Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
L akeshia
I wake up groggy and alone. Why hadn’t Takeshi and Shinji woken me? Do they believe I wouldn’t want to see them after last night? Do they not want to see me?
No. I reject the thought as a fuzzy memory fights to solidify. Was it a dream? Wishful thinking? Or had Takeshi and Shinji taken turns kissing the breath out of me before I could respond or was coherent enough to protest as the darkness vanished into the early morning light?
Shit!
I pull the covers over my head as I recall mumbling about morning breath and both men chuckling. They ignored my concern, took turns possessing my mouth and making me moan in my semi-wakeful state.
No, they have no residual hangups about last night. But I do.
I sweep the covers off my body, determined not to dwell on how the night ended. After a quick shower, I head downstairs for breakfast. Takeshi, Shinji, or maybe Kori, left an assortment of fruit and a personalized quiche I devour without hesitation.
Without Shinji and Takeshi’s presence, boredom sets in. With my malaise comes too much time to reflect on my behavior. Avoidance and distractions are way better activities than reliving last night. I jump out of my chair and go in search of Riu as sitting idle doesn’t mesh with what I need, nor is it my ideal way to spend the day. Neither is looking into setting up a new escort business, although I’d agreed to do so.
Instead of creating a company and losing myself in the weeds while Takeshi and Shinji spearhead my revenge plans, I’m going to take advantage of their resources.
“Tora, how many times do I have to kick you out?” Riu’s whisper carries to me in the hall, halting my search.
I follow his conversation with the hell beast that refuses to stay in his owner’s home. They’re in the small office space that, like the rest of the house, is sparsely furnished. By the looks of the room, no one uses the space.
“Riu?”
He jumps at my voice, turns guiltily toward me, and bows. “Don’t mind Tora. I’ll take him outside now.”
I grab his arm before he can go after the feline whose penetrating glare makes me uneasy. I don’t speak cat and can’t figure out what the hell he wants. “After you take care of that… animal, I’ll need a car.”
“I can have whatever you need delivered to the house.”
I stare hard at Riu. Neither Takeshi nor Shinji confirmed if I am a glorified prisoner in their home, but I didn’t agree to sitting on my ass all day. How far will Riu go to keep me locked up here?
“I prefer to do my own errands. If this will be a problem, I’ll find my way where I need to go without you.” I refuse to back down on this point.
My determined glare must have worked on Riu because he steps away. I glance at the furry critter that hasn’t taken his eyes off me since I entered the room. I may not appreciate his presence, but I respect his no-fucks attitude.
“She insists on having a car…unclear… Hai.” Riu’s soft conversation distracts me from the stare-off with Tora.
I should have realized when Riu didn’t approach the cat or immediately leave the room that his priority was to rat me out to his employers. In English. As if I couldn’t figure out the purpose of his furtive Japanese whispers.
Maybe his employers demanded he speak in English around me out of of respect.
I’m not ready to listen to my conscience praising the two men I share a roof with. Riu hands me the phone and I snatch it from him, already over having my movements monitored.
“Where are you going?” Takeshi’s voice is more curious than demanding.
“Shopping.”
“And this shopping requires your presence?”
I temper my urge to snap at him. “I require it.”
He sighs at the other end of the phone. “Take Riu and two other guards with you. For your safety, let them know exactly where you plan to go. And have him show you where we stored your weapons.”
“That’s it?” I can’t hide my incredulity and scowl at Riu when I’d rather glare at Takeshi.
“Were you expecting resistance?”
“Well…yeah. You made me stay here all day yesterday.”
His low chuckle travels through the speakers and my body. “Chiisai senshi no megami, you had a delivery.”
I ignore the warm flutters in my stomach at the Japanese term. Although I have no idea what he said, the warmth in his voice gives me enough context. It’s an endearment and after last night, I’m not prepared to deal with everything the sweet words may entail.
I stiffen my spine. “But you never denied that I would be a prisoner here.”
“Would admitting or denying change anything? I’m very aware you can slip your security whenever you want, but we can agree that wasting time to find and retrieve you won’t benefit either of us.”
“I see your point…”
“You still have doubts,” he says, his voice flat.
I sense his disappointment, and a pit opens in my stomach. I glance at Riu and avert my eyes, uncomfortable with admitting the words I’m about to say in front of an audience, but needing to revive the liveliness in Takeshi’s voice before I’d killed it with my suspicions.
“Why don’t I have a phone to call you directly? Must everything go through Riu?”
Surprise fills the silence. My heart beats to fill the emptiness while I hold my breath for his response.
“You want to hear my voice during the day, chiisai senshi no megami?” A seductive note enters his tone and all I can think about is the way he handled Shinji in bed.
I open my mouth to protest and clear my head, but nothing comes out, not even air. I can’t fight the image of Shinji with his beautiful wavy hair stuck to his skin while Takeshi orders him not to come.
Why am I behaving this way?
“Look on the nightstand. You’ll find a new phone with my and Shinji’s numbers. Call anytime. Even if you don’t need anything.”
“O…kay. If there’s nothing else, I guess I’ll just go about my day then.”
“There is one thing.”
I knew there was a catch!
“ I require you to keep your guards with you. Your safety remains a priority for me and Shinji.”
I breathe a relieved sigh. “I can live with that.”
“And chiisai senshi no megami…?”
“Yes?”
“I like to hear your voice while I’m at work, too.” Takeshi hangs up before I can disabuse him of his notion.
Serenidad is very new to me and I only intend to call him if there are things Riu can’t tell me. I return Riu’s phone and retrieve the one I’d overlooked in the bedroom, sitting exactly where Takeshi said it would, but I question whether I’ll call him or resort to Shinji.
With Shinji, I expect flirtation. He’s a charming rogue with an unending supply of sexy smiles that stir my emotions. I do not expect Takeshi to match his energy. Takeshi holds my life in his hands, so for him to admit to liking…no, wanting to hear my voice. I shake my head, unable to fit my two impressions of the man together and not wanting to obsess over him more than I already have.
What we have is a business arrangement. It can’t be anything else. Especially because I expect to benefit from the arrangement long before I give Takeshi and Shinji what they want.
I should feel guilty—a small piece of me does—but postponing a pregnancy for as long as I can hold out allows me to be front and center when I hammer the nail in Tomasso’s coffin. There’s nothing I want more than to watch his disbelief turn to horror when we meet for the last time. I will relish paying him a hundredfold for what he did to me and my father. My vengeance will manifest in rivers gushing with his blood and hills piled with his broken bones.
An image of Shinji’s disappointed face breaks the beautiful tapestry of blood and death I’ve painted, causing my chest to ache. I need to focus on my goal and try to shake him from my thoughts. I can’t risk going soft for him or his husband.
But will they give me a choice?