All Hallow's Eve (23 page)

~

William’s eyes searched the
crowd
with high expectations of glimpsing the visage that would make his heart sing.
When he did, his heart
momentarily
stopped beating instead, for there was a certain look in her eyes that he had seen
only
the previous morning
—
just
after he had kissed her—and then a breathtaking smile spread across her features
.
T
he young gentleman
soon
found that he had crossed the room
without realizing it
and stood before her
,
gazing
down at such beauty that it seemed
to him
to illuminate the
entire
room.
She blushed
,
and he saw her lips move, but heard nothing
over the pounding of
his own heart until her tinkling laugh broke through it
.

“
I
said
, good evening
,
Mr. Darcy
,
”
t
h
e
enchanting vision
before him
uttered
, and
then
she
curtsied.

His bowing in
response
was automatic
.
“
It has
certainly
been
so
thus
far, Miss Elizabeth;
I
thank you.
”
William stood mesm
erized.
Is
she acting a part for the others, or ha
ve her feelings
altered?
He hoped for the lat
t
er.

She
laughed again, giving
up her expectation of
a greeting.
“
I
know it is
improper of me
,
sir, but I cannot resist
saying that
I
told you so
,
”
Elizabeth said in a hushed tone that was meant only for his ears.
William’s brow furrowed in confusion
,
and she answered his unspoken question.
“
Miss Bingley
remains
in Hertfordshire.
”

“
Yes
,
she was unwell
,
and their journey to London was delayed.
”

Elizabeth’s eyes danced with suppressed
mirth
.
“
She has made quite the rec
overy then
to be out in company so soon.
”

As his own sister had matured, there
had been
several instances
in the past when
his housekeeper told him that it was not proper to discuss with him what had been
ailing
Georgiana
, so it had not occurred to William to question
any
lady’s indisposition, but now that Elizabeth had mentioned it, Caroline’s recovery did seem extraordinary.
William
was about to comment but
was distracted by
a scratching
up
on his
sleeve
.
S
tartled,
he
turn
ed
to see what it could be.

Caroline dug her
claws into his arm as she sent Elizabeth a look that would have frightened a lesser woman
.
I
n the most insincere tone
that
William
had ever heard in his life—and in spending most of his life amongst the first circle of the
ton
, he had heard quite a few
insincere tones
—Caroline said,
“
Miss Eliza!
How
good
it is to see you.
”

“
Miss Bingley
.
”
Elizabeth curtsied and smiled
politely
at the lady
.
“
W
e were just speaking of your recovery from a sudden illness.
I hope
by
you
r
attendance
this evening
you have not exerted yourself too soon
.
I remember hearing you speak of a marked preference for Town over the country
.
I
t would be a shame if
this
evening
’s entertainment
should
delay
your return to Londo
n
.
”

“
I have found that, at this time, the country h
olds advantages over Town, one especially t
hat will
always
be of
interest
to me
, Miss Eliza.
”
She turned her eyes upon William and made an effort at directing a flirtatious expression
toward him
, which
,
he thought,
made her look rather ill instead.
She scowled when her target’s eyes widened
slightly
,
and
he
looked away from her.

Lord Reginald
approached
the group
,
holding two cups of punch
.
He
did
an
excellent
job of
executing a
bow without spilling
a drop
.
“
Good evening, Miss Elizabeth.
I took the liberty of bringing
some refreshment.
”

“
Lord Reginald, I thank you!
”
T
he aim for Caroline’s
coquettish
glare
had now changed direction,
although
she did not let go of William’s arm
.

Elizabeth thought it was
as if
she
were
laying claim to both gentlemen
—or, with all the banter about, did
Caroline
think she was keeping them
safe
from
her
wild influence?

Lord Reginald almost laughed
out loud
when
, as he handed Elizabeth her cup,
saw
her
raise the eyebrow that Caroline could not see from her position.
He nodded slightly, thanking her for the warning and indicating that he knew exactly what he was about.
Within several
additional
conversational exchanges
,
Lord Reginald
had expertly guided Caroline away from the couple.

Elizabeth observed,
“
It is surprising that a lady
such as
Miss Bingley should not know of Lord Reginald’s betrothal.
Has it not been in all the papers?
”

William was
am
azed;
as she looked upon him
now
,
her expression
was
different
from any
he had ever seen,
and he did not know what to make of it.
“
No, it has not.
His fiancé
e
’s grandmother fell ill
during the same
evening
that
they bec
a
me betrothed
.
T
hey felt it
would
not
be
in good taste to announce the engagement until she is well again.
I do believe they will now wait until he returns to Town before publishing the news.
”

Elizabeth
looked away
as she said,
“
I
t is also obvious that
Miss Bingley
ha
s not
been
inform
ed
of
your
engagement, sir
.
”

His eyes widened.
“
There was no time...
we had arrived home with just enough time to dress
—
”

She interrupted,
“
William, i
t might be
kind
er
if
Caroline’s
brother
would take her aside and
mention it to her private
ly
before my father announces it to the entire
party
.
”

W
ords lost all meaning once
he
heard Elizabeth use his
Christian
name.

Elizabeth arched her eyebrow.
“
Sir, is this a sign of things to come?
”
She tilted her head a little to the side.
“
Shall I be dis
couraged that the moment we are engaged
to be married
, you
cease
paying attention to what I have to say
?
”

Elizabeth
is teasing me
!
Is
she
flirting?
What does
her
behaviour
this evening
mean
?
Though confused, h
e refused to pass up an opportunity such as this.
“
Madam, you are mistaken.
I
can pay attention to no other when
such beauty as yours is
near.
”

She gifted him with a
certain
smile that she had previously directed at him
only
in his dreams.
“
Well said!
”
She laughed.
“
And yet, you did not hear me
,
and I
find I
must repeat myself
with alarming frequency
this evening
.
I believe that her brother should tell Miss Bingley about our betrothal very soon
,
so that she does not hear about it for the first time in company.
”

“
You amaze me, Elizabeth. How can you find it within yourself to be so kind to a woman who has done nothing but insult you from the moment
that
you met her?
”

She did not miss the
irony of his question
—after all,
they
did not behave in a kindhearted manner toward each other for the first six weeks of their acquaintance
either
—
but
she
chose
to ignore it.
“
Perhaps I am
not being kind!
Perhaps I am
truly showing the
selfish
side of my nature
and
simply
do not wis
h to be witness to her reaction.
But
, I
give you
leave
to
choose
a
s many
of my
fault
s
as you wish
and twist them
around
to make it seem as if I am being generous
and good
.
”

Oh, how he loved
this woman
!
And how he
enjoyed
being on the receiving end of her teasing nature.
He
had never
felt more alive
than he had
since he
had
met her.
How had he survived seven and twenty years without her?
“
You are too modest to see what you truly are.
”