The Wedding Pact Box Set - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,194

you should give up. Otherwise hardly anyone would get married. So what are you going to do about it?”

Garrett sighed and ran a hand over his head. “My sister told me to show her I’m not an ass anymore, but I’m under a tight deadline here. That plan might work if I had a month or two. So I tried to apologize to her in the kitchen . . .” He wasn’t sure he should confess that she kissed him first. He knew her, and he suspected she was in agony over the thought that she’d just cheated on Neil. “I know she still feels something for me.”

“You need to step up your game, dude.”

Garrett took a long sip of his beer and lowered the bottle. “I think I may have just pushed her away.”

They sat in silence for a minute before Noah said, “I don’t know Blair very well, but I know she likes to act like a hard ass. From what Libby says, she resists letting anyone get close to her.”

Garrett shook his head. “You’re not telling me anything I don’t know.”

“Okay then, Mr. Know It All. How do you get to her?”

He groaned. “Persistence. Patience. Things I don’t have time for.” He motioned to the house behind him. “She’s out there opening wedding gifts with my asshole cousin.” Should he give up? Let her go? But he knew she wasn’t happy with Neil, and said asshole was cheating on her. He just had to make her realize he really loved her, and he’d do his damnedest never to hurt her again.

Noah’s brow lowered in concentration as he stared out into the street. “So what you need is an accelerated plan. Sometimes a chemical reaction speeds up when heat is applied.”

Garrett’s eyes widened.

Noah chuckled. “I’m an engineer, and contrary to what my younger brother thinks, I did pay attention in a few of my college courses.”

“Heat, huh?” He might be right, but he still needed a plan.

“Are you going to their party tomorrow night?”

“Yeah. Nana’s insisted that I attend all of the wedding functions, but I would have been there anyway. I’m going to take every opportunity I can to see her. In fact, we have a deposition together tomorrow.”

“We’ll come up with something by the party. Just keep trying to charm her in the meantime.”

Noah was being a little too friendly—why was this total stranger so gung-ho to lend his assistance? “Why are you helping me? We’re plotting to break up a wedding.”

He grinned. “Instigating trouble is something I’m good at, and Libby’s a perfect partner in crime. The two of us made sure Josh and Megan were officially married, and if we managed to do that, we can definitely break up Blair and Neil’s wedding.”

Garrett’s hand tightened around his beer bottle. “So this is all some game to you?” His voice rose with his anger.

Noah shook his head. “Hell, no. I’m doing it because there’s no way she’s happy with that dickhead.”

Garrett’s gaze jerked up to his. “How do you know?”

“I spent time with them a couple of months ago at Josh’s wedding. The guy’s a total douchebag. Blair might come across as a bitch—no offense, dude—”

He shrugged. He knew how she came across. “None taken.”

“—but she doesn’t seem like the type to tolerate a guy like him for very long.”

Garrett took a long drink. “And yet she has . . . she is.” Could their arrangement be as practical as Neil had suggested?

“Look, I don’t know you, man, but I saw my brother with Megan in June. When he thought he was going to lose her, he was totally messed up. I can’t imagine what would have happened if he hadn’t taken a chance.” He paused, twisting the bottle in his hand. “If you love her, win her over. You still have a couple of days, and the two of you have history. Josh had less than that with Megan. Hell, the two of them met on the plane on her way to her wedding.” He flashed a grin. “But I bet beating the crap out of Blair’s fiancé in front of her friends isn’t going to win you any favors. Not with a pistol like her.” He laughed at the surprise on Garrett’s face. “Yeah, it was pretty easy to see your intention.”

Garrett grinned. “Yeah, you’re right.”

Noah’s smile widened, and he held out his hands. “Why can’t more people see that?”

His grin morphed into a laugh. “Won’t your girlfriend be looking for you soon?”

Noah