by Leenie Brown
“Of course,” William muttered as he fidgeted with his hat once again.
Darcy rose along with William and made all the proper introductions when Richard and Georgiana entered the room.
A sound as if the wind had been knocked out of him emanated from William, causing him to be only able to stammer a greeting and Darcy to chuckle. It was similar to how Darcy had felt when first introduced to William’s sister. A Bingley William might not be, but anyone who would take Wickham in hand – quite literally – as William had for his sister was not a man Darcy would brush aside – even if that gentleman had caused a great deal of distress with his foolishness.
“You will have to excuse Mr. Bennet’s appearance.” Darcy motioned for them all to be seated. “He has just come from extracting his displeasure on a fellow whose lies caused his sister some grief.”
Richard, who had been looking at William, turned quickly to Darcy with a questioning look.
“Colonel, Miss Darcy!” Bingley cried as he entered the room. “Good heavens what happened to you?” he said as he took in the appearance of William. “This is not Darcy’s doing, is it?”
Darcy laughed. “No. I have not laid one finger on Mr. Bennet.”
“Though he would be well within his rights if he did,” William added.
“I am confused,” Georgiana said. “Why would my brother wish to harm Mr. Bennet?”
William blew out a breath and shook his head. “Because I was a fool and listened to a tale about your brother that was not true. However, I chose to believe it and was less than willing to allow him to be accepted by my sister.”
Georgiana’s eyes grew wide. “I beg your pardon? My brother has made an offer to someone?”
“I have,” Darcy answered. Joy swelling in his heart at the admission.
“You have?” Richard nearly shouted.
“Yes, I have and so has Bingley,” Darcy replied, attempting to shift some of the attention from himself.
“Both of you?” Richard began to laugh. “I had heard tell that there were some beauties in the area, but so soon?”
“They are the most beautiful ladies in Hertfordshire,” William’s voice held a decided edge to it.
Darcy chuckled silently. Not even a colonel would be tolerated to even hint at disrespecting William’s sisters.
“He does not exaggerate,” Bingley replied.
“Well, I am happy for you, but I thought that I was needed to convince someone of Darcy’s worth.”
“That would be me,” William said. “I need no further convincing. I believe I know all I need to know.” He rubbed the area below his swollen lip. “I had a discussion with the fellow who lied to me, and after some persuasion, he told me the truth.”
Richard leaned back, folded his arms, and smiled approvingly at William. “I do hope the other fellow looks at least as damaged as you do.”
William’s lips curled into a smile as best they could and said, “I have very few injuries comparatively.”
To which Richard responded by calling William a fine fellow. Then he shook his head. “Then I am unneeded? There is nothing with which you require my assistance.”
“Oh, no!” William said quickly. “There is an assembly next week, and there seems to never be enough gentlemen to dance with the ladies.” He shrugged. “And I would like for once not to have to listen to my sisters complain about being left standing and not being able to dance every set.”
“An assembly, you say?” Richard rubbed his chin. “I do like to dance, and since it is a country assembly, we might even allow Georgiana to attend, mightn’t we?” He looked at Darcy hopefully.
“She is not out yet,” Darcy answered.
“But it is a country assembly, and your betrothed will be there, will she not?”
“Yes,” William replied, “and her four sisters. Three of whom have not yet been spoken for.”
“You would throw your sisters at him, yet refuse Darcy?” Bingley asked.
“I have heard everything I need to know about Colonel Fitzwilliam,” William replied with a smirk. “The fellow I spoke to and who blackened my eye has a healthy fear of the man, and that is a good enough recommendation for me.”
“He should fear me,” Richard muttered.
“Who?” Georgiana asked. “You all seem to know who this fellow is, and I would like to know.”
“No,” Darcy answered. “You would not.”
“I am certain I would,” she replied.
Darcy shook his head.
“He is not worth your notice,” William replied. “A total scoundrel.”
“Aye,” Bingley agreed. “That he is.” He clapped his hands together. “Have you been shown to your rooms?”
“No,” Georgiana answered.
“Then, that must be done.” Bingley turned to Darcy. “Shall we make it a grand party which calls at Longbourn today?”
Darcy smiled and clapped William on the shoulder. “We are going to Longbourn now. Apparently, William would like my help in persuading his sister to speak to him.”
Bingley laughed. “As if she will notice more than you.” He waved toward the door. “While Darcy is off courting his lady, allow me to make you comfortable by directing you to your rooms.”
“Shall we?” Darcy asked William. “You might not be anxious to see your sister, but I will not lie. I am.”
Darcy gathered his hat and coat, and then, the two men stepped out into the bright light of the day, both happy to be on their way to Longbourn. One hopeful to be forgiven, and the other to put his short agonizing wait to an end.
Chapter 16
Elizabeth knocked on the door to her father’s study before opening it. “You wished to see me?”
“No,” her father replied with a smile. “But William does, and I did not expect you to come if I told you that.” He rose from his chair and crossed the room. “I think I shall go torment your mother’s nerves for a while.” He stopped in front of her and took her by the shoulders. “You are not to leave this room until this is settled.” His lips curled up on one side in a small smirk. “And I have no doubt that it will be settled soon.” He kissed her cheek and left the room.
“Lizzy?” William, who had been sitting in front of his father’s desk, rose and turned toward her.
Elizabeth gasped, and her hand flew to her mouth. Whatever sharp welcome she had thought to give him died on her lips.
“I have heard the whole ugly truth – or as much of it as I could extract – from Mr. Wickham. I know you said I should hear it from Mr. Darcy, but…” he stopped talking and looked at the floor.
“But what?” Elizabeth questioned as she crossed to him. She gently touched his eye. “Does it hurt?”
“Not as much as my lip or my heart.” He took her hand.
“Why did you not go to Mr. Darcy?” Elizabeth asked again.
“Because he was not the cause of my blindness to reason. Mr. Wickham was, and since I could not thrash myself for having caused you pain, I thought I might be able to thrash him and receive my just dues in the process.”
“William!” Elizabeth scolded. “When will you stop censuring and calling out every gentleman who appears to do me harm? You did call him out, did you not?”
William nodded. “But, instead of swords, we met with only our hands as weapons, and not in a field. We met at a club where gentlemen tend to do this sort of thing for sport.”
“You men are a funny lot,” Elizabeth muttered.
“I will never stop protecting you, Lizzy,” he added. “At least not until that responsibility falls on another.” He sighed and dropped her hand. “I do not feel worthy of your forgiveness. I have been an utter fool.” He shook his head and rolled his eyes upward. “Likely the greatest fool in all of England.”
“You were foolish,” Elizabeth agreed. “But, you know the truth about Mr. Darcy now?”
“Mostly. Wickham would not tell me part of why he was attempting to tarnish Darcy’s name, but I know about his dissip
ate behaviour and his refusal of the living, as well as his attempt to later claim it. You were correct. There were reasons for the refusal. I should have bowed to your greater abilities to reason things, but I was so determined to make certain you were not tying yourself to someone of questionable character that I convinced myself you were only protesting because he was handsome and rich.” He grimaced as she glared at him. “Yes, that was ill-thought-out.”
“Indeed.”
He should know better than to think so of her. She had often told him and Jane that she would not marry any gentleman whom she did not feel she could respect, or whom she thought would not respect her. Admiration was longed for, of course, and wealth could not be ignored, but it was the character of a gentleman which would recommend him most strongly to her.
“All my thinking was rather faulty.” He was looking at the floor once again. “And I should be very sorry if such foolishness has created a breach of a permanent nature between us.”
“You hurt me.” Elizabeth placed a hand on his cheek, causing him to look at her. “Not just by separating me from Mr. Darcy, whom I love, but by not valuing my judgment.”
He leaned his cheek into her hand as a tear slid from his swollen eye. “I know. I have buffeted myself in spirit most severely for two days for that.”
“You will not do it again?”
He sighed. “I shall attempt not to, but I cannot promise success.”
“It is good enough.” She removed her hand from his cheek and opened her arms to him in invitation. “You are forgiven.”
He wrapped her in his large arms, crushing her against him, and thanked her over and over.
“I was not certain if you would forgive me,” he said when he released her. “So, I brought something with me that might help ensure my success.”
She looked around the room, but she did not see any gifts.
“It is not in here,” he said. “He is in the garden, waiting to see you.”
Her hand flew to her heart as a smile spread across her face. “He? Mr. Darcy? Is Mr. Darcy here?”
William nodded his head. “I went to beg his forgiveness before I came home. I was fearful that Mother would not allow me out of her sight once she saw me.”
“Has she seen you?”
“No, I came through the servant’s entrance, and I intend to wash and put on fresh clothes before she does.”
Elizabeth chuckled. “That will help you some, but not completely.” Their mother was not one to take an injury to any of her children with any amount of composure. A wound to one of her children was always the most severe of that sort she had ever seen.
“I have already obtained all the potions and tinctures she will require,” he added. “Now, while I sneak upstairs to make myself somewhat presentable to our mother, you should escape to the garden.”
Elizabeth threw her arms around him. “Though you are a fool at times, I could not ask for a better brother. I love you and am so happy I will not have to be parted from you, for I would still choose Mr. Darcy.”
He squeezed her tightly and then released her. “I am glad to hear it. I should not want any of my sisters to choose me over their husbands. Now, go. And when you are done in the garden, if you could distract Mother with Mr. Darcy, I would appreciate it greatly. She will be more forgiving of my stupidity if she knows I have made amends in such a fashion.”
Elizabeth tipped her head. “Perhaps I will, or perhaps I will send Mr. Darcy home, so that you can suffer as you should.”
“You said you forgave me,” he reminded her.
“Yes, and I will not withdraw that, but there are consequences to all actions, are there not?”
“Please, Lizzy,” he begged.
She said not a word in reply, choosing instead to only smile and shrug before leaving the room. She was happy to have their relationship restored, and she was nearly positive she would invite Mr. Darcy in just so she could have him near for longer. However, she was not above enjoying making her brother feel uneasy for just a while longer.
~*~*~
Mr. Darcy was waiting for her.
The thought made her smile as she put on her pelisse, and it caused her breath to catch as she saw him, pacing a circuit at the far end of the garden nearest the servant’s entrance. It was a portion of the garden that could not be seen from the sitting room. William must have either been hiding Mr. Darcy from their mother, or he wished to give her a private place to be reunited with Mr. Darcy. Whatever his motivation might have been, she was glad that Mr. Darcy was here where they could speak in private.
He turned toward her just at that moment, and a beautiful smile spread across his face. A smile that was just for her and because of her. Jane was right. It was very romantic to have a gentleman respond to you in such a demonstrative fashion.
“It has been a long two days,” he said as she approached him.
“It has,” she agreed.
He extended his arm to her. “Would you care to take a turn around the garden?”
She placed her hand on his arm but shook her head. “There is a bench to our right. I would rather sit there.” There she would be guaranteed of not being interrupted by some sister being sent out by their mother to act as a chaperone.
“If that is what you prefer.” He led her down the short path to the bench. “I was surprised to see your brother this morning. I had thought it would be longer before he came to see me.”
Elizabeth allowed him to pull her close as they sat down. “I was surprised as well, though I should not be, I suppose.”
“He cares for you very much,” Darcy said, putting words to Elizabeth’s thoughts.
“He does.”
“He is not the only one who cares for you,” Darcy lifted her fingers and kissed them. “Will you still have me? Even after I walked away from you?”
“You have no need to apologize,” she chided. “Your actions were beyond reproach. I, on the other hand, was once again demanding and that caused the whole ordeal. William would not have made his demand as he did if I had not provoked him. Of course, I would not have provoked him if he had not challenged you, so the beginnings of the wrong lie with him. However, I am still at fault.”
He placed a finger on her lips. “Will you still have me?”
She nodded, and he removed his finger from her lips. “If you will still have me.”
“I cannot imagine living without your demanding person at my side. Two days without you was enough.” He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer to him. “I love you, Elizabeth. I do not know how you stole my heart so quickly, but you have. And I do not want it back. Keep it and care for it for now and always.”
She rested her head against his shoulder right above where she could hear his heart beating. It was a wonderful, reassuring sound. “Seeing as you have my heart, it seems only proper that I keep yours in return.” She took his free hand and held it between both of hers. “I love you, though, like you, I do not know how it happened so quickly, but this closeness we share feels as if it has always been.”
“Perhaps that is how it is supposed to be.”
“Perhaps,” she agreed.
They sat as they were, her head resting against his shoulder while she held his hand, for several minutes.
“William is hoping I will invite you in so that Mama will be too happy to be put out with him. She was very displeased when Papa told her about him challenging you and demanding I chose you or him.”
Darcy laughed. “I can imagine any mother would be upset with a son for driving away a suitor.”
“Seeing us well-married is my mother’s sole goal in life aside from having her dinner parties spoken about for longer than her sister’s ever are.”
“I shall remember that and praise her when I can. It is best for a gentleman to keep his mother-in-law happy, or so my father said.”
Elizabeth giggled. She would enjoy continuing to learn about him. “Well, then, I suppose I must invite you in and not just because I
do not wish to have you ever leave me again.”
They rose reluctantly from the comfort of their secluded spot in the garden.
“I am not returning you to the house without a kiss and a promise that you will not suffer me to wait too long before we marry.” He wrapped her in his embrace.
“I had hoped you would kiss me,” she admitted, tipping her face up to look at him and meet his lips as they descended to hers.
There would be three months to wait for the wedding, but as Darcy and Elizabeth waited, this corner of the garden, as well as Elizabeth’s favourite tree on the knoll, would know many of their secrets and witness many ardent kisses such as this one. And with each meeting, whether it was on the knoll, in a drawing room, or on a dance floor, Elizabeth would find herself delighted by the love that she found and was constantly reminded of as she began the lifelong pleasure of learning about the man who held her now.
William would be sorry to see her leave Longbourn. However, in a year’s time, he would find his way to London to spend a season with the sister he loved best in all the world while he sought to prove himself worthy of a brother’s good opinion while hoping that brother would prove to be far less foolish than he had been while assessing Mr. Darcy.
Confounding Caroline Excerpt
If you enjoyed this unique take on how Darcy and Elizabeth found their happily ever after, then you might enjoy my Marrying Elizabeth Series which follows our dear couple’s journey from the first acknowledgment of feelings through several obstacles as their love grows on their way to happily ever after. The first obstacle which must be overcome is Caroline Bingley. The story of how that all unfolds can be found in book one, Confounding Caroline. The first chapter of this story can be found below.
Chapter 1
Fitzwilliam Darcy handed his coat and beaver to his friend’s butler, while that friend, Charles Bingley, leaned nonchalantly against the sitting room’s door frame. The soft glow of a lamp, which remained lit, shone behind him, indicating that Bingley had been engaged in some activity in the room before which he now stood.