Chapter 14 #2
“Mr Darcy, for the first time in a long while I have been left speechless. I am not sure whether I should answer you or simply laugh. I cannot take such a proposal seriously, and I wonder whether you are sporting with me on behalf of my daughter—”
“Mr Bennet!” Darcy interrupted him firmly.
“I would never dare to sport with you on a matter of such gravity, and I assure you I have never spoken more seriously in my entire life! I have come to you after sound consideration, incited by my sense of responsibility, honour, and willingness to marry Miss Elizabeth. I understand this has come as a complete surprise, and I do not expect an immediate answer. If you will allow me, I shall present my offer to Miss Elizabeth in person, confronting her ill opinion of me. But I am ready to make any effort and to use my power of persuasion to change that and resolve this matter.”
His speech was coherent and strong, his entire bearing revealing his earnest consideration of all aspects before making a decision, while Mr Bennet was more undecided and confused than ever in his life.
To dare refuse anything to a man like Darcy seemed impossible, but to accept such a proposal was inconceivable.
“Mr Darcy, I shall not deny that I am impressed by all the reasoning you have undertaken and amazed that you have done so. I am seriously considering your proposal, though I see no reason for it, and I foresee no success to such a union. I am, obviously, mindful that such a marriage would be exceedingly advantageous for our family, and Mrs Bennet would surely expire from either joy or sorrow if she heard of it. But in the end, the only one entitled to a firm opinion and to give you an answer is my daughter.”
“I understand.”
“I have to think on this overnight, and tomorrow morning I shall speak to Lizzy. I do not intend to conceal anything from my daughter, and I shall present her with your proposition and the reasoning behind it so she will not be caught unawares. You should return tomorrow, and we shall try to complete this discussion. Please keep in mind, sir, that you will have to speak to Lizzy and explain your reasons for such an extraordinary request.”
“Very well, Mr Bennet. Thank you for your help. That is all I hoped for.”
“And Mr Darcy? I hope you realise how unfair it would be to play with Lizzy’s feelings.
Please do think some more on this matter overnight.
I shall talk to her after breakfast. You have plenty of time to change your mind.
If you do wish to withdraw your proposal, send a servant with a note, and I promise you this conversation will remain a secret between the two of us. ”
“Mr Bennet, I assure you I have pondered everything carefully and taken into consideration every detail as this situation will affect not only me and Miss Elizabeth but also my sister. There is nothing that could change my mind. Of course, the only thing that truly matters is Miss Elizabeth’s answer. ”
“You should know that I cannot and shall not force my daughter to accept anything against her will. She is stubborn and headstrong, I hope you know that!”
“I imagined as much, Mr Bennet. I praise myself that I have come to know Miss Elizabeth well enough to be aware her decision is hers only. And I would not want it any other way.”
“Well then…there is nothing more that can be discussed or settled tonight. Let us have another brandy and then return to the others,” Mr Bennet concluded.
They sat comfortably, swirling the alcohol while silence fell again over the small library, intense and heavy, interrupted only by the crackling fire. Each of them took small sips from their glasses, lost in their thoughts, trying to make the brandy and the calm last longer.
“Mr Darcy, if I may ask…there is something that bothers me…” Mr Bennet resumed the conversation after a while.
“Anything, sir.”
“As a man, I am curious, and as a father, I am forced to enquire. I do not question your sense of responsibility or your honour, but I am a man of the world, and I know you could leave the county without a thought. Why would you so easily accept binding yourself to a woman whose situation, connections, and fortune are so much beneath you and whose beauty did not even tempt you to dance with her? What is it that you could possibly gain from this?”
Mr Bennet’s scrutiny, as well as the common sense of the question, were difficult to handle after such an emotional discussion, and the truth he was not yet ready to reveal.
“Mr Bennet, I had hoped that we had already clarified the unfortunate incident at the Meryton assembly. As for the rest, I cannot deny it — and if I did, you would not believe me. I have considered the differences you have mentioned. But Miss Elizabeth is a gentleman’s daughter and in this we are equal. ”
“That is a generous statement, Mr Darcy, although we both know it is not entirely accurate. Besides, if that was your only requirement, I am sure you may easily find at least two dozen young ladies, all of them gentlemen’s daughters, willing to marry you at once.”
“Perhaps, but I have not searched for such ladies, nor I am willing to do so.” Allowing himself a small smile, Darcy continued, “Miss Elizabeth possesses all the qualities that fit my notion of an accomplished woman. And to my previous admiration, I have added my gratitude and esteem for the strength of her character — which I told her only yesterday.”
“Your family would oppose the match, I am sure.”
“Probably. But my sister would certainly approve. She is my closest family and, ultimately, the only one whose approval I would seek. For the rest, it would be my duty to protect my future wife from any unpleasant reception.”
“Mr Darcy, I admit I am stunned. And still sceptical. You seem to have taken everything into account, and I wonder when you had the time to do so since you have only just received the letter from your aunt. The one which apparently induced you to take this step.”
Darcy avoided offering an answer to the last part of the statement but replied, “I would never have presented myself to you, sir, had I not been certain or convinced of the strength of my decision.”
“Very well then. Let us conclude this discussion for tonight. We shall complete this strange conversation tomorrow, with Lizzy.”
“Thank you,” Darcy said, and they both returned to the rest of the party.
Elizabeth met them with an enquiring gaze, slightly raised brows, and a very small smile revealing her preoccupation.
“I see you have finished the conversation about lace, gloves, and bonnets in our absence,” Mr Bennet teased. “Mr Bingley, I apologise for leaving you alone among the ladies.”
“It was a pleasure, sir,” Bingley answered hastily, and Mr Bennet smiled.
“I am sure it was, sir.”
“I was asking Mrs Bennet and the Miss Bennets if they wished me to bring anything from London. We shall all leave the day after tomorrow, very early in the morning, and I shall return within a week.”
“Yes, you have mentioned that,” Mr Bennet said, slowly returning to his usual spirits. “And you should learn never to ask such imprudent questions of a group of six young ladies.”
“Oh, Mr Bennet,” flushed his wife. “You may tease us, my dear, but nothing can ruin my disposition. Since Mr Bingley will be part of our family, nothing will upset me ever again.”
“I am very glad to hear that, my dear Mrs Bennet. I am sure your poor nerves deserve a long rest.”
The conversation continued, animated and engaging, for more than another hour. It was already late in the evening, but neither party was willing to separate.
Darcy mostly watched in silence, holding his glass but sipping from it only rarely.
Half of the burden had fallen from his shoulders, but the remaining half seemed suddenly heavier.
Mr Bennet’s response mostly matched his expectations, but he still felt somehow mystified.
The gentleman had admitted such a marriage would be advantageous for his family, but he had shown no pleasure at the notion and no willingness to hasten it or to take advantage.
Quite the contrary. Despite his politeness, he seemed rather opposed to the offer Darcy had presented, and the mention of a favourable and generous settlement had not swayed him; he had dismissed it without a word.
Elizabeth’s answer, Darcy would await with trepidation.
As Mr Bennet had mentioned, there were more than a dozen young women who would marry him tomorrow if he only as much as entertained the idea; Darcy knew that without being vain.
However, he also knew Elizabeth was different, and this was the reason he had fallen deeply and helplessly in love with her.
If his marriage proposal had come a week prior, her aversion and dislike for him would have induced her to refuse him instantly. But considering the circumstances and incidents of late, as well as their last private conversation only a day before, he had faith that her opinion of him had improved.
They had reached a truce and a tentative friendship but nothing close to real affection, admiration, and thoughts for the future. Not on her part.
It felt like an eternity until the next day when he would be able to speak to her and hear her answer.
With a sudden knot in his stomach and an icy claw in his chest, he looked at her — smiling brightly in the midst of her family — and imagined she might smile the same way with him and Georgiana, at home at Pemberley.
But would her smiles be equally genuine and heartfelt if she were to accept him, as he had proposed to her father, only for convenience?
What would bring him more comfort? What would hurt him more?
Her acceptance or her refusal? Her presence by his side, forced by circumstances, or her absence from his life, of her own will?
It was a torture he would have to bear overnight and perhaps for the years to come. For the remainder of the evening, he found some consolation in witnessing his friend’s apparent happiness and Elizabeth’s sparkling eyes which he sought to meet several times.