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A Quest for Mr Darcy – Chapter Fifty Two
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Hello!
I'm Cass, and I write the sort of stories I love to read - heart-warming, character driven and strong on location. I lean heavily towards the upbeat in both my reading and my writing.
As one of my favourite authors, Jane Austen, once wrote, ‘let other pens dwell on guilt and misery’.
Cass Grafton - Writer 
Cass, you delivered…big time!
🤗👏👏👏
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My pleasure, Carol!
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Ah, at last I can breathe deeply. But now…how sick does she or do they both become…soaked to the skin and not at all near any warm dry shelter? But I am smiling at the kisses and the impromptu proposal!
Thanks for finally giving us more than a kiss….
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Don’t worry, Sheila! I’ll get them home as quick as I can! 😉
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He found her and popped the question. Yippee. Hopefully she says yes and rhere are no problems getting jee home. Waiting!
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If she doesn’t say yes, I’m likely to walk away from the story, Jen!!
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To say that I was reading with my heart in my throat would be an understatement, Cass! What an exciting scene, particularly when I was expecting a Wickham attack but rainsoaked proposals are so much better! Excellent story, well paced — you should be very proud.
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I’m so happy you are happy, Katherine!
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Excellent chapter Cass, you had me on the edge of my garden bench reading this hoping there were no cliffhangers, and you delivered and the proposal at last!! Now we can only hope and wait for Elizabeth’s reply!
Still no Wickham though and the tangle with Bungley, Jane and Miss Latimer, what a story. It aught to be a best seller!
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Hope you’re able to sit back on the bench now, Ruth!
Elizabeth’s reply will be in the next chapter, I promise! As for the other characters… well, let’s see! 😉
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Ooohhhh…. Swoon…. What a romantic chapter, it was worth waiting for Cass 🙂 I love Darcy’s second proposal, the best ever… Who cares for Wickham when there is such a man searching for Elizabeth in Pemberley’s woods….
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I’m so pleased you enjoyed the second proposal, Nathalie!
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😍😍😍 on the edge of my seat with anticipation the entire chapter. Was expecting Wickham but a rainy proposal 💕 my hear is racing! Cant wait for Tuesday
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You can sit back now and relax!!! 😉
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Well, I’m just going to take the liberty of answering for Elizabeth. “YES!!!!!!!!!” There, now we can move on to the capture of Wickham, the debarkation of Mr. Latimer (the putz certainly could not be bothered to join the search for a lowly tenant), and the long-overdue “aha” moment when Lydia finally realizes that most of her troubles were brought on by herself. However, if in between all of those things, you want to throw in some more kisses and endearments, I certainly would not object.
As caught up as I was in the final scene, I did notice Bingley’s odd response to the question about his ride with Miss Latimer. I won’t even try to guess what that signifies. I know that in your own good time, you will reveal all. So… to tide me over until next Tuesday, I’m going to read the kissing scene a few dozen more times. (It’s cold and rainy here today. Do you think if I wander off into the woods that Mr. Darcy will come and rescue me?)
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LOL, Jan. You make me smile 😀
Mr Latimer is an arse, if you’ll pardon the word! Hmm, Bingley. What could be going on there, I wonder? 😉
I hope you didn’t get too wet waiting for rescue by Mr Darcy!
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That was swoon worthy. You did good! Thanks
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Glad you were happy with it, Fran!
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*le sigh*!
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Merci!
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Squeeeee! I was holding my breath through the search-in-the-rain scene and what a lovely surprise! Thank you, Cass!
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Breathe easy, Carol! Well, until the next chapter! hahaha No, only joking! 😀
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Really passionate scene. I loved it, Cass. I think Elizabeth pretty much already responded with her move for the second kiss. Can there be any other answer to such a proposal? Have mercy, Lizzy!
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I think she did too, Cristina! 😉
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Whewwwwwwwwww!!! No Wickham. Thank goodness. I was reading with one eye closed. Thanks for the wonderful chapter.
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Hope the eye doesn’t suffer for being closed so long, Mari! 😉
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OMG! AT LAST!!!!!
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LOL! You mean you were waiting a while, Jessica? 😉
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Hurray! it is definitely time. Hopefully there is no way Lizzy will refuse like feeling her family is beneath him. Hope they don’t get sick out there. Wickham is still somewhere wanting money from Mr Bennet who does not have huge quantities. Now there is also Lydia. It seems like Mr. Bennet handled some trials very badly. Yes, the sooner Lizzy the better.
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She won’t leave him hanging for long, I’m sure, Donna! I am sure he would be able to persuade her away from her doubts! 😉
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Wow. Swoon-worthy is right. And to think, it took them only 52 chapters to find each other, That’s even more than the original! LOL!
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LOL! Well, as I’ve said before, Janis, I never seem to manage to write succinctly!
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Ok. My second comment! I loved vex this chapter so much, I’ve readread it several times, as a whole and in parts!
But noticed, finally, bingley answer to Darcy about his ride with me latimer. Interesting……
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I’m so happy you felt you wanted to read it again, Carol! That makes my heart smile!
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Yay!!! He proposed at last!! I’m sure that she will say yes, but goodness–what a time for a proposal after chewing her out for walking!! That’s our Darcy!! 😉
Thank you for a gloriously rainy chapter, Cassandra!! There is still much left to untangle with Wickham on the loose, Bungley still bungling, Lydia still acting like a spoiled child, etc. But at least we have a proposal!! 😀
“See” you on Tuesday!! (Of course a surprise Saturday chapter would be most welcome….)
Warmly,
Susanne 🙂
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I’m afraid it will be Tuesday, Susanne, but nice try! 😉
Well, I am sure you know that feeling, when you have been worried sick about a loved one and then you are so relieved they are okay and then you’re just mad at them for making you worry in the first place! It just seemed right for them! 😉
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PS: loving Bungley still bungling! lol
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Outstanding installment–both intense drama and romance to swoon over. I pray the first words I read in the next chapter are, “Yes, I will marry you!” I also hope they make it to safety without Wickham discovering anything more he can use against them. He needs his comeuppance. He has been allowed to be troublesome for far too long!
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So pleased you enjoyed, Lizzybel!
Ah that pesky Wickham. His uppance cometh! 😉
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😱😱😱😱😱😱😍😍😍😍😍💏💏💏💏 that was amazing! Finally!
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LOL re the ‘finally’, Jenny!
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OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 Did that just happen?! Did Darcy just propose?! And you left us your loyal and very desperate readers without hearing Elizabeth’s answer!!!! Are you out of your mind Cass?! Seriously THE question we or I have been waiting for for the LONGEST time! And you leave us with this THE most evil cliffhanger EVER!!!!! You are siriusly one evil writer 🙄😡😉😫😫😫😍 omg how am I going to wait until Tuesday?!
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I think you just broke the rules on the number of emoticons per post, Sophia! lol
This isn’t evil! Don’t you trust me yet? 😉
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Terrific – and glad to see Wickham didn’t actually show up (yet). With so many developments during Mr. Bennet’s recent absence, I’m eager to see how he reacts to the engagement (hoping/assuming she says yes).
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Glad you enjoyed it, Clara!
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Whew! I was worried Wickham would find E before anyone else. Thanks for the proposal at the end.
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You’re welcome, Suzan!
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While reading i was worried u stop at cliffhanger where wickham encounters either Darcy and Lizzy.Happy they are kissing and singing duet.Is it wrong to think happy because we have Dizzy (living and working with teens).Thanks for wonderful story and beautifully written.
Revam.
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LOL re Dizzy, Revam. I’m not sure I’ve heard that one before! 😀
Thank you for reading along!
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I may just have been guilty of punching the air and shouting “Yes!!!” Not actually admitting anything but one of our dogs is looking at me in a very puzzled manner right now (the other one is upstairs with hubby). Thought Darcy was going to really mess things up (again) when he started chewing Elizabeth out for going on her walk and she reacted badly to that, as she would. But then came those final five lovely, delicious paragraphs. Thank you, thank you, thank you! You said it would be worth waiting for and it was.
Brief pause….just had to go back and read it again (kind of lost count of how many times I’ve read Darcy’s search and the final encounter). ‘Marry me, Elizabeth.’ Darcy’s voice was hoarse with feeling. ‘Say you will take me, for all my ills. I cannot bear to think of a life without you.’ Just melted into a puddle. I’ll definitely be giving her a slap if she answers with anything other than an affirmative.
Now, I wonder what Bungley’s been up to on his ride with Miss Latimer. Just exactly what does “enlightening” mean?
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Ooops, sorry to the dog whose ears were affronted! 😉 (Hope Rodeo is doing okay)
If felt right that Darcy’s fear and over imagining of what might have happened would turn to him being cross at her for making him worry before he just, hmm, ‘goes for it’! lol
Ah, Bungley. Yes. What has he got up his sleeve, I wonder?
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Rodeo’s doing OK, thanks, just one part of his wound that isn’t healing as quickly as the rest but it’s getting there.
Oh yes, been there and done that with the worry thing over both husband and son. Of course I chewed them out first before going into the hugging and weeping!
And I simply had to read those final paragraphs over again just now. Got a warm fuzzy glow inside me now, from that and Amy D’orazio’s post over at AV (Strangely enough, her scene is set in a rain storm, too). Hope the rest of my Friday doesn’t upset it all!
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I, too, had an evening when my husband didn’t come home at his usual time and I was making phone calls all over in an attempt to find him or find out what happened to him. Yes, I yelled at him and he was not allowed to hug me and say I was foolish. He was at least 2 hours late…and had stopped to have a drink on the way home.
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I have come to realise I have a thing about being under trees in the rain! I set the first proposal in AFP in a copse of trees in a rainstorm and the second under a large tree during a storm! Now I’ve done this. I think I may need help!!!
Good news re Rodeo, hope he continues to heal.
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It was fitting that Darcy had to make Lizzy a bit mad before he proposed… but it was great, full of feeling. It is wet, cold, and soggy here today.. but reading this brightened my day. I am sure at the end of the chapter Lizzy did not care that she was soaked through either! 🙂
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Happy to have brightened your day, Maureen! I agree, I doubt she was at all bothered!
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Take a bow/curtsey as you hear the round of applause for that was brilliantly executed and had all of us waiting with bated breath…Talk about passionate! I can go into the weekend knowing all will be well. As for Bingley and Miss Latimer, what are they up to? Enlightening? Do tell…Bingley.
I still think if Wickham shows up, Lydia should grab the fire poker and go at him! Really she will feel so much better and empowered!
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Thank you, Carole!
I’m liking your ideas for Lydia to take out Wickham! So many choices on what to do to that man!!! lol
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Oh happy day! Like others, I was first worried that Wickham would find Elizabeth, and then worried no one would find her until she was deathly ill, and then that Darcy would mess it all up yelling at her (though I can’t blame him for it. He was so scared for her). But you took pity on us all and he proposed! It was perfect and emotional and heartfelt.
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I don’t blame him for yelling. It’s a pretty natural emotion when you’ve been worried sick about someone and then find they are fine, isn’t it?
Happy you enjoyed the proposal!
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Loved it! Darcy was so worried about Elizabeth he was not going to give up the search until he found her! Loved the passion and the proposal, finally no more misunderstandings.
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Pleased to hear you enjoyed it!
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Wonderful! I have a long, busy day. This was just what I needed to end it. Looking forward to Tuesday!
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Always happy if I’ve helped a long day recede into the distance, Suzanne!
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I was so thrilled with the proposal I went back and reread the story. Great writing job! Thanks!
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Oh my, Fran! Not the whole story? That would take days!!! 😉
So happy you are enjoying it!
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Ah, that certainly put paid to it – their first kiss!
Well, there’s nothing more wonderful than a passion filled Darcy.
Nicely done! Kind of reminds me if the raining proposal scene in the 2005 edition. You know, the one where we all wanted him to kiss her.
Yeah, and what’s up with Brinkley and Miss Latimer.
Me think there is something foul a foot.
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Bingley*
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He’s going to start being confused, with all the names we have for him!
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LOL, Trez, re Brinkley. Wasn’t that Tom Hanks’ dog’s name in You’ve Got Mail?
I did say somewhere above about seeming to have a thing about proposals in the rain. Both the ones in A Fair Prospect were during rainstorms. Not sure why and it’s never intended, it just sort of happens!
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I’ve read it twice. AFP… but it’s been 3 years. I’m going to have to read it again.
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I so like this story! Read all chapters in one and a half day🙊. And I hope there will be so much more. With all things Lydia etc. A bit happiness inbetween💟
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Wow Beate! A day and a half? Well done! 😀 ❤
I'm hoping a bit more happiness now, as we're heading for the end!
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Please no… this is such a nice plot!
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Oh… And you know Hope Valley and my beloved Curbar Edge. You mention Bakewell – where is your Lambton? And where is The Grange situated when she can walk up the Edge? The Devonshire Arms in Baslow, is Baslow Kympton?
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I adore Curbar Edge, Beate! Are you lucky enough to live nearby?
The Grange, in my head, is located about a mile or two south of Curbar, going back towards Baslow and Chatsworth. I stayed at the Devonshire Arms in Baslow inFebruary when I took a short break in Derbyshire and loved it! In fact, I wrote most of two chapters of the story during my stay. ❤
The Pemberley estate in this story is a shrunk down version of the Chatsworth estate, bringing everything closer together than it is in reality. I know many favour Lyme Park for the house, but it's in Cheshire, and Chatsworth itself is considered by many to be too grand for Darcy's home, though I have used the setting of Chatsworth, with its wooded hillside backing the house, the lakes, the hunting tower etc in the story.
Lambton for me sits somewhere between Baslow and Bakewell for size. For Kympton, my mind imagines Earl Sterndale, particularly the church, but not its location as obviously it's a lot closer to Pemberley!
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Sorry Cass, no. I’d like to live there, unfortunately I’m living in Germany. But this July will be the 6th time to visit the Peaks.
And I concur, Lyme Park is beautiful – we visited last year – but too far north. As to Earl Sterndale I will put it on the list for this year, the Buxton region being a blank spot as yet. Thanks for the recommendation.
Curbar Edge is were I can sit with dangling legs and watch the beautiful landscape. We always reside in Grindleford, where we found friends too. And you know, you can walk the Edge till there. I have yet to walk the Edge in the direction of Chatsworth. Will give it a try in July.
I like it very much, to read your descriptions of the countryside in this book. It gives me the impression of being there. First I thought Kympton being Pilsley – but then it coudn’t be the parish of The Grange. Thence my idea of Baslow and the Devonshire Arms – and there is a lane from Chatsworth in this direction. The Hunting Tower accomodates holiday appartement(s) but I have yet to visit it.
So the neighbour who holds the ball resides in Haddon Hall? With the massiv tower? Hardwick being too far away for just an evening outing.
So Cass, I’m looking forward to more imaginations inspired by your marvelous writing.
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Enjoy your travels this summer, Beate! The Peak District is so beautiful.
I love walking on Curbar Edge or Stanage Edge. The views are spectacular and inspiring. ❤ I haven't walked as far as Grindleford but it's lovely when you stay somewhere so often you begin to make friends, isn't it? ❤
Earl Sterndale is very small and tucked away, near the border with Staffordshire, but the setting of the church just spoke to me for Kympton!
You make an excellent point regarding Haddon Hall being the Seymours' home at Froggatt Park! I never thought of it, which is odd, because I adore Haddon! I actually based the house itself on Swinton Park in North Yorkshire, home to Lord and Lady Masham. It's a high end hotel now and just so lovely to stay in. All the interior descriptions, as well as the winding driveway uphill to the ivy clad tower over the entrance are from personal experience (though I wasn't attending a ball!) 😉 For location, it certainly could be in the Haddon area, or nearer to Froggatt itself.
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