Chapter 31
"Lizzy!" Amanda called her daughter, "are you taking your black boots?"
"Yes!" she answered from her bedroom. "But you take yours 'cause you'll need them! We'll probably go out so let's be prepared."
"Liddy! Do you have everything ready?" Amanda asked her other daughter.
"Yes, mom." Lydia was lounging on the couch, not willing to join her mother's and sister's hysteria.
Mother and elder daughter closed their bags and brought them to the living room. "I think this is all right," said Amanda. "We are only staying for ten days so it should be enough. Now, Liddy, I want to talk to you."
Lydia rolled her eyes and turned down the volume of the TV.
"Lydia," Amanda began, "I already said this but I'm going to repeat it, just in case you didn't understand. We'll be guests at William's house. According to what Elizabeth says, it's big and they have servants, but that doesn't mean that they are serving you. So you'll make your bed after getting up and wash your underwear, all right?' A 'humpf' was the only reply she received. "And try to keep the bedroom neat. Also, try not to complain about things. There will be other guests so you behave if you know what's good for you."
Lydia crossed her arms over her chest. "You are treating me as if I were a bloody idiot."
"No, Liddy, I'm just warning you."
"I don't know why I'm going to that place. What am I supposed to do there? He's Lizzy's boyfriend. I'll be bored to death in his 'country house' with his 'other' guests. "
"Lydia," Elizabeth joined her sister on the couch. "Pemberley is a beautiful place. It has a huge park, a gym, sauna, and many other things. You'll be able to use the computer and chat with your friends, we'll tour around and ..."
"Wow," Lydia said mockingly, "that's super interesting."
Elizabeth held back her irritation. "William said that there are a few recitals we can attend and we can also go to Manchester to do some shopping. Also, he has this fabulous projection room and you'll be able to watch all these movies ..."
Lydia looked away.
"Lydia!" Amanda jumped into the conversation.
Her sister continued. "As for the guests, I already told you that Jane and Charles Bingley are there. Jane is pregnant and keeping in repose so try to be helpful."
Lydia was very excited to meet the super hot superstar, Charles Bingley, but that wasn't something she would admit so she did her best to conceal it and held onto her rebellious and disagreeing posture.
"Also," Elizabeth sighed, "William's sister, Georgiana, is there too. She's deaf, so please try to act normal when you first meet her."
Her sister's reaction was exactly what she expected because this time Lydia expressed her annoyance vehemently. "What? The only one that is close to my age and she's deaf? Are you and mom doing this to torture me? This is supposed to be my vacation, too!"
"Lydia!" Amanda jumped, "Stop it! You are grounded so this isn't your vacation. Consider this your PRISON!"
Elizabeth knew best not to argue with her so she did her best to convince her. "She can read lips and speak with her stomach so you'll be able to talk to each other. It's not difficult to understand her, you must only give a try."
"Yeah," Lydia rose and went to her room. "I'll spend the holidays with your pregnant friend, your boyfriend and his handicapped sister. Bloody good vacation this is going to be."
"Don't you EVER say that again, do you understand?" Elizabeth went after her, enraged by that remark about Georgiana. She grabbed her sister by the arm and spun her around. "You should be showing a little more gratitude for what William did for you. Or did you forget in what condition he found you that night or what would have happened had he not come for you?" Lydia didn't answer. "Maybe you have not learned to respect yourself, Lydia, but you will learn to respect the others, in the same way they are respecting you. So you show us that you are able to behave like a well-bred person and we'll treat you like one. All right?"
Lydia freed herself from her sister's grip and went to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.
Elizabeth ran her hand through her hair in frustration and collapsed on the couch. Amanda sat by her side and patted her hand. "Don't worry, Lizzy, everything will be fine. She's just playing difficult."
"I hope so." She sighed.
The doorbell rang and Amanda went to open it. "That's surely William."
Amanda opened the door and smiled at the handsome man standing outside. She kissed his cheek and allowed him inside. His eyes were immediately drawn to the couch where Elizabeth was sitting and winked at the sight of her tense smile.
"Make yourself comfortable," said Amanda as he walked towards her daughter, "I've some things to finish."
"Hi," he bent to give her a kiss on the lips and sat next to her.
"Hi." She smiled while he tucked her hair behind her ear. She instantly began to feel better.
"Is everything all right?"
"Yes." She sighed.
"Liar."
"No," Elizabeth shook her head, "really, I'm fine."
"Did Lydia complain about this vacation?" He instantly guessed what was going on.
"I don't know what's wrong with her." She nodded and he chuckled.
"Well, it's understandable. She'll spend her vacation with your pregnant friend, your boyfriend and his sister. She's surely excited about meeting Charles, though probably she'll never admit it, but as for the rest of us, I'm sure she thinks we stink."
Christ, he only skipped the word 'handicapped' and he would have repeated exactly what her stupid sister said. "She should learn some civility, William. I understand that she won't be able to see her friends, but this is a great opportunity for her."
"Don't worry, we'll show her that she's wrong about us."
He succeeded in making her smile.
"Just relax and enjoy it, will you?" He gave her a brief kiss. Elizabeth leaned in, the kiss grew deeper and he parted from her lips with a murmur. "Hmmmm, how I missed this."
"I missed it, too."
"Now," he pulled back, "are you ready to go? I want to make it to Pemberley before tea-time."
"Mom!" Elizabeth called Amanda while smiling into his eyes. "Let's go! Liddy!"
The Bennet clan got in motion and the final preparations for their trip to Pemberley began.
That day Darcy learned something new: trying to leave at one time with one or more women carrying Gardiner genes was an almost impossible task and, in packs, it was even worse. Each time everything seemed to be ready, one of them would remember something they were leaving behind. Or there was something missing, or they would go back for one last checkup, realizing that they were indeed forgetting something or they would simply return to the apartment to go to the bathroom and reconfirm that the window was closed.
The first half an hour on the road wasn't the most comfortable one. Three of the occupants were conversing about their plans and expectations for the holidays while the fourth stared out of the window with an expression that could be described as bored and displeased. Lydia wasn't happy with the recent course of events and didn't have any problem in making it obvious to the rest, even Mr. Darcy was part of them. She participated very little in the conversation, only making monosyllabic answers when addressed directly and smirking at the comments she didn't find worthy of being replied. That, obviously, only made the others in the car ignore her, which, obviously, only made Lydia more isolated and fastidious.
Once at Pemberley, the luggage was unloaded from the car and Darcy escorted his guests into the house.
"Lizzy," He stopped Elizabeth before they entered the house letting Amanda and Lydia walk ahead in the company of one of the maids.
"Yes?"
Darcy took both of her hands in his and kissed her knuckles. She was smiling before he spoke because it was obvious that he wanted to ask her something and was making all this fuss to soften her heart to his petition.
"I readied a room for you, in case you wanted to sleep on your own, but I'd really love it if you could stay in my bedroom with me. It's quite big and comfortable, the tub is large, we can share it, and I also made some room in my dressing room for your stuff too."
He was looking so charming, asking like that, but at the same time, it was so obvious that he knew that she would agree, that she wanted to scream 'yes!' but she kept him in suspense for a while. "And what about this other room? Is it large too?"
"Not much, it's a sort of attic over kitchen, quite ugly, no bathroom, no heat, you'll probably freeze in there, and the bed is made of hay. But at least there are a few cockroaches there to keep you company."
She wrapped her arms wound his neck. "I only need an evil stepmother and it will be just like Cinderella."
His hand went to her butt and spoke close to her mouth. "Why, don't you want to sleep in the wicked Prince's quarters?"
"Did you say that your tub is large enough for both or us?"
"It's huge."
"Then, my wicked Prince, I think I'll choose your room."
The newcomers were shown to the living room where the introductions to the rest of the party were made. The Bennets already knew Jane though they were all surprised of how big she was right now. Even Elizabeth, who had seen her only a few weeks ago, was amazed by the growth of her belly. Charles was there, too, reading a script while Jane knitted something for the baby.
Amanda's and Lydia's reactions to the actor's presence were exactly what Elizabeth had expected. Charles was sexy and stunning and just the sight of him was enough to get a woman's hormones in uproar. Amanda's flutters were so obvious that it was embarrassing and Lydia, while looking more shy, couldn't take her eyes off him and the only thing she could think about was when she could take a picture of them together so she could show it to her friends. Georgiana joined them soon after that and the attention was turned towards the youngest Darcy sibling.
As Elizabeth feared it would be, the meeting was awkward. Her mother was trying so much to act friendly and normal and overlook Georgiana's hearing deficiency that she ended being exaggerated in her modulation and politeness. On the other side, Lydia didn't give up her self-sufficient attitude, looking as uninterested as she could and barely said a word, acting as if the entire situation were above her. The Darcy's didn't seem to mind, they had lived situations like this one too many times so they did what they always did on occasions such as these: act as if nothing had happened.
They had some tea and then Darcy accompanied the newcomers to their rooms so they could refresh themselves and rest before dinner. Lydia and Amanda were sharing one of the biggest guestrooms, the one that had the bathroom inside while Elizabeth's stuff was sent to Darcy's bedroom. Amanda was all praise with her accommodations and Lydia was all indifference.
"What a lovely room, William!" Amanda cried while pressing her hands over her chest. "Such good taste, everything is so nice!"
"Thank you, Amanda. The bathroom is over there." He pointed.
"With bathroom! Lydia, we have our own bathroom. Don't you think it's great?"
"Yes, mom." Lydia rolled her eyes. Her mother was acting as if this were a bloody five-star hotel. She was praising the house and the host in a way that was sickening.
"And Lizzy, where are you going to sleep?"
Elizabeth knew her mother well enough as to guess that this question was destined to know if she was going to sleep in Darcy's bedroom or not. Not that she minded, but Amanda always wanted to know about her daughter's nocturnal whereabouts and, though her Elizabeth was a very responsible girl, she liked to know if she was taking care of the 'details' so there wouldn't be any 'accidents' she could regret later.
"I'm staying in William's room."
Amanda's eyes went from her daughter to the man standing next to her. "I see."
This was not the first time that Elizabeth slept with a man, Amanda knew that well enough, but it was the first time it happened 'officially', that is, that her daughter would sleep with one while she was living with her under the same roof. It was like an official declaration that she would be having sex with him and this felt strange, for both of them. Mother and daughter exchanged glances and it was Elizabeth who was the one that looked away with bashful cheeks.
"My bedroom is at the end of the corridor." Darcy interjected on seeing the awkwardness that had suddenly taken over them. "Please, don't hesitate calling me on the phone in case you need anything. My extension is on that list by the phone." He pointed at the nightstand.
"Oh, thank you, darling, but we won't importune you, will we Liddy?" Amanda said lightly and Lydia humpfed her reply. "Now, shoo the two of you. We'll unpack, go and enjoy yourselves."
Elizabeth nodded and the couple left the room and headed towards Darcy's bedchamber. With every step she made towards his bedroom, Elizabeth felt this unpleasant sensation growing in the pit of her stomach. While, initially, the idea of staying in his room had sounded exciting, as they were getting closer to it, she started thinking of all the reasons why she shouldn't be sharing his room and his bed with him, at least not so openly. Too many things were going on at this moment for her to feel completely at ease with him, with this 'vacation' at his house or with herself. She sensed that, as a couple, they barely knew each other, and she feared that this premature cohabitation would ruin what they were just beginning to build. What would she do once they were on their own? What if he turned 'sexual' right now? On top of it, her mother was acting as if this were some kind of prize she had won in a cereal box, praising Darcy and the house as if it were a posh hotel. And if Darcy decided that he didn't like her relatives anymore? Her mother could be a pain sometimes. What if Lydia did or said something to embarrass her? She already did something once and that didn't affect her relationship with Darcy, it only made it more solid, but if something happened while staying in his house, it would be terrible. And Georgiana? They treated her like a freak today and she feared that it would turn worse. Why did she agree to come?
But there was another reason for her nervousness -the one that was making her really crazy- and that was her mother's proximity while staying with Darcy. She knew perfectly well that Darcy wasn't the kind of man that would be inhibited by her mother's presence, he didn't have a problem in kissing her or touching her butt in front of her -or her father-, but she did. Right now, she couldn't imagine herself having sex with him with her mother a few yards away. Knowing her mom the way she did, she knew she was going to look for proof of her doings in the morning. And Lydia was there too. Oh, God, Lydia. One of the reasons why they came to Pemberley was to keep her sister away from temptation and show her some moral values. But no, here she was, sleeping with her new boyfriend not 20 yards away from her and her mother. Why did she agree to come?
They finally reached Darcy's room and he, gallantly, opened the door for her. Her bags were already there, a servant had probably brought them so now she felt there was no escape. Shyly, she entered and looked around.
Darcy's room was very much like him. It was spacious, imposing, definitely, a man's room. Like in his London apartment, the bed was huge, making it obvious that he was someone who needed lots of space. It was decorated in a very classic style, with mahogany and dark fabrics. Every single item inside the room had a purpose and it was free from artifices and adornments. Of course, there was a flat screen TV, a VCR, a DVD player and a dozen movies piled on a side. As he had told her, he rarely read in bed, he usually did it in the adjoining room -the one he showed her the first night at Pemberley- so there were no books in it. She could see that this was his room and only his and for what she could guess, no other woman had been allowed in this private domain before.
"Does this one meet with your approval?" He teased her.
"There is nothing I would not approve," she answered with a tense smile.
"I'm glad you like it, because I want you to feel comfortable in it." His eyes followed her tour around the room.
She only smiled and looked away, continuing with her examination of his chambers.
"I made some room in the closet for your things and the bathroom is over there." He showed her. "In case you need more space, you tell me, all right?"
"Thank you," she nodded. "It's a very large room, I think that is as large as our apartment." She walked around slowly.
"I don't think so." He said with a twisted smile. "This wing had three separate rooms and I adapted them into a larger bedroom and the study you have already seen. I don't like to be confined in small areas."
"It's very spacious." Elizabeth peered inside the bathroom. As he said, it was huge.
He took a deep breath and joined her where she was standing. She had her back to him, so he embraced her from behind and bent his head to kiss her neck. Elizabeth squirmed herself out of his embrace the moment his lips touched her skin and walked towards the closet.
"I think that this space should be enough. I didn't bring too many things." She met his eyes for a second and averted them almost immediately.
"Great." He replied briefly and looked down.
They were both pretending a calmness they didn't feel, trying to act casually as if this big step forward in their relationship wouldn't be affecting them. Though concealing it very well, Darcy was as nervous as she was and he was at a loss of what to say or do at the moment.
"Shall we go down?"
She nodded, not looking at him.
This was getting worse. Darcy walked towards the door and was about to open it for her to pass but he stopped there, frowning while staring at the doorknob.
"Elizabeth," he asked after a moment of reflection, "You are not having second thoughts about coming, are you?"
"What? No! Where did you get that from?" She exclaimed with exaggerated joviality.
He looked up and met her eyes for only a moment before she looked away. "Jesus, you are."
Elizabeth looked up again and sighed. Then, she walked towards him and put her arms around his waist while resting her head on his chest. She hugged him tightly.
Darcy exhaled and kissed the top of her head. His hands rubbed her back. "All right, little thing, just tell me what is going on, please."
"Oh, Will, I don't know what's wrong with me. What if this doesn't work? Everything is happening so quickly that I ..." She couldn't go on, because neither her thoughts or feelings were clear to her.
There wasn't much Darcy could say so he just replied a soft, 'it's all right' while holding her against his chest. This was happening too quickly for him too. Pemberley was special for him, it was what he considered the 'official' Darcy residence and, with the exception of Ann, he never brought a woman to this house with him before and even at that time, they used his old bedroom because this 'master suite' wasn't ready yet. He wanted so much for everything to be perfect but, instead, everything seemed strange. All his life he had been independent and self sufficient, not used to sharing or adjusting his life to the others around him, not even with Georgiana, as it was usually she who was the one that adjusted her life around his. And now, two weeks after starting his relationship with Elizabeth, she was going to share his bed and live in his house with her mother and sister, all at once, for the holidays and he wasn't sure he would be able to come through this without inconveniences. Would he have the patience to deal with all them at the same time?
"If this gives you some comfort, I'm nervous too." He said.
Elizabeth pulled back so she could look at him. "So you are having second thoughts about this, Mr. Darcy." She said archly.
"I'm not used to this either, Elizabeth," he replied with evident uneasiness. "I don't want everything to fall apart just because I want to be with you."
"Do you think it will fall apart?"
"I hope not," he smoothed her hair. "We must only try to do things the best way we can."
Smiling, she nodded.
"Shall I take your bags to the other bedroom?" He asked softly, fearing she would agree, but knowing that asking her was the right thing to do. "Maybe it's for the best, I don't want to overwhelm you or ..."
"No, I'll stay here, with you. Just be patient with me, my mom is not far away and I'm feeling quite nervous about sleeping with you with her so close. "
Darcy repressed the frown that almost wrinkled his forehead. He would never have imagined that Elizabeth could feel inhibited by her mother's presence. He couldn't tell her that she shouldn't let that affect her, that would surely make her even more nervous, so he preferred to keep the mood light about the subject and teased her.
"Does that mean that I can't kiss you or touch you when she's near?" He pouted.
"Oh, yes, you can." She giggled at his pitiable performance of a man in pain. "You already kissed me in front of her, quite explicitly, so I don't think I'll have a problem with that."
"Really? I can?" He raised his eyebrows.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Yes, Will, you can kiss me."
Of course, he kissed her, but not in the way she had expected. She thought he would give her a soft, sweet, reassuring kiss that would help her to relax but he didn't. Instead, he chose to give her a kiss of the shameless kind, one of those kisses that always succeeded in making her pulse quicken.
"So kissing is all right?" He introduced his hand inside her blouse.
"Oh, Will, don't do that." She breathed.
"What?" He teased her ear with his tongue.
"That." Oh, boy, he was brushing her nipple with his thumb and she couldn't think clearly. And his leg, it was pushing its way between hers, so muscled and strong that she ...
"Why, do you think your mom would approve of us doing this?" He grabbed her ass fully and held her firmly against him.
"I'm not ... quite sure."
While Darcy thought that seducing her would be a nice trick to help her overcome her embarrassment, soon this game turned against him and ended arousing him in the same way it was arousing her. Elizabeth was rocking her pelvis on his thigh she was sighing against his mouth.
"And this?" This time he pressed her body where he wanted.
What the hell, screw her mother. "I don't give a damn to what she thinks."
"Good, 'cause I'm planning to do so much more to you tonight that if you think you can't do it with her so near, I'll have to take you to some other place."
"Where?" She breathed.
"Here." He carried her to his bed, throwing them both over it with a loud thud. From then on, there was a frantic wrestling where they kissed and groaned and rolled on the bed from side to side.
"Is your trauma over or shall I go a little further?" He asked breathlessly.
The man was between her legs, hard as a rock, and all she could think about was, "how further is further?"
"Much further. Can we? I ..." Darcy lowered his hand in between their bodies, searching for the button of her trousers. "Can we just get rid of this?"
Elizabeth gasped when he lowered the zipper. "Will, that's too ..."
"Please."
"But, my mom will know that we ..."
"She won't, I promise. I won't leave any marks on you ... " The little blood that was still in his head rushed down to his loins the moment Elizabeth's fingers started unbuttoning his pants. So further was all right. Resolutely, he rose on all four and looked down at her. "Let's finish this quickly. She won't even realize we are missing."
When Darcy said quickly, it was quickly. He crawled on the bed to get a condom from the drawer, helped her to remove her trousers and entered her right away. He groaned a 'tell me when' and moved wildly within her until her pleasure came. At the cries of 'now! Oh, Will now!' he let go to rest on top of her.
"I think that this little trauma of yours is already cured." He smiled down at her. This was the best part of all, staying in the warmth of her embrace while she caressed his hair. They were surely a sight, both half dressed, he with his trousers down to his knees and Elizabeth wearing her socks.
"Well, sir, " Elizabeth giggled. "You just applied some bloody good shock therapy."
"Wait until tonight and I'll show you what shock therapy really is."
With Christmas so near, the conversation during dinner was mostly about their plans for the festivities. The Gardiners had agreed in coming, something that made Amanda very happy and they were all very excited -except for Lydia, who was still looking indifferent- about how everything was going to be.
While Darcy was a genius putting miles of celluloid together so they would make sense and produce the most fantastic movie, maybe because he didn't like it, he was incapable of organizing a social event. Usually, when he needed to host a social meeting, he would hire someone to do the planning for him, a caterer, or a member of his producing staff, but, on this occasion, he delegated that task to his sister. But the youngest Darcy sibling was very much like her brother in that aspect as nothing referring to domesticity seemed to be in Georgiana's gene map. So, on seeing two well disposed guests who had a good expertise in the kitchen, she didn't hesitate in asking for their assistance in the planning. Of course, Amanda and Elizabeth agreed immediately and together with Jane, the women chatted incessantly about the festivities.
The Bingleys were the first ones to retire so Jane could get some rest and soon the others did the same. They all said their good nights and parted to their rooms.
"Well," Darcy sighed as he closed the door of his bedroom, "everything seems to be going along fine. Are you feeling better now?"
Elizabeth wrapped her arms around his waist. "I am. Thanks to you."
"No," he kissed her nose, "I have nothing to do with this. Now, little thing, do you want me to help you to hang up your clothes?" he patted her bottom.
"Would you?" She beamed.
"Sure," he smiled and took her hand, leading the way to the dressing room. "You didn't bring too many things," Darcy hung the last hanger.
"No," she shrugged and turned to fetch a smaller bag. "I only brought what I thought necessary. I'm not moving in, you know."
"Pity," he muttered.
"What?" She spun around.
"Hmmm?" He made an innocent face.
"I heard you." She smiled knowingly.
"So if you heard me," Darcy placed his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him, "why are you asking?"
She bit her lip. He was looking at her with such intensity that she felt like a puddle in his arms. "Just wanted to know if you were being serious or not."
"I told you once, Lizzy," he cupped her cheek with his hand, "I'm serious about this."
She wanted to ask him how serious he was but she was almost afraid of hearing him say what his eyes were telling her. Was she ready to hear it?
But Darcy wasn't the kind of man that did or said things by halves and, true to his nature, he made his intentions known. "Elizabeth," he saw her big eyes looking at him and didn't hesitate. "I know that there are certain steps that we must take before turning our relationship more formal, so please don't feel pressed by what I'm going to say," he saw her swallow and went ahead. "But when I say I'm serious I mean very serious."
"Very serious?" her heart pounded loudly inside her chest.
"Very. You'll think I'm crazy for saying this right now, but I'm planning to marry you one day." He smiled at her stunned expression and said, "And no, this is not a proposal, just a warning, so you get used to the idea, Miss Bennet, 'cause when the right time comes, I'm going to ask you to marry me and I won't accept a 'no' for an answer."
Elizabeth's astonished face melted into one of love and tenderness. "I don't think there's anything I would refuse you, William."
"Good," he gave her a playful pat on her bottom, "I see that you know what's good for you. Now, my sweet, let's go to bed, I know you're tired."
"I am," she sighed as he put his arm around her shoulder as they walked towards the bedroom. "I was so nervous today about all this. Mom can be a pain sometimes and Lydia is not showing us her best side since she arrived."
"I don't know why you're saying that about your mother, Lizzy, I think she's great." Darcy unbuttoned the first three buttons of his shirt and pulled it over his head. He didn't unbutton the cuffs so the sleeves got stuck around his fists and he struggled to remove them. When he realized he couldn't, he walked over to Elizabeth so she would do it for him.
"Do you think so?" She released his hands from their prison and the shirt was thrown towards a nearby chair.
"She's amazing." He kicked his shoes off and he sat on bed to remove his socks which, one at the time, flew across the room to rest on top of the untidy pile of clothes that was being formed on the chair. Missed one of the shots. "She's very strong and I like that she's always enthusiastic about everything."
Elizabeth smiled. She was relieved that he liked her mother so much. "Yeah, mom is great. My only wish right now is that Lydia would be changing her attitude. She's so displeased about everything and is doing nothing to conceal it."
"Do you think she's still thinking about George?" He looked up at her.
"I don't think this is only about him."
"No?" he frowned.
She sighed heavily. "I know that all what happened lately is also bothering her. I'm dating you while she had just lost her boyfriend, I'm rebuilding my relationship with my father and she has nothing."
"So you think she's jealous."
"I hope I'm wrong, but I think she is."
He realized that she was upset about this and extended his arms, telling her to come close to the bed, where he was sitting. She joined him and stood in between his legs. His hands, as always, stationed on her bottom and he gave her a kiss on the stomach.
"Don't worry so much about this, she'll adapt."
Elizabeth smiled down at him and smoothed his hair. "Yes, she will."
"Aren't you going to change?"
She stepped back so he could rose. "I was waiting for you to use the bathroom ..."
"No, you go first."
"Oh, no, you go. You're surely be quicker than me so why don't you do what you have to do and then I'll go."
Darcy raised an eyebrow. He would never understand why is that women always needed so much preparation before going to bed. For him, it was much easier: undressing, peeing, washing his teeth and it was done. On the other hand, he only spent one night with Elizabeth and one of the things he adored about that night was how she smelled of soap when she joined him in bed.
"All right." He kissed the top of her head and walked towards the bathroom while scratching his ass cheek.
Darcy did what he had to do in less than five minutes and left her the bathroom all for herself. Of course, Elizabeth took her time in readying herself for bed. She washed herself carefully, combed her hair, brushed her teeth and checked that everything was in place. Only then, she joined him.
The smile that illuminated Darcy's face when he saw her coming could only be described as one of pure joy. He lifted the blankets for her to lie down next to him and put his arms and one leg around her so if she thought of moving her body one inch away from his she would not be able to escape from this 'octopus' embrace.
"Your feet are cold." He put his foot over her feet so he would warm them up.
"I was barefoot. I forgot my slippers."
He rubbed her arm, which was cold too. "I can't believe you returned to the apartment twice to fetch things you forgot and you left your slippers behind."
"I'm almost sure I brought them. Maybe they are in mom's bag."
"If not, we'll get you a pair." He moved a little to kiss her lips. The kiss grew deeper and Elizabeth arched her body to his.
"Mmmmh," she was still savoring this kiss in her mouth, "Is this part of the shock therapy you mentioned?"
"Just part of it," His fingertips were caressing her side.
"And what does this therapy consist in?" She asked seductively.
"Well, I have this sort of crazy piston that is very good to exorcise embarrassment from traumatized girls ..."
"Piston?" Elizabeth giggled.
"It's not exactly a piston," His voice was all that was playful and wicked. "It's much bigger and thicker. Quite an impressive piece of machinery."
"And how do you apply it?"
Darcy's hand moved to her thigh, pushing the hem of her satin nightgown up to her hips. His mouth was close to her ear and sent tickles all through her body every time his lips brushed the soft skin of her cheek and neck. "First, we must to do this warming up thing, so the piston can do his job without difficulties. Those are called," he spoke while tracing the border of her knickers, "lubricating maneuvers. The piston works better over slippery surfaces."
"Oh, and how are you going to ..."
The phone on his nightstand rang and both Darcy and Elizabeth looked at each other with surprised eyes. Darcy removed his hand from the place that had been keeping it busy and extended his arm to answer. "I'm sure it's for you," he said.
"For me?" Elizabeth was stunned. "It can't be. Who ..."
Just before picking up the phone, Darcy said, "Lizzy, no one would call me in my room after I retire unless the house is in flames and I don't hear any fire alarms ringing. It's for you. Hello?"
Elizabeth looked at him expectantly.
"Hi, Amanda," Darcy looked at Elizabeth with an expression that said 'I told you'. She rolled her eyes.
"Oh, William, I'm sorry importuning you at this hour. I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
"No, you are not." He lied.
"Are you sure?"
"No, Amanda," he wanted to say 'I was just seducing your daughter' but he preferred not to. "Everything is all right, we just got into bed. Do you want to talk to Elizabeth?"
"Oh, no, I don't think she'll know how this works."
"What?"
"The remote. It's not working. I tried to turn the TV on but it didn't work so I did it manually but now I want to change the channels and it's not working either. I don't know what's wrong with it."
While Elizabeth thought that her mother's interruption was completely tactless and embarrassing, Darcy found it excessively diverting. "Are you sure you are not using the VCR's remote?"
"What VCR?"
"The one that is under the TV." He said.
"We have a VCR in the room? I didn't ..." There was a moment of silence where it was obvious that Amanda was searching for the VCR. "Oh, look! There it is!" Amanda cried in surprise. "Lydia! There's a VCR too!" Now she was talking to her youngest daughter, who had already seen the VCR and was saying 'I told you'. "Liddy, why don't you see if there's another remote somewhere? There is? I don't know why I didn't see it, before, how embarrassing, calling William to his room, just for that. See if it works ... yes it does ..." The sounds of the TV filled the receiver. "No, no, Liddy, I want to watch the news, but tomorrow you can ask William if he can lend you a couple of movies for you to watch. Which one? ... I don't know, why don't you ask him? Oh, Lydia, don't be silly, he ..." she paused and realized that Darcy was still on the phone. "Oh, sorry, William, we found it, the TV is working now."
"I'm glad it does."
"Please forgive me for bothering so late."
"No problem, Amanda. Please call us whenever you need anything." He smiled and Elizabeth raised her eyebrows.
"Thank you, darling, you are such a sweetie. Good night."
"Good night." He hung the phone. And, turning to Elizabeth, he said. "Remind me to buy a One 4 All remote control for your mother."
"What? For my mom? She'll never know what all those buttons are for."
"No?" He moved their bodies so Elizabeth was lying on her back and he was partly over her. He eased the strap of her gown off her shoulder. "Then I'll have to teach her how to use it, so the next time she doesn't interrupt the 'piston' therapy again."
"I don't think it will work," Elizabeth purred as his lips kissed the soft skin of her neck and down to her breast. "She never learned how to use the one at home."
"Then I'll have to find some other way to keep her busy." He removed the last garments off their bodies. The only thing that stood in between them was the protection he had just donned. "I need your full attention on me if I want this therapy to be successful."
"And how long would this treatment last?" The sensuous undulation of their bodies started.
"A lifetime, Lizzy."
Amanda hung up the phone and sighed. "William is such a dear, don't you think so, Lydia?"
"Yeah," Lydia slid into bed.
"Your sister is so lucky for finding such a wonderful man, a caring man. He seems so much in love with her."
Now the youngest Bennet girl rolled to her side, showing her back to her mother.
Amanda crawled into bed and scanned the channels with the remote. "Yes, very lucky indeed, I'm so happy for her."
The lights were off and Amanda turned down the volume so she would not bother her daughter's rest. But Lydia wasn't able to sleep, there were many, many things going on inside her head right now. First, she didn't know what to think about all this. When she learned they were coming to Darcy's house, she had been angry, disappointed that she would not be able to see her friends during the break. But then, she realized that it wasn't that bad. She liked it. And Darcy, she liked him too. He was being very nice with her, talking to her when everyone ignored her. She also liked how he treated her sister, he was very considerate and respectful. As she meditated about them, she couldn't help comparing him with George and how he was with her. George was all sexual advances while Darcy was all tenderness with her sister. Even when they showed up back in the living room today, with that 'just fucked' expression in their faces, they were all sweetness. She counted four times when Darcy kissed the top of Elizabeth's head while they sat together on the couch. And the way they looked at each other, it was pure love. When George looked at her, she knew he was only after a shag, especially that night at the cottage, the night that Darcy rescued her. And Charles Bingley was super cool too. It was amazing that a man that was so attractive would be so in love with his wife when she was looking like a whale.
Amanda finally turned the TV off and Lydia closed her eyes. Darcy had all of Robbie William's concerts on DVD. Cool.