Elizabeth had heard enough, and, shaking, she turned and walked out of the shoppe. Georgiana joined her only moments later, an expression of concern etched upon her face.

“Miss Elizabeth, are you well?” she asked.

Elizabeth swallowed down the hot lump that had lodged in her throat, and looked away.

“Pay them no mind,” she continued as she placed her hand on Elizabeth’s arm. “Anyone who has had the pleasure of seeing you and Fitzwilliam together can be left in no doubt of your love for each other. What those two women said inside was horrible, but it was nothing more than gossip, maliciously purported by Caroline Bingley, no less. She has always aspired to catch my brother, and now she is angered that all her scheming has come to nothing. And as for my uncle, I know he will love you. He is not so concerned with birth and connections as he would have the rest of London believe. The most important thing to him, and to my aunt, is that Fitzwilliam is happy, and they will be reassured of that the moment they see the way he looks at you.”

Though Elizabeth was touched by the words her future sister offered, she could not soon forget the rude treatment she received, the unkind remarks and the hurtful gossip she overheard, nor the resulting pain associated with it all. That morning, the happy prospect of ordering new gowns for her trousseau had greatly appealed to Elizabeth, but considering the emotional cost she was required to pay, she no longer felt equal to the task. She was eager to be away from Mrs. Duval’s shoppe as soon as possible and not at all looking forward to having to return.

*   *   *

While Mrs. Bennet, Jane, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia were eager to continue their shopping excursion in another part of London, Elizabeth and Georgiana chose to return to Darcy House. When they entered the foyer, it was nearly teatime, and Georgiana was informed that her brother was entertaining none other than Lord and Lady Matlock in the music room. Elizabeth, at Georgiana’s urging, accompanied her future sister, and when they entered the room, she saw an elegant older lady and two finely dressed gentlemen engaged in easy conversation with Darcy.

Georgiana’s eyes lit up with pleasure. “Aunt Rebecca, Uncle Henry. How wonderful to find you here.” She kissed them both before turning to the other gentleman. He appeared to be no more than several years older than Darcy. “Hello, Cousin. Have you come to meet Miss Elizabeth, or are you here only to tease me mercilessly, just as you always do?”

He laughed and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I am always eager to tease you, dearest, but I confess to being quite curious about the young lady who has finally managed to captivate my infamously imperturbable cousin.”

Smiling wide enough to show his dimples, Darcy hastened to Elizabeth’s side. “Elizabeth, please allow me to present my uncle and aunt, Lord and Lady Matlock, and my cousin, Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam. Aunt Rebecca, Uncle Henry, Richard, it is my very great pleasure to introduce Miss Elizabeth Bennet of Longbourn in Hertfordshire.”

Lady Matlock smiled kindly. Her husband addressed Elizabeth stiffly. “Miss Bennet, allow me to offer my congratulations to you. My nephew has been rather negligent in his duty, I am afraid, and saw fit to inform us of his engagement to you only the other day. If you are truly all he claims, I daresay you will find much happiness in your union.”

Elizabeth understood him. The earl did not yet know her, and despite whatever Darcy had told his family, his uncle would reserve judgment on her. She chose her reply carefully. “Thank you, Your Lordship. Your nephew and I have already shared much happiness. He is one of the most intelligent men I have ever had the pleasure of knowing, to say nothing of his kind and generous heart. I consider myself extremely fortunate to have earned the affection and esteem of such an excellent man.” She exchanged a look of affection with Darcy, who moved even closer to her and brushed her hand with his own.

The affectionate action was not lost on Colonel Fitzwilliam, who grinned at having caught his reserved cousin performing such an impropriety in front of his parents. Never before had he seen his cousin so besotted with a woman. Now that he thought of it, he could not remember ever having seen Darcy besotted with a woman. He observed Elizabeth with interest while his mother engaged her in conversation.

Though his cousin’s fiancée had seemed somewhat reserved at first, she was now listening with rapt attention to Lady Matlock as she related some story about her own courtship with the earl. Elizabeth leaned in then and, smiling archly, said something that caused the older woman to laugh. The earl merely harrumphed, but his twitching lips indicated his amusement.

By the end of the visit, it was obvious to Darcy his relations were impressed by Elizabeth’s wit, candor, and keen intelligence. It pleased him beyond measure to see that even the earl did not remain unaffected by her charms. The older gentleman had become more animated as the hour wore on; his eyes turned often upon Elizabeth with interest and, perhaps, even a touch of admiration.

Darcy saw them all to the door with regret. He kissed his aunt and slapped Richard on the shoulder. Before Lord Matlock quitted the house, he took his nephew aside and muttered, however grudgingly, “She’ll do, she’ll do.” A small, satisfied grin played upon the earl’s face as Darcy bid him a good evening.

*   *   *

Dinner that evening passed in much the same manner as breakfast. Mrs. Bennet and her youngest daughters talked of the success of their shopping trip and of the vast number of new gowns they had ordered, while Elizabeth sat in mortification, and Mr. Bennet silently laughed at their silliness. Darcy, as could be expected, could find nothing so humorous in the scenario at his table, especially given how Georgiana and Jane seemed to glance repeatedly at Elizabeth throughout the meal, with expressions of concern. It was not until the very last course was taken away that he discovered, through Mrs. Bennet’s loud ranting, their trip to Mrs. Duval’s shoppe had not gone at all as they had anticipated.

After the meal, while the Bennets retired to the music room, Darcy summoned Georgiana to his study under the pretense of discussing a minor household matter. In actuality, he was anxious to hear her own account of the visit to the modiste. It infuriated him to no end to learn of such an affront to his beloved Elizabeth, and it had, in fact, taken all of Georgiana’s powers of persuasion to convince Darcy not to leave the house at that very moment for Mrs. Duval’s residence in order to personally reprimand her for the outrage that had been perpetrated at the hands of her staff. Instead, he paced in his study for a full quarter of an hour, attempting to regulate his temper before rejoining his guests. By the time Darcy entered the music room, Georgiana was immersed in her playing on the pianoforte, entertaining the Bennets with a lovely piece by Handel.

Darcy searched the room for Elizabeth. He discovered her standing apart from her family at one of the large windows overlooking the street; her distress was obvious by the manner in which her hands twisted the material of her gown. Greatly affected, Darcy joined her. “You have been very quiet tonight, my love.”

Elizabeth turned to him and gave him a half-hearted smile. “I am fine, Fitzwilliam. I am only a little tired. I was thinking of retiring soon. I am afraid I will not be suitable company tonight.”

Darcy’s brow furrowed. “I was hoping to have a moment alone with you, Elizabeth. We have not yet had any time to ourselves today, and I find myself desirous of your presence.”

Elizabeth lowered her eyes. “And I am very much in need of yours,” she murmured as she took his hand between both her own.

Darcy glanced about the room. All her family appeared to be well entertained for the moment. “Will you come to me tonight?” he whispered as he moved a curl from her face. “I have some matters of business I must see to in my study. I will be there until very late. Please say you will come.”

His eyes beseeched her to agree, and without so much as a second thought, Elizabeth nodded.

It was just past one o’clock in the morning when Elizabeth finally joined Darcy in his study. She found him seated behind his mahogany desk, going over pages of documents. When his gaze lit on her, he laid them aside and smiled. She ran to him, and in the very next instant, Darcy pulled Elizabeth onto his lap and enveloped her in his arms, cradling her in his embrace. She sighed as some of the tension from her unpleasant day melted away.

“Fitzwilliam,” she murmured as she circled her arms around his shoulders and buried her face in the fabric of his cravat. “I have missed you.” She could not help but inhale his distinct, masculine scent. He smelled wonderful, like sandalwood and black pepper. How she loved the smell of him and the feel of his comforting presence!

“And I, you,” he murmured as he placed a lingering kiss upon the curve of her neck. “May I take your hair down?”

She inclined her head, and Darcy removed the decorative pins from her dark locks. As he pulled out the last pin, Elizabeth’s hair fell like a rich veil to well below the middle of her back. His breath caught, and he buried his fingers deep within the silken depths of her curls.

Elizabeth snuggled against him, breathing deeply as she enjoyed the feel of his fingers moving through her hair. She found it soothed her, just as it had when her maid would brush her hair many years before, when she was still but a girl. Before Elizabeth could stop herself, she almost shyly asked Darcy whether he would mind performing that same task for her now.