Unexpected Friends & Relations

by Jayne Bamber

  Georgiana thanked her for the compliment, when they were approached by Lydia Bennet, whom Georgiana had been endeavoring to avoid that afternoon. She had found Lydia’s company overwhelming and unpleasant in the extreme, since the earliest days of their acquaintance. How Lydia had plagued her at Pemberley, making everything into a competition between them, and taking every opportunity to embarrass poor William and Lizzy!

  Lydia appeared much changed since coming under Mrs. Sutton’s influence, but still Georgiana was wary as Lydia unceremoniously sat down beside Harriet on the divan, obliging the other two girls to scoot over and make room for her. Lydia sipped at a glass of champagne, striking a rather pretentious pose as she smiled at them, waiting to see if they would speak first.

  “Miss Lydia,” Harriet giggled. “How lucky you are to live here with my new sister! I suppose that makes us almost sisters ourselves. Are you enjoying the garden party?”

  “Of course I am,” Lydia purred. “After all, this is all for me. Caroline is very proud of me, and wished to show me off before all her friends.”

  Georgiana grimaced. Caroline had said at their family dinner that the reception was in Harriet’s honor, but then Lydia would not have known, as even Elizabeth considered her unfit to attend them there.

  Harriet seemed not to feel the insult, and assured Lydia she thought the garden party was everything lovely. “I have never been to such a fine picnic in all my life, I am sure. How happy you must be here with my sister! I know I am certainly happy my mother sent for me to come to London. Do you not love it?”

  Lydia smiled. “London is all well and good, I suppose, but we had quite a fine time at Mr. Darcy’s house over the winter, did we not, Georgiana? Pemberley is the grandest house in the world, Harriet; I hope someday you can see it. Of course, being Lady Catherine’s daughter and very rich, no doubt you shall be like me, and make friends wherever you go. I do not have a mighty fortune like you, but I could teach you a thing or two about making friends, I daresay. Surely it is something you need to learn, since your introduction to society is meant to make people gossip about you and your grand inheritance and mysterious origins, so that they will stop gossiping about Georgiana’s secret, is that not right?”

  “Wh-what,” Harriet sputtered, and glanced at Georgiana in confusion. “Georgiana, what does she mean?”

  Damn and blast! Georgiana had suspected Lydia’s apparent transformation was too good to be true, and so it was. Underneath her fine clothing and affected manners, she was still just as rotten as ever.

  “Yes,” Lydia continued, sipping at her champagne. “There were some fearful rumors going around Town about our perfect little cousin here, and just when we all thought she would be ruined, Lady Catherine sent for you to be brought to London, to give everyone something else to talk about. Well, I am sure it will not be so very bad, even if everybody is whispering about your illegitimacy behind your back. What should you care, for you are now rich as anything, and shall have all the fine gowns and jewels you could ever wish! Well, tra-la! It has been very pleasant to see you, but I am afraid as the guest of honor I must go and mingle.”

  Lydia fixed Georgiana with a deliberate glare of triumph before she tipped her glass to them and moved away to speak with the Miss Granthams. Beside her, Georgiana watched Harriet’s tranquility crumble.

  “Is it true,” Harriet whispered. “Did my mother only send for me to make a scandal? Oh, tell me it is not true!”

  Cursing Lydia internally, Georgiana gave a heavy sigh. She had hoped that she and Harriet might grow close enough that she could confide the truth someday, on her own terms. It was far too soon however, and Georgiana could see that this knowledge must be damaging to Harriet’s peace of mind, as well as their budding friendship. She could not even account for how Lydia had even become aware of their subterfuge – was their ruse truly so transparent?

  “I wanted to tell you,” she began, reaching for Harriet’s hand, but Harriet pulled away, moving further away from her on the divan. “Truly Harriet, I had meant to tell you, when I thought it right. Wretched Lydia only told you to hurt you, for she takes pleasure in inflicting pain on others. Selfish girl! Do not pay her any heed, I beg you!”

  Harriet looked crestfallen, and her voice trembled as she spoke. “It seems to me that if this is true, perhaps it is you who meant to hurt me… and even my mother.”

  “No, Harriet, you must not think so. Your mother loves you, and is happy to have you here with her!”

  “But she wished for people to know about me, to know that I am illegitimate, and gossip about my mysterious birth? Is that why everyone is being so very kind to me? Am I merely an object of curiosity and fodder for gossip? Are people laughing at me?”

  Georgiana began to fret and fidget, desperate to put her cousin at ease, though she knew there would be no putting it to right now. As disgusted as she was by the ways of the ton, the discovery must be even more shocking to poor, innocent Harriet, who was paying for her mistakes.

  “Heiresses are inherently interesting, Harriet, and newcomers to London society as well. You happen to be both; it is only natural that tongues would get to wagging about you. Lady Catherine merely decided to make the most of this by allowing the inevitable gossip about you to cover the horrible things being said about me, as a silver lining to the difficult situation.”

  “Silver lining,” Harriet scoffed, so indignant that she was actually shaking. “Is that what I am, a convenient solution to someone else’s problems? I was perfectly content as I was, in Highbury, and now I have been brought among strangers who are laughing and whispering behind my back, all because of you! What did you do, what are they saying about you, that I must be thrown to the wolves to save you? Good God, is that why you have been so nice to me, because you feel sorry for me, sorry for using me?”

  “No, it is not like that,” Georgiana assured her, gesturing that they must keep their voices down. “I like you very much, Harriet. It has been painful to know that my salvation has come at your expense, but the rumors about me were such that would destroy my reputation, and unfortunately it was absolutely necessary for your mother to act as she did to preserve me. But I promise, nothing is being said about you that would not have been said anyhow, for your circumstances are so very unusual. But just as the whispers about you have drowned out the gossip about me, I am sure it is only a matter of time before something else captures the ton’s interest, and you will be forgotten.”

  “Oh.” Georgiana watched Harriet struggle with her quandary, her brows furrowed in consternation as she struggled through a rapid succession of emotions. “I do not like this,” she said, her blonde curls bouncing as she shook her head. “Why did you not tell me the truth, why did you pretend to be my friend, to know nothing about what people are saying about me?”

  “Because I was embarrassed to have been the reason behind any discomfort you may experience in coming out into society. I am not proud of my involvement in the matter, and I have felt very sorry for you.”

  “You pity me,” Harriet moaned. “Better and better. I do not wish to be an object of pity to anybody, any more than an object of curiosity, like people gawking at the poor caged beasts in the menagerie. I wish to go home, I wish to go back to Highbury! I hate this!”

  “Please do not say such things. Just because your arrival in London was fortuitously timed to salvage the tatters of my reputation does not mean we do not care for you. Can you not see how happy your parents are to have you here? I am as well, I swear it. I really do wish to be your friend, if only you could forgive me. I swear I shall never keep secrets from you again, or do anything to make you uneasy. I should be your fiercest ally.”

  Harriet exhaled a shaky breath, still trembling. “If the gossip about my illegitimacy is covering up some rumor about you, I think I deserve to hear it.”

  Georgiana hesitated. Even though they were at some remove from the rest of the present company, she hardly dared speak of it at such a time, and she dreaded ho
w Harriet would surely scorn her once she knew the truth. Wringing her hands, she looked down at her lap and replied, “It is not my secret to tell, not entirely and if I were to speak of it, I am sure my brother would be very angry with me. Please Harriet, you shall simply have to trust me. It was the most dreadful business, and very painful for me, please do not force me to say.”

  Harriet looked away and shook her head again. “Either you do not trust me, or you do not care for me enough to be honest. I cannot like it, Georgiana. I do not know if we can be friends. I think I need to find my sister, to take me home.”

  “No, please,” Georgiana said, reaching for Harriet’s hand as she stood up to walk away. “That is just what Lydia intended, to upset you and make you unhappy, can you not see?”

  “Lydia has been honest with me where you have not. I think it is you who have made me unhappy, Georgiana. I am going to look for Kate and Cecily, I must go home.” Harriet quickly stalked away from her, hurrying toward Cecily and Kate, with whom she spoke in hushed whispers for a moment before Kate gave Elizabeth and Mary a parting embrace and led Harriet away from the party.

  8

  Harriet put on a brave face to greet her parents when she returned home, and made some feeble excuse to retire up to her room. She was entirely wretched, and paced her room in agony for she knew not how long. At length, there came a knock on her door, and Kate entered uninvited.

  “I brought you some hot cocoa,” she said with a commiserating smile. “Even a life of luxury is not always pleasant, you know, but I find nothing cheers me like a cup of hot cocoa.”

  Harriet tried to smile back at her new cousin, who set the mug down on Harriet’s bedside table and took a seat in a nearby chair. “Come and sit with me,” she continued. “We shall talk all about it, and I am certain you will feel better.”

  Harriet reflexively did as she was bid, sitting on one side of her bed as she sipped at the warm, creamy drink. She had to admit, it was delicious. “Thank you,” she said softly.

  “You are most welcome. You know, Lydia is not the easiest person in the world to get along with. She is my sister and even though we were very close growing up, I have not been blind to her selfishness and meanness of spirit when she does not get her way. She may boast about her new situation with Mrs. Sutton, but I know it is only because she is angry that she is not welcome at Darcy House, and her jealousy of Georgiana, and even of you, must have provoked her.”

  “I am not angry at Miss Lydia,” Harriet replied, and took another sip of her cocoa. “I suppose I should thank her for being honest with me, when others would not.”

  Kate responded with a rueful laugh. “It is a testament to the sweetness of your nature, Harriet, that you should think such a thing, but I can assure you Lydia does no one any favors but herself. If you think that Lydia has been kinder to you than Georgiana, I am sorry to say you have got it all wrong.”

  “But how? Georgiana lied to me, and Lydia told the truth.”

  Kate frowned, and screwed up her face. “Sometimes people can be honest for the wrong reasons, and deceitful for the right reasons. Last summer, there was a ball in my neighborhood. I meant to wear one of Lizzy’s dresses, a brown one with a plunging neckline, made of very fine silk. I felt beautiful in it, and Lizzy and Mary told me I looked very pretty indeed. Not Lydia – Lydia told me the color did not suit my complexion at all, in such hard language that I went from feeling very confident about my looks to feeling absolutely miserable, and was moved to change into another gown not quite so fine. I spent the rest of the evening feeling rather nervous about my appearance after Lydia’s remarks, even though my other sisters had been kind to me, and my enjoyment of the ball was lessened considerably. Had Lydia not spoken, I might have looked rather silly to others, but I would have felt much better being unaware how ill that shade of brown suited to me. And in the end, Lydia herself wore the brown silk gown and received a great many compliments on it. So you see, I would have been happier not knowing the truth, which Lydia only told me because it suited her selfish purpose.”

  “I see,” Harriet replied hesitantly. “But this is not just a gown, this is my life. Whether or not she meant to do harm, the truth still hurts.”

  “What truth,” Kate prompted her.

  “That my parents brought me here to London to parade me in front of the world with the intention of using me as fodder for gossip, so that this other gossip about Georgiana could be hushed up.”

  “I see,” Kate replied. “Tell me this, Harriet – if there was no rumor going about London regarding Georgiana, how would that affect you? How would your situation be different?”

  “Well, I do not know,” Harriet stammered.

  “There would be no difference. I do love London, but it is rather full of dreadful people, who shall always seek to put themselves forward by speaking ill of others. I daresay there was no possible way Lady Catherine and Sir Gerald could have brought you into their lives that did not give rise to the whispers of the ton. Surely you must see that.”

  “I suppose, but it is almost as though they wished for it to happen.”

  “No indeed! Of course they would not wish for such a thing. Your parents love you very much. They did not desire you to be the subject of so much talk, but they did recognize that it was inevitable, and decided to make the most of it.”

  Harriet frowned. “That is what Georgiana said.”

  “And she was right,” Kate exclaimed. “Your mother is really a clever woman, you know, turning a thing like that to her advantage. She knew there would be gossip about you, but she would not have brought you here if she were not certain of her own ability to protect you from the worst of it.”

  “Oh, I feel so stupid! I think I liked London better before I knew that I was to be the subject of so much curiosity.”

  Kate smiled and patted Harriet’s hand. “You only give strength to my argument, my dear. Georgiana was not wrong for keeping the truth from you, for you were happier before you knew how cruel society can be. The rest of your family would have shielded you from it if they could have, and you would have been the happier for not knowing anything about it.”

  “Happier, and yet so very foolish,” Harriet groaned. “If I am to be a laughingstock, I should at least prefer to be aware of it!”

  “You are far from a laughingstock! You are gentle and kind and good. Your company is charming and your enthusiasm for everything you encounter is genuinely delightful. Those who would whisper about you do so out of jealousy and ignorance, and you must accept the fact that you cannot change that.”

  “Georgiana did not accept that she was the subject of so much gossip. She and my mother contrived this scheme to preserve Georgiana’s peace of mind over my own. My mother chose her over me!” Harriet drew her hand away from Kate to cover her face as she burst into tears. “It is so unfair!”

  “What is unfair is what poor Georgiana Darcy has had to suffer. You cannot know, Harriet, how much worse it has been for her. You may not like to be an object of curiosity to others, but Georgiana has been an object of scorn and derision, and her reputation is very nearly ruined. You are far from ruined if the worst people are saying about you is that you are an heiress of questionable birth. These things may be true, but they shall not ruin you. Indeed, I daresay you are still far better off as an illegitimate heiress than a parlor boarder in the country, whereas Georgiana faces the possibility of a lifetime of disgrace, reduced from one of the most promising heiresses of the season to... well, I had better not say, but it was very bad indeed.”

  “Why will you not just tell me? If only Georgiana had told me the truth, I am sure I could forgive her!”

  “Do you need to know the truth? Can you not forgive her unless she reduces herself in your estimation, the way you are determined to diminish your own worth?”

  Harriet was taken aback by the sudden firmness in Kate’s voice, and was so startled that her tears ceased for a moment. She drew away, studying Kate’s face. There was compas
sion, and yet absolute resolution, as well.

  Kate pressed on. “Really, Harriet, I think that if you continue on like this, you do yourself no favors at all, and the Lydias of this world will triumph over you. You have a choice. Accept that you have unwillingly done a great service to a worthy member of your family who wants very much to be your friend, and hold your head up high as you face down society together, knowing that whatever they might say about you cannot change the fact that you have been given everything you ever dreamt of: wealth, security, family who love you, opportunities to improve yourself through culture and education – things that a great many young girls without parents would die for. Or, I suppose, you could continue wallowing in your own misery. Which is it to be?”

  With a trembling hand, Harriet reached for her cocoa once more, and took a long sip. She wondered what her mother would think to see her weeping thus. Would she think her ungrateful, or merely weak and pathetic? Realizing she did not wish to be either, Harriet slowly nodded.

  “You are right, I have let someone who cares nothing for me attempt to undermine my felicity and turn me against somebody who I believe really may be fond of me. I had thought that perhaps Georgiana was only so very kind to me because she felt guilty for profiting at my expense, but if you would defend her so stridently, I am sure she must be a good sort of person.”

  “She is,” Kate replied. “She is rather like you, I think, in that she is very gentle and meek, and the two of you might get along very well, especially considering how much you have in common. I would not wish to see Lydia spoil that for all the world. Let us speak no more about it, only promise you shall give her another chance.”

  “I shall,” Harriet replied.

  Georgiana called the following day to make amends, and by the end of the visit all was put right between them. Georgiana even offered to confide her great secret to Harriet, the mysterious thing that had caused so much gossip about her, but in the end Harriet decided she did not wish to hear it. Georgiana was much relieved at being spared the discomfort of speaking of whatever the great matter was, and Kate had declared this displayed a great strength of character in Harriet.