Darcy expected his aunt to tease him all the way back to Darcy House. He was surprised when she did not.
"That was a very satisfying visit," she said as the carriage rolled away from the home of the Bennet sisters. "I have been so afraid that you and Richard might never choose to marry or that you would simply give up searching for someone who made you happy and just marry some random well-dowered society miss because you felt you had to. Instead, I believe you have both chosen exactly the right women to be the making of you. Well done, William."
"I am glad you approve, but I am not sure I chose anything. I opened my eyes and there she was. Before I knew it, I could not imagine marrying anyone else. Bingley was originally attracted to Miss Bennet, primarily because she is a lovely woman, but seemed willing enough to point Richard her way after his betrothal to Miss Mary. Your son fell for her after a conversation about the state of affairs on the Continent in which she held her own and showed her good sense and intelligence."
"Ah, I am glad to hear he judged her on the correct things. It would have been a shame if all he saw was her pretty face and figure. I am very pleased with how this day has gone."
"So am I," Darcy said emphatically. "Although I thought it was rather high-handed of you to insist Elizabeth and her sisters make themselves a new set of gowns. You as much as said they were not good enough for who they are."
"Not at all, dear boy. What I said is that they need to look the part of the women I already know them to be, so that society will see them the way I do. With Jane's attachment to Richard not yet formalized, I would have been truly high-handed to simply insist they stop taking sewing commissions altogether. They are smart enough to figure that out on their own long before their new gowns are completed. I also meant it when I told them that I could not buy them any gowns better than what they can make for themselves. Lizzy as much as admitted that they no longer need to do the work to support themselves and are now taking the jobs because they cannot stand the idea of being idle. Well, they will both need more than one fine gown each as your wives and by then they will have found other occupations for their time. I believe my gown will be the last special creation Lizzy does for Madame Gaillard, a distinction I shall savor."
"Kitty said she wanted to learn to be good enough to do work for Madame," Georgiana said quietly.
"She would do well to reach for that standard, as would you, but she will not be selling her work. As the sister of three wealthy gentlewomen not to mention your best friend and soon-to-be sister, it would not be at all appropriate and neither of you should discuss that desire or the fact that Lizzy and Jane have sold their work anywhere that others beyond our trusted little circle can hear. That includes in front of any servants who do not already know. I understand that honest work is acceptable in the face of want and starvation. Much of society would feel that starvation is preferable to lowering oneself to trade, entirely forgetting that everything we do is a form of trade. If it becomes commonly known, they will have trouble being properly accepted. For the same reason, we will not spread the word that the Gardiners are in trade. They will be part of the family and we will gladly invite them to join us at events, but that part of the connection remains unspoken unless they choose to speak of it. Do you understand?"
"I think so, Aunt Susan."
The two women fell into a discussion of the shopping expedition for the following day. Darcy had nothing to contribute, so he let the talk continue around him while he thought about everything he had learned that day about Elizabeth and her family. All the little mysteries of the past had been solved. Now he had to deal with the big mysteries of the future – how often and long he would be in Elizabeth's company, when they could marry and when he would be able to take her home to Pemberley. He had just realized that with his aunt involved, they would probably not be able to sneak away right after the wedding. Aunt Susan was sure to insist on them spending at least part of the upcoming Season solidifying the new Mrs. Darcy's place in the Ton, both for her sake and to ease Kitty and Georgiana's entry the following year. He was smiling at the thought that Richard and Jane would be subject to the same social torture, and wondering if they could get Bingley and his wife to come join them to deflect some of the attention, when the carriage came to a stop in front of Darcy house.
"William! Stop grinning to yourself and pay some attention," Aunt Susan said, with a pat to his knee. "I expect my son is probably waiting for you here. Be sure he knows the plan for tomorrow and tell him firmly for me that he is not to visit the Bennet sisters at their home without me. I will, of course, restate the order later, but for now you must be my proxy."
Darcy agreed and descended so he could help Georgiana down the step. He wished his aunt a good night and was about to close the door when she stopped him.
"You may also tell Richard that I approve, very much. And that goes for you as well. Good night, William. I will see you tomorrow. Georgiana – be ready on time!"
"Yes, Aunt Susan," his sister said happily.
The carriage rolled off as the Darcy siblings entered the house. At the door, the footman who opened it told Darcy that his cousin was waiting in his study. Darcy thanked the man and turned to his sister.
"Richard and I will see you at dinner. I imagine it is just about ready, so I will not be too long."
She started to head for the stairs and then rushed back and gave him a hug. "I am so very happy for you, Brother. I think Lizzy will be perfect for you and I cannot imagine gaining better sisters. Thank you for coming along with us today and making it such a wonderful experience."
He gave her a quick squeeze before stepping back. "I am glad to be of service, Georgie. Go on. I need a few minutes to gloat over Richard before we head to the meal."
"It is not often the tables turn like that, is it," she teased. "Usually he is the one teasing you. I suppose you must enjoy it while you can."
She headed up the stairs looking happier than he had seen her since before the incident at Ramsgate, possibly even since their father had died. Suspecting he looked the same, he headed off to the study. There, he found Richard draped over a chair near the fire sipping at what could only be brandy.
"That had better not be from one of the bottles I purchased from Bingley," Darcy said as sternly as he could manage.
"No, the servants would not unpack it for me. I still cannot believe you and Bingley thought you could keep that wine cellar full he gained as Mrs. Bingley's dowry a secret from me. You know I found out from the carter before they ever finished the delivery. Anyway, this is what you had in the decanter already. What took you so long? I expected you to be here when I arrived. Instead, the butler said you had gone off somewhere with my mother and Georgiana."
"Yes," Darcy answered, attempting to be nonchalant. "Your mother had an errand to run and I decided to join them. We ran into some acquaintances and ended up visiting for a while."
"I bet you wish you had stayed home," Richard said, taking another sip of his drink. "Well, I can report that Wickham and Denny are now safely housed in their new homes. I provided that little payment you made to made sure they ended up in the lower levels and that they will have no chance to get out. You were correct – Wickham did not have energy enough to attempt an escape. You really made a mess of his nose. That is not going to heal well."
Darcy went to the decanter and poured himself a small amount of the brandy as Richard continued his report. As long as he did not look at his cousin, he thought he could keep his countenance for a little while longer and then spring the news on Richard at the best possible moment. To that end, he took a chair that did not face his cousin directly and leaned back in it, partly closing his eyes to look as if he was simply enjoying the brandy.
"I could not believe how much Denny whined the whole journey," Richard was saying. "He went on and on about how unfair we were being and that he had not done anyone any harm. We had no reason to arrest him when he was just doing his duty as a militia officer. No one could prove anything against him and so on. I let him go on for quite a while. It was actually rather entertaining. Wickham was the one who finally told him to just shut up and take his lumps like a man. I thought that was rich coming from someone who has spent his lifetime avoiding the consequences of his own behavior."
"He knows the concepts," Darcy said, "Even if he never practiced them. He always said honor and the like were luxuries for wealthy boys like you and me."
"Wealthy? If he had not frittered away all the benefits your father gave him, Wickham could have been a wealthy man himself. All it would have taken was a little self-restraint."
"Again, a concept he knew about but never practiced. So, did you ever enlighten Denny to our knowledge of his part in the plot against Miss Bingley."
"I let him and Wickham have a bit of a go at each other for a while. Eventually Wickham got tired of it. I think talking hurt. Once that wound down, I casually told Denny that if he had been smarter, no one would have known about his fraudulent behavior at Brighton. Gloating to your buddies about how smart you had been to cheat someone was a sure way to end up one day paying the consequences for the deed. Then I told him he might have had a longer grace period before anyone discovered it if he had not been overheard plotting to help Jamison commit a rape for money. That prompted a bit of inquiry into his past actions."
"I bet that information did not go down well," Darcy guessed.
"Like trying to swallow a stale loaf of bread without benefit of liquid or teeth," Richard said. "Then, Wickham cursed him for his foolishness and that got Denny riled up again. He started swearing about Jamison and how he should have told them his sisters had good dowries. He said he would have married the little whore, which I assume he meant Miss Lydia, like a shot if he known about the money. That was the first Wickham had heard about the money either and he started muttering about Jamison setting him to ruin Miss Elizabeth when Wickham would have been better served to have just dragged her off to Gretna. I gave them both a good whack at that point, telling them that they should just keep their mouths shut about the Bennets or I would give them more than just Wickham's broken nose to worry about. I also let them know just how bad off Jamison was and gloated a bit over his impending demise. Neither of his friends seemed too sad about that."
"I am not surprised. I doubt Wickham is actually capable of true friendship and I would guess Denny is another of the same sort. It is a good thing he never got the chance to marry Lydia."
"Oh, I expect we could have found a way to quickly make her a widow. Or simply have sent him off to debtor's prison anyway. I assume Mr. Phillips has some discretion on how her trust fund is released?"
"I am not sure what the terms he built into it are. I just bought the books and made a demand as a condition."
"I think it is hilarious that if you marry Miss Elizabeth the dowry you will receive came from your own accounts."
"Some of it. You know that she and Miss Bennet both have an additional amount from their great-grandmother."
"I remember Mr. Bennet saying something about an existing dowry, but not how much or where it came from. How do you know it was their great-grandmother?"
Darcy took another sip of the brandy to cover his grin. "You remember that connection between the Gardiners and Oakbrook? Well, your mother knew the details of the matter. We discussed it on the way to the modiste."
Richard started in surprise and rapidly shifted to sit up straight in his chair. "You accompanied my mother to the modiste? Willingly? Are you ill, Darcy?"
"Not at all," Darcy replied, "In fact, I have never felt better. You see, the modiste in question was Madame Gaillard, the same one who provided Miss Bingley with that gown she prizes so highly and which bears a strong resemblance to Mrs. Bingley's wedding gown."
Richard leaned back again. "Oh, you were tracking down more of your little mysteries."
"i found far more than answers to those today. I found a new favorite word."
"Oh, really," Richard said sarcastically. "And what word is that?"
"Yes."
"Pardon?" Richard asked, not sure what to make of the comment or the grin Darcy could no longer hide.
"Yes. That was the answer Miss Elizabeth Bennet gave me when I asked her to marry me. Yes!"
Richard shook his head and put down his empty glass on the side table. "Wait a minute. You asked Miss Elizabeth to marry you? When was this? I thought we were not going to visit the Gardiners until tomorrow morning. We were supposed to go together!" He became progressively more upset with each comment.
"We would not have found them there. Miss Bennet and her sisters have their own establishment now." Darcy was enjoying this.
"What? How did you find out?"
"Elizabeth told me."
"When?"
"A little while before I tried to ask her for a courtship."
Richard was turning a bit red in the face now. Darcy was only just holding in his laughter.
"But you just said she agree to marry you. How were you even in her company?"
"I started by asking for a courtship but was talking about asking her to marry me at the same time. Your mother interrupted before I really got the question out, but Elizabeth said yes that time as well. When I got the chance to clarify matters with her a little later I decided to just go all out and asked her to marry me."
"And she said yes again."
"She did. I love the sound of that word when she says it."
Richard took a deep breath and gripped the arms of his chair. "Good, she said yes. Now, tell me the sequence of events in order starting with taking my mother to the modiste."
He could stop himself no longer. Darcy burst out laughing while Richard just looked at him as if he had gone insane. When he got control of himself, Darcy began the explanation.
"You said earlier that you bet I wished I had stayed home? That is a bet you would have lost. I doubt I ever made a better decision that to go along with them today." He went on to explain how they had come across Elizabeth and Kitty and outlined the subsequent events. "Your mother already knows that you plan to court Miss Bennet. When she told me about the family history, I slipped and said that we had planned to visit the Gardiners tomorrow and she immediately asked which of the sisters you were courting. She observed Miss Bennet carefully today and told me to tell you that she approves."
"Of course, she does," Richard said. "But I cannot believe you got the drop on me by taking my mother to the modiste! I figured you would bumble around with your courtship and Miss Bennet and I would be married long before you had the nerve to even ask Miss Elizabeth. Instead, you went from courtship to betrothal in under an hour! Inconceivable!"
"I am not that bad," Darcy said, pretending offense.
"Darce, you are an utter idiot when it comes to women. You either insult them or run off and hide."
"It just took finding the right one," Darcy said, admitting only to himself that Richard was correct.
"Well, I plan to do some superior courting of my own tomorrow morning."
"Oh, we will not be going to the Gardiner's home tomorrow morning," Darcy said.
"Of course not. We will go to this establishment where the Bennet sisters live."
"No, Richard. Your mother has absolutely forbidden us to visit there without her or Mrs. Gardiner present. It is a household full of women. Think about it."
Richard thought for a moment. "Oh," he said.
"Besides, they will not be there tomorrow morning," Darcy continued, once that thought had sunk in.
"Well, where will they be and when do I get to visit Miss Bennet? You do not seem very concerned, Darcy."
"They will be with your mother, Georgiana and Mrs. Gardiner on a shopping expedition. We are allowed to spend the afternoon with them at the Gardiner's home and are invited to stay for dinner as well. Speaking of which, I think it is about time we go up and prepare. The gong should ring at any moment."
Richard dragged himself from the chair. "Shopping?" he said in a disgruntled tone. "How is shopping more important than courting?"
Darcy put down his empty glass and stood as well. "Oh, I agree. But try convincing your mother of that."
Richard sighed and then he brightened. "All afternoon and then dinner. Hmm, I wonder if I can be betrothed before the meal?"
"Shoot for after," Darcy said teasingly. "You want to be in the courtship before dinner. Now come on. I am hungry. It has been an amazingly long day."
