Chapter Two
It rained for nearly the entire day’s ride to Sussex, which rather diminished Elizabeth’s enjoyment of the journey. For Jane’s sake, she only once observed that it was an inauspicious beginning to their adventure; after a sharp look from her aunt, Elizabeth kept her remarks optimistic.
The Gardiners travelled with them and were to stay the first night at Richmond Cove in order to ensure that their nieces were not met with any unpleasant surprises when they arrived at the manor.
Aunt Madeline was sure that her own budding friendship with Lady Blanche and Lady Rosamund had been enough to merit the invitation, rather than any gossip promising dramatic entertainment for the Goulding ladies.
Uncle Edward was more discerning, and took Elizabeth’s skepticism seriously, which gratified her tremendously.
Strangely, it put her fears at ease that her uncle had taken on her troubles. Even so, she knew he might very well feel rather less inclined to be on her side if he knew she had refused Mr. Darcy a fortnight prior, and that was why she was so rattled by the prospect of meeting with him again.
The rain let up at last as the Gardiner barouche entered Brighton, and when they turned onto the road that ran west along the coast, the sun broke through the clouds just as Richmond Cove came into view.
Jane gasped and raised her hand to the glass windowpane, and Elizabeth leaned closer to her sister to join her in marveling at the splendid vista before them.
The road to the estate was open, cutting through an open meadow on the gradual incline of a cliff, at the top of which sat a wide and stately Tudor style manor house.
A more modern expansion at the back of the house blended well with the antiquated elegance of the edifice, and the sheer size of it made Elizabeth let out a breath of awe.
As if reading her thoughts, Jane let out a slow, wondrous gasp. “It must be twice the size of Netherfield.”
Ornate gardens surrounded the palatial building along the front and both sides, and their carriage fell just behind another as they drew near enough to take in the details of the grounds.
With fountains sparkling in the sunlight and newly blooming flowers sparkling with droplets after so much rain, Richmond Cove appeared a verdant coastal paradise.
As they rounded to the back of the manor, toward the coaching house and the cobblestone courtyard, Elizabeth looked up at the windows that lined the upper floor, peeking through ivy-covered walls and promising exquisite views of the sea.
She leaned in to whisper to Jane, thinking of their cousin’s fawning praise of Rosings Park, which Elizabeth had often transcribed in the letters she sent her sister from Kent.
“I wonder what Mr. Collins would make of so many windows! But I shall have to rhapsodize on his behalf, as much as I shall rejoice in his absence. The sight of such a magnificent place might have proved too much for him.”
Jane laughed softly but did not tear her gaze from the sight before them.
Specifically, she appeared to be focused on the undeniably pleasing sight of the two gentlemen who disembarked from the carriage that came to a stop alongside their own.
The first gentleman to descend the barouche was a tanned fellow with dark hair that was greyed at the temples despite his youthful face.
His features were handsome, or rather they might have been, had his expression borne any of the pleasure the occasion warranted.
When the second gentleman sprang down from the carriage, Jane smiled and abruptly removed her hand from the window, sitting up a little straighter.
Elizabeth heard her suck in a sharp breath.
This gentleman was of a much finer appearance, tall and broad shouldered, towering more than half a foot above his friend.
His sandy blonde hair hung in waves that fell to his shoulders, which was longer than Elizabeth liked on a man.
She preferred the length and color of Mr. Darcy’s shorter, darker hair; his fine jawline was accented by the fall of his curls about his ears, while this gentleman's handsome face was nearly obscured by his thick mane as he turned his gaze about the manor that surrounded them on three sides.
Uncle Edward exited his barouche first, and handed down his wife, then Elizabeth, and finally Jane, who stumbled a little as a third gentleman exited the other carriage and helped an attractive woman in her middle twenties out of the equipage.
The woman let out a cry of delight. “Madeline Gardiner, what a pleasant surprise! You sly thing, you never mentioned you were coming.”
She turned to Elizabeth and Jane with a cheerful wink. “My old friend knows very well that I met my own dear husband at the Gouldings’ fourth spring fête, and I wrote a fortnight ago that I had heard I would soon meet her nieces. But you must be the famous Miss Bennets!”
“Sophie Croft, allow me to present my eldest niece, Miss Jane Bennet, and my second eldest, Miss Elizabeth Bennet. Girls, this is my second-cousin, Admiral Croft, and his charming wife, my friend of many years.”
“Yes – you might have introduced us yourself, and I am sure Lady Sophia will tease you for it, Madeline. It is a pleasure to meet you at last, Miss Bennet, Miss Elizabeth. I have heard all about you since you were young girls. Your aunt is prodigiously proud of you!”
The amiable Mrs. Croft proceeded to introduce her brother, Captain Wentworth, who had been away at sea for nearly the entirety of her ten years of acquaintance with the Gardiners.
Captain Wentworth, the handsomer of the two younger men, gave a gallant bow, his eyes lingering longer on Jane than Elizabeth, and then he presented his friend, Captain James Benwick, who had served with him aboard the Laconia.
The admiral was full of warm praise for the two captains; they had only recently returned to England after a series of profitable victories, and had distinguished themselves honorably in their duties.
When they had exchanged a few pleasantries to open the promising acquaintance, they were met by the four great ladies of the state, who descended a high stone staircase that wound about a small, arced terrace in the center of the edifice.
They were accompanied by a rather timid young woman with pale blonde hair and a look of youthful innocence.
Mrs. Croft again performed the introductions, presently Lady Dorothea, Lady Sophia, Lady Rosamund, and Lady Blanche, who in turn introduced her god-daughter Miss Harriet Smith, whom she had very lately taken in as a ward.
After they had all bowed and curtsied and remarked on the dismal weather that plagued most of their travels, they made their way into the manor.
The grand double doors framed in wide windows brought them into an expansive, round chamber with a high ceiling and frescoed walls, with wide passages into opposite corridors on either side, and a curved staircase lined with potted ferns sweeping down in the center of the room.
Lady Sophia led the way, diminutive but regal; she appeared entirely indifferent to the opulent surroundings that Elizabeth and all her companions took in with a collective gasp.
High above them, a massive crystal chandelier glowed, even as sunlight poured in through the windows that looked upon the inner courtyard and the distant shoreline.
The painted walls depicted a charming pastel seaside landscape, with whirling gold and silver embossing that leant the artwork an ethereal sort of dignity.
At the top of the stairs, Elizabeth could make out an open area with rich furnishings, which connected on both sides to a wide passageway that encircled the upper floor, with dark wooden pillars at intervals and an intricate wooden railing.
Lady Blanche directed her smile to the Gardiners.
“We shall give you a proper tour tomorrow, after church; I believe you have just enough time to refresh yourselves from your journey before joining us in the parlor with the other guests. Mamma likes an early supper; particularly on the first night.”
She and Miss Smith curtseyed before taking their leave to return to the parlor.
As they withdrew to one of the corridors, Elizabeth watched them go, peering into the room they entered.
Seated within, she observed two other gentlemen and a lady, all of them appearing very refined.
She and Jane exchanged a look of gleeful curiosity before they were led upstairs with the others.
The staircase was wide enough to allow half their party to move abreast up the steps, and when Captain Wentworth moved alongside Jane, she gazed up at him and nearly stumbled and lost her balance.
The captain swiftly caught her arm in his and held her steady until they reached the top of the stairs.
Elizabeth looked determinedly away from her blushing sister, grinning with pleasure at Jane being so admired already.
When she glanced back, it was clear the dashing captain was as instantly smitten as Jane.
The ground floor was even more impressive when viewed from the railing that lined the first floor.
Lady Sophia explained that the first floor had been lately remade into four large apartments, rather than the family wing that once boasted seven rooms and a nursery.
They made a circuit of the round, open corridor that looked down into the foyer below.
It was also lined at intervals with more of the same ferns in gold and ivory pots in between the four large sets of wooden double doors.
The walls were frescoed with more scenery, the colors more muted, the imagery more serene.
Elizabeth gazed down at the intricate pattern on the glossy mosaic floor tiles, which glinted in the late afternoon sunlight. She had been over-prepared for what she had seen at Rosings Park, but on this occasion, she felt entirely overcome by so much true elegance.