Kel contacted social services right away, and he and Dixie were granted temporary custody of Tina until they'd had time to go through the adoption process. Soon Tina was ready to be discharged from the hospital, and Kel and Dixie brought a wheelchair for her to ride in. "Where are you taking me?" she asked.

"You're coming home with us to live," Kel told her with a smile. "How does that sound?"

"Neat!" Tina grinned.

Kel helped her into the wheelchair, and they all went together to Dixie's car. Kel's was still in the shop from when Tina's father had crashed into it.

"Wow, what a nice car!" Tina exclaimed. "I don't think I've ever ridden in a car this nice before."

"Thanks," Dixie replied. "I try to keep it looking good."

It was about a twenty-minute drive to Kel and Dixie's house. The lived in a large, comfortable two-story home on a couple of acres of land just outside Los Angeles city limits. There was a garden and lots of shade trees.

Tina's eyes grew round as she looked out the car window. The car pulled into the garage, and Kel helped Tina to stand on her crutches. Slowly they all made their way to the front door.

"Your permanent bedroom is going to be upstairs, but you'll be sleeping downstairs in the sun room until your foot gets better," Dixie told Tina.

The sun room was bright and airy, with an arched window on one side, a charming little dresser with a lamp on top against another wall, and a red sofa with a large plant on each side. A matching footstool was in front of the sofa, and on the hardwood floor was a tan rug with a curlicue design. Tina gasped in amazement. It was all so different from the cramped two-bedroom inner city apartment she'd shared with her father.

"The sofa makes out into a bed," Dixie told Tina, who was awed speechless by the grandeur of her new home.

"I think it's going to take her awhile to get used to her new surroundings," Kel chuckled, ruffling Tina's hair.

"Would you like to watch TV until dinnertime?" Dixie asked the young girl as she helped her to sit on the sofa.

"Sure," said Tina.

"I think 'The Brady Bunch' might be on right about now." Dixie switched the TV in the sun room on.

"Wow, it's in color!" Tina exclaimed.

"Well, of course." Dixie frowned.

"The set my Dad and I used to watch was black and white," Tina explained.

"Poor kid," Dixie said to Kel when they were outside the room.

"I didn't have a color TV set until several years after I'd finished my residency," Kel replied.

"Neither did anyone else," said Dixie.

After 'The Brady Bunch,' Tina watched 'The Partridge Family' and then "Family Affair,' and then it was time for dinner. Dixie made her special meatloaf with potatoes and beans.

"Dinner was delicious," Tina told her afterwards. "I'm sorry I'm not able to help with the dishes because of my foot."

Kel and Dixie looked at one another. "Don't worry about it, sweetheart," Dixie told Tina. "I think we've got the dishes covered."

Kel patted Tina's shoulder. "Why don't you come into the den and sit with me," he told her.

Kel and Dixie talked some more about their new ward after Tina had gone to bed. "I can't believe she's only ten," said Dixie.

"Neither could I, at first," Kel replied. "She must have had a terrible life with her Dad. I hope she'll be happy living with us." He got in on his side of the bed and held the covers for her. She slipped beneath them and into his arms, and they cuddled.

"Good night," said Dixie, switching off the bedside lamp. "I love you."

"Love you too." He kissed her lips, and they drifted off to sleep together.