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to buy an estate and settle
permanently near here.”
    “How marvelous! What a pleasure it will be to
have them so close at hand.”
    Georgiana had known Mr. Bingley for years,
but Jane she had met only twice – at the wedding and again when the
Bingleys visited Pemberley the following spring. Yet Elizabeth felt
certain that the two only wanted a little more familiarity to grow
as close as sisters. In both she saw a similar sweetness of temper,
the same gentle, affectionate hearts.
    Quiet conversation and a hearty supper
occupied the three Darcys for the remainder of the evening. Then,
weary from their journey, the travelers retired early.
    Next morning, the couple lingered lazily in
bed, reluctant to forfeit its lavish comfort for the
responsibilities that awaited them. Darcy absently twisted the
loose waves of his wife’s chestnut hair round his fingers while
she, nestled up against him, pondered the dancing light and shadow
patterns cast by the lace curtains upon the wall.
    At length, Elizabeth commented with a yawn,
“I suppose we really should rise and begin the day.”
    “Yes, you are quite right; we should indeed,”
agreed Darcy without conviction.
    Neither of them made any attempt to stir from
their cozy positions.
    “What are your plans?” Elizabeth asked some
minutes later.
    “I must confer with Mr. Adams,” he answered,
referring to his trusted land steward. “According to his
information, there are a number of matters that require my early
attention – a petition from one of the cottagers, another report of
poaching, and so forth.”
    “I see.”
    “Later, I thought we might take a ride
together if the rain holds off. What do you say?”
    “I think it is an excellent idea, sir. I
would be even more enthusiastic were it not for the fact that I
fear it will require us to leave this snug spot and this pleasant
room.”
    By and by, the two did manage to quit their
bedchamber and, after breakfast, parted to attend to their separate
duties. Elizabeth first addressed the daunting collection of
correspondence that had accumulated in her absence. Then she
consulted with Mrs. Reynolds about household affairs, though Mrs.
Reynolds, after her long tenure at Pemberley, needed very little
direction from anybody. On the contrary, it had been Elizabeth who
required instruction when she arrived as the naive new mistress of
Pemberley the previous November. For Mrs. Reynolds’ kind counsel
and sage advice during those early months, she would be forever
grateful. Now the two women worked as a team to manage the
house.
    With his wife thus occupied, Darcy closed
himself up in the library for a protracted discussion with Mr.
Adams, reviewing various aspects of the estate’s business
enterprises and the concerns of his numerous tenant farmers.
Although Darcy left much of the day-to-day oversight in the capable
hands of his steward, he insisted on being kept abreast of all
matters of consequence, and reserved for himself the task of every
weighty decision.
    When Elizabeth considered how many people
depended on her husband for their livelihood and security, it
sometimes alarmed her. Along with the power he possessed – as
husband, brother, landlord, and master to a host of servants and
workers – came heavy responsibility. A less conscientious man might
not have felt the burden of this trust. But she knew Darcy was
acutely aware of his obligation to protect the welfare of all those
under his guardianship, and mindful that his choices in the
management of Pemberley could affect dozens of others for good or
for ill. Still, he never complained. He was much more likely to
brood in silence if trouble threatened.
    When her husband at last emerged from the
library, Elizabeth scrutinized his countenance for the telltale
signs of strain she had come to recognize. There they were: the
tightened lips, the contracted brow, the unblinking gaze.
    “Difficulties?” she asked gently.
    “Nothing out of the common way.”
    “Dinner was