Welcome back to Austen Promises!
Here’s a link to last week’s post, in case you missed it. 🙂
Clicking on some of the links will take you to Amazon. I am an Amazon affiliate and while clicking the links won’t cost you anything, it might give me a small payment. These links are clearly marked.
This week’s purple thing I love was inspired by this excerpt from the third book I wrote, Promises Kept. Remember that Darcy’s father is still alive in this book, and that Elizabeth calls her husband “Fitzwilliam.”
Click to read blurb and buy links.
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Arriving at the chambers he shared with his spouse, Fitzwilliam quietly turned the handle and entered the room, closing the door behind him with a soft click. Seeing that she was not in the sitting room, he strode across the room to the bedchamber, peeking in and smiling widely to see Elizabeth lying on the bed, covered with a quilt, soundly asleep. Creeping into the room, he removed his topcoat and waistcoat, draping them over a chair, before sitting and removing his boots. When he was done, he gently lay on the bed, lifting her blanket and curling up behind and around her. Holding her close, he nuzzled her hair, breathing in the lavender scent she favoured, before bestowing a kiss and laying his head behind hers.
The pair slept for a short while, Fitzwilliam awakening when his wife began to stir. Kissing her cheek and squeezing her tightly, he watched in fascination as she began to awake. This was a view he never tired of. She appeared so peaceful in sleep, younger than her sixteen years. With her poise and grace, she always seemed so much older when awake. As she became more aware, her nose twitched and her mouth opened and closed as though she were tasting something. Her eyelids began to flutter, and soon she began slowly blinking. Finally, she would open her eyes fully, see him watching, and smile as she stretched.
“Hello, my love.” Fitzwilliam leaned in to kiss her.
“Hello,” she replied. “Have you been home long?”
“Long enough to enjoy a short nap with my beautiful bride.” Another, longer, kiss accompanied his statement, along with a nuzzle of her nose with his. “Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, I did. I did not realize how exhausted I was. How was your business?” Elizabeth was a little wary of his response. She knew he was furious about last night’s incident, and she was nervous about what he might have done or said in response. She knew Papa George would do his best to keep Fitzwilliam calm, but an angry Fitzwilliam was a frightening one, and there was no telling what he could have said or done.
“It went well. We decided before we left that Papa would do the speaking, as I was, and remain, far too angry to do it myself. However, my disapprobation was clear, I believe. Miss Smith certainly appeared frightened enough when I finally did speak to her.”
Elizabeth laughed. “Did you turn the Darcy glare on her, my darling? It is a wonder she did not turn into a pillar of salt!”
Fitzwiliam chuckled. “If only I had such power, my love! Alas, she remains flesh and blood. However, her father has set severe strictures on her activities for the foreseeable future. Her opportunities to assault innocent ladies are non-existent, as she is restricted to Blackmoore House. She is allowed no visitors, no pianoforte, and no reading other than sermons her father selects for her. There is more, but the salient point is that she is being punished, and that you may expect her to call on you to apologize at some point, and to publicly accept you into her company, when she is allowed out again.”
Elizabeth was silent.
“My love?” He peeked around to look at her expression. “What thoughts are tumbling around in that gorgeous head of yours?”
“Will she mean it? If she is forced to apologize, how do I know it will not happen again? She implied, if it can be called that, severe consequences if I told you what happened, and I did just that.”
“Sweetheart, look at me.” He rolled her to her back, still held in his embrace, and looked her in the eye. “It was made clear to her by her father that, as my wife, it was your duty to tell me, especially when I noted something was wrong and inquired of you what it was. He further stressed that to threaten you again was to risk more sanctions. I also made it clear to her that I would ruin her socially if such a thing occurred, and believe me, I will. The Darcy name is a powerful one. I don’t know if you understand just yet how powerful it is. I certainly do not. Every meeting I attend with my father drives the point home to me that people listen to him, to us. We do not go pushing our will on others, but when the situation calls for it, we make sure we are heard. She will be sincere in her apology, I promise you.”
Elizabeth smiled tremulously. “What would I do without you, my Fitzwilliam? You take such good care of me. Thank you for being my defender and my protector. I love you.”
Her husband leaned down and tenderly kissed her lips. “I love you, Sweetheart. I will defend you to the death. You are my life.” He kissed her again, and the couple soon gave in to the passion that always seemed to flow when they were together.
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If you are not a NASCAR fan, you may not know this, but the broadcasters wear suits and ties, and generally they match. Along with purple shirts, I love it when the guys wear purple neckties. <3 There’s something about the color purple that draws me, and to see a guy in a suit with a purple tie is almost as exciting as a guy in cowboy boots, tight jeans, and a Stetson hat! <3 Take that love and add Mr. Darcy into the mix, and, oh, my! Turn on the fan and open the freezer, it’s getting HOT in here! <3
Click to view at Kohl’s website.
I started with Google again this week. I’m learning to like it more and more. LOL Here is my search results page. The top hits were ads for Kohl’s and tiemeart.com, and below them was an Amazon link. I decided to skip Amazon for now. We’ll look at it last.
Kohl’s was just under Amazon, and this is where the link took me. They offer ties in a whole range of patterns and shades of purple. They even have a couple purple bow ties! <3 It was difficult to choose a favorite, but I took my time and eventually, I went with this option. It’s a solid, dark purple and I love it! <3
The next listing under Kohl’s on my search page was The Tie Bar. This site also has some very nice choices, though I was a bit nervous seeing the almost-pink ones at the top of the page. I didn’t load all the options … I did click “load more” at the bottom of the page once, but when I have too many options, my ability to make a decision suffers. LOL This company also offers many shades of purple, from lilac to plum to eggplant. I ended up choosing this tie with dots on it. My heart wished to go with another solid color, but I was afraid that would be boring. 😉 Anyway, I liked the dots and thought it was a fun tie. Not that the others weren’t just as much fun.
Click to view at Tie Bar’s website.
Finally, we come to Amazon’s offerings. (affiliate link) As expected, there are some great options here, too. I’d describe some of them as “interesting.” LOL Like the Jerry Garcia Grateful Dead tie and the cosplay tie with what appears to be a dog skull on it. They offer this floral tie, as well. (affiliate link) I’m uncertain how I feel about that one. It’s very pretty, but it’s not terribly masculine, in my opinion. I’m trying to imagine what sort of guy might wear one. I can’t think of any in my circle of acquaintance who would, but clearly, some do or they’d not be produced. Anyway, I went with this tie. (affiliate link) It is also floral, but uses subdued, matching colors. It’s classy. 🙂
When I was married, my then-husband did not wear ties or suits, ever. Not even to get married in. So, I have never been able to shop for ties for a guy. Have you? Regardless if you have or not, which did you like best? One of my choices or something else?
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