Obstinate and Headstrong

Part 11

William's POV

The chatter around the table had not seized even though my reason for even being at this table had left some time ago.

No one else seemed to be bothered by the disappearance of Elizabeth. For some reason, this irritated me.

I believe that Julie would've noticed if she and Ian weren't lost in their own bubble for the past 30 minutes.

The rest of them were too busy talking animatedly to notice. Well, it was just Collin and Mrs Bennet who was fighting for the spotlight and the rest of us were stuck watching a show without so much as a recess in between.

"Excuse me, I'll be right back," I said in between one of Mrs Bennet's mind-numbing conversations on the daily lives of some or other reality show star.

I made haste in standing up before they could attempt at pulling me back into the conversation.

The rest of the house was silent apart from the occasional clinking of dinnerware. That's probably where Elizabeth snuck off to.

I followed the noise into the kitchen where Elizabeth was standing in front of a sink.

Her shoulders were tense and she was so deep in thought that she hadn't even noticed my presence when I came to a standstill right behind her.

I slipped my arms across her stomach as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Her body tensed before shrinking into me when she realized who it was. I couldn't help the feeling of satisfaction that spread over me at the fact that she wasn't trying to pull away from me anymore but rather welcomed my touch.

I had never been very affectionate. On the contrary, I usually tried to keep my distance from people and as far as possible avoided physical contact at all costs. Things like that had always been a waste of time and more trouble than it was worth.

But with Elizabeth it was different. I wanted to be near her, to hold her close. In the beginning, it was unnerving and I tried denying it and blaming it on mere physical attraction. But ever since the day of her interview when she waltzed up to me and put me in my place, I couldn't get enough of her. Every one of my instincts told me to stay away, that she would ruin me. But I couldn't, she kept drawing me in. She was a walking contradiction, trying so hard to put up a strong front, caging her true feelings so deep inside that I doubted even her sister knew what she was feeling most of the time. But I saw her, that uncertainty, anxiousness, distrust... all because of that fragile heart of hers. She felt too much, too fiercely and could get hurt all the easier because of it.

She knew I could see right through her and feared I would see her as weak. That's why she kept trying to reinforce those walls around her.

That's what she was doing now, trying to keep that wall up, keep me at arm's length. But there was no way in hell that I was going to distance myself from her again. These last couple of months had been hell.

But today everything changed and I wasn't stepping back again.

I squeezed her tighter to my chest as if to make sure that she was truly in my arms and not a figment of my imagination. Her vanilla scent enveloped me and it was so undeniably her.

"Is there any particular reason why you are hiding away in the kitchen, Elizabeth?" I whispered in her ear, purposefully brushing my mouth against her soft skin.

She shivered under my touch.

"I'm not hiding..." She answered stubbornly, keeping her tone even.

That wall, that damned wall...

"Hmm...of course, you're not," I said as I started trailing soft kisses down the side of her neck.

She inhaled a sharp breath.

"What...are you doing?" she stammered, the dishes in the sink all but forgotten, "Everyone is right outside; they can walk in at any moment."

"I honestly don't give a damn who sees us," I answered, lifting her chin that had been staring down at the kitchen sink. "It's just you and me, no one else."

Her eyes travelled up to my own. Those big black eyes were going to be my undoing. A hint of that vulnerability was peeking through.

I twisted her around in my arms so that she was now facing me. Those eyes now hitting me with their full force.

I pulled her to my chest in an embrace and started rubbing soothing circles on her back. A shaky breath left her lips before she pressed her face into my chest. Her hands slowly, uncertainly at first came across my back. My heart swelled as her fists clenched the fabric of my shirt as if she needed me more at that moment than I dared to believe.

I waited for her breathing to become deeper, more even and her shoulders to visibly relax before venturing to speak once more.

"Elizabeth," I said softly, "Please tell me what's bothering you."

A few seconds ticked by before she lifted her face slightly away from my chest to speak.

"I just... This is all too much." She said, without raising her eyes to meet mine.

"What is too much? Me being here?" I asked gently.

I should've known springing this on her might freak her out.

She frowned, "It's not that I don't want you here, it's just... I don't know what it means or what you're thinking."

"Hey," I cupped her face and lifted her face so that her eyes were once again meeting my own. "Your mother didn't bombard me, after what you told me about her I knew she would invite me in. I wanted to spend more time with you today, that's why I turned around. But that doesn't mean I'm going to drop down on one knee today." I finished with a cheeky smile.

A blush spread over her cheeks at the meaning of my words.

Oh Elizabeth, if you only knew what I planned for our future...

I leaned down and placed a quick kiss on her lips causing her eyes to widen in surprise.

"And don't worry, your family isn't going to scare me away. I'm already in too deep." I winked at her.

I finally attempted a William POV and I hope it doesn't disappoint 😅

What do you guys think? Was this what you thought it would be like to step inside William's head? 

I'd love to hear what you guys are thinking!

And I would just like to thank you guys for the amazing support, all of you are awesome!

XO

Audrey