CHAPTER 17 - The Time For Truth – Part I

Elizabeth was in hell.

Complete and utter hell.

Not only that, but a brown-haired, chiselled cheek boned, blue-eyed Devil was actually sitting right next to her giving her soft smiles and tender looks while his evil hands constantly reached out to entwine with hers or brush an errant strand of hair out of her eyes.

And those lips; those wicked, wicked lips that were too soft to be real, just kept on murmuring endearments and planting gentle kisses on her temple…her cheek…her mouth, until she began to have a hard time remembering it was all a deception.

Her optimism that things couldn't get worse rapidly changed as the rest of the day and evening turned out to be a continuation of the nightmare that began when she walked in and discovered that she was engaged to William.

At nine o'clock, unable to stand it any longer, she announced truthfully that she had a headache and was going to bed. Playing the ever-dutiful fiancé, William immediately stood and went with her.

She climbed the stairs as quickly as her rigidly tense body would allow, tripping on the last step in her haste to get away from William. Naturally, the last person she needed touching her at that moment, reached out and put his hands around her waist in order to steady her and she nearly fell again as she jerked violently away from his touch.

"Only trying to help, love," William told her in an aggrieved tone.

"Then go back down stairs!" she snapped as she walked away to her bedroom.

His raspy chuckle at her retort sent duel tingles of awareness and aggravation up and down the last of her nerves. Reaching the end of her tether, she got to the door of her bedroom then turned on him like a cornered cat. "Look, you've made of show of being the doting fiancé in front of my sister and Connor but there isn't an audience now so just go away and leave me alone!"

With that, she went into her room and slammed the door in his face with such force that it made her head throb even more. Turning, she collapsed back against the door for support and let out a harsh cry of frustration.

All evening he'd been attentive and lover-like, so that her nerves were stretched to breaking point with the effort of controlling her own responsiveness to him. Even now, outside her door, if he'd taken hold of her and kissed her as he had done in the garden earlier, she had no doubt she would've betrayed exactly how she felt about him.

She didn't know how much more she could endure. Keeping her love for him in check when she could maintain a physical distance between them was one thing, but now, with him so determined to play the amorous and adoring fiancé, it was becoming nigh on impossible as he seemed determined to touch her every chance he had.

Deciding that she really, really needed to speak to her sister, she'd waited for an opportunity to arise to speak to her alone but, to her continuing frustration, none ever presented itself. Admitting defeat, she'd come to bed and resolved to have a talk with Dawn first thing in the morning and try her damnedest to convince her that she’d lied about her feelings for William before hopefully persuading her to cut her trip short. The sooner they were gone, the sooner William would leave her alone and she could hopefully retain a small part of her sanity…and her pride.

She ran a weary hand over her face and sighed heavily. Her skin actually felt hot and tender with a feverish craving for the intimacy of his touch. Her body ached with tension and desire, her brain clouded with emotion and need.

Going to her bedside cabinet, she pulled a pack of headache tablets from the top drawer and then went into the bathroom. Taking two of the pills, she had a quick wash then went back to her bedroom and changed into her favourite silky nightslip. Turning off the main light, she then climbed into bed and settled down, her body slowly relaxing as the tablets took effect and she gratefully succumbed to sleep.

xxxxxxxxx

"Is she okay?" Dawn asked in concern as soon as William entered the lounge.

"Well, she's ticked off as all hell, but I expected that," William replied with a wry smile as he sank down onto the couch.

Dawn let out an unlady-like snort and shook her head. "I'm not surprised the way you were all over her. Even Connor and I aren't that bad and we're for real."

William chuckled. "What can I say…I'm naturally affectionate."

Dawn looked horrified. "You mean that when you get together we'll have to put up with that all the time?"

"All the time," William confirmed with a grin, pleased at how Dawn seemed to expect things to work out.

Dawn grinned in response then looked over at Connor as he stood up and excused himself to go to the bathroom. The young man bent and gave Dawn a quick kiss before he exited and when she looked back at William she saw him grinning unabashedly back at her. "Okay, okay, we're just as bad," she allowed with a roll of her eyes.

"Wasn't going to say a word," he told her innocently.

Dawn gave him a look then sat forward as her expression softened. "You know, I have to admit that I wasn't completely convinced about your plan," she divulged quietly. "But seeing Buffy's reaction to you, even if she is fighting it, makes me realise that I haven't seen her like that with a guy since old Poophead Parker."

The last was said with such disdain that William immediately frowned. "Who's Parker?" he asked in a clipped tone.

"Poophead Parker," the brunette corrected him with a grimace. "He was the jerk who Buffy dated in college when we were in America. She fell for him hard and I know that for a while there she really believed they'd end up getting married."

Despite the fact that he'd already started to suspect that the reason Elizabeth was so fiercely determined to keep a tight control on her emotions was due to a man in her past, William couldn't help the pang of jealous hurt that coursed through him at hearing it confirmed. "What happened?" he asked flatly.

Dawn's expression grew angry. "Buffy found out that the only reason he was dating her was to sleep with her. He even had a bet going with half the college to see how long it'd take him."

"He what?!" William exclaimed, so aghast at that piece of information that it brought him involuntarily to his feet. Trying to sleep with her was bad enough, but betting on it?

He started to pace. "Oh God," he muttered to himself as he shook his head in disgusted disbelief as he imagined how Elizabeth must have felt to have all her hopes and dreams ruined in such a callous and heartless manner like that. What a bloody wanker that Parker was. Good job there was an ocean between them otherwise he didn't dare think what he'd do if the bastard lived over here.

"Yeah, well, I'm not quite sure what happened after that really. All I know is that she dumped him pretty quickly and it wasn't long after that that Uncle Rupert offered her the chance to take a year out and help him." She shrugged. "She took it and has been here ever since."

"Well, for that I'm grateful to the git at least," William all but growled. "Buffy might never have come here otherwise and we'd not have met. His loss, my gain and if he was too stupid to realise what he had when he started dating her, then he's an even bigger prat than I already think he is."

Dawn's gaze softened on the man who'd won her sister's heart as he stood there obviously distressed over what she'd just revealed. If nothing else, his reaction to her revelation alone would've been enough to convince her of the depth of his feelings. He was completely in love with Buffy and he still didn't know for sure if she felt the same…but Dawn did and she suddenly felt bad for not telling him sooner.

"She told me she loves you, you know,” the brunette remarked quietly, as if she wasn’t aware that she’d just handed him everything he’d ever wanted on a silver platter.

William halted mid-pace, the hand that had been running agitatedly through his hair dropping uselessly to his side as he slowly turned to face the young woman. “What?” he asked faintly, his expression one of total disbelief.

Dawn gave him a small smile and nodded. “Buffy…she said that she loves you…very much.”

William's eyes widened at the conformation and his posture relaxed slightly as he swallowed hard. "She did?" he asked incredulously.

"Yeah," Dawn nodded, her smile widening at the look on his face. "And I even gave her the opportunity to deny everything but she didn't take it."

William was having trouble comprehending what he was hearing. Yes, he’d suspected…hoped…that Elizabeth loved him in return, but to hear that she’d actually admitted it to her own sister…

He frowned suddenly as a thought hit him. Had she just said that to continue the façade or did she really mean it?

Dawn watched in fascination as his expression changed from wonderment to doubt and couldn’t help but let out a tut of disgust as she realised that despite all of his seeming bravado, William was just as insecure about everything as Buffy was. Shaking her head, she stood up and went to stand in front of him.

“Buffy meant what she said, William,” she told him firmly when he finally made eye contact.

“How can you be so sure?” he replied with half a smile as his gaze practically begged her to say something to convince him once and for all.

And in two words, Dawn did. “Her eyes,” she told him simply.

William blinked, then very, very slowly, a huge grin began to bloom on his lips. “Her eyes,” he repeated almost to himself as he weighed the relevance of Dawn’s words. The truth of Elizabeth’s love for him had been reflected in her eyes when she’d talked to her sister. He hadn’t been wrong, she did love him…she did!

Dawn gave a little squeak of surprise as she suddenly found herself engulfed in a big, tight hug by William. “Air,” she gasped in a strangulated voice as she tried to catch her breath.

“Oh, sorry,” he apologised, immediately relinquishing his hold and stepping back. “Just…it’s nice to have it confirmed, you know?”

“I know,” said Dawn, grinning back at the obviously happy man. “Now all you have to do is get Buffy to admit it to your face and you’re home free.”

“I will,” he assured her with renewed confidence as his expression became determined. “I’m not going to lose her now.”

xxxxxx

Elizabeth was pulled from her restless sleep by the sound of someone urgently saying her name. Groggily, she forced her eyes open and reached over to flick her bedside lamp on noticing from her alarm clock that she’d only been in bed for forty minutes. Frowning, she pushed herself up to a sitting position as her foggy brain tried to focus on the source of her disturbance.

Her stomach gave a little lurch when she realised it was William and he was standing in the open doorway of her bedroom.

“Elizabeth, what’s wrong?” he whispered in concern.

“Wrong?” she queried, her mind still clouded with sleep. Giving her head a little shake, she blinked rapidly in order to dispel the last vestiges of her tiredness and froze as she registered the fact that William was inside her room now, silently closing the door and shutting them in together in a dimly lit, warm cloak of intimacy.

“You cried out just as I was passing by your door,” William lied as he slowly walked over to her and sat on the edge of the bed. He hadn’t planned on doing anything further tonight, but learning of Elizabeth’s true feelings had made him impatient to hear the actual words from the woman herself. He just hoped he wasn’t going to be disappointed. “I guess it’s Dawn and Connor, isn’t it?” he continued sympathetically. “I should’ve expected this. “Poor Elizabeth…I know just how you feel.”

Elizabeth seriously doubted that. He was, she recognised from his damp curling hair and loosely tied bathrobe, on his way to his bedroom from the bathroom. Glancing down at his bare feet, she realised that he was probably wearing very little under the robe apart from a rosy glow and that comprehension managed to effectively chase away all remaining remnants of sleep.

As he settled himself by her side, she caught a waft of the fresh male scent of soap that clung to his newly clean form and involuntarily found herself leaning forward slightly to breathe the aroma in more deeply.

Realising what she was doing, she drew in a sharp breath and jerked back as she turned her head away.

“Oh, come on, have a good cry if you want to,” William offered comfortingly and before she knew what was happening, he’d stood up, shed his robe and had climbed in the bed next to her.

Mortified that he’d mistaken her reaction to him for distress, Elizabeth could do nothing more than gasp out his name as he gathered her into his arms and pulled her close against his naked body.

“Shhh, I know,” he soothed as he tucked the covers in around them. “You just let it all out.”

“But I’m not upset,” she protested, trying to hold herself away from the tantalising smoothness of his bare skin next to hers. “And you shouldn’t be here,” she added, trying to win the battle within herself to not succumb to her own desires.

“Come now, Buffy, no need to put on a brave face in front of me,” William told her in kindly. “And you don’t have to worry about me being here. I know you love Connor and I completely respect your feelings.” He paused, then added succinctly, “Besides, it’s not like it’s the first time we’ve slept together, is it?”

Slept together? He intended to sleep here? With her? Oh God! She couldn’t let him do that…she just couldn’t. So why was she not saying something to put a stop to it? And why was her traitorous body moulding itself to his so unresistingly?

Because it knew this was where she really wanted to be, she realised resignedly. Weeks of being constantly on her guard with him chipping away at her defences coupled with the day of intense emotions she’d just endured had left her resistance at an all time low. Never mind what her brain said, her body knew the truth and it was determined to ignore her mental struggle completely and grab control.

“Mmm, this is nice, isn’t it?” he murmured softly as his hand began to draw lazy circles on her back.

Nice? That certainly wasn’t a description she’d use, Elizabeth thought dizzily as she desperately tried to resist the lulling effect of his gentle hands. Wonderful? Unquestionably. Dangerous? Definitely. But nice? Not even close.

“There’s something just right about the way you feel in my arms, Buffy, do you know that?” he continued, his voice dropping a seductive octave. “It’s like we fit.” As if to prove the point, he wriggled even closer, diminishing what little space there was between them to nothing.

Elizabeth swore she could feel every hard inch of his body now. Not a part of her seemed to remain untouched as she lay flush against his muscular form. Eyes closed, she was taken back to their one night together, back to how it felt having his body cover hers…move against hers…be inside hers.

“William,” she groaned as she made another futile attempt to put some distance between them.

He lifted his head and looked down at her, and, if that slight movement somehow meant that every inch of his skin where it met hers dragged ever so gently and erotically against her in a way that made her tremble with arousal and need, she prayed that only she was aware of it.

Apparently she wasn’t though, for the next minute William leaned forward and moved to cover her body. Immediately, she lifted her hands to push against him, knowing that if he succeeded in kissing her, she’d be lost for good. Although she didn’t dislodge him, the movement was enough that the lamp on her bedside table that he’d been reaching for was knocked to the floor with a loud thud as his arm jerked.

“Calm down, I was just leaning over to turn off the light,” he told her with a frown.

“Oh!” Elizabeth exclaimed. “I thought you were going to try…” she stopped and bit her lip feeling suddenly embarrassed.

“Try and what?” William queried softly before shaking his head slightly at her continued silence. “I’m sorry, Buffy,” he began in a regretful tone. “But I’m not going to make love to you if that’s what you were thinking, so please don’t ask. I can’t, not knowing you love another man.”

Elizabeth was speechless. Don’t ask him? A surge of annoyance ran through her at that. How dared he assume? She had no intention of doing any such thing. She took a deep breath and then another in order to let him know of his misconception when she discovered that the gentle friction of her lace covered breasts against his chest had stimulated them to such an extent that they actually seemed to be pushing against the solid wall of muscle as though deliberately trying to incite a response from him.

Apprehension weakened her anger and she once more discreetly tried to pull away from him as she bit back a heavy sigh.

All that panic when William had first arrived here. All the problems which had now arisen from her defensive lies about being engaged. All her self-contempt and soul-searching anguish on believing that William wanted to establish a relationship with her based purely on sex…and now here she was, lying by his side, aching for him to make love to her while he, very clearly, had no reciprocal feelings whatsoever.

How terribly ironic!

“For heaven’s sake woman, just lie still and go to sleep,” William ordered with a pretend yawn as he tried to control his own body’s reactions to her persistent wriggling. “You’ll feel better in the morning.”

Better? Did he really not know what he was doing to her? Of all the stupid, insensitive, thoughtless…Men!

“William, I appreciate what you’re trying to do but I really think that…”

A sudden knock sounding on her door followed by it opening wide stopped her from finishing her sentence as both she and William looked over to see who had walked in.

“Dawn!” Elizabeth cried in mortification as she saw her sister come to an abrupt halt two steps into her room.

The brunette’s surprised gaze turned speculative before a mischievous smile began to appear on her face. “Oops, sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt,” she said, beginning to move backwards to the door. “I heard a bang and was worried that you’d hurt yourself Buffy, but I can see that you’re in…good hands.” With that, she bade them both a good night and left the room.

Elizabeth stared at the closed door, blankly. From the way Dawn acted, it was obvious what her sister thought she’d interrupted and her face flamed at the fact. How was she going to convince Dawn that William meant nothing to her now when she seen them in bed together with her very own eyes?

She let out a long sigh as everything of the past few months seemed to suddenly bear down on her shoulders making them visibly sag under the weight. She couldn’t go on like this any longer. Everything was getting completely out of hand and she knew of only one way to make it all stop, whatever the consequences may be.

It was time.

Time for admitting her lie about Connor.

Time for facing up to her mistake.

Time for the truth.

Turning to the man sitting silently next to her, she drew in a deep breath to steady her nerves and said, “William, there’s something I have to tell you.”

TBC IN CHAPTER 18 – The Time For Truth – Part II

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