So Long, Sentiment

by Amber Allen-King

  Six

  —

  "I was not going to suggest that," the Colonel replied with a smirk.

  "Well, what were you going to suggest, sir? You are the professional strategist here. Think of something!" Colonel Fitzwilliam disarmed her with a smile, then threw himself on the settee and tried to accommodate the lady's demand. Olivia continued to pace the Aubusson rug. Turning back toward the Colonel, she caught a glimpse of the basket he had deposited on a chair earlier. She kept her eyes on the basket as she sidled over to the Colonel, who was deep in thought. She tapped him on the shoulder.

  "Colonel Fitzwilliam?" The Colonel looked up. "What is in that basket?"

  "Huh?" he replied. He had completely forgotten the gift he had planned to present to Olivia an hour earlier.

  "Colonel? It is moving!" Olivia backed away a step or two, while the Colonel gaped at her. Then he caught her meaning and laughed. He got up, retrieved the basket, and drew back the cloth that concealed its contents. Immediately, a small head popped up and two big brown eyes fixed on Olivia's beaming face.

  "I acquired him on my way south. I--." The Colonel paused and cleared his throat. "I thought that you might like a companion." Olivia stared at him blankly for a moment. Then she picked up the puppy and clutched it to her heart. The puppy nuzzled against her and she smiled.

  "Whatever possessed you, Colonel?" she asked, charmed by his gift.

  "Well, I have always wanted a Labrador, and besides, it reminded me of..." he replied sheepishly. Olivia held up the puppy and peered into its face. For her trouble, she received several licks upon her nose.

  "Colonel, what is this?" Olivia held up the end of a well-chewed ribbon attached to the puppy's collar. Colonel Fitzwilliam's eyes bulged as he swore softly and grabbed the puppy from Olivia and stared at it.

  "Oh, dear lord," he cried, holding the puppy aloft and examining its nether end. Olivia smiled as she calmly reached into the basket and pulled out a small round box, slightly damp and chewed but intact.

  "Is this what you are looking for?" The frantic Colonel looked at the box, sighed his relief, then absent-mindedly shoved the puppy under one arm as he reached for it and tried to make it more presentable. Olivia clucked at the Colonel and took the puppy from him. She sat on the settee and scratched the puppy behind his ears. She looked up at the Colonel expectantly. He stood frozen for a moment, then shrugged his shoulders and laughed. He had completely forgotten about his gift to Olivia when he first saw her, and the speech he had so carefully rehearsed had now fled his mind as well. He sat next to Olivia and blushed as he tried to piece together his proposal.

  "Miss Crenshaw, I do not have to tell you how much I have come to admire you over the past few months...." Sensing that the moment had come, Olivia was not about to be denied every detail.

  "Do you not?" she replied archly. The Colonel was thrown by her comment.

  "Do I not what?"

  "Do you not have to tell me how much you have come to admire me over the past few months?"

  "Miss Crenshaw..."

  "Actually, I would be very interested to know," she said with a flutter of eyelashes that kept pace with the fluttering in his stomach.

  "Well, I--."

  "Every agonizing detail," she grinned, as the puppy slipped from her grasp and dove into the Colonel's lap. "I think he is rather fond of you."

  "Well, we have had some good times together these past few weeks," the Colonel replied as the puppy curled up in his lap and promptly fell asleep.

  "Perhaps you should keep him then," Olivia said as the Colonel absently stroked the puppy's soft fur. "I would not want to be the cause of a division between you two."

  "I thought we might share him, Miss Crenshaw." Olivia blushed becomingly and had to force herself to speak.

  "So, you have had him two weeks? Have you given him a name as yet?"

  "I thought that you might like to name him, but my staff has taken to calling him the 'Little Colonel.'" Olivia found the name very funny, and the Colonel folded his arms and waited for her laughter to subside. Olivia's demeanor suddenly grew serious, but there was amusement in her tone.

  "Now, Colonel, if we are going to share this dog, might I make so bold as to beg permission to call you by your Christian name? I cannot go around referring to both of you as 'Colonel.'"

  "You might just rename the dog, Miss Crenshaw," the Colonel retorted with equal humor as Olivia raised her brows, but he quickly added, "But I would be honored to have you call me Richard."

  "Well, Richard," Olivia said, sliding closer to him on the settee and drawing her arm through his, "You were saying something about coming to admire me?" Colonel Fitzwilliam ducked his head sheepishly, then took her hand and looked into her eyes.

  "I found the Little Colonel my first night on the road," Olivia started to interrupt, but the earnest look in the Colonel's eye stilled her tongue. "He had been abandoned, or lost, and he was cold, wet, and frightened. I took him in. He sort of reminded me of you...Not that you look anything like a sorry, wet, frightened puppy," he amended. Olivia laughed at the Colonel's discomposure. "But you do both have lovely brown eyes and an irresistible appeal," Colonel Fitzwilliam continued with a wink, and Olivia felt her heart melt. "As we traveled together, the Colonel and I, I decided that he might make a good companion for you while I was away from...I know that a Labrador retriever is hardly a fashionable lady's dog, but you are not a lady of fashion--I mean--. Miss Crenshaw, you have an amazing capacity to distort every reasonable thought in my head," he said, as he deposited the Little Colonel in Olivia's lap and retreated to the relative safety of the window. He took a deep breath and began anew.

  "I actually had this silly, romantic notion of offering you two companions today," the Colonel continued, his eyes on the rug before him. "The Little Colonel and...." There was a knock on the door which both Olivia and the Colonel ignored as it opened to admit an unannounced visitor.

  "...And the big Colonel?" Olivia quipped. But the Colonel did not answer. His eyes were fixed on the lady who stood in the doorway. Olivia followed his gaze.

  "Lizzy!" she exclaimed, rising abruptly and depositing the sleeping dog on the floor. "You were not expected until tomorrow!"

  • • •

  Mr. Darcy went down to dinner reluctantly. He was not eager to be in company, but having brought his discomfort upon himself, he knew that he must ride it out. As Mr. Darcy entered the dining room he immediately noted the absence of the Miss Bennets, and the import of that fact only added to his guilt. Mr. Bingley, who had gone to Mr. Darcy's room with the express purpose of delivering Jane's message, had completely forgotten about it when he saw his friend's dejected face. As they talked, Mr. Bingley began to understand why Jane had rushed away, but he had never mentioned it aloud to Mr. Darcy.

  "It seems that we a few short this evening, Mr. Darcy," Miss Bingley said with a smug smile. "Our dear Jane found something terribly important to attend to at Longbourn," she added with a significant look. Mr. Darcy glared at her stonily, then took his seat next to his friend.

  "Oh, I must apologize, Darcy. I completely forgot to mention it to you earlier." Mr. Bingley said, casting his own glare at his sibling. "Jane wanted me to tell you that she could not stay to dinner; there was an important matter at Longbourn that demanded her immediate attention," he added, with his own significant look. "She...." Mr. Bingley thought better of revealing Jane's entire message before his sister Caroline, so he quickly amended his statement. "She looks forward to seeing you tomorrow."

  Mr. Darcy bowed his head in acknowledgment, but rather than taking his friend's message literally, he concluded that Jane planned on bringing Elizabeth to Netherfield. He sighed heavily and began to disturb the neat pile of chives floating on his consommé.

  So, it is to be tomorrow, is it? I had hoped for a few more days. But Elizabeth will already know that I am in the neighborhood. I suppose there is no reason to delay the inevitable....

  Miss Bingley observed Mr.
Darcy carefully. She could not be as at ease with him as she had thought herself previously. Mr. Darcy had been acting strangely since his return to London the past month. Now he appeared to be out of sorts with everyone, save her brother, Charles. Miss Bingley concluded that something must have happened in Kent to cause his sour mood. Whatever it was, she couldn't wait to see Miss Eliza Bennet become the object of Mr. Darcy's wrath. Yes, that would serve my purposes very well, she thought.

  "I wonder if Miss Eliza Bennet will grace us with an appearance soon," she baited her brooding dinner companion. Her comment had the desired effect; she ignored her brother's apoplectic sputter and basked in Mr. Darcy's glower. Yes, she thought, as she delicately cut into her veal chop, I daresay Miss Bennet will no longer be an impediment when he gets through with her.

  • • •

  Elizabeth stood frozen in the doorway. It was obvious to her that she had interrupted a tete a tete between Olivia and Colonel Fitzwilliam, although he was standing some eight feet away from her, shuffling his feet uncomfortably. Elizabeth blushed and would have withdrawn, but Olivia spoke again.

  "Do come in Lizzy... You remember the Colonel, of course?" Olivia said awkwardly. Elizabeth curtseyed and the Colonel managed a curt bow. He wondered whether Elizabeth's apparent flight from Hertfordshire was the result of, or precluded, an interview with his cousin. Olivia bade her friend to sit down and joined Elizabeth on the settee.

  "How do you come to be here early, Lizzy? I have not even sent the carriage off," Olivia asked, concern evident in her voice. Elizabeth opened her mouth as if to speak, but instead she glanced at the Colonel, who immediately took the hint and started to take his leave. Olivia met the Colonel at the door. She reached out and touched his arm. Elizabeth walked to the place recently vacated by the Colonel and looked out the window to give the couple a moment's privacy.

  "I am sorry, Richard," Olivia said in a low voice, her eyes communicating all the love she felt for him at that moment. She started to say more, but Colonel Fitzwilliam put a finger to her lips. He kissed the tip of her nose and pressed the little box into her hand. The door closed behind him, and as if to echo Olivia's sadness, the Little Colonel sat by the door and whimpered.

  "And who might this be?" asked Elizabeth, who had turned around as soon as she heard the door close. She scooped up the puppy, which immediately applied his tongue to her face.

  "That," smiled Olivia, "Is a young protégé of the Colonel's." Olivia walked over to the settee and threw herself into it. Elizabeth put the dog down and joined her.

  "I am sorry for bursting in unannounced like that," Elizabeth said. "Your father assured me that--."

  "Oh, it is all right, Lizzy," Olivia said in a tone that made it obvious to her that it was not.

  "Did I interrupt something important?"

  "Only the most important moment of my life thus far," Olivia replied airily. She placed the box on the table and sighed. Elizabeth, curious, picked it up.

  "What is this?"

  "I do not know, and I will not know until the Colonel returns. It was his gift to me, along with the Little Colonel there, and him--."

  "The Little Colonel? That is a strange name for a dog," laughed Elizabeth. Olivia, however, was in poor humor. She was both concerned for her friend and frustrated that the Colonel had left again without proposing. She tried not to take it out on Elizabeth, but there was an edge to her voice as she repeated her original question.

  "What are you doing here a day early? And just how did you get here?" Elizabeth bowed her head, and smiled mischievously.

  "I ran away from home, Livy."

  "You did what?" Olivia stared at her friend incredulously.

  "I ran away. I packed a few things in a bag, casually walked into Meryton and caught the post. I had a little money saved up, and father had given me a sum to tide me over while I am in town. I just left a day earlier than I planned." Olivia, who had been slumped rather ungraciously on the settee, sat up.

  "Whatever for?" Tomorrow you could have ridden in comfort and safety and in my own carriage at no cost!" She looked her friend in the eye. "What has happened, Lizzy?"

  "Nothing has happened," she replied, slightly averting her gaze. "I just meant to see to it that nothing did."

  "You are trying to avoid Mr. Darcy!" Olivia accused.

  "How did you know that--of course, your Colonel told you of his visit to Mr. Bingley." Elizabeth sighed. "Yes. I am afraid I am not ready to face him just yet."

  "Why not? You have had nearly several weeks to prepare for this...."

  "I was preparing myself to face him at Jane's wedding, not before."

  "What difference does it make?" Olivia grew impatient; she could now empathize with the Colonel's frustration at the muddled state of things. Elizabeth raised her hands to her face, and Olivia grew ashamed of herself. She stood and picked up the box.

  "I do apologize, Lizzy. It is not every day that a man is on the verge of proposing marriage to me." Elizabeth rose and hugged her friend.

  "...And someone bursts in and ruins it? I am so sorry, Livy." The two ladies hugged for a moment, their eyes moist with tears. They pulled away and began laughing at themselves.

  "Well, we are a fine pair," Elizabeth said, wiping the corner of an eye. "One desperately awaiting a proposal of marriage and one desperately running from one." Olivia looked deeply into Elizabeth's eyes.

  "Do you think Mr. Darcy will propose again?"

  "I...I hope he will. I am just not certain that I will be able to accept him. That is why I came away from Hertfordshire. I cannot face him until I know."

  • • •

  Elizabeth's parents were not left frantic and wondering. Elizabeth had left a note on her father's desk in his library, and Mr. Bennet knew his Lizzy well enough not to panic. He sent an express to Mr. Crenshaw begging for a confirmation of her safe arrival. Mr. Bennet was worried about his favorite daughter. She had not been herself since the spring, when she returned home from her visit to the Collins'. He had attributed her mood to the unpleasant experience of living for six weeks under the same roof with Mr. Collins, and the revelations of a girl who had seen her close friend married and comfortably settled with no similar prospects for herself. But it was unlike Elizabeth to behave irresponsibly, especially since she had already planned to leave for London not twenty four hours later than the time she had run off. He had asked Mr. Crenshaw to have Elizabeth write to him, but Mr. Bennet felt certain that she would write to him as soon as she reached London, even without Mr. Crenshaw's prodding.

  Mrs. Bennet saw Elizabeth's disappearance as nothing short of a scandal. Her sisters Catherine and Lydia were rather inclined to see it as an adventure. Lydia began to spin plans of her own flight from the tedium of Hertfordshire until her parents, in a rare display of similar thought, effectively communicated to her that she would be disowned outright at the first sign of any such attempt.

  "It is bad enough that I shall have one daughter ruined; how shall I be able to show my face if I lose two daughters?" Her eldest daughter Jane and Mary, her third born, reminded their mother that Elizabeth was not on the path to ruin, but on the path to the home of a well-bred and fairly wealthy gentleman. "Well then, perhaps he will give a ball in Lizzy's honor, and he will introduce her to a wealthy young man of four or five thousand a year. I would not be displeased if she were to come home engaged, like you, Jane dear."

  Jane knew that her sister's best prospect for marriage was currently residing three miles away in Hertfordshire. She retired to her chambers early and lay awake half the night worrying about both Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. As early as possible the next morning, she made her way to Netherfield. She reached the great house as everyone was enjoying breakfast. Jane was shown into the morning room. The men rose to welcome her and Mr. Bingley invited Jane to partake of the meal. She declined, saying that she would not be staying and asked to speak with Mr. Bingley privately. He escorted her to the library to talk.

  "What is it, my love?" h
e asked, drawing her to a chair. "You look pale. Is something wrong?"

  "It is Lizzy. I am afraid--," she paused, realizing that she had begun in the middle. "When I left you yesterday afternoon, I went home to see Lizzy. You see she had been invited to visit a friend in London. I wanted to persuade her to stay, or at least to postpone her departure." Jane rose and fidgeted with a small East Indian artifact as she spoke. "After speaking with both Mr. Darcy and Lizzy yesterday I knew that they still loved each other. They just do not realize it--or at least Lizzy does not, Charles. I thought that, perhaps, if I could bring the two of them together...." Mr. Bingley nodded.

  "I admit I tried to convince Darcy to go to Longbourn, myself. He said he was not ready."

  "Lizzy said pretty much the same thing. Oh, Charles! I am afraid that I have ruined everything. Instead of bringing them together I have scared Lizzy away. She was meant to leave this morning. Olivia Crenshaw had arranged for her carriage to come for her, but instead Lizzy fled to London on the afternoon post chaise." Mr. Bingley was slightly shocked, but he was more concerned for his future sister's safety than her degrading mode of travel.

  "And are you certain that she has gone to the Crenshaws?" Jane shot him a look, but realized that it was a reasonable question.

  "Yes. Lizzy left a note. Father sent an express to Mr. Crenshaw and has already received word of her safe arrival." Mr. Bingley sighed in relief, and Jane sought the comfort of his embrace.

  "Well, at least she is safe. Now the only thing is: what do we tell Darcy?" Mr. Bingley murmured into Jane's hair. Jane looked into his eyes.

  "You will have to do that alone, I am afraid. Miss Crenshaw's coach will be arriving at Longbourn any minute now, and I mean to go to Lizzy in London."

  • • •

  In the morning room, Miss Bingley buttered her toast with an artful smile on her face. She looked at Mr. Darcy, who seemed to be lost in thought.