“Did you ever wonder if there was a hullabaloo when your grandmother married a Fitzwilliam, someone who was not of Norman stock?”
“I am sure any objections were mitigated by the fact that he was to be an earl, but I have never given it any thought.” The furrowed brow that revealed so much about what Mr. Darcy was thinking returned, and after many minutes of silence, he added, “Well, I imagine the Devereauxes would have thought their daughter, my grandmother, was marrying beneath her station as the first Earl Fitzwilliam was granted that title only in 1692, merely a few decades before their marriage.”
A smile appeared on Darcy’s face as he realized the implications of Elizabeth’s question. “The Devereaux line goes go back to Baron Guillaume D’Evreux, who was in the meadow at Runnymede in 1215 when King John signed the Magna Carta. To the Devereauxes, the Fitzwilliams were parvenus.”
Following that statement, the conversation reverted to those subjects that Mr. Darcy claimed to disdain. Apparently, his thoughts were elsewhere, and the best he could come up with was the number of couples who were in attendance at the ball.
While the Bennets and Gardiners waited for their carriages to be brought ’round, Mr. Darcy and Mr. Gardiner continued their discussion about coffee.
“I import coffee beans from around the world, Mr. Darcy, but to my mind, the best coffee comes from the Jamaican Highlands. It is grown in the shade, and because it is more difficult to harvest, it is rather expensive, but well worth it.”
“Do you sample the brews?”
“Definitely, sir, as it is I who bears the brunt of any displeasure from the retailers. Now, when you are in London, you must come to our home in Gracechurch Street. I have a whole cupboard reserved for nothing else.”
“I hope you are sincere, Mr. Gardiner, as I intend to take you up on your offer. I confess that I am fascinated by the whole process of a commodity from the far reaches of the globe ending up in my breakfast room.”
At that time, Jane walked over and, after taking hold of her uncle’s arm, invited the Darcys to dinner on Wednesday. “Uncle, we must allow our hosts to retire, and my father has expressed an interest in joining in your conversation. He has just now revealed that he often visited White’s Coffee House as a young man whenever he was in town. Mr. Bingley has already agreed to come, although, unfortunately, his sisters will not be able to join us. Hopefully, that will not be the case with Mr. Darcy and Miss Darcy.”
“I had planned to leave for London on Wednesday, Miss Bennet,” and then he looked at his sister, who was imploring him with her big eyes to accept the invitation.
“Mr. Darcy, if I may speak on Mr. Bennet’s behalf,” Mrs. Gardiner said, “in a house full of females with no interest in angling, you will save the poor man from having to listen to all of Mr. Gardiner’s fish tales—again.”
After agreeing to dinner at Longbourn, Darcy looked for Elizabeth, but she had already stepped out onto the portico. Because she believed she had seen the last of Mr. Darcy, an overwhelming sadness had settled on Lizzy. When Jane informed her that the Darcys were coming to dinner, it did little to lift her spirits. It would only delay the inevitable, and it was not possible to move forward if you remained weighted to the past.
Chapter 15
The following day, Georgiana and her brother took a long walk about the property, so that they might talk freely and without the constant interruption of Mr. Bingley’s sisters.
“I had a delightful time at the ball. I wore through my dance slippers,” Georgiana began.
“You always wear through your dance slippers. You buy them by the dozen, do you not?”
“No, I do not, but I think that is the perfect solution to my problem. I shall order them a dozen at a time in ten different colors and be done with it.”
Darcy turned around and started to walk backward. When she was a child, he had done this for her amusement, and he was in an excellent mood because he was very pleased with how she had performed in public.
“Will, you are not as good as you once were at walking backward. If you do not alter your course, you will walk right into a tree.”
“You are trying to make me look as you always did. But I shall not be tricked as I have previously reconnoitered this path in case of such an eventuality.” The two burst out laughing and resumed their stroll side by side.
“My dear sister, you were as charming and gracious as always, and you put a smile on more than one gentleman’s face, but most especially Mr. Short’s. The poor fellow was winded, but he stuck with you to the end.”
“It was a capital idea for Mr. Bingley to send to London for the musicians who had played at the Clermont ball, as the music was first rate. I also thought the ladies who exhibited were quite good, especially Miss King, who performed admirably on the pianoforte. Not as well as Miss Montford, of course, but then few are her equal. However, Miss Montford cannot sing.”
That was the first statement his sister had made about Miss Montford that could possibly be construed as being negative.
“But, of course, if you play three instruments, it would be unfair to expect such a person to also have an exceptional voice,” Georgiana continued, “and she does speak French and Italian. On the other hand, with the exception of attending the opera, Italian is not of much use, what with Napoleon’s brother-in-law and sister sitting on the throne of Naples. I mean, no one is going to the Italian peninsula any time soon.”
Darcy continued to say nothing, but it was clear Miss Montford’s pedestal had a crack in it.
“And there were so many fine-looking ladies at the ball. Miss Cross and Miss Maria Lucas are very attractive, and, of course, Miss Bennet is perfectly lovely as is her sister, Elizabeth. Miss Elizabeth’s face is not symmetrical, but then neither is mine nor is Miss Montford’s, whose nose points slightly to the right.”
After hearing the comment about Miss Montford’s nose, Darcy visualized a huge chunk of stone crashing to the ground. If this conversation went on much longer, Miss Montford might find herself without any pedestal at all.
“But what is most important to me is how much a person smiles, and there were so many happy faces at the ball. It shows a
“Ladies in the country tend to smile more and laugh more freely than ladies in town. I believe Mrs. Quilling cautioned you that a smile by an unmarried young lady is subject to misinterpretation, and one must be cautious. There are few families in the country who have the resources to hire governesses, and as a result, these young ladies do not have the benefit of their wisdom.” A vision of a demure Miss Montford, with her controlled half smiles, appeared before him, as did Elizabeth Bennet, whose smiles were open and contagious.
“That is why I love being in the country. I am so very eager to go to Pemberley.”
“As you know, Georgiana, I have business in town. Any plans for Pemberley will be discussed once we are in London.”
After a day’s rest following the ball, Lizzy’s usual good humor returned. She was not one to brood or pine or cry into her pillow, and so she decided to look to that evening’s supper as an opportunity to get to know Miss Darcy a little better without having to step over the flowers that the Bingley sisters laid at her feet.
Lizzy also used the dinner to get to know her future brother-in-law. She found Charles to be a delightful man, full of good humor, and perfectly suited to her sister, but he would not have done for her at all. There was no edge to him whatsoever, and although she liked a sunny day as much as the next person, life would be rather dull if it did not rain occasionally. She needed to find a man with more complexity than Charles Bingley, someone like Mr. Darcy, but available.
After supper, everyone went into the parlor to play a few rounds of whist. Miss Darcy sat at Lizzy’s table and gave glowing reports of just about everything she had seen or heard or tasted since coming to the country.
“After being in town for less than a week, I was surprised when my brother told me of his plans to return to
