Georgiana looked sceptical but said she would try the trousers. “When else in my life will I have the chance?” she said with a brave smile.
She took the bags into her room to dress, with Elizabeth adding, “Try tying your hair the way Sandra had it this morning, in one knot at the back of your head. You don’t need it piled high with all those curls.”
When the door shut, she said to Darcy, “I talked to Roland this morning.”
His eyes tightened, and the corner of his mouth pulled down. “Was he packing his bags?”
“No, he was working like any other day. He’s confused, but he loves being here and will stay.”
“And will he stay silent?”
“Yes,” she said firmly. “Although he asked a fair question about if he could tell his future wife about Nine Ladies.”
He thought for a moment. “Sheryl, the docent that started last year?”
“How did you know that?” she asked, surprised.
“I know everyone, even if you and I don’t hire everyone personally anymore.”
They had more paid staff now than when they first opened Pemberley: a textile conservator, fashion archivist, event coordinator, a few visitor services associates, curatorial housekeepers, and a museum director, along with grounds and stable workers in addition to Roland. Many who helped were interns or volunteers who wanted experience or those with a love of history.
“That doesn’t mean you know who’s dating whom.”
“I’m still landlord and master,” he said drily. “I would not be doing my due diligence for everyone here if I did not know them and note their concerns. I pay attention, and Sheryl comes to work from the direction of Roland’s house, not the car park. They walk hand in hand through the park on their days off. She was talking to another volunteer about engagement ring styles last month. Roland finds a reason to come into the house any chance he can get when she is working.” He grew thoughtful. “If he marries her, I should find her a permanent job on staff.”
“You’ll have to get your accountant to approve that,” she said, putting her arms around him, “but I think she’ll tell you we can afford it.” It wouldn’t be a bad idea to have another permanent tour guide, and Sheryl was excellent.
“Georgiana can’t hear any of the tours,” Darcy said firmly. “Someone could mention Mr Willers’s name.”
“Yeah, I know.” Elizabeth stepped away in frustration. She had hoped he would be flirtatious, kiss her, or say something provocative that she could think about all day, but he was sopreoccupied with some make-believe damage his sister would do.
“What is the matter?”
“Nothing.”
“A wife who says ‘nothing’ never means nothing, not even two hundred years ago.”
“Look, I am wearing trousers!” Georgiana re-entered, and the change was remarkable. She wore linen cargo pants, a flowy wrap top, and sandals. Her long hair was no longer in tight ringlets but tied low at the base of her neck. She looked like a model in an ad.
Darcy didn’t say a word, but gave a little bow that was more fitting for the time he left behind. Elizabeth told her how well she looked. “What do you think of trousers? Is it everything you wanted it to be?”
Georgiana swung one leg back and forth, then the other, looking down at them. “How scandalous,” she said with a laugh. “Philip, I mean Mr Willers, would be positively shocked to see it.”
Elizabeth tried to catch Darcy’s eye, but he watched Georgiana. Was Georgiana on a first-name basis with the steward? That was a good sign for them marrying this year.
“Now that I am appropriately dressed, may I walk through the house? I should like to see what is the same and what is different.”
Elizabeth shared a glance with Darcy. He wanted to say no to her viewing the public rooms. His face silently screamed it. What he wanted was to keep her hidden, sit her down, and demand to know why she was here. A widening of Elizabeth’s eyes and a tilt of her head convinced him. “Of course,” he said, in that “civil but I’m unhappy about it” tone he used two hundred years ago. “Pemberley is your home.”
“Not here,” she said softly. “Here and now, it is yours.”
“Elizabeth, would you show?—”
“We’d both love to take you around.”
Darcy pursed his lips, but led them down the stairs, around the house to the main entrance.
“I think you’ll find many things the same as you left them. Aside from electric lights and toilets,” Elizabeth added.
