She cat-walked to the couch but I stopped her. I sat behind my desk. “I think we should conduct this session as we ended the one before.” I pointed to the side chair.
She stared for a moment and shrugged. “You know you want me. I know you want me. Why fight about it? We’re adults, after all.”
She wasn’t going to give up easily. I thought, “Good. The more you fight, the faster this will go.”
She glided to the chair, sat, and crossed her legs slowly. Her smile remained. Her eyes never left mine. Her skirt rode up significantly. I could see the top of her stocking was lace. Her perfume, an expensive one, filled the air. I let my eyes trail down to her legs and then back up. She smoldered, assuming the role of the cat to my mouse.
I thought, “Time to turn the tables, kitty.” I said, “You are acutely aware of your physical attractions. It’s too bad you view them mostly as a useful weapon in a game of conquest. I think it’s time you realized that attitude will always impede you from achieving true emotional intimacy.”
Her nostrils flared and she frowned. In an aggressive tone she asked, “What the hell do you know about my level of intimacy?”
I nodded. “Not nearly enough, yet. So let’s quit the seduction games and get to work, shall we?”
She didn’t surrender. “Christ, you are one cold bitch. And you’ve got the brass balls to lecture ME about intimacy issues? When’s the last time you had a good fuck?”
I didn’t flinch. “With whom, a man or a woman?” She widened her eyes. I nodded. “Yes, it does take one to know one, doesn’t it? Now, let’s pick up the story of your adolescence. Tell me about your life with your mother after your father died. What sort of accident was he in? Why did you say your mother killed him? That was clearly a severe trauma and I need to know more about it.”
Her smile faded and she glanced down to the left. I cut her off. “No lies, please. I looked up the police reports on his arrest for assaulting your mother and his accident, so I’m armed to detect falsehood. Anyway, I think I’ve earned a bit of trust from you.”
Again, her nostrils flared. “If you know so goddamn much what’s left for me to tell you?”
“You need to tell me in your own words your interpretation of the events and how they made you feel then and how they make you feel now. If you think I’m being intrusive, well, that’s what therapy has to be in order to do you any good.”
She gave the seduction one last try. She switched to the All American Girl, bright-eyed and sincere, and reached for my hand. “But I thought you were my friend.”
I didn’t take the proffered hand. “I’m not your friend and I’m not going to be your lover. I’m your doctor and I’m trying very hard to help you. Please understand that and stop play-acting. Answer my questions.”
Her shoulders drooped and the smile fell from her lips. She looked down and reached into her purse for a cigarette. Her hands shook as she lit it and expelled the smoke. “I read those reports too. After I turned eighteen. The cop who wrote up the one about the assault gave both versions, Momma’s and Daddy’s. But once they got Daddy back to the station, he agreed to not fight the charges if they left me out of it. He offered to make a deal. He’d plead guilty but get a suspended sentence so it’d be kept quiet and he wouldn’t lose his job. He would move out of the house and let Momma have a divorce on the grounds of mental cruelty.”
She paused. I had to prompt her to resume. “Under the circumstances, that sounds reasonable. Did the officer agree?”
She shook her head. “You read the report so you know he couldn’t. That was up to the district attorney’s office and Momma would have to agree to it. Good damn luck with that.”