Free Let It Snow by Cari Quinn, Emily Ryan-Davis, Suzan Butler, Sadie Haller, Holley Trent, Vivienne Westlake

better.
    “I love you too.” He stroked his fingers along her hip, each movement throwing kindling on the fire building inside him. Leo could be stubborn. He could be an ass. Garrett’s temper flared inside him, burning like a Roman candle, ready to explode. When he got back, he’d let Leo know that Brianna Zane never hurt for anything. That it was their job to protect her, not hurt her.
     

Chapter Six
     
     
    The snow had fallen steadily for hours, making it difficult for even his four by four to make it through. When he made it back, he knew he was stuck there for possibly days. He’d considered not coming back. But they wouldn’t have enough food to last them. They were his friends. He couldn’t’ do that to them.
    Dread filled him as he opened the front door, halfway expecting the two to be standing on the other side. But the living room was deserted. He’d been gone hours. At close to dinner time now, he couldn’t imagine what they were doing now. Their bedroom was shut. Even the bathroom door was shut.
    He’d never felt truly alone in the cabin before. Miserable and guilty, he rubbed his chest, over the anchor tattoo. Fuck, even when he was upset, he reached for something that reminded him of Garrett. He grabbed several bags from the back of his truck and brought them inside. Unloading the truck only took a few minutes. He restocked the kitchen with his newly bought groceries. The weather forecast called for the snow to continue for hours, maybe days. The roads would close in about four more hours if the snow continued this way. At least that’s what the police had told him on his way back up the mountain.
    Normally, being trapped in a cabin with his best friends wasn’t a big deal. Last time, they’d stocked up the firewood and gas and had a good time with movies and long talks about random shit by the fireplace.
    Things had changed.
    The cabin was quiet, so he figured that Bri and Garrett were off doing couple things or maybe napping. Who the hell knew? They weren’t around, which he wasn’t sure if he should be thankful for or terrified of. While it disappointed him that they weren’t close, being a couple was something that they needed to do. They needed to reaffirm their relationship.
    He rolled his eyes at himself. Relationships. Reaffirmation. Next thing he knew, he’d be all Stuart Smalley in here. What the hell was happening to him? He leaned against the counter and listened to the quiet of the cabin. Frustrated with himself, and his inability to deal with the emotions he had churning inside, he went to his current bedroom, shutting out the rest of the world.
    The door burst open, bright light flooding his still darkened bedroom. Garrett’s large body shadowed over him and then he was airborne. His back slammed into the wall and shock had him crumbling to the floor.
     “Get up, asshole.”
    Leo sluggishly slid his body back up to a standing position, his back biting with pain.
    “Garrett, what—”
    Stars burst in his vision as Garrett’s fist slammed into the side of his face. Leo stumbled to the side with the force.
    Damn, Garrett packed one hell of a punch. He grabbed Garrett’s swinging arm, covering the anchor tattoo with his hand and deflected the next punch. He jumped back, and pressed his fingertips to where Garrett had hit him, just at the corner of his left eye. “What the fuck, man?”
    “It’s one thing to be fucking scared, dude,” Garrett growled. “It’s another to hurt my wife in the process. I won’t let you.”
    Leo balanced his hands on his knees, half bent over to keep the room from spinning. Hockey fights were one thing. There was only so hard a person could hit on the ice. This was the punch of a man who was utterly, completely pissed off. And really, he didn’t blame him one freaking bit.
    “It’s better this way, okay?”
    Garrett came at him again, his fist coming for his gut. Leo sideswiped him, deflecting yet again. “Fuck, stop,