Revelations an adaption of Pride and Prejudice

Chapter 11

After a very short, but very enjoyable drive in the relatively unadorned but beautifully crafted carriage that Elizabeth chose, Darcy hands his bride out of the carriage, and leads her to his house, where the door is not held open by a butler, but opened with a key, by himself. All the staff is dismissed for the night, Georgiana has agreed to stay in Bingley's house this once, they have the house all to themselves, they are finally alone.

Darcy carries a little bag with some essentials that Jane has packed for her sister, and as the carriage is taken to the stables by the driver, Darcy lets them in, closes and locks the door behind them and leads Elizabeth to his own bedroom, a large, comfortable room on the first floor.

He helps her into a comfortable chair next, and kneels before her. She still looks like some princess, in that absurdly rich dress, diamonds all over her hair. 'How are you, love?' he asks softly, 'you look tired.'

And she does, sitting there she seems ready to go to sleep, so vulnerable, he has never seen her this way, his beloved. Still feeling his usual reticence to touch her, it will probably take weeks to fade, he takes her hands and kisses both of them.

She smiles and replies: 'I am very tired right now, but don't worry, if you help me out of this dress and into something more comfortable, and I have the chance to freshen up a little, I will be perfectly fine.'

And with no little trepidation, Darcy helps his beloved to remove her fashionable veiled hat, then all the flowers and diamonds and finally also the bows and pins from her hair, making an invaluable pile on the little table. Then he unhooks the back of the dress, he knows Elizabeth is not used to having a maid and usually wears dresses she can put on herself, this must have felt like being imprisoned all day. And she does heave a sigh of relief when the back is released, saying: 'Do you mind if I undress right here and now? I suppose Jane or someone gave you one of my own dresses to wear tomorrow?'

Does he mind! He cannot think of anything he'd rather do right now than undress her, but he says coolly: 'She did even better, she packed a dressing gown for you. Do you want to wear that, as conciliation for having to walk around in that gilded prison all day?'

'I do want to wear it, Fitzwilliam,' she says, so sweetly, who would have known she is so intensely sweet, 'but beloved, not as conciliation for being uncomfortable today. Your gorgeous suit must have been as uncomfortable, and you're not complaining. I have not had the chance yet to tell you how incredibly, heartbreakingly beautiful you look in it. But it cannot be other than very uncomfortable.'

She is right, it is, the stiff collar chafes the sensitive skin of his throat as it has all day, and his arms cannot move freely at any time. Even his chest feels constricted, fortunately he has his own dressing gown within easy reach.

The top of her dress already unfastened, it takes him a while to find the fastenings on the skirt of the dress, but he manages, and she allows him to lift the whole thing over her head, something she would not have been able to do herself, there is so much fabric, so many pleats and folds of it. As he puts the dress away neatly, she'll be surprised how well he can do that despite employing a valet, she slips the dressing gown over her underwear, and he gets just a single tantalizing glimpse of her bare skin. But by now he's so uncomfortable in his own tight suit he can only think of getting out of his coat and shirt quickly.

He picks up his own dressing gown, and brings it towards her, then stands as patiently as a horse waiting to have its harness removed. As soon as her small hands touch his back, stroking him through his coat, his discomfort instantly vanishes, to be replaced by growing ardour and expectancy of things to come. He quickly sits down for her to help him remove his boots.

To get out of those knee-high boots, Darcy is glad of her help, though he feels a bit ridiculous with a delicate lady in a dressing-gown pulling until they give way. Then he feels ridiculous without them, until he spies Elizabeth looking at him with desire. She wants him as much as he wants her.