Page 15 of Cocky Choices: Zoe Cocker

I frown, “A strategic partnership?” stunned by the lack of romance. Not that a proposal over the phone would have more. This is just a far cry from what I hoped would happen when I heard the four magic words:would you marry me?Everyone dreams of this moment, don’t they? Do they ever dream of it happening like this?

I can hear a reassuring smile in his voice as he continues, “You wouldn’t have to worry about financial pressures. Your flower shop could thrive without the burden of bills hanging over you.”

“Why me, Caleb?”

He pauses, and I wonder if I’ve caught him off guard. “Because you’re passionate about what you do,” he finally says.

“How do you know that?”

“By how pained you looked at disappointing the manager today. Only someone who cares would have cared. You love flowers, right?”

“Almost as much as I love people.”

He laughs, “See? That! That answer right there! I need more of that in my life. Someone who cares and creates beauty in the world. That’s the kind of person I want by my side. I want someone who can bring light into my life, even if it’s not in the traditional sense of marriage.”

Stunned by such a compliment — what I offer sounds of immense value when he puts it like that — I cross to lift Ralphie up and carry him to the front counter. “Wow,” is all I can say.

Caleb’s tone becomes quieter, intimate. “Zoe, I could offer you stability,for life,and I’d get what I need to access my trust fund. And it’s not just about the money — we’d be each other’s safety nets.”

A flutter of intrigue takes hold. “Safety nets?” I echo, curiosity piqued. “What does that mean?”

“Companions. Friends. We wouldn’t go through life alone anymore.”

My heart skips a beat. “Oh!”

“The events I have to go to for work, to represent the company and my family, they bore me.But they’ll be fun when I bring someone who’s company I enjoy. That’s just one example.”

Unable to stop myself, I whisper, “You enjoy my company?”

“Yes! Today, chasing your cat? I haven’t had that much fun in years!”

“Really?”

“My life is all work.”

“Don’t you ever make time to play?”

“I go to the gym.”

“Play, like just being silly. Doing things just because they’re fun?”

“I don’t understand. Like what?”

“Um…seeing a movie in the theater with a friend or a sibling.”

“I don’t have siblings. And why go to a theater when I can watch them at home?”

“Because the energy is amazing when you’re in a theater. It gives the movie a whole different experience. It’s not just you laughing but a whole bunch of people enjoying the same thing, together.”

“Give me another example.”

“Dancing in your bedroom right when you wake up.”

“Why would I dance when I get up?”

I glance to Ralphie as he sharpens his claws on my card holder. “Hiking barefoot.”

“Without shoes? What would people think?”

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