Chapter 3: Toshi's Penthouse

Thankfully the week passed quickly enough, and before it had seemed possible, Friday evening was upon her.

Elizabeth stared hard at her reflection with hangers in both hands, exchanging her tried and true little black dress with the brand new Emerald one for the twentieth time, draping the silky green fabric in front of her body. Both had their merits: the slinky black number with the racer back and cowl neckline had always served her well, making its first debut at a holiday party two years ago. She had left the event with her dancing shoes in hand, flip flops on her feet and 3 guy's phone numbers in her clutch. Of course, the numbers had all been thrown away promptly upon her arrival home, but still...black dress, 1 point.

The emerald cocktail gown was more of a gamble. Panicking that she didn't have anything to wear to the night's event, and knowing that she would be meeting the man who had given her this incredible career opportunity, Elizabeth had ducked into Lord and Taylor hoping to find a clearance rack miracle. Although this gown had certainly NOT been discounted, Lizzy couldn't tear herself away from the luxurious fabric and sexy sophistication. The illusion bateau neckline, low v-back and pencil skirt made 1950s glamour modern via a series of well-placed seams that drew the lines of her curves. In the fitting room mirror, and even now, Elizabeth couldn't help but notice how the green and gold flecks in her dark hazel eyes were exaggerated by the vibrant hue of the dress.

Elizabeth was interrupted in her deliberation when Jane flung open her bedroom door. "Lizzy, can I borrow your silver…Ooo, where did you get that dress?" Jane exclaimed.

"Lord and Taylor. I'm still torn as to which one to wear though."

Jane rolled her eyes. "As if there is any question." With that, she yanked the black dress out of Lizzy's left hand and returned it to its place in her closet. Snatching the nude stilettos that she regularly borrowed from her sister, she turned back around and placed them on the floor at her sister's feet. Then, she walked over to the dresser and selected the delicate silver earrings with the crystal moon and star dangles, and began to hook them in her ears.

Lizzy shook her head at herself. "You made that much easier than I was making it. And, hey," raising a finger, "what if I was planning to wear those earrings?"

"Oh," Jane stopped in the middle of her earring pilfer and began to reverse the process. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to take them from you." She offered them out in her hand.

Lizzy rolled her eyes, but her smile gave her away. "I'm just teasing you Jane. You can have them for tonight. I think it might be illegal to wear anything but yellow gold with emerald green, anyway." Jane gave her a relieved smile and quickly re-donned the earrings.

Slipping on the green dress, she turned around to let Jane zip her in. "I really am glad that you are coming with me tonight. I have to admit, I'm a little nervous. The last time it took me that long to pick out an outfit was when mom set me up on that blind date with her co-worker's son."

"You mean the one who couldn't stop talking about Star Wars and asked you three times if you wanted to learn how to play Magic, The Gathering?"

"Yup, the very same."

"You worry too much."

Lizzy laughed at herself. Jane was right…when did she ever care that much about her outfit? Lizzy knew her wit and personality usually carried her through any situation; unlike her older sister, looks and outfit were always secondary. Mom made sure I knew that early on, Lizzy thought wistfully.

The truth was that Elizabeth had never heard the end of her mother's disparaging comments about her looks. As soon as Elizabeth hit puberty, and it became evident that it would be impossible for her size 6 frame to ever fit her older sister's size 2 clothing, Fran Bennet took it upon herself to make sure Lizzy understood her place as a woman who would probably not receive much attention from the opposite gender. In fact, so sure was she that Elizabeth deserved none that she made sure to stress to her daughter that she should value and accept any measure of attention she received from men, no matter how insincere or poorly intentioned. Although her mother's sentiments regarding her beauty had ingrained themselves in her own more than she would care to admit, Elizabeth's temper usually had the effect of causing her to act in direct contradiction to her mother's wishes. Before she reached the age of sixteen Elizabeth had resolved that, instead of gratefully receiving the attention she got from men, she would not need it to determine her own self-worth and therefore, would place a very small value on any compliments or attentions offered to her.

As cruel as her mother's words may have been, they had served Elizabeth well. Avoiding romantic heartbreak altogether, she had the further benefit of never allowing another person's opinion of her to affect her self-esteem too negatively. The extremely fortunate outcome of Fran's blunt motherly advice was her second daughter's innate confidence and natural merriment that was almost impossible to stifle. Elizabeth was delightful, and many found her charming as a result. She just didn't take them very seriously if they had the courage to tell her, and many had learned that compliments were in no way an effective tool to get into Elizabeth's good graces.

Returning to the present moment, and ready to revel in the promising evening ahead with her sister at her side, Elizabeth grabbed Jane's hand. With a sparkle in her eye and an excited smile she said, "Let's go."

When the girls arrived at Toshi's Penthouse in the Flatiron District, Elizabeth sucked in a deep breath. She had been to quite a few networking events in her day, but this venue was quickly setting a new standard. The rented out Penthouse consisted of a main gallery space, brightly lit and amply supplied with a sea of white: white couches, white tables, white flowers and white chandeliers. Outside of the large portico doors, a romantically lit balcony ensconced the gallery space, complete with low black coffee tables, tall pillar candles and black and cream couches. It was classy and posh, without being overly pretentious. Looking over to Jane, Elizabeth realized her sister felt similarly, if her wide blue eyes and "o" shaped mouth had anything to say about it.

Before they had taken five steps into the room, the girls were quickly approached by an attractive, energetic and sociable man. Elizabeth had to do a double take to convince herself that it wasn't Alex Pettyfer walking straight towards them. His cropped dirty blond hair was gelled in front, and his greenish-blue eyes were alight with life. Extending his hand to Jane, he smiled one of the warmest smiles Elizabeth had ever encountered, and said, "Welcome, welcome. Although I would never complain about my temporary role as door greeter, I find that it is bringing me more pleasure than usual at this moment. My name is Charles Bingley, but please, call me Charlie. And who is it that I have the pleasure of greeting?"

Elizabeth couldn't help but smile at his smooth British accent. Maybe he is Alex Pettyfer and he's just calling himself Charlie? No, no…not possible...it's just his doppelganger, then. No complaints there! Elizabeth smiled to herself, and then raised that smile to Alex's, no…Charlie's, face. Get your head out of the celebrity gutter quick, or you're gonna accidentally call him Alex, and that would be mildly embarrassing, she chided herself.

Elizabeth spoke up. "My name is Elizabeth Bennet, and I am the manager of the team that was selected to produce the upcoming marketing campaign for the Longbourn. This is my favorite +1, my sister, Jane."

Charlie shook her hand cordially before immediately returning his attention to Jane. Elizabeth was not surprised; Jane looked absolutely ethereal this evening. Her silvery blue cocktail dress floated over her fit and slender figure, the gossamer charmeuse shimmering under the bright lights and playing off of her highlighted blonde hair. Although she was only two inches taller than Lizzy's petite 5' 2" frame, her tall silver heels gave her the overall appearance of a fashion model.

"It's nice to meet you," Jane replied with a serene and light tone, raising her eyes to meet Charlie's as she spoke.

The effect was immediate. If Charlie had been attracted before, he was besotted immediately by those simple words and full view of her face. Running his fingers through his hair, he stammered, "So…can I, uh," he swallowed a little harder than was necessary. "Can I get you both anything to drink?"