Page 66 of Master of Himself

Lydia’s eyes flared with fire. “Lizzy is a jealous cat,” she said with a defiant sneer. “Wickie paid all of his attention to her when we first met, and he could have brought her to town, but he brought me instead.”

Darcy could scarcely believe the girl’s senseless disregard for propriety.

“You must see reason, my dear Lydia,” Mr Gardiner said in a cajoling tone. “You can’t remain here with a man who isn’t your husband.”

Without waiting for Lydia’s reply, Mr Bennet grabbed her by the wrist and yanked the door open as she squealed in protest.

Wickham stood in the hall holding a plate piled high with bacon, eggs and rolls in one hand, and a cup of coffee in the other.

Mr Bennet pushed his daughter towards Mr Gardiner, who took hold of her. “Name your friends, sir,” Mr Bennet said in a caustic tone.

Lydia struggled to be free of her uncle’s grasp. “No, Papa, don’t call Wickie out. We are to marry.”

“Perhaps we might discuss this in the room, rather than the hall,” Charles said.

Once the door had been closed, Wickham placed the plate and cup on the small table, then offered a servile bow. “Mr Bennet, I humbly beg your pardon for my offences against you and your daughter. I was quite inebriated last night and don’t perfectly recall what happened.”

“What happened, sir, is that you have abducted my daughter and held her under your power all night,” Mr Bennet said with thinly concealed rage.

Wickham nodded. “It may appear that way, but that was never my intention. Please accept my humblest apologies.”

Mr Bennet stared agape, as in disbelief. Even Darcy could scarcely believe Wickham’s polite effrontery.

“I’m afraid there is the matter of my niece’s reputation, sir,” Mr Gardiner said. “If she has been despoiled—”

Wickham held up his hands. “Oh, no, sir, I assure you, I was in no condition to…spoil anyone last night.”

“If you will give us your consent, Papa, we need not go to the expense of travelling all the way to Gretna to marry.”

“Unfortunately, my dear girl, I don’t have thirty thousand pounds to offer your amiable abductor, nor do I believe he treasures the idea of marrying you.”

At this civil condemnation, Wickham turned his focus to the floor, and Lydia continued to voice her complaints.

No one paid her any heed, including her uncle. “Perhaps if you take Lydia to my wife, Thomas, the rest of us can remain here with Mr Wickham and determine what is to be done,” Mr Gardiner said.

Lydia stomped her foot. “No, I shan’t go.”

Taking hold of his daughter’s arm, Mr Bennet dragged her out of the room, with Lydia screeching her objections as though she were being kidnapped. Darcy grabbed the valise, bonnet and pelisse, and followed them down the stairs and out to the street. Lockhart arrived with the carriage, and Darcy instructed him to swiftly convey Mr Bennet and his daughter to Gracechurch and come back for the rest of the party.

Upon returning to the room, he exchanged worried glances with Mr Gardiner and Charles. While he was glad that Lydia had finally been safely returned to her family, what was to be done with Wickham was completely beyond his understanding. Would they be able to come to one accord about the resolution of this intolerable situation? He seriously doubted a favourable outcome.

Chapter 21

Charles’s stomach churned as Wickham sat on the bed munching on bacon and gulping down the coffee. Although he hadn’t eaten so much as a morsel all day, he couldn’t think of food at a time like this.

“What could you have been thinking, absconding with a gentleman’s daughter and refusing to marry her?” Darcy said in an acrimonious tone, quite unlike anything Charles might do.

Wickham shrugged one shoulder. “We were just having a lark. I still have hopes of marrying an heiress from another country.”

Darcy scoffed. “What other country?” he asked, now incredulous. “There’s a war raging on the Continent. Do you hope to meet some heretofore unknown heiress in Paris or, perhaps the Americas?”

“You must think more rationally about this, Wickham,” Charles said, hoping to defuse the situation. “Your charm alone will not recommend you to a woman of fortune, or her father.”

Wickham ignored this advice and finished the last of his breakfast.

Charles sent a pleading glance to Darcy. “I’m certain we can find an agreeable solution for my friend.”

Darcy nodded his understanding. “Have you given any thought to joining the regulars, Mr Wickham?” he inquired, moderating his tone.