Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Waking up, Elizabeth felt somewhat refreshed.
She found she was looking forward to returning to Pemberley as the pace of London was exhausting, and she needed daily naps to make it through the day.
So many events started so late in the evening and extended far into the night, and Elizabeth had always struggled to sleep past eight in the morning.
Pregnancy had made that easier, but she hated lying in bed all day, especially as her husband was bound to be awake early since he was also accustomed to rising with the sun.
Sighing, she began to stir and then felt the presence of another in bed. “Good afternoon, dearest,” she heard the deep voice of her husband say. “How are you feeling?”
“I am better, William; I am sorry for worrying you,” she replied, remembering their conversation.
“I understood the reason, dearest. Despite what Jane has done, she is your sister, and for twenty years, she was the closest person to you. Since she has turned against you, and even though none of us truly understand why, you still love her and want what is best for her. Even from a distance, you do not want to see her hurting,” he reassured her.
“No, I hate to hear that she is so sick with her pregnancy. While I cannot imagine ever spending time with Jane again, I would like to think that she will eventually recognise the truth. I cannot understand why she chooses to believe these lies about me. Unlike my parents, I cannot just pretend she is dead and never think of or speak to her ever again,” Elizabeth said.
“Oh, Will,” she sobbed, turning and crying into his chest. “Oh, pregnancy makes me cry so often, and I hate feeling so … carried away by my emotions. Everything makes me cry, and I feel so awkward, and I just want to sleep all the time. I do not know if I can stay here in London another two months if we keep to the same schedule we are doing now.”
“Hush, dear,” William soothed as he rubbed his hands along her back.
“It will be well. With Mary here, we will stay home for the rest of the week and skip whatever events we had intended to attend. We can rest and then spend another week or two with Mary before we depart for Pemberley sooner than we had planned. What will we do about Mary?”
“I think we should take her to Pemberley with us,” she suggested. “We can send Mr. Bennet a letter telling him of our intentions and wait to see if he reacts. Like with her coming to London, I doubt he will be bothered to say much if anything.”
After a few moments of lying like this, she seemed to realise his state of undress. “William,” she said, her voice lifted in question, “how much time do we have until we must dress for dinner?”
“Time enough, dearest,” he whispered as his hands changed their path and began to caress her body in a way meant to do anything but soothe.
They joined their sisters in the drawing room shortly before dinner was announced. The girls had quickly formed a friendship since Mary had arrived earlier that day and were chatting amiably when Elizabeth and William joined them.
“Where did you two disappear to this afternoon?” Mary asked when they entered.
“I had something to discuss with my wife when I returned this afternoon, and then Elizabeth needed a nap,” William explained.
“Elizabeth needed a nap! Are you well, Lizzy?” Mary asked quickly, suddenly worried about her sister since taking a nap was unusual.
“Yes, Mary. Umm, we have a bit of news that we have not shared with you yet,” Elizabeth said, pausing for a moment as she considered what exactly to say. “I am with child; we believe the baby will come in June.”
Mary stood and rushed to Elizabeth, throwing her arms around her in a hug. “Oh, Lizzy, congratulations. I am so happy for you. Do our aunt and uncle know?”
“They do, but likely did not want to mention it in front of Kitty just yet,” Elizabeth said.
“Mrs. Gardiner spoke to her as she spoke to you, and Kitty spouted all the nonsense that Mrs. Bennet and Lydia have been saying all these months. I cannot take anyone else disparaging my husband or me right now. If Kitty cannot be persuaded of the truth, she will likely stay at Gracechurch Street for some time, if not return to Longbourn eventually.”
Dinner was announced just then, and the four entered the dining room and sat at a small table. Elizabeth sat to the right of her husband, and both girls sat to his left, with Georgiana directly beside him.
“Since Mary does not have clothes appropriate for evenings out in London, we will curtail our schedule until that is remedied. We were at the modiste this morning and will return on Saturday for a fitting. By then, hopefully, an evening dress or two will be ready for you to wear. If so, we will attend the theatre that night, but if not, we will wait until the following week to take you both out to events. We will make additional decisions about our schedule once Mary is properly outfitted,” Elizabeth explained to the two girls.
Turning to Georgiana, she continued: “Georgiana, you may still attend events with Aunt Rebecca if you are inclined, but we will remain at home for the rest of this week.”
After just a moment or two of thought, Georgiana decided to attend a concert tomorrow night with her aunt, but she would stay home from all others until Mary could join them.
The afternoon spent together had helped the girls become friends quickly, bonding over their music and a lifetime of isolation from others.
Georgiana had grown up surrounded by a much older brother and cousins and had not been successful in finding many friends due to her general shyness.
Likewise, Mary had been isolated at home, in part due to being the middle child in a family of five girls but also because she had so wanted to distinguish herself from her sisters that she had frequently pushed the others away.
Mary had consistently recognised in Elizabeth a strength she sought to emulate, even as she silently competed against this sister for notice within the family.
Despite this, both girls admired Elizabeth, although for different reasons, and that also formed a basis for this fast friendship.
Discussion around the dinner table was lively, which was unexpected given its occupants, as they discussed events they would be attending in the coming weeks, books, music, and even their shopping expedition from that morning. The only thing not discussed was the larger Bennet family.
Finally, Mary asked about Jane. “Will we see Jane while we are in town, Lizzy?” Mary asked.
“If you would like to see her, it could be arranged, but she will not be visiting here,” Elizabeth replied, her mouth in a tight line.
“She seemed to be behaving strangely, although I did not see her often once she married Mr. Bingley. However, I noticed a few times before the wedding that she was sick in the mornings, and she was always so tired,” Mary told them, causing William and Elizabeth to look sharply at each other.
Elizabeth gently tried to ask for more information. “When was this, Mary? Right before the wedding?”
“Yes, I think I noticed it started the week before I heard you were at Netherfield,” Mary replied. “Or perhaps the week you were there, I do not quite remember.”
Elizabeth nodded and thanked her sister, exchanging another look with her husband. Nothing was said then, but Elizabeth knew they would discuss it later.
After dinner, the two girls played several songs individually before playing two duets they had practised that afternoon.
Already, Georgiana had helped Mary to improve her playing, and Elizabeth was quick to praise both girls for their efforts, and William joined in.
This unaccustomed praise caused Mary to flush, but she genuinely enjoyed hearing such positive comments when her playing was typically either overlooked or resulted in censure.
She was pleased to receive both notice and praise for her music and began to hope she could stay with the Darcys forever.
Later that evening, when everyone had gone to bed, William and Elizabeth lay together in the afterglow of their love speaking of the evening. Of particular interest was the news about Jane’s illness before the wedding.
“Would Charles possibly have anticipated his vows with Jane, William?” Elizabeth asked. “You know him better than I.”
“While it is not impossible that he would have done so, it would be surprising, given his rather strict adherence to propriety,” William replied thoughtfully. “He can be impulsive, but I would be astonished if he had done so in this case.”
“Is it possible to broach such a topic with him?” she asked again.
“I would be hesitant to do so,” William answered her.
“If Bingley suspects anything, given all that is going on right now, he may be reluctant to say so to me, given the tension between yourself and Jane. How would one even raise the possibility with another man that his wife may have been enceinte before his marriage? It quite goes beyond the bounds of proper conversation, and given our history, if I were to bring it up, would Charles even listen to the suggestion? No, Elizabeth, I have no idea how even to begin such a topic with the man.”
The other possibility, the possibility that the baby was not Bingley’s but the product of a liaison between Jane and another, was not even mentioned between the couple. However, both had questions about the timing of things.
The following morning, Elizabeth and Mary went again to the shops, this time with Georgiana.
After visiting several shops, the ladies decided to stop in a tea shop for some refreshments.
As they enjoyed their tea and biscuits, Elizabeth was surprised when Louisa Hurst approached their table and spoke to the three of them.