Section I, Next Section

Chapter One

Posted on Monday, 27 August 2001

"Oh, Lizzy!" Mrs. Bennet clapped and rubbed her hands together with enthusiasm. "This is going to be a great thing for our family! It's about time your father reentered the political arena. All this nonsense about money laundering and extortion, your father had absolutely nothing to do with that."

Elizabeth blushed deeply as her mother brought up her father's disgrace yet again. James Bennet had been a respected state senator with his eye on a seat in the U.S. Congress. He had hired a charismatic young man, Hamilton Lowegard, to head his campaign. When unethical fundraising questions had been raised, it was revealed that Lowegard had been pilfering funds into a secret bank account in James' name. The entire family had been thrown into scandal, and James was impeached from his seat. It had ruined Elizabeth's own political aspirations, no one in their right mind wanted to be associated with the last name Bennet. "I don't see how that's possible."

"Bah!" Mrs. Bennet rolled her eyes at her second oldest daughter. "Having young gentleman in the neighborhood is always a good thing." She could not for the life of her understand why Lizzy had to be such a wet blanket about everything.

"Mom, I'm not saying that having Dad helping out this Mr. Bingley with his campaign is a bad thing, I just don't understand how it could be a good thing for the family."

"You and Jane aren't getting any younger, and your sisters are always on the lookout for a good looking man to take them out." Mrs. Bennet looked at Lizzy pointedly.

"Mom," She laughed, reminding herself that she only had to deal with her mother every great once in awhile.

"Just tell me that you'll come to his dinner party. I want him to meet all the girls." She fixed a stern stare to her daughter.

"Okay, fine." She pressed a kiss to her mother's cheek, "But I won't promise to marry him." She teased.

"I don't care if you marry him, as long as one of my daughters does." Mrs. Bennet fanned herself. Her girls were set on sending her to an early grave. Imagine having two daughters past 25 who weren't married! Her only consultation was knowing that Kitty and Lydia wouldn't follow in their footsteps, at just 20 and 18 respectively; they already had a firm grasp on the inner workings of the male mind.

"Goodbye, Mom." Lizzy waved, pulling the front door shut with a sigh. If her mother mentioned that she needed a husband one more time, she was going to scream. The weekly visits to her family's home was enough to test even her good nature.

She climbed into the compact sedan and started the engine, relishing the silence for a moment before pulling out the drive. She reflected on her mother's comments about her father rejoining politics. It had always been a great passion in her life. When she was a girl, she used to dream of one day becoming the first female president. She would tell her father that and he would pat her head and agree, an indulgent look in his eye. The day the scandal broke, however, she knew that it wasn't possible. The people of Massachusetts didn't trust the name Bennet, and it certainly wasn't without reason. Surely her father could claim no knowledge of the bank accounts, but who was going to believe him? James Bennet's friends had abandoned him, and he was resigned to take an early retirement, living the rest of his days idly playing golf. She was happy that he had taken an active interest in this Bingley character, but she couldn't really feel that any good would come of it. She didn't want her father's bad name to ruin the chances of the poor gentleman. It was just a fundraising party, but if the press got a hold of it, it would be more than enough to ruin Bingley's career. She guided the car to her small apartment across town. She turned off the engine and climbed the stairwell that lead to her humble abode. It wasn't fancy, but it got the job done. She picked up the sleek, black, cordless phone and punched in Jane's number.

"Hello?" A pleasantly female voice trilled.

"Jane, it's Lizzy." She threw herself onto the couch with a sigh, "Have you talked to Mom lately?"

"I was over there last night...why do you ask?" Jane asked

"So she's badgered you into going to the dinner party?" She flipped on the television, changing stations every couple of seconds.

"She hardly badgered me, Lizzy. It's important for Dad that we be there." Jane chided gently

"Hmmm...I don't think it would be so important if Charles Bingley was single." Lizzy said conspiratorially.

"Do you have to see the worst in everything?" Jane asked with a good-natured laugh

"If I don't see the bad side of things then who will?" Elizabeth defended, "You? Jane it would kill you to see the glass anything but half full."

"Someone has to be the optimist." Jane bit back the laughter bubbling at her throat. Trust Liz to think that their mother had something up her sleeve.

"Just as someone has to the pessimist." She volleyed back, "How I would love to be more like you, but I just don't have it in me."

"You would if you tried a little harder." That much was the truth. Liz was known to be rather good-natured and complacent when it suited her.

"I think I'm going to try and con Charlotte into going." She smiled at the thought. She could always count on Charlotte Lucas to accompany her to all of the dreadfully boring functions her mother was constantly dragging her to.

"Good, I should like to see her, it's been a long time." Jane checked her watch, it was almost time to leave for her volunteer work at the Youth Center, "Would you mind terribly if I let you go? I signed up to referee at the Center tonight."

"Oh, no, Jane, you must remain on the phone with me and listen to all of my grumblings." Elizabeth said in mock seriousness, "Of course you can. I shall see you tomorrow night, anyway, at the Bingley thing."

"Oh, Lizzy. Don't worry about it, Mom isn't going to throw eligible bachelors in our pathway." Jane shook her head. Their mother wasn't nearly as bad as Lizzy would make her out to be.

"She's more likely to pick them up and beat us over the head with them." Liz mumbled.

"Goodbye, dearest." Jane laughed

"Goodbye." Elizabeth clicked the phone off and settled in for another evening with Bill Hemmer and CNN Tonight.

"I cannot thank you enough for coming to this thing with me Charlotte." Elizabeth shot her best friend a grateful expression. Thank God for Charlotte, she was going to be the only reason Elizabeth didn't go completely insane tonight. She usually loved parties, or any kind of social gathering, but not when her mother was hell-bent on marrying her off to the first taker.

"Don't worry about it." Charlotte looked at Elizabeth's pale complexion. "I remember a time when you thought gatherings like these quite fun."

"They're always fun, but I'm a bit on edge. Mother is on the prowl." She raised one eyebrow, chocolate eyes dancing with laughter.

Charlotte handed her keys to the valet. "Cripes, that's a pretty big house for a man who's only running for a state seat."

Elizabeth stared at the stunning white grandeur of the home, "His father hit it big in the dot com industry, I think he set Junior up with the house." She whispered as they stepped into the foyer.

Her mother caught sight of them first thing, and began to frantically wave them over. "Lizzy! Do come here, dear!"

Elizabeth shot a look to Charlotte, "Okay, let's just get the hard part over with." She plastered a smile on her face and walked determinedly to her mother.

"Lizzy! You must meet this charming young man." She gave a sly smile to the handsome blonde with friendly blue eyes, "Charles Bingley, this is my daughter Elizabeth. Elizabeth, Charles Bingley."

Charles shook her hand firmly and smiled at her with genuine interest, "I've heard so much about you, Elizabeth. It's very nice to meet you."

She noticed that he had stopped looking at her directly and followed his eyes to see what had caught his attention. Jane stood in the foyer, looking as lovely as ever. Elizabeth smiled to herself at Charles' dumbstruck expression, she leaned in and whispered, "That's my sister, Jane, would you like it if I introduced you?" She checked to see if her mother had heard her. Mrs. Bennet was engaged in a heated conversation with Mrs. Philips, an old family friend.

Charles cleared his throat; embarrassed at having been so rude to someone he had just only met, "I'm sorry about that."

"Don't be." Elizabeth laughed, gesturing for him to follow her.

Jane smiled broadly at her sister; not yet taking notice of the handsome man that was with her. "Lizzy!" She cried, pulling her in for a hug.

"It's nice to see you too, Jane." Elizabeth grinned, "There's someone I would like you to meet. Charles, this is my sister Jane." She noted the flash of approval in Jane's eyes.

"Very nice to meet you, Charles." Jane took his hand, while her sister noticed that neither of them seemed very anxious to release the brief contact.

"Likewise." Charles' heart pounded within his chest. She was gorgeous. Blonde, but not in a lethal way, she was natural, almost wholesome. He had never seen anyone so beautiful in his life.

Elizabeth took the two staring in absolute wonder at each other as her cue to leave. She walked back to Charlotte, who was staring openmouthed. "Charlotte, what is the big deal?"

"Fitzwilliam Darcy is here." Charlotte said in half fear and half awe.

Elizabeth was shocked at her friend's piece of news, "As in The Darcy's? How on Earth did one of them end up here?" The Darcy's were often referred to as the Kennedy's of the west. Senator Fitzwilliam Darcy was the third Darcy to hold a seat in the U.S. Congress. His father, and grandfather before him had both represented the state of California. Elizabeth didn't really know that much about them other than the fact that they came from old money, oil or something like that. They were a staunch Republican lot, which ruffled her very Democratic feathers. Certainly her father hadn't agreed to help with a Republican campaign. She made a mental note to grill her father about what Charles Bingley stood for.

"You've got me on that one. I've heard that he's a real bear." Charlotte said, grabbing a glass of champagne from the table.

"It doesn't matter, we probably won't even have to talk to him." Elizabeth studied him. He was young, not even all the way through his first term. He was surprisingly tall, with dark hair and eyes. He was standing alone, with a bored expression on his face. Even with that, she couldn't deny that he was handsome. If only he didn't look so dour.

"I have to use the bathroom. Do come with me." Charlotte grabbed Elizabeth's arm and lead her to the doorway.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. Charlotte always insisted that she walk to the bathroom with her. "I'm not going in with you." She teased.

"Oh, shut up." She opened the door, "Just wait outside for me."

"Darcy, you can't just stand there stupidly." She heard Bingley's cheerful voice say with an affectionate exasperation.

"I believe I can do anything I damn well please." A deep male voice growled.

Elizabeth wondered if it was a good idea to stand there and listen in on the conversation. But, she really didn't have much choice. Charlotte would whine at her forever if she left.

"Come on, mingle or something. There are plenty of beautiful women to talk to." Bingley vainly attempted to get his friend to socialize.

"You're talking to the only beautiful woman in here. That blonde is a knockout." Darcy said, his stiffness lightening somewhat.

"Have you met her sister?" Charles searched the room for Elizabeth, who was standing awkwardly outside of the bathroom door.

Elizabeth fought against the urge to blush as she heard the two men speak of her. She hoped that they couldn't tell that she could hear every word they said.

"She's tolerable enough, I suppose, but she's certainly not a beauty." Darcy coldly assessed the dark haired woman. "I'm sure it would be a waste of time talking to her."

Elizabeth tried not to laugh to visibly at this. He was lucky that she had a teasing, self-depreciating sense of humor, or she might have taken his unkind words to heart.

"Darcy, I insist that you move from this spot." Bingley wasn't giving up. "Move or I'll send Caroline in here after you."

Darcy groaned at his friend, "You can't be that cruel."

"I am." Charles insisted, knowing of the crush his sister harbored for Darcy. "Now get along."

Charlotte emerged from the bathroom, and Elizabeth pounced on her already bursting at the seams to tell her of Darcy's opinion of her beauty. Eyes dancing she whispered, "I think that Mr. Darcy has just insulted me."

"What are you talking about?" Charlotte's eyes flew open as Elizabeth leaned in.

"Well apparently Charles Bingley was trying to get him to mingle a bit and he mentioned me. Darcy doesn't think much of my beauty apparently." She laughed at this, "Oh no, Charlotte, to think, I may never be Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy!"

Darcy noticed the musical laughter coming from his right. He looked to the dark haired woman that Bingley had pointed out earlier. She was giving him a knowing look, her brown eyes dancing. She couldn't have possibly heard what he'd said. If he would have gotten a look at those eyes earlier, he might have said something different entirely.

Chapter Two

Posted on Monday, 27 August 2001

"William, what are you looking at?" Caroline Bingley purred, slipping her arm in his.

Darcy clenched his teeth and turned to his companion, "Nothing at all, I assure you." Damn Bingley. He liked Caroline well enough, from time to time he found her rather amusing, but he was in no mood to deal with her catty gossip tonight. He stepped away from her, breaking contact.

"You certainly are in one of your moods this evening." Caroline grumbled, forming her mouth into a pout. For two years now, she'd been trying to send him signals that she was interested. Who wouldn't be? Fitzwilliam Darcy was handsome, fabulously rich, and even though to strangers he seemed ill tempered, he was kindhearted. And quite frankly, she didn't understand why he wasn't responding to her advances. True, she was subtle in her pursuit, but not overly so. Her feelings for him seemed to be obvious to everyone else that knew them.

"You know just as well as anyone that I hate events like these. I can't stand being at these local functions. Everyone standing about gawking at me." It made him feel uncomfortable. From a young age the press and the public had been interested in his family, and he hated it. He had long practiced a face of cool composure; it was his most treasured weapon. He always felt the scrutiny more so at smaller gatherings, he wasn't deaf to the whispers of his name about the room.

"Well I'm not any happier about being here, either. I long to be back in Boston." She had been crestfallen to learn that her father had decided that he wanted to get away from the buzz of the city. Even though they were only a couple of hours from her beloved hometown, she felt as if she were living in the middle of nowhere, there was no night life here, or any society to speak of. She supposed she could have stayed in the city and gotten an apartment, but then she wouldn't benefit from a grand home, and the leisure of having no real responsibilities. The thought of having to work for a living caused Caroline to shudder. All in all, she was much better off living here with her brother.

"Well buck up, Caroline. Here comes Charles." Darcy involuntarily smoothed the line of his jacket when he noticed that Bingley was approaching with the two sisters that he had mentioned earlier. The darker one was still had a teasing look in her eye, like she had just been done making secret jokes about him moments earlier. Normally, he would be irritated at such behavior, but with her it just intrigued him.

"Darcy and Caroline! Please meet Jane and Elizabeth Bennet." He gestured to the two ladies in his party. "This is William Darcy, or just Darcy, as I like to call him, and this is my dear sister Caroline."

Elizabeth smiled at both of them, even though her reception was anything but warm. Darcy just looked bored, and she sensed maliciousness about Caroline. She had a very plastic smile and her green eyes barely concealed her obvious feeling of superiority. "How do you do?"

"Very well, thank you." Caroline stared at the two women. Jane was very beautiful, with long cascading blonde hair, and was wearing a fashionable jersey style dress. It wasn't the kind of thing that she would wear, but she must take into account that not everyone came from the same fortunate situation that she did. The other wore a simple black dress, and very little make-up. She seemed to be one of those Gloria Steinem, feminist types. Those kinds of women bothered Caroline exceedingly. Not that she had anything against equal rights, but those kinds always took it too far. She decided that she disliked Elizabeth Bennet on the spot.

Darcy gave both sisters a slight nod and said nothing. He hated the way that Elizabeth seemed to be laughing at him. No one ever laughed at a Darcy. He noticed that Charles' eyes were getting that glazed over look. He rolled his eyes. Dear God, Bingley had fallen madly in love yet again. The man seemed to be uncontrollable when it came to beautiful women.

"This is really a lovely gathering, Charles." Elizabeth said graciously, feeling the eyes of Fitzwilliam Darcy on her. She tried not to feel self conscious as he coldly assessed her. Men like that thought that they could act and do as they please, and it bothered her to no end. They didn't have to bother with things like manners, and good social graces. That's what happens when you have everything handed to you on a sliver platter.

"Thank you, but you should thank my sister, she took care of all of the details." Charles graciously offered.

"Yes, well it was no trouble at all." Caroline forced a smile, "It's not everyday your brother runs for office."

"No, indeed, it's not. You have truly outdone yourself." Elizabeth caught the patronizing tone in the other woman's voice. She wasn't very keen on the idea of hanging about Rude and Ruder anymore. "If you'll please excuse me, I have to run. It was a pleasure meeting you, Caroline." She smiled and faced the formidable gentleman across from her, "And you, Darcy."

"William." Darcy found himself saying before he had the good sense to stop himself. He had no desire to be on a casual level with this woman.

"William." Elizabeth repeated, with a hint of a smile. She gave slight bow of her head, and gracefully stepped from the circle.

Darcy stared after her, not sure if her curtsy had been some kind of sarcastic dig at him. And if it was, he couldn't help but feel a small pinch of respect for her.

"Did you see the way Charles Bingley was staring at our Jane?" Mrs. Bennet said, puffing out her chest proudly. "The man was complete besotted." She gave her eldest daughter a pat on the arm, "You could stand to do far worse than Mr. Bingley. He has loads of money, and from what I've heard, he's really a very nice person."

Elizabeth tried hard to not roll her eyes. It was all her mother had been talking about for the past two weeks. "Yes, Mother, I think that you should send out for wedding invitations posthaste."

"That's not what I'm saying, Lizzy. I'm just stating that Jane should make an effort to get to know him better." Mrs. Bennet gave her a withering look. "You could stand to do the same thing. What about that Senator Darcy? I saw the two of you chatting."

Elizabeth burst out laughing, "Well, I do hate to dash all of your hopes and dreams, but I overheard Senator Darcy saying that I was not a beauty and that it would be a waste of time to engage in a conversation with me."

Mrs. Bennet's mouth fell open, a look of indignant shock on her face, "He said WHAT? How dare he say that about my daughter? The sheer nerve!"

"I wouldn't worry about it. He may be handsome, but other than that, the feeling is completely mutual." She shot her mother a reassuring smile.

"Oh, Lizzy, I'm sure that you misunderstood what he said. He is a bit standoffish, but he has good intentions, I'm sure of it." Jane piped up, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Jane, you'd find a way to think positively about Adolf Hitler." Lizzy giggled, she thought about their encounter the night before. He was a pompous, overly proud, arrogant jerk. There was no two ways about it. She could really care less if she ever saw him again.

"I can't think of anything positive about Hitler." Jane said, giving the idea serious thought, "So there." She stuck out her tongue at her sister.

"Fine. You win." Elizabeth retaliated with a goofy face herself.

"Actually, Caroline invited me to come to Netherfield for dinner tomorrow evening." Jane said brightly, trying to play down her excitement at the prospect.

"Oh, goody!" Mrs. Bennet clapped her hands, "Be sure to wear something sexy."

"Mother!" Elizabeth interjected with exasperation, "You can't be serious."

"Jane is a very beautiful girl. And she should make the most of it. Rich men love beautiful women, and that's the truth." She retorted matter of factly, "You two are both almost thirty years old. And I don't care how many Bridget Jones books they write, no man wants a woman over thirty. I don't want my girls to end up old maids."

"We're not old maids! Plenty of women wait until their thirties to get married." Elizabeth threw her hands into the air in frustration. She was so sick of having this conversation! It was all her mother ever spoke of.

"Hmm.." Mrs. Bennet sniffed, "You think you know everything, and you are in for some unpleasant surprises just a little bit down the road."

Elizabeth sighed and looked into her coffee cup. This was going to be one long afternoon.

"What do you want to see?" Elizabeth squinted up at the movie marquee. "The new Schwartzengger flick starts in ten."

"I really don't want to see that. It got horrible reviews." Charlotte replied

"Okay, well it's up to you. I don't care what we see."

Elizabeth's cell phone rang shrilly. Red faced with embarrassment, she fished into her purse and retrieved the device. "Hello?"

"Lizzy?" Jane moaned, "Is that you?"

"Jane, what's wrong?" Elizabeth's heart leaped into her throat. "Are you okay?"

"No." Elizabeth heard her cover the phone and make retching noises

"Jane, what's wrong?" She said trying to tone down the alarm in her voice.

"Food poisoning, I think." Jane took a couple of deep breaths, blowing them out shakily, "Could you come and get me? I really don't feel like driving home."

"Sure thing, dear." Elizabeth felt immensely relieved. "That wouldn't be a problem at all. I'm leaving right now." She slapped the phone shut and turned to face her friend, an apologetic look in her eye. "I'm sorry, Charlotte, but Jane's sick. I have to go and pick her up. Do you want to come with me?"

Charlotte smiled, "Well, as much as the idea of sitting in a car with your vomiting sister appeals to me, I think I'll just head home and make it a Blockbuster night."

Elizabeth laughed, "I can't say that I blame you." She gave her friend a hug and walked out to her car. She felt the cool breeze hit her skin. The hot summer weather had finally let up, leaving one of those summer nights that the coast was famous for. Balmy, yet cool. A good night to roll down the highway with all four windows down. She climbed into the car and did just that.

Chapter Three

Posted on Tuesday, 28 August 2001

Elizabeth hummed along with the tune on the radio, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel to the rhythm. Poor Jane, to think that she was sitting on Charles Bingley's bathroom floor being sick. She bit her lip, and pressed her foot against the gas pedal, speeding up along the freeway. She buzzed by the other cars on the road, wind hitting her face. She had pulled her dark curls back in a haphazard ponytail on the top of her head. Flipping the turn signal, she exited smoothly from the highway, pulling onto the winding road that led to the Bingley estate.

"Oh Goody!" she mumbled as her favorite song came on the radio. Half singing, half yelling along with the lyrics she navigated down the winding surface and onto the gravel driveway of the manor. She coughed as the dust from the rocks flew into the open windows of her car. Frantically she began waving her hands in front of her face, moving the particles of dirt and chalk away from her delicate nose. The last thing she needed was to have a sneezing fit in the middle of the Bingley's foyer. Still humming the melody of the song, she threw the car in park and climbed out. She had planned a graceful unaffected exit from the car, but when her ankle hit the gravel surface it gave way, causing her to fall out of the car. Thankfully, she remained uninjured, but now her outfit, consisting of a pair of worn jeans and an old t-shirt, was completely covered in chalk and dust from the gravel. Elizabeth glanced wildly about her, trying to see if anyone had seen her folly, but there was no one outside. She began laughing, great heaving chuckles that shook her whole body. She was sure that she looked a fright, but she didn't care. It wasn't as though she had anyone to impress. Still giggling she climbed up the stairs and rang the doorbell.

"Yes?" An older woman answered the door, not bothering to hide her surprise at the woman's appearance.

"Hi, I'm Elizabeth Bennet, I'm here to pick up my sister, Jane." Elizabeth offered her a warm smile, "Sorry, I had a bit of an accident outside, fell down." She laughed again.

"Oh, well that explains it!" The woman tittered along with her. "Hold on just a moment and I'll get Charles."

Charles didn't hide his look of surprise at her appearance, she was covered in some kind of dust, her hair in half ponytail, pointing out in every which way, and a smudge of dirt covered the apple of her left cheek. "Are you alright?" he asked with true concern.

"Yes, I was just telling..." Elizabeth trailed off not sure of the older woman's name.

"Mrs. Liefield." Charles supplied,

"Mrs. Liefield that I had a bit of an accident just outside, but I'm fine. I'll just collect Jane and be on my way." Elizabeth said, gesturing to her car.

"Well, do come in. I'm afraid that Jane isn't feeling well at all. I don't know what happened." Charles offered her his arm.

Smiling she accepted and stepped into the grand foyer of the house. "You really do have a lovely home." She said quietly, taking it in for all of its beauty. While the Bennet's were in want of nothing, they didn't live the opulent, leisurely lifestyle of the Bingley's. She thought of her own small one bedroom apartment, certainly he would laugh at it. She looked to her companion. No, Charles Bingley would never laugh at someone else's home. He would tell her that he liked it very much, and he would mean it. She had never met someone as good-natured as he. Scratch that, she did know someone as pleasant as kind. Jane. A soft smile overspread her lips as they walked into the sitting room.

Caroline stared open mouthed at the dark haired woman. She looked as though she had been living in the woods for weeks, without showering, or washing her clothes. The nerve of that woman! You didn't come into Caroline Bingley's home looking like a homeless child. "Eliza Bennet, right?" She said, not bothering to hide her disdain.

Elizabeth's smile fell, as she lifted her head up to meet Caroline's eyes. "Elizabeth Bennet, yes." She said coolly, with not a trace of embarrassment.

Darcy watched her out of the corner of his eye. She looked dirty, yes, and extremely windblown, but she also looked a little wild, her cheeks were red, eyes bright. When she had walked in, it had taken all of his willpower to not burst out laughing. He didn't want to laugh because he felt that she was somehow below him. But because she had the smile on her face, she looked like a child, pure, and in awe of the world and all of the things it had to offer. He took another glance at her. He had been too hasty in his first assessment. She really was a beautiful girl. He watched as she pushed the curls that had escaped her ponytail from her eyes, meeting his. He stood frozen in place as he gazed into the brown depths. She seemed to be as reluctant as he to release the contact. She blushed visibly and looked away from him. He let his breath out, unaware that he had been holding it.

"Stupid man." Elizabeth pulled at the hem of her t-shirt. He was staring at her like she was some kind of freak, that smarmy superior smug on his face.

"Well what has happened to you?" Caroline laughed snottily, bringing her hand to her chest in mock concern.

"Had a bit of an accident with the driveway. Everything's fine now." Elizabeth replied warmly. She knew from experience that it was best to bite her tongue and try to kill with kindness, even though most of the time she failed at that particular endeavor miserably.

"Really? I would have always liked to been clumsy. I think it's cute." She gave a wincing half smile on her last word.

"Yes, not all of us can have the grace of a queen." She clenched her hand into a fist. How she would like to just get in one good punch.

"Indeed, but I'm sure that you're blessed in other ways." She gave a pointed look to her sister.

Elizabeth hadn't noticed the other woman; she looked like an older replica of Caroline, the red hair, long aristocratic features, and the same pinched expression. "I'd really like to see my sister now, if you don't mind." Elizabeth said hurriedly

"Of course, the poor thing." Caroline led Elizabeth to the corridor, "We have her in the guest bathroom, she's been too sick to leave."

"What happened?" Elizabeth asked

"Well, we were just sitting down to dinner, and Jane, the dear thing, began eating her salmon. She took maybe one bite, and turned the strangest shade of green that I have ever seen in my life. Thank God that none of us had touched our salmon yet, or we'd all be sick." Caroline laid an arm on Elizabeth's.

"Thank God." Elizabeth mumbled, allowing Caroline the friendly gesture.

Caroline rapped lightly on the door, "Jane, darling, it's Caro. You're sister is here."

"Lizzy?" Jane called miserably through the door.

Elizabeth brushed past the other woman, opening the door. Jane lay at the base of the toilet, stark white. "Oh Jane." She sat down next to her sister and stroked her hair.

"Oh Lizzy, I don't think I can move." Jane moaned snuggling closer.

"Don't worry about it, we'll have you out of here in no time." Elizabeth pressed a kiss on the top of her head. "Come on, give it a try." She flung Jane's arm around her neck and began to stand up. Faltering, Jane stood up, trembling.

"Put me down, put me down!" Jane cried, "I'm going to be sick!" Elizabeth gently sat her on the ground, trying to block out the retching noises her sister was making.

"I think we should call a doctor." Elizabeth said to Caroline without looking at her.

"Certainly." Caroline sniffed and walked back to the sitting room.

"Elizabeth thinks we should call a doctor." Caroline said upon her arrival.

Bingley stood up, shoving his hands in his pockets, "Well, I think that she's absolutely right. Jane is very sick. I'll go and tell Mrs. Liefield."

"Is Elizabeth still with her sister?" I hope so. He silently added. He had a strange reaction to her. That defiant gleam in her eyes made him nervous, her unaffected attitude made him want to get to know her better, and her smile made him want something he hadn't quite put his finger on yet. A very dangerous combination. He didn't have time for obstinate, headstrong women, no matter how much she appealed to him.

"Yes." Caroline rolled her eyes, "I can't believe she walked in here looking like that. Her hair Louisa!"

"I know!" Louisa Hurst shook her head in agreement, "And covered from head to toe in dust! I don't care what happened outside, she should have taken some time to clean up."

"She was probably worried about her sister." Darcy piped up. He didn't feel like listening to Louisa and Caroline gossip about Elizabeth Bennet.

"It's just a little case of food poisoning, she'll live." Caroline sniffed, and turned again to her sister, "And did you see their mother? Talk, talk, talk. I daresay she didn't stop all evening."

"And not a useful word came out of her." Louisa snorted.

"Don't you agree Darcy?" Caroline asked with feigned sweetness.

"Yes." Darcy didn't bother lying, even if it meant shutting Caroline up. "She did go on."

"How can dear Jane live with a family like that, a shrewish, frumpy sister, and a nattering mother?" Caroline giggled at her own joke.

"I don't find Elizabeth to be a shrew at all." Bingley defended from the doorway. "I think she's rather funny."

"Oh, bah on funny women. They always think that they're better than everyone." Caroline dismissed.

"And you don't?" Darcy asked dryly, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

"Yes, but that's different. You know just as well as I do, that people like us, we're different, and yes, in some ways, superior. Your ego is just as healthy as mine, Fitzwilliam Darcy." Caroline teased with a flirty tone.

"Hmmm.." was all that Darcy would reply. He was thinking about Elizabeth Bennet's dancing brown eyes, and the way that they seemed to hold a private joke between the two of them. She was the most intriguing woman he had met in a long time.

"Darcy? Darcy? DARCY?" William was awoken from his thoughts by a huffing Caroline snapping her fingers in his face. "Where were you just a second ago?" She laughed.

"Just thinking." He mumbled

"About what?" She asked coquettishly.

"The nice feeling that a pair of beautiful eyes and a pretty face can give a man." He said distractedly.

"Whom might you be speaking of?" Caroline leaned in a touch closer, putting on a seductive face.

"Elizabeth Bennet." Darcy was surprised that he had said the words aloud. One look at Caroline's face told him that he had done the right thing. He'd been trying for years to get the point across that he wasn't interested in her, and maybe this would help his case.

"Oh." Caroline said, crestfallen. She crossed her arms and walked over to the couch where her sister was sitting. "I guess that there's no accounting for taste." She said under her breath. Caroline wanted Elizabeth Bennet out of her house, and out of her house now.

Chapter Four

Posted on Sunday, 30 December 2001

Caroline plastered a smile on her face and knocked lightly on the bathroom door, "Jane, love, are you feeling any better?"

She was answered with a retch.

Elizabeth opened the bathroom door slightly, "She's still sick. I'm sorry to intrude on you, but I don't think she's going to be feeling any better tonight. Any news on getting a doctor?" She bit on her lip to keep from laughing as a look of annoyance crossed Caroline's features, one wouldn't have even noticed the brief flash of discontentment, but Elizabeth had a sharp eye for insincerity.

"Let me check on that." Her lips spread again in a fake smile, and she turned on her heel and snipped down the hallway.

"Stupid git." Elizabeth leaned against the door, looking down at Jane who was still hunched over the toilet.

"Lizzy." She said with a warning tone, "She's been nothing but perfectly nice to us, I know that she's not your type of person, but come on, there's no reason to be ungrateful."

"There's plenty of reason to be ungrateful, Jane. She's got this ... attitude. I don't like her one bit." She kneeled next to her sister, "But I'll be on my best behavior just for you.

There was another knock at the door, as a friendly male voice called out, "Ladies? I can't get a doctor until first thing in the morning, but I took the liberty of having Mrs. Liefeld set up a room for Jane."

Elizabeth cracked the door once again, an appreciative expression etched on her features. "Thanks, Charles."

"My pleasure." He grinned at her, "How are you feeling, Jane?" He called into the lavatory.

"Much ..." Jane began, but was once again retching into the toilet.

Charles shifted uncomfortably, looking around the hallway. "Well then, uh......I suppose we should get you situated in your room." He smiled again, not knowing what to say.

"Great idea." Elizabeth turned away from him, slinging her arm around Jane. Hoisting her up, they slowly inched toward the door. "Alright, lead the way Mr. Bingley."

"Lizzy?" Jane cried weakly, "Will you grab the trash can, I think I'm going to be sick."

"Still thinking about the younger Miss Bennet's fine eyes?" Caroline purred into Darcy's ear, slinking up behind him. "I was just thinking, once the two of you are married, you could look forward to Christmases right here in Longbourn."

"How like you to think the admittance of attraction to be translated into years of domesticated bliss." Darcy rolled his eyes and slipped out of her grip.

"You rarely admit to anything, William. I can only assume that your testimonial to her fine eyes and pretty face were nothing short of a declaration of your undying devotion." She raised one delicate eyebrow at him and smiled cattily.

Darcy stiffened visibly; he was in no mood to defend his statement about her. He hadn't been thinking at all when he said it. "No, I don't intend to marry Elizabeth Bennet. The single women of Massachusetts may breathe again." He bowed mockingly, a slight grin teasing at his lips at the look of absolute horror on his redheaded companions face.

"You are wretched, Darcy." She gave him a playful smack on the shoulder. She studied his face for a moment. He had dark, aristocratic features, matched with a pair of stunningly blue eyes. It didn't really matter to her whether he was handsome or not. He was appropriate. He had money, social position, and a drive to move forward in his career. His being good looking was a bonus of sorts. She'd made up her mind years ago that Fitzwilliam Darcy would be the ideal husband for her. If only she could convince him of the same. She was beginning to think that he'd remain a bachelor for the rest of his years.

The look of interest in Caroline's eye didn't go unnoticed by Darcy. He was approaching 35, and people were beginning to talk. It would be most advantageous if he were to marry soon. He only planned on serving in Congress for one more term before attempting a bid at the Presidency. People would never elect a single man, a confirmed bachelor, to such a position. They wanted a devoted husband and father. They wanted publicity shots of him scampering around with his children, looking adoringly into his wife's eyes. He returned Caroline's stare. He had trained himself for so long to automatically dismiss her as a candidate for a wife, or anything more than a friend. But the time had come for him to get serious about the whole marriage idea. He sighed inwardly. She was catty, snooty, and had not one noble aspiration other than to see herself comfortably settled. But she would be a good politician's wife, knowing how to work people to her advantage. The press would love her. She would leave him largely alone, and they got along well enough, even if he did find her unwillingness disagree with him on anything annoying, her laugh grating, and her eyes did not tease him the way that Elizabeth Bennet's did. He stopped at that last thought. What in the world had brought that on? Why should he care about his wife's eyes? Dismissing it quickly, he bent over and kissed Caroline.

"Oh Goody!" Caroline thought, returning the kiss with as much emotion as Darcy put into it. She thought of the spread People Magazine would probably do on the wedding. Would she wear her hair up or down? How long would they wait to have a child? Where could she find a good nanny? She stood contemplating for a moment, not realizing that the kiss had been ended. Not that that was what she was interested in. She was a modern woman. She didn't want fairytales and love, she wanted prestige and someone to provide her with the luxuries that she was accustomed to.

Darcy grimaced slightly. He might not love her, but she was appropriate. He supposed he'd ask her to marry him before the year was over. That would give them roughly 6 months of courtship, but they were noted in political circles to be good friends, so it wouldn't seem as abrupt. Mechanically, he planned out their relationship from first kiss, to retirement. To some it may seem harsh, unfeeling, inherently wrong, but to Darcy and Caroline, it was not only necessary, but entirely logical.

"I think I'm going to diiiiiiiiie." Jane moaned from beneath the mound of pillows and blankets that engulfed her.

"Janey." Elizabeth tucked the covers tighter around her sister; "I know you'll feel better in the morning."

"So how's our little trooper doing?" Charles asked from the doorway, peeking inside with obvious concern.

Elizabeth stifled a laugh at his almost boyish eagerness to watch over her sister. Many times she had seen that look he had upon his face, it was the same one that Jane wore when she was caring for others who were ill. Two peas in a pod, she thought to herself, smiling secretly at Jane, who managed to blush at the implication the look provided.

"Our little trooper thinks she's going to die." Elizabeth said, settling her hands on her hips, "But I think she'll feel tons better in the morning." She turned to Charles, "Thank you for everything, the doctor, the room. I really appreciate it, almost as much as Jane does, I'm sure."

"There's no need to thank me, but you're very welcome, regardless." He looked past her to Jane. She was a queer shade of green, but she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life. He looked into her kind, green eyes, and felt his stomach jump. She seemed so peaceful, he just wanted to stand and stare at her while she rested.

"Thank you again." Elizabeth said to Charles reaching for her purse. She turned and pressed a kiss on Jane's forehead. "I'll call you tomorrow."

"Lizzy," Jane whispered, turning an even deeper green, "Please don't go. It makes me feel so much better having you here." She grabbed her sister's arm and pulled her close, "Please don't leave me here alone in a houseful of strangers." She whispered.

Pushing the hair out of Jane's eyes, "Awww Janie, I really can't." She loved her sister, but she'd be damned if she was going to stay the night in the same house as Caroline and Fitzwilliam Darcy. She didn't feel like being scrutinized and talked about behind her back.

Disappointment clouded Jane's eyes. "Please, Lizzy?" She pleaded.

Elizabeth felt her heart soften a bit as Jane's expression turned even more pathetic. "Fine." She resigned, "But I'm not leaving your side."

Charles beamed at the sisters. "I'll have Mrs. Liefeld prepare another room for you." He scurried out of the room a dazzling smile plastered on his face. Now he would have an excuse to stay at Jane's side without getting hassled by his sisters or Darcy. Someone would have to keep Elizabeth company while she cared diligently for her sister, and that someone might as well be him.

Chapter Five

Posted on Sunday, 30 December 2001

Elizabeth tried to ignore the rumbling in her stomach for the umpteenth time. Glancing at the clock, she rubbed her eyes. 12:30. Checking on Jane, she saw that her sister was resting peacefully. She hadn't eaten since lunch that afternoon and was starving. Stretching, she padded out of the room barefoot, hoping that she would be able to find the kitchen with little trouble. She just wanted to grab a quick bite to eat and go to bed. Being such a caring wonderful sister was more tiring than she would have thought.

Darcy clicked away intently in the den. He'd been so caught up in the kickoff of Charles' campaign that he'd forgotten to tell his secretary to type up his report addressing the state of public schooling in California. Darcy, who hated computers and wrote everything longhand, was painfully slow at the task. Having begun three hours before, he was extremely vexed to only be on page 6 of his transcript. "Dammit." He stopped for a moment and rubbed his temples. He was never going to be done. He looked hopelessly to the legal pad that was filled front and back with his small meticulous script. He still had about 30 pages to go.

Pushing open the door, Elizabeth bit her lip, squeezed her eyes shut, and crossed her fingers for luck. This was the fourth room she'd tried, hoping to run into the kitchen.

"What do you want?" She heard a male voice say exasperatedly.

"Sorry, I was just looking for the kitchen." She opened her eyes; she was standing in an office of some sort, staring at the back of Fitzwilliam Darcy's head. She turned around to leave, her face aflame with embarrassment.

"You aren't even on the right floor." He said, not bothering to turn around and face her. He was stupid to think her different from any other woman. Sure, she had just happened upon him in the middle of the night. He knew that if he turned around, the chances of her being dressed in some slinky piece of lingerie were high.

"Thanks." She said coldly, affronted by his behavior once again. She really should have known better than to be offended by him, it's not like she expected better treatment.

Detecting the displeasure in her voice, he spun around automatically, even though he had told himself that he wouldn't look at her. He tired to hide his surprise at her attire. She was still dressed in a t-shirt and jeans. His gaze traveled up to her face. She had a pinched, annoyed look on her face. "I could use a glass of water myself, how about I show you where it is?" He said respectfully, but without friendliness.

"No, that's fine. I'll find it myself." She said with the same tone.

"I insist." He almost smiled as he watched her chin jut upwards, set in determination.

"No, really. You're in the middle of something, and I'd hate to disturb you."

Darcy lifted himself out of the chair and pushed past Elizabeth, "I'm going to the kitchen. If you'd like to follow me to find out where it is, you are more than welcome to. If you want to stand there like an idiot some more, that's fine by me, also."

Elizabeth's eyes flashed with anger and offence. She opened her mouth to lay into him, when her stomach growled loudly. Pride be damned, she was hungry. She closed her mouth and followed him.

Caroline shot out of bed as she heard the musical laughter of Elizabeth Bennet float past her door. What on earth was she doing? Curious, Caroline crawled out of bed, put on her slippers and snuck out the door.

"Six pages in three hours? How impressive!" Elizabeth teased as Darcy pushed open the door to the kitchen. "You probably need a snack as much as I do."

"I could use a distraction, that's for sure." Darcy mumbled, unsettled with the way she made him feel at ease. He pondered over that for a moment. How was it that she made him feel uneasy about feeling comfortable? Wasn't that a paradox of some sort?

"Whoa." She sucked in her breath as her bare feet hit the cold stone tile. She skittered across the kitchen, hopping up on the counter to save her feet from frostbite.

"What are you doing?" Darcy asked, flipping on the light switch.

"Saving my feet from certain doom." She answered, shivering.

"What kind of doom might that be?" He opened the refrigerator

"The tile is about 90 degrees below zero." Elizabeth said chattily. She checked her watch with amazement. He'd been completely cordial to her for exactly 15 minutes.

"Maybe you should have worn shoes." He looked at her bare feet disapprovingly. She quickly tucked them under her legs, sitting on the counter Indian style.

Looks like 15 minutes was going to be the standing record. That was fine with her. Tomorrow she would be safe and sound at home with her small kitchenette with linoleum tile that didn't reach sub zero temperatures at night.

He watched her pick at the hem of her jeans, her ponytail falling over in front of her face. She really was alarmingly attractive, in a fresh faced, unaffected way.

She looked up at him and caught him staring. He cleared his throat and looked away. Self consciously, she lifted her hand up to her nose and wondered if she had a booger or something hanging out her nose. Or had she had something caught in her teeth all evening and no one had bothered to tell her.

"What would you like to eat?" He turned away from her and faced the refrigerator once again.

"What's in there?" She leaned over trying to get a look. She leaned over too far, and lost her balance. Without thinking she reached her hand out and caught herself with the help of Darcy's shoulder.

"Am I interrupting something?" Horrified, Elizabeth turned to face Caroline Bingley.

Chapter Six

Posted on Thursday, 10 January 2002

"Caroline!" Darcy exclaimed, removing Elizabeth's hand from his shoulder.

"Not at all, Caroline, I just lost my balance for a second there." Elizabeth said cheerily, trying to ignore the blush that was threatening to overtake her cheeks. Imagine that Caroline thought there was something inappropriate going on between herself and Darcy. The idea was just ridiculous.

"I see." The redhead said flatly. Putting on a beaming smile she turned to Darcy and looped her arm through his. "So what brings you two in here at such an hour?" She whispered loudly, switching her gaze from him to Elizabeth. She let the slightest hint of possessiveness slip into her gaze.

Elizabeth duly noted the warning. Mine. Caroline couldn't have things more perfectly clear. She giggled a bit at that. She certainly didn't like Darcy, and he definitely didn't have any interest in her.

Darcy shifted uncomfortably as he witnessed Caroline boring a hole through Elizabeth. Turning her around slightly, he gestured to the refrigerator, "Elizabeth got lost trying to find the kitchen, since I wanted something to drink, I showed her where it was." He said a bit too quickly, like he had something to hide, or to feel guilty for.

Elizabeth arched one eyebrow at his hasty explanation. Distracted from Caroline's less than welcoming greeting, she forgot to be embarrassed about being caught alone in the kitchen with Darcy. With great interest, she watched the two confront the other silently. Caroline's eyes narrowed at the man, while he rolled his own and looked into the refrigerator again. Darcy withdrew his arm from hers, resting it atop the door of the open fridge. Caroline blinked hard, forcing a smile. Lizzy suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable. She hopped off the counter and slipped underneath Darcy's arm, grabbing an apple out of the crisper. Backing out of the way she smiled at the twosome and walked out of the kitchen.

"What is your problem, Caroline?" Darcy said through gritted teeth as Elizabeth let the door swing behind her.

"I don't have a problem, William." Caroline replied just as tersely. "You're the one who was stammering like a school boy. It makes me think that you're up to something you shouldn't be." She wrapped her arms around him, tapping her finger lightly against his nose.

Darcy wiggled his way out of her grasp, "I was getting a drink of water. You were the one who acted like I committed a crime."

"Calm down, William, I was just having fun with you." She rested her hand on his shoulder

"You were not having fun with me, you practically froze Elizabeth Bennet to death with that glare." He removed her hand

"Why do you care what kind of looks I give Elizabeth Bennet?" She was proud of the way she managed to keep the suspicion out of her voice

"I don't care what k-k-kind of looks you give Elizabeth Bennet!" Darcy sputtered, throwing his hands up in the air, and generally making too much of a to do about the situation, which in turn set Caroline's radars on high alert. The aggravation of both rose considerably; Darcy because he couldn't figure out why he was getting so angry, and Caroline because she knew what was wrong with him.

"Then quit acting like you do." She barely kept herself from wincing. Never in her life had she used such a tone with him, but it had slipped out before she could stop herself. She didn't want to get into an argument with him, not now. He'd kissed her for the first time that evening; she didn't want him to regret it.

"I'm NOT acting like I do." He bit out, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not."

"Fine, you win. But she was obviously throwing herself at you, don't you think?"

"I don't think she was throwing herself at me." He thought on that for a second. He hadn't really felt like she was coming on to him, but then again ... she had been the one who initiated the trip to the kitchen by stopping by the office. After all, what were the chances of her stumbling him like that completely by chance? He felt his stomach flutter a bit at the thought. He supposed he was more attracted to her than he ought to be, but didn't dwell upon the idea. For anything to happen between the two of them would be preposterous. He had a career to think of, his family name. His Mother and Father would roll in their graves. Though he had never been convicted, he knew on good authority that James Bennet had stolen more than a million dollars from his own campaign fund. He couldn't risk being associated with her. It was bad enough that Charles had gotten the man involved in his party, even on the slightest level. But his friend had too big a heart and not enough sense. Realizing that he was once again over thinking, he returned his attention to Caroline.

"Let's not make an issue out of this." Caroline smiled brightly

"I'm not making an issue out of anything." He wished he knew why he was being so defensive in the matter.

"Quit saying 'I'm Not', or 'I Don't' and then saying whatever it is I said before that!" Caroline huffed, throwing her hands on her hips

"I'm not repeating everyth ..." He stopped himself before letting the whole sentence slip out. Running a hand through his dark curls, he lifted himself on the counter. He hadn't had a fight like this since he and Richard were small. He was a grown man for God's sake. He knew it was hard for him to have an intelligent conversation with Caroline, but apparently a foolish, inane disagreement came naturally. "I refuse to argue with you about this like a child. I have nothing to defend myself for. I came up here for water."

"I've waited a long time for things to progress between us, William, I'm sorry, I'm probably just overreacting." She stared at the ground. She knew that she was being irrational, but there was no way anyone was going to screw things up, not even Darcy himself.

"I understand, Caroline." He questioned his judgment once again. He wasn't the type of man to come to a hasty decision; he'd carefully weighed the pros and cons of becoming involved with her. Rationally and of his own free will, he had come to the conclusion that she was the best candidate for a wife. He had come to terms with it already, hadn't he? "I've got a lot of work to do, good night." He announced, sliding past her and out the door.

Elizabeth stretched her arms above her head, stifling a yawn. She was beyond exhausted; she ran her hands under the warm water, drying them with a plush towel that hung by the light switch. She couldn't wait to snuggle underneath the covers and close her eyes. She left the bathroom and began her trek down the expansive hallway to her room.

"Dammit." She heard Darcy yell from the office, "Dammit, Dammit, Dammit, Dammit." A series of loud crashing noises followed. She wanted so badly to peek inside and see what had happened. She pondered on the idea for a moment before poking her head inside, her curiosity once again getting the best of her.

"Everything okay in there?" She stifled a giggle as she saw Darcy bend down to pick up the stone paperweight he had thrown in frustration

"Just having a little problem with the computer. It'll be fine." Darcy said tersely, promptly returning to his chair. That impish stare of hers was absolutely maddening. Every time he looked at those chocolate eyes, they seemed to be alive, lit up from the inside with something that he'd never encountered in a woman before, or in a human for that matter.

"I didn't know computers could heave paperweights across the room." Lizzy commented, crossing her arms across her chest and leaning against the doorframe, a teasing smile playing on her lips.

Darcy was taken aback at her ribbing. Very rarely did anyone tease him, much less someone he barely knew. "Well ... errr," He ran a hand through his hair and met her gaze directly.

There he was giving her that peculiar look again! She hated it! It made her feel squirmy and uncharacteristically self-conscious. What was so absolutely, fundamentally, wrong with her, as to make him look at her that way? Shifting uncomfortably, she opened her mouth to make her goodbye.

"I threw the paperweight, not the computer." He explained in all seriousness. He opened and shut his mouth again, amazed at his stupidity. He stood still for a moment, mortified at what was meant to be a witty rebuttal to her comment.

Laughter welled from her chest, slipping out her mouth, piercing the air in a sweet peal. Never in his life had Darcy been attracted to the way someone laughed. It seemed like a silly thing to find attractive, not to mention unimportant, but still, it caused his breath to catch in the back of his throat, just a bit.

"Well, give the computer my apologies for falsely accusing it. I'm off to bed. Good luck with your report, Mr. Darcy." She gave him a slight wave and pushed her shoulder off the doorframe, so that she was standing without its assistance.

"Do you know how to type?" He asked in a rush, taking no pause between words. Amazing. Well, that certainly didn't come out the way he had intended. He looked down again, silently condemning himself for looking like the world's most socially awkward geek.

"Yes, a bit." Elizabeth cleared her throat and looked about the room, waiting for Darcy to get his point across.

"Would you help me?" There. He'd managed to say that perfectly normal. Smiling slightly, he ducked his head to meet her eyes again.

She felt him looking her, and lifted her head to meet him. No way was she going to spend a good couple of hours helping Fitzwilliam Darcy. Did he think she was stupid? A little boyish smile and she'd be slavering to type up his paper for him? She wasn't some stupid bimbo looking to get in good with him. "I normally would, but I'm just exhausted." She even managed to drum up an apologetic smile.

Darcy noticed the dark smudges underneath her eyes. She did look tired. But that didn't mean that he didn't want her to type his report for him, he'd get to kill two birds with one stone. Continue his conversation with her and get the damn thing done. It was a win-win situation. "I'd be willing to pay you." He offered gallantly.

He certainly had some gall didn't he? If he can't use his charm to get what he wants, then he'll just throw around some of his money. "No really. I can't." Her voice dripped with mock regret.

"Please?" He was surprised that he'd kept the desperation out of his voice. Desperate? For what? He wondered.

His entire faced softened, and for a second, he had just looked tired, and beaten. Stupid me with this soft heart of mine, Lizzy thought as she felt her animosity towards him waver slightly. "Fine." She approached the chair, "Get up. I'll let you know when I'm done." He was crazy if he thought she was going to let him hover over her. She could just hear him correcting her in that condescending tone of his.

"Sure." He smiled widely at her, elated at the prospect of spending some time alone with her.

Lizzy kept her eyes on the computer and didn't notice Darcy's pleasure in the situation.

He sat down on the brown leather couch that sat against the wall on the side of the desk. An awkward silence hung over the room, which he felt every second of.

She was too busy to notice.

He made a couple of strained attempts at conversation, well, he hadn't actually said anything, but he had opened his mouth as if to say something a few times. Instead of speaking, he stared at her hunched over the computer. One dark curl had escaped bouncing stubbornly each time she leaned over to check his notepad. She bit her lip in concentration and scrunched her nose as she read.

It was at that moment Darcy began to feel the danger of paying Elizabeth too much attention.

Chapter Seven

Posted on Wednesday, 16 January 2002

He cleared his throat as the walls of the room starting closing in on him, "Well, ah..." he began, heat rising in his cheeks. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Just get this one sentence out, Darcy.

Elizabeth bit back a loud sigh of annoyance. The man could barely keep himself from voicing his discontent every ten minutes.

"Well, ah..." He began again, his heart pounding in his head. He needed to say something witty, or intelligent. Anything to make up for being such an insufferable clod. "Well, you seem to be doing well, so I, ah..." His heart jumped into his throat as he realized he didn't know what he was going to say. The blush that had threatened earlier overtook his face as small beads of perspiration broke out on his forehead. "Errr ...Well, Yes, I'm just going to go ahead and leave then. Yes." He tittered nervously.

Elizabeth made no response. Eyes rolling, she continued to click away on the computer, wishing he would just leave her alone.

"Okay then." He said with finality. "That's right. I'm off to bed. Yes." He remained seated on the couch. Surely she would object to his leaving. He'd give her a couple of beats to make her objections, "Well. I'll be in bed, then." He rose and took two paces towards the door. "Bed."

"Goodnight, Darcy." Elizabeth murmured distractedly.

"Right, then." He hovered in the doorway, cursing himself for botching his entire plan, "Goodnight."

Elizabeth clicked on save and ejected the floppy from the computer's hard drive. Yawning, she rubbed her eyes, reaching out blindly for a pen. She scrawled "Darcy" on the disk and placed it on the keyboard. Smiling, she left the room, thinking only of how wonderful it would feel to get some well-deserved sleep.

Caroline shoved her pillow over her face and stifled a groan. She hadn't slept well all night, her tiff with Darcy playing over and over again in her head. She had reacted badly to it, and even if it killed her, she was going to keep her mouth shut when it concerned Elizabeth Bennet. Obviously, it was a sensitive subject and she wasn't going to be stupid enough to broach it again.

Humming lightly, she threw the covers off her and rose out of bed, stuffing her feet into plush slippers. She began to head downstairs to see what Mrs. Liefeld had made for breakfast. She stopped outside Darcy's room, contemplating if she should go in and wake him up. "He was up late last night." She muttered underneath her breath, thinking once again to the events of last night. He'd looked like he'd been caught cheating. Certainly, it wasn't a good sign. Fitzwilliam Darcy wasn't the type of man to look guilty unless she had something to feel guilty for. She decided against the idea, remembering she was probably the first person up, and could get away with going to the breakfast table sans makeup. Stopping by the small office next to Darcy's room, she picked up the latest issue of Cosmo that she had left in the rack next to the couch last night. Bending over to pick up the magazine, her eye caught the green disk with the word "Darcy" printed across it, in distinctly feminine handwriting.

One name ran through her head. "Elizabeth Bennet." She whispered, picking up the disk, eyeing it, trying to figure out exactly what was in there. Had the little minx spent the night concocting a little letter for him? She flipped on the power strip and booted up the computer, intending to find out exactly what information the disk held.

"Caroline, what are you doing?" a male voice asked with a hint of amusement. "I have never known you to use a computer for anything."

She plastered a smile on her face, and hid the smidgen of guilt that niggled at her. "I was just going to check my email, but since you're up and about, why don't we go and get some breakfast?" Triumphantly, she slipped the disk into her pocket. I win this round, Bennet. she smirked silently, directing her glowing smile to Darcy once again.

"I'm sorry that I yelled at you last night, Caroline." Darcy said, eyes directed towards the carpeting of the hallway, "I was feeling extremely stressed, and I overreacted."

"No, William, please, allow me to take the blame. It was my fault entirely." She continued to smile at him vapidly.

"No really." He stopped walking, intent on having his way, "Don't blame yourself for my childish behavior." You are going to make this work, Darcy. Just think Caroline. Caroline, Caroline, Caroline. The thought really didn't make him feel any less apprehensive. He demanded the greasy knot of nerves residing in his stomach to stop making him feel as though he was going to be sick at any second.

"No, no, no, darling. It's my fault." Caroline trilled. It was best to not disagree with him. That's not a characteristic he was looking for, she knew. She swallowed the part of her that wanted to say that she was glad that he was admitting that he was acting like a jerk the night previous.

"Fine." He said dully, holding open the door to the dining room, where a small breakfast spread was already laid out on the table.

"Morning, Darcy! Caroline." Charles said, jumping up to meet his friend and sister. "Mrs. Liefeld has outdone herself this morning, I must say." He winked at his long time housekeeper and cook. The older woman blushed and giggled at his compliment. "I just checked on Jane, she doesn't seem to be doing much better this morning. The doctor should be by sometime later this morning."

"That's a shame." Caroline clucked, meaning the words two ways. While she was somewhat concerned for Jane's health, she was more distressed over Elizabeth spending any more time in her house, and in Darcy's presence.

Darcy nodded his head in agreement, but remained silent. He was preoccupied, trying to think out his irrational reaction to the younger Bennet sister. It just didn't make much sense. He was an educated, eloquent, well-spoken man. He'd addressed audiences of thousands without the smallest hint of nervousness, but when she spoke to him, his tongue began tripping all over itself, and he couldn't get a coherent sentence out. Yes, she was attractive, but not overly so, not as beautiful as her sister, even. He supposed it had something to do with her eyes, so clearly intelligent, inquisitive, full of life. They were disarming. He shook his head as the thought over the events of the day before. Ever since she walked into the house looking like a ragamuffin she'd consumed his thoughts. Of all the women to get some sort of strange crush on he'd picked her. It must have been his unconscious mind playing a trick on him, because he could not fathom a worse choice. He was almost frightened of how drawn he was to her, how he couldn't help but to seek her out. He'd only known her for a day, really, but when he made a comment, or stated an opinion, he sought her eyes for approval. Completely ridiculous he banished the thought of her laughing at him last night, amusement shining bright in those eyes of hers, playful laughter filling the room. Although he might not have been able to control his thoughts, or his mouth when it concerned Elizabeth Bennet, he knew better than to play with fire. Consequently, he decided his best method of defense would be to ignore her. If she walked in a room, he would leave. If she said something, he would not comment. Smiling satisfactorily, he patted himself on the back. That is called stopping something before it starts, old friend.

Caroline bit into the delicate slice of cantaloupe, closing her eyes at the wonderful flavor. She caught her reflection coming off her glass of orange juice, sending a jolt of panic down her spine. She'd been so pleased to see Darcy, and to work out their argument that she'd completely forgotten that she'd put on no makeup. Horrified, she snuck a quick glance at Darcy, who was staring at his newspaper with an almost frightening intensity. She listened to Charles babble cheerfully, talking for the sake of hearing his own voice, as it was obvious that neither she, nor his friend were listening to a word he said. She managed to choke down the piece of fruit she'd taken, and mumbled a quick excuse. She left the table with the dignity of a queen, but broke into a mad dash the minute she hit the foyer.

Darcy was staring at the wall with great interest when Elizabeth entered the kitchen. He was determined to make no eye contact with her, to barely acknowledge her presence. Inexplicably, his eyes would not listen to him, and he swung his head to the right, gaping at her as she took a seat next to Bingley. She looked charmingly ruffled, her curly hair piled on the top of her head. She was wearing plaid pajama bottoms and an old t-shirt that he recognized as Charles'. He felt a sharp jab of jealousy. It was inappropriate for her to be wearing his clothes, surely. He looked at her dig into a huge plate of eggs and fruit, and felt his throat catch just a bit. She was wonderfully adorable. He had to get out of there. Without a word, he pushed back his chair and left the kitchen.

Elizabeth didn't bother to hide her rolling eyes at Darcy's behavior. He'd gotten up and left almost the second she had come to the kitchen. Not even so much as a thank you for her assistance with his report. Well, she'd learned her lesson hadn't she? She'd never help him again. She stewed in her irritation for a moment, a dark look overcoming her features.

"Are you feeling alright?" Bingley asked with concern.

"Oh, I'm fine." Her usual smile returned as she directed her attentions to her newfound friend. "Just an unpleasant thought."

"About what?" He bit into a half of English muffin with relish.

"Nothing." She wasn't going to complain about the man's best friend. It was better to leave well enough alone. "What time do you expect the doctor to arrive?"

"He said sometime later this morning. He didn't give an exact time." He felt slightly bad about telling Dr. Douglas to take his time. And about hoping that Jane wouldn't be feeling better anytime soon.

They fell into a comfortable conversation, talking about their respective childhoods, likes and dislikes. She felt wonderfully at ease with Charles, he reminded her very much of her dear Jane. They would suit each other wonderfully, she had no doubt.

The morning passed quickly, and with great success on the part of Darcy's plan to avoid Elizabeth. He had been very proud of himself. Charles had insisted that they all take a tour of the grounds, and he'd not said one word to her, even when Charles had gone ahead of them to take care of a problem with the gardener. They'd walked for at least 15 minutes in complete silence, which was just fine by him.

Dr. Douglas had come and announced that Jane had a case of Norwalk's virus, and shouldn't be moved for at least 2 days. Jane's first words upon hearing the news were to beg Elizabeth to stay with her. With some trepidation, her sister agreed.

Darcy wasn't sure what he thought about that. The idea of two more days in the company of Ms. Bennet was exciting and dreadful. He only hoped that he would be able to stay true to his promise.

Chapter Eight

Posted on Monday, 21 January 2002

Elizabeth sighed heavily, resting her head on her hand and leaned forward, elbows digging into her thighs. She was bored. As in horribly, terribly, frighteningly bored. She'd spent the last two days in the company, for the most part, of an extremely sick sister, two vicious snobs, and a perfectly charming, agreeable man who spent the majority of his day working, leaving very little time for him to entertain her. She was suffering from a bad case of cabin fever, and was struggling to not show Jane her restlessness, lest she think that Lizzy resented her for being ill. She knew it wasn't Jane's fault, and instead blamed the entire incident on the kitchen staff trying to poison Darcy for being such a jerk, but accidentally switching his salmon with Jane's. The idea made a wide grin spread across her face. She glanced around the room quickly; making sure no one had noticed her sudden change in expression. Caroline was seated next to Darcy, who was writing an email to his sister, Georgiana.

"Tell Georgiana that I send my love, and can't wait to see her." Caroline craned her neck over his shoulder, he voice cracking with the strain.

Elizabeth hid a giggle underneath her hand and turned back to her book.

"She's leaving for school in a few weeks, it's going to be a long time till you see her next." Darcy said dully, wishing that he could write in peace.

"She's such a wonderful young woman, William, you've really done wonders with her." She leaned in a bit closer to the gentleman, raising her eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

"I'm sure that Georgiana's attributes can be credited more to her than to anything that I have done. But I will agree with you that she's a lovely girl." His eyes never wavered from the screen, except to steal glances at Elizabeth to see if she was paying attention to him. The disgust he felt for himself was immeasurable, but he couldn't stop himself if he tried.

"You don't give yourself enough credit. Without you and Richard," Caroline paused, a sour look crossing her face. Richard Fitzwilliam was Darcy's cousin and shared guardianship of Georgiana with him. He was also an endless thorn in Caroline's side, constantly making fun of her, and generally humiliating her at every opportunity, "She would certainly not be the upstanding citizen that she is today."

Elizabeth snorted into her book. Upstanding citizen? Caroline must have really been reaching for that one.

"Something funny?" She turned her attention to the dark haired woman, gently sneering.

"Just my book." Elizabeth's eyes danced with amusement. She wished that she didn't find her disdain so funny, she was positive that it did nothing but justify Caroline's dislike of her. Coloring at her fib, she buried her face in her book, body shaking with silent laughter. Darcy's attention was finally diverted from his email, he stared at Lizzy openly, wondering what it would feel like to brush away the stray curls that fell into her face when she laughed, or to have her look at mirthfully, as they laughed at a shared joke. Without realizing it, his features softened, and he looked completely besotted by her.

Caroline noticed the glazed look in his eyes, a hint of smile playing at his lips and decided to take action. "Eliza, I was thinking about taking a walk around the estate. Care to join me?" She looked as sincere as possible.

Elizabeth's gut reaction was to politely decline, but she stole a glance out of the window. The sun was shining brightly, the branches of the willow trees that surrounded the property were swaying gently in the summer breeze, and the gentle twinkling of the sun on the lake beckoned her. "I'd like that, Caroline." She smiled genuinely at the redhead, placing her book facedown on the leather ottoman by her feet.

"Darcy, would you like to come also?" She broke through the haze he'd been in, and he jerked towards her mumbling, "What's that you said, I didn't hear you."

"Eliza and I are going for a walk around the estate, would you like to come with us?" She asked sweetly, knowing that he would. And then she could prove to him that she was more interesting, more beautiful, and a better all around person than Elizabeth Bennet.

"Oh William, look at this!" Caroline cried, pointed towards the lake. "A duck!" She deftly diverted his attention from Elizabeth, forcefully dragging him to the water's edge.

"Yes that's very nice." He raised one hand to his chin, cocking his head sarcastically, clucking his tongue. "I don't think I've ever seen a duck quite that exquisite in my life."

"Oh shut up, Darcy." Caroline muttered darkly, stomping away, arms crossed tightly against her chest.

Darcy laughed at her reaction, and searched out Elizabeth's eyes for approval at his witticism. He spotted her walking far ahead on the path, as she hadn't stopped when Caroline had drug him to his current spot. Disappointed, he took long strides, hoping to not look obvious in his attempt to catch up with her.

Caroline had to break into a brisk jog to keep up with him. She tried to do it as lady like as possible, but it was hard to keep one's dignity while jogging in eighty-degree weather. She smiled at him, feeling the sweat run down the sides of her face. Thankfully, he didn't seem to notice. The closer they got to Elizabeth the faster Darcy walked. Panting, she threw her hands on her hips and came to a dead halt. "Eliza Bennet! Please do wait for the rest of us!" She was not going to run a marathon so that he could catch up with her.

Elizabeth turned around a sheepish grin on her face. "Sorry about that." She said as they caught up with her, "I didn't even realize you two had fallen behind." She'd been so caught up in the beauty of the grounds and the feeling of fresh air in her lungs that she sincerely hadn't noticed.

"That's fine." Caroline pouted, grabbing Darcy's arm.

He pulled his arm out from her grasp. He didn't want her to show him any affection while in Elizabeth's presence, lest she get the wrong idea about them. "Caroline, it's entirely too warm for you to be hanging all over me." You were ready to marry her not even a week ago. He reminded himself, ignoring the look of mortification that had taken over Caroline's features.

"Fine." Caroline spat, her blue eyes turning icy. She made a show of moving away from him, walking to the other side of Elizabeth.

They walked along in silence for a few moments, each deliberating over the situation. Elizabeth was uncomfortable to bear witness to virtually every lover's spat the two shared, Caroline was contemplating on the best way to show Darcy she was a more desirable woman than Elizabeth, while Darcy was thinking about the feeling of electricity that ran down his spine when Elizabeth's arm would accidentally brush against his.

"So has Georgiana started looking at colleges yet? She's a junior this year, correct?" Caroline said, desperate to break the silence.

"Yes, she'll most likely go to Oxford like the rest of us." He replied, shading his eyes with his hands. He regretted agreeing to come on this walk in the first place, it was dreadfully hot, and Elizabeth hadn't spoken to him directly the entire time. He supposed that Caroline's presence made her usually vivacious demeanor dampen. Caroline had the tendency to suck all the personality out of just about anything. It had been one of the reasons why he'd liked her.

"Another one off to England, then?" She was quickly running out of things to say. The comment hung dead in the air, as neither Darcy nor Elizabeth answered her.

"How old is your sister, Darcy?" Elizabeth finally asked, unable to take the awkwardness any longer.

"She'll be seventeen in March." Darcy brightened considerably, "She attends a private academy in Rhode Island."

"Really?" She shook her head, "I don't know if I could have done that. They might drive me nuts sometimes, but I don't think I could have been apart from my sisters for the entire school year."

"I think it's better for her, really. Our parents have passed, and I'm twelve years older than her, we share a different bond than you do with you're sisters." He spoke proudly of his relationship with his sister. They were as close as could be, even though he knew that Georgiana looked towards him more as a father figure than brother. He couldn't help but feel the same way for her. He'd been away at school during most of her childhood, and by the time he was done with his education, it was time for her to begin a more rigorous school schedule. The death of their parents had only served to solidify an already close bond.

Elizabeth couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy at the mention of the late Mr. And Mrs. Darcy. "Yes, that would be a different kind of connection."

"She's a very talented and bright young lady, Eliza." Caroline crooned, smiling flirtatiously at Darcy. "Marvelous singing voice. She is going to continue with that isn't she?" Giving a pointed glance to Lizzy, Caroline flounced back to Darcy's side.

"Yes, I hope so. Richard and I have done our best to encourage her in that respect." He swelled with pride at the compliment. His sister really did have the voice of an angel.

"May I ask who Richard is?" Elizabeth inquired

"He's my cousin, he shares guardianship of Georgiana with me." Darcy smiled softly at her.

"I see." She continued walking, letting the conversation die. She hadn't wanted to speak in the first place, but the painful silence had been too much. He was rather handsome when he smiled. Good thing they were few and far between, otherwise she might begin to think him human. He couldn't be all bad, she supposed, after all he was close with his sister, even though she wondered if she behaved as abominably as her brother.

"How old are your own sisters?" Darcy asked, clasping his hands behind his back.

"Well, I don't think I can tell you how old Jane is without her killing me, but my other sisters are 24, 20, and 18 respectively." She said playfully, twisting her hair on the top of her head.

"Four sisters?" Darcy swallowed hard at the sight of her, glowing from the exercise, loose tendrils of hair sticking to her neck. He was surprised that he'd managed to get the words out and not choke.

"Yup. It was crazy when we were growing up. I shudder to think of the fights we had over the bathrooms." She arched one eyebrow

"Yes, I know what you're saying! Louisa and I would get in the worst fights over who would use the master second floor bathroom rather than the one that was adjoined to our rooms." Caroline laughed at the memory

Elizabeth tried not to roll her eyes at the woman, but it proved to be too much. She just would never be able to relate to Caroline Bingley. It was best to come to terms with it now.

He caught her look of bemusement and smiled himself. He liked her refreshing honesty and wit. "I don't think that's quite the same as duking it out with four sisters, but I'm sure that it was a battle royale at the Bingley residence." He caught Elizabeth's eyes for approval.

"Well," Lizzy said, stiffening up a bit, "It is a lot different from how both..." She emphasized the word looking hard at him. She might not like Caroline, but he had no right to make fun of her about something like that. She imagined Darcy's biggest trouble at home had been to decide which car to take out. "Of you grew up."

Darcy felt the sting of Elizabeth censure and cleared his throat nervously. "Yes, a houseful of women. Your poor father."

She laughed heartily at that, "I think that is definitely the right sentiment."

He felt a great wave of relief at being in her good graces once again. "So what do you do, Elizabeth Bennet? You've been in our company for days now, and we know nothing about you."

"Well, I'm currently in between jobs, I recently quit my job at Gaffney and Doerhoff, which is a small law firm here in Longbourn. I've lived here most of my life, but have traveled around quite a bit. My likes include long walks, Monty Python, and orange juice." She smiled sardonically, "I sound like a game show contestant. I apologize, I'm not good at being put on the spot, I suppose."

"No, you were doing just fine." He chuckled, "I thought it was a lawyer's job to be good at being put on the spot."

"Well, I am good at it when we're talking about surprise evidence or something along those lines. But as far as talking about myself on the spot, you've got me. I'm no good." She threw her hands up in defeat

Darcy noticed that one person seemed to be missing from their party, "Where's Caroline?" he asked half exasperated, half amused.

"I don't know..." Elizabeth turned around and looked toward the horizon, but there was no sign of her. "Caroline?" She called out, cupping her hands around her mouth. She was met with no response and soon Darcy had joined her in the call.

They looked at each other and shrugged shoulders at the same time. "I think she'll find her way back just fine. After all it's her house." Darcy said rationalizing the situation

"I suppose you're right." She replied uncertainly. "For all we know she could have walked back to the house."

"Exactly." Darcy smiled again, offering his arm to her.

She chose to ignore the gesture and looked straight ahead, looking forward to the reprieve of Jane's room. It was exhausting to be around both Darcy and Caroline for an extended amount of time.

Caroline screamed as she stomped on the green diskette again. "Stupid, stupid, stupid Eliza Bennet.! Arrgh!" She bent over and picked up the beaten plastic, tempted to rip into it with her bare teeth. She thought about it for a moment and placed it between her lips.

"For God's sake Caroline, if you're that hungry, your house has a perfectly serviceable kitchen." She narrowed her eyes at the familiar male voice.

"Hello Richard." Her voice dripped with animosity.

"Good to see you're still as pleasant as ever." He chirped, patting her on the top of her head. "Now say, who's this Elizabeth Bennet that you hate so much?"

Continued In Next Section