Emily Maynard is on her way to finding her happily ever after!
On Monday's season 8 premiere of The Bachelorette, Brad Womack's jilted ex had her pick of 25 sexy suitors — and quickly took a liking to quite a few guys. Among them: Single dads Tony and Doug, who had much in common with Maynard, the 26-year-old mom who moved production of the series to her Charlotte, N.C. hometown so she could care for her daughter, Ricki, 6.
While most guys before him offered pleasantries to Maynard and complimented her beauty, Seattle's Doug, 33, took a different tactic and opened right up about his 11-year-old son. "I talked to my son last night and he said 'I miss you a little, but go have fun!'" Doug told Maynard, who in turn revealed her own daughter was adjusting well to the Bachelorette experience. "Ricki loves it — and I think she likes the nanny more than me," she joked.
Maynard couldn't help but gush over Doug, whom she presented with the coveted first impression rose. "It's cool to have someone here who gets what I'm going through. Missing your other half is heartbreaking, so you have made me feel really comfortable and good about myself," Maynard said, finding the note that his son, Austin, wrote to her to be an especially nice gesture. "His little letter was really sweet and just from that I can tell that Doug's done a good job at being a dad."
Doug wasn't the only guy to win over Maynard with his backstory. Tony, a 30-year-old lumber trader from Oregon, called his 5-year-old son "the best thing that's ever happened to me." And if that wasn't enough to score brownie points with Maynard, he came to greet her bearing a pretty sweet gift: A Cinderella-style glass slipper.
"I believe in fairytales, I believe in love, and [that] if the shoe fits, me and my princess will live happily ever after," Tony said, before Emily tried on the heel, which — you guessed it — was a perfect fit. "I believe in love and fabulous shoes, so you know me well," she quipped.
In the end, six guys — Jean-Paul, Brent, David, Jackson, Lerone and Randy — weren't as lucky as Doug and Tony, and Maynard had to send them packing. Despite having to let some men go, Maynard was optimistic about her chances to find The One.
Said Maynard: "Coming in here, I worried I wouldn't like any of these guys and now, it's like, hell, who am I going to send home [next]?"
