by Abbey North
She decided right then and there she would like Mrs. Green, who seemed to be a woman of sensible outlook. “Excellent. You may come to Jane or me with any such concerns in future without fear of chastisement, Mrs. Green. Now, we should see our mother.”
That was as delightful an experience as Lizzy had expected. Fanny Bennet was inconsolable, given to moments of shouting and moaning before settling into a glazy-eyed state that was likely a result of too much laudanum. Nothing could comfort her, and she was the first to wail that Jane’s marriage to Mr. Bingley would surely not take place.
Lizzy wanted to chastise her mother for that, seeing how devastated Jane was at the thought. While she secretly shared the fear, she pulled Jane aside and put an arm around her. “Please do not fret about that. Mr. Bingley loves you, and he will take you regardless of Lydia’s actions.”
Jane frowned. “I do believe you are correct, but I am uncertain I can rightfully allow him to do so. We will we tainted by Lydia’s acts. We are all ruined, and is it fair to allow Mr. Bingley to shoulder such a burden by taking me as his bride?”
It was obvious that Jane had already thought about the possibilities. She reminded herself Jane was sensible and levelheaded. She didn’t have to be protected or walked through every scenario like the younger sisters. She put an arm around her sister’s waist and hugged her. “Do not be hasty to be so noble. Let us see what develops. Perhaps Uncle Gardiner can find her before too much damage is done.”
“Oh, the damage is most certainly done. They never made it to Gretna Green, so they must be somewhere in London. Uncle Gardiner posits it’s the only way they could remain hidden like this. It means he has no intention of marrying her.” Mary gave those words with a sniff as she clicked her tongue. “A woman’s reputation is no less brittle than it is beautiful. Why cannot Lydia see that?”
“Why indeed?” Lizzy sighed, resigning herself to hours or days of tending to their mother in hopeless circumstances. She was already ruined, but she hated to see her sisters share a similar fate. As it was, if everyone was discreet, others might never learn she was a soiled dove, but with Lydia’s actions, she had exposed them all to ridicule, gossip, and a reduction in status.
It was with surprise that she saw Darcy waiting at the Gardiners’ residence in Cheapside a few days later when she and Jane accompanied their mother there after being summoned. Judging from the happy smile on Aunt Gardiner’s face, and the less dour look on uncle Gardiner’s, they had happy news.
She couldn’t help thinking at the sight of Darcy how much she had missed having his body beside hers in the narrow bed she slept in at the townhouse. Jane had shared with Mary, so she’d taken the daybed in the attic, and it felt wrong to sleep alone.
She had yearned for him, and not just his body. She had missed the sound of his voice, and the gentle brush of his fingertips against her spine. As she stared at him, Lizzy admitted to herself she loved Darcy more than she ever had, which was foolish on her part.
She should be finding a way to divorce her emotions from him, rather than getting further entangled in them. He had made no secret that once he was finished with her physically, their arrangement would come to an end. She was all kinds of fool to be allowing fantasy to overwhelm common sense.
They were hardly there for such thoughts though, so she waited with bated breath as Uncle Gardiner said, “All has been resolved, dear Fanny.”
Their mother gasped, abruptly looking better than she had in days. She no longer had that glassy-eyed look from laudanum, since Mrs. Green had weaned her off it. Now, color returned to her cheeks, and she did not seem so frail. “How was it done? What has happened?”
“Mist… A family friend has settled matters. Wickham has agreed to take Lydia as his wife, and it has already been done. They had to report immediately to his new regiment, so I am afraid you will not be seeing Lydia for a while, but rest assured, she is a married woman and quite respectable again.” Uncle Gardiner beamed with the news.
Mama looked like she might spontaneously dance in place, and then she swayed slightly, forcing Lizzy and Jane to hold her up for a moment until she regained her strength. “Oh, this is a marvelous outcome. I had feared so much that it would be quite different. The idea of never embracing my poor sweet Lydia again, of having to cut her off…”
Mama sighed. “Of course, we would have done so immediately to preserve my other daughters’ reputations, but I feared it was already too late.” She reached out for her brother, squeezing Uncle Gardiner’s hand. “Thank you for accomplishing this miracle.”
Uncle Gardiner blushed at the effusive praise. “I merely assisted in the matter, dear sister.”
Darcy spoke at that moment. “Miss Jane, Mr. Bingley would like to speak with you about moving up the wedding, since we are all here in London. Would you find that agreeable?”
Jane nodded, and she was quickly distracted by the news. As Fanny cornered Aunt Gardiner to get more details about Lydia, Jane prepared herself to meet Charles at a nearby tearoom so they could discuss the matter.
Lizzy asked, “Shall I come with you as chaperone?”
“It shan’t be necessary,” said Mr. Darcy. “Miss Bingley is accompanying Charles, so it will be proper for them to meet.”
Lizzy could barely hide her grimace at the mention of Caroline, and she suspected she hadn’t been quite as successful as she’d hoped by the way Darcy’s lips twitched. “In that case, I wish you luck.” She kissed Jane on the cheek, and her sister was soon departing in a hansom cab.
She and Darcy had walked Jane out, and they stood together at the end of the walkway, not quite touching, but close enough that she could absorb his heat. “Were you the family friend, Mr. Darcy?”
He hesitated. “I should not like to claim credit for anything.”
She turned to face him, looking directly into his eyes. “Not liking to take credit and being unable to claim credit are two different things. Which is it, Mr. Darcy?”
After another hesitation, he simply nodded. “I could not let it stand that way. If I had mentioned Georgiana’s difficulties with Wickham, and my knowledge of his character, Lydia would not have ended up in such a place where she was vulnerable to his predation.”
Lizzy couldn’t help a small snort. “Lydia probably had her own share of blame in the predation, but I agree, she is too foolish and naïve by far. It is no surprise she succumbed to someone like Wickham.”
“After all, you succumbed to him as well, did you not, Lizzy?” There was a hint of jealousy in his tone.
She frowned at him. “Only briefly, I assure you, Mr. Darcy. Once I became aware of the knowledge you imparted and witnessed his behavior with my own eyes, eyes that were newly awakened by your information, I quickly realized what sort of villain he was. I never anticipated he would end up wooing my young sister though. It is shocking, but I thank you for making the best outcome in the situation, though I pity Lydia being married to that man.”
He seemed to relax with her words, and he nodded. “It did seem a shame to have to shackle her to him, but it was the only way to preserve her reputation, thus preserving the rest of the Bennet sisters’. I am sure you are aware how difficult it would have been for Charles to continue with his marriage to Miss Jane once word leaked out around the Ton of what Lydia had done.”
Lizzy nodded her head. “Of course. And that is why we must be so discreet with our arrangement.” She tilted her head. “I had assumed our arrangement had come to an end, Mr. Darcy. You seemed rather hasty to be out of our presence the morning the news of Lydia’s elopement reached us.”
He shifted slightly, scowling. “I rushed off to handle the matter, not because I was done with our arrangement, Lizzy. I find myself quite undone with that.”
His words could have double meaning. Did he simply mean he was not sated of her yet, or did she make him come undone? She dared hope so for a moment, before scolding herself. It did not do to indulge romantic fantasies about the man with whom she was having
an unmarried fling.
She was his mistress, and that was all she would ever be. If in some scenario he managed not to grow tired of her, she could spend the next forty years with him, which would only ever be as his mistress.
The idea of being his consort on the side while he was married to some other woman, who gave him legitimate heirs and stood by his side in the Ton, was enough to leave a foul taste in her mouth. She could never do that.
The day Darcy decided to take a bride, she would end their arrangement regardless of the cost to herself or family, since she forfeited the settlement if she ended the agreement. She could not stand idly by while he married another, even if he did not love her. As much as she loved her family, she could not bear that pain and disgrace for them or anyone else.
Chapter Eight
Jane and Charles’s wedding was lovely, conducted in the cathedral close to Grosvenor Street. Lizzy viewed them she stood beside her sister, her gaze locking with Darcy’s more than once.
There was a somber, reverent feel to the ceremony, and it was obvious to anyone with eyes that Jane and Charles were very much in love. She had no hint of anxiety that someone would speak out against them when offered such a choice. Miss Bingley doubtlessly wanted to, but she would never be so ill-mannered. The church remained silent at the pertinent point, and the ceremony finished without delay.
After that, they had a wedding breakfast at the Darcy townhouse, and Lizzy was pleased her mother managed to comport herself with an amount of decorum that didn’t immediately mark her as a country bumpkin lacking in manners.
The only negative event for her was a brief meeting with Lady Catherine de Bourgh. She accompanied Mr. Collins and Charlotte, who was now Mrs. Collins. Lizzy had adapted herself to that, and she thought Charlotte looked quite well. If she was not mistaken, Charlotte’s stomach had burgeoned, and her friend was likely expecting, though she couldn’t ask her at the moment in mixed company.
Lady de Bourgh was as cold and opinionated as she had ever been, and Lizzy had not missed her at all since her short stay at Hunsford Rectory. She endured a few sharp criticisms from the older woman before making an excuse to part. She could see de Bourgh was annoyed by her refusal to stand there and accept her unsolicited advice, but Lizzy was too drained to care.
Instead, she walked across the room to stand near her sister, who was preparing to leave for her honeymoon trip. They were visiting the Peak District, though Lizzy doubted they would spend much time outside their marital bed on their wedding trip if Jane was as lucky in passion as she was.
She wished she could discuss it with Jane, to give her some advice, or to warn her that it might hurt a bit, but she couldn’t explain away how she had acquired such knowledge, so she was forced to keep it to herself. Instead, she kissed her sister on the cheek and then accepted a kiss from Charles on the cheek as well. “As my brother, Charles, I implore you to take good care of my sister, and congratulations on your happy marriage, the both of you.”
“Thank you, Lizzy. You kept up my flagging hopes, and I suspect we would not be here without you,” Jane whispered in her ear.
She pulled back slightly and shook her head. “You would not be here without Mr. Darcy’s help. He was the family friend who ensured Wickham did the right thing by Lydia.”
Jane smiled, not looking at all surprised. “I have inferred that, except I suspect it was not for my sake, but for yours.”
Lizzy’s eyes widened. “Whatever do you mean? He specifically stated he did this to ensure your union with Charles would not be challenged.”
“He was probably wise enough to realize that Lydia’s actions would taint us all, making it that much more difficult for him to offer for your hand again. He will be offering in the future. I have no doubt of that.”
Lizzy snorted. “I daresay Mr. Darcy has gotten over the pain that loving me caused long ago. It was simply a twinge of discomfort…more like indigestion than true devotion.”
Jane shook her head, clearly unmoved from her assessment. “My dear sister, you give yourself far too little credit, and far too little credit to Mr. Darcy as well. The way he looks at you, there can be no doubt he will soon ask for you. I doubt his passions can be denied much longer.”
Perhaps Jane might have been correct in a conventional situation, but the truth of the matter was, Darcy’s passions weren’t really being denied. They had been delayed for a few days with the Lydia drama and then the wedding, but he was being physically satisfied overall, and that was surely all he cared about.
Though she could not be privy to the details, if Jane thought a few days of abstinence would be enough to spur Darcy to make a proposal to a woman who was imminently unsuitable for him, her dear sister Jane was even more naïve than she’d considered.
She joined the others in waving them off a short time later, and then the rest of the people started to depart. She saw her mother and sisters preparing to leave, so she moved to join them.
Darcy intercepted her. “You will be staying at the townhouse with us. It is not quite as discreet as Pemberley, but it will do for now. I have already had your things transferred from 14 Glasser Place.”
She scowled up at him. “How am I to explain that?”
His gaze moved to Georgiana, who was currently engaged in conversation with Anne and Lady de Bourgh. “Georgiana still requires a companion, since her current one has fallen ill. That will provide decorum enough, and your room is in a distant section from mine in the house. All will be well, Lizzy, but I do not wish to prolong separation between us for a few more days until we return to Pemberley.”
“And as we know, your wish is my command,” she said with a hint of sarcasm as she nodded at him and moved over to explain to her mother what was happening.
Fanny had apparently already been informed, and she seemed unconcerned about Darcy’s insistence that Lizzy stay at the townhouse. “It is a golden opportunity to snag yourself a fine husband, dear daughter. Follow in Jane’s wise footsteps, and soon you shall have Mr. Darcy offering for you as well.” She giggled. “Oh, to think two daughters having such fine matches. And then dear Lydia, already married to a dashing officer.”
Lizzy barely suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. It amazed her how wicked Wickham had become a fine officer instead of the terrible scoundrel who had tried to lead Lydia astray. Her mother was indeed a shallow creature. “I shall see you soon, Mama.” She nodded to Mary and Kitty.
With a flurry of giggles, the three ladies exited the townhouse, and soon it was just Darcy, Georgiana, and Lizzy.
Georgiana came over to put an arm around her waist. Her easy affection touched Lizzy, and she hugged her in return.
“I was most pleased to hear you will be staying on as my companion for now, since Mrs. Wetzel is ill.” Georgiana frowned. “She did not even seem ill at all yesterday. Whatever the ailment, it has taken her down quickly.”
Her suspicious gaze darted to Darcy. “Yes, indeed. Most quickly.” Had Darcy paid the companion to feign illness to have an excuse to keep her nearby? It seemed well within level of his machinations to believe so. Honestly, she wasn’t even angry with him. She had missed him and being in his bed, and she was looking forward to the night ahead.
After impatiently awaiting, she was finally able to have Darcy to herself when he slipped into her room late that night. Once he shed his night shirt, he slid into bed behind her, pulling her into his arms with his hand resting on her abdomen. She had not bothered with wearing anything to bed, and he moaned with clear delight. “I have missed you, sweeting. You are so beautiful.”
It wasn’t a declaration of love, as she would have preferred, but the words still touched her, and she turned on her back to be able to see him. She blinked back a wave of tears, not wanting to ruin the moment by blubbering. It helped when his hands repositioned and moved higher to explore her breasts. She moaned as he lightly stroked them with a feather-soft touch.
“These are beautiful too.” Tenderly, he bent his head
and ran his tongue carefully over one of her distended buds.
She moaned and thrashed as he paid careful attention to her super-sensitive breasts, stroking and licking the nipples with a deft touch that left her wetter than ever and aching with need.
“You make me want you so much. I have been thinking about this since the day I had to leave Pemberley to find Wickham. My cock is so hard for you, Lizzy.”
She looked down to confirm for herself, mouth watering at the sight of his thick, rigid erection pressing against his stomach, even though he was kneeling partially forward. He must be very hard indeed.
Unable to resist, she slithered down the bed, licking her lips with anticipation. He must have realized her intent, because he met her halfway, offering his cock by pointing it toward her mouth. She wrapped her lips around the tip and sucked lightly, pleased by how his breath hissed through clenched teeth. She stroked him with her tongue, delving into the slit to taste the pre-cum gathering there.
His salty taste sent a jolt of desire through her, and she took in as much as she could, until his head lodged at the back of her throat. She began licking and sucking him, pausing randomly to lick the underside, concentrating on the bundle of nerves there.
He clamped a hand in her hair, perhaps in a show of dominance, but she thought it was more likely because he needed support to stay aloft. Lizzy had discovered a particular talent for this act, and she was really working him over. She savored each hitch of his breath, soft moan, and buck of hips. Suddenly, his grip tightened, and he pulled her head back as he withdrew.
Lizzy gave him a sly smile, knowing exactly what had prompted his abrupt withdrawal. He’d almost come.
“I require a moment to regain control.” He sounded shaky. “Your mouth is like velvet, but I want to be inside your quim.”
