Chapter forty eight

Duncan

“Am I meant to be impressed with this or something?”

Duncan looked around at the picnic blanket around them, a spread of sandwiches, pasta and several meat finger foods were delicately arranged around them. He was impressed, he was pretty sure she should be as well.

“Well, yeah.” He said. “I spent ages on this.”

Daniela rolled her eyes and picked at a cocktail sausage, dipping it in a pot of salad cream. She was wearing a yellow sundress and big black sunglasses. Her hair was up in a silver clip, falling in waves down her back. Her matching yellow flip flops lay discarded by her feet. She turned towards the sun and smiled serenely as she soaked in it’s rays.

“Okay, I suppose it isn’t too bad.”

Duncan smiled. “That might be the best compliment you’ve given me, so I will take it.”

Daniela laughed. “Sorry, you have made an effort. I just don’t totally understand why. I mean, you barely know me.”

“So everyone keeps telling me.”

“So explain it to me.” Daniela said.

“You’re beautiful.” Duncan answered after a while. “And you’re complicated, which usually is a big no for me but… I don’t know… there’s something about you that I can’t seem to get enough of.”

Daniela looked at him curiously. “You are a strange one, Duncan Jennings.” She said.

She got up from her spot on the blanket and made her way over to him. Kneeling down and placing each knee on either side of him, she sat herself directly in front of him, her arms making their way around his neck.

“Lucky for you, I like strange.” She whispered.

She pulled herself close to him so that she was sat straddled on his lap. Weaving her fingers into his hair she leant in and kissed the top of his jaw.

“So tell me.” She whispered into his ear. “What exactly is it about me that you can’t get enough of?”

Duncan wrapped his arms around Daniela’s waist and closed the small gap left between them. With a giggle, Daniela shifted forward and responded to Duncan’s body, pushing her torso towards his. Her lips found his jawline again and she began to brush kisses up and down his neck. Duncan groaned and his hands shot to her face, pulling it up so that his lips met hers. Daniela pushed herself into the kiss and Duncan fell back with her still straddled on top of him. His hands travelled south once more as his teeth bit into Daniela’s lip. He grabbed the bottom of her dress and started to pull it up…

“He’s here?!”

Something sharp hit the side of Duncan’s face and suddenly the picnic blanket, sun, food and Daniela were gone; a stuffy and all too familiar laboratory taking it’s place. Duncan groaned as his hands searched for the source of the pain. Daniela’s fancy looking diary lay by his side. The corner of it looking to be culprit of the sharp pain now emanating around his head.

“What was that for?” He asked.

“Connor is already here and you didn’t bother to tell me?”

Christiana was towering over him, her face red and she was yelling, really yelling.

“What?”

“Connor! You know, my boyfriend? The one you were apparently in conversation with about three hours ago!”

“Oh.” Duncan said. “Him.”

“Why the hell didn’t you tell me he was here?” Christiana asked.

Duncan shrugged and got up from his bed, stretching his body out to it’s full length.

“I needed you here,” he said, unapologetically. “Daniela will need you here when she wakes up and I knew you wouldn’t stay if you knew that Connor was back.”

“So you thought you would just lie to me? What the hell Duncan?! You know how much I’ve been missing him!”

“I was going to tell you tomorrow!” Duncan reasoned. “I just thought that maybe it could wait until after Daniela…”

“I have had it with this crappy obsession you have with that girl!” Christiana exploded. “Sodding hell Duncan, you sound like you’ve been married to the woman your entire life the way you go on about her! And now you figure, what? This relationship is more important than mine and Connor’s?”

“I think re-establishing her into the world is more important than you going to see Connor, this has nothing to do with me.”

“This has everything to do with you, you idiot. Wake up Duncan. You’ve just spent the last ten months obsessing over a woman who has been emotionally unavailable to you and now that it comes to the point where you actually have to meet her, you’re chickening out and waiting for someone else to take over. Well, guess what Duncan? I’m not going to be your scape goat. You have Gary to help with her physically and the rest is all yours. I’m out of here.”

“Christiana, wait.”

“Piss off, Duncan.”

And with that, Christiana stormed out of the room, leaving Duncan alone with a curious Daniela peering up at him through the screen.