Pride and Prejudice

dreamy-eyed and obviously smitten

Darcy's POV

I stared blankly at the headlines on my laptop, then sighed, and sat back against the chair.

Yesterday I thought I liked Elizabeth surprising me, but today, I didn't, not one bit. Anyone who I trust doesn't do what she did. My friends know how much I want privacy, and she utterly betrayed my growing confidence in her. I didn't think she would do something to bring attention to her like that. Apparently, I was wrong.

I didn't mind that the picture was of the two of us, in a way I did, but not really.

According to the media, I am dating either, Caroline, Anne, or someone else, depending on the day and the magazine company. I will never marry either one. Both are decent enough, Anne considerably more than Caroline because she is nice. However, Anne and I don't share much in common besides our money and heritage. Neither one of them are what I have been praying for my future wife to be.

Half of the reason I agreed to come with Charles to a random small town in Texas was so that no one would recognize me like they do in New York, London, or any other major city. Apparently being a billionaire makes you different from everybody else, or so they think. I don't. The only difference is that I can basically do whatever I want to spending-wise. Which sometimes is a downfall, but I give tons away to Christian charities.

I rubbed my hands over my eyes, looking at the headlines again. My phone lit up with a text from Caroline, providing the perfect distraction. I picked it up to better see the words. "Lizzy is about to climb the wall and it should be a sight to see."

Shifting my frame to stand up, I went to the window and opened the curtains to see how she would manage to get over the wall. After a short while of waiting and scanning the wall for any hint of movement, I saw some of the tree limbs shaking. She eventually made it out of the tree and crawled out to the top of the wall. Despite myself, my stomach dropped when she slipped. I was very impressed when she flipped off the wall and landed on her feet. She stood still for a moment, then appeared to examine herself. Was she hurt? Elizabeth glanced around, then spotted me looking at her and I ducked out of sight. There was no way I could condone her actions.

What is going to be her explanation for why she called the paparazzi?

It was perfect that Jane got sick so we had a reasonable reason to invite her over. Caroline had told me her plan was to take Elizabeth's phone from her so she couldn't take any pictures or videos and send those in.

I grabbed my iPad laying on the bed and headed downstairs.

Time to confront her.

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Lizzy's POV

What the actual heck? Do they seriously believe that I would do that? Why would I?

Being famous isn't my dream. Especially not if it means being associated with the jerk in Mr. William Darcy.

Once Caroline closed the door, I walked a couple of feet into the mudroom and turned to her. "Caroline, can I go to the bathroom first and clean myself? Then will you please give me the respect to at least see the picture?"

"Formal parlor." She pushed past me and lead me out of the spacious mudroom, down a wide hall, my sneakers slightly squeaking on the glossy, old hardwood, and through a maze of rooms to what she called the formal parlor. I followed, my hands and face burning from the pain of them getting scratched. By the time we arrived in the formal parlor, I realized that Caroline was either trying to get her steps in or simply hadn't thought much about the layout of the house. I knew a shortcut that would have saved about forty-five steps. The things you learn when hosting parties and you have a short window of time to prepare before guests arrive.