by Don Miller
Georgiana quickly departed, leaving Darcy with Elizabeth. As he escorted her to the stairway and down the stairs to the foyer, somewhat embarrassed, he said, “Please forgive my sister, she is a romantic and has undoubtedly decided there is or should be some romantic connection between us. Therefore, she will probably make an effort whenever you are here to see we are alone together for some period of time. I hope it will not make you too uncomfortable.”
Elizabeth chuckled. “It will not make me uncomfortable, Mr. Darcy. In fact, I suspect there are many who might think the connection between us could be labeled as romantic. You did after all propose to me, something which had never been happened to me before. But I am glad to have this opportunity to apologize for my misjudgment of you and some of the things I said to you. I was not at all ladylike in my refusal and am embarrassed at how much I let the anger I had been harboring since I learned your part in separating Mr. Bingley and Jane affect my behavior. I do hope you will forgive me and, for the sake of the growing friendship between me and Georgie, we can at least be pleasant to one another.”
“Miss Elizabeth, I can easily forgive you because much of what you said was true, and I hope you will in turn forgive me for the ungentlemanly manner in which I made the proposal. I also would hope, in light of your growing friendship with Georgianna, we can be friends. Rest assured I am pleased about your friendship with her, because I think she needs an older friend such as you in whom she can confide things she would never tell me and would rather not confide to her older female relatives such as her Aunt Matlock or Cousins Anne or Alicia. She still has not fully recovered from her experience with Wickham, and I think you can help her do that.”
“I will be happy to help her any way I can, Mr. Darcy.”
As Darcy and Georgiana watched the carriage pull away with Elizabeth in it, Darcy said, “I am glad you and Miss Elizabeth have become friends. I think she can help you. But do realize, Georgie, there is nothing between us. We are of very different situations and temperaments, so you do not have to scheme to have us alone together or try to encourage me to pay more attention to her. I am fully aware of her beauty and intelligence and talent, but we will never be more than friends. Do you understand that?”
“I understand Will. I am not expecting you to ever propose to someone from such a lower social status. I just want you to be friends. However, I do have hopes that through her friendship with us, she can be introduced into the ton and perhaps some of the gentlemen who do not require a woman of high status and wealth will be interested in her. I hardly know her, but already I believe she is one of the kindest, most intelligent, and talented women I have ever met.”
She paused for a moment and covered her mouth as she giggled. “It just came to me, now that Richard is to be a knight, he may not need a wealthy woman. I may try to arouse his interest him in her. It would be wonderful if she were part of the family.”
Darcy did not reply, but was thinking, “I am not so sure I wish that. I will have enough trouble over the coming weeks seeing her in Darcy House and remembering, had she accepted me, she would have been its mistress. I do not think I can see her often with my cousin and not remember the hopes I once had for us. No, I think it best she find someone I see very little.” He smiled to himself. “Perhaps I should help Georgie find her such a husband.”
Chapter 7: A Family Meeting at Matlock House
In the morning two days after Elizabeth’s visit to Darcy House, Darcy received a letter from the steward of his estate in Scotland stating there was a problem with the tenant who had rented the house for the summer and he thought Darcy needed to be there to help solve it. It seems the tenant, a Baronet from England, had a son who was a rake and had compromised a young girl in town. The town was extremely upset with the tenant, who had rather arrogantly refused to discipline his son or to make any restitution to the young lady and her parents for his son’s transgression. The steward feared there may be some violence and urged Darcy to come to Scotland as soon as possible.
Deciding he must go, Darcy told Georgiana she would have to stay with her aunt and uncle at Matlock House for at least three weeks while he went up to Scotland to see how he might settle the situation. He sent a note to his aunt asking her to take Georgiana and her maid while he was in Scotland and informing her he wanted to deliver them that afternoon. When his aunt’s acceptance note was received, he, Georgiana and Ellie, Georgiana’s maid, travelled the short distance to Matlock House in the Darcy carriage.
After Georgiana was settled in her usual room, Georgiana and Darcy met in the sitting room with Lord and Lady Matlock and their daughter, Lady Alicia Rutherford, who was staying with them while her husband was away at sea fighting the French. While tea was being served, Darcy explained the situation and that he would be leaving early in the morning for the seven day trip to Scotland.
“Oh Will, in all of our preparations, I forgot I had invited Miss Elizabeth to Darcy House to practice with me next Monday. Aunt Helen, can I have her come here or can someone go with me to Darcy House so that I can entertain her there?”
“Who is Miss Elizabeth?” asked Lady Matlock.
“She is a gentlewoman from an estate in Hertfordshire whom I met while I was at Netherfield Park with Bingley last fall. She is also the niece of the Gardiners, whom you know well,” said Darcy. “Georgie and Richard were in the bookstore the other day and Miss Elizabeth happened to be there. She helped Georgie look for music and in the ensuing discussions, they found they had many musical interests in common. Georgie subsequently invited her to Darcy House to practice and they forged a friendship Georgie wishes to continue, so she was invited to return on Monday so they could practice more together. She is a very genteel young woman and I believe she would be a good influence on Georgie, so I approved the growing friendship and encouraged Georgie to invite her back. I believe you would approve of her and find her company and her music quite pleasing.”
“She is a gentlewoman, but works in her aunt’s bookstore?”
“No, she does not work there,” answered Georgiana. “She helps her aunt sort through foreign books and judges whether the bookstore should stock them. She knows several languages and has helped her aunt and uncle for years to repay them for bringing her to London to enjoy the culture it has to offer. She is a very good singer, whom I know that once you hear her, you will want to hear more.”
“May I ask how old she is?”
“I believe she just turned 20 in March.”
“Is she not a little old to be a good friend?”
“I suppose she is, but she is very kind and I feel very comfortable talking to her as if she were an older sister. I so want her to be my friend and to make music with her. I would very much like you to meet her.”
Lady Matlock had heard of Elizabeth before from Mrs. Gardiner, who had sung the praises of her niece—her intelligence, her care for others, her talent with languages and numbers and singing. When her name was first mentioned by Georgiana, she wondered if it might be the same Elizabeth. “I have to admit I have heard of Miss Elizabeth from her aunt and have often thought I would like to meet her. Therefore, I will approve of her coming to Matlock House to meet with you Georgie. Somehow I believe there is more to this than is being told, but I will accept what I have been told and ask no more until I have met her. I will issue the invitation to her to come here on Monday.”
Georgiana got up and went over to hug her aunt. “Thank you, Aunt Helen. By the way, one advantage of having her here is you will get your piano tuned. I think I will go play on it and see if I think it needs it badly.”
After Georgiana had gone, Lady Alicia asked the question all had on their minds. “What do you suppose she meant by that last statement. Is Miss Elizabeth a piano tuner also?”
“I have no idea,” answered Darcy. “You can ask her sometime in the coming days. Now, I want your advice before I go. I am sure you will be happy to learn I have decided it is high time I got married and produced an heir. I know yo
u have been encouraging me for years and I have resisted, but my last trip to Kent and Aunt Catherine’s constant harping that Anne and I marry, despite both of us telling her neither of us wanted to marry the other, has made me decide it is time that I give up my dream of finding the perfect woman and just try to find a suitable woman with whom I might be happy. While I am off in Scotland, I hope you will give it some consideration and if we can come up with a name or two, I will try my best to finally fulfill the family’s desires for me.”
Lord Matlock abruptly burst out laughing. When Darcy looked at him questioningly, he said, “That must have been some trip to Kent. You suddenly are willing to give up on your quest for the perfect woman, which you once swore you would never do and Richard comes to us and asks us if we would be upset if he married a woman of little wealth and not of the ton.”
“Did he give a name to this woman?” asked Darcy.
“No, he did not. He said it was a hypothetical question, but we of course assumed he had someone in mind. We were hoping maybe you could tell us.”
Darcy was torn. Because Richard had not told his parents Elizabeth’s name, he assumed he did not want Darcy to tell them. “He did tell me on the way home from Kent that with his upcoming induction into knighthood, he felt more comfortable looking for a woman to love rather than a woman of wealth, feeling his income from all of his sources would allow him to live in genteel comfort—perhaps not how he lived with you, but sufficient for him. I thought it rather ironic we seemed to be switching sides. He now wants to look for love regardless of position and wealth while I want position and wealth, regardless of love. It is amazing how reality sometimes eventually changes our perception of what we want.”
“I thought I would never hear you say what you have just said,” said Lady Alicia. “I was fortunate enough to find love, and am very happy, although always concerned about Phillip. Andrew, on the other hand, found position and wealth without love and is miserable. Are you sure you know what you are doing Will?”
“May I ask,” said Lady Matlock, “was there any gentlewomen in Kent that Richard might have met?”
“Yes, there was, but since he chose not to name her to you, I do not think I should.”
“Nonsense. If he met someone, you know Anne or Catherine will know. Now you have told me he did meet someone, you know I will write them and ask. You might as well tell me.”
Darcy gave a big sigh and shook his head. “You are right, of course. I wish I could have lied and said he did not meet anyone. I suggest when he returns home tonight, you ask him and tell him you asked me a direct question and I could not lie, but I did refuse to tell you her name. I am sure he will tell you then. I just do not want him to be angry at me for giving you the name.”
“You boys are always so loyal to one another. I will get it out of him tonight. Now go home, pack, and prepare to go. And while you are travelling up there, consider the two young women I have mentioned in the past: Lady Penelope and Margaret Farnsworth. I know you grew up knowing them as young girls, but they are young women now and you might find them to be quite acceptable if you forget you knew them as little girls and look at them as grown women.”
“I promise you, I will think about them. I am going to go by the music room and say goodbye to Georgie and then I will be gone.”
After he had gone, Lord Matlock said, “That was a very un-Darcy-like conversation. What do you suppose could have happened in Kent that has affected him so much? He was not exhibiting this behavior before he went to Kent, so I have to believe something happened there, and I do not believe for a minute it was Catherine’s harping. He has resisted that for years and I doubt it affected him any more this year than it did in past years. Something else happened that distressed him so much he decided to give up his dream. Normally I would say it was woman trouble, but it would certainly not be Anne and as far as I know, he does not know any unmarried women in Kent, although I suppose Richard’s unknown woman and Darcy’s could be one and the same.”
“I think Richard needs to answer some questions tonight. They are so close he has to know what the problem is.”
Col. Fitzwilliam returned to Matlock House just in time for dinner and was surprised to see Georgiana there. During dinner, they told him about Darcy’s problem with his tenant in Scotland and they discussed the arduous trip from London to his Scottish estate. Then the talk got around to Darcy’s declaration in the afternoon. “Georgie,” asked Lady Matlock, “have you noticed anything strange about your brother’s behavior lately?”
“Oh my, yes. Since his return from Kent he has attended almost every social event to which he has been invited, which is very unlike him. When I asked him about it, he said he had decided it was time he was married and was going to use this Season to seriously look for a suitable woman. When I asked him about his requirement to marry for love and respect, he said he had recognized the reality of the situation and he had to find a suitable wife whom he might be able to love. I became so worried about him, that Thursday I asked Richard over to visit so that I could ask him about Kent, because he did not start acting this way until he returned from Kent.”
“And so, did the two of you come to any conclusion?”
“No, but I asked Richard if Miss Elizabeth might be the cause, but after I met her I could not imagine that she was.”
“Why would you think she was the cause?”
“He wrote so favorably about her when he was at Netherfield Park last fall, but when he came home, he said it was just a friendship and he would probably never see her again. And then I discovered from Anne he had seen her in Kent when he and Richard were there, and he did not mention it to me, so I thought she might have had something to do with it.”
Lord and Lady Matlock and Alicia all looked at Col. Fitzwilliam. “Richard, you did not tell us she was in Kent,” said Lord Matlock.
“No, I suppose I did not. I did not see any reason to tell you. She was there visiting a friend of hers from Hertfordshire who became the wife of Mr. Collins, Aunt Catherine’s pastor. She came to dinner with them a few times and Darcy and I called on the Collinses a few times because of his prior acquaintance with Mr. and Mrs. Collins. She was staying with them, so of course we saw her there.”
“May I ask; is Miss Elizabeth pretty?”
“Pretty is an understatement. She is gorgeous,” said Georgiana. “and extremely talented. If she were a member of the ton, she would be inundated with gentlemen callers.”
“Is not this amazing,” said Lord Matlock. “My son and nephew go to Kent as usual, meet a gorgeous young woman whom neither of them mentions, and upon their return, both of them inform us they are going to essentially turn their lives around: one who had been seeking a rich woman of the ton decides a gentlewoman of little wealth may do and the other decides love and respect are not needed in his marriage; all he needs is a suitable woman of the ton who he might be able to love. Is not that a coincidence?”
Col. Fitzwilliam was clearly looking uncomfortable as his family was looking at him. “Alright, so maybe something did happen there, but I am reluctant to speak about it without Darcy being here.”
“Well, I am sure that one mystery has been cleared up,” said Alicia. “We were all wondering who the young lady might be who inspired your question to our parents as to whether they would object to you marrying a young gentlewoman not of our sphere. Clearly that young lady was Miss Elizabeth. Was your meeting with her in Kent and at the bookstore enough to make you think she might be a worthy mate for you?”
He hesitated in answering, but finally admitted it was, to which Georgiana said, “That is wonderful Richard. I told my brother, after he assured me there was nothing between him and Miss Elizabeth, I thought she might be good for you. Are you serious about her?”
“Not yet, but I could imagine I might be.”
“What are you not telling us about her and Darcy?”
“Why would you think I was not telling you something about them?”
&nb
sp; “Come now, Richard, do not take us for ignoramuses. Darcy goes to Kent not unhappy. He comes back completely changed and I sense an undercurrent of unhappiness in him. What happened between them?”
He finally threw his hands up in the air and shaking his head, said, “He asked her to marry him and she refused. They had a bit of an unpleasant discussion and he departed saying he now knew she was definitely not suitable for him and he would have to get on with his life. When I asked him if he was sure, he said he was and I told him I was interested. He wished me good luck with her. And that was the end of it.”
Georgiana could not contain herself, “He proposed and she refused? I cannot understand. How could she do that? He is one of the best young men in England and rich and she is poor. How could she refuse?”
“Because she does not love him, Georgie, and that is more important to her than it is even to your brother. She would rather be poor and happy than rich and unhappy. She thought they would not have a happy marriage.”
“Extraordinary,” said Lord Matlock. “Who would have thought a young lady of her means would be able to refuse one of Darcy’s wealth and position? Is she brave or stupid?”
“I would say,” said Alicia, “she is a woman of principle and inner strength possessed by few women. I feel for my cousin, but I applaud her. I am anxious to meet a young woman who would be willing to do what she did.” She looked at her mother. “I hope this will not make you dislike her and rescind the invitation you sent her this afternoon to practice with Georgie on Monday.”
“Alicia, I cannot be angry with her because she has seen she would not be a good match for Darcy. Like you, I applaud her strength of character. I am also anxious to meet her.”
“Well, I am not sure I want to make music with someone who refuses my brother and makes him so unhappy. She cannot be all that caring and intelligent if she does not like him.”