Part II
~v~
Kagome felt like she'd been punched in the stomach for all the air that suddenly whooshed out of her in disbelief at what Mattaki had just told her. He wants me to be his... mate? Mating was a very serious matter as there was no way to break the bond – Mattaki had been married twice but he'd never wanted to tie himself down in such a manner before, so that he wanted to now, and with her, was a huge shock. She felt blindsided. Just a few hours before she'd been lamenting the fact that she would be leaving the company and wouldn't see Mattaki again, and now... this?
"What were you planning to do about the situation with Inuyasha?" he asked after a moment when it became clear that Kagome didn't know what to say at all.
That question broke through her shock quite well and she scowled down at the floor, Mattaki finally having removed his finger from under her chin. "I was going to go to a hotel this evening and then once he's gone to work tomorrow, get a moving company to come get my things and put them in storage until I could find an apartment."
"Hn..." his brow furrowed in thought, "I have a better idea. You can simply move into my apartment and we will have your things moved there tomorrow." He caught the dazed look that was back in her eyes. "I have two bedrooms, so you can sleep in the spare until you are comfortable with our relationship."
She appreciated the offer, she really did, but the truth was she didn't really need to do that. She supposed that it was her reiki, but she was more like a youkai in certain things than a human – such as instinct. Her instincts were screaming at her to take his offer, to take him, and she really didn't feel like fighting them. She'd learned the hard way to always listen to her instincts. Hell, she was ready to jump him right this minute and enjoy what he would do to her body if she did. Who needed time? Not her.
Blushing at the thought of telling him that, she didn't let her nerves stop her from verbalizing her decision.
"Ano... I thank you for your understanding, but the truth is I really don't need the time. I already know how I feel and have for a while, so I'm ready now. It's so strange, in a way," she said musingly as he listened intently to her words. "But it seems as though I've known you forever. Does that make any sense?" she asked, meeting his gaze beguilingly.
"It makes every sense," he smiled, just so pleased that he wouldn't have to wait any longer to have what he'd been craving for so long that he could barely keep from sweeping her up in his arms right that second and hauling her off to his penthouse.
Before he could say anything else, Kagome's phone rang and blushing, she pulled it out of her shoulder bag to see who it was. She frowned when Inuyasha's number popped up and answered the call.
"What do you want, Inuyasha?" she asked curtly, not even caring if she made him suspicious with her tone of voice.
"Hey, what's your problem, wench?" he asked angrily, his voice loud and grating and perfectly audible to Mattaki, who scowled.
"Never mind. What did you call me for?"
"I'm gonna be home late – I've got a bunch of work to finish, so don't wait up for me," he returned, his voice still aggravated at her sharp tone.
"Of course you do," she murmured sarcastically. "Well, enjoy her, then." And before he could even respond to that little play on words she hung up, tossing the phone back into her bag with the volume off so he wouldn't bother her again, to the tune of Mattaki's laughter.
She was right; not two seconds had passed and her phone vibrated angrily as the hanyou tried to get her back on it.
"I suppose I should go and get enough of my clothes and personal items to last until I can get my things moved," she said with a sigh.
"I will drive you – you can simply leave your car here until tomorrow when I come to work. I'll make sure you have two paid days off so that you can get all your things unpacked and put away in my apartment." He frowned thoughtfully. "Perhaps I will also take at least tomorrow off so that I may go with you when the moving company arrives – I don't wish to leave you to Inuyasha's tender mercies – I have always suspected that he is an abuser and I've no doubts that if he is, you leaving him is going to bring that side of him out."
"You know... I think you're right about that," she said slowly. "He's never hit me, but there's been a few times I'm almost positive that he was about to."
"It is fortunate for him, then, that he did not have the chance," Mattaki replied with a dangerous edge to his voice as he took her hand and pulled her to her feet. He wanted so badly to kiss her, but he knew that it would be better if they waited until they made it back to his penthouse, because with as long as he'd wanted her he knew he wouldn't be able to stop at just a kiss. Hell, their first kiss, just a few minutes ago had tried and strained his control more than anything else ever had – not even that little monster he'd sired named Inuyasha and all his seemingly endless foibles.
"Hai, I'm also glad it didn't come to that," she sighed as she ran damp palms down her thighs as she straightened her skirt. "I would have been forced to use my reiki to defend myself, and I don't like doing that." She looked up at him as he waited for her to swing her bag back over her shoulder, and then escorted her out the door before turning to lock it. "Ano... are you sure you don't mind me taking two days off? You also don't have to attend me tomorrow, you know. Inuyasha will be at work, so it should be fine."
Mattaki shook his head as they paused to wait for the elevator. "He may call in tomorrow so that he can confront you about your words just now. I'd rather not have to kill my own son - as obnoxious as he is - for harming you in any way. It won't destroy the company for us to be absent for a few days," he added as the elevator dinged and then slowly opened.
Mind still whirling with the incredible events of the last hour and how much her life had turned around in just that short time, Kagome nodded and smiled, a little shyly, at the daiyoukai that she had fallen so hard for. She couldn't help but wonder what his true feelings for her were – was it just physical for him? Technically, the fact that he had bluntly informed her of his desire to mate her should have given her every bit of information she needed – but she knew that it wasn't enough... she would need to hear in words exactly what he felt for her.
Mattaki pressed the button for the bottom floor and the elevator obediently began to move, though it was such a good one that Kagome barely felt any movement. Unable to hold back in light of the circumstances, she blurted her question out without thought and winced when it fell into the silence like rocks breaking glass.
"Do you love me?"
Startled, Mattaki slowly turned his head to look down at the woman by his side, the woman who he always wanted by his side. He frowned after a moment as her fear scent absolutely exploded when he didn't answer right away.
"I think the fact that I paid my ex-wife millions to go away just so that I could have you should have spoken for me-" he growled low in his chest as his eyes narrowed at thought of his ass of a youngest son, "-but I suppose it is not surprising that you need to actually hear the words. Inuyasha has much to answer for." Pulling her around gently to face him by one slender arm, he waited until she looked up at him with eyes filled with fear and a desperate hope to answer her.
"Yes, Kagome, I do, indeed, love you. I wouldn't have planned to mate you otherwise, you know," he said gently, with a small, intimate smile just for her. He completely ignored the elevator doors opening up as well as the security guards that were stationed next to the elevator behind a small desk, despite their stunned stares at hearing the big boss, the Inu no Taisho, saying such a thing in a public setting. Not to mention the fact that the woman he was saying it to was a human miko and one who also worked for him.
Flushing brilliantly with a combination of embarrassment and joy, she sparkled up at him and murmured the same sentiments in return, and Mattaki took her elbow and guided her out to the parking garage before he made a fool of himself and gave those guards and anyone else who had been working late a very explicit show.
Once they were seated in his Mercedes and belted in, he started the vehicle and slowly backed out of his parking spot, and within moments they had left the Taisho building behind as he sped towards her apartment – soon to be ex-apartment.
It was quiet for a little bit, though it was a comfortable quiet and not strained at all, to Kagome's surprise. She could hardly believe that she was sitting next to the only male that had ever made her heart beat faster just walking by, and that he was going to help her gather her belongings so that she could move in with him.
"I find myself curious, Kagome – when did you find out about the brat's cheating?"
Startled from her thoughts at the sound of his voice, she blinked. "Oh! Sorry, I wandered off for a moment there. Um... It's been about a week – no, nine days," she corrected herself. "Why?"
"Just a comment you made earlier about not wanting to touch the bed again. So you are saying that you haven't slept on it since?"
She shook her head. "I deliberately provoked a fight with Inuyasha so that I had an excuse to sleep in the guest room. Does that make me a terrible person? Because I've spent all these last days worried about that," she admitted slowly.
Mattaki scoffed. "No, I'd say that was more clever than terrible. It's the boy's own fault – he's the one cheating, not you. And since he is now your ex, our new relationship has nothing to do with him." He took one hand from the steering wheel and caressed her thigh gently, though he kept it in respectful areas. "Do not blame yourself, Kagome. Tell me – if Inuyasha hadn't been cheating on you but you finally realized that you weren't in love with him, what would you have done?"
If he knew her as well as he thought he did, he already knew the answer, but she still needed the question asked so that she could know the answer, too.
"I would have broken things off with him," she said blankly, obviously not having caught on to his reason for asking.
"Exactly. So subconsciously you were not happy with him – you hadn't realized why, though. If you had, you would have broken up with him. You weren't trying to hurt him deliberately; we can only act on what we know, after all. On the other hand, Inuyasha was fully aware of what he was doing, completely cognizant that he was cheating on you and that it was wrong, a terrible thing to do to a person. He is the one that carries all the fault for what's happened."
Kagome sighed and nodded, her fingers fidgeting in her lap as she looked down at them. "I'm just glad that you aren't angry about this," she said.
"Oh, I'm angry all right – but not at you," he snorted. "That fool is far too much like his damned mother for my comfort, and I've no doubt I'm going to have to cover him sooner or later for some completely honorless action. He embarrasses our proud blood with his behavior. I'm going to end up whipping his ass again so he remembers who alpha is and what I do and don't see as proper behavior."
A tiny giggle met the end of that speech just as they pulled into the parking lot of the apartments. As they passed the manager's office, she snapped her fingers. "I mustn't forget – I'm going to have to come down here to the manager's office and have myself taken off the lease."
"I will remind you, itoshii." He couldn't help but to smile when he caught the starry look in her eyes, knowing that he had often had just such a besotted look on his face after seeing her.
Thankfully not seeing Inuyasha's truck in the parking lot, she directed Mattaki to park in what was usually her spot, and then as he shut the engine off she opened her door and climbed out before he could get around the car to open her door for her. He liked the fact that she was so independent and strong-willed, but... "Kagome," he said softly, waiting until she looked up at him questioningly, "next time, let me get your door for you. I was raised to be a gentleman and I would beg you to allow me to practice those gentlemanly manners," he finished teasingly, though he was really dead serious about the matter.
He wanted to pamper and spoil her so that she would never think of trying to leave him.
She blushed a little and nodded, though he could tell he'd surprised her. He took ahold of her elbow and escorted her to the elevator. "Come, little one, we should get this done as quickly as possible – I'm truly in no mood to run into that little whelp tonight. Better saved for tomorrow, when I can take my time and savor his anger and frustration when he realizes that he's lost you."
Rolling her eyes, because that was such a guy thing to say, Kagome hurried out of the elevator and turned down the hallway towards her now ex-apartment. She took the keys out of her purse as they were walking, wanting to grab what she needed in the short term so they could disappear before Inuyasha showed up – she had nothing to say to him tonight, tomorrow was soon enough to unload on him. She'd had a long, stressful day, and wasn't in top form because of that.
She had the feeling she would be much more relaxed tomorrow.
Quickly unlocking the door, she flipped on a light switch as soon as she stepped inside, and turned to look up at Mattaki as they entered the living room. She nodded towards the couch. "Have a seat, and I'll just grab a small bag and stuff what I'll need for the next couple of days in it and then we'll be able to go."
He inclined his head and sat down, pleased that his son had not yet come home, for if he had been forced to confront the whelp tonight he might have gone a little further than just an ass-kicking. He shook his head – how could he cheat on someone like Kagome – and with a horrible bitch like that secretary of his?
Hn... she was probably only with him for all the money and gifts he was spending on her to keep quiet about their affair. Now that's going to end, and it would be simple justice were he to find himself tossed to the curb as she went looking for someone else to lavish her unworthy self with everything she seems to think she's entitled to.
He was brought out of his musings by a muffled curse, and immediately stood up and followed Kagome's sweet scent into what must have been the guest bedroom that she'd been sleeping in. He stepped inside.
"Kagome? Is everything alright?" he asked cautiously, not wanting to upset her for following after her.
Kagome jumped a little at Mattaki's nearness to her so suddenly, but then resumed her search on the carpet and under the bed. "I dropped my diamond earrings and I don't dare leave them here, because I've no doubt he'd turn around and give them to that witch Kikyou while letting her believe he'd bought them for her," she said sourly, though the words were muffled what with her head being under the bed.
Mattaki, however, wasn't even listening to her anymore; the moment he rounded the bed and found her down on her hands and knees red light ignited in his eyes and he began trembling, fighting for control.
A deep, vibrating growl pulsed through the room and Kagome's head popped out from where she had been looking in startlement. "M-Mattaki?" she questioned worriedly, not understanding at first what image she'd presented to the inuyoukai.
"Kagome," he crooned, taking a step towards her, "I want you. Come to me, little lover."
Blinking in shock, it took Kagome a few moments to realize just what had set Mattaki off, and a cranberry flush overtook her cheeks. His instinctual side has taken him over, she thought with a gulp. I don't think we're going to be leaving this room for a while. I just hope Inuyasha doesn't show up. She scowled inwardly at that thought. Actually, I don't care if he shows up – its not like he didn't have that bitch in the apartment so he could screw her. Turnabout's fair play.
Making a decision in the moment, Kagome sat back on her heels and tilted her head so that her neck was bared. Being miko, she'd learned a lot about different races of youkai during her training, and that training was going to come in handy right this very minute, if she wasn't mistaken.
She was oh, so pleasurably right.