“You will soon see,” Darcy responded as he offered his beloved his arm. He saw Andrew roll his eyes, but he ignored him. They were both competitive and Andrew tried to claim his estate had the best vistas when anyone with eyes knew that title belonged to Pemberley. He gave his cousin a knowing smile and led Elizabeth up to the crest of the rise.
Elizabeth gasped at the sight which was before her.
Much to Hilldale’s chagrin, Jane had a similar reaction when she saw the view, which was visible once they reached the crest of the rise. She applied pressure to Andrew’s hand. “As we swore never to lie to one another, I have to tell you that William’s estate is the most beautiful one I have seen,” Jane said quietly.
“I know that to be true, but I do not want my young cousin to hear me admit that. He is already puffed up with too much pride in his estate,” Hilldale jested.
“I heard that,” Darcy announcedwith a very smug look on his countenance.
“Living with him now will be impossible,” Hilldale huffed with fake asperity. He was not blind; William had much of which to be proud.
“Never have I seen a place for which nature has done more or where natural beauty has been so little counteracted by the awkward tastes of man,” Elizabeth marvelled. Below them was a valley meandering off to the west. The peaks rose in the hazy distance. There was a river and several streams she could see below. The fields which were not fallow were heavy with crops. On the eastern side of the valley was a tree-covered hill, and near its base was quite the largest house she had ever seen—even bigger than Snowhaven’s and rivalling Blenheim Castle. It was built on rising ground and here too there was much nature to see. She also could see there were formal gardens and two gazebos, but that in no way conflicted with the natural beauty. Opposite the front of the house there was a grass park, which ended at the edge of a nice-sized lake. It seemed that the lake was fed by a stream. The house was glowing with a golden hue in the afternoon sun and the many windows sparkled like so many lights.
The vast forests reached the southern shore of the lake. As she drank in the wonder before her, Elizabeth understood why William and Gigi told her she needed to ride here.
“William, the view from here is magnificent,” Elizabeth enthused.
“I agree with you,” Darcy riposted. No one missed that he was looking directly at Elizabeth when he said the last.
“Is there much fishing to be had?” Gardiner asked to distract Darcy.
“If you enjoy fishing, I can show you the best spots. We have rods, reels, tackle, and anything else you may desire. I too like to cast a line every now and again,” Darcy responded. “Weshould reboard our coaches and continue on down the drive.
Soon everyone was seated, the steps stowed, and the doors closed. As soon as the footmen were back on their benches, the convoy drove down the winding drive towards the mansion. Rather than proceeding to the steps in the front of the house, which led from the drive to the huge double front doors, the lead coach turned and passed through aporte cochèrewhich led into an internal courtyard.
Ready to meet the master and his guests were the three senior staff members and a cadre of liveried footmen waiting to offload the trunks and valises. There were no servants in neat rows because Darcy eschewed that practice.
As he always did, Darcy handed first his sister and then his beloved from the coach. Thompson assisted Mrs Annesley to alight.
Ever since the master had sent a note telling his senior staff he was engaged, Mrs Reynolds wanted only for Master William to be happy. She was waiting to point out she had been correct and, more than anything, to meet the future mistress who had Master William wrapped around her little finger. She knew he would never choose a Miss Bingley-like woman, but Mrs Reynolds was determined to take the lady’s measure. That she was a beauty was not a question. Already in her favour was the warmth between her and Miss Gigi. Next, it was obvious that the lady had the good opinion of the Fitzwilliams who had just arrived.
When they interacted, the long-time housekeeper noted the mutual affection between Master William and Miss Elizabeth Bennet. One would have to be blind to miss the love which shone for one another when they looked at each other. Like his betrothed owned Master William’s heart, from what the housekeeper could see, hers belonged to him as well.
Darcy introduced the senior staff toElizabeth, Jane, and the Gardiners. While the footmen were conveying the baggage into the house via a servants’ entrance at the level of the courtyard, he led their guests, Elizabeth on one arm and Gigi on the other, into the house using the courtyard door, which was reached by climbing six wide stone steps.
From close up, Elizabeth could see that the stone covering the walls of the house was a light colour. When she asked, she was informed the stone was quarried in the foothills of the Peaks and most houses in the county were built using the same material, called Derbyshire Stone.
As they walked past some of the public rooms on the ground floor, Elizabeth was pleased that like Snowhaven and Hilldale—even if it was out of date—this house was decorated with understated elegance. So far she had seen nothing which was uselessly fine and uncomfortable-looking like she had noted at Rosings Park. Elizabeth was in anticipation of seeing that estate again, as she had been informed that since Lady Catherine had been removed as the mistress, Rosings Park had undergone a vast transformation.
As he and Andrew were each engaged to his respective Bennet sister, Darcy had written to Mrs Reynolds with instructions to place himself and his cousin in a guest suite in the southeast corner of the fourth floor, while the sisters and the Gardiners would be on the family floor. It was the first floor, and, they would be on the northwest side of the house in suites with the best views over the lake. The suite the Bennet sisters were assigned was next to Gigi’s.
After washing and changing, Darcy personally led a tour of the library for those who had not seen it. He waited for those who had yet to see its wonders at the double doors across the landing from the grand staircase on the first floor. Once everyone was ready, Darcy nodded to two footmen who threw the doors open.
The first thing which assailed Elizabeth’s senses was thesmell of leather, paper, and ink. She drank it in, a smell she always detected in her father’s study. With one hand resting on William’s forearm, Elizabeth entered the library. Like she had when she first saw Pemberley, she gasped. William had not exaggerated, nor, in this case only, had the banished Miss Bingley. Yes, it was not the Bodleian, but then no other library was, but it was magnificent.
As she twirled around, she noticed that it went up two levels. There were spiral staircases in each corner to reach the upper level. Outside of the library at Oxford, she had never seen so many books. If she read for every minute of every day, Elizabeth imagined she would need at least three lifetimes to come close to reading most of the books in this room.
“William! It is everything I imagined and so much more,” Elizabeth enthused.
“Then, you approve of the library and Pemberley? I know it is not the Bodleian, but I think it will do for us and our children.” He waggled his eyebrows when he said the last.
Elizabeth blushed furiously. “Yes, William, this is more than adequate.” As she spoke, she was not looking at the library.
It was Darcy’s turn for the tips of his ears to burn red.
That evening, a sumptuous dinner was enjoyed, and plans were made for a tour of some of the principal rooms in the morning, to be led by the housekeeper. Thereafter, riding lessons would commence.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
