A Chance Eavesdropping by Odom C. P

Author:Odom, C. P.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Meryton Press
Published: 2023-06-22T00:00:00+00:00

***

Wednesday, 5 August 1812

Pemberley, Derbyshire

On Wednesday afternoon, Darcy kept his engagement with Mr. Gardiner to fish the waters of Pemberley while Mrs. Gardiner and her niece visited friends in Lambton. The afternoon met all his wishes for satisfaction despite the scarcity of open conversation between the two men. He had learned to fish from his father, who impressed upon him the notion that the proper way to fish required the full attention of the angler, who thus had no time for idle talk. It appeared Mr. Gardiner had learned in a similar fashion, and Darcy’s appreciation of his guest’s character was further advanced.

They had a good deal of success, which may have been the result of their sparse dialogue. Darcy’s father had observed that those fishermen who talked the most caught the fewest fish. His opinion had been that fish, like other game, might hear and avoid human sounds. Darcy had no way of knowing for certain, but this afternoon’s catch did not contradict what his father had told him. In any case, the party took a full hamper back to the house.

Afterwards, he and Mr. Gardiner relaxed in a pair of comfortable chairs in his study. They each held a snifter of excellent brandy, and a rather unusual but most satisfying sense of relaxation came over Darcy. He was not comfortable with many people; Bingley was one of the few, and their mutual ease with each other was the central foundation of their firm friendship. There were few others with whom he felt truly at his ease, and he was cautious about letting down his guard. All of which made his present sense of relaxed contentment so unusual—and so welcome.

The sound of Georgiana playing the pianoforte down the hall was a reminder of how well introducing her to Elizabeth Bennet had proved. He could not have asked for a better result; Georgiana had been bubbling over with praise for her new friend, and she had looked rather wistful that morning as Mrs. Gardiner and her niece left for Lambton.

His train of thought came to an end as he caught sight of the Gardiner carriage turning in to the drive. The music from the pianoforte ended at the same time, which meant that Georgiana had seen them as well.

“It appears your wife and niece are returning from their visits in the village,” Darcy said, rising to his feet and doing his best to restrain his eagerness to greet the ladies—or at least one particular lady. “In addition, I hear my sister running to the front door to greet her new best friend, so we had best join her.”

He did wonder what might have occasioned the sudden narrowing of Mr. Gardiner’s eyes as he rose, but the thought was a passing one of no significance and was thus easy to dismiss.

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