I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I really have no other excuse except that I really lost enthusiasm for this story. I didn't know if I still wanted it to go in the same direction and it all just seemed a bit weak to me. I'm really sorry. But I have to thank so many of you who kept sending me reviews telling me how much they were missing the story: StarlingGirl30, englishmugglesrock, mahhhfy, beckycat32, flower123, pinkpal1992, Mimi, Julianabr, TopazHeart, LutzButz2687, AmberS76, Jo S16, hess, Dizzy Lizzy.60, LoriH, Lelalini, all the guests and everyone who has reviewed the previous chapters! I probably would have let it roll over and die without you and all of you who also favourite and/or followed the story.

I have been writing though! I'm not sure how many of you would remember that I mentioned contacting the 100th reviewer about their prize (I'm looking at you Tennisballer747)… well I promised you a one-shot. However, due to an exceptionally long holiday period (thank you Uni!) and a story that just kept growing and ideas that literally poured into my head… it is far longer than a one-shot. I'm sure you are not complaining though! So I have been focusing all my attention on that at the moment, and it has been so much fun to write. Please keep an eye out for it! It is P&P, of course, and I would love to hear what your guys think of it. It is pretty different from Without Reservation, but I'm pretty sure you will like it. If you follow me (shameless self-promotion going on here) you will be notified as soon as it is up! I have a few (actual) one-shot ideas floating around my head, so I may throw one or two of those up in the meantime, they are not all P&P though.

Once again, thank you to my spectacular beta, Centava99 – she would have dragged me over hot coals to get this chapter to you all and I wouldn't change her for the world!

Anyway, I really hope you all enjoy this chapter; it is dedicated to all of you. But most of all to the wonderful TMC, my best friend and one of the most miraculous people I have ever had the honour of knowing. Thank you so, so much for all your support and love - You mean the absolute world to me!

As usual, nothing recognisable is mine (but the new stuff is!)


Chapter Twelve

Lizzy's alarm sent her jolting upright in bed on Monday morning, rudely frightening her out of a deep sleep. She slammed her hand down on the clock, silencing it but also almost knocking it from her bedside table. Sighing, she flopped back down onto the mattress and waited for her heart to stop pounding, relishing a few more minutes immersed in the warmth of her covers. She wearily thought about the day ahead of her; as much as she loved her job, she feared today would be one of the less enjoyable days due to the article in The Sun over the weekend.
"Oh, stuff them." She groaned, rolling out of bed. She got on well with the majority of her colleagues and she didn't care for the opinion of those who would gossip. She just had to focus on her kids and their lessons. As she stumbled into the shower, she thought back on the weekend. She still felt a bit shocked from seeing Wickham and from the intense emotional rollercoaster the rest of her weekend had turned out to be. She sipped slowly at her morning cup of tea, dawdled through most of her routine and left her house rather late, hoping to avoid the morning gossip session of her workmates. She didn't particularly want to start her day with an interrogation; she knew her appearance in The Sun would be off the Richter scale in terms of office gossip.

She relished the walk to work, bundled up in a coat and scarf, with an umbrella firmly tucked under her arm and the crisp wind against her face. By the time she got into her classroom, she was glad for the cleaners who had gotten in early and turned the heater on for her, making it toasty warm and a nice contrast from the light rain that had just started to pick up outside. It was 8:20 and there were already children milling around, heading into the gym to escape the weather. Lizzy sat down behind her desk and pulled her laptop out of her bag, bringing up her lesson plans for the day. It was a decidedly ordinary Monday, with only the rehearsal at the end of the day to mix things up. At 8:50 the first bell rang and she waited for a couple of minutes before opening her classroom door to her twenty-four students lining up outside, waiting to be let into the room. Lizzy plastered a smile onto her face and stepped aside, clearing the way for the squealing voices, and grubby fingers that were her kids.


In Knightsbridge, Will hit the 'snooze' button on his alarm and pulled the blankets up to his chin, trying to keep the warmth in. He heard footsteps on the landing outside his room and the door to his room slowly opened. Before he put two and two together, a huge yellow shape leapt on top of his chest and began to lick his face.
"Georgie! Come and get this great big lump off of me!" He yelped, pulling the blankets over his head in an attempt to avoid the tongue of his Golden Retriever. He heard his sister's muffled giggle from the hallway beyond his room.
"No way! Misty needs to go outside and it's freezing out there; I've been taking her out all weekend." Her voice grew fainter as she began to walk away, presumably back to the warmth of her own bed. "And you'd better get up quickly, before someone has an accident!"
Will wormed his way out from under the dog and went downstairs, opening the door to the backyard. He stood on the back veranda, stamping his feet to keep his blood moving in the cold and keeping an eye on the dog lest she decide to take a mud bath.

When Misty had finished, Will dragged himself into the kitchen and turned the coffee machine on, watching the liquid drip down into his cup. He made Georgie's cup of tea in the meantime and carried it upstairs with his own cup when it was ready. He knocked on her door and opened it awkwardly. His sister was back under her covers with a book propped open on her knees. He passed her the tea and perched on the end of her bed, taking a sip from his own drink. Georgie marked her place in the book; Will noted it was one of her childhood favourites.
"So," she began. "How was your weekend?" She took a small sip of her tea, a small grin on her face.
"It was fine." Will replied, busying himself with his coffee.
"Oh, just 'fine' was it?" Georgie asked. "That's a bit rich. You're barely home and even when you are, you spend hours hiding in your office." She paused for another drink. "Oh, and how could I forget you showing up on page four of The Sun with some stunning mystery woman?" She levelled a cheeky grin at him. "That sounds a bit more than 'fine' to me, laddie-buck."
Will groaned and made himself comfortable, moving further onto her bed and leaning against the foot-board. He could sense an inquisition coming on.
"Why can't you still be six and more concerned with teddy bear tea parties than anything else?" He asked her. Georgie's only reply was a raised eyebrow and an expectant expression. Will took another drink in an effort to buy more time but her toes poking into his calves let him know that she wasn't going to wait long. He sighed before he began.
"It's complicated Georgie, I can't really talk about all of it. But," He said when he saw her open her mouth to interrupt. "Her name is Elizabeth and she is amazing."
"Will I get to meet her?" Georgie asked.
"Eventually, I hope so." He took another drink. "We are going out on Wednesday." Georgiana did what he suspected to be a seated equivalent of a happy-dance, taking care not to spill her tea.
"Well, I'm happy for you, Will." She said when she had finished. "Even if you are being very mysterious about it all. Hopefully she can help you avoid the clutches of the infamous Caroline Bingley." Will grimaced into his coffee as Georgie giggled.
"That's not funny." He grumbled, climbing from her bed. "What are your plans for today?" He asked when he was standing.
"I'm not sure yet." She replied, opening her book. "But I will let you know if I decide to go out."
"Thanks. I'll be in my office most of the day but I might meet up with Richard this afternoon." Georgie just nodded at him and waved him out of her room, already engrossed in the novel. Will chuckled and left, heading back to his room to get ready for the day.


Lizzy stumbled home just before 5:30, worn-out and slightly irate. Her day had begun reasonably well, with her students excited and full of stories about their weekend, such as their cousin's neighbour's new rabbit called Muffin or the airplane show they had gone to see (complete with sound-effects) and she had let them babble for ten minutes before telling them to settle down and take their seats. They set to work, as diligently as they could, on the task she set them and she had foolishly allowed herself to relax, hoping they were oblivious to her appearance in the paper over the weekend. That was until a little girl in grade one called Maisy (one of Lizzy's favourites, truth be told) came up to her shyly and asked if they would be invited to her wedding.
"What do you mean, sweetie?" Lizzy had asked her. Maisy then told her that her mother had showed her Lizzy's picture in the paper and when she had asked what a Duchess was, her mother had said that it was a lady who was married to a Duke, who was a very important person, a bit like a prince.
"Are you going to be a princess, Miss Bennet?" Maisy had asked, nearly causing Lizzy to fall off her chair in shock.
"No, sweetie, I'm not going to be a princess." She told the little girl, who looked a bit disappointed. "But, I promise that when I do get married, you can come to my wedding." This appeased the six year old who went back to her desk and promptly began a debate with the little boy beside her over why purple was a better colour than green. That was the beginning of a slew of comments and questions about The Sun article. She managed to stay in her classroom during recess, but had to venture into the staff room during the lunch hour and her colleagues took the opportunity to pounce. She had never been more glad for lunch to end and all but ran back to her classroom, looking forward to immersing herself in a rehearsal for the Christmas concert with her kids.

When the end of the day finally rolled around, Lizzy hung around to clean up and finish what work she could before beginning the trek home. She kicked her shoes across the room once she made it through her front door and moved tiredly to the kitchen to stare uninterestedly into the contents of her fridge. She always listened to music when she cooked, and tonight she let the amazing voice of Billie Holiday soothe her as she chopped vegetables and chicken, and, later, as she ate her dinner.


By the time Lizzy had finished eating, cleaned up the kitchen, watched the news followed by some mindless television program, then had a shower, it was close to 9 o'clock. She briefly pondered if it was too late to call Will, but she wanted to hear his voice, so she decided to risk it. She climbed under the covers of her bed to keep warm and pressed her phone to her ear, listening to it ring.

"Hello?"
"Mmm, say that again." She could hear Will chuckle from the other end of the phone.
"Hello?"
"I don't think I have ever been so glad to hear that word in my life." She said, burrowing further under her blankets.
"It sounds like you had a long day." She could hear him shifting around, presumably getting comfortable.
"Ugh, you have no idea. You try controlling twenty-four five, six and seven year olds who are all incredibly excited that their teacher is famous and in the newspaper and the gossiping of your workmates and then add a rehearsal for an end-of-year concert on top of that and tell me how you fare!"
"Aha! So you're a teacher?"
"Blimey, didn't I tell you that?" She was once again hit by how little they each knew about the other.
"Blimey? Really?" She heard him chuckle. "And no you didn't."
"Shut up, I love that word." She scolded with a laugh. "Yeah, I'm a teacher, I have been for five years now; I love it." Lizzy thought back to her first year on the job, before she had met Wickham and her life had taken a turn for the worse. She had been young and enthusiastic and had completely loved her job; teaching had to be one of the most rewarding jobs around. Even on the rare bad days, she could count on one of her students saying something completely outrageous that would cheer her up. Kids came out with the best one-liners.
"Did you always want to be a teacher?'
"I think so… after the obligatory stage in every girls life of wanting to be a cat, of course." She heard him chuckle again and her stomach did little flips. "I love kids and being able to watch them grasp a concept or learn a new word that they have been struggling with is amazing. And being the one that helps them get there is just priceless." She smiled giddily.
"I understand what you mean. I used to love reading with my sister when she was younger and helping her with the trickier words." Lizzy pictured a much smaller version of Will sitting on the floor with a little girl reading Beatrix Potter. She smiled at the image.
"What about you?" She asked. "If you could have been anything you wanted, what would it have been?"
"Hmm, other than the year I wanted to be a games show presenter, I'm assuming?"
"Yeah, other than that." Lizzy laughed.
"Well, I suppose I would have wanted to be a psychologist."
"Really?" Lizzy asked. Whatever answer she had been expecting, it certainly wasn't this.
"Yeah. One that worked with children preferably. I actually did a few subjects in it while I was at university."
"Why?" She wanted to know what would make a man who seemed so well suited to the life he led want to be something completely different. But she heard him exhale loudly at her question. "I'm sorry, you don't have to tell me."
"No, no, it's fine." She heard him shift in his seat.
"Are you sure?"
"Completely" She waited patiently for him to continue. "My mum died when I was fifteen and Georgiana, my sister, was six. She had cancer; the doctors caught it too late and it was so aggressive that she was gone before we really had time to even register her illness."
"Oh, Will, I'm so sorry." Lizzy whispered.
"It's fine." He said. "Well, it's not 'fine', but I've come to terms with it; it was a long time ago. Sometimes I wonder how hard it must be for Georgie; she barely remembers her, but I can tell her stories and we still have lots of photos. They have the same eyes. Dad died eight years later; he had a stroke. Heart disease ran in his family and he was quite a bit older than mum when they married. That left me as Georgie's legal guardian and was how I became the youngest Duke in the House of Lords; I was twenty-three. I went a little wild for a few months after the funeral. You know, shirked all my responsibilities; lots of countries, lots of booze… the press had a field day. They called me The Little 'Lost' Prince." Lizzy sat silently for a while, absorbing his story.
"What made you come back?" She asked.
"Richard." Will stated simply and Lizzy thought back to the man she had met on Friday night. "Charles came with me, probably to watch out for me, but he thought that this was my way of coping and was too afraid that I might snap if he told me to go home. I think he expected me to just pull myself together eventually." He paused and chuckled a little. "Richard had no such qualms. He charged into Barcelona, shouted at me for two days, reminded me that there was a fourteen year old girl who had just lost her father and was scared that she would lose her brother, too. He did a bit of damage control and dragged me home by my ear and with my tail between my legs. I don't think even my father ever yelled at me like Richard did over those couple of days. He probably got some perverse enjoyment out of it too." Lizzy laughed softly with him.
"Well, it's lucky you had him." She said.
"Yeah, it really was." She could tell he was remembering that time from the tone of his voice. She thought back over the story and one part stood out to her.
"One of my students said something interesting today." She began. "Or rather, asked something interesting."
"Yeah?"
"She saw the article and asked her mother what a Duchess was. Her mother told her that it was someone who was married to a Duke, who was a bit like a prince. Then she asked me if that meant I was going to be a princess. After I laughed at that, it got me thinking. A Duke is a pretty high title; how close are you to the throne?" She blushed a little as Will laughed on the other end of the phone, feeling a bit foolish.
"Don't worry," He began. "I'm not about to become King or anything like that."
"I figured that much." Lizzy replied. "I know there are quite a few people in line after our current monarch, but still…"
"Fair enough. Well, I am in the line of succession, but, as it stands, I think about twenty or twenty-five people would have to, erm, die before I ever sat on the throne." Lizzy couldn't help but let out a little chuckle at his words and heard Will join her. "Well, it doesn't sound like you're too disappointed at the thought of not being a princess."
"Believe it or not, it doesn't actually tickle my fancy that much." She laughed, struck by herself in a tiara and a gown reminiscent of something one would find in a Disney movie.
"Understandable." He replied. "So what else happened today?" Lizzy smiled and launched into an account of her day, slightly surprised by how willing she was to tell him every little detail: the rehearsal, the funny anecdotes and the teasing she received from the other teachers. In return, he told her about his own day, from the antics of his dog carrying around her beloved teddy bear from her puppy days to how sick he was of the never-ending streams of emails that flooded his inbox. They talked for over an hour before they finally got to the topic of their date on Wednesday night.
"So, where are we going?" Lizzy asked.
"I could tell you," Will replied. "But then I would have to kill you and, frankly that would be a waste."
"Charming!" Lizzy laughed "How am I supposed to decide what to wear if I have no idea where we are going?"
"Anything you wear will be perfect." He soothed. Lizzy groaned in reply.
"You are such a man." She told him, shaking her head though she knew he could not see it.
"And you love it." She could hear the laughter in his voice and couldn't help but join in. However, she refused to dignify his comment with a response, even though she was giddy over his words. "Just dress nice and you will be fine."
Lizzy huffed, teased and pleaded some more, but Will refused to give anything away. She eventually gave up and he told her he would pick her up at 7pm on Wednesday. They softly said their goodnights and both fell asleep smiling.