Assumed Engagement (10 page)

"May I congratulate you on your upcoming wedding? Both Elizabeth and my brother informed me you are to be married! I am so very pleased that you became engaged right here at
Pemberley
!"

"Thank you, Miss Darcy" they both replied.

She then walked over to
Elizabeth
. "Miss Elizabeth, before you leave, I want to tell you how much your visit meant to me. I do look forward to seeing you again when we visit Hertfordshire for the wedding."

Elizabeth
took Georgiana’s hands in hers. There was so much she wanted to say; so much she wanted to convey. "Georgiana, I have genuinely enjoyed my visit with you also." She gave her hands a squeeze. "And believe me; I am truly sorry for any hurt I caused you by not imparting the truth about your brother and myself to you. I never meant to hurt you."

"Do not concern yourself, Miss Elizabeth. I am just grateful that my brother is greatly improved, and for that, I have much to thank you for."

"No,"
Elizabeth
laughed, "I am sure it was mostly his strong constitution that was fighting for him."

Georgiana excused herself to go back to her brother in the study, as he was directly to be taken to his own room. Winston and
Durnham
stayed at his side as they ushered him past the dining room. Bingley and Jane went out to greet him and had some dialogue with him while
Elizabeth
remained where she was. Her absence was very noticeable.

She decided to retire early that night, knowing they would be rising early in preparation to leave. It had been a long day and she was fatigued. How good it would feel to sink into bed and drift off to sleep. When Jane finally came in a bit later,
Elizabeth
was so sound asleep; she did not even wake up.

*~*~*

The next morning a maid came and tapped lightly at the door to waken the two sisters. It was still fairly dark outside and the air was cool. It took all of
Elizabeth
’s strength to pull the covers off and begin getting ready. When they both had finished dressing, they packed all the miscellaneous items that had been needed for the morning. Before they left the room, they gave one last glance around, making sure nothing was left.
Elizabeth
hoped she would find her handkerchief, but it was still not to be found.

The smell of tea and sweet rolls greeted them. Quite a few servants were up and scurrying about. As Elizabeth and Jane enjoyed their last breakfast at
Pemberley
, footsteps were heard out in the hall.
Elizabeth
looked over and caught an informally dressed Darcy pass by. He was walking on his own, but
Durnham
was at his side. He looked in the doorway just as she looked out. Their eyes locked in a gaze that
Elizabeth
could not turn from. She shuddered as she remembered her decision to go to him and ask for forgiveness before she left. He did not come in to the dining room so she assumed he was going down to the study again.

She knew what she had to do, but waited a few minutes for him to get settled.
Durnham
came in and poured a cup of coffee and prepared a plate of food for him. "Excuse me, Mr.
Durnham
. Do you think Mr. Darcy would be willing to see me right now?"

He smiled and assured her now would be a most convenient time. She followed him back to the room and he stood aside to allow her to walk in before him. When Darcy looked up and saw
Elizabeth
, it gave him a start, having expected it to be
Durnham
. He looked a little sheepish, as he quickly looked down and placed something from his hand into his trouser pocket. He took the cup of coffee from
Durnham
, who then excused himself.

"Good morning, Miss
Bennet
. I hope you and your sister are well.

"We are. Thank you. And you?"

"I feel greatly improved this morning. Thank you. I understand you are to leave this morning. I hope you found your stay at
Pemberley
hospitable."

"It was Sir, very much so." She paused to gather her thoughts. He was being civil; that helped. She could not determine what he was thinking or feeling by the look on his face. When she had walked in and he saw her, he looked startled; a little ruffled. She knew her being there must cause him much uneasiness.

"I wanted to speak with you before I left to tell you how sorry I am for the misunderstanding and subsequent hurt that my silence caused your sister. Please forgive me."

"That is very gracious of you Miss
Bennet
. I do forgive you. She apparently has a very high regard for you that has not been altered by this."

"Thank you."

Darcy continued to look upon her, trying to discern her feelings toward him.
Elizabeth
struggled with trying to meet his gaze. She finally looked away, feeling herself at a loss for words.

An awkward silence hung in the air, until
Elizabeth
finally responded, "Well, goodbye, Sir. May God grant you a complete and speedy recovery."

"Thank you. May you and your sister have a safe trip home."
How trite that sounded!
How much more he wanted to say, but the disconcerted look on her face said it all to him. She wanted nothing more than to be out of his presence.

She nodded and found that all she could utter was a soft, "Thank you; goodbye, then." She curtseyed and exited the room.

Darcy’s heart had been pounding all the while she stood before him, his hand holding tightly onto the handkerchief that was still in his pocket. He almost pulled it out to give it back to her, but selfishly changed his mind. As she walked out, he let out the breath he had been unwittingly holding and dropped his head back. He pulled out the handkerchief and without thinking, put it to his face. He noticed that the scent of gardenia was fading; that he had to inhale more deeply now to catch any scent. He wondered whether his love and admiration for
Elizabeth
would eventually fade too, just as this scent had.

Georgiana finally came down and was visiting with Charles and Jane in the dining room when
Elizabeth
returned. The young girl excused herself for a moment to go to her brother, and
Elizabeth
walked toward the door to go outside as their things were being loaded on to the carriage. Charles accompanied Jane into the study as well so she could say goodbye to Darcy.

Georgiana returned directly and stood next to
Elizabeth
. "I shall miss you, Elizabeth. I have enjoyed my time here with you. Please forgive me if I made you at all uncomfortable by my assumption of your engagement with my brother. I know that it must have put you in a very awkward situation."

"Georgiana, please do not concern yourself. Much good came out of what you did. I greatly enjoyed my stay here and making your acquaintance."

"I look forward to our visit to Hertfordshire. I should very much like to meet your family and see where you live," the young girl softly said.

"I look forward to that too, Georgiana." She took her hand and squeezed it.

When Charles and Jane came back out, all goodbyes were said.
Elizabeth
could see the anguish in Charles’ eyes in Jane having to leave. He and Georgiana stood back as the two girls approached the carriage. Suddenly Georgiana ran forward to
Elizabeth
, giving her a big hug and burying her head against her shoulder. "Thank you for everything,
Elizabeth
!" Tears ran down her face.

Elizabeth
wrapped her arms around her, and then pulled away, looking into her eyes. "Georgiana, you did much yourself. Now, do not let those tears spoil your pretty face. If I only had my handkerchief, I would wipe each of those tears away, but unfortunately I have misplaced it somewhere."

"I shall inquire whether anyone has found it," Georgiana offered.

Elizabeth
smiled at the girl. As she turned to go, she caught sight of the window to the study. She saw a slight movement in the reflection that drew her attention, but for the glare of the sun could not ascertain what it was.

*~*~*

Being left alone in the study, Darcy pulled himself up and slowly walked over to window. How often he had gone to a window and looked out at nothing, as a means of escape from what was inside – both inside of him and inside his surroundings. Now he looked out at someone leaving who had so captivated his heart that he was unsure what to do about it. He had been angry with her yesterday; at the hurt she had caused his sister. He watched, though, as Georgiana ran over to her and hugged her and how
Elizabeth
had returned the hug in a very fervent way. It gripped the depths of his emotions as he realized she had not just captured his heart, but his sister’s as well.

He watched as
Elizabeth
’s eyes glanced up at the study window. His eyes remained fixed on her although he drew back from the window. He knew not whether she saw him; he should not be watching her like this. He continued to watch her, however, as she stepped into the carriage, followed by her sister, and soon they were whisked away. He felt transfixed and unable to move, watching the carriage until it was completely out of sight. He stood there for a few more minutes until he heard Bingley’s boisterous entrance into the room.

"Darcy, you are a hypocritical cad!"

Darcy looked at him with a resignation that, for some reason, his friend was none too happy with him.

"Now that you have regained some strength, maybe you have regained some of your sense enough to enlighten me as to what has been going on!"

"You are referring to…?"

"You and Miss Elizabeth
Bennet
! Now you need not fear, I did not say anything to either one about how unrelenting you were in trying to persuade me against Miss
Bennet
because, according to your own words, the
Bennet
family was completely unsuitable. Now, however, I would like to know exactly why you were so set against the two of us, all the while you had designs on her sister!"

Darcy looked at him with much contemplation. Yes, he was right to be confused; to be upset. Darcy had assiduously tried to keep him and Miss
Bennet
apart. Then he had turned right around and asked for her sister’s hand in marriage.

"Bingley, I did it for a number of reasons. Most of those reasons were for my benefit though; only one, I believe, was for your benefit."

"Explain. I am listening."

Darcy narrowed his eyes in thought. "When I told you that Miss Jane
Bennet
showed very little regard for you, I felt she saw you solely as a prospective husband for reasons of monetary advantage only. You know her mother and how set she was to marry her daughters off to any man of considerable means. No offence intended, Bingley, but I truly felt she had no love for you – that I could see – and I felt it would be a mistake for you to marry her if she did not have the same affections for you as you did for her. Obviously I was most wrong and I apologize for it."

"You actually admit you were wrong and apologize?"

Darcy nodded.

"Apology accepted. Now what about those other reasons – for
your
benefit?"

Darcy’s jaw tightened. "I was referring to her inferior connections and her family’s appalling manners. These reasons were given not so much for your benefit, but for mine. I had developed strong feelings of attachment for Miss Elizabeth, but could not,
would
not, allow myself to pursue her because of those very things. Every time I brought up those issues with you, I was trying to convince myself of the validity – the necessity – of heeding that argument. I was determined to do whatever it took to keep you and Miss
Bennet
, apart for I knew that if you married her, it would throw me constantly in Miss Elizabeth’s presence and I would be powerless to keep my resolve."