Page 93 of Unapologetic Obsession

“Your adviser mentioned that your father found out you’d changed your major. You should have told me what happened,” he chided gently.

I had confided in my adviser about the fight with my father. It seemed she mentioned it to Professor Maxwell. He must have concluded that I’d ran away from him because things were tense at home, and I didn’t want to rock the boat more.

“This isn’t about Papa or my family.” This was about sleeping with the wrong man.

“Of course it is. Why else have you been on edge?”

I opened my mouth to set the record straight before realizing it was a bad idea. Professor Maxwell’s parents had favored Damon throughout their childhood. Being mistaken for his brother would strike a raw nerve and reopen old wounds. I couldn’t do that to him. No matter what had happened between us, I couldn’t shake the sadness I felt over his childhood. My heart went out to the lonely rich boy abandoned by his family.

I closed my mouth, and Professor Maxwell took it as acknowledgment that my family was the problem. “What did he say to you?” he asked.

Lots of things, but none of it had anything to do with my current dilemma.

“Is he trying to intimidate you into working for him?” he pressed.

I said nothing.

“I’ll take care of him if he doesn’t fall back in line,” he declared with an air of finality.

Take care of him?

Did he just threaten my father?

My concerned expression did nothing to deter his spiel. “Your father has some well-kept secrets that can ruin him if I make them public. One phone call, and he’ll never hold a position at Ambani Corps again. Just say the word.”

My heart started beating erratically. How long had he been keeping tabs on my family?

Papa had a few skeletons in his closet, I knew that. Men of his stature generally had some sordid secrets stashed away. What I didn’t expect was for Professor Maxwell to uncover them and blackmail him.

While we had a complicated relationship, Dev Ambani was still my father. How could Professor Maxwell casually discuss destroying him without so much as batting an eye?

He kept talking about different ways to sabotage my father, but I couldn’t hear him. He was insane, I just hadn’t realized it until now. I stared at him blankly. He was a completely different person from the supportive teacher who had helped me with my term paper. Professor Maxwell had a dangerous side, and he had given me a glimpse into his darkness. He didn’t have morals, nor did he live by a code. There was no line he wouldn’t cross if it accomplished his end goal.

He leveled me with a sharp look at my extended silence. “Rose. Say something.”

I breathed heavily, my skin tingling with dread.

He stared at me for a long moment. “Fine. We’ll deal with your father later. For now, give me your phone.” He extended his hand, prying it out of my fingers.

His touch lingered. Electricity shot up and down my arm, my eyes widening at the intensity of it. Not only could I tolerate his touch, but I nearly melted under it. I never thought I could bear anyone touching me other than Damon, and that was only because he had made me feel safe when I was young.

I retracted my hand as if I had been electrocuted. What the hell was wrong with me? This man just threatened my family.

Professor Maxwell held up the phone to my face so it would unlock. When I glanced over, he was registering himself into my phone. He paused and frowned at something. My guess—he had figured out I had blocked his number.

If he was offended, he showed no inclination of it other than the small eye twitch. When I peeked at my screen next, he had unblocked himself. He handed the phone back to me. “Call me the next time your family gives you a hard time. Don’t let me find out about it from your adviser.” He paused before clarifying, “Call me the next timeanyonegives you a hard time.”

I nodded, hoping it would end the conversation.

It didn’t.

He reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out a box that hadCartieron it. “Before I forget, I bought something for you.”

I tried to make sense of my weird predicament. I slept with my professor, he yelled at me for running away, he threatened my family, he fucked me like a beast, and then, he bought me a gift.

Was he trying to bribe me so I wouldn’t tell anyone about what he did in the lab?

I pushed the box away. “No, thank you.”