Page 104 of Good Girls Don't Kiss and Tell (Rock Canyon, Idaho 7)

Eric stood in the crowd inside the community center, watching the stage as they brought up another woman to be auctioned off for charity. It was the night of the Sweetheart Dance and Charity Auction, and the place was packed full of men and women waiting to bid on their loves.

His four-year-old daughter sat on his shoulders, hanging on to his hair, which his wife, Gracie, had begged him not to shave. Apparently, she liked something to grab onto when they were—

Suddenly, he felt Pip lean forward, and he was looking into upside down blue eyes and a pert nose.

“Daddy, when is Mommy coming out?”

Eric smiled and pulled on one of Pip’s loose curls. “Any minute, Pipsqueak.”

“You said that already!”

Eric rolled his eyes and reached up to gently pinch her nose. “Have a little patience, or I’ll hand you off to your grandma.”

“Which one?”

Since Gracie’s parents had moved back to Rock Canyon, he could understand her question. Both sides spoiled Pip shamelessly, much to his and Gracie’s annoyance. At least Pip was sweet…most of the time.

“The first one I see.”

“Okay.”

Eric chuckled, thinking his threat was pretty weak. He used to leave grown men quaking, yet his daughter had him wrapped around her tiny, perfectly painted finger.

His dad was the auctioneer again, and as he escorted the current young lady down off the stage, he addressed the crowd with a wide smile. “The next bachelorette is my beautiful daughter-in-law, Gracie Henderson. Normally, this auction is for single ladies, but Gracie said she would make it worth everyone’s while if we let her participate. So, give it up for the sweetest barista in twenty miles.”

Gracie walked out onto the stage, smiling and waving. Maybe walked wasn’t the right phrase; Eric would never tell her out loud, but at this point in her pregnancy, she was waddling a bit like a duck. Her pink dress with white hearts all over it protruded in front of her. Her blonde hair, cut just above her shoulders now, was held back from her face, and her skin glowed with health and happiness.

Eric might be biased, but he thought she was the most beautiful woman in the room.

Gracie took the mic from Buck and kissed his cheek. “Thanks, Dad.”

The crowd chuckled, and Gracie continued. “I’m offering the highest bidder a year’s worth of coffee!”

“Shit,” Eric said as the crowd started murmuring.

“Dad, you said a bad word. You have to put money in the jar.”

Eric grunted. Gracie had made them a swear jar to keep down on their cussing after the first-time Pip had dropped her cereal on the floor and said, “Son of a bitch.” They’d had to explain about bad words, and now that Pip knew them all, she seemed to enjoy calling them out on it. Especially since when the jar was full, they took her to do something fun with the money.

His dad took the mic back and grinned. “I’m gonna start by bidding fifty bucks.”

The crowd exploded. A flurry of bids around him made Eric grit his teeth. He knew that they weren’t actually bidding on his pregnant wife but her amazing coffee. Still, it was too reminiscent of the first time he’d won Gracie four years ago.

“Aren’t you going to bid on Mommy?” Pip asked.

“Not yet.”

When the bidding finally closed, Gracie and her year’s supply of coffee had gone for eight hundred and twenty-five dollars to Carl Andrews. Eric headed toward the stage with Pip, trying to beat Carl there.

Once they were both in front of the stage, Eric pulled out his wallet. “Carl, I’ll give you a hundred for my wife.”

Carl stroked his chin as if he was considering the offer. “Two hundred and she’s yours.”

Gracie stood over them with her hands on her hips. “Standing right here, and I’m a little insulted. I’m worth at least three hundred.”

“You’re worth a gazillion, Mommy!” Pip cried in solidarity.

“Thank you, baby.”

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