Chapter Thirty-two
“I am so glad you and Miss Bingley could join us this morning. Did Mrs. Hurst and Mrs. Russell not wish to come?”
“Louisa has been feeling low in the mornings lately. Mrs. Russell simply wished to rest.”
Lady Lucas and Mrs. Phillips nodded to each other.
Although Aunt Lucy had never had children of her own, she had been there for all five of her sister’s pregnancies.
She thought of her nieces as her very own but allowed Jane to take charge of the Bennet household after Fanny’s death.
She was the best of aunts and only gave advice when it was asked for.
Maria, the younger daughter of Lady Lucas, went over to the corner where Gigi, Kitty, and Lydia were sitting with Mrs. Greaves.
They were allowed to sit and listen to the ladies but were to stay silent as girls who were not out should.
Anything they did not understand would be discuss with their governess or sisters later.
Charlotte Lucas started the conversation, “You have quite an esteemed admirer Jane. A viscount!”
“We met in Ramsgate. He is very kind.” Jane blushed and looked at her hands in her lap.
Beth teased, “I think he was looking for an angel to help him on his road of improvement. He is dazzled by your halo.”
Jane’s eyes grew fiery, “He has been very honest about his failures. It is our Christian duty to forgive. How is one to ever move on from a checkered past if they are constantly judged and reminded of their faults.”
“Hush Jane, be easy. I was only teasing. If cousin Darcy has forgiven him, I am sure he has turned over a new leaf, and no one should judge him.”
Lizzy sat forward in her chair, “So, is Mister Darcy to be judge and jury of those around him? He approves of his cousin, so everyone else must?”
“Cousin William has a rather stringent set of morals but has allowed more than a decade of abuse by his cousin to be forgiven…with the understanding that if past behavior is repeated, it will not be granted again.”
“Oh my! A decade?”
“Or more. It started when they were children. Another boy who played with them turned jealous and wicked, and Theo joined with him. William put up with a lot of abuse. It is not my story to tell, so I will say no more.” Beth had become very protective of her Darcy cousins.
She would tease them relentlessly but never allow anyone else to abuse them.
She looked at Gigi sitting with the younger girls.
She was proud that Gigi looked ready to jump to her family’s defense, but now she had relaxed back into her chair.
“I guess every family has its stories to tell. ‘Judge not, lest ye be judged.’ I would not want people who did not know me well to be speaking of me harshly and judging behavior they knew nothing about.” Mary added quietly.
“Well said, Mary, and how do you feel about your first assembly? Was it everything you were hoping?” Charlotte took control of the conversation again.
“It was. I danced almost every dance. People were very kind.”
“Did you favor any one gentleman over the others?”
Mary blushed and shook her head.
“It is too bad Colonel Fitzwilliam could not get away in time to attend. He showed you some preference in Ramsgate I believe.” Beth gently teased her shy cousin, but Mary refused to rise to the taunt.
“And you Miss Bingley? How did you find our little assembly?”
“To be honest, I have never been to a country assembly, so I have no basis of comparison. I had a very pleasant time, though.”
“Did you see any gentlemen of interest?”
“I have been rethinking what I find interesting in gentlemen. What I was taught…well…it may not have been correct.”
The conversation paused at that comment while the ladies became thoughtful. Jane took that moment to refresh the tea. “And you, Beth? I think Lizzy found Mr. Darcy rather interesting, but I did not notice you giving anyone preference.”
Lizzy scowled at her sister while Beth chuckled.
“I think William found Lizzy rather interesting also, but as for me, I am not sure there are any gentlemen in England who could keep my attention. If there was someone like my cousin Will, who was a bit more progressive and wanted to move to America…then maybe…but I have not met anyone like that yet. Now Charlotte, you have led the conversation long enough. Who did you find interesting?”
“John Smith.”
“He is a steward’s son, Charlotte!” Lady Lucas exclaimed.
“That may be true, mama, but he is probably the most intelligent man I have ever met. We have spent a great deal of time conversing. I like him.”
“Lady Lucas, being a steward’s son has a different connotation in America. He has very fine prospects. He has his own house. He is my brother’s closest friend. He is not a servant.”
“Oh, well, he has his own house you say? And prospects?” Lady Lucas’s eyes became calculating.
“Yes, very fine prospects. He earns a percentage of the estate’s income, just like his father.
He also has several horses of his own that he breeds with ours.
My father granted him ten acres of land in his will to keep said horses.
” Beth tried to keep a smirk from her face.
She knew John had been speaking with Charlotte more than she had ever seen him speak to any other woman.
She would do her best to help him along.
They were the same age, and although the people of Meryton called her plain, Beth thought she was quite pretty when she smiled.
She had a steady personality and was practical in her knowledge.
There was no one near Rolling Meadows that was right for John, or that he had ever shown interest in.
In fact, in Beth’s memory, Charlotte was the first lady he had shown favor to.
All the young ladies had been canvased on their opinions and interests of the previous evening, and Lady Lucas was caught up in her own thoughts of her daughter’s prospects, so it was time to end the tete e tete.
Beth collected Gigi and returned with a very quiet Miss Bingley to Netherfield.
Georgiana found Miss Bingley’s silence disconcerting, but Beth kept the conversation going by asking questions of how the younger girls spent the previous evening.
By the time they arrived back at Netherfield Park, Gigi was giddy with the retelling of the pretend ball the girls had of their own.
They had danced and gossiped late into the night, just as young ladies aught.