Elizabeth woke up refreshed. With a smile she went to the window and looked out at the sunshine kissed gardens below. A perfect day for a wedding, she thought. Looking out beyond the garden, she saw two men on horseback coming. With an even wider smile, she woke Jane so that they could dress for the day.
They had barely finished their hair when Mrs. Bennet came rushing up the stairs announcing their visitors in a way that only Mrs. Bennet and her nerves could. With three engaged daughters, one would expect that her nerves would settle. "Oh, Lizzy, Jane, they are here. Bingley and Darcy are here. They are drinking coffee. You must hurry." She burst into the room. "You are barely ready. What will they think if you are not down there soon?"
Elizabeth laughed. "I doubt they will refuse to marry us because we are late coming down."
Mrs. Bennet looked horrified, and Elizabeth realized she ought not to tease her mother on such an important day. Thankfully, Jane leapt to her mother's defense and said the perfect words to calm her mother so that they could finish getting ready.
Half an hour later, they were ready to meet their betrotheds. The greetings they received let them know their mother's fears were for naught. Mr. Darcy could barely keep his hands to himself as he carefully sipped his coffee. Elizabeth fared only slightly better as she watched her soon to be husband's hand nearly shake in their determination. His valet had outdone himself in preparing Mr. Darcy. His cravat was perfectly tied with a flourish just shy of being ostentatious. His blue coat fit in a way that made Elizabeth itch to rub her hands over his shoulders.
Elizabeth was distracted from her observations by Mr. Bingley, who had been speaking to her for some time and was now asking her a question. She stared at him blankly until he laughed. "You look just like Darcy! Oh, you two are perfect for each other. I suppose I will get better conversation from my sister than I will from the two of you while you are guests in my house."
Elizabeth blushed as deeply as Mr. Darcy, but for slightly different reasons. Elizabeth agreed with his statement, while Mr. Darcy was clearly thinking of his wedding night at Netherfield. Just a few more hours before he could be alone with his wife. He put both hands around his cup, knowing that if his hands were free, they would seek out Elizabeth. Conversation turned to more neutral topics as they finished eating.
The carriage ride to the church was only quiet in that Mrs. Bennet was the only one speaking. Elizabeth sat with Jane and Mrs. Bennet and across from Mr. Bingley, Mr. Bennet, and Mr. Darcy. With Mr. Bennet in the carriage, Elizabeth refrained from attempting to touch Mr. Darcy's leg with her foot. Mr. Darcy looked out the window to avoid looking at Elizabeth, especially now when she was so close to becoming his wife. Mr. Bingley simply watched Jane, wishing that his wedding day would hurry.
The other carriage arrived before them, so when they descended, Mary, Lydia, and Kitty were gathered around to welcome them with excitement, as though they had not seen them just a few minutes before. Elizabeth was so happy, she easily managed to avoid rolling her eyes.
Mr. Darcy took her arm and escorted her inside, thrilled that the time had finally come. Inside the church, they found many friends and neighbors already seated, happy to witness the nuptials. Even Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam had come to support their cousin. Mr. Darcy could not notice any of that, he simply walked up to the vicar and stated that they were ready to begin. The Bennets took their seats, and the vicar began.
The wedding lasted for two hours and completed without any impediments. Signing the registry was completed gleefully by the newly wedded couple and with resignation by Mr. Bennet. Mr. Fitzwilliam and Jane were happy and much calmer than the other three signees.
For the ride to Netherfield, Mr. and Mrs. Darcy had 20 blissful minutes alone in their carriage. When they arrived at Netherfield, everyone welcomed them while ignoring their swollen lips and blushing faces. Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam were the first to congratulate them, whispering to Mr. Darcy that he had won a better mother-in-law than Mr. Fitzwilliam had.
"Surely she has accepted your marriage." Elizabeth stated, shocked.
"Surely not. We are here because she was unbearable, even from the dower house." Mr. Fitzwilliam chuckled at his own joke. "But seriously, we are more than delighted that you have finally come to such an understanding. And now, I get to meet the wonderful and often discussed Bennet family."
"Yes, you do." Elizabeth stated with a smirk. "And I am certain you will be well entertained. It is too bad you no longer are a colonel. My younger sisters used to love seeing a man in a uniform. They have matured much in the past month, so perhaps it makes no difference that you are dressed as a gentleman."
"Not to mention he would be less interesting purely for the fact that he is married, Mrs. Darcy." Mr. Darcy stated blandly, attempting to hide the delight he felt at her no longer being a Bennet. He failed, but no one seemed to mind. He continued in a more serious tone, "Cousin, I cannot express my gratitude to you, not only for attending me today, but for your wise counsel in Hertfordshire. Without your assistance, I might have never won my lady's hand."
Elizabeth expressed her agreement before she moved to join Kitty at the refreshment table. "Kitty, I am sorry Mr. Denny could not be here today."
"All I care about is that he is here in two weeks."
Elizabeth laughed and agreed. "Are you certain you wish to take Lydia with you to Brighton? She could come with us."
Kitty looked around to ensure they were alone. "I enjoy her company, and she has behaved properly. Mr. Denny will not allow her to come with us to assemblies if she is anything but properly behaved. She is more likely to meet her husband among the red coats than she would be with you in Derbyshire." She paused to look around before turning back to Elizabeth. "Do not look so pleased that you will not need to take her! She is your sister."
"As my sister, I would have taken her with me, and I would not have complained too much. However, I am relieved only Georgiana will be traveling with us. We cannot go to Derbyshire immediately, or we would miss your wedding, however, we will enjoy being in our own home in London for a time." She blushed at the thought.
"Truly, I look forward to being in Brighton with my soon to be husband and Lydia." Kitty declared, looking around at the gathered crowd. "I believe Mr. Darcy is looking for you." She giggled slightly as she walked away.
Elizabeth, feeling relieved that Kitty had not been forced to choose to keep Lydia, turned to find her husband walking quickly towards her. Feeling a little mischievous, she turned and quietly moved into a secluded alcove. Her husband was not far behind. Almost as soon as they were out of sight, his lips were on hers as he showered her with his loving kisses.
After pulling away to draw breath, Elizabeth smiled, "Hello Husband."
Mr. Darcy groaned delightfully. "Hello, Wife. How long must we remain among the party? I long to show you our chambers and show you how much I have longed for today."
Elizabeth laughed. "They will start leaving soon. I doubt my mother will leave before dinner, but once the majority of the people have left, no doubt we could feign the need to rest before dinner."
"Fitzwilliam Darcy!" Mr. Fitzwilliam said from just out of sight behind them, startling them from a renewed kiss. "You have been married for an hour. You have not even received the congratulations from all of your guests, yet. You had best save that for tonight and get back out of the alcove before Mr. Bennet comes looking for you. Or Mrs. Bennet, for she would make quite the scene. I shall ensure my wife feigns tiredness in half an hour. That will make some begin to think of leaving, and the house shall mellow. Wait until then, before you spirit your wife upstairs for…"
"Thank you, Richard!" Mr. Darcy exclaimed quickly before his cousin could finish his sentence. "We are ever in your debt with your fount of wisdom. We shall return presently." He rested his forehead over his wife's and listened to his cousin's retreating footsteps. In a lower voice, he continued, "While his counsel is wise beyond his years, I will admit to having no desire to follow his command, but we must, my dear wife. He is correct. We ought to allow our guests time to share in our joy. Tonight will come eventually."
Elizabeth laughed as she agreed with his sentiments. "Are my lips swollen again?"
"Your lips are… absolutely.. delightfully tempting, my dear, as usual, but I had better not watch them for I am sorely tempted to make them swell again." With a chaste kiss, he leaned away and took her hand.
The remainder of the party lasted for three hours. Even after Mr. Fitzwilliam escorted his wife upstairs, Mrs. Bennet commandeered all of her neighbors to delightfully exclaim how delighted she was to have encouraged such a suitor as Mr. Darcy. Even Lady Lucas was returned to her good graces, for who could bemoan Mrs. Collins following her as mistress of Longbourn when Mr. Darcy of Pemberley in Derbyshire would be there to ensure she had all her comforts taken care of. And if she ever ran out of things to say, she easily remembered to mention Mr. Denny and Mr. Bingley would join the family in a matter of weeks.
Therefore, they only had about an hour to rest before dinner, and they used the time to simply sit in their shared sitting room, relishing at being alone and able to hold each other close.
The End
AN: ok, I will do an epilogue. I have it started already. I am so relieved to be done, though my goal had been to finish yesterday. I started this story a year ago today. Thank you for joining me on this journey. Your reviews have kept me going through a tough year.