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

studying the wall where he’d just thrown Leo only a few minutes earlier.
    “We love you, Leo. We always have, even if Garrett can’t admit it right now. We’re like an isosceles triangle. All our angles are equal and all our lines are the same length. But it only works when we’re together.”
    He smiled and thought better of it when it reached his eye. “You’re talking about us like we’re geometry.”
    “We are, sort of,” she said. “Garrett and I… we have a good relationship. He loves me and I love him. But we both know that we’re not complete.”
    He saw her eyes water for a moment before she blinked the tears away. She flashed him that beautiful smile that always undid him. He’d been angry when he’d left the cabin. He’d thought about not coming back. But he had. Because deep inside, there was something there. He wasn’t completely sure what it was, but physical pain choked his breathing every time he thought about Garrett and Brianna leaving him for good, never to return.
    “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Bri.” That was the truth. His intention wasn’t to hurt her but rather to convince her not to want him.
    “Yes, you did,” she laughed. “But I know why. It’s okay.”
    “You’re far more forgiving than I would be,” Leo told her. Garrett grunted his agreement but didn’t look at them.
    Bri glanced at Garrett then back to Leo where she handed him the ice pack. “Maybe it’s because I’m not the one you hurt the most.” She stood up, her dainty little feet making soft little footfalls as she walked back toward the door. “I’m going back to bed. I’ll not push the issue right now, Leo. You guys have worn me the hell out and I need some time away from you two. But later? We’re going to discuss this.” She glanced back at Garrett. “Like adults.”
    Talking about his relationship with anyone, much less with his married best friends wasn’t high on his priority list. She knew that. She probably knew he’d also do anything to get out of it later, yet she was letting him off the hook now. Confusion clouded his judgment with her, and especially with Garrett.  Around them, rational thought took a vacation.
     “Thanks, Bri.”
    “We take care of each other, Leo,” she said, “because a triangle needs all of its sides to be strong.”
    She stopped in the doorway and glanced at Garrett. Leo watched as Garrett squeezed her hand lightly and gave her an apologetic smile. Then she left.
    Garrett glanced at him, pinning him with an angry stare. Leo sighed, finally seeing what Bri had meant when she’d said she wasn’t the one hurt the most. “Garrett, I—”
    “Shut up.” Garrett’s voice was gravelly. “I don’t want to talk right now.”
    As Garrett stormed out of the room, Leo dropped his head in his hands. He’d made a major mess of things.
    ~*~*~
    The next morning, Garrett was not as pissed as he wanted to be, especially when he saw the mess she’d made of the kitchen for breakfast. Pancakes piled high on a plate by the stove. Flour all over the counters. The stove had burn marks where the pan had been sitting. Leo was going to have a conniption. He scooped her into his arms, dropping a soft kiss on her lips. “Hey, baby.”
    “Hey,” she said, a smile bright and clear on her face, very different from the heartbroken woman from the night before. Her ability to bounce back amazed him, though he knew she was holding it back. “Where did you put my shampoo? I couldn’t find it earlier.”
    “In that little plastic case you have all your lotion stuff in,” he said.
    “Oh, good, because I need to take a shower and I’m not happy with the frizz.” She waved at her non-existent frizz. She was always so paranoid. She never realized just how beautiful she really was.
    “Don’t you think you’ve taken enough showers?”
    “You can never be too clean!”
    He smiled and slid his hand underneath the boxers she wore. He was disappointed to find she was wearing