Yes Ma'am

Alice's Day Off

Alice

It was early in the morning when I felt the bed shift. My internal alarm clock screamed at me to wake up but I mentally shut it off and snuggled deeper into the blankets.

Lips press against my cheek and I open my eyes slightly and watch as he gets dressed.

"Come back to bed." I mumble. "It's too early."

"It might be your day off love, but I still have things to do." His voice was husky and thick with sleep, which only made his accent more pronounced.

"C'mon please? Just a little longer Jazz?" I stick my lip out.

He sighs and lays back down, placing his head on my pillow, leaving a lingering kiss on my forehead. "I'm starting to see where Thea gets it from."

"Rude." I slap his arm lightly and bury my head in his chest as he laughs.

Despite Jasper being taller than me by a whole foot and then some, we still managed to fit together like two pieces of a perfect puzzle.

We stayed in our little bubble of comfort a few moments longer, then he starts to stir again.

"Do you have to?" I look at him through my eyelashes.

"Chicken coop won't build itself, darlin'. And I have to take care of the horses."

"Make Emmett build the coop. It was his idea anyway." I grumble.

"Thea wanted chickens way before Emmett presented the idea. He was just the catalyst of the recent events." He rubs my back and tilts his head to whisper in my ear. "Plus when it's just me, I get to show off my skills." A small smirk plays on his lips as he nips at my earlobe then pulls away.

"Jasper Whitlock-Hale, you are such a tease." I say in exasperation, star-fishing myself across the bed.

He laughs and presses a kiss to my lips. "Love you."

"Love you too."

Then he was gone.

——-——

Jasper had the coop built and the horses fed, watered and in the paddock by mid-morning.

"Looks like you had a productive morning." I greet as he comes downstairs, fresh from the shower and clean-shaven.

"Very." He sits at his usual place at the kitchen table, cup of coffee clutched in between his hands, flipping through the newspaper with furrowed eyebrows. Which of course, perfectly highlighted the two slightly faded scars that ran across his left eye.

"Anything interesting in the paper today?" I curl myself into his lap and he smiles, wrapping his arms around me, keeping me in place.

"Not really. Just same stuff as always."

"Small towns. Gotta love them."

Jasper snorts and leans into my hand as I run my fingers through his hair. "It's quiet. Almost too quiet. Whatever you gave Thea to help her sleep last night must've really worked."

"Melatonin." I give him a cheeky grin.

"I don't think she's ever slept this long. Not even as a baby."

"I blame you and Rose for that."

"Why's that?" He cocks an eyebrow as he looks at me over the rim of his mug.

"I have my reasons." I reply.

"Care to share with the rest of the class?"

"Nope." I pop the "p."

The room is quiet for a while as Jasper and I wash, dry and put away our breakfast dishes.

I start on the oatmeal for Thea when Jasper comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders and resting his chin on top of my head when he bends down a bit.

I turn around and he straightens, tightening his hold around me almost instinctively. "What's on your mind Alice?" My husband asks.

"Just hold me for a while, Jazz. I want to cherish every bit of alone time we have before Hurricane Thea wreaks havoc around the house."

"Yes ma'am." He says in a soft whisper, and does just that.