Page 27 of Five Gentlemen at Netherfield (Pride and Prejudice Variations)

Dining Room

Netherfield Hall

“Given how wealthy she is, it is quite astonishing how badly Miss Mary is dressed,” Caroline Bingley said, tilting her nose skyward. “I declare I would be ashamed to appear in public looking so…”

“Caroline, please stop criticizing the Bennets,” Bingley said.

The tone was mild, but the words were sufficiently surprising that everyone at the table looked either at Bingley or his younger sister.

Caroline turned a startled look at her brother and sniffed audibly. “My dear Charles, you may not know that I am correct on this matter, but that is no great surprise as you are not a lady. I beg you not to speak of things about which you know nothing.”

Bingley deliberately put his fork and knife down and glared at his sister. “I may not be an expert on ladies’ fashions, but I do know cruelty. There is no reason for you to speak so unkindly of Miss Mary, and I must insist that you change the topic of this conversation.”

Darcy’s gaze was on Miss Bingley, and he was not surprised at the fury on the lady’s handsome face, nor by the bright red spots which formed on her cheeks.

“Do you think the weather will be good for hunting tomorrow?” Colonel Fitzwilliam asked in a commendable attempt to turn the conversational tide.

“Hastings, who manages the Home Farm, thinks that the weather will be excellent on the morrow,” Lord Stanton said in a noble effort to support his brother.

Sir Quinton had been largely silent through dinner, but he broke himself free from his abstraction and said, “I would be pleased to go shooting tomorrow, then. You all know I am not a great shot, but I certainly enjoy the taste of partridge!”

Sporting talk continued, while the ladies remained silent, and Darcy was relieved when the women rose at the end of dinner to leave the men to their port.

As soon as the door closed behind Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst, Bingley said, “I apologize for any discomfort I caused you.”

“It is quite all right,” the colonel said. “Frankly, I have found your sisters to be rather too critical of the Bennet ladies. My apologies, Mr. Hurst, if that is offensive.”

“Not at all,” Mr. Hurst replied, draining his glass of wine.

“My wife has always had a timid disposition compared to Caroline, and nothing I have ever said has convinced Louisa to break away from her younger sister’s dominance.

I would be pleased if you would take Caroline in hand, Bingley, though given that your own temperament is an amiable one, that seems unlikely. ”

Bingley sighed and said, “It is true enough that I have not been inclined to impose my will on my younger sister, but today I asked Miss Bennet’s hand in marriage and was refused, partially because I am too meek a character.

I entirely understand the lady’s perspective and have resolved to improve myself by becoming master of my own life instead of being pushed this way and that by the whims of fate and Caroline. ”

This speech provoked looks of astonishment on the parts of Lord Stanton, his brother Richard, and Mr. Hurst, along with silence until Richard recovered enough to demand, “You offered for Miss Bennet, and she refused you?”

“Yes to both,” Bingley said, his right hand now idly playing with his crystal glass. “She informed me that we do not yet know one another adequately to wed, while also explaining, very delicately, that my pliable nature sometimes serves me ill.”

“I confess to some astonishment, Bingley,” Lord Stanton remarked. “With the Bennet ladies’ father so sick, and the estate entailed away, I would have expected the eldest Miss Bennet to leap at the chance of wedding a wealthy man like yourself.”

Sir Quinton sighed and said, “It seems that the elder two of the daughters, at least, do not wish for a marriage of convenience. At the same time Bingley was offering for Miss Bennet, I was offering for Miss Elizabeth and was likewise refused on the score that we do not know one another well enough for marriage, with the added claim that Miss Elizabeth is too much of a romantic to enter a civil contract.”

The viscount and colonel regarded the older man with raised eyebrows, and Richard lifted a glass and said, “That is most honorable of them. To the Bennet ladies.”

“Hear, hear!” Bingley cried out, and all drank.

Darcy, who had been thinking deeply ever since being informed of Sir Quinton’s failed attempt to gain Miss Elizabeth as a wife, said, “Bingley, I think that perhaps I will return to Town on the morrow. I fear that it will be rather awkward for you to apply appropriate guidance to Miss Bingley when I am in residence.”

Bingley opened his mouth, obviously in protest, and then closed it, frowning thoughtfully.

“There is some truth to that,” he said reluctantly.

The Fitzwilliam brothers exchanged glances, and Lord Stanton said, “We ought to leave Netherfield as well.”

“My friends,” Bingley said earnestly, “I assure you I do not wish for you to leave, not at all. I can always confine my remarks to Caroline when you are not present.”

Colonel Fitzwilliam poured himself another glass of wine and shook his head.

“I do not think that will work, Bingley. With four guests rattling around the house, there will not be many times when you and Miss Bingley are alone. Moreover, your sister is an intelligent lady, and she will quickly discover that you will not scold her when others are about.”

Bingley looked disheartened at these words. “I suppose you are correct.”

“I hope you will allow me to stay,” Sir Quinton said. “I am quite gifted at producing a look of bovine blankness, and you can argue with your sister as much as you like in my presence, and I will pretend that I cannot even hear you wrangling.”

Hurst guffawed at this statement, and Richard said, with a lifted eyebrow, “Are you hoping for another attempt to charm lovely Miss Elizabeth, Sir Quinton?”

“No, I am determined to improve my acquaintance with Miss Charlotte Lucas.”

***

Darcy Carriage

On the Road to London

The Next Day

A chill wind whipped at gray clouds and the dead brown grasses listing limply sideways on the verge of the hard-packed road.

Darcy was grateful to be snugly inside the warm carriage, hot bricks heating his feet, excellent glass panes and velvet curtains keeping the heated air contained, and thick warm woolen rugs to maintain his comfort.

With Darcy facing backwards, and Lord Stanton and his brother Colonel Fitzwilliam facing forwards, all together in the compartment, it was very pleasant.

The wind moaned around the body of the carriage, and Darcy glanced outside again.

The view was no less bleak than it had been a few minutes previously, and his heart stirred with pity for the coachman who drove along without the benefit of closed walls and hot bricks, and the footmen clinging to the sides of the carriage.

Still, the servants were dressed warmly in heavy wool, with hats and scarves and gloves to supplement their thick coats.

The trip to town was but five and twenty miles, and there would be hot spiced ale waiting in the servants’ hall at the end of the journey.

The men would be fine. Even the groom coming behind them on Phoenix would be comfortable enough, as the great stallion was a well of heat.

“It will be good to see Georgiana,” Richard remarked, breaking the silence, and Darcy smiled and said, “It will, indeed.”

“I have not seen our little cousin in some years,” Viscount Stanton said lazily. “How tall is she now?”

“She is quite tall,” Darcy said vaguely, turning his head to watch the countryside march by. “She is as tall as Miss Elizabeth Bennet, or perhaps a trifle taller.”

“That is not very helpful,” the viscount said drily, “as I do not remember the height of Miss Elizabeth.”

Darcy felt his face warm at these words, and he turned back and said, “Erm, well, she is perhaps an inch taller than Miss Bingley?”

Richard chuckled and said, “I suspect that Zachary has not paid much attention to Miss Bingley’s height either. Perhaps you should visit Georgiana, Brother, and then you will be able to see her directly.”

“I will,” Stanton said promptly and turned a mournful gaze on the countryside. “It is something to look forward to when everything else sounds dreadfully dull. I do not like Town in the winter, not at all.”

“You can always journey to Snowden and spend the rest of the winter with the earl and countess,” Richard returned with a grin, which provoked a glowering look from his brother.

“That would be worse, without a doubt,” Lord Stanton declared with a snort.

“Why?” Darcy demanded, turning a confused look on his cousin.

“Why?” the viscount asked rhetorically. “Because my mother is absolutely determined that I marry, and soon, and within hours of setting foot in the family home, she will have a score of eligible ladies invited for dinner! I simply cannot bear it.”

He moaned dramatically, and then his eyes lit up. “Darcy, would you care to return home to Snowden with me? You are as eligible as I am given Pemberley’s great riches, and the countess is almost as interested in your marriage as mine!”

Darcy shook his head firmly. “No, absolutely not. It is hard enough beating off the society ladies and their daughters in London. The last thing I need is Lady Matlock harassing me.”

“There is no point anyway,” Richard said in a dulcet tone. “According to our mutual aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, Darcy is engaged to our cousin Anne.”

Darcy could not help wrinkling his nose, and he said, “I know she says that, but there have been no papers signed, and ... and...”

“And you are strongly attracted to Miss Elizabeth Bennet,” Richard Fitzwilliam stated.

This provoked a shocked squawk from Lord Stanton, and Darcy felt his face flush bright red and his mouth hang open.

“What ... what are you talking about?” he finally asked feebly.

Richard shrugged and said, “I am talking about how you watch Miss Elizabeth at every opportunity. I am talking about how you wander near her at every party so that you can listen to her conversation. I am talking about the look of relief on your face at the dinner table yesterday when Sir Quinton said that she turned him down.”

Darcy was, at heart, an honest man, and he could hardly argue with Richard’s remarks.

“I did not realize you observed all that,” he muttered.

“Darcy, are you seriously attracted to Miss Elizabeth?” Lord Stanton demanded.

“Why should he not be, Brother?” Richard challenged. “The lady is charming, lively, intelligent, and all too willing to disagree with those around her. I think she is just the right sort of woman for Darcy!”

“But she has an uncle in trade!” the viscount exclaimed.

“Why should that be of concern?” Richard said irritably. “Her father is a gentleman, at least, and...”

“A mere country gentleman, and his wife is the vulgar daughter of a solicitor. None of the Bennet ladies are appropriate brides for a Darcy, or a Fitzwilliam, for that matter!”

The colonel’s usually amiable expression was now transformed into a hideous scowl.

“That is absurd, Brother! Darcy, for all his wealth and position, is not a member of the nobility, and thus has more options than you in his choice of a bride. More to the point, I am confident that while you might be happy in a marriage of convenience, he would not be! Though, given that you are two and thirty and still unmarried, it seems that you are not pleased at the prospect of such a contract either!”

“Why should I be in a hurry?” the viscount demanded, glowering at his brother. “Father did not wed until he was five and thirty, and since our mother was gracious enough to provide a spare to the earldom, I do not see why I should not sow my wild oats a few more years before settling down.”

“So if you break your neck, I will find myself battling our mother over my own marriage, is that it?”

“If you care so much about that, Richard, I suggest you settle down yourself. After all, if you produce a son or two, I will not need to worry about the succession!”

It was at this point that Richard apparently noticed Darcy’s startled expression. “Is something wrong, Cousin?”

Darcy looked back and forth between the brothers. “Besides the two of you quarreling?”

Lord Stanton had the grace to look apologetic. “I am sorry, Darcy. Richard and I have been arguing like this for literally decades, but we are not truly angry at one another. It is a method more of debate than anything else.”

“Debate?” Darcy demanded. “I was expecting you to start punching one another!”

The brothers laughed merrily, and Richard said, “No, Zachary is entirely correct. We are merely debating. But to return to the earlier conversation, I think that Miss Elizabeth Bennet would make you a fine bride, and I urge you to not give way to concerns about her relations.”

Zachary opened his mouth, likely to protest, and Darcy held up a staying hand.

“I am greatly attracted to Elizabeth Bennet,” he said, “but the family is currently in crisis with Mr. Bennet’s illness.

The elder two daughters refused excellent offers of marriage in the last two days.

Moreover, I do not know if what I feel is genuine love or merely infatuation.

I have no intention of pursuing the lady until I am certain of my own heart, nor would I dream of attempting a courtship when Mr. Bennet is very sick.

So for now, I think this … debate … can be laid aside in favor of, well, anything. ”

The brothers chuckled again, and then Richard obediently began speaking of the opera, which Lord Stanton knew a great deal about, and Darcy was able to relax into comparative silence.

He was mightily confused, and that was the truth. For as long as he could remember, he had lived a life regulated by intellect as opposed to emotion and his heart.

He had indeed accepted a full decade earlier that he would likely marry his cousin, Anne de Bourgh, heiress of the great estate of Rosings in Kent.

But in the intervening ten years, he also had never actually offered for his cousin, because he truly did not love her or even care about her in particular. Not that he disliked her, but she was a sickly woman, entirely under the thumb of her overbearing mother, Lady Catherine.

Now he was in love, or thought he was, and yet, could he cast aside the habits of a lifetime in favor of an enchanting young lady with arch manners and dancing eyes?

He had time to think, at any rate. With Mr. Bennet’s health hanging in the balance, this was no time for romance. He would wait.