Page 27 of Aunt Felicity

D uring the dinner at Lucas Lodge, Sir William and Lady Lucas, who normally made sure they emphasised their ranks, were conspicuously mute on that subject.

The simple truth was they were far too awed at hosting an earl, countess, their second son, and daughter. They felt the compliment of the three Darcys attending as well, but that paled in comparison to being able to boast about a peer at their table. When Lady Felicity suggested that Charlotte was welcome to join the Earl and her and the three eldest Bennet sisters when they made for town, Sir William and Lady Lucas agreed even before their daughter had a chance to react.

Jane and Elizabeth took pleasure in introducing their cousins to Charlotte Lucas. She followed news of the war closely as her younger brother, Johnny, had enlisted in the army and purchased a commission in a regiment of the Foot mere days after he graduated from Oxford. Thanks to how close she was to her younger brother; Charlotte had taken a keen interest in all things military.

With her interest in the war and her knowledge of her brother’s experiences in the same, it did not take long before Charlotte and Richard were speaking of the campaigns and battles on the Peninsula.

As he had promised himself, Bingley did not change the way he related to Miss Bennet because of some fatalistic notion that she would reject him due to his roots in trade. He would not have been able to fall in love with her as he had if she had been anything like his sister, who only used the superficial to judge people. As they chatted, their heads close together as always, Bingley could tell that his momentary worry had been in vain; Miss Bennet was exactly as she had been before the Fitzwilliams and Darcys had been revealed as family members.

Mary and Kitty led Bethie and Anna to where Maria Lucas, who was the same age as Kitty, was seated. At first, Maria was like her parents. She was in awe of the highborn guests, but she was soon put at ease when she saw how unaffected Lady Bethanne and Miss Darcy were by their social status.

Once Lady Sarah Lucas reconciled herself to the fact that Felicity Bennet, as she was the last time they had been in company together, was as she always had been and had no airs and graces due to being a peeress, she was able to relax and join the conversation. What she was not able to understand were the changes she saw in Fanny Bennet. She was much more subdued than she had ever been, and not one word of boasting had crossed her lips.

Poor Sir William had not been able to recover his garrulous ways since the Earl, Countess, and the other members of the first circle had entered his home. His noble guests did not ensure everyone knew of their rank or of their feeling of superiority. The Knight saw a lesson in the way they behaved, or more to the point, in the way they did not behave.

The Lucas parents’ instant agreement to Charlotte joining her friends in London was borne by their fear that she would end up a spinster, being a burden on them and on Franklin after Sir William was called home. With the possibility of meeting so many more men in Town, they saw it as a last and golden chance for their eldest daughter to find a man who would take her.

What they had not expected was the amount of time Charlotte was spending with the Bennet’s cousin, the one who would be the master of Longbourn one day. When they heard that the former Colonel would be in London while Charlotte and her friends were there, they independently decided they would beseech Him in their daily prayers to make a match with Mr Fitzwilliam.

“How is Miss Bingley faring?” Jane enquired when Mr Bingley offered her his arm to escort her into the dining parlour.

That she would ask about his sister, Caroline, who had written those vile things about Miss Elizabeth, was one of the many things Bingley loved about Jane Bennet, her compassion for everyone. “I have written to those in charge of an asylum on the Scottish Highlands that Lady Matlock recommended. As soon as they inform me they have a chamber for my younger sister, she will be on her way there,” he revealed. “It will be the best thing for her. Even though she is incapable of empathy and compassion, she will be treated with great consideration there.”

“I am sure it is very difficult for you to send her away, but I truly believe it is the best you can do in such a horrific situation,” Jane opined.

“Miss Bennet, do I ask too much for you to consent for me to address you in private in the morning on the morrow?” Bingley requested hopefully. Without meaning to do it, he held his breath as he waited for the reply. Why should he be nervous? After all, it was only his future happiness riding on her response.

“I will be happy to hear what you have to say,” Jane responded with a deep blush of pleasure. She had hoped Mr Bingley had not been scared off by the revelation of her connections.

“Should I request your father’s permission to address you in private?” Bingley asked excitedly.

“If you choose to, I will not tell you not to, but remember that I am of age so I am able to grant you a private interview without Papa’s permission,” Jane replied.

“In that case, to honour his position as your father, I will speak to him before the evening ends,” Bingley related. “If you are sanguine with the hour, I will present myself at Longbourn at eleven o’clock.”

Elizabeth did not miss the glow of pleasure on her sister’s countenance. She guessed that something had changed, or was about to, between Jane and Mr. Bingley. She did not want to feel it, but she felt a tinge of envy. Of course she did not begrudge Jane her happiness. The feeling was for what she did not have herself, not for what Jane did have. For some inexplicable reason, whenever she thought about her own future love, the image of Cousin William sprang into her mind.

Yes, he had apologised and told her he admired her looks, but did that mean there could be more between them, and did she want there to be more? At this point, her head and her heart were giving her conflicting messages, and sooner rather than later, for her sanity, she would have to decide which organ to listen to.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

Bennet had agreed the previous evening to Bingley addressing his eldest daughter without making too much sport of the man. Strangely enough and completely contrary to her character, the one who had spoken in opposition was none other than Fanny Bennet. Jane was greatly confused, as was it not her mother who had pushed her at Mr Bingley since before he arrived in the neighbourhood?

Luckily it had been Aunt Felicity and Uncle Reggie who had pointed out that if Mr Bingley had been good enough for Jane before the connection between the Fitzwilliams and Bennets had been discovered, then nothing had changed.

Not wanting to gainsay an earl and countess, Fanny had conceded and withdrawn her opposition to Jane aligning herself with the son of a tradesman.

No note had been sent to Netherfield Park to cancel the interview, which led to the Bingley coach arriving at Longbourn less than ten minutes before the agreed upon hour.

Bingley stepped out as soon as the footman opened the coach’s door. Longbourn’s butler opened the portal to the manor house before he knocked. By this time, no card was necessary, and Bingley followed Mr Hill to the drawing room, where the long-time retainer announced him. He was not surprised to see Miss Lucas present and seated next to Fitzwilliam.

Surprisingly, Mr Bennet was in the drawing room. “You and Jane may use my study. You have no more than ten minutes, and the door will remain partially open,” Bennet instructed. “Oh yes, one of my sister’s diminutive footmen will be just outside the door,” he drawled.

Jane led Mr Bingley to the study, where the footman-guard John Biggs stood in the hallway outside. He towered over Bingley, who swallowed hard as he passed the stern-looking man on his way into the study. He set the door with it left open a few inches.

“Miss Bennet, if you feel you need a courtship, I am more than willing to enter into one. However, if your feelings are similar to mine, then a courtship would be superfluous,” Bingley managed.

“In order for us to make that judgement, I need to know what your feelings for me are, Mr Bingley,” Jane replied.

“Of course. I did not say, did I?” Jane shook her head. “I have fallen deeply in love with you, Miss Bennet. If I searched the whole of the known world, I do not believe I would discover another lady who would suit me a fraction as well as you do. You are compassion personified, as evidenced by your worry for my sister, even after everything she has said and done with respect to you and your family, especially your sister, Miss Elizabeth.” He looked at her hopefully. “Do I dare to hope that your feelings match mine, even in the smallest measure?”

“You do, Mr Bingley—Charles! I too love you with my whole heart. With you, I have no doubt I will be protected, and you will always be concerned with my best interests. I could never have fallen in love with an irresolute and capricious man; you are neither. You are a good, considerate, charitable, and amiable man of excellent character. It has been some weeks now that my heart has belonged to only you, as it will until I draw my final breath in the mortal world.”

Bingley dropped to one knee before his angel. “Miss Bennet, Jane, will you make me the happiest of men and accept my hand in marriage?”

“Yes, Charles, I will most certainly accept you. To be your wife is my dream.”

Bingley stood like a shot out of a cannon. He drew her to himself, lowering his head towards hers. Just then he remembered the intimidating presence just outside the door, so he pulled his head back a little and shot a furtive glance towards the partially open door.

“John will not enter unless I call out or we exceed ten minutes. I think we have more than half that remaining. However, if you do not continue and do what you were about to, then I will have to call for him.”

He needed no more prompting. They sealed their engagement with sweet kisses, which deepened with each successive one.

The couple jumped apart when a deep bass clearing of a throat was heard from the hallway. They had used their ten minutes. Jane made sure she was put to rights. “I will summon Papa to join you here,” she said with a dreamy look, wishing they had had more time before they had to separate.

Thanks to his fiancée being of age, he did not need permission from Mr Bennet, but his blessing was important. While he waited for his future father-in-law to join him, Bingley felt like he was floating in the clouds with his profound joy.

Blessings for the match were bestowed by Bennet without delay, and he did not attempt to make sport to humour himself. By the time Bingley followed him into the drawing room, the Hursts and his friend had arrived from Netherfield Park. Bennet made the announcement, which was greeted with universal approval. Longbourn’s mistress, thanks to her sister-in-law, had only recently adopted the opinion that it was a good match.

“Have you set a date yet?” Bethie enthused.

“We have not,” Jane replied. She looked at her betrothed, and it seemed they agreed on one point regarding the wedding. “We do not want a long engagement.”

“But I will need six months to plan a wedding for you,” Fanny insisted. She saw Felicity’s arched eyebrow and huffed. “It is your wedding; when you tell me the date, I will begin to plan.”

The family dinner at Longbourn that evening was instead a dinner to celebrate Jane’s and Charles’s engagement.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

On Friday, the eighth day of November, at precisely four in the afternoon, a gig was halted in the drive at Longbourn. The passenger was a rather corpulent man in the black garb of a clergyman with the traditional broad-brimmed hat on his head.

William Collins sat on the bench, looking around indignantly. He saw no one ready to welcome him to the estate over which he would be master, by the Grace of God, sooner rather than later. He had expected the Bennet parents, and hopefully the reputed comely daughters would be waiting for his arrival with anticipation. He was condescending to spend time with his cousins, who were below him of course. Not only that, but he would bless one of the daughters—the prettiest of course—with his hand in marriage.

Were the Bennets spurning his good intentions just like they had his father when his sire had agreed to marry the Bennet daughter only to have her run off with some nobody? According to his honoured father, even if the woman bore a son, it would not affect the line of succession as the son had to be born of the male line.

What an insult to him! He had been waiting for almost five minutes, and none of his family had exited the house to welcome him as was his due. A manservant approached the gig. “Where is the master of the estate?” Collins bellowed.

The man, who was one of the Bennet footmen, did not answer; he turned and knocked on the front door, which was opened by Mr Hill.

“Finally! Are you Cousin Bennet?” Collins demanded.

“No Sir, that would be the master; I am the butler, Mr Hill, and are you Mr Collins?” Hill enquired.

“Indeed, I am! Why are my cousin and his family not present to welcome me as is right and proper? Lady Catherine says…”Collins began to bluster

“Mr Bennet and his family are visiting a neighbour. He asked me to convey his regrets, but they will return in time for dinner,” the butler revealed. “Jonas here,” he cocked his head towards the footman, “will assist with your trunk, and then my wife, the housekeeper, will show you to the guest chamber. That way you will have time to wash, change, and rest before the family returns.”

Collins could not believe he was being treated thusly. If he had not been having such a devil of a time getting a lady to accept his proposals, he would withdraw his offer to extend an olive branch in marrying his prettiest cousin. One thing he was sure of was that whichever of his fair cousins he chose, she would have no choice but to accept him for the future security and the wellbeing of her mother and any unmarried sisters. He huffed and began to lumber down from the bench. The effort expended in alighting caused him to sweat even though the air was cold. He removed his hat to mop some sweat from his brow. This revealed a partially bald head with some strands of hair stuck to the bald spot with oil or grease.

Eventually he was ready and followed the butler into the house, where his sweat-soaked hat and his coat were taken from him. He was introduced to the housekeeper, Mrs Hill, who, after a curtsy began to lead him towards the stairs.

Looking around, Collins could see his future home was nothing to Rosings Park, but then, as Lady Catherine said, no house was. Everything he surveyed would be his one day. Once he inherited, he would beg his patroness for advice on how to decorate his house, so it could have some of the class evident wherever one looked in Lady Catherine’s manor house.

He stopped in the hallway, where he spied a portrait of a very comely woman. “Who is that?” Collins demanded.

“That is the master’s late mother, Mrs Elizabeth Rose Bennet,” Mrs Hill replied. She led the puffing parson up the stairs. The man halted every two steps to catch his breath. Eventually they passed the other two guest chambers and arrived at the last one. “This will be your bedchamber, Mr Collins. You will find a ewer and basin for you to wash. Did you bring your valet with you?”

He did not want to admit he did not employ a valet to a servant. “No, my man remained in Hunsford,” Collins dissembled.

“Mr Hill assists the master. If you need something, you may ring, and my husband will help if he is not busy with his other duties,” the housekeeper related. She cared not if the man was not pleased her husband would not be at his beck and call whenever he rang.

“Why am I in the farthest guest chamber from the stairs? As the future master of the estate, I should have the best suite available,” Collins insisted.

“There are guests who arrived before you who are in those chambers,” Mrs Hill replied. She curtsied and left before the parson could launch into another complaint.

“Well, I never! Such blatant disrespect. The day I am master here, I will sack that woman without any characters,” Collins told the closed door.

~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~

While the Bennets, Bethie, and Anna had been calling on Netherfield Park for Jane to tour the house with the eye of a future mistress, Felicity, Reggie, and Richard were at Mr Phillips’s law office to meet with him.

“The owner agreed and has accepted the amount you proposed for the price to purchase,” Phillips told the three Fitzwilliams. “If all is acceptable to you, sign the bill of sale, then as soon as the funds are transferred to my client’s account, Netherfield Park is your property.” He turned towards Mr Fitzwilliam and said, “To be accurate, it will be your estate.”

“Mother, Father! What have you done?” Richard demanded.

“It is not just us, Son. Your Uncle Robert and Andrew have each pledged a quarter of the required funds,” Reggie reported.

“This is far too much. I appreciate the gesture, but from whence do the funds come? I thought everything earned from the Matlock estates is entailed to the earldom?” Richard wondered.

“True, but a certain percentage of the profits may be used for anything the current Earl, me, sees fit. Since you were born, we have been investing those funds with Edward Gardiner, who over the years with compounding and high rates of return has given us more than we need, even without your brother and uncle insisting they wanted to participate,” Felicity told her son. “I wanted to tell you when you decided the army was for you, but your father and I swore we would not impose our desires on you once you were an adult and able to make your own decisions.”

Richard knew how churlish he would seem if he tried to refuse this gift. He called William on his improper pride, and here he had considered giving his pride free reign by refusing such a wonderful gift. “Thank you, Mother and Father. I will thank Uncle Robert at Longbourn. I will convey my gratitude to Andy and Marie by the post.”

“You know it is not entirely altruistic, do you not?” Felicity smiled. Richard looked at his parents quizzically. “Longbourn only has so much room; we want to be able to visit the area without filling my brother’s estate each time.”

The Earl and Richard signed the bill of sale. “Thank you for your stellar work, Phillips. Thank you also for your confirmation of our reading of the entail as that oddity should have arrived already,” Reggie stated gratefully.

“It was my pleasure, your Lordship. Please remind Bennet I am available if I need to clarify anything for his cousin,” Phillips responded as he bowed to the Fitzwilliams.

“I will pass that on,” Reggie replied. The three Fitzwilliams took their leave.