Chapter Four

Terry's eyes were impossibly wide as the foreign word hit her.

"Saiyans?"

Zarah hung his head suddenly, he was a bit mortified that he had just blurted that out. Shit! How to cover?

"It is my . . . nationality," he voiced softly, "Now if that is all, I am going on a lunch break."

Zarah picked up his jacket and put it on.

Terry frowned.

"What's wrong?" Zarah noticed her look.

"Oh," Terry seemed embarrassed, "I just noticed your belt."

"Belt?"

"Yes, um. . . When you put on your jacket, your shirt lifted a little and I saw your belt," her face was red now.

Zarah blinked at her when he realized that the belt she was referring to was his tail.

"Your observant," he noted, trying not to be embarrassed as well.

"Not many even notice my . . . belt."

Terry met his eyes again when she heard the amusement in his voice.

"I have never seen another belt like it," she smiled at him, noticing a slight redness about his cheekbones.

"Yeah, it's almost one of a kind," Zarah laughed, "In fact, you can even say it's custom made."

Encouraged by his light acceptance of her looking at him, Terry got to her feet and went to him.

"I didn't notice a clasp," her tone was teasing.

Zarah grinned, not noticing how close she was as he went to his filing cabinet to grab a file. He wanted to leave it on his desk to look at after lunch.

"You could say it connects," Zarah turned and almost dropped his file when his secretary appeared in front of him, "in the back."

She hooked her fingers around his tail and pouted up at him.

Zarah froze, he didn't dare move least she figured out his 'belt' was alive.

"What are you doing?" He swallowed, his tail was a very sensitive thing.

He could feel each of her fingers individually as they seemed to measure the thickness of his tail before moving along its length to circle behind him.

"Me?" She offered her lips to him, "I just trying to figure out how to take it off."

She leaned into him and closed her eyes as her fingers neared his back.

Strong hands gripped hers and pulled her hands away from her employer's belt.

She opened her eyes to see his angry blue eyes.

His hands slipped past her elbows to grip her upper arms. He lifted her into the air to meet his eyes at their level.

"What are you doing?" She asked breathlessly.

"I believe that is what I asked you," Zarah sneered at her, "Rule number one: Never touch my belt!"

She blinked at him.

"Did you think I would let you harm me so easily?" He growled. "Who do you work for woman?"

"I work for you," Terry pleaded with him, "What did I do?"

Zarah's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

"Do you work for Tapion Inc.?"

She shook her head.

"Why else would you try to assassinate me?" He demanded, a cruel smile lighting his face.

"I am not easy to kill."

"I'm not trying to kill you. I was just attracted to you and wanted to get closer," Terry eyes filled with tears, "You're gay, aren't you?"

Zarah blinked.

"No, I am not gay." Zarah lowered her to the ground.

"Your actions confuse me."

Terry rubbed the water from her eyes, "I confuse you? You are serious one minute and laughing the next! I have never met someone so contradicting."

Zarah shrugged, his attitude was his business. Besides, he wasn't the one trying to touch her inappropriately.

"Don't touch me, you wouldn't like the consequences," Zarah gave her a pained look, "This is how I lost my last secretary. What is wrong with you women?"

Terry bit her lip nervously, "She tried to take off your belt?"

"No, she tried to lean on me," Zarah sniffed indignantly, "I am not a wall or a store so if you want a belt than go buy one."

Terry watched her employer leave the office in disbelief. He thought she wanted to take his belt?

She stood there in his office completely dumbfounded, could he really not understand that he was attractive to the opposite sex? How was it possible for a man in this day and age not recognize a sexual overture? Unless . . .

A very wistful expression donned her face as she ran her hand over his chair lovingly.

Unless, somehow, he had remained untouched by the evils of the world. Maybe he didn't date because he didn't know how to . . .

She gave a heartfelt sigh as she wandered back into her small office. She needed to set her hooks into this man before anyone else got him!

She opened her door and gasped with surprise to see a guy sitting on her desk.

He had straight black hair and light blue eyes, a startling resemblance to her boss except Zarah's hair was much more spiky. What surprised her was the fact the guy wore a scarf/bandana thing around his neck like it was no big deal.

"Um, did you need help with something, sir?" She asked him shyly.

He seemed to snap into attention.

"Where's Zarah?" The voice was cold and unemotional.

"He's on a lunch break," she smiled weakly.

"Damn," the man remarked lightly as he slid of her desk, "I was hoping I'd catch him."

"Would you like me to tell him his brother stopped by?" Terry eyed him curiously.

"Brother?" The guy blinked at her, "Zarah doesn't have a brother."

"Oh, his cousin then?" Terry moved behind her desk to get a notepad.

"Oh no," the man laughed, "I'm Zarah's dad. You can call me 17."

Terry stared at the man in front of her with shock. There was no way on God's green earth that this man could be the father of her employer. He barely looked old enough to have finished school! Hell, he looked about the same age as his son!

She had heard about age defying products but this was ridiculous. Had 17 discovered the fountain of youth?

"Excuse me," 17 tried to get the girl's attention, "Is there something wrong?"

She twitched at the sound of his voice and realized she had zoned out on him.

"I was just thinking how . . . young you . . . looked," Terry sat in her chair and was relieved when 17 followed suit.

"Young?" 17 raised an amused brow at the secretary, "How old do I look?"

"Well, if you don't mind me saying this, sir," she saw him shake his head dismissively, "but I thought . . . with the resemblance that you were brothers . . . maybe a year apart at the most."

17 leaned back in his chair lazily, "So I look either twenty-two or twenty-four. Interesting, I guess I won't have to worry about flashing my ID in bars."

17 grinned at Terry un-repetitively, "Maybe I should bring my wife in and you could tell me how old she looks."

Terry smiled nervously and fiddled with the papers on her desk nervously to avoid eye contact. He was married? She hadn't seen a ring.

"Where is your ring?"

17 raised his eyebrows at the almost accusing tone of her voice.

"Ava doesn't believe in wedding rings," 17's eye went out of focus, "Rings do not symbolize forever from where she is from, besides, she has absolute trust in me."

17 sighed and got to his feet.

"If he's not here I should go," 17 tilted an imaginary cowboy hat at her, "Ma'am."

"Wait!" She burst out.

This was her one chance to learn something about her employer. His likes and dislikes, deep dark secrets that only family knew. She might never get another opportunity like this again.

17 paused in the doorway, "Yes?"

"Can I ask you a personal question?" Terry asked him hesitantly.

17 frowned and moved back into the room. If for no other reason than the fact that he was intrigued.

"You can but I might not answer," 17 tilted his head at her curiously.

"Um . . ." Terry bit her lip, trying to think of something to ask.

At a loss she took in 17's clothes and noticed a missing item.

"Why don't you have a belt?" Terry lifted innocent gray eyes to 17's startled blue ones.

17's hand went to his gun at his waist in habit to find it gone. He had given up his gun belt a long time ago, after he got with Ava to be exact. She had questioned him about owning the weapon when he was more powerful than it could ever hope to be, which led to him revealing he liked to hunt. Ava had scoffed lightly at him and told him bluntly.

"If you want to be some real hunting then come with me."

They had left the kids in the cave while they took off into the forest. He hadn't expected her to take off his belt and lay it on the ground.

"You want to hunt," she had leaned in close, "then hunt me."

Ava took advantage of his moment of shock to disappear into the woods.

He had never had a more thrilling experience in his life. He had never found her instead she had tackled him an hour later and pinned him to the ground.

"Some hunter you are," she rubbed noses with him.

"Well, usually the prey doesn't attack the hunter," 17 grinned.

"Where's the fun in that?" Ava looked at him arrogantly before she kissed him.

Yes, it had been a very pleasurable episode that 17 was glad to repeat at least once every week. he had almost caught her a couple of times.

17 glanced at the secretary in front of him, wondering how she knew of his gun belt.

"I don't wear my gun belt anymore," 17 shrugged, "Why?"

"Oh, I . . . uh . . ." Terry blustered trying not to be too obvious, "I just noticed your son's today and was wondering if it ran in the family."

Smooth Terry, very smooth.

"What ran in the family?" 17 leaned against the chair he had recently sat in.

"Eccentric belts?" Terry turned her face to the computer.

"Zarah doesn't wear a belt," 17 was puzzled.

Terry glanced at him with surprise, "Yes, he does. It's brown, round, and feels . . . "

Terry frowned as she realized that the belt had felt a little off, somehow.

17 considered her words skeptically for really how could she expect to know his son better than he did. Zarah would never wear a belt due to the simple fact that his tail . . .

"Oh, his belt," 17 nodded to himself.

How clever, his son was passing off his tail as a belt.

"Yes," Terry smiled happy to have 17's understanding, "Where did he get it?"

"Get it?" 17 became amused, "You could say he got it from his mother."

"Oh so it is a family heirloom?" Terry became excited at this information.

17 nodded absently, more like genetics.

"Terry-"

They both looked up to see Zarah half in her office.

"Dad, what are you doing here?"

"Zarah," 17 grinned, "I just wanted to eat lunch with you."

"Avoiding Mom again?" Zarah questioned his sire dryly.

"Not exactly," 17 stepped out of the office to stand in the hallway with his son, "She ordered me out."

"Why? What did you do?" Zarah cocked his hip to one side.

"You've been spending too much time with your Uncle Vegeta," 17 shook his head with seemingly regret if you didn't know him, "Sasoli is back."

"I see," Zarah rolled his eyes, "So the princess wants to have girl talk."

"Exactly, though, I don't understand why I had to leave," 17 grumbled, showing his annoyance for the first time.

"Face it, Dad, they rule the roost," Zarah grinned, "Come on, I'll buy you lunch I was just on my way out."

"Something fast food I hope," 17 returned the grin, "nothing against your Mom's cooking but a man needs junk in his system."

Zarah chuckled, "Why do you think I work in the city . . ."

Terry couldn't hear anymore as they walked down the hallway. She nearly screamed in frustration, who was Sasoli?

She stomped back to her desk and tapped into the Capsule Corp. database. If Sasoli was on record Terry would find her and deal with her.

Despite not having a last name to work with there was only one match for the unusual name.

Sasoli Briefs.

Terry's muscles loosened as the woman's picture popped up and the last name hit her. This Sasoli was related to Zarah. She had to be! If the last name wasn't prove enough than the sheer resemblance would have tipped Terry off. Sasoli was the female version of her boss, only her lips were more full and the eyes slightly tilted.

Terry smiled at the picture.

"Hello Sasoli, my name is Terry and I am in love with your brother. It is so great to meet you. I have heard so much about you."

Terry ran her fingers over the keys and typed in Zarah's name. Delighted, she printed the picture that popped up with his name and took special notice of his noted martial status: single.

"Not for long," she picked up the picture and studied it for a long moment, "Not for long at all, just wait my darling."

She kissed the picture.

End of Chapter Five