Vol 2, Chapter 12 #2
If he had his way, Andrew would have taken Jane to the Continent to see Paris and Florence, mayhap even Venice.
Unfortunately, the little problem, otherwise known as the dictator Napoleon Bonaparte, had forced him to wait on that intention.
Andrew was sure it was only a matter of time before Wellington brought the Corsican to heel, and then he would be able to show his wife the delights of Europe.
As the newlyweds stood on the quarterdeck looking to the west, they watched as the setting sun seemed to turn the sea a blood red and gave the optical illusion that the water was boiling at the point where the sun was sinking below the horizon.
They could almost hear the sound of boiling water as the blood red sun disappeared below the horizon.
Jane was a most contented woman. Their first night as married man and woman had been at Hilldale House in London. The house was located in Hanover Square, at walking distance from St. George’s Church. It had been everything Jane imagined and more, a lot more.
Andrew was a most attentive and generous lover who would do anything to give his wife pleasure before he took any, even if he did not succeed all of the time.
It had not taken them long to find a rhythm where sometimes they would both reach their releases simultaneously.
Once their passion for one another had been released, it was a genie neither wanted put back into its lamp.
That night at Hilldale House, Jane had screamed out in ecstasy as they joined multiple times.
There had been a little pain as her mother told her there would be, but not enough to bother Jane and certainly nothing that would halt their activities.
Andrew had wanted to stop in deference to his wife, but she had urged him to continue his thrusts.
Since the first night, that activity had been repeated multiple times, day and night, in their spacious owner’s cabin.
Jane’s courses had begun a few days previously making them hunger for more of what only their loving could give, so even that did not stop them, with the exception of joining.
They found other ways to pleasure one another; it was enjoyable in the extreme.
Both were impatient for her indisposition to end so they could commence joining once again.
For his part, Andrew had suspected his Jane had hidden depths of passion waiting to be released.
To his everlasting joy, he had been proven correct!
And to his pleasure alone, her passion had not simply been released, it was like the eruption of a long dormant volcano.
Since their wedding night, neither had slept very much when they were alone, and neither repined their lack of sleep.
At dinner that night, the Captain informed them they would be arriving in Dublin with the tide in the morrow.
When they retired, they vaguely considered just how much time they would spend actually exploring the city, promising each other and themselves they would see the city and all its splendour.
If it did not happen to have occurred on this trip, that did not mean they did not eventually fulfil them.
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Elizabeth was feeling bereft of William’s company. He had been called to Pemberley to work with his steward on some issues two days previously, and it had not taken much convincing for his sister to remain with the Bennets.
Once Maria Lucas had calmed herself about the size and opulence of the Bennet’s estate in general, and her bedchamber in particular, she had relaxed. And once she had, Maria grew closer to Georgiana. By the time Darcy needed to depart, the three younger girls were nearly inseparable.
They had pleaded their case to the Duchess, who had happily extended an invitation for Georgiana to remain at Longfield Meadows, and Darcy had nodded his approval as his excited sister had accepted the invitation with alacrity.
It was not just the blossoming friendship with the two younger girls that Darcy saw helping Gigi further come into her own, but the close relationship between his sister and Elizabeth which in itself was becoming more sisterly by the day.
In a little more than a month, the three-month period of mourning would be complete, and Darcy would begin to try and gift his sister with having Elizabeth as a sister not just of the heart but indeed.
A sennight earlier, the Jamisons had arrived to visit for a month; the parents spent most of their time with the Bennet parents.
The friendship between the Jamisons and the Bennets was more than a century in duration and had begun when Karen Jamison wed the first Tom Bennet all those years ago.
The Jamison’s daughter, Karen, had arrived eleven years after Robert when Will and Yvette had been convinced there would be no more children.
At eight, Karen was too young for the older girls, so she spent a lot of time with Mark.
They would soon have company as the Gardiners and their four children were scheduled to arrive within days, and as Karen was in between Lilly and May Gardiner in age, the nursery would be a lively place.
In order to give Tom some company, in addition to the Jamisons, the Bennets extended an invitation to the Lucases so that the three Lucas brothers would be present, also making a nice group of young men. Sir William and Lady Lucas and sons would arrive in three days.
Charlotte was happy to see the rest of her family again, but the date she was eyeing was five days away: the one and twentieth. It was the day her mourning period ended, and, she hoped, was the very day Richard Fitzwilliam was to arrive.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Mr. Chalmers, Pemberley’s steward, was amused. He had never before seen his master so distracted. There was one-time last summer after the little miss returned from Ramsgate, but that had been driven by sadness. What he was seeing in Mr. Darcy now was quite the opposite.
Neither he nor any of the servants employed on the estate had ever seen Mr. Darcy so happy; he was downright ebullient!
For the fourth or fifth time so far that morning, the steward heard: “Sorry, Chalmers, please repeat what you said, my mind was elsewhere.” The steward was sure it had something to do with that Duke’s daughter the master had been trying to impress when her family visited in April.
He suspected Pemberley would not be without a mistress for too much longer.
Darcy knew his mind was fifty miles away in Yorkshire, but he was doing his best to complete the work that needed his attention. No matter how he tried, his mind kept returning to his conversation with Elizabeth the night before his departure.
“I will be sorry to see you go, William,” she had said.
“Not as sorry as I am to need to go,” he had returned.
“William, you know you are much more than just a friend to me do you not?” Elizabeth had asked boldly.
“That was my hope, Elizabeth, as you know how I feel about you, do you not?” he had asked.
“I have an idea that you hold me in tender regard,” Elizabeth teased him by understating the obvious.
“It has been some time that I have loved you most ardently. I passed tender feelings some time ago,” he said, trying to lighten the moment some in case it was needed.
“Oh! I will be honest, William; your feelings are NOT unwelcome. I will tell you I most definitely have tender feelings for you, but I am not ready to say more—yet. When you ask me the question I believe you want to, I will have an answer ready for you, one I dare say you will like.” She had looked at him with meaning and Darcy’s heart had taken wings, soaring high above the highest cloud.
As he sat atop Zeus surveying the crops that would be harvested in the autumn, Darcy knew Elizabeth had been telling him that when he asked for a courtship she would agree; mayhap she would not demure if he requested a betrothal!
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
When the Lucases arrived at the Bennet’s new primary estate in a Bennet travelling coach, the reaction of the five was quite similar to what Maria’s and the Bennets themselves had been.
The normally ebullient Sir William had been silent as he, his wife, and sons were shown to their chambers on a guest floor.
They met in the parent’s suite’s sitting room before joining the rest of those in residence in one of the many drawing rooms.
“Good Lord, William, I have never, in my wildest imaginings, conjured such a house!” Lady Lucas began.
“Nick and I are sharing a suite, not a bedchamber, but a suite! We each have our own bedchamber. There was a man waiting in mine. He is to be my valet while I am here!” John Lucas added with awe.
“I have a lady’s maid, John; I believe each of you have a man working with you. I know your father has,” Lady Lucas shared, “Do you realise that we could place all of Lucas Lodge in two or three of these suites?”
Just as the changes to their life had been realised by the Bennets, and brought home to Charlotte, the realisation fully hit the Lucases at that moment.
With the help of two different footmen, the Lucases found their way to the drawing room.
In addition to the Bennets, the Lucases were happy to see the Gardiners and the Jamisons were also present, all of whom they were already acquainted with.
They also recognised Miss Darcy who they had met at Jane’s wedding.
Just as Sir William was casting about to see if Mr. Darcy was present, Elizabeth stood. “William,” She was looking past the Lucases with the biggest smile, her eyes shining with pleasure, “you have returned."
The Duke and Duchess shared knowing looks. It seemed that their middle daughter’s feelings for Mr. Darcy were quite the opposite of what they had been some months ago!