Chapter 29
On the seventh day of their marriage, Elizabeth and Darcy finally became husband and wife. The following morning found them sleeping soundly, tightly embraced, in Elizabeth’s bed. Unlike other mornings, neither Janey nor the valet were summoned until later.
To anyone who observed them, the change brought about by their completed union was visible.
The colonel, who came to visit again, and even Georgiana complimented Elizabeth on looking more beautiful than ever, without either of them suspecting the reason for the change, or for Elizabeth’s violent blushing.
The fulfilment of their love — finally admitted and acknowledged — brought them a new level of happiness, with no further restraint between them.
In the days that followed, their usual activities were interrupted by little interludes when they would disappear from company to enjoy their privacy. Also, they retired earlier in the evenings and woke later in the mornings than in their first week of marriage.
To Darcy, Elizabeth’s passionate nature — which he had recognised before — was slowly revealed day by day.
He had once believed that he loved her ardently, but the time he spent with her showed him what ardently truly meant.
He learnt it at the same time as her because, despite his experience as a man of the world, his feelings for Elizabeth, the sensations he experienced with her, he had never felt before.
Every day that passed made Darcy wonder about the joy he had felt since Elizabeth had been by his side.
His concern about her feelings for him was all gone, as she told him, showed him, and proved to him how she felt every day.
Besides their shared passion — about which he teased her saying she had learnt as quickly and diligently as she had learnt everything else — there were countless small things that he would not have even noticed before.
He became accustomed to viewing his life as ‘before’ and ‘after’.
Meeting Elizabeth and falling in love with her had been a turning point in his life.
Her company brought him immense pleasure, whether it was in the intimacy of their apartment, in the library, or in the music room while Georgiana was playing.
He just loved to be with her. He could see Georgiana’s amazement at the way he spoke to Elizabeth, at their teasing, and his dear sister needed a little while to become accustomed to his new manners.
The growing friendship between Elizabeth and Georgiana had extinguished one of his other concerns.
His wife’s friendly nature and kind heart had encouraged Georgiana to open up to her, and only a few days after she met Elizabeth, she confirmed to him that she had already begun to feel like she had a sister.
In one of their moments of privacy, Darcy told Elizabeth about the failed elopement.
“You should have hunted them down that moment, just as the admiral said,” she uttered at the end of the story, with a deep resentment that amused Darcy and made him place a kiss on her eyes, which were narrowed in anger.
He knew she spoke in earnest, but since the scoundrel had left England, Darcy could treat his distressing memory with more leisure than he used to.
It was the last time Wickham was mentioned between them.
About the other culpable officers, Darcy had not much news. His rage and desire for satisfaction and revenge slowly dissipated, as he considered the bliss that the miscreants’ indiscretions had brought to him.
The news from Hertfordshire was all good and came regularly.
Bingley’s engagement to Jane, described in his letters, which were written carelessly as usual, both amused Darcy and touched his heart.
He had no doubt that his friend would find his own felicity in his marriage and was overjoyed for him, just as Elizabeth was for her sister.
Darcy teased his wife, saying that the Bingleys would be the second happiest couple in the world but a significant way behind the Darcys.
To such a statement, Elizabeth agreed with sparkling eyes.
Bingley decided to remain at Netherfield for Christmas and only returned to town in January.
Their wedding was set for the beginning of March, and all the Darcys were eager to attend.
Bingley’s sisters did not return to keep him company at Netherfield.
They also avoided Darcy, and they only met once, by chance, when he was enjoying a walk with Elizabeth.
Their fierce glares and cold politeness in greeting them was more laughable than upsetting.
With Hurst, Darcy had a most cordial encounter at his club on the only day when he joined his uncle and cousins there, leaving Elizabeth at home with Georgiana.
After only one hour, he missed his wife so much that even he laughed at himself and hurried back to her.
Before Christmas, Lady Matlock invited them to dinner, and he accepted, knowing it was another small step towards Elizabeth being recognised as part of the family.
He also knew that the admiral must have had something to do with it, and he was grateful to him once again.
But the admiral did not attend dinner and did not visit Darcy again.
During his brief call, he had looked like a changed man, as though bringing back the past had altered his present.
The friendship that Darcy had always cherished and the affection he had felt from the admiral all his life were now changed and missed.
His growing love for Elizabeth helped Darcy to better understand the anguish the admiral had suffered for twenty years, loving a woman who was married to his best friend, and the excruciating pain he must have felt when he read her diary and found he had her love too, only to lose it for good days after.
He also looked at his father’s life with less severity.
The first person who had offered him a different perspective was Elizabeth, on their journey to London, when she spoke of her parents’ marriage.
Most of the marriages he knew were either like his parents’ or the Bennets’ or somewhere in between.
Being blessed with a different sort of union made him more generous with his compassion and more restrained in his judgments.
The dinner at the Matlocks’ was as he expected.
The colonel was there, amiable and supportive.
His uncle and aunt, as well as the viscount and his wife, displayed rather cold politeness; they asked Elizabeth questions, which she answered lightly, with wit and confidence.
There were small details that could have offended Elizabeth, and Darcy immediately noticed, but Elizabeth wisely chose to disregard them, just as she elegantly overlooked any reference to Lady Catherine.
“As forgiving and kind as Elizabeth might be, I shall never forget Lady Catherine’s behaviour.
I have only one aunt now, and nothing will change that.
I shall not permit anyone to offend my wife, and if I must choose between my wife and anyone else, my decision is clear and easy,” Darcy declared with repressed anger when his uncle tried to justify Lady Catherine’s behaviour.
His outburst almost ruined the dinner, but Elizabeth and the colonel masterfully changed the subject and turned the conversation down a less dangerous path.
When they returned home, in the comfort of their apartment, Elizabeth told him that she understood the Matlocks’ reluctance to accept a stranger who had suddenly become Mrs Darcy and taken a place so desired by many.
Christmas was a rather small, intimate affair.
It was only Darcy and his wife, Georgiana, and Mrs Annesley.
The Gardiners were still at Longbourn, the colonel had other plans, and the admiral refused the invitation, mentioning he already had a fixed engagement — one which Darcy believed he could guess.
Elizabeth wore the ruby and gold set and shone in it, but to him, her eyes were brighter than the jewels, and he knew — she told him as much — that it was her happiness that made them sparkle.
On Boxing Day, together with Elizabeth, he offered the usual gifts to his servants, and afterwards, they took a long walk through the frozen and empty Hyde Park.
They returned home cold, dirty, their shoes and clothes wet, and warmed themselves in each other’s arms until they fell asleep in delightful tiredness.
Three days after Christmas, Darcy received an invitation for him and Elizabeth to the admiral’s house. He knew the reason, and emotions overwhelmed him, as he confessed to Elizabeth. He needed time to prepare for a meeting that would be the clear and undeniable proof of a hurtful past.
He had never asked the admiral what the woman looked like, but the moment he saw her, he needed all his strength and self-control not to run away. The beautiful young woman was the living image of George Darcy, only her skin was slightly darker and her features softer.
The introduction was painful and uncomfortable for Darcy, as well as for Laura.
The two mostly stared at each other, while the conversation was carried by Elizabeth and the admiral.
They discussed Hertfordshire, Bingley and Jane, Elizabeth’s time in London, and some upcoming performances which Elizabeth would like to attend.
As much as Elizabeth tried, Darcy could not open himself enough to become pleasant company. He observed Laura carefully, scrutinised her gestures and her features, and had to admit — from the little she spoke — that her good education and elegant manners were obvious.
The visit ended rather quickly but in a better spirit than it had started.
“Mrs Darcy, whenever you have a little bit of spare time, we would be happy to see you again,” the admiral said.
“So would I, sir,” Elizabeth assured him. “There are few people in the world whose company I enjoy as much and to whom I am so grateful, sir. Mrs Moore, it was a pleasure to meet you, and I hope to see you again soon.”