Chapter 14
As Darcy wished, the wedding preparations were discussed within the Matlock family, and it was decided that the wedding breakfast would be held at his uncle’s house.
Lady Catherine, outraged by such an arrangement, contrived difficulties at Rosings and departed, sufficiently clever to accept these conditions for the present, in order to impose others as soon as the marriage was concluded.
Darcy was an advantage she had not dared to hope for only a few months earlier.
He had signed the marriage settlement, which made it impossible for him to retract his word.
Almost impossible—she was obliged to admit.
Men had been known to change their minds at the last moment.
In such a case, many legal difficulties might arise; only marriage was irrevocable—not an engagement.
She resolved to say nothing, to let them marry, and then, a month after their arrival at Pemberley, just as winter approached, to establish herself in the country and remain there until spring.
Her daughter did not know how to manage a household.
She was a useless creature, fit only for one purpose—to marry Darcy and secure the fortune within the family—her family, and not that of Sir Lewis de Bourgh.
Even if the fortune passed legally into Darcy’s possession, she was now convinced that she would remain mistress of Rosings for the rest of her life.
∞∞∞
Lady Catherine’s departure for Rosings was a happy event at Matlock House. Both Lady Eleanor and Lady Wharton felt ill at ease in her presence, while they were sincerely fond of Anne, who could be a pleasant young lady when not under her mother’s influence.
“I must confess that I had some doubts at first,” Lady Eleanor said to her daughter-in-law one morning.
“I understand you perfectly. But it seems that Cousin Darcy was right. In time, she will become a proper wife for him.”
Lady Eleanor agreed, looking at her with affection, though not without some concern.
Fortunately, she was expecting a child, and much of her present melancholy would soon disappear.
The viscount was not the husband she would have chosen.
He retained all the same faults he had before the marriage: he was fond of women and of gaming—not the qualities of an ideal husband.
Unfortunately, even his father had little influence over him.
Many men continued to lead a separate life after marriage; still, most did so with discretion and some regard for their family.
Richard and Darcy were very different from the viscount.
And, in the end, the little lady from Rosings was fortunate.
She could only hope that Darcy would prove equally so.
There were still two weeks before the wedding, and the only anxiety that remained concerned Georgiana. Almost every morning she joined the ladies in their preparations. Still, she seemed unable to enter fully into the agreeable atmosphere of Matlock House.
One morning, Lady Eleanor invited her niece into her private parlour for a more intimate conversation.
“I wished to speak to you about this marriage, my dear.”
Georgiana looked at her, uncertain how to reply.
“You appear unhappy.”
Georgiana merely shook her head. She is still a child, Lady Eleanor thought, she must learn to grow.
“Yes, you are—everyone perceives it. You must understand that your brother’s marriage was inevitable. He has reached the age when men marry.”
“I know that, Aunt.”
“Then is it…about the lady he has chosen?”
Georgiana said nothing, but lowered her eyes beneath Lady Eleanor’s steady gaze.
“Look at me, Georgiana. You are no longer a child—you might marry at any time—and you must learn to meet the world as it is. You may disapprove of your brother’s choice and thus create a distance between yourself and them, or you may accept Anne and their union and be happy with them.
To like or dislike a person is, in the end, a matter of choice.
Do not allow yourself to be separated from them. ”
That evening, after dinner, Lady Eleanor spoke only a few words to Darcy. They both looked towards Georgiana, who was conversing with Lady Wharton, and he immediately understood.
On their way home, he stopped the carriage near a small park and asked Georgiana to walk with him along a quiet path. For some time, they walked in silence, watching the passing carriages and the people, before he spoke.
“You are my sister. That will never change. I love you more than anyone in this world, and I wish you to be close both to my future wife and to me.”
“I understand,” she said softly.
“You do not appear to understand. You behave as though I were to leave your life entirely.”
“It is not that,” she replied at last.
“But what, then?”
“I have always hoped that when you married, I should gain a sister.”
“Anne is your cousin.”
“No, you do not understand. I imagined…a wife who was not already part of our family. I thought of you with a lady…like…Miss Bennet. When you were at the Bingleys’ dinner, I saw you together, and she seemed suited to you—someone who might become the mistress of Pemberley…
Forgive me,” she added quickly, as Darcy remained silent. “I speak foolishly.”
“Indeed,” he said.
With unexpected severity, he directed her back to the carriage, and they returned home without further conversation.
This is the last time I shall think of her, he told himself, as Elizabeth rose in his mind and in his heart, as if called forth by Georgiana’s words.
He was angry with his sister, but in truth, he knew she was not to blame.
He was angry with the path he had chosen.
Once more—only once—will I allow you, Elizabeth Bennet, into my thoughts, he said silently… to himself, and to her.
That night, he dreamed—not of the marriage before him, but of another. And of that enchanting sorceress in his arms.
The following morning, Georgiana waited for her brother at breakfast far longer than was her usual habit.
When he appeared, there was a heaviness in his expression that warned her this was not a moment for lightness.
She could not tell whether it was their conversation that had troubled him, or her own manner, which might have seemed unkind towards Anne.
She felt she must apologise.
“I am sorry if I caused you pain last night.”
There was something unfamiliar in her brother’s expression. He had been grave before, even angry at times, but never absent from her. Now he seemed almost a stranger, and she could not understand it. Yet, as he listened, he forced himself to smile.
“You did not, my dear. But we must conclude our conversation. Anne is to be my wife, and I expect you to be on the best of terms with her. I am convinced you will become friends; but I rely upon you to assist her in becoming accustomed to our way of life.”
He spoke with warmth, though it seemed at variance with the sadness in his eyes, and Georgiana felt at once that he was right.
“Of course, I shall do all that is necessary to become her friend.”
“Thank you. Lady Eleanor tells me that you wish to spend the winter in town.”
“Yes,” Georgiana said, with sudden eagerness, before moderating her tone, “—if you approve.”
“My dear, you are now grown. You may remain in London with our family.”
In some measure, this was a relief to Darcy.
He feared that it might take Georgiana a long time to reconcile herself to his altered circumstances, and a Season in London, under his aunt’s care, might do much to ease the transition.
He also preferred to be alone with Anne and to guide her, step by step, into their new life together. ..and into marriage.