A pact that will change their lives forever…
Fitzwilliam Darcy is a successful young barrister with a bright future. His late uncle has guided his career, made him his heir, and even selected a bride for him—sight unseen—whom he’ll meet and marry upon her majority. Who could have predicted that making the acquaintance of Miss Elizabeth Bennet in Meryton would throw those careful plans into disarray?
Elizabeth Bennet doesn’t know what to make of “Fitz” Darcy, who intrigues and draws her notice like no other. Despite Fitzwilliam’s warnings, she allows Mr. George Darcy, Fitzwilliam’s older brother and master of Pemberley, to charm her. Little does she know that she, too, has been promised in marriage by her late father—to an unknown barrister, no less. What is she to do when her hopes to marry for love disappear in the blink of an eye?
Is George
Darcy’s suit in earnest? Can this mysterious bridegroom of her father’s
choosing become the husband of her dreams? With the danger of duels and deceit,
what will come of the initial attraction between her and Fitzwilliam? Will she
become the barrister’s bride?
Note: contains scenes with adult content.
* * *
Introduction from author Suzan Lauder
The excerpt that
follows has Elizabeth and Mr. George Darcy, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy’s older
brother, out for ices at Gunter’s. The Mr. Darcy mentioned in the scene is
George, and his brother is called Fitz at this point in the story. This excerpt
is from Elizabeth’s viewpoint.
~~~
Mr. Wickham’s face
lit in delight as he changed direction and joined them at their table. “Ices in
February. A bit cool, though I suppose that, since the crocuses are out,
springtime must be close.”
“Are you not here
for the ices?” asked Elizabeth.
“No, I come for the
sweetmeats. Except that now I see Darcy here, I find that I hope to interest
him in an amusing activity a few days hence.”
Mr. Darcy’s
countenance shifted from that of animated friend: his eyes clouded over and his
facial expression became shuttered. The steady, neutral pose of his features
suggested he suspected the nature of the pursuit, and it wearied him. “Excuse my
friend, Miss Elizabeth. His idea of amusement may not be fit for respectable
ears.”
Mr. Wickham scoffed.
“I do not think Miss Elizabeth such a prude to be offended by a mere
gentleman’s card party,” He lifted one eyebrow to Mr. Darcy in what could be called
a conspiratorial manner. Ah, yes, even a gently born lady would know what they
alluded to. This would not be Aunt Philips’s card party with lottery tickets
and a light supper. They were to consider an evening of high stakes gambling.
“I cannot attend your
event. I am hosting friends for a musical presentation at Middlebrook House
that evening.”
“How did you know it
was Wednesday?”
Mr. Darcy tapped his
nose. “I am aware of what occurs amongst the ton, acceptable and not.
In any case, I shall not be at your friend’s card party. Oh, my!” Mr. Darcy
pointed towards the window. “My brother just passed the shop. I have not seen
him in an age. Do excuse me for one moment while I fetch him to join us.” With
that, he placed his hat on his head and rushed out of the door.
“You are acquainted
with Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, am I correct?” asked Mr. Wickham.
“Yes. He is a close
friend of my sister’s affianced, Mr. Bingley. I expect you know him from your
youth.”
Mr. Wickham frowned.
“Yes, but he has crossed me more than once since then. Old Mr. Darcy wanted to
give me a living at Kympton, but when he died, Fitz suggested I be trained for
the military, which would be dangerous and not near as lucrative. Thankfully,
George disagreed, and he helps me out while I give him business advice. I am
similar to my father, who was Pemberley’s land steward.”
“Mr. Fitzwilliam had
a great influence on your livelihood?”
“He and his uncle
the judge were, yes. Without a reliable income, I was unable to prove my
ability to support a wife. Thus, I am still waiting to be allowed to court the
woman I love. I do believe that Fitz knew and tried to keep us apart.”
“Why would he do
that?”
“He is jealous since
I am more sociable and better connected than he is.”
“Could Mr. George
Darcy not help?”
Mr. Wickham
shrugged. “In those matters, he defers to Fitz. Says he has the right amount of
acumen.”
“It sounds as though
he interferes more than he should.”
The bell for the
shop door rang again, and the Darcy brothers entered. Elizabeth stifled a gasp
when her view of Mr. Fitzwilliam’s tall, handsome person struck her like a
lightning bolt. His eyes met hers and never wavered while he strode to their
table. Mr. Wickham rose and shook his hand to greet him. The barrister’s
apparel made him look older than Mr. George Darcy or Mr. Wickham and added an
air of importance and legitimacy to his character. When invited to sit, he
glanced at her with a slight frown and begged that he had no time. Meanwhile,
Mr. Wickham insisted he must purchase his marzipan and depart since he was late
for an appointment across town. His smile did not appear genuine; he was
avoiding Mr. Fitzwilliam.
“With my own lady
friend, you know.” Mr. Wickham waggled his eyebrows. He said his good-byes. Mr.
Fitzwilliam’s sullen expression lifted a little, and he waved his arm to Mr.
Wickham. Was he pleased to see him leave?
“I insist you take
Wickham’s chair for a few minutes, Fitz,” said Mr. George Darcy.
“Very well.” Mr.
Fitzwilliam Darcy’s usual deportment seemed different today. He was as stately
as before, but his eyes remained on Elizabeth for long periods of time. Was
that a glare? Was he critical of her for some reason? She could not fathom what
she had done to offend him. She lifted her hand to smooth her hair, but her
bonnet was carefully in place, so her hair could not be tousled. She gave Mr.
Fitzwilliam a stare of challenge, and his lashes lowered.
~~~
.JPG "Author Suzan Lauder")
A lover of Jane Austen, Regency period research and costuming, yoga, fitness, home renovation, design, sustainability, and independent travel, cat mom Suzan Lauder keeps busy even when she’s not writing novels based on Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, all of which are published by Meryton Press.
She and Mr. Suze and their rescue tabby split their time between a loft condo overlooking the Salish Sea and a 150-year-old Spanish colonial casita in Mexico. Suzan’s lively prose can be found on her Facebook author page, www.facebook.com/SuzanLauder; on Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest as @SuzanLauder; and on her Meryton Press blog, road trips with the redhead www.suzanlauder.merytonpress.com.
Contact Info
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The Barrister’s Bride by Suzan Lauder is available to buy now in Paperback, Kindle and Kindle Unlimited.
• Amazon US • Amazon UK • Amazon CA • Add to Goodreads shelf
Meryton Press is giving away six eBooks of The Barrister’s Bride by Suzan Lauder. There is a swag giveaway by Author, Suzan Lauder, and it includes a personalized signed copy of the book, a Suzan Lauder reticule, an embroidered handkerchief, and a fan. Both giveaways are in the Rafflecopter.
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May 9 My Jane Austen
Book Club
May 10 Babblings of a Bookworm
May 11 The Literary Assistant
May 12 My Vices and Weaknesses
May 13 Interests of a Jane
Austen Girl
May 16 Austenesque Reviews
May 17 From Pemberley to Milton
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This sounds intriguing. Thanks for sharing here and for a chance to win a copy. It is on my "Wish List".
ReplyDeleteSo glad to hear it, Sheila, as I know you're a discerning reader. Good luck!
DeleteGlad you enjoyed the post :)
DeleteWell, this sounds interesting. I usually break my fans during swoon-worthy moments and have had to buy more gorilla glue. I'd love that fan in the swag and a copy of the book. Thanks to Ceri for hosting and to Suzan on the launch of this new work. I wish you all manner of success. Good luck to all in the drawing.
ReplyDeleteIt's a nice fan for costuming, hot flashes, or Darcy swoons. Good luck!
DeleteIt's always good to have a spare fan available for the swoony bits :)
DeleteI'm looking forward to reading this one. Love her books!
ReplyDeleteLove it when someone says they love my books. I love this book, and was sad to let it go to publishing so I could no longer play with it.
DeleteHope you enjoy it when you read it
DeleteAw, Wickham! He is always up to something isn't he? Poor me, poor me..., is usually what he is up to! Thanks for sharing this excerpt, Suzan! It is so hot at my place today that I would love an ice from Gunter's or anywhere! :) Ceri, thank you for hosting The Barrister's Bride and Suzan Lauder. It was great stopping by.
ReplyDeleteIf you read the book, you'll get to try (in your mind) the flavours of ices too. I wish it were hot here. Ice cream is okay if it's cool out, though. That's what Mr. Suze tells me when he brings it home after a bike ride while I've been writing.
DeleteAlways thinking about how he can turn things to his own advantage!
DeleteThanks so much for your work in arranging the blog tour, and thanks both for stopping by!
Yay! I'm so glad this is finally out there for everyone to read! I love the sound of the flavours at Gunters and would love to meet Darcy for an ice (Fitz Darcy, of course ;) ) I'm not sure about E with George (especially since he seems to be great buddies with Wickham). Is George even worthy of our dear girl's time?
ReplyDeleteYuck to the Georges. Yay to FItz.
DeleteI am with you, somebody who has known Wickham for any length of time and still is friendly with him is raising some big red flags!
DeleteIntriguing scene! So it seems that Fitzwilliam has a cordial relationship with his brother, even if they are not especially close. But Wickham is another matter; I wonder if there is more to those card parties than just cards!
ReplyDeleteYou're especially suspicious, as you should be. Wickham can't be up to any good. Thanks for commenting, Kelly!
DeleteI don't trust them either!
DeleteI like it when Darcy has to work hard to win his lady but an actual hard-working Darcy is even better!
ReplyDeleteEspecially when I have a guess who this barrister Elizabeth is promised in marriage is...
I'm not a redhead and I have no Welsh ancestry but...can I have some of this ice cream?
Alexandra
Barristers supposedly didn't work. They were considered gentlemen. Their remuneration went to the bank, which supposedly meant they weren't paid for their efforts. However, this Darcy takes his profession quite seriously and spends many hours on his cases.
DeleteWhich flavour do you prefer? There was parmesan, asparagus, and jasmine, to name a few!
Thanks, Alexandra!
Not everybody can be a redhead with Welsh ancestry so I am sure there will be ice cream left for you too :)
DeleteHope you enjoy the story of this hardworking Darcy when you read it.
Would love to read this as it sound great!
ReplyDeleteI hope you get a chance to read it, then!
DeleteHope you enjoy it when you read it
DeleteThank you for the excerpt and the giveaway. Looking forward to the story esp the revelation time.
ReplyDeleteRevelation time has some drama that readers will be surprised about. Elizabeth is always feisty!
DeleteI think from this set up we are expecting quite a few revelations. Hope you enjoy it when you read it.
Delete