Page 14 of Bad for Me

“Stop right there, Isaac.” She holds up one hand as if to fend me off.

“Alright, fine.” Coming to a dead stop in the center of her room, I reach out a hand. “Come here.”

Her eyes drop to my hand incredulously before looking back up into my face. “What? No!”

“Then I’m going to have to come to you.” I take another step forward.

She squeaks with denial and scurries back two more steps until her back meets the wall. Her eyes grow impossibly large as she realizes she’s trapped. Her throat convulses.

“Listen to me, Isaac. T-this infatuation isn’t real. Whatever attraction you feel toward me is just a construct in your mind. You’re trying to bring us together, but this is, ah, one-sided.” Meredith stumbles over her lie before picking right back up. “And while I know you must be disappointed, you have to respect my boundaries. I’m not coming to you, you’re not going to come near me. Once I find you some help, you’re going to, after a little time, realize that this is inappropriate. You can’thaveme. I’m not some puppy in a pet shop to scoop up o-or…”

Meredith struggles to find the right words as she rambles. With a deep breath, she steadies herself. Straightening, she attempts to hold my gaze, but I find that she can’t look me directly in my eyes. Is she staring at my nose? My grin grows bigger.

“In my field we call this limerence. You’ve convinced yourself that you’re emotionally attached to me. I don’t know when this started, or quite frankly why, but I’m sorry I didn’t recognize it sooner. This is my fault for not noticing the signs. I didn’t realize I was feeding into a delusion…” Her voice trails off as color returns to her cheeks.

I tilt my head, my eyebrows raising incredulously. Amusement springs up my chest like the compressed air in a champagne bottle. The laughter that spills out of me is loud and hearty.

“Liar. You knew exactly what you were doing.” I lick my lips again. “Judging by the way you kept your blouse unbuttoned enough to tease me, or the way your gaze shifted to my cock every chance it could—I think it’s safe to say you urged me on.”

“Isaac, please… You need to take a deep breath, and step back. We can talk about this and figure out the appropriate next steps?—”

There’s a heavy sigh behind me. The disapproval that rings in it is familiar and grating. I haven’t been on the receiving end of it since my teenage years, but still—the sound stirs up the same irritation as it once did.

I look over my shoulder to find my father stepping into the room, looking around with great interest.

“Took you long enough to get up here.”

Dad glances at me, his brows coming together curiously. “Given that I just got here, I’d say it took me just the right amount of time. You should’ve shut the front door behind you, by the way. We don’t want to alert the neighbors that something is up. That was sloppy.”

The front door was open? I shake my head. Maybe it didn’t latch behind me… I frown as the rest of the words register.

“You just got here?”

My dad nods but his gaze flickers back to Meredith. Right, focus… Maybe I thought I heard him but was mistaken. As I turn back toward Meredith, I find her inching toward the bathroom door.

I grin. “Are you going to hide in the bathroom? Do you really think a simple lock would keep me out now that I’ve tasted you?”

She freezes. Her eyes dart between the two of us as her chest heaves while she gasps nervously.

“What a marvel you are, Meredith,” my dad says, walking past me to look around the room. “Only allowing yourself to indulge in your more carefree, dare I say,playfulnature within your bedroom? I suppose I’m not surprised. You always aim to please and impress. Clearly that doesn’t just pertain to your professional life. It encompasses all of it. Fascinating. I’m guessing that’s from a lack of attention from your parents.” He comes to a stop at the edge of the bed. “From the crisp, near sterile palette downstairs, I was wondering if youeverlet your true nature come out. I’m pleased to say that worry has been squashed. And lucky for you, this,” he twirls an index finger, indicating the room around us, “won’t be the only space where you can be yourself and find true happiness. We will rain praises down upon you once you’ve taken your rightful place in our lives.”

Meredith shakes her head slowly. “Look, Dr. Carlton?—”

“Bernard, please. Or Bernie if you’re feeling sentimental.”

“Dr. Carlton, you can’t be here! You and your son are either mistaken or confused about the situation.”

I hum thoughtfully. “You can attempt to gaslight us all you want, but it won’t work. You might just want to drop the act since you’re no saint in this situation.”

Her gasp of outrage is drowned out by my laughter. God, she’s adorable when she’s upset.

“Isaac, collect Meredith’s belongings, please.”

I bristle at the command but do as he says. We’re wasting time when we could be showing her reasons to sink into her new role. With a heavy sigh, I prowl over to the closet.

“I’m going to call the cops,” Meredith hisses. Trying to sound angry and failing miserably.

“Go ahead,” my dad says, calling her bluff.

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