The Adventures of Lizzy Bennet - Book 3: A Pride and Prejudice Variation Read online

  CONTENTS

  The Adventures of Lizzy Bennet

  Year 1809 Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Year 1810 Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20/Epilogue

  The Adventures of Lizzy Bennet Book 3

  By Kate Speck

  “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”

  ~ Mahatma Gandhi

  Year 1809

  Chapter 1

  New Year’s Day, 1809

  “Lizzy?!” Fitzwilliam Darcy whispered to himself. “Lizzy Bennet?”

  He had been incredibly relieved to return home to Netherfield, eager to see his family and to share of his adventures from the past two and a half years after his long journey through England, Ireland, and Scotland. His original schedule had been to sail for Sweden a few months ago, but with John Knightley’s courtship of a neighbour’s daughter and due to his John’s father’s declining health, they had agreed to await further word then cancelled the remainder of their travels and returned to England earlier, and William had kept his homecoming a secret. Travelling from Highbury to Pemberley to fetch his horse and other belongings, then continuing south to Hertfordshire to arrive on New Year’s Day, William had wished to surprise his family with his unannounced arrival. After speaking with Mrs. Nicholls, the housekeeper at Netherfield, who was stunned to see the young master return to Hertfordshire, he headed to the back gardens, where he was told everyone was gathered this late morning.

  William had watched the fencing match from a distance and laughed to himself that it must be Lizzy and Richard in a duel. He noted how much taller Lizzy had grown as she stood in front of his cousin and was parrying swiftly to block the strikes. He watched her movements and was proud to see her win, and began to walk closer to surprise them when he saw Richard embracing Lizzy.

  For reasons unbeknown to himself, William felt a stir of jealousy to find Lizzy in an affectionate embrace with his cousin, the dashing Colonel of the army, and had stood frozen until Richard saw him and his parents and sister came rushing towards him.

  He shook off his thoughts and spoke merrily to his family then turned to greet his cousin and his friends.

  “Richard! It is wonderful to see you so well. I was concerned for you but you appear to have completely recovered from your injuries, and even though I saw you lose soundly to a young lady, I will not speak of it to anyone you know,” William laughed, “as long as you promise to bribe me with a fine bottle of brandy!”

  William turned and avoided Lizzy for a moment, bowing to the other girls. “Miss Bennet, Miss Mary, Miss Lucas, how do you do? It is a pleasure to see you. Happy New Year!” He slowly turned to Lizzy and held his breath for a moment. “Lizzy, you are so much grown. I hardly recognised you.”

  Lizzy beamed brightly and answered, “Welcome back to England, Will.”

  Mr. Darcy gathered and led everyone back indoors. “Let us return for luncheon. Lizzy won a great battle today and we must celebrate.” He gathered the rest of the girls and nodded to Richard to lead the way. He and his wife had wished to give their son a moment to speak with Lizzy.

  “You look very well, Will.” Lizzy began as she reached for his arm and held it. “You have certainly grown taller and it is good to see that you have kept yourself healthy. I hope you are not planning to travel again for quite some time now.”

  “No, I shall remain quite affixed at home for several months.” William answered. “You... you have... I know you wrote that you decided to come out into society but I did not expect you to be...” he gulped nervously, “...so tall. You look like a lady now, Lizzy. And you speak and act like one now. Well, except for the fencing part.” He began to relax and chuckled. “I was glad to see you beat Richard. It was my special attack that we practiced, remember?”

  Lizzy smiled as she looked up at him, “Yes, I remember it well and I have been practicing. There are few who will practice with me, other than a little with my papa and Uncle Edward, so I have had to use our tree to battle my imaginary enemies and remember the steps. Richard lost our duel so he has to teach me how to fire a pistol and my life’s goal of learning how to be a great warrior will be complete.”

  “I will teach you!” William blurted out. “I mean to say,” he softened his voice, “Richard might be able to teach you but he will not be here for much longer, will he? He is to return to his men soon, is he not?”

  “He has one more week of holiday, I believe. He returned from Matlock after visiting his brother and has been deliriously happy. He said he is planning on finishing out one more year before retiring. I think he is desiring to settle down and finally take his inheritance to live at Rosings Park. He deserves every happiness and I wish him the best, Will. After his services to King and Country, any woman would be privileged to marry such a man.”

  Lizzy was curious when William did not respond for several minutes. They had reached the house by then and entered the dining room with everyone waiting for them. She could not understand why William was glaring at his cousin and speaking very little, but with Georgiana asking Jane questions about the dinner party last night and Mr. Darcy and Lady Anne asking their son about his trip, she turned her attentions to the conversations around her and spoke merrily as they partook their meal.

  ~*~

  “What is on your mind, son?” Mr. Darcy asked gently the next day. His son appeared hale but was often seen scowling when he was in deep thought since his arrival. “Is something bothering you, Fitzwilliam? Perhaps you are tired and need to rest? Your journey was long and you have not slept as much as you need yet. You must have been quite shocked to see the girls so grown yesterday.”

  William cleared his throat and spoke, “I am well, father. I was quite surprised to see how much... everyone has changed. Georgiana looks more like mama and Miss Jane is out and will be eighteen next month and... and Lizzy... she is completely different than when I left. She... I cannot wrap my head around the fact that she looks... so... so...”

  “She is all grown up, is she not? She will be sixteen in March and is more a woman than a girl now and you find it difficult to see her as an adult?” Mr. Darcy smiled. “Did you think she would stay small forever?”

  “I... I never thought about it, actually. I always saw her like a sister but she has altered so much.” William sighed, “I believed she was going to be the small and affectionate child that she had always been forever, I suppose, but she is not. She looks different and speaks different, and I am afraid I no longer recognise her.”

  Mr. Darcy sat next to his son, “She is becoming a woman and your mother has been working on her since summer to see if Lizzy might be willing to change her mind about marriage. Although she is determined to become a spinster, your mama has been teaching her that she can be both a bluestocking and a lady at the same time and Lizzy has excelled in her studies, as she does in everything if she puts her mind to it. She is still the young girl you know but you must make the effort to change your perspective, Fitzwilliam.” He wrapped his arm around his son’s shoulder, “Time moves on and I only feel older when I see the children grow bigger. If it all goes according to your mother’
s plans, Lizzy will marry a worthy man and she will have a family of her own to love. You have grown up much and you must give Lizzy a chance to grow in her own way.”

  William sat back and closed his eyes. “Perhaps I am only exhausted and am thinking too much on it, father. I could use a ride and will take Snowflake out for an hour. I missed the country air here.”

  Mr. Darcy nodded and William left for the stables.

  ~*~

  While heading toward the stables to ride his stallion, William heard a shot ringing from the large field on the other side of the mansion. He walked over to see Richard and Lizzy practicing with a flintlock pistol, with Richard talking and pointing his hand to a target in the far distance. He was about to turn back to the stables when he heard Lizzy’s boisterous laughter and something burned within his chest. He marched to where they were standing and listened to them for a moment before announcing his presence.

  “I am terrible at this, Richard! I did not realise how heavy a pistol is and it is quite difficult to keep my arm straight. Not only must I aim and keep my arm straight, but not flinch when I fire the shot and try to hit my target!” Lizzy laughed, “This was harder than I thought and I admire your great abilities in your accuracy!”

  Richard smiled, “Perhaps if I help you hold it up while you fire, you might be abl...”

  “That will do, Richard.” William sternly commanded. “Father wants you. I will continue with Lizzy.”

  Richard replied, “But of course! I will see what my uncle wants. We will practice more later, Lizzy. Do not forget to keep your arm straight and firm. William will show you but you know I am the superior teacher!”

  Lizzy smiled as she continued her inspection of the pistol in her hand. “Thank you, Richard. I am glad you kept your part of the deal, even if you lost soundly to a girl!”

  Richard chuckled as he walked towards the house.

  “Help me, Will. I thought it would be an easy task to point and shoot but it is quite difficult. This is so heavy and my hand is too small.” Lizzy commented without seeing her friend’s serious face. “Well?” She finally looked up when he did not respond. “Will you hold up my arm so I can attempt to aim?”

  William took a deep breath as he stood behind her. He slowly drew his body closer to hers, her back completely flushed against his front, and he held up her right arm with his right hand. He leaned forward and placed the right side of his chin against her head, “Take a deep breath and calm your heart, Lizzy.” She did as told. “Close one eye and aim for the target. When you are ready, let me know and take two deep breaths, hold it, and fire. I will hold your arm but be prepared for the recoil. If you let go of the pistol, it is dangerous and you can get hurt.”

  She took several deep breaths and William did the same. He inhaled the scent of lavender from her hair and his heart raced rapidly. He looked down to see her chest move up and down and knew his body had never reacted so to anyone else before. He kissed her temple as he raised his left arm to wrap around her waist and held her abdomen, and she placed her palm over his hand.

  “I am ready, Will.” Lizzy took two deep breaths then pulled the trigger.

  After the shot was fired, she hopped away from his arms and cheered, “Look at that, Will! It was nearly perfect! That was so exhilarating; it was amazing!” She turned around and jumped up and down in excitement. “Thank you! You are such a good teacher. Richard kept talking on and on and his advices were not helpful. I wish to try again!” She turned back and began to reload the weapon.

  William calmed his galloping heart and rubbed his face. “Lizzy, you had better try without my help. I think you are ready.”

  “No, Will! I need you one more time, please!” Lizzy begged. “My arm is tired and I will not be able to keep it straight.”

  William softly smiled, “If only you knew what you are asking, Lizzy. All right, one more time. Stand like before. Allow me to check the pistol before you fire.” He looked at the flintlock and made sure it was clean. He handed it back to her and resumed the position again.

  Lizzy stood and aimed. “Will! Wrap your arm around me again. Hurry! I am ready to pull the trigger.”

  “Lizzy...” he whispered from behind her.

  “Now! This is so exciting!” Lizzy pulled him closer to her.

  William wrapped his arm around her waist again and this time held his breath. She was intoxicating and he felt overwhelmed to have her in his embrace.

  Lizzy fired and she squealed in joy, “That was better than the first!” She turned around and hugged him, wrapping her free arm around his neck and kissing his cheek. “Thank you! Will you teach me again tomorrow? My arm is tired but that was so fun!”

  William encircled his arms around her waist and held her. “Yes, Lizzy. I will teach you again tomorrow. I do not believe I can deny you much. I am going to go for a ride on Snowflake for a while. I will see you later.” He let go and stepped back to distance himself from her.

  “Oh, I have not ridden with you for so long! Can I come?” Lizzy asked innocently. “I can still ride Ghost but papa said I am ready for a larger mare or even a stallion. I have done well on Lily but she is such a slow horse and I missed riding fast with you on Snowflake.”

  William cradled her cheek and stroked her soft skin with his thumb. “Not this time, Lizzy. I need some time alone.” He kissed her forehead and resignedly walked away with a gloomy look on his face.

  Lizzy could not understand why her friend appeared despondent but thought it might be due to fatigue from his travels. She gathered the items from the lesson and walked back to the house to return them to Richard. It had been a great adventure to learn to shoot a pistol today and she was eager to try again the next day.

  Chapter 2

  “What is the matter with you, William?” Richard asked, as he puffed on his cigar after dinner, after everyone else had retired. “You have been restless and irritable all week long and I hate to see you mope about in this stupid manner. I leave the day after tomorrow and I hope I can help you with whatever you are sulking about, cousin. Did you leave a beautiful woman in Scotland? Are you mourning the loss of some temptress who is not fit to be your wife? Crossed in an unrequited love?”

  William snapped at his cousin who was his least favourite right now, “Shut it, Richard! You know nothing about love!” He looked up and saw the crushed expression of his older cousin, remembering Mrs. Jenkinson and Richard’s care for Anne de Bourgh’s companion. He sat down and sipped his drink, “I am sorry, Richard. I should not have said that. I forgot about your situation with Mrs. Jenkinson.”

  Richard took a deep breath, “Tell me what is wrong. It has to do with a girl, does it not? Is it Lizzy? Do you find her infinitely attractive and wish to marry her but she is only fifteen?” He began to laugh as he watched William’s astonished face. “I had wondered why you shooed me off from Lizzy’s shooting lesson last week and Uncle George had no idea why you said he had called for me. I have seen your face whenever she makes her daily calls, William. You are in love with her and you have no idea what to do.”

  William scratched his head, “You are exactly right, of course. My heart dropped to my stomach the first moment I saw her last week and I cannot get her out of my head. This is Lizzy we are speaking of! The hoyden who climbs trees and chastises me to chew my food more. The little girl who dreams of being a pirate and wants to sail the seas; how can she be the one that I fall completely head over heels in love? I have known her for nearly six years and I wrote to her daily during my travels, and she knows me better than anyone else and thinks of me like a brother. I thought of her like a sister and she has been my dearest friend for years, but I see her now and everything is different. My heart beats wildly, I cannot breathe, and my body... my body reacts like no decent gentleman’s should. I have resigned to staring out the window to try to calm myself whenever she is near me... She is gorgeous and if it were any other lady, I might have proposed the same day. I do not know what to do.”

  “Ah,
” Richard nodded in understanding. “I wondered why you kept insisting that I join your shooting lessons after that first day, and you are never alone with her. Lizzy mentioned that she has not seen you at her tree since your return and she seemed to be sad about it. I think she misses your company.”

  “I have been going to our tree every morning. I cannot stay away from it since it is the most peaceful place in the world for me. I think about her when I sit there and how much has changed since the first time I caught her in my arms all those years ago, Richard. She was such a beautiful little child then.” He laughed, “I liked her immediately and could not wait to hear what else would come out of her mouth. I found her fascinating then.”

  Richard smirked, “And you find her fascinating still. Just in a more... gentlemanly fashion.”

  “It is beyond fascination. I find her most tempting and I need some distance from her to think straight. She is not what I had envisioned as a wife and she has no dowry and the opposite of what I had been looking for, but she is... I desire her more than anything I wanted in my life.” He sighed, “I am going to ask father if I may go to London with you in two days. I can have Darcy House opened up and you can stay with me instead of at the barracks with the lowly officers.” William smiled as he looked at his cousin. “I know how much you detest staying there and I would not mind having you for company. Now that you are a high-ranking officer, you have much more free time and can go to the club with me. I need to be away from her for a while until I can sort this out, or at least until she grows up a little more. I am afraid that I will disgrace myself to be in her vicinity next two months and she is still fifteen.”

  Richard asked, “What are your intentions? Any woman would be fortunate to marry you, William.”

  “I never felt like this before, Richard, and cannot imagine life without her. I have always loved her but I want her as my wife now. No one else compares and I envisage my future with her by my side, having a marriage like my parents’ and her becoming my perfect companion. If I wait until she is sixteen and propose, I think I can wait for a one-year engagement and marry her as soon as she is seventeen. That is a decent age for a girl to be wed, do you not think?” William asked his cousin, “Mama was seventeen when she married, even if she was closer to eighteen at the time.”