Thank you for your reviews! Because some of you pointed out problems with paragraphs and grammar, I have double-checked Chapters 1 to 3 and uploaded them again. I hope they're easier to read now! I hope you enjoy this new chapter :)

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Jane Austen.

- 4 -

He walked away from her but she could not let him leave. She heard herself speak up again:

"Mr. Darcy."

He turned around.

"You have said a great deal and I must admit that if you had allowed me such a full insight into your character before you made your proposal, my notion of your character might have been more fully formed. I am humbled by your faithful account of my own character. I have never fancied myself in love; in fact, I know very little about love. You, on the other hand, appear to have the advantage of being familiar with the sentiment."

Mr. Darcy raised an eyebrow.

"But you must know what to expect from a husband? You must have given it some thought?"

"I would want him to be a kind and honest man. And I would have to be sure of his character."

"This would constitute an excellent foundation for a lifelong friendship. I believe that Bingley possesses all of these qualities. I am sure of his character. However, I do not wish to marry him."

He smiled at her. Who would have believed that Mr. Darcy had a sense of humor? It seemed that he had decided to conceal all his good qualities and to present her only with the most disagreeable aspects of his character. He must have hoped that by discouraging her heart, he might be able to silence his own.

"Mr. Darcy, you should know that my sisters frequently fancy themselves in love. But I know that it means nothing. They take pleasure in a handsome face or a few charming words. My mother and father believed themselves to be in love; they were so sure of their feelings that they decided to bind themselves together for life. But their temperaments are ill-matched and their marriage is not a happy one. I do not wish to make the same mistake."

She would have to stop now and let him go. He would leave this garden first, then Rosings and she would never see him again. By now, Elizabeth felt herself cast into an even greater turmoil than before. She could not remember ever having been in a similar state of distress. Her torment, her greatest torment – and how he would triumph if he knew – was this: she feared that he might have seen her more clearly than she had seen herself.

"I should envy you," he said.

"And why is that?"

"Because if you do not love, you do not suffer. You must believe that the only thing that could ever be wounded is my pride..."

"No, I do not believe that at all. In fact, I envy you."

"And why is that?"

"Because where I have raged and have been resentful, you have loved."

He was silent. Elizabeth began to wonder what she might have implied. Perhaps she had said more than she knew.

"Miss Bennet. I have never spoken to anyone as I have spoken to you today. I know that you wish to rid yourself of any qualms you might have and reach a definite conclusion about my character, but you must know that it will never happen. I will suffer, I will repent; you may regret or triumph as you choose, but we can never again be indifferent."

He gave her such a look that she feared what he might do next. Lady Catherine knew about his intentions... But he would not dare to force a conclusion in this matter. Not after the ill luck that had befallen his sister. He would not dare to take something from her that she could only give to the man she was sure to marry. Mr. Darcy made a step towards her and before she had an opportunity to escape, he touched her hair with his lips. At least that must have been his intention, but it was so fleeting that she could hardly say whether he had even touched her at all.

Before she could make sense of it, he was on his way to the house and by the time he reached the main entrance, her heart had begun to beat very fast indeed.