Matters of Chance

Chapter 6

Elizabeth had never felt poorer in her life after stepping into the Netherfield penthouse. The private elevator had brought them up to the top floor of the Netherfield building. The highrise wasn't quite tall enough to make Lizzie's ears pop going up, but she knew she was at the highest point in Meryton. As Elizabeth rolled her old suitcase into the foyer, she had to stop herself from dropping it in awe. The penthouse was a modern masterpiece. The walls were a sleek white and the hardwood floors sparkled, as if freshly polished. The furniture reminded her of what she saw on Million Dollar Listings. She could have sworn that there wasn't a speck of dust inside the entire living area. Elizabeth looked over at her sister. Jane just smiled at her, not nearly as bewildered.

Charles, who had gotten them into the private elevator, waved a hand and began walking. Elizabeth and Jane followed him. They walked past the kitchen and living room. Caroline lounged on a red leather sofa that matched the color of her lipstick. She looked up at the two of them to acknowledge them. It wasn't much, but it was more than they got from Darcy, who sat at the kitchen breakfast bar staring at his laptop. Elizabeth rolled her eyes. Of course he wouldn't look up at them, she remembered how he stared at his glass of water for two minutes straight at the arcade bar.

Charles opened a door to their left and stepped into the room, standing to the side so that Elizabeth and Jane could wheel their suitcases in. As soon as both girls were in the room, Charles stepped out.

"I'll let you two get settled," he said, then closed the door.

As soon as she heard the door click shut, Elizabeth belly flopped onto the king sized bed. She could feel her body sinking into the baby blue bedspread. She flopped around on the bed until she was turned around, staring at the ceiling. The blanket felt silky against her arms. She rubbed her hand up and down the bed. She wondered what the thread count was.

"You're going to have to share that bed you know," Jane said.

"There's plenty of room for both of us!" Lizzie rolled across the king sized bed.

Jane laughed and flopped down next to her.

Caroline stood up from the couch once her brother had come out of the guest bedroom. She sauntered over to the breakfast bar and took a seat on the glossy wooden stool next to Darcy.

"I thought we would only be getting Jane," Caroline leaned in close enough to the laptop to get into Darcy's line of sight, "but we got Elizabeth too." Darcy didn't acknowledge her. "Did you see the way she marveled when she got in here? It's like she's never seen a clean house before." Caroline snickered.

Darcy shifted his eyes from his laptop screen to Caroline. "Your brother bought expensive furnishings. I think it's normal to be impressed."

Caroline shook her head and stood. She rolled her eyes and huffed, and made her way back to her spot on the couch. Darcy's attention went back to his computer and he started typing.

Elizabeth's first night at Netherfield passed nicely. Since her and Jane arrived after dinner, all there was to do was unpack and sleep. Sharing a bed next to her sister wasn't a problem either. Jane was a rather peaceful sleeper, and Lizzie's small snores didn't seem to wake her.

When Elizabeth woke up that morning, the space next to her was empty. The sun that filtered through the window was nice and warm, although blinding. She buried her face into a pillow and reached her arm out to the bedside table. She smacked it a couple of times before she finally found what she was looking for. She turned her head and squinted at the light reentering her eyes as she turned on her phone. The clock read 8:30 am, and a text message from her sister appeared on the screen.