Pride and Premeditation (Jane Austen Murder Mystery #1)(46)

“And third, Miss Elizabeth, is the reason I alluded to earlier. With the bulk of your father’s estate to come to me after his passing, I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t choose a wife from among his daughters, so that his loss might not sting quite as much. I’m completely indifferent to your lack of fortune, and I promise to never speak of it once we are married. Nothing remains except to assure you of the violence of my affection!”

Nothing sounded more horrifying to Lizzie, and she took a giant step back. “What about Charlotte?” she asked.

“Miss Lucas is a . . . fine young lady,” Collins said, “but you must know that I’m hardly interested in her in that regard. She’s not appropriate as a life partner.”

Lizzie felt the heaviness of the words he did not say. Lizzie did not wish her friend to be shackled to Collins, but his excuse was enraging. “Because her mother was from the West Indies and not the West End?”

Collins nodded. “I’m glad you understand.”

“You mistake me,” she choked out. Talking had become difficult, and the right words were hard to grasp. “I understand nothing.”

“When it comes to marriage, you and I are far better suited. I’m certain both of your parents will approve of our engagement.”

Well, this was a nightmare. “I haven’t even given you an answer!” Lizzie reminded him.

Collins kept trying to edge closer, and Lizzie was running out of space in which to retreat. “I’m not worried,” he told her. “I know that when young ladies refuse a man, they secretly mean to accept. I’m prepared to ask again and again, before leading you to the altar.”

The image of Collins leading Lizzie anywhere was so distasteful, she nearly gagged. She would have loved nothing more than to turn on her heel or, better yet, smack some sense into him, but if he intended to keep pursuing the matter, it was better to lay it to rest now. “I assure you, I’m not one of those young ladies—if indeed they exist. I’m certain that you could not make me happy, and even more, I could not make you happy.”

Lizzie thought she might be getting through to him. His countenance was no longer quite as smug; he looked confused, even frustrated. “Perhaps you wish me to flatter myself, Miss Elizabeth. What I’m offering you is significant. A position in society as a married lady, a household of your own, a modest fortune, the opportunity to keep your family in comfort. You’re unlikely to receive a proposal such as this again.”

Lizzie laughed once more. “If your words are an attempt at flattery, please know I would rather be paid the compliment of being taken at my word. I would not, could not, marry you, and nothing you say will convince me otherwise.”

Lizzie planned to make for Charlotte’s desk and escape the conversation, but she had taken no more than a single step backward when Collins’s expression changed. He grabbed her by the wrist, surprising Lizzie with the strength of his grip.

“Stop this nonsense, Elizabeth,” he said. “I’ll be patient, but if you don’t accept, I have the means to see that you never set foot into Longbourn and Sons again.”

Lizzie yanked her hand from his grasp, furious that he would threaten her—but frightened, too. Mr. Bennet was already disappointed in her. Was refusing Collins the final straw that would see her banished from Longbourn forever, her career aspirations crushed?

Lizzie realized in an instant that even if it was her undoing, she could not, would not, relent. “I don’t know how else to say it. I. Will. Not. Marry. You.”

And with that, she wrenched open the office door and stalked past an alarmed Charlotte and right out of Longbourn, Collins’s furious stare burning at her back.





Thirteen


In Which Lizzie Receives a Shock



JANE WAS EMBROIDERING IN their shared bedchamber when Lizzie returned. She looked up from her stitching as Lizzie came in and said, “Oh, there you are—”

Lizzie checked to make sure the hall was clear, then shut the door with a solid click. “Jane,” she said gravely, “I have good news and horrid news. Which would you like to hear first?”

“Heavens.” Jane set her needlework aside. “You better start with the bad.”

“No, I think I shall start with the good news.” Lizzie removed her spencer and flung herself down on her bed, next to Jane. “The good news is that you don’t have to worry about Collins ever proposing marriage to you.”

“Oh?” Jane asked, not sounding the least bit relieved. Then again, she’d never had to seriously concern herself with the prospect. “And why is that?”

“That’s the horrid news. Because he just proposed. To me. But don’t worry, I refused.”

Jane’s shock was rather satisfying, but not nearly enough to make Lizzie feel better. She kept waiting for the moment when she could laugh the whole strange encounter off, but the humor never came. The mattress ticking dipped as Jane shifted closer. “Lizzie! Does Mama know?”

“No. And she can never know.”

“I don’t know how likely that is,” Jane said. “She can sniff out a proposal in a crowded room from a mile away, and besides, she’s been making preparations for dinner with Collins all morning.”

Lizzie rolled over and buried her head in her pillow.