by Aimée Avery
Elizabeth didn’t have time to answer as her mother led her from the kitchen and upstairs to the master bedroom.
~ • ~
Fanny Bennet guided her daughter to the window seat that faced the expansive backyard and sat down, pulled the bags from her daughter’s hands, then pulled Elizabeth down to sit with her.
“Tell me about your vision, Lizzy,” Fanny instructed her daughter.
Elizabeth stared at her mother with her mouth slightly agape.
“Oh come, come, Elizabeth. I’m your mother. Did you think that I didn’t know?” Fanny smiled, wiping her daughter’s face with a tissue she pulled from a box on the nearby table.
Elizabeth looked at her mother’s face, and saw the loving eyes and sweet smile she remembered her mother always had for her when she was small, and which comforted her after falling and skinning her knee or elbow.
“Do you think you just were graced with this ability?” Elizabeth just stared at her. “Here, lie down and put your head on my lap.”
Elizabeth did as she was told, and stared out the window at the tree she loved to climb in her younger years, and started to relax as her mother stroked her hair.
“Your Grandma Gardiner had them, you know?” Mrs. Bennet mentioned.
“She did?”
“Yes, Lizzy. And so do I.”
Elizabeth turned and looked up at her mother in surprise.
“Why do you think I changed your room and not Lydia’s?”
“I thought…” Elizabeth was about to say that Lydia was her favorite, but she wasn’t so sure anymore.
“I knew you would find a home with Will, and I knew Lydia would be back; though I think we will be keeping Sunni, and Lydia will be off somewhere ‘cool’.”
Elizabeth sat up a bit, and Mrs. Bennet hugged her to her chest.
“Now tell me what you saw, Lizzy. Whatever it is, I can see it is making you hurt. Is it William?”
“Y-yes. H-he… H-he…” Elizabeth started to sob again.
“Let me see if I can help you,” Fanny said keeping her daughter close. “I would have to say that this vision did not include you in it but it did William. Am I correct so far?”
Elizabeth nodded.
“Did you and William have a disagreement?”
Elizabeth nodded again.
“I’m afraid I don’t know what you saw, Lizzy, but from how I see you feel, I can only imagine that William is feeling some sort of pain. And from the look of your reaction, I can only assume it is emotional pain.”
Elizabeth looked up at her mother and nodded.
“I understand. It’s hard to ‘vision’ that. We understand our own emotional pain. We know where it will hurt, and when things happen, we know where we will feel it. It hurts, and we’ve learned over the years to deal with it. But when we vision someone we love and feel their pain, it isn’t the same as our own. Everyone’s pain is felt in a unique place. You felt William’s, and the pain is excruciating. I assume even more so since it concerns his feelings for you?”
“I’m such an idiot. I didn’t think he felt the same way about me as I do him. I thought I was just someone convenient. We argued and then at the party he acted as if nothing had happened and…” Elizabeth sat up straight and her hand flew to her mouth. “The party! Oh, my God!”
“What, Lizzy?” Mrs. Bennet asked in a soothing voice.
“The party was for… me! He threw the party for me! All the guests were…” Elizabeth started to cry again. “I’m such an idiot!”
Mrs. Bennet chuckled lightly. “No. Lizzy, you’re not. You’ve had a lot to deal with. Even if you are gifted with some special views into the future, it doesn’t mean you aren’t a normal person.”
“Some visions! They don’t always come true, so I don’t trust them.”
“Oh, my! They always come true, Lizzy. Some way or another, they all do. Have you been doubting them?”
Elizabeth didn’t answer, but Mrs. Bennet didn’t need her to.
“Lizzy, why do you doubt them?”
“The first one I remember… when I was in the cave at the lake when I was five… I dreamt that a knight would rescue me. My knight looked just like Will and, of course, Will found me. But in the dream, when he led me back, Jane stomped her foot and I had this very pretty princess dress on. I didn’t have on a princess dress; I was in muddy shorts and a T-shirt and had a dirty face. Jane hugged me, she didn’t stomp her foot!”
Mrs. Bennet smiled. “Is this the only vision that has been… inaccurate?”
“Well, no. There have been others, but not many. And come to think of it, most of them did eventually work out, but the first one and one other… no.”
“Elizabeth, hear me. Do. Not. Doubt. Them. You will understand one day, and I am sure it will be soon. But let us go back to your latest vision. Do you doubt it?”
“No. It hurt too much not to be real.” Elizabeth hugged her mother tightly. “He was crying, Mom.” Elizabeth spoke tearfully. “He was on my side of the bed, hugging my pillow and crying.”
“Your side of the bed, hmm?” Fanny smiled as Elizabeth stiffened. “Oh, pooh, Elizabeth! I wasn’t born yesterday. I know you two kept separate rooms while your father and I visited, but I told him that would soon change and this time he couldn’t do anything about it.”
“This time?”
“Yes. You must have William tell you about it.” Mrs. Bennet smiled and tucked Elizabeth’s hair behind her ears. “Now let’s go down and see how well your father has done about getting you home.”
~ • ~
Tom Bennet managed to get Elizabeth on the first morning flight the following day, and Elizabeth didn’t complain when her father sent her back to England in the first class cabin. She felt sorry for the passengers in coach. They didn’t know what they were missing. Even if she didn’t sleep, lying down and resting for most of the flight was much better than sitting the whole way. She just wished the plane would fly faster. She wanted to get home to William and tell him that she loved him and was sorry for being such a dolt.
Elizabeth smiled into her pillow as she thought of William and how much he must love her. He let her redecorate the house, for goodness sake! And she never even asked. “That’s got to be love!” Elizabeth whispered.
Elizabeth’s eyelids fluttered closed, and she hoped that her mother was able to get through to Georgiana and ask her to pick her up at the airport. Elizabeth felt bad about calling Amherst and leaving a message on the human resources voicemail. She wondered if they called back, and what her mother would tell them. She couldn’t help but giggle out loud imagining her mother’s voice in her head. “I’m so sorry. My daughter won’t be able to make the appointment. She needed to get back to England and soothe her boyfriend… if you know what I mean.”
Elizabeth buried her face in the pillow, slightly embarrassed to remember how she and her mother packed her suitcase and talked about sex, of all things. Did she really tell her mother that William could make putting on a condom sexy? God, she even told her that their condom ritual had become a game of sorts! Her mother didn’t seem shocked, however. But Elizabeth was shocked when her mother hugged her goodbye and whispered in her ear, “Forget the condoms, dear. Just make me some beautiful grandbabies.”
Chapter 14
Elizabeth stood in the airport, looking about for Georgiana. It was possible that her mother couldn’t get in touch with her, or that she might be checking the airline desk to see about flight status. Elizabeth decided to wait a bit longer, and then, if necessary, take a taxi to Holland Park. She would take the Tube, but the hour was late, and since Ronny had followed her, Elizabeth had tended to stay away from the Underground at night.
“Elizabeth!” She turned toward the unexpected voice.
“C-Caroline?” Elizabeth asked surprised.
“Yes, sorry. Your Mum phoned and Georgiana was out, so I told her I would come to pick you up.” Caroline explained as she took Elizabeth’s hand and pulled her toward the car par
k. “I haven’t said a word to William, though Richard and I are so happy you’re home. Will has been an absolute tyrant without you.”
“Oh, um…” Elizabeth didn’t know what to say to Caroline. She hadn’t been prepared to see the woman.
Caroline stopped suddenly, lowered her head and spoke quietly, “I want to apologize to you. You’ve been with William for months now, and I’ve been determined to stay away. I remember that summer in the States, and how much you disliked me, and I was so jealous of you…”
“Of me? Whatever for? I was jealous of you!”
“You have everything, Elizabeth. A loving family, a guy who was head over heels for you, you were pretty… and even more so now. You’re smart and fun. And have curves to die for!” Caroline explained. “And why on Earth would you be jealous of me?”
Elizabeth thought back to the day she sat in the tree and decided to hate Caroline Younge for the rest of her life, and suddenly felt totally ashamed for it. “You looked like a model; tall, with all the latest fashions fitting you perfectly. I thought you were the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen, even more so than my sister, Jane. And you were with Will.” Elizabeth thought it was best to come clean. She had never told anyone about sitting in that tree, but right then and there, she knew it was time to let the past go. “I was sitting up in a tree looking over the lake when you and Will suddenly appeared below. He… he… he kissed you, and was trying to get you to… um… do it in the woods. I decided to hate you forever right then and there. I wanted to be the one he… well, you get the picture.”
Caroline stood there with one hand covering her open mouth and the other still holding Elizabeth’s hand. After a moment, she began to pull Elizabeth toward the car park again. “Let me tell you something as I drive you home.”
As Caroline navigated the roads, she explained the whole relationship she’d had with William that summer.
“So you see, we never did anything, nor were we likely to. It was a game to make us feel better. I wanted Richard and William wanted you. Sure, I let him kiss me. I needed the affirmation just as much as he did. I think if we ever had weakened and done the deed, we would have regretted it. And we knew that. But William had already been lectured by his father when your father requested it.”
“My father requested it?” Elizabeth asked when they stopped at a traffic light.
“Yes, he was seventeen, and apparently had a hard time not looking at you. The lecture had embarrassed him so much that he refused to attend the retreats after that. It was only when his mother died that he… Anyway, he knew his feelings hadn’t changed, and when he saw you again, well... You were fifteen, and he was still too old for you.” Caroline reached over to her passenger. “Elizabeth, William Darcy has been in love with you since he was a boy. Only when he was older, did he realize it. He has never gone out with the same woman more three times and you, he moves in and lets redecorate the place without a word. That has to tell you something.”
Elizabeth nodded. “Yes. It does now. I… I have been hiding within myself for so long that I’ve stopped looking at everything around me.”
Caroline pulled up in front of the Darcy townhouse and turned to look at Elizabeth. “You know, I understand that. And sometimes we have to do that for our own sanity, but it’s like wearing sunglasses. You need to take them off when it gets dark, or you will never see what’s right in front of you.”
Elizabeth laughed and then leaned over and hugged the one person she never thought she would want to call a friend. “One thing I don’t understand is why William or Georgie never mentioned that you were Richard’s wife.”
“You didn’t know Richard was married?” Caroline asked with a look of shock on her face.
“Oh, I knew he was married! They just always called you ‘Richard’s wife’ and never Caroline.”
Caroline laughed and then shook her head. “I’m afraid that is my fault. I’ll have to tell you sometime, but right now, I think you’d better go take care of that big oaf in there.”
Elizabeth nodded happily and jumped out of the car, grabbed her luggage and took the front steps two at a time.
~ • ~
The house was dark. She looked at her watch. It was late, and Elizabeth knew that everyone would have to be in bed. She took a deep breath, dropped her luggage and ascended the staircase, letting her fingers trace the handrail as she went.
At the top, Elizabeth looked down the hall and looked along the floor, checking for light seeping out from thresholds. All dark. She continued to the master suite with a smile on her face. She opened the door quietly and entered softly. Light shone in from the window, and she could see William sleeping in the middle of the bed with her pillow held tightly in his clutches. His face, though peaceful, showed traces of sadness. She kept her eye on him as she toed off her shoes and crept nearer.
She stood watching him sleep. Her heart felt full, and she wanted nothing more than to have him hold her as he was holding the pillow.
She stripped out of her clothes and climbed on the bed clad only in her bra and panties.
William stirred but remained asleep, though she was sure he had called her name. She leaned down and lightly kissed his lips, holding them on his until she knew he was awake.
“Hi,” she said softly.
“Lizzy?” William asked sleepily. “Am I dreaming?”
“No. I’m home,” she said as she lay her head down on his bare chest. “I’m so sorry, Will! I should have never left. I…” Tears began to fall from her eyes. “I love you.”
“Oh, Princess!” Will exclaimed softly as he pulled her up and brushed her tears from her cheeks. “Don’t cry, my sweet, beautiful love. I love you too, you silly woman.”
Will pulled her down so her lips met his and kissed her as if his life depended on it. He pushed off the covers and managed to rid Elizabeth of her undergarments, then made sure his boxers joined the other clothes on the floor.
Keeping his lips on hers, he arranged her to sit astride him then buried his hands in her hair.
In a gruff voice, he growled, “Don’t you ever run away again, do you hear me?”
“Never, ever again!” she answered him and watched as he fell back on the pillow.
“I thought I was going to have to live the rest of my life without you, Elizabeth! I don’t think that’s possible.” And skipping any foreplay or their customary condom ritual he lifted her and placed her above his already straining erection.
Elizabeth lowered herself onto him with a deep sigh as she tilted her head back. She opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling, all at once realizing she was in her room, on her bed, with her man deep inside her filling her full and tight. Everything felt so wonderful. She smiled as she felt her breasts tingle and looked down at them.
William was now sitting up and pinching her right nipple with his fingers and sucking on her left.
“God, you taste so good, Princess.” Will groaned and slipped his hands down to her legs and held on so that he could lift her and arrange her so she was lying down. He stopped short and kept her upright and he sat up on his knees and began to move her up and down.
Elizabeth gripped his arms tightly and felt the pressure build rapidly and within just a few moments traveled with her climax as if she were surfing on lava as a volcano erupted. She didn’t quite understand how she made it to a full reclining position, but she was now on her back, and Will began to frantically move in and out of her. She wrapped her legs around him and held fast. As he came, Will pulled her into his arms and held her tightly.
Elizabeth knew at that moment she was in her true home. Her mother was right; the visions all seemed to come true. Well, all of them but the princess dress. But at that moment, she didn’t give a hoot about any princess dress.
The couple held each other tightly, and William pulled the covers over them.
“Will?”
“Hmm?”
“I’m sorry I doubted you, us, everything. I…”
“
Shh, Princess,” William said as he pressed his finger to her lips. “We’ll talk about it in the morning. Sleep. You’re exhausted.”
Elizabeth looked at him and tried to speak again. William quickly covered her lips with his.
When he broke the kiss, he said, “We have a lot to discuss, but right now, the only communication we need is just holding one another.” He turned and looked at the clock. He turned back to her and continued, “Tomorrow you can tell me why you were obviously sitting on airplane when you were supposed to be in an interview.”
Elizabeth watched his eyes and opened her mouth to answer him.
He stopped her by saying, “Tomorrow,” and pulled her closer to him.
When she heard his breathing begin to slow into sleep, she whispered, “Because I belong home with the man I love. I belong with you.”
He squeezed her gently and pressed his lips into her hair.
After a few more minutes, they were both fast asleep, held tightly in each other’s arms.
Chapter 15
Elizabeth awoke to sunlight shining through the windows – her bedroom windows. She smiled, remembering William’s welcome last night. Her smile broadened as she again realized her homecoming was her vision in the pub when Charlotte was visiting. She turned so she could cuddle up to his warm body.
But William wasn’t there.
Elizabeth sat up, worried it had all been a dream, or that he really hadn’t wanted her to come back. He’d said they would talk.
“Talk?” she uttered aloud. “Maybe he wasn’t saying, ‘Welcome home.’ Maybe it was ‘Goodbye.’”
