Chapter 13
Days later, George Wickham approached Georgiana in the garden at Longbourn. He presented her with her favourite flower and proceeded to beguile her with reminiscences of their most cherished moments at Pemberley.
Georgiana was exceedingly entertained, and she made no pretence of hiding it. “You always did know how to make me laugh, George. Although, I suppose I should learn to address you otherwise for appearances sake and to lessen the aspect of familiarity that exists between us.”
“But are we not especially familiar? Have I not known you all your life and I dare ask who knows me better than you?”
She smiled fondly at the person who had devoted so many hours to giving her pleasure over the course of her life. “If only my brother could summon the strong familial harmony you and he once shared.”
“I take some of the credit for Darcy’s hard feelings against me for, just before he and I parted company at Pemberley, I might have expressed my disappointment with him less violently than I did.
I might have handled my temper much better, and I know that now.
If I could do it again, I most certainly would do it differently, for I am a changed man, and soon Darcy will see that too. ”
He extended his arm, which she graciously accepted, and he guided her away from view of the manor house. “Seeing you alone in the garden was fortuitous. I have longed for a chance to speak with you in privacy. There is much I had wished to say to you when we dined with the Philipses that evening.”
“And I you.”
“I have thought of you so many times since we parted, and never more than of late, now that you are a young woman of an age where you are likely giving thought to your place in society. You do remember your promise that you would wait for me?”
Her heart turned somersaults. Her hopes and dreams had not been in vain, for he remembered their promise as well.
“And despite the disheartening circumstances that brought you to Hertfordshire, it is most fortunate that we are all here. Soon, your brother will come to know how mistaken he is about my character, and he will bless our future union.”
“Oh, George, does that mean what I think? Are you? Are you?”
“I am indeed—if you will have me.”
“Oh, nothing would satisfy me more.”
“Then, it is official. Mind you, this must be our secret. We will know when the time is right to share our happy news with others.”
As was her custom, Elizabeth had spent hours in her father’s room, reading to him and the like.
She was encouraged by what she felt certain were daily signs of improvement in his health.
Having reached a fitting stopping point for the day, Elizabeth placed her book aside, stood, and walked to the window.
She was not at all surprised to espy the dashing Lieutenant Wickham, for he and some of the officers regularly called at Longbourn.
She was, however, surprised to see the gentleman and Georgiana sitting together on a bench.
The couple’s comportment hinted of a fair degree of intimacy.
“How long has this been going on?” Elizabeth voiced aloud.
She cast a furtive glance over her shoulder.
His breathing steady, Mr. Bennet’s eyes were closed.
Elizabeth proceeded to the door and quickly made her way outside.
She was half way to the place where she had espied Georgiana and the lieutenant when she saw her sister headed towards the manor house—alone.
Elizabeth waited until they were but a short distance apart. “Georgiana, I saw you and Mr. Wickham in the garden earlier.”
“Indeed, Elizabeth. He called on the Bennets while you were visiting with your father, and he joined me as I was having a turn in the garden so we might talk.”
“Pardon, is this the first such instance where you and he have enjoyed a turn in the garden?”
“Come now, Elizabeth, I can well imagine my brother asking such a question. I am surprised to hear you voice it.”
“I would be remiss if I did not ask. Your brother has made it clear that he does not approve of Mr. Wickham, regardless of how amiable you or I might consider him to be. He would be terribly disappointed if he knew that you were spending time in the gentleman’s company.”
“Then, do not tell him is all I can say. I believe my brother is being entirely unreasonable where George is concerned. I have known George all my life, and all my memories of him are happy ones. Having met him and even spent time in his company yourself, can you wonder why I simply adore him?”
Elizabeth drew her head back. “Adore him, you say?”
“Indeed, what is there not to adore about him? He is kind and considerate; he is what every gentleman aspires to be.”
“He may be all those things, but pray you are not mistaking fondness built upon the basis of sweet childhood memories as something more.”
Georgiana coloured. She stared. She said nothing.
Elizabeth said, “Pray you take my meaning.”
Georgiana crossed her arms over her chest. “Perhaps you ought to just say what is on your mind.”
“Georgiana, I pray you are not considering that your future is with Lieutenant Wickham.”
“I see no reason why I should not be as happy with him as with any other gentleman.”
“I am sure your brother would beg to differ.”
“That is because my brother does not like George.”
“I am afraid his displeasure in seeing you married to such a man would be based upon more than mere dislike.”
Georgiana huffed. “I suppose you are alluding to the gentleman’s lack of fortune, his want of connections.
I know that, were I to entertain the notion of becoming Mrs. George Wickham, it would entail certain sacrifices.
There would be no fine homes the likes of Pemberley and Darcy House, no fine carriages and such, but my own fortune is not insignificant, and as I think about it, as the sister of Fitzwilliam Darcy and the niece of the Earl of Matlock, on the whole, I shall have no cause to repine. ”
As Georgiana took in the raised brows of her sister, she began to consider that she had said too much, and she thought of tempering her strong sentiments just a little, for, after all, her tacit engagement with George had scarcely even begun.
For now, it was meant to be a secret between the two lovers until the time was right to let others know, and she did not intend to force the issue by allowing her brother to gain wind of the situation before there indeed was a situation.
She was not unaware that, if her brother had his way, she would find herself married to his friend, Charles Bingley.
She certainly liked Mr. Bingley well enough, but she would never say she adored him.
Besides, Bingley had never looked at her even once, as best she could tell.
He only had eyes for another—Elizabeth’s older sister, Mrs. Geoffrey Collins.
“Mind you, Elizabeth, I am only putting forth such an argument to illustrate my point that the size of a man’s fortune shall not be the deciding factor in my decision to marry.
With that said, there is no reason at all for you to be concerned about my feelings as regards George, and, for heaven’s sake, I would ask that you make no mention of any of this to my brother.
I have told him already that I shall not allow his opinion of George to shape my own and further that he does not get to decide with whom I spend time.
I think it is unreasonable for him to expect me to slight George simply because they suffered a misunderstanding.
“Besides, I know that he and George were once very close—I dare say the best of friends—when they were younger. Who is to say they will not one day put their differences behind them?”
Elizabeth placed her hand on Georgiana’s arm. “One can only hope, but you know your brother, and he affirms that his good opinion once lost is lost forever.”
“Indeed, I know his sentiments all too well, but I am a strong believer that everyone deserves a second chance. Pray my brother will come to feel that way too. I know it is something my dear father would have wished for—that Fitzwilliam and George should be lifelong friends. This rift between them would simply break his heart, for my father loved George as though he were his own son.”