Page 9 of Why I Kissed You (Pride and Prejudice Variation)

“Obstinate, headstrong boy!” Lady Catherine bellowed.

“Honour, decorum, prudence—nay, interest—forbid you to marry her. Yes, Darcy, interest; for do not expect to be noticed by your family or friends, if you willfully act against the inclinations of all. You will be censured, slighted, and despised by everyone connected with you. Your alliance will be a disgrace.”

If her actions alone had not been enough—and they certainly were—the speech Lady Catherine had just given was all the proof necessary to confirm what Elizabeth had said about families: there was not one that did not have amongst their number at least one who was an embarrassment.

Darcy was mortified by his aunt’s arrogance and presumption; his uncle would no doubt wish he had chosen better, but he would approve his doing right by Elizabeth when it was made known to him that the threat to her reputation was caused by his own weakness.

“Madam, neither duty nor gratitude,” said Darcy evenly, “have any possible claim on me in the present instance. No principle of either would be violated by my marriage with Miss Bennet. I am, however, bound to her by honour which I hope soon to satisfy. And with regard to the resentment of my family, or the indignation of the world, the former may be excited by my marrying her, but I cannot allow it to give me one moment’s concern—and the world in general would have too much sense to join in the scorn. ”

He would not allow her to detain him further; Darcy turned on his heel again and strode purposefully out of the room.

Lady Catherine ranted behind him, demanding he return and insulting Elizabeth, but he ignored her.

Fitzwilliam and his valet were coming down the stairs as he entered the hall, and the colonel winced at the piercing shrieks still emanating from the morning room.

“I see your meeting with our aunt went well,” Fitzwilliam quipped as they fell into step. “No point in my taking leave when she is in such a state. She knows we traveled together.”

Darcy said nothing as they left the house.

He was gratified to see that his carriage was already waiting for them, and so was a young girl who looked to be about Jane Bennet’s age, a carpet bag in her hands.

Vincent assisted the footman with hauling Fitzwilliam’s trunk onto the roof of the carriage while Kirk introduced the girl as Penelope.

“Penelope Lacey, sir,” she said as she curtsied.

“Miss Lacey, I understand you are not satisfied in your employment here at Rosings,” Darcy began, “and I am glad to take you on as a temporary maid to my friend Miss Bennet. When we stop at Bromley to rest the horses, I would advise you to send some word to your relations so they do not worry for you, as I cannot yet say when I might be able to facilitate your return to Kent.”

Miss Lacey lifted a shoulder. “Won’t be no need, Mr. Darcy. I have no relations left.”

“I am sorry to hear it. In that case, I will see to a new situation for you, perhaps in London.”

The girl’s eyes widened. “Oh, we’re going to London, sir? Bless me, I’ve never been to town before! Only ever been as far as Bromley.”

“Then it will be an adventure for you, Miss Lacey,” Fitzwilliam said with a grin, before handing her into the carriage. He then climbed in himself, and Darcy joined him in taking up the rear-facing seat.

He was checking his watch as the driver slowed to a stop some minutes later before the gate at the parsonage; half an hour precisely had passed. Elizabeth, Mrs. Collins, and Maria Lucas were stepping outside as the footman was opening the door and lowering the step.

“You are nothing if not punctual, Mr. Darcy,” quipped Elizabeth as she approached .

Darcy studied her features as he moved through the gate to meet her; behind him, Fitzwilliam was giving directions to the two valets to retrieve her trunks.

To the casual observer, Elizabeth’s expression was bright and cheerful, but he had examined that countenance so often that he could tell she was troubled.

There were faint lines of worry about her eyes and her posture was tense.

It disturbed him to see her so distressed, and he mentally berated himself for being the cause of her concern.

“Miss Bennet, this is Penelope Lacey,” said he, gesturing to the maid who had walked with him. “She will attend you until I can safely deliver you to your aunt and uncle in London.”

The maid curtsied and Elizabeth nodded, then said, “So you will take me to Cheapside, Mr. Darcy?”

A small sparkle had come into her eyes, and he knew she was teasing him. “I can assure, you, madam, that I have no scruple to be seen drawing up to a house in Cheapside—or entering it.”

Elizabeth shook her head with a slight smile, then she turned to Mrs. Collins and embraced her. “I am so sorry, Charlotte. I pray you do not suffer too much for having such a friend as me.”

“Nonsense, Lizzy,” said Mrs. Collins, who began to weep again. “You have nothing to apologize for. I imagine that Maria and I may have to suffer several lectures, but I promise you that I will not let their disapprobation rule me. You are my friend and shall always be so.”

The parson’s wife then looked to Darcy. “I trust you made at least some attempt to explain the truth, sir?”

Impressed by the hint of challenge in the lady’s tone, Darcy nodded.

“I assure you, Mrs. Collins, that I did. Unfortunately, my aunt has long been of the mistaken impression that I would marry her daughter and unite our two estates and fortunes. Having heard that I had designs on another young lady, which obviously would disappoint her greatest hopes, is what led her to issue so uncivil an edict to your husband. She seems to believe that exposing Miss Bennet to censure and ridicule will change my mind.”

“And will it?” Mrs. Collins pressed.

Darcy’s gaze caught Elizabeth’s, and he could see her friend’s question repeated in her eyes. “It is all up to Miss Bennet now.”

Her eyes widened a fraction, then she lifted an eyebrow. “I see. So, if there is to be ruin, it will be all my own doing. No pressure at all. ”

Elizabeth embraced Mrs. Collins again and then Miss Lucas, then bid them both goodbye after promising to send word of her safe arrival in London.

Darcy guided her and the maid to the carriage; Fitzwilliam greeted Elizabeth with a sad smile.

In moments they were all in the coach and on their way into the village, where they stopped only long enough to rent two sturdy horses from the coaching inn for he and Fitzwilliam to ride.

The party stopped at The Bell in Bromley for refreshments and rest for the carriage horses; the rented pair they would exchange for fresh ones.

Because of his having rode a horse instead of sitting in the carriage, the small private dining parlor he secured at the inn was the first chance Darcy had of addressing the circumstances which had prompted their journey.

A pointed look at Fitzwilliam was all it took to send his cousin out of the room, mumbling something about checking on the horses. Darcy, who stood at the single window, drew a breath and said, “I believe we must discuss our situation, Miss Bennet.”

“Yes, I suppose we must,” she replied. A sigh escaped her, and then, “Mr. Darcy, I… Heavens, I really don’t even know what to say.

I will own that I behaved unconscionably toward you yesterday, though I maintain that at least some of my anger was justified.

You were wrong about Jane and Mr. Bingley, and the fact that you have no remorse for your actions still vexes me greatly. ”

Darcy turned toward her as she stood and began to pace, wringing her hands together as she went on.

“I refused you, and it must wound your dignity not only to have your love spurned but to be faced with the possibility of having to take me on anyway. You can hardly be wishing to marry someone who has said she does not care for you.”

“Allow me to ask you this, Miss Bennet… Do you truly disdain me so much that you see marriage to me as an evil?” Darcy said. “Can you imagine no chance at all of us at least being friends?”

Elizabeth scoffed. “Friends, perhaps, yes. In time. But friends do not see each other every day. As husband and wife, we would be forced to endure each other’s company every day for the rest of our lives.”

She turned slowly to face him. “Mr. Darcy, I cannot but believe that your feelings will only end in resentment if I should say yes in order to save myself.”

Darcy shook his head. “On the contrary. Besides, you would not be in the position of needing to be saved had I not taken the liberty that I did. Had I then resisted the temptation your lips presented as I resist it now…”

Elizabeth’s eyes widened at the unexpected revelation. Darcy cursed himself silently; he had not meant to say so much.

He decided to address her claim of resentment.

“You are not entirely wrong—I am not at ease with the prospect of marrying a woman who has refused me. What man of sense would want to bind himself to a lady who has made her dislike of him so clear? I am, contrary to what you may believe, perfectly capable of accepting ‘no’ for an answer, and I would leave all at that if I believed it possible to do so. However, given the events of this morning I am not convinced we can. Now, as the true blame for our predicament is my responsibility, so must the remedy be, do not you think?”

When Elizabeth remained silent, Darcy moved away from the window and closed the distance between them.

“I have no desire to force you into a marriage you truly do not want, Miss Bennet, but I think you must consider as I have that we no longer have a choice in the matter. I know my aunt’s inclinations—seeing that you were turned out of Mr. Collins’s house may not be the end of her schemes to keep us apart. ”

Alarm now entered Elizabeth’s eyes. “Not the end? You mean to say she will do more to harm my reputation?”

“Nothing that could be traced to her directly, of course,” said Darcy.

“Lady Catherine will certainly see her own reputation remains untarnished. But as you well know, society enjoys gossip as much as any servant, and she will use that to her advantage. Much as it pains me to confess it, I would not put it past my aunt to go so far as writing to her friends in town to tell them all about the ‘upstart country chit’ who has had the audacity to try and lure her favorite nephew away from the marriage she and her late honoured sister had planned for their son and daughter.”

Elizabeth scoffed. “And if the story spreads about London, it won’t be long until it goes even farther—then I shan’t be seen as respectable anywhere. I would not be able to return to my father’s house, as my ruin would lead to the disgrace of all my sisters.”

She drew a deep breath and straightened her posture, and looking at him squarely, said, “As difficult as it is for me to do so, I must own that my actions of yesterday are equally responsible for our predicament, and as equally inexcusable—so I will not allow it said that the fault for our situation is yours alone. I am also sensible of the indignity you must feel at the prospect of asking me a second time to be your wife after being so uncivilly refused. I don’t want to be forced into marriage, Mr. Darcy, with you or anyone else.

But given the circumstances, I know that if I don’t marry, that choice could utterly destroy what prospects my sisters have to be respectably settled. ”

Darcy clasped his hands behind his back. “It would seem we are at an impasse, Miss Bennet. How do you propose to overcome it?”

“The only thing it seems I can do,” she replied evenly.

“Rather than forcing you to ask again a question you have already spoken, I will ask you to forgive the hasty reply I made when first you asked me to accept your hand, that I may—having further considered the merits of your offer—gratefully acknowledge the honour you have paid me and accept you with alacrity.”

Taking another step closer, Darcy held out his hand, and though Elizabeth hesitated to put her own into it, he still lifted it and softly touched his lips to the back.

“Thank you, Miss Bennet,” said he. “I could not have been easy had I been the means of doing you harm.”

Elizabeth’s brows rose. “Is that so? Then may I make my first request of you as your betrothed, Mr. Darcy?”

His curiosity was roused. “If it is in my power to grant your request, I will see it done.”

“Tell your friend Bingley the truth and make amends for the harm you have done to my sister Jane,” Elizabeth replied. “Give him at least a chance to repair the damage his abandonment has caused. Let the decision of whether to marry or not be their own.”

Darcy drew a breath and nodded his acquiescence, knowing this was but the first of many steps to a peaceful co-existence.