Chapter 17
The Fitzwilliams arrived at the Roaring Lion Inn just before sunset.
The sky was a pallet of oranges, reds, and golds as the sun dipped below the horizon on their wedding day.
Richard had reserved the largest suite of rooms that the landlord had.
The couple were pleased with what they found.
Their personal servants were waiting for them, so in short order, they had baths drawn for their master and mistress.
Without having to say the words, both agreed that they would eat in their suite and had no interest utilising the private parlour offered for their use. Richard, who normally wolfed down any food in his general vicinity, only ate half of his food while his wife pecked at hers.
“Are you well, Loretta?” Richard asked out of concern.
“I find I am a little too warm, husband,” Loretta replied with a saucy look.
“Let me lower the fire,” Richard stood as he had not caught her intent yet.
“Richard,” she called softly.
He turned around and froze at the spectacular sight before him. His wife was naked with her robe and nightgown strewn on the floor.
“I see I misunderstood when you said you were warm,” Richard said as he approached his wife, licking his lips as he prepared to kiss her in full appreciation of her gift.
“You are far too overdressed for the occasion, Richard; I want to see all of you, too,” Loretta stated breathily. It was but an instant before Richard’s nightshirt was flung away—where, he cared not.
It was Loretta’s turn to allow her eyes to roam over her husband’s form. He had broad shoulders, a well-defined barrel chest, and muscular belly. His chest sported a covering of almost blond hair that tapered downward.
They came together, and Richard pulled her into him. Richard picked Loretta up as if she weighed naught, carrying her into the bed chamber, and lowered her on top of himself on the bed.
Though he was a man of the world, she was far more forward with him than he had dared hope, and a woman who could take what she needed from him was a possibility he had not dared hope for until they were years in.
Just before Loretta was about to take her release, Richard lowered her to her back. He walked to the end of the bed and then lay down between her legs. “Do you trust me, dearest?” he asked, his eyes twinkling in the candlelight.
“With all that I am,” she replied, her breath heavy with anticipation.
Grateful she was no wilting flower, he devoured her, taking her past her release into an endless ecstasy that had her so blissful she could not but smile dreamily up at him when he settled over her.
“Love me with all of you, Richard.” She asked softly, barely registering the pain when he slid in as pleasure returned in delicious waves that made her whole body quiver.
“I believe we will have a marriage most would not dare dream of.” He chuckled.
“Only if you stop being so slow to come to the point.” She smiled up at him in a playful challenge few would appreciate more than a soldier who worried he would be too much for his gentle wife.
“My apologies.” He kissed her soundly then proceeded to make love to his wife until the sunrise proved time had not stopped.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Two days after the wedding, the Darcys arrived at Pemberley.
For Will and Elizabeth, it was a most welcome sight having been by then almost two months away from Derbyshire.
The couple would stay at Pemberley overnight and then depart for Rivington in the morning.
It was close enough that they could have easily made the estate before sundown, but they had been invited to spend the night with their family.
After dinner, all six Darcys and William Bennet were sitting in the music room where Georgiana had just completed a duet with her mother.
“How are you finding your duties, William?” Elizabeth asked her older brother.
“I am finding that I enjoy them very well,” William replied.
“There is much to learn, and Mr Perkins is a good teacher. Thankfully, he is the type of clergyman that I want to be, like Mr Pierce at Longbourn is. He does not see his livings as a means of income, but rather a calling, and the welfare of every single parishioner, regardless of rank, is important to him.”
“He is a good man, William,” George Darcy agreed, “and he finds that you are, too. He is to retire at the end of November and has heartily endorsed my choice to appoint you to his livings.”
“Are you sure, Uncle George, for I am yet young?” William reminded him.
“I have had your measure for a long time, William, including long conversations with Mr Pierce, who told me how you would take the shirt off your back to help someone if you thought it was warranted. It is not age but temperament that I look for in my appointments, and you have exactly what I am looking for to guide the parishioners of the three parishes I can grant a living for.”
“Look at how well you performed our wedding ceremony barely a month after you had taken orders, William. With your legacy, you could be an indolent gentleman and live well, but you choose to follow the call of God and His Son Jesus,” Elizabeth said with pride in her brother.
“In that case, I thank you, Uncle George. I will not let you down.” He nodded to the room at large.
No one noted that Georgiana seemed to look pleased when it was confirmed that William Bennet would remain in the area, except her mother, who could not but smile at the possibility of such a perfect match for her daughter.
Thomas Bennet had indeed been a patriarch of good fortune for their family.
Perhaps a first edition from the top shelves would be an appropriate gift for him.
“Lizzy and Will, may I come with you to Rivington on the morrow?” Georgiana asked, pleading sweetly with wide, innocent eyes.
“Me, too,” Alex added.
“Before your brother or sister answer, let me stop you two there,” their father stated firmly.
“It will be the first day that Lizzy and Will are at their estate as a married couple.” He gave his two younger children a quelling look before they spoke again.
“When they are settled in, and they invite you, then you may go with pleasure.”
“Father George is correct. In a…,” Elizabeth looked to her husband.
“Week,” Will suggested the timelines they had already discussed before inviting them.
“Yes, you are all welcome in a week. I am issuing my first official invitation as Mistress of Rivington,” Elizabeth effused. “I will send an invitation to Mama, Marie, and Andrew as well. It is a pity that Jane and Perry will be at Longbourn until the little season.”
“If my parents will cede this Christmastide to us, why do we not have all of the family at Rivington for the holiday?” Will suggested, looking at his parents to gauge their reaction.
“I see no reason why you and Lizzy should not host your first Christmastide,” Lady Anne said after her husband nodded. “Both your mother and I will be available to assist you as needed, Lizzy.”
“Marie will also want to help. She has hosted the holiday more than once since she became the mistress of Snowhaven,” Elizabeth added as she started making plans in her mind. “Now that Retta is my sister, Aunt Sarah and Uncle Cyril will have to be included at all family events.”
“I, for one, am happy that Wes is your brother and no more than that!” Will teased his wife.
“He never stood a chance, Will. I had lost my heart to an infuriating man, and in the end, none but him would do,” Elizabeth said with an arched eyebrow at her grinning husband.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Will and Elizabeth now had a suite that would always be ready for them at Pemberley. It was a few doors down from the master suite, which both prayed would not be theirs for many years. “Are you ready to be loved, my Lizzy?” Will asked as he climbed into the bed next to his wife.
“Nothing would please me more, but I am indisposed my love,” Elizabeth told her husband delicately.
“Well then, I see we will have to be a bit more inventive,” Will said with a glint in his eye.
“There is nothing to stop me pleasuring you,” Elizabeth said as she slid her hand up his thigh.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
The Darcys arrived at Rivington before midday.
The butler, housekeeper, and servants were arrayed to meet them, and they accepted congratulations on their nuptials from all assembled.
“My husband and I are happy to return home. We will rely on each of you to make Rivington the best that it can be. I hope to learn all your names in a short time, and though we demand respect, we believe in giving respect in return. Thank you for your warm welcome and well wishes.”
The butler and housekeeper dismissed the servants, who all left the entrance hall feeling that they would enjoy working for the young master and mistress.
“Mrs Ralston, please inform Cook that we will have dinner at half after six in the breakfast parlour. When it is just the two of us, there is no need to bother with the formal dining room,” Elizabeth instructed before she and her husband ascended the stairs.
They noted that the few changes they had requested in their sitting room had been done to precision, as was the mistress’s chambers.
The master’s bed would be the one that they would use, and the only time they planned to use Elizabeth’s bed was when she was in her final confinement, if they were so blessed.
Thankfully, there was no pressure on them to produce an heir.
If they had all daughters, or worse yet no children, Alex’s, or, failing that, Georgiana’s son, would inherit Pemberley after Will.
“Welcome home, Mrs Darcy,” Will said as he started to dance an impromptu waltz with his wife.
Even though London society rejected the dance as scandalous, as Will had promised, he had taught Elizabeth the dance on the continent, and they joined it as many times as they could before returning to England.
“When do you think this dance will be accepted in London?” Elizabeth asked as they twirled around the chamber.
“We do have a remarkably close connection to one of Almack’s patronesses, Lizzy. Mayhap we can work on Aunt Sarah. I believe that until the dance starts being acceptable at private balls, it will not be allowed in wider society,” Will opined.
“We may have to start holding balls in London,” Elizabeth teased.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
End of September 1809
In the end, Richard and Loretta decided to forego time at Seaview Cottage. Both Darcy's families and William Bennet were visiting Snowhaven when Richard’s barouche came to a halt in the drive.
Richard told Smythe not to announce him and his wife, so the family was caught by complete surprise when the happy couple strode into the drawing room. “Richard and Loretta, welcome,” Marie was the first to react. “We were not aware that you would be here today; you are most welcome as always.”
“I decided I was tired of being alone with Richard, so we returned home,” Loretta teased her mockingly aggrieved husband, who then leaned for her to kiss his cheek in recompense and grinned at the winning of it.
“It has been much warmer than normal, so we decided not to travel for four days in this heat,” Richard clarified.
“That was a wise decision,” George Darcy agreed, “I do not remember heat like this so late in the summer for many a year.”
“How was your time at Lakeview House?” Elizabeth enquired.
“We, er, did not see as much of the area as we could have.” Richard owned, pleased his wife smiled at him instead of shrinking away in embarrassment.
“When are you two planning to head to Brookfield?” Andrew asked.
“When do you depart for Rivington, Lizzy?” Loretta inquired.
“We are planning to leave Monday,” Will replied.
Richard looked at Loretta, and she nodded to his unspoken question. “Then we will leave on Monday too, if that is convenient, Marie?”
“Of course it is,” Marie replied, “and besides, you are always welcome in this house with or without notice. Glad you agree.” She patted her husband’s knee absently.
Elaine Fitzwilliam sat watching the happy scene in front of her. It was times like this that she especially felt the loss of her beloved Reggie, though she was sure that he was smiling down on them from heaven.
She wondered how different their lives would have been had her boys not been traveling through Sherwood Forest at exactly the right time, for Lizzy had brought so much light and joy into their lives since that very day.
She had survived multiple attempts to harm her and gone from strength to strength, and now she was married to her soulmate.
Yes, Elaine had lost her Reggie and would miss him until she was called home by God to be with her love again, but there was so much good associated with Lizzy though there had been suffering and heartache.
They had been shells of their former selves after the accident which had taken their Tiffany from them, and they had all started to recover the day Lizzy had been gifted to their family.
Elaine could not imagine what their lives would have been like without Lizzy having been someone’s discarded daughter.