Memory of the Heart

Chapter 26: A Coward

Today was a special day as it was Little George's birthday. Every year, no matter what the circumstances were, Luke would always want it to be celebrated.

It was rare because this year, Little George shared his own initiative with his birthday.

"I want a costume party, Papa! Dalena and I were watching some videos and they seemed so fun!" George excitedly told his father, even squealing a little bit.

Amused at his son's initiative, Luke couldn't help but grin as he patted his son's head. It seems like ever since Dalena came to the estate, the little boy became a little livelier and started sharing his wishes more.

For the first time, he seemed to act more like his age as the stiffness he had before was no longer visible.

To comply with the Young Master George's request for the costume party, everyone in the estate were groomed and dressed-up by special services that were meticulously picked by Hamish.

Speaking of which, Hamish dressed up in a plain white robe dress, aiming to appear as a cartoon ghost. It was plain and boring, which was expected of his character.

Then, as for the birthday celebrant, the little boy chose to dress-up as a pirate for his day. In fact, due to that, the party venue in the estate was even decorated like a ship.

Because today was a special day, Little George's hair was styled upwards. He had a pirate eyepatch, covering one of his gorgeous green eyes and wore a red vest over white long sleeves and ripped black pants. On how much those costed, one could only imagine.

"Arrr!" Little George mischievously exclaimed.

Even though he looked like a little pirate with his costume, it couldn't disguise the quality of his appearance.

On the other hand, his nanny, Dalena, was still inside her room.

'Do I really go out like this?' Dalena thought to herself as she saw her reflection on the mirror.

Currently, her face had a little bit of make-up, which accentuated her features. Her long black hair that was usually put up in a ponytail or a bun was also let loose and curled a bit. Moreover, she wore a white strapless dress that was hugging her body closely with wings behind it.

Because Dalena couldn't care less about the costume she was going to wear, she let one of the staff from the make-up & styling services pick for her and eventually, they made her dress as an angel.

Even right now, Dalena could not believe how she looks. It's another first time for her to be groomed like this.

But for some reason, she's regretting that she let the staff choose for her as she felt quite exposed with her dress. Since it was a body-hugging dress, her small waist was emphasised along with her areas on the top and bottom that were quite blessed. More so, when she bends down, her cleavage could be seen visibly.

Once again looking at her self, Dalena took a deep breath before finally deciding to go out.

'It's not like I can do anything right? I'm just going to wear this for a little while anyway.'

As soon as she went to the venue though, Dalena regretted her decision heavily as she felt heavy stares from both men and women that were there.

Is what her wearing that bad? Does she not look good?

Timidly, Dalena avoided having eye contact with anyone and found comfort when she finally found Little George, who has been holding hands with his father.

As soon as Little George saw her, he unclasped his hands from his father's and ran towards her, making Dalena giggle a little.

Unlike Little George, Luke was wearing a light knight's armour as a costume, making his masculinity defined. His hair was also styled similar to Little George's, sleeking upwards.

At his appearance, Luke looked like those dukes in the old times who were also knights protecting their territory. To say that he was breathtaking was an understatement. Everything about him screams noble.

As courtesy, Dalena was about to nod at the Duke as a greeting but she found that the Duke looked quite upset about something.

Luke had his jaw clenched and his brows were furrowed a little. He was not even giving his polite smile that he'd usually give to Dalena and the other staff.

However, Dalena did not think much of it as the little boy kept clinging to her.

"Dalena, you really look like an angel!" Little George exclaimed.

Dalena let out a small laugh at Little George's compliment as she knelt down a little to face him.

"Thank you, George. Happy birthday. You know you always have me." she said in a heartfelt tone as she hugged the little boy.

Touched and a bit speechless, the little boy hugged Dalena tighter.

"I know. Thank you, Dalena." he murmured softly.

***

Little did Dalena know, the Duke had an irritated expression not because of her, but because of himself and the other staff in the party.

Ever since Dalena came to the venue, his male staff won't stop staring at her, as if they were really mesmerised. Luke knew it was irrational, but he could not stop the fire burning from his heart. He felt like a little boy for having angry feelings just over other people admiring her.

More so, he was angry at himself. It takes him a lot of self-control to not suddenly approach Dalena and at least, hold her.

How can she look so beautiful today? Why didn't she give him any warning at least, so he could prepare himself more?

Even though Luke was busy talking to some of his staff about estate matters as his son was busy clinging with Dalena, he still could not help but stare from a far, admiring Dalena's figure.

Every time he stared at their direction, he felt his throat becoming dry and swallowed hard.

'It's good like this. Can't come close to her.' Luke thought to himself.

For him, it was alright that his son was basically ignoring him and also keeping Dalena all to himself because he was afraid of his own feelings.

In fact, because of his fear of himself, he has been avoiding Dalena for quite a while now.

It was an attempt to run away from the attraction he felt for her, as he didn't know how to resolve them and as much as possible, he actually wants to restrain them from growing even more.

Back when Dalena was framed by that Andrea, Luke already used much of his restraint to not go to her. He only relayed his message of comfort through Hamish and did things for her justice in private.

And while she was recovering from her operation, Luke would only visit occasionally but every day, he would ask for updates and made sure that she was being given the highest quality of care.

The more Luke reflected about what he's doing, the more he felt like a coward. But other than this, what else can he do?