A/N: This chapter is long and spicy. Enjoy!

Yoruichi was buried in a pile of paperwork. There was lots to catch up on after spending time helping Rangiku with her wedding and dealing with the scandal of her and Kisuke dating. On top of all that, the shareholders were discussing promoting her to a director.

She contacted all the media connections she had to stop them from badgering Kisuke. In return, she gave them a brief interview in which she told them that they were happy and to please give them privacy.

Protecting him was part of their deal, after all— a deal which he definitely didn't benefit from. Did he really not want money or something like that? It bothered her.

She grimaced as she saw all the articles about her finding love again after Kaien. Her eyes paused when she saw one of the pictures the paparazzi caught of them at the wedding. She was mid-laugh and he was looking at her like a lovestruck idiot. She felt her stomach flip.

Suddenly, there was a knock on her door.

Yoruichi looked up to see her assistant Isane at the door, looking nervous. "Isane? Something the matter?"

The quiet, silver-haired woman looked more flustered than Yoruichi had ever seen her. Though not unusual for Isane, she was rarely ever flustered when it involved work-related matters.

"Yoruichi-san, you have a guest."

"What?"

"Aizen Sōsuke, remember?"

Oh right. She had forgotten about their meeting, too occupied with all the paperwork and stressing about her potential promotion. Aizen Sōsuke. He was a hot topic in the artificial intelligence industry, having created revolutionary algorithms and technology. His startup had only launched recently but it was already worth hundreds of millions.

Yoruichi wanted to meet with him to discuss a business opportunity involving the use of his company's algorithms for their hotel app and market research. She recalled Rangiku mentioning that he was Gin's boss— he must be something.

"Please let him in."

Isane nodded and returned with the man, who stepped into her office emitting a confident aura. He was tall and his hair was slicked back with a single strand that fell between his piercing brown eyes. He was dressed in all black except for his dark red tie.

Yoruichi was surprised. When she first saw him in a magazine, his hair was down in a reserved, scholarly style and he wore a pair of square glasses. No wonder Isane was so flustered. He could probably give Byakuya a run for his money.

His eyes wandered the room before settling on her. He reached out to shake her hand and a warm, sexy smile formed on his lips. "Aizen Sōsuke. It's a pleasure to meet you, Shihōin-san."

She quickly composed herself and stood up to shake his hand. "It's a pleasure Aizen-san. You can just call me Yoruichi."

"In that case, just call me Sōsuke."

She gave him one of her charming business smiles. "Please take a seat, Sōsuke."

Aizen had spent nearly an hour in her office, even though their meeting was only slotted for thirty minutes. The man was as brilliant as the rumors claimed, and she thoroughly enjoyed their conversation.

Before he left, he invited her to a charity gala ball that raised money for Tokyo Children's Hospital.

"I would be delighted to dance with you, Yoruichi," he said next to her ear, his voice husky and deep.

Yoruichi shuddered. Kisuke had his own charm, but she had to admit, this guy was sex on legs. But another gala? She groaned inwardly. Still, she should probably attend as it could help solidify their business deal.

She wondered if Kisuke was free to go with her. Thinking of him made her smile. She couldn't lie, she was excited to see him again.

'No shorts or skirts in the lab,' Kisuke texted her the day before.

'Prude'

'It's policy'

'I know, I was just messing with ya'

Saturday finally came and Yoruichi messaged Kisuke to say that she arrived on campus. When she saw him, she grinned and waved, and he waved back, with a goofy smile on his face.

Dork.

He was wearing a checkered green dress shirt with a mismatched tie and a pair of grey slacks.

Not to mention fashion disaster.

Like last time, her hair was tied up and she wore a cap, but this time she wore a loosely fitted V-neck tucked in a pair of linen joggers paired with some white sneakers.

"You look comfy," he remarked once they were standing next to each other.

"That's what I was going for. I almost showed up in sweats."

"You should have, you would have blended in more with the students," he said, earning a laugh from her.

"So, where's this lab of yours?"

The corner of his mouth twitched up. "Follow me."

He led her to a glass building labeled 'Research and Development Institute.' They took the elevator up to the fifth floor and he took her hand and brought her into his lab.

(Even though he didn't have to because there was no one around.)

Yoruichi looked around the room— there was various lab equipment and fancy computers scattered on the desks. On both sides of the room were gigantic whiteboards filled with numerous equations and question marks that made her head hurt trying to decipher them.

"This is something else," she finally said.

"Right? Come on, I'll show you around but first, let's get you a lab coat."

Kisuke put on his own lab coat and looked through the hangers. "Hm… let's see." He handed her a small lab coat. "Try this on."

Yoruichi tried it on but the cuffs were way too long on her. She huffed and he bit back a laugh. She looked like a little kid wearing a sweater two sizes too big.

He gently pulled her by her overhanging cuffs and folded them so that they didn't cover her hands, and stepped back to look at her.

She crossed her arms and cocked a brow at him. Kisuke was staring at her longer than normal. "What, do you have a lab coat fetish or something?"

Well, he didn't… until now. He chuckled. "You look good in it," he said, earning an eye roll from her.

Kisuke showed her around the lab, gesturing and babbling on about the research he did and the equipment set up everywhere.

Yoruichi could only understand tidbits before she got lost in all the science jargon. Yet, once again, she caught that adorable look on his face: the one where his entire face lit up and his grey eyes had a unique liveliness to them, and she couldn't help but grin.

"… And that's the quantum computer we use to test our quantum algorithms project."

"Layman terms, Kisuke."

"Right, sorry." He grinned bashfully, scratching the back of his neck. "Basically, we're trying to make an algorithm to speed up machine learning tasks."

She nodded. "I think I get the gist of it. I had a client a few days ago from the artificial intelligence industry."

"Oh really? Who?"

Before she could answer, a short, blonde-haired girl with pigtails walked hurriedly into the lab.

"Oh, Hiyori-san! I didn't expect you to be here on a Saturday," said Kisuke.

Hiyori looked back and forth between the two of them and snickered at Kisuke. "I need to check up on one of my experiments real quick. Don't worry, I'll be out in a few minutes and you two can be all alone."

Yoruichi was surprised at the sudden intrusion, but she quickly composed herself. "I'm Yoruichi, nice to meet you," she said, reaching her hand out.

"Yeah, yeah, I know who you are. Name's Hiyori," Hiyori shook her hand.

Yoruichi gave her a small smile, feeling a little awkward. When Hiyori went to check on her experiment, Yoruichi looked to Kisuke for an explanation but he just gave her a shrug.

Hiyori, true to her word, left after about three minutes, giving them a half-assed wave as she left.

After she left, Yoruichi crossed her arms. "I don't think she likes me."

"That's not it. She's like that with everyone." He snorted. "She barely tolerates me."

"Why?"

"Her old professor left to teach in Germany and they were really close. I took over her lab and invited some of her students to join me, Hiyori-san included.

"Why did she accept if she hates your guts?"

"I think she likes the research I do so she stayed. Besides, I think she's slowly warming up to me."

And she had a feeling he was right. After all, it didn't take long for her to warm up to him.

They hung out on campus afterwards. Kisuke gave her a tour and she tried the campus food (which she admitted was pretty terrible, to which he gave her a look that said 'I said so').

As they walked around a park near campus, he couldn't help but notice that she spaced out here and there.

"Hey, you okay? You've been spacing out pretty often." He bit his lip. "Am I boring you?"

"No!" Yoruichi blurted out, the outburst surprising them both. "It's just… work stuff."

"Ah. You can tell me about it if you want."

They had only known each other for a few weeks but she found that he was easy to talk to and they got along immensely well— like they had known each other for much longer. And he did want to learn more about her as part of their deal. So she decided to tell him things she had trouble telling even Kuukaku.

"The shareholders are talking about promoting me to a director soon."

"And that's not a good thing?" he asked.

"It's… a lot of added responsibility. I only started fully putting my time into the company about three years ago. Sometimes I wonder if I'm even ready for it," she said the last sentence quietly, barely audible.

"The shareholders must think you're ready if they're promoting you to such an important position already."

A sigh escaped her lips. "I guess. There's a lot of people that don't think I am though. They think that I'm just a privileged, rich heiress that got everything handed to her. Which I guess they're not entirely wrong about—

Kisuke cut her off, "They're wrong."

Yoruichi blinked. "What?"

"Yes, you were born in a rich household and maybe you were a bit— okay not just a bit spoiled growing up," he said, earning a snort from her. "But look, I read about some of your achievements online. You helped your family's company overcome one of its worst security breach scandals and turned one of the dumbest acquisitions made into the innovative success it is today. And that was on top of being a professional athlete— all in your early twenties. That's fucking impressive. There's a reason your family chose you as the heiress despite you having a brother."

She tilted her head, slight amusement written on her features. "Been stalking me huh?"

He rolled his eyes before looking at her, his usual humorous demeanor gone and his eyes completely serious. "I know I haven't known you for long, but I do know that you're capable of much more than you think. Believe in yourself, Yoruichi. I believe in you too, for the record."

Slowly, a wide, radiant smile formed on her face. "Thank you. That means a lot to me."

His breath hitched at the sight and he felt his face heat up. "Don't worry about it."

There was a long silence as they walked down the path. Yoruichi checked her phone and broke the silence, "I need to go. I'm supposed to meet a friend tonight and Tessai's already here."

"I'll walk you to the car."

By the time they get to where Tessai is parked, their hands are still locked together. Yoruichi hadn't let go of his hand.

She turned to face him. "I'm thinking of attending a charity gala ball. It's to raise funds for Tokyo Children's Hospital."

"Need me to be your plus one?"

Her eyes twinkled. "This one's optional. Do you want to go with me? It's in three weeks, on a Sunday."

He checked his calendar. It was completely full that day. He scratched his head. "Afraid I can't, have some things I have to do."

"No worries, I know it was kind of last minute."

She gave him a gentle smile but he couldn't help but notice the slight twinge of disappointment in her eyes. He didn't like the feeling of disappointing her but all he could think of to make up for it was to make a witty comment.

"Like the wedding wasn't."

She laughed, one of the ones that filled the air and made him swoon.

And he thought that maybe he could be satisfied with that.

Two days later, Kisuke got a package in the mail. It was a forest green shirt jacket. Attached to the package was a note:

'Your fashion sense is terrible. I saw this and thought it would look good on you.' —Yoruichi

He laughed, half offended and half elated at the gift. He picked up the garment and turned it around.

Of course she took off the price tag.

He called her, even though he wasn't sure if she was free.

"Kisuke?" she sounded surprised. "What's up, did you get my package?"

"Mhm... I'm slightly offended you think I'm a walking fashion disaster," he said, earning a chuckle from her. "You want to get lunch with me?" he asked, "my treat."

"Oh, I can't. I'm stuck in my office doing some work."

"Isn't it lunchtime?"

"Yeah, been busy lately. Haven't actually been taking my breaks." She could imagine him scowling.

"Seriously Yoruichi, you need to eat something. I'll bring something over."

"What? You don't have to—"

"I'll be there in fifteen," he said before hanging up.

Kisuke arrived at the glass office building she worked at that towered over all the others. He was feeling a little awkward now that he was here. As he walked up to the receptionist, she looked up at him and a glint of recognition appeared in her eyes.

"Oh, are you…? Yoruichi-san's boyfriend?" asked the woman.

"That's me," he replied. Yoruichi's boyfriend. The words still felt foreign to him, yet he felt a guilty sense of pride.

The receptionist smirked. "Top floor, on your right."

Yoruichi opened the door to her office before he could knock, and he almost fell into her.

She placed a hand on his chest. "Woah there, big boy." She sounded a tad annoyed. She couldn't believe he had just shown up at her workplace. She ignored the way her chest warmed when she saw him.

Kisuke held up the bag he was carrying. "I got you fried chicken. I could tell you liked chicken at the wedding," he teased.

"Shut up," she muttered before she pulled him inside and closed the door behind them.

He looked curiously around her office before settling his eyes on her. Her hair was up in a high ponytail and she was dressed like a true businesswoman in a blazer and well-fitted ankle pants.

"Sit down," she gestured to one of the couches. He sat down and she sat in the one adjacent to him.

"Hmm." He looked carefully at her face. "You're already looking thinner."

"Really?" A slight frown appeared on her face.

"Yeah, stop missing meals," he scolded. He took out one of the drumsticks and moved it towards her mouth. "Open wide, Yoruichi-san~"

She glowered at him. "You got a death wish?"

He chuckled and made a motion towards the window with his head. "Your coworkers seem to be spying on us."

"What?" she hissed and turned her head to the window where she saw several of her coworkers huddling around the window. She cursed under her breath and moved to the window to glare at them before she pulled the blinds down.

It became a routine; they had lunch together whenever they could. Kisuke would bring some food for her or Yoruichi would drop by his office, and they would spend their breaks together (with the blinds closed). Kisuke would tell her bad jokes which she would roll her eyes at, then look away with a smile on her face. She would show him impressions of various celebrities and rich aristocrats, including a near-perfect one of Byakuya.

It's not like they never talked about themselves before, but it was mainly only the necessities to get their story straight. Now they were talking about the tiniest of details because they wanted to learn about each other and not because they needed to.

He learned that she loves traveling because of the freedom it gives her. That she enjoys seeing the sunrise more than the sunset. That she and her father have a difficult relationship, especially after her mother passed away giving birth to her brother. Though she loves her brother to bits and according to her words "would kill anyone who laid a hand on that boy."

She learned that he spent most of his childhood alone. That he loved the smell and sound of rain. That he never understood why his mother would never talk badly of his father even though he was never in their life. That he was a cat person, to which Yoruichi agreed.

It was comfortable and he was sure she felt the same. She would steal food off his plate when she thought he wasn't looking and lounge around like a cat in his office. Even their silences felt oddly comfortable— the moments where they didn't need to say anything and simply did some work.

And just like that, two weeks passed by.

Yoruichi lost count of how many times she had sighed so far. She was sleep-deprived from tying up the loose ends before her possible promotion. Not to mention, she was mentally exhausted after her last meeting that day. One of her clients was very particular and could not make up his mind. She had to change the strategy plan numerous times to adhere to his needs.

Finally, she was done for the day and she stepped out of the office building, her eyes searching for Tessai's car.

Instead, she saw a bizarre sight. Kisuke was leaning against his car, dressed in the forest green shirt jacket she got him, holding a bouquet of sunflowers in his hand. He glanced up at her, with a lopsided smile on his face. She gaped at him.

What the…?

She had so many questions. Still, she couldn't help but feel a rush of happiness that he was there.

And he was wearing that jacket she got him. Gods.

She ran down the stairs towards him despite wearing high heels and he looked at her in surprise, barely having time to move his arms before she came running into them, holding on to him for dear life.

His arms automatically went around her and his back collided against the car from the sheer force of her embrace. "Yoruichi…?" he murmured, as he slowly tightened his hold around her, still holding onto the bouquet.

"Play along, people are watching," she whispered in response.

Really, it was an excuse. People were watching but she would've done the same even if no one was there. She breathed in his scent and sighed contently in his arms. He smelled of aftershave and coffee and he felt like a safe haven after all that she went through today.

Kisuke felt a lump in his throat. If he wasn't already smitten for her, he'd be a goner now. He had to remind himself she was only doing this because people were watching. In that case, he should play the part. He pressed a soft kiss on the top of her head. "Well… I'm glad I brought flowers then."

She slowly removed herself from his arms and looked up at him. "I have so many questions."

"I know, I'll explain," he said and handed her the bouquet of sunflowers. "First, take these."

Her eyes softened as she took them. "You remembered. They're beautiful, thank you."

He wanted to tell her that they reminded him of her but instead, he settled on, "Of course."

"I wanted to cheer you up since you were feeling pretty stressed about work. I asked Tessai when you usually get off." He put an arm around his neck. "Figured I'd play the role of a perfect boyfriend at the same time— two birds with one stone."

"Tch. You're sweet."

He smiled. "Are you hungry?"

As if on cue, her stomach grumbled at that moment, making them both laugh.

"I'm too tired to go out though. Just take me home."

"Won't you be too tired to cook?"

"I was just planning on going to sleep, to be honest."

His eyebrows furrowed. "You need to eat something. I can cook you something?"

"You can cook?"

"A bit. Don't expect anything like L'été though."

Her apartment was expectantly large and unexpectedly cozy.

Kisuke wasn't an amazing cook but he hoped that she liked the pasta he made.

As he waited for her to finish showering, he paced around her living room. There were several picture frames on top of the fireplace and one of them caught his eye. It was a picture of Yoruichi, Kuukaku, and a man who had his arms wrapped around both women. He had an uncanny resemblance to Kuukaku, with spiky, raven hair and aqua green eyes. A sudden realization hit him. Was that…?

"That's Kaien," came a voice from his right.

"Gah!" He jolted in surprise; she had sneaked up on him like a cat. She had changed into a black camisole and shorts, and he had to force his eyes not to stray away from her face.

"What was he like?" Kisuke asked.

"Friendly, loving, adored by all. He was also a straightforward, no-nonsense kind of guy. He wasn't afraid to tell you things straight to your face." She paused. "Honestly, he put me in check a few times. I'd probably be an arrogant prick if it wasn't for him."

Kisuke looked amused at the thought.

She continued, "He was never about the rich, heir life but he conformed to it anyways. Not without being a little rebellious though." A small smirk appeared on her face. "I guess we were similar in that way."

"How did you two…"

"Fall in love?"

He nodded.

"Well… we were actually betrothed at a young age. The engagement became official when we turned 20. He was the eldest son of the Shiba family and Kuukaku's older brother."

Hence the chilling resemblance.

"Though we were never interested in each other that way... at least, at the time. He was a womanizer." She shrugged. "Not that I wasn't a free spirit myself. And then the day I turned 22, he told me he loved me out of the blue." She put a hand on her forehead like the memory made it throb.

Kisuke chuckled. "So then you started dating?"

"Are you kidding? I thought he had gone nuts. We had been good friends since we were ten. It took him over a year to convince me he was serious," she said, and he laughed, feeling a little sorry for Kaien.

"Enough 'bout me. How about you? Tell me something about your love life," she prodded, and he sighed quietly.

"My last relationship didn't end well," he started, "she... left me for someone else. I guess I was so invested in my research that I didn't really make time for her." He chuckled darkly.

Yoruichi stepped closer to him and squeezed his hand. "Kisuke, that's not—"

"It's okay," he cut her off, "I'm used to people leaving me. My ex, my parents, and once this is all over... you." His voice started to break and Yoruichi flinched. She didn't know what to say to that. She could see the fear in his eyes and she thought about embracing him— but she didn't.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to go into all of that," he murmured.

"Hey, no," she whispered, reaching up to cup his cheek. "You're my friend. You can tell me anything… anytime."

And again, their gazes locked.

They were interrupted by the sound of Kisuke's phone ringing, breaking him out of his reverie.

"I should probably get this," he said quietly.

"Right," she replied, breaking out of her own and moving away.

"I made pasta, it's still in the pan."

She grinned. "Thanks."

By the time he finished his call, she was watching a TV show on the couch and the bowl of pasta in her hands was 3/4ths done.

"Was it to your taste?" he asked.

She beamed. "It's pretty good, I'm impressed."

Kisuke joined her on the couch and they ate in comfortable silence. He noticed her moving her neck side to side and back and forth as if it were sore.

"Sore neck?"

"Mhm, long day at work."

"Want a neck massage?" He regretted his words instantly. "I—"

She interrupted him, "Sure, you know how?"

He didn't expect that. "Uh yeah, I used to give my mother neck massages often. She'd work long hours everyday."

"Ah." A soft smile tugged at her lips. "Well, I'd like one if you're willing."

He sat cross-legged behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. With his thumbs, he applied long and gentle motions along her neck, applying firm pressure when he found her tension knots.

A groan escaped her lips. He wasn't lying, he was good at massages. Plus, he could cook. God, his future wife was lucky. She jumped a bit at the thought.

"Sorry, did I touch a sensitive spot?"

"N-no you're good. Please continue."

He hummed and continued, gliding his calloused hands down the sides of her neck, causing her to gasp quietly. "So, want to tell me about your day?"

"It was tiring. Had this client who couldn't make him his damn mind," she said, earning a chuckle from him.

"I know those ones."

It was silent with the exception of hums and soft groans as Kisuke continued in his ministrations.

"Kisuke?" Yoruichi's tone was suddenly serious.

"Yeah?"

"Why did you agree to this… to fake dating? And don't give me that sorry excuse of wanting to know me better."

Kisuke was quiet for a moment and then he spoke, "I didn't want you to be forced into a loveless marriage for the sake of business. My father was… before he and my mother got together, and my mother told me it made him so miserable that he was practically a shell of himself."

"I see…"

The massage was making her sleepier than she already was. She felt her eyelids droop and she couldn't help but lean back into him.

Kisuke stopped moving his hands. "Yoruichi?"

"Let me lean on you for a bit. Yer comfy," she mumbled.

He sucked in a breath. "O-okay."

She rested her head in the crook of his neck and her hands rested on his knees. He slowly massaged her scalp, earning a sleepy sigh from her. Eventually, her breathing started to even out and he realized that she had fallen asleep. On him.

He pondered for some time, wondering what to do before deciding on undoing her hair tie, which was already loose and letting her hair fall out. Then he slowly wrapped his arms around her waist. He would allow himself to indulge, just this once.

Kisuke wasn't sure how much time had passed when Yoruichi stirred and slowly moved her head up to look at him.

"Still here?" she mumbled sleepily.

"I can leave if you—"

"No, stay… just a little longer."

Well, she had asked him, after all. So he would stay a little longer.

It was late at night when he finally decided to leave her apartment.

"Thank you," Yoruichi said to him at the door, "for cooking me dinner and… everything."

"No worries," he murmured. "Take care of yourself, okay? If you need anything, let me know."

There was something in her eyes that he couldn't decipher, and he forced himself to look away because he knew if he took another look at those beautiful golden eyes, he would fall— fall off the edge of the cliff.