Ever since she could walk, Elodie Bennet had expectations set upon her, expectations that all young women had. As the second eldest, she was meant to care for her younger sisters and do what was asked of her without complaining.
This also meant...
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PALPABLE SENSE OF BETRAYAL.
Theair turned hot during Mr. Collins' sermon in the church as frequent pellets of rain battered against the roof, the rhythmic sound making eyes slowly close in boredom and mouths open in quiet yawns.
Elodie blinked away the haze in her eyes and rubbed at the spot where the ribbon of her bonnet had begun to irritate her jaw. "I cannot stand this," Elizabeth whispered to her side, brown eyes burning holes in the pew ahead of them. "I'm viciously bored."
Elodie chuckled to herself, head shaking as she mused upon her sister's frustrations. She, too, felt the same way, but what could they do?
Since they were guests at the Collins' house, it only felt proper to accept when Mr. Collins had extended an invitation to attend his sermon that Sunday. Her mother would hit her if she had not.
"If it provides you any peace, I like to think about what I plan to do after this boring affair." Fitzwilliam —the Colonel that had joined Mr. Darcy at dinner the previous week—had felt more than welcome to sit beside the Bennet sisters; far across the room from his friend.
Elizabeth bared her teeth in a quiet laugh at his insensitive comment, as she certainly would take him up his advice. Church bored her more than anything else.
Thinking about the two men's relationship, Elodie unknowingly sent a look in the direction of Mr. Darcy.
His coat was a dark blue and very neatly put together. The color suited him, she thought. But all depressing colors did as such.
Her eyes scoured his frame as she watched the man's every movement as he shifted in his seat, his hands coming to rest on his thighs and his throat bobbing up and down with impatience.
Elodie could already tell what he was thinking about. She was almost certain he was thinking about making a fuss and leaving before Mr. Collins could finish. Or perhaps not? Now, after knowing much more of his character, she would think he'd just sit quietly and endure.
Before she could finish her assumptions about the situation she had concocted in her mind, his brooding eyes locked with Elodie's and she let out a small gasp, thankfully not loud enough to draw attention from the people she sat beside.
Her gaze nervously traveled around the church, now avoiding the right side of it. Her cheeks were hot with embarrassment at having been caught staring. Why was she acting like a giddy schoolgirl?
