Chapter 30: Night and Day

Elizabeth strolled the length of the villa's private beach early Monday morning, enjoying the beauty of the rising sun reflecting purple, salmon and gold tones off of the deep turquoise water. Relishing the feel of the shimmering white sand between her toes and the gentle breeze lifting her hair from her shoulders, the slowly rising indigo shadows of the coconut trees gave her surroundings the feel of a tropical fairyland. Although she certainly appreciated the sublime majesty of the nature around her, she was simply thankful to finally find an opportunity for some time alone and private reflection.

Her first two days in the Dominican Republic had given her a lot to think about; in fact, they had been nothing like she expected. Robert had so packed the schedule with precise meal times and pre-booked excursions that she barely had time to explore her accommodations, much less the country of her heritage. Although she had finally settled in with her travelling party – mostly to the credit of Richard - she couldn't help but feel that she would have taken much more pleasure vacationing alone or only with close friends.

She wasn't sure if it had been her initial five minute delay, or just a general friction of personalities; but it didn't help that Ms. DeBourgh and herself had been unable to carry on a conversation without entering a competition of wills. The woman had a bad habit of eavesdropping and then injecting herself into a discussion in order to share her view on the topic at hand; a behavior that Elizabeth didn't have an ounce of patience for, and one that had already resulted in a series of debates between the two. While these battles raged the rest of the room fell strangely silent, furtive glances passing between the other occupants as Elizabeth boldly faced Catherine in their next difference of opinion. Only Will and Charlotte seemed to actually enjoy these encounters; a strange look of pride would emanate from their eyes as Elizabeth entertained an intensity of conversation with her hostess that she would much rather do without, and yet couldn't quite seem to avoid.

It was exhausting, and by day the end of day two it had become obvious that Ms. DeBourgh herself was actually seeking topics to ignite Elizabeth's spirited opinions. Elizabeth bitterly thought of how similar this was to the many challenging conversations she had shared with her nephew, and ironically wondered if it could possibly be a shared genetic trait.

Her nephew was an entirely different conversation altogether; Lizzy was still unable to determine his motivation for negotiating their truce on Saturday. On the boat ride home from the shark excursion he had continued to allow his cousin to lead the conversation, but at least stayed around and occasionally ventured a contribution to the group discourse. However, just when she thought he might actually be coming around, he chose to sit out of the bartending lessons, and instead only watched with rapt attention as Lizzy and Richard competed with each other to see who could make the fanciest martini in the quickest time. The competition quickly grew physical as each playfully shoved the other in an attempt to slow their rival down, grabbing the other's supplies and hiding them so that they couldn't finish. It had been great fun, and by the end, Lizzy, Richard and Charlotte had to lean on the bar top to catch their breath from laughing. Lizzy had caught Will's eye numerous times throughout in an attempt to draw him into the fiasco, but aside from a return stare, had received nothing for her effort; a response which provoked her to refocus her attention entirely on his cousin and her friend, while making sure to put her "revenge bikini" to its full use.

And then that first evening, as she sat on the theater's loveseat waiting for the others to attend Robert's "Vacation Presentation", Will had casually strolled in and sat directly beside her even though many other seats were still available. He didn't say much except for a few whispered comments in her ear regarding the planned excursions, but the body heat generated by their nearness, and the scent of his heady cologne had been more than enough for Lizzy to withstand for one evening. Their closeness also heightened her senses as it necessitated unintentional bodily contact: her foot would accidentally brush his calf as she crossed her legs, or their elbows would rest against each other as their arms were folded, and each tiny bit of touch felt as keen as if they were intentionally grasping at each other. These brief moments of connection seemed to extend for an eternity, and Elizabeth began to cast sideways glances at his face in order to gauge his response to their interaction. Although it was no consolation for the entirety of their sordid history, a small part of her was grateful that he seemed comfortable, and even more so that he hadn't felt the need to place a throw pillow between them as he had so readily done with Caroline that night at Bingley Mansion.

Unsurprisingly, this was not the Will that found her the following day. Once again distant, sitting across the table speaking to his Aunt and Uncle Fitzwilliam, he had barely offered her a good morning. The day's excursion venturing out to the open sea for whale watching provided little opportunity to bring them together, especially since Lizzy was forced to spend time with Charlotte and Robert as he struggled to fight an overwhelming bout of sea sickness. It was a circumstance that quickly secluded them from the other guests and, unfortunately for Robert, it was a battle lost almost before it had begun. Lizzy spent the majority of the excursion on the boat doing what she could to be useful to her friend and her suffering fiancé, only occasionally finding opportunity to walk to the side of the boat to witness the languidly swimming Humpbacks show off their incredible size and strength during their yearly migration. Finally returning to the villa shortly before dinner, instead of a reunion, Lizzy found that their arrival seemed to only provide further separation as Will had then disappeared completely.

And then Sunday night, after most of the other guests had already retired, she decided to relax on one of the submerged pool chairs and look out at the moon reflecting on the glassy, blue-black water. Just as she was settling into tranquility Will once again materialized and sat beside her. At first not saying much, but reluctantly drawing her into a discussion on books and poetry, Lizzy had been surprised to find that they shared many similar tastes in authors. For perhaps the first time since he had defended her to her mother she once again felt a small glimmer of camaraderie with him, a sensation that livened her senses and made her eager to continue the conversation.

He had even amused her at one point in the discussion by boldly proclaiming poetry to be the "food of love". Twelfth Night was one of her favorite Shakespearean comedies, and she had quickly corrected him that it was music, and not poetry, that was the purported "food of love".

"But aren't they mostly the same, music and poetry? Wouldn't you agree that song lyrics are generally poems set to music; some of them proving to be rather profound, might I add?"

She had to admit that he had a point. "Okay, yes, you could say that. But that still doesn't mean that Shakespeare was actually correct. If two people truly love each other, I think a good song or sonnet could absolutely deepen their feelings. But if they only share a slight attraction, any attempt at feeding those feelings with a romantic verse might instead starve any romance out of the situation completely."

Will burst into laughter then, the moonlight shining in his smiling grey eyes and making them appear almost celestial themselves. He considered her for a moment and then replied, "I don't believe you. You're telling me that if a guy you liked wrote you poetry, or even just played you a song, you wouldn't fall head over heels for him?"

Lizzy scoffed. "I would like to think that I had more sense than that! If he was such a wonderful guy, I would hope that I would already feel strongly for him without him having to impress me in such a way."

"But that's just it. Sometimes it's simply about seeking a way to express how one feels; you make it seem as though you would automatically assume it to be an insincere, grandiose gesture."

"I probably would. There should be no need for theatrics when love is involved. Honesty, trust and openness are all that are needed."

He considered her carefully. "You are absolutely correct and I could not agree with you more, although I can't imagine that many women would share your opinions. I might have to test these theories out on you one day just to see how truthful you're being." His gaze became more intent and perceptive as he continued, "I know that sometimes you like to express opinions that aren't quite your own."

Lizzy wasn't really sure how to respond and instead resorted to saying nothing.

He picked up on it immediately. "Lizzy Bennet lost for words? Oh lord. Quick, call a doctor. She might combust from the inability to speak the dazzling array of thoughts behind those challenging eyes."

Lizzy thought back to his comment at Ella Lounge and quickly realized that the teasing Will Darcy had returned. Why doesn't he show this side of himself more often? It's hysterical. Eyeing him mischievously, she swatted a large handful of water at him in response. He returned the favor, and the rest of the evening had been spent joking and soaking one another in the tepid water of the pool.

Which Will was she about to meet as they journeyed to the horseback riding excursion scheduled for the afternoon? Which Will did she want to meet? The man she had spent the evening with last night was intelligent, insightful, funny, sexy…pretty much every woman's fantasy; it had almost validated the crush she had entertained on him before he had stood her up. God damnit. He had stood her up – insulted and mortified her beyond belief, even - and there she had been splashing him in the pool like he was her life-long best friend.

Ugh! This is so confusing! Why can't I just hate him? It would make things so much simpler.

Lizzy tried to clear her head as she realized her musings were unable to reach a conclusion; his behavior was two opposites - both night and day simultaneously - literally and figuratively. She sighed, resigned, and realized she had walked the full length of the beach, the bright morning sun now fully risen. I should probably get back to the group; the shuttle to the next excursion will be arriving soon and with Catherine lurking, there is no way that I want to be late. And I'm a little curious who plans on attending today: Will, or Mr. Darcy?

A/N

Thanks for your patience once again! This transition was necessary to lead us into the next two chapters, but it proved harder to write than I thought it would be. I suppose I am anxious to get to the meat and potatoes of this trip, which are quickly coming up next!

I also wanted to share that another celebration is in order, since between the posting of the last chapter and this one, we crossed over 300 reviews! Thank you for all of the support you have been showing the story through your favorites, follows and reviews! I really get energized when I read your comments so please do keep them coming! Also, please feel free to review earlier chapters of the story..I'm curious to hear which have been your favorites so far, if you have the time and are so inclined to do so. :)

And finally, a quick shout-out to Julianabr for the term "revenge bikini". I loved it so much I just had to try to use it! :)