Chapter 24
Netherfield Hall
The footman opened the door to the carriage, and Darcy stepped out with a courteous word of thanks. A moment later, he turned and held out his hand for Georgiana, who leaped lightly down onto the ground, her eyes scanning those assembled to welcome her.
“Elizabeth!” she exclaimed, rushing forward to embrace her friend.
“My dear Georgiana,” Elizabeth returned happily, though inwardly she was a trifle dismayed.
It was obvious that in the excitement of their reunion, Miss Darcy had forgotten that their friendship was a secret to Miss Bingley, who was standing a few feet away looking rather as if she had just stepped on a cow patty.
“Darcy, Miss Darcy, Mrs. Annesley,” Bingley said, “welcome to Netherfield Hall!”
“Thank you, Bingley,” Darcy said, stepping up next to Georgiana, who had disengaged from Elizabeth.
He too was aware of his sister’s minor faux pas, but he found himself largely indifferent as he looked upon Elizabeth Bennet’s lovely face and exquisite form.
She was even more beautiful than he remembered, which was saying a great deal!
“Please do come in,” Mrs. Bingley urged. Darcy found a few seconds to look upon his friend’s wife and was pleased, for Bingley’s sake, to observe that the lady seemed in good health again. It appeared that the worst of her sickness had passed, which was a relief.
“Yes, do come in and refresh yourselves,” Caroline Bingley cooed, though her eyes were fixed angrily on Elizabeth. “Jane, my dear, I would not dream of having you climb the stairs in your condition. Mr. Darcy, Miss Darcy, Mrs. Annesley, allow me to show you your rooms.”
“I will come too,” Elizabeth declared, casting a reassuring look at Jane.
“Thank you both,” Darcy said, hiding his disappointment. He wished to speak to Elizabeth, but that would have to wait until a more private time.
“Darcy, I do hope you and Miss Darcy will join us in the drawing room shortly?” Bingley requested.
“Certainly.”
/
Longbourn
“Mama, make Kitty give me her pink lace!” Lydia Bennet exclaimed.
“Kitty, give Lydia the pink lace,” Mrs. Bennet ordered.
Kitty cast her eyes heavenward and exclaimed, “Why should I when Lydia has plenty of lace of her own? Why should she take mine?”
“Because my new dress requires it,” Lydia snapped. “Come now, Kitty, everyone knows that I am more beautiful than you are. It would be a waste for you to use your lace tonight, especially since your dress is old!”
Kitty opened her mouth in protest, only to shut it.
A year ago, she would have argued and fussed and perhaps even wept at this juncture, but she had learned wisdom.
Mrs. Bennet would always take Lydia’s side in an argument like this, and Kitty was required to obey her mother.
It was certainly frustrating, but not worth crying over.
At least in a few hours, the family would gather with the Darcys and Bingleys at Netherfield Hall, and Kitty, who often felt out of place and unsettled at Longbourn, adored being at Netherfield Hall.
She, Elizabeth, and Mary were taking turns living with Jane to assist their married sister during her pregnancy, and Kitty’s turn would start a few days from now.
There was no reason to be overly distressed about the lace.
No one at Netherfield would likely even notice Lydia’s new dress except, perhaps, Caroline Bingley.
That lady always made a point of denigrating the Bennets’ dresses and would probably make subtly disparaging remarks about Lydia’s gown, which was in fact quite attractive.
“Very well,” Kitty said calmly, turning back to her sketch book. Her last lesson with her art master had focused on how to draw someone’s eyes. Her mother and Lydia both had beautiful eyes; her mother’s were, like Jane’s, clear blue, and Lydia’s were so dark as to be almost black.
“Mama?” she asked.
“Yes, Kitty?” Mrs. Bennet returned, her brow lowering suspiciously. She hated it when her children quarreled over ribbons and hoped that Kitty was not about to bring that up again.
“Would you be willing to sit for me so that I can practice drawing your eyes? They are such a glorious blue.”
Mrs. Bennet’s expression shifted from ominous to gratified. “Why of course, Kitty, I would be delighted!”
“I have beautiful eyes too!” Lydia insisted.
“Yes, but you are so very active that I think it would be more difficult for you to sit still for as long as Mama,” Kitty said diplomatically.
Lydia tossed her head and boasted, “That is true enough. All the officers used to say that I was the most energetic of all the ladies here in Meryton. Oh, how I miss them all, especially Mr. Wickham!”
Kitty pulled out a piece of fresh paper and turned toward her mother, her pencil at the ready.
In truth, she was now far more interested in art than officers, but there was no reason to say such a thing to Lydia.
Her youngest sister was, regrettably, not very wise and cared more about looks than fortune or character.
Kitty, observing the adoration between her eldest sister and Mr. Bingley, wished for a similar marriage in time.
/
“Checkmate,” Mary said, moving her bishop two squares.
Mr. Bennet blinked, leaned forward, considered, frowned, and then grinned. “You are entirely correct. What a clever series of moves, my dear!”
“Thank you, Father,” Mary replied, blushing with pleasure.
A year previously, she had not even known how to play the game, nor had she considered it important to learn, since chess was neither spiritual nor considered a useful accomplishment for a lady.
After Jane’s marriage, Elizabeth had asked Mary to learn how to play as a way to honor their father, since Elizabeth suspected, correctly, that she would often be gone from Longbourn.
Mary had discovered that she had a remarkable ability to visualize the way a match would play out, and in a few short months of study and practice had matured from rank beginner to skilled journeyman.
“Yes, very clever,” Mr. Bennet repeated, staring down at the board. He was both astonished and impressed at his third daughter’s play. Even Elizabeth, who enjoyed the game, rarely beat her father.
“Do you have time for another game, Mary?” he asked hopefully.
“Of course, Father.”
/
Netherfield
“Mrs. Annesley, your room is here, and Georgiana, my dear, I have set aside the green room for you. I hope it is…”
“You ought not to call me Georgiana,” Miss Darcy interrupted, sounding more bewildered than angry. “We have not given one another permission to call each other by our first names.”
Caroline Bingley found herself flushing uncomfortably at these words. It was true that no such permission had been given, but…
“Oh, as you wish, Miss Darcy, of course,” she said with nervous cheer. “I merely thought that since you and Elizabeth are on such close terms, you would be on equally informal terms with me, as we have known one another far longer.”
Georgiana cast a confused look at Elizabeth, who promptly stepped into the breach.
“Georgiana and I discovered a mutual interest in domestic fowl while we were in Derbyshire, which resulted in our friendship blossoming with surprising haste. My friend, I was wondering if you would care to look over Jane’s poultry yard?
Something keeps infiltrating the coop at night and killing the layers, and the poultry maids are quite at their wits’ end! ”
“Oh yes, I would be delighted!” Georgiana exclaimed, hurrying over to the door of her bedchamber. “I will, erm, refresh myself and be available in ten minutes!”
“The poultry yard is rather muddy,” Elizabeth warned, “so I recommend you wear boots!”
“You should change out of your traveling clothes as well, Miss Darcy,” Mrs. Annesley suggested. “You might want to wear your brown dress. I am certain the servants’ carriage is here by now, and I will arrange for Selina to assist you in changing.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Annesley,” Georgiana said. “Elizabeth, I will see you in fifteen minutes, perhaps?”
“I am not in any great hurry; I will be waiting on the chair in the alcove down there, reading The Romance of the Forest again, and you can find me when you are ready.”
Georgiana nodded and disappeared into her room, pushing the door closed behind her. Mrs. Annesley nodded toward Elizabeth and Caroline and also retreated to her room, leaving the two sisters by marriage alone.
“I had no idea that you were so interested in poultry,” Caroline said unpleasantly.
“I must go find my book, which I left in the drawing room,” Elizabeth said, turning and beginning to walk toward the stairs. “Regarding poultry, my friend Charlotte is very fond of her hens, which inspired my interest. They are quite fascinating creatures, as are ducks and geese.”
“I confess to finding livestock of any sort tedious,” her companion said loftily.
“Certainly, I find it astonishing that a member of the Darcy family could possibly find any interest in such things, but then Miss Darcy is the soul of tact. I do hope you will not force her to stay out of doors for too long, Elizabeth.”
Elizabeth’s lips thinned, but she remained silent until the two ladies had entered the drawing room, where Bingley, Hurst, and Darcy were standing near the large picture window with brandies in hand.
Upon observing the ladies, all three gentlemen bowed, and Elizabeth said archly, “Miss Bingley and I were discussing livestock, specifically poultry. Do be truthful, do you not find geese, ducks, and hens to be thoroughly fascinating?”
Darcy blinked, but he was a quick-witted man. “I am far fonder of horses and dogs,” he said, “but my sister is undeniably interested in poultry.”
“I suppose that birds are more practical,” Bingley admitted, “but I am like you, Darcy; I can spend countless hours and a great deal of money on horses, but birds? Their eggs are useful, but they seem to be very foolish creatures.”