Chapter 11
Making Plans
The time between the engagement and wedding alternately flew by and dragged.
When Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth were together, time flew by.
However, the time they were apart seemingly lasted forever.
Unfortunately, it seemed they were apart during this time, and those times lasted much longer than either desired.
The necessary business of planning a wedding, even a small one, in such a short time kept the couple apart frequently.
When they were apart, it seemed to them those times lasted much longer than either could tolerate and made them wish the time away.
While Elizabeth spent many mornings shopping for her trousseau with her aunt and future mother-in-law, Fitzwilliam spent his time arranging for the marriage.
One of the necessary tasks had been to arrange for Elizabeth’s marriage settlement.
Elizabeth’s dowry was to remain in her control, and for the moment, it was invested in the five per cents.
The income from this would be hers to spend as she saw fit, and she would receive a minimum of two hundred fifty pounds each quarter as her pin money.
Of course, Darcy would supplement this if she needed more, but Elizabeth had already claimed the amount to be far too much since, at Longbourn, she had only received fifty pounds a year for her allowance.
The settlement outlined other details, including financial arrangements for any future children.
Elizabeth would retain the right to live in their estate during her lifetime, and their eldest son would inherit upon Fitzwilliam’s death, although it would remain in trust with Elizabeth until the child had reached his majority.
Elizabeth was present with her uncle when the settlement was reviewed, again demonstrating Fitzwilliam’s desire for the two to be partners in life.
Fitzwilliam also met with Lord Matlock several mornings to discuss the legacy left to the younger man.
Richard also joined several of these discussions since Lord Matlock had agreed his son deserved to know.
Lord Matlock had also persuaded the rector at St. James’s Church in Mayfair to allow the couple to marry there after his wife and sister had suggested it.
While it had not been what either Fitzwilliam or Elizabeth would have preferred, the news of Fitzwilliam’s engagement had spread quickly throughout the ton after Lady Thornhill had heard of it.
This also delayed the wedding date by an entire week, as arrangements had to be made for a wedding breakfast to be hosted at Darcy House and to wait for the church to be available.
It had taken Lord Matlock promising a substantial donation to the church to persuade the rector to allow the wedding since, technically, neither participant was a resident of the parish.
Despite all of these things, the couple were able to at least spend their evenings together in company with each other, most often at the Gardiners’ home.
Still, they did have dinner at Darcy House three times during that period and once at Matlock House, where Elizabeth was introduced to others in Fitzwilliam’s extended family.
Elizabeth had met Darcy’s family, other than his aunt and cousin in Kent, and was well pleased with them.
The earl had been standoffish, but he had gradually warmed to Elizabeth, and Lady Matlock was kind.
The viscount, the earl’s eldest son, was something of a rake according to her intended but had been pleasant enough, and his younger brother, a major in the horse guards, was amusing.
There was one Darcy relative, a great uncle, a retired judge who was just a touch eccentric now, and he had been at one of the dinners at Darcy House Elizabeth had attended during her engagement period.
He was a kind and charming elderly man who had kept the party nearly in stitches with his comments during the meal.
Upon their first introduction, the Matlocks had been ambivalent toward the Gardiners, although the earl had been intrigued by Fitzwilliam’s account of his investments with the man.
The funds Darcy had invested with Gardiner had grown by half, earning him an additional five thousand pounds over his initial investment of ten thousand pounds.
However, Lord and Lady Matlock had liked Elizabeth well enough and, after learning her dowry was at least twenty thousand pounds, felt she was a good match for their nephew.
Darcy was pleased they liked her; however, he would have preferred they liked her before they learned the amount of her dowry.
It mattered little to Darcy since the estate he would inherit and its income would enable them to live well.
George Darcy seemed to like Elizabeth well enough when he met her during the second dinner at Darcy House, and his behaviour had frequently bordered on the flirtatious with her.
This had caused his brother to bristle repeatedly during the meal, and it took some effort on Elizabeth’s behalf to calm his temper.
She had not responded to the flirtations and instead had fixed Mr George Darcy with such a stern look he eventually quit these efforts.
For some inexplicable reason, this had caused him to smile, his first genuine smile directed toward his brother’s fiance.
This resulted in a somewhat awkward conversation between the brothers.
Fitzwilliam had escorted his intended and her relatives to their carriage and had sought out his brother when he returned to the house.
George Darcy was sitting in his study, and George spoke before Fitzwilliam could speak.
“I believe you have found an extraordinary lady, Fitz.”
Fitzwilliam hesitated to speak for a second, his anger not quite evaporating but at least tightly controlled.
Seeing his brother’s face, George said again.
“Do not think me arrogant, but I have seen women turn their interest from you onto me when they meet me. Bingley’s sister would not hesitate to respond to my overtures were I to appear interested in her and would throw you over in a heartbeat.
Your Miss Bennet did not do that, and I believe I actually offended her this evening with my flirtatiousness.
I did see your obvious anger pointed in my direction, and while I may not be an ideal brother in many ways, I did want to be assured your Miss Bennet had the right motive for pursuing you. ”
For a moment, Fitzwilliam was taken aback by this knowledge.
“While I appreciate you looking out for me, Brother, I could have told you the result without you making Elizabeth uncomfortable. Elizabeth is certainly not interested in me for social standing or anything of the sort. Although we have not known each other long, I know she truly loves me for the man I am and not for what I or my family might own. The fact that I am heir presumptive to Pemberley does not figure in at all to her desire to marry me.”
“Perhaps you would have been correct, but at least you can be assured of her faithfulness to you,” George retorted.
“That was never a question, George,” Fitzwilliam insisted.
“I know the reason Elizabeth is marrying me, and it is for genuine love. Do you know she almost refused me when I spoke of marriage before she was ready? A woman seeking a fortune or connections would have leapt at the prospect regardless of how quickly it happened. A woman of Caroline Bingley’s ilk would not hesitate to accept you upon a first meeting, as she would see marriage as nothing more than a business venture.
I know you have spoken to our uncle about brokering a match for you, as Mother has persuaded you it is time to marry, but that was never what I wanted.
I am thrilled to have the chance to marry for love. ”
“I would wager you learning you would inherit an estate upon marriage was not a deterrent to your decision,” George countered.
Fitzwilliam shook his head before replying.
“I was unaware of the legacy until I decided to marry Elizabeth. Perhaps we would not have wed quite so quickly, but we would have wed. When I spoke to Mother about Elizabeth, she helped me realise I had already made up my mind and told me as a way to encourage me, I think.”
George had merely shaken his head at his brother, and the conversation had ended there.
The night before the wedding was the first time Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth had been afforded any time alone, and they took advantage of it.
He had arrived at the Gardiner home a little early for dinner and had been permitted to speak with Elizabeth privately while the Gardiners tucked their children in.
Fitzwilliam quickly embraced Elizabeth and engaged in several passionate kisses, but he ended these before things went too far.
He held her as they spoke about a few matters related to the wedding.
“I believe I told you, dearest, that Mother offered us the cottage on Lake Windermere for our wedding trip,” he began.
At Elizabeth’s nod, he continued. “My uncle also suggested we stop by both of the estates mentioned in my grandfather’s legacy on our way so we might decide which one we prefer.
He has made arrangements so we might stay at each before deciding which we prefer.
We can then decide what changes need to be made to the estate we choose, and those can at least begin to be made while we are away.
Hopefully, when we return from our wedding trip, the house will be ready for us to settle there, and we can spend the rest of the year learning to manage the estate. ”
“Will we stop at Pemberley as well? I know how much you love your family’s estate, and now that your brother is in town, I wondered if we could visit there briefly?” Elizabeth asked.