Title: A Love for All Seasons
Rating: T (PG-13) – for implied sexy times and potty mouths. Not premium channel swearing, only network TV.
Disclaimer: Though I write stories based on the novels and characters of Jane Austen, this work belongs to ME and no one else. Unless given express permission, no one besides myself has the right to distribute or profit from my intellectual property. All rights reserved.
Setting: Modern AU
PSA: I hope that you and yours are safe and healthy during the COVID-19 crisis. Take precautions for yourself and others and please don't hoard any goods that your family doesn't need; we're all in this together, even while we remain physically apart.
Follow Me: Facebook (Mary Smythe; look for the lady in red), Twitter MrsMarySmythe and Pinterest mrsmarysmythe

Summary: In the fall they get off to a rocky start. In the winter they learn to understand each other better. By the time the weather grows hot, so do their feelings...Collection of connected, holiday themed OneShots featuring the evolution of Darcy and Lizzy's relationship. Modern AU.

"Miss Bennet, I am shocked and astonished. I expected to find a more reasonable young woman. But do not deceive yourself into a belief that I will ever recede. I shall not go away, till you have given me the assurance I require."

"And I certainly never shall give it."

– Lady Catherine de Bourgh and Elizabeth Bennet, Pride and Prejudice, Vol III, Ch 14

Mother's Day

Mother F-

SUNDAY

MAY 9, 2021

"Did you tell your mom yet?"

I watched my relatively, but not really, new fiancé closely as I posed the above question and had all the satisfaction of seeing his eyes widen and his coffee cup come to a sudden standstill before it reached his mouth. He looked up at me and stared back, maybe hoping that I'd show him mercy and let the subject drop if he appeared pitiful enough.

Pfft, keep dreaming, buddy. That's not the girl you're marrying.

I crossed my arms and leaned back against his island countertop, glaring and waiting. Will set his coffee down beside his phone—which he'd also been messing with before I'd dropped the Mom Bomb—on the kitchen table and slowly turned toward me. Easy like, as if he were afraid a sudden movement might make me lunge. (He was probably right, too; my patience on this subject has been wearing decidedly thin for weeks now.)

"Uh…not yet."

"Still?"

"That's right."

"Will."

"I know, I know!" Will made a sound that sounded like something between a groan and a sigh—a grigh?—and slumped bonelessly in his chair. "I'm going to, I swear. Is there really any rush, though?"

I tamped down the impulse to pour my orange juice into his lap. No sense wasting perfectly good OJ just because I was mad. And, honestly, a teensy bit afraid of what was about to come next.

"Are you serious? We're getting married, Will! Eventually, she's going to wonder why that detestable farm girl has bling on her finger and lives here with you instead of under a pile of hay." I paused here to glare at him, my nostrils undoubtedly flaring. "Unless you're not telling her about our engagement because you don't think it's going to get that far."

There. I'd said it. I'd been holding it in for awhile, but I just had to get the question out there—was he having second thoughts? If it weren't for the dragging of Will's feet over telling his parents about our engagement, I wouldn't have even considered it, but it bothered me so much that he was essentially hiding the news from them. He'd already implied last fall that he was doing me a favor to so much as ask me out, so…yeah. I won't lie, I was scared that he was planning to dump me.

I apparently didn't need to worry, though. Instead of asking my pitiful question, I might as well have jabbed Will with a cattle prod, he leapt up so fast. He was across the kitchen and pulling me into his arms before I could so much as blink. "God, no! That's definitely not why!"

Damn him for smelling so good. Like clean laundry and delicious man-musk. I buried my nose in Will's T-shirt and gave him a good, calming sniff. I even reveled in it a bit, closing my eyes and basking in the way my brain lit up with wonder at his scent. I attributed it to so many wonderful things now.

My voice might have been a bit dreamy and less accusatory than I'd meant it to be when I'd replied, "Then what's the problem? Are you ashamed of me still?"

Will's arms tightened around me. "No, of course not. You know, I don't think I've regretted saying anything in my life more than that shit I said to you at Thanksgiving…"

"Not even 'tolerable, but not sexy enough to be tempting'?"

"It's a tie."

I snorted into his shirt and burrowed deeper.

"It really has nothing to do with you, Lizzy. I mean it. If I'm ashamed of anyone, it's Mother." I felt the rush of a sigh against my scalp almost the same moment as his kiss. "You've met her. She's impossible to please."

I pulled back just enough to look up into Will's face, but I wasn't about to let him go completely. I think we both needed the comfort for this conversation. "So I'm guessing she's not going to be happy with our news?"

Will winced slightly at my sarcasm, but nodded. "Don't take it personally. She was mad when I went to Duke and not Yale. Never mind that she'd already gotten her way when I'd dropped out of culinary school."

"The horror."

"And you remember that woman she brought to New Years?"

I couldn't help but snicker. "How could I forget Queen Lee-za?"

"I'd rather wish she'd forget me." Will shuddered and pulled me closer. "Mother gave her my number and she still texts me. You'd think she'd have given up by now, but obviously not."

"Points for persistence, I guess."

"No. No points for anything. That'll just encourage her."

Will's pretty adorable when he pouts, did you know? His forehead gets all wrinkly and his head sags, but the best part is how his lower lip juts out just a teensy bit. I'm entirely serious; he does the sad little boy thing and sticks his lip out. It might be obnoxious if it weren't so endearing.

So I gave him a kiss to tuck it back into place and Will responded sweetly, cupping the side of my face with one hand while the other remained at my waist. It was just a quick one, nothing raunchy in the middle of our serious conversation, and then I pulled away to rest my cheek over his heart. "I assume Lee-za is more the type of girl you mother wants you to bring home?"

"More like she wants to select my wife herself." I could hear the exasperation in Will's tone. "Then, naturally, she would decide where we should live, which cars we should drive, how many kids to have—and when we should have them—where those kids should go to school…I think she'd even come over and pick out my clothes before work if I let her."

Ugh. I know I complain about my mom and her meddling silliness a lot, but wow. Mom might have set me up on a few too many blind dates with her friends' children, or embarrassed me at some school functions once upon a time, and yeah she kinda messed up my boyfriend's proposal recently, but ultimately she lets me make my own decisions. Okay, sure, she probably would have threatened to never speak to me again had I refused to marry Will (because my mother is nothing if not outrageously hysterical when she doesn't get her way), but I'd probably only have endured her silent treatment for about ten minutes. Fifteen, tops.

At the end of the day, I know that Mom loves me unconditionally, something I'm not sure Will can say about Annette; sounds like her approval has a lot of strings attached. All the more reason to be thankful for Barbara Bennet every Mother's Day.

Suddenly, I wanted to get back to Meryton a bit early and go see her. Give her a hug.

I slid out of Will's arms enough so that I could look up at him again. "You still have to tell her."

Will's head drooped. The pouty lip was puckered up again, but I had to be strong against it. "I know."

"Call her? Today?"

"It's Mother's Day!"

"All the more reason to tell her your good news." I lifted both my eyebrows at him and straightened out my mouth into a thin line. He knows what that look means.

Will gusted out a capitulating sigh. "Fine. I'll do it today."

See? I've got him trained and we're not even married yet. Were I not such a phenomenal fiancée, I'd have fist pumped to my victory.

Instead, since I am the best (and hopefully the only) fiancée he'll ever have, I go for the positive reinforcement instead. "Good boy." I said, not at all patronizingly, and leaned forward and give him one more kiss, lingering a bit. "See you at Longbourn this afternoon?"

"I'll be there."

"Don't forget the eclairs. Or the kebabs."

"I won't, jeeze…"

I laughed at Will's eyeroll and disentangled myself from him entirely. It was time to get dressed and get back to the farm to help Jenn with our brunch plans. "You'd better get used to the nagging, dude. I hear wives do a lot of it."

I dodged out of the way with a giggle when Will swatted playfully at my ass, then scurried faster as he approached to do it again. I'm betting the neighbors on either side of us heard me squeal as I ran up the stairs to the master bedroom, Will in hot pursuit.

o0o

"We could always do a double wedding, save you guys some money."

After casually dropping that one—I was really on top of unleashing conversational A-bombs that day—I sank deeper into the comfy patio chair I was occupying to enjoy the fallout. Predictably, my dear mother clasped a hand to her heart and stared at me as if I'd just suggested Will and I get married on the Black Sabbath and sacrifice a goat for the reception. My sister Jenn just pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head as if in disapproval, though I could see her fighting not to smile.

"A double wedding?" Mom paused here to insert one of her patented dramatic gasps, the kind one only learns from daytime soap operas. "Elizabeth Ehle Bennet, what on Earth are you thinking? No one does double weddings anymore! And you would steal Jenn's thunder, after all she's done for you?"

I shrugged and replied, with as much affected innocence as possible, "It was just a thought. Dad would love the idea." And he probably would. My dad hates "wedding nonsense" and he's already been living with it, and my mother's increasing enthusiasm for it, for more than six months already. If he could marry both his daughters off on a single day and get it all over with he would undoubtedly jump at the chance. And then go hibernate in his den until spring.

Unfortunately for him, "no one does double weddings anymore" and so he'll have to suffer through Mom's wedding fervor until at least next summer, which is when Will and I have (tentatively) decided to hold our own nuptials. Jenn and Chad are getting hitched at the end of September—roughly five months and counting from now—and everyone's looking forward to it, but the stress of planning it has got everyone but Mom down.

It's going to be a huge affair at the Ballantyne Hotel over in South Charlotte, a swanky, high end and dare I say elegant location for what Mom wants to believe is a society wedding. We're talking a fully catered, sit-down meal, chandeliers, covered chairs, open bar, designer wedding cake, bling everywhere…all those wedding buzz words that Mom keeps filling up my email inbox with (according to Jenn, the bombardment will only get worse the closer we get to The Big Day). Should be tasteful and refined, or so the on-site wedding coordinator assures us frequently. With Momzilla on the loose, though…well, I hope sweet little Miss Price has the gumption to tell Mom no occasionally or else the event is going to be a crystal-encrusted hellscape of frills and blood. We're talking Red Wedding if someone doesn't curb Mom's expectations soon.

Anyway. Jenn, who has always been more girly-girl than myself, is on board with having a large, expensive event and a big poufy dress, but not me so much. It's a good thing that Mom has Jenn to live vicariously through, because me and Will are going to do something much, much, much, much more scaled down. It's my intention—though I haven't the heart to break it to Mom yet who has already dropped hints about hosting the wedding at Pemberley—to get married at Longbourn Acres and have a country chic theme. You know, burlap artfully hung everywhere, mason jars and tea light centerpieces, adorably quirky photos with the bride and groom in rubber boots…that kind of thing. And I'm not inviting two hundred people, either, maybe not even half that. Just people that we know and love us and who wish us well.

I can see by the look on your face that you're skeptical of my eventual success. Well, as much as Mom usually gets her way, she has one Achilles heel to exploit: the desire for a rich son-in-law. All I have to do—and Will is on board with this, even if he seems kinda skittish about it—is tell her that my groom wants to keep things simple and she'll have to cave. Mua-ha! Also, I'm not a monster; I'll let her DIY a bunch of stuff (she lives for crafting) to make up for the lack of "refinement." She'll like that, especially if I agree to do it with her (you have no idea what kind of sacrifice that is for me, ugh).

But anyway, back to our regularly scheduled programming:

"Who cares what your father thinks? What do men know about weddings?"

Seeing that Mom was getting kinda worked up, Jenn reached out and patted her on her convulsively clenched hand. "Lizzy's kidding, Mom. She doesn't really want a double wedding. Do you, Lizzy?"

I giggled at Jenn's bug-eyed, don't-you-dare-argue-with-me expression and showed some mercy. "Just teasing."

My mother pressed the back of her hand to her eyes with one hand while still clutching at her heart with the other. "You will be the death of me one day, Lizzy Bennet!"

Is it wrong to think she's kind of adorable when she's being all crazy like this? I mean, yeah, it can be super annoying at the wrong moment—such as when one's boyfriend wants to propose—but in a controlled environment it's more endearing than anything. I suspect it's why Dad likes to rile her up so much all the time.

Since we'd already had a delicious brunch and given Mom her gifts, we, her dutiful daughters, were out on the front porch and indulging her with wedding planning. Mom's been strategizing how to marry us off since we were kids—no, really, she even made us dress up as brides for Halloween one year when I was six; boy was she pissed when Dad helped me Goth it up so I could be a Black Widow instead—and so the greatest kindness we could show her on Mother's Day was to let her fantasize without complaint or evasion. Dad had left us to our "wedding nonsense" and disappeared into his den to watch ESPN and take a nap. Chad was visiting the "Brawling Bingleys" with Carrie, albeit reluctantly, and Will, who had some work to do (practically every holiday is a crunch for grocery stores), wasn't expected to show up for another hour or two. All in all, the world was at peace until a shiny new BMW turned off of the main road and trundled up the drive.

At first, I didn't think much about our unexpected visitor, figuring that they just needed to turn around. Happens all the time out on a two-lane, no passing road out in the sticks. But the Beemer didn't swivel around at the end of the drive, it kept coming until it was right in front of our garage, blocking in Jenn's car. Mom was chattering to my sister about some minute detail of the flower arrangements and Jenn was humoring her, so neither of them seemed to notice that our party wasn't so private any longer. But I was watching with confused interest and so I witnessed the moment that Annette de Bourgh climbed out and fixed me with a glare so hateful that I might have burst into flames had it been possible.

Mother f—

The slamming of the car door brought the attention of my mother and sister to Annette's presence and they looked up. Mom, of course, didn't know Annette from Adam, but Jenn's eyebrows flew upward with recognition and then she turned to face me. I shrugged, affecting confusion as to my future mother-in-law's presence, though truthfully I suspected why she was there. Anticipating all kinds of unpleasantness, I drew in a deep breath and steeled myself.

We all stood as Annette tromped up the front steps, looking stylish yet overdressed in a pink suit jacket, matching skirt and short heels. Classic Chanel. Her burgundy red hair, a shade which never occurs in nature, was perfectly coiffed into a long bob that brushed the shoulders of her jacket. Very prim, very proper altogether. Lady shivered in the crook of her arm until she spotted me, then yipped and began struggling to get down, completely trashing the cool, resolute image that Annette was attempting to project.

"I hope you are well, Miss Bennet," was Annette's opening salvo, though she said it as if she actually hoped the opposite were true. Her eyes darted momentarily to Mom and Jenn, as if just noticing them there for the first time, and belatedly commented, "I suppose the lady next to you must be your mother."

As she was rudely inserting herself into our Mother's Day celebration, it was a fairly obvious guess. "She is. Mom, this is Annette de Bourgh, Will's mother. Mrs de Bourgh, this is my mom, Barbara Bennet."

Once Mom realized who the stranger was, her face lit up and she held her hand out. Annette just looked at it, as if my mom were visibly crawling with COVID germs, and shuffled half a step back. Mom withdrew it, laughing, and said, "Oh, forgive me! After more than a year, you'd think I'd learn, but I guess some habits just can't be broken. Welcome to our home, Annette, it's lovely to meet you at last."

Annette's mouth puckered slightly more. "Charmed, I'm sure." She went on to acknowledge Jenn's presence as well and they traded distant greetings, one cool and the other leery.

Mom's eyes then dropped to the squirming bundle clinging to Annette's elbow and I swear I saw hearts bloom in her eyes. My mother adores dogs, the foofier the better, and Yorkies are one of her favorite breeds. She loves any creature who will allow her to dote on them endlessly. "And who is this?"

Annette replied without so much as glancing down at Lady. "This is Lady Anne."

Mom reached out and plucked Lady from an astonished Annette and brought the trembling dog right up to her face, at which point Lady began bathing her nose with rapid kisses. Love at first sight. "Who's a sweet girl? Yous a sweet girl!"

Poor Mom. Ever since Kit—the fluffy Pomeranian whom my father had ironically dubbed Kitty, just to irritate his long-suffering wife—had passed two years ago, she hadn't been able to bring herself to adopt another dog. Maybe it was time to surprise her with a new friend, though.

"Where are my manners? Annette, do take a seat and join us." Mom waved her hand at the porch swing and wicker furniture which made up our seating area. Lady, who was possibly the least loyal dog I'd ever met, happily remained in her lap and reveled in the belly rubs she was receiving from Mom. Annette simply glared at the scene, though didn't move a single hair to get her dog back.

Sneering, Annette declined my mother's hospitality with only the barest amount of politeness possible. "I'd rather not. In fact, after such a long drive, I would like to take a walk and see this farm you've told me so much about, Miss…Lizzy." Had I shoved a fistful of manure in her mouth, I don't think she could have forced her request out with more distaste.

Okay, I rescind my judgement over Lady's defection. Bitch.

Sensing that Annette had dropped by for the sole purpose of yelling at me for the audacity of agreeing to marry her son, I determined that it was for the best to let her do it in relative privacy rather than allowing her to ruin my mom's day. So, I forced a smile and indicated that Annette should precede me back down the front steps. "Certainly. It's just across the road."

"Lizzy." Jenn's voice held me back just as I was about to follow and I turned back. My sister, having heard all about my worries over Will telling his mother about our engagement and remembering Annette from his disastrous New Years Eve party, looked concerned. Mom, beside her, just seemed a touch befuddled and maybe mildly put out. Lady noticed nothing as Mom's hand hadn't stopped scratching her for so much as an instant during our exchange.

I kept my fake smile plastered in place and said, "We'll be right back." Jenn didn't look terribly comforted, but what else could I do? Let the landmine that was Annette de Bourgh explode all over them? My family didn't deserve to get caught in the crossfire of her outrage.

So, I led the scowling Annette back down the drive and across the road to Longbourn Acres, building up my courage for the confrontation I knew was coming toward me like a freight train. Just like a freight train, there wouldn't be any stopping it, either, only standing back at a safe distance until it passed.

I stopped walking once we'd rounded the backside of the barn, placing a physical barrier between ourselves and my family. I knew that there was no way that Mom or Jenn could possibly hear us from such a distance, but it made me feel better to think there was one more thing in place to protect them from Annette's fury and disdain. No doubt it would be mighty. Plus, the backdrop of fledgling corn to one side and strawberry plants behind my adversary—we're never open for U-Pick on Mother's Day, family tradition—made me feel better. Maybe because it placed her squarely on my turf. She certainly looked out of place, like a countess paying a call on a lowly peasant.

Without even a hint of further preamble, Annette jumped right into it. "I'm sure you know why I'm here."

Can anyone say DUH? But I wanted to make her work for it, so I played dumb. "Sorry, can't say that I do."

"Don't play games with me, Miss Bennet," replied her ladyship in an angry tone, straightening up and sticking her nose into the air. "I don't appreciate it in the slightest, nor will I tolerate it. Those who know me know that I prefer to be direct and that I despise coy upstarts. But, if you won't take this matter seriously, then I will.

"I received a call from my son this morning in which he told me some disturbing news. He informed me that not only had he been seeing you behind my back, but that he'd actually proposed to you a month ago. He wouldn't listen to reason and so here I am."

My responding sarcasm was unmistakable, but I kept my voice level and calm. "And I suppose you didn't drive four hours to give me your congratulations in person?"

"Hardly!" Annette looked affronted at the very idea. Had she been wearing pearls, she would have been clutching them. "I'm here to insist that you break off this ridiculous engagement immediately."

Well, she certainly wasn't kidding when she'd claimed to be direct. Blunt and officious, more like. And to think I once thought Will the rudest person I'd ever met! But no, his mother is infinitely worse than he ever was, even at his most snotty.

"I'm sorry you feel that way," I said, doing my best to keep my tone civil, "but I'm going to have to decline."

"You will do exactly as I say!"

I wanted to snort and roll my eyes at her, but really. One of us had to set the standard for politeness. "I understand that you're disappointed, but you have no right to ask me to break up with your son. Our relationship is our business, not yours."

Annette's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. "I am his mother, I brought him into the world and I am his closest kin." Apparently, Georgia and Will's dad didn't count. "Therefore, I am entitled to know everything about his life."

I crossed my arms over my chest and planted my feet firmly in the dirt. "Even if that were true—and it's honestly not—you're still not entitled to know anything about mine, nor do you have a say in my choices."

Annette scoffed and tossed her hair. "And if he's already spoken for? What then? How would you feel to know that you're the other woman?"

I was skeptical and I let it show on my face. "Oh? And who am I supposedly displacing?"

"Liza Elliot."

My snort could not be contained after that supposed revelation, something Annette did not appreciate in the slightest. "How dare you? Liza is a respectable girl from a good family, not some—some gold-digging tramp who lives like a farm animal! Are you really so cold hearted as to ignore the wishes of everyone around you just to have your way?"

I might as well have asked her that question. "I'm sorry, but even if he did have some sort of romantic relationship with Liza—and I have it on good authority that he doesn't—you still have no right to march yourself over here and butt into our relationship like this. Will asked me to marry him, I accepted. He's his own man and he makes his own choices. If I'm that choice, you'll just have to live with it."

"No!" Annette actually stomped her foot like a toddler in the midst of a tantrum. "I won't have you ruin his life! If he marries you, he'll be the laughingstock of all good society. No one will even acknowledge you as his wife, you'll be shunned by everyone who matters. Your children will be denied entry into the best schools, the best opportunities. You will be a pariah to all his family and friends."

"As unfortunate as that would be," no, I couldn't keep the disdainful irony out of my voice, "I'm not going to break up with Will just to please a bunch of people I don't even know. Besides, if they're really so prejudiced, something tells me I don't want to know them anyway, much less have them around my future children. Anybody with half a brain would have too much sense to 'shun' me just because I grew up without a silver spoon jammed into my mouth. Further, I'm sure any happiness I have with your son will more than make up for being on the outs with 'good society.'" Oh yeah, I totally gave her the finger air quotes, too. She's lucky I didn't give her a different finger gesture altogether.

By the end of my little speech, Annette was almost as deeply red as her hair, which I didn't think boded well for her general health. She looked ready to pop. "You obstinate—headstrong—I won't stand for this! You will give me what I came for."

"Unlikely."

My flippant answer only encouraged Annette to prolong her rant, which was now punctuated by flailing hands and stomping feet. No doubt her expensive-looking shoes were completely ruined by doing so; nothing gets red mud out of white suede. "My son is meant for better things than you! Liza is from a distinguished family, one which can trace its line back to the very first settlers, and mine goes nearly as far back. I'm sure even you know the illustrious history of the Darcys."

Annette marched closer until we were practically bumping noses and poked me, hard, in the center of my chest. I stumbled slightly, more surprised than anything, and scrambled out of spittle-range. "And what should keep them apart? A nobody. A nobody who grew up in a muddy backwater with pigs, scampering about the countryside in bare feet and overalls, a piece of hay in her teeth. And I'm just supposed to stand back and allow this to happen? Not on your life, girl!"

At first I was annoyed. Then I was kinda ticked off. By the time Annette called me a nobody and painted me as a dirty redneck I was damn well pissed off. Fortunately for her, I'm more of a lady than she gave me credit for and so I resisted the nearly overwhelming urge to slug her in the face. It was a near thing, but deep breathing helped. As did literally walking away from the confrontation.

"Where are you going?"

Annette shouted this at my retreating back, but I didn't so much as look over my shoulder. "Back to the house."

"Get back here!"

"No, I think we're done." I kept walking, turning the corner around the barn and back up the graveled drive which led to the road.

A few seconds passed before I heard scrambled footsteps come after me. "I demand that you come back here this instant! I'm not done with you!"

I just ignored her and kept walking.

"You will…listen to what…stop!" You'd think Annette would be more used to walking and talking considering how much she generally has to say, but I could hear her struggling for breath around her demands for me to acknowledge her. "I have more to say!"

I paused only long enough to check both ways before crossing the street, little though I actually needed to, and tromped over the asphalt toward my parents house. Up ahead, I could see three figures on the front porch and I slowed my progress, reminded of how I'd taken Annette across the street to keep her away from my family. But what else could I do? Stand behind the barn until she wore herself out and fainted in the fields? Better end this thing quick.

Though I didn't want to give her any more attention than she'd already received, I stopped where I was near the end of the driveway and turned around to watch Annette scurry across the road and catch up to me. She huffed and puffed the whole way, all sweaty and disheveled from the heat (or maybe our argument, hard to say), looking for all the world like a well-dressed crazy lady.

"Unfeeling, selfish girl!" was the first thing she said once she had enough breath to say it with.

I rolled my eyes and planted my hands on my hips. "Yes, you've made your opinion very clear. So sorry you came all this way for nothing, have a safe drive back to Charleston." I gestured in the direction of her BMW to follow up my unsubtle hint for her to leave.

"Not so hasty, if you please." Annette straightened up and regained some of her haughtiness, but she still gave off the impression of a wilted flower. "I have more objections—"

I held up my hand, palm first, to stop her. "Yes, I'm sure you do. However, you've made your point and you've heard my answer. I believe we're done here."

"Not hardly."

"Fine, then I'll make myself clear—you enjoy frankness, after all." My words were droll but my glare was sharp. "If you don't leave now, I'm going to be forced to call the police. You are officially trespassing on my land as of this moment."

"You wouldn't!"

I raised a bow at her. "Try me."

Annette seemed taken aback by my threat, as if the simple thought that someone might not want her around was astonishing to her. What was astonishing to me was that anyone could stand her company at all. "You are entirely bent on ruining him."

I reached into my back pocket and withdrew my phone, making quite the show of unlocking it and pretending to dial. "Calling the cops in three…two…"

"Oh, very well! I'm leaving." Annette threw her arms into the air as if I were the one being entirely unreasonable. "But don't think that this is over."

I had been intending to make a snotty comment in response, but was interrupted before I could unleash it by a new voice, familiar to us both. "Mother? What are you doing here?"

I turned around to find Will behind me, looking tense and displeased. My eyes darted quickly up the drive where I confirmed his car was parked beside Annette's, then to the porch where my mom and Jenn were watching all this family drama unfold. Lady panted cheerfully in Mom's arms.

"Since you hung up on me earlier," Annette's tone was cold and offended as she lashed this accusation at Will, "I decided to come up here and see if your fiancée could be reasoned with. As it turns out, I've wasted my time."

"You—" Will paused, breathed deeply through his nose, and started again. "I can't believe you. Coming up here to yell at Lizzy just because you can't have your way? Ruining Mrs Bennet's Mother's Day? What the hell were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that I had to save you from yourself! Really, William, how could you even think of aligning yourself with these…these people!" Annette wrinkled her nose as if even the whiff of a Bennet was noxious to her. "I had thought you better than this, but you're more like your father than I thought. He can't seem to help himself, either."

I admittedly didn't understand what she meant by that, but Will clearly did. I've never seen his spine snap so quickly to attention or his nostrils flare like that. If he could have exploded his mother with his mind in that instant, I'm pretty sure he would have done it without even the protection of a poncho. Not that I would have stopped him, but…ugh, the mess.

I joke because the look on Will's face was legit scary and it softens the memory. Shudder. Unlike me, I don't think Annette really appreciated how far over the line she'd apparently stepped because she just kept at him. "I'll never understand the Darcy men's penchant for slumming. Honestly, you'd think those with such an elevated pedigree would be above such disgusting nonsense."

Oh damn.

I put my hand in the center of Will's chest when it seemed like he was about to lunge, successfully calming him enough to hold back. I doubt he would have tackled his own mother, or anything, but then I really don't know what his baser instincts were telling him to do at that point. Something regrettable, whatever it was.

It seemed like the appropriate point to remind Annette that she was no longer welcome at Longbourn Acres, and so that's what I did, before shit could escalate further. "You know, it only takes about five minutes for a deputy to get here…"

Annette turned her icy stare to me, sniffed and side-stepped us on the way to her car. She didn't pause at the house to say any goodbyes, just opened up the driver's side door, threw herself inside and slammed it behind her in a huff.

As she was starting her engine, I pivoted my head upward to look at Will, attempting to diagnose exactly how upset he was after his mother's below the belt "slumming" attack. I only knew enough about Will's dad to realize that there's a story there, but not much more than that. "You okay?"

Will nodded, tightly, and guided me to the lawn so that Annette couldn't mow us both down with her car when she left (knowing her, she might).

"Fine. What about you? What did she say?"

"Mostly just a bunch of crap about how you're destined to marry Liza and how I'm standing in the way of your ultimate greatness. You know, the usual future mother-in-law stuff."

Will's head drooped and he sighed heavily. "Oh, God. I'm sorry, Lizzy."

I shrugged. "Not your fault. And I understand better now why you put off telling her."

Will winced. "Yeah, but it wouldn't have been any better later. With any luck, she's gotten her complaints out of her system now and will leave you alone. I'm only sorry she ruined Mrs Bennet's special day." He nodded up at the porch where Mom and Jenn were still watching, entirely rapt. The only thing missing was a bowl of popcorn between them.

I chuckled. "Are you kidding? I think this only made it better. You don't know how much my mom thrives on drama." And it's true. Barb Bennet loves her some crazy. She'll be feasting off of Annette's disapproval with her gal pals for years.

"At least someone is happy," Will muttered, watching his mother speed her Beemer up the driveway and out onto the road. It's a good thing there's not a lot of traffic out in the sticks because she absolutely did not look before making her turn.

"C'mon." I held my hand out to Will and he took it, twining our fingers together. "Let's go have dessert. You brought the pastries, right?"

He chuckled and shook his head at me. "I know better than to forget."

"You might just be trainable yet." Let him think he wasn't already entirely whipped.

Will paused right there on the lawn, in full view of our peanut gallery, and bent down to kiss me. When he raised his head, I saw a spark of worry in his smoky grey eyes. "We're good, right? My mother didn't scare you off?"

I playfully scoffed at him. "If anything, I scared her off. Did you see her hightail it out of here?"

A high-pitched whine distracted me from the adorable moment we were building and I looked down. Right there at my feet was poor Lady, forgotten and abandoned by that she-devil she called a mistress. I picked her up, cooing in sympathy, and carted her back to the house where my mom was ready and waiting to comfort her with leftovers.

Author's Notes: My deepest apologies for updating so far beyond my projected posting date. My book, Dare to Refuse Such a Man, came out at the end of April and so I was greatly distracted for much of the time I was supposed to be writing this chapter. With no more of my stories being published in the immediate future, however, it shouldn't be a problem again. The next doesn't come out until ALAS is complete.

Speaking of Dare to Refuse Such a Man, you can now purchase it either as an ebook, audiobook or paperback via Amazon! It's also available on Kindle Unlimited if you just want to borrow.

All of that aside, the Father's Day chapter will be out ON TIME tomorrow, as promised.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! (Belatedly.)

Next Update: TOMORROW! Father's Day 2021
Expected Completion Date: September 2021

– MrsMarySmythe