Crashing the date (Darryl and Tallis)

Darryl was currently more nervous than he could ever remember being in his life. Waiting her, by the surf shop, Darryl could help but anxiously await Tallis' arrival with bated breath. She was going to show up to meet her date soon and when she did he would swoop in and tell her that she was the woman he had been pining for and he was there to take her out on the date that she had told him was her dream/ideal date.

He was dressed in a light, white, linen shirt that was unbuttoned a few times at the top, it being a warm evening and all. He was also wearing some faded jeans that he had bought just for the occasion. There was a difference between jeans that were faded for fashion and those that were just old after all.

In a little wicker picnic basket at his feet he had a wide selection of picnic foods that he hoped that she would enjoy. Truth be told he might have gone a little bit over-board in hindsight. There was cola, some beers and some assorted alcohols. Not to mention the pork pies, sausage rolls, patte, fresh bread, a selection of cheeses and crackers. That was just some of the more notable additions too.

As well as that he had a portable DVD player that had a charge of at least 8 hours. If that wasn't enough to meet the dawn then there was also a spare battery pack. For their comfort there was a large picnic blanket and pillows for them. Shuffling a little bit in his black leather jacket, he waited and he waited.

He wanted her to be here already... so that he could tell her all about these emerging feelings he had for her and to share with her a beautiful night.

Tallis had been excited for her date, but there was something weighing on her mind, when she had been in bed after that talk with Brax and Heath she had thought for a moment that instead of the girl being someone different from her it was her! The thought still made her a little bit embarrassed she was sure that it wasn't her, but the thought couldn't help but cross her mind a few times, he had even asked her for what her ideal date was, not for one anyone would like.

Despite that she had still looked forwards to her date today because she was going to have a nice time, be treated to some food and have a nice conversation with one of her close friends, Tallis of course had dressed for the occasion.

Running her hands through her hair she walked down the beach looking out for the surf shop as she took in the soft warm evening air. She was wearing a long green dress made out of a taffeta material that billowed softly in the wind, her sandals were brown with little green stones on the straps. Biking didn't often lend itself well to modesty when dresses were concerned so she had worn green shorts underneath.

As she approached the surf shop she blinked as she saw Brax there, wow, he looked hot, she thought to herself. What on earth was he doing here at this time? The surf shop was closed up for the day and he had his own board so why did he need to be here? That unbidden thought that it was because of HER he was here popped into her head again. Walking slowly up to him Tallis smiled shyly.

"Hey Darryl, what are you doing here?" she asked with a raised eyebrow "I didn't think you needed to rent a board, you have your own don't you?"

Darryl felt a little lump appear in his throat when he caught sight of Tallis, dressed in a beautiful green dress that billowed slightly in the light sea breeze.

If ever there was an angel made into a human then it was Tallis Absolon.

When she noticed him he had to quickly sort his mind out. After all, this was exactly what he wanted to happen wasn't it? Yes it was but he had expected to be the one to initiate... he was on the back foot here! Calming himself with a few deep breaths, he smiled a little bit in return. She was smiling so shyly... could she have figured out why he was here?

He wouldn't put it past her to be honest; she was smart and he hadn't exactly been subtle.

He still blushed a little bit when she asked why he was here even though the surf shop was undoubtedly closed for the day. Gathering his thoughts, he chuckled a little bit,

"Well I'm no' her' for'a boar'." he admitted before grinning a little bit sheepishly, "You see... I'm her' to stea' you away."

He grinned a little bit as he held up the picnic basket with one hand and took hers in his free hand, smiling at her as he gently tugged at her hand to urge her to follow him onto the beach. Deciding that he had better explain, he looked into her eyes,

"The shela who caugh' my ey'... an' me hear'? The on' I tol' you abou'?" he blushed a little bit, "It's you Tallis. So I'm her' to mak' your drea' dat' com' tru'."

Tallis smiled happily when she heard the reason why Darryl was here today, it was exactly as she had thought because she WAS the woman that he had been talking about when they were in the Bar together. To be honest she had figured that out but, she didn't want to believe it and ask him in case she was wrong and then where would she be?

Embarrassed and probably having overstepped her mark and any chance of them being together. Which was something that she didn't want to do.

Unable to stop herself from smiling widely she took Brax's hand in her own and walked down the beach with him, he was taking her on her dream date and he was dressed like this for her, negating his normal scruffy and casual wear for something dressier, he really had tried. There was a softie underneath the big bad Brax exterior after all then.

"I'm so glad that you took my advice." she admitted with a small blush "I wanted to be with you again, but, I just didn't see you as the type to like clingy women and, even if it was only one night, it was amazing so, I didn't want to ruin it."

Gently she squeezed his hand as he looked into her eyes, her blush grew again and she looked down the beach to where the blanket was set up, it was so amazing. It was like he had seen the exact picture in her mind of what she had wanted!

"Oh thank you so much Darryl!" she cried out, wrapping her arms around his waist in a soft embrace "You have no idea how much this means to me, to be on my dream date, and have someone special to share it with." Tallis smiled bashfully, making a circle with her toe in the sand.

Now that all of the potentially catastrophic things were mostly negated by her acceptance of his intentions he grinned a little bit and a lot of his nervousness disappeared. Damn! He didn't like being that... moony. But now that his nerves were mainly gone he was able to relax and easily slide back into his usual skin; being the casual tough guy with a heart of gold.

Or at least that was how people around the town had described him at one point or another.

Grinning a little bit, he looked down at his clothes. That was one way he had taken her advice, despite not really liking the effects. After all, Darryl didn't much like to dress up, especially for the beach, but she seemed like the type to enjoy being with strong, smartly dressed, men so he had dressed up a tad,

"You'd be righ' on tha' fron' to be fair. In the pas' I've no' lik'd it when they moon'd ov'r me." he admitted before smirking a little bit, "Bu' I woul'n't min' you pinin' for me... I've figur'd ou' tha' I don' sui' pinin' at all, ev'n ov'r somon' as beautif'l as yousel'."

Placing the picnic basket down on the blanket, he grinned a little bit and hugged her back, enjoying having her body pressed against his own. There was another basket here, also full of drinks and food. He had come prepared since dawn was said to be 10 hours away. He grinned a little bit and gestured for her to sit down,

"Well I wan'd te bes' possibl' settin' to ge' to kno' you a lo' bett'r you kno'? Wha' bett'r than your drea' dat'?" he smirked a little bit before grinning, "Now... wha' kin'a film? Maid in Manhatt'n... som' frien's seas'n... oh an' I go' The Proposal too."

Tallis sat down on the blanket and she laughed happily, she would never have thought that it would be the wrong way around when it came to who was lusting after who. Closing her eyes she sighed softly and enjoyed the soft breeze ruffling her hair, it was just too surreal to believe that what she had daydreamed about through studying today has actually happened.

Raising her eyebrow in a cheeky expression she gasped, placing her hand on her chest; "You wouldn't mind me pining over you?" she asked with a gasp "Well wouldn't you be lucky?" Tallis winked.

Now she was sat down on the rug she looked out over the sea, it was nice to be here from this distance, getting up close was a different thing though. It seemed that Brax had brought loads and loads of food, she didn't think she was going to be able to even make a dent in it throughout the night, but, she was sure that he would help.

"Well I don't know if it's going to be better yet, you have to be able to impress me with your wit, your intelligence and your humour." she teased with a wiggle of her eyebrows "But seriously, it is already better than my dream because its real, and Im here with you."

Laughing softly she lay down on her tummy and looked through the films;

"Are you serious? You don't have to watch such corny films you know, this is a public place, someone could see you being so romantic, it would ruin your reputation." Tallis teased moving to lay her head in his lap.

He laughed a little bit when she teased him. It seemed that she had a much faster sense of humour when she wasn't being quite so nervous. It made an awful lot of sense since he was pretty sure that he was likely very bad company when he was nervous too. Probably why she hadn't wanted to stick around him too much lately. Or at least a subconscious addition to the reasons why,

"I'd be very luc'y to hav' you pinin' ov'r me." he agreed with a grin and a wink, "I hav' to admi' tha' I'm likin' this bant'r... bett'r when neith'r of us is nervous huh?"

With her distracted by the sea, he thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to set out some of the drinks and food. He made sure that the white wine and the two glasses were right in the middle within easy reach of them both. Smirking a little bit, he gave her a mock leer,

"I though' I impress'd you wit' somethin' els'?" he joked a little bit before chuckling a little bit lightly and grinning happily with her, "Well I'm gla'. I'm wantin' this to be somethin' we can bot' loo' bac' on an' enj'y you kno'?"

She was right, of course. If anyone caught wind of this then he would likely never get his reputation back up to what it was right now. But... for some reason it didn't really seem that important to him right now. Instead he just chuckled a little bit,

"Well choos' anyw'y." he urged her with a small roll of his eyes and a good natured grin, "I thin' my rep' can tak' a hi' or two."

Tallis nodded her head with a happy smile on her lips, she felt much more relaxed with Darryl now, there was nothing that she could do that he would find odd, that would make him not want to see her again because he had already said that he was planning on seeing her again. It filled her with a sort of confidence that she hadn't had last time.

Of course, sleeping with someone tended to let you know their vulnerable side. Both of them knew the most intimate parts of each other which made them so much closer.

"Well I found that impressive too but, then again, I'm pretty sure that I impressed you too so, falling short of having sex in public I think we should find other avenues don't you?" Tallis asked, becoming her rather rare cheeky and confident self, she loved to joke, she loved playing with words to make them funny, Darryl seemed like a pretty nice person for her to open up to.

"I'm guessing you have never done something quite this elaborate for a girl before, it's...sweet of you to go through all this effort for me you know Brax but, in future, maybe a beer on the beach while you surf would be a better date for you?" Tallis asked, any date he wanted to go on with her would be great, because she wanted to be with him whatever the variables.

Stroking her imaginary beard she looked up at Darryl from his lap; "Alright then, I think I'll choose The Proposal, I've not seen that one after all, and the guys kind of cute." she giggled, teasing him obviously.

He had to admit that he liked doing it this way round. They had had sex first and now they were getting to know each other better. For some reason he found that he liked doing it this way better. Like it felt like they were able to open up to each other more because they had already had something so intimate with each other. At least that was the way he saw it. He had no doubt that a lot of people would see it as going completely the wrong way round but then again they were unique people,

"You sur' did impr'ss me don' ev'r thin' oth'rwis'." he assured her with a wink before chuckled a little bit at the banter that was going back and forth between them, "I don' kno', we'd be deprivin' the publ'c somethin' amazin' in seein' us two goin' at it."

It was a joke of course. Darryl was too possessive to even chance anyone else seeing him making love with his partner,

"You kno' you're righ', I thin' the nex' bigg'st thin' was takin' a girl to prom." he told her with a little smirk before he laughed a little bit, "You see' to hav' me dow' to a T! Bu' for the recor' I'm quit' enj'yin' mysel' so far so mayb' we can hav' mor' lik' this."

He began to idly play with her hair since her head was in his lap and he rolled his eyes a little bit at her attempt to tease him, smirking as he loaded the disk into the portable DVD player,

"Yea' yea', you ge' your eye candy whil' I ge' sand'a bulloc's."

Tallis was enjoying looking up at Brax while she was laying in his lap, he was a sweet guy and he was handsome, she was enjoying herself on this date and it had only just started, she had completely forgotten about the other guy and in a fit of guilt hoped that he wasn't going to be that upset with her for not turning up, perhaps she should text him and let him know?

She was beginning to worry her lip between her teeth but what Brax said made her laugh out so loud she completely forgot about everything again;

"Ewwwwwww Darryl that's disgusting!" she laughed, poking him on the chest lightly as she continued to giggle about what he said "I don't think anyone wants to see that, let alone tough surfer guys who are probably more likely than not going to be your brothers! Who else would be surfing at this time?"

Hearing that he was enjoying it, she didn't think pushing it would be a good idea, because, she was enjoying it too. Brax might actually take back what he said if she continued to go on and on about it. So she merely smiled contentedly up at him from his lap; "I might just take you up on that offer then Darryl, I'd like to do something for you next time though."

As she looked up at Brax again, Tallis ran her fingers up and down his arm as she admired his attractiveness, he was rugged and strong, the exact opposite of what she normally went for, but he made her heart flutter like nobody else;

"Well, I have my eye candy right here." she blushed softly, a little embarrassed with the corny line her words took.

Darryl could see that she was beginning to worry about something. After all, you only worried you lips like that if you had a really big issue on your hands. He thought about it for a second before realising that it was probably her feeling guilty for standing that guy up. Darryl immediately wanted to smirk at the victory over the guy he had never met but squashed that urge down. It was just childish after all and he was above such petty little things.

Thankful that it hadn't hurt the atmosphere of the date at all, he grinned a bit when she laughed out loud because of his little comments,

"Ah you hav' to admi' tha' we'd mak'a sigh'!" he laughed a little bit before sticking his tongue out in distaste at the idea of his brothers seeing him with Tallis being intimate, "Okay mayb' you wer' righ' in sayin' tha' it was a bit sic'n'in' to thin' of."

Seeing that she was so happy, so contented, with him and this type of date, he couldn't help but smile. It was nice being with her like this, he was enjoying a more relaxed but more adult kind of dating experience. After awhile, surfing and drinking became a bit stale in terms of dating,

"Well as lon' as you're ther' wit' me I'll consid'r it a goo' tim'."

When she said that he was her eye candy he could help but chuckle a little bit even as the corny line made him grin from ear to ear. It was nice to see that he was appreciated in that manner. He winked at her and replied,

"Righ' bac' at you." he told her with a laugh before pouring two glasses of wine, "Didn' kno' if you lik'd win' or no' bu'..."

Tallis sat up from Darryl's lap and looked at the sea, it was a beautiful night and the stars were shining in the sky, she could never tell if the sky was navy, black or purple, but whatever colour it was it was beautiful. Whatever was up there in that sky was very lucky indeed, even if she was warmer down here on the sand and in Brax's arms. To rethink this, Tallis was way more lucky than any old thing up there in the stars.

Grinning up at him she nodded her head; "Yeah now you and I are on the same page, I don't think that you would ever live it down if that was spotted by one of your brothers especially if it was spotted by Heath." Tallis teased, poking him lightly on the nose.

For a moment she enjoyed the silence between them, just listening to the waves crashing on the shore, it was a wonderful feeling to be so warm and contented with someone who she had feelings for, in such a wonderful place. As he poured her the wine Tallis beamed up at Darryl;

"Amazing, you remembered my favourite type, sweet white." she stated, taking a sip "I always have room for some sweet white."

Glad that the corny comment seemed to have been forgotten she lay back down on her tummy, kicking her feet up behind her as she watched the movie, having missed the first few minutes but not having really cared, she was too busy looking at Darryl to care.

"What have you been up to today then? Anything interesting happening in the land of Braxton?"

Darryl smiled a little bit softly to himself as Tallis focused more on the stars than anything else at the moment. He really did enjoy being with her, even when they were just sitting in a comfortable silence. He chuckled a little bit, knowing that he had never felt comfortable enough around other women for their to be a silence between them that didn't feel incredibly awkward. He smirked a little bit but shook his head a little bit when she mentioned if it was Heath,

"Go' tha' shi' jus' isn' funny." he laughed a little bit before wiggling his nose after she had poked it, "Alrigh' alrigh' we won' hav' any publ'c sex at all an' ge' to kno' eac' oth'r the norm'l way... wit' relaxin' togeth'r on the beac'."

The sea was calm tonight, something that didn't happen too often considering it was the time of day when the most waves came inland. He smiled a little bit, breathing in the sea air with a happy little sigh. Something about the sea just seemed to relax him so very much. It seemed to do so more than usual though. Perhaps it was Tallis' influence? He wasn't sure,

"Of cours' I did." he told her with a grin as he popped the cork back into the bottle before raising his wine glass in a toast to her, "To sea fron' dat's an' banterin' on the san's wit' someon' spec'l."

He could tell that she wasn't really interested in the film and that actually made him grin a bit. That meant that she was enjoying his company a lot more than the film; a good point considering it was a chick flick. He shook his head a little bit,

"No' muc'. Wen' surfin', gav' the restauran' ov'r to Kyl' for the day an' go' the picnic ready." he told her with a grin. There was no way he was going to tell her that it had taken him three hours to decide what to wear due to his nervousness; he'd never live it down.