Heist of the Aztec Necklace
Chapter 2
The date occurred at twelve o'clock, the busiest time of day for the Italian restaurant. According zagat and yelp, this was the best place in town to eat. The restaurant mainly had seating outside and there was no way he would try anything in the public eye. She definitely knew how to control the situation.
His eyes scanned the outside seats looking for the woman.
"Do you have a reservation, sir?" a waitress asked from behind him.
He turned and her eyeballs grew wide before her tone changed to a silkier register, "Do you have a reservation?" She sounded like she was trying to ask him to a hotel room.
"Konoha," he told her. It wasn't his name, they never used names around strangers outside of town. Both of them were supposed to be several hundred miles away and in different directions. He on a business trip outside of the states, and she... He didn't actually know what her cover was supposed to be. In fact, maybe she was 'still in town'.
The waitress looked at the hostess table then gave a smile, "Right this way." As they made their way through the row of tables the waitress's heels began to click in distress. "It seems like your date has already arrived."
And so she had. The woman's short pink hair had been curled and placed in a bun, revealing her long, slender neck. She stood upon seeing him and the summer dress followed every inch of her curves seamlessly. Being perceptive, he noticed most men sitting or walking in the area had an eye on the woman. He wouldn't be able to touch her. Sometimes she was too good.
She gave a slight embrace and kissed the side of his right cheek, then his other. "It is good to see you."
Uncaught and uninjured he assumed. He took her hand and kissed the back of it. It never harmed a man to be a gentleman; his odds could only improve. "Thank you. It is good to see you too. You look stunning."
She blushed, in her girlish fashion, at his formality before she sat and motioned for him to do the same. "I already ordered, I hope you don't mind."
He only nodded his head, "Not a problem." He took his seat.
She'd been ordering for both of them for over a year now. She continued to ask, to be polite, and he continued to give her the same answer. He preferred it, ordering was always a hassle. With the current medication he was on, half of the time he could barely taste the food; so it didn't matter what exactly he ordered in the first place.
She was neither cheap nor expensive, whatever she bought usually was the median price. That being said though, she was very enthusiastic about her courses. Bread(if the restaurant served it and if not an appetizer), a glass of wine , salad, entree, and then dessert was how she always had it.
She pulled the bread in the basket apart, and then slowly spread the butter upon the piece in her hand. She was very cautious about not getting any on the table or on her hand, but she liked the entire piece to be covered before-she popped the piece in her mouth and began to chew.
Her green eyes then looked at him and redness dubbed her cheeks once again. As she chewed, she raised her napkin to her face. She was fairly hungry; her continuous appetite never ceased to amaze him. Perhaps it was that food tasted better for her. But she at least had been polite enough to wait until he was seated to begin eating.
He pulled a piece of bread from the small tray and ate it without butter. The soft, warm wheat and oat was filtered with the metallic film of his saliva. He gave her a smile, knowing it best to get to the point...When the waitress left them alone, of course.
"May I get you something to drink?" her clicking heels had given away her return.
He turned to her, "This water is fine," he said taking a sip.
The waitress smiled, her lips pinched upward, "Alright, let me know if you need anything." Her eyes darted to Sakura.
"Will do," Sakura smiled like a girl who'd gotten the larger half of a chocolate bar.
The clicking retreated and the murmur of voices surrounded them, letting him know it was safe to begin.
"You're wearing a wire," he left his tone open as if asking why.
Her nose twitched, such an easy tell. "How obvious is it?"
He smirked, it was good to be right. It had been a educated guess, but she didn't have to know that. "You usually wear lower cut tops, its obvious your little friends dressed you today."
Her cheeks went red at his blatant admittance of them usually meeting. As far as her team knew, he and Sakura were not friends. Her team members were probably squealing over the microphone about lower cut tops though, missing the point that he saw Sakura on a regular basis. It was his way of getting a small amount of revenge. It was fine, stealing an item to arrange a date. In fact, he enjoyed their banter and play. But the terms were a date, so that is what he expected. She'd tricked him into getting involved with something more. Something that would probably be unpleasant.
She cleared her throat, a signal to shut up the banter on the other end. She continued to try and play it off. "Your brother just wants to know how you're doing."
Yes, his dear brother wanted a lot of things like his demise or death, figurative in his job and perhaps the literal meaning as well. It was somewhat understandable. He had stolen a piece from his brother midst his brother stealing it. It happened all the time in their little world, but his brother had taken it too seriously. Since then, Sasuke hadn't even spoken a decent conversation with him. Sad really. Blood was very thick in their clan, even if almost all of them worked for different employers. That being said, there were a couple of odd balls in his family that actually worked for the law. Even though he didn't want to test it, he was curious whether blood was thicker than steel manacles .
"What a delight. It's good to know that deep down Sasuke truly cares for me." If that wouldn't ignite his brother's anger, nothing would.
She gave a twisted smile and tugged at her earring. It sounded like his brother was being a tad bit callous, and to such a pretty woman too… That wouldn't do. It was about time the conversation only had two people in it.
"How have you been?" he began.
She smiled, assuming it was just a formality. "Well, very well. You?"
"Pleasant, seeing that I didn't have to court to get a make-out session a night ago."
Her hand snatched and pulled out her earring, and her other hand reached into her dress to turn off the transmitter. Green eyes glared at him. Her smile grew wider and more twisted.
"If you don't play nice, you won't get what you came for."
She always resulted in using blackmails against him. He lifted her chin with his hands. "You're very beautiful when you make threats, I think you enjoy it."
The sliding of a chair drew both of their attentions. The man plopped down, sitting backwards on the chair to face them. "Yo!"
"Hello, Mr. Hatake, care to join us for lunch?" Itachi asked, his hand still lingering on Sakura's throat.
"Just stopping by for a visit actually. Checking in, making sure things go smoothly; curious to know what is going on," at the last line he looked directly at Sakura with his one visible eye.
Her face started changing shades. "Everything is going according to plan," she hissed.
"What plan would that be exactly?" Itachi asked, pulling her chin closer to him.
"Yes, please do tell Sakura," Hatake said leaning in.
Perhaps it was cruel to do this to the girl, but she had asked for it. Even Kakashi was involved, so this meant more than just his brother trying to ruin a date with a beautiful woman. It was likely to be a business affair.
The smile was almost to her eyes and her teeth flashed like a snarling dog. "Behave both of you."
"Will you be joining them?" the waitress asked, she had returned hoping that the woman was truly for the grey-haired man.
"Yes-"the man said, his one eye closing in a smile.
"No-" came from the two already seated.
Hatake looked at Sakura and something passed between them.
She dipped her head in submission, "Yes…" It sounded like a growl more than a human word.
The waitress gave a smile. "Can I get you something to drink?"
Hatake looked at Itachi, "Are you paying?"
Itachi could already knew this wasn't going to end well for him and now he wasn't even allowed to be alone with a pretty girl. Who knew this plan could backfire so much? "Yes."
"A glass of your most expensive wine then."
He'd probably be losing money on this venture.
Thanks for taking the time to read. I'd appreciate any feedback you care to give. Have a good weekend!