Thankfully, the orphanage was up ahead. He resumed walking and increased his pace. Although he enjoyed Olivia’s company, he didn’t want them to be alone anymore. The strange sensations that continuously ran through his body whenever she was near him astounded him.
And then there were those times he thought of her when he wasn’t with her. Could it be that he was falling for her so soon?
Adam shook his head. No, that wasn’t possible. He only liked her and was doing his duty by her as a lawman. That was all.
Keep on lying to yourself.
Adam quickly silenced his inner voice and tried to think of something other than the beautiful woman walking beside him. He struggled to focus on his surroundings but it didn’t work.
He let out a sigh of relief when they finally reached the gates of the orphanage. He knew the exact moment that it dawned on Olivia where he had taken her. The roughly-hewn signboard with the words,Little Angels Orphanage,was a dead giveaway.
Her eyes widened and she turned to look at him with accusation. He offered her a grin.
“You lied to me?” she reproached angrily.
He gazed at her ruefully. “I’m sorry I deceived you. If I had told you the truth, you wouldn’t have agreed to come.”
Placing her hands on her hips, she said, “You got that right. I told you I don’t want to work here. I don’t even want to be here.”
As she turned around to leave, Adam placed a gentle but firm hand on her arm.
“Please, Olivia. You’re already here, you might as well go inside.”
She glared at him with her stunning blue eyes. “Of what use would it be? For the last time, I will not work here.”
He dropped her hand and ran his fingers through his wind-ruffled hair.
“I understand. All I want is for you to see the children.”
Folding her arms across her chest, she said, “Why? After seeing them, then what?”
Adam hid a grin by rubbing his hand across his jaw. He was banking on her seeing the children, falling in love with them, or at least feeling sorry for them and then changing her mind.
He, however, hadn’t thought when he hatched the plan, that he would have an argument in his hands in trying to convince her to go inside.
Olivia was clearly a woman who knew what she wanted and wouldn’t allow anyone to deter her from it. He liked that trait in her, but at the moment, he wished she weren’t so stubborn.
He decided to appeal to her soft side. “Please, Olivia. See the children, hear their stories, and then decide what you want to do. In case you’ve forgotten, these children are orphans. I’m sure you know how they feel growing up without parents. At least you had your Indian family and I had my foster parents. These children have no one, but the workers here.”
Olivia’s eyes glazed for a moment and then she lowered them. Adam hoped he had been able to convince her to go in with him.
Some minutes later, she lifted her head and said, “Very well then. You win. I’ll see the children.”
A bright smile appeared on Adam’s face. “Thank you.”
He led her into the large compound. Roughly-hewn wooden toys littered the place. Noise from the children and the workers filled the place.
The wide, rambling red brick building with broken stone steps had seen so many years, it was a wonder it was still standing. The redness of the brick had faded due to wear and tear over the years and all that was left was a pasty color. Most of the bricks had broken off the walls, leaving open patches of white stone.
The broken steps lead to two opened wooden doors and a dark hallway.
Adam and Olivia crossed the sandy courtyard and entered the building and immediately had to step aside when two children happily chasing each other ran past.
Adam’s chest tightened when he saw the fond smile on Olivia’s face as she turned to look at the running children.
The hallway led to several classrooms on both its left and right where children seated on benches listened to their teachers standing before the blackboard. Some of the children wrote and drew things on slates.
They walked past a classroom and saw Annie teaching the children the English language. But that wasn’t what caught Olivia’s attention.
