The tour of Darcy House was everything Lizzy had hoped for. The furnishings in the house were exactly as she imagined they would be from what she had seen when they had gathered for dinner. Everything was tasteful and comfortable, nothing opulent or gaudy.
Lizzy and her mother made a list of the minor changes she would suggest to the housekeeper separate from the mistress’s suite, which would be the last stop on the tour.
Elizabeth had only suggested some minor updating to a small number of the guest chambers which she had verified had not been updated since the previous Mrs. Darcy had been mistress of the house. Mrs. Killion was again very impressed and was grateful that their future mistress, unlike most, was not making changes for the sake of change, just those needed.
The mistress’s side of the master suite had been decorated over thirty years previously and the housekeeper was excited to see what her new mistress, actually the first of the house in too many years, was going to pick.
As they were taking the tour, Fanny was being introspective just like she had been the day the twins were born. She imagined that the woman she had been then would have made vulgar effusions about the quality of the rooms and the cost of the furniture. And she had no doubt that she would have made exclamations about the amount of pin money Lizzy would have, and the jewels and carriages in her future.
She was again grateful she had made the changes she had, and that she was just genuinely happy to see the excitement and love in her daughter’s eyes the same as she once had when she had first married her Thomas. Fanny Bennet was forever changed, and it would have filled her heart to near bursting to know her family was convinced there was not a better or more loving mother that anyone would, or could, wish for.
She watched Lizzy be amazed at the collections of art on display in the house and tomes in the library, and how her daughter’s whole face lit up when she heard from the housekeeper the library at Pemberley was many times larger than the one at Darcy house and that even more artwork was housed there.
‘Papa will never leave our libraries when he visits!’ Lizzy thought, her smile growing bigger even though she knew that father would not closet himself away like he was wont to do before the twins were born.
Like Bennet House, Darcy House was a house of seven stories with a very similar layout. Darcy explained to them the Grosvenor family who had owned the land and built the townhouses that created what was now known as Grosvenor Square about a hundred and fifty years ago had only built two basic models for the townhouses.
The houses that were built in the same dimensions were very similar in layout unless the owners had undertaken major renovations, and neither the Darcy nor the Bennet townhouses had been renovated besides some small and unique modifications. Matlock house was the same size as the latter two.
As planned, the last set of rooms that were toured was the master suite. Lizzy expected and was prepared to find the furniture and decoration in what would soon be her chambers and their shared sitting room was old and more worn than she would prefer. Her William informed her that he never bothered to use the shared sitting room while he was a single man.
For her new bedchambers Lizzy chose colours in various shades of green and complimentary blues with just a touch of gold for the walls. She chose a similar palette of colours for the shared sitting room with more tones of green.
She agreed that two days hence when not otherwise engaged she and her mother would accompany Darcy to famous furniture maker Chippendale to order a complete new set of furniture for her bed chamber and the joint sitting room.
The very last rooms they saw were those used by the master of the house. Lizzy loved how the room exuded masculinity and had the biggest four-poster bed she had ever seen. She blushed as she thought that soon it would be their suite and if his hopes matched hers, she would sleep in the bed before her every night they were in residence at this house.
In his bathing room she saw an enormous brass tub. When informed that it was the twin of one at Pemberley and could easily fit two people, she blushed from head to toe in colours she had not believed herself capable of before. It was not lost on Lizzy that Darcy too was blushing furiously.
On completion of the tour, and once she was certain she had returned to a normal colour, Lizzy and her mother were escorted to the drawing room by her fiancé. As soon as they entered, she was accosted by her very enthusiastic future sister.
“What did you think Lizzy? Do you like Darcy House? Are there a lot of changes to be made?” Miss Darcy practically bounced on her toes.
“Slow down, Georgie,” Lizzy laughed as she took the girl’s hand and led her to a settee. Once seated, she was happy to answer all of her soon-to-be sister’s questions. “The house is all that is lovely. I am sure I will love living here when we are in town. There are but few changes to make outside of what will be my personal chambers and the shared sitting room. But before the renovations start in my future chambers, and only if you would like to, please go take anything you want that would remind you of your mother, dearest.” Lizzy squeezed her hands.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart,” Georgie smiled as a single tear rolled down her cheek. “I was only three when mama passed, but I would love some of the things that used to belong to her.”
Lizzy nodded in understanding and hugged her sister, and Fanny and Elaine looked on with motherly pride. Elaine knew as a certainty that Lady Anne would have loved and approved of Lizzy without reservation.
When it was mentioned that there would be an outing to Chippendales in two days, Anne asked if she could join the party going as she needed to start to order liveable furniture so she could begin to sell the gaudy, uncomfortable furniture from both Rosings and de Bourgh House.
“To be honest, I have no idea how to remove all of the unwanted baubles and uncomfortable furniture Lady Catherine crammed into my houses,” stated Anne, it was not lost on anyone she refused to refer to Lady Catherine as her mother any longer.
“We have the perfect solution for you, Anne.” Fanny took her hand.
“I would be very appreciative of any suggestions you have for me, Mrs. Bennet,” Anne agreed, looking hopefully at the woman she was fast coming to think of as Aunt Fanny and Aunt Elaine as more the mother she was grateful to have in her life.
“Anne, how many times have I told you that you must call me Fanny, or if you are more comfortable, Aunt Fanny. I told you when you came to our home that you were with family that has long loved you. And to carry my point, soon with the upcoming weddings we will in fact, be family.
“My brother Edward will be able to sell whatever you want to get rid of. He will send some of his men to your estate and townhouse and they will catalogue everything you want sold. As you are about to be family indeed as you are already in our hearts, I am sure Edward will not take his normal commission, only what he needs to cover his costs of employees and the details I could not list but we all understand are the costs of such a business as his.” Fanny smiled at Anne’s surprise.
“Thank you, Aunt Fanny. I will insist he take his regular commission, so long as I get all of that horrid stuff out of my houses,” Anne declared. The Fitzwilliams and Darcys, who had been to the houses, nodded their agreement and understanding.
The ladies collected their outerwear and readied themselves to leave. As they were a party numbering ten, they needed to take two coaches, and in this instance, they were taking a Bennet and a Darcy conveyance.
The butler let them know the carriages were waiting in the front of the house. Each conveyance had its driver, a postilion, two footmen who rode at the rear of the carriage, and two outriders. Even though they were in town, none of the men were willing to take a chance with the security of their womenfolk.
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