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M r. Bingley returned to Netherfield, tired and dusty, but with a sense of satisfaction. It was quite late, too late to go to Longbourn until the following day. Caroline, of course, demanded to know where he had gone and why.

“It is none of your business, Caroline,” he told her, sternly.

“But you were gone for two entire days. There must have been a reason!” she insisted.

It occurred to Mr. Bingley, then, that Caroline could become an unwitting ally in the Bennets’ campaign. “If you must know, Caroline, I traveled to Brighton to visit with Miss Lydia Bennet.”

“Lydia Bennet? But whatever for? I understand she did not even attend her mother’s funeral!”

“That is very true, Caroline, and it is because she was too ill to get up from her bed. Mr. Bennet was ready to go by post to see how his youngest fared, but I offered to go in his stead.”

Caroline stared at him. “I cannot imagine Miss Lydia received any comfort from seeing you, rather than her father.”

“No, but I bore many letters from her family as well as her favourite muffins from Mrs. Hill, and that brought her comfort.” He would have to remember to tell these details to the Bennets.

“All this is in service of wooing the lovely Miss Bennet, I take it?” Mr. Hurst put in, unexpectedly.

“Yes, exactly. She was not at all pleased with me for deserting her as I did last winter, and it will require considerable effort to earn her favour.”

Caroline made a sound that could only be described as disbelieving, but Mr. Bingley chose to ignore it. Instead, he stared at her hard. “I take it you have not yet paid a condolence call to the Bennets, Caroline.”

“No.”

“But you claimed to be Miss Bennet’s friend, did you not? And did she not visit you in London?” Mr. Bingley persisted.

“Oh! I do not recall; do you, Louisa?” Caroline’s eyes opened wide and she then turned to Louisa.

Mr. Bingley watched his two sisters communicate silently, and decided to cut it short. “There is no point in lying, ladies; Miss Elizabeth told me that Miss Bennet visited you in London and, after some weeks, you returned the call. I note that you did not mention either visit to me.”

“Now, Charles,” Caroline said. “You know that we were trying to protect you from her.”

“I do not recall asking you to protect me.”

“We were only trying to –“

“Just stop, Caroline. Stop. It is enough. And I expect you both to visit the Bennets this week to express your sorrow for Mrs. Bennet’s passing.”

Both Caroline and Louisa took the hint and remained silent for the remainder of the meal.

***

The next day, as soon as it was polite to do so, Mr. Bingley went to Longbourn. He was welcomed warmly by Mrs. Hill and led into the drawing room.

“Oh, Mr. Bingley, you have returned. Was your visit – um, successful?” Elizabeth asked at once.

“It was.” He smiled at her.

“I shall get Papa,” she said, and rose at once.

Mr. Bennet joined his daughters in the drawing room a minute later. “Well, Mr. Bingley? No need to keep us in suspense, I think.”

“No need at all,” Mr. Bingley replied promptly.

“The Forsters are both eager to cooperate; in fact, Mrs. Forster penned this letter for you to show around. Oh, actually, I have two letters here. One is the letter that Miss Lydia left for Mrs. Forster; the other is the letter that I just described.” He took both letters from his coat pocket and handed them to Mr. Bennet.

“Have you read them?” Mr. Bennet asked.

“I read the one that Miss Lydia wrote, but only because Mrs. Forster insisted that I do so. I have not read the other; it is, as you see, addressed to you.”

Mr. Bennet nodded his thanks and first opened the letter that Lydia had written.

“Papa?” Jane said.

“A moment, Jane.”

“Read it aloud, Papa!” Mary insisted.

Adjusting his spectacles, Mr. Bennet did so. When he was done, he looked up and studied his girls’ faces. There was rage on Mary’s face as well as Lizzy’s; Kitty was looking at her feet, no doubt still feeling guilty at having concealed what she had known; Jane looked as if she were about to cry.

Mary rose, took the letter from her father’s hand, and began methodically tearing it into tiny pieces.

Jane said, “You are quite right, Mary; we do not want anyone to see that letter.”

Mr. Bingley said, rather awkwardly, “I asked Mrs. Forster to send Lydia’s things to Longbourn, as she said she did not wish to have to transport them when the militia was relocated; I hope I did right.”

“Yes, I think you did,” Mr. Bennet said. “Her gowns are doing no one any good in Brighton. I will read the second letter now.”

Dear Mr. Bennet,

I write to you at my dear friend Lydia’s request. It is difficult for her to hold a pen for long, as she is still quite weak.

She was deeply grieved to learn of her mother’s passing, and that has proved to be a serious setback to her health.

I am doing my very best to care for her, and will continue to send word as to her condition.

Yours most sincerely,

Mrs. Harriet Forster

He nodded and said, “This will stem the gossip for a time; thank you, Mr. Bingley. Of course, we cannot keep up this pretense forever.”

“Perhaps at some point, we can invent a suitor, then a proposal and then a wedding,” Jane said. “Kitty is quite adept at imitating Lydia’s handwriting.”

“But then everyone will expect to see her, will they not? For surely she would return to Meryton at some point with her husband. No, that will not serve,” Mary said, shaking her head.

“But she will be found, will she not? Papa?” Kitty asked, urgently.

“I do not know, child,” Mr. Bennet said, wearily. “One day at a time; that is all I can manage just now.”

Mr. Bingley now thought he might have earned a bit of extra time with Miss Bennet. “Mr. Bennet, might I be permitted to walk with Miss Bennet in the garden?”

Mr. Bennet looked at Jane. “Are you willing to walk with Mr. Bingley, Jane?”

“Yes, Papa,” she whispered.

“Very well; Lizzy, you go with them.”

The three of them stepped out into the back garden. Elizabeth made it a point to stay far back enough to allow her sister to have a private conversation with Mr. Bingley, but close enough so that her sister felt supported.

Jane saw Elizabeth staying several paces away, and nodded her thanks to her sister. She then turned to Mr. Bingley and waited for him to speak. She did not have to wait long.

“Miss Bennet, I am grateful that you are allowing me to walk with you. I feel quite certain that I do not deserve your kindness.”

“On that we are in agreement, Mr. Bingley.” Jane’s voice was tart.

He winced.

She continued, “How am I ever to trust you again, Mr. Bingley, knowing that your sisters and Mr. Darcy can twist you about to suit their own preferences?”

“Miss Bennet –“

“No, please let me finish. Have you any idea how people spoke about me after you left so unexpectedly? How they laughed at me behind their hands?”

Mr. Bingley remained silent, his head down.

“And you know what the worst thing was? It was how very badly I missed you! Despite how you had treated me, I missed your smile, your laugh, the way you dip your tarts into your tea, the way you –“ and she could not go on.

He rushed to respond. “Miss Bennet – Jane – I missed you terribly. I missed your kindness, your beautiful smile, your grace when you move, everything! Listening to you tell me how things were for you after I left makes me hate myself. I have never hated myself before, but I do now. I should have trusted myself , trusted what I thought we had together. But instead I trusted my sisters. I was utterly, completely wrong.”

“And Mr. Darcy; let us not forget his interference!”

“Yes; but it was Mr. Darcy who told me that he had been wrong and that you had feelings for me! And it was when Mr. Darcy took me to visit Miss Elizabeth in Lambton that your aunt told me that you had been in London and had called upon my sisters.”

Jane laughed bitterly. “And then I waited three weeks before your sisters returned my call. They made it very clear that they had no interest in continuing the relationship.”

“Miss Bennet, I shall do everything in my power to force my sisters to be kinder to you.”

She stopped walking. “How do you expect to accomplish that?”

“If you become my wife, Caroline and the Hursts must mend their behaviour towards you, or they will live elsewhere.”

She stared at him. “But where?”

“That need not concern you; the point is that you will never have to put up with their bad manners again.”

Jane was not certain that she understood. “Are you proposing to me, Mr. Bingley?” Jane whispered at last.

“I shall, eventually, if you permit it. But not yet. This is not the place, nor the time.”

“I am ready to go back into the house,” Jane said, not looking at Mr. Bingley. In silence, they turned about and returned to Longbourn, Elizabeth trailing behind them.

***

It was not until bedtime that Elizabeth had an opportunity to speak with her sister privately. “Was he rude, Jane?”

“Not at all,” Jane replied, not looking at her sister.

“Did he say something to upset you?”

“He says he wants to marry me.”

“I am not surprised,” Elizabeth said, smiling. But her smile faded when she saw her sister’s face. “But you do not seem pleased, Jane.”

“I am not yet ready to trust again, I suppose,” Jane said. “I thought he was about to propose to me last winter and it came to nothing.”

Elizabeth was silent for a long time, until finally Jane prompted her. “Your thoughts, Lizzy?”

“If I am honest, I envy you your second chance with Mr. Bingley, and I hope with all my heart that you do not waste it. I wish – oh, how I wish! – that I had another chance with Mr. Darcy.”

“Oh, Lizzy! I am thoughtless; I am so sorry!“

“No apology necessary, Jane; you asked what I was thinking, and I told you.”

“You think I should encourage Mr. Bingley, then?” Jane sounded doubtful.

“I think you should follow your heart, nothing more and nothing less.”

“I believe I am following my heart in being careful!”

“No, I do not think you are. I believe that you are being unduly influenced by hurt pride, and you may live to regret it. I speak from my own mistake, Jane, and I sincerely hope that you learn from that mistake, rather than repeat it.”

It was Jane’s turn to be silent. At last, she said, “You are right, sister. My pride was hurt, and badly. I am punishing Mr. Bingley as a result.”

“I believe that is the right of it, Jane.”

Jane sighed. “I must also admit that I was rather enjoying having him so apologetic. Hearing him begging for my favour was quite gratifying.”

“I imagine that is so, but it is no recipe for future happiness. If you want Mr. Bingley, do not push him away. If you do not want him, tell him so at once. But one thing to consider…” she trailed off.

“Yes?”

“I do not know how to say this without sounding grasping, but it may be our last chance, Jane.”

“Because of Lydia?”

“Yes; if it becomes known that she is not ill, that she ran away from her friends in Brighton with a man, none of us might find husbands. I am not saying that this is a reason to marry Mr. Bingley, but it should certainly be kept in mind, should it not?”

“You are right in every respect, Lizzy. And I do want him, as it happens.”

“Good; at the risk of sounding like Mama or Charlotte, you should secure him as soon as may be.”

“I shall attend to it at once.” Jane was now smiling in the dark.

“Good! I look forward to having a brother!”

***

The next morning, Jane went to speak with her father. “Papa, may I have a few minutes of your time?”

“As much as you like, Jane; but first, let me ask – have the girls enough fabric for mourning clothes? Is anything needed? Bonnets, ribbons?”

Jane’s mouth fell open. Before she could close it, her father chuckled. “You are surprised that I should think of such things, I take it?”

“Well, yes, Papa.” Jane eyed her father with some confusion.

“I always had your mother to handle such matters, but now I suppose I must involve myself in them.”

“We have dyed some of our older clothing and remade our bonnets, Papa, so I believe we have enough for now.”

“Good; if there is need for anything more, Jane, you are to let me know at once. You are, after all, now mistress of Longbourn.”

“I had not thought of myself in that capacity, Papa, but I suppose you are right.”

“Yes; and do let Mrs. Hill know that it is you she should apply to for her household requirements and approval of menus. She has tried to discuss these things with me, and I admit to feeling rather out of my depth.”

“I shall, Papa.”

“I thank you. Now, then, what did you wish to discuss?”

“Mr. Bingley.”

“Are his visits distressing you? I can have them cease at once, if you like, Jane.”

“Oh, no, not at all. On the contrary.”

“Oh?” Mr. Bennet peered at his eldest daughter over his glasses.

“I have determined to accept him when he offers for me, and I ask that you agree at once when he comes for your approval. Let us not delay.”

“Is there a reason behind this sudden change, Jane?”

“Lizzy pointed out to me that I was letting my hurt pride dictate the terms of my relationship with Mr. Bingley.”

“Indeed, hurt pride is a cold bed companion, if you will forgive my saying so. But there is more, I take it, given the apparent need for haste?”

“Lydia.” Jane’s response was terse.

“Ah. The family reputation once the truth becomes known.”

“Yes; I think it would be best if I were safely married before that happens, though our being in mourning forces a delay of at least six months. A year would be better, but we will not wait that long, lest Lydia’s folly becomes known.”

Mr. Bennet sighed. “How I wish I had kept that girl in the nursery! And how I wish that I had done better in saving money for you girls, Jane. I am a poor excuse for a father.”

Jane was silent. She wished those things as well, but there was no point in saying so.

He continued, “But now I am determined to correct my faults. You will not need a dowry if you marry Mr. Bingley, though you are entitled to your share of your mother’s four thousand pounds. I hope that the other girls will profit from my thriftiness, late as it is.”

“I am certain they will appreciate your efforts, Papa.”