Lucy getting him out of bed each morning with the promise of food was something Caspian didn’t know he would miss so much.
Without realizing he had fallen into a cozy routine here...
Drowsily give Asher a goodbye kiss and then laze around until Lucy marched in and made him clean up to eat.
By the time the morning started getting warmer, and Caspian hungrier, he finally got out of bed.
He frowned at the door, staring at it hard like it would invite Lucy.
He wanted to call for her but he didn’t want to sound spoiled, he was just curious after all.
Caspian decided to clean up and request breakfast by himself, just like he used to before Lucy came into the picture.
In a short while, there was a knock on his door, making Caspian perk up.
But when all that happened was the knock coming again instead of the person on the other side walking right in, he invited them in, deflating.
A maid walked in gingerly, pushing a tray, she looked around nervously like she expected to be jumped.
"Thank you," He mumbled when she served him.
The maid just nodded and gave him a kind smile, preparing to push her tray out.
"Wait!" Caspian said at the last minute, making her pause.
"Is Lucy in today?" He asked, eyes wide hoping for a response.
"I don’t think so," The maid frowned as if she was just realizing in herself.
"Could you help me check?" Caspian pushed.
"Of-Of course," The maid accepted eagerly, bowing her head slightly as she hurried out.
Caspian forced himself to relax, of course Lucy would get days off, she deserved to get enough rest.
With a solution to her absence in hand, Caspian was able to focus on his breakfast, noticing the distinct difference between it and the meals Lucy cooked for him.
After breakfast... well more like lunch because he hadn’t eaten till it was well past noon.
He switched on the TV and found himself unable to concentrate...
Everything was supposed to be fine now, he had found the truth, he had paid a visit to his parents, he no longer had to pretend to be someone else, and Warren and Tammy were getting what was coming to them...
He might have to call Jael to confirm but he was pretty sure that he was free to go wherever he wanted.
But all of that was tainted by Lucy’s absence; Caspian switched off the television after getting halfway through a movie and being unable to remember what had happened.
He decided to try playing a game, his phone ringing after a while of doing that.
He picked it up with a frown, Jael’s number was saved in his phone so it was strange to see an unfamiliar number.
"Hello?" He answered tentatively, worried that it had been a bad move.
"Asher!" He beamed, dropping his controller to focus on the call. "I wasn’t expecting it to be you..."
Caspian didn’t miss Asher’s uncharacteristic sigh, "Is everything alright?"
"Yeah. What did you do today?"
Asher asking that was even more concerning but Caspian didn’t push.
"I got out of bed really late because Lucy wasn’t here," He started, keeping his tone light.
"Lucy isn’t in?" Asher cut in, his frown evident in his voice.
"I think she probably has the day off," Caspian shrugged.
"Right. I’ve got to go."
Caspian frowned when the call dropped, the call itself was already strange but it didn’t compare to how Asher acted.
It felt like he was missing something, but there was no other way to find out if Asher wasn’t telling him.
He could try calling Jael though...
Caspian avoided calling the Beta unless it was very important because he knew just how busy he was.
And this didn’t sound to be that dire, he could just try to pry more information from Asher when he got back.
If it was a matter to do with work, Caspian doubted he even wanted to be privy to that.
He was just concerned about Lucy’s absence and what had Asher so distracted that he was sighing.
He picked up the controller again, trying to distract himself with a game.
By the time the day was coming to an end, Asher had resigned to not seeing or hearing from Jael until the Beta decided to return.
The only other time that the Beta had stayed away was after his father was killed.
As the only two young children in the mansion, they hung together because they had no other option.
It meant that Asher knew every single hiding spot in the mansion, or at least he thought he did, because Jael managed to stay out of sight for three days straight.
By the time the Beta showed up again, Gage had already taken care of the people responsible for his father’s death, and Jael just never spoke about it.
So hearing about Lucy’s absence made Asher antsy. He honestly didn’t know how close they were.
Jael just seemed above feminine pleasure, even though there was an endless list of them that would do anything for him.
Asher didn’t exactly have the best relationship with sex before Caspian showed up so he couldn’t judge.
He didn’t even question the Beta, he was free to do as he wanted...
Asher stared at his phone, he didn’t get as many phone calls as he had been expecting, and he knew it was the men being too terrified to call him.
The sun would be setting soon, and he wasn’t sure he could spend another minute seated on this chair, working on autopilot.
Although his presence would make things go smoother, he had spent almost seven years with Jael building up the ranks so that it would be business as usual even if they both disappeared for an indefinite amount of time.
But the familiar routine would be the only thing keeping him sane until Jael returned... and Caspian.
That was enough to send Asher to his feet, picking up his phone as he swept out.