“How are you feeling, dear one?” Stooping over Georgiana, he brushed his lips lightly against her brow, feeling the warmth of it.
“Rather awful,” Georgiana admitted, “but a little better than I did earlier.”
“That is good to hear.” Darcy looked at the doctor, uncertain whether the man would want to speak to him outside, but Doctor Jones shook his head as he packed his things back into his bag.
“Miss Darcy does seem a little better this afternoon, but I must caution her against trying to get up. I have long been firmly of the belief that rest is the best medicine, that and the loving care the Misses Bennet have been lavishing upon you. I will see you again tomorrow morning, Miss Darcy, and I hope to hear that you have passed a restful night.” With a reassuring smile for Darcy, the doctor departed.
“Well, you heard him, Georgie,” Darcy said in some relief; the doctor did not seem too concerned. “Snuggle down into those pillows and go to sleep.”
“Not yet; come and talk to me for a little while, Will?” She looked up at him from her huge china-blue eyes and he gave in, as he always did, setting a hip on the edge of the bed and taking her hand in his. “I’m truly so glad you brought me here, Lizzy and Jane are so nice! Why did you not write of them in your letters to me, when you were staying with Mr Bingley?”
“I did not know them so very well then,” Darcy excused himself, “but I am glad of the opportunity to have introduced you, though I wish it was not at the expense of your health. The Misses Bennet are admirable young ladies.”
“Lizzy says that there are five Bennet sisters. Five, Will, just imagine!”
He chuckled at her wide-eyed incredulity. “I do not have to imagine, I have met all of them.”
“Are they all as pretty as Lizzy and Jane?”
Elizabeth laughed from the other side of the room, where she was placing a log upon the fire. “You will make me blush, Georgiana!”
“In my opinion, Miss Elizabeth is quite the most beautiful of all the Bennet sisters,” Darcy said with a conspiratorial air, though he did not bother to keep his voice down.
“I think your brother has contracted your illness, Miss Darcy,” Elizabeth said, her tone tart as she returned to stand beside the bed, so close that Darcy could have reached out his hand and touched her. “I have heard it said that a high fever can affect the eyesight.”
Georgiana giggled delightedly at Elizabeth’s wit, and Darcy found a broad smile spreading across his face. It had been many months since he had heard Georgiana sound so happy; he knew that soon he would have to break her heart by telling her the truth about Wickham, but for now he let her have her amusement at his expense.
“Indeed, I quite envy you,” deliberately, he prolonged the banter. “I should very much like to lie abed and have the beauteous countenance of Miss Elizabeth to comfort me in my illness.”
Elizabeth was looking at him with that arch little smile playing about her lips. He wanted very much to kiss that smile, vowed to himself then that one day he would, one day when he was sure she would welcome it.
“Your tune has changed, Mr Darcy. Do you know, the very first time he laid eyes on me, he described me as tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt him?” she told Georgiana confidingly.
“He did not!” Georgiana’s eyes widened with horror.
“Regrettably, I did, and I am never going to be allowed to forget it, either,” Darcy confessed. “I am afraid that is not even the worst of my bad behaviour. No doubt Miss Elizabeth will take great delight in telling you all about it.”
Elizabeth smiled at him, shaking her head. “Shall I tell your sister, too, about how you crushed Miss Bingley with a few words when she attempted to put me in my place?”
“Oh, please do!” Georgiana had to pause to cough, but the look she gave Elizabeth was extremely eager. “That is one story I shall be most pleased to hear!”
“Well, here comes Jane now with the tea for you. Drink it all, and I promise I shall repeat the conversation word for word, to the best of my recollection, and even try to mimic Miss Bingley’s expression as your brother delivered the final verbal blow.”
Georgiana looked delighted. Darcy had to turn away to hide his grin. He hadn’t realised quite how much Caroline Bingley had apparently managed to aggravate Georgiana with her ingratiating manner on the few occasions where they had been in company. Perhaps Georgiana had even feared that he might fall prey to Miss Bingley’s matrimonial schemes.
“I added lots of honey to the tea to help your sore throat,” Jane said, helping Georgiana to lift the cup. “And to mask the taste somewhat… I fear it is not very nice, but I have one of Mrs Hill’s special treacle and liquorice cough drops for you to suck on afterwards.”
“Oh, delicious!” Elizabeth said. “I do not suppose you coaxed a few extra from her? We have all been quite addicted to them since we were small,” she confided, “but Mrs Hill always said they were only for when we were ill.”
Georgiana smiled faintly before taking the first sip of tea, her nose wrinkling. “Well… I shall look forward to one of these special treats.”
Jane came back to Darcy’s side, placed a hand on his arm. “Leave us with her, Mr Darcy. She will be well soon, I promise you.”
“Thank you,” Darcy had to drag his gaze away from Georgiana and Elizabeth, sitting close together on the bed. “Thank you so much, Miss Bennet, for taking such good care of her. I cannot ever hope to repay you.”
“This is not something done with thought of repayment, Mr Darcy.” Jane smiled at him kindly.
He was surprised to find himself choking up a little. How long had it been since someone had done something for him or Georgiana with no thought of reward, not because they were Darcys of Pemberley, but for no other reason than a simple Christian desire to do the right thing?
“Thank you,” he said again, more softly. “I will never forget your kindness.”
Jane truly did look rather like an angel, he thought as she smiled at him again before turning away. All golden beauty and serene attitude. Her smiles had never stirred him, though. Not like the arch smirks and dancing eyes of her sister. Sneaking one last glance at Elizabeth as he left the room, Darcy was surprised to find her watching him in return.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The arrival of the Gardiner family the following afternoon caused further upheaval at Longbourn, but of the most welcome kind. The Bennet girls were clearly very fond of their relatives, Jane and Elizabeth taking it in turns to come out of Georgiana’s sickroom and greet their little cousins, be embraced and exclaimed over by their aunt and uncle.
Darcy tried to remain in the background, but failed utterly when the youngest Gardiner child, a blonde moppet who he suspected would share Jane Bennet’s beauty when she grew up, came trotting over to him dragging a rather shapeless stuffed animal by one leg, small thumb in her mouth, and stared at him from enormous blue eyes. Removing the thumb for a moment, she said loudly;
“Who ‘oo?”
“Juliet!” Mrs Gardiner swooped, laughing, on her daughter. “You must wait to be introduced, not barge in and demand names!”
Darcy smiled. “It’s quite all right, ma’am. I am Fitzwilliam Darcy, at your service, Miss Juliet,” he went to one knee and gravely offered his hand. When Juliet took it, he kissed her fingertips gallantly. She giggled at him before reinserting her thumb into her mouth.
“Madeline, Mr Darcy is a guest with us while his sister is recovering from an illness,” Mrs Bennet came up to introduce them properly.
“I believe Lizzy mentioned in one of her letters that Mr Darcy was staying with your neighbour Mr Bingley a few weeks ago? Do I have it right that you are from Derbyshire, Mr Darcy?”
“I am.” He inclined his head to her, smiling. “Do I detect a little of the Peaks in your own speech, Mrs Gardiner?”
“You do indeed, I spent quite some time in the village of Lambton in my youth.”
“Very recently then, I am sure,” he said. Mrs Ben
net looked quite astounded at the charming remark; Darcy mentally patted himself on the back. All that time spent with Bingley must be rubbing off. Normally he could never think of charming things to say until long after the opportunity had passed.
Mrs Gardiner chuckled warmly, gave him an appreciative look. “The last time I was in Lambton, Mr Darcy, I believe you were still in leading strings. I remember it very fondly, though.”
“You would find a good deal of progress if you were to visit again. My father encouraged business in the village, and I have followed suit. Lambton is less than five miles from Pemberley,” he advised Mrs Bennet, who was listening to the conversation, her expression fascinated.
“You must tell me more, Mr Darcy; I still keep up a correspondence with my friends there. Perhaps we have mutual acquaintances.” Mrs Gardiner drew him to a seat beside her and smiled as Juliet promptly sat down on the other side of Darcy, eyeing him with unconcealed fascination.
“I should be delighted,” Darcy said honestly. He could not believe that he had considered the Bennets’ London connections to be inferior; Mrs Gardiner was every inch a woman of fashion, impeccably dressed, with perfectly charming, unaffected manners. And her daughter, even though Juliet could not be more than four years old, was completely adorable.
Not that the mop of golden curls and wide,trusting blue eyes that reminded him almost painfully of his sister at the same age were having any effect on him, of course. He found himself planning to visit the confectioner’s next time he went into Meryton to stock up on sweets. He was sure that Juliet’s two older brothers wouldn’t be averse to a few treats, either.
“Edward, do come over here and meet Mr Darcy,” Mrs Gardiner beckoned to her husband, who came across at her summons, smiling genially. Darcy made to rise and discovered a small head on his lap.
“She is a little tired, I am afraid. She did not sleep a wink in the carriage, from excitement.” Mr Gardiner gestured to Darcy not to rise. “Edward Gardiner, sir; an honour to meet you.”
“The honour is mine.” Shaking hands from a seated position was awkward, but Darcy did his best, over the sleeping child in his lap. “I was just becoming acquainted with your lovely wife, and your delightful daughter. Tell me, does she have you wrapped around her little finger as tightly as I suspect she will me in a day or two?”
“My wife, or my daughter?” Mr Gardiner replied with a distinct twinkle in his eyes and a certain quirk to his lips Darcy recognised all too well. He stifled a huge guffaw of laughter to avoid waking Juliet, found himself smiling broadly.
Elizabeth, just entering the room, stopped short at the sight of Mr Darcy barely containing laughter as her small cousin slumbered peacefully on his lap. He caught her eye and his smile widened even further.
“Lizzy, my dear!” Her aunt rose gracefully to her feet and came to embrace her. “How very well you look!”
Returning the greeting, Elizabeth found it difficult to tear her eyes from Mr Darcy, astounded at how comfortable he looked with Juliet on his lap, his hand resting lightly on her golden curls. She had never seen him interact with a child, she realised, taking a seat close by at her aunt’s urging. Somehow she had thought that he would be awkward and uncomfortable with them, but it was quite the opposite. Nor did he seem uncomfortable conversing with her aunt and uncle, even though she knew he was well aware they were in trade.
In short, she was seeing a side of Fitzwilliam Darcy that she had genuinely never suspected he possessed. The previous day before their conversation in the garden, she might have accused him of faking his friendliness, but with the new understanding of his character she had gained, she now understood that such deception would simply never occur to him. If he did not care for someone, he would simply ignore or avoid them. Had she not seen him do the same thing many times on his earlier stay in Hertfordshire? There was no reason why Mr Darcy should care to try and impress the Gardiners, so the only conclusion she could draw was that he actually liked them.
Privately, Darcy admitted he was a little surprised to find the Gardiners so amiable. Mrs Gardiner was clearly a lady of fashion, her outfit cut in the latest style and made of high-quality fabric which must have cost a pretty penny. She and her husband were clearly devoted to each other and their children. It was the kind of happy, loving family unit Darcy had not seen since his own mother’s death, and he felt a lump coming to his throat as he lightly smoothed his fingers over Juliet’s silky golden curls.
I want this, he thought, watching Elizabeth embrace her uncle and take a seat beside him, laughing as one of Juliet’s older brothers came rushing up to clamber into her lap and demand a story. I want to hear the laughter of children echoing in Pemberley’s halls again.
Thinking of Pemberley, he wondered what his redoubtable housekeeper, Mrs Reynolds, would make of Elizabeth. The smile he didn’t even realise he wore widened as he considered that if he brought Elizabeth to Pemberley as his bride, Mrs Reynolds would probably fall on her neck with tears of job, and that even before the two women got to know each other.
“Does it not, Mr Darcy?” Elizabeth said, and he twitched, jerked from his reverie.
“I beg your pardon,” he said guiltily. “I was not attending.”
“Well, now you must tell us what has you so far away you cannot attend to such riveting conversation,” Elizabeth said archly.
Wondering what she would say if he told her he was imagining her triumphant arrival at Pemberley as the new Mrs Darcy, Darcy sternly suppressed the impulse. “I was recalling when Georgiana was as small as Juliet,” he said instead. “With golden curls and blue eyes, they share a great resemblance. I hope Georgiana will be well enough to meet the children soon, Mrs Gardiner; she has a great love of small children. Our cousin Henry has three young daughters we do not get to see so often as we should like, and they are always sending her drawings and letters written in brightly coloured crayon.”
“Is that Colonel Fitzwilliam?” Elizabeth asked curiously.
“No, his older brother.” Darcy hesitated, but downplaying his connections would be as good as concealment, and he had already sworn an oath to himself to keep no more secrets from Elizabeth. “Viscount Darleydale.”
“No son? That must be disappointing for a titled gentleman,” Elizabeth remarked, a slight edge to her voice.
“Actually, he does, but Thomas is older than Georgiana. He went up to Cambridge this year.” Darcy hesitated, remembering what Elizabeth had told him about Longbourn being entailed. “And even if he had no son, I don’t believe Henry would be disappointed. Though the title would pass to his brother, along with most of the estate, he has already ensured his daughters will be well-dowered. As did my father with Georgiana, though Pemberley is not entailed and would pass to her if I have no children.”
“Not entailed?” Mr Gardiner said, expression interested. “That is unusual, for such a great estate.”
“There was an entail, but my father chose not to renew it.” Darcy could not take his eyes off Elizabeth, who was watching him with a quizzical expression, as though wondering why he chose to share the information with her. She must know. Surely, she must know.
The arrival of Hill with a tea-tray broke their intense staring-match, and Darcy looked away, a little embarrassed. He could not will Elizabeth into understanding his feelings; he would have to use his actions and words to show her he was worthy of her esteem and affection, if he could.
“Mama is calling me to help her with the tea. May I fetch you a cup, Mr Darcy?” Elizabeth said and he looked at her again. She was smiling at him, and there was nothing arch about it.
“Thank you, Miss Elizabeth,” he managed to get out as she stood, gesturing to him to remain seated because of the sleeping Juliet. “That would be wonderful.”
Their fingers touched as she placed the cup into his hand, the merest whisper of skin on skin. Elizabeth’s eyes flew to his, and a tinge of red flushed her throat, her lips parting.
Darcy had never wanted to throw caution
to the winds so strongly in his life. If they were alone, he would have tossed the teacup into the fireplace and taken Elizabeth in his arms to vow his eternal adoration.
As it was, there was a four-year-old asleep on his lap and a roomful of witnesses. Darcy reined in the impulsiveness he had never even suspected he possessed and forced himself to take a sip of his tea. At least Elizabeth wasn’t rushing off to be with Georgiana, remarking that Jane had her well in hand and she could steal half an hour to drink tea and spend time with the Gardiners. Darcy would just have to be content with sitting and gazing at her as she talked with her aunt and uncle, drinking in her beauty, the animation of her features, the cleverness of her wit. Hearing her laughter was like drinking the finest wine, utterly intoxicating, especially when she glanced at him with those sparkling dark eyes and leaned forward to make an arch remark, including him in her joke.
Juliet made a sound in her sleep and wriggled around, climbing further into Darcy’s lap and snuggling against his waistcoat. Mrs Gardiner smiled down fondly at her daughter.
“Perhaps we should put her to bed.”
“Please, allow me to carry her upstairs for you,” Darcy offered.
His offer was accepted, and he carried the sleeping child, light as a feather, up to the nursery where the Gardiners’ governess had a fire lit and warmed beds ready. When he returned to the parlour, though, it was to find that Elizabeth had excused herself to relieve Jane, and the cheerful family gathering suddenly seemed far less golden in Darcy’s eyes.
Nonetheless, he took a seat by Mr Gardiner. Elizabeth esteemed her uncle, so it behooved Darcy to get to know him. He did not doubt the effort would be worthwhile.
Georgiana was feeling well enough to sit up and eat some dinner, and she begged Jane and Elizabeth to leave her alone and go downstairs to eat their meal with the family. They would have refused, except that Kitty had come out of her room and asked to be introduced to Georgiana that afternoon, and the two girls immediately became fast friends. Not entirely recovered from her own illness, Kitty insisted she was perfectly well enough to sit and talk quietly with Georgiana, and she could certainly ring the bell if the other girl took a turn for the worse.
A Christmas Miracle At Longbourn (The Darcy And Lizzy Miracles Book 1) Page 12
