Summary: A deeper look into Drake’s thoughts about MC Elizabeth Richmond in Book 2 Chapter 15
When Drake received Maxwell’s frantic call to help out at the Beaumont manor, promising bottles of whiskey and declarations of friendship, he hadn’t banked on Elizabeth being there. Sure he’d expected her to be at the manor — she was part of their house after all — he just didn’t think she’d end up toiling right there alongside the Beaumont brothers as they scrambled to prepare to host the court. This took him by surprise as most things about her did, he had accepted that now. Still he wouldn’t allow himself to be so close to her and took every opportunity to avoid her, knowing that if they happened on a moment alone, she would want to bring up the events of last night.
And that would be a bad idea. He thought of the promise to keep his distance that he’d made himself this morning after a long night of tossing and turning, trying in vain to get thoughts of her out of his head.
However he could only avoid the inescapable for so long.
He was pouring all his energy into arranging centrepieces for the table in an attempt to get her out of his mind when a familiar mellifluous voice sliced through his concentration.
‘Why Drake. I never knew you had such a flair with peonies,’ Elizabeth quipped, her tone light and full of humour as she came to stand next to him.
Drake kept his eyes trained on the flowers in his hands as he growled a surly reply. ‘The things I do for you people…’
His gruff remark didn’t faze her and she reached towards the garlands next to him. Even though their skin did not touch, he could feel the warmth of her body next to him.
This is a recipe for disaster.
Still avoiding her gaze, his eyes flitted around to room in hopes of finding a distraction. He was able to divert her attention to the brothers Beaumont in the far corner of the room for a little while but before long there was a lull in the conversation and Elizabeth took it as a cue.
‘Actually Drake,’ she ventured hesitantly. ‘There’s something else we should talk about… About last night…’
Drake knew the inevitable had arrived but stubbornly feigned surprise. He could sense Elizabeth’s resolve wavering slightly before she continued.
‘What you said… about how you feel?’
He knew exactly what she meant. Gritting his teeth, he uttered a short reply in a warning tone.
‘Elizabeth… I don’t think we should talk about this here.’ His efforts to discourage her from pursuing the matter did not faze her.
‘Then somewhere private?’ She persisted.
God she is as stubborn as I am.
‘I’m not sure thats a good idea,’ he replied curtly, still refusing to look at her.
‘Why not?’ He watched her withdraw her hands from the flowers and look pointedly at him.
Sighing, Drake finally turned to face her.
‘The way you look at me sometimes Richmond…’ He began, reverting back to his use of her last name.’ If we’re alone together I’m not sure I’ll be able to stop myself from doing something stupid.’
He watched her eyes soften slightly as she reached to put a hand on his arm before being interrupted by Bertrand’s irritated call.
As Elizabeth returned to her task, Drake made an executive decision to remove himself from the situation, abruptly abandoned his vase and flowers, ignoring her gasp of confusion as he slipped out to the hallway.
As his feet took him to a familiar place, a sense of dread began to well beneath him. He’d revealed too much now and he could bet an entire bottle of whiskey that Elizabeth would continue to persist until she got an answer out of him. The least he could do was put some space in between them for a while, he thought as he entered the Beaumont’s study.
Finally alone, he heaved a sigh to clear his mind. His exhale was interrupted by the soft click of the door.
‘Drake, what are you doing back here?’
He whirled around, unable to hide the look of surprise on his face at her boldness.
‘Richmond! So you followed me, huh?’ He exclaimed, slightly begrudging her lacking ability to drop a subject. ‘This is the Beaumont study,’ he announced weakly in an attempt to divert her attention.
Being with her all alone, behind closed doors, particularly after the events of the night before, he didn’t trust himself to stay resolute.
It seemed that she had a particular talent for eroding all his defences and a few moments later he caught himself wondering why he was telling Elizabeth about his sister. He’d never talked about this to anyone else, not even Maxwell whom he’d known for years. She had a a certain charm that seemed to pull the words effortlessly from him.
When the conversation concluded, a small silence fell between the two of them and he allowed his eyes to linger on her for just a moment before pulling away when she noticed. He could practically see the gears turning in her head and immediately chastised himself for being so careless.
‘Drake…’ she began again firmly in a tone that brooked no argument. ‘We need to talk about ‘us’.
Us…
He bit back a bitter laugh before shaking his head and turning away from her.
‘There is no ‘us’. He replied hollowly.
‘Drake you can’t mean that.’ Her voice was softer now or was he just imagining it?
Not allowing himself to pursue that line of thought, he faced her once again.
‘The truth is that my best friend is head over heels for you. So it doesn’t really matter how I feel. Because thats where it has to end,’ he told her, praying that she would just accept his answer.
It pained him enough to have to remind himself of that face constantly but voicing it out loud was like a stab to his gut.
‘Liam is the only one who’s ever looked out for me,’ he continued hoarsely. Her power to extract his deepest thoughts was working strongly today, he mused, as he found himself telling he about his father’s death and how Liam’s friendship had affected his family.
‘I could never betray him by falling for his girl…’ his voice dropped off to a whisper as he hung his head towards the floor. ‘That’s what it all comes down to Richmond… Whatever I feel… It doesn’t matter.’
Elizabeth was silent for so long that Drake was almost convinced she’d left the room. He was just lifting his head when —
‘What about how I feel?’ Her voice, holding so much emotion made him snap his head up and he looked at her properly for the first time all day. Her eyes, locked on his, were beginning to shine with tears.
‘How you feel…? Of course I care how you feel.’ He gasped, fighting back an urge to hold her and take away all the hurt in her. ‘I just didn’t think…’ That you’d care for me too.
He cleared his throat, buying a moment to regain his confidence.
‘I mean… What are you saying Richmond?’
She took a step towards him, never breaking her gaze. ‘I’m saying… I want you too,’ she breathed.
Had he heard her right? He’d imagined this moment so many times but to hear her say it out loud it was almost cruel when he knew he couldn’t have her.
‘Oh Richmond…,’ Drake whispered, raising his eyes from her with a colossal effort. ‘You shouldn’t have said that.’ He drew in a deep, ragged breath, feeling his resolve crumble. He was certain he’d never be able to forget her words no matter how hard he tried. There was no way he’d be able to resist her now.
All it took was for Elizabeth to say his name in her soft musical voice before all his walls came tumbling down and he drew her in his arms, his heart beating a mile a minute. As they stayed frozen in time, faces so close but not touching, Drake looked into her eyes searching for an answer. Did she really want this? What this actually happening?
Never breaking their gaze, Elizabeth rose slightly on her toes and pressed her lips to his before he could process what she was doing. Just as he began to kiss back, she pulled away gently and he ached at the loss of her touch.
‘Richmond…’ he whispered hoarsely, still not fully believing what had just happened.
She blinked slowly, her dark eyelashes brushing her cheek before looking back at him. ‘Yes?’
In that moment Drake couldn’t stop himself from admitting what he’d been trying to deny for the last few weeks.
‘I’ve wanted this for so long,’ he breathed before pulling her tightly against him, cupping her face in her hands, kissing her so hard that Drake doubted he’d ever get the taste of her out of his mouth.
She moaned slightly before returning his ferocity, her arms locking around his neck, clinging tightly to him, eliminating every inch of space between them. His tongue brushed against her lips pleading for entrance and she willingly opened, giving him access. His hands explored her body, taking advantage of this time to really savour the feeling of of her in his arms. In return, her hands explored the plane of his chest, bunching gripping the fabric of his shirt as she pulled him closer still.
‘Drake…’ His name is a prayer on her lips as he moved across her face to whisper in her ear.
‘I didn’t think this would ever be more than a fantasy,’ he mused, burying his nose in her soft dark hair. For some reason this made Elizabeth chuckle slightly and he felt her chest rumble against his.
‘Are you saying that you’ve thought about this before?’ She asked, peppering his jaw with tiny kisses.
There really was no escaping her quick mind. Drake brought his head up so he was looking once again into her deep brown gaze. He’d spent many nights imagining this moment, holding her, feeling her soft lips on his and now that she was here, he never ever wanted to let her go.
‘More than I like to admit.’
It was at that unfortunate moment that Drake’s conscience decided to intrude, reminding him of who they were and why she was here. The wave of guilt crashed back onto him, breaking the spell that had fooled him into thinking that they were just one man and one woman kissing in a room. But it was so much more complicated than that. He allowed himself to cling on to that fantasy for a moment more as he caught her lips in a final kiss, deep and desperate before abruptly stepping back and releasing her. Confusion washed over her dazed face as he watched her mind struggle to keep up with the sudden change.
‘What wrong?’ Her question was so innocent but it only served to add to the growing knot of guilt in his chest.
He’d just kissed his best friend’s girl.
That went against everything in their friendship, especially after all Liam had done for him and his family. Drake prided himself especially on his loyalty to his friends. He didn’t have very many and none were as close as Liam. The two of them had been there for each other through thick and thin but this was the ultimate act of betrayal and he silently cursed himself for the moment of weakness. But looking at Elizabeth he realised that despite all that he wouldn’t have taken their moment back for anything.
Seeing her look at him expectantly, he mumbled a weak response.
‘Someone could come in here… One of them might come looking for us… We shouldn’t just…’ he trailed off lamely, shaking his head.
His eyes met hers again and he marvelled at how intoxicating they were, two deep pools of wonder that held so much intrigue and possibility.
‘Even without a drop of whiskey, why do I feel drunk when I’m around you, Richmond?’ He wondered out loud as he searched those eyes again.
Did she feel it too? Did she understand what they had just done? Or was she just playing a cruel trick on him?
He couldn’t possibly imagine any future where she would pick him when Liam was offering her the world.
‘Drake…’ she breathed again, offering him a small smile. He shook his head and she paused halfway through the step forward to him, her smile faltering slightly. In turn Drake took a step away from her and the effort almost tore him apart.
‘Don’t smile at me like that,’ he croaked, feeling his face crumple. ‘I don’t deserve it. We shouldn’t be doing this. I don’t know what I was thinking.’
He felt rather than saw her recoil at his words as she paused, taking in what he’d said.
‘Should we leave?’ Her voice was so small that Drake immediately regretted his words.
He dared to sneak another look at her as she attempted to compose herself but looked away when she glanced at him. They busied themselves with their original mission, making some peculiar discoveries but for the rest of the day, he felt the heat of her kiss on his lips, threatening to burn him from inside out.
He knew he was already gone, there was no turning back from this.
For either of them…