Page 47 of Redeeming Rabbit

My chest cracked open. The mind-numbing pain I’d experienced when gathering up my clothes and preparing to walk out of her life returned with a vengeance. She smiled on the screen, and someone took a rusty switchblade to my fucking heart.

Slice. Slice. Slice.

“Fuck!” I shoved to my feet, unable to handle one more second of her gorgeous face while also lacking the ability to drag my attention from Morse’s screen. “What the fuck, man? What are you doing? Why would you show this to me?”

I’d been good. So goddamn good—continuously resisting the pull to go to her—trying to convince myself it was better this way.

He paused the video and zoomed in on her face before scrolling out to follow her line of sight. “Because of that right there.”

Eyes bright and full of affection, Elenore was smiling atme.

“I’ve watched the footage a handful of times. She doesn’t look at anyone else like that, brother. Only you.” He pressed play and let the footage roll, pausing again to zoom in on me. “And then there’s you. I’ve known you for years, and I sure as shit have never seen you that happy. She’s good for you. I don’t know what happened between you two, but this…? This shit looks real.”

“I fucked it up.” The admission was an oversimplification, but it was all I could get out before my throat closed up.

“Then un-fuck it. I’ll help you. I’ve got a plan.”

17

Elenore

“Oh my God, youarealive!” Tina exclaimed, leaping to her feet. “I was afraid aliens had kidnapped you and have been sending texts to cover your disappearance as they probed you in the ass.”

My sister was rightfully miffed since I’d dodged her phone calls the past three weeks. I’d gone from harassing her several times a day, ensuring she was safe, to total tech silence. The last time we’d spoken, she’d called to inform me that Matt had attacked her outside my apartment, had been arrested, and was now facing a lengthy list of charges. She and Dylan were safe now but had chosen to stay with Kaos for the foreseeable future, a decision I was exceedingly grateful for since I appeared to be experiencing a crisis of my own.

During our call, my questions about the attack and resulting arrest distracted her. Rabbit hadn’t even come up. Tina’s third-degree was inevitable, and the anticipation had affected me more than I’d like to admit. I’m direct and pragmatic, but the situation with Rabbit made me feel out of control. Even thinking about discussing him sent me into mini anxiety attacks fueled by feelings I couldn’t comprehend. So, I’d sent every one of her calls since then to voicemail, immediately texting back messages like “Super busy. Can’t talk right now. Everything okay?”

She’d put up with my evasion tactics much longer than expected, but her last text had made it clear she was done.

Tina

WTF, El? Enough of this BS. You WILL meet me for lunch on Friday at the café next to your lab. If you don’t show, I swear I will march next door and drag you there by your hair. We need to talk. Don’t try me, sis.

My sister had never been one to make idle threats, so here I was, walking into her outstretched arms. “Har-har. You’re so funny,” I said snarkily as we embraced. “Where’s my favorite nephew?”

“Your favorite nephew bailed on you to work out with Kaos. They’ve started hockey training, and I don’t know which of the two is more obsessed.”

I sat across the table from her. “That dirty little traitor! I’m supposed to be his favorite person in the world. What can I do to regain his love and devotion? If I have to challenge Kaos to an in-game sniping contest for the love of my nephew, I will.”

Tina’s eyebrows rose, and a smile tugged at her lips. “I heard you’re quite the savage sniper. Zombie told me he’d never seen anything like it. But there’s no need to shoot my boyfriend. Dylan loves and needs you both.”

It sounded like she and Dylan had been spending time at the fire station. The memory of my short time there made my chest hurt. I shoved the unwanted emotions aside, stored that data away for future questions, and focused on her statement. “Boyfriend, huh? You put a label on it?”

She nodded. “I know we’ve only been together a few weeks, and it’s totally insane for me to jump into another relationship so quickly, but he’s… he’s incredible, El. I keep searching for red flags, but all I see are green lights. Even his family is amazing. Don’t get me wrong, they are a lot to take in, but they’re so welcoming and caring. It’s like… an actual family.”

“Bizarre.” I deadpanned.Wewere an actual family. Albeit not a normal one, we’d always had each other. I was happy for my sister, ecstatic that Kaos’s family had welcomed her and Dylan into their fold. But some prevailing juvenile fear of abandonment had me terrified about being replaced.

“Indeed. And they want to take care of us. They keep stopping by and dropping off food like they’re afraid we might starve to death without them. It’s wild. We eat dinner with the entire family at least once a week. They all love Dylan—even when he’s a smartass—and are all about supporting his hockey career. Seriously, the season hasn’t even started yet, and the family is asking for his game schedule so they can come and support him. I thought they were just showing curiosity to be polite, but Darius insists they really do plan to attend Dylan’s games. I mean, who does that? Are they even human?”

Darius. I liked that name far better than Kaos. It struck me then that I’d never even asked Rabbit’s real name. The hollowness in my chest grew painful, so I pushed those thoughts away.

A waitress approached and took our orders. When she left, Tina’s speculative gaze settled on me. Dreading the lecture that was sure to come, I attempted to pick up the conversation where we’d left off.

“They sound perfect for you and Dylan. The family you’ve always wanted.”

“Yeah, except now my sister has abandoned me, which is unacceptable. They want to meet you, too. In fact, they’re all about family holidays and are already insisting you join us.”

I didn’t bother to mask my horror. “Why on earth would they want me there?”

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