Claimed And Marked By Her Stepbrother Mates novel Chapter 271

Chapter 271: 271-Cooking With The Devils

Helanie:

While I cooked, Maximus stayed beside me. He helped with chopping vegetables and tried to get his hands on the pans. Most of the time, he was kind of in my way. He would excitedly jump whenever he heard what I was doing next.

I never thought of him as being so full of life—full of himself, yes!

That’s when Kaye walked by, saw us working, and decided to step in. His arrival froze us both. He stood tall, hands on his hips. My first thought was that he might disapprove of me cooking for them or call Norman to take over the "dirty" job. I guess my opinion of Kaye was low because, deep down, I was still upset about how things went between us. We were both at fault, though.

"What is going on?" he asked, his eyes shifting between me, my apron, and Maximus—who was also wearing an apron, though in a way that made me feel sorry for him. He’d tied it around his waist, leaving the straps hanging awkwardly, even after seeing me wear mine correctly.

"Helanie is cooking for us tonight," Maximus responded with a huge smile on his lips. Kaye looked unimpressed at his apron.

He stepped closer and glanced around, his eyes landing on an apron hanging on the wall.

"I’m going to help, too," he muttered, grabbing the apron to put it on.

I watched him struggle for a bit, holding the straps in the air, his arms stretched wide, his eyes darting around as he tried to figure it out.

"Put these behind," I gestured, but Kaye still seemed clueless.

"There are simpler ones in the shop. Why do you guys pick the most complicated ones?" Kaye grumbled, trying to get it right.

"It’s not rocket science, Kaye. Just do it the way I did," Maximus shrugged, giving his brother a look for complaining about something so trivial. I glanced at Maximus and stifled a laugh.

"You’re not wearing it correctly either, Maximus," I pointed out, cracking eggs into a bowl.

"Huh?" Maximus sounded genuinely shocked, as if he hadn’t realized it. "But we can wear it like this too. You don’t know anything—I do. Kaye, wear it like I did," he urged, passing his "expert" advice to his brother.

Kaye quickly handed the apron to Maximus, who claimed to know better. The two clowns stood to the side, arguing and "helping" each other, before eventually coming back to ruin my progress.

"What is this white stuff?" Kaye asked, extending his hand over my head. I didn’t see it until I lifted my head and accidentally hit his arm.

The bowl he was holding slipped from his hands, and the flour spilled all over the floor.

"Ugh!" I turned to him, scolding, "Can’t you stand on that side like him?" I yelled, pointing at Maximus, who was quietly engrossed in cutting fruits into smaller, similar sizes. That task had worked because he was focused and silent.