Page 112 of A Life Diverted
“If Lizzy is amenable to your suit—and I believe she will be—from whom do you think you need to request consent? The Prince or the King?” Darcy sat back and waited while William cogitated. “Also,” he added cryptically, “rank will not be an issue.”
It was one of the characteristics—one of many—Robert Darcy admired in his son. He was not impulsive and always took his time to think when considering weighty issues. Darcy saw the moment his son reached the correct conclusion, as his whole mien brightened.
“I understand why you told me my pain was self-inflicted,” William admitted.
“It seems I was trying to protect my heart prematurely. If I did not venture anything, I could not get hurt. It seems I need to look at what is rather than operate on assumptions. I do not understand why you say rank will not be a factor, but I trust you, Father.”
“Your mother and I always said you could not be so intelligent for no reason.” Darcy gave his son a pat on the back as William departed to go complete his ablutions prior to the ball.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“I know your birthfather has the first and your papa the second,” William bowed over Elizabeth’s hand, entranced by the vision she made as she descended the stairs before the first guests were expected. “I would like to ask for your supper and final sets, if you will grant those to me.”
“You have been distant since we were told of my birthparents, William,” Elizabeth pointed out archly. “I was not sure you wanted to dance with me at the ball.”
“Lizzy, I am sorry,” William replied contritely. “After the revelation of you true rank, I was afraid I was too far below you. I should have relied on our bonds of friendship and not allowed my self-doubt to rule me.”
“You are forgiven. I will grant you the two sets you have requested,” Elizabeth allowed.
“Please remember this, William. It is critical to me that my friends and extended family treat me as they always have. I may be a Princess, but that is a rank, not who I am. For me nothing has changed among those I esteem and count as my closest friends and family.”
William’s heart soared as he understood her message clearly. He would never allow his head to overrule his heart again.
“Do you have a set open for your very old uncle, niece?” Wes asked with a grin.
“As William here is a few months older than you, that must make him ancient,” Elizabeth volleyed playfully. “Yes, my third set is open, and if you desire those dances, they are yours, Uncle Wes.”
“Thank you, my impertinent niece.” Wes looked around and saw the warm camaraderie among those assembled for an aperitif before the receiving line formed.
These people were genuine, warm, and loving.
Nothing they did—unlike his father—was to impress society or anyone else.
If not for his father’s wrongheaded decisions, both of his parents would have been part of this family for many years.
He felt sympathy for his father, who was driven not by love but by what he thought society expected from him.
Wes solicited, and was granted, a set each from Jane, Anne, Cassie, Mary, and Kitty.
He had to admit he was intrigued by the third Bennet daughter.
She was almost as pretty as her eldest sister and had a wit and intelligence that matched his niece Elizabeth’s.
Earlier, Wes met the resident masters the Bennets employed, which helped him understand why all six Bennet children were so well educated and accomplished.
He smiled to himself as he thought of the drubbing he had suffered at the hands of both Darcys across the chessboard. He could not remember clashing with players of that calibre before.
Before the receiving line formed, Elizabeth, Mary, and Kitty had filled their dance cards.
Kitty would have much to tell Gigi and Lydia when she departed the ball after supper to join the other two above-stairs.
When Wes requested her final set, Mary had blushed with pleasure.
She was days away from turning fifteen, so she had three more years before coming out, but it did not stop her glowing with pleasure with the attention from Lizzy’s handsome uncle.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Jane and Andrew were at the head of the line, followed by Jamey and Anne and Richard and Cassie.
Although Jane and Andrew were to wed in two days, the ball had become an impromptu ball for all three betrothed couples, which necessitated the addition of the Carringtons and Mrs. de Bourgh to the receiving line.
If anyone from high society questioned the latter’s presence in the line, none had the bad manners to comment on it within earshot of those in the receiving line.
Elizabeth enjoyed dancing the first with her birthfather. Again, if any of the guests questioned why the second Bennet daughter danced the first with the Prince and the second with her father, none voiced their questions aloud.
Most surprising was when Robert Darcy requested the supper set from his late wife’s older sister.
Darcy would have loved for his Anne to have been present to witness how much her sister Catherine had changed.
Darcy felt it was only right he recognise Catherine’s efforts by dancing with her.
The dance signalled to the Ton the complete reconciliation within the family.
“Come, William,” Elizabeth said archly, “we cannot dance the whole half hour complete without some conversation; what will people say?” Lizzy teased lightly as they danced the first of their two scheduled sets—the supper set.
“Do you talk as a rule when you dance, Lizzy?” William returned. “Name the topic and we will discuss it. Would you like to discuss the new edition of Cowper’s you are reading?”
“No, books are not a fit subject for discussion in a ballroom,” Elizabeth replied with mock severity. “I could comment on the number of guests, and you could remark about the lovely decorations Mama and her helpers have made.”
“I am at your disposal your Roy…madame.” William stopped himself before he completed his attempted jest knowing how close he came to making an unintended revelation in a crowded ball room.
The guests were split between those representing the four and twenty families of gentlefolk in the area and those from London. He might have been able to explain his slip as a jest, but he would rather not take such a chance.
“That is enough conversation for now,” Elizabeth granted, and they enjoyed the rest of the set in companionable silence. At its completion, William led Elizabeth to sit at a table with her three sisters and their partners.
William Collins, as a family member—albeit distant—had been invited to the ball.
He was awestruck at the number of highly ranked personages, from a Prince on down.
Luckily, he schooled his features and did not fawn over anyone.
It was not the first time in his five-and-twenty years Collins had been thankful he had not taken his father—who used to fawn over the high-born—as an exemplar of how to behave towards others.
Collins passed supper most pleasantly with his partner for the supper set—Miss Charlotte Lucas. Before the meal was complete, Collins solicited the final set from his partner, who gladly granted those dances.
After supper, Kitty departed without complaint, and it was not long before she was regaling Gigi and Lydia with her experiences at her first private ball.
The rest of the ball passed as balls do, without any remarkable occurrences.