Page 10 of The Duke of Derby (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

The next day, the entire party went to Derby for some shopping.

The town was about twice the size of Meryton, but since it was the largest town in the county, there were more shops than one might expect based on population alone.

Many of the shops were set up specifically to serve the wealthier inhabitants of Derbyshire.

The duke separated from the party early to inquire about hiring some new staff. The ladies, accompanied by Mr. Darcy and two footmen, proceeded with their shopping.

Their first stop was a draper’s. There they acquired enough material for several sets of sheets. Elizabeth and Jane also picked out the finest material available for a couple of new gowns each. They requested that their purchases be delivered to Lockwood.

Jane had a plan to test the two maids who wished to open up their own shop.

She planned to ask them to hem the sheets first. Then, and only if they were willing to do the boring job first, she would ask them to make the gowns for Elizabeth and Jane.

That way, she could test how much she could recommend them to other customers, especially her mother.

They then spent some time browsing in various shops, all the while looking for blankets and wallpaper, though they did not pass up the opportunity to purchase some very fine-looking gloves and a couple of reticules.

For Elizabeth, it was a novel sensation.

Never in her life had she gone to a shop knowing that she could purchase anything and everything she wished.

While her father hadn’t given them a set allowance, she was certain he would not begrudge any little purchase they made.

Even so, there simply wasn’t much she wanted.

At one point, they went to a jeweler’s. It wasn’t a particularly large shop, but Miss Darcy said it rivaled some of the shops in London for quality, though not for variety.

Jane eyed a particular set of sapphires.

It was a necklace and earring set, though when they asked a little more about it, the jeweler mentioned that he also had a thin tiara that matched them perfectly.

When Jane saw all three pieces together, she smiled. Elizabeth said, “You should buy them. Those sapphires would look perfect in your hair as well as against your skin.”

“Oh, do,” cried Miss Darcy. “It is almost as if they were made for you.”

“I do like them,” said Jane, still with a small smile on her face. “I shall ask Papa before we leave town. I think it might be a bit more than I am comfortable spending without permission.”

“I doubt he’ll say no,” said Elizabeth, “but if you wish to wait, I see no reason not to.”

They continued to look around. Soon afterward, her attention was seized by an elegant silver comb, studded with small emeralds and worked into delicate scrolls which almost resembled vines.

“It is a beautiful comb,” said Mr. Darcy over her shoulder. “It would look even more lovely against your dark hair.”

Elizabeth glanced around to see if Jane or Miss Darcy were close enough to have heard what he said, but they were on the other side, looking at something else.

“Perhaps, I shall come back for it another time,” she said, reluctantly. She did not feel comfortable asking her father for something so expensive when Jane would already be doing so. She was nearly certain he would agree, but the thought made her squirm, nonetheless.

They left the jeweler’s and headed for the bookshop.

That was where His Grace finally caught up with them.

He had gone to an agency that specialized in placing those who wished to find servant positions with those who needed servants.

They served the needs of plenty of estates for about twenty miles in any direction as well as the more affluent denizens of Derby.

The duke had made inquiries into hiring three maids and an assistant cook. The agent, while tripping over his own feet in excitement for helping a duke, said they would consult their records and get back to him as soon as possible.

Duke Derby had also stopped at a shop that sold wallpaper to acquire some plain paper for his wife’s and daughters’ bedrooms. He knew it would not be perfect, but it would be good enough until the duchess could change it to something better.

While Elizabeth was perusing the books available for sale, Mr. Darcy left the shop for a bit. She was so interested in the merchandise, however, that she only realized he had been missing when the bell on the front door rang, and he re-entered.

She went back to perusing the philosophy books on offer. “You seem to have rather eclectic tastes, Lady Elizabeth,” Mr. Darcy said. Once again, he was looking over her shoulder. “When I left you, you were looking at romance novels.”

Without turning to look at him, Elizabeth said, “My taste in reading material was formed almost entirely by what was available in my father’s bookroom.”

Elizabeth heard the humor in his voice as he said, “It surprises me to hear that Mr. Bennet collects novels alongside Greek philosophy.”

“Believe it or not,” said Elizabeth. “To be honest, he finds them rather humorous instead of romantic. He says that the five most humorous books he has ever read were all romances.”

“And you? Do you find them humorous?” asked Mr. Darcy.

“To a degree,” she said. “The overdrawn emotions, the unrealistic behaviors and settings. Those do amuse me. At the same time, however, I have to admit that there is something there to interest a young lady who has no way of seeing much of the world around her.”

Just then, her father came up to them. “I have a neglected library to fill up, so I have just placed a rather large order,” he said. “Is there anything you wish to add?”

“Oh yes,” said Elizabeth, and she named five books she wanted.

As her father walked away, she thought it silly that she would willingly and easily spend nearly five pounds on books, but she still had not asked for that comb, which was less than two pounds.

“Papa,” she said to stop him. When he turned around, she said, “There was some jewelry that Jane and I found. We would like you to take a look at it to see if it is worth purchasing.”

“We can go there before we leave town,” Papa said without even hesitating.

Elizabeth noticed Mr. Darcy watching the duke as he walked away. Eventually, Mr. Darcy said, “The entire town would be in uproar if they knew the new duke was shopping here with his daughters today.”

“It is just as well, then, that we are still dressed in our normal clothes rather than the finer gowns that will soon be required of us,” said Elizabeth.

“I look forward to seeing you arrayed in finery as you should be,” said Mr. Darcy. “You are beautiful as you are, but you will be a sight to behold when you are dressed as a duke’s daughter is expected to be. The first ball you attend as Lady Elizabeth will be an event unto itself.”

There was something in Mr. Darcy’s tone and expression that caught Elizabeth’s attention.

Given his proposal only weeks earlier, she expected admiration, and she wasn’t disappointed.

What surprised her was a sort of wistfulness, almost sadness.

Then she realized. Mr. Darcy was not titled.

Despite his wealth, it was entirely possible that he would not be invited to her first official ball as Lady Elizabeth.

The idea struck her as wrong, somehow. Mr. Darcy was the one who had helped them.

Despite his former pride, he had willingly given them all the help they needed to adjust to their new lives.

He had spent many hours looking over ledgers that weren’t his and teaching the new duke how to manage his new property, and he would likely spend many more days doing the same thing.

In thinking this, Elizabeth realized that her attitude toward that gentleman had materially changed in only two days.

“Whenever that day is, I will make certain you have an invitation,” she said.

She could feel his gaze shift from staring off into the distance to staring at her face. She could not meet his gaze, however. She did not understand her own motivations in saying such a thing, so she did not know what expression to wear.

“Thank you,” he said eventually.

Not long afterward, the group decided they had enjoyed their shopping quite enough for one day, and they made their way back to the jeweler’s.

Papa immediately agreed to purchase the sapphire set, but he could not purchase Elizabeth’s comb, because in the intervening hours, it had already been sold.

Elizabeth tried not to show her disappointment, but Mr. Darcy must have seen it anyway. He looked at her with sympathy and some other expression she could not identify.

~~~~~

Dinner that evening was pleasant as the three young ladies chatted about everything they had seen in Derby while the gentlemen looked on with pleasure. Both men were happy simply to see the ladies happy.

The next day, the duke put some of his workers to the task of hanging the new wallpaper.

He had a set of carpenters and builders whose job it was to maintain the cottages and houses he rented out, but he temporarily pulled two of them from their scheduled work to take on this small task.

In the meantime, Jane set the two maids who wished to be seamstresses to work hemming the sheets, and she was happy to see that neither maid complained.

The morning mail brought a reply from Mrs. Rigby, saying that she would be more than happy to take on the position of governess and teacher to the family assuming His Grace found her suitable.

Papa immediately dispatched his carriage to Nottingham to fetch her for an interview.

Since it was only twenty miles away, it would be easy enough to pick her up and return before dinner.