All throughout the day yesterday, Mr. Bingley left no doubt about his regard for Jane. Her sister, in turn, must have taken their friend Charlotte’s advice to heart, for she had given Mr. Bingley as much encouragement as a lady could without making a spectacle of herself, practically glowing every time he looked upon her. It would surprise Elizabeth if there was not an announcement of an engagement between them before the church bells at Meryton rang in the new year.
Elizabeth looked away to confirm Jenny’s two brothers were still safely feeding the ducks in the small pond.
It was a beautiful morning—warmer than it had been since they arrived in London. Being confined to the house for the past few days, Elizabeth had welcomed the exercise of escorting the children for a stroll to the churchyard grounds down the street from the Gardiners’ home whilst their injured eldest brother slept late after a difficult night.
Now soothed by Jane’s reassurance, little Jenny ran off to play with her brothers. Jane stepped up to join Elizabeth.
“Getting in some practice?” Elizabeth quipped.
Jane blushed. “I often wonder whether I would be an adequate mother.”
“Oh, Jane! You will make the ideal mother; of that I am certain.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“While I do love our parents dearly, we both must concede that we have daily proof at home of what we should not do. Mama and Papa allow our youngest sisters to run wild at times and cannot be bothered to make the effort to subdue their unruly behaviour. You, Mary, and I have better sense than Kitty and Lydia, but we are not their parents, and since Mama has told them repeatedly that they do not have to listen to us, therefore, they do not. Our aunt and uncle make much better models of proper parents, and you and I have chosen to learn from them, instead. During your every interaction with children, you are firm, yet gentle and patient. By nature, you are everything Aunt Madeline is, and more.” She paused to smile mischievously. “With you as their mother, and Mr. Bingley as their father, your children will be the most beautiful, kind, loving, and polite boys and girls who have ever lived.”
“Thank you, Lizzy.” Jane blinked away the tears that had welled up in her eyes. “I believe you will be an exceptional mother, as well.”
Elizabeth noticed Jane did not dissuade her from pairing her with Mr. Bingley. Very interesting! “I am determined to be the best aunt I can be. I will spoil your children as often as you will allow.” She spoke the next in a more subdued tone. “Though I doubt very much that I shall ever have children of my own.”
“You will if Mr. Darcy has anything to say about it,” Jane said under her breath whilst looking off towards the lawn where the Gardiner children were now playing tag.
Elizabeth’s heart lurched. “Mr. Darcy? Whatever could you mean, Jane?”
Jane smiled. “Charles has told me that Mr. Darcy cares deeply for you.”
Two things about what she heard hit her at once. While she wanted to know why Mr. Bingley would ever say such a thing about Mr. Darcy, it would have to wait. Even more extraordinary at this moment was…
“Charles?” Elizabeth gasped.
A grin spread across her sister’s lips, wider than any Elizabeth had ever seen.
“Jane! What have you not told me?”
“I am sorry, Lizzy—I know it was selfish of me, but I wished to keep my news to myself for one evening. Yesterday, as we all moved towards the dining parlour for supper, Mr. Bingley asked me to marry him. I accepted.”
“So soon! But then, the moment I saw you together again, I knew it would be so.” Elizabeth took her sister’s hands in hers. “No wonder you were beaming all throughout supper, and more so on the carriage ride to the Gardiners. I thought it was simply that you were glad to see Mr. Bingley again.”
“I was glad to see him. And now… oh, Lizzy! I am so happy,” Jane declared. “I wish everyone could be as happy as I!”
“But, with so many people about, when did he find time to propose?”
Jane stared at the clear, blue sky, all starry-eyed. “It was in the corridor, on our way to supper. You all had gone before us, but he held me back.” She sighed. “It was very romantic…”
“Romantic?” Elizabeth chuckled. “Mr. Bingley behaved romantically in Mr. Darcy’s corridor?”
“Where it happened does not matter. It was his words and all of his looks I will always remember.”
A nanny Elizabeth recognized as being employed by a family two doors down from the Gardiners arrived with two young boys. Elizabeth glanced over at their charges. The Gardiners’ children asked the newcomers to join them in their game of tag. The nanny settled herself on a bench across the pond as the children continued their game.
Elizabeth turned to Jane. “I hope you wish to share more with me.”
Jane looked as if she would burst if she did not. “Charles said he had long been in love with me, though he had been uncertain about my own feelings, for he felt undeserving of me. However, while we were apart these past few days, he realized he wished to spend forever with me, so he could not help himself from taking full advantage of the opportunity of meeting with me again. He asked if I would agree to never part from him for as long as we both shall live.”
Elizabeth sighed. “You are correct, it was romantic.”
Jane nodded vigorously. “Charles will ride to Longbourn the day after the ball to ask Papa for consent. I am hoping he can return the same day to let me know…”
“Do not fret, dearest Jane. Papa will happily give his consent and blessings. Mama will be so thrilled at the prospect of having you settled at Netherfield, only three miles away from Longbourn, we will probably hear her response all the way from London!”
Jane giggled, then her eyes widened. “Oh! But Lizzy… I almost forgot. What I said about Mr. Darcy…”
“Yes?” Elizabeth held her breath. That gentleman had been very attentive towards her and kind to the extreme whilst they finished packaging the gifts the previous day. And yet, though her opinion of him had greatly improved, he was no less of a mystery to her. There were a few times she thought he might be flirting, which had confused her to no end! However, internally, she explained it all away as wishful thinking.
“Charles told me he expects it will not be long before Mr. Darcy proposes to you.”
Elizabeth huffed. “What in heaven’s name would cause him to presume such a thing? Of all people, Mr. Bingley should know that I am ‘not tempting enough’ for Mr. Darcy even to dance with.” Her face heated. “After all, those two gentlemen were speaking directly at the time Mr. Darcy declared it quite forcefully.”
“Based upon that incident, I did suggest it was possible Charles was mistaken, but he insisted he was not. He believes the comment was voiced only because the gentleman did not wish to dance that evening. Neither of them had any idea someone had overheard him, and I must say that Charles was terribly upset when he heard it was. You should know it seems his sister’s unfortunate incident had taken place not too long before his coming to Hertfordshire. Although he had not wished to leave her, his aunt and uncle felt his protective behaviour towards Georgiana was not beneficial towards her recovery, and so they ordered him to accompany Charles to Hertfordshire, as he had previously planned. So, you see, Mr. Darcy was not himself on the day of the assembly ball. Apparently, since that comment had been expressed, Mr. Darcy’s opinions steadily grew more complimentary towards you, Lizzy.”
Jane smiled impishly this time. “Then, yesterday, Mr. Darcy said something to Charles that made him expect there was more to his interest than he had previously thought.” Elizabeth suspected Jane knew exactly what Mr. Darcy had said, but she did not repeat it. “Charles observed him whenever he could during the day and declared to me that he has never seen his friend behave in such a manner towards any other lady. He is adamant Mr. Darcy is in love with you.”