AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Darcy nodded. Mr. Gardiner’s reserve indicated that the servants had not been told Elizabeth was missing. Like her father and sister, the Gardiners had protected her reputation at the cost of their own peace of mind.
They had not been in Mr. Gardiner’s study long enough for Elizabeth to explain their presence when the door opened and a slender, extremely well-dressed woman several years older than Darcy slipped inside. Without uttering a single word, she enfolded Elizabeth in a tight embrace, and Darcy had the fleeting thought that they appeared more like sisters than aunt and niece.
“Oh, my dearest girl,” the woman cried with relief. “Thank God you are safe.”
“I thank both God and these gentlemen, Aunt Gardiner,” he heard Elizabeth say. She stepped away from her aunt and made the introductions.
Mr. Gardiner was entirely different from his sisters. His dress was fashionable without ostentation, and his entire demeanor displayed a keen intelligence. “Do your parents know you are well, Elizabeth?” he asked gruffly.
“They do, sir. My cousin and I were with Mr. Bennet and Miss Bennet earlier today,” Darcy replied. “You will no doubt receive a letter tomorrow.”
“Yes,” Mrs. Gardiner said weakly. “Jane will write.”
Elizabeth took her aunt’s hand. “I am so very sorry for worrying you and uncle.”
Darcy wanted to declare that it was hardly her fault, but Mr. Gardiner was impatient for an explanation.
“Ladies,” Mr. Gardiner said, gesturing to the chairs, “normally I would ask to speak with the gentlemen privately, but these are not ordinary times.”
“No sir,” Darcy agreed. “They are not.”
They took turns telling the story as they knew it. Elizabeth began, and then he and Fitz told their parts in equal measure, including the afternoon’s frightening events and the countess’s invitation, which produced a small gasp from Mrs. Gardiner.
“Elizabeth, you are to marry Mr. Darcy?”
His lovely betrothed beamed as she confirmed the news. Mrs. Gardiner offered her best wishes for them both and hurried Elizabeth upstairs to pack her belongings.
“Oh, Elizabeth!” Aunt Gardiner cried, her relief and happiness apparent in the way the words tumbled from her. “I have been so distressed for you. But now you are to marry—and to a Darcy of Pemberley! I knew of his parents, for I spent much of my childhood in Lambton within five miles of that great estate.”
“So near?” Elizabeth inquired with interest. “Have you acquaintances there? Will you and my uncle visit us?”
“You could hardly keep me away,” Aunt Gardiner said with a laugh and took Elizabeth’s hand. “Oh, Lizzy. Mr. Darcy seems to be a fine man. Only tell me that this is a marriage of mutual respect and affection, and I shall be entirely well.”
Elizabeth squeezed her aunt’s hand. “If you had posed this question before the ball at Netherfield, aunt, my answer would be quite different. I have mistaken Mr. Darcy for weeks, but once I knew the truth, I could not help but love him.”
Aunt Gardiner touched her left arm. The splint was hidden beneath her sleeve, but her aunt possessed sharp eyes. “What happened here?”
“I was injured before I arrived at Mr. Darcy’s home,” Elizabeth explained. She frowned. “He has been a rather determined nurse.”
Aunt Gardiner laughed softly. “A good match for you, then,” she teased. “He is a bit stately, but his care for you is evident. Do you respect him as well as love him, my dear? For I know you, more than most, require both.”
“He is not perfect,” Elizabeth admitted. “But neither am I. He is everything good, and I do not believe I have ever met a better man. He is stately and stiff at times, but he is also clever and strong and kind.”
Aunt Gardiner sighed happily. “I never thought to see you besotted, Lizzy. It is enough for me. We must pack your trunk.”
“It will not require a great deal of time, Aunt,” Elizabeth said. “I have only a few gowns here, and Jane’s would not suit.” Her sister was several inches taller and her figure more fully formed.
Her aunt waved a hand in the air. “But mine will, at least until your handsome Mr. Darcy sends you to the modiste for your own.”
Elizabeth shook her head vigorously. “Oh no, Aunt Gardiner, I could not!”
Aunt Gardiner crossed her arms over her chest. “And why is that? You and I are nearly of a size. Do you think my dresses are not good enough for a countess? Your uncle’s fabrics grace all the shops in Mayfair as well as Cheapside.”
“You know very well that is not my complaint, Aunt,” Elizabeth said with a fond shake of her head. “I could not rob you of your gowns when you might have need of them!”
Aunt Gardiner lifted an eyebrow. “Do not be ridiculous, Lizzy. One thing I have in abundance is gowns made up of your uncle’s best fabrics. I am a walking advertisement, he says, and therefore must always look smart.” Her eyes shone. “My husband is not a romantic, but he has his own ways of spoiling me. Besides, you are only borrowing them, and you have nothing to wear on your wedding day. Oh!” she cried enthusiastically. “I have just the thing.”
Elizabeth’s eyes teared as she watched her normally composed aunt dart to her wardrobe and, with a flourish, remove the most stunning dress Elizabeth had ever seen.
