Page 34 of The Happiness of a Most Beloved Sister (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

I n the first week of May, the Bennet sisters returned to Hertfordshire in triumph, Jane having secured a proposal—at last—from Mr Bingley.

Elizabeth clutched the flower stone between her palms, fingers entwined to keep it hidden lest she be scolded for her fidgets.

She knew more than felt that she ought to be happy with this conclusion, one brought about after months of tribulation for them all, but she could not quite muster the enthusiasm for it as they trundled towards Longbourn in Mr Bingley’s carriage in strained silence.

Any satisfaction she might have enjoyed was hampered both by Jane’s continued refusal to forgive as well as the mercenary motives she had confessed a little above a fortnight ago.

It had been this, more than any other evidence, that had convinced Elizabeth that she had never truly known her sister—or herself.

She had been cautious of gallant gentlemen but had never once considered that someone she shared a deep intimacy with might be guileful.

It had been a hard lesson to learn and one she was still struggling to come to terms with.

She had entirely given up any notion of seeking rapprochement with Jane, for there no longer seemed any point to it.

Her sister was determined to hold her to account for her ‘blunder’ and would not be moved to discharge her resentment; Darcy had been correct when he had called it implacable.

Apparently, it suited Jane to punish her indefinitely for one reason or another, and Elizabeth was beginning to believe that her sister enjoyed it.

Whether this was true or not, she could not rightly say, but that was the suspicion building within her.

She had apologised enough and would no longer prostrate herself at Jane’s feet.

Should her sister choose to absolve her in the future, Elizabeth would be glad of it, but she would not go seeking it again.

As they crossed beneath the stone arch that denoted the beginning of their father’s property, Jane cleared her throat, garnering Elizabeth’s attention.

“I am sure I need not remind you to keep your opinions and unwanted ‘assistance’ to yourself from henceforth. You have promised me faithfully to maintain a suitable distance from my betrothed, and I will brook no dissension on this point.”

Elizabeth bowed her head a moment to hide her grimace.

It was becoming increasingly difficult to endure Jane’s supercilious directives.

“I have no intention of coming between you and Mr Bingley again, though I know not why you are bothering to chide me now that you are engaged to him. He cannot untangle himself from you without a great deal of difficulty at this juncture.”

“Even so, I will not have you poisoning him against me.”

“Ah, I see your concern now,” Elizabeth said, a thin smile of understanding unfurling across her lips.

“You worry that I shall tell Mr Bingley that you love him more for his purse than his person. Well, you have nothing to fear from me. You have caught your mouse in your trap, and there is no profit in causing him to suffer for it. Your secrets are, as always, safe with me.”

Jane’s eyes narrowed into slits, and she turned her head away, nose pointed into the air. Elizabeth was reminded distinctly of Miss Bingley and wondered how she had never thought to make the comparison before.

She glanced out of the window to where Mr Bingley rode alongside them, whistling a jaunty tune.

She almost felt pity for the poor man, taking on a wife who did not especially care for him.

Howbeit, Darcy’s contention that his friend was no more deeply enamoured of Jane than an appreciation for her beauty and gentle demeanour alleviated a great deal of her inclination to warn him.

Darcy was right—they were a remarkably good match in how shallow their attachment was.

They might yet be content together, that being the case.

Elizabeth was more of Darcy’s opinion on the subject of marriage—not that she particularly anticipated entering the state herself.

If she ever did, she would require more than a thin sort of inclination for her partner, a more profound connexion than could be easily attained via wealth.

She would want a gentleman who, in disposition and talents, would suit her in every respect.

His understanding and temper need not be precisely like her own but should answer all her wishes for a companionable marriage.

If she were most fortunate, the union would be advantageous to them both, if not necessarily in monetary assets then in the sort of felicity that could only be attained by those who genuinely understood one another.

In short, Elizabeth wished to laugh, not merely smile, if she were to ever marry.

Unbidden, Darcy’s face floated across the surface of her mind, and Elizabeth experienced a hot flush throughout her body. No, no, Lizzy—guard your heart.

Given the state of her relationship with her formerly dearest sister, Elizabeth might have descended into a deep melancholy if not for the enduring presence of Darcy, who had visited her almost daily whilst she remained with the Gardiners.

She considered him her most devoted friend; unlike Jane, he not only said he was loyal but actually proved it with unstinting attentions.

Mrs Gardiner had hinted several times that there might be more between them than platonic amity, but Elizabeth could not consider such a thing just now.

Even if Darcy were amenable to a romantic attachment, she was not ready to take that risk.

Until she better understood her own fallibility, she was in no fit state to marry anyone, much less a man as deserving of every good thing as Darcy.

Although her feelings for the gentleman were in a muddle, Elizabeth was clear on how much she missed him already.

She had hoped that he might return to Netherfield with Mr Bingley, but arranging his sister’s affairs would keep him in town for at least another week.

He had promised to join his friend as soon as was feasible, so she at least had his impending company to anticipate.

That he was coming for her sake had been left unsaid, though Elizabeth’s heart fluttered at the possibility.

Miss Bingley and Mrs Hurst, reportedly in high dudgeon with their brother for linking himself irreparably with Jane, had declined to join the party, but their absence would be lamented by no one.

They stopped in the circular drive in front of Longbourn’s manor house, and Mr Bingley opened the door to release them. He reached in for Jane first, as was expected and proper, before belatedly recalling Elizabeth. She hastily tucked the stone into her reticule before accepting his assistance.

By the time she had descended from the coach, Jane had been taken up in their mother’s arms and was being inundated with Mrs Bennet’s effusions. “I just knew how it would be! I knew you could not be so beautiful for nothing!”

Mrs Bennet then turned her attentions to Mr Bingley, who submitted to them with stammering uncertainty. Beyond them, Elizabeth caught the eye of her father, whose shoulders shook with laughter at the scene. He is well and truly caught now, even if I wanted to warn him. Mama will never release him.

Mrs Bennet swept Mr Bingley and Jane into the house, exclaiming for Hill to prepare refreshments. She had obviously forgotten the rest of the family, and Elizabeth most of all; her mother had not so much as glanced in her second daughter’s direction, much less offered a greeting.

Blessedly, her father and younger sisters were not so callous. “Well, well, Lizzy. Back again at last, eh? I am glad you are home, for I have not heard two words of sense spoken together since you left.”

Elizabeth embraced him as she laughed. “Oh, Papa.”

She was somewhat apprehensive to turn to her sisters, but it appeared that any disgruntlement on Jane’s behalf had long since evaporated.

Mary welcomed her with quiet pleasure and bid her to listen to the new piece she had been practising.

Kitty and Lydia chattered at her, talking over one another in an impossible tangle about all the gossip of the neighbourhood.

Their greatest lament was that the militia was set to depart for Brighton at the end of the month.

“Even though you were not here to scare them off!” Lydia exclaimed with a braying laugh and a teasing nudge.

Although these antics had used to irk her, Elizabeth breathed in a deep sigh of contentment as she allowed them to lead her inside for tea.