Page 15 of Savage Secrets

Damn that son of a bitch Eli Feldman for tossing his past in his face. At the time, he’d used every single technique he’d been taught by the therapist and a round of anger management classes to keep from ripping the man’s head off.

Worse, Feldman spouted it off in front of Opal. While she must have questions, he had been too chicken to look her in the eyes, let alone explain.

He cracked the truck window, enjoying the spicy scent of fall and the crisp air in his lungs. The landscape fled by and before he knew it, he was rolling up in front of his therapist’s office.

Ugh. He really did hate this.

He drew a deep breath, steeling himself for the same old routine, and climbed out of the truck.

Even the waiting room annoyed him. Some lumpy lamp on a table glowed orange and flute music that never calmed him played in the background.

“Zach?” His therapist, Diane, stood at the open door of her office.

He shoved to his feet and followed her inside. The space felt small and too cramped. One quick move and he’d swipe the row of precious photos in gold frames off her desk. Hell, maybe he’d overturn the desk too.

He took his usual seat in the armchair. Diane sat in a chair across from him, a smile on her face.

“How are you?”

Answering her questions always made him second-guess himself. Any words he’d choose would be analyzed in ways that he didn’t want to think about.

He settled on: “Fine.”

She nodded, but her blonde hair, stiff with hairspray, never moved from its perfect shape.

So different from Opal. When he saw her this morning, her hair mussed and her clothes rumpled, his hands twitched to run his fingers through that dark, glossy hair and then all over her body. His gut clenched with an echo of that desire.

“And how did things go this past week since we last met?”

He met her gaze. “A lot has happened. There was a fire.”

She nodded. “I read something about that in the paper. But it wasn’t on the Gracey Ranch?”

“No, the neighboring ranch.”

“Was everyone okay?”

“Yes, the neighbor and his family are fine. But a man was killed on the Springvale Ranch.”

“And you knew him?” That information would have been in the paper too.

“Yes. Mr. Vale.”

“How awful.”

He nodded, images from that night flitting through his mind. The look of relief on Opal’s face when he brought Rainie to her, safe and sound. Of the lines of grief on her face when she stood at her father’s grave.

And this morning, when she handed over the key to her home without a blink.

Diane interrupted his thoughts. “And how are you dealing with all these events?”

He shifted his shoulders, feeling confined. “I was moved to the Springvale to help the owner’s daughter. To watch out for her.”

“What do you mean you were moved?”

“Ordered to go,” he clarified, but his jaw clamped. Suddenly, words burst out of him with volcanic force. “I feel more like property than people. I’m not important. Not human.”

“I can see this upsets you a lot, Zach.”

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