So I've gotten a few questions and comments about future plans. What you are all reading if my very first draft of this story. I'm pretty invested in it at this point. I know where its going and how it will end...definitely an HEA but there's still a lot to canvas. The likely culprits of angst will appear - as will one that's controversial to many of you - Georgie. Yes, its going to take her some time to accept Lizzy, sorry to say but who can really blame her given the life she's had thus far and remember she's 15 going on 16. Being a mother of a 15-year old boy I can tell you they are a skeptical bunch!
So once, I've finished posting my series of first drafts, I will revise, and edit, and revise and edit and then, I'll repost. But that's likely a 2015 activity so please, please, please continue to leave me your comments in 2014 as they will impact the re-write AND the future of this story in certain ways.
The relationship progresses below...
They'd arrived directly at the Charles Hotel where a room had been reserved to freshen up. William carried her wedding dress in its special bag while she lugged her makeup bag. Lizzy took over the bathroom to begin getting herself ready for an evening of celebrating. She'd invited some of her friends from high school who were in the area and was surprised when a few of them had accepted her invitation. It was going to be an interesting mixture of people in attendance this evening with friends from all parts of her life.
William stretched out on the king size bed in the room they'd rented for the day. He hoped she'd be willing to share their bed tonight, and every night from now on. Tired of being alone, the single night they'd slept together was the best night sleep he'd had in months. Emerging from the bathroom in her bathrobe, William was once again amazed that this beautiful girl was his wife. "I was wondering if you'd help me with my dress. I need someone to zip me up."
"I think you look perfect the way you are." William got up from the bed and reached down to give her a kiss.
"You may think so but I think the guests have some expectation of seeing me in an actual wedding dress. The pictures will likely come out better that way too." She teased.
"Alright, if you insist."
Allowing the robe to drop to the floor, Lizzy turned so her back faced him. William took his fingers and traced down her back to a spot just above her backside. "Um William? I think you're supposed to be zipping UP the dress."
"Of course. Did I mention this low back and the soft lace here is my favorite part of this dress?" He said as he placed a kiss just above the top of the zipper.
"No you did not, but then, we've spoken little about the details of today."
William was about to zip the dress when he noticed a bit of blue. Peeking down the back, William ran a finger along the light blue lace poking through. "Now there's a detail I hadn't noticed earlier. I see you did follow that old wives tale, something blue?"
"Um, yes. You're nothing if not observant" Lizzy blushed. In fact her face was burning as she thought of the nightgown the girls had bought to match undies. William placed another kiss on her back and began to zip the dress closed.
Trying to ignore the warmth she was feeling, Lizzy steadied her voice to ask, "So, what's been your favorite part thus far?"
"That's a hard one. I'm pretty sure there will be more favorite parts to come," he grinned. Lizzy shot him a look, "Come on, I'm asking you a real question."
Looking seriously at her he paused, then slowly began, "Ok, let me think. It may have been when you looked up at me and said, 'I do' or maybe it was when the magistrate pronounced us husband and wife, or maybe when I opened my eyes and saw you walking steadily towards me. Yes, I think that was my favorite moment."
Lizzy smiled. She loved hearing him recount the memories of the day. "Well I'm looking forward to being introduced as Elizabeth Darcy to our friends and family gathered in the restaurant downstairs. Shall we go?"
"After one more kiss." Several minutes later, they walked down to the restaurant.
It was a strange sensation walking into the restaurant seeing so many disparate people from various facets of her life. Sitting in one corner were the Fitzwilliam's talking with Professor Gilpin and his wife. The Gardiners soon joined them and were engaged in a vigorous conversation. After saying a quick hello to the family and friends they'd spent the morning with, Lizzy and William greeted their invited guests. To say their friends were shocked was likely an understatement. The invitation was vague, only indicating that a wedding had taken place for the friend that had invited them. Many had come in part, because they couldn't believe their respective friends had married and wanted to meet the fortunate other half. Lizzy thought she'd prepared herself for the inquisition but soon realized it was going to take awhile for her friends to accept that yes, at 20 years old, she was well and truly married to the billionaire, William Darcy. The gawking gave her a small inkling of the potential impact of being married to someone apparently so well known. She'd never realized how familiar all of her friends were with the Fortune 500 list, even if she hadn't been. She began to wonder if this fascination would extend beyond those who knew her. Most likely it would.
William stood to give their thanks for everyone joining them at the private celebration. William had expected to shock many in his circle and so he took the opportunity to introduce the beautiful woman sitting beside him to those assembled.
"Thank you everyone, for joining us tonight to celebrate our wedding. Earlier today, in a private ceremony in Maine, this amazing woman and I were wed. We ask that you enjoy yourselves tonight and keep your stories to yourselves tomorrow. We'd like to continue to enjoy our privacy and as good friends we know you'll understand our desire to stay out of the gossip pages." Raising his glass of champagne, William toasted,"To good friends, to joyous moments, and to a future filled with love."
General agreement filled the restaurant. Every few moments the Fitzwilliam clan called for a kiss between the newlywed couple. The Darcy's were relieved when the meal was finally served.
True to form, the wedded couple only had time to eat a few bites before they were called over by friends. Lizzy guided William over to a group of three friends from BLS. "I'm so happy you guys could make it. William, allow me to introduce a few of the people with whom I spent six very formative years. Alexa, Mark and Jesse spent many hours at my parents restaurant doing homework and working on school projects. They're at MIT, BC and Brandeis now, respectively."
"It's great to meet you and I'm so glad you're all here. Lizzy's spent a lot of time with my family and as a result has several stories to use against me now. I look forward to spending some time hearing anything you've got on her so we can even out the balance of power at home," he teased.
"If you haven't figured it out yet, Lizzy's perfect. I'm afraid we won't be very much help," Mark said and the other two shook their heads in agreement.
"I guess I'm not the first to observe that." William smiled. He was trying to figure out which of the two boys in front of him had dated Lizzy and whether they still had a crush on her. He surmised they both did. Maybe Alexa could clue him in.
"Lizzy, I see your sister Maria but where's the rest of the family? I've been trying to imagine Francesca Benetez at the Charles Hotel all day." Alexa added with a grin.
"Oh I guess you wouldn't know. Maria's still in Boston finishing up her senior year of high school but the rest of my family has moved away," Lizzy calmly answered as William placed his hand on her back. She gave him a small smile, grateful for his unspoken support.
"Moved? Moved where? And that still doesn't explain why they're not here for your wedding. I can't imagine your mother wanting to miss this event." Alexa asked.
"My parents left town about a month ago, rather abruptly. I don't know where they've gone. It turns out that they're here illegally. My sisters were all born here so they're citizens but they, and I guess I, am not. I just found out at the beginning of November. You might imagine, it's all been rather sudden." Lizzy was wondering if it would ever get easy to share this story.
Her friends were quiet for a few moments taking in all she'd said. All of a sudden Jesse blurted out, "Wait a minute. This is a green card marriage? Only Lizzy Benetez could get a billionaire to agree to marry her to get her citizenship," he continued shaking his head.
William did not like the direction of this conversation and stood a bit taller towering over the college kids, "For your information, I was the one who asked, and thankfully, convinced Lizzy to marry me. And if you know Lizzy at all, and are truly her friends, you'd know she'd not agree to something so base."
"Whoa. I think you misunderstand me. Sorry, sometimes I process things out loud. It's something I've been trying to overcome. Lizzy's awesome, it just explains why its been so secretive and all. We've been trying to figure that out, that's all." Jesse explained.
Lizzy put her arm on William, "Don't worry about Jesse. We've spent years trying to help him extract his size 11 feet out of his mouth. He's a bit of an idiot but he's our idiot and we love him anyway."
Jesse stood up and pointed over to the bar, "Look, I'm sorry. I'm going to head over and get a drink, can I grab anyone else one?"
William looked at Lizzy who seemed calm and unruffled, "I'll go with you. Lizzy can I can you anything?"
"I'd just love a very big glass of water, please." A few others indicated drinks they'd like and the two men walked away.
"Again, I'm sorry for what I said. I really didn't mean anything bad by it. You see, Lizzy's had a pretty hard life and I was hoping I'd come tonight to find she'd fallen deeply in love with some guy who loved her even more. There really wasn't a lot of love in that house. Her mom's a complete flake and can say the most hurtful and undermining things. Franny Benetez is never happy. Her dad...he's a good guy and I think he means well, but when he got sick Lizzy had to grow up and become the adult in the house. We spent all our time studying at the restaurant because she needed to oversee things while she was getting her school work done. Even with everything she was handling, she's always had a positive attitude, always was willing to help out a friend. I care about her. She deserves someone great. I hope you're that guy." Jesse said.
William thought about what Jesse'd said. He'd been pretty angry at the kid when he first started spouting off but realized that Lizzy didn't seem ruffled by the outburst so he shouldn't get riled up either. "Thanks for the explanation. I've only met her parents twice but that was more than enough for me. I'm glad she had good friends like you in high school. I hope I can be that guy for her too. If I'm not, it's nice to know there are others out there who'll keep me honest. Lizzy inspires tremendous loyalty. That's one of the things that I find so special about her." William added.
"Forgiven?" Jesse extended his hand and William accepted it. They'd come to an understanding of sorts.
The two men returned seemingly in accord with one another. "Your water my dear." William passed the drink to Lizzy. "I'm sorry to break up this gathering but we need to circulate. Perhaps we can host something at our place for a little reunion of sorts when everyone is back in town." William suggested.
"Oh, that would be perfect. We used to all get together at my parent's restaurant but our place would work just as well I think." Lizzy smiled at William appreciating his thoughtfulness. Turning back to her friends she said, "I'll email you guys. I'm living in a condo now right by the river so it's probably even more convenient now for the Allston/Brighton crowd."
"Congrats Lizzy. We're really happy for you." Alexa said as she pulled her friend into a tight hug.
They made their way over to where the Gilpin's were sitting, surrounded by former and current students.
"Professor, I was hoping you could introduce us to your beautiful wife." Lizzy said as they approached.
"Mr and Mrs. Darcy, allow me to introduce my darling Rebecca." The professor said as he wrapped his arm around his wife's shoulder.
"I am so happy to meet you my dear. My Solomon has told me so much about you and while I'm glad he has been there to help you and I am even happier that you've found such a joyous resolution to your most vexing problem." Rebecca Gilpin said with a smile.
"I've been so grateful that the Professor was willing to take on my challenges. There were times when his sympathetic council was the only thing that kept me returning to the Legal Aid Clinic." William winced at that comment remembering his mean spirited words.
"One shouldn't discount having had the benefit of life experiences to build understanding. We never know when our prior experiences will be invaluable to the present," Professor Gilpin added with a wink.
"No doubt. Life is often a more effective teacher than the classroom." William agreed.
"We haven't seen you two dance yet, and in our tradition it is a blessing and an obligation to dance at a wedding. We will join you if you get over to that dance floor you've set aside." Professor Gilpin said as he pointed to a corner of the restaurant with a small band and windows on two sides.
"We would love to have you join us on the dance floor. We'll head over now as long as you join us shortly." Lizzy smiled thinking how adorable it would be to share the floor with this couple so obviously in love with one another these many years after their wedding.
William walked over to the band and indicated they were ready for their dance. The band leader called everyone's attention to the dance floor as the newlywed's took to the floor with their song. This was the second time they had ever danced, and it was the second time to this song. Lizzy was surprised when William looked down at her and began singing the opening lines to the song. In the past day it seemed he had memorized the words...
"All I knew this morning when I woke
Is I know something now, know something now I didn't before.
And all I've seen since eighteen hours ago
Is green eyes and freckles and your smile
In the back of my mind making me feel like
I just wanna know you better, know you better, know you better now"
Lizzy hadn't cried the entire day but tears began to form in her eyes as he earnestly sang the words to her. She reached up to kiss his lips and was surprised by the whoops and hollers that began to surround them. Embarrassed, she buried her face in his coat as they continued to dance. Holding her close, William placed a soft kiss on her head and they swayed to the music as he continued singing the words softly so only she could hear.
The song was almost over when Lizzy lifted her face to see William's smile. She felt safe in his arms. Returning his smile once again felt those three little words bubbling up in her heart. She was about to say something when a loud crash surprised them. Looking around she saw that Caroline, it seemed, had knocked an entire bottle of champagne from a server's hand and a group was rushing to clean it up. Looking around Lizzy was glad to see Jane was dancing with Charlie. They were talking intently as they dance, and Lizzy hoped they were beginning to clear up their issues. She was looking forward to an update. But it could wait.
The evening passed very quickly and all too soon, Lizzy said goodbye to her friends, her sister Maria, and to Jane and Charlotte.
"Call me anytime Maria. I want to hear from you. And we can make plans for Christmas. I want you to spend it with us."
"Ok. I love you Lizzy. And call me too. I promise I'll answer if I can." Maria said hugging her sister goodbye. She was so glad she'd made the right decision this weekend and had been there for Lizzy, especially after all the times Lizzy had been there for her.
Stepping into William's car, they took the short drive back to their home. At the top of the elevator, William stepped out to unlock the door. Quickly, he turned around and swept Lizzy off her feet. Laughing, she said, "I can't believe you are following that old wives tale."
"We deserve all the good omens we can get." He said as he set her down.
Lizzy kicked off her heels and went into the kitchen. William followed her, and began divesting himself of his jacket, tie and cufflinks, placing them on the back of a dining room chair and table as he walked. It felt good to relax a bit. They were pleasantly surprised to see a bottle of champagne cooling on the counter along with a tray of cheese, meats and chopped vegetables. "Mrs. Reynolds strikes again," Darcy chuckled.
"Let's carry this into the living room and have a picnic on the floor in there." Lizzy suggested, "I'm starving!"
"One would think, Mrs. Darcy, that having a wedding reception in a restaurant, a quite good one at that, wouldn't result in being starving at the end of the evening." William teased.
Settling down on the floor, she tucked her feet under her and began making up two plates. "I don't know how anyone has 200 people at their wedding. We had a little over 50 guests and I still feel as though I barely spoke to everyone." Lizzy said with a sigh.
"I think people attend weddings to bear witness to happiness and hope, not really to spend a lot of time with the bride and groom. We're you happy tonight Lizzy?" William asked.
A smile crossed her face, "Yes, I was very, very happy."
"Good." They sat their in companionable silence eating their food and sipping champaign. Finally, William got the nerve up to say what had been on his mind all afternoon. "Lizzy, I, um, I wanted to talk about tonight...I mean, later tonight, um, bedtime so to speak." William started clearly uncomfortable.
Startled, Lizzy's mind started racing. Yes, they were married and all but she wasn't sure she was ready, not yet.
Seeing the look on her face, Darcy regretted ruining their happy moment. "Sorry, nevermind."
Lizzy looked up and saw the withdrawn look on his face. Maddy had reminded her over and over again this weekend that they needed to be honest and transparent with one another or else they'd be constantly misunderstanding one another. Taking his hand in hers, she squeezed it, silently encouraging him to look at her. He did.
"William, I have a confession to make." She could see she had his full attention now. "These past few days, I think I realized, truly for the first time, that I'm falling very much in love with you. It's an exhilarating and frightening experience. It's just that, I've never, well, you know. I trust that if I give these new emotions a little more time to grow and develop that I'll know when I'm ready. I'm sorry that I'm not ready right now."
"Please don't apologize. You should never apologize for that. Lizzy, over these past few days I've come to appreciate that I'm very much in love with you already. Yes Lizzy, I love you. And if you think you're starting to feel those same emotions than I'll wait a very long time. I wasn't suggesting that we have sex tonight, but I'd very much like it if we slept in the same bed. I just want to hold you in my arms all night long. Would you consider that?"
Lizzy was relieved and felt bad about jumping to conclusions. Maddy had been right. "Yes. I'd very much like to sleep in your arms. Thank you. I've been on a path to only sleep with one man in my life and I want that to be true." Lizzy said as she reached up to stroke his cheek.
William reached down to kiss her. He prayed those words were true and in the meantime, he'd happily hold her close to him.
So they don't consummate it tonight. I know many of you expected them to but as I said to one commenter - they challenges ahead will only serve to deepen their connection and...there will be a few bumps ahead. Comments, perspectives, thoughts...all welcome.