The Corporate Catch

By: Sandreline

Hello everyone! Thank you so much for your support and kind words. And thank you for your patience – as I said before, I apologize that updates will not be as frequent as normal due to my sister's wedding in less than two weeks. It is crunch time, and as Maid of Honor I have a lot to do! So thank you so very much for everyone – you are all my inspiration!

Chapter 12: Coffee Communication

Thankfully, London was well stocked on quaint little cafés and therefore easily allowed Kagome to have her choice of escapes. The moment that she stepped out of the doors to the building, she followed her instincts; usually, they did not do her wrong. She passed one or two possibilities, but they did not quite catch her interest. It was only two blocks later that green umbrellas over patio tables and the scent of fresh muffins called out her name.

The conference room encounter continued to play over and over again in her mind, which caused her ire to continue to grow. Who did that demon think he was? Just because she was being friendly with Shippo did not mean that she felt that way about him! Not that it was any of his business anyway! Hoping that her growling and stomping did not startle the locals too much, she made a beeline inside and went straight to the ordering counter. The scent of fresh coffee alone did wonders to sooth her nerves.

"Not such a good day, love?" The red-headed man asked from behind the counter with a heavy English accent.

"My boss is a demon." She answered with half a growl and half a sigh.

"I am sure he can't be that bad." His words had a tone of comfort and hope. He encountered this sort of thing from customers daily.

"No, really," Kagome explained as she ran a hand through her now loose hair. "He is. He is a pompous and arrogant dog demon."

"In that case, I have just the thing to cheer you up." The barista replied as he realized she meant a literal demon.

"A shock collar?" She inquired with a raised eyebrow, causing the man behind the counter to laugh. "I am half serious." Kagome added with a small smile.

"You just give me a minute, and I will whip you up a real treat. You are not from here, are you?" He asked, and Kagome was unable to see exactly what he was doing as he half-disappeared behind the coffee equipment.

"I was literally kidnapped by my boss to come here for work." She answered honestly. "I'm from Japan."

"If it any consolation, your English is wonderful." He told her, the buzzing of one of the machines filling the air.

"Thank you." She answered. "What exactly are you making me?"

"The cure-all." He answered before placing a blended drink on the counter. It was topped with whipped cream, which was further topped with chocolate and caramel drizzle. Her mouth was watering already. "It is on the house; a thank you for the laugh, and to help cheer you up." The red-head gave a playful wink followed by a big smile.

Kagome blushed. "Thank you, thank you so much." She answered, taking the drink. Bringing the straw to her lips, she took a big sip. Her eyes widened as the chocolate and coffee flavors swirled over her tongue. "This is amazing!"

"Thanks, love." He answered as he turned to venture to the back office. "I hope your day improves."

"It already has." Kagome answered while slipping a ten dollar bill in his TIP jar, before turning to retreat to a secluded table outside and enjoy the English air.

Sesshomaru blocked her path.

The demon was surprised to admit that the feral growl she emitted was rather impressive, as was the faint pink glow of her eyes from her priestess powers. For a moment, she looked like a very pissed off demon. It caused a strange wave of desire to flow through him; until she opened her mouth.

"What are you doing here?"

It took all of her self-control to not unleash a wave of her powers and send him flying out of the establishment. The whole point of her storming out of the office was to get away from his delusions and mood swings!

"This Sesshomaru wished to apologize."

Kagome's prepared retort at what she expected him to say died on her lips. Instead, she was left wide eyed and stunned.

The Western Lord took this opportune moment of her rare silence to continue. "In recompense for my actions, I would like to once again offer my services as your tour guide around London, and purchase you dinner."

Kagome looked at the demon strangely, attempting to once more assess his mood swings. On one hand, he had apologized and offered to take her around London again. On the other hand, she was seriously about to research medication for the demonically bipolar. "Why do you treat me this way?" She asked.

"You will need to be more specific with your inquiry."

"Why are you such a gentlemen to me one moment, and then in the next make it seem like you are going out of your way to piss me off?"

The silver haired demon, who was the cause of several whispers among the women of the café, hesitated for a moment. "That is not a conversation that this Sesshomaru shall discuss here."

Kagome stood to her full height. "Then it shall be discussed at dinner." She told him. "In the meantime, I'm going back to work."

Sesshomaru watched as the ebony haired woman completely brushed him off, walking past him to return to the office building. Turning, he realized that he was the object of every gaze in the room. In return, he sent a glare to the patrons of the café, causing the temperature of the establishment to drop several degrees before he took his leave.

The barista let out a whistle before he made a comment to himself. "No wonder the lady was in such a foul mood."

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Thank you all so much for all of your support! I will see you in the next chapter – I have already started writing it. I hope you all enjoyed chapter 12!

~Sandreline