Page 9 of Missing

"Please, do not trouble yourself about me, my dear boy. Today I shall go shopping with Madeline and Lizzy, and afterwards we shall take tea at Mr. Dixon's tea room. It is one of the best in the city, and I mean to have a berry tart. So you see, I shall not be neglected."

"I am glad you will have such a pleasant afternoon, Mother.

That way, I do not feel guilty for leaving you alone," said William.

After a moment's pause, he added as casually as possible, not wishing her to suspect his true intentions, "And at what time will you be at the tea room?

If I finish early, perhaps I might accompany you. "

"We shall go after we have bought some presents for Madeline's nieces. She also wishes to give Lizzy a new gown for her sister's wedding."

"I understand. Well, I hope I may see you this afternoon, Mother." William knew perfectly well that he would go to the tea room, for nothing would prevent him from hearing once more Elizabeth's melodious voice.

◆◆◆

In the days following Jane's departure, Elizabeth had no time to feel depressed, for she had the opportunity to see Mr. Dalton almost every day. Whenever she went for a walk, she was fortunate enough to meet him and exchange a few words.

Moreover, the Daltons were frequent visitors at the Gardiners' home, so they dined or took tea together nearly every day.

Elizabeth observed that William was reserved only when many people took part in the conversation. But when they met by chance in the park or on the street, and were alone, he was far more open and talkative.

Mrs. Gardiner had noticed the growing attachment between Elizabeth and William, and therefore suggested that Elizabeth should prolong her stay in London for two more weeks. The Gardiners planned to travel to Hertfordshire a week before Jane's wedding, and Elizabeth could return with them.

Elizabeth was uncertain, so she wrote to Jane to ask if she needed her.

But Jane never replied, and Elizabeth concluded it was better to remain in London.

If her sister had no time to answer a simple letter, she probably had no time for anything else.

Besides, Elizabeth wished to avoid her mother's nerves and the inevitable disputes between Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Bingley's sisters regarding the wedding arrangements.

Two weeks after Jane's departure, Elizabeth was more at ease and enjoying the city. The weather had been very cold, but as the afternoon was sunny, she took her cousins Luke and Emily to the park two blocks from the house.

William, meanwhile, was desperate to see her.

The previous day, he had been so busy that he had not had a moment to visit the Gardiners.

Sometimes he felt like an infatuated schoolboy, and at other times entirely and utterly in love.

For now, however, he preferred not to name the feeling and enjoy Elizabeth's company.

Fortunately, his study window looked onto the street, and whenever Elizabeth passed by, he would find an excuse to leave the house and contrive a casual encounter.

Although she spoke most of the time, he noticed she did not mind his reserved nature.

Indeed, she seemed to draw him into conversation and make him say things he rarely shared with anyone but his mother.

As he stood at the window after three hours of uninterrupted work, William saw Elizabeth walking with her cousins. He immediately seized his coat and gloves and left the house.

When Violet observed her son leaving so abruptly, she could not help but smile.

She guessed he had seen Elizabeth and hastened to join her.

Violet had always wished that her son might meet a good woman who would love him, and she felt certain her late husband, from heaven, had arranged that miracle.

"Miss Bennet, Luke, Emily, how very good to see you. I have been working all day, and I thought I should take a little walk, for the weather is not so cold," William said.

Elizabeth could not help but feel excited at the sight of him. "We are happy to see you, too, Mr. Dalton. We are going to the park to enjoy the sun. My poor cousins have been confined to the house these last days owing to the cold."

"May I accompany you?" William asked at once.

"Yes, Mr. Dalton, please come with us. I am always the only man," Luke said cheerfully.

"You are not a man, Luke; you are only nine," Emily replied.

"And you are ten, but you seem to be a hundred, for you scold me as though you were my mother. Do not mind her, Mr. Dalton."

"Mr. Dalton, do you think a nine-year-old boy is a man?" Emily demanded.

"Well—"

"You two must not involve Mr. Dalton in your quarrels. You have made him uncomfortable. Let us go to the park and not waste time on nonsense," Elizabeth said, conciliating.

"Your cousin is right; we had better go before the cold returns and obliges us to return home."

"I am sorry, Mr. Dalton," said Luke and Emily together.

Elizabeth caressed their cheeks to show she was not angry, and the children smiled, reassured.

William offered his arm to Elizabeth, and they walked on, pleasantly conversing with the children. At the park, they played with Luke and Emily for nearly half an hour, until several of the children's friends arrived, accompanied by their mothers or governesses.

The cousins ran to join them, and William and Elizabeth were left with the opportunity for a more private conversation. They sat on a bench, close enough for Elizabeth to keep an eye on the children.

At first, neither spoke, for both were nervous. But it was William who broke the silence.

"Do you miss your family, Miss Bennet?"

"Not greatly, Mr. Dalton. I enjoy spending time with my uncle, aunt, and cousins."

"As you know, I am an only child. Now that my father has passed, my family is very small; it is only my mother and me."

"But you and your mother are very close, which must make a great difference. I have a large family, but I feel close only to my sister Jane. Now that she is marrying, I fear our relationship may not be the same."

Hearing the melancholy in Elizabeth's voice, William was sorry. "Change is never easy, but one learns to adapt. Yet I confess I am surprised, for I had imagined large families must always be very close."

"Perhaps some are, but mine is not. Do not misunderstand me; I love my parents and my sisters dearly, but we are very different. My father lives in his own world and has little time for us, while my mother has always wished me to be different."

"In what way?"

"For my mother, a young woman's chief concern ought to be finding a husband at any cost. She says I read too much, speak too much, and argue too much, which renders me unattractive to men. She insists that if I continue so, I shall be a spinster," Elizabeth said with a laugh.

"Does your mother truly think so of you?" William asked, astonished.

"Yes, but please do not misjudge her. She fears no one will care for or protect me if I do not marry, and she desires what she believes is best for me.

The difficulty is that she can be very intrusive and unintentionally wound me with her constant criticism.

But I suppose that is how she expresses her affection. "

"Then I must tell you that I disagree with your mother."

"You disagree with her? About what?"

"About everything."

"Everything?"

"Yes. For I find all you say most interesting.

You do not argue without reason. And you are very handsome, with lovely eyes.

I am certain I am not the only man who thinks so.

It is impossible that a lady so charming should never marry.

" The words burst from him before he could restrain them.

But seeing Elizabeth blush, he immediately apologized.

"Forgive me, Miss Bennet; I did not mean to be indiscreet. "

"Pray, do not be concerned. I thank you for the compliment. I am simply unused to hearing such kind things said of me."

William could not stop looking into her eyes, and this time she did not look away. Almost unconsciously, he took her gloved hand, and together they sat in silence, watching the children play.

"Miss Bennet, I had forgotten to tell you. I have at last closed the business I mentioned. I now possess a new warehouse, with contracts and investors secured. In a year's time, I am certain my enterprise will be well established."

"I congratulate you. I know how hard you have worked these past months. You deserve every success."

"Miss Bennet, when do you return to Hertfordshire?"

"In a week. Why do you ask?"

"Because… because I have grown accustomed to seeing you, and I thought perhaps… your father, being a solicitor, must be busy, yet he might receive me, and perhaps I might—"

"My father is not a solicitor, Mr. Dalton."

"No? Does he not work in Meryton?"

"No, that is my uncle Philips."

"Then what is your father's occupation, Miss Bennet?"

"He is a country squire. He is the master of an estate called Longbourn."

"Your father is a gentleman? You are a gentleman's daughter?"

"Yes, I am Elizabeth Bennet of Longbourn, in Hertfordshire. Did you not know?"

"No, I did not know," William replied, rising abruptly.

Upon learning this, he felt that everything must change between himself and the lady he so deeply admired.