Second Opinions: A Lizzy and Dr. Darcy Story (Meryton Medical Romances Book 2)

by Ruby Cruz

  I stood hesitantly in front of the house, unsure of my next move. As if conjured by my thoughts, Nico drove the limo from the direction of the garage and had the window rolled down. “Dr. Darcy contacted me to say I was to take you wherever you requested.”

  “What?”

  “Wherever you need to go, I’ll take you. Within the continental U.S., of course.”

  My mind spun. Where did I want to go? I had no idea.

  “I was also instructed to give you this. You left it behind.” He handed me the prescription bottle of anti-nausea meds I’d had ever since my arrival.

  Tears welled in my eyes once more, but I fought them back and cleared my throat. “Just the airport, then.”

  At that moment, Ana ran out of the house. “Lizzy, thank God you haven’t left yet! Will told me what happened. You don’t have to go right now. He’s not making you leave.”

  “I can’t stay here right now.”

  She bit her lip. “I can’t begin to understand what’s going on between you and my brother, and I don’t want to be in the middle of all this, but you can’t just run away.”

  My first inclination in any tough situation was to run, as if my body were always poised to escape at any moment. But she was wrong about this time. “I’m not running away. Your brother had a choice to make and he refused to choose.”

  “So you’re choosing for him? That’s not fair.”

  “I don’t have many other options here.”

  “You can wait and cool down. The past few days have been stressful for everyone. Look, Lizzy, I know he loves you. He’s just being stupid about things now.”

  Now that much of my anger and frustration had dissipated, the tears threatened to stream down my face. The last thing I needed was to break down now. “I do love him.”

  “Then don’t leave. Stay here and see this through. He wants you to stay.”

  “I have to go to work tomorrow.”

  She raised a brow. “With that ankle, I doubt you’ll be lifting any patients and running around anytime soon.”

  I’d totally forgotten about the logistics of working on my injured leg. She was right - the sprain was still too painful to put any weight on it, and I couldn’t safely perform my job hobbling around on crutches.

  Plus, not that I wanted to call off sick, but with my future with Darcy at stake, I didn’t feel like there was any choice. No way could I just show up to work tomorrow and do my job effectively. Who was I kidding? It would be a miracle if I could make it through my shift without being distracted by thoughts of Darcy or breaking down into a blubbering mess of tears.

  “Come back inside, Lizzy. Please.”

  I was tempted to follow her but I didn’t. “’Even if I don’t go to work tomorrow, it doesn’t change the fact that he never considered me in all this. Even now, he’s making you talk to me.”

  “He was afraid of pushing you away even more.”

  “I just need to get home. I’m sorry, Ana.”

  She nodded, but didn’t argue with me further. Instead, she stepped forward to give me a quick hug. “Take care, Lizzy. And please don’t hate him.”

  “I don’t hate him.” Far from it.

  When she stepped away from me, Nico assisted me with my meager belongings before gently guiding me into the limo. I leaned a little too much onto my injured ankle, and a hot arrow of pain sliced through the joint. I almost wished I’d taken Nina up on her offer for stronger pain killers - perhaps those would help dull the pain in my heart also.

  Nico climbed into the driver’s seat and revved the engine before beginning to pull out of the driveway. Ana watched from the front of the house, her slight figure getting smaller as the distance between us increased. This time, I allowed the tears to slide down my cheeks. I’m doing it. I’m actually leaving.

  Desperate for a distraction, I tried calling Luke, but he didn’t answer so I just left a message asking him to call me back. These were the times I missed him the most. He’d always put me straight if I was thinking out of turn, and I desperately needed to know if I was totally off the mark with Will now.

  The longer I sat in the limo and stared at the passing trees and houses, the longer I began to fret about my rash words and actions. Half a dozen times, I was tempted to order Nico to turn the car around and return to the manor, but would change my mind at the last minute. Anyone watching me would probably have thought I was doing some strange form of exercise with the number of times I extended my arm and retracted it.

  My phone buzzed several times, and I was tempted to pick it up until I saw it was Will. I didn’t want to talk to him just yet, not when my emotions were still raw and fresh.

  I thought to my earlier conversation with him when I’d had a moment, a revelation really, that I would’ve followed him anywhere. Putting aside that giving up my life in Meryton felt like an invalidation of my needs and goals, I wondered if that’s what I truly wanted.

  After all, I’d never sought to fall in love with Darcy. In fact, I’d fought very hard not to have feelings for him despite our obvious mutual attraction. And I hadn’t even wanted to move in with him earlier in the year, having been too scared to think we were ready to live together, but the reality was taking the next step scared me. I knew I wanted to be with him, knew that he was the love of my life, but the thought of making that commitment completely terrified me, because it would mean I was vulnerable and would be dependent on someone else for my happiness, someone who would sacrifice his own happiness in order to please those most important to him.

  Maybe that’s why I was so upset. In taking this position and agreeing to join his aunt’s company without any discussion with me, he’d effectively indicated I was not the priority in his life. The knowledge burned into my already scarred heart. No matter what he said or what his true feelings were, he would always choose his aunt, his blood, over me.

  I swiped fresh tears from my cheeks. Was that so bad, though? He had such a strong sense of responsibility and of family, most women would kill to be with a man like him. In fact, Caroline Bingley had proved she was willing to make a fool of herself just to garner some nugget of attention from him. A part of me felt I should be thanking God for having him in my life in any capacity and that I was being selfish for walking away.

  No, I resolved. If this was going to work, if our relationship was going to weather any interference from his aunt, I had to know whether he was willing to fight for me. For us. The fact that he let me go with hardly any argument cut deeper than any of Dr. DeBourgh’s harsh words against me.

  I thought back to the past year and felt that as much as I felt changed, in a way, I would always be the lowly nurse, he the arrogant doctor, and I would never be worthy of him.

  I’d done so much crying that week, that day, I didn’t think there were any tears left. But as I sat in the limo, the window down, the salt air rushing at my face and hair and soothing my frayed nerves, I sobbed.

  ~

  By the time we arrived at the airport, my eyes were red and felt so swollen I marveled I could still see through them. Nico said nothing as he assisted me from the limo and assured my bag was transferred to the waiting plane. I avoided eye contact with him, but he asked, “Miss Bennett?”

  “Yes?” I was surprised when he addressed me. We’d barely spoken since he’d driven me into town two days ago, and even then our conversation had been light and superficial, nothing more than small talk.

  “I hope I’m not being too forward in saying he’s an idiot.”

  I paused as his words sunk in and began to laugh. “He may be, but I may be an even bigger one for leaving,” I managed to say, sniffing away the laughter and tears that accompanied it.

  “You probably don’t want my opinion, but if you love someone, you don’t let them go, no matter what. But like I said, that’s just my opinion.”

  I wondered exactly how much Nico knew or suspected about the situation. “I’d be lying if I said I didn
’t share your opinion.”

  “Good luck, Miss. I’ve arranged for a car service to bring you back to the house in Meryton when you arrive back there.”

  “Thank you, Nico. I hope Dr. DeBourgh doesn’t give you too much trouble.”

  He grinned at me, a gold tooth glinting in the sunlight. “Oh, I’m sure she will, but I just keep my mouth shut and do my job. You’re the first person in the family who talked to me here. You don’t care about me being the help.”

  “Probably because half the time I feel like the help myself. Thanks, again.”

  He handed me to the attendant waiting at the gangway who assisted me up the steps and into the interior of the plane.

  “Ginger ale, Miss Bennett?” she asked as I settled into my seat.

  “Yes, please.” Even though I would’ve loved a couple of snifters of hard liquor to help numb the dull pain in my chest, I doubted my GI tract would once the plane took off. I fished the medicine bottle from my purse and when I opened it, found a slip of paper on the inside nestled among the pill packs.

  I recognized Darcy’s familiar scrawl and the words had my pulse thumping, as if they had revived my broken heart. Please don’t leave. I love you.

  Oh my God. I stood so suddenly, I almost fell down. The attendant nearly spilled the cup of ginger ale she was in the middle of bringing to my seat. “Are you okay, Miss Bennett?”

  “Yes. No. I mean, I have to go.”

  “Miss?” By the look she was giving me, she clearly thought I’d lost my mind.

  “I can’t leave. I have to get off this plane.” I was beginning to panic as the engines started to hum alive. “I need to go back.”

  An announcement from the pilot said we were cleared for takeoff. “Wait!” I shouted, hoping he could hear me from the cockpit. “Stop the engines!”

  “Miss Bennett, are you quite sure you want to get off this plane?”

  “Yes. Please, I can’t leave! I have to return to the manor. Get Nico. I have to go back!” I knew I probably sounded raving and crazy but I didn’t care.

  The attendant said something into the intercom with the cockpit and the engines quieted. Relief flooded me as I scrambled for my crutches. In my haste, I’d dumped the contents of my purse onto the floor. “I’m so sorry,” I apologized to the increasingly frazzled attendant, who automatically crouched to pick up the items off the floor. “How do I get the door open?”

  “We have to wait for the ground crew to come back out,” she explained as she clutched my hairbrush and wallet in her arms.

  Impatiently, I searched outside for indications that the ground crew had received the message. Yes, I’m crazy, I said to them silently as a couple of men on the ground made confused gestures, just please work faster.

  As I watched the men rush around to accommodate the change in plans, a different movement caught the corner of my eye. I turned to follow what had caught my attention and through the window, I saw a car speeding across the tarmac towards us. My newly reformed heart nearly burst as I dared to hope.

  As the vehicle approached and I could make out more details, I saw it was a silver sports car, a Lamborghini, I think, racing toward the plane. He came for me, was my thought, and I prayed I wasn’t wrong.

  The car skidded to a stop as it reached us and caused the ground crew to scatter in alarm. Darcy jumped out of the driver’s seat, hair disheveled, face frantic. He looked nearly as crazy as I felt, but I didn’t care as my heart swelled at the sight of him. He yelled fiercely at one of the men who then scrambled to comply, retrieving the scaffold of steps and wheeling it to the plane door.

  An interminable moment later, the attendant opened the plane door and I stepped to the opening. Darcy was already halfway up the metal steps and bounded up the last few to meet me on the landing.

  “I thought I was too late,” he announced breathlessly. “I thought you were gone.”

  “I got your note. I couldn’t leave.”

  He gathered me into a fierce hug and whispered into my hair, “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have let you go.”

  The raw pain in his voice cut through me because his pain was my own. I clung to him, the tears once more overtaking me at the thought of how close I’d come to ending things. I didn’t want things to end between us, and even though his apology didn’t change the overarching problem, it was enough for now.

  “I’m sorry, too.” I pulled away from him slightly to gaze up at him. His dark eyes were wet, and I reached up to brush an errant tear from his cheek. “I shouldn’t have tried to leave when things between us weren’t settled. I shouldn’t have…”

  His lips cut off my words, my breath stolen by the raw and passionate kiss. At some point during our embrace, the attendant had excused herself because when I finally pulled away slightly, she was gone. “I should’ve told you sooner. My aunt…”

  “I don’t want to talk about your aunt.” If I started talking about her, I probably would just get angry again.

  “I’m sorry, Lizzy. I should have been upfront with you about what was happening with the company, and I’m sorry for betraying your trust. If you give me a chance to make it up to you, I promise you I’ll never betray that trust again.” He grabbed my hands in his. “I love you. While I can’t say I’ll never make any mistakes again, I can promise to do my best to cherish you. You have bewitched me body and soul. Despite my actions not exactly reflecting my words, please know my heart belongs to you.”

  I remained silent.

  “Say something. Please.”

  Instead of answering, I lifted his hands and raised them to my lips. “I love you, Will, more than I ever thought I could love anyone. After everything that’s happened this week, I realized it would be stupid of me to throw away everything I have with you just because of a lack of communication. Life is too short to be bogged down with misunderstandings. If I can’t trust you, then I have no business being with you, simple as that. And I want to trust you. I want to be with you. I want us to be together, for better or worse.”

  Those last words gave Will pause. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying that I want to be with you, and I want to commit to you. Even though promises may be just words for some people, we’re not just some people. I want to make a promise with you. I want to marry you, for better or worse.”

  “Are you…are you proposing to me?”

  I laughed nervously. “You know, for someone who’s supposed to be a brilliant doctor, you’re pretty dense.”

  Before I knew it, he grabbed me around the waist, kissing me fervently again. Moments later, breathless, his lips left mine and I could see they had formed a grin.

  “So…is that a yes?” I whispered.

  “Yes, Lizzy. That’s a yes.”

  PART TWO

  BETTER OR WORSE

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  The Most Appropriate Time

  We didn’t tell anyone yet we were engaged. In fact, it was quite easy to just go on as if nothing had happened. After all, only a few people were aware of our disagreement and I wasn’t sporting a diamond on my finger just yet.

  It’s not like we didn’t want to tell people we were going to get married. The timing just didn’t feel right. After all, Dr. DeBourgh had just buried her father that morning - not exactly the happy and bright setting for an engagement announcement - and she was still in the hospital recovering from the emotional stress.

  Besides, the whole point of me proposing to Will was to cement what we had together - it had been an intimate decision between the two of us, a commitment of our love for each other. Formally announcing our engagement to our friends and family could wait until the emotions over Walter DeBourgh’s death had dulled a bit.

  Back at the manor, I considered telling Will about his aunt’s comments about me, but decided against it. Let’s see how she reacts to the news about our engagement first, I mused. There was no point broaching the subject until then.

  Wil
l sat next to me on the loveseat, his arm draped across my shoulders. I could feel his fingers playing with my hair and the movement tickled the back of my neck and caused shivers down my back.

  “So, what happens now?” I asked, determined to discuss what had happened despite Will’s veiled attempt to distract me. “Are you planning on returning to Meryton before you go to San Francisco?”

  “I still have to finish up some documentation and ensure the other doctors in my practice will be able to cover my patient load until they can find a temporary replacement. I’ve left them in the lurch, so to speak, with my abrupt departure.” His dark eyes became troubled.

  “Is it really so important for you to do this right now? Your aunt’s company has done well without you thus far.”

  The fingers in my hair stilled and he sighed heavily. “I wish that were true. The reason why it was so imperative for me to intervene this week was because my aunt has been receiving a lot of pressure regarding a merger deal that has been in the works for some time. One key member of the board has been in strong opposition to the deal…”

  “John Corbett.”

  “Yes. Mr. Corbett has been a detractor of my aunt’s ever since she was named Chief Medical Officer years ago. He’s the main reason she’s asked me to step in and aid in the negotiations. He’s not a fan of women in business. With my grandfather’s death and with her…incapacitated for now, she wanted me to step in both as a member of the family and as a strong male figure to help lead the negotiations.”

  “But as far as I know, you haven’t had much involvement with the business before now.”

  “Yes, you’re right. A lot of this week has been spent getting me up to speed.”

  I broke eye contact and reached for the hand that had been playing with my hair and enveloped it between my hands. His touch was far too distracting. “But Mr. Corbett’s objections are sure to extend past these negotiations, aren’t they? Even after this deal finishes, he’ll probably try to find a different way to undermine your aunt.”