Darcy's man quietly retreated from the room. His master lay, his wound re-dressed, comfortably in bed, recollecting the afternoon's delights. In particular the feel of his wife in his arms as they danced sat delicately in his heart.

A knock at the door between his room and his wife's set his heart hammering. "Come in," he stuttered.

"Mr. Darcy, how are you doing? You're not over-tired, are you?" she asked, crossing the room quickly. "I suppose I should not have danced with you so much."

He started to rise, protesting that he was in fine health. She gently pressed him back into the pillows, pressing a kiss to his brow.

"You may fool the rest, but you will not fool me, Mr. Darcy. I know how gravely you were injured in protecting Bennet honor. I cannot allow you to strain yourself."

He gathered her to himself, gazing up at her adoringly. "With you so near, I cannot help but heal quickly. You must not worry yourself."

She stroked his hair fondly back from his face. "If my keeping close will heal you the sooner, I should stay as close by you as I may."

Darcy's heart skipped a beat. He opened his mouth to say what he knew not, when Elizabeth stopped it with a kiss. Some ages later she pulled back a nonce, and whispered, "Shall I stay, Mr. Darcy?" He could only nod fervently and slide back, drawing her down into bed with him.

They lay on their sides facing each other. She caressed the side of his face tenderly while he held her close, savoring her precious warmth so near to him.

"I love you, Elizabeth," he breathed, drawing her closer.

"And I love you, Mr. Darcy," she returned before kissing him once more.

And they lived happily ever after.

But before that…

As yet another delicious kiss ended, Elizabeth looked at Darcy, her body tingling and her mind racing.

"Lydia will be visiting Mrs. Romney for some time," she began haltingly. "It seems that Lydia and Mr. Wickham… consummated their union before they reached Scotland. She is with child."

Darcy gulped and tried to give his wife a bit of room on the bed, as they had become rather entwined.

"Ah… I… Well, I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Thank you, my love. I am certain that if Mrs. Romney requires anything, she will request it plainly."

"Mrs. Romney is the very figure of plain speech."

"Yes, she is," she shifted and reached for him. "While we were at her home, after our wedding, she clarified some things for me. One cannot be entirely sheltered from some un-gentle realities of life, living on a farm as I did, but hearing her tell me that I need not go to you that night, or any night unless I wanted a child or was overcome by passion… has put things in a different light for me."

Darcy quietly struggled with panic, not knowing where Elizabeth was going with this. His love of propriety warred with his deep desire for openness with her.

"I'm afraid Mr. Wickham's desire for… close company… was one of the points of conflict between us," he admitted.

"He had a way with women, for certain," Elizabeth said, drawing herself up a trifle, her hair brushing against Darcy's cheek. "I am ashamed that I thought well enough of him to overlook his licentious ways, when his ungentlemanly conduct should have been enough to alert me to his true character."

"He fooled everyone who had not seen direct evidence of his wickedness," Darcy assured her, his arm squeezing reflexively around the small of her back.

"You are so entirely a different sort of man that I can scarce believe you were raised together," she said, tracing his face with her fingertips.

"I believe that his example steered me in the direction of propriety, not wishing to risk any chance of being painted with the same brush as he."

"Yes, you have ever been a model of propriety. Have you never, yourself… enjoyed close company? From chance remarks, it appears that such is common for young men of rank."

Darcy shifted uneasily, the movement sending sparks throughout Elizabeth's frame.

"I suppose with such a younger sister keeping company with militia officers, it must have been impossible for you to avoid hearing such things as we try to keep from the ears of young gentlewomen." He bit his lip slightly, and the sight inflamed her.

"I tried to pay as little heed as I could to her more unsavory tales but could not avoid them altogether. That certain men and women kept company in a way that brought fleeting pleasure at the risk of a child that… could not be acknowledged in society was a conclusion that I could not but reach," she explained.

Thoughts of the tantalizing hints of forbidden knowledge she had glimpsed raced confusingly into her feelings.

"That you trust me with yourself after such an example is more than I can understand," Darcy confessed.

Elizabeth reached out to caress his hair with tentative fingers.

"And yet I do trust you, and myself. I find myself wishing to be closer to you, to bring you comfort and… more."

Darcy could not help himself, he gently gathered her in his arms and drew her to himself. Elizabeth felt the desire to be closer still to him overwhelm her.

Seeing his face change into a transport of passion, Elizabeth tore herself away from him, checking his side to see if she had aggravated his wound. A slight reddening of the shirt over the bandage caught her eye and at once she blamed herself.

"I have hurt your poor side," she said, half reaching for the injured spot.

"Tis nothing," Darcy struggled to say, mind and body reeling. "Pray, come lay beside me again. It will be well."

Relieved, Elizabeth snuggled up beside him, he gratefully wrapping his arm around her and relaxing into bliss.

Dear readers,

And that's as much as I can post here. "I Will Have You" has come back to me with a vengeance, but this part of the story is much more… explicit than would be acceptable according to our community guidelines.

I am posting more - with a lot of NC-17 content - if you become a Patron (look for "Kaurifish's Fiction."

There is also an inexpensive tier for PG-only, "Squeaky Clean." (a tip of the hat to FFN user DangerMouse, who many years ago alerted me about how far I had exceeded the content guidelines in "Lydia's Just Desserts, which will also be available via "All the Naughtiness").

I hope you enjoyed the story thus far and hope you come for the rest of the journey.

All the best,

Kaurifish