Win, Lose, or Darcy

by Jennifer Joy

  Her room had a window overlooking a tiny garden between the house and the stables. A bare tree limb tapped her window and she anticipated watching the birds build their nests in its leaves in the months to come.

  It was a perfectly situated room. And it was hers alone. The room, the view, and the sparsely populated armoire beckoning for more dresses to satisfy its appetite.

  "Lizzy, come on! Aunt Gardiner is here, and I am absolutely dying to go to Bond Street! I shall have all the dresses I want and will buy as many ribbons and bonnets as I please," said Lydia, prancing in front of the door.

  Elizabeth was excited too, though she would exercise more restraint than Lydia. Money so easily won could just as easily be lost.

  She followed Lydia downstairs, where her mother and sisters waited as their new coach pulled up in front of their new home. Mother gave orders for the coachman to convey them to Gracechurch Street in a stuffy voice.

  Lydia mimicked Mother’s pompous tone. With one hand over her breast, she exclaimed, “Take us to Gracechurch Street, Mr. Coachman. Do not dally, for I am desirous of a new dress or five to go with my diamond necklace and emerald earrings.”

  “Do not forget the matching slippers and bonnets,” exclaimed Kitty.

  Mary sulked in the corner opposite Elizabeth.

  “Are you not excited in the least, Mary?” Elizabeth asked.

  “How can I when they display such a lack of restraint? A virtuous lady does not concern herself with ribbons and frills, but with her inner beauty and such qualities as modesty and piety. I would rather have remained at Longbourn than expose myself to frivolity.”

  “You silly goose, Mary! I choose to believe that Mother’s winning the lottery was a blessing from God, and it would be wicked of us not to enjoy it to the fullest,” said Lydia in a self-righteous voice, which caused a fit of giggles from Kitty.

  Jane leaned in to Elizabeth. “It will be nice for you not to have to wear my handed down dresses for once. I have always felt guilty that my sisters have not had the advantage of the firstborn daughter in being the first to wear a new dress. Let us not be too hard on Lydia. She has only ever worn the same dress she has seen all four of us wear before it is finally her turn.”

  “How fortunate that my brother lives such a convenient distance,” remarked Mother.

  All heads turned to her. Elizabeth did not think the distance convenient in the least.

  Mother continued, “This is a fashionable carriage, and it offers a grand opportunity to be seen riding in it with its matching grays. It gives a good impression of us as members of the higher class.”

  Indeed, Aunt Gardiner did pause to admire their means of transportation before joining them inside the leather and velvet interior. Elizabeth doubted that Aunt viewed them any differently from how she had before their change of fortune, much to Mother’s chagrin.

  Aunt directed them to the dress shop where the ladies of the beau monde were known to frequent. By the time they finally arrived at Bond Street, Elizabeth was ready to stretch her cramped legs. For all the trouble it took to arrive at their destination on the crowded roads, she could have walked from their home.

  Before they entered, Aunt Gardiner said, "With the Season coming upon us, I think it would be wise of you to order all the dresses you require to be made now, so that you will not be rushed when the ton comes back from their country estates."

  Mother fanned her face. "Oh, to think that we, like the best families in England, have a country estate at Longbourn! How divine it will be to get new dresses for all of my girls. They shall have the best the shop has to offer, and I think we should call at the milliner's, as well as a shoe shop to have some slippers made. They shall need pearls and bejeweled combs for their hair…" Mother's list of necessities grew.

  Jane whispered to Elizabeth as they climbed the stairs to the door of the dress shop, "I do hope that Father invested wisely and that he placed certain spending limits on Mother. Do you know if he has met with the gentleman Uncle Phillips recommended here?"

  "I will ask as soon as we return home. We will encourage Lydia and Kitty not to be too extravagant. Mary will help us." She looked over at her younger sister, whose sanctimonious face reddened at the showy attitude displayed by their mother and sisters.

  Aunt, who was of a more sensible mind, said, "Dear Fanny, surely Mr. Bennet gave you an allowance for this excursion. I suspect it might be higher than normal, as this is your first visit, but you must be reasonable. Adorning all five daughters in the fashion you seek could cost more than the sum of your winnings."

  Mother dismissed her worry with a wave of her hand. "Yes, yes, that has all been seen to. Mr. Bennet agrees with me that our foremost purpose is to set our girls up well for the Season. It is money well-spent and worth the initial expense."

  Mary, her face now mottled in red and white splotches, said, "I will have no part of this. Excess is the height of vanity, and I should be ashamed to have any part in it."

  Mother harrumphed and continued into the shop, Lydia and Kitty nearly trampling over her in their hurry to see the delights awaiting them inside.

  Aunt put her arm around Mary's thin shoulders. Elizabeth and Jane stood closely, shielding her from the onlookers walking by. Mary was on the verge of tears.

  In a soft voice, Aunt said, "It is not vanity to have one new day dress, Mary. And you need not get slippers when a new pair of sturdy boots will do just as well."

  Mary looked down at her shoes just as Elizabeth examined hers. The leather had scuffed and peeled in places so that no amount of polish disguised it.

  Leaning in to Aunt’s embrace, Mary sniffed. "How is it just that we have so much when there are countless others who cannot afford their daily bread? It pains me to drive through the streets in our fancy carriage when there are children with dirty faces walking barefoot on the cold, wet stones."

  Elizabeth wiped her sister's cheek, touched at her humanity. "Perhaps in alleviating the suffering of others, you might be able to enjoy the blessings you have been given.”

  Mary stood taller, as if a weight had lifted from off her. “I could volunteer my time and energy for a higher cause. Aunt, can you help me? I do not know where to start.”

  Aunt's face brightened. "There is an orphanage for which one of my dear friends is constantly campaigning and seeking donations. I will talk to her and see if your talents might be put to good use there. Would that please you, Mary?"

  With a sigh which she must have held in for a great deal of time, Mary said, "I should like that very much."

  Elizabeth hugged her. They had not been in town a full week, and already one sister was finding her way in the world. "Now, let us go in so that you can replace this dress. There is a hole in the collar."

  Aunt led the way and Elizabeth followed behind her sisters.

  “Miss Jane, Miss Eliza, how charming to see you,” said a stuffy voice which stood Elizabeth’s hair on end.

  She traced the direction from whence the voice came over to a mirror where a ginger-haired lady stood admiring her reflection.

  "Good afternoon, Miss Bingley," Elizabeth said, recovering herself more quickly than Jane.

  She promptly introduced her aunt to Miss Bingley and her equally stuffy sister, Mrs. Louisa Hurst, who rose hesitantly from her chair to greet them.

  "What brings you to town?" Mrs. Hurst asked through her teeth and pinched smile.

  "We have had a change in circumstances,” Elizabeth answered, wishing she could wave their fortune in front of their vainglorious noses. But ladies did not act like that. More was the pity.

  Jane, refusing to recognize their displeasure or, as was more likely, dismissing it with a justification in their favor, said, “We have now taken residence near St. James. We would love to receive you for a call sometime."

  Miss Bingley's nostrils flared, and Mrs. Hurst sighed as she haughtily turned her face.

  As if Jane had not written to them about it. They probably had their exact address. Eliz
abeth’s nails bit into her palm.

  Jane’s forehead bunched together in innocent confusion. Even she could not misinterpret their reactions, though she would find some fault within herself to pardon their aloofness.

  Very well. If they would cause Jane distress, the least Elizabeth could do was find out what information she could about their brother for Jane’s benefit. "I hope your family is well?" she asked.

  "Mr. Hurst is suffering from gout at present, and it looks almost certain that he will require a trip to Bath. Have you been to Bath?" asked Mrs. Hurst, avoiding any mention of Mr. Bingley in her obvious attempt to change the subject.

  "We have not had the pleasure. Will your entire family go?" Elizabeth asked, undeterred in her quest on behalf of her heartbroken sister.

  Miss Bingley answered, "We are considering it. There is more society to mix with there at this time of year. London is sorely lacking in good company."

  Still nothing but cuts. Elizabeth’s fist balled together, and she bit her tongue to keep herself from retaliating in like manner. Oh, but they deserved it!

  Aunt Gardiner touched her gently on the arm. "Miss Bingley… are you the sister of the gentleman who recently let Netherfield Park?" she asked, brilliantly maneuvering the conversation back to Mr. Bingley. Elizabeth made a note to hug Aunt Gardiner later.

  Mrs. Hurst inhaled sharply through her nose. "Yes, but he decided that there was nothing in all of Hertfordshire which could tempt him to remain there. Caroline and I nearly perished of boredom at the lack of diversion."

  Jane bowed her head and clasped her hands in front of her, her cheeks a brilliant shade of red.

  That was it! With a sweet smile, Elizabeth replied, "While I am sure that the good people around Netherfield felt the loss of your departure deeply, I fear that we were too occupied to notice you had gone. I shall ask Charlotte about it when I write to her. She has an excellent memory and a mind for detail."

  Miss Bingley harrumphed, and Elizabeth had the satisfaction of watching her complexion reflect the shade of her hair.

  "La! Look at the fabric samples over here, Mama. I shall have more beaus than my sisters with this shiny silk to compliment my rosy complexion," said Lydia much too loudly, and diminishing the severity of Elizabeth’s cut by half at least.

  Miss Bingley smirked. "Yes, how lovely to see you." It was clear that she meant the opposite.

  Chapter 8

  Mrs. Hurst and Miss Bingley departed, leaving a much defeated Jane near tears by the door. Elizabeth rushed her over to the corner of the room while Aunt and Mary joined Mother, who kept the shopkeeper occupied by requesting that she pull out every bit of trimming from the drawers behind the counter so that she might hold them up to the light for inspection.

  Elizabeth glanced around the room. They were not the only ladies present. There were others who looked to be every bit as proud as Miss Bingley, and it seemed that every one of them looked in their direction. Now was not the time for tears.

  Turning to Jane, she said, "Janey, Miss Bingley only said that to be mean-spirited. It is not the first time she has said something unkind, nor will it be the last. If you love Mr. Bingley, you will have to withstand much worse from her when you become his wife."

  Jane's eyes widened. “I had not considered that.” She dabbed the corners of her eyes with her coat sleeve and said, "I will endure." To prove her point, she straightened her shoulders.

  Elizabeth smiled at her. "Love has given you more gumption than I thought you capable of."

  Jane's face lit up. "I can face anything if he stands beside me. If I must suffer discomfort now, it will be worth it if I learn that he returns my affection."

  Elizabeth prayed that he did.

  "That is the spirit, Jane. Now, let us hasten to Mother before the ladies over there think us the silliest family in all of London." She bobbed her forehead over to the fitting area where four impeccably adorned ladies stood. They could have walked directly out of a French fashion magazine.

  Elizabeth took a moment to admire their perfectly fitted gowns when one of the ladies, the one in the center of the group, smiled at her.

  She had dark hair, skin as fair as Jane's, and a twinkle in her eye that Elizabeth instantly liked.

  The elegant lady dismissed herself from her group and walked over to them, her smile growing the closer she came. "Please excuse my presumptuousness in approaching you without an introduction, but if you are who I believe you to be, we have some dear friends in common.” Dropping a curtsy, she continued, “I am Miss Sophia Kingsley. Might you by any chance be the Bennets from Hertfordshire?”

  "We are," Elizabeth asked, curious how Miss Kingsley could possibly have heard their name.

  Miss Kingsley put her hand over her heart. "I am thrilled to meet you. I am a close friend of the Darcys.”

  Elizabeth tried not to frown. Miss Kingsley would have heard nothing good from that quarter.

  “You left quite an impression on Mr. Darcy,” Miss Kingsley said pleasantly.

  “I imagine so,” Elizabeth said.

  “I admit that my interest in you is a touch self-serving. I thought it odd how the Bingleys quit Hertfordshire so soon after letting an estate, and I suspected that there was more to the story than Miss Bingley's claims of boredom." Miss Kingsley looked directly at Jane. "I think I understand now. Forgive my boldness for speaking so plainly, Miss Bennet, but you are every bit as handsome as the rumors I have heard."

  Jane flushed a scarlet red. "There are rumors about me?"

  Miss Kingsley touched Jane's forearm with her fingertips. "Let me assure you that they are nothing but complimentary. You see, I heard it directly from Mr. Darcy. He never lies."

  Elizabeth was flabbergasted. "Mr. Darcy?" Mr. Darcy said something nice about her family?

  "I only know of one,” replied Miss Kingsley without a pause. “Of course, I asked Mr. Bingley directly one afternoon shortly after their arrival— he calls on Mr. Darcy as often as I call on Miss Darcy— and I will admit to taking advantage of the occasion to ask why they quit their estate so quickly. When Mr. Bingley could give no simple answer, I suspected that a young lady was involved. The poor man looked positively miserable.”

  Elizabeth watched as the insults of minutes before were forgotten by dear Jane, to be replaced by the glow of a happy woman who hoped.

  Miss Kingsley continued, “And so I inquired about the company they kept, and your names were mentioned favorably by the gentlemen. I decided at that moment that should I have the opportunity to meet you, we should become friends." She sighed in self-satisfaction.

  Elizabeth wanted to hug Miss Kingsley then and there for confirming that Mr. Bingley still had feelings for Jane and for implying that the mere mention of her name had made Mr. Darcy uncomfortable. She had said ‘gentlemen,’ after all. Though why Mr. Darcy should become uncomfortable when she was spoken of was a mystery…. What kind of ‘uncomfortable’ had he been?

  Stopping her mind from its foolish rambles about a gentleman she would rather not ponder over, Elizabeth asked, "Is Mr. Bingley still in town?"

  "I am uncertain. He had every intention of going northward to his father’s mills the last I heard, but I do not know if he has departed yet." Her eyebrows bunched together as she looked at Jane. "Take heart, Miss Bennet. If he has gone, he cannot be gone forever." She looked over at the group of ladies she had left by the fitting rooms. "I must rejoin my party. I cannot begin to express how pleased I am to have met you today," she said.

  "It was a pleasure to meet you too, Miss Kingsley," Elizabeth said in unison with Jane.

  Miss Kingsley narrowed her eyes and bit her lips. "I have just had a fabulous idea. Tomorrow, I am hosting an afternoon tea. To tempt the gentlemen to come, I will also have several card tables set up, but I am short two ladies to balance the company. Would you be able to join us at my home?"

  Elizabeth accepted immediately.

  "Wonderful!" Miss Kingsley clapped her hands together. "Here is my card, and
I will expect you tomorrow afternoon," she said as she turned back to her friends, who now stood by the door, ready to leave.

  Aunt Gardiner could hardly hold back her excitement as she rushed over to Elizabeth and Jane.

  "Do you know who that was, my dears?" she asked, clenching her hands together and bobbing up on her toes.

  Elizabeth looked at Jane. The lady had introduced herself clearly enough.

  Looking quizzically back at Aunt, Elizabeth said, "She introduced herself as Miss Sophia Kingsley. She was extremely kind and invited Jane and me to a card party tomorrow afternoon at her home. She even gave me her card." She lifted it up to read the address. It did not surprise her to see that Miss Kingsley lived at Grosvenor Square. It had surprised her to be presented with a card— a practice much more common among gentlemen. Miss Kingsley must hold modern views. Elizabeth liked her more with each passing minute.

  "Yes, Miss Kingsley is well-known. She is so well thought of amongst the ton, all the younger ladies dress as she does. You have only been in town a half a week and have already secured an invitation by the most sought-after woman in all of London! You will be in the best circles now."

  "Oh, my," said Jane, intimidated.

  Elizabeth gloated. Her plan was working. With Miss Kingsley on their side, Miss Bingley would have to be careful about what she said against Jane, who would soon be reunited with Mr. Bingley. As for herself, Elizabeth’s confidence grew that Miss Kingsley would put her in the way of gentlemen with intelligent minds and circumstances comfortable enough to marry.

  With a light heart, she joined Mother and her younger sisters, who had half a dozen new gowns planned and in various stages of design.

  Darcy sat next to Georgiana, turning the pages of her music as she played the pianoforte. Her ability at the instrument had improved dramatically under the capable guidance of her new tutor, and Darcy often forgot to turn the page until the music stopped and she looked at him impatiently.