Mr. Darcy Forever (16 page)

‘
Seems that you can’t move around Bath without stumbling across a blue plaque or some sort of literary reference to the great lady.’

‘
That’s what I love about being here. She’s in the very air!’

Lloyd smiled. ‘So what is it about Jane Austen?’

‘
What do you mean?’

‘
I mean, what’s this great hold she has over the female imagination?’

‘
It’s not just a female thing,’ Sarah said. ‘Have you not seen all the men in costume too?’

‘
Yes but they’re far outnumbered by the ladies and I have yet to see a man sporting an ‘I Love Darcy’ T-shirt.’

Sarah grinned. ‘I suppose.’

‘
So what’s her secret? Why are people still so fascinated by her after two hundred years?’

Sarah paused for a moment. ‘Well, it’s the stories. To begin with. They’re just wonderfully warm, optimistic stories about love and forgiveness. Her characters have such life and they’re still so recognisable today from the vivacity of Elizabeth Bennet to the appallingly snobbish Mr Collins.’

‘
But Jane Austen only wrote six books and so many other books have been written since them.’

‘
I know,’ Sarah said. ‘You’ve only to go into a bookshop to be stunned by the number of stories out there. It’s truly baffling sometimes to know what to choose but the magic of Jane Austen is that you can return to her six books any number of times and always find something new to enjoy. If you read them when you’re young, it’s the love stories you’re interested in – the will they, won’t they? But, later, you become fascinated by other things too – there’s the humour for a start, and the intricacies of the relationships. It’s a whole world and I can’t tell you what a joy it is to escape into that world.’ She stopped. ‘I’m gushing now.’

‘
No,’ Lloyd said. ‘Well, yes. But it’s wonderful. I’ve never heard anyone talk so passionately about books before.’

‘
You’re not a reader?’

‘
Only a bit of non-fiction, I’m afraid.’

‘
But you’re missing out on so much!’ Sarah said. ‘Novels can tell us so much about life. They have the power to enrich our own lives in so many different ways. They’re not just for entertaining us although that would be enough.’

‘
And how have they enriched your life?’

Sarah smiled. ‘I can’t imagine my life without novels – especially Jane Austen’s. They’re like the very best of friends. They’re always there for you. At the end of a hard day, you can reach out and know that they’ll give you the sort of comfort that’s rare to find in life.’

‘
You speak like somebody who-’ he stopped.

‘
What?’

‘
Like somebody who’s needed that comfort,’ he said, looking down at the pavement. ‘I’m sorry – I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t mean to pry.’

‘
You’re not prying,’ Sarah said. ‘And you’re right. Jane Austen’s always been there for me. Even in the very worst of times.’

It was evening at Barton Cottage. The sun had dipped low in the sky and a cold breeze had sent the sisters inside. As Sarah was tidying in the kitchen, there was a knock at the door.

‘
I’ll get it,’ Mia sang. Not that Sarah had any choice. Ever since she was a small girl, Mia had been convinced that every phone call and every knock at the door was meant for her. This time, she was right because, as she opened the door, she saw Alec standing there holding a large birthday cake aflame with candles.

‘
Alec!’ she screamed. ‘It’s wonderful!’

‘
Couldn’t celebrate a birthday without a cake, could we?’

‘
That’s so sweet of you! Come in. Come in!’ Mia ushered him through to the kitchen where Sarah was making a cup of tea. ‘Sarah - look what Alec’s bought!’

Sarah turned around and gasped at the sight of the cake.

‘
Can I put it down somewhere? I'm terrified I'll drop it at any moment.’ Sarah motioned and Alec placed the cake on the worktop where the twenty-one beautiful candles winked at them all.

‘
I can't believe you found such a brilliant cake. Wherever did you find it?’

‘
Ah, that would be telling,’ he said with a grin.

‘
Well, we must all have a slice immediately.’

‘
Not before blowing the candles out and making wish.’

‘
Okay,’ Mia said, her cheeks flushed with excitement as she closed her eyes and blew. Every single last candle was extinguished.

‘
Did you make a wish?’ Sarah asked.

‘
Oh, yes,’ Mia said, blushing as she looked up at Alec. ‘I did.’

That night, Sarah lay awake in her bed, listening to the distant hoot of an owl. She didn't mean to think about Alec. She'd been trying to shut him out of her mind all evening but he just wouldn't go away. His voice had echoed in her mind throughout dinner and, as she'd washed up, his face had hovered before her.

He’s not interested in you
, a little voice said.
It’s Mia he likes and why not? She's so young and beautiful and so full of vitality. Why would he look at you? You didn't have one interesting thing to say to him all day. Besides, you're meant to be having a break from men.

For a moment, she thought about her last relationship. It had been a complete disaster from start to finish. Well, what could she expect being the way she was? People just didn't understand her. Mia had often joked that she'd need to find a carbon copy of herself only a male version, of course, who would put up with her little quirks. But where was she going to find such a man?

People with OCD didn't want to go around divulging their affliction for fear of putting others off. It was bound to rear its ugly head at some point and Sarah had always hoped that whomever she was seeing would have fallen for her by then and nothing would put him off. But that hadn't happened with Martin.

She'd been seeing him for six months and things had been going well but only because he hadn't visited her home. They'd been out to restaurants where Sarah had behaved herself impeccably even when faced with a dirty tablecloth and a rickety table leg that had driven her mad. She had bitten her tongue and not said a word.

But then she’d made the mistake of asking him to take his shoes off when she’d invited him in for coffee. He looked at her as if she was quite mad.

‘
I haven't been asked to do that since I was a kid,’ he told her.

‘
I have new carpets,’ she explained. Well, they weren’t technically new but they looked as though they were because she took such good care of them. So, he’d taken his shoes off
and followed her into the kitchen whilst she made the coffee. And that was mistake number two. She should never have let him into the kitchen.

‘
You file your herbs?’ he’d said, looking at the herb rack, a large grin bisecting his face.

‘
Of course,’ she said. ‘It makes perfect sense. How else would you find them?’

‘
Er - by looking?’

‘
But this saves time.’

After that, he'd given himself a private tour of her home, noting the way she folded her towels in the bathroom and laughing when he discovered her list of lists. He even opened her wardrobe and shook his head when he saw the way she colour-coded her clothes.

‘
You’ve got that OCD thing, haven’t you? I saw a programme about that the other week and thought you had it. You’re always straightening things that don’t need to be straightened.’

Sarah hadn’t known what to say and so she said nothing.

‘
You are one
crazy
lady,’ Martin had said, shaking his head. ‘Now, I'm going to put my shoes back on and get the hell out of here.’

And those were his last words to her. Six months of friendship and kindness evaporated as he slammed her front door and drove away.

So she certainly wasn’t looking to leap into another relationship yet. That would be madness.

She beat her pillow with an angry fist and flopped back down again. Oh, why did Alec have to be there to spoil things? This week was meant to be about her and Mia. It was their special time together and the only stressful thing was meant to be them fighting over which version of
Persuasion
to watch. But Alec’s appearance had given the weekend another dimension – one which Sarah was sure was going to end in trouble.

There were several wooden sun loungers in front of the house and, the next morning, after a late breakfast, Sarah had made herself comfortable on one. She’d brought her copy of
Sense and Sensibility
out for company but it had long since fallen out of favour as she’d closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of the May sunshine.

This really was the life, she thought, wondering if she could afford to buy Barton Cottage if it ever came on to the market but even her decent earnings probably wouldn’t stretch to purchasing a piece of heaven.

She took a few deep breaths, inhaling the sweet air as she listened to the rich song of a blackbird in a nearby hedge. It would be so very easy to shut oneself off completely from the rest of the world in such a place as this, she thought, and she could imagine doing it too. She had a sort of personality that didn't rely on others and she'd be quite content to be alone with her books and her films and only herself for company. Mia wouldn't, though. She was enjoying her time at Barton Cottage and was definitely benefiting from being out of the city for a while but she would go mad if she was expected to live in such a place. She'd already made friends with that stranger, Alec, hadn't she? No, her sister couldn't be happy unless there were others around her.

Sarah was just pondering on what to have for lunch when a dark shadow fell across her, blocking out the sun. She opened her eyes and started as she saw the outline of a man before her.

‘
Hello,’ he said.

‘
Alec?’ She sat upright, adjusted the straps on her summer dress which were doing their best to escape down her shoulders. ‘You startled me.’

‘
Sorry,’ he said, taking a seat next to her without invitation. ‘You looked so peaceful there.’

‘
Yes, she said, removing her sunglasses and smiling at him. ‘It’s that kind of a place, isn’t it?’

He nodded and smiled back at her. He really did have a very lovely smile, she couldn't help noticing.

‘
Mia’s out,’ she volunteered before he asked her.

‘
Jogging?’

‘
Yes.’

‘
I thought she might be. I expected to pass her as I walked through the wood.’

‘
I think she went the other way.’

‘
Ah,’ he said.

‘
But you're welcome to wait for her. I'm sure she won't be long.’

‘
What makes you think I wanted to see her?’ he asked.

Sarah frowned at him, not understanding.

‘
I might have wanted to talk to you,’ he said, clearly seeing her confusion.

‘
Me? Whatever for?’

He laughed and Sarah found that she was soon laughing with him.

‘
You are funny,’ he said at last. ‘Don’t you know how fascinating you are?’

Sarah's eyes crinkled in merriment. ‘You’re joking, aren't you?’