Joe brought her a bottle of water.
Hannah drank deeply. He touched her shoulder briefly, his palm as warm and comforting against her bare skin as his verbal reassurances had been to her infant daughter.
“Try and get some sleep,” he whispered.
Feeling like she could drown in the empathy in his eyes, knowing it would be all too easy to depend on his inherent kindness, she nodded. Seconds later, they turned off the light.
As Hannah lay back against the pillows, her breath shallow in her chest, she wondered what had frightened the baby so. Was Isabella remembering the night she had been abandoned in a city park by the family who could not care for her? Nights and days spent in an orphanage where again it seemed like she was all alone? Or was she afraid of the changes and unfamiliar faces?
All Hannah knew for sure was that she would do anything to protect her baby. Isabella needed to know she had family now. A family who would always love her and care for her, a family she could count on.
Isabella would never be forsaken again, Hannah vowed fiercely. She would see to that.
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE’S going to be a delay?” Hannah asked the international adoption agency representative who had come to their suite.
Joe turned to the bearer of bad news.
The Hong Kong–born woman in charge of all legal matters was deeply apologetic. “We have just received word that our English interpreter has fallen ill. Our appointment with the local court is in one hour. We cannot get a suitable replacement that quickly. So all the English-speaking families in the group will have to reschedule for next week. The French and Italian families will proceed as scheduled.”
Joe watched the color drain from Hannah’s cheeks. He could imagine what she was thinking. International adoptions were orchestrated very carefully. A single glitch could cause the process to be set back for weeks or months. A lengthy delay would not only cost her thousands of additional dollars she might not have to spend, it could also prompt the Taiwanese authorities to send Isabella Zhu Ming back to the orphanage, until all was in order again.
Any obstacle to Isabella legally becoming Hannah’s child was unbearable. “Can’t you act as interpreter?” she asked the woman emotionally.
The representative shook her head. “While my English is fine, my Mandarin is rudimentary. The magistrate will be asking questions, and your answers to him must be correctly translated.”
Once again, Joe found himself getting involved despite his better judgment. “I speak the language fluently.” Before he knew it, he was on his way to the local court with the rest of the group. And Hannah Callahan was looking at him with more gratitude than ever before….
Once the adoptive families arrived, they were ushered into a waiting room and then called in to the judge’s chambers, one by one.
Joe served as interpreter for two other families before it was Hannah’s turn to appear with Isabella. As in other cases before the magistrate, vital statistics for both were verified. Then came the questions that were even more important.
“Are you adopting this baby girl as a single parent?”
“I am,” Hannah answered.
Her reply was translated. Then the next question came and was similarly transposed so she could understand. “Do you plan to someday marry?” Joe inquired for the court.
Hannah hesitated, her eyes locking with his momentarily, before she turned back to the bench. And in the silence that fell Joe found he was—surprisingly—almost as interested to hear her reply as the judge.
“I will only marry if the man loves Isabella as much as I do and will promise to be there for her always,” Hannah stated plainly.
Her answer was relayed. The judge nodded, his gaze approving—but stern. Another question in Mandarin.
Again, Joe translated. “Who will care for this child?”
Hannah’s voice rang with the certainty of a promise made and kept. “I will.”
“Will you be with the child during the day or will you be at work?” was the judge’s next inquiry.
“I will take the baby with me to the store where I work. I can do this,” she explained, “because my family owns the store.”
Gus might have something to say about that, Joe thought. Then again, given the look of determination on Hannah’s face, maybe Gus would not have a say, at all….
“Do you promise to love this child always?”
As soon as she understood the question, Hannah’s heart was in her voice, and her eyes shone with tears. “Yes. I will always love her.”
“Do you promise to never abandon her?” Joe asked for the judge, looking deep into Hannah’s eyes. Yet already knowing the answer as surely as he was beginning to know her.
“I promise that with all my heart,” she said thickly. And this time a single tear—of pure and unadulterated happiness—did fall.
TO HANNAH’S DELIGHT, ISABELLA Zhu Ming Callahan’s adoption was approved and her HHR—household registry—was changed to reflect this. The adoption then became legal and final. And it was off to a clinic with the rest of the babies to have a rudimentary physical examination that consisted of a palpitation of her abdomen, a listen to her heart and lungs, a measurement of her head, and movement of her arms and legs.
That quickly, she was pronounced healthy, a rubber stamp affixed to the required medical exam papers. After the groups split up to keep their preset appointments with the various consulates, the three of them headed to the American Institute in Taiwan. In the consular section on the third floor, another interview commenced—this one all in English—and an immigrant visa was issued for Isabella Zhu Ming Callahan.
Hannah didn’t know whose smile was broader—hers or Joe’s—as they left the AIT. It had been six hours since they had left the hotel, and although Isabella had enjoyed several bottles of formula, neither she nor Joe had eaten. The hotel was a half-hour cab ride away. The dinner hour was upon them. Aware what a trooper he’d been, and how little she’d done to see to his comfort on this trip, she offered a tentative smile. “We should celebrate,” she said.
Joe grinned back, looking more content and at ease than she had ever seen him. “We should,” he agreed.
The question was where, she thought, acutely aware that this was suddenly feeling more like an impromptu date than a mission to be accomplished. “Any ideas?” she asked, trying not to notice how strong and handsome Joe looked standing there beside her.
Joe slid his hands in his trouser pockets. “We could have dinner at a place I know.” He maintained the casual attitude he’d exuded all day. “It’s not too fancy but the food is amazing.”
Wishing she had time to freshen up, Hannah used her free hand to push the hair from her face. “Sounds great.”
There was no chance to converse en route because Joe was busy giving the driver directions in Mandarin Chinese. Upon arrival, Hannah took Isabella to the ladies’ room to change her damp
