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“Yes, the last four days have been my favorite part of the trip.” He smiled at her. “It has been nice to free ourselves of the need for a chaperone.”
Elizabeth frowned pensively. “I think we should not tell anyone about our marriage until we have an opportunity to tell Papa.”
“I agree.” Darcy said immediately.
“Good! I was concerned you would not want to wait until we could visit Longbourn.”
“No. I have robbed your father of his chance to consent to the match—”
“We have robbed him. It was a decision we both made. And I am of age.”
“I stand corrected. But, he cannot consent, nor can he give you away. I think we should do him the courtesy of telling him first. Except that I would like to tell Georgiana.”
“Of course! I am so looking forward to meeting her.”
“She will love you,” Darcy predicted confidently.
“I hope so.” Elizabeth fell silent as she tried to bring order to her jumbled thoughts. “It will be difficult when we get to London. I shall have to go to the Gardiners and you to your home.”
“Only for a couple of days and then we can leave for Hertfordshire. Perhaps a few days’ time will be beneficial. If we appear in public, the ton will assume I am courting you.” He smiled rather whimsically at the thought. “We can establish the notion that I am showing you favor, so the news of our marriage will not come as such a shock.”
Elizabeth nodded. “That is an excellent plan.”
“Just about no one knows how I feel about you, so we may benefit if they receive a little warning.”
“If only we had time to do that in Hertfordshire,” she said with a sigh. “I am afraid you will encounter many people at Longbourn who believe that I detest you.”
“Including your father?”
“Yes.” She regarded him apologetically.
“I have to confess, Elizabeth, when I was younger and envisioned asking for a young woman’s hand, I never imagined a father who would be less than pleased.” His smile was ironic.
She laughed. “No, I would suppose not. But to his credit Papa is less concerned about material advantage than with my happiness.”
He raised her hand to his lips. “That is something we have in common.”
“Any disapproval on his part will pass with time,” she predicted. “Once he knows what a fine man you are, he will appreciate you.” Darcy fixed his gaze on the horizon and hoped that she was correct in that assumption. He would be taking her far away from her family, he did not want to create a rift with them as well.
They arrived at Dover around dusk. After Darcy thanked the captain and paid him well, they stepped onto British soil with a great sense of relief. Darcy hired some boys to carry their trunks to a nearby inn he had frequented before. Fortunately the innkeeper had available a pleasant room with attached sitting room that was quite cozy. As they readied themselves for bed, Elizabeth thought with regret that this would be their last night together for at least a couple of days. While she hoped that their families would be happy for them, she knew that they would likely encounter some anger and disappointment. These days together, isolated from those cares, had been a very pleasant interlude. If only it go on forever!
They woke early the next morning to hire a carriage to take them to London. Fortunately, it was not a long trip, and they found themselves pulling up in front of the Gardiners’ house on Gracechurch Street around mid-afternoon. The carriage came to a halt and Darcy gazed onto a very respectable looking townhouse, not at all what he pictured belonging to someone in trade. But then he had been very impressed by the Gardiners when he met them in Paris; they were well-informed, genteel people.
Elizabeth peered out the carriage window at the townhouse and then back at Darcy. “I am going to miss you tonight.”
“Only at night?” He teased. “I will miss you every moment of the day you are not with me.”
“I will as well. But at night I will experience it most acutely.” She tilted her head up at him in a clear invitation. He kissed her deeply and thoroughly, mindful that this might be their last kiss for a while. He did not want to let her leave his arms, but eventually he loosened his grasp with great reluctance, opening the carriage door and helping Elizabeth out.
As they approached the door, Darcy raised his hand to knock, but the door was suddenly opened by the mistress of the house, dressed in a bonnet and gloves to go out. Mrs. Gardiner started for a moment, but then cried “Elizabeth!” and flung her arms around her niece. Her cries brought other inhabitants of the house and Elizabeth was soon encircled by her uncle and the Gardiners’ children.
Darcy retreated to a corner, watching this scene of domestic bliss and musing that his family was seldom so exuberant. He supposed that once he might have found such a display lacking in decorum, but now he saw it as a touching demonstration of how much the family members cared for one another. Visions of enjoying such tranquility crowded his mind as he pictured Elizabeth at Pemberley surrounded by children.
Soon Mrs. Gardiner had sent the children upstairs to resume their studies and ushered Darcy and Elizabeth into the house’s respectable, but not opulent, drawing room for some tea. Mrs. Gardiner could not stop smiling at Elizabeth. “We were so worried about you. We should never have left you behind in France.”
Elizabeth shook her head emphatically, wanting to ensure they suffered no guilt over their actions. “No, Aunt, you made the right choice. I could not have borne it if you had stayed behind for me and been harmed in any way.”
“Did my messages arrive?” Darcy asked as he settled into a chair near Elizabeth. “Did you know why our departure was delayed?” Occasionally during their return voyage he had expressed a concern to Elizabeth that his letters had been lost.
