“Most definitely. Charlotte Lucas is my dearest friend.”
“Then I shall look forward to having a conversation with you on a topic somewhere between the number of couples in the room and the wars on the Continent,” and then he smiled, thanked Lizzy for receiving him, and took his leave.
After watching the gentleman ride down the lane, Jane asked her sister, “What are we to think about Mr. Darcy?”
Lizzy shook her head, confused by the whole visit. But some things were clearer. Mr. Darcy was more handsome than she had remembered and had eyes that were more green than gray, attractive legs, and a voice that was very pleasing to the ear, especially when he used it to say that she was handsome and intelligent. Because of these things, she found that her determination never to think well of him was faltering and that might not be a bad thing at all.
Chapter 2
It was during the ride from the assembly to Netherfield that Darcy had recognized the need to apologize to Miss Elizabeth Bennet. The carriage was barely out of sight of the assembly hall when Bingley had begun a litany of praise for all that he had experienced that evening. The food was delicious, the music lively, the men agreeable, and the ladies handsome, and of all those attractive ladies, the most beautiful was Miss Jane Bennet. Although Darcy found little to admire at the assembly, he had refrained from commenting as he had no wish to dampen his friend’s recollections. His sisters were less generous and had used Darcy’s comment that Miss Elizabeth was “not tolerable enough to tempt him to dance” to support their low opinion of their neighbors.
Darcy had been in ill humor the whole of the evening, and his unhappiness had been reflected in that thoughtless statement. He realized that if Bingley’s sisters had overheard his remark, then others may have as well.