Handsome Enough to Tempt Him: A Pride and Prejudice Variation by Laraba Kendig

Author:Laraba Kendig [Kendig, Laraba]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Pride and Prejudice & Related Fandoms, Alternate Universe
Goodreads: 218019738
Published: 2024-09-05T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 28

Drawing Room

Longbourn

Three Days Later

16th November, 1811

Bingley sat uncertainly at the edge of his chair and clutched his tea cup, the tension in the air palpable. Mr. Bennet had come down at the announced arrival of a visitor and was ensconced in the most pleasant chair by the fire, his eyes clouded, his expression peevish. Mrs. Bennet had adopted a most unusual air of fluttery anxiety, and Miss Bennet’s face was drawn and nervous. Miss Elizabeth visibly bit back irritation, not looking at her father, and Miss Mary labored industriously over a list at the table in the corner, her shoulder to the room and her head bent down.

“So, Mr. Bingley, do you think Mr. Darcy will be returning from Town anytime soon?” Mr. Bennet demanded.

Bingley eyed his host uneasily and said, “Erm, I am not certain. The family business which took him to Town may take some time for him to complete.”

“I see,” Bennet replied and cast an irritable look at Miss Bennet, who was seated next to Bingley. “Well, that is a pity. I had hoped I would have the pleasure of soon welcoming another son-in-law into the family.”

Mrs. Bennet, hitherto silent, said in a complaining tone, “I do beg you not to joke around in such a way, Mr. Bennet. You know that Mr. Darcy has no interest in our Jane. You have no compassion on my nerves!”

Bingley blinked at this whining speech from the sensible Mrs. Bennet, but a moment later, Bennet rose to his feet and said, “You mistake me, my dear. I have a high respect for your nerves. They are among my oldest and dearest friends. Now, if Mr. Darcy is not here, I might as well make my way to my library, where I can enjoy some private time with the very best friends I have, my books.”

“Until later, Papa,” Jane said, and the other ladies murmured their own goodbyes.

Mr. Bennet stumped out of the room, his cane tapping away on the wooden floors, and shut the door behind him.

Bingley, looking around, observed that the four ladies wore expressions of embarrassment, with Miss Bennet appearing to be the most distressed of them all.

“I do apologize for that display,” Mrs. Bennet said uncomfortably.

“It is quite all right,” Bingley replied, unsettled by the grave faces of his hostess and her daughters.

Miss Bennet shook her head quickly, and her voice, when she spoke, was husky with distress. “It is not all right for my father to suggest any kind of commitment when Mr. Darcy merely asked me to dance twice. It is absurd and, yes, mortifying.”

Bingley stared into the lady’s lovely face and said impulsively, “I fear that I am to blame for this entire problem.”

“You?” Miss Elizabeth demanded. “Most certainly not, sir. It was Mr. Darcy who asked Jane to dance twice, and in public, not you.”

“But he did it on my behalf,” Bingley explained.

The ladies gasped at these words, and Miss Bennet’s blue eyes, which had been fixed on her own clasped hands, lifted to meet his own.

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