by Lauren King
Darcy wonders if the Allston’s son is still pursuing Elizabeth. Darcy doubts that Elizabeth is still entertaining his visits; she is in an official courtship with him, and she is not the type of young lady who would concurrently play with the feelings of two gentlemen. Additionally, she had said firmly that her reason for declining his courtship was not due to another suitor. He thinks that even if he does not attend this Allston’s Christmas Ball, he will not fear that Elizabeth will do anything inappropriate because she is not that kind of person; he trusts her. It is the men that he does not trust.
“I would like you to attend a ball with me, Lizzy. Will you accompany me?” Darcy says candidly and tenderly. He definitely wants to attend a ball and dance with her; he wants to be able to gaze at her, to see how she is with others, and to be able to talk with her while everyone knows that he is courting her.
“I would be delighted to accompany you.” Elizabeth replies most pleasantly with her bright smile.
“I have several invitations to a Christmas ball and to a New Year’s ball to which I have yet to respond; therefore, when we are back in London, I will pick a few balls, and we can attend together. Would you like that?” Darcy asks cheerfully.
“Yes, but will it be appropriate for you to include me in your invitation? We are not…we are only courting.” Elizabeth says gently but frankly. She definitely wants to attend with William, but she would not want to make him feel that he is obligated to include her in everything.
“The invitation includes my guest, so there is nothing inappropriate about it. I will not attend if you do not attend with me.” Darcy states forthrightly.
“But William, I want you to go and have fun with your friends. You can visit me on a different day. I do not mind. You do not have to decline going to events where I am not included. You are not obligated to only be with me all the time.” Elizabeth says understandingly, but she secretly hopes that he will want to be with her more often than not. She does not mind seeing him everyday even if they just sit there and be in each other’s company. That is how much she enjoys his presence.
“But I do want to be with you all the time.” Darcy squeezes Elizabeth’s hand again. “I do not need to nor do I desire to go to any of those events without you. We are in a courtship which means we take each other into every consideration. That is how I see it.” Darcy covers her dainty hand in both of his. “Can I be blunt with you, Lizzy?”
“Yes.” Elizabeth answers softly but with great bliss at what he said.
“I already know that we are right for each other. Lizzy…I want you to know that…I love you.” Darcy looks directly at Elizabeth, and he sees her joy but his revelation is surprising to her. “Would you do me the great honor of accepting my hand in marriage?” Darcy asks warmheartedly. He can see that she is utterly stunned by his question. He caresses her hand while he waits for her reply. At this juncture, he does not think that holding her hand will be frowned upon. As her betrothed, he is allowed to kiss her hand in greetings and in farewells.
Elizabeth gasps then covers her mouth with her other hand in shocking surprise while staring at William with joy in her eyes. She cannot believe what she just heard William ask her. Oh goodness! She cannot believe this! William would not tease her in this way. His facial expression and demeanor is serious from what she can see. Most definitely, she wants to become his wife, but she wants to make absolutely sure that he knows what he is getting himself into with her family.
Elizabeth answers softly with a charming smile while her heart and mind are in raptures – absolute ecstasy! “I would be honored to become your wife.” This must be what euphoria feels like; she wants to hug him tightly, but she has to control her jubilant emotions from bursting through. She does not want to act unseemly.
“You have made me so very extremely happy.” Darcy is overjoyed and smiles handsomely at Elizabeth. He desperately wants to hug and kiss her to express his happiness, but that may scare her; he will take it slow. He gently kisses her hand while looking directly at her.
“May I ask you something?”
“Yes, absolutely.” Darcy smiles happily.
“Are you sure you know what you are getting yourself into with my family’s troubles right now? I will understand if you want to be in this courtship longer. We have only been in this courtship for four days. I want you to be in no doubt of such a crucial decision for your life. I will not be able to bear it if you should resent me and regret me later in our marriage.” Her face is hopeful but sad at the same time.
“Lizzy, I do not make these decisions lightly. I certainly do not make these decisions on the spur of the moment. I have thought of wanting you in my life permanently for the most part of our acquaintance. I know your family’s troubles, and I willingly want you to be my wife. Do you truly want to be my wife?”
“Yes, I do. I love you.” She is delighted that she can tell him of her deepest feelings.
“I love you, Lizzy.” William kisses her hand with more fervor. Thrill is insufficient to express his current feelings. “I am thoroughly and tremendously blissful right now. Are you?” His smile is devastatingly handsome.
Elizabeth is still so shy even though they have expressed personal intimate things to each other. She has to accustom herself to his openness. “Yes, I am very happy.” She answers while gently nodding.
His lips are most soft and warm against her skin. She is fascinated by his kisses to her hand. She wonders how it will feel on her own lips. She has never kissed any man on the lips before.
Darcy, joyfully and caringly, holds Elizabeth’s hand in both of his when he says, “Dearest, I will speak to your Father later when he has time for me.” Darcy entwines their fingers together. “Do you still want to leave tomorrow or stay a little longer?”
She does not miss his endearment for her; she is elated! She feels cherished when she hears it. “Do you not have to attend to your business? I do not want to cause any problems in your business schedule just so I can stay here a couple of days longer. I do not mind leaving tomorrow as planned.” Elizabeth replies thoughtfully.
Darcy is right; Elizabeth is considerate. There is no doubt that his decision to marry her is the best decision for him. Now, he just has to help alleviate or solve Miss Lydia’s problem, and then they will be fine.
“I do not have any pressing business to attend to, so we can do whatever you like.” Darcy cannot help his constant smiling. They go back inside to have tea with the others. He is quite content with his current situation.
Exultant, euphoric, rapturous, jubilant – there are not enough words to describe her delight at this time. She will tell Jane when they have a little time together. She has to contain her joy for now. She speaks to Georgiana about her music, and then all the sisters talk of the things they used to do for Christmas and soon funny stories are told. Elizabeth glances at William every chance she gets to show him that she is thinking of him.
Darcy can see how Elizabeth is just right for him as his wife. He cannot wait for that special momentous day.
Yesterday, Darcy had planned with Mr. Bennet that he will go into Meryton with his men to try to find out about this Sergeant John Denny. Darcy will have his trusted driver, Hughes, pretend to want to join the regiment and find out if there is a Sergeant John Denny encamped in Meryton. Hughes will try to find out about the Sergeant Denny’s family residence, and then Darcy and Mr. Bennet will decide from there if the information is useable.
Darcy tells Elizabeth, “Lizzy, I need to speak with my men about our traveling, and then I will need to go into Meryton with them to see about a saddle for one of the riders. I want all you ladies to stay at Longbourn until I come back; afterwards, we will go into Meryton and visit the bookstore that you want to show me.”
“All right, William. Do you need my help in finding any of the stores in Meryton?
Darcy thanks her but says that the driver will know where to go. He reminds her to stay home.
Darcy tells Hughes privately w
hat he wants Hughes to find out about Sergeant John Denny. Darcy waits inside his coach, out of sight. They make sure that Hughes is not recognized as the driver for such a luxurious coach when he starts to ask around about the militia. After about an hour, Hughes comes back to the Darcy Coach and tells Darcy what he learned.
“I accidentally found Sergeant John Denny in the pub by himself, so I started to ask him about joining the militia. I told him that I was not certain. He said that it was an easy way to assure a pay, a place to live, and three meals a day. If I work hard, then I will get more as I move up the ranks. I asked him how long he has been encamped here; how are the towns people; is the commanding officer difficult; what do they do all day; how long will they stay here in Meryton; where do they go next once they leave here; do they get any time off to visit family; how much time do they get off, and who gets to have a leave.”
“Then, slowly I asked about where his family lives currently and whether he gets time off since he is a sergeant. His family lives in Reading. He has two brothers – one older and one younger and a younger sister. Sergeants get to take leave once a year for one week. I told him that his family must be proud of him for being a sergeant already because he looks young. He seemed very proud of this.”
“After that I asked him about the townspeople again and whether they are welcoming of the militia being in their town. I asked if the regiment is invited to any gatherings or assemblies with the townspeople. He said that there are some young ladies around here that are cute and quite flirty. There are a couple of them that are very flirty. He knows one of them really well while he winked and chuckled at me. I pretended to chuckle too and said that he was lucky to know a willing young lady so well. Then, I jokingly asked if she has any sisters. We both laughed, and then he said that she has four sisters but none of them are like her. They do not talk or flirt like she does; she is very outgoing and open. I was bold, so I told him that he better hang on to her, then.”
“Next, he said that she must be mad at him because she hasn’t come by to see him for a few weeks now. He has not had a free day anyways due to his training of the new privates enlisting these past several weeks. Additionally, he cannot just show up at her home; he has never met any of her family except the sister that is with her most of the times. She has told him not to come around because she is afraid of her Father finding out about their meetings.”
“That is all good information you got out of him, Hughes. Did he mention her name?”
“No, Mr. Darcy; he did not. I bought him a beer and then kept him talking about is regiment. He was trying to convince me to join.”
“You were very clever, Hughes. Thank you. Here is the money for your beers and a little something extra for your good work.” Darcy hands Hughes the money, and then they all head back to Longbourn.
Back at Longbourn, Darcy tells Mr. Bennet what he has learned about Sergeant John Denny. Mr. Bennet is very glad to have Darcy’s assistance in this matter. Darcy suggests that Mr. Bennet ask Miss Kitty about whether she thinks Sergeant Denny truly likes Miss Lydia because if he does, then he may be amenable to actually marrying her with a money enticement that is not too large. If he really is a rogue, then they may have to use other threatening tactics. Mr. Bennet agrees, thus he goes to talk to Kitty, privately.
After Mr. Bennet speaks with Kitty, he speaks with Darcy again. Kitty relayed that Lydia told her that Sergeant Denny is nice and really does like her. When the three of them were together, Kitty saw that he was nice to Lydia, but she did not know much else about him.
Darcy suggests that he goes to find out if Sergeant Denny really has family in Reading and what type of people they are. In the mean while, Mr. Bennet may want to find out more about Sergeant Denny’s inclination towards Miss Lydia.
“I know it is outrageous to suggest this, Mr. Bennet, but I do not think you have much choice.”
“What are you suggesting, Mr. Darcy?”
“Well, you might ask Miss Kitty to surreptitiously ask Sergeant Denny if he wants to visit Miss Lydia. If he says that he does, then Miss Kitty may say that she will find a day where he could come to their home to visit Miss Lydia and meet the rest of her family so that you will further allow Miss Lydia to see him. If he agrees to that, then he may be amenable to marrying Miss Lydia without too much trouble or coercion. If he refuses to meet your family, then most likely he does not have good intentions towards Miss Lydia or that he is afraid that you will find out about their liaisons and force marriage upon him. At that point, you will either have to bribe him with enough money or use threats towards his family to get him to agree to marriage. Involving Miss Kitty is a roundabout way so that you can advance the marriage or else you will have to directly approach him yourself and reveal that Miss Lydia is with child in order to bring about the marriage swiftly. Unfortunately, you are at this sergeant’s mercy to do his duty.”
“Yes, that is unfortunate, indeed.” Mr. Bennet sighs heavily. “Your suggestions are good. I just want a route that will assure that my other four daughters will not be tainted with this mess. The only way that can be assured is that no one else knows about this situation, not even Sergeant Denny. Lydia wants to give up the baby after it is born, thus if the parentage of the baby is hidden well, then most likely this knowledge will not surface. If that is the case, then all five of my daughters may not be affected with this shame. Hopefully, with time, Lydia will be more mature and realize her great mistake and do all she can to hide this truth. I will emphasize how devastating it will be to her reputation if any man knows that she has had an illegitimate child already. Unfortunately, that is the truth of this entire ordeal. I need to think about the options and consequences again.” Mr. Bennet sighs heavily. “I am heartily disappointed in myself for not being stricter with Lydia.” Mr. Bennet looks contemplatively off towards the wall with great distress.
Darcy feels pity for Mr. Bennet’s predicament and problems. Darcy is determined to assist him with this. He cannot let Elizabeth be negatively affected. First, he has to secure Elizabeth’s hand in marriage. This is not the greatest time to ask Mr. Bennet for her hand in marriage, but he does not want Mr. Bennet to think that he is hiding anything or has dishonorable intentions towards her.
“Mr. Bennet, I know this is not the best time to talk to you about this, but I feel that I should not delay it.”
“What is it, Mr. Darcy?” Mr. Bennet asks with much curiosity.
“Sir, I would like to ask you for Miss Elizabeth’s hand in marriage. I have the utmost respect and love for her. She is all that a proper and good young lady should be, and I would like for her to be my wife. I assure you that I will always cherish her and care for her. She will lack for nothing, sir. I am certain that you have heard of the rumors of my income. I do not mind letting you know that the number is lower than the reality; therefore, Miss Elizabeth will never have to be worried about her financial future. As Mrs. Darcy, she will be afforded a life befitting of my name; she will be very well taken care of even after my death.”
“Have you talked to Lizzy and asked her, Mr. Darcy?” Mr. Bennet is surprised at such a rapid development.
“Yes, I have, and she has accepted me, sir.” Darcy replies proudly.
“Well…let me speak with Lizzy, and then I will give you my answer, Mr. Darcy.” Mr. Bennet responds frankly.
“Yes, sir.” Darcy goes to the drawing room to retrieve Elizabeth.
Elizabeth smiles brightly and warmly when she sees William approach her looking cheery. She has to admit that he is the handsomest man she has ever seen, and he is such a good person. She cannot fathom her life with anyone else at this point. His kindness and understanding is astounding; she will never forget it.
“Dearest, I decided not to wait to ask your Father for your hand in marriage, given what he has to endure with Miss Lydia’s problem. I do not want him to have any doubts about my honorable intentions towards you. Therefore, I have just asked him for his consent; he would like to speak with you in
his bookroom, now.”
Elizabeth looks at William tenderly and says, “All right, I will go speak with Papa immediately. Will you sit and have some tea?”
“Yes, I will wait for you right here.” Darcy smiles charmingly.
Mr. Bennet says forthrightly, “Lizzy, I am very happy that you have such an honorable and admirable suitor. Even though this has happened so very quickly, I trust your judgement. However, I still want to ascertain that you know you do not have to marry anyone against your inclination. I know Mr. Darcy is very wealthy, but I do not want for you to be slighted in marriage in any way just to secure a good financial future. I have to admit from what I have seen thus far, Mr. Darcy has shown great understanding, kindness, tolerance, and love for you by not being repelled from our family’s current circumstances. That is clearly a tribute of his love for you. Now, how do you feel about who he is as a man, Lizzy?”
“Papa, I have observed him in many situations, and we have talked quite openly with each other on many occasions. He has not treated me any differently before or after he knew of our situation. He has always treated me with respect and great consideration. I had declined his courtship the first time around to spare him the shameful reputation should Lydia’s situation become known. However, he still pursued me after he found out. He even thought of ways to handle Lydia’s situation. Does that not speak of a true, genuine, trustworthy, honorable gentleman?”
Mr. Bennet nods in agreement as Elizabeth continues explaining her observations.
“I think I understand him sufficiently to know that he is the man that I want for a husband, Papa. Now, should I be wrong of my assessment then I will not hesitate to end our engagement. I would rather not have a husband than to have a bad one. My reputation will not suffer anymore than it will anyways if this knowledge of Lydia’s situation surfaces. Papa, what is your assessment of Mr. Darcy?” Elizabeth poses honestly because she respects her Father’s opinions and ideas.