A caravan of carriages rolled into the drive of Longbourn in the last week of June 1812. Kitty Bennet had been the first to raise the alarm of the unexpected visitors, and the entire household soon rushed outside to greet the visitors.

The first carriage opened, and Mr. Denny jumped down, then assisted his wife.

"Mama! Mama! Look! I am married!" Lydia shouted as she was soon accosted by her mother and sister, Kitty, showing off the ring on her finger.

The second carriage, holding Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth, and Miss Darcy and her companion, was relieved of its passengers and Jane hurried to embrace her sister.

The two sisters shouted and laughed, spinning around and agreeing that the month of separation had been entirely too long.

Elizabeth had written to Jane the events of the worst week in Brighton, and the details of Mrs. Fitzherbert's delightful ball on the last night they remained in the seaside town. But in a bit of mischief, and as an act of small revenge on her parents, she had sworn her sister to secrecy in the whole matter. Typical of Lydia, she did not write to their parents, either, and waited until they arrived at Longbourn to ambush them with her news.

"Jane, look, there is someone else who came with us," Elizabeth said, pointing to the third carriage. Colonel Fitzwilliam aided Miss Caroline Bingley out of the carriage, and another poked his head out and waved.

Jane covered her mouth in excitement and beamed as Mr. Bingley approached them.

"Miss Bennet," he said, greeting Jane first.

Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth casually walked away to leave the two of them alone, as invitations to enter the house were issued.

Longbourn soon became a crush with the unexpected arrival of ten visitors, and everyone sat with Mrs. Bennet in the parlor, except for Elizabeth, Mr. Darcy, and Colonel Fitzwilliam. Those three received an exclusive invitation to Mr. Bennet's library.

After offering a glass of brandy to all, Mr. Bennet took a seat in his favorite armchair by the fire. Elizabeth sat in the window seat, to leave the remaining two chairs available for the men. But both of them elected to stand.

"Well, Lizzy, you must congratulate me. We shall have everlasting peace now that Lydia is Mrs. Denny. Though I am surprised it wasn't that Wickham fellow that won in the end," he said, scratching his head.

In horror, Elizabeth watched as her father acted as though there was nothing amiss in having a daughter of sixteen married in a faraway county without the majority of her family present.

"I beg your pardon, sir, Colonel Fitzwilliam," Mr. Darcy's cousin said, introducing himself. Both Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth sat incapable of speaking. "George Wickham killed a man and stole from the Prince Regent. He was executed for his crimes," he summarized, and the only relief Elizabeth felt was witnessing her father's discomfort firsthand.

"I cannot believe, no, no, that young man was nothing more than a flatterer," he said, agitated. He rose from his chair and began to look at his desk through his correspondence. Picking up an unopened letter from Colonel Forster, Elizabeth, and Mr. Darcy exchanged glances at the negligence he demonstrated. "Here, let's see what Colonel Forster . . . " Mr. Bennet's voice faltered as he read the lines penned to him from the militia leader in Brighton.

Stunned, Mr. Bennet fell into his chair and he turned to his daughter, Lizzy.

"My god, Child. And you tried to warn me," he said, tears welling up in his eyes.

Mr. Darcy and his cousin offered to excuse themselves, but Elizabeth refused their courtesy. She particularly wanted Mr. Darcy present as she spoke to her father.

Calmly, she told her father that he had let her down and that she did not write to him out of fear that he would not believe her. It was evident now that her assumption had been correct.

"Mr. Darcy has asked for my hand in marriage, and I have heartily consented, and I would like your blessing," she said.

Mr. Bennet scowled at his daughter's criticism, but being outnumbered, he quickly returned to his affable ways. He raised his glass to Mr. Darcy. "You have my blessing, my consent, and my gratitude, sir. I shall announce your engagement tonight!"

Mr. Darcy thanked him but explained that he and Miss Elizabeth had resolved to grant Mr. Bingley one night to sort his position with Miss Bennet.

"So I am to lose three daughters," Mr. Bennet said, with a sigh. Lifting his brandy to his lips, he took a healthy sip. "Your mother will be unbearable," he commented.

Realizing she was uncomfortable with her father's inability to treat anything with seriousness, Elizabeth stood up and offered him a kiss upon the cheek.

"You will visit us at Pemberley, won't you Papa? Mr. Darcy has told me tales of his extensive library," she said, with a wink.

"Over ten thousand volumes, sir," Mr. Darcy said, in a humble tone.

Patting his daughter's shoulder, Mr. Bennet promised Elizabeth he would indeed, and then threatened that they might regret extending the invitation when he refused to leave!

Leaving the man to accept the news of losing his favorite daughter, Mr. Darcy suggested to Elizabeth that they take a walk in the garden. She accepted his plan as Elizabeth and the Dennys would remain at Longbourn while the rest continued on to settle at Netherfield Park. Mrs. Bennet invited them all for dinner that evening.

Walking together through the rose garden, they both chuckled to see Mr. Bingley wasting no time talking with Jane. Even though they were on the far side of the garden, like the spectators at their own engagement, they could easily spy a proposal being made.

"What do you think, a double wedding in July?" Mr. Darcy asked his betrothed, and Elizabeth smiled.

"A very economical proposal, sir," she countered.

"I care nothing for the expense, I simply do not wish to wait a day more than I must before calling you my wife," he explained, and Elizabeth sighed, resting her head against his shoulder as they walked.

In the end, the solution proved far too sensible for them to turn down. A double-wedding, that would allow them to include the Gardiners, suited everyone's desires. After the wedding, the Darcys could travel alongside the Gardiners and Mary and Kitty north to Pemberley.

Elizabeth lamented to Mr. Darcy that they would not reside as close as they had enjoyed in Brighton.

"I do enjoy morning strolls up Oakham Mount," she said to him, sharing her habit of partaking in the vistas of the hill that rested between Longbourn and Netherfield Park.

"I will happily follow you to any part of the kingdom that pleases you. For the love of a Bennet," he said, making her laugh.

A/N Thank you so much for reading this story. And a big thank you to everyone who has purchased a copy or one of my other books, your support allows me to keep posting chapters free for everyone to read. On that note, the 5 books of my Moralities of Marriage series are available to read for FREE on my site and I am starting to post chapters of Book 6 here on Fanfiction soon. I don't have plans to post the old books back up here, as I had to take them down when I went into Kindle Unlimited for the pandemic. But they are free to read on my site.

After Moralities of Marriage Book 6 is finished this month, I will be selecting what I write next, and I always let my Facebook group The Janeside help me pick. So if you're on Facebook, go ahead and join up there and you will get a say in what my last book of the year I write will be :)

Thank you for reading and loving Jane Austen as much as I do. XOXO - Elizabeth Ann West