| |
Lizzy was dancing a cotillion with Colonel Fitzwilliam when Darcy re-entered the ballroom. He looked grave but not the worse for whatever he had encountered in his uncle’s study. She caught his eye, and he gave her a reassuring smile.
“What do you think, Colonel?” Lizzy asked. “Has my reputation been utterly ruined?”
“Do you mean your reputation as the most bewitching woman in London? On the contrary, Darcy has sealed it. The man is besotted.”
She grinned. “You are too kind.”
“Not at all. I daresay Darcy is the envy of half the men here tonight.”
Lizzy let the subject drop. Only time would tell what the fallout would be of the night’s events. If anyone could manage a potential scandal, it was Lady Matlock.
Lizzy would not mind for herself. She would happily retire to the country and leave the ton behind. She worried for Georgiana. If this evening’s foolishness hurt the girl’s prospects... Ah well, there was no point wondering about that now. They would have to wait and see.
After the dance, Lady Cressida came and kissed Lizzy’s cheek. She looked radiant in a gown of yellow silk, with white flowers in her hair. “My dear, I am so happy for you. You and Mr. Darcy will be deliriously happy.”
Lizzy tilted her head as a smile crept over her lips. “I believe we shall.”
“You and I will be neighbours, you know,” Cressida said. “Greymore Park is not an hour’s ride from Pemberley. I shall convince Mama to hold a house party in October. The men can go shooting, and the ladies... We can decide what our husbands and brothers will work on when Parliament reconvenes.”
Lizzy chuckled. “That sounds delightful.”
Cressida stepped closer. “We must be serious a moment, though. Priscilla is one of my dearest friends, but a complete ninny. You must have deduced that by now.”
Lizzy nodded. “She reminds me of one of my sisters. Kitty is too easily influenced and exposes her mind to all sorts of foolishness.”
“Then you understand. Priscilla has a kind heart but not a bit of sense. I know you will not hold that against her. As for Lady Wayne, however...”
Lizzy stiffened. Cressida had touched a nerve. Viscountess Wayne was somehow more difficult to forgive. She had leapt on the opportunity to rid herself of an unwanted charge. And to saddle Darcy with a bride who would have made him miserable for the rest of his days. That kind of selfishness seemed unpardonable.
“Lady Wayne has had a difficult time since she married,” Cressida explained. “Lord Wayne was then heir to a title and a vast fortune. He was precisely the sort of man she had been raised for. From what I have heard, it was a love match. But one cannot live on love alone.”
Cressida hinted at the challenges the Waynes had sustained. Unscrupulous business associates had preyed on the old earl during his final illness. Lizzy pressed her hand to her chest in shock. “How awful! Lord Wayne is such a kind man—at least he has always been so to me. I am sorry for the trouble that has befallen his family.”
“I am afraid the viscountess was unprepared for the change in her circumstances.” Cressida spoke gravely. “She was raised for a life that revolved around parties and fashion. Her current situation is nothing like what she thought she was marrying into.”
Lizzy shook her head, a sudden sorrow welling in her chest. “It must be a dreadfully difficult adjustment.”
Cressida nodded. “Perhaps you can understand why, when she saw a chance for Priscilla to marry well, she grabbed it. It would have been a disastrous match, to be sure, but Priscilla would have been provided for.”
“Yes...yes, I see.” Lizzy swallowed hard. With her background, she could appreciate the viscountess’s desperation. The need to see a charge well married could drive a woman to all sorts of ridiculous machinations.
Lizzy thanked Cressida for the information. If the viscountess would let the matter drop, Lizzy was inclined to do so as well.
When the time came for the supper waltz, Darcy claimed her without ceremony. They got into position on the dance floor as they waited for the set to begin. Placing a hand at Lizzy’s waist, Darcy leaned towards her and said in her ear, “You are mine, Lizzy.”
“Goodness,” she teased, breathing his scent of wool and bay rum, now so familiar to her. “Is that a promise or a threat?”
He looked at her with wide eyes, as if taken aback. “A promise, I assure you. You are mine, just as I am yours.”
She regarded him, losing herself in a wave of bliss. With her palm resting on his shoulder, she stroked her thumb over the wool of his jacket. Gently, she murmured, “I like the sound of that.”
He growled, and his gaze fell to her lips.
“Behave,” she warned.
“If I must.” His eyes grew dark. “But I hope I shall not have to behave for long.”
Her chest rose with a quick intake of breath. She looked up at him in a panic. She had heard of engaged couples taking liberties before exchanging their vows. But she had no intention of—
“I ride to Hertfordshire tomorrow,” he explained, “to ask your father’s permission. I can secure a license, and we can be married within the week.”
Unable to speak, she stood frozen. When the music began, she followed the steps mechanically. A week! She had not conceived of marrying so soon. If she had thought of it at all, she had imagined a double ceremony with Jane and Bingley after Easter.
“I expected we would wait for the banns to be read,” she said at last.
He said lightly, “A license is but a few pounds, and then the banns can be dispensed with.”
“Yes, of course,” she replied. To a man of Darcy’s means, a few pounds was nothing.
“You would rather wait?” he asked, eyeing her, his brows drawn.
“Not necessarily. This is happening so fast, I can hardly think.”
He nodded, hesitating a beat. “Forgive me. I should not have assumed—”
“Please, sir, you have me at a disadvantage.” She swallowed and collected her thoughts before continuing. “A man may make plans, where a woman may only wait and hope. I had given no thought to a wedding until tonight. I am open to your suggestion, but I may need some hours to adapt.”
He looked away, his expression downcast. “I was foolish to think you would wish to marry so soon.”
The disappointment in his face touched her heart. “Not at all,” she insisted. “I simply need time to think through our options. In the meantime, pray do not be discouraged. Your wish to marry quickly is most endearing.” She gave him a smile.
Darcy’s lips quirked up at that. “I am glad you see it that way. I would not wish to pressure you.”
“I must warn you, sir, you shall not find me so docile as to relinquish my every wish to your command.”
“That is a relief.”
She laughed, a sense of pure joy rushing through her. No man could be more perfect for her than Darcy. But a week! Could they truly be married in a week? Her head spun at the possibility.
***
DARCY LED LIZZY INTO the supper room, feeling conspicuous. What had he been thinking, kissing her in front of the assembly? He and his betrothed would be the subject of gossip for the next fortnight.
Somehow, the prospect did not bother him in the least.
Lady Matlock insisted they sit at her table. They would need to put up a united front, she said. Arabelle and Greymore joined them.
“How are you enjoying the ball, Lady Arabella?” Lizzy asked. “I see you have had a partner for every dance.”
“Oh yes, it has been a splendid evening! And you must call me Arabelle, now that you are to be family.”
“Thank you. And please call me Lizzy.”
Greymore inserted, “You are a lucky dog, Darcy.”
“I am,” Darcy said with a quick nod, giving him a grin. He remembered what Greymore had said in the house at Berkeley Square, when he gave up his suit. Lizzy might have been a countess if she had pursued the man. She had chosen Darcy.
His heart swelled with the joy of it. He had been the worst possible suitor, and yet their hearts had recognized the truth. The two of them fit together effortlessly.
As the meal wound down, Darcy leaned towards Lizzy. “You recall this afternoon, I said I had invited Miss Peabody to Pemberley?”
“Heavens!” Lizzy said. “I had forgotten about that.”
“Lady Matlock suggested that you extend the invitation to Miss Peabody as well. An olive branch, so to speak, but also to show that you do not consider her a rival.”
Lizzy suppressed a laugh, her cheeks pinking from the effort. “Indeed I do not. Should I speak to the Waynes now, do you think, or wait until some of the discomfort has subsided?”
“The sooner the better, I would say.”
She arched her brows and said in his ear, “Wish me luck.”
***
WHEN LIZZY SPOTTED the Waynes, Miss Peabody was sitting with them. She looked forlorn, wearing a gown Lizzy recognized as Arabelle’s. The Fitzwilliams had made sure Priscilla was supplied with dance partners. But the poor thing must be feeling chastised after the way the night had turned out.
Lizzy took the empty seat next to Lord Wayne. “I understand Darcy invited Miss Peabody to visit Georgiana at Pemberley this autumn.”
“The subject has been discussed, yes.” The viscount gave her a wary smile, with no enthusiasm in his eyes.
Lizzy turned to Miss Peabody and met her eyes. “I certainly hope she will be able to come, if the viscountess can spare her. Georgiana’s companion, Mrs. Annesley, and I shall arrange a variety of activities for the girls. Perhaps we can start a reading circle, as Miss Peabody is fond of books.”
“Acting as mistress of Pemberley already,” the viscountess said with a saccharine smile.
“Darcy and I hope to be married within the week,” Lizzy replied, surprising herself. Well, why not? If that kiss had been any hint of what marriage held for them, they might as well get on with it.
“By Jove,” Wayne exclaimed, “that Darcy wastes no time.”
Lizzy tittered. “One might say that.” Or, she thought, one might say it took him an inordinate amount of time to propose, given their history. She recalled the days she had spent at Netherfield while Jane was ill. Darcy’s eyes had followed her whenever they were together. She had thought him looking to disapprove, but had he loved her even then?
It occurred to her that in truth, Darcy had not proposed. He had kissed her. He had said he loved her. He had told the assembly they were engaged. But he had not, in fact, asked for her hand.
For some reason, that troubled her. Would he have proposed, if circumstances had not forced his hand? When faced with the prospect of marrying Miss Peabody, had Lizzy been the lesser of two evils?
Her blood chilled at the idea. She ended the conversation with the Waynes on a cordial note. Then, she went back to Darcy just in time for him to escort her into the ballroom for the final dances of the evening.
Distressed as she was, she hardly attended to her partners. She would rather die a spinster than spend her life with a man who did not want her with his whole heart. She could not let him make that sacrifice, no matter what it cost her.
Part of her berated herself for doubting him. In truth, she was not thinking clearly. It was late, and she was exhausted. She would speak with him on the morrow.