Page 13 of Redeeming Rabbit

Rose.

I’d gone to pick her up, parked, and then… nothing. Scratch that, there was something. Someone, rather. Mom. She’d opened the door, and… blackness. That must have been when my mind checked out. How had I even gotten back to the shop?

Darkness blotted out the light between two chairs, and Wasp appeared. Concern dug deep grooves across his forehead, and his uncertain smile made me want to laugh. Or punch him. I wasn’t sure which.

“Hey, brother, you okay?”

He was usually a joker, all laughs and witty barbs, and his gentle tone grated on my nerves. My life had never been easy, but I wasn’t fucking fragile. I’d had an episode, like lots of other vets. It was no big deal; he needed to stop looking at me like I was about to shatter.

“I’m fine.” I slid out from under the table, standing to stretch my limbs.

Wasp pushed up beside me. “Nothing about this is fine. Zombie went to get Sage, and I really think you should—”

“No.”

“Rabbit, I…”

“Forget it. You know how I feel about this.”

All the club’s officers pushed therapy like it was made of sunshine and tequila, but I knew the truth. The service had forced a psychologist on me, and that idiot hadn’t done jack shit other than recommend a medical discharge. He didn’t care that I had nowhere to go and no future waiting for me. The bastard just wanted me out before I got someone killed. Sage could be a decent guy, but he reported to Link. The club president knew I was fucked up, but he didn’t know the extent. And I sure as hell didn’t want him to. Today had been a mistake. I never should have promised to pick Rose up. It was stupid of me to think I could return to that house like it wasn’t the start of all this shit. But now that I’d reinforced my limits, I wouldn’t repeat that mistake. Rose would have to find a different ride to work. She’d understand.

Mom was right; my sister should know better than to depend on me. She’d told me as much when I stood at her door this morning, and now I could remember that little tidbit, too. I still had no idea how I’d gotten from Mom’s place in Tukwila to the shop, but maybe that’d come back to me eventually.

“You can trust Sage. He’s not like the—”

“Don’t care. I’m not talking to him, and that’s final. Can you just give me a fucking minute to collect myself?”

I didn’t need therapy. What I needed was for him to get off my back so I could process the fact now everyone would know I’d been hiding under the table like some frightened pussy. My brothers gossiped worse than any little old ladies I’d ever seen.

Wasp narrowed his eyes at me. “You’re supposed to be on the clock right now. You didn’t sign in, you didn’t call, and then Zombie found you under a fuckin’ table. Nothing about that is fine. You need to talk to someone, and Sage is qualified to deal with this shit. There’s no shame in getting help.”

He didn’t understand. Wasp had grown up in an upper-middle-class family, raised by parents who were still married. Everyone liked and respected him. He had a wife and two kids who thought he walked on fucking water. He was Link’s vice president, and he’d turned the shop into a well-oiled machine. We always met our goals while still managing to help veterans who couldn’t pay the full price for repairs. I’d bet he’d never been kicked out of anywhere in his life.

Anger burned away the last of my humiliation, and I glared right back at the entitled prick. “Great. If I ever need help, I’ll be sure to ask for it.”

“Dammit, Rabbit.” He stabbed a hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck likeIwas harassinghim. “I’m trying to help you. Don’t make me be a dick about this.”

“Too late, cocksucker. You may be my fuckin’ boss, but not even you can force me to get therapy.”

“Like hell, I can’t. You are the best mechanic we have. I won’t lose you because you’re being a stubborn asshole. You’re not clockin’ in until Sage gives you the all-clear.”

The bastard was relentless. “I have an engine rebuild today. And I’m donating my labor.”

“I don’t care. I’ll pay someone else to do it.”

Now, he was just being stubborn. “I told you, I’m not talking to him. Not ever.”

“Fine. Then take the rest of the week off.”

My jaw dropped. I studied his expression, waiting for the ‘gotcha’ moment, but the bastard was serious. “I don’t fuckin’ consent. You gonna have him rape my mind?”

“That’s not how therapy works.”

“But you think forcing someone to do it is okay?” Had he made anyone else talk to Sage? There had to be a way out of this. I couldn’t be the first one he’d pulled rank on. Wasp was usually Mr. Fuckin’ Cool, and I couldn’t believe he was treating me like this.

“This is a business,” he said. “I can’t have you losing your shit in the middle of the workday. On a personal level, I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I give a fuck and want to make sure you know you’re not fighting this battle alone.”

“So, you’re taking away my job for a week.”

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