Bonus Chapter 1

It was the day of Darcy and Elizabeth's wedding, and Bingley had nothing but good feelings. His two dearest friends were united, the celebration was sensational, and the food was marvellous. Furthermore, his sisters were absent, Mrs. Bennet hardly glared at him, and his encounters with his former betrothed were very civil.

He watched Darcy and Elizabeth laughing together and thought that he would like something like that in the future. Since the moment he saw Elizabeth in all her joy and in her pretty dress, he observed that she was truly one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. He had always known her to be lovely, but as a bride she was more radiant than the sun. If he were a poet, he would go about purchasing new pens and parchment after the gathering. Bingley was in awe of her and could admire her beauty alone, but there was more that garnered his interest. It was the way she looked at Darcy—her eyes—which made him meditate. That had been his dream, to find a sweet lady who gazed at him with true intimacy, understanding, and love. Darcy was also the handsomest he had seen him, not only in attire, but in expression. The man could not take his eyes away from his bride, and Bingley could not blame him. He knew that Elizabeth trusted Darcy with her entire heart and that Darcy trusted her with his.

"That could have been you," Lydia said, suddenly appearing and stealing his glass of wine. Her faithful follower, young Denny, took it from her and handed it back to Bingley. "Are you jealous of my new brother?"

Kitty was there and looked a little confused.

"Why would he be jealous?" she asked. Her eyes widened. "Do you like Lizzy, Bingley? Good heavens, it is like Mr. Collins all over again! You must stay away from Maria Lucas! She will want you for herself like how her sister wanted my cousin after he liked Jane and was rejected by Lizzy. Only you cannot propose to Lizzy! I will not allow you to ruin what she has with Darcy, even if I like you better than him. They are married now."

"If only there was so much excitement," said Lydia. "Obviously I meant that Bingley might envy his friend because he was supposed to be getting married as well. I can only be grateful that such an awful thing has not happened to me."

"Are you jealous, since you and Denny are still only engaged?" asked Kitty.

Lydia adamantly denied it, stating that nothing could stop her from being the first of their sisters after Lizzy to be married. Kitty started to cough in the middle of her speech, and Lydia accused her of doing so on purpose.

Wishing to keep the peace on such a joyous day, Bingley interrupted them. "I confess I am a little jealous of Darcy today," spoke he. "However, I do not regret being single and would never dare kindle Darcy's jealousy by even thinking of Lizzy like that for one second—which reminds me to instruct you all to never mention Mr. Collins pursuing Lizzy in his hearing."

"Does that mean he might murder Mr. Collins?" inquired Kitty. "Should we even stop him if he makes an attempt? Maybe a handsomer relation of papa's will visit Longbourn then, if mama does not have boy."

"Good God, no!" cried Bingley. "Darcy would never do that."

"Are you sure? He seems callous. I still think that he would lock Lizzy inside his home to cruelly possess her."

"Now, if he will lock Lizzy up and possess her, he would do so affectionately, not cruelly. No one would blame him, for he is newly married to his pretty, young bride—" Bingley cut himself off as Lydia began to giggle. Next to her, Denny blushed and Kitty appeared not a little concerned. He cleared his throat and stated, "Darcy is no monster. He will treat Lizzy with the utmost respect, I assure you. There is no need to worry for her."

"If she loves her husband half as much as I love my Denny, then there is nothing to fear for at all—think of how rich she is now, Kitty," said Lydia. Suddenly, she wore a wicked smile. "You say that my new brother does not know that he was not the first to propose to my sister, Bingley?"

It was then that Lydia's betrothed guided her away to the refreshments. Bingley smiled at him in thanks, and Denny returned the cheerful expression. The two boys had formed a good friendship since their meeting. Bingley's easiness did not intimidate Denny, whose genuine manners were likewise appealing. Several moments later, Kitty was called away by one of her friends.

Bingley resumed his observation of Darcy and Elizabeth. Their hands were free of gloves, he noticed. It seemed as if Darcy was always finding excuses to touch Elizabeth and that she was welcoming it. They were inconspicuous, at least—good heavens, never mind that! He was holding her bare hand with his and bestowing on it a kiss! The act should not have been so scandalous, but surrounding them was such an intense air of passion, or perhaps more accurate and flustering—pure love. Bingley blushed. Yet, he could not look away. They were a handsome, striking couple as any in a romantic novel or play. He was beginning to think that watching them was a rather enjoyable pastime when he was caught by Darcy, who raised an accusing brow at him. Bingley beamed back at his unamused friend. His smile grew when Darcy resumed gazing at and attending Elizabeth with violent adoration. The gentleman was besotted!

He finished his drink and went to clear his hand of his empty glass. As he was doing so, a neighbour approached him.

"You are welcome to stay at my estate while you lend your home to Mr. and Mrs. Darcy," said the gentleman. "I know it would be awkward for you to be under the same roof as Miss Bennet and Mrs. Bennet. My wife arranges the best dinners, and my daughter treats us to her beautiful singing every evening."

Bingley thanked him, but gave a polite refusal. Though there was some awkwardness between him and Mrs. Bennet, his former betrothed gave him no reason to be uneasy. He was sure that if Denny could survive living at Longbourn with Mr. Bennet, he could do the same with Mrs. Bennet.

After the conversation with his neighbour concluded, he went outside for some air. He was well aware that he was becoming a target of sorts in Hertfordshire, following his broken engagement. It was becoming to him increasingly clear that the fathers of the county were more vicious than the mothers and daughters themselves.

"Bingley! There you are!" cried Kitty, skipping to him. "It is good that you are alone. I have a most important question for you."

"I will do my best to answer," he said sincerely.

"Will you kiss me?"

Bingley coughed. He thought perhaps that he had not heard her correctly. "What?"

"I have been eighteen for many weeks now and have yet to experience a kiss!" bemoaned Kitty. "Lydia has already been kissed by Denny. Jane, too, had been kissed when she was fifteen. Mary is naturally dull, but what I fear most comes from what Lizzy told me. Did you know that Darcy was her first kiss, and she his? She is twenty, and he is eight-and-twenty! Can you believe waiting that long for a hint of romance in your life? I do not want to wait two entire years until someone kisses me, let alone ten."

"But should you not wait until you come across a man you love, who loves you?"

"Have you waited?"

He was silent.

"Exactly! I have caught you out. It is well, for I knew you were not as boring as Lizzy and her Darcy."

Blushing, Bingley explained, "If I had kissed a lady or two in my life, I had believed myself to be in love."

"Did you kiss Jane?"

"No, but she is one reason why I should not be kissing you. We must be considerate of her."

"Did she have the same consideration for you when she tried to be bold to your friend?"

"What do you know about that?"

"Not much—but tell me, do I know the friend? Is it Mr. Hurst?"

"No, it is not Hurst! I need not tell you anything. Surely you are not that interested anyway."

"No, I am really not." Kitty played with her fan absentmindedly. "So will you kiss me?"

"Kitty, I care for you, and I am flattered that you have asked me, but I think of you as—"

"Oh, do not misunderstand me. I am only worried that someone ugly might steal my first kiss. You are handsome, at least."

Bingley was happy to hear the compliment and largely relieved that she was not in love with him, but he still declined to kiss her.

"Why not?" she asked. "Have you already got another lover? Is it Lady Cassandra?"

He vehemently denied that, and Kitty was subject to a rant of how his nose was still sensitive after the lady had damaged it.

"Very well, so you do not like her, or anyone," said Kitty afterwards. "If you have no attachment, then why can you not kiss me?"

"It is not proper."

"No one is here to see us. My goodness! Am I am ugly?"

"Never! You are certainly pretty."

"Well, then what is the concern?"

"I am not going to kiss you, Kitty."

"If you do, I will paint a portrait of your elder sister."

Bingley suddenly became interested. "Louisa? You would draw her, like you did Caroline?"

Kitty faithfully nodded.

"I will kiss your hand," said Bingley, after a moment of consideration. "Then you will draw Louisa."

"Oh, if that is all you are offering, I suppose I will agree to it."

Smiling at the thought of the addition to his gallery, Bingley took her hand and slid off her glove. He appreciated the softness and cleanliness of her skin, but he did not believe that he felt any of the strong emotions he witnessed between Darcy and Elizabeth.

"I am ready," said Kitty expectantly.

Bingley nodded and kissed her hand, putting in the effort to be most gentlemanly. They then stepped away from each other.

"That is it?" she asked, furrowing her brows and wrinkling her nose. "How incredibly insipid!"

Bingley folded his arms. He spoke, "I thought it was pleasant."

"Oh, do not be offended."

"I am offended."

"Did you think it was pleasant enough for you to want to repeat it?"

"No."

"Then should you not be happy that I thought it awful and am not begging you for more?"

"Certainly not! You have wounded my pride. I have always been described as a wonderful lover, until now. For my touch to be declared as insipid and awful—I can hardly believe it."

"What had gone wrong? Would I feel more romanced if my lips were touched?"

"Possibly; but if you ever studied Darcy and Lizzy, you might realise that passion exists in the slightest moments of contact. They have managed to find the pinnacle of romance from the mere brush of their hands. Thus, we may conclude that it is all about being with the right gentleman or lady."

"Will you help me find my gentleman, Bingley?"

He smiled and answered, "Of course! I have many good, eligible, single friends. I will be happy to introduce you to them."

"I will help you find a lady, too," declared Kitty. "We must look out for each other at balls and gatherings."

"Indeed we must," he agreed.

Content at the conclusions of their conversation, they returned to the festivities. They marvelled at the amount of flowers and food present, enjoyed the music, and engaged in stories about Mr. and Mrs. Darcy. Kitty showed Maria Lucas the details of her gown. Bingley took a turn around the room with Georgiana, saving her from the presence of strangers; they merrily discussed the prospect of her becoming an aunt.

Coming across the recently married was a joy.

"Will you join us at Pemberley for Christmas, Bingley?" asked Elizabeth. Her eyes were sparkling as she shared a glance with Darcy. She was Mrs. Darcy now; Pemberley had gained its mistress.

Bingley accepted the invitation with great pleasure. Though his friends were the ones newly married, he felt as if he also secured a new family through their close circle. There was a lightness as he thought of the future. He feared nothing, he realised, when his father had left him the resources to face the world, and when he had such good friends surrounding him.

Note: Thank you to everyone who has purchased the ebook/paperback version of this story! (It is published as His Offences Absolved by F.D. Woods.) And thank you to the readers and kind reviewers here. All of your support is inspiring.

Up Next: Bonus Chapter 2! Darcy finds out about Mr. Collins's proposal to Elizabeth.