Falling for Elizabeth Bennet Read online

  Darcy looks at Georgiana and then to Elizabeth, who just grins and nods. Once Darcy and Georgiana have switched seats, Georgiana engages Richard in a fierce whispered conversation. Seeing them occupied, Darcy turns to Elizabeth and asks, “Miss Elizabeth, how are you enjoying Much Ado About Nothing?”

  Elizabeth smiles and replies, “Mr. Darcy, I am enjoying my book. I have actually read it several times. It is a favorite of mine.”

  Darcy raises a brow at Elizabeth and replies, “Miss Elizabeth, this will not do. We are not going to talk books all day. I wanted to ask you earlier how your back was doing. I do hope that you would tell me if you were experiencing any discomfort.”

  Elizabeth laughs and says, “Mr. Darcy, I do not believe you would allow anyone to travel in discomfort. But to make you feel better, my back is doing much better.”

  Darcy watches as she strokes Fitz’s head as the puppy sleeps. Elizabeth looks up from the puppy to see Darcy watching her and says, “Mr. Darcy, I just wanted to thank you again for Fitz. She is a wonderful puppy.” Elizabeth stops, bites her lip, opens her mouth, and then closes it. Darcy taps Elizabeth on the arm and says, “Miss Elizabeth, you know that you can ask me any question you like, and I will be happy to answer you.”

  Darcy watches as different emotions cross Elizabeth’s face, and she takes a deep breath and asks, “Mr. Darcy, why do you continue to go through so much trouble for me? I am not a family member. I am no one to you.”

  Darcy replies, “Miss Elizabeth, think real hard about why any man would assist a woman not related to him.”

  Darcy watches Elizabeth as she shakes and lowers her head and turns away from him. Darcy reaches over and puts a finger under Elizabeth’s chin, gently turning her toward him, lifting her chin until Elizabeth meets his eyes. Darcy smiles gently down at a blushing Elizabeth and says, “Miss Elizabeth, the reason I have done all this for you is that I ardently admire and love you. My feelings for you make me want you to have a happy life—even if that life is not with me. You deserve happiness.”

  Darcy watches Elizabeth’s face as surprise, happiness, confusion, and finally sadness cross Elizabeth’s face. Elizabeth looks Darcy in the face and says, “Mr. Darcy, I am more honored than I can possibly say that a man like you could love someone like me. I have no social position. My dowry is nonexistent, and I have a health condition that could be an impediment in my life. Mr. Darcy, I must ask that you think of Georgiana and your family. Any connections with me would only bring you problems.”

  Darcy reaches over and puts a finger to Elizabeth’s lips to silence her. Darcy says, “Miss Elizabeth, you need to get used to someone loving you. I am not the only one who loves you. I watched the love on all your sisters faces when they came to see you. Your sisters want you happy too. I am willing to bet that even Georgiana loves you. I know you are used to hiding, but now it is time to come out of the shadows.”

  Hearing a sniff, Darcy turns to see that Richard and Georgie had finished their conversation and had heard his entire conversation with Elizabeth. Darcy flushes in embarrassment that his family have heard him speak so. Georgiana gives him a watery smile and a nod. Richard just looks at Darcy. Darcy looks back at Elizabeth and sees that she too has also flushed in embarrassment and is twisting her handkerchief. Eventually, everyone falls asleep under the gentle rocking of the carriage.

  About an hour later, Richard awakens to the sound of the puppy whining and slits his eyes to see Miss Elizabeth awaken to the puppy licking her fingers. Richard watches as Miss Elizabeth gently brushes a curl off Darcy’s forehead as he sleeps next to her. Richard watches Miss Elizabeth gaze at Darcy’s sleeping face, and he hears her softly says, “Mr. Darcy, I love you too, but because I love you, nothing more can come of this.”

  Just as softly, Richard says, “Miss Elizabeth, if you love Darcy, you should tell him.”

  Richard watches as Miss Elizabeth jumps and looks to Richard and asks, “Colonel Fitzwilliam, how long have you been awake?”

  Richard looks at her and replies, “Long enough to know you love my cousin.”

  Elizabeth gasps. “You heard me?”

  Richard nods and asks, “Miss Elizabeth, is it my cousin’s money, home, and lifestyle that you love? Darcy would be devastated if you loved what he can give you and not love the man.”

  Elizabeth looks Richard in the eye and calmly replies, “Colonel Fitzwilliam, I realize that you do not know me well. I care not for what material things that Mr. Darcy has. Yes, having money makes life easier, but it was the kind man who saw a young lady sitting alone in a corner at an assembly and decided to become her friend. Mr. Darcy stood by me and became my friend in spite of . . .” Elizabeth pauses, and Richard says, “Miss Elizabeth, I am aware of your condition. Darcy told me and Georgiana before we came to Netherfield. You should trust Darcy—he will care for you. Darcy is head of his family, and he is fortunate enough to be able to marry where he wishes. I will support you and Darcy. I just want to be sure that you love the man and not his belongings.”

  Elizabeth nods in understanding and closes her eyes again.

  The party arrives at the inn for the evening about four hours later. Darcy, Richard, and Georgiana meet the Gardiners and their children. The Gardiners are a fashionable couple only a few years older than Darcy and Richard. The children are lively and well-mannered. Much to Darcy’s chagrin, Mr. Gardiner announces that Elizabeth will be travelling in the Gardiner carriage for the remainder of the trip. Darcy was hoping to have another private conversation with Elizabeth. Darcy hopes he will be able to do so once they arrive at Pemberley.

  Chapter 10

  Darcy and his guests arrive at Pemberley two days later. Darcy is excited to see Elizabeth’s face when she first gets a look at Pemberley. Darcy knocks on the roof of the carriage so that everyone can see Pemberley in its glory from the lookout point. After helping Georgiana from the carriage, Darcy crosses to the Gardiner’s carriage and assists the ladies and children from the carriage. Darcy offers his arm to Elizabeth and asks her to close her eyes and trust him—she is not going to want to miss this view.

  Darcy carefully guides Elizabeth to the vantage point and says, “Miss Elizabeth, welcome to Pemberley.”

  Darcy and the rest of the party watch as Elizabeth gasps in delight at seeing Pemberley for the first time. Elizabeth gives Darcy a beautiful smile and says, “Mr. Darcy, your home is beautiful. I cannot wait to explore your grounds.”

  Mrs. Gardiner laughs and says, “Lizzy, if we cannot find you on the grounds, I know you will be in Mr. Darcy’s library. I have heard that Mr. Darcy’s library is a sight to see.”

  Everyone chuckles and gets back into the carriages. The party arrives at the entrance to Pemberley about ten minutes later. Darcy can see Mrs. Reynolds and a few of the other staff members waiting to assist. Darcy introduces his guests to Mrs. Reynolds, “Mr. Gardiner, Mrs. Gardiner, Miss Elizabeth, this is my housekeeper Mrs. Reynolds. If you need anything, she will be the one who will be able to assist you. Mr. Gardiner, Mrs. Gardiner, Mrs. Reynolds has arranged for Maggie to take care of the children. If you would like to rest and refresh yourselves, Maggie will take the children to the nursery for you.”

  When the Gardiners agree, Maggie takes the children and the Gardiner’s head toward the stairs. At the base of the stairs, Mrs. Gardiner turns back and asks, “Lizzy, are you going to come with us?”

  Elizabeth looks to her aunt and says, “Aunt, if you do not mind, I would like to stay and have Mrs. Reynolds give me a brief tour of the ground floor—if Mrs. Reynolds has the time.”

  Mrs. Gardiner nods and departs. Elizabeth turns to Darcy and asks, “Mr. Darcy, do you mind if I get a brief tour of the ground floor?”

  Darcy offers Elizabeth a small smile. “Miss Elizabeth, I believe I will join you. I have heard that Mrs. Reynolds is very generous when speaking of me.”

  Richard and Georgiana laugh and head for their rooms as well.

  Mrs. Reynolds leads Elizabeth on a small tour of
the ground floor. Darcy is enjoying having Elizabeth in his home. Darcy is listening to Mrs. Reynolds speak of his parents with such love and affection that Darcy does not realize that he has fallen behind until he feels a light touch on his hand that sends chills down his spine. Darcy looks down to see that Elizabeth has returned to his side and touched his hand with her bare hand. Darcy sees Elizabeth looking up at him with concern in her eyes as she asks, “Mr. Darcy, are you well? Am I asking too much personal information of Mrs. Reynolds?”

  Darcy sighs softly and gently touches Elizabeth’s cheek and says, “Miss Elizabeth, my apologies. Hearing Mrs. Reynolds speak of my parents made me reminisce about them, and it made me miss them at this time. I was wishing that they could meet you. I know that they would have loved you. Thank you for caring about me. I usually only get this kind of care from Georgie and occasionally from Richard, and it has made me realize how much I miss it. We need to catch back up with Mrs. Reynolds and get back to a happier topic.”

  Elizabeth gives Darcy a small smile as they catch up to Mrs. Reynolds, who is holding open the door to another room. Darcy grins down to Elizabeth and says, “I believe that you will enjoy this room.” Darcy’s smile widens as Elizabeth takes in his library.

  Elizabeth looks at Darcy and says, “Mr. Darcy, your home is lovely. I could spend hours just browsing the shelves in this room for a book to read.”

  Mrs. Reynolds calls out to Elizabeth, saying, “Miss Elizabeth, if you come this way, Mr. Darcy can explain his cataloging system that will help you find any book you are looking for.”

  Elizabeth looks at Darcy and says, “Sir, you are very organized. I cannot believe you have such a system in place. I shall have to tell my father about this.”

  Darcy watches as Elizabeth turns toward Mrs. Reynolds, who is turning to leave the room, and Elizabeth calls out to Mrs. Reynolds, “Excuse me, Mrs. Reynolds, I have a gift for you. I wanted to give it to you in private—just in case you had a bad reaction to the gift.”

  Darcy is intrigued as to what gift Elizabeth could have for his housekeeper, and Darcy can see that Mrs. Reynolds is equally surprised. Mrs. Reynolds turns to Elizabeth and says, “Miss Elizabeth, I am touched that you would have a gift for me, but I cannot imagine what it could possibly be.”

  Darcy watches as Elizabeth pulls out a small package out of her pocket and hands it to Mrs. Reynolds. Darcy and Elizabeth watch as Mrs. Reynolds opens the package, gasp at the gift, and then starts laughing. Darcy watches as Elizabeth grins, and his housekeeper is laughing so hard she can barely breathe. After a minute, when Mrs. Reynolds is calm, Darcy asks, “Mrs. Reynolds, what did Miss Elizabeth give you that would cause such a reaction?”

  Smiling Mrs. Reynolds hands Darcy the gift and says, “This is what caused the reaction, sir.”

  Darcy looks down at two snowy-white handkerchiefs—the first one shows a little green frog sitting on a lily pad in a pond. The second handkerchief shows a muddy little boy holding the frog out to a lady. Darcy looks at Elizabeth and asks, “Miss Elizabeth, when did you make these? They are lovely.”

  Elizabeth replies, “I was passing time in the carriage.” Elizabeth turns to Mrs. Reynolds. “I apologize if the gift disturbs you. I met Mr. Wickham in my hometown before I left, and he and Mr. Darcy told me the story of Mr. Darcy giving you a muddy frog as a young boy and thought you might like a frog that would hopefully not frighten you.”

  Darcy watches as Mrs. Reynolds crosses the room and picks up Elizabeth’s hand and gives it a gentle squeeze, saying, “Miss Elizabeth, that was a lovely surprise. I cannot believe you made me such a gift. I will treasure it always, and now I can look back at that memory and laugh. I thank you, Miss Elizabeth. I have only just met you, and I have seen Mr. Darcy smile and laugh more in the last ten minutes than he has in the last year. You make him happy.”

  Darcy clears his throat and says, “Miss Elizabeth, would you like to stay in the library, or would you prefer to retire to your room to refresh yourself?”

  Elizabeth looks to Darcy and says, “Mr. Darcy, I believe I will go to my room for a little while if that is acceptable to you.”

  Darcy nods and opens the door and summons a nearby maid and asks, “Molly, would you please show Miss Elizabeth to her room, please?”

  Molly nods, and Darcy looks at Elizabeth and says, “Enjoy your rest, Miss Elizabeth. I will see you later. I hope you enjoy your stay at Pemberley.”

  Darcy watches Elizabeth as she follows Molly to her room. Mrs. Reynolds starts to leave the room, and Darcy says, “Mrs. Reynolds, will you please come to my study with me for a moment? I need to speak with you.”

  Darcy and Mrs. Reynolds make their way to Darcy’s study. Once there, Darcy says, “Mrs. Reynolds, please take a seat. This conversation is going to take a few minutes, and what I tell you needs to stay in confidence. I have only told Richard and Georgiana, and what I am telling you is important. This is regarding Elizabeth. As I am sure you have figured out by now, Elizabeth means a lot to me. In fact, I have fallen in love with her.”

  Darcy watches as Mrs. Reynolds’s face breaks out with a huge smile, and she says, “Mr. Darcy, that is wonderful. I believe Miss Elizabeth will be a wonderful mistress. When do you plan to marry?”

  Darcy sighs and says, “Mrs. Reynolds, it is not that easy. While I believe that Elizabeth might have feelings for me, I do not believe that she is yet in love with me. I have not yet asked for her hand. I do have her father’s blessing, which she is not aware of. There are other problems that I need to make you aware of.” Darcy takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly and says, “Mrs. Reynolds, Miss Elizabeth has falling sickness. I have brought her here for a couple of reasons. One was that she was recently attacked by her own mother, and I wanted to get her away from Mrs. Bennet as soon as possible. The other reason is that the town physician has suggested that Elizabeth be removed from her stressful home environment and to see if there is any improvement with her health. At the moment, I am only telling you about Elizabeth’s condition. Please keep an eye on her when you can. If you have any concerns, please come and get me. Mrs. Reynolds, I know this is a lot to ask, but please try not to treat Elizabeth as if you know the truth about her.” Darcy looks at Mrs. Reynolds, who has tears in her eyes.

  “Mr. Darcy, Miss Elizabeth is a fine lady, and I will guard her secret carefully.” Mrs. Reynolds stands and turns to leave the room. When she reaches the door, Mrs. Reynolds turns back to Darcy and says, “Mr. Darcy, I do believe you are wrong about Miss Elizabeth. I believe that she is already in love with you. Ask yourself this, sir—why would a lady as fine and sweet as Miss Elizabeth make your housekeeper, a person she has never met and a servant at that, a set of embroidered handkerchiefs based on one of your childhood stories?”

  Darcy looks at Mrs. Reynolds and replies, “Mrs. Reynolds, I hope you are correct. I want to believe you, but now Richard has made me doubt what I thought I have seen in Elizabeth’s eyes. Forgive me, Mrs. Reynolds, she is already Elizabeth to me.”

  Mrs. Reynolds replies, “Forgive me, sir, your cousin is a fine man, but I do not believe I would trust his judgment in matters of the heart. One only has to look at Miss Elizabeth’s eyes to see her feelings for you. Miss Elizabeth will make a fine wife for you. I have no doubt that you will be able to secure her hand. As for her health, I will watch out for her, and perhaps in time, things may get better. I would not worry about it too much sir. It is all in God’s hands anyway.”

  Darcy exhales slowly. “Thank you, Mrs. Reynolds. I appreciate you saying that. I was afraid I was seeing what I wanted to see. I just hope this visit works out the way I am hoping.”

  Mrs. Reynolds nods and departs the room.

  During the next several days, the Gardiners visit various friends and families in the area, as well as tour other local famous houses. Sometimes Elizabeth accompanies them, and other times she remains at Pemberley. Georgiana returns to her studies and plays on the pianoforte. Richard rides the grounds and inspects the far
reaches of the park. Darcy is frustrated. He has been stuck in his study, attending to business that had piled up while he was away visiting Bingley and running to London and Scotland looking for ways to help Elizabeth. While Darcy in no way resents that he has business to deal with, he does miss the time he is able to spend with Elizabeth as it is not nearly as much as he would like.

  About five days after Elizabeth arrives at Pemberley, Darcy takes a break from his study and goes looking for Mrs. Reynolds. Darcy is surprised when he cannot find his trusted housekeeper. Seeing a nearby footman, Darcy asks, “Wilson, have you seen Mrs. Reynolds? I cannot seem to find her.”

  Wilson slips a slight smile and answers, “Mrs. Reynolds is in the kitchen, sir.”

  Darcy thanks Wilson and heads to the kitchen. When Darcy arrives in the kitchen, he stands in the doorway, enchanted. Elizabeth is showing his cook how to make the scones that Darcy favored when he visited her home. Darcy watches as Mrs. Reynolds whispers something to Elizabeth. Darcy hears Elizabeth say laughingly, “Mrs. Reynolds, stop trying to make a proper lady out of me. It will not work. My own mother was never able to manage it. In fact, the reason I know how to make the scones that Mr. Darcy favors is I am my mother’s least favorite daughter. I am not pretty like my eldest sister, Jane, nor am I lively and witty like my youngest sister, Lydia. When I would make my mother mad, I was sent to the kitchen to help Cook. Cook did not agree with my mother, but did give me the secret to Mr. Darcy’s favorite scones.”

  Darcy hears the kitchen servants all gasp in shock, and Mrs. Reynolds says, “Miss Elizabeth, I have never heard the like. While I have never had the privilege of meeting any of your sisters, you are a lovely young lady and one who should not have punished in such a way. But perhaps it was for the best. Now you are able to share the secret with the rest of us.”

  Darcy watches as Elizabeth laughs and the rest of the servants join in. Suddenly Mrs. Reynolds looks up and sees Darcy and asks in surprise, “Mr. Darcy. I am sorry, sir. Did you need something?”