Megan laughed. “And that’s exactly how it happened. You got sent to the principal’s office the very first day for cursing.”
Neil gave her a disapproving look, but Garrett was beaming.
Debra cleared her throat. “That’s two dollars, Blair.” She passed the kitty to her daughter, who leaned forward and reached it out toward her.
Blair chuckled and pulled two dollars from her pocket and stuck them in the jar. Then she winked at Megan, who was wiping her eyes. “Best two dollars I ever spent.”
Hopefully most of the questions and answers wouldn’t be like that—otherwise, Blair was doomed to embarrass herself with tears. Blair grabbed another question.
“What is Blair’s idea of a fun night?” She looked over the one-sentence answer, then read it out loud. “Working in her office.” She glanced up. “Debra.” Even if she hadn’t known, the tight loopy handwriting would have given it away.
Debra’s mouth pinched into a frown. “You really need to get a hobby, dear. Like quilting or couponing . . . so you’ll have something to occupy your time when the babies come.”
Garrett looked like he was going to combust, but Josh and Noah now sat on either side of him, and they each grabbed hold of him.
Gram’s mouth twisted with worry. “Maybe I should take my present back if you’re already pregnant. It’s a box full of edible underwear and lotions.”
“I am not pregnant,” Blair said, vehemently shaking her head.
Libby giggled and patted Gram’s arm. “And even if she were pregnant, she could still eat it . . . I mean wear it.” She and half their friends broke out into hysterical laughter.
Blair might have joined them if she wasn’t about to bolt out of the chair.
Knickers patted her shoulder. “Maybe we should read another question.”
Blair went through several more papers, most of them easy to guess. And even if she couldn’t guess who’d written the answer, all she had to do was keep an eye on the group as she read the paper. She was used to reading people, and the person usually gave himself or herself away without realizing it.
After about ten minutes, the crowd was getting restless, so Knickers handed her the bowl and said, “Last one, Blair. Make it a good one.”
She opened the paper and automatically read, “Your first impression of Blair.” Then she stopped when she saw the words that followed. Her heart sped up, and she glanced up at Garrett, his eyes dark and intense.
“Go on,” Knickers encouraged.
The words swam on the page through her tears. Oh, God. She couldn’t believe what he’d written, and she definitely didn’t have the strength to read it out loud.
Before she knew what was happening, Knickers pulled the paper from her hand and started to read. “I was blown away by her confidence. Most of us were anxious, but not Blair. She walked into class like she owned the place and let everyone know she was the one to follow. I could see she held people at a distance, afraid to let them close. But that first day, as she walked past me, I looked into her eyes—something everyone else was too intimated to do—and she held my gaze for a mere second, but it was long enough for me to see she was just as nervous as the rest of us. She was only better at hiding it. It took me six months to work up the courage to ask her out for pizza and beer. And when she sat across from me that first night, I lost my heart to her forever.”
Blair’s skin prickled and panic swam through her head as she glanced up at Neil’s furious face.
Knickers pulled the paper to her chest and sighed. “Neil, that is so romantic.”
The other women in the crowd gushed over him, and he forced a smile. “What can I say?”
Garrett glanced at his cousin in disbelief as Debra said, “I didn’t know you had any classes with Blair. I thought you were introduced by a friend.”
Blair could feel herself losing her tenuous grasp on control. She slid out of the chair, desperate to escape.
Megan jumped out of her seat as though someone had shot her in the ass. “Time for cake!”
Knickers shook her head. “But I have another game.”
“But everyone wants cake, Mom.” Then she pulled Blair’s arm and tugged her toward the back door. “We’ll go get it. Libby too.”
“Megan!” Knickers called after her. “You can’t make the bride get her own cake!”
“She wants first pick!” Libby said as she hurried after them into the house. “And she has a really hard time making up her mind, so this might take a while. We’ll be out when she’s done.”
“But there’s only one flavor,” Megan’s mother called after them.
Megan shoved Blair through the door, and when Libby entered, Megan shut the door and locked it.
Blair began to pace and sucked in deep breaths of air, feeling dangerously close to losing it.
“Blair,” Megan said, “talk to us.”
She shook her head. “There’s nothing to talk about.” She just had to whip herself into shape, go back out there, and finish this party. Then she could go home and sleep.
“How about starting with why you’re so upset,” Libby suggested.
“I’m perfectly fine!” she practically shouted.
“Okay . . .” Megan said, lifting her hands in surrender.
“Please,” Blair begged. “Just give me a minute to catch my breath.”
She continued to pace while sucking in deep breaths. What should she do? She had finally composed herself after getting caught in the kitchen, but then Garrett had written that damn answer . . . Part of her desperately wanted to talk to him, but based on the way she seemed to lose all sense of reason when she was near him, she suspected there wouldn’t be much talking. She couldn’t risk it.