by Lily Lord
As she said this, she continued to pat Elizabeth’s hands, not unsympathetically. “The challenge is to assuage his concerns about the health of the baby, to protect his ego so he does not feel that his authority is being questioned, and to come up with a plan that will allow you reasonable freedom.”
Elizabeth and Georgiana both looked at Mrs. Gardiner in amazement.
“You must have studied the male of the species very thoroughly in order to have this level of understanding,” Elizabeth said, half laughing as she did so.
“I have had a front row seat for such observations for many years now,” Mrs. Gardiner said, smiling.
Georgiana shook her head. “If marriage is this challenging and full of pitfalls, perhaps I ought not to be so eager to enter into that state.”
At that, Elizabeth and Mrs. Gardiner both laughed.
“Do take your time, Georgiana. Courtship is a stage to be savored. After marriage, life brings new challenges,” Elizabeth said, her expression turning sober.
“It sounds as though it is the husbands who bring the challenges, rather than life!” Georgiana said, looking aghast.
“No doubt you will soon find out, my dear,” Mrs. Gardiner said. “I gather that you have a suitor of your own.”
Now it was Georgiana’s turn to look at Mrs. Gardiner in amazement. “How did you know that?”
Mrs. Gardiner smiled. “When you have gotten to be my age, you find it a simple thing to read the signs.”
“I would dearly love your advice in this, and all matters, Mrs. Gardiner. You seem to be quite the expert. I wish I had an aunt like you.”
“Well then, my dear, you may consider me your aunt as well. An aunt by marriage.” Mrs. Gardiner smiled at Georgiana.
The young girl clapped her hands together. “How marvelous. I want to have all of your advice about how to handle my impertinent brother. I refuse to let him stand in the way of my happiness.” She turned back to face her sister-in-law. “But first we must sort you out Lizzy, should we not? Your predicament is the more pressing.”
Mrs. Gardiner nodded, bringing her eyebrows together in concentration as she leaned forward in the carriage to create an intimate circle of the three women. “As I see it, the challenge is to make Mr. Darcy understand that Elizabeth, and her future child, are perfectly safe. And that he will not be embarrassed by anyone believing that he does not have his wife under control.”
Elizabeth and Georgiana smiled at that. Mrs. Gardiner continued.
“One thing we have on our side is that he will be eager to save face. He will never say to anyone that his wife defied his orders by appearing in church today. So you are free on that score, Lizzy. But your next move is to placate any anger and assuage his hurt pride. The way to do this, naturally, is to make him feel as though what is best for you and your baby is his idea.”
Georgiana beamed at Mrs. Gardiner. “No wonder you have such a happy demeanor. You must have your husband and your children well in hand.”
“She does indeed, Georgiana,” Elizabeth said. Looking back at her aunt, she lowered her voice when she spoke again. “When he left Pemberley, Fitzwilliam said that he intended to lock me in my room until the baby is born. He was very angry. Angrier than I have ever seen him before. I was quite afraid at the moment.” She realized that she was twisting her handkerchief between her hands. “How can I avoid his wrath over my defying his orders not to go to church?”
“In my experience,” Mrs. Gardiner said, “it is often best to continue serenely as though the disagreement never happened. While women like to examine, explain, and apologize, men seem to want to ignore things that have not gone their way.”
“How remarkable,” Elizabeth said. “I would never have thought of that possibility. So your advice would be to say nothing of it.”
“Yes. I cannot be sure that it will work in this particular instance,” Mrs. Gardiner said, “but my advice would be to sweep in to the next meal looking unconcerned, fresh, and beautiful. We will all be there wishing each other happy Christmas and enjoying each other’s company. Rather than dwelling on what he might regard as a defeat, your husband may be perfectly content to put it behind him.”
Elizabeth nodded, turning this notion over in her head. “It did seem, from Fitzwilliam’s expression in church, that he was grudgingly appreciative of my boldness in making an appearance.”
Georgiana shook her head in amazement. “I can see that I have a lot to learn in terms of how to handle my brother… and men in general.”
“It does seem extraordinary that there would be no repercussions for my action this morning,” Elizabeth said, thoughtfully. “But I will try to do my best to follow your suggestions.”
“Well, I am not at all certain that behaving this way would be a panacea. Mr. Darcy really does seem to have some concerns about keeping you quiet and away from others until the baby comes.”
For a moment, Mrs. Gardiner said nothing, a thoughtful expression on her face. When she began speaking again, she nodded in satisfaction. “You have a very good grasp of how your husband thinks, Lizzy. You should probably simply follow your instincts when it comes to smoothing this over.”
“Yes, I think you are right. I will have to gauge my reaction by what I see in Mr. Darcy.”
Georgiana nodded admiringly, a mischievous smile on her face. She reached across the carriage to put her hand on Mrs. Gardiner’s arm. “Now, Aunt Gardiner, that we have resolved Lizzy’s plight, please give me your best counsel on how to persuade my brother to be reasonable regarding one Lord John Stanley. I believe that he is a wonderful man, and I am ready to contemplate marriage to him, though I am young. And considering that our own aunt, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, introduced him to me, he must be deemed most appropriate in both breeding and station.”
Mrs. Gardiner smiled. “Ah yes. I had heard so much about that young man that I imagined he would pluck the fairest flower of London this season, and it seems that he has.”
Georgiana colored prettily and smiled back at the older woman. “Oh, you cannot imagine how wonderful he is. I love him so.”
Elizabeth reached out to touch Georgiana’s arm. “Georgiana, as meritorious as this young man might be, are you certain that he shares your sentiments? Whether or not your brother approves, or Lady Catherine has recommended him, is Lord Stanley himself equally eager to venture into an engagement?”
“Oh, yes.” Georgiana said, nodding happily. “We have been seeing each other, in highly appropriate circumstances, of course, since before your wedding… for nearly three months now! I do love him, but he is the more eager. He has been trying to persuade me for many months that I should regard him as a serious suitor.”
Elizabeth nodded. “And is there something you find objectionable? I would think, from what you and Mrs. Gardiner have said, that he is the most eligible bachelor in London.”
“He is indeed!” Georgiana said. “But for a long time, I could not imagine why he would have singled me out. He is immensely popular, and all of the finest young ladies in town have their eyes on him. Despite the fact that Lady Catherine introduced us, I did not think he would consider me.”
“And why not?” Mrs. Gardiner said, her eyebrows raised in surprise.
“I should imagine you would have been the first young lady he would consider,” Elizabeth said. “You are lovely, you are intelligent, you have everything to offer. And one cannot ignore the fortune that you would bring to the marriage. My only concern would be that you would attract too many young men, and possibly those who were more fortune seekers than suitable beaus.”
At that, Georgiana blanched, and Elizabeth immediately regretted her words. “Please do forgive me, my dear,” she said. “I did not intend cause you pain.”
Georgiana looked down at her lap for a moment and then raised her eyes back to the other two women in the carriage. She addressed Mrs. Gardiner. “Now that we are family, I may as well let you know that when I was younger, an unscrupulous man tried to take advantage of my youth by pe
rsuading me to run off with him.”
Mrs. Gardiner simply nodded, and gave no sign either way of whether or not she was familiar with the earlier chapter of the Wickham saga. Elizabeth, having some idea of her aunt’s perspicacity as well as Darcy’s intimate dealings with the Gardiners during Lydia’s recent crisis, imagined that Mrs. Gardiner was simply being circumspect about any information she had.
Georgiana looked back at Elizabeth. “Because of my history, I have been doubly careful about responding to the blandishments of men, whether they were likely suitable or not. So it took some months after my meeting Lord Stanley to accept the fact that he was interested in me, and that his attentions were quite legitimate. At that point, we began having conversations that led to my understanding his affection for me.”
When Georgiana finished her statement, her cheeks were aglow with a very becoming blush.
Elizabeth looked out of the carriage and realized that they were swiftly approaching Pemberley House. “Well, ladies, we have managed to achieve some private time in order to address the important challenges of handling the men in our lives. But now, we must face them in person.” She smiled, dabbed at her eyes one last time, and folded up the lacy handkerchief in her lap.
Mrs. Gardiner’s eyes sparkled. She leaned in one more time as the three women put their heads together. “I have an idea about how to distract your husband, Lizzy, from your earlier actions in going to church against his orders… whilst also advancing Georgiana’s cause. When we go in for the Christmas meal, I will steer the conversation away from anything treacherous and make sure that we are discussing more pleasant topics.”
The carriage pulled up to the front of the manor, and Mr. Gardiner and Mr. Darcy were seen emerging from the entrance. The two men came down the stairs as the driver opened the door for his passengers. Darcy was the first to arrive at the side of the carriage. Carefully, he handed Mrs. Gardiner down, and then his sister. Elizabeth realized that he was going to be in a position to speak to her privately.
She arranged her face into an expression that she hoped was neither defiant nor contrite. To her surprise, she no longer felt afraid. She knew that Mr. Darcy loved her, and desired only what was best for her and their future child. If they had disagreements about how best to handle her confinement, they would simply have to work them out. She was not going to let his occasional stubbornness keep her from having a wonderful marriage. And she was certainly not going to let his need for control destroy her love for him.
As he touched her hand, she felt the familiar thrill as well as tenderness. He was only a man, after all, doing his best to fulfill his role as he saw it. He had grown up as the wealthy only son of a very wealthy gentlemen. He and Elizabeth were both finding their way in this new state of matrimony.
Elizabeth realized that she was smiling at Darcy, and it seemed perfectly natural to do so. As he took her smaller hand in his large, warm one, she squeezed it gently. “Thank you so much for allowing me to come to church on Christmas. It was wonderful to be with you and Georgiana, and with the Gardiners.”
Darcy’s expression in return was one of surprise. But his smile in return was broad and relaxed.
Encouraged, Elizabeth continued. “And I cannot thank you enough for arranging to have the Bingleys come for Christmas. It is the best present that I could have imagined. I have missed Jane so much.”
As Elizabeth stepped down from the carriage, Darcy put his arm around her waist and leaned down to speak to her quietly. “Lizzy, I do not know what I ever did to deserve you. Every day I learn better how to love you. I, too, was happy to see you in church today.”
Elizabeth repressed a shiver as she felt his arm around her. It felt so good to be close to him again. All of the tension of the morning seemed to leave her as she gazed up into Darcy’s dark eyes, seeing the trust and affection in them.
“While I was listening to the message of the season during the service, I thought about peace… and it came to me how harsh I had been in speaking to you this morning.” Darcy looked down at Elizabeth seriously, and as he did so he pulled her gently away from the carriage. The others had gone in, no doubt aware that the Darcys were having a private conversation. The carriage pulled away as the driver headed back to the stables. The under butler, Murphy, who had been holding the front door open, had gone back inside the house and closed the big doors discreetly behind him.
Darcy continued. “I will be addressing this matter further. I am determined to get the best advice about how to keep you and our child safe during your confinement.” Darcy cast his eyes downward, and Elizabeth saw the dark eyelashes sweep against his skin before his gaze returned to hers. “But I trust you, LizzyLizzy. You are a highly intelligent woman, and you would hardly care about our baby less than I do. I am sure you intend to do what is right. What is unquestionably safe and careful.”
Elizabeth looked up at her husband and a deep glow of contentment filled her. She reached up, wrapping her hands around his neck and standing up on tiptoe. Feeling quite bold, she put her lips on his, and was rewarded with his swift response. His kiss was full of passion and relief, and his warm mouth took hers fully as he swept her off the ground in a tight embrace that left her feet dangling for just a moment.
Briefly they lingered there, lips to lips, Elizabeth blissfully unaware of anything but her delicious Darcy. His strong arms holding her, his tongue, warm and languorous, exploring her mouth. She could have stayed there forever, wrapped in happiness.
Finally he put her down, his lips curving into a smile that incorporated both love and desire. “Mrs. Darcy, do you have any idea what you do to me?”
Elizabeth tipped her head to one side, knowing she was being coquettish, and knowing that he would enjoy it. “Actually, Fitzwilliam, now that I am a married woman of more than two months, I can quite easily imagine what I do to you.” Stepping back slightly from her husband and daring to let her eyes sweep down his body, she continued. “In fact, I do not have to imagine it. I can see it.”
Darcy’s mouth dropped open, and he laughed, an explosion of delight. “Madam, you continue to amaze me.” His expression got more serious. “My only sorrow is that we can no longer celebrate our physical union.”
It was Elizabeth’s turn to open her mouth. “What do you mean by that, sir?” She was completely nonplussed at his sudden change of demeanor.
“Well, of course, in your delicate condition, we will be unable to continue to have… marital relations.”
As Elizabeth was trying to formulate a response, she saw Darcy’s head turn quickly and look back at the lane leading to Pemberley House. “I do believe we have Christmas visitors. We will have to continue this discussion later.”
“Indeed we will,” Elizabeth said. She turned and saw Charles Bingley’s coach approaching, and the face of her dear Jane peeking out with an expression of joy. It was as much as Elizabeth could do to refrain from picking up her skirts and running down the lane to meet the visitors. But soon, the coach had arrived at the front of the house, and her beloved Jane and Mr. Bingley emerged.
As the sisters embrace each other and the reunited foursome exchanged effusive greetings, the door to Pemberley opened and Elizabeth’s Aunt and Uncle Gardiner came out. Soon the entire party, chilly from the crisp December air, entered the house. The Bingleys had arrived earlier than anticipated, and Elizabeth escorted them to their designated rooms to refresh themselves for the upcoming Christmas dinner.
When at last everyone had gathered around the table and heard a brief grace, during which Darcy expressed his happiness at being able to host everyone, there was much festivity and enjoyment. It made Elizabeth so happy to see her husband presiding over a meal attended by members of his family, old and new, as well as by his dearest friend. At that moment she felt the swelling of joy at her circumstances in life.
She was struck by the contrast between her alarm of this morning and her current contentment. She could never have imagined such a rise and fall of dramatic emo
tions in the same day. From time to time she caught Mr. Darcy looking at her from his position at the head of the table. She suspected his thoughts were on the child she was carrying, and… had it not been outside the bounds of propriety… he would have gladly shared the news with all in attendance.
Elizabeth noticed that Georgiana, while seemingly enjoying the company, kept throwing glances toward Mrs. Gardiner. After some time, the latter picked up on the import of Georgiana’s expression, because she steered the conversation toward the topic of the early London season.
“Mr. Gardiner and I certainly do not participate in all of the social events of the young set in London, but we do hear about major goings-on from time to time. Apparently there is a very fine young gentlemen, a Lord Stanley, the eldest son of the Earl of W___, who has been in town of late. He has made a significant impression on all that have had the good fortune of meeting him.”
As much as Georginna may have looked forward to having the subject broached, her cheeks colored mightily at the mention of her potential beau. To her credit, Mrs. Gardiner kept the attention on herself so that Georgiana and her embarrassment would not be observed.
“A very amiable young man, as I understand it, he is not only very well bred, but very handsome as well.”
Bingley spoke up, looking pleased that he could contribute to the general knowledge of what was happening in the city. “I may have some intelligence to report on the subject in question. My sister, Miss Caroline Bingley, whom I believe you have all met, included a few words about the very same gentleman in her last letter to me. She said that he is indeed quite charming and that I should call upon him when next I am in town. She is eager for me to make his acquaintance. Apparently she was immensely taken with him.” Bingley turned to Jane and gave her a meaningful glance. “Caroline even went so far as to suggest that I invite Lord Stanley to Netherfield for a ball.”
Georgiana gave a small squeak and looked in her lap, while Jane raised her eyebrows and met Elizabeth’s gaze with one of frank amusement. Even Mrs. Gardiner seemed quite aware of the import of Bingley’s pronouncement regarding his sister’s interest.