Chapter 12
Viscount Hindley rode to London to speak with his family regarding Darcy being ill and needing to wed. Richard rode with him but once they were in London proper he separated from Hindley and paid a visit to St. Paul's Cathedral to spoke to Bishop Darcy, Fitzwilliam's father's cousin. Wishing to not anger the Bishop, he did not speak of little William. He kept to the facts that Darcy and Miss Bennet had met several years before and parted because she was too young to wed at the time. Now that they had been reunited they wished to marry since her father had decided twenty was a good enough age to marry and begin a family since Darcy had remained steadfast in his affections regarding Miss Elizabeth.
Bishop Darcy was the Royal's confessor and took it upon himself to send Queen Charlotte a letter requesting a boon. Queen Charlotte already knew who Fitzwilliam Darcy was and agreed that it was high time the gentleman entered into the holy state of matrimony and beget the next generation of little Darcys. And since she was such a romantic at heart, she crafted her royal writ to cover a multitude of sins (just in case it was necessary).
Darcy was granted a special license to wed within three days. Richard rode through the pouring rain back to Matlock House, cursing the whole way because everyone knows if it ain't raining the army ain't training. He was of the opinion that he had had more than enough training to last this lifetime and the next. Furthermore, he was completely certain that some missions did not require rain; planning and action were sufficient. Why could the enemy not find issues enough to die over before the freaking rain pounded you into something posing as meat?
The family was in residence at Matlock House in London. By the time Richard was given a nice hot bath, dried off, and fed supper most everything had been sorted. Everyone was ready to travel to Hertfordshire in the morning, providing the rain had tapered off by then. Otherwise, Richard and Hindley would be returning with the license and very little else.
Hindley looked around at his father, mother, sisters and brother and proclaimed them wonderfully selfish and he was proud of them for stating the obvious; they would rather miss an important function than be inconvenienced. They all knew he would not have gone out in the rain either if he had not been required to. He did make a point of telling Richard that it had been a jolly good decision on their part to stop off in Cheapside to deliver Miss Elizabeth's letter to her Aunt and Uncle before the rain started.
The folks residing at Gracechurch Street were stunned to receive the letter from Miss Elizabeth. Uncle Edward and Aunt Madeline knew the full story behind the birth of the twins. They were thoroughly dumbfounded to read that the man she had been intimate with years ago had recognized her and his son and demanded that she marry him so he could recognize his son as his legitimate heir. Edward and Madeline were thrilled that the man proposed marriage with her, and she had agreed.
Edward and Madeline had never censured Elizabeth for carrying out her plan during their watch. They understood only too well what the driving force behind her decision had been. It eased their hearts and minds to know that Elizabeth would not have to spend her life alone paying the penalty for helping her family when it was not her responsibility to provide for her sisters.
Madeline was beyond ecstatic to learn that the gentleman's name was Fitzwilliam George Alexander Darcy. She was rather certain that there was only one such named man from Derbyshire, and she knew that he came from a fine family and if he was like his father he would be an excellent husband.
They planned to leave for Longbourne as soon as they cleared the list of things Madeline made to do before leaving in the early hours of the morning. Looking at her list it would be more realistic to wait for the rain to cease before they ventured out to procure the items from specialty shops for the wedding. However, Madeline was a force of nature and rain would not stop the errands being accomplished. Most of the packing could be done immediately. Other items could be delegated to the staff… Had Wellington known about Madeline Gardiner and her propensity to plan, execute and adjust on the fly he would have recruited her to at least be his quartermaster. And if he had taken a very good look at her he might have installed her as his pet dolly-bird. (Which begs the question: If one is not stupid and the definition of dolly bird is a young and unintelligent, can Madeline be called one or is she overqualified for the job?)
The rain decided that since Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett were getting married it would travel on down to Cornwall for a few days and let the grass dry out in Meryton. It left forthwith and the cavalcade descended upon Meryton by o'dark hundred the following day. The cavalcade consisted of the Gardiner coach, the Matlock coach, the Matlock servants' coach, a few outriders and not much else. The paparazzi, which would not become famous for another one hundred and fifty years, had not yet begun stalking the rich and famous or they would have been part of the excursion. However, the term cavalcade is legitimate. According to the dictionary the word originated in the late 16th century. A cavalcade denotes a ride or raid on horseback. It comes to us from French, who stole it from the Italian word cavalcata, which was derived from cavalcare 'to ride', which is based on the Latin word 'caballus- horse'. So, yes, we have a convoy.
The next order of business is to establish where the visitors will shelter until after the wedding. The visitors decided to break into different abodes for the duration of the fete. Heath broke down Darcy's room at the inn and took his gear over to Longbourne. He wanted to take over the old schoolroom which Lydia and Katherine had cleaned just the day before and set up camp cots since there was a shortage of beds. However, he had to make do with a camp bed in Darcy's room because Katherine and Lydia refused to go anywhere near where Richard, Hindley, or Charles were. They avoided being with Heath alone also, but figured that if two or more girls were together they could take him.
Mrs. Hill was amused when Heath stomped down the stairs and presented her with the list of items he needed to acquire for Darcy's comfort. She had to ask him what had him in a snit. Turns out that he had smiled at both Annie and Cindy on his way down to visit Hill and they ran screaming to the schoolroom begging the girls to open the door for them.
She was perfectly happy to tell him which shops had the items based on quality, quantity, and price in Meryton. The rest he would have to send to St. Albens for unless he wanted to use London shops. He was pleased to learn that St. Albens was only ten miles away.
The Matlock family found the Inn insufficient for their needs. It was just their good luck they were getting ready to make a scene when Bingley rode into town on his stud Big Rich singing a tawdry drinking song about saving horses and riding tradesmen. Thus, they were soon ensconced at Netherfield Park and Louisa Hurst was acting hostess because Viscount Hindley told his parents about Caroline Bingley throwing a pewter cup at Darcy and damn near killing him. They insisted she be treated like a princess- lock her up in the highest tower… If she tries to escape from the coach trying to take her back to London.
I forgot to mention that Bishop Darcy travelled in the Matlock coach. His valet travelled in the servant's carriage. He decided to stay at Netherfield Park with his travelling companions and enjoy Mr. Charles Bingley's hospitality. We think it had something to do with him feeling it might be important to meet and converse with Caroline Bingley after learning she had tried to kill a fellow human being. He wanted to make sure he did not need to perform an exorcism on her since she was prone to acting out regarding her anger issues.
And just like clockwork- Caroline Bingley came stomping up the driveway behind the Matlock coach and slammed the front door as she rushed into the house. Everyone stopped and stared at the disheveled red haired hoyden disappearing into the great house.
Lousia was not about to back down. She followed Caroline into the house and stomped up the stairs behind her. She let her little sister know in no uncertain terms that she was the hostess at Netherfield Park now and things were going to be done differently- at least until the Matlocks and Bishop Darcy were no longer on the premises.
Caroline flounced down the hall to her old room and then threw another fit when she was redirected to the same room she had assigned to Elizabeth in a different version of Pride and Prejudice. The damn room was totally unsuitable for a woman of her caliber. There was no dressing room, no sitting room, no bath… When she complained Louisa told her that if she did not like her accommodations she was perfectly welcome to bag her skinny arse back to London. She could stay at the Hurst's townhouse where everyone else at Netherfield wished her to vacate to.
Caroline did not meet Charles's other guests until dinner. She found it peculiar that the only person who would converse with her was Bishop Darcy. Probably because he did not have the heart to give her the cut direct like the others were. After observing her he decided that it was more likely she suffered a low blood sugar condition rather than a demonic possession. He was not about to rule out the demonic possession though, because she spent a fair bit of time holding her knife while glaring at her dinner partners.
The day before the wedding dawned bright and clear. A rather singular condition for those who have been exposed to Britian. Normally if it is not raining there is fog covering most of the countryside. Today is different though. Not only is it different, Bishop Darcy decided to attend Church with everyone since it was a Sunday. Or, if you are German it is Samstag.
After church Bishop Darcy waited until the congregation thinned out and went forward to meet the Curate who led the service. He spent a few minutes complimenting the young man on the sermon and its relevance to life in the country before introducing himself. The curate told him he appreciated him waiting until he finished the sermon before speaking to him. They both laughed about the business of being too nervous to preach properly.
One reason Bishop Darcy spoke to the curate was to inquire about Miss Elizabeth Bennet. He wanted to know a bit of what others thought of her before he performed the ceremony. He explained to the curate that Fitzwilliam Darcy was his cousin's son, and he knew that Darcy was a good person. He wanted a sense of what kind of union the two of them could forge going forward.
Rather than gossip about Elizabeth, the curate walked him outside to where the Bennet family was just getting into their carriage to return home. The bishop was introduced and was immediately invited to dinner with the family. He accepted the invitation and settled himself in the coach with them before inquiring as to the whereabouts of his cousin. He was pleased that said cousin was at Longbourne recovering from a grievous head wound.
The day went along as days tend to. After church the family returned home and had a spot of tea with a few biscuits. It was enough to hold them over until dinner. Since the bishop would be attending dinner Mrs. Bennet took the time to go to the kitchen and get cook upset with her for interfering with a perfectly good menu. As usual, Cook won the argument but let Mrs. Bennet think that she had suggested keeping the dinner party smallish but intimate. Her concession to the lady of the house was to make an extra pie and whip some cream to go on it.
It did not take long for Bishop Darcy to become acquainted with the facts of this marriage. He did not have to be told most of the real reason behind it either. He did not become a Bishop by sitting there and letting Catherine De Bourgh write his sermons for him. He took one look at the folks gathered around the table at dinner and saw the little Darcy. The little darling stood out like a cuckoo in the cardinal nest. It made perfect sense to him that Darcy would want to marry the mother of his child. He had only just met them, and he wanted Darcy to marry the mother of his child also.
Darcy managed to come downstairs and eat dinner with everyone. He was surprised, but in a good way- generally described as thrilled, to find his cousins had set up a wedding for him and his dearly beloved female. He still had a slight fever and a dull headache, but he was no longer drifting in and out of delirium. Elizabeth sitting beside him, helping him with quiet efficiency, eased much of his embarrassment with not being completely steady. She took care of his needs at the table.
When they rose for the separation of the sexes she directed Richard to him in case he needed help getting to the bog and back. Once he was settled on the sofa with a cup of tea and some lemon sugar biscuits, she was back by his side to make sure he did not overdo himself. He even managed to spend a few minutes with William as Elizabeth hugged and kissed the little one before he was sent upstairs to bed with Lydia and Katherine. It was not much later that Elizabeth asked him if he would like help going back up to his room.
Darcy did not want to part from Elizabeth. He would have dearly loved to have Elizabeth help him upstairs, help him with preparing for bed, helping him get comfortable in bed… If his body's reaction to his thoughts were any sort of indication of his health- he was well on his way to a quick recovery. Mr. Bennet may have missed his predicament, but Uncle Edward had not missed it. He found himself smiling in a low friendly kind of way as he asked Darcy if he needed help getting upstairs.
Deep blue eyes looked at him guilelessly while the younger man mutely shook his head yes.
Edward Gardiner did not laugh at Fitzwilliam Darcy. He understood that the younger man was in a fragile state. He was doing remarkably well for a sick man getting married in less than twenty-four hours. Edward helped him upstairs and left him with his devoted Valet.
Darcy was pleased when Heath slid the bed warming pan between his sheets and let it set for a few seconds to heat the foot area. He had to laugh at the double entendre when Heath mentioned that it would not be a good thing for him to have cold feet. He agreed that getting cold feet was not something he wanted to deal with since he had been waiting on this woman for almost six years and he had no desire to spend any more time pursuing someone who was little more than a fantasy. She was his reality and she was everything he wanted.
Sleep took him quickly despite the fact that he had spent most of the last two days sleeping. The absolute stillness of the night woke him around two in the morning. He heard the click of his door opening before her soft whisper carried to him. "William, are you awake?"
"Yes, dear one." He managed to whisper also. "What brings you to me this late? We shall need to get ready soon to go to church."
"I know. That is what brings me here. Do you truly want to be wed in the morning?"
"Yes, my one." Darcy reached out and pulled Elizabeth's unresisting body close to his. "Are you cold? Do you want under the blankets with me?" His whisper was a soft murmur of warm damp air against her neck.
"William!" Was a soft low whimper just before his mouth covered hers.
Several kisses later she was lying on top of his body, molded to him as his hands slid under her night rail and caressed up her thighs to seek her hot wet place. Trying to make her come undone without making a crazy amount of noise he whispered, "How do you pleasure yourself when you think of me?"
Elizabeth did not stop to think. Her husky voice worked magic on him as she sat up with her knees pressing down on his hips. Her core pressed against his cock and she rocked back on it experimentally to see how it felt. Her command of, "Pull your shirt up!" Had him obeying. She did not wait for him to free himself from the shirt. As soon as he initiated compliance she gathered hers up also and when his erection sprang free she lifted up and thrust her pelvis forward slightly to feel him ease against her. Her hand moved down to direct him into her channel and as she began moving, rolling her hips to feel him deep inside her, her hands raised to her chest where she cupped her breasts and began pinching and rolling her nipples.
Darcy could not hold still. His big hands moved to her hips and pulled her down solidly against him. He knew the extra friction of his thumbs touching her sweet spot would have her coming in seconds. Her surprised, "OH!" as she gripped him and began pulsing, had her bending down to let him nurse. Instead, he pulled her up and buried his face in her muff as his tongue set off a second round of contractions. She finished gasping and moaning against his neck.
Darcy was faced with reality when Heath placed a cold wet cloth across his forehead. He jerked awake with a muffled scream to find the remains of his dream floating away into the ether. "Damn it, Heath, what are you doing?" He snapped.
Heath drew back. "Pardon me, Sir. Since you are ill I was unable to determine whether you were having a fever dream or a wet dream."
Darcy flashed him a wicked smile. "It was a very good wet dream." He slid an arm in between the sheets and wrapped his hand around his erection. "Except for the wet part. I did not get to peak. Although it did give me a brilliant idea of what to do to Mrs. Darcy later on today when I get her alone and hot for me."
"Shall I hand you your handkerchief, Sir, and return to my own bed?"
Darcy could not suppress the low laugh that escaped. "Thank you, Heath, that is an excellent idea. Have I mentioned lately that you are a brilliant valet. Do you have any ideas on who you would like to see become Mrs. Darcy's maid?"
Heath smiled. "There are two beautiful maids here, but I am not sure if either is interested in leaving Longbourne." He scratched his neck nervously before adding, "They actually seemed skittish around the men. When I walked past them and smiled they both edged back toward the rooms Miss Lydia and Miss Kitty were in."
Darcy smirked again. "Ah! Yes! The two maids who sat in on the infamous lecture Mrs. Hill gave the ladies a few days ago. It is my understanding that the lecture sent Lydia and Katherine racing back to the nursery vowing not to appear in society again until they are fully grown adult women."
Heath arched an eyebrow. "Whyever for?" He managed once he realized Darcy would provide no further information without prompting.
"Hill seems to have lost her patience with trying to keep the girls from behaving badly and explained the facts of life to them. Badly, or baldly, is up for grabs, but the lecture was delivered explicitly with no chance of misconstruing the facts. Mrs. Hill's father used to teach Natural Science at Eton. He taught his daughters the same coursework he taught the boys."
"Damn!" Heath huffed. "I suppose I could ask Caroline's maid if she would like to become Mrs. Darcy's new maid. She is reasonably talented both as a lady's maid and as a strumpet. I am just not sure I want to share my woman with others."
Darcy nodded. "That is a good point to think about." He yawned and looked at the clock. "We should probably try to get some more sleep. It is getting on to 2:30 and we should be getting up around 6:00 to start getting ready."
Heath yawned in response and then mumbled agreement before blowing the candle back out and moving back to his cot to lay down again.
Darcy's body was still humming after dreaming of making love to Elizabeth. It was almost the exact opposite of his mental state. He was much calmer now that he had found her. She was everything lovely and intrigued him more and more. As he learned little bits about her he became more entranced. He imagined her mouth around him as he twisted and stroked himself while wanting her.