Wickham's Wife

by C. J. Hill

  Mr. and Mrs. Stanton entered the room that evening, accompanied by the young lady who had excited such new feelings within the breast of Jardine, closely followed by Julia who was taking great care not to be noticed. She had quickly finished her own toilette, such as it was, after arranging Miss Darcy's hair and helping her dress in a gown that was quite elegantly charming, and also, subtly, exceedingly expensive. It suited her colouring and her demeanour, and no one, not even the most vicious of females within the crowd, could say that it was unfashionable, ugly or vulgar. The pale blue silk and satin, the lace, and the ribbon trims all declared understated elegance and innocence; her hair, drawn up into the fashionable style, glowed silkily in the candlelight, and the unfamiliar attention of so many eyes upon her caused a blush to creep to Georgiana’s hairline and remain in her cheeks as pretty highlights after the initial embarrassment subsided.

  Jardine was delighted!

  Miss Darcy was everything he had hoped for - at least upon first appearance - and he wished to know more of her immediately. He called upon Wickham, who was overseeing the meats being laid out in the dining room, to accompany him and make the introductions. Wickham demurred that it was not his place to do so but Jardine dismissed his objections with an impatient flick of his hand.

  "Do not play the humble servant with me, Wickham, when it suits you. She knows you of old, or at least that has been your story to me. Who better than you to introduce your old childhood friend to me? Come, man, introduce me immediately!"

  Wickham bowed in acquiescence, smiled, and led the way across the floor to where Julia, the Stantons and Georgiana were standing, watching the dancing and talking quietly amongst themselves.

  The gentlemen bowed and Wickham began:

  "Miss Darcy! How delightful to see you again; I should have known you anywhere, except you are rather taller than I remember. Please forgive the intrusion, but Mr. Jardine begged the pleasure of an introduction and insisted that as we are old friends, you and I, that I should be the one to play ambassador. May I introduce Mr. Jardine of London to you?

  “Mr. Jardine: May I introduce Miss Georgiana Darcy of Pemberley, recently arrived in London and one of your closest neighbours, living on this very street as she does! Miss Darcy is, as you know, the sister of Fitzwilliam Darcy, with whom you have had contact in the past."

  He raised his eyebrows with a half-smile at the allusion, bowed and left the way open for Jardine to make himself known to Georgiana, with the Stantons smiling at his every word. He looked to where Julia was standing slightly apart and quickly walked over to her, bowing quite formally.

  "Mrs. Younge! What a pleasant surprise this is, indeed. How long has it been since we last saw each other? And how fortunate that we are to be neighbours and can look forward to many more occasions such as tonight."

  Julia smiled at his familiar ease and charm, and his oblique reference to their separation of the past year, answering in kind:

  "You were very kind to ensure the invitation, sir. I believe it is almost a year since last we saw each other. Miss Darcy was delighted to have been invited here tonight, even though it is only her second night in Town. The new acquaintance with the Stantons enabled it, although I do not think she will be able to spend much time in their company once the Bingleys arrive next week, who will, she assures me, take her entertainment entirely upon themselves while she remains in London. She is anxious to make new acquaintances and enjoy a wider London society, although her natural reticence may present a formidable barrier to her ease in such company; she claims to suffer terribly from shyness around strangers."

  They both looked over to where Georgiana appeared to be excessively diverted by Jardine. Wickham laughed as he watched. "Well, let us hope that she continues to find Jardine so amusing. He will be more than happy to entertain her every day should she wish it; he was determined to like her and is already quite smitten, I believe."

  Julia looked surprised and quietly observed her charge interacting with Jardine. "Surely he cannot have designs upon her within so short a space of time? He has barely known her for five minutes and she must not allow him to monopolise all of her attention tonight, even if he is the host."

  Wickham sighed. "Jardine has been like a bear with a sore head all week since he heard of her arrival in London. Even before he knew her, or even had set eyes upon her, he had decided, I think, that she would be an eligible wife for him. He has quizzed me mercilessly, and even today accused me of hiding some terrible defect of hers in an attempt to humiliate him! I think him quite besotted; to my limited knowledge, he has never been interested to this level in any other lady. I hope he does not jeopardise his chances by being over-eager."

  Julia smiled at the thought of Georgiana being so admired sight unseen, but hoped that her charge would be allowed to enjoy life just a little more before she became engaged.

  "I am sure he is perfectly capable of making a good impression, George. Look at her laughing at his conversation; although I suspect her shyness may have been over-rated, I have found her to be quite sensible and cautious thus far and quite aware of her very fortunate situation in life and the attractions she will hold for some unscrupulous men. Her brother has done an excellent job of preparing her to be wary of fortune-hunters. But Mr. Jardine has a fortune of his own, of course, and so he is an eligible gentleman."

  Julia paused and then, remembering George's reference to there being more such opportunities for them to get together under the cover of their present employments, asked:

  "The Stantons take us to the races next week, George; does Mr. Jardine mean to attend? Perhaps we shall next see you there?"

  Wickham smiled. "Oh, I am quite sure that if it is made known to him, Jardine will certainly be at the races, and at any other function or entertainment he hears about where Miss Darcy will be in attendance. I shall expect you to keep me fully informed as to Miss Darcy's whereabouts, Mrs. Younge."

  In a lower voice he continued, "Of course, my own motives are driven, not by Jardine’s wishes but from my desire to see more of you, my dear. I know the separation we have endured was caused entirely by my own disgraceful behaviour, but I hope that we can begin to mend the rift. I have missed your company terribly, Julia, indeed I have, and the thought of you living only footsteps away torments me every day. Please relieve my suffering and admit that you, too, have missed our friendship, even if only a little?"

  Julia was about to respond when Jardine called from across the room where he had drifted with Miss Darcy, away from the company of the Stantons.

  "Wickham! Come here! Miss Darcy wishes to ask you something, immediately."

  "I am sure she does not," murmured Julia as they moved in that direction. "I am sure she prefers not to be so engaged with Mr. Jardine to the exclusion of everyone else; it is not proper and she is alert to that impropriety."

  "Miss Darcy!" Wickham bowed, smiling his most charming smile. "I am at your service; what is it that you need to ask so urgently?”

  "How formal you sound, George! Oh! Mr. Wickham! Oh! I am terribly sorry but I cannot forget our childhood together nor your kindness to me, and not once in that time did I ever call you 'Mr. Wickham', nor did you call me anything other than ‘Georgiana’. Remember? We used to laugh and make both our names 'Georgie'! How annoyed my brother was because it was something we shared, and he was excluded! Oh! I forget my question now!”

  Wickham smiled at her reminiscences and endeavoured to relieve her confusion: “Pray tell; how do you enjoy London thus far? Although perhaps it is very early for you to make any judgment, is it not?"

  "I think I shall enjoy London while I am here, but it is so terribly busy and noisy after always being in the country, and dirty! My dress was quite black after I had been out walking yesterday; I was shocked, was not I, Mrs. Younge? But she assured me that such dirt was unfortunately normal and I would become used to changing many times in the day It is all quite different from Pemberley, but I am determined to enjoy myself while I am here." />
  "Indeed you must, Miss Darcy!" boomed Jardine, "I, too, am at your service, madam; I shall be more than happy to escort you around town and show you the sights - wherever you wish to go, you must merely send word."

  Georgiana smiled in acknowledgment. "Mr. Wickham, do you generally accompany Mr. Jardine on excursions? Mrs.Younge would enjoy the company, I am sure and, obviously, I could not venture out with Mr. Jardine without her!"

  "Of course he would come," Jardine assured her. "He knows all the best places for superior entertainment."

  Anything she wanted, she would have as far as he was concerned. Georgiana smiled with satisfaction.

  "I must introduce you to my friends when they arrive next week, Mr. Jardine. Mr. Bingley, Miss Bingley, and Mr. and Mrs. Hurst, are very anxious to introduce me to all their acquaintance and entertain me while I am here. They have a house in Grosvenor Street and fully intend keeping me busy every day I believe."

  "I consider myself warned," joked Jardine. "I must make arrangements for your amusement before they do, and my amusements must be better than any they can offer, which will make your refusal of theirs much easier. I accept the challenge, madam, I do indeed, and I look forward to meeting Bingley; he is a pleasant fellow, I have heard."

  The rest of the evening passed in a very amicable manner: Georgiana began to feel quite at ease even being the centre of attention; Jardine considered himself to be more than half-way in love; and Julia and Wickham both held cautious hopes that their relationship could, with time and attention, be repaired and restored to its former felicity.

  The arrival of the Bingleys and the Hursts did nothing to lessen Jardine's interest in Miss Darcy, as by then he had arranged not only the outing to the races but also evenings at the theatre, a play and a dinner, all within the confines of the intervening week. He was, by now, one of Miss Darcy's foremost friends in London and he delighted in the position.

  Although his initial reception by the aforementioned persons was decidedly cool, Jardine was not to be put off. He levelled his best performance and entertaining manner at them and, after a period of several weeks they became accustomed to his presence at all of their engagements.

  The presence of Wickham they had more trouble understanding. Georgiana had explained his connection to her; they vaguely remembered something of him mentioned by Darcy, and allowed he was a polite and charming person of low rank, although not someone with whom they particularly wished to spend time. However, it was convenient that he was so friendly with the governess as she frequently took it upon herself to remove him from their immediate company to their great relief. Miss Bingley was particularly eager to promote a friendship between her brother and Miss Darcy: they were of similar natures and in Miss Darcy, Miss Bingley anticipated someone whom she could advise to gently guide her brother into emulating his friend's, Miss Darcy’s brother's, example by purchasing a country estate the equal of Miss Darcy's childhood home of Pemberley, and finally settling down as a country gentleman.

  Nothing could bring Miss Bingley more pleasure than this thought other than, perhaps, the thought that the families may also be attached in another more beneficial manner for herself; that of her persuading Mr. Darcy to fall in love with her! How delightful an occurrence that would be, to be sure! If both she and her brother were agreeably attached to the great Darcy family and all that entailed, she would have nothing left to wish for. Her sister had married fairly agreeably as to fortune: Mr. Hurst was a reasonably wealthy gentleman but not a very interesting specimen and Miss Darcy had decided that she would never marry just to be bored for the rest of her life as her sister had done. Life with Darcy would certainly never be dull.

  Therefore, when Darcy had requested that she take an interest in his sister’s entertainment while she was in London, Caroline was only too eager to agree. Anything that could improve her standing with that gentleman would be done to the best of her ability, and the chance to impress Georgiana with Bingley's good manners and easy nature was also something to which Caroline was eager to devote herself. She was discussing the matter with her sister, Louisa, one day before they were to meet Georgiana at the Park for a morning walk.

  "Do not you think Georgiana a good match for our brother, Louisa?" she demanded as she placed her hat carefully upon her intricately-arranged hair. "I think he will have to try harder to impress her with that Jardine forever in attendance; infernal man! And his assistant! Why must he always be trailing along in his wake? I must let Jardine know that while his company is generally acceptable, that of his assistant is quite unnecessary. However, it would stand better in our brother's favour if I could dissuade Jardine entirely, but he is a most entertaining young gentleman and Georgiana enjoys his company."

  "Charles will need more than the absence of a competitor to see what you hope him to see, Caroline. I doubt he will view Georgiana with any greater favour than any other young lady he meets, other than her status as his best friend's young sister - someone needing his protection - but definitely not as a marriage prospect. I believe you should stop with your matchmaking and conjuring invisible feelings in others and concentrate on your own.”

  She smiled mischieviously.

  “When does Darcy come to town, have you heard anything?"

  "Oh, who ever knows anything with that man! He is as elusive and taciturn as ever, only communicating the barest essentials regarding his sister when he deems it necessary. He is so frustratingly difficult to know better."

  "Well. At least he asked for your help with his sister; that should be some comfort to you, Caroline. At least he has acknowledged that you are trustworthy enough to do that small service for him - perhaps that is his way of indicating affection."

  Carloine looked at her sister and laughed ruefully, "Yes, indeed! He probably looks at me as another sister, an older sister for Georgiana, just as our brother will probably look at her as another sister to him. We are all too easy with each other; we have known each other too long that we cannot be romantic or see beyond our histories together.

  "Come, we shall be late for the Park. Let us meet with our new sister and discover what we can of her feelings towards Jardine."

  "And spoil her view of him a little, perhaps, sister?" smiled Louisa.

  "I am sure I do not understand your meaning!" retorted Caroline as she sallied forth into the street.

  Chapter 9

  The Season progressed with its usual excitement; for not one evening in several weeks did Georgiana remain at home, such was her cachet compared to the other young ladies being introduced into London society. Suddenly her diary was entirely taken up with amusements for mornings, afternoons and evenings, and Julia had a difficult time deciding between requests for her mistress's company.

  Luncheons, teas, dinners, musical evenings, theatre, private parties, dances and balls – it seemed every single event in London requested her presence and after more than a month of such a constant whirl, Georgiana confessed to Julia, as she was eating her breakfast one morning after just being apprised of her schedule for the day, that she was fast tiring of it all and deeply wished to remove herself from London to recover her energy in solitude and breathe some clean air once again. However, she was reluctant to return to Derbyshire just yet.

  "I had no notion that London would be so exhausting, Mrs. Younge!" she declared, "and I confess, that although there is more company in London, when one sees the same people at every event, the quantity certainly does not improve upon the quality. There are just more dull people in the room with whom one has already exhausted every avenue of conversation. Is there anywhere that you could suggest where we might escape town for a week or so? And please do not mention Brighton. I understand it to be as bad, if not worse than London in the Summer."

  Julia smiled and agreed with her charge. London's denizens and entertainments were exhausting for a young and inexperienced person used to the country pace of life, as she very well remembered from her own experience, and recalled a place recommended to h
er some years ago by an acquaintance.

  "I believe Ramsgate to be rather a delightful seaside town, Miss Darcy. It is not yet as popular as either Brighton nor Bath which, for you, must be part of its charm, but it has similar amenities for those wishing to enjoy varied company and the benefits of sea air. Perhaps you might suggest it as a holiday location to your brother next time you write?"

  The two women had become rather firm friends over the month that they had known each other, and Georgiana had slowly come to realise that her governess-companion was rather more than she had at first appeared; that she had another life waiting for her once her duties were concluded and Georgiana returned to Pemberley in the Autumn. Over time, she had heard snippets of Mrs. Younge's story about her slow rise to independence; the work she had endured and the manner of her inheritance. While some of the news - that her governess was actually someone who owned a gaming house and several other properties – had been surprising to Georgiana, she could not help but admire such resourcefulness in one of her own sex. Her own life, in comparison, seemed inconsequential, rather dull and predictable, even with the social whirl and attention she was currently experiencing.

  Georgiana had, as expected, been pursued persistently by Jardine, and he had made some progress in affecting her opinion of him, although not enough to convince her to fall in love. He was merely a charming companion; one who made her laugh and feel at ease, and who would go to any lengths to ensure her enjoyment in anything that they ventured together.

  Unbeknownst to him, though, was the fact that his most attractive quality was that, whenever they met, he was accompanied by Wickham; and although Wickham and Mrs. Younge walked together in the park discreetly behind Jardine and Georgiana, or talked together in another corner of the room from the other pair, Georgiana was always very pleased to see Wickham again and encouraged his attention. He amused and charmed her greatly; he was a connection to her childhood and to Pemberley; he understood certain things she wanted to discuss, such as a certain tree in the park that reminded them both of another in the Pemberley Estate grounds. They had so many memories in common, growing up alongside each other as they had, and as the weeks progressed, Georgiana certainly began to value this friendship and renewed acquaintance far more than any other she had made in London.