Forbidden Prescription 5 (Forbidden Medicine 5)

“Listen, I appreciate everything that you are willing to do for me. I really do. But you have to understand where I am coming from. My whole life I saw my mother resent my father until the day he died. Then she went from one man to the next as she made her way up the food chain. I don’t want anything that I have earned or traded for .”

“Well then,” he said with a shrug, “I’m sure we could work something out .”

I laughed. “Then that would make me a hooker, or maybe a ‘kept woman’, either way it’s not going to happen. I like the independence that I have. I’m not sure what kind of deal we would work out, but I’m sure everything will work out in the end .”

“Why don’t we just start with breakfast? Unless you are really in that much of a hurry to get home ?”

I looked down at the meal he was making and listened to my stomach growl. I could use some food. Begrudgingly, but feeling a little better about the situation, I set my purse down on the ground and turned toward the kitchen as Earl started to fry up the food. The smell of bacon wafted up to meet me and I was glad I decided to stay. At least I was until he decided to ask more questions. Then, I couldn’t help but glance at the door again for an escape .

“So were your mom and dad married for a long time?” he asked as I scarfed down the food .

I nodded and swallowed quickly, trying not to be rude. “Oh yeah, up until he died when I was twelve. He always made sure that me and my sister were taken care of. I know that my mother loved him back then. It was near his end that she started to ‘wander’ as he called it .”

He frowned. “I guess I don’t know very much about my new step-mother .”

“What about your dad? Him and your mother were married, right? Did he meet anyone else before my mom ?”

Earl shrugged. “I don’t really know. After my mother died, me and him weren’t very close. I spent most of my time getting kicked out of private schools and boarding schools until he finally found one that stuck. Then it was off to college and starting my practice .”

“Do you ever miss that time with him?” I asked .

I was trying to keep the conversation focused on him. It wasn’t that I was ashamed of my life, but there wasn’t all that much to be proud of. Beyond graduating college, I’d done absolutely nothing with my life. At twenty-two years old I had no idea what the future held for me. Already my nineteen-year-old sister had a better-looking future than I did. It was a hard pill to swallow. As the meal neared its end, I thought about going home again and my heart sank .

It would be a lie if I told myself that I didn’t want to stay. Everything about Earl and his home were so inviting. That was part of the problem though. How many other women had been invited there under the same ‘nice guy’ pretense that he used on me? I never realized just how much of a skeptic I was until that point in my life. I wanted to stay with him, lie around all day naked, and talk about our hopes and dreams for the future. The harsh reality of it was that we were from two separate worlds. The only time our paths would cross after this was in his office when I had the money for my surgery .

“Can I use your bathroom?” I asked him .

He looked at me like I was crazy, but nodded his head. “Sure .”

“Thanks,” I replied as I quickly made my way into the bathroom and shut the door behind me .

My heart was racing. This whole situation was insane. How long would it be before he was asking about my work plans and moving in again? I wanted to like him, I knew that my feelings for him were real which just made the situation even more terrifying. There was no way that we could ever have a future together. The best thing that I could do for myself would be to get out of the apartment and never look back. Exhaustion was starting to play a part in my decisions too which was never a good thing .

He said nothing as I came back out and sat down again. “Well, I really should be going. Thanks for everything though .”

“Are you sure? You know I have a spare room here. It wouldn’t be any problem for you to sleep a while longer. I know you woke up really early .”

I rolled my eyes. “Are you really that worried about me going back to my apartment? Even after everything I told you about how I grew up ?”

Earl shrugged, a large pout crossing his face. It was the most convincing puppy face I’d seen in quite some time. I had to give him credit as I started to laugh and tossed my purse once again on the floor. Earl made me feel good about myself. He made me forget temporarily that my life was in shambles, my apartment was a hellhole, I had no money, and no family that I could count on. No matter what I told myself, I couldn’t take money from Earl because he wasn’t my family .

He was just a guy that I slept with, a distraction that I didn’t mind having for a little while longer. Eventually the real world would creep in and I would be forced back to my own place. I rested my elbow on the table, putting my chin in my hand and watching Earl as he looked me over. The wheels in his head were turning, but I could tell with one glance that he wasn’t sharing information. Whatever he had planned, it was for his eyes only. At least for now .

“So, you’ve got me here and we’ve already had sex twice. I’ve told you all about my crazy ass mother and my family. Now it’s your turn, I want to know everything there is to know about you and your dad .”

Earl’s eyes grew wide as he swallowed. “Everything ?”

“Either that or I can go?” I said as I reached for my bag .

“No!” he said quickly as he set down his place. With a dramatic eye roll he sighed. “Fine, you want to know about me then that’s what we will talk about, but I have to warn you, it’s not pretty .”

“I find that hard to believe,” I told him honestly .

He grinned. “That’s okay. I like a challenge .”

Chapter Nine

Earl

I shuffled around uneasily in my seat. It felt like I was on trial as she watched me and waited for an answer. I was getting exactly what I’d asked for, her undivided attention. Now, I was wondering if I had made a huge mistake. She didn’t seem to have any filters which was both infuriating and enchanting to me. Nothing was out of bounds or off limits with her. I loved it for the most part .

“Well?” she asked again. “Are you going to tell me about your childhood or not ?”

I sighed. “Sure. When do you want to start ?”

“How did your mother die?” she asked bluntly .

“Cancer, your dad ?”

“Tumor. Got any siblings ?”

I laughed. “Besides you?” I asked with a wink .

Tabitha rolled her eyes. “Yes .”

“Then no. What about you? Any others I should know about? Past step-brothers I should be jealous of ?”

She shook her head but grinned. “Nope. I mean, I’m sure my mother has half a dozen former step-children that I don’t know about, but again, we don’t really talk .”

“You really don’t ever talk to your mother?” I asked .

“And you’re ‘son of the year’?” she snapp

ed back .

This wasn’t going at all like I’d planned. I wanted her to trust me, not be more suspicious of my motives. For some reason that I couldn’t explain, I needed her to open up to me and trust that I wasn’t going to hurt her. There was an instinct inside of me that I couldn’t shake. I had to keep her safe from the outside world. She wasn’t making things easy for me though. Tabitha had spent most of her teen years and adult life not trusting the men her mother cycled in and out. I couldn’t understand how their relationship was so fractured .

“Fair enough. My father and I drifted apart after my mother died. He never really even dated after she passed. At least not until he met Opal. He always told me, ‘what’s the point in dating the rest when you’ve already had the best?’ I guess that just always stuck with me .”

“Were you surprised when he got married again ?”

I shrugged. “I hadn’t really thought about it much. At the wedding he seemed happy, like he had someone to take care of again and that made him feel good. That’s all I’ve ever wanted was for him to find that joy again that he had with my mother .”

Tabitha frowned. “I wish that my mother was a better person then, for your father’s sake .”

I still couldn’t believe that Opal was the monster that Tabitha was making her out to be. My father had to have better judgment than that. If Tabitha and her mother could resolve their issues then maybe things would work out in the end. I couldn’t see a future with us though, if the hostility stayed with Tabitha. A plan was starting to form in my mind, but I needed to be careful about the approach .

“Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?” she asked me as she looked down at her phone .

Taking a deep breath, I shook my head. “I guess not. Maybe you could explain to me why you are in such a hurry to get out of here .”

“Or you could tell me why you are so hell-bent on keeping me here .”