Richard nodded. “Yes, but let her tell no one else. Her elder sister may wed Bingley, and I would not have him hear of it.”
Darcy’s eyes widened. “Indeed not. The last thing I desire is to see you saddled with his sister.”
When the evening drew to a close, Darcy approached his wife. “Elizabeth, may I escort you upstairs?”
She rose. Her sisters stood also, and together they made their way up. Richard remained below. “Darcy, I will play billiards for an hour, then your servants may close up for the night.”
Darcy acknowledged him with a nod and then went up with Elizabeth. At his wife’s door, he said quietly, “The night is still young. It is only half past nine. Would you like to read the next section ofThe Odysseywith me? We might test the comfort of your chairs.”
Her lips curved in a smile. “I would like that, sir. Give me twenty minutes to prepare for bed, and you may join me.”
He inclined his head and left her, smiling to himself. She still felt at ease in his presence, comfortable enough to change into her nightdress and study with him in her chamber. His kiss had neither frightened nor driven her away. Hope stirred.
And her voice, how had he not known that his wife possessed such a gift? None of her family had ever spoken of it. Then it occurred to him that they had not known each other long enough to learn much of the other, nor had there been any occasion for her to reveal such a talent. How many other gifts, he wondered, had he yet to discover in her?
Chapter 29: Life At Pemberley
Darcy stood at the bottom of the old oak, looking up. Elizabeth and Georgiana stood above him, gazing down from the little tree house.
“Would you ladies like to join us for luncheon?” he called. “Georgiana, Mary says she needs your help with a difficult passage in her music. I tried to assist with the fingering, but she is still struggling.”
His sister hopped down from the lowest step and said, “Fitzwilliam, I will join you at luncheon when I have finished with Mary.” Then she ran off.
He offered his hand to Elizabeth, helping her down. “So tell me, why did Georgiana drag you up to her tree house?”
Elizabeth took his offered arm. “She knows I have spent years reading in my favorite oak tree, and she wished to share hers with me. I love the little bench, Fitzwilliam. If you ever lose sight of me, you may find me there, reading.”
His brows rose. “The library does not provide sufficient attraction to tempt you?”
Amusement sparkled in her eyes. “In the mornings, when I most enjoy reading, the servants are busy dusting and sweeping. I do not wish to be in their way, for they are not permitted to keep to their accustomed schedule if I enter the room. Georgiana found me sitting under a yew tree with my book and brought me here. She has given me permission to use her tree house whenever I wish.”
A smile flickered across his mouth. “It pleases me that my sister is willing to share. She has never invited me into her little nest.”
Elizabeth laughed again. “You are far too large for that house, sir. There would be no room left for her to move.”
He chuckled. “Very well, you win. Come, let us eat. Are you hungry?”
“I am,” she admitted. “I am going to gain weight living here at Pemberley. At home, I often missed breakfast. I would take a boiled egg and a scone with me to Oakham Mount and enjoy the sunrise.”
“Ah, was that how you kept out from under your mother’s feet?”
“Yes. I spent the early hours reading in the old oak. Then at ten, Papa and I studied together. We had a schedule.”
He turned his head toward her. “Truly? What did you study?”
“Everything. We discussed the passages in the poem I found difficult, and at other times we reviewed the ledgers, the newspapers, the Bible prophecies, or such scientific articles as he discovered for me.”
“Really? What of the ledgers?”
“We tracked improvements or failings in our farming strategies. We usually followed those recommended in theAnnals of Agriculture. I remember when we abandoned the three-field system and adopted the four-course method. Our neighbors thought Papa had gone mad, but when they saw our yields, they stopped ridiculing what they did not understand and followed suit. Once they realized the value of adding fodder and grazing crops, they came to him asking to be taught more.”
She looked out toward the hills. “That is the drawback of living in a small, uneducated corner of the countryside. We get left behind. My father was the key to innovation in our little corner of Hertfordshire. These days, agricultural practices tend to occupy more time at our local dance assemblies than dancing or flirtations.”
Darcy had been watching her closely. “Elizabeth, I am concerned you may find Pemberley dull by comparison. I have two stewards who assist me, and unless you join us at our weekly meetings, you will have little to occupy your mind. I only hope you do not come to feel shut away from the world. Pemberley can be a lonely place.”
She walked silently for several minutes before she replied. “You have many tenants here, sir, far more than at Longbourn. I can visit them and serve in that way. Does Pemberley have a working stillroom?”
“It does. A servant is trained to oversee it.”
