Dear readers: I will frequently post chapters of this story. Stay tuned because once it's complete, I'll remove it in a few days.

Chapter 14

Mr. Bingley was devastated; the night before, he could not sleep well, as all he could do was think about his Angel. How could she have forgotten him for another man so easily? The only reasonable explanation in his mind was that, seeing herself alone and in a difficult financial situation after her father's death, she had to marry to help her family. If he had not been a coward and abandoned her, she would have married him, and now they would be happy together. After seeing how she reacted when she saw him, he was convinced she loved him as much as he loved her.

Besides, the man she married was not worthy of her; he looked ordinary without any notably attractive attributes. From the inquiries he made, he knew that he was a tradesman who had an import and export company and was also connected to the shipping business.

Seemingly, he was wealthy but actively working in trade, unlike himself and his family. However, Charles Bingley was not like his sisters; he did not despise people because of their profession or occupation, but his jealousy blinded him when he thought of him with his Angel. So, he was certain that Jane's husband had taken advantage of her vulnerability to force her to marry him.

In the superficial world of Charles Bingley, a woman as beautiful as Jane Bennet could never fall in love with an ordinary-looking and dull man like Mr. Clark. He only wondered what he could do to save her and to get her out of the torment that her life must be next to him.

Suddenly, his sister's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "Charles, you do not know how surprised I was when I saw our dear Jane married that vulgar, horrible man. Imagine comparing his father, who was surely the owner of some insignificant shop, with our father, a man so successful that he could make his son a gentleman, rescuing him from a life of trade", said Caroline, disgusted.

Charles listened silently; it hurt him that his sisters did not understand his suffering. But when Louisa made a comment, he could not help but feel curious.

"Jane came to visit us in January, looking at all costs to meet you, Charles. Thankfully, we decided not to inform you, as Mr. Darcy advised us. It was clear that she was looking for a rich husband regardless of his rank, and evidently, she found one."

"What did you say...? And what does Darcy have to do with any of this? I demand that you explain to me immediately, Louisa!" Mr. Bingley exclaimed furiously, barely controlling his temper.

Caroline looked at Louisa disapprovingly and tried to explain as calmly as she could. "Jane visited, and Mr. Darcy advised us not to inform you of her presence in London."

"Charles, we did it for your own good," Louisa said.

"I am sorry, Charles, Louisa, but I have to go. I have neither time nor desire to speak about that woman. I have an appointment with my modiste. I need a new gown for the Carlson family ball. I arranged to meet Lady Isabella and other friends who will also attend the ball."

Caroline left, and Louisa tried to speak with her husband, who was dozing on the couch beside her. She wanted to avoid the wrath of her brother at all costs.

Charles Bingley could not believe what he had just heard. His Angel had come to visit him, and his sisters and friends conspired to keep them apart. Seeing that his sister did not wish to give him any explanation, Mr. Bingley left the room in disgust.

'I shall not leave you alone in this, my beloved Jane. I do not know what to do, but I know we shall be together sooner or later, my dear Angel.'

P&P

Lawrence Clark was delighted. The night before, his loving wife had told him that she loved him and that they would have a child. After Lord Fleming's gathering, they went straight to their room and passionately made love. It made him laugh to remember how they had concluded that their first child was conceived during their honeymoon. Apparently, he had been so irresistible to his wife when he read poems that she could not help but spend the night with him.

He informed his wife that he planned to stop by the bookstore and buy new love poems to guarantee conjugal felicity.

Lawrence knew his beautiful wife was almost happy. But she missed her dear sister and was permanently concerned about her. So, he wanted to do something to cheer his wife. So, he would send Elizabeth one of the books from Mr. Bennet's collection that Mr. Collins gave them.

Jane was excited and thought it was a great idea. She suggested sending The Divine Comedy because it was Mr. Bennet's favorite book.

Lawrence went to his office, and when he completed his pending work, he visited Mr. Gardiner to deliver the book. He was in charge of sending the letters that went to Pemberley.

Mr. Gardiner was pleased that his nephew came to see him, and when he learned the purpose of his visit, he decided to share a piece of important information with him.

"Lawrence, I shall tell you something, but you must promise that you will not tell anyone," Mr. Gardiner said in a pretend menacing tone.

Lawrence laughed because he did not know what Mr. Gardiner referred to and replied in the same tone. "That depends on what kind of secret you will tell me, Uncle Gardiner."

"Lizzy is in London, and she asked me to fetch her from her husband's house tomorrow. She wishes to attend Mary's wedding and spend a few days with us," said Mr. Gardiner, excited.

"What good news! My Jane will be so delighted when she sees her beloved sister." He thought a bit and added, "Of course, I shall keep it a secret. But if my sister-in-law wants to surprise us all, I shall surprise her as well!"

After thinking for a moment, Lawrence had the idea to write the note and send the book to Elizabeth along with the message Mr. Gardiner would send her. Furthermore, he asked if he could accompany him the next day. Lawrence had little faith in his sister-in-law's husband and wanted to be present in case he decided to dissuade Elizabeth from visiting her family.

P&P

Mrs. Bennet, Kitty, and Lydia arrived in London and stayed at the Clarks' house. Lawrence was the favorite of all the Bennet women, though that did not diminish their respect for Captain Walker. That day, the sisters had decided to go shopping accompanied by their Aunt Gardiner.

Although she was much better, Mrs. Bennet had difficulty walking long distances. Hence, she stayed home, and Mrs. Clark offered to accompany her to embroider gifts for Mary and talk about their children.

Mrs. Bennet still did not regain full mobility of her left hand, but she could already use her right hand, allowing her to embroider almost as well as before her apoplexy. Mrs. Clark was very patient, and knowing that Mrs. Bennet loved her son so much made her very fond of her son's mother-in-law despite her spirited personality.

Kitty and Lydia were happy to be in London with Jane to attend Mary's wedding. Although both were still cheerful and lively, their behavior had changed, especially Lydia; she became suspicious of men after her experience with Wickham. The governess hired by Lawrence was patient and helped them learn new skills to express themselves more appropriately.

P&P

"I do not need all those things. I do not think they are necessary," said Mary, blushing when she saw the nightgowns that Jane and her aunt were choosing for her.

Jane took her hand and said softly, "Mary, if you do not feel comfortable, you do not have to use them. We are just giving it to you in case you want to look especially pretty to your husband."

Mrs. Gardiner and Jane talked to Mary about married life. She felt very uncomfortable with the subject but knew she would soon be a married woman and needed to be prepared for her new life. Plus, she liked it when Roland kissed her, so she assumed being his wife would not be unpleasant.

"Mary, you have to buy this bonnet and these gloves; they match perfectly with your wedding dress," said Lydia enthusiastically to see so many beautiful things in the shop.

"Lawrence said that I should buy presents for all of you. Lydia, Kitty, you can also choose some bonnets and gloves for yourself." As soon as Jane finished speaking, Lydia and Kitty began to select what to buy and said how much they loved their brother-in-law.

Lady Isabella, Caroline, and two other women entered the shop. When Lady Isabella saw Jane, she immediately felt a deep hatred. She could not bear to think that the man she had chosen to be her future lover preferred his foolish wife. She admitted that Jane could be considered attractive- but she could surely never make a man as passionate as Lawrence happy. Nevertheless, lady Isabella decided to give Mr. Clark a second chance. She knew that once she had him under her control, she would probably get tired of him, but she liked challenges and did not intend to let him escape her grasp.

Without saying anything to her friends, she approached Jane's group and greeted her with a hint of disdain in her voice. "Mrs. Clark, how nice to see you."

At first, Jane did not recognize her, but when she looked at the woman well, she realized she was Lady Isabella. That was the woman who flirted with Lawrence shamelessly at her own husband's gathering.

"Lady Isabella, the pleasure is mine," replied Jane shyly.

Jane introduced her sisters and aunt. Then, Lady Isabella's friends came to the group, and Caroline greeted all the Bennet ladies disdainfully. Then, she ignored them.

"How is your husband, Mrs. Clark? What a shame that you left so early the other evening," and with a voice full of malicious intent, added, "You do not know how much I like it when your husband reads me poems," she put a mock face as if she had said something wrong and added, "I mean when he reads poems at our literary gatherings." And she looked into Jane's eyes and was happy to see how her words had upset her.

Jane blushed and was speechless. She did not understand why that woman spoke in that manner about Lawrence, but Lydia intervened, "Excuse me, but if you are married, you should ask your husband to read poems to you. I doubt my brother Lawrence has a wife."

Mrs. Gardiner had realized the lady's intentions. So, after talking about trivialities for a few minutes, she told her nieces it was time to return home.

"We have a hectic week. I am afraid we must leave. It was a pleasure to meet you," said Mrs. Gardiner.

"The pleasure was ours," replied Lady Isabella, looking at Jane. Then she added, "Please, Mrs. Clark, give my regards to your excellent husband."

Lydia was about to put that woman in her place, but Kitty whispered in her ear to remember what they had learned from the governess and Mrs. Carter. Then she took a deep breath and said nothing. She did not even say goodbye to that horrible woman.

When Caroline saw the Bennets had left, she approached Lady Isabella. "My dear friend, you must not associate with such low-class people. You should not stoop to talking to such vulgar women."

"I am not interested in that silly blonde or her family. I am interested in Lawrence Clark," she replied, laughing.

"That insignificant tradesman?" Caroline asked in horror.

"I see you still do not forgive him for putting you in your place, dear Caroline. Well, yes, I am interested in real men like him, not like your Mr. Darcy. He must be colder than ice. Or at least it was what I thought until I heard that in a fit of passion, he compromised a woman to force her to marry him."

"That is not true. He would never do something like that. I know his... that woman..."

All the women present began to laugh, and although Caroline wanted to deny the accusations, no one took her into account. Instead, her supposed friends loved to remind her that the man she said would be her husband had preferred another woman.

P&P

Mr. Darcy stared at the note for a few minutes, trying to find an answer. Then, when he heard Elizabeth returning to her room, he immediately placed the message inside the book and left it in the same place Elizabeth had left it before leaving the room.

"Is everything all right?" Mr. Darcy asked to start a conversation.

"Yes, the housekeeper wanted to ask me a few questions about what we wanted to eat during our time here and whether you were planning to have visitors."

Mr. Darcy noted the tone in which Elizabeth said the word you, but he decided to ignore the remark. He expected to hear more about the book she had received.

But she did not say anything. Instead, Elizabeth took the book, sat, and looked at it with longing eyes. Mr. Darcy was to ask her about the note, but he preferred to avoid arguments. Instead, he would find another way to discover what he wanted to know about the mysterious sender.

"Elizabeth, the countess will come tomorrow to accompany you shopping. She will help you choose your new wardrobe. In two more months, your mourning will end, and we shall have to participate in some events. I want you to buy everything you need and everything you want, even if you do not need it," he added with a smile.

A little nervous, Elizabeth replied, "I am sorry, Fitzwilliam, but tomorrow I shall visit my relatives. You should have asked me before making plans with your aunt."

Mr. Darcy, visibly irritated, added, "But we are traveling to Kent the day after tomorrow. So I thought you would visit them after we left."

Elizabeth could not keep her calm any longer, and she answered firmly. "Mr. Darcy, I have complied with all parts of our agreement, and I hope you will understand that I wish to see my relatives. Excuse me, but I do not wish to speak further about this." Elizabeth took the book again and began reading it, ignoring her husband.

Mr. Darcy took the case with the jewels and told Elizabeth he would keep it in his study's safe. When he was there, he called the butler to ask about the package.

"Ford, a box came for Mrs. Darcy. Do you know who sent it?"

"The message and the package were from Mr. Gardiner, Sir," replied the butler.

The answer soothed him; indeed, Lawrence was a relative who, for some reason, had that book that belonged to Mr. Bennet.

"Thank you, Ford," replied Mr. Darcy.

The butler left, and Mr. Darcy forgot about the matter. He had some things to arrange and some papers to prepare about Rosings. Anne and Richard had asked him to bring.

Dinner that evening was quite dull. Usually, Elizabeth talked and jested, making Mr. Darcy and Georgiana participate in her lively conversations. But that night, she was silent and seemed deeply immersed in her thoughts. After finishing dinner, Elizabeth excused herself and said she wanted to retire early to rest. She had explained to Georgiana that she would visit her family the following day, that she wanted to have everything ready, and that she would see her at breakfast to say goodbye.

Mr. Darcy was infuriated by his wife's discourtesy. First, Elizabeth's cold reaction to his gift hurt him deeply. He had commissioned those jewels, especially for her, and she had not even tried to pretend she liked them. Then, the book with that note from a stranger she seemingly cherished more than her husband's present. Finally, she would rather go to Hertfordshire to spend time with her mother and sisters instead of with his aunt, as if one day less with her family would make any difference.

After dinner, Mr. Darcy went to the library to read something but could not focus on the book's content. He had two brandies and went to his room. He had planned to sleep alone that night, but he remembered that it would be almost a week before he saw Elizabeth again, and he could not bear the idea of being away from her that night.

When he entered Elizabeth's room, she was sleeping. He lay down beside her and started kissing her neck. Elizabeth woke up, pleased her husband had come to spend the night with her. She could not deny she would miss him.

Elizabeth turned and began to kiss him passionately. Mr. Darcy was always very loving, and before making love, he would kiss her, caress her, and say words of love. This time, it was all very fast, and when it was over, he got dressed and said, "Good night, Elizabeth," and went to his room.

Elizabeth did not understand what had happened but cried before falling asleep. Twice, Mr. Darcy was about to return to the room with his wife and apologize, but he preferred to stay where nobody could hurt him.

P&P

The following day, Elizabeth got up very early. She could hardly sleep due to the excitement of finally seeing her family. She prepared everything she needed and went to breakfast. When she entered the dining room, Mr. Darcy was already sitting at the table, looking at the newspaper and having a cup of coffee.

Elizabeth was still hurt by what happened between them last night, but she would not let anything ruin her day. So she greeted him kindly and tried to talk to him.

"Good morning, Mr. Darcy. I hope you slept well."

"I slept well, thank you," he replied and continued looking at the newspaper.

He seemed more interested in reading than her, so Elizabeth remained silent, thinking about the beautiful day ahead. Fortunately, Georgina arrived, and the atmosphere lightened.

After breakfast, Elizabeth went to the drawing room to wait for her uncle to arrive. Occasionally, she would look out the window to see if he was there. With great shame, she had asked him to wait for her in the carriage.

Although she was not sure Mr. Darcy would mind if he came to the house for just a few minutes, she preferred not to expose him to such a humiliating situation. Her uncle Gardiner did not deserve to be snubbed by her husband.

Some minutes later, Georgiana and Mr. Darcy joined her, and her sister-in-law said curiously, "Lizzy, you do not need to be watching out the window to see when your uncle arrives. Mr. Ford will let you know when he is here. Also, I would very much like to meet him "said Georgina smiling.

Elizabeth could not look at Georgiana's face. She felt so ashamed that she replied shyly, still looking at the street. "My uncle is very busy, and I do not think he has time..."

"Georgiana, you should get ready. Aunt Victoria would be here in less than an hour." Mr. Darcy felt very uncomfortable, too, and interrupted his sister because he did not want Elizabeth to feel more uneasy than she already was.

"Yes, but before I want to say goodbye. Lizzy, I shall miss you."

Elizabeth turned and embraced her dear friend. "I shall miss you, too, my dear."

"Enjoy the company of your mother and sisters very much," Georgiana murmured in Elizabeth's ear.

"I love you, my dear Georgie," Elizabeth replied excitedly. Then she kissed her sister-in-law's cheek with much affection.

Georgiana left the room. Mr. Darcy was pleased to see how his wife had taken Georgiana in and become the sister she so needed.

"Elizabeth..." Mr. Darcy wanted to talk to his wife, but she did not hear him.

Elizabeth saw her uncle outside the house waiting for her. "Mr. Darcy, my carriage has arrived. I must go. I hope you have a pleasant stay in Kent." She curtsied and tried to leave the room.

However, Mr. Darcy took her arm and kissed her before she left. Unfortunately, this time, she was the one who responded coldly. It was a quick and icy kiss that made him feel remorseful. He knew he deserved that treatment after his attitude the night before. But he did not want to part with Elizabeth on bad terms.

"I shall see you in a few days, Elizabeth," he said, barely hiding his disappointment.

"Please give my regards to Miss de Bourgh, and I hope you have a safe journey. Goodbye, Fitzwilliam."

"Goodbye, Elizabeth."

Mr. Darcy immediately went to his study. From there, he saw Elizabeth hugging her uncle, and at the same time, a footman lifted her luggage to the carriage. He wished she had let Mr. Gardiner in. He was a polite enough gentleman, and they could have received him for a few minutes in the parlor.

While Mr. Darcy was thinking of that, his thoughts were interrupted when he saw a tall young man hugging his wife tightly, and she smiled joyfully.

Mr. Darcy was extremely curious to know who that man was. "Lawrence?" He kept repeating that name, wondering who he was.

Thanks to everyone who leaves supportive comments and enthusiastically follows the story.

In the next chapter, Mary's wedding and important events in Kent! 😀

See you soon!

Saludos,

Yo