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When Caleb arrived home with Braelynn late on Sunday afternoon, I evaded him and stayed in the guestroom well in to the evening.

Caleb looked up from the newspaper in his hands, and when his eyes did a slow intake of my appearance, I wanted to curse him.

He told me there wouldn’t ever be anything between us, but then he looked at me like that. Granted, the blush colored crepe sheath dress I had on made me look phenomenal – if I could say so myself – and the only person to thank for that was Caleb.

His lips twitched, and he contemplated me from over the rim of his cup. “I see you got the clothes.”

“I did, thank you.”

He’d left several bags in front of the bedroom door this morning, and I’d immediately regretted accepting them. He’d gone completely overboard, but I didn’t want him to know that I actually liked everything he had chosen for me.

“Can I make myself some coffee?” I asked. I brushed my hair behind my ears, noting how Caleb’s eyes followed the movement, and folded my hands in front of me. I felt out of place, even more so after the night before, and there was nothing I could do to hide my discomfort.

“Of course you can,” he replied with a frown. “Make yourself at home. I made some bacon, and eggs, if you’d like breakfast before you go to work.”

Without answering, I made myself some coffee, and put some food on a plate. I sat down at the opposite end of the kitchen island, and quietly had my breakfast.

Caleb cleared his throat, and I unintentionally lifted my head to look at him. “I’m not going in to the office,” he told me. I’d guessed as much as soon as I saw his choice of attire, but because he was the boss I had no reason to bring it up. My objective for the next week was to interact with Caleb as little as possible, while still being amicable, and as soon as I found a new apartment, I wouldn’t have to see him again, save for the accidental office interaction or planned function.

“Is everything okay?” I asked around a piece of crispy bacon. I immediately wished I hadn’t, simply because keeping my interest limited would make it easier for me to pretend I didn’t care.

“Yeah,” he brushed his hand over his head, and rubbed his neck, bringing my attention to the ink on his forearms. His white shirt brought out the brilliance of the colors, and with every movement, the images on his skin twisted, and contorted to accommodate the stretch of his muscles. “I have to try and find a new nanny for Brae, so I’ll be working from home until I can find someone.”

“Do you know what happened with Danielle?”

“Her number’s been disconnected, and I have no idea how else to reach her without showing up at her place. I don’t think that’s going to work.” Caleb’s mouth tilted into a nervous smile, and it looked incredibly odd on him. He was always so confident, and so composed, but the man in front of me was not the businessman I’d come to know. He was just a man, concerned about finding a new nanny for his baby girl.

“If you need me to spend a few days at home so that you can go into the office, I won’t mind.”

“You don’t have to do that,” he replied. “I’m sure I’ll find someone soon.”

I shrugged, like his brush-off didn’t matter. “I wouldn’t be doing it for you.” I stood up, and took my cup and plate to the basin, and then started walking towards the elevator.

“I’d be doing it for Braelynn.