by APRIL FLOYD
Mrs. Bennet hurried to Elizabeth’s side. “Oh, Lizzy, I knew! I knew you would catch Mr. Darcy in the end! Oh, Lady Lucas will be so jealous, I tell you. What is Mr. Collins to Mr. Darcy? You were wise to refuse that silly parson.”
Lydia and Kitty hugged Elizabeth tight and laughed saying how lucky she was and how they too might marry wealthy men with her new connections. Mary rolled her eyes and pulled her younger sisters away from Elizabeth. “Do try and behave as though you have a bit of sense between the two of you.”
To Mr. Darcy, she quoted a bible verse. “May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth. A loving doe, a graceful deer — may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be intoxicated with her love.”
Elizabeth took Mary by the arm, “Young lady! I am shocked by your lack of propriety!”
“But it is a Bible verse, Lizzy!” Mary exclaimed.
Darcy’s face turned a deep shade of red. The room was growing warmer and the Bennets overwhelmed him with their antics and provoking bible recitations.
Mr. Bennet took Mary in hand. “There are many subjects in the Bible not suitable for discussion amongst ladies and gentlemen, daughter.”
Elizabeth was grateful for her father’s assistance. She turned and led Mr. Darcy away from her parents and sisters.
The Colonel and Miss Darcy welcomed Elizabeth to the family in a much more sedate manner, but one that was also heartfelt.
“I am pleased at last to have a sister!” Miss Darcy exclaimed as she embraced Elizabeth. Lady Matlock was more reserved in her welcome, but Elizabeth believed they might someday become close.
The earl, with his burly frame, hugged Elizabeth tightly and proclaimed his nephew a wise man for choosing such a handsome and practical wife. “Boy,” he said to Darcy over Elizabeth’s head, “I thought you might marry Dumont’s sister all those years ago. When I saw her in Town again, the worries returned. The lady has a sizable dowry but she is quite a slip of muslin. You have settled my fears for the family with this one.”
This time it was Elizabeth’s turn to blush. Mr. Darcy took her hand, his brows lifted as if to say I have my own troublesome family members.
Mr. Bingley, aware of the discomfort Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy were hiding, sent for champagne to toast the happy couples and celebrate the Bingley child that would be born before the end of the year. “We should return to our guests soon, but a private family celebration must be observed.”
The footmen opened several bottles of champagne and flutes were filled for the whole of the library. The Bennets, the Bingleys, the Darcys, and the Matlocks celebrated the happiness that two weddings would bring.
For the rest of the evening, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy danced, announced their engagement to the delight of all gathered, and whispered to one another of their future plans. There would be children and family to fill the halls of Pemberley once more and Mr. Darcy would take her camping.
When the ball ended at last and the Bingleys waved away the last of their guests, Elizabeth stood with Darcy on the steps of Bingley House. She was still in his coat and he held her tightly against him. “I cannot believe you accepted me, Elizabeth. I am the luckiest man in London, in all of England.”
Elizabeth laughed. Her shivers coming now from the way he held her instead of the cold. “I cannot believe you chose me, William. You could have had any lady you desired over the years.”
“None were you, my love. It is as simple as that. Now tell me, where do you wish to say our vows? Will it be here in Town at Darcy House or at Pemberly? Or will we return to Hertfordshire and marry there?” Mr. Darcy inquired as he pulled gently at the hair gathered in pins at the nape of her neck. He wished to see her with it down, to run his fingers through it.”
Elizabeth reached back and expertly removed the pins holding it, shaking the curls free for his hands. “I shall have to think on that, my love. I want only to be married, the place is not so important.”
Mr. Darcy bent, his mouth hungry for the taste of hers. He kissed her with the restrained passion of a man of character, but his kiss conveyed all his feeling for her. Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him, melting into his warmth.
Mr. Darcy moaned and broke their kiss, his hands still in her hair. “I must go before I take leave of my senses, woman. Go back inside and lock the doors.”
Elizabeth took off his coat and offered it to him. He pulled her close and kissed her again, leaving his coat in her hands. “Keep it, and dream of me tonight.”
She watched him walk down the street and stepped inside, her heart melting in her breast. Her lips were swollen from his kisses, but Elizabeth found she did not mind the tingle. Mr. Darcy was to be her husband and her joy could not be contained.
Jane was waiting for her when she turned to make her way upstairs. “Oh Lizzy, I hoped you might marry Mr. Darcy! Charles has said he will not lease Netherfield again and we shall have a home near Pemberley instead. Is it not the best of news?”
Elizabeth took Jane’s hand and pulled her towards the stairs, “Come to my room and let us gossip as we did in our old room at Longbourn.”
The sisters hurried upstairs and lit a lamp in Elizabeth’s room before burrowing beneath the fine coverlet of the bed. Whispers and giggling ensued as Mr. Bingley wandered the house looking for his wife.
10
March 1812
In a fortnight, Darcy House was the center activity as preparations for the wedding of Mr. Darcy to Miss Elizabeth Bennet were well in hand.
Mr. Darcy had instructed his hot house gardener to bring all blooms to the ballroom so that the housekeeper might have the maids place them accordingly.
Miss Darcy had finished practicing on the piano forte that had been placed in a far corner near the terrace doors. She had been honored when Elizabeth asked her to play before the wedding as their guests arrived.
Mr. Darcy was in his study just off the library speaking with his cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. “How I wish we were holding a double wedding today, Richard. But I know you agree that waiting until after Georgie’s season is best.”
Colonel Fitzwilliam lifted the decanter of port and splashed a generous amount in his own glass after filling that of his cousin and best friend. “Georgiana may have whatever her heart desires when it comes to a courtship and a wedding. I must only serve out my commission and then surrender it. Mother and Father are both quite pleased as they always wished for this match.”
He sat near Mr. Darcy and lifted his glass. “To Miss Elizabeth Bennet, may she ever inspire you to be as pleasant as you have been these past weeks. Now, a bit of bad news I do hate to relay. I have seen Dumont near Bingley House several times. He does not know me, of course, but he does know of the family connection between the Fitzwilliams and Darcys. The engagement announcement will not have gone unnoticed on the part of the Dumonts.”
“He would be a fool to approach Bingley or Elizabeth. I can only imagine he wishes to make amends with my friend and beg his way back into Bingley’s favor. I do not think it would work.” Mr. Darcy drank from his glass, savoring the taste.
“Well, fools can be dangerous, I say. It would not go amiss to warn Bingley and perhaps, Miss Bennet. Though I would hate to see the sweet girl worry so close to her wedding day.” The colonel was earnest in his concern.
“I shall send a footman to Bingley House with a warning but since the wedding is tomorrow, I feel we have little reason to truly be concerned,” Darcy stood and moved to ring the bell by the fireplace to summon a footman.
He moved to his desk and quickly wrote out a note for Bingley. At the end, he wrote a line he knew need not be written as Bingley had protected Elizabeth from Dumont.
“See that my future wife does not become alarmed by our caution. I want her final day as Miss Bennet to be one of joy, anticipation, and preparation for our ceremony without a cloud of apprehension hanging over her.”
At Bingley House, Elizabeth endured the last fitting of her wedding dress and c
hecked that her trunks were packed for a wedding trip north to Pemberley and then on to Scotland where the Fitzwilliam family held a large estate.
She had teased Mr. Darcy about joining hands over the anvil at Gretna Green and he had at first seemed dubious but quickly offered that if it was her wish, he would see it done.
Elizabeth had kissed his cheek spontaneously and declared again how much she loved him. She blushed to think of it now, and hurried downstairs to sneak away from Bingley House for a quick trip to a scent to pay for the cologne she had asked the chemist to make for Mr. Darcy.
She had sat at his counter behind the front area of the shop and smelled each bottle he presented her with to achieve the exact mix she wished to present to her husband. There was a hint of rose mixed with woody notes and cinnamon. It reminded Elizabeth of the outdoors and the scent of leather when Mr. Darcy had taken her to Rotten Row seating her on a gentle mare in the two weeks leading up to their wedding.
He had not insisted she learn to ride as a person might across fields or as a mode of travel, but allowed her to gain confidence along the path that allowed only for a gentle pace. She promised to ride with him daily at Pemberley as he had gained her trust.
Climbing aboard the Bingley carriage, she directed the driver to Old Bond Street. As the sights of London flew by on the quick journey, Elizabeth sighed with satisfaction. Tomorrow, she would be Elizabeth Darcy and only pass the name Bennet to one of her future children as a first or middle name. It made her sad for her father that he had never been blessed with a son.
When she thought of Mr. Bennet as a father and husband, the uncomfortable truth that nagged her returned. He had favored her over her sisters, but his lack of planning and care, and his constant belittling of their mother, though she was a silly woman with a mercurial personality bothered Elizabeth more and more the older she grew.
She hoped that she and Mr. Darcy would never fall into such a pattern. Above all, Elizabeth Bennet wished to be loved and cherished by her future husband, to be respected and admired for more than her face or figure, for more than her ability to bear an heir for her husband.
Mr. Darcy had courted her in a most arduous manner from the moment he proposed. In his carriage on the way to the Gardiner townhouse for a dinner to celebrate their engagement, he had held her close and whispered of how he wished to make her every wish come true, of how their love would only grow with each passing day, each season, each year.
Now, as she stepped down and ordered the driver to wait for her, Elizabeth calmed her racing mind and breathed deeply. She walked confidently inside the shop, her reticule containing the payment for her wedding gift to Mr. Darcy.
When she approached the counter, her feet nearly back on solid ground from her dreaming of the man who held her heart, Elizabeth was brought up short by the sight of Mr. Dumont speaking with a clerk.
Elizabeth’s first thought was to turn and leave. She might return after the wedding, even after the wedding trip, and claim Mr. Darcy’s present. Her heart raced as she backed slowly towards the shop door.
The chemist who had mixed Mr. Darcy’s surprise fragrance came to the counter and noticed Elizabeth before she might exit. He called to her and waved her over. “Miss Bennet, it is fortunate you have arrived at the time I have finished wrapping your gift. I was going to have it sent to Bingley House, but here you are!”
Mr. Dumont turned upon hearing the chemist call out. He sauntered over and offered his arm. “Oh Miss Bennet, imagine my surprise at meeting you here on today of all days. Are you not to be wed on the morrow? Surely there is much you must do yet to prepare?”
Elizabeth ignored his arm and refused to acknowledge his address. Instead she moved toward the counter and smiled at the chemist. “How lovely to know you have completed the task, sir. I do believe Mr. Darcy will be most delighted by the gift and by your service.”
Mr. Dumont came to stand beside Elizabeth as the chemist went to the back to retrieve her package.
“Miss Bennet,” he said, his voice low and full of menace, “I cannot believe a man of Mr. Darcy’s standing has stooped to marry a country chit without a thing to recommend her, not even a pretty face to sweeten the deal.”
Elizabeth turned to him, her face serene. “And yet you stooped, as you say, and offered for my hand. As for Mr. Darcy, you are not even worthy to speak his name. Money cannot cover your wickedness.”
Mr. Dumont raised a hand to Elizabeth and she shrank back, sorry that she had engaged the man at all. Before his hand might strike, Elizabeth felt someone against her back. She managed a surprised squeak as Mr. Darcy’s arms came round her and flinched as his arm caught Mr. Dumont’s blow.
Giving her into the hands of Colonel Fitzwilliam, Mr. Darcy took Mr. Dumont by the arm and hurried him out the back of the shop before anyone could utter a word of astonishment.
Colonel Fitzwilliam offered the answer to the question Elizabeth was too stunned to ask. “We arrived at Bingley House shortly after you had left. The butler who called for the carriage knew of your destination as a footman mentioned to him where you might have gone when pressed. The staff of Bingley House is loyal to you Miss Bennet.”
Elizabeth clasped her trembling hands and breathed deeply to calm herself. “I am quite grateful for the interference even if it does ruin Mr. Darcy’s surprise.”
The chemist came from the back with a perfectly wrapped package. He inquired after the noise and Colonel Fitzwilliam made an apology. “I fear my cousin was forced to defend Miss Bennet’s honor, sir. We shall leave as soon as he returns.”
“Was it that Dumont fellow? Quite the unpleasant one, he is. He shall not be entertained in our shop again if he has offended Miss Bennet.” The chemist smiled at Elizabeth and pushed up his glasses that had slipped down his nose.
He pushed the package across the counter and Elizabeth opened her reticule to pay. The chemist shook his head. “It was an honor to make this for your future husband, Miss Bennet. We may add it to our collection soon and sell it for one and all. But, do not worry. It will be a year or more before we introduce a new cologne.”
With that, the chemist nodded and returned to his work in the back of the shop. The colonel held out his hand. “I will hide your package in my pocket and see that it is in your possession with my cousin being none the wiser when we return to Bingley House.”
Elizabeth gave the parcel to the colonel and thanked him. “You are most kind, Colonel. Will you stay for tea?”
He agreed just as Mr. Darcy entered the shop by the front door. Elizabeth and the colonel seemed confused at this, but Mr. Darcy calmly approached and offered his arm to his beloved. “Shall we return to Bingley House? Mr. Dumont has been dispatched and nary a word shall we hear from him again.”
Elizabeth gasped. Mr. Darcy eased her fears. “I did not kill him, my love. He is not very good at boxing, though. Had we swords at the ready, I might have run him through, but I have a long and happy married life ahead of me. I would not sacrifice that bliss for one so inconsequential as Ferris Dumont. No, he was persuaded to take himself and his sister back to their home in the countryside far north of Pemberley.”
The colonel chuckled at this explanation. “I see your tutelage under my wing has paid off, Darcy.”
The men carried on their banter and Elizabeth quit the shop escorted on one side by her fiancé, and on the other by a member of His Majesty’s finest.
Epilogue
September 1813
Elizabeth left her private sitting room at Pemberley and hurried downstairs to take her seat with Mr. Darcy in the ballroom, making certain her dress was returned to its proper state.
Nanny had brought her son down to nurse in the interest of saving time before the wedding of Miss Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam commenced.
Miss Darcy had enjoyed a wonderful season in Town that began when Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy returned from their wedding trip to the North. Lady Matlock had presented Miss Darcy at court and guided her through her season w
ith Kitty and Mary Bennet.
Elizabeth had been grateful for the assistance from Lady Matlock. Mrs. Bennet could not be counted upon to see that her daughters were instructed on proper etiquette and dress for a season in London.
Lydia Bennet, who sat with her parents behind Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, had thrown terrible tantrums for three months the prior summer since her sisters were allowed to debut. She was made to wait until this year due to her misbehavior with Mr. Wickham.
Mr. Bennet had confided in Elizabeth that Lydia had nearly ran off with the lieutenant when she was in Brighton with the Forsters. Mrs. Forster’s pug had barked the warning the night Lydia had attempted to flee and saved her reputation.
There was a young man interested in her youngest sister, but Mr. Darcy had persuaded Elizabeth’s parents to wait until the new year to allow Lydia to marry. An engagement of six months was not so long.
Now, the entire family was gathered; the Darcys, Bennets, Fitzwilliams, de Bourghs, and Gardiners, as Miss Darcy joined the colonel before the vicar to take her wedding vows and become Mrs. Fitzwilliam.
Mr. Darcy took Elizabeth’s hand and held it gently in his own. His glance, that ended with a squeeze of her hand, showed he was as sentimental as she in the remembrance of their own vows over a year ago at Darcy House in London.
Since that time, Mr. Bingley had given up his lease of Netherfield Park and bought an estate near Pemberley and Jane was expecting their second child. She smiled as Elizabeth glanced at her across the way.
The Gardiners were seated behind Kitty and Mary and their two suitors, who had made their intentions known shortly after the season ended. One was the only son of Mr. Bingley’s solicitor and the other was a cousin of Mr. Darcy from Scotland.
Elizabeth sighed with satisfaction when she saw them all together, but then recalled a double wedding would be held for Mary and Kitty come October.