The Secrets of Darcy and Elizabeth

He hugged her hand tightly to his side, wishing he could embrace all of her. “You have a unique ability to put her at ease. It gave me great joy to see you converse so freely. I believe you are destined to be great friends.”

“I hope so,” Elizabeth said. They walked in silence for a moment. Elizabeth soaked up the sunshine and enjoyed the tranquility of the park. “We received an invitation to a ball given by Earl and Countess Matlock tomorrow.”

Darcy smiled. “I am glad it arrived.” He turned his head toward her. “This will be an excellent opportunity for you to meet some of my relatives and acquaintances. At least they will know who you are when we reveal our marriage.”

“I believe it will be a shock no matter how much preparation we give them,” Elizabeth opined.

“Perhaps, but the ball will provide an opportunity to show my partiality for you.” A muscle in his jaw tightened, Elizabeth noticed.

“Is there a problem?”

He sighed. “A small one – nothing you need to worry about. My cousin, Richard’s brother, apparently took it into his head to marry his mistress while I was in France. She is a former actress and it has created quite a stir within the family.”

Elizabeth imagined how the family must feel. “They must be very unhappy. And I thought they would be scandalized by me!” Darcy chuckled. “Was the marriage completely unexpected?” She asked.

Darcy considered his answer. “Perhaps not entirely. He was always very enamored with her, but my aunt and uncle thought he would outgrow the infatuation and marry someone more appropriate. The difficulty is that my aunt is particularly concerned about the damage to our family’s reputation. Which means—”

“She is not pleased to have you associate with another family touched by scandal,” Elizabeth finished for him. “Unfortunately, her reservations are completely understandable. Perhaps I should wait and attend a ball in a few months, when both scandals will have faded from memory.

”

“No!” Darcy’s voice was fierce. “I have waited long enough for you. I will not wait one moment more than necessary.” He brought her gloved hand up to his mouth and kissed it, causing her to wish he could kiss other parts of her body. As he stopped walking altogether, he gazed intently into her eyes. “At night I long for your touch. Just the memory of it…is sweet torture. And now…seeing you and being unable to touch you…”

Her eyes locked on his; she could not tear her gaze away. “I know,” she whispered.

“We should continue walking or I will surrender to my desire to kiss you,” Darcy murmured, and she chuckled.

As they resumed walking, she placed her hand on his arm and he covered it with his. “I must tell you, my love: I insisted that my aunt invite you to the ball, but she was not pleased. In exchange, I promised that I would not be overly attentive in my attentions to you and that I would dance with other eligible young women. I am sorry.” He regarded her anxiously.

“Well, if that is the price I must pay for seeing you at the ball, so be it.” She said lightly.

“Thank you for understanding. Please know, they – these other women – will mean nothing to me. If I could, I would dance every dance with you.”

“That would cause a scandal!” Elizabeth laughed. “Nor do I have the energy for every dance, I believe.”

Darcy’s face instantly reflected concern. “Will your health will allow attendance at the ball? I do not want you to exert yourself too strongly and compromise your recovery.”

Elizabeth shook her head. “I do tire a little more easily than before – and I slept quite late this morning! But today I am more like myself. Certainly I can survive a ball.” Darcy appeared about to protest. “William, I do not want to miss it.” He subsided, but still looked concerned.

They walked in silence for a while. Seeing that she was tiring, Darcy invited her to sit on a bench and then took the place next to her. Eventually Darcy spoke. “I have a reputation for never dancing with the same woman twice. I never wished to give rise to rumors or create false expectations – and there was no one I wanted to know better – until you.” His smile warmed her.

Suddenly she realized that while they had been talking, Darcy’s hand had worked its way around her back and was softly caressing the nape of her neck. She blushed at the thought of her aunt’s reaction at the impropriety. Fortunately, Georgiana and Mrs. Gardiner were far ahead of them feeding bread to the ducks in the pond.

Her first impulse was to chastise Darcy, or at least tease him, but when he ran his hand lightly along her shoulder she shivered with pleasure and recalled so many other pleasurable touches. Closing her eyes, she simply enjoyed the sensations.

Then she opened them and tilted her head toward Darcy. “When I first met you, I thought you excessively proud and proper. Who knew that underneath you are completely lacking in propriety, sir?”

“I beg to differ. I was the soul of propriety before I met you, madam.” He arched his brow at her.

She laughed. “So I have corrupted you? No, I do not believe that to be the case. I know I never before allowed a man to caress my neck in public.” She gave him a mischievous look. “I am afraid you are an appallingly bad influence on my behavior – and not the other way around.”

“Now that I think of it, I do believe I have talked you into some shocking behavior.” Seeing Georgiana and Mrs. Gardiner turn and stroll back toward them, Darcy hastily removed his arm from around Elizabeth’s back. As the two women were almost within earshot, he leaned over and whispered in her ear: “Mrs. Darcy!”

Her giggle caused her aunt to raise an eyebrow. Elizabeth schooled her face into a properly demure expression as they turned back to Gracechurch Street.

Darcy’s aunt insisted on greeting each guest who arrived, apparently as part of her campaign to appear as if no scandal had touched the family. Unfortunately, she had also insisted that her husband, Colonel Fitzwilliam and Darcy join her – although Darcy was the last in the line and many people did not linger to talk with him. Because Georgiana was not officially “out” in society, she was spared this duty. Lucky Georgiana, Darcy thought. Darcy’s eyes were drawn to the door each time a new visitor appeared. Instinctively he knew he would be more comfortable with the whole evening once Elizabeth arrived – even if he could not spend every moment with her, as he would prefer.

He glanced at his aunt and uncle, seeing Aunt Alice holding her head high as she attempted to appear above any gossip about her son and his mistress. His uncle appeared oblivious – which he probably was. He had been irate about his son’s actions, but often did not notice the ill effects of gossip. However, happily, very few people had declined the invitation to the ball, so Lady Matlock was in high spirits, seeing it as an indication that the earl’s family had not slipped down the social pecking order. But Darcy saw signs of strain around her mouth and knew that they could not assume they had escaped scandal so easily.