Chapter Thirty
Longbourn
When Tuesday night arrived, the Bennet girls were in their best looks, having spent the entire day on gowns, hair and jewelry. At one point, Elizabeth heard the two youngest girls squabbling over a ribbon, and had gone in to ask, “Is this how Georgiana would behave?”
They had quieted at once and then had actually apologised to one another.
Elizabeth would not have believed it had she not seen it with her own eyes.
Now everyone sat very properly in the parlour.
Mrs. Bennet had insisted that the seat beside Jane be left empty, so that Mr. Bingley might sit with her.
Mrs. Bennet was still working out her table arrangements in her mind; of course, Jane and Mr. Bingley would sit together, as would Lizzy and Mr. Darcy, just in case there truly was a partiality there.
The Colonel was completely unknown; he might, after all, be a married man. Should he sit beside Mary?
No, no; Miss Darcy must sit beside Mary.
Ah, and if this Colonel was a cousin of Mr. Darcy’s, then he was a cousin of Miss Darcy’s as well.
The poor shy creature would be most comfortable if sitting between Mary and the Colonel, would she not?
Or perhaps between the Colonel and Mr. Darcy?
But that might make the girl feel rather isolated from her newfound friends.
Perhaps she should wait a bit and see what undercurrents she could deduce from the time that everyone sat together in the parlour.
Their guests arrived right on time. The Hursts and the Colonel were introduced to the Bennets.
The Colonel was nowhere near as handsome as Mr. Bingley or Mr. Darcy, but he had a presence about him that drew the feminine eye.
His shoulders were wide and his chest broad, and he was the very picture of a warrior.
Mrs. Bennet watched her three youngest girls out of the corner of her eye. Lydia and Kitty were being silly about the Colonel’s red coat, as was expected, but – was that a slight blush on Mary’s cheek? How very interesting.
The rapid flow of Mrs. Bennet’s thoughts did not deter her from her duties in the slightest. She called in her husband, and introductions were performed again.
“Good to see you again, Mr. Darcy,” Mr. Bennet said, with something almost approaching warmth.
“And you, Mr. Bennet,” Mr. Darcy replied, cordially. “Perhaps we might visit your book room later this evening?”
“Excellent. Do you play chess, sir?”
“I do, of course.”
“Will you accept a challenge?”
“If time permits us, yes; however, my young sister is with us tonight, and she is unaccustomed to late hours.”
“Perhaps another day, then.”
“Come, Mr. Bennet,” his lady chided him. “Enough of books and chess!”
“What is life, without books and chess?” he asked her.
“You sound just like Darcy here,” Colonel Fitzwilliam said.
“Or Lizzy!” Lydia exclaimed.
Mr. Darcy turned to Miss Elizabeth with alacrity. “We discussed books, Miss Elizabeth, but I did not know that you are a chess player as well.” He smiled warmly.
Elizabeth felt colour rising up to her cheeks. Why did this sound so much like approval, and if it was, why did she care? “I do play,” she said. “I do not consider myself a proficient,” she added, modestly.
Her father snorted. “She can get a draw out of me, and that is no easy feat.”
Mrs. Bennet frowned at Mr. Bennet. Bragging about Lizzy’s chess play was no way to help her catch a man. Mr. Bennet had been married too long not to understand the import of the frown; he coughed and turned away.
But Mr. Darcy continued, undeterred. “Might we not play a game sometime, Miss Elizabeth?”
“I would be happy to, Mr. Darcy,” she replied.
Mrs. Bennet thought now that she would definitely seat Elizabeth beside Mr. Darcy at dinner. She turned her attention then to Mary, who was speaking with the Colonel. “You must be glad of a respite from your duties, Colonel,” Mary was saying.
“I am, though I wish it were for a different reason,” he replied. Then he frowned and bit his lip, as if he had said too much. He added, brusquely, “A family matter.”
“Oh! I am sorry, then,” Mary said. The Colonel’s tone made her feel that she had pried, and she cast her eyes down, embarrassed.
Georgiana, seeing Mary’s discomfort, quickly rescued her friend. “Mary, I have been telling my cousin that you and I often play together. Would you be willing to perform with me after dinner?”
“Yes, indeed,” Mary said at once, grateful for the interruption.
The Colonel made an effort to make amends to Miss Mary. “I look forward to hearing you play.”
“Your cousin is a far better performer than I,” Mary said, happy now that an uncomfortable subject had been avoided. “It is a pleasure to play with someone so gifted.”
“I wager she would say the same about you,” the Colonel replied, smiling.
“Then she would be very much mistaken!” Mary laughed. “But she is likely kind enough to say so, yes.”
“You like my cousin, then?” the Colonel enquired.
It was an odd question, Mary thought. “Of course; who would not? She is a delightful creature.”
Mrs. Bennet had been listening with half an ear throughout, eager to know if there was a possible match in the making, but at this she felt she had to interrupt.
“Colonel, everyone at Longbourn is excessively fond of Miss Darcy, and not just because of her talent at the pianoforte. As you see, I have five daughters, and so am inclined to be fond of girls in any case, but Miss Darcy has a sweetness about her that makes us particularly dote on her. In fact, if Mr. Darcy were to be called away from Netherfield for any reason, I would ask him to leave her with us for an extended period of time.”
“Oh, yes!” Mary exclaimed. “She could share my room. Jane and Lizzy share a room, as to Kitty and Lydia, and I would love to have Georgiana’s company.”
The Colonel smiled and said all that was proper, but meanwhile his mind was whirling. Darcy was right; Georgiana had made friends here. And perhaps Mrs. Bennet could help them with the fear that pressed on his own heart as well as Darcy’s. But how in the world were they to introduce the subject?