The Morning After

As I woke up, I found I was unable to move my body at all. Last night's passion had taken all my strength as Jasper was on me like white on rice. My entire body was covered in bites and obscene marks, some that I wouldn't be able to cover up easily.

"Sir, are you ready for breakfast?" The head butler, Mr. Tang, asked, peeking his head into the room.

"Yes, please set it on the side table," I replied. Thank God I was mostly covered. "Is Elizabeth alright?"

"Miss Elizabeth is resting comfortably in her room. As requested, she did not consume any alcohol," he informed me.

"The party was a success?" I inquired.

"Indeed, sir. The event is being heralded in the media as the summer party of the year. The staff extends their gratitude for the opportunity to enjoy the festivities and the attire provided," Mr. Tang said as he carefully poured my tea. "I have taken the liberty of sending complimentary gifts to all the notable attendees. Several have already left their contact information for you."

"Anything troublesome?" I asked.

"It appears you have garnered quite a following, sir. Some admirers were present at the party, aiming to get closer to you. Upon investigation, it seems their group is led by your associate, Mr. Jameson."

"Are they going to be a threat to me?"

"They appear to be a benign group of admirers, sir," Mr. Tang reassured me. "Mr. Jasper has already addressed the issue a few times when some of them overstepped. Their current activity is limited to taking photographs of you in public and posting them on their fan page, along with other interactions they document."

"That seems invasive," I frowned.

"Fortunately, Mr. Jameson manages them effectively," Mr. Tang said. "I have also asked Mr. Lombardi to monitor the situation."

That's probably for the best. If Travis can keep Jared Jameson under control, I wouldn't have to worry about some crazy fan ruining my entire life or worse.

What's actually crazy is that I had fans! "Why do I even have fans? I'm not a celebrity."

"You have achieved a level of notoriety within the business world," Mr. Tang informed me. "Today, I have prepared green onion porridge for your hangover and some blood sausages. It is accompanied by ginger tea. Mr. Azure called to inform you that he will handle all your work for today, allowing you to take a few days off to recuperate."

"Why would I do that?" I asked.

"Miss Elizabeth informed Mr. Azure that she noticed signs of stress, including graying hair, and recommended that you rest. He has instructed me to ensure you remain in bed until at least noon."

"I can't move anyway. Thank you, Mr. Tang." I knew poaching him from the Todd family's employment was a smart move. He ran my home with the same ruthless efficiency as he did the Todd family home and was worth double what he already made. Best of all, he could be trusted implicitly since being a butler was his entire life.

Mr. Tang gently closed the room door as he left, while Jasper sat right up next to me, yawning. He looked over at my clearly immobile and marked-up body and appeared incredibly satisfied.

"Mornin', sugar," he leaned down to kiss me.

I was immediately upset by his cheeriness. The audacity of this guy! "Stupid brute."

"Hmm, you weren't saying that last night," Jasper hummed. "Go ahead, hit me."

I glared at him since it was clear I was too sore to move. "I can't go out like this."

"Take a few days off, my little sociopath," Jasper reached over me for the tray of food and helped me sit up.

"I'm not a sociopath!"

"A sociopath is defined as someone who lacks a sense of moral responsibility or social conscience, often hurting others with little to no remorse. You just can't see it because you surround yourself with other sociopaths," Jasper said, starting to feed me the porridge.

"I can't believe I missed the hottest party of the year because of you," I groaned.

"Oh right, you wanted to talk about something last night?" Jasper said.

Is he serious? "Forgive me for flipping out on you," I huffed.

"Was that it? I thought we already made up," Jasper said.

"Hey, I put my pride aside to apologize! What's with your reaction?" I snapped.

"I'm sorry, my lord, your apology is a blessing from the heavens. I feel I am not worthy of such an honor," Jasper chuckled.

"Smartass," I muttered, eating the blood sausages in silence. "Perverted old man."

"This perverted old man loves you," Jasper mused.

Jasper went off to the balcony to take a call, and that's when I decided to stop the act of being immobile. The feeling had returned to my legs a few minutes ago, but I was honestly enjoying being pampered all day.

Getting closer to the balcony doors, I watched Jasper face the city lights. His broad back was always nice to look at, and there were obscene scratch marks I'd left on him from our rough session last night. It satisfied me to see them.

""Bro! What's this Sam's telling me about you having a side to you we've never seen? You get angry or something?"" a voice rang out. It was Mike.

"Yeah, someone pissed me off at the party," Jasper confirmed. "I almost knocked him out for hitting on Alex so aggressively."

""Speaking of, you're going to bring your little husband to the bar to meet the other officers, right? People are curious about how you snagged such a gem and they've been on my ass to get you to let them check him out. I think it's because they all want a chance to work with an Azure. Think you can explain things to them?"" Mike asked.

"Are you kidding? It's a miracle that Alex is even still dating me, not to mention he actually wants to stay with me. I'm shocked he didn't annul the marriage that first day," Jasper sighed. "I'm just as shocked as everyone else."

""Hey! What the hell does that mean? You're a commoner but you're good too!"" Mike tried. ""Why are you so gloomy?""

"I'm not, all this feels like a happy dream. Alex feels like a dream. Hell, I don't even mind being his pet, as long as he doesn't throw me away," Jasper admitted.

""I was just joking when I said you were a rich guy's pet, you know. And honestly, I thought you would be pretty secure with Alex. He's much better with you than Leo was and he won't run off to some chick. And Alex actually trusts you unlike all your other relationships,"" Mike said.

"But it's because of how I am that we fought."

""Every couple fights, Jasper. He came back exactly when he said he would, and he's obviously not done with you,"" Mike said. ""I think you're worried about nothing. You told us that he's trying his hardest to make everything work. Remember when we snooped on his search history? It was all to do with you.""

"He's going to meet so many more rich and successful and ambitious people, and I can't predict what'll happen in the future. He might find someone better suited to him or closer to his age," Jasper sighed. "I guess I'm prone to changing my mind about the people around him, and I'm quick to retaliate violently if it has to do with Alex. There's no way I'm not affected by it. I'm so happy every single day with him because I know he loves me too. The more I fall in love with him, the more I want him to be happy, but naturally, I will get in the way of that happiness if it's not with me."

""Dude, do you even know what you're saying? Calm your ass down before I arrest you. We don't need a repeat of Leo!""

"I'm aware! But without Alex, I'll probably go back to being a shell of a human. Until I met him in person, I don't think I knew what real happiness was. I feel like I'm alive again, and I barely know what the hell I'm doing. I know that I'm entirely too much, but I can't help it." Jasper admitted. "He brings out that side of me at full force. He's too irresistible, I guess that's why he has a fan club."

""I still think that's weird! It's not like he's Beyoncé. Why are they so obsessed with him?"" Mike asked.

"He helped many people directly and indirectly. People are bound to get overattached."

""Including that Jameson guy?""

"I'll deal with him if I need to. Worst that can happen is I 'accidentally' kill him." Jasper chuckled.

I watched Jasper from the doorway, a mix of emotions swirling within me. Jasper's insecurities and his deep love for me were laid bare.

Fuck! How the hell was I supposed to fix that now?