In the morning, they told Georgiana their news and she could not have been happier. While she was now too mature to squeal in delight at their news, this is exactly what she wanted to do. Elizabeth, who had wondered if she had been worried about continuing to live with them after their marriage said, "Georgie, I want you to know that you do not have to worry about where you will live. Of course, I would love to have you continue to make your home with us. I have a feeling that it will not be for very long in any case as there are obviously so many fine gentlemen interested in you. I will only ask that you be very choosy before you accept one. Find someone who will respect and love you for yourself and not for your dowry. Of course, if he is handsome, that would be nice! Perhaps not too short and not too fat as well?" They both giggled at this. Darcy was very pleased to see that they got along so well that they could tease each other.
Darcy, Elizabeth, and Georgiana returned to Meryton the next day. Together, they told the Bingleys their news. They all talked about their concerns about Tommy and Longbourn. Bingley quickly assured them that he would gladly assist their uncles with managing the Longbourn estate and would be available to oversee a steward. They even spoke about using the profits from the estate to buy more land so Tommy's inheritance would be greater when he took over.
As for Tommy, they easily agreed that it would be good for him to be raised near Longbourn and most of his relatives, rather than so far away in Derbyshire. Bingley and Jane said that they would love to have him as he was such a good child and was a great playmate for Anna. In the end, knowing that his uncles were his official guardians, they decided to suggest that his care would be shared between the Bingleys and the Darcys, with his spending most of his time at Netherfield but summers at Pemberley. The cost of his care and future schooling would not be a problem as the entire income from Longbourn would be available for him, and for him alone.
They had the first banns read that Sunday, which did not surprise any of the local residents who had seen them at the Assembly. Their wedding would be held soon after the third banns were read, so they did not have much time to invite their relatives to come. The Bingleys graciously told them that, as they had many empty rooms at Netherfield, they would all be made available to any guests who needed a place to stay. Their offer was accepted as they all knew that Longbourn's guest rooms would be insufficient for everyone who was expected to come.
Every relative they invited did come. Longbourn was full to bursting as many of Elizabeth's family wanted to stay there except for her mother, who, as usual, stayed with her husband at the Long's house. While Elizabeth had invited Kitty and Mr. Roper to stay with her, Kitty decided that she would like to stay with Mary and Mr. Towers as she worried that her husband might not be comfortable at Longbourn as it would be so crowded. With the Gardiners and Carters all there, every guest room was full, so Elizabeth shared with the oldest Gardiner daughter, Elaine. Elaine was pleased as she had a lot of questions she wanted to ask about boys and marriage. Elizabeth had to answer her questions very carefully, but she sympathized with her cousin's curiosity as she remembered what she was like at that age.
Both Jane and Aunt Gardiner managed to find time to talk to Elizabeth about what to expect on her wedding night. While her Aunt explained the technical details, Jane was more explicit about the ultimate joys she could expect and gave her suggestions on how to achieve these pleasures. Elizabeth thought that she understood what Jane was describing as she had found a number of opportunities to be alone with her intended and she found that his gentle ministrations had given rise to some very pleasant feelings. If there was more to come, it must be like heaven on earth!
The only friend that Elizabeth invited was Charlotte Collins. She did come with her husband, although Collins had not been enthusiastic to be reminded of the estate that he would no longer inherit as long as Tommy lived. They stayed at the Lucas's house and they did not mingle very much with the other guests. However, they now had two children of their own who soon found playmates among the many children who had come. The Collinses were made to feel quite comfortable with the other young guests, even if they did not enjoy Mr. Collins's company for long. It did not take long for every guest to learn what conversing with Collins was like, so he had a difficult time finding anyone who would listen to him for more than a few minutes at a stretch.
All the Matlocks came and stayed with Darcy at Netherfield. Most of the time before the wedding, everyone gathered there from both estates. Fortunately, they all got along; the Earl and Countess were hesitant at first to meet the Gardiners and Ropers as they were in trade, but were soon won over by their excellent manners and intelligence. When the Gardiner children were introduced to them, they appreciated that each made a very proper greeting to their social superiors.
The only guest who did not appear to be very happy for the engaged couple was Sir Richard, who was still chastising himself for not having followed up on his initial attraction to Miss Elizabeth Bennet once he inherited Rosings and could then afford to marry anyone he wanted. However, as every other person was so happy for them, his disgruntlement soon disappeared and his natural liveliness quickly prevailed.
The church was packed for the ceremony with the many invited guests and local residents who wanted to see this last Bennet daughter happily married. Georgiana accompanied Elizabeth down the aisle, who was given away by her Uncle Gardiner. Bingley stood up with Darcy. The wedding breakfast was held at Netherfield and was just as well-attended. Finally, the newlyweds managed to leave for London as they decided to spend their first week at Darcy House. Georgiana returned to town with the Matlocks for that week to give the new couple time to love in private. This proved to be a good arrangement as the Matlocks made sure she was kept busy with the entertainments that were available at the end of this season.
What can we say about their first night together? It was all that they expected, and more, much more, with their long-suppressed passions being allowed to run free at last. After four lost years, they had much catching-up to do, which they certainly did with enthusiasm.
At the end of their week alone, they finally emerged to visit Georgiana and the Matlocks. They had intended to take Georgiana to Pemberley with them, but she asked if she could remain in town until the very end of the season as she was having such a wonderful time with her success. This they allowed, so Darcy and Elizabeth went up to Pemberley alone. While she had visited the estate four years ago, this time she would arrive as its new Mistress. She quickly found that the staff all welcomed her enthusiastically as they all wanted their Master to be happy. From what they had heard from the staff at Darcy House, not only was Mrs. Darcy a kind and considerate lady, but Mr. Darcy was infatuated with her and she returned his regard just as fervently. They all looked forward to years of happiness and the hopes that the halls of Pemberley would soon be filled with the sound of running little feet and happy laughter.
EPILOGUE
The Pemberley staff were not disappointed in their hopes and a son and heir was born within a year of their marriage. He was followed by three more children who proved to be very active and happy, so the nurses, maids, and footmen were kept busy chasing after these little scamps for many years.
Pemberley was visited numerous times by family members and their own growing families. The Bingleys ended up with just three children, the same as Kitty and Mr. Roper. Roper eventually took over his father's business and became quite successful running it. Lydia and Carter ended up with four children. They managed their estate well and were happy together. Mary and Mr. Tower surprised them all when they produced their sixth child. No one had any idea of the depth of the passion they found with each other. Tower soon became the parson at Meryton and proved to be popular, which was widely credited to result from the influence of his wife. They lived a comfortable life in Meryton for many years.
The Bingleys mainly had Tommy except when he went to Pemberley in the summers. He was sent to Eton, then Cambridge, but he wanted only to be a gentleman farmer in Hertfordshire. He was admired around Meryton for his capable running of Longbourn, which had slowly grown in size due to the efforts of Elizabeth, Darcy, Bingley, and Tommy's uncles.
Lady Elford's marriage lasted just ten years before her husband passed to his final reward. While the bulk of his estate, including his Reading house, went to his children, his widow was left with a sum that would ensure she would be comfortable for the rest of her life. With the loss of her Reading home, she decided to move back to Longbourn, which was reopened for her. After graduating from Cambridge with honours, Tommy moved in with her to take over the management of Longbourn. They finally established a good relationship that lasted until she left the earth many years later. Even though he could have had the pick of the many ladies he met in London, he eventually chose a country wife whose father was also just a squire like he was. Just like his sisters, he married for love, not money or position. He and his wife lived quite contentedly in the country with their four children, which included two sons, thus breaking the entail on Longbourn forever.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed my story. If you are interested, I am currently working on another one, tentatively titled "Warrior with a Parasol."
I read every comment, so please let me know what you think and how I might improve my writing.
The inspiration for the title "Four Lost Years" came from Barry Broadfoot's great book, Ten Lost Years.
RoniAllan