Foundation of Love: The Gypsy Blessing 2 (4 page)

“How…?” William sputtered out, almost a whisper. “How did your niece know what I have pictured in my mind every time I think of that land? I’ve never even made a sketch of the house, and yet here it is, perfectly built in miniature!”

Gardiner raised his eyebrows high. “Really?”

Too choked up at the moment to say anything more, William only nodded.

“Well, that
is
interesting!” Gardiner rubbed his thumb across his chin. “You see, what you described is exactly the way Lizzy works. After familiarizing herself with the type of building the client needs, she gets the feel of the land and then designs what she sees in her imagination—something that will fit in with the surrounding landscape. When she looks at your land,
this
is what she sees.”

Lizzy?
A shiver ran down William’s spine.
How many architectural students named Lizzy can there be?

William’s attention moved to the model once again. “There are a couple of additions I would make on the outside—a tennis court for instance—but this is almost perfect.”

“Actually, here are the plans.” Gardiner motioned towards a drafting table behind William. “There
is
a tennis court.” He pointed. “Right here.”

William nodded. It was exactly where it belonged.

Gardiner continued. “Lizzy hasn’t had a chance to build it onto the model yet.”

William looked over the plans and chuckled when he saw the stables were also precisely where he thought they should be. He straightened his spine and looked Gardiner squarely in the eye. “Is there any way your niece would part with her ambition to build this for herself?”

Gardiner took in a deep breath. “As I said earlier in the day, it was just a dream of hers. While she might have eventually saved the money to buy the land, realistically she knows she will never be able to afford to build the house as she has envisioned it. I would think she’d be thrilled to know that her mansion will be built on the plot of land it was
meant
for.” He glanced at the clock on the wall. “It’s too bad she won’t be able to come into work this afternoon—her classes run late tonight.”

Speechless, William only nodded once again. A photograph on the wall above the drafting table caught his eye. It was obviously a job site; Gardiner was in the picture, along with a few other people he did not recognize, and there was the beautiful face of the woman—no,
girl
, he reminded himself—whom he had found himself staring at for a good portion of the weekend.

“Elizabeth Bennett,” William breathed.

“Why, yes! Do you know her?”

William’s heart skipped a beat.
What an incredible coincidence.
He cleared his throat to give him a moment to recover from his shock. “I know
of
her, Mr. Gardiner, but I’ve never met her. She shares a suite at university with my friend, Anne de Bourgh.”

Gardiner smiled widely. “Ah, Anne. What a lovely girl! I’ve come to know her quite well since Jane and Lizzy met her at the university.”

If I choose to have it built, will I ever think of my house as anything other than “Elizabeth’s mansion?” No, Mr. Gardiner, it’s
good
that I won’t have the opportunity to meet her.

~%~

~The following weekend

“There he is, Anne.” Elizabeth pointed toward the door and called out, “Richie!” The other girls stood and called out, as well. It was obvious by the way he looked around Club Speakeasy that he’d heard them. Recognition dawned in his eyes, and he picked his way through the crowd, heading in their direction. The closer he got, the more anxious Anne seemed to be. As Richard drew near, Elizabeth gave her a little nudge. Anne ran into his arms, practically tackling him. It warmed Elizabeth’s heart to see both their faces light up with such joy, the same as they did every weekend when he came to visit her. It was too bad they lived so far apart. They belonged together.

Knowing their staring into each other’s eyes could go on all night, she piped up. “I don’t know about you girls, but I think it’s rude that we don’t even rate a greeting
before
they start acting like they’re the only two people on the planet.”

Richard chuckled and turned to face Elizabeth. “Hello, Squirt! The color of your kiddie bracelet clashes with your outfit.”

Speakeasy was a dance club for anyone age sixteen and over, so everyone had to wear a colored bracelet to indicate whether or not they were old enough to order alcohol.

“Ah, that’s better.” Elizabeth smiled brightly. She never minded his teasing references to her deficiency in age or height. “Your honorary sisters don’t rate as high as your girlfriend, eh?”

“Honorary sisters?” Richard raised his eyebrows.

“Yes. After you did such a wonderful job of chasing away that
pest,
Collin Hunsford, from stalking me the last time you were in town, you were officially declared our ‘big brother.’”

“I’m honored, ladies.” Richard bowed slightly before holding Anne’s chair and then taking a seat himself.

Thinking of the greasy young man whose eyes never strayed from her chest and whose conversation consisted entirely of suggestive comments and empty flattery, Elizabeth wrinkled her nose. “He never bothers me when we’re out somewhere near home anymore, but in Longbourn, he does.”

Jane shared a knowing glance with Charlotte. Charlotte said, “That’s because he knew he was safe here, so far away from Dan. Now he won’t bother you again at Longbourn, either, knowing Richie might be in town.”

Elizabeth nodded. She had tried to forget her old friend Dan’s reaction the night Collin had hung all over her when they all attended a concert. It upset her too much. But Elizabeth was not one to stay in a bad mood for long, so a few minutes later, she goaded Richard into joining them all on the dance floor.

Chapter
2

~Meryton – May 30 – a little more than 2 years later

On the afternoon of her twentieth birthday, while sharing a celebratory slice of pizza with a group of friends, Elizabeth heard her cell phone make a sound it had not made before. Curious about the noise and surprised that she could hear it over the crowd in the restaurant, she excused herself and stepped outside to check her phone. When she looked at the screen, the displayed read
*New Photo*.

She had not seen this message previously. There were no missed calls or text messages. The sound she had heard was not the one her phone would normally make at all.
Maybe someone changed my ringtones?

Elizabeth opened the photo album and found not one, but several new photos.

The first was a picture of an artfully wrapped gift on the balcony outside her room. Elizabeth laughed. Someone must have sent her the photo so she would hurry home.

The second was a photo of her family in their beautiful new home, and she could swear they were seated around their brand new dining room table, which had just been delivered last night--but they had eaten in the kitchen the night before. When could this have been taken? Her sister Lydia was pouting, probably because she had a large stain on her favorite shirt. Her mother was very upset, and her brother Tom was bending down. Jane was absent.

The third confused her even more—it was a picture of Anne’s friend William Darcy.

Living with a photography nut like Anne, Elizabeth had seen plenty of photos of all Anne’s friends and family, including William Darcy. Anne had even framed the full-page photo she had taken of him, which was published alongside an article naming him as one of the top ten bachelors of the year for the second time. Every time Elizabeth saw a photo of him, she was shocked to find that she ached to lose herself in the clear, crystal blue of his eyes. This time, as she stared at his image on the phone, the longing went much deeper, and an unfamiliar warmth coursed through her. It was some minutes before she could tear away her gaze.

Since nobody knew about her secret crush on William Darcy, and none of her friends or family knew the man except Anne, Elizabeth had to assume Anne was trying to tell her that she had surprised her by coming to visit for her birthday. Maybe she was waiting for her at the house right now?

Still, that didn’t explain why Anne would send a photo of William... unless she had brought William with her. Why on earth would she do such a thing?

Elizabeth returned her attention to her phone and sighed wistfully. How could any woman
not
be attracted to a man who had the physical attributes usually found on a statue of a mythical Greek god?

From all the photos Anne had shown her, she knew he was tall. In this picture, his dark hair was cropped short, and his beard had grown in just enough to make him look the slightest bit scruffy, which she thought extremely sexy on a man usually seen in the tabloids all spiffed up, sporting an expensive suit or tuxedo. The polo shirt and khaki shorts he wore were tight in all the right places, accenting his muscular build. Her hands twitched—she’d love to run her fingers through his hair.

If those tabloids ever got ahold of
this
picture, she was sure it would be plastered all over the front page. She giggled, thinking she could already see the headlines “Darcy Dressed Down.”

Elizabeth cocked her head to the side and decided she preferred him this way. It really was a shame William was so unpleasant—even with a scowl plastered on his face as he was shown in the picture, he was the best looking man Elizabeth had ever seen. The frown fit right in with Anne dragging him along to a place he didn’t want to go. Judging by how rude he was whenever she answered the dorm room phone, he must dislike her, though she could never figure out why. If Anne
had
brought him along, he was probably feeling as happy to be there as Elizabeth would be to see him.

Knowing her friends were still waiting for her, Elizabeth forced herself to return inside. Figuring out the photos would have to wait a while longer.

~%~

A few hours later, as she always did whenever entering the Bennetts’ new house—the first of her architectural designs ever to be built—Elizabeth smiled widely. “I’m home.”

Jane popped her head out the kitchen door as Elizabeth entered the great room. “Don’t come in the kitchen, Lizzy!”

“I’m going up to my room to change. I wasn’t expecting it to be so hot today.” Elizabeth headed upstairs.

The first thing she did was look on the balcony for the gift pictured in the photo, but it wasn’t there. She smiled.

Knowing that I wouldn’t be able to wait to open it, Anne must have moved it after taking the picture.

Elizabeth threw on a comfortable T-shirt and pair of shorts. Usually, she’d head straight into the kitchen to help with dinner preparations, but since it was her birthday, she was exempt from that duty. Instead, she kept busy flipping through the channels on the television for a few minutes.

Jane startled her when she seemed to appear out of nowhere. “Happy Birthday!” Jane handed her a small box. “Everyone is home for dinner tonight, but I wanted to give you this while we’re still alone.”

Elizabeth opened it to reveal a lovely set of earrings. “Jane! How did you remember? We saw them such a long time ago. Thank you!” Elizabeth hugged her sister. “Is Anne in the kitchen?”

Jane shook her head. “Why would you think Anne was here?”

“Oh, I got some pictures on my phone, so I automatically thought they were from her.” Elizabeth reached for her cell phone, brought up the photo of the gift on the balcony, and then showed her the others. Jane only glanced at the first two but stopped at the third.

“That’s strange. Why would Anne send you a picture of William Darcy?”

“I have no idea, but she’s the only person I know who also knows William.” Elizabeth chuckled. “Since all these photos came in together, I expected the first was a gift from her and that she must have showed up to surprise me.”

“Not unless she’s hiding from me, too.” Jane laughed. “Come on. I’m supposed to take you into the dining room. Lydia went to get Tom and Dad from the library.”

~%~

After enjoying a combination of Elizabeth’s and Tom’s favorite meals, Elizabeth sat with Tom and her father at the dining room table.

“The best thing about my children’s birthdays is that I get a break from clearing the table so that I can keep the birthday child company.” Her father teased.

Elizabeth smiled. “I don’t mind getting out of it, either. I’d much rather make the mess than clean up afterward.”

Tom agreed. The three discussed Tom’s new plan to continue on to get a master’s degree in business after his graduation next year.

Tom turned to Elizabeth. “How are things going with the Lambton project?”

“The area has been re-zoned, and the plans for the hospital and medical office building have been approved by the Planning Committee and the Town Board. Uncle Ed isn’t optimistic about the construction beginning as soon as it should, because the Commissioner of the Planning Committee is retiring.”

Her father nodded. “Ed told me he doesn’t have much confidence in the new commissioner.”

“He feels it may take the new commissioner a while to become acclimated, especially taking over in the middle of a project as large as this.” Elizabeth sighed. “I’m glad to have a few days off, but there are quite a few buildings to work on. I really should head back on Tuesday and work full-time for the two weeks before summer session begins.”

Her father placed a hand on hers. “You deserve a break, Lizzy.”

Glancing toward the kitchen, Tom smiled and gestured toward the door.

Elizabeth had to stifle a giggle when she saw a feminine hand groping the wall, obviously searching for the light switch. The lights dimmed, and in came the remainder of the Bennett family. Their song wishing her and her brother a happy birthday filled the room. Her mother placed a cake covered with candles before Elizabeth and Tom, and they blew out the candles together.

Elizabeth’s and Tom’s preferences were usually so different, but their taste in cake was the same—Triple Chocolate Truffle. Born three minutes before her brother, Elizabeth traditionally received the first piece of cake, and then Tom was served. Lydia impatiently snatched the third slice from her mother’s hand as soon as she plated it. The dessert slid off onto Lydia’s blouse and landed on the floor.

Elizabeth’s head began to spin, and a chill made its way up her spine.

The photo!

She examined the room. Though what happened next was very typical of her family whenever something went wrong, everyone seemed to be moving in slow motion.

Her mother screeched, Lydia huffed and pouted, Tom leaned over to scoop the remains of Lydia’s cake off the floor, Jane rushed into the kitchen to grab something to clean up with, and her father watched his family’s antics with amusement. Usually Elizabeth would be helping either Jane or Tom, but she couldn’t move.

When Tom straightened, his expression changed to one of concern. “Lizzy? Are you all right?”

Lydia proclaimed loudly that it was Elizabeth and Tom’s fault that her favorite shirt was ruined, since they had asked for a chocolate cake, and she stomped out of the room, passing Jane as she returned with cleaning supplies.

Elizabeth blinked several times in confusion. Movements returned to normal speed.

“Lizzy?” Tom repeated. “You’re so pale.”

“I was a little dizzy, but I’m okay now.”
Or maybe I’ve gone insane!

“I hope you aren’t coming down with something.” Jane knitted her brow.

“No, really, I’m fine. I’ll be right back.”

Elizabeth rushed up the stairs to her room and pulled her cell phone from her pocket, unable to catch her breath as she paged through the menus. There, she found it—the photo.

She stared at her phone for a long time before admitting to herself that it really
was
that exact moment captured in the photo—one that had been sent to her hours
before
it actually happened!

How is this possible?

She jumped when the phone made the same noise it had made while she was eating pizza earlier in the day. Printed across the display was
*New Photo*

Hands shaking, she found that more pictures of William Darcy had been uploaded.

The first was William, taken from a different angle than the one she already had received. The painting on the wall looked just like one in their common room at the dorm. It seemed that he was speaking to someone while looking away from the camera.

When she opened the next picture, she gasped. He
was
in their common room at school... and he was speaking to
her!

This never happened. I would never forget meeting him.

The next was of Elizabeth heading toward her bedroom, either upset or angry, her arms crossed over her waist. William was in the background, watching her walk away with such a look of regret on his face that it caused a pang of sympathy in her chest.

Anne is probably showing off a new program she bought to alter photos
, she rationalized.
He must have helped her move in at some point and merged that picture with one that included me.

The intercom in her room beeped. Elizabeth could barely hear Jane’s voice over the pounding of her heart.

“Lizzy, are you coming? You didn’t eat your cake, and you have gifts to open.”

But no matter how skilled Anne may be with a camera or the computer, she can’t predict the future.

Elizabeth hesitated a few moments before punching the power button on her phone. Dropping it into a drawer, she slammed it closed with a bang.
Yes, I am going insane, but maybe it’s only temporary. I can’t mention this to ANYONE.

She opened her closet door and looked down at the trunk she had come across in the attic years ago. She had found it in her closet the day they moved into the new house and assumed the movers had placed it there because it had her name on it. Repeatedly, she had been tempted to go through it, but every time she decided to open it, she became too nervous to follow through with the plan.

It was a joke—none of this can be real!

“Lizzy?”

Elizabeth pushed the “answer” button on the intercom. “I’ll be right down, Jane.”

~%~

~Mid-August – six weeks later

Anne held up her sticky hands and frowned. “Can you answer my phone, Lizzy?”

Elizabeth rolled her eyes at seeing the caller ID on Anne’s phone. She swiped the screen to answer it. “Hi, Will. Can Anne call you back in a few minutes?”

Silence.

“Will?”

Silence. “Uh... yes?”

She sighed deeply before speaking carefully and distinctly. “Anne will call you back in a few minutes, okay, Will?” She waited a few seconds and then ended the connection.

~

William groaned, placed the phone down on the desk of his home office, and stared at it.