The Wedding Pact Box Set - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,238

on the way out. He gave her a slight nod before she ran down the hall.

But Blair missed their silent interaction because she’d turned her attention back to Garrett. “And you . . . you worthless, disgusting excuse for a man.”

“Blair,” he pleaded. “Please listen to me.”

Blair rushed toward him and shoved his chest. “There’s not one damn thing I want to hear from you. I’ve heard enough to last a lifetime.”

The pain in her eyes seized his heart, squeezing tight. How was he going to fix this? “It’s not how it looks.”

Contempt washed over her face. “Do you have any idea how many times I’ve heard those exact same words from the couples filing into my office? Do you think I’m an idiot?” She released a harsh laugh. “Oh, wait. I think this proves you do. Screw stupid Blair—then laugh about it with your cheap girlfriend.”

She was killing him. “Blair.”

Neil put an arm around her shoulders, but she shoved it off. Garrett expected him to flinch from the rejection—instead, he grinned. “Blair, don’t listen to him. He screwed you last night, and he didn’t even wait for the hotel staff to change the sheets before he invited his girlfriend back over. I warned you that his room had a revolving door.”

Blair shook her head in disgust.

Garrett took a step toward her. “He’s doing this to get back at me, Blair. Layla’s Neil’s girlfriend. Not mine.”

She put her hands on her hips. “And she just happened to be half-naked in your room?”

“It’s not how it looks. I love you, Blair. You have to believe me. Nothing has changed that.”

She glared at him, her face wrinkling in disgust. “You’re right, Garrett. Nothing has changed. You’re still the lying, cheating bastard I thought you were five years ago. You’re not man enough to be in a relationship. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to fall for your bullshit. Again.”

Neil put his hand on her arm. “Blair, let’s go. You need to rest before the wedding.”

She turned her gaze on him, venom in her eyes. “You think we’re still getting married?”

Neil rolled his eyes. “Of course we’re still getting married. Everything was fine until he showed up. Now that his true colors have shown through, there’s no reason we wouldn’t proceed with the wedding. Just like we planned.”

Blair looked at Garrett, and he watched as the anger on her face faded, replaced with dismay.

“I don’t know that woman, Blair. Neil sent her here to break us up.” Garrett’s voice cracked. “You have to believe me.”

“I don’t have to do shit.” She spun around and stomped down the hall. “I don’t ever want to see your sorry face again. Go to fucking hell!”

“Blair!” he shouted, trying to run after her.

Neil blocked his path and gave him a stone-cold smile. “I told you not to screw with me, Garrett. I warned you that I always win.”

Horror washed through him. “Oh, my God. You would hurt her like that to get back at me?”

Hate filled Neil’s eyes. “I put it together after we started dating. It wasn’t too hard. She went to the same law school you did, at the same time. She was dumped by a guy who slept his way through the school. So did you. It was a nice bonus, knowing I was seeing your old girlfriend. But then Nana insisted you come to the wedding, so I put an insurance policy in place to encourage her to keep our engagement. Just in case.”

Oh, God. “Your friend is the junior partner who told her about the potential partnership or firing. He made it all up.” He felt like he was going to throw up. “What the fuck, Neil?”

“Knowing how much she holds a grudge, I figured she’d castrate you on sight. But I had to make sure you wouldn’t screw this up for me, so I convinced Ben to tell Blair the story about the partnership. She holds her job sacred, so I knew that even if she were still attracted to you, she’d never act on it. She’d offer up her firstborn child to stay at her firm. I never thought she’d consider dumping her job for you.”

“Why are you trying to keep her so badly? Is this really all about you and me?”

“God, you really are a narcissist. Stealing something you want is a bonus. The thing I don’t understand is why you want her. She’s perfect for me. We’ll live our mostly separate lives, but we’ll both have the