6. Chapter 6 #2
Her forehead crinkled and she frowned, shaking her head. “No, I’m afraid not. The last designer…” She pressed her lips together. “No, these rooms will be fine. Please do not enter any other areas of the house.”
“Not a problem,” I said, though I did find her reluctance odd.
“I’ll clear the rooms of all the furniture and everything you don’t want to incorporate into your design.” She cleared her throat. “I ask that you refrain from handling any of my things.”
I glanced at Jack, who raised his eyebrows.
“Gladys, please be assured, I won’t touch your things or enter any area of your home that you don’t want me to.”
Her smile returned. “Good. Thank you, dear. Did you get everything you needed?”
“Yes, I’m ready to move on to the next step. I know you don’t want your things to be handled, but would you like me to hire a crew to move the furniture for you? I would never expect a client to do that alone.”
She held out one hand. With a flick of her wrist, the chair I’d been sitting on floated into the air. “No need, dear, I can handle it.”
I grinned. “All right, then. I’ll be back in a week to show you what I’ve come up with so you can make changes or move forward with the design.”
“That would be wonderful, thank you.”
She showed us to the door herself and we hurried outside, the wind chasing us the whole way. Moments after I started the car, a heavy rain pelted the windshield. Lightning lit the sky, illuminating piles of once crisp fallen leaves that would now be a soggy mess.
When we reached Netherfield, I parked as close as I could to the house and pulled the door handle, but Jack reached across me and quickly pulled it shut again. “You can’t go out in this, the water will ruin your dress. I’ll be right back.”
He ran out into the rain and disappeared into the house. A few moments later, he returned with a large umbrella and opened the driver’s side door for me.
“That was quick,” I said as he helped me out of the car.
“The umbrella was propped up in the entryway.”
I hid my smile. Apparently Netherfield approved of him if it was responding to his needs and wants.
“Follow me and I’ll find the housekeeper to sort out a room for you.
” I led him through the den, a cozy, comfortable room I’d created for Charles to host intimate friends.
The door to the outside opened and a dripping wet Elizabeth Bennet ran in with Darcy on her heels.
They were followed by Charles and a group of about ten people, some of whom I vaguely recognized from around town.
I’d forgotten Charles had told me he would be inviting a few people over tonight.
Darcy’s eyes met mine and he stopped, even as the group continued on to another part of the house.
The rain had left wet splatters all across the shoulders of his gray jacket and on the thighs of his tailored jeans.
He pushed his dark, dripping hair out of his eyes and started crossing the room toward me.
I turned to Jack, who must have read the panic in my eyes because he stiffened and scanned our surroundings. “What’s wrong?”
“Darcy is here.”
Jack’s shoulders relaxed and I smacked his arm. “No. You don’t get to be relieved about this. He believes I’m desperate enough that my sister had to resort to a love potion to get him to feel something for me. And pathetic enough that she would have to kill the competition.”
“Just talk to him,” he whispered. “If you’ve been friends for years, he’ll believe you.”
I let my eyes slide from Jack’s reassuring face to Darcy, who was closing the distance between us.
My eyes snapped back to Jack, my heart galloping in my chest. Facing Darcy felt like facing everything: my father’s rejection, my sister’s betrayal, my own worthlessness in the eyes of everyone who knew me.
“I can’t do it,” I whispered. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. If I let myself break down now, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to put the pieces back together.
Jack lifted my chin so he could meet my eyes, and I didn’t glamour over the pain.
“What if he had good reason to believe that you were over him?” Jack took a step closer to me, his amber eyes never leaving mine. “What if he thought you were into someone else?”
My heart skipped a beat. I knew what Jack was doing.
He was distracting me to keep me from falling apart here in front of Darcy.
I grabbed onto the lifeline he offered and took a baby step closer, retreating into the comfort of flirtation.
“Oh? And who do you have in mind? I don’t know if we can find someone on such short notice. ”
“I’m not the best man for you, but I could stand in and help you out.”
I saw it then, in his eyes. This man who followed me into the frigid ocean, who saw my pain even when I tried to hide it and protected not only me but also my favorite dress—he actually believed that he wasn’t good enough for me.
I’d show him otherwise. I snatched the front of his collar and pulled his lips to mine. They were warm and smooth, and carried the faintest trace of seawater. He wrapped his hands around my waist and I cupped his face in my hands, loving the gentle stubble as it scraped along my palms.
He pulled away from me much too soon. “He’s gone.” His voice was low and breathy.
Who was gone? Right—Darcy. I cracked a shaky smile. “Do you think he saw us?”
“Oh, he saw us.”
“Good.”
Jack cleared his throat. “What do you want to do tonight?”
My traitorous eyes may have briefly flicked to his lips. “Something reckless,” I said.
His smile was predatory. “In what way?”
“Not in a way you’ll like. I want to break into the antiques store and get some dirt on Reggie McFarland.”