Back in the drawing room, the Darcy men bowed and the Bennet ladies curtseyed. Mr. Darcy was the first to speak.
“Please accept my condolences for your loss. As you may already have known, or maybe have guessed, I am your father’s friend. We knew each other from our days at Eton, and though we were not able to visit as much as we would have liked, we corresponded regularly. I am pleased to meet both of you.”
“Thank you, sir,” the girls both murmured.
“My friend was fond of describing his children to me, therefore let me guess your identities.” He leaned back a bit, examining each, with his arms crossed and one finger tapping his lips. “Blonde and rather tall and extremely beautiful … you must be Miss Jane Bennet.”
Jane blushed at the compliment. “I am, sir. Your kind words are appreciated.”
“Oh, they are not mine, my dear, but your Papa’s. You were his firstborn, and he was in love with you from the moment he laid eyes on you the day of your birth.” As Jane’s blushed deepened, Mr. Darcy turned to Elizabeth. “Brunette, petite, and mischievous, which I can see you are by the way you are trying to swallow a laugh. You must be Miss Elizabeth.”
Eyes twinkling, Elizabeth curtseyed. “I am. Papa spoke of you often; he never mentioned that you were a charmer.”
Mr. Darcy laughed heartily at that. “Perhaps my charm did not work on him.” He winked at her before turning toward Fitzwilliam. “Ladies, this is my son, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy.”
Fitzwilliam bowed. “I am happy to make your acquaintance.” What he was happy about was that he sounded intelligent. He had been dumbstruck to walk into the room and see such elegant and handsome women waiting. He was not certain what he had expected to find; they were gentlewomen, after all. Perhaps, he thought, I expected girls. These are definitely not girls. The blonde is beautiful, for certain, but the brunette … well, she is something exceptional, especially when you take into account the sparkle in her eyes. This is the one I am to marry, is it not? Perhaps it was not such a bad idea, after all. But, I should not base such an important decision on her looks, nor on how attracted to her I am. She could turn out to be awful.
Forcing his thoughts away from how enticing Miss Elizabeth had turned out to be, Fitzwilliam struggled to regain the thread of the conversation.
“You must forgive Fitzwilliam if he seems distant. He has always been rather reserved among strangers. Once he comes to know you, he will be more comfortable. He is very much like his mother in that.”
Both ladies smiled, but it was Elizabeth who spoke. “I remember from the letters my father shared that you loved Mrs. Darcy very much. It must be a comfort to you to see so much of her in your children. Please allow me to offer my condolences on your loss, though I know it was many years ago now.”
“Thank you, my dear. It is a comfort to look at my son and daughter and see my Anne. Both are very like her.”
Jane spoke up. “Please, do be seated. Tea things should be here soon, and then we will have Hill show you to your rooms so you can refresh yourselves after your journey.”
Elizabeth waited for her sister to stop speaking before she conveyed the apologies she felt necessary. “I am sorry that you were greeted only by myself and Jane. My mother has taken to her bed, and insisted this morning that my younger sisters sit with her.”
“Do not trouble yourselves about that. We did not expect her to be well enough to receive us just yet. Perhaps later today, we can convince her to come down.”
Once she hears there are two single gentlemen in the house, I am certain she will be easy to convince. Keeping her uncharitable thoughts to herself, Elizabeth merely nodded.
Mrs. Hill arrived then with a maid and the tea things. She laid them out, surreptitiously eyeing the gentlemen, then nodded to Sally to leave. She followed the maid, after curtseying to Jane and Elizabeth.
As Jane poured the tea, the four spoke of Mr. Bennet, sharing memories. Before they retired to their rooms, the gentlemen broached the subject of the reading of the will.
“Miss Elizabeth, I know your father’s opinion of what your mother’s reaction will be to his death and the reading of his final wishes. Obviously, he was correct about the former, but what is your opinion of the latter?”
“Mama has already stated that she will not attend the reading of the will. I think she would prefer that I do not, but I have insisted. My sensibilities are not that delicate, and I much prefer to hear things myself and be able to ask questions in the moment than to wait and wonder.”
“I had suspected you would feel that way.” Mr. Darcy smiled. “Your father’s descriptions of you were spot-on, Miss Elizabeth. He would be proud of you right now.”
“Thank you, sir.” Elizabeth’s eyes suddenly welled with tears. “I am happy to hear it.”
Fitzwilliam, who had chosen a seat close to Elizabeth’s, quickly reached into his pocket and offered her his handkerchief, having seen that she was becoming emotional. While he was not comfortable with feminine tears, he was eager to make a good impression on this young woman.
Taking the handkerchief, Elizabeth thanked Fitzwilliam. He is a very nice young man, though quiet. Many gentlemen his age would be awkward with a lady’s tears. I think he will turn out to be a good friend to us. She smiled at him and blushed when he returned the gesture, for it made his face light up.
By now, tea was finished, and Mrs. Hill had returned to take the tray. Handing it off to Sally, who stood in the hall, she asked the gentlemen to follow her.
The Darcys bowed to the Bennets and left the room, proceeding up the stairs ahead of the housekeeper. She showed them to their chambers and informed them that supper would be served at seven. Before the elder Darcy could enter his room, Mrs. Hill spoke again, her eyes cast to the floor. “Mr. Darcy?”
He paused, hand on the doorknob. “Yes … Mrs. Hill, is it not?”
Blushing in pleasure that he knew her by name, the housekeeper replied, “Yes, sir. I do not wish to overstep my place, but I wanted to thank you on behalf of all the staff. We do our best to blend into the background as we are supposed to, and we keep our noses out of the family’s business, but after serving so long for one family—most of us have been here since the master and mistress married—they become like our own.” She glanced up at Mr. Darcy’s face. His kindly expression gave her courage to finish what she started. “We have all at one time or another been the one to deliver the post, and so we know that you and the master wrote each other often, and have heard him speak of you as being his greatest friend. We want to express our appreciation to you for coming at such a difficult time. Our ladies need guidance and help. I, for one, remember the master’s cousin. He came here once, well, to Meryton, and tried to stir up trouble for Mr. Bennet. I shudder to think what will happen to Mrs. Bennet and the girls under his thumb. So, thank you for coming to their aid. We will all rest better knowing that such a good friend of the master’s is here.”
“You are welcome, Mrs. Hill. Please reassure the staff that, while I cannot change the entail or the heir, I fully intend to protect the ladies of the house to the best of my ability. I am equally as grateful as you are, for I find comfort in knowing the depth of your loyalty to them.” Bowing, he watched as the housekeeper thanked him, curtseyed, and hastened down the hallway to the stairs. Then, he turned into his room to bathe and rest.
~~~***~~~
Before supper, Darcy knocked on the door to his son’s room, entering it at Fitzwilliam’s call.
“Well, son, you have met your betrothed. What do you think?”
Fitzwilliam’s face lit up at the memory of his first sight of Elizabeth. “I thought both of them beautiful at first glance, but though Miss Bennet is more so in the common use of the term, Miss Elizabeth has something about her that makes her exquisite. I am eager to learn more about her.”
“You like her, then?” Darcy chuckled to himself. He well remembered being a young man full of vigor and laying his eyes on his future bride for the first time.
“I do, very much.”
“This is a good thing, since you will be spending the rest of your life with her. Dare I ask what it is that you like the most?” When his son blushed, Darcy laughed long and loud. “Is that how it is? Well, Son, I cannot say as I blame you. They are beautiful women. I recall Bennet’s reaction when he met his wife; it was much the same as yours.”
Embarrassed and not liking it, Fitzwilliam did not say much. He had never been one to make jokes at another’s expense, or to speak flippantly of women and so did not know how to react to his father’s teasing. He knew his father was not being disrespectful to the ladies, and he was glad of it. Finally, he pulled up the corner of his lips into a small smile.
“Oh, do not be embarrassed, my boy. It is not often I find occasion to tease you, and I must take advantage of this opportunity. Forgive me?”
“Yes, Father, I do. I am not used to being teased.”
“I do not doubt it. I am certain that your friends and acquaintances look at your forbidding demeanour and choose not to attempt it.”
“Except for Bingley. He loves to tease as much as you do.”
“That is good. Everyone deserves a friend who is not afraid of him. I say that you are like your mother, but you are very much a Darcy in your ability to appear severe. With our coloring, we can seem intimidating even when we do not wish to be. It is a skill that is good to have, just be careful that you use it appropriately.” Seeing Fitzwilliam’s nod of understanding, Darcy continued, “Come. Supper will be served soon. We must meet the ladies downstairs. Perhaps Mrs. Bennet might have been convinced to join us.”
Mrs. Bennet had, indeed, been persuaded to descend the stairs and eat with her guests. True to Elizabeth’s mental prediction, it was the discovery that both Mr. Darcy and Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy were single that convinced her it was a good idea. “Oh! Perhaps one of them might be persuaded to marry Jane, and then we will be saved!”
Elizabeth’s frustration was evident in her voice. How I wish I could chastise her in a way that she would listen! “Mama, we are in mourning. None of us can marry for a year. Besides, Mr. Darcy is Papa’s age. He loved his wife very much. I doubt he would be interested in marrying a woman younger than his son.”
Mrs. Bennet paused in her exultations long enough to consider that fact. “Very well,” she conceded, “you may be correct about that. Still, he has a son who is unmarried. He will do for Jane.”
“Unmarried does not mean unattached. Please do not push Jane at him.”
Whirling around to look at Elizabeth, Mrs. Bennet fired back. “Do not tell me what to do, young lady. We need a saviour, and one of those men will be it.” She turned back around to check her appearance in the mirror as Sally finished buttoning her gown. “One way or another, they will not leave here without my Jane being married to one of them.”