Disclaimer- ok ok ok… I don't own Inuyasha…although I really wish I did (grumpy face)
ohhh and thank you to the lovely ppl who reviewed
Chapter 3: Onward to Florida
Kagome's head pounded as she exited to cab at the airport. The pain in her temple had nothing to do with Spencer, but had everything to do with her traveling companion.
She had enough on her mind without having to deal with the constant distraction Inuyasha would provide and she'd called him in a last-minute attempt to discourage him from joining herm but the man insisted on being there the minute she found his father. Assuming she even tracked Spencer down. Kagome had her doubts.
She'd tossed and turned all night, sleepless over the thoughts of being so close to Inuyasha on the flight and on their trip. 'I'm too attracted to him for it to be healthy,' she thought.
'Athletes,' she thought with frustration. She'd avoided dating them for years, leaving the bold, brash kind of guy for Sango, who'd always known how to handle them. Inuyasha Takahashi had a string of women following him everywhere he went and unlike Sango; Kagome wouldn't know how to compete.
As the middle sibling, she created her own sense of order and followed a path she herself dictated. She could attract a man's attention and hold it, but she'd only do that for the right sort of man. A man she could understand and control. Accountants, executives, people who understood schedules and did the expected. Inuyasha was the lone bullet in Russian roulette. She never knew when to expect him to hit or what would happen when he did.
She glanced at her watch once more. Just because she didn't see him now didn't mean he wasn't here. They'd agreed to meet at the gate. Kagome passed through security quickly and easily. She had the routine down pat. She wore slip in shoes; no belt or heavy jewelry that might beep when she passed thought the metal detectors and slow her trips. Before she even neared the scannersshe methodically pulled out her laptop and cell phone, and then slipped off her jacket as well.
She settled into a chair by the gate and hour prior to takeoff just as the airlines always instructed. By the time they called for first-class pre-boarding, Inuyasha still hadn't, Inuyasha still hadn't arrived. Kagome's stomach cramped.
Frustration and annoyed by his lack of consideration, she gathered her things and settled into her seat on the plane. Telling herself she didn't care that he'd stood her up, she pulled out her travel sized pillow and placed it behind her head, settling in for the two-and-a-half-hour flight.
Seconds before the cabin doors closed, Inuyasha made his entrance. Oblivious to how late hr was, he store over onto to the plane. As if on cue, a female flight attendant ushered him to his seat as if he was a visiting dignitary. The rest of the women attendants then fawned over the handsome football star, asking for his autograph and fluffing his pillow and covering his legs with a blanket. Even the pilots took time out of the cockpit to meet him.
Inuyasha Takahashi didn't have to worry about following the rules other people lived by, and with each favor bestowed upon him, Kagome would bet he lost more of the manners and sense of courtesy others deserved. All he had to do was charm everyone around him and all was forgiven.
She couldn't forget that easily. All this scene did was reinforce what Kagome already knew: a man like Inuyasha flirted as easily as a candy man gave treats to children. All the times he'd sought Kagome out at the office, it had been to feed his ego, not because he had some kind of interest in her. And she admitted to herself now, that had been the little hope she'd held on to deep in her heart. That the great Inuyasha Takahashi had some secret crush on her the same way she had on him.
Fat chance. His flirting with the flight attendants showed her that all the times he'd come on to her, it'd been an act. Just Inuyasha Takahashi, football star, looking for more attention. Well, he wouldn't receive any more special treatment from her, she decided, and after takeoff, Kagome buried herself in a book and outwardly ignored her traveling companion.
Inwardly, she was completely aware of him. Once again, it didn't matter that her emotions were bruised or that her mind warned her to steer clear. Every feminine instinct she possessed was on high alert. Inuyasha's body was big and snug in the next seat and his arm constantly brushed against hers, disturbing her peace. More than once she glanced over to see if he'd noticed the sparks and heat she felt so strongly, not a flicker of emotion showed in his expression. There was not a hint of a reaction to touching her,
Damn the man.
And she damned herself for wanting anything from him at all. She shut her book and closed her eyes but the simmering awareness remained, made more potent by his alluring cologne. She sighed and shifted in her seat, trying to get more comfortable.
"Can I get you anything to drink?" a female voice asked.
The flight attendant's question was a welcome distraction. "Red wine, please," she said
"Another Scotch thanks." Inuyasha winked at the woman who flushed pink.
"Be right back," she promised, placing a hand on his shoulder and letting it linger before striding down the aisle.
"Oh brother," Kagome muttered, unable to control her reaction.
He glanced over. "What are the chances that this drink'll take some of the starch out of your shorts?" he asked, his southern accent coming through.
"Excuse me?"
He turned toward her, his arm leaning against hers, his amazing Amber eyes studying her through thick lashes. "You've been sitting there like a PrimaDonna from the minute I got on this flight. You haven't said two words to me, not even a hello, and your pretty little nose is so high in the air I'm surprised you don't have altitude sickness. Drop the attitude and we might have some fun on this trip."
She opened her mouth then closed it again. She ought to be offended by his words, but she knew he has a point. She'd been a bitch from the get-go and not just because she was uptight and Spencer being gone.
She hated to admit it but she was hurt by the realization that she was nothing special to Inuyasha Takahashi. And the sad fact was, if he did corner and turn that potent sex appeal her way, she'd be a goner for sure.
She looked at his freshly shaven face and imagined how her hand would feel caressing his skin. "Do you really think my nose is cute?" She heard herself ask and almost cringed.
He chuckled, flashing one dimple in his cheek. "Cuter than your personality at the moment. Elizabeth with PMS is more pleasant than you've been, and trust me, that's saying a lot."
She swallowed. "Who's Elizabeth?"
He paused a beat. Then another. Finally he said, "My thirteen-year-old daughter."
Kagome breathed out a sigh, promising herself it wasn't one of relief that he'd been referring to a daughter and not a girlfriend. She racked her brain in an attempt to remember what, if anything, she knew about Inuyasha's past and surprisingly she came up blank.
'Like father like son,' she thought. She didn't know much about Spencer's life either.
Inuyasha was her uncle's client and her sexual nemesis and verbal sparring partner, but he was an enigma. An athlete she'd always opted to stay way from, mostly because he shattered the illusion of control she held onto. The illusion that allowed her to function without worrying about either the people she loved leaving her or the important things in her life falling apart.
"Here you go." The flight attendant returned. She placed their drinks on their tables, pausing by Inuyasha's aisle seat. "Can I get you anything else?" the woman offered Kagome a glance and when it came to Inuyasha, she wasn't talking about food or drinks.
"No thanks, but I'll be sure and ring your bell if I think of anything," Inuyasha said in that sexy voice of his.
The flight attendant smiled and headed to the row behind them.
Kagome tried to relax and took a long sip of her red wine, savoring the flavor when suddenly the flight turned bumpy, the plane jostling in the air.
Inuyasha laughed. "Isn't that the way? As soon as they serve drinks, the turbulence starts." He lifted his cup and took a large sip to lower the amount so that it wouldn't slosh over the top.
Kagome did the same with her wine, more for fortification than need. Inuyasha wore a short-sleeve t-shirt that showcased his muscular forearms and tanned skin. 'He's obviously been on vacation recently,' she thought as she admired him all the way down to his gold Rolex watch and long tanned ringless fingers.
His dark lashes fringed his eyes, which looked more golden then amber today. But he was the same man who easily tossed out sexual innuendo and caused her hormones to go wild. She just couldn't reconcile this sexy, carefree man with one who had responsibilities as a parent.
Parents were warm and loving, soft and caring. At least those were the fuzzy memories Kagome had of her mother and father before the plane crash took them away from her for good.
"So how'd you become a father?" she asked, steering her mind away from the ever-painful topic.
"The way most people do." He shot her an amused look. "You do know about the birds and the bees?" he nudged her elbow with his.
A heated flush burned her cheeks. "I meant I didn't know your were a father."
"Whew. I'd hate to think I needed to teach you the facts of life: he said, still grinning. "Though I suppose that could be fun."
This conversation was definitely getting out of hand. Her hands trembled as she placed her wine on the tray, still holding on to the cup because of turbulence.
She bent over searching for her MP3 player and headphones just as the plane bounced once more. She grabbed for her cup and missed, knocking over the lightweight plastic, causing the red liquid to spill. The wine traveled across the tray, onto her lap and splattered on her white shirt.
"Damn!" she tried to bolt the mess with paper napkins, bit it wasn't working. She needed the bathroom to clean up.
As if anticipating her next move, Inuyasha stood so she could exit the row and head back to the restrooms. He tried really hard not to laugh at her.
So far, this wasn't a flight she wanted to remember and she just hoped it wasn't an omen for their quest to find Spencer. Holding on to seat tops to steady herself; she walked quickly to the lavatories. Thank God one of them was vacant and she let herself inside.
"Wait."
At the sound of Inuyasha's voice, she paused, giving him time to place his foot inside, preventing her from closing the door.
She looked at his sexy face and her heart rate picked up speed. "What do you think your doing?"
"Joining you." A hint of challenge in his voice. And a teasing smile curved his lips.
"No!" she summoned outrage when she was really intrigued.
"Come on, sugar. I want to help you." He leaned a broad arm against the small opening.
This wasn't the first time she'd heard a hint of a Southern accent and she wondered where he was raised, but inquisition and conversation could come later.
She licked her too-dry lips. "Thanks but I can handle cleaning up all by myself."
"So you clean and I watch. It'll give me a chance to talk to you in private."
She panicked, not from fear but from the over whelming desire to get up close and personal with this man who was everything she normally avoided.
Kagome dated men who were safe. Men who didn't flirt with every woman they met. Men who weren't demanding. Men who didn't put their feet into her personal space and insist they get their way. Yet, though it galled her to admit it, there was something inherently arousing about his dominance.
"There's no room in here." She gestured to the small space behind her in a last feeble attempt to do the right thing.
The safe, expected thing.
He pushed the door open farther with his knee and wedged his big body inside, forcing her to step back. Then she heard the click as the lock slid into place and the dim light went on overhead ensuring the sign outside the door read 'Occupied'.
They were completely alone and very, very close.
Inuyasha didn't know what had gotten into him. One minute he'd been ignoring Kagome and her pissy attitude and the next he was enjoying making her squirm. She couldn't handle the sexual banter without blushing a hot shade of red, which only made him want to push her buttons even more.
She was cute when she was mad but when piqued by jealousy, like when she hadn't been sure who Elizabeth was, Kagome was down right sexy. He'd followed her into the small bathroom to… what?
"I'm not joining the mile-high club with you." She glared at him, but those wide brown eyes flashed with a definite interest, contradicting her words.
"And here I thought you were already a member," he said smirking.
No way had she ever had sex anywhere but a bedroom. He'd bet his Super Bowl ring on it. Suddenly the thought of initiating her to sex in different places and positions held great appeal. He had a damn hard-on to prove it.
Shit.
This wasn't the first time his impulsive behavior had gotten him into trouble. Like the time he'd been caught making out with the teaching assistant in the janitors room in collage. The difference was, the T.A had been older and willing.
Kagome, for all her N.Y.C chic, was definitely a lady in every sense of the term. It was part of what drew him to her, Inuyasha knew. The lure of someone different, someone special.
She deserved better than a quickie in the sky, no matter how much fun it would be. To distract himself, he reached over and pulled some paper towels from the holder, dampened them and began to bolt her shirt where the wine had stained.
He gritted his teeth, determined to ignore her full breasts and hard nipples. Perfectly rounded breasts and the more perfect nipples just made for a man to suckle and tease. He tried to focus instead on her flat belly, where the liquid had concentrated.
She grabbed his wrists, stopping him. "Seriously, Inuyasha. What are you doing in here?"
He groaned. Good question. One he was still trying to sort out himself. No way would he admit he'd just followed her on impulse. "Since we're going to be spending time together, I thought we could come to an understanding."
She shifted in an obvious attempt to get more comfortable in the cramped space, but her thighs came in direct contact with his and the flame burned hotter. Her sweet sugary scent, more refined and classy than most women's, sent his already heightened senses soaring.
Kagome drew in a startled breath, an admission that the awareness between them definitely wasn't one-sided. Yet she sighed in clear annoyance.
"Just what did I do to piss you off so badly?" he asked
"You were late!" she said the word as if he'd committed a cardinal sin.
She turned toward the mirror and he followed her stare so she was unable to look there without seeing his shocked expression. "That's it?" he asked. "I arrived a few minutes late and you're holding it against me?"
"It was rude! We agreed to meet before the flight. You left me wondering if you were even going to make it." Her voice quivered and she glanced the opposite way, this time toward the safety of the empty wall. "I told you routine give me comfort." She spoke the last words softly.
'A quite admission of weakness,' Inuyasha thought.
Aw, hell. He hadn't meant to alarm her. He'd forgotten how seriously Kagome took life. Even with the dim lighting in the restroom, he could see her cheeks had turned pink and she'd sucked her lower lip into her mouth, embarrassed at admitting her neuroses aloud.
"Hey," he said softly. "I said I'd be here."
"And I was supposed to take your word for it? The minutes ticked by and boarding had begun-"
"Were the cabin doors closed?"
She shook her head.
"Well then, there was still plenty of time for me to get here."
"I don't work that way. I don't think that way. I plan ahead. And right now I need to find Spencer before my whole place of work falls apart. I have Koga sniffing around and no sign of Spencer. He said he'd be in by nine on Monday and he wasn't. You said you'd meet me at the gate," she said, the implication clear.
He'd let her down. The thought didn't sit well with him. Not a normal reaction for a man who did his own thing on his own schedule and answered to no one.
Most people accepted his behavior.
Kagome wasn't most people.
She folded her arms across her chest, as if that would provide a barrier between him and her emotions. Between them.
As if.
He placed a hand beneath her chin and turned her face toward him. Her skin was softer than anything he'd touched before and his gut churned with the sudden desire to kiss her lips and see if that pink pout felt as seductive as it looked. If her mouth tasted like the sweet heaven he imagined.
He shook his head to redirect his thoughts. He and Kagome had a mutual goal. To find his father and smooth over the mess created by the media. Not to create another one at thirty thousand feet in the air.
To that end, they needed each other. "Look, I'm just not used to answering to anyone except Lizzie."
Kagome blinked, probably as startled by his semi-apology as he was
"That's what you call your daughter, Elizabeth?" She said
He nodded, the old familiar pride welling inside him. Lizzie was Inuyasha's whole world and he'd do right by her in ways his biological parent had never done by him. He'd be there for her and she'd know her daddy loved her.
"Lizzie's thirteen going on eighteen. She has attitude up the wazoo and some discipline problems at school, but she's smart and special and gorgeous. And I'm going to have to buy a shotgun to keep the hormonal idiots away," he said, awed as always by the young lady his daughter was becoming.
Kagome laughed a light, airy, more relaxed sound than he'd heard from her since boarding.
"I take it you have some firsthand experience with being one of those hormonal idiots?" she asked.
"You know what they say. Boys'll be boys."
She inclined her head. "So what do you suggest we do to make this arrangement work?" she asked, turning the conversation back to them.
He leaned against the counter, thinking about what would help them get along for the duration of the trip. "How about we begin by understanding each other a little more? I'll start. Atkins is my long-lost father and though I have my reasons for needing to talk to him, I doubt he'll be happy to see me." Inuyasha offered the difficult admission as a peace offering.
A flash of understanding flickered in her eyes along with the steely resolve he'd seen before. "I respect you privacy, but you hired me to help you. Besides, before I can bring you to Spencer, I'm going to need to know those reasons. We're like-"
"Family. I know." When that word, used along with Spencer Atkins, the word family tasted sour in his mouth.
He paused, wondering how much more detail to reveal now and decided the lavatory wasn't the place for long-winded explanations. "I'll fill you in. Just not here."
She nodded. "Fair Enough. I suppose you're looking for an admission of my own? A quick pro quo toward understanding? Well, fine," she said before he could reply. "I'm a pro at handling other people's crises, but not when everything around me is falling apart. If Spencer doesn't turn up soon, my entire life's going to crash and burn." She blinked once, and then blinked again.
He thought she was fighting tears, but she covered it so well he couldn't be sure. He admired that strength.
All Inuyasha knew for sure was that for Kagome, routine provided comfort and Atkins disappearance had thrown her carefully structured life into disarray.
They had that in common, he thought. He'd been thrown for a loop, too. His sudden inexplicable desire to take care of her threw him. For the first time, other than Lizzie, it wasn't all about him, and those feelings for Kagome messed with his carefree philosophy on life, and it made him very, very nervous.
Still, he couldn't stop the words that came next. "I'll try harder not to screw up your schedule," he said, hoping he could handle answering to someone, even on a short term basis.
"Thanks," she offered a smile and something inside him lightened with the knowledge that that he'd eased her burden.
"And I'll try not to be such an uptight pain in the ass," she said, taking him by surprise.
He hadn't expected her to know herself so well or to admit as much to him. Drawn by need and a compulsion, Inuyasha reached out and pulled at the binding holding her bun in place. She gasped in surprise as strands of dark Brown hair fell around her face in waves, softening her features, making her appear infinitely more touchable.
More human.
More kissable.
She moistened her lips and he sucked in a sharp breath. Right now he was definitely one of those hormonal idiots they'd just discussed. He leaned in so they were almost cheek to cheek and he inhaled her fragrant scent.
Together they generated enough heat in the small space to steam the mirror, set off the smoke alarm and send the flight attendants barging in.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the captain has turned on the Fasten Seat Belt sign. Please take your seats as soon as possible." The flight attendant's voice broke into his thoughts.
He saw her expression the moment she realized that she'd almost kissed Inuyasha Takahashi at thirty thousand feet. Her eyes opened wide and she jerked away. Her knees came in contact with the toilet bowl and she sat on the closed seat with a thud.
He chuckled and held out his hand to help her up. "Tell you what. I'll leave first and you can sneak out after me."
"You're a true gentleman, Takahashi." Her voice held more than a hint of sarcasm, but her eyes held a wealth of gratitude.
He decided not to remind her that people had probably already seen him follow her into the bathroom or had likely already come to their own conclusions about what the two of them were doing in here. She had enough on her mind and Inuyasha's presence on this trip probably wasn't helping her keep things in her life running smoothly.
But he couldn't change the strength of their attraction nor, he admitted, did he want to.
Ayame thought she knew what frazzled meant. Coming from a family that consisted of herself and her father and the employees from his California seaside restaurant, she'd grown up harried working practically from birth. She'd gone to UCLA and hadn't moved East until her father had passed away last year. It had been tragic. An employee had stolen money from the register after hours and set a fire to cover his tracks. Frank James, "Jimmy" to his friends, had tried to save his restaurant and prized possessions before the fire fighters arrived. He'd died of smoke inhalation inside the restaurant he adored.
After she'd survived that loss, Ayame thought she could handle anything. But The Hot Zone office without the Jordan sisters, and Athletes only without Spencer and Yank, was the equivalent of utter chaos. She and several others had been forced to work on a Saturday just to begin to deal with all that was going on and going wrong.
"And why did I agree to watch this dog?"
She'd just returned from a long with Noodle. One made longer by the dog's desire to sniff, wander and not do business when told. She stepped off the elevator feeling out of sorts and almost out of options.
"Ms. James?"
"Yes?" Ayame turned to the temp who'd been working for the past couple of days.
Even if Raine, their normal receptionist, returned from her serious bout of the flu, the offices could still use the manpower Nicki Fielding provided. Cindy had no doubt Kagome would agree.
"You have messages." Nicki held out a stack of pink papers.
Ayame pushed the notes into her suit jacket pocket.
"Ms. Higurashi called from Florida. I told her everything here was fine, which is true. Sort of. I mean the reporters are still hanging around," Nicki whispered, gesturing to the group who'd perched themselves on the sofa, hoping for an interview form anyone here.
"I just keep telling them 'No Comment,'" she said, looking at Ayame for approval.
"You're doing great." She smiled at the young girl.
"I'm trying." Her brown eyes were huge. "I don't think Ms. Higurashi thinks I'm that qualified."
Ayame shook her head. "It's just crisis time around here. We'll all be come through this fine. You're being a huge help, I promise."
The dog pulled on the leash and she groaned. "Go, you little pain in the ass." Ayame leaned down, released the catch and the dog bolted, likely for the safety of Yank's office, where Kagome said she could fine the pooch if she went missing.
"If you need me, I'll be in my office returning calls." Ayame patted the papers in her bulging pocket and walked past the reporters, head held high, looking straight ahead before they could begin to toss out questions.
Ayame shut her door behind her, leaned against it and sighed. She couldn't wait to hand this place back over to Kagome. When she opened her eyes, she stared in shock. The most beautiful red roses sat on her desk.
"What the…?" She bent close and sniffed the glorious petals, breathing in their floral scent. As she pulled out the card, she realized the vase wasn't a typical glass holder from a florist but etched Baccarat Crystal.
"Red beauties for a redheaded beauty. Have dinner with me. Koga" Ayame read the card and shivered.
She'd been living in New York for a little over six months and although she'd made friends, she hadn't dated anyone special. She hadn't met anyone who seriously interested her. Until she laid eyes on Koga Cambias. His cerulean blue eyes and naturally dark skin, so different from many of the surfers and actors she'd met in California, caused goose bumps to prickly up and down her arms.
But his business card had burned a hole in her pocket and she'd left it untouched in her desk drawer ever since. Loyalty was important to her. She'd learned it from her small band of "family" back home, a group related by love, not blood.
She worked for The Hot Zone. She enjoyed her job and she appreciated all three Higurashi sisters and the family like atmosphere they brought to the firm. For Ayame, this place was similar to her father's tiny restaurant and she didn't want to lose the inroads she'd made.
She slowly opened her desk drawer and stared at the business card tucked safely away. She also didn't want to make a mistake and spend forever wondering 'what if.' Fingering the business card, she turned it over and over in her hand. Kagome hadn't asked her not to see Koga. She'd just suggested Ayame be careful.
With those words in mind, Ayame picked up the phone. After all, what harm could come from one little dinner? She wondered.
Kaiiiii pplzzz, don't forget to review!
and plz feel free to sedn over some ideas of what you would like to happen in the next chappie.