Assumed Engagement (8 page)

Darcy abruptly turned his head away from Georgiana. His words came out slow, deliberate, and with great effort. "Miss
Bennet
and I are
not
engaged!"

Georgiana's hands went to her mouth in shock. She could neither move nor could she utter a sound. She looked down, unable to meet the stern gaze of her brother, but knew, from the tone of his voice that he was very angry.

She began shaking and was only able to utter a meek, "I do not understand. You wrote to me…"

"Unfortunately, I did." This was taking more strength than he had, but he had to finish. He took a few more breaths and summoned what little strength he had left. "She refused my offer of marriage!"

A sudden look of alarm spread across Georgiana’s face. She brought her hands to her face and he heard a smothered, "No!" as she pulled farther away from him. "That cannot be! Why did she not tell me? I do not understand!"

Georgiana, gasping and dissolving in sobs, turned and fled from the room, almost colliding with
Durnham
as she ran out the door. Darcy watched in horror as his beloved sister, who had been so grieved over his condition and so grateful for his recovery, was now in a state of anguish and utter shock.

Durnham
rushed in and asked if anything was the matter.

"Get one of the maids and have her see to Miss Darcy; make sure she is all right. Then come back immediately. I have some questions."

His heart pounded, both from the exertion of these last few minutes and his confused emotions.
Why had
Elizabeth
come? Why was she here?
What was he missing? He could not get his mind to come up with any logical answers.
Think, man!
Even if Georgiana had a misunderstanding about whether or not they were engaged,
Elizabeth
certainly did not. He shook his head, trying to sort things out; his brain refused to cooperate.

He brought his hand to his forehead and rubbed it. This was no good! He turned his head to the side, and suddenly caught a scent that drew him back to recollections of last night. The heat, the cold, the voices,
the scent
! His hand slowly reached back as if searching for something, behind his head, under the pillow. He felt something and pulled it out.

It was an embroidered handkerchief. He looked at the colourful embroidery that occupied one corner and his heart stopped as he noticed the initials,
EB
. He brought it to his nose and breathed in the gardenia scent. He recalled the vision of the woman in the night, the fine eyes. As the vague memories became clearer, he now knew they were of
Elizabeth
.

He began to dwell on the fact that
Elizabeth
had been walking the halls of
Pemberley
these last few days. She had eaten in his dining room; sat in his sitting room. Had she taken her early morning walks out in the grounds of
Pemberley
? How many times in the previous months had he imagined her thus, and now, while he had been completely oblivious, she had been there. 
But why?

He had more questions than answers and was anxious for
Durnham
to return. As he heard him hurry back down the hall, Darcy stuffed the handkerchief back under the pillow.

"I have sent Mrs. Reynolds to look after Miss Darcy, Sir."

"Thank you." Darcy took a deep breath. "
Durnham
, was Miss
Bennet
standing over here last night?" he asked pointing to the left side of the bed.

"Miss
Elizabeth
Bennet
was. She spent most of the time with you last night doing all she could to bring down your fever. I came in to assist, but she did most of the work. She certainly seemed to know what to do!"

Darcy tried to think of what else to ask, but he was not sure that
Durnham
would have any answers. He need not have worried, though, because
Durnham
immediately continued, "She has been most helpful to Miss Darcy. She is certainly strong. She came right in and was not at all dismayed at your appearance when she first saw you. You looked quite a fright! Almost looked dead! Poor Miss
Jane
Bennet
, as well as Mr. Bingley, struggled with composure at seeing you!"

Darcy's eyes slowly turned to
Durnham
. "Miss Jane
Bennet
and
Bingley are both here?"
Durnham
nodded.

Realization suddenly hit Darcy. He took a deep breath as he finally was able to formulate a reason for
Elizabeth
’s presence here. She must have come, in response to Georgiana’s letter, to reunite her sister with Bingley. He was not sure how it all came about, but was confident that had to be part of the reason.

Darcy suddenly began issuing orders to
Durnham
. "Draw me a bath and get my clothes! I must get up and get dressed!"

Chapter 6

D
urnham
looked at the fire in Darcy's eyes and felt now, for a certainty, that his master would fully recover. He could not grant his request, however. "I am sorry, Sir, but I must refuse, at least on the latter. The doctor said for you to take things slowly, not to do too much at first. I will draw your bath, granted you need one; however, I will not have you going to all the trouble of dressing. You are still dreadfully unwell. I will get you clean night clothes and your robe, but that will have to suffice!"

"Are you defying me?" asked Darcy incredulously.

"I am only abiding by the orders of the doctor, Sir. Getting up and dressed would not be the wisest thing for you right now. You need to conserve your energy."

"
Durnham
, there are some things I need to discuss with a few people and I cannot do it… dressed like this!"

"And why not, Sir? Everyone in this household has seen you in your night clothes, and
less!"

Darcy abruptly turned to him and asked, "What do you mean
and less
?"

"Last night Miss Elizabeth had to remove your shirt to wipe down your chest with cool cloths." He inwardly smiled, knowing the mortification Darcy must be feeling. "Now, Sir, let me draw your bath. I will summon Winston to help me move you and also get a plate of food and drink for you." He bowed and turned to leave.

Darcy was agitated, but knew he could do nothing without his valet's help. "Fine, let us get to it!"

When
Durnham
set off to draw the bath water, Darcy decided to try to sit up. Once again he felt dizziness overtake him and had to lie back down. He would have to do this in small increments. He did not want to recline in a bed all day. If he was to talk with
Elizabeth
, he wanted to be sitting upright in a chair. He preferred to do it in his dress clothes, but obviously he had to settle for his nightclothes and robe. He shook his head in much consternation.

When
Durnham
returned, Winston accompanied him. They came to the side of the bed, and supporting Darcy's back, slowly lifted him. He closed his eyes as another wave of dizziness swept over him. Once in a sitting position, he put up his hand for
Durnham
to stop. He sat there for a while as he waited and hoped that he would not faint. Finally he indicated to
Durnham
to continue.

His valet helped him swing his feet over the side of the bed. Darcy felt the muscles of his legs scream out to him as he moved them for the first time in five days. He stretched and wiggled his toes, trying to work out the lethargic muscles.

"Now, Mr. Darcy, put your arm around Winston and let him carry as much of your weight as possible. I will not be much help with my broken ankle. But I shall be ready to catch you if you start to fall."

The men went helped Darcy walk to the bath chamber and as he stepped into the bath. As he settled in, he relaxed and felt as if he could fall asleep sitting right there. They did their best to wash his hair and then lathered him with soap. With that finished,
Durnham
prepared his face for shaving. As Darcy leaned his head back, he closed his eyes and was soon fast asleep again.

"I have a feeling that our friend here is going to be worn out by the end of the day!" Winston said to
Durnham
. "You know he will never let himself get all the rest he needs!"

When
Durnham
finished, they let Darcy sleep as long as they could. They knew it would do him good. After a while they gently shook him, and at length Darcy began to stir. He looked around him; feeling a little disoriented, but finally was able to recall all that had transpired that morning.

Both men helped him out of the bath and dressed him in clean nightclothes and his robe. They escorted him back to the infirmary, where they sat him down in the chair that was next to his bed.

"Sir, it would be best if you sit here for a moment to gain more strength before we take you to your study. Try to eat a little bit and have something to drink."

"Thank you. I think I will. Will you check on my sister for me?"

Winston agreed to do that as
Durnham
went back to clean up the bath chamber. Darcy was exhausted, but did not want to let the others know. He sat in the chair, picking at some of the food that was put out for him when he suddenly remembered the handkerchief. He stretched out to reach under the pillow and drew it out, bringing it up to his face. Yes, it still carried the fragrance of gardenia. He quickly, surreptitiously, slipped it into the pocket of his robe.

When Winston returned, he informed Darcy that Georgiana had locked herself in her room and was seeing no one. At this news, Darcy felt an even greater resolve to leave this room. He was more determined than ever to see
Elizabeth
. Since he had discovered she was there, that had become forefront on his mind. He wanted answers from her. He
needed
answers from her. He did not know if he wanted more to shout at her for deceiving his sister or to tell her again how much he loved her, as the memory of the face from last night came again before him. He knew he had to see her.

When
Durnham
and Winston returned to his side, he asked them to take him to his study. As the two men helped him through the great house, Darcy tried his best to walk as much as he could on his own strength. They came to the study and placed him in a large overstuffed chair off to the side of his desk, lifting his feet and placing them upon a footstool.

"Please ask Miss Elizabeth to come see me." He looked over at the two men and added, "Then find Bingley. I want to talk to him, after I have seen her." They nodded and set out to carry out his request.

When left to himself, Darcy wondered what he would say when she came in; how he would respond to seeing her again! His mind was in turmoil, wondering if she deceived Georgiana out of a vindictive spirit in anger against him or simply a selfish one in trying to reunite her sister and Bingley. He could not believe she would be so malicious, but why had she been so uncaring in how she treated his sister?

Winston went out to search for Bingley, but was told that he had most abruptly gone outside with Miss Jane
Bennet
when news spread of Darcy's awakening. Upon searching the grounds closest to the house, he could not be found.

Elizabeth
had just come downstairs when
Durnham
found her.

"Miss
Bennet
," he bowed. "Mr. Darcy wishes to see you in his study."

Elizabeth
's jaw dropped and her eyes widened in disbelief. "Mr. Darcy has awakened, then?" She suddenly felt discomposure quickly spread throughout her body.

"Yes. He is expecting you."

Elizabeth
was not prepared for this. When she left him last night he had not fully awakened. Obviously he had discovered she was there.
What must he think of my being here?
she wondered.

Knocking lightly at the door, she heard his voice weakly command her to come in. She timidly stepped inside looking at first toward the desk, but then moving her eyes over to where he sat in the chair. He still looked pale and weak, but he sat upright. She noticed now how fresh and clean he looked; how the curls on his head were still wet from being washed and the locks were glimmering and bouncing in the light, unlike the other night when they had been matted to his forehead.

When she met his gaze, however, she saw a steely determination that caused her to draw back.

"Mr. Darcy," she politely said and curtseyed. "I am so glad to have heard you are recovering. We have been quite concerned."

"Hmmm, yes. Thank you, Miss
Bennet
. Please excuse me for not rising." He noticed she seemed tired, there was very little light in her eyes and they were dark. She seemed uneasy, but he still found her very engaging.

There was an awkward silence that
Elizabeth
broke. "I am sure you must be wondering what I am doing here." She smiled nervously, gearing herself for the explanation she had planned to give him.

"No, Miss
Bennet
. I perfectly comprehend your reason for being here." His voice became harsh despite his obvious struggle to maintain his strength. "It is fairly obvious that you came here with your sister with the intention of reuniting her with Bingley; throwing her back in his favour!"

"Excuse me, Sir. I do not believe she was ever
out
of his favour!"

"But you agree that you came here for the sole purpose of manipulating the situation between the two of them!"

"Manipulate! Mr. Darcy, if anyone did any manipulating, it was you! You manipulated Mr. Bingley's affection to steer him unwillingly away from my sister! Coming here only provided them the opportunity to meet again. What you did to separate them was unwarranted and unjust! I do not believe that you could have been more wrong about the feelings two people have for each other!"

He looked at her; his eyes boring through her. "Quite the contrary, Miss
Bennet
, I assure you. I believe there was another time when I was
more
wrong!"

Elizabeth
looked at him, feeling as if he had twisted a knife in her back and then she looked down. She felt as though the world was spinning around her.

When she finally looked back at him, she met his gaze. She wondered why every meeting with this man resulted in argument. Where was the man for whom Georgiana had been so full of praise? Where was the man who was so generous and thoughtful? Where was the smile that beckoned down at her from his portrait, but always seemed hidden from her somewhere deep inside?

Unexpectedly he became civil again and asked, "Now that you are here at
Pemberley
, how do you like it?"

His sudden change of manner surprised her. "I like it very much, Sir. It is a grand place that I am sure anyone would find to their liking."

He accepted her response and asked, "And Georgiana, you have gotten to know her well?"

"Um, yes,"
Elizabeth
suddenly gulped.
Where was Georgiana?
Why had she not seen her since she had gotten up? Why was she not at her brother's side, even now?
"She is a very sweet girl. I have enjoyed her company."

Darcy noticed
Elizabeth
's fine eyes suddenly dart about, filling with dread. "Have you?" he asked sarcastically.

Darcy shifted in his chair, looking past
Elizabeth
, and then looked back at her. "I have been quite unaware of what has happened here these last few days, as you well know. But may I ask you why you let my sister believe that we were engaged the whole time you have been here and did not tell her the truth?"

Elizabeth
gasped and her hands flew to her mouth. Her eyes widened with a fear that was too great to disguise.

"Sir, where is Georgiana now?"

"Apparently she has locked herself in her room and will not allow anyone in to see her."

He looked at
Elizabeth
intently, waiting for a response, but she seemed stunned, unable to say anything.

He continued, "When I told her that we were
not
engaged, as apparently she had been led to believe; that you had refused my offer of marriage, she fled the room in great distress!"

Elizabeth
could bear it no longer. She muttered a very anguished, "Excuse me," and rushed out of the room. The last Darcy heard was, "I must go talk with her!"

Darcy crumbled in his chair. He put his head back and felt great distress. In one morning he had the two most exceptional women in his life run out of his room completely distraught. He knew not what to make of it. In one way, he owed
Elizabeth
his life, feeling it was her very presence that helped pull him back out of that dark chasm in which he found himself last night. Yet how could she have behaved this way toward his beloved sister?