“No,” William owned.
“So, this is all in your head,” Darcy pointed out. “You are assuming she will think you below her because you used to—albeit many years ago—think her below you. Is your love for her so weak you are willing to give her up without a fight?”
William sat in silence for a minute or two as he assimilated his father’s words. “No, I love her with all of my heart and soul,” William admitted.
“Then why are you already adopting a defeatist attitude and giving up a year before she comes out?” Robert Darcy asked his son pointedly.
“The King will have to approve of her suitor,” William stated, changing direction slightly. “And what of the new law that one must be a certain rank to marry a prince or princess?”
“Yes, and what of it?” his father asked.
“You are not a duke and I am not a marquess; how will the King consent to a mere gentleman as a suitor for his granddaughter—a royal princess? He will not make an exception to his new rule,” William tried to explain his rationale to his father.
“Do you think your Uncle Freddy—who has seen the attraction between the two of you as plain as day for some time now—disapproves of you, William?” Darcy answered with a question of his own.
“No, I suppose not, but…” William started to respond when his father held up his hand.
“How many times have you heard the Prince tell us how his father will not interfere as far as Lizzy is concerned due to the guilt the King feels after forcing the divorce and the marriage to Princess Frederica on him?” Darcy pushed.
“Many times,” William acknowledged.
“If Lizzy is amenable to your suit—and I believe she will be—from whom do you think you need to request consent? The Prince or the King?” Darcy sat back and waited while William cogitated. “Also,” he added cryptically, “rank will not be an issue.”
It was one of the characteristics—one of many—Robert Darcy admired in his son. He was not impulsive and always took his time to think when considering weighty issues. Darcy saw the moment his son reached the correct conclusion, as his whole mien brightened.
“I understand why you told me my pain was self-inflicted,” William admitted. “It seems I was trying to protect my heart prematurely. If I did not venture anything, I could not get hurt. It seems I need to look at what is rather than operate on assumptions. I do not understand why you say rank will not be a factor, but I trust you, Father.”
“Your mother and I always said you could not be so intelligent for no reason.” Darcy gave his son a pat on the back as William departed to go complete his ablutions prior to the ball.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
“I know your birthfather has the first and your papa the second,” William bowed over Elizabeth’s hand, entranced by the vision she made as she descended the stairs before the first guests were expected. “I would like to ask for your supper and final sets, if you will grant those to me.”
“You have been distant since we were told of my birthparents, William,” Elizabeth pointed out archly. “I was not sure you wanted to dance with me at the ball.”
“Lizzy, I am sorry,” William replied contritely. “After the revelation of you true rank, I was afraid I was too far below you. I should have relied on our bonds of friendship and not allowed my self-doubt to rule me.”
“You are forgiven. I will grant you the two sets you have requested,” Elizabeth allowed. “Please remember this, William. It is critical to me that my friends and extended family treat me as they always have. I may be a Princess, but that is a rank, not who I am. For menothinghas changed among those I esteem and count as my closest friends and family.”
William’s heart soared as he understood her message clearly. He would never allow his head to overrule his heart again.
“Do you have a set open for yourvery olduncle, niece?” Wes asked with a grin.
“As William here is a few months older than you, that must make him ancient,” Elizabeth volleyed playfully. “Yes, my third set is open, and if you desire those dances, they are yours,UncleWes.”
“Thank you, my impertinent niece.” Wes looked around and saw the warm camaraderie among those assembled for an aperitif before the receiving line formed. These people were genuine, warm, and loving. Nothing they did—unlike his father—was to impress society or anyone else. If not for his father’s wrongheaded decisions, both of his parents would have been part of this family for many years. He felt sympathy for his father, who was driven not by love but by what he thought society expected from him.
Wes solicited, and was granted, a set each from Jane, Anne, Cassie, Mary, and Kitty. He had to admit he was intrigued by the third Bennet daughter. She was almost as pretty as her eldest sister and had a wit and intelligence that matched his niece Elizabeth’s. Earlier, Wes met the resident masters the Bennets employed, which helped him understand why all six Bennet children were so well educated and accomplished.
He smiled to himself as he thought of the drubbing he had suffered at the hands of both Darcys across the chessboard. He could not remember clashing with players of that calibre before.
Before the receiving line formed, Elizabeth, Mary, and Kitty had filled their dance cards. Kitty would have much to tell Gigi and Lydia when she departed the ball after supper to join the other two above-stairs. When Wes requested her final set, Mary had blushed with pleasure. She was days away from turning fifteen, so she had three more years before coming out, but it did not stop her glowing with pleasure with the attention from Lizzy’s handsome uncle.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Jane and Andrew were at the head of the line, followed by Jamey and Anne and Richard and Cassie. Although Jane and Andrew were to wed in two days, the ball had become an impromptu ball for all three betrothed couples, which necessitated the addition of the Carringtons and Mrs. de Bourgh to the receiving line. If anyone from high society questioned the latter’s presence in the line, none had the bad manners to comment on it within earshot of those in the receiving line.
Elizabeth enjoyed dancing the first with her birthfather. Again, if any of the guests questioned why the second Bennet daughter danced the first with the Prince and the second with her father, none voiced their questions aloud.
