“I would agree,” Arabella replied.
Sarah went and placed a few toys onto the tree branches. “This tree is so beautiful,” she gushed. “At first it looks ugly, but it looks much better the closer you get.”
“You truly believe so?”
Sarah bobbed her head. “Yes, and I came to that conclusion entirely on my own,” she said. “No one told me to tell you that.”
Colin cleared his throat, drawing the girl’s attention. “Perhaps you should go get some more almonds to put on the tree.”
“That is a good idea,” Sarah said before she hurried over to the table.
Arabella arched an eyebrow. “That was quite the performance.”
“It was,” he responded, pretending to feign interest in the tree.
She stepped closer to him, keeping her voice low. “Did you bribe that girl in some way to lie to me about the tree?”
He turned to face her. “I may have given her an incentive to help decorate it.”
“Meaning?”
“I paid her a farthing,” he admitted with a wince.
To his surprise, Arabella started giggling. “That is awful of you,” she said, bringing her hand up to her mouth. “You shouldn’t have done such a thing.”
He stepped back as Sarah approached with a handful of almonds. “If we place the bags of almonds on the tree, I should be able to convince the other girls to eat them.”
Arabella set her hand on his sleeve and mouthed, “Thank you.”
He smiled in response and placed his hand over hers, enjoying their private moment.
Lady Langdon spoke up from across the room. “Arabella,” she said. “May I see you for a moment?”
“Of course,” Arabella replied, slipping her hand out from under his.
As she walked away, he couldn’t help but notice the smile forming on Lady Langdon’s lips.
* * *
Standing in the entry hall,Arabella let out a sigh of relief once the last orphan departed from the manor, each with a toy in their hand. They had spent hours decorating the trees, and after they had admired them, they partook of the sweets that each bore. Now her feet hurt, and she couldn’t wait until she could take a long, relaxing soak.
Colin came to stand next to her. “That was an enriching experience.”
“It was,” she readily agreed.
“The children seemed taken by the toys that they received.”
“That they did.” Arabella turned to face him. “That was sweet of you to lift the girls up to reach the higher branches.”
Colin shrugged. “It was of little consequence.”
“True, but it made the little girls smile.”
“Then my work here is done,” he said, performing an overexaggerated bow.
She smiled. “You are incorrigible.”
“That’s better than being a jackanapes,” he said with mirth in his voice.
