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Posted on Monday, 16 June 2003
Elisabeth still hadn't heard back from Lydia two days later. No one had heard from George, either, which was problematic for the people working at his store because he hadn't bothered to tell anyone that he was taking time off.
"He calls me Monday morning and says that he needs a few days," the assistant manager, Jean Walters, groused when Elisabeth talked to her. "He doesn't say why. He doesn't say where he's going or when he'll be back or anything like that. He doesn't even thank me for doing it----not that I had a choice in the matter. He just says he's taking off and that's it. That's all I hear from him. Believe me, I've made the necessary calls because this is..."
Elisabeth let Jean talk for a few more minutes before hanging up with her. She couldn't blame her for being furious. Things were hard for the Effingham store when Sean left to work with other stores, but at least they always knew where he was going when he wasn't working there.
By the third day, Elisabeth decided to call her mother and see if she knew anything about the elopement. She hadn't spoken to Ruth since the wedding gown fiasco, and from the moment her mother realized it was her on the telephone, she knew her mother hadn't forgiven her.
"What do you want?" Ruth asked.
"Have you heard from Lydia at all in the last few days?" Elisabeth asked.
"No. She called me Monday night to tell me that she was going to spend a couple days with friends of hers in St. Louis, so I...why? Has something happened? Is she all right? Has she talked to you? Answer me, Elisabeth! What's happened to Lydia?"
Elisabeth sighed. Part of her had been hoping her mother knew something about where Lydia and George had gone, but she obviously knew nothing. Just my luck. I get to be the one to tell her, Elisabeth thought.
"I'm sure she's fine," Elisabeth said. "I don't know exactly where she is, but she's probably okay."
"Probably?!" Ruth was verging on hysterical. "Elisabeth, do you know something about her or not? What's happened to her?"
Elisabeth paused for a second. "Lydia got married," she said. "She married George Wickham sometime Monday."
Silence. Elisabeth waited, figuring her mother needed a moment or two to get over the shock. When Ruth hadn't said anything after a minute, Elisabeth asked, "Are you still there, Ma?"
There was a small, choked sound. "Married?"
"Yeah, that's what it looks like."
"You knew she was getting married and you didn't bother to tell me?" Ruth shouted.
"No, I didn't know she was getting married. I had no clue until Darcy's aunt came by to tell me. That's when I found out."
"I somehow don't believe you. How did Darcy's aunt know Lydia had gotten married? For that matter, why would she care? If this is another one of your childish antics, Elisabeth Cathleen..."
"Why would I make this up? Do you think I wanted Lydia to marry George? For God's sake, I just managed to get the man out of my life and away from Grace for good. The last thing I would've wanted was for him to marry into the family." Elisabeth was hoping she could sidestep the issue of how she'd found out.
"I suppose you're right about that, but you didn't answer my other questions. How did Darcy's aunt know about this, and why did she care?"
Damn. "Um...Darcy's aunt is against our marriage. She doesn't like me because she thinks I'm a bad influence on Darcy." No need to mention the five-million-dollar payoff. She suspected her mother would think she'd made a bad decision on that one. "I'm not, of course. Darcy's done everything he's done on his own, but she doesn't see it that way."
"So she's trying to discredit you by pointing out your sister's marriage? What good would that do you? The more you talk, the less I believe you."
Elisabeth wanted to scream. "Okay, okay, okay. I was hoping I wouldn't have to give you the details, but here goes." As quickly as possible, she told her mother the truth about who Darcy's aunt was, George and Ginger, and why Catherine had come to town.
Once she was finished, Ruth said in amazement, "You really do love him, don't you?"
"I'm hanging up the phone." Elisabeth started to turn it off when she heard her mother shouting at her to stay on the line. Elisabeth put it back to her ear.
"I'm not saying I didn't think you loved him, Ellie, I just had my doubts from time to time. It was awfully convenient of you to marry someone who had money and was willing to accept your bas...er, your child as his own."
"I know I didn't just hear you almost call Grace a bastard."
"I was sure he loved you, though," Ruth continued as if Elisabeth hadn't spoken. "That was something I never doubted. But now I know that you love him as well, and that's a good thing. Right?"
"The fact that you...oh, never mind." Elisabeth knew she wasn't going to change her mother' opinions or anything else, for that matter. There was no point in even trying.
"You're sure that Lydia is married? This aunt of Darcy's had the marriage license and everything?"
"No, she had pictures of the two of them holding the marriage certificate and kissing outside a justice of the peace's office. Darcy already tracked it down. It's near St. Louis."
"What about after that? Where did they go? Where are they now? And why did Catherine's aunt continue to have George followed even though she knew Darcy wasn't going to work for her again?"
"Because she's a persevering old witch with no life of her own. As for what happened after they got married, we don't know. We don't have any way of finding out, either. They'll come back." If we're unlucky, which we usually are.
"But what if they don't? Lydia's my baby, Ellie. I can't believe that my baby got married and didn't tell me anything!" Ruth started crying.
Elisabeth started to roll her eyes before she got to thinking. She thought about getting a similar phone call twenty years down the road about Grace, and how she might react if she did get the call. "It's okay, Ma," she said soothingly. "Lydia won't stay away forever. She can't."
"But she might!"
"No, she won't. You know Liddy." And I know George, she mentally added. "She can't keep news to herself for more than a few days. Right now, she and George are probably out on their honeymoon..." ...paid for with the rest of the money he embezzled... "...and as soon as they're back, they'll come straight to you."
"Oh. I hadn't thought of that. You're right, of course. They've gone away on a honeymoon. Well! George was certainly thoughtful about making sure things were done properly in that respect, but honestly, why couldn't they have gotten married here, with all of us to be with her, like you're doing?"
Elisabeth could only smile as her mother rattled on about Lydia not getting married in town. She could've given her mother the right, honest answer, and told her that Lydia had eloped because she'd seen what Elisabeth was going through, but she wouldn't. It wouldn't be fair. Elisabeth let Ruth talk a few minutes longer before she decided she needed to go.
George and Lydia still hadn't turned up by Saturday. Ruth had started calling Elisabeth every night to see if she knew anything more about the situation and never quite believed her when she said she didn't. Once the subject of Lydia was gone, Ruth then turned her attention back to the wedding, careful not to make too many disparaging remarks about Elisabeth's choice of dress.
With two weeks to go until the wedding, Elisabeth found her concentration going. She tried to focus on her work, but all she could think about was the fact that she was getting married in two weeks. Every thought she had on the wedding started with, In two weeks...
Elisabeth was counting the money in the store safe Saturday morning when there was a loud knock on the back door. She yelled, "Hey, Jack, can you get that for me?" It turned out to be unnecessary, of course, because Jack had already headed for the door and opened it.
"I got a bunch of boxes for you guys, and all from the same place," she heard a strange voice say. "Looks like computer equipment."
"All riiiiiiight!" Jack said in response. "Praise the Lord and pass the computers around!"
"Computers? What computers?" Erin asked from the salad bar, where she was setting out food.
"It's the new computer system they've been swearing we'd be getting for years. We're getting rid of those god-awful touch screens!"
Elisabeth finished counting the money and closed the register. She walked to the back, where Jack was staring at the boxes which continued to be brought into the store. He looked at them with love in his eyes.
"Dell computers," he said joyfully. "Can you believe we..."
"Don't you dare say it," she warned. "If the word 'dude' comes out of your mouth, I'll have to hurt you. I hate those commercials."
"I do, too. I was just going to say that I can't believe we actually got decent computers this time. No more cast-offs and rejects for us. This is a glorious day at Planet Earth Pizza, and I'm glad I was here to see it." Jack smiled. "Now, when do I get started putting it all together?"
"Sean was hoping they'd be here yesterday so you could do it this morning. Unfortunately, it's..." Elisabeth checked her watch. "It's nearly eleven. They'll have to wait until tonight. You'll be able to come back tonight, won't you?"
"Of course. Why wouldn't I be able to?"
Elisabeth frowned. "Maybe because you have a date with Charlie? Now that she doesn't have to work double shifts on weekends, I thought you two were getting the chance to do more things together."
Jack's face lost some of its' joy. "Oh, right. With my mom calling my cell phone every half hour to demand that I come home. It makes Date Night tons of fun. It's gotten to where I turn it off and deal with the fallout when I get home."
Elisabeth hesitated. "Charlie tells me that there might be a place in a group home for your mother."
"There is. I got the call yesterday. One of their residents is ready to move out on her own. My mother will take her place. She moves in at the beginning of next month." Jack turned back to the boxes, obviously finished with the conversation. "So, I could swing by here after my date with Charlie to set things up. You think Sean will mind if we put it off until then?"
"I think that'll work."
"Good." Jack walked back into the kitchen.
Elisabeth felt like smacking herself in the head. Why had she brought up his mother? He'd been thrilled about the new computers and had been looking forward to setting them up, and now she had to bring up something to ruin his mood. With a sigh of disgust at herself, she went to call Sean and let him know that the computers had arrived.
Thomas Palmer walked into the store just after noon, when business was fairly busy. The moment Erin yelled a warning to the kitchen that he'd arrived, Elisabeth felt a dull throbbing at her temples, because she knew why he was there.
Dammit, dammit, dammit.
There was only one possible reason why he was there, because Thomas Palmer had taken to avoiding her like the plague ever since she'd fired that shot at George a year ago about screwing her twice. Their conversations to each other were short and to the point, and avoided whenever necessary by making Sean the mediator. But here he was, walking into the store, and there was no doubt in her mind that he was here to offer her what had been taken from her a year ago.
Why did it have to be now? Why couldn't this have happened before I found out that I got into college? Why couldn't this have happened before I went on maternity leave? Why did I ever get demoted in the first place?
Okay, so she knew the answer to the last question. But if this offer had come to her sooner, she never would've applied to college.
"Good afternoon, sir," Elisabeth said with a smile when Thomas approached her.
"Hello, Elisabeth. How are you today?"
"Couldn't be better," she lied, because she knew that's what he expected all of his employees to say. They could be on death's door, but he'd still want them to say that they were happy, healthy, and ready to do whatever it took to make Planet Earth Pizza a success.
"Whenever you've got a free minute, I need to speak to you."
Elisabeth glanced around the dining room. It was three-fourths full, but Erin and Kit seemed to have things well in hand. "I think I can spare a minute now," she said. "As long as it doesn't take you long, things will be fine without me."
Thomas stepped behind the counter then and made his way to the office. He offered Jack a cursory hello before walking by. Jack gave Elisabeth a puzzled look. She just shook her head and muttered, "Later," as she followed the regional manager.
By the time she'd reached the office, Thomas Palmer had already taken a seat in Sean's chair. He was glancing at the day's numbers with a small frown.
"Jean Walters says you called over to Newton the other day, so I'm sure you know what's been going on," he said.
Elisabeth nodded.
"She seemed to think you knew more than you were letting on when she talked to you. Obviously you did, otherwise it wouldn't have occurred to you to call Newton to ask if he'd returned. So what's going on?"
"He got married," Elisabeth said. "At least, that's what I was told."
"He told you? I was under the impression that the two of you had as little to do with each other as possible. Not that it's a bad thing, it just surprises me that you know this."
"I know this because he married my younger sister."
"So you've heard from them? You've spoken to him?"
"No, I haven't. I would be the last person he'd call. Lydia wouldn't put calling me high on her list of priorities, either. I found out from someone else who had heard from them. That person didn't know where they were or where they were going."
"I see." He sighed heavily. "You've got your store back, Elisabeth. If it's possible, you start immediately. I'll call Sean and see if he can come in to relieve you." He plunked the keys to the Newton store on the desk beside her.
Elisabeth opened her mouth to say something, but found that she couldn't. The words wouldn't come out to say yes or no, to ask for time, or anything else. And by the time she did manage to say something, he was gone.
When Thomas called the Fitzwilliam house, he reached Rachel, who told him in no uncertain terms that Sean couldn't come to the phone because he had taken Tasha to a swimming party in Shelbyville and wouldn't be home until at least five o'clock, maybe later. It meant that Elisabeth would be stuck working all day, because the moment Sean came in to relieve her at Planet Earth Pizza, she'd have to go to Newton and work the night shift.
"But I need to go home and take care of my daughter," Elisabeth protested when Thomas told her of the plan.
"You have a fiancé without a job, don't you? What's wrong with him?"
"He's not her mother," Elisabeth snapped, but made no further protest as her headache grew worse.
She called Darcy to let him know that she was going to have to work at Newton that night but didn't mention anything about George or the fact that she was going to be the manager of the store. She decided that it could wait until she got home, and Darcy, up to his neck in new books which had arrived that morning, didn't press her for details.
In the mood and condition she was in, it didn't surprise her that Lydia waltzed into the store at three-thirty, a wide smile on her face and the usual bounce in her step. "Elisabeth!" she exclaimed, rushing over to her sister. Before Elisabeth could take a step back, Lydia had thrown her arms around her neck. "It's so good to see you!"
"Hi, Lydia."
"I've been away all week. Did you miss me?"
"No. Not really."
"Oh." Lydia let that sink in for two seconds before letting it go over her head. "Well, you'll never guess what happened. It's the most wonderful thing, El, that I just can't believe it. You'll never guess."
"You got married?"
Lydia frowned. "How did you...wow. You're good."
"I didn't guess, Liddy. I already knew."
"But that's not possible. Even I didn't know until George suggested it. Personally, I think he realized he was crazy if he let me get away from him, and in the micro-mini I can understand that, since it really doesn't leave much to the imagination, but that's what I was shooting for, right?"
"I guess so."
"But how did you know already?"
And I thought explaining this to Ma was hard. "I just did, okay? Someone told me. Congratulations." And I'm an idiot for not saying that it was a lucky guess instead of telling you I already knew.
"Well, thanks, El. It's been unbelievable. Check out the ring." Lydia held out her left hand. A huge diamond sparkled on her ring finger, with a matching wedding band. "Pretty cool, isn't it? And so big! I never thought George could get me a ring like this, and for a while I even thought it was fake, but one day when George was doing a little shopping, I went to a jeweler's and found out that this was the genuine article. Can you believe it?"
"No," Elisabeth said flatly. "How on earth did he afford something like that?"
"You're not going to believe me when I tell you."
"Probably not."
"George came into an inheritance! When he picked me up, we went out dancing and we were having a great time and George said he'd come into some money and would I like to marry him. Well, naturally I said I would."
"He came into an inheritance? What inheritance?" What a way to hide the fact that he's an embezzler!
"He got some money from a dead grandparent or something like that. I don't know how much, but George said it should last us for a while. I asked him if he was going to quit his job, but he said he wasn't because unlike the last bit of money he came into, he wanted to make this last."
"I'll bet."
"Want to hear about the wedding?"
"Not really," Elisabeth said, but Lydia ignored her.
"Like I said, I had no idea that I was going to be a married woman when I went out with George that night. It was insane, spur-of-the-moment, and soooo romantic! I think all marriages should be like that, otherwise they're not made because of true love. If you want to marry someone, you shouldn't wait and let other things get in the way. You should just jump right in and do it, don't you think?"
"I don't suppose your attitude has nothing to do with the fact that you've been watching me go through hell with Ma, does it?"
"It has everything to do with that," Lydia said with a wink. Then she frowned. "Oh, you think I meant----oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to imply that you and Darcy didn't love each other the way George and I do when I said that..."
"It's all right, Lydia," Elisabeth said, exhausted with her sister's logic. "I'm sure you're perfectly happy with the way you got married, and like I said, I'm...happy for you."
"I was hoping you'd say that! See, I kind of need your help."
"How?"
"Well, since I knew nothing about it, I didn't get the chance to tell Ma or Mel, and I'm afraid they'll be mad at me for not having a wedding like yours. You know what I'm saying? Ma's been saying to me that even though she's been having fun planning your wedding..."
"Fun?"
"...that she'll enjoy planning my wedding more because she knows we agree on almost everything. She says that you're as stubborn as a mule sometimes about things and that if you would just see that she knows what she's doing, everything would be fine. Of course, now you see why I really didn't want to put up with all the hassle, because to tell you the truth, I know that despite what she says, she and I do not have the same idea about weddings. And then I would've wound up as frustrated as you've been the past couple months, or even worse, I'd wind up in her idea of a wedding, and then I'd be miserable. Have I told you that..."
"Ma already knows. When I found out that you'd gotten married, I called to ask her if she knew everything because I was concerned about you. So you can go home and see her, because you're not going to upset her too much."
"You mean she didn't mind that I ran away to get married?"
"She's plenty mad about that. She's had time to adjust, though."
"Well, that's okay. I'm glad you told her, even if you won't tell me how you found out, because now she's had a few days to think about it and she'll be happy I'm married and at home. And of course, I'll bring George over so she can see us together, otherwise she might not believe we're actually married. George is so excited to have a family now, because you know that he doesn't have much of a family and you're denying him Grace..."
"What?!"
"He doesn't say anything about it, El, but I know he thinks about her sometimes. The other day, I saw him staring at the little picture of her that you gave me and he had the funniest look on his face. I couldn't tell him that I saw him, of course, because that would just be embarrassing and I didn't want him thinking I was spying on him or anything like that. But all the same, George loves his daughter and he's very sad that he's not going to get the chance to be a father to her."
More likely he's sad that he didn't get the chance to use her to get more money out of Darcy. "Did George tell you he wanted to be a father to Grace?" Elisabeth asked.
"I just told you, we don't talk about her."
Which answers my question, I think. "If George is so gung-ho about becoming a father, when are you having a baby?"
Lydia was taken aback by the question. "I'm not pregnant. Is that why you think George and I got married? You of all people should know that a baby isn't enough to keep him if he doesn't want to stay. George married me because he wanted to, not because he had to." Lydia's mouth dropped open before she smiled smugly. "You still love him, don't you? It's killing you that he's married me when you're the one who had his baby, isn't it?"
Elisabeth scoffed. "You're joking, right?"
"I don't think I am. I think you're secretly in love with him."
"Which is the reason why I'm marrying someone else----"
"You're marrying on the rebound."
"----and why I've had his parental rights terminated so my future husband can adopt Grace."
"Revenge because he left you when you were pregnant. I see it all now."
Elisabeth would've let Lydia prattle on about her suppositions except for the expression on her face. Her sister was gloating over this, and Elisabeth didn't have the first idea why. But she did know she wanted to find out. "Lydia, don't be ridiculous. I do not now nor have I ever loved George Wickham. I have only loved one man in my life who wasn't related to me, and that's Darcy. You remember Darcy, don't you? The man I'm marrying in two weeks? The love of my life and everything that's good? And as for George's supposed love of his daughter, if that was true, why didn't he refuse to have his rights terminated? He had every opportunity to do so."
"Well, who knows what you might've done if he hadn't gone along with it? You might've had him arrested or something."
"You know me better than that. Why would you think..." It struck Elisabeth where Lydia's assumptions had come from. "You're jealous," she said suddenly.
"Jealous of what?"
"Of me."
Lydia snorted. "Okay, someone in this room needs to get over herself, and I think it might be you."
"I didn't say that to be conceited, and I'm not saying you're jealous of me in the way that you're thinking."
"Then what are you saying?"
"I'm saying you're jealous of the fact that I had a relationship with George. Never mind that we broke up----badly----and that I want nothing more to do with him. The fact remains that we were together for a while, and that's what's upsetting you." Elisabeth softened her voice. "And you're jealous because of Grace, because even though he's having nothing to do with her, she's still his child. She's living proof that we were together."
"I would never be jealous of a baby."
"But you think he's regretting the fact that he's given up his parental rights, that he might have actually wanted to be a father to his child. That upsets you, doesn't it?" Elisabeth sighed. "Liddy, George will never be anything more to Grace than...than an uncle now, I guess, since you married him. And he'll be even less than that to me, if that's what you're worried and jealous about. I've told you many times that I don't want much to do with him. Please believe that."
Lydia shook her head. "I'm not jealous of you, or of Grace, really I'm..." She slumped. "I guess maybe I'm a little jealous of the fact that...that you got pregnant when you weren't even trying and I haven't yet."
"You're trying to get pregnant?" Elisabeth asked, aghast.
"What's wrong with that? You had a baby you weren't ready for. I'm ready to have a baby, so I want to have one. So I...um, I've lied to George. He thinks I'm on the Pill, but I stopped taking it two months ago because I wanted to get pregnant. I don't think he'd mind if I had a baby, and I wasn't trying to get pregnant to trap him into marriage. Anyway, we're married now and babies are the natural result, so..."
Elisabeth felt her headache thud against her temples. Lydia's logic combined with the reasons for her jealousy were about to drive her crazy. Thinking of Grace and how much responsibility went into taking care of her tempted her to lecture Lydia on why she wasn't ready for motherhood. But the lecture would fall on deaf, resentful ears and would only drive a wedge further into the always-rocky relationship she had with her sister, so why bother?
"I'm sure if you give it enough time, you'll get pregnant," she said wearily. "Just because I got pregnant by accident doesn't mean it was the first time the chance had arisen. Just have patience."
Lydia grinned. "You know me. Patience isn't my strong suit."
"Yes, I know."
"What's wrong with you? You're looking kind of tired today. Is it wedding problems again?"
"No, nothing like that. It's..." Elisabeth thought of telling Lydia the truth, that she'd just been given the Newton store back, but she realized that George didn't know about that yet. Although it was tempting to have him find out from her, she knew he wouldn't believe it unless Thomas Palmer told him. Besides, she had the opportunity to do something else with her answer.
"It's Grace," Elisabeth said, making herself sound more tired than she was. "She's taken to fussing all night and most of the day. I was hoping at this point she'd be sleeping through the night, but she seems to be an insomniac. Can you believe it? Not even three months old, and she's up all night. Darcy's so nervous about his bookshop opening that he's no help at all, and when he is sleeping, I don't have the heart to wake him up. So I'm up with her until all hours, rocking her, feeding her, caring for her, trying to figure out why she's so upset."
Lydia looked at her sister for a few seconds. "Nice try, Elisabeth. I'm still planning to have a baby."
"It was only half a lie," Elisabeth said half-heartedly. "Grace really is a handful. Don't let anyone fool you into thinking motherhood's a walk in the park."
"I'm not stupid, you know."
Better to leave that one alone. "I never said you were. I was just hoping to give you an idea of what would be in store for you if you did have a child. Where's George, by the way? You never did say."
"He's at his...I mean, our apartment. He's going to unwind for the rest of the day and then go to Newton tomorrow."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah. He figures that what's-her-name, his assistant manager, is mad at him, so he's not going in tonight when he'd need her to work for him because it's the last night of our honeymoon. He'll go in tomorrow."
"I see. Well, I guess I should leave you to go be with him and...have a nice night."
"I intend to," Lydia said cheerfully. "Oh, Ellie, I'm so happy I don't think I can stand it!" And with that, Lydia was gone.
A small smile played on Elisabeth's lips as an idea grew in her mind. It was mean, especially since the jerk just became a member of her family. But it was too tempting for her to resist, and it would only be fair to do it.
With that thought in mind, she waited until Sean arrived to take over for her before she made two phone calls. The first was to Jean, telling her that she was on her way and giving her the details of her plan. The second was to Thomas Palmer, telling him exactly where he would be able to find George.
Posted on Thursday, 26 June 2003
Elisabeth walked into the Newton store, feeling as though it were the first time she'd ever been in it. She was surprised at how it seemed that many things had changed even though it mostly looked the same. The store was half-empty, which was no surprise since it was still early in the evening. It was looking better than she'd expected it to look from what Sean had told her at Christmas, making her think George had given it a thorough cleaning before the Knightley Corporation could inspect it.
She thought back to more than a year ago and how she'd felt the first time she had walked into the store as the new manager. She'd been so proud of herself that day. She'd thought nothing could go wrong. She'd thought it was the happiest day of her life, because she'd finally accomplished something.
Then she remembered the awful day she'd been demoted. The smug look on George's face as Thomas Palmer told her she'd lost the store. The ache in her heart that had been part anger, part humiliation, and part shame. Breaking her fingernails in order to get the keys off her key chain. The store had been so cold that day, she remembered as she shuddered slightly. And she remembered, with a small smile, that she'd vowed never to set foot in the store ever again.
If I'd known how soon I'd break that promise, I'd have left in a caveat about how I'd only come back if I were in charge of it again, she thought wryly.
"Can I help you?"
Elisabeth turned to see an unfamiliar young woman smiling at her. The stunning brunette wore a red shirt with an apron that tied at the waist, indicating that she was a waitress. Elisabeth knew that most of the staff were going to be unknown to her, thanks to George. She hoped they'd be easy to work with and would know what they were doing, although with George training them, it might not be the case.
"Yes...hello, Bianca," Elisabeth said after looking at the young woman's name tag. "I'm Elisabeth."
"Oh, hi! Jean's in the back, waiting for you. She's already talked to Thomas Palmer and she's...well..."
"I'm sure she's a little disappointed. She was probably hoping to get the store herself." Elisabeth remembered that feeling as well.
"She was, but she understood why they decided to go with you. More experience and all that. Plus, you know the store better than she does, since you were here before, or so I heard."
"I was. It's nice to meet you, Bianca."
"Same here. I'm sure it'll be great working with you." The young woman smiled again before walking away to check on her tables.
Elisabeth mustered a smile as Bianca passed her by, but it soon dissolved. The reservations she was having about being here only grew as she walked into the kitchen. She ran a hand along the cool steel of the make table as she passed it by.
At the Effingham store, the manager's office was a little cubbyhole off of the kitchen. At the Newton store, the manager had a separate office with a door that not only could be shut, but locked if need be. The door was opened at the moment, and the tall, blond-haired Jean was sitting in the manager's chair, going though invoices on the computer. The corpulent Thomas Palmer was looking over her shoulder.
"Hello," Elisabeth said quietly. Neither turned to look at her, making Elisabeth realize she'd been unable to greet them loud enough to be heard. Before she could try again, Thomas spotted her.
"About time you got here. Why didn't you say you were here instead of standing there staring at us?" he asked gruffly.
Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, Elisabeth stepped into the office. "I just arrived," she said. "And you told me I had to wait until Sean arrived at the Effingham store to take over, which is why I didn't get here until now."
"George here yet?"
Elisabeth shook her head. "Not that I saw."
"Well, when he gets here, I don't want you around when I tell him he's been fired. It's bad enough news to give someone without an audience. That goes for you, too, Jean."
"Forget it," Elisabeth said. "I'm staying."
"Excuse me?" Thomas looked stunned, as if he hadn't expected her to protest.
"You demoted me with him standing in the kitchen listening to every word you said. I think it would only be fair to have the same opportunity."
"He was not listening to our conversation. I told him the same thing I just told you----to give us some privacy so I could talk to you in peace."
"He obviously didn't listen, because the minute the keys were out of my hand, he was there to take them from you," she reminded him. "He was listening. He knew what was going on, and don't even think of trying to convince me otherwise."
"You know, you need to have a little more respect for me, young lady. It was part of the reason I was reluctant to give you this store in the first place, and why I hesitated to give it back to you today."
Elisabeth stared at him in stunned silence. She knew Thomas Palmer didn't particularly care for her, but she'd always figured it had to do with the last thing she'd said last March when she'd left. She hadn't realized it extended as far back as the beginning of their acquaintance.
Still, he was right about one thing. She didn't have a lot of respect for him.
"I'm sorry," she said contritely, because she knew that was what he wanted to hear. Not that it seemed to do a lot of good, because he gave her doubtful look and turned back to Jean. With a small grin on her face, Elisabeth realized he hadn't bothered to remind her not to stick around while he was firing George.
As far as she was concerned, it meant the conversation was fair game for whoever wanted to listen.
Elisabeth had not been surprised when business hadn't been busy when she'd arrived. What did surprise her was that business didn't pick up around the time it should've. She asked Bianca about that, only to be told that a lot of people had been infuriated by George.
"He never bothered to hide his contempt for people," Bianca explained. "If someone complained that he'd made a mistake on their order, he always blamed it on someone else. He tried that with me one time, but the customer knew I'd done my job correctly. Even when this was pointed out to him, he still tried to make it my fault."
"That's George, all right," Elisabeth said. "It's never his fault. It's never his responsibility. But the credit is all his."
Bianca hesitated before saying, "I heard that the two of you were going out once."
"Yeah, about a year ago." Elisabeth sighed. "I guess I'm going to have to hold a meeting to let you guys know that I'm nothing like him. Nothing at all."
"We don't think that. I don't, anyway. Is it true that you've got a baby with him?"
Elisabeth wasn't sure she liked the way that was worded, but decided to let it go. "I have a baby. He gave up all rights to her. My fiancé is going to adopt her as soon as all the legal stuff is taken care of." Elisabeth smiled and reached into the apron she was wearing. She handed Bianca the plastic-protected picture of Grace she kept in her pocket. "This is my daughter."
Bianca looked at the picture. "Oh, she's so cute!" she squealed. "She looks just like you!"
"Do you think so?" Elisabeth smiled and glanced at the picture herself. Grace did look an awful lot like her. There was almost nothing resembling George at all, except maybe her hair. Grace's hair looked like it was going to be darker than her own, and curly, which her hair never was. But her eyes were going to be green, and in every other way she looked like a Bennet.
"Absolutely. If you hadn't told me she was George's child, I would never have known." Bianca gave the picture back to her. "I think it's sweet that you carry a picture of her around with you all the time like that."
"It's tough to be away from her," Elisabeth admitted. Wistfully, she thought about where Grace was right now...with Darcy, as she seemed to be more and more lately. Elisabeth remembered coming home one night to find Darcy laying on the couch watching television, Grace resting peacefully on his chest. Elisabeth had been unable to resist the temptation to snap a picture.
With a small frown, she thought about what taking over the Newton store was going to mean. At store manager meetings, George had always complained that Jean couldn't work nights because she had another job. That meant Elisabeth would be working nights at least six days a week. In all likelihood, she would get a dozen phone calls on her day off, which would undoubtedly lead to having to come in and help out. Darcy's store hours were going to be nine-to-five, which meant she would be at work by the time he got home. He would be asleep by the time she got home, and they would never see each other.
Elisabeth could picture the future now. The distance between them would grow until one day, ten or fifteen years down the road, she would look across Darcy at the breakfast table and wonder who the hell he was, because she didn't have the time or energy to find out anymore. Grace would be a rebellious teenager doing things ten times worse than Elisabeth had ever done, and with Elisabeth's luck, there would be a couple other children who didn't know their mother, either. One day, she would wake up and find herself in a marriage like her parents had had.
I don't want a life like that. I don't want a marriage like that. I want something more for myself than this.
Before Elisabeth got the chance to delve into all the ramifications of that, she saw George's red truck zooming into the parking lot. He stopped with a squeal of tires and got out of the truck, slamming the door in anger. With a small grin, she allowed herself to think of what a shock he must've gotten when Thomas Palmer had called and insisted on speaking with him at the store.
Somewhere between the truck and the front door, George composed himself because he practically strutted in. Elisabeth could only stare in surprise, wondering what he was thinking about to make him seem so confident. Either he was thinking he was just going to get a slap on the wrist for disappearing for a week or he was thinking of what he was going to do with Lydia once this meeting with Thomas Palmer was over.
Elisabeth felt slightly queasy at the second of those choices and resolved to put it out of her mind.
Almost immediately, George spotted her, and his step faltered momentarily. He blinked several times, as if he'd never seen her wearing a work uniform in the Newton store. Or, more likely, he was remembering the last time Elisabeth had been here.
I've tipped him off. Maybe I should've hidden somewhere until Thomas had the chance to talk to him. She stared at him, not speaking.
George regained his composure and gave her an smirk that she knew was meant to annoy her. He thinks I don't know that he's married Lydia, she thought. "Hello, Lissie. How are you this evening?"
"I'm doing all right."
"Hi, Bianca. Looking sexy as ever." George's eyes momentarily roamed over the brunette's slender frame before returning to her face. Bianca gave him a look which clearly told him to go to hell, so George's eyes went back to Elisabeth. "I guess they asked you to come over and help out while I was gone. It was nice of you to do that, but then, I always think that family members should help each other out, don't you agree?"
Elisabeth realized that Lydia must've told him that she knew about the marriage, so there was no point in pretending she didn't know what he was talking about. "It depends on the family member and what they're wanting. For instance, if Jenna needed my help, I would give it to her in a heartbeat because I know that she'd do the same from me. On the other hand, if you needed my help, I'd tell you to take a flying leap."
"Now, now, is that any way to talk to your brand-new brother-in-law?"
"It is when my brand-new brother-in-law's a slimeball." Elisabeth gave him what she hoped look like a fake smile. "Thomas Palmer's waiting for you in the office."
George's expression got serious. "You told him I was back, didn't you? You're the reason I had to give up the last night of my honeymoon."
"I may have mentioned to Thomas Palmer that you'd returned to town, but it was his decision whether or not he should ruin the end of your honeymoon. Maybe if you're persuasive enough, you can talk him into giving you the night off."
"I have yet to meet anyone I couldn't talk my way around," George bragged. "You should know that by now, Lissie."
"I've asked you repeatedly not to call me by that hideous name," Elisabeth said, deliberately ignoring his other comment. "And like I said, Thomas is waiting for you."
George gave her a suspicious look before walking toward the back. Elisabeth had intended to follow him after a few seconds, but when Jean suddenly joined her at the front counter, Elisabeth knew she would have to wait or else she'd make everyone suspicious.
"You're probably thinking this is nothing compared to an Effingham Saturday night," Jean said, motioning to the dining room for emphasis.
"No, not really. Effingham has had its' share of slow nights, too, especially these days when everyone's getting ready to pay taxes and stuff."
"Yeah."
Elisabeth looked at Jean, who was still frowning. Elisabeth could guess why. "You're not happy that I'm here, are you?"
Jean shrugged. "Better you than George, I guess."
"You have another job, don't you?"
"Yeah, but I'd give it up if I could take over this store. I was getting in my fifty hours a week and nothing more because George wanted all the glory when he'd work late. Not that he did anything in the extra hours he worked. I always had to come in behind him and finish up what he neglected. I tried to tell Thomas Palmer that, but what do you think he said?"
"Something along the lines of what he just told me. He doesn't like my attitude or much else about me. I don't give him the proper amount of respect." Elisabeth rolled her eyes. "He's right, of course, but what can I do about it? Genuflect and be some sort of brown-noser whenever he walks into the store? I tried that route, too, and all it got me was back in Effingham with a red face."
"Yeah, well, I'm thinking that maybe I should give up this job and see if there's any advancement potential at my other one." Jean glanced around. "Shouldn't you be in the back, trying to listen to every word said as George gets what's coming to him?"
Elisabeth glanced around the store for a moment. "I shouldn't," she admitted.
"Aah, go ahead. Of everyone here, you're probably the one who deserves it the most. We'll cover for you if you get caught."
"Honestly, I don't think I care whether I get caught or not, but...thanks." Elisabeth stepped away from the counter and walked toward the back. The door to the office was closed tight, but the walls were thin enough that anyone working nearby could hear what was going on as long as the person talking was speaking loud enough.
"I felt that I had the time coming to me," George was saying angrily. "God knows I've worked my butt off around here, first for De Bourgh Enterprises and now this new company. I had a situation arise where I had to leave for a few days. It was an emergency situation. What was I supposed to do, call and get permission from the company before I took off to handle an emergency? That seems a bit ridiculous."
"You didn't bother to mention to your assistant manager that it was an emergency when you told her you had to leave town," Thomas said.
"I told her I had to leave. It was a personal matter that I didn't care to discuss."
"I fail to see how getting married could possibly be considered an emergency."
"It is when there's money riding on having my name on a marriage license."
Elisabeth frowned. What on earth was that about? She took the chance of tiptoeing closer to the door, just in case George lowered his voice.
"What are you talking about?"
"I...look, I'm not allowed to talk about the details of the money. All I can say is that there was five hundred thousand dollars on the line, money I could have as long as I got married Monday evening. I didn't plan on being gone more than a couple of days, but my wife insisted on having a proper honeymoon, and I figured that Jean would be fine by herself. At the worst, I figured that you could call Sean over from Effingham. And since I saw Elisabeth here, that must be what you did."
"We'll get to Elisabeth in a minute. You don't honestly think I believe such a ridiculous story, do you? Do I look like an idiot?"
Elisabeth almost giggled, which certainly would've given herself away. She could guess what George was thinking, and it was one of the few times when she would've agreed with him. However, she couldn't blame Thomas for not believing George's story. It was absurd.
"I know it sounds ridiculous, but it's true. I was...I came into an inheritance, from a distant relative, but in order to get the money, I had to be married. Wouldn't you do whatever it took to get five hundred thousand dollars? Wouldn't anyone?"
Elisabeth shook her head without realizing it. I wouldn't, and I was offered ten times that amount just the other day, she thought.
It was the memory of Catherine's visit that made her stop paying attention to the conversation inside the office for a moment. Catherine had offered her money to give up Darcy...would she have...
Don't be ridiculous. Why would she have done that?
But Elisabeth couldn't shake the thought that Catherine had paid George to marry Lydia. It was the only thing that made sense. She'd been racking her brain all week long, trying to figure out why he'd done it. He hadn't loved her. Marrying someone in order to get revenge seemed far-fetched, even for George.
Money, on the other hand, was the perfect reason, or so it would seem to George. Catherine knew how much money meant to him, because she knew he'd been the one to steal the money from the ad account, not Ginger. Was it so crazy to think that Catherine had paid George to marry Lydia in an attempt to wreck the marriage between Darcy and herself?
Yes, it is. This is not a soap opera, a bad theatrical, or the Jerry Springer Show. This is real life, and things like this don't happen in real life.
Then again, she'd thought much the same thing when she'd realized that Catherine was about to offer her five million dollars to stay away from Darcy, and that had happened, too. So maybe this wasn't completely out of the realm of reality.
But if Catherine was so convinced that George marrying Lydia would cause Darcy to back out of the wedding, why did she come to pay me off? What point was there in offering me money if she was so sure she knew what Darcy would do?
That made Elisabeth think that maybe she was wrong about the whole thing, until she remembered that Catherine had gone to see Darcy first. Darcy had refused to look at the envelope she'd given him, which they'd both figured contained the same pictures of George and Lydia that Elisabeth's had.
So when Darcy refused to look at what she had to show him, she figured she'd try me next.
It was all starting to make sense. Elisabeth's first thought was for Lydia, because she had no idea why George had married her. She was completely oblivious to the real reason behind their marriage, thinking that George loved her and had been unable to wait to marry her. And all along, he'd had five hundred thousand dollars riding on it. Then again, maybe George had told Lydia the truth, and Lydia had been willing to marry him anyway. Elisabeth had never been as close to Lydia as she was to Jenna, for reasons that had as much to do with age as they did with their mother, but she had always believed Lydia to be something of a romantic. She doubted Lydia would marry strictly for money.
But she couldn't be sure of that.
"I don't consider that to be a true emergency, and even if it had been, you had a responsibility to tell me, as your boss, that you were leaving. You didn't bother trying."
"Look..." George was starting to sound penitent. "I'm sorry, all right? You're right. I didn't think before I acted. I was just so excited about the prospect of gaining half a million dollars that I wasn't thinking straight. Surely you can understand that."
"I suppose I can," Thomas said slowly.
"And it was only fair of me to let Lydia have what she wanted----I mean, she did marry me. So that's why we were gone until this afternoon. I was planning to end our honeymoon tonight and come in tomorrow and get back to work. In fact, I was going to recommend to Jean that she take a few days off."
"That's not going to be possible."
"Why not? We can call her in here now and I'll let her know. She can work tonight and then tomorrow take a week..."
"You're fired, George."
As silence fell in the office, Elisabeth smiled with satisfaction. Maybe it was mean-spirited and petty, but revenge was feeling pretty good at the moment.
"You can't fire me," George said. "I'm the best store manager you've got in the district."
"No. Sean Fitzwilliam is the best I've got, and he has been for a long time. You did quite well when you first started out, but as time went on, your profits fell as the number of complaints this store got increased. Then we started getting the sexual harassment claims..."
"Those weren't true!" George snapped. "They were completely false, made up by employees who didn't like the way I did things around here and were always refusing to do any work..."
Elisabeth gasped, then covered her mouth in a feeble attempt to muffle the sound. She remembered all too well that two of those complaints had come from Frances Price and Marianne Brandon, two women who were exceptional at what they did and always did what they were supposed to do.
"I have never made an improper advance to any female employee!"
Elisabeth almost laughed. If that were true, how did I end up with Grace?
"If that's true, then why did Elisabeth Bennet have your child three months ago? The last time I checked, the two of you were working together at the time the child was conceived."
"No, we weren't. Elisabeth and I didn't start our relationship until she was transferred over here. And our relationship ended the day before she was sent back to Effingham and I came here. We weren't sleeping together while we were co-workers." Elisabeth could hear the contempt in George's voice, but technically he was right.
"And you never once made an advance to her before your relationship started? I'm sure if I were to call her into this office and ask her about it, she'd tell me a different story."
"Well, of course she would. I see why she's here now. She's taking over this store again, isn't she? She'd do anything to get this store back, and if she thought it included telling a few little lies about me, she'd do it. She told you I was back in town, didn't she?"
"Elisabeth said nothing about you, except to tell me that you were home again. She made no accusation, but she didn't need to, either. You were going to be fired the moment you returned. Your reason for taking off without giving anyone notice may have been a good one, but the Knightley Corporation has decided they've had enough of you." There was another long pause, and Thomas said, "I'm sorry, George."
"Yeah, whatever."
Before Elisabeth could duck out of the way, the office door was thrown open and George emerged. He stopped long enough to notice she was there and give her an angry look before storming out of the restaurant. Elisabeth was distracted long enough by George's departure not to notice that she'd been caught eavesdropping by Thomas Palmer.
"I thought I told you that you weren't to listen in," Thomas said angrily.
"You told me I couldn't be present. You said nothing about listening in," Elisabeth lied.
"I sure as hell did! This is what I was talking about when I said you show me no respect, Elisabeth. You disregarded my order."
Elisabeth wasn't going to bother apologizing because it would be insincere and besides, she knew it wouldn't matter.
"I'm writing you up for insubordination," Thomas said. "And you're lucky I don't have someone else to give this store to, otherwise..."
"You can give it to Jean," Elisabeth said suddenly.
"What?" Thomas looked stunned.
Elisabeth took a deep breath and said, "You can give the store to Jean. She wants it more than I do, and I have a feeling she probably knows it better than I ever did. I've been watching her tonight, and she's good at what she does. She knows what's been going on around here and she knows what it'll take to put things right now that George is gone. Give it to Jean."
"Jean's not ready. I'll have your write-up here tomorrow for you to sign."
"You're not hearing me, Thomas."
"I heard you just fine. If you think Jean is so good, you'll learn a lot from her."
"No, you didn't hear me. I guess I'll have to say it straight out...I'm not going to manage this store." Elisabeth took the keys he'd handed her earlier that afternoon out of her pocket and put them in his hand. Instinctively, his hand closed around them. "I don't want it anymore. I don't need it."
"Why? All I've heard from you is that you think you weren't given a fair shake when you were replaced by George, and that George is doing things all wrong..."
"Which I was right about, I'd like to point out. You ignored me about that."
"And you've talked about how you want your own store again. Now you're saying you don't?"
Elisabeth nodded. "I don't. As a matter of fact, I don't think I'll be working for Planet Earth Pizza by the end of the summer. It's just too much for me."
"You honestly think that bookstore your fiancé is opening is going to make money? Small businesses never make money in towns like Effingham, Elisabeth."
It had been one thing to hear it from Catherine de Bourgh, because Catherine had had an ulterior motive in making Elisabeth think Darcy was going to be a failure. But hearing it from a jerk like Thomas Palmer made her seethe.
"What do you know about it?" she said furiously. "Nothing, that's what, and yet you think it's okay to scoff at his work. Maybe he won't make money, but so what? He'll be happy."
"I didn't mean to scoff."
"The hell you didn't, otherwise you wouldn't have said it. And even if I didn't have Darcy, I would still have my daughter, and it's already bad enough that I spend more of my day at the store than with her. And not that it's really any of your business, but I got into college. There's no way that I could work fifty hours a week and go to school and have any time left over for the people who matter to me."
"You never mentioned that you were applying to college."
"I didn't see any reason to tell you." Elisabeth paused and smiled. "That sounds familiar, doesn't it? Well, at least I'm telling you now, in March, rather than the day before classes start. It gives you plenty of time to get started on training someone to take my place at Effingham."
Thomas sighed. "You're really leaving, aren't you?"
"I'm staying until August," she reminded him.
"Does no one have any loyalty to this place?" he asked, disgusted. He made as dramatic an exit as George had done without waiting for an answer to his question.
Elisabeth was unable to leave the Newton store until just after midnight. As she made the half-hour drive back to Effingham, she felt tears trickling down her face as she spent the entire time contemplating everything that had happened that evening.
Did I really just give up the Newton store? Did I really make that decision without even talking to Darcy about it? He still doesn't know that I've gotten accepted to Eastern!
The fear that she'd done the wrong thing in turning down the offer of managing the Newton store continued to haunt her. The closer she got to Effingham and the moment when she would have to tell Darcy everything, the harder she cried until she had to pull over at the gas station just inside the city limits to give herself time to calm down.
You're being silly about this. Darcy's going to be happy for you. He's going to think you made the right choice. And it's not like you have to worry about the financial implications you might've otherwise.
It was nearly one in the morning when she walked into the apartment. She opened the door carefully so as not to disturb Grace, who Elisabeth swore could wake up if someone dropped so much as a pin. She wasn't surprised to find Darcy stretched out on the couch. He'd obviously tried to stay awake and had been unsuccessful. She felt some of the fear fade as she looked at him. His hair was getting a little too long, but she decided that she preferred it to the perfect style he'd had when she'd met him almost a year ago.
Elisabeth had almost decided to wait to tell him what had happened until the next morning when Darcy unexpectedly twisted around, trying to get more comfortable, and wound up sprawled on the floor. Elisabeth didn't laugh because she'd expected Grace to wake up and start crying. To her surprise, no sound came from the nursery.
"Oh, you're home," Darcy mumbled as he got up from the floor. "What time is it?"
"One o'clock," she said. "Sorry I'm so late."
"It's okay. I figured you'd have a long night there." Darcy yawned, then yawned again. "So, why did you have to go over there? Still no George?"
"No, and there isn't going to be from now on," Elisabeth said, slipping her shoes off and walking over to the couch. She sat down heavily next to Darcy. "He's back from his honeymoon, or I should say he'd come home for one more night of newly-wedded bliss with Lydia before returning to work." Elisabeth told him everything that had happened from when Thomas Palmer had told her she was going back to manage at Newton up to when George stormed out of the store after being fired.
"So this is...congratulations?" Darcy frowned. "I mean, you got your store back, right? That's something good, isn't it?"
Elisabeth shook her head and faced up to telling him what she'd dreaded having to tell him. "I told him I wasn't interested," she said.
Darcy's face was expressionless. "You did," he said.
Elisabeth nodded and practically threw herself into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him and felt the tears welling up again. "I thought it was what I wanted," she said. "But then I was sitting in the store and missing you and Grace and I just realized that it wasn't what I wanted. I wanted to be with you, and if I took over at Newton, I'd hardly ever see you. I mean, look at tonight. You would've been asleep ages ago if you hadn't tried to wait up for me. This is what I would walk into every single night."
"Did he accept your decision?" Darcy asked.
"I think so. I'm not sure. He said something about no one having loyalty and took off without saying anything one way or the other. I hope he accepted it, because I don't want to go back to Newton." Elisabeth waited for Darcy to ask her why she'd turned down the store.
"You don't look happy about it," he said. "Having second thoughts about not taking over?"
"And third and fourth thoughts as well. But I know it was the right thing for me to do." Elisabeth sighed slowly. "There's something else. Something I haven't mentioned because I'm a total coward and because there hasn't seemed to be the right time and..."
"Okay, out with it. You didn't kill your mother, did you? Because if you did, you could've at least told me so I could help you bury the body. I know of some great places in New York where..."
"I got into college."
Darcy didn't say anything for a second. "Where?" he asked.
"Um...Eastern. I found out earlier this week that I was accepted. I was going to tell you but then the whole mess with George and Lydia came up and I never got around to doing it." Elisabeth picked at a spot of something that was on her uniform. "Are you mad at me?"
"Why would I be mad at you about that?" Darcy paused. "I wish you would've told me, but I'm not mad that you got into college. I'm happy for you."
"You don't sound happy."
"It's one in the morning. My enthusiasm level's a bit low. Tell me again in the morning and I'll be full of excitement." Darcy smiled. "I am happy for you."
"Thank you." She stopped picking at the spot. "I must be crazy."
"You're not crazy."
"Oh, yeah? Then why else would I have turned down a perfectly good chance to have my own store again? I would be back to making good money and getting to be the boss instead of being bossed around. I would have security and a clear future."
"You've got security and a clear future. You just don't have the headache of running your own store. Did you quit altogether?"
Elisabeth shook her head. "I just turned down the position in Newton. Like I said, he might not have accepted my refusal to work there."
"Are you going to keep working at Planet Earth Pizza once the fall semester starts?" Darcy asked.
"No. I'm quitting in August. Another decision I made sort of spur-of-the-moment. I seem to be doing that a lot lately."
"Is it any wonder, with everything that's been going on? I've thought several times over the past couple of months that your mother might have had a point when she said that we should've chosen a wedding date a few months later than March 22. Then I think of how bad she's been, and I think of that being spread out over many months, and..."
"You wake up in a cold sweat?"
"Something like that." Darcy smiled. "But I do wake up next to you, which is a good thing. What do you say to heading to bed and doing things that would frighten the neighbors?"
"I don't know that I'm up to it," Elisabeth said sleepily. "How about if we just stay here and snuggle and dream of the day when we're able to do that again?"
"I think we'd be much more comfortable snuggling in bed. You saw what happened when I tried to sleep solo on this couch." Darcy got up, stretched for a moment, and then held out a hand for her. "Come on. We'll go snuggle in..."
Before he could finish, Grace started crying in the nursery. Elisabeth groaned at the thought of having to stay awake long enough to get Grace to go back to sleep. She got up from the couch with Darcy's help and started walking toward the crying infant.
"I'll take care of Grace. You go on to bed," Darcy said, refusing to take no for an answer as he guided her to their bedroom and watched as she got into bed. She fell asleep immediately.