Mr. Darcy left Elizabeth near the front door of Netherfield and whistled for the groom to take his horse. In moments, he strode to her side and offered his arm. “Shall we go into the gardens and bring my cousin inside before she catches her death?”
Elizabeth nodded and placed her hand upon his arm, her expression one of adorable camaraderie. “Let us hope she shall not become very cross when she finds us together. I do not wish her ill, Mr. Darcy. In fact, my heart is full of pity for the girl. What else might I feel for a lady who shall never know your love and care as a husband? It cannot be a happy time for her.”
Mr. Darcy thought himself so very fortunate to have the love of a lady as kind as Elizabeth Bennet and soon he and his beloved strolled the pathways of the barren garden. Elizabeth called out for Miss Anne as they went along hoping the young lady had given up before she arrived and gone inside to warm herself.
After several more steps and another call of the young woman’s name, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy were startled when a cry arose further down the path. “Miss Bennet, I have turned my ankle! Won’t you please get a footman?”
Mr. Darcy rushed forward with Elizabeth following close behind. She called out to the young mistress just as Mr. Darcy was about to speak. “Do not worry, Miss Anne. Mr. Darcy is with me and he shall carry you inside.”
Anne de Bourgh appeared on the path ahead and stomped her feet in a fit of rage. “Why has Fitzwilliam come with you? You were supposed to come alone!”
Mr. Darcy caught hold of his cousin and shouted at her. “What is the meaning of this Anne? You are as cold as a stone statue. Come, we shall all go inside and you will tell me what foolery you have devised for Miss Elizabeth.”
Mr. Collins burst forth from his hiding place behind a large statue and barreled toward Miss Elizabeth. His lips were puckered and his eyes closed as he collided with his cousin.
Mr. Darcy left Miss Anne standing though she tore at his greatcoat to keep him from Mr. Collins and Miss Elizabeth. “No, Fitzwilliam! Leave them and return to me!”
Elizabeth stumbled under the weight of Mr. Collins as he nearly knocked her down with his blind attack. His lips came perilously near her left cheek but she dodged this clumsy effort while remaining on her feet. Before she might free herself of her cousin’s foolish attempt at compromise, Mr. Darcy appeared.
He took Mr. Collins by the scruff and pulled him away from her with one hand. His other he used to steady her before pulling her close against his side in a protective gesture.
Mr. Collins’s howls of pain mingled with Miss Anne’s angry shrieking and Elizabeth longed to race from the gardens and escape the madness that threatened to overtake her. Mr. Collins had meant to compromise her here as she met with Miss Anne!
She shook with anger and Mr. Darcy released her cousin. Pulling Elizabeth into his arms, he lifted her chin. “Miss Elizabeth, I wished to propose in a more romantic setting but I cannot risk another attempt at compromise on your cousin’s part and so I must know, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? I shall spend my life cherishing each morning I awaken with you by my side.”
Elizabeth gave a whispered yes, happy tears springing to her eyes and he kissed her as though they were lovers parting for eternity.
The enraged screeching of Anne de Bourgh faded in the safe harbor of Mr. Darcy’s arms as the wind whipped Elizabeth’s skirts. Her heart was as tempest-tossed as her clothing and he was her anchor. His tongue parried with her own and the fists that beat upon her back did not signify.
When Mr. Darcy pulled away to shield her from the wrath of his cousin, Elizabeth came to the realization that Miss de Bourgh had torn her bonnet from her head and now delivered such insults as should never fall from the lips of a gentlewoman. Elizabeth was truly shocked but the young lady sounded as wicked as her mother had that night in the parlor.
Mr. Collins, to his credit, took hold of the screeching lady and pulled her away from Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth. “You must come away, Miss Anne! It is too late. He has chosen my cousin and achieved the compromise I could not. I have failed.”
Anne de Bourgh struggled against Mr. Collins and spat at him. “You have disappointed our family for the last time you bottle-headed simpkin! There is not a bit of steel in your spine and I am grieved that my mother only may take your living away!”
Mr. Darcy released Elizabeth and looked to their cousins. “I shall take mine if you will take yours. I believe he must not set foot inside Netherfield again. The storm that shall come once Aunt Catherine finds what has happened will be worsened by his presence.”
Elizabeth agreed and rose on her tiptoes to steal one last kiss from the man she would marry as soon as they were able. “Poor Mr. Collins, he does not deserve such a terrible fate. I must see whether Father might allow him to offer for Mary now that he has lost all. It does not seem fair that he be punished so, though I would not mind were he to suffer for at least another day before being forgiven.”
Mr. Darcy ran a hand through Elizabeth’s windblown hair and bent to whisper in her ear. “And this is why I love you so dearly, my Elizabeth. You are kinder than you ought to be and soften the anger I might hold to no good end.”
“What have I to be unkind for Mr. Darcy? I have won the heart of a man most noble. More’s the pity I hold for my cousin that he felt he must perform such treachery and lose my sister.”
Mr. Darcy walked with his love behind the parson and his hysterical cousin. “Do not be too forgiving my Elizabeth. He owes your sister and family a great deal for all that has passed. There is nothing he shall do that will stay my aunt’s hand in taking his living but I shall provide for him if Miss Mary accepts him.”
Elizabeth leaned her head against his shoulder as they walked along and gave a contented sigh. In her mind, if Mary wished to make a match with Mr. Collins after all that had passed who was she to object. It was true the man was undeserving of her sister’s consideration but love was a healing force, one that could cover a multitude of sins whether the sinner was worthy or not.
The foursome parted as they gained the front of Netherfield. Miss Anne was fighting against Mr. Darcy as he pulled her along to the door but Mr. Collins merely stumbled into the lane beside Elizabeth with his shoulders sagging in defeat.
The servants of Netherfield would spend the coming hours avoiding the ladies upstairs as Lady Catherine and Miss Anne de Bourgh determined to take their leave before darkness fell. Mr. Darcy would not allow the staff to prepare their trunks nor bring the carriage round and so the ladies were made to remain. There was much destruction to the sparsely furnished Netherfield Park and Mr. Darcy was relieved that Mr. Bingley had not yet begun to furnish it in earnest for his bride.
The walk to Longbourn was miserable for Mr. Collins but Elizabeth barely felt her feet touch the ground. Mr. Darcy’s kiss still tingled on her lips. The air had grown colder but her heart blazed with a warmth that would not be diminished. It was entirely possible that she would be Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy before Jane returned from her own wedding trip!
No, she thought, she must await Jane’s return or her sister would never forgive her. Mr. Collins began to mumble and run his hands through his hair as they neared Longbourn.
Elizabeth’s heart was pricked for the man’s predicament though a bit of anger lingered at his foolishness. “Mr. Collins, do try and think of how you might improve your situation instead of behaving as though all is lost.”
The parson whirled on her, his eyes wide and his face redder than Elizabeth thought was healthy. “All is lost! My living is lost, Miss Mary must hate me, and you will tell all to your father. I have lost my gamble to keep some shred of dignity and where shall I go now?”
Elizabeth bit her tongue, for she wished to return his anger but a calmer head was needed. “Sir, you made a terrible choice to interfere with Mr. Darcy and his family. Had you not run back to Kent to report to Lady Catherine, you might have merely returned to your life and allowed some time to pass before coming to Longbourn again to seek my sister’s forgiveness and her hand in marriage. But, and I hesitate to give you hope, Mary does love you and though you have treated her most unfairly, her heart is kind and she will forgive you.”
Mr. Collins brightened at this and begged Elizabeth not to relay his behavior in the garden to her father. “He will not allow me to marry your sister if he knows I made a second attempt to ruin your happiness. I cannot blame him but you are my only hope. Promise you will not give me away.”
Elizabeth would not give the man any assurance. “Nay, Mr. Collins. I will not lie to my father willfully or through an act of omission. He will know all and then you may have your opportunity to petition him for Mary’s hand. Though I forgive you for your attack in the gardens, I will not allow you to escape your responsibility to my family. To be forgiven, you must repent. Surely as a man of God you know it to be true.”
Mr. Collins turned away and seemed to accept his fate at last. The pair approached the front door of Longbourn in much the manner they had left Netherfield, Elizabeth contented and her cousin dejected.