“You are, indeed, Madam,” he bent to kiss her cheek, “you are indeed.” Darcy let his lips linger, and she could feel his breath on her neck. His voice was raspy when he spoke again. “My aunt’s retelling inspired me to action. I knew enough of your disposition to be certain that, had you been absolutely, irrevocably decided against me, you would have acknowledged it to Lady Catherine, frankly and openly.”
Elizabeth offered a ghost of a grin as she chastised herself.“Yes, you know enough of my frankness to believe me capable ofthat. After abusing you so abominably to your face, I could have no scruples in abusing you to all your relations.”
For the next few minutes, they each belabored themselves for the foolishness of their earlier wrongs. Darcy, who prided himself on being a man of scruples, criticized his first proposal for its poorly worded sentiments. He showed mistaken pride, and he proved himself not worthy of Elizabeth’s love then. He admitted the memory of his conduct, his manners, and his expressions of love pained him for their inappropriateness. “I shall never forget your challenging me with ‘Had you behaved in a more gentleman-like manner.’Those were your words.You know not, you can scarcelyconceive, how they have tortured me—though it was some time, I confess, before I was reasonable enough to allow their justice.”
Elizabeth, being of a lighter temperament, blamed them both for the many misunderstandings, which occurred that evening. “I was certainly very far from expecting them to make so strong an impression. I had not the smallest idea of their being ever felt in such a way.”
Darcy was not willing to abandon his self-reproach so easily despite the fact Elizabeth was now his; the pain was difficult to surrender, but Elizabeth now understood his nature and first gave him his moments and then redirected his passions. She begged him not to recollect in so much detail how they misread each other for so long. “We will be happy now—the happiest couple to ever be married.”
Darcy chuckled lightly as they stood to continue their walk; they caught each other’s eye, and shades of their present tranquillity insolently demanded admittance.“The letter,” he embarked,“did it soon make you think better of me? Did you, on reading it, give any credit to its contents?”
Elizabeth told him the letter was a revelation. “It gradually removed all my former prejudices. I came to know myself as I never had before.”
“I am sorry if it gave you pain. I was angry at your rejection; I was jealous of your attentions to Mr. Wickham; I was lost to loving you,” his countenance dropped.
“Mr. Darcy, we will have no more melancholy,” she emphatically said.“You will not be the Prince of Denmark for if you recall I dearly love to laugh. If the letter brings you recompense, it shall be burned.The feelings of the person who wrote the letter and the person who received it differ greatly now.” The subject needed airing without distraction, but Elizabeth would not have him sad today. “I want you to remember only the pleasant things from the past.We will have no sadness today.”
Darcy gave her credit for having acted well in all their dealings. He, on the other hand, realized his life created a double man—theman the world saw and the one Elizabeth now loved. He told her his parents were loving people and taught him what was right; but they allowed him to act prideful with others, never correcting his disposition. “Unfortunately an only son, for many years an only child, I was spoiled by my parents, who, though good themselves, allowed, encouraged, almost taught me to be selfish and overbearing; to care for none beyond my own family circle; to think meanly of all the rest of the world. Such I was, from eight to eight-and-twenty; and such I might still have been but for you, dearest, loveliest Elizabeth! What do I not owe you.You taught me a lesson, hard indeed at first, but most advantageous. By you, I was properly humbled. I came to you without a doubt of my reception. You showed me how insufficient were all my pretensions to please a woman worthy of being pleased.”
“I never meant to deceive you,” she stammered and looked deep in his eyes. “If I was not blinded by my own prejudices, I would have seen the man you really are. Our pride and our prejudice are a dust from the past; dust must be wiped away, leaving a clean surface. You spent your life ignoring others; I spent mine constantly censuring them; we will learn and offer forgiveness to each other.” She gently stroked his jawline. “May we not talk of something more pleasant?”
Darcy conceded easily.They would have a lifetime to vanquish those ghosts.They unknowingly leisurely walked several miles, and upon looking at their watches, they realized it was time to be home. Elizabeth looked around sheepishly. “I totally forgot about Jane and Mr. Bingley. They will wonder where we have gone . . . . Tell me true, Mr. Darcy, did you give Mr. Bingley permission to court my sister again?”
“Bingley needs not my permission,” he claimed his innocence. “What I did give him was my sincerest apology for interfering in his life.”
“Did he forgive you?” Elizabeth teased.
“His letter announcing his engagement to your sister told me I was forgiven.”
“Then you changed your mind about Jane?”
“I knew I was wrong last April.Your insights allowed me to see Miss Bennet as I never saw her before.Then Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner spoke of her affable nature. What could I do but to rescind my judgment? How could I keep Bingley from Miss Bennet and justify my feelings for you? I simply told Bingley he could wait or he could offer his hand; either way, the result would be the same. I watched Miss Bennet in your home, and I knew her regard for Bingley had not diminished.”
Elizabeth thought it to be amusing how easily he could manipulate Mr. Bingley. As they neared Longbourn, they knew they would have to part until Darcy could secure her father’s consent. He felt her conviction as he moved up behind her and rested his hands on her shoulders. Elizabeth turned toward him, captured by his nearness. “Mr. Darcy, you are an exceedingly handsome man.” Her fingers traced his lips.
He caught her hand and kissed her fingertips; Darcy’s eyes danced with the passion he could no longer conceal. “Elizabeth, you gave me the world today. I will spend my life trying to make you happy.”They walked next to each other the rest of the way to Longbourn; they did not need to touch to be connected. Their love was there; that was enough for now.
Entering Longbourn, Jane turned and asked, “My dear Lizzy, where can you have been walking to?”
“Yes,” Kitty added,“we feared something happened to you.”
“I am sorry to plague your sensibilities. We wandered about until I was beyond my own knowledge,” she offered an explanation. Darcy noticed she blushed, but no one else took note of her nervousness. Elizabeth shot Darcy a quick glance, and he gave her back a reassuring smile.
Dinner awaited them, but they purposely sat at opposite ends of the table. Neither could look at the other without betraying the love now openly declared. Darcy, seated next to the man, turned his attentions to her father. “Mr. Bennet, I understand from yourdaughter you are considering some changes at Longbourn. I am also trying to address concerns at Pemberley; would you consider sharing some of the changes of which you are thinking?”
Mr. Bennet’s interest in Darcy increased. “Well, Mr. Darcy,” he began,“what are you considering?”
“A four-crop rotation is one of the prevalent changes my steward Mr. Howard and I have put in place. It is widely used in Scotland and the Americas.”
“A four-crop rotation, you say?”
Throughout the dinner, Darcy’s effort to engage her father pleased Elizabeth. She knew thanks to her earlier censure of this man she now loved, except for Jane, the Meryton Assembly set her family’s opinion of Darcy. Tomorrow she would admit her error in judgment and tell them how much she now esteemed him. Jane and Mr. Bingley talked and laughed together; everyone easily accepted Bingley. Happiness did not take an open path in Darcy’s case, and although she knew him to be so, others would not; plus, Elizabeth feared even with his fortune and consequence, her family may not accept him.
“Are you up for a game of billiards, Darcy?” Charles Bingley called to his friend when they returned to Netherfield.
“Truthfully, Bingley, I would prefer some of your pleasant conversation; that is, if you have anything left to say after spending the day with Miss Bennet,” Darcy smirked.
“She is the most beautiful woman. Do you not agree, Darcy?”
