Evenings with Darcy Read online

  “That is her way,” Bingley said. “She is clever. She has a satirical eye.”

  It was one of her most attractive features. Darcy said, “I do not want to surprise her with a proposal. I wish it to be the most natural, comfortable courtship.”

  “So what is your plan?”

  “To spend as much time as possible with her. I would take up all her evenings, if I could.”

  Bingley said, “We can have them to dinner at least twice a week, here. Hurst won’t mind as long as I pay for everything.”

  “And twice at Darcy House,” Darcy said.

  “It is too bad that the season hasn’t started, yet. If it had, there would be more balls and musicales.”

  Darcy said, “I shall have to see what else I can arrange. I may even enlist the Earl’s support.”

  “Matlock? Is he even in Town?”

  “I don’t know.” And on a more practical level, Darcy wasn’t certain his uncle would approve of Elizabeth. He would have to approach his uncle carefully.

  “But we’re only talking about two more weeks?”

  “Yes.”

  Bingley smiled. “That brings us to Valentine’s Day. How appropriate.”

  Darcy agreed. He did feel as if he had been struck by Cupid’s bow.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Mrs. Gardiner was surprised the next morning when Darcy and Bingley paid another morning call and they were all invited to Darcy House for dinner the following night. “You both need new evening dresses,” she said. “We must go shopping today and see what is readily available. If necessary, I can put two of my maids to work making alterations and hemming.”

  “We do not need new dresses,” Elizabeth protested.

  “Mr. Darcy and Mr. Bingley have already seen every dress you own. If you are going to socialize among the Ton, you need new dresses.”

  Elizabeth refused. “No, ma’am. It is an extravagance we cannot afford.”

  Mrs. Gardiner pursed her lips, annoyed. “Normally I would commend your frugality, but I think you should put your best foot forward.”

  Elizabeth said, “Jane is so beautiful, she could wear the curtains and still be the most attractive woman in the room.”

  Mrs. Gardiner smiled as she looked at her curtains. “True.”

  “And no one cares what I am wearing.”

  “No one?” Mrs. Gardiner teased. “I very much doubt that.”

  Elizabeth blushed and looked down at her needlework. That morning, Mr. Darcy had sat beside her during his call and her aunt had smiled at them in a knowing way.

  Elizabeth let out her breath in a long sigh. “We don’t need new dresses, but perhaps new ribbons?”

  “And new shawls,” Mrs. Gardiner said, pleased. “We shall go shopping this afternoon.”

  DARCY HOUSE WAS A REVELATION to Elizabeth. It was three times the size of Mr. Hurst’s abode, and beautifully, elegantly furnished.

  Once they were inside the home, even the air seemed fresher, for the rooms were large and the moulded ceilings high. Elizabeth noticed the many wax candles instead of tallow.

  Miss Darcy seemed very happy to greet them. In her own home, she was more comfortable and with Darcy’s help, she was acting hostess. Elizabeth was surprised to be introduced to the Earl of Matlock and his wife. The earl was Darcy’s uncle and there was some family resemblance, although the earl was shorter and of a stockier build.

  The Countess wore diamonds and a cap adorned with peacock feathers. She looked at Elizabeth’s dress closely as if she knew exactly how much the muslin had cost, but she smiled and nodded as they were introduced. Elizabeth raised her chin and said all that was proper.

  Later, as they were walking into dinner, Mrs. Gardiner whispered, “Mr. Gardiner should have been here.”

  Mr. Gardiner had a headache that evening and had cried off. As he said, “I cannot spend all my evenings socializing. I have a business to run!” So, Mrs. Gardiner had come with her nieces by herself.

  She had sent a quick written note to Miss Darcy to apologize, hoping that the lack of one gentleman would not upset the seating arrangements. Miss Darcy had written back, assuring her that was not the case. “It will be a simple dinner.”

  Simple was four courses and included numerous dishes with complex sauces. Elizabeth was certain Mr. Darcy had a French chef.

  Elizabeth ate as little as possible from the various dishes so she wasn’t overly full by the time for dessert.

  She sat between Mr. Bingley and Colonel Fitzwilliam, one of the Earl of Matlock’s younger sons. He was about thirty, not handsome, but in person and address most truly the gentleman. Elizabeth liked him. He entered into conversation directly with the readiness and ease of a well-bred man and talked actively throughout the courses. They spoke about music and books and their various travels. His travels, not hers. Elizabeth had never gone far from Hertfordshire, except for London.

  Mr. Darcy sat at the head of the table and often seemed interested in their conversation, but he spoke primarily to the guests seated on his left and right.

  After the meal, the women separated from the men and retired to a large sitting room that contained a harp as well as a pianoforte. Miss Bingley tried to engage Lady Matlock in conversation, but that elegant woman closed her eyes and said she was fatigued. She wished to sit silently until the men re-joined them.

  “How long will that be?” Mrs. Gardiner wondered.

  Miss Darcy volunteered that they might stay in the dining room as long as an hour. She pulled out a piece of needlework to keep herself busy.

  Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst urged Jane and Mrs. Gardiner to join them in a card game.

  Elizabeth sat by Miss Darcy to admire her project. “Is that a chair cover?”

  “Yes.” Miss Darcy showed her the intricate floral needlepoint pattern. “This is for the dining room at Pemberley. My mother started the seat covers years ago and now I am finishing the set.”

  “What a lovely thought. For how many chairs?”

  “Twenty-four.”

  “Good heavens,” Elizabeth said with a little laugh. “That would take me more than a lifetime.”

  Miss Darcy smiled. “Perhaps myself as well. I much prefer playing music or reading, but needlework does occupy my hands.”

  Elizabeth said, “I like hemming myself because it is simple and repetitive. It does not take much thought.”

  They sat in comfortable silence for a while and Elizabeth asked Miss Darcy what she liked to read. They were discussing poetry and novels when the men returned.

  Once her husband was in the room, Lady Matlock rallied and declared that she was willing to play cards if someone would play the piano forte. Mrs. Hurst dutifully played a concerto and she was followed by Miss Bingley singing a depressing Italian aria with a cheerful smile that belied the despair of the song. When she had finished, Lady Matlock asked Elizabeth if she sang as well.

  “I can sing,” Elizabeth said. “But I have little formal training.”

  Miss Bingley smirked.

  Miss Darcy said, “My brother has told me how much he has enjoyed your singing.”

  “Then I will sing,” Elizabeth said. “If you will follow me with a song as well.”

  Miss Darcy looked nervous but agreed.

  Darcy nodded at her, as if pleased by his sister. Elizabeth walked over to the pianoforte, feeling as if all eyes were upon her.

  “Do you need someone to turn your pages?” Colonel Fitzwilliam offered.

  “No,” she assured him. “It is a simple song that I know by heart.” She settled herself at the grand instrument and said, “This is an amusing romance entitled: Married to a Mermaid.”

  She played the song and sang:

  There was a gay young farmer

  Who lived on Salisbury plain

  He loved a rich Knight’s daughter dear!

  And she loved him again.

  The Knight he was distressed

  That they should sweethearts be.

  So he had the farme
r soon pressed

  And sent him off to sea.

  “Oh, I know this one,” Mr. Bingley cried and sang along with Elizabeth for the chorus:

  Singing Rule Britannia

  Britannia rules the waves

  Britons never, never, never shall be slaves.

  Elizabeth sang the next verse about the poor farmer falling overboard and sinking to the bottom of the sea.

  “Oh no,” Miss Darcy said, but she also sang along with the chorus:

  Singing Rule Britannia

  Britannia rules the waves

  Britons never, never, never all be slaves

  Elizabeth smiled as she sang the next verse:

  We lowered a boat to find him.

  We thought to see his corpse.

  When up to the top he came with a bang

  And sang in a voice so hoarse,

  ‘My comrades and my messmates

  Oh, do not weep for me,

  For I’m married to a mermaid,

  At the bottom of the deep blue sea.

  “Oh, marvellous,” Miss Darcy said and this time, even Mr. Darcy joined in the chorus.

  Singing Rule Britannia

  Britannia rules the waves

  Britons never, never, never all be slaves

  As Elizabeth finished the last three verses, she glanced at the dinner guests to judge their reactions. As she expected, Bingley was his open, pleasing self, and Colonel Fitzwilliam was entertained. Miss Bingley looked annoyed by her sudden popularity and refused to join in singing. Elizabeth sang:

  He said that as he went down,

  Great fishes he did see,

  They seemed to think as he did wink,

  That he was rather free.

  But down he went so quickly,

  Saying, “Tis all up with me,

  When he met a lovely mermaid

  At the bottom of the deep blue sea.

  Lord and Lady Matlock were smiling, and Darcy looked at her intently as if he were pleased, but she could not be certain. Elizabeth looked down at her fingers so she would not make a mistake as she played.

  She came at once unto him,

  And gave him her white hand,

  Saying, ‘I have waited long, my dear,

  To welcome you to land.

  Go to your ship and tell them,

  You’ll leave them all for me,

  For you’re married to a mermaid

  At the bottom of the deep blue sea.

  After another chorus, Elizabeth finished:

  The wind was fair, the sales set,

  The ship was running free,

  When we all went to the captain bold,

  And told what we did see.

  He went to the ship’s side,

  And loudly bellowed he,

  ‘Be happy as you can, my man,

  At the bottom of the deep blue sea.”

  Nearly everyone sang the final chorus:

  Singing Rule Britannia

  Britannia rules the waves

  Britons never, never, never all be slaves

  When Elizabeth finished, Miss Darcy clapped her hands. “How delightful,” she said. Jane, who had heard the song before, said, “I always wonder if he will be truly happy at the bottom of the sea.”

  Bingley looked at her, “Why shouldn’t he be happy? He is married to the mermaid and the song says she is lovely.”

  Elizabeth thought that if she were Jane, she might worry that Bingley only loved her for her beauty. Elizabeth said, “Ah yes, but what about the poor Knight’s daughter that he left behind?”

  Lord Matlock said, “Do not worry about her. I’m certain her father will find someone else for her to marry.”

  Darcy added lightly, “Or perhaps she will fall into the ocean as well and marry a merman.”

  Elizabeth was surprised to hear him make a joke. She said, “That sounds like another folk song. Perhaps you should write it.”

  Miss Bingley offered to help him for she was as she said, “I am good with rhymes.’

  Darcy declined and asked his sister if she was willing to play a song as well.

  As Miss Darcy walked over to the pianoforte and Elizabeth relinquished her seat, Elizabeth looked about the room and thought that she would not mind spending more evenings so pleasantly engaged.

  CHAPTER SIX

  The next two weeks were busy, filled with social activities: a musicale at the earl’s town home, plus three more dinners and another trip to the theatre. Elizabeth felt that Mr. Bingley instigated most of the invitations, but she was uncertain about Mr. Darcy’s intentions. Her aunt seemed to think that he was attracted to her, but Elizabeth could not tell if he was merely arranging events to allow Bingley to be with Jane. Since his comment about wooing, he had been more circumspect. And yet sometimes Darcy looked at her so intently, Elizabeth would have sworn he cared for her. Other times, he was infuriatingly dark and silent.

  Odious man.

  How was she supposed to know her own heart if she did not know his?

  She could not decide if she liked him or not. She could not forget all the things Mr. Wickham had told her.

  Mrs. Gardiner did not feel comfortable providing a reciprocal dinner meal for Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy, but she did invite them and their sisters to tea one afternoon.

  On February fourteenth, they were all invited to dine at Darcy House again and in the morning, two valentines arrived with small bouquets of flowers. There were white rosebuds for Jane with a printed card that read:

  The flowers look brighter

  And all on earth seems sweet

  My heart is always lighter

  My darling, when we meet.

  “They must be from Mr. Bingley,” Elizabeth said.

  Jane smiled and did not demur. Mrs. Gardiner reread the card and declared that it was a most proper sentiment. “You should wear some of the roses in your hair tonight, Jane.”

  For Elizabeth, there was a bouquet of red rosebuds and a handwritten note that read:

  Drink to me only with thine eyes,

  And I will pledge with mine.

  For a moment, after Elizabeth had read the note silently, she held the card against her bosom, not wanting to share it, but Mrs. Gardiner held out her hand and Elizabeth finally gave it to her. Mrs. Gardiner read the lines out loud and said, “It is most romantic, but I do not recognize the lines.”

  “They are from a poem by Ben Jonson,” Elizabeth said. “But I cannot remember all the lines.” At that moment, she wished she was back at Longbourn with access to her father’s library. He would know the poem and exactly where to find it among his books.

  Mrs. Gardiner tsked her tongue. “How vexing to not know all of it. Should we go to a bookseller today?”

  Elizabeth smiled. “No. It does not matter. The sentiment is clear.”

  “Indeed,” Mrs. Gardiner said with a sly smile. “Your Mr. Darcy seems a man of hidden passions.”

  Elizabeth blushed. “We do not know for certain that it is from Mr. Darcy.”

  “Of course not,” her aunt agreed. “He could not be so bold if he had to sign his name. That would not be proper. That is the purpose of valentines – to be able to say something anonymously. But who else knows that you are visiting here? And who else has been inviting you to spend so many evenings together?”

  Elizabeth nodded. There was no one else who could have written to her. “But I will not wear the roses in my hair,” she said firmly. “I will wear them on my wrist in a bracelet instead.”

  Mrs. Gardiner said, “Very well. I see you will make the man earn your regard.”

  DARCY THOUGHT VALENTINE’S Day was a foolish tradition, but when Bingley made such a fuss over choosing a card and flowers for Jane, Darcy felt that he must send something to Elizabeth as well. But now that it was done, he worried about what she might think.

  Darcy did not like ambiguity. He was a man of action. He wanted to approach Elizabeth directly and tell her that he admired and loved her. But how could he arrange that?
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  Perhaps there would be a moment this evening that would be appropriate.

  At breakfast, Georgiana told him that she had received two friendship valentines. “I think one is from cousin Anne because I recognize the handwriting.”

  Darcy looked at the card briefly. “Yes, that’s Anne,” he said. “And the other?”

  Georgiana made a wry face. “I assume the other is from Miss Bingley.”

  Darcy thought that Miss Bingley’s efforts to win Georgiana’s friendship were part of her plan to win him as a husband. He looked at the ornate card decorated with lace and dried flowers and then set it aside. “I agree.”

  Georgiana sighed. “I did not think about Valentine’s Day before this morning. Do you think I should have sent cards to the Misses Bennets?”

  Darcy wondered how much his sister knew of his feelings for Elizabeth Bennet. Did she sense that one day Elizabeth would be her sister? He said carefully, “What do you think?”

  Georgiana said, “They are my newest friends. I think it would be a nice gesture.”

  “Do whatever you think best,” Darcy said.

  “I will. I’ll go out with Mrs. Annesley and purchase some cards. There isn’t time to make my own.”

  “You may take the carriage,” Darcy said. “I don’t want you to catch cold.”

  Georgiana beamed at him. “Thank you.”

  THIS WAS HER THIRD dinner at Darcy House and Elizabeth was beginning to recognize some of the servants. She admired the gleaming crystal on the large dining room table and the polished silver. There were roses in the centrepiece. They looked like the roses on her wrist.

  Darcy sat at the head of the table with her aunt and uncle on his right and left. Lord and Lady Matlock were not in attendance, so Mr. Darcy had given her relatives the seats of honour. Elizabeth was glad that Mr. Gardiner had been able to come, but she saw with some concern that he was drinking more wine than usual. She had never seen her uncle become inebriated, but she did not want tonight to be a first.

  The dinner was superb, and Elizabeth enjoyed speaking with Colonel Fitzwilliam. When the ladies separated from the gentlemen, Miss Bingley was in a sour mood. She made a pretence of looking at a book and Mrs. Hurst entertained herself by playing with her bracelets.