"When do we get to ride?" Maggie asked, trying not to laugh at Jim's white nose.
"Never," Hanna admitted, "not until we are rich enough to rent an electric cart."
"Walking is very good for the health," Jim said, pushing the stroller toward the welcome sign. "Coming?"
Hanna laughed, took the oldest girl's hand, and hurried to catch up with him. Jim bought tickets, and the gang of five females and one male paused inside the gate to read the signs.
"Here's the deal," Jim said. "We can go anywhere you want except Predator's Ridge."
"Why not there?" Maggie asked.
"Because that's where Nicole lives."
Maggie nearly doubled over laughing.
First, they went to the underwater viewing widows to gawk at the polar bears as they dove beneath the surface of the water. Next, they saw cats of every size, and then they went to admire the bears. The girls especially liked the bears.
"Bathroom break," said Hanna, as they approached the duck pond and the public restrooms.
"Ah, my favorite time," said Jim, taking the little ones out of the stroller.
"Why?" Maggie asked.
"Because," Hanna answered, as she ushered the girls toward the restroom door, "we have to take the girls with us and he gets a rest. I should have had boys."
Maggie lowered her voice, "I want to tell you something anyway."
"What?" Hanna asked, as she opened the door to the restroom.
"Jim very much loves and adores you. I never knew a man could be so devoted."
"Oh," Hanna cooed. "Thank you for saying that. I know he loves me, but it is nice to hear it from someone else." She took the littlest ones into a stall and kept talking. "Do you have brothers and sisters?"
"No." Maggie answered. When it looked like the oldest girl couldn't wait much longer, Maggie took her into a stall.
"None at all? What about your parents; are they still in England or did they come to America with you?"
Maggie puffed her cheeks, waited to answer until she flushed the toilet. "They are…"
"What?" Hanna asked, "I couldn't hear you."
"I wanna go see daddy," the eldest girl said as soon as they came out of the stall.
"And so you shall," Maggie said, happy to get away from Hanna's questions. She opened the door and walked the child back to Jim. By then, he was sprawled out on the lawn.
"That looks heavenly," said Maggie, as she sat down not far from him. "I am quite out of shape these days and all this walking is tiring." She dug in the pocket of her shorts and handed him the fifteen-dollar admission price.