J Croft: Mr. Darcy Takes the Plunge

Elizabeth laughed appreciatively and then scolded Jane for mentioning the animals before alluding to the gentlemen they had encountered. She then told the Gardiners they had met the Darcy heir, his army-officer cousin, and two of his friends. Lizzy smiled and arched a brow as she added, “They were all very attractive fellows, were they not, Jane? Although the gents were, perhaps, a little rough around the hedges and a little less than formally attired.”

The two young ladies blushed and suppressed giggles whenever they looked at one another for the remainder of the trip to the inn; their aunt and uncle rolled their eyes and grinned at their nieces’ baffling and rather uncharacteristic giddiness.

The Darcy sisters wished desperately to atone for the embarrassment the Bennets had suffered at Pemberley, so a hastily jotted note was quickly dispatched to the inn at Lambton inviting and imploring Jane and Elizabeth to agree to return the next day. As their relatives had plans to visit an elderly cousin of Mrs. Gardiner, the recipients gladly sent their acceptance with the messenger and eagerly anticipated spending another pleasant day with Georgiana and Anna at their impressive estate.

So it was that the modest Gardiner carriage pulled up to the magnificent manor’s front entry for the second time in as many days. Jane and Elizabeth alit and waved goodbye to their aunt and uncle while Miss Darcy and Miss Anna patiently waited on the steps and their older brother surreptitiously watched from between the curtains of an upstairs hallway window.

“Jane, Elizabeth, welcome back. We are very happy you agreed to return, and Anna and I apologize again for the awkward situation that occurred here yesterday. Please be assured the debacle was the exception rather than the rule at Pemberley, and we shall have a perfect time today to make amends for the fiasco.”

Miss Anna added, “Yes, the sun is shining; and we have planned a nice ride around the park followed by refreshments. Perhaps we shall also have an opportunity to play the pianoforte for one another, if time permits. Does this agenda meet with your approval? If not, we can alter it to accommodate whatever activities you would prefer in order to make your stay here more enjoyable.”

Elizabeth laughed with delight and said, “Georgiana and Anna, please relax. Jane and I are not, whatsoever, upset over the previous afternoon’s … hmm … let us frivolously refer to it as entertainment henceforth, rather than fiasco. There may have been a modicum of embarrassment at the onset; still and all, we are resilient women and have recovered quickly. So you must promise to not think again on the incident.”

Jane agreed, “Oh, yes, please do not worry yourselves any further on our account. We are very happy to be here again and shall derive pleasure in whatever occupations and pursuits you have scheduled for our day together.”

The four linked arms and made their way to the sitting room, where they chatted and sipped tea while the landau was made ready for their afternoon outing. As Elizabeth brought the delicate teacup to her lips, a mysterious noise erupted from the direction of an overturned sewing basket on the floor next to her chair. She glanced toward the contents but was only able to distinguish spools of embroidery thread.

Purr, whistle, snuffle.

Her eyebrows lifted, her eyes widened, and she looked to her sister as if to ask whether she had also heard the peculiar sound.

“Lizzy, are you well?”

Purr, whistle, snuffle.

Elizabeth gracefully lowered the teacup to its saucer, smiled serenely, and calmly replied, “Yes, Jane, thank you. I am fine.”

Purr, whistle, snuffle.

On pins and needles with curiosity, Elizabeth placed her cup and saucer on a nearby table and then dropped her napkin as close to the noise as possible without being too obvious. “Oh, how clumsy of me,” she said. A footman started to cross the floor to assist, but she waved him away. The intrepid Lizzy Bennet crouched down beside the basket, peered inside, and inched her hand toward the back, hoping to discover the origin of the curious little sounds no one else seemed able to hear.

Snort, puff, grunt!

“Ouch! Eeek!” Lizzy promptly withdrew her hand and stood up with a startled, bewildered look on her face.

“Elizabeth!” Georgiana exclaimed and came swiftly to her guest’s side. “Whatever happened? Have you pricked your poor finger on a needle in my sewing basket?”

“I am uncertain. Does your pincushion happen to purr, whistle, snuffle, snort, puff and grunt?”

Miss Anna rushed forward. “Oh, thank you, Elizabeth! You have found Barbara Thorne. I spent most of the morning searching for her, but … Oh, I am sorry. Did she startle you? Barb is quite harmless, really. Does your hand require attention? Please allow me to ring for assistance.” The flustered girl began to turn away.

Elizabeth stopped Anna with a gentle touch on her arm and insisted she was fine. “Truly, my friend, I was merely startled.”

Jane joined them and looked at her sister with protective concern. “Lizzy, are you certain you have not been injured?”

“I am perfectly fine, Jane; and if I am not mistaken, your solicitude should be for a prickly little hedgehog by the name of Barbara Thorne, who is most likely very upset and frightened by now.”

Miss Anna retrieved a small ball of quills from the basket, held it gently in her hands and cooed soothingly to the little creature. She then excused herself to return Barb to its proper confinement in her bedchamber.

Georgiana’s apology for Elizabeth’s distress was dismissed as unnecessary. Just as Anna returned, a footman informed them the landau was ready and waiting. While the ladies donned their bonnets in preparation for the excursion, Fitzwilliam Darcy made an appearance that was remarkably different than the one a day prior on the lawn. The striking young man bowed elegantly and politely inquired about the ladies’ health and plans for the afternoon. He was immaculately attired in a soft white lawn shirt and cravat, tan striped waistcoat, nut-brown tailcoat, Nankeen breeches, and tall Hessian boots. Elizabeth was relieved to discover his hair was not actually green-tinged but was a rather alluring rich chocolate colour with thick tousled curls. So, here, obviously, is the dignified, impeccably dressed brother Anna had so loyally praised yesterday . Lizzy Bennet thought he just might not be such a barbaric buffoon after all; just the same, she soon came to realize the hooligan had actually been just as appealing as the formally proper, well-groomed, conventional gentleman who stiffly stood before her.

For his part, Darcy simply wanted to make a better impression than he had on their initial meeting; so he had donned his reserved public persona. As his father had taught him, a gentleman must not show his emotions; so Darcy’s handsome but unreadable face displayed total indifference, never allowing an iota of his attraction to the younger Bennet sister to be detected. He wished the ladies a pleasant afternoon and informed his sisters that he and his party were going riding and would return to the house later in the afternoon. Should he be needed for any reason afterward, they would most likely be found in the billiard room. Once that succinct information was imparted, Darcy bowed very properly and took his leave.

The ladies insisted the landau’s hoods remain folded down as they started their jaunt around the expansive park. Ninety minutes later, they returned to the house with rosy, laughing faces. A light repast of cold meats, bread, cheese, and fruit was enjoyed al fresco at a canopied table on the garden terrace. The two sets of siblings then strolled toward the stables to see a litter of kittens born several weeks previously. The feral striped mother cat flattened her ears and growled if anyone came too close to the babies, so the young ladies left the felines alone and walked in the direction of the orangery.