against the shower wall, limp and breathless.
Only then did she rise and slide into his arms, where he held her close and kissed her. “Thank you,” he said in a soft breathless whisper.
“Thank you,” she sighed contentedly, pressing her head against his chest and letting the hot water wash over them as one.
Chapter 10
Elizabeth sighed tiredly as the elevator doors closed on her, and the small car spirited Darcy, Caroline, Alex, and her up to their floor. Weary after a long day and night of performing, Elizabeth had avoided the other elevator car, seeing that it contained Jane and Charles, Richard with his latest flavor (she heard the name Maria), and Charlotte with some man she picked up. No way was Elizabeth going to get anywhere near that situation.
Darcy’s mouth curled in the half smile she now recognized as signaling his amusement with something she did. “What?” she asked.
Darcy’s expression changed to a full smile at her. “It’s funny. We live the lives that people dream about having: traveling, making millions of dollars, being adored by thousands of people every night, and at the end of the day, what’s the one thing you want the most?”
Elizabeth chuckled. “A bed,” she answered knowingly.
Darcy nodded. “Something most people don’t even think about.”
Elizabeth grinned. Somehow they had maintained their easy truce. While Jane and Charles were romancing each other, and Richard and Charlotte were banging everyone else, they found a comfortable niche with each other.
“How did the photo session go today?” he asked.
“Oh,” Elizabeth groaned, as the unpleasant memories she’d been trying to forget came back. “It was fine, except for Collins.”
Darcy’s expression turned cold. “Did he harass you?”
“No,” she said tiredly, “he barely even spoke to me, which is a good thing, but now he is making a big show of ignoring me. He spends all his time talking up Charlotte.” She pulled her hair back from her face. “I find photo sessions to be so boring. The first time it was exciting, but after that, it’s just dull. And I’m not sure I like how they are marketing me. The studio always puts me in these sexy poses. I’m not really comfortable with that.”
“I know,” he nodded. “On one level you are a product being marketed, and you know that, but you are still an artist, and you wonder where the line is between people listening to your music because they like it and people listening to it because they think you’re sexy.”
“Exactly. And I’ve put too much into myself and my work to be turned into a sex object.”
“But you are sexy, Lizzy,” Alex objected. “You are vital and confident and strong, and that’s very sexy. It comes across in your performance, so you might as well use it.”
Elizabeth smiled politely to hide her disagreement and looked away from Alex. She wasn’t at all pleased with his observation. Her eyes moved to Darcy, who remained silent, but she saw his eyes travel up and down her body with a look that made her feel very warm.
Was it possible? she asked herself. Could it be that the super-hot Fitzwilliam Darcy found her desirable? She tried to dismiss the thought as being ridiculous, but a part of her burned with the idea. She definitely desired him. He was one of the sexiest men she had ever known, and she couldn’t deny her attraction to him.
And then what? she asked herself. Spend the rest of the tour with him? She couldn’t see herself in the type of relationship Jane had with Charles, all hearts and flowers, and she definitely didn’t want to be in Charlotte’s position. Not that she even knew what Charlotte’s position was. At the last three stops, Richard had taken a different flavor to his room each night, seeming more and more subdued around Charlotte. Elizabeth had thought their affair was over, until she caught them in an intimate position in a tour bus bathroom yesterday.
Elizabeth also knew that if she slept with Darcy, she would prove all those websites correct. LBS were just Slurry’s Bitches: their playthings for this tour.
She felt a flare of anger at the idea, but when she looked into Darcy’s eyes, she knew it didn’t matter; if he really cared about her, and if she really cared about him, all the rumors and innuendo would be of no consequence. A part of her knew she could love him. She didn’t, but when she heard him play and when they had these easy conversations, she knew she could, and a part of her longed for it.
No, Darcy was a yummy-looking treat, and he might or might not be a good person inside. But Elizabeth didn’t have time for it. She didn’t have the time, or the emotional energy. She smiled sadly to herself as she realized that she would take a pass on him.
Elizabeth sat in the private corner backstage, working on a new song, unaware she was being observed. She sang along with her strumming, testing out chord progressions and the flow of her lyrics.
He smiled to himself. How could he not? He felt instinctively that she was singing about him. It was the first solid sign of her affection for him and it made him grin with deep satisfaction.
“Careful,” a voice said from behind him. “You’ll burn your eyes out like that.”
Darcy turned to see Alex staring at him coldly. “And I suppose you know this for a fact?” he replied, his voice coated with ice.
“Everyone knows you can’t stare at the sun for too long. Didn’t your mother teach you that?” He pushed past Darcy and walked to Elizabeth, calling her name to draw her attention, as Darcy watched.
“I’ve got great news, Lizzy.”
Elizabeth stopped and tilted her head expectantly. “Well?” she smiled.
“Collins just called. He’s bringing the video commissioner down tomorrow and we’re going to have a meeting to plan your video!”
Elizabeth smiled brightly. “I still can’t believe it,” she said, then she laughed with delight. “That’s great, Alex. Thanks for telling me.”
“I’m going to go tell the others,” he told her as he moved off.
Elizabeth nodded and returned to her guitar. As Darcy watched, she smiled again and then looked away
