Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
ELIZABETH
Bubbling over with excitement and happiness, Elizabeth allowed her husband to hand her into the new carriage, and she turned with a smile as he climbed in behind her.
Instead of sitting properly, on facing benches, William had joined her on the same bench. He pulled down the shades on both windows, then cupped her face and kissed her very well indeed.
While her breathing returned to its usual pace, Elizabeth panted, “William, I know you and trust you, but please tell me what you know about the thing Mr Collins claimed. Just so that I am armed against him, or really anyone who asks about it.”
William leant his forehead against hers. “When I contemplated our marriage day, of all the things I wished to talk about, it would not have occurred to me to have to speak of my overbearing aunt.”
Elizabeth made a contrite grimace, but he waved his hand and said, “It is certainly not your fault. Let me just tell you all that I know as swiftly as possible.” He explained his aunt’s claims and the evidence that pointed to his own parents wishing him to choose with affection and a true partnership in mind, and he mentioned that not even Anne wished for the alliance.
It was Lady Catherine alone who spoke of and wished for a marriage uniting Anne and Darcy, Rosings and Pemberley.
Elizabeth nodded but said, “I gather that your aunt, Lady Catherine, must be my cousin’s ’noble patroness.’ What a coincidence!”
“It really is.” William shook his head, clearly still in some shock over the matter.
“But even if she chose Mr Collins to be the priest of her parish, it is surprising that she would have said anything of this imaginary betrothal to him, let alone claim that it was real.”
“It is awful to contemplate how far such a story might have carried. It matters little to my reputation, since my entire family stands against the story, and also because I am now married. But I fear it could harm Anne’s reputation, when she herself has done everything she could to stand against her mother’s fantasy. ”
“Poor Anne. But truly, we will not give into this nonsense and allow it to ruin our wedding day, will we? We shall do something to help Anne—but not today.”
“No, not today,” he murmured.
They had reached Longbourn, and Elizabeth wished they had not had to deal with such nonsense during their moments of privacy.
But…. She leant forward and whispered to her husband, “We will have a much longer carriage ride soon enough. And we will enjoy many, many hours away from the noise of the world, Husband Mine.”
“Mmm, Alexander Pope,” William said, naming the poet she had briefly quoted. “I would add, Wife Mine, from another Pope poem:
Oh happy state! When souls each other draw
When love is liberty, and nature, law!”
They smiled at one another, and then he alighted and helped her follow, escorting her into the house.
People rushed to greet them, and William pressed ladies’ hands and shook men’s hands as Elizabeth hugged her friends and both his and her relations.
Then Elizabeth led William in a search for the Gardiners, who seemed to be attempting to remain close to Mrs Bennet, presumably in an effort to rein her in when necessary. They both thanked all three.
Elizabeth whispered to William, “Ask him.” She then held her mother’s right hand and her aunt’s left as she launched into more detailed praises for the flowers and cakes and…
. And it looked like William had succeeded with his assigned task, which was to extend an open-ended invitation to any of their houses to the entire Gardiner clan.
She saw William and Uncle Edward shake hands, smiling and clapping each other on the back, so she quickly wound up the praise of the delicious smelling Scotch Collops.
“Please eat some food,” her mother urged William. “We worked hard to make all this for you and your friends and relations.”
“I will try to eat, although I am feeling a bit too excited to be hungry,” he answered her. “But I do very much appreciate all of the hard work on all of these delicious dishes. And your cake is simply magnificent.”
Elizabeth was pleased to see him kiss her mother on the cheek. Mrs Bennet seemed more than a bit pleased, as well.
After Elizabeth and William moved away to some empty seats in a shady spot under a large elm, Jane and Lord Wessex arrived with plates in each of their four hands.
“Apparently there is a requirement to eat before your carriage driver will take you to Town, Darcy,” Wessex said, thrusting one of the plates he held into William’s hands.
“You, as well,” Jane said to Elizabeth, offering her a plate.
“Oh, dear,” Elizabeth teased, “I had not understood, William, that once we are wed we are no longer capable of plating our own meals. What shall we do when we are alone?”
“Ha!” Lord Wessex laughed. “You will never be alone, Mrs Darcy. Do you have any idea how many servants you will have at your beck and call?”
“Hundreds,” William whispered in her ear, harkening back to an earlier conversation in which he had shocked her sensibilities. Back then she had not really understood the disparity between his and the average “rich” man’s fortune.
To be honest, she still did not really understand. The numbers had smeared somehow into meaningless nonsense that had no referent in the real world.
Elizabeth laughed nervously. “Quite a few, I gather,” she said.
“Do not worry,” William said. "You are more than capable of managing all that we have.”
“Eat,” Jane reminded them. They all four took seats, and Elizabeth dispatched a helping of Scotch Collops, plus thin slices of ham, a wedge of Cheshire cheese, stewed pears, a warm roll, and a large serving of wedding cake.
“I am quite full,” she declared. “Has William eaten enough to be allowed in the marriage carriage?” Startled by the rhyme she had not meant to make, Elizabeth laughed along with Jane, Lord Wessex, and William.
“That depends on which William you mean,” Lord Wessex said. “If you mean Mr William Collins, oh, yes, he has eaten enough to warrant an even longer voyage than merely to Town. Would you like to annul your marriage to Darcy, here, and take the parson on?”
Elizabeth’s eyes had followed the viscount’s hand, which had waved towards one of the heavily laden tables.
She looked with embarrassment mingled with pride—her mother had certainly shown her little corner of the world how hospitable she could be, but she had also revealed an unfortunate tendency towards excess.
Finally, Elizabeth saw what Lord Wessex must have been indicating: her cousin, Mr Collins, stood in a corner next to Mr Hurst, and each of the two held a very heavily laden plate with one hand while devoting the other hand to scooping up food into their mouths as quickly as they could.
“Oh, my!” Elizabeth said. She felt ready to faint. “What are they doing? They certainly cannot be competing to eat more quickly than…. Oh, William!”
William had been listening to Jane, but when he heard his name, he looked up, followed her eyes, and his own widened in shock. “Well, that is…that is not done!” is all he could say.
“Perhaps someone should tell them that,” Jane suggested.
Everyone looked at her, and she seemed to panic. “Of course, not me!” Jane said. “I am perfectly dreadful at confrontation.”
Elizabeth looked for Mrs Hurst, hoping she could put a stop to the ill-mannered contest. However, Mrs Hurst was speaking most animatedly with the Countess.
Not wishing to draw Aunt Helen’s attention to Mr Hurst's poor behaviour, Elizabeth decided to handle the problem herself; however, as she made a move to do so, William rose from his seat, shaking his head.
She knew he was uncomfortable—he did not like being in large groups, and the wedding breakfast felt perfectly enormous to her; and he disliked speaking to strangers, and Mr Collins assuredly was one.
She ended up walking with William to Mr Collins and Mr Hurst, and she was about to introduce her cousin to her husband when she heard the latter speak: “Hurst, would you be so good as to introduce me to your dinner companion?”
Both gentleman stopped eating, thank goodness. “Of coursh!” Mr Hurst replied, and Elizabeth realised that he had overindulged in spirits.
Mr Hurst stumbled only a little during the introduction.
Mr Collins said, “Oh, my dear sir, I am enormously thrilled to meet you, Mr Darcy. My noble benefactress, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, has said many, many complimentary things about you.”
William narrowed his eyes and said, “And because of those praises, you decided to attempt to ruin my wedding?”
“No! I—I apologise, sir, but I do believe that you have done your aunt wrong, very wrong indeed. And your cousin, as well. Why, the day I left she was reminding her daughter that you would be arriving any day to propose—”
“Mr Collins, I will tell you something exactly one time; then I expect you to drop this subject forever.”
“Yes, sir?”
“My parents urged me multiple times that I should seek love and a true partner. They never said a syllable about marrying my cousin. Obviously, the fact that it was only after they were gone that Lady Catherine started speaking of a cradle betrothal proves that such a marriage is the wish of Lady Catherine alone. The instant I heard her demand, I informed her I would never submit to marrying Anne—that I was my own master, the head of my family—that I would choose my own wife. But I also did the caring thing and spoke to Anne, in private, and she said the same thing: she did not wish to marry me, or anyone. That is the final blow to Lady Catherine’s machinations. ”
Mr Collins just gaped at William. When he finally began speaking again, he merely gibbered the words “my apologies” over and over.
Elizabeth saw the opportunity to swoop in and claim her groom, and she said to him, “I believe we should be saying our goodbyes to all of the guests. And then start off to London.”
He said nothing, but there was no mistaking the fiery look in his eyes, the dimple-displaying smile on his lips, even the new bounce of his feet as the two began to make the rounds of saying farewell to all those who had come.