Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha, its characters, or the plot 'Dragon King,' which this fic is based on.
Summary: He shouldn't have agreed to this. He despised humans, and the last thing he wanted to do was mate with one. However, with the success of the previous year, Sesshomaru has no choice but to compete in this year's forage. Especially if he wants to have heirs. So he'll choose a mate. He'll just treat this like any business transaction he's ever done. No emotions involved. That should be easy. Right?
Three weeks later…
"I would rather be unzipping you." Sesshomaru said, as has he pulled up the zipper on the back of her dress. "There should be a rule against this." The garment was red and it clung to every curve on Rin's body. He stepped in behind her, pushing his erection into her lower back. "I can make it very quick." He whispered into her ear, eliciting a shiver.
"We're late. Besides, you came home for lunch."
It sure was a surprise for her when lunch time rolled around and he came by. Rin had made them club sandwiches and during lunch they talked. Surprisingly, Sesshomaru found that he enjoyed their time together…as friends. They hadn't done much else other than share a meal or two per day. Quality time as Rin put it. He'd never had a female friend, in fact he hadn't any friends at all. But if there ever was a candidate for such a thing it would be Rin. And just like he said, he made time to take her on the dining room table after they ate. A fitting way to end a meal. According to Rin, it was what friends with benefits did. However, he found that he didn't like how she described them. He didn't know why, he just didn't.
"Lunch time was hours ago." He nuzzled her neck and nibbled her earlobe. She gave a small whimper.
"We're leaving right now." Her voice was breathless.
"Five minutes."
"Right now!" She gave him a shove with her elbow and he took a step back. "Oh don't be that way." She turned and a beautiful smile graced her face. "You'll live."
"Hmm, I am not so sure. I have read that men can die from having blue balls."
She raised her brows. "There's no way in hell your balls are blue."
"Are you sure about that?" He had to laugh. "Maybe you should check just to be sure."
She gave him a light slap on the arm. "We need to leave. And thanks again for my earrings and necklace." She moved to the side so that she could look in the mirror. "They're so sparkly and elegant, you would swear they were real."
"They are real. Why would you assume they were fake?"
Rin's eyes bugged from her skull. "Oh my God!" She shook her head and started to take them off.
"What are you doing?"
"I can't possibly accept these. How many diamonds are on each of these things?" Her hands were shaking but she managed to get the necklace off first. She held it up. "Oh my…there are at least a dozen, maybe two. They're not tiny stones either. How many carats are in my hand right now?" She was talking more to herself.
He walked over to her and took the necklace from her. "I bought these for you. I want you to have them."
"Friends with benefits don't give each other gifts like this."
Sesshomaru frowned. He really hated that she kept calling them that. "Take the jewelry. I am enjoying our friendship and I want you to have them."
"I'm enjoying the friendship as well, but this is too much."
"No." He shook his head. "It's not. I want you to have them." He tried to put the necklace back on her but she turned her head.
"Keep them, if we end up mating then I'll wear them but I don't feel comfortable taking them now."
"Listen," he hadn't planned on having this conversation just yet. "I want you as my mate. This is working. What we have established in the past few weeks is going well."
"I'm not ready to take that step." Her eyes widened even further. "It's too soon."
"Wear the jewelry. Take them as a loan. If you decide to mate me then you can keep them and if not, you can give them back."
She visibly relaxed. "What if I lose them?"
"Rin, wear the damned pieces. I do not care if you lose them. It is not important to me. It is only money." He didn't know why it meant so much to him that she wore them, but it did.
She held his gaze for a long while. "Are you sure?"
"Yes." He moved forward. "Now, turn around and stand still."
"Bossy." Rin murmured.
He couldn't help but smile at her retort. "There." He quickly closed the clasp.
"Well, I'm not wearing any underwear so I guess that makes us even." She winked at him and walked out of the chamber.
He groaned. This woman was going to kill him. How was he going to get through this evening knowing that she was bare underneath that sinful red dress? They left his chambers, his arm around her waist as they walked down the hall. It felt weird for him to have his arms around another women's. Though surprisingly to him, it felt right. As if being in his arms was where she belonged.
As soon as they entered the room, they saw Jiro, causing Sesshomaru to pull Rin closer to him.
"Hello, Rin. It's nice to see you again, how are you?" Jiro said to her.
"I'm doing good. It's nice to see you again as well." She smiled at him.
Jiro and Sesshomaru said their hellos while Rin looked about the room. "Where's Lila?"
A bright smile suddenly formed on his face. "She's back at the lair resting. I didn't want her out and about since she's expecting."
"What?" Rin couldn't believe it. "She's already pregnant?"
"Sure is!" Jiro said, proudly.
"Really? But it's only been a few weeks." She just couldn't believe what he was telling her. It literally hasn't been that long since the end of the forage, and already one of the women Rin had met managed to already get knocked up.
"After arriving in my territory, and endless days of rutting, we managed to take a break to get to know each other better. We found out we have a lot in common. Anyway, a few days ago she missed her period and my personal doctor confirmed she was expecting."
"Wow…well, congratulations." Rin said, hoping the shock wasn't evident in her voice. Even though she was happy for them, it was still pretty shocking.
"I assume that you two are mated?" Sesshomaru asked him.
"Of course!" Jiro stated, happily. "We mated the week before."
"Excellent. And I am to assume another member of your tribe has found a mate as well?"
Jiro's smile faded as his face clouded. "Yes. However, that relationship didn't work out. One of my soldiers managed to secure a woman as well, though now she's been sent back home."
"Why? What happened?" Rin asked, curiously.
"Turned out she was only interested in the prestige and material things. An easy life with not having to work and to support her lavish life-style. He had caught her going through some valuable family heirlooms of his and wearing them. Luckily I happened to pay him a visit because it looked like he was ready to murder her. It took everything in me just to restrain him. He was that upset."
"I can imagine." Rin said. What kind of person would do such a thing? She wished she knew who the woman was. Most likely she met her when she arrived in this realm as well. She didn't think the women who entered the forage had ulterior motives. Then again, she thought about Rue who was also clearly here for more than just finding love and a future. That woman also had some serious ulterior motives. She was still hanging off of Aric's arm so he hadn't wised up to her yet.
"This was why the interviews were set, so something like this would not happen." Sesshomaru stated, unhappy to hear this news.
"Hey don't blame me," Jiro held his hands up. "Inuyasha and Kyo were the ones who held the interviews. However, it's not their fault that a few wolfs in sheep's clothing slipped past them. Though after what my soldier went through, I believe he's a bit wary about meeting any more humans."
"We're not all bad." Rin said. Deep down she started to feel guilty. She was technically being a bit deceitful with Sesshomaru. She was trying to get him to fall in love with her against his will. It was probably worse than gold-digging. She didn't like misleading him, but hopefully he would understand when she came clean.
"It's a shame he didn't have a woman like you." Jiro smiled.
Sesshomaru growled. "Rin is taken."
"I can see that." He laughed. "You're one lucky man, my Lord. I'm surprised you guys haven't mated already."
"We will be soon." He told Jiro. "I am working on convincing Rin that mating me is the right decision to make."
"Good luck, although, I don't think you'll need to convince her for much longer." He lowered his voice, "I can see that your future mate is crazy about you." Jiro laughed, then he stared somewhere over their shoulder. "The hors d'oeuvres have arrived. I'll talk to you later."
Oh shit! It must be obvious that she was falling for Sesshomaru, and boy, she was falling for him. The more time they spent together, the worse it became. This whole plan could backfire on her big time.
"Did you hear that?" Sesshomaru whispered in her ear.
"Hmmm." She made a bit of a squeaky noise. Was he going to call her out on it? She tried to stay calm.
"We are doing a good job convincing them." He whispered. "We look great together. We are great together. Think about mating me, will you?" He pulled away so that he could look her in the eyes.
Rin nodded. "Okay." She got away with it, this time.
He smiled. He then cupped her chin and gave her a kiss on the lips. He held his mouth against hers for a moment or two, their breaths intermingling. It wasn't a friendly kiss, and it wasn't a friends with benefits kiss either. It was confusing because it felt like more of a lover's kiss. It was just for show though, she reminded herself. Just for show. Sesshomaru didn't mean anything by it.
-0-0-0-0-0-
Two and a half weeks later…
"Just say yes already." Sesshomaru nuzzled her neck, then planted kisses all the way along her collarbone before kissing the side of her mouth. He probably didn't realize it but he was touching her more and more in private and not just to initiate sex.
He stepped away. "What can I do to convince you?"
Love me. However, it was the one thing he said he couldn't give her and the one thing that she needed the most. "Soon." Rin finally answered.
"I like spending time with you. We are friends…really good friends. That was your one concern was it not? That we needed to do other things besides sex, and we have. So why should we wait any longer?"
He was right. For the past two and half weeks, they managed to do other things besides have sex. And during those weeks, they were able to get to know each better as well. One morning he went into work late and they just laid in bed all morning and talked. From that one morning, Rin was able to learn a few more things about him that she never knew before. She learned that he had a few companies that he started from the ground up over the years in the human world, and that they were still making billions after all these years. She also found out that he liked going to museums and art galleries whenever he had time visiting the human realm. She even learned that he loved classical music and occasionally listening to opera.
In fact, one evening he had taken Rin to see a favorite opera of his, Madama Butterfly. But besides her knowing things about him, Sesshomaru had learned some things about Rin as well. He learned that she didn't really care for cold weather and loved spending her free time reading various books in the library and listening to jazz. However, even though they were getting to know each other a bit, Rin was still having second thoughts on going forward with the mating.
"I'm not quite ready." Rin had told him.
"Alright." He replied. It seemed like he looked disappointed, but it was quickly gone from his face.
There was a part of her that wanted to throw the plan out the window. She would love him whether he wanted her to or not. In time, he might reciprocate and he might not. They did have a good relationship. He would look after her and respect her and they would have fun, but there would always be something missing. They would always have this whole 'terms and conditions' thing hanging over their heads. What if she accidentally told him that she loved him? What if she didn't need to tell him? Her actions, her eyes, the way he held her, surely these things would give her feelings away? What then? Would he leave her? Turn his back on her? What if they had kids together? She couldn't live in a state of limbo.
"Soon though?" He squeezed her hand to draw her attention.
"Yes, soon." She nodded. She would need to have a serious conversation with him and very soon. There was no doubt in her mind that she was in love with him. She only prayed that he had fallen at least a little bit in love with her as well.
-0-0-0-0-0-
The next day…
"I can tell that you're backpedaling." Kagome sat down across from her.
"What do you mean?" Rin asked her.
"Hello, the plan you had with Sesshomaru. He started to get suspicious. You guys are getting along so well, yet you keep refusing to mate with him."
"He spoke to me about it this morning." Inuyasha said, from the kitchen.
Kagome had asked if she could confide in him and Rin couldn't say no. It just felt even more wrong where Sesshomaru was concerned. It felt like she was going behind his back. It didn't feel right. It made her feel like a horrible person. However, Kagome kept reminding her that it was for his own good, it was the only thing that helped with the guilt.
"What did he say?" Rin asked him.
Inuyasha came through to the living room, carrying a charcuterie board and three drinks with him. "He can't understand why you won't mate him. He asked my advice on what to do. The asshole didn't tell me about his agreement with you. I had to bite my tongue to stop myself from saying anything." He poured what looked like homemade lemonade into three glasses and handed one to her.
"You can't put this off any longer. The guy is crazy about you, anyone with working eyeballs can see it. Thanks, Inu." Kagome took the lemonade from him and took a sip.
Rin pulled in a deep breath. "Are you sure? Maybe I should wait a little bit longer just to be on the safe side." Her gut churned at the thought of coming clean. At the same time, she couldn't wait to get it off her chest.
"Kagome's right. Sesshomaru's an extremely private person. He doesn't confide in others, yet he opened up to me this morning which means that it's weighing on him. He might suspect that something's up. I think that he really wants to mate you because he's in love with you. He's been out of sorts since the forage."
Rin nodded. She wasn't convinced that Inuyasha was right. "I'll talk to him today." She had to speak up though. She couldn't wait any longer.
"Knowing him, he won't take it very well." Inuyasha warned. "And in case things fall through, we'll be here for you. Come to us, night or day. Don't let him bully you."
"Okay. I'll let you know how it goes." Her stomach churned, as she forced herself to take a sip of her drink. Her hand shook so she clutched the glass harder.
"Don't look so petrified." Kagome gave her a smile that was full of concern. "I'm sure it'll go better than you think. Sesshomaru loves you whether he likes it or not. It is what it is."
Rin prayed that Kagome was right. Even if he did love her, he might not admit it, not even to himself. What then? She couldn't think too far into the future. One step at a time.
Later that evening, as Rin laid in bed, she felt a warm body came up flush behind her. She woke up from the contact, her mind still fuzzy with sleep. It took a moment or two to orientate herself. The room was dark. The bed warm. However, Sesshomaru was warmer. "Hi." He whispered, wrapping his arms around her.
She felt something press to the side of her head. It felt like a kiss but she couldn't be sure. "I apologize for being so late." He murmured.
"You missed dinner." They started eating dinner together whenever he didn't have to work late.
"I know." Another soft brush against her hairline. Definitely a kiss. "I will make it up to you."
"How do you propose to do that?" She felt him hard against her back.
"I am sure I can think of a few things." She could hear that he was smiling. Rin couldn't help but to smile as well.
She turned to face him, putting her arms around him. The full moon caused light to spill in, making it easy for her to see him. She should talk to him first but she needed this. It might be their last time. A lump formed in her throat, as she swallowed it down. She couldn't think like that. She had to stay positive.
Sesshomaru licked his lips and she watched his tongue roll over his full bottom lip. "I'm sure you will." She hooked her leg over his thigh. She needed to talk to him but the conversation could wait. Right now, she needed to show him what she felt about him. What she needed most was for him to show her back.
Rin kissed him. Just a soft caress of the lips at first, then she sucked on that full lower lip, eliciting a low growl. Screw the no kissing rule! He pushed her onto her back and pulled her legs up higher on his body. He rubbed his cock against her seam, her pearl firing up on all cylinders. Rub, rub quickly turned to slip and slide as she grew wet and needy. He kept his mouth about a half inch above hers, their eyes locked onto one another. Rin moaned softly as he ground his shaft against her sensitive nub.
Fuck it! She leaned up and kissed him again. It was a dangerous thing to do, and up until now, she'd let him do the kissing. Although he touched her and kissed her all the time it was never fully on the mouth. At least, not behind closed doors. Kissing on the mouth was against their agreement, he found it too emotional, too romantic. Well again, fuck it. Rin covered his mouth with hers and shoved her tongue inside. She hooked her ankles behind him and arched her back. She held him tighter, her fingers digging into his back emitting a growl from Sesshomaru. Using a careful thrust, he pushed into her, simultaneously sucking on her tongue causing her toes to curl as she groaned. He moved slowly, making love to her mouth. His thrusts were just as slow yet they were also powerful.
Sesshomaru grunted as he cupped her jaw, changing the angle of their kiss so that he could deepen it as he continued to thrust. She grabbed his ass, feeling his glutes contract beneath her fingers. Rin moaned. Their joining went on and on, both of them becoming slick with perspiration and their breaths ragged from the exertion and from the sheer pleasure.
He pulled back as her folds began to flutter around him. He looked so serious, so angry, so intense. Her orgasm hit, rolling through her this time, it seemed to affect every part of her. Every cell, every nerve ending, every inch of skin.
Sesshomaru's face took on a strained look as he began to jerk against her. He grunted once, twice, then he called her name as he buried his face in her neck and bit down. Another orgasm exploded through her, making her call his name as her back bowed and her folds clamped down. He roared as he released her neck, his thrusts way more urgent than before.
He finally fell against her. Both of them were breathing hard. His lashes fanned his cheeks. He moved to the side to give her breathing room. His own chest rose and fell more slowly, more deeply. They normally fell asleep or had more sex and then fell asleep. They didn't normally talk this late at night. Maybe she should wait till morning? No. This was too important, it couldn't wait.
"…Sesshomaru."
"Mmm?" He replied, sounding sleepy.
"Are you asleep?"
He chuckled, his chest vibrated against her side. "No, but I was getting there."
"I'm sorry I kissed you."
"What?" He lifted his head, his eyes were glazed over from sleep or maybe still from coming or possibly both. "Do not worry about it. Go to sleep." He pulled her closer to him and kissed her forehead.
They had just made love. That wasn't just sex. Quite frankly, their coming together had been morphing over the last period. Sometimes urgent but other times, something different, something more intense, way more emotional. He did have feelings for her. He had to. Either way, she would soon know.
"I liked it." She blurted. "The kissing that is."
"You said it makes you come harder." Trust him to try to bring it back to sex.
"You know that you're the first man I've ever been involved with." She blurted out.
He pulled away, using an elbow to prop himself up. "It does not surprise me. You were a virgin when I first took you."
"Besides being my first in that aspect, you were the first other things as well. My first kiss, and my first relationship. I never dated when I was in school."
"Those human men were foolish to not approach you. However, it makes me glad that no one did, otherwise you would not be here if you were attached to someone else. Now, get some rest."
He tried to pull the comforter over her but she grabbed his hand and shook her head.
"Honestly, I think one of the reasons why I didn't date anyone was because I always imagined having the type of relationship my parents had. Even though I was young and barely remember them now, I can recall the times that they were so much in love with each other. They seemed almost so perfect in my eyes. They had a very passionate relationship. It was rare that I saw or heard them fight, but when I did, they'd always make up straight afterwards. And besides the love they felt for each other, they loved me and my brothers very much. Because of what I had with my family, I knew that once I got older, I wanted to have the same thing."
"…Why are you mentioning this?" He moved to a sitting position.
"But besides wanting to have the type of relationship my parents had, I think the other reason why I couldn't get involved with anyone was because of you."
This made him sit up straight.
"I think after you helped me, I admit I had this hero-worship complex over you. I admired what you did for me because you were the only one who bothered to help me out of my situation. However, as I got older, I used to wonder if I was older, would you have done the same thing for me? Even now I sometimes wonder, if you needed a mate back then and had I been old enough, would you have suggested I become your mate to give me a better life?"
Sesshomaru was silent for a moment before he said. "I do not know. However, it does not matter. You are here with me now and that is all that matters. Now, let us get some sleep."
"Have you once thought about me as I used to think about you?"
His eyes narrowed and he pursed his lips. "Why do you need to know?"
"It's important because after eight years I wanted to find you and I was curious about what you were doing. Didn't you want to know how I was doing over the years? If I was putting the money you gave me to good use." She didn't understand where she was getting the courage from to ask him all these questions, but it was no way she was going back now. She was already too far gone to stop now.
"What would it matter if I was or was not curious?"
"It would mean that you thought about me just as much as I was thinking about you."
"You were not a single thought to me back then." He said, shifting his spot on the mattress. "As far as I was concerned, I helped out a poor helpless human girl and gave her the opportunity for a new start. What happened to you afterwards was no concern of mine."
Rin flinched from his words. His words hit her like a bullet to the heart. "Your serious?" She asked him.
"Yes. What happened in the past between us is not relevant. The only thing that matters now is what we have here and now in the present."
"That's not true. If it wasn't for our past, I wouldn't even be here."
"I am positive you would have entered the forage last year had you been of age." He stated. Where is all this talk suddenly coming from anyway? Why are you telling me this?"
"I know I might be going all over the place but my point is that I wanted to be with you. The reason why I couldn't date other guys was because they weren't you. I knew deep down they couldn't give me want I wanted. Want I believed you could give me."
"And you are right." He stated. "I want to mate you. I want children with you."
"But it's not enough for me." She shook her head. "There were moments where I tried to convince myself that it would be, but it's not good enough. It wasn't before and it isn't now. I feel even more strongly than ever."
"What are you talking about?" He shoved a hand through his hair. "We have an agreement."
"I said I would give it a try."
"Dammit!" He leaped off the bed in anger. "Fucking hell!" He muttered, more to himself than to her, as he walked away. "Is that why you kept refusing to mate me?" He shook his head. "You didn't." He turned to face her. "Please tell me you did not fall in love with me."
Rin swallowed hard. She turned on the side lamp and pulled the comforter over herself. "I probably couldn't tell myself back then, but now I know it's true. I've been in love with you the moment you told me your name as you left me in my school dorm. It only grew stronger once I saw you again and had the chance to thank you. And after getting to know each other over these past few weeks, you can't tell me that you haven't fallen in love with me either? You can't." She whispered the last, as she watched his eyes darken.
"I cannot believe this." He yanked open the closet and pulled out a pair of pants.
"I wouldn't believe you if—"
"You would be wrong. I do not love you." He shook his head. "It is the show of affection, isn't it? I knew I should not have agreed to that term. You women can't separate the hand holding from the emotional can you?"
"I've seen the way you look at me. We made love just now. You can't deny that."
"I have never denied our compatibility. You are a good fuck, it is part of the reason why I wanted you as a mate." He yanked his pants on. "Compatibility. Nothing more."
Forget his earlier words hurting her like a bullet to the heart. He just took a shot gun causing her heart to blow up in a million pieces.
"I was already in love with you when we agreed to those stupid terms!" She yelled.
"What?" His eyes blazed. "Why did you accept then? What is this?" He took a step towards the bed. Every muscle was taut. "Why did you tell me you were not in love with me if you were?" He looked so angry, even his hands were fisted. "You accused me of being arrogant to even suggest it."
"I was angry. I didn't even realize that I had feelings for you at the time. Not at that moment." Rin tucked the comforter a little more firmly around herself. "I wouldn't say that I was in love with you but I knew that it wouldn't take much for me to get there."
"Why did you agree to my terms if you knew you could never keep them?" His voice was soft, while everything else was hard, intense and ready.
"I took a chance."
"What kind of a chance? Dammit, Rin!" He took a small step back.
"A chance on us. It was a risk. Foolish, I guess."
"Seriously foolish." He growled.
"No!" She yelled. "I disagree. I think you love me right back."
"No way." He shook his head. "You are delusional. I warned you. I thought I was clear about my feelings."
"You're too scared to admit it. Too afraid to take a chance because like me, you've never felt this way before. But we can grow together and let the love we have for each other shine through."
He shook his head, looking disappointed. "What we had was a mistake, nothing more and nothing less. A big horrible mistake. Pack your bags. Someone will be here to take you back in the morning."
She was about to reply when he cut her off saying, "You have already thanked me for what I did for you eight years ago. You have managed to accomplish what you have come here to do. I do not want you as my mate any longer, so consider your payment fulfilled. We are done. Your scheme did not work." He turned and headed towards the door. "This just confirms my suspicions…humans are weak creatures. I will replace you with a less emotional human. One who can agree to simple terms. Good-bye." He didn't turn back.
It hurt. It hurt so damn bad. Sesshomaru wanted her gone. He was so convincing that she was inclined to believe that he didn't love her. What if she was wrong? Perhaps what she did really was for nothing. As she watched him walk away, she wanted to shout a whole lot of things at his retreating back…
You can't be serious!
You don't mean it.
Wait!
Stop!
I love you.
Don't go.
No! Please!
They all went through her mind. More than once. It was almost like he was moving in slow motion.
"Sesshomaru…" She finally managed to squeeze out.
He paused for half a second. His back stiffened. Then he was gone, the door clicking softly behind him.
Rin just sat there. She continued to clutch the comforter to her chest. Her heart beat wildly. Her eyes stung so she blinked a couple hundred times. She should pack. She really should. Unfortunately, she was a sucker for punishment because she wasn't ready to give up yet. Not by a long shot. There had to be something she could do.
After a shower, she quickly dressed. It was a little after midnight, but Inuyasha had said to come at any time. Hopefully he meant it.
BlueMoon Goddess: Rin finally confessed and it backfired and Sesshomaru wants her gone. I know it looks bad, but it'll get better. Also, I wanted to make a note in case some were curious, the month for these ladies to decide if they want to stay and be mated or go home had another week left. So in Sesshomaru's case of sending her home, it was a week early. Anyway, like I always say, until next time! ^_^