He almost felt bad for taking advantage of such an easy target. Almost.

Her eyes lit up when she saw him. Even with her face frozen in shock, even when she glared at him, her feet coming towards him in dramatic stomps, he could see the emotion play out on her face—the tenderness lying in wait for him to hold her.

He smiled. It wasn't arrogance, it was confidence. He knew everything about her and she didn't even know his name.

She paused, looking as though she might attack him for his reaction. Yet the anger melted off her face, replaced by something between confusion and relief. "Shinichi!" She leapt forward, throwing her arms around him in a tight embrace. "Why didn't you tell me you were here, you jerk?" she mumbled into his chest. She just didn't care anymore. It had been too long for her to act like she didn't miss him, or that she blamed him for anything. She didn't care as long as he was home.

He patted her back. The poor girl had it bad. She held onto him as if afraid he might disappear, which, with him, was usually a correct suspicion. He laid his hand against the side of her face, pushing her hair back before lifting her head to meet her eyes. They were wide with shock, yet glistened with expectation all too delicious for him to resist.

He pressed his lips to hers. She seemed to hesitate, but didn't pull away. It was a soft, sweet kiss, although he laughed inwardly at the thought of what he could have done. He let his hand fall to his side as they parted.

He wondered how the little detective had resisted spilling everything to her. She was just begging to be swept off her feet. The things they could get away with, all without her old man knowing. He could almost be jealous of the kid.

Her face was flushed all over as she stared into his eyes. Something seemed to strike her. She sucked in a breath, lips parting and face burning even brighter. "You…"

He leaned his head towards her, unable to keep from an open-mouth grin. "Me?"

She took a step back. "You're not Shinichi!" she shouted, oblivious to the stares directed at the two. The boy looked nearly identical to Shinichi. She hadn't noticed the difference until she saw that it wasn't just a new haircut, but his hairline was different. Her face heated up at something that silly being the giveaway.

"Nope," he said simply.

Anger coursed through her veins. "You don't just kiss someone! That. Isn't. How. You. Greet. A. Girl."

With each word, he dodged a foot shooting for his groin. "I'm sorry!" he said with hands raised defensively. "You're the one that hugged a stranger in the street. It seemed like natural progression."

She glared at him, her muscles still twitching to sock him a good one. But there was something bothering her. She couldn't quite pick it out. "Have we met before?" she found herself saying before her mind caught up.

The girl was more perceptive than he'd given her credit for. "Maybe." And maybe he was shooting himself in the foot. Women were a terrible weakness to have. "I do have the tendency to get around." Reminding himself that she practiced karate and was damn good at it, he went for the good old tactic of changing the subject. "Kaito Kuroba," he said, holding out his hand.

She stared at the hand as though it might burn her. "Ran Mouri…" Her hesitant hand met his as she studied his face. She gripped his hand hard. "Touch me again and I'll break your bones."

He laughed, taking his hand back to nurse it. "It's nice to meet you, Mouri-san. I hope to see you again soon." At her look of confusion, he elaborated, "You were going somewhere, were you not?"

He knew he had hit the mark when her eyes widened. She looked embarrassed for having gotten distracted.

"You're right. I'd better go." She paused before adding, "It was nice meeting you too, Kuroba-san. Bye."

He waved as she took off, a smile remaining on his face. She was a little calmer than the girls he hung out with by choice or not. It was nice being around girls who only hated him for the right reasons, too. He could still feel the soft lips against his skin. And she had a nice body to boot.

He sighed happily as he wandered away.

Don't worry, Tantei-kun. I won't steal her away.

I might just borrow her for a while.