Cup of Tea: Chapter 3
By DragonFly
It's a fair offer, SesshouMaru kept telling himself over and over.
They, he and the lawyers, had spent the entire day, the morning on the phone and the afternoon/evening in his office, researching, drafting, and finalizing the agreement. There was a section concerning division of assets, a section about employment, another about divorce and that there could never be one, and finally a paragraph about children. SesshouMaru had the company to think of, but more so he wanted Kagome to see the agreement as being manageable, though based on solid underlying principles. She'll see it, he convinced himself.
A light knock on the door nearly had him dropping the mantra in his mind and moving to open it swiftly.
She had the contract hugged tight to her chest, a look of uncertainty on her face and complete innocence in her eyes. "Umm, may I come in?"
Without answering he stepped back, closing the door once she entered. The entry room was a casual sitting salon. Two couches, one facing the hide-away TV and the other positioned for window viewing, dominated the room like the bookcases dominated his office. Through an arched walkthrough, the master bedroom was blatantly obvious.
One full wall of windows was blocked with heavy curtains, the drapes falling behind a free standing gas fireplace. The bed faced this feature, its canopied headboard backed up to a wall shared by the enormous closet that branched from a hidden spa bathroom. A maid came daily to freshen the bedding and cleanup the room, though it remained immaculate. She had left a sliding wall, which served to close the room off from the salon, half open and Kagome stopped just behind the window couch to stare at the bed.
She'd known about the suite, private rooms that her employer used when he stayed too late to head home. There had been several mornings, more of recent, when SesshouMaru-sama had been the last person she saw one night and the first the next morning. Hugging the agreement closer, she understood why that was.
It had been like reading a recipe, a step-by-step instruction manual to how life would be. It seemed like everything had been covered from what would happen in the event of a death, birth, or general disagreement, to the exact schedule of pay she would be receiving for her new full-time position as his secretary. It was an interesting read but discouraging because he intended it for them. And she'd already made a decision; it was just a matter of letting him know what it was.
SesshouMaru had never really found silence uncomfortable, but from Kagome, it was strange and thus unnerving. Thinking he was in for a long night of negotiating, he moved to the side bar set in along the wall.
"Can I get you a drink," he asked while withdrawing a glass for one himself.
Kagome made herself put the contract on a runner table that backed up the couch. "I should really be getting home." He turned to look and her and she smiled slightly. "Thanks for the offer though."
She was half way to the door before he spoke again. "Stay a moment and watch me destroy that," he motioned casually to the contract. He couldn't believe it actually hurt. The fact that he felt such was amazing enough, but to also realize he had hoped she would accept him felt like a blow to his ego, pride, and heart all in one.
"I thought you said that was only if I didn't sign," Kagome replied. Turning from him she left silently.
SesshouMaru had heard her statement and frozen. He looked up from the crystal and brandy to where she had left the contract. Setting down the tumbler, SesshouMaru crossed the room to look down on his future. There, on the last page, she had signed her name next to his.
His piercing gaze flew to the door only to notice she had left. Beyond, in his office he heard the soft sounds of cloth, as she undoubtedly was putting on her coat. He crossed the room in several long strides and came into his office. Kagome had donned her outdoors attire but was watching the city as it shown in the window.
"It's so beautiful from up here, don't you think?" Her voice was calm, the placid façade showing no indication of internal turmoil. He could smell it on her though, and so approached carefully.
There was a slight reflection in the glass, only so because the lowered light of SesshouMaru's office were designed specifically to minimize such a thing, but she noticed his approach, slow though it was. Without realizing it she turned away, her back always facing him, and headed towards the door.
The arm's reach to stop her was all he had to do but instead SesshouMaru chose to set into her path and stop her escape altogether.
"There is no need for you to go, Kagome," he began, slowly reaching out to cup her chin and tilt her gaze up to his own. "There's plenty of room here in the executive suite for you."
She had blushed to her roots before he realized the double meaning of his words. For the first time ever he was at a loss. But she took his silence as control, not embarrassment, and so swallowed once before nodding slightly. "I guess we are now engaged…"
"Married," he interrupted. She bit her lip slightly, confusion evident in her expression. SesshouMaru dropped his hand to withdraw from his pocket a key-sized envelop. Opening it he removed two rings, one set with a pearl the size of a pea though slightly pinker in shade, and the other a matching wedding band.
"Our agreement is binding and immediate. Our signatures on it will hold more legal sway than any marriage license." He took her left hand and place the rings, the pearl first, onto the second to last finger. They were a perfect fit.
Her hand seemed so tiny in his, almost completely engulfed, and feelings began surging through him. Want, possession, protectiveness, comfort, relief… So many new and interesting sensations, all from just holding her hand.
"Where is yours," Kagome asked, feeling she had to break the silence or faint from the overwhelming disbelief that was coursing through her.
All while she read the contract she'd been running off adrenaline. Her mind, though registering what was happening to her, was still beyond her own body. It had been like watching another, some stranger who looked exactly like her in every way, sign her name perfectly to a document binding her for the rest of her life to the man now standing before her.
She had only just returned to herself and that was the first thing to strike her notice. He wasn't wearing a ring.
SesshouMaru reached back into his pocket and brought out another envelop. Before he could open it Kagome stopped him and took the small package. She flipped back the paper flap and looked inside, pouring the ring into her palm.
The metal was cold at first though began to warm immediately. It was heave, similar to the one she already wore except much larger in size. She looked back up to him, regarding him silently, every aspect of his face and appearance.
He stood before her nervous on the inside and complete placid on the outside. This woman was his, signed, stamped, and dated, but still he wanted her to put the ring on him. There was symbolism in it for both human and youkai, and more than anything at the moment he wanted her to give him her first acceptance.
"With this ring," Kagome said, her voice a near whisper. She slipped the band on his finger, turning his hand afterwards to cup over hers.
"I, thee wed," SesshouMaru finished.