A Second Glance

3

"Looky what we have here," Papa Colt fixed his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"They'll be staying with us," Raven took the last step up the staircase. Lorelei and Hallie followed right behind, with their heads down.

"Ain't she adorable. My name's Papa Colt, darling. What's yours?" He tickled Hallie's side with the tips of his fingers, and she giggled.

"I'm Hallie, sir," her voice was a bit shaky. Papa Colt looked at Lorelei with a soft smile.

"Ya'll hungry? I whipped up some late night grub. Raven's always coming in late with an empty stomach," Raven turned the key for his door and pushed it open.

"Mind bringing it in, Paps? I'm going to show them their rooms," Papa Colt nodded and gave one last tickle to Hallie's cheek.

"Get settled, darlings. I hope you're ready to stuff those little tummies."

Lorelei followed Raven inside, and he lead her into a small room. Turning on the lamp, Hallie's eyes fluttered. There were pink colored walls, and a little frilled bed in the centre. Toys lined the shelves and there was even a rocking chair.

"This was my, er, little sister's bedroom. She passed away a long time ago," Lorelei placed Hallie onto her feet and she slowly walked over to the bed.

"Can I?" She politely asked, and Raven nodded. The little girl lifted herself onto the beautiful bed and sighed in content. She'd never seen something so pretty in her life.

"This will be your room, okay? There's enough toys to occupy your time, right?" Hallie nodded and gritted her teeth excitedly. Raven picked up a little doll from the nightstand and held it against his chest, "except this one. Mind if I keep it?" Hallie shook her head, as she caressed the bedding with the pad of her thumb.

"I'm sorry about your sister," Lorelei shared her condolences.

"It's alright. She's in a better place now. Let me show you to your room?" Hallie jumped up from the bed and took her sister's hand.

"It's nice that you kept her room like this," Hallie grabbed a teddy bear and held it close to her chest, the same way Raven was holding the doll.

"Yeah, I've wanted to turn it into something different for a while now. Maybe a storeroom, but my heart hasn't allowed me to," he turned on the lamp in another room.

"You don't have to give us separate rooms," Lorelei said softly, and looked around, "we'd be perfectly fine in just one."

"So you'll sleep with all the teddybears, will you? There's enough space, darling. Don't worry," Raven opened the window and made sure that the lock was secured on the closet.

"As long as it's okay," Hallie ran over to Raven and hugged his leg. He looked down at the little girl and smiled.

"Thank you," she held on tightly, before abruptly letting go and walking back over to her sister.

"Whatever I can do to help. We'll head into town tomorrow to get you a few things," he looked at Lorelei, "a lady needs her personals, and anything this little one needs too."

Raven realized that he was still holding the doll against his chest, and dropped his hand to his side, "thank you for being so kind."

"As long as you respect my privacy, the pleasure's all mine, darling. Get settled in. The shower's right down the hall, if you'd like. I'll be on the balcony in the meantime."

Lorelei dropped her sack to the floor, and held her hand against her chest. She was exhausted, and excited, all at one. She hadn't met a kind heart like Raven in her life, and something told her that he was unlike any other man in town.