Part III
Simms halted in the doorway of the study and bowed fastidiously. Without looking up, Darcy said, “I am not at home.” He was in no mood for callers. As far as he was concerned, he might never be in the mood for them again.
The butler paused a minute longer than he usually would, then said, “I will tell Miss Bennet. Shall I indicate that you are unlikely to be at home to her in the future?”
Darcy’s hand jerked, knocking over the inkwell and spreading a pool of black ink over the letter he had just finished. He glared at Simms as if suggesting it was his fault. “Miss Bennet is not in London,” he said coldly, carelessly tossing a fresh sheet of paper over the large blot. He did not know what sort of joke this was, but it was not in the least amusing.
“Miss Bennet is on the doorstep, sir. She was quite insistent that I see if you were at home.”
Darcy knew Simms would never joke. Then he realized what the butler had said. “You left her on the doorstep? Show her in at once.”
Simms looked taken aback by his unexpected harshness. “To the sitting room, sir?”
Darcy scowled. With ink all over his desk, he could not receive Elizabeth in the study where he would be able to sit with the safety of his desk between them. “The sitting room, yes.”
“Right away, sir.” Simms hurried away.
As Darcy stood and hurriedly straightened his waistcoat, he noticed an ink stain on his right sleeve. Of all the times to turn accident-prone!
He must calm himself. There was no telling what had brought Elizabeth here, and he would not raise his hopes again only to have them cruelly extinguished. But he would not keep her waiting.
As he strode down the hallway, he heard her familiar light tones thanking Simms, no doubt for taking her bonnet and pelisse. His gut wrenched at the sound. He hastened into the sitting room, choosing to stand behind a sofa tall enough to hide the stain on his sleeve. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to calm himself.
“Mr. Darcy?” Elizabeth’s amusement at catching him unawares as she entered was clear.
His eyes shot open. What was wrong with Simms today, first leaving a lady on the doorstep and then failing to announce her presence? “Miss Bennet.” He bowed stiffly and gestured to a chair, careful to use his left arm.
He waited for her to begin, but she seemed at a loss as well. Finally they both spoke at the same moment, and both stopped with apologies to the other. Darcy said, “Pray, continue.”
Elizabeth folded her hands in her lap and looked down at them for a moment, then straightened her back and looked him in the eye. “Some time ago, you elicited from me a promise that if I found myself in desperate circumstances again, I would inform you. I seem to be making a habit of desperation.”
Had her lover abandoned her? Did she truly expect him to help her now? It did not matter; he knew he would help her no matter the circumstances. He had no choice. “What difficulties are you facing?” His voice sounded unnecessarily harsh to his ear.
She raised a playful eyebrow, though her eyes did not sparkle as they did when she was truly amused. “Quite similar to the last time, in fact. Mr. Collins has given me two options. One is to continue to live at his sister’s home in Dorset as a virtual prisoner. If I agree to that, my family may remain at Longbourn. If I return to Meryton, or if I seek out my other relations, he will put my mother and sisters out on the street. I am constitutionally not suited to imprisonment, so I have left his sister’s home. I have a small amount of money that I brought from home, enough to cover today’s post to London, and while it should be sufficient to purchase a few nights’ shelter, it will not go far. I hope you find that suitably desperate?”
It made no sense. “A virtual prisoner? Surely you overstate the matter.”
She shrugged lightly, her face unusually still. “It seemed so to me. I was locked in my room for over a fortnight, and the door was only opened for meals and other necessities. To be fair, Mr. Collins had told his sister that I could have the freedom of the house as soon as I gave my word not to leave nor to make any effort to contact anyone, but as you can see, I was not willing to make that promise.”
“If you were locked in your room, how then are you here?”
Her face paled. “When it became clear that I was to be left to my own resources, I climbed out the window. It was not difficult, I had merely hoped to be spared the indignity of running away.” She rose to her feet. “I see now that was a foolish hope. I will bid you good day, sir. I am sorry to have troubled you.” Her voice trembled as she turned away.
Was she trying to play him for a fool? “What happened to the officer?”
She turned slightly over her shoulder, blinking rapidly. “What officer?”
“The officer with whom you eloped. Did he abandon you so quickly?” He had not meant to say that, but his bitterness would not be restrained.
Her eyes widened. “Is that what they told you?”
“It was general knowledge.”
Elizabeth made a hissing sound between her teeth. “It must be Mr. Collins’ doing. I assure you, I did not leave Longbourn with anyone besides him and the driver of the carriage. I thought I was travelling to help my aunt Gardiner, who was said to be near death, and by the time that I noticed in my distress that we were not on the road to London, we were hours from Longbourn in unknown country. I had no choice but to proceed.”
Darcy’s mouth was suddenly dry. Could it possibly be true? “Why would Mr. Collins have done such a thing?”
Elizabeth crossed her arms as if to protect herself. “Surely you can guess that.”
“I cannot.”
She sighed. “He believed I had entered into an improper liaison with you. He thought to spare his own reputation, and I do not doubt that he hoped for some sort of reward from Lady Catherine de Bourgh as well. Had he known that you had already rejected my favours once, perhaps he would have been less disquieted.” The burning irony in her voice was unmistakable. “Then again, I would have thought you would not have believed such a story about me, but, as we both have cause to know, I have a history of being incorrect in my judgments regarding you. But I will trouble you no further. Good day, Mr. Darcy.”
She was already at the door before he shook off the paralysis that held him captive. He reached her in a few quick strides and gripped her arm, turning her to face him. “Elizabeth, I did not know. I swear it to you. I would have hunted for you the entire length of England had I known.”
“Yet you believed that I would accept your kisses one day, and run off with another man the next? Of course, I should not blame you, since you already know the depths to which I can sink.” Her words hung in the air like a knife.
“I was a fool. A broken-hearted fool. But even your sister did not deny what had happened. Who was I to question her word?” As he said it, he recalled the frightened look on Jane Bennet’s face, and her frequent glances at Mr. Collins, when he finally called at Longbourn to ask after Elizabeth. Why had he not suspected a deception?
Elizabeth gave him a silent grave look, then carefully removed his hand from her arm and turned once more to go.
Surely he could not lose her again? “Elizabeth, please do not leave.”
She ignored him.
“You have no place to go,” he said in desperation, following her into the hallway.
“You need not worry. I am not completely without resources.”
Was he going to have to chase her into the street? “Miss Bennet,” he said firmly, in his best Master of Pemberley voice.
She stopped, but did not turn back to him. He could tell she was wavering, but her pride was injured.
“Miss Bennet, some time ago, as you say, you offered yourself to me under terms of my choice, provided that I assisted your family. I kept my part of the bargain, and now I am ready to state my terms.”
Her back stiffened abruptly. After a moment of silence, she said in the most even of tones, “And what are your terms?”
Relief
began to trickle through him. “My terms are that you shall remain under this roof.”
She turned slowly, her eyes wide. “That would destroy anything that remains of my reputation.”
“Perhaps,” he said more gently, and began to let his smile show through. “But my sister can serve as your chaperone, and since you will be accompanying me to Doctors’ Common early tomorrow morning to obtain a special license and we will be wed by noon, it will be of little matter.”
He could almost see her relief as the sparkle returned to her fine eyes. She smiled archly and said, “It is dangerous to assume a lady’s consent to a proposal of marriage.”
Now his smile could not be repressed. “As I have cause to know. But in this case, I need not concern myself with such small details, since I am entitled to state the terms.”
She crossed her arms in front of her and attempted to look stern, but he could see her eyes were laughing. “Just how long do you intend to hold me to this bargain? Am I to be your servant all my life?”
He could no longer stay away. He took her hands, pressing the lightest of kisses first into one palm, and then the other. “I will consider your debt paid in full as soon as you have vowed before God to love, honour and obey me.” Her nearness made him dizzy with longing.
“I see that you are indeed a man who likes to have his own way!” she said.
He was beyond relieved that she was teasing him again. “Please believe me, Elizabeth, if I had known you left Longbourn against your wishes, I would not have left a stone unturned in all England until I found you. I should have known not to believe the lies I was told, but it does not reflect on my respect for you and your word, but only upon my own uncertainty that you could ever regard me with affection after all that has happened in the past.”
She tilted her head to one side. “Then tell me, what must I do to convince you of my regard?”
He took her hands in his and held them tightly. “Tell me that you will marry me tomorrow.”
“Since I have nowhere else to go, it would seem wise.”
“Elizabeth, do not tease me now. I am at your mercy.”
“Very well, then, I will marry you tomorrow.” She raised one hand to touch him lightly on the cheek.
His breath caught in his throat. He whispered, “May I kiss you?”
She smiled. “You are the one stating the terms.”
He stepped closer, until there was barely an inch between their bodies. “You know I could never do anything to you that was truly against your will. You are my dearest, loveliest Elizabeth, and I will devote my life to making you as happy as you have made me at this moment.”
Her eyes gazed deeply into his with a joy he had never seen in them before. “Then perhaps you might begin by kissing me, but it might be best if you remove your coat first. It would look highly improper if my dress had ink stains to match your coat sleeve.”
He did not need a second invitation. He stripped off his topcoat and threw it across the back of the sofa, heedless of the upholstery.
Elizabeth, with an impish look, folded back the sleeve of his coat. “We cannot have you staining the upholstery, either.”
“If it is stained, I will throw it away and buy a new one. I would buy an entire houseful of new furniture if it meant I could kiss you.”
His arms were warm around her, and there was something more intimate now that he was in his shirtsleeves. It was an embrace of the sort she had only pictured between husband and wife, and the notion sent a deep thrill through her. Tomorrow she would be his wife in truth and discover all the mysteries of the marriage bed. The ache deep within her intensified as she felt his kiss lightly brushing her cheek, then trailing a line of fire along her jaw until finally reaching her burning lips. A moan escaped her as his tongue teased her into deepening the kiss, plunging her into that sweet intimacy that had haunted her dreams since their encounter on the riverbank. Their tongues danced together, and she could feel his passion as he crushed her against him.
The fire was now running through every inch of her. Her breasts ached for his touch, and the rough cloth of her shift rubbing against her was not an adequate substitute. She needed more, oh, so much more. But as the sweet oblivion of desire washed over her, the sound of footsteps in the hall made them jump apart. Elizabeth could think of nothing beyond the urge to be back in his arms, and she knew she must look even more disheveled than when she had arrived. Fortunately, Darcy stepped in front of her just as two maids appeared in the doorway, each carrying a tray.
“Mr. Simms said you would want refreshments, sir,” the older one said.
“Refreshments?” Darcy looked as if he had never heard of such a concept before. “Ah, yes. Please set them up.”
It seemed to take forever for the maids to arrange the dishes on the side table. Elizabeth wondered if they guessed what their master had been doing, and if so, what they would think of her.
But once they had left, and Elizabeth found herself engulfed in his embrace, nothing else mattered. She leaned against his shoulder. She had never realized that a man’s arms could provide such comfort and solace, not to mention the myriad other sensations she felt. Then, to her surprise, he released her, keeping only her hand in his.
His eyes were dark with desire. “I can be trusted no further. Pardon me a moment.” Reluctantly he dropped her hand, then exited the room without a further word.
Darcy tried to still his breathing. He was not surprised to find Simms hovering in the drawing room. “Simms, Miss Bennet will be staying the night. I believe the blue room would suit admirably.”
Simms’ eyes widened. “The blue room, sir?”
“That is what I said.”
The butler bowed rigidly. “It will be prepared immediately.”
“One more thing, Simms. Miss Bennet should be treated with all the respect due to the future Mrs. Darcy.” It felt remarkably good to say.
The normally poker-faced Simms broke into a stunned smile. “Congratulations, sir.”
“I thank you.”
Darcy leaned a hand against the wall. He needed to think, something that was remarkably difficult when his entire being was demanding that he return to Elizabeth and lock the sitting room door behind him. Despite the overwhelming temptation, he would not dishonour her so. He stopped a footman and told him that Miss Darcy’s presence was requested in the sitting room. That would provide some restraint. He returned to the sitting room, forcing himself to leave the door wide open.
Elizabeth was loading a small plate with fruits and pastries. She gave him a half-guilty glance. “I hope you will forgive me that I did not wait for you. I have eaten nothing today, and I did not wish to celebrate our reunion by swooning with hunger.”
His eyes widened with horror. “Elizabeth! You should have said something immediately. Here, you must sit down and eat. I will bring you anything you like. Shall I ring for some cold meats? A glass of wine?” He placed a hand under her elbow and led her to the sofa as if she might have somehow have forgotten how to get there. How could he have been thinking only of his desire for her and not of her comfort?
“This will do quite nicely.” Elizabeth took a bite of cherry pastry as he sat beside her protectively, far closer than propriety would dictate. “It is delicious.”
Another surge of desire went through him as her tongue captured a crumb that remained on her upper lip. He chastised himself silently, noticing for the first time her pallor and that her hand trembled slightly as she set her fork into a strawberry. He would never allow her to suffer so again, not now that she was under his protection.
Darcy felt he had come off fairly well, all things considered. Georgiana seemed pleased to be introduced to Elizabeth, at least after she recovered from the shock of finding him in his shirtsleeves with an arm around an unknown young lady. He had expected the news of their wedding the following day to provoke even greater surprise and perhaps some embarrassing questions, but instead Georgiana seemed nothing more than delighted to hav
e a new sister so very quickly.
His housekeeper managed to find a dress of Georgiana’s that fit Elizabeth presentably, and Georgiana’s maid had restored Elizabeth’s appearance to something more closely resembling its usual state. Not that Darcy cared for himself; he found Elizabeth beautiful no matter her circumstances, and her earlier dishevelment had only made her seem even more desirable.
He managed to keep his hands to himself for the remainder of the day, or at least mostly so. He had not been able to resist the exquisite temptation of taking Elizabeth’s hand while Georgiana played the pianoforte for them after dinner, tracing circles in her palm with his fingers as her cheeks grew becomingly flushed and he grew ever more aroused.
If it were not for his sister’s presence, it would have been a difficult, if not impossible, feat to resist kissing Elizabeth at every available opportunity. The swift shift from his earlier hopelessness to his present happiness was intoxicating. He refused to think about the wedding night tomorrow, lest his remaining self-possession be endangered.
A Pemberley Medley (A Pride & Prejudice Variation) Page 18
