by Jennifer Kay
Elizabeth froze in shock, and for a moment she could only gape at him as her mind struggled to catch up.
“I never thought to see you speechless,” Mr. Darcy remarked, but worry crossed his face.
She forced herself to speak, to put him at ease. “Mr. Darcy, I—you caught me off guard, sir. I never expected—that is, oh, drat it! I can put words together better than a simpleton.” Elizabeth took another deep breath and pulled her thoughts into order. “Yes, I will marry you, if you are certain you want me.”
His face relaxed into the most jubilant smile she’d ever seen him wear. “There is nothing I want more.”
Still she held back, hesitating. “Even though you will have to endure my mother, and Mrs. Wickham as my sister, and two other silly sisters besides? Even though I cannot introduce Georgiana to anyone important, and my dowry will do nothing to grow your estate?”
“You, Elizabeth, more than make up for any obstacles or inconveniences that could be laid against our marriage. If you only knew how I had suffered through the last—” he stopped abruptly, and she smiled, believing him at last.
“The last three and forty days, sir?”
His eyes met hers, and the intensity in his gaze took Elizabeth’s breath away. “William,” he said roughly. “Call me William. Not sir.”
A knot of worry she hadn’t even noticed was melting from beneath her breast bone and turning into a joy so intense it frightened her. “William,” she mused, drawing the name out as if tasting its syllables.
“My God, Elizabeth,” he murmured. “If you knew how you enchant me, you would not ask if I am sure. You have haunted me since our meeting in Lambton; I cannot close my eyes without seeing yours staring back at me.”
“Then why did you ignore me in London?” she burst out, shocking both of them. “I was haunted as well, and you could scarcely look at me. I was convinced you wanted nothing more to do with me; I lost what little hope I had left.”
Darcy drew her back to him, his thumb gently brushing away the single tear that had fallen. “You came to Town for your sister’s sake, and I did not want to intrude, especially when I was not sure that I would be welcome. It did not feel proper to think of my own hopes when Lydia’s situation was so precarious—I could not bear to add to your anguish. And at the church, I did not wish to draw Wickham’s attention to you. He can be vindictive, and I am afraid I bring out the worst in him. The last thing I wanted was for you to be caught in the crossfire.”
“What could he have done in a church?” Elizabeth asked.
Darcy shook his head. “Any number of things. He could have said that Lydia was being forced to marry him, or that Mr. Gardiner did not have your father’s permission to act as a guardian, and thus prevented wedding. He could have claimed he was not free to marry Lydia because you had already married him in secret—or Georgiana had. There are a great number of other things that Wickham might have done or said that would never occur to me as they would to a desperate man, and Wickham has always been inventive.” He sighed. “It is a shame he chose not to study the law when I gave him money to do so, for he would have made a good barrister. In any case, I thought the safest thing to do was to keep Wickham from seeing that you meant anything to me.”
Elizabeth considered this. Yes, she could see Wickham attempting to get his revenge on Darcy using her. Then another thought struck her. “My letter…” Elizabeth began, then trailed off.
“Your letter gave me more hope than even our encounter at Lambton had,” Darcy said. “Not only did you write back to me, but to hear that there was nothing for you to forgive, that you thought of me with fondness rather than anger—I very nearly followed you to Hertfordshire that very day. I would have, save that my guests had long been neglected and I hated leaving Georgiana alone with Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst for so long. I only wish the letters I sent to you, the first one especially, could have caused such joy rather than pain.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “Do not worry; it was necessary pain, for it lead to the happiness that is before us now. You must learn some of my philosophy. Think only of the past as its remembrance gives you pleasure.” She hesitated. “But—did you say that Mr. Bingley has truly returned? We heard a rumor that he was coming, but I refused to believe it.”
Darcy smiled. “I will save my argument on your philosophy for another day, for I am sure we could pass many hours in debate. Yes, Mr. Bingley has returned, and I will answer what you did not ask: he has come intending to renew his advances towards Miss Bennet. In fact, he has come specifically to see her again.”
“Oh, I am so glad!” Elizabeth exclaimed. “I could not be truly happy while Jane suffers such disappointment.”
“Then I will support the match even more than I was planning to do,” Darcy said, earning himself a brilliant smile in response. He glanced around swiftly, then drew a willing Elizabeth farther into their patch of wilderness so he could kiss his betrothed thoroughly without fear of being observed.
*
Two days passed before Mr. Bingley called at Longbourn, and Elizabeth would have been much vexed with him, had Darcy not explained that his friend had previously received invitations to other households in the neighborhood and did not want to offend anyone by ignoring all but the Bennets. After all, he planned to remain in the neighborhood for the foreseeable future, and social obligations must be tended to.
“Still, he could at least make a short call,” Elizabeth commented on the morning of the second day. She wanted Mr. Bingley to be well-liked and respected by her neighbors—it would only help Jane in the long run—but it also meant Jane had had to suffer for two extra days.
“Do you truly think he could tear himself away, once he came back to her?” Darcy asked. “Could I leave you now if my other option was listening to Sir William drone on about St. James for a quarter of an hour?”
“If you thought it necessary, you could,” Elizabeth replied easily, with the confidence that came from two days of steady affection. They had met once again in the wilderness by Oakham Mount, and Elizabeth was now perched on Darcy’s leg, leaning back against him and reveling in the feel of his warm body behind her. “Let it be known that I am very glad you do not find it necessary.”
His arms tightened around her middle, and he kissed the spot just under her ear. “We will call this afternoon. Bingley shall be delighted and delightful. I will glower and stare and bemoan the fact that I cannot make everyone else disappear so I can be alone with you once again.”
Elizabeth laughed. “Thank you for the warning—William.” The name was still new to her, but she was working on using it more often. “I will do my best to look tolerable.”
Darcy stood, swinging her up in his arms, and kissed her nose. “You, my dear, are nothing short of enchanting.” He paused, then said, “I also mean to talk to your father today. Would you like to speak with him first?”
Elizabeth considered, then shook her head. “No. I am sure he will wish to speak with me afterwards, but he will not refuse his consent if it is what I want.” She grinned. “You might make mention of Pemberley’s library, though.”
He smiled back and set her on her feet. “Like Mr. Gardiner and fishing, I see how it is. Very well, I will keep that in mind. And Elizabeth—I will not tell him about my involvement with Lydia and Wickham, but if you wish to do so, I would not stop you. I know your father is dear to you, and I do not want to start our marriage with lies. Now I must go, for I promised Bingley I would be back by noon, and he is liable to leave without me if I am even a minute late.”
She smiled up at him, then stood on tiptoe for one last kiss. “Send a letter if you’re called away to save a princess in distress. It sounds like the kind of thing that would happen to you, and I’m not sure I can survive any more uncertainty.”
He bowed gallantly over her hand. “If I hear from any princesses, they will simply have to wait. I’ve found my lady, and I’ve wasted too much time with her already. Now begone! The sooner I leave, th
e sooner I will see you again. And I will look forward to meeting you here tomorrow so we can actually talk without your entire family listening in.”
Elizabeth gave Darcy a final impish grin, then hurried off down the path to Longbourn. Tomorrow would dawn on a very different day, she thought as she walked, full of stressful duties as well as joyful ones, and there would be much to discuss when she saw Darcy again. There would be Mrs. Bennet’s excessive exclamations to endure, concern and confusion from Mr. Bennet that must be addressed, and Elizabeth shuddered slightly to think of what Lady Catherine would do upon hearing the news.
But to balance all of the trials there would be smiles from Jane and more kisses from her betrothed. Darcy had written to Georgiana with the news, and Elizabeth could not wait to hear her delight. Then Elizabeth realized that there was one more person who must be acquainted with the happy development. She and Darcy agreed that they owed much of their current understanding to her dear aunt and uncle, and she had already denied them two days of happiness.
Smiling as she imagined her aunt’s reaction, Elizabeth picked up her pace. If she hurried, there would be just enough time to start her letter before all the excitement began.
*
My dearest aunt,
I have been a poor correspondent since leaving London, and I hope to make up for my silence now, with news that I know will bring you joy. Give a loose rein to your fancy, indulge your imagination in every possible flight which the subject will afford, and unless you believe me actually married, you cannot greatly err. I know you were disappointed to leave Lambton with childhood haunts yet unvisited, and I hope we shall soon be able to remedy that problem. You are invited to Pemberley for Christmas…
Want to hear more from Jennifer Kay?
Check out the following titles on Amazon.
Before A Fall: A Pride and Prejudice Reimagining
Darcy’s Tempest: A Pride and Prejudice Short Story
A Lady’s Pride: A Pride and Prejudice Reimagining
About the Author
Jennifer Kay started writing stories in Kindergarten. She rarely got past designing the cover, but the habit stayed with her, and before long the covers turned into short stories and the stories into novels. In college, Jen discovered Pride and Prejudice and it's safe to say life has never been the same. She has a minor in English but primarily writes as an escape from her day job in engineering - and yes, all her coworkers call her crazy. Jen lives a long way from Pemberley with her very own Mr. Darcy and a very regal cat. She can be reached at [email protected].
