A while later a car door slammed outside, causing Lauren to wake up. She lifted her head with a start, feeling somewhat disoriented. Reality hit her like a splash from Lake Tahoe. She was at a B and B vying for the affections of a man she hardly knew. Why? For one thing, to please her friends who had gone through all the trouble to get her there. Secondly? She had been pushed aside by one woman already in the past six months.
She wasn’t about to move over again.
Wait. The stakes weren’t the same—were they? It’s not as though she was in love with Garrett Cantrell, after all. Her chin rose. Still, she would not step aside. Lauren’s friends wanted her to win—what was the prize again? Hadn’t the reporter called the contest “Win Daddy’s Heart”? Well, she didn’t want the entanglement any more than Garrett did, but she could at least enjoy the adventure. That would show Jeff Levinger and Camilla Renfrow a thing or two.
Lauren walked over and peeked out the window. Garrett and Ellen had returned. Neither looked very happy.
When Garrett and Ellen stepped into the house, Macy and Molly looked at them with hope in their eyes. Garrett was not a happy camper. Not even a happy B and B owner. In fact, he was beginning to think that the whole dad thing was way overrated.
“Good night, Garrett,” Ellen croaked in barely a whisper, her glasses slipping down her nose. She cleared her throat and pushed her spectacles back into place.
“Good night, Ellen,” he said, much as he would talk to a child. When her back was turned toward the stairs, he motioned for his daughters to follow him into the den. They obeyed. Closing the door behind them, Garrett walked over in front of the sofa where they sat.
“Didn’t it go well?” Macy was the first to ask.
“That’s the understatement of the year, Macy.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “And I have far too many days left of this.”
“I don’t get it. We had the contestants fill out a personality profile and they all seemed to match with your likes and dislikes,” Molly said.
“I think some of them didn’t answer honestly,” Macy added.
“Bingo!” Garrett said with far too much attitude.
“We’re sorry, Dad. We thought we were doing a good thing, but you’re not enjoying it,” Molly said. She looked down at the floor, her expression forlorn, disappointed.
He hated it when she did that. Got to him every time. “Look, girls, I appreciate your efforts, but this just isn’t me. When I meet a woman, it will be unplanned, just something that happens, and I’ll let nature take its course.” He thought of Lauren and, not ready to deal with what that meant, quickly pushed her from his thoughts.
Molly brightened. “What about Gracie and Lauren? You seem to enjoy them. Or maybe one of the other women?”
Molly, his bold, tenacious one. When she got an idea, she clenched it as tight as Bear with a steak bone. “They’re nice ladies, but I don’t know. Gracie talks too much, and though I enjoy being around Lauren, we’re as different as night and day.”
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