After spending most of the evening in the cardroom, he returned to the assembly and watched as Miss Elizabeth made her way through the complicated steps of a quadrille. Now that he had an unobstructed view of the lady, he saw that she was quite pretty, especially when she smiled, and he also noticed how softly her long, dark curls fell upon her shoulders and the brightness of her eyes and the fullness of her mouth. Shortly after realizing how appealing Miss Elizabeth Bennet was, he told Bingley he was sending for the carriage.

A few weeks after the assembly, on a lazy summer’s day, Charlotte and Elizabeth were walking along the wagon road between Lucas Lodge and Longbourn, discussing how their friend and sister seemed to have captured Mr. Bingley’s heart. And they were not the only ones who had noticed. Ever since the dance, the town was humming with rumors of an engagement between the two, and some of the shopkeepers were busy circulating the news that Miss Bennet had been in their shops looking at bonnets and ribbons and other paraphernalia, which would obviously become a part of her trousseau. This greatly amused Lizzy because Jane and she often went into the shops to see what new goods had come in on the London coach, but now everything Jane did had a hidden meaning.

Another topic of conversation was Mr. Darcy of Pemberley. Because Lizzy was one of the prettiest girls in this corner of Hertfordshire, Mr. Darcy’s remark that Lizzy was only “tolerable” had insulted every lady who was less attractive than she was. But Charlotte Lucas was of a different opinion.

“Lizzy, at the risk of challenging one of your reasons for disliking Mr. Darcy, I must say that I do not think his comments were directed at you.”