There were quite a few more cousins sharing the nursery this evening. Bingley's two rambunctious boys and twin two-year old girls added their own charm to the happy group. Bingley and Jane were as cheerful as parents as in everything else. Their Shropshire estate was always a happy place and they welcomed visits from the rest of the family with love and joy.
Spotting Bingley and Jane across the floor reminded Darcy of another couple that was not there that night. The Hursts had been invited, but no one really expected them to come, especially not in early February. The couple rarely left London except during the hunting season, and then they accepted any and all offers of hospitality from those with country houses. Hurst loved his sport and never seemed happier during those autumn days than when he was heading out with gun in hand. He usually brought in enough birds to fill the larder and pay for his keep.
The rest of the year they spent in Bingley's townhouse. Once Bingley and Jane had the two boys, they realized they would not make much use of the London house themselves, so Bingley let his sister and her husband live there rent-free while requiring them to pay the staff and household expenses themselves. Even that was a better deal to Hurst than hovering around his father's estate waiting to inherit. He paid the bills, if not gladly then at least regularly.
Lady Putnam, the former Miss Caroline Bingley, and her husband, Sir Leonard were also not present, but in their case, it was due to a lack of invitation. That couple would have jumped to attend with any invitation, given or implied. Despite the advantage of title and old family, they had skated on the edge of respectability since shortly after their marriage, when Sir Leonard made several questionable investments. He lost most of his wife's dowry and became a subject of investigation by the government. In addition, Lady Putnam's haughty airs and sharp tongue made her a target for derision and disgust among the ladies of the Ton. Even Bingley agreed with the comment Richard had once made that it was blessing that they had no children to inherit either their disgrace or their personalities.
Mr. Bennet had better luck with both the government and establishing an inheritance. His petition to break the entail on Longbourn had languished in the courts for over a year despite the combined efforts of Mr. Phillips and Darcy's London solicitor to have it brought forward sooner. Once it received notice, however, the request was quickly granted, and Mr. Bennet could will the estate to whomever he wished. As they had discussed when arranging the settlements for Lydia, Jane and Elizabeth, Mr. Bennet willed the estate to the oldest daughter whose husband was willing to take on the name of Bennet in place of a dowry. The only other stipulation was that Mrs. Bennet would have the right to a small allowance from the income for the remainder of her lifetime and rent-free occupation of the dower house Mr. Bennet proceeded to build on a portion of the home farm that had never produced very well in the past.
So, a year later, when Mary was wed to the music master who had started by coming from St. Albans once a week to teach pianoforte and progressed to making more frequent trips to court Mary, she became Mrs. Bennet, not Mrs. Harris. The happy couple settled into the newly-built dower house and Mr. David Harris Bennet took over much of the running of the estate from his father-in-law while continuing to provide music lessons in the area to a small group of students. The sitting room of the dower house featured a beautiful pianoforte that Darcy and Elizabeth gave them as a wedding present. Its sounds often filled the four-bedroom house as both Mary and David loved to play on it, although now it also had use from their five-year old daughter, Susan. She currently played with a style reminiscent of her mother's early habits but was certain to improve with age and practice. Little Davy, at only two, was too young to do more than randomly pound on the keys yet, but it was likely he would join his parents and sister in their love of music as he grew older.
Darcy saw Kitty and Georgiana laughing with their husbands as they went to join the set just forming on the dance floor. Kitty had felt the need for a great deal more training regarding proper behavior in society after meeting Georgiana. They spent whatever time they could together and eventually came out together along with Maria Lucas. Maria married in her second season to the heir of a small estate in Dorset. Because of the distance, she and her husband were also not there that evening, although they were always invited to family gatherings and had attended some of the summer events. Kitty and Georgiana were hard to please, both turning down offers from men they either did not care for or did not respect. Finally, in their fourth season, they accepted proposals from a pair of brothers. Better yet, both brothers had estates that were within ten miles of each other, Kitty's husband being the heir and Georgiana's husband having a nearby estate he inherited from his mother's family. They each had a young daughter, born within two months of each other, and the two girls were part of the crowd of children filling the nursery upstairs.
From nearby Darcy heard Lydia's distinctive laugh. It was not as loud as it had been the first time that he noticed it at the assembly in Meryton. With age and the gentle guidance of her husband, as well as the experience of being a mother, Lydia had matured into a respectable woman who behaved properly at all public events. Her six-year old son, named Terrance after his father, had shown himself a leader in the nursery games. For her part, Lydia still loved balls, parties and lace when she was allowed any or all of them. Her ability to identify the most attractive colors to suit a woman caused all her sisters and the other related females to consult her when they needed a special gown. Colonel Denny was proud of his wife now, although the early years of their marriage had been somewhat rocky.
Darcy was glad the sage-green color he so loved met with Lydia's approval for Elizabeth. The newest creation in that color adorned his wife this evening, much to his delight. He still had the original ribbon token she had given him when they were courting; it was a treasured keepsake. All the same, he preferred to see the color on his wife, especially when they attended a dance.
Glancing around again Darcy could see Mr. Bennet had already escaped to the library. Even during a ball, he would hide away there if he could. Despite Elizabeth's frequent invitations and descriptions of the delights he would find, her father had waited for three years after the triple wedding to overcome his dislike of travel enough to make a trip to Pemberley. Darcy insisted on being present when Elizabeth showed him the library for the first time. As he expected, the look of dumbfounded amazement on his father-in-law's face was priceless. Pemberley's library was the work of several generations of dedicated bibliophiles. On seeing it, Mr. Bennet declared he was now in heaven. Getting him to leave was now much harder than convincing him to visit.
"Who are you looking for?" Elizabeth asked him.
"Oh, I was just checking to see if your father was still here. It seems he has made his escape once again."
"Yes," Elizabeth laughed. "He snuck out two dances ago. I saw him evade both Uncle Gardiner and Uncle Phillips before slipping out one of the side doors."
"Well, at least we know he is not getting into any trouble," Darcy said.
"Unlike Alexander and Ben, you mean? Miss Harwood quelled the rebellion upstairs early tonight. I checked on the crowd in the nursery while you were dancing with Mary. The three older boys, along with Terrance, are in a room of their own and one of the maids is assigned to keep them there. Without them to disrupt things the younger ones are all behaving beautifully."
"I should have known you had already checked. You seemed so relaxed when we enjoyed our waltz."
"I always enjoy our waltzes. Do you remember on our wedding day how you told me you had dreamed we were waltzing together?"
"Yes. I thought that was the happiest day of my life, but here we are, ten years on, and each day just seems to be brighter and happier than the last. Thank you, Elizabeth, for being willing to travel this journey with me."
"Thank you, my dear, for listening to your dreams."
Smoky Dreams Page 36