Wade pulled up to a quaint, white house with red shutters and empty wooden flower boxes.  There was a long, concrete ramp, extending from the sidewalk to the porch.  Wanting to make sure he was at the right place, he pulled the piece of paper where he wrote down the address Kelsey gave him.  It was.  Wade grabbed two presents from the passenger seat and exited his car.
            He walked to the front door, taking calming breaths along the way.   He was thirty-three, but he felt like a teenager on his first date. 

            Wade straightened his shoulders before ringing the doorbell.  When Kelsey opened the door, his heart flipped.   She wore a light pink, long-sleeved shirt and fitted blue jeans, her long, and curly hair cascaded down her back.  The words “natural” and “beautiful” popped in his mind.  Her face was free of makeup, and he liked it.  He thought her beautiful either way, but he preferred her in this natural state.

            Why do women wear makeup, anyway? 

            Kelsey cleared her throat, getting Wade’s attention.  “Hi, Wade.”

            “Um, hi, Kelsey, I hope I’m not too early.”

            She shook her head and moved aside.  “Please, come in.”

            Wade stepped inside and followed her to the living room.  Though small, it looked cozy.   A long, cream leather couch sat along the wall, a matching love seat, just two feet away.  A small brown oak coffee table sat in the middle of the room.  On either side of the couch were wooden side tables, and alongside the wall near a hallway was a matching armoire with its doors hanging open, exposing the TV, satellite box, and DVD player.  The walls were painted mint green, and family pictures hung on them.

            The one that touched his heart showed Kelsey and Hannah at the local park where he started running in.  Kelsey held Hannah in her lap, tickling her.  Hannah’s head was thrown backward against her mom’s right shoulder, laughing, and Kelsey smiled lovingly down at her.

            “It’s my favorite picture.”  Kelsey came to his side and glanced at it.  “My dad took it when we weren’t looking.”

            “I like candid pictures.”

            She smiled.  “Me, too.  Well, I’ll get Hannah.  She has been looking for you all morning.  I told her to watch a movie in her room until you came.”

            Wade turned away from the picture and looked at her.  “Thanks for letting me spend time with Hannah.  I know you’ve not known me that long.”

            “It was Hannah’s choice, and I’m honoring it.”   She crossed the room, craning her neck, and glanced at him over her shoulder.  “For the record, I think this will help both of you.”  Then she disappeared through a door that had a white wooden plaque with pink and blue block letters which spelled out “Hannah” and had a pink heart at the end.

            Hannah drove into the room, a broad smile on her face.  “Hey, Dr. Ramsey.  How are you?”

            “I’m fine.”  He knelt.  “Please call me Wade.”                                        

            “Okay, sir-um, Wade.”  She pointed to the gifts he had tucked under his right arm.  “Who are those for?”

            He pulled the small one out and held it out to her.  “Well, this one is for you.”

            Hannah’s eyes widened, and her mouth opened.  “Oh, thank you.”  She unwrapped it using her good hand.  “Look, Mama.  He bought me Love Comes Softly by Janette Oke.”

            Kelsey stroked Hannah’s hair and smiled.  “I see.”

            “Pastor Kellerman told me you love to read,” Wade said.

             “I do.”

             “I hope you’ll like it.”  He stood.  “I’m out of the loop on what kids read nowadays.”

             “I will.”  Hannah hugged the book to her chest. “I love the movies, but Mama said the novels are better.  I wanted to read all of them soon.”

             “I’m glad I bought the first one.”  He handed the other gift to Kelsey.  “Here. This one is for you.” 

             “You shouldn’t have.”

             Wade shrugged.  “I wanted to.”

             Hannah touched her mom’s arm.  “Open it, Mama.”

             Kelsey sat down on the couch and unwrapped the beautiful gold paper.  When she peeled away the last flap of the paper, a hardcover book with pictures of Stonehenge, the Tower of London and Big Ben stared up at her.

             She looked up at Wade and smiled. “I guess Pastor Kellerman told you going to England was on my wish list.”

             “Yes.”

             “Well, thank you for this book.”

             Wade smiled.  “You’re welcome.  The gifts were my way of thanking y’all.”

             “I’m happy to spend time with you.”  Hannah looked up at him, her eyes sparkling.

             “Well, I’ll leave y’all and get back to work on the christening cake.”  Kelsey put her new book on the coffee table and rose.  “My clients are coming this afternoon to pick it up.”

             A grin spread across Hannah’s face.  “She makes awesome cakes for everything.  She can make any animal out of cake.”

             He arched an eyebrow.  “Do you make cakes as they do on those baking shows that my mom watches?”

             Kelsey laughed.  “Well, yes, in looks, but I don’t use pyrotechnics or make my cakes move.  Mine are simpler, but I think everyone’s pleased with the result.”

             “I’m sure they are.”

             He smiled, and Kelsey nervously tucked a piece of her hair behind her right ear and returned the smile.

             They stood in silence for a minute until Hannah broke it.  “Wade, my grandpa and grandma Schell bought me a microscope last week.  Do you want to see it?”

             “Yes.”

             “I’ll go and get it while you and Wade go to the dining room.  You can handle it on the table there better than the coffee table.”  Kelsey made her way to Hannah’s room to retrieve the instrument. 

             Hannah cocked her head, an indication for him to follow her. 

             As he helped Hannah get situated at the table, Kelsey carried in a pink microscope and the slides.  “Here.”  She set it in front of her daughter. 

             “This is a nice one.”  Wade examined the microscope.  “When I was your age, I got my dad’s old one.  He thought I wasn’t responsible enough to have a new microscope. He was right.  I didn’t treat my things well.” 

             Hannah nodded.  “I know people like that.  Did you always want to be a doctor?”

             “Yes.”  He slightly tilted his head.  “Do you?”

             “No, I want to be a scientist to find cures.”

              Admiration for Hannah grew in Wade’s chest.  This child is remarkable.  I can tell she is a type a person who won’t let her handicap stand in her way.  I wish Christina-  He stopped himself from going there and turned his attention back to Hannah.  “That’s great. Where do you want to go to college?”

              A big smile plastered Hannah’s face.  “Texas A&M.  Just like Mama.”

              Wade glanced up at Kelsey, who lowered her eyes to the wooden floor.  “Is that right?  Did you go there?”

              Her head popped up.  “Yes, but only for two semesters.”

              “Why?”

              Hannah sighed.  “Because of me.”

              Kelsey knelt beside her and stroked Hannah’s forearm.  “That’s not true.  I had to quit so I could help your Papaw and Meemaw with the restaurant when your Uncle Travis was so sick, and while he was recovering from his heart transplant.  I’d planned to go back, but-“

              “You met Daddy, fell in love, got married, and had me.”  Hannah finished for her, guilt written on her face.

              “I’m satisfied with my life.”  Kelsey kissed Hannah’s forehead.  “I wouldn’t change a thing.”

               Hannah slightly frowned.  “You’re my mom. You have to say that.”

               “It’s true.”

               Hannah sighed and shook her head.

               Rubbing his chin, Wade contemplated on how to gear away from this subject that upset Hannah, and when he glanced down, it hit him.  “I see your microscope came with prepared slides.  Would you show them to me?”

                The girl smiled a little.  “Sure.”

                 “And if it’s okay with your mom, maybe we could go outside to find more things we can look at.  We could stay on the porch since it’s a nice day.”

                 Kelsey looked up at Wade and said, “I’d rather y’all bring the samples inside.”

                  Wade could appreciate her being cautious.  Neither his parents nor he let his sister by herself when strange men were around.  There were a lot of depraved men in the world who would violate children. With an open house plan, she could keep an eye on them from the kitchen area.   

                  He nodded.  “I understand.”

                  Kelsey stood up and pointed to the buffet behind him.  “We made cookies, so feel free to help yourself.”

                  “Thanks.”  He smiled his appreciation.

***

                  Wade and Hannah collected more bugs and leaves to look at through the microscope.  After they studied a dead beetle,                             Kelsey brought drinks for them.   Announcing she just had a couple of finishing touches to do on the cake, she asked them to keep a lookout for her clients before going back to the kitchen area.

                   Hannah drank her chocolate milk and ate her cookie in silence.  She looked out of the bay window, with her gaze fixed on a dying plant hanging above the porch railing.  She scowled and turned her head towards him.  “Wade, do you ever wonder why things happen to people?”

                   Wade paused with the mug halfway to his lips and swallowed.  He noticed the sadness in her eyes.  The picture of Christina, alive and happy, flashed his mind, but then it changed, and he saw her tombstone that had her name, birth date, the date she died, and an angel below the information.   He breathed in a haggard breath and said, “More times than I can count.”

                   “Me, too.”

                   He tilted his head.  “Is it because you were born with Cerebral Palsy?”

                   “I guess so.”  Hannah craned her neck and gazed at the kitchen for a second and turned back, tears welling up in her eyes.  “I wish my mom had someone in her life.  Sometimes I think if I didn’t have CP, then my daddy would have stayed with us.”

                  Wade pulled a handkerchief from his jean pocket and handed it to her.

                  She dabbed her eyes.  “Thanks.”

                  “You know, I don’t believe you were the main reason for him leaving.”

                  Hannah shrugged.  “Everyone told me Daddy was immature for marriage.  That it overwhelmed him.”

                  Nodding, he said, “They’re probably right.  How old were they when they got married?”

                  “They got married at nineteen.”

                  “That’s pretty young.”  Wade covered his hand over Hannah’s.  “I bet your dad loves you.”

                  She lowered her gaze.  “I guess.   Daddy is busy working on a big case right now.  He’s a lawyer in San Antonio.”  Then she glanced up at Wade.  “But he tries to call me every night and promised me next month he and his fiancée will spend time with me.”

                   He shook his head.  That was the downside of having divorced parents, especially when one didn’t live in the same town and had a demanding job.  A month was a long time to wait to spend time with his daughter.  Hannah’s hopeful face made him want to be sound upbeat in his answer.  “That’s good.   I bet you will have fun. “

                   “Yeah.”  Hannah glanced at Kelsey's way again.  “I still wish Mama would date and have someone too.  I know she gets lonely.”

                   Wade rubbed his chin.  “You shouldn’t be worrying about that.  Your mom will move on when she’s ready.” 

                   “That’s what Meemaw says.”  She studied him, glancing at his bare left ring finger.  As her eyes met his, Wade caught a hint of mischief in them.  “Maybe I can help things along,” she whispered.

                   Taken aback, Wade almost dropped his coffee.  He certainly was interested in Kelsey, but would be patient until she was ready.  Before he could reply, a car pulled up behind his.

                   Hannah’s attention turned to the people who were exiting the red Kia.  “Those are the people who are coming for the cake.  We better tell Mama.”

***

 

                    After Kelsey’s clients left with the cake, Hannah excused herself, saying she needed to do her homework.

                    “Well, I guess I’ll be going,” Wade said, gesturing to the front door.

                    Kelsey smiled.  “Thank you for coming.  I know Hannah enjoyed today.”

                    “Me, too.”  He tried to think what to say next.  “I hope I’ll get to know you too, in days to come.”

                    “I think you will.”  She bit her bottom lip that caused his pulse to quicken. He thought she looked both innocent and sexy.

                    “Well,” Wade said, extending his hand, “goodbye.”

                    When their hands touched, Wade felt an electric sensation run through his body.   Puzzled, he stared at their hands, racking his brain to figure out why it was happening.  The word “Chemistry” echoed in his mind.  Looking up at Kelsey, Wade could see the same shock and confusion etched on her face that he was experiencing.  He felt her hand begin to shake.  Not wanting to scare her further, he released her hand.
                    Kelsey blinked several times as she stroked her freed hand with her other one.  When she found her voice, she stammered, “I-I better check on Hannah.  Please, excuse me.” 

 

***

 

                    Hearing Hannah’s wheelchair approaching her room, Kelsey tried to collect herself.  She steadied her shaky hand and breathed in a few calming breaths to slow down her heart rate.

                    Lordy, what happened?  She’d never felt anything like that before.

                    Hannah entered her room.  “Mama, I heard Wade leave.  Y’all didn’t talk that long.”  Hannah wrinkled her forehead.  “How come?”

                    Kelsey scratched her head, wondering what to tell her daughter without lying to her.  “We didn’t have a lot to say.”

                    “He’s a nice man.  I like him.”

                    “That’s good.”  Kelsey cleared her throat.  “I‘m glad.”

                   Hannah clapped her hands together and smiled.  “We’ll see him a lot.  Isn’t that great?  I bet we’ll see him next week at the Oktoberfest festival.”

                   Kelsey’s stomach tightened, feeling nervous.  “Hm-mm.”

                    “May I call Brie and tell her about Wade?”

                    Too overwhelmed to say anything more, Kelsey nodded.

                    When her daughter left, Kelsey had a feeling that to feel Wade would change her life.  Not knowing if it would be a good thing or not, scared her.    

 

***

                     Wade ate the last bite of his white sausage and glanced around the park, noting again the lit Bavarian lanterns hanging from the trees, with the matching tablecloths draping every table and Bavarian pendants hanging from every game and food booths.

                     “People in Kirchville really do Oktoberfest right.  Well, from what I’ve read.  I never attended one, even though I’m half German.  Our church had a dinner every October, but nothing like this.” 

                     Rose chuckled.  “Wait until tomorrow.  We have a parade with marching bands, floats, and a couple of covered wagons.  Then, at night, we have a fireworks display.”

                     “We squeeze Oktoberfest in two days rather than sixteen,” John said. 

                     “So, this is a town tradition?”

                     “Yep.”  John took a swig of his beer.  “The town’s founding fathers were from Munich, Germany, so they wanted to celebrate Oktoberfest as they did back home.  It used to last sixteen days, like in Germany, but over thirty years ago, the town council decided to shorten it two days, since people’s lives had gotten busier, and it was a waste of money to have it that long.”

                     “I think two days are enough.”   Wade started to eat his black forest cake.

                     German folk music began, and for the tenth time, Wade’s eyes drifted over to where Kelsey sat.  She was talking with her friends Tracey, Scott, and another couple he didn’t know.  Kelsey looked breath-taking in her turquoise sleeveless dress with her hair half up with a turquoise butterfly clip.  Hannah was playing games with her friends, but she had stopped for a minute to say it was nice to see him and couldn’t wait to spend more time with him.  He felt she would have said more, but her friends were anxious to play.

                     I don’t blame them.  I didn’t want to hang with adults when I was their age.

                     Turning his attention back to Kelsey, Wade wished he could have talked to her, but it was crowded.  She spotted him looking at her and then smiled and blushed.

            Maybe I could ask her for a dance.

            As if reading his mind, John leaned towards him and whispered, “Go on.  Ask Kelsey to dance.”

            Wade drank the rest of his beer and excused himself.

            He sidestepped older couples who were dancing and made it to Kelsey’s table.  “Hey, Kelsey.”

            “Wade, hi.”  She smiled and began fiddling with her cross necklace.  “How are you?  Enjoying the festival?”

            “Yes.  It’s really something.”

            “It reminds us of our German heritage.”  She closed her eyes and sighed.  “But you knew that.”

            The blonde woman sitting by her nudged Kelsey’s shoulder with hers.

            “Oh.”  She rubbed her forehead.  “Where are my manners?”  Pointing to the blonde lady, she said, “This is Abigail Schaeffer,” and then pointed to a sandy-haired man, sitting by Abigail, “and her husband, Jason Schaeffer.  I think you saw Tracey and Scott Becker at the picnic, but haven’t been introduced.  Everyone, this is Dr. Wade Ramsey.”

            After pleasantries, Wade turned to Kelsey.  “I was wondering if you would like to dance with me.”

            “I-I don’t know.”  She looked at the dancers.  “I haven’t folk dance in a long time.”

            Tracey laughed.  “You danced with Scott and many other men last year.  You’re the folk and polka dancing queen.”

            “Yeah, but-.”

            “You don’t have to.”  Wade bit his cheek, silently cursing himself for putting her in a difficult situation with her friends watching.  Obviously, she was still shocked about their hand contact the week before.  I was selfish in not considering her feelings before I asked her to dance.

            “Come on, Kelse,” Abigail coaxed.  “It’ll be fun dancing with a handsome, single man.  If you don’t, then I will.  Jason doesn’t dance.”

            Jason waved his hand in his wife’s face.  “I’m sitting right here.”

            Kelsey narrowed her eyes at her friend. 

            “You know, Abby’s right.  I would like to dance with you.”

            “You sure?”

            She nodded.

            Wade offered his hand to her, and she stood and took it.  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tracey and Abby high-fiving one another.

             Scheming friends, he thought, amused.

             While they were waiting for a new song to begin, he said, “I’ve not danced folk or polka in a long time.”

             Kelsey cocked her head.  “I’m surprised you know how.”

             “Well, my mom signed me up for dance classes when I was in junior high school.  We studied many cultures and learned how to do their dances.”  Wade shuddered at the memories of that time.  “My friends teased me, and I wanted to play more sports, but later I was glad Mom made me learn how to dance.  Once I got the nerve to ask a girl to a dance, the hard part was over.”

             She pursed her lips.  Is she jealous?   Before he could ponder more about it, a new dance began.

             Thank God it’s a one-on-one polka.  I don’t think I could remember the steps of a group dance.

             Kelsey gave him an arched smile that made his heart leap.  “You ready?”

             “Yes, ma’am.”  He tipped an imaginary hat, garnering a merry laugh from her.

             When they got to the area set aside for dancing, Wade put his left hand on her small waist as hers went on his shoulder, and their right hands joined together.

             Wade enjoyed Kelsey’s laughing and the way her curls bobbed up and down, but at the end of the dance, a couple bumped them, causing Kelsey’s body to fall onto his.  He liked the feel of her soft form against his hard one.  Kelsey breathed in and out, trying to recover from the exertion of the dance, with her forehead on his chest.  Wade held her, sniffing in her apple-scented shampoo.  He couldn’t help but kiss the crown of her head.

             She pushed away, her cheeks red.   “Thanks for the dance.  I really enjoyed it.”

             “Me, too.”  He brushed a finger down her cheek.

             “I-um, I better check on Hannah.”  She waved in the direction of the games. 

             “Okay.”

             “See you soon.”