Eternal Flame ~ A Pemberley Fairy Tale

Chapter Fifteen

In the moments following his proposal, a small part of Liz’s rational mind screamed out that she couldn’t marry William when she’d known him for less than a week. The rest of her craved him: his smell, his kiss, his touch. She tried to imagine the rest of her life without him but the thought repelled her. Her eyes met his, dark and troubled. Despite everything they’d been through, he wasn’t taking her answer for granted. The least she could do was put him out of his misery. “Yes, of course I will.” As soon as the words were spoken she felt his whole body relax.

He grinned. “Next week?”

As the heavy weight of reality settled around her like a thick winter coat, Liz put a hand on his chest and eased him back, so she could swing her legs around to sit up. Despite the smile, she knew his suggestion was quite serious. “As much as I’d love to, you know we can’t get married just like that. Weddings take ages to plan. Why are you in such a hurry?”

William sat next to her, sliding his arm along the back of the sofa before resting it on her shoulder. “Well, part of it comes back to the reason the knife wound healed. Your presence should have ended the curse but it didn’t, so your homecoming alone isn’t enough. That damned gypsy didn’t specify her terms, and at the time I wasn’t in the mood for a lecture, but I’m assuming I need to get my life back to how it was in 1817, and back then I was a married man.”

“That sort of makes sense. You said part? What’s the other reason?”

He looked into her eyes as his right hand slid along her thigh. “Because I need you as my wife, in every sense of the word.”

Liz felt the heat in her face as she recognised his implication. She wondered when he’d last had any sort of female companionship. “Have you been on your own for long?”

“Long enough.”

“We don’t have to wait for the wedding if you want to—”

He tightened the grip on her shoulder. “Absolutely not. My father taught me to respect women and I will not casually ruin your reputation for my personal gratification.”

“We’re not in the Victorian age, William. Everyone else does it.”

“I am not everyone, and neither are you. Did you not say you have had no other relationships?”

Liz smiled as she realised where his thoughts were leading. “You mean did I save myself for you? Not intentionally, but it’s true that I’ve never been in a physical relationship with anyone. Now we’ve found each other surely it won’t matter if we aren’t married.”

“Impossible. The idea of stealing your…your innocence, outside the bonds of marriage, is abhorrent to me.”

“You’re serious.”

“I’m very serious. I love you, more than I thought I ever could. Even though you share Elizabeth’s soul, I wasn’t convinced that alone would be enough. For many years I waited, hoping to find a carbon copy, some sort of twin who would look and act just like she did. I never dreamed I could feel anything like the passion I felt for Elizabeth with someone whose features are so different. But I’ve come to realise that our connection was never purely physical. There has always been a deeper, more spiritual link that has nothing to do with a person’s outer shell. I love all of you, I would lay my life down for you, and because of this I have to do things right. Can you understand?”

Liz looked into his eyes. William Bingley had always seemed the epitome of a modern man, but time had done nothing to diminish Fitzwilliam Darcy’s old fashioned upbringing. The fact he wanted to do things the traditional way appealed to her. “Yes, and I love you all the more for it. But even so, we can’t get married next week. Don’t you have to book a church or something?”