Checkmate, Mr Darcy Chapter 22, a pride and prejudice fanfic

~O~

Chapter 22

The residents of The Hedgerows used that same time to good purpose, giving them the opportunity getting to know Miss Darcy, as well as becoming even better acquainted with the gentlemen at Netherfield.

At meeting her, Mrs Bennet's heart went out to the orphaned Georgiana, and she could not help but mother the girl. Georgiana in turn blossomed with that attention, and she was starting to overcome her shock at being welcomed by her future cousins.

On the Sunday after their arrival, the various Fitzwilliams' plus Mrs Annesley, and both Bingleys were invited to spend the day with the Bennets after services. As it was a drizzly day, they were forced to remain indoors. It was only natural that someone should suggest a game of chess.

Fanshaw smiled at Fitzwilliam. 'Shall we have a game, little brother?'

'You wish to play against me? You have not done so for years.'

'Since father had decided to stop humiliating you, I had no wish to hurt your feelings either. It would not do to sap your confidence at strategy, which you would need in battle.'

'Is that why you stopped playing against me?' Richard asked in surprise.

Andrew suddenly looked uncomfortable, having inadvertently given himself away. 'Yes, well… But you are not in the army anymore. So, prepare to be annihilated.'

The Viscount's confidence soon turned to chagrin as Fitzwilliam trounced him. 'What happened?' he asked as he examined the board.

'Did father not mention the real reason he stopped playing against me?' his brother asked with a smirk. 'He has not won a game against me in years.'

Fortunately, Andrew's sense of humour reasserted itself. 'No, he conveniently forgot that detail,' he laughed.

Since the Viscount had no wish to risk being beaten again, Elizabeth took his place. He was astonished when that game ended in a draw.

Elizabeth grinned at her intended. 'A few more games and I believe that I will be able to win even against you.'

Richard leaned across the board and whispered suggestively in her ear, 'Perhaps we should play for forfeits…' which caused Elizabeth to blush furiously.

Refusing to be intimidated, she whispered back, 'Perhaps that would cause just the distraction I need to win.'

Richard sat back in his chair and wondered if she might not be right.

~O~

On Monday the Viscount, having received a letter from the Earl, returned to London to attend to some of his father's duties as Matlock was busy dealing with a recalcitrant Lady Catherine.

After his departure, the ladies busied themselves with clearing the formal drawing room. The items temporarily stored there, either found a new home in one of the rooms or been moved into an outbuilding for safekeeping.

Naturally, the residents of Netherfield spent a significant part of their days at The Hedgerows.

~O~

Even a year ago, before that debacle with George Wickham, Georgiana could not have imagined being ever as happy as she was now.

In the fortnight since meeting Elizabeth, she had been included in a family like she had never before known.

Yes, Mrs Bennet was exuberant and unsophisticated… she refused to call the dear lady loud and vulgar. Yes, Lydia's and to some extent Kitty's, manners left a lot to be desired, but they were warm and friendly girls. Well, mostly, as Lydia did have a rather selfish streak. And Mary, even with her single-minded attention to Fordyce, could be diverted with music, and at least she was starting to pay attention to advice from Georgiana and Mrs Annesley to improve her playing.

None of these ladies was perfect, not even Jane and Elizabeth, but they had accepted her into their family without reservations.

The more Georgiana came to know them, the more she liked them and could not understand why her brother had looked down on the family.

In her pique and under the guise of helping Kitty with her drawing, for which the girl had shown some aptitude, Georgiana produced a very creditable painting of The Hedgerows on her second attempt.

She had done the painting from a position at the front corner of the garden, to show the house to its full extent. It depicted not only the large front garden with the gravelled circular drive, but also the impressive front and the extensive side of the building. There was even a glimpse of the terrace at the back of the house before the garden stretched into the distance.

Once finished and fully dried, she carefully rolled the painting, secured it in a sturdy container and sent it to Pemberley. She also included a brief note.

This house is 'The Hedgerows', the home of the Bennet ladies, from which you were determined to save Miss Elizabeth. G.

After Darcy overcame the shock of seeing the Bennets' abode, he had the picture framed and hung it in his study as a constant reminder of his greatest folly.

~O~

As the wedding approached, Netherfield was filling up. By Friday before the wedding, which was to be on the following Monday, all the guests had arrived.

Since The Hedgerows was only intended as a comfortable home for the Bennet ladies, they only had one spare room which could accommodate one couple. Therefore Bingley, generous as ever, offered to host everyone not living locally. It was fortunate indeed that the manor boasted of more than a dozen bedrooms.

Richard, Georgiana and Mrs Annesley had been in residence for weeks already. They were joined by Richard's parents and brother as well as the Hursts and the Gardiners.

The final guest was introduced as Mr Reginald Smythe-Barrington, to the amusement of the Fitzwilliams.

'We do not want to overawe Mrs Bennet,' he explained.

Matlock was even more amused by the amount of time the Duke spent chatting with Mrs Bingley, but he refused to speculate.

~O~

Mrs Bennet had decided that the wedding breakfast was going to be too rushed for her liking, she wanted an opportunity to entertain the whole current and future family in a leisurely manner by hosting a dinner in honour of the two couples.

When she discovered that Elizabeth had another godfather who had been one of her husband's friends and was currently staying at Netherfield, she insisted on extending an invitation to him as well.

As she was determined to have all the family, she included extended family as well. This meant she sent notes to Sir William and Lady Lucas, as well as Mr and Mrs Collins, inviting them to a family dinner.

~O~

Mr and Mrs Collins were the last to arrive. While the man had always been overly punctual whenever invited by Lady Catherine, he felt the Bennet ladies deserved no such courtesy.

'I shall be interested to see the kind of hovel Mrs Bennet and her daughter inhabit now. Although it is quite presumptuous of them to still pretend to gentility.'

Charlotte listened to her husband's ridiculous opinions during their ride to the Bennet residence, but made no other comment than to say, 'I shall be pleased to see the ladies again.'

It was not too many minutes later that their carriage pulled up in front of the residence, the address of which Collins had provided to the coachman. The footman set the step and opened the door assisting Collins to exit.

As soon as Collins had both feet firmly on the ground, he surveyed the residence. Seeing the grand proportion, he rounded on the coachman. 'You fool, you have taken us to the wrong address.'

'I am sorry, sir, but this is the house for which you provided the direction. It is also the house to which I took the Bennet ladies when they vacated Longbourn.'

'That cannot be. They are supposed to live in a hovel not a mansion,' complained Collins, turning back to the house in disgust.

Charlotte, who had been helped out of the vehicle by the footman while her husband was busy being displeased, suggested, 'Perhaps we should knock on the door and confirm that we are at the right place.'

'Of course, my dear wife, I was about to do that,' Collins said and stomped up the stairs. With a look of resignation Charlotte followed more gracefully. As they approached the door, it was opened by Mr Hill. 'Welcome to The Hedgerows,' intoned the butler, carefully watching Collins' expression.

'I beg your pardon? What did you say?' Collins asked in confusion, unsure if he had heard correctly or if the butler could have misspoken.

'Welcome to The Hedgerows,' Hill repeated unperturbed, opening the door wide and stepping back to allow the guests to enter.

~O~

A bewildered Collins stepped into the house, amazed at the grand proportions. He hardly noticed when Hill took his hat.

Conversation and laughter drifted into the foyer from the open double doors to their right. The appearance of Mrs Bennet in that space shook the man out of his befuddlement and his mien took on a thunderous expression.

But before Collins could say anything, their hostess approached with a smile. 'Welcome to The Hedgerows. I am so pleased that you were able to join us for our family dinner tonight.'

'Why do you keep speaking of hedgerows?' Collins focused on the irritating reference.

'You must forgive your cousin. But Mr Bennet had to have his little joke.' Having answered Collins' question, Mrs Bennet turned to her other guest. 'Charlotte! Pardon me, Mrs Collins. It is good to see you again at last. I hope that you have settled into your new home?'

'Indeed, Mrs Bennet. And I was grateful at your attempt to make it as comfortable as possible for us with what was available.'

'My dear, you are very welcome, but you really have Lizzy to thank for that. Due to your longstanding friendship, she would not have it any other way.' She ushered the last guests into the drawing room which held all the residents of Netherfield, Sir William and Lady Lucas, as well as Mr and Mrs Phillips.

Not receiving the attention and reverence he thought was his due, and only noticing a roomful of people without paying attention to their identities, Collins took exception. 'Madam, I must object to the disrespect you are showing to your husband. He has been dead for less than a month and you are hosting a party. You even lured me and my wife here under false pretences. You claimed that this was to be a simple family dinner.'

'But this is a family dinner. Extended family, admittedly, but still none but members of our family and the families which will be joined to ours on Monday next.'

'I beg your pardon?' Collins asked in confusion.

'Truly. I waited as long as possible after Mr Bennet's death to host this engagement dinner and as you can see, I included only family. But you could not deprive the family of one final dinner before my dearest daughters take up their new lives far from our home.'

'Are you saying that one of your daughters will marry on Monday?' Collins huffed in outrage.

'No. I am saying that two of my daughters are marrying on Monday… as that was my husband's dying wish,' she added to forestall any more objections from that objectionable man.

'Who is getting married?'

'Firstly, my lovely Jane and her Mr Bingley. You recall that I mentioned their courtship when you first visited?'

'Quite.' Collins glanced towards Jane who had come to stand next to her mother. 'Congratulations, Cousin Jane. I confess that I had wondered if this engagement was a but ruse to draw my attention away from my first choice, especially as nothing came of it for many months.'

'A family emergency kept my nephew from his beloved for some time,' interjected Mrs Bingley, who took up position between Jane and her mother, as Bingley had stepped up to Jane's other side.

As they did not know each other, Mrs Bennet performed the introduction, before she continued to address Collins. 'The second couple to marry is my dear Lizzy and the Honourable Mr Richard Fitzwilliam. Formerly Colonel Fitzwilliam. I believe you are acquainted?'

Collins jerked as if stung. This could not be. He had predicted that the impertinent young woman who had had the temerity to reject his suit, would never receive another offer. That she was to be married was bad enough, but to marry into a family of such consequence was unthinkable.

'I cannot allow your daughter to pollute the family of my most revered patroness. This marriage must not take place.'

This time it was the Earl who stepped forward. 'Mr Collins, your approval to this match is not required. As both my son and Miss Elizabeth are adults, they do not require permission. But my old friend Bennet gave his blessing, and I am delighted to welcome Miss Elizabeth into our family.'

'But…'

'I will hear no more on this subject,' Lord Matlock said with a pointed look at Collins, who wilted under that glare.

Unable to retaliate against Elizabeth directly, he advanced a different tactic. 'Mr Phillips, I am most displeased that you withheld this property,' he gestured to indicate the building in which they were standing, 'from my rightful inheritance. Did you think I would just ignore this fraud? I shall most certainly have to sue for my rights.'

'Sorry to burst your delusions, but Bennet bought this property with funds raised from his endeavours in another field and is in no way connected to Longbourn.'

'Bennet was too indolent to make money from anything other than the estate.'

'You are misinformed as usual,' the Earl drawled. 'As I was one of the main contributors of his earnings from his hobby, I can attest to that.'

'What hobby could possibly provide enough funds for such a grand house?'

'For over twenty years he played chess against half the nobility in this country. He was an excellent player and won a significant sum which he invested with me for his family's future.' This time it was Gardiner who provided the information.

'Indeed, he did. It was such a nice surprise to discover that my husband had so much foresight,' gushed Mrs Bennet. 'Although it will take time to get used to the name he chose for our new home.'

Sir William Lucas and his wife had listened with growing embarrassment at Collins' performance. When it appeared that Collins was going to argue further, Sir Wiliam took his son-in-law by the arm and saying, 'Pardon us for a few minutes. I would have a private word with my daughter's husband,' he led the irate master of Longbourn from the room.

While they were gone, Elizabeth made Charlotte known to the members of their party whom she had not previously met. She was perplexed to meet a distinguished older gentleman who was introduced as Mr Reginald Smythe-Barrington, an old friend of Mr Bennet and the second of Elizabeth's godfathers.

Mrs Bennet was getting concerned about dinner when Sir William and a thoroughly chastened Mr Collins returned to the party.

It must be said that even though Collins was gritting his teeth, he managed to apologise to Mrs Bennet and his cousins for his earlier attitude. He was still not reconciled to the Bennet's good fortune, but at least he managed to remain polite throughout the evening.

The party was a huge success not only by the standards of Mrs Bennet but most of her guests.

~O~