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“I make the best peanut butter cookies you’ve ever tasted.” While not a humble statement, it’s an accurate one. “They’ve won a blue ribbon in the county fair for four years running. They’re even better than Faith’s.”
She claps her hands with so much enthusiasm you’d think I’d just given birth to a litter of kittens. “You are theperfectsmall-town girl!”
Someone at the table calls out, “As long as she’s not wanted by the FBI.”
“Or Interpol …” another helpful voice contributes.
Trina asks a few more questions that I forget as soon as I answer. I’m seriously starting to wonder if this show is for me. But then I remember I’ve had a grand total of six dates in the last two years. If I want to stay in Elk Lake, I’m going to need some help.
Trina eventually approaches me and takes my hands in hers. “I can’t wait to have you on the show, Paige. You’re a real prize.”
Feeling like a deer caught in the headlights of a truck convoy, I nod my head. I’m starting to realize what the repercussions could be for going onMidwestern Matchmaker. I could meet the man of my dreams and live happily ever after, or this experience could be a total failure.
Either way, I guess I’m about to find out.
CHAPTER TWO
TIM
“Pass me the salt, will you?” My dad’s eyes are glued to his newspaper as his hand shoots out in my direction.
Handing him the grinder, I ask, “Why don’t you read the news on your phone like normal people do?”
He lifts the paper to his nose and inhales deeply. “I like the smell of newsprint. It reminds me of my childhood.” I’m guessing my dad used to be a glue sniffer.
“The crew fromMidwestern Matchmakeris setting up shop at the club today,” I tell him. “They’ll be shooting for the next five weeks.”
“Do you have everything under control, or do you need me to come in and lend a hand?” He sounds so hopeful. My family owns the country club and until very recently my dad was there six days a week making sure everything ran smoothly. He’s finally retired after years of my mom’s pleading, and he is not taking to it easily.
“I’ve got it,” I tell him. I was managing a country club in L.A. when I got the call to come home and take over the family business. I wasn’t caught unaware, as that had always been the plan.And being that my brief marriage had just ended, I was particularly eager to get out of Tinseltown.
My dad slumps into his chair dejectedly. “Well, if you ever need me, you know where I am.”
“I thought Mom was going to keep you busy traveling.”
“Our first trip is over Valentine’s Day.” He grumbles, “We’re going to Paris.”
I can’t help but tease, “To be guillotined?”
“Ha, ha, ha.” He chews and swallows a bite of toast before adding, “Don’t get me wrong. I like Paris and I love your mom, but I’m worried all this free time is going to be the end of me.”
“You’ll adapt,” I assure him. “You just need to remember what it’s like to have fun.”
My mom walks into the dining room in time to hear him say, “I thought going to work was fun.”
She rolls her eyes as she sits down opposite him. “You’re a royal pain in the butt, Greg. You’ve been telling me for years that you can’t wait to retire so we can spend all our time together and now that you’re finally done, all you can talk about is work.”
“I’m adjusting,” he mumbles.
“Not very well, which is why I’ve signed us up for pickleball lessons.”
His face screws up in disgust. “What in the heck is pickleball, and why would I want to play it?”
“It’s kind of like life-size ping pong,” I tell him. “It’s all the rage these days.”
The look on his face makes me laugh. It does not have the same effect on my mother. She jabs her pointer finger in his direction and declares, “Greggory Alan Ferris, if you don’t get on board with having fun with me, then you can go right back to work, and I’ll have all the fun by myself.” She pauses a beat before adding, “Or maybe with someoneelse.”
It doesn’t seem like my dad hears the implied threat because he’s still looking at me hopefully. “No coming into work,” I tell him plainly. “The only reason I came home is because it was timefor me to take over.” It’s not that I don’t love my dad, but he’s a massive control freak and I donotwant to work with him.
