by APRIL FLOYD
Elizabeth joined them. “Yes, there is hope. I cannot think your aunt might go against her daughter’s wishes now if Miss Anne accepts the colonel’s offer.”
The silence above them was encouraging and in moments, the colonel came dashing down the stairs. He ran into the parlor, his face fixed with an incredulous grin. “She said yes! Anne said yes!”
The parlor erupted in congratulations but quieted as Catherine de Bourgh entered, her countenance severe. “There will be no wedding…,” she paused and looked at her nephew in his red coat, “until Autumn.”
The colonel grabbed his aunt and kissed her cheek before twirling her about the room. She laughed, a sight Elizabeth had never seen and suddenly she understood the appeal the woman held for her grandfather. She was beautiful when she was happy.
When at last Mrs. de Bourgh’s feet again touched the floor, the earl made his way to her side. “I cannot keep it secret a moment longer myself,” he said, his eyes shining as he looked up on his beloved’s face, “Mrs. de Bourgh shall become my countess, my Lady Matlock.”
Elizabeth gasped and Mr. Darcy placed his arm around her waist. “Hill,” he called to his housekeeper as the parlor again erupted in happiness, “bring plenty of wine because Miss Bennet, my Elizabeth, accepted my offer of marriage last evening. She will become my wife.”
A half hour after the celebration in the parlor quieted a bit, Elizabeth made her way upstairs to Miss Anne’s room.
“Miss Elizabeth! How happy I am to see you again. Did you hear my news? Richard and I will wed when the leaves fall again.”
Elizabeth sat carefully on the bed beside her new friend. “I did and he is as radiant as you are about the news, my dear! Will it not be fun to plan all the weddings?”
Anne’s brows shot up in surprise. “What have I missed trapped here in my bed? Has mother caught your grandfather, then?”
“She has!” Elizabeth said and laughed with the young lady before telling her of Mr. Darcy’s proposal.
“It has all come right in the end. I knew William loved you and I hoped you two might mend the misunderstandings between you. He is so fortunate you gave him another chance.”
“I am the fortunate one,” Elizabeth said and accepted the hug Anne offered.
“We shall be family! Will you marry William soon? Oh, and your family, what will they say?”
Elizabeth eased Anne’s fears. “My father will be happy for me but my mother shall remain cross. My sisters will not mind, but they all may wonder whether Grandfather has lost his mind.”
Anne frowned but Elizabeth took her hand. “Grandfather and I are obstinate and headstrong, you see. They have always known it and so will accept our choices in time. It matters little as both he and I shall be incandescently happy.”
The two young ladies laughed and talked of all the weddings to plan and the trips. Soon Mr. Darcy, the colonel and Mrs. de Bourgh joined them before Georgiana came upstairs and sent them all away. “There is much Anne and I must speak about in private. Leave us be for a time.”
Elizabeth quit the room with the rest of Anne’s family and in the hallway, she embraced Mrs. de Bourgh. “You have made my grandfather happier than I have seen him in many years. I do wish you both all the happiness in the world.”
Mr. Darcy smiled with pride at the grace his future wife displayed. Mrs. de Bourgh placed a hand on Elizabeth’s cheek and smiled the way she had in the parlor earlier. “Thank you, Miss Bennet. I see how happy you have made my nephew and I am so grateful for all you have done for my Anne. Darcy told me it was you who found her too. You have been a blessing to my family.”
Elizabeth took the woman’s hand and the two walked downstairs with the colonel and Mr. Darcy.
Epilogue
Elizabeth Darcy placed her child in Georgiana Bingley’s arms and took the post from Hill. A package had arrived from her grandfather and she wondered what he and Lady Matlock had sent all the way from Derbyshire.
She tore the paper off and pulled open the box. Inside were a pair of wine glasses and two place settings carefully wrapped. The gold encircling the plates was lovely and Elizabeth ran her thumb along the edge of one plate. She noticed a card inside and read it quickly.
It was a note of congratulations on her first wedding anniversary that had passed only a few weeks ago. Hill had gone out and come in again. “Mistress, there is a wagon out front with another gift from your grandfather.”
Elizabeth looked to Georgiana and the two giggled. “Let us go and see!” she said after regaining her composure.
Hill took little Philip Bennet Darcy from his Aunt Georgiana and smiled as the babe grasped her finger. A new babe at Longbourn had made the housekeeper into a surrogate grandmother.
The two sisters by marriage hurried outside to find a large, ornate dining room table on the back of the wagon. Elizabeth sent Georgiana to fetch Mr. Darcy. The driver jumped down and handed Elizabeth another card and tipped his hat.
“Where would you like it Mrs. Darcy?” he asked.
Mr. Darcy arrived before she might answer and kissed his wife on the cheek before reading the card over her shoulder. He laughed as the words from his Aunt Catherine leapt off the page. “Darcy never did want a new dining room table, but since he is rebuilding parts of Longbourn, tell him to put this one in the new, larger dining room for you and his growing family.”
Elizabeth watched her husband lead the driver behind the house and call for his workmen to help unload the large table. She looked again at the note and then held it to her chest. How she wished her mother might be so kind as to think to write to her.
Sighing, she took Georgiana’s hand and went back inside to see to her son. Hill handed him over and gave her mistress another message. “The earl told the driver to let you know that many more place settings would arrive soon to fill that table for a family dinner when he and Lady Matlock come to a visit at the stewards cottage with the Colonel and Mrs. Fitzwilliam.”
Rocking her fussy son who was ready for a feeding, Elizabeth smiled. At least part of her family thought of her fondly and would visit soon. To be fair, her father had come with Jane, Mary, and Kitty when his grandson was born. Elizabeth had been overwhelmed with joy to see them again. But still, her mother would not come nor even answer Elizabeth’s letters.
As she climbed the stairs with the babe, Elizabeth thought she must give up the hope she held for being reunited with her mother again. But she enjoyed abundant fellowship with all the family she had gained in Hertfordshire.
Anne and the colonel lived in the steward’s cottage and were quite happy in spite of her mother wishing for them to come to Derbyshire to live with them.
Georgiana and Bingley were expecting their first child and Elizabeth enjoyed having her dearest friend only a short walk from her front door.
Caroline Bingley was engaged to Lord Aisling and would marry before Autumn. She often came to Hertfordshire to visit her brother and call on Elizabeth at Longbourn.
Counting her blessings, Elizabeth sat in the rocking chair Mr. Darcy had made for her and placed in the nursery when she first told him they were expecting a child. The gentle sway and her warm milk lulled the young master of Longbourn to sleep.
After placing him in his cradle, Elizabeth spoke with Nanny before going downstairs again to see whether her new table was in place.
There was a knock upon the front door and as Hill was otherwise occupied helping Georgiana with the package and the place settings, Elizabeth opened the door.
Before her stood a very contrite Lady Francine. “Mother!” she said and hugged the woman tight.
Lady Francine did not waste time making polite conversation. “I have come to say I am quite sorry for missing the birth of my first grandson and give my apologies, Lizzy.”
Elizabeth was astonished. She led her mother into the parlor. Hill and Georgiana had gone into the dining room.
Lady Francine looked about the room and nodded her approval. “It is not Pemberley, but it w
ill do.”
“There is no home that might compare to Pemberley for those of us who do love it so. But yes, Mr. Darcy and I aim to make Longbourn a lovely home for our children,” Elizabeth said proudly.
“I would love to see my first grandson. I do not know why Jane and Lydia have not given us grandchildren. They are so stubborn to torture me so.”
Elizabeth thought to herself there is the Lady Francine I recall, but she smiled in spite of it and called for Hill to bring them tea.
“How long will you stay, Mother? I have a few lovely spare rooms at the moment. Grandfather will come soon with Lady Matlock. They are both eager to meet the babe.” Elizabeth wished to find how her mother thought of her own father’s marriage to the widow de Bourgh.
“I cannot stay but a day or so, my dear. Your father needs me in London, you know. Mary and Kitty can be a handful. As for your grandfather and that woman,” she said and rolled her eyes, “you really need not call her Lady Matlock. I cannot imagine she carries herself in the manner befitting the title.”
Georgiana came in behind Hill and smiled at Elizabeth and her mother. When she was introduced to Lady Francine, Georgiana gave a curtsey and said how honored she was to make the lady’s acquaintance.
“So you are Mr. Bingley’s wife? You know, I thought for a time Elizabeth might marry him. Thank heavens she did not!”
Elizabeth’s face reddened as Georgiana seemed embarrassed by the comment made in such a matter-of-fact manner. “Yes, thank heavens! Then he would not have been able to marry the woman who is truly his perfect match.”
Elizabeth smiled at her sister hoping to smooth the insult her mother had given. Georgiana sipped her tea and looked as though she wished to quit the parlor as soon as possible.
Lady Francine inquired after her grandson and Elizabeth thought it a wonderful idea to take her mother upstairs and away from poor Georgiana.
“We shall return in a moment dear,” Lady Francine said to Georgiana as Elizabeth led her away.
Georgiana stood and curtseyed again. “I must return home for Charles shall be wondering where I have gone. He is lonely without me, you know.”
Elizabeth was sad to see her sister and friend leave. “Do come for dinner, dear. The new table must be properly christened as we dine on it for the first time.”
Lady Francine narrowed her eyes. “What table is this, dear?”
Elizabeth swallowed hard. “It was sent by Grandfather from Derbyshire and arrived just before you came.”
“And was it sent along with plates edged in gold?”
Her heart sinking to her stomach, Elizabeth nodded.
“Why that, that silly old fool! Take me to your dining room daughter and let me see for myself!” Lady Francine commanded as she peered at Georgiana and Elizabeth.
“I thought you wished to see your grandson, Mother. The table will wait for us,” Elizabeth said, smiling though she felt near to tears.
Georgiana nodded. “He is so handsome. You will lose your heart to him if you are not careful.”
“I will see him once my suspicions regarding this table are confirmed.” Lady Francine held her ground.
Knowing there would be no peace until her mother’s demands were met, Elizabeth escorted her into the dining room.
“I knew it!” Lady Francine screeched, “That old fool has given you my mother’s table! She meant for me to have it. His new wife must have made him get rid of it so that she might spend his fortune redoing his dining room when it was perfectly decorated.”
She spat the word wife from her tongue as though it was poison and Elizabeth’s temper flared. “Mother! It matters not why Grandfather gave it to me instead. If you wish to have it, you may. I would not keep it if it pains you so to see it in my home.”
Lady Francine spun on her heel and marched out of the dining room. “I would not have it now if your grandfather begged me to take it. You care more for him in any case and so I will make my way back to London, thank you kindly.”
Elizabeth followed after her. “But Mother, you have not even seen the babe. There is no need to allow such a small slight to drive you out of my home. You only just arrived. Please, do not go away angry.”
Her mother would not listen and Elizabeth stopped in the entry as the sound of her son’s cries reached them. She implored her mother with her eyes, but Lady Francine quit Longbourn and was gone before Nanny might bring Elizabeth’s son downstairs.
Georgiana placed her hand on Elizabeth’s arm. “She is terribly angry with her father, Lizzy. She ought not to have treated you so unkindly.”
Elizabeth was embarrassed but thanked her friend. “It is how she always behaves and I am honestly thankful she has gone. I do not wish to have such discord in my home. You will come for dinner?”
Georgiana hugged her and promised to return. “Charles and I would not miss it. That table must be a happy meeting place and not a symbol of your mother’s misplaced ire.”
After she had gone, Elizabeth went upstairs and took her son from Nanny. As she walked about the parlor with him, Mr. Darcy came in. His shirtsleeves were rolled up to his elbows and there was sweat upon his brow.
Elizabeth’s heart melted and she sent a silent prayer of thanks heavenward for the blessing of her husband.
“Is your Mother upstairs then?” He asked as he took his son and held him gently. Elizabeth sighed in contentment as Mr. Darcy kissed the little lad’s forehead.
“She left without seeing your son after she learned that Grandfather had sent me that table. She is certain your Aunt Catherine is the cause for such betrayal as she said the table was meant to go to her from my grandmother.” Elizabeth’s voice trembled as she finished and Mr. Darcy came to sit with her.
“Well, she may have it if it means more to her than this boy or her own daughter. We will send it to Pemberley first thing on the morrow,” he said and brushed away the tear that had slipped free of her lashes.
“I would not for all the world, William. My mother is never going to love me the way I wish for her to love me. She never has and she must learn she may not hurt those who love her and have her way. The table will remain at Longbourn.” Elizabeth sniffed away her tears and smiled at their boy.
“Look, I think he smiled at you,” she said to her husband.
Mr. Darcy laughed. “I hate to disappoint you Mrs. Darcy, but it was not because of me.”
Elizabeth meant to scold Mr. Darcy but then the odor from her son made her pinch her nose. “Oh dear! Give me that boy!”
She laughed in spite of the situation and Mr. Darcy laughed with her. “I love you, Elizabeth Darcy, and I want you to be the happiest woman in all of England. If you say the table stays, it stays. We cannot control your mother.”
Hill entered the parlor and took the small master from his mother. “You two stay here and let me handle this fellow.”
Elizabeth waved a hand before her face and watched the housekeeper carry her son away. “Hill is amazing. She has been much happier it seems since his arrival. It is as though he is her grandson.”
Mr. Darcy nodded. “The boy will have no lack of mothering. But his father would like a bit of his mother’s attention.”
Elizabeth laughed as Mr. Darcy stood and pulled her off the sofa and into his arms. His kisses melted her from head to toe and she did not resist when he picked her up and carried her upstairs to their room.
“Mr. Darcy,” she whispered as they passed the nursery, “it is the middle of the afternoon and your workmen will wonder where you have gone.”
He laughed loudly and she shushed him. He lowered his voice. “They will not for they are husbands too and I sent them home for their midday meal with directions to return in a few hours.”
Mr. Darcy kicked open their bedroom door as he took her lips again and made his wife forget their son, her mother, and everything else except for his touch.
The End
About the Author
April Floyd is a wanderer of the world and love
r of great stories who now resides in the Last Frontier with her husband and youngest child. Days are spent doing the mom thing, managing the house, and not missing the working world.
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To contact April, use the links below for her website and email or ask to join The Janeside, a facebook group she runs with her friend Elizabeth Ann West.
www.authoraprilfloyd.com
[email protected]
Also by April Floyd
Austen Inspired
The Parson of Pemberley
No Promise of the Kind
Mr. Darcy’s Brides
Spells Spoken Lightly
Darcy & Lizzy
From Admiration to Matrimony
Mr. Darcy’s Good Opinion
Mr. Darcy’s Debt
Properly Humbled
Clever Compromises
Miss Bennet and the Beast
A Match Made in Mayfair
Mr. Darcy’s Christmas Wedding
Mr. Darcy’s True Love
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The Lost Heir Series
Mrs. Fitzwilliam
The Colonel’s Son
Mrs. Darcy
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Christian Historical Fiction/Romance
Cassidy Jane
Courting Cassidy Jane
Wedding Cassidy Jane
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