Sir Orton closed his eyes and prayed as usual before signaling for everyone to begin eating.
Desmond took his first bite, savoring the sweet tastes, but something else caught his attention. There were no maids. No servants.
Despite all the wealth, the Ortons handled everything themselves. Like his family, they don't have any helpers.
As they were eating, Sir Orton finally spoke up. "Desmond," he began, and Desmond raised his head, "I invited you here this evening because I wanted to personally thank you for saving my life. This dinner is more than just a meal—it is a celebration. A celebration of life." He said, and Desmond nodded slightly and set down his glass. "I’m happy that I was able to help, sir," he said sincerely. "I saw it as my responsibility."
"Responsibility?" he repeated.
"Yeah, it's my responsibility. My father was a great acupuncturist. He passed his knowledge down to me. Over the years, I’ve helped people in comas and similar cases requiring acupuncture. So when I was called to the hospital, I did what I knew how to do. And thankfully, it worked." He said, and Sir Orton nodded.
"So, Anabel told me you refused to take money from her and Jethro as appreciation."
"Yeah, I didn't do it to collect money. I don't want to have the money." Desmond replied.
"Alright, since you don’t want money, you must want another thing. What do you want?" Sir Orton asked.
Desmond hesitated briefly before replying. "I wasn’t expecting anything from you, Sir. I did it out of my heart and because it was the right thing to do. But if there's one thing I would love to ask. It would be your forgiveness." He pulled the chair back and knelt down before Sir Orton. "I want you to forgive me for treating your daughter badly. For causing her pains and instigating the divorce. I will be very happy if you could please forgive me. I'm a changed person. I've learned my lessons. Please forgive me ."
Anabel was surprised. She was expecting him to ask for something else. She was expecting him to ask for the opportunity to work with Orton’s Group again. Or ask his father to help him talk to her to accept him back.
Anabel looked at his father, knowing that he would forgive him. His heart was no longer hard to him. What he did had melted his heart. He won't have any other choice than to forgive him.
"Is that all you want?' Sir Orton asked.
"I will be the happiest person on earth if you will be able to forgive me." Desmond replied, still kneeling down.
"I was hurt when Anabel came back. I was angry with you for treating her the way you did. But after I was told you saved my life, my heart melted. I thought, Maybe you have a good side."
"What happened is because of my selfishness and the influence of my family. But I'm totally a changed person now. I won't let anything control me anymore. My mom would have joined me and asked for your forgiveness. Just that she wasn't invited. I don't want to upset you with her presence. Please, see me as your prodigal son and have mercy."
"For asking forgiveness first, I've forgiven you."
"Really?" Desmond asked with a smile across his face.
"Yeah, you are forgiven. And to show you that I've forgiven you, I will call the senior manager and tell him to dust your files. I will ensure they start working with you again. In fact, we will assign your company a five-hundred-million-dollar contract."
Desmond froze for a moment. He wasn't expecting that. He was yet to ask for it. He stood up and nodded respectfully. "Thank you, Sir Orton. I'm grateful."
Sir Orton gave a satisfied nod. "It is well deserved, son."
"Congratulations, Desmond. Your kind heart has opened a closed door for you." Jethro said while Anabel said nothing. She kept eating her food.
"Is there anything else you want?" Sir Orton asked, and Desmond looked up at Anabel.