Elizabeth Bennet pulled her bright blue beetle into the parking lot of the strip mall. She stepped into the fresh morning air of the little town of Meryton. She scanned the parking lot and noted Jane's car in front of the shop. Smiling, Elizabeth pushed against the glass door with Bennet Fine Books scrawled across the top. The little bell rang as she entered. Even from the front, she could hear her mother calling to her father who was probably half way across the store.
"Morning," she said to Jane, who was already perched at the bar with Kitty at her side. "Are they at it already?"
"Oh yes," Jane replied with a sweet smile, "But this time, it's all about the new neighbors."
"New neighbors?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes!" Lydia replied from the kitchen. "Someone's thinking about buying the old Netherfield place."
"Really?" Elizabeth asked as she slung her purse under the counter.
"Keep up, Lizzy," Lydia said as she put the tray of cinnamon rolls in the oven.
Mary emerged from the bathroom, "Keep up with what?"
"Netherfield." Lizzy replied quickly before moving to the sink to wash up.
Every morning since Lizzy could remember, the girls would gather for breakfast and chatter before heading to school. Since returning from college, Lizzy had been working full time at the family bookstore. It was the kind of job that made her completely happy in every way and was the only possible chance that would make living in Meryton acceptable. The idea of new faces was a welcome diversion.
Elizabeth looked up as her father came into view carrying a stack of books towards the coffee bar counter. As expected, her mother was not far behind, waddling along, still complaining.
"But you know he must marry one of them!"
"Lizzy," her father said with a broad smile when he saw her.
Elizabeth smiled back as she moved to pour herself a cup of coffee.
"Henry!" his wife objected, "Are you even listening to me?"
"Certainly, dear. He's come to sweep our daughters off their feet."
Mr. Bennet put the books down on the counter and followed his daughter's direction as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
"And how do you know he's not already married, mama?" Jane asked.
"Oh come now," Mrs. Bennet started. "Mr. Lucas is the one who showed them the house and told Linda everything about them. She couldn't keep a secret if national security depended on it."
Mr. Bennet rolled his eyes before moving over to sit at one of the bar stools.
"What's his name?" Elizabeth asked.
"Bingley." Lydia and her mother said at the same time.
"I don't see what all the fuss is about. You all haven't even seen him," Kitty said languidly from her perch next to Jane. "For all we know, he could have warts and a leer."
"With as much money as he has, does it really matter?" Lydia joked.
"How much money does he have?" Elizabeth asked.
"Who can say?" her mother practically yelled, "But he has enough to rent out that huge Netherfield house. AND," she emphasized, "Linda told me that when he came to look at the house he pulled up in one of those big fancy cars. 'Rich, rich, rich', she said."
Elizabeth sipped her mug and tried not to scowl at her mother.
"Gather your things. It's time for school," Mr. Bennet said to the younger girls.
Lydia and Kitty groaned as they moved around the counter to pick up their bags.
"Yes girls," their mother said, "Since your father won't make an effort to introduce you to better society, we must slave away at our business until we die old and decrepit."
"You know, father, if he does have a lot of money, it might be good for business to try to get to know him."
He smiled at his daughter for her sense and stepped closer. "Good thinking, Lizzy. That is, in fact, why I made the visit to him yesterday."
"You what?" Mrs. Bennet yelled.
"I went to help Bingley move in yesterday and let him know about the business. He said he would try to stop by soon if possible."
At that, all the girls were sent into a flutter of noise, particularly their mother, Susan. Her mouth didn't stop running as she pushed the younger two out of the door towards the car. Elizabeth began pulling out the other pastries for the coffee bar display window. Jane set her mug down and moved around to help with the finished cinnamon rolls.
"And what did you think of Mr. Bingely?" Elizabeth asked her father.
"From the five minutes I spoke with him he seemed young, energetic and eager to please. I'm going to finish organizing the mystery section while we have some peace and quiet. If you get a chance, Elizabeth, there are two boxes of books in the back that need to be put in the system."
"I'll get on it," Elizabeth said as he walked away.
"Well," Mary said, pulling her book bag over her shoulder, "I'm going to head to work."
Elizabeth and Jane said their good byes before they continued the work organizing the front counter.
"Have you seen the mysterious Bingley yet?" she asked.
"Oh no," Jane said with a quick smile. "But I'm sure we'll see him next week at least."
"Where?"
"The Lucas's have already planned a welcome party for him and from what I've heard, he's bringing friends with him."
"Really?"
"Family, I think."
"Hm."
The clock above them chimed the half hour and Jane looked up, "I've got to get to the office. Did you want to meet for lunch today?"
"Can you get away?"
"I think so. Stan's off on vacation so I'm in the office by myself all week."
"Sounds good then. Just come here."
"Okay."
Jane gave Elizabeth a half hug before grabbing her purse and heading out. She worked at a lawyer's office a few blocks away which allowed them to see each other a great deal. Once the coffee area was set up, Elizabeth moved to turn on the open sign.
Mornings were usually slow for the shop, particularly weekday mornings. Elizabeth headed for the back, but left the door open. No sooner had she gotten through the first box then she heard the bell ding.
"Hello?" a male voice rang out.
Elizabeth stood to go help when she heard her father call out.
"Charles!"
"Hello Mr. Bennet."
"Just call me Henry." He said.
Elizabeth moved a little closer to the door to hear the conversation.
"What a fine establishment you own." Bingley said rather nervously.
"Thank you. We've got all kinds of books here from collectible first editions to best sellers."
"Oh," he started, "I'm really not much of a reader, you see."
Elizabeth clasped her hand over her mouth to keep the giggle from escaping. She moved to peek through the opening of the door hinge to get a glance of Bingley, but it was hard to tell.
"Right," Mr. Bennet replied. "If you see something you might be interested though, just let us know. Would you care for a cup of coffee?"
"I'm on the run, actually. But I'll be back when my friend arrives. He absolutely loves old books. Well, not to say your books are old, I mean, he just collects them. He'll be delighted."
"I'm sure he will. Bring him by any time."
"Thank you."
If there was any more to the conversation, Elizabeth didn't hear it because she moved back to the box of books. Poor Charles Bingley. If anything, though, he was honest and that was certainly something Elizabeth looked for in a man. His further character would only be revealed as she got to know him and she hoped she would get the chance.
