Her lips pursed as he watched her peer through the lens. A light breeze blew some loose strands of hair across her face and she tossed her head to shake them back, her eye still pressed to the viewfinder. She was in her natural habitat, the camera almost an extension of her body, and she looked really good.
Well,der, of course she did. But it wasn’t about her hair or what she was wearing, although those jeans hugged her curves to perfection. It was more that she was … happy. Content, behind the lens. Like she was doing what she was meant to be doing in life, and it made him suddenly… restless.
Washedoing what he was meant to be doing in life? Did he look that satisfied when he was slaving over a spreadsheet?
In their argument, his father had accused him of having a soulless job, and right now, standing here with little kids running all around and family and community everywhere, that feeling of restlessness—or maybe it wasdissatisfaction—intensified.
He didn’t work for a big multinational anymore earning the big bucks. He’d deliberately gone smaller when he’d moved to Dublin, and really enjoyed working at the charity. Enjoyed the focus on how money could be spent prudently and wisely to benefit the many and not how it could be multiplied to benefit the few.
But it wasn’t exactly speaking to his soul, either, was it?
Thankfully he’d reached the middle of the field, so he firmly pushed that unwelcome thought aside. ‘Okay, okay, gather around,’ he called.
Donny hadn’t arrived yet so it was just him to do the wrangling. The kids swarmed him, seeking fist bumps and high fives fromSharky, which he dutifully delivered.
‘I’d like you all to meet Winnie.’ He smiled at the girl flanked either side by Tori and Nellie, signing as he spoke. ‘She’s our new team member.’
A brusque voice from the back asked the blunt question. ‘Is she deaf?’
Although she was too short to see who had asked, Tori glared in the direction of the enquiry, clearly considering it insensitive. Thunder in her face, she crankily folded her arms. Fin suppressed a smile and said a prayer for her future boyfriends. Or girlfriends.
‘No,’ she said haughtily.
‘She just doesn’t like to talk much,’ Nellie clarified, also on the defensive.
Fin suppressed a smile. ‘Okay, let’s all make Winnie welcome by saying hello. Here’s how you signhello.’ Fin showed his palm to everyone then swooshed it through the air as if he was making a rainbow, just as Tori had done earlier.
The kids cracked up and Matthew demanded, ‘Is that hello?’
Fin made a horizontal fist in the air and wagged it up and down. ‘Yes.’
‘But that’s easy,’ Matthew responded.
‘Okay then,’ Fin signed. ‘Let’s see you do it.’
The stocky little ranga pushed to the front of the crowd, standing in front of Winnie, and performed a perfect sign for hello. ‘Good,’ Fin said, giving the kid one thumb up. ‘You also say the words,’ he said, signing slowly so Winnie could catch it, ‘if you can, when you’re signing.’
Matthew repeated the process, saying, ‘Hello,’ this time.
Winnie gave a shy smile and signed hello in return, which made Matthew beam. Fin scanned the rest of the team. ‘How about we all do it together?’ He counted to three and the team all said, ‘Hello,’ as they performed the sign.
Some were better at it than others but that was just practice. The most important thing of note right now was hiszero levels of dissatisfactionas he watched a bunch of five- and six-year-olds enthusiastically signing a welcome to a kid who didn’t speak because she’d been through an unimaginable horror.
He felt like how Sweeney had looked just before when he’d observed her snapping pictures. He feltgood. Like he was supposed to be doing this thing. Despite being roped into it and having a couple of dozen iPhone cameras trained on his face.
It was probably just the familiarity and nostalgia of signing and being back in Ballyshannon again, but still, it spread warmth through his chest.
‘Okay,’ he signed and said. ‘Let’s play some football.’
The kids whooped, running to their usual positions. Winnie obviously didn’t join in the cheering, but Tori and Nellie were already showing her the ropes and she seemed happy to fall in with the sisters.
Gordon was certainly happy on the sideline as Fin’s gaze connected with his. ‘Thank you,’ he mouthed as he pressed a hand to his heart.
And damn if that warmth didn’t spread to every part of Fin’s body.
Fifteen
Just when Sweeney had thought things were starting to settle down, Mai posted one—actually a series—of her photos to the Insta page on Friday night and what felt like the entire internet went loopy again.
