Epilogue
"Stop introducing random men to your sister, Logan! She already has a husband. I am your brother-in-law!"
Xavier's furious voice echoed through the living room as he stalked after Logan, his expression dark enough to make anyone else immediately reconsider arguing with him.
The man who could silence anyone with a single dark look was currently chasing his brother-in-law around the couch because the man refused to acknowledge a marriage that had already happened six months ago.
Logan, however, seemed completely unaffected.
With the same stubborn, indifferent expression he had worn throughout the argument, he smoothly rounded the couch, effortlessly avoiding Xavier's attempt to catch him.
"No, you're not."
"I am." Xavier gritted out as he took another step closer. "Elise and I have been married for six months."
Logan finally stopped moving and turned toward him. He looked at Xavier with a completely deadpan expression, raising one eyebrow slightly as if he genuinely didn't understand why Xavier thought that statement proved anything.
"And what does that have to do with me?"
Xavier's jaw tightened, a muscle ticking beneath his skin as irritation flashed through his eyes. The look on his face was enough to intimidate almost anyone who had ever crossed paths with him. There was a reason people feared Xavier Chen.
But Logan simply stared back.
Although he was carefully hiding the fact that the couch between them was serving a very important purpose.
Because while he was determined to act fearless, his legs were quietly betraying him, trembling behind the furniture.
"Logan."
The warning in Xavier's voice made him instinctively straighten.
Before Logan could respond, another voice interrupted them.
"Why does it sound like you two are fighting again?"
Both men turned toward the entrance.
Elise stood there, one hand holding a stack of office files while her other carried her handbag.
She had clearly just returned from work, still dressed in a sophisticated knee-length dress that suited her perfectly.
Her hair fell freely over her shoulders, framing her face beautifully, and despite the exhaustion from her day, she still looked effortlessly elegant.
Her confused gaze moved between the two men.
Before Xavier could explain, Logan immediately abandoned his position behind the couch and walked toward her.
"Elise, your roommate just tried to assault me."
Elise blinked, clearly unsure whether she had heard correctly.
Her gaze shifted toward Xavier.
He stood there with his arms stiff at his sides, his face set in obvious displeasure.
"Your brother is one stupid comment away from getting banned from my house," Xavier said through gritted teeth.
Logan immediately stepped half behind Elise. Despite being nearly two feet taller than her, he shamelessly used his sister as a shield while peering at Xavier with renewed confidence.
"This is my sister's house. You can't ban me."
Logan lifted his chin proudly, looking almost smug as he folded his arms across his chest.
"I'm unbannable. I own, like, a fifty percent share in this property. Legally, I'm at least fifty percent unbannable."
Xavier exhaled slowly through his nose, his eyes sliding shut as he struggled to contain his frustration. His hands settled on his waist, gripping tightly as he tipped his head back, the expression on his face hovering somewhere between utter exhaustion and complete disbelief.
Dealing with ruthless business rivals, impossible negotiations, and endless corporate battles had never tested his patience the way Logan did.
Elise watched him for a moment before gently disentangling herself from her brother and walking toward her husband.
The instant she stepped close, it was as though Xavier sensed her presence before she even reached him.
Without saying a word, he opened his arms toward her in silent invitation. As she came to a stop in front of him, he bent slightly to meet her at eye level, another weary sigh escaping him as the tension remained etched across his face.
"Can we stop his two-night sleepovers every month?" he asked, his voice heavy with exhaustion. "I think that should be punishment enough to finally bring him to his senses."
A small smile tugged at Elise's lips.
"He's just joking. He doesn't really mean it."
"He introduced six men to you in the past six months."
Xavier's jaw tightened as he spoke, as though merely saying the number aloud was enough to irritate him all over again.
"He keeps trying to replace me."
Before Elise could respond, Logan, who had gradually wandered closer to eavesdrop on their conversation, immediately spoke up.
"And I will!"
Both Xavier and Elise turned toward him.
Logan stood there with a completely serious expression, as though he had just made a perfectly reasonable announcement.
"I want my sister to get married properly. She's already at the age where she should be settled down. I need a handsome and rich brother-in-law."
Very slowly, Xavier turned his head to look at him.
The little patience he had left vanished instantly.
"She is married!" He snapped, pointing a finger at himself. "To me! I am your handsome and rich brother-in-law."
Logan narrowed his eyes.
"No brother-in-law of mine would ever be a cheater."
Xavier's expression hardened. "I have told you a hundred times—I never cheated on Elise."
His voice rose with frustration, disbelief woven through every word.
Logan merely scoffed. He shot Xavier one last disapproving look before turning away.
"Yeah, sure."
The dismissive response made Xavier's jaw clench even harder.
Elise's gaze moved between the two men, worry gradually settling across her face as she watched their endless battle continue.
Before Xavier could say another word, he turned back toward her.
The moment his eyes met hers, some of the anger melted away.
Without hesitation, Elise stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him.
“Alright, alright. Calm down. I will beat him up later.”
Xavier immediately gathered her against him, his arms tightening around her waist as he buried his face against the curve of her neck. The frustration that had consumed him only moments ago slowly drained away the instant she was in his embrace.
***
Elise waited by the door that evening, dressed in a gorgeous dress as she stood there waiting for their guest to arrive. She shifted from one foot to the other, lightly rocking back and forth on her toes while she glanced outside.
The moment Xavier stepped out of the house, he already had a blanket in his hands. A faint frown rested on his face as he walked toward her, clearly displeased that she was standing outside waiting.
Without saying anything, he came up behind her and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders before pulling her back into his arms, holding her close against him.
He dipped his head, his lips brushing near her ear as he whispered, "Why are you standing by the door? Let's go inside.”
Elise turned slightly in his arms and looked up at him with a soft smile.
"I can't let a guest come inside on her own, can I?"
She leaned closer and kissed him on the lips before adding, "Besides, Astrid couldn't even come to our wedding. It's a good thing that she is coming over now, so don't fight with her, okay? Promise me."
Xavier looked at her with a frown.
"I never fight with her," he said immediately. "It's her who tries to take you alone into dark rooms. I don't know what she plans on doing to you."
Elise couldn't stop the small snicker that escaped her.
"You always exaggerate when it comes to her. She doesn't do anything like that."
Xavier immediately looked at her as if he couldn't believe she refused to believe him.
A deeper frown appeared on his face as an unpleasant memory crossed his mind.
"She looks at you so lovingly," he muttered. "She even brought you a gift from France."
His expression darkened slightly as he remembered the necklace that had bothered him from the moment he saw it.
"That diamond necklace she bought at the auction..." His jaw tightened. "The one she spent fifteen million dollars on."
His gaze returned to Elise.
"Why did you keep it? I told you that you shouldn't have taken it."
Elise looked at him with a helpless smile.
"But she would have been upset," she explained. "It was my wedding gift from her. I couldn't just refuse it."
She paused, remembering how Astrid had insisted.
Xavier released a quiet sigh, his expression turning troubled. He looked down at her, the frustration in his eyes mixed with a helplessness that only Elise ever managed to bring out of him.
"I am so tired of this," he murmured.
His arm tightened around her waist as he pulled her closer.
"I don't know how much longer I can keep you all to myself when everyone seems determined to steal your attention away from me."
Elise couldn't help the small laugh that escaped her.
"You overthink everything."
Xavier immediately frowned at her, clearly unhappy that she wasn't taking his jealousy seriously.
"I do not."
He turned her around and kissed the corner of her mouth before moving down toward her throat. His lips brushed against her skin as he whispered in her ear, "Do you remember our wedding night? It is still my favorite night. Let's recreate it tonight. The same positions."
Elise stiffened as his breath brushed over her neck, and the memory of their wedding night immediately rushed back to her.
The goddamn man had not let her out of his grip for even a second the entire night, and even the day after that.
It had been the most exhausting two nights of her life, but at the same time, they had also been the most pleasurable nights of her entire life—ones she could barely forget, even if she tried.