by Ola Wegner
Elizabeth allowed herself to relax against his solid frame again, supporting her back against his chest. “I understand that your uncle expected you to try to persuade your cousin out of his decision to stay with his mistress and their child.”
“Yes, and I went there thinking that I should do just that, convince him to abandon his mistress and go back to his wife. I must confess that I was surprised that George had ever decided on such an arrangement - he never had been what could be called a rake. He is rather shy with women, like me, a family trait, I dare say.”
She turned her head to look into his face. “You...shy?”
He laughed softly. “Yes, have you not noticed? It took me half a year to tell you about how I felt for you.”
Elizabeth frowned and said nothing to this, allowing him again to arrange her in the crook of his arm.
“When I listened to George, talked with him in private, I could not do it,” Darcy continued. “I thought how I would have acted in his position. What if I had married, pressured by the family and society, to a woman I could not abide, had no children with her, and then met you. Would I be able to stay away from you?”
“I think that your cousin’s situation is very difficult.”
“Yes, it is, but surprisingly, he is happier than I have seen him since the beginning of his marriage. He is very excited about becoming a father. He told me that it elated him that the woman he truly loved would bear his child.”
He shifted sideways so he could look into her face. “I do understand him, Elizabeth, to think that one day you will tell me that I will become a father... makes me feel, I cannot explain it.”
Elizabeth gaped at him, full of wonder, feeling both hot and, cold, blushing rosily, her heart rapidly beating in her chest. She would have never suspected Mr. Darcy to be so... sympathetic, so sensitive about such delicate matters.
“In the end, I gave him my full support, and even invited him to come with the woman to Pemberley after the baby is born and old enough to travel. This invitation was an impulsive act that I have since then started to regret.”
“Why?”
“Because...,” he hesitated, “Perhaps you would not like to admit someone like her under your roof, such a woman.”
“No, not at all,” Elizabeth contradicted quickly, “I imagine that I would have nothing against it, taking everything into consideration. I would welcome her as your relative, I guess, who she since there will be a baby.”
“There is Georgiana to consider too, but...” Darcy frowned. “Since last year...” he sighed, “I have started to believe that young girls should not be so sheltered from the realities of life. Being too naive about certain matters does not always help them.”
He was absent with his thoughts for a moment, his expression distant, and Elizabeth was about to ask what the reason for this, when he stood up and offered him arm.
“Let us not discuss this sad matter anymore,” he proposed as she stood up.
Elizabeth smiled and nodded, accepting his arm again as they resumed their walk.
“You did not tell me how your time has been spent since your return from Kent.”
“It was very nice to see Mama and all my sisters, Jane, especially.” She smiled. “You cannot imagine how surprised she was when I told her how you proposed to me. She cried, 'Mr. Darcy... that cannot be, Lizzy, the man is so cold!” she laughed and looked at him, only then realizing what she had said.
“I am sorry...,” she whispered.
He shrugged. “I do not mind people seeing me thus, or in other words, I do not care how others perceive me. However, I hope you know that, indeed, I am not cold.” His dark brown eyes bore into hers, and those hot, cold, trembling sensations came back to her with magnified force.
He lowered his head, and Elizabeth was sure that he wanted to kiss her, but then he lifted his head, looked around with a frown, and directed them energetically towards the stables, which were on the left from the small park.
At first Elizabeth did not quite capture why he chose that place. He strode confidently in, and seeing no one in sight, pulled her inside one of the empty stalls.
The stable was not a place which Elizabeth visited often, or ever. At first she was disturbed by its particular smells, and the idea that she could stamp on something unexpected with her slippered foot. To her relief, the stall looked reasonably clean, and the hay it was strewn with was fresh.
Soon she forgot about those fears, when he supported himself against one wall, hooked an arm about her waist and brought her to him, between his spread thighs.
“Now...,” he leaned forward and his lips touched hers.
Elizabeth closed her eyes and allowed him to do what he wanted, half curious, half apprehensive about what would happen.
Her very first sensation was that he was very gentle and what he did felt good, safe, very right and exciting at the same time. His hands were at the sides of her face, as he teased her mouth, tugging at her lower and upper lip interchangeably. She stiffened when she felt him trying to push his tongue inside. He took the hint, retreated at once, and concentrated on kissing her neck, which felt even better than what he had done earlier.
Elizabeth allowed herself to lean into his body with more trust, which enticed him to take her hands, so far securely resting on his shoulders, and wind them around his neck.
He was so much taller that she needed to stand on tiptoe, pressing into his body even more. His arms wrapped around her with force, and pinned her to him. His breathing suddenly became harsh and laboured. He was becoming hard and swelling down there, his manhood poking into her belly.
He let her go abruptly.
Elizabeth stepped back from him tentatively and, for a very short moment, allowed her eyes to rest at the front of his beige coloured britches. He was definitely affected by what had happened, by their close proximity.
Blushing furiously, she turned her back to him, allowing him the needed time to compose himself.
When a long moment later she felt a tap on her shoulder and turned around, he looked his normal self again.
“Forgive me,” he said.
She shook her head hard, so her locks bobbed up. “No... I should not...”
“No, Elizabeth, I am the experienced one here, and I should be responsible so things will not go too far too soon.”
He took her hand in his, gave it a squeeze, and leaned forward to kiss her cheek.
“Do not stress over what happened, love.” He smiled at her, his eyes warm. “It was perfectly natural and bodes well for the future, only, as I said, it happened too soon.”
She smiled, still unsure, and shy about what had just transpired.
Holding her hand in his, he led her out of the stall. “I want to give you something. That is why I brought you here.”
They walked to the next stall, where what seemed was Mr. Darcy's horse was kept.
Elizabeth gave him an unsure look. He did not want to give her a horse? Surely not.
He walked inside the stall and opened the satchel at the saddle, taking a parcel wrapped in elegant paper out of it.
“For me?” Elizabeth asked.
“I stopped in London for a few days to see Georgiana and bought it for you.”
“You should not have...,” she tried to protest, but he pushed the parcel into her hands.
“Of course, I should. I wanted to.”
She weighed the parcel in her hands. “I am not certain whether I should accept it.”
She looked at him and saw that she would give him a great deal of disappointment if she refused the gift. Slowly, she unwrapped the paper, and a silk material fell into her hands. It was a beautiful shawl, in a stunning, rich deep colour of red wine.
“How beautiful,” she gasped.
With the tips of her fingers she touched the material. The silk was of the highest quality. She assumed it had cost a small fortune, certainly more than any piece of clothing she had ever owned, including her very best yellow ball gown. Sh
e was not sure how she felt about him giving her such an expensive gift.
“Do you like it?” he asked, as excited as a child.
“Yes,” she admitted reluctantly.
“May I?” he draped the shawl around her shoulders. “The colour suits you very well.”
“I did not know you were an expert in women's fashions, sir.” she teased.
He grinned. “I am not. I went to the shop where my sister usually makes her purchases. I told the owner I was looking for something for a young lady. I described your looks, and she assured me that this colour would match well with your chocolate curls, dark eyes and pale skin. I am very pleased to see that she was right.”
“Thank you.” She lifted on her toes and kissed his cheek. “I will wear it with pleasure.”
***
“Oh, Jane I think that he wants to buy me.” Elizabeth complained later when she was alone with Jane in their room upstairs. Mr. Darcy bade her goodbye in front of the house, saying he had to deal with some matters in Meryton before dark.
“Lizzy, I think he just wanted to buy you something nice. You read too much into it. Imagine the situation when you are in London with all the wonderful shops around you and with unlimited resources. Would you not want buy something for me, Mama, Papa, Mary, Kitty and Lydia?”
“Of course, I would.”
“He has a much younger sister, am I right?”
“Yes.”
“We can safely assume then that he likes to spoil her, buy her nice things. He sees nothing wrong with doing the same when it comes to you. I know your independent spirit, Lizzy, and your pride, but think about all the time and thought which he had to devote to the idea of buying you this. He chose it by himself, thinking only of you.”
“It must have been frightfully expensive. It will stand out against my plainer gowns.”
“I am sure he did not want to embarrass you. He is simply used to buying the very best.”
Elizabeth wrapped the shawl around herself and touched the soft material to her face. Then she took it off, spread it on her bed and folded it neatly. There was a knock on the door and Mrs. Bennet appeared.
“Lizzy, I came to ask how your walk with Mr. Darcy was. He did not want to stay for tea with us? Was he displeased?”
Elizabeth looked at her mother, her compassionate heart tugging at the woman’s worried expression. She could not tell her that her future son-in-law considered himself above them all.
”No, Mama. He came here straight from London. He did not want to be rude, but I think he was tired after the journey and needed to see to some matters in Meryton yet today.”
“Oh,” Mrs. Bennet said, her expression still unsure.
Jane wanted to redirect her mother’s attention, so she pointed to the shawl. “Look, Mama, what Lizzy got from Mr. Darcy.”
Mrs. Bennet came closer to the bed and saw the silk shawl. “What is that?” She took the shawl and started to admire it from every side. “How beautiful!” she exclaimed, “Surely very expensive!”
“I think that it’s too expensive, Mama,” Elizabeth pointed out. “I am not certain whether I should accept it.”
“Or course, you should! Silly girl. Such a generous man.” She put the shawl to Lizzy’s face. “Look how it suits your complexion. He must have picked it out by himself, thinking of you. You should appreciate it, such caring. Your father never in his life thought about buying me anything so beautiful as this gift.”
“Mama, we are not even officially engaged.”
“Just because of your father’s stubbornness.”
“Nevertheless, I think people should not be aware he gave me such an expensive gift.”
“Lizzy is right, Mama.” Jane said in her most serious tone. “I am sure that Mr. Darcy would not wish any improper gossip to circulate about him or his future wife.”
Mrs. Bennet thought for a moment. “You are right, Jane. No one should know for the time being how generous towards Lizzy he is. Everyone is already green with envy that you secured such a man for yourself. You will wear it, of course, to make him happy, but no one needs to know it is a gift from Mr. Darcy.”
“What about Kitty and Lydia, Mama?” Elizabeth asked apprehensively. “I doubt they could keep it to themselves.”
“Leave them to me. I will tell them... I will think what to tell them so they will stay quiet about it.”
She reached her hand to squeeze Elizabeth’s cheek. “Such a generous man, Lizzy,” she repeated, and left the room.
Chapter Eight
After breakfast the following morning, Jane and Elizabeth, enveloped in large aprons, started on the long postponed task of preparing baskets for the tenants’ families. They hoped to distribute them later in the afternoon. Concentrating on their work, in quiet tones, they spoke about the man who had been the main subject of their conversations recently, Mr. Darcy.
“You shall see for yourself, Lizzy, that he is not that bad at all,” Jane said after Elizabeth had told her what she had heard from Mr. Darcy yesterday. “The fact that Mr. Darcy does not condemn his cousin, only tries to understand his difficult situation, proves that he cares deeply about his relatives and can be very sympathetic.”
“I must say I was truly astonished with his attitude on this matter. I always thought him to be a man who sees everything only as black or white, without any doubt,” Elizabeth said as she wrapped the hocks of ham into the white clean rags, so Jane could put them into baskets. “He seemed so human.”
“Lizzy,” Jane laughed. “You talk about him as if he were of some different species.”
Elizabeth finished with the ham and went to wash her hands. Mr. Darcy was a human, of course, a warm, strong, living man, with a deep voice, who affected her more than she was ready to acknowledge. Every time she had closed her eyes last evening, determined to fall asleep, she had memories of how he had held and kissed her. Only a month ago, she had hated the man. Hatred was too strong a word, perhaps, but she had sincerely disliked him and now...
“What I cannot understand is why he treated Mr. Wickham so poorly,” she cried in frustration, lathering her hands with energy.
“I have already told you that we know only one side of the story,” Jane reminded her. “I think that you should ask Mr. Darcy about this matter. He should have an opportunity to defend himself, explain what happened from his perspective.”
Before Elizabeth could answer, the voice of their mother was heard, speaking loudly.
“After me, Mr. Darcy! She will be a most excellent wife to you! She knows everything about running a house. I taught her myself!”
Mrs. Bennet hurried into the room with a very sober looking Mr. Darcy behind her.
“Here she is, Mr. Darcy.” Mrs. Bennet made a wide gesture in the direction of Elizabeth, who was drying her hands with a clean cloth. “As you see, sir, she is making the baskets for the tenants.”
“Miss Bennet, Miss Elizabeth,” Darcy bowed.
The girls curtseyed in response, Elizabeth's face turning beetroot red at her mother’s crassness.
Mrs. Bennet, standing next to her second daughter, winked at her. “Mr. Darcy wants to take you for a walk again, Lizzy,” she announced in a theatrical whisper.
“Mama,...” Elizabeth murmured, not knowing where to hide her eyes.
Seeing her sister’s discomposure, Jane spoke. “Mama, we were to distribute the baskets today.”
“Lydia and Mary will go with you, Jane.” Mrs. Bennet dismissed her worry, untying Elizabeth’s apron. “Kitty will accompany Mr. Darcy and Lizzy on their walk. Now, Lizzy, run upstairs to prepare yourself, and do remember to wear the shawl Mr. Darcy was so kind to give you.”
The matron walked to Darcy. “I think that the walk to Oakham Mount is an excellent idea, do you not think so, sir? A nice, long walk.”
Darcy nodded. “I agree, madam. I have heard that the view from that spot is spectacular, and I have not yet had the opportunity to admire it.”
“Excellent, excellent!�
�� Mrs. Bennet smiled widely at the man, receiving only a severe frown in return.
Elizabeth came to the conclusion that it was a high time to separate her mother from her intended.
“Mr. Darcy.” She approached him with smile. “Let us go to the foyer. I will call Kitty and go upstairs to change into more appropriate attire.”
Darcy smiled down at her, bowed in front of Mrs. Bennet and Jane, and turned to the entrance.
Mrs. Bennet gave Elizabeth a worried look, whispering, “Is he displeased with something?”
“I do not think so, Mama.” Elizabeth whispered back. She felt sorry of her mother, who, she knew, had tried hard to please the man. Mrs. Bennet’s intentions were the best, and despite her faults, she did not deserve such rude, cold treatment from Darcy.
She glanced at Darcy, who was waiting for her in the doorway. Taking a deep breath, she walked to him with a polite smile.
Darcy let her go first as they walked through the narrow, darkened hall leading from the kitchens area to the main part of the house. At one moment, she felt his hand on her hip, later her waist, and his mouth at the back of her neck.
She stopped and, in semi darkness, turned her head to look up into his face. She did not manage to say anything, because his mouth captured hers, as he pushed her against the wall.
At first she did not know how to react, astonished with his unexpected act. His kisses were gentle and tentative, so after a moment she responded in kind, tilting her face to give him better access.
“Lizzy,” she heard him groan her name, and he pushed his body against hers more aggressively.
Her eyes popped open as he pushed his tongue inside her mouth. It happened so quickly, without warning, that she was not prepared for the invasion and broke the kiss, turning her face away to the side.
“Sweet,” he murmured, as his face dipped into her throat, sucking there.
Elizabeth began to take deep breaths, not a bit concerned that he was losing his control, and she could do little to stop him. She was torn, what he did to her gave her wonderful sensations, his body next to hers, so hard and warm, rubbing against her and pushing her against the wall. She did not want to stop, but at the same time, she was afraid of the unknown.