Chapter 343: A trial run
Andrew did, in fact, let them know when dinner was ready. He stopped listening in on the two of them after a while, turning his attention back to the task at hand. Cooking a dinner that would make Richard happy, Maxwell happy, and Andrew happy that he had made it.
He could hear the two moving around the house, chatting, practically could smell them, but didn’t pay attention to it. When Maxwell came knocking on the doorway to the kitchen, letting Andrew know that the two of them were entering the kitchen.
Maxwell looked normal, confident, a little smirk on his face. Richard?
Hesitant. Scared. Unsure. Andrew just smiled, staying where he was behind the counter, making himself as unapproachable as possible.
"May we come in? I wanted to set the table for dinner. Richard thinks he might be able to stand eating with us." Maxwell said, but his eyes gave him away. He was joking, laughing at Richard, but hiding it from the man involved.
Andrew just smiled, nodding as he grabbed some plates to plate up the food he had made.
"Perfect timing. I’m just plating up dinner right now." Andrew said and Maxwell nodded. He gestured for Richard to dart through the kitchen, which he did, ending up at the dining room on the other side while Maxwell grabbed cutlery and glasses. He also grabbed a jug for water, filling it up before coming back to the dining room. Andrew could hear them speaking to each other, and Andrew’s heart warmed hearing them talk to each other.
Especially after the conversation he had overheard, where Richard said he wasn’t quite sure about how he was supposed to behave. He was glad that Maxwell and Richard were getting along as well as they were, and did wonder what they had talked about upstairs.
Even if they were talking about him, he was just glad that they were bonding, and that Richard didn’t move around the house like a frightened animal as much. Did that mean that Andrew wasn’t treating him that way? No.