Sorry it took so long. I just had the worst week I had in years.
Tuesday, my husband had an operation, and I was chauffeuring him around. Wednesday, I spent 2 hours at the dentist for a new crown. Thursday my old dog passed away and I had to make arrangements. None of those days was conducive to writing.
This is only a short chapter since I wanted to get something posted.
After this there will only be one more small chapter and an epilogue.
A couple of days later I will probably remove the story for publication.
~~H~~
Resolutions
While the evening was cold, there was no rain or snow, making it possible for Edith and her friends to walk back to Purvis Lodge using the path which Elizabeth had used on many occasions.
On their return, they made for the small parlour and called for tea for Charlotte. Edith and Richard opted for coffee and brandy.
Edith had the first warming sip of her beverages before commenting to Richard, 'there was no exigency on you to call out Mr Bennet on his attitude.'
'Yes, there was. I cannot abide cruelty.' Richard gave her a wolfish grin. 'Since Darcy is married to Elizabeth, I am family of sorts. Which means that I can get away with telling him things he has no wish to hear.'
Edith laughed. 'True. I have to confess to a certain cruel streak. I would have loved to have seen Cousin Bennet's expression.'
Richard wore a smug smile as he related his interaction with Bennet in exacting detail.
Edith shook her head in admiration. 'It occurs to me that you may have been closer to the truth than you might have imagined. Did you know that Cousin Bennet and my late husband were friends at Oxford. Perhaps that was where they learned their attitudes.'
'That could explain why my family sent their sons to Cambridge,' Richard joked to deflect any further praise.
'Thank you, Richard. Fanny and I appreciated your support.' Then, to change the mood, she asked, 'since you mentioned Darcy, have you heard from him lately?'
'I have indeed. Admittedly it took him a month before he could tear himself away from his bride to reassure me that all is well with him, and he has not given Elizabeth any reason to be upset with him.'
'I am pleased that he is proving the intelligence for which I gave him credit.'
~~H~~
The consequences of Richard's chastisement of Mr Bennet became obvious over the next few days.
Ever since his arrival at Netherfield with Bingley and Darcy, the Colonel had been quite popular with the locals. Now his reputation increased even further.
Even though Mr Bennet's wit had been admired, it had also made his neighbours quite uncomfortable at times, particularly when Mrs Bennet was the public recipient of his sarcasm. Now that the lady had taken steps to improve herself, they thought it patently unfair that Mr Bennet should continue to denigrate his wife.
But as a principal landholder in the area, Mr Bennet's neighbours had been reluctant to raise his ire, lest they became the preferred target of his sport. They were therefore grateful to Colonel Fitzwilliam to have taken the bull by its horns and turned the tables on Bennet.
Once the Colonel had led by example, the others were prepared to follow.
Therefore, the residents of Purvis Lodge and Longbourn, except for Mr Bennet, were invited to a round of teas, dinners and parties by the other two and twenty families of Meryton.
~~H~~
It had been a fortnight since that dinner at Longbourn, when on a rare quiet evening, Richard had a chance to reflect on the happenings.
He considered that it was most peculiar that none of the neighbours seemed to have an issue with him staying in Edith's house with only Charlotte Lucas as a chaperone.
It came as an amusing realisation that even though he and Edith did not have an understanding, their neighbours acted as if their match was a foregone conclusion.
Perhaps they had reached that inference due to the relaxed manner with which they dealt with each other.
A major part of that relaxation came from an unexpected source.
Now that Richard was confident that he could not accidentally hurt Edith , he relaxed when he was around her. The more he relaxed, the fewer waking or sleeping nightmares he suffered, which in turn caused him to relax more.
That is not to say that he thought that he was cured. He was simply reaching a point where he could control the worst of his responses on those occasions when his memories were triggered.
He felt that he was in an upward spiral and only the sky was the limit.
The only question for him now was whether the Countess… no, Edith was able to leave her own past behind.
~~H~~
Richard need not have worried.
Ever since the dinner at Longbourn, Edith could not stop thinking about Richard's defence of Mrs Bennet. He was a man so unlike her late husband that the fear she had held onto for all the years since his death was melting away.
For months she had enjoyed Fitzwilliam's company and conversation and they had become the closest of friends. With the Colonel Edith had felt comfortable enough to tell him the truth about the circumstances of her husband's death. He had not judged her as a monster but a survivor and as the champion of her son.
Yet despite the strength he displayed in most circumstances, he had also allowed her to see him in his vulnerable moments.
At times Edith felt that he was as attracted to her as she was to him. She had wondered what was holding him back from declaring himself and thought that perhaps it was his concern for her safety.
The evening when he had lunged at her during one of his vivid memories confirmed her suspicions. He had been horrified by the thought that he had tried to hurt her until he was faced with the fact that she had overpowered him.
Yes, it had been an excruciating embarrassment for him to be vanquished by a woman, but when he had recovered, it seemed that he was glad that she could so effectively defend herself against him.
She was in a quandary. Should she be quite proper and wait for Colonel Fitzwilliam to speak up or should she be bold and confront him?
For the past two weeks they had barely had a chance to speak privately, and Edith was getting frustrated by the uncertainty.
~~H~~
Edith was restless and was denied respite in the arms of Morpheus. Eventually, after hours of tossing and turning, she gave up trying to go to sleep.
She threw on a dressing gown and slid her feet into warm slippers before going downstairs to find a book to distract her restless mind.
As she opened the door to the library, Edith was astonished to see the light not only of the fire, but also of several candles beside one of the big chairs, the one angled to face towards the door.
As she approached, she could hear soft snores from the occupant of the chair above the crackling of the fire, which had been well stoked but was almost reduced to embers.
The Colonel must have had problems with sleeping in his room and had come to the library, where he found some soporific reading material, since he was now sprawled in his chair, fast asleep.
It seemed a shame to wake him, but with the fire burning low it would soon be too cold in the room and Edith was concerned that Richard would catch a chill. While his banyan might be quite warm, his current position had caused it to fall open and she surmised that his legs must be getting cold.
Remembering Caroline Bingley's fate when she touched Richard as he was asleep, Edith opted for caution and from a distance of several feet she called, 'Richard, wake up. You must be getting cold.'
~~H~~
Richard Fitzwilliam was having the most marvellous dream about the woman of his dreams.
He was relaxing in the library when he opened his eyes, and a lazy but delighted smile crossed his features as he saw Edith standing in front of him. He drank in the sight of her looking breathtaking in her dressing gown, with her dark hair cascading over her shoulders in soft waves.
'You look quite fetching, my love,' he drawled as he reached out a hand to her. Richard was pleased how warm her hand felt which she placed it into his much larger hand, while she wore an amused but indulgent smile.
'My love? Are you not a little premature?' she asked.
He gave her hand a gentle tug. 'Not at all. This is my dream, and I will dream it just as I please,' Richard murmured as he tugged Edith closer until she had no option but to sit on his lap.
'Your dream, you say? And pray tell, how will this dream of yours continue?' Edith said quietly even though her eyes sparkled with amused excitement.
Richard raised his other hand to her cheek and guided Edith's face towards his own for a slow and gentle kiss.
'Hmm,' he murmured with a dreamy smile. 'I like this dream. I usually wake up just before this moment.'
'And what makes you think that you are dreaming?'
'I never have the nerve to kiss you when I am awake, and I have wanted to kiss you for weeks.'
'I am glad since I have wanted to kiss you too,' Edith replied as to Richard's delight she leant towards him and this time it was she who initiated the kiss.
When they came up for air, Edith smiled and said, 'I have good news or bad news for you.'
It was Richard's turn to smile indulgently. 'Why is the news good or bad?'
Edith grinned at him. 'It depends on your point of view… You are not dreaming.'
~~H~~
Btw I am torn how far I have our couple go. Do I keep this clean or maybe not quite? Nothing graphic of course, but possibly a test to see if Richard gets nightmares or if Edith is a dreamcatcher.
I just had a thought, perhaps I should call this story 'The Colonel and the Dreamcatcher?
~~H~~
The Colonel and the Heiress (working title) by Sydney Salier, Copyright © 2022