The Wedding Pact Box Set - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,330

frown, but he took a deep breath and lifted his hands at his sides, holding his arms horizontal to the ground, palms up. A light shot out from behind him, putting him in silhouette as a bright light surrounded him. He closed his eyes. “And lo, I descend from above to join you two in holy matrimony.”

Libby grabbed Noah’s hand and held tight.

“Do you Elizabeth . . . uh . . .” He pulled the top of his loincloth away from his stomach and looked inside.

Noah leaned close to her and whispered, “If he takes that thing off, I’m leaving, Lib.”

She lifted her hand to her mouth and bit the side of her index finger. “Deal.”

Tito looked up and cleared his throat before returning his arms to their previous positions. “Do you, Elizabeth Gabriella St. Clair, take this man, Noah Michael McMillan, to be your husband?”

She looked up into Noah’s face, her eyes dancing. “I do.”

“To have and to hold in the angel’s glowing light?”

She took a deep breath, her shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter. “I do.”

“Will you stand by his side until his aura fades?”

She grinned. “I will.”

“Will you let his wings spread wide so that he can take flight?”

She tilted her head and gave Noah a mischievous grin. “It depends on where he’s flying off to.”

Tito’s head jutted back in surprise. “Oh.”

“I’ll take it,” Noah said, squeezing her hand. “I’m not planning to fly anywhere without her.”

Tito looked confused by the alteration to his vows.

“Noah Michael McMillan, do you take Elizabeth Gabriella St. Clair to be your wife?”

The words filled him with more hope and joy than he thought possible. “I do.”

“To have and to hold in the angel’s glowing light?”

Her eyes twinkled with mischief. God, he loved her. He never suspected he could ever love anyone this much. “I do.”

“Will you stand by her side until her aura fades?”

He shook his head, lifting his hand to cup her cheek. “Her aura will never fade. Impossible.”

Her eyes glistened as she looked up at him with unabashed love. “Oh, Noah.”

“Um . . . okay . . .” Tito fumbled, clearly unsure what to do.

“I’ve got this, Tito.” Noah reached for Libby’s hands and held them gently in front of him. “Libby, I’m so grateful Josh tricked Megan into letting him be her fiancé.”

Tito’s eyes widened. “Huh?”

“If he hadn’t tried to steal information about her father’s business, we might never have met.”

Tito’s eyes widened even wider.

“I’ve had more fun with you in the last five months than in the previous four hundred and ten combined. But more importantly, I’ve found my best friend. You make me a better man, Libby St. Clair, and I can’t wait start our lives together in Seattle—you, me, and Tortoise.”

She smiled up at him, tears in her eyes. “Noah, you’ve been there for me when everyone else almost gave up on me. Thank you for the last two days, which were exactly what I needed. You’re the only one who’s ever really understood me. But more importantly, you’re the only person in this world I can completely trust. Thank you.”

“Oh, Lib.” He brushed away a tear. “I promise I’ll never let you down.”

“I’m counting on that.”

Tito studied them for a moment and shrugged, then picked up his harp. “The rings.”

Noah tilted his head and grinned. “If he pulls them out of his diaper,” he whispered into her ear, “I’m not using them.”

“We have rings?”

Tito began strumming an unrecognizable tune on the harp, then said in a theatrical voice, “Release the doves.”

Angelica opened a small cabinet door on the wall and two white birds flew out and swooped around the room.

Noah’s mouth dropped open. “You have got to be kidding me.”

Libby started laughing again. “It’s perfect!”

“Hey!” one of the men in the back shouted. “It pooped on me!”

The birds swooped around the room a few times before finally landing on the top of Tito’s harp, the rings dangling from their feet with strings.

“Come get your rings,” Tito said, nodding toward the doves as he continued playing the instrument.

“Is now a bad time to mention I hate birds?” Noah grumbled, inching his way forward.

“I’ll do it,” Libby said as she stepped around him, slowly reaching for the string on the first dove. She handed Noah the ring—hers—then untied the other ring and moved back in front of him.

The back doors burst open, spilling light into the darkened chapel, and Noah wondered what Tito and Angelica could possibly have planned next. Startled, the birds went crazy, flapping their