Legally Darcy: A Modern Retelling of Pride and Prejudice Read online

  Legally Darcy

  A Pride and Prejudice Modern Variation

  Denise O’Hara

  Ten year old Will has an ideal life, but things take an unfortunate turn in the course of one fateful day. Years later, he makes a name for himself as one of the top legal minds in the country. He seems to have it all: Money, power, connections, looks… but he begins to realize something is missing when he meets feisty law student Elizabeth Bennet.

  Legally Darcy

  By Denise O’Hara

  Copyright November 2, 2016

  All Rights Reserved

  This book is a work of fiction.

  Names, characters, places and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Special thanks to Regina Silvia.

  [email protected]

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Thank You!

  Author

  Chapter One

  “He’s peeking!”

  Ten year old George Wickham ripped off the blindfold dramatically. Replying in a hurt tone, “Richard Fitzwilliam, you are always so mean to me! I was not peeking.” Quickly bending down to gather candy he added, “I struck the piñata fair and square. You’re just jealous because on your turn you couldn’t hit it to save your life.”

  Richard scowled at his doubled over cousin, William Darcy. “What are you laughing at, shorty?”

  “You were hitting the hydrangea bush the whole time, thinking it was the piñata. Oh man, that was funny! And George struck gold on his first try!”

  “That’s because he was peeking!”

  “Was not!” George exclaimed, scooping up as much candy as quickly as he could.

  “Was too!”

  “Boys, let’s not argue,” came the gentle voice of Anne Darcy, as she walked onto the back patio of her large home on the Darcy’s even larger estate. “Especially not on the most beautiful day of the year. Oh, how I love spring!” she said as she ruffled the hair of her nephew.

  “I was thinking the same thing, Mrs. Darcy. The weather is beautiful today. Not as beautiful as you though,” George looked at her and smiled sweetly.

  “Oh, George, always the little charmer! Richard, go get some candy before it’s all gone.”

  Richard couldn’t stay in a bad mood when his aunt was around. She had the sweetest disposition of anyone he had ever met, much like her brother, Richard’s dad. His own mother was nice enough but Aunt Sandy never lost her temper like his mom did. Just yesterday she had sent him to his room after she’d lifted the lid of the butter crock and discovered he’d put a frog in it. He still didn’t understand what the big deal was: there was hardly any butter left in it anyway. He figured his mom just wasn’t an animal lover. Maybe that, and not that she was allergic, was the real reason they didn’t have any pets.

  He shrugged and did as his aunt said. Her name wasn’t actually Sandy but that’s what her father had nicknamed her because, with her blond hair and brown eyes, she looked so much like an actress who was popular in his day, Sandra Dee. Her real name was Anne, which was what her husband called her. Bending down to get his share of the candy before George and Will took it all, George stole a glance at him and gave a telling smirk.

  “Is that all you’re going to take, Will?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Dad said I shouldn’t be eating too many sweets or I’ll be too big to fit through the door by the time I get to High School,” Will said with a grin as he pat his slightly round belly. “It’s fine; I got all my favorites anyway,” he winked as he opened his t-shirt and showed her his stash.

  Anne reached down to kiss his cheek. “Well, I think we can make an exception this once. It isn’t every day that the three amigos all make the honor roll. Besides, you don’t have anything to worry about; you’re shaped just like your Uncle Jim was when he was your age. Once you hit your growth spurt in a few years, you’ll be so tall and thin we’ll have trouble keeping enough meat on your bones. ”

  Will looked up at his mom, her eyes shining with love. “You’re the best, Mom.” He tried putting his arms all the way around her expanding waist but came up short.

  “When are you going to have that baby, Aunt Sandy?” Richard asked as he stuffed two tootsie rolls into his mouth.

  “Oh, it won’t be too long now. Probably before the end of this month.”

  George came over with his t-shirt loaded with candy. He never went home from his friend’s house empty handed; Mrs. Darcy made sure of that. He could tell she felt sorry that he had only a father to look after him, since his mother had left when he was just a baby. He wished she hadn’t run off, but on the other hand, if she’d stayed he probably wouldn’t have ever met the Darcy’s, and he really liked having rich friends! They didn’t just have a swimming pool: they had the biggest swimming pool he’d ever seen. They had stables full of horses, and plenty of land to ride them on. They had four wheelers and a huge stocked pond. He leaned back in the lounge chair contentedly. Yes, this was the life, he thought.

  He thought back to how he came to be a regular guest at Pemberley estate. As a chef, his dad’s shift started in the afternoon and didn’t end until after the restaurant closed. After his wife left, Ben needed someone to help take care of George. When Ben’s mom suggested she would like to have them there with her, they had moved across the country.

  A few years later, Mr. George Darcy stopped to eat at the restaurant where Ben Wickham was chef. He was so impressed with his meal that he came back a few weeks later to offer the man a much better paying job in an upscale restaurant at an elite golf course, which George Darcy had invested in. The current opening was for the morning and afternoon meals. The catch was it was pretty far out in the country, requiring the Wickham’s to move. With his son about to start Kindergarten, and his Mom planning on going back to work once her grandson was in school, Ben accepted, deciding it was a good opportunity for the two of them to have more time to spend together.

  Being so far out in the country, there was only one school and it was a good one but it was public. So from Kindergarten on, both Ben and Mr. Darcy’s sons were
in the same classes, becoming fast friends. Young George was often invited to the Darcy’s for play dates.

  Meanwhile, the restaurant at the golf course became Mr. Darcy’s go to place for breakfast most days, stopping there before his driver took him to his law office in the city. He was never disappointed and often amazed at the new dishes Ben would come up with. After almost five years he was offered the position of head chef. Since it would mean a change in Ben’s schedule, the Darcy’s had insisted that young George be picked up from school with William. There the boys could spend the afternoons doing homework and playing together. It was no problem for a driver to bring him to meet his father at the restaurant after. And so began the routine which suited all concerned.

  George Darcy took a particular liking to the well-mannered and already athletic George Wickham, who happened to share his given name. Ben and his son were big sports fans, and now Mr. Darcy finally had someone to watch the games with.

  George’s thoughts were brought back to the present when he heard Richard ask, “So do you know if you’re having a boy or girl, Aunt Sandy?”

  “No, we want it to be a surprise.”

  George chimed in, “What do you want, Will? A brother or a sister?”

  “A brother, of course!”

  “Be careful what you wish for, Cousin. I have a brother, remember? Believe me it’s no picnic,” Richard suggested as he tore open a bag of Skittles.

  “That’s for sure. But he’s your older brother. I’ll be a better older brother than yours for sure.”

  “Couldn’t get much worse,” Richard replied before dumping a quarter of the bag of candy into his mouth.

  Anne laughed at the exchange between her son and nephew. “Whether it’s a boy or girl, I know my Will is going to be the best brother there ever was. Now who wants lemonade?”

  Chapter Two

  Early the following morning, just as the sun was beginning to rise, Will dreamed his house was being shaken by an earthquake.

  “Wake up, Will! I’ve got a surprise for you!”

  Will rubbed his heavy eyes as he sat up in bed. “What is it, Dad? What’s the surprise?”

  “I can’t tell you or it won’t be a surprise, will it? Now get dressed and meet me down stairs.”

  George Darcy was waiting at the door when Will ran down the stairs as fast as he could. “Will, how many times have I told you not to run in the house? Here, put your jacket on.”

  “Where’s Mom? Is she coming with us?”

  “No, she isn’t,” he smiled at his son. “This surprise is just for you.”

  Will looked out the window in silence as his father closed his eyes in the seat next to him. Their driver, Carl, smiled at him whenever their eyes met in the rear view mirror, as he continued past all the familiar sites around Pemberley, before merging onto the Highway. Will realized then that they must be heading to the city where his father worked. Maybe that’s where they were going.

  The car pulled into the road leading to the hospital; Woman’s Hospital the sign read. Instinctively his father’s eyes opened as the car slowed, finally coming to a stop at the front doors of the hospital.

  George looked over and smiled at his eager son. “Ready for your surprise?”

  “Yes! I think I know what it is! Is mom here already? Just tell me one thing: Is it a boy or girl?”

  His father laughed and said, “Let’s go find out.”

  Will followed his father onto the elevator and they got off at the third floor. “Your Mom and your baby…oh, what is it? A boy or a girl?” his father teased, “They’re in room 322 at the end of the hall to the right.” Just as they turned to the right, his father’s phone rang. Looking at his phone before answering he said, “It’s the hospital.”

  Will’s excitement was growing to the point where he felt like he was about to burst. “Can I go Dad? To room 322?”

  George smiled and nodded his head as Will took off running down the hall.

  “Hello,” George answered. “Yes, this is George Darcy. Excuse me for a second. William, stop running. I’m sorry about that, what can I do for you?”

  Will slowed down to a fast walk. He said the numbers out loud as he passed each of the rooms; 308, 310, 312…

  Just as he reached room 320, he heard a woman’s voice call out, “Wait, little boy! Stop!” He turned to see a nurse running in his direction. He looked past her to his father who was on his knees a little distance behind her. Alarm filled him at the sight. He started to walk towards them but then a different fear gripped him. He stopped and glanced towards room 322. Just as he did, he heard the sobs coming from his father. The nurse reached him then, and pulled him away from the door to his mother’s room. He didn’t resist her as she led him to a private conference room, while another nurse escorted his father.

  Later he remembered little of what was said once the doctor entered and spoke to them. An aneurism, suddenly, no one could have known. Before he knew it, he was back in the car, being driven home again presumably. He could hear Carl sniffling but the driver wasn’t making eye contact with him this time. Will felt numb as he stared out the window.

  Sooner than expected the car came to a stop at his Aunt and Uncle’s house instead of Pemberley. Aunt Val came running out of her modern house in the well-to-do neighborhood that adjoined the gold course. Next to Pemberley it was by far the largest house in the town, but only sat on a couple of acres.

  Once inside Aunt Val hugged him tight as if she would never let him go. He could feel her tears wetting his hair, while Uncle Jim sat in the living room staring into space. Later Richard came out and sat on the sofa in the den where Aunt Val eventually had her nephew sit. He never said a word, but Will could see his face was red from crying.

  Richard’s brother, Leonard, though he insisted on being called Lenny, came into the room holding a glass of milk. “You, uh, want some, kid?’ Will shook his head “no” in response.

  “Yeah, well, really sorry, kid.”

  Will didn’t meet his sister until their father brought her home when she was three days old. When he saw her, all the feelings that had been inside came pouring out. Once the tears started, he couldn’t stop them. He felt the worst hurt, sadness, loneliness, and sorrow of his life. But as he looked into his sister’s big brown eyes, which were just like their mother’s, he felt a love more powerful than he had ever known. When Georgiana, the name his mother had chosen for her daughter, began to wail, Will cried with her. He held her as he rocked her in the chair their mom had rocked him in. “It’s going to be ok, Georgie. I’ll take care of you.”

  That Dad loved Georgie and him, he had no doubt. But that he had been deeply and permanently affected by the loss of his beloved wife was easy to discern by the change in him from the day of her death until his own. It was as if his dad no longer wanted to set the usual boundaries for them that most parents did. That he used to, in fact. According to their father, everything he and Georgie did was the best; they were always in the right in every disagreement they had with others. They were the smartest, and never again did his dad tell him to limit his sweets or stop running in the house. He could tell his dad was annoyed with him at times, but then he’d just laugh it off and tell him what a great kid he was.

  Will decided to take up the slack in making sure he and Georgie were as safe as he felt they should be. After all, he couldn’t allow Georgie to lose her only brother in some accident because he was being careless. And he couldn’t let anything happen to her.

  From the first moment he met her, he’d always been there for her. They were closer than most siblings. While there were never ending gifts from his dad, it was Will who did those special things his mom had done for him, such as introducing her to the piano and asking his Dad if she could start taking lessons. He had volunteered to escort Georgie to class on her first day of school. He always made sure he met her school friends and teachers. He was the one to make the suggestions of who to invite over and enlisted Mrs. Reynolds, their dear housekee
per, to assist in planning special activities, which their dad always approved. “Anything you want” became one of George Darcy’s favorite expressions.

  Chapter Three

  Eight Years Later

  “That boy of yours boy always makes me laugh! He’s got charisma, that’s for sure,” George Darcy said in response to a story Ben Wickham had just told him. He and Ben had gotten into the habit of going to the High school games together to watch George Wickham, the team’s quarterback, play. “And what an arm he has! Oh, that was a great game. He’s putting our little community on the map.”

  Ben grinned proudly. “I don’t know where he gets it from. I just hope his grades are good enough to get him graduated. He can charm a lot of his teachers but that Mr. Burns doesn’t cut him any slack. Of course, my boy does like to go out most nights. Sometimes he gets home after I do.”

  “A real ladies’ man, huh? Well, with his looks and personality, he’ll be just fine. Tell you what; I’ll put a bug in Burn’s ear to let up a bit. You know, Ben, I told those boys they will have a great future if they apply themselves. Who knows, maybe they will both end up as my partners in the firm.”

  “Well, I can see Will being a mighty fine lawyer. I hear he’s expected to be named valedictorian.”

  George shrugged, as he waited in line to leave the crowded parking lot. “Oh, he’s as smart as they come alright. But I worry about him. It’s just… he’s just so serious. Who ever heard of a fourteen year old who picked their Dad’s brain about legal cases? You laugh, but I know you remember him doing it. I thought he’d grow out of it when girls and cars came into the picture. I mean, I bought him this cool sports car and he hardly ever drives it. He prefers the Lexus. What eighteen year old chooses to drive a sedan instead of a sports car? If I didn’t drive it to the games, it would hardly get any use! I remember when he was younger and I’d always have to remind him not to run in the house. Now he wouldn’t run if I paid him. Though, I suppose that’s a good thing considering he’s as tall and slim as a tree.”