Responsibility and Resentment by Melissa Anne

One honest conversation changes everything—but responsibility and resentment may decide the rest.

What if Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy spoke honestly to one another in Kent, clearing away their misconceptions before he ever made his proposal?

With pride softened and prejudice reconsidered, happiness seems far nearer than either of them once imagined. But at Longbourn, Mr. Bennet has made an ill-fated attempt to resolve the issue of the entail, only to create a far greater danger for his family—and for Elizabeth in particular. Worse still, he has reasons of his own for encouraging Darcy and Elizabeth toward a swift marriage before either of them can return to Hertfordshire and think better of it.

Darcy and Elizabeth may find happiness together sooner than in canon, but their future is far from secure. Mr. Bennet’s manipulations leave wounds that cannot be easily dismissed, and Mrs. Bennet’s conduct threatens to make a difficult situation worse.

As some accept responsibility and others refuse it, resentment grows in the spaces left behind. Darcy and Elizabeth must decide whether honesty, affection, and duty are enough to overcome the circumstances that brought them together—or whether the very choices meant to secure their future will endanger it.