KEIFER POV
Hazel was getting on my last nerve. I gripped the edge of my mahogany desk so hard I thought the wood might splinter. How dare she talk about Jay-Jay like she was some kind of business transaction?
"Hazel, watch how you talk about my wife," I snapped, my voice sliding into a low, dangerous growl.
"What? I'm not wrong, am I?" she continued over the phone, her voice dripping with that arrogant, high-society condescension. "I mean, what's so special about her? She's just a teacher. Once she gives you an heir, you can get rid of her and find someone else—another girl who is much more powerful and actually fits our circle."
My blood boiled. The image of Jay-Jay's smile, her messy hair in the morning, and the way she defended me against her own brothers flashed through my mind.
"Watch it," I hissed. "One more word out of your mouth about my wife and I will forget you're my cousin. I'm not marrying anyone else. She is the only one."
"Keifer, be realistic—"
"I am being realistic," I interrupted, my voice cold as ice. "You think power comes from a last name or a bank account? Jay-Jay has more strength in her pinky finger than your entire social circle combined. She isn't an incubator, Hazel. She's the woman I love. If you ever disrespect her again—if you even think her name with that tone—I will cut you off so fast you'll forget what a Watson trust fund looks like."
I slammed the phone down on the desk, the silence of the office suddenly feeling heavy and suffocating.
Just a teacher?
Hazel had no idea. Jay-Jay wasn't just a teacher; she was the person who brought light back into this tomb of a house. She was the one who made me want to be someone better than the cold CEO my father raised me to be.
I leaned back, rubbing my temples. I needed to see her. I needed to make sure she was okay, that she was resting like she was supposed to.
I stood up and walked out of the office, heading toward our bedroom.
As I reached the door and pushed it open softly, the room was quiet. Too quiet.
"Jay?" I whispered.
There was no answer. I walked closer to the bed and saw the duvet piled up in the center. She was already sleeping. A small smile tugged at my lips; she must have exhausted herself during her first day of walking around.
I headed to the walk-in closet to change. It had been a long, draining day
I didn't even bother with a shirt. I just pulled on a pair of grey sweatpants and walked back into the room.
I climbed onto the bed, the mattress dipping under my weight. I gently reached for her, turning her small, bundled body around so she was facing me. Her eyes were shut tightly, her breathing rhythmic. She looked so peaceful, so far away from the insults Hazel had been spewing.
I pulled her close, tucking her head under my chin and wrapping my arm around her waist. She felt warm and fit perfectly against me, as if she were the missing piece I'd been looking for my entire life.
"You crazy woman... you're the only one who can make me feel like this," I whispered into her hair, knowing she couldn't hear me. My voice was thick with an emotion I usually kept locked tight. "How do you do that? How did you take over my life so completely?"
I held her tighter, pulling her flush against my chest.
"I had to yell at my cousin Hazel today because she was speaking ill of you," I muttered, my jaw tightening at the memory. "She doesn't understand. None of them do. They think this is about business, about heirs and power. They don't see what I see."
I closed my eyes, breathing in the scent of her strawberry shampoo.
"You're not just a teacher, Jay. You're my wife. And I'm never letting anyone—not my father, not my cousins, not even the whole world—make you feel otherwise."
I drifted off to sleep, holding her like she was the only thing keeping me grounded.
JAY-JAY POV
I wasn't sleeping.
I was lying there, as still as a statue, my heart hammering so hard against my ribs I was sure he could feel it through his bare chest. Gago. Why is he so warm? And why does he smell like peppermint and expensive soap?
When he turned me around, I kept my eyes squeezed shut. I was still crying silently when he walked in, and I didn't want him to see my puffy face. I thought he was just going to sleep, but then he pulled me into him.
No shirt? Really, Keifer?! This is not fair to my internal organs!
But then he started talking. His voice was low, vibrating through his chest and straight into my soul.
He yelled at his cousin? Because of me?
I felt a fresh wave of tears prick at my eyes, but these ones weren't cold and sharp like the ones from earlier. He didn't marry me for an "heir." He didn't see me as "just a teacher." To him... I was his wife. The only one.
The weight that had been crushing my chest for the last hour suddenly lifted. My brain, which had been spiraling into a mess of I'm not good enough, suddenly went quiet.
Gago. He really does love me.
I stayed still, pretending to be deep in dreamland, even though I wanted to turn around and hug him back. I wanted to tell him that I heard everything, but I didn't want to ruin this moment. It felt too sacred, too real.
I felt his breathing even out as he fell asleep. Slowly, carefully, I snuggled closer into the crook of his neck, resting my hand on his chest.
Fine, Watson, I thought, a small, sleepy smile finally forming on my face. You win this round.
I finally drifted off, the words my wife echoing in my heart like the best song I'd ever heard. Truly.
****IN THE MORNING****
The morning light was peeking through the heavy curtains, turning the room into a soft, golden blur. I blinked my eyes open and realized I was still tucked firmly against Keifer's side. He was still dead to the world, breathing deeply and steadily.
I trailed my eyes down his chest to where his abs were. Gago. Even lying down, they looked like they were carved out of marble. My hand had been resting near his abs, and I quickly pulled it back, my face heating up even though nobody was watching.
He was still sleeping. He looked so... human. Not like the billionaire CEO who makes people tremble in boardrooms.
"You look so peaceful," I whispered, watching the way his eyelashes cast long shadows on his cheeks. "Unlike when you're awake. Always ordering people around like a grumpy man. You even rubbed some of that attitude off on Keiran."
I knew he couldn't hear me, which gave me a boost of bravery.
"You gago," I murmured, a small smile playing on my lips.
I reached out, my fingers trembling slightly, and lightly traced the line of his eyebrow.
"How do you do that?" I asked him softly. "Why do you look even more handsome when you're sleeping? It's not fair. When we get old, you'll probably still look young and I'll be all wrinkly, making me look like your grandma."
The thought made me huff. Typical Watson. He probably has efficient skin cells that refuse to age.
I moved my hand down, my fingertips grazing the line of his jaw. It felt rough with a bit of morning stubble, but the shape was unmistakable.
"It's so sharp, I bet I could slice an apple with it," I giggled quietly to myself.
I was so caught up in admiring my grumpy husband that I didn't notice his breathing change. I was just about to pull my hand away when his large, warm hand suddenly moved—fast as a lightning strike—and caught my wrist.
My heart practically leaped out of my throat. Gago!
KEIFER POV
I had been awake for the last three minutes.
It was hard not to wake up when I felt small, soft fingers tracing my eyebrows and poking at my jawline. I stayed still, keeping my eyes closed, just listening to her talk to me while she thought I was in dreamland.
Grumpy? Grandmother? I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing when she compared my jaw to a fruit knife.
But when she called me a gago for the second time, I decided the peaceful act was over.
I grabbed her wrist just as she was about to retreat, and I slowly opened my eyes. She looked like a deer caught in headlights—eyes wide, face bright red, and her mouth hanging open in a silent O.
"So," I said, my voice husky and deep with sleep. I didn't let go of her wrist; instead, I pulled her hand back toward my face. "You're planning on using my jaw to prepare snacks now?"
"I—you—!" Jay-jay stammered, trying to squirm away, but I just pulled her closer until our noses were almost touching.
"And who are you calling a grumpy man?" I teased, a smirk tugging at my lips. "I thought I was your husband who makes perfectly round pancakes."
Her face went from red to a shade of purple I didn't know was possible. "You were awake?! You heard that?!"
"I heard everything," I whispered, my gaze dropping to her lips before meeting her eyes again. "Including the part where you think I'm handsome. But don't worry, Jay. Even when you're a wrinkly grandma I'll still be the only gago making you pancakes."
I saw her eyes soften, and for a second, the embarrassment faded into that sweet, honest look that makes my chest tighten. This was the Jay-Jay I wanted to protect from the rest of the world—the one who saw me when I wasn't wearing the crown of the Watson empire.
I brought her closer to me, shifting my weight until there was absolutely no space left between us. I wanted her to feel every beat of my heart, to know that it only beat this fast when she was near.
"Keifer," she whispered, her voice a soft, shaky breath against my lips.
"Hmm," I hummed back, moving even closer, my forehead resting against hers.
She smiled. God, I would do anything for that smile. I'd burn down every factory I owned just to keep that expression on her face. I bet the angels are taking notes right now; she has the beauty of an angel, and I'm just the lucky sinner who convinced her to stay.
"You're really going to be a grumpy old man, aren't you?" she teased, her fingers playing with the hair at the nape of my neck.
"Only if you're the annoying old lady who hides my glasses," I whispered back.
I didn't care about the board meetings today.
I just wanted to stay in this room, in this moment, where the only thing that mattered was the girl in my arms.
Then she moved closer. I didn't think it was possible to get any closer, but she proved me wrong, pressing her soft warmth against me until I could feel the rhythmic thud of her heart matching mine. I moved too, my arm tightening around her waist to anchor her there.
Then, she kissed me.
It wasn't a tentative, shy peck like before. It was certain. It was her way of claiming me back after everything we'd been through over the last two weeks. I smiled against her lips, a wave of pure, unadulterated relief washing over me. I moved my lips against hers, tasting the sweetness of the moment, pouring every bit of the love I hadn't fully put into words yet into that one contact.
If this was what being a gago felt like, then I never wanted to be smart again.
JAY-JAY POV
Gago. My brain is officially short-circuiting.
I don't know where I got the courage. Maybe it was the way he defended me to Hazel, or maybe it was just the way he looked at me like I was the most important person in the world. But I knew I didn't want to wait for another interruption. Not a cat, not a phone, not a brother.
So I kissed him.
His lips were warm and firm, and when he smiled into the kiss, I felt that familiar kilig explosion in my chest. It was like a hundred fireworks going off at once, but better, because these fireworks tasted like peppermint and felt like home.
I wrapped my arms around his neck, my fingers tangling in his messy morning hair. For the first time since the fire, the fear was completely gone. The bruises didn't matter. The rumors didn't matter.
He was mine, and I was his.
I pulled back just a tiny bit, breathless and dizzy, my forehead still resting against his. My face was probably redder than a hot dog, but I didn't care.
"Keifer," I whispered, my voice sounding a little shaky but happy.
"Yeah?" he breathed, his eyes dark and meltingly soft.
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