NovelEnglish
Chapter 318 The Celebratory Dinner
Mrs. Boebert was shocked. She could not even find the words to refute them. “W-Why you-”
Suddenly, a steady rhythm of footsteps approached them. Declan King’s jocular tone sounded. “Whoa! What’s
going on here? Are you guys having a party here?”
Deirdre clenched her fists instinctively. She could not help but be worried. Kyran could not possibly be with him,
right? If he were… Bobby might suddenly switch his target and name Kyran, the culprit. Then, because the young
man was mute, Mrs. Boebert would bulldoze him even harder with a one-sided argument!
To Deirdre’s relief, Declan added, “Okay. Why does everyone look so intense? Is this because I’m crashing the party
or something?”
He said ‘I’, not ‘we.’ Declan was alone this time.
Mrs. Boebert had seized the chance to slink away from the fray with Bobby in tow. Maybe she was afraid of taking
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtup Deirdre’s medical costs after all. Either way, the rest of the crowd broke off soon enough. leaving a slightly
nonplussed Declan with Deirdre and Eilis.
Raising his eyebrow, he wondered aloud. “Uh… What just happened?”
Eilis relaxed. “Nothing. There was some petty quarrel in the neighborhood. Don’t trouble yourself with it. How can
we help you, Mr. King?”
Declan smiled and handed her an invitation. “Our development plan is about to become official! To mark our first
success, I’ve hosted a celebratory dinner in town, and I would love to have you join us, Mrs. Russell!”
“Oh, my Lord!” Eilis was surprised. She would have expected the village chief to be invited. “I don’t get it. I didn’t
help much! I don’t think I deserve the honor.”
“This is just untrue, ma’am. You helped us a lot. Without you, we wouldn’t have been able to finalize our traffic and
road designs. Besides, you’re one of the most senior members of Alnwick. We’re only going to need even more of
your help going forward. So, please, do attend the dinner!”
When someone was as earnest as Declan was, why not?
Eilis liked the young man enough-despite his wealth and social standing, he displayed not even a whiff of a
superiority complex. But still, she could not help but be reminded of Deirdre’s situation. Thus, she pushed the
invitation back into Declan’s hand.
“Mr. King, thank you for your kind invitation. But I’m afraid I can’t. Deirdre’s dinner depends on me, you see.”
Declan laughed. “Well, good thing I have another invitation extended to Miss McKinnon too, then. There, problem
solved. Here you go, Miss McKinnon.”
“M-Me?” Deirdre’s mind turned blank. She shook herself out of her stupor and forced a smile, shaking her head. “T-
That won’t be necessary. You should go, Madame Russell. I’ll heat something up for tonight.”
Deirdre knew she was a liability to everyone around her. She was just not fit for events like these.
Declan churned his thoughts for a moment and decided to neither accept nor refute Deirdre’s refusal. “I’ll send
someone to drive you to the venue by today’s late evening, so there’s time for you to consider, Miss McKinnon,” he
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmproposed, grinning
“Frankly, I think it’s important for you to attend this event, not just because it’ll delight me, but because my
friend will appreciate it as well. As you already know, he’s mute and doesn’t like these events. It makes him feel…
alienated. You know, alone in the crowd.
“But if you’re there with him, I bet he’ll feel a bit more at ease. So, this is for my friend. If accessibility is your top
concern, Miss McKinnon, rest assured that I’ll do my best to accommodate you to the fullest!”
With that, Declan turned away and left.
For some reason, Deirdre’s mind began to conjure scenes-Kyran, sticking out of the crowd, becoming the gossip of
the event as people gawked at him. Declan would not have the time to explain Kyran’s condition to everyone-he
would be too busy checking in on everyone.
What would that leave Kyran to? People would flock to him, point out his “difference”, “and hawk on him about it to
no tomorrow.
And he would be helpless against it like she usually was, would he not?
Declan’s driver came that evening, and Deirdre took the ride.
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