Chapter 24 #2
“Then you would lo… like Pemberley. Nature has been left unadulterated in the vast tracts of forests that Pemberly claims. The same is true, for the most part, around the lake as well,” Darcy related.
“There are formal gardens, but they are not close to as ordered as Lady Catherine kept her gardens at Rosings Park. Half of the garden is a rose garden, which was my late mother’s pride and joy.
As a living memorial to her, I make sure that the rose garden is always well tended.
Anna spends much time there. Before the letter to her from Mother, it was the only tangible connection she had to our mother. ”
It was not hard to see how proud Mr Darcy was of his estate, and it was not improper pride in the least. When he spoke of and described his estate, it was with reverence.
There was no doubt that he was the best of brothers to Anna.
“Pemberley sounds blissful. We have a rose garden at Longbourn; it is my mother’s love.
Well, hers and Jane’s. My older sister has the green thumb that I do not own,” Elizabeth mused.
“The still room is Jane’s domain. She makes salves and tinctures as well as the scented water that each of us prefer. ”
“And your preference is lavender.” Darcy had been smelling her scent since she entered the coach, and it was intoxicating, as it always was.
Elizabeth arched her eyebrow. Mr Darcy had really been paying attention to her likes and dislikes. “Most men cannot identify the scent a lady is wearing. How is it you are able to do so?”
“Because it was my mother’s favourite scent.
We have a section of the conservatory dedicated to various strains of lavender.
I am told that the plant does not like too much water, and it enjoys a warm and dry environment.
The sunniest section of the conservatory is dedicated to the plants.
Their placement ensures they are able to survive the harsh winters we have in Derbyshire.
” He thought, but did not add aloud, ‘I am very attentive to anything about you.’
She was aware that Mr Darcy’s cologne was a scent which mixed sandalwood and spice, which to Elizabeth was a very pleasant smell.
She did not mention that she paid attention to his scent because in her mind that was far too forward.
Unlike Mr Darcy had with regard to his late mother, she did not have the excuse that his scent reminded her of a current or lost close family member.
“You are very different from the man I thought I knew,” Elizabeth admitted.
“I hope that is a good thing?” Darcy responded.
“Considering the wrongheaded ideas I had about you previously, yes, Mr Darcy, it is a very good thing. I now know that you are a very good and honourable man.” Elizabeth blushed as she said the last, and there was nothing she could do to stop it from happening.
“Had we gotten to know one another from the beginning of our acquaintanceship as we have now, then, I believe that we would have been good friends for quite some time.” What Elizabeth did not say was that had she seen this Mr Darcy from that first assembly onwards, then she would have been far more receptive to a proposal from him.
Elizabeth had thought that Mr Darcy would never lower himself to pursue her after the way she had rejected him, but now she was not so sure.
The question was whether she wanted something more than just friendship.
Her heart insisted ‘yes’ while her head was not sure; however, it was not screaming ‘no’.
Darcy could see that Miss Elizabeth was contemplating some weighty issue, so he remained silent to allow her as much time as she needed to think on whatever it was she was considering.
The coachman guided his team into the courtyard of the Blue Parrot Inn and brought the conveyance to a halt.
Not wanting to touch Miss Elizabeth without her permission, Darcy had the maid, Jenny, touch her mistress’s shoulder. “We are at the coaching inn. Would you like to refresh yourself and have something to eat and drink?” Darcy questioned.
Elizabeth had been so busy thinking about Mr Darcy as it related to herself that she had been lost in her cogitation.
She was thankful he had obviously directed Jenny to bring her out of her wool-gathering and had not made her feel any embarrassment in the least. She had a feeling that without trying too hard, she could lose her heart to him.
However, Elizabeth was determined to move slowly, so there would be no repeat of the misunderstandings of the past.
“Yes, I will join you in the inn. Jenny, should we go?” Elizabeth suggested.
Once Darcy alighted, he handed Miss Elizabeth out, and Carstens did the same for her maid.
Darcy offered his arm to her, and Miss Elizabeth took it without delay.
When she rested her hand on his forearm, his heart sped up.
He remembered how her hand had barely touched his arm when he walked with her at Rosings Park before the proposal he would rather forget.
He was so convinced that she was expecting him to propose to her that he had been blind to the things which indicated her disinclination for his company.
That was the primary reason that he was being so careful now.
They were coming to know one another, and from that base, he hoped and prayed more would grow.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Once they departed the Blue Parrot Inn, Elizabeth and Mr Darcy spent time debating philosophy and books they had read.
He asked if she played chess, and when she answered with a very enthusiastic yes, he was quick to extract his travel set from a pocket on one side of the coach.
The board folded, and there was a hole in the centre of each of the four and sixty squares to keep the pieces stable; each piece had a little wooden peg at its base which was inserted into the hole of the square the piece occupied.
When he offered her white, Elizabeth refused. “Take one in each hand, and we will play the colour based on what I chuse just the way it is always done,” she demurred.
He removed a black and white pawn from the board and mixed them between his hands behind his back. Then, Darcy offered Miss Elizabeth his fists for her to make her choice.
As neither of them were gloved, when Elizabeth touched Mr Darcy’s left hand, she felt heat creep throughout her body.
She watched as he opened his fist, revealing the black pawn.
She took the piece from his hand and placed it on the board and turned it so black was on her side.
Once Mr Darcy replaced his pawn, he made his opening move.
By the time the coach slowed on entering Meryton, the game was not over, and it seemed it was headed for a draw. Just as they rolled past the former Netherfield Park’s gates, the two players conceded that neither of them could win.
Darcy had known Miss Elizabeth was intelligent, but until this moment, he had not been aware of just how skilled she was at chess. He was a champion at Cambridge, and this little slip of a woman had almost defeated him. He had to employ every tactic he was familiar with to reach a draw.
From her side, even though she had not won, Elizabeth was very pleased with the game.
The fact that Mr Darcy had played against her as he would any other opponent and did not make allowances for her being a member of the weaker sex, spoke to the fact that he respected her and her abilities.
That, to Elizabeth, was far more attractive than his wealth, connections, or incredibly handsome countenance.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sight of Kitty, Anna, and Lydia waving to them from the drive at the base of the stairs leading up to the veranda before the front doors. Mrs Annesley and Miss Jones were close to their charges.
“Lizzy, Mr Darcy, welcome,” Lydia declared as she ran forward to hug her older sister as soon as Mr Darcy handed her out of the coach.
Had either of the two youngest Bennet sisters been out, she would have been asked to be the hostess at Netherfield Park for the time they were not with the family and until their mother returned. As none of them were out, the only callers had been female friends of an age with them.
“I missed you too, Lyddie, and Kitty and Anna as well,” Elizabeth said as Kitty stepped forward for a hug. She was followed by Anna, who had just received one from her brother.
Seeing how light and happy Anna appeared made Darcy’s heart want to sing.
All traces of the late miscreant’s damage had been swept away.
Her heart had been repaired by the very family that he once judged without merit and so below him in standing.
He was about to chastise himself for being an arrogant arse when Miss Elizabeth’s words about the past intruded, and he relaxed.
What a balm to his soul it was to see Anna, not only as she had been before Ramsgate, but also, far better.
After greeting Mrs Annesley and Miss Jones, Elizabeth led the way into the house, where Mr and Mrs Nichols met them at the front door.
Papa had told her that all of the Longbourn servants were temporarily at Netherfield Park.
However, Mr and Mrs Hill remained at Longbourn to be Mamma’s and Papa’s eyes and ears during the construction while her parents were away.
Mrs Nichols showed Miss Elizabeth to her suite on the family floor while Mr Darcy was told that the rooms he had used on the guest floor when last at the estate were ready for him and his valet.
After they washed and changed, Elizabeth and Darcy joined their sisters in the west drawing room.
It was smaller than the principal drawing room, but they were not such a large group.
They fielded many questions from the two youngest Bennets about Bennet House and what had occurred in London.
Elizabeth informed them of Jane and Jamey selecting a date for their wedding, and that set all three younger ladies to speculating about the wedding and the gown Jane would wear.
That also led to Kitty and Lydia asking if they had any new dresses or gowns.
“Yes. Mamma purchased two for each of you. You will receive them when we arrive at Rosings Park,” Elizabeth informed her youngest sisters. “Before you get too excited, do not forget they are styled for girls not out yet.”
“Lizzy, we know that,” Lydia replied pertly. “After what almost happened to me, it is much better I am back in.” She looked at her friend. “Anna and I were worked on by the same scoundrel. I feel no sympathy for him or the way he ended up. It was his due!”
“I shared what almost happened to me with Kitty and Lydia when I was told what that dastard attempted with Lydia,” Anna stated unrepentantly when she saw her brother’s questioning look. “I agree with my friends, the world is better without him in it.”
From what Darcy could tell, Anna had been imbued with some of the Bennet sisters’ confidence. That was something which would only stand her in good stead in years to come.
Elizabeth was exceedingly pleased to note the changes in Kitty and Lydia.
It seemed that with Miss Jones’s lessons and with encouragement from Anna and Mrs Annesley, her sisters were learning how to act with propriety.
An even bigger surprise came after dinner when Anna exhibited without any hesitation.
The next morning the Darcy coach and the Bennet carriage departed for Kent and Rosings Park.