On the way back to Netherfield, Darcy was quieter than usual thinking of the past, of Miss Thompson and his sister. He was sure Georgiana would be very happy to resume her friendship with Miss Thompson and Miss Mary Bennet. He was so deep in thought that he didn't realize Caroline was talking to him.

"...don't you think Mr. Darcy.", "Mr. Darcy…"

When he didn't reply, Bingley touched his arm, "Darcy, are you all right?"

Darcy blinked, "Sorry I was distracted, what happened?"

"Nothing important, we were just talking about our surprise to meet Miss Thompson here. For several years I heard so much about her at Sandstone that I was intrigued to meet her. Robert Elliot wasn't exaggerating when he said she was a very pretty young lady." Binley smiled.

"She is also very popular with the gentlemen of Meryton. Although to my liking I did not see anything special about her to be considered one of the local beauties."Caroline said with a bit of annoyance.

"I agree with you, Caroline. I didn't get a chance to talk to her because she was in high demand all night, but I had a conversation with Miss Jane Bennet and she seemed very nice," said Mrs. Hurst.

"Miss Bennet is an 'Angel', what do you think of her, Darcy?"

"About Miss Thompson?"

"No, Miss Bennet."

"I hardly ever saw or talked to her, Bingley," he sighed, "I guess she's pretty, but she smiles too much for my liking."

"Only you Darcy can criticize a woman for smiling too much... What can you criticize about Ms. Thompson?"

"Frankly, I can't find anything to criticize about her."

"I agree with you, Darcy…"

They talked for a few more minutes about Miss Bennet and in particular Miss Thompson until the carriage finally reached Netherfield. Darcy quickly retired to his room as he was very tired. The next day the first thing he was going to do was write to Georgiana to tell her that he had seen Miss Thompson…

Bingley went to bed thinking about his new 'angel' – similar to the previous one – with the desire to get to know her better.

On the other hand, Miss Bingley had a hard time falling asleep that night. She had been looking forward to Mr. Darcy's visit and she definitely didn't expect to have a rival in Hertfordshire. But she was going to find a way to discredit Miss 'I can't find anything to criticize about her' since she had spent so many years and energy trying to win over Mr. Darcy and she wasn't going to give up without a fight...

PPP

The next morning while walking to a tenant's house, Mary and Elizabeth were talking about the assembly...

"It was strange to see Mr. Darcy in Hertfordshire. Did you ask him about Georgiana?

Lizzy nodded, "Yes, it was weird to see him. He told me that Georgiana has been living with him in Pemberley for a few months. He also told me that she was very ill." Lizzy smiled "he said that he was sure that Georgiana would be very happy if we wrote to her. He said Georgiana has missed us all these years. I told him I was going to write to her and maybe you also want to include a few lines."

Mary nodded, "I was just thinking about that. While I didn't know Georgiana for as many years as you do, we become very good friends and I was very sad when she left for seminary and we lost touch."

"It was a very sad time for us and also for her too." Lizzy sighed, "Changing the subject a bit, what did you think of Mr. Bingley and his sisters? I saw you dance with him."

Mary nodded again, "Mr. Bingley is a nice and handsome gentleman. He is a good dancer, very energetic and talks a lot. As you must have heard my mother said, she danced with Jane twice. I didn't have the opportunity to speak with his sisters, in fact, I got the impression they spoke almost exclusively among themselves. They seem like elegant women. Did you speak with them?"

"No, I spoke only with Mr. Bingley, but only for a few minutes. I heard your mother's comments about all the couples Mr. Bingley danced with, and he only danced twice with Jane." Lizzy sighed, "I hope he takes an interest in Jane and proposes to her! If he doesn't marry her, your mother and perhaps Jane herself will surely blame me."

"Lizzy, they just met. Perhaps Mr. Bingley is engaged or has no intention of getting married. You don't have to listen to what my mother says, and you shouldn't listen to Jane either."

"You're right Mary, but those kinds of comments bother me. Your mother doesn't realize that it is the gentleman who decides if he wants to propose to a lady and not the other way around. The only thing the lady can do is accept or reject the proposal."

"I know, Lizzy…"