by Heather Moll
“Georgiana, what is on your mind?” He tried not to sound harsh. “It is all over your face, so you might as well come out with it.”
“Did you truly speak poorly of Miss Elizabeth Bennet to Miss Bingley?” His sister looked as though she was on the verge of tears.
“I am ashamed that I did, and I can say nothing in my defense.”
“I do not understand. Lizzy was sociable to me and never once made me feel as if I were a means by which she could win your attentions.” Her words came forth in a rush and grew louder as she became more distressed. “Why would you insult her and her family to Miss Bingley when you admire Lizzy? Do not deny it!” she cried as Darcy opened his mouth to speak. “You have never once encouraged me to know any woman of your acquaintance, yet you introduced Lizzy to me and even took me to meet her relations in Cheapside. You are staying in Hertfordshire for the summer because she is there, not because you desire Mr. Bingley’s company.”
“I do not deny it.” His voice was low. “I do admire Eli—Miss Bennet and was in error when I spoke to Miss Bingley. We…quarreled in the past and misunderstood one another grievously. She has taught me a lesson regarding my behavior to others, hard indeed at first, but advantageous. I have earned her forgiveness. Now may I ask for yours?”
“You do not owe me an apology, and if Lizzy does not think less of you, then it is not my place to do so.”
“She is ‘Lizzy’ to you, then?”
“Do you not approve?”
Darcy could hardly explain his jealousy in being unable to refer to Elizabeth by her given name yet. “On the contrary, I am pleased that you have become friends, and she would be proud of you, I am sure, to have defended her so valiantly.”
Georgiana appeared shy at the memory of her outburst. “Is there any truth to Miss Bingley’s comments about Lizzy’s family?”
“Some of them can be indecorous, yes. Her immediate relations are not as fashionable as the Gardiners or her elder sister; however, they are her family and must be respected.”
Georgiana nodded and walked towards the door. “Fitzwilliam?” she said, turning back to him. “So long as you are happy and she loves you, I am exceedingly gratified by your choice.” She offered a small smile and hastily exited the room before Darcy could do more than wonder when his younger sister had become so perceptive.
Chapter 8
After the late evening with the officers, Elizabeth and Jane were the first downstairs for breakfast. Elizabeth had treasured their newfound happiness as a precious matter best kept to herself, but there were few people whom Elizabeth really loved, and still fewer of whom she thought well, and she could no longer justify refraining from telling Jane of her engagement.
“You are engaged to Mr. Darcy? Good heavens! Can it really be so?” Jane was absolutely incredulous.
“I am in earnest! I speak nothing but the truth. He still loves me, and we are engaged.”
“I do congratulate you. But are you certain? Your feelings have undergone a drastic change in such a short time.”
“There can be no doubt of that.”
“You know for certain that you love Mr. Darcy?”
“I hardly know when it began. It has been coming on gradually. As soon as I gave credit to his letter, I understood him better, but I assure you he is a good man, and I love him. I am grieved when I think about what we came so close to losing.”
“Good gracious!” cried Mrs. Bennet as she came into the breakfast room. “I just came from the window, and there is someone arriving in a chaise and four. Lizzy, my love, go see whether you recognize it.”
Although she knew quite well who must be arriving, she went to the window to allow herself a moment alone to gain her composure. Her heart fluttered at the sight of Mr. Darcy alighting as he turned back to offer his hand to his sister. Elizabeth grinned as she walked back to her mother and told her who was expected.
“That disagreeable Mr. Darcy is coming again! What can he mean by being so tiresome as to be always coming here?”
“Can you not think of any way of accounting for his attentions? I have been speaking well of him since he last came to Longbourn. Mr. Darcy now brings his sister to be known to us. He has been overflowing with attention for me. Is it so difficult to believe he admires me?”
Mrs. Bennet stared in amazement and allowed herself to be guided to the drawing room by Jane to receive their guests. Their mother sat in silence, and not a word was said by anyone until the servant announced Mr. Darcy and Miss Darcy.
Mr. Darcy appeared just as he had been used to look and paid his compliments with his usual reserve, but Elizabeth could discern, from his gaze on her, that his appearance of composure was a façade. She was flattered that he appeared, in his own way, enthusiastic to see her. Georgiana looked nervous, and Elizabeth hoped for an opportunity to put her at ease.
Mrs. Bennet received Mr. Darcy and his sister with the utmost politeness and begged them to be seated. This was a remarkable change from his last visit.
“Miss Darcy, I am honored you came to call on us in Hertfordshire. I am sure your beaux are disappointed on not finding you at home today.”
“My sister is not yet out,” Mr. Darcy replied before his sister could do more than turn pink.
“Not out! Why, my dear, you must be sixteen! I see no reason for a pretty girl like you, with no sisters, to remain at home. My girls were out at fifteen, and they are all the better for it. I am resolved to see my daughters well settled. Your brother must agree how necessary it is for you to catch a husband before you are too old.”
Georgiana was mortified, and Elizabeth said, “Catching a husband is not an employment to which Miss Darcy has been brought up, Mamma.”
Mr. Darcy changed the subject. “My sister and I called on the Gardiners before we left and found them in good health.” The conversation about the Gardiners led to that of Derbyshire, and Mrs. Bennet eagerly asked about Pemberley.
Elizabeth was ashamed her mother wished to hear about Mr. Darcy’s home only because she hoped to see her daughter as its mistress. However, both Georgiana and Mr. Darcy spoke eloquently and with affection of their home and of Derbyshire. She was comforted that this visit was an improvement over the awkwardness and cold civility of his previous call.
“Are you much at Pemberley in the course of the year?”
“Not as much as I might wish, but I may spend half my time there.”
“If you marry you may see more of your home, should you find a lady to fill that role,” Mrs. Bennet said, turning her gaze heavily towards her second daughter.
Elizabeth looked apologetically at Mr. Darcy, who only shrugged his shoulders after Mrs. Bennet had turned to enquire of Miss Darcy as to the latest fashions in town. Mr. Darcy took the trouble to speak to Jane, who was seated by him. Elizabeth was satisfied that he made the effort to know her sister better and hoped that, when Mr. Bingley proposed to Jane, the four of them might often be together.
Before half an hour had passed, Kitty came into the room and complained that she had no amusements. Georgiana asked to be made known to her, and the two spoke about the lace on Georgiana’s gown. Elizabeth privately thought Kitty’s addition brought little value to the party, but aloud suggested they might all walk out. Jane and Mrs. Bennet declined, while Kitty accepted because she had no other activity to entertain her.
The younger girls walked ahead and, although Kitty’s voice could be heard oftener than Georgiana’s, they appeared at ease as they talked. Elizabeth was uncertain that Kitty’s manner could be much improved upon, but Georgiana’s calm conduct could at the least make her more pleasant for the afternoon. Mr. Darcy took her hand and tucked it under his arm while they walked in companionable silence. She smiled at him for his familiar gesture, and her heart rejoiced with the sensations of exquisite comfort that it produced.
�
�One-hundred forty,” he said abruptly.
“I beg your pardon?”
“Miles, Elizabeth. My estimation is that Pemberley is 140 miles north of Longbourn. It would take two days to travel from Hertfordshire to Derbyshire, although if there was little hurry, it could be made into a pleasant trip of three days.” He offered her a smile, and she told him how she looked forward to being with him at Pemberley.
“Then we are of a similar mind because there is nothing in this world that I want more. I intend to speak to speak to your father as the first step in achieving that end.” Elizabeth knew her father would be made unhappy by the thought of parting with her, but her own happiness was at the forefront of her mind. After walking in companionable silence, he asked, “Of what are you thinking?”
“How is it that you know me so well as to know that I am preoccupied?”
“I attended to your movements and conversations long before I spoke with you myself. And since then, I have been captivated.” Her insistent gaze told him she needed a more specific answer. “When you walk, you keep your head upright. You do not demurely keep your eyes downcast as some women do when with a man. I know you are not distracted or sad. You are, however, pursing your lips and darting your eyes back and forth. This makes me believe that you are considering something and that you are unsure whether you will share it.”
Elizabeth was both impressed and bemused. “And I thought I was the studier of character. I shall have to make my character more deep and intricate in order to be a more challenging study. How fortunate I am that you have already humbled my excess of pride in my own ability to read one’s character; otherwise, your adept analysis would put me to shame.”
“Is my understanding of your behavior enough to earn me the subject of your thoughts?”
“Yes, of course—I was considering our future. Aside from time spent with my aunt and uncle Gardiner, I do not have a pleasing picture of conjugal felicity or domestic comfort. My parents have no affection for one another. Respect, esteem, and confidence are missing from both sides. I was thinking how fortunate I am that I shall be able to respect my partner in life.”
“I hope, dearest Elizabeth, that you might feel more for me than respect.”
She stopped and looked up at him, eager to assure him that her love for him was beyond mere deference, when she determined a slight upturn to his lips. “You are teasing me! I was about to profess my love for you in the very fondest of terms, but I see you require no assurance.”
“On the contrary, you should reassure me of your affection and partiality as often as possible.” Elizabeth could hear the intensity of emotion in his low voice.
Elizabeth knew she was blushing. Mr. Darcy might even be able to hear the rapid pounding of her heart. They were in full view of the house, and Kitty and Georgiana were seated on a bench not far from them. How she wished to ask him whether he wanted a kiss to prove her affection for him!
“For the present, you must be content when I tell you that I am marrying you for affection. I love you sincerely. Anything is to be preferred or endured rather than to marry without love.”
“Do you view your parents’ marriage in this way?”
“Yes, as well as Mr. and Mrs. Collins’s. You asked me once what I thought of their happiness, and I can tell you now that, although they might be content, I would not wish for a loveless union.”
“Then you are fortunate that I have a steadfast love for you. I cannot remember the time when I did not.” Mr. Darcy reached for her hand and held it in his own for a long moment before he wrapped it under his arm and they walked again.
“Your mother is more disposed to tolerate my presence than ever before, so I presume you told her of our engagement. Did you speak to your father as well?”
“Not explicitly. That honor falls to you since he does not take me seriously when I tell him how I admire you and prefer your company. I only suggested to my mother that you are my suitor, and now she regrets having ever disliked you.”
They were joined by Kitty and Georgiana. Forwarding Elizabeth and Georgiana’s conversation required Mr. Darcy to walk with Kitty, and although he was unhappy to relinquish his beloved, walking with her sister was a small penance to pay. Little was said by either. Elizabeth heard Kitty and Mr. Darcy speak on the weather, the ride from town, the date of the next assembly, and then nothing at all. She suspected her sister was too much afraid of him to talk, and Mr. Darcy, although improved in civility, would never be a man who could be described as loquacious.
***
During dinner, Mrs. Bennet was in great spirits while she sang Elizabeth’s praises and officiously flattered Darcy. He knew Elizabeth’s misery increased with such unnecessary attention, but Darcy kept his countenance for her sake. His sister did not speak more than a monosyllable as she listened with undisguised astonishment whilst Mr. Bennet mercilessly teased his daughters.
“So tell me, Lizzy, have you any further warnings of your sisters’ imprudent manners? Have additional gentlemen been kept aloof by Lydia’s folly? If I believed you had any inclination to marry soon and leave home, it would be to your advantage to make a match now while she is at Brighton.” Mr. Bennet gave a sardonic smirk that made Elizabeth wince.
Darcy, while keeping his self-importance in check, could not help but share his opinion. “Your daughters’ behavior ought not to be the subject of sport. Should one daughter be censured, the other sisters, wherever they are known, will also be involved in the disgrace.”
“This is hardly a matter with which you need to concern yourself, Mr. Darcy. I am quite sure you never noticed any of my daughters in all of your life.”
Darcy shifted his gaze from Mr. Bennet to his second daughter, who was pushing the food about her plate in a very deliberate manner.
“I disagree, for I must admit that one of your daughters caught my attention from the very beginning of our acquaintance.”
“I am surprised there was one of us tolerable enough for you to notice,” Elizabeth interjected archly, to which Darcy could only smile in response.
“Of what are you talking, Mr. Bennet?” called his wife loudly from further down the table.
Mr. Bennet peered at Elizabeth, and then he gave Darcy a cold glare. “Regardless of any daughter who may or may not have been worthy of your attention, Lizzy is not a young girl that has been spoilt for home by great acquaintance.”
“I suspect that, when Miss Elizabeth leaves home, it will not be for one who offers her more advantages than Longbourn has, but because she feels the gentleman who has the good fortune to earn her love and respect is worthy of her.”
“Mr. Bennet, I cannot hear of what you are talking!”
“I believe Mr. Darcy was talking of Lizzy, and he has exhausted that subject.” Before Darcy could refute this ever being possible, Mrs. Bennet continued it for him.
“Oh, Lizzy is so good-natured, Mr. Darcy! She may not be half so handsome as Jane, but she is a good girl.” Her mother continued in this manner for the remainder of dinner.
After the meal, Darcy and Elizabeth sat together discussing the book he had brought for her.
“I remember your defense of Gilpin’s travelogue, so I bought this yesterday afternoon. The protagonist sets out on a quest for picturesque scenery and remains ignorant to the realities of the world.”
Elizabeth laughed as she read the title, a cheerful and sincere sound that Darcy would never tire of hearing. “You have brought me a satire! I have egregiously underestimated your sense of humor.”
While Elizabeth flipped through the pages of her new volume, Darcy realized that he had no greater ally in securing Elizabeth than her mother. She was visibly anxious to get Elizabeth alone with him. Mr. Bennet had retired to the library, as was his custom, and Mary went upstairs to her instrument. Two obstacles being thus removed, Mrs. Bennet sat looking an
d winking at Jane and Catherine for a considerable time without making any impression on them.
When at last Kitty observed her, she innocently asked, “What is the matter, Mamma? What do you keep winking at me for?”
“Nothing, child, I did not wink at you.” She was unable to waste such a precious occasion and said to Kitty, “Why do you not show Miss Darcy your new bonnets? I am sure that Miss Darcy knows the latest fashions and could help you trim them up nicely.”
Georgiana looked surprised, but when Kitty politely asked for her assistance, they left together. Now only Jane and her mother remained and, after sitting still for five minutes, Mrs. Bennet got up and demanded her eldest daughter speak with her in private, taking her from the room. Elizabeth, who had been sitting in the window seat with Darcy, shrugged her shoulders, forcefully leant her head back, closed her eyes, and let out a sigh of exasperation.
Although Darcy could never condone Mrs. Bennet’s contrived spectacle, he kept his silence and instead watched as the sunlight brightened Elizabeth’s complexion. Her dark eyelashes swept across her cheekbones, and he admired her sun-kissed ringlets that he now knew not to curl naturally. His arm was resting on the window casing and, almost of their own volition, his fingertips stretched out to stroke her cheek. Elizabeth visibly relaxed and smiled as she reached out her hand, placed it on his knee, and slowly stroked her fingertips back and forth.
Darcy’s face grew warm, and his tongue appeared to be fixed to the floor of his mouth. He considered the possibility that Elizabeth’s gesture was an innocent display of regard and wished he knew the manner in which to proceed that would give the least offense. Their first kisses were impulsive actions in an emotional moment, and he was uncertain how receptive she would be if he attempted to repeat that wonderful experience. Her eyelids opened, and when her eyes were fixed so expressively on his, Darcy could see they plainly denoted how well she understood him.
He was unsure who moved first, but in the span of a heartbeat, his hands moved to hold the sides of her face while she brought her hand around his neck. This kiss was different from the ones they had shared before. There was nothing timid about it, and excitement shot through Darcy when Elizabeth parted her lips and gave herself freely to the passion of his kiss. She leant in closer, and Darcy easily lifted her onto his lap. He allowed his tongue to explore her mouth and abandoned himself to a rush of delightful sensation. He felt her hand lift from where it lay across his shoulder and could not repress a moan of delight when she ran her fingers through his hair.