Chapter 5
The coming-out ball would be held at Matlock House and hosted jointly by the Fitzwilliam and Bennet families.
On the evening of the sixteenth of January, the day of Lizzy’s curtsey, a formal dinner would be held at Bennet House for the family and some close friends.
Elaine and Tammy, who were organising the ball jointly, had a cadre of assistants in the form of Jane, Lady Rose, Marie, both Annes, Maddie Gardiner, Hattie Phillips, Sarah de Melville, and Gillian Ashby.
Before they had left Town for the Christmastide break, all the plans for Elizabeth’s coming-out ball were in place.
As they were tangentially related through Jane and Perry, and because of the Queen’s interest in Elizabeth over the years, an invitation to Elizabeth’s ball was sent to Buckingham House.
The Queen’s lady in waiting, the Duchess of Kent, had written a reply to the Dowager Countess Matlock that Prince Edward and Princess Elizabeth would represent the royal family.
Once the Prince’s attendance was known, a small adjustment had to be made to the first set.
The Prince would lead Elizabeth onto the floor and dance the first few movements with her, then Andrew would take over and dance the rest of the first half of the set as originally planned.
Between making sure that everything was in order with the upcoming activities surrounding Elizabeth’s launch into society and the plans for the Derbyshire Committee, there was not as much time for relaxation as there otherwise would have been for the ladies of the families.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
On Sunday morning, the day before Christmas Eve, Elizabeth decided that she needed a long ramble before breaking her fast regardless of the cold.
She dressed warmly, donning her sable lined gloves and heavy fur-lined coat.
Although she would have preferred to sleep in front of the warm fire, Aggie dutifully followed her mistress, as did Biggs and Johns a little way behind them.
Elizabeth remembered the vista that she had viewed from Oakham Mount and decided to head in that direction.
As she walked with Aggie barking at the stray rabbit, she decried the fact that she had not had as much time with Will as she would have liked due to all that had needed to be accomplished of late.
Her mother and Mother Bennet had involved her in planning her ball as they had not wanted to make unilateral decisions, only to discover too late that they were not reflective of Elizabeth’s preferences.
As she came out of the trees at the path leading up the side of the hill that the locals named a ‘Mount,’ she was jolted out of her current mood and became excited when she spied Zeus on a long tether as he breakfasted on the available grass and shrubs.
When she crested the top, Aggie gave a warning growl, then recognised that it was Will and walked up to him, tail wagging and nudging his hand in a bid to get him to scratch behind her ears.
As her two footmen had seen their mistress’s cousin’s horse, they had relaxed, knowing it was a family member and not a stranger on the crest.
“Good morning, Will,” Elizabeth greeted her cousin as she approached the spot where he was sitting under the oak tree on the big rock. Aggie had already flopped down and was on her way to slumber.
“Morning, Lizzy,” he returned, thanking his lucky stars that his gamble on her taking a ramble before church paid off.
“It is a cold morning, is it not?” she asked as she pulled her winter coat around her shoulders.
“Here, take my jacket; you are cold!” He stood, quickly unbuttoning the top button.
She placed her hand on his arm, so he went still.
It was not just her touch that stayed his actions; it was her proximity.
He could smell her lavender scent even through the layers that she had on.
She was so close all he had to do was bend his head, and their lips would meet.
He dropped his head slightly, and her eyes fluttered closed in anticipation.
He would perhaps have broken a promise were it not for the loud cough behind them.
Will took a step back and glanced up at Biggs, finding that the normally stoic man had a ghost of a smile on his lips.
“I am warm now, Will,” Elizabeth whispered up to him as a warm feeling started in her face and was felt throughout her body.
How she wished that Will had kissed her despite the warning, for she had dreamed many a night about his kissing her and more, and this anticipation was driving her to distraction.
She regularly dreamed of the man that she loved.
She was not alone in her dreams; the biggest difference was that Will’s dreams were far more vivid.
He had been innocent until he had visited a courtesan that catered to the extraordinarily rich while he was on his grand tour.
He had only visited her four times, but it was enough to gain an adequate education in the arts of relations between a man and a woman.
“Please accept my deepest apology, Lizzy,” Will said, mortified thinking that his almost loss of regulation had upset the woman that he loved.
“You have nothing to apologise for,” she returned softly. “I desired the same.” Her admission led to her breath feathering in longing.
“You know how I feel about you, do you not, Lizzy?” Will asked as he looked deep into her shining eyes.
“Although we are not allowed to say the words yet, I believe that we are in complete accord on this subject,” Elizabeth replied as she held his gaze.
Neither spoke for some minutes, just basking in the comfort of their knowledge until they were reminded of the cold as the wind whipped up and over the crest of Oakham Mount, causing Elizabeth’s tresses to be pulled out from under the collar of her coat.
“May I escort you back to Longbourn?” Will asked, to which Elizabeth nodded her agreement.
At the base of the hill, with Aggie bounding ahead of them, the couple walked back to Longbourn, trailed by Biggs and Johns, the latter leading Zeus. Words were not required for the looks they gave one another spoke volumes.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
A few days before the Twelfth Night Ball, Will requested the supper and final sets from Elizabeth, which she granted without delay. The only thing that she could repine was that he was only allowed to request two dances.
Much time had been spent on the last-minute details of her coming out ball, which was fast approaching. Elizabeth’s mother and Mother Bennet had at last reviewed every detail and finally pronounced the ball planned to their satisfaction.
On the first day of January 1799, Will had the supreme pleasure of consigning the calendar for 1798 to the fire in his chambers.
With the first of January already crossed out, there was not much more than a fortnight before he would be dancing with Elizabeth at her ball. His wait was practically over.
He had berated himself for forgetting himself that morning on Oakham Mount even though Elizabeth had acquitted him of any fault in the matter.
If Biggs had not cleared his throat, he knew that he would have kissed her, and then the question was, once he did, would he have been able to stop at one?
There was no question of him going too far before they were married, as he knew they would be one day.
He had discussed his almost kiss with his mother and asked if he needed to tell Andrew.
His mother had opined that as nothing actually happened, he should leave well enough alone.
If he had kissed her, then, of course, he would have to tell his cousin.
She told him flagellating himself for an action not taken would do nothing, as she was sure he would remember that moment even though there was no understanding between them and would not allow himself to be tempted to give in to his base urges with Elizabeth again.
The day before the Twelfth Night Ball, Elizabeth and Will sat in Longbourn’s library reading quietly.
Mrs Annesley was sitting across from them, concentrating on her knitting.
“Lizzy,” Will called her name softly to gain her attention.
“I cannot wait for the time to pass before I am allowed to declare myself for you.” He said as he leaned in toward her to make sure that her companion could not hear his words.
“I too wish it will pass swiftly, Will,” Elizabeth responded shyly. “Talking about which, had Andrew given you his choice for when I am allowed to receive any declaration?”
“Yes, he had. He wants you to have the season. He will allow declarations to be made one week before we leave London to avoid the oppressive summer heat,” he informed her.
“Before your season starts, I also want to own up to there being a time when I was jealous of the attention that Wes was paying you. As much as I would have hated it if he were the one you found your happiness with, I would have withdrawn from the field. Your happiness is the most important thing to me, Lizzy.”
“Wes returned to the attention of a family friend once he saw that I did not reciprocate any tender regard, and I believe it was because he noticed that my eyes always sought you out whenever we were in the same room. And,” she added, “I did notice the looks that you gave Wes when he paid me attention.” She stifled a giggle with her hand as she remembered some of those very deep scowls from that time.
“It pleases me that I was able to provide you such entertainment,” he quipped. “I could not help but stare at you, Lizzy. I hope that you know that you are the handsomest lady of my acquaintance, inside and out.”
“You are the most handsome man that I know, Will; also one of the best men that I know,” Elizabeth blushed as she made the admission. “Do you know that at first, I thought you were looking at me with disapproval or to find fault before I understood the truth?”