Can’t Win Me Back by Ginger Sue

If Landon were to hear what Jasper just said, he would probably laugh at him.

"Good-for-nothing!" "Useless president!" "Polyandry?" Alyssa narrowed her eyes at him. She tickled him on his chin with her fingers and tilted his chin up. "Would you be happy with that, Mr. Jasper?" "No, I won't." Jasper looked her in the eyes with his fiery gaze. He then gulped. The bob in his Adam's apple was exceptionally sexy. "But I know that I don't deserve it." If he didn't deserve it, who did? That said, The Taylors always maintained a level of conservativeness. Although Alyssa's heart was racing, she uttered in a neutral tone, "Also, what are you doing? Is this a proposal?" Jasper pursed his lips and didn't reply.

"Others would usually have a romantic proposal and an expensive ring. I've never seen anyone hold a brush and a broken one at that." Alyssa put her hand on her hip, making herself look as if she was mad at him.

Jasper clenched his hands into fists. The brush's bristles dug into his palm.

He recalled the twhen Alyssa married him in the past. There was no proposal and no wedding ceremony. All she had with her was her luggage when she moved into Seaview Manor quietly.

Even the three-carat wedding ring was just a tool for formality's sake. He didn't put any heart into choosing that ring. Yet, she wore it every day and treated it like a treasure.

He was indebted to her. Tand tagain, he was covered by all the debt he owed her.

It was his dream to marry her. However, till today, he couldn't bring himself to say those few words openly-"Alyssa, marry me." Right at this moment, Alyssa's phone buzzed.

The secret group chat hadn't pinged in quite a long while. Surprisingly, the quietest member, Jonah, broke the silence. Jonah: "Lyse, I heard that Landon is getting married. Feel free to let us know if there's anything that we can help with." Alyssa smiled. She typed her reply speedily.

"Looking for three groomsmen. Limited spots available! One chance only!" Silas: "Why three? Shouldn't it be four? There are exactly four of us. We can fill up four spots." Axel: "Are you dumb, Silas? That spot is obviously allocated for Jasper. Fill up? I'd like to see if you can fill up four spots yourself." Silas: "Oh, right, right... I forgot about Jasper. But wait, who are you calling dumb?" Axel: "Are there any games or trivia for the groomsmen during the wedding, Lyse? With Silas' brain, he'd better not be a groomsman." Silas: "Just wait and see... Damn it!" Axel then sent a GIF of a dog sitting on a cat and wagging its tail. It really annoyed him.

Alyssa noticed that Liam hadn't said anything. She tagged him and asked, "Liam, can you attend the wedding?" Liam: "Of course. I can help out if any help is needed. It's just that I'm not that close with Landon. About being one of his groomsmen, it's a bit..." Liam held a high position in the military. He also had a huge responsibility on his shoulders. His every move was being watched by countless people in secret.

He also barely had any interaction with Landon. Even with Jasper, they had very minimal interaction.

It was indeed too demanding to have him be a groomsman.

Jonah: "Don't forget Julien, Lyse." Silas: "That's right! Your lover! Fortunately, he's a man. Otherwise, we wouldn't have enough people." Jonah: "They would probably need a priest if they are having a traditional wedding, right? I can't be a groomsman if I were to be the officiant." Alyssa bit her lip and thought about it. She then added Cyrus to the group.

"Cyrus, urgent help is needed! Can you be a groomsman?" Jasper saw that Alyssa was engrossed in her chat with her brothers. So, he excused himself and left the room. He went downstairs to cut sfruit for her. At the stime, he made a call.

In the kitchen, he plated the fruits skillfully while he spoke on the phone with Xavier.

"Keep an eye on upcoming famous auctions within the country and overseas. Remember to informif there are any high-end diamonds." "Wow! Mr. Jasper, are you being influenced by Mr. Landon? Are you planning to propose formally to Madam?" Xavier cheered from the other end of the call.

"Maybe, if there's a suitable timing. Just making spreparations first." Jasper lowered his eyes. His heart was filled with an array of conflicted emotions. He was worried but also filled with anticipation.

"Ho, ho... You're finally getting it right!" Xavier was about to burst into happy tears. "I'm so happy to know that I will be able to see you get married again. I can rest in peace even if I were to die tomorrow!" Jasper was speechless.

He was marrying his first wife again, not getting remarried to someone else! "Oh, right. You askedto investigate The Ivory Gang, right? It tookmuch effort to finally find out sthings." Jasper froze. "Go on." "Multiple gang members are involved with drugs. The police already have them on their watch." "Marc despises drugs. His subordinates never involved themselves with drugs throughout these decades. Those who did would only end up dead. Yet, speople took that risk?" Jasper lowered his darkened eyes.

"It's a different era now. Mr. Marc has advanced in age. There have et been multiple internal strifes in the recent two years. It is said that the gang would be in a worse condition if it weren't for Mr. Nathan holding everything together. "Their underlings have started to becdisloyal. They tried to accumulate Wealth behind Mara's back however theUltimately, they would seize power or start their own gang. This is the fate of those who dwell in the underworld." Jasper was a successful businessman who cfrom a wealthy family. His and Marc'spositions were like appand oranges. In actual fact, he didn't have to bother about the things going on within The Ivory Gang.

Despite that, Marc was Colene's father, while Colene was Alyssa's precious family member.

Inevitably, he paid more attention to them.

Moreover, there was also the death of The Ivory Gang member who died a tragic death on the street. He kept getting the feeling that there was something more behind his death.

"No matter which drug, the symptoms of addiction are pretty much the same. But did the man we saw last treally die from an overdose?" Jasper's eyes were deep. He frowned. "Why did it look more like he was ill or poisoned?" Xavier gasped. "It was strange indeed!" Jasper gave it sthought. Out of the blue, he asked in a deep voice, "Where can I buy it?" Xavier was stunned. "What do you mean?" "The drug. Find a way to buysome."