Chapter 20

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Mr. Bennet had suspected that there was something between his favorite daughter and Mr. Darcy; so, he was not entirely surprised to be asked for permission to marry his second daughter by Mr. Darcy. He liked the young man, and he saw that his daughter liked him too. He hoped that this marriage would not change his daughter like the last one had. He was glad she had returned to her normal self and hoped she would never go back.

The rest of the Bennets - except Jane - were surprised to hear of Darcy's and Elizabeth's engagement. Aside from Mary, Jane, and Elizabeth, the ladies were excited to think of the money, jewels, gowns, balls, etc. that Elizabeth would have. She would be a grand lady, and thus her sisters would benefit from her.

To celebrate their engagement, the Netherfield party was invited to dine in Longbourn three days before the wedding. With seven Bennets, two Gardiners, two Bingleys, two Hursts, and a Colonel Fitzwilliam, they would have a nice gathering. Mrs. Bennet was frantic with preparations to impress her future sons-in-law and the colonel.

The dinner went on nicely. Everyone ate until they had their fill, talked until their throats were sore, and laughed until their sides hurt. Well, everyone except one jealous woman. She saw nothing that impressed her, and nothing amused her; but she remained civil. It was no use to be rude to the woman who could deny her entry to Pemberley; she needed the connection to one day make a good match, but Miss Bingley could only do so much. She still only spoke when spoken to directly, and even then she replied in her haughty tone.

Miss Darcy was enamored with Mrs. Harrington. She was very excited to be getting a sister, especially one that loved her brother and made him happy. She attached herself to Elizabeth that night and immediately asked her to call her Georgiana. Elizabeth returned the favor, and asked to be called Elizabeth or Lizzy.

A date was set for the Darcy wedding that night. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth did not want to wait long for their marriage, so with difficulty they convinced Mrs. Bennet that they would only wait for the reading of the banns. This would put the wedding about three weeks after Jane's wedding. Since Mr. Collins and Charlotte were to marry two weeks after the Bingley-Bennet union, Bingley and Jane had planned to travel until after a month of being married, so Darcy's and Elizabeth's wedding did not inconvenience the couple's travel plans.

Miss Bennet's and Mr. Bingley's wedding day arrived on a very cold but bright day. Everyone was in high spirits for the couple and wished them well. The ceremony was the same as many before and after it; except perhaps this couple was very much in love, unlike many before and after them.

The wedding breakfast was remarkable and would be the talk of the county for quite some time for Mrs. Bennet had outdone herself with the food and decorations. She was upset, however, that when her other daughter would marry, she would not have as beautiful wedding breakfast because she would not have time to prepare for it. It mattered not in the end, for she could boast to all the other matrons of the county that she had two daughters married, and married to rich men.

Another couple, besides the bride and groom, received many congratulations that day. Many mothers with single daughters were a little resentful towards Elizabeth for snagging a very rich and handsome man; and to make matters worse, this was her second time! No doubt she was pretty and clever, but were not their daughters just as pretty and clever? What luck those Bennets seemed to have.

Mr. Darcy was often near his betrothed, always squeezing her hand or brushing her arms with his when no one was looking. Anyone who saw the pair could not deny that they were very much in love. Many young ladies wished that one day they would have a rich and handsome young man fall in love with them just as Mr. Darcy was with Mrs. Harrington.

The most remarkable event during the breakfast was Mr. Darcy's apology to Sir William Lucas. Though the man had not been offended (his character was one of always being jovial), he accepted the apology but deemed it unnecessary. Nonetheless, Mr. Darcy apologized and meant it. He had learned a hard lesson, one that he was happy to have learned, because without it, he would have not have Elizabeth's love or Mr. Bennet's and the Gardiners' friendships. They were all worthy of his notice, more so than some in his own or higher circle.

The time before Mr. Darcy's and Elizabeth's wedding was a happy one for the couple. They saw each other every day (except the days when Mr. Darcy had business to take care of in London) and both fell in love more with the other. Every moment possible was spent in getting to know each other even more.

One afternoon, a few days before their wedding, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth were walking the grove with Miss Darcy and Miss Mary acting as chaperones. The ladies were giving the couple plenty of privacy by letting the two outstrip them, though they still maintained them in their sight. The couple was once again talking of their past, and Darcy had to ask of Mr. Harrington and how they came to marry.

"Please forgive me, my love, but I am very curious. I will understand if you wish not to speak of it."

"William, I will tell you. I have to tell you so you understand how we came to marry. I was young and foolish - seventeen if you can believe it. I met him when he took a house about five miles from here. My mother, of course, was ecstatic because she could marry either Jane or I to Mr. Harrington.

"Everyone thought he would fall for Jane. Who would not? But somehow I caught his attention. He admitted to me that it was my liveliness - my wit - that attracted him. I, of course, was flattered, but I was not sure I liked him much more than a friend, but he persuaded me. He made me believe that I felt more for him than I felt.

"I believe he was desperate to marry anyone and quick; and there I was, young and stupid. Perhaps he did like me and my headstrong manner; he probably wanted the challenge of taming me. I now thank the good Lord that he did not marry Jane instead. She would not have survived his horrible acts; and he may have known that, that is why he chose me instead."

Because she began to remember her suffering during her marriage, Elizabeth began to weep. Mr. Darcy pulled Elizabeth to him, and tried to comfort her. Their sisters almost ran to the pair when they saw Elizabeth's distress, but when they saw Darcy's face, they allowed them to continue thusly by turning around and walking the other way.

Not having an audience any more, Mr. Darcy dried her tears with his handkerchief and gave her many kisses all over her face. When she calmed enough, she began kissing him back. He vowed to her that he would never treat her in such a manner and would do all he could to protect her sisters should they ever find themselves in a similar situation.

"I know, William. You are an excellent man. That is why I love you so."

"And you are a strong, beautiful, intelligent, good woman and that is why I love you."

Thus calmed, they decided to head back towards Longbourn. They wanted to assure their sisters that everything was alright; but before they began walking, they had to share a passionate kiss. It was possible that the next time they would get a chance to kiss would be after the wedding so they took advantage of every chance they had.

Finally, the day came when Mr. Darcy and Mrs. Elizabeth Harrington were united never to part until death. The ceremony was just as it always was; everyone who was important to the couple was present to witness their union. Many tears were spent, and many well wishes were given.

Everyone was happy for the couple, especially Jane and Mrs. Gardiner. Both had seen how much Elizabeth had been hurt in her previous marriage that they wished the best for her the rest of her life. When they saw how happy she was with Mr. Darcy, and how much in love they were, they could not help but weep at her good luck. The rest of their family and friends were happy for the couple, but never to the level of Jane and Mrs. Gardiner.

Only two people were upset over the marriage of Darcy and Elizabeth: Miss Bingley and Lady Catherine de Bourgh. The former did naught but look condescendingly at everyone around her, and the latter was not known to most or present. Neither could put a damper on the joyful couple's day. They laughed and wished that everyone else was at least half as happy as they were.

Their wedding breakfast was not as grand as Jane's and Bingley's had been, but they still enjoyed it more than they had enjoyed the other couple's. No one bothered to think that maybe the couple wanted to spend time together: everyone wanted to talk to the bride and the groom. Even Elizabeth's good nature started to wear thin as she was once again separated from her husband to talk to another guest. She could see he was uncomfortable, but he was making an effort to be interested in others' conversations.

Since Mr. and Mrs. Darcy were scheduled to spend a few nights in their London home (they would then travel Italy for a few months), they made their excuses and left earlier than some of their families wished them to leave. Georgiana would return to Pemberley with her cousin the Colonel and wait for the happy couple to return from their wedding tour. Her goodbye was a tearful one, but she knew she would see her brother and sister soon, so that they could be a happy family.

As soon as they were comfortably settled and had been on the road for ten minutes, the couple could not resist each other any longer. Their passion always started the same: an innocent touch of their hands, a look, a soft kiss to the cheek, an embrace, and before they knew it, she was on his lap kissing him like her life depended on it. This went on most of the ride, always stopping their actions before they went too far. Too many times did Elizabeth have to rearrange her hair to something presentable.

Once they neared their London home that night, Mr. Darcy said to his bride, "My dearest wife, I know how much you fear what is to happen, but please remember that I will not hurt you; and if I do, please tell me so and I will stop. Think that our kisses signify how much we will enjoy our time alone. "

She could not reply without giving away how scared and excited she was at being alone with her husband in their rooms. Elizabeth knew it would be different with Mr. Darcy, but she was still a little nervous. She nodded and tried to smile, but he was not fooled.

After the couple arrived and all the usual traditions of a new bride and groom were followed, both prepared for bed. When Darcy was ready, he made his way to her bedroom. Timidly, she answered his knock by saying "Come in."

Darcy looked very handsome in his night clothing. She could not help but stare at his chest, where she could see a little hair poking out of his robe. He looked so tall and almost fearsome, but she knew better. She felt different than she had in the past in similar situations. She blushed when her thoughts turned into a more pleasant direction of what she and her husband could do now that they did not have to stop themselves.

He approached her slowly and said, "Remember, you only need to tell me to stop and I will; but if you find yourself enjoying this, then do not be afraid to act on instinct." He held her face in his hands as looked into her eyes. She looked beautiful in his eyes. He could tell she was scared but also excited.

Once she had nodded, he began to kiss her slowly; his hands roamed her back and arms. Slowly, as she accepted more and more from him, he began touching her more. Once both were on the bed, no place on her body went untouched; and to her surprise and his delight, she left no part of his body untouched. She never had felt such feelings that her husband was making her feel. She whispered his name and declared her love many times that night. The tears that came to her eyes that night were not of pain or fear, but of intense love and pleasure she had never experienced before.

Elizabeth learned that night what is was like to really love and be loved. Never again would she fear her marriage bed. She would from now on enjoy the time with her husband, and it seemed as if neither could get enough of the other. The four days they were in London were spent entirely in their rooms, only leaving them when absolutely necessary. They did not care what the servants thought of their disappearance, for they knew that only couples this much in love would behave in such a manner.

Five days after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Darcy were on their way to Italy. Both were excited about their adventure and new lives together, for nothing could separate them now; as they had promised before God, "until death do us part" and they meant it.

Fin

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