Copyright

© Bed of Roses / Renée Olsthoorn 2020

Author: Renée Olsthoorn

Title: Filling the gaps: short stories based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice

Lay-out: Renée Olsthoorn / iBooks Author

Cover: Renée Olsthoorn

Cover illustration: The first quadrille at Almack’s / Courtesy British Library

Photo author: Sven Verbruci

Distribution: Pumbo

Epub

ISBN 97890 82754 056

NUR 343

All rights reserved.

Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part or in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the author Renée Olsthoorn.

This is a work of (fan)fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or borrowed from Miss Jane Austen’s famous work Pride and Prejudice. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.

The Hague, The Netherlands, March 2020

Contents

Preface

When so much beauty is before you

Rudeness repined

On welcome intelligence and conflicting emotions

George Wickham’s Sweet Revenge

You do not know what I suffer

Charles Bingley’s Dashed expectations

Nocturnal Torments

Elizabeth faces the truth

Let’s take a stroll, Darcy!

Mr. Darcy’s Resolve

A waiting woman’s woes

No cause to repine

My good qualities under your protection

Horizon Of Hope Bonus story

About the author

Also by Renée Olsthoorn

Preface

Dear reader,

If it weren’t for my dear American friends Grace, Roya and Lisa, Canadian bestie Tracey and Australian matey Clare, who patiently corrected my far from perfect English, these stories would never have seen the light of day.

We got acquainted at a fanfiction site called Firthness, thanks to our mutual love for Jane Austen’s work and Colin Firth’s interpretation of Mr. Darcy, the hero in her novel Pride and Prejudice. Later I created my own site Mrs. Darcy’s Story Site, a platform for my own fanfiction stories and for those of my friends.

We were all a bit crazy - temporarily though - and met practically every day to chat, to exchange views on all kinds of subjects and read each other’s fanfiction based on the books of our favourite author and comment on it. I like to stress that neither my friends nor myself compared our writing skills in any way with that of our beloved author. Obviously not! However, for many of us writing fanfiction was a stepping stone to continue writing and even publish the fruits of our pen in print.

As time went by we went our separate ways, as far as the Jane Austen obsession is concerned, that is: we discovered new hobbies or couldn’t go on with it due to family expansion or work.

Firthness went off line, but we keep in touch through Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter and meet in Real Life from time to time. In short, we’re friends forever, albeit most of the time from a distance.

I wish you a lot of fun with my take on Pride and Prejudice fanfiction; essentially the result of a Firthness challenge (2007) to fill the gaps in the book.

By way of reference each chapter is preceded by a quote from the original book, and ends with the location where the action takes place. Various famous quotes from the book are used in a different context.

I’ve written these fanfiction stories as a Pride and Prejudice fan for all those Pride and Prejudice fans who just can’t get enough of Jane Austen’s great novel.

Renée Olsthoorn

When so much beauty is before you

1

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

Whilst Sir William Lucas, the host of the party, put himself out to impose Elizabeth upon Mr. Darcy, rambling on as he did so about her beauty and desirability as a dance partner, a seemingly bored Mr. Darcy observed the tableau in front of him in complete silence. He listened with only one ear, and his countenance expressed perfect indifference.

However, this was but appearance. Mr. Darcy was not bored, not in the very least! One aspect of Miss Elizabeth Bennet’s pleasing figure had drawn his full attention: the alluring sight of her low neckline. Her décolletage was a little too daring to be called proper in polite society, he imagined, but utterly tolerable to observe indeed.

Mr. Darcy assumed that this was quite acceptable in the less polished society to which Meryton belonged. After all, in this small country town in Hertfordshire it was obvious that savagery had not yet fully developed into civilization.

Admittedly, he would not want his sister Georgiana to make such an exhibition of that particular aspect of her womanly form.

But, though a man of principle, he was quite comfortable with the realization that as far as Miss Elizabeth’s manner of dress was concerned, he most certainly did not loathe that on which his eyes did feast.

Her half exposed, milky white bosom made his heart pound faster whilst a pleasant warmth rose from the lower parts of his body to end just beneath the lower jaw, resting on his impeccably white neck cloth. And thus, thanks to this skilfully tied cravat, his excitement was, to his great relief, not visible to Miss Elizabeth’s fine eyes.

From her neckline his eyes wandered towards her mouth and he focused on the movements of her lips from which the following words escaped: ‘Indeed, Sir, I have not the least intention to dancing. - I entreat you not to suppose that I moved this way in order to beg for a partner.’

Awakened from this reverie as he became aware of Miss Bennet’s pert voice, he thought this is all very vexing. Now I am obliged to ask her to dance! Such a compliment I would prefer not to pay to any place if I can help it, as I told Sir Lucas moments ago.

But it would be exceedingly impolite if I did not. Even within the confinement of this society, I cannot be so offensive as to slight her, nor can I offend her by ignoring Sir Lucas’s observation on the impossibility of objecting to a partner such as her.

It is rather confusing though that she does not wish to dance, since she seemed to take so much pleasure in it at that appalling assembly. Well, after all, she is tolerable, perhaps even a little more than that and, although I am not really tempted, I can imagine worse things happening to me. At least it will save me from having to converse with Caroline Bingley for at least half an hour.

‘Miss Bennet, I would be honoured if you accept to dance with me,’ he finally spoke with grave propriety when Sir Lucas had exhausted his profuse compliments to her.

‘I thank you, no, Mr. Darcy I am not inclined to dance. I beg you excuse me,’ replied she and she turned away from the gentlemen to seek the company of the officers in a different corner of the room.

And whilst he thanked his good fortune that he was spared the humiliation of dancing amongst low rank officers and Miss Elizabeth’s vulgar younger sisters, he noticed to his great surprise that Miss Bennet’s unexpected refusal to dance with him amused, rather than insulted him. So she was not inclined to dance! Not even with him, Mr. Darcy of Pemberley, the most eligible bachelor in the country? Apparently, that was not enough inducement to her.

He could not help but chuckle, and whilst watching in admiration this frank young gentleman’s daughter from Hertfordshire, he suddenly felt an unpleasant draught on his neck.

This current of air was occasioned by Miss Bingley’s breath, for she had chosen to position herself without a sound behind him and commenced complaining about the tediousness of the party, presuming that he shared her considerations.

Discreetly moving his head and the rest of his body away from the unpleasant sensation her breath provoked on his neck, he thought: Have you any idea, Miss Caroline Bingley, how tedious and insupportable you are yourself? but instead he replied politely: ‘I should imagine not. My mind was more agreeably engaged.’

Intently looking at the pretty woman who but moments ago had made it clear to him that she was not impressed by him at all, he continued: ‘I have been meditating on the very great pleasure which a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can bestow.’

After learning whose eyes had inspired such reflections, Miss Bingley, astonished, disappointed and excessively jealous, began to make sport of his future felicity in marriage in a tone that betrayed a mélange of sarcasm and grief. However, her brother’s friend either did not care or entirely failed to notice. Slightly vexed or perhaps a little envious, he mused: Miss Bennet seems to prefer the company of officers to that of a gentleman. Singular! But what can one expect from a country upstart? I most definitely must put her fine eyes, her light and pleasing figure and her bosom (where a man’s eye could feast on forever) out of my mind at once...

Here Mr. Darcy stopped in order to keep further indiscreet thoughts of Miss Bennet, as well as his wounded pride, under good regulation.

With a tinge of regret in his voice he whispered to himself: ‘I dare say, if it were not for the inferiority of her relations, I would be very happy to have so much beauty before me for an indefinite period of time.’

Location: Lucas Lodge, Hertfordshire, Sir William Lucas’s estate

Rudeness repined

2

‘Pray, Miss Bennet, do not you feel a great inclination to seize such an opportunity of dancing a reel?’

Upon hearing Mr. Darcy’s rather unexpected question, Elizabeth looked up from her book somewhat confused, but composed herself almost immediately and replied with cold civility: ‘I thank you no, Mr. Darcy, a reel is tolerable, I suppose, but not alluring enough to tempt me.’

Elizabeth expressed this rather pert opinion a little louder and sharper than she intended and was overheard by the other persons in the room. Each and every one of them had a reaction of some sort.

Mr. Bingley was awakened abruptly from a daydream about an angel and, looking up from his game of patience, cast a puzzled glance towards his friend and the angel’s sister. He wished to say something, but knew not what and so remained silent, awaiting coming events.

Mr. Hurst, for his part, made an unexpected movement when Elizabeth’s voice penetrated his fogged brain and fell off the couch bewildered, shouting: “You prefer a quadrille to a reel? That is rather singular!”

And when the entire party watched him in astonishment, he sheepishly looked about the room, shrugged and crawled back on the couch to continue his state of unconsciousness.

As for Miss Bingley, she hit a wrong key on the pianoforte, which provoked her to softly hiss to her sister: ‘Do not you think that Miss Eliza has an unfortunate manner of address and expression, Louisa? And the abominable tone of her voice! Not to mention her lack of a certain something in her air.’

‘Indeed I do, my dear,’ replied Mrs. Hurst, who could not help but fully agree and emphasized her accord with squinted eyes and shaking head, her jewellery jingling rather like the bells of a group of Swiss cows.

Somewhat taken aback, Mr. Darcy, who did not shew his feelings as a general rule, could not hide the expression in his eyes of disappointment, anger and, perhaps, if one took a closer look, sadness.

However, there was nothing for him to do but accept the lady’s blunt refusal and resume his previous occupation: reading the book he had left on his chair near the fireplace. So, after a swift bow, he returned to his former location and the rest of the party continued with their momentarily interrupted activities.

Staring unseeing at the open page of his book, Mr. Darcy found that the words printed on it danced before his eyes and that their meaning escaped him entirely.

His gaze wandered in the direction of the young lady who was indeed more on his mind than he liked. He could not understand her refusal yet again. Her riposte in response to his request sounded somehow familiar, but Darcy could not fix on the moment or the spot where he had heard it before! Her wrath appeared genuine and yet she had a mischievous look in her eyes. Mr. Darcy thought her manner most impertinent. Worse still, he liked it. It was enthralling, refreshing; especially after the tiresome flattery of Miss Bingley. Admittedly, Miss Elizabeth was not without her charms. Apart from her fine eyes, framed with remarkable lashes, her figure was pleasing and light. As Darcy mused thusly, his imagination roamed how might her slender frame look were I to remove that pretty red gown and unpinned her hair so it were to hang loose on her shoulders?

However, when he commenced meditating on the very great pleasure which the thought of touching the silky skin of her breasts with his lips could bestow, he began to feel quite uncomfortable, mentally as well as physically.

Discreetly covering the evidence of his discomfort with his book, he acknowledged that he had never been so bewitched by any woman as he was by her, and were it not for the inferiority of her connections, he indeed should be in some danger. Forcing himself to concentrate for quite a length of time on the ladies of his acquaintance such as cousin Anne or Miss Bingley who most certainly failed to incite any sinful thought in him, he managed to put his body and mind to rest and renewed his focus on his book.