Page 217 of Heart of Frost and Scars

“Move, woman.” Kody advances, an animal on the hunt.

“Let them by.” Adrenaline pumping, I push back my shoulders, prepared to face their wrath.

Every instinct urges me to go to her, to set her out of the way. But if I take one step forward, they’ll attack, and she’ll be caught in the fray.

So I keep my feet planted, my stance wide, and I wait.

“No!” She stands her ground. “I won’t let you hurt him. I put myself in that situation. Me! I did this!”

“You chose him.” Kody’s black eyes turn blacker, pulsing with pain. “You chose him over us.”

“You’re wrong.” Her voice shatters. “I’ll never choose. I can’t. I want all of you. I love all of you. I’m the problem.” She pounds her chest. “I’m the monster. The toxic red flag.”

Leo flinches, his eyes flickering with confusion and anger before he turns that battle back on me. “I’ll kill you for this.”

“I won’t apologize for loving my wife.” Engulfed in the flames of their territorial fury, I crack my neck. “Do your worst.”

48

Kodiak

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“No! Stop this!” Frankie jabs a finger at Monty and spins back to Leo and me. “Focus on me, not him.”

I glare into her eyes, recognizing the desperation she holds for him, the fierce need to protect and defend him.

The betrayal I feel is a gaping, unbearable, soul-deep wound, and that look on her face pours salt into it.

“You love him,” I whisper, my voice breaking.

“Yeah.” Her chin trembles. “I love him. And you. And Leo.”

Behind her, Monty’s eyes soften immediately, and a subtle quiver sweeps across his mouth as if he’s struggling to hold back a sappy declaration.

“For how long?” Leo pitches forward, bringing his face nearer to hers. “Have you been fucking around with him since we moved in?”

She flinches, curling in on herself as if he took a sledgehammer to her chest.

I snarl at him, baring my teeth.

Monty’s face turns to stone.

With a deep inhale, she lowers her arms and squares her shoulders.

“I told you I loved him in the gym three months ago. My feelings for him have been shifting, returning, deepening into something new. But I never acted on them. I haven’t so much as kissed him until tonight.” Her chin dips. “I’m sorry.”

“You didn’t kiss me!” Monty swipes a hand through the air. “Don’t apolog—”

“I never intended to hurt you.” She presses the heel of her hand to her sternum. “I’m so fucking sorry for your pain, and I won’t make excuses for my behavior. But I need to understand…” She aims her watery gaze at me. “You said I wasn’t a possession, a thing to own. You shared me with Leo because you knew we would be happier together than divided. Why is this different?”

“I trust Monty with our safety, with our business deals, but not with this. Not with you.” The pain in my chest intensifies. “Monty doesn’t share. His obsession with you threatens everything we have.”

“He’s right.” Monty inhales sharply. “I won’t share.”

“Shut the fuck up!” Leo roars. “You’ve caused enough damage.”

“Stop yelling.” She stands taller, fisting her hands at her sides. “Monty didn’t cause this. I did. You want to fight? Fight me.”

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