"We will, Mama," said Lydia, answering for both of them, which was just as well, for Elizabeth was still too stunned to speak.
"Run along, Lydia, I just want a little word with Lizzy," said Mrs. Bennet. Once Lydia had gone, after bidding her mother an affectionate farewell, she went on, "I'm glad you will be there with her. Her lack of experience in society unsettles me dreadfully. I pray she will keep out of trouble."
"I'm sure she will, so you mustn't worry."
"I won't,” promised her mother. “As long as you assure me that whilst looking after Lydia, you do not neglect your own chances. I am convinced that if you are not stubbornly blind, you will discover the man who is just right for you."
Seeing the pleading light in Mrs. Bennet's eyes, Elizabeth gave her the assurance she craved and bent to kiss her goodbye. She was about to leave, when she heard her name spoken.
"Yes, Mama?"
"He's a fine man, my dear."
Elizabeth blushed, smiled uncertainly, and left the room without even asking her mother to whom she was referring.
****
"What do you suppose Darcy's sister will be like?" asked Lydia as they traveled. They had received a kind, welcoming letter from the young Georgiana Darcy, but it had given them no indication of what her state of health or habits might be. “What sort of girl do think Miss Darcy to be?” Lydia continued. “She seems pleasant in her letter, but I suspect she is much like her brother. Very proud.”
“He does have pride. Family pride, brotherly pride,” Elizabeth answered indignantly as she glanced out of the window.
He was riding alongside the carriage as their escort. He had arrived that morning, impeccably attired in a russet riding coat, buff breeches, and boots so shiny that one might have seen one's face in them. His strong presence was certainly a comfort, she thought as she leaned back against the cushion.
She had not yet had the opportunity to ask him about her necklace. When she had first seen it, her initial thought had been one of delight at seeing it again. Immediately following that had been the realization that Darcy must have paid a fortune for its repairs. She knew that she would have to confront him about it and offer to pay the sum back—though how that was ever to be accomplished was anyone's guess.
Whatever might happen on that score, however, she could not help but be touched by the delicacy with which he had returned the necklace. Mama was right; he was a fine man, and she was only just beginning to realize it.
A slight jolt in the road brought her out of her mood of abstraction. She glanced across at Lydia and saw that she was smiling.
"What is so amusing?" she asked defensively.
"Nothing!" replied Lydia not-so-innocently, the smile disappearing at once. "I was just thinking how fortunate we are that Darcy has lent us his carriage to travel in. Kitty will be so jealous!"
To this Elizabeth was obliged to agree. They were undoubtedly very comfortable in Darcy's well-sprung carriage.
As they finally drew closer to Ramsgate, the road started to climb, and Elizabeth found it very hard to contain her excitement.
"Really, Lizzy," said Lydia, with all the superiority of a girl of fifteen could muster, "anyone would think that you were a girl in her teens!"
“I feel like it," said Elizabeth, turning to her sister, her eyes shining. “I feel so . . . so,” she searched her mind for the right word and eventually simply whispered, "free."
Mrs. Younge lived in Lilley Place, and by the time they drew up outside her door at almost exactly half past eleven, even Lydia had abandoned her air of know-it-all, and both of them had been hard put to tear themselves away from the windows. Only the fear of appearing like yokels enabled them to retain some sense of decorum.
On their arrival, Darcy sprang down from his horse in order to hand them down from the carriage. Elizabeth, unaware of how much the excitement enhanced her complexion, turned a glowing face up to him as she thanked him. He looked at her with approval.
“Travel agrees with you, Miss Bennet," he remarked. "You are looking uncommonly well."
She could not help thinking the same thing about him, for the exercise had given his cheeks a healthy ruddiness, although naturally she did not say so.
The party was clearly expected, for the door was thrown open and they were ushered inside immediately by the butler. "Good morning, Sims," said Darcy. I hope I see you well?"
Thank you, sir I am very well indeed. I will inform that you have arrived safely with the young ladies."
They followed the butler across the neat, light hall and up the stairs to the drawing-room door, which he opened, after which he announced them all.
"Mr. Darcy!" cried a surprisingly youthful voice and, as they all entered the room, they saw Darcy being embraced by a lady who was clearly no older than their own mother. "This is wonderful indeed! I did not expect you until dinner-time! And you have brought my two welcome house-guests, who are going to charm me out of my ennui!"
"I'm sure they will do their best," replied Darcy, disentangling himself from her embrace. "But allow me to present them first. This is Miss Elizabeth Bennet and her sister, Miss Lydia Bennet. Ladies, allow me to introduce to you Mrs. Younge."
Elizabeth and Lydia made their curtsies and murmured something polite, but they were clearly looking somewhat bemused, for Mrs. Younge gave another of her very attractive tinkling laughs and said, "Oh, how shocking! Mr. Darcy has not told you anything about me, and you have been imagining me to be a very old lady! Do not deny it, for I can see it in your faces!"
Elizabeth could not help laughing. "You're very perceptive, ma'am," she said. "It is quite true that when Mr. Darcy asked us to come and bear his sister company, he gave us no indication that her companion would be so young and attractive."
"Mr. Darcy, she is delightful," cried Mrs. Younge, clapping her hands. "I can feel my ennui disappearing already! Come with me both of you, and I will show you to your rooms. Sims, ring for some wine, if you please. We shall be down directly."
Elizabeth and Lydia followed their hostess with a sense of pleasurable anticipation, for one happy word had caught the ear and the imagination of both of them and that word was "rooms". Could it really be true that they were to have a room each?
It could. Elizabeth was shown into a delightful room with blue curtains and bed hangings to match, and a thick carpet with not a single threadbare patch in sight. There was a communicating door between the two rooms, and no sooner had Mrs. Younge left them, than Lydia flew through the door, and the sisters embraced, exclaiming almost simultaneously, “A room each! How wonderful!"
“Lizzy, I just know that we are going to have a wonderful time here," breathed Lydia, her eyes shining. Elizabeth smiled back, and squeezed her sister's hands.
It did not take them long to tidy themselves up, and they soon returned to the drawing-room to join Darcy and his sister, Georgiana.
Despite being siblings, they were not at all alike. Darcy towered over his sister who was small and plump, with a head of golden curls, and cornflower-blue eyes. She was fashionably dressed in a pale-blue morning gown edged with lace.
After Darcy had poured tea for everyone, Mrs. Younge, said, "Mr. Darcy gave us no hint at all that you would be joining us so soon.”
“I am afraid that my brother can be something of a rogue,” smiled Georgiana.
A rogue! That was not a term that Elizabeth had ever thought of applying to the stoic Mr. Darcy!
"How shameful," laughed Elizabeth.
“It is indeed. But I must not abuse my brother, for he takes very good care of me and has come to my rescue on more than one occasion."
Elizabeth glanced across at Darcy. She had heard that Miss Darcy was proud like her brother, but in fact, she was actually quite shy. Though a little more than fifteen, she was graceful and sweet.
"Where are you staying, William?" went on his sister.
"At the Inn. I have commitments in London, and am not sure how long I shall stay."
"Wel
l, do not rush off. It is very agreeable to have a gentleman's escort, is it not, ladies?"
Lydia and Elizabeth readily agreed with Mrs. Younge.
That evening, Darcy dined with them, and a very pleasant evening they had of it. For the first time in a very long period, Elizabeth found herself able to enjoy the meal and the surroundings, without feeling in any way responsible for the arrangements. Mrs. Younge and Georgiana were both very careful not to indulge in prolonged conversations in which the sisters could not join, but from the remarks that passed between them from time to time, Elizabeth realized that they both inhabited a world in which she had hardly taken part.
She looked at Darcy seated at the head of the table, faultlessly turned out in the black and silver evening dress that he had worn once at Netherfield Park. He looked every inch the man of the world.
After dinner, Darcy declined to sit alone, and brought his glass of brandy through to the drawing-room, where Georgiana played for them on the pianoforte.
"She plays delightfully," remarked Elizabeth.
"Yes, I think she is most accomplished," replied Mrs. Younge. "And do you play, Miss Bennet?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "I am not at all accomplished," she replied smiling.
"Miss Bennet is too slighting of her own talents," said Darcy, surprising her. "Her gifts lie in taking the burdens from other people's shoulders."
Elizabeth looked at him for a long moment before blushing and looking away.
After Darcy had gone, and Lydia, pleading tiredness, had gone up to bed—to revel, Elizabeth was convinced, in having a room to herself—Mrs. Younge said to Elizabeth, "Pray don't go up just yet, Miss Bennet, unless you are really fatigued from your journey. I would like to talk to you for a little while."
To tell the truth, Elizabeth was not feeling at all tired. The adventure of coming to Ramsgate to a new situation had so stimulated her that she did not feel in the least bit exhausted, so she readily came to sit down next to her hostess.
"Ever since I knew that you would be coming I have been making plans,” went on Mrs. Younge confidentially. “I have no daughters to bring out, you see, so I am very much looking forward to taking you about and finding husbands for you both!"
"Not for me, ma'am," said Elizabeth, coloring. If anything could be done for Lydia, it would be wonderful, but . . ." She drew a breath. "We have no money, you see—and at any rate I would like to see all my sisters marry for affection."
Mrs. Younge waved her hand dismissively.
“That need not be a problem," she said. "Remember, you have lived very retired. Here in a wider society, you will find that people are not so ruled by a woman's age, or even by her lack of her portion, unless she allows it to be so. But whatever happens, my dear Miss Bennet, we shall certainly have fun!"
CHAPTER FIVE
The fun began the following day when Mrs. Younge declared that they would go shopping. It was a long time since Lydia and Elizabeth had browsed among the shops simply for pleasure. Their shopping usually consisted of buying essential articles in the village of Meryton.
On this occasion, however, they were to be doing a little more than just looking into the shop windows, or even observing Mrs. Younge spend her money without being able to spend any of their own. Elizabeth had retained the hundred pounds from her portion and was determined to use it wisely.
It could well be that Mrs. Younge was right about Ramsgate. It was smaller than London but with a society more varied than that which was to be found in their own area, and there might just be a chance to find a husband for Lydia, but Elizabeth knew that she was woefully ignorant concerning fashions and society ways. With these things in mind, she took her hostess on one side and explained their situation.
"Of course, my dear, I understand perfectly," said Mrs. Younge soothingly. "No one loves a bargain better than I and it is entirely true to say that if one strays out of the village center, one can often find something just as good for half the money!"
At first inclined to protest, Lydia allowed herself to be persuaded into having three new gowns: a walking dress in blue, a day dress in a paler shade, and an evening gown of white muslin. Elizabeth would only have purchased a single evening gown for herself, but Mrs. Younge strongly urged her to purchase more, for, as she said, "What is the good of Lydia going round looking fine, whilst you are standing next to her looking shabby?"
So, for Lydia's sake—or so Elizabeth told herself—she chose a walking dress in mint and an evening gown in primrose. With the addition of sundry other items, such as shawls, bonnets and gloves, all bought by Mrs. Younge's recommendation Lydia and Elizabeth felt as if they could hold up their heads in any company.
Later that day, as Elizabeth was helping Lydia to do up her gown, Georgiana appeared, followed by her companion who was carrying some material over her arm.
"Look what Mrs. Younge has found!" she exclaimed. "Her daughter left these behind when she got married, and I am sure that there is very little difference between her and Lydia! What do you think, Mrs. Younge?"
The older lady cast a knowledgeable eye over both of the sisters.
"Nothing at all between my Catherine and Miss Lydia, I'd say, dear," she replied. "But I'll need to take something off the length for Miss Elizabeth."
The girls tried to protest, but were quickly over-ruled.
"What do you think I should do with them if you don't have them?" asked their hostess.
“Now, say no more, for it is settled, and Mrs. Younge will do any alterations, will you not, Mrs. Younge?"
"With pleasure.”
"You must wear them tomorrow, for we are going to the assembly hall, and as you probably know already, that is the place to see and be seen. And we must also make sure that you sign the subscription books—every fashionable visitor does, you know."
Thanks to Mrs. Younge's skill, the Bennet sisters found themselves feeling very elegant the following day, Lydia in a pink round gown with a cross-over front, and Elizabeth in a green gown with a low square neck, which flustered her a little, until Mrs. Younge assured her that it was perfectly decent.
"You look quite charming, my dear," she declared. "Be quite certain that I would not tell you so if it were not true!"
When they arrived at the assembly hall and saw the quantities of elegant people strolling around the harbor, Elizabeth found herself agreeing with her hostess on the fashionable nature of the place. There were a number of sick and elderly people about, but, in general they were outnumbered by very healthy-looking individuals, most of whom were clearly there for the social benefits to be gained.
Elizabeth was very relieved to see that there were a number of women wearing gowns that were lower cut than the one she was wearing, so she stopped worrying about it and prepared to enjoy herself.
As soon as they arrived, Mrs. Younge began greeting people that she knew, and, moments later, Lydia exclaimed, "There is Mary King! I met her in London with Mrs. Gardiner. Do you mind if I go over and speak to her?"
Elizabeth shook her head, and was about to join Mrs. Younge, who was in conversation with an elderly woman in a great hooped skirt of a rich purple hue, when she saw Darcy approaching her, and she remembered that she had still not had an opportunity to speak to him about her necklace. Dressed in a green cloth coat and dull gold waistcoat, he looked as fine as any gentleman there.
"Good morning, Mr. Darcy," she said, curtsying politely in response to his elegant bow. She paused, then went on when he offered her his arm. "I think you cannot be unaware of what my grandmother's necklace means to me."
"Ah," said Darcy.
"You have been kind enough to see it repaired—at heaven knows what cost! How can I thank you. . . or repay you?"
He stopped walking, and laid his hand briefly upon hers before releasing it.
"I suggest you cease to trouble yourself with such thoughts," he replied. "It was my pleasure to restore it to its proper state."
"But the extra money—that must have been from
you, too. Mr. Darcy, I cannot. . ."
"Listen to me," he said in a serious and compelling tone. "Your family has been kindness to Mr. Bingley since he came to live at Netherfield Park. How could I withhold something which would help you and which was in my power to give?"
She did not reply at once, but eventually she murmured. "Such kindness deserves a reward, but I cannot give one without . . ."
"Enough,” he said firmly but kindly. "My acquaintance with you is sufficient a reward as any.” Seeing her worried look, he added. "You are still anxious, but it is not necessary.” He smiled wryly. "Call it an early bridal gift.”
"It will have to be repaid, for I shall not marry," she said matter-of-factly. Then she went on in a more moved tone. "But I am grateful to you for my mother's sake. The kindness with which you acted. . ." He made a disclaiming gesture, but said nothing. They walked together in silence for a while, then Elizabeth began again. “I owe another debt as well."
Darcy shook his head. "No more gratitude. I beg of you, Miss Bennet." he said laughing. “I find it far too wearing!"
"Just one more thing I must mention,” begged Elizabeth. "Sir, you know as well as I that your sister's companion is not ill. Lydia and I appear to be here chiefly for our own pleasure!”
He was silent for a moment.
"Very well then, Miss Bennet,” he declared eventually. "Since you are so intent on expressing your gratitude, there is a way in which you can show it to me. But perhaps,” he added provocatively, “you are not sincere in your profession."
She could not think what he might ask, so she replied, "Of course I am sincere. And certainly I am prepared to show my gratitude, as long as . . . that is . . ." Her voice faded away.
"Don't look so anxious, Miss Bennet," he said with a teasing note in his voice. His eyes had a twinkle that was decidedly playful. "Surely you do not think that I am about to ask for something improper!"
Encouraged by his tone, she answered him in like manner, "Certainly not here in the assembly hall, sir!" Why, he is flirting with me, she thought to herself. And what is more, why am I flirting with him?
The Ramsgate Affair Page 3