Prom and Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg Read Free Book Online Page B

hit it off really well. We were friends from the moment we met.
    "Darcy took me under his wing. It was only a few weeks into the semester, and he brought me into the city to meet his family. I fell in love with them. His dad is this incredible man, which iswhy I don't like saying anything bad about Darcy, because his father is a kind, generous person. He even arranged for me to have a summer job last year at his law firm. That would have set me up -- not only with a way to earn money, but to get experience that would have been amazing on my college transcript. Things were going well for me. And Darcy couldn't take it. He loved having me under his wing, having some sort of control over me. But he didn't like seeing me fly by myself, making things happen without his influence. He became increasingly competitive with me. And when he thought he might lose, he stabbed me in the back. Before I knew what was happening, I was being escorted off campus."
    I gasped.
"Darcy
got you kicked out of Pemberley?"
    Wick nodded, the color draining from his face.
    "I don't believe it. How could anybody be so awful?" A knot formed in my stomach. "Why would he do that?"
    "Maybe it was jealousy over my growing relationship with his father. That's all I could think of. I spent most of spring break with his family, and while he was his usual cold and distant self, I didn't understand the treachery he was capable of. I went home for a couple days before returning to campus, and in that time, he set his plan in motion. When I got to my dorm room, campus security was waiting for me."
    "But that's ridiculous. They can't just kick you out for no reason."
    "Oh, they had some trumped-up charges, some accusations he'd made. But what would I fight them with? My family didn't have money for an attorney. And the Darcy men had been going to Pemberley for generations. I'd been going for months."
    My mind was swirling with what Wick told me. "We can't let him get away with this."
    Wick leaned back in his seat. "Someday, Darcy will get what's coming to him, but it isn't going to be from me. I couldn't do that to Mr. Darcy. It's not his fault that his son is a liar and a scoundrel."
    "You're a far better person than I," I said.
    "Hardly. After all, I'm going to crash a party this weekend."
    That was really all I wanted to hear Wick say. But my mind kept reeling over what Darcy had done. Jane had nearly convinced me that I'd been too harsh on the guy, but apparently I hadn't been harsh enough.
    As Wick drove me back to campus, I didn't want the evening to end. I didn't want to have to go back to the taunts and bullying. I liked spending time with someone who was like me.
    He parked the car and turned off the engine. "Do you need a moment to prepare for battle?" he asked, only half joking.
    "I guess." I looked at the beautiful building that had been my home for the past five months.
    "I had a really great time tonight." "Me too."
    Wick leaned over ... and gave me a hug. "I'll see you on Saturday," he murmured. "Promise?"
    He smiled at me. "Promise."

11.

    I CAME CLEAN TO JANE THE NEXT EVENING AT DINNER. IT should've been suspected that when I relayed Wick's story to her, she didn't share in my disgust at Darcy's actions.
    "George Wickham, Lizzie? I haven't heard good things about him." Jane looked worried.
    "There's a surprise."
    "I'm sure there has to be an explanation for all of this. First, Darcy wouldn't do something like that. Second, Charles would never have a friend who was so despicable. It's probably just a simple misunderstanding."
    "Misunderstanding?" I was astonished. "Why is it that I'm always misunderstanding something? How could someone misunderstand being expelled from school without just cause? Didn't you hear anything about it last year?"
    Jane looked thoughtful. "I do remember he got kicked out, and that Charles knew him, but it wasn't something Charles talked to me about."
    I couldn't believe that someone getting kicked out of Pemberley wouldn't be