My Beginning With Mr. Darcy [Book Two]

by Lauren King

  “It is approximately 150 miles, Miss Elizabeth.” Darcy answers nicely as he smiles back charmingly, and then he addresses Mr. Hugh St. John. “Do you know Derbyshire, Mr. St. John?”

  “I do not know it well, sir. I would like to extend my congratulations on your betrothal, Mr. Darcy.” St. John says graciously.

  “Thank you, Mr. St. John.” Darcy replies politely.

  Dinner conversation continues between Darcy and Elizabeth and then with Mr. Brandon Morgan and the Gardiners. Darcy manages to squeeze Elizabeth’s hand quickly a couple of times when her hand is resting on the side of her lap. When dinner is over, the men and the ladies separate for half an hour; Elizabeth is worried that her Mother may say something unappealing without her Father present to rein her in.

  In the music room, Mrs. Morgan comes to sit near Jane, Elizabeth, Mrs. Bennet, and Mrs. Gardiner. She asks where Elizabeth had her wedding gown made and if there is anything left to be done for the celebrations.

  “Mrs. Stanton made my wedding gown, Mrs. Morgan. As for all the other details, Mr. Darcy and I have been fortunate to have Lady Matlock help us; we are finished with those details also.” Elizabeth answers amiably.

  “Ahh, that is right; I remember now. Lady Matlock is Mr. Darcy’s aunt. How superb it is to have such a lady assist you.” Mrs. Morgan states pleasantly.

  “Yes, she is very generous and kind to us; their families are very close. I was very glad to have her guidance and support; she is a treasure trove from which I can learn. She is a wonderful lady.” Elizabeth discloses genuinely and contentedly. She wants to praise her Aunt too, but she does not because it would sound awkward if she does not include her Mother.

  “Oh, I am sure she is a great person to learn from, Miss Elizabeth. Lady Matlock is highly regarded in the first circles.” Mrs. Morgan can tell that Elizabeth is honest with her praises. She turns to Jane and asks her if she would exhibit on the piano forte.

  “I am sorry, Mrs. Morgan; I am not proficient on the piano forte. I am more capable with embroidering, ma’am.” Jane replies shyly. She knows that it will be considered deficient for her not to be competent in some form of art, but her Mother never guided her into any of those art forms. Her Mother had said that Jane was so pretty already that she did not need to exert so much energy in practicing such endeavors. Her beauty alone would attract all the gentlemen’s attention. Jane can see now what a mistake it was for her Mother to raise her in that manner.

  Mrs. Bennet immediately interjects, “Oh, Mrs. Morgan, you should see the beautiful embroideries that Jane has made. Everyone that has seen them has complimented on the superb quality and their beauty. My Jane is very well versed in running the household too. She practically runs Longbourn, now. I am very proud of her. She knew it all ever since she was six and ten. All of our neighbors in Hertfordshire know how valuable Jane is to our family. She is a beautiful, dutiful daughter who will make a very fine wife for a very fortunate gentleman.” Mrs. Bennet beams proudly.

  Jane, Elizabeth, and Mrs. Gardiner sit there hoping and praying that Mrs. Bennet will stop her bragging so it does not get out of hand and become an embarrassment. Inwardly, Jane is discomfited from her Mother’s boasting. She knows that her accomplishments are not as notable as her Mother asserts them to be; she exclaims them as if they are the best achievements a girl could have. Jane has seen how impressed many people are of Elizabeth’s accomplishments with helping her Father run Longbourn, with speaking French, with being book-intelligent, with being very good at accounting and numbers, and with her singing. Jane is always complimented by others as being very pretty and kind.

  Mrs. Gardiner decides to intercept before her sister-in-law can become overly boastful. “I agree, sister; Jane is quite adept with running the household for you. She is well liked and admired by all who meet her.”

  “How very nice; I am certain that Miss Bennet can run a household very well.” Mrs. Morgan smiles at Mrs. Bennet and Mrs. Gardiner and then turns to ask Elizabeth, “Miss Elizabeth do you play?”

  “I sing adequately, ma’am.” Elizabeth replies straightforwardly.

  “Oh, you must perform, then. I get the feeling that you are being modest. Will you sing if I find someone to play the piano forte, Miss Elizabeth? Otherwise, I can accompany you.” Mrs. Morgan asks cheerfully.

  At this moment, Mrs. Crawford and her Mother arrive to greet Elizabeth and Jane. Introductions are made by Mrs. Morgan and greetings are conveyed by all. Afterwards, Mrs. Morgan asks Mrs. Crawford to accompany Miss Elizabeth on the piano forte so she can sing.

  “Oh…Mrs. Morgan, I am not certain if I will play well enough to showcase Miss Elizabeth’s talent.” Mrs. Crawford says demurely. She wonders how talented Miss Elizabeth is; Mr. Darcy would not be with a young lady that could embarrass him in any way, and if she has agreed to sing, then that must mean she sings well. She has heard of the illustrious Mr. Darcy, all these years. It looks like he finally chose a young lady. Mrs. Crawford has to admit that Miss Elizabeth is quite pretty just as is Miss Bennet. She is going to have to emphasize her inclination and desires to Morgan more, in order to try to get him on her side.

  “Diana, I have known you since you were a child; I know you are talented on the piano forte. Miss Elizabeth would you mind singing a song for us? Maybe you can choose a very simple song so that the both of you will not be overwhelmed.” Mrs. Morgan asks warmly.

  Elizabeth feels challenged as though if she does not perform, then she would be letting down her family and all that Mrs. Morgan will remember is that both eldest Bennet girls are incompetent in any form of art. She is emboldened by the thought to perform.

  “If it is not too much trouble for Mrs. Crawford to accompany me, then I will try my best to entertain everyone, Mrs. Morgan.” Elizabeth smiles agreeably.

  “Diana, will you entertain us with your talented skills on the piano forte?” Mrs. Morgan asks amiably.

  Mrs. Crawford’s Mother, Mrs. Everett, comfortably encourages her daughter to play the piano forte. “Diana, you should not refuse our hostess. We all know how accomplished you are on the piano forte, sweetheart.”

  At this moment the gentlemen come back into the drawing room and Mrs. Crawford looks up to see Morgan. Elizabeth sees that she smiles at the gentlemen’s direction and then responds that she will play the piano forte to accompany Elizabeth. The gentlemen disperse to their respective family as Elizabeth and Mrs. Crawford approach the piano forte to discuss what they will perform.

  Once everyone is settled, the performance begins. Elizabeth’s entire family, especially Darcy, watches proudly and delightedly at her performance. They all know how beautiful her voice is and how well she sings. Mrs. Crawford is adept with the piano forte just as Mrs. Everett and Mrs. Morgan claimed. They perform admirably together which is very surprising, indeed, especially with no prior practicing together.

  As everyone enjoys the performance, Jane discreetly observes Mr. Morgan a couple of times while he is gazing at the performers. Jane wonders what he is thinking. Jane had seen Mrs. Crawford agree to play for Elizabeth after Mrs. Crawford saw the gentlemen come back to join the ladies. Jane wonders if there is anything to that. There may not be anything on the side of Mr. Morgan as he has asserted to Jane, but Mrs. Crawford has been trying and is trying her best to show that she knows Mr. Morgan very well.

  That was what she had done throughout dinner when they sat next to each other. Mrs. Crawford spoke very comfortably with Mrs. Morgan during dinner. She included Mr. Morgan in all of her conversations and brought out their past to praise him and tease him playfully. Indeed, Mr. Morgan was a gentleman and responded good-humouredly each time. Mr. Morgan tried to bring Jane into the conversation, but it would only last a few minutes before something came up that only involved him and Mrs. Crawford, again. She laughed coyly and openly; once in a while, she leaned in towards Mr. Morgan and said something more privately for only him to hear. She was not blatant about how close she came to him; it was just enough to still lo
ok lady-like. Anyone observing could not fault her for being too forward given that she is a widow and is a longtime childhood friend of Mr. Morgan and his family.

  While Elizabeth sings, Darcy gazes at her with evident admiration. He is simply enchanted by Elizabeth’s alluring voice and beauty. He cannot say much else except that she is going to be his wife in three days. He does not care who admires her as long as they do it from afar and not display it blatantly or vulgarly. He cannot prohibit other men from admiring his betrothed, BUT he will not allow anything brash or ungentlemanly to be said or exhibited. Inconspicuously, Darcy can see that Mr. Hugh St. John is keenly observing Elizabeth sing. Mr. Hugh St. John does not take his eyes from her the entire time. As long as Mr. Hugh St. John does not insist on pursuing Elizabeth then Darcy will have to tolerate his admiration of her from afar. There are also other men observing Elizabeth; Darcy will have to bear it. He knows that she loves him, and she has shown him many times, thus he is confident of her love.

  At the end of their performance, both Elizabeth and Mrs. Crawford are given a generous applause by their audience. Elizabeth turns to Mrs. Crawford to thank her for accompanying her and doing an excellent job on the piano forte. In return, Mrs. Crawford smiles back politely and as they walk back to where they were before, Mrs. Crawford responds politely, “You are welcome, Miss Elizabeth.”

  “Miss Elizabeth, Diana, you both performed wonderfully. I knew you both were too modest.” Mrs. Morgan states genially.

  Both ladies thank Mrs. Morgan for her praises. The others also commend both performers and in turn are also thanked. Darcy comes to congratulate her on her excellent performance. The loving looks exchanged from these two could not be missed by anyone around them.

  Morgan comes over to applaud the ladies. “Miss Elizabeth, that was superb; I never knew how very well you sang. Darcy has been hiding your voice for himself, undoubtedly.” Morgan teases and then chuckles along with everyone else around them making Elizabeth slightly blush as she peeks over at William and then back to Mr. Morgan.

  “Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Morgan.” Elizabeth smiles cheerily but shyly, and then she turns to smile affectionately at William.

  Darcy flashes his proud smile for her as he gently pats her hand that is resting on the sofa arm. This warm exchange does not go unnoticed by the others; however, they cannot fault this betrothed couple for being in love. The exchange was loving, tasteful, and within the boundaries of an engaged couple who will be married in three days.

  Morgan continues cheerily, “Mrs. Crawford, your performance was skillful as I knew it would be.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Morgan; you are very kind.” Mrs. Crawford replies openly and with a joyous, bright smile. Then Mrs. Crawford good-naturedly asks, “Miss Bennet, do you also sing so well as your sister? It must run in the family.”

  “No, I do not sing, Mrs. Crawford.” Jane answers with a small smile.

  “You must play the piano forte well, then.” Mrs. Crawford continues.

  “No, I do not play the piano forte. You played expertly, Mrs. Crawford.” Jane praises honestly, but she is also trying to divert Mrs. Crawford’s attention away from her lack of artistic accomplishment.

  “Thank you, Miss Bennet. You must paint or draw very well, then.” Mrs. Crawford persists with a soft smile.

  Mrs. Crawford is trying to bring forth Miss Bennet’s accomplishment (or lack thereof) for Morgan to see and to discourage him from this alliance with Miss Bennet. Mrs. Crawford wants him for herself. For the past few weeks, she has been around Morgan more, and it brought back the tender feelings that she had for him when she was younger. She had always liked Morgan, but Morgan was at Oxford when she was out in her first season seven years ago. At the time, she had offers from several gentlemen, and she was afraid of not receiving any such offer from Morgan, even though she had hinted to him about her inclination towards him. Therefore, she accepted Mr. David Crawford at the end of her first season. Well, she is going to do her best to remind Morgan of how well they got along when they were younger and how good things can be now that both of them are available. She will wait for him if he needs to pursue his law career further. As long as she knows that she has him, then she will wait. She is not a maiden, but she is young enough to wait for him.

  “No, I do not draw or paint, Mrs. Crawford.” Jane replies frankly with a small, closed-lip smile; she is embarrassed, now.

  Mrs. Bennet quickly interjects. “Jane embroiders beautifully, Mrs. Crawford. You should see her work; it is fit for the finest shops on Bond Street. Lady Matlock has praised Jane’s work when she saw it. Jane’s work is praised by all throughout Hertfordshire.”

  Jane blushes with embarrassment. Elizabeth and Jane know exactly what Mrs. Crawford is doing; she is a sly person, indeed. This better confirms that Mr. Morgan may only think of his relationship with Mrs. Crawford as a childhood friendship, but Mrs. Crawford, evidently, feels more. An alternate possibility is that Mrs. Crawford may simply be envious or jealous of Jane. No matter what the reason, Mrs. Crawford is not a nice person, and Elizabeth will not forget what Mrs. Crawford is doing to Jane.

  Darcy also recognizes what Mrs. Crawford is doing by exposing Jane’s lack of accomplishments. He is displeased to know someone so petty and conniving. Darcy looks over at Morgan, and he sees that Morgan is bearing Mrs. Crawford’s comments, but he cannot say anything without looking ungentlemanly. Darcy can see the discreet silent look between Morgan and his Mother. Afterwards, Mrs. Morgan requests that Mrs. Crawford play another song for them. Mrs. Crawford agrees proudly as she moves to the piano forte.

  Morgan takes this opportunity to shift where he stands so that he stands right next to where Miss Bennet is sitting while his Mother moves across to the other sofa to sit next to Mrs. Everett. Elizabeth moves to Jane’s other side with Darcy standing next to Elizabeth. They effectively close Jane off so that when Mrs. Crawford comes back there is no way for her to converse with Jane again. Mrs. Gardiner also has figured out what is going on; consequently, she moves closer to her nieces’ front view.

  Mrs. Bennet is just happy that Mr. Morgan is standing close to Jane in front of everyone here. This should solidify their courtship with everyone without her having to do much. Now, Mrs. Bennet will move on to find two rich gentlemen for Mary and Kitty.

  When Mrs. Crawford’s performance is over, everyone, including Morgan, courteously commends her performance again. Immediately following that, Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner converse with Jane in soft voices to exclude anyone else from entering into their conversation. Elizabeth looks up at William and smiles, after which she asks him with a question. He comes closer to sit next to them to join in on their conversation. Mr. Morgan is also brought into the conversation which displays how close he is to this particular group; Mrs. Crawford surely sees this arrangement.

  Mrs. Morgan remains seated on her sofa with Mrs. Everett and Mrs. Crawford to converse with them. Mrs. Morgan keeps the ladies busy, especially Mrs. Crawford. Elizabeth can tell from her peripheral view that Mrs. Crawford looks over at them several times as if she wants to join them.

  At this point, Mr. Brandon Morgan announces that the card tables and game tables have been set up in the side room, and they await all the gentlemen. The ladies can continue to perform in the music room, converse in the drawing room, or join their gentlemen in the card room. Many of the people stand up to go to their chosen pursuit. Elizabeth and Jane remain seated with their gentlemen beside them while Mrs. Morgan, Mrs. Everett, Mrs. Crawford, Mrs. Bennet, and Mrs. Gardiner make their way to the card room. Elizabeth catches Mrs. Crawford glimpsing at Mr. Morgan before she turns to go with the other ladies.

  “Miss Elizabeth, would you care to join me in a game of chess?” Darcy asks smoothly.

  “Yes, I would like that, Mr. Darcy.” Elizabeth replies coyly. “I am determined to beat you one day, sir.”

  “Oh, I know how determined you can be when you make up your mind, Miss Elizabeth.” Darcy says charismatical
ly and then offers her his arm.

  Elizabeth gladly takes William’s arm and gives Jane one last glance before she goes off with William to the sitting room where a table is set up for chess – a quieter atmosphere for this particular game. This leaves Jane sitting alone with Mr. Morgan. There are several other matrons sitting on the sofa at the other end of the music room conversing.

  Jane and Mr. Morgan speak amiably and playfully for about a quarter of an hour before Mrs. Crawford approaches them and informs Mr. Morgan that his Father would like to see him in the card room.

  “I will keep Miss Bennet, entertained while you are away, Morgan.” Mrs. Crawford says easily. Her smile is bright and alluring.

  Morgan excuses himself quickly; he wishes to be back with Miss Bennet as soon as possible. He does not like that Mrs. Crawford will be speaking personally to Miss Bennet, but he has no reason not to report to his Father as requested. This is bad timing, again.

  Mrs. Crawford plans to make her intentions clear so that Miss Bennet will remove herself from this courtship with Morgan. As soon as Morgan steps out of the music room, Mrs. Crawford says, “Miss Bennet, I will get straight to the point. Do you know that you are not the best person for Mr. Morgan?” Mrs. Crawford is deceptively casual. She does not want to bring any unnecessary attention to them while she has this serious conversation with Miss Bennet.

  Jane is stunned at Mrs. Crawford’s query, so she is not able to voice an answer immediately. Jane continues to gaze at Mrs. Crawford with a pinched forehead because she is confused as to why Mrs. Crawford would make such a statement to her. Is this her opinion or has she heard something from Mr. Morgan? Their families are close with each other; perhaps Mrs. Crawford heard something from one of the Morgans.

  Mrs. Crawford looks directly at Jane and says, “I have known Morgan for twenty years, and I know that he does not highly regard ladies who are timid and helpless. Those young ladies of no accomplishment are not a benefit either. He likes to be stimulated intellectually. He likes a lady who can converse intelligently and who can do more than just look pretty. He wants true love in his relationship. He is a good gentleman, and if he has somehow, mistakenly, given a lady a sense of his word or his inclination, then he will not go back on his word. He will do the honorable thing and stay in that relationship even if he does not want to. He will feel obligated to do so even if he is miserable.” Mrs. Crawford pauses and then sighs before continuing.