Page 36 of Secrets Across the Sea
Pemberley in Derbyshire, England – Summer of 1814
“Jane!” Elizabeth called as her sister emerged from her carriage, followed by her husband. “Charles! It is so good to see you both.”
Laughing as Jane wrapped her in a hug, Elizabeth quickly pulled her sister toward Pemberley’s doors. “Come, everyone is here already; Father, Lydia, of course Kitty and her husband… even Mary and Richard managed it, and you know we were uncertain of his being able to get away, what with all of the paperwork surrounding that estate–almost as complicated as our own inheritance was.”
“Slow down,” Jane teased, “I am as excited as you are. So tell me, where is Darcy? Charles and I are almost as eager to see him as we are you… are we not?” Jane asked over her shoulder, her husband closing the gap between them and stealing her hand for a kiss.
“Of course we are,” he answered at length, his smile wide as he turned toward Elizabeth. “Is Lady Charmane coming?”
Shaking her head, Elizabeth sighed, “She is not, though the reason is a happy one at least; the reverend–Mr. Moore–is to marry Miss Umbridge, and as the man is Lady Charmane’s rector, well… she could not get away. It is a pity we missed it, however. Lord Brayburn is to be there with his new bride; I am all curiosity about the woman he loved, lost, and found again.” Peering over at her sister, Elizabeth said, “As to your question, my husband had to go to Lampton–even I do not know what he is up to–though, I suspect he will be back before you two have had time to freshen up.”
“Jane!” Cathy squealed, she and Georgie surrounding her. “We have been longing for you to arrive! You too, of course,” she rushed, her head whipping toward Charles for half a moment before returning to Jane. “It has been a jolly time, but always we thought of you.”
Lips curling as the girls whisked Jane and Charles into the drawing room, Elizabeth followed at a more sedate pace, the sound of joyful chatter greeting her as she entered.
“It seems the last of our party has arrived,” the deep, familiar voice of her husband whispered as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
“Just before you it seems,” she answered, leaning into his chest, her muscles relaxing at the familiar pose. “Was your task a success?”
“If you are fishing for answers,” he chuckled as he leaned to kiss her ear, “I must warn you I am sworn to secrecy.”
“Fiend,” she teased, her eyes darting toward the room, everyone happily occupied. She would have just enough time.
Spinning in his arms, Elizabeth drew his head down as she reached up to kiss him; he as always, happy to oblige.
Thoroughly kissed, Elizabeth sighed as she moved back, the voices of his sisters as they caught sight of him certain to draw the attention of the rest of the room.
“Darcy! It is wonderful to see you,” Bingley effused, Elizabeth moving to her father’s side by the window as the two men greeted one another warmly.
“It seems all my girls have done well in life; intelligent, happy, and even healthy. What more could a father ask?”
“I will not deny any of it,” Elizabeth smirked, “Having the pride of one's family is too welcome to trifle with. But what of you? How are you coping with Lydia out; I know she has been of help with the estate, but I imagine that your youngest, intelligent, happy, healthy, and dare I add, beautiful daughter has a great many young men vying for her affections?”
Huffing, her father scowled, “A great, great many young men. If she had not chosen to delay her coming out to help me learn the proper management of my estate, it would have been harder still. At least now I am not too busy learning to keep from being a stalwart, though fair father, or rather, trying to be,” he remarked with a sad laugh.
Hugging him, Elizabeth sighed, “Oh, dear, wonderful PaPa. Lydia is proud of how you have been as a father; she told me so herself. Since returning for our weddings you have been as attentive as any father could hope to be… we all love you.”
With a kiss to her cheek, he smiled, “How did I ever get to be as lucky as I am?”
“Luck had nothing to do with it,” Mary remarked as she joined in the conversation. “Hard work, on all our parts; yours included. That, and a lot of love. Oh, speaking of which, Jane told me Caroline is to be married next month.”
“To whom?” Elizabeth awed, her eyes wide as she stared at Mary.
“You will never believe it,” Mary laughed. “She is to marry Lord Ramsgate!”
“Not THE Lord Ramsgate?”
“Yes; the very one. Jane was as surprised as any of us by the sound of it, though I admit stranger things have happened recently.”
Caroline Bingley trapped a husband! Lord Ramsgate? It would seem men of that nature did reap less than pleasing rewards.
Still, as Mary said, far stranger things had happened.
“Strange indeed,” Elizabeth said with a quick shake of her head. “Lady Catherine wrote to us only last week with a proffered olive branch. It has been far slower than that of your Richard’s family, but still, they were only keeping visits with our family a secret, Lady Catherine pretended none of us even existed!”
“I never thought she would concede,” Mary murmured, her husband coming to stand beside her. “Did you know? About your Aunt Catherine giving way at last?”
“In what?” he asked as he wrapped an arm about her waist.
“Actually admitting the Darcy side of the family exists?”
Laughing, he turned his head toward Darcy, the man in question moving their way with the rest of the family. “So, that was the letter you teased me about. You said I would not believe it, and you were correct… I would have thought you were having sport at my expense.”
“Tease you? Never,” Darcy smirked. “Though, as you have heard it from other lips, I trust you will believe me this time?”
“Only just,” he jested. “You are rather keen to goad me of late; the result of your improved temperament, I suppose?”
“What if I am? I see how marriage has agreed with you, is it wrong that it has done the same with me?”
Chuckling, Richard answered, “Merely in regard to your newfound propensity in choosing me for your jests. The rest of your happiness I shall not deny you. Speaking of happiness,” he said, turning to Jane and her husband as he motioned to the Lucases, “Has our resident reverend told you their good news?”
“News?” Jane wondered, her eyes flitting to Kitty before moving to James.
“Well, I am to receive a new parish; in a month’s time we shall be moving from Watford to Meryton. And… there is news no one has yet been told,” James grinned as he turned toward Kitty.
“We are expecting a child in the autumn,” she finished, the squeals of her sisters and congratulations of the gentlemen filling the air.
Kitty! With child? Before the year was out their family would be grown and she would be an aunt!
“What do you need?” Georgiana asked excitedly. “I mean for the child… and for you of course, I imagine you need a bit of spoiling too. When we are in London next month Lizzy, and Cathy, and I will have to visit all of the shops! I know we are sisters by marriage, but I hope you shall let me be an aunt like all of yours?”
Thus, the thrum of voices began to plan for the future; Georgie and Cathy being assured of aunt status, Jane making Kitty promise to take care of herself, their Father suggesting names, while the whole host required that another family gathering take place before the child was born.
Smiling as her husband pulled her from amongst the throng, Elizabeth followed him to the doorway, their vocal family still gathered in front of the large row of windows; a picturesque sight if not sound.
“Do you want to know the reason I went to Lampton this morning?” her husband questioned as he took her hands, his thumb rubbing across them.
One brow raising she tilted her head, “I believe you know the answer.”
Kissing her hands, he let them go to reach into his pocket. “I wanted to bring you this.”
“I…” she began, her eyes growing glassy, as she viewed the ring he held, the various stones spelling out ‘ darling .’ “It is beautiful.”
“That day in the passageway when I asked you to marry me, I called you, ‘my darling.’ Since then, many other times I have called you thus, and still it always is true. You are my darling, my love, and I thank the Lord for the day I met you and for the gift of loving you.”
Slipping the ring onto her finger, he wrapped her in his arms, the two sharing a sweet kiss before laughter in the drawing room had them turning that way; their family continuing to talk and laugh gaily.
When Mamma had died, it felt as though happiness had died with her. As though their family had died. Yet, here they were, happy and whole, and increased.
Four sisters married. A father healed and returned to them. And not one of their family, new or old, would ever be tossed aside or unloved. They were home.
She was home.
In her husband's arms, she would always be so.
THE END