Page 15 of Penned By Mr Darcy
“Mr Darcy is a man of a most private and guarded nature,” Miss Bingley placed a hand dramatically to her chest. He does not share his thoughts lightly, and every man must be allowed his secrets.”
“And what of your brother? Does he follow in Mr Darcy’s footsteps?”
“Charles?! Oh, no! He loathes writing; when he was at school, they had a job keeping him still enough to even put pen to paper. He barely attends to his correspondence in a timely manner. Really, the idea of him being so fastidious in his record keeping is quite amusing. His handwriting is barely legible.”
“Mr Darcy is the only man I know who has ever kept a diary,” Mrs Hurst interjected. “A man who is so skilled at so many pursuits is quite a rarity, let alone one who cares to make note of it all at the end of the day.”
“Yes,” Elizabeth said, her chest tight. “Very unusual.”
Chapter Six
Darcy
After they had been to Meryton to ask the doctor to pay another visit to Miss Bennet, he and Bingley went out to the wider Netherfield estate for a ride. It was a relief to be free of their guests and the others in their party. Bingley was an oddity to Darcy, in that he found his presence so easy to endure, as though he were not in company at all. As they galloped through the countryside, Darcy felt his mind begin to clear, as the tension that had so tightly wound began to melt away.
They came to a stop next to a stream, and they both dismounted to allow the horses to drink. Bingley sat on the grass, paying no mind to the dampness, and stared out ahead. Darcy studied him closely, a dreamlike expression on his face that Darcy did not like the look of at all.
He soon discovered why.
“I am going to ask her to marry me.”
Darcy had to bite back the first retort upon his tongue. It felt inevitable, really, for Bingley’s adoration for the girl waspalpable, but to hear the words out loud was another thing entirely.
“I would not advise it.”
“Why?”
“You barely know her!”
“It does not matter. People have married far sooner!”
“And how many of those people are happily married? In my limited experience, hasty marriages are long regretted.”
“You are a cynic. We need not marry quickly; I have no objections to a long engagement.”
“Then why rush?”
“Life is short, Darcy. She is gravely ill! What if she dies without knowing my true feelings?”
“Miss Bennet is not going to die.”
“You do not know that. Have you truly never been in love, Darcy?”
“I have not – and I would wager that you have not either.”
“You do not know what you are talking about.”
“I know that a pretty girl has smiled at you. I do not think that the basis for a lasting and meaningful union. I have seen little else to suggest that Miss Bennet has any attachment towards you.”
The hurt in Bingley’s expression was obvious. His pale cheeks tinged red, something that always happened when he was angry – or embarrassed, or happy, or really when he expressed any emotion at all. How tedious, Darcy thought, to have your body betray your secrets so easily.
“Is it so impossible that you do not understand a situation?” Bingley said sharply. “You see only what you wish to see. Just because you believe society is filled with fortune hunters who would only pursue us for our wealth, does not mean that it is true! Even if it were true, Miss Bennet is quite aside from all of that.”
“She is the eldest of five unmarried daughters, the father of whom is an insignificant gentleman with an entailed estate. Do you really believe that they have not been instructed to entangle any single man of worth?”
“You are too distrusting.”
“Why should I trust people I do not know? The world is not as easy as you would have it, Bingley.”
