by C. J. Hill
Even more unfortunately for Jardine, the Bingley sisters continued to be very attentive, showing great concern for their young charge by taking their responsibilities seriously, introducing her to all of their friends, and insisting that she accompany them to whatever function promised to be the most entertaining. It was a never-ending battle for who should win her company each day.
The Bingley sisters also took it upon themselves as experienced women of the world to advise Georgiana constantly on the attributes, or lack thereof, of the gentlemen to whom she had been introduced.
Mr. Jardine, they agreed, was not very suitable.
Caroline Bingley sat in her morning room taking coffee with her sister and Georgiana one day, and advised:
"Do not attach yourself to him, my dear. He may be very amusing and somewhat charming, I suppose, and his fortune is not to be discounted, but he is not someone of whom you would wish to become too fond. He is not quite what he appears, my dear, even though he has managed to refrain from such activities recently whilst in your company. I am sorry to have to be the bearer of bad news but he is well known to be an inveterate gambler! It is quite shocking, I know, and I pity you, Georgiana, for this discovery of your favourite's guilt, but I have it on the highest authority. Any woman who marries him would lose everything in one night if she were not careful."
Georgiana, while truly shocked at this revelation, gathered her composure quickly enough to reassure her companions. "I do not consider Mr. Jardine to be my favourite at all, Miss Bingley. He is, as you say, most attentive and entertaining but he is certainly not someone whom I would consider marrying - even if I was considering such a serious commitment - which I am not. You may both dismiss that notion. But all young men gamble a little for entertainment do not they, Miss Bingley? And he has not shown it to be an obsession - clearly he does not need to gamble every night since he has refrained from it whilst in my company."
Mrs. Hurst broke in drily. "It is true that every man has some vice or other, my dear, many of which we do not discover until too late, but take my sister's warning as it is meant. She does not mean to denigrate Mr. Jardine, but only to kindly warn you about him before it is too late. There is nothing worse than discovering a fault after the wedding that was clear to everyone but no one thought, or dared, to mention. But, regardless of your interest, or lack thereof in Mr. Jardine, you are not in any serious danger; your brother would certainly not approve of him."
Georgiana reflected quietly as she drank her coffee. Mr. Hurst, she had noticed, was frequently inebriated regardless of the hour of day or night. That Mrs. Hurst could endure such a husband showed an admirable and commendable fortitude but, of course, she had her sister as her constant companion which seemed to relieve her solitude brought on by her husband's neglect, and, from her comment, Georgiana supposed that there had not been any warnings given before her marriage and it was to this that the lady alluded.
"I thank you for your friendly concern, ladies, and I shall bear your advice in mind. But, as I have said, I am not considering marriage to anybody in the immediate future, and, even if I were, as you so rightly point out, my brother must approve my choice; he would not agree to the marriage if what you say is correct. I am fortunate to be so well protected by him and by you."
Caroline nodded and then looked sideways at her sister announcing, "Our brother, Charles, is arriving in London in two days to attend to some business. He is a very delightful and amusing companion and wishes to be remembered to you, even though you have not seen him since you were quite young. He will stay for several weeks we think, do not we, Louisa?"
"Oh, yes, indeed we hope that will be the case. Since our poor father's death Charles has been kept very busy making sense of the business affairs over which he now has control, but we always enjoy his company when he can afford the time. You will find him quite charming, Georgiana, I assure you."
"And, of course, he is your brother's most faithful friend," added Caroline, "and quite relies upon Mr. Darcy to advise him in everything, as well he might, given your brother’s experience regarding the Pemberley Estate and all that entails; Charles could ask for no better assistance and advice than that which your brother can offer. We all admire Mr. Darcy greatly, do not we Louisa?"
Louisa smiled slyly at her sister. "Indeed we do, Caroline! But some of us a great deal more than others, perhaps?"
Caroline sniffed indignantly and glared at her sister, quickly changing the conversation to the prospects on offer for that evening's entertainment and her plans for their brother's arrival.
Charles Bingley certainly was the epitome of a gentleman and a very welcome addition to the social circle which had so begun to wear upon Georgiana. She remembered him slightly from her childhood and his occasional visits to Pemberley, but had never imagined him to be so handsome, agreeable and diverting. He quite challenged Wickham in every area of attraction, and over-shadowed anything that Jardine could manage; Georgiana found herself entirely caught up in his allure. His attention to her at every occasion, maneuvering Jardine from centre stage with the greatest ease and feigned innocence, was gratifying; she became more and more flattered, and his attentions were something to which she began to look forward every evening. Jardine was soon convinced to leave off entirely in the face of such an adversary, and, similarly, Wickham and all other interested suitors. They understood they were nothing to her when Bingley was in the room, or the park, or the theatre!
Bingley, for his part, merely thought Georgiana a delightful girl; a credit to his friend's attention to her education and upbringing since the death of their parents. He considered it only fitting that he should attend to Darcy's sister and entertain her as well as he could, and since she was now such a great friend of his own sisters, he found himself in her company a great deal. She spoke intelligently, played the pianoforte admirably and displayed such knowledge of arts and languages as might cast some doubt upon his own sisters' education if there should ever be occasion to test each against the other.
But she also appeared modest, quiet, and reserved, not wishing to bring any undue attention to herself if it could be at all avoided, and this Bingley found was her most attractive quality: a gentle soul who cared little for the noise and ostentation of the London crowd; someone with whom he could speak without the necessity of impressing her with witty comments or fantastical stories. He saw a great deal of his friend's best qualities reflected in the sister and was agreeably impressed by her.
Caroline watched what she supposed to be the developing mutual attraction with great satisfaction. If her brother should gain Georgiana's affection, and their families be united by marriage, a very close acquaintance between other members of each family would be unavoidable; her own influence over Darcy even more effective! Caroline dreamed of marital felicity not only for her brother during his stay with them.
Unfortunately, only two weeks into his visit, those dreams were dashed severely when, happening upon Charles in the morning room going over some papers, she sat down and enquired about his impressions of Georgiana. She was confident of his answer and perfectly ready to offer her congratulations.
"She is a delightful young girl, I think, a testament to her brother's care over her development, and I am glad you and Louisa have taken such pains to get to know her and keep her safe and amused during her time in London. Darcy will be most grateful for your attention to his sister, I assure you."
"Oh! It has been very little trouble, Charles. She is such a charming and easily-pleased young person that we have enjoyed our role. She did seem quite relieved when we arrived after her short interactions with the Stantons - they were not such amusing companions, I believe. But they do know Darcy slightly and were selfless in offering their protection for Georgiana upon her arrival; they must be commended for that. But I think she feels more at home with us, almost like family, do not you think, Charles?"
Bingley smiled distractedly at his sister and agreed. "Indeed! She is quite like a third sister to
me. Although rather quieter and less opinionated than my two older ones. She will turn into a very pleasant young lady in a few years, I have no doubt; indeed, she is well on her way to being so already and I must commend Darcy when next I see him - which I must do very soon on a very pressing matter of business. He will know which way I should proceed." He turned back to his papers, frowning, understanding that the conversation was at an end.
Caroline looked shocked.
"A third sister, Charles? Surely not! You have paid her more attention than to any other lady I have ever seen you with. You have purposefully sought her out every evening and devoted hours to her entertainment. An attention, I must point out, in which she appears most interested. Even her other suitors, including Jardine, who until now has been quite tenacious, have given her up as completely spoken for. And now you say all you feel towards her is a sibling’s affection?"
Bingley slowly turned back to his sister, realising the import of her words; frowning, he looked at her quizzically for a moment.
"It was never my intention to deceive any person about the level of my affection for Miss Darcy, Caroline. Perhaps I have commandeered too much of her company in the past weeks but only because she is such a young girl and needed my protection from other gentlemen in attendance. That Jardine, in particular, does not have a worthy reputation, you know, whatever his fortune may be. And there are some others from whom I wished to distance her. It would be better if she was not always out in such company and returned to Pemberley as soon as possible; she is still too young to be considering marriage to anybody – but most especially with me. I have no interest in marriage yet, I assure you. I have far too many responsibilities to even consider such thoughts. Oh! Do not tell me that she believes there is any serious interest on my part, sister?" he begged.
"Charles! What can you be thinking? Of course that is what she believes, and why would not she? Your behaviour and attentions towards Georgiana suggest an announcement is to be made very soon; everybody expects it. She may be young, but she is of age and a very eligible young lady as evidenced by the great interest that has been paid to her ever since she arrived in London. We were having trouble rebuffing all of the gentlemen who wanted to know her better - Jardine was one of many, I assure you. Even Darcy's old playmate, Wickham, was unfortunately constantly in her company and she seemed most taken with him due to their previous connection. Everybody has now conceded to your status, as friend to her brother, but they would not have done so if they had known the true nature of your feelings for her. Oh! How am I gently to impart this disappointing news to her?"
Charles was utterly astonished. That his solicitous actions could have been construed as this! He was aware that in the past he very often had thought himself in love because a young lady had captured his attention to a certain degree, but he had learnt that those feelings were fleeting and not to be taken seriously. Indeed, he had decided to ignore all such attractions until he was absolutely certain of his feelings for the lady in question, and his sisters and friends agreed that those feelings were genuine and approved his choice. But to think that he had convinced an innocent young girl to feel affection for him without any knowledge of doing so was an entirely different matter. And Georgiana Darcy was certainly not a person he would ever wish to deceive, however unwittingly.
"But what can be done, Caroline? I had no notion that I was causing such a depth of feeling in Miss Darcy! Oh! What will she think of me - I, who only wished to protect her from other predatory males, have now been cast as one of them. It is mortifying indeed. You must do something to reverse her opinion of me, Caroline, or I shall be forced, as a gentleman, to ask for her hand."
Caroline looked at her brother with a mixture of irritation and benevolence; this was not the first time he had found himself in trouble due to his overly-sympathetic attentions to impressionable young ladies. He could not help his kind nature and handsome features but it had grieved her more than once that her brother should have inherited only pleasant and attractive features and she should have inherited none.
"I know you did not intend to mislead Georgiana, Charles, - you never do! But she is quite taken with you, I know, and it will come as a terrible blow to her pride when she learns of your indifference, even though she has so recently assured both Louisa and me of her intentions of remaining unmarried for a while yet. I believe that should you ask her, her response would be 'yes' regardless of those intentions."
Charles groaned. "Then I must leave London tomorrow; I can visit Darcy at Pemberley before I return home rather than wait for his arrival in London. I cannot remain here where I have inadvertently caused such pain. You must do what you can but, if all seems irreversible, inform me and I will return to honour my unwitting commitment. Should I inform Darcy of the situation, do you think, sister?"
"I can see no reason for it, Charles. Once she is acquainted with the facts of the matter, I am sure, firstly, that she will cast you from her adolescent affections without delay and, secondly, she will want as few persons to know of her foolishness as possible, especially her brother. She would be quite humiliated."
"Oh, I do pray that you are right, sister - not that marriage to her would be unpleasant, of that I am sure. But what shall you tell her, Caroline? You must be unusually kind - none of your usual blunt, business-like manner, if you please. You must inform her gently and kindly the truth of the matter, and assure her that I am entirely to blame, and that I deserve and accept whatever insults she wishes to use against me."
Caroline smiled. "I doubt that she would rail against you in front of your sister! She will be hurt, most certainly, but the hurt will be only to her pride rather than her heart, I suspect. Her accusations and anger towards you will be confined to the privacy of her chamber; she is too much the lady to display those emotions in public. You are safe from the emotional rantings of a scorned woman, at least."
Caroline did not have long to wait before she had to impart her news; only hours after her brother had departed from London, she was paid a visit by the lady in question accompanied by her companion. Georgiana and Mrs. Younge had been enjoying a walk through the Park and had called quite unexpectedly. After the preliminaries of tea and cake had been dispensed with, Georgiana settled herself and enquired about their activities for the evening; she was rather hoping to have Mr. Bingley all to herself once again and was visibly disappointed when informed that he had left that very morning on business.
"These men are always flying about, are not they, Mrs. Younge?" queried Caroline, eager to involve the woman in the conversation, knowing its probable outcome as she did. "Always busy with secret affairs with which we women are never involved nor understand. How tiresome it all is; just when we are used to having a four for cards, once again, we are light on players."
Julia smiled in acknowledgement but refrained from observing that she was more than vaguely aware of the claims business could have upon such a person - male or female - rather wishing she was able to drop everything when necessary to attend to her own businesses. Her reticence was unnecessary.
"Oh, Mrs. Younge does indeed understand business, Miss Bingley. She has several of her own that she manages, left to her by her late husband." Georgiana giggled. "What do you think of that?"
What she thought of that caused Caroline to slightly recoil away from where Mrs. Younge was sitting and to regard her with a frosty eye.
"Indeed? Then you must be a very busy woman, Mrs. Younge, acting as companion to my friend and concerned with other businesses besides. Tell me: how is it all fitted in, I wonder?"
Julia smiled quietly and assured Miss Bingley that her concern was unnecessary; all was quite well-taken care of by managers and she was very happy to be able to spend her time accompanying Miss Darcy. “It is, after all, a situation of short duration and we get along quite well, I think."
Georgiana smiled and agreed. "Of course we do! I could not do without you here in London, Mrs. Younge. And it is so interesting to think that you
are quite independent, where we are all so dependent upon men for our fortunes and futures! Sometimes I quite envy you your freedom, but I know, of course, that you must have worked hard and suffered to reach that independence. I do not think Miss Bingley nor I would have been able to withstand such trials."
Caroline shifted uncomfortably at the mention of men and futures and suffering, and decided that she must broach the unfortunate subject immediately before her guests took it upon themselves to leave.
"Yes, well, I am sure that I have no need of a husband if I do not want one, as do not you, Georgiana. We all would like to have a husband eventually, perhaps, if only not always to be under the direction of our brothers or fathers. As I mentioned, Mr. Bingley has removed from London without any indication of his intended return, and so I am afraid that you will not have the pleasure of his company to which you have become so accustomed, Georgiana. He has really been most attentive to you, has he not, these past weeks? Quite pushing every other gentleman out of the way. He is a most protective brother, as is your own, Georgiana, and takes his responsibilities very seriously indeed. He sincerely wished to protect you from the many unsuitable admirers he noticed gathering about you, as would your brother have done, and he is such a thoughtful and kind person that his main worry this morning about his leaving was that, during his absence, they would once again prove troublesome."
"Oh! I see!" Georgiana allowed the words to sink into her consciousness and finally realised the truth at which her friend was hinting. "And I am very grateful to Mr. Bingley for his protection, of course I am. He has saved me a world of bother and unpleasant discussions with persons in whom I should never have taken any interest. I hope he travels safely; please give him my warmest regards when next you write to him, Miss Bingley. Mrs. Younge: I believe we must leave before it gets too late. Thank you, Miss Bingley, for the delicious tea; we shall see you again very soon, I hope. Please give my good wishes to Mr. and Mrs. Hurst."