Page 46 of Pride, Prejudice, & Pretense

Four hands and then away

Both under influence

We had divine sense

To know what to say

Mind is a razorblade

To call for hands of above, to lean on

Wouldn't be good enough for me, no

“Heartbeats,”The Knife

Chapter Eleven: Parlor Games

Lizzy and Darcy had dessert,tiramisu.Darcy ordered one dessert with two spoons.

Celebration.

Lizzy could not stop smiling as she ate it, and neither could Darcy.

Delicious.

She wasn't sure how to explain her giddiness, but she was impressed by Darcy's acting skills. Anyone watching would have thought that the woman he loved had accepted his proposal, truly. He beamed at her. The other customers smiled and nodded at them, eager to participate in their apparent happiness.

He paid and tried to lead her quickly out of the restaurant, but it took a few minutes, as they were stopped by customers who wanted to congratulate them. Ned held Fanny's hand as they navigated the phalanx of well-wishers ("Beautiful couple!" "You both look so happy!" "You're a lucky man!") and continued to hold it as they strolled down the street, not letting go until they got into the elevator to her apartment floor.

Once the doors slid closed, Darcy turned to her, his smile at last fading as he dropped her hand. His look was serious, and he rolled his shoulders before speaking in his normal accent, the physical shift a mental shift.

"While we were at dinner, Bingley moved some of my things into your apartment. It probably makes the most sense for Ned to be staying with Fanny during this visit, given what just happened. I imagine knowing that Ned is here will motivate Wickham even more. Of course, I'll sleep on the couch and do my best to stay out of your way. It'll just be for a couple of nights—tonight and tomorrow. Ned will head back to the city the day after the Rosings party."

Lizzy nodded as the elevator opened on her floor. "Okay," she said quietly, waving her hand, the ring. "I suspect Wickham will now be actively interested in our sleeping arrangements." Although the hallway was empty, they walked to Fanny's door hand in hand. She was not sure whether Darcy had retaken her hand or she had retaken his.

In the apartment, a worn leather duffle bag stood on the kitchen counter next to the computer. Darcy gestured to it. "Bingley's been here. This is mine." He walked over, picked up the bag, and moved it to the couch. "There's extra bedding stored in the bathroom closet…at least there should be." He headed in that direction.

Lizzy, sitting in the armchair, stared down at her left hand, the ring on her finger, stared fixedly at it, and she shook her head. It had all felt so real—so very, so unexpectedly real in the restaurant. Now she did not know how it felt, how she felt. It was all fake, a pretend proposal. The ring was real, of course, a real diamond, shining at her, small but bright. But the ring did not mean what they pretended it meant at the restaurant.

A fake thing is often a real something else.A teddy bear is a fake bear but a real toy.Fanny's engagement was fake, but her ring was real, a real ring. Ned was fake, but Darcy was real. The ring should not have made Lizzy feel as happy as it had, but it did. It still seemed to hold out a prospect of happiness.

Darcy marched back into the room, his arms full of pillow, blanket, and folded sheets. He smiled at her above the stacked bedding. "You were terrific in the restaurant." He put the bedding down and turned to face her. "Your smile, yourface…when you saidyes…" He looked at her as if trying to decide something, holding himself taut and then shaking his head and grinning. "Convincing, utterly." He stared into the distance past Lizzy, his grin lasting as long as his stare.

Finally he sobered, giving himself a visible shake and refocusing on Lizzy. "We'll need to be as convincing tomorrow. That dinner party is going to test us both, but especially you. I'll just need to be jealous, subtly or obviously, depending on what happens, but Fanny's got to straddle having saidyesto me tonight and still wanting to sayyesto Wickham on some night soon. She's got to convince him that tonight only delays the inevitable."

Lizzy glanced down at her ring…the ring…again. Fanny would have to betray that ring, making Wickham believe that she was capable of both accepting it and being false to it. It was a lowering thought. It turned her stomach and made her regret eating so much of the tiramisu, more than her half. Darcy had enjoyed it, too, but had seemed to enjoy watching her eat it more. His pleasure caused her to let herself go. She put her hand on her stomach and then slid it up to her chest.

Darcy had directed his attention to the couch, converting it into a bed, unfolding the sheet and tucking it in. "We still need to discover why Wickham is here. He wasn't lured here only by Lady Catherine's well-preserved curves. This second visit to Rosings may give us a chance?not only for you or me to perhaps get Wickham to slip, to reveal something?but also to slip someone into the house. Bingley."

"Isn't the house guarded?"

"Not like it was the first night we were there. Most of the time, Lady Catherine relies on a state-of-the-art security system and only a couple of security guards. There were more the other night, but that was for the large party. Bingley should be able to get inside and into Wickham's room—that's the target. Once you and I are inside, we need to make sure that Wickham stays with us until we know Bingley is out of the house. We'll finish the plan tomorrow, but I wanted you to know the basic idea."

Lizzy contemplated what he had said. "Charlie can do that, you think?"

Darcy turned. "Yes. He’s a good agent."

"But what about his distractions? His girlfriend?" she asked, not giving away any particular knowledge of the situation, of Jane.

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