But if anyone learned what they had done, she could be nearly as embroiled in scandal as Lydia would be.
Saturday morning,Elizabeth took her solitary walk toward Netherfield, although the clouds had yet to be burned off by the warmth of a July sun. Her purpose was to put herself in Fitzwilliam’s way. The Netherfield party arrived late last night, and although he would waste no time in calling, Elizabeth little liked the thought of sitting at home and gazing longingly out the window. She laughed aloud at the memory of her desire to avoid encountering him in all her morning rambles in Rosings Park.
“Might I rouse you from your daydream to enquire what makes you laugh?”
Elizabeth gave a little start of surprise and looked down the lane to see her beloved standing not twenty yards away.
“My love for solitary walks has changed its purpose. I once sought the privacy for contemplation, but now my real purpose is to seek you out.”
He drew closer and, after glancing up and down the tree-lined lane, took her hand and pulled her from the path. The sound of their boots crunching against sticks and leaves rang loud in her ears. Before she could ask him where he was leading her, Fitzwilliam stepped around a large oak tree, tugged her in front of him, and pressed his lips against hers in a searing kiss. Elizabeth pushed his hat from his head, wrapped her arms around his neck, and clung to him.
Elizabeth was struck by the desire she felt for him, and she did not protest when she finally felt his hands on her body. She pressed closer against him, her hips rushing forward as a low moan escaped her mouth.
The bark of the tree pressed into her back as Fitzwilliam pushed closer, and she revelled in the pleasure of his weight against her. His teeth scraped her skin as he kissed along her jaw and neck, his hand clutching at the skirt of her gown near her hip. His voice was hoarse and near trembling with passion as he moaned her name.
Her breathless reply was lost, however, when a crack in the woods and a rustling of leaves startled them away from one another. Her lips felt swollen, and she had to lean against the oak because she doubted her legs could hold her. Her heart still pounded with desire, but they were only a few yards away from the lane, and one large tree was not enough to conceal them from sight. Fitzwilliam turned away and ran his hand through his hair.
Elizabeth felt for him as he tried to keep his emotions and desire under good regulation. She watched him wage his own private battle as he calmed, and she had to admit a thrill of excitement at knowing she was the one person who could overpower the reason of Fitzwilliam Darcy. His desire outpaced his control, but it would do him no good to believe that he alone was to blame. She bent to retrieve his hat and offered it to him, interrupting his silent self-condemnation.
“Forgive me, Elizabeth?” He shook his head, as if scarcely believing he had found himself in such a position. “Not a month ago, I would not kiss you on an open road, and now you would be entirely justified in saying I have behaved ungentlemanly.”
“There is nothing you could do to lose my esteem.” He took his hat and followed her back to the lane. “You know I love you,” she added, “and I have missed you dreadfully. You take too much upon yourself. What kind of helpmate would I be if I did not shoulder some of the blame for our shameless ways?” She grinned, and Fitzwilliam offered a wan smile. “We are not the first engaged persons to forget themselves. Perhaps that is why courting couples are kept to parlours under the watchful eye of chaperones. You and I have more successful conversations outside and in less conventional places.”
“Today I did not have the strength of mind to restrict our interactions to simply conversing. It would not do for such actions to gain public notice.”
“I think we are merely suffering from a natural progression of intimacy that has outstripped the length of our engagement.”
He took her hand. “You have made me very happy.”
She returned his ardent gaze with equal strength of feeling. “We shall have to part here,” she said, keeping a light tone, “unless you give me the pleasure of your company and walk me home.”
“That I will—with all my heart. I have some things to tell you.”
“I presume Bingley’s sisters will not call on Jane immediately? Miss Bingley and Mrs Hurst would not wish to bestow too prompt a greeting on one so beneath them.”
He confirmed this accurate sketch of Bingley’s sisters and his friend’s docile nature. Whereas Fitzwilliam had walked out to see his intended at the earliest possible hour the morning after his arrival, Bingley deferred to his sisters and would wait until Monday for a formal call. Fitzwilliam then told her that they had found Lydia with Mrs Younge, and how they restored her to her uncle’s home. Since Wickham had unsurprisingly not returned, she would be brought to Longbourn with the Gardiners.
“I do not doubt that bribery and corruption were employed to gain Mrs Younge’s compliance.” Given the rigid set of his jaw, she knew the less said of the matter, the better. “I am impressed you could reason with Lydia. She becomes defiant with any attempt to check her behaviour.”
“Bingley was kinder and more patient than I could have been. He had to convince her that you and Jane would prefer to marry in the same ceremony later this summer, and as such, Lydia could be the first to marry.”
“Let us hope Lydia’s spirits will be tempered when she has to accept that Wickham had no intention of marrying her. I would love to share my wedding day with Jane, but part of me wonders whether, perhaps for both our sakes, we ought to end this prolonged engagement and marry sooner. I saw my father looking over the settlement several days ago. Given what I know of his habits, maybe in several more days he will sign it.” Elizabeth could not keep the sting of contempt from her voice.
“We may as well have all of our unpleasant conversations regarding our relations now and be done with it. I had the displeasure of receiving a letter from Lady Catherine. I had not the opportunity to speak of it to you before.”
Seeking to save him the trouble of recounting what would likely cause pain to them both, she asked wryly, “We shall not be naming Pemberley’s heir after the Fitzwilliams?”
He barked a mirthless laugh. “No, that is not likely.”
“Have you heard from your other relations regarding our marriage?”
“Georgiana is delighted, as you know. Colonel Fitzwilliam, who I believe long suspected my regard for you, writes that he does not know to what trickery I resorted to induce you to accept me, but he wishes us joy.”
“Mrs Gardiner does the same, as she likely told you when you arrived with Lydia. I told her she must spend Christmas with us at Pemberley.”
“You will enjoy Pemberley,” he said as the house came into view. “The grounds are delightful. I think you will pleasure in exploring its windings.”
“I hope you will take prodigious care to show me every sheltered copse, shielded dale, and private path you own.” She winked and satisfied herself with the faint blush on his face as he understood her meaning. Not ready to join the others, they retired to the gravel walk, where the power of conversation and a few stolen kisses would make the present hour together a blessing.
