Page 23 of To Go Against Her Heart (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

From the moment of his arrival, Mr. Collins was perfectly confident that he could secure his marriage with Elizabeth without any obstacles.

Her mother seemed to welcome the prospect, and he did not doubt that Mr. Bennet would agree to have an amiable gentleman such as he for a son-in-law, especially considering the entailment.

Although he observed Elizabeth’s efforts to avoid him, he attributed her reserve to his understanding of the world: he assumed she was shy around her future husband.

But this evening, he slowly started to worry, especially when he saw Darcy and Elizabeth dance together.

Suddenly, the notion that Elizabeth might never be his own occurred to him, and he panicked.

He wondered if he had delayed his actions to claim her hand, and so, when he saw Elizabeth leave the ballroom, he followed her out till she entered the library.

This grand ball is the best occasion to announce my engagement. My esteemed patroness will be delighted if she understands how I have conducted myself here.

He entered the library with anticipation and saw Elizabeth turn around in shock as she beheld him.

“Mr. Collins!” she exclaimed.

“My dearest cousin, I apologize if I have startled you.”

“Well…I…I was looking for my father. If you would excuse me,” she said, trying to walk past him, but he blocked her way.

“I am certain both of us can meet him shortly with news that would delight him beyond measure,” he smiled, and Elizabeth stared at him in horror. He seemed to have indulged in both food and wine without restraint.

“I do not understand you. Please allow me to leave,” she cried as his intentions were now obvious.

“You must understand me, and I wonder how you could not after all these weeks of showing my utmost regard for you. I …”

“Enough, Mr. Collins. I have no wish to hear your words,” she yelled. Just then, the door opened, and Darcy walked in, looking concerned.

The moment he saw Elizabeth’s countenance, his own changed into anger. As for Elizabeth, she felt nothing but relief at the sight of him. His very presence comforted her, and she breathed a sigh of relief as Darcy walked in with swift strides.

“Miss Elizabeth, your sister has been looking for you. I assume your family is ready to leave,” he said, keeping his gaze on Mr. Collins.

“Mr. Darcy, I was just telling my cousin that I…” Mr. Collins stammered.

“Can you move aside?” he asked with a piercing gaze, seeing that he blocked Elizabeth’s way, and Mr. Collins had no other choice but to do as commanded.

Elizabeth quickly walked past him and locked arms with Darcy, and they left the library, leaving behind Mr. Collins, who was disappointed beyond measure.

As they proceeded to the ballroom, Darcy understood that she was still in a state of agitation. In truth, Elizabeth, endeavoring to compose herself, could not but wonder how he had come to know about her whereabouts.

“Please allow me to apologize. Your sister was not in search of you, but I did see your family preparing to leave,” he said, not wanting to lie to her.

“Then why did you say so?” she asked with irritation.

“I saw Mr. Collins follow you out of the ballroom, and I…”

“And you wanted to come to my rescue, did you not, Mr. Darcy?” she asked with anger.

By now, they had walked into the ballroom, where most guests had departed after an exciting evening.

“I wish you would understand that I was concerned about you.”

“Who are you to be concerned about me?” she asked, keeping her voice low. She continued, trying to compose herself, “I do not need you to come to my aid in any situation. I wish you would not take the liberty to interfere in my life any longer,” she said, trying to lower her voice.

Darcy could not mistake the emotion and anger in her voice, even though she tried to conceal it quite well. He did not want to argue with her but was certain he was not at fault.

“I wish you would not throw words in haste. I could very well see that you were not comfortable in his presence,” he said calmly, which kindled Elizabeth’s anger even more.

“Yes, maybe I am hasty, especially in forgiving someone who does not deserve it,” she cried, leaving him to join her family.

Darcy was tortured beyond measure by her words, and it demanded every effort of composure to stand beside his friend, betraying nothing of his anguish until the Bennets took leave.

Elizabeth did not care to look at him as they bid goodbye, and Jane’s parting from Mr. Bingley was equally awkward.

She was very much embarrassed by her mother’s words and the way she had reacted to them.

Both Darcy and Mr. Bingley seemed to be in the same state of mind, given how the evening had ended.

Darcy immediately excused himself and retired for the night, not in the mood to spend another moment among company.

On the other hand, Elizabeth tried hard to control her anger as she sat in the carriage.

She could not accept the fact that Darcy had rescued her from an uncomfortable situation and wanted to confide in Jane about the incident.

Unfortunately, when she looked at her sister, she could see that Jane was not in the mood for any discussion.

She looked pale and troubled, and, for the first time, Elizabeth hoped that nothing would go awry in Jane’s relationship with Mr. Bingley.

She knew her sister could never handle heartbreak; deep within, she felt that Jane was the last person who deserved such suffering.

Her headache worsened by the time they reached home, and Elizabeth rushed upstairs, wanting to avoid any conversation with Mr. Collins.

He either wanted to propose or disclose his feelings to me. Ridiculous man!

In her heart, she was aware that Darcy wanted to protect her, and she also knew that if he had not intervened, someone might have discovered her alone with Mr. Collins in the library.

But she could not bring herself to forgive him for considering her welfare and displaying it so openly.

She did not wish him to show that he cared for her, for she found it impossible to trust herself when he did.

“I am worried, Lizzy. Do you think Mr. Bingley heard what Mamma said?” Jane finally asked, as they retired for the night.

“I do not think so. I did not spot him seated for supper.”

“But there is a possibility that he could have been around, and if he had heard Mamma, what would he have thought about me?”

“No matter what happened tonight, you did nothing wrong. Mamma’s words do not represent you.”

“But I created a scene among all our friends; I cannot believe I lacked composure when I needed it the most,” Jane said with shame.

“Please do not be harsh on yourself. No one acquainted with you can find you at fault, especially Mr. Bingley. Now tell me what his sister said to upset you.”

“Right before the fourth set, she voluntarily walked up to me and conversed as I stood with Mrs. Hurst. She mentioned that Mr. Darcy usually spends Christmas at his estate in Derbyshire, but because of the likely engagement that is to take place between her brother and Miss Darcy, they plan to stay in London. She mentioned how delighted they were to welcome her into the family, and Mrs. Hurst praised the young lady to a great extent. Please do not think I am jealous about another woman winning his affection, but I do not understand why he showed me such undoubted partiality until this evening.”

“You are jumping to conclusions, Jane. As far as I know, Miss Darcy is too young to be engaged; you need to trust me in this matter. In my understanding of Mr. Darcy’s words that morning, I am certain his sister is not inclined to get married anytime soon.”

“How could there be no truth if both sisters carry the same story? Could they be so cruel as to spread such lies to detach me from him? They must be aware of the consequences, don’t they?”

“I am certain they are trying their luck as they may be confident that you would never ask anything about this to Mr. Bingley. The only way to react to their lies is to act unaffected by the same.”

“It is easy for you to say, Lizzy. The very thought of Mr. Bingley deceiving me pains me beyond measure. You probably cannot understand how it feels to…” She stopped abruptly, seeing Elizabeth smile.

“Good heavens! That was so cruel of me, and I cannot imagine what made me say such a hurtful thing to you. How could I ever forget what you went through?”

“Do not apologize; no matter what I went through, I cannot disparage your pain now. But please understand that this will be temporary because I am certain once you ignore Miss Bingley’s words, she will have no choice but to give up the pursuit of separating you both,” Elizabeth assured.

The sisters went to sleep that night feeling exhausted.

However, Elizabeth woke up in the middle of the night with a recurring dream that she hated to revisit during the day.

She had been tortured by the same for many weeks now and struggled to erase it from her memory.

It was a dream about Darcy, and nothing about it made sense to her.

….. “Would you like me to turn pages for you?” he asked, looking into her eyes with love.

“If you wish to.”

“I would never miss a chance to sit next to my wife and admire her in close proximity.”

“I warn you that I will hold you in contempt if you fail to assist me and I end up embarrassing myself by faltering in my performance.”

“Trust me, no matter the situation, no one could find fault in your music.”

“You are a convincing liar, Mr. Darcy, not that I do not enjoy it,” she said with a smile.

As they sat together in what seemed like a music room in his estate….

Whenever she experienced the dream, she awoke with a jolt, as it seemed so real, yet beyond reasoning.