P&P: How Darcy met Elizabeth

by MJanie001

Modern variation of P&P, traditional style. Elizabeth Bennet is a young and upcoming photographer who is about to cross paths with the proud, arrogant, and handsome Mr. Darcy. From the moment, they meet Elizabeth finds him to be rude, controlling, and snobbish. While Darcy finds himself equally annoyed and intrigued by this new acquaintance with the captivating brown eyes.(c)

43. Chapter 43

Chapter 43: Lady Catherine Comes to Longbourn

It was three weeks since Elizabeth last spoke to Will. She had to fight the urge on more than one occasion to pick up the phone and call him. She decided that if he wanted to speak with her, he would have contacted her. Deep down she knew that her sister's marriage to Wickham must have caused him to have doubts about the two of them. She was sure the idea of her being related to George Wickham must be on his mind.

She walked through the trees, the leaves were already beginning to change, and there was a crisp smell of autumn in the air. She thought about the coming months ahead, Jane and Charles were getting married near the end of October. She was very happy for them both. When Charles came, Elizabeth knew at once that he was planning to ask Jane to marry him. Jane was so happy when she got home the two of them stayed up half the night talking about how Charles proposed and how they both professed their love for each other. Jane asked her to be the maid of honor, and she knew Charles was going to ask Will to be his best man. She knew that she would see him at the wedding, but she was determined to keep her emotions under control. She had to admit his not calling did hurt, but she understood why he wasn't in contact with her. After all the harm Wickham had caused Will, she could understand why he would be conflicted about the two of them.

She thought about how her life would change once Jane was married, and moved to Netherfield. Elizabeth was glad that she would still be close enough to visit often. She glanced down at her watch; it was already well past 4:00, she needed to head back to the house. She pulled her coat up tighter around her shoulders as an uncontrollable shiver came over her. The wind was picking up, so she hurried to get home. As she came up the drive, she saw a limousine parked in the driveway. She arched her eyebrow wondering whom it could belong too since the only guest they were expecting was Charles coming to have dinner with Jane. She went inside and was just about to slip off her coat when Hill came up to her. "Lady Catherine de Bourgh is here to see you," she whispered to her.

Elizabeth's eyes opened wider in shock, "Here?" she repeated. "Lady Catherine is here?"

Hill nodded her head, "Yes, she has been waiting for at least fifteen minutes with your mother and Kitty."

Elizabeth hung her coat up and went into the living room not sure what to expect. "Lady Catherine, I didn't know you were coming, sorry to keep you waiting," she told her as she walked into the room.

Mrs. Bennet smiled, "Oh there you are Lizzy. I explained to Lady Catherine that you went for a walk and would not be gone too long," she told her.

Lady Catherine stood up and said in a rather irritated voice. "If you don't mind Miss Bennet I have some business I would like to discuss with you," she said as she walked over toward the window. "Perhaps we could take a short walk through your gardens?"

"Of course," she said.

Lady Catherine made her way over to the door without saying anything further to either Kitty or her mother. She waited while Hill brought them both their coats then proceeded to lead the way out of the house and into the garden.

Elizabeth followed behind her wondering what she could be doing there. "Lady Catherine I have to ask to what do I owe this unexpected visit?" she asked politely.

Lady Catherine walked further away from the house before stopping and turning to face Elizabeth, "I think you know very well the reason for this visit, Miss Bennet," she snapped at her.

Elizabeth shook her head, "No I truly don't," she told her a little surprised at the tone of Lady Catherine's voice.

"Fine play innocent if you like, but don't expect to fool me the way you have fooled my nephews. I can see past your little tricks," she told her.

Elizabeth took in a deep breath and tried to contain her rising anger, "Look if the only reason you are here is to insult me then I..." she began to say when she was interrupted.

"I have it on very good authority that you and my nephew have been secretly seeing each other since you lured him into your web when you came to visit your cousin at Rosings," Lady Catherine told her.

Elizabeth almost laughed at the words Lady Catherine chose to use, "I can honestly say I have no idea what you are talking about."

Lady Catherine shook her head in disgust. "Your kind are all alike. I knew as soon as I saw you with my nephews, that you were attempting to make a play for one of them," she sneered at her. "Of course, at the time I assumed it was Richard you were after. I thought Fitzwilliam had too much sense to fall victim to someone like you!"

Elizabeth no longer found the conversation funny. "Excuse me, but who do you think you are, coming to my home and attacking me like this?"

Lady Catherine ignored her comment and continued, "I know your type, you will try to trick him into thinking that he's in love with you then you end up pregnant like your younger sister and demand that he marries you!" she accused her. "Well, I won't have it. I will not have my sister's good name dragged through the mud by the likes of you. I will not stand by and see my nephew destroy his life and throw it away by proposing to someone like you Miss Elizabeth Bennet!"

Elizabeth stood her ground, "Someone like me!" she snapped back, "You think you are so much better than me just because you have money and a huge house. Well let me tell you, Lady Catherine, it takes more than money to instill good manners and polite behavior!" she snapped at her. "I don't have to stand here and defend myself to someone who has done nothing but attack me since opening her mouth to speak!" she snapped at her then added, "And if your nephew and I were dating that would be none of your business!"

"Do you admit it then?" she demanded.

Elizabeth shook her head in frustration, "No!" she told her honestly. "But if we were, you would have no cause to come here and attack me or my character as you have done. Your behavior is beyond rude and unacceptable," she told her as she turned to leave.

Lady Catherine shook with anger, "My nephew sent for his mother's ring while he stayed with me at Rosings. There would be no reason for him to do that unless you have trapped him as your younger sister has trapped her husband!"

Elizabeth stopped and turned back toward her. "Lady Catherine I have said all that I plan to say to you on this subject."

"He will lose his family; he will lose his friends. My brother will never accept you and neither will I!" Lady Catherine threatened her. "You would never fit into our social circle, and I will be sure to tell him so. If you have any conscience at all for what is proper and right, you would promise me here and now never to enter into any relationship with him. You will promise to drop any further involvement with him and leave him to marry someone from his own sphere."

Elizabeth tried to control her own anger, "I will never make such a promise to you or anyone else! If Will and I chose to see each other that's our business and not yours!" she told her then turned again to leave. "As far as I'm concerned, this conversation is over, you can show yourself back to your waiting limousine," she told her as she began walking back toward the house.

Lady Catherine followed behind her yelling, "What about Georgiana?!" she called out. "You would drag her down with her brother. You would ruin her chances for a happy marriage among her own peers because of your selfish desire to try to better yourself, instead of knowing your place!?" she told her.

Elizabeth said nothing more as she reached the door and went inside slamming it shut behind her. Lady Catherine was left standing there, enraged by what happened. She turned and went back to her car yelling at the driver as he opened the door for her. "Take me to see my nephew at once!"

Elizabeth hung up her coat and was just about to go upstairs when she heard her father's voice calling out to her. "Lizzy, can you come in here?"

Elizabeth took in a deep breath, she did her best to calm herself down and then went in to see her father. "Yes, what is it you wanted to speak to me about?" she asked as she came into his study.

He motioned for her to close the door, "I heard you had a visit from Lady Catherine this afternoon," he commented.

"Yes, she just left actually," she told him.

He opened his laptop and then his email, "Well I just got an email from Collins, he wrote to warn me that Lady Catherine was very upset and that I should advise you against any further involvement with her nephew," he told her trying to keep from laughing. "He thinks you are involved with Mr. Darcy, of all people."

Elizabeth's looked puzzled, "How strange that he would say such a thing," she tried to make lite of it.

Her father smiled, "He said that Lady Catherine is not pleased and will never give her approval. Can you imagine the idea of you being involved with Mr. Darcy," he laughed?

Elizabeth pretended to laugh it off as idle gossip, "You know how people like to spread rumors even when there is no truth in it at all."

Her father smiled, "Well what did Lady Catherine want?" he asked her. "Did she come to tell you she does not approve of your family and financial connections," he teased her.

Elizabeth made lite of the visit, "It was a business matter and of no real importance."

Her father closed his laptop and got up from his desk, "Well Lizzy I don't think I will respond to your cousin's email directly. Instead, I shall let him stew for a while."

Elizabeth didn't say anything as her father led her into the dining room for dinner. She found the entire situation confusing and perplexing. Who would have started such rumors and shared them with Lady Catherine, she wondered?

Darcy was just about to go in and have his dinner when Rupert announced that his Aunt, Lady Catherine had arrived and demanded to see him. He took in a deep breath and waited as she came into his study, "Aunt Catherine, what has brought you to London?" he asked her. "Is everything all right? I hope you are well."

She brushed off his questions, "NO! I am not well!" she snapped at him. "I am here on a matter that cannot wait, and I must speak with you."

"All right what is it?" he asked her as he sat down behind his desk and motioned for her to be seated. What's wrong?"

Lady Catherine walked over and sat down across from him. "Fitzwilliam, I have always been honest with you and spoken my mind, so I don't intend to change now. I will come straight to the point, I know of your involvement with that Bennet girl. I have been to see her and I know the whole sordid truth!"

Darcy was taken aback, he cleared his throat, "Excuse me, Aunt Catherine, did you say you went to see Elizabeth?" he asked her not sure he heard correctly.

She looked at him intently, "Of course I did, as soon as I heard that you, my favorite nephew had requested for his mother's ring to be sent to Rosings. I knew I must stop this insanity before it went too far!"

Darcy stared at her in disbelief; he wasn't sure what to say. Her intrusion into his personal business was nothing new, but to find that she spied on him was beyond what he thought her capable of. "Tell me, Aunt, how do you know about my mother's ring or my involvement with Elizabeth?"

She ignored his question and instead began berating Elizabeth. "How could you even consider giving my beloved sister's ring to such a girl?! To think you would consider marrying someone like her, that you would bring her to Pemberley and give her the title and place my sister once held..."

Darcy was quickly getting angry, "Elizabeth Bennet is a wonderful woman, she's exactly the kind of girl I know my mother would have wanted me to fall in love with and marry," he told her leaving no doubts of where his heart lies.

"I knew it, I knew you were involved with her!" she yelled. "That girl had the audacity to lie to my face. I asked her point-blank if the two of you were involved and she said you were not, but clearly, you are. No wonder she would not promise to end things with you."

Darcy looked at her intently, "What exactly did you say to her Aunt Catherine?" he asked her directly.

Lady Catherine's eyes narrowed, "I told her she would never be accepted and that she would only bring you sorrow and pain. I told her if she had any real decency she would end any involvement she had with you and promise to never have any future involvement with you."

Darcy needed to know, "What did she say, what was her response to your request?"

"Miss Bennet would not agree to my request. She refused me outright and then she had the nerve to tell me that if the two of you were involved that it was none of my business," Lady Catherine told Darcy. "Fitzwilliam how can you not see what she's about? She wants your money; she wants your position and place in society. She cares nothing for what is right; she's no better than her sister who ran off with the son of your father's employee. She will try to trap you in the same way if you don't end things with her!"

"Aunt Catherine I have tolerated your interference in my and Georgiana's life for far too long, but this time you have gone too far. I will not put up with it any longer," he told her. "If I choose to ask Elizabeth to marry me and share in my life; then I would hope you would show me some respect and support me. You should that I'm old enough to make my own choice in such a personal decision."

"How can I support you? How can I accept this situation when it clearly is a tragic mistake?" she told him as she got to her feet. "Honestly what is wrong with your generation, you are ungrateful and completely disrespectful of the care that has been given to ensure you were brought up in the right environment," she told him. "Would you really throw it all away, your family, your upbringing, your future, all for the sake of this...this nobody?"

Darcy got to his feet, "I would do just about anything to be with her!" he told her honestly.

"And what about your sister?" Lady Catherine demanded, "What about her future?"

"Lady Catherine I can see this conversation is going nowhere. I think it would be best if you had your driver take you home and we can talk of this another time when we have both had a chance to calm down," he told her as he made his way over to the door and opened it for her.

Lady Catherine was indignant, "This is outrageous, if your mother were alive this would not be tolerated!" she yelled at him as she made her way to the front door. "You will hear from me further on this Fitzwilliam and from your uncle as soon as I have spoken with him!"

Elizabeth laid down on her bed and closed her eyes. She still felt frustrated by Lady Catherine's visit and her ridiculous accusations. She thought of everything that was said and found herself more puzzled and annoyed than she was before. She wondered who it was that would have set Lady Catherine off in the first place. Her first thought was her new brother-in-law George, but then after her father shared an email from their cousin Collins warning him that Lady Catherine would never approve of her relationship with her nephew, she wondered if it might not have been him that caused this drama. Either way, it was clear Lady Catherine didn't approve of her or her family, and she was going to do everything within her power to ensure that Will understood just how inferior she was. She rolled over on her side and closed her eyes; she was determined not to give into her emotions again tonight, she was determined not to cry and not to dream about Will Darcy.

Darcy was up early the next morning, he was unable to sleep for the better part of the night and when he did finally drift off his dreams were of Elizabeth. He made his way downstairs and into the dining room where Georgiana sat waiting for him. "William, you look dreadful," she told him.

He half-heartedly smiled. "Thank you, Georgie, for pointing that out to me," he said as he brushed his hair back from his face. "I didn't sleep much last night."

Georgiana felt bad for her brother. She was worried about him. "You haven't slept much since Elizabeth left Pemberley," she commented.

It was true; he hadn't slept much since that day. How could he when all he could think of was how much he missed Elizabeth. "No, I guess I haven't," he admitted.

Georgiana took in a deep breath to calm her nerves. She knew her brother was not going to like her interfering, but she couldn't just stand by and continue to watch him suffer from a broken heart. "William, I have decided to interfere in your life for a change, but I am doing it for your own good."

Darcy looked at her puzzled by the remark. "What exactly is that supposed to mean?" he asked her.

She swallowed and summoned her courage and explained. "You aren't going to the office today," she told William.

His eyes narrowed. "I'm not?"

"No, you are not," she told him. "You are going to see Charles and spend a few days with him at Netherfield. It has all been arranged. Richard is watching things at the office, Mrs. Annesley is going to be staying here with me, and you are going to see Charles."

"Why would I do that?" he asked her.

"Because you want to congratulate him on his upcoming marriage and because you need to go and see Elizabeth," she told him.

"Georgiana, we have been over this..." he started to say when she cut him off.

"I already called Charles and let him know you were coming. He said that Jane's parents were having a special dinner for them tonight and you being there as his best friend and best man would be mean a great deal to him," she told him. "Now unless you want to call Charles and explain why you cannot attend this dinner, I think you really do have to go," she told him.

"Fine Georgiana I will go, but that doesn't mean that it will change anything between Elizabeth and me," he told her.

She smiled, she knew getting him to agree to go see Elizabeth was only half the battle. She hoped once he saw Elizabeth he would realize how foolish he was being for staying away from her for so long. "I heard the way you defended Elizabeth to Aunt Catherine. I think as soon as you see her you will not be able to help yourself," she told him. "And I know Elizabeth loves you, I can read between the lines in her emails. She has been waiting for you William; I just know she has."

He looked at her and said, "I will admit after my Aunt Catherine had left I was overjoyed by what she said. The fact that Elizabeth wouldn't promise her to stay away from me, that she hinted at a potential future with me was very encouraging. But even if she does feel the same about me as I do her," he reminded her. "We still have the matter of her sister being married to George Wickham to deal with."

Georgiana looked at him and said, "Then deal with it. You are William Darcy; you take on difficult challenges all the time, don't run from this one. You told Aunt Catherine you would do anything to be with Elizabeth, so go and make it happen."

Darcy walked over to his younger sister and kissed her on the cheek. "You are becoming more and more like our mother every day," he told her before he left to pack for his trip to Netherfield. As he climbed the stairs, he realized that this was what he wanted to do every day for the past few weeks but lacked the courage to do it. Georgiana was right; he would never really know how Elizabeth felt until he spoke to her face to face. No matter what the future held, he had to try and make things work for the two of them. He had already given his heart there was no turning back now.

Elizabeth spent most of the day taking photographs of a young couple who recently got engaged. They were so happy and in love that she found herself getting caught up in their joy. It felt good to be around people who had found each other, in a strange way it acted as a balm for her own aching heart, it gave her hope. After she had taken the last few photos, she glanced down at her watch and realized she was running late. Her mother was having a dinner party this evening for Jane and Charles, and she was expected to be there promptly at 6:00. She wrapped up what she was doing and hurried home. Elizabeth saw Charles's car parked in the driveway and knew he was already there when she pulled up. She hoped her mother wouldn't say anything about her being late as she came into the living room. "I'm so sorry if I kept you all waiting," she said as she walked into the living room to find Charles, Jane, both her parents, her two sisters, and several other guests sitting and chatting.

"Lizzy, look who has come along with Charles," Jane said as she motioned over toward the window. Elizabeth turned to see Darcy standing there staring intently at her. She was surprised and didn't say anything for several seconds as they stared into each other's eyes.

Darcy was not sure how she was going to react to his being there after all the time he had allowed to pass. He watched her closely trying to find some sign of how she was feeling. "Hello Elizabeth, it's nice to see you again."

Elizabeth swallowed and looked around at her mother, and sisters before she answered, "Mr. Darcy... It's nice to see you too." she smiled trying to control her racing heart. "How is your sister, Georgiana?"

"She's doing very well," he told her all too aware that all eyes in the room were on them. "She's hoping to get to spend time with you again very soon."

"Yes, she did mention that in her last email. I look forward to it very much," Elizabeth told him.

Darcy tried to read what she was feeling; she didn't seem angry with him. "How has work been?" he asked not sure what to say with everyone watching them.

Elizabeth was very aware that the conversation around them stopped and the attention was on the two of them. "Very well thank you," she said sounding way more nervous than she wanted to.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries they both fell silent, and the others began talking again. Darcy looked over at Elizabeth; she seemed to be avoiding looking in his direction. Was she angry with him for not coming sooner? Was she upset that he was here now? He wished he knew what she was thinking.

All through dinner Elizabeth kept looking over toward Will, she kept wondering what he was thinking. Was he here to see her, or had he only come for Charles? Was he angry with her because of his aunt's visit? Had he come to make it clear that he didn't have feelings for her, or was there something else behind those looks he kept giving her all evening? She wanted more than anything to have a moment alone to speak with him and yet could think of no reason to do so. Finally, when dinner ended, and they were all just chatting around the table, Elizabeth got up, "I'm going to get a bit of fresh air," she said as she excused herself from the table.

"Well don't be too long, dessert will be served soon," her mother called out after her.

Darcy stood up waited while the rest of the family headed toward the living room. He motioned for Charles, "Make some excuse for me; I need to speak with Elizabeth for a moment," he whispered.

Charles looked at him a bit puzzled, "Is everything all right Darcy?"

"Yes everything is fine, I just wanted a moment to speak with her alone about some photography work she has done for me," Darcy said.

Charles nodded, then went in to join the rest of the group, while Darcy slipped outside to join Elizabeth. He found her outside in the garden; she looked beautiful with the moonlight shining down on her. He didn't realize just how deeply he missed her. "Elizabeth?" he called out softly, "Lizzy?"

Elizabeth turned around to see him standing there, her eyes filled with tears. She wiped them quickly. "Will," she said trying to control her emotions.

"I was hoping to have a moment alone to speak with you," he told her as he walked over toward her.

Elizabeth forced a smile, "Oh." she whispered still struggling with her emotions.

He searched her eyes wondering if she was angry with him. Perhaps that was why she was so quiet, he thought to himself. "Lizzy I'm sorry for not coming to you sooner," he began then added, "I don't blame you if you are angry with me?"

Elizabeth smiled at him. "I'm not angry with you."

He searched her eyes looking for a place to begin. So much had happened with Wickham marrying her sister, his aunt's rude intrusion into their business, and all those things said between them at Rosings that they had never really spoken of. "Lizzy, about that last day at Rosings Park," he began, but she interrupted him.

"Oh Will, do we have to even bring that up. I'm so sorry for the things that I accused you of back then," she blurted out. "I'm embarrassed to even think of it, and with all that has happened I really do realize how wrong I was."

Darcy took her hand in his, "Lizzy, please listen to me," he asked her softly.

"All right if it's very important to you, then I will listen," she assured him.

"That afternoon I was planning to tell you that, I had fallen in love with you, that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you," He began to tell her.

Elizabeth felt her heart racing, "You love me?" she asked hardly able to believe it. She was not expecting him to make a declaration of love to her, not with everything that happened between Wickham and her sister.

Darcy was just about to tell her how very much he loved her when Kitty came out, "Lizzy...Mum sent me out to tell you that dessert is being served and that you should come inside now," she repeated her mother's demands.

Elizabeth let out a small sigh, "We are coming, Kitty. Thank you," she said as she looked up at Will, "You were saying," she whispered softly.

He took her hand in his, "Lizzy I do love you so very much, and I want us to be together, but..." he was interrupted again by Kitty coming out. He let go of Elizabeth's hand and took a step backward.

"Lizzy, you are both to come back inside with me," Kitty repeated her mother's orders verbatim.

Elizabeth tried not to give into the frustration she was feeling. "We better go back inside, or my mother will come out here next," she whispered to him as she turned to follow her sister inside.

Darcy followed her inside, he leaned over and whispered into her ear, "Please Lizzy, I really need to speak with you. I have so much to say."

"I will come to Netherfield tomorrow with Jane," she whispered back.

As they came back inside, he watched her walk away from him and stand near her sister Jane. Her mother was making some speech about the happy couple, but he wasn't really listening. All he could think about was Elizabeth. If only they had more time to talk tonight. He really didn't want to wait another day to speak with her but knew that he had little choice in the matter. The rest of the evening went by quickly. They had dessert and listened as Mrs. Bennet talked endlessly about Charles and Jane's upcoming wedding. Darcy did his best not to stare at Elizabeth, but he couldn't help himself. On more than one occasion, their eyes meet, and he kept wondering what she was thinking now that she knew he was in love with her. He thought perhaps she was going to declare her feelings for him, but Kitty came out too soon for that to happen.

When it was time to say good night, Elizabeth went out into the entryway with Charles, Jane, and Will. She was just about to speak with him when her father and mother came out to say their final good night as well. She looked over at Will, their eyes met. She could see he had more to say to her and she so wanted to speak with him. Just before he turned to leave he mouthed the word, "tomorrow." She nodded her head and watched him go. She stood in the doorway for a few moments more watching as his car drove away then she turned and went up to her room. Will had finally told her he loved her. He said the words she had waited to hear and her heart beat faster until he said the one word that could ruin everything. He said, "but." Elizabeth let out a heavy sigh as she changed into her pajamas and began brushing her hair. She decided for her own sanity she would not imagine what he was going to say. Instead, she would simply wait until tomorrow and hear for herself.