Mr. Darcy's Proposal Read Online Free PDF Page A

after his fortune and he would be miserable married to her. I admit to having some help from Bingley’s sisters in this. Charles is a very good man, but he is prone to being easily influenced. I may have taken advantage of that. He was not secure enough of Miss Bennet’s affections so he took my advice and did not return to Netherfield. I thought I had saved him from an imprudent marriage. Also, I was spared from having to see Miss Elizabeth again.”
    “But you could not forget her?”
    “I am embarrassed to admit I even dreamed about her for months after that.”
    “Not really a surprise. She is charming enough to induce any man to dream a bit.”
    “Behave yourself,” Darcy said in mock anger. “She is spoken for.”
    Fitzwilliam flashed a wicked grin. “So when we arrived at Aunt Catherine’s for our annual Easter visit, there she was.”
    “Yes, and it gets even more complicated. Mr. Collins, that obsequious little parson Aunt Catherine sponsors, is the Bennet’s cousin. He was visiting Hertfordshire when I was there and had the temerity to come up and speak to me with no introduction. Can you imagine that?”
    “He is an unpleasant fellow,” Fitzwilliam agreed.
    “Unfortunately, the Bennet’s home, Longbourn, is entailed to Collins upon Mr. Bennet’s death as there are no sons—just the five girls.”
    “I begin to see where this is going.”
    “Apparently, Collins was in Hertfordshire at our aunt’s instruction to find a wife presumably from among his cousins. I learned recently that he proposed to Miss Elizabeth, but she had the good sense to turn him down. He married her friend, instead. That is how Miss Elizabeth came to be visiting Kent.”
    “I frequently caught you looking at her when she was at Rosings. At first, I just thought that our dear aunt was boring you more than usual, and you were entertaining yourself by watching a beautiful lady. After it went on for a while, I suspected you had feelings for her, but I never dreamed it was this serious. What are you planning to do now?”
    “You remember the evening before we left, she stayed back at the parsonage claiming a headache—the one brought on by learning about Bingley and her sister from you!”
    Fitzwilliam grimaced. “I seem to recall you disappeared for a while.”
    “I went to call on her to beg her to end my misery and marry me. When I got there, she had just received the letter about her father’s illness. Understandably, she was quite distressed. In that moment of weakness, she told me everything.”
    “As usual, your timing is perfect!” exclaimed Fitzwilliam with a laugh.
    “Once I knew she needed help, I offered my carriage. I admit at the time I was thinking that if I assisted her, she might be even more inclined to look favorably on my proposal.”
    “And she did allow you to help her. What is the problem? All you have to do now is follow her to Hertfordshire after an appropriate period of time and ask for her hand. No woman in her right mind would turn you down.”
    “There is one who most definitely would. In spite of my attempt at chivalry, Miss Elizabeth was more than a little angry with me—having it fresh in her mind about the role I had in ruining her sister’s life. She let me know in no uncertain terms what she thinks of me. In addition to despising me for hurting her sister, she also thinks I am selfish, conceited, and disdainful of others—to name just a few of my many faults she enumerated that evening.”
    “A small complication, I am sure.”
    Darcy put his head in his hands. “I know I should be practical and let her go, but I find I cannot give her up that easily. She is not like any other woman I have ever met. She has never tried to gain my attention nor has she ever been impressed with my fortune or status. No, I believe the only course open to me is to prove to her somehow that I am a better man than she has taken me for. It will not be an easy task, but I believe she is a woman worthy of