Elizabeth nodded, half unwillingly. Mr Darcy now had an excellent reason for disliking his brother-in-law, but Mr Wickham seemed to imply that he had felt deep enmity forhim even before the elopement. If Mr Wickham truly loved his wife, it was understandable, if not justifiable, that he had felt it impossible to wait and endure.
Mr Wickham was looking at Elizabeth as though he hoped she might offer agreement and sympathy, but so far, she could not go. “No wonder you felt deeply for Mrs Wickham,” she offered instead. “She is very pretty, and from all I have heard, of a very sweet temperament.”
“Yes, she is,” he sighed. “You seem to understand my very heart. It was my love for my dearest Georgiana that caused me to throw caution to the winds. I suppose I could have behaved more respectably if I could have felt less, but I am a man of profound passions. The thought of losing her was more than I could bear.”
Mr Wickham brought a clenched fist to his heart, as though to say that he would bear any stricture if he could only be with the one he loved. Elizabeth looked at him curiously, wondering. She would not have thought Mr Darcy would be so very unreasonable. He would not have allowed Georgiana to marry so young, of course, and nor should he. But would he really have forbidden a couple so much in love to see each other at all?
“But enough of my woes,” Mr Wickham said good-naturedly. “You are very good to listen to me so patiently. Let us speak of other things. I hear Lady Catherine has been subjecting you to her dubious tutelage. You have my condolences,” he added with a chuckle.
“There is no need,” Elizabeth replied, torn between amusement at his wit and disapproval at his expressing such open disrespect of a family member on so little acquaintance. “Iasked her to teach me. I have learned much from her over the last weeks.”
He chuckled, smiling warmly at her. “You are very kind to indulge her. Has it been as harrowing as I imagine it would be?”
“Not at all,” she replied. “Have you known Lady Catherine long? I would not have thought you had spent much time in her company.”
He chuckled. “I have spent more than enough time in her company to know she can be a somewhat difficult woman, shall we say? I grew up in this house. Did you know it?”
“Mr Darcy told me that your father was the steward here for many years,” she replied. Would Mr Wickham be angry that she had brought up his father, or the fact that he had not been a gentleman?
He gave a sad smile, as if he were remembering better days. “He was. The late Mr Darcy loved me like a son. I spent many happy days here, despite Lady Catherine’s meddling. She once tried to get me expelled from the house.” He did not go into further detail, to Elizabeth’s regret. She would have very much liked to hear the full story behind the remark, but it would surely be an invasion of his privacy to inquire further.
“I am very sorry to hear it,” Elizabeth therefore began carefully. “I cannot agree with Lady Catherine in many respects, and yet I have come to feel for her considerably during our acquaintance. She may be difficult at times, but she also deserves respect, especially as one of the matriarchs of the family you and I have just joined by marriage.” She included herself in the rebuke, hoping to soften the blow and ease the path for her mild critique.
He looked as if he might argue with her for a moment. However, he evidently thought better of it, for he shook his head with a rueful smile. “You are right, of course. Thank you for reminding me. I sometimes take things more to heart than I should. Lady Catherine is a wise woman, with years of experience. Perhaps I might learn something from her, too.” He met her gaze steadily, without hesitation. “It is true what you say. We have both married into this household and must do our best to get along with our new relatives. You are very good to remind me. I would very much like it if we could be friends.”
Elizabeth nodded. Though Mr Wickham had shown himself capable of speaking and acting in haste, he had also shown considerable gentleness and judgement in so readily listening to her mild rebuke. And while she had felt less an outsider of late, she knew that she and Mr Wickham both faced a considerable challenge in joining a family far beyond their own level of consequence. It would do her good to have a friend as charming and attentive as Mr Wickham. “I would like that very much.”
He shrugged and moved away from the lady’s parlour door. “Though Darcy and I have had our troubles, I am certain we will work out the awkwardness between us in time. Perhaps you can help him see why I behaved the way I did? You have already done much to smooth the way by insisting that he invite Georgiana and me here.”
“If I have been of any assistance, Mr Wickham, I am glad of it. I think it is a very sad thing for a brother and sister to be estranged.”
“Yes, indeed! Very well said. I thank you for speaking with me, Mrs Darcy.” He took her hand and lightly kissed it before he bowed and made his excuses.
She smiled as she turned toward the parlour. Elizabeth stood before the hearth for long moments, looking absently into the flames and thinking over the conversation.
It was very odd, very odd indeed. Mr Wickham did not seem quite the monster Mr Darcy had led her to expect. Quite the contrary, for his manners were excellent, and he seemed sincerely attached to his wife. And he had so mildly and graciously accepted her rebuke, and had truly seemed to understand that Lady Catherine, difficult as she was, must also be deserving of some measure of deference. Thinking of all these excellent qualities in a young man of so handsome a face and such pleasant conversation, Elizabeth’s lips curved into a smile. Perhaps Georgiana Wickham had a good sort of husband after all.
Yet her smile fell away as she thought over the circumstances that had led to that marriage. Mr Wickham should have waited for Georgiana, obtained Mr Darcy’s permission, and had the marriage conducted in the proper way. To have eloped with a sixteen-year-old girl, no matter how honourable his intentions and how much he seemed to care for her, was surely inexcusable…if not to society at large, then at least to the protective older brother of that sixteen-year-old girl.
Mr Wickham would surely have a difficult time in convincing him otherwise. All that she could do now was try to smooth things over between the two men and hope that, over time, Mr Darcy would think better of him.
Surely forgiveness must come eventually, if Mr Wickham truly cared for Georgiana. Mr Darcy could not stay angry forever. Or could he?
With an odd, lurching feeling, Elizabeth realised she did not know her husband very well at all. Certainly not well enough to justify the unwavering confidence she had felt in him. She had not even questioned that Mr Wickham must be a black-hearted scoundrel. She had only listened to and believed Mr Darcy’s side of the story.
But Mr Wickham did not seem very much like a villain, wrong though he had been to so precipitously marry Georgiana Darcy. And now that Mr Wickham and Georgiana were at Pemberley, she had a chance to hear both sides of the narrative…
“Have you been waiting long, Mrs Darcy?” Mrs Reynolds asked as she entered. “Do forgive me for being so tardy. There was a problem with the oven, and we’ve only just been able to fix it.”
“Oh, yes. That is completely understandable. I would not fault you for keeping me waiting when there are more important issues afoot.”
Mrs Reynolds sat down, wearing a concerned expression. “I did not mean to convey that you are of lesser importance, my lady. I am —”
“No, no!” Elizabeth laughed, waving her off. “Please do not worry, Mrs Reynolds. No offense is taken in the least. I was only trying to convey that a working oven, especially when we have guests, is more important at this moment than going over menus for next week’s meals.”
“Yes, ma’am, quite right you are,” Mrs Reynolds said gratefully. She leaned forward and prepared to take notes in a small journal. “Shall we go over them now, Mrs Darcy?”
Elizabeth nodded and started down the list of festive meal ideas she had compiled, some of which were staples at Pemberley and some of which she had enjoyed growing up at Longbourn. Hopefully, her husband would not be too displeased that she had combined their separate household traditions in the food they would enjoy for the Christmas season.
