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She walked over to Will and sat next to him in the sand. He looked at her warily, almost nervously, and when she wrapped her arms around him, he winced.
“You need to go to the hospital,” she said quietly.
“No, I'm fine. Just…I got jostled a bit. I landed on him. He got the worst of it.” He gazed at her and swallowed heavily. “I'm–I'm sorry, Lizzy. I'm so sorry. I didn't want that to happen, I really didn't, but–but he said that, about–about Georgie, and I just…I lost it, I couldn't stop myself.”
He lowered his head, and she wrapped her arms around him again, gently this time, and pressed his head to her shoulder. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”
“Yes, I do. I do. I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have attacked him like that. I should have kept my head, controlled myself. What’s wrong with me?”
She lifted his chin and looked him in the eye. “You didnothingwrong, and I will defend you to anyone who says differently.”
At that moment, they noticed Bill had risen and was attempting to walk away. Will jumped to his feet, wincing in pain, and when he reached Bill he gave him a good shove, sending him sprawling back into the sand.
“Stay right there, asshole,” Will said angrily. “You're not going anywhere until the police haul you off and lock you up.”
Will hobbled back over to where Elizabeth stood and looked at her for a long moment, his eyes searching hers. He wrapped her in his arms, and when the flicker of blue lights came from the front of the house, they looped their arms around each other’s waists and slowly walked out front.
* * *
Willand Elizabeth were settled in bed on Tuesday night, after a long talk with Georgiana about everything that had happened with Bill Collins—only leaving out the comment he’d made about her. She’d been stunned, of course, but was glad to hear that Collins was in jail—for now—and that Elizabeth had been granted a harassment prevention order at the courthouse today. No charges had been filed against Will, and after some pressure from Elizabeth, he’d gone to the emergency room to get his leg checked. Thankfully, his knee and thigh were only badly bruised.
Elizabeth’s body partially covered his, and he toyed with her hair, fanning it out around her head and over his torso, sifting it slowly through his fingers. This had become a routine for them, one he looked forward to every day. Whether they made love or not, they would always end the night talking quietly about whatever came to mind before drifting off to sleep wrapped in each other’s arms. This was what he loved, this connection with her. Yes, it was there when they were being physically intimate as well, of course; that connection was powerful in its own right. But there was something about being with her like this that made him feel complete.
“Mr. and Mrs. Bingley are due back tomorrow,” she said softly. “They both have the rest of the week off, so I’m sure they'll come to the Cape. I hope they had a nice honeymoon.”
He smiled and kissed her head. “I'm sure they did.”
“Um, the guy I called to fix the railing said it will be done tomorrow. After that...I guess I should plan on staying at my place again. Orwecould stay at my place.” He remained silent, and she lifted her head to look at him. “Is that okay? Will you stay with me?”
“Of course.”
She rested her head on his chest again. “Good. I'd like that.”
The words were on the tip of his tongue.Stay here with me. Live with me, make my home your home.
She raised her head again. “What's wrong?”
“Nothing. Why do you think something is wrong?”
“Your heart is racing. Are you nervous about me being at my house?”
He took a deep breath, trying to force his heart to slow. “Areyounervous?”
“I won't be if you're there.”
“What about when I’m in Boston?”
She shrugged. “Maybe I could just…stay here those nights?”
“Of course you can.”
After a moment, she spoke again. “Will, your heart is going a mile a minute. What's wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Her hands crept up either side of his ribcage and she attacked him, tickling until he was squirming under her. He couldn't flip her and pin her because of his leg, but he finally caught both of her hands and pulled her over him until they were nose to nose. Both were breathing heavily and grinning like fools. Of course, all that friction and rubbing had his body rioting.
“If that was meant to soothe my racing heart, it backfired epically.”
