“And what will we do when we reach these far-flung locations,” she asked him as he lifted her from the saddle. In reply, he pulled her tightly into his embrace and kissed her deeply.
“Would you like a demonstration?” he growled.
She laughed merrily at him and darted away, silently encouraging him to chase her. With his long legs, he quickly caught up with her and captured her. Lifting her into his arms, he strode into the house,carrying her into the first room he came across, and proceeded to show her exactly what he intended to do.
Their time at Darcy Cottage passed quickly, and on the last day, they celebrated their fourth month of marriage with a picnic in a nearby grove and a boat ride across the lake. Elizabeth and Darcy enjoyed this respite from their responsibilities and the season, as both of them found the constant activity wearing. Elizabeth missed her early morning walks in the countryside and the freedom to explore as she did at Longbourn, and she so enjoyed this time at the Lakes with Darcy. Darcy’s staff was tasked with caring for everything that might arise at Pemberley while they were away, and no emergencies requiring his immediate attention occurred. They enjoyed a blissful fortnight of solitude and the pursuits they most desired.
When they returned to Pemberley nearly three weeks after they left it, they both almost glowed with their happiness, and it was clear they enjoyed their time away. A few of the footmen quietly placed bets on how soon the heir to Pemberley might be announced.
Waiting for the Darcys was a flurry of letters that arrived in their absence. Many were notes accepting the invitation to the small house party they would be hosting during the first two weeks of September, but there were also several from Longbourn, London, and Matlock. These were of far more interest than the acceptances, so the morning after they returned, Elizabeth and Darcy sat in his study and read through their correspondence.
“I did not see a letter from Papa in all of this,” Elizabeth said after looking through her pile. “Did he send one to you? I have one from Mama—I am almost afraid to read it after the letter you sent to Papa.”
Darcy looked through his stack. “There is one here from Todd and another from the new governess, Mrs Martin, but I do not see one from your father either,” Darcy frowned as he looked again through the letters in his pile. “It has been a month since his last letter, and he was supposed to write at least every other week. Let us see what these other letters say.” Darcy opened these two first and began to read. Elizabeth watched his face as he read and grew concerned at the anger she saw developing.
“Yet again, your father has failed to keep up his end of the contract,”Darcy told her after reading the first. “Todd reports he has not begun making the improvements we agreed upon, nor has he ridden out on the estate a single time. Not only that, but he received a crate of books from a London bookseller, and Todd had to help him open it a few days before he wrote this.”
Elizabeth sighed deeply. “What can we do if he refuses to do as he agreed? Do we wait for the quarter day to see if he makes the first payment, although if he is ordering books from London, he is unlikely to have the funds to do so? I am angry at Papa for putting us into the position of having to threaten him with prison if he fails to pay.”
“He does not believe we will act against him,” Darcy said quietly. “As much as I hate to make this comparison, it seems as though, like Wickham, he believes I will not act because of his connection to someone I love.”
“He is taking a ridiculous risk,” she replied heatedly. “If he can acquire that much debt in a few months, what is stopping him from doing it again and then demanding more money to pay off these future debts? How do we make him understand how serious all of this is?”
It was Darcy’s turn to sigh. “I do not know your father well enough, Elizabeth. Is there someone he listens to who could convince him of the seriousness of this situation?”
“I do not know,” Elizabeth admitted, scowling when she noticed her mother’s letter again. “Read the letter from the governess, and I will read Mama’s, and then we may decide how to act.”
It was quiet for several minutes while they read. When he was finished, Darcy looked up and observed that Elizabeth’ was clearly angry as she finished her mother’s letter.
“My mother is still complaining about ‘living in penury’ because we are forcing them to repay the debt,” Elizabeth said. “As before, she either does not know or care that Papa gambled and Jane was threatened. She is angry that she has been ‘replaced’ by a governess. She asks what was so lacking in my education that my sisters need a governess. Given that she had little to do with my education, I cannot imagine what she means, but she has never been able to see any fault in her own behaviour, and even less so in Lydia’s. She does not like Mrs Martin and calls her an ‘interloper’ several times. I gather Papa has restricted her spending andstopped Kitty and Lydia from attending events, but Mama is aware of the books he ordered.”
Elizabeth paused to think for a moment before she grinned wickedly. “I know how to get his attention,” she said, sitting up and looking rather pleased with herself. “My Uncle Phillips is an attorney in Meryton, and he and my father have never been the best of friends. Papa has violated our agreement several times now, most especially by purchasing a crate of books from London. If you sent my uncle a copy of the agreement, could he not confiscate some of his books as a penalty? Did we not have the option to assess a penalty for failing to comply with the terms?”
Darcy was rather surprised to see Elizabeth grin, but as she spoke, he smiled in response. “That is an excellent idea, Elizabeth. His new books can be paid as a forfeit for his failure to comply with the conditions in our agreement. Will Phillips do as you have suggested?”
Elizabeth grinned at him. “He will, and Mrs Hill will assist him.” Elizabeth held up a letter. “She has written to me as well and is displeased with my father’s actions, or rather, inaction. Mama is aware Papa owes a significant debt, but she does not know the extent of the debt, how he acquired it, or the threat to Jane. Mama complains to Mrs Hill whenever she is upset, so she knows what Papa has said. The girls do not know and are upset about the restrictions Papa has placed on them. Lydia is particularly frustrated by the governess requiring her to attend lessons, as she believes she is too old for such ‘nonsense’.” Elizabeth rolled her eyes at her husband as she told him about the letter. “I know we agreed to allow Papa to tell the rest of the family without us there, but clearly, he believed he could keep part of the truth hidden and did not tell them the truth.”
Elizabeth stood and moved to the small writing desk he added to his study for her use. She wrote a letter replying to Longbourn’s housekeeper and then another to her uncle outlining their plan. She imagined the look on Mrs Hill’s face when she read the letter and struggled to hold back a laugh.
Darcy composed letters to his informants from Longbourn and another to Mr Bennet about his lack of communication. When he finished those, he returned to the rest of his correspondence, althoughhe frequently looked up to watch Elizabeth. Each time he did so, he smiled, happy he could share his office with the most beautiful woman he knew.
Several hours later, they finished responding to the most pressing letters, leaving the rest for the next day. Elizabeth went to speak to Mrs Reynolds about the Gardiners’ upcoming visit and the house party a few weeks after their arrival. She found Georgiana and Jane on her way and encouraged both ladies to join the discussion, as she thought they would both have ideas to add.
That meeting lasted nearly two hours, and finally, the family gathered for tea in one of the smaller family sitting rooms. Georgiana and Jane had gotten along well while Darcy and Elizabeth were away. Jane smiled as Georgiana peppered her brother and sister with questions about their trip to the Lakes and even managed to ask a few of her own. Darcy and Elizabeth answered all the questions patiently, although the frequent glances between them silently expressed their desire for more time alone. They thoroughly enjoyed their time at the Lakes, and it was proving challenging to return to Pemberley, where privacy was far more difficult to find.
The couple made it through dinner and sat with their sisters for some time after dinner before claiming fatigue and retiring to their rooms for the rest of the evening.
For the next few weeks, the days fell into a pattern of Darcy and Elizabeth breakfasting together in their sitting room before adjourning to his study to review correspondence together. Then, they would separate to pursue individual tasks—Elizabeth to meet with the housekeeper and her sisters, and Darcy to meet with his steward or conduct other business. If she could, Elizabeth would join him in the study until they joined their sisters for tea and dinner.
Some days, Darcy rode out on the estate with the steward, and when Elizabeth accompanied him, and his business was completed, they rode to another of those locations Darcy wanted to show her with a picnic lunch and a blanket. Once there, Darcy would demonstrate to Elizabeth his purpose in seeking out these isolated locations.
A monthafter the Darcys arrived at Pemberley, the Gardiners came, bringing their children and Mary with them. Almost immediately, Mrs Gardiner noticed a change in Elizabeth and determined to speak with her privately as soon as she could manage it.
It took Mrs Gardiner a few days to manage a private conversation with her niece. “Elizabeth, you look very well,” she began. “Tell me, though, how are you finding married life?”
“It is wonderful, Aunt,” Elizabeth replied. “William is such a good husband, and despite all the trouble with my family, he has been incredibly patient and generous. I know I wrote you about Papa’s reaction to our claiming his books as a forfeit for his failure to comply with the conditions of the loan. The letter he sent my dear husband after that was almost contrite, although it held an undertone of bitterness.
“William has not been happy about Mama’s letters to me. She is still angry with me for all the changes at Longbourn, but at least Papa is now making something of an effort on the estate. I do not know if he has realised several people at Longbourn are reporting the goings on there, but he is taking more interest in the estate and attempting to restrain Mama’s vehemence towards me.”
