Chapter 24

"M iss Bennet, I am not even sure what to say…how to begin… I am so grateful to you for coming…"

"You may say anything, Mr Darcy. Except talk about gratitude…" She smiled.

"Indeed…I am such a fool. I would not have requested this conversation so soon if you were not to return to Longbourn in a few days. I fear you might find it too hasty."

"If I do, I shall certainly tell you."

"Surely you must guess the reason for this private conversation. We have talked so many times, of so many things, that I hope you know my feelings and my wishes. I am just asking you to allow me to tell you how much I love and admire you…and to make my proposal one more time. To ask you to consider being my wife. I am sorry for being so inarticulate… Perhaps someone who felt less would speak more eloquently."

Her smile moved from her lips to her sparkling eyes. "Mr Darcy, since it was I who suggested my father come here this morning, surely you must guess my answer. Indeed, we have talked many times, of many things, and you have confessed your feelings for me, which I hardly believed in the beginning."

She paused, and their eyes locked.

"But I had no chance to speak to you about my feelings," she continued. He moved to sit next to her on the sofa, and to his delight, she took his hands in hers.

"I never told you how much I struggled with my desires, how I doubted them, and how many times I dreamt about such a moment yet feared it may not come."

"If I had known, I would not have waited so long! It seems we spoke many times, about many things, except what was truly important," he joked, and she let out a little tearful laugh.

"The wait was worth it," she replied.

"So, it is a yes ?" he asked, his head gently leaning towards hers.

"How could it be a no? That was the biggest yes my heart could say."

Their faces were now close, and his right hand caressed her cheek. She copied his gesture, slowly leaning forwards until their lips joined, as their hearts already had. It was their first kiss — tender, sweet, gentle, sealing a long-awaited understanding. Other kisses followed, there, in the drawing room, which did not offer much privacy; there was no secret to be concealed — they were already prepared to share their love with the world.

Mr Bennet spent an hour in Darcy's library with Georgiana before Darcy and Elizabeth joined them. Between the gentlemen, there was no need for a private conference, nor many words required for Mr Bennet to give his blessing, which was readily granted.

"I must leave now, Mr Darcy, but I shall certainly return soon," Mr Bennet declared. "I am almost as happy that Lizzy will marry a most excellent man as I am to know I shall have access to your libraries. I hope you will invite me often, even after you marry my daughter."

He spoke in earnest, and a few tears glistened in his eyes. The others laughed, with equal joy and anticipation.

"Mr Bennet, please remember that I invited you even before I knew Elizabeth would agree to marry me, so you cannot suspect I have ulterior motives," Darcy teased him. "You need no further invitation — you may come whenever you want."

"You should count on me doing so. I shall visit you when you least expect it!"

That very day, at dinner, Lord Matlock, Colonel Fitzwilliam, the Bennets, the Gardiners, the Bingleys, and the Hursts were presented with a piece of news that turned the evening into a most unforgettable one.

For Bingley's sisters, the announcement came as the cruellest punishment, ruining that evening and many more to come.

For the more perceptive of the party, the news was expected and brought joy and gratitude. For others, it was the happiest, most astonishing shock, causing cries of disbelief and tears, bringing Mrs Bennet to the edge of fainting. After her nerves calmed a little, when she was certain it was not a joke and that Mr Darcy — of all the people in the world — would become her son-in-law, Mrs Bennet did what she intended before: she kissed his cheeks twice.

Lord Matlock's blessing and Colonel Fitzwilliam's congratulations were heartfelt. On the same evening, Mr Bennet announced to his family the decision to leave London in three days' time. Except for Lydia and Kitty, nobody else regretted it. With Jane marrying Mr Bingley and Elizabeth marrying Mr Darcy, Mrs Bennet did not care about London at all. Being home at Longbourn seemed the perfect choice.

∞∞∞

A tumultuous time passed in Hertfordshire, with many unexpected events, but none as important as the double wedding of the two eldest Bennet sisters. The announcement of Mr Darcy's proposal to Elizabeth Bennet was taken as a joke at first; why would a man so important, so rich, so proud and arrogant as Mr Darcy marry the daughter of a country gentleman with no fortune or connections, especially since he had not even found her tolerable enough to dance with.

The question, first asked by Sir William and Lady Lucas, was the gossip of the little town for a while. Mr George Wickham had several answers to offer, and he was believed for a while, until he came to be shot in Colonel Forster's house. Nobody knew what he was doing there and assumed the colonel had mistaken him for a thief. Mr Wickham was not badly wounded, but he was confined to his bed and cared for by Mr Jones for a fortnight. As soon as he recovered, he agreed to leave the regiment for reasons that were unclear. His friendship with Miss Mary King also ended abruptly, as the lady's uncle unexpectedly took her away from Meryton.

Charlotte Lucas married Mr Collins at the end of January and moved to Kent. Mr Collins only saw the Bennets once, in Meryton, and wisely avoided any encounter with Mr Darcy. Neither the Bennets nor Mr Darcy cared about him enough to confront him for spreading false reports. As Mr Bennet said, the clergyman would probably suffer enough abuse from Lady Catherine to compensate for his sins.

In the middle of February, on a cold winter day with a little bit of snow, Elizabeth Bennet married Mr Darcy in a double wedding with Mr Bingley and Jane. Aside from the four-and-twenty families from Meryton, the Gardiners were present, as well as Miss Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliam, and Lord Matlock.

The Darcys travelled to London after the ceremony, eager to begin their new life together. Neither of them had the courage to enquire whether Lord Matlock had shared his tormented past with his sons, and there was no proof to either confirm or deny it. They were ready to offer their support — if and when it was required. Until then, it was their time to enjoy their ardent love and to rejoice in their deep, complete felicity.