By Force of Instinct (20 page)

“you did not know, then,” Mr. Gardiner said, seeing his niece’s amazement, and he again exchanged glances with his wife. “I am astonished to hear it; nothing but the belief of your being a party concerned allowed me to act as I did. This is most disturbing.”

“Hush, edward,” said his wife. “It has clearly turned out as it should in the end. If he had not already reached an understanding with Lizzy then, it was clearly his intent to do so.”

elizabeth could not bring herself to correct her aunt’s misapprehension by indicating just how much Lydia’s elopement had affected Darcy’s intentions towards her, but her curiosity would not be stilled. she turned to her uncle, and said, “Please, I must know the rest of the story. Will you not tell me what happened?”

“As I understand it, he came to London after hearing of Lydia’s elopement with the intent of discovering them, which he was able to do by means of a woman who had previously been in his employ and a known associate of Wickham. I believe he then met with Lydia once, and Wickham many times. His first object with Lydia had been to persuade her to quit her present disgraceful situation and to return to her friends as soon as they could be prevailed upon to receive her, offering his assistance, as far as it would go. But he found Lydia absolutely resolved on remaining where she was. she cared for none of her friends, she wanted no help of his, she would not hear of leaving Wickham. she was sure they should be married some time or other, and it did not much signify when,” said Mr. Gardiner, disgust with Lydia’s behaviour apparent in his voice.

He continued, “It remained to him only to expedite a marriage between them. Wickham of course wanted more than he could get, but at length was reduced to be reasonable. Mr. Darcy’s next step was to acquaint me of the proceedings, which he did immediately following your father’s return to Longbourn. By that time, the papers had been drawn up, the license obtained, and Lydia prepared—under duress from Wickham, I might add, 121

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as a condition of the agreement—to return to our home. I must tell you, Lizzy, that Mr. Darcy refused to allow me to help in any way in this endeavour, saying that it was owing to him, to his reserve, and want of proper consideration, that Wickham’s character had been so misunderstood. He imputed the whole thing to his mistaken pride, and begged that we keep his role in it a secret. It did not sit well with me, but after all he had done, it seemed that we must grant him the one thing he asked. But we always assumed that
you
were aware of the entire situation!”

she hardly knew what to make of this intelligence. What sense was there to be found, when he had undertaken such trouble and mortification as she could hardly imagine! Her heart did whisper that he had done it for her.

she was ashamed to think how much he had done.

she was aware that her aunt and uncle were observing her closely, but she felt unequal to meet their inspection and averted her eyes. nor could she show the pleasure they no doubt expected for discovering such generosity and liberality on the part of her new fiancé; it was painful, too painful, to feel under such an obligation to him, and to know that she was under even further and perhaps greater obligation for his decision to preserve her own reputation when she had been foolish enough to allow herself to be caught in a compromising position.

Why, oh why did I permit him to kiss me? It was beyond foolish! Why must
it be that I have so little resistance to him? Imprudent, thoughtless behaviour—

no better than Lydia!
she thought reflexively, but she recognized as well that Darcy’s feelings were equally strong, and that given the behaviour he had initiated, she knew he would have felt honour bound to offer marriage even had they not been interrupted.

yet when she remembered the pleasure she received from looking into his eyes and from the warmth of his gaze on her, she could not bring herself to regret it completely; even if she regretted the circumstance, she could not be sorry for the outcome that would allow them to be as one.

Darcy watched the carriage bearing elizabeth and the Gardiners as it pulled away from his doorstep, following it with his eyes until it turned the corner onto Park Lane. only then did he allow the sense of triumph he had been feeling since kissing elizabeth to show itself in a victorious smile.

Who would have thought, when the evening began so inauspiciously, that it 122

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would end in such a satisfying manner? And the irony of it—that through quite unacceptable and frankly irresponsible behaviour, he had won what he most desired. now it remained only to convince elizabeth to be as pleased with the outcome as was he. But she is far from indifferent, he reminded himself, savouring the memory of her response to his kisses and the satisfaction of the moment she had moved of her own accord into his arms.

He turned back into the house, his step light, thinking of the best way to inform Georgiana of the developments. He had no doubt that she would be pleased; after all, she was fond of elizabeth and would be delighted to have her as a sister. It would also put an end to the continuing pressure from Lord Derby about her future. not for the first time, he wished he could just remind his uncle that if his father had thought him suitable to be Georgiana’s guardian, he would no doubt have named him as such rather than to leave her to the care of a brother of only two-and-twenty!

He found Georgiana in the music room. He took a seat by the piano-forte until she had finished the piece she was practising, admiring her fine touch on the keyboard. she turned to look at him with a cool air. He wondered briefly what she had found to be irritated with him about this time; at least he had the means to change the subject.

“Georgiana,” he began, “there is something I wished to speak with you about.”

“clearly,” she said, her tone noncommittal.

He was taken aback for a moment at her attitude but continued on nonetheless. “I have some good news; tonight I asked Miss Bennet to be my wife, and she has agreed to do me that honour.” He watched her face expectantly.

Georgiana could scarcely believe her ears. His obvious attentions to Miss Bennet that evening had vexed her, but she had believed them not to be serious; she had known that he would never consider marriage to a woman so much beneath him. she had been angered to think that he might be toying with her friend’s affections, but any relief she presently felt that elizabeth would not be hurt by his behaviour was far overwhelmed by the feelings of resentment and jealousy that he was so ready to have another woman, one whom he hardly knew, take
her
place in the household. And to choose such a woman after all he had said to
her
about the necessity of a proper marriage!

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“I cannot believe it,” she said finally, her tone coming perilously near incivility.

“It is quite true, I assure you. We will make the announcement as soon as I have her father’s consent.” Darcy could see no reason to make her aware of the irregular circumstances. “shall you not like to have her as a sister?”

to his surprise, a look of resentment came to her face. “you refused to allow me to marry George Wickham because he was not good enough for me, and now you are choosing a woman of scarcely higher status and no fortune to be
your
wife?” she cried.

The irritation that Darcy had been trying to suppress at his sister’s pattern of insolence could not longer be quieted. “How dare you compare the two?”

he said icily. “Wickham’s lack of fortune was the least of my concerns! He is a man with no morals or respectability. you should be thankful you were saved from him—he would have made your life a misery.”

“And what if I am
not
thankful?” The words Georgiana had been longing to say for so many months poured from her mouth, regardless for the moment of the painful knowledge she had gained of Wickham from elizabeth.

elizabeth! Why could he not let her have a friend of her own, but must step in and take her away from her as well? or was it the other way around—had elizabeth cultivated her friendship to become closer to her brother, as had many a fortune-hunter before her?

taking a deep breath to calm himself, Darcy said, “you are young, Georgiana, but you are not a fool. Wickham was trying to take advantage of you for your fortune.”

“And I suppose that you believe Miss Bennet is indifferent to your wealth?

I have seen no great affection toward you on her side!”

Darcy’s countenance showed no evidence that her remark had cut him.

“Georgiana, you know nothing whereof you speak. Miss Bennet would not enter into a marriage solely for pecuniary advantage; it is not in her character.”
As I know all too wel !
he thought, but he was not about to present Georgiana with the humiliating evidence of Hunsford.

“of course she would not have you believe as much! shall I repeat the arguments you made to me last summer when you were trying to persuade me to give up Mr. Wickham for no better reason than his poverty?” she said scornfully.

Darcy’s complexion became pale with anger. “Georgiana, would you 124

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like to know what your precious Mr. Wickham is doing now?”

Georgiana flinched, but did not give in. “yes, I would, in fact.”

“He is on his way north with a commission that
I
purchased for him after he fled his old regiment owing to his excessive gambling debts.

Unfortunately, to cover his departure, he convinced Miss Bennet’s youngest sister to elope with him, but his intentions with her went no farther than seduction—he still hoped to effect his fortune by marrying well on the continent. I found them living together without the benefit of marriage in one of the worst sections of London. It cost me over ten thousand pounds, between the settlement of his debts, the commission, and moneys I settled on Miss Lydia Bennet to convince him to marry her. And
this
is the man you would have had me allow you to marry?” Darcy’s voice was chillingly level.

“I do not believe you!” cried Georgiana, her eyes wide, the disturbance of her mind visible in every feature.

His temper snapped. “That is quite enough, Georgiana! If you would care to see the documents proving it, I will be happy to take you to my solicitor’s office tomorrow. otherwise, I will hear no more of this. Miss Bennet
will
be my wife, and you
will
treat her with proper respect!”

she glowered fiercely at him for a moment, tears rising in her eyes, then stalked out of the room. Darcy allowed his head to slump back. Whatever had happened to the shy, sweet girl who had adored him above all others? she had begun to vanish even before that fateful day at ramsgate; he would never have imagined that she would even consider such wild and shameful behaviour as an elopement, regardless of how much in love she might fancy herself to be. Was it the pernicious influence of Mrs. younge who had fooled him so successfully? or was it something innate to her? In company she was often as quiet as ever; but, as soon as they were alone, the barbs would start to fly.

He knew that he should not have said what he had about Wickham—he had always tried to protect her by keeping her from the knowledge of just what a scoundrel the man she had thought she loved was. But perhaps it was for the best—she would have to know about his connection to the Bennet family eventually.

He experienced a sudden wish for elizabeth’s presence. He could imagine her sitting by his side, taking his hand in hers with a concerned expres-125

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sion on her lovely face. The thought brought him some small measure of comfort. If only he did not have to wait for her …

“What is troubling you, my love?” asked Mrs. Gardiner of her husband when they retired that night. “And do not bother to say that it is nothing; I know you far too well.”

Mr. Gardiner sighed deeply. “I know I cannot deceive you. This engagement—something is not right about it, but I cannot tell what.”

“It is true that Lizzy seems not as pleased with it as I should hope, but perhaps it is only embarrassment for her situation,” she replied.

“I have to admit, Madeleine, that it was quite the shock of my life when I discovered those two! By all appearances, it did not seem that
marriage
was what was in the gentleman’s mind; and given elizabeth’s rather surprising compliance—well, the truth is that it raised certain suspicions in my mind about what Mr. Darcy believed he had purchased with his financial outlay for Lydia. I was frankly relieved to discover that she knew nothing of his actions—at least that suggested that she had not made a pact with the devil in order to rescue her sister.”

His wife turned to him in surprise. “Did you truly think that Lizzy would do such a thing?”

He shrugged. “If she saw it as the only way to save her entire family from ruin and disgrace—yes, possibly, I could see Lizzy making an impulsive decision to sacrifice herself. Fortunately, that does not seem to be the case, I
think
.”

“you sound dubious, my love,” his wife said, her manner puzzled.

“It simply makes no sense!” he said with some agitation. “Lizzy clearly did not wish to see him, and avoided him assiduously the entire evening, then suddenly decided to accept—and apparently return—his advances.

yet then she was reluctant to accept his proposal. something is not right, and it disturbs me—what does she know about him that makes her want to refuse such a brilliant match? And then I come around once more to whether his intent was honourable; after all, I cannot believe that his family will readily accept a girl like Lizzy as his bride!”

“
He
certainly seems enamoured of her,” said Mrs. Gardiner thoughtfully.

“But you are correct; she does seem oddly reluctant to think well of him.”

“I do not like it—I do not like having to write to her father with this news 126

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