by Ola Wegner
“I had not yet the opportunity to congratulate you on your wedding, and as I can see, the impeding birth of your first child.” Colonel’s gaze rested on Elizabeth’s middle section.
Elizabeth put her hands on her rounded stomach. “We thank you, Colonel Fitzwilliam.”
Colonel inclined his head. “I wish you every happiness.”
“We thank you, Cousin,” Darcy spoke formally, his posture stiff, his hand covering his wife’s hand on their child’s bulge.
Colonel seemed to ignore Darcy’s words, because his gaze still rested on Elizabeth. “Mrs. Darcy, I must say you look positively radiant; glowing, I would say.”
“It is because I am so happy,” Elizabeth responded softly, taking a small step back, leaning against the tall frame of her husband and looking up at him.
Darcy instantly reacted to her movement, his hand wrapping more securely over her middle, his eyes melting into hers.
Colonel stared at the couple for a moment, and seeing that they were lost in their own world, he gathered Georgiana under his arm. “Pray tell me what new compositions have you learned on the pianoforte.”
“Oh, so many since you had the opportunity to listen last time. I played the newest one before you came. I can play it now for you.” Georgiana was already pulling him in the direction of the pianoforte.
Elizabeth stepped forward from her husband’s embrace. “Georgiana, I think that Colonel Fitzwilliam may be tired and hungry.”
Georgiana let a soft gasp. “Oh, you are so right, Lizzy. I have not thought.”
“Do not fret yourself, little one.” The man smiled at the girl. “A few hours on horseback is nothing for an old soldier like myself. I will be happy to listen to you.”
Georgiana shook her head so vehemently that her artfully arranged glossy blond curls bobbed. “No, my sister is right. You must rest first and eat something warm.”
Elizabeth stepped closer to Colonel. “We have already dined, but I will ask Mrs. Reynolds to set the table in the smaller dining room, or perhaps you would prefer to have your dinner served in the guest room upstairs.”
He bowed with a smile. “I thank you Mrs. Darcy, the smaller dining room sounds very good indeed.”
***
“It has been a very pleasant evening, has it not?” Elizabeth remarked, her tone light and pleasant, sitting by her vanity and brushing her dark curls.
“Yes.” It was the only reply she was given.
Elizabeth looked carefully at her husband’s grumpy reflection in the mirror in front of herself. She turned to him on the stool. “You will not tell me that you are still jealous over your cousin?”
Darcy enfolded his hands over his chest. “Did you not see the way he looked at you? He forgets you are not Miss Bennet anymore.”
Elizabeth smiled to herself, turning her back to him again. He sounded like a little boy in a grown up man’s body.
“Well, you certainly did everything short of breaching propriety to show him that I am yours, keeping me so closely pinned to your side the entire evening.” She glanced at him, her brow raised at him in the looking glass.
“You are my wife. I have every right to keep you by my side,” Darcy pronounced haughtily.
“William, I noticed that your cousin was laughing at your attitude a bit.” Elizabeth removed her elegant earrings, another present from Darcy, and put them carefully back into their box. “I saw him smiling secretively a few times on noticing how you were pulling me to yourself.”
“Are you coming to bed or not?” Darcy huffed.
Elizabeth stood up from her vanity, shaking her head with a smile as she removed her dressing gown. She walked to the bed, reached for the covers and pulled them aside. She climbed on the bed and knelt in front of Darcy.
She reached to the hem of her nightgown, pulled it up and drew it over her head.
“Come here,” she whispered, bringing him to her chest.
Darcy instantly buried his head in the valley between her breasts, his hands on her stomach. She tugged at his nightshirt and removed it as well. Next she pushed him on his back, and her lips began the slow journey from his throat down his body.
When she reached his manhood, she took it gently in her hand and wrapped her fingers around it. Leaning over, she placed a soft kiss on the tip of it. His throaty growl broke the silence of the room. Still cradling him in her palm, she leaned over and muffled his moans with a kiss.
She straddled him and began rubbing her private area against him. She closed her eyes at the pleasure of it, and then without hesitation, positioned him at the entrance to her body.
“Slowly love, you will hurt yourself.” Darcy placed his hands on her hips, trying to stop her.
“I am fine,” she half moaned, half groaned, taking her husband fully into her body, her eyes half closed, her head thrown back.
They began moving together, Darcy mesmerized with the vision of his love, rising and falling above him. She was beautiful. For some time, he simply stared at her before he reached his hand forward, stroking her rounded belly, and then rubbing the secret spot beneath it, the one hidden in her clipped damp curls. She reacted almost instantly, shutting her eyes tightly, biting her lower lip. Soon he felt her body grasping him tightly, and in consequence, bringing him abruptly to his own release.
***
The next day, Colonel Fitzwilliam was walking briskly towards the manor after his morning walk. He smiled broadly, noticing Elizabeth trotting down the lane in front of the house. Even from the distance, he could see how lovely she looked. She wore a thick velvet coat with fur around her neck and cuffs, with a matching bonnet with a big ribbon tied under her chin in the same shade of rich green. When she saw him, her face lighted up and she waved at him. He smiled back, hastening his pace.
Colonel bowed politely in front of the lady. “Taking the early morning air, I see, madam.” He stared at the pretty picture she made, her cheeks flushed, eyes sparkling, the puffs of air coming from her soft looking pink lips.
“It is not that early at all, Colonel Fitzwilliam; it is almost noon.”
“Ah, yes. I feel ashamed that I languished in bed so long.”
“You have every right, sir, especially after such an exhausting journey yesterday. Moreover, we kept you quite long last evening. Georgiana has learned many new songs since the time you last saw each other.” Elizabeth raised her brow knowingly.
“Yes, she certainly has. I want to I thank you for the breakfast you sent to my room, Mrs. Darcy. It was very thoughtful of you.”
“You are welcome. When you did not descend to break fast with us downstairs, I simply thought you would perhaps like to have a warm meal when you awoke.”
“As I said, that was very kind of you.” He took Elizabeth’s hand, squeezed it gently and looked into her eyes. “I am not used to anybody taking care of me so much.”
Elizabeth did not respond to this, only kept smiling at him, but at the same time tried to remove her hand from his slowly.
“Can I accompany you on your walk, Mrs. Darcy?”
“But you have just returned from yours, have you not?”
“I am not tired,” he offered his arm.
Elizabeth accepted it with a polite smile and Colonel felt her leaning heavily on him. “But I warn you, sir, that I walk only back and forth this path today.”
“Just back and forth such short path? Forgive me, Mrs. Darcy, but I remember you to have cultivated much longer walks as yet Miss Bennet,” he teased her.
“Ah, yes, but back then, I had not the pleasure of carrying this little fellow everywhere with me.” Elizabeth placed her free hand on her middle.
Colonel’s eyes rested on her already visibly rounded stomach. “That was thoughtless of me. I have forgotten your state for a moment. You are not feeling well?” His expression clouded.
Elizabeth shook her head smilingly. “I am very well, and I walk every day, but not so far as before, perhaps. It is just today. The ground is covered with snow a
nd slippery, and I could fall easily. Moreover, this morning, my husband had some urgent letters to attend, so he could not accompany me as usual. This path is well cleared and sprinkled with sand, so I can walk without fear. I have also promised William that I would walk in front of the windows, so he could see me from his study.” Elizabeth’s gaze flew into the direction of the manor.
“I should not be surprised.” He smirked. “This sounds very much like my cousin.”
“Yes, he is most caring towards me, and Georgiana, as well, of course.”
They walked in silence for a few minutes when Elizabeth raised her head at the man beside her. “Colonel Fitzwilliam, I want to thank you for what you did and how you acted that day in Kent. You really helped me back then. I was almost on the verge of… well, not behaving like a lady, to say the least.”
“You mean you wanted to hit Darcy over his arrogant head another time if he called you dearest or tried to embrace you?”
“Yes, I did.” Elizabeth laughed. “How do you know?”
“You have very expressive features; and my cousin tends to treat women he cares for like weak kittens or abandoned lambs.”
“That is true, but I must say I have learned to appreciate this in him, as well as many other admirable traits.”
“I am glad to see you so content.” Colonel stopped, covering Elizabeth’s hand resting on his arm with his. “I have always wished you well.”
Elizabeth gave him a warm look. “I know.”
They resumed their walk, and he continued. “Despite Darcy’s fortune and position in the world, I have never really envied him. Being the second son has some privileges: you have more freedom, you are not the one responsible for the welfare and good name of the entire family. However, now I feel I do envy him. He deserves his happiness, more than anyone, I think. But when I look at his life and compare it to mine, I feel emptiness, I feel that there is something crucial lacking in my own life,” he paused, looking directly into her eyes. “A wife whom I could love, knowing she returns my feelings, and the child, some remnant of my life.”
Elizabeth’s eyes looked into the man’s sincerely. “You are still a young man, sir. You can still have all of this.”
The corners of his mouth lifted sadly. “I am not so certain. I always thought it would be reasonable, even expected in my situation to marry a well dowered lady, but now I know I want more than that.”
Fitzwilliam stared at Elizabeth earnestly, so she could not mistake his meaning. She lowered her eyes, looking away uneasily.
“Pray, tell me, Mrs. Darcy,” Colonel said after a long moment of silence. “You have four sisters? Am I correct?”
Elizabeth smiled, guessing his intention. “Yes, sir, but my two youngest sisters, Kitty and Lydia, are only Georgiana’s age. Mary, who is nineteen, seems to be more interested in reading and practicing the pianoforte than anything else. Whereas my eldest sister, Jane, who is by far the most beautiful of all of us, not to mention the most well tempered, has been engaged these three months.”
“Is it this sister of yours who was…?”
“Yes, it is Jane. She is engaged to Mr. Bingley.”
“So, all ended well.”
Elizabeth just nodded, looking at the snow hills behind the park.
“I imagine it was one of your conditions for my cousin,” he offered.
Elizabeth stiffened, and she gave him a sharp look.
“Forgive me. It is your private matter, which should not be of my interest.”
“Yes, it should not.”
There was a moment of an awkward silence before Colonel spoke again in a neutral, light tone. “So, you expect your eldest sister to marry soon?”
Elizabeth gave a little sigh. “No, not so soon, I am afraid. Jane is decided to wait till the end of the mourning period. And if so, the wedding should take place in May, but such a date would make it impossible for me to attend it. Jane wishes all her sisters to be at her wedding, but I will not be able to travel with a small baby, and I cannot imagine leaving a little one in its first months. I am trying to convince Jane to arrange a quiet wedding in spring and visit us for summer. However, my sister…” Elizabeth paused on seeing her husband coming towards them.
Her face broke into a bright smile, and abandoning her companion’s arm, she rushed forward in the direction of approaching man.
“Elizabeth, stay where you are! You can fall!” Darcy cried, running towards her rapidly. Elizabeth stopped, waiting till her husband reached her. She was given a quick hug, and both of them turned towards Fitzwilliam.
“You cannot imagine how difficult is to keep her home, Cousin. If the child is to take after her in that, he or she will cry ‘outside’ first thing after waking up in the morning.”
Elizabeth pouted. “William, I walked along the path as you recommended; and Colonel Fitzwilliam offered his arm, so I was quite safe.”
“And pray tell me how you will explain that wild running a moment ago?” Darcy glared at her from his great height.
Elizabeth placed both of her hands on his arm and looked up at him with a sweet smile. “You always say you admire my lively spirit, and I could simply not contain myself when I saw you.”
“I dare say that you have managed to effectively silence your husband, Mrs. Darcy,” Colonel noted jestingly when Darcy failed to find a suitable retort to his wife’s words, too much lost into her pretty eyes.
***
“That is an excellent port, Darcy,” Colonel Fitzwilliam remarked when the cousins sat in the library later that day, after dinner.
“Of my own import,” Darcy said, casually stretched in the comfortable chair.
“You want to say that you involved yourself in business of sorts.” Colonel looked up at the other man, a stunned expression on his face. “That is rather unexpected.”
“I invested some sum in Elizabeth’s uncle’s company, and I have received my first profits already. You remember Mr. Gardiner?”
“Do I remember him?” Colonel’s brows raised high on his forehead. “I thought he would tear us apart when we escorted his niece unchaperoned to his door.”
Darcy ignored his cousin’s words and continued matter of factly. “He is a very sharp businessman. I am seriously considering investing more than the initial five thousand pounds.”
“I have a small capital put aside.” Colonel leaned back into his armchair. “Would you think that Mr. Gardiner could be possibly interested in taking another partner?”
“Oh, I think he would. His company develops itself rapidly. I shall write to him, but on the condition you will never mention to Lord Matlock that I invest money from Pemberley in trade.”
Colonel raised his hand in a defensive gesture. “You do not have to tell me this. I know very well my father’s views on the subject of the gentry earning its income from sources other than land.”
“Times are changing,” Darcy spoke in a confident voice. “It is unavoidable; sooner or later, the landowners must start looking for different possibilities, especially if they want to keep the estates prospering and whole.”
“I agree with you, Darcy. Nevertheless, my father is of another generation. I leave it to my elder brother to explain this to him.”
“On the other hand, Uncle did not mind matchmaking you with that lady whose father’s fortune was from trade, did he not?” Darcy remarked.
“Just because her mother was our distant cousin,” the other man pointed out and continued more seriously. “I find it very hard to imagine that I will ever find myself a woman who would suit me and want me at the same time. You should appreciate your own situation, Darcy. Your wife is truly… she loves you for yourself, you know. When I talked with her earlier today, she spoke very highly of you. She admires and respects you.”
There was a moment of silence between two men before Darcy spoke. “I should thank you, Cousin. If not for your persuasion to go to see her that morning at Rosings, I do not know if all of this would have happened.”
“It would, Darcy, it would; I am certain of that. I know you. You would have run to her the moment you learned about her situation after Mr. Bennet’s death.”
“Still I thank you, Richard” Darcy spoke earnestly.
“You are welcome, and in return, I reserve myself the role of the godfather to your firstborn son.”
“We will be honoured.”
The men returned to sipping their drinks and did not speak further, each seemed to be engrossed in his own thoughts.
Suddenly, the door opened violently and a crying, shaking, tear stricken Elizabeth stood in the entrance.
“William, the express came from Uncle Gardiner...” She ran to her husband.
“What is the matter?” Darcy was already beside her, enfolding her into his protective embrace.
“It is Lydia…” Elizabeth raised her anguished eyes to him. “Oh, William, she has eloped with... she gave herself into the power of Mr. Wickham…”
***
It was well past midnight when Darcy entered the darkened Mistress’s bedroom. He tried not to make a sound while removing his clothing, so as not to wake his wife, but the moment he approached the bed, he heard Elizabeth’s voice.
“William?” she whispered, turning to the bedside and, with trembling hands, trying to light the candle.
Darcy stopped unbuttoning his shirt and sat beside her. “You are not sleeping?” He took the matches from her and lit the candle.
“I dozed off a little, but I cannot stop thinking.” Elizabeth supported her back against the headboard, clenching her hands nervously together over her belly. “Stupid,…stupid, thoughtless Lydia, a wrenching/wretched? mistake. What will happen with her now? She is ruined.”
Darcy combed away a few curls which fell on her face. “He will marry her, sweetheart. He wants to be paid off again; it is that simple. It was the only reason why he involved himself with Georgiana, and now Lydia.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “I do not understand Wickham. He is young, healthy and intelligent. He had such great opportunities to succeed in life, thanks to your father’s generosity, and he wasted it all. He should try to gain fortune and position in the world due to his own hard work and caring.”
