Chapter 34 #2
“Well, you have been overly preoccupied with them of late.”
“How could I not? Damn. Turns out the internet has a lot more to offer than French word translation.” He grinned.
“A quick search confirmed my speculation after I realized that using protection hasn’t been on our radar, then or even now.
And then you stopped drinking wine, coupled with your voracious sexual appetite.
Hell, we didn’t even make it to the room on Saturday night. ”
“No one saw,” she deadpanned, then laughed. “But, you’re right, that was a bit risqué with all those people on the beach.”
“And the moaning.” He dropped a peck to her lips.
“Oh, God, was I that loud?”
“I did not mind a replay of June’s beach romp.”
“No, you sure didn’t. So, you’re happy about this speed mode turn of events?”
“Hell yeah! It’s incredible, Mrs. Darcy.”
She giggled, “I love the sound of that! Seriously, though, are you really happy? A baby?”
“Yes, really! Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because we put the cart before the horse, again!” she joked.
“What can I say? I’m a proud overachiever and kept my promise to Big Tom before I even made it, and I didn’t even have to pinky swear. The question is are you okay with this unplanned surprise? You’ve been through so many changes, like supersonic fast, in the last couple of months.”
She smiled and sighed. “Babe, this adjustment makes all the crappy stuff worth it. I am more than okay with it. You, me, and our baby made out of our love for each other? It’s the best beginning. It’s everything we planned in all our late-night whisper sessions.”
“Then why did you wait so long to tell me?”
“Because I wanted to go to the doctor first, and I was worried that you’d think a baby, this soon, was too soon.”
“No way.”
She lovingly kissed him, and his hand slid across her tummy.
“Do you still want to go to Paris?” he breathed.
“Sure! We can go at Christmas or wait until next fall. It’s not like babies can’t travel or we can’t afford an au pair for long trips. Heck, I’m good with just you and me carrying our little one in a papoose as we see the world.”
“Definitely doable,” he agreed.
“On the beach, at the wedding, is this what you wanted me to confess?”
“Yes! Duh! I set it up perfectly. How did you miss that?”
“Well, I sorta had a one-track mind, and I figured you were catching my vibe because all day you were sending me horn-dog signals.” She knit her brow. “Is the pregnancy why you want to get married today?”
“Not at all. I’m just tired of waiting to say I do. As it turns out, your pregnancy is a wedding gift from me to you.”
“And from me to you.”
“A reminder of the night that brought you back to me. You know, even though I thought it was a dream, maybe I subconsciously wanted, needed, to leave you with something tangible from our love.”
“I never said before, but that night when I left the hotel room for a walk on the beach, I hoped I’d run into you.
I felt on fire for you, and there you were in the water with the full moon shining down on you.
There was so much magic in the moonlight and in our coming together in the way we had.
I can’t explain it. It was like I needed something profound to come from us making love. ”
“I’d say it did.” William kissed her.
“I’d say he or she will be our greatest collaborative masterpiece.”
The Unforgettable Moment
Wearing a graphite grey, three-piece suit, William paced at the bottom of the staircase, waiting for his fiancée’s grand descent.
His heart raced a little but not from anxiety or fear, just the overwhelming emotions he felt for the future before them.
Although engaged to be married two months ago, he never imagined such joy awaiting him.
Lizzy. A baby. Smiling, he shook his head in disbelief.
Everything had changed him and the world he lived in, all because of Lizzy.
He thought back to the night on the beach, how brazen she had been, and the events it ushered in.
Seeing her for the first time after The Breakup had shocked him, not just for her presence but for the knock-out she had become, but also how staid her personality had become.
The people in her life had co-opted Lizzy, and only now was she reclaiming her vibrant self.
Could he be so bold as to assume that his re-emergence had been the catalyst for her breaking the shackles that controlled her authentic self?
He knew better than that. Never her lifeline, he was just fortunate to witness her indomitable spirit awaken and fight for survival toward absolute victory.
Helping to restore her self-worth was his privilege.
Opening and closing his fist, he hoped the tea-length wedding dress he purchased for her with Gigi would fit and that she would feel special in it.
His sister’s convincing agreement about it, the shoes, and the “bougie” wedding boutique gave him hope.
Small as this wedding would be, he felt confident that it would be everything Lizzy had dreamed.
For all her insistence on wanting to marry in Aunt Catherine’s chambers, he knew otherwise because he knew her and how her mind worked.
She also loved surprises, and he would move heaven and earth to give her the wedding she deserved.
“I’m ready!” she announced from the second floor. “Are you ready?”
“With baited breath. Does it fit?”
“Like it was made for me.”
“But, do you like it?”
“I looove it! Okay, here I come, cowboy,” she said, her voice filled with mirth.
From his position, he saw a glittering white shoe take its first step down like Cinderella, and his pulse raced.
Then another step down.
The magnificence of the mansion and the grandiosity of the staircase disappeared when his stunning bride-to-be elegantly descended, wearing a coy smile and the perfect dress for her.
From the delicate white floral pins sweeping up her chestnut locks, down her graceful neck to the illusion neckline, sheer lace long sleeves, the crystal and lace-fitted bodice, to the soft, flowing skirt accented with lace, draped her beautifully.
She looked like an angel floating toward him.
His breath caught, heart arrested, his grin wider than it had ever been. Spellbound, he was rendered speechless, swallowing hard as he was caught up in the whirlwind of overwhelming emotion. The sappy romantic in him fought back tears.
“Well? What do you think?” she asked from the second-to-last step.
He offered her his hand for the last step into his arms. “I ... God, Lizzy,” he choked back.
Damn, if his eyes didn’t well with tears at the feeling of his heart bursting.
Those perfect lips. He’d kiss her if they weren’t so flawlessly painted pink.
A tear escaped from the corner of his left eye, and her lace-gloved finger brushed it.
“I know. I feel the same way.” Her eyes glistened. “You look so handsome.”
A word finally escaped his lips when he bent to kiss her hand. “Breathtaking.”
“Let’s go get married, Mr. Darcy,” she said.
From the box on the entrance table, he withdrew her bouquet. “For you.”
“Oh, wow, William. It’s beautiful—all my favorites. How did you find peonies this time of the year?”
He simply smiled, glad for his connections in Canada.
Lizzy dug her nose into the bouquet. “The roses are stunning.” Examining it, she said. “This is ... the bouquet your mother painted in ‘With Love.’ ”
“Yes, it is. She’s with us today.”
“She’s with us every day.”
“Are you ready?”
“Yeah.” Tenderly smiling, she held his gaze for a second. “Thank you.”
“No. Thank you.” He gingerly kissed her on the lips.
“Guys, we’re ready,” he called out, not taking any chances today that Wickham might emerge from the hole he’d crawled back into after the article.
“Look at you two!” Pete said. “Elizabeth, you stop my heart.”
“Yeah. Makes me want to get married,” Sean added, then laughed. “For, like, two minutes.”
“The resolute bachelor,” William joked. “You just haven’t met your Lizzy, yet, but when you do—look out!” He squeezed her hand.
“True. I’m honored to be your official security detail, Elizabeth.”
“Thank you, Sean. I feel safe already. So, are we all going in the limo together?”
“Nope. He rides with us. Taylor will drive Pete in the limo.”
“Hey! Lucky me!”
“Don’t get used to it,” he joked.
Opening the front door, Sean stepped aside for Lizzy to exit first. Pete would reset the alarms behind them.
“Oh. My. God!” Lizzy declared, the smile on her face as joyful as the leap to his heart. “You didn’t?”
“I did.”
“You are the most romantic man in the world,” she stated, clearly pleased by the white with red interior and canopy, horse-drawn carriage waiting for them at the curb.
He helped her into the carriage, then settled beside her. Sean took his seat beside the driver for an eagle-eye view of traffic and pedestrians, eyes sharp for their slimy nemesis.
Nothing should mar the joy sparkling in her eyes and the auspicious day.
“William, how long will it take to get downtown?” she asked.
“We’re not going downtown.”
“Oh?”
Kissing her hand he said, “It’s a surprise.” Chuckling, he added with a whisper into her ear, “Trust me.”
“Is this payback?”
“In a way, yes.”
The horse clip-clopped at a leisurely pace down Fifth Avenue as passersby snapped photos when the carriage rode by. “I planned dinner at Tavern on the Green afterward.”
“That’s perfect, and it’s such a beautiful day for it. Oh, this is so romantic already.” Then, Lizzy blurted in a panic, “Wait! We don’t have rings.”
“Would I miss that detail?”
“No, you wouldn’t.” She grinned.
Turning down 72nd Street, they rode under tree canopies along Central Park’s Terrace Drive.
“I love the detour, but won’t we be late?” she asked.
“Trust. Me.” He removed the phone from his pocket, then texted someone.
“Ha ha. Sean, where are we going?” she asked.
“Beats me. I’m just on the lookout for thugs and flying pigeons.”
Lizzy twisted her lips when they turned down a winding path, and then another, wrapping around the Angel of the Waters statue, until the carriage stopped at its destination.
“This is us,” he said, stepping out. “We just have one more stop to make down this path.”
“I know where we are. You are so sentimental to want a photo op before we say ‘I do.’”
He held her hand to assist her, then kissed it before giving instructions to Sean.
“Mon Dieu! You are a princess!” Guy announced, his blue suede shoes rushing up the path toward her.
“What? Guy, what are you doing here? You should be at the courthouse waiting for us.”
“I’m only following instructions.” He clasped his hands at his chin. “Aye caramba, look at you! You’re a beauty beyond compare. If I were thirty years younger and straight, I’d wrest you from your Mr. Darcy and marry you myself!”
“Thank you, Guy. I’m so happy.”
“Of course you are. You’ve got the world on a string. And I’m sitting on the rainbow!”
From down the pathway, William heard the violins. “That’s my cue, babe. Guy will escort you.” He kissed her forehead. “I’ll see you by the lake. Forever begins here, sweetheart.”
“Wait! What?”
He winked, then dashed down the tree-covered path.
“Oh, my little dove. Your man has been mucho, mucho busy. Grab your bouquet and let’s get this party started,” he said with a swing and snap to his fingers.
Lizzy grabbed his hand. “Guy, wait. I have something to tell you.”
“Oh no! It’s too late for cold feet. I won’t allow your Telenovela life to destroy this perfect day.”
“Never! I just want you to be the second person I tell. I’m pregnant.”
He waved. “Pshaw. That’s old news.”
“You knew?” She placed her hand on her tummy.
“Mammuccia, everyone knows.”
She chortled, thinking she had kept the biggest secret in town.
“What gave it away?”
“Your afternoon siestas for one and, of course, my hypothesis about your little tête-à-tête on the beach in June.” He sighed.
“No sense in putting on my biology teacher hat again. Your virile man did exactly as I anticipated he would—knocked you up on the first go after all those years without you. The man was obviously dedicated to winning you back.”
Beaming she replied, “Baby or not, he succeeded.” She tucked her arm into the crook of her dear friend, and they set out toward the lake and the growing music of violins and cellos.
“This is really happening,” she whispered.
“My elusive happiness. It’s been so long since I felt this content—this complete. ”
“Yes, my dear girl, and you deserve it. I couldn’t be any prouder than to give you away to such a man.”
“Thank you for everything. You’ve been so kind to me.”
“Of course! You’re like a daughter to me.”
Walking beneath towering oak trees and sugar maples, her heart hammered, and she couldn’t stop smiling.
Romantic music filled the air and the scent of roses floated up from her bouquet, filling her lungs.
Wow. Her wedding to William, which he planned just for her.
Wow. How far they had come in such a short time since Paris.
Emerging from the tree line into the brilliant sunlight, she couldn’t believe her eyes.
A magnificent floral archway welcomed her to the small boat landing beside their painting spot.
White streamers billowed on the bank of the lake and from their tree.
Beyond the archway, her grinning fiancé stood beside Charlie to the right of Aunt Catherine.
Charlotte, her matron of honor, stood at the judge’s left side.
She half-expected William to run his hand through his hair, but he looked too confident and at peace for that.
Her heart danced, and she fought tears of joy.
Outside the wrought-iron railing, the seated guests stood for her entrance.
Gigi, Carrie and Rick (surprise!), Louisa and Hurst, Charlotte’s husband, Cousin Anne, and Charlie’s boss beamed at her arrival.
The picturesque, heart-squeezing scene, and all the beautiful people dearest to her, were backdropped by the tranquil lake and Bow Bridge.
Her gaze locked on William, and she was sure he was tearing up.
She’d never felt so loved or special in her entire life.
The quartet played Urban’s “Making Memories of Us” when she and Guy stepped onto the red rose-petaled runner.
Her gaze never left William’s as she floated toward her happy ever after beside the man she loved.