Bestselling Historical Romantic Comedy!
The Houseguest Paperback
The Houseguest Paperback
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💛 Read the Synopsis
💛 Read the Synopsis
Darcy is visiting his friend Bingley in Hertfordshire and decides to bring his sister for a time. While escaping the attentions of Miss Bingley, Miss Darcy meets Elizabeth Bennet and the two form a fast friendship.
Friendship leads to a steady correspondence which leads to an invitation to visit Miss Darcy in London that winter. Elizabeth accepts—unbeknownst to Mr. Darcy.
When he arrives home from visiting relations to find Elizabeth Bennet staying in his townhouse as his sister's guest, he is thrown into a tumult of feelings he had hoped to avoid.
How could he forget her if she was staying in his house? How could he turn his attention to another lady if every time he came home, he was met with her bright eyes? It was insupportable!
Little does he know the lady is far from longing for his attention and can barely stand his presence.
Tropes in this story:
✔️Wealthy meets penniless
✔️Enemies to Lovers
✔️Slow Burn
✔️Sunshine / Grump
✔️Unrequited Love
“At Longbourn, there is a tree near the edge of the estate where it borders Lucas lodge. It is perfect for climbing. There is a branch that hangs down particularly low to make it easier to climb up.” She gestured with her hands and Darcy leaned back in his chair, his eyes in rapt attention, his hands steepled in front of his mouth.
“One summer, my father’s sister came to stay with us and brought my cousins, Thomas and Michael. They were horrid boys, always stealing our dolls and hiding them in tops of trees, strapping them to branches with our favorite ribbons. Kitty and Jane would cry inconsolably, and they would just laugh at us before their mama would make them give our toys back.
“One afternoon, our parents and aunt went to a party and weren’t due back home till late that night. Jane and I were playing merrily when Thomas ran in and stole Jane’s new doll. It had been a birthday present from our parents, and she’d only gotten it the week before. It had a lovely porcelain face, with blue eyes just like Jane’s and a lace gown. She loved that doll and carried it with her everywhere, even sleeping with it at night. Which is why, of course, horrid Thomas stole it in the first place.” She made a disgusted face and Darcy hid his smile behind his hands.
“So Thomas ran off with the doll, shrieking that he would hide it where we’d never find it. He passed it off to Michael and the two of them ran into the pastures, towards the tree on the property line. We all ran behind them, Jane and Kitty crying, Mary holding little Lydia by the hand. Of course they outran us and were well into the tree by the time we arrived at the bottom. They had fashioned a noose out of ribbons and put it around the doll’s neck, and there she was, hanging from the tree.” Darcy clamped down hard on his jaw to suppress a laugh and nodded for her to continue.
“Well, you can imagine how it was. Jane was in a terrible state over seeing her prized possession being executed, and there was Kitty, wailing in the background, Mary trying to console her; it was quite a sight. They jumped down from the tree and began taunting us, saying that we’d never get it down and their mother wouldn’t be home until later, so we couldn’t go to her. The doll would have to stay up there all night. Then they began talking about what would happen if it rained and how the doll would be completely ruined.
“Eventually, I had had enough. I told them that I would climb up into the tree and retrieve the doll. They didn’t believe me and said that girls can’t climb trees and even if they could, our skirts would get in the way. That was when I got an idea. They were to be staying another month and we couldn’t continue doing this every day, so I challenged them.”
“You challenged them?”
“Yes. I told them we would race to the top. If I got to the doll first, they could not take any more of our toys and must behave like gentlemen the rest of their trip. If they got to the top first, we couldn’t tell their mother about any of this. We shook on the deal and they decided horrid Thomas would be the one to race me, since he was taller and had longer limbs.
“I tied my skirts up around my waist and Jane counted us down. When she said go, we both began to climb furiously, but I knew the way better.” She couldn’t hide the air of pride she felt in her accomplishment. “I had climbed that tree hundreds of times and knew exactly where to step. I had made it to the top and was reaching for the doll long before Thomas. He was so angry with me, he reached out to grab the doll from my arms, but I hit him with my elbow.”
She released a sigh.
“Unfortunately, he lost his balance and fell all the way to the ground. His arm was twisted terribly behind his back and he was screaming in pain, and cursing me with words I had never heard. Michael ran for Mr. Hill and the doctor came and declared he had a broken arm.
“They couldn’t set it until our parents returned several hours later, so he was given laudanum and laid in the kitchen crying and writhing in pain. Eventually all was set right, but he ended up having to stay with us another six weeks until the doctor declared he was ready to travel.”
She slumped back into the chair and exhaled loudly. “It was horrible! My mother went on and on about how unladylike my behavior was and said that if I wasn’t so wild, none of this would have happened. As my punishment, whether for climbing or pushing, I don’t know, she made me act as Thomas’s nurse while he stayed with us. I had to bring him tea and give him his medicine. Mother said it would teach me how to take care of a man, which was what I should be doing, instead of keeping my nose in books all day and climbing trees.” She rolled her eyes.
“And did you?”
“Did I what?”
“Learn to take care of a man?” he asked with a smirk and a glint in his eye.
“I hardly think a twelve-year-old boy can be called a man, Mr. Darcy,” she replied with an impish smile.
He let out a deep, rumbling laugh. “No, he cannot, Miss Bennet. He certainly cannot.”
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Chapter 1
The Saturday air was crisp and cold as Darcy walked into his London town home; he hated traveling in January, but there was nothing to be done for it. Hearing music drift up from the back of the house, he smiled to himself, happy to hear his sister playing. He handed his hat and gloves to the footman, all the while thinking how relieved he was that Georgiana seemed to be coming out of her despair of the last summer. As he walked toward his study, he was arrested by the sound of Georgiana laughing.
Curious, he walked up the stairs to the music room. Just before he opened the door, he heard something that made him stop in his tracks. He knew that laugh. But surely it couldn't be; she of all people wouldn't be here, in his home, with his sister, playing on his pianoforte? Sure his mind was playing tricks on him, he opened the door and was met by the picturesque sight of his sister sitting next to Elizabeth Bennet on the bench, both playing terribly while laughing so hard they were on the verge of tears. They were so close they were nearly embracing as they giggled and continued to play out of sync.
The sight of Georgiana laughing was so foreign to him that he stood there watching them for a few silent moments before he could force himself to advance into the room. Eventually Georgiana became aware of his presence and looked up, her blue eyes turning to saucers as she gasped and stopped playing. Elizabeth followed her gaze, and her mouth dropped open as her eyes widened in shock at the sight of Darcy before her.
“Brother! I did not know you had returned!”
“Only just. I heard the music and decided to come say hello.”
Elizabeth and Georgiana had risen with his entrance, and he made a quick bow as he acknowledged Miss Bennet. The ladies curtsied in return.
“Was your journey pleasant, Brother?”
“Yes, quite uneventful. I'm afraid I have some letters to write. I'll see you at dinner?”
At her nod, Darcy quit the room and headed to his study. He would have to sort out this business of Elizabeth Bennet later. For now he knew he had a stack of correspondence to deal with, and it would be rude to question Georgiana in front of her guest; he would simply wait until Elizabeth went home to wherever it was she was staying and then speak with Georgiana later. Surely there was an explanation for all of this. Didn't Elizabeth have family in town? Maybe she was visiting them and Georgiana had invited her to call; yes that made perfect sense. That must be it.
Darcy walked behind the mahogany desk and settled in the comfortable leather chair; he took a deep breath and stared into the fire. “Focus old man!” He shook off his reverie and decided to delve into his work. There was a large pile of letters in the center of the desk and he set to work organizing them into three neat stacks: the first for business, the second for invitations, and the third for personal correspondence. Seeing that the stack of business letters was the smallest, he decided to start with that one first. After writing several “odious” letters, as Miss Bingley would have called them, he looked at his other two stacks. The stack of invitations was, as always, precariously high and he did not have the energy to deal with it at the moment.
He had vaguely entertained the thought of hiring a secretary, someone to handle his business letters and respond to invitations. But it didn’t take up that much of his time, and invitations were only so various when he was in town, which was only half of the year, if that, so it never seemed that necessary, and he pushed it out of his mind.
Darcy liked to be busy. It kept his mind engaged and focused. His father had always told him to stay active, that idleness led to mischief and a soft mind. His aunt, Lady Matlock, liked to remind him that if he would marry, his wife would manage both households and all the invitations, cutting back his workload and freeing up his time considerably. He had responded with, “So would hiring a secretary, and would likely cost a lot less.” She had only shot him a withering glare and moved to a new topic.
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