Page 38 of Hidden Desires
DARCY GOT NO FURTHER than the hall, where Mrs. Hurst stopped him with a raised hand. Caroline stood beside her, lips curved in a smile too cold to touch her eyes.
“Mr. Darcy,” the woman said when he halted. “Might we have a moment?” He shook his head and stepped aside, but Mrs. Hurst would not be deterred. “This concerns your sister,” she said. “It is a matter of some urgency.”
Darcy stopped, tempted to rebuke the woman’s brazen conduct, but recalling her insufferable behavior when opposed, he sighed and regarded her as one might a bothersome servant.
“Not in the hall, where the entire household might overhear,” he said, motioning them into the library.
As he turned toward the room, he caught Caroline leaning close to whisper something. Though her voice was too low to hear, Mrs. Hurst gave a quick nod, and Caroline straightened. The smirk that had flickered across her face vanished the moment she met his gaze.
Without a word, he opened the library door and stepped aside.
“You said this concerned my sister,” he said once they were seated. “Explain yourself.”
Mrs. Hurst shifted in her chair, uneasy beneath his impatient tone. “Caroline brought this to my attention, so I think she should speak.”
The introduction seemed to catch her off guard. Caroline’s eyes flitted between her sister and Darcy before dropping to the floor.
“It is about Georgiana,” she said, raising her head to meet his gaze.
“I was at the window, admiring the morning, when I saw her on an overgrown path that looked long forgotten. She was following Miss Elizabeth, who appeared as though she had not worn clean clothing in a fortnight. The woman was disheveled, untidy. Had I not known better, I should never have taken her for a gentleman’s daughter. ”
Darcy recalled the moment when Georgiana and Miss Elizabeth returned from their walk. Did Elizabeth appear so slovenly when she entered the library? He searched his memory but found no details to support Caroline’s claim.
“She pointed toward the manor and said something that made them both laugh. Then she took poor Georgiana by the hand and led her back into the thicket, off to who knows where. Not what I would call proper conduct.”
Caroline sat back and nodded to her sister, who resumed without hesitation.
“Miss Darcy is still a girl, impressionable and eager to please. One must be cautious about the company she keeps. Someone like Miss Elizabeth, charming as she pretends to be, might do more harm than good.”
She paused and fixed him with a look suggestive of a hawk waiting for its prey to stir.
Darcy did not respond at once. Though disinclined to encourage their meddling, he wished to preserve peace in Bingley’s home.
“I know Georgiana spent the day exploring the Bennet estate,” he said at last, addressing Caroline, “but I am confused by your concern.”
He took a breath and continued, silencing them before they could interrupt.
“I see no reason why Georgiana should not enjoy her friendship with Miss Elizabeth. She is a personable young woman who welcomed my sister without reservation.”
Caroline leaned forward and opened her mouth, but Darcy pressed on.
“From what I have seen, and from what she has told me, I favor the acquaintance. She needs a friend, and Miss Elizabeth is willing to offer her one.”
Caroline looked ready to object, but Mrs. Hurst spoke instead.
“Do you not think the Bennet estate lies too far to walk? Allowing your sister to roam like that, and with someone who remains unknown, might cause gossip over the quality of your care.”
Darcy’s brows lifted at the insinuation. Whether Mrs. Hurst noticed or chose to ignore it, she continued.
“Were she my sister, I would discourage the acquaintance and never approve of her wandering about the county unsupervised.”
“I suppose, then, it is just as well you are not her sister,” Darcy said, smiling as Mrs. Hurst’s expression darkened.
“I believe it is good for Georgiana to form new friendships, and I encourage it within the bounds of propriety. To cloister her to such a degree that she gains no experience in choosing companions would do her no favor.”
He met Mrs. Hurst’s gaze and shook his head at the frustration in her eyes.
“If you were her chaperone, she would have no chance to enjoy such opportunities. Miss Elizabeth told me of their plan to explore the countryside before they left. I approved it and have heard nothing since to make me regret my decision.”
“Our chief concern in bringing this to your attention is the damage such a friendship might do to the Darcy name,” Caroline said, her voice thinning to a whine.
“If it becomes known that Georgiana is consorting with someone of Miss Elizabeth’s inferior breeding, she may face censure and ridicule from your friends and relations. I need not remind you, Mr. Darcy, of the repercussions that may arise from such an association with those of improper birth.”
“Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention.” Darcy rose and opened the door, a clear signal that the discussion had ended. “Rest assured, I will protect my sister.”
“Our only concern is for young Georgiana,” Mrs. Hurst said as she crossed the threshold. “She is a delightful young woman, deserving of nothing but the best.”
Caroline reached out and placed her hand on his arm, a gesture of intimacy he had no wish to accept.
“It is a relief to know your thoughts align with ours. I am sure you will resolve this situation.”
“That remains my primary focus.” Darcy nodded and stepped aside, freeing himself from her touch.
She smiled and turned away, hurrying to join her sister in the sitting room, where Bingley sat engaged in conversation with Mr. Hurst.
Darcy remained a moment longer, then ascended the stairs to his chamber, reviewing the exchange as he went.
In light of all he had seen and heard, he concluded that the growing friendship between Georgiana and Miss Elizabeth gave no cause for concern.
On the contrary, he found himself favorably disposed toward it.
In his estimation, Caroline’s true motive lay not in concern for Georgiana, but in jealousy, born of her long-standing desire to secure him as a husband. That she should view
Miss Elizabeth as a rival seemed almost laughable; they had exchanged only a few words.
Still, he recalled the flash of irritation in Caroline’s eyes at the first mention of Miss Elizabeth, and the condescension that crept into her tone when he spoke in his sister’s defense.
What troubled him more was the allusion Mrs. Hurst had made to a matter he believed private. Only he, Georgiana, and their cousin Fitzwilliam knew the full truth, and the colonel, he felt sure, had spoken of it to no one. Yet her remark suggested the knowledge had spread farther than expected.
Darcy had taken care to avoid any explanation for his delayed arrival. Bingley had not pressed, and he doubted Georgiana had spoken of the matter with Miss Elizabeth, as she had not yet recovered from the ordeal.
He had tried to encourage her to confide in him, but her sorrow remained locked behind silence. The pain was there, plain in the moments when she thought herself unobserved. He had seen the tears she tried to hide, the pale tracks beneath her eyes.
Still, she refused to speak of it, leaving him with only the barest facts surrounding the event.
His unexpected return to Pemberley, when he was supposed to be in London, had disrupted the designs of a former friend and spared Georgiana from the consequences of believing a calculated falsehood.
He felt certain the decision to shorten his trip had saved her.
Had he delayed, she would have been gone, lured away by a deception masked as affection.
Of this there was no dispute. The effect on Georgiana, however, proved worse than he had anticipated. In the weeks that followed, his sister, once cheerful and eager, turned inward, unwilling to venture beyond the manor or remain alone within its walls.
Bingley’s request for aid arrived during the height of the crisis. Darcy faced a choice: remain at Pemberley to support his sister or assist the friend who had long trusted him with everything.
His first impulse was to reply with an apology and remain where he was. Georgiana, however, insisted he go to Netherfield, on the condition that she be allowed to accompany him. He agreed, though not without hesitation.
The improvement in her spirits surprised him more than he cared to admit, and he soon credited Miss Elizabeth with the change. From the moment they met, she had shown genuine warmth, and Georgiana, contrary to his expectations, responded to it.
With Miss Elizabeth, she displayed little of the guarded reserve that now marked her conduct with others. In watching them, Darcy could scarcely believe they had been acquainted for only a few days.
He felt deep gratitude for the return of the sister he had feared lost and for the thoughtful kindness Miss Elizabeth had offered her without request or condition.
* * *
“Why tell Papa? He will not notice we have gone. If we wait any longer, we will miss our chance.”
The whisper drifted from the cloakroom as Mary, on her way into the dining room, paused at the threshold. She knew that voice and frowned, her fingers tightening around the book she carried. Its tone had, more than once, preceded some small scandal.
She followed the voices and found Kitty and Lydia fastening cloaks and bonnets. She watched, unobserved, as they adjusted ties and arranged folds with practiced haste before speaking.
“Where were you planning to go that our father need not know?”
Lydia jumped in surprise and placed her hand over her heart, the color draining from her face.
“Mary! You gave me a fright. Do not go creeping about like that. It is dreadful to startle me for no reason.”
“I am not the one creeping. I ask again, what is there in your plans that our father would forbid?”