Page 42 of Longbourn’s Son (Pride and Prejudice Variation #22)
She guided him toward the dance floor and, when the music began for a cotillion, started the familiar steps.
There was truly no reason to repine over her engagement; she would get what she wanted in the form of societal acceptance, and Lord Sedgewick would get what he wanted in the form of her dowry.
Far better to be pragmatic than to be fool enough to fall idiotically in love like Darcy, Fitzwilliam, and her ridiculous brother.
/
“Anne!” Georgiana Darcy exclaimed worriedly. “Is something wrong? The ball cannot yet be over.”
“It is not,” Anne answered, hurrying into her cousin’s sitting room and divesting herself of her shoes. “ I am done, though. I am not accustomed to being on my feet for so long.”
“Dancing for hours on end is indeed most fatiguing,” Mrs. Annesley said, her hands working busily on a knitted scarf. “In addition, I suspect the ballroom is quite warm with so many in attendance.”
“It is,” Anne agreed, sitting down across from Georgiana and sighing with relief.
“Did you dance many times, Cousin?”
“I danced four times, once with Darcy, another time with Mr. Bingley, then with Richard, and finally with Lord Winston, who went to school with Darcy at Cambridge. He seems a pleasant enough man. Incredibly enough, I had numerous gentlemen request a set, but I knew that even with my improved health, I would not be able to stay on my feet until the wee hours and thus made my gracious excuses.”
Georgiana, who had grown comfortable with her older cousin, snorted inelegantly. “I am not at all surprised that you were besieged; you are a very wealthy heiress, Anne!”
“But I am not beautiful,” Anne argued, “not in the least.”
“You are not plain, Anne,” Georgiana said seriously, “and you look much healthier now that you have gained some weight and are walking each day.”
Anne rolled her eyes and shook her head with exasperation.
“I feel so much better. It is quite dreadful that my mother’s obsessive cossetting made me an invalid for so many years.
I do not have nearly the stamina of Elizabeth and Jane and you, but compared to even two months ago, I feel incredibly strong.
You are, of course, entirely correct about my appeal to the gentlemen; it is hardly pleasing that most men consider only my wealth, not my person. ”
“It is a blessing to be well dowered in some ways, and a curse in others,” Georgiana said gravely. “I do not know if you heard of my own near disaster a year ago at Ramsgate?”
“No?” Anne asked in wonder.
Georgiana grimaced and said, “I told Jane and Elizabeth about my folly, and I will gladly tell you, though I daresay you would not be such a fool as I was. I went away for a holiday at the seaside, and my companion at the time, a Mrs. Younge, permitted my father’s godson, Mr. Wickham, to call on me.
He was at the time a most handsome young man, and I was encouraged to believe I was in love with him and agreed to elope.
Fitzwilliam arrived shortly before the planned journey to Gretna Greene and I told him all, thus saving me from a horrifying marriage.
Wickham is a rogue and a foul seducer, and he did not care a whit for me; he was after my dowry, and he also wanted to take revenge against my brother. ”
“That is dreadful!” Anne exclaimed in distress. “Where is this Wickham person now?”
“In Marshalsea,” her cousin said with satisfaction, “for non-payment of debt. It was a harsh and painful lesson, but I know now to be very cautious with men who might only be in pursuit of my dowry.”
Anne nodded and said, “I wonder whether I will ever wish to marry, Georgiana; even with my improved health, it is not certain that I could successfully bear a child. However, my mother is imperious and authoritative, and if I do not have a husband at my side, she may never be dislodged from Rosings, which will be mine by right when I turn five and twenty.”
Georgiana grinned impishly and said, “My dear cousin, I do beg of you not to concern yourself. If you wish my aunt to leave Rosings for the Dower House, you need only tell my brother and Richard. I assure you that they are entirely capable of dealing firmly with Lady Catherine.”
/
“Did you enjoy yourself, Charlotte?”
“Yes, it was lovely, Charles. I cannot thank you enough for taking me as your bride; I would never have had the opportunity to attend such a wonderful ball.”
“My dear, you know that it is you who are the blessing. You are the most perfect woman in England for me.”
/
“Jane, you have no idea how incredibly beautiful you are.”
“Well, it is good that you find me attractive even after a full month of marriage, my dear Richard.”
“My darling, I am quite confident that if we are blessed by God to have thirty years together, I will be equally enthused when I am sixty and you are three and fifty.”
“Shall we go to bed?”
“Immediately!”
/
“Bingley is happy that his sister Caroline is engaged,” Darcy mused, relishing the feeling of Elizabeth in his arms. It was the middle of the night and both were fatigued after many hours of dancing at the Matlock Ball; fortunately, the Darcys had no appointments for the next day and could sleep late accordingly.
Elizabeth raised herself onto one elbow and ran an affectionate finger down her husband’s cheek. “Do you know anything about Lord Sedgewick?”
Darcy grimaced in the semi darkness and said, “He is at least forty years of age and has already buried one wife. He has no children and inherited the barony some five years ago, but I understand the estate is heavily encumbered with debt, and he has a reputation for drinking heavily. I confess to some surprise that Miss Bingley accepted his offer.”
“He is a baron, my love, and she wished to marry into a higher level of society. From that perspective, it is a good arrangement, even if she does not care for him in the least.”
Darcy stared at her admiringly, watching her beautiful face glowing in the candlelight. “I feel sorry for her, then, Elizabeth. I cannot imagine marrying without love and respect.”
“Neither can I,” his lady answered, and planted a long kiss on his lips.
There was no more conversation that night.