The Wedding Pact Box Set - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,69

in silent horror as the dogs knocked over the table. The pans of food fell to the concrete, and the two candles rolled off, one of them setting the tablecloth on fire.

The black cat ran past the spilled food and burning tablecloth, hissing and screeching. One of the dogs looked up, a string of brisket hanging from its mouth, and took off running after the scared cat, which found its exit to the back yard blocked by the bar Kevin had set up the night before. The cat skidded around the corner, the dog gaining on it, while the two other dogs dragged the pans of food away from the now-raging fire.

“Fire!” Nicole shouted. “Bart! Do something!”

Bart ran toward the fire, grabbed a plastic cup off the table, then knelt by the pool and started scooping up some water and tossing it toward the fire.

The cat continued its race around the pool with the dog closing the distance. The fifty-pound lab crashed into one of Megan’s younger cousins, a girl who looked like she was around six years old. The girl fell sideways into the pool, creating a huge splash that drenched the people nearby.

One of the drenched women began screaming, while Megan—who was with them—watched the melee in horror. The little girl surfaced but began flailing in the deep end of the pool.

“I don’t think that little girl can swim,” Josh said to Libby, his voice panicked.

“Oh, God,” Libby shouted. “I think you’re right.” The black cat continued to circle the pool, the dog in hot pursuit. In its haste, the dog knocked over a small table, sending the cups and candle that had been on top skittering across the concrete.

The fire from the tablecloth spread to the nearby table.

“You’ve ruined everything!” Nicole yelled at Bart, who continued to douse the flames with scoops of water.

The back door flung open, bouncing off the house with a loud bang. Gram stood in the doorway, her feet spread apart, holding a fire extinguisher and wearing nothing but her birthday suit. “Did someone say fire?”

The girl was still in the pool, but now she was under water.

Josh kicked off his shoes and dove in, finding the girl close to the bottom of the ten-foot-deep pool. He grabbed her waist with one arm and swam for the top. When they broke through the surface, the girl gasped for air and started crying. She flailed and kicked as Josh swam to the edge of the pool, dragging her with him.

Noah was kneeling at the edge, reaching toward them. “I’ll take her.”

Josh swam over to him, and Noah grabbed her arms, lifting her out. As he set her on her feet, the little girl leaned over Noah’s arm.

Crying out in surprise, he dropped his hold on her. “She bit me!”

Josh clung to the side of the pool, heart racing.

The other two dogs, having devoured the food, joined in the cat chase.

“Take care of those animals!” Nicole shouted over the confusion.

“What do you want me to do?” Bart shouted, still throwing water onto the now raging fire.

Gram stopped in front of the burning food table and fumbled with the fire extinguisher. One of Bart’s brothers moved toward her, trying to keep his gaze averted as he blindly reached for the extinguisher. “Maude, hand it to me and let me do it.”

“I’ve got it,” she said, exasperated.

Megan’s uncle moved closer, still not looking while he held his open hand out—a tactic that accidentally led to him grabbing Gram’s butt. The man shouted in horror, but a wide grin spread across Gram’s face. “I think I just got goosed.”

“For God’s sake, Mother!” Megan’s mother shouted. “Put some clothes on!”

But Gram pulled a pin and tossed it on the ground, then shot foam onto the fire. Once the fire was out, she kept spraying, covering two of the dogs running past. They skidded to a halt, then turned the other way, barreling into Nicole and shoving her into the pool in the shallower end. She went under and came back up, mascara streaming down her face, looking more unkempt than Josh had ever seen her.

“Somebody get those dogs!”

A man in a khaki uniform stood in the open gate, his mouth hanging open as he took in the destruction of the backyard. “Did someone call animal control?”

Nicole climbed up the steps at the entrance to the pool, though part of her hair stayed floating in the water behind her.

“Josh.” Megan knelt next to him. “Are you okay?”

He looked up at