“I would very much appreciate you taking the position,” Anne requested, her tension easing as he saw the sense of her request.
“If that is the case Miss de Bourgh, then I happily accept.” Mr Harrison smiled as they shook hands. Anne relaxed because she knew how unhappy the parishioners would have been if she had not secured this excellent candidate.
‘When are you able to move to Hunsford and commence your tenure?” she asked.
“Ian, Mr Ashby, and I spoke, and he has told me that if I was offered and accepted the living, he would make sure that I would be released from the curacy immediately so I would be here by Friday at the latest.” Mr Harrison chuckled at her relief. He could tell as much as she that the parish here needed him and he needed to be wanted by them so he could answer his calling to the best of his ability. It was a perfect fit.
“You have not asked me how much the living pays.”
“The money is not important to me; the work is, as is the freedom to do it as I see fit,” Harrison answered, impressing his new patroness even more.
“The living pays a little more than seven hundred per annum, and as you know anything that you earn from the glebe lands is yours as well. Welcome to Hunsford, Reverend Harrison. We are very fortunate to have you here,” Anne stated, echoing the feelings of the parishioners. The two shook hands again and Anne presented Harrison with the letter of appointment. They walked back to the drawing room where the expected announcement was made and Harrison was congratulated by the Fitzwilliams, who were to depart back to town with their children and servants on the morrow. Ian Ashby would be departing with Harrison, but he would return with the newly appointed vicar to assist him when he moved into his house. Anne de Bourgh was very happy to hear that Mr Ashby would be Mr Harrison’s guest when the latter moved into the parsonage.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
As had been stated at the Gardiners a few days back, the older Bennet sisters and Charlotte Collins arrived at Bennet House Sunday afternoon after they had eaten nuncheon with the Gardiners. The three were in Elizabeth’s carriage, the second carriage belonging to Jane Bennet pulled up behind the first. It contained the girls’ personal maids and some of the footmen that doubled as guards, including the head footman Biggs. The housekeeper and butler were waiting on the steps to welcome them to the house. As soon as the conveyance came to a complete halt, the door was opened and the steps placed by one of the newly hired and liveried footmen. As the three women exited, they saw the Darcys crossing the square from Darcy House to welcome them, and from the direction of Matlock House came Lady Tiffany escorted by her brother, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam.
After greetings were exchanged, where it was not missed by anyone how Richard’s gaze lingered on Miss Bennet. Tiffany issued an invitation for the two Bennets and Mrs Collins to join them for dinner that night, as the Countess knew that the rest of the Bennets would only arrive on the morrow. Georgie let them know that she and William would be present as well. After the three ladies communicated silently, they gratefully accepted the invitation and were asked to arrive at six o’clock that evening. After welcoming them to the neighbourhood, the Darcys and Fitzwilliams took their leave to allow the ladies to move in and rest before dinner.
As their friends headed back toward their houses, the three ladies were escorted inside Bennet House by the housekeeper and the butler. The newly hired staff were arrayed to greet the daughters of the house. They were introduced to the baker, Mrs Maud Carlyle, and the chef, Mr Victor Mercer, who had been hired along with the rest of the staff of the house. Lastly, Mrs O’Grady introduced the two Bennet sisters to their newly hired lady’s maids, a Miss Jacqueline Arseneault, known as Jacqui, who would work for Lizzy, and Miss Antoinette de Chambé who would be Jane’s abigail. Charlotte Collins was introduced to Miss Lucy Tibbs, who would be her maid for the duration of her stay with the Bennets.
‘My goodness, I thought I understood how wealthy the Bennets are after seeing their uncle’s home,’ Charlotte thought as she looked around the entrance hall of Bennet House. ‘I had no idea of the reality. This house is the same size, if not larger than Gardiner House! Yet, with all of this wealth, Lizzy and Jane are the same as they ever were, completely unaffected. They display true grace and sophistication. I am ever more impressed as they had never let it taint their relationships with those they had always known and returned affection when it was genuinely offered and meant.’ Charlotte thanked Mrs O’Grady for assigning a lady’s maid to her.
With a nod from the butler, the assembled staff went back to their regular posts and employment. The three ladies were shown up to their bedchambers. Lizzy and Jane knew where their suite was as they had chosen one for themselves on one of their previous visits to the house. Charlotte, who thought that her chambers would be in one of the guest wings like it had been at Gardiner House, was very pleasantly surprised to see that not only was she placed in the family wing, but in a bedchamber right across the hall from her friends’ suite.
When Charlotte entered her chambers, Miss Tibbs was already busy unpacking Charlotte’s trunks and hanging her clothing in the cavernous walk-in closet. It was soon established that Charlotte would call her maid Lucy rather than by her surname Tibbs. Her apartments were not a suite for two, but it still had a nice sized sitting room, dressing room, bathing room and a very large and comfortable bedchamber. In the centre of the room against the wall was an enormous four-poster bed. There was an end table on either side of the bed, an escritoire with more supplies than Charlotte could use in months of daily letter writing, and two comfortable armchairs. On the wall opposite the bed was a large fireplace with a nice fire that had the room well warmed. On either side of the fireplace were floor to ceiling windows that looked out onto the sizable garden below. To say that she would be comfortable was an understatement.
Now that she was alone, she could feel the relief of being a widow without having to hide it. Charlotte never had to deal with the sycophantic stupidity of her late husband ever again. Now that her marriage was over, she admitted to herself that the price of being married to a man like the late Mr Collins had, in fact, been too high a cost for a home of her own and to relieve the burden that she believed that she was on her parents. She made the resolute decision that if she ever married again, and there was no pressing need to do so as she now had what she craved which was independence, but should she decide to, she would follow her friend Eliza’s advice and only marry for love, mutual respect, and felicity. She would never shackle her life to one like her late husband again. As much as she would love to have a child or children, she would never compromise her values to such a degree again.
The three ladies from Bennet House arrived at Matlock House a few minutes early, escorted by the very aptly named Biggs for the short walk but three houses down from their house. They were shown into the family sitting room and were warmly welcomed by the assembled family. Lord Matlock, Lady Elaine, Lord Hilldale, Lady Marie, the Colonel, Lady Tiffany, and the two Darcys all returned the lady’s curtsies with curtsies and bows of their own.
Lizzy seated herself on a settee and was quickly joined by Georgie and Tiffany. Darcy sat in an armchair on the side closest to Miss Elizabeth. Jane and Charlotte were joined on a settee by Lady Marie while her husband sat on a chair next to her and the Colonel on a chair at the other end of the settee at the closest point to Miss Bennet.
Lord Matlock gave his beloved wife Elaine a knowing look as they noted that their second son and their nephew were drawn to a Bennet lady each like metal to a magnet. It looked to them that the beautiful, vivacious, impertinent, and extremely intelligent Miss Elizabeth had decided to give their nephew another chance to prove that he was better than her first impression of him. It was not hard to see that William was completely besotted with her and that she was not indifferent to him, although they could tell that he still had a lot of work to do to completely redeem himself in her eyes.
Knowing the story of Darcy’s former friend Charles Bingley’s lack of resolution and character that had caused the serene but steel backboned Miss Bennet to send him away with a flea in his ear made the Earl and Countess very happy for the chance that it gave their second son Richard to meet a woman that would be perfect for him. Not because she was one of the wealthiest women in the Kingdom, but because in character they were so well matched. She would be the perfect foil to their son’s enthusiasm and ebullience, and were it to progress to that point, they were sure that the two would do very well together.
The dinner and the convivial company was enjoyed by all, and if the Darcys and Fitzwilliams were not impressed by the Bennet sisters before, when they exhibited after dinner the assembled audience was left speechless. Miss Elizabeth played the pianoforte while Miss Bennet played the harp. Their playing was exceptional, not just in technique, but in the feeling and interpretation of the music. They did not just play the notes on the page; they lived the music. If that was not enough, when their voices joined in song the listeners felt that they were listening to a choir of herald angels. Miss Bennet was a mezzo soprano while Miss Elizabeth was a perfect contralto. Each on her own had a voice that matched the best that could be heard anywhere, but when they combined, the audience was sure that they had just glimpsed perfection.
As the heavenly sounds washed over Darcy it struck him that his Lizzy had held her vast talent back when he had heard her exhibit in Hertfordshire and Kent.‘His Lizzy,’that is how he thought of her now; he knew he would move heaven and earth to make it so.
Caroline Bingley’s jealousy would have been tenfold had she witnessed the true depth of her talent. His aunt would never have made that ridiculous and insulting comment about her being able to practice in Miss Jenkinson’s room where she would not be in anyone’s way. If his wayward aunt had not already been judged insane, being faced with the truth of Miss Bennet’s talent may very well have pushed her over the edge. What a woman! Her wealth was coincidental to Darcy, he knew without a doubt that she was the only one that he would ever love, the only one who could be his wife and a sister to Georgie. If his quest to win her heart failed, it hit him like the hammer of Thor that he would never, could never, marry any other.
Chapter 11
On Monday morning, a little after eleven o’clock, three carriages and a wagon halted in front of Bennet House.
Jane and Lizzy stood waiting for the footman to open the door of the first conveyance. The housekeeper and butler stood a little behind them, waiting to meet their master and mistress. The sisters had prepared themselves for vulgar and loud exclamations from their mother; they were not prepared for the demure and quiet woman that was helped out of the first carriage by their father.
“Jane and Lizzy, it is so good to see you looking so well. How is poor Charlotte doing?” Asked their mother in a welcoming voice with a well-modulated tone. “Will you please introduce us to our housekeeper and butler?” Jane almost thought that she was dreaming until her mother hugged her. Both girls noticed the look of pride on their father’s countenance as he watched his wife. Before Jane could perform the office, the peace and quiet was disturbed by her brash youngest sister, Lydia.
“La, we really are rich are we not?” Her vulgar pronouncement made all the rest of the family cringe. Bennet, who in the past would have been amused by the bad behaviour of his youngest, was not entertained. He looked past her to the servant’s carriage where Miss Anita Jones was standing. Miss Jones was the Meryton apothecary’s niece, an educated gentleman’s daughter, and had been employed by the Bennets to act as governess to the youngest two who were no longer out and back in the schoolroom.
“Miss Jones, if you would, please escort this child to the nursery where she will remain until I say so? Mrs O’Grady please inform Miss Jones where the nursery is,” Mr Bennet said in a tone that brooked no argument. Where she would have defended her youngest and clear favourite in the past, Mrs Bennet just looked at Lydia with obvious disapproval.
“Why do I need to go to the nursery?” Lydia asked petulantly as she stamped her foot to make her point, but only highlighted her immaturity.
“The reason is simple, Lydia,” Mrs Bennet replied in a steely voice, “you are a young girl that does not know how to behave. You and Kitty are no longer out, but Kitty has at least learnt to start behaving as a young lady should. Until you learn to act with decorum and propriety, to the school room you will go, and there you will remain.” This was all said quietly so that no passer-by would hear private family business being discussed but with enough volume that the family could hear.
