Page 52 of Just for December

‘Something like that, yeah.’

Duke looks at Evie without meaning to. She holds his gaze, like it’s okay that he just clarified that, that she understands he and Daphne are friends. He feels the heat rise at the back of his neck.

‘I saw that,’ Magda says, smirking.

‘What?’ asks Evie, looking up.

Magda looks at Duke, waiting for him to explain, and Duke waits for a hole to open up in the ground so he can disappear. He doesn’t want to talk about what might be growing between him and Evie. Not just yet. He isn’t even sure himself.

‘Let’s just say,’ Magda tells Evie, ‘that my little theory yesterday has been proved wrong. These two genuinely are just best mates, I think. Our friend Duke here is smitten with someone else, I’d say.’

‘Magda!’ Evie cries, and Duke goes to defend himself but then, confronted with the horror behind Evie’s cry, finds that he can’t.

Daphne fills the gap for him. ‘Wait, you thought there was something going on between us?’ she asks Evie.

‘No,’ says Evie, hurriedly. ‘Not me. Magda.’

‘Sorry,’ says Magda. ‘It’s just … you’re both very attractive, and were together like, ten minutes ago, and also have very good chemistry on camera, et cetera.’

‘It’s called acting,’ Duke says, and it comes out a bit cross. But he is cross. He’s angry that Magda would posit such a thing to Evie: the person heactuallylikes. In fact, Evie is preciselywhyhe can be so friendly with Daphne. Daphne had it right all along: they’re better as friends and he was in love with the idea of her, more so than her. He certainly didn’t feel the way he does now, with Evie … It’s been one kiss. But dear God, it was a great kiss.

‘Yes,’ Magda says, agreeing. ‘I misspoke. Evie said so yesterday, anyway.’

Duke looks at Evie. Why does he suddenly feel like this is a bad sixth form party and everyone is talking about him?

‘Knock, knock!’ a voice comes then, and Duke assumes it’s the hot drinks arriving but it’s not his assistant. It’s the head of production, Marnie.

‘Hey,’ Duke says, standing up to shake her hand.

‘Hey,’ Marnie says, shaking Duke’s hand and waving at the three women. ‘Listen,’ she presses. ‘Can we have a little three-way meeting here? Sorry Evie, and …’ She trails off, unsure who Magda is.

‘A guest of mine. Magda,’ Duke supplies, and Marnie nods politely, obviously wanting to discuss something sensitive.

‘We’ll pop to the café on the corner,’ Evie announces. ‘Leave you all to it. Break a leg, won’t you?’ she adds, fumbling through all their coats and jackets to find what belongs to them. ‘If that’s … Is that what we say? Okay. Well. Whatever … it is. Bye.’

It’s the first time Duke has seen her flustered and unable to articulate herself properly.

‘Right,’ says Marnie, once they’ve both gone. Duke looks at her. She’s a calm woman, with a kind and patient demeanour, so it’s unnerving to see her sweating and tapping her foot with nervous energy. This must be bad.

‘Is Brad okay?’ Daphne asks, slowly, and Duke looks at her. Trust Daphne to be compassionate, even in the face of rude, dickish behaviour.

‘Physically?’ Marnie says. ‘Yes. Mentally? No, to be frank. He’s off the project. So is the assistant director.’

Duke is shocked. Off the project? Halfway through it? That is not a thing that can happen. This isserious.

‘I know,’ Marnie continues, and she motions to an empty chair. ‘May I?’

‘Yeah,’ Duke says. ‘Of course.’

They watch her get comfortable, take a big gulp of air, and then continue, calmer now: ‘Speaking confidentially, there have been … allegations.’

‘What kind of allegations?’ Daphne asks, and Duke can hear the alarm in her voice.

‘Sexual harassment,’ Marnie says. ‘Intimidation. Bullying.’

Daphne sets her face in a hard line. Duke has a very fleeting thought – is she the accuser? And then it disappears. If she is, it’s none of his business unless she tells him directly.

‘What happens now?’ Duke asks. ‘Are we done?’

---