The Trials of the Honorable F. Darcy (31 page)

***

They walked back to Darcy’s place hand-in-hand.

“I don’t think Georgiana likes me much,” Elizabeth ventured. Darcy sighed.

“Georgiana and I are very, very close. We went through some very trying times together. We tend to be overprotective of each other, although this is the first time she has ever taken an interest in who I’m involved with.” He looked over at Elizabeth. “But then, I’ve never been really serious about anyone before, so it’s natural that she’d take an interest in you.”

They walked on in silence until they reached his building. The doorman nodded pleasantly as they entered.

“I didn’t know you could speak French,” she said as they got into in the elevator. Darcy punched the button.

“Eight solid years of French in school, and many summer vacations spent at least in part in Paris,” he sighed. “At my father’s insistence. We’re British but we have French roots. Very important to remember that we were originally the D’Arcy’s with an apostrophe,” he mused.

Elizabeth pushed the stop button and the elevator ground to a halt.

“What are you doing!?” he exclaimed.

“Monsieur D’Arcy, I do not think I can wait to get to the bedroom. I insist that you say something in an outrageous French accent right now,” she said turning to him with a naughty smile.

He laughed at her.

“
Vous portez un beau chemisier bleu
.”

“What did you say?” she asked, putting her arms around his waist.

“I said that you are wearing a lovely blue blouse,” he grinned.

“Oh, Monsieur, not good enough. Try again.” She pulled his t-shirt from his waistband and slipped one hand under it, caressing his low back.

“
Vous avez de beaux yeux
.”

She looked at him expectantly.

“I said you have beautiful eyes.”

“Better,” she said, running her fingertips over his nipple. She felt his groin stir. “But not quite good enough.”

He tried again. “
Vous me taquinez si vous jouez avec mon mamelon
.”

She waited for the translation.

“You are teasing me by playing with my nipple.” She pushed his t-shirt up and put her tongue on his nipple and licked it, then took it in her mouth and sucked. She heard him exhale with a little groan.

“
Votre bouche a le goût du caramel chaud
. Your mouth tastes like warm caramel,” was rewarded with a deep kiss.

“
J'aime quand vous me touchez
. I like it when you touch me,” gained him a hot kiss on the stomach and an intimate, seductive caress of his butt.

A breathy “
Vous aimez ma saveur
? Do you like the way I taste?” resulted in her unzipping his pants and briefly
,
much too briefly
,
tasting him.

A hungry “
J'aime comme vos seins épousent mes mains
. I love how your titties fit in my hands,” caused her to pull her tank top up over her breasts and put his hands on her. He squeezed them and stroked her nipples while kissing her for some time before he spoke again.

“
Votre slip me bloque la main
. Your panties are in my way,” he said hoarsely. She pulled up her skirt and turned her back to him, showing him her thong underwear. She slipped them down, bending over for him as she pushed them to the floor. Then she turned back to him with an inviting look.

He kissed her and pulled up her skirt, slipping his fingers inside of her and then pulling them out. He put his fingers to her lips.

“Your pussy is hot and tastes like pears,” he whispered in English.

“Ah-ah-ah,
en français, s'il te plaît
,” she said mischievously, exhausting her knowledge of the Gallic language.

He struggled for a moment to remember the French equivalent for “pussy.” “
Votre chatte est brulante et a un goût des poires juteuses
”

She rewarded him by taking his fingers into her mouth, tasting herself. She closed her eyes as she sucked his fingers, then, still massaging his fingers with her tongue, opened her eyes to stare boldly at him.

He was overcome with a savage lust for her.

“
Je veux vous baiser
. I want to fuck you.” She lifted herself onto the railing and spread her legs. He pushed her skirt up, thumbs tracing her folds.

“Do you want me to fuck you?” he asked in English.

“Yes,” she whispered.

“
En français
!” he said roughly.

“
Oui
,” she replied breathlessly.

He pushed into her and she leaned her head back against the wall, arms wrapping tightly around his neck.

“Good?” he asked.

“Yes,” she gasped.

“
En français
!” he barked, slapping her thigh.

“
Oui
!” she yelped. She smiled and let out a little laugh. “
Oui
.”

“Harder?”

“
Oui
.”

“Deeper?”

“
Oui
.”

He pushed into her and she squirmed against him.

“Fuck me,” she said against his neck.

“
En français
,” he rasped.

“I don’t
...”
she began,

“
Baise-moi
,” he said against her lips.

“
Baise-moi
,” she repeated against his.

“
Baise-moi
,” they repeated it together as he thrust into her.

In an act defying gravity, he fucked her against the elevator wall. She wrapped her legs tightly around him, drawing him in as far as she could. He smashed his face against hers in fierce kisses, biting her lip and thrusting his tongue into her mouth. He held onto the railing and used it to leverage himself further into her. He felt an instinctive need to possess her, to be possessed by her. He made feral grunts as he thrust into her; she made no attempt to stifle her own wild, hoarse moans and groans as she ground herself against him. She dug her nails into his back as she reached orgasm with a throaty growl. He spilled into her with an animalistic snarl and the satisfaction of a conqueror, her lower lip caught between his teeth.

They stood, shaking from their exertions, she clinging to him. After long moments, he lifted her from the rail and let her skirt fall around her.

“Jesus Christ,” he laughed shakily. “
Jesus Christ
.” He thought his knees might give out.

Elizabeth laughed and put her head against his chest.

“
Je t'aime
,” she said.

He put his arms around her. “
Je t'aime
,” he replied, putting a lingering kiss on the top of her head. After a moment, he zipped up his pants and released the stop button on the elevator. She picked up her panties and balled them in her hand. The elevator shuddered back to life and in a moment they were at his floor. He followed her to his door, both smiling in wicked satisfaction.

“Don’t you have to work?” Lou laughed as Elizabeth met him at the San Diego airport Wednesday morning.

“I
run
the office, I do what I
want
,” she said haughtily. “And I wanted you to come visit for the day,” she added firmly.

“All that power has gone to your head,” Lou replied, rolling his eyes. “Lucky for you I didn’t have any appointments scheduled today
...
once I cancelled them,” he added slyly.

Elizabeth laughed and tucked her arm into his elbow and they went to a late breakfast. They chatted amiably over pancakes and eggs, then strolled to a shopping center.

“Help me pick out a new shirt,” Lou said as they entered the men’s section of Macy’s. “I have a date this weekend.”

“Is this the Denny I keep hearing about?” she asked nonchalantly.

Lou nodded, trying to suppress a smile.

Lou spent the next half hour talking about Denny: he was a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman living in Vancouver. He was a friend of a friend of Charlotte’s. He had sandy blond hair and hazel eyes and liked to play hockey. Lou was obviously smitten.

“I’m sorry I haven’t been around for you,” Elizabeth said sadly.

Lou put an arm around her shoulders.

“Don’t be. We’ve all got our paths to walk. Yours veered off to San Diego for a few months. You’ll be back soon.” He gave her a little squeeze.

Elizabeth put her arm around his waist. “Thanks for sticking with me with the whole Darcy drama. I know it’s a bad soap opera.”

“It is. Hopefully it’s over, but I’m here for you, sweet pea, no matter what. I’ve got your back.”

Elizabeth smiled and pulled him into a lingerie shop.

“So how was your big reunion this weekend?” Lou asked. He might still have his reservations about Darcy, but he still loved some good sexy gossip. Elizabeth was delighted to oblige. She described to him her long-distance strip tease, much to his amusement, while they looked over bras. Then she told him about the coffee shop show, and finally,
“And then we did it in the elevator.” She gave him a mischievous grin and held a red lacy teddy up to her chest.

“In the elevator?” Lou exclaimed, shocked. He shook his head at the teddy and she hung it back up.

“In the elevator,” she confirmed.

“Lizzy, you little tramp! I’m very proud of you,” he laughed. “Remind me to start carrying wet wipes everywhere!”

He picked up a pair of garters and showed them to her. She wrinkled her nose. He put them back.

He nodded in approval as she picked up a yellow gauzy confection. “Try that on,” he said. He followed her to the dressing room.

“What do you think?” she asked as she opened the door for him.

Lou smiled. “Very pretty. I think he’ll like it.”

Elizabeth smiled and closed the door. It really was a relief to have Lou as her best friend; he had impeccable taste and never let her go out looking awful in order to make himself look better. In his opinion, a good looking companion was the best accessory.

She came out and they rifled through panties. He picked up a pair of panties comprised of a small mesh triangle and three strings. He frowned.

“Really, what is the point?” he said. He held them to his waist. “No support, doesn’t conceal anything. Why not just go without?”

“I believe those are more of a hair net,” Elizabeth commented. Lou laughed.

***

As expected, on the following Friday there were a number of familiar faces from the courthouse at the coffee shop. They were mostly younger lawyers, fresh out of school; most older attorneys were either not interested or respected Darcy’s private pursuits. But the young attorneys were too curious to stay away.

Elizabeth sat in the rear and heard several conversations about Darcy. A couple of young men were commenting on a case they had recently tried before him and laughing; another set were remarking on his musical talent. Two young women were standing beside her, and one was saying,
“Did I tell you he auctioned himself at this year’s Pediatric Aids Foundation bachelor auction?”

“No!” exclaimed the other attorney. The first one nodded.

“My sister-in-law was on the organizational committee and I went to the auction with her and a couple of friends. I almost died when I saw him in the catalogue! Let me just tell you, he was
hot
. I got them to all give me their money to bid on him but we only had $5,000 and he was bid beyond that after about four bids.”

“Get
out
! How much did he go for?”

“Sixty-one thousand!” the first laughed.

“What?” the second exclaimed.

“Yes, there was a bidding war and it escalated way out of control, it was hysterical. My sister told me that he had actually promised to match the winning bid, so he wound up donating another $61,000 to the Foundation. I’m sure he didn’t think he’d get bid that high but she said he paid it that night.” Elizabeth was surprised at this; she thought he had also paid for the bid. He had paid $122,000 to avoid her spending her savings?!

“He must have some other source of income then because he certainly couldn’t spare that on a judge’s salary.”

“Uh, yeah. Have you ever looked at his suits? You don’t buy Dolce & Gabbana on a judge’s salary. He’s got some serious cash somewhere.”

“Is he married?” asked the second.

“No ring. He suddenly looks very tasty, doesn’t he?” the first laughed and the second nodded, laughing as they moved away.

Elizabeth felt a mixture of satisfaction and indignation. They were after talking about her Darcy, so she was pleased that they found him attractive but she didn’t like the discussion of his money. She scowled into her tea for a minute until she heard her name.

“Lizzy?”

“Charlotte! It’s so good to see you!” Elizabeth exclaimed as she stood and hugged her. Charlotte gave her a squeeze and sat down across from her.

“Are you back now?” Charlotte asked. Elizabeth shook her head.

“No, not for a few more weeks. I’m back visiting my sister.”

“You look great! Nice suntan.” Charlotte looked around. “I see you heard the rumors too? Last week this rumor spread that Judge Darcy was playing guitar in a coffee shop and nobody would ask him about it but everyone seems to have shown up. And there he is!” she exclaimed as she looked over toward the stage area. “Who would have thought!”

Elizabeth said nothing. She was confident that Lou would not have revealed her secret to Charlotte despite their friendship. Should she say anything about her relationship with Darcy? Was it too soon? She decided not to do it; she would discuss it with Darcy first.

“I hear he’s not renewing his term next April,” Charlotte said as she watched him play.

“No,” Elizabeth agreed.

“So, how did you hear about this? You haven’t been to the courthouse this week.” Charlotte turned a curious eye toward Elizabeth.

“Uh, actually, I know him socially,” Elizabeth said nonchalantly. She dropped her eyes from Charlotte’s face and studied her tea. Charlotte’s interest was immediately aroused.

“You know him socially?” she asked, eyebrows raised. Elizabeth nodded and took a sip of her tea.

“Yes, my sister is engaged to one of his very good friends. In fact, he’s to be the best man.”

Charlotte sat back and looked at Elizabeth in something like amazement.

“Then you must be seeing quite a bit of him,” Charlotte mused speculatively.

Elizabeth shrugged. “I see him when I come back on the weekends. He’s very close to my sister’s fiancé, they were college roommates. So yes, I do see him quite a bit when I’m here.” She hoped she was sounding as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

“Elizabeth, you’re blushing,” Charlotte said, smirking. “Do you have a crush on him?”

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and refused to dignify the question by answering with the resounding “yes” that was in her head.

“What’s he like?” Charlotte asked curiously. Elizabeth was becoming increasingly uncomfortable with this conversation. She shrugged.

“Charlotte, he’s just a guy. Look, I’m really uncomfortable talking about him. Could we change the subject?” Charlotte sat back in her chair and looked at Elizabeth with unabashed speculation.

“How long have they been engaged?” she asked.

“Who?”

“Your sister! Come on, Lizzy, take your eyes off him for two seconds and focus!” Elizabeth looked at Charlotte again, ashamed at being caught staring at Darcy.

“Uh, I guess right around the time I went to San Diego,” she answered. “Why?”

“So you’ve known him socially for a few months then?”

Elizabeth sighed in exasperation and refused to answer the question.

“Why don’t you tell me about
your
love life?” Elizabeth said.

“Who said anything about a
love life
?” Charlotte said, intrigued by this Freudian slip. “I was referring to your social life. Is he involved in your love life?”

Elizabeth rubbed her forehead with her fingers and shook her head.

Charlotte was not convinced.

“Lizzy?” she prompted.

“Stop,” Elizabeth said firmly. Charlotte recognized the stubborn look in Elizabeth’s eye, and retreated to a safer topic. But she wondered why Elizabeth would be here to see her sister’s fiancé’s friend if neither her sister nor her sister’s fiancé were here. She quickly put together the simultaneous vacations, with both returning in foul moods, and Elizabeth’s quick transfer to San Diego and arrived at the right conclusion. But Charlotte was fond of Elizabeth and her secret was safe.

They chatted about the Gardiners’ office while Darcy’s band continued their set. Charlotte told her that deBourgh and Associates had begun to infiltrate the office with changeover procedures. The name partner, Catherine deBourgh, had swooped in last week to begin looking over the place.

“She’s quite impressive, I must say. Very opinionated on how things should be done.”

Elizabeth nodded. “I have had some contact with her regarding the new office; she is very demanding, but luckily she doesn’t care much at this point about the office. She just wants it physically there, then she will come in and mold everyone to her satisfaction.”

“That sounds like her,” Charlotte said. “She seems to be chummy with Judge Darcy,” Charlotte ventured.

“Really?” Elizabeth asked, surprised. Charlotte nodded.

“Mr. Gardiner told me that they were both at the same firm when Darcy came over from England and she was sort of his mentor. She was very unhappy that he wouldn’t come with her when she left the firm and there was apparently some big bust-up. But since he became judge, she’s been trying to get back into his good graces. Do you know anything about it?” Charlotte asked cautiously.

“No, this is the first I’ve heard about it,” Elizabeth said, shaking her head. Charlotte looked over at Darcy speculatively. Elizabeth downed the remainder of her tea and got a clean mug from the barista.

They sat together quietly until the set was over and people began filing out of the coffee shop. Elizabeth busied herself by pouring a dollop of cold milk into the mug. Next to it sat a small ceramic teapot which held boiling water. Elizabeth dumped two scoops of Earl Gray loose leaf tea into the pot and let it sit.

Charlotte looked over her shoulder at Darcy, who was detained by several attorneys who wanted to speak with him. He looked dreadfully uncomfortable.

“They should know better,” Charlotte said, looking at them. “He doesn’t want to see his co-workers during his leisure time.” She gave a quick glance at Elizabeth and grinned.

“Then why are you here?” Elizabeth laughed.

“Mary and Maria put me up to it. We were all curious. But I’m not going to go over and
talk
to him,” she replied defensively.

Elizabeth looked over Charlotte’s shoulder and saw Darcy coming toward them looking rather discontent. Elizabeth sighed inwardly. He was so deliciously handsome.

Charlotte looked over her shoulder again and saw him. To spare everyone embarrassment, she greeted him cheerfully as he approached.

“Hello Judge! That was a terrific performance. It’s nice to see that you don’t read trial briefs on Friday nights,” she said turning toward him.

Darcy stopped short at Charlotte’s voice.

“Ah, Miss Lucas.” He paused and looked at Elizabeth. “And Miss
Bennet
.” He had no idea whether Elizabeth had revealed anything to Miss Lucas and was trying to play it safe.

“Won’t you join us?” Charlotte said, pulling a chair out for him. “Lizzy was just telling me that her sister is engaged to one of your friends,” Charlotte offered. “I understand you’re to be the best man,” she smiled. Darcy nodded and took the seat. He silently thanked Elizabeth for letting Charlotte know enough to ward off suspicion of their b
eing together, or so he thought
.

“Yes, he was my college roommate at Cambridge,” Darcy said easily.

Elizabeth poured the hot tea over the milk in the mug and stirred it. Then she pushed it toward Darcy.

“Oh, thank you,” he said, and took a sip. “Perfect.”

Charlotte smiled to herself.

“So, Judge, what else do you do in your free time? Besides play in coffee shops?” Charlotte asked easily.

“Well, between the serial killing and drug trafficking, I don’t have much time for hobbies,” he said sipping his tea. Charlotte laughed; she didn’t think she had ever heard him joke before.

“It’s always the quiet ones,” Charlotte said knowingly. He laughed gently into his teacup. He has a lovely smile, Charlotte mused. “Milton tells me you used to work with Catherine deBourgh?” Charlotte asked him. He nodded.

“Yes, years ago. I hear she is cleaning house at Gardiner and Associates before she begins her reign,” Darcy answered. Charlotte snorted and nodded. “She has a very strong personality,” Darcy continued.

“Do tell,” Charlotte said, leaning forward on her fists, intrigued.

“We used to call her ‘Lady Catherine’ behind her back,” he said, lips curling mischievously. “She was a very imposing woman. She certainly had no qualms about making her opinions known.” He shrugged. “We had professional differences and then we had a falling out when she left the firm and I refused to go with her.”

“Why did you refuse?” Elizabeth asked, drawn in to their conversation.

“Georgie
-
my sister,” he clarified for Charlotte, “was having some trouble in school at that time and I thought my time was better spent with her than with starting a new law firm,” he said nonchalantly.
Trouble in school, indeed
, he thought. “Catherine was not sympathetic and frankly I didn’t relish reporting to Lady Catherine every day.”

“What will you do when your term ends?” Charlotte asked him.

“I don’t know,” he answered, frowning. “I had thought to move back to England, but really, all of my family is here. I’ve been contemplating opening my own law office but I don’t quite feel up to the task of setting up shop right away.” He took another sip of his tea.

“Lizzy could do it for you,” Charlotte smiled. “You know she’s setting up the San Diego office for deBourgh and Associates. I’m sure she’d have no problem; you can’t be anywhere near as demanding as Catherine,” Charlotte laughed. “Do you know that she even sent instructions on how many shelves were to be in the storage closets!”

“That sounds like her,” Darcy laughed. “Have you seen Anne’s art?” he said to Charlotte, who promptly burst out laughing, nodding. “I think that says it all; she must have had a very disturbed childhood,” Darcy mused.

Charlotte had never seen this sociable side of Darcy; she could see how Elizabeth would find him attractive, charming, even sexy. While thinking this, Charlotte took a bite of her pastry. Darcy’s stomach growled.

“That looks good
...
I’ll be right back,” he said and went to the counter to get a pastry.

Charlotte swung her head to Elizabeth.

“You are so totally sleeping with him,” she said quietly.

“What?!” Elizabeth replied in a hushed whisper. “I am not!”

“Yes, you are, don’t you
dare
deny it!” Charlotte pointed an accusing finger at Elizabeth.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about! You have the most ridiculous imagination, Charlotte,” Elizabeth said, shaking her head. She toyed with her coaster and tried not to blush.