Page 47 of A Searing Acquaintance
Darcy watched her walk down the path and let out a deep sigh.Brilliant. I lift my shirt and then I insult her. We manage two minutes of civility, and I screw it up. Perfect.
When she told him she’d taken a sip, all he could think about were her lips—and his, sharing the same bottle. God, when had he become such an idiot? He needed to clean up and get the car fixed. And fix what had just happened. Or should he just leave?Shite.He’d wanted to be gone and not intrude on Charles’s celebration. But he was going to be trapped here for at least a few hours until he could ensure the Mustang was attended to. He’d better use that time wisely and try to have another, better moment with Elizabeth. He started toward the house.
She’s here. And she looks amazing in shorts.
Few things amused Charles Bingley more than watching his smarter, richer, stuffier friend—grease smeared on his cheek and wearing a filthy, once-white polo shirt dampened by sweat—explain his predicament.
“I told you that Mustang shouldn’t be driven. It’s a relic. A gorgeous, sleek collector’s item.” Charles crossed his arms and stared at an oily spot on Darcy’s shirt. “What are you doing here, anyway? I thought you were out of town.”
“Being at Pemberleyisbeing out of town,” Darcy replied, smiling a little. “This was my first chance to scatter Coco’s ashes here—you know, in the gardens she used to tear up.”
“Oh, of course.” Charles nodded sadly. “Good. That’s perfect.”
“I thought so.” Noting his friend’s concern, Darcy quickly shiftedthe conversation, asserting he needed to clean up and make sure the car would be drivable.
“You’re going to drive it to the city?”
“Of course not, are you daft? It just needed to be taken out to shake off the cobwebs before I left. I’ve got the Rover in the garage.”
“Oh.” Charles looked crestfallen. “So you’re leaving? I mean after a good scrubbing, of course.”
Darcy stood still, not saying anything. His eyes swept the vast, gleaming white foyer and alighted on a mirror. He looked even worse than he’d suspected.Vile.
“Come on. Stay. You have to meet everyone. Jane’s aunt and uncle are great. And their kids want to play pirates, so I was going to get out the dinghies and have water wars. They brought water cannons.” Charles smiled mischievously. “Really, it’ll be fun. And Ipromiseto keep Caroline far away from you. Please don’t let us chase you away from your own house.”
Darcy bit his lip. He didn’t just have a choice; he had an opportunity. “Of course, I’ll stay. Um, I need to get upstairs and clean up.”
“Great! And yeah…go scrub behind your ears. We don’t want you soiling your furniture or scaring all the guests.” Charles smiled at Darcy’s wary expression. “Don’t worry; they’re all down at the water.” He slapped Darcy on the back and grimaced. “Ugh, you’re disgusting.”
He didn’t just look amazing in shorts; he looked pretty damn good in a wet shirt too. Elizabeth blanched.Since when am I noticing these things?She’d stood there, her mouth hanging open, staring at him. His eyes were bright and his hair longer than she remembered. Messy and damp, wearing a filthy shirt and shorts. She’d never seen his legs before, never seen him so…undignified. And she’d stood there and stared and stuttered and acted like an idiot. He was here at his house, and she was an intruder. And she’d ogled his chest and offered him a drink from her water bottle. As if he’d want her help, let alone to share a drink.
Ugh. Never had she felt so much like she was back in middle school.
After Darcy walked back to the house, she ventured down the road and saw his abandoned, jacked-up sports car in the distance.Hot car.Hot day. Hot man. Ergh.She hated that her brain was spewing outthese thoughts and shifted to wondering why he’d tried to change the tire himself.Desperate to get away from here? From me?
She spent the next half-hour or so walking along the beach, sandals in hand, and trying to figure out—again—just how many ways this weekend could go bad.
Darcy wasn’tsupposedto be here. His presence would just compound the embarrassment and frustration she always felt around her family. Darcy’s overwhelmingly beautiful Hamptons mansion would magnify their foibles and failings. And he would witness the spectacle of Lydia and Mary meeting Charles’ sisters for the first time.
Elizabeth wrinkled her nose and used her big toe to draw an X in the sand.Who hates me enough to curse me and set up this weekend in hell?She could only think of two people to whom she’d spoken rudely in the past week, and despite the hairy mole on the woman’s chin, she doubted the Macy’s clerk who’d loudly announced Elizabeth’s cup size was actually a witch. That left one name: George Wickham. She’d befriended him for his charming smile and valuable Rolodex, and he’d used her to spread his slanderous stories about the Darcy family. She sighed heavily and watched the water roll in and blur the edges of her X.May that liar’s name and the memory of his face disappear as quickly and as permanently.
The name and face of Fitzwilliam Darcy would not disappear. Elizabeth laughed softly. He’d been a mess. After hours in the car with squirming children, she probably didn’t look much better, but at least she didn’t have grease smeared on her nose. She’d been afraid to see him again, afraid to see the hurt and anger in his eyes, but all she saw was embarrassment and fatigue. And maybe something else.
Still, after the things she’d said to him and the lies she’d believed about his family, how could he want to see her? And in his home?I offered him my water bottle.I bet he thinks I have cooties.And he saw me looking at his chest.It was mortifying to have to face him again—here at his house or in the future at the wedding. She wondered whether he was hurrying to another car to get away. She wasn’t sure whether she felt relief or regret at the thought.
As awkward as their meeting had been, though, they had managed to speak to each other in a civil, friendly manner. She owed him an honest attempt to be friendly. He owed her nothing. But she would forge on, and she’d be sure to say something to him about Coco. Somuch awfulness for him…maybe it was he who was cursed by a witch.Maybe I’m the witch.
The clanging of a bell broke her thoughts. “C’mon everybody! Shrimps are on the barbie!” Charles bellowed.
Elizabeth turned and spotted her aunt and uncle rounding up their children about a hundred yards from her. She started toward them as Aunt Maddie waved. “There you are, Lizzy. You’ve been gone nearly an hour!”
She smiled weakly. “You know me—always exploring.”
Her aunt nodded. “Simply beautiful, isn’t it? So many of these old houses have been gutted or razed for vanity projects and McMansions, but this house has been left true to its vintage. It’s just so perfect in its setting. I wonder who built it.”
“It’s a family house.”
“Right, Charles’s friend…what was the name?”
