Inmate of the Month (Souls Chapel Revenants MC 7)

I sighed.

“Okay.” I looked toward the road in front of us, my eyes spotting a lone motorcycle ahead. “You know him?”

Laric shrugged. “Too far away to know for sure. Maybe. Probably. There aren’t many bikers in the Souls Chapel area that I don’t know.”

I hummed. “You didn’t want to ride the motorcycle today?”

Give me the chance to be pressed up against you again?

He smiled. “Need to get groceries.”

I sighed in relief.

“Good.” I paused. “You’ll get those while I’m getting my shoulder fixed up?”

He nodded. “I’m gonna run and get groceries. Then I’ll pick up some lunch, then we can go back to the cabin.”

I deflated a slight bit. “Do we have to?”

He looked over at me, his eyes taking me in. “Someone tried to kill you.”

I scrunched up my nose and sank slightly in my seat. “I know.”

“You’re really not doing good there, are you?” he asked.

I sighed. “I’m a really social person. I mean, at least, I am in the sense that I always like to have someone around. It gets to the point where I kind of act out if I’m left alone. I don’t necessarily need someone to be there entertaining me the entire time, but I need someone to be there, just in case I want to look over and see that I’m not alone.”

He frowned. “Is there a reason for that?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know if you know but…I was a twin. My twin died in utero. Maybe that’s why? I don’t think know. Maybe I’m just wired like that? I get myself into a lot of trouble sometimes if I’m bored and lonely enough.”

His lips twitched in amusement. “What kind of trouble?”

I thought about how to answer him, then decided to give him an example.

“Well.” I smiled. “I paint my house, inside and out, at least two times a year.”

His brows rose. “No shit?”

“No shit,” I confirmed. “I just get a wild hair, and suddenly I’m at Lowe’s getting paint supplies.”

“That’s not too bad,” he admitted.

“No,” I agreed. “But there was one time I got the same itch to paint my car. So I did.”

He threw his head back and laughed.

Sadly, after finally getting him started on all things that I did when I got bored, we pulled into the parking lot of the rehabilitation center that I had a ten o’clock appointment at.

All talking ceased, and after getting me not only securely inside, but also making sure that I was in the back and beginning the work on my shoulder, he left.

The older man in his fifties that’d come and gotten me parked me on a table almost directly right inside the door, then looked at me curiously.

“What?” I asked.

He shrugged. “You look a lot like someone that doesn’t really want to be here.”

I snorted. “I don’t know what gave you that idea. I just love the idea of making myself hurt.”

The older man snorted too. “My name is Stephen, and I’m the physical therapist here. I’m going to get you started, talk to you about expectations, then get you sent over to Chastity, a new hire, and she’ll get you started on treatment. Sound good?”

Did I have a choice?

“Sure,” I said. “I’m up for anything.”

After getting the lay of the land, or more aptly the lay of my arm, he started in on a bunch of stretches.

“You can cuss, scream, and anything else that you want to do, as long as it doesn’t cause me any bodily harm. My wife calls me a puss, and I hate to tell you, but I can’t take any pain. I cry myself. So please, for the love of all that’s holy, don’t hit me,” he pleaded.

I unfurled the fist that I hadn’t been aware that I’d fisted and smiled at him apologetically. “Sorry. I won’t hit you, I promise. No matter how much you torture me.”

Stephen laughed and started up all over again, moving my shoulder to the point where I wanted to scream.

At this point, I was glad that Laric had brought his truck. I had to admit that, when I was done here, I might very well only be able to shuffle out the doors.

When Stephen was done with me five minutes later and walking me over to a new station where a familiar looking blonde was sitting, I told him like it was.

“You’re a sadist, aren’t you?” I asked. “That’s the only way I can see you doing this professionally. I mean, it seriously doesn’t make sense to me how one could want to do this job which causes people pain all day every day.”

Stephen laughed, then spent a few minutes going over his plans with the Chastity chick before leaving me alone with her.

“You ready?” she asked, her eyes narrowing dangerously the moment that he left.

I felt the instant cooling of her demeanor, and wondered what in the hell I’d done to her.