“Yes, it has. Tell me, Lizzy, are the rumors in town the truth? Did Mr. Darcy come to Longbourn the morning of your wedding, throw you over his shoulder and march off to the church, refusing your protests, determined to marry you at once?”
“That is nonsense, Charlotte!” exclaimed Elizabeth, though she could hardly make herself understood through her laughter. “No one in the neighborhood is gullible enough to believe such a story!”
“Then you should tell Miss Harrington that, Lizzy,” said Charlotte, “for she told that bit of gossip in my mother’s sitting-room only yesterday. Mama was quick to correct her, of course, but I dare say even more outlandish tales are making their way from Meryton.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “I am convinced they will die out in time. The truth is far more prosaic, for Mr. Darcy arrived at Longbourn that morning and presented some good reasons to hasten our nuptials. I agreed with his assessment, and here we are.”
“So we are,” agreed Charlotte. “I hope, Lizzy, that you will remember your poor friend still trapped in the hinterlands of the kingdom and that I can expect an invitation to your new home when you settle in.”
“What of the season?” asked Elizabeth. “Shall you not visit for a time in London?”
Charlotte pursed her lips in thought, her reaction not much different than she had expected. “Perhaps if you insist, I may join you. Let us table this discussion.”
Elizabeth agreed to Charlotte’s request, and they turned to other topics. The evening was an unqualified success; Mrs. Bennet received many more compliments about the arrangements, and the ballroom at Netherfield was used for the first time in many years. Kitty and Lydia associated with Georgiana, who they had allowed to participate in a reduced fashion, and kept out of trouble for the most part. A contingent of the officers was even in attendance, each effusive in their congratulations. Though Elizabeth did not learn until later, this was a source of some intrigue, though she could not have imagined the source. William told her later about his conversation with Colonel Fitzwilliam.
“DARCY, I NEED TO SPEAKwith you.”
Curious about Fitzwilliam’s grave demeanor, Darcy nodded, and they separated themselves from the rest of the guests for a private conversation. Fitzwilliam did not hesitate to state his concern.
“I just discovered that Wickham was present.”
“Wickham?” asked Darcy, remembering the rogue who had dared to show himself at Pemberley not long after Darcy arrived. “What can he be doing here?”
“He is a member of the regiment, it seems, though I do not think he has been here long.”
Darcy frowned. “Wickham did not strike me as the sort of man who would do well with the discipline of the army.”
Fitzwilliam’s snort spoke to his disdain. “You are correct, for there are few men as undisciplined as George Wickham. When I discovered his presence, I warned him away and sent him back to the camp, then I had a word with Colonel Forster. Forster was not pleased to discover he had such a man in his company—I suspect Wickham will not long be a member. That is if he has notaccumulated debt with every merchant in Meryton, an uncertain proposition to say the least.”
“He must have known you would discover him,” said Darcy, curious about the man’s appearance.
“Wickham’s audacity is sufficient for more than this bit of defiance.”
Distracted though he was, Darcy nodded. “Is there nothing that can be done about him?”
“For the respect of his father, who always supported Wickham and enjoyed his company, my cousin declined to pursue justice against him. As you have inherited all my cousin’s holdings, which include substantial debt receipts in Wickham’s name, you have the power over him if he proves persistent. My father may take action against him, of course, but he prefers not to wield the power he holds unless he feels it is necessary.”
“In this matter, he does not feel it warranted,” guessed Darcy.
“I have not yet spoken to him, though I suspect you are correct. It may be best if you inform Mr. Bennet so he can warn his daughters. Wickham is a bounder without limits; if he takes a fancy to one of Mrs. Darcy’s sisters, even the knowledge she is a gentlewoman would not stay his hand.”
Darcy offered a tight nod. “Then I shall speak to Mr. Bennet. Does Mr. Moore know of Mr. Wickham’s debts?”
“He was the steward by the time Wickham visited after my uncle’s passing.”
“Then I shall request he send them to me so that I have them on hand should I need to use them against him.”
“That is prudent,” said Fitzwilliam with a nod of approval.
THAT WAS THE ONLY BLIGHTto the evening, for other than the news that a libertine was in the neighborhood, Elizabeth found the night to be a magical one. The breakfast the nextmorning was also an unqualified success, Mrs. Bennet receiving all the praise she had ever hoped to attain.
For Elizabeth and William, of course, they were now joined with unbreakable bonds. As the coming days would see them depart for a few weeks in each other’s sole company, she could not wait to be alone with her husband. Though recent months had seen interminable waiting and uncertainty, Elizabeth was now content with her life. Unorthodox it had been, but she could not wish for anything else.
Chapter XXIII
Once the official and public events surrounding their wedding were complete, Elizabeth and William took thought for what they would do next. Before that, however, there were a few matters to decide, especially those surrounding what the rest of the company would do when they were away.
“The house in Ramsgate, you say,” said the earl when Darcy spoke of his intention to take Elizabeth there for a sort of abbreviated wedding tour.
