Elizabeth needed to put a stop to it. As he moved to the other side of the bed to tuck her in, she waved him away with her good hand.
“I do not need to be trussed up like a chicken, Mr. Darcy,” she remarked with a little laugh, trying to dispel the strange feeling that was coming over her.
He straightened up into a standing position, looking as awkward as she felt.
“Do you wish for company, Miss Bennet, or would you prefer to rest?”
She wished for company, but at this particular moment she also needed to reflect on what was happening to her. A strong sense of longing to see Jane came over her. She wished Jane could have been there so they could have discussed Mr. Darcy’s unexpected behavior.
She did not think it would be wise for Mr. Darcy to stay. “I would like to rest for a while, but perhaps later you can return and bring Georgiana or your cousin with you to prevent me from succumbing to boredom.”
Darcy’s face shuttered.
“Very well, Miss Bennet. I will give you a chance to rest. Try to get some sleep.”
Bowing stiffly, he turned and strode to the door.
*****
Darcy straightened his shoulders and tried not to show any signs of the turmoil that was surging through him. Miss Bennet did not want him to stay. She had made it quite clear that she did not care for his company. He longed for one sign from her, just one, however small, that would indicate she was interested in him, but there seemed to be none forthcoming.
At least she did not toy with his feelings. Thankfully, her playful nature did not extend that far.
Darcy pulled at the door handle, but the door refused to budge. Puzzled, he tried it again. He pushed the handle down as far as it would go then, leaning his shoulder against the wall, he tried to use it as leverage, but the door remained stubbornly closed.
“The door is jammed,” he said.
There was nothing like a closed door to make a man feel like an incompetent fool. He would have liked to talk to Elizabeth of lock mechanisms and springs, but he knew nothing at all about them. All he could do was jangle the handle up and down in the hope that it would loosen.
Elizabeth tilted her head to one side, her eyes dancing.
“That is a poor excuse for you to extend your visit with me, Mr. Darcy.”
He felt his ears redden at the accusation. He knew it was only said in jest, but there was enough truth in it to sting. He did wish to extend his visit, but he had not jammed the door deliberately.
He started to bang at the door to see if someone would hear and come to his assistance. It was undignified, but it might do the trick.
“Shall I ring for a servant?” said Elizabeth.
Now that was a more sensible solution, but then, she was not the one seized with a sense of panic at being locked in.
“I will do it. I do not wish you to undo my work after I took the trouble of tucking you in,” he said, surprised that he was capable of joking. He approached the bed again and tugged vigorously at the bell pull.
Elizabeth was sitting with her head against the headboard, her eyes closed. His gaze took in the long thick lashes that rested against her cheek, the soft swell of her red lips and the long extension of her neck that was interrupted by the sheet.
It was more than he could endure. He had not wanted to leave the room, but heaven forgive him, he was finding it more and more difficult to keep himself under control.
He would give anything to be able to go to her and take her into his arms, to press his lips to hers and cover that long neck with kisses. Only an iron will prevented him from doing it. It would be despicable for a gentleman to take advantage of a lady’s weakness when she was injured. Then there were Theo and Richard to worry about; he did not want a lady to come between them. Nor could he do such a thing unless he was sure of her feelings, until she looked at him with an ardor and feeling that equaled his.
Why was no one coming to let him out?
He began to walk up and down again. Then a thought struck him and he slapped his hand across his brow.
“Depend on it,” said Darcy. “This is Theo’s mischief. He left the room after I entered and must have locked it then. He probably thinks it is vastly amusing and is chuckling away as he rides to London.”
Darcy went to the window as if expecting to see Theo bolting away on horseback.
“I do think it is strange that no one has answered our summons,” said Lizzy. “It is not my impression that the servants are slovenly at Rosings.”
“They are not. I cannot imagine my aunt would run Rosings with any less efficiency than a barracks. I am sure there is a perfectly good explanation for that.” He opened the window and looked out. “I suppose if necessary, I can climb down the drainpipe.”
“Surely you are not that desperate to escape my company, Mr. Darcy!” said Elizabeth. “Still, it is a spectacle I would like to witness. If you will help me to the window so I can watch, it would be a tale to tell when I return to Meryton. Mr. Darcy Descending Down a Drainpipe. I would make ample use of alliteration.”
Darcy smiled. “I would rather not amuse the inhabitants of Meryton if I can help it, Miss Bennet. As for your first statement, you cannot accuse me of both wishing to escape you and plotting to stay in the room with you at the same time.”
She was really bewitching when she smiled in that playful way, mischief written all over her face. It tugged at every heartstring he had. A few strides and he could be at her side. It was so very tempting to give up his scruples and gather her into his arms.
Do it, Darcy.
You must not. You are a gentleman. A gentleman does not accost injured ladies in their bedrooms.
He teetered on the precipice.
“Really,” said Elizabeth. “It is very odd that no one has come.”
Her remark brought him back to himself and he took a step backward.
“Prodigiously strange.” He went to the door and looked through the keyhole. There was no key there. Theo must have pocketed the key, which gave Darcy another thing to worry about. Could Theo have taken the key with him to London?
Another suspicion raised its ugly head. Where did Theo get the key from in the first place? This was not a random action spurred by the moment. Theo had planned to do this, and there could be no explanation for it other than a desire to take revenge on Darcy by making him look like a fool in front of Elizabeth.
“I am providing entertainment for my brother even as we speak. He enjoys playing pranks at my expense. You would think he would have outgrown that by now.”
All the pent-up frustration of the last few days—Theo’s accident, his flirtations with Elizabeth, the irresponsible shooting, his sudden decision to leave for London—surfaced. It appeared the purpose of Theo’s life was to torment his older brother, to make trouble for him at every turn. And now he had rushed off to get into yet another scrape with that good-for-nothing friend of his Monty.
Elizabeth saw only the charming side of Theo, as so many people did, but there was unfortunately another side to him as well.
“My brother is the bane of my existence, Miss Bennet.”
Even as he spoke, he knew he was doing the wrong thing, but he could not help it. It would not endear him to Elizabeth for him to speak badly of Theo, but he wanted her to understand what he had been through as he struggled to raise a brother with a tendency to wildness. For the first time that he could remember, he wanted to speak about those grueling years after his father had died and left him with two younger siblings to take care of.
He badly wanted to give Elizabeth Bennet a glimpse of who the real Fitzwilliam Darcy was. Perhaps in time she might even come to like him.
*****
Elizabeth listened to Darcy with astonishment. She had never imagined taciturn and reserved Mr. Darcy capable of such an outpouring of feelings and she had certainly never imagined herself as the recipient of his confidences. She did not want to hear them. He was painting such a dark picture of his brother, and the
more he spoke the more agitated she felt. Any charity she had begun to feel for Darcy disappeared, especially since Mr. Wickham seemed implicated in a great many of the crimes Darcy was accusing Mr. Theo of committing.
“Perhaps, if were not for Theo, Sebastian might still be alive right now.”
A horrified silence followed. Darcy seemed shocked that he had said such a thing. Presumably he realized how bad he had sounded, because he immediately turned contrite.
“No. That is not true,” he said. “Theo had nothing to do with Sebastian’s accident. Nothing at all.”
But to Elizabeth, it was apparent that Darcy had harbored the thought or he would never have mentioned it.
“From what I heard of the story from Georgiana,” said Elizabeth, feeling a strong urge to defend those maligned so heartlessly by Mr. Darcy, “Theo was a child at the time, no more than nine years old when Sebastian’s tragic accident occurred. How could you lay the blame on him all these years later, knowing he could not have understood what was happening? I remember when we were in Netherfield; you told me then that your good opinion, once lost, would be lost forever. Theo is clearly guilty of having lost your good opinion, as is Mr. Wickham. In Theo’s case, since he is your brother, the consequences are less dire. But I cannot imagine how badly Wickham must have offended, to have his living taken from him and to have been left destitute?”
“Wickham? Destitute? And you believe this destitution to be inflicted on him by me? This, then is your opinion of me?”
“They say that first impressions are generally correct. My attitude has been softening towards you since you and I spoke at the Parsonage, and I had even begun to think better of you these last few days, but it appears my initial perception was correct. If you are able to judge your own brother so harshly, then it is not surprising that you would be capable of tossing out the son of your steward by the wayside without a qualm.”
“You take an eager interest in that gentleman’s affairs,” said Darcy, tight lipped.
Her temper rose.
“Is it so strange that I pay attention to someone who was a victim of circumstances? Someone who, by right, should have been granted a living near Pemberley? Who has been treated so abominably even though he has caused injury to no one!”
Darcy’s expression darkened. She had pushed him too far now, she could tell.
“Hurt no one?” he said. “Hurt no one?”
In two strides, he had crossed the room and was at her side. To her astonishment, he kneeled next to her bed and took hold of her hand. “I do not wish to cause you pain, Elizabeth, if you have formed an attachment to Wickham, so I will not tell you of the many unfortunate situations I have had to rescue him from, but I must warn you that he is not what he seems. He—” Darcy peered into her face intently. “I cannot speak of it—but it concerns my sister Georgiana. You can ask her about her experience with Wickham, although it will give her great pain to speak of it.”
Elizabeth’s mind reeled, both from the revelation about Mr. Wickham—though she could only guess at what Darcy meant—and from the strange sensations she was feeling at having Darcy so close to her. She no longer knew what to feel. A moment ago, she would have said she hated him, but now—.
Oh, it was too confusing. It was all too much. Her shoulder was throbbing; she could not think straight.
“I am sorry if I have distressed you because of my revelations. I would not wish to cause you pain, dearest Elizabeth.”
Darcy reached out with his hand to touch her cheek. The contact sent a strange shiver through her. His face was only inches from hers. Elizabeth’s pulse began to race.
CHAPTER 10
The door flew open.
“What is the meaning of this?”
The voice penetrated through Darcy’s befuddled thoughts. His aunt!
Darcy sprung to his feet and turned to face Lady Catherine. Except she was not alone.
“How the mighty have fallen!” said Theo, in a smug, self-righteous tone. “I would never have thought it of you, William.”
“Miss Bennet!” said Anne.
The worst was Georgiana. She stood there staring, her hand pressed to her mouth, an expression of horror on her face.
“Fitzwilliam, what were you doing?” she said, in a strange voice.
Her words rang out in a suddenly silent room. Tension filled every corner of it.
“I fear you are compromised, Miss Bennet,” whispered Anne.
“I am afraid so,” said Theo, lounging carelessly against the door.
“When we came to your rescue, Miss Bennet, we little imagined—” Fitzwilliam peered over the top of everyone’s heads. “The servants said they heard banging noises,” he continued, by way of explanation.
Darcy knew guilt was written all over his face. He had been about to kiss Elizabeth when they had entered.
“There is nothing else to be done,” said Anne, bluntly. “You will have to marry Miss Bennet, Cousin William.”
“Nonsense,” said Lady Catherine. “We are the only witnesses. No one need know about it.” Her gaze came to rest on Elizabeth. “As for you, young hussy, you may leave Rosings right now. Have you no shame? Coming to Rosings for the sole purpose of trapping my nephew into marriage!”
“Now I know who shot at me,” said Elizabeth, striving to make a joke of the situation.
“It is too late for all this, Aunt,” said Colonel Fitzwilliam, ignoring Elizabeth’s attempt at levity. “I am afraid nothing more can be done. The fact is, Darcy locked the door to the room and we have caught him red-handed. Miss Bennet is a lady, and Darcy has compromised her reputation.”
“I?” said Darcy, suddenly realizing that this had all gone beyond a prank. “I locked the door? And pray, where is the key?”
“Over there on the table,” said Anne, readily.
Everyone turned to look at the key. There was no doubt about it. There it was in plain view.
Darcy turned to Theo. His brother had not budged from his position in the doorway, so Darcy could not blame him for placing the key there. Was his mind playing tricks on him? Had he wished so much to stay with Elizabeth that he had failed to see the key?
Darcy looked towards Elizabeth, a bemused expression playing at the corners of her eyes. Fortunately, she did not think him guilty, and that was all that mattered.
He took a deep breath. “I suppose it is no use protesting that things are not what they seem?”
“No use at all,” said Anne, firmly. “You will have to offer for Miss Bennet. You must do the honorable thing.”
“If someone will allow me a word in edgewise,” said Elizabeth, “The easiest solution is simply to ask all of you not to speak of the matter, and that will be the end of it. I cannot believe any of you will be malicious enough to spread gossip that will tarnish my reputation. In any case, I am prepared to take the risk.”
“You cannot mean that,” said Georgiana, of all people, in a small voice. “You have four sisters to think of. The reality of the situation is that there will be gossip, even if everyone in the room swears to silence.” She looked towards the two footmen lurking just outside the open door.
“Servants in my employ do not spread gossip,” said Lady Catherine, in a quelling voice intended to intimidate Georgiana.
Darcy bristled defensively, but his aunt had already turned her attention to Elizabeth. “I find your suggestion very sensible, Miss Bennet. I am willing to revise my opinion of you.”
Sensible? There was nothing sensible about it. Did she not she realize the seriousness of the situation? Darcy clung to the only words that made sense in this madness. The honorable thing. Yes, there was only one honorable thing to be done. He did not believe for one moment that Elizabeth was not worried about her reputation.
Besides, it is what you wish, more than anything in the world, a voice whispered inside him.
He walked up to the bed calmly, even though he was shaking inside, went down on one knee and took her hand in his.
&nbs
p; “Miss Bennet, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
A collective breath was held as everyone waited expectantly. Elizabeth chewed on her lower lip. Her hand fluttered inside his.
“I am sorry,” she said, “but I cannot.”
Darcy stared at her in incomprehension. He could not get his mind around her response. Had she actually refused him?
“There,” said Lady Catherine, in a voice filled with satisfaction. “The chit will not have you. She knows that nothing good will come of marrying above her station. Miss Bennet, I knew you were a prudent young lady the moment I laid eyes on you. That young woman, I thought at the time, will not suffer fools gladly. My opinion of you is confirmed. You have done exceedingly well. If you had a brother, Miss Bennet, I would have bestowed a living on him.”
“Do not be ridiculous, Mama,” said Anne. “Miss Bennet, I am sorry to say this but you have no choice but to accept my cousin. You need not be noble and self-sacrificing about it. My cousin is perfectly willing. Are you not, Darcy?”
Darcy did not think he could ever be more embarrassed than at this moment. To have his emotions discussed in front of everyone immediately after being rejected by the object of his affections!
“I am not prepared to discuss any of my feelings about anything or anyone in public. If you will allow me a few moments of privacy with Miss Bennet, I would like to speak with her about the matter alone.”
“Certainly not,” said Lady Catherine. “She has rejected you. What could you possibly have to say to Miss Bennet?”
“Mama!” said Anne, pushing Lady Catherine backward.
“I am shocked and dismayed,” said Lady Catherine, her eyes bulging. “My own daughter! I have nursed a viper in my bosom. After all I have done to secure Darcy for you. Anne! How could you?”
Anne ignored her mother’s remarks, continuing to push Lady Catherine backwards as the room cleared.
The Darcy Brothers Page 18
