by Wendi Sotis
She almost whispered, “Charlotte’s brother John died in Afghanistan. I still can’t believe it.”
“I’m sorry.”
Unable to tear her eyes away from the marker, she nodded slightly. “Me, too. John was a good friend.” She hesitated for a few breaths’ time and then turned to William. “It’s because of them, and those who served alongside them, that we are able to live the way we do. We gather together with our family and friends this weekend every year to prove, even if it is only to ourselves, that their loss was not in vain.”
William nodded his understanding.
Elizabeth surprised him when she laid her palm on the empty space below John Lucas’s name. “Every day I pray that this spot remains empty forever.”
Chapter 8
~Tuesday
“Are you sure I look okay, Lizzy?” Georgiana smoothed an imaginary wrinkle from her dress. “I’m so nervous—I’ve never been to a groundbreaking ceremony before.”
“Oh, it’ll be easy. Politicians will make speeches, a bunch of people will have their pictures taken while they use the specially made ‘golden shovel’ to move the first bit of earth, and then we’ll go to lunch. I’ll give you a hint now—Zabbara’s restaurant has the best food on earth, so save your appetite.”
“If it’s so easy, then why is William always so nervous before one of these?”
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. “But he must go to so many of these ceremonies.”
“He does, but he has to force himself to go. He doesn’t feel comfortable around a lot of people—especially ones he doesn’t know—and hates being the center of attention. Mr. Lucas wants him to use the shovel first. Just between you and me, I think he’s terrified.”
Elizabeth was astonished. “I had no idea.” Noticing Georgiana’s anxious expression, she spoke the next with more confidence. “Well, I have to go into my room to get my dress, so I’ll check up on him.”
“Oh, good.” Georgiana’s relieved expression vanished. “Is there any way you can stay near him today? He’s so much more comfortable when you’re close by.”
Elizabeth suddenly felt too warm. “What do you mean?”
“I noticed it at the graduation, then at the party on Saturday, and again at the parade. He scowls and twists his ring when he’s very nervous, but when he’s near you, he stops. Even when you’re busy with someone else, I can see that just looking at you makes him feel calmer. You’re such a good friend to us both.”
Elizabeth’s heart was beating much too fast. “What about you, though? Wouldn’t your staying with him be even better?”
“No, he worries twice as much when I’m there—for me and for him.”
“I promise I’ll try, Georgie, but I don’t want people to think I’m stalking him, either.” She chuckled too loudly.
Georgiana took hold of Elizabeth’s hand. “He’d be angry if he knew I’d asked you to do this. Please don’t say anything to him.”
Elizabeth agreed and noticed that Jane and Anne had entered the room.
Georgiana turned to Jane. “Can you help me with this button? I think it’s loose.” The two left the loft to get a needle and thread from Jane’s room.
“I heard your joke, Lizzy... about stalking Will.” Anne seemed very uncomfortable. “Did you ever hear about what happened with Charles’s sister?”
“Caroline? Not really. I only know she had some psychological problems and is in an institution.”
Anne explained, and Elizabeth was appropriately horrified. “Will and Georgiana have been through so much in the past few years.”
“You don’t know the half of it.” Anne looked around to make sure they were alone. “I just wanted to warn you about it so you didn’t make that same joke with Will, especially when he’ll be so uptight with all those people around.” A pained look crossed her features. “Even worse, my mother will be there today.”
Elizabeth placed her hand on Anne’s arm and gave it a little squeeze. “I’m sure everything will be okay. And thanks—I have a special talent for bringing up subjects I should avoid, especially with Will.” Elizabeth glanced at the clock. “Oh, it’s so late! If I don’t get dressed soon, I’ll have to go to the groundbreaking in shorts and a tank top.”
~%~
Although Elizabeth’s bedroom door was closed, there was no answer to her knock. Assuming William was still downstairs, she let herself in and crossed the room to her closet. She smiled when she saw William had hung his suit next to her dress. As she reached for the dress, William’s tie fell onto her bare foot. Elizabeth picked it up. Was it her imagination or did the color of the pattern in the tie match the exact color of her dress?
Thinking it must be the light in the walk-in closet, Elizabeth stepped out into her room to see both in the sunlight. Just as she emerged, the bathroom door opened.
She froze and her mouth fell open.
Even though she knew she should look away, she could not tear her eyes from the most magnificent sight she had ever seen. There stood William with his back to her, drying his hair with a towel—as naked as the day he was born.
She blinked and blinked again. There was no doubt in her mind that he not only oversaw construction jobs, but that he worked as hard as any of his employees. She held her breath, watching the muscles ripple and stretch under his smooth skin. Her fingers twitched as he lowered the towel and began to dry his body. Was it possible to be jealous of a towel?
A couple of heartbeats passed before she drew in a breath and came to her senses. Hoping to make a quiet escape before he noticed her there, she took a tentative step toward the door. At that same moment, William turned slightly. Her movement caught his attention.
She knew she had not received a picture of this scene, but time seemed to stand still. His eyes widened. He wrapped the towel around his waist and turned to face her, all the while not releasing her from his gaze. It would have been difficult to judge who blushed a brighter shade of crimson, but she guessed it was her.
Elizabeth snapped her mouth closed and stammered, “I... I knocked.”
“I was in the shower... I didn’t hear it.” They stood staring at each other for a few more moments in awkward silence. “The fan doesn’t work. I had to open the door.”
“There was a short. It was disconnected until a new one came in.” She held up her dress. “Came to get this.”
“Do you always wear a tie with a dress?”
She looked down at his tie in her hand and laid it carefully on the bed. “Oh! It fell. I picked it up.” Looking up again, she blushed even more deeply when her eyes would not behave. She finally dragged her gaze from his body. The look in his eyes made her breath catch.
“See you later?” She gasped. “No, I didn’t mean... I meant—” She gave up trying to speak coherently.
As she dashed for the exit, the last thing she saw was the corner of his lips twitch.
Elizabeth practically slammed the door closed behind her. Leaning back against the wall beside the door, she closed her eyes. Guess I should’ve knocked harder!
“How’d it go?”
Elizabeth jumped at the sound of Georgiana’s voice. Hand to her chest, she tried to catch her breath. At least now I have a reason for it!
“Sorry, Lizzy! Is Will okay?”
Elizabeth nodded. “He is so much better than I imagined!” She rushed off down the hall toward the loft. “I have to get dressed.”
~%~
“William, it’s good to see you again.” Edward Gardiner shook William’s hand. “County Executive Lucas just asked me about something, but I’d like your opinion. How long do you think we should wait for Mrs. de Bourgh? The refreshments will keep people busy only just so long. I’m sure she wouldn’t expect us to wait more than ten or fifteen minutes more.”
William just barely stifled an eye roll. Oh, yes, she would, but I’ll handle her tirade! “That’s fine, Ed.”
“Sorry we couldn’t join you at the Bennetts’ this weekend, but two of the childre
n came down with a fever, and we felt it better to stay home. I hope you enjoyed a little time off.”
“It’s been an interesting weekend.”
Gardiner raised his eyebrows. “Interesting—that’s a good way to describe a weekend at my sister’s house!”
“How are the children doing?”
“Much better, thanks. Madeline thinks it must have been one of those twenty-four hour viruses.”
“Good. She was able to make it today, then?”
“Yes, she’s over there, with Lizzy.”
William looked in the direction that Gardiner had indicated. His eyes lingered, admiring the way Elizabeth looked in the dress he had seen hanging in her closet—professional, and yet so alluring that he could barely keep his eyes off her. That particular shade of blue complimented Elizabeth’s coloring perfectly.
He had noticed that several other men at the gathering had taken note of Elizabeth, as well. Since they had arrived, he had been watching one man in particular, who had been making every effort to remain as close to Elizabeth as was possible. Earlier, he had been introduced as Dan King, an assistant district attorney. Today, the man’s irritating attentions toward Elizabeth distracted William more than the lady herself. He clenched his teeth; she was talking to Dan King now.
William had not known what to expect after their encounter at the house, but since their arrival at the groundbreaking, her behavior had been swinging between avoidance when he was with people he knew and being almost protective of him any time he was surrounded by strangers.
He was consumed by an ironic, but pleasant realization—when he first met her, he had been a nervous wreck, but now, along with any contact with Elizabeth came all the warmth and well-being of home.
Had she guessed at his reserved nature and noticed how much calmer he felt whenever she was near him, or was her behavior today some sort of strange after-effect of their... meeting this morning?
Earlier, when she had placed his tie on the bed and looked up, the way her eyes had drifted over his skin had felt almost like a caress. Women had looked at him like that before, but never had it brought to the surface a feeling buried deep within his soul. He did not just want her physically; he needed Elizabeth in a way that he had never needed anyone or anything in his entire life—and he desperately wanted her to look at him in that way again.
William watched as she laughed at something Dan King had said and then searched the crowd, stopping when she met William’s gaze. Their eyes locked for a moment, and she smiled warmly. He felt a wave of relief pass over him knowing that she had sought him out, especially while she stood with him.
“William?”
“Sorry, Ed. I was just... thinking.”
“Yes, I could see that.” Suddenly, Gardiner seemed very uncomfortable. He looked around to see if anyone was standing close by, and then spoke quietly. “This is difficult for me to say, William. I certainly didn’t want to talk about this here, but after seeing your expression a moment ago, I think I should—before it’s too late.” Gardiner adjusted his tie, which William had come to recognize as a nervous habit. “I feel I have to warn you—before our employees are hired, they must sign a copy of our company policy. It’s against that policy to become romantically involved with a client.” Gardiner squirmed a little. “My partners are already resentful that the Lambton project consists almost entirely of Lizzy’s designs. This is a huge project, one that our little corner of the world has never seen before. You must know that a certain prestige comes with your choosing an architect’s plans. Although they haven’t said anything directly to her, there has been some talk—accusing Elizabeth of persuading you...” his voice trailed off, but his expression spoke volumes.
William’s nostrils flared with sudden rage. “She has done nothing to warrant such slander!” The two stared at each other for a minute before William’s anger cooled enough for him to speak again. “If you think I chose her drawings because of—”
Gardiner interrupted him. “I do not, and neither does Madeline. Lizzy would never do such a thing.” He cleared his throat, bracing himself for William’s reaction. “To be perfectly honest, just to prove it to those who have complained, I purposely covered up the signatures on some of the plans you’ve seen until after you’d chosen them. Because she’s not licensed, she can’t sign off on a plan, but you’d know which drawings were not hers if you saw a signature other than mine.”
William’s tone was resentful. “I wasn’t aware you were doing this—but for your information, I refuse to look at the name on the drawings until I’ve made a decision.”
Gardiner nodded. “I’ve noticed.”
“Are employees allowed friendships with clients?” William flexed his fists into balls at his sides. “Do I tell my sister she’ll have to end her friendship with Elizabeth until the Lambton project is complete, since Georgiana is part-owner of Darcy Construction? Maybe I should insist that everyone in your office call me ‘Mr. Darcy’ from now on.”
“There is nothing in our policy about friendship.” Gardiner sighed. “Or having family as clients, for that matter. If it were just Madeline and me, it wouldn’t make a difference—we’d both be happy about a relationship between the two of you. But our partners—” He shook his head. “You’re a reasonable man, William... I’m sure you can understand the position I’m in.”
William took a deep breath and stared across the field, careful not to look in Elizabeth’s direction. “Being an employer myself, I do understand.” But that doesn’t mean I like it. “I’ll tell you right now that I will not choose someone else’s drawings over hers on purpose. I can’t help it if she has designed almost exactly what I wanted.”
“I agree; she is quite gifted. There are some in our office who can look past her pretty face and recognize her talent.” He sighed again. “Lately, there have been times when my offices have been like a war-zone—Madeline, the other two women architects, Joe, and me against the rest.”
“What did they expect when they agreed to hire her—that she was there to decorate the office?” William ground his teeth.
“Apparently so.” Gardiner noticed William searching through the sea of faces in the crowd and guessed he was trying to pick out some of the men from his firm. Mr. Gardener placed his hand on William’s shoulder to get the younger man to look at him. “I’ve known Lizzy all her life. If you confront anyone from my firm, I’m certain she’ll find out. Even though none of this is her fault, she’d quit rather than feel she’s causing problems for Madeline and me. With your name included in the gossip, the news would spread all over the trade in a matter of days. You know how people think—not many would believe she was innocent. It’s pretty much guaranteed that she’d never get a job at another firm, and if she was hired, you know what they’d expect from her.”
William swallowed the bile rising in his throat. “If something like that should happen, she’d be welcome to work directly for Darcy Construction.”
“She’d never be able to get a license that way.” Mr. Bennett stepped from behind Gardiner, surprising both men that he had overheard their conversation. “Not to mention that a scandal such as this would crush her spirit.”
“That will not happen,” William stated firmly.
A high-pitched voice called out from several feet away, “Darcy, dahling!”
William could not suppress an eye-roll this time, and he huffed. Wonderful timing, as usual! The emotionless mask he usually wore while doing business snapped into place, and he turned to greet the maleficent storm that was Catherine de Borough.
As she walked toward him, he noticed that while her dress might have been in fashion, he was sure that the designer had a much younger woman in mind when it was first envisioned. The perfectly groomed Pomeranian dog that accompanied her everywhere was tucked into the designer bag carried under her arm.
“Catherine. We were just about to begin the groundbreaking ceremony without you.”
“Nonsense, Darcy. You never would
have started without me. Where is my daughter?”
Probably hiding from you. He ignored her question and gestured toward the others. “May I introduce Mr. Edward Gardiner, whose firm is handling the architectural needs of the Lambton project, and Mr. Thomas Bennett, the owner of the local building supply warehouse.”
“A pleasure to meet you.” Mr. Bennett held out his hand to shake hers. Her dog began to yap madly.
Mrs. de Bourgh looked at his hand as if it were covered with manure. “I never converse with people Miss Snugglepuss dislikes.” She turned her back on the two men to face William. “If Anne is present, why is she not by your side?”
Mr. Bennett pressed his lips together, looking as if he was trying to stop himself from laughing out loud.
When William had a difficult time keeping his mask in place, he realized he had been in comfortable company for too long—he was losing his edge. “I assure you that Anne is here, madam.”
Mrs. de Bourgh searched the crowd with her gaze. “There she is!”
William wasn’t surprised when Anne seemed to feel her mother’s glare and turned to look in their direction. When their gazes met, Anne’s mother raised her eyebrows almost imperceptibly. Anne blushed and nodded slightly in response.
“And where is Georgiana today?”
His eyes widened slightly. “As soon as Anne joins us, I’ll go find her.”
“She is here? Honestly, Darcy, have you lost your mind? How could you allow your poor, impressionable sister to mingle with these people?” Mrs. de Bourgh was distracted by a young man named Colin Hunsford, to whom William had been introduced earlier in the day, bowing to her from a few feet away. She acknowledged him in an almost regal manner by tilting her head in his direction.
William heard Mr. Bennett’s laughter. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Gardiner take Mr. Bennett by the arm and steer him away.
Anne approached the pair, bringing a support crew with her. Poor Richard’s hand had turned white from the strength of Anne’s squeezing fingers, and, William realized, the way she was holding onto Elizabeth’s arm had to be painful. William could not help but think it a shame that his friend should be this nervous around her own mother.
