Prelude to Pemberley: Darcy and Georgiana talk about the Bingleys

Welcome to our Pride & Prejudice prequel! P&P: Prelude to Pemberley tells the story of the time leading up to the events of Pride & Prejudice, including what Darcy and Elizabeth were doing and thinking, Georgiana Darcy’s story, the events of Ramsgate, how Mr. Bingley came to lease Netherfield, and much more! Join us on our journey as the Austen Variations authors post the events of 1811 in real time on the date they happened – 214 years in the future.

Darcy and Georgiana talk about the Bingleys

October 8, 1811

Georgiana breathed a sigh of relief once the sound of distant footsteps had receded. At last, that was over. She was alone at last, fully alone as Mrs. Annesley had gone to the drawing room to retrieve some embroidery thread. Peaceful and serene, the parlour was one of Georgiana’s favourite places in the house–but not when Mr. Bingley’s sisters were visiting.

A new set of footsteps in the passage, and her breath caught. But no, those were the heavier footsteps of her brother, not the Bingley sisters returning for a forgotten glove–as Miss Bingley had done last time, hoping to catch William.

“Georgiana.” William nodded to her as he entered, taking a seat on the chair nearest the window. “How was your morning?”

Georgiana winced. “Mr. Bingley’s sisters are very elegant.” She hesitated. “Is it proper, do you think, for them to be calling on me when I am not yet out?”

Darcy leaned forward, his eyes earnest on hers. “Our aunt suggested that it would be appropriate for you to begin receiving calls from close family friends.”

If only the Bingleys didn’t count in that number. Mr. Bingley was pleasant and amiable, and Georgiana was pleased for his friendship with her brother. But his sisters made her feel on edge, afraid to make the tiniest mistake. They were so perfect, so elegant, so . . . certain of themselves. Everything she was not.

They were too much like the girls at school. All the more reason not to join her brother at Mr. Bingley’s estate in Hertfordshire, no matter what lovely garden designs Mr. Bingley might plan.

“It would be good for you to make connections with other young ladies,” William said, steepling his fingers. “Miss Bingley admires you a great deal.”

That much was true, at least outwardly. Miss Bingley admired Georgiana’s playing, her embroidery, her artwork, her gowns, and everything else that might reasonably be praised by another young lady. None of it felt genuine. What Miss Bingley truly admired most about Georgiana was her brother.

“Mr. Bingley does as well,” William said, a hesitant hopefulness ringing in his tone.

It was true, then. “You see Mr. Bingley as a potential match for me?”

William sat up quickly at her forthright question. She would never have dared ask such a thing in the past, not before she had gone away to school, when she had thought of her brother almost as a father. But now things had changed, and she would have it from him directly. His opinion of her was already damaged–she had to know the worst of it.

“Yes,” William said slowly, “if you like him.”

Georgiana swallowed. “I do like him,” she admitted, “but I do not know if . . . if it is in the way you mean.”

“There is time for both of you to come to know each other. You are still young.” The tips of William’s ears were red, and he would not meet her eye. This conversation was as difficult for him as it was for her. “Love could come, in time.”

Georgiana squeezed her hands together tightly until the knuckles turned white. They were speaking as brother and sister. It felt so warm and real. She had to know, and yet she did not want to break the peace between them.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment to build up her courage. “Are you considering Mr. Bingley for me because I am ruined?”

“What?” William’s eyes widened, and he pushed himself to his feet. “Georgiana! You aren’t ruined!”

“Lady Catherine declared me as good as ruined after the . . . incident at school.” Georgiana could feel her face and neck heating, but for once, she would have a forthright conversation with William, no matter how hard it was. “You said it was not true, but . . . How much worse must it be now after I agreed to elope with Mr. Wickham?”

William blanched and looked behind him at the open door. 

Well. She had not been particularly loud, but perhaps it would have been better not to be so explicit about that part.

Gingerly, William retook his seat. “You did not elope,” he said, his voice low but insistent. “You may have agreed to, but you did not. You are not ruined.”

Georgiana considered. William had not, it was true, treated her as if she were ruined. He had not talked about sending her away. He talked about her future as if marriage were a certainty in her future.

“When Lady Matlock once spoke to me of marriage,” she said slowly, “she spoke of rank. She thought I could marry into the nobility if I wished. A viscount, perhaps an earl. She even had a few in mind that she planned to introduce me to once I came out. But Mr. Bingley is not even the son of a gentleman. His father was in trade. Do you not expect me to reach higher? Mother was the daughter of an earl.”

“Do you want to marry an earl?” William asked.

It was not a question anyone had ever asked her before.

Lord and Lady Matlock spent the season in town, attending frequent social events and, on Lord Matlock’s part, sessions of Parliament. With multiple estates to oversee, the Matlocks rarely stayed in one place for long and were always busy, beset by visitors, supplicants, tenants, and political allies.

No, she would not want that life.

“No,” she said slowly.

“I did not consider Bingley for you because I thought an earl was reaching too high. Instead, it is because he is gentle and kind. He is trustworthy. If you told him about Mr. Wickham, he would be horrified–for your sake. He would not hold it against you.”

“He is a good friend.” Could she marry Mr. Bingley? Maybe William had a point. She had thought of marrying Mr. Wickham for love, the kind of dramatic, overwhelming love that she had read about in novels. But even if she did not look upon Mr. Bingley with a romantic eye now, maybe that would come. Perhaps love would creep upon them gently.

It was a sweet idea. But could she ever see Mr. Bingley as a husband? He was a good man and would make somebody a good husband, to be sure. But her husband?

Stalling, Georgiana asked, “You do not mind if I do not marry for rank?”

“Rank and connections are important, too. I would not have you think otherwise. The benefits of marrying a man who is well-connected and has a good fortune will impact, not only you, but your future children. It will affect your reputation–what doors are open to you, which ladies will receive you. It could even affect Lord Matlock’s power in the House of Lords.”

Georgiana swallowed. What if she had married Mr. Wickham? What would that have done to her uncle? To her brother?

“Mr. Bingley cannot compare to a nobleman, that is true. But, while he has not yet purchased an estate, he is a gentleman in every other way. He has a gentleman’s education, an excellent fortune, connections in town–everybody likes him–and his family is on the rise. After he purchases an estate, he will be a gentleman in every way. While you could certainly reach higher by rank alone, he would be a respectable choice, a good balance between his character and his position.”

William would be an excellent choice for some woman someday. He, too, was the perfect balance between character and position. He was such a good man, the best of brothers, and she knew he would make an indulgent, protective, loving husband. He was also handsome and wealthy, and well-connected even if he had no title. Maybe somewhere there was a woman considering marrying him. Other than Caroline Bingley.

“Do you expect to marry an earl’s daughter?” she asked cautiously. “Like our father?”

William chuckled. “There would be a nice symmetry to it, would there not? But my wife need not be a daughter of the nobility.”

Georgiana’s breath caught. Did that mean William might be considering marrying Miss Bingley? “Would it matter to you if your bride’s fortune was made in trade? If her brother–or father–was considered a gentleman and was planning to purchase an estate?”

William took her question seriously, frowning as he mused. “Such a woman would be an adequate match if I particularly liked her, assuming she were well-educated and had a respectable fortune and connections.”

Miss Bingley had hope, then. William staying in Hertfordshire with the Bingleys would give her even more opportunities to win his heart and his hand. Would William return for Christmas engaged to Miss Bingley?

Georgiana clenched her fist before determinedly relaxing it. No, she would not let herself indulge her desire to pound something, not after she had seen what giving in to violence had done at school.

William’s choices were her own. And if he chose Miss Bingley . . .

Well, maybe she would have to find an earl to marry after all.

Read all the scenes in Prelude to Pemberley here!