The pleasant creativity that had prevailed the day before for Slurry was long gone by the next morning. In a strange twist of behavior, Richard was the first one up. Darcy woke to the smell of coffee and was surprised to find his cousin up and dressed.
With a puzzled look, Darcy sat on the bar stool beside his cousin and poured the tea that Richard had thoughtfully made.
“Okay, spill,” Darcy said shortly.
“What? It’s after ten already. What’s the problem with a man not wanting to sleep the day away?”
Darcy studied him impassively, took a sip of his tea, and said, “So, it’s Charlotte then?”
“Jesus Christ!” he swore sharply, putting his elbow on the counter and resting his forehead in his hand. “Fuck,” he muttered under his breath.
“What did she say last night?” Darcy asked calmly.
“She said she missed me,” Richard answered automatically. “And I almost blew it.” He closed his eyes and slammed his fist on the counter. “What if I screw up?” he demanded, his voice bordering on desperate.
Darcy lifted an eyebrow. “Richard, you already screwed up. What you really mean is ‘What if Charlotte doesn’t want to love an alcoholic and sex addict,’ right?”
Richard gave him a black look. “I hate it when you’re like this.”
Darcy nodded once. “I know.” He took another sip and continued impassively. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m meeting her at the airport, and I’m going to take her to my place.”
“Does she know this?”
“Yes, I asked her last night if we could have a date tonight to talk.” He slammed his fist down again, rattling the cups. “I can’t believe I asked her for a fucking date! I’m acting like a high school kid!”
“No, you are just nervous because you are planning on admitting some important stuff to someone who could really hurt you deeply.”
Richard glared at his cousin. “I fucking hate you.”
One corner of Darcy’s mouth turned up. “If it’s any comfort, I can tell you I’ve been there, and I think you’re doing the right thing.”
Richard took a long sip of his coffee and grumbled before saying, “How did you tell Elizabeth that you loved her?” His eyes, when he looked at Darcy, held his vulnerability, despite his light tone of voice.
“Well, you heard the first time I told her and witnessed how successful that was. When we met again at Tanglewood, we couldn’t really be alone all day, and while that was making me crazy at the time, it was actually kind of a good thing because we didn’t have a chance to let words trip us up.” Darcy frowned thoughtfully. “Words have always been hard for Lizzy and me.”
“You seemed to have worked that out,” Richard observed.
“Yeah,” Darcy grinned, “but we still do better communicating with our music or nonverbally.” He looked over at his cousin. “You and Charlotte are different, though. You two have never had a problem with words.”
Richard smiled for the first time that morning, as he thought about all of their interactions. “That’s true. We’re really good at talking to each other. I’m just not sure how good we are at loving each other.”
“From the point of view of a neutral third party, I’d say you are both better at that than you give yourself credit for.”
Richard stared at the man who knew him better than any other. “You think?”
Darcy nodded with calm certainty. “Tell her, Richard; you owe her at least that.”
“I’m going to.”
“Good,” Darcy said as he put down his cup and headed back to his bedroom to shower and dress, leaving a thoughtful Richard sitting at the bar.
It was almost four when George announced that filming was over. Elizabeth shared a look of relief with Jane and then noticed Charlotte biting her nails. The girls had packed their bags that morning, so they were ready to leave right away for the airport.
As they were getting into the limos, George walked up to them with a bag over his shoulder. “Can I hitch a ride to the airport?”
Elizabeth was surprised. “Don’t you have to stay here and clean up?”
George shook his head. “No, the producer takes care of all that. I have to go back to New York to oversee the editing.”
“Oh.”
“Sure, George, we’ve got room,” Winnie volunteered. Jane, Charlotte, and Alex rode in one limo, while Winnie and Elizabeth rode with George.
“How’s Darcy doing?” George asked conversationally.
“He’s good,” Elizabeth answered with forced indifference. “I haven’t really seen him, but I’ve heard he’s good.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” George said smoothly and changed topics to talk about the videos he had recently made.
When they reached the airport, George casually reminded Elizabeth to have her ID ready, which prompted a pause as all three members of LBS had to search through their bags to find their driver’s licenses. A full two minutes later, they were ready and moved on to their gate.
Darcy followed Rebecca through the crowded airport. He was glad she was there, because it meant he couldn’t rush the way he wanted to, and it guaranteed that he would find the right terminal. In his current frame of mind, he suspected he would have trouble finding his own house. He was in a state of happy anticipation like he hadn’t felt since he was a child.
They reached the security checkpoint and had to stop. The security regulations prevented them from going to the actual gate. Darcy wasn’t surprised to find the other members of Slurry waiting there as well.
Charles looked at him and laughed. “I’ve got tulips,” he said, holding up the bouquet in his hand. “What have you got?”
Darcy smiled smugly. “Red roses.”
“I’ve got you both beat,” Richard boasted, holding out a white box with a cellophane window. Inside was an exotic orchid in deep black with a slight purple undertone. “Candor Kohl,” he announced proudly.
Charles whistled appreciatively.
“You didn’t get that at a florist shop,” Darcy quipped.
“No,” Richard replied, looking at the flower. “This was almost as rare and hard to come by as she is.”
Charles shook his head. “Good luck, man.”
“Thanks.”
A group of people started coming through the gate and captured their attention. Darcy’s significant height gave him an advantage and he smiled as he recognized Elizabeth in the crowd.
She smiled and waved across the distance until she was stopped by a police officer. Darcy saw her frown in confusion and then she was gone. He spoke her name as his eyes searched for her, growing more frantic with each second.
“Well, well, the gang’s all here.”
Darcy’s attention snapped to the last person he ever wanted to see again. George Wickham was standing in front of him.
“What are you doing here?” Darcy hissed.
“Will,” George chided, “is that any way to talk to your old buddy? Hey, Richard, good to see you.”
Richard glared dangerously.
“And you must be Charles. George Wickham, nice to meet you.”
“I know who you are. Leave. Now.”
George lifted his eyebrows to Charles in surprise and laughed. “I was just going to tell Will that I’m afraid Lizzy might be a little late. After all, that is who you’re waiting for, isn’t it, Will?” His tone was mocking. “She’s nice, but you know, she really is a horrible liar.” He shrugged and grinned. “But a few years of prison should fix that. She’ll learn all sorts of things there.”
Darcy stood frozen, as his blood turned to ice. “What are you talking about?” he demanded in a harsh and choked voice.
“I just wanted you to know who had taken her away from you. So that makes it George two, Darcy zero.”
Darcy felt himself rooted to the ground, unable to move. He watched, stunned as Richard’s fist smashed into Wickham’s jaw.