A Matter of Honor

by Abigail Reynolds

  And he was clearly not going to say anything more. It was easier for him to leave the work of a reconciliation to her, and he would ignore her aunt. He always took the easiest way, and she had always allowed it. She had no choice then, dependent on him for a roof over her head and food to eat, with no one to stand up for her.

  Now she had friends who would stand beside her in a fight, friends she had earned, like Jasper and her aunt. The staff at Kinloch House would put salt in his coffee and put clammy sheets on his bed because she had won their loyalty when they had begun by resenting and fearing her. Duncan MacLaren would defend and protect her as an adopted part of his clan. And she no longer had to rely on her father for a roof over her head and food to eat.

  Was that why her father had refused her aunt’s original invitation for Elizabeth to live with her? Because it would make her independent of him instead of being forced to tolerate his choices? A flush of sudden understanding filled her.

  She could chart her own course instead of floundering in her father’s wake. Why should she tolerate his ridiculous feud with her aunt, when she had seen Aunt Emmeline face down the magistrate’s man to save Mr. Jack, and she had just watched Lady Matlock masterfully orchestrate an entire roomful of powerful people and bend them to her will?

  She might forgive him someday, but she would never allow him to control her again, even if it might mean losing him forever. Decisively, she turned to the footman. “Mrs. MacLean is with the other guests. Pray ask her to join us.” Holding out her hands to her father with a smile, she said, “How good it is that we are together again, and how happy I will be when you and Aunt Emmeline have made up your ancient quarrel over things that happened years before I was born!”

  He grimaced and made a small huffing sound, but he took her hands. “If it is so important to you, I will strive to be polite to your precious aunt, even if I am not certain I approve of the influence she has had on you.”

  She let laughter bubble up in her voice. “I daresay you can do better than that, and since Lord Matlock will insist on a great show of family harmony, you might as well take the credit by being forgiving and magnanimous before he forces you into it.” She squeezed his hands. “And I look forward to hearing about all the books you have read since I saw you last.” There; she would do that much for the sake of family peace, but she would never forget how her father had abandoned her without a word. How different he was from Darcy, who had risked everything to follow her!

  “There would have been more books to tell you about, had it not been for all the nonsense of Jane’s wedding,” he grumbled. “At least I was spared from endless discussions of lace and ribbon for your wedding.”

  The door clicked open behind her. “Mrs. MacLean,” intoned the footman.

  Elizabeth dropped one of her father’s hands to reach out to her aunt. “Aunt Emmeline, look who is here! Now we can all be together at last.”

  Aunt Emmeline said carefully, “Welcome to Edinburgh, Thomas.” Her tight grip on Elizabeth’s fingers hurt.

  Mr. Bennet’s mouth twisted, but the look in his eyes suggested a certain relief. “Hello, Emmeline. I understand Lord Matlock has decreed we are to be friends.”

  “I suppose that is as good a reason as any,” her aunt said briskly. “Come, let us sit down. I am parched for some tea.”

  Elizabeth smiled. “First, Aunt, I must beg leave to present my dearest sister Jane, whom you last saw when she was four years old, and her husband, Mr. Bingley. Jane, this is our aunt, Mrs. MacLean.”

  “I am Aunt Emmeline to you, my dear! You are every bit as beautiful as Lizzy told me. I am so glad you are here, and I hope you will grant me the opportunity to show you Edinburgh.”

  Elizabeth let her aunt take the lead in keeping the conversation flowing. She sank back in her chair between Mr. Bingley and her father to bathe in the pleasure of being among her family once again and feeling the warm support in Darcy’s gaze from across the circle. For so long she had thought it impossible that she would ever see her father or Jane again. Even now it might never be the same, since she was no longer the same girl who had lived at Longbourn and tamely submitted to her father’s will, but it was good to have them all together, her old family and her new one.

  THEY HAD WALKED TO the meeting with Lord Matlock, but it had started to drizzle and Darcy insisted on getting a hackney for the return to the house and helping Elizabeth up into it. “It has been a long day already, and there will be more yet to come now that your aunt has invited your family to dinner.”

  Elizabeth leaned against his shoulder. “It will be tiring, it is true, but I want to spend as much time with Jane as I can. I imagine Father will want to return to Longbourn as soon as the ball is over, but I hope to persuade Mr. Bingley and Jane to remain for a longer visit.”

  He put his arm around her. “An excellent idea. I will speak to Bingley about it as well.”

  “Were you able to make up your quarrel, then? I saw you go off with him alone for a few minutes.”

  Darcy nodded. “He apologized for not believing me. It is odd looking back on what a simplistic sense of honor I had then. I blamed him for failing to trust me even though I had hidden my motivations from him. I think I have a better understanding now.”

  “I am glad. I do not want to lose Jane again. It was hard enough to leave her for this short a time, and heaven knows I need to rest if I am not to fall asleep in my soup at dinner.”

  He frowned. “I am deeply concerned about this fatigue of yours. This is quite unlike you. I must insist on calling a doctor tomorrow.”

  She straightened and looked up at him archly. “My love, surely you cannot be unaware of the usual reason why recently married ladies suddenly become sleepy all the time.”

  His cheeks grew hot with mortification. “I had not realized my nightly attentions to you were so tiring. I will restrain myself in the future.” Why had she not told him he was exhausting her?

  She laid her fingers on her lips. “If you dare to restrain yourself, I shall be very cross! My beloved idiot, I am tired for the same reason that I keep bursting into tears and the bodices of my dresses are growing tight.” She watched him expectantly, a small smile playing about her mouth.

  He furrowed his brow in confusion. Her tearfulness had been because of her worry about her father, but what did that have to do with her bodices? Now that he thought about it, he had noticed a slight change in how snugly certain parts of her fit into his hands. She had been picking at her food, too, so perhaps she was worried about gaining weight. “I have no complaints about how you fill your bodices. None at all.” Perhaps that would reassure her.

  She laughed outright. Taking his hand, she placed it on her lower abdomen. “If my suspicions are correct, this part of me will start to swell soon, too. And some months after that, we will be needing a nursery. That is why I am tired.”

  He sucked in a deep breath. Could it be? Somehow he managed to choke out the words, “You are increasing?”

  Her smile widened. “It is too early to be certain, but the signs are there. Enough so that both my aunt and Lady Matlock reached that same conclusion without a word from me.”

  A child. Elizabeth was carrying his child. Their child. He could not comprehend it.

  His utter astonishment must have shown, as she said in a teasing voice, “This is a natural consequence of marriage, you know.”

  “I know, but...” But there were no words. He gathered her in his arms, heedless of the hackney windows allowing any passerby a full view, and showered her face with kisses. “My dearest, loveliest Elizabeth!”

  She snuggled into his arm. “I am glad you are pleased.”

  “Pleased? Delighted! Overjoyed!” He could not believe the reversal of his fortunes. Not long ago he had despaired of having Elizabeth as his wife. Now she was carrying his child! Then it struck him. “You should have told me! Here I am, dragging you all over Edinburgh when you should be resting. I am so very sorry, my love.”

  She sw
atted at his hand. “I am with child, not ill. I admit to some concerns, most seriously that someone will say something particularly kind to me in the midst of the ball in our honor and I will burst in tears in front of everyone, but apart from needing more sleep, I am perfectly well, and require no special treatment. Apart from frequent kisses and reassurances that you adore me, but I know I may rely on you for that.”

  He took both her hands in his and pressed kiss after kiss to them. “You may depend upon me. But I hope you will not have regrets that this has happened so quickly.”

  “My love, you do find the strangest things to worry about, but if I did resent it, I would know precisely who to blame for my present situation.” Her eyes sparkled at him.

  “Me?”

  She laughed, her face alight. “No, Mr. Jack. He told me not to consummate our marriage so quickly. What could I do but disobey?”

  Epilogue

  LONDON, TWO YEARS LATER

  Duncan MacLaren’s London valet bowed to him. “Mr. Scott is calling,”

  “Show him in.” Duncan was still in shock at the very notion of having his own valet, much less a haughty Sassenach, but Darcy, Georgiana, and Lady Matlock had joined forces to insist upon it. They had been right; Duncan could not have managed the unexpected demands of the Season without him.

  He had planned only to attend Georgiana’s presentation ball. She had begged him to attend, saying she could face it with more equanimity if he were there, and he could not deny her. He expected to be shunned by the London ton as a savage Highlander. To his shock, everyone had crowded around him, eager to make the acquaintance of a real Highland laird straight out of The Lady of the Lake. The next day he was deluged with invitations to society events. Walter Scott had a great deal to answer for!

  Poor Georgiana had been horrified when he told her he would be attending all of them, but she had taken it like a true Highlander when he said, “Aye, lass, I must. I know you dislike such things, and I dinna expect you to attend, but if society will welcome me, I owe it to the clan to be an ambassador and build goodwill for the Highlands. Anything that can bring more travelers to the glen will help us all.” Mr. Gardiner’s guide had already proved a success in attracting tourists. The MacLaren clansmen were in demand as tour guides, and the Grahams were building a second inn to accommodate the influx of travelers.

  Georgiana had straightened to her full height. “If the Highlands needs an ambassador, I will be by your side.” And she had been. For the sake of the Highlands and Clan MacLaren, Georgiana had overcome her shyness and dislike of the ton. She had even allowed a portrait to be made of the two of them to go in the next edition of the guide, along with the etchings made from her drawings.

  Walter Scott strode in energetically. “There you are. I have been looking everywhere.”

  “These are my lodgings,” Duncan MacLaren said mildly. “But I have only a few minutes before I must dress for the theatre.” Jasper Fitzpatrick’s first appearance at Drury Lane, to be precise. And he would see Georgiana there. An involuntary smile rose to his lips.

  “Good thing I caught you in time. Do you have the Garb of Auld Gaul with you?”

  Duncan gave him a sidelong look. “The kilt? Aye, my father insisted I bring it for when I call on his auld friends here. Wearing it once was more than enough. Everyone stared and pointed.”

  “Good. You will wear it tonight,” Scott pronounced.

  “To the theatre? You jest.”

  “Not at all. I need a true Highlander to tell the Prince Regent that the blood of the Highlands runs in his veins.”

  Duncan exclaimed, “Are you out of your mind? I know you were invited to dine with him last night, but what in God’s name happened?”

  Scott gave a smug smile. “I learned he is enamored of the romantic Jacobite cause after reading my novel Waverley, and I seized my opportunity. I told him he was also a Jacobite by virtue of his descent from King James, and that Scotland needs him to be our Scottish prince.”

  Duncan stared at him. “You truly are out of your mind!”

  “Nay, laddie, ’tis our chance to make certain Scotland remains a country in its own right rather than just the north of England, as some of these English fools believe.”

  “Aye, and well I know it! I hear it every day when I am out in society. Half of the ton has caught Highland mania from your books, and the other half superciliously insist Scotland no longer exists.” And Duncan tried to listen to it all patiently, and then to remind them that things can be strangely misrepresented at a distance.

  “That is why you will help me to convince yon fat Prinny to value Scotland. He is coming to Drury Lane tonight at my suggestion, and you are invited to sit in his box. He wants to hear the opinion of a Highlander, not a Lowlander like me.”

  Duncan held up his hands in horror. “Och, nay! I have lived this long by keeping my head down. It is bad enough that Lord Matlock is aware of my existence. No royalty for me! There must be hundreds of Highlanders in London you could take instead of me.”

  Scott snorted. “Assimilated, all of them, sounding as English as Prinny himself and doing whatever they can to hide their heritage. Nay, I need a true proud Highlander, and Prinny is expecting you by name. Look at it this way – if Fitzpatrick’s debut creates a huge scandal, you and your kilt will be a good distraction. All you need do is sound Scottish and tell him he is the true Jacobite prince Scotland is waiting for.”

  Duncan groaned. “My father would flay me alive if he knew.”

  “Aye, but you and I, we understand reality. We canna earn the respect of the English by ignoring them. A wee compromise may serve us better.”

  ELIZABETH’S SATISFIED smile told Darcy the play was going well. She had taught him that the silence during the play was a better indication of its reception. He had never heard a London theatre so quiet as when Jasper was on stage, and there was a satisfying roar of applause at the end. It was still possible the ton would reject Jasper, but his London acting career appeared to be off to a solid start. And the clapping and cheers only grew louder as Jasper came out for a solo bow, first to the audience, and then an elegant full court bow to the Royal Box, with the natural grace that only came from being raised to mingle with royalty.

  Elizabeth jostled Darcy’s elbow. “Stand up,” she hissed, half-pulling him to his feet.

  “What?”

  “Prinny is on his feet!” She reached forward to tap at Georgiana’s shoulder and gestured to her to stand as well.

  Other people were noticing now and rising to their feet, the applause even louder now. It seemed to go on and on until finally some dancers came out for the interval performance. Darcy leaned back and closed his eyes in sheer relief. Whether or not society accepted Jasper Fitzwilliam back, no one would be able to cut the Matlocks or the Darcys for their connection to him now that Jasper Fitzpatrick had the royal imprimatur.

  The sound of Elizabeth’s sharp indrawn breath caught Darcy’s attention. “Is something the matter?” he asked.

  “He is in the Royal Box!” she squeaked.

  “Duncan? Of course he is.” And in full Highland dress no less. Darcy had seen Georgiana stealing glances at him all night.

  “No, Jasper!”

  Darcy grabbed the opera glasses and peered across the theatre. Good God! She was right. There was Jasper in full costume, speaking earnestly to Prinny, who must have commanded his presence. After a minute, the Prince Regent threw back his head and laughed uproariously, clutching at his belly. What had happened?

  Prinny said something, wiping his eyes, as Jasper pointed across the theatre towards Lord Matlock’s private box. Prinny beckoned regally, and Lord Matlock rose to his feet, bowing an acknowledgment before leaving his own box. All played out in full view of the cream of London society, the theatre itself turning into a stage.

  “Oh, dear,” said Elizabeth with laughter in her voice. “This was not part of the plan. Lady Matlock will not be pleased.”

  Darcy said philosophicall
y, “Jasper had no choice, once Prinny sent for him. They would have met before, so he had no choice but to reveal his identity. Anything else would be perilously close to lying to the future king.”

  Her fine eyes sparkled at him. “Well, I look forward to hearing the full story later.”

  JASPER SPRAWLED ON the fainting couch, his arm across his forehead. “What a laugh! Then Prinny summoned my parents, still chuckling, and forbade them from stopping me from acting. Forbade them! My parents! I have never seen such a look on my father’s face.”

  MacLaren retorted, “I still canna believe you told him that my uncle was a smuggler! After all I have done to keep his activities secret, you announced it to the Prince Regent himself, of all people!”

  Jasper shrugged. “It was Scott who brought the Wee Bruach whisky, not I.”

  “But you were the one who recognized it by the taste and connected it to me, and that is when Prinny asked me to send him more! Now I get to choose my crime - disobeying the Prince Regent or sending him illegal whiskey!”

  With a laugh, Jasper said, “There will be no difficulty. Did you think that brandy he was serving was not smuggled? Once you are supplying Prinny, the excise officers will conveniently look the other direction. Just think, your uncle is now the unofficial smuggler to His Royal Highness!” He collapsed into laughter.

  Elizabeth said quickly, “How did you like performing at Drury Lane?”

  “Exciting. So many excellent actors, even in tiny roles! But I miss the Edinburgh theatre. That was like family, and so much less drama backstage. All those gentlemen wooing the actresses! I had forgotten what it was like here.”

  “Well, tomorrow you will be performing at your mother’s soirée where she will reveal you to the world, or at least those few people who did not hear what happened tonight,” said Aunt Emmeline. “That will be a different kind of drama.” She sounded a little wistful.

  “Are you sure you will not take part?” Jasper coaxed. “I would love to have you acting beside me.”