Chapter 15
Darcy was seated in the front parlour of Willowmere House and fidgeting like an errant schoolboy.
The housekeeper delivered tea and refreshments and he was glad to have some activity as he drank the perfectly prepared beverage that Miss Elizabeth handed him.
He kept trying to say something, but had no idea how and where to begin.
The whole situation was nonsensical at best.
“Mr. Darcy, I have been meaning to thank you for your generosity,” Elizabeth finally spoke, breaking the awkward silence.
“Thank me, whatever for?” Darcy stammered.
If there was a situation where she should be justly admonishing him, then this was it.
He had proved that every reproach she had in Hunsford was more than correct.
His family was domineering and interfering, and he himself had no sense of propriety.
His ears turned pink as he remembered his drenched appearance.
“I am immensely grateful for your assistance with the shopkeepers. I am unsure what caused them to behave in such an unfathomable manner and with Aunt Sarah confined to her bed, I could not think of any recourse,” Elizabeth spoke, bringing Darcy back to the present.
“How is Mrs. Hardwicke doing now? I hope you will not hesitate to let me know if the apothecary hereabouts is insufficient for her care.”
“I thank you for your concern, sir. My aunt has shown steady improvement and is no longer feverish, but the cough is still persistent. The sickness has left her weak but I expect that by next week she should be able to come downstairs.”
“That is indeed good news, Miss Bennet. I wish her the best of health.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes, but this time Darcy finally gathered his courage and spoke, “Miss Bennet, I must apologise for making you uncomfortable recently both with my improper appearance and my aunt’s imposition on the household.”
“Mr. Darcy, I am aware that the house is now yours and Mrs. Ashcombe, as your aunt, is very much entitled to stay here.”
“Aunt Agatha may be family, but that does not excuse her behaviour. She is an interfering busybody; Aunt or not I do not mean to condone her behaviour.”
“You do expect a lot from others, sir,” Elizabeth replied with a smile.
“Miss Bennet, I know you have just cause to consider me selfish and arrogant but from a very young age my father instilled in me the importance of upholding the family name. I have always considered that impeccable manners and proper behaviour are the least I could do to honour that legacy.”
“Forgive me, sir, I had no intention of criticising you. We both know that I have behaved like a foolish and gullible lady in the past. I wish you to understand that I appreciate all you have done and that I am heartily ashamed of my behaviour.”
“Miss Bennet, I may not have given just consideration to your complaints at the time, but I am not so inflexible as to continue in my arrogance. I do have a sister I adore and would flay anyone who caused her grief; how could I begrudge you the same.”
Elizabeth could not believe her ears. The man seemed intent on making her regret her refusal, this act of self-recrimination was much more than she had ever expected.
“I did write to Bingley. I am yet to hear from him, but he can be careless with his replies. I hope he will visit your sister soon enough.”
“It is enough that you corrected your mistake, Mr. Darcy. You are not responsible for mending Jane’s heart, that is Mr. Bingley’s task if he is so inclined.”
“I also promise to talk to my aunt. I will try to convince her to move to the dower house or better still, to return to London or rent a house. Anywhere but here, she must bow to reason, it is unconscionable that she would disturb a house in mourning.”
Elizabeth was amused by the frantic note in Mr. Darcy’s voice.
She had finally understood that the gentleman had a deep aversion to improper conduct irrespective of a person’s rank and situation in life.
He expected everyone to behave with decorum and was highly uncomfortable when someone flaunted social rules.
“Sir, I am sure that the household will be improved by Mrs. Ashcombe’s presence. She may even teach me a thing or two about running the house while my aunt recovers.”
“I am sure you are already accomplished, and all my aunt would achieve is to make a nuisance of herself while enjoying every moment of it.”
“You are forgetting a very important point, Mr. Darcy; I have a healthy appreciation of the absurd and love to laugh at follies and nonsense.”
Finally, she achieved a faint smile from Darcy.
“I just want you to know, Miss Bennet, that at any point you may ask my aunt to remove herself from this house. You yourself said that as the master of the estate it is my prerogative as to who stays, well, I give you full freedom in disposing of uninvited, officious family members however you deem fit.”
Elizabeth erupted into laughter at his sardonic comment. “I think I am a bad influence on you, sir. The ever correct Mr. Darcy could hardly have made such an impertinent speech.”
“The best kind of influence, I assure you,” Darcy replied, causing Elizabeth to immediately blush.
“Would you not tell me how the drainage is coming along?” she asked, changing the subject.
“Drainage? Yes, of course, the drainage,” Darcy stammered, distracted by the vision before him. He had seen the lady blush on behalf of her family multiple times but this was different. Then, recollecting her question, he explained to her about the problem encountered while digging.
“That you seek to improve something on the estate so soon after inheriting is to your credit, sir,” Elizabeth replied, genuinely impressed by the gentleman’s meticulous planning.
“It seems that I may have to wait until we can understand the lay of the land. The estate map did not have details of work in that area.”
“We can check in the study. My uncle has carefully maintained all the estate documents and we may find something that would be useful to your endeavours.”
Darcy immediately agreed and they went to the study. After an hour of diligent searching, they finally found an old document and a map at least three decades old.
“I cannot believe this!” Darcy exclaimed. “There was already a drain built on the land. It seems the endeavour is not completely ruined. I just need to connect this old line to the swamp. I think I will have to redirect the digging.”
Elizabeth could not help but share in the joy with the gentleman. Mr. Darcy genuinely seemed to enjoy drains and fields and all things related to the land and Elizabeth was slowly coming to understand that she really appreciated this quality in a gentleman.