Chapter 27 #2
“Yes, but consider: you would be presented to society as the daughter of Sir William Lucas. Most everyone who does not know your family will say, ‘The earl’s second son and the daughter of a knight, how suitable’ and think upon it no further.
If Mr Darcy of Pemberley presents Miss Nobody of Nowhere as his bride, I should expect quite a different reaction, and so must he. ”
“Perhaps,” her friend allowed. “Though I do question how much he cares for the opinions of society. Still, you would do well to guard your heart unless and until he makes his intentions plain. It may be that he is thinking of you as a potential wife and does not give a fig what anyone else thinks so long as he is happy, or it may be that he simply enjoys your company and has not given proper thought to how his attentions may be viewed. I wish I had a firmer conclusion on the matter.”
Elizabeth sighed. “You are correct, I must not allow myself to hope or to feel too much until I know better what his intentions are. Gentlemen are very vexing, are they not?”
“They certainly are. If only they were not also capable of being so appealing.”
It seemed half the neighbourhood attended the tea at Longbourn the following day.
Darcy’s sister, having learnt from him of Mrs Gardiner’s acquaintance with Lady Anne Darcy, was all eagerness to speak with the lady.
He himself was torn; he wished to hear tales of his mother almost as much as Georgiana did, and yet he also wished to fix himself at Miss Elizabeth’s side as Bingley and Fitzwilliam did with their chosen ladies.
He stayed with his sister, of course; he had been the one to suggest the conversation, and it was indeed a pleasure to hear how his mother had involved herself in the concerns of the larger community outside the borders of Pemberley.
It was an attention he himself had not paid, and he thought that if he should be so fortunate as to marry Miss Elizabeth, she would not allow such a state of affairs to continue.
No, her keen eye would alight upon every poorly-thatched roof and shabbily-clad child in the district, and she would see that all which might be set right, would be.
Just as his mother had done, but in her own open, cheerful manner.
From her, he hoped he might learn to be of better and more immediate use to his neighbours than merely making his habitual donations to the nearest parishes.
When Mrs Gardiner’s little store of recollections was exhausted and the thanks of her listeners most sincerely conveyed, Georgiana left him for the company of her friends.
Darcy smiled to see how warmly she was welcomed in the little group of young ladies near her age, to whom she had been a stranger less than a month ago.
Miss Elizabeth, too, was engaged with others, and though he expected that he could move in that direction and be admitted to the conversation, he hesitated.
His heart and mind were so full of her that he doubted his ability to speak sensibly with others when she was close.
He had no notion whether she would welcome his interest and would not wish to make her uncomfortable by acting as a mooncalf before all her friends and neighbours, and under her own roof, at that.
He elected to seek out Mr Gardiner and Mr Bennet instead; the former would depart on the morrow, and he knew not when they might meet again, and the latter was fast becoming a good friend.
Aware though Darcy was that the man was not an ideal husband, father, or master, he respected that an incompatible marriage and the lack of a son had not driven him to viciousness or vice as such circumstances were frequently known to do, and he valued Mr Bennet’s intellect and companionship.
Darcy also understood that the man represented his only possibility of real attachment to either of Miss Elizabeth’s parents.
He could and would treat Mrs Bennet with respect, difficult though the lady might make that at times, but he would never be really fond of her.
Mr Gardiner once again impressed Darcy with his sense and intelligence.
His speech, his air, his appearance were all most gentlemanly.
Darcy was ashamed of himself for thinking meanly of the man without having met him, simply because he was in trade and brother to two very silly ladies.
When they spoke of the war and of Parliament, he learnt that the concerns of a tradesman over such events were not entirely dissimilar to those of a gentleman—both must be concerned with what effect conflict at sea must have on their ability to acquire wanted and needed items, how the constant requirement to send more young men to the front affected their ability to adequately fill open positions, and how the changing, intertwined fortunes of war and trade affected the prices of domestic goods.
As different as their lives were, greater events concerned them both, and often in a very similar fashion.
As the Netherfield party were making ready to depart, he did seek Miss Elizabeth out, if only for a farewell. “You will be sad, I think, to see the Gardiners depart tomorrow,” he said, grasping for another moment in her company.
“I always am,” she agreed. “But London is not so far away. I shall spend some part of the coming year with them, and must be content to wait for that.”
Before he could reply, there was a giggle behind him.
“Lizzy, you and Mr Darcy are under the mistletoe,” Miss Kitty said.
He turned his head and beheld his own sister by her friend’s side, both of them grinning expectantly.
Raising his eyes, he saw she was correct.
Plucking a berry from it, he bent and kissed Miss Elizabeth’s cheek.
Her skin was soft and warm beneath his lips; her hair smelled of lavender and lilies.
He felt a bit light-headed as he straightened, and saw she was blushing rosily, though she smiled.
He hoped his farewells were sensibly spoken; he hardly knew what emerged from his mouth in the moments following.
No one seemed to regard him oddly so he assumed he had acquitted himself well enough.
He said little on the drive back to Netherfield, being occupied in contemplating Miss Elizabeth’s manifold attractions and wondering if he might be able to acquire a sprig of lavender for his room.
At any rate, Miss Bingley’s vocal dissatisfaction with everything and everyone at Longbourn would have made it impossible to speak more had he wished to.