8. Dominic
Idodged the punch aimed at my jaw, but my reflexes were a split second too slow. As my head whipped sideways from the force of Aaron’s fist, I knew I was in trouble. I ducked beneath the follow-up right hook and danced out of reach.
That was the second hit one of my friends had gotten in during our morning training session when I was usually untouchable. The Sato family’s building downtown boasted a spacious private training facility. Our combined grunts and heavy breathing echoed across the vast space.
Almost every day for as long as I could remember, my three closest and most loyal friends—Aaron, Rin, and Keiko—met with me to practice. Each of us would take a turn fighting off the other three. And for equally as long, no one had bested me.
Until now.
Possibly.
Aaron’s feral grin stretched ear to ear, his blue eyes bright from the exertion. “You got it bad if I was able to get a terrible swing like that in.” He dipped under my swing with cat-like reflexes courtesy of his leopard shifter blood.
“Got it bad” was a gross understatement.
Less than a day had passed and my pulse still thrummed with the memory of Marissa’s hands gliding over my skin. Her coy smiles and soothing touch had played on a loop in my mind since that encounter, haunting the periphery of my consciousness.
“Yeah, Nic, what’s got you all spaced out?” Rin asked, easily dodging a sloppy punch. “You’re off your game today.”
As one of my distant cousins, Rin’s dragon was also a fire elemental. The entire Sato family boasted fire spirits, the most fierce and deadly of all the elements when it came to dragons.
I was certain Ichiro would have refused his bastard grandson’s spirit-bonding ceremony if I hadn’t proven such a valuable asset in the ring before I’d turned eighteen. The old man had wanted to see what I could do with a dragon on my side.
Little did my grandfather know at the time, the spirit of Joubunaryūō—one of the strongest Dragon Kings of old—would choose me. Ichiro never would have allowed it had he known.
“More like what’s her name?” Keiko’s teasing voice asked from behind me.
I shook off the memories clouding my mind and focused on the fight, lashing out with a series of quick jabs and kicks.
Nimble as ever, Keiko and Rin darted out of reach and shared a knowing grin. These two had been lovebirds from the moment they first set eyes on each other in middle school. It was as unlikely a pairing as my parents, but no one outside this small group knew about their relationship.
Both had black hair and dark eyes, but their similarities ended there. While Rin’s beast-like, bodybuilder’s form made him look like he could eat an entire cow for dinner and still be hungry, Keiko was pint-sized and a smattering of freckles danced across her otherwise pale nose.
She was the perfect example of size not mattering. Her naturally lethal skills and abilities were unique, which was why Ichiro adopted her fifteen years ago, and she had become like a little sister to me. Unrelated to the Satos by blood, yet more accepted by the family than I would ever be.
Regardless, I wasn’t like the rest of them. I didn’t fall for anyone. I couldn’t.
Not yet.
I didn’t have time for the kind of distraction Marissa posed, not when my position within my family’s empire was at stake. Securing my place as heir was paramount for my plan to succeed, and chasing after a woman would only slow me down.
With a growl, I allowed the simmering beast within me to rise. Letting my dragon loose was far too dangerous in my current state of mind, but scaring my friends would go a long way to easing my frustration.
Keiko took a step back, narrowing her eyes. She’d been on the receiving end of my dragon’s wrath before. “You wouldn’t.”
I kept my voice low and dangerous. “Wouldn’t I?”
This time, Aaron rolled his eyes and stood straight, sweat dripping down his tan cheeks. “Admit it, Dominic. She’s got you whipped over a fucking massage. And it wasn’t even a rub and tug.”
“This’s about that masseuse? The one I met at your place yesterday?” Rin’s eyes widened, and then he nodded. “She was a fox.”
Had it been anyone else making a comment like that about Marissa, I might have felt threatened enough to attack. Instead, I dropped my arms in defeat.
My friends were right. I was completely distracted by that brown-haired beauty. More of an auburn with those streaks of red that glittered like gold in the light. I’d never thought of a woman’s hair like that before, hardly gave the color more than a cursory glance.
But Marissa was different.
Everything about her was different, unique, seductive. Her essence called to me at all hours, day and night, and it had only been a day. No, not even twenty-four hours.
I found myself wondering what kind of shampoo she used and how she took her coffee. All the little details that made up a person. A vivid fantasy of her laughing over breakfast in little more than one of my t-shirts flashed through my mind, and I shook my head to dispel it.
“Fine, I admit it,” I said and shrugged it off. “But it’ll pass, like all the others.”
Rin headed to the side benches and grabbed a bottle of water. “Bullshit it’s like all the others. We’re not blind. Want me to run a background check?”
Brushing wet strands of hair back from my face, I followed. Aaron and Keiko were hot on my heels. “No, I’ve got this handled.”
I leaned against the wall, trying to slow my pulse and clear my mind. But unwanted thoughts of Marissa persisted, haunting me. She was like a drug, and I was an addict after just one hit.
Keiko sidled up next to me with a knowing smirk. “So again, what’s her name?”
I cast her a withering glare. “There is no her because it’s not happening.”
“Yeah, and I’m the tooth fairy.” Aaron stretched his arms behind his back in a languid manner. “Come on, we’ve known you for most of our lives. Who is she?”
“Megan?” Rin rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Melissa?”
“Marissa, and this conversation is over. She wasn’t interested.”
Aaron laughed. “So that’s what’s got you all twisted up, huh? The great Dominic Sato shot down at last.”
Irritation flared, but beneath it, a traitorous part of me couldn’t deny the truth in Aaron’s words. The masseuse had caught me off guard in a way no woman ever had. And that both thrilled and unsettled me.
“Since when has that stopped you from getting what you wanted?” Keiko crossed her arms and cocked her hip to the side. “She won’t say no forever, if only to say she went on a date with a Sato.”
I shook my head, knowing Marissa was different. She would have been a challenge, a thought that excited me, but now was not the time.
“Seriously, Nic, we want to see you happy for once.” Keiko’s voice had taken on a soft tone, and I met her gaze. “You deserve happiness.”
“I can’t afford to think about happiness,” I shot back, my voice tense as I conveyed my hidden meaning. “Not when I’m so close.”
Although we were alone in the training facility, cameras and hidden microphones were as abundant here as in my penthouse, except there they were all mine. The old man wasn’t any more paranoid than any other ruler sitting on a precarious throne.
Still, we kept any discussions about our plans with Ichiro to more secure locations. Even discussing Marissa at all felt like a risk. If my grandfather knew I had a weakness, Ichiro wouldn’t hesitate to use her against me.
“Who says you can’t do both?” Rin countered. “Maybe this is exactly what you need—someone who challenges you, makes you question things, and ultimately makes you stronger.”
“Is she Gifted?” Keiko asked. After I nodded, she said, “Good, that’ll make things easier.”
Exhaustion clung to me like a second skin, but beneath the fatigue was a restless energy I couldn’t shake. My friends’ words echoed in my mind, their persuasion wearing away at my resistance. Maybe they were right.
I knew I should focus on the impossible—gaining Ichiro’s favor. Pursuing a woman, no matter how intriguing, was trouble waiting to happen. Once I took over the empire and made some massive changes to the way business was run, then I could focus on my own happiness.
Except curiosity burned hot and bright within me, ignited by Marissa’s mysterious hold over me. I wanted to see her again, to uncover the secrets behind her quirky smile and guarded eyes.
Rin tossed me a towel. “We’re going out for lunch. You in?”
Wiping the sweat from my neck, I shook my head. “Not today.”
“Ah, so the mighty Red Dragon has given in at last,” Keiko teased. “Planning to see a certain, uninterested masseuse?”
I opened my mouth to object, but no argument came. The human side of me wanted to rip something to shreds in frustration, but Jou purred in contentment. The beast wanted nothing more than to take what he thought was his, which was this woman who’d enchanted us both.
My friends were right—I couldn’t deny my feelings any longer. Besides, I had never been one to back down from a challenge, and Marissa was a mystery I was determined to solve.
Perhaps once I did, this infatuation would pass.
With a wry smile, I raised my hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. I have a lunch meeting with a potential client, but I’ll track her down after.”
My friends erupted into laughing cheers, slapping me on the back and offering enthusiastic encouragement. I allowed myself a moment to enjoy it, anticipation building within me.
This pursuit would be anything but ordinary. Just from one meeting, I knew Marissa wasn’t like other women. If I wanted to win her over, I would have to approach this strategically. No more careless flirtation or hollow charm.
She deserved more than that, and I found, possibly for the first time when it came to a woman, that I wanted to give her more.
Later today, I would visit the massage school. Only this time, I wouldn’t be dissuaded so easily. I had made up my mind, and once I set my sights on something, I didn’t give up until it was mine.