Her eyes blaze with suppressed anger as she stares at me for several beats before looking away. Running her fingers over the kitchen counter, she whispers, “This is all amazing. Much more than I expected.”
I’m surprised by the hint of wonder in her voice.
What did she expect?
Anyways, I don’t care, Oscar has rented this place for only three months, and after that period, we’ll be even, fair and square. And if someday I plan to have a tenant, I have already learned my first lesson.
Never assume.
“Check this out.” Mere walks to the sofa bed and pulls out the mattress with a hidden handle. “We got this new. The old one was too bulky and not good-looking at all. This opens very easily. I tested it many times before we bought it. Didn’t I, Dad?”
“Hmm,” I grunt.
“Thank you so much.” Clementine saunters to where Mere is now sitting on the open sofa bed, getting all comfortable, as if she is the one living in this room. “I love the color.” Clementine runs her hands over the yellow upholstery. For a second, I’m distracted by her fingers as they move almost seductively over the arm of the couch.
Fuck, does she have some sort of couch fetish?
“Me too.” Mere bounces in excitement. “I thought it would suit you more, as you are a…fashion designer and all.” She waves her hand shyly as if uncomfortable with the admission.
Mere’s enthusiastic voice and face make me question my reaction to Clementine’s presence. Maybe her non-adult demeanor makes her more approachable for Mere.
Fuck. I feel like a fucking yoyo.
“Oh, Mere! Thank you so much for thinking about me.” Clementine flops next to my daughter.
Mere? When did they become best buddies?
“But if you would prefer a proper bed, this can still be replaced.” I point to the couch where both of them are now sitting, looking like sisters.
The smiles on their faces drop upon hearing my words.
“I like it,” Clementine replies. “It’s more practical.”
“That’s what I told him.” Mere scowls at me. “When you have friends over, you can use this as a couch and then at night easily open the bed. This is a space-saver model.” She repeats the words of the salesgirl at the furniture store.
Friends?
“Okay. Before I leave, some ground rules.” I focus my gaze on Clementine. “No men in this house.” Her eyes squint again but I continue. This is a no-argument point. “No parties. And no sex.”
Her face reddens at my last words, in anger I assume.
“Dad!” Mere jumps from the couch. “Clementine is renting this place. She does not have to follow any crazy rules. If she wants to have friends over, she can.”
“I didn’t say anything about friends.” I cross my arms over my chest, waiting for Clementine to confirm, because if she doesn’t, she might have to find a new place to sleep tonight.
“But you said boys.” Merida’s eyes narrow on me, as she mimics my action and crosses her own arms.
What’s up with her? Why is she picking a fight with me for a stranger?
“And what’s with no sex? Not everyone is living as a hermit or chasing a ghost.”
I’m stunned by her words. Chasing a ghost? For a second, I feel everything has stopped working in my body and there is no blood flowing in my veins, no oxygen reaching my lungs. Soon, I realize where we are and what Mere just said.
I’m still trying to get my heart rate in check, breathing deeply through my nose when Clementine clears her throat.
“I have no intention of bringing men over or having sex.”
When I simply stare at her because my lungs still feel tight, she provides further clarification, “Under your roof?”