Chapter 3
"May I help you?" Darcy sternly asked the young lady, who was looking over his shoulder and sighing loudly yet again. Having been at his employment for only two days, he was still learning how to organise Mr. Gardiner's business ledgers and write several letters on his behalf to bill the clients, but this child next to him had spent two or three hours daily at the warehouse and most often standing about his desk.
"Oh, do not mind me, Mr. Pembers, I am just a little restless." Elizabeth replied.
Darcy scoffed but covered it with a cough. "Perhaps if you are so restless, you may return home and be restless there." He could not help his annoyance, "You are of no use here," he sharply added.
Elizabeth crossed her arms in anger and huffed, "Well, I would be of use if I had been allowed what I usually do for my uncle! I do comprehend that his is your job, but you are doing it wrong and I hoped you would catch it but it has been a whole quarter hour and you still do not see it. How thick can you be?"
Having never been so criticised before, not by his father, not by his tutors or teachers or professors in his entire life, Darcy retaliated in a way he never thought himself capable.
"How dare you criticise me when you are a little child in a woman's dress whose ears are too big and your teeth bulge so far out? What do you know about ledgers, you little hoyden?" He yelled out before he realised he could not take back his words.
Darcy saw Elizabeth turn from him and her shoulders began to shake. He felt awful that he spoke so harshly to a young girl to make her cry. Even if she were not related to his hosts, it was most ungentlemanly and he was mortified of his rude manners.
"Good god, I am so sorry, Miss Bennet! I should have never spok…" Darcy began but stopped when Elizabeth turned around.
She was covering her mouth but burst out into a laughter that was not a small giggle but a rambunctious fit of chuckles that she could not hold back.
Darcy found himself smiling at the ridiculousness and soon joined her laughter and found himself wiping his eyes from so much amusement.
Some moments later, they eventually settled and calmed. As soon as she quieted, Darcy began to speak again. "Miss Bennet, I do truly apologise for such a speech. I have never spoken so in all of my life and I am absolutely humiliated that I reacted so."
"Apology accepted, Mr. Pembers. It was quite amusing to see your face turn so red so quickly. You must not be used to being criticized or bickering with siblings and I will admit I have been called worse by my own mother so I do not take offense at all. You were very honest, even if brutally so, and I cannot fault you for it." Elizabeth replied.
Darcy groaned loudly at her response. "Now I truly feel like a cad. You are too generous and I will have to pay penance someday. I did not mean it. You are still very young and I am sure you will grow to be a pleasant-looking young woman. How old are you now, thirteen, fourteen?"
Elizabeth raised one eyebrow before speaking, which made Darcy chuckle again, "I am fifteen, sir, and will be sixteen next Tuesday. I know it is not common in town but I am already out and my mother has directed my uncle and aunt to flaunt me all over town so I could find a rich husband before I return home." She plopped onto the chair next to his desk and sighed, "I have told my aunt that I cannot consider myself an adult until at least seventeen and not a day sooner. I do not wish to marry at all since I know I am a hoyden," she finally smiled again, "and have no desire to marry but for the deepest of affections. I only hope my elder sister Jane will marry well so I can live with her and be a doting aunt."
Darcy had thought she might be mercenary for a moment but realised quickly that this young girl did not have a cruel bone in her body and that she was very forthright. He coloured at his faux pas of believing her so young but she was still very slight and looked quite young.
"I am sorry again, Miss Bennet. Not only should I not have offended your appearance and mode of dress, but I had thought you were much younger. I have a sister who is eleven and I believe she is almost as tall as you. Perhaps about your height now." He examined her a little closer now. She was not beautiful and certainly not womanly, but she had a fiery spirit and conversed very well. She appeared intelligent and had a quick wit and there was something in her eyes that sparkled with intrigue. He recalled that she had said he made an error and returned his thoughts to the task at hand.
"Miss Bennet, will you please tell me where you have seen the error in the ledgers and assist me? I thought I was doing well but if I made a mistake, I shall like to correct it straight away." He humbled himself.
Elizabeth smiled brightly. "I would be happy to help! I thought you would be too prideful to ask a girl for help but I am so pleased to be proven wrong."
She stood and walked around to the desk and pointed in the ledger where she had noted the mistake. "Here, it should be an eight and not a zero. And here, after that calculation, the numbers are incorrect three more times because of that first zero."
Darcy was impressed that she had seen it. The receipt had been poorly written and he had not caught it. "I am very thankful that you were here to correct me, Miss Bennet! It would have been easily missed and your uncle would have had a loss of £50!"
"That is my whole yearly allowance! Such a sum!" Elizabeth beamed. "I am so glad to have been useful today." She winked.
Darcy looked into her eyes for a few moments and realised she was no longer awkward-looking but quite pretty in her own way. Her eyes shined with joie de vivre that he had rarely seen in a person. He remembered his own mother's eyes shining so after Georgina's birth and could not recall another living soul who exuded such happiness.
"You certainly have been useful, miss, and I am thankful for it. And I know I have not said it before but thank you for bringing my lunch as well. My sister was most concerned that I would not receive enough nourishment." Darcy smiled.
"I am happy to be of service, Mr. Pembers. I will now let you return to work. I am satisfied that I have done my duty and I hope to hear more about your sister at dinner tonight." She smiled and quickly departed after curtsying.
Darcy smiled and returned his focus to his work, ensuring that he did not make another mistake in the calculations, and later when it was appropriate, he pulled aside Mr. Matthews privately to speak about the receipts and the need to clearly write out the numbers to prevent future errors.
P&P&P&P&P&P&P
"And that is why Lizzy is our favourite," Mr. Gardiner beamed after hearing Darcy's report of her assistance. "Poor Mr. Matthews did not know heads or tails on what to do with Lizzy's instructions and was baffled on how to respond last year. I am glad you took so kindly to her desire to help my business, Mr. Pembers."
Darcy flushed in embarrassment, as neither had told anyone else of the words that were exchanged before the assistance took place.
Elizabeth giggled when their eyes met. "Mr. Pembers was very kind indeed, uncle. Not many would be able to handle any type of opinions from a girl that did not have to do with ribbons or laces! He has a sister and seems like an excellent older brother. Please tell us about her, Mr. Pembers."
Darcy relaxed and laughed along with the merry group and spoke of his sister's personality and likes without giving too much away of her consequence.
Mr. Gardiner's business investor Mr. Skinner was also in attendance, who had been a tradesman who made a fortune and was now a landed gentleman. Darcy studied both men and their wives, and although he would have never considered dining with such men before and had unknowingly looked down on tradesmen, he was very pleased with the current company and could envisage many future meals together.
He thought of his friend Charles Bingley, whom he had met his last year at university. Bingley was a wealthy orphan but still a son of a tradesman who had initially struggled with the group of prominent sons of peers and gentlemen. He was just finishing his education and at one and twenty years old, he still had a lot of growth to overcome, but Darcy had mentored him for a full year and they had kept in touch every few months. Darcy was determined that once this lesson was complete, he would connect with Bingley again and develop a better friendship with that cheerful young man.
The rest of the dinner was spent in easy conversation, with Darcy learning about how these men thought of the world and the government, and with Elizabeth learning about how to behave as a lady in society.
P&P&P&P&P&P&P
"He is very handsome," Elizabeth heard Mrs. Skinner comment to Aunt Madeline, just as she was returning after going to the kitchen to fetch some spoons. "If I were three decades younger, ooh! Dear Roger would be in trouble." She heard the ladies giggle from the other side of the door.
Mrs. Skinner was well-over her fifties and was a very likeable woman. She spoke honestly but tactfully and her personality was similar to Aunt Madeline's.
"Do you think Mr. Pembers might be a good fit for Lizzy?" Elizabeth heard the elder lady ask her aunt.
"Oh, no, Christine, Elizabeth is not ready to be out yet and is still much too young. She is one of the brightest young lady I know but Mr. Pembers would not be a good fit. He has a younger sister and sees Lizzy as a child. They are finally getting along today but he had ignored her for two full days until now and I would not be surprised if he has a lady friend already. He is very handsome and his prospects are very good and I am certain he will marry someone quite suitable according to his future expectations." Aunt Madeline replied.
Elizabeth giggled at hearing the ladies speak. She knew Mr. Pembers thought her a child and although respectful after his initial insult, his manners were that of an older brother and not a suitor. Considering that she was not truly out at almost sixteen, he was very appropriate with her and even if they had argued and exchanged words in the office today, it was in a corner space and not in a private room, where their interactions could easily be observed by anyone walking by.
She thought of Mr. Pembers and what a wonderful brother he appeared to be. There was affection in his eyes whenever he spoke of Georgiana and not for the first time, she wished she had an older brother.
As one of five daughters born to the Bennet family, there was no future for her sisters and herself if they did not marry well. The family estate, Longbourn, brought in £2,000 a year but was entailed to a distant cousin and her mother always bemoaned that she would be 'tossed into the hedgerows' if her father should predecease her. Her father was highly intelligent but indolent, with no motivation to increase his prospects, and kept to his study most of the days.
Jane, at eighteen, began her courtship with the son of the current owner of Netherfield a few weeks ago, and her mother continued to push for the relationship to progress too quickly. Elizabeth was almost sixteen, with Mary who was fourteen, Kitty at thirteen, and Lydia who would be eleven years old in the fall.
Elizabeth knew that if she did actually consider marrying someone, it would have to be a gentleman of some means. A poor clerk of £30 a year would never do, since she was already a gentlewoman of £50 a year and she could never dishonour her family by marrying so low, even if that man was as handsome as Mr. Pembers when he smiled.
She shook off her thoughts and returned to the ladies and spoke of theatre and concerts until the men joined them after their drink and cigars.
P&P&P&P&P&P&P
Mr. Skinner enjoyed speaking with the young man, who was intelligent and thoughtful. "And it is a shame you are staying as a clerk to Gardiner here when you could be making something of yourself like my son. My dear Peter is now a major in the army and has met General Wellesley himself. He has been in Spain this past year." He proudly boasted.
"Oh! He must know Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam. He is my…" Darcy halted, realising he had almost revealed his identity. "I know him and he has also been in Spain."
"What a small world! I do know the colonel, I met him once, perhaps three years ago, when he dined with us. My Peter absolutely worships him and praises him to the skies. I know it is a dangerous occupation but it has such excitement and what an honour to defend our country. My first son is learning about estate management in Shropshire and my two daughters are married off. If only I could be young again." Mr. Skinner grinned.
Darcy responded, "If I had been given the opportunity to join the military, it would have been an honour. I am quite envious of the colonel at times that he is fighting Bonaparte and doing something more for the world, but I do understand my place as well. For now, my place is with my family and to learn how to take over my father's work." He smiled softly, "Perhaps there might be a need for a dull clerk in the middle of the battlefields." Darcy thought of his brave cousin and wished his own life could be a little more stimulating.
Mr. Gardiner chimed in, "Perhaps, Mr. Pembers, you will find excitement enough through hard work and marriage. It is certainly not dull to have an expectant wife who is suddenly craving summer fruits in the beginning of March!"
The men laughed jovially and spoke of several new investment opportunities before returning to the ladies.