Chapter 3

The room I'd gotten ready for Frankie was unrecognizable.

The fresh bedding had been stripped and dumped over a chair. Leather jackets and evening dresses were crammed into the closet. Marnie's skincare, camera, and shopping bags covered the dresser, and a huge stuffed white polar bear sat in the middle of the bed like a flag planted on conquered territory.

Downstairs, the front door opened, and I heard Marnie laugh. "Thanks for taking me to the Northern Lights exhibit, Soren. Today was awful, but that totally cheered me up."

Soren came in, tugging off his gloves. "Marnie got into it with the patrol trainees again. The council's investigating, and the dorms have turned hostile. I told her she could stay here for a few days."

"I told you last week that Frankie was moving into this room tonight."

He paused for half a second.

That was all I needed. He'd forgotten completely.

When I'd brought it up, he hadn't even looked away from his laptop. He'd said Frankie was my friend and I didn't need his approval.

Now his mouth went tight. "I forgot. That's on me." He reached into his coat and pulled out a music box. "I picked this up at the exhibit. I'll take you this weekend."

I recognized the logo on the base. I'd wanted to see that exhibit since opening night. For three months, he'd told me he couldn't spare a single evening.

Tonight, he'd found the time for Marnie.

I took the music box, walked into the kitchen, and dropped it in the trash.

The color drained from Soren's face. Marnie rushed forward. "This is my fault. When Frankie gets here, we can share the room. I really don't mind."

I walked right past her with a smile and carried her clothes, camera, makeup, and stuffed bear out into the hallway.

Her eyes filled instantly. "Where am I supposed to sleep tonight?"

I nodded toward the master bedroom. "With Soren. You two already act more like mates than we do."

Her face went bright red. "Wren! If you don't want me here, just say so. You don't have to humiliate me."

She covered her face and ran outside.

For once, Soren didn't go after her right away. He looked at me first, brows drawn together. "She didn't take Frankie's room on purpose. The council might ban her from pack events for fighting a ranked member, and she's terrified. If you didn't want her here, you could have just told me instead of tearing her apart."

"This is my home too. You brought another woman into it and gave away the room I'd set up for my friend, and somehow I'm the one who owes everybody an apology?"

Soren rubbed his forehead. "She had nowhere else to go. It's only for a few nights. I thought the Luna of this pack could show a new member a little compassion. Besides, you never needed my permission to have Frankie over either."

A month ago, I would have fought until my throat hurt. I would have reminded him that Frankie didn't wear his clothes, didn't ask him for midnight snacks, and didn't post suggestive photos with her body pressed up against his.

I would have demanded to know why one tear from Marnie mattered more than everything I felt.

Now I just nodded. "You're right. Neither of us needs the other's permission."

Which meant I didn't need his permission to leave Ashen Ridge. I didn't need it to end our marriage. And I definitely didn't need it to raise my child somewhere Soren would never find us.

I opened the front door for him. "You should go check on Marnie. I have to finish packing."

That answer rattled him more than anger would have.

Soren crossed the room and wrapped his hand around my wrist. The mate mark warmed under his fingers, but all I felt was tired.

"She can stay at a hotel." His gaze moved past me to the open suitcase in the living room, and his expression changed. "Why are you packing? Wren, where are you going?"