“No worries there. We have timber enough for a lifetime, and unlike Antony, I pay my coal bills.”
“Salt and money to ensure the household will be prosperous?”
“We are not doing too badly financially.”
“Bread to ensure that the occupants will be well fed?”
“If you want some bread, I shall ring for a servant.”
“Greenery to ensure long life and good luck?” Lizzy said, pretending to be desperate.
“Well, it is true that we did not string garland over the mantel of the drawing room, and there was no wreath upon the door. So with my permission, you may go out tomorrow and cut some holly, which I know you know how to do, and we shall use it as a centerpiece for our New Year’s Day dinner,” Darcy said, smiling graciously.
“Oh, Elizabeth, he is only teasing,” Georgiana said, in case Lizzy did not appreciate her brother’s sense of humor. “Do you have any more New Year’s customs?”
“Yes, the first dark-haired male stranger is invited into the house, that is, if he comes bearing one of the gifts I mentioned. No matter how humble his station in life, he is invited to take dinner with the family.”
“Dark haired?” Darcy asked. “So what you are saying is that if Charles Bingley or Colonel Fitzwilliam were strangers to us, they would not benefit from our hospitality because they have red and blond hair?”
“That is correct, as those with dark hair tend to brood and scowl more than their fair-haired brethren, making them much more intriguing.”
“Oh, Will, Elizabeth is only teasing,” Georgiana again piped in, but Lizzy looked away from her husband, refusing to confirm that she truly was in jest.
Along with the three Darcys, Mr. Jackson, Mrs. Bradshaw, Mrs. Reynolds, Mrs. Brotherton, and Mercer waited for the arrival of 1812 in the upstairs sitting room. Mrs. Bradshaw used the opportunity to “suggest” that a Christmas dinner be served on Twelfth Night with a goose and all the trimmings.
“Of course we must also have a Christmas pudding, and Cassie, the stillroom maid, makes an excellent wassail. It is a Darcy tradition to have a complete Christmas dinner served in the servants’ hall as well,” Mrs. Bradshaw added, and before Lizzy could say yes or no, the cook had detailed everything that would be on the menu, but she did allow her mistress to decide if the family wished to exchange Christmas gifts.
Mrs. Bradshaw and Mrs. Reynolds, who were believers in early to bed and early to rise, chose to depart two hours before the clock struck midnight. But before returning to her kitchen, Mrs. Bradshaw whispered to Elizabeth, “I have known Mr. Darcy since he was five years old, and I have seen him grow from a sweet boy into a fine man. With all that he suffers, he deserves to be happy, and now that he has you as his wife, he will be.” Lizzy, caught completely unawares, was speechless and nodded her thanks.
Minutes before the new year, Darcy asked Mr. Jackson to pour whisky for the men and a Madeira for the ladies, and when the clock tolled the midnight hour, all raised their glasses and wished each other all the best in the new year, and when Georgiana mentioned again that this was the year she would come out into society, everyone laughed.
Chapter 38
Lizzy, Darcy, and Georgiana were still at breakfast when Mr. Jackson announced that Teddy had returned to Pemberley and wished to speak to the master at his convenience.
“Thank you, Jackson. Tell Teddy that he should visit with his mother first, and then we shall talk in the library.”
As soon as Mr. Jackson mentioned Teddy’s name, Georgiana’s face lit up. Lizzy had suspected that she had a romantic interest in the son of her lady’s maid and that look had confirmed it. But there was nothing wrong with a young girl admiring a handsome young man, especially one who was her brother’s hunting partner and companion. Of course, Georgiana did not know that Teddy would be leaving for North America in the spring, and Lizzy knew that she would be unhappy when she learned of it. But once she had made her debut, this beautiful girl with her dazzling smile would have the young gents flying to her like moths to a flame.
While Darcy was meeting with Teddy, Elizabeth received a note from Lady Helen asking if she could call the next morning. Of course, it was impossible to deny the request, and so she wrote a response, her first on the Pemberley stationery. After signing her name as Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy, she handed it to Lord Granyard’s groom. When Darcy emerged from the study, she showed him Nell’s letter.
“Well, you may receive her, but I am still annoyed and have no wish to see her until next nightfall. So I shall go riding tomorrow morning.”
“Coward.”
“Sticks and stones,” Darcy said, laughing. “Besides, she asked to visit with you, not me.”
“Speaking of visits. What news from Teddy?”
Darcy gestured for Lizzy to follow him into the study because, with all the Darcys in residence, the junior servants were everywhere.
“Apparently, there is a war going on in Herefordshire. There are three groups of Frenchmen: the elite, the bourgeois, and a group of farmers and herders from the Pyrenees. It seems that the first two have been lording it over the other members of the pack, and there has been a peasant revolt. The farmers have elected to emigrate en masse to French-speaking North America, so that will bring the population down to a manageable size. The males will join Teddy and Rupert in the spring, and once they are established in Quebec, they will send for their wives and children. That should be interesting because there are no she wolves in the French delegation, so these men will have to cook and clean and do everything by themselves.”
“As you did,” Lizzy added.
“Yes, as I did, and I have no doubt of their eventual success as these are rough mountain men, but they are as quarrelsome a group as I have ever met.”
“This does not affect the two candidates for my lady’s maid, does it?”
“Well, we are down to only one candidate as the other has accepted a marriage proposal from one of the emigrating Frenchmen and will join him once the group is established in their new quarters.”
“The thought of working in your household scared off one of the women, did it?”
“It was not me who scared her off. Teddy told her frightful tales about the razor tongue of the mistress of the manor, displays of impertinence to your husband, and…” That was all he could get out before Lizzy punched him in the arm.
“I suspected you had violent tendencies, so I shall have to tame you.” He lay down on top of her on the sofa, and she made no objection.
Unsure of what Nell might say, Lizzy had secured Darcy’s permission to meet with Lady Helen in his study. Her purpose in coming was twofold. First, she wanted to know if Alpha was annoyed with her as he had given her that impression at daybreak and, second, had he met with her prospective groom?
“Both of those matters are pack business, and I have nothing to do with that. You will have to speak to Mr. Darcy.”
“I believe he is upset with me because of what I said to you here at Pemberley. I did not mean to give offense, but you can imagine my surprise when I learned that he was interested in you, and not just because of your lack of rank. You see, I was bitten while Mr. Darcy was away in North America, and fearing risk of discovery, my family insisted that I live in this dreadful, damp convent in Ireland. But when Mr. Darcy returned to England and learned of my fate, he came to Ireland and brought me home. How would you interpret such a generous gesture?” she asked Lizzy, but did not wait for an answer.
“And we get along so well in the wild. We never argue, and Alpha is so attentive to all my needs. He loves to groom me, you know. I merely have to look at him with what he describes as ‘eyes the color of a summer sky,’ and he comes and rakes his claws through my luxurious fur. I think it is his favorite thing to do.”
“I can form no opinion of his intentions as I never witnessed these kindnesses,” Lizzy said, trying not to roll her eyes. If Mr. Darcy was so taken in by her beautiful coat and summer sky eyes, then why was she Mrs. Darcy and not Nell? The woman was as dense as an iron skillet. “All that is in the past, so let us leave it there. We are
