Chapter 12
The doorbell rang.
"Lydia!" Elizabeth yelled from her bedroom. "LYDIA!"
"What?" Her sister answered from the couch.
"Could you answer the door for me? I'm sure it's George." Accidentally, lipstick had stained her blouse and now she was looking for one that would match her skirt. The pale blue one wasn't ironed so she had to rush like a maniac to be ready on time.
Lazily, Lydia went to answer the door and told the man to come up stairs.
"Hi, I'm George."
"Hi, I'm Lydia, Lizzy's sister." She eyed him up and down, twice. "She's not ready, something happened with her blouse."
Instinctively, George's eyes dropped to her chest. The girl wasn't wearing a bra and at the age of sixteen, nature had gifted her with a very generous figure.
"Do you want to come in?" Noticing the direction of the man's stare, Lydia moved her body so he would appreciate her attributes better.
"Sure." He raised his eyes to meet hers. His smile broadened at the sight of her inviting smile.
When Elizabeth emerged from the room, Lydia was on the couch, with George, sitting in that way that made her look like a cheap hooker. She wanted to die when she realized that her sister was only wearing a white top (no bra under it) and those low cut jeans that barely covered her pubic hair and that made her belly fall over the upper button.
"Hi, George, forgive my delay."
"No problem, sweetheart, Lydia has been so kind as to keep me company until you were ready." George rose and kissed her cheek.
"Yeah, I see." Elizabeth looked disapprovingly at her sister. "Let's go."
"Bye, Liddy." He said before leaving.
"Bye, George." She replied.
George took Elizabeth to a small and very nice restaurant in St. Albans. The food was excellent, the atmosphere pleasant and everything was coming out in a very romantic way. Just like Elizabeth wanted it to be. For the first time since they met, Darcy was not part of their conversation and they found very interesting topics to talk about. George inquired about Elizabeth's youth, he learned how Lydia's father left them when they were only kids and he expressed his admiration at Elizabeth's mother for having raised two daughters on her own. For her part, Elizabeth was interested in knowing more about his activities, his expectations in life and found out that he traveled a lot and that he didn't have any family or working ties.
By the second course the throat exploring kiss was forgotten and she really began to enjoy his company. After dinner, they walked to his car. Once they were inside, he leaned in for a kiss.
What started a soft, romantic kiss -that Elizabeth gladly accepted- soon changed into a deeper, more explicit one. It didn't take long until his hand went to her knee and his lips left her mouth to graze her neck. By the way he was kissing and touching her, she realized that this wasn't just another passionate exchange inside a car.
"Why don't we go to my place?" He murmured behind her ear. His hand was moving up her thigh under the skirt.
"You live in London." She tried to sound casual. This was not to her liking.
"So? I can drive you back tomorrow morning." He insisted and nibbled her earlobe.
"I don't think so." She managed to say before his mouth covered hers.
Elizabeth's body tensed and she pressed it against of the back of the seat, trying to move as far away from George as she could go. She sensed him coming over her and removed his hand from her thigh, giving him a first sign of discomfort at this unwelcome invasion of her private space. It seemed that he got the message, because he eased the pressure on her mouth. He removed the hand from her leg and placed it on her waist. The kiss went on, now softer, but his eagerness returned once she relaxed a little. His hand began to caress her stomach and then moved up to fully cup her breast.
She was reaching a turning point with him now. She wasn't comfortable with his forwardness but she didn't want to blow everything with him right away. Elizabeth was a romantic and George had turned suddenly too sexual for her taste. She preferred to slow down things before it was too late.
"George," she pushed him away gently. "I think we should take this slower."
He raised his head while removing his hand from her breast. "I'm sorry, Lizzy, I was carried away."
"It's OK," Elizabeth forced a smile.
"Really?" He brushed her nipple with the back of his fingers. "You are so damn sexy, Lizzy. I'm having a hard time controlling myself."
Smiling uncomfortably, she moved his hand away.
Again he understood the message. "Do you want me to take you home?"
"Yes, that would be nice, thank you." She was getting nervous with his advances but didn't want a confrontation. She didn't know him well enough as to guess what would be his reaction if she started an argument. George was two times bigger than she was and she would surely lose the fight.
"All right then." Sensing her uneasiness, he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and tried to calm her down. "I'm sorry I scared you, Lizzy. It's that ..."
"It's all right."
"I would never hurt you." He cupped her chin.
She only smiled. Apparently, this was working and she started to feel at ease again.
George kissed her again, very tenderly, and started the engine. There was a moment when Elizabeth panicked on the way back as he took a completely different route to return to Meryton -through a very ugly neighborhood- and she lost track of where she was. Finally, they reached her house without major inconveniences and everything ended all right.
The farewell inside the car was ardent, at least from his side, as she was only waiting patiently for him to end the kiss, hoping that this time, he would be keep his hands off her breasts. Thank God this date was over.
"Lizzy," Lydia greeted her from the couch, "you came home early. I wasn't expecting you to come back tonight."
"Why?" Elizabeth frowned.
"Well," her sister said with an amused twinkle in her eyes, "it's been ages since you got any action. I don't understand how you can miss the opportunity to screw a hottie like George."
"Lydia!" Amanda called to her from the door of her bedroom, "watch your mouth!"
"Oh, mummy, it's just a joke."
"How was your date, sweetie?" Amanda asked her eldest daughter.
"Fine, mum."
Her mother realized that she wasn't telling the truth. "Do you want a cup of tea? I could have one too."
"It's midnight, mum." She replied.
"Midnight tea," Amanda said merrily as she took her daughter's hand and led the way to the kitchen. "Isn't it eccentric? Come, darling, tell me about this George. It's a pity I wasn't home when he came for you. Lydia said he is very nice, very handsome."
"Oh, mum," Elizabeth sat on a chair by the table when they were in the privacy of the kitchen. "I don't know what to think, one moment I like him and the next one I don't."
The elder woman served two teas and sat across her daughter. "Why? What happened, was he mean with you?"
"No, not mean, just too hungry for my taste."
"Then you shouldn't see him anymore, Lizzy."
"Mother, I'm 27 years old and George is the first man that has asked me out in ages. And he isn't that bad, when he's not kissing me. Anyway, I don't think he would ever call me again after I said that I wanted to take things slowly. He's 33, men his age usually don't have the patience to wait."
"Then you should dump him. If he is not willing to wait he ..."
"Don't worry, I know what to do, I'm not Lydia."
Amanda rolled her eyes. "Oh, your sister is going to kill me one of these days."
"What did she do now?" Elizabeth smiled at her mother's expression. She just loved to exaggerate things.
"Nothing, she did nothing, all day long, just lounging on the couch, like a vegetable. I don't know what do anymore."
"She'll grow out of it soon, mother, you'll see."
"I hope so."
Contrary to what Elizabeth thought, George did call her on the following day. He apologized for his behavior in that charming way of his and begged her to give him another chance. Elizabeth couldn't resist him and accepted his 'suggestion' of having lunch with her and her mother and sister at their flat. She just adored him for bringing that delicious chocolate dessert. The only thing she didn't like was Lydia's forwardness when in his presence, it was almost vulgar, though George seemed to care very little about it. Amanda loved him, Elizabeth was comfortable again and the day ended being a very pleasant one.
That Monday, she started work at Rosings. It took her a couple of days to adjust to the new routine and soon she turned into the efficient assistant she (and Richard) expected her to be. Her major difficulty was getting acquainted with the people and phone numbers and how the storeroom was organized, but Richard and his staff were extremely patient and helpful with her. Their offices and rooms were located in a separate wing of the company, exclusively for that purpose, so she had very little contact with the other people working at Rosings. Basically, her job was to control everything around him and allow Richard to do his job. She answered phone calls, she was in charge of readying the material for him and his team to edit, serve him coffee when he was tired and whenever she had the chance, she peered inside the editing room to see how things were progressing. They were all very nice and merry people and she just loved being there.
The only thing that bothered her about this job was the fact that she would see Darcy soon. She didn't know exactly when this would happen, she heard maybe in a week or two, and that produced some mixed emotions in her. What would be her reaction on seeing her ex-boss again? What would be his? Would he ignore her? Would he be happy to see her? Would she be happy to see him again after knowing what he did? One side of her was anxiety, anticipation, though the other was all rejection, knowing that his presence would only bring the unpleasant memory of a job she lost.
Ten cans labeled 'The Secret of the Mountain' containing a copy of the movie arrived that morning. Elizabeth was cataloguing them and about to take them to the storeroom when a tall and very classy woman entered the office. Without stopping to announce herself, this young lady passed by her with 'hi, how are you' and headed directly to the editing room.
"Miss, can I help you?" Elizabeth rose to stop her.
The woman placed her hand in the doorknob and turned around. "Yes?"
"I'm sorry, I'm must announce you, Richard is ..."
"You are new here."
"Yes, I ..."
"I'm Ann de Bourgh, darling, I always enter unannounced."
Ann opened the door and Elizabeth exhaled in relief when Richard exclaimed a cheerful 'Annie, what a lovely surprise'. Her first thought was that this Ann de Bourgh was an arrogant bitch. Then, after thinking on it better, she thought that bitchy Ann was the perfect match for the arrogant jerk William Darcy. They would surely have a bunch of tall and arrogant, bitchy children.
"Lizzy? Is that you?"
"Mum, I'm here!" Elizabeth yelled back from the door.
"Oh, sweetheart," Amanda came trotting from the kitchen, "how was this first week at work?"
"Fine. I'm tired." She exhaled heavily.
"And the ride back? Do you want some tea? Did you eat something before leaving? You look thinner, you are not eating properly, darling, don't you cook for yourself?"
"I'm fine, mother, it's just that my food doesn't taste like yours."
"Now, come to the kitchen. Tell me everything about this Richard fellow."
Elizabeth collapsed in the kitchen's chair and told her mother all what had happened during her first week at her new job. Even her encounter with Miss de Bourgh.
"How rude of her. Entering unannounced. Who does she think she is?"
"The owners' daughter."
"Well, that doesn't allow her to ..."
"I'm not going to worry about her, mother."
"And you say she's Darcy's girlfriend?"
"That's what George said."
"Oh, George," Amanda brightened. "Such a sweetie. He came here yesterday just to say hello. Can you imagine?"
"He came here?" Elizabeth was surprised that George would have come to visit when she wasn't home.
"He came to say goodbye, actually. Right after Lydia arrived from school, they practically arrived together. He brought me some chocolates, isn't he a darling? He's travelling to Edinburgh for the week so he came to say goodbye to us, to you. He said he'll call you from there."
"Oh."
"And Jane called you, too, twice. She sounded so anxious. She said that she called you at Rosings but that you had already left and she ..."
Elizabeth was already dialing Jane's number. Anxiety and Jane weren't something that she would see very often together so she was sure something happened to her friend.
"Hi, Janie." She said when her friend answered the phone.
"Oh, Lizzy. Thank God you called, I don't know what to do." Jane sniffed.
Alarmed, Elizabeth replied. "Jane, what happened?"
"Can you come over? I need to talk to you, Lizzy, please could you come?"
"Sure," Elizabeth was confused, it was obvious that Jane had been crying for some time. "I'll change and I'll go directly."
"Thank you."
Elizabeth hung up the phone and turned to her mother.
"What happened, Lizzy? Is anything wrong?"
"Jane. She was crying. I'm going to see her."
"Are you staying in London for the night?" Amanda inquired, concerned about Jane.
"Yes, probably. I'll call you if I don't."
"Go, darling, go, your friend needs you. Try to eat something there, will you?"
"Yes, mum." Elizabeth went to her bedroom to change her clothes.
Elizabeth changed clothes at lightning speed and was fortunate enough to arrive at the station only two minutes before the train arrived. An hour later she was knocking on her friend's door.
"Oh, Lizzy, thank you so much for coming. I don't have anyone to talk to, I don't know what to do I ..." Jane started crying again.
"What happened?" Elizabeth walked into the apartment and closed the door behind her. "Janie, tell me!"
Jane sat on the couch and buried her face in her hands.
"Jane, tell me what happened!"
"I'm pregnant, Elizabeth! I'm pregnant!" yelled Jane.
Mouth open, an astonished Elizabeth sat on the couch next to her. "What?"
"I'm pregnant." She repeated, fiddling her fingers nervously.
"But Jane, you don't even have a boyfriend, how could it be?"
"I am. That's all that counts. How am I going to face my family? What am I going to do?"
Elizabeth was desperately trying to understand how this could be possible. Jane was very much like her where sex was concerned. No sleeping around with strangers, intimacy when the relationship was established and sex as a complement of love. Now, Jane had not dated anyone since she met her so, how could this be possible?
"Janie. Who is the father?"
Jane swallowed and spoke in a small voice. "Charles Bingley."
"Charles?" Elizabeth couldn't believe her ears. "You slept with Charles?"
"I was drunk, you know, I didn't know what I was doing. Oh, Lizzy, I love him and he left! Do you understand? He left without saying goodbye! He said that he loved me and left without leaving me a bloody note! What am I going to do? My father will kill me when he finds out!"
Elizabeth tried to calm her. She could imagine how her friend was feeling. Jane told her that her father was some kind of despotic vicar. "Shhhhh. When did you find out?"
"Today. I had a two week's delay. I went to the pharmacy and got a test. It was positive."
"Maybe it was wrong, maybe it ..."
"I did three, all positive. And you know these things don't fail."
Elizabeth smoothed her friend's hair and inhaled before asking the dreaded question. "Did you think about what you are going to do?"
"I'll have this baby, I have no other choice, you know how I think about that." Jane had very strict religious convictions about abortion and terminating the pregnancy would never cross her mind.
"I know," Elizabeth sighed. "Are you going to tell Charles about it?"
Jane looked up at her friend. "No. He left, he never called back, he doesn't care about me."
"Jane, he has the right to know it. You must tell him."
"No, he'll come back only because of that. I don't want him to be with me because he's feels obliged."
"Janie," Elizabeth tried to make her understand. "Don't do this. I never met my father. I know how it feels. Don't you think I don't blame my mother for never telling me about him? I don't even know if she told him about me!"
"What if he doesn't care? What if Charles says it isn't his baby?"
"Charles would never say that, Jane, he knows you."
"But he left!" Jane started crying again.
"But he will come back, because he loves you." Elizabeth tried to calm her down.
"Oh," Jane buried her face in her hands. "I can't believe it happened. It was only a night. Only once."
"Well, it happened, and now we must figure it out. And you must tell him."
"Oh, please, Elizabeth, I don't think he even recalls my name. Remember, he's Charles Bingley, he slept with almost every woman in Hollywood, he even had a party when he reached two hundred!"
"One hundred." Elizabeth smiled. "I think you are exaggerating. Remember not to believe everything you read about movie stars. You told me that yourself."
"Yeah," Jane sniffed noisily, "I know."
"And you said he said that he loved you."
"I'm not sure, I was drunk, and he was drunk too, so I don't know if he was being sincere or not."
"Pissed or not, he said it, and I'm sure he meant it."
"I wish I could have your optimism."
"Now," Elizabeth said enthusiastically, "we must tell him. Do you have his phone number?"
Jane shook her head.
"His private e-mail?" She was sure that Charles Bingley' number wasn't in the LA phone book.
"No."
"I'm sure he wants to see you again. Maybe something prevented him from calling you, what if he doesn't have your number?" She saw her friend raising a skeptical eyebrow. "Anyway, we'll find him, we'll call him."
"How?" Jane cried in despair. "He's Charles Bingley for Christ sake! How am I supposed to contact a movie star? Through his agent?"
"Well, maybe you can send him an e-mail through his web site. He does read his mail, doesn't he?"
"No, a secretary answers his fan mail. He said he stopped reading them when someone threatened him with chopping off his penis if he slept with another woman." Elizabeth let out a chuckle and Jane smiled too. She was calming down.
"We'll talk to him, don't worry. He's still in Canada, from what I know, so maybe we can call Charlotte and ask her to tell Billy to give him your message."
Jane sighed. "I don't know, I don't want anyone to know about this."
"We don't have to tell her anything, just ask her to pass the message. Give me Charlotte's number. I'll call her." Elizabeth grabbed the phone.
Her friend panicked. "No! I ..."
"Jane, give me the number."
Jane did what she was told and then minutes later, their first attempt to contact Charles Bingley was accomplished. The subject in question was so delicate that the reason why the make up artist needed to contact the movie star was not transmitted to the messenger. Charlotte promised she would call her boyfriend on the following day because of the time difference between countries and was left wondering why Jane would want to talk to rakish Charles after avoiding him for a full month.
"Now, we can only wait to see what happens. I'm sure he'll call you back immediately."
"I don't know if I wish that or not."
Charles Bingley was not the same man he used to be. To the guilt and remorse he had been feeling since he left Africa, two other sentiments appeared to make his existence more miserable: longing and heartache. Now he was sure that his angel despised him, that she didn't forgive him, that she hated him. For weeks, he had expected her to call him but she never phoned. He even asked his agent to send him a list of fans that were e-mailing him, but no Jane Benedict from London or Texas ever tried to contact him. Only his work was keeping him from falling apart. The long hours on the set, the pressure of the deadline and the intense and dramatic action of the script were his only escape from his tortured heart. He missed Jane, he loved Jane and he didn't know how he was going to live without her.
Someone knocked on his door and he rose from the bed to answer it. "Carrie." He smiled faintly.
"Chuck." Caroline smiled too. "Can I come in?"
For a second, he hesitated, though he knew perfectly well that nothing would happen. If something positive came out from this Canadian setting was the friendship he developed with his co-star. "Sleepless?"
"I'm in need of a friend." Caroline said with a crooked smile.
She was looking tense, Charles noticed with a frown. "Come in. What's wrong?"
Caroline sat on his bed and Charles placed a chair to sit down in front of her.
"He's making me crazy, Charles. I don't know how to handle this."
"Who?" He took her hand. It was shaking.
"William, my agent, Luis, everyone!" She started crying. "All of them! William is pressing me so much, I don't know how to do it! I try, Charles, I'm trying very hard, but it's never enough for him!"
Charles sat on bed next to her and put his arm around her shoulder. He could understand her anguish. They were shooting some very dramatic scenes these days, one of them even involved violence against his co-star and that implied that her acting had to be very emotionally charged. Caroline was new at this and she didn't have the training that veteran actors usually have for these kinds of scenes. It was a lot harder for her and William, demanding more and more, was pushing her to her limit to obtain a good a performance.
"It's all right, honey. Everything will be fine." Charles kissed her temple. "Unfortunately, this is how it works."
"And my agent! You don't know what he came up with now!" She wiped her eyes. "He says that this movie will be a huge success and that the gossip media are avid for information. He's trying to convince me to have an affair with you so he could feed the vultures with juicy news. He says it would be a great promotion and that it would skyrocket my career."
"Funny," Charles chuckled. "My agent suggested the same. 'Why don't you have an affair with Carrie? She's beautiful, I'm sure it won't be a problem for you, you shagged so many others', that's what the bastard said."
"What?" she gasped, horrified that someone would suggest such a vulgarity in such a crude way. At least her agent had elaborated his suggestion more subtly. "That man is a pimp! He is treating you like a whore!"
"That's exactly what I said to him. He didn't believe I was being serious."
Caroline started laughing. "There's no business like show business, is there?"
"It seems we are prisoners of our own choice, Caroline." He hugged her with brotherly affection.
"I wish I could be at home. I'm sure my dad would have killed Arnold for suggesting that." Caroline looked at him with smiling eyes.
"Maybe we can drop Arnold and Mike on a desert island and get rid of both our agents at the same time." Charles smiled too.
"That would be nice."
"Or maybe we give them what they want. Allow them to spread the rumors about a romance. That would get them off our backs for a while."
"Do you think so?"
"The rumors will start by themselves anyway. I'm sure that as soon as we step on a carpet together the press will say that there is something going on between us. We only have to say the magic phrase for them to start speaking silliness."
"And that is ..." Caroline raised her eyebrows.
"... we're only good friends!" They both said at the same time and then they laughed.
"Well, we can avoid each other at parties, maybe that will help."
"No, that would only raise their suspicions. They'll think we are avoiding each other only to conceal our romance." Charles shook his head. "With or without our agents, the reporters will talk about us as soon as we start promoting the movie. We don't even have to look in love for them to invent something. You know how avid they are for news, no matter if it is true or not."
"I know." Caroline looked down. "So what are we going to do?"
"Nothing," he sighed, "just what we have to do. Attend some awards together, go to a few shows and show ourselves together at a few parties. All that paraphernalia that is needed to promote the movie."
"I guess we have no choice." Caroline noticed the sadness in his eyes. That old playfulness of his had been gone lately. "Charles, what's wrong with you? You're not the same."
"I'm tired, and under pressure, just like you."
"Are you not going to tell me?"
He shook his head. "Go to bed."
"Thank you for listening to my rambling, Charles." Caroline smiled. "You are indeed a nice person."
"So are you, Carrie."
"Good night." She rose from the bed.
He walked her to the door. "Good night, sweetie."
Charles closed the door behind her and leaned his body against it. "Why Jane? Why don't you love me?"
"Billy!" An angry Charlotte yelled at the phone.
"Charlie, my love, how are you?"
"Where the hell have you been? I've been calling you for two days!"
"Missing me, lovely?"
"Of course I do, you bloody idiot, couldn't you call me back?"
"I couldn't, babe, we are shooting all day long and I couldn't find a moment to ring when it wasn't midnight there."
"How are you doing?" She asked sweetly. She couldn't stay angry for more than two seconds.
"I miss you, honey. I'm crazy for you. I've been planning for days what I'm going to do to you when I'm back, Charlie. I'm desperate. I want you, I want you."
"Tell me, you stud. Tell my how much you want me." Replied Charlotte in that state of constant hornyness she acquired whenever she talked to Collins.
"I'll rip your blouse with my teeth, right there at the airport, I'm going to ..." Billy enunciated a long series of dirty things he was going to do to her as soon as he was back in England. Charlotte was delighted.
"I can't wait, you animal. When are you coming back?"
"In five days."
"Oh," Charlotte purred, "I don't know if I'll make it until then, I want you now."
"Charlie, don't do that," Billy whined, "you are getting me hard."
Charlotte fanned herself. Since they discovered they were in love, they had been behaving like two horny rabbits. "Oh my, I have to go. You always turn me wild when you say those things."
"Then good-bye, my little whore." He said lustfully.
"Just one more thing," she said, "can you give Charles Bingley a message?"
"Bingley?" Billy's jealous-possessive side emerged. Why would his Charlotte want to talk to the movie star? "What kind of message?"
"Jane Benedict wants to talk to him."
"Oh," he relaxed on learning that it wasn't Charlotte's message he should pass. "Jane? Make-up Jane? The one he tried to shag and that refused him for a full month?"
"Yes, Jane."
"I don't know, Charlie, Jane is a nice girl, and this Bingley is such a scoundrel. I saw Caroline going into his room the other night. Do you think it's wise to get them together?"
Charlotte thought for a moment. "You are right. It's not. I'll tell her that Charles is inaccessible, that you couldn't pass the message because he already left the set."
"Right. Good bye, babe, I'll be touching myself for you." Collins said playfully.
"I'll do the same, you animal, I'll be thinking of you."
"Whore." He snorted.
"Stud." Charlotte laughed.
"No, Charlotte said Billy couldn't pass the message." Jane told Elizabeth.
"Drat," Elizabeth swore under her breath. Jane had called her to tell her the bad news about attempt #1 to contact Charles. "We'll need to find another way. You don't happen to have Luis' number, do you?"
"No, Lizzy, not Luis, he'll tell everyone. I don't want to be on the cover of The Sun tomorrow morning."
Elizabeth could almost picture the newspaper cover. Jane's picture and the title: 'Seduced and abandoned by movie star'. "You are right, Jane. What about Sam?"
"Hmmm, do you think so?" Jane wasn't very acquainted with him.
"No, you are right with that one too." replied Elizabeth. "I know what to do. Let's call Darcy's office. Ask his secretary to give him the message."
"Meg?"
"She'll never ask why you need to contact him. You said that you get along fine, that you always conversed with her."
"Yes," Jane said dubiously, "but this is different. You know how secretaries are."
"Do you want me to call her?" Elizabeth suggested.
"No, Lizzy, this is something I should do myself, I'll call her."
"All right, tell me what she says to you, all right?"
"Yes, bye Lizzy, and thank you for your support, you are the best friend that exists."
"Thank you, Jane," Elizabeth smiled, "give me a ring after you talk to her, will you?"
"Sure. Bye."
As Jane predicted, Meg didn't make things easier for her. Being only a secretary, she couldn't contact the actor personally unless she was passing a call from her boss and she wasn't allowed to give anyone his private number either. The Canadian location was over and for what she knew, the actor was back in LA and leaving to start another production soon. Meg wasn't all negativity though. She promised Jane that she would tell Darcy about her request and remind him that he should pass this message whenever he talked to Charles. That was all she could do and Jane, resigned and defeated, decided this would be the last attempt to contact the father of her child.
For the following week, Richard worked in the editing by himself, readying the first cut for Darcy's revision. Miramax was pressing with the release date, scheduled in less than four months time and now they were running against the clock. Their goal was placing 'The Secret of the Mountain' in the theaters before James Cameron's new movie was ready and this way avoid competing against it for the public's preference. The launch campaign and merchandising was being designed and Ann was negotiating with the media the shows where the actors would appear at the appropriate time. The London Philharmonic Orchestra was being convoked to record the sound track and Elizabeth heard somewhere that Robbie Williams was composing the love song for the movie. Rosings Post Production Studios was all adrenaline.
That Friday Elizabeth was very anxious to return home. George had called her to tell her that he was coming back from an unexpected trip on Saturday afternoon and that he was anxious to see her again. To celebrate his return, he invited her and her family to have lunch and spend the day together in the park. For once, and having not seen him since he left for that trip to Edinburgh two weeks ago, Elizabeth was wishing they would be on their own.
She still had a full day ahead before being able to leave so she decided to concentrate on her work. A noise at the door distracted her from her computer and her eyes saw William Darcy's tall frame entering the office. Her heart started racing.
"Elizabeth. It's good to see you again." He approached her with a smile.
"Hi," She replied, still surprised by this unexpected meeting.
"How is Richard treating you?"
"Very well, thank you."
There was a moment of silence when he just looked at her, his smile never fading. "So we'll be working together again, that's nice. Is Richard in?" He pointed at the editing room.
"Yes, he doesn't know you're coming, I'll tell him you are here." Elizabeth rose from her desk.
Darcy placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Don't trouble yourself, I called him on his cell phone telling him I was on my way. He's expecting me."
She sat down again, speechless. At that moment, Richard showed up and addressed his cousin in his severest voice.
"If you continue to alter my schedule, you'll edit this all by yourself, do you understand?"
Darcy shook his hand and then they embraced, slapping their backs noisily. "Age is making you soft."
"And you, old chap, are getting fat." Richard retorted. "What did you eat in Canada? Grizzly bears?"
Darcy patted his stomach. He indeed gained a few pounds while in Canada. "I'll lose some weight when I'll beat you in Squash."
"Are you threatening me?"
"You know I never threaten."
"Then we'll duel rackets tomorrow." Richards laughed. "Elizabeth, please send us two coffees to my office."
"Sure," she looked at Darcy. "Strong and black?"
"Light, with milk. You taught me that, Lizzy, don't you remember?" Replied the director.
The gentlemen turned and continued with their easy conversation on the way to Richard's office while Elizabeth thought about that last comment. Drinking his coffee with milk was a healthier habit, but changing it because of her?
Before they could close the door, Elizabeth heard Richard saying,
"What is that Lizzy thing you called my assistant?"
"Your assistant?" Darcy laughed, "You are wrong cousin, she ..."
But they closed the door before she could catch his reply.
Darcy's sudden arrival left Elizabeth even more confused that she already was. He looked so different. Maybe, as Richard pointed out, these additional pounds were making the difference, though, for her, physically, he looked exactly the same. Correction, he was looking more handsome. Something about him has changed, his air, his attitude, he was a lot more relaxed and at ease. Was it the fact that the filming was over? That he was back home? She had seen glimpses of his playfulness and good humor before -quite dry, sometimes-, but never like this. He was not forgiven yet for not taking her to Canada, but she couldn't deny that this change in his attitude was very becoming in him.
The gentleman stayed in Richard's office all afternoon and Elizabeth only saw them a couple of times when they asked for something to drink. The day was coming to an end and she wondered how long would they stay working in there. She was grabbing her bag to leave when Ann de Bourgh came into the office.
"Is William in there?" She went directly to the editing room.
"No, in Richard's office, he ..." The woman passed by her.
At that same moment, Richard and Darcy came out of the office. "Will, you're back." Ann smiled. "Hi, Richard."
"Hello, Ann." Said Darcy.
The scene happening in front of her left Elizabeth puzzled. For what she knew, Ann was Darcy's girlfriend, though their meeting was the least passionate she had seen between a couple that was supposed to be in love. From what she could guess from their conversation, these two had not seen each other for over a month and Ann kissed Darcy's cheek with the same warmth she would kiss her dog. The only demonstration of affection from Darcy's side was a squeeze on her arm. Ann inquired about the movie and about his sister as if asking for a weather report and he asked about her mother more out of politeness than out of real interest. Those two weren't in love. Maybe George's information wasn't that accurate.
"Richard, I'm leaving. See you on Monday. Have a nice weekend you all." Elizabeth swung her bag over her shoulder.
"Thank you. Have a nice weekend too, Elizabeth." Richard replied.
Darcy repeated what Richard said and Ann only said a 'bye'. She walked away, listening to Ann inviting the two men to have some coffee in Lady C's office because her mother was 'dying' to see Darcy again. They agreed and Elizabeth heard their footsteps coming behind her. When she turned to call the elevator, she glanced over her shoulder to see what they were doing. Ann was walking in between the men, chatting with Richard. As for Darcy, he was looking down, with his hands on his pockets. He seemed pensive. He lifted his eyes just in time to meet hers and smiled slowly, Elizabeth did the same and he turned to answer something Ann had asked him.
Darcy was definitely more handsome than George.