Page 25 of Shields and Roses

While information about the proposal and slap was news to Lizzy, it was not as much of a surprise as her sister might have hoped. Lizzy and her friend continued to take weekly walks together as often as possible, and they had already discussed the unwanted attention Miss Lucas had been receiving from Mr. Tarleton.

"I have tried every polite way I can think of to convince him that I am not interested in knowing him any better," Miss Lucas had said on their most recent walk. "It would be unladylike to simply tell him to go away, although I will do so if I must."

"You are not turning him down because you are carrying a torch for Captain Fitzwilliam, are you? You know how dedicated he is to his career. There is no chance of marriage to him any time soon," Lizzy said, looking at her friend searchingly.

Miss Lucas blushed slightly as she stoutly replied. "I know that. I am not 'carrying a torch' for anyone. I do not want Mr. Tarleton's attention because I do not like his company. He is pushy, rude and does not respect me in the least. I am not even certain his intentions are honorable enough to include marriage. I want him to stay away from me, and I will not be shy about saying so if he pushes me too far."

"He is an eligible match, at least for around here," Lizzy said lightly.

"He is single and will one day inherit the dilapidated house and tiny property his father owns, assuming they are not taken up for debt first. That does not make him eligible even if he was a more pleasant person."

"If he does propose, what will your mother say if you turn him down? I know my mother would fall over in the vapors if one of her daughters turned down a proposal, no matter how unpleasant the suitor."

"I hope he does not come to the point, but if I must turn him down, I think my mother will be reasonable should she find out. I would tell my father, of course. He supported me when I turned down Tommy Hoskins, although I noticed he did not mention it to my mother even after he had words with Mr. Hoskins." Miss Lucas shook her head slightly.

"Yes, if I am ever in a like situation, I hope it never reaches Mama's ears either. At least Papa will always support me."

It seemed that this time Lizzy's friend would not be able to hide the unwanted proposal from her mother. Mrs. Ansel had probably already spread the word far and wide.

"Charlotte can do much better than Mr. Tarleton and she does not like him," she said to Jane as Lydia headed for the pianoforte to play for their first two-couple run with music. "She never led him on and was hoping he would find someone else to importune."

"I suppose I can understand that," Jane admitted. "I had to ask Papa to warn him away from me. He made several inappropriate comments at the dance last Christmas that made me most uncomfortable. You remember that Captain Fitzwilliam was here at the time, and I think he went with Papa to speak to Mr. Tarleton and his father, although they never said anything about what happened afterwards. Since then, Mr. Tarleton has stuck to only the most basic of civilities and generally stays far away from me."

Lizzy could imagine exactly what Richard had said to Mr. Tarleton. He would probably say something even worse if he knew the man was bothering Miss Lucas. Although her friend denied it, Lizzy knew she still considered the one-time "Sir Richard" as one of the best of men. The dance Jane mentioned had happened during one of his rare visits to Longbourn and he had gone as a guest of their family.

Although he was in Portugal now, Richard had been back in England on leave before Christmas and spent a few days with the Bennets before heading on to his family estate. Charlotte had been floating on air after he danced with her that night. Of course, he had also danced with Jane and several other young ladies, so he gave Lizzy's friend no improper attention. In fact, he had been the talk of the village girls for the following few weeks because he had been cheerful, kind and obliging in true Sir Richard fashion in addition to wearing that fancy red coat. Above all, he had danced every dance, a true blessing to the young ladies, since male dance partners were in such short supply. The talk had only died down after Jane made it known that he was not only a second son, he had few expectations and was not in good favor with his father.

The supposed feud between Viscount Rand, Richard and Lizzy's father had been slowly softened over time. Viscount Rand used the excuse of checking on Mary to explain his brief stops in Meryton, although he had yet to spend another night under Longbourn's roof. Richard wrote openly to Bennet but sent only the briefest of messages directly to his father. His real correspondence when through the hands of Edward Gardiner, with whom the Viscount was doing business in truth as well as for purposes of their ruse. Lizzy never would have corresponded directly with Richard, of course. Her father quietly read her the portions of his godson's letters that he thought were fit for her to hear. Lizzy then passed on that information to Charlotte's eager ears during their walks together. She might tease and warn her friend not to wait for Captain Fitzwilliam to return, but Lizzy secretly hoped the two would make a match one day.

"I think we must not blame Charlotte for her actions, then," Lizzy told Jane. "Before I judge, I will wait to see what she has to tell me of events. After all, she is our friend and I would not wish to harm her. Are we ready to continue our practice?"

"If Lydia is ready to play," Jane said.

"I was just waiting for you two to stop gossiping," Lydia teased as she sat at the pianoforte bench. "I hope you are done now, or I will never get my turn to practice the steps."

Lizzy turned to her partner as Jane took up her place opposite Mary. "Thank you for honoring me with this dance, Miss Kitty," she laughed as she offered her sister an elegant bow. Lydia struck up the tune and the dance began.

Chapter 16: Inheritance

Fitzwilliam Darcy put down the quill he had been spinning between his finger and thumb while George Wickham presented his case. "No, George," he said firmly, "I am not cheating you and I do not owe you anything else, no matter what you may have decided was your due."

"Decided was my due? What do you mean by that? I was your father's godson. He always intended to provide for me. He told my father so."

"And he did provide for you - very handsomely, and with far more than you ever had a right to expect. He provided you with the opportunity for a good education, both at Eton and at Cambridge. He provided you with a generous allowance. He provided you with the strength of his contacts and a place under a prosperous solicitor when you decided you wished to study the law. In his will, he has provided you with a bequest of four thousand pounds to help you establish yourself to use all those other benefits he gave you. His gifts would be considered generous by many younger sons of my station. Few men would do as much for the son of their steward, godson or no. What makes you think you have a right to anything more?"

"Four thousand? It is a pittance. I know you must be holding something back." Wickham tried to take a threatening stance, but the width of the desk between them prevented him from appearing truly menacing to Fitzwilliam. He had learned enough about his one-time friend not to be too surprised that Richard's prediction had come true. Richard had said George would not be satisfied with the bequest and would demand more. Fitzwilliam sighed. He owed Richard a new saddle now. He never should have taken that bet, not that he truly begrudged his cousin the gift.

"Come now, George," he said in a tone that matched the sigh, resigned but not angry. "You know better. You know me better than that. You should also know I cannot be bullied or threatened by you. Take the bequest and have done with it. Do not give me a reason to break ties with you or throw you off this estate."

George suddenly stood upright, shaking his head slightly with the shock. He must have realized he had overplayed his hand. "I did not mean any offense, Will. It is grief talking. You know we have always been good friends. I would not wish to insult you. It is just that I thought your father intended more for me."

"Perhaps, at one time, he did. We will never know now. All we have is his will, and that is very clear. You have what you are meant to receive. As to any friendship between us, well, we both know that is more fiction than fact. So long as you behave with civility, I will not cut you in public, but any illusion of intimacy between us has long since dissipated."

"That is all Richard Fitzwilliam's fault. He lied to you and to your father. He made you see what was not there," George said, desperately. He had remembered that Lady Catherine would be furious if Fitzwilliam Darcy broke ties with him completely.

"I think that was your role, George," Fitzwilliam said almost genially. "Do the wise thing. Leave now before I decide it is time to break all ties between us. Show me by your behavior who you truly are and make the most of all you have received." Fitzwilliam picked up the quill and began to roll it between his forefinger and thumb again.

George took the hint. He bowed and with his most charming smile said, "Thank you for your time, Will. I hope to see you in town."