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“Hardly,” Elizabeth responded, her cheeks a little warm.
“Nobody knows the neighbourhood as well as Miss Bennet, I am sure,” Mr Darcy replied. “Indeed, you were fortunate to meet her. You could have found yourselves in a most unpleasant situation otherwise. This is precisely why I dislike surprises. One must hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.”
“You may be right, but if one is always prepared, one would miss the charms of the unexpected,” Lord Dunnroy declared in the same amused voice. “But we can debate this later on. Now, we must send some of Bingley’s servants to help my own mend the carriage and bring it here. My men need food and drink — and so do my horses.”
“Come, let me show you inside,” Mr Darcy said. “Help will be sent to your men immediately.”
As they approached the house, joyful exclamations proved that Mr Bingley had spotted the visitors; he ran towards them, waving, then he stopped and bowed, hardly catching his breath.
“Lord Dunnroy, Lady Cecilia, what an extraordinary honour! Did you come to visit me? I very much hope so! Please come in! How did you arrive here? Miss Bennet? I did not even notice you had left the house!”
“Bingley, calm down for a moment,” Lord Dunnroy said, attempting to temper him. “Yes, we came to visit you. But we need a few men to help our servants with the carriage. I believe Miss Bennet is better qualified than I am to explain where they are.”
“Of course, of course! Darcy, please show Lady Cecilia and Lord Dunnroy inside,” Mr Bingley offered. “I shall talk to Miss Bennet and make the necessary arrangements. I am very happy to see you at Netherfield! Truly happy!” the gentleman repeated, though nobody doubted his words. Elizabeth could hardly suppress her smile. Mr Bingley was certainly not a man to conceal his feelings; unlike Mr Darcy, whose countenance never expressed any feelings at all, whether they existed or not.
Two
When Elizabeth entered the house, she found the Bingley sisters and Mr Hurst talking animatedly in the morning room. She chose not to join them and instead went to see Jane. She found that her sister was awake and had managed to drink a cup of tea.
“How are you feeling, dearest?”
“Better, Lizzy, thank you. You went for a walk, did you not?”
“You know me too well,” Elizabeth replied, sitting on the edge of the bed. “It was a fortunate decision, though, as I happened upon some visitors looking for Netherfield.”
“Visitors?”
“Yes, Lord Dunnroy and his wife, Lady Cecilia. He is a viscount, Lord Matlock’s eldest son, and first cousin to Mr Darcy. They came to visit Mr Bingley but their carriage suffered a broken wheel near the bottom of Oakham Mount.”
Jane’s eyes widened. “Oh dear… We must leave Netherfield as soon as possible. Even today. I do not want to become a burden for Mr Bingley. With such illustrious guests, he is certainly keen to see us gone.”
“I look forward to returning home as soon as Mr Jones approves of it. But the Dunnroys are exceedingly amiable, Jane. I doubt they are a reason to put your health in danger.”
“Regardless, please write to Papa and ask that he send us the carriage.”
“Very well. I shall ask Mr Bingley to send a servant to Longbourn or, even better, to lend us his carriage. I am sure he would oblige.”
“Mr Bingley is very kind. I do not want to abuse his generosity.”
As they were talking, Mr Jones arrived.
Elizabeth stepped out to allow the apothecary to perform his examination, and she found herself facing a concerned-looking Mr Bingley in the hall.
“Sir, I was just talking to Jane… We would like to return to Longbourn today, if possible. You have guests, and we do not want to impose—”
“Oh no! Please do not consider leaving because of the Dunnroys! They have been given rooms on the other side of the house, and they will have privacy and comfort. Your presence is certainly not an imposition. We should only consider Miss Bennet’s health.”
“I agree.” Elizabeth smiled at him.
“Of course, my carriage is entirely at your disposal if you prefer to return home, but please know you are most welcome here. I would be sad if you wished to leave because of the new arrivals.”
“Thank you. You are very kind, sir, and you have made us feel welcome indeed. Though I know our presence has not been equally pleasant for your entire party.”
“My entire party? You mean Caroline and Louisa? I assure you they are very fond of Miss Bennet, but sometimes they just… Well… As I said, you are most welcome!”
He looked uncomfortable trying to defend his sisters’ rudeness. Can he be so naïve as to believe their affection for Jane is genuine?
“Let us defer our decision until after Mr Jones’s report on Jane’s progress,” she said.
