Their Second Chance
Chapter 14
It would take an hour and some driving but Andrea found a farm festival that had food, animals and fireworks at dark. It was put on by a church and so Hannah would be in her element. She had changed her mind and opted to wear a pair of bib overalls and her favorite pink shirt. Andrea found a hat for her to wear due to sensitivity to the sun and Mike packed her backpack with water bottles, her inhaler and snacks. He had conveniently forgotten the notebook to encourage Hannah to talk. Tom came in to borrow Mike's drill and when he noticed how excited Hannah seemed and the backpack on her back, he struck up a conversation with her since she hadn't turned her back on him and Mike was getting ready while Andrea was getting the drill.
"So, Hannah, you're all dressed up. Where are you going?"
"Daddy and Andi are going on a date and since he won't leave me home alone; I'm going with them."
"You're awfully young to stay home by yourself. Ashley doesn't even stay home alone. Where are you going?"
"Andi found a festival that a church is doing. There's gonna be fireworks and everything. Super romantic."
"I just threw up in my mouth a little. Do you want to go with them?"
"I don't have anywhere else to go."
"Well, let me talk to your dad but you're welcome to go with me so they can have a date."
"Okay! I keep telling Daddy that he needs to just marry Andi."
"They need to go on a date first."
"And then they'll kiss? They already live together but it's different. When my mom was alive, Daddy and her loved each other and they slept in the same room and the same bed but Daddy and Andi sleep in different rooms. Married people don't sleep in different bedrooms."
"Not normally but your dad and Andi have a long way to go before all that."
"Well, it's silly. My mom is dead. She isn't coming back so they need to just hurry up."
"Your dad still misses your mom and Andi misses her husband. It's a little complicated."
"It shouldn't be. I love Andi and I know Mom isn't coming back so I need a new mom and Daddy is lonely. He needs a new wife."
"I see. I'll talk to your dad and see if he's okay with you going with me."
"I'll tell him."
"Well, okay then." Mike and Andrea walked back in and both smiled when they saw Hannah with Tom. She still seemed a bit stiff around him but at least she was communicating.
"Daddy, Uncle Tom said I could go with him and visit Sam and Ashley. I'd rather do that. You and Andi can go on a real date."
"Uhh." Both Mike and Andrea looked totally stricken by Hannah's request and Tom was grinning from ear to ear. Andrea was beet red from blushing and Mike was stumbling over his words.
"Please, Daddy?"
"And hey, Mike, a restaurant just opened up. I'm not sure what they serve but they opened on good faith that the food supply would be restored."
"Th…thanks."
"Just pick her up when you all get done. I'll text you my address. Of course, if you want all night, that can be arranged too."
"I'll have her picked up by nine."
"Just let me know if you all want longer. Hannah, you ready to go?"
"Yeah."
"Alright, Tom, her inhaler is in there but if she has an asthma attack, call me. Hannah, come here?" Tom began talking quietly to Andrea about something while Mike knelt down in front of Hannah and pulled her into a hug.
"Was this your idea?"
"Yeah but you need to have fun. I really don't want to spend tonight away from home though."
"I'll be there to get you and if you want to come home earlier, have Tom call me."
"Okay, Daddy. Have fun. And remember to be a gentleman. Open her door for her and kiss her."
"Is my ten year old giving me dating advice?"
"You need it."
"It's a good thing you're so cute and I love you so much."
"Well, you aren't very cute but I still love you."
Mike laughed and gave Hannah a kiss. He was a little shocked that she had readily agreed to go with Tom but it also felt good to have some adult time. Hannah had turned into quite a matchmaker. Tom finished talking to Andrea and collected Hannah's backpack and the drill. Hannah had given Andrea a hug and had told her to make sure her dad behaved. Tom finally got out the door with Hannah and both Mike and Andrea burst out laughing.
"If you don't want to go out, we don't have to. I'll just pick Hannah up and tell her we had a good time."
"Do you not want to go out?"
"I do if you do. It'll be nice to get out."
"I agree. Hannah did say that she wanted to come home tonight."
"I figured. Mike, are you ready for a date? It can just be a dinner out between friends. I know Hannah has big plans but you only found out about Christine a few months ago. Maybe I'm overthinking this but we don't have to do anything."
"How about we just go and not put a label on it. I'm not the only who has lost a spouse. Are you ready for a date?"
"I honestly don't know. Do I need to change clothes?"
"No. You look good to me."
"Twenty years ago if a man had told me I looked good before a date; I would have been humiliated. Now it's not so bad."
"Yeah. Sorry, this is getting awkward. Let's just go."
"Agreed." Andrea picked up her purse and Mike let her out of the house and then opened the truck door for her. Andrea burst out laughing because Mike still looked kind of miserable.
"You know how many years it's been since I've been on a date?"
"How long had you and Christine been married?"
"It was fourteen years when we left for the Arctic so that long."
"I'm sure you took Christine out to dinner from time to time so therefore you still dated?"
"Not really. Maybe that was our issue."
"Possibly. So did you figure out what restaurant Tom was talking about? I hope it isn't fancy dining."
"Surely not."
Mike quickly found the restaurant and thankfully they weren't busy. The maître de got them seated in handed them menus. It was a little fancier then what they were prepared for. Mike and Andrea both choose steaks with baked potatoes and salads. Things were on the uptick concerning the food supply. Mike was a little worried about Hannah so he texted Tom while they waited.
"How's my girl?"
"She's fine. She and Sammy are playing soccer in the backyard. Hope that's okay?"
"It's fine, she needs to do normal kid things. Just make sure she doesn't get to winded."
"Sasha and I are both keeping an eye on her. Don't worry."
"It's a little hard. She's all I have. I trust you with her but it's easier said than done."
"I will look out for her just like she's my own. Now enjoy your date."
"Will do."
"Have a good time."
Their food appeared and Mike and Andrea both dug in. The conversation was light and they talked about the bathroom remodel, Hannah and what Mike was going to do with the rest of his time off. The restaurant was next to the river and they decided to go for a walk. They had time before Hannah needed to be picked up. Andrea was surprised when Mike offered his hand to her as they walked.
"You don't seem like the hand holding sort?"
"Hannah told me I had to be a gentleman. I suspect that she's going to want a report."
"She is so sweet."
"She's ornery. She's convinced that we need to get married."
"Hannah thinks the world of you. She wants you to be happy and for some reason she's fixated on me. No pressure."
"She loves you."
"I think Tom is trying to help her on the matchmaker front. It's kind of cute."
"It is. Vast improvement over not talking to him."
"I suppose."
Mike had stopped and was looking at a barge coming in. It was not all that interesting for a normal person but both Mike and Andrea found it fascinating. They stood and watched it for probably five minutes when Mike pulled Andrea into a hug and before either of them realized it, they were kissing. It was soft and sensual and lasted considerably longer than their first kiss had. They finally pulled away to catch their breath.
"I got my wish. After that first kiss, I wanted you to kiss me again and for it to last longer."
"And I was worried that I had screwed something up when I did that?"
"You should have asked."
"Yeah. So how do I fix the fact that I didn't?"
"Kiss me again."
"Happy to. What's going on here?"
"I don't know but I like it."
"Mmm-Hmm." Mike started kissing her again and Andrea melted into him. She had to stand on her tip toes and had both arms around his neck and his hands were on her waist. He finally pulled away but looked incredibly guilty.
"What's wrong?"
"I…I've fallen in love with you and it just seems so soon since I found out about Christine."
"I love you too. We can take our time but you don't have to do this if it's not right for you. You and Christine were married for a long time and she was the love of your life."
"I honestly don't know. I've only known for a few months but she's been gone longer than that. And she wanted me to move on and specifically named you in her note. I have never been so conflicted but I do know; I want something with you."
"We take our time and concentrate on Hannah. That's all we can do. And remember that Bill and Christine would want both of us to move on. And I don't think they would care about a time frame."
"No, Christine would tell me to get my butt in gear."
"We'd better go get Hannah. What do you want to tell her?"
"I don't know. She'll figure it out and we know she'll accept it." Mike gave Andrea his hand again and they started walking back towards the truck. She could feel the tension and normally it would bother her but she understood it. She was glad that they had finally told each other. It felt better now that things were in the open.