Elizabeth looked up to meet the bishop’s eyes for the first time as she said, “I will.” The bishop took her hand from her uncle and placed it over Darcy’s, and as he began to repeat his vows, she gazed up at his beloved face, knowing that he was thinking, as was she, of the night he had already spoken those words to her. The slightest of smiles crossed his face as she took him to be her wedded husband, her voice clear as she repeated the bishop’s words, “… to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love, cherish, and to obey, till death us do part, according to God’s holy ordinance; and thereto I give thee my troth.”

His dark eyes held such warmth for her that she could feel her love for him rising within her as he slid the ring upon her finger. It might have been only the two of them in the world as he said, meaning each word with every fibre of his being, “With this ring I thee wed, with my body I thee worship, and with all my worldly goods I thee endow: in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.”

They knelt for the prayer, and suddenly it no longer mattered to Elizabeth that the marriage had been rushed, that her family was far away; all that mattered was the man at her side. The bishop joined their hands again, and said the words over them, “Those whom God hath joined together let no man put asunder.”

It is done, thought Darcy. After all this time, after all the pain, it is done. He had never before appreciated how difficult it could be for the newly wed couple to wait patiently through the prayers, blessings, and psalms, while their feelings ran so high. He wished he could carry her off to Pemberley right at that moment, not knowing how he could bring himself to make the social conversation necessary at the end of the service. When it was finally concluded, as they walked together down the aisle, he bent his head to whisper to her, “At last, Mrs. Darcy.” The pleasure it gave him to say those words was beyond measure.

She turned her lively eyes on him. “At last, Mr. Darcy.”

At the chapel door their families came to meet them, and Darcy made the introductions, almost slipping once when he presented the Gardiners to Lord and Lady Derby as “Miss Be… Mrs. Darcy’s aunt and uncle.” She smiled up at him mischievously.

Lord Derby shook his nephew’s hand with gusto, offering his congratulations. Darcy said, “I am of course delighted to see you, uncle, but I do wonder how you were informed of the proceedings.”

Lord Derby laughed heartily. “Let me see—I was informed by my cousin the bishop, and by your sister, and by your housekeeper. I am, in fact, an extraordinarily well-informed man, except, perhaps, by you.”

“The notice was very short, sir, and I did not wish to cause any inconvenience,” Darcy said smoothly.

“William,” said Lady Derby, “might I have a word with you?” She drew Darcy apart from the others, abandoning Elizabeth to the company of Lord Derby.

“So, Mrs. Darcy, I need your help to settle an argument between my wife and me,” he said jovially.

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow, a shock still running through her at the sound of her new name. “I would be happy to be of assistance if I may, Lord Derby.”

“Tell me, then, when did you and my wayward nephew meet?”

She blinked in surprise at the question. “I believe we first saw one another in mid-October of last year, but it would have been another week or more before we were formally introduced.”

“October!” he snorted in disbelief. “October—I cannot believe it!”

“I assure you that I remember it clearly,” Elizabeth said smoothly, though I do not think that I shall tell you what your nephew said on that memorable occasion. “I am not sure why you find it quite surprising; I believe that October is as fine a month as any other to meet.”

He laughed at her pertness, and said, “Well, we both lose the argument then. My wife guessed that it was a month ago; I thought no more than two weeks. Who would have thought October?”

Both of Elizabeth’s eyebrows rose in response to this. “Two weeks! That hardly seems likely.”

“Well, you would know best, I suppose,” he allowed, “but we have always said that when young William finally made up his mind, he would nab the young lady in question and marry her without further ado, and when we heard about today, it seemed only logical to think that our predictions had been correct. I am seriously disappointed.” He shook his head.

“You seem to assume, Lord Derby, that the young lady in question would consent to be nabbed,” replied Elizabeth with spirit.

“Oho!” he exclaimed. “So that is the way the land lies, then! Gave him his comeuppance, did you? Good for you—he was certainly overdue. Too many beautiful women throwing themselves at him for years, you know,” he said with a confidential air.

“Well, if it makes you happier, we have only been engaged for two weeks,” Elizabeth allowed.

“That is a relief—that is more the William we know! So he did not propose to you the first time he saw you?” he asked, sounding like a child denied a long-expected treat.

Elizabeth smiled in great amusement. “I am sorry to disappoint you, but I cannot think of anything that would have been further from his mind on that occasion.”

He shook his head again, as if mystified by the behavior of the younger generation.

Darcy approached them at this point, and Elizabeth linked her arm through his. “Mr. Darcy,” she said mischievously, “it seems that I am a great disappointment to Lord Derby.”

“I am sorry to hear that, Mrs. Darcy, since I have just agreed that we would join him for a brief wedding breakfast at Derby House,” he said in like manner, clearly unsurprised to find her already teasing his uncle.

“Not at all, Mrs. Darcy,” said Lord Derby urbanely. “I find you uniformly charming. My nephew is another matter entirely; he is indeed a disappointment.”

“For failing to inform you of my wedding? I knew that if you were invited, you would take the opportunity to tell my bride terrible things about me.”

“Did I do anything of the sort?” he demanded of Elizabeth, but without giving her a chance to respond, he continued, “William, this lovely lady tells me that you met her last October and that you are only now getting around to marrying her! What sort of example are you setting?”

Darcy gave Elizabeth an ironic look. “I see nothing wrong in keeping her in suspense about my intentions,” he said. “Mrs. Darcy, have I thought to mention to you that some members of my family run to an excess of character? Of course, you have met Lady Catherine, and as you know, a more gentle and circumspect soul never walked the earth, but some of our relations are rather more difficult than she.”

“You introduced her to Catherine, and not to us? Now I am offended!”

“I must confess, Lord Derby, that I managed to find Lady Catherine completely on my own, with no assistance from Mr. Darcy,” Elizabeth intervened, but stopped short of mentioning her cousin. She was still uncertain of how much Darcy intended to tell his family about her connections. Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner could easily be mistaken for people of fashion, after all, and she did not know if he intended to disillusion his illustrious relations.

“Mrs. Darcy’s cousin is the recipient of a living from Lady Catherine,” Darcy explained. “She had the opportunity to dine at Rosings on several occasions during a visit to him.”

“And lived to tell the tale? Mrs. Darcy, I am indeed impressed.”

Shortly thereafter they departed from the cathedral en route to Derby House, which proved to be an imposing edifice of the same white limestone as the cathedral lying a short way outside of town near the river. Lady Derby had arranged a sumptuous wedding breakfast—Elizabeth could not help but wonder what would have happened had Darcy not agreed to attend it—that outstripped her expectations by far; it was clear that Lady Derby was a gifted and experienced hostess. The bishop was announced shortly after Darcy and Elizabeth arrived; Elizabeth followed suit behind Lady Derby in curtseying and kissing his ring. Darcy stayed close by her side as the bishop spoke to her, asking her questions about her impressions of Derbyshire and Pemberley. It seemed a somewhat stilted conversation to Elizabeth, and she was relieved when he moved his attention to Georgiana, giving Elizabeth the opportunity to offer her thanks to Lady Derby for her attentions.

Lady Derby was a very genteel lady of understated but direct opinions who was quite curious as to the mettle of the young woman who had captured her nephew’s heart. It was clear to her from observing them both that it was a love match; she would not have expected Darcy to settle for anything less, but she had in the past few years felt some concern as to whether he would ever meet someone to suit his needs, surrounded as he was by fortune hunters and flatterers.

Elizabeth brought up her acquaintance with Colonel Fitzwilliam, and the two conversed on that subject briefly before Lady Derby turned her attention to the subject of her nephew, mentioning that Elizabeth seemed rather different than many of the young ladies of Darcy’s acquaintance.

“Yes, I remain convinced that the reason he first noticed me was that I showed no interest in him whatsoever,” said Elizabeth with a laugh. “It is my impression that he was quite tired of the constant attention he received.”

“Yet somehow he seems to have gained your interest,” Lady Derby suggested.

With an amused smile, Elizabeth said, “He can be very persuasive—and persistent—when he sets his mind to it.”