“Darcy, usold married menjust want to make sure you know what to do tomorrow night,” Hurst jested gleefully, glad to partake in the effort as there was so little he could find to rib Fitzwilliam Darcy about.
“I am not uneducated! I have an extensive library and have studied up on the subject a lot since my engagement,” Darcy replied with all the dignity he could muster.
“Theoretical knowledge is not the same as practical, William,” the Archbishop chimed in.
“Not you as well, Cousin Archie! I would have thought at the very least you would not tease me on this subject.” Darcy looked at him in horror. He corrected his previous thought, hearing advice about the marriage bed from a priest was infinitely worse than it would be from Hurst, Richard, or his uncle.
“I am but a mere man with all the weaknesses and foibles of most men, I just control them better when I am performing my pastoral duties,” the Archbishop said with a wink at his cousin.
“Leave him alone. We all know he is completely besotted with his fiancée so I am sure there will be no issues tomorrow night,” Richard chuckled.
“That is rich. You are no less besotted with your Mary. Is your defence of William in hope we will not start in on you and Bingley before your weddings, brother?” Andrew smirked at his younger brother.
“No!” he denied too quickly. “Well, mayhap, Andy, but leave the man alone. We all know we have never seen him so happy before, even before Ramsgate, so let him enjoy his last night in the bachelor state. You would not want to make the man worry so he is not rested for his nuptials on the morrow. You do not want Lizzy angry at you for sending a tired William to the altar. For such a slip of a woman, she can be very scary when she is not pleased,” Richard reminded all present.
“Just some good clean fun, William. You know how proud we are of you, and we love you. Elaine and I have thought of you and Georgie as our children much more than niece and nephew, and we always will,” his uncle told him as he rested his hand on Darcy’s shoulder.
“Thank you for all you have done for us, Uncle Reggie. We could not be happier to have you, Aunt Elaine, and the rest of your family in our lives.” Darcy replied for both Georgie and himself.
It was not long after that the men returned to the drawing room where Ladies Matlock and Hilldale, Anne de Bourgh, and Louisa Hurst were having pleasant conversation and enjoying each other’s company. An hour later, starting with the Earl and Countess, everyone retired for the night.
Darcy, like his fiancée Lizzy did, took a while before sleep claimed him with the excitement and expectation of their wedding day on the morrow.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Miss Elizabeth Bennet woke up just after dawn and knew she would not be able to get back to sleep. She pulled the bell to summon her maid, and after dressing in a riding habit, made her way down to the stables collecting some carrots in the kitchens for her horse.
Mercury was saddled and waiting for her as she fed him the treats and rubbed his forehead. She set off with a groom following at a respectful distance toward Oakham Mount. Giving Mercury his head Elizabeth felt exhilarated as her mount galloped across the fields.
On arriving at the base of the mount, she noticed her beloved’s horse, Zeus, was tethered there. She handed the accompanying groom Mercury’s reigns and luckily had one carrot left that she fed to Zeus who whickered his thanks for the treat.
When she arrived at the top, she saw her beloved as he looked to the east which was ablaze with red and orange light heralding the sun which would soon rise.
Elizabeth silently approached her betrothed as he was lost in his reverie watching the changing colours as the sun was preparing to bless their wedding day with perfect weather. He made an audible gasp as she enfolded her arms around him from behind.
“I was wishing you would come this morning my love, my loveliest Elizabeth,” he offered quietly.
“Even though some have the superstition we should not see each other before my father escorts me up the aisle, I am very happy you are here, William.” Elizabeth pressed in closer.
“It seems like a dream, but you will be my wife and fulfil my dearest wish in a scant few hours from now, Lizzy. You have no idea how my heart is filled with all of the love I have for you.” Darcy’s voice had turned husky with emotion.
“I have been pinching myself from the first day I saw you in the drawing room at Longbourn, William. You are the only man in the world I could ever agree to marry. You complete me, and I could not imagine spending the rest of my life with anyone but you.” Lizzy’s voice hitched with the power of her words.
Their lips met, softly at first but soon their tongues were duelling as the kisses deepened to reflect their growing need for one another. Lizzy let out a moan of satisfaction as his hand grazed her breast, which almost sent them over the edge. With the evidence of ardour clear to be seen, Darcy stepped back just before they tumbled over the precipice of uncontrolled passion.
“Not here, and not now my Lizzy. As much as I want you and have since we first met, we must wait. I have waited seven and twenty years to be with a woman, and I will not dishonour you like this when we are so close to reciting our vows in God’s house.” Darcy regulated himself, knowing he had to, no matter how difficult it was.
“You…you have never been with a woman?” she looked at him in surprise.
“No, my love, I have never been with another woman. You will be my first and my last, my love,” he vowed.
“That means this is a journey of discovery we will embark on together as equals.” She smiled brightly as her love for him washed over her in unending waves.
“Yes, my beloved, as with everything else in our marriage, in this we will be equals as well,” Darcy agreed as he leaned his forehead against hers.
The soon to be wed couple stood hand in hand facing the sun as it peeked above the horizon and started its upward journey into the sky to warm the earth below. After watching for a while and feeling its warming rays, the couple descended, mounted their horses, and parted ways as they galloped into destiny.
They would soon meet and join their lives forever at the very church Fanny Bennet had once beseeched God’s grace over sixteen years previously.
