Cup of Tea: Chapter 2
By DragonFly
The day progressed as any other had. There was no indication, no suggestion, not even a stray look really, that might give any validation to InuYasha's claim whatsoever. Kagome did have to work through lunch, but that was because she'd dawdled all morning while watching for her employer for anything out of the ordinary. SesshouMaru-sama would have made comment to her lack of dedicated work habits perhaps if he had stepped from his office more than once in the past 14 hours.
Since the moment she walked in, until now, hours past the time everyone else left, Kagome had seen, as in actually with her own two eyes and not by way of intercom or e-mail, this youkai who was apparently going to employ and then court her, twice. Once, when she arrived and he told her to close the suite doors to his private lobby and the second time in passing, when his lawyers, personal and corporate, arrived for an afternoon meeting that had just ended a half hour ago.
As needed she had answered phones, scheduled and confirmed appointments, and finished the 'President's Letter' for an upcoming quarterly review to share holders and investors. The document was per notes SesshouMaru-sama had given her, and went on in extensive, exact detail to where money was allocated in growth and development, plus a totally uncharacteristic section on projected earnings and expansion. There was not much that SesshouMaru's family didn't have their hands in and it appeared they may be in the market to moving into other industries.
The door to SesshouMaru-sama's office opened and Kagome looked up slightly. Miroku, her boss's head of corporate legal, exited the room, leaving the door ajar but not fully open.
"Hello Kagome. Working late?" He came to stand directly before her desk, a Devil-May-Care smile on his lips and the normal flirtatious twinkle in his eyes.
She couldn't resist smiling in return; Miroku was just such a cheerful guy. "Yes, well, I needed to complete the QR article and wanted it to be ready for proofreading tonight. SesshouMaru-sama is too busy to do more than one revision."
Behind her the printer kicked to life and began spewing out her afternoon's progress. Miroku skirted the side of her desk, leaning casually beside it while she hovered at the printer.
"He's supposed to be doing that himself. The share holders like to think their fearless leader is also a youkai of words," he said in a teasing nature.
Kagome laughed lightly, instantly relieving tension that had accumulated through the day. "SesshouMaru-sama did write it. He sent me notes and outline charts. I just fleshed it out a bit."
"Is that so?" Miroku asked, her infectious mirth evident in the lawyer's voice.
"Yes, it is."
Both Miroku and Kagome, startled by the unknowing addition of another person to their conversation, jumped at the sound of SesshouMaru's voice. Recovering first, Miroku turned to his friend and long time business associate, noticing that their day's work was held in the youkai's hand. SesshouMaru's eyes never left Kagome, and it was all Miroku could do not to beam with happiness at his friend's good fortune. Of course, SesshouMaru had an enormous amount of work ahead of him to win over this amazing woman who'd been brought into their lives by pure coincidence.
It was going to be a long year for the youkai, and the packet of papers held in his hand was just the beginning.
The eyes that had so recently been focused on Kagome shifted and Miroku found himself the subject of an intense look, almost a glare. Taking the hint he nodded to the youkai, turned and said a brief 'good-bye' to Kagome, and left.
SesshouMaru watched her for a moment then turned and went back into his office. Kagome wondered briefly if she had just blown her chance of having the job full-time because he caught her talking about his inner-office work with someone it did not involve. Though, as the company lawyer, there was not much that didn't involve Miroku.
The printer beeped, signaling its completion of the job, and she sighed, the tension riding her all day returned.
Suddenly tired and not at all in the mood to face her boss, Kagome arranged the report properly in one of the 'CONFIDENTIAL' company folders, placed it into the file slot next to SesshouMaru's office door, and turned to the hanging bureau used for outside attire and umbrellas to retrieve her purse and winter coat. She just wanted to go home, take a long soak in her tiny tub, and hit the sack. Maybe she'd put a call into the agency that found this job and tell them it was too stressful, that she wanted to go back to substitute teaching for a while.
Behind her the office door opened just as she was about to leave.
"Kagome, I need to speak with you," SesshouMaru said, not even bothering to wait for her to turn around, before disappearing back into his office.
For a few seconds Kagome considered walking out and heading home anyways, she figured this was going to be her 'we're only keeping you until I find someone better' speech, something she didn't really want to go through.
With a sigh of resignation to her inescapable fate, the young woman slowly made her way into the enormous space her boss termed so simply 'an office'. Wall to wall hardwood floors were covered in places with awesome Russian and Persian rugs. The furniture, all the very height of luxury, was predominantly soft leather and oak with a few pieces covered in richly colored upholstery. Kagome chose one such chair before SesshouMaru's desk when he indicated she should sit.
The youkai himself was standing behind said desk, his gaze directed out the dark window. Contrary to the norm, SesshouMaru's desktop was not organized and meticulously clear. Books and manuscripts covered the surface, piled two and in some places, three texts high. It was nothing Kagome had ever seen before.
She wondered where all the extra references and books had come from; being it did not appear any were missing from the primary structural aspect of the office.
Along one wall, floor to ceiling bookcases, not an inch of space available or wasted, dominated the entire space, its obvious main and most impressive feature. Miroku had been knowingly sarcastic when he'd joked about SesshouMaru being a 'youkai of words'; he probably didn't even need Miroku's advice for anything, having read and studied in most all the major subjects needed to run a business.
Nothing appeared to be missing from the shelves which meant they had come from the business library, located on the fifth and sixth floors of the building. SesshouMaru must have a private elevator somewhere, she mused, seeing no other way the materials could have come into the office. They certainly weren't carted past her at any point during the day.
Without warning, SesshouMaru turned from the view outside and pinned her with a look she'd never received before. A strange mix of confusion, indifference, and anger mixed in his eyes, causing her stomach to twist slightly. Quickly she cycled through her day's activities, trying to discover what could put her employer in such a mood.
"I completed the article," she blurted out, continuing quickly when his expression remained the exact same. "It's ready for your proof and revisions, Sir, and also Naraku-sama called. He'll be in a little early next week to see V.P. Kouga-sama before he comes here for your meeting. He actually called twice and wanted to speak with you the second time, but you'd said no calls while the lawyers were here, so he'll probably try again later."
She fell into silence when he raised a hand slightly, indicating for her to stop babbling. SesshouMaru relaxed with the returning silence, clasping his hands behind his back and breaking eye contact with his nervous secretary to look at the document setting atop everything else on his desk.
They had worked all afternoon, checking, rechecking, preparing and finally drafting and signing the contract before him. He had to make sure that everything was in order, every angle covered, before bringing Kagome before him. And now here she was and he felt stuck.
In all the years since he'd made that promise to his mother, SesshouMaru never truly believed he'd have the opportunity to fulfill it. At first, he'd been impetuous and impatient, two highly uncharacteristic behaviors for him, and had found someone whom he'd thought 'the one'. But Kaede, at the time a young lady's maid of eighteen, cautioned him against the decision.
She had been right. After such a near encounter, he'd made Kaede into his personal assistant. She'd managed his search for half a century, taking yearly leaves of two to three weeks and finding various different females to temp for her. Some he'd been ready to kill within minutes of meeting, some had merely served their job function and left, and then there was Kagome.
The urge to smile was overwhelming, and SesshouMaru knew the fact he even felt urges was due to this human woman. There were other feelings too, the strangest of strange for him, since SesshouMaru had only really felt two things for the past hundred years; hate and obsessive retribution.
Kagome sighed, her look totally defeated, and a wave of protective warmth rolled over SesshouMaru. So new, and extremely exciting.
"Come sit over here, Kagome," he said casually, or at least so he thought. She stiffened then rose, allowing him to take her coat and even sit beside her on one of the stylish conversation couches.
"Sir, I just want to say that it's been an honor working for you these past few weeks and if you ever have need for another temp I will make myself available." Kagome twisted her hands together, having wanted to get her confession out before he canned her, but was immediately confused when her boss, the stuffy, cold, impersonal youkai that he was, chuckled.
Setting the document face down on a nearby coffee table, SesshouMaru lounged back against the couch. So, he thought, my little secretary thinks she's out the door. Kagome was still looking down at her hands when he reached out to cover them with one of his own. It was not unlike petting a spooked animal, he noticed, for sure she would jump away at his touch.
Gallantly Kagome calmed herself. Realization that the only other time she had ever touch SesshouMaru was their introductory handshake; Kagome faced him full on, confusion even more evident in her features.
"Sir?"
Slowly and with over-emphasis on his movement, SesshouMaru reached inside his suit coat and pulled out a pen. "My name is SesshouMaru. You will address me as such." He placed the pen in her hands, then reached and retrieved the documents, placing them face down on her lap.
"Read through these and sign them. Everything is in order."
He rose from the couch, prepared to give her a few moments of privacy, but stopped at the soft touch on his arm.
"Sir. I mean, SesshouMaru-sama," she blushed prettily and he almost sat back down, "may I take this home to look at? It's so late and my train."
"No, Kagome." He tried to keep his tone gentle and knew he failed when her previously animated face fell immediately. Trying to soften the blow, he let some of the warmth she awakened in him spill into his eyes. "It is extremely sensitive material. If you sign it, I will personally deliver it to the company vault; if you turn me down, we will both watch it be destroyed."
Her eyes widened slightly, the magnitude of his words more solidly impressed to her by his tone and choice of language. That he'd shown emotion only before explaining threw Kagome even farther off. Perhaps InuYasha had warned her correctly; what about the contract on her lap could be so secretive that SesshouMaru had closeted himself and several legal experts into his office all afternoon?
She watched SesshouMaru disappear through a door in the corner of the room, which she knew led to the private rooms he kept at work for late nights. When the door had closed completely she took a deep breath and turned over the document on her lap.
"Pre-Nuptial Contract and Binding Agreement"
By DragonFly
The day progressed as any other had. There was no indication, no suggestion, not even a stray look really, that might give any validation to InuYasha's claim whatsoever. Kagome did have to work through lunch, but that was because she'd dawdled all morning while watching for her employer for anything out of the ordinary. SesshouMaru-sama would have made comment to her lack of dedicated work habits perhaps if he had stepped from his office more than once in the past 14 hours.
Since the moment she walked in, until now, hours past the time everyone else left, Kagome had seen, as in actually with her own two eyes and not by way of intercom or e-mail, this youkai who was apparently going to employ and then court her, twice. Once, when she arrived and he told her to close the suite doors to his private lobby and the second time in passing, when his lawyers, personal and corporate, arrived for an afternoon meeting that had just ended a half hour ago.
As needed she had answered phones, scheduled and confirmed appointments, and finished the 'President's Letter' for an upcoming quarterly review to share holders and investors. The document was per notes SesshouMaru-sama had given her, and went on in extensive, exact detail to where money was allocated in growth and development, plus a totally uncharacteristic section on projected earnings and expansion. There was not much that SesshouMaru's family didn't have their hands in and it appeared they may be in the market to moving into other industries.
The door to SesshouMaru-sama's office opened and Kagome looked up slightly. Miroku, her boss's head of corporate legal, exited the room, leaving the door ajar but not fully open.
"Hello Kagome. Working late?" He came to stand directly before her desk, a Devil-May-Care smile on his lips and the normal flirtatious twinkle in his eyes.
She couldn't resist smiling in return; Miroku was just such a cheerful guy. "Yes, well, I needed to complete the QR article and wanted it to be ready for proofreading tonight. SesshouMaru-sama is too busy to do more than one revision."
Behind her the printer kicked to life and began spewing out her afternoon's progress. Miroku skirted the side of her desk, leaning casually beside it while she hovered at the printer.
"He's supposed to be doing that himself. The share holders like to think their fearless leader is also a youkai of words," he said in a teasing nature.
Kagome laughed lightly, instantly relieving tension that had accumulated through the day. "SesshouMaru-sama did write it. He sent me notes and outline charts. I just fleshed it out a bit."
"Is that so?" Miroku asked, her infectious mirth evident in the lawyer's voice.
"Yes, it is."
Both Miroku and Kagome, startled by the unknowing addition of another person to their conversation, jumped at the sound of SesshouMaru's voice. Recovering first, Miroku turned to his friend and long time business associate, noticing that their day's work was held in the youkai's hand. SesshouMaru's eyes never left Kagome, and it was all Miroku could do not to beam with happiness at his friend's good fortune. Of course, SesshouMaru had an enormous amount of work ahead of him to win over this amazing woman who'd been brought into their lives by pure coincidence.
It was going to be a long year for the youkai, and the packet of papers held in his hand was just the beginning.
The eyes that had so recently been focused on Kagome shifted and Miroku found himself the subject of an intense look, almost a glare. Taking the hint he nodded to the youkai, turned and said a brief 'good-bye' to Kagome, and left.
SesshouMaru watched her for a moment then turned and went back into his office. Kagome wondered briefly if she had just blown her chance of having the job full-time because he caught her talking about his inner-office work with someone it did not involve. Though, as the company lawyer, there was not much that didn't involve Miroku.
The printer beeped, signaling its completion of the job, and she sighed, the tension riding her all day returned.
Suddenly tired and not at all in the mood to face her boss, Kagome arranged the report properly in one of the 'CONFIDENTIAL' company folders, placed it into the file slot next to SesshouMaru's office door, and turned to the hanging bureau used for outside attire and umbrellas to retrieve her purse and winter coat. She just wanted to go home, take a long soak in her tiny tub, and hit the sack. Maybe she'd put a call into the agency that found this job and tell them it was too stressful, that she wanted to go back to substitute teaching for a while.
Behind her the office door opened just as she was about to leave.
"Kagome, I need to speak with you," SesshouMaru said, not even bothering to wait for her to turn around, before disappearing back into his office.
For a few seconds Kagome considered walking out and heading home anyways, she figured this was going to be her 'we're only keeping you until I find someone better' speech, something she didn't really want to go through.
With a sigh of resignation to her inescapable fate, the young woman slowly made her way into the enormous space her boss termed so simply 'an office'. Wall to wall hardwood floors were covered in places with awesome Russian and Persian rugs. The furniture, all the very height of luxury, was predominantly soft leather and oak with a few pieces covered in richly colored upholstery. Kagome chose one such chair before SesshouMaru's desk when he indicated she should sit.
The youkai himself was standing behind said desk, his gaze directed out the dark window. Contrary to the norm, SesshouMaru's desktop was not organized and meticulously clear. Books and manuscripts covered the surface, piled two and in some places, three texts high. It was nothing Kagome had ever seen before.
She wondered where all the extra references and books had come from; being it did not appear any were missing from the primary structural aspect of the office.
Along one wall, floor to ceiling bookcases, not an inch of space available or wasted, dominated the entire space, its obvious main and most impressive feature. Miroku had been knowingly sarcastic when he'd joked about SesshouMaru being a 'youkai of words'; he probably didn't even need Miroku's advice for anything, having read and studied in most all the major subjects needed to run a business.
Nothing appeared to be missing from the shelves which meant they had come from the business library, located on the fifth and sixth floors of the building. SesshouMaru must have a private elevator somewhere, she mused, seeing no other way the materials could have come into the office. They certainly weren't carted past her at any point during the day.
Without warning, SesshouMaru turned from the view outside and pinned her with a look she'd never received before. A strange mix of confusion, indifference, and anger mixed in his eyes, causing her stomach to twist slightly. Quickly she cycled through her day's activities, trying to discover what could put her employer in such a mood.
"I completed the article," she blurted out, continuing quickly when his expression remained the exact same. "It's ready for your proof and revisions, Sir, and also Naraku-sama called. He'll be in a little early next week to see V.P. Kouga-sama before he comes here for your meeting. He actually called twice and wanted to speak with you the second time, but you'd said no calls while the lawyers were here, so he'll probably try again later."
She fell into silence when he raised a hand slightly, indicating for her to stop babbling. SesshouMaru relaxed with the returning silence, clasping his hands behind his back and breaking eye contact with his nervous secretary to look at the document setting atop everything else on his desk.
They had worked all afternoon, checking, rechecking, preparing and finally drafting and signing the contract before him. He had to make sure that everything was in order, every angle covered, before bringing Kagome before him. And now here she was and he felt stuck.
In all the years since he'd made that promise to his mother, SesshouMaru never truly believed he'd have the opportunity to fulfill it. At first, he'd been impetuous and impatient, two highly uncharacteristic behaviors for him, and had found someone whom he'd thought 'the one'. But Kaede, at the time a young lady's maid of eighteen, cautioned him against the decision.
She had been right. After such a near encounter, he'd made Kaede into his personal assistant. She'd managed his search for half a century, taking yearly leaves of two to three weeks and finding various different females to temp for her. Some he'd been ready to kill within minutes of meeting, some had merely served their job function and left, and then there was Kagome.
The urge to smile was overwhelming, and SesshouMaru knew the fact he even felt urges was due to this human woman. There were other feelings too, the strangest of strange for him, since SesshouMaru had only really felt two things for the past hundred years; hate and obsessive retribution.
Kagome sighed, her look totally defeated, and a wave of protective warmth rolled over SesshouMaru. So new, and extremely exciting.
"Come sit over here, Kagome," he said casually, or at least so he thought. She stiffened then rose, allowing him to take her coat and even sit beside her on one of the stylish conversation couches.
"Sir, I just want to say that it's been an honor working for you these past few weeks and if you ever have need for another temp I will make myself available." Kagome twisted her hands together, having wanted to get her confession out before he canned her, but was immediately confused when her boss, the stuffy, cold, impersonal youkai that he was, chuckled.
Setting the document face down on a nearby coffee table, SesshouMaru lounged back against the couch. So, he thought, my little secretary thinks she's out the door. Kagome was still looking down at her hands when he reached out to cover them with one of his own. It was not unlike petting a spooked animal, he noticed, for sure she would jump away at his touch.
Gallantly Kagome calmed herself. Realization that the only other time she had ever touch SesshouMaru was their introductory handshake; Kagome faced him full on, confusion even more evident in her features.
"Sir?"
Slowly and with over-emphasis on his movement, SesshouMaru reached inside his suit coat and pulled out a pen. "My name is SesshouMaru. You will address me as such." He placed the pen in her hands, then reached and retrieved the documents, placing them face down on her lap.
"Read through these and sign them. Everything is in order."
He rose from the couch, prepared to give her a few moments of privacy, but stopped at the soft touch on his arm.
"Sir. I mean, SesshouMaru-sama," she blushed prettily and he almost sat back down, "may I take this home to look at? It's so late and my train."
"No, Kagome." He tried to keep his tone gentle and knew he failed when her previously animated face fell immediately. Trying to soften the blow, he let some of the warmth she awakened in him spill into his eyes. "It is extremely sensitive material. If you sign it, I will personally deliver it to the company vault; if you turn me down, we will both watch it be destroyed."
Her eyes widened slightly, the magnitude of his words more solidly impressed to her by his tone and choice of language. That he'd shown emotion only before explaining threw Kagome even farther off. Perhaps InuYasha had warned her correctly; what about the contract on her lap could be so secretive that SesshouMaru had closeted himself and several legal experts into his office all afternoon?
She watched SesshouMaru disappear through a door in the corner of the room, which she knew led to the private rooms he kept at work for late nights. When the door had closed completely she took a deep breath and turned over the document on her lap.
"Pre-Nuptial Contract and Binding Agreement"