A/N: Thank you for all the comments, reviews, adding to favorites and alerts - it is greatly appreciated. Please enjoy, and please read the longer author's note at the end... -DCM
Chapter 21
Most of the guests moved to the indoor courtyard following dinner, the noise of festivity escalating as the hour grew late. There was a hum of excitement boosted by alcohol and a feeling of rising intimacy among the guests, fostered by lighting that grew dimmer as they neared midnight.
The adults mingled in small circles, all armed with the requisite champagne flutes to welcome the new year. Those under twelve took to the cushions on the floor, their formal clothes forgotten as they sat cross-legged, sipping on mugs of sweet cocoa. It was barely ten minutes till midnight, and the show was about to commence.
Richard had announced that he needed to work the room after receiving his sister's admonishment, leaving the ladies alone. Somehow sensing an awkwardness she could not fully understand, Nathalie's nature led her to make light of the situation. She steered the conversation into tales of girlhood mischief and soon both Elizabeth and Georgiana were giggling softly. Not long after they were joined by Charles and Jane, cheeks flushed from dancing and ready to collect their daughter. Andrea eagerly settled into her father's arms, letting out a yawn.
"If she needs to nap, you can use one of the guestrooms," Nathalie offered, and Jane graciously said her thanks.
"After midnight," Charles appealed, and Jane patted his arm.
"Of course, dear."
"This will be her first time to see fireworks." Richard returned to the group with William in tow, the former bearing a bottle of champagne in his right hand. Both stood next to their sisters.
Catching Elizabeth's eye, William nodded towards the glass ceiling and she raised her head just in time to catch the first sparks of color light up the sky. Gasps of delight echoed around the room.
"Ready to ring in the new year?"
Georgiana raised her glass. "To a fabulous year ahead!"
"To holidays," Nathalie chimed in. Richard grinned at his sister.
"To family."
"To old friends," William declared, tilting his glass.
"And new beginnings," Lizzy added, smiling up at him. There was a hush, and then the countdown began.
"Ten… " An explosion of silvery-white glitter remained in the air for seconds, drawing excited cries from the crowd.
"Nine… eight… " Richard hurried to fill Nathalie's glass, then Georgiana's, Lizzy's, and Jane's, the girls giggling at the anxious expression on his face.
"Seven… six… " Andrea, feeling the excitement in the air, began clapping her hands together, much to the amusement of - well, everyone in their group.
"Five… four…" The children had moved to press their noses against the windows, their breath fogging up the cool glass.
"Three… two… one! Happy New Year!"
The sound of cheering and tinkling glass echoed throughout the room. Hugs were exchanged, cheeks kissed and more glasses refilled as they all toasted to the new year. Georgiana gave her brother's arm a subtle squeeze before disappearing into the small crowd, following Richard and Nathalie as they went to find the other members of their family.
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The party was winding down, with the clock nearing one in the morning. Shortly after his sister left with Richard and Nathalie, the Bingleys went off to find an unoccupied guest room to settle Andrea in.
Some new acquaintances and his cousins came by with their families to share well-wishes, and once introductions were made, William found himself amazed by how effortlessly Elizabeth made friends with everyone. Had it been the other way around, he would have kept silent after the requisite greetings were exchanged, with his participation in the conversation limited to brief remarks on the subject of interest.
When Oliver and Cassandra excused themselves from their conversation, he lost track of the others and contented himself with being a passive participant once more. William watched her discreetly, paying little notice to the topics at hand, realizing too late that not only had other people joined their group - but that one person of particular significance had, and she was currently shaking hands with Elizabeth.
"I'm sure you get this all the time, but I love your accent," she said.
His attention now captured, William focused his gaze on Elizabeth and when she glanced his way, he wondered if he imagined the teasing glint in her eyes.
"Do you like dancing, Adrienne?"
'Apparently not,' he thought, pursing his lips together and turning his head to hide his expression of amusement.
"So do I," Elizabeth replied. "I think there are fewer things in life that are as mutually gratifying."
"Assuming that the partners liked each other," Adrienne offered.
"Yes, but then why ask someone you didn't really like to dance?" At this William looked to her and she met his gaze squarely, the ghost of a smile on her lips.
"A valid point," he acknowledged, tipping his glass towards her, and she gave him a smug smile. At that Lizzy turned back to face Adrienne, and he bowed down his head to hide his own grin.
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"I'm glad for our little cottage. I can't imagine how I would be able to keep a place this big this clean all the time!"
Charles gave his wife a grin as he fluffed the pillows and placed them to border Andrea, who slumbered quietly on her stomach, her thumb in her mouth. "I'm sure they have a staff for that, dear." He watched as she continued to inspect the room - running her finger on the tables and window ledges - and chuckled. He had long lost count of how much champagne she had consumed, but her behaviour pretty much gave it away. The night was proving to be almost too much for her to handle. He glanced at his daughter's head and sat on the bed beside her.
"We should get out more, shouldn't we?"
Jane looked over her shoulder at him, holding the heavy curtains to one side of the large-paned window. "Hmm?"
"Come sit here with me," he urged, and after giving him a charmingly dopey smile, she obeyed. He took her hands and twined their fingers together. "I'm the luckiest man in the world... ringing in the new year with my two angels."
She leaned towards him and fluttered her eyelashes before letting out a huge yawn, and he laughed softly, pulling her closer as he shifted on the bed.
"I think you, my darling wife, would do well with a nap."
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Georgiana watched as her cousin took a quick look around the room before putting her feet up on the lacquered coffee table. Nathalie gave her a wry smile.
"These heels are killing me."
"And I suppose it helps that both Uncle Matthew and Aunt Sarah have already said their goodnights," she giggled.
"Yes," she grinned. "That too."
They sat in silence for a while, sipping on their drinks as they burrowed deeper into the cushions, listening to the muffled medley of party noise: music, laughter, the hum of conversation from all corners of the house.
"How are Margaret and Anne? Did you see them over Christmas?" Nathalie asked, referring to the Darcy cousins she had spent some summers with growing up.
"No, Anne got engaged early this year - to Marco, this lovely Italian man. Margaret, Uncle Simon, Aunt Louise - they all went with her to Sicily. Palermo, I think. The wedding is in September, and I think you're all invited."
"That's lovely! We could go a week ahead and do some shopping in Rome," Nathalie suggested, giving her a look. "Oh that's if you can get a week off from the academy."
"It's my last year; that means my schedule will be quite flexible."
"What are you two hiding out in here for?" Richard squeezed next to his sister on the chaise, drawing giggles from the two girls. "I thought you girls liked a good party."
"We do, but our toes - mine, definitely - do not exactly feel the same way," Nathalie snickered.
"I suppose you're too tired to dance with your old brother," he bemoaned.
"Of course not! You, however, in your advanced age, might be," she teased, and he turned to Georgiana.
"How about you, Georgiana? Do you give William attitude like my little sister here?" He winked at his cousin, grinning when she shook her head shyly.
"No, but he says I'm far too good, and I say the same about him."
"Look at you getting all weepy on us. That's enough alcohol for you." Nathalie teased, grabbing the wineglass from her cousin's hand.
"Now where is that good brother of yours anyway?"
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William found himself alone with Elizabeth for the first time tonight, and felt a sense of ease. Those with children had said their farewells, and most of the few guests that remained had moved indoors.
The glass doors leading to the house had been kept open, and music drifted out from the hall. She fiddled with her glass and looked up at him, smiling briefly. He placed his empty glass on a nearby surface and held out his hand to her.
"This was the very song Adrienne and I danced to."
Her eyebrow rose and she chuckled, under her breath, before placing her hand in his. "Planning to impress me with your skills?"
His lips quirked up in reply and then they were dancing, moving elegantly across the grey stone floor, their feet stepping in time to the rhythm. She was definitely surprised: the motions were nothing less than traditional, and he led their feet across the floor so well.
"I have to admit that was very sweet. I can't imagine you getting up the nerve to dance in front of a huge crowd, knowing how much you hate being the center of attention."
"Under the right circumstances, I can be persuaded to do a lot of things." He spun her around and she stared at him in open-mouthed wonder.
"Who are you, and what have you done to William Darcy?"
William's raised eyebrow accompanied his smirk. He finished the waltz with an unconventional flourish, twirling her around once more before stepping forward, placing his right leg between hers and bending her slightly backwards, his left arm holding her tight against his hips. A delighted giggle escaped her lips and he smiled indulgently at her, straightening back up slowly.
Short of breath and standing much closer to him than when they had started, she tilted her face up to him. "Now I know why you got that kiss."
Her tone, initially teasing, had faded to a soft whisper at the word kiss, and the smile on her face, initially cheeky, had quickly disappeared. Her lips had parted slightly; her quiet breathing shallow.
William stared at her, his face hovering a breath away from hers. He lowered his right hand to linger by her waist. There was a time when he would not have hesitated; a time when he would have been used to her teasing and would have, pulled her close for a kiss. But there was too much history between them, too little said, and far too much he needed to think about. He blinked, lifted his head and pulled her to his chest for a quick embrace.
"Happy new year, Elizabeth."
A/N: Thanks for making it to the end. This is the part where I let you all know that I will be going on a 15-day vacation beginning next week, and will be doing my very best to post while I am away... but that I am making no promises, as I will be in an entirely different country (continent actually). Rest assured this story is a work in progress - progress being the operative word. :) -DCM