Elizabeth waited until she and Mr. Bingley were seated in his carriage before she spoke again. “What do you make of Mr Darcy’s behavior? I did not expect an apology nor his support. It unnerves me if I’m honest.”
Charles shook his head. “Darcy is a good man, though he is often his own worst enemy in polite company. I believe he and I might mend our friendship since he has taken up for you against the Matlocks.”
“He looked as though he’d seen a ghost today. I wonder if that had to do with you.” Elizabeth swiped at imaginary lint on her skirts.
“Oh, I’m quite certain it was seeing you that unsettled him. And knowing you wed his closest cousin. Caroline has told me he admired you at Lucas Lodge that evening though she could never understand why.”
Elizabeth raised her head quickly at this bit of news. “And you believed her?”
“Oh, I know it was true Lizzy. Caroline was most angry and shocked as she had hoped Mr. Darcy would love her. Instead he admitted his ardor was for you.”
The idea that Mr. Darcy might have found her tempting elicited a loud snort and Mr. Bingley was startled into laughter at this most unladylike noise.
When he had regained his composure, Charles grew serious. “It is a good thing he favors you. His word will sway the Matlocks. I expect we will hear from their solicitor in but a few days’ time. Would you care to see the townhome they will give to you and young Richard?”
Elizabeth had not thought they might reconsider. In fact, she thought it highly likely Lady Matlock would withhold every penny and forget Elizabeth existed.
“If only to please you,” she replied but followed with an admonition, “but we must return home to Jane soon.”
Charles tapped on the roof of the carriage a little further down the road and they were stopped at the front door of a magnificent townhome. Elizabeth noted its proximity to Matlock House. Charles helped her down from the carriage and led her up the steps.
“We are not going in are we?” Elizabeth asked, her voice a desperate hiss.
“We are indeed. There is staff present because they thought you might take their offer this day. Lady Matlock may be a fearsome foe, but she would never have her friends and neighbors gossip over how the widow of her second son was installed in an empty townhome.”
Raising the brass knocker, Mr. Bingley nodded further down the road. “Darcy House is just there, the one with the dark green door.”
He turned and winked at Elizabeth. She elbowed him sharply in the ribs. At that moment, the door flew open and Elizabeth nudged her brother.
“Mrs. Fitzwilliam, I presume?”
The distinguished gentleman seeking her identity must be the butler and Elizabeth nodded to him, a small smile curving her lips. “I am. And you are?”
The butler stepped smartly aside and with a flourish of his gloved hand, bade them enter. “I am Mr. Harley, ma’am, your butler here at Fitzwilliam House. Please accept my deepest condolences on the loss of your husband. The colonel was my favorite from amongst his family, but I beg you not to repeat such a scandalous admission from a mere servant.”
The man bowed his head just a moment too long and Elizabeth knew he must have cared deeply for her husband. “I am honored to make your acquaintance Mr. Harley. Richard mentioned several times that his love for soldiering was due to your influence.”
The butler forgot himself and took her hand. “I cannot tell you how it pains my heart to know it, Mrs. Fitzwilliam. Would that he had never seen a battlefield. I shall serve you as long as you wish it so.”
Elizabeth felt a warmth in her heart that bloomed throughout her body. How odd it was that a servant truly welcomed her into the Fitzwilliam family and grieved her husband as one of his own.
The butler offered a tour of the townhome, but Mr. Bingley remarked they would not be long. The man bowed to Elizabeth and left them in the entryway. Mr. Bingley placed an arm around her and pulled Elizabeth close. She rested her head on his shoulder and gave a deep sigh.
“It has been enough today, Lizzy. Let us go home to Jane, Rose, and Richard. I should not have brought you here.”
“No, it was wonderful to meet Mr. Harley. If we shall settle here, at least there is yet another friend to greet us.”
Charles felt a sharp twist in his chest for his widowed sister. Their meeting with Richard’s family had shaken her confidence. “You are welcome at Bingley House as long as you wish to stay, Lizzy. And there is your aunt and uncle. Do not allow today’s events to bring you unnecessary pain. You have many friends and family standing by your side.”
As they turned to leave the townhome, Elizabeth took her brother’s assurance to heart. She was not alone in the world and she had shown the Matlocks she was not one to dismiss.
But their behavior worried her when it came to her son. How might they react to the news of his existence? As she hurried down the steps of Fitzwilliam House, a cold gust of evening air sent a chill through her that matched the one squeezing her heart.