Adam and Heather Ch. 01: Wine Festival

As he turned to walk over to one of the water stations, Adam mentally slapped himself for that sad attempt at a wetness comment to Heather. There was a good vibe going on between the two of them, but Samantha was a bit of a complicating factor right now. Adam hoped to keep the connection going and see how things played out. There was a lot to like about Heather physically, and hopefully, she felt the same about him. Adam grabbed three of the paper cups of water being handed out and carried them awkwardly back to the table with his new friends. "Here... Samantha, can you take one?" he said, holding them out and letting her take it. She took a sip. "Want me to put this in your cup Heather?" he asked, to which she nodded and said, "Thanks, that would be great."

Adam took her cup from the holder and realized it had some remnants of red wine left at the bottom. "Hang on, I'm going to rinse this," he said, not waiting for a reply and turning back toward the water area, this time taking Heather's cup with him. He got some water, rinsed the cup, and walked back to the table.

"You didn't have to do that, but thanks," Heather commented as Adam poured the water into her cup.

Adam said, "You're right, but nobody wants water mixed with wine. It makes for bad water and bad wine." He placed the cup into the cup holder and put the straw in so Heather could drink.

As Samantha was texting furiously on her iPhone, Heather told Adam, "Congratulations. You helped me with water without having to ask for detailed directions or spilling it on me. You've passed step one in the 'Helping Heather' game."

"Is that a 12-step program?" Adam asked.

"I hope you're not trying to quit me already!" Heather replied.

"Certainly not. I might have to find out how to level up."

"It's a journey. Future levels include lifting, awkwardness, and unfortunate surprises."

Adam reached out and rested his hand on top of Heather's left hand as it sat flat on the armrest of her wheelchair. He said, "I hope there are also levels that include fun, sexiness, and pleasant surprises."

Adam noticed Samantha watching his interaction with Heather, and her eyes caught his. She gave a subtle smile of approval at his flirting with her friend.

"Not many folks have really enjoyed the more advanced levels, Adam. But I have a strong suspicion that you might. Perhaps now is the time to tell you that while I enjoy that you put your hand on mine, you should know I can't feel it there."

"Ahhh..." he said as he lifted his hand. "I wondered. But... if you like it, I like it. You have lovely hands even if you can't feel them." He rested his hand back on hers.

Heather smiled. "You're good at this. You'll be leveling up unless you somehow lose focus."

"Excellent," said Adam. He looked again over at Samantha. "So, Samantha... Heather... since I seem to have crashed your girl's day at the wine festival, did you have dinner plans? Were you going to eat here or something else? I haven't figured out what I want to do, but I wouldn't complain if we kept hanging out. Unless I'm intruding, of course."

"We weren't going to do dinner here," Samantha replied. "I'm meeting Caleb... my fiance... later tonight for dinner and a movie. I was going to take Heather back to her place when we were done but I'm not sure what she was doing later."

Heather added, "I didn't have any plans for tonight. My evening caregiver is going to bring takeout with her for us. That said..." She paused before speaking. "If you wanted to meet me for an after-dinner beverage, there are a couple of options near my place."

"I'd definitely enjoy that," Adam said, trying to sound interested but not too overexcited. "Did the two of you want to have more wine here?"

Samantha looked at Heather, and both girls started to speak simultaneously. As Samantha said, "I'd like to do that," Heather began saying, "I could use another taste or two." They both laughed.

"Sounds like it's unanimous," Adam chuckled as he turned and gestured "Let's head over here and check out a couple more booths."

The threesome headed to another winery's booth and chatted with the serving volunteers. Talk turned to what folks were up to, and Adam mentioned who he worked for and that he was doing a sales demonstration tomorrow.

"No way!" said the volunteer. "You're giving that demonstration to my team. I'm Brandon Turnbill; I think we've exchanged some emails."

"Small world," said Adam, and the two men shook hands. They chatted for a couple more minutes while Adam, Heather, and Samantha enjoyed the wine. Adam was developing a good rapport with Brandon, which he hoped would put him in a good position for his presentation. After a bit, Brandon said, "Hey, I've got a bottle of something special that we're not officially pouring today, but would the three of you like to try an older vintage of our Pinot Gris?

"That sounds great," Heather said, and Samantha nodded yes. "Let's do it!" said Adam.

Brandon reached down to a cooler under the table and pulled out the bottle, showing the label to the group. He uncorked the wine and asked, "Who's up first?"

Adam took Heather's cup from the cup holder and asked, "Hey Brandon, how would you feel about pouring Heather's into this since she can't use the taster glassware?"

"That makes sense. I know there are rules, but it seems silly to pour it into something that creates more work, right?" Brandon replied.

"Finally, someone who gets it." Heather said, along with "Thanks Adam. And Brandon." as the wine was poured into her cup. Adam put the cup into her holder and added the straw, ensuring it was near her mouth. Samantha handed her glass to Brandon, who poured quite a generous amount, and Adam got his as well. They continued chatting with Brandon while the other person working the booth handled the (small) number of other folks coming and going.

After finishing their wine, Adam said, "It was great to meet you, Brandon; I guess I'll see you tomorrow afternoon." They exchanged another handshake, and Brandon looked at the women "Thanks for hanging out with me, ladies; perhaps we'll cross paths again." Samantha and Heather said goodbye, and Heather turned and started her chair heading away back to an open area. She paused to the side and said, "I'm going to recline for a minute; you two can continue if you want."

Samantha said, "I'm gonna run to the ladies room again. Too much wine." she turned away and left.

"I'll chat with you," Adam replied, moving to stand beside her at a wide portion of the path so they'd both be out of the traffic flow.

"Cool. So when I recline, it works best if my arms are in my lap otherwise, sometimes they slide weirdly on the armrests. Would you mind moving them?"

"No problem." Adam lifted one of her arms and placed it so her hand rested in her lap. He then took the second one and did the same. He naturally and subtly rubbed the back of her hand and wrist, noting how smooth and soft her skin felt. He assumed she hadn't felt his touch.

"Thanks. I'm glad you don't mind helping." Heather said as Adam saw her hit the button again with her shoulder and then move her head to recline her wheelchair backward again.

"I don't mind helping you at all. You seem pretty cool."

"It's nice to run into a good-looking guy who isn't married, isn't freaked out by my disability in general, and doesn't mind helping with things. Although you're still at the beginner levels. More than one guy has decided to quit the game when it got more difficult."

"You? Difficult?" Adam asked with a raised eyebrow.

Heather turned her head and looked at him from her reclined position. "I'm sure I can be difficult at times. But they've tended to go away at the point where me being paralyzed becomes more difficult for them."

"Well, I haven't seen the map of what lies ahead in this game, but I also haven't seen any reason I don't want to continue exploring. And if I'm reading things right, you'd be happy to have a new player in the game."

"It's not that I need a new player, and I'm a bit selective about who gets to play. It's a collaborative game, not a competitive game. And it's been a while since I've had a win with someone."

Adam paused for a moment considering his reply. "Selective is good. Samantha seems nice, but I knew within just a few minutes of meeting you that she's not my type, which isn't bad. It just means we're not a good match. You, on the other hand, I like what you've said. I like how you think. And I like what I see. A lot."

Heather shifted her head, and her chair began tilting upward, her legs lowering back to the normal position as her torso returned upright. As it stopped, she looked at him and said, "I like what I see too." and after a pause, "Here comes Samantha it seems." Heather turned her chair to roll toward her friend, and as she did, Adam said, "Looks like your dress got caught on your chair. Would you like me to fix it?"

"Please do."

Adam reached down; the bottom of her dress had gotten caught on the leg rest on the left side as she had shifted back to the usual position. He lifted the fabric off where it was hung up, and let it fall back to hang freely with the hem of her dress just above her ankles. In lifting it from where it had been stuck, Adam saw a clear bag, partially filled with urine strapped to Heather's lower leg. He knew that with paralysis, bladder and bowel function was usually impacted, and it would make sense that Heather had a leg bag. Adam didn't say anything about it, and he wasn't sure whether Heather realized he would have seen it. If she did, she didn't mention it, nor did her face give any clues that it was a concern.

As Samantha reached the pair, Heather said, "I think I'm about done here unless you want to stay longer."

Samantha replied, "Yeah, I think I've done what I want to do. We can head out."

"That works," Adam said, then looked to Heather. "So for later, what's going to work well for you?" Adam realized he had no idea how Heather got around town. Does she have a van with a wheelchair ramp? Does she take the bus?

Samantha said, "Aw, is this a first date?"

"Hm, I suppose it might be. Normally I'd take the lead, but since you're local, Heather how about you tell me what sounds good."

Heather said, "Normally, I like being told what to do," and gave a subtle wink. "But for tonight, we could meet at that coffee shop I mentioned on the ground floor of my building, or there's a wine bar on the same block if you haven't had too much wine for the day already."

"A wine bar sounds nice. Probably a nice shift in the environment from the crowds here," Adam replied.

Heather smiled and said, "Perfect. It's called Off the Vine. I'm about three miles from here. Want to meet me there at 8?"

"I'll see you then," Adam said, and he reached out and put his hand on top of Heather's left shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

She smiled. "Yes sir. See you there."

As Adam turned to walk back toward the park entrance, he heard Samantha's voice. It trailed off as he walked farther away, but he clearly heard her ask Heather, "Did you just say sir casually or... like... sir as in a role..."

Adam smiled, a mixture of excitement and satisfaction within his mind. He exited the park and turned to make the short walk back to his hotel.