The Aristocrat

“Sorry, we’re late,” the girl said.

“I didn’t know you were back in Narragansett,” Felicity said to one of the guys.

He nodded. “It’s been a long time, Felicity.”

Getting a strange vibe, I looked between them.

Felicity seemed uncomfortable as she turned to me. “Leo, this is my best friend, Bailey.”

“Great to meet you,” I said.

“You, too.” She smiled.

“And this is her boyfriend, Stewart.”

“Stewart, how’s it going, man?” I shook his hand.

Then she turned to the other bloke. “And this is Matt.”

I nodded toward him as my suspicions grew. “Hi.”

“Hey,” he said, seeming just as wary of me.

Matt was a couple inches shorter than me, with dark hair and dark eyes. I’d have to ask Felicity about him later.

She showed them around the space for a few minutes. “If one of you wants to handle cutting the wood, that would be great,” she said. “That way I can continue to help Leo.”

Matt volunteered to handle the wood cutting while Bailey and her boyfriend worked on clearing out some of the residual junk out of the side of the room opposite where I’d been working.

At one point, Felicity stopped me. “I think Mrs. Barbosa just pulled up. We should go say hello.”

I put down the piece of wood I’d been about to affix on the wall. “All right…”

We left the other three in the garage and headed toward the main residence.

Before I could blink, a large boy ran out of the house and landed straight against my chest, nearly knocking me over. Without saying anything, he took my hand and led me to the backyard as he ran at warp speed.

“What’s going on, mate?” I asked.

He shrieked but said nothing. Within seconds, I realized he wasn’t typical. This must have been the special-needs child we were renovating the therapy space for. I laughed, relieved that I hadn’t had a knee-jerk reaction to nearly being clobbered by a kid almost as big as me. I knew he was only about thirteen or fourteen.

The boy led me to a bench swing, and we sat down. He began swinging us with his legs as he continued to hold my hand. There’s a first time for everything in life, I guess.

I spotted Felicity running toward us.

“So, okay, you’ve met Theo,” she said, out of breath.

“I certainly have. We’ve become quite acquainted in a matter of seconds.”

A woman, whom I assumed was Mrs. Barbosa, appeared. “Leo, I’m so sorry. Theo loves it when we have fresh faces over to the house, especially guys. He’s so used to all the female therapists who come work with him. I guess he got a little excited to see you.”

I looked at him, and he gazed over at me before placing his head on my shoulder.

“I hope you’re not uncomfortable,” she said.

“Of course not.”

Theo was like a nearly two-hundred-pound teddy bear. There was certainly nothing to be uncomfortable about.

“Thanks for humoring him. He’s not verbal, but I can see he likes you, even if he can’t tell me. And believe me, he can sense the good ones.”

“His radar must be off today, then,” I joked as he continued to swing us.

She smiled. “I can’t thank you enough for your donation that helped make all of this possible. Felicity told me. I don’t know what to say.”

“No need to say anything. I’m happy to do it. You’ll be seeing a lot of us over the next few weeks.”

“I understand you’re from England, and you’re only here through the summer?”

“Yes. And being able to work on this project will bring important meaning to the last leg of my trip.”

Mrs. Barbosa looked back toward the house. “I wish I could stay and chat, but my other kids need me inside. It’s time to make lunch.” She waved at the boy. “Come on, Theo.”

Theo didn’t budge. He seemed very comfortable as he continued to lean his head on my shoulder.

“It’s all right. He can stay with me. I’ll make sure he gets inside safely.”

“Are you sure?” she said.

“Yes.”

It didn’t look like we had much choice; this kid wasn’t letting go of me anytime soon.

After she left, Felicity beamed as she looked at me. “You’re very sweet to let him do that.”

“Every man can use a ride on a swing once in a while.”

She chuckled. “Do you want me to stay here with you?”

“No. We’ll be fine.”

“Okay.” She smiled.

“Hey…” I called as she walked away.

“Yeah?”

“That guy…Matt. Who is he?”

Felicity let out a breath. “Did you sense something? Is that why you’re asking?”

“Yeah, I did. You seemed nervous around him from the moment he arrived.”

She glanced toward the garage. “He was my high school boyfriend. I had no idea Stewart was going to bring him here. They’re good friends. The last I heard, Matt was living in Pennsylvania. I never expected to see him.”

That gave me pause. “He lives in Pennsylvania. The same place you’re headed?”