Her hand was wrapped in a fresh, clean cloth just to make sure she wouldn't let anything press against it by mistake, "Did you bury her?" she asked Lucas. Somewhere she felt it was wrong of her that she had gone to sleep after the maid had pa.s.sed away.
"She must already be resting in the graveyard," Lucas answered her and then said, "There are times you cannot do anything, Miss Belle but just stand at the side and watch."
"Like you leaving this mansion?" asked Belle and she bit her tongue for blurting it out without thinking it through. She looked away while scolding herself for saying something she shouldn't have said to him.
"Always speaking things without thinking through," he hummed without actually replying to her. Though she had blurted it out, she had hoped he would have given a direct answer but Lucas always twisted around the words and got away from the questions she had asked.
Lucas stood up from the wooden chair as he started to put away the things in the little box while Belle hoped she could spend some more time with him as he would be leaving the mansion in less than two days. Would it be too much to ask him to stay and talk? Asked Belle to herself.
She continued to look at his handsome and stoic face which barely held any expression on it. She looked at her hand that had been tended by him. Soon, the mansion would feel empty as Lucas wouldn't be working here anymore. He would be gone. She wouldn't be able to speak about these things with anyone.
"What will happen if I am unable to come out of the land one day? What if I am stuck when I am still alive here?" Belle questioned him.
Belle had decided to stand up when her leg that she had placed behind the stools stand caught her ankle to make her lose her balance to be caught by Lucas with his right arm while the left held the box that had the needles and strings inside it.
One hand of hers was placed on his chest while the other placed close to his shoulder, clutching it tightly; her own imbalance startling her. In the past, she had stood in close proximity to Lucas but never like this. Not with her face looking up at him with her eyes wide not with that strong arm of his that held her waist firmly that kept her from losing any further balance of her feet as they still hadn't corrected themselves.
In truth, Belle had never stood this close next to anyone. Never like this and she was glad it was Lucas who was holding her and him holding her like this did something unexplainable to her.
"Sorry," she apologized with her cheeks flaming hot and she got away from him, keeping a distance. Her eyes darted left and right and everywhere around as her heart started to beat and she prayed he wouldn't be able to heat it which was wishful thinking.
Not aware of how love went and what to do, Belle wasn't well versed in it. She held back from asking him to sit back in the chair so that she could spend some more time as during the time of morning he was always busy with the mansion work.
"Let me walk you to your room," he offered her and she readily accepted it.
"Okay," she answered to see him pick up the candle which he had brought in to lead the way outside the kitchen.
Thinking about the way his arm had felt around her, the heat in her cheeks didn't fall back and it continued to stay in the cold night as they walked in the lonely corridor with most of the candles that had extinguished.
Belle was head over heels when it came to Lucas with her eyes following him every time he was in the same room and now that he was here and knowing there was just one more night after this, her heart started to sink. Once they reached her room, Belle twiddled her fingers and she stepped inside her room.
"Have a good sleep," said Lucas to her and he left.
But Belle didn't go to bed and instead, she paced back and forth her room before stepping out of the room after five minutes to step out of the room and take the stairs before her feet made way to Lucas' room that was located on the other side. As he was moving to the Stlinkson's mansion soon, he had s.h.i.+fted to another room to make s.p.a.ce for the other butler.
Reaching the room, she raised her hand and gave two firm knocks on the surface of the wood. When the door opened, she noticed how Lucas had removed his coat. His hair that was combed had now fallen in a messy state as if he had run over his hand through his hair many times after getting back to the room.
"Did you need something, Miss Belle?" he asked her, his head tilting subtly which Belle noticed.
"Lucas...I need to tell you something," she said to him. Her eyes looking up at him anxiously to see him look back at her with his still and composed face. She had contemplated what to do after reaching the room but she decided to ask him, "Earlier in the kitchen you called me Belle."
"Isn't that what everyone calls you?" he gave her a perplexed look.
"No, not that," Belle said a little fl.u.s.tered. It might not have been a big deal to him but it was to her. It had made her happy. She then parted her lips to say, "I..."
