Page 11 of The Widower of Pemberley

“He said you were immoral.” Mrs. Bennet shook her head. “Why would you think he might be in love with you?”

“We are joking,” Elizabeth said hurriedly. She didnotwish her mother to imagine that she had hopes from Mr. Darcy.

Her mother replied, “Oh, Lizzy, you do joke so. Too much like your father.”

“A woman’s reputation,” Mary said, “is of the greatest importance. Any stain upon it cannot be wiped away, no matter what the future may bring. We must always be careful to never permit a hint of scandal to touch us. That this Mr. Darcy suggested you would engage in immoral behaviour, without any cause, suggests that he has poor judgment and poor morals himself.”

Elizabeth laughed. “A poor disappointed man. And what is more, he is clearly sad.”

“Yes,” Charlotte said. “I heard definite information that his wife had engaged in an intrigue, and for that reason he locked her in her rooms for a week before her death.”

Elizabeth said, “I wonder what his character and temperament would be if he was not suffering from such a disappointment.”

“He is a terrible man.” That was Mrs. Bennet’s pronouncement. “He refused to dance with you, and he was rude to Charlotte.”

“Hewasrude to me,” Charlotte said. “But men in general are not to my liking, so I do not mindthatso very much. An odd man. I can hardly guess what he was about asking me to dance a second time.”

“Hmph, well if you do not mind a man calling you ugly, that is your prerogative,” Mrs. Bennet stated.

Elizabeth thought her mother was more than a little annoyed that Charlotte had enjoyed two sets with the richer of the two single gentlemen, while her daughters collectively could boast only the one set that Elizabeth had danced with Mr. Bingley.

Chapter Three

It would have surprised Elizabeth, and disappointed her, if she had known that following his loud declaration that she was too pretty to have a good character, the handsome Mr. Darcy had begun to hold a suspicion that she was in fact of a virtuous and admirable nature.

This unromantic notion was first suggested to Mr. Darcy by his own sense of justice.

He was a disappointed man. He knew he was likely to judge severely any woman whose look and manner enticed him, and he knew that was not fair.

Miss Elizabeth and Mary were both women with dark coloration, of less than average height, with enthusiastic and clever manners.

Mary’s tendency to flirtation, her quick wit, her delight in conversation, and her ability to look at Darcy with those wide dark eyes and suddenly take everything he said with complete seriousness—while yet finding a way to laugh about the matter—had drawn him to her. That his mother had been keen for the match to occur, and that she was exceedingly rich and lovely, had in no way reduced the interest.

Yes, vanity had played its part.

Possessing Mary made Darcy’s friends even more envious of him than they had been before. And he knew that. And it had encouraged him to not think twice.

A fool.

Darcy had dismissed the signs that their characters were dissimilar. He had instead busied himself with enjoying the flutterings of stomach and heart which her piercing glances gave him.

Yes, Darcy had known enough to tell him that he should have feared to tread. She made cleverly worded jokes about adulterers and drunkards. She laughed at the misfortune of a servant dismissed for lewd behaviour. She often spoke about how marriage was generally a mistake. She spoke slightingly of religion, the church, the clergy, and even the Crown. While sometimes she was governed by generous and concerned impulses, she also delighted in vicious jokes.

Mary seldom attended church.

Darcy wished to believe that he would not have married Mary if he had been more experienced and observant.

He had no reason to think that Miss Elizabeth Bennet had the combination of imprudence and lack of moral principle that had characterised Mary. It was Darcy’s duty, as a sensible and thinking man, to judge her upon her own merits and not upon the faults of his former wife.

The next time he saw Miss Elizabeth, the elder Miss Bennet was also present.

Miss Elizabeth closely attended her sister, hands always busy and with concern for the blind woman on her face. She made sure that Miss Bennet was comfortable, she supplied her with cushions and food, and she surrounded her with persons happy to converse with her. Miss Elizabeth jumped away from her own conversation to help Miss Bennet whenever her sister needed to be guided.

This sincere care for the unfortunate made it impossible for even Darcy’s present disinclination to like anyone or anything todefeat his better self. Miss Elizabeth seemed to be a very good sort of creature, and quite possibly better than the average in character.

Her determined friendliness towards Darcy’s own sister continued, and Miss Elizabeth coaxed Georgiana into the circle around Miss Bennet. He watched the smiling and lively yet soft way that Miss Elizabeth drew Georgiana out of the stammering silences to which she was prone.

By the time the evening was half over, Darcy entertained warm feelings of gratitude towards Miss Elizabeth. As his pique dissipated, he forgot that he must instinctively scorn every pretty girl.