by Kelsie Fann
As his fingers typed, his mind debated what to do. Darcy had come to Savannah to solve the embezzlement issue, but he’d also come down to make sure Hamilton wasn’t hanging around.
Despite Liz’s assurance Hamilton wasn’t behind the charges, Darcy knew he was. The detective tracked down the source of the charges to the IP address on Stella’s computer. Obviously, she hadn’t acted alone.
Darcy clenched his teeth together at the thought. He could solve this problem with one conversation. He could make sure Liz wouldn’t talk to Hamilton ever again by telling her the truth: Hamilton was a predator.
Only two things were in the way of exposing his enemy. The first, and largest, was his sister’s involvement. Nothing hurt Georgia more than talking about Hamilton.
Secondly, he needed to keep his relationship with Liz professional. He could feel his eyes slipping every time he was around her. They kept slipping down to her lips. He felt a pull to her that wasn’t work-related. He knew if he shared more of his personal life, letting her in, he might not be able to resist her. He could never cross that line. Never.
Darcy was hyperaware the second Liz stepped out of the Pemberley Media building. He saw her tall black pumps, standing on the outside of the office door, toes pointed his direction. He stared at her as worry lines crossed her forehead.
He watched her turn quickly and disappear around the corner. After sitting outside the building a few more minutes, he knew there was nothing more he could do. “Hotel, please,” he told his driver.
He walked into his hotel room. His eyes rested on the giant, intricately-carved bed. White panels of fabric draped over canopy slats. It felt like sleeping in a doll house, way too ornate for his taste. He liked straight, hard lines. He ran his hand over the deep curve in the dark wooden headboard, trying to get his mind off of Liz.
“What took you so long?” Caroline walked out of the bathroom. She straightened the bottom of her dress, which consisted of a short piece of silver fabric with tiny straps that hung limply over her thin shoulders. Darcy could see every bone in her chest.
Darcy leaned on the end of his hotel bed and crossed his arms. “Why are you in my room?”
Caroline leaned against the door frame and smiled at him. “Just checking out your clawfoot tub. Maybe we can try it out later?”
He shook his head; he knew he shouldn’t have let her come to Savannah again. But she had begged, saying she needed to reconfigure the new branch office. “What are the clients going to think of the desks arranged in a sloppy tornado pattern?”
“Fine.” Darcy had shrugged and let her on the plane, but Caroline hadn’t gone to the office. Instead, she’d spent her days in the hotel.
“I’ve got a lot of work tonight,” he said.
She sat down at the small writing desk next to his heavily-draped bed. “Pour you a drink?” she asked, nodding to an ornate crystal bottle filled with amber-colored liquor.
He shook his head. “No.”
“Come on.” She poured a drink anyway.
Darcy shook his head again and looked around his hotel room. He needed to figure out an excuse to get out of there without insulting James’s sister. “Let’s go out,” Darcy said quickly.
Caroline huffed, but she slowly stood up. “Fine. The bellboy recommended Bistro South. I’m sure it’s just a local Applebee’s, but I guess we can try.”
“Great,” Darcy said. “I need to change.” He opened his hotel room door, and she walked out of his room.
13.
Liz’s heart almost exploded when she saw Darcy walk into Bistro South with Caroline. She narrowly escaped running into him outside the office, now he was walking into the same restaurant she was at with Hamilton? Liz groaned, and for the first time, she wished she lived in Chicago instead of small-town Savannah.
Liz stared at the couple for a few seconds. Caroline looked perfect, of course. Her hair was perfectly swept over one shoulder in thick curls. Her dress hung on her skinny frame, looking even better than it would have looked on a mannequin.
Darcy, of course, looked amazing. He’d changed his checked button-up shirt to a solid black one, and his gray suit perfectly coordinated with Caroline’s silver dress. They sat down at a table across the restaurant, looking like a demeaning Barbie and moody Ken.
“Everything okay?” Hamilton asked.
Liz looked down at her empty plate. She had already finished eating, and Hamilton paid for dinner. This would be the perfect time to escape.
She hopped out of her chair and bent down beside Hamilton. She got a whiff of his cologne; he smelled wonderful, like the perfect combination of woods and clean soap. “I’ve got to use the restroom,” she said. “Meet me at the door?” She hoped splitting up would give her a shot of not being seen with Hamilton.
Hamilton smiled at her. He stood slowly. “Sure, Lizzy.”
Liz walked as fast as possible toward the bathroom. She took a deep breath as she wiped her hands on the paper towels sitting on the bathroom sink. She almost would rather stay in the bathroom forever than run into Darcy and Caroline after the terrible day she had.
Liz took a deep breath, tucked her clutch under her arm, and walked out of the bathroom. She didn’t even glance toward Darcy and Caroline; it wasn’t worth the risk. She just locked eyes on the front door and made a beeline for it.
With each step she took toward the door, she felt closer to freedom. By the time she made it to the front of the restaurant, she felt lightheaded and forced herself to take a deep breath in.
Hamilton grabbed her hand and opened the door; they ventured into the dark night. “Want to walk to your place?”
“Yes.” Liz would have agreed to anything as long as it meant she didn’t have to be a part of another close call between Darcy and Hamilton. There was no way the universe was going to allow her to have three near misses in one day.
“Are you in a hurry?” Hamilton asked.
Liz looked back, realizing she was two steps ahead of Hamilton. She stopped and let him catch up. “Sorry. Just trying to get some exercise.”
He grabbed her hand and laced his fingers between hers. Their arms swung back and forth as they strolled down the sidewalk. Something about being with him felt so easy. It was so effortless that she hadn’t wanted to ruin their dinner talking about Stella. Instead, they talked about everything you were supposed to talk about on a date: hobbies, friends, and favorite foods. There were so many easy topics that flowed so naturally between them that she felt like she had known Hamilton for a lifetime.
Now, under the cover of nighttime, Liz was ready to find out if he knew anything about Pemberley’s recent theft. “What’s been going on with you?” she asked.
“Business has been good,” he said. “Landed a couple high-profile clients in Chicago. Thinking about expanding to Houston at the end of the year.”
He stopped at the crosswalk in front of them, and she met his aqua eyes. “I’ve been building my company for so many years and trying to prove myself. Feels like it’s paying off.”
The light changed, and they started to cross the street. “That’s a great feeling.”
After a few more blocks, they were already back at Liz’s apartment. She didn’t want to ruin the mood, but she knew she needed to be more direct. “I don’t want this to come off rude.” She stopped talking and thought about her words. “But did you happen to . . . ” She stopped for a second. Steal money? Accidentally take money?
Hamilton leaned against the stucco siding of her apartment and brushed her arm with his fingertips. “What, Lizzy? You can ask me anything.”
As he looked earnestly at her, she knew in her gut that this kind man had never taken anything in his entire life. He was just like her. He was a teased kid, who was now working his butt off to succeed. She shook her head; she wasn’t going to bring Hamilton into the messy situation at work.
“Nothing,” she said. “It’s nothing.”
“None of your thoughts are ‘nothing’ to me.” Be
fore she had the chance to say anything else, he inched closer to her, put his hands on her waist, and pulled her close. The heat from his body made Liz forget everything except how much she liked him.
14.
When Liz walked into work early the next morning, she expected the office to be empty. It wasn’t until she pushed open the executive office door that she noticed a man with a stiff back and a black suit sitting in the chair in front of her desk.
“Hello, Darcy.” She put her purse down on her desk.
He looked up from his phone and shoved it in his pocket. Liz noticed his white undershirt was fully buttoned and his tie was tied tightly against his throat. “Hi, Liz.” He straightened his jacket. “What did you do last night?” he asked.
Liz stayed cool, sitting down at her desk and pulling her phone out of her purse. “I thought you were going back to Chicago.”
He pressed his lips together. “Postponed leaving. Until tomorrow.”
She looked at the clock on her computer. “I’m going to have to postpone this conversation. I have a team meeting in an hour.” Rose and Elise deserved to hear her side of the “Stella was fired” story.
“Liz,” Darcy looked into her eyes, and every cell in her body wanted to avoid his glare, but she wouldn’t let him win. “Hamilton left Bistro South last night. Then, a few minutes later, you met him at the door. No one walks that fast out of a restaurant, Liz, unless you’re avoiding your boss.”
Busted. She tried not to look surprised, but her mouth fell open a half an inch. “I didn’t think you saw me,” she whispered.
He narrowed his eyes. “I always see you, Liz.”
The comment made her stomach tighten. She heard her phone buzz on the desk, but she didn’t look down. Instead, she sat in her chair, putting her elbows on top of the desk, and leaned toward Darcy. She thought she’d gotten lucky the night before, but she should have known better. Darcy was the most perceptive person she’d ever met.
For a second, a spark of bravery entered her body and traveled straight to her mouth. “Are you?” she asked.
It was Darcy’s turn to lean toward her. “Am I what?”
“Are you dating Caroline?” she asked.
He sat up in his chair a little higher, looking past her. “No, I am not,” he said. He sighed after the words escaped his lips.
Liz’s phone buzzed again. This time, both Liz and Darcy couldn’t resist looking at Liz’s phone. It couldn’t have been worse timing because the buzzing sound they had been overlooking was a text from Hamilton. Liz reached out to snatch her phone away, but she was too slow.
“I had a great time at dinner, Lizzy. Hope to see you soon,” Darcy read Hamilton’s text out loud; disdain dripped off of his words. Liz didn’t say anything. She shouldn’t have to defend herself to her boss. She braced herself for his questions, his rebuke. But none of it came.
He lifted a black leather briefcase from beside his chair. He got up to leave, not saying a word. But before he took a step toward the door, he turned back slowly toward Liz.
“You let him call you Lizzy? I thought you hated that.” His voice was quiet.
Liz didn’t know what to say. The conversation she’d had with Darcy, when she asked him not to call her Lizzy flashed through her mind. “We bonded over childhood . . . stuff.”
He stared hard into her eyes, like she’d betrayed him. “Over what?” His tone was angry and entitled, and Liz was tired of it. Who did he think he was? She stood up from her desk and walked closer to him.
When she was only a few feet from him, she told him the truth. “We bonded over both being fat kids. Boys in elementary school called me ‘Lizzy the Piggy.’ He was called ‘Hammy,’ so we bonded over our shared tortures,” she said.
Darcy scoffed; his angry laugh burned her ears. “You bonded over being fat children?”
She couldn’t believe she’d admitted this humiliating childhood experience to her perfect-looking boss. She could feel the blood creep into her cheeks. “I’ve got a meeting.” She stood up, pushed open the glass door, and walked past him.
Liz marched straight into the conference room. She was over Pemberley Media. Darcy had given her everything she wanted. She had her old job back and her old team back. But now he’d taken Stella away and her pride away, too. She was over it. She exhaled slowly as he walked out of the building. She couldn’t wait until he left tomorrow. Until then, she wasn’t going back to be his punching bag.
15.
Darcy’s flight home was uneventful. New pilot, same plane. New stewardess, same traveling companion. Darcy had taken a seat as far away from Caroline as he could get, but it wasn’t far enough.
“Darc.” She slid into the seat next to him. He continued to stare out of the window. He couldn’t stop thinking about that one word: “Lizzy.” She’d been so against Darcy calling her that, and she’d let the fakest man on the planet, a man who was not even worthy of talking to her, use the nickname instead.
It didn’t make sense. If she hadn’t stormed out of the office, Darcy would have shown her pictures, proof that Hamilton was definitely not a fat kid growing up. Darcy had spent the majority of his childhood in the same private school as his nemesis, and Hamilton hadn’t been chunky; he was the most athletic boy in their grade.
Darcy pictured Hamilton, age ten, flying across the field, scoring goal after goal as Darcy wheezed into his inhaler. Darcy’s lungs still burned as he remembered the time Hamilton hid his inhaler.
Because of Darcy’s asthma, he spent most of his free time inside. He was small, sickly. Always coming down with different ailments. It wasn’t until he was late into his teenage years that he finally hit a growth spurt. And even that hurt. He grew so fast that his joints ached.
It made his skin crawl that Hamilton was lying about his childhood to get closer to Liz. Unfortunately, Darcy knew if he outed Hamilton, he might also have to explain their entire past, and he wasn’t sure he could do that to his sister. Georgia was just now returning to the light-hearted girl she used to be.
The plane took off, and Caroline interrupted his thoughts. “Wasn’t Savannah horrid? Somehow it was even buggier this time.”
“Yes,” he said, “it was horrible.” Between firing Stella and running into Liz and Hamilton on a date, it was a trip he never wanted to relive. Darcy looked at Caroline, who was still sitting next to him. They made eye contact, and she reached up slowly and brushed a piece of his hair back. As her arm moved away from his face, he made the decision that he’d needed to make a long time ago. He vowed never to go on a solo trip with Caroline again.
“Want to go get lunch after we land?” Caroline asked.
Darcy shook his head. “Plans with Georgia,” he told her. It was the truth. Georgia had texted the night before and told him she had some news, but even if he didn’t already have plans, he definitely would have made up something.
Caroline squeezed the top of his hand. “You’re such a good brother.”
Darcy turned to look out the window and watched the plane soar into the sky. He tried to lose himself in the clouds, but he couldn’t get Liz off his mind.
By the time the plane landed, Darcy thoughts slipped away from Liz and back into work, which he was completely grateful for. Darcy followed Caroline down the stairs to the tarmac, and the pair slid into the black car that was waiting for them. Before the driver could shut their door, Caroline brought up the subject he’d just gotten off his mind.
“How was Liz?” she asked. “Still fat?” Darcy’s upper lip twitched as he heard Liz’s name. She was anything but fat. Curvy, sure, but fat, no.
Darcy gripped the door handle until his knuckles turned white while Caroline popped a bottle of champagne beside him.
16.
“What’s wrong, Darcy?” Georgia asked at lunch. She’d dragged Darcy to “Slize,” a hipster pizza restaurant ran by college students with rowdy facial hair. Darcy, in his black suit, was surrounded by plaid shirts, man buns, and body odor. He looked aroun
d the room and rolled his eyes. He just wanted to be eating a steak in a clean smelling room like a civilized human being.
“Nothing, Georgia,” he told his sister. He picked up a piece of pizza and took a bite, so she wouldn’t make him elaborate.
“Is it Liz?” she asked.
“No,” he lied.
Georgia picked up her fork and knife and started sawing into a slice. “Don’t lie. You just came back from Savannah, and I’ve never seen you so out of it. It has to be a lady. And that lady’s name has to be Liz.”
He put down his pizza. It was no use trying to hide his feelings from Georgia. She would just pester him until he told her. “Hamilton is still around.”
She took a sharp breath in and held it. “Oh,” she said. She put down her utensils and looked down. “Did you tell Liz about what happened?” she asked. He couldn’t see her face, but he could hear the nervousness in her voice.
“No.” Darcy didn’t want to bring up the past any more than Georgia did. Next to his parent’s accident, it was the worst day of his life.
“You can,” she said. “If you think she needs to know, you can tell her.”
Darcy shook his head and grabbed his sister’s hand. He didn’t want Georgia to feel bad about the past. “Hamilton doesn’t stay around long anyway.” He winked at her, trying to lighten the mood, and took another bite of pizza.
“Don’t I know that.” Her smile faded.
Darcy looked at his sister. He wanted to ask her a question, one that he never thought he would want to know the answer to. “Can I ask you about him?”
He couldn’t believe he was bringing up this subject. Since the “incident,” they had never talked about what happened between her and Hamilton.
