Beginning, Section II
Jump to new as of May 28, 2001
Jump to new as of June 4, 2001
Part 6
Lizzy sighed and rubbed her forehead as she watched the 4pm news come to a close.
It had actually been a very good show, and their coverage of the fire had blown away the competition.
The 5 and 6 were set to do the same thing.
Overall, she should have been on cloud nine, having beaten the competitors and gotten a fantastic broadcast on.
She'd also thoroughly enjoyed her interview with Steven Tyler and Joe Perry. To her surprise, they'd been extremely nice and very talkative. Steven had even laughed when she'd gotten up the nerve to ask about his 'lips.' He'd assured her they were genetic, and told her to look at Liv if she had any doubts. She'd laughed, making a note to tell Will about his answer later on. Overall it had been a fun and enlightening ten minutes.
So why was Will's closed expression and his warning still lurking in her mind, even overshadowing Steven Tyler's lips?
She was jolted from her thoughts as her phone rang.
"Lizzy Bennett, WDEB," she replied off-handedly, staring at the flowers on her desk.
"Did you like my flowers?"
She started as Jeff's smooth voice flowed over the line. Although she shouldn't have been so surprised to hear it. She'd expected his call.
"Jeff, they're beautiful, and quite a surprise," she began carefully, still confused at her ambivalence to his smooth charm, Will's warning a haunting refrain inside her head.
"I hoped you'd like them, and I was wondering if you felt like dinner tonight," Jeff replied, feeling proud of himself as he realized he'd succeeded in surprising her as he'd hoped. He wondered if Will Darcy had been around to see his gift. He smiled evilly at the thought.
Lizzy hesitated, not sure what to do.
Part of her was interested in finding out more about him, but a larger part was unable to forget Will's soft spoken, unexplained warning.
She felt some residue of anger building inside her as she realized she was letting thoughts of Will Darcy take over too much of her life.
"I'd love to Jeff, why don't I meet you at 'Luigi's' at about 7:30, okay?" she replied quickly, before she could think better of her acceptance.
Jeff smiled and punched a fist into the air in triumph.
"Sounds wonderful, I'll see you then. And I'll be thinking about you Lizzy," he rumbled in what he hoped was his 'sexy' voice, as so many women had teased him about before.
It was obviously working on Lizzy Bennett.
Murmuring a good-bye, Lizzy hung up the phone, immediately wondering if she'd done the right thing.
"Lizzy, we've got another shooting!"
Charles's urgent voice brought her out of her daze and back to the present.
Pushing all thoughts of her upcoming dinner date, and Will Darcy, from her head, she began to focus on her job.
***********
Two hours later a very tired but triumphant crew emerged from the studio, congratulating themselves on an outstanding newscast.
They'd gotten the best coverage of the fire and the recent shooting that had injured three people. Emma had outdone herself by dropping her story and heading to the shooting, as usual, managing to get everyone to talk to her before the other stations.
Lizzy was smiling as she returned to her desk and gathered her things.
"Great show Liz! We rocked!"
She smiled as Charles passed her on his way out.
"It was wasn't it?" she replied, please with everyone. "You off to pick up Jane?" she asked as he nodded on his way towards the door.
"Yep, you having dinner with Jeff?" he called back with a teasing smile.
Lizzy sighed, remembering how hard it was to keep a private life private in a newsroom.
"I don't even want to know how you know, since it's none of your business, but if you must know, yes, we're meeting in a half an hour," she replied as Charles simply laughed and winked before disappearing out the door.
Realizing she had only 20 minutes to make her date, she quickly gathered up her things, called out good-bye's to those still left in the newsroom, and headed out the door. A quick stop in the ladies room to retouch her makeup and make sure her hair was in some semblance of order, and she was out the door, headed for one of her favorite Italian restaurants in the city.
As she drove, she found herself wondering if she were really doing the right thing, having dinner with Jeff. Although she had just met him, and found him intriguing in some way, there was also something about him that set warning bells off inside her brain.
But then again, she had been accused of being too suspicious at times.
Promising herself she'd give Jeff the benefit of the doubt, she took at deep breath as she pulled into the restaurant's parking lot. Slipping from the car she smiled as she noted Jeff's tall figure waiting for her near the front door.
"Lizzy! I'm so glad you made it!"
Jeff smiled as he watched her walk towards him. She really was a beautiful woman in an understated way.
And Jeff Wickham always noted a beautiful woman, understated or not.
"Jeff! I'm so glad I'm not late," Lizzy replied smiling as he leaned over to brush a kiss across her cheek.
She was surprised to feel, well, nothing, at the small gesture.
Puzzling that over, she allowed him to lead her inside, chatting almost off-handedly about her day.
When they were seated, Jeff motioned a waiter over and ordered a bottle of wine.
"Jeff, really, I do have to work tomorrow," she began, but stopped as he smiled and waved off her excuse.
It irritated her for a moment that he seemed unconcerned about her wishes.
But as he smiled apologetically at her, she found herself softening and settled back to see where the evening led.
Surprisingly she found herself the receiver of a barrage of questions about her job. Not that she weren't used to getting them, but Jeff's questions seemed rather pointed instead of open ended.
It was only as she kept talking that she realized what he kept trying to get her talk about.
Will Darcy.
That set her antenna on red alert.
Especially after Will's warning earlier that day.
Determined to get to the bottom of the matter, Lizzy decided frankness was her best option at the moment.
"Jeff," she began, cutting him off with a puzzled smile, "why are you so interested in Will Darcy?"
She watched as he started at her bluntness, noting his eyes shifted quickly from hers for a moment before returning his gaze to hers.
It made him look rather shifty in Lizzy's opinion.
"You've found me out," Jeff managed, trying to calm his nerves as he realized he'd been too obvious in his questions. He had to backtrack a bit, and then give Lizzy the story he'd come up with.
"I'm just kind of curious, especially since you keep asking about him, and when I mentioned your name this morning he sort of tensed up," Lizzy offered carefully, watching something spark in Jeff's eyes. What she didn't know, but it didn't look pleasant.
"So you mentioned my name to Will, did you?" he managed, running a hand through his hair and trying to look upset. Really though, this was going better than he'd planned. Lizzy Bennett was a very sharp woman.
"Not actually to him, I was telling the people at work who sent me the flowers," she began cautiously, deciding for the moment to keep Will's warning out of the conversation.
"I bet it gave him a shock, the bastard," Jeff managed, trying not to gloat at the surprised expression that crossed Lizzy's face.
"Obviously you two dislike each other, care to fill me in on why?" she asked, wondering if he'd give her an answer. His eyes kept shifting, making her more inclined to think he was trying to hide something.
Jeff sighed, preparing to put on the act of his life.
He was actually looking forward to it.
"I suppose you'll find out anyhow, but it's a long, and not very pretty story. You sure you want to hear it?" he asked, watching as Lizzy's curiosity was aroused.
"I'm listening," she managed, settling back in her chair, wondering what she was getting herself into.
Jeff sighed and began to talk.
"Will's father and mine were the best of friends. In fact, our families literally lived next to each other, grew up together and all that. My family had no where near the money that Will's did, but we managed just fine. Will and I were about five years apart in age, but we were still good friends. Unfortunately, when I was 17, my father and mother were killed in a skiing accident, leaving me all alone in the world. I was provided for of course, and I ended up living with the Darcy's until I turned 21 and was able to figure out what to do on my own," he trailed off, noting the softening expression on Lizzy's face.
"Oh how terrible! To lose both parents, I'm sorry," Lizzy managed, feeling for him. She might get frustrated with her family, but she didn't know what she'd do if she lost them.
"Thank you. But I survived and actually decided on a career in law. However, I didn't have enough money to finance it. But I decided I'd find a way to get the money without asking the Darcy's. They'd been good enough to me already, I didn't want to take anything from them, until I met Georgiana," he trailed off at this point, watching out of the corner of his eye as Lizzy leaned forward.
"Georgiana?" she asked, curious about the far off expression on Jeff's face.
Jeff sighed and returned to his story.
"Georgiana is Will's sister. She's quite a bit younger, but still, one of the most fascinating creatures I've ever met. She was away at school for years, and when she returned, well, she wasn't the little 'sister' I'd grown up with. She was a beautiful woman, and I'm afraid I fell in love with her," he managed quietly.
Lizzy watched his expression change, sensing he was telling her the truth, but something still seemed off about it. Pushing those suspicions to the back of her mind, she urged him on, determined to know the rest of this story, although she had an idea where it was leading.
"I take it Will didn't approve?" she asked dryly, hearing Jeff laugh harshly in reply.
"To say the least. Ever since my father died, he'd made it clear that while we were friends, he was far above me, in class and wealth. While I was good enough to be a friend, I was definitely not good enough for his precious sister. He hated the thought of her marrying a 'poor man' like me. He told me so plenty of times let me tell you. Of course, knowing this didn't stop Georgiana and me from wanting to be together. I must admit, it only made us more determined to find a way to be together, despite Will's efforts to thwart us. It helped for a while that he was distracted by his studies as he prepared to take over his father's business. We were able to sneak around and plan our future while he was away. We had it all planned out, all of it, to the last detail, until he ruined everything," Jeff muttered, eyes flashing with anger.
Lizzy watched his expression, surprised to see the genuine hate that flashed through Jeff's eyes as he uttered the last words. While part of her sympathized, finding it easy to believe Will Darcy capable of such things from what little she knew of him so far, another part of her shivered lightly, realizing there was definitely something dangerous about this man. Something that made Will object to Jeff having a relationship with Georgiana. Something that had made him warn her about him this morning.
But she wasn't quite ready to give up on Jeff just yet.
She wanted to hear this story to its end. Then she'd figure out her conflicting emotions.
"What happened?" she prodded, watching as Jeff's eyes cleared.
Jeff unclenched his hands, forcing his temper down at the remembered emotions and continued.
"We were going to run off and get married in Vegas. She'd just turned 18, so it was legal, and we were ready to hop a plane and get married. We were going to start a life together as I worked through law school and she helped support me as she took classes as well. It would have been a tight existence, but we could have made it work. We loved each other, that was what counted," he trailed off, the wistful look he'd practiced so often easy to slip into. Another side-look from his eyes showed Lizzy seemed engrossed in his tale.
Perfect, he smiled to himself.
"I take it Will found out," Lizzy managed, watching as Jeff nodded, his eyes clearing as he continued.
"The night we were going to leave, Will returned suddenly from school, summoned by his father for something. We were packed and heading out the front door when he walked up. Needless to say he didn't react well at seeing his precious sister and I together. In fact, he lost it. He grabbed Georgiana and hustled her back inside, then pulled me into the living room and began to lay into me for thinking we could do this. I tell you, I've never felt so humiliated in my entire life, especially by a man I once considered a friend," Jeff managed, knowing this was the part of the story he had no problem feeling honest emotions about.
He hated Will Darcy with a passion he couldn't even begin to explain.
Lizzy sighed, her heart aching for the young lovers, but something else inside her warning her not to feel too sorry for the man sitting across from her.
She chose to ignore that part for the moment.
She wanted to hear more.
"I'm guessing he made it clear you and Georgiana had no future together?" she asked quietly as Jeff nodded.
"He basically told me to get out. He added that any friendship we'd had was over and done with and that if I ever went near Georgiana again, he'd make sure I was taken away for good. When I refused, declaring I loved Georgiana and she me, he offered me a bribe, a bribe to stay away from her! I was appalled! I'd never considered Will Darcy capable of that! But he did. Of course I didn't take it, I couldn't. But I did leave, figuring it was the best option at the time. I was determined to return the next day and try to talk to him when he seemed more reasonable. Unfortunately, when I returned the next day, I found he'd sent Georgiana off to a private college, and wouldn't tell me where. I was devastated Lizzy, truly and deeply devastated, I didn't know what to do," he managed in a hoarse voice, noting the sympathy in the brown eyes across from him.
This was almost too easy.
Lizzy felt her own tender heart moved at his story. Who wouldn't be? It had all the trimmings of a fairy tale gone wrong.
That's what put her on guard.
It was almost too much like a fairy tale.
Forcing her doubts down, she urged him to continue.
Jeff smiled to himself as he finished his tale.
"Needless to say, I left Pemberley that day and never returned. For a few months I simply lost it, drinking myself to sleep each night, wondering if Georgiana thought about me or about our future. Finally, I realized I was doing no one any good, least of all myself, so I got up and found a job. I worked odd jobs around the country and took classes at various community colleges until I had enough to put me through law school. I somehow ended up in Atlanta, and ended up getting accepted into law school there. I then worked my way through school, and several marriages, to where I am today. But I always wonder about Georgiana and what she's doing. Which is why when you mentioned you worked for Will, it brought back unpleasant memories," he finished wryly, reaching for his wine, satisfied she believed his tale.
Lizzy sighed as she watched him. It was truly a sad tale and she felt for him.
But she still wasn't sure she believed him.
Besides, something else had sparked her curiosity.
"You mentioned several marriages? Obviously you didn't try and find Georgiana?" she asked, watching as his eyes shifted from hers again.
"Well, I tried to find her for several years, but had no luck. I also didn't have any money to help in those efforts. I guess I just resigned myself to getting on with life after a while. So I did. I met my first wife Joan in Atlanta. She was a law student too, and we decided to try a life together. Unfortunately, after two years, we realized we weren't suited to each other and divorced. It was a civil matter, and we parted amiably. Two years later I was just starting my career as a lawyer and I met Gwen. Her father actually owned the law firm I was working in. After a whirlwind courtship, we married. Three years later, it was over. We argued and fought constantly and decided the best route was divorce. So that's when I moved out here, determined to start life fresh, and meet new people," he finished, sending Lizzy a dazzling smile.
Lizzy was still trying to absorb all she'd just learned about the man sitting across from her.
And figure out why she didn't believe half of what he was saying.
She figured it was her suspicious nature coming into play, but something wasn't right here.
But she couldn't let on she felt like that.
"Have I totally disgusted you with my past?" Jeff asked, watching as Lizzy seemed to come out of the daze she'd been in.
Lizzy shook herself, determined to enjoy the rest of the evening before analyzing her confusing thoughts.
"Oh no, I'm just thinking how hard it must have been for you all these years. And then to hear the man who started it all is working in the same town. You must be really upset," she hedged gently, watching his eyes spark again.
"Well, I knew I'd run into Will again, and I swore I'd be civil. I just hope I don't physically run into him. I don't know what I'd do," he finished in a harsh voice, his hands clenched into fists on the table.
Lizzy forced down the spurt of alarm she felt at his intense words.
Definitely another side to Jeff Wickham here.
But she'd think about that later.
Right now, she simply wanted to finish dinner, talking about anything other than Will Darcy.
"Sorry, didn't mean to sound intense there, in fact, why don't we change the subject all together," Jeff managed, knowing it would be pressing his luck to try taking things any further on the topic of Will Darcy.
But he was certain she'd believed him.
Hook, line and sinker.
Feeling rather proud of himself, he settled back and turned on the charm, knowing he'd succeeded in the first part of his plan.
*************
Two hours later Lizzy was fighting a growing headache as Jeff walked her back to her apartment.
After Jeff's enlightening confession, they'd talked about other things, but Lizzy hadn't been able to break herself of the suspicions she found herself having of Jeff Wickham.
She would be lying if she said she weren't glad their night was nearing an end.
"I had a wonderful time tonight Lizzy, despite boring you with the sordid details of my past," Jeff managed as they reached her door.
Lizzy forced a smile at him as she reached for her keys.
"That's okay, at least I know why you two hate each other now. The rest of the evening was nice though," she managed as she turned the knob and opened the door.
"Lizzy."
She turned at Jeff's whisper of her name, not surprised to find him leaning towards her lips. Before she could say anything, he was kissing her.
And she felt nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
Not one shred of emotion, pleasant or passionate or otherwise.
She tried not to breathe a sigh of relief as he pulled back, a smile on his face, obviously oblivious to her reaction or lack there of.
"I'd like to see you again, if that's all right with you?" Jeff asked as he smiled at her.
"I'll call you," she replied as she sent him another smile and slipped inside the door, closing it behind her.
She sank back against the wood as Honey bounded up to her, tail wagging happily.
"Oh Honey, what a night," she managed as she scratched her dog's head and tried to clear her mind.
Sighing, she straightened and headed upstairs, knowing she needed a bath and a good nights sleep before trying to process Jeff's story.
***********
A half an hour later she was relaxing in a bubble bath, sorting out her feelings.
While she had no doubts that Will Darcy could forbid Jeff to marry his sister, she had a very hard time believing that he would actually treat Jeff as someone 'lower than him.' Not that she had any reason NOT to believe he would, but from the way he'd acted around the staff at work and even her, he didn't seem like the type of man to look down on someone.
Especially from a man who took the time to talk to everyone in the newsroom and make sure they were okay with things. Or from a man who admitted he liked Aerosmith and classic rock. Not something one would normally associate with the 'upper crust' of society.
But Jeff had sounded so impassioned, so heartbroken.
But he'd been out with her.
And he'd admitted to two other marriages that hadn't worked out.
She had a gut instinct there was quite a bit Jeff Wickham wasn't telling her.
But what cinched the deal was the fact she hadn't felt anything for him when he kissed her.
No sparks, no fireworks, not even a tingle.
Emotions she felt simply from looking at or talking to Will Darcy.
Uh oh.
Bad thought.
Very bad thought.
She forced herself to get the thoughts of Will Darcy's eyes, and the emotions they inspired in her, out of her mind.
She turned her attention back to Jeff.
Maybe they could work on a friendship, because she knew now she couldn't be romantically involved with him. She'd promised herself long ago that she wouldn't 'settle.' She was determined to find the love of her life, a man that made her feel things she'd only read about, a man who would love her and she him, for the rest of their lives. She knew it was probably more of a fairy tale than any Jeff might have spun, but she clung to her promise.
She wanted the fireworks, the bells and the whistles.
She wouldn't settle for less.
Which meant finding a way to let Jeff down easily.
God, when had her life become so complicated?
Sighing, she got out of her bath and toweled herself dry, slipping into an old college T-shirt before curling up on the bed and falling into a fitful sleep, Honey snuggled at her feet.
**************
Three hours later an insistent pounding woke her from her tangled dreams of Will's eyes and Jeff's shifty looks. She lifted bleary eyes to her clock that read 3AM.
Who in the world would be pounding on her front door at 3AM?
Dragging herself from bed, she grabbed a robe from her closet, nudging a still sleeping Honey awake, and padded down the steps, Honey close behind her. She felt safer having the big dog next to her, even though Honey wouldn't hurt a fly.
Intruders didn't know that however.
As she neared the door, the pounding grew louder.
"I'm coming, hold your horses," she muttered as she squinted to see through the peephole on the door. Her eyes flew wide open as she recognized the woman standing in front of her door.
"Lydia!"
With a surprised cry, Lizzy threw open the door to her sister's smiling face.
"Lizzy! I'm so glad you're still awake!"
Lydia Bennett smiled as she reached out to hug her sister. She had been pretty sure Lizzy would be home, even though she knew it was very, very late to be visiting, but her plane had been delayed.
"Lydia, what are you doing here? At 3 in the morning?" Lizzy managed, glad to see her sister, but puzzled as to why she hadn't called to let them know she was coming.
"My flight was delayed, I'm so sorry I got in so late, but can I come in?" Lydia asked as Lizzy immediately nodded and reached for some of the bags at her sister's feet.
"So what brings you out west? I thought the 'lights of Broadway' were calling?" Lizzy managed, lugging some her sister's luggage into the guest bedroom, assuming from all her bags that Lydia would be staying with her.
"Well, I needed to get away. Things weren't working out, and when I talked to Mama, she paid for a ticket to come visit you and Jane. She said it would be good for me to look at things out here, and she was sure you and Jane would help me find something to do," Lydia chirped happily as she dumped the rest of her luggage in the guest room.
"Great, I just wish she'd told us," Lizzy muttered as she watched her sister head for the kitchen and begin to raid the fridge. She sighed as she followed Lydia and watched her sister happily make herself at home.
"I thought she'd called, sorry to descend on you, you don't mind though, right?" Lydia suddenly asked as she poured herself a glass of milk.
"Of course not, it's just a surprise I wasn't expecting, that's all," Lizzy muttered as she sank into a chair.
"Well, now that I'm here, you can go back to sleep, I know I woke you up. I'll just make myself at home and we can talk tomorrow night! I'll call Jane and we can all do dinner here or something after you guys get off work, okay?" Lydia bounced as Lizzy simply nodded already overwhelmed by her exuberant sister.
She never got any rest when Lydia was around.
Why start now?
"Actually, I wasn't sleeping well, so why don't you pour me a glass of milk and catch me up on what's going on in your life, okay?" Lizzy managed as Lydia brightened and reached for another glass.
"Great! I was hoping you'd say that! I've been needing to talk to someone about this for a while, and you're always the best listener Lizzy," Lydia began, settling into the chair and beginning to fill her sister in on her life.
Lizzy smiled tiredly as she sipped her milk and listened.
Lydia might be tiring at times, but she was her sister, and she had to admit, she was curious about what had brought the usually independent Lydia to Longbourne. It had been too long since they'd seen each other.
Although in about two days, Lizzy knew she'd be ready to send her sister back to New York City.
She smiled wryly to herself as she prepared for a long night.
Part 7
Lizzie sighed as she trudged into the morning meeting the next day feeling like she'd gotten no sleep instead of the two hours she'd managed to get in after Lydia had wound down. She was carrying her third cup of coffee for the morning and it wasn't even 9:30 yet. This didn't bode well for a good day.
"Rough night Lizzy, or hot date?"
Lizzy laughed sarcastically at Charles's comment and leer as she settled herself into her normal chair.
"Yes to the former, definitely no to the latter," she muttered as she rubbed her eyes forcing herself to try and sound coherent.
"Well I'm assuming then that your rough night had nothing to do with Jeff Wickham if you're negating my theory of a 'hot date,'" Charles teased as Lizzy sent him a death glare.
Of course, just as he spoke those words, Will walked into the meeting.
Lizzy held her breath as she watched her boss absorb Charles's comment, his eyes unreadable. She let out the breath as he simply moved around the table, exchanging good mornings with those gathered there.
She said a quick prayer of thanks that he wasn't going to bring up Jeff at the moment. Not that she didn't intend to bring the subject up after they got this meeting over with. Despite her lousy mood and relatively little sleep, she had to hear Will's side of the story. It didn't sit well with her to only hear it from one man and not the other. Not to mention her suspicions of Jeff anyhow, and the thought that she couldn't believe the man sitting next to her capable of the cruelness Jeff had accused him of.
Determining to talk to him as soon as the meeting was over, Lizzy got things into gear.
"Okay people, I know it's Friday and you're all anxious to get this weekend started, not to mention that sweeps start Monday, meaning we all need this weekend to relax, but we've got to get through today first. So who's got ideas and how can we get them done?"
Her words sparking lively discussion around the table, Lizzy began to make notes, her mind only half on her job, the other half wondering what Will would say when she asked him about Jeff.
Emma's words brought her back to her job as she turned to hear what her friend was saying.
"Lizzy, there's a meeting today at 2pm about what to do to clean up some of the neighborhoods up north, where all those shootings have taken place, and I was thinking, what if we went to it, but focused on the people. How they're banding together to help police crack down on neighborhood violence. We could follow one person or family around, maybe a mom, seeing how she protects her kids from the daily violence of the streets, and maybe how she hopes the police will help?" Emma asked, her eyes lighting up at Lizzy's contemplative expression.
"That's not a bad idea Em, it's a different angle and that's what might appeal to people. Why don't you see what you can find out and put together? Give George a call, I bet he'll help you with whatever you need," Lizzy replied, watching as her friend gave a mock salute before jumping up and heading for the door.
"I bet George can find me a family, especially if the police are piloting this program. And maybe I can find him the perfect woman while I'm at it," she mused as she waved to the rest of the room before disappearing out the door.
Lizzy watched her go, fighting her irritation at her friend's blindness.
"Cheer up, she'll wake up sooner or later, I'm just betting on later," Charles mused as he smiled sympathetically after Emma.
"That's what I'm afraid of Charles, later," Lizzy mused, wondering if Emma and George would ever figure things out.
"Hey, if he finds someone else, more power to him. Even if it's someone to make Em realize what she feels, it can't be that hard," Charles offered as he shuffled his papers and smiled at Lizzy and Will, the only remaining people in the room.
"I take it this George is interested in Emma?" Will asked, getting sighs from the other two in the room. He had to admit, it was rather humorous to listen to them discussing their friend's love life.
"To say the least. But Em's blind as a bat to it, darn shame too because they're really the only two people in the world for each other, well, other than Jane and myself," Charles finished philosophically as Lizzy burst into laughter through a yawn.
"Of course, how could I forget you and Jane," she managed, suddenly remembering her other visitor of the night before. "By the way, better alert Jane that Lydia's in town, and probably going to descend sometime today, if she wakes up before noon," she finished, watching Charles's eyebrows rise.
"Lydia's here? When did that happen?" he asked curiously as Lizzy sighed and rubbed her eyes again.
"3AM last night she showed up on my doorstep, complete with bags and the word that Mama had sent her out here so Jane and I could help her 'find herself," she muttered dryly, earning a laugh from her friend.
"So that's why you're zoned out, I bet she kept you up with tales of life in New York City, didn't she?" Charles asked as Lizzy nodded, suddenly remembering the third person in the room. She turned to Will with a slight smile as she explained.
"Lydia's my younger sister, who was, until 3AM last night, trying to make it on Broadway, or at least in some form of acting career. Don't get me wrong, I love her dearly and am glad she's here, but now she's apparently relying on my sister and I to find her something to do here in Longbourne," she added wryly, noting Will's slight smile.
"I know how that can be with a sibling," he replied quietly.
Lizzy looked at him sharply, remembering what Jeff had told her the night before. Could this man really be capable of treating someone like he'd supposedly treated Jeff? And breaking his sister's heart? His reply only made her more determined to get an answer.
"Well, good luck Lizzy, I'm sure I'll be seeing Lydia and you later today, I better go warn Jane however," Charles called as he rose and headed for the door. As he reached the doorway, he suddenly turned back to Lizzy.
"By the way, we expect a full report of your dinner with Jeff last night, no details spared," he called back, winking at the exasperated blush that suddenly appeared on Lizzy's face.
Lizzy felt Will tense up beside her and cursed Charles for bringing up Jeff.
But it did offer the perfect segue to the questions she wanted to ask Will.
"Trust me, there's not much to tell," she managed, avoiding looking at Will as she shot Charles a death glare. Her friend simply smiled, winked and closed the door behind him.
Lizzy took a deep breath as she turned to face Will, noting his expression was closed again.
Now that they were alone, she wondered how to bring up the matter of Jeff Wickham and his tale.
"I'm assuming Wickham told you quite a story about the evil person I am last night, didn't he?" Will asked quietly, noting Lizzy's surprise at his direct question.
He'd been expecting it. When he'd heard Charles mention Jeff and dinner in the same sentence while talking to Lizzy earlier, he'd pretty much figured out what happened. Not to mention the looks he was getting from Lizzy when she thought he wasn't paying attention.
Not that they were looks of disgust or anger, but more of curiosity.
It gave him a smidgeon of hope that she hadn't bought totally into whatever lies Jeff had spun.
Lizzy was a bit taken aback at his frankness, but soon realized it shouldn't have surprised her.
In fact, she found it rather admirable that he'd addressed the matter outright.
This might be easier than she'd thought.
"Yes, Jeff told me quite an interesting story about you last night," she began noting his face was still expressionless.
Before Lizzy could complete the rest of her sentence, which would have been "but I don't know if I believed a word of it," the door flew open and Emma burst in.
"Lizzy, double shooting in that same neighborhood where the peace rally's going on. We're heading there but I need you to call and cancel the 10AM I had with George. Not that he won't be at the scene by the time I get there, but just for protocol's sake, 'kay?" she finished breathlessly as Lizzy cursed her timing.
"Sounds like a plan, just get going, I'll take care of George," she began, stopping as she noted Will had risen and was moving towards the door.
"Will, wait," she called, desperately wanting him to hear the rest of her sentence before he left.
Will turned and looked at her as he replied.
"You need to deal with this now, we can talk later," he managed before disappearing out the door.
Lizzy sat in silence for a few moments, wondering at his sudden change of mood. He'd been the one to bring the whole situation up, now he seemed like he didn't want to talk about it at all?
God the man was infuriating at times! He hadn't even let her finish her sentence.
Of course, that might have been what sent him running.
Oh boy.
Had he actually believed she'd bought into Jeff's story, hook, line and sinker?
He couldn't have, could he?
But she'd never gotten to tack on the rest of her thought, so of course he could have gotten the wrong idea.
She had to talk to him.
"Lizzy, we need you out here!"
Charles's frantic voice brought her out of her stupor as she jumped to her feet and forced her mind onto her job.
But she promised herself she'd pay Will a visit when things calmed down and they'd finish this discussion before either of them left for the day.
Sighing, she headed into the fray that was her daily life.
*************
Will sighed as he finished some last minute business before heading to the airport.
He hadn't realized how much he'd hoped Lizzy hadn't believed Jeff's story.
But her words rang in his mind.
"Yes, Jeff told me quite an interesting story last night."
He just bet the man had.
Could Lizzy have believed it though?
He could have sworn she was about to add something to her sentence when Emma had burst in on them, and he had to admit, he wondered if it would have been an accusation. For if Jeff was telling her his version of the story, he was certain he'd emerged the ultimate 'bad guy.'
Lizzy couldn't think that of him, could she?
He sighed, rubbing his forehead, amazed at how disturbed he was at the thought Lizzy might have believed Jeff's lies.
He wasn't sure why it mattered so much to him that she think well of him, but it did.
Although, if he admitted it to himself, he knew the reason.
He was attracted to her.
More than he'd ever been attracted to a woman in his life.
Which was probably why he didn't want her believing Jeff's lies.
He wished he could have continued their conversation this morning, but fate seemed to be against it. Now he was being called out of town on emergency business and he'd have to wait until he got back to find out what Lizzy believed or not.
But he didn't want to think about what she might be thinking about him while he was gone.
He needed her to know the truth!
But could he tell her?
He looked deep inside himself and realized that he could.
Despite the sparks they struck off each other, he'd known from the start that Lizzy Bennett was someone he could trust, who wouldn't believe everything without hearing all sides, and would keep quiet about Georgiana if he asked her too.
But when would he find time to tell her?
He was leaving in 10 minutes and she was involved in breaking news.
But she had to know.
He wouldn't be able to accomplish any business until he'd put his mind at rest. Or as at rest as it could be without talking to her in person.
"Mr. Darcy, your taxi will be here in five minutes," his secretary called as he called back a distracted reply.
How to tell Lizzy?
Because he wasn't leaving town until he was sure she'd heard his side of the story.
Then, suddenly, he knew.
Dashing over to his computer, he opened his interoffice email and began to type frantically.
Part 8
Later that afternoon found Lizzy sipping a soda and watching the 4pm news with a smile of satisfaction. Once again they had gotten the story of the double shooting on first and covered it best. It certainly was a great way to start a Friday.
"Not too shabby for us at all," Charles called as the newsroom burst into applause at seeing how little the competing stations had done on the same story.
"Teamwork guy, it works every time," Lizzy called out, exchanging smiles with those around her. As she settled back into her seat, she finally let the other matters pressing on her mind come to the forefront.
She sighed again as she realized she hadn't yet had a chance to track down Will and get his side of the story. She'd been planning to, but had gotten caught up in producing. Which was normal considering it was her job after all. But a part of her could still see the shuttered expression on his face as he'd walked out of the meeting this morning, believing who knew what about her dinner with Jeff last night.
It was not a pleasant feeling, thinking he might think she'd believed Jeff completely.
Determined to hunt Will down now that she had a free moment, she almost overlooked the blinking email icon flashing on her computer.
But at the last minute, she caught it.
She grumbled to herself, wondering if she could postpone looking at the message until she'd tracked down Will, but then thought better of that idea, realizing it could be an important message from someone.
Settling back into her chair she clicked on the email and opened it.
Her mouth dropped open in surprise as she read the message it contained.
~~~~~~~
To: Elizabeth Bennett
From: Will Darcy
Lizzy, forgive me for not hearing you out this morning, but I knew you needed to deal with your breaking news. But I couldn't forgive myself if I didn't tell you what was going through my mind as I imagined what story Jeff Wickham might have told you last night.
I would have liked to tell you this in person, but an emergency meeting out of town has come up, and I won't be able to. I hope you will hear me out in this letter and not make any judgments until you have heard the full story. I know you are at liberty to believe what you will, but I can only hope, from some clues you have given me in your manner when you speak about Jeff, that you will take his words with a grain of salt.
As I am sure you know by now, Jeff and my family were friends for years, ever since our fathers met during their college years. Jeff was a charming boy, who grew to learn that truth about himself, and how to use that charm, all too quickly. When he was 17, his parents died and Jeff came to live with us. It was only then that I began to realize the boy I'd grow up with had changed.
After Jeff had been living with us almost a year, I found out that he had gotten himself into debt with several companies both of our fathers had invested in. In fact, through some shady deals, he'd managed to lose all the money he'd been left by his father. Needless to say, I confronted him about this, and he gave me a story about trying to invest to 'make enough' to put him through law school because he didn't want to ask my father for the money. I was foolish enough to believe him, and feeling bad that he'd gotten into debt so early on, went to my father and asked him to help Jeff. He agreed to finance Jeff's college education and I thought the matter was resolved.
However, being four years ahead of Jeff, I finished college and entered my father's business before he graduated. My father was getting older and in bad health, so I ended up taking over a good deal of the business. As I learned more about the company, I stumbled upon an accounting error, or at least what I thought was an accounting error at first. I soon realized that someone had been embezzling money from my father's company, hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to be exact. I set out to find who was doing this, and all roads led back to Jeff. At first I didn't want to believe it, but the evidence was overwhelming. As I learned more about Jeff's actions, I also learned he has a very, very bad tendency to gamble. And ironically, he'd lost most of the money he'd embezzled.
Once all the facts and figures were in place, I confronted him. He of course denied it at first until I presented the documented evidence. I'm afraid to say things turned ugly then, and the result of our 'conversation' dissolved into an ultimatum from me to him, telling him to get out of our family's life and never return. He stormed off and I hoped never to see him again.
Unfortunately, he had an ulterior motive, as I learned almost too late.
Over the next year, my father got weaker, and finally died late that summer. My mother soon followed, leaving me to raise my sister Georgiana and fully take over the family business. As I began to pay more attention to my sister and her life, suddenly being her guardian, I became aware she was dating a young man no one seemed to know anything about. Immediately suspicious, I tried to get her to talk to me about her young man, but she was surprisingly reluctant to tell me about him. An unusual thing since Georgie usually tells me more than I want to know about her life.
As I continued to look into the matter, I began to suspect it was Jeff she was seeing.
Needless to say, my suspicions were soon confirmed
Tracking the man down, I warned him to stay away from Georgie, but I knew he wouldn't listen. I even tried telling Georgie about what he'd done, in hopes of persuading her to stop seeing him. I thought my message had gotten through, and despite her sadness, that she had given him up, now knowing his true nature.
Several months later, however, I returned home suddenly, intending to surprise Georgie and try to cheer her up. It was late at night and I decided to use the back door, instead of the front, not wanting to wake anyone up. As I was coming up the walkway, I saw Georgie and Jeff sneaking out the back door. They were both carrying luggage and looked as if they were planning a long journey.
You can imagine my reaction.
I wasn't pleased.
I'm afraid I might have been a bit irrational, grabbing Georgie and sending her inside, telling her to stay upstairs while I 'talked' with Jeff. Again we had words about what he was doing with Georgie, and to my surprise, he admitted the two had planned to run off to Vegas and get married. Of course, I saw through those plans immediately and accused him of wanting to marry Georgie for the trust fund she would come into when she turned 21. He denied my allegations at first, claiming he loved my sister and wanted to marry her. But when I informed him that I alone controlled Georgie's trust fund and that he would get nowhere near it, he changed his tune.
It got ugly again, and I can only say I am glad Georgie wasn't there to hear his words. He threw out plenty of threats, including ones that would have ruined Georgie's reputation. About things they'd done, or places they'd been. I knew most of the threats were lies, taunts to goad me into bending to his will, but I would not do it. They only incited me more and to sum everything up, I again kicked him out of our home. He left vowing revenge on the Darcy family.
That Lizzy is why I've been so reluctant to speak of the matter.
Georgie was heartbroken to learn of Jeff's true intentions towards her, and horrified by his threats to ruin her reputation. It might sound old fashioned and pompous, but the truth is, the Darcy family name is well known in the upper circles of the business world, and to have Jeff's accusations become public would have damaged any chance Georgie might have had at living the life she was born to lead. Selfish of me maybe, but I refused to let Georgie suffer for my bad judgment in not doing more to make sure Jeff stayed out of our lives.
I ended up sending Georgie away to school, and to my relief, after several months of moping, she seemed to put Jeff Wickham behind her. But I've refrained from telling this tale to spare her pain because I know it still hurts her to think how she fell for Jeff's lines and what people might believe of her if they knew how foolish she believes she was to fall for him.
I do not want to see that happen to you, or anyone in your family Lizzy. Living through it with Georgie was hard enough. I would not wish Jeff Wickham on my worst enemy.
I don't know what became of Jeff after that, but I will admit, I heard various stories. Most revolving around the theme that he'd moved to Georgia and married several 'rich' women in an attempt to pay his way through law school. He was never a strong student, but possesses the talent to make people believe he is something he is not. I fear that's what keeps him alive and in the 'money' so to speak. But again, I have no confirmation on those rumors and won't presume to tell you they are true. However, if you have any doubts about his background, I suggest you have Jane check carefully into his references. I have a feeling they aren't what they seem either.
I know this must sound extremely one sided, but again, I don't know what exactly Jeff told you. I'm hoping you'll read these words and understand that I tell you nothing but the truth. I believe you know enough of me to believe me capable of that at least. I certainly haven't hesitated to tell you the truth since we first met.
So there's my story. Again, I know you will believe what you will, but I could not rest until I was sure you knew the truth. Because this story is the truth. Jeff Wickham is not a man I would suggest anyone take lightly.
Please Lizzy, believe me when I say I'm telling you this only to prevent you or those you love from being hurt by a man I know is capable of great lies and insincere promises.
I'll be out of town this weekend, but I hope we can talk more about this when I return, if you believe me at all.
Please, until then, consider what I've said.
Will
~~~~~~~~
Lizzy stared at Will's email for a long time after she'd finished reading it.
Everything inside her was screaming that his words were the truth. It would certainly explain the unease she felt about Jeff whenever she was around him.
But some small part of her wondered if Will were spinning a tale just as Jeff had.
Although Will's words did spark the hint of a memory about a story she remembered from several years ago in Atlanta. Something about a rich socialite getting taken for everything she had in a divorce settlement with an up and coming lawyer.
Heart sinking, Lizzy quickly reached for her rolodex and pulled up a number. Dialing quickly she closed her eyes and prayed Anne was in.
"Anne Wentworth, BNN News, Atlanta."
Lizzie sighed in relief as her friend answered, quickly exchanging greetings then getting to the point of her call.
Ten minutes later she was thanking Anne and hanging up the phone, an even bigger headache brewing.
Anne had pretty much confirmed Will's story.
At least the part about a "Jason Hamwick" who had married and divorced two very rich women, each time finding a way to walk off with all their money. Both women had at one time wanted to speak out about it, but suddenly, when reporters arrived, clamed up and or disappeared from the public view altogether. "Jason Hamwick" had then disappeared altogether, no one had seen hide nor hair of him for at least a year.
But Lizzy figured it was too much of a coincidence for it to be anyone other than Jeff Wickham.
"Hamwick" was not a very good alias.
So if that part of Will's story, a part he wasn't even sure about, was true, didn't that mean the rest of it had to be as well. She couldn't see him lying about part of the story, then telling her the truth at the end.
And Will had been so determined she hear his side of the story, even if he couldn't convey it in person. She didn't know too many people who would take the time to explain everything in writing to 'set things straight.'
She also had to admit she got a funny feeling in the pit of her stomach as she read between the lines, to his desperation that she believe his words. The fact that he'd taken time from his busy day, and important meetings, to write her this letter.
She didn't want to analyze that feeling just yet.
The conflicting emotions were only serving to increase the headache that had begun earlier that day.
The ringing phone didn't help.
"Liz Bennett, WDEB," she muttered through the pounding pain in her temples.
"Lizzy, you okay? You don't sound great."
George's voice brought a wry smile to her face.
"Far from it. Really far from it, but that's just me, how are you doing?" she managed, hearing her best friend laugh ironically.
"The same. Police work is pretty routine, despite the frequent calls from Em," he replied, a note of wistfulness in his voice.
Lizzy sighed.
She somehow found it comforting, in a strange way, to know someone else's life besides her own was in chaos.
"I know the feeling," she replied with a wry laugh of her own.
"That bad huh?" George asked, immediately sensing his best friend was more down than normal. He wondered if it had anything to do with this "Jeff" Emma had mentioned several times today.
"Want to talk about it over dinner and a movie?" he asked, getting a laugh in reply.
"That's exactly what I need. An objective listener," Lizzy began, perking up at the thought of spilling everything to George and getting his opinion on what she should do next.
"I don't know about that, but I'll try. You bring the movie, I'll order Chinese," he replied with a laugh, falling into the familiar routine easily. They'd done this many nights over the years, and they'd gotten it down to a routine.
"You're on, and don't you dare complain about my movie selection," she teased, smiling as he grumbled something that sounded like 'do I ever?' in reply.
After firming up their plans, Lizzy hung up the phone with a slight smile.
Talking to George was just what she needed tonight.
Maybe he could help her figure out her seesawing emotions.
And maybe she could help him figure out how to hang in there until Emma came to her senses.
Not an easy task, but a familiar one.
And it would stop her from constantly thinking about Will and Jeff, and the fact that she knew, deep in her heart, which one she believed.
It wasn't Jeff.
Sighing, she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.
Suddenly, she remembered Lydia.
She groaned, knowing talking with her sister was the last thing she needed at the moment. Lydia was not known for her listening skills, love her though Lizzy did.
She'd have to call and tell Lydia that she was having dinner with George.
She didn't think her youngest sister would mind, she'd probably descend on Charles and Jane.
She made a quick mental note to warn Charles before he left for the day.
Sighing, she squinted her eyes as she reached for her bottle of pain killers.
There really was too much to think about right now.
So she just wasn't going to think about it.
She had a show to produce and produce it she would.
Talking about Will and Jeff could come later.
She spared a brief thought to what business it could have been that took Will from town before closing her mind to everything else but work.
Part 9
Three hours later found Lizzy knocking on George's door, arms laden with provisions for the night.
George smiled as he opened the door and immediately reached for one of the bags she held.
"About time you got here, the food's been here for 15 minutes," he teased as she shot him a wry look as she made her way into the foyer, closing the door behind her.
"Well, we had our usual debrief after the show and Erik wanted to go over a few things technical wise so I got out later than I thought," she replied as she followed her friend into the kitchen, smiling at the familiar smells of egg rolls and sesame chicken.
"Gosh, I'm starving, it's been one heck of a day," she managed as George laughed and grabbed plates from the cabinet over the sink. Lizzy smiled her thanks as she dropped her purse and coat over the nearest chair and grabbed a plate from his hands. The two chatted good-naturedly about their days, Lizzy leaving out any reference to Will or Jeff, and George refraining from uttering Emma's name.
That would come later.
When they'd filled their plates, they moved into the dining room, settling down at George's ultra modern glass dining room table. Actually, Emma had picked out the table, George had simply gone along with her.
Not that he could have disagreed with all Emma's views and chatter on the matter anyhow.
He didn't really mind.
Lizzy sighed as she dug into her food, thinking how much better she felt now that she had food in her stomach. She only now realized she hadn't eaten all day.
"Hungry Liz?" George asked wryly as he watched Lizzy devour her food.
Lizzy simply shrugged as she munched on an egg roll.
"This is the first meal I've eaten all day," she answered with a wry laugh as George sighed sympathetically.
"The shooting I take it?" he asked, getting a nod in reply.
"Yeah, what else? Oh, and in case I haven't mentioned it lately, thanks for helping us out so much with the information, I know it's a drain on you and your officers," Lizzy offered with a smile.
George simply shrugged and took a sip of the beer he'd been nursing all night.
"Hey, it's my job. I might not like you guys around all the time, but you're good about working with us, so I guess we can return the favor," he offered modestly as Lizzy smiled.
"I'm sure it doesn't hurt that the person you talk to most often happens to be Em, does it?" she teased, getting another wry smile and a resigned look.
"For all the good it does me, she still only looks at me as 'friend George,'" he answered with a sad sigh.
Lizzy sighed and reached over to pat his hand.
"Em is a wonderful friend, but she can be really, really obtuse sometimes. Besides, I think she takes you for granted, I mean, look at it this way," she began, seeing George settle back in his chair, resigned to hearing her out as he always did. "You haven't dated anyone in the past few years, you've spent most of your time with me and Em and the crew, but not dating. I'm willing to bet Em takes that for granted, and you need to make her see you're not always going to be available for her," she finished with a determined smile.
George simply sighed before replying.
"It's all good in theory Lizzy, but I can't make her feel something she doesn't," he replied morosely as he picked at the sesame chicken remaining on his plate.
Lizzy sighed in frustration.
"She's in love with you, you fool, she just hasn't realized it yet. You need to make her realize this," was her reply.
"So what? You're saying I should go find someone to date, someone to parade around in front of her, on the off chance she'll suddenly realize she wants me?" he asked in an annoyed tone.
Lizzy sighed again.
"Well, yes. We need to find you someone, even if it's just to see as a friend, like," she stopped, pondering who would fit the bill. Suddenly, she got the perfect idea. "Someone like Charlotte!" she replied with a smile and clapped her hands.
"Charlotte?" George asked in amazement. "You mean Charlotte the 5pm producer who barely says three words to me when we meet?" he asked, frowning at her laughter.
"Char's great, you just have to get to know her. Besides, she's perfect. She knows Em's in love with you and I bet she'll be more than willing to help you stir up a little jealousy to get Em to admit it!" Lizzy cried, getting excited about her new plan.
George simply sighed and gave her a resigned grin.
"There's no talking you out of this, is there?" he asked wryly as his best friend nodded enthusiastically.
"Come on, what have you got to lose?" Lizzy replied, seeing her friend sigh and nod.
"All right, if Char's willing to do it, let's do it. Anything's better than keeping things the way they are," he replied, lifting his beer in a toast.
Lizzy laughed delightedly and clinked her wine glass against the bottle, her mind already spinning with ideas.
"This is going to be perfect! We can plan some kind of date, dinner or something, that you'll show up with Char, we'll all be there, I'll get Em to come and we'll go from there," she began to plan as George simply sighed and got up to clear their dishes.
He knew when Lizzy got an idea into her head she ran with it, and lord help anyone who got in her way.
He sighed as he dumped the dishes in the sink then returned to the living room where Lizzy was now settling onto her side of the couch, sipping her wine and planning in her head.
Suddenly, he remembered he wasn't the only one in need of a friendly ear tonight.
Settling onto the opposite end of the couch, beer in hand, he turned the tables on his best friend.
"So I take it the renewed fascination with my life is so you can avoid the men in yours? Two specific ones from what Em tells me," he prodded, watching her eyes suddenly darken as she sighed.
Lizzy wondered how to begin.
Finally, she decided to start from the beginning.
Ten minutes later she'd recounted everything about her first encounter with Will, her confused feelings about him and even her fascination with his eyes. She'd also told him about her dinner with Jeff, and the two stories she'd heard over the past two days. When she finished, pausing for breath, she watched George try to comprehend what she'd just told him.
"Man, you have to admit Liz, those are pretty powerful stories either way, although, I think, from what you've said, and from what you haven't, I know which one you believe. And it isn't Jeff," he offered in a knowing manner, fascinated to see his best friend shift and look uncomfortable.
That was a first for her, and he was going to enjoy the situation while he could.
He was also going to help her see clearly what was so obvious to him.
"What makes you say it's obvious?" she asked nervously, knowing this was why she'd come here tonight, to get George's opinion on her situation.
She just wondered if she were ready to hear it.
George sighed and looked at her with a slight smile.
"Have you listened to yourself?" he asked simply, watching her expression.
Lizzy frowned at him, wondering what he meant.
"What do you mean?" she asked, earning a wry laugh in response.
"I mean, you've talked about Will more in the past 10 minutes than I've ever heard you talk about a man in the years I've known you. Much more than Jeff, who as you so aptly put it, didn't merit a thought after a not too spectacular good-night kiss. And I've never seen you so worked up over anyone, especially a man. Which leads me to only one conclusion," he trailed off, sending her a knowing smile.
Lizzy sighed, closing her eyes as he put into words the very thoughts she'd been trying to avoid.
She was falling for Will Darcy.
She groaned as George laughed.
"Oh, how stupid can I be George," she moaned as she rubbed her forehead. "I mean, the man is so far above me it's not even funny, not to mention we seem to spark such volatile emotions in each other I don't know what would happen if we were left in a room together for longer than five minutes," she stopped at the lecherous leer her best friend sent her way.
She threw a pillow at him in response to his laughter.
"As I was saying, we have nothing in common. Well, other than the fact he likes classic rock and Aerosmith, and he understood my fascination with Steven Tyler's lips," she mused, oblivious to the huge grin that broke out on George's face.
"Oh Liz, it's perfect! You've finally found a man who likes Aerosmith , now if he likes 80's music and has a dog, it's a match made in heaven!" he teased, getting another pillow tossed his way.
"Right, like Will Darcy listens to 80's music at night. Come on, you know I'm the only person in the world pathetic enough to watch those VH-1 show's and sing to Honey. Trust me, that is so NOT Will Darcy," she muttered amidst her friend's laughter.
"I don't know Liz, Will sounds like he could have a lot of hidden 'desires,'" he shot back with another wicked leer.
Lizzy couldn't help but burst into laughter at his look.
It was rather funny to think of Will singing to a dog.
Right.
Like that would ever happen.
"Okay, fine, so I'll give a little and admit I do find something fascinating about him, even though we're so wrong for each other," she muttered, earning a war whoop from George.
"Progress! Yes, Elizabeth Bennett admits she's interested in a man! I think the world just stopped turning," George crowed, tossing the pillow she'd thrown at him back at her.
Lizzy simply smiled slightly, letting him gloat.
She had to admit, she did feel better having admitted to him, and to herself, how she felt about her enigmatic boss.
The question was what to do about it.
But she'd think about that later.
She'd had enough of discussing her love life, or lack there of.
Now it was movie time.
"Okay, love life discussions over, time to watch the movie of my choice," she stated, laughing as George reached for the bag she'd placed on the table, pretending to grimace as he closed his eyes and reached for a DVD.
"I swear to God Lizzy, if you make me sit through "Pride and Prejudice" again, simply to see Colin Firth in a wet shirt, I'll murder you," he muttered, earning a laugh in reply.
"I learned my lesson last time dear," she teased him, smiling as she remembered his pained wince when she'd made him rewind the lake scene and watch it over and over.
Wait until she managed to get him to watch "Emma."
She smiled in delight at the thought.
"Well, thank goodness for small mercies," he teased back as he pulled out a DVD and opened his eyes.
He groaned.
"X-Men? We've seen this already," he managed, wondering at her strange smile.
"Two words my friend, Hugh Jackman," Lizzy replied with a dreamy smile, which was met with another groan.
"Geesh Liz, I can't tell you how thrilled I am to think of sitting through an hour and a half of watching a man with entirely too much hair slash people on screen and moon over a girl that's half his age," he shot back.
Lizzy simply smiled.
"Well, I figured you'd focus on Halle Berry, since I know how much you like the woman," she shot back, earning a sigh and finally a nod from her friend.
"Good point, but what else did you get?" he asked reaching into the bag and pulling out two more DVD's.
"Someone Like You?" he asked, turning it over to read the back and groaning at the face that stared up at him. "You're really trying to kill me with an overdose of Hugh Jackman, aren't you?" he muttered as she laughed delightedly.
"Hey, I needed a pick me up and no one does that like Hugh, except Colin, but I figured you wouldn't want to sit through "Valmont" or "Shakespeare in Love," although you might like "Fever Pitch,"" she replied musingly.
George shuddered, truly wondering at his best friend's taste movies. Usually they agreed on the types of things they'd watch, but he for the life of him couldn't understand her fascination with British and Australian actors. Or those little independent movies that never made it to their town because they were too 'artsy.'
"Well, I suppose you're right, and it says Ashley Judd is in this one, so there's something in favor of it," he replied, cheering up a little.
Lizzy smiled and grabbed the DVD from his hand.
"Hey, remember how much you didn't want to watch "Playing By Heart" until I forced you too? And you loved it!" she teased as she settled the disc into the player.
"Well, how can you not love Sean Connery? And Angelina Jolie stole the movie," he shot back as he settled onto the couch, determined to humor her for the night. After all, it couldn't be all bad staring at Ashley Judd for a few hours.
"Just be glad I didn't bring over "Strictly Ballroom,"" she replied with satisfaction as he groaned.
"Lord Lizzy, you must be the only person on the planet who likes a movie called "Strictly Ballroom," it's just not normal," he teased, getting a pillow in the face for his efforts.
"Some people can't appreciate quality film making when they see it," she sniffed, pretending to sound pretentious, but breaking into laughter instead.
"Fine, let's just see how I feel when this movie's over. The things I'll endure for Ashley Judd," he muttered over her laughter.
Quieting down, the two settled back to watch the movie.
**********
Two hours later, Lizzy was sighing and George was laughing.
"Okay, that ending was like out of nowhere," he complained, watching the dazed look slowly fade from Lizzy's eyes.
"Well, it was kind of forced, but still, it's Hugh Jackman, and did you see his bare chest?"
Lizzy sighed, remembering how she'd almost swooned at the sight of so much muscled flesh.
Be still her heart.
"It really didn't do too much for me, I was kind of more interested in watching Ashley dance around in her underwear," he added wryly, ignoring her snort of laughter.
"Figures," she muttered, getting a wounded look in return. "Oh come on, I was kidding. Overall, it wasn't a bad movie, it was so sweet when he fell asleep with her, I'm such a sucker for romance," she mused mistily as George sighed.
"You and me both. If only I could get Em to see me that way. Maybe we should move in together," he mused as they dissolved into silence, each thinking about their own problems.
"Oh George, we're quite a pair, aren't we?" she muttered, getting a sad smile in reply.
"Think it'll ever work out for us?" he asked seriously, wondering what she thought.
Lizzy looked at him, contemplating an answer.
"I'm hoping it will. I guess I'm just going to trust fate and hope she knows what she's doing. We'll just give her a hand along the way however, especially with you and Em," she replied, getting another laugh in response.
"Great, I can't wait to see how we're going to do that," he muttered as they both sighed.
Lizzy suddenly looked over at the clock and groaned.
"Oh Lord, it's already midnight and I've got too many errands to run tomorrow. Not to mention Lydia has probably wrecked the apartment by now," she muttered as she rose and stretched.
George rose with her, stifling a yawn.
"I thought you told Lydia where you were going, and wasn't she going to see Jane and Charles?" he asked as Lizzy sighed.
"I told her to call them if she wanted to do something, but you know Lydia, I'm almost afraid to know what she's been up to," she muttered as she headed for her coat.
"Well, I'm sure she's fine, don't let her get to you. I know you love her, frustrating as she can be," he replied as he followed her to the door.
"That I do, and things will work out, for her, and all of us, I promise," she managed, leaning up to hug him tightly.
"Thanks Liz, I needed to talk to someone tonight, and even watching Hugh Jackman was tolerable," he whispered as he squeezed her tightly.
"Hang in there George, it'll work out for both of us. We'll make Em come to her senses, and well, I guess I'll see what I'm getting myself into with Will, if there's anything to get into at all," she muttered as she pulled back and brushed a kiss across his cheek.
"Why don't you ask him if he's seen "Strictly Ballroom?" I'm sure it's the top of his list," George chortled as she sent him an annoyed grin.
"Maybe it is, you never know," she replied as she turned and blew his a kiss before heading down the walkway.
"Call me tomorrow, okay?" he called after her.
"Sure, maybe we can do dinner or something with a bunch of people, you know, start getting Char into the picture and all," she called back with a smile as she slipped into her car.
With a honk and a wave, she backed out of the driveway.
She was suddenly wondering if Will Darcy had ever seen "Strictly Ballroom."
Most probably not.
It just didn't fit his image.
Either did 80's music, or singing to a dog.
But she had to admit, she was more curious than ever about the man.
Still puzzling those thoughts, she headed home.
*********
George sighed as he watched her go, closing and locking the door after she'd disappeared down the street.
He only hoped she was right about making Emma jealous.
Although he had a feeling things were going to be just as interesting to watch Lizzy and Will figure out where they were headed.
With a slight smile, he headed back to the couch.
Maybe it was time to watch a little slicing and dicing courtesy of the X-Men.
After all, a man could never get too much of Halle Berry in black leather.
************
Lydia sighed as she flipped through the channels, finding nothing on. Of course her sister didn't subscribe to HBO or any of the pay channels. What kind of cable set up was that?
She muttered to herself as she stroked Honey's fur.
She was bored.
She'd had dinner with Jane and Charles, but after dinner, had parted company with them. They were entirely too boring for her taste tonight. She wanted to do something exciting.
Like find an exciting man and go dancing.
Heck, at this point she'd settle for having coffee.
Anything other than what she was doing right now.
She wondered when Lizzy would be home. She knew her sister was having dinner with George, although why she had no idea. She found the man rather boring. Handsome for sure, but boring as all get out. Besides, the man was totally gone on Emma. Not that she could see why. The blonde was really nothing special when you looked at her.
But oh how she wanted some excitement tonight!
The knock on the door startled her for a moment as Honey jumped up and barked, heading towards the sound. Sighing, wondering whom it could be at this hour, she padded over to the door and pulled it open.
She caught her breath at the gorgeous man standing in front of her.
"Hello? Is Lizzy here?"
Jeff Wickham was surprised to see this young woman in Lizzy's doorway. Not that she wasn't attractive, because she was most certainly one of the prettiest women he'd seen in a long time, but still, he hadn't been aware anyone else lived there.
Lydia for her part was wondering who this gorgeous man asking for her sister was. He really didn't seem her type at all. Too intriguing and mysterious for her staid and predictable sister. Not to mention her horrid taste in music and foreign films.
Suddenly realizing the man was waiting for an answer, she put on her prettiest smile and spoke.
"Lizzy's out for the evening, can I help you?" she asked, lowering her voice just a touch.
Jeff wondered just whom she could be out with.
Certainly not Will?
"Oh, well, she wasn't expecting me, I should have figured she'd have plans on a Friday night anyhow," he managed, hoping he sounded pathetic enough. He must have if the look in the woman's eyes was anything to go by.
"Oh she's just having dinner with a friend, kind of a boring night if you ask me, but then again, I'm only her sister, Lydia, and you are?" she asked, holding out her hand with a smile.
Jeff smiled and took the offered hand.
"Jeff Wickham, she hasn't mentioned me to you?" he asked, wondering at her blank stare.
"No, but I just arrived late last night, we haven't really had time to talk, otherwise I'm certain she'd have mentioned knowing an attractive man such as yourself," she simpered, knowing she was flirting but unable to help herself. The man was really too cute for his own good. And if Lizzy wasn't salivating and waiting for this man's phone call, well, she was just crazy.
"Oh, well, if you'd tell her that Jeff called, I'll try her tomorrow I guess, although I'm not sure what to do with these tickets to "Felix's" tonight," he added bashfully, watching from the corner of his eye as Lydia's face lit up.
"You mean "Felix's" nightclub? Only the hottest club in this little town?" she asked eagerly, watching as Jeff nodded.
"The one and only. I didn't know if Lizzy would like them, but a friend gave them to me and I figured I'd see if she wanted to go, but since she's not here," he stopped, looking hopefully at her, hoping she'd take his cue.
Lydia knew an offer when she heard one.
And it sure beat sitting home watching something from her sister's eclectic movie collection.
"Well, I know we've just met, but if you'd like to go, I could go with you. You know, get to know you, maybe feed you information on Lizzy," she offered hopefully, getting a laugh in reply.
"I was hoping you'd offer, can you be ready in ten minutes?" he asked as she laughed and motioned him in.
"I'll be ready, make yourself at home, I'll be out shortly," she called, racing into the guest room to search for an outfit.
Jeff simply smiled as he watched her go.
The smile turned to a frown as he thought of Lizzy.
She was out with someone, having dinner.
Obviously not him, and more than likely, not Will.
So who?
And that must mean he hadn't had the impact on her he'd wanted.
His frown deepened as he wondered what she was thinking after his tale the night before.
He'd really hoped to find out tonight, but it looked like that was out of the question.
"Okay, I'm ready, let's party!"
He smiled as he turned to greet a smiling and very scantily dressed Lydia Bennett.
The night was suddenly looking up.
Maybe one Bennett sister was as good as the next.
With a small smile he offered her his arm, already reworking his plan.
(Author Note: "Strictly Ballroom" is a wonderful Australian movie directed by Baz Luhrman (Moulin Rogue/Romeo + Juliet) which is basically a comedic romance set in the world of ballroom dancing. The movie is one of my favorites, if you can find it, I highly reccommend it! "Valmont" and "Fever Pitch" are two Colin Firth films I highly reccomend as well. Just for those who might be wondering about them. Oh, and I don't suppose you all noticed my fixation with two certain actors, did you?!)