7. Chapter Seven

Why, oh why, did she have to blush so fiercely and so easily? No matter what she did when she was truly embarrassed, Mary could not hide the vibrant blush that would erupt on her face. It did not even stop at just her cheeks, either. It spread to her ears and down her neck. Today it felt as if it had spread all the way to her toes.

She just wanted to get away and hide from how embarrassed she was. But it seemed to not be something she would be able to manage because no one was leaving her alone. Making it to the stairs, she plastered on a smile and looked at Mr. Goulding and Nellie. "I am fine, really, I can manage."

Mr. Goulding's eyes seemed to dance with some secret joy, but at least he did not laugh at her obvious stubbornness. "It seems that we have two options. You may take my arm and allow me to support you, you are injured after all, or I will carry you. I did not save you from falling through the floor to let you take a tumble down the stairs now that you are free." Offering her his arm, he waited.

Mary looked at his arm that hung there waiting for her compliance and struggled to make the decision she knew she should. The most rational part of her brain seemed to understand that she would feel even more embarrassed to be seen being carried like an invalid. A small part of her wanted to refuse in order to know what it would feel like for him to carry her. Swallowing her pride and frustration, Mary took his arm and allowed him to help her down the stairs.

Her leg did hurt, but she could tolerate it, albeit barely. Despite that, it would be foolish to take a tumble down the stairs because she refused to accept help. Through it all, her face was still aflame. She could feel it in the heat on her cheeks and even her ears.

Making it to the bottom of the stairs with Nellie trailing behind them, Mary tried to smile and hold her head up. "Thank you for your assistance. I am sure I can make it back to the kitchen and resume working. We have accomplished much, but we still have a long way to go. I do not know what I was thinking of trying to reminisce." Mary tried to remove her arm from Mr. Goulding's, but found that he was clasping her hand.

Eyes still dancing, Mr. Goulding did not release her. Smiling calmly, he said, "While you have an honorable idea, I believe we should return you to Netherfield at this juncture." Mr. Goulding's voice was gentle but left no room for debate.

Her smile growing artificially large, Mary tried to convince him she was fine. "I am sure that I can manage the few hours that we were going to remain here. There is no need for me to rush off." Giving a slight tug to her hand, Mary realized he was not letting her go.

Raising his eyebrows, Mr. Goulding smiled back at her. "What would you have me say to Mr. and Mrs. Darcy? That I not only allowed my lack of foresight to endanger you, but that I allowed your injury to wait and possibly become infected instead of having it seen to immediately?"

Mary pondered Lizzie"s and William"s reaction. Neither of them would be happy to hear that she waited to see to an injury, and she did not want them to discourage her from returning to Longbourn. Her shoulders drooping in defeat, Mary responded to his query. "It seems that you have the right idea of it."

In no time at all, Mary and Nellie were in the wagon and one of the grooms was directing the animal back to Netherfield. Conversation was scarce everyone either enjoying the nice autumn day or lost in thought. Mary's face had started to feel less fiery, or maybe that was just because of the cool breeze. Despite the time and distance that separated her from the escapade that had her stuck in a floor, Mary remained mortified.

Yes, that was the problem. It was not the impulse she had to throw propriety into the wind and lean up and kiss Gabriel Goulding on the mouth. What had she been thinking? She knew exactly what she had been thinking, and she shook her head at it. He had just saved her; she was in pain and frightened and he was comforting her and her sensibilities had run away with themselves. When he had run his thumb along her injured lip, it had been nearly too much for her to resist.

The entire situation was so unlike herself that Mary was perplexed. She was never the sister who got into binds or randomly kissed gentlemen. She was the plain one who enjoyed teaching children and offering council. Besides, if Mr. Goulding truly wanted to kiss her, would he not also want to at least court her? She felt so entirely foolish. She knew he hesitated to take that step, but what was it about her that made him hesitate?

Her mind wanting to shy away from the drama of the morning, Mary looked at Mr. Goulding. Not that she was sure it was a wise idea. He had insisted on accompanying them. He stated it was only because he wanted to discuss the latest issue with William, but Mary suspected he wanted to make sure that she arrived back to her family in one relatively uninjured piece. Did he think her incapable of riding back to Netherfield in a wagon? Even as a small child, she had never been the sort to fall out of a moving vehicle. That was more like Lizzie or Lydia.

Taking a breath, Mary released it slowly. She knew she was at risk of behaving like a petulant child if she did not stop that train of thought. The morning had put her out of sorts, and she had no right to become suspicious of Mr. Goulding's actions. Where had the normally logical woman that she was gone? Had she lost it when she fell through the floor?

She returned her gaze to Mr. Goulding, who was riding next to the wagon on his horse. While Mary was fond of the gelding, named Fox of all things, she preferred Cadmus, also known as Crumpet and Crumb by little Artie. Mr. Goulding's horse was less sleek lines and speed and more muscle and endurance, its reddish coat unassuming. He was more of a workhorse than a gentleman's steed, though somehow, he fit Mr. Goulding well.

Once they reached Netherfield, Mr. Goulding dismounted and after handing off his reins to a groom, he went over to the wagon and easily lifted her down. Mary tried to limp away from him and into the house but was stopped by his hand on her shoulder. When she looked up at him in surprise, Mr. Goulding leaned over and whispered to her, "I know you were embarrassed, but I must say I adore how lovely you look when you blush."

Eyes going wide at his comment, Mary felt herself being escorted away, but was utterly lost in thought. What kind of comment was that? He liked her blush? How did he have any right to express himself thusly? He had not asked to court her and though her sisters told her that he had strong feelings towards her, he had never acted on them. And here he was confessing that he thought her blush was lovely?

And there went her face again, giving her away as his words had her flushing scarlet. Looking at him over her shoulder as she was shepherded away, she saw his grin grow as he offered her a grand bow. Furious or flattered, she had no idea which she should be. Whatever she chose, she would have to do it away from him as he went with William and she was taken to her room to wash up and change out of her dirtied dress.

Gabriel could not help but chuckle as he arrived at Longbourn. The way Mary had turned scarlet when he told her she looked lovely when she blushed had been spectacular. Then, after a moment, she looked like she did not know if she should thank him or hit him. He would remember it fondly for as long as he lived.

Not that he was happy that she had been injured. No, in fact, he still felt very guilty that he had been unable to prevent it. The first thing he was going to do was to inspect the second story for any other rotten flooring. He did not want anyone else to fall through the floor, not if he could help it. Dismounting from Fox, he brought him into the stable and settled him in. Then he went in search of the workers who had stayed behind.

The remaining maid was happily cleaning away in the kitchen. She had been relieved to learn that Miss Mary was being well cared for and that Nelle would be returning with the wagon and Jeremy shortly. He found looking up at the ceiling in one of the rooms on the first floor. Walking up to him, he asked, "Did you find another problem?"

Pointing up at a discolored spot on the ceiling, Isaac said, "I suppose that depends on whether or not you look at finding more rotten boards is a problem."

Looking up to where he indicated Gabriel frowned. Why hadn't he noticed the discoloration before? He would have to contact a carpenter and get to work on the floors sooner than he had originally thought, otherwise it would not be safe. "I think finding out now before anyone has the chance to fall through another ceiling is a good thing. Will you help me look for other spots that we will need to fix? First and foremost, I want to make sure we are all safe working here."

"Sounds like a good plan to me. I wouldn't want to step wrong on some rotten wood. Man my size, I would be liable to fall all the way through. Better to fix things before something else happens," said Isaac. He left the room with a nod in Gabriel's direction.

Gabriel was glad to be working with such amiable people. Making a mental note of the room, he moved around the first floor looking at the ceiling searching out other water damaged spots. He wanted everything safe by the next time Miss Mary made her way back to Longbourn.

Elizabeth came rushing into the room as Mary was just getting into bed. The housekeeper had come and tutted over her wildly bruising ankle and foot and smeared something over her bleeding cut before wrapping it. She was promptly commanded to get in bed and stay there with her foot propped up. The housekeeper"s commanding voice rang through the air as she assured Mary that a cup of hot, sweet tea was en route to her room. She would drink it without protest.

Mary was still smiling at the housekeeper"s dictates when Elizabeth settled on the bed next to her. Brushing the hair back from Mary's face, Elizabeth asked, "Are you certain you are well?" Elizabeth examined her ankle where the bruising was not covered by the bandage and grimaced. "I mean, you fell through the floor, Mary."

Mary offered a timid smile and shrugged. "Not all the way through the floor, just partially. I am fine, and frankly, I am more worried about you. How are you feeling?" Reaching out, she grabbed Elizabeth's hand and gave it a squeeze. She did not want to talk about her own folly. She would much rather change the subject.

"At the moment, I am managing. Who knows what later will bring?" Elizabeth smiled at Mary, but then raised her eyebrows and tilted her head. She had always been good at the scolding elder sister look. "I know you are trying to distract me with your concern for me. Only falling partially through the floor? One would think that we have changed places. This is the kind of scrape I was known to have found myself in."

Falling back against the pillows behind her, Mary sighed. "Yes, that thought did cross my mind as I was stuck there. It was certainly your sort of scrape. I am fine, really, more mortified than anything. I feel so foolish for exploring and not realizing there was something wrong with the floor before I fell through it."

Offering Mary a commiserating smile, Elizabeth appeared content to allow the conversation to move on. "Well, you are safe now. How was Longbourn before you were forced to leave?"

"Longbourn is going to be quite the project, though clearing it out is well under way. The kitchen at least was swept clean, and we had cleared all sorts of nastiness out. It still needs a good scrubbing and some cats before we ever bring any food there." Mary's nose wrinkled at the thought of the mice that they had evicted that morning potentially returning.

Elizabeth sat in the chair near the head of the bed and put her feet up on a footstool. "You know we can afford the workers to go there. You do not have to help. Especially now with your injured ankle, you will have to rest for a few days, or maybe a week. Beyond that, once the cleaning is done, there is not much you can do. Unless you are planning to learn how to patch walls and paint them."

"I know, but I wanted to be there myself." Mary began fiddling with the embroidery on the sleeve of the night clothes she had been changed into. "You know how bad I felt to abandon Longbourn to father when we left."

Elizabeth"s lips twisted into a frown, and her eyes portrayed her sadness as they turned downward, as if haunted by the memory. "You also know that we could not have stayed. He would have found a way to destroy us all."

"Yes, I know. That does not mean I have to like what we were forced to do. I want to see Longbourn set to rights." Looking at her sister with a halfhearted grin, Mary said, "Who knows, maybe I will live there as an eccentric old maid, teaching the neighborhood children to read and write."

Elizabeth immediately shook her head in response. "I see many things for you, but I do not see you becoming an eccentric old maid."

"Do not fight me on this, Lizzie. One of the reasons I was relieved to leave Mother and Lydia behind in Derbyshire was their incessant cheerfulness, always hinting that I would be wedded in no time. I cannot take it from you as well." Mary looked away from Elizabeth, her voice dropping to a murmur. "It is simply too painful."

Elizabeth smiled gently at her wounded sister. "It is obvious that you will be confined to your room for at least this evening. I won't torment you as well, so I will leave you be on that subject. Since Artie is napping and cannot cheer you up, you will have to make do with me for now. What do you want to talk about instead? I am at your disposal."

Elizabeth's guess was correct in that by the time Mary's ankle was deemed well enough to get back on her feet easily, the work at Longbourn was mostly beyond her ability to contribute to. In the week that Mary had kept her foot elevated, the whole first floor of Longbourn had been cleaned free of dust and grime and the floors scrubbed. As far as Mary was able to find out, they had cleared all the broken furniture from the house and there were large piles of rubbish in the old kitchen garden. The maids were currently needed at Netherfield, so they would start on cleaning the second floor in the next week or so.

Mary had not decided whether she would go with them or not. In the time she had to think while keeping off her foot, she had realized that though she wanted to be useful; she was not really trained on scrubbing and cleaning. Despite what she had thought, there was a knack to it. As nice as they had been, she realized that the maids had to take time to show her how to help them.

Finally able to walk without too much issue, Mary wanted to get out of the house. Dressing with care, Mary decided she would make her way into Meryton that morning. She knew they were running low on the ginger that was needed in the tea that helped Elizabeth, but more than that, she wanted to see the town that she had grown up near.

It had been years since they had fled Longbourn, and there was no telling how things had changed. Between her injury and trying to help with Longbourn, she had yet to visit Meryton or walk among the shops. Carefully lacing her shoe around her still bruised foot, Mary smoothed her dress and went to check on Elizabeth before she left. Maybe she could get something to tempt her appetite while in town.

Running into William in the hallway outside of the room he shared with her sister, Mary smiled in greeting. "Good morning, William. I was just going to check on Lizzie. How is she fairing today?"

Gesturing for her to follow him away from the door and down the hallway, he spoke softly. "Today has not been one of her better days. I just convinced her to try to go back to sleep."

Frowning at the news, Mary hated to hear that her sister was still unwell. Speaking softly, she replied, "Then I will not disturb her. I was planning to walk into Meryton this morning and see if there was anything there that I could get to tempt her appetite. Then, too, we are running low on ginger for the tea that Lizzie needs. What are your plans for the day?"

Continuing to speak softly, William said, "I have some letters to write to my steward at Pemberley and a few other business matters. I was going to write Georgiana as well."

Mary could not help thinking of her mother and the happiness she had found with her new husband, Mr. Hawkins. She even had a new son to dote on. Mathew was a sweet little thing with a shock of curly hair of indeterminate color. Mary was uncertain if it would stay a sandy blond or turn a darker brown. Georgiana had been visiting with Lydia and the plan had been that they would pick her up on the way down to Netherfield, but she had come down with a cold shortly before they arrived. It was quickly decided that they would let her stay with Mama and Lydia instead of coming down to Hertfordshire. There was no need to risk her getting worse by traveling. The idea of traveling in a carriage for days while ill was never a fun prospect. "The last letter I had from Lydia said they had been enjoying looking after Mathew and were planning to start a school for the children near Mr. Hawkins's estate. It sounds like she is fully recovered from her cold."

"Yes, last I heard, Georgiana was enjoying herself." Turning to watch Mary come down the stairs behind him, he frowned slightly. "You are still favoring your foot."

"Yes, I have to be careful of it still, but it is not so sore that it will keep me from going about my day," she replied, hating that she had not been able to hide the pain better. She continued following William into the family dining room that held various foods on the sideboard, as well as coffee and tea. She immediately went to the sideboard to get herself a cup of tea with a liberal splash of cream.

Getting his own cup of coffee and a pastry, William took a seat at the table. "I will make sure the carriage is available for you so that you may go into Meryton as soon as you are ready."

Mary looked at her brother-in-law, who she had grown to love. She knew he cared deeply for those around him, but sometimes that love manifested itself as heavy-handed acts of kindness. He also had the habit of saying things in a way that did not carry the meaning he intended. Should she tease him and his clumsy way of trying to look after her? It was what Elizabeth would do, but it was not her typical sort of thing. "I did say that I could walk there. Were you meaning to say something else?"

The widening of his eyes was slightly comical, but Mary did not laugh. She hated to be embarrassed herself and would never want to hurt his feelings. "Oh, that did come out rather wrong. I would just hate for you to strain your foot, as it would not do for you to hurt your foot and ankle more than it already is." With a deep breath, he tried again. "I would like to offer you the use of the carriage so that you may enjoy yourself while in town and not worry about being in pain."

It was no wonder her sister had fallen in love with her husband; he was so earnest at times. "Thank you for the consideration. Though I feel I could manage to walk to Meryton without issue, I will accept the carriage ride. That way I can buy whatever I wish without having to worry about carrying it back." Smiling, Mary took a sip of her tea, enjoying the warmth as it spread throughout her body.