"So, tell me about your wife," Kelly said abruptly.
"What do you want to know?" Ray replied evasively. He wasn't certain he liked this at all. It had been okay when she spoke of her dead husband but talking about Roni's demise somehow felt too raw even after more than two years.
"Well, for one thing, what was her name?"
"Rhonda," he said making a face.
"Help, help me, Rhonda..."she sang jokingly.
"Oh, please no!" he said cringing. "I hate that song."
"So, you never sang it to her?" she asked amazed.
"She hated it even more than I did. I changed her name because of it. I called her Roni instead. She loved it. I think that's why she liked me right away because I refused to call her by a name she hated," he said reminiscently.
"That's so sweet," Kelly said dreamily. "How did you meet her? It was love at first sight, wasn't it?"
He stared at her completely shocked. "How in the world did you know that?"
She grinned impishly. "You look the type,"she said poking him playfully on the nose with her forefinger.
He gaped at her terrified. Dear God, could this woman see right through him? Did she know how wrapped up in her he already was? Apparently she did.
"Ray, tell me what it's like,"she said earnestly.
"What?" he asked apprehensively.
"Love at first sight. What does it feel like?" she asked softly. "You are so good with words, you can describe it to me so I can understand. I've never believed in it before. Make me believe in it. Please, Ray."
He hesitated a moment then tentatively said, "It was so long ago, Kelly. I don't..." He stopped as she sternly shook her head at him.
"Don't even try that, Mister. I saw the gleam in your eyes when you thought of Roni. You remember it as if it were yesterday. Tell me and don't skimp on the details. Where did you meet?"she asked eagerly, propping her chin in her hand as she always did when questioning him.
He gulped. He didn't like this, not one bit but what could he do? Lying wasn't an option. She would know. Somehow she would. But she also would know he was madly in love with her, if she didn't already. He just had to try to hide it, if possible. What chance did he have of that, though, when she was as intuitive as this?
"Um... it was at college, junior year, right after finals. We were crazed from studying, so, my buddies and I went to a party. We were only there a little while when I saw her. She was dancing with her girlfriends," he said dreamily, drifting back in time. "I never understood why girls like to dance all together in a group like that."
"That's easy. We know it's instinctual for guys to look at girls dancing. It gets their attention better than any other way,"Kelly said knowledgeably.
"Sure got my attention, like a bolt of lightning," he said before he could stop himself.
She giggled. "Girls also dance together because they love dancing and too many guys are afraid to dance. They think they'll look stupid but little do they know it's the perfect way to get the girl even if they're terrible at it. But you know that, don't you? You went right up to her and asked her to dance," she said with such certainty he stared at her again, stunned.
"I had no choice really. My mind went blank when I saw her and my feet went of their on volition straight up to her," he heard himself say from a great distance. He was right back on that dance floor. Their eyes met and locked. He held out his hand, Roni took it and went right into his arms.
"What was it like when you first saw her?" Kelly asked softly.
"Magic. The rest of the world melted away. The air went out of the room. My heart seemed to take wing. It was wonderful and terrifying, amazing and potent all at once. It was surreal and yet the most real thing I'd ever known," he slowly said without thinking.
"Wow," she whispered. "Then what, Ray? What did Roni do?"
He refocused his eyes a saw Kelly again. She was so beautiful. Her large, dark eyes sparkled, her face glowed, rapt with attention. He chuckled and jokingly said, "Do you want to take notes?"
Her eyes widened and she lifted her chin off her hand. "You think I should?" she asked innocently.
He laughed again. "You are adorable, Kelly," he said admiringly.
She pouted. "Stop stalling, Ray. Tell me more. What did Roni look like?" she said eagerly.
"Amazing... perfect.... just beautiful. She had the bluest eyes I ever saw and she was tall, almost my height. She had dark blonde hair but she always said it was just light brown. It had streaks of red and gold in the sunshine. It was a wonderful color. Justin's is almost like it," he said dreamily, picturing Roni just as she had been then.
"And you danced.... like a wave on the ocean romance...." Kelly sang softly.
He turned to her, astonished. "The Hooters. How in the world did you know we danced to that?"he whispered.
She smiled. "It was a very popular song then and it sort of describes what you told me," she said before singing again. "Swept away for the moment by chance... you danced and danced and danced. Didn't you?"
He nodded. "We danced as one, danced all night. I'd never felt anything like it. We connected right away. We talked forever about nothing and everything. We finished each other's sentences and laughed about it. We were like two halves of a puzzle finally brought together. We made sense. We were..."
"Meant to be," Kelly wistfully finished for him.
"Yes," he said taking a much needed deep breath. Had the air vanished here, too, or was it just the memory?
"Sounds wonderful, Ray. I'm going to do that," she said getting abruptly up off the sofa and turning the radio on. Instantly a woman's smooth and mellow voice came on giving words of comfort to a lovelorn fellow before she played a slow, sad song.
"Do what?" he asked apprehensively.
"Come dance with me," she said pushing aside the coffee table to make room. She pulled him to his feet, went into his arms and laid her head on his chest. "I love dancing. I haven't danced in so long," she said sighing contentedly.
"Me too," he replied. He could barely breath. The feel of her in his arms swaying sensually against him was incredible. It took all his strength to keep from kissing her as she tilted her head back to look at him. She was so tiny, a full head shorter than Roni had been. They were complete opposites Kelly and Roni and yet there was something in the way she looked up at him that seemed so familiar. He had seen that look before on Roni's face all those years ago and everyday they were together until she died leaving him so retchedly alone.
Tears filled his eyes. He missed Roni so desperately and yet he was falling for this amazing woman before him. It didn't seem right.
"Thank you, Ray," Kelly said suddenly.
"For?"
"Making me believe in love at first sight. You described it perfectly, exactly as I felt it," she said softly.
"With Henry?"he asked confusedly.
"No, Ray. I never felt that with Henry. Finding love with him was far more subtle," she replied smiling sweetly. "When you closed the classroom door the first day of class and turned around, you looked straight at me and somehow through me, taking all the air out of me. I'd never seen a more handsome, more graceful man and then when you spoke... magic. Your voice washed right over me like warm honey. It was as if everyone else in the room vanished and you were there only for me. I'd never felt that before so I didn't know what it was. Now I do. Love at first sight."
He gaped flabbergasted. He didn't dare trust his ears. Surely he heard wrong or perhaps he was dreaming. But that expression on her face, it was just like Roni's. Could it be? Dare he believe?
"Deja Vu all over again," he mumbled dazedly.
She smiled. "Yogi said that but I'm pretty certain he wasn't talking about finding love,"she said brightly.
"Kelly, I don't think I heard you right. What...what are you saying?" he asked tentatively.
"Nothing much. Only that I'm completely in love with you. Hope you don't mind," she said casually.
"Mind?" he repeated incredulously.
"I don't mean to put pressure on you so don't feel the need to say anything back," she said quickly. "I just don't believe in hiding my feelings once I know what they are."
"Kelly, I thought you already knew. I thought you were teasing me because you knew. I was entirely too obvious. I tried to tell myself it was impossible. Lightning doesn't strike the same place twice. Everybody knows that."
"Ah, but there are those that are prone to it," she said shrugging carelessly.
"There you were like a bolt of lightning hitting me for the second time. How is that possible?"
She smiled brightly. "So, you felt it too?"she asked excitedly.
"How could I not? You, so lovely, so sweet. I fell instantly."
She frowned. "But then why haven't you wanted to kiss me?"
"Who said I didn't? I just... can I?"he asked sheepishly.
"Do you always ask permission?" she asked jokingly.
"Actually, yeah," he said stupidly. "I did the first time with Roni."
Kelly giggled, put her arms around his neck and pulled him down. "I guess some things never change, like getting hit by lightning."
More like striking gold twice, he thought happily as he kissed her and felt those old familiar sparks ignite within him. Finding love, even for the second time, was like that.