The Wedding Pact Box Set - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,96

“It’s such a shame your mother didn’t stick with this one. I really do wish we could exchange it.”

“It’s okay. I’m not getting married anyway.” The saleswoman started to say something, but Megan interrupted her. “It’s a long story. Josh is just filling in.”

The woman took it in stride, which made Megan wonder how many weird stories she heard in her line of work. “Well, let’s let your substitute groom see you.”

“Okay,” Megan said, butterflies fluttering in her stomach. The sales clerk was right. This dress was so much more her. While she hadn’t thought anything of showing the other dress to Josh, this one mattered. What if he didn’t like it?

His back was turned, his eyes gazing out the shop’s windows, but he must have heard the ruffle of silk because he turned slowly to look at her.

She took several steps toward him, then stopped, searching his face for a reaction.

He must have seen the worry in her eyes because he closed the distance between them, gently slipped his hand behind her head and pulled her mouth to his. It was a soft kiss, gentle and reassuring. When he lifted his head, his eyes were filled with warmth. “God, Megan. You’re beautiful.”

She flushed, slightly irritated with herself that his opinion meant so much.

“Your mother is an idiot,” he murmured, picking up her hand as he took a step back. “This dress is so much more you.”

The clerk stood behind Megan, smiling sadly. “It fits perfectly. This dress looks like it was made for you.”

Megan stepped up onto the stage and studied herself in the mirror.

A group of women entered the store, chatting excitedly, and an anxious look filled the saleswoman’s eyes. “My next appointment is here, and the other consultant called in sick.”

Megan forced a smile. “That’s okay. I’m done.” She stepped off the stage, ignoring Josh’s offer to help, confused by her feelings. She couldn’t name all of the emotions brewing in her chest, but she could name one, pushing its way to the front, demanding attention—sadness. She didn’t know if it was over the man she was possibly walking away from or the dress she’d never have, because after wearing it for Josh, she knew she could never wear it for another man.

Chapter Twenty-Three

When they got back into the car, Josh told her that he’d changed his mind. He wanted to get a phone after all.

She told herself it didn’t mean anything, but somehow she sensed it did.

Nevertheless, his earlier distance was gone. She stopped at a phone store next to the shopping mall and stayed with him while he picked out his replacement. He touched her nonstop—either holding her hand or putting an arm around her. And she teased him about how he’d told her earlier in the morning that he was going to be the attentive boyfriend she would either love or hate.

“And which is it so far?” he asked with a grin.

She lifted her eyebrows playfully. “I’ll let you know later, but I have no complaints so far.”

He snaked an arm around her back and pulled her close, searching her eyes.

“You two are so cute,” the sales girl gushed. “It’s so wonderful to see couples in love.”

She expected Josh to pull away or protest, but he only pulled her closer and placed a sweet kiss on her forehead.

In love? It was too soon to make that kind of pronouncement, yet there was no denying she was heading there fast. What if they didn’t go past tonight? How would she live with that? But something told her focusing on the future would be a mistake if it meant missing out on the present.

They left the store and she drove him to a crummy little strip mall, refusing to tell him where they were headed until she parked. “Don’t let the exterior fool you,” she said, pointing at the sign. Faded cartoon characters adorned the sign. A man on a horse carrying a Mexican flag was next to a man with a huge handlebar mustache holding a set of maracas. A third man was about to take a bite out of a huge taco. “Three Amigos has the best Mexican food I’ve ever eaten. And they make great margaritas, too.”

“You don’t have to sell me on it. We’re already here. And I’m starving, so let’s go get a table.”

Fifteen minutes later, their orders were in and Megan had already polished off one margarita and, after Josh’s assurance he’d drive to the courthouse, asked for a second