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Collins tugged at his collar. “I beg your pardon, your ladyship,” said he, his complexion turning a deep shade of red.

Lady Catherine went silent for a moment, no doubt to digest this troubling tidbit. She tasted her food and seemed pleased to find it to her liking. After another moment or two, she declared, “I do not suppose everyone can claim the privilege of leisure—unfortunately for you, Miss Bennet.”

“How so?” Elizabeth exclaimed with energy. Remembering herself, she continued, “If I may ask.”

“Why, being burdened by such relations must necessarily diminish the chances of you and your sisters attracting men of consequence as husbands.”

Keenly feeling the sting of such an impertinent remark, Elizabeth formed her lips to respond in kind. Heeding a pleading look from her friend Charlotte, Elizabeth held her tongue.

If such is to be the nature of the conversation, it will surely be a long evening after all.

After dinner, the women gave up the room leaving the gentlemen to their port. Finally, Darcy felt an overpowering need to exhale. Whoever this Miss Elizabeth Bennet was and wherever she had come from, she had nearly taken his breath away when he walked into his aunt’s parlor earlier that evening. The intelligence that she had relations in trade now made sense. There was no longer any wonder her clothing was simple and expensive jewelry did not overly adorn her body as commonly exemplified by all the young ladies of his acquaintance. This bewitching creature with her amazing, dark eyes and her light, pleasing figure had rendered him utterly speechless. That was until she began boasting of an acquaintance with that scoundrel George Wickham.

What impertinence, Darcy began to consider in recollection of her earlier retorts to his aunt as well as to himself. Does that young lady not comprehend what an honor it is for someone of her standing to dine here at Rosings? How impolitic of her to utter a single word in defense of George Wickham when it was made perfectly clear to her how thoroughly that man is abhorred. Darcy’s mind was so full of the impertinent stranger in their midst that he hardly attended a word his cousin and that ridiculous Mr. Collins had to say. In no time at all, it seemed, it was necessary to reunite with the ladies.

The possibility that Darcy would come back to the parlor alongside his aunt’s vicar was unsupportable. As a consequence, he and his cousin languished behind until the parson was no longer in view. The colonel questioned his cousin’s hesitance.

“Why would I wish to afford such a courtesy to such an inconsequential man?” Darcy folded one arm over the other. “It is insulting enough that we should be forced to be in company with our aunt’s sycophantic vicar, but having to endure his impertinent relations is beyond the pale.”

“Darcy, old fellow, I would not be as fastidious as you for a kingdom. What objections can you have to the man’s relations? His wife is very pleasant.”

“That she may well be, but one cannot help questioning her thinking for marrying such a foolish man.”

“No doubt, the lady was guided by prudence. Since when is a woman’s soundness of mind to be questioned for her decision to marry for security?”

Darcy shrugged. “Fortunately, I have never had reason to think of such matters.”

“Indeed, but you will acknowledge that not everyone is so fortunate as you—present company included. But other than her friend being Mr. Collins’s cousin, how might you possibly object to the charming Miss Elizabeth Bennet? Is she not lovely?”

“She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me or to excuse her impertinence.”

Completely unbeknown to the gentlemen, their conversation had been overheard. Elizabeth, in her desire to eschew the company of Lady Catherine at least until the gentlemen had rejoined the party, had made an excuse of wanting to refresh herself. Not wishing to be accused of deliberately putting herself in the gentlemen’s paths, she had quietly slipped inside an empty room when she heard them approaching.

Retreating farther into the room, Elizabeth braced herself against the wall. She placed one hand on her chest and the other she pressed to her lips. And these are the words of a gentleman—the words of someone whom I admired mere hours earlier, she considered, admired in spite of his dour nature and even his ill regard for the amiable Mr. Wickham.

Why, I had even begun to fancy the gentleman more handsome than Mr. Wickham.

I am now given to consider that Mr. Darcy is not so handsome after all. Smiling a little inside at this new resolve, Elizabeth rallied her spirits. Not only is he not handsome enough to tempt me, I further declare that he is the one who is impertinent. What is more, he is not even tolerable.

CHAPTER 2

HOUSEHOLD HARMONY

Elizabeth nearly choked on her breakfast tea. She could scarcely believe what she’d heard. “Mr. Darcy is engaged!” she exclaimed. “To his cousin?”

Mr. and Mrs. Collins nodded in unison. “You may think it odd that the gentleman did not attend Miss de Bourgh in that manner young lovers are wont to do, but I assure you of their attachment,” said the former.

Elizabeth remained silent, despite the fluttering of her busily engaged mind. Did not attend Miss de Bourgh, indeed! He could not have paid less attention to the young woman had he tried. He paid far more attention to me, both before and after his disparaging remarks to his cousin that I am not handsome enough to tempt him.

Her pride still extremely mortified by his harsh affront, Elizabeth could not help but wonder what exactly it was about his cousin that had succeeded in tempting the gentleman. Miss de Bourgh was pale and sickly. Her features, though not plain, were rather insignificant, and she spoke very little. When she did deign to speak, she always did so in a barely audible voice, one that compelled anyone who would listen to lean ever so close to hear what she had to say. At length, Elizabeth began to appreciate the irony that such a man as the proud Mr. Darcy should be engaged to that frail creature, and she thereby decided that he deserved his fate.

Mr. Collins heralded the union between the two cousins as though it were preordained by God, and he did so in a manner that marked him for Elizabeth’s derision. He was far from being a sensible man, but rather someone whom fate had smiled upon in rendering him the recipient of the living in Hunsford, a good home, and a sufficient income. Sealing his good fortune was the fact that he was the heir apparent to the Longbourn estate—the only home Elizabeth had ever known.

He rambled on and on, extolling all of Miss Anne de Bourgh’s estimable qualities. His proclamation that Miss de Bourgh would have a very large fortune and his belief that she and her cousin would unite the two great estates of Rosings Park and Pemberley was all that Elizabeth needed to hear to understand the nature of Mr. Darcy’s motives. Men of his ilk were nothing if not always seeking ways to expand their fortunes.

Soon enough, Elizabeth began to pay her cousin no mind. She sat at the breakfast table thinking of all that had taken place the evening before. Heavy on her mind was the burden of deciding whether to accept Lady Catherine’s open invitation to practice on the pianoforte.

You would be in nobody’s way in that part of the house, the proud aristocrat had insisted, referring to the east library. The instrument was deemed in need of tuning, but any practice would be better than none, her ladyship went on to say after Elizabeth concluded a command exhibition the evening before—one the grand lady had found wanting both in execution and taste, especially in comparison to her daughter’s despite Anne’s never having actually learned how to play the pianoforte or any other instrument for that matter owing to her health.