Page 74 of Stuck

“What?” I asked coldly.

“Um…” He didn’t say anything else. He didn’t need to—it was written all over his face.

“Paris too?”

He grimaced and nodded. “But that’s not why the meeting didn’t go well. I⁠—”

“On second thought, I will go for that beer. I trust you’re okay to finish this off while I’m gone?”

He nodded, his eyes downcast. “Of course. I’m sorry, Darcy.”

I didn’t acknowledge him. Without another word, I snatched up my jacket and left the room, and then the hotel. I had no idea where I was going; I simply let my feet take me along street after street, until I came to a canal lined with restaurants and bars, all with outdoor seating. I picked the first one with an empty table.

It wasn’t until I’d drunk most of a pint that I stopped seething long enough to think straight. I couldn’t believe Bingley. This whole time, while I’d been hustling with every resource at my disposal to make this buyout a success, and Elizabeth had been contorting herself every which way to do her job whilst maintaining his lie, he’d been getting down and dirty with his girlfriend.

I took another swig of beer and thumped the glass down on the table, curling my lip and letting out a harsh breath, forcing myself to calm down. Bingley wasn’t who I was truly angry with. I didn’t appreciate being lied to and would never condone the position he’d put Elizabeth in, but his relationship with Jane wasn’t the reason the investment drive was floundering. Business simply went that way sometimes, and he’d worked too hard to jeopardise it at this stage.

No, it was myself I was mad at. Bingley’s revelation had merely given me an excuse to get out of the hotel and be on my own for a while to think.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out to cut the call, thinking it would be him, but seeing Georgiana’s name, I answered. Her smiling face filled the screen, and I felt the usual release of tension that seeing my sister hale and happy always delivered.

“Hey. Everything all right?”

“Everything’s fine. Ooh, where are you? It looks pretty.”

I looked around, taking in my surroundings properly for the first time. She was right—it was a particularly picturesque spot, with multicoloured buildings and soaring ship masts all bathed in late-evening sun. I admitted I didn’t know my exact location but flipped the camera and panned from left to right so she could see.

“Will you take me there one day? It looks amazing.”

“I’d love to.” I reverted the camera to see her biting her lip nervously. “Are you sure everything’s okay?”

“I’m sure. I actually called to ask you that. A little birdie might have dropped a few hints that all is not sunshine and roses in your world at the moment.”

I silently cursed my cousin. “I’m fine,” I lied.

“He might also have let slip that your problems involve a woman.”

“I said I’m fine.”

“And Bingley, who you’re currently travelling with.” She paused, and when I didn’t respond, she added, “That doesn’t sound like a fun trip.”

“It’s a business trip, not a road trip. It’s not meant to be fun.”

She was completely unfazed by my rancour. “You can talk to me, you know. I’m not a child anymore.”

“It’s not your job to solve my problems.”

“That doesn’t mean I don’t want to, you big numpty. You’ve always been there for me. Let me be there for you for once, yeah?”

Maybe it was her expression, so hopeful of gaining my confidence; maybe it was the beer I’d all but downed; maybe it was sheer desperation. Whatever it was, I started talking and didn’t stop until I’d told her everything.

“Blimey,” she said once I was done. There was a slight laugh behind the word, but it sounded more like disbelief than mockery. “Okay, first question: what happened to Wickham? Did you kill him? Do I need to retrieve his body from that lift and dispose of it for you?”

I chuckled despite myself. “I didn’t do anything to him. He snuck away from Elizabeth’s place while no one was looking, and I haven’t seen him since.”

“Are you going to see through your threat to sink him?”

I shook my head. “Tempting though the idea is, he didn’t actually do anything this time. Plus…” I let out a pained sigh. “He’s Elizabeth’s friend. I don’t want to give her another reason to hate me.”