Chapter 7 Elizabeth #2
He shot a glance at Aunt Maddie and then looked back to Elizabeth and said, “At Cambridge, everyone called me the Monk, and although I did not mind all that much that people thought me remarkable because I did not partake in the usual…pleasures…of other gentlemen, I still knew that they shook their heads and wondered and….” He seemed incapable of going on with his thoughts.
Elizabeth had a flash of understanding about Mr Darcy’s meaning—the words the usual pleasures made her think of brothels.
She was not entirely certain what a brothel was—she had heard the word a few times, and it appeared in Shakespeare and other literature.
She knew her eyes were wide and her cheeks were flushed at having thought of that sort of thing in her aunt’s parlour, of all places.
Still, Elizabeth was not certain she had comprehended everything of what Mr Darcy had said. She looked at her aunt, who had spots of colour on her cheeks, too; perhaps she understood more than Elizabeth did, and was embarrassed as well.
Floundering, not knowing how to reply to Mr Darcy, Elizabeth spoke to her own mistake, saying, “Please forgive me for seeming to accuse you of snobbery. I…I sometimes feel insecure.”
Shaking his head again, Mr Darcy said, “I never anticipated having such an excruciating conversation today. But it is well that you know this of me. I am positive, if we continue to visit or if we advance to attending events together, you will hear people call me the Monk or say I am a prig. Some may say worse. I have not enjoyed being viewed as entirely different from others of my age and station, but neither could I ever talk myself into behaving as most men do.”
Elizabeth asked, “So when one of the men said, ‘I cannot compete with Darcy,’ he did not mean something like duelling or fighting, then?”
Mr Darcy let out a laugh and said, “You say the most unexpected things, Miss Bennet.” But then he sobered and said, “I assumed that they meant that they could not compete in the things most people count as important: money and connexions.” He held Elizabeth’s eyes as he said, “But I am positive that those are not the most important things to you, are they?”
She shook her head, her eyes remaining locked onto his, and she said, “I am relieved that you are not a fighter.”
“Well, actually….” Mr Darcy explained, “I still hold the record of most chess matches won at Cambridge, although I took my degree from university several years ago. I have learnt pugilism, as expected, although I do not continue with that sport, and I am well known as being yet unbeaten in fencing, at both Cambridge and Angelo’s. ”
Elizabeth’s breath seemed caught somewhere as she stared at the man who seemed to be quite a gentle gentleman. She was able to restart her breathing by letting out a gasp.
Mr Darcy looked a bit sad at her reaction. He whispered, “I am sorry to report that I could be described as a fighter.”
“No.” Elizabeth shook her head. “I am not upset at what you have said. I mean—you have not killed people, or duelled? You do not go around attacking other men?”
“Of course not. None of those things.”
She nodded. “I began the day, before you even called, eager to accept your calls and to come to know you better. Now, after learning many unexpected things about you, I am even more desirous of knowing more of you.”
“Good.” Mr Darcy’s smile dazzled her and showed his dimples. He stood and said, “Might I call again tomorrow?” He looked at Elizabeth and then at her aunt.
Both women agreed—and Elizabeth believed that Aunt Maddie showed as much enthusiasm as she herself did.
As soon as Mr Darcy left, she asked her aunt, “Please tell me everything that has gone through your mind this afternoon, Aunt Maddie. I need help sorting out my feelings and the things I have learnt about Mr Darcy.”
Aunt Maddie said, “I am eager to discuss these things as well, Lizzy. Let me begin by telling you about Pemberley….”
It turned out that her beloved aunt had spent a decade living less than five miles from Pemberley, and she had toured it several times when it was open for tours at Christmastide and in the summer.
She described it as incredibly beautiful, elegant, tasteful, with wonderful grounds and gardens.
Elizabeth’s eyes widened as her usually imperturbable aunt went on and on.
“And I heard that Mr Darcy has already inherited Pemberley, despite his young age,” Elizabeth said.
“Yes. Tragically, Mr Darcy’s wonderful mother died shortly after giving birth to a daughter, when Mr Darcy was ten or twelve years old, and his father died…
perhaps three years ago? I imagine that he had to take on Pemberley and whatever else the family owned when he was just two or three and twenty. ”
Elizabeth said, “No wonder the men were intimidated and said that they could not compete. I feel intimidated. I hesitate to imagine how wealthy Mr Darcy is.”
“I would say he must be very wealthy.”
“And what would he want from me?” Elizabeth asked.
“Exactly what the rest of us want: he wants people to like him and want to be with him because of who he is, not because of his surname or his property or his wealth.”
“But would not almost every woman in England wish to be courted by a man like Mr Darcy? He…he is uncommonly handsome as well as, apparently, an excellent chess player and fencer.”
“You heard what Mr Darcy said, Lizzy. He has not become interested in every woman in England; he has become interested in you.”
Elizabeth blushed, looking down at her own hands for a few moments, but then she grinned back at her aunt. “I need to ask you about some of the other things Mr Darcy said today. The children are well away, might I ask now?”
“Yes, but let us speak in low voices, and if servants or anyone at all approaches, we will cease speaking.”
The two women continued to speak about all that had transpired in the drawing room that day, until Uncle Edward’s arrival home told them that they should be freshening up for dinner and checking on the children.