Chapter 12 #3
“My physician informed me that I can ride again despite the injury to my leg. I shall need help mounting but I should like to try. When Mrs. Darcy’s riding clothes are ready, she will need a gentle mare to help her get reacquainted with being in the saddle.”
“I know just the one for the mistress,” said the stable master. “Sir, I have an idea.”
“What is it?”
“If the mounting block is not high enough for you, at other stables I have seen a mounting platform. You could have it built as high as you like, and the steps help you mount more easily.”
“That sounds like just what I need. There are so many carpenters working in the house every day, they could build one in no time. Thank you for your suggestion, Benjamin.”
“Happy to help, sir. Which horse would you like today?”
“Let me try Apollo. He will give me an easy ride.”
“Pray fetch my horse too,” said Richard.
“Yes, Colonel. Right away.”
He stood on the mounting block, placed his left foot in the stirrup, and one of the grooms helped Darcy swing his right leg over the saddle. He and Richard were soon on their way, slowly walking their horses near the house.
When they returned, a groom helped Darcy dismount, and they were met by Elizabeth’s welcoming smile.
“How do you feel?”
“I am a bit sore from not having ridden for so long, but it was good to be atop a horse. I have missed it.”
“I must say that watching you do something you truly love brought tears to my eyes. I cannot wait to join you.”
Being able to ride again was a pleasure he had never dreamt he could resume. He grinned to himself. He had been doing a great deal of that lately.
* * *
Later that day, Darcy and Richard were inspecting the construction in the manor house. “I hope it will not be long until I bring my lovely wife and Georgie home.”
“So, you are truly in love. I would never have guessed it at your wedding.”
“I stupidly tried to fight what was in my heart and acted the fool that day. And now. . .now I never could have conceived I could be this fulfilled. Elizabeth is my heart and soul—joyful and generous and everything I need to feel whole and loved. Richard, she is worth her weight in gold. Her liveliness makes me, your formerly grim cousin, laugh! She inspires me and has brought out the compassion I once had in me. A year ago, my heart was filled with nothing but anger and guilt; I never thought I could be at peace again, yet now I know I can never live without her. I used to think of my life as before or after the fire. Now I look at my life as before and after I married Elizabeth. My life is more perfect than I ever imagined—every morning I wake up with my wife in my arms and I smile. I pray you find such love one day.”
“You have always kept your emotions to yourself—you have never opened up to me the way you are now. I can see how besotted you are, and Elizabeth glows with her love for you. Watching the changes your wife has wrought in you, I look forward to finding my own heart and soul one day.”
“Sometimes in the middle of an ordinary life, love can lead to a marvellous future.”
* * *
While Fitzwilliam and Richard were touring the manor house, Elizabeth was thrilled to receive a letter from the Gardiners.
They wrote that they looked forward to their trip north and would be in Derbyshire for at least a month.
She could scarcely contain her excitement when she read they were to arrive in Lambton in two weeks and they were bringing Jane.
Jane! How she longed to see her dearest sister!
She hoped Jane would accept their invitation to live nearby until the time came when she could move into the manor house.
Her wonderful husband would understand her desire to spend as much time as possible with her family when they arrived.
As soon as the gentlemen entered the drawing room, she rushed towards her husband and grasped Fitzwilliam’s hands. “Jane and the Gardiners are coming to see us, and they will arrive in two weeks!”
“That is great news. I assume they will stay at the Rose and Crown. The next time they visit, they will stay with us in the manor house.” He turned to Richard. “This is the first opportunity I shall have to meet anyone in my wife’s family, and I am looking forward to the event.”
“Thankfully, you will be meeting my best relations. The Gardiners are everything fine and sophisticated. They have always welcomed me and Jane to their London home and seen to our comfort. My sister is the loveliest person I know. She never judges people and is also quite beautiful.”
“In that case, I may plan to visit you sooner than I thought.” They laughed at Richard’s remark.
“Seriously, since one Bennet sister has bewitched my cousin, do you think your sister might be interested in a battle worn soldier like me? I told you my parents have begged me to leave the army and settle down. With the property I inherited and the money from selling my commission, I believe I could make a go of running an estate.”
“Nothing is impossible.” Elizabeth was lost in her thoughts of further connecting the Bennets with the Fitzwilliam family through Richard and Jane.
He was a steady, trustworthy man, perhaps not as handsome as Fitzwilliam, but a good man, nonetheless.
Jane deserved to recover from her sadness, and mayhap Richard was the right man for her.
* * *
The cousins were alone while Richard awaited his horse, and he asked Darcy what he knew of his new sister.
“Elizabeth and Jane have always been the best of friends and constant companions. My wife describes her as the most agreeable of her sisters. She hastily married before their father died, and Elizabeth is not certain she married for love, but rather in order to help her family. Unfortunately, her husband died in an accident, and she then lost the baby she was carrying. I have no idea what her mood will be when she arrives—it seems Jane rarely reveals her true heart to anyone. She has told my wife she is miserable remaining in Hertfordshire, so we are going to offer her a place at Stockton Hall. If she accepts, she can stay there when she needs her privacy or can easily visit us here.”
“I look forward to making her acquaintance.” When the colonel was ready to depart, the men hugged, and Darcy watched as Richard rode away.
* * *
Darcy joined his wife in the drawing room and sat beside her. “Do you think Jane might like to meet Richard?”
“Now who is playing the matchmaker?”
“Who knows what draws one person to another?”
“If Jane remains in Derbyshire, as I hope she will, I am certain they will eventually meet. The rest is up to them,” she said. “I plan to visit the dressmaker tomorrow and have a riding habit made. If I enjoy the exercise, I can order more.”
“That sounds like a splendid idea. I am looking forward to showing you more of our estate. There are several impressive vistas that are perfect locations for a picnic.”
“When will your mounting platform be finished?”
“The head carpenter said it will be ready in three days.”
“How perfect! You will be able to ride whenever you wish.”
He placed his hand over hers. “All I wish for is you by my side.”
“Then, dear man, you need never be concerned about me being anywhere but right here.”
* * *
Darcy came across the housekeeper and greeted her, and she returned his words with a polite smile.
“Mrs. Reynolds, do you know where Mrs. Darcy is?”
“I saw her go into the library and when I looked in on her, she was sleeping. I did not wish to wake her.”
“Sleeping? Is she unwell? Never mind it. I shall go and see her.”
When he reached the library, he stopped in the doorway to watch his wife. He was overcome by the sight of her seated before the fire in that particular room—a vision he had often dreamt of. Her eyes must have become tired and she had fallen asleep.
He knelt beside the chair and kissed her hair. “Love, are you well?”
She smiled when she opened her eyes and focussed upon him. “I must have just fallen asleep.”
“Are you certain you do not need to see Mr. Barton?”
“Quite sure. There is no need to be concerned.”
A peculiar insight overcame him. The last time anyone had told him those words, his father had been hiding his fatal illness.
If she was truly ill, he could not go on living.
He would say no more but would ask Mrs. Reynolds and Perkins to keep a close eye on her and let him know if she appeared unwell.
* * *
The following week, Elizabeth’s new riding clothes arrived, and that afternoon Darcy suggested she begin riding a short distance every day until she was comfortable in the saddle.
From then on, weather permitting, they rode together almost every afternoon until they were able to ride a fair distance from the house.
One day he said, “I would like you to see one of my favourite views in the park.”
They rode for half an hour until they reached their destination. She gazed all around her until she turned back to him. “It is magnificent, my love! Did you plan our arrival so the sun reflecting on the waterfall looks like a rainbow?”
“Well, I do know the best prospects on the estate,” Darcy said in a teasing manner. “When I can dismount on my own, we shall have a lovely picnic here and stay all day.”
“How delightful that sounds! Perhaps one of the grooms can accompany us, help you dismount, then return to help you mount whenever we ask him to.”
“I am so happy I married a clever woman.” How was it possible that he loved her more every day?