Elizabeth took his hand and kissed it, as she often did.
It was not right for him to feel so happy.
She then said, “It is odd that I feel so happy at present, but I do, and I will let no one say that we do not deserve happiness. Both of us do.”
“Do I?”
“Yes, certainly, and as we are to marry, you must put your faults into my keeping, so thatIcan determine how you ought to feel about them. That is, after all, what is customary in marriages. And I declare to you, that your faults do not change that you ought to feel happy. Besides, what value could there be in younotfeeling happy?”
“Is not the moral bad?”
“No, the moral is good.” She kissed his hand again, smiled, and leaned against his shoulder. “Now stop thinking about that, and simply enjoy being alive on such a lovely day.”
Chapter Nineteen
One fine day, near the end of summer, Fitzwilliam Darcy was united in Holy Matrimony with Elizabeth Wickham, née Bennet, in the church of St. Laurence-in-Thanet.
Elizabeth was lovely in a yellow silk dress. Both George and Emily were present, dressed in the finest floating little silks, and both delighted. George cheered when the Reverend Harvey announced that they were man and wife, which prompted Emily to squeal, and they were shushed by a teary and grinning Georgiana.
Mr. Bennet had a warm, slightly teary smile the whole time.
After the wedding, Mr. Bennet set off to Longbourn, and promises were exchanged that they would all see each other again when the Darcys stopped at Longbourn on their way north in only a few weeks.
Elizabeth was lovely, smiling, bright eyed.
They then climbed into Darcy’s carriage for the first stage of what would be a slow and leisurely journey to London.
Darcy took Elizabeth’s hand as soon as he sat down in the carriage. His legs were tired, and his chest hurt. How he held himself while standing still during the ceremony had pulled at the tear in his chest. Oddly, it had been far more painful to stand in one place than it was when he walked.
The children were enthused by being on the road again, and they bounced about inside. Georgiana and Elizabeth kept them a little under restraint. It was comfortable and pleasant, even though the carriage was crowded—Darcy decided that he would purchase a larger one to go with his new family.
His family.
A big smile grew.
Elizabeth saw it and said with an impish smirk, “Youareeager to visit Canterbury.”
Darcy laughed. “You are the one who wishes to see it.”
Canterbury was not far off the road between Ramsgate and London, and they had already planned for their trip to be a slow journey in three stages. On the way to Ramsgate, Darcy had gone the whole eighty miles between London and Ramsgate in one day, changing to the fastest horses at each station.
Bounce, bounce, bounce.
After half an hour of the banging that even their slow pace of about five miles an hour gave him, Darcy was ready to admit that Elizabeth was right that it would not have been wise to make the whole trip in one day.
They stopped to change the horses and the children hopped out, followed by Georgiana. A second carriage had been brought for the servants to travel in. Sally, who’d happily accepted the position as the nurse for the children, exited the second carriage to join Georgiana in chasing the two children around the green that surrounded the parish steeple.
Elizabeth helped Darcy down.
Her hands were so strong. He was almost shocked that he did not hate being weak whenshehelped him. They sat next to each other on a bench, hips and legs pressed together.
One of the servants was sent into the inn for small beer, bread, and cheese.
Darcy tore into his food with relish.
The doctor at his last visit had finally removed all restrictions upon Darcy’s diet, though he still advised Darcy to eat cautiously. Darcy was still weak, and while he found joy in Elizabeth’s care, he looked forward greatly to when he would be able to take his proper place as the person who handed others out of carriages, and when he would be able to toss George and Emily around while tickling them.
Autumn was coming, and the air was clear and beautiful, and the sun was still bright enough that the wind did not bother them.
