Part I: Letters
Prologue
He got off the plane and headed directly for the airport bar. His
business trip had not gone well - in fact it was one of the worst he had
ever taken. The company he had planned on buying decided not to sell at
the last minute. They believed that they didn't need his company to make
them more money. Well, they will learn that they were wrong.
He ordered himself a whisky and sat at the bar staring at the worn
surface. He was tired. After arriving from Hong Kong, his flight had
been delayed for three hours before leaving LA International. I should
have stayed the night in LA instead of flying immediately back to New York.
He received his drink and threw it back in one gulp. He didn't care if
he got drunk. His driver was waiting for him with his luggage. All he
had to do was find Jeffrey and get into the limo. He ordered another drink.
He had been having a bad year. Or more like a bad couple of years. His
mother had died two years ago and his father a year later. That was when
he took over the company - Pemberley Electronics. He hated the company.
He had wanted to be a writer. But no, he had to keep the family legacy
going.
It didn't help matters that he was also the guardian of his
fifteen-year-old sister. She was having her own problems. The Jerk had
to hurt her. The Jerk always had to hurt someone, especially if it would
hurt him too. He hated the Jerk for hurting his sister. Why can't he
just leave my family alone? He finished his second drink in the same
fashion as the first.
He ordered another drink and turned from the bar to look around. There
weren't many people there. It was still early, but it felt very late to
him. How long have I been awake? Forty-four hours?
He looked at the floor and saw a piece of paper with some writing on it.
He leaned from his stool to pick it up and almost overbalanced. He got
the paper in his grasp and straightened himself on the stool. He looked
closely at the paper. It read: EB 105 Longbourn Ave. Keene, NH 03431.
His intoxicated brain took a while to understand what the words meant.
It's someone's address. Someone named EB who lives in NH. Where's NH?
I've never heard of a place called NH.
"New Hampshire you idiot."
The bartender stared at him strangely as he placed the third drink
before him. He gulped it down and asked for another one. The bartender
refused to serve him a fourth drink. Damn bartender! He placed the paper
with the address in his pocket and left the bar. He headed for the exit
where he found Jeffery and his limo waiting for him. He got into the
limo and stared into oblivion the whole way home.
Upon arriving home, he stumbled up the stairs to his rooms. He had
decided he was going to write to EB to return the paper, which he found
was a luggage tag. He got out a piece of paper and a pen and sat at his
desk.
Dear EB,
I write to you because I found your luggage tag on the floor of the
bar at JFK. I thought you might like it back. I was just wondering
how your luggage tag came to be in the JFK bar, but now I realize
that you must have been there at one point. I was also in the bar.
I went there to drown my sorrows. I had just come back from Hong
Kong. Those bloody Asians don't know what they have lost. They
didn't want my help. Well they will find soon enough that they will
need it. Too bad for them that by that point I will have moved on.
I flew in from LAX before I went to the bar. I hate LAX. They made
me sit in those miserable plastic chairs for THREE HOURS. Damn
LA-ians. Why can't people just be on time! They even had the nerve
to seat me next to an obnoxious man who would not shut up the whole
flight. I believe he was trying to get me to convert to Catholicism
or something. I'm already Catholic. He wouldn't stop sweating
either. He emanated a stench that made me so nauseous that I was
quite glad I hadn't eaten anything in over twelve hours. (I refuse
to eat airplane food.) To my utter horror I found out that he is a
clergymen for a small chapel on my aunts estate. I guess I won't be
visiting my aunt anytime soon.
I am now running out of paper. I wish you well and hope that you
don't mind that I have written.
Sincerely,
FD
He placed the letter and the luggage tag in an envelope and wrote the
address upon it. He got a stamp and placed it on the envelope. He left
the envelope on his desk and then went to his bedroom and fell asleep,
fully dressed, without even pulling back the covers on his freshly-made bed.
Chapter 1
Fitzwilliam Darcy woke up with a horrible headache. He groaned in pain
as he sat up. His head was spinning. He looked at the clock on his night
stand and saw that it was ten twenty-eight.
"Dammit!"
He stood up quickly and saw black. He stayed still until his head
cleared and he could see again. He stumbled into his bathroom and into
the shower, then turned on the water.
"Damn, that's cold!"
He quickly turned on the hot and lowered the cold. He washed himself and
then stood under the relaxing torrent of hot water. He thought about
what he had to do that day. Groom, dress, breakfast, phone calls to
Europe, lunch with Georgie, go over financial report with Roger, meeting
with Richard, dinner with Charles, charity event for something I don't
remember, call to Tokyo, bed. His day was packed and it wasn't even
a workday.
~.~
As Fitzwilliam, known as William by friends and family, shrugged into
his suit jacket, something nagged at him. I'm supposed to do
something. He looked around his bedroom to see if anything would
remind him what he had forgotten. He then walked into his sitting room
and looked around there. As soon as he saw the mess of paper and pens on
his desk it hit him. I wrote a letter to a complete stranger. He
walked over to the desk to throw the letter away but did not find it. He
searched the floor and the wastebasket. It was not there. He looked
around the room and saw that Mrs. Reynolds had placed a breakfast tray
on the low table before the sofa. Did Mrs. Reynolds see my letter and
mail it?
He bolted from the room and down the stairs. He quickly made his way
into the kitchen, receiving a stunned look from the downstairs maid.
William found Mrs. Reynolds talking to the cook.
"Where's my letter?" William asked suddenly, disrupting Mrs. Reynolds
and Mr. Larousse's conversation. When Mrs. Reynolds didn't respond
quickly enough, William continued. "Where's the letter that was on my desk?"
"I mailed it. I thought you wouldn't mind as it was addressed and stamped."
William groaned.
"Is something wrong, sir?"
"No, no. It's okay."
William left the kitchen and went to his office. He had work to get
done. He would forget about the letter. EB will think he is crazy and
nothing will come of it.
~.~
Jane Bennet grabbed the mail from the mailbox and walked up the walkway
to the front door of the two-bedroom house she and her sister had
bought. It had taken them several years to save up enough money for a
down payment on the house but they made it and now they had a beautiful
home and a not-so-bad mortgage.
She entered the house and set the mail on the table. Elizabeth, who was
drinking her coffee at the table, sorted through the mail.
"We got the cable bill. And the phone bill. Oooh the EMS catalogue is
here. Hmm... I got a letter from someone in New York. The return address
says FD. Do we know anyone named FD?"
Jane was pouring herself a cup of coffee while her sister went through
the mail. She leaned against the counter and looked at her sister.
"It's probably a credit card offer."
"Maybe... It's hand written."
"If you want to find out who it is from why don't you open it?"
Elizabeth did just that. She took out one sheet of paper and read it.
She laughed a couple of times. She then refolded the letter and took her
luggage tag out of the envelope.
"Someone found my luggage tag at JFK and sent it back. I think he was
slightly intoxicated when he wrote the letter. It doesn't always make
sense."
Jane smiled. "It was very kind of him to return your luggage tag to you."
"Yeah, but it's just a piece of paper; easily replaceable."
~.~
Elizabeth lay awake in her bed. She was debating on whether she should
respond to the letter from FD. She thought that the writer, who she
believed to be male, had some things on his mind that he needed to vent.
I wonder if he has someone to talk to. If he did would he have
written that letter to you? He appears to have been drunk while writing
the letter. Maybe he is lonely and he drinks to forget the loneliness.
He saw your address and by writing to me he felt less lonely. I will
write to him tomorrow. With that settled she fell right to sleep.
~.~
The weekend after his return from Hong Kong, William found himself
sitting alone in his study. He was trying to read a financial report but
he could not focus. He felt depressed and that something was missing
from his life. When he got into these dark moods, which happened more
frequently of late, he would do nothing but stare out the window and
think about how much he wished to be happy. Why am I not happy?
Mrs. Reynolds entered his study with lunch and the mail on a tray. She
placed the tray upon his desk after moving the abandoned papers aside.
William turned from the window and sat at his desk.
"I'm not all that hungry."
"You will eat your lunch," Mrs. Reynolds responded in a stern matronly
voice.
"Yes, madam!" William called after her as she exited. He heard her
mumbling about how he treated her with disrespect. William smiled. He
had known Mrs. Reynolds all his life and when his mother died after his
sister was born she became a mother to him.
William picked up the sandwich from the tray and took a bite. He then
sorted through the mail. It was all bills, except one. There it was.
William had been dreading seeing this letter but it was now in his hand.
EB had written back to him. He tossed it in the wastebasket, deciding he
didn't want to read it, and went back to eating lunch.
By the time William had finished lunch, the discarded letter was nagging
at him. He wondered what EB had written. Finally he grabbed the envelope
from the wastebasket and opened it up. There were two sheets of paper.
Dear FD,
Thank you for returning my luggage tag. It would have been
horrifying if I had also lost my luggage (especially without the tag).
I am sorry to hear that you did not have a pleasant flight from LAX.
I don't know how you were able to survive through the flight with
such a man seated beside you. I have a second cousin who also is
obnoxious and sweats a lot. I wonder if the two go hand-in-hand. He
is also a clergyman. I guess that is the only place they will be
accepted unconditionally.
I do have a question for you. Were you drunk when you wrote that
letter? Oh, don't be embarrassed about it. I didn't mind. I was just
surprised by the forthrightness of the letter and you did mention
being in a bar...
I thought you might be interested in continuing a correspondence
with me. It is always nice to be able to talk to someone about
anything. It's so much easier to do this when you don't have to face
the person. You don't have to worry about their opinion of you
because they have nothing to do with your life and you will never
see them. If you would like this then please respond to this letter.
I will tell you some of my own problems. I have a sister, JB (let's
continue with initials, it keeps things less personal) who is in a
long-distance relationship. It is starting to aggravate me. You see,
we live together and have to share a phone. They are always talking
on the phone and when they are not on the phone, JB talks about him
non stop. I like CB, JB's boyfriend, but there is only so much I can
take of "I miss CB." "CB said the sweetest thing..." I feel like
suffocating her with a pillow!
JB is not my only sister. I actually have four (no brothers). These
are JB, MB, KB, and LB. LB is the most irresponsible person I have
ever met and I am actually ashamed to admit being related to her.
She flirts with any man who has a handsome face or any charm. Right
now she is drooling over a man ten years older than herself (and
she's only eighteen).
Okay I think I have done enough venting for today. I hope to receive
a response back from you.
Sincerely,
EB
William had a smile on his face. EB sounds like a nice girl. I wonder
what the E stands for. Eleanor? Emily? Elizabeth? Edith? Eve? Personally
I like Elizabeth out of all the other E names.
William was interrupted by the entrance of Richard Fitzwilliam, his
cousin and business partner, into his study.
"Hey, Darce, I was wondering if I could borrow your yacht this weekend."
Richard sat casually in the chair in front of William's desk.
"Sure, I have the keys right here." William opened the top draw to his
desk and took out a set of keys. He then tossed them to Richard.
"Is everything okay Will?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Well usually you argue with me about use of the yacht, not that I don't
mind your acquiescence."
"I'm very surprised at you Richard. I didn't know that 'acquiescence'
was in your vocabulary. It has more than three syllables."
"You are in good humor today. Don't tell me you finally got laid?"
"No Richard. Just because someone is in 'good humor' doesn't mean they
'got laid'."
"Yes it does. No person can be in a good mood without getting laid at
least every other day. I don't even want to know how long it's been for
you."
"Richard you amaze me sometimes. You have such a lurid way of looking at
life."
"I wouldn't call it 'lurid' just risqué."
"It's the same thing."
"Risqué sounds much better than lurid."
"I don't know how I tolerate you."
"You're just jealous because I have all the fun while you sit behind a
desk and plan strategies for taking over the business market."
"I believe you are also supposed to be sitting behind a desk between the
hours of nine and five."
"I do - most of the time."
William shook his head. "Richard, is there anything else? I have work to
do, unlike some others I could mention."
"No, that's it. I'll leave you alone," Richard said as he got up and
left the office.
William went back to reading the financial report but his mind kept
wandering back to the letter from EB. He was wondering if he should
respond. It is what I need. I need someone to talk to about my
worries and problems. I bet I'll feel less depressed if I do. With
that decided, William pulled out a sheet of paper and began writing his
letter.
Dear EB,
With your letter I have come to the realization that I do need
someone to talk to. I don't like the thought of seeing a
psychiatrist. I think this will be the perfect outlet for me. I
enjoy writing very much and had always wanted to write a book. I was
unable to do so when my father died five years ago and I had to take
over the family company. With the death of my father I lost all my
freedom. I am tied to a job I do not enjoy. I am also the guardian
of my fifteen-year-old sister, GD. My mother died fourteen years
ago. My life is my work and my sister.
My best friend, CB, is going to be proposing to his girlfriend soon
and I have yet to meet her. They have been dating for two years. All
I know about her is that her name is J (I don't even know her last
name) and that she is an angel. I rarely see CB nowadays and I wish
I had more time to spend with him. The only good thing that comes of
this is that I haven't seen his sister, CB (I think I will refer to
her as BB so as not to confuse her with her brother and if you ever
meet her you would understand why I chose B), in over a year. BB
always attaches herself to my arm when we are in company. She hopes
that we will marry someday. It is not because she is in love with me
it's because she is in love with my money, house, and prestige.
When I do have free time, away from work and GD (not that she's a
burden), I usually end up chatting with my cousin RF. RF and I are
partners in the company. RF had started his own company after he
completed college and when it started to fail I bought it. Now the
company is doing well and I have left RF to be the president of that
company. RF is not a serious person and is usually off somewhere
with a woman. So when I bought RF's company I gained even more
responsibility since RF hasn't been holding up his end of the
company and leaves it to me to keep things going.
Despite all the trouble that RF causes me, we are very close. He is
like a brother to me. So when I do have time to spend with him I
often do so and if we can we try to get CB in on it. RF usually gets
CB into some kind of trouble. CB is so easygoing that he can easily
be taken advantage of and RF uses that flaw to its fullest extent.
Of course I do everything I can to make sure CB doesn't get too
badly burned, but in most cases I end up falling into the frying pan
with him.
Just last month RF was able to convince CB to help him kidnap me and
drag me to a strip club for my birthday. They succeeded in getting
me there by getting me very drunk beforehand. I don't remember most
of the night but I did wake up with a nasty hangover. I also found a
pair of panties in my pocket and a garter around my head. RF did
have the presence of mind to bring a camera. He took lots of
pictures but he will not show them to either CB or me. He says they
will make great blackmail material and of course an interesting
slide show for our weddings.
I have yet to get my revenge upon RF. If you have any ideas of how
to get him back, please let me know.
It sounds as though you have a large family. In my immediate family
there is only GD and myself, but we are very close to our aunt and
uncle F and all our cousins. We have four cousins in total: EF, RF,
LF, and AD. LF and AD are female but the youngest of the two is
still six years older than GD. Sometimes I feel that GD is lonely.
She has been very reticent of late and I don't know what to do to
get her out of her shell. I guess it doesn't help that I am also
reticent. I don't speak very well to strangers. I don't make small
talk. The only reason I am able to tell you all this is because I am
writing it. I can easily edit, pause, etc. while writing. You cannot
do so when speaking.
I should be getting back to work. Thank you for writing back to me.
You might just save my sanity.
Sincerely,
FD
PS I was drunk when I wrote that letter. After I had sobered up I
had planned on destroying the letter but my housekeeper had already
mailed it. Now I'm very glad she did.
Chapter 2
Dear FD,
I am glad you wish to continue corresponding. I could also use
someone to talk to. It appears to me that you spend way too much
time working - you need some time to relax doing something you
enjoy. You should find yourself a hobby that you can do with a
friend or family member or that you can do by yourself when you want
to be alone. For example billiards or golf can be played alone or
with a friend. So can going to a movie or even dancing. The list is
endless. Personally, I tend to do a lot of walking and hiking -
alone, with my sister or with my friend, CL.
I'm glad that your cousin at least tries to get you away from work,
although I do question his methods of getting you to relax. Not
remembering anything is not the best way to forget about work. Maybe
you and CB should go and do something without RF so that you can
have a blackmail-free time.
My mother has just arrived so I have to cut this letter short. I
always enjoy my mother's visits (rolls eyes).
Sincerely,
EB
~.~
Dear EB,
I actually just spent a night out with CB (without RF). We went to a
night club where he danced and I didn't (I'm not a big fan of
dancing). He did get me to dance once with a woman who was very nice
and who was hitting on my friend. He seemed to be enjoying her
attentions. I don't even know if he thought about J at all.
I do have a hobby. I have a stable at my house in Connecticut with
several horses. Whenever I am there I go riding. Usually I go alone,
but sometimes my sister or CB will join me. CB often accompanies me
to my house, but he intends to buy himself a house in the country
when he can find one he likes.
RF disrupted me from my writing for a moment. He is trying to set me
up on a blind date and would not take no for an answer. I absolutely
hate blind dates. RF thinks that because I haven't been on a date
for over a year that I must go on this date. The reason I haven't
been on a date for a long time is because I'm tired of dating women
I do not like. I want to find someone interesting, who does not want
to date me just for my money. I have such women throwing themselves
at me all the time so I could get a date easily without RF's help if
that was what I wanted. But it's not. I'm looking for a serious
relationship - I want to have a family and I'm already in my thirties.
RF is in his late thirties. I don't know if he will ever settle
down. He seems to like having a different girlfriend each week. I
wonder if he will ever realize how lonely that kind of life can be.
I hope it's sooner rather than later.
Sincerely,
FD
~.~
Dear FD,
It's good that you went out with your friend, even if you didn't
really participate. Sometimes it's just nice to be around other
people, especially when you are feeling depressed and lonely. But
never let your friends force you to do something you are not
comfortable with - such as going on a blind date. If RF can't
understand why you are not dating, maybe you should ask him why he
is always dating someone new. It sounds as if he needs a break.
I have the apartment to myself this weekend. JB went to visit her
boyfriend in New York. Wouldn't it be funny if JB's CB and your CB
were the same person? I doubt it though. How many people in New
York, about 8 million? It's almost impossible odds. Anyway I have
met all of CB's friends and no FD has ever been seen or mentioned.
You're not the only one being set up. My mother has been trying to
get me to date this guy, GW. He's nice, but a little too nice - he
gets along with all the females. Not only that, he is the one my
youngest sister LB is trying to get out on a date. She is always
flirting with him. I believe I mentioned that in my first letter.
To cap it all, he has this whole sob story about being wronged. I
don't believe it for one moment. According to him he should have
inherited a bunch of money from a friend of the family but someone
in the family (I can't remember who) wouldn't give him the money. I
guess it wasn't in the will or something.
Sincerely,
EB
~.~
Dear EB,
I failed in the battle against RF. He talked me into going on the
blind date. I know you will think I am weak, but as you said I do
need to get out of the house once in a while so I figured dinner
with the lady would not hurt. I will tell you about it in my next
letter since the date will be tomorrow night. I hope you will do
better at standing against your mother than I was against my cousin.
I'm finally going to meet J. My sister's birthday is this weekend
(she's turning sixteen) and we are having a big party with just
family and friends (she asked me to invite CB, he's like a brother
to her). CB is going to bring J to the party so that GD and I can
meet her. He plans on proposing to her this weekend and thought that
if I am to be best man then I should meet the bride.
I hope that GW is not returning your sister's attentions. You
mentioned she is 18 and that GW is ten years older. It could cause
some problems, even if it is legal. Is she in school?
I was wondering what you do for a living. I have already told you
that I am a CEO of my own company. If I had to guess I would say you
work in some field of art - you just sound like someone artistic. I
should know since I have a BA in English. My focus was on literature
and writing. I did have to get an MA in Business so that I could run
my father's company. I had to do it part time while running the
company too. It was hard but I did it with help from some of the
senior management.
Sincerely,
FD
~.~
Dear FD,
So you will finally get to meet J. Actually you are probably meeting
her as I write this since it's the weekend. I hope you like her. It
would be horrible if you didn't like your best friend's wife-to-be.
Your guess was correct - I work at an art gallery. I am the gallery
director, but I am also required to teach Museum Studies.
I am sorry to hear that you gave in to RF, but I have to admit it is
hard to resist someone who is persistent. I should know since I gave
in to my mother and finally went out with GW. The entire night he
tried to kiss me and then, when I finally allowed him to kiss me, he
started groping me. Well, that's when I slapped him and asked him to
take me home. I will never go out with him again.
I will have to watch his dealings with my sister. LB is not modest
in any sense and would probably jump at the chance of having sex if
she hasn't already. She probably lost her virginity a long
time ago. Let's just hope she doesn't get involved with him. Of
course, as you said, she is of legal age, but she's still in high
school. She keeps failing otherwise she would have graduated last
year. I've tried my best to help her but she won't listen to my
advice. Sometimes I just feel like giving up and letting her ruin
her life, but I can't do it. I still care for her a great deal.
Sincerely,
EB
~.~
Dear EB,
I finally met J (JB). She was really nice. We had a long talk about
CB. She is definitely someone I could be friends with, so I am very
happy for CB.
My sister's birthday party went really well. She had a good time and
I didn't end up with a headache. Although I didn't like some of her
friends, they are very much teen fashion magazine girls. They were
wearing too much makeup and too little clothing. I am glad that GD
doesn't dress that way. Hopefully she will not change.
When I heard that CB's fiancée's (they are engaged now) initials
were JB I thought she might be your sister, but then she didn't talk
about her family at all. Plus she lives in New York and your sister
lives with you in New Hampshire. It's just a coincidence that our
acquaintances have the same initials.
I'm sorry to hear your date with GW went badly. He sounds like a
jerk. Maybe you should tell your parents that you suspect that he
might have not-so-honest attentions towards LB. She might listen to
them, even if she doesn't listen to you. It's good that you still
try. It's hard to keep lecturing to someone who doesn't listen.
That's how RF responds to me.
I promised you I would tell you all about my date. It was the worst
experience of my life. I have never had such an awful time. First,
my date, AD, was an hour late. While I was waiting for her at the
restaurant where we had planned to meet, BB showed up. She invited
herself to sit with me even thought I explained that I was on a
date. She talked non-stop about something that I can't recall until
AD arrived then was very rude to AD. Eventually I was able to get BB
to leave the table. She did so, but not without making a snide
comment about AD's dress. Finally AD and I ordered dinner (by that
time I was ready to eat the table) and AD ordered a salad that she
didn't even touch. She was quiet during the entire dinner. After
dinner we went to see a play (for which we were half an hour late).
AD didn't seem to be enjoying it and she asked if we could leave
early. So we ended our date there and went our separate ways. I
decided to have a drink at a bar near the theater. To my dismay, BB
and all her conniving friends were there. They wouldn't leave me
alone. It took me three hours to get away from them.
I WILL NEVER LET RF SET ME UP ON A DATE AGAIN! But you know I said
that last time and yet I still ended up on a blind date. Maybe you
will do better at resisting your mother next time. At least I didn't
get groped. By my date, that is.
Sincerely,
FD
~.~
Dear FD,
Sorry it has taken so long for me to write back. I have been very
busy. My sister is getting married and very soon. In four months!
She is moving to New York and wants me to move with her to help plan
the wedding. I have agreed since my job was becoming a dead end. So
now I am applying for jobs in New York.
I'm hoping I can get a job at a small art gallery in NY. Could you
suggest some galleries? I have searched online but not all the
galleries seem to have websites. I'm trying to get a listing of all
the galleries in NY but it seems almost impossible.
CB is currently looking for an apartment for us (one that fits in
our budget). He has invited us to live with him but JB wants to wait
until they are married before they live together. Of course, once
they are married I will have to live alone in NY and pay all the
rent. Maybe I'll find a job that pays more than $150,000 a year and
pigs will fly.
Your date sounded horrible. It sounds as though AD disliked being on
the date as much as you did. You really should do something about BB
(I believe I now know why you use the B). You should tell her to
leave you alone, that you are not interested in a relationship with
her and never will be. But you can't tell me you didn't enjoy all
the attention. Men always like female attention, don't they?
Sincerely,
EB
Elizabeth was packing when the phone rang. Charles had finally found
them an apartment to move into in New York, and they were moving that
weekend. As Elizabeth stumbled to the phone she cursed her sister and
future brother-in-law for leaving her with all the packing. Jane was in
New York, finding the perfect place for their wedding reception.
Elizabeth grabbed the phone and immediately dropped it into a box of
kitchen supplies. Of course this created a loud clang as the phone hit a
pot. She cursed once again as she pulled the phone from the box.
"Hello," she said with no patience whatsoever.
"Did you have to bang the phone against everything in reach?" asked a
very masculine voice.
"Sorry," she responded sarcastically. "I dropped the phone in a box of
pots."
"Could I speak with Jane Bennet?"
"She's not here. Can I take a message?"
"I need to contact Charles but he doesn't seem to be in New York. I was
hoping he might be with Jane."
"Well he is with Jane. They are both in New York."
"No they are not."
"That's where Jane said they would be."
"Charles told me he was leaving the city but didn't specify where."
"Well I have no idea where they are then. They told me they would be
looking for a reception hall in New York."
"Who is this?"
"Lizzy."
"Are you a friend of Jane's?"
"I'm her sister."
"I didn't know she had a sister."
"Well she has four sisters. Now that you know who I am, who are you?"
"Will."
"Will..."
"Charles' friend and best man. If you talk to them can you tell them I'm
looking for Charles."
"Sure. How come we never met? I thought I had met all of Charles' friends."
"I don't know."
"Okay. Well I have packing to do. I will most likely see you at the
wedding as I'm the Maid of Honor."
"Yes, sure. Bye." The phone line went dead.
"Well he sounds pleasant," Elizabeth responded sarcastically. She hung
up the phone and went back to packing.
~.~
Will was not in a good mood. He needed to find Charles, and fast.
Charles's sister, Caroline, had arrived at his house earlier that day
and would not leave. He was on the brink of throwing her out. To top it
off, he had found out that the Lizzy Charles and Jane were trying to set
him up with was Jane's sister. Why does everyone try to set me up?
And now I'm reduced to dating sisters of friends! William had not
considered that maybe Jane wanted him to go out with Lizzy because they
seemed a perfect match and it had nothing to do with Lizzy being her sister.
It wasn't until late that night, just after Caroline had finally left,
that Charles called him.
"Hey Will. Lizzy told me you wanted to talk to me."
"Yes, I wanted you to get your sister out of my house. She
arrived just after breakfast and she left barely fifteen minutes ago."
It was quite obvious that William was not in a good mood.
"I'm sorry Will. I'll talk to her when I get back to New York."
"Where have you been? Lizzy seemed to believe that you and Jane were in
the city."
"Ah, we, ah, went and looked at a house on Long Island."
"Charles, you don't want to live on Long Island."
"I know, but I thought we should take a look."
"So what did you think of Lizzy?"
"Charles," William growled. "I barely talked to her. I could hardly have
an opinion of her."
"Sure you can."
"I think she's rude."
"Rude?"
"She was sarcastic during the whole conversation."
"Lizzy, sarcastic? What did you say to get on the wrong side of her?"
"I don't know."
"Well you will get to meet her in a few days."
"No I won't. Don't you remember, I'll be in London for two weeks."
"Oh, you're opening another Pemberley Electronics, right?"
"Yes and we've been having some trouble so I have to go to London and
straighten it all out."
"Okay, well I'll be back in New York tomorrow. We'll talk then. And I'll
explain to Caroline that she can't spend the day at your house."
"Okay, thanks. See you tomorrow."
"Bye."
~.~
Dear EB,
I DID NOT enjoy the attention of BB and her friends. They were
like a pack of wolves. I will not be going on any more blind
dates. I have already turned down an offer to set me up with
JB's sister. I actually spoke to her on the phone today and she
was very rude. I don't know why they (CB and JB) think that we
would be perfect for each other. If I had to go on a date I
think I would much rather go out with you (you are female,
aren't you?).
I had a horrible experience the other day. BB showed up at my
house, unannounced, right after breakfast and did not leave
until almost midnight. I felt like kicking her out of the door,
literally! But I didn't as I was afraid of upsetting CB and
causing a rift between us. I wonder if he would approve of me
kicking his sister - maybe I should ask him?
I have included a complete list of art galleries in New York
with this letter. I have starred the more prestigious ones. I
figured you would want to start high and work your way down. Why
are you moving to NY with your sister? You seem to be under a
lot of stress due to your sister's engagement and sudden move.
Why are you doing all the work?
I thought I should let you know that I'm leaving for London for
two weeks. I thought that as it would be impractical for us to
send mail internationally that we should use email. So please
send your next letter to fd@pemberley.com.
Sincerely,
FD
~.~
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: I hate email
Dear FD,
The reason I am helping my sister is because I love her. Also I
do want to get out of Keene. It is a very small city, more like
a large town. There is not much to do here, at least if you
don't want to party. Keene State College is a big part of the town.
I have wanted to live in New York since the first time I visited
the city several years ago. That first trip was very memorable.
JB and I went to New York to see a Broadway show, which we ended
up missing. We stayed at a restaurant where we met two guys. One
of them was CB, who is now JB's fiancé. The other, I can't
remember his name, made such a physical impression on me - I can
remember how I felt when he sat next to me at the table. My
whole body tingled. I remember his dark brown eyes that were so
warm. I also remember how charming he was and the sound of his
voice. You may ask why I never saw him again. I don't really
know. I have never asked CB about him and we never met again.
Maybe I'll see him at the wedding.
Thank you for the listing of galleries. I have already sent my
résumé to several of them. Now I will just have to wait for a
response.
I hope everything is going well in London. You must send me a
souvenir or something. I have always wanted to visit London - it
sounds like a very interesting place to live. So does anywhere
in the UK - the history! Well, studying for an art degree I
learned a lot about European history, certainly more than I
learned in history classes (probably because I didn't pay
attention).
You said that you would rather go on a date with me than another
blind date (yes, I'm female), I found that very sweet. We have
bonded a lot in our letters and maybe, once I have moved to the
city and you have returned from London, we could meet? But that
might ruin this special relationship we have here where we tell
each other about whatever is on our mind.
Sincerely,
EB
~.~
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Re: I hate email
Hmm... So you hate email. Well it's just until I get back to the
States, then we can return to letter writing. I'm not very fond
of email either, except for business. It's very handy for
getting things done quickly.
Is that why you are going back to New York? To meet that
mysterious guy again? I'm a little jealous. I wish it were me
that you had met and were thinking about. But it definitely
wasn't me. I'm quite sure that if I was ever to meet you that I
would know right away. You are someone very special and you've
helped me so much. My sister made a comment the other day that I
was "brooding around the house" far less nowadays.
I actually don't have much time to write. I'm very busy with
work. I know you told me that work shouldn't be my life but
right now we are working to a deadline. I do take the time to
eat a complete meal rather than grabbing something quick and
unhealthy. I will be sure to take sometime to buy you something.
I will send it to you when I am back in the States. You will
have to give me your new address.
Sincerely yours,
FD
Chapter 4
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Meeting
You have not responded to my email and I assume it's because you are
moving. I just need to say something to you. I reread your last
email and you mentioned that maybe we should meet. I would like
that, but I'm not sure it is the right time. I have a lot happening
in my life, as you do. I think we both may need some time to have
each other as confidants before we meet. I hope you will agree.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: Meeting
I wish to thank you for your compliments. No one has ever called me
a "someone very special" before. I'm glad that I am able to help
you. You have also helped me in many ways, like the fact that I have
found a job. I will not tell you where, but it is one of the
galleries you have suggested.
About meeting, I agree with you. We need each other as strangers, in
a way, so that our lives do not become more complicated.
You asked me why I'm moving to NY. One reason is for a change. A new
job. Another is to give my sister support. JB and I have been best
friends since we were tiny. I cannot imagine my life without her. I
am closer to my sister than anyone else in this world. You should be
happy because you come in second. :-)
I have to go and finish unpacking. I look forward to your next email.
EB
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Work
It's aggravating when things don't turn out the way you've planned
them. I do not wish to go into the details but I am having problems
with my work here in London. It's giving me headaches, but I feel
better now that I have received an email from you.
I am glad you have found a job, but do you realize that I now have
an idea of where I can find you if I wish to? Maybe I will.
CB called me yesterday. He is starting to have doubts. I cannot
understand why. He is very much in love with JB and she is perfect
for him. I think he might be more scared of disappointing JB rather
than scared of being married. He is one who hates to hurt people,
especially JB. I feel the same towards JB. She is a very nice woman.
She and I are becoming friends very quickly. She actually emailed me
to ask my opinion about what kind of wedding they should have -
whether it should be very formal or more casual. I suggested formal
but not black tie. Maybe cocktail. I don't know much on that subject
but she was more worried about CB's associates' opinions since they
seem to be inviting half of NY.
Well I have to get back to work.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Weddings
I don't think I want to get married. Not after helping my sister to
start her planning. She has to select a menu, dress, music, church,
reception hall, caterer, florist, hairstylist, and the list goes on
and on. Maybe I'll elope. Well if I ever meet someone I would be
willing to marry.
I hope that the problems at work won't keep you in London longer. It
would be nice to be able to send letters again. I save each of your
letters. I have also printed each email. I keep them together in an
envelope.
I have to get to my first day at work. Wish me luck.
EB
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Re: Weddings
When it comes to weddings, I believe there is too much planning.
It's as though you are showing off to the world how much money you
can spend, as if you can show how much you love someone by doing so.
I have always thought eloping would be more romantic. When you find
someone you love and can't wait to marry, then you have to do it
right at that moment and not six months later. Not many men feel
that way. They may want to elope to protect their wallet but not
because of romance. I am a romantic. I have never admitted that to
anyone before. Not even myself. But it is true.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Your return
What's wrong with being a man and being romantic? Any woman would
love to love a man who is romantic. I'm one of them.
Do you know when you will be back? I can't wait to see what you got me.
EB
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Re: Your return
I do not know when I will be able to leave London. I will be
delayed. It is taking much longer than I thought. CB was a little
upset. He and his fiancée were planning a dinner party that I was to
be invited to, but I believe they have decided to reschedule it for
after my return. They really want me to meet JB's sister - LB. I
have already told you about her before and I do not look forward to
meeting her.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: Your return
You should not judge LB by one phone call. Maybe she is nice, but
you happened to catch her on a bad day. You should give her a chance.
EB
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: LB
Maybe I don't want to give her a chance because I have already found
someone I like very much and would rather be with her than LB.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: LB
Did you meet someone in London? You have not mentioned anyone
before. You must tell me more about this woman you would rather be
with, and why you are not with her.
EB
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: You
The reason I am not with the woman I wish to be with is because I do
not know her name. I do not know where she lives in NY. I want to be
with her, but I'm not sure she would want to be with me.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: You
Maybe you should ask her.
EB
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Re: You
Would you want to be with me?
FD
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Re: You
Forget I asked that. I don't want to scare you. I will give LB a
chance as you suggested.
FD
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Re: You
Sorry. I know I didn't respond right away to your email. I didn't
know how to respond. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable though.
I do like you and would like to at least be friends. I'm still
unsure about the more part. Maybe I'm scared. My last relationship
didn't go very well. I need to relearn trust because of that
relationship.
I still think you should give LB a chance. You might just like her.
EB
~.~
It was three in the morning and Elizabeth was still awake. She couldn't
sleep. She decided to go online and do some research on Manet, since the
gallery she worked for was going to be displaying some of his work. She
was suddenly surprised when a message popped up on her screen. FD had
sent her an instant message through Yahoo.
fd: Hello
eb: What time is it there?
fd: No hello?
eb: Hello. So what time is it there?
fd: 8am What are you doing up at 3?
eb: I can't sleep.
fd: I slept really well last night.
eb: Did you? Do you have to brag?
fd: :-)
eb: You probably slept well because you were tired after a hard day's work.
fd: Actually it was because I dreamt of you.
fd: Are you there?
eb: You dreamt about me??
fd: I sound obsessed, don't I. Sorry. I always feel better after getting
a letter from you. Sometimes I have to think about you as a substitute.
eb: What was your dream?
fd: I was meeting you. In my dream you had long dark curly hair that was
worn down but held back by barrettes. You were wearing a sapphire gown
that matched your eyes. You looked so beautiful. And when you smiled you
warmed me inside.
eb: How did you know I have long dark curly hair and blue eyes?
fd: I didn't. That was just how I pictured you.
eb: Really?
fd: Yes. Well now that I know what you look like should I tell you what
I look like?
eb: Why don't I take a guess.
fd: Ok
eb: Tall, dark wavy hair, deep brown eyes.
fd: I think we have a psychic connection.
eb: You're teasing me. That's not what you look like.
fd: Yes, it is.
eb: That is what woman look for. Tall, dark and handsome. Are you handsome?
fd: Are you beautiful?
eb: :-) I guess that question can't be expected to be answered by the
subject.
fd: It's all in the eye of the beholder. You will always be beautiful to
me.
eb: You haven't seen me.
fd: I don't need to see you to know that you are beautiful.
eb: You are too kind.
fd: You are too self-conscious.
eb: What?
fd: You're self-conscious. You don't have much self-esteem.
eb: What makes you think that?
fd: I picked it up from your letters.
eb: Well I'm not self-conscious and I do not have a low self-esteem.
fd: You forgot to mention that you are beautiful.
eb: I'm not.
fd: See what I mean?
eb: You can be aggravating.
fd: My sister would agree with you.
eb: This is the part of you that I read in your letters.
fd: Me being aggravating?
eb: Yes. What other faults do you have?
fd: I have a temper, especially with those who have vices. My good
opinion once lost is lost forever.
eb: Why's that?
fd: I cannot stand those who will not help themselves. I feel they
cannot improve themselves in my eyes.
eb: But some can improve themselves.
fd: None that I have met.
eb: That is truly a fault. I feel sorry for you.
fd: What of you? Do you have any faults?
eb: lol do you really wish for me to list my faults?
fd: I told you mine.
eb: I have a temper too. Sometimes my wit can be sharp. I need to be
careful of what I say when my temper is high.
fd: So we both have tempers.
eb: I think everyone has a temper, except maybe my sister JB.
fd: My sister appears to have no temper but on rare occasions she lets
loose and then I wish I hadn't said anything to her.
eb: Are you the only person who has set off her temper.
fd: There has only been one other.
eb: Well I should try to get some sleep. I have to work in the morning.
You probably have to head off to some meeting.
fd: Actually I took the morning off to go shopping for you.
eb: You did?
fd: You wanted something from London.
eb: I didn't expect you to take the morning off to do so.
fd: Well I need some free time to relax a bit. I hope you get some sleep.
eb: Me too.
fd: Sweet dreams.
eb: :-)
Part II - Misunderstandings
Chapter 5
Shortly after Elizabeth and Jane had arrived at Charles' house, a man
who fit the description of tall, dark and handsome entered the sitting
room with a young lady who was also tall, but had blue eyes and long
blond hair. She could be considered a classic beauty. Before Charles
could introduce the two to Elizabeth; they had already met Jane;
Caroline rushed over to the man's side.
"Oh, Will, it's so good to see you again! You have been gone way too
long!" Caroline had grabbed hold of his arm pulling him down to sit on
the sofa next to her.
The young lady looked confused and at a lost of what to do next so
Charles came to her rescue. He gently took her hand and led her over to
Elizabeth. "Lizzy I would like you to meet Georgie. She is Will's sister."
"It is a pleasure to finally meet you Georgie," Elizabeth responded with
a smile. "Jane has been singing your praises. She tells me you play the
piano very beautifully. You must play for me, so that I may prove my
sister correct."
"Oh, well, I don't play very well. I mean I do play. I enjoy playing,
but I do not play very well."
Georgie's shyness was tangible to all in the room, except maybe
Caroline. Will, who had seen Georgie's discomfort, if not heard it over
Caroline's chatter, came to her rescue, when she really didn't need it.
He walked over to the two ladies as Elizabeth was responding.
"Oh, I'm quite sure you must play better than me. I never take the time
to practice. But if you feel uncomfortable playing to an audience then
we will have to do it some other time, for I must hear you play."
"And will I hear you play?" Georgie asked with less shyness.
"If it's required for you to play. We will do a trade off. I will play
horribly for you and you will play horribly for me," Elizabeth teased.
Caroline heard this last part and took it out of context. "Eliza
I don't know how you can say such a thing. Georgiana is quite an
accomplished pianist. She has been offered a place at Juilliard."
"I think you misunderstood, Caroline," Elizabeth responded. "I
was only teasing Georgia. From what I have heard it would be impossible
for her to play horribly."
"That is not true," spoke Georgie. "I can play horribly. Just ask Will."
"Georgie you always play wonderfully." Will was surprised by Georgie's
outgoing behavior. She never was this way around Caroline or people she
just met, but Lizzy seemed to make her comfortable right from the start.
Too bad it wasn't the same for Will. He remembered that Lizzy was very
rude to him, but he had promised EB to give Lizzy a chance. What really
bothered him is that she fit his mental image of EB. He didn't like that
one bit.
"You're biased," she said to her brother. She then turned to Elizabeth,
"you can ask Richard. He is less biased then Will."
"It must be nice to have a brother who sings your praises."
"He is an ideal older brother and father-figure for me."
"Father?"
"I'm her guardian," responded Will.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize that your par..."
At that moment Richard had entered the room. Elizabeth was staring at
him. She had stopped speaking. There he is! Charles' friend! He
hasn't changed one bit. Richard was no better. Upon making out
Elizabeth he had become nervous. He wasn't sure how she would react to
the fact that he never tried to make contact with her. He liked
Elizabeth, but she just wasn't his type. He needed a girl that wasn't so
stubborn. However he did think she was perfect for Will.
Will found Lizzy's staring to be quite rude, which only strengthened his
resolve to not like her. Georgie saved Elizabeth from disgracing herself
further by making introductions. She pulled Richard over to Elizabeth.
"Lizzy this is my cousin Richard. He will tell you that I'm not a
proficient pianist."
"Georgie are you telling Lizzy lies about yourself? You are a very
proficient pianist and you have no bigger fan than I except maybe Will."
Elizabeth had stopped staring at Richard and looked somewhere else. To
her dismay that somewhere else was a disapproving Will. She hadn't given
him a good look until now and she wondered how she could possibly have
missed doing so. He was the most handsome man she had ever met. He was
the essence of tall, dark and handsome. He radiated masculinity. He was
exactly how her imagination pictured FD.
To save herself another embarrassing moment by staring at Will she
instead ask Jane if she could show her to the bathroom. Elizabeth was
happy to be led away from the room where two extremely handsome men
stood. So they're cousins! The realization of their connection
had finally come to her. She had not automatically associated that
Georgie's cousin would also be Will's.
"So what do you think of Will?" Jane asked as they reached the bathroom.
"I've only been in his company less than five minutes and have judged
him to be rude and inconsiderate."
"You judge to harshly Lizzy. Please don't tell me you are still in love
with Richard. He has a girlfriend now."
"He does?" Elizabeth disheartened.
"Yes, he is dating Charlotte."
"What?" she asked in surprised.
"They met when Richard had to go to DC on business."
"But how do they do it? Charlotte still lives in DC, doesn't she?"
"Only during the week. She lives with Richard on the weekends. They are
very serious. I believe they will be next to marry."
Charlotte stole my dream guy! Elizabeth couldn't believe it.
Although Charlotte had been her best friend since they were toddlers she
had never thought of Charlotte as the type who would attract such a
lively man as Richard. There is nothing to it but to give up on him.
I still have FD... She wondered about her feelings for FD. Was she
in love with him? She thought she might be. Was it possible to be
truly in love with someone you have never met in person... only in
letters?
Elizabeth used the bathroom to freshen up, then she rejoined Jane as the
group was just being served dinner. The seating arrangement wasn't well
thought out according to both Elizabeth and Caroline. Charles sat at the
head of the table with Jane to his left and Caroline to his right. Next
to Jane was Elizabeth and then Will. Next to Caroline was Richard and
then Georgie. Elizabeth conversed at great length with Georgie, in which
Richard participated at times, but she felt very uncomfortable with Will
beside her and Richard across.
Will only made occasional remarks to either Georgie or Richard. He
ignored Elizabeth throughout the entire dinner. Caroline was very
unhappy. She was too far from Will to make conversation with him.
Charles and Jane were in their own little world which left Caroline to
converse with either Richard or Elizabeth. She chose the former. Richard
tried his best to be caught up in conversation with Georgie so that
Caroline would not be able to talk to him.
Needless to say, dinner did not go well for all, except for Charles and
Jane who did not notice anyone else but each other. After dinner,
Elizabeth was able to convince Georgie to play if only she played first.
Elizabeth picked her favorite piece to play, "Canon in D". It was the
song she would choose for her wedding processional if she were ever to
marry. She was quite proficient in it's playing and had everyone
entranced with the exception of Caroline who was trying to make
conversation with Will.
Will was captivated. He had never heard anything so beautiful. He was
very annoyed with Caroline and tried to ignore her as best he could. He
listened with rapt attention as the song drew to an end. He decided that
Lizzy had one redeeming quality. She could play the piano like a siren's
song. Everyone but Caroline applauded Elizabeth's talent as she had
Georgie take her seat at the piano.
Elizabeth realized that Will and Richard's compliments for Georgie's
playing were very understated. She played with proficiency and emotion.
Not many pianists could accomplish both with such a great skill. Georgie
made Elizabeth's playing sound like a beginner learning her scales.
However, Elizabeth did not mind this. She knew she did not have much of
a talent on the piano, because she rarely took the time to practice.
Will listened to Georgie with the pride of an older brother and father.
He was always proud of his sister's playing. She was going to wow the
world with her talent. That is if she decided to continue with her piano
studies. They were still discussing whether or not she would and if she
should finally accept the offer from Julliard? She would have to leave
high school before she finished. She was very determined to graduate,
but she also didn't want to pass up the chance to attend Julliard.
Georgie finished her song, and Caroline then took a seat at the piano.
She played with average proficiency and no feeling. Everyone listened
with tolerance and applauded politely when she was finished.
The rest of the evening was spent talking about Charles and Jane's
wedding. The couple went over each person's responsibilities. Richard
would be an usher. Georgie would be a bridesmaid. Caroline didn't want
to have anything to do with the wedding. And as we already know, Will
would be Best Man and Elizabeth Maid of Honor.
As soon as Elizabeth arrived home she checked her email. She had not
received an email from FD for several days. She was afraid that maybe he
decided not to be her friend any more. But surprisingly when she logged
onto the Internet there was a new message waiting from FD.
To: eb@yahoo.com
From: fd@pemberley.com
Subject: Sorry
Sorry about not emailing you for several days. The company server
went down. It has not been a pleasant few days. I am back in NY, so
if you can give me your address we can start writing again, plus I
have a present for you.
I don't have time to write much, I have to go to CB's dinner party.
I told you he was waiting for me to return, so he planned it for two
hours after my flight arrived in town. I'm not looking forward to
it. They have, of course, invited LB to the dinner. I guess I'll
finally meet her in person.
FD
~.~
Dear FD,
I decided to write a letter. My return address is on the envelope.
If you thought you would get my home address you were wrong. I
thwarted your plans by getting a PO Box.
I just had a horrible evening. I had dinner with several of CB and
JB's friend. I finally found that man I told you about. The one that
I met with CB. Well he's as pleasant as ever except he has a serious
relationship with one of my friends! It was quite a shock when my
sister told me this.
I did meet WD, CB's best friend and best man. He barely said ten
words to me the entire night. His sister was pleasant. She is a very
talented young lady and I wouldn't mind becoming a better friend to
her, but for the life of me I don't understand how she could be
related to such a disagreeable brother.
I can't wait to see what present you got me.
Sincerely,
EB
~.~
Elizabeth had stopped at the post officer on her way home from work. She
found a letter and package from FD. She was very excited the package was
a large box, big enough to fit herself inside, if she curled up into a
ball. She had a hard time carrying it home on the subway. When she did
arrive home she immediately opened the box.
Inside were several smaller boxes of various shapes and sizes. She took
out the largest and opened it. Inside was a large miniature of a red
double-decker bus with the name Pemberley Electronics across each side.
It was obviously an advertisement item. She then remembered that FD's
email account was from Pemberley. He must work for Pemberley
Electronics, but didn't he say he owned his company? Maybe it's a
company he bought?
The next box she opened was a shallow rectangle. She opened it to find a
box of English truffles. She immediately popped one in her mouth. It was
absolutely delicious. Is he trying to make me fat?
She opened several more boxes and found several framed prints of art
from British painters. She also found a miniature of London Bridge.
There was only one box left. A small one. She opened it carefully, and
was quite shocked by what she found. A thin white gold chain with a not
too pretentious round cut sapphire laid inside the small box. She took
it out gently (or very carefully.). She realized that the necklace was
probably worth a couple thousand dollars if not more. She would have to
return it.
She decided to go online and see if he was online, too. She had wanted
to tell him that she could not accept the necklace and would have to
return it to him. While waiting for the computer to boot up she read
the letter he had enclosed.
Dear EB,
You should receive the package I sent along with this letter. I hope
you enjoy each item I chose for you.
I was hoping that we could meet in person. Soon. I very much want to
meet you. To date you if you would permit. You already know how much
you mean to me. I will not take no for an answer and if I have to
search every art gallery I put on that list, I will. Please say
you'll meet me.
Sincerely,
FD
Elizabeth changed her mind about instant messaging him and instead wrote
an email.
To: fd@pemberley.com
From: eb@yahoo.com
Subject: Meeting
I'm sorry. I can't meet you. Please don't search for me. I'm sending
back the necklace. I will not be responding to anymore of your
messages. This is going to far.
~.~
Of course William was not happy when he finally read that email. As he
said he would not be taking no for an answer. He would also not receive
any packages from EB. So when a small package arrived he wrote "return
to sender" on the package and had it sent back.
The day after he read her email he started his search. He took a 2-hour
lunch break and visited half the art galleries on the list to no avail.
No one knew any employee who had the initials EB.
The following day he did the same thing and covered the other half of
the list. He was about to give up when he arrived at the last gallery.
He entered anyway. He walked over to a young lady who's back was to him.
She was reorganizing a table cover in various brochures about artists.
"Excuse me miss. I was wondering if you have an employee who-" he
stopped talking when the lady turned and surprisingly saw it was none
other than Lizzy Bennet. "It's you," was all he was able to say.
Elizabeth was also caught off guard but immediately recovered her senses
replying, "Good afternoon Mr. Darcy. And what do I owe the pleasure of
seeing you here?"
"I, uh, I was looking for someone but she obviously isn't here."
"Georgie?"
"No, someone else. A, uh, friend."
"Well I'm the only one here besides yourself, maybe she went somewhere
else."
"Most likely. Umm I have to go. I've over extended my lunch break."
He then made a quick exit, leaving a very aggravated Elizabeth behind.
She had been in a weird mood all day. She was kinda disappointed that FD
hadn't come searching for her or hadn't even tried to contact her.
Later she did find the returned necklace waiting for her. She decided to
keep it and left the unopened package on her dressing table. She planned
on giving it to Jane as a bridal gift. It could be her something
blue. It will go exquisitely with her dress.
Chapter 6
Elizabeth had a headache. There was nothing that was more likely to
cause her such a headache than being in a small apartment with nineteen
females, especially when it was at a bridal shower. Her mother, Fran,
was driving her crazy. She had found out that the best man was William
Darcy and that he was very wealthy. Now she was trying to get Elizabeth
to be very nice to him.
"Lizzy! Just think how much money you would have! He owns Pemberley
Electronics! Owns! He's number 5 on the most eligible bachelor list!"
"Who puts out these lists?"
"And he is so handsome! I met him yesterday when Charles gave me a tour
of his house. William was there. You had better hurry. I believe
Charles's sister is after him. Oh you should have seen Charles's house!
It's absolutely magnificent!"
"I've been there before, Mom. Many Times."
"Oh you have, have you? Then you must see William often. Caroline
mentioned that he is always there."
"I've only seen him once - at Charles and Jane's dinner party. I believe
he was away for several weeks."
"Well you'll be seeing more of him. He is, after all, the best man and
you are the maid of honor! You will have to sit with him and dance with
him! And even walk down the aisle with him!"
"You make it sound like I'm marrying him."
"Oh and the gown Jane picked out for you! The rich blue is very pretty
on you. You will look so beautiful that William will not be able to take
his eyes off you."
"Thank you, mom. That is the first time you have ever complimented me on
my appearance."
"Well the dress is very lovely and once your hair and makeup is done you
shall be very beautiful. Mrs. Stewart does wonderful things to make
plain women look beautiful."
Elizabeth sighed and rubbed her temple. Her headache was getting worse
with her mother's exuberance. Luckily Elizabeth was saved when it was
announced that Jane would be opening her gifts. Jane sat in an armchair
while Lydia and Kitty chose a gift for her to open. Fran was taking many
pictures as she opened gift after gift.
Elizabeth had added her gift to the pile because she wished to save it
until the end. After all the other gifts were opened (and three rolls of
film later), Elizabeth handed her gift to Jane.
"I wanted to save this for last. I though it would go nicely with your
wedding dress."
Jane unwrapped it to find a jewelry box with Boodle & Dunthorne engraved
in gold leaf. Elizabeth had not noticed the prestigious name on the box
before; her mind had been more occupied by the contents of the box to
notice the letters on the outside.
Jane opened the box to reveal the sapphire necklace. She gasped and
looked up at her sister.
"Lizzy, I can't except this. It is very expensive."
"Actually I didn't buy it. It was a gift to me. I didn't want it."
"Why not?" asked Lydia. "If someone gave me a sapphire necklace I
wouldn't give it away. Especially not one from Boodle and Dunthorne."
"Who would give you such an valuable necklace?" Fran asked her daughter.
"A friend. But we are no longer friends and I do not wish to have the
reminder. I think it would look very nice on you Jane."
"Charles has already given me a necklace to wear. It's a diamond
heirloom. This necklace would go very nicely with your gown. It's the
exact same shade of blue. I wish you would wear it to the wedding."
"But it is yours now. I gave it to you."
Jane could see that Elizabeth was going to be very stubborn on the issue
so she replied "I will lend it to you for the wedding."
"I guess if you are not wearing it..."
"It will look very lovely on you, Lizzy. I believe William will be quite
jealous to find out you are wearing an expensive necklace given to you
by someone else. You should suggest it was a man. Your boyfriend. Then
he might go after you."
"Mom!" Elizabeth exclaimed.
"I don't know," Fran continued, "why anyone would give you a necklace
from Boodle and Dunthorne. I hope you didn't blow off a rich friend for
some silly reason. Just think of the connections she has. She could be
very good for you. Maybe you should try to get her friendship back."
"Well, I never met him. We were just friends who wrote to each other.
The letter writing was getting a bit boring so we called it quits."
"He?" asked Fran. "A man gave you that necklace and you 'called
it quits'?"
"He must be a rich fool," added Lydia. "Why would any man give Lizzy a
necklace? Especially one so fine."
"It was a souvenir. He was in London for several weeks and he sent me
several souvenirs from his trip."
"A sapphire necklace from Boodles and Dunthorne is not a
souvenir!" her mother exclaimed.
"Are you talking about FD?" Jane asked.
"Yes. We've been writing back and forth to each other."
"Well I still can't understand why you wouldn't want the necklace," her
mother added.
~·~
He needed to find EB. He found himself at the post office, trying
to get EB's name.
"It's very important," Will begged. "Could you at least give me her last
name?"
"Sorry sir," responded the postal worker.
"How about her first name. It can't hurt her if I only know her first
name. I just need to know her name."
She hesitated, "I don't know. I shouldn't. I could get in trouble. It's
confidential information."
"How about you do me the favor of giving me her name and I will do a
favor for you in return."
"Well I would love a coffee. And a chocolate croissant."
"How do you take your coffee?"
"Black and only from Panera. They make great coffee and the best
croissants."
"That's nowhere near here."
"The very reason why I need you to go and get it for me."
"Okay. What's her name?"
"Not until after I get my coffee and croissant."
"Okay."
Will left the post office to fight lunch-hour traffic. The line at
Panera, after having taken fifteen minutes looking for a parking place,
was very long. It wasn't until an hour and a half later that Will found
himself back at the post office. He handed over the coffee and croissant.
"Her name?" asked Will sharply.
"There are two names on the PO box. I will only give you one name."
"Her initials are EB. The other one is probably her sister."
"Her name is Elizabeth."
"Elizabeth," he whispered.
~·~
"Charles," Jane rested her head on her fiancé's shoulder as they lay
together on the couch. "Do you know if Will has been writing letters to
a woman he has never met?"
"Why would he do that?"
"Because he is unhappy."
Will's not unhappy. He has a great career, a lovely house, and a
wonderfully talented sister. Why would he be unhappy? He else could he
possibly need?"
"A wife. A family. You have everything he has. A career, house and
sister. But you also have me. Will doesn't have anyone to love. How
would you feel if you didn't have me to love."
Charles sighed. "Unhappy. What made you ask this? Why would you think he
would be writing letters?"
"It's just... Will went to Hong Kong and he went to London. He's wealthy
and he works at Pemberley."
"He owns Pemberley. You are not making sense."
"Just a moment. Does Will's real name begin with an F?"
"Yeah, Fitzwilliam. But he never uses it. It's a family name."
"His mother's maiden name right? Well Lizzy has been writing to a man
with the initials FD. He has a friend with the initials CB. He went to
both Hong Kong and London. He lives in New York and works at Pemberley.
Now that is too much coincidence."
"And how do you know so much about him?"
"Lizzy is very careless with her letters."
"You've been reading your sister's mail," Charles accused.
"I needed to know how serious their relationship was. Lizzy won't tell
me anything and lately she has been depressed. I only read one of her
letters. I also saw his email address on our computer. It's FD at
Pemberley dot com."
That's Will's email."
"Then it is him. He must love her."
"Why do you say that?"
Jane got up from the couch to grab her purse. Charles repositioned
himself so that they could both sit up. She sat next to him and took out
the Boodles and Dunthorne box. She handed him the box.
"He gave this to her."
Charles opened the box and was stunned.
"He gave this to Lizzy?"
"Yes and he only knows her as EB."
"This was his mother's."
"What? But the box says-"
"That was where Mr. Darcy bought it. It was his wedding gift to his
bride. Will inherited it after his mother died. He's to give it to his
bride. He gave this to Lizzy?"
"Yes. She told me that herself."
"And they have never met?"
"Well not knowing that they were EB and FD."
"I knew they were perfect for each other. But why are they so
indifferent to each other? They obviously are in love. At least Will is."
"I think Lizzy got scared at how serious Will wanted things to be. She's
not very comfortable with intimacy."
"Why?"
"You can't tell any one this. She was raped. In high school. By her
boyfriend. Our mother never believed her. She wouldn't let her go to the
doctor to prove it. The boy was very religious so no one believed her,
except me. That was when Lizzy and I moved to Keene. I was starting my
first year at Keene State College and Lizzy transferred to Keene high
school."
"I hadn't realized..."
"That was also when she changed. The carefree Lizzy was lost and the
stubborn distrustful Lizzy was found."
"I think Will would be good for her. He is very caring. This is also a
secret. Will saved Georgie from almost being raped. And by a family
friend. He had arrived home to the sound of his sister's cries and ran
up to her room just in time to stop George Wickham from seriously
harming her."
"George Wickham? There is a George Wickham in Meryton. Lizzy went on a
date with him, by mother's urgings. Mom likes George very much and
wanted Lizzy to marry him."
"Well it's good that you both moved. You won't have to deal with
him any longer. I'm glad he didn't hurt Lizzy."
"So am I. How are we going to get Will and Lizzy together?"
"We'll have to get her to wear the necklace in Will's presence. That
should be a big tip-off to Will."
"She'll be wearing it at our wedding."
"Then we will have to wait four weeks until he sees her with it on."
b>Chapter 7
Dear Elizabeth B,
I hope you don't mind me writing to you but I must see you.
It doesn't have to be a date, I just want to talk to you in person.
I promise not to do anything that may make you uncomfortable. Will
you meet me a week from Friday at ___________ at eight? I'll be
there for a private party, but we could meet at the bar for an hour
or so.
Sincerely,
Fitzwilliam D
Dear Fitzwilliam,
That is a very unusual name. I know someone with that name as their
last name. I don't know how you figured out my name but Elizabeth is
it. Against my better judgment I have decided to meet you. I think
we will both recognize each other right away but just in case I'll
be wearing a red dress.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth
Elizabeth was frantically going from store to store, Jane in tow,
looking for the perfect red dress. She wished she had never told
Fitzwilliam that she would be wearing red, but it had been the only
color she could wear that would stand out among a crowd.
She couldn't believe she had actually agreed to meet him. But she
was already going to be at _________ at eight that night. Charles
and Jane's rehearsal dinner was to take place there. The wedding was
the following morning. She wondered what other party would the up
scale restaurant be hosting that night.
"Lizzy how about this one?" Jane asked. She had been very happy when
Elizabeth had finally agreed to meet William. Now she wouldn't have
to wait until the wedding for them to meet.
Elizabeth looked at the dress that Jane was holding up and shook her
head vigorously. It was a very tight, very short, silk slip dress.
The bottom of the shirt flared out a bit, after it hugged the hips.
It would leave nothing to a man's imagination.
"Come on Lizzy. At least try it on."
Elizabeth gave in. She grabbed the dress and headed for the dressing
room. The dress was so snug there was no way she could wear panties
without her panty line showing.
"Jane there is no way you can get me out in public in this dress. I
don't want to give Fitzwilliam the wrong idea."
"Fitzwilliam?" Jane asked startled.
"He told me his name. Somehow he figured out my name. You know I
never thought of Fitzwilliam as a first name but I actually really
like it. It sounds rather romantic."
"Then you must wear this dress."
"Not unless I get it in a bigger size."
"But it's meant to fit that way."
"Jane I can't wear any undergarments with this dress!"
"So?"
"So I won't wear it."
"I don't blame you," a voice came from Elizabeth. She turned to see
Caroline Bingley standing behind her. She had on transparent gold
dress, if you can call it that, with bead work making the dress
barely decent. "If I had a body like yours I would never wear a
dress that hugged my hips or derrière. Are you planning on wearing
that to the rehearsal dinner?"
"What do you mean about my hips and derrière?"
"It's just they are too big for a dress like that."
"Oh, so women who actually have hips and derrières cannot wear
this
dress? What about your dress, if you actually call that a dress. Are
you wearing that to the rehearsal?"
"Yes, I am wearing this dress to the dinner. William likes it
when I dress like this."
"How much do you charge him?"
"What do you mean?" Caroline asked, confused.
"Well I thought if he likes you dressing up like a hooker, that you
must be his hooker."
"Elizabeth!" Jane finally interceded.
"Jane, I really like this dress. I think I will wear it. And you are
right, I don't need to wear panties."
"Slut," Caroline hissed as she went back into her changing room.
"I'm glad you finally realized what you are," Elizabeth called to
her as she went into her own changing room.
~•~
Elizabeth regretted her impulsive decision the next day. Now she was
stuck with a dress she felt uncomfortable wearing in public and to
make it worse she couldn't wear her panties without them showing.
"Why, oh, why did I let Caroline's comment about my hips get to me?"
she complained to Jane while they made party favors. "There is no
way I can wear that dress. He will think I'm a slut if I where that
dress."
"He won't think that," Jane consoled her. "He'll think you are
wearing that dress for him."
"It's something Caroline would wear."
"No, her dress is much too lower cut. Your dress is more modest."
"Modest! The skirt barely reaches mid thigh."
"But it doesn't show a lot of cleavage. You are always complaining
that it is hard to find a dress that isn't low cut. This dress makes
you look more proportional, it doesn't make your chest look too
large, instead it leads the eye to your long legs. Charlotte is
always saying you should show off more leg."
"But I don't want to go to dinner in commando."
"Then why don't you wear a thong. It would barely show through."
"I hate thongs. They are so uncomfortable."
"Well you can't wear the briefs you always wear."
"They're bikini."
"They will be too obvious."
Elizabeth sighed. "I hate it when you are right. I will wear a thong
before going commando. But I will only wear it with that dress."
"Good. Now we will have to go buy you a thong."
"Tomorrow. I'm tired of shopping."
They silently worked on favors for sometime before Jane hesitantly
broke the silence. "Lizzy, I haven't told you this yet but you will
find out soon if I don't. Bill Collins is performing the ceremony."
"Bill!" Elizabeth cried. "Why? He's so…so…"
"Lizzy! Bill is nice. He's our cousin and I couldn't have anyone
else perform the ceremony. Anyway we are having the wedding at his
church. You should have suspected that we would have him perform the
ceremony."
"I was hoping you weren't. Now I wished I had said 'no' when you
asked me to be maid of honor."
"Lizzy!"
"It's bad enough I have to deal with Will Darcy but now Bill Collins
and not to mention Caroline."
~•~
Elizabeth was nervous out of her mind. She was also quite furious
with her hair. She couldn't seem to get it to do what she wanted
it
to do. Just as she was about to give up and pull her hair back into
a tight bun, Charlotte arrived. Charlotte, who has been Elizabeth
and Jane's closest friend since before kindergarten, had worked
part-
time as a hairstylist during college. And fortunately Charlotte was
the only one Elizabeth knew who could tame her wild long curls.
"Wow Lizzy!" Charlotte exclaimed upon seeing her. "I have
never seen
you wear anything as sexy as that dress. Are you trying to impress
someone?"
"With my hair like this," Elizabeth pointed to the frizzy
mess, "I'm
not going to make any good impressions, even with wearing this
dress."
Charlotte immediately went to work, styling her friends curls into a
sexy upsweep with long wisps around her face and at her nape. "So
are you trying to impress the best man? I hear William Darcy is
quite the hotty."
"Where did you hear that? From his cousin? Will is defiantly not
a `hotty'."
"She has a date tonight," Jane answered.
"A date? With William Darcy?" asked Charlotte surprised.
"No way!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "I would never dress like
this for
Darcy! Anyway it's not a date."
"You don't like Will?"
"He's conceded, rude, pompous, inconsiderate…"
"Richard says otherwise."
"Well Richard would have to say nice things about him."
"You never say anything nice about Bill and he's your
cousin."
"Richard must then have better manners than I do. I would never
be
caught dead with Darcy."
"You will be spending a lot of the time with him tonight and
tomorrow," mentioned Jane.
"And I'm not looking forward to it."
"So who are you dressing up for?" Charlotte asked.
"Fitzwilliam," Elizabeth simply stated.
"Fitzwilliam? Not my Richard?"
"I would never steal what is yours, Charlotte. I do have to admit
that I did have an interest in Richard before I found out about you
and him, but now I'm over that."
"Lizzy hasn't actually met Fitzwilliam yet in person,"
Jane
clarified. "They've been writing to each other for almost a
year. He
wanted to get to know her better."
"Never met? He could be a serial killer," Charlotte responded.
"He's not a serial killer," Elizabeth said defensively.
"He's very
nice and the best of men."
"You got all that from his letters?"
"Then why don't you want to date him?" Jane asked.
"I thought she was going on a date with him tonight,"
Charlotte
asked confused.
"They are just meeting. No date."
"You are meeting him dressed like that?" Charlotte asked
Elizabeth. "And it's not a date."
"I'm dressing like this for the rehearsal dinner,"
Elizabeth
pronounced. "Not for Fitzwilliam. We just happen to be meeting
during the same time as the dinner."
"All done," Charlotte said as she backed away from Elizabeth.
"What
do you think?"
"It's wonderful Charlotte!" Elizabeth exclaimed.
"I'll never
understand how you can make my hair look so wonderful, when I can
barely make it look presentable." She gave her friend a hug.
"We
better get going or we are going to be late for the rehearsal."
The three ladies finished getting ready with organized chaos and got
out the door and to the church in ample time. They actually arrived
before Charles and William. Everyone else there being the Bennet
family, Richard, Bill Collins and to Elizabeth's dismay, George
Wickham.
Elizabeth went to ask George what he was doing at the church but as
she got closer she noticed that George and Richard were exchanging
heated words. She decided to intervene before fists started to fly.
"George, what are you doing here?"
George turned from Richard to see Elizabeth. His look of anger eased
into a charming smile. "Lizzy!" he cried as he came over to
her and
pulled her into a hug. "It's so nice to see you again."
He stepped
back and let his eyes roam her body, making her very uncomfortable
in her provocative red dress. "You're looking very sexy
tonight."
His eyes settled on her breasts. "You wouldn't wear a dress
like
that for me."
"Well I didn't want you to ogle me like you are doing right
now."
She moved away from him to stand next to Richard. "You still
haven't
answered my question, what are you doing here?"
"Your family invited me. They are hoping you and I will hook up
together again."
"We were never `together'."
George moved towards her, standing so close she could feel the heat
of his breath on her face. "I know you want me Lizzy. You have
wanted me since you first laid eyes on me. Don't deny it."
Elizabeth never got a chance to deny it for George was suddenly
pulled away from her and up against the altar. At first she thought
that Richard had been the assailant but then she saw it was William
who pinned him with his arm at George's throat.
"What are you doing here Wickham?" William growled,
spitting
the name.
"I could ask you the same thing," George said as if he was
having a
casual conversation.
"What is going on Will?" Charles asked as he approached the
two. "Who is this man?"
"This is George Wickham," Darcy said the name as if he
was
cursing. "What are you doing here?" he asked George again,
tightening his hold.
"I was invited. By the Bennet family."
"The Bennets?" asked William. He turned to Elizabeth.
"You invited
this man?"
"Me?" Elizabeth yelled. "Are you crazy? I would never
invite a man
any place who can't keep his eyes and hands where they
belong."
"If you want to keep men's eyes and hands off you then you
should
wear some clothes and not something that looks like it should be
worn in the bedroom." Elizabeth glared at Will as he continued,
"Who
invited this man?"
"I did," spoke up a young lady who was obviously related to
Elizabeth. She walked over to Will's side. "Let him go, you
brute.
He doesn't deserve your treatment of him. He hasn't done
anything to
you."
"Hasn't done anything to me?" Will laughed at that.
"What have you
been telling her Wickham?"
The lady took exception to his laughter and began beating on him.
"Lydia!" Elizabeth cried as she moved towards her sister. She
grabbed her around the waist and pulled her away from Will, with
help from Richard. "Leave Mr. Darcy alone."
"Let me go Lizzy!" Lydia cried. "He's hurting
George."
"Well it's not like George doesn't deserve it,"
Elizabeth commented
to herself.
Charlotte, Jane, Kitty and Charles watched, not sure what to do. The
rest of the Bennet's were talking will Bill, not even noticing
the
commotion at the front of the church. Caroline, who had arrived at
the church with Charles and Will in her skimpy gold dress, was not
to be found in the church for she was on her cell phone outside
where she got better reception.
The commotion finally got the clergyman's attention and Bill
walked
over to them. "What's going on here? You will not harm any
man in
this church and most definitely on my altar."
Will finally realized where he was and what he was doing. He
released George and said: "This is not over Wickham.
We'll
finish this later."
Order was restored and the rehearsal commenced. Elizabeth kept
catching Will staring at her. She wondered why he did so. He's
probably thinking I look like a slut. Did he actually say my dress
was only appropriate for the bedroom? Why did I ever let Caroline
antagonize me into buying this dress?
Elizabeth couldn't believe that Caroline had actually worn that
same
gold dress in a church. It was obvious that Caroline was wearing it
to get Will's attention and Elizabeth got some satisfaction in
noticing that Will never even gave Caroline a second look. At
least he has some taste.
~•~
William Darcy had no idea what was wrong with him. He felt like a
teenage boy again. Every time he looked at Lizzy in her sexy red
dress he just wanted to kiss her. No, he wanted to do a lot more
than kissing but he didn't want to think about that. At least not
while he was in a church.
He was also angry with himself for how he reacted to George
Wickham's advances on her. He knew he had felt jealousy but
couldn't
understand why. Lizzy was rude, inconsiderate and… and…
She's
dressed like a slut. No. That dress is actually decent. She looks
very sexy. Classy sexy. The dress covers more than Caroline's bit
of
lace.
Will then remembered how nice Lizzy had been towards his sister.
Georgiana had felt uncomfortable about meeting new people, but Lizzy
suddenly had her talking about herself. Maybe Lizzy isn't so
bad. He loved the way her eyes glowed when she smiled or
laughed. Maybe if things don't work out with Elizabeth…
He was shocked by that thought. He knew Elizabeth was a terrific
person. He just wasn't so sure about Lizzy. I will just have
to
wait until I meet Elizabeth tonight.
Chapter 8
Elizabeth was in a bad mood when she arrived at ________. She got
stuck sitting next to Billy Collins in the car. They had traveled
from the church to the restaurant in three cars: Jane and
Elizabeth's (Jane, Elizabeth, Mary and Billy), Charles' (Charles,
William, Caroline, Richard and Charlotte), and the Bennet's (Mr. and
Mrs. Bennet, Kitty, Lydia and George). She was glad she didn't get
stuck in a car with George.
Although Jane and Charles had not wanted George Wickham at their
rehearsal dinner they could not turn him away. Considering he had
traveled all the way down from New Hampshire with the Bennets and
was sharing a hotel suite with them, it would have been very rude
not only to George but also Jane's family.
To make matters worse she ended up being seated between Billy and
William at dinner with Lydia sitting across from her. William was
silent throughout the whole meal. Both Lydia and Billy were
constantly competing for Elizabeth's attention. Also George stared
at her through out the whole meal from his seat next to Lydia. She
felt very uncomfortable and could not wait until she could leave the
party to meet Fitzwilliam.
When dinner was done she excused herself, telling Jane where she was
going and headed for the bar. There were several men there but none
came over to her, and she did not think that any of them were him.
After a moment a man came towards her. He appeared to be a man who
always got the girl he wanted. He walked up beside her and gave a
lecherous grin.
"Hello beautiful," he said in a practiced seductive voice.
Elizabeth tried to ignore him. She knew that was not her
Fitzwilliam.
"You're looking very sexy in that dress."
Dammit! Why did I wear this dress!
"How would you like to come with me to my place to have a… private
drink?"
"No, thank you."
"Come on I know you really do. You're just playing hard-to-get."
"No! I am not!" Elizabeth said forcefully. Where is Fitzwilliam?
I hope he doesn't think I am with this guy.
~•~
William was in a bad mood when he arrived at ________. He got stuck
sitting next to Caroline in the car. She had blatantly fawned all
over him. She was practically in his lap by the time they arrived.
To make matter worse he was seated between Lizzy and Mrs. Bennet
during dinner with George Wickham across from him. He was glad that
Caroline was no where near him.
He spent dinner listening to Mrs. Bennet ramble on about how
wonderful Charles is. And how he is the perfect match for "her dear
Jane." William grew bored quickly. When he excused himself to use
the restroom he was accosted by Billy Collins.
"Oh! How wonderful it is to see you again! You probably do not
recall someone as humble as myself but we were seated together on
our flight from LA to New York."
No! Not again! "I remember meeting you."
"Oh! How wonderful of you to remember someone of the cloth. I am
humbled to have such a prominent man as yourself present during one
of my services.—"
"Yes. Well please excuse me?" William walked passed him to the
restroom.
After he left the restroom he decided to go directly to the bar to
meet Elizabeth. He did not want to run into Billy or George.
As he walked up to the bar he immediately saw a man trying to hit on
Lizzy. She was obviously repulsed by the man and was looked
desperate for help. So quickly William without second thought went
up to the man and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Excuse me, but I would like it very much if you left her alone."
The man turned towards him. "Why the hell should I?"
"Because she is my girlfriend."
The man laughed. "Yeah right."
"Lizzy, why don't we go somewhere else?"
For a brief moment Lizzy looked as if she might not go with him, but
he guessed she judged him less dangerous than the strange man,
because she finally took his hand as he held it out to her and let
William lead her towards the back end of the bar.
"Thank you," she said after they were both seated at a small table
together.
"You're welcome."
"It's this dress… I look like a whore. I don't know why I let Jane
talk me into wearing it."
"You don't look like a whore. I think the dress looks very nice on
you."
She looked at him as if she didn't believe him.
"I am telling you the truth."
"I don't believe you. There is not enough fabric to look respectable
in it."
"Are you trying to look respectable? If you were you failed. But you
do look… ah… sexy and compelling."
"Sexy and compelling? What is that suppose to mean?"
"Well… I mean… as in a powerful kind of sexy. You know… A dominating
sexy."
"I think you better shut up before you say something that I won't
like."
"Okay," William laughed.
"I am wondering why you helped me when you hate me."
"I don't hate you."
"Yes, you do."
"No. I don't hate you… but maybe I dislike you."
"Well, I dislike you, too."
"I figured that."
"We have both treated each other very badly."
"Yes we have. You started it."
"How so?"
"You were rude to me on the phone."
"You were rude, too."
"Yes, but only after you were rude."
Their voices were getting steadily higher and other occupants of the
bar were looking their way. Neither Lizzy or William noticed.
"You call accidentally dropping a phone rude?"
"No. But asking your sister to set you up with me gave me a bad
opinion of you."
"What! I never asked Jane to set me up with anyone. I would never do
so. And especially not with you! From the moment I set eyes on you I
knew that you would be the last person I would ever want to be set
up with!"
"I felt the same way!"
"Good!"
"Excuse me, but you two will have to leave," the bartender had come
over to their table and was now glaring at them.
"We'll quiet done," responded William.
"I'm sorry but you will need to leave."
"We are part of a party," Lizzy added. "We will go back to our
private room."
"I'm sorry. But as I said you will have to leave. We have rules
against rowdiness in this bar and we have no tolerance for rule
breakers. Please leave on your own. I would hate to have to call the
police."
"Okay," Lizzy responded, "We will just get our things and let our
party know we are leaving."
~•~
Elizabeth told her sister what had happened. Jane didn't seemed
surprised that she and William had gotten in an argument.
"So you did not see Fitzwilliam?" Jane asked her quietly.
"No. He must have seen me with William and left."
"I don't think so."
"Well I'm going to need the car. Can you get a ride home with
Charles?"
"Charles," Jane asked her fiancée, "can you give me a ride home?"
"What about Will? He came with me here. Can Lizzy give him a ride
home?"
"Sure she can," Jane spoke before Elizabeth could speak.
"Okay. Then it is settled," Charles responded. "I will give Jane a
ride and you will give Will a ride."
Elizabeth did not want to give William a ride home but could
not think of any way to get out of it.
She headed for the door and then stopped to turn to William. "Are
you coming?" She continued walking out without waiting for a
response.
~•~
William wasn't sure what had just happened. He was getting a ride
home from Lizzy and for some reason he felt surprisingly aroused.
Why am I so attracted to Lizzy? She rude, insulting and it's
obvious that she thinks the same about me. So why am I glad she is
driving me home instead of me taking a cab?
He got into the passenger seat after she unlocked the doors. They
were silent except when Lizzy asked him for directions. She pulled
up to his front door and turned off the car.
"Goodnight William."
"Goodnight," he responded. He got out of the car and walked up to
his town house. He unlocked the door and entered. Now what do I
do? Should I email Elizabeth?
~•~
Elizabeth turned the key in the ignition again.
"Damn car!" she hit the steering wheel. And tried to start her car
again. Nothing.
"I'm going to have to ask Will if I can borrow his phone and he will
think it's all a trick to seduce him. That arrogant pig!"
She got out of the car and stumbled up the steps. She hated her
shoes. They were uncomfortable but Jane had said they were the best
choice to go with the dress. She rang the doorbell. And after
several moments of no answer, rang it again. She then heard what
sounded like someone running, or more like stumbling, down the
stairs. There was muffled cursing and then the door opened.
William stood on the other side wearing flannel pants and nothing
else. It was obvious he was getting ready for bed when she rang the
bell. He looked surprise to see her.
"Lizzy?"
"Uh, the car won't start."
"Oh, uh, why don't I take a look."
I knew he would think it was a ploy.
He put on shoes and grabbed a jacket from a closet and walked out to
the car, Elizabeth following him. He tried the ignition and got the
same results as she did. He then popped the hood and stared at the
contents.
"Uh, I don't know anything about cars," he admitted. He closed the
hood and turned to her. "Would you like to call a tow truck?"
"Not at this hour. If I could call a cab…"
"Sure. Come in."
She followed him into the house and he showed her where the phone
was. She made the call but was informed it would take at least an
hour before any one could pick her up.
"A cab won't be here for at least an hour," she told Will after she
had hung up.
"Oh, ah… well, would you like something to drink while you wait?"
"No. But could you direct me to the bathroom?"
"Down that hall; last door on your right."
"Thanks." She followed his direction and entered a large bathroom
decorated in white and green with images of various birds on the
sink, floor and towels. She used the facilities and then stayed in
the bathroom longer, not wanting to be alone with William. Finally
she exited the room. I can't stay in the bathroom for an hour;
he'll think something is wrong with me.
When she arrived back into the living room, where the phone was, she
found William sitting in a chair and fast asleep. He had taken off
his shoes and coat and was now wearing a bathrobe that was tied
shut. It still showed a good portion of his chest. He looked
peaceful in his sleep state. Elizabeth even went so far as thinking
he looked quite adorable.
She sat on the couch and waited for her cab. If Will were more
considerate I would like him. If he were more like Fitzwilliam…
To be continued...