by E Bradshaw
Lydia and Kitty gave him quick curtsies in return and sweetly entreated him to return soon, though Elizabeth in comparison was grave and silent. Darcy risked a quick glance in her direction and realised at once that she was likewise embarrassed, but he was too desirous of escaping the awkwardness between them to wish to stay any longer. However, as he reached the doorway he paused, feeling that he could not leave without at least trying to explain himself a little more coherently. He knew that in his mixed feelings of overwhelming relief and anxiety he had snapped at Elizabeth as soon as she had entered the room – and he inwardly cursed himself for yet again causing friction between them.
“I’m sorry if you feel that my concern is intrusive, Miss Bennet,” he addressed her stiffly, “but as your father’s friend, I feel an obligation to ensure that his daughters are all well. Your uncle asked me to pay calls at Longbourn, since he could not be here himself, and so I feel a duty to watch over your safety. That is why I make it my business,” he added in a clipped tone, “but rest assured, I shall not interfere again.”
Darcy did not miss the way that Elizabeth blushed at this admonishment, but he felt too disordered to stay and listen to anything that she might have to say in return. Thus, he continued without giving her the opportunity to interject with any comment of her own. “I maintain that you should not walk around the countryside unaccompanied,” he added sternly. “There are some unscrupulous men about whom I would not wish for you to encounter – and especially not when you are on your own.” And with this said, he gave her a curt nod in farewell and swept out of the room.
Chapter 7
After his recent exchange of words with Elizabeth, Darcy was certain that he would not be welcome at Longbourn again, and thus he chose not to visit over the following few days. He was convinced at first that he was doing entirely the right thing, and in his misery over his failure he even contemplated giving up his quest to win Elizabeth’s good opinion and instead return to London. However, his conscience was pricked when he received a note from Mr Bennet three days later, with such words of kindness and concern, along with an earnest entreaty for him to visit again soon, that Darcy felt in all conscience that he could not refuse. He did not truly want to return to Longbourn; he dreaded encountering Elizabeth again, for he was certain that he would see open disdain in her expression – but nevertheless, he could not deny the older gentleman some company and comfort when he asked for it. Mr Bennet had become his friend over the last few days, Darcy realised, and thus he felt he owed the older gentleman more loyalty than to slink off to London without so much as a word of farewell.
Besides, he knew that Charles would never understand his reasons if he were to talk of returning to London, for ever since Darcy had made his confession in regards to Jane, Charles had been a consistent visitor at Longbourn. It was still far too early, of course, for any sort of open courtship with the eldest Miss Bennet, but it was nonetheless obvious to everyone that Charles still loved Jane and that he intended to ask for her hand as soon as the mourning period had been observed and decency allowed him to speak of marriage.[2] Thus, he had continued to visit Longbourn each day, leaving Darcy behind to kick his heels alone at Netherfield whilst he went off to enjoy the company of the Bennet ladies. Indeed, Darcy had begun to despise himself for his unsubtle eagerness whenever his friend finally returned home, for he was always impatient to discover any news from Longbourn, and he knew all too well that Charles had started to wonder about his odd behaviour.
Thus, in a strange sort of way, it was almost a relief when he received Mr Bennet’s note, for it finally gave him the ultimatum he needed to make him return to Longbourn and face Elizabeth again. In truth, he was in a turmoil of nerves about returning and encountering her again, and so, in wishing to avoid any further hesitation or time wasted in brooding over the situation, he immediately sent a note back to Mr Bennet telling him that he would call at Longbourn later that very evening. He both hoped for and feared seeing Elizabeth again, and thus his feelings were somewhat mixed when he was shown straight into Mr Bennet’s study, rather than into the sitting room, on first arriving at Longbourn. Nonetheless, much of his unease was quickly put to rest, for Mr Bennet seemed delighted to see him, and his kindness and tactful comments were so obvious that Darcy felt sure that the older gentleman must know something of what had passed several days before with his daughter.
Indeed, Mr Bennet had ordered his servants to bring food into his study so that the two of them could dine alone together, and so Darcy was spared from having any interaction with the ladies at all. He could not be certain how he felt about that – since he had braced himself for facing Elizabeth again and had even prepared a suitably calm apology to deliver to her – though it was clear that Mr Bennet was doing his best to make him feel comfortable in whatever way he could. Consequently, the two of them ate and drank in a casual fashion together whilst playing games of chess, and several hours passed before either of them realised what the time was and how late it had become.
In fact, when the two of them finally checked their pocket watches and realised how late the hour was, Darcy – much to his chagrin – also belatedly became aware that he had had far more to drink than was wise. Indeed, he stood up too quickly and Mr Bennet chuckled to see him wobble slightly where he stood.
“I thought all young men these days were of the fast set, living debauched lives of drinking and gambling – but I can see that you would struggle to keep up with such types!” chortled Mr Bennet. “You will never stay in your saddle if you try and ride home in that state! It would be far better if you were to stay here for the night instead.”
Darcy shook his head and opened his mouth to refuse – but he had no chance to do so before they were suddenly interrupted. The door to the study unexpectedly swung open, and before either of them could speak, they heard Elizabeth addressing her father in a tone of fond exasperation.
“Really, Papa,” she admonished in the moment before she saw them both, “it is far too late for you to be still up...”
However, she immediately stopped speaking on seeing Darcy, and her hand shot to her mouth in complete mortification. She froze on the spot and it was obvious to Darcy that she felt extremely embarrassed by their unexpected meeting. Her face flooded with colour, and for the moment it was clear that she could not think of anything else to say.
Darcy was dimly aware that he likewise said nothing in response to Elizabeth’s sudden appearance, and instead, to his utter consternation, he found himself staring rather stupidly at her. Even so, he simply couldn’t help it. She was a vision of loveliness, exactly like the fantasies which he had had of her so often – dressed only in her nightgown, with her long, dark hair spilling loose around her shoulders. Darcy was vaguely aware that his jaw had dropped open and that his mouth felt dry as he stared at her, but no matter how hard he tried, he could think of nothing suitable to say to greet her with.
It was Mr Bennet who finally broke the awkward silence between them; he looked back and forth between his daughter and his guest, and then laughed softly to himself. On hearing Mr Bennet’s mirth, both Darcy and Elizabeth abruptly started out of their distracted state and determinedly looked away from one another.
“You’ve come to scold your old father for staying up too late, is that it, Lizzy?” Mr Bennet asked in an amused tone. “And yet it is Mr Darcy who appears as if he’s been chastised, the poor man!”
Elizabeth finally found her tongue, though her words, when they came, emerged as a croak. “Good evening, Mr Darcy,” she murmured uncomfortably. She shifted her gaze uneasily from where it was fixed upon the carpet and then, after a quick glance at his face, hurriedly flicked her eyes back down again. “I’m so sorry for intruding; I had not realised that you were still here. I would never have dreamed of coming down if I had known –”
Darcy was just as uncomfortable as Elizabeth was, and in an effort to put her anxiety to rest – and feeling desperate to make up for the blatant way that he had
just stared at her – he found himself interrupting her to make a hasty apology. “Of course,” he stuttered, “I beg your pardon. I shall go at once; I should never have presumed to be here so long –”
“No,” interrupted Elizabeth awkwardly; “that it not what I meant.”
Mr Bennet finally took pity on the pair of them and interjected before either of them could become any more embarrassed than they already were. “You are quite right, Lizzy, my dear,” he commented good-naturedly. “Mr Darcy and I have been talking far too long this evening. It is all my fault, so you must not glower at the poor man for it!”
“Oh, I did not mean to –” began Elizabeth self-consciously.
“I have kept my unfortunate guest up long past the time when decent people are in their beds,” continued Mr Bennet; “and now, of course, it is far too late to rouse a servant to have his horse fetched from the stables. So there really is nothing else to be done about it; I have told Mr Darcy that he must stay here for the night.”
Although Darcy drew breath to argue with Mr Bennet’s declaration, he did not get the opportunity to voice any objection at all.
“And I will not take any polite nonsense from you, young man,” Mr Bennet added firmly; “you shall not turn down my hospitality. You have been a good friend to me – and I would not be able to rest this evening if I sent you from my house in your current state.”
Mr Bennet turned to address his daughter and comprehended in one swift glance how embarrassed she was. “Now, Lizzy,” he instructed kindly (though it was nevertheless an instruction); “will you be so good as to direct our guest to a spare bedroom for the evening? I know I can trust you to ensure that he has everything he needs.”
Leaving neither Darcy nor Elizabeth with any opportunity to refuse him, Mr Bennet then left them, decisively nodding his head at the two of them as he went. “Good night Mr Darcy, Lizzy,” he said. “I shall see you at breakfast.” And with this, he passed out of the study and made towards the stairs, leaving his daughter and guest standing awkwardly together and each desperately trying to appear more collected than they truly felt.
*****
Darcy could not imagine a more awkward situation than the one he now found himself in. He inwardly cursed himself for allowing such a situation to arise in the first place; for drinking too much and for allowing so much time to slip by without realising how late it had become. He kept his eyes firmly averted from Elizabeth, for he still felt awkward about the way in which he had first stared at her. It was even worse now that they were alone, for without a third person present to create conversation, the silence between them was absolute. Consequently, he almost flinched when Elizabeth finally spoke.
“If you would follow me, sir,” she said quietly, “then I will show you to a room.”
They proceeded up the stairs and hallways together in silence, with Elizabeth lighting the way with her candle. All else within the house was dark and hushed, giving Darcy the absurd feeling that he was engaging in something illicit; it almost felt as if he were sneaking around like a thief in the night, or that he was slinking into Elizabeth’s bedroom to seduce her under the cover of darkness. He forcefully tried to put such wicked thoughts out of his head, though he was painfully aware of everything about her – from the floral smell drifting from her hair, through to the way that her cotton nightgown alternatively billowed and pulled against the curves of her body as she walked. Twice he stumbled in the darkness, and each time he firmly reminded himself to focus his thoughts upon his feet, rather than on the entrancing sight before him.
Fortunately for Darcy, however, their journey was not a long one, and before long they reached their destination. At the end of the hallway Elizabeth opened a door to a room and silently beckoned him inside. Darcy followed her into the bedroom and took a quick look around. He had expected the room to be in darkness since he knew there were no servants around to prepare a guest room for him at such a late hour, but instead he saw that the room was already softly illuminated by a candle left burning by the bedside and by glowing embers in the fireplace.
With a frown of puzzlement, he looked around; he noticed that the sheets of the bed were already turned down and a half-read book had been laid aside on the bedside table. He glanced around the room further still, noticing assorted belongings and women’s clothes; clearly this room was not simply a guest room, but belonged to one of the women of the house. A suspicion formed in his mind as he looked towards the vanity table; he saw ribbons and a hairbrush scattered about on its surface, whilst a pair of abandoned stockings were draped over the nearby stool.
Darcy frowned again as he glanced at Elizabeth. “Where are we?” he asked in confusion.
Elizabeth looked uncomfortable, and it was obvious that she had misinterpreted his frown and his prolonged scrutiny around the room, for she hastened forward to put her candle down and began to tidy various things away. “This is my room,” she explained quickly, as she hastily snatched the stockings from his view; “I’m sorry it’s such a mess.” She kept her back to him as she hurriedly moved her things into order, though Darcy could plainly tell that she was embarrassed.
Nevertheless, he could not help but clarify what she had just told him. “Your room?” he asked with surprise in his tone. He knew very well that there were some women of the ton who would shamelessly scheme to catch a husband by arranging a compromising situation such as this – but he knew without a shadow of a doubt that Elizabeth was not of that ilk. After turning down an honourable offer of marriage from him so decisively as she had, she would hardly devise an underhand seduction in the dead of night in order to catch him.
“Yes,” answered Elizabeth somewhat defensively; “I know it is not what a gentleman of your standing is used to, Mr Darcy, but I thought that this room would be far more comfortable than our guest room, which is likely cold and a little damp without a fire having been lit in there. I’m sorry I could not provide you with anything better, but at least you will be warm in here.”
Darcy realised at once that he had offended her with his tone; he guessed that he had sounded ungrateful and disparaging, when actually he had just been surprised. Moreover, he felt ashamed that such thoughts of her having any sort of ulterior motive had even entered his head. “No, I beg your pardon,” he said quickly, “I did not mean to sound ungrateful. It is really very kind of you – but where will you sleep?”
Elizabeth glanced at him, her face flushed with colour. “I shall sleep with my sister,” she mumbled.
“I do not like to put you to such trouble,” murmured Darcy uncomfortably.
“It is no trouble,” responded Elizabeth quickly; “I have often shared a bed with my sister and Jane will not mind in the least.”
An awkward silence descended between them once more, and Elizabeth seemed to think it safer to concentrate on practicalities. “There is fresh drinking water in the jug over there,” she said, as she pointed to the vanity table, “and I will ask our maid to bring you hot water for washing in the morning. If there is anything else you want, then you only need to ask.”
“No, no, there is nothing else,” answered Darcy shortly.
Elizabeth nodded and seemed relieved that their awkward conversation was over. Quickly she gathered a bundle of her clothes to take with her, presumably to wear in the morning, and then she hastened towards the door. However, before she left she suddenly faltered and turned back to face him, as if she had resolved to say something else to him. Darcy’s attention was always unavoidably focussed upon Elizabeth, and thus he noticed her expression as she hesitantly bit her lip and steeled herself to speak. He watched her as she forced herself to look up and face him, and Darcy wondered what it was that she might have to say that was causing her such obvious trepidation.
“I wanted to apologise, sir, for my rudeness when we last spoke,” she finally said. “I had no right to speak to you in such a way, especially when you have been so kind to my father – and I realise now that your concern was kindly mea
nt.”
Darcy could not help but be surprised by her words, though he had no opportunity to speak for Elizabeth hurried on.
“My Uncle Phillips later told me what had happened in the public house that day,” she added quickly, “for one of his apprentices was also present and he witnessed the whole altercation – and so, of course, he relayed the entire incident to my uncle straight away.”
Rather than giving Darcy any sense of pleasure, the revelation that Elizabeth had heard about his violent behaviour at the inn instead filled him with shame. Consequently, he was not gracious in his response. “I am sorry that you came to learn of it,” he muttered grimly. “I had not wished for you to know.”
“I’m afraid that very few incidents can occur in a little town such as Meryton and escape public gossip, Mr Darcy,” Elizabeth answered him with a wry smile; “and especially not when the news concerns something as gripping as a brawl in a public house!”
Darcy frowned again. “Then my actions have been exaggerated,” he stated bluntly; “it was not a brawl but a small altercation.”
“I believe that you are too modest, sir,” contradicted Elizabeth, “for my uncle was very impressed by your intervention. In fact, he came that very afternoon to speak to my father about it, and then they gathered my sisters and me together to warn us to steer clear of any of the officers from the regiment. My uncle was very careful in what he said to us of the incident, but he mentioned something about the officers speaking improper, drunken words about us, and he said that you had stepped in to defend our honour.”
Elizabeth blushed and glanced away as she continued. “I can see now why you were so fierce with me when I returned home that afternoon and you learnt that I had been out walking on my own. I must have seemed very foolish to you.”