“Jane, I prefer not to spend my visit discussing Mama,” Elizabeth said, causing Jane to frown. “Tell me how you are doing. I worried about you when you developed a fever, but you seemed to recover quickly. Do you intend to remain in this room like this for another fortnight?”
“It is what the midwife recommends,” Jane replied. “I will do all she says so that I remain well. Frederick disagrees, and I know you did not follow the midwife’s strictures, but I feel more comfortable doing so.”
Elizabeth sighed at the petulant tone her sister used. “I was not criticising, dear Jane, merely asking. You know me; I am a terrible patient and struggle to remain in bed for longer than a day or two, even when it is needed. With Alex, I was walking about within our rooms in just a few days. William protested and attempted to keep me in bed longer than I was willing, but eventually, he gave in as he saw that I was determined. The midwife supported me so long as I was reasonable in my demands, and William tolerated my stubbornness well. It was different since we were not in London then, giving me more freedom to do as I wanted.”
Jane agreed, and the conversation returned to Amelia and eventually to Alex. Elizabeth was reluctant to share the news of their expected child with her sister while their mother was visiting, so after a short time, Elizabeth stood and hugged her sister as best she could before taking her leave. “It will probably be next spring before we return to town, as I doubt we will come again in the autumn. I do not know if it would be possible for you to visit at Christmas, or perhaps sooner, depending on Mr Hastings’ schedule. You are welcome any time.”
“Thank you, Lizzy,” Jane replied, and Elizabeth departed.
Just as Elizabeth stepped out the door of Jane’s home, Mrs Gardiner’s carriage arrived. The two ladies looked at each other, and Mrs Gardiner looked at her niece apologetically. The two womengreeted each other with a hug, but Mrs Bennet remained frozen inside the carriage.
Elizabeth drew upon all her strength and greeted her mother. “Good afternoon, Mama,” she said quietly. “It is nice to see you.”
Her daughter’s voice jarred her, and Mrs Bennet stepped down from the carriage. “Good afternoon, Elizabeth,” she whispered.
Struggling not to roll her eyes, Elizabeth moved to end the awkward encounter. “Well, I must depart for home. We will be leaving for Pemberley in a day or two. Mama, Aunt, I am certain you will both write, but I really must be going.” She immediately stepped up into her carriage. Mrs Gardiner watched her for only a moment before she walked up the steps and into the house. However, Mrs Bennet stood there for several more minutes until the butler’s voice roused her from her imaginings, and she also entered the house.
The journeyto Pemberley was uneventful. Alex remained an excellent traveller, and shifting him between the carriages that contained his parents and his nurse allowed everyone else to travel comfortably and rest occasionally. Alex was inquisitive and vocal at fifteen months of age, although little of what he said could be understood. The Darcys deliberately travelled slower than they might have liked, but they used frequent stops to explore the areas where they stopped. Darcy and Elizabeth scoured the bookstores in small towns they rarely visited and discovered several new treasures. Each morning, they requested a picnic lunch for their travels to allow Alex time to explore the area around him when they placed the blankets on the ground for the meal.
Despite these additional stops, the trip to Pemberley only lasted an extra day. Once again, the Darcys’ time was immediately consumed for several days as they caught up with what had been occurring on the estate while they were from home.
Darcy rode out with his steward several mornings, and although Elizabeth could not ride in her condition, he took her out to visit their tenants over several afternoons in a pony cart. The couple enjoyed thistime together, something that had been in short supply in London, and often took refreshments and a blanket with them on these trips.
Nearly a fortnight after their return, after all the major concerns from the housekeeper and steward had been addressed, Elizabeth and Darcy finally settled into their preferred routine while at Pemberley. While her nausea was diminished by this time, she felt a bit queasy if she did not eat something first thing in the morning, and she slept later than usual most mornings. Darcy would rise early to take a short ride and, upon returning, would request tea and toast be delivered to their shared sitting room. By the time he washed up from his ride, Elizabeth was usually just beginning to stir. He would sit in the bedroom near her until she woke, attending to his correspondence or his ledgers if she were not yet awake. After this light breakfast, they would dress for the day and visit their son in the nursery.
They had moved him to the upstairs nursery upon their return from London as it gave the boy and his nurse more room for play. The Darcys still spent much more time with their child than was considered ‘fashionable’, and it was not uncommon for someone to come above stairs to find the adults on the floor playing with Alex or reading to him with the child in one parent’s lap. Often, he would alternate between the two as one read, and they enjoyed their time with him tremendously.
Eventually, their duties would call to them, and they would separate for a time, usually returning together by noon to indulge in a heartier repast, as by then, Elizabeth was ready for a more substantial meal. They would enjoy this in their study while attending to their business.
After their brief meeting outside Jane’s home, Elizabeth had not written to her mother again. Mrs Bennet had sent her daughter a note the day after the difficult conversation between that lady and the Gardiners, but it was full of excuses and explanations for her treatment of her least favourite daughter. “She is finally being honest with herself,” Elizabeth told her husband upon receipt of the letter. “She has never understood me—never bothered to understand me—and finally, her honest thoughts and ideas are being expressed. She did not recognise her poor treatment of me because she did not consider it inferior; she was blind to the fact that she favoured some of her daughters while nearlyreviling others. It is easy to see how, in her ignorance, she could not understand that she treated us differently.
“Not that I excuse her behaviour by any means, and I am astonished how anyone could be so wilfully blind that she cannot see how she treated her daughters so differently. Jane was the treasured one who was constantly praised for her beauty and expected to marry well. Lydia was favoured for her similarity to her mother—she was pretty and lively and, as the youngest, was spoiled. Kitty was treated well enough as she was nearly always in Lydia’s shadow, although she was occasionally reprimanded for disturbing Mama’s nerves. Mary was largely ignored, and I, well, I was not a boy. And I was despised for it. Nothing I did was ever enough, never good enough for Mama. Papa appreciated that I was intelligent and interested in learning and gave me more opportunities to learn than he did the other girls, but that was because I insisted on it. And in the end, he gave me to you willingly but with an ulterior motive in mind. When he agreed to your request for my hand, he knew you would rescue him from failing to provide for his family.” She had sighed deeply and snuggled deeper into Darcy’s lap. He had not replied but merely held her.
That had been the last communication between Elizabeth and either of her parents, and so it was a surprise when, three weeks after arriving home, a packet of letters arrived from Longbourn. From the Gardiners and Jane, Elizabeth knew that her mother had returned home, and Jane continued to implore Elizabeth to write to their mother. Elizabeth and Jane could no longer discuss Mrs Bennet, as their views of the lady were too different to reconcile.
When his valet handed Darcy the morning’s post at their bedroom door, Darcy had been reluctant to pass the packet to his wife. They were still in their chambers, as Elizabeth had been restless that night and was sleeping later than usual to compensate. He was still considering the packet when she began to stir, and he moved towards her and kissed her temple as she slowly woke.
“Good morning, dearest,” he whispered into her hair. He sat back slightly from where he was perched on the edge of their bed and watched her wake. She was covered only by the sheet, and he watched as it moved and revealed more of her form. When her belly was exposed tohim, he began to caress over it and leaned in again to kiss their growing child and to speak to it. “Good morning, little one,” he said quietly. “You gave your mama a restless night last night. You mustn’t do that again; she needs plenty of sleep to help you grow. I know Mama would like another son, but I confess, I hope you are a girl—a dark-haired beauty with sparkling green eyes like your beautiful mother. She will be a wonderful mother, whether you are a boy or a girl, and I know she will love you.”
Elizabeth grinned at her husband. “You are silly, do you know that?” she asked.
He grinned back as he sat up. “Only with you and with our children,” he replied. “I could never be like this with others, not even Georgiana, though; perhaps I was when she was a child. Not now.”
“I love you, Fitzwilliam Darcy,” she whispered. “You are a wonderful husband and father, and I know that whatever this child is, you will love it as much as you love our son.”
Once again, he leaned over to kiss his lovely wife, and it was some time before he considered the post again.
Sometime later,they dressed and went into the sitting room where their breakfast waited. He had ordered a more extensive breakfast that morning, which suited Elizabeth well since she was rather hungry.
“Did I see you with the post earlier?” Elizabeth asked after they had been quietly eating for several minutes.
Darcy swallowed the bite he had just taken and looked up at his wife. “You did. A … several letters arrived from Longbourn. I imagine it is yet another apology,” he said.
She sighed. “I am tired of dealing with Longbourn. Part of me wishes to be done with them entirely and never hear of them again. However, I know that is impossible, as my sisters will forever bring her up somehow. Mary feels similarly to me, which is surprising given that she is a parson’s wife, but our parents so frequently ignored her that shehas little connection to them, especially not after living with them for so long.” They were both quiet for a long moment.
“Give me the letters, William,” Elizabeth finally said. “I know you are thinking you should not, but, well, I need to see what they say. Certainly, there are letters from Mrs Hill and Mr Todd within the packet, and they will have a different perspective on whatever these letters say.”
Reluctantly, he stood to retrieve them, observing her carefully as she opened the outer envelope and withdrew several letters. She handed him the letter from the steward, although he did not open it as he continued to watch her. Grimacing, she began with the letter from her mother.
