His Uncle's Favorite (34 page)

Elizabeth was equally amused and touched to see Miss Darcy so happy at their meeting and to watch the young girl becoming so lively. Her previous shyness seemed to be gone. She embraced the girl again, and then they both moved to the settee together, holding hands.

“Thank you for your invitation; I would love to watch a play.”

“Oh, Mrs. Gardiner, did you tell Elizabeth about the hunting party? We all will be there; I am so happy. Matlock estate is beautiful. Only Pemberley is more beautiful,” she exclaimed with genuine enthusiasm. She blushed, slightly embarrassed. “Please do not think I am being rude or vain, but Pemberley is truly the most beautiful place. You will see for yourself.”

Miss Darcy seemed so proud of her home and so certain that her friend would have the opportunity to see it for herself soon that Elizabeth felt unable to make a proper reply.

“I can testify as to your statement, Miss Darcy,” Mrs. Gardiner happily intervened. “Pemberley is indeed a magnificent place, though I only have had the pleasure of being inside a couple of times. Is Mr. Darcy well after his trip?” Mrs. Gardiner masterfully changed the subject from what appeared to be a momentary indiscretion.

“Yes—yes he is. I think he will come to call on you later… I heard him saying so…”

“Georgiana, I was talking to my aunt yesterday. Do you really hunt?” Elizabeth finally managed to intervene in the conversation after spending the last minutes wondering about the probable opportunity of seeing Pemberley sometime soon.

“Hunt? No, not really—I could never hunt a living animal…”

“I imagined as much.” Elizabeth laughed.

As expected, Lady Selina called shortly with her two children and Lord Matlock.

“My, my, you truly look beautiful, my dear Miss Elizabeth. Where have you been all these months? I am pleased to see you are unharmed after spending a fortnight with my sister Catherine. How is your cousin? Still busy kissing Catherine’s footsteps?”

“Papa, please!” Lady Selina scolded him. “I am sure Miss Elizabeth had a most pleasant time at Rosings. Aunt Catherine is a very attentive host.”

“Robert said it rained most of the time; he said he had a most boring time,” the earl added.

“It did rain, but there were a few beautiful days, which fully compensated for the rainy ones,” Elizabeth answered, hoping nobody would notice her blush.

“My brother told me he enjoyed his stay at Rosings very much.” Miss Darcy tried to support her friend, oblivious to the reason for Elizabeth’s crimson cheeks.

“Perhaps Miss Elizabeth and Darcy found a way to employ their time much better than Robert,” the earl concluded.

“Well, Robert is not very fond of spending time in the country unless there is a hunting party or some other activity that requires a challenge. Do you notice how eager men are to challenge each other?” said Lady Selina.

“My dear, all male creatures are eager to challenge each other; it is a manly way of living. I confess I like a good challenge anytime,” the earl said.

“I know you do, Papa. Sometimes I would prefer that your young spirit was tempered more frequently by the voice of wisdom.”

“My love, man and wisdom are two words that rarely go together.” The earl laughed and—not surprisingly—none of the ladies tried to contradict him.

“My brother is a very wise man,” Miss Darcy said a few moments later.

“Yes dear, we all know Darcy is very wise and perfect in everything,” replied the earl.

“I thank you for your trust, Uncle. I shall prove my wisdom by struggling to avoid the challenge raised by your mocking tone,” Mr. Darcy answered from the door. He was staring at them, a large smile twisting his lips as he looked at his uncle challengingly.

“Here you are, my boy. Come—let me see you. And do not pretend to be offended. You know very well that you are not much wiser than the other men of our family.”

Darcy moved to Mrs. Gardiner and greeted her politely, kissed his cousin and then shook his uncle’s hand. Finally, he turned to the place where his sister and Elizabeth were and smiled.

“Well, I am glad we are all here to clarify a few things. I have fixed our leaving for next Wednesday, and I do not wish to hear about any urgent business delaying our departure.” The earl cast a meaningful glance at Darcy.

“Do not worry, Uncle; we shall be ready for Wednesday.”

Mrs. Gardiner called for some refreshment, and the discussion continued animatedly. Darcy took a glass of wine, and after a brief hesitation, he sat on a chair near Elizabeth.

“I hope you rested after your trip,” Darcy said a few moments later.

“I did, thank you… I was not really tired but more anxious to see my friends,” Elizabeth answered. “How is Thunder?” she asked and he glanced at her with surprise.

“He is fine. I think he misses the long walks in Kent,” Darcy said, and Elizabeth felt a wave of redness spreading over her neck. She daringly held his gaze.

“Thunder is wonderful,” said Miss Darcy. “And my horse, Duke, is wonderful, too,” she added, and Elizabeth smiled. She could feel Darcy’s eyes on her.

“Mrs. Reynolds—our housekeeper at Pemberley—says that Thunder is strong and intimidating but gentle and trustworthy—just like William,” Miss Darcy whispered.

Elizabeth turned her head for an instant, enough to see Darcy’s face redden with embarrassment. She returned her attention to her friend. “I am sure Mrs. Reynolds is right.”

At that point, they were interrupted by Lady Selina asking for details regarding their presence at the theatre that evening.

“If it is convenient for you, Georgiana and I will take Mrs. Gardiner and Miss Bennet,” said Darcy, waiting for Mrs. Gardiner’s approval.

“That would be a perfect, thank you sir,” Mrs. Gardiner answered.

The guests left with the promise of seeing each other again soon.

In the solitude of her room, while choosing her gown for the theatre, Elizabeth was not easy with everything she had learned that day. The hunting party sounded strange, and the more she thought about it, the more uncomfortable she felt, though the reason for her low spirits was hard to determine. Most disturbing was Georgiana’s comment about seeing Pemberley soon. Could she dare hope for a summer invitation to Pemberley? She knew the Bingleys had spent summers at Pemberley before, so the prospect was not impossible, yet she could not allow herself to speculate much upon that subject.

***

At the perfect time, Darcy’s carriage arrived. They spoke little during the ride, but Elizabeth’s eyes turned insistently to Darcy, and each time his gaze was upon her, ready to catch her eye. She tried to keep her attention outside the window; the streets were crowded, and the gentle, spring breeze touched them with the fresh smells of tree flowers.

The theatre entrance was more crowded than Elizabeth anticipated. The earl was already there, together with his sons, his daughter, and his son-in-law.

Lord Matlock approached them and politely engaged Mrs. Gardiner to walk with him. The colonel took a few steps towards them, but Darcy had already offered his arms to both Elizabeth and Georgiana.

As soon as the small group reunited, they entered the main hall. There was another moment of greetings and exchanged politeness with a large number of their acquaintances. Elizabeth’s attention was drawn to a group that approached them, calling Lord Matlock’s name. She startled to see, in the middle of the group, Lady Sinclair on the arm of a handsome gentleman who seemed in his late fifties.“Lord Sinclair, I did not expect to see you here.” Lord Matlock laughed.

“I did not expect to see myself here, but I could not escape my wife’s stubborn insistence. You know Eve and her notions of entertainment.”

“Lord Sinclair, you should not make a fool of yourself; everyone knows you are more than willing to keep me company,” Lady Sinclair replied with a mischievous smile. She looked beautiful; Elizabeth was forced to admit the truth.

“I was a fool when I decided to marry a woman less than half my age,” he said with an adoring glance at his wife, which contradicted his harsh words.

“Good evening,” Lady Sinclair said with a charming smile to them. Elizabeth did not miss Lady Sinclair’s displeasure the moment she saw her.

“We should go to our places,” said Lady Selina. “We will be in Darcy’s box. If I remember correctly, your box is on the opposite side, Lord Sinclair.”

“You have an excellent memory, Selina. It was a great pleasure to see you all. If I had known you would be here, I would not have asked my husband to keep me company. I am certain there would be an extra place for me in your box,” Lady Sinclair said to Darcy. “In any case, I shall see you again in a few days. Lord Matlock, I know you are hosting a hunting party, but I rely on you to entertain us with some dances, too.”

Elizabeth was unable to take her attention from her, trying to comprehend her words.

“We should go,” Darcy said, and with a short greeting to the other group, he walked away, followed by his relatives.

They reached the box, and Elizabeth briefly noticed that it was perfectly situated for the most advantageous view of the stage. Georgiana asked her to take the last seat on the left side of the box, then she seated herself at Elizabeth’s right. At the other side of Georgiana were Mrs. Gardiner and then Lady Selina. The gentlemen sat in a second row of chairs behind the ladies. Mr. Darcy took the seat behind Elizabeth; near him were the colonel, then the earl and lastly Lord Brightmore.

Some lights were extinguished and the play was about to start.

With Darcy only a short distance behind her, Elizabeth’s mind was not clear enough to understand what she had just seen. She could not understand how it was possible that Lady Sinclair dared to flirt openly with Darcy while she was on the arm of her husband. And how was it possible that she was invited to the hunting party? Who else would attend? She vividly recollected Lady Sinclair’s offensive words about her at the ball; she could only speculate what she would say after seeing her on Darcy’s arm. Lady Sinclair was determined to claim Mr. Darcy’s interest. She was even more insistent and impertinent than Caroline Bingley, but at least Caroline’s desire of marrying a gentleman like Mr. Darcy was easy to understand. But Lady Sinclair? What did she propose to accomplish with her insistence? The answer instantly came to her mind, and Elizabeth felt her ears and neck burning. It was not difficult to guess what Lady Sinclair wished to accomplish; even Darcy’s relatives were well aware of that. They said as much at the ball in January.

At Elizabeth’s right, Georgiana spoke with the colonel in whispers; their subject seemed to be highly amusing, as they barely contained their chuckles. Elizabeth turned her head to them briefly and then frowned; from behind, she could feel Darcy leaning gently towards her until he could whisper in her ear.

“Lord Sinclair has been my uncle’s friend for many years, and Lady Sinclair is distantly related to Lord Matlock. We have known her since we were children.”

She did not dare breathe; how did it happen that he knew what was troubling her? And what was he thinking to remain so close to her that she could feel his warm breath on her neck? She struggled to form an indifferent reply, to show him she was not preoccupied by Lady Sinclair. Then she remembered his confession from his first day at Rosings. He admitted he had come for her. They had discussed Anne and the colonel, and each of them was relieved to know the nature of their feelings. Now she wished to give him the same honesty.

She whispered back,

“Thank you for letting me know, sir. I was wondering about…the nature of your relationship with Lord and Lady Sinclair. Your family relationship, I mean…” She blushed with embarrassment.

He replied, each of his words warming the skin of her neck. “There is no relationship between me and Lady Sinclair, nor has there ever been since we played together as children, fifteen years ago.”

She heard the answer, and for a moment she sighed in relief; a moment later, however, her mind was invaded by a single thought: if she had leaned back a little or if he had moved his head an inch closer, his lips would have touched her skin.

The play finally began, and fortunately, nobody observed the trembling of her hands.

***

Never in his life had Darcy been less interested in a play.

He barely managed to calm himself after the meeting with the Sinclairs. In truth, Eve Sinclair had become more irritating with each passing day. He was not interested in judging her behaviour; he knew very well that most marriages arranged for social reasons soon ended with at least one if not both partners finding entertainment outside of marriage. Even if that fact was customary and easily accepted among the men, it was well known but silently ignored that quite a few ladies of the
ton
also developed particular preferences for one or more gentlemen.

Though he considered such a situation appalling and completely unacceptable, he did not give the fact much consideration. So Eve Sinclair was free to do as she wished—as long as she refrained from bothering him. Could she really imagine that she would be successful in her attempts? He would have to lose his mind entirely to consider accepting Eve’s attentions.

And Elizabeth was troubled by Eve; even more, she was jealous.