Their fingers entwined, Daphne stared into the steel grey eyes of the handsome man across from her. Who ever heard of anyone having steel grey eyes? It wasn't normal, but then again nothing about Frederick J Morrison was normal. He was the most unique man that Daphne had ever known.
He wasn't the type that she would usually go for, but when she saw him sitting by himself once night at Granville's, she boldly struck up a conversation. That wasn't like her either, making the first move.
But it was all Roz's fault. If it weren't for her friend's constant reminders of how Daphne needed to find a man, she would have quietly slipped out of the bar as quickly as she could.
Roz wouldn't have noticed anyway, having gone off with the first man who made eye contact with her. And Daphne knew that Roz wouldn't be calling that night to find out if she'd actually spoken to a man. Roz wouldn't be doing anything alone until early the next morning, unless things turned completely disastrous in the bedroom.
Daphne shuddered at the thought of how Roz could simply go to bed with a man that she barely knew, treating sex like it was something people did every day. Daphne preferred to call it making love and she wanted to wait until just the right moment. But sadly, she feared that there would never be a right moment.
However, given Roz's stern lecture, Daphne felt compelled to change all of that. It may not happen tonight but once she got to know this man a little better...
With a sense of pride, Daphne offered to buy the man a drink. When he mentioned that his name was Frederick, she knew that it was a sign, and promptly launched into a detailed story about her boss and how his young sweet son was named Frederick who lived with his mother in Boston.
To her surprise, this man showed genuine interest in what she had to say and she found herself giving him her phone number in the hopes that this man would be the one she'd been waiting for her entire life-or at least that the relationship would last longer than a few months.
It had only been a week since that fateful meeting, but after three blissful dates, Daphne had grown quite fond of Frederick, despite the snide comments of her so-called friend. Roz repeatedly told her that Frederick wasn't her type, to which Daphne calmly explained was precisely the reason that she liked him so much. He was sweet, affectionate, attentive and kind. And she could easily find herself falling in love with him.
Now they sat face to face in the most romantic restaurant she could have ever imagined sharing an equally romantic meal of pasta, wine and bread sticks. As she looked into Frederick's eyes, she could feel her heart beating faster.
"This is a lovely evening, Frederick." She said, smiling as she squeezed his strong masculine hand. "I can't remember when I've had a better time. The only thing that comes even close is when me brother Stephen took me to see me favorite band at this little club in Manchester." She laughed at the memory. "Oh, we had a wonderful time! Me mum flatly refused to let me go and I cried for days. All me friends were going and I couldn't understand why I wasn't allowed to go. I wasn't a bloody child! One day Stephen came home from college and found me crying in me bedroom. I was so embarrassed because had it been me brother Simon, he would have assumed that I was in some sort of trouble if you know what I mean. I love Simon, but bloody hell, he can be a pain! Imagine, him actually thinking that I'd be stupid enough to-."
"Daphne!"
She looked up in surprise. "What?"
He smiled warmly and rubbed her hand. "Just... finish your story. You were talking about Stephen?"
"Oh right... I guess I got a bit sidetracked there, didn't I? Well, Stephen came home and found me crying in me room. To my surprise, he walked in and sat down beside me, holding me while I cried. He didn't ask me what was wrong, either. Somehow he can sense when something's bothering me and doesn't make me talk about the problem until I'm ready. Wish I could say the same thing about Simon. He rarely comforts me but when he does, he automatically assumes that it has something to do with a man! Can you believe that? I mean-."
"Daphne?"
"Yes?"
"You're doing it again. You were telling me about Stephen?"
She laughed nervously. "Oh right... I'm sorry. So anyway, Stephen came in and found me crying and he held me while I soaked his shirt with me tears. Finally when I stopped crying, which seemed like hours later, I managed to tell him that I wanted so much to see me favorite band, but me mum wouldn't let me. I still can't understand what she had against Troubled Spirits! I mean, just because they had tattoos and earrings doesn't make them bad people! They're not the best band in the world, but I was quite fond of them back in the day and-."
"Um... Daphne?"
"What?"
"About Stephen?"
She sighed deeply. "Right... So in the kindest gesture I could have imagined, he offered to take me to the concert. We had the best time ever, and even though it was a school night, he managed to sneak me back into the house without anyone ever noticing. The next day I could hardly contain me excitement, with-."
"Daphne-."
She sighed deeply, suddenly annoyed by Frederick's constant interruptions. But she didn't dare speak her mind. Not with this man. She wanted so much for this relationship to work. Instead she squeezed his hand, bringing it to her lips for a kiss.
"Well, I suppose that's enough about me brother Stephen for a while. What were you going to say?"
She saw him swallow hard, and rub the back of his neck, a sure sign of nervousness.
"Daphne, there's something I need to say."
"All right. I'm listening." She said, smiling to herself. "I'm sorry, that's a little joke. You see, me boss always says-."
"Yes, I know... You've mentioned it several times." Frederick replied with a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Daphne, I really need to say something."
"Okay, what is it?"
He sighed deeply, and ran a hand through his dark hair.
"Um... Not here. Let me take you home, all right?"
She looked at her watch and then back at Frederick. "Oh... all right. Is something wrong?"
"Just... come on."
He slowed his car to a stop in front of the Elliot Bay Towers and shut of the engine. Then he turned to her, wearing the same shy look he'd worn when she first met him. Her heart fluttered in her chest and she found herself wondering if her dreams were about to come true.
"What's wrong, Frederick?"
"Daphne... You're a wonderful person. You're smart, funny, beautiful and-."
She stopped him with a series of tender kisses and then brushed a lock of hair from his face. "You're beautiful too. I know that sounds completely ridiculous, calling a man beautiful, but me brother Stephen always says-."
"Yeah about that-."
"About what?"
"Your brother... You seem to talk an awful lot about your family. Don't you find that... I don't know..."
She blinked in surprise. "Well, I didn't realize I was talking about them so much but how could I not? They're quite unique if I do say so meself."
"I gathered that but your stories... Well, they're... a bit much."
Hurt she drew back and stared at him. "Oh... Well.. I'm sorry. I'll try not to talk about them so much."
"It's not that. It's... a lot of things."
"I-I don't understand."
Another deep, irritated sigh.
"Daphne, this isn't working out. I want us to stop seeing each other. For good."