Master, my Master | boyxboy | [alternate happy ending]

XIX - Return

The sleep enveloping Jasper's body slowly withered away. His chamber was still dark and he himself was still a bit groggy. Beside him a figure lay under the covers and he smiled tiredly, reaching out his hand and ran his fingers a small ways through the silky hair. Then he traced his fingers down to the shoulder and scooted closer, pressing his nose into the back of their neck.

He furrowed his brow a moment later. The scent he was so familiar with was different from what he was used to, but his bleary mind quickly pushed the thought aside. He slipped his leg between theirs, kissing the sweet aromatic skin under him.

"Mmm," came a weary moan.

Jasper kissed again, trailing them towards the back of their neck. "Good morning," he whispered, almost inaudible.

A hand reached blindly for his, dragging it under the covers and up their chest.

Jasper smirked and then, like a brick wall appearing from nowhere, understanding struck him. He gasped, sucking in a chest of air and backed away quicker than ever.

Darcy nearly screamed as well as she comprehended the situation. "Jasper!" she wheezed, shooting upright.

"Darcy!"

They flinched from the realization, both tumbling off the opposite sides of the bed.

Jasper almost fell on his head and got to his feet hastily, catching a flame to the bedside lantern. He and Darcy stared bewildered at one another...before laughter shook the room. Darcy slapped her knee, bending over as tears of hilarity and embarrassment overcame her, and Jasper gripped his stomach, his cheeks becoming sore.

"Dear, lord," Darcy exclaimed heartily, "I thought you were Juliette!"

"And I thought you to be Elijah!"

Wiping a tear from her cheek, Darcy said, "We couldn't have been anymore wrong."

"Oh, I feel quite humiliated."

Jasper and Darcy clearly had forgotten they were to spend the night with one another, for show, of course, to give the illusion of consummation.

When their laughter died down, a moment later Eli entered the chamber, dressed and ready to serve as the lowly butler everyone else thought him to be. Seeing Jasper and Darcy in an equal state of disorder made him pause in the doorframe. He'd known they were supposed to spend the night together, but he couldn't put his finger on why they looked so puzzled. "What is the matter?" he asked.

Darcy snickered with a playful twirl, the hem of her nightgown opening in a wide circle before falling again. "It seems your master was trying to get touchy with me, Elijah. I'd say he deserves a little talking to."

"I was not!" Jasper cut in.

"Tell that to my shoulder, Mister."

Eli shook his head, dismissing whatever they were going on about. "If you two are quite finished," he said, "The manor has a very unfortunate guest downstairs."

Jasper, fixing his blonde mane of bedhead, couldn't imagine who Eli could be talking about. After last night's supper in celebration of his marriage, everyone had gone home to their families while Darcy was the only one to stay behind. "And who might this 'unfortunate' guest be?"

Annoyance could be heard in Eli's voice when he said, "Your ever so wonderful cousin Edmund."

The name rattled in Jasper's head for a quick second. Edmund? What in the name of Christ was Edmund doing here of all the other places he could be? No one from his step mother's side of family just dropped in without a notice like that. But wait, Eli had said 'a' guest, just one. So Edmund was here alone? No Francis or Bolton following close behind? Jasper could already feel himself begin to sweat.