Page 36 of Rumours & Recklessness (Sweet Escapes Collection #1)
Chapter 34
T he Netherfield party, with the exception of Darcy, retreated to that house directly upon arriving at Longbourn. Darcy closeted himself in the Longbourn library to apprise Mr Gardiner of all that had taken place, as it was within his rights to have a thorough explanation.
“Are Miss Darcy and Miss de Bourgh well?” Gardiner inquired.
“Miss de Bourgh is. My sister, I believe, is still somewhat shaken, but she assured me as they departed that I would see her well by the time I returned. I wonder, however, that you do not ask how Miss Elizabeth fared?”
Gardiner offered a sly grin. “I know her better than that, perhaps. She seemed well enough when they came in. Did she ever tell you about that fellow who was trying to pay court to Jane when she was but fifteen?”
Darcy’s mouth tugged to the side. “Mrs Bennet made mention once that Miss Bennet had received some very pretty poetry from a gentleman.”
Gardiner laughed. “Far from pretty! The girls were staying with us at the time. The fellow was a perfect eel—another Mr Collins, I should say. Jane felt obliged to receive his attentions because of her mother, but even at thirteen, Lizzy would have none of it. She made a point of telling him all manner of unflattering stories about her younger sisters, playing the pianoforte rather more poorly-and loudly —than usual, and once she even went so far as to purposely trip over the man’s feet and spill hot tea all over his lap. He did not return!”
Darcy could not help a loud, hearty laugh, a sound which startled the ladies outside the library.
“Lizzy!” Mrs Bennet snapped. “You are a terrible influence on that gentleman. Why, he was so perfectly respectable and dignified until he started spending so much time around you!”
Elizabeth exchanged smiles with her aunt. “You are quite right, Mama.”
A t last, a very tired Fitzwilliam Darcy bid his beloved a good afternoon, with the intentions of spending the rest of the day in his bed. Elizabeth had ferreted out a secluded nook in the hallway where they could have a moment of privacy. It occurred briefly to him that Elizabeth owned a perfectly good bed upstairs, but even as alluring as that sounded, he was too tired for his passions to overcome his good sense in disallowing the fantasy.
She wound her arms around his neck and allowed him to kiss her gently. “Elizabeth,” he murmured, “please tell me it will not be long before I can remain always with you.”
She arched a brow. “Unless you wish to continue scandalizing the neighbourhood, I think it best we get the nuptials over with quickly and remove our shocking presence from the vicinity. I do hope there is not a town too near Pemberley!”
He chuckled, brushing a joyful kiss into her crown of curls. “Not as near, but we have a good many more tenants. You will have to earn their loyalty early if we are to keep up the Darcy family name.”
“I shall endeavour to do so, but it is the master’s affections which shall preoccupy me.”
“Then you shall be assured of success on all counts,” he verified with another kiss. “Elizabeth, I must go, because I may soon find myself far too relaxed and fatigued to remain on my horse all the way back to Netherfield. At present, I am trying not to wonder if Longbourn boasts any additional guest quarters.”
“It does not.” She gave a firm push to his chest with a playful smirk. “William, there is one last thing before you go.”
He quirked a knowing expression at her. “Richard?”
“How did you know?”
“Never mind. What wisdom have you to impart regarding my dear cousin?”
“None. Leave him alone, William. I beg you would not question him about Wickham’s words. If he needs to speak of it to you, he will, but I expect it will not be for years, if ever.”
He sighed. “I wondered if that might not be the case. Georgiana’s reaction was rather peculiar as well.” He shook his muddled head to clear it. “If you wish it, it shall be so. I will say nothing—at least, not unless I have cause.”
“Thank you, my love.” She raised herself up on her toes to kiss his very surprised face.
He froze. “What did you just call me?” he quavered, his voice hushed.
“You heard me,” she whispered in his ear, pressing another kiss to his cheek.
“No, most assuredly, I did not! I beg you would repeat yourself.”
She raised a cheeky grin to his eyes. “You will have to work to earn another such endearment, William! Before you should attempt to do so, however, I am of the opinion that you must first see to the needs of one I care for very much.”
He drew back reluctantly. “I will tell Georgiana of your concern.”
That impish smile he so adored graced her features once more. “I was speaking of you, William! Go get some rest, my love!”
He drew her into his arms, furtively glancing down the conspicuously empty hall. “I am at your command, my Elizabeth.”
W orn out and nearly overwrought, Elizabeth withdrew to her father’s room for the remainder of the afternoon. She tucked herself neatly into her double-knitted blanket and hovered near as Mrs Cooper spooned broth for her father. He was not what one might call alert, but he was becoming steadily more responsive. He was swallowing the nourishment offered on his own now, and his eyes opened more frequently. He still seemed only vaguely aware of his surroundings.
Elizabeth could not help but wonder at the singular consciousness which had roused him briefly the night before, but Mrs Cooper did not think the incident so remarkable. That opinion, Elizabeth thought privately, might change if Mrs Cooper had been told all the details of Mr Bennet’s wakefulness the previous night! She watched him closely as they helped him to lie back on his pillows. There was a brief eye contact, a flash of recognition, and a smile, and Mr Bennet slipped once more into peaceful dreams.
There was a soft tap on the door, and her uncle’s face appeared. “Lizzy, there is a young man here to see you.”
She pursed her lips in an attempt at annoyance. “Not Mr Darcy? It had better not be he!”
“No, I think we can safely guarantee that young man is curled up sound asleep somewhere. This lad claims to have been sent by Mr Bingley to speak with you about your farm. I told him to wait for you in the library.”
“Oh! I had not expected this so soon. I had hoped that father….”
“Your father has confidence in your abilities, Lizzy. I thought I would stay in the room with you, but you can make this decision. You need the practice, after all.” Her uncle’s eyes sparkled with encouragement.
Elizabeth found the young man waiting nervously, crumpling a stained cap in work-hardened hands. He was young, perhaps her own age, but he had been head of his family already some while. He rose smartly and greeted her with every respect.
The interview was over quickly. She was impressed with his desire to care for his family—two sisters, he claimed, with a third employed at Netherfield. He also announced proudly to her that he had just become engaged to marry one of the other maids from that estate, who had recently inherited a generous dowry from an unknown uncle. “We won’n be needin’ char’ty through the win’ner, Miss,” he assured her. “We’re well ‘nough set up to start. All we ask ‘s a chance.”
“And you shall have it,” she smiled. “The Brown family are set to depart for Derbyshire in a few more days. You may take up residence as soon as may be.”
The young man’s face glowed. “Thank ye, Miss!”
He took his leave, and Elizabeth was treated to a broad smile from her uncle. She took his arm as he affectionately tugged her out of the library. He fixed her with a toying look, his eyes holding hers until she began to laugh. “What!” she finally demanded.
“You will make a fine mistress. I always knew you were cut out for more than a parson’s wife.”
Elizabeth sighed with a twinge of pride. Just a twinge. “I hope I can prove myself worthy. I wish very much to honour and please my h—Mr Darcy.”
“In that, my dear, you cannot fail. The gentleman seems determined to be pleased. He is quite obstinate, I daresay—almost as much so as a certain relation of mine.”
She grinned. “Yes, I suspect our future together shall not be boring.”
W hat Elizabeth had looked forward to as a restful evening proved to be somewhat less so. Scarcely an hour after the young farmer’s call, the bell was rung again. As it was growing rather late, the family were surprised to be receiving any callers. This past week, however, had taught even Mrs Bennet a new equanimity respecting the extraordinary.
Charlotte Lucas, shivering and wet from a fresh rainfall, was shown bashfully into the drawing-room to be surrounded by a bevvy of curious faces. “Charlotte?” Jane ventured wonderingly.
Charlotte blanched for a moment, then turned as her dear friend entered the room behind her. “Charlotte, darling!” Elizabeth enthused. “What brings you at this hour?”
“My mother desired my removal,” she mumbled, shuffling her feet on the rug.
Mrs Bennet’s eyes shifted between the two young women suspiciously. It was she, who had spent so many years contriving to marry her girls well, who first surmised the cause of the rift in the Lucas household. “Oh, dear me, you have gone and withdrawn your acceptance of Mr Collins!” she ejaculated. “And in this house! Oh, what will the neighbours say?” She wrung her hands in exaggerated worry.
Elizabeth drew a long sigh as Charlotte’s gaze sank. “Of course, Charlotte, you are welcome here!” She shot a penetrating stare at her mother, catching her aunt’s amused expression as she did so. “ We shall be most pleased to receive you.”
Charlotte wearily returned her friend’s smile. “Thank you, Lizzy. I shall not intrude long on your generosity...”
“Nonsense, Charlotte. We shall discuss everything in the morning.” Elizabeth firmly dragged her friend upstairs and made arrangements for a hot bath to warm her. Mary volunteered to share her smaller room, and at last, the tired family lay down to rest for the night.
“I know my mother is dreadfully disappointed.” Charlotte set her cup down on her saucer and watched as Elizabeth arranged her father’s pillows.
“Mine would be,” Elizabeth sighed reluctantly. “I am curious, though; what led you on to do it? I always thought you rather practical regarding marriage, and this seems very contrary even to your own advice to me a few days ago.”
Charlotte nibbled a bit of her biscuit thoughtfully. “I suppose I could not bring myself to marry a man I could not respect,” she admitted at last. “Oh, I never had any great admiration for your cousin, you understand, but when he so easily betrayed your family and forced me to do the same, why, I knew I could never live under his rule. I would come to despise him—if I have not already done so—and I could not imagine knowing him as I now do and going through with the marriage. He is and will always be utterly subject to the whims of Lady Catherine, or another just as corrupt and domineering, and I would be subject to his. No, Lizzy, practical as I have always been, it was something I just could not do. I know it was foolish, and I have disgraced myself and my family, but… I just could not marry him.”
“It took courage to refuse him, Charlotte. You should be proud of yourself, as I am of you.”
“You say so, Lizzy, but now I am virtually homeless! My parents are ashamed of me, and I shall never marry another, for who would be willing to have me? I attracted little enough attention before, and now! No, there is none who would have me.”
Mrs Cooper, sitting in the corner with her knitting, cleared her throat gently. The girls both looked to her. “Not all are quite so choosy, Miss. Some young man of modest means would be right pleased to meet with a practical lady of sense. Not all are in a position to care so much about a broken engagement.”
Charlotte offered a wan smile to the woman who had overheard so many private conversations of late. “That is very kind of you to say, Mrs Cooper, but such gentlemen are extraordinarily rare.” Mrs Cooper just lifted her eyebrows and returned to her work.
“You could come to Pemberley...” Elizabeth suggested hesitantly. Darcy had proven more generous than she might have ever hoped, but taking a fallen woman into his home, particularly to be in company with his sister, might be too much to ask.
Charlotte sighed. “Miss de Bourgh promised me a place with her. How ironic that I could live in that very man’s parish, and in the wondrous Rosings he praises unceasingly! I think, though, that he may be rather disappointed in the near future. Miss de Bourgh told me something of her plans, and I gather that she has been in no way impressed with Mr Collins’ performance of his parochial duties.”
Elizabeth laughed. “I quite believe it! Anne de Bourgh is one acquaintance I shall try not to anger. I am dying to know all that occurred yesterday afternoon.”
“Oh, Lizzy, you would have found it so highly amusing! My poor father was most distressed, as Lady Catherine blamed him for the entire ‘inhospitable’ county. I think she thinks all of Hertfordshire is set against her! She returned from Netherfield alone when Mr Darcy refused to satisfy her, fuming and raging about both her brother and her daughter. No one understood most of what she said, but Mr Collins flew into a panic to arrange their return to Kent. I think it may be some while before Mr Bingley sees his carriage again! It was when he almost forgot to bid me his farewells, and my father said something about Mr Collins’ return for the wedding arrangements that I spoke up. My mama started to cry and tell me I was a shameful daughter. I think Papa is more distressed about losing Lady Catherine’s intimacy than mine.”
Elizabeth sighed. Such a frantic muddle it had all become! Poor dear Charlotte. Elizabeth hated that her friend had been made to suffer for her loyalty and dignity. She took Charlotte’s hand firmly. “One way or another, Charlotte, you shall be cared for. I will not allow you to pay such a price for standing up to Lady Catherine and her lackey!”
“I thank you, Lizzy. I was so looking forward to managing my own home, but I shall be content. I believe I have done rightly. Is your mother still very vexed?”
“Oh, Mama! She thinks you quite foolish, so be prepared for a scolding and some very snide remarks, but she seems satisfied at least that she shall not have to yield Longbourn to you one day.” Both girls broke into giggles.
A moment later, they could hear from downstairs that a caller had arrived. As it was still early, Elizabeth did not expect it to be Mr Darcy. Her suspicions were confirmed when Dr Cooper, the younger, came up to them. His eyes immediately went to the young ladies and then to his mother.
Smiling, Elizabeth excused herself. Charlotte was somewhat less prompt in her response but followed her friend dutifully. The doctor shyly bowed them out of the room before closing the door to examine Mr Bennet.
When he had finished his examination of his patient, he descended the stairs once more and presented himself uncomfortably at the entrance to the drawing-room, where nearly everyone save Kitty and Lydia had gathered. Elizabeth rose to speak with him, but it became apparent rather quickly that his mission was not a medical one. He softly asked permission to speak with Miss Lucas… alone. Charlotte, embarrassed and seeking to hide anywhere but in his presence, eventually relented.
Elizabeth ushered the blushing pair into the library, then turned smugly about, crossing her arms and finding her aunt standing nearby. “A doctor’s wife! Do you know, I think it will be just the thing for her?”
Mrs Gardiner only smiled and rolled her eyes.
O n the third day after their arrival, the Earl of Matlock and his Lady took their leave. They generously paid a call at Longbourn before setting back out for London with their son, the colonel, in tow. Colonel Fitzwilliam had remained long enough to coach his old comrade, Colonel Forster, in the disposition of one former Lieutenant George Wickham, deserter to His Majesty’s armed forces. With a few favours called in, Wickham was spared a tribunal and the gallows and was soon made to see the merit in a long voyage to Australia.
Elizabeth was sorry to see the Fitzwilliam family leave, but they all assured her they would return rather shortly to celebrate her nuptials. “Good heavens, we may as well remain here, for I declare you shall be wed before the month is out. That boy will not wait a moment longer than necessary.” the Countess was heard to lament. “I do hope you have some success at reining him in, my dear. You still have to be fitted for your wardrobe in London. How you have time to get married now, I shall never fathom!”
Elizabeth had made what assurances were in her power to soothe her future aunt, enjoying her glimpses at the earl’s unsuccessful battle with his own amusement. He stood just behind his wife, and his cheeks were suspiciously bright with mirth.
Darcy and Bingley had arrived with them, as it had already become their habit to spend the larger part of their days with their betrotheds. It was fortunate that Mr Bennet’s burgeoning recovery still required some measure of deference from his family, if proper decorum were to be observed. Had such not been the case, the gentlemen would scarcely have had a chance to see their beloveds, as Mrs Bennet would undoubtedly have had the girls frantically about their wedding plans. As it was, that lady could hardly sit quietly for more than a moment, eager as she was to be about the business of matrimony.
Each day Darcy would hopefully inquire about Mr Bennet’s health, anticipating the day when the father would be well enough to consent to his daughter’s marriage. He intended to pay a visit to the vicarage the very moment the man had given his blessing! On this day, as the Fitzwilliam carriage drew out of sight, Elizabeth offered him a knowing smile and a small wink.
His eyebrows rose hesitantly. “Your father?”
“He finally read the Times, which Jane forgot to check before leaving with him. I am to understand that a few days ago, there was a rather interesting entry.” She quirked him a playful smile. “He tells me that if I do not bring you to him, he shall come down the stairs himself in his bedclothes. I do think he means it!”
Darcy closed his eyes. The announcement! He had nearly forgotten about it in the flurry of the last days, and as he had rushed off every morning to see Elizabeth without bothering with his own morning paper, he had not seen it himself. Nary a word of it had been mentioned by the magnanimous Mr Gardiner, but it was clear that it had not passed unnoticed by the family. What explanation would the justifiably offended father demand for all of his actions of late?
His stomach fluttering, Darcy followed where she led, back to that familiar little room. Mr Bennet was sitting up in his bed, his white hair tousled and his dressing robe still in evidence. Darcy swallowed. All of the times he had rehearsed the day he would ask a man for his daughter’s hand, he had somehow never pictured himself accosting that man in his sickbed, with an incriminating announcement already printed in the man’s newspaper. It felt like robbery somehow, to come to a man who had very little opportunity or strength with which to object.
He bowed in the entryway. “Mr Bennet. I am very glad to see you so greatly improved.”
Mr Bennet raised his glasses from a bedside table, where they had rested upon his book. “Mr Darcy! Why, I thought you had left the country last week for London. Very good of you to come back to check on an old man who cannot remain astride his horse.”
“I… yes sir,” Darcy shifted uncomfortably, glancing at Elizabeth. She had said Mr Bennet expected to see him! The man he spoke to now seemed to have no knowledge or recollection of any of the recent events. That was worrisome, certainly, but it might also spare him an awkward explanation about their last encounter.
Mr Bennet lowered his glasses again, glancing between Mr Darcy and his daughter. “Was there something in particular you wished to discuss, Mr Darcy? I recall you had that question about our hardy wheat variety. I should think it would do very well, even in your climate. I can provide you with some seed to sample.”
“No, indeed, I had something of a rather more personal nature to discuss.” Darcy glanced once more at Elizabeth, unable to stop himself. She seemed not at all inclined to come to his rescue. Instead, she was simply gazing at her father, her curly head tilted curiously to the side.
“Ah, you must have heard about that tenant of mine who has been so dependent upon charity. The talk of the village, I am afraid. I do hope the good people at Netherfield have not been put to any inconvenience. Longbourn may be modest, but we can see the family through the winter.”
“No, sir, that was not at all what I came to speak to you of.” Darcy sighed, pressing his lips together and blinking in frustration. Elizabeth had been apprising him of her father’s progress, and he was quite sure that Mr Bennet had been informed about the Brown family, among many other matters! Perhaps his memory suffered more greatly than any could have suspected.
“Indeed?” Mr Bennet gestured to the chair with which Darcy had already become familiar. “Take a seat, Mr Darcy. I shall be eager to hear what I can do for you.”
Darcy took the seat, watching in some dismay as Elizabeth moved past him to exit the room. It was right and proper for her to go, of course, but he could not feel at all satisfied about addressing himself to a man in Mr Bennet’s condition. He suddenly wished that Elizabeth might make some plausible excuse for the conversation to be delayed a few more days.
“Lizzy, close the door, please,” Mr Bennet called. Elizabeth stepped outside and began to draw the door closed after herself when her father corrected her. “No, I meant for you to remain, Elizabeth! You are managing most of the household affairs just now, if I am not mistaken, and you ought to hear whatever this man’s concerns are.”
Elizabeth slid a cautious look to Darcy over her shoulder and did as her father asked. She moved by Darcy again to take the chair opposite him, near her father.
“Now, Mr Darcy, how may I be of service?”
Darcy clenched his fingers into a fist, then forcibly relaxed them. Best to have this over and done with! “Mr Bennet, I wish to marry your daughter.”
Mr Bennet merely gazed expectantly at him, as if Darcy had just announced he was about to go hunting but had not declared which field he intended to plunder.
Darcy blinked. Had the man not heard? “I… I love her, Mr Bennet, and I have the means to care for her extremely well. She shall want for nothing, I assure you. I can provide you with whatever assurance you require. I only ask your blessing, sir.”
Mr Bennet remained quiet, his face wearing a kindly puzzled look. Darcy could feel himself growing red. He looked to Elizabeth, who was narrowing her eyes slightly, then back to Mr Bennet’s face.
At last, the man spoke. “Mr Darcy, I have an abundance of daughters. Pray, which of them did you wish to claim? I had thought you a rather sensible man, so it cannot be Lydia. Though your purse is deep, I should think you would prefer a wife of some economy, so it cannot be Kitty. I expect you would not wish to compete with your friend, so it cannot be Jane. And Lizzy! No, far too stubborn for your taste, I declare. Mary, it is! She is rather more respectable but quite as silly as Kitty and Lydia in her way. Still, I do not think she will give you any trouble, so long as you curtail her playing in public. Of course, Mr Darcy, you may take her as soon as you please.”
Darcy’s face drained of all colour. Mr Bennet smiled, contented with the result of their discussion, and reached again for his glasses and book.
“Mr Bennet, there…” Darcy’s voice cracked. “There has been some sort of mistake! It is Miss Elizabeth I wish to marry!”
Mr Bennet’s eyebrows rose above the rim of his spectacles. “Lizzy? Surely not! She is tolerable, I daresay, but you will never have a moment’s peace, Mr Darcy! She will argue with every decision you make, steal all of the newest books from your library, use up an entire week’s allotment of candles in one night, and will ruin the hem on every gown you buy her. And her shoes! Oh, no, Mr Darcy, she will run you into the poorhouse.”
Elizabeth’s head bowed, but by the roundness of her cheeks, Darcy could tell she was chuckling rather than hiding in shame at her father’s remarks. Perhaps Mr Bennet was not so pitiable as he had been allowing himself to believe.
“All of these would be nothing, I assure you, Mr Bennet. I love Miss Elizabeth, and I shall marry no other.” Darcy’s voice still warbled, but by the end of his short statement, his voice had grown a precious little in firmness.
“Do I understand you correctly that you would share your library ? My good man, do be sensible! Surely there is some more handsome girl in London who would not cause you such worry and distress—one who might not thwart your authority at every turn! A man in your position clearly requires a much more docile wife!”
Darcy stared incredulously at Mr Bennet. The older gentleman smirked back at him. If his sudden intuition were correct, Mr Bennet had the most peculiar means of protecting his daughter that Darcy had ever seen. Intimidating hopeful men by insulting his daughter was not a tactic Darcy would have chosen, but it was effective in one regard—it crystallized his resolve. So devious was his method, in fact, that Darcy catalogued Mr Bennet’s pleasant perversity as a likely means of screening future suitors for Georgiana.
“Mr Bennet, sir,” Darcy cleared his throat and spoke in such terms as he might have used with his aunt. “I may have spoken carelessly and rather unwisely on a number of occasions, but I have long considered Miss Bennet to be the handsomest woman of my acquaintance. I greatly admire her lively intellect and her generous heart, as well as her independent nature. I quite look forward to sharing my library, along with any other meagre possession I might claim, because truly, sir, she is my treasure. I should be content with no other woman, sir, and if it is your intention to refuse your blessing, I shall haunt Netherfield Hall until next spring when Miss Bennet reaches her majority. You would be most welcome to attend the wedding, should you be so inclined, but Miss Elizabeth and I will marry with or without your blessing, and not one day later than May the twenty-second.”
From the corner of his eye, he watched Elizabeth give a start. “You know my birthday, sir?”
He sidled a sly grin at her. “I paid very close attention to all of your conversations, Miss Elizabeth.” She treated him to a gentle laugh, and one of her bewitching smiles.
Mr Bennet was chuckling and began to wipe his spectacles on the bedsheet. “Quite so. Well, well, Mr Darcy, you may marry my Lizzy if you think you can handle her. I wondered what it would take to bring you to the point. If you defend my girl so ably before the ton as you just did to her cantankerous old Papa, I expect you shall do quite well together.”
Darcy took a great breath and shook his head in relieved confusion. “I hope you do not think, Mr Bennet, that I ever truly disdained your daughter.”
Mr Bennet replaced his glasses once more. “No! I believe that much was plain the other day. That was quite an interesting discussion we were having. Where did we leave off? Oh! Yes, I believe we were discussing that fabulous Berkshire boar you had recently acquired. Fascinating discipline, swine husbandry.”
Darcy narrowed his eyes suspiciously. He glanced quickly at Elizabeth, whose cheeks had suddenly flushed to a most becoming rosy hue. Mr Bennet’s head injury had been of such a nature that it was impossible for an observer to know what the man remembered and what he did not, but Darcy’s frame suddenly tingled with embarrassment. Evidently, Mr Bennet remembered quite a lot of what had taken place since their cold morning ride!
As if in confirmation, Mr Bennet’s cheeks pulled into a wide grin. “I anticipate, Mr Darcy, that you are planning to wed sooner rather than later.”
Darcy closed his eyes and swallowed. “Yes, soon, indeed, sir.” He pulled a document from his breast pocket and flinched a little when he saw Elizabeth’s eyes widen in shock. “If you will forgive me, sir, I had taken the liberty of having a special license drawn up.” He frowned, sorry to be confronting the injured father with such plans to quickly spirit his daughter away, but Mr Bennet deserved to know the entire truth. “I thought, sir, it might simplify matters, so that the wedding date could be chosen with respect to your recovery, and still...”
“And still be soon enough to suit the eager groom, you mean,” Mr Bennet finished with a calculating smile. “Do not forget, young man. I was once such a groom myself.” He fixed Darcy with an enigmatic stare which the younger man could not quite decipher.
Darcy looked down, folding and re-folding the document awkwardly. “I fear that, upon reflection, you may have cause to believe I sought to overrule your authority in your own household concerning more than one matter during these past several days. I assure you, sir, that was never my intention.”
Mr Bennet frowned, pulled at his spectacles, and gazed long at the earnest young man before him. “Mr Darcy, as you have been frank with me, so I will be with you. I have no desire to part with my daughter so quickly, and I was most surprised to discover her... revised opinion of you. I have, however, witnessed ample evidence to the proof of her affections, and I have faith in her good sense.
“Furthermore, I have not been wholly unaware of your actions to preserve the good names of my family as well as yours. I believe you to be an honourable fellow, sir, and you may come as near to deserving my Lizzy as I imagine any man might be able to. If, in addition to these things, you have also contrived a means to spare me months of agonizing shopping and dissertations on lace and satin, I shall suffer you to take her from me at your convenience. My one condition is that I be granted the right to visit her—and that marvellous library of which I have heard so much—whenever the fancy strikes me.”
Darcy was by now offering his future father-in-law a toothy grin and trading elated glances with his fiancée. “Truly, sir?” He asked in a near whisper, as though he could not believe his ears. “We may marry so soon?”
“I give you until December the fifteenth, Mr Darcy, not one day longer, else I shall not be held responsible for what elaborate arrangements my wife might impose upon you. I, personally, would rather not find out.”
“That… that is only eight days from today!” Darcy nearly leapt out of his chair in his burst of pleasure and shock. “How can it possibly be contrived so quickly? And… if you will forgive me, sir, can you possibly be well enough?”
“Well enough to manage my affairs without the help of my Lizzy? Certainly not, but if I am not mistaken, she has suddenly become rather useless around here. Her thoughts are elsewhere. The sooner you get the affair over and done with, the sooner I can send Mary or Kitty to live with you and set to work training Lydia. My youngest daughter also has quite a sharp mind, if one can only divert it from her thoughts of officers. She may make a suitable replacement for you about Longbourn, Lizzy.” He smiled at Elizabeth, and she clasped a loving hand over his.
“And now, if you will be so good, sir, I believe there is another eager young man waiting below. Do send him up on your way out.” Mr Bennet winked at his blushing daughter and picked up his book, ignoring Darcy completely.
The couple exchanged half-laughing shrugs of resignation and rose to go. As Darcy was holding the door open for Elizabeth, Mr Bennet called their attention back. “Lizzy! Do be sure to close the door when you tell your mother of your wedding date. I am still recovering from a head injury, after all.”