Still lazing around in bed the morning after their wedding...
"Did you know I looked for you when you left Rosings, after you had given me the letter?" Elizabeth said whilst she cuddled up and started to play with her husband's chest hairs.
"No, I did not think you would wish to see me. I decided to return to Pemberley directly from Rosings. I was supposed to attend a function in London at the end of that week, so my stay there was drawing to a close anyway, but I had to remove myself from the situation, from you, so decided to depart early.
I was in such a state that I just wanted to lock myself away and tell the world to go hang themselves from the nearest tree. I became a virtual recluse and tried to get my head around it all, but I struggled," Darcy sighed. Thinking back on that time, made him wince as he recollected his torment, "Georgiana was worried for me, I have never known her to be so forceful. When it came to food and my lack of appetite, she certainly showed traits of my mother in those moments. She finally drew me out of my moods, at that point I had no-one to confide in as Richard had gone back to the army, I eventually opened up to her and she gave me a woman's spin on things. Your species certainly see things differently or it may have been the bad place I was in that made it hard for me to see how it all was, but Georgie put me right. I started to feel myself again after talking it through, but it took weeks." Darcy said looking down at Elizabeth, who was still running her fingers up and down his chest, "What you said Lizzy struck a chord, my speech, if you can call it one, was unthinkable. It was more like a tirade of hate, hate I felt towards myself for having such feelings for you and I took that out on you, blaming you for their affect on me. I was tormented by how I could not control them, I was sucked into their embrace before I knew what had hit me and then fought against them for weeks, but they were too strong. Oh Lizzy, how you must have hated me."
Elizabeth was astonished by the revelation her husband had just admitted to, how can I have affected him so much, to stop eating and to lock himself away, I had no idea my rejection would have hurt him so, she thought. The look of concern made Darcy pull her into a tighter embrace, where he just held her close. Elizabeth knew she had to say something, the atmosphere was beginning to feel rather uneasy, she had to give him some sort of relief to put his mind at rest. Had she hated him? No she did not, she never had.
"I would not say I hated you, indeed you were not my favourite person, but my dislike of you was only short-lived. As soon as I read your letter and thought about all the things that had happened in the previous months, everything fell into place. Your looks, I thought to be your dislike of me I knew then were gazes of admiration, you meeting me on my walks was your attempt to get to know be better. Your declaration that you do not have good social skills amongst strangers made me realise that your behaviour was that of a shy man, not of a proud man and that was your way of telling me to understand your recent behaviour better and your difficulties in expressing yourself. All I did was tell you to practice more, which in hindsight was a foolish reply.
Your account of Wickham was the hardest to swallow, I believed your words on the page and it took no longer than an hour to recollect my conversations with that man and how uneasy I felt at his total openness from such an early stage in our acquaintance. I knew little of him other than what he told me about you, his involvement with you. He did not promote himself well other than to say that he had been hard done-by by the prestigious Mr Darcy on more than one occasion. His general charisma was what won a lot of people over, his ease in conversation, but not the conversation itself.
I hoped that you were at your aunt's that evening, I wished to seek you out and make amends, but you had left."
"I could not stay, to see you again after such an abysmal proposal, I felt sick at how I behaved, I owed you an apology for my harsh words but was so ashamed of myself that I could not bring myself to be in your company."
"I came to understand you better after reading what you wrote and when I think of how I favoured Mr Wickham and believed all his lies," she said with the guilt she felt, visible for Darcy to see. "How I made that man persuade me to despise you with his lies, how could I not see him for what he was. He had volunteered details so early on in our acquaintance, some of it almost inappropriate, why did I not question his behaviour?"
Darcy was stunned at this revelation, what had that man said to his love, "What did he say to you that was inappropriate? Did he proposition you?"
"No! Not at all!" Elizabeth said in a panic as she felt her husband's body stiffen at her words, "It was just his harshness towards you, I had only known him for a day or two before his slander started. It was not appropriate to discuss with a woman, let alone one who's only recently been introduced, I am sure you save that sort of conversation for the gentleman's club."
Darcy relaxed somewhat, although he felt he could throttle Wickham at that moment, he had to keep calm for his wife's sake. His thoughts then wandered to the other matter in his letter, "Do you forgive me for my part with Bingley? We have not discussed this, you know I only had his best interest at heart. He has been a good friend for a long time, I felt I had a duty to warn him, even though my assumptions were incorrect."
"You should not have meddled in his life, however if the roles were reversed I am sure I would have warned one of my sisters. He was guided by a friend who thought he was doing him a good turn, it was up to Bingley to decide what he wanted to do about it. It is a shame that he saw fit to listen to you and not go by his own instincts, if he loved her he should have told you to keep your thoughts to yourself and decipher how Jane felt towards him."
"Do you know how Jane feels now? What if he were to come back into her life? Would she welcome his advances?" Darcy enquired.
"She has told me that she does not wish to see him again, she thinks his absence has been too long for their connection to pick up where it left off. Her heart has now mellowed and she no longer pines for him. Why do you ask?" Elizabeth asked seeing her husband biting his lip.
He was obviously wanting to say something, before Elizabeth asked as to what was on his mind he said. "I received a letter from him a couple of days ago, I didn't say anything to you as we were so busy with the wedding, he is returning to Netherfield next month, he renewed the lease on the place before he left for the continent and was going to return then, but due to Miss Bingley's behaviour he did not have time to take up residence. He does not know you are no longer at Longbourn, the last he knew you were still resident there, courtesy of Mr Collins."
"You have not written to him to advise of our news? That we are married and we are all in London?"
"No, after my involvement with him and your sister, I did not wish to discuss anything connected with her, it is up to him to come back of his own accord. I had admitted after you left in July of my part in getting him to London. He was not happy with me but eventually forgave me as he could see I was in some sort of living nightmare myself. He knew he could not approach Jane then, but over time he could have visited, he was in a far better position than myself to reacquaint himself with the one he loved."
"Well, if he ventures back to win Jane's heart again, I think he will be unpleasantly shocked. She is almost angry at his behaviour, she feels he was playing with her emotions and to be truthful I agree with her, by deciding to go away showed how shallow his feelings towards Jane were."
"He has been known to be flighty in recent years, flitting from one lady to the next, I have witnessed it several times myself. I did however, see something different in him this time, with Jane... Anyway, Mrs Darcy," he said looking down at his wife still fondling his hairs, "Enough of talk on these matters, there are much more enjoyable things to do." Darcy said as he slunk down in the bed to come eye to eye with Elizabeth, planting a wet kiss on her lips he moved slowly, rolling gently over so that he could move between her limbs.
"William! Do you think it is rather late and we should be getting up?"
"No, we are newlyweds and it is to be expected," he murmured between kisses. "There will be no visitors to this house, I have made sure of it, the butler is not to let anyone in unless it is a dire emergency," he said now kissing down her neck and reaching her shoulder. Elizabeth could feel a hand run down her body towards her lady parts, sending a tingle in its path. Cupping her private area, Darcy commenced tickling her folds making her squirm at the sensation. Elizabeth could feel his reaction and moved her hips slightly to allow him better access.
All too soon there was a firm knock at the door. "Damn and blast it! They know not to disturb us. WAIT!" Darcy shouted as he got up. He put on his banyan, closed the drapes to the bed and walked to the door. On slightly opening it, so that the intruder could not notice his aroused state, he found the butler, "What is it Gladstone! I thought I said no interruptions!"
"I am sorry sir, but Colonel Fitzwilliam is downstairs, he is rather anxious and will not leave until he has spoken with you."
"I will be right down, tell him to wait in my study," Darcy replied in a brusque manner and sending the butler away.
On closing the door he turned to Elizabeth, but before he could apologise she said, "Go to him William, it must be important. I will get dressed and come downstairs shortly, you may need to put on some clothes though," she said looking at her husband in his robe, "I know he his your cousin, but he will know what he has interrupted."
"I don't care as he should have realised we would be otherwise occupied. He can see me like this and I want you to stay as you are, I will be back as soon as I can and we can carry on where we left off," Darcy kissed his wife and went downstairs.
On opening the study door, he looked over to see Richard who was deep in thought, "Richard! What is the matter? I only have a short while, I don't want to keep Lizzy waiting."
"Oh Darcy... sorry… didn't think…" he said apologetically on seeing him in his attire."
"Well now you are here what is the matter?"
"I came straight over when I found out, I saw Colonel Forster in town. He had Wickham in his lot and has just told me that he went absent without leave last month and it is now looking like desertion from the army. Apparently there were rumours that he was coming to London to get payback for something and I immediately thought of you."
"Good God! Will that man never stop, I wish he would get out of our lives once and for all, I am fed up with him appearing as soon as I think he no longer is a threat."
"He has run up debts again, at Brighton this time and on top of his existing debts he owes a tidy sum," Richard advised.
"I know, I had thought about buying them up and throwing him into debtors prison after Ramsgate, but I reasoned with myself and thought why should I waste my money on that scum."
"You could always frog march him back to his gambling pals, so they can sort him out? I am sure he would not leave their company with less than a few broken bones." Richard chuckled, but Darcy could see a rather sinister look in his cousin's face indicating he was not joking.
"Are you serious Richard? Don't you think that is stooping a little too low," Darcy replied, he knew Wickham deserved it but could he be the one to hand that man over to be beaten within an inch of his life.
"Of course I am Darcy, I would even go as far as to alert the authorities of his whereabouts after the beating, so that he can be charged for desertion, that would be the icing on the cake. Look, he is a clever man, he is also a desperate man, I wouldn't put it past him to think of something like kidnap, that would not be something he rules out if it was to earn him some swagger."
Darcy was stunned at this revelation, kidnap? he thought. Then his mind wondered to who Wickham would think was worth the most money, Georgie or Elizabeth? His gut hurt at the thought so sat down before he fell down, "Richard, let me think things through, nothing has happened yet and it may never happen. In the meantime I think we need to get all the women under one roof. If you could see fit to bring Georgie and Mrs Annesley here tonight, I will talk to Lizzy to see if we can get her family here also. I don't think it will be difficult, they have already hinted they wish to see inside this place. Well, they can have a chance to live here for a short time, now I must get back to Lizzy and let her know what's happened."
"Sure Darcy, I will go sort out the ladies, I will also take up my bed in my old room if that is not too much trouble, I have my trusty sword, it may come in handy."
"I hope not Richard for all our sakes," Darcy said with an air of defeat. Richard once again apologised for his intrusion and left.
Darcy returned to his rooms, but Elizabeth was nowhere to be found. His heart skipped a beat for a second before he heard the sounds of water splashing in his dressing room. He gazed around the door and found Elizabeth, looking delectable as ever, taking a bath in his tub. Her maid was with her and was ushered out of the room as soon as Darcy entered. He sat on the edge of the bathtub swirling his fingers in the water, deep in thought.
"What is the matter William, is it bad news?"
"Richard has said that Wickham has deserted the army, he is here in London apparently seeking revenge, but we do not know who."
"But you have an idea?"
"Yes, I think it is me he is after, after everything that has transpired between us. In his eyes, I took away the livelihood my father said he could have, not taking into account the fact that he did not wish the living and I compensated him handsomely. I stopped him from eloping with Georgiana and then made the one woman he genuinely admired turn against him. He is probably aware now that we are married as it is all over town, so I would imagine he is seething." Darcy said with a sigh, "Move up Lizzy, I'm coming in," he said as he took off his banyan.
They relaxed in the tub for a while before Lizzy started to think further on the matter, "What are we to do? He could be out there plotting and scheming with god knows who? What if his target is me?" Elizabeth said with growing concern.
"Lizzy, do not think that way, it could be anything, I think you are too much of an obvious target. I do wish for your sisters and mother to move in to Darcy House today though, Richard is bringing Georgiana and Mrs Annesley tonight and he will also stay. I want everyone here under one roof, so we can keep an eye on you all."
"I think that is best, although it may be difficult to get mother to agree, so much upheaval of late, her nerves are taking a beating, that is for sure," Elizabeth said concerned that a third move in less then a month would send her mother to Bedlam.
"We will try and make it as gentle of a move as possible, they do not need to bring everything, enough for a few days and then we can all go to Pemberley once things have settled down. I will have the servants help with their packing, it shouldn't be left to them to do all the work."
Lizzy commenced on sponging Darcy's body down with soapy water, "I wish we could just relax and have a few days to ourselves, with everyone around I doubt we will have much time alone," Darcy said realising this would be the last time they would spend any time together during the day for quite a while. "This all means that we may have to stay in London a bit longer. It also means that we won't have much of a honeymoon now either, I had planned on taking you on a trip after we had settled everyone down at Pemberley, but that now seems out of the question."
Thoughts then turned to a more pleasurable activity as Elizabeth continued her attentions to washing her husband. Darcy, now wanting his wife, pushed all thoughts of Wickham to the back of his mind. He picked her up in his arms and marched over to the bed, leaving a trail of soapy water behind. Placing her down on the counterpane, he stood back and gazed upon her body with the light hitting its wetness and accentuating her womanly shape. Thoughts of not being able to gaze upon her beauty flooded into his mind, wondering what it would be like to only be able to feel her. "My Love, what would you say if I were to ask that you blindfold me?"
"What? Why would you want that?"
"I want to remove one of my senses, I have heard it heightens all the others," he said raising an eyebrow in the hopes that she would pick up on his unasked question.
"I must admit that it was so intense, not knowing what you were going to do kept me on edge." Elizabeth looked at her husband trying to work out if he wanted this or was just thinking aloud, "Do you wish to try?" she asked.
"Yes... wait there." Darcy disappeared into his dressing area and returned moments later with a cravat, "Tie this on me and take charge," he instructed.
Elizabeth was in a fluster, she didn't know what to do, she placed the cravat around his head and tied it at the back, "Is that too tight William?"
"No it is fine," he said whilst turning around where he sat, feeling his hands over the bedding until he came to his wife's thighs and grinned, but it was a matter of seconds before she moved away with a chuckle.
This will be so much fun, she thought, "Mr Darcy, I think you will have to find me first," she said as she scampered around the room. She decided to help her husband who had stood up and was about to bump into the bed post, "Left a bit, right a touch, Oh William, you are aiming towards the wall," she laughed.
"Well I am glad you are thinking this all so funny, you are directing me there woman! It will be your fault if I get a flat nose. Now where are you, I need you," he said frustrated at her childishness and the distance she had put between them. "I had wanted this to be sensual and loving, it is turning into a charade!"
Elizabeth took pity on her dear husband, who had grown rather disheartened over the whole matter and just stood in the middle of the room, head bowed in defeat. She walked up quietly behind him and run her fingertips softly down the centre of his back, his head shot up and he took in a deep breath at her unexpected touch. Standing motionless, he allowed her to move around him, still giving tender touches to his body and coming to a stop when they were face to face, where she noticed his breathing was heavy. She placed a tender kiss upon his chest, just above his heart making him pant at her touch. She moved him gently back to the bed, where his legs hit the mattress, forcing him to sit. She knelt to the side of him and run her fingers down his chest, paying particular attentions to his nipples, which were so small that they were hard to find amongst his chest hairs.
"Lord, heaven above, this is so intense," Darcy gasped.
Elizabeth could not miss the appendage standing to attention in Darcy's lap, however she decided to ignore it knowing that the lack of attention would make him frustrated even more. She caressed every part of his body, so close had her lips got to her main goal, but she did not venture there as she wanted him to wait.
"Lizzy, please."
"Please what?" she said stifling a giggle.
"Oh this is torture, I'm removing the cravat, I cannot take any more of this."
"No you don't William, I was not allowed, you refused me, remember?"
"Yes, but you didn't know it was me, I need you." Darcy's need for her was evident in his voice, but Elizabeth was having too much fun, teasing him.
"Do you mean this?" she asked as she touched the tip of his phallus momentarily.
"Ah! Yes!" he said as she removed her hand, "Why did you stop? Don't stop!"
Elizabeth moved in front of him and parted his legs, she bent down and without any further contact, she took his yard into her mouth. Darcy nearly fell back onto the bed with the sensation, he sat there and placed his hands on her head, feeling her bob up and down, hearing the sounds emitting from her mouth as she swirled her tongue around him, sending him into a frenzy. Before he released he begged, "Lizzy, take me please, I need to feel your warmth."
Elizabeth stopped pushed his shoulder back to indicate she wanted him to lay down, he did this and scrambled back further until he was fully lying down. Next thing he felt his wife climb on top of him and take hold of his hardness and push the tip into her, where she slowly sank down onto him. Darcy was having trouble not instantly completing and tried to think of all things disagreeable in an attempt to sustain his release, until a respectable amount of time had passed.
Elizabeth grabbed her husband's hands and placed them onto her breasts, urging him to caress her. On doing this Darcy sat back up and took one of her nipples into his mouth and stroked each bud with his soft gentle tongue. Holding her so close to him in a loving embrace sent her over the edge allowing Darcy to finally release his seed into her.
"God Lizzy, that was unbelievable," Darcy said as he calmed down.
"So you wish to do that again at some point?" Elizabeth asked as she removed the cravat from her husband.
Looking up at his wife, he gazed at her, now flushed in a post coital state, "Oh yes my love, think we need to keep this beside the bed."
