They left Pemberley and arrived at Darcy House when they were expected. The staff welcomed them warmly. While Darcy was looking after his finances with his man of business and lawyers, Elizabeth and Georgiana kept busy either at Darcy House or visiting the Matlocks and the Gardiners. They had a good time with both families and they all dined with them. When they mentioned that they were going to Rosings, Amanda asked if she could go with them as she wanted to see how the new couple was managing. Darcy had no objection, so the four of them left on their journey south to Kent.
They were welcomed warmly by Richard and Darcy introduced his wife to Anne. Darcy was soon off with Richard talking about the estate, so the four ladies were left to enjoy their tea and talk. It was obvious to Elizabeth that Anne did not look very healthy as she was thin and pale. She did not seem to have much energy, so Elizabeth wondered how she was getting along with her husband, who was so energetic and outgoing.
Anne had noticed Elizabeth's increasing size. "Elizabeth, I notice that you are expecting. When are you due? Or should we talk about this with two unmarried maidens with us?"
Elizabeth laughed, "Georgiana is well aware of my condition as she has been with us all the time. I expect that it will be in December." She turned to Amanda. "I assume that you are also well aware of my condition as well?"
Amanda laughed and said, "With your increasing size, how could I be otherwise? Of course, we maidens are not supposed to know anything about any of that. We are left in the dark until after we marry. However, I am sure that you all appreciate that we are not completely ignorant of some of what happens."
Anne continued shyly, "Elizabeth, I would like to talk to you as I might be increasing as well."
All the ladies exclaimed at this news. "Have you told Richard? He will be so happy."
"I did tell him my suspicions, but we are still not sure as I have not felt any quickening. I believe that it should be due next spring."
Elizabeth put her hand on her stomach. "You will know for sure when you feel it. Either my little one is dancing right now or is just kicking me for fun. Put your hands here and you will know what I mean."
The other three ladies all put their hands on her stomach and were surprised at how obvious the movement was. Later, Elizabeth talked to Anne about the signs that she had experienced and agreed that she likely was with child.
The spent only a week at Rosings as Darcy wanted to get back to Pemberley before Elizabeth was anywhere near her due date. Richard did find an opportunity to talk to Elizabeth when he saw her walking alone in the gardens one morning. "Elizabeth, how is Darcy treating you now? After how your marriage started, you know that we all worried about you. I cannot tell you how pleased I am to see that you are with child. At first, I worried that this might never happen. After getting to know you, I wanted you to be happy. I was always very impressed with you, as I am sure that you know."
She was surprised that he would even hint at Darcy's lack of marital contact with her at the beginning of their marriage. "Richard, you know that I cannot tell you any details. I should not have been so open with your mother when I was in town right after our wedding. However, I thank you for asking and can reassure you that we are getting along quite well now.
"But now that you mention such things, please tell me something. Darcy had told me how worried he is about Anne's health, which he said had never been very good. I admit that I had not expected to hear that she is increasing so soon after your marriage. Have you consulted a good physician about her?"
"Elizabeth, I will be very honest with you. When we married, I was also worried about her health and had planned not to do anything that might jeopardize it, even if that meant that ours would not be a complete marriage. I should not be so open with you, but I know that you will understand. She insisted that she wanted to be a real wife for me and that she wanted to know what being with a husband was like. I certainly did not think that she would become with child so quickly. Even though I would like to have a family, I was worried about her health. I have arranged for an excellent physician to check on her and to monitor her progress. I am also looking for the best midwife I can find for when we need her. I am sure that we will also need a wet-nurse."
"You are right that we should not be talking about such personal things, but somehow I feel that we can. I feel that we are so close that you could be my brother."
Richard found that while he was pleased at how they could talk to each other about such personal issues, he did not look on her as his sister. "Something else that I wanted to ask you that is also very personal. I know about Darcy's case of the mumps. I even know how he caught it—when we were visiting the tenants here at Rosings at Easter, we went to a cottage and the woman greeted us with a sick child in her arms. Now I realize that it must have had the mumps and that is how Darcy caught it. I know how mumps can affect a grown man and am worried about him. May I ask you how he is?"
"Richard, that is a very personal topic that I cannot talk about. I must ask you not ever to ask William about this as it touches on his very manhood. I will only say that I am glad that I was already with child when he became ill and hope that it will be his heir. Please do not ask me for any more details."
Richard took her hand in a show of sympathy as he was well aware of what she was hinting at. What he really wanted to do was to take her into his arms to show her that he cared for her, but he knew that he could not do this. He knew that Darcy desperately needed an heir, so he also hoped that this child would be a son.
During their visit, it was unavoidable that they would be in the company of Lady Catherine as she was living in the Rosings dower house. Richard invited her for dinner one night and that was the only time they were together. That one dinner was certainly enough as she was her usual bitter self and had not one good word to say about any one of them. After Lady Catherine left, Darcy and Elizabeth tried to comfort Georgiana as she had also felt the sting of her criticisms.
When Georgiana began to cry, Elizabeth took her into her arms and Darcy tried to console her. "Georgie, I am so sorry you were the object of her words. You know that she can be very vitriolic with everyone, even her own family members. I have tried to keep you away from her in the past, and I can promise you that I will never force you to be in her company again. She is not a happy person and has not been as long as I can remember."
When her tears finally stopped, Elizabeth took her up to her room and left her with her maid to continue to calm her and get her ready for bed. Before Darcy separated from Elizabeth, he said, "Elizabeth, I can only apologize for my aunt. Nothing I do seems to satisfy her. I can promise you that I will never invite her to be with us at any of our homes."
A highlight of their visit to Rosings was the presence of Charlotte. Shortly after their arrival, Elizabeth went to her cottage and had a very happy reunion with her good friend. When they finally managed to get out of the company of Mr. Collins, they had a great talk and caught up with each other's news that they had not been able to convey in their frequent letters. Charlotte was especially happy to see her friend's condition and admitted that this had not yet happened to her. Elizabeth invited her to the manor house and the five ladies quickly became close friends. The other ladies appreciated the common sense that was one of Charlotte's best features. At the same time, she was starved for the conversation of young ladies. While she had become a frequent visitor with Anne, she needed other friends as well. The other ladies did not say anything about Mr. Collins; they all sympathized with Charlotte's position as his wife.
While Elizabeth would have liked to stay at Rosings longer, she agreed with her husband in his desire to get back to Pemberley as soon as they could. On their way to Hertfordshire, they stopped in London so they could take Amanda back to her parents. When they dropped her off and paid a short visit with the rest of her family, Lady Grace asked, "Elizabeth, would you like me to be with you for your lying-in? You mentioned that only your sister has been invited to be with you. At a time like this, you should have the company of more family with you, especially as this is your first child. Your sister may be a great comfort to you, but she has not experienced childbirth. Remember that I have gone through this three times and know what you will be facing. I would be delighted to be with you then."
Elizabeth was pleased at her request as she had developed a close relationship with her Aunt Grace. "Aunt, if we can work out the details, I would like to have you there with me. I believe that I am due in the middle of December, if that is convenient for you. I know that the birth can vary from this date by a couple of weeks, so that could interfere with Christmas."
After some discussion, they decided that the whole Fitzwilliam family would come to Pemberley in early December and stay there until after Christmas, or for as long as they were needed. They were a bit surprised when Elizabeth said that Richard may not want to have Anne travel then as he had not mentioned his news to them.
When they were on their way to Longbourn, Elizabeth again warned Georgiana to expect that her family was boisterous, but that they would be very welcoming. On their arrival, her family did not disappoint her. Her sisters soon whisked Georgiana away, with Lydia and Kitty gushing over her gowns as they were being put away. Mary, as soon as she heard how proficient Georgiana was on the piano, dragged her from her sisters to go to their instrument. Music was soon filling the house. Mr. Bennet even came out of his office, where he and Darcy had gone to find some peace and quiet, to find out who was producing such fine sounds. Darcy was amazed that his shy sister would have agreed to play among people who had been strangers to them such a short time ago. He was again made to realize how his sister needed the company of young ladies who were close to her own age. He worried about his own family—he rued that he was likely only to have one child when he had wanted a large family who were close to each other in age.
Their visit to Longbourn went much better than either Darcy or Elizabeth had expected. Of course, Mrs. Bennet was her normal unrestrained self, but the girls were immediate fast friends. Darcy found that his opinion of Mr. Bennet improved as he spent more time with him. Mrs. Bennet would not be parted from Elizabeth and gave her a lot of unwanted advice about her pregnancy.
That first night at Longbourn, Elizabeth apologized to her husband that they would have to share a bedroom and a bed as they had never slept together before. They were both a bit uneasy when they first got in the bed, but Elizabeth woke early in the morning, she found that her husband's arms were around her. When he woke and realized the position they were in, he did not pull away from her but ran his hands over her protruding stomach.
"He is active this morning. Is he often like this?"
"Sometimes. Maybe he, or she, is just appreciating your attention." Elizabeth was enjoying the feel of her husband's body pressed against her back. She found that she wished that his physical condition was better so they could enjoy even more intimacies, even if they resulted in no pleasure for her. But it was as it was; she knew that she had no choice but to accept his condition.
Before they left Longbourn, Darcy asked his wife if they should invite one or more of her sisters to come to Pemberley with them. While Georgiana thought that this was a great idea, Elizabeth was less enthusiastic. "William, that is a good idea and I know that Georgie would like their company. However, with my due date coming, just now may not be the best time for a long visit. The Gardiners always come to Longbourn for Christmas and I know that Mother wants everyone together at that time. Of course, we cannot be here this year with our child coming."
Georgiana had an idea, "Why not have them to come back with us for a few weeks? They could come back home in time for Christmas. I would love to have any of them, or all three, visit us for a while."
After more discussion, they agreed with this plan and talked to Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Mrs. Bennet wanted the whole family to go to Pemberley, but her husband talked her out of that hope. They decided to ask the three girls who would like to go. Kitty and Lydia were eager to go, but Mary was not. Thus, it was decided to take the two girls with them but to return them at the end of November at the latest.