‘Not long,’ I reply, sipping champagne, ‘just a few weeks.’
‘And who’ve you met? Emma and Jessica obviously.’
‘Yes. I especially like Emma, she’s really nice.’
‘Definitely, Jessica is a little more scary.’ He pulls a face. We both laugh. ‘And have you ever met the CEO, Darcy Drummond?’
‘Kind of, but I don’t really know him,’ I reply. ‘I believe he’s the MD of Drummond Associates?’
‘Yes, he’s a very wealthy man. Worth ten million or maybe even more, I should think. I’ve lost count over the years – I’ve known him a long time, since we were kids.’
I must look shocked as Daniel continues. ‘I can understand you’re surprised by this, after seeing his reaction to my presence in the restaurant the other evening. Do you know much about him?’
‘As much as I ever wish to!’ I cry with feeling. ‘From the time I’ve spent with him, I think he’s one of the most arrogant, unpleasant men I’ve ever met.’
‘I can’t say I disagree with you because he’s not exactly my favourite person. I’ve known him such a long time that you won’t find I’m able to give you an unbiased view, but he’s generally well thought of in business circles.’
‘I don’t know about other people,’ I reply hotly, ‘but that’s what I think of him and I’m sure others would agree, if they knew how rude he is. Everyone I know thinks he’s full of himself.’ (By everyone, I mean Chloe, Mel and Mark, who I guess haven’t really met him, but that’s irrelevant.)
‘I don’t feel he deserves people to admire him,’ Daniel continues. ‘Everyone’s blinded by his money and position, or intimidated by his influence.’
‘Personally I take him as I’ve known him; a bad-tempered arrogant piece of work, used to getting his own way. I hope his being involved in the agency won’t scare you away.’
‘No, definitely not. If he wants to avoid me, he has to stay out of the way. We’re not on good terms.’
‘Why’s that? What did he do?’ I ask, prepared to believe the worst. I mean, this is so the Wickham/Darcy feud.
‘We met through a philanthropic cause his father’s company supported. I come from a poor background, with parents who had nothing. My dad left when I was young and my mum struggled to cope with my sister and me on her own. The late Mr Drummond was good to me and I always respected him. Sadly, his son had other ideas.’
I’m gripped by Daniel’s story but as he stops at this point, I don’t like to ask any more questions, he seems genuinely upset about what happened. He begins to talk about work and the dating agency. He’s so positive in what he says, without being boastful like Rob, who constantly talks about himself. Daniel is able to discuss most subjects, making everything interesting with his own touch of charm.
‘I joined the dating agency because I want to get out more,’ he says. ‘I can’t bear sitting around doing nothing. The way Darcy treated me has made me lose faith in human nature. My life could have been so different. I never expected to end up working freelance.’
‘So, what happened?’
‘The late Mr Drummond planned for me to join his business at management level. He bequeathed it in his will. He’d been so kind as to give me this incredible opportunity. I thought it was definite. It was what kept me strong, working hard when everything else went wrong. But when it came to it, the position wasn’t given to me.’
Surely this couldn’t be possible. ‘How could that happen? If you were legally entitled to the position, a lawyer would have made Darcy honour Mr Drummond’s request?’
‘Not really.’ Daniel smiles wryly. ‘You’ve no idea how powerful these people are. I could have tried legal representation, I suppose, but to Darcy, hiring the top lawyers in the land would be a matter of course. I would have struggled to find the funds to even secure an appointment with a regular legal professional. When the position became available two years ago, just as I was at the age to take it on, it was given to another guy. The only thing I can think of to explain Darcy’s behaviour is that I’ve told him what I think of him a couple of times. I do have occasional anger management issues.’
‘Really?’ I ask with a smile. ‘I can’t believe that.’ And I can’t, Daniel seems so easy-going. I can far more easily believe it of Darcy Drummond.
‘Maybe sometimes I can get a bit grumpy to be fair! I can’t think of any other explanation. We’re so different, I think he must see me as a rival rather than a friend.’
‘That’s terrible.’ I’m incredulous that anyone can get away with such scandalous unfairness in this day and age. In fact, I’m not sure altogether. I mean, I really like Daniel, but can this be true? It’s so like Wickham in P and P, all so plausible. I remember when I first read the book, I thought everyone was a bit gullible, believing him so readily when they didn’t really know him. I don’t blame Lizzie for wanting to be on his side though, especially when Mr Darcy had been so vile. I would much rather believe Daniel than Darcy Drummond. But this is different in any case. Emma really likes him and can vouch for his personality. I must stop living in books; I’m literally losing the plot, this is real life.
Anyway, Daniel is such a nice friendly guy, nothing shady about him at all. ‘You should go to the papers,’ I suggest.
‘I suppose one day the world will find out about it, but not from me. I can’t bring myself to do it, I’d feel like I was destroying old Mr Drummond’s legacy. He was so kind to me, I owe him everything.’
That’s so typical of Daniel, he’s such a kind person. I begin to wonder if I’ve found the perfect guy at last. There’s a tiny question that bothers me, however. ‘But I still can’t understand what makes Darcy so determined to be unpleasant to you?’
‘I s’pose he hates me. I put it down to jealousy – because his father was so fond of me, he was prepared to give me a top position in his own company. Obviously Darcy resented this, he must have seen me as competition and couldn’t cope with it.’
‘I just hadn’t realised Darcy is that nasty. I obviously took a dislike to him as he’s so arrogant and looks down on everyone, but I never believed he would behave like this. You’d think his sense of honesty and pride would have made him keep the promise.’
‘His sense of pride is one of his core values – and I guess this has led him to do a lot of good things. He’s very involved in charity work and, rather ironically, apprenticeship schemes for those who need a leg-up.’
I ponder for a moment, trying to work it all out. Certainly Darcy had shown a great deal of arrogance in how he spoke about the dating agency and the sort of people it attracts. At the GQ Awards he’d appeared bored and full of himself. No, this account from Daniel doesn’t surprise me at all.
‘But what about Nick Palmer-Wright?’ I chip in. ‘Surely he wouldn’t want to associate himself with such a lying arrogant piece of work. He seems a genuinely nice guy, I can’t imagine he would support this kind of unfairness.’
‘I don’t expect he knows about it,’ Daniel replies sombrely. ‘Darcy can be very charming and even good fun when he wants to be.’