The next day, Hadley returned to his old self. When he woke up, a small velvet box wrapped with a red silk ribbon was lying next to him on the bedside table. Feeling the space beside him on the bed, there was no trace of the passionate night he and Louis had shared or any trace of the other man being there in the first place; the sheets were cold.
Letting out a sigh, Hadley reached over to the box and read the small card attached aloud.
'Good morning darling, I hope you slept well. As promised, I've told the staff you won't be home till late (if at all) so they shouldn't prepare a proper dinner. I'm sorry that I had to leave so early, something in the company needed my urgent attention. To pay for my sins against you, I have gotten you this small present and a larger one is down on the dining room table. Enjoy~
Your one and only husband, Louis xxx'
Squinting at the box, Jess felt a rush of excitement within him which meant only one thing:
NEW DIAMONDS!
Holding in the squeals of delight, he pulled the ribbon, watching with glee as the red silk gracefully slipped off and revealed that precious diamond-holding box in all its glory. After a moment of appreciating the box, he practically ripped open the box to reveal two large dangling diamond earrings sitting snugly.
Letting out a small squeal of delight, he removed the small diamond studs already in his ears and replaced them with the eye-catching dangling ones. He practically ran to the walk-in-wardrobe wrapped in his sheets and admired himself in one of the many floor-length mirrors. Though the earrings were beautiful, the unkempt bed hair and general untidy appearance were not nearly as.
Jess scanned his body before giving a little twirl, admiring himself and the way the silk sheets moved on his body.
"Damn, I am quite beautiful, aren't I? Being on the way to completing one of my missions is merely a side bit~" He hummed in approval. "Also System, what other items do I have to collect? And on that note, could you just give me a quick rundown of my missions again?"
Had the system been a person, it would have been rolling its eyes in annoyance.
<< ... As the host requests. For your mission to collect diamond-related items, you must collect two bracelets, one of which MUST be a gift, one necklace and an engagement ring which must also be given to you.
Alongside that, you have to take Greyson away from his mother and divorce Louis. >>
Pausing for a moment, he'd stare intently at himself in the mirror. "So not only do I have to get divorced, I have to take my brother away and then get engaged? Isn't this a bit much especially considering my past failed missions?"
<< Systems don't make the rules. Gods run the system and allocate missions. >>
It sounded like somewhat valuable information so Jess filed it away for future notice. Then he went back to looking at the sparkly diamonds hanging from his ears in the mirror.
After a few more minutes of admiring and one look at the clock on the wall, he decided it was probably about time he started getting ready for the day. One lengthy shower later, he was once again standing in his walk-in-wardrobe and thinking about what to wear.
Deciding to go more casual and proper than what he would wear tonight, Hadley pulled out a white blouse before grabbing very pale lilac pants that fell to his ankles. After making sure there were no creases in his clothes (somebody would have been fired if there had been), he quickly scooted into the pants and tucked the blouse into them. After deciding on a nude pair of heels, he grabbed a black handbag before choosing a simple pearl necklace.
"God it kills me to wear this when such beautiful diamonds are available but for the sake of Hadley's love for clothes..." Jess mumbled to himself, staring longingly at the diamond pieces laid out in the draw. After contemplating for a sold five minutes, he picked up a pair of discreet diamond earrings and put them on, grinning brightly as he admired them in the mirror.
After getting dressed, he quickly straightened his hair before wandering downstairs into the dining room. He would have squealed in delight had the old, stone-faced butler not been standing there. Instead, he shot him a bitchy glare (a very Hadley thing to do) and walked over in long strides, head held high.
To be fair, Hadley did have his reasons for not liking the butler; a loyal servant to Louis' father, he had only come at the old man's request. Not only was he a servant to that pig, but he was also quite traditional in his thinking for what the roles of men and women should be. He hated Hadley for dressing up so feminine but wouldn't dare say anything directly to him and risk the wrath of both the Young Master and his current one. Had he not been so loyal and afraid of losing his trusted position, he would have insulted the boy and made his life difficult.
Noticing the butler's distasteful look hidden in his expressionless face, Jess scoffed and happily opened the present. Inside was not quite what he expected and it even went as far to make him a tad surprised.
It was lingerie.
Very lacy, very revealing lingerie.
Pulling out the bottoms from the box, he'd whistle in appreciation at the lacy number. It was all black, sheer and beautifully made. Obviously, Louis had gotten in from a good place. Turning it around, his brow would raise at the realisation that this was a G-string and not just normal undies. Hadley could practically feel the disapproving gaze from the butler who stood at the entrance to the room.
With a cheeky smile, Hadley placed the piece gently back into the box and shut the lid. He then moved to his place at the table, waiting for one of the servants to hold his chair for him and push it in. Immediately, one of the younger male servants rushed forward with pink cheeks. He looked about ready to burst from excitement.
Noticing the little crush this servant seemed to have, Hadley decided to tease him a bit and in the process of going to sit down, brushed softly against his leg and smiled seductively at the man.
"Thank you for doing this, I do hope to see you around." He'd turn and smile at the blushing mess that was the male servant, licking his lips as he looked at the young, delectable man.
"O-of course Master! If you call upon me, I will come straight away!" The young man would rush out, his embarrassment and eager to please feeling taking over general manners. It was a well-known rule amongst the servants (especially those with something dangling between their legs) that Master Hadley was not to be touched and if he was, they would be severely punished.
The butler scowled from his place, making sure to put on his expressionless mask before going to collect the box laying still on the table.
"Ah-ah, I'll be taking that with me. Also, would you be a dear and tell Sydney that I'll be over in about an hour. She knows I've been dying to see her adorable pooch." Smiling sweetly at the butler, the old man could not refuse no matter how much he wanted to.
Watching the butler do his own version of storming off, Hadley began to eat his muesli with a content and happy smile.
END CHAPTER
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Word count according to Grammarly: 1294
So uh, it's been a while. How are y'all? I listened to a song and felt some inspiration for some sort of dramatic moment in a book and I was questioning whether I should just write a completely new one when I stumbled across this one on one of my profiles. Decided it could sorta fit somehow so here we are.
P.S Sydney is the FL. I don't think I've named her before (at least I hope not, direct me to where I did if it happened)
I can't necessarily promise frequent updates (if one or two at all tbh) but maybe? Anyways, in typical fashion, I haven't proofread this properly so point out any mistakes you find.