Page 67 of To Love And To Cherish
“Sir,” Walters said, “it’s raining hard. The stable master advises it’s too dangerous to send a carriage out today.”
Darcy crossed to the window and pulled back the heavy drape. “Ah. Yes, I see. A proper storm.” The landscape beyond had vanished beneath a veil of rain. “Miss Bingley will have to remain here another day.” He added silently to himself,What ill chance, to be forced to harbor that harridan.
He turned to Walters. “Assign the footmen to guard her door around the clock. I will not allow her to persecute Jane or Kitty. And I mean to guard myself from her machinations.”
“Yes, sir,” Walters said with a slight bow.
At eight o’clock, Darcy entered the breakfast parlor and had just begun upon his eggs and bacon when Georgiana appeared, her cheeks flushed.
“Fitzwilliam, as it is too wet to ride, may Kitty and I remain in my room all day reading?”
He frowned. “And what of Mrs. Bingley? Is it not rude to leave her alone the entire day?”
Georgiana giggled. “She and Mr. Bingley scarcely know anyone else exists when they are together.”
He raised his brows. “You are right. Very well, I shall spend the day in my study. Send for me if you require anything.”
Bingley entered the breakfast parlor several minutes later and winced. “I’ve been with Caroline. She is furious. I’ve never seen her with such a malevolent expression.”
Darcy shuddered. “I hope she doesn’t have revenge in mind. If looks could kill, I would be lying dead on the floor last evening when she arrived.”
Bingley nodded grimly. “She may very well try something. I think she’s gone half mad over you. She’s always had a temper, but now… I don’t know what’s gotten into her. I think it’s Elizabeth. She sees you slipping from her grasp, and she’s green with jealousy.”
Darcy blinked. “Why would Caroline be jealous of Miss Elizabeth? I’ve never paid her any special attention.”
“You may not think you have,” Bingley said, “but you’re so reserved with women that when you speak even kindly to one, it appears as a declaration. You don’t realize how closely people watch you.”
Darcy frowned. “I don’t recall granting Miss Elizabeth any marked attention. Your sister must be imagining it.”
“She is,” Bingley said, “but women often do. They build castles out of glances and sighs.”
The stable boy returned from Bakewell with the post and the parcels he had been sent to purchase, and handed a packet of letters to Walters. Darcy was in the study, working, when the butler brought the bundle in.
“There’s a letter for Miss Darcy, sir. The rest is yours, several from your solicitor, and one from Colonel Fitzwilliam.”
Darcy nodded and took the lot, turning them in his hands. He recognized his cousin’s bold script, the solicitor’s neat scrawl, and a third, in a more elegant, unmistakable hand. Addressed toMiss Darcy, care of Darcy House, London.
His breath caught.
He carried the letter to Georgiana’s room, where she and Kitty sat reading near the fire.
He placed the missive in her hand and said, “A letter for you, Georgie.”
She stared at it, blinked, then gasped. “Lizzy wrote to me!”
In a rustle of muslin and sudden laughter, she broke the seal, unfolded the page, and began to read aloud.
Dava Moor, May 20, 1811
To Miss Georgiana Darcy
Care of Darcy House, London
My dearest Georgiana,
You cannot imagine my delight at finally writing to you. I have missed you terribly. The landscape here is astonishing. We are nestled on a rise above the moorland, and the air is so sharp and clean that I find myself perpetually hungry. Mr. Allister says it’s the Highland air that does it, and I believe him, for I fear I have gained a pound or two from eating far too many bannocks spread with fresh butter and served beside hearty bowls of stew. My mouth waters even now.
I walk daily, though I must now be accompanied by young Archie, the stable boy, as the bogs here are treacherous.One misplaced step and a person might sink thigh-deep. I stay on the trails, which are well-marked, but it is not like rambling about Longbourn. Still, I persist!
