A Wife for Mr. Darcy

by Mary Lydon Simonsen

It was good to see Elizabeth smile because the whole idea of his coming to Pemberley had been a total disaster. Darcy could not even remember the reasoning behind it. It would have been better if he had remained in London, dealt with Miss Montford, and rode posthaste to Pemberley to be with Elizabeth. Instead, he found himself starring in a bad play with no third act.

  And why had he thought it was a good idea to go to a cave? Instead of slip-sliding his way through a wet cavern, his preference would have been to stroll a woodland path. Better yet, he would take Elizabeth’s hand, walk into the woods, make a bed of leaves, and make love to her. Of course, such a thing only occurred at night—every night—as he lay awake in his bed. In his imaginings, Elizabeth and he had made love in every room at Pemberley, and their lovemaking had now moved to the gardens.

  When they arrived at the mouth of the cave, Darcy handed each of the ladies their farmer’s hat, and Georgiana and Lizzy broke into giggles at the sight of the horrid things.

  “Georgiana, all I can say is that I hope the hat looks better on me than it does on you.”

  “Sorry, Lizzy, but you are no example of haute couture either.”

  While the ladies were laughing, Darcy and the colonel decided how best to proceed.

  “Fitzwilliam, you go first, followed by Miss Elizabeth, and then…”

  “I am not going first, Darcy. I am the tallest. The last time I went into that cave, I got a nasty scratch from one of those calcium icicles. I suggest you go first, and if you bump your head, I will know where to duck. Miss Bennet should follow you, then Georgie, and I will protect the rear.”

  “Protect the rear? From what? Wayward sheep? Never mind. Let us proceed.”

  Little Ben, with his torch, was the first into the cave, and when all were inside, Darcy explained that the front part of the cave was used by shepherds as a place to sleep at night and to shelter during a storm.

  “You can see some tally marks scratched into the wall, which I am sure were used to count sheep as recently as this summer. The interesting part is through here.”

  Lizzy crouched as she passed through a narrow opening before emerging into a much larger room smelling of minerals and accompanied by the sound of the drip, drip, drip of water. Ben’s torch revealed large cones of calcified water rising up from the floor and bursting forth from the ceiling. Lizzy looked around and was filled with the wonder a child experiences when presented with an unexpected gift.

  “Remarkable.”

  “Yes, it is, but there is something even more remarkable beyond,” and he directed Ben to proceed. Taking her by the hand, Darcy led her to an inner cavern where there were pictures of animals drawn with charcoal on the walls of the cave. Although the pictures were more representational than realistic, Lizzy got chills thinking she might be looking at something that was 5,000 years old.

  “The archaeologists from Cambridge believe this room served a sacred purpose because the animals depicted here are either predators, such as wolves and bears, or animals that would have required great courage to hunt, like elk or wild pig, and the cavemen, with their spears, are definitely on the hunt. There are finer caves with better drawings in England and certainly on the Continent, but I take some pride in this little depository of the history of an ancient people being so close to where I live.”

  While Lizzy took her time in studying the sketches, Darcy was thinking about how he could kick himself for wasting such an opportunity. Here he was in a dark cave standing next to the woman he loved, and he was regaling her with stories about wild pigs and a primitive people who lived in caves and wore animal skins. He had done the same thing with Miss Montford. Was it any wonder she had looked frightened when he had discussed the American and French revolutions and the great explorers? And now he was doing it again.

  “Mr. Darcy, did you read in the London paper that a young girl in Dorset, I believe her name is Mary Anning, discovered the fossilized skeleton of what appears to be an ancient crocodile? It fell from a cliff following a storm. Can you imagine?”

  “You read about such things?”

  “Why does that surprise you? Because I am a woman?”

  “You are right. I should not be surprised, but there is so much about you that does surprise me.”

  Seeing that the couple was getting along famously, Georgiana signaled to her cousin that they should leave. “Will, Richard and I will wait for you outside. There is a steady dripping on my head, and I have seen all of these drawings, but please take your time.”

  And Lizzy and Mr. Darcy did. He stood as close to her as he could without scandalizing the young Avery. Even with that ridiculous hat on, she looked beautiful. He watched as the flames from the torch cast her profile in flashes of shadow and light, and he had to fight the urge to take her in his arms. Instead, he shared all that he knew about the cave and the valley below. After they had returned to the first room, Darcy stopped Lizzy before she could go out.

  “Elizabeth, I am truly sorry…” but then he said no more, and after a long pause, Lizzy spoke.

  “Mr. Darcy, I can see that you are troubled, so perhaps I can put your mind at ease.” Believing that he was apologizing because nothing could ever come of their relationship, she told him about Mr. Peterson. “There is a certain gentleman who owns a large farm near Watford, and he has expressed an interest in calling on me. He is a fine man and a worthy suitor.”

  Darcy was dumbfounded. How could such intelligence possibly ease his mind?

  “Please explain to me how revealing the presence of a suitor waiting for you in Hertfordshire is supposed to put my mind at ease? It does no such thing.”

  If Darcy was dumbfounded, Lizzy was shocked by the vehemence of his response and felt the need to defend herself. “I only mentioned Mr. Peterson because I thought you were unhappy with your performance regarding… I thought you might have felt that you had given me the wrong impression about… Oh, never mind.”

  Once again he stopped her from leaving. “There are complications.”

  “Complications? Forgive me if I appear confused, sir, but it is my understanding that you are about to become betrothed to a lady in London. There is nothing complicated about that.”

  “No.”

  “No? No what? No, you are not about to become betrothed? I see that you hesitate. I would think that such a question could be easily answered with a simple yes or no.”

  “There is nothing simple about this whole matter.”

  “I beg to differ. If I had been asked the same question, I would have had a ready answer.”

  If Georgiana had imagined listening to the sound of cooing lovebirds coming from inside the cave, she was quickly brought down to earth by loud voices speaking in anger.

  “Richard, they are quarreling.”

  “I would not call it quarreling. It sounds more like fighting to me. Apparently, Miss Elizabeth has tired of our games.”

  “Ben, go into the cave and ask Mr. Darcy if he needs a light to find his way out,” but the boy stood frozen as he had heard the same angry words coming from the cave. “Tell Mr. Darcy that I sent you. Now please go.”

  As soon as Ben went into the cave, Lizzy and Darcy went silent, and Darcy told him that he would be out shortly.

  “Elizabeth, I am trying. I can assure you that I am trying.”

  “I do not understand what you mean.”

  “If I may speak to you in private this evening, I would appreciate it.”

  “Fine,” and out she went.

  As soon as Lizzy emerged into the light, she immediately began praising the cave to Miss Darcy and Colonel Fitzwilliam because if she did not talk about all that she had seen, she would start crying out of pure frustration. After lauding all of the cave’s treasures, she quickly began to walk down the path to where Sugar was tethered. For fear that she might kick Darcy, the colonel assisted Lizzy onto the mare. Nothing was said during the ride down to the carriage and little on the ride back to Pemberley, that is, until they came into view of the stables.<
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  “Oh, no!” Georgiana said and looked at Richard.

  “Oh, God!” Richard answered when he saw what she was looking at.

  At that point, Darcy turned around and uttered a very audible “Damnation!”

  “What is wrong? Has something bad happened?” Lizzy asked, thinking that something terrible had occurred at Pemberley during their absence.

  “Yes, Miss Bennet. Something is wrong. My brother, Lord Fitzwilliam, has decided to pay us a visit.”

  Lizzy turned around to see the stable grooms unhitching a matched pair of white horses that had been pulling an ebony carriage with the coat of arms of the Fitzwilliam family on its side, and just from the little bit she had heard of Antony, Lord Fitzwilliam, she agreed that this could not possibly be a good thing.

  As soon as the carriage came to a stop, David and Goliath were doing circles and flips to show their master how pleased they were to see him, but Darcy hardly noticed his dogs’ acrobatics. Even before he saw Antony’s carriage, his unhappiness with how the excursion to Shepherd’s Cave had gone was visible on his face. Now with the prospect of spending the evening with his rake of a cousin, his visage was all storm and thunder.

  After Mr. Darcy helped Lizzy out of the carriage, he told her that he was looking forward to seeing her at supper, although his countenance appeared to be saying something else entirely. She quickly made her way into the house only to encounter Lord Fitzwilliam. But her mind was too unsettled to attempt to tackle a conversation with the earl, and she made a quick bow, mumbled “milord,” and went right upstairs.

  Georgiana would have made good her own escape if she had not also run headlong into her cousin, who was standing in the foyer looking confused as his eyes followed Lizzy running up the stairs.

  “Georgiana, my dear, how lovely to see you. One of your servants just ran past me. I must say that even for a Darcy that is a damn liberal policy allowing a servant to use the front hall stairs.”

  After kissing his extended cheek, Georgiana explained that the lady was Miss Elizabeth Bennet and a guest, and after looking at her outfit, he asked if the usual tradition of handing down her used clothing to the maids had been reversed to accepting them from her servants.

  “We are dressed this way because we went to Shepherd’s Cave.”

  “Oh, sorry I missed that,” he said, rolling his eyes, “but I had a pleasant conversation with Mrs. Gardiner.” After seeing her expression, he reassured her. “Do not worry. I have not been here long enough to outrage anyone. Jackson has not even had time to follow your brother’s standing order to dilute the port.”

  Georgiana was so rattled by Antony’s sudden appearance that the remark went right over her head. “Antony, what are you doing here?”

  “I was just about to ask that question myself,” Darcy said, entering the foyer with David and Goliath right behind him. It always amazed Georgiana how easily his dogs sensed their master’s changes in mood, and they now stood behind him like sculptures guarding a pharaoh’s tomb.

  “I came to find out what is going on,” Antony said while deliberately ignoring his brother, who was vigorously shaking his head in an attempt to quiet him.

  “What makes you think something is going on?” Darcy asked.

  “Why else would Richard have sent my man to Kent for the purpose of delivering a letter to Anne with instructions to wait for an answer and to return to London immediately?”

  After seeing Darcy’s expression, Richard asked, “Can’t I write a letter to my cousin?”

  “Of course you can,” Antony answered for his brother. “But why was it so important that Darcy be kept from going to Rosings Park? I suspect it has something to do with that badly dressed lady who just ran up the stairs.”

  “Will, may I please get out of these dirty clothes?” Georgiana pleaded, and she tried to slip away, but Darcy caught her by the arm and suggested that they all adjourn to the study for a family discussion.

  Once there, Richard tried to extract his young cousin from the mess they now found themselves in. “Listen, Will, Georgie did not have anything to do with the part about Gregg riding to Rosings Park with a letter for Anne.”

  “Which part was she involved in, if not that?”

  “I swear, Will,” Georgiana said. “I have done nothing behind your back. My only involvement in any scheme was to invite Elizabeth and the Gardiners here to Pemberley and to suggest the excursion to the cave, both of which you knew about.”

  “Do I know the lady who is the cause of so much intrigue?” Antony asked, and all three answered with a loud “no.”

  “Antony, I know you did not come all the way from London just to catch up on family gossip,” Will continued. “So, tell me. What the hell are you doing here?”

  “That is not very nice, Will, especially since I have news to share.”

  “So share it.” Darcy’s patience was wearing thin, and his eyes, which could change with his mood, were now gunmetal gray.

  “With pleasure. A few nights ago, Richard came to White’s, and after we got Gregg off on his midnight ride to Kent, he worked the conversation around to politics. As you know, my interest in politics is only exceeded by my interest in women. There were rumors that you might be courting Letitia Montford. I say ‘might’ because your attentions to the young lady have been irregular at best, and you have everyone playing a guessing game.

  “After beating around the bush, Richard finally got to it. He said that even though Sir John and you were polar opposites on the most important issues of the day, you were hoping to change that. You had gone so far as to say you were determined to secure Sir John’s support for some legislation the Whigs were supporting regarding the expansion of the franchise to vote.

  “Knowing that I cannot keep a secret, I understood my brother wanted me to spread this about, and so when Sir John came in the next evening, I told him what Richard had said. He sucked in his breath and forgot to breathe, and turned blue, not his best color, I might add. But then he asked where you were. When I told him, Sir John asked for me to give you a message.”

  “Which is?”

  “He wants you to pay a call on him as soon as you return to town. He called you a young whippersnapper. I have not heard that word since I asked my father for an increase in my allowance when I was nineteen. Now, I believe I have performed admirably, so may I have a glass of port—from your reserve, Will—not the special port you keep just for me?”

  Even considering the source, Darcy decided that this was good news. If his friendship with Letitia could be ended as a result of her father’s disapproval of his politics, then it would turn out all right if his behavior since the ball at Netherfield had not caused irreparable harm in Elizabeth’s eyes. As far as Darcy was concerned, he could not get to London to see Letitia fast enough and get this whole sorry affair behind him.

  As soon as Lizzy reached her room, she rang for Ellie and asked that arrangements be made for a bath.

  “Right away, miss, and a letter’s come for you. It is on the table in the foyer. Should I get it?”

  “I am sure it is from my sister Jane, so it can wait. I am much more interested in getting all of this dirt off me.”

  Lizzy felt an overwhelming sense of fatigue and was looking forward to soaking in a warm bath. Hopefully, she could wash away all the anger she was feeling for Mr. Darcy. But when Lizzy entered her apartment, she found her Aunt Gardiner waiting for her.

  “I fear that I am intruding, as I am sure you are tired,” her aunt stammered, “but I am actually hiding out in here.”

  “From Uncle Gardiner?”

  “No, your uncle has not returned. I am speaking of Lord Fitzwilliam,” and she clutched the lace on her bodice. “Elizabeth, he is a total rake. He had me blushing like a new bride. As your guardian, I do not want you anywhere near that man.”

  “I don’t think you need worry,” Lizzy said, taking off her coat. “From what I have heard, he would be more interested in you than me. Apparently, he d
raws the line at seducing maidens.”

  “Oh dear! You do not really think that he would try to…” but Aunt Gardiner could not finish the sentence.

  “I have never met him, but I think he is probably more talk than action. I imagine one cold look from Mr. Darcy will settle him down nicely. But what did he say to you?”

  “I am embarrassed to repeat the conversation,” but with the slightest smile on her lips, she related the hour she had spent in Lord Fitzwilliam’s company. “I have never been in the presence of an earl before, and I did not know what to say. In fact, he told me I was saying ‘milord’ too frequently. He appreciates his rank being acknowledged, but to his mind, a few ‘milords’ are sufficient,” and Ruth Gardiner started to giggle like a young girl. “Actually, he is wickedly charming. I can imagine him getting his way more often than not.”

  “But tell me what he said.”

  “All right. After all, you are more than twenty years old and not a child. As I said, I did not know what to say to him because of his rank, and so I asked him about his family. He told me that he had two delightful daughters, ten and twelve, who were the apples of his eye. After we had exhausted the subject of his children, I told him that I had met the colonel and asked if there were any other sisters or brothers. ‘Yes,’ he said, ‘I have two sisters. The younger one thinks I can do no wrong, while the older one thinks I can do no right. The older one actually got it right.’

  “That is exactly what he said, but then he went on. ‘My parents had four children, one right after the other, and then no more. I wonder what happened there?’ Well, I blushed from head to toe at the implication that they no longer… Anyway, after he saw me blushing, he said, ‘Tsk, tsk, tsk, Mrs. Gardiner, I wasn’t thinking of that at all.’”

  Lizzy started laughing. “I think he was trying to fluster you as he has a reputation to protect—that of being a rascal.”

  “Well, my dear, if he wanted to see me flustered, he succeeded. I will tell you that I shall have Mr. Gardiner beside me throughout the evening, and if he must leave me for even a moment, I shall seek you out.”