looked at Lauren’s long, manicured nails. He wondered if the dog would ever see again.
Lauren hurried on. “She’s housebroken and won’t be a problem, I promise.” The woman lifted those Emerald Bay eyes to him.
How did women do that? It seemed they had an internal button marked “charm weapon” that they turned on when they needed it. Garrett winced inside, but his lips rose at the corners. There was a strict “no pets” policy—why would Macy and Molly tell her a dog was all right? He sighed. He couldn’t turn her away. She was the one normal applicant in the group. Well, at least she appeared normal. Still, the dog was questionable.
“That’s fine, Miss Romey—”
“Please, call me Lauren.” Her eyes twinkled.
Oh, sure, now that I’ve accepted her dog, it’s Lauren. “Lauren,” he repeated. “If you want to step into the front room, I have your key on a desk there.”
As they walked down the hall, Garrett heard her footsteps behind him and wondered what she would think of the place. A woman like her no doubt stayed in only the nicest inns and hotels. He squared his shoulders. Why should he care what she thought? Woods Inn could rival the best of them.
She gasped as he led her into an enormous room with a massive stone fireplace that stretched to a cathedral ceiling. He glanced back at her and followed her gaze from the brown beams arched above to the dark warm carpet beneath their feet. Though the room was large, the subdued lighting that shone from corner lamps gave it a sort of cozy feel. Well, that was what his girls had told him, anyway.
“This is very nice,” Lauren said as though she meant it.
“Thanks. My girls offer the feminine touch with the plants and fluffy pillows, all that. If I had my way, I’d have bear heads mounted on the wall.”
Lauren grimaced.
Garrett laughed. “Yeah, that’s kind of what my daughters thought.”
“How old are your girls?”
“Macy is nineteen and Molly is sixteen,” he said. “Macy had a childhood illness that caused her to start school late.”
“Won’t be long until you will have an empty nest—well, except for your visitors.”
He thought a moment. “It’s funny. My wife and I were working hard to make the adjustment easier—you know, dating, still making time for each other so that we wouldn’t grow apart and then be strangers once the girls were gone. With my wife’s death, I’m afraid the adjustment won’t be quite as easy.” He didn’t like the vulnerable feeling that swept over him. Walking over to a large wooden desk, he made a couple of notes in the log book and handed Lauren a key. “Would you care for a snack before you settle in? It’s on the house,” he said with a smile.
“No, thank you. I’m pretty tired.”
“Here, let me help you to your room,” he said, grabbing her luggage.
In silence they climbed the small spiral staircase together. Garrett opened the door to her room, allowed her entrance and placed the luggage just inside the door. She turned to him. “I will need to take Nocchi out. Is there a preferred area?”
He thought a moment. “You’d better let me know when you’re ready. I have a black Lab outside.” Alpha dog, he wanted to say. The thought made him feel proud, even a trifle studly. “Bear is chained, but I don’t want him to startle Nocchi.” One look at Bear, and she’d wish she’d left her dog at home.
“Thank you,” she said before closing her door.
He turned to go back down the stairs, feeling a tad ashamed of his thoughts. What had gotten into him anyway? He was grumpy, that’s what. He didn’t appreciate the position in which his girls had placed him. Not one bit. As Garrett walked down the stairs, he wondered how on earth he could endure the next couple of weeks with five strange women and a cross-eyed hairball.
Chapter Three
A sense of restfulness greeted Lauren the moment she stepped into her room. The pleasing scent of cinnamon wafted from a dainty dish of potpourri. Compliments of Garrett’s daughters, no doubt.
She wondered about these girls who had lost their mother. Her heart squeezed with compassion for them. She looked forward to meeting them. They had to be beautiful if they resembled Garrett in any way. Thick dark hair crowned his head with soft curls, stopping short of wide, dark eyes. She would not have been surprised to learn he had Greek ancestry. His manner seemed cautiously friendly, almost business-professional with a smidgen of warmth thrown in for good measure.
She didn’t need to be thinking about the hotelier’s good looks.
She lowered Nocchi’s carrier on the floor and glanced around. Earth tones covered the bed, plump pillows and window tops. Color-coordinated pictures depicting woodsy scenes hung here and there against the pine-paneled walls. A heavy wooden rocker with thick cushions added the perfect touch to this rustic yet inviting bedroom. At one corner a door led to a good-sized bath area, complete with a roomy shower.
Lauren took a deep breath. She was glad she had come—this was exactly what she needed. Picking up her cell phone, she decided she’d call Gwen, since Candace had already left for London.
Punching the numbers, she waited while the phone rang.
“Hello?” Gwen answered with her usual enthusiasm.
“Hi, Gwen. This is Lauren. Just wanted to let you know I made it to the B and B and it is wonderful, just as you and Candace said.”
“Oh, I’m so glad, Lauren!” Gwen said, her chewing gum snapping as she talked. “I think you’re going to have a wonderful time.” She popped a bubble. Lauren couldn’t understand for the life of her why Gwen—a grown woman—still insisted on chewing bubble gum. To her credit, she did try to chew discreetly, but a bubble here and there always managed to pop during a conversation, giving her all the grace of a junior high school student. “I’m praying for you.”
“Thank you.” Despite her gum and party attitude, Gwen had a way of making those with whom she talked feel as though they were the most important people in the world. Lauren’s heart warmed as the two discussed her trip to California and how much fun she was sure to have. “I don’t know what I’d do without you and Candace.”
Gwen’s gum stopped snapping and she seemed to grow pensive, something she didn’t do often. “We have a special friendship. We’re always here for you, just as you’ve been there for us. “Now,” she said, her perky voice back in place, gum popping, “you get some rest while you’re there, okay? No more doom and gloom!”
“Will do. And Gwen?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks again.”
“You’re welcome.”
Lauren put her cell phone on the nightstand and lifted her luggage onto the bed. Nocchi whined, obviously wanting out of her prison.
“Oh, dear, I forgot about you, didn’t I?” Lauren walked over and opened
