The Love of the Game by IntuitiveIntelligence
A/N: Wow, thank you for so many reviews. 13! And I only posted it just last night. Well, without further adieu, I give you chapter 3.
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"Lizzy! What on earth are you doing here?" Mrs. Bennet exclaimed as she opened the front door to find her second eldest on the porch looking at her expectantly.
"I was given some time off…" Lizzy started as she tried to make her way inside but her mother's eyes were still questioning.
"Well, that's all well and good, but shouldn't you be spending your vacation somewhere tropical where you can find your future husband… to be swept off into the sunset on a beach somewhere… wouldn't it be heavenly?" Mrs. Bennet said with her eyes glazing over.
It is now incumbent upon the author to mention that Mrs. Bennet was in fact a one, Wendy Horton, the famed British stage actress known for her pretty face and penchant for the overdramatic. And even though she left the stage long ago, when she married Mr. Bennet, she hadn't left any of the drama behind.
"Yes, as heavenly as any trashy romance novel cover could hope to offer. Now could you kindly let me inside, my bags are heavy and I had to lug them all the way up the drive?" Lizzy huffed.
Mrs. Bennet seemed to snap out of her daze thanks to her daughter's sarcasm and she quickly walked away back to the kitchen where she had been arranging flowers in a vase. Lizzy looked about her childhood home, and it was the same as ever.
Longbourn, was an older house, but had been updated for the more modern comforts due to Wendy's prodding and thanks to Mr. Bennet's income. Lizzy however seemed to find more comfort in the rooms that Mrs. Bennet had yet to fiddle with or attempt to redecorate, principally, her father's study.
Dropping her heavy duffle at the base of the winding staircase, she slid her hand along the chair rail until she stopped outside a white wooden door towards the back of the house. It was open slightly, and she pushed it open further to reveal her father, Thomas, sitting reading with a slight puff of smoke appearing now and then over the top of the newspaper.
"You know if Mum catches you smoking, she is going to throw a fit and complain about how your health is destroying her nerves…" Lizzy said with a smile as she leaned on the door frame.
Thomas Bennet immediately folded down the pair to look at who was speaking, his pipe lodged firmly between his lips as he let out another puff. His eyes lit up as he took in Lizzy and setting aside his paper entirely, he stood to give her a huge warm hug.
"Lizzy, whatever are you doing here?" He said as he released her from his grasp.
"Why does everyone keep saying that? Am I not allowed to come home anymore?" She said as she collapsed into one of the worn velvet arm chairs with a huff.
"Of course you are always welcome here Lizzy, it is just that it's the middle of the week. And you should be working."
"They gave me some time off…"
"Oh?" He said raising a brow.
"I actually was given two weeks to complete an assignment, and I thought where better to do it, than here at home, where I would be offered no peace and quiet. Satisfied?"
"Completely…Now you might want to go upstairs and unpack, and perhaps change into something a little more formal."
"Why? What's wrong with what I've got on?" Lizzy said as she looked down at her designer jeans which were well broken in but clean, and her black cashmere sweater.
"We've been invited to attend a party down at the club. Just a bunch of the neighbors and the like, but you know your mother, she enjoys the chance to play dress up."
Lizzy smiled up at her father before laughing and agreeing to go change. Lizzy was Daddy's little girl and took after him in many things. She was gifted with her father's wit, his eyes and above all else, his skill for the sport of football.
Thomas Bennet had been on the Watford team during the 70's and was one of the best midfielders of his day. So, with the money that he had made during his footballer days, he decided to marry his sweetheart Wendy, and purchase the team that had been so good to him during his youth.
The only trouble was that lately the team had hit a slump, they weren't winning on the pitch, and they certainly weren't drawing any crowds to their arena. Add to that the expenses of putting five children through top rate universities, and the maniacal spending habits of some of them, it was easy to see that they had stretched their finances too thin.
Lizzy had begun to put away her things in her old room, which still thankfully held the personal touches that she had given it when she dwelled there when she glanced out her window to see a lovely white stallion being led back towards the stable by a woman with long blonde hair pulled under a black riding cap.
"Jane…" Lizzy said outloud with a smile.
She adored her eldest sister, she was her best friend and confidant. If Jane was here, it meant that Lizzy would have at least one friend on her insane quest to secure an interview with William Darcy.
Lizzy hurried into the shower and emerged from the bathroom wearing the slip style silk dress she had picked out for the evening. It fit her well and highlighted Lizzy's slim yet athletic form, but it was the color that seemed to bring out her eyes the best, as it was a deep rich chocolate brown with teal accents.
She was admiring herself in the full length mirror when she heard a cat call like whistle and her youngest sister Lydia came bounding in.
"That's so hot!" Lydia said as she looked over her sister's dress, whether this was in admiration of how it fit Lizzy or merely that she was quite convinced it would look better on her was uncertain.
"Hello, Lydia."
"Why are you home, did you get fired or something?"
"What? No, I am just on holiday."
"Oh that's hardly exciting…" Lydia said with a frown.
"What's hardly exciting?"
Lizzy looked up to see her big sister Jane looking at Lydia with confusion.
"Janey!" Lizzy said rushing forward to hug Jane but Jane quickly held a hand up to prevent her.
"Lizzy, its so good to see you. But you don't want to hug me right now, I smell entirely of horse and you look so very pretty….What are you doing here?"
"Can no one be happy just to see me?"
"No." Lydia said with a smirk before slipping from the room to finish getting ready.
"So I suppose you are going to the party tonight then and you are dressed to kill, sweetie. This only happens when you've got your eye on a guy or if you are going for a scoop, which is it?"
"Both, I suppose."
"Oh, really… well you can tell me all about it later. Right now, I just want to wash this smell off my body."
Jane gave Lizzy a quick smile before fleeing to the sanctuary of the bathroom. Flopping back on to her bed, she stared up at the ceiling and smiled at the mural of the night sky that Mary had painted for her. Mary, that was one sister who always seemed to have an opinion of "sense." And it was that opinion and studious nature which landed her at Oxford University to become a solicitor.
"Well, Mary certainly isn't missing out on much…" Lizzy said to herself when she heard the screams from down the hall as Kitty felt Lydia's wrath for borrowing her shoes.
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"Come on Darcy, it will do you good to start going back into public again." Charles said as he fastened his tie.
"No, absolutely not. I am not going to some private club, to be gawked at by people who think they have money."
"See, its times like this where I worry about you." Charles replied shaking a finger at his friend who was brooding on the couch.
"You should be worrying about yourself, and what these poor country girls are going to do when they find out you are a millionaire with the disposition to be overly kind."
"And you'll be in here moping around by yourself, oh wait. No, Caroline was coming in tonight, so you two will just have to entertain each other until I get back."
Darcy nearly choked on the glass of brandy in his hand. If there was one thing that Darcy truly feared it was being left alone with Caroline. Caroline Bingley was the traditional socialite: slightly pretty, but with the money to burn to make sure she always looked like a star, even if she wasn't one. She also had one of the most annoying and clingy dispositions on the face of the planet, with eyes only for William Darcy.
"I think I've changed my mind…" Darcy said suddenly.
"Good! Go change, we need to leave soon." Charles said with a smile, not realizing that it was his sister that Darcy was just trying to avoid.
Darcy walked slowly towards his room. He had regained enough strength that he didn't need the support of his cane any longer, but anything more strenuous was still beyond his reach which frustrated him to no end. If his body kept it up like this, he wouldn't be able to practice, Charles would never allow it.
He changed out of the clothing he had worn that day and put on a pair of black trousers with a black button up shirt and a silver tie. Just because he wasn't planning on socializing that evening didn't mean that he didn't' have to look his best.
If he was lucky, then no one would recognize him and the evening would pass in relative calm. He would watch Charles flirt with the pretty girls in the room until he grew weary, then request that they return for the evening.
"Darcy, you ready?" Charles called down the hallway as he grabbed his coat from the rack.
Darcy didn't bother to respond, instead he walked out of the room, his face a mask of indifference as Charles ushered him out to the car chatting all the way about how nice it would be to meet new people.
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"Thomas, Wendy! How lovely to see you. And with four of your lovely daughters at that, please, please come right in. Have some refreshment." Mr. Lucas, the club chairman said as the Bennet party arrived.
"Robert, Helena." Mr. Bennet said politely to the chairman and his wife, before ushering his family into the main room so that the next party could be greeted.
"Well, I dare say that it is awfully crowded here tonight." Mrs. Bennet exclaimed as she took in the room.
The party was being held in the main ballroom of the Meryton club, a club which prescribed itself to the wealthy of the area. Little candles had been set up on the dining tables which circled the outside of the room while the main dance floor was full of older couples swaying to the sound of the band playing in the corner.
"Mum, can I have some champagne?" Lydia asked batting her eyelashes at her mother.
Lydia was not yet eighteen, and drinking was still out of the question. However her mother could deny her nothing, if her baby Lydia asked for it. So Lydia and Kitty giddily made their way over to the bar, where they were likely to become sillier by the moment.
Lydia was the sort of girl whom fashion appealed to greatly, as well as the opposite sex. Though not exactly considered to be loose, she was considered to be quite a tease. And tonight her flirtatious cocktail dress and high heels would lead yet another man astray.
Kitty on the other hand, was older than Lydia by a year, yet she still followed her younger sister's boisterous personality into almost everything she did. If Lydia had a short skirt, Kitty had to have one too, and then Lydia would have to make hers shorter. And so ran the course of Katherine Bennet's life thus far.
"So what do you think Jane, who will be the first to fall over in a drunken stupor? My bet is on Kitty."
"Oh Lizzy, you are horrible." Jane said in response lightly smacking her sister's arm.
Lizzy had just idly started sipping her champagne, when she noticed that everyone in the room had turned to look at two people entering the room. She didn't recognize the first man, but she decided that he was attractive and seemed to be generally pleasing as he didn't stop smiling. When she saw the man who came with him, she recognized him instantly. It was the object of her search, and here he was just walking right towards her. And then right past her. And then to the other side of the room.
"Oh Jane and Lizzy, dear me. You and your sisters must come and introduce yourselves. Mr. Lucas just informed me, that the man with the red hair is Mr. Charles Bingley, heir to the Bingley business dynasty. Apparently, he works as a physical therapist to the wealthy now, oh and Jane I know how you love those who are kind at heart. But the other man who comes with him is William Darcy, one of the richest men in England and the former Manchester United star. Oh Lizzy, you are a sports journalist, there must be a lot for you to talk about." Mrs. Bennet rattled off while pulling her two eldest girls over to the gentleman as she was unable to locate her others.
Mr. Lucas and her husband were already speaking to them, or rather, speaking to Bingley as Darcy was not inclined to participate in the conversation when she arrived with Jane and Lizzy in tow.
"Ah, Charles and William, I'd like to introduce you to Thomas's wife, Wendy and two of their stunning daughters Jane and Elizabeth."
"It is a pleasure." Charles replied locking eyes with Jane alone.
Lizzy knew the look that fell into her sister's eyes, Jane was going to fall head over heels for this Mr. Bingley before she even knew what hit her.
"So Mr. Bingley, what is it that you do?" Lizzy said trying to bring the two of them back down to earth.
"I am a physical therapist. Sports physical therapy mostly, but I do other therapy work as well." Charles explained with a smile as he came out of his trance.
"Oh, that is quite interesting. Our family has been connected with sport for quite some time."
"Yes, of course. Mr. Lucas was just telling me, your father was quite the midfielder I hear. And you own Watford club now?"
"Yes, well my father purchased it, team nostalgia or something of the like. I wish I followed football more closely, but I hardly have the time to keep up with everything."
"I know what you mean, I find myself often quite busy with my own profession. What is it that you do, Jane?"
"I am a jumper, a horse jumper. I compete quite regularly but after this next Olympics, I think I am going to return to University and finish out my degree."
"Fascinating. I ride quite a bit, and Darcy here does as well. My sister Caroline, is much better than I am however. And you Elizabeth, what is it that you do?"
"Please call me Lizzy, hardly anyone ever calls me Elizabeth. I'm a writer."
"Don't be so modest, Lizzy." Jane said prodding her forward to explain that she was a sports' journalist, but one look for Lizzy silenced her.
"A writer?" Darcy said finally finding his voice as he looked Elizabeth over.
She was alright looking he supposed, her face wasn't as beautiful as her sisters, but her figure was decent, even if her hair was a bit too curly for his tastes. When he had seen her, he passed her off as another nobody. But when Mr. Lucas introduced her as Elizabeth Bennet, he instantly recognized the name, but he could not place from where.
"Yes, I graduated from St. Andrews University. I hope to become an International Journalist, but so far I've found that those doors remain closed to me."
Upon hearing the word 'journalist,' Darcy froze slightly and looked to Bingley for help. But Charles was wrapped up in conversation with the blonde haired beauty yet again. If he was lucky, Elizabeth wouldn't be smart enough to put two and two together with him. However, since he was more a man of logic than of blind faith he knew that he would have to confront her about it sooner rather than later. Just not at present in a room full of people prone to gossip.
When Darcy came out of his reverie it was to see Charles leading Jane on to the dance floor where they continued to sway in time to the soft jazzy music that was being played and talk all the while. This left him alone with Elizabeth who was standing rather awkwardly off to the side.
Lizzy stared at this man who was supposed to have been England's greatest hope. He was taller than she thought he would have been, and pictures hardly did him any justice, for he was far more attractive in person. Yet, for all of his physical attributes, conversation or socializing did not seem to compute. He hardly spoke and when he did it was so condescending she wondered if he was truly the diva that the papers had made him out to be.
"Do you dance, William?" She said slowly trying to draw his attention away from Charles and Jane and back to her.
Darcy felt a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach with the way she said his name. The fact that she would jump straight to calling him on a first name basis at all was something he wasn't really used to. Most people he came in contact with of late were business people, who relied on the formalities of calling him Mr. Darcy. While he was musing, he realized that he had yet to give her an answer. But he could barely recall what she had asked him in the first place.
"Pardon me?" He said shortly.
"I asked if you danced." Elizabeth replied with an equally clipped tone.
Darcy considered for a moment saying yes to her, but realized that if he was dancing, his back might spasm out again. And that kind of weakness was not something he was going to display to these people or to anyone at all.
"No." He replied before draining the rest of his glass and walking away from Lizzy.
Elizabeth let her jaw fall open, as she was insulted by William Darcy for the first time and probably not the last time either. If she was to get an expose on this man, she might as well kill herself first. He was not going to talk to her for all the money in the world.
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A/N: I am going to break up the chapter here. But know that there is more to come, it was just getting a bit long. Please review guys! Gracias.