Byakuya caught himself before dropping his spatula, whirling on his boss. "You've cooked for her?"
Sesshoumaru shrugged, but Byakuya caught the dusting of colour across his cheekbones and nearly cackled with glee. Taking a deep breath to contain himself, he slowly turned back to Kagome. Maybe he'd been wrong about her being behind the loud parties.
He was going to snag a date for Sesshoumaru, regardless.
"So, was this a taste-testing thing?" he asked, collecting the used cutlery from his station. "I know he's been trying to convince the big boss-man to put his dishes on the menu."
"That still hasn't happened?" She gave Sesshoumaru an incredulous look. "I thought you were going to talk to him about that."
Sesshoumaru pursed his lips. "He is adamant that I have more to learn."
"You should talk to him!" Byakuya said, grinning at Kagome. "I bet a personal compliment would go a long way."
A delightful flush coloured her cheeks, and she gave an awkward chuckle. "I'm sure the things he wants on the menu are a lot fancier than the things I've tasted."
"Oh?" he probed, leaning closer. "What was the first thing he made you?" To his surprise, her expression softened, once again meeting the daiyoukai's gaze over his shoulder.
"Soup. He took care of me when I was sick."