Author's Note:
Chapter 17 part 2.
My Beta Reader (Elaine/Bookmommy from AHA) sent me some edited chapters, I replaced chapter 1 and probably I will be replacing one chapter per day.
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As usual, when he arrived at Sandstone, he was warmly greeted by Elizabeth and Isabella. With each passing day, Isabella loved Mr. Darcy more and told her mother that Mr. Darcy was her best friend. In addition, Darcy tried to win her affection, and he was delighted every time Isabella smiled at him, hugged him, or told him she missed him.
Isabella, very happy with the colors, immediately sat down at her small desk and began to draw a picture to give to her best friend, Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth hesitated before accepting the gifts, she knew that it was not right for a single or widowed woman to accept gifts from a man with whom she had no understanding... they looked into each other's eyes for several seconds, Darcy's eyes told her everything he felt for her, and finally, to Darcy's joy, Elizabeth with a slight smile accepted the gifts.
After a simple and hearty lunch, Darcy helped Elizabeth to answer some letters from prospective buyers of Sandstone's crops and wool. Darcy suggested that she not accept these proposals since the prices they were willing to pay her were 20% lower than what his acquittances paid him for the same Rosings' crops. Since the crops and wool of the estates were the same, and his clients and acquaintances wanted to buy more products, he suggested that he let him sell Sandstone's crop and wool along with Rosings. He was sure that she would make more profit than if she tried to sell them on her own.
As soon as they finished answering the letters and talking about business and about the books that he had gifted her that day, they returned to the main room where Isabella was waiting for them with the book 'Puss in Boots' that Mr. Darcy had promised to read to her. Darcy sat Isabella on his lap and began to read the book to her as she looked at the beautiful illustrations in the fairytale book. Elizabeth looked at them with tears in her eyes, it was the image of a loving father with his daughter, and for a few moments, she thought of Thomas with a hint of nostalgia... Unfortunately, Isabella was very young when he died and had very few memories of him, and as time went on, they faded.
Before Darcy finished reading the story, a very strong storm blew up. Since it was too dangerous for Darcy to return to Rosings by horse or carriage, Elizabeth decided to invite him to spend the night at Sandstone. Very grateful Darcy accepted the invitation; each passing day it was more difficult for him to be apart from her and he dreamed of the day he would have the privilege and the right to take care of her.
Elizabeth escorted him to the bedchamber the Gardiners used when they visit her so he could rest and freshen up before dinner. The room was very simple and relatively small, there was only one double bed with two bedside tables, two small armchairs, a table with a bowl, and a vase of water.
Half an hour later they were all gathered in the dining room. Unlike most ladies of the Ton, Elizabeth was used to dining with her daughter and Mrs. Watson; Darcy thoroughly enjoyed these intimate moments spent with the woman he loved and Isabella. He remembered that when he was a child, his parents never had dinner with him, he was with his governess most of the time, and he only saw his parents a few minutes per day. He realized that the emotional bond that Isabella had with Elizabeth and vice versa was very different from the one he had with his mother and father. He knew that if one day he had a child, he wanted to have the same relationship with him or her that Elizabeth had with Isabella. After a simple and tasty dinner, Isabella reluctantly - since she wanted Mr. Darcy to read her Cinderella - said goodbye to her mother and Mr. Darcy and went to bed together with Mrs. Watson.
After being alone, they went to the library where Elizabeth offered him a glass of brandy and they sat down to talk. The chess board that Darcy had gifted her that day was on the table; and a few minutes later Darcy challenged her to a game of chess, and with a smile, Elizabeth gladly accepted the challenge.
To Darcy's delight, in a few moves he discovered that Elizabeth was a great opponent, and he had to concentrate hard not to lose the game. The game was at its height when Darcy moved his rook leaving Elizabeth in check. To defend against that move, Elizabeth had no choice but to sacrifice her Queen.
Darcy looked into her beautiful eyes and passionately said, "Although I am going to take your Queen right now, it is another Queen that I want. Tell me Elizabeth, how much longer do I have to wait for you to finally say yes?"
Elizabeth held his gaze and determinedly replied, "I have thought carefully about your proposal, but before I give you a definitive answer, I have to ask you a few questions. Are you sure you want to marry a woman whose family, despite the years that have passed, is still tainted by scandal? Are you sure you want to marry a woman that your family probably won't approve of? Are you sure you want to marry a woman who has another man's daughter?"
"Do you think I care what my family thinks or says about my decision to marry you? I do not have, nor am I interested in giving explanations for my actions and feelings. You do not realize Elizabeth that we are no longer the same. I am a man who several years ago due to my pride lost the opportunity to woo and win your affection, and for this, I have been very unhappy all these years. Do you think I'm going to be so stupid to have happiness at my fingertips again and let it go because of what others may think? No, Elizabeth, you are the only thing that matters to me. You and Isabella whom I already love as if she were my daughter.
With a slight smile, Elizabeth replied: "Then I want to tell you that I enjoy immensely your company, that I miss you very much when I am not with you and I am falling in love with you. I know that you are a proud man of your lineage and heritage and although you say at this moment that you do not care what they say about your choice of wife, I fear that in a few years you will regret not marrying a lady of the Ton."
Darcy was very happy to hear that she was in love with him, but at the same time he was frustrated because she still had doubts that she was and would always be the most important thing to him, so he got up from the chair and with a quick movement took her in his arms, held her tightly and passionately kissed her. At first, Elizabeth was surprised, but seconds later she also started kissing him passionately.
"I need you Elizabeth, I have been in love with you for eight years; I love you more than anything in this world and if you think for a second that one day, I will regret marrying you, you are very wrong. As I have told you and I will repeat to you a thousand times until you have no more doubts, I only care about you and Isabella and I want to be worthy of you. Please, my love, do not make me wait any longer and tell me once and for all YES.
They continued kissing passionately, their hands running over each other's bodies. Darcy guided her to a couch and a few minutes later they were intertwined until at one point Elizabeth told him they should stop; her daughter could go downstairs with her governess or a servant could enter the room, and it was wrong for them to anticipate their vows. After a few minutes in which they both recovered, Darcy knelt and asked her again to be his wife. In this instance, Lizzy accepted without any objection.
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El capítulo en inglés tiene algunos detalles adicionales.
Como ya era costumbre, fue calurosamente recibido tanto por Elizabeth como por Isabella. Ese día después de almorzar, Darcy ayudó a Elizabeth a responder algunas cartas de negocios. Además, le ofreció vender en conjunto los cultivos ya que eran los mismos que los de Rosings, y él ya tenía una cantidad de conocidos y clientes con los que hacía negocios. De esa forma seguramente obtendría mayores ganancias que si trataba de venderlos sola.
Sobre las últimas horas de la tarde, enseguida que terminó de leerle un cuento de hadas a Bella, se desencadenó una fuerte tormenta. Elizabeth preocupada, invitó a Darcy a que se quedará esa noche en Sandstone, ya que era muy peligroso que se fuera cabalgando por la baja visibilidad causada por la lluvia. Darcy que cada día le costaba más estar separado de ella, gustosamente aceptó la invitación.
Elizabeth lo acompañó a la habitación que usaban sus tíos cuando venían a visitarla, por si quería descansar y refrescarse unos minutos antes de la cena. La habitación era muy sencilla y pequeña, tenía una cama matrimonial simple, dos mesas de noche y dos pequeños sillones.
Después de una simple y sabrosa cena, la Sra. Watson e Isabella se fueron a acostar. Elizabeth estaba acostumbrada a comer todas las comidas con su hija y la niñera, y Darcy disfrutaba mucho de compartir esos preciosos momentos en familia. Sabía que, si un día tenía otros hijos, no iba a ser como la mayoría de los padres de la alta sociedad, que era muy raro que pasaran más de una hora al día con ellos.
Después que quedaron solos, fueron a la biblioteca donde la estufa estaba prendida ya que las noches ya eran muy frías. Darcy invitó a Elizabeth a un partido de ajedrez con el tablero que ese mismo día le había regalado, y ella gustosamente aceptó el desafío.
El partido estaba en su apogeo, cuando en una excelente jugada Darcy movió su torre dejando en jaque a Elizabeth. Para defenderse de esa jugada, Elizabeth tuvo que sacrificar a su Reina. Darcy la miró a los ojos y con pasión le dijo, "Si bien voy a tomar ahora tu Reina, es otra la Reina que quiero. Dime Elizabeth, ¿cuánto tiempo más tengo que esperar para que me digas que sí?"
Elizabeth le mantuvo la mirada y con determinación le respondió, "He pensado en tu propuesta, pero antes de decirte que sí, tengo que preguntarte, ¿estás realmente seguro de querer casarte con alguien cuya familia a pesar de los años sigue teñida por el escándalo? ¿Estás seguro de querer casarte con alguien que tu familia seguramente no apruebe?
"¿De verdad crees que me importa lo que pueda decir mi familia? No tengo, ni me interesa, dar explicaciones de mis acciones. No te das cuenta Elizabeth que ya no somos los de antes. Soy un hombre que a causa de mi orgullo perdí hace varios años la oportunidad de cortejar y ganar tu afecto, y por ello he sido muy infeliz todos estos años. ¿De verdad crees que voy a ser tan tonto de tener nuevamente la felicidad al alcance de mi mano y dejarla ir? No, Elizabeth, tú eres lo único que me importa. Tu e Isabella a quién ya quiero como si fuera mi propia hija."
"Entonces, no voy a negarte que disfruto inmensamente de tu compañía, que te extraño cuando no estoy contigo, y que sin quererlo me he enamorado de ti. Se que eres un hombre orgulloso de tu linaje, y a pesar que ahora dices que no te importa el qué dirán, tengo miedo que en unos años te puedas arrepentir."
Darcy se levantó de su silla, y en un movimiento rápido la tomo en sus brazos y la besó apasionadamente. Al principio Elizabeth se sorprendió, pero segundos más tarde comenzó ella también a besarlo con pasión.
"Te necesito Elizabeth, hace 8 años que te amo, estoy totalmente enamorado y si por un segundo crees que algún día me voy a arrepentir estas muy equivocada. Como te he dicho y te repetiré mil veces hasta que no tengas dudas, solo me importas tu y lo que más quiero es ser digno de ti. Por favor mi amor, no me hagas esperar más, y dime de una vez por todas que sí."
Los dos siguieron besándose apasionadamente, las manos de ambos recorrían el cuerpo del otro. Darcy la guío hacia un sillón y minutos más tarde estaban totalmente entrelazados, hasta que Elizabeth en un momento le dijo que debían parar. Su hija podía bajar con su niñera, o alguien podía entrar a la habitación y no era correcto que anticiparan sus votos. Después de unos minutos, en que ambos se recuperaron, Darcy se arrodilló y le pidió nuevamente que fuera su esposa. En esta instancia, Lizzy aceptó sin ningún tipo de objeción.