Mr. Darcy Forever (42 page)

‘
Do I look okay?’ Mia asked Shelley as she came into the bedroom.

‘
You look marvellous!’ Shelley said, leaning forward to kiss her cheek. Bingley – who had sneaked up the stairs when nobody was looking - thought he’d get in on the action too and stuffed a nose into Mia’s crotch.

‘
You really must teach this dog some manners, Shelley!’ Mia said as she pushed Bingley’s head away with a giggle.

‘
Right,’ Shelley said. ‘That would be like teaching Mr Collins to become interesting.’

There was a blast of a car horn.

‘
That’ll be the taxi,’ Mia said, looking at her watch before running down the stairs.

Shelley and Bingley followed, the former almost tripping over the latter.

‘
Remember,’ Shelley shouted after her, ‘no slapping!’

Mia tutted. ‘I’m not going to slap anyone,’ she said. ‘Unless they really deserve it.’

‘
Oh, dear,’ Shelley said. ‘I wouldn’t want to be Alec, then!’

Mia left the house, got into the taxi and waved goodbye to Shelley. She suddenly felt very alone and half-wished that she’d asked Shelley to come with her but she knew she had to do this alone.

As the taxi dropped her outside the abbey, Mia felt a whole meadow full of butterflies fluttering in her stomach. What was she going to say? How on earth did you tell somebody that they had a two-year old son? Maybe he would slap her for not having told him or maybe he'd demand to marry her. She shook her head. Somehow, she couldn't imagine Alec would have marriage on his mind again.

What if he didn’t turn up at all? No, that wasn’t likely to happen. Not if he thought she wanted a reconciliation which was how she had left things the night before.

Turning off a busy street, she saw the café and made her way towards it. Already, it was full of tourists and the constant chatter was comforting to Mia and might very well disguise any shouting that might occur in the next few moments.

She was still wondering if the whole thing was a good idea when Alec walked into the café. There was no escaping him; he spotted her straight-away.

‘
It’s so good to see you,’ he said as he sat down opposite her. ‘I was hoping you’d change your mind because there’s something I want to-’

‘
Alec,’ she said, interrupting him. ‘You mustn’t try to guess why I wanted to see you because you won’t.’

‘
But you've obviously changed your mind from the other day,’ he said, reaching across the table to take her hand in his. She flinched away from him.

‘
I haven’t changed my mind.’

‘
Then why are you here?’ he asked, a smug smile lifting the corners of his mouth.

‘
Because I’ve been persuaded by other people that it’s the right thing to do.’

He frowned. ‘What do you mean?’

Mia took a deep breath. ‘You have a son,’ she said, letting the words hang in the air between them for a moment.

‘
What?’

‘
After I got home from Devon, I realised I was pregnant and I had a baby. A little boy.’

‘
Are you sure it’s mine?’

Mia blanched at his words even though she’d been expecting them. ‘Of course I’m sure he’s yours. I didn’t meet any other Willoughbys whilst on holiday.’

‘
What?’

‘
Never mind,’ she said, not bothering to explain the literary allusion. ‘Do you want to see a picture of him?’

Alec looked blankly at her. ‘I wasn't expecting this.’

‘
No,’ she said. ‘I guess not.’

Mia opened her handbag and took out the photo to show Alec. ‘He’s called William and he’s two and I won’t stop you from seeing him if that’s what you decide you want but he’s
my
son and you have to know that there’s nothing more important in the world to me now.’

Alec took a moment to study the photograph. ‘He’s the spitting image of my dad at that age.’

‘
Is he?’ For a moment, Mia thought she saw a softening in Alec’s eyes but he then returned the photograph to her.

‘
You don’t need to worry about me breaking up a happy home,’ he said.

‘
What do you mean?’

‘
As you said, he’s
your
son.’

‘
You don’t want to see him?’

Alec shook his head.

‘
I don't believe it,’ Mia said.

‘
Come on. Be fair now. I didn't come here for this. I'm not a family man, Mia.’

‘
Then why did you get married?’

He shook his head. ‘Getting married was a mistake. How many times do I have to tell you that?’

‘
Then we have nothing else to say,’ she said, standing up so quickly that her chair fell over behind her. Alec leapt up and picked it up.

‘
Mia,’ he said, ‘don’t leave like this. We can work through things.’

‘
What do you mean? You don’t want to see your own son!’

‘
But I still want to see you.’

‘
What?’

He smiled at her and, for a moment, she thought she was going to slap him again but the moment soon passed.

‘
I guess that’s it, then,’ Mia said, turning to leave.

‘
Don’t go!’ Alec said, making a grab for her arm. She dodged out of the way and glared at him.

‘
I’m not laying any blame at your doorstep, Alec, and I can’t say I’m surprised by your response to this but I want you to know that if you ever change your mind, if you want to see William, then I shan’t prevent you.’

‘
It’s
you
I want to see.’

‘
Well, it’s like this now – I’m a package-deal with my son.’ She turned to leave.

‘
Mia!’ Alec called after her. She hoped that he wasn’t going to chase her through the streets of Bath again and was thankful when he didn’t bother. He was probably thanking his lucky stars that she wasn’t demanding more of him in his role as father.

‘
We’ve both had a lucky escape,’ she said to herself. It was the most unromantic of endings between two people that she could think of but she also knew that it was the right one.

Shelley was trying to find Mia amongst the back streets of Bath. She had a pretty good idea of where the café was but it was almost impossible to steer a direct route because Bingley kept stopping and starting, pulling and pushing and generally causing canine chaos.

‘
I shouldn’t have brought you with me, Bingley!’ she said, tugging him away from half a hot dog that had been dropped on the pavement. He looked up at her as if to say that he didn’t ask for much in life.

Shelley paused in a doorway and reached for her phone but, once again, it went to Mia’s voice-mail. Shelley sighed. Surely Mia must have said goodbye to Alec by now? Unless she’d run away with him! What if she’d had a complete change of heart, had forgiven the rogue and run away with him?

‘
Answer your phone!’ she shouted, causing a pair of shoppers to turn around and glare at her.

It only took her another five minutes to reach the café and she peered in through the window in the hope of spotting her friend. Bingley peered in too, his wet nose leaving a long slimy streak across the window much to the joy of a toddler who was sitting on the other side. But Mia was nowhere to be seen. Shelley chewed her lip and decided the best thing she could do would be to walk Bingley around for a bit and keep trying Mia’s phone.

It had been an extraordinary few days since Mia had arrived. The Jane Austen Festival was always an exciting time but Shelley had never experienced anything quite like this one before. What with long-lost sisters, dramatic reunions in the Pump Room and secret babies, Shelley’s head was spinning faster than Catherine Morland’s after reading her fill of Gothic novels.

And what had all that massaging business been about with Pie? Shelley couldn’t help but smile as she remembered the delicious tingles she’d felt when he’d touched her. She’d never had a massage before. Well, not a professional one. She’d had a very poor substitute for one from a boy at drama school who’d knuckled her shoulder-blades for a bit and then expected her to kiss him. But Pie had been wonderful and she sincerely hoped that her first wouldn’t be her last.

Life was intensely interesting at the moment.

Since leaving the café, Mia had somehow managed to get herself lost – not only in her thoughts but in the back-streets as well. What was she doing? Had she just made a huge mistake? Should she have pushed Alec more? He was, after all, the father of her son and surely it was only right that he took an interest in him.

‘
He doesn't even want to see him,’ she whispered to herself. ‘How can he not want to see his own son?’ She thought about the blank look on his face as he’d glanced briefly at the photograph of William. It could have been a photo of any young boy in the world for all he cared. There was a part of Mia that was absolutely furious with Alec but there was also a part that was relieved. If she was absolutely honest with herself, she didn't want Alec in her life. Ever since she’d found out she was pregnant, William had been her child and her child alone. She had coped through the most difficult years of her life without Alec. She didn't need him now. But at least she’d done the right thing in telling him. She didn't need to feel guilty any more.

For a moment, she couldn’t help thinking about Gabe and how he would have responded if he’d been in Alec’s position – not that he would ever be in such a position because he wouldn’t be the sort to become involved with two sisters at once, get one pregnant and then marry the other one.

She wondered how he’d have reacted when shown the photograph of William and she could imagine no other response other than total delight that he had a son. She knew he desperately wanted a family and had been heartbroken when he’d lost his chance with Andrea. Life seemed so unfair sometimes. It was a cruel trick of fate that one man had been denied a child whilst another had been given one that he didn't want.

Mia looked at her watch and gasped as she saw the time. She must have been wandering around for ages, losing all track of time, and Shelley would no doubt be worrying about her.

She reached for her phone and switched it on. Almost instantly, it rang.

‘
Oh, thank goodness!’ Shelley’s voice cried into Mia’s ear. ‘Where on earth are you? I’m here at the café right now!’

‘
I don’t know,’ Mia said.

‘
What?’

‘
I’m a bit lost.’

‘
Well, look for a street name,’ Shelley told her. ‘Bath isn’t that complicated.’

Mia searched for a street name. ‘Lansdown Road,’ she said a moment later. ‘And I can see a street called Alfred Street.’

‘
Good heavens! How did you end up all the way out there?’

‘
I’m not sure. I’ve just been walking and thinking.’

‘
Well, it’s time to stop,’ Shelley said and proceeded to give her some directions. ‘Do you think you can get yourself to the Pump Room?’

‘
I think so.’

‘
Good, well get yourself there as fast as you can. I’ve got a surprise for you.’

By the time Mia reached the Pump Room, a huge crowd had gathered there and it took a further five minutes before Mia and Shelley were reunited.