She married for love. London says he married for a bet.
When Fitzwilliam Darcy overhears a country girl defending him to a room full of gossips, before she has even seen his face, the proudest man in England loses his heart in a single evening. Within four months, Elizabeth Bennet is Mrs Darcy, and she has never been happier.
Then they arrive in London.
An anonymous paragraph in a scandal sheet claims that Mr Darcy of Pemberley married a penniless squire’s daughter to win a wager at White’s. Invitations vanish. Old friends look away. Hostesses turn their backs on the stairs. And as the whispers grow crueller, someone begins printing secrets that only an intimate could know, until even Georgiana’s long-buried past is no longer safe.
Elizabeth could doubt him. Darcy could retreat to Pemberley. Instead, they take on the ton together, hand in hand, following a trail of forged letters, false friends and paid informers to a saboteur far closer than either of them imagined.
But evidence alone will not silence London. To prove to the whole of society that his marriage was never a jest, Mr Darcy must place the most public wager of his life.
The Darcy Wager is a sweet-to-warm Pride and Prejudice variation featuring:
A devoted Darcy who never doubts his wife
A married couple who face every storm together
A scandal mystery with red herrings and a satisfying unmasking
Surprising allies, including Lady Catherine and even Caroline Bingley
Love letters, a midnight ride, and one unforgettable grand gesture
Low-to-medium angst, a few tasteful love scenes, and a guaranteed happily ever after