Page 80 of Mr. Darcy and the Mysterious "Miss B"
“She wrote to multiple newspapers, hoping one would print her tale. When the first notice appeared, she followed it with additional rumours to keep the story alive.” Elizabeth’s voice dropped to a whisper. “She wanted to force you into an uncomfortable situation, the way you had forced Jane into one with your interference between her and Mr Bingley.”
“Good God.” Darcy began to pace the room, running his hands through his hair. “Your mother orchestrated this entire scheme out of revenge?”
“Yes. Though she never intended for it to become what it did between us. She was quite surprised when I claimed to be Miss B, but pleased when she thought something genuinemight develop.” Elizabeth watched him anxiously. “Are you very angry?”
Darcy stopped pacing and turned to face her. To Elizabeth’s amazement, his lips were twitching with suppressed amusement.
“I suppose I should be concerned,” he said, “that my future mother-in-law despised me enough to spread false rumours through the London papers in order to trap me in an unwanted marriage.”
Elizabeth’s own lips curved upward. “She has changed her opinion of you since then. She thinks you are quite wonderful now.”
“I am relieved to hear it.” Darcy’s smile widened. “Though I suspect this will make for entertaining dinner conversation in years to come. Our children will certainly be thoroughly amused by the tale of how their grandmama engineered their parents’ courtship through scandal and deception.”
“Children?” Elizabeth’s voice was barely a whisper.
Darcy moved to stand before her. “Elizabeth, surely you do not think I would wish to end our engagement over such revelations? I have told you already—I love you. Not because of how we came together, but because of who you are. Your intelligence, your loyalty to your family, your courage in facing adversity. I love your quick wit and your generous heart. I love the way you challenge me to be better than I am.”
Elizabeth’s eyes shone with tears. “I love you too, Fitzwilliam. I think I have loved you for weeks, but I was too frightened to acknowledge it. Too afraid that someone like you could not truly care for someone like me.”
“Someone like me?” Darcy cupped her face in his hands. “Elizabeth, I am a proud, stubborn man who nearly threw away the greatest happiness of his life over wounded pride. You are everything good and bright in this world. I am the one who is unworthy.”
“Then we are perfectly matched in our unworthiness,” Elizabeth said, tears flowing down her cheeks. “And perhaps that is what will make us worthy of each other.”
Darcy leaned down and kissed her then, soft and gentle at first, then with growing passion as Elizabeth’s arms came around his neck. When they finally broke apart, both were breathless.
“I have a confession,” Darcy murmured against her hair. “I never want this to end. Will you marry me, Elizabeth? Truly this time, not for convenience or scandal, but because you cannot imagine a future without me as I cannot imagine one without you?”
“Yes,” Elizabeth whispered. “Yes, with all my heart.”
As they stood together in the morning room of Darcy House, holding each other close, both knew that whatever challenges lay ahead, they would face them together. Their love had been tested by deception, misunderstanding, and their own stubborn pride, but it had emerged stronger than ever.
Epilogue
Two Years Later, Longbourn
Elizabeth sat in the familiar drawing room at Longbourn, bouncing her infant son on her lap as afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows. Little Thomas gurgled contentedly, his dark eyes—so like his father’s—studying the dancing motes of dust with fascination. Through the window, she could see Darcy and Uncle Morton engaged in earnest conversation near the rose garden, their heads bent over what appeared to be papers of some importance.
“Lizzy!” Lydia burst through the door, her face alight with excitement. “I have the most wonderful secret, but you must promise not to tell a soul!”
Elizabeth shifted Thomas to her other arm, smiling at her sister’s enthusiasm. At nineteen, Lydia had blossomed into a lovely young woman, her natural vivacity tempered by the maturity that grief and experience had brought. “What is it, dearest?”
“Georgiana has just written to me,” Lydia said, settling into the chair beside Elizabeth with obvious delight. “Mr Quinn has proposed to her! Can you imagine? They are to be married in the spring! Of course, he has to first speak to Mr Darcy which he will do next time you are in London.”
“Oh, how wonderful!” Elizabeth exclaimed, then caught herself. “Though Lydia, you ought not to have told me if it was meant to be kept secret. I cannot keep such news from Darcy.”
“I know I ought not to have said anything,” Lydia admitted, though her excitement remained undimmed. “But I am so happy for Georgiana! They will make such a lovely couple. And perhaps,” she added with a meaningful look, “seeing another wedding will inspire Mr Thomas to make his intentions known.”
Elizabeth smiled knowingly. For the past several months, Lydia had been receiving regular visits from Mr Edward Thomas, a young solicitor who worked alongside Uncle Phillips. The gentleman’s growing attachment to her sister was evident to all who observed them together, and Elizabeth suspected it would not be long before another Bennet daughter was engaged.
“Mr Thomas seems quite taken with you,” Elizabeth observed. “I have noticed how his eyes follow you whenever you are in company.”
“Do you think so?” Lydia’s cheeks glowed with pleasure. “I confess, I am rather fond of him as well. He is so intelligent, so kind. Nothing like the silly officers I once thought so charming.”
Elizabeth thought of how much her youngest sister had changed since their father’s death. The flighty, impulsive girl had grown into a thoughtful young woman who valued substance over superficial attractions. Mary had married a prosperous merchant in Devon, whilst Kitty had become the wife of a clergyman—the very clergyman who now held the living at Kympton that Wickham had once coveted. As for Wickham himself, he had been arrested for fraud several months after his encounter with Elizabeth and was currently serving a lengthy sentence in jail.
“If Mr Quinn establishes himself in London,” Lydia continued, “Georgiana and I shall be able to see each otherregularly. Would that not be wonderful? Perhaps our husbands might even work together in some capacity, so we could live near each other.”
Little Thomas began to fuss, and Lydia reached for him. “May I hold him for a moment?”
