Two Gentlemen of Honor by Clara Willoughby

Author:Clara Willoughby [Willoughby, Clara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Daisy Chain Publishing
Published: 2019-07-30T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

It was a beautiful day in Meryton and the market was filled with people shopping for fabric, meats, and other odds and ends. The Bennet sisters walked together down the street with Lord Adrian Spencer by Elizabeth’s side, eliciting quite a stir among passersby. Whenever he stopped to look at trinket or a particularly nice silk shirt, a crowd would form around them to see what the gentleman was buying…

And who was at his side as he stopped at each of the shops to visit with the shopkeepers.

Elizabeth could not recall having ever drawn so much attention while in town and she suspected her sisters were not used to it either. However, each was behaving in a decidedly different manner. With every step she took, Jane was clearly hoping for Mr. Bingley to appear, but thus far, he remained as mysterious as ever. Mary had long ago departed for the music shop, where she would likely remain until their time in Meryton was done. Meanwhile, Kitty and Lydia availed themselves of the officers who loitered near the entrance to town.

“Elizabeth,” Jane asked, though her eyes remained firmly on their younger sisters. “Should we collect the girls and request that they stay by our sides? I do not believe that mama or papa would approve of their rather forward behavior with those soldiers.”

It had been raining for a week prior and not a soul in Hertfordshire had left their homes for fear of washing away. As soon as the clouds cleared that morning, Adrian arrived at Longbourn, to Elizabeth’s great surprise, and suggested they all go into town together to celebrate the unexpected sunshine. Mrs. Bennet did not even hesitate before instructing her daughters to put on their cloaks. She also quickly informed her husband that he would be helping her while she inspected a tree she believed to be decayed. It took all of Elizabeth’s great strength not laugh as her mother offered up her feeble excuse to push their daughter together with Lord Spencer for a day. Mrs. Bennet had little interest in trees and even less interest in their care.

And so it was that Lord Adrian Spencer walked with the Bennet sisters to market, the younger ones teasing him with silly questions while the older marveled at his kind spirit. Yet, Elizabeth could not help but notice that he seemed far away, as if his mind were somewhere else entirely. She wished to ask him of what he was thinking, but history told her that to do so would only increase his periods of silence.

“Elizabeth? Please?” Jane renewed her request that they gather the younger girls before they embarrassed themselves. She knew it was a fair worry, so she nodded her ascent.

“Lord Spencer, would you be so kind as to join us as we tear our sisters away from those officers?” Elizabeth asked. Adrian smiled in return.

“Of course, Miss Elizabeth. I would be happy to help protect your sisters’ virtue. You may lead the way.”

As they crossed

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.