Prelude to kisses

Chapter 56

It was an unbelievably hot day; it seemed to suck the energy out of those under it. So many beautiful women under the sun, what were the odds that one of them was his wife? He wondered for the millionth time. He stressed about finding a woman to spend the rest of his life with every so many times, he was becoming obsessive now.

He'd done the work, both on himself and within him. Only, at this point it felt like God was withholding this part of his life from him. He felt ready, knew without a shadow of a doubt that he'd make a great husband. That he was a leader, would be a good father too. But for a year now, nothing had happened. It was as if the Lord had hardened his heart, he hadn't felt romantic feelings towards a woman in so long.

He'd gone out of his way to go on dates, sometimes from women he met on church conferences, women he'd met through work or charity events, but they just didn't ignite a fire in him. It was frustrating at this point. To want something so bad and not be able to have it. A month ago, he'd given up, it was not worth the trouble of going on all these dates when nothing would come from it. Rather give it all up. He couldn't argue with God even if he wanted to. There was no point in even trying.

He walked into his niece's favorite burger joint to order a kid's meal and visit his sister who lived a few blocks from here. He gave his order and was handed a receipt. His phone rang as he walked from the counter, he stepped outside. It was his sister.

"Can you get me a printout of the documents I just emailed to you on your way please".

"Yeah sure, what would you like for lunch?"

She sighed, fully aware he'd bring her a burger anyways, "Why bother asking when you're going to get something from the burger joint. Just get me a king-sized burger and coke".

He smiled before ending the call. He scrolled through the documents, they were CVs, identification copies and a reference letter from her previous employer. It felt good to see that his sister was going back to work, after being a housewife for six years now.

He was about to put his phone back in the front of his pocket when he looked up and saw her. She walked gracefully into the burger shop, holding a boy's hand. His heartbeat loudly inside his chest. He couldn't remember ever feeling like this before. Her scent washed over him, and his knees buckled. He became all too aware, the blood running through his veins became hot.

Thirty-seven years later, two houses and cars later, he'd found the one...