It was small moments like this that Charity thought were important. She wanted Matilda to have the sense that she could make decisions.
“Umm...” Matilda said, looking confused and scratching the side of her head. “Well, we could all play a game. Do you like hide and seek?” she turned to Duncan, making it clear that it was only his opinion that mattered most to her out of them all.
“I am afraid that it’s been many years since I’ve had the chance to play,” Duncan chuckled, “but yes, it used to be a game that I enjoyed.”
Matilda clapped her hands together in delight.
“Lovely. It is a favorite of mine as well,” she squealed. “So it is decided then. We all play it.”
“It seems that our preferences are alike,” he said to Matilda.
Seeing them interact like this just made Charity melt on the inside.
She thought to herself that this is what was missing in the girls’ lives. An older brother-like figure who could entertain their silly demands, but protect them all the same.
In that moment, she felt grateful to have him.
“I shall go first,” Matilda announced, “the rest of you, go hide. I shall count to twenty.”
Matilda took her spot and began to loudly count.
“Oh, heavens,” Augusta said, scrambling away to the distance to hide behind one of the trees.
Charity took the opposite direction, finding refuge under one of the bushes. It wasn’t until a moment later that Duncan appeared behind her.
“Oh,” she yelped in surprise. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
“It seems that we’ve picked the same spot,” he said to her, Matilda’s voice in the distant background reaching to the number eighteen. “And it’s too late to change now. So, move over and make some space.”
Charity was blushing crimson as she did exactly as told. She was not sure if Duncan had picked the same spot as her on purpose, but they were stuck together now until they were found.
“She’s rather adorable, you know,” Duncan said to her in a low voice. “Matilda. And sweet, too. One would not assume that the two of you are related.”
“I can be sweet as well, if I please,” Charity replied immediately.
“No, you take more after Augusta,” Duncan chuckled. His tone suggested that he was clearly trying to ruffle her feathers, and unfortunately, it was working. “Both of you are plenty stubborn.”
“Well, maybe you just haven’t seen my sweet side yet,” she countered.
“And what would it take for me to see that?” he turned to her. She realized that he was closer to her now than before. When had he scooted closer?
“I am not sure,” she said, stuttering suddenly, and rushed to change the topic. “I am happy that you agreed to spend some time with the girls. I can tell that this means a great deal to them, even Augusta, though she may not show it.”
“They’re nice girls, and they’ve been through a lot,” Duncan said softly. “I don’t mind if I can make their days a little bit easier.”
His words held so much consideration behind them that she was struck for a moment.
“You know, you’ve really handled this situation very well,” she said. “Most people would have taken offense to their behaviors in the beginning, as they really did not like you immediately. But you were so patient, and you never once took it to heart.”
Duncan was silent for a few seconds. Maybe he had not expected her to praise him like this. Frankly, she hadn’t either. It was something that had just slipped out very naturally.
“I suppose I understand them,” he said finally. “I’ve had my fair share of difficulty in trusting strangers, and so I try not to take it personally when it is done to me.”
“Huh.”
Charity thought over his words for a moment, and then couldn’t resist saying out loud, “But you know what the strangest thing out of this all is? I didn’t have trouble trusting you at all. From the very beginning, it was…”
“We met under extraordinary circumstances,” he told her. She wasn’t sure if he was trying to dismiss the event as something that ‘just happened by chance’ or something that had a deeper meaning.
