Chapter 25
Chapter 25
“I, too, am sorry, my dear, for causing you distress by leaving for Rosings as I did,” Darcy murmured, pulling her closer and dropping a kiss on her forehead.
There was a heartbeat of silence before he burst out, his voice hoarse with emotion. “But, Elizabeth, I could not have stayed back then if I wanted to. Your accusations nearly ripped my heart into two.” He swallowed as he remembered that dreadful day, and he rubbed his face against hers in agitation.
“One moment you were all soft and responsive in my arms, filling my heart with hope for our future felicity, and the next you were pushing me away, hurling accusations. All my hopes turned into ashes, and I was left grappling with the idea that my wife either feared me or was repulsed by me. I-I had to go away to think and decide what to do next. My days at Rosings were some of the bleakest I have spent since my father died.”
Elizabeth made an inarticulate sound. She rose on her toes and drew his face to hers, intent on erasing every remnant of his pain and despair. If it was up to her, he would never doubt her feelings for him.
It was only when Darcy placed her gently on the bed and straightened that she realised that, at some point during their heated exchange of caresses and endearments, he had picked her up and brought her to his bed chamber.
“If it is any consolation, then my days at Pemberley were no better. Your absence was like a nagging ache that throbbed in my heart constantly,” she confessed once he sat down beside her.
“Elizabeth…” He drew her into his arms and tucked her head under his chin while she continued to unburden herself. She found that she could not stop now that she had started.
“I felt guilty for hurting you and kept worrying that I had pushed you away for good. Despite all of Georgie’s efforts to keep me company, I felt lonely. I missed you and craved your presence so much that just to feel near you, I…” Elizabeth paused abruptly, and Darcy murmured in her ear, “Slept in my bed?”
She leaned away from him, shocked. “How do you know this? I thought I had meticulously removed all evidence of my clandestine presence in your chamber,” she protested with a brief smile.
“Ah, but you could not remove your heady fragrance from my pillow,” he whispered, nuzzling the sensitive spot below her left ear, and the very same scent assailed his senses.
“Oh! I completely forgot about that.” She shook her head ruefully.
“I hope you are not regretting that you did forget.”
Elizabeth could feel his lips stretching in a smile against her skin, and the delightful sensations he was eliciting nearly caused her to miss his next words.
“Finding that fragrance on my pillow was a salve to my bruised heart. It confirmed my newfound suspicions that you did, in fact, care for me. I figured that all I needed to do was bide my time until I could determine the reason you pushed me away in the park that day.”
“But… how could you think that I cared for you after the abominable manner in which I behaved with you?”
He smilingly tucked a curl behind her ear before responding. “Because you told me so yourself, Elizabeth. I was standing at the parlour door when Sarah informed you of my arrival. Let us just say that the manner in which you buried your face in the shawl I had presented you made me think a little.”
His smile widened as he observed Elizabeth’s blushing face. “And then, of course, there was that fragrance on my pillow,” he added huskily.
“Oh. Is that why you were so amiable when you came inside the parlour?” she enquired curiously.
“Uh…uh. I had already arrived at Pemberley with a conciliatory heart. When I returned to Darcy House from Rosings, every nook and cranny of the house reminded me of you. The only thing I did there was to think about you and… us. And my reflections made me realise that you have been a loyal friend to me and have cared deeply for those dear to me. It left me with a desperate desire to find the reason for your rebuff.”
He gave her a lopsided smile before adding, “I am sure you will understand how delighted I was then to learn about your feelings.”
“Hmm.” Elizabeth picked up one of his hands and pressed it to her lips. “Honestly, Fitzwilliam, you have been much kinder to me than I deserved.”
“I do not think so,” Darcy said firmly as he pulled her into his arms once again and bent his head to kiss the tiny mole on her shoulder.
“Nonetheless, it happens to be true, but I am not complaining. Your generosity in forgiving me without even a word of apology gave me courage to… start my campaign to make you fall as much in love with me as I was with you.”
“Campaign!” Darcy chuckled as his lips trailed over her collarbone. “Have you been talking to Richard?” he mumbled against her skin, making Elizabeth shiver.
“No, my Aunt Gardiner,” she managed to say in a reasonably composed voice.
Darcy reluctantly lifted his head from her throat, and his golden eyes fizzed at her for a moment. “I thought we had talked enough for the day, but I find I have to ask what campaign General Gardiner strategised?” he enquired at last.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes at the absurd words. “In theory, it was simple enough; I was to apologise to you, then regain your friendship, and finally make you fall in love with me,” she replied with a wry look at him.
“What a very simple plan.” Heroically, Darcy managed to keep from smiling; unfortunately, his eyes did not comply with him. “Though quite superfluous, really, because I was already in love with you and have been from the very beginning,” he could not help but add.
Elizabeth’s lips twitched as she noticed his dancing eyes; however, she ignored his interjection and continued doggedly, “Unfortunately, it all went haywire because of my… my affliction.”
“Hmm.”
“However, I did take one modest step in my campaign when I baked that cake for you. Aunt Gardiner had suggested that men are more amenable when their palates are satisfied. I felt it was a sign when I found that recipe in your mother’s letter.”
Darcy remembered Elizabeth in his study with all the sugar on her lips, and his blood heated. “Your aunt was very correct; that cake certainly made me more… amenable,” he said throatily as the banked fire in his eyes blazed suddenly. With a husky sound, he captured her mouth with his, finally allowing free rein to his pent-up longings of the last so many months.
∞∞∞
Elizabeth looked around when her husband rose and began discarding his coat. It was a little disconcerting to find herself supine on the bed without any recollection of getting there. Her whirling senses made it difficult to tell how much time had elapsed since he had so suddenly unleashed that delightful assault on them.
“I believe your… affliction has ended?” he asked while casting his coat on the armrest of a nearby chair.
She nodded silently, even as she admired his lean, handsome form. Suddenly, she noticed a wistful expression cross over his face as he glanced around the chamber.
“What is it, Fitzwilliam? Why do you look like that?”
“Look like what?” Darcy quirked an eyebrow at her.
“I am not certain, but… you looked like someone just filched the last piece of the gold cake from your plate.”
Darcy let out a surprised crack of laughter at that. “It is nothing, Elizabeth; your imagination is running away with you.” Although he denied that anything was wrong, Elizabeth was intrigued to notice that he suddenly appeared a little disconcerted.
“Oh, no, something definitely is the matter, and I hope you realise how disheartening it is for a young woman when her husband looks like this just after…”
“Oh, good God, Elizabeth, stop!” Darcy grumbled at her playacting. “Oh, very well. It is just that, um….” He paused to clear his throat.
“That?” Elizabeth cocked her head to one side and waited expectantly.
“That from the very beginning, whenever I have imagined about… about making love to you, somehow, it has always been in my bed, in my bedchamber… and I.…” He broke off with a nonchalant shrug, although his colour remained high.
“Oh!” Elizabeth was flustered at the revelation but recovered her poise soon enough. “Well, let us go home then,” she said, getting up from the bed swiftly.
“Now?” Darcy asked, surprised. “But it will take more than an hour to reach Pemberley.”
“Well, we have waited four months for… for each other; an hour here or there will hardly make a difference.”
“Ha! You do not know the half of it,” Darcy muttered. Then, observing her smiling face, he added, “But you are right; let us go home. You have led me a dance for six months; it hardly matters if you do so for an hour more.”
“It was a mutual dance, Fitzwilliam,” Elizabeth said wryly before she started setting her appearance right.
After a while, a thought struck her, and she asked doubtfully, “Can we just get up and leave without bidding farewell to our hosts? What will Lord and Lady Ashleigh think?”
“Please do not worry about that; I will send a nice letter of apology to Lord Ashleigh,” Darcy replied while repairing the damage to his cravat to the best of his ability.
“And what about our things?”
“I am certain that on our way to the carriage, we will meet a footman somewhere. We will leave a message for Banes with him. Now quit tarrying, Elizabeth; we should leave now if we want to reach Pemberley while it is still light,” Darcy said, ushering her towards the door. Now that he had decided, he was eager to leave Ashleigh Manor.
He looked down at her as he opened the door to their chamber and noticed that, despite her attempts to tame her hair, a rebellious curl still remained loose. He tucked it behind her ear before bending to kiss her cheek. At the same time, Elizabeth looked up to smile her gratitude to him, and the kiss landed on her lips.
Darcy had waited nearly four months to openly express his affection for his wife, and from now onwards, he was not going to miss any opportunity to do so.
The oblivious couple jumped apart guiltily only when someone noisily cleared his throat in the corridor, and found Colonel Fitzwilliam regarding them in amusement.
“I finally begin to understand your earlier urgency to locate Mrs Darcy,” the colonel said conversationally.
Apart from giving his cousin an irritated glance, Darcy ignored the teasing. “I am glad we found you, Richard; we are leaving for Pemberley now and…”
“Leaving two days early! Whatever is the matter, Darce?”
For a moment, a flummoxed Darcy could only stare mutely at his cousin. He could hardly reveal the true reason. Fortunately for him, his anxious gaze then landed on the door to the opposite chamber, through which Lady Stalbridge had disappeared only a short time ago.
“I am finding it difficult to tolerate some of our fellow guests here,” he replied obliquely, glancing significantly towards Mrs Worthing’s chamber.
The colonel’s eyebrow rose in response to the intelligence, but all he said was, “I suppose I can understand your reasons.”
“So, we will take your leave now, but before that, I would like to task you with the responsibility of apprising Georgie and Banes about our changed plans and asking Banes to follow us tomorrow morning.”
“Do not worry; I will pass on the message to all concerned.”
Elizabeth and Darcy soon parted ways with Colonel Fitzwilliam. As he stood watching them walk towards the staircase, Richard saw his cousin’s arm slip around his wife’s shoulders, and his lips twitched. It was quite amusing to see the ever correct and reticent Darcy so openly displaying his affection for his wife, especially since such behaviour was hardly common among the gentlemen of the ton. Yes, it was amusing, but strangely satisfying to see his cousin’s obvious happiness.
It will be a pleasure to tell Mother she is unnecessarily worrying about Darcy and his marriage. He chuckled and turned to resume his walk to his own chamber.
∞∞∞
Rather than sending a message to have their carriage sent to the house, they thought it would be quicker to walk down to the stables. Darcy was content to walk beside her in silence, but Elizabeth could not wait to discover something that had been nagging at her since her husband confessed about it.
“Fitzwilliam?”
“Yes?”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course, anything!”
“You said that from the very beginning, whenever you… you imagined us together, it was in your bedchamber.”
“Hmm.” Darcy gave her a sideways glance before nodding.
“When was the first time that you imagined… that?”
Darcy’s eyebrow rose at the query, and he flushed slightly. However, he did not respond in any other manner.
Elizabeth nudged him gently with her elbow and murmured, “You did say anything.”
Darcy smiled ruefully. “So I did. Very well, my oh so curious Elizabeth, I first imagined us together while you stayed in Netherfield caring for Jane.”
“What?” Elizabeth’s eyes rounded, and then she gave him a sly smile. “Ah. So, the most correct and gentlemanly Mr Darcy is not so very gentlemanly after all!”
“Oh, no, madam, I was every inch the gentleman until I met you, and your arts and allurements corrupted me.”
Elizabeth came to a halt and looked at him indignantly. “That is not fair at all, Mr Darcy. Please retract your words, sir.”
“I most certainly will not, madam, because they happen to be true.” He turned towards her and looked at her stormy face with a mischievous smile. “Before our marriage, I would have rather chewed nails than contemplate kissing my wife in someone else’s garden, but now, I very much want to do so… at this very moment. And all because you look much too enticing for your own good!”
“How absurd, Fitzwilliam. A proper gentleman like you would hardly…”
Elizabeth’s challenging words were cut short when he swooped down and covered her mouth with his. The kiss was brief but was searing in its intensity. And as Elizabeth stood there, blinking up at him, she felt as if his lips had branded her. She remembered to glance around her only after a bemused moment of silence and was relieved to see that no one was around who could have seen them.
Darcy grinned at her furtive look, then gently brushed his knuckles on her heated cheek. “Shall we go?” he asked huskily. At her nod, he extended his arm to her once more.
∞∞∞
Elizabeth was mistaken in thinking that they had not been noticed by anyone. In reality, they had been observed by a multitude of eyes—some envious, some jealous, and some indulgent—from various rooms inside Ashleigh Manor. One pair of those eyes belonged to Lady Matlock.
Darcy’s aunt was standing in front of one of the windows of her bedchamber, admiring the gardens, when Darcy and Elizabeth walked into her view. Even as she watched interestedly, the couple came to a halt not far from her window, and then, after a moment of what appeared to be an engrossing conversation, Darcy swooped down to kiss his wife passionately.
“Well!” Lady Matlock fanned herself vigorously before stepping away from the window.
“Well… well… well!” she muttered as she smiled to herself before entering the sitting area attached to her chamber. On one of the tables was a bottle of her husband’s finest port. She picked up the bottle and poured herself a generous measure. She sat down in a nearby chair and contemplated the tumbler for a moment. Then, with a smile, she picked it up and raised a toast.
“Cheers, my dear Anne. I hope you saw what happened in the garden from where you are. I think you will agree with me that we can now quit worrying about our dear boy and Elizabeth. Finally, they have each other to do so. They also have Georgie well in hand. So, I suppose we have an easy year or two ahead of us, until Fitzwilliam and Elizabeth present us with a grandchild or two,” she said, before taking a dainty sip from her glass.