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And in that moment, I was excited to think about standing next to Sarah on her big day.

She deserved to be in love, and Connor complemented her in every way. And not just in the looks department, with their dark hair and height, but in their choice of career; they were both soldiers; they both knew what it meant to sacrifice . . . truly sacrifice.

They were made for each other.

But as happy as I was for her, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy toward her. It had been so easy for Sarah to fall in love with Connor. She had told me he was the one the first day she’d laid eyes on him, when he had transferred to Fort Gray a couple of years ago.

As hard as I had tried with Aaron, I could never get there with him, could never fully commit myself to him. He had been kind and funny, handsome, with soft features and freckles scattered across his nose and cheeks. And his eyes had been a green so deep they were easy to lose yourself in, the shade of them what haunted me the most now. But something had always been missing between us, like we could never fully click into place. And I hated myself for it.

Sarah kissed my cheek, unaware of the sadness in my thoughts, and walked over to Connor, wrapping her arms around him.

The two of them made it look easy. Simple.

Two people meant to be together.

“Hi, love.” Kyle’s hot breath came close to my ear, the tang of his cologne overwhelming. My body curved in on itself at the unwelcome presence. “I was only joking earlier. You can have a shot, too.” He set down a glass in front of me, slightly brushing the side of my body with his.

I recoiled at the touch.

“No, thanks,” I said, trying not to breathe the scent of his air through my nose. “I’d rather drink gasoline than a shot your hands have been on.”

“What? Scared I put something in it?” he whispered, his closeness pissing me off. “Don’t worry, love, I have no interest in getting in your pants.” He slung back a shot of his own, slamming the empty glass down on the table in front of me. “Not when the last man you let in wound up dead.”

First, I saw red.

Then, my ears filled with a static so loud I lost my fucking mind.

CHAPTER FOUR

BRYN

Before I could stop myself, my palm was in Kyle’s nose, pushing upward, his blood spraying my face.

He bent forward, his hands searching for his nose, but I didn’t give him the chance to stanch the flow of blood as I grabbed his shoulders and drove my knee straight into his groin—his most sensitive parts a pillow cushioning the impact for me.

The poor bastard dropped to the floor screaming, perfectly positioned to drive my boot down onto his temple. But before I could try, arms came around my midsection, hauling me away from his slumped-over body.

“You bitch!” Kyle screamed, clutching at his face, and then his balls. “You broke my fucking nose!”

I wrestled against the arms around me, the urge to finish what I’d started screaming inside my bones. “I’ll break your fucking arms next!” I raged, the static moving from my ears down to my throat.

Hunter shouted in my ear as he worked to drag me toward the bar’s front door. “Fuck, Bryn . . . calm down!”

He kicked the door open, the night air hitting my face like ice-cold water, shocking my system, my adrenaline immediately waning.

“You got him good, sis, but now you need to try and calm down⁠—”

I pushed out of my brother’s hold and walked across the parking lot, tears falling hot down my face.

I wanted to murder Kyle. I wanted him to pay for his cruel joke.

Aaron was buried six feet under while Kyle was alive and well, free to parade his pompous ass around.

It should be an asshole like Kyle buried deep in the ground. Not Aaron.

And it was all my fault.

Hunter caught up to me, turning me around gently, then taking me into his arms.