Page 164 of Gunner

She shook her head. “I would never hurt a child.”

“I didn’t think you would. I am also mandated to report a crime you confess to planning in the future. What that means is, if you tell me you plan to rob a bank, or murder someone, I have to tell the sheriff.”

“Oh, it’s nothing like that.” She chewed her fingernail. I hadn’t seen her do that before. Even in the first few days after her attack, she had never been this nervous. This much on edge.

“So, you won’t tell the club?”

“Has someone hurt you, Aspen?”

She nodded, but didn’t elaborate.

I knew better. I really did. It was my job to lead her with questions, but not to ask outright. But I couldn’t help myself. I cared deeply for Aspen. We had a bond beyond therapy. I considered her a friend.

“Did Banshee do something?”

Her eyes were wide like saucers at my question. “Oh no!” She quickly shook her head. “He would never.”

Releasing a breath I hadn’t realized had caught in my lungs, my body sighed in relief.

“Ok, I just thought with the tension between you two last night…”

“That was my fault.” Aspen stood and paced the room. Her hands twisted together. “You won’t tell the club what I tell you, right?”

“No, Aspen. I won’t tell the club. Unless you ask me to and sign a waiver giving me permission, nothing you tell me will get back to the club.”

“Not even Gunner? I know you two are together now. Pillow talk is a thing between a biker and his old lady.”

“No, Aspen. If the club hadn’t been involved, I wouldn’t have even revealed you were a patient. You are safe with me. You can tell me anything.”

I wasn’t sure what was troubling Aspen, but when she opened up to me, choosing to trust me, she led me into unfamiliar territory. What she shared wasn’t something I could ever have come up with on my own. And it was something I would need to learn more about quickly if I wanted to help her.

I just wasn’t sure where to get the answers I needed.

Aspen shared the story of who she was and why she left Texas. How she came to settle here in Diamond Creek, and why she hadn’t made an effort to make friends.

By the end of the session, I knew everything there was to know about Aspen Winters. Silently, I made a vow to do whatever I had to do to protect her. Even if it meant one day going against my oath and sharing it with a motorcycle club. Because this woman would never again be hurt by anyone.

I would make sure of that.

The rest of my appointments went off without issue. They were all online appointments, and at the end of the day, my back was stiff from sitting at the computer.

I was looking forward to dinner at the clubhouse. I wanted to foster the friendships I had begun to make. I wanted to belong the way the others did.

Shutting down my computer and walking out the kinks around the house, I straightened up a few things before heading outside to see Archie.

“I hate that you have to sit out here all day.”

“Don’t feel bad for me, Doc. I like looking after the old ladies. You all are important, and it is an honor to protect you.”

Those words from anyone else would sound fake. Like they were sucking up with the women to gain points in the club. But there was a sincerity that exuded from Archie.

I wasn’t sure King saw what a treasure they had in this young man. In the days he had been with me, I had invited him in for lunch. I had to call Gunner and tell him to order Archie inside to get him to come in.

Which I didn’t feel bad about.

I enjoyed talking with him. He was a very insightful young man. He wasn’t big like the other guys in the club. And his red hair and freckles gave no doubt as to how he got his road name. But there was something about him that was special.

I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. He didn’t bullshit me. He recognized our lunch dates for what they were. I was shrinking him. He even called me out on it, but he didn’t balk at the opportunity. He even told me that because he wasn’t a patient, he knew I could share with the club anything I learned.

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