Kiss the Sky (Calloway Sisters #1)(113)

“Don’t do this,” Daisy pleads. “I beg of you.” She cups her hands together in a praying fashion as her head whips from Rose to me. She sits on the edge of her paisley green bedspread while we stand in her room, the door shut so no leering cameras can peek inside.

“We gave you three whole days to break up with him,” Rose reminds her little sister. “If it hasn’t happened already, it won’t be happening in the near future.”

The Marco Jeans campaign ended almost a week ago, which means Daisy can break up with Julian without fearing “bad” chemistry at the shoot. But Daisy has a weakness for hurting people’s feelings.

I’m supposed to escort Julian out of the townhouse when we deliver the news. And I am greatly looking forward to it. I no longer have to be nice and put on a façade that hurts my fucking jaw. He’s of no use to me anymore.

Daisy groans into her hands. “I don’t want my older sister and her boyfriend breaking up with my boyfriend for me.”

“Fine. Will you break up with him?” Rose raises her eyebrows.

“Ye—”

“Right now?”

Daisy’s face drops.

“So let’s lay out the facts,” I interject. “Everyone in this house dislikes Julian. You dislike Julian. And I don’t like to generalize, but I’d say a very large portion of America hates Julian. But you’re still dating him because…”

“I don’t like breaking up with people,” she admits. “It’s awkward and horrible. In all my past flings, I would just stop talking to the guy and he’d kind of go away. Julian’s not like that.”

Rose snaps, “If you can’t break up with someone, you shouldn’t be dating them.

“Okay, but still…I say we reconvene this powwow in a month or two. Like, chill on it until Julian gets tired and moves on.”

Rose looks to me and her lips lift. “I think this might be on my bucket list. You and me, crushing the heart of my sister’s disgusting boyfriend.”

“Was this boyfriend on your list named Loren Hale?” I ask with a smile.

“Maybe. But we can always have an addendum.”

Daisy lets out another long groan.

“If it’s so embarrassing, next time don’t date someone you can’t break up with,” Rose refutes.

“She’s watching this, right?” I ask my girlfriend.

“What?” Daisy gawks, her eyes widening. “Noooo…” She draws out the word like she’s coming to terms with what’s about to happen.

“You’ll watch,” Rose says with a nod.

“And take notes,” I add.

Rose turns to me, her face lighting up. “Look at us. We’re already pretty good at this.”

I slide my hand into hers, joining in her excitement, maybe even more than her. I see us ten years from now. The same incredible team. Only with little versions of us running around. But her fear of motherhood is another battle for another day.

“After you,” I tell Daisy, gesturing towards the door.

“He’s here? Right now?” She blinks in a daze.

“Yes,” Rose snaps, “so reconfigure your sense of direction and make your way downstairs. Chop chop.” She snaps at her sister until Daisy springs to her feet.

“Okay, I can do this…” Daisy says brushing her hair off her shoulders. “I’ve swam with sharks before. What’s so bad about listening to my sister tear the soul out of a guy?” She cringes and gives Rose a pleading look. “Go easy on him. He’s already half-ape, Connor said so.”

I laugh when Rose glares at me. “What?” I say. “I watched him open a can of soup in the Alps by smacking it against the counter. There are tools that humans invented for such complicated tasks.”

Rose shakes her head repeatedly and then she marches towards the door. “If no one is going to move their ass, then you all can follow mine.”

“Fine with me, darling.” But I wait for Daisy to walk ahead of me. She’s the type of girl who would jump out of a three-story window for the hell of it. And we’ve just given her a reason to do so.

Daisy sighs and heads downstairs with Rose. In the living room, Julian waits for me to show up, thinking I’ve invited him over for beer—like we’re friends. He sits on the couch and flips through Rock and Ice, a mountaineering magazine that Ryke reads.

Daisy lingers by the staircase, unable to approach the couch any further. She looks like she’s about to flush a pet fish down the toilet. Ben is already sitting in one of the chairs, his camera positioned at us.

“Hey, man,” Julian says with a nod, standing up. He tosses the magazine on the table.

I don’t say a thing. I just head over to the couch. “You can take a seat.”

He frowns, but he sits on command. Rose and I choose the loveseat across from him. She crosses her ankles and rests her hands on her knees.

“Julian,” Rose says flatly. “It comes with my utmost pleasure to inform you that Daisy will no longer be seeing you, ever again.”

“What?” Julian scratches his cheek, more unshaven than I last remember.

“She’s breaking up with you,” I clarify. “Don’t call. Don’t text. Don’t show up on the doorstep expecting a quickie of any kind. You’re done.”