“Have you spoken to my sister about your desire to court her?” Darcy asked.
Kingsley hung his head. “I have not. I did not want to request it before she had an opportunity to see what men in London may have to offer. While I have a good living and enjoy what I do, I would not want to deprive Miss Bennet of the opportunity to visit London and possibly find someone more suited to her there,” he said quietly.
“I believe you undervalue yourself, Kingsley,” Darcy told him. “But I will approve your request, pending Mary’s agreement. When we return, if she is not engaged or courting another, I will allow you to make your request, and if she is amenable, you may court. We will be in London for two months and will return before the Christmas holidays.”
The two men spoke a bit longer about parish matters before Kingsley took his leave, briefly meeting with Mary as he departed. The two spoke for a few minutes, and Kingsley wished her well in London, missing the brief sadness that crossed her face when he departed.
The Darcy familyarrived in London nearly a se’nnight later. Alex travelled reasonably well, but his presence did extend their trip an extra day since he required more frequent stops than usual. It took three carriages to convey all the people, family and servants, and the luggage required for the visit to London. Alex frequently alternated between these to keep him happy and occupied and keep any adults from becoming too frustrated. His aunts particularly enjoyed his company, and Darcy liked the rare opportunities he was provided to travel alone with his wife.
After visiting the modiste to obtain new dresses for all the ladies, Lydia was delivered to school, and Kitty returned to the Gardiners. Mary chose to remain with Georgiana since she would attend events along with Elizabeth and Darcy in preparation for Georgiana’s come out in the spring.
Mr and Mrs Darcy’s presence was noted amongst thetonas they had not been to town in over a year. Many wanted to look again at the woman who captured Fitzwilliam Darcy’s hand and heart and, of course, to see the level of contentment between the couple. Since they appeared just as happy, if not more so, as the previous spring, the reaction was similar—some were pleased to see that Darcy remained happy in his choice, although a few jealous harpies hoped he was unhappy so they might have a chance at him. However, he was obviously content and happy with his wife and rebuffed any overtures from these women.
Darcy was busy during the days tending to his business concerns, which included meeting with Mr Gardiner aboutinvestments made on behalf of the Bennet daughters. Mr Bennet was caught up on his missing payments from the previous autumn, and with the savings from not having his daughters at home, combined with his finally making efforts to improve the estate, he was able to get ahead. With Mrs Bennet’s assistance, they were living on substantially less than ever before and could not only pay down the debt to Darcy but put aside funds to add to Mrs Bennet’s jointure and provide for their daughters’ dowries. Mr Bennet was investing these small amounts with Mr Gardiner, surprising that man, given Bennet’s indolent nature.
While Darcy worked, the ladies shopped and visited. In the evenings, the entire family attended the theatre, operas, musical evenings, and a few dinner parties. Georgiana and Mary performed well at these events but, similar to Elizabeth and Darcy, found little to admire in the falseness of society. While they enjoyed the events they attended, they found that often, those who attended did so to be seen rather than for the sake of the performances.
They enjoyed visiting with Lady Matlock and Mrs Gardiner and with a few ladies who were Elizabeth’s friends when she was in town following her wedding. These ladies introduced Mary and Georgiana to girls near their ages, helping them form a few friendships with ladies in town. However, Mary wondered if she would return often, much preferring to live in the country. They also frequently visited with Jane, who was happy and content in her life after several months of marriage as the wife of a barrister.
One morning, several ladies were visiting at Darcy House as they discussed upcoming plans. Lady Matlock arrived accompanied by Mrs Gardiner, and Elizabeth was discussing plans with her aunts when Jane was announced, followed by Mrs Thornton andMrs Ashford. These ladies were married to friends of Darcy and had been introduced not long before the Darcys’ house party the previous autumn. The Thorntons married only a few months later, but the Ashfords were still newly married.
“I do apologise if we have come at a bad time,” Mrs Thornton said as soon as she greeted all the women. “I know this is not your normal day for receiving visitors, but ever since you wrote you were coming to town, I looked forward to seeing you and dragged Amelia with me.” She indicated Mrs Ashford. “We have not seen you since the autumn, and I know you were unable to come to our weddings, but we were anxious to see you again.”
Elizabeth smiled graciously at the women. “You are not interrupting at all,” she answered. “Do you know everyone here?” After a brief introduction to Mary, who had not been at Pemberley in the autumn, the ladies began to speak of more general topics, although they continued discussing their plans for the coming weeks.
“I know you have only been in town a few days, but how long do you intend to stay?” Mrs Ashford asked. “My husband cannot imagine Mr Darcy being willing to stay longer than he must, but I suggested that you might be able to persuade him to stay longer.”
Trilling a laugh, Elizabeth replied airily, “I quite prefer the country to town as well, but we did want to give Georgiana and Mary an opportunity to attend a few events before participating in the Season in the spring. We have several outings planned while we are here—a few musical evenings and several theatre performances.”
The group spoke a bit longer before the butler brought several cards for Elizabeth to review. After glancing at them and a slightnod from Lady Matlock, she permitted the butler to announce them. “Ladies Grenville and Harcourt, and Mrs Sutton,” the butler intoned as the ladies entered the room. The other visitors in the room stiffened somewhat as these women were known as inveterate gossips and were there to glean whatever gossip there was to be had.
“Mrs Darcy,” they greeted her insincerely, reminding Elizabeth of Caroline Bingley, “it is such a pleasure to see you again. You have been absent from London for much of the last year.” They greeted the other guests but turned up their noses at Mrs Gardiner and Miss Bennet.
“Well, I believe it was published in the paper, but Mr Darcy’s heir was born this spring, and that prevented our travelling to town during this time,” Elizabeth said carefully. “Alexander Darcy is a handsome child; my husband is thrilled with him.”
“How lovely,” Lady Grenville said. “When was he born?” She was an older matron of theton,of a similar age to Lady Matlock, and her daughter was one of the ladies who sought to win Darcy’s attention for herself. Both mother and daughter were disappointed when he married Elizabeth and still sought to discredit them by assigning a different reason for their hasty wedding.
“He was born in April, my lady, just after our anniversary,” Elizabeth replied, her smile tight.
“Oh,” Mrs Sutton said, clearly disappointed at the lack of scandal in this news. She was also a gossipy matron, and while she did not have a daughter with marital ambitions dashed by Darcy’s marriage, she attempted to entice Mr Darcy to a tryst on several occasions. She hoped that with him married, she could nowconvince him. “How long will you remain in London? You have not been in town in a year, and we do hope you will remain.”
“We only intend to stay in town briefly,” she replied. “We were just discussing some of the events we hope to attend while we are here.”
“How wonderful,” Lady Harcourt cried. Lady Harcourt had been married for a few months; Lord Harcourt, the Earl of Bexley, was at least sixty but, having pursued Darcy for several seasons, had finally relented to marry a title. Like Mrs Sutton, she was still hoping to entice Mr Darcy into agreeing to a liaison with her and subtly let Mrs Darcy know her intentions. “I missed seeing Mr Darcy in town this Season and look forward to seeing him this autumn. I am certain once Mr Darcy realises how much all his friends have missed him, he will wish to remain in town longer.”
Elizabeth eyed the women warily and took a moment to compose herself. She wanted to unleash her claws on these intruders into her peaceful afternoon, but her upbringing and the presence of other guests demanded a more refined approach. However, before she could speak, Lady Matlock answered for her. “Darcy is even less enamoured of town than before his marriage. He is very happy at Pemberley and only came to London for this short visit for his sister’s sake. Once she is safely married”—she reached over to pat her niece’s hands in her lap—“I would expect him to limit his visits to town until little Alex has come of age or he has a daughter to launch into society. Marriage has made him extraordinarily content, and I believe he would spend all his days at home with his wife and family. Of course, he will always be willing to invite his friends for brief visits, and I am certain that Mr and Mrs Thornton and Mr and Mrs Ashford will continue to be frequent visitors. In fact, these ladies both met their husbands at the Darcys’ house party lastyear.” She smiled at the two ladies she referenced as she spoke, who smiled back graciously.
Soon, Lady Matlock began to depart, taking the rest of the ladies with her. Elizabeth hugged her friends and relations, whispering thank yous in their ears and inviting them to return soon. Her other visitors did not receive the same warm farewells, and they took their leave unhappy at the lack of gossip they had gathered.
After a month in town,the Darcys began to prepare to return to Pemberley. Darcy’s business was accomplished more quickly than he thought, and while they planned to stay for two months, they saw little need to extend their stay beyond what was necessary. A month in town was enough for them all, especially Mary, who spoke with Elizabeth about her desire to know Mr Kingsley better. Knowing of the conversation between the vicar and her husband regarding Mary, Elizabeth encouraged her sister to do just that, and she promised to invite him to the house often.
When the Darcy party returned from London, Mr Kingsley was more convinced than ever of his desire to marry Miss Bennet. He asked to court her nearly as soon as he saw her and waited only a week before proposing. The couple decided to marry in Derbyshire just before Christmas and visit the Bennet family the following spring.
Upon receiving the letter conveying this news, Mrs. Bennet expressed her discontent with it, perturbed by having yet another daughter marry away from home without her input.“Mr Bennet, Mr Bennet,” his wife cried when she read the letter from her third daughter announcing her engagement and outlining her plans. “You surely cannot approve of our daughter marrying so far from home. You must tell her to return home to Longbourn for her wedding.”
“Mr Darcy informed me of the gentleman’s intentions a month ago when the gentleman spoke with him to request his permission to speak. I replied to that letter granting permission to act on my behalf, and they have determined it is best to marry in Derbyshire. They will visit us in the summer when travel will be easier,” Mr Bennet told his wife.
“Why have you said nothing sooner?” Mrs Bennet demanded.
