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 took sip of his beer, then lowered his bottle. “Libby’s not my girlfriend. She’s just a friend.”
Garrett studied him for a moment. Given the way those two acted around each other, he was pretty sure Noah might need a straight talk of his own.
“Libby’s worried about her and would do anything to protect her. That’s why she and Megan were so quick to jump in when Neil showed up.”
That got Garrett’s attention. “Blair’s not the type to tolerate people hovering and taking care of her. She’s too independent for that. I can’t believe she let Megan drag her off like that.”
“Blair hasn’t been acting like herself lately, and like I said, they’re worried about her. They think she’s making a mistake but is too scared to admit it. If they push too hard, she’ll do it anyway just to prove them wrong.”
Garrett suspected they were right.
“I’m sure the way Neil was acting in the kitchen hasn’t done much to set them at ease.” Noah drained his bottle, then stood. “Let’s go out there and keep an eye on the douchebag. Libby doesn’t trust him, and neither do I.”
Though the last thing he wanted to do was watch Neil parade around with Blair, he forced himself to rise from the stoop. If he truly wanted a chance with her, what choice did he have? Maybe it was time to tell her that Neil was cheating on her. Perhaps it would ease the guilt she was sure to be feeling. But he worried it would harden her heart against love even more, or worse, she’d accuse him of lying about her worst fear in a desperate attempt to win her back.
He’d sit on the information and hope he could win her over his way. He only hoped his way didn’t take too long.
Chapter Sixteen
Blair didn’t have a lot of experience with showers, but this had to be the strangest one she’d ever attended. After the gifts, Knickers divided the attendees into three teams and set them to work draping one team member with toilet paper in an attempt to create a wedding dress.