Imperative: Volume 2, A Tale of Pride and Prejudice (60 page)

“But we will be going home soon.  I have to become used to walking and things.  Elizabeth told me that I need to look like everyone else as we travel.” She held onto his arm tightly.  “I am a little dizzy.”

“I knew it!”  Letting out a frustrated sigh, he led her to a bench and helped her to take a seat.  “As much as I dearly admire Elizabeth, she has never had a child, she has no idea how it feels to carry one or give birth, and certainly not how long it takes to recover.  I am certain that she would not be running merrily about the garden nine days after giving birth, no matter how stubborn she is!” 

Georgiana put her hand to her mouth and laughed.  “You sounded so much like Fitzwilliam complaining of her!”

“Did I?”  Samuel smiled sheepishly. 

“I think that you admire her very much.”

“Of course, she is . . .” He shrugged.  “But you are lovely, too.”

“Thank you, but I . . .” She looked down at her hands.  “What is to become of me, Samuel?  Is it a waste of time to go to London?  Nobody will ever want me.”

“That is not true.”  He took her hand gently in his and smiled.  “In a few years, you will be everything that . . .”

“Samuel, please stop, just be honest with me.  You have always been honest with me.” 

“Very well then, what do you want to know?”  He tilted his head and tried to see beneath her bonnet.  “Or do I need to ask?”

“If you were courting a lady, and you were told of her past, would it matter?”  She looked up at him. 

He hesitated and she looked back down.  “Wait, just . . . that is a simple question, but there is no simple answer.  It depends upon . . .”

“What she did.  What if she did what I have done?” 

Samuel struggled to find an answer and he shook his head again.  “It depends.”  She looked up again.  “Do I love her enough?  Do I trust her?  Can I look at her and not imagine . . .”  He squeezed her hand.  “I am not the right person to ask.”

“Why not?” 

“Because I love you too much.  And I want to protect you.”

“But you refused to marry me.” 

“I am too young.  I know that I am.  If I were to marry now . . . I am not ready to support a wife, let alone support a family.  I need to accomplish some things on my own before I can be the man caring for the lives of my loved ones.  It all falls on me, you see.  I have not what your brother has, so, for a man like me, an answer to your deceptively simple question is . . . maybe.”  He drew a breath and held her eye.  “To a man such as your brother, it is not quite so difficult.”

“Yes it is, he would never have taken Elizabeth if she had been ruined.”

“I do not know about that, he took her and she had nothing, no dowry, no . . . real pedigree.  He took her on face value, if you think about it.  He took her because of the woman, the wonderful, accomplished woman she is.   You
do
have the dowry and the pedigree.”

“I have the education that she does not.”

“She is older.  And she is a self-made woman.  I think that your brother admires that, I
know
that William loves that about her.  It was a tremendously brave and unusual decision for him to take Elizabeth, even though she was agreeing in essentials to marry him to protect you.  They would not have married at all if they had not loved each other deeply, beyond that, if
he
had not loved
her
.  Somewhere in the world, there is a man who will look at you when you have emerged from this . . . event, and see the woman you choose to become.  And he will want you.” 

“When did you become so thoughtful, Samuel?  You were always so shy, at least, that is what I remember.” 

Surprised, he smiled.  “I do not know.   Maybe I am growing up, too?  You see?  There is hope for all of us.”

“I’m glad that you are taking me home.” 

“We will have a pleasant trip together.”  He saw her looking up at the house.  “Would you like to visit Hope?”

“They said that I should not be near her until my milk is completely gone.” 

“I could hold her and sit next to you.”  He offered.

“She might be wet.”  Georgiana smiled.

“I don’t mind.  I will be living with her, after all.  She may as well become used to me.”  He stood and helped her up.  “Come on, while everyone is away and nobody can chastise us.”   

Georgiana held onto his arm and they strolled slowly towards the house.  “Do you think that Richard is proposing to Miss Kelly?”

“Yes, he was determined.”

“Do you think that he will say that he loves her?”  She smiled at him and he shook his head.  “Why not?”

“I think that is something he will find very hard to say.  He grew up differently than you and I.  He feels it, but he cannot say it.”

“I feel sorry for Miss Kelly.”

“I do not.  She will see how much he loves her every day.”  They reached the door and opening it, he waited for her to cross the threshold.  “She just has to learn how to look for it.” 

“THANK GOD THAT IS OVER.”  Richard said with feeling.

“I am sorry that it was such a trial.” Sophie said with a bit of a glare.

“I am sorry, my dear.”  Richard raised her hand to kiss and tucked it back upon his arm.  They were strolling around the garden before dinner, well within sight of the Kellys and the Darcys, who were seated beneath a portico behind the house.  Robert and Stephen were standing guard at one exit, while Adam and Mitchell stood at another.  Richard eyed the glowering men and boys.  “I feel like we are in prison here.” 

“I would not risk trying to kiss me again, lest we have a brawl on our hands.”

Richard sized them up.  “I could take them all.” 

“Let us not find out, shall we?” 

“Just this once.”  He winked and looked down at his boots.  “I cannot believe that I am engaged to be married.  It just is not done by men in the army.  It is not fair to the wives, you see.”

“I understand.”  She bit her lip and watched him.  “You are very unsure of yourself.”

“What do you mean?”

“This courtship business, and having to . . . well be with a family and follow the rules . . .”

“I am quite used to following rules, I assure you.”

“But not with women.”

“No.”  He admitted.  “Not with a great many things.  But . . . I trust you will correct me.” 

“I trust you to respond.”  Sophie laughed and he chuckled. 

“What is next?” 

“Dinner?”

“No.” 

“Wedding?”  Sophie blushed.  “I was serious; I do not need a great deal to leave home.”

“Are you so anxious?”

“I am nearly five and twenty, most of my friends are married and settled, I . . . I am ready to go.”  Becoming businesslike, she urged him on, “So, tell me your plans.” 

“Well . . .” Richard indicated a bench and they sat down.  “We must marry in the Anglican Church.”

“I thought as much.  My parents will be very disappointed.”

“I think that they are aware of it.  Your father already said that he will regret not walking you down the aisle in your childhood church, but he understands that taking my name means taking everything of mine.”

“So we will marry . . .”

“At Matlock, I think.  It will give your family an opportunity to see where you will live, and perhaps it will give them some comfort when they know you are so far away.”

“That is very kind of you . . .”

“Sophie, dear, please stop being so properly polite with me.  Relax, please.  You make me very nervous.”

“
You
are nervous?”  She laughed and they squeezed hands.  “Oh my!”

“That is better!  Now then, my father must remain in London until Parliament closes, so we can marry in July.  That gives you some time to buy whatever feminine trappings are required of a bride. I can employ Samuel to draw up a settlement for your father to peruse, and perhaps I can have a few more tables and chairs installed at Gladney.  How does that seem to you?”

“So, six weeks?”

“Yes.  I will accompany Samuel home in a few days and get something accomplished at Gladney and then come back to be with you . . . and well . . . I do not know!”  He laughed. 

“Neither do I!”  Sophie looked down at his rough paw of a hand.  “I did not say it before, there were too many people near, but . . . I do love you, Richard.”  He looked up at her with bright eyes and back down.  Nervously he fumbled in his pocket for his snuff box and when the leg appeared, she groaned.

“I am sorry, I will put it away.”  He hurriedly moved to put it back in his pocket.  Sophie stopped him and took the box in her hand.  “Darcy bought that for me when he was purchasing Elizabeth’s engagement gift and having their wedding bands made.”

“Yes.”  She looked at the box and held it up to him.  “This is a good symbol of you.”

“I am afraid to ask.”  He crossed his arms.

“You are irreverent, unique, loyal and loving.”

“How did you arrive at that?”

“I think that the first two are obvious.  But the last two, you were there with your cousin for the most important purchases of his life, and if he did not love you, he would not have bought you such a ridiculous, but valuable gift.”  She tilted her head.  “Please always carry it.” 

“I love you, do you know?”  He said quietly to the box in his hand.

“Me?” 

Richard looked up and nodded with a smile.  “I love the snuff box, too.”  Sophie laughed and he grinned.  “Come on; let’s tell your family our plans.” 

“CAREFUL!”  Elizabeth cried when Darcy slipped on a rock on his way down to the pond. 

“I have done this a thousand times, love.”  He called over his shoulder and then with great waving of his arms, he landed with a thud on his rear.  Laughing, he rested his arms on his knees and hung his head.  “What was I saying?”  Elizabeth’s skirt appeared beside him and he looked up. 

“I said to be careful.”  Grabbing her hand, he pulled her down beside him.  Elizabeth squealed when she landed and he laughed harder.  “That was unkind!”

“I know.”  He kissed her and then set to work.  “Now then we have paper for the sails, what else do we need?”

“I have the bark for the ships.”

“Good and here are some twigs for the masts.”  Retrieving his pocket knife, he began fashioning boats from their supplies.  “If we are lucky, one of these just might float.” 

Elizabeth watched him skilfully working with great admiration.  “Is it true that Albert used to throw rocks at Richard’s boats to sink them?” 

“mmhmm.  He used to sink mine, as well.  But it was only fair; we were skipping stones onto his.”  Nodding to her, she handed over a square of paper torn from Lady Catherine’s letter.  He wove a stick into it and stuck it into the curve of bark, and then leaning forward set it upon the water.  The two of them watched with baited breath. 

“I think it may work . . .”

“shhh, it will hear you . . .”  Darcy’s eyes were bright and she turned away from the boat to watch him.  The creases in his face were not so prominent now that they had come home.  “Oh well.”   He turned to find her gaze on him.  “Try, try again.”

“It sank!”

“Spectacularly, did you miss it?”  He looked at her with a twinkle in his eye.  “What were you watching?”

“You.” 

Darcy’s face coloured and he set to work on the next boat.  Elizabeth again prepared him a sail from the letter, but the whole time she was watching him.  “Will?”

“Yes, love?”

“You used to have the palest complexion, but now it is warm.”  He looked at her and away.  “How many boys would you like?”

“I did not realize one could place an order for them.”

“If you could.”

“Four.” 

Elizabeth laughed, “You answered that quickly!”

“Two and there is a child with hurt feelings for not being first born.  Three and it will always be two against one.  Four, and everyone has a playmate.”  He shrugged and kept working.  “But that is just an only child’s opinion.” 

“And girls?”

“At least two.”

“Not just one to wrap herself around your finger?”  She leaned on him and watched the second boat launch.

“No, I want to hear giggling as they share secrets and make comments behind their hands about their beleaguered father.  One, and I would be heartbroken when she left me, three and I think that I would go mad with too many Bennet-like creatures driving me to an early grave.  I have to have the strength to keep up with their mother.”  Darcy put his knife away and looking to her briefly with a shy smile, he bent at work, folding the rest of the letter into a paper boat.  Setting it into the water, he urged it forward, and placing his arm around Elizabeth, they watched their little yacht race.  “I think that the HMS Catherine is going to sink.”

“What is the other ship?” 

“HMS Pemberley, of course.”  He said proudly. 

“Of course.”  She looked around the spot.  “This is just as you said, quite private and special.”

“Yes.”  He scooped up some water.  “A little warmer, I think.”

“For what?”

“Swimming,” He grinned when she gasped.  “Oh yes, I was serious.”

“Serious is the last word I would use to describe you right now.”  She laughed.   “What has become of you?”

“I am just happy.”  They watched the two boats slowly sinking and both laughed.  “Well, I see that I must practice my boat making before all of those sons arrive.” He looked to her with a smile.

“I think there is something else that you need to practice first, Mr. Darcy.”  Elizabeth whispered in his ear.

“So there is . . .” He hugged her then lifted one brow.  “Have you ever wondered what lies beneath all of this clothing, my dear?”

She laughed.  “Am I about to find out?” 

Darcy laughed and kissed her.  “You certainly are.”

Chapter 23

“T
here you are, dear.”  Susan gently placed the sleeping baby into Georgiana’s arms and smoothed out the gown.  “She is so beautiful, Georgiana.  Whenever I look at her, I see you as a baby.” 

Georgiana studied her daughter’s peaceful face, framed in a bonnet she had sewn herself.  She was searching for any sign of Hope’s father in her delicate features.  That she could see none brought both relief and a touch of regret.  She tried to imagine a family scene with him.  George sitting by the fire with a book . . . no, not a book . . . a glass of wine . . . no . . . whiskey.  She tried again.  George sitting beside her in church . . .  Turning pages as she played . . .  Tears streamed down her face and she bent to touch her cheek to the baby’s.  “I am grateful for your life, my sweet Hope.  But had I been thinking clearly of mine, you would have never come to be.”  She kissed her and watched the baby yawn and stretch.  Blinking open her wide blue eyes, she stuck out her tongue.