Chapter 4
Chapter Four
William and Elizabeth took a circuitous route back to Pemberley.
William was more talkative than usual, sharing details about Pemberley and its tenants that Elizabeth appreciated his sharing.
He also pointed out some of the peaks that were visible from his estate and suggested outings to visit several of them.
They arrived at the house after the Gardiners had arrived and as their trunks were being unloaded.
William lifted Elizabeth down from the curricle, relishing the feel of her in his hands and his right to do so.
His hands lingered briefly around her waist as she looked up at him, colouring slightly.
Just as his head dipped toward her lips, they heard the sounds of carriages approaching at a distance.
They reluctantly stepped apart, and Mr. Darcy allowed the grooms to take charge of the curricle. “That looks like Georgiana’s carriage. They must have left early this morning,” he said. “Would you like to greet them with me or wait inside?”
“Do they know I am here?” she asked. “I am afraid Miss Bingley will not be happy to see me and will be even more aggravated when she learns I am staying here as a guest.”
“She will be even less happy when we tell her that we are engaged, my dear,” he said wryly.
“But I want you to meet Georgiana before we tell her, so I guess we should wait to announce it until later. Please wait here with me, though. You will be the Mistress of Pemberley soon enough. And if Miss Bingley cannot accept that, she can leave. I invited Bingley for a visit, and the rest of his family merely tagged along anyway, as usual.” He grimaced.
“I love you, William,” Elizabeth said, laughing.
He beamed at her. “I love you, too, Elizabeth, but what made you tell me just now?”
“I just wanted you to know it before we face what I hope will be our biggest supporters, along with some of our biggest detractors. No matter what Miss Bingley says, you will know I am marrying you not for your wealth but for love,” she explained.
“If there was anyone less motivated by wealth and social standing, I do not know them, dearest,” William laughed before bringing her hands to his lips for yet another kiss.
Straightening, he stated, “Miss Bingley certainly has no love for me, just for what I can offer her as the master of a great estate. She would change me and Pemberley just as quickly as she could manage it if she had ever gotten her claws into me. I am proud to have you by my side, my love.”
The carriages arrived, and the footmen opened the doors.
William quickly approached the first carriage and handed out a lovely young lady with blonde hair and blue eyes.
He gave her a quick hug before whispering a few words to her.
She gasped and looked up at Elizabeth, who smiled broadly at her, causing Georgiana to smile shyly back.
Just then, Mr. Bingley hopped down from the second carriage and approached his friend, clapping him on the shoulder.
“Darcy!” He cried in greeting. “Were you able to accomplish whatever took you away from us yesterday?” He lowered his voice.
“Caroline was rather upset that you had deserted us like that.”
“Yes, I was able to accomplish what I came to do and more besides,” Darcy replied with a grin.
“And I happened across Miss Elizabeth Bennet and her family who are touring the area and have convinced them to join our little house party.” He indicated Miss Elizabeth, who was waiting a few steps away.
As Charles approached her, Darcy briefly greeted his other guests in a tepid fashion.
“Miss Elizabeth Bennet!” Bingley cried as he approached the lady. “How fortunate that you are here at Pemberley.” He paused and said hesitantly. “How is your family?”
“It is good to see you as well, Mr. Bingley. My family is very well,” she replied.
“Miss Bennet,” Darcy interjected, “may I present my sister, Miss Georgiana Darcy. Georgiana, Miss Elizabeth Bennet.”
“It is lovely to meet you,” Georgiana said shyly, her eyes on her feet. She glanced up. “I am pleased you will join us at Pemberley for a brief visit.”
“I am pleased to be here, and I am looking forward to getting to know you better, Miss Darcy,” Elizabeth said kindly.
“Come into the house,” Darcy said to the group at large.
“Bingley, you have the same room as always. Mr. and Mrs. Hurst, Miss Bingley, allow my housekeeper to escort you to your rooms. Miss Bennet, your aunt and uncle are in the parlour. I will escort you to them. Everyone, we will have refreshments served in an hour on the terrace.”
As everyone moved toward the house, Darcy lingered behind with Elizabeth, offering his arm to escort her inside.
“Mr. Darcy,” Miss Bingley said as she shoved Elizabeth out of the way to take the arm he was holding out. “I am so pleased to be back at Pemberley. I always feel so at home here.”
“Miss Bingley,” Darcy said, grimacing at Elizabeth over the other lady’s head. “I must escort Miss Elizabeth to the parlour where her aunt and uncle are waiting. If you would please follow Mrs. Reynolds to your room so you can refresh yourself from your trip.”
“Oh, Miss Eliza, I did not see you there,” Miss Bingley said snidely. “Whatever are you doing at Pemberley?”
“I was invited, Miss Bingley,” Elizabeth said, amused. “My aunt grew up in Lambton, and they invited me to tour Derbyshire with them. When we came across Mr. Darcy yesterday afternoon, he invited us to join your house party.”
“Which aunt and uncle is this?” Miss Bingley asked. “The ones in trade or the solicitor from Meryton?” Her voice left little doubt of what she thought of Miss Elizabeth’s connections or her being there at Pemberley.
“Miss Bingley!” Mr. Darcy interjected. “You will not criticise my invited guests. Suffice it to say that I invited Miss Bennet and the Gardiners to join us because I enjoy their company and I wanted to get to know them better. They are here at my explicit invitation and not because they have included themselves in someone else’s invitation. ”
Miss Bingley expressed shock at his statement. “Whatever do you mean by that, Mr. Darcy?”
“I mean, Miss Bingley, that for years, I have issued invitations to Mr. Bingley, yet time and time again, you have interpreted these invitations to include yourself. I have tolerated your presence in my homes because of my friendship with your brother. If you continue to abuse those whom I have invited into my home, you will soon find yourself not only unwelcome, but your admittance to my homes refused, and you sent away from Pemberley.”
“Well, I never,” Miss Bingley said as she stomped away.
Darcy fairly growled. “This is a disastrous start to her visit,” he remarked to Elizabeth.
“She will be ever more determined to make everyone miserable. After I escort you to your relatives, I need to find Charles and explain.” He hesitated as she took his arm.
“I asked Mrs. Reynolds to place you and your aunt and uncle in the family wing—I hope you do not mind. If you do, or if your aunt and uncle object to the arrangements because we are engaged, I can move you into the guest wing. With Miss Bingley here, my footmen will remain on duty in the halls of the family wing each night, so nothing, um, untoward, can happen.”
She laughed. “You do have a lot to talk about with Charles.”
He grimaced. “I will send a footman to ask him to join me in my study shortly. Might we go for a walk in the gardens later?”
She smiled up at him lovingly. “I would enjoy that, but we may not be able to get away this afternoon. We can plan to rendezvous in the mornings for our walks. If I recall, the Bingleys and Hursts tend to keep town hours. Is that true even at Pemberley?”
“Yes, it is,” he grinned. “And you, like myself, were always an early riser. We may have to use that to our advantage while they are here, my love. It may be the only time we have to be alone.”
“We will use our early morning walks to actually speak to one another this time, William,” she said, smiling up at him. “We have many things to discuss.”
He pointed out the terrace where they would gather later and then escorted her up the main staircase to the family wing.
As they walked down the hall, he pointed out the master’s and mistress’s suites and told her he planned to have Mrs. Reynolds show her the rooms and discuss any changes she would like to make.
The mistress’s suite had not been updated since Anne Darcy had taken it over, and Elizabeth was welcome to order any changes to the rooms to make them more comfortable for her.
He also showed her Georgiana’s room and her aunt and uncle’s rooms before pointing her to her door.
“You are next to Georgiana, my dear,” he said. “I will try to create opportunities for the two of you to get to know each other away from Miss Bingley while you are here, but the two of you will also share a sitting room during this stay so that you might speak in there as well.”
“Thank you, William,” she said. “Now, go track down Mr. Bingley and have what I am sure will be the first of several uncomfortable conversations for the two of you. I will find my way to the terrace shortly.”
He looked up and down the hall and, seeing no one, bent and kissed her lightly on the lips before heading to find Bingley. When he walked away, he turned back to look at her and saw her standing there with her hands touching her lips. She blushed and then hurried into her bedchamber.
It did not take him long. He found Charles headed toward his study. “Darcy! Caroline says you insulted her, and she is livid about it. I think she would not be half as angry if Miss Elizabeth had not been there to witness it.”
“Are you angry, Bingley?” Darcy asked hesitantly, leading him the rest of the way to the study and entering it.