The butler was already at the door when they arrived home.
He bowed and asked about dinner.
Arthur listed what he wanted without looking the man directly in the eye. Bennett added his order after. Cedric said he was not hungry.
Arthur put his hand on Cedric's shoulder.
Cedric went still.
"You should eat something," Arthur said. "You will need the energy tonight."
Cedric looked at him.
He immediately remembered he had said yes to Arthur's offer at the party. He had said it carefully and with the right amount of reluctance to make it look like a real decision rather than a calculated one. Arthur had nodded and said nothing more about it for the rest of the evening.
Now the evening was ending and the reality of what he had agreed to was sitting in front of him like something he needed to step over.
He had not told Noel yet.
He had no way to tell Noel yet.
That was the problem.
Arthur nodded at the butler.
