Chapter 24
"Good morning, Lizzy." Maddy walked inside the kitchen where her niece was having breakfast.
"Good morning," Elizabeth smiled. Her aunt was walking like a duck. Not as much as Jane, but she was losing grace with every week and she found it very amusing. "Sit down, I'll make you some tea."
"I thought I wouldn't be able to get up this morning, I was so sleepy." She yawned.
"It's logical; we returned quite late last night."
Maddy smiled knowingly as Elizabeth sat across from her at the table. "We had a very good time, don't you think so? William is an interesting person and the Bingleys are very nice."
"I had a great time," she replied with a smile. "I was so happy to see Jane again."
"She's a lovely girl. I can imagine how tough it must be to be married to a movie star. They are so exposed, their privacy is intruded on constantly and she has to deal with his past every day. Not to mention when he travels abroad due to his job."
"Yes," Elizabeth sighed. "Jane told me a little about that. On top of it, she has to deal with his fans' reaction and now she has her own. She said she receives hundreds of letters from people she doesn't know, from psychos to admirers and that they hired a secretary to read and reply to their fan mail because she's afraid to find threats among them."
"Poor thing, I can imagine." Maddy paused for a moment. "And what about William? Did you change your mind about him? He was so attentive and nice with you. No one would guess that you had parted on bad terms."
"I don't know what to think anymore." She shook her head. "I'm so confused about him, about everything."
"Lizzy," her aunt said in a soft voice. "I haven't known you for a long time. However, I think I know you well enough. You are not the same girl I met a few years ago. Something is going on with you and I would like to help you. Do you want to tell me about what happened between you and William?"
Elizabeth let out a loud sigh. Maybe it was time to take all this out of her chest. "As you know, we worked together. While in Africa, it was great, I loved being his assistant, he's really incredible and I liked him, a lot."
With that introduction, she told her aunt the entire story. How George came into her life, how Charles harassed Jane during the African location and how it hurt her that Darcy had left her behind when they moved to the Canadian set. During the second round of tea, her relationship with George was explained and Elizabeth told her about her job in Kent, her ambivalent feelings for Darcy, Jane's pregnancy, and finally about their date, the fight and those so painful, stressful days until she quit and he left.
Then came the saddest part of all, the one that brought tears to Elizabeth's, and Maddy's, eyes: the discussion with Jane, her argument with her mother, the shock of learning who her father was and her departure to France.
"And here I am now," Elizabeth wiped a tear from her cheek. "I've been trying to escape from a reality that is already here and that can't be changed."
"Maybe you should learn to live with it, Lizzy."
"Yes," she sniffed and smiled. "Maybe." Aware of it or not, Elizabeth had now reached her turning point. It was the end of her suffering and the beginning of her new life. Her old wounds were already healed and she was ready to accept the new possibilities that all these changes were offering her.
"Do you still think William is responsible for everything that happened? For that thing about your father?"
"No, I know he's not, he never was. Horrible as it was, he only made a mistake, though I blamed him for everything else. I think that I just venting my frustration against him. If I didn't ask my mother before, it was my fault."
"No one is guilty here, that subject came into the light when it had to come. If you didn't ask before it was because you were happy with your life the way it was. The same happened with your mother. She did what she thought best for you. In spite of how difficult it was, she made some very wise decisions. Don't forget that she was only twenty years old at the time, Lizzy, she handled this the only way she could."
"I think you are right."
"Lizzy, I only joined this family a few years ago but I've seen the other side. Edward told me about that time, how his father wanted to help your mother and your grandmother forbade it. But when Ed tried to get closer to his sister, it wasn't easy. Your mother was still resentful about what her family had done and didn't want to accept Ed's affection. He almost gave up, but then Amanda realized that he was only fifteen when that happened and that there wasn't much he could have done. In the end, she learned that she should leave that behind if she wanted to bring that part of her past into her life again."
"I remember that time. I was so excited about you and Ed and I didn't understand why she was so reluctant."
"I guess she was just afraid of being hurt again, Lizzy." Smiling gently, Maddy asked, "And your feelings for William? You liked him, then hated him. What do you really feel for him?"
"Oh, Maddy, I don't hate him." Elizabeth looked down as sobs climbed up her chest. "But now everything is over! I've ruined it all, Maddy! He apologized and I ruined it all!"
"Why? What happened?"
"Yesterday he ... (hiccup) ... when we were alone in that room, well, I apologized for saying that about his sister and he forgave me, he was really generous, he said that I only made a mistake and that I should forget about that and he was really nice and then we changed the subject but then he ... (hiccup) ... apologized for that thing he thought and I was really mean to him ... do you understand? I was mean! ... I implied that I knew that he came to see me but that I didn't care! I told him that I was avoiding him! Could you believe that? ... And now he thinks I don't care about him and he'll never want to see me again."
"Why do you think that?"
"I made it clear to him." Elizabeth wiped her nose.
"Maybe you should talk to him, that is, if you really want to fix that."
"No, he probably thinks that I'm some kind of resentful bitch that can't accept a sincere apology when it's presented to her."
Maddy broke in laughter. "What an unforgiving speech, Lizzy! You are being too hard upon yourself and with him. I'm sure he'll never think that of you. The man is in love with you."
"Do you think so?"
"Do you think he would have invited us all for dinner, asked your best friend to come along so you could make amends and send me the script if he weren't? Open your eyes, Elizabeth, it's obvious. It took him five minutes to recognize me at Chesterfield. He's not doing all this just because we were classmates for four months, ten years ago or because Ed likes fishing."
Elizabeth smiled. Her aunt was right. "You never said a world about that script he sent you. Is it good?"
"It's a wonderful story, very intense and heartfelt. It's about a burlesque actress who falls in love with the director of the play. They have a passionate romance but everything is against them."
"And do they get together in the end?"
"I won't tell you." Maddy smiled knowingly.
"Maddy!" Elizabeth laughed.
"I must send William my comments first. I was thinking of sending them by e-mail, but why don't you go and give him the diskette? It's such a big file."
"Go? To his office?"
"Why not?"
Elizabeth's lips curled up in a hopeful smile. "Maybe that isn't such a bad idea."
"Mom, I'm leaving!" Lydia yelled from the door.
"Just a second!" Amanda came trotting from the kitchen.
"What?" her daughter said in an irritated tone.
"At what time are you coming back home?"
"I don't know."
"Six is your limit," she said firmly.
Lydia rolled her eyes.
"Six, and not a minute later, do you understand?"
"Yes, mom."
"Do you have enough money for lunch?"
"Yes, mom."
"That coat is too thin, Liddy, you'll catch a cold."
"I'm fine."
"Liddy, please, do as I ask, will you?" Her mother insisted.
Her daughter sighed out her fastidiousness and went to her room for her heavier jacket.
"That's better, darling," Amanda smiled condescendingly. "Go, here you have some more money, just in case you need it." She gave her ten pounds. "Be careful, will you?"
"Yes, mother." Lydia opened the door and stopped before leaving. "Mom, I'm staying at Mary's Friday night. Her father bought a new DVD player and we're renting a movie."
"Let's see." Her mother pursed her lips.
"But mom!" Lydia protested.
"I'll think about it, Lydia."
"Mom! All the girls are going, you can't do this to me!" Now she whined.
"I want you home by six. You show me I can trust you and you'll go."
"All right, mother. Goodbye." Lydia showed her most submissive, manipulative smile. Arriving early today was only a tiny little sacrifice she'll have to do to obtain a full night out. Six sharp -no, better five thirty- she'll be home, acting like the perfect daughter and her mother would consent the Friday night outing.
"Goodbye, Liddy, have a nice day."
Darcy's thoughts couldn't be directed to his work that morning. Since he arrived, he had been absentmindedly staring at the window, playing with a pencil, twisting it around and around and around.
He just couldn't resign himself to accept that this was the end. He had to try again. Something was telling him that he should, that not everything was lost that there was still hope. Not now though, she needed time to forget, to adjust and then he could try again. He knew where to find her now, he would wait some time and then call her and ask her out. Yes, maybe in a week or two. Or three.
A soft knock called him out of his reverie. "William?" Margaret popped her head in.
"Yes?" He glanced over his shoulder.
"Elizabeth Bennet is here to see you. She doesn't have an appointment, but she said that ..."
Darcy turned towards her. "Tell her to come in."
He sat back on his chair and took a deep breath in an attempt to control his heartbeat, which had turned uncommonly fast in only two seconds. The door opened, and she came in.
"Hi, William," she said with a shy, hesitant smile.
Not knowing how to interpret it, he replied a polite, "Hello, Elizabeth."
She stood in awkward silence, suddenly unsure of his reception. He was serious, imposing, not at all welcoming. She was beginning to regret having come to see him when he said a low,
"Sit down, please."
"Thank you." She felt a little more at ease with this invitation. Maybe it wasn't him, it was her own nervousness what was making her so scared.
Darcy was sure that she had a reason to be there and he was intrigued by it, though he was too proud to ask. "Do you want some coffee?"
"Oh, no." She smiled. "Thank you."
"So, what brings you here?" He showed her a polite smile.
Elizabeth was so anxious that instead of starting a nice conversation about how lovely dinner was last night or other irrelevant subjects, she went directly to the point that brought her here. She looked inside her purse and pulled out the diskette Maddy was sending him. "Here are Maddy's comments on the script."
Darcy took the diskette from her hand and placed it on the desk with a brief, "Thank you." He was at loss of what to do. If that was the reason why she came, he had nothing to say about it.
Elizabeth was losing her nerve with this stupid posture he was adopting and even more for her own stupid hesitancy in starting a normal conversation. But he had the right to act stupid and aloof, he was probably hurt because of what she said yesterday and this was her fault and she would have to fix it. She took a deep breath and said,
"William, last night, I made a mistake. I let you think that I would never forgive you, that I didn't like you, but that is not how it is." She looked at him, waiting for an answer or a comment or just a nod but there was none. "In fact, it's quite the opposite, you know. Yesterday," she reconsidered what she was going to say. "Forget about yesterday, it was all wrong. Well, not everything was wrong, you were very nice, but I wasn't. I acted wrong and I realize that I hurt you with what I said and you must think I'm crazy for saying what I'm going to say, but I want you to know that I really like you, a lot, and if by chance you decide to forgive me for being such an idiot I wouldn't mind seeing you again."
That was it, she said it and now she could only wait for a reaction, a blink, anything that would tell her that at least he heard what she said. But he only sat there, with his intense eyes fixed on her, with his elbows resting on the armrests and his fingertips pressed together in front of his mouth. Christ, he looked so much like the Director right now that she just wanted to run away.
After agonizing seconds, he said, "You 'like' me."
Elizabeth exhaled in relief at the sight of his smiling eyes. "Yes."
"I see. So then I can suppose that you are not mad at me anymore."
"Yes." She smiled.
"And that I can ask you on a date?"
"Yes."
"And that you'll accept if I ask." Smiling, he swung his desk chair from left to right, twice.
"Yes." She grinned.
"What about tomorrow night?" He grinned too.
"I'd love it."
He swung the chair again. In fact, he wanted to spin it around but he knew it he would look completely ridiculous. "So ... are you free for lunch?"
"Is that an invitation?"
He moved forward, leaning his elbows on the desk as a wicked smile illuminated his face. "Yes, it is. I was planning to go to Pemberley, to have lunch with Charles and Jane and Georgiana. I thought you might like to come along too."
She bit her lip. "I don't know, I'd love to go, though my aunt is expecting me home and I must take the car back and ..." she sighed, she wanted to go so it would be better if she'd stop finding excuses not to do it. "I'll call her to tell her that I'm going to be later."
Without replying, he gave her the phone. Elizabeth called Maddy and her aunt was delighted with her new plans.
"Let's go." Darcy rose and walked around the desk. "I'll follow you so you can return the car. I'll drive you back later."
Elizabeth was feeling happier than she had felt in months. Her heart was racing and her stomach fluttering. She just didn't know what to think about all this, it was too soon to reach any conclusion, they still had a lot of talking to do, but she was happy, more than happy that at least they were finally understanding each other.
They walked together the short distance towards the door, Darcy opened it for her to pass, but, unexpectedly, he took her arm and turned her around while pushing the door shut again.
"There is one thing I would like to make clear before we leave this office, Elizabeth."
She looked at him expectantly.
Darcy took one step closer and took her face in his hands. He leaned down, brushing her lips with his, very softly. He parted enough to change the inclination of his head and returned, kissing her mouth more intently. Just for Elizabeth to understand the nature of the kiss, with a gentle move of his mouth, he parted her lips and deepened the kiss. As she kissed him back, his tongue entered, chaste but decided and if, by chance, Elizabeth still harbored any kind of doubt about what his intentions were, a soft sigh and a barely noticeable slip of self-control -that occurred when his tongue touched hers- showed her this wasn't just a friendly kiss.
When they parted, they both had to catch their breath. The kiss had not been hungry, it remained gentle, but they both gave so much, they were so overwhelmed by this sudden turn of fate that they had to pause to think and realize that this was indeed happening and it was not just a trick of their overactive minds.
Too happy to be able to conceal it, Darcy smiled and gallantly opened the door for her. "Margaret," Darcy turned to his secretary, "We are having lunch at Pemberley. Please call and tell them we are on our way."
Being the wise and experienced secretary she was, Meg asked in her most casual voice. "Are you coming back? You don't have any meetings scheduled this afternoon."
This woman deserved an additional bonus. His tone was as casual when he replied. "I'm not. Good day to you."
"Good day." She smiled. "And good bye, Elizabeth."
"Good bye, Margaret." Elizabeth replied.
Darcy's hand was on the small of Elizabeth's back all the way to the parking lot. When they reached her car, just to prove to himself that this had been real, he gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Her smile and that hand that touched his cheek finally confirmed to him that, in fact, it was not just a dream.
"I stayed in France for almost a month, touring around with a backpack." Elizabeth sighed. "I don't know what was wrong with me, Jane; I just couldn't stay at home, I couldn't look at my mother, at anything that would remind me of Darcy or the movie or my father. I realized that I lived a lie for 28 years and just didn't know how to handle it. I think I needed time to process my new reality and accept it."
"And how do you feel now that you accepted that you are the daughter of John Lucas, the great British producer?" Jane sat back on the couch and accommodated her body more comfortably.
"Awkward." Elizabeth smiled. Now that that anger and that resentment had finally left her, she felt much better with herself and the entire situation. "I can't think of him as my father yet, but he is, and every time I remember something we did together, I can't help think that he was giving me hints. He had always been great with me and maybe I should keep those memories instead of the awful ones."
"Would you like to see him? I mean, as your father, to tell him you know the truth."
"I don't know. Maybe I would like to do it in the future, but not now. I think I'm not ready to face him yet."
"And what does your mother say about this?" inquired Jane.
"I haven't talk about this with her yet," sighed Elizabeth. "Though I understand now why she made certain decisions. Also, I don't know his side of the story, only mom's. The day she told me the truth I wasn't exactly in my best frame of mind and many things were left unsaid. For what I remember, she said that there was a time when he tried to revert things and she didn't allow it. But then, I don't know how or when it happened, so that is something I will have to find out."
"What's important now is that you are able to think about it without suffering."
"I also know I was very unfair with you, Jane. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did because you didn't tell me about the rumor." Elizabeth smiled at her best friend. "You made the decision you thought right."
"Do you know something, Lizzy?" Jane said softly. "When you left my apartment, I felt awful. I questioned myself for days. And even now, I think I did the right thing. You were right in getting upset, though I saw no point in making you suffer by telling you that. It was only a stupid rumor, something that was said only once and that no one ever repeated. You know how the guys are, they were always speaking nonsense. And they always treated you with respect, which proves that they never believed it, that they were just joking. Just imagine what the African location might have been like if had you known about it, Lizzy. You would have felt dirty for something that no one really cared about."
"Maybe you are right. Though William believed it."
"Yes, he did, but he never treated you differently because of that. You two made a great team; it was obvious that he liked to work with you, that you were special to him. And when he came to my apartment, looking for you, I realized that he really cared about you."
"Was it you who told him that he was mistaken about me?" Elizabeth asked her.
"No, he already knew about it. I only told him that, during the argument, you thought that he was talking about your birth. Poor Will, I think he wanted to kill himself when I told him what you were really thinking. Charles even teased him, saying he was a snob."
"Do you know how he learned the truth?"
"No," Jane shook her head. "I have no idea. But I can affirm that he was very upset because of that. He went to your apartment, and when he didn't find anyone there, he came to mine to see if I knew where you were. Then I gave him the address of your mother's flower shop."
"Yes, mom told me he wanted to see me. Though I don't know what they talked about, I was so angry that I didn't allow her to tell me," Elizabeth said with a guilty smile.
"William told us that he talked to your mother but that the meeting wasn't very successful. Though at least he made amends with Charles that day."
"Why, they had a fight?"
"For what Charles told me, William traveled to LA to tell him that I was pregnant. It seems that they argued, quite harshly. Charles may look like the amiable, outgoing fellow, but he has a temper. When Will came to my apartment, I thought they would start a fight, though they finally cleared up that misunderstanding."
"Oh," Elizabeth looked down. "So, how's everything going on with superstar Charles Bingley?"
Jane's face beamed in happiness. "He's great. At the beginning, when no one knew about us, it was a lot easier. We lived in my tiny apartment like two turtledoves. Chaotic but lovely. Fortunately, Will lent us his flat and we were able to be more comfortable. We are renting a nice big flat now, though we'll move to the States after the baby is born."
"You are?" Elizabeth couldn't mask her disappointment.
"The paparazzi are making our lives impossible. You don't know how it is here in Europe. Every time I open a window I see photographer hanging onto a signpost trying to get a picture of any of us. They can make you crazy. Charles says that they aren't so insistent in the States. I thought of a house in Los Angeles though Charles wants to buy a ranch and live in the country."
"And how do you see yourself as a cowgirl?" Elizabeth teased her friend. Jane wasn't exactly a 'rural' person.
"At the moment, I only see myself as a cow," Jane laughed.
"You are looking beautiful. Indeed, Charles looks happy. You didn't have faith in him but I always knew that he was in love with you."
"Yes, I guess you are right."
Jane's deep sigh raised Elizabeth's suspicions. "What?"
"It's just that not everything is black or white, Lizzy. Charles didn't earn that reputation in vain. I'm not saying that he's back on that road, but sometimes I know he misses that life. He's very domestic, yes, but he's also very extroverted, he likes going dancing or attending parties and events. I can't accompany him now and sometimes I fear that he would go and end up in an orgy or something. He says that he loves me, but I'm not looking exactly sexy lately."
"He'll never do that." Elizabeth tried to sound reassuring. "Don't you trust him?"
"I believe in him." Jane said seriously. "It's not only about trust, Lizzy. One of the things I love most about him is his honesty. He told me his fears. Sometimes the pressure is enormous. At parties, they are constantly offering him drugs and alcohol and sex. He keeps refusing them, but they insist because they don't believe he quit them. Fortunately, he talks about this, he shares it with me and he has even asked for help. William has been great in that aspect, too."
Elizabeth looked down and fiddled with her fingers. "It seems he has helped you a lot."
"He did," Jane smiled. "I know you'll say that he was the one that separated us in the first place, but what he did wasn't completely wrong. Well, it was wrong, but he was just doing what he thought best. And he fixed it immediately."
"Yes," she let out a loud sigh.
"And how are things between you two now? Last night you didn't seem completely at ease with each other, though today you two seem to be understanding each other much better."
A joyful smile appeared on Elizabeth's lips. "We are clearing up our differences."
Elizabeth's face was glowing in such a way that Jane didn't need to ask more about that. "And George? You never told me what happened to him."
"That's over. I broke up definitively with him when I returned from France. Our relationship was already dead long before that so it wasn't a great loss."
"And did you clear up that with Darcy, too? That was one of the reasons why you argued in Kent."
"I don't know if I should. It's a very delicate subject and I don't want to upset William, but if he asks, I'll tell him. There's not much to say about that anyway."
The men showed up at the living room at that point and the girls' chat was over. Charles, always solicitous and tender, fixed the cushions behind his wife's back and sat next to her. Darcy preferred one of the armchairs, the one that was closer to Elizabeth's. They had coffee together, Georgiana joined them and some time later Elizabeth announced that she should be leaving and reminded Darcy of his promise to drive her back home.
The first miles on the road were silent, awkwardly silent, as they were both a little shy with the other to start a comfortable conversation. Elizabeth was the first one to break the silence and began to speak about the things she still needed to know.
"William," she began quietly. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Yes, of course." He smiled at her.
She paused for a moment before asking. "How did you learn that you were mistaken? I mean, about that thing you thought, the ..."
"John told me." There was no need for her to mention it. He knew what she was talking about.
"You asked him that?" She cried, suddenly embarrassed that that subject would been discussed outside the circle that was already aware of it.
"No, I didn't." Darcy saw her expression and tried to calm her. "Do you mind if I park somewhere? I'm driving and I would prefer if we stop to talk about this."
"Sure," she said quietly.
He drove a few miles and stopped at a coffee shop. They found a nice table in a corner and they sat down to continue with their chat.
"Elizabeth," Darcy began when the waitress left after taking their orders. "I'll tell you everything, just promise you won't get mad at me, will you?"
Elizabeth grinned at his charming, pleading smile and took the hand that he was offering over the table. "I'll try."
Looking at her hand in his, he said. "Everything started when John told me to hire you. He said something and it just happened. I think that, at the beginning, I was a little ... angry that he was trying to impose someone in my staff so I became prejudiced about you. But then, I met you and I found you so ..." smiling, he looked up, "... lovely that I started torturing myself because of that." Elizabeth's lips curled up into a shy smile. "I was confused because you didn't seem the type of person that would do something like that and I couldn't understand why you did it. I still remember that moment when you followed me down the corridor, demanding that I tell you about your job. I was so impressed by you that I started doubting." He sighed, and he continued. "From them on, I started looking for signs that would confirm it or deny it, though I never found any. I know that I will sound ridiculous by saying this, Elizabeth, but I fell in love with you and that made me blind to what was obvious. I was so in love that I couldn't see the truth for what it was. I started hating John and myself for not being able to handle it." Darcy looked down at the hand he was holding and squeezed it gently. "That's why I preferred not to take you to Canada. I knew that I would not be able to control myself, that I would try something with you and was afraid that that would ruin it all, between John and myself and between us."
Darcy released her hand when the waitress served them their coffee. He stirred it slowly and continued with his story.
"One day, I decided I didn't care any more, that I should try. That's why I asked Richard to hire you."
"So it was you." She smiled. "I thought it might be you, though I wasn't sure."
He chuckled softly. "It was me. I called Richard in the middle of the night and I didn't stop talking until he agreed."
Elizabeth drank some of her coffee. "So, you didn't tell me how you 'confirmed' that you were mistaken about me."
Grinning, Darcy shook his head. "That was the most surreal moment of my life." Then, as he recalled those painful weeks that preceded that night, he turned serious and a frown knitted his brows. "When I left Kent, I was in very bad shape. I was beginning to realize how wrong I was about you, how selfish I had been about everything. I realized that I imposed on you by asking you to come to my place, when I kissed you, that I jeopardized your job and that I judged you without having the right to do it. I was quite ashamed of myself. One night I went to a party, at John's house. We ... he told me a story about something that happened many years ago. He ..." Darcy took a deep breath and said it. "John told me he's your father."
Mouth open, Elizabeth stared at him. He stared back, waiting for a reaction, but she only closed her mouth and looked down. Shrugging, she said, "He is. I learned that not long ago, in fact, right after our fight in Kent."
"I know, your mother told me." He squeezed her hand over the table.
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. It seemed that everyone knew everything except for herself.
He laughed at her expression. "She's a tough lady."
"She is. She tried to tell me about your visit, but I wouldn't let her."
"I guessed that was the case, so I stopped looking for you."
She smiled, a smile that mingled guilt and resignation and even a little of longing. Though they both knew that this time was necessary to heal those wounds, they both lost so much time and suffered unnecessarily because of her stubbornness.
They sat together in companionable silence for a while, drinking their already cold coffee, each thinking and reconsidering all what had been said until now. It was still too early to make conjectures about what would happen next, but they were here, together, making the first steps towards something they didn't know exactly what it was, but that they were both desirous to find out.
Darcy received a text message from Georgiana, on his cell phone, asking him if he was going to have dinner with them at Pemberley. Though he would have liked to ask Elizabeth to dine with him somewhere else, he knew he could not leave his sister on her own with his guests for so long. They understood each other pretty well, Charles and Jane had come to Pemberley more to escape from the paparazzi than to visit them but that didn't mean that Georgiana had to do the honors all by herself. He told her that he would be home soon and paid the check before leaving the cafeteria.
They sat inside the car and Darcy couldn't hold back his happiness anymore. Instead of turning the engine on, he placed both hands on the wheel and, grinning, he shook his head.
"What?" Elizabeth was curious about this sudden display of mirth.
This time, he laughed. He sat back and looked at her.
"William, what's going on?" She chuckled at this unusual behavior.
"Nothing, it's just that ..." This was so awkward. Their understanding was so young, everything had happened so quickly that he didn't know how to act. He decided to follow his heart.
Darcy raised his hand to her cheek and they both leaned in for a kiss. It started hard and happy and playful and turned slow, wet, deep and sensuous. It was a lover's kiss. A kiss full of expectations, of desire and wishes they wanted to fulfill. It was still too soon to think about tomorrow, to plan or to dream, but they were here and they had a lifetime ahead.
He took her home, to the Gardiner's, and parked in front of the house.
"I'll call you tomorrow to tell you when I'm coming for you."
"All right." She smiled.
"Bye, Lizzy." He moved closer to kiss her.
Her heart fluttered when she heard him call her that. "Bye."
After a brief and noisy kiss, they parted. She walked into the house, he drove home, both happy and smiling.