The Harvest Ball

by Lily Bernard

  July 8, 1814

  Carter House

  Suffolk

  My dear Lady Mary,

  I have been spending a lot of time thinking about what you have written in your letters. I have often thought about what we discussed on the days we walked together in Hyde Park; you spoke about us being happy together. I enjoyed being in your company in Derbyshire and London and learning a little more about you through your letters. I believe an invitation to the Greenley estate in Kent may help us get to know each other better and determine if we are well suited. I can travel with Maggie, my trusted maid, and your housekeeper can welcome me before entering your home. Your staff can unload my trunks, and no one will be the wiser. My driver and coachman can begin their journey back to Suffolk and remain there until I write my parents about the requested date of my return. Please, Mary, I hope you will invite me soon.

  Your caring friend,

  Emily

  Richard was especially anxious about his response to Emily’s letter about her visit to Rosings Park. He did not want this particular letter to be intercepted after one of her parents observed another envelope addressed to their daughter from Mary Greenley.

  My dearest friend,

  I cannot express how eagerly I am looking forward to your upcoming visit. Please let me know when you plan to arrive.

  Until we meet again,

  I remain your obedient servant,

  Mary

  As Lady Emily and her mother sat at the breakfast table at their Suffolk estate, Mrs. Carter noticed her daughter reading a letter with a smile on her face. “What has Lady Mary written that has you so amused?”

  “I have the most wonderful news, Mama. Lady Mary and her parents have invited me to visit their estate in Kent next month.”

  “Emily, that is good news. I am certain that Lord and Lady Greenley will also invite other nobility to their house party; that is what those people do. They invite other peers to their homes and then they reciprocate. They spend the entire summer going from one house party to the next. This trip is a wonderful opportunity for you to meet someone to marry. You are a widow and not getting any younger; I look forward to hearing your reports from Kent. Just remember to keep an open mind.”

  “Yes, Mother, I promise to keep an open mind and carefully consider all my options.”

  “Is it not curious that Lady Mary never wrote to you before, but since the winter she has become a frequent correspondent.”

  “I ran into Lady Mary while we were in London and we decided that too much time had lapsed without us seeing or hearing from each other. We decided that day at the milliners that we would write to each other more often. We were very close friends at school and there is really no reason that we cannot be close friends again.”

  Mrs. Carter raised her tea cup, “here’s to a successful visit to Kent!”

  “Yes, to a successful visit to Kent!”

  Chapter 18

  Elizabeth was looking forward to once again attending the Bingleys’ Summer Ball. It was at their party two years prior when her husband expressed his love for her and had, once again, asked her to marry him. During their time together that night they shared what was in their hearts. Not long after the Bingley’s party, they were joined in marriage.

  The Darcys traveled to Birchwood Manor on the morning of the Ball and planned to stay over one night before returning to Pemberley and their son. Georgiana accompanied them and when she entered the ballroom, she was surprised to see that several of the men who had called on her in London were in attendance.

  Georgiana was speaking with Jane and Charles when she was happily surprised to see David Arlington walking toward her. “Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Bingley, Miss Darcy.” He bowed before them and when he stood up, he looked at Georgiana, “Miss Darcy, may I have the pleasure of dancing the next set with you?”

  “Mr. Arlington, I look forward to it.”

  “Excellent, I will return shortly.”

  While he walked away, Georgiana hoped he could not feel her eyes following him until he was lost in the crowd. “I did not realize you knew Mr. Arlington. His family’s estate is not far from here,” Jane said.

  “We met at my Ball at Darcy House, but he did not call on me during the remainder of our time in London.”

  “Are you happy to see him? Charles has met with David’s brother a few times to discuss some farming issues. He told Charles that David has been spending more and more time here since they lost both their parents in the past few months. Charles said he was very impressed with the family. They have lived in Derbyshire for a hundred years or more and they are very generous to their tenants.”

  “I am terribly sorry to hear of his loss, I had no idea. I am happy to see him but since he never called on me, I did not think I would ever see him again. I am a bit surprised that he asked me to dance.”

  A few minutes later, David Arlington came to escort her to the dance floor and they did not speak for the first few minutes of the set. In due time he asked, “how do you like living in Derbyshire? Do you like to ride? Do you prefer London over the countryside?”

  Georgiana thought it inappropriate to offer her condolences while they danced. She responded to his questions as they went through the steps, “I love being at Pemberley more than anywhere else in the world. I love being in the country, watching the seasons change and helping my sister in all her efforts to care for our tenants.” When the dance was ended, he walked her back to the Bingleys, bowed and walked away before she could tell him how sorry she was about his parents.

  After the next dance set was finished, Caroline was standing with her brother and sister when Peter Carter approached them. “Mr. and Mrs. Bingley, my compliments on your lovely party. I am grateful to have been invited.”

  “We are very happy that you were able to join us, Mr. Carter,” Jane said as she smiled.

  “Miss Bingley, may I request your next available set?”

  “Thank you; I am free to dance the next.”

  “Wonderful, the musicians are warming up now; shall we join the others?”

  Caroline placed her hand on Peter Carter’s arm and could feel her heart racing. Jane looked at Charles and they both smiled. She had told her husband everything she had observed and her conversations with Caroline. As she was walking toward the dance floor, Caroline thought, why am I so nervous about dancing with him? Will he say something this evening that will reveal how he feels about me? Do I love him? We have been spending so much time together and I enjoy being with him, but…it is just a dance Caroline, not a marriage proposal! What if Peter Carter did propose, what would I say?

  As they stood opposite each other, he smiled at Caroline and she knew then that she would accept his proposal, if it ever came to be. “Will you remain in Derbyshire for the remainder of the summer, Miss Bingley?”

  “Yes, I have no plans to leave. I find I like being here and spending time with Jane, Charles and Maddie. I have enjoyed my time helping you in Kympton; it is very gratifying work.” Stop talking Caroline and let the man say something!

  “I have also enjoyed the time we have spent together helping my parishioners and also during my calls to Birchwood Manor.” She smiled at his words and then turned to follow the steps of the dance. When the set ended, he asked her if she would care to go out to the terrace for some fresh air. “I am sure there will be many others out there enjoying the cool evening, so we need not worry about any impropriety.”

  “Thank you, that sounds lovely.”

  When they walked out to the terrace, they saw that there were many others enjoying the evening air but they were far enough away from anyone else that their conversation could not be overheard. “It is so lovely out here. While they were on their wedding trip, Charles and Jane stopped at Birchwood to inspect the property before deciding to buy it. They have made many improvements and are very happy living here.”

  “I can understand why, it is a lovely estate.” Neither of them said anything more for several m
inutes and then Peter said, “Miss Bingley, I would like to tell you how much I have come to look forward to spending time with you. I know you are a lady of the ton, but I wish to know how you feel about being away from London society. I suppose what I am clumsily trying to ask is if you thought you could be happy living in the country all year.”

  Caroline’s dreams of a life with Peter were becoming a reality. “Yes, Mr. Carter, my answer is yes. I no longer have any desire to return to my old life in London and all that entails.” Can it be true? He loves me and intends to marry me. I am happier than I ever imagined I could be!

  Peter stepped toward Caroline and kissed her hand without taking his eyes off her. “Will you enter into a formal courtship with me, Miss Bingley?”

  “Very happily, sir, very happily indeed.”

  “My dearest, Miss Bingley, I…”

  “Will you not call me Caroline?”

  “Yes, of course, and you must call me Peter when we are alone.”

  “You were saying?”

  “Ah, yes, I was saying, my dearest Caroline, I will speak to your brother tonight and obtain his permission.”

  “If you do not mind, I would like to keep our courtship to ourselves. I have reached my majority and can make my own decisions.” Caroline did not wish to make their understanding public. She feared Peter would change his mind if he knew the truth about her past behavior and she wanted to spare herself the humiliation that ending their courtship would bring her. She hesitated before she continued, “there is something I must tell you before our relationship goes any farther.”

  “I am ready to listen although I do not think you can tell me anything that could change my feelings for you.”

  “Thank you, but I did not always behave as a kind person should.” Caroline raised her hand to stop Peter from objecting. She knew that she needed to clear her conscience before she could ever think about accepting his proposal of marriage. “The truth is that before I met you, I was a mean-spirited, social climbing shrew. I did not treat people as I should; I spoke to servants as if they did not merit me being civil with them. In an attempt to lower Mrs. Darcy’s worth in the eyes of Mr. Darcy, I criticized her every move before they were married. At the time, I was determined to marry him myself; not because I loved him but because of his wealth and the elevated social standing he represented. In his defense, Mr. Darcy was never anything more than polite to me and never encouraged me to pursue him in any way.”

  Caroline paused to gather her thoughts, “I know I am not the woman I was last year. Since coming here and meeting you at the Harvest Ball I know I have changed. I have tried to be a better person, to listen to others and try to understand their feelings. In the past, I judged everyone by only thinking about how knowing them might benefit me; improve my status in the ton or help me meet a suitable husband. You and you alone are responsible for the changes I have made. I happily confess, I like myself much better than I ever did before; I am so deeply ashamed of my previous behavior.

  “After our conversation at Christmas, I spoke to my maid about donating my gowns to the church; you were correct, she told me she had been selling them and sending the extra money to her family. I told her that I wanted her to continue to do so and I also apologized to her for the many years I have treated her so poorly. Happily, she accepted my apology and told me she would like to stay with me, although in the past she confessed she had looked for another position whenever I had been especially cruel to her.” Caroline looked at Peter as he reached out to take her hand in his. “If you would like to change your mind about our courtship, I will completely understand. No one else knows about our agreement, nor does anyone ever need to know.”

  Caroline was close to tears when Peter said, “let us return to the ballroom, I am eager to dance with you again.” He kissed Caroline’s hand again before escorting her back to the ballroom. “Whoever you were before we met does not concern me in the least. I believe that life in the ton demands women behave in precisely the way you described. I am happy to say that I never met the ‘old’ Caroline Bingley; I am in love with the woman I met at Pemberley last year. Now, my dear, may I anticipate dancing another set with you this evening?”

  “Two sets in one night, people will talk,” she teased.

  “I care not what others think; only your wishes concern me.”

  “Thank you for accepting me as I am now, I will do everything in my power to be the person who deserves your love.” Peter smiled as they returned to the ballroom.

  “In that case, a second set sounds perfect; perhaps the supper set or the last set?”

  “Perhaps both?” Caroline and Peter looked at each other and smiled. Jane saw them enter the ballroom and observed their happy faces. If they had come to some sort of understanding, she could not be happier for her sister and was anxious to speak to Charles about what she had just seen.

  As they had for the last two years, Darcy and Elizabeth danced the first set together at the Bingley’s Ball. After the second set was well underway, they spoke to some friends before Darcy followed Elizabeth out to the terrace. “The air on a summer night has a wonderful stillness to it.”

  “Mr. Darcy, what a lovely observation.” Those were the same words they uttered on the night two years prior when he proposed to Elizabeth again.

  “More than anything, I wanted to take you in my arms that night and never let you go. My love for you was almost too powerful for me to control.”

  “Perhaps if my sister had not interrupted us, I would have agreed to be your wife that night; I was still so confused about my feelings. I kept thinking that if I opened my heart to you as I did in Hertfordshire, I would lose you once again. I knew I could not endure my heart being broken a second time as it was when we thought you were dead.”

  Darcy embraced his wife and quietly said, “hush, my love. I am not going anywhere. I will never, never leave you and you will be forced to live with your grumpy husband for many, many years to come. Did I tell you how much I love you, Mrs. Darcy?”

  “Your secret is safe with me, Mr. Darcy.” She was in the arms of the man she loved, feeling the power of their love as she had when he proposed to her on this same terrace. They kissed briefly and looked at each other with the knowledge they were both thinking the same thing. “I hate to leave Jane and Charles’ party early but I am feeling rather fatigued.”

  “I am very sorry to hear that. I will be happy to escort you to your quarters and make sure you are comfortably settled in your bed.”

  “I do appreciate your care and concern for my well-being. Shall we go?” Elizabeth smiled as she took Darcy’s arm and they both moved as quickly as possible through the ballroom and toward the stairs. He stopped to speak to a footman while Elizabeth continue to walk up the steps. When he joined her on the landing she asked, “what did you speak to him about?”

  “I told him that my wife was feeling unwell and I was escorting her to her chambers. He asked if I needed anything and I assured him that I am fully capable to seeing to your needs. If a doctor is needed, I will let him know.”

  “Well done, sir. Your serious demeanor allows you to get away with expressing thoughts in a manner that most of us would be too shy to say.”

  “Years of practice, my love, years of practice.”

  “In that case, I am becoming more unwell by the minute. We should make haste to my chambers.”

  “I am right behind you, vixen.” Elizabeth laughed at her husband’s teasing words as he chased her down the hallway toward their rooms.

  When Jane and Charles finally entered their chambers, they were both exhausted. Charles embraced his wife, “thank you, my wonderful Jane. The Ball was a huge success from start to finish!”

  “Thank you for your praise but I did have a lot of help. Caroline took on a great deal of the responsibility and she was ever so helpful.” Jane paused, “do you know anything about your sister and Peter Carter? I saw them enter the ballroom from the terrace and they both looked very happy
.”

  “I saw them dancing together and talking a great deal. My sister is certainly old enough to make her own decisions, but I do not know anything more than you.”

  “I hope they find happiness together. Your sister is not the same person she was when she arrived unannounced before the Harvest Ball. Maybe meeting Peter Carter is the reason for the change in her behavior.” Jane yawned, “I am sorry, but I must prepare for bed. Maddie will be awake before we know it.”

  “Good night, Jane. Sweet dreams, my love.”

  After the Ball at Birchwood Manor, Georgiana did not see David Arlington again. He had only danced with her once even though she did not dance every set. He did not offer her a refreshment when the dance ended. He escorted her back to her family but did not remain to speak with them. After being together at Birchwood Manor, he did not call on her at Pemberley. She wondered why his behavior toward her was so inconsistent. They got along quite well, had several interesting discussions, and enjoyed dancing together. But he did not make any attempt to see her again and she was, once again, determined to forget about him.

  Chapter 19

  Kent

  Before leaving her family’s estate, Lady Emily gave a great deal of thought to her planned journey. She knew it was completely improper and her reputation would be ruined if anyone learned of her stay in the home of an unmarried man. Richard was a man of the world and Emily had already been married. Would Richard try to bed me when we are alone? No, he is a gentleman and knows about my terrible relationship with Lord Howard. How do I feel about him? Do I love him? Can I love anyone? I cannot answer those questions until I spend more time with him. No one need know the truth about my trip and if we are meant to be together, everyone will know soon enough.