Entrapped

43 Bad news

"Yes, come, Isaac, I simply must show you the garden!"

Chloe and Hayley take Isaac to Clea's lovely garden in the centre of the dwelling. They walk around the round, heated swimming pool and Isaac marvels at the wide variety of indigenous and foreign plants.

Suddenly Isaac stops, his eyes widen and he studies a lovely, blue plant from nearby but he keeps his hands away.

"Chloe, I wonder if I see correctly! Can it be? This thing doesn't belong here. It is foreign and I've never seen it before in South Africa. I wonder whether your mother enlightened you about it."

Chloe smiles. "You see correctly, Isaac. My mother had to import the seed and take special care of it. She had not been sure whether she would be able to grow the plant here, but look now how lovely! Blue was always her favourite colour and is this not heavenly! When sunlight catches it in a certain manner in the morning it sometimes looks purple but now it is an exquisite, bright blue."

Hayley inhales deeply: "It is breathtakingly beautiful!"

Isaac frowns and questions Chloe. "The Queen of Poisons! I hope your mother warned you not to touch it?"

"No, they call it Monkshood, as far as I know, and yes, she warned us and always handled it with gloves."

Still frowning Isaac pensively answers as if in a dream world: "Yes, then it is the plant I suspected. It goes by different names and Monkshood and Queen of Poisons are only two of them."

They stroll further and admire the rest of the plants while Chloe points out her favourites to Isaac, but suddenly he seems to be deep in thought in a world of his own and she stops abruptly.

"Hey, you are suddenly quiet and aloof? What is wrong? It seems you don't listen to what I say? Is the garden becoming boring?"

It is as if her words shake him out of his deep contemplation and he smiles guiltily: "No, everything is fine, Chloe, I only wondered about something."

"What?"

"Nothing to shout about; like the mouse's snout!"

Playfully she bumps him and then she must grab him before he loses his balance and ends up in the swimming pool. "Teaser! I nearly shoved you into the water."

Hayley is splitting her sides: "You two are going to make a hilarious pair!"

Chloe pulls a face towards her and rolls her eyes: "He just knows how to push my wild button!"

Isaac suddenly stops and pulls her towards him: "Look at me!"

She looks at him with a question on her face and he unexpectedly embraces her and before she knows what is going on, they melt together in a warm, passionate kiss. He overwhelms her and she becomes putty in his arms; totally lost, but then she realizes what they are doing right in front of Hayley and wrestles violently to get away, but he doesn't let her go but merely follows her retreat.

In the end, she struggles free: "Are you mad?"

Chloe blushes blood red just like earlier in front of Lyle. "Sis, Isaac! And this right in front of Hayley! Don't you have any shame?"

Shyly she peeps at Hayley. "See, he has done this purposely in front of you to mock me."

Hayley laughs heartily and winks at him: "I see, yes. He is só naughty!"

Isaac's blue eyes sparkle: "She is just too delicious to leave alone especially when she turns hard-ass and just look how cute she blushes."

Naughtily he smiles at Chloe. "You have taken your time to get to your senses, not so, darling!"