Chapter Thirteen
Darcy checked her reflection in the window of the restaurant. Her hair was hairing and she’d successfully achieved a smooth winged eyeliner in the tiny mirror of the downstairs toilet in the gallery. Remembering her much-anticipated date with Aksel, she had had the foresight to pull on her new winter white jeans this morning, brown jodhpur boots and a chunky moss knit jumper beneath her coat.
‘Cute but cosy,’ she had said in the bathroom mirror as Freja brushed her teeth; she only came home each morning for fresh clothes.
‘Cute but cosy doesn’t exactly scream “fuck me in the club toilets”,’ Freja had said, spraying toothpaste everywhere.
‘We’re going to play board games. I’ll be lucky if he kisses me with tongue.’ Darcy threw her hands up. ‘With my luck, I’ll be lucky if he kisses me at all!’
She skipped down the basement steps of the yellow building and pushed on the door of the cafe. Freja had first taken her there soon after they’d met, saying that if a good mood could be a place, this would be it. It had the convivial pub vibe Darcy missed from back home, crammed with sofas, chairs and tables of assorted sizes, and the walls lined with shelves groaning under the weight of almost two thousand board games. It was always heaving and Darcy had prudently reserved a table. The ambient noise level was already high as she walked in and she stood taking in the scene, trying to locate her date.
It appeared she’d arrived first and she checked them in, a slight sinking feeling in her stomach. She’d pushed for the date, booked it, he’d cancelled once and now he was late? It wasn’t boding well.
‘Here you go,’ the guy said, leading her to their table. It was set between some bigger tables with groups on. They were already rowdy, pushing their chairs back and leaping with shouts as the die were rolled.
At least they’ll mask any awkward silences, she thought, sinking into the chair and opening up the app to order a drink while she waited.
‘Darcy?’
She looked up in surprise. He must have been almost right behind her. ‘Aksel,’ she smiled, cross-referencing the man before her with his photos. Freja always told her that men on dating apps added two inches’ height to their bios and a zero to their incomes. She’d once turned up for dinner with a guy sporting beach blond surfer-boy hair in his photos, only to be met with a man fifteen years older and completely bald. She had walked out on the spot – not because she objected to the baldness, but to the lying about it.
But Aksel, if anything, was better than his pictures had suggested. He was olive-skinned, with dark, tousled hair, a slight underbite, ultra-white teeth and those soulful eyes that had first drawn her in. And he’s kind to animals, she thought, as he leaned in and kissed her cheek lightly.
‘I only just got here,’ she said as he took off his coat – flashing a strip of toned abs – and sat down opposite her. He was tall, too, she realized as he banged his knees on the table.
‘I know, I saw you ahead of me on the street. When you turned in here, I was hoping you would be...you.’ He gave an awkward smile. ‘Sorry – I really wanted to get here first, but I had a walk-in at the last minute.’
‘Do you get many of those?’
‘All the time. But never more frustrating than when you’re trying to get out the door.’
‘I can imagine. Was it anything worrisome?’
‘For the owner, yes. Her dog had swallowed her engagement ring she’d left on the side of the sink.’
‘Oh no!’
‘A two-carat diamond, apparently.’
She winced. ‘And so you treated it by...?’
‘Putting the dog on a high-fibre diet for the next three days.’
Darcy grinned. ‘Oh. Nice.’
‘It happens all the time,’ he smiled, shaking his head. He looked around the room. ‘It’s great here. I can’t believe I’ve never been.’
‘Yeah, good for rainy Sunday afternoons too.’
‘Noted,’ he nodded. He looked over at the bar. ‘Let me get us some drinks.’
‘Oh, it’s okay, I’ll order on the app. It means we don’t have to queue and they bring the food and drink over to us here. The nachos and chilli fries are to die for.’
‘Yeah? I’m starving. I ended up working through lunch. An epileptic cockatoo.’
She gave a small guffaw. He was amusing without realizing it. ‘Well, let’s order food at the same time then.’
‘You’re sure? I don’t want to rush us through this.’ He smiled at her. ‘Now I’m here I feel like I wasted too much time already.’
Darcy smiled at the unexpected compliment. ‘Well, I’m really glad we could make it happen.’
‘Yeah, I’m not that good with the whole online thing. It’s my first time on a dating app.’
‘Oh? How did you end up on Raya?’
‘My best mate works at Goldman Sachs. He sorted it out for me, although I don’t think I’m really what most of the girls on there are looking for. I think they want hedge fund managers, not a guy who spends his days with his fingers in a cat’s rectum.’
Darcy spluttered. ‘...But you’re a professional. Veterinary school’s how many years?’
‘Six years.’
‘There you go, then. You’re more qualified than any banker. Everyone knows they’re just winging it.’
He grinned. ‘How about you? Who put you on Raya?’
‘My flatmate’s boyfriend. They did it without telling me.’
‘Yikes! And did they swipe on me for you too?’
‘No,’ she said, throwing hm a coy look. ‘I did that all by myself.’
‘Well, that’s a relief,’ he smiled. ‘I wouldn’t want to think you were here under duress.’
‘ I suggested the date, remember?’
‘I do.’ They held eye contact for a moment and Darcy felt a small pulse of relief that they were actually flirting. She hadn’t held out much hope, especially after the run-ins with Max had left her feeling flattened.
‘So tell me your dating history,’ she said. ‘Let’s get it out of the way. What’s brought you to be sitting here with me tonight, about to embark on a fierce game of Scrabble?’
He shrugged. ‘It’s a pretty short story. I was in a five-year relationship, almost all the way through vet school.’
‘Was she a vet too?’
‘No. She’s a data analyst now.’
‘Five years is a long time. What happened?’
He hesitated for a moment. ‘If I’m being really honest, I think I always had an instinct we weren’t going to go the distance. I loved her, but I knew I didn’t want to marry her.’
‘Ouch.’
‘Yeah. It was rough. I felt like a scumbag, of course, even though I was only trying to be honest. I really did – and do – believe it was the best thing for us both, but it put me off getting too involved again.’
‘I’m not surprised. That’s a long time to be with someone. Are you still in touch with her?’
‘A little...Not really. She’s with someone else now. They’re engaged.’
‘Are you cool with that?’
‘I was a bit sad when I heard, but I didn’t want to be him, if that makes sense. It confirmed for me that I’d done the right thing.’
‘Yeah – far better to call it quits before you get to marriage and kids. I’ve already got a friend back home getting divorced.’
‘Really?’
‘Yeah. The marriage lasted ten months. And the sad thing is, we all knew it was coming. No one thought they should get married. She just wanted a wedding, I reckon.’
‘There’s a lot of that,’ he said, rolling his eyes. ‘Do you want to get married?’
She pressed a hand to her heart. ‘Gosh, I mean we’ve only just met but sure, why not?’
He laughed, sitting back as the waiter came over with their drinks. ‘Food will be twenty minutes,’ the man said.
‘Great, thanks...Well, cheers,’ she said and they clinked beers. She drank, feeling relaxed already, although Aksel seemed to betray some nerves as he gulped his down in deep swallows.
‘Tell me your story, then,’ he said, putting down a half-drunk pint a moment later.
‘Oh, it’s a little more meandering than yours,’ she sighed. ‘I was in a three-year relationship at uni. Then I was single for a bit, doing my master’s; then I got into another relationship for eighteen months. After that I rebounded into what was supposed to be a fling but turned into a year-long thing. I moved over here in the summer and was determined I’d be single but I met a guy I worked with in, like, my second week and we were together for two months. I keep trying to have my Hot Mess moments but it never quite happens that way. Somehow I always end up in a relationship.’
‘Yikes.’ He made a face. ‘Will I get a warning or just wake up one day married to you with three kids?’
‘I’ll try to warn you,’ she grinned.
‘Great. Thanks.’ He looked at her again and she felt an ease with him she hadn’t felt with Erik or Max. Erik had made her jumpy, pushing too hard for an ending she wasn’t ready to give; and Max...she couldn’t relax with him. He made her feel like her soul was on fire. ‘So why did these relationships end?’
She grimaced. ‘I wish you hadn’t asked that. At least, not before I’ve had a few drinks.’
‘Why not?’
‘Because it doesn’t reflect well on me.’
‘No?’ Aksel frowned, waiting.
She sighed and held up a hand, beginning to count off her fingers. ‘Uni guy – cheated on me. Master’s guy – turned out to be married . Yeah, that was great! Year-long guy – decided he was bi, with a strong preference for men. Copenhagen guy – cheated on me.’
‘Oh.’
‘Yep, I know how to pick ’em.’
‘Well, it does sound like your radar might be off a little,’ he said falteringly. ‘Although you’re sitting here with me now, so you obviously have some taste.’
She grinned.
‘You do know, them cheating only reflects on them, not you?’
‘Well, thanks for saying that. But when it keeps happening, you can’t help but feel that you’re the one doing something wrong.’
‘It’s not you, Darcy.’
They held eye contact again. It was so easy to look at him. He was unguarded, direct, safe.
‘And so you’ve been in Copenhagen since the summer?’
‘Yes, five months now, I can’t believe it.’
‘Do you like it here?
‘I love it. I just wish time would slow down a little. I feel like I’m going to be back in London before I’m ready.’
‘Can you extend your stay?’
‘Possibly. I’ve been diverted onto a special project, which means I can’t actually get on with my thesis at the moment, so it will probably mean an extension to my deadline.’
‘Oh, that’s right. You mentioned it – the hidden painting that’s been in the news?’
‘Yeah, it’s down to me to discover the identity of the woman in the portrait. There’s this big Johan Trier retrospective coming up at the National Gallery in the new year, so they’re throwing everything at it to have the big reveal then.’ She pulled a face. ‘Nothing like a deadline to deliver to the Danish general public to sharpen the mind.’
He winced. ‘How’s it going?’
‘Oh, it’s not.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘But it’s early days still; I’m trying not to be impatient. Such is the life of an art historian. The dead can be reluctant to reveal their secrets.’
‘It sounds so different to my job. I deal with what’s on the table. Right there, in the moment.’
‘Is it what you hoped it’d be, being a vet?’
‘It definitely involves more client management than I’d reckoned on. It’s not the animals that are tricky, it’s their owners.’
‘Are you ever scared? You must have dangerous animals coming in?’
‘Frequently. And even the most docile pet can become unpredictable and aggressive if they’re in pain or scared. I probably get bitten a few times a week.’
‘Wow.’
He shrugged. ‘There’s tricks of the trade that can help; the senior partners are especially helpful there, that’s where the experience shows. But I really don’t like snakes, so my heart sinks whenever I see that on the log sheet.’
‘Do you build up a rapport with animals if they come in regularly?’
‘For sure. I’ve got a soft spot for a particular dog that was brought into us when she was a juvenile. She’d been abandoned by her owners, who’d tied her up to a stake in a remote field. She was just left to die there which, to this day, I still find unbelievable. Luckily some walkers saw her and brought her in. I don’t really know how she survived, to be honest. She was completely dehydrated and malnourished when we first got her. Just a bag of bones. She wouldn’t look at us, wouldn’t eat. I would go into her crate during my lunch hour and whenever I had any free time to read out loud to her...It soothes them.’
‘That’s cute. What would you read to her?’
‘Whatever was lying around: old copies of National Geographic , the sports pages, medical studies.’ He shrugged. ‘It didn’t matter. She just got used to my voice and began to understand I wasn’t going to hurt her. Eventually she came and sat against my legs and started to eat from my hand. She made a full recovery, but man, it hurt when we had to hand her over to the shelter. No disrespect to my ex, but I think it was harder having to let go of that dog.’
‘She must have been so bewildered when she was taken away.’
He shook his head, looking pained. ‘I lasted four days before I went to the shelter to adopt her.’ He pulled a face. ‘Only to be told she’d been chosen by a family the day before.’
‘No!’
‘My fault for hesitating. I’m a chronic procrastinator.’ He took another sip of his beer. ‘But it was for the best and I do get to see her occasionally. The family registered with us, so whenever she comes in for her annual jabs, I’m the one to do her. All the nurses know to book her in on my shifts.’
‘That’s so sweet.’
‘It’s a peril of the job, falling in love with the patients.’
She grinned. ‘Well, I definitely don’t have that to worry about!’
‘No? No hot co-workers, then?’
The image of Max, standing in his doorway last night, flashed through her mind. He didn’t count as her co-worker. He didn’t count as anything.
She shook her head. ‘I’m currently spending all my days with a seventy-three-year-old widower. Don’t get me wrong, he’s fantastic company and I’m really enjoying it, but no – my heart is quite safe.’
‘Good to know,’ he smiled, putting his pint down and leaning forward. ‘So...what shall we play?’
‘I’ll call you,’ Aksel said in the half-second before the cab door shut and she turned back to wave him off, standing staring after the car until it turned out of sight.
Had that gone as well as she’d thought it had? She had a strange sense of abeyance. They had talked and laughed easily all night, the conversation never faltering. In fact, it hadn’t really felt like a first date. He was intelligent and seemingly honest. He had flirted just enough and there were no glaring red flags that she could see; his romantic past was far less chequered than hers. He had been respectful – but had he been too respectful? He hadn’t made any attempt to touch, much less kiss, her. Unlike Max Lorensen, who had acquired a proprietary stance within seconds of meeting her...No, he was a gentleman. Decent. He’d paid for their dinner without any hesitation, but unlike most men who did that – Erik – he hadn’t followed it up with an equally unspoken expectation that they would go home together either. He’d simply kissed her on the cheek and told her he’d had ‘a great time’ as the Uber pulled up outside her apartment.
She fished her keys out of her bag and walked into the building, her mind in full evaluation mode. On paper it had been a great date. Not a thing had gone wrong. She had gone in expecting precious little and come away pleasantly surprised. She wasn’t going to pretend it had set her world alight; there weren’t scorch marks on the ground between them, but it felt like they were on the same page. Their values aligned. It was a solid start.
She slid her key into the apartment door and stepped in. Freja was brushing her teeth in the bathroom, a charcoal face mask on and her hair braided and stowed under a sleep cap in an effort to control the frizz. Her head popped around the doorway, eyes wide.
‘You’re back early,’ she said after a moment, seeing that Darcy was alone.
‘You’re here !’ Darcy fell against the doorframe in mock shock.
‘Day two of my firebreak, remember?’ Freja gave a thumbs-up. ‘I told you, I’m going strong!’
‘Good work.’ Darcy shrugged off her coat and boots.
‘So how was it – dare I ask?’ Freja held her thumb up again, but this time side-on like a Roman emperor.
Darcy did a thumbs-up. ‘Great.’
‘Yay!...So where is he then?’
‘In an Uber back to his place. He’s a gentleman.’
Freja scowled. ‘Did you ask him back here?’
‘No, and he didn’t suggest it either. Which suits me just fine.’ She remembered how Max had asked her for the nightcap on the museum steps. So confident, self-assured. So practised...‘There’s no rush. We talked really easily – like we’d known each other for years. He’s a good listener, too. It was great.’
‘Was there any awkwardness at all?’
‘No. None.’
‘Hm.’
Darcy frowned. ‘Why do you say it like that?’
‘A bit of awkwardness is good. It indicates tension, you know? Sexual chemistry.’
Darcy hesitated. ‘We had tension.’ She sounded defensive.
‘You did?’
‘Yes, he’s really attractive. And so clever.’
‘Well, he is a vet.’
‘Exactly.’ Darcy leaned against the doorframe as Freja ducked back into the bathroom and spat in the sink. ‘We’re going to go for drinks again tomorrow night.’
‘Ooh, that’s keen. Setting up the next date while you’re still on the first one.’
‘I told you, it went well.’
Darcy’s phone buzzed – already? – and she gave a smile as she checked it. A flirty little ‘good night’ text was always welcome...
But she frowned as she saw the Revolut banner come up and an invoice for 392 kr.
What?
It was for half of dinner! She blinked in disbelief. She had assumed by the way he’d grabbed the bill and didn’t even look her way as he handed his card over that he had wanted to cover it himself. She had thanked him for paying! He’d made no mention—
‘So, he’s a gentleman. Clever and attractive. What else?’ Freja asked, patting her mouth dry with the towel.
Darcy looked back at Freja and groaned, slumping against the wall. ‘He’s a bloody feminist.’