A/N: And epic fail to me for this being ohhh 4 months late. For those who don't read my other story, I was really sick for about 2 months and then we moved at the beginning of May. I also had some trouble with this chapter though I have no idea why. I wish to say thank you to everyone who read and reviewed and thank you to everyone who nominated this story for the 1st Quarter awards. Now that things are settled I hope to get this back on a regular schedule. I hope you're all still with me! As always reviews are greatly appreciated and make me smile! BTW Sesshoumaru is far from perfect in this and it's going to come out that he has quite a few flaws.

I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters associated.

New Routines, Empty Refrigerators and Crossing Boundaries.

Sesshoumaru groaned and did his best to ignore the blaring alarm clock on his nightstand but the more he tried, the louder the alarm seemed to grow. When the buzzing became too much to tolerate, Sesshoumaru slammed his hand down and turned it off. It was far too early to be awake even for him but his 7:30 meeting wouldn't wait. He laid in the peace and quiet for a few extra minutes before he removed the blankets and sat up. The room was spinning a little and it just served as another reason why he needed to quit drinking; no one should ever drink a bottle of tequila alone.

He rose from the bed slowly and headed off towards his private bathroom. As soon as the scalding water came in contact with his aching body he relaxed. He went over everything he needed to know for his meeting in his mind while he went through his daily routine in the shower. There were talks of a massive merger in the making and they wanted all of the top people in the company to go over the details and make sure the information being provided by the other institution were sound. For the most part they were but there were definitely a few things that he noticed that needed to be addressed. Hopefully they were just simple errors that could be easily corrected but if there was one thing he learned in his tenure with the company it was that nothing was ever so simple.

10 minutes later his shower was complete and he was putting the finishing touches on his wardrobe choices for the day when the smell of fresh coffee and breakfast reached his nose. He inhaled deeply before smirking just a bit. It seemed that his new roommate was awake too.

Kagome had officially moved in as of Saturday evening but he had barely seen her. No, he wasn't avoiding the woman he simply had other matters to attend to. Okay that was a lie; he really didn't want to help move her stuff in. Her friends were coming to help her so really there was no reason he needed to be there. He spent the day hiding in his office going over some reports and his night at the local bar he liked to frequent. Most of Sunday was spent nursing his hangover and when he emerged from his room Kagome was nowhere to be found. He assumed she was out getting things that she needed and wouldn't be back any time soon, so he made himself some food, grabbed yet another bottle of alcohol and retreated back to the safety of his room. He never even heard her return. Kami help him, he was turning into a truly pathetic male over one simple woman. Whore his mind reminded him sternly. While it was true that she hadn't tried to get in touch with him since the day he threw her out, he knew it was only a matter of time before she tried to come crawling back. He would refuse her of course but that still didn't stop the lonely feeling he had a night when he curled up in his bed…alone. Pathetic.

Shaking his head to rid himself of the ridiculous thoughts he was having, he straightened his tie and headed for the kitchen. He spotted Kagome by the stove flipping what looked to be an omelet of some kind. He wanted to chuckle at her appearance but he didn't. Her hair was thrown up into a messy ponytail on top of her head while her sunshine and rainbow pajama pants with matching tank top did nothing to squash his amusement. Quietly he slipped into the kitchen and leaned against the wall. She was oblivious to his presence but that didn't last long when he cleared his throat loudly.

Kagome jumped and whirled around to see Sesshoumaru looking at her with an amused gleam in his eyes. She huffed and stared at him.

"You could have warned me you know. I'm still getting used to being here" she told him.

"I could have but you seem to be adjusting well" he replied while gesturing to the pan on the stove and the pot of coffee.

"Right, well I thought you could use some breakfast before you went to work. Since I was up and making it for myself I thought I'd be nice and make you some too. I don't know if you're a coffee drinker or not but I can't live without it."

"Coffee is fine. Thank you for your consideration" he said stiffly. She was far too happy in the morning he decided.

Kagome smiled softly and turned back to the stove. Her first weekend in her new home was not what she expected it to be. Sure, she never thought that Sesshoumaru would actually be there to help move anything in but she was surprised when she saw nothing of her new roommate. She knew that he was a busy man but it was the weekend and she was hoping to spend a little time with him while she moved in, in the hopes of getting to know him a little better. Obviously he had other plans because she hadn't seen him once. She was aware that they weren't going to be friends instantly but it was impossible to try when he wasn't around. Sango had immediately commented on the fact that he wasn't there because he was afraid to meet her friends but she dismissed that theory almost instantly. Sesshoumaru didn't seem like the type of person to avoid things but…She shook her head. He was busy, it was no big deal, and they would just start over.

When she heard his alarm blaring this morning she decided that a good way to start off on this new adventure was to make a good impression. When the shower next to her bedroom kicked on, she got up and quickly started breakfast. She had no idea what he liked but figured that just about everyone enjoyed a good omelet once in a while.

She arranged their breakfast neatly on the plates and carefully poured two cups of coffee before turning around and setting his plate in front of him. Kagome watched somewhat nervously as he eyed the food with caution.

"I promise it's very edible. I took cooking classes a few years ago" she told him when she noticed he had yet to take a bite.

Sesshoumaru lifted an eye and gazed at her before deciding that she wasn't out to poison him in order to steal his home. Really, he had way too many ridiculous thoughts going on in his mind when it came to the woman and they all needed to stop…right now.

Hesitantly he lifted the chopsticks to his mouth and dove in. The first thing he noticed was that the food was, in fact, edible. He didn't know what he was expecting but it certainly wasn't what he got. The flavors were rich and well blended. He was impressed but that could be due to the fact that his normal breakfast consisted of a piece of dry toast on his way out the door. The meal in front of him was many, many levels above that and he silently thought that he could get used to mornings like this. He was so involved in his thoughts that he didn't even notice that he had devoured the entire plate in a matter of only a couple minutes. He stared at the empty plate in obvious confusion; he didn't realize he was that hungry.

"I guess it was good then?" Kagome asked when he said nothing.

Shaking his head, Sesshoumaru looked up at the woman sitting across from him and nodded "Yes, thank you it was delicious but I must be going."

"Oh, alright. I'm off today so I'm just going to finish setting up the rest of my things and spend some time changing my address on a few things."

"If you need anything, let me know. I left a note with my cell phone and work numbers on the dry-erase board on the refrigerator the other day" he replied while getting up from the chair and draining his cup of coffee in the process "thank you for breakfast; I will see you this evening."

"Have a good day Sesshoumaru." Kagome said with a smile.

Sesshoumaru nodded and headed for the door. He probably should have grabbed the bottle of aspirin from under the sink in the bathroom before he left but it was too late for that now. Today was definitely going to be a shitty day.

~~~~~B~~~~~

Kagome stared at it, unable to truly believe what she was seeing. There was…nothing. Why had she not noticed this, this morning when she made breakfast? Because you were still half asleep and didn't care her mind supplied as she surveyed the situation.

How does he live like this? I mean, it's not like he can't afford it…Kagome was at a loss and she immediately began snooping around the kitchen until she found what she was looking for.

"Ah ha!" she cried when she spied the very large pile of take out menus in the corner. It was obvious from the pile that he ordered out…a lot. While she could understand that he was a very busy man and probably didn't have a lot of time to cook, when she opened up the refrigerator and saw that there was nothing inside she frowned. She had no problem cooking for the two of them but if there was nothing to work with she didn't' see that happening. I guess I need to go grocery shopping she thought just before her phone began to ring.

"Hello?"

"Hey Kags, what are you doing?" Sango asked on the other end.

"Trying to figure out how this man lives with no food" Kagome replied with a laugh.

"I'm sorry?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I just have some shopping to do."

"Okay then. How are things otherwise?"

"I'm settling in. I've got my room basically set up the way I want it now I just have to find a spot for some of my bigger things like my potted plants and a few paintings. I don't want to just put them anywhere without asking him first."

"Why didn't you ask him yet?"

"Because I haven't seen him at all until this morning."

"Seriously? How rude is that?"

"Sango…"

"No, Kagome don't you 'Sango me'! He doesn't show up to help you move your stuff in then you don't see him the whole weekend? That's a big load of bullshit if I do say so myself. What is the point of having a roommate if you're not going to see them?"

"Sango, he's a busy man and I'm not going to bother him with stupid questions like 'oh where should I put this' and besides we're both still adjusting to being around one another. It's not like I expected us to be best friends in 3 days."

"Well, I still think he should make some sort of effort to get to know you."

"I'm sure he will when he has free time. I mean, it's not like he can avoid me forever."

"I guess you're right. Now, what's this about shopping?"

Kagome laughed loudly at her friends' eagerness to spend money.

"Not that kind of shopping. I have to shop for groceries. I had stuff to make breakfast with but when I looked in the refrigerator and the cabinets there was…well there was nothing. I get the feeling that he orders out…a lot"

"Must be nice to have so much disposable income that he doesn't have to bother with the simple things like buying food to live on. Hell he probably has someone do it for him" Sango bit back harshly.

"You're awfully cranky today Sango; is there something bothering you?"

"No. Well nothing more than usual"

"What did Miroku do this time?"

Sango chuckled on the other end and Kagome knew that the woman was shaking her head.

"You know me too well. The answer is the same thing that he always does."

"Hmm let me guess…probably 5'5, dark hair and eyes and an ass that could knock down a building?"

"You got it! Listen I've got to get going but I'll call you later tonight."

"Alright, Sango have a good day"

Kagome hung up the phone and took a seat at the kitchen table. Grabbing a stray piece of paper and a pen, she began making a list of everything she would need to purchase. Food was obviously at the top of the list and she knew she would need to buy enough for two people. The only problem was she really had no idea what Sesshoumaru liked to eat. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that it didn't matter what he liked to eat or not. Sure, she made him breakfast but that didn't automatically mean that she had to cook every meal for him. I'm not his personal chef, I'm his roommate! She told herself before diving in and making a list of all of her favorite foods.

~~~~~B~~~~~

He really should have stayed in bed today but unfortunately it was too late to change that decision by this point. From the moment he set foot inside the building nothing had gone right. First his personal secretary called in sick and the replacement temp working was nothing short of a disaster. Even the most menial tasks seemed impossible for the woman to complete and he was tempted to just tell her to leave for the day and deal with it on his own. The meeting that he had woken up so early for was a complete failure seeing as how neither side could come to an agreement. It was apparent that the other side had issues with the discrepancies that he discovered in his research and had all but accused him of altering the data to make them look bad. That, of course, was ridiculous but it caused the proceedings to come to halt until both sides had a chance to go over the data again. He knew that his information was sound but that didn't mean anything in the end. They asked for his opinion and diligence and he gave it 100% there should be no reason why they would question him. He didn't argue with those that were above him even though he wanted to.

Sesshoumaru sighed and leaned back in his chair. He really wanted to leave for the day but knew that it wasn't going to happen. There was too much going on and if he suddenly just disappeared it wouldn't look good at all. He was contemplating leaving for lunch when his office door was suddenly thrown open and a very angry Kagura stepped through followed closely by a harried looking temp.

"I'm sorry Ito-sama; she didn't listen when I said you didn't want to be disturbed and insisted that she speak with you immediately. I can call security—"

"Just go, I'll handle it" he seethed while leveling a murderous gaze at Kagura.

The temp worker backed out of the room slowly and shut the door behind her. Kagura never took her eyes off of Sesshoumaru's face.

"You look well" she purred.

"And you still look like a whore. What do you want, Kagura I'm a very busy man?" he snapped.

"I thought we could talk" she began while she stalked towards the other side of the desk where he was seated "I miss you and realize that I made a terrible mistake. I want us to start over."

She stopped when she was standing in front of him with her ass resting on the edge of his desk. Her short skirt rode up even higher and her tight shirt emphasized her generous breasts and she did everything in her power to draw his attention to them.

Sesshoumaru wasn't biting. He seethed in disgust and pushed his chair back further. She was a master of seduction, there was no question about that but he was stronger than she gave him credit for.

"I would rather die a celibate man than give you another chance" he spat.

"Oh come now, Sesshoumaru. You know you don't really mean that" she replied while she removed herself from his desk and attempted to place herself in his lap.

Sesshoumaru immediately stood up and pushed her away.

"Do not touch me or I promise you it will be the last thing you ever do. You have 2 minutes to remove yourself from this building or I will have you removed. If I ever see you set foot in here again I'll make sure you leave in handcuffs."

Kagura huffed; he'd won this round but she was nothing if not determined. She would return and he would be sorry.

"Whatever, Sesshoumaru. You're going to regret your actions today I promise you that. You're not as powerful as you like to think you are and I can't wait to see that ego of yours bitch-slapped into the next century."

With that, she turned and calmly strolled out of his office like nothing happened. He watched her go and fought the urge to vomit. He was starting to wonder what he ever saw in her. If he really thought about it, she was cruel, vindictive and was obviously after him for only one reason; his money and his name. He had no patience for gold-digging bitches but every woman that seemed to attract his attention could be grouped into that category.

One day he would meet someone who saw him for more than just his name and what he could provide for them. He knew that he wasn't the easiest person to get along with but that didn't mean he had to settle for someone less than he deserved. If-no, when he found her he would know but until then he was done with dating. He had needs obviously and he wouldn't stop himself from taking care of those needs but as far as any sort of commitment was concerned he was ready to just say 'fuck it all'!

Sighing loudly, he decided that he was officially done for the day. He didn't care if anyone needed him he needed to get the hell out of there and blow off some steam. Perhaps he would hit the gym? He chuckled to himself; there was no way in hell he would be setting foot inside a gym today. He was likely to take his frustrations out on some poor, unsuspecting person and well…that just wouldn't be a good thing.

An odd thought popped into his mind and he wondered where it came from. Surprisingly he was curious what Kagome was doing. Why he was curious, he really didn't know and didn't care to know but the thought was there none the less. Pushing that thought to the back of his mind, he left the office, informed his secretary that he was leaving and made a point to tell her that her services would not be needed for the rest of the week.

~~~~~B~~~~~

"You have reached the voicemail of Sesshoumaru Ito. I am unavailable at the moment and will return your call at my earliest convenience"

Kagome listened as Sesshoumaru's voicemail sounded…again. She didn't bother to leave a message and flipped her phone closed. It was the third time she had tried to reach him since around 4:00 in the afternoon and she was ready to give up. She didn't need anything really she was just curious when he was going to be home. She was getting ready to make dinner and she wanted to know how much to make. If he was on his way she would happily make enough for the two of them. If he was going to be a while then she would just leave his portion aside. On the off chance that he wasn't going to be there at all then she didn't want to bother. She wasn't there to cater to him but she wouldn't be rude and ignore him either. If they were going to be living together they were going to have to get used to being around one another. Dinner was a nice common thing that they could do together and it was her hope that she could learn a little more about him.

Sango and Miroku hadn't been very forthcoming when she asked what they knew about him. She knew he was a powerful business man but beyond that she knew nothing. She tried to do a little research in her down time this afternoon but they only things she could find were articles from the local gossip blogs. He seemed to have a taste for gorgeous yet unsurprisingly snobbish trust fund princesses. It didn't surprise her really; men like him were rarely seen without some stunning airhead on their arm. She had attended several high profile functions with Kouga and all of the women were the same. They couldn't hold a normal conversation without their brain deciding that it wanted to implode if she used words that were too big for them to comprehend. She often wondered what the appeal was. Sure they were nice to look at but it wasn't always about that. She wasn't attracted to money or power but to compassion and intellect. She wanted someone that was mentally stimulating to her and for a while she thought…

No, she wasn't going to do that to herself again. Kouga was her past and she was moving on from that past. Smiling to herself, she decided that she really didn't care if Sesshoumaru was home or not because it didn't matter. They had plenty of time to get to know each other and there was no reason to rush things.

Right now she wanted to cook herself some dinner, sit out on their patio with a nice glass of wine and enjoy the night air. Smiling again she also foresaw a nice, hot, steamy bath in the near future.

~~~~~B~~~~~

"You're hitting it a little hard tonight you know" the bartender remarked when he poured his highest paying customer yet another drink. He never understood why a man like Sesshoumaru Ito needed to drown his misery in alcohol, in a shitty little dive bar like this of all places, but considering how slow it was tonight he wasn't going to complain; tonight's tip was going to be phenomenal.

"Spare me and pour me another double" Sesshoumaru replied while he quickly downed the drink that had just been placed in front of him. He knew he should have just gone home and passed out but he truly just didn't care at the moment. He wanted to forget the day and this was his way of doing it. He didn't realize how pissed off he was until he sat down at the bar. After his 8th drink he realized just how much of a vapid bitch Kagura really was and how much he was looking forward to crushing her. She wanted to play hard ball did she? Well she was in for the surprise of her life. When he was done with her she wouldn't even be able to get a job as a prostitute at the local whore house. Kami how he hated her right now. In the back of his mind he knew that he shouldn't even be giving this a second thought but his mind had a tendency to focus on the more unpleasant things when he was drunk. His failed relationships, his bastard half-brother, the feeling of disappointment that was always present in his father's eyes when he was younger was all there just under the surface. Fuck he was turning into a truly pathetic being!

"Hey, you alright there Sesshoumaru? You kinda spaced out…"

"Hn…m'fine. Jus' poured me anoter drink and be quietly" he slurred. Damn he was really feeling it.

The bartender narrowed his eyes and decided that the man had, had enough. He hadn't seen him this wrecked ever. Whatever had set him off today had obviously been bad.

"Sorry but I think you've had enough tonight. I'm going to call you a cab, you're going to go home and pass out. Tomorrow you're going to home right after work because I think you need a night off" he told him carefully.

Sesshoumaru scowled; how dare this man tell him what to do? Didn't he know who he was talking to?

Before he could open his mouth to protest two surly looking men approached the bar and stood next to him. Great, just fucking great. He wasn't in the mood to cause a scene because the last thing he needed was to spend a night in jail. The last time that had happened it had been all over the tabloids.

"Hmm…damage?" he stuttered.

"19,850 yen"

Sighing heavily, Sesshoumaru pulled out his wallet and threw a stack of bills on the bar. He had no idea how much was there but it didn't matter; it wasn't like he couldn't afford it.

The bartender counted the stack on the bar and after figuring out what his tip should be he went to hand back the rest.

"Kee it" Sesshoumaru said before he staggered his way off his bar stool and out the door to his waiting taxi. His head was pounding and he was pretty sure that he was seriously going to regret his actions in the morning. Oh well, that was the morning and personally he didn't care about the morning. All he cared about was getting home so he could pop a few aspirin and pass out.

The cab ride was short and before he knew it he was paying the cab driver, probably more than he should have, and slowly making his way inside. The doorman nodded at him but he ignored him. When he reached the elevator he sat back against the wall and did his best to keep the room from spinning. It was a struggle to stay standing and he idly wondered how the hell he was going to make it all the way down the hall to his apartment. When the doors opened, all 8 of them, he stepped forward slowly and fumbled along the wall until he reached what he hoped was his door. Shaky hands extended and it was by some miracle from the Kami above that he managed to slip the key into the lock and open the door.

Things felt different when he walked inside but it was hard to figure out what was wrong. The placed seemed to have acquired a few new additions that he didn't remember purchasing but he didn't care. The only thing on his mind was a shower and bed.

He reached the bathroom door and wondered idly why the door was closed. Why would the door be closed? He never closed any doors because he didn't have a reason to. It didn't matter; he decided before he reached out and turned the knob. Steam and the scent of lavender attacked him as soon as the door was opened and that only caused his confusion to grow. What the fuck was wrong with his bathroom?

Movement to his left drew his attention to the shower where the curtain was just pulled aside. One long, toned leg was extended from the tub followed by another and before he knew it, there was a tall, round in all the right places, wet, naked woman standing in front of him.

Who the fuck is this? his mind questioned before the object of said questioned turned and finally noticed his presence.

Kagome stared at Sesshoumaru with her mouth hanging open. When the hell did he get home and why is he standing there staring at me…

It hit her then that she was completely naked and soaking wet! She screamed and immediately dove for the towel hanging on the rack.

"What the hell are you doing in here, Sesshoumaru?"