Page 13 of Drawn to Love

As she walked at a fast pace, she tried to calm herself and be reasonable.

There was a chance that he had not understood her suggestion and might not come until, as he had told her father.

And if he did come, it would surely not be at that early hour.

She had enough time to compose herself and to prepare what she wished to say to him and to ask him.

At the edge of the Longbourn estate, she was about to turn when a voice calling to her made her feet still and her heart race.

“Miss Bennet!”

“Mr. Darcy…”

“I did not expect you to come so early,” he said.

“Likewise.”

“It seems we do not know each other well enough to have reasonable expectations,” he said.

“Sometimes surprises are pleasant, would you not agree?”

“I do agree, Miss Bennet. I cannot forget the most wonderful surprise when I saw you at Pemberley.”

“My surprise was just the same when I saw you at Longbourn yesterday, sir.”

“But surely you must have known that I would come.”

“I did know…I hoped…but it had been a while, and I feared…”

“I had some business to complete before I came to speak to you again,” he said. “Some business that was better resolved before rather than after.”

“I know what sort of business kept you busy, sir, and even if you refuse to listen, I must say it. I must thank you for your extraordinary generosity shown to my family and to my poor sister Lydia. The daunting and exhausting effort in finding them, the outrageous amount of money spent — it cannot ever be repaid.”

He looked at her intently, and she continued, “Please do not be upset. Papa told me, but I am the only one in the family who knows everything.”

“I did not expect Mr. Bennet would betray me so quickly,” Mr. Darcy said. “I might reconsider my invitation to Pemberley,” he added, and the trace of a smile in his voice softened his words.

“Papa felt guilty, blamed himself for everything, and he wished me to know the true extent of your involvement….and I believe he was curious. He could not understand why you would show such extraordinary generosity to someone who was almost a stranger to you. He asked me, but I could not tell him either. I have long waited to ask you, Mr. Darcy.”

The gentleman averted his eyes, while she looked at him, waiting anxiously. She witnessed his struggle until he finally found the words to voice it.

“Even if your father cannot understand, I hope you do, Miss Bennet. I hope you know that I did it mostly for you. As much as I was worried for your family and willing to punish Wickham, my strongest inducement was to relieve the sadness in your eyes. I did not want you to know, precisely because gratitude is not the feeling I hoped for and not the word I wished to hear from you.”

Now his gaze deepened into hers, and Elizabeth’s eyes moistened with tears.

She stepped closer as she replied, “Gratitude must be said and felt, Mr. Darcy. But it is only one of the many feelings and words I have for you. That is why I practically forced you to come here at this hour. I could wait no longer for this meeting, for this discussion.”

There was so much she could read on his handsome face that she was tempted to caress it. But she did not dare yet.

“And speaking of being forced, I am sorry that Mr. Bingley and Papa forced you to invite them to Pemberley. It was not fair to allow you no choice to refuse,” she tried to jest.

“Do not worry, it was quite fair, Miss Bennet. I am perfectly capable of refusing when I wish to. I gladly invited your father, but I could not be sure of what position he would have there.”

“Position?”

“Yes. Would he be a mere guest or something more? That depends entirely on you.”

“Oh! If the decision is entirely mine, it should be an easy one,” she answered. He was still hesitant, so she stretched out her hands and he took his. Her fingers rested in his strong and warm palms, trembling slightly.

“It is entirely yours, Miss Bennet. My decision was made long ago, and my feelings and desires are well known to you. I have just learnt to better repress them and be more cautious in the way I express them.”

“Please do not repress them, Mr. Darcy. There is no need to be cautious any longer.”

“Then…would you allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you, my dearest Elizabeth?”

“I have hoped for a long time that you would, Mr. Darcy. I never imagined I would use such words as ardent love, but now they sound so natural, so perfectly suited that I could easily repeat them.”

“Please do,” he whispered.

“Would you allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you, my beloved Fitzwilliam? Your name is another word that I love to say…”

Then she finally gathered the courage to free one of her hands from his tender grip and gently caress his face. He turned his head so he could place a kiss in her palm.

The kiss — though barely felt through her glove — stirred a warmth that spread through her. She shivered, although she felt hot, and lost herself in his arms when moments later his lips claimed hers, in the first kiss of her life, from the only man in the world she desired it from.

Although there was so much to talk about, so many questions to be asked and answered, neither spoke much after that. They were too intoxicated by their mutual happiness to be interested in anything else.

Mr. Darcy accompanied her for a while, then waited until she reached Longbourn's garden and departed, with the promise of returning with Mr. Bingley.

Elizabeth entered the house, almost bouncing on her feet, earning her another puzzled glance from Hill. On impulse, she embraced the kind woman and hurried to her chamber, then changed her mind and went to seek out her father.

“Papa, do you remember when you asked me if I had any news?”

“Yes…what are you doing here so early, child?”

“I came to bring news, of course, Papa. About Mr. Darcy’s call later today — he will not come to speak to me, but to you.”

She paused, barely holding in her laughter in front her father’s puzzlement, which turned into astonishment as the revelation struck him.

“And regarding the invitation to Pemberley, you will need to ask permission from the future Mrs. Darcy too. So be careful when you are tempted to make sport of me, Papa, or you might not be allowed to see the library.”

Elizabeth finally laughed, while Mr. Bennet put down his book and glasses, standing up.

“Lizzy, my child, what are you saying?”

“I am saying that Mr. Darcy proposed to me, Papa! We met earlier, during my walk. He proposed to me — can you believe it?”

“I cannot, Lizzy. Truly not. And I cannot believe how happy you are. In fact, I am worried.”

“Worried? Why, Papa?”

“I am worried that you are too thrilled and that perhaps you are not accepting Mr. Darcy for the right reasons. Lizzy, let us speak calmly, child. I know you wish to be married like Jane, I know you enjoy being comfortable and safe, but Mr. Darcy is a man who expects the very best. His affection for you has been proved beyond doubt. If you do not feel as much affection as he does, you should take some time to think carefully. I do not want to see either you or him unhappy in a hasty and unwise marriage.”

Mr. Bennet spoke in all earnest, as Elizabeth had rarely heard him do. She embraced him and kissed his cheek.

“I have thought carefully, Papa, for a long time. You have no reason to worry. I have not said much about my love for him because we had no understanding, and I could not be certain of his intentions.”

“Is that so? Are you sure it was not because you were charmed by his impressive estate?”

“I was charmed, but I began to admire Mr. Darcy as soon as I learnt the truth about him and Mr. Wickham. It was long before we met at Pemberley. And when I saw his true nature, I fell in love so deeply that I almost lost my mind. If you do not believe me, know that I purposely went to look for Mr. Darcy in the middle of the night, in his library, more than once. And I hoped he would kiss me, which he did not, of course.”

At that, Mr. Bennet widened his eyes, opened his mouth, then finally said, “Get out of here, you shameless child! I shall pretend I did not hear that! Send Mr. Darcy to me as soon as he arrives. And please, for heaven’s sake, do not tell your mother — until at least the end of the day.”

Elizabeth embraced and kissed her father once again, then she ran out of the room and did not stop until she found Jane. She could tell her sister everything. Then she wrote a letter to Mrs. Gardiner — all before Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy finally called.

***

The month of madness continued at Longbourn throughout September, until the happy day of a double wedding.

From the moment she found out about Elizabeth’s engagement to Mr. Darcy, Mrs. Bennet suffered an utter transformation in front of the gentleman.

Her words gained more sense, her manners more decorum, causing Mr. Bennet to reflect that Mr. Darcy had exerted more influence over the ladies in his family in one month than he had in a lifetime.

Mr. Darcy seemed to enjoy the Bennets’ company very much, to the extent that even Kitty and Mary dared to speak when he was present. However, his preference was for Elizabeth’s company, usually in long walks in the gardens.

That was the proper time to clear any misunderstandings left and to answer all remaining questions.

Elizabeth found that in the weeks he had spent in London, Mr. Darcy had settled matters with Mr. Wickham, who was now indebted to him to the sum of twelve thousand pounds.

“I told Wickham that I shall keep a close eye on him, and if I notice that he mistreats his wife, he will be immediately thrown into debtors’ prison. The most difficult task was to tell Georgiana of the scoundrel’s marriage to your sister.”

“I imagine as much. How did she take the news of our engagement?”

“With surprise, like everyone else. But she — as well as my cousin Richard — were aware of my admiration for you. I informed them as soon as we met at Pemberley. They did not expect our betrothment to happen so soon, though. Lord and Lady Matlock were rather shocked, but they responded reasonably well in their second letter after the announcement.”

Elizabeth also found out that Mr. Darcy had travelled to Kent, making it clear to Lady Catherine — in person — that he might soon marry.

That had caused a terrible quarrel, which ended with Lady Catherine dismissing her nephew from any involvement in her affairs, which he had been managing for the last five years.

“I must confess I was not so angry with my aunt, as I expected her furious response,” Mr. Darcy said. “But your cousin Mr. Collins had the audacity to rebuke me for upsetting Lady Catherine! I almost lost my temper with him. Upon my word, I wish to see that man as rarely as I see Wickham.”

“In that, you have my entire family’s agreement.” Elizabeth smiled.

“And Lady Catherine is equally as undesirable to me unless she reconsiders her position. I shall always take care of Anne, though. I wish she had more determination to claim her rights. The estate belongs to her, and she should act as its mistress. When — if — she does, I shall be there to support her.”

“I am so proud of your kind and generous nature, my beloved Mr. Darcy! It warms my heart to see that you are always ready to support everyone. I can only hope that I shall be able to support you as you deserve.”

“I have never felt so strong as I have since your love became part of my life, my dearest future Mrs. Darcy.”

Such discussions and interludes always ended with brief kisses, which some of the Bennets noticed but wisely chose to overlook.

A week before the wedding, Netherfield was full again. Mr. Bingley’s sisters arrived, as well as Colonel Fitzwilliam, Miss Darcy, and Mrs. Annesley. The Gardiners also came to Longbourn, and Mrs. Gardiner claimed her leg was even better than before the accident.

A year after Mr. Bingley first leased Netherfield Park, Longbourn’s church hosted the long-awaited, much doubted — and still unbelieved for many — wedding of Mr. Darcy to Miss Elizabeth Bennet. By their side, were Mr. Bingley and Miss Jane Bennet.

In the front pew, Mrs. Bennet squeezed her husband’s arm, whispering, “God has been so good to us, Mr. Bennet.”

The gentleman briefly kissed his wife’s hand.

“Indeed, he has, Mrs. Bennet.”