Title: As The Season Changes

Genre: Romance & Drama

Rating: T (M)

Main Character: Atobe Keigo [OC] Saotome Aiko

Note: Future. Slight AU. This was written a bit differently than what I'm used to, it's a bit more fast-paced with a lot of adult drama.

Disclaimer: I don't own.

Warning: Mature Content. Adult Situations. Language.

As The Season Changes

Chapter One

Party guests, dressed in regal finery, ebbed and flowed through the Atobe mansion. The festivities roaring well into the night with no sign of it ever stopping.

From a safe distance, Saotome Aiko, known to many as simply Ai, kept an eye on Atobe Keigo, whom she could tell scanned the festive throng with bored eyes.

Born to wear the stark black tux and crisp pleated shirt, every immaculate inch of him screamed wealth and bone-deep self-confidence. With his aristocratic features and penetrating blue eyes, he was like a king surveying his kingdom. And the dangerous edge of his sex appeal was universal enough to make every female head turn.

Fifteen years hadn't changed him. He was still the gorgeous man she'd known in her teenage years. But Ai had changed considerably. No way would he recognize the woman she was now and associate her with that awkward teen.

Atobe Keigo had set the bar in which she judged all men. Her standards were now extremely, and friends told her, unreasonably high. So be it. She was perfectly content with her life just the way it was, thank you very much.

Well, not entirely.

Those same friends, had told her in no uncertain terms she'd become an old spinster if she continued to reject all men. Then in explicit and detailed words, that she care not to repeat, they went on to suggest she have a no strings attached, casual fling with a man. Even though they knew Ai wasn't the type of woman to have a fling.

That had been several months ago. But slowly, Ai realized that her friends might just be right. There was something essential missing in her life.

In that moment, Ai caught Keigo's gaze. She held it, although it took every ounce of courage she possessed to do so. Her chin lifted a notch and she saw his lips twitch. Their eyes locked as he started across the room toward her. She squared her shoulders and took a fortifying sip of wine. Exhilaration made her heart pump harder. She resisted the urge to run her hands over her hips to make sure the silk jersey wasn't bunched anywhere.

Keigo was taller, fitter, better looking than any other man in the room. Her heart pounded so hard she barely felt the individual beats. Everything about him assaulted her senses as he moved inexorably closer. Adrenaline raced in effervescent bubbles through her bloodstream.

"You look like an angel in that white dress, honey."

The words so close to her ears almost gave her a heart attack. Ai turned around and came face to face with Atobe Kyoususke, Keigo's father.

Tongue-tied, she hadn't noticed his approach. He kissed her cheek in greeting.

Ai was saved from speaking when he asked, "What were you staring at so intently—Oh, Keigo."

Blood pounded in her ears as she turned around once more.

It had taken forever, yet, in a second, he was right there within touching distance. His cologne was more subtle, more sophisticated, than she remembered, but the base scent, the essence of the man, remained. She'd never felt more female in her life as Keigo's hot gaze burned through the thin silk of her dress to the pulsing skin beneath.

The physical attraction she was experiencing was as powerful, as terrifying now as it had been all those years ago. Lust made her mission easier. And if the feelings were reciprocated...

"Father." Keigo greeted, his voice low and husky, his eyes never leaving Ai.

"Keigo." Kyoususke sounded atypically jovial as he clasped his son's shoulder. "How are you doing, son?"

"Introduce me to the lady." Keigo watched the sunrise of a blush paint her cheeks as he allowed the heat of his gaze to travel slowly from her lush mouth to her eyes and back to her mouth. A cloud of dark curls framed her face and drifted about her shoulders as she looked up at him. Her brows, dark and silky, formed a gentle arch above eyes of dark chocolate.

Keigo had been reluctant to attend this party when his father had called days ago inviting him to join. He didn't do these time-consuming parties anymore. His father had used the incentive of a surprise to make him come. And for a second, when he'd spotted the dark-haired beauty beside the old man, he'd imagined she was his surprise. Considering every surprise his father has ever given him and familiar with his wily manipulations. Keigo had almost turned and left.

The supple, slender body standing few feet from him was enough of an inducement to make him stay. For now. Her subtle fragrance teased him. Her skin smooth and pale against the virgin-white floor-length gown. The matte fabric covered her from throat to ankle in a sensuous sweep, without showing so much as a panty line.

He felt a rush of heat as her small breasts shifted with her breathing. She was doing her damnedest to appear unaffected, but the lady was as aware of him as he was of her.

Keigo felt the familiar adrenaline rush for the start of the chase and wondered if she, too, was thinking of tangled sheets and sweat-dampened skin.

He almost didn't catch the frown marring his father's face. "Keigo, don't you remember her? This is Saotome Aiko."

Her name was familiar. Blue eyes widened as name and face were placed. "Ai?"

A grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. "It's nice to see you again, Keigo."

Their father's were close friends. So there was nary a summer where the two families hadn't gotten together. If he remembered correctly she was three years younger than him, thirty to his thirty-three. Keigo looked her over once more from head to toe. Saotome Aiko sure has grown into a beautiful woman.

And she'd be a pleasure to have in his bed. The very thought startled him. Keigo couldn't remember ever reacting so explosively. He was almost tempted to cut his losses and walk away. Sex was one thing, but sex with the daughter of your father's best friend another.

He knew he was looking at Ai with unabashed hunger. His blood pressure shot up another ten points as he heard her stifle a moan. "Are you here alone?" he asked.

"Just me and 299 party guests." Ai said with a smile that made Keigo's skin tingle.

She had an extraordinary mouth, generous, her lips pouty without being petulant. Keigo needed a taste. Just one. He almost leaned over to take it but managed to remain fixed in place, his libido jumping. She was available, he wanted her and she appeared interested. It was turning out to be a good party, after all.

He smiled. "Can I take you home?"

"Actually, I just got here," she drawled, eyes bright. "But thanks for offering. Oji-sama," she turned to his father, using the term she had always used to call him by, "I'd love another glass of this excellent wine."

Kyoususke gave them both a pointed glance before he snatched her glass and went off.

Ai tilted her head a little to look up at him. Brown eyes twinkled as bronze lights of laughter danced in the sparkling depth. She was all sass and flirty eyes. And damn well irresistible. Keigo wanted to bury his hands up to his elbows in her hair, assure himself that it was as soft as it looked. He wanted to run his fingers along her slender curves. He wanted to lay her on cool sheets in a candlelit room and make love to her until she melted like warm honey.

But first things first...

"Before we start anything," he said flatly. "I need to make something perfectly clear. I'm not interested in a long-term entanglement and marriage will never be on the table."

Obviously taken aback she gave him a startled look. And then she laughed. "Goodness, a philanderer with integrity. How refreshing."

Keigo realized he'd tensed for her response. There was something about her that led him to believe she was nothing like his female companions to date. Maybe it had to do with his memory of the young carefree girl he had spent some of his childhood with. But this woman, with her flowing eyes and ripe mouth, might not understand.

"I don't want any misunderstandings. I'm powerfully attracted to you. Hell, flat-out, I want you, Saotome Aiko. If there's a problem, tell me now."

Her breath hitched. Keigo glanced down. Her nipples were clearly delineated by the fabric of her dress. As he watched, the small buds peaked. He stifled a grown and shifted his stance.

She said, voice thick, "you've always been direct, Keigo."

Her husky voice saying his name made him want to yank her into his arms. He craved her mouth under his. "If I was any more direct, I'd take you to bed right now. I'm hardly the first man who's wanted to sleep with you."

"What?" Little Miss Sass was distracted for a moment watching his mouth. "You're the first man who's said it straight out with about three hundred witnesses."

For the first time since he was a boy, Keigo felt a flush rise to his cheekbones. A point to the lady for her swift recovery.

"I want to see you."

"You are seeing me."

"Without all these people around."

She opened her mouth, but paused. Obviously hesitating, so he knew whatever came next was far from what she was truly going to tell him. "Oji-sama invited me to stay for the weekend, if you're staying here too, we should bump into each other sometime."

"That's a little too vague for me." Keigo scanned her animated face. Her eyes still danced as she crossed her arms over her chest. At the view of her plumped breasts on the shelf of her arms, his mouth went dry.

He wanted her. He planned to have her. Soon.

"Several of us are going parachuting tomorrow, and since it's too far to drive home, then back so early, I'll be spending the night here. You're welcome to join us, Keigo."

He wanted to back her against the wall and have her, right there in front of hundred of guests. He couldn't remember ever being this hot, this fast. Then her words dawned on him. She would never go to bed with him under his parents roof. Damn, somehow he'd lost control of the conversation. He wasn't sure where or why, but it mildly annoyed him.

"What do I have to give you for just one kiss?" He didn't recognize the roughness in his own voice.

"Here?" Ai surveyed the room.

"Yes, damn it."

Brown eyes gleamed devilishly. "Chloroform?"

"Oh," he mocked, "I think I can find something that works just as well and is far more accessible." He hailed a waiter, and handed her two brimming glasses of pale wine. "Here."

Ai automatically clutched both glasses as she looked up at him. "What am I supposed to d—"

He touched her cheek, just the barest of touches, and she tilted her face up. He kissed her softly on the mouth. She tasted of his father's excellent Chateau Coutet, laughter and something he couldn't quite put a name to.

His fingers tightened briefly in the springy silk of her hair as her tongue shyly touched his. His lips moved with expertise over hers, Ai's lashes fluttered then drifted close. He felt her small breasts brand his chest as she leaned into him. He swallowed her ragged moan as he deepened the contact and lost himself in her response.

And then she was gone.

One moment he was standing with an armful of pliant willing woman, the next he was holding two dripping glasses and she was several feet away.

"Give me a call sometime." She—damn her sassy hide—had the nerve to grin. Ai melted into the crowd, disappearing from view before he could recover.

Keigo felt as if he'd been poleaxed. It had been a long time since he'd felt the roar of his blood and the thrill of the chase.

ATSC

Ai's purple-and-pink parachute floated over the trees on the south side of the Atobe estate. Keigo shaded his eyes against the sharp summer sun and scowled. He'd had precious little sleep the night before. Thinking about her, knowing she slept under the same roof, had caused him to toss and turn. So near and yet so far.

In his imagination she'd appeared larger then life somehow. Vibrant and intoxicatingly alive. She had what the French called je ne sais quoi, an indescribable something.

Keigo enjoyed sex. He considered himself a considerate lover. He wanted Ai. It seemed simple enough. Except... in some sense she was family. They shared a past. He knew her, his family knew her. And she knew him in ways no other woman ever has. He dreaded the closeness, but at the same time he needed to assure himself that what he remembered from the night before was as simple as her unmistakable sex appeal. And nothing more.

High above him, a gust took hold of the thin silk, and Ai's slender arms madly manipulated the controls against the sudden shift in wind direction. She was losing the battle.

"Hell." Keigo started to run as her feet skimmed the treetops. He followed the dirt road behind the estate, then sprinted to the other side of the trees just in time to see the billowing silks covering Ai's prone body.

Roughly he gathered the fabric, flinging it behind him until he unveiled her. She looked up into his face and grinned.

"That was fabulous!" Ai sat up, brushing twigs and dirt off her arms. A skintight purple and fuchsia spandex bodysuit clung to every sleek, tight inch of her long body.

"You little idiot," Keigo said furiously, his heart still pounding, "You could've been killed."

Ai's hand stilled and her smile slipped a little as she unbuckled her helmet and tugged it off. Something he didn't recognize flared in her eyes.

"Yeah, my landing left a little to be desired." She tossed her braid over her shoulder. "I'll have to work on that." She stuck out a hand. "Pull me up."

Then he knew. They had gone through this several times growing up. Their bantering was so familiar. He liked how natural it felt. Like reuniting with a long lost friend. That's exactly what they were, and yet, now he was more than intrigued by her.

"You've always liked to live dangerously, don't you Ai?"

Keigo remembered some of her exploits since the parents tasked him to watch over her. Mainly because they were worried she was going to get into trouble if left without supervision. It went without saying that that didn't mean they didn't find themselves in trouble from time to time.

"You have no idea," Ai managed to say breathlessly as he suddenly tugged on her hand, drawing her to her feet and against his chest in one quick move.

He hadn't imagined it. Ai seemed to inhale life, to eat it with a spoon, relishing each delicious moment at a time. Keigo knew she'd be like that in bed. Eager. Hot. Passionate and wild.

"I want to taste it on you."

"Taste what?" she asked, a breath away from his mouth. She looked up at him, and he swore he could drown in those hot, brown eyes. Her fingers flexed against his chest. "Taste what?" she repeated, her voice low.

"Danger." He brought his mouth down on hers like a starving man at a banquet. He knew after he'd slept with her a few times the gnawing want would lesson and become manageable enough to ignore. Keigo needed to remember that this wasn't just any woman, he needed to proceed with care.

Ai's lips held the sheen of his kiss as he stepped away from her. "I'll call you April first," he told her. Ignoring her bemused look, he turned and walked away. He licked his lips, his body stirring with the taste of her.

He walked faster.

TBC...