If such an idea was not quite impossible, it must at least be considered highly unlikely. Darcy was unsure if anyone had ever won his aunt over. Usually, people cowered in her presence. She ruled her household with an iron fist and ran the county from which she hailed in the same manner. Perhaps the fact that Elizabeth came from a different county and had not even heard of his aunt made her less likely to kowtow to the woman, where others might fail to stand up to her.
“Very well. If you are sure?” he asked.
“Yes, I am quite sure,” she replied. He let go of her hands, and he felt as if some of the light had gone out of the room when he did. What was wrong with him? Had he not promised himself that this would be a marriage in name only?
But that was before he had seen how admirable Elizabeth truly was. Her plan to win over his aunt showed wit andhumility, not to mention compassion. He was uncertain of her chances of success, but that was due more to his doubts of Lady Catherine than of Elizabeth. If his aunt truly preferred dominating others to learning to live with them, she would not allow herself to be won over.
Still, Elizabeth was strong, and he would not allow Lady Catherine to go too far. If she wished to subject herself to his aunt’s often absurd opinions, so be it.
Darcy offered his wife his arm. Elizabeth took it, and without further conference, they rejoined his relations. The rest of tea was thankfully uneventful, at least compared to what had come before. Though Lady Catherine continued to show herself to be condescending and rude, Elizabeth took it all in stride.
After tea, their guests went up to the rooms that had been made ready for them to rest before the supper gong. Elizabeth started out of the room, holding her book in her hand. She made for the doors that let out onto the patio, and, on a whim, he turned and followed her. “May I join you?”
Elizabeth seemed surprised. “Oh, I thought you usually answered correspondence in the late afternoon?” Though, thankfully, she did not seem displeased by the idea. “I thought to take some fresh air before retiring to dress for supper. Of course I should be glad to have you join me.”
“Excellent,” Darcy said. He held the door open for her, and they walked out into the chilly November air. She wrapped her shawl around her shoulders, and he offered her his arm, glad to share a little of his warmth with her. “You showed great courage during tea. I cannot say enough how impressed I am with how you dealt with my aunt. She is not easy for anyone to handle, but I cannot imagine how it would feel for someone whohad just come into the family. I cannot — that is to say, I do not agree with my aunt’s opinions or her ways of expressing them. In many cases.”
Elizabeth laughed gently. “No, nor do I. Yet I do not think your aunt is a cruel woman. For all the faults in her manner, I think she may be rather lonely.”
They walked on in silence for a while, and he wondered what she was thinking. He found her company oddly soothing. She was like a balm for his heart — one he had not realised he needed after losing Georgiana to Wickham, and the painful mixture of disillusionment and failure he had felt ever since.
“What of your cousin?” Elizabeth asked after a time. “There must be some story there.”
Darcy sighed. “She has been told all her life that she is weak and sickly. Yet the doctors have never been able to give a name to her illness, or to match her symptoms, such as they are, to any known disease.” He slowed, turning toward Elizabeth. “Lady Catherine had hoped that Anne and I would wed someday. She may tell you as much. But I never intended to wed my cousin. Much as I respect Anne, she and I would not suit.”
“Poor Anne,” Elizabeth said. “So, there is nothing wrong with her? Medically speaking, she is sound?”
“Yes, quite sound. The mind is a powerful thing. One can hear so often that one is ill and tired that eventually one begins to believe it. This is what has become of Anne, I believe. She will never leave her mother’s house because she has been convinced that she is too sick to do so.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “It is not right,” she said. She halted on the path, turning earnestly to him. “There must bea way to help your cousin. Perhaps, if I can win over Lady Catherine, something could be done to free her.”
“I would advise you to leave well enough alone. Cousin Anne is a fragile sort. She has lived in her mother’s shadow for so long, I do not know if she will ever be able to find a life of her own.” He sighed and took her arm again, and they started down the gravel pathway. “Your first task is to win over my aunt. We can worry about my cousin later.”
After a short walk, they were soon forced to return to the house. Rain clouds rolled in so quickly that they were forced to hurry to avoid being soaked through.
Elizabeth laughed as they entered the house. “I want to thank you for being willing to come to my defence today, with your aunt. I would have understood if you had taken her side over mine.”
“No, indeed. You are my wife, Elizabeth,” he said with more tender feeling than he had meant to convey. He looked down at his feet for a moment, then back into her stunning eyes. “You are my family now.”
She blushed prettily and looked away. “Well, I wanted to thank you all the same. It meant a great deal to me.”
With that, Elizabeth excused herself and returned to her room for a rest, very well deserved after facing the dragon that was Lady Catherine. Darcy headed toward the study to work on his correspondence, as was his usual practice after tea.
But despite his silent chiding that he should try to concentrate on the task at hand, his thoughts kept taking him back to Elizabeth.
Chapter 12
The first of Lady Catherine’s lessons was to take place only two days later. Though unwavering in her choice to undergo her ladyship’s tutelage, Elizabeth could not pretend to look forward to it with any enthusiasm. It was therefore a welcome distraction when she noticed Stephans looking at her with a rather odd expression.
“Is something amiss, Stephans?” Elizabeth asked her. “You are looking at me most strangely.”
With that, the floodgates opened. Stephans, normally so correct and controlled, could no longer stop the tears from streaming down her face. “Oh, Mrs Darcy! I have just heard what you did for my family. I have been so worried for them. I do not know how to thank you!”
“I know exactly how I should like you to thank me,” Elizabeth told her gently. “If anything like this should occur again, I want you to tell me at once. I know we have not known each other long, but you can trust me to do my best for you.”
“Oh, I know that now, ma’am,” Stephans said, her voice still rather uneven. “After this, I would trust you with anything.And I shall do my very best for you, ma’am, always. You may be certain of that.”
After another exchange of reassurances, Elizabeth left to make her appointment — and to allow Stephans, who had begun to look embarrassed as well as relieved, a little time to compose herself. The praise had left Elizabeth with a warm glow inside, one that she hoped might bolster her against Lady Catherine’s harsh criticism.
