This book releases in 1 week to direct preorders! To larger vendors it will come out March 14, 2018.
XOXO Elizabeth Ann West
Chapter 12- If Mr. Darcy Dared
The chill of November dampened what good spirits might be had. But Elizabeth Bennet ran from her father’s house without an ounce of good cheer. She didn’t slow until she reached the far edge of her father’s property. Hyperventilating from the exertion, she drew her shawl that had flapped behind her like a cape, tighter around her shoulders as her body shivered. Why had Mr. Darcy not come to call when Mr. Bingley and Miss Bingley arrived? And curse that Caroline Bingley and her rudeness! What unlucky yield to earn her as a sister when Jane married Mr. Bingley.
Her thoughts ran rampant as her feet carried her without her conscious effort. She tried to remind herself she had even stated more than once to even Jane and her father how he was unlikely to visit. But truly, even though the words had passed her lips, her heart ached with each utterance, praying her rational side to be wrong about him.
Before she knew what she was about, Elizabeth ceased her preoccupation with Mr. Darcy’s absence and recognized she was halfway up the trail to the top of Oakham Mount. Bile rose in her throat as she could not help but think of the last time she was at such a place, just the day before. She thought briefly to turn and flee her favorite spot, but her stubborn will refused such a capitulation. Mr. Darcy and Miss Bingley would not ruin her favorite pastimes; it was not to be borne!
Still, she could not help but try to sort out where she had gone wrong. Had she made a mistake in honoring her set with Mr. Darcy? Maybe she should have said more when the carriage was called to encourage him?
Elizabeth lost her focus once more in second-guessing her behaviors. When she reached the summit, she had planned to sit upon her favorite prospect and allow her emotions to have their way, safe from the humiliation awaiting her back at Longbourn. But just like the last time she had visited Oakham Mount, Elizabeth Bennet was not alone.
Unfortunately, her company was in no state for a visit. Slumped against the very boulder where she had first found herself in Mr. Darcy’s arms, sat the slumped form of the same man, fast asleep.
At first, Elizabeth could think of nothing more suiting than to throttle the man or at least throw a heavy stone in his direction. But when he suddenly began to move to find a more comfortable position against the rough stone coupled with a heavy snore, Elizabeth found herself covering her giggles with her gloved hand. As much as she wished to be cross with him, here lay a very reasonable explanation for why Mr. Darcy had not called at Longbourn. Never had she suspected that he might wait here in hopes of meeting her, and fall asleep in the process.
Feeling her courage return, Elizabeth walked forward in triumph as she trusted herself to be so close to Mr. Darcy’s person that she leaned down and whispered into his ear.
“Mr. Darcy?”
The man moaned, but didn’t rouse. So Elizabeth tried once more.
“It’s time to wake up, Mr. Darcy.”
“Mmmm, my Elizabeth,” the man uttered in a sleepy voice as his eyes fluttered open. The very dream occupying his subconscious mind appeared as a vision before him. Spying his eyes widen in embarrassment, Elizabeth giggled and reached out her gloved hand to touch his cheek.
Chapter 12 - If Mr. Darcy Dared (cont'd)
Such forwardness on her part brought forth the irascible impulsive side of Mr. Darcy. When he reached up to meet her hand, he gently pulled and Elizabeth followed his lead. When his other arm expertly caught her form, he turned her so that she might fall to sit directly next to him, their backs against the same boulder. But Elizabeth’s torso was caught in his embrace as she turned to look at him.
“I thought you had meant to humiliate me.”
“Never.”
“But you did not come. And Mr. Bingley and Miss Bingley–” Elizabeth could not finish her chastisement as Fitzwilliam leaned forward and hushed her lips with a kiss, only the second one of her life. At first, Elizabeth inhaled through her nose and enjoyed the delicious spark that seemed to course through her veins every time this man’s lips touched hers. But somewhere in the back of her mind, the angry spirit that had carried her to the very hilltop had its say and brought her back to the moment.
She pulled away and scolded him.
“You must not do that again!”
Mr. Darcy looked at her utterly confused. “Does such affection not stir your heart the way it does mine?”
Elizabeth shook her head, and then contradicted herself. “Yes, of course it does. But it is improper!”
Mr. Darcy looked about them, not spying anyone around. Elizabeth followed his gaze and attempted to stand, though his arms held her close and she did not truly try to pull away.
“Is there someone else here?” she asked, suddenly afraid she had just increased her humiliation ten-fold since the previous evening.
Mr. Darcy cleared his throat. “None that I spy or that I brought. So as we were saying,” he paused to tilt her chin towards him and leaned forward to kiss her once more, but she ducked her head and this time she rose, leaving poor Mr. Darcy with his eyes closed and his lips puckered to nothing but the air about them. He did not remain in such a state for long. Realizing Elizabeth had left him bereft, he also stood as he dusted off the dirt from his clothes.
“Madam, has anyone told you that you are a consummate tease?”
Again, the anger at how presumptuous Mr. Darcy could behave raised alarm in Elizabeth’s mind. She began to walk away from him as she tried to sort out her feelings. Then she stopped and thought better of it when she finally had something to shout at him.
“You take favors, sir, that you have no right to seek!” Elizabeth’s left hand rose to her neck where she fingered a small gold cross. How she had become so wanton in the presence of one man when never in her life had she behaved as such, she could not fathom. But she did not have long to think before Mr. Darcy nudged her shoulder so that she turned around to face him.
“Is it not customary for two people who are to be wed to engage in amorous affection?” Mr. Darcy gave her a rare smile so the dimple in his right cheek appeared. But his charms would not work.
Elizabeth scoffed at him. “I wonder, sir, in what reality do you reside? One moment we are cross with one another, and the next you declare you hold me in your deepest regard. Then we dance, and you are kissing me. And now, we are engaged and yet you have not asked me any question of such weight!” Elizabeth’s small hands flew up in a rage between the two of them. She forgot about her shawl which fell to the ground behind her.
To her satisfaction, Mr. Darcy winced and his face crumpled into one of shame. But still, Elizabeth looked at him expectantly and he suddenly realized what he must do. Lowering himself to one knee, Fitzwilliam gently grasped Elizabeth’s hand and pulled it close so that he might kiss her fingertips even though she wore gloves.
“Is love a tender thing? It is too rough, too rude, too boisterous, and it pricks –” he suddenly stopped as Elizabeth grimaced at him. “What is it? What have I done wrong now?”
“Do not speak to me with the words of Romeo,” Elizabeth swallowed as she prepared herself for her next admission. “Speak to me with the words of Fitzwilliam.”
Mr. Darcy stared intently up at his Elizabeth but yet he remained quiet.
She began to feel foolish, as though she had ruined the entire moment. Her second-guessing herself returned with the condemnation that she might be the only woman in all of England to interrupt a proposal of marriage and demand a better one. Just as her cheeks began to flush bright pink with her embarrassment, he spoke.
“I love you, most ardently. And it is my deepest desire to wake up every morning hearing your lovely voice whispering in my ear. Would you, Elizabeth Bennet, do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Chapter 12 - If Mr. Darcy Dared (cont'd)
Elizabeth’s breath hitched in her chest and she so very much wished to tell him yes, but instead the words tumbling out of her mouth were as unplanned as her entire trip to Oakham Mount.
“I am not certain.”
When Mr. Darcy attempted to drop her hand, Elizabeth reached forward and grasped his with both of hers, refusing to let go. Swiftly, she crouched low so that she might meet his eye.
“Do you delight in tormenting me?” he asked.
Elizabeth shook her head, and to his surprise pulled his hand to her lips for a chaste kiss across his knuckles. “Nay, but I have questions I need you to answer with only one word. Can you fulfill a lady’s request?”
Mr. Darcy stood from his kneel and assisted Elizabeth up before gallantly reaching behind her to collect her shawl. He shook it out and replaced it about her shoulders. Standing tall, he stepped back a pace to put a small distance between them. Then, he nodded.
“It would appear you leave me little choice.”
If the circumstances had been different, Elizabeth might have felt guilty. But his question was serious business, and she did not yet feel she had the measure of the man.
Still, she felt she owed him an explanation.
“I am acquainted with two Mr. Darcys. The first is a proud and selfish man who insults others at his convenience, who imposes his will without hesitation, and truly frightens me as a prospective husband.”
“I frighten you?” he asked, unconsciously taking another half step away.
“No,” she said reaching out her hand to encourage him to stay. “But you must understand, mariage is not the same for a lady as it is for a gentleman. A disastrous marriage for your sex is a bit of inconvenience.”
Mr. Darcy’s breath now caught in his chest as he had an idea where Miss Elizabeth might go in her next statement, but still, he had to hear it. “Go on.”
Elizabeth began to feel her nerve waning and so she began to pace. “And a poor match for a lady could be a lifetime of misery. So I ask you, are you engaged to your cousin, the daughter of Lady Catherine de Bourgh?”
A wide grin broke out on Fitzwilliam’s face. “I am not. Nor have I ever been,; whatever gave you that idea, I happily discharge you of it.” Overcome with jubilation that his Elizabeth had merely worried if he was promised to another, Fitzwilliam rushed forth to embrace her, but Elizabeth took a step back, giving him pause.
“You forget, sir, that I have two questions.”
Realizing his mistake, Darcy paused and gave the woman he loved a small bow.
“My apologies,” he said earnestly.
“Did you deny Mr. Wickham his inheritance?” Though Elizabeth had hoped for another similar answer, Fitzwilliam disappointed. His expression changed just on the mention of that man’s name. His jawline became rigid and set. Before he could even answer, she knew.
“You did,” she said, softly.
As Elizabeth began to turn away, crestfallen, for a fleeting moment Fitzwilliam worried that she held a regard for Mr. Wickham, that lecherous man. But in a comparison of himself to that piece of horse dung, Fitzwilliam held no self-doubt.
“It is for very good reason that I denied George the living on my estate. When we were in school, he was undisciplined and,” Fitzwilliam struggled for an appropriate word to use for Wickham’s libertine ways without further offending Miss Elizabeth sensibilities. Finally, he settled on one. “He was to free with women, you see,” Mr. Darcy explained.
“As you have been with me, you mean?”
Elizabeth’s startling accusation threw Fitzwilliam off. As he took stock in her logic, he shook his head.
“No, not like me. I have made mistakes, that is true, but I have only ever acted with the purest interest in sharing my life with you. That is, if you will accept my suit.”
Elizabeth hesitated. She briefly considered if Mr. Darcy only offered her a convenient explanation, but in her heart she knew his words to be true. Her father’s knowledge about Mr. Wickham’s spending habits and even his own loose tongue upon such a short acquaintance with her left her with no doubt in the grand mystery who was telling the truth and who falsehoods. It was Fitzwilliam who was true.
“Well then, I believe we should go speak to my father.” Elizabeth smiled. She felt like a little bird fluttering in one’s hands with how fast her heart was beating.
Fitzwilliam gulped. “You mean you say yes? You say yes?” He repeatedly asked until he reached her, the last step whereupon they both eagerly joined in an embrace.
Elizabeth nodded profusely with her head crushed against his chest. She felt Mr. Darcy’s arm squeeze around her causing a feeling she hoped she would never lose.
“I love you with so much of my heart that none is left to protest,” she said, her small hands gripping the lapels of his coat as tightly as she could.
“And now you are to recite Shakespeare to me?” Mr. Darcy laughed.
Elizabeth looked up at him to be greeted immediately with a quick kiss from the man.
“Do you object?” she asked as he picked her up and spun them around. Their eyes searched each other’s and found nothing but the glistening beauty of pure happiness.
Fitzwilliam’s hands left her waist as his arm snaked around her lower back and rose up to feel her heartbeat underneath the shawl. Elizabeth closed her eyes feeling his hands in such an intimate place.
“Never,” he said as he bent down to take the lips of his Elizabeth once more, this time exploring the depths of her mouth with his tongue and delighting in the little shock of her voice.
But she did not pull away, and met his exploration with her own, her weight falling more and more into his arms as Mr. Darcy left Elizabeth Bennet weak in the knees from the passion she would enjoy as his wife.
You’ve been reading . . . If Mr. Darcy Dared, a work in progress by Elizabeth Ann West.
Available for Preorder now!
If Mr. Darcy Dared
a Pride and Prejudice variation novel
Direct Preorder Release Date: March 23, 2018
Wide preorder: March 30, 2018
As Charles Bingley and Fitzwilliam Darcy prepare for the Netherfield Ball, a gentlemen’s challenge develops between them to secure their future happiness . . . with the two eldest Bennet sisters! But when things do not go as expected for Mr. Darcy, Hertfordshire society is in an uproar over the pursuit of one of their favorite daughters by such a wealthy gentleman.
Despite being claimed by Mr. Darcy as his future bride, Elizabeth Bennet has no plans to wed the proud and disdainful Mr. Darcy, no matter what her father says! At her sister’s urging, she agrees to give him a chance, if only for Jane’s sake. But there are others with an interest in breaking a match between Fitzwilliam Darcy and some country miss. . .
The stakes are high and romance strong as two of Jane Austen’s most beloved characters dare to declare their feelings, dare to defy family, and dare to trust each other!
If Mr. Darcy Dared is a steamy romance for fans of Elizabeth Ann West’s other works, especially those readers who love their drama cranked to a ten!
Available March 30th on these fine vendors (more added as links become available)
+ 23 additional Pride & Prejudice variations are available at these fine retailers . . .
A Jane-of-all-trades, mistress to none! Elizabeth Ann West is the author of 8 novels and 11 novellas, 18 of which are story variations of Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice.
I think the scene of having Elizabeth finding Darcy sleeping was cute. Maybe, Elizabeth could have lingered a bit before waking him, maybe sitting closer and observing his face. Darcy could have awakened slightly taking her in his arms and speaking to her as he did in his dreams, making Elizabeth see another side of him. I enjoyed the short bit about wickham. It seems too many times the same story repeats and I usually skip those paragraphs unless wickham is out of character and the storyline changes.
I’ve enjoyed this chapter and I have to agree with Pozemon, maybe Elizabeth thoughts about what her father had said meanwhile discovering a new side of Darcy.
Great work 😀
The whole story is wonderful. Mr. Darcy is just what a gentleman should be. (Lol). It seems we are heading for a HEA very soon. I’m thinking there must be some angst coming up. Lizzie usually doesn’t like Darcy this much this soon. I can’t wait although I will. Family stuff keeps me from pre ordering right now.
Loving this story!
I’m excited for each new post.
I enjoyed it very much and found it to be very romantic.
Thank you very much!
An amorous Darcy proudly making a proper proposal in Elizabeth’s favourite place love it
not ‘to free with women” should be ‘too free with women”
Fantastic story
Oh my how wonderful!!!
To awake a sleeping Darcy. Two sides to a story, two sides of a person, and two questions asked.