Page 52 of Miss Fortune

He nearly smiled. Unexpectedly, he blurted out, “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you. Not many people get to see me without my hair or makeup done.”

“A lot of people use makeup to hide things, but you seem to use the colors to, I don’t know, to express yourself?”

I grinned at the fact he understood a fundamental part of who I was. “Exactly. I consider makeup as art. My face is my canvas, and I choose my colors depending on my mood. Same with my clothes. It’s about what makes me happy.” I took another bite of the toast. “Sort of like this breakfast. Turns out cinnamon French toast makes me exceedingly happy.”

“I won’t make you happy, Daisy.”

His words were unexpected, yet I shouldn’t have been surprised. True happiness appeared to elude Caleb, so why would he believe he was capable of providing it?

“What are you trying to say? You think last night was a mistake?”

He shook his head. “No. Not at all. But I can’t help thinking I’ll end up letting you down. It seems to be what I do without ever meaning to.”

“You’ve been clear about not wanting a relationship, and I’ve been clear about wanting to find someone to spend my life with.”

“Which is why logic tells me this will end badly. Unless you’re okay with me not being the guy you’re hoping for a relationship with.”

I sighed, aware he couldn’t be the man for me. For one, our futures didn’t align, and for two, I wasn’t sure we were compatible. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

“Do you still want to spend our Saturdays together and have more nights like last night?”

“Absolutely. But we’d need to keep things casual. I don’t want there to be any misunderstanding about what this is.”

My nose crinkled. “Define casual. Would we date other people?”

“We should, yes.”

“And sleep with other people?”

“It’s what casual means.”

There was no way I could do casual, then. Although it pained me to say it, I had no choice. I knew my limitations and what I was willing to accept, even in a short-term relationship. “Then this won’t work for me. I’m sorry.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Caleb

“What?” My stomach dropped at her response. To be honest, I wasn’t keen on going out and sleeping with other people, but exclusivity equaled a relationship. And a relationship wasn’t something I could do. There were too many expectations, too many ways it would end badly.

Yet the thought of no longer seeing Daisy had me in knots.

When I’d left her this morning, I’d intended to come home and spend my Sunday the way I usually did. Alone. But instead, I’d started to feel uneasy with the need to define things between us. Especially before tomorrow morning in the office.

“I was hoping we could come to an understanding where—” I struggled with the words.

“Where you get to dictate what this is, and I simply go along with it?” she finished dryly, standing up from the table.

“That wasn’t what I meant.” But maybe it’s what I’d subconsciously expected?

She walked to the refrigerator grabbing some OJ, and pouring two glasses for us. I’d anticipated some anger, but instead she appeared calm.

“Look, I can be the girl who understands limitations. Heck, since I’m planning to move away early next year, maybe there’s already a natural end to what we’re doing. But if last night at the party taught me anything, I can’t do jealousy. I can’t be the type of woman who’s okay with knowing you might see me on a Saturday morning and then go have sex with someone else.”

I hadn’t expected such bluntness from her. It wasn’t as though I wanted to sleep with multiple women. Frankly, who had the time? With my work schedule, I certainly did not. But when I dated, I was clear about seeing other people. This served to ward off misconceptions of my intentions. Not as if this strategy had worked with Tabitha, however. Despite only two dates and my firm stance regarding seeing other women, she’d still taken our parting hard.