The Unread Letter

Book excerpt: For every one of his smiles, she thought of his letter and blushed with shame of what she had done. Oh, that she might have just looked at it! After rejecting Mr Darcy's proposal at Hunsford, Elizabeth Bennet is surprised when he finds her walking the next day and hands her a letter. Without any expectation of pleasure-but with the strongest curiosity-she begins to open the letter, fully intending to read it. It really was an accident-at first. Her shaking hands broke the seal and somehow tore the pages in two. Oh, what pleasure she then felt in tearing the pages again and again! A glorious release of anger and indignation directed towards the man who had insulted her and courted her in the same breath. She did feel remorse, but what could she do? The letter was destroyed, and Elizabeth expected that she would never see Mr Darcy again. Home at Longbourn, she discovers that her youngest sisters are consumed by a scheme to go to Brighton-and Elizabeth finds herself drawn to the idea of a visit to the sea. But the surprises of Brighton are many, beginning with a chance meeting on the beach and ending in unexpected romance all around.