Today’s post was supposed to be the launch of my new book, Mr. Darcy’s Noble Connections. I was all set to go with the book. The editors and copy-editors had okayed it. The cover was done, the book was formatted, and all I needed to do was to press the button that said ‘Publish.’ But I kept delaying because something didn’t feel right. Finally I decided to send it out to another set of editors. To my surprise, the new editors loved it, but they did feel that there were places I could improve it — not because of the quality of the writing, but because there was a section where I’d strayed too far from my own writing style.

So I’m in the midst of revisions. I’m trying to have it done by mid-June, so rather than add another delay to the release by writing a separate post, I’m going to give you another long, juicy excerpt from the book. It’s probably best to read the first chapter before this, but if you haven’t, the crucial things to know is that this takes place two months after Hunsford. Elizabeth is visiting her childhood friend, Lady Eleanor Carlisle, at Bentham Park, while Darcy is staying nearby with Geoffrey Paxton, his friend from Cambridge and Lady Eleanor’s secret love — and neither Darcy nor Elizabeth knows about the other’s presence.

 From Mr. Darcy’s Noble Connections

Lady Bentham rose to her feet. “Eleanor, you may choose a list of dances for the musicians,” she said as if granting a great favor. “No more than two hours’ worth, I think. We do not want to over-tire our guests so soon after their arrival.” She swept out of the room.

“Oh, yes,” said Elizabeth dryly. “It would be a shame to allow the guests to choose how much they wish to dance when we can decide it for them.”

Eleanor gave a look of mock horror before starting to giggle. “You need not worry. After two hours, my stepmother will explain to them that they are tired, regardless of what they believe, and immediately they will start drifting off to sleep like characters from a fairy tale. What is your favorite dance?”

“Mine? You had best choose. I would no doubt pick something that would betray my low origins and make a terrible impression on poor Mr. Paxton.” Elizabeth imitated Lady Bentham’s refined accent. She had heard far more of it than she wished to. In the old days, she and Eleanor had taken their meals in the schoolroom, rather than a formal dining room presided over by Lord and Lady Bentham. The change was not an improvement.

Eleanor heaved a dramatic sigh. “Very well, then. A few country dances, a reel or two, and of course a waltz since we must be modern – and because I have a specific person in mind with whom I wish to waltz. Do you waltz?”

Elizabeth laughed. “Of course not. I have never even seen a waltz. In Meryton, it would be shocking even to speak about it!”

“Oh, you must waltz here, though! I will teach you.”

“If I am not mistaken, unmarried ladies must have permission from the patronesses at Almack’s before dancing the waltz, and I have not received that. Of course, I have never met any of them, either, so it would be quite surprising if I did!”

“Nonsense. In town, yes, we would have to pay attention to that, but this is a private party, so we may do as we like. No one will be in the least surprised.”

With a smile, Elizabeth shook her head. “I will be perfectly content merely to watch.”

The butler materialized at the door to the sitting room. “Lord Charles Carlisle, your ladyship,” he announced.

A tall young man with tousled, windblown hair strolled past him, his shirt points fashionably high. “Eleanor, my dear!” he exclaimed as he bent to kiss her cheek.

Eleanor said warmly, “This is a surprise. We were not expecting you until tomorrow.”

He grinned. “You know that it is a point of honor with me to always do the unexpected.”

“In this case, it makes me wonder what or whom you may be fleeing! But will you allow me to introduce to your acquaintance my dear friend Miss Bennet? Lizzy, this is my brother Charles.”

Lord Charles turned his gaze to Elizabeth, raising an appreciative eyebrow before bending over her hand to bestow a completely unnecessary kiss on it. Elizabeth’s cheeks grew hot at this unexpected forwardness, which seemed to please him, as he made a point of holding onto her hand for a good half-minute after he should have released it. “I would have driven faster had I realized there would be such beauty at the end of my journey.”

Elizabeth rallied at this. “Do tell me, Lord Charles, how often you have employed those exact words in the past? They have an air of long practice.”

He threw back his head and laughed. “Shall I say instead that your eyes would teach the torches to burn bright? Those words are even more practiced. If only we had some torches for your eyes to teach! Eleanor, you must arrange for torches at the next opportunity.”

At least he had a sense of humor and could tolerate being laughed at. “Torches are too smoky for my taste, my lord. But we have met before, on my first visit to Bentham Park many years ago. I helped Eleanor hide a grass snake under your pillow.”

“So that was you, my dear sister! You denied it so prettily that I was fool enough to believe you.”

Eleanor said briskly, “I should have chosen an adder instead. Still, your early arrival will work to my purpose. Miss Bennet must learn to waltz before tomorrow evening.”

“And you need me to take the gentleman’s part,” said Lord Charles promptly. “Knowing that I am always happy to be of service to a lovely young lady, with or without torches, although preferably without snakes, you immediately thought of me.”

Giving his arm a mock slap, Eleanor said, “You are a rogue! I immediately thought of you because you walked into the room just after I decided to teach her to waltz.”

He pressed a hand to his chest dramatically, opening his clear blue eyes wide with mock innocence. “I am crushed, dear sister!”

“You could not be crushed by a coach and four running you down in the street. And do not try to work your wiles on Lizzy; she is my friend.”

“Utterly heartless,” he said mournfully with a glance at Elizabeth, who could not help smiling.

Eleanor rang the bell. “In the meantime, I will see if your room is ready yet.”

“Of course it will be ready,” he said with an engaging smile. “Our dear stepmother would never allow any room to be in anything but a state of perfect readiness.”

“She is nothing if not efficient,” Eleanor said darkly. “Will an hour be sufficient time for you to tie a cravat to your satisfaction?”

He appeared to ponder this. “It will depend upon the quality of the mirror, but you may be assured that the anticipation of dancing with my Juliet will preclude any delay.”

A maid appeared, and at Eleanor’s instruction, led Lord Charles out of the sitting room, though not before he blew a departing kiss in Elizabeth’s direction.

Elizabeth shook her head, astonished at the alteration from the perpetually untidy boy she recalled. “Good heavens. Is he always so forward?”

Eleanor leveled a grim look at her. “Charles is charming, witty, handsome, and I love him dearly, but I would not trust him alone with you in a room for even a minute. He is an inveterate rake and enjoys making women fall in love with him, only to leave them once he has had what he wants from them. Do not let him near your heart, no matter what he may promise you.”

“I had not planned to,” said Elizabeth with amusement, “but I appreciate the warning.”

***

“One, two, three, one, two, three.” Eleanor established the rhythm as she led Elizabeth through the steps. “That’s it. You can see how simple it is. Remember, a little rise on the last two steps.”

“Is it the same all through the dance? There are no figures or lines?”

“None. You can forget everything you know about reels and country dances. This is completely different, just one man and one woman together for the entire dance. It is wonderfully romantic.”

“Oh, lovely,” said Elizabeth with heavy irony. “Just what I need, a romance with someone who would never consider me good enough to marry. With luck, no one will ask me to dance.”

“It won’t be that bad. You may well win an admirer or two.”

“Among those coming to this house party? As near as I can tell, anyone lacking a title has a fortune or close connections to the aristocracy – except for the one who will have eyes for no one but you.”

“You may like Captain Bradley. He is not the cleverest of men, but he has a good heart and no undue pride. It is not his fault that his father is an earl. And I will warn you which gentlemen are not to be trusted.”
“Apart from Lord Charles?” Elizabeth teased.

“Apart from me?” Lord Charles’s elegant tones sounded from the door to the ballroom. “I had hoped you would not even notice any gentlemen apart from me, my dear Juliet.”

Elizabeth gave him an arch look as she rose from her curtsey. “I had never realized that it was so difficult to pronounce ‘Miss Bennet,’ she said. “If you wish, I could instruct you in how to say it in return for your assistance with the waltz.”

He laughed. “And deprive me of the chance to call you Juliet? Never. But how are your waltz lessons coming?”

“She is doing very well,” said Eleanor briskly. “I was about to show her how to turn while doing the steps.”

“That is my job, fair sister.” Stepping close, he caught Elizabeth by the waist, tugging her toward him.

“Lord Charles!” Elizabeth exclaimed reproachfully, pulling away from him.

Eleanor laughed. “You really have never seen a waltz, have you? You put your left hand in Charles’s right. Now your right hand rests on his shoulder, like so.” She moved Elizabeth’s hand into position. “Then Charles…”

Lord Charles interrupted. “Then Charles has the pleasure of doing this.” He put his hand back on her waist with a slight smirk.

The sensation was shocking. Elizabeth turned to Eleanor. “You must be joking.”

“No, my dearest Juliet, she is not. And what is even better is that we stay this way through the entire dance.”

No wonder the waltz was thought so improper! It was practically an embrace. Lord Charles’s eyes laughed at her discomfort, making it clear he had no objections to the position. Elizabeth said tartly, “I can tell this dance was invented by a man.”

“Enough of that,” ordered Eleanor. “You are not in your little country town any longer. Now try the steps in place. Charles will step forward while you step back.”

Feeling unusually awkward, Elizabeth tried to do as she instructed. Good Lord – was he trying to put his leg between hers? She stepped backwards quickly, then had to remember what to do with her feet. How could she pay attention to her steps with a man standing so close to her – especially when he was taking advantage of his position to admire certain of her assets? She tried to focus instead on Eleanor’s counting and not to think about what the ladies of Meryton would say if they could see her now.

“Very nice,” said Lord Charles. “Now, keep doing those steps, but allow me to lead you.”

Elizabeth strongly suspected the only place he wished to lead her was into temptation, but she swallowed her retort before she made herself look any more provincial than she already did.

His hand pressed more firmly against her waist. “Now turn with me. That’s right. And again.” When she stumbled, he said, “You’re doing very well. You should have seen me when I first tried to waltz. My partner declared me a menace.”

Once he stopped trying to flirt with her, Lord Charles proved a good teacher, gradually coaxing her into taking wider turns and moving more rapidly. To Elizabeth’s dismay, Eleanor went to the pianoforte at the end of the room and began to play. Elizabeth had felt safer with her friend only a few feet away from her, but she had to admit that hearing the music made the dance easier. Gradually she relaxed into the rhythm of the movement, though the warmth of Lord Charles’s hand against her back continued to disturb her. At least the gentlemen at the dance would be wearing gloves. Elizabeth strongly suspected that her partner had deliberately omitted that part of his attire.

When Eleanor reached the end of the music, Lord Charles released Elizabeth and bowed. “You are a natural dancer, my sweet Juliet. May I hope to have the honor of your hand for tomorrow evening’s waltz?”

“No, you may not!” said Eleanor tartly. “Elizabeth should take the opportunity to dance it with someone else. You can find some other unfortunate woman to practice your wiles on.”

“You are as cruel as you are fair, dear sister!” He took advantage Elizabeth’s laughter to reclaim her hand long enough to place a lingering kiss on it.

***

Darcy did not anticipate finding any pleasure in spending an evening of dancing and cards at Bentham Park, but he tried to disguise his distaste from Paxton. On their arrival, they found the first set of dances had already started. Lady Bentham was leading the set, but Lord Bentham approached Darcy immediately. “Welcome! I am glad you could join us, Darcy. Come, Charles is in the card room and anxious to see you.”

Darcy glanced at Paxton, who appeared to accept Lord Bentham’s lack of notice without distress. His friend said, “Go ahead, Darcy. I will not intrude on a family reunion.” No doubt he preferred to remain where he would be able to see Lady Eleanor.

Although he had little interest in seeing Charles, Darcy was content to go to the card room. He was in no mood for making the acquaintance of young ladies. They only reminded him of what he had lost in Elizabeth, and none of them could hold a candle to her liveliness of spirit and arch wit. But that was enough thoughts of Elizabeth – he would not allow her ghost to haunt his every moment. Firmly he put her from his mind.

“Darcy!” cried Lord Charles Carlisle. “What brings you to this godforsaken corner of the country? Never mind; you are just the man I need. Come join us and perhaps my luck will turn. God knows I deserve some good luck!”

Darcy tilted his head in acknowledgement and took a seat across from Lord Charles. Pulling out the handful of coins he had brought for this purpose, he spread them in front of him. “You may do your worst,” he said.

The next half hour passed tolerably enough. Darcy ignored most of the banter between the other three men until Lord Charles pushed his cards away. “That will have to do for now,” he proclaimed. “I must attend to my latest flirt. After all, I have only a fortnight to make her fall in love with me, and the sooner that is accomplished, the sooner I will be enjoying her favors.” He smirked at the other men’s guffaws when he traced out with his hands the shape of a well-endowed female. “I have some very particular plans for that young lady.”

Bradley looked up over his elaborately knotted cravat. “I say, Carlisle, she is a gentleman’s daughter, don’t you know.”

Lord Charles’s smile widened. “When has that ever stopped me before? I need some amusement to alleviate the utter tedium of this house party. The Season cannot start soon enough for me.”

Newbury drawled, “And I say you will not manage to seduce her. She does not seem the sort to fall prey to your blandishments.”

“Too virtuous, don’t you know,” added Bradley helpfully.

Lord Charles tapped two fingers on the table. “Would you care to place a bet on that, gentlemen? I would be happy to take your money along with her virtue.”

“One hundred guineas says you cannot enjoy her before the end of the house party,” said Newbury without hesitation.

“Agreed,” said Lord Charles. “Who else is in? Bradley? Darcy?”

Bradley looked up from counting his coins. “One hundred from me as well.”

Darcy shook his head, trying not to let his distaste show. He knew of one girl of good family who had disappeared from the ton after Carlisle had set his sights on her, and another whose reputation was ruined. “I bet only on sporting events,” he said evenly.

Lord Charles laughed. “There will be sport aplenty for me in this case! But I must not keep the young lady waiting. I bribed the musicians to make this set a waltz. Perhaps I can discover a few of her charms during it – after all, a man’s hand might happen to slip from her waist, might it not?” He pushed back his chair.

The other two made to follow him. Darcy, with no desire to watch Carlisle take advantage of an innocent girl, went to observe the other game for a few minutes, but the table was full and none of the players showed an inclination to leave. As the strains of the waltz began to drift in from the next room, Darcy decided it should be safe to emerge from the card room now. Perhaps he could find Paxton and convince him to play a few hands of cards, unless he had managed to win the hand of his lady love for the waltz.

Making his way into the parlor, Darcy scanned the room for Paxton while avoiding the eyes of the match-making mamas. Damnation – his friend was already waltzing, his expression dreamy. Darcy’s lips tightened. He had no patience with lovers at the moment, especially not ones who had succeeded in winning their lady’s affection.

A light, rippling laugh reached his ears, making his blood run suddenly hot. He knew that laugh. It had haunted his dreams for months. Surely he must be mistaken, though. What would Elizabeth Bennet be doing among such elevated company?

His heart thudded painfully against his chest as he slowly turned his gaze in the direction of the laughter. For a moment he froze, his body gone rigid at the sight of her light, pleasing form moving gracefully in the turns of the waltz.

Elizabeth was here, in another man’s arms, another man’s hand splayed against her waist. Bile rose in Darcy’s throat when he saw the object of her delighted laughter. She was gazing up into the admiring countenance of Lord Charles Carlisle.

Well? What do you think?

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO EPISODE 107 *LIVE* THIS MONDAY NIGHT (5/20/13) AT 10PM ET/7PM PT!

Episode 107 of Hunger Games Fireside Chat will air live this Monday, May 20, at 10pm ET/7pm PT! This week, our panel of experts will include some of our fabulous friends from Down with the Capitol, Crystal of Mockingjay.net and FictionalFood.net, Courtney from Welcome to District 12, Rebekah from Victor’s Village, and Amanda from HG Girl on Fire!

- To kick things off, we’ll interview author and survivalist Creek Stewart about his new book, The Unofficial Hunger Games Wilderness Survival Guide. (Stay tuned for our review of the book AND a giveaway!)
- We’ll also chat about the new Catching Fire poster, which was unveiled last week via Lionsgate’s official Hunger Games Instagram account. Feel free to share your thoughts about the poster below; we’ll try to read as many comments as we can during the show!
- To conclude, we’ll discuss Chaff’s characterization in The Hunger Games Adventures and the fact that he does not appear to be missing a hand in the game. What do you think about this? Let us know in the comments!

You can chat with other listeners throughout the live show by using our hashtag #HGFiresideChat on Twitter! We recommend TweetChat to easily follow along with the conversation.

(If you missed our last episode, click here to listen!)

And click here for an index of all of our archived episodes.

Follow this week’s participants on Twitter:
Adam (Host): @AdamSpunberg
Savanna (Co-Host/Producer): @MlleNouveau
Down with the Capitol: @HungerGamesDWTC
Crystal: @pikko / @mockingjaynet / @FictionalFood
Courtney: @WtoD12
Rebekah: @Rebekahdg / @VictorsVillage
Amanda: @Amanda_Akay / @HGGirlonFire
Creek: @survivalcreek

We kick things off with Aeris, aka The Girl With The Flowers, a French Tribute with a special perspective on the promotion of Catching Fire in Cannes! Take it away, Aeris!

___________________________________________________________

It’s that time of the year again. Spring? First of all, rain, wind and me hugging my hot water-bottle because the heating’s been officially turned off in my flat does not constitute spring to me. But the point is, I’m actually talking about the Cannes Festival! You know, the stuffy red carpet event which takes place near The Croisette each year in France.

Pretty, isn’t it? *sigh*

Now, I used to take an interest, because I like independent, artsy movies and the Cannes selection usually does a good job of pinpointing which ones are going to be great. Until last year that is, when Amour received the Palme d’Or. And I unsuspectingly, even anxiously went to see it. And thus lost 2 hours of my life and promised myself I would never listen to the festival’s opinion again.

I had to eat my words though, because rumors have been swirling since early April that our very own The Hunger Games: Catching Fire possibly, maybe, might be Cannes bound. Oh, not in the official competition, because Catching Fire is not the type of movie to be selected for that. I mean, even Lord Of the Rings didn’t make it so, you get what I mean. Franchise movies aren’t big in Cannes, sadly. Awful, boring, cringe-worthy, badly acted Movies like Amour are, though. Anyway, where was I? Right. Catching Fire! *channels her inner Jen and shakes like a Chihuahua in anticipation*

Imagine that in your backyard!

So we very recently got confirmation that some kind of promotion for CF was being made in Cannes, at the Majestic Barrière hotel, and let me tell you, it looks good.

Actually, no, it looks FANTASTIC. Can I have one of those for my garden please? And maybe the fiery posters too? No? Even if I say pretty please?

They are going all out on this, and then we hear that Jennifer Lawrence was in attendance at the Catching Fire party on Saturday! Why do I not live in Cannes? (Well, because I live in Paris and other than the fact that the weather is better in Cannes and yes, this year, Catching Fire is actually there, there wouldn’t be much of a point of me living in Cannes. Also the Catching Fire Premiere will take place in Paris, so I’d rather stay there).

Rumor has it they are using this to promoting Mockingjay Parts 1&2 to “international buyers”. Eh. I have to say, I’m not quite convinced about this rumor. Are there really any “buyers” left who are not convinced by the power of The Hunger Games franchise? Who still wonder if they should distribute the movie in their countries?
Europe seems pretty involved with it already. (That being said, I’m a little disappointed in my own country’s “fan attitude”. Or maybe I’m just an über-fan, as in a Tribute, and they are just normal people whose lives do not revolve around The Hunger Games. I can’t quite remember how that feels, so I’ll let it go).

Aeris + Jen = BFFL

Well, whatever the reason, being in Cannes is giving Catching Fire some cred, even though it isn’t in the running for the Palme d’Or. It also might give us news, as they’re most likely going to do some sort of presentation, or even show some footage. And of course, any Jennifer-at-an-event-where-she-will-be-interviewed-and-NAIL-it possibility is something to be thankful for. Also, she and I will be in the same country for a few days, and although I won’t see her, it’ll make the possibility of us becoming BFFs slightly (very slightly) more possible for a few days.

Who said telepathy didn’t exist?
Aeris (The Girl with the Flowers)

We have a special poll this week for our Pride & Prejudice Reader’s Choice story, The Bennet Brother. This is your chance to choose which of the ladies in the story will be Edward Bennet’s eventual bride. Think hard about this one! We won’t be announcing the results. You’ll just have to read the story to find out the answer! This poll will be open through 6 a.m. on Thursday, Eastern time.

Who should Edward Bennet eventually marry?

1. The lovely and well dowered Lady Colette Fitzwilliam, younger sister of Colonel Fitzwilliam

2. Miss Caroline Bingley

3. Miss Georgiana Darcy, whose brother will insist on waiting until she is at least 18 years old.

4. The charming and flirtatious Miss Perry of Meryton

5. None of the above

Jennifer Lawrence attended Cannes for the first time to support her upcoming film The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, and she stopped on the carpet of the film’s Capitol-inspired party to talk with Gala about her experience. Don’t worry, she speaks in English and there is no dubbing, only French subtitles! Watch below, she starts talking at 0:25.