A/N: Sorry, sorry, sorry!! I finished this chapter about a week ago and had to wait for my beta to return it. I'm so sorry it took so long for me to post. I feel like a bad author. School does own my soul, though. Massive thanks to all reviewers, especially kagome357. I love your work, so it was great to get a good review from you.

Kagome stared at Sango, anger radiating from every line of her posture. "I can't believe it! He gets us arrested, in his own casino, and doesn't tell them he owns the place because he likes his privacy? Tell me you hit him. For the love of the kami, tell me you hit him. He deserved it, you know. Really. Of all the assholes-"

"Kagome! Calm down." Sango stared straight into Kagomes eyes, her gaze straightforward and honest. "He did get us this room for a week as an apology."

"Apology-shmology. It's not like we can stay for a week, anyways. And really, if I wanted to come to the casinos every day, I have my own house, a nice ranch with all my own stuff in it, only seven miles from here."

"I know, but really, this place is a five star resort." Sango's eyes took on a pleading look, their deep brown depths imploring. "Pleeeeaaase? With a cherry on top? Can we stay, Mom, can we, can we?"

Kagome rolled her eyes at her friend's perpetually silly antics. Even in a situation this serious, she could still act like a five year old. "No. We need to get back to work."

"Not really."

"Oh? And those clothes that pay your bills design themselves, I suppose?"

"Nope. But the fall line is done now. You finished the last mock up from the line yesterday, remember? Now the seamstresses take over. The only thing you'd be doing is overseeing and starting on the winter line. Besides, you need a break and now is the perfect time to take one. Admit it."

"Sango-"

"Nope. I aint leaving. And you're not leaving, either. I have your wallet!" Sango stuck her tongue out at Kagome and ducked when her friend playfully tried to smack her. Her friend needed a vacation, and she was going to make sure she got one! "I already went home and got your clothes while you were passed out,so you have no reason to leave for six more days. Now, go to bed and sleep in as late as you want. Then order breakfast in bed, then it's off to the spa."

Kagome eyed her best friend warily. "Are you ordering me to relax?"

"Damned skippy!"

"Fine." It's not like she had much of an option at this time of night. At nearly 2AM, there was no way she was walking the distance back to her house, and with no money, a cab was out of the question. She turned and trudged back to the bedroom.

By the next morning, Kagome felt much more cheerful. After lying in bed for an entire hour after waking up, doing nothing but read the skankyromance novel Sango had left on her night stand, she had ordered breakfast. The decadent waffles piled high with strawberries, put her in an even better mood and left her ready to face a day of pampering without making a break for the nearest sewing machine. She showered and dressed in a loose pair of khaki cargos that hung off her slim hips and a snug, bright blue organic cotton t-shirt. The quirky saying on the front of the shirt fit her mood perfectly. She smiled at her reflection in the mirror, ran her hands through her hair, pulled it into a sloppy pony tail, then left the room.

Sango was curled up on the couch in the main living area, content as could be, watching Animal Planet on the big screen TV. She looked up when Kagome walked into the room, and beckoned her friend to the couch. Her eyes only left the TV for a second before snapping back to the screen.

"Check this out!" Sango excitedly pointed at the TV that had her so absorbed. "It's this show about dog groomers and their competing for all this stuff. This week, they have to groom Chows, and this crazy chick keeps treating her dog likes he's going to kill her for no good reason."

Kagome just stared at her friend. "You're nuts, you know that, right?"

"Of course I'm crazy. I'm friends with you, aren't I? But really, this lady drives me crazy. I hope they boot her off."

"I'm sure they will." Kagome stated sarcastically. "But don't we have an appointment at the spa in like 10 minutes? At least, that's what the note you stuck in book said."

"What? Oh, yeah." Sango could hardly pull her eyes form the TV. "This lady really needs to get a life!"

Kagome glanced at the screen. She didn't know much about dogs, but the groomer in question had shoved a muzzle on her dog and was acting like he was going to give her radiation poisoning if she came within 10 feet of the animal. "That doesn't seem right."

"Hell, no, it doesn't!"

"Alrighty then." Kagome sighed, her very posture indicating that this was a scene the two had lived out countless times before. "Are you coming, or what? Because, frankly, if you won't let me leave this building, then I want a good massage."

"Fine, fine, I'm coming." Sango pulled herself off the couch and hit the power button on the remote in her hand. The TV shut down with an odd beeping sound that made Sango giggle. Kagome merely rolled her eyes and left the room. Sango caught up to her at the elevator. The spa was located on the 6th floor of the building and took the majority of the floor and a bit of balcony space to house. Everything from mud baths to pedicures was offered, along with 12 different forms of massage. Kagome had no clue what was going to happen, but she wasn't sure she'd like it. Sango always picked out the oddest spa treatments. She sighed and walked through the double doors of the spa, only to stop and stare in shock.

Water. It was everywhere. The walls were covered in delicate river rocks, soft and colored in tons of blue, green, and purple. Water cascaded down the walls, the source of the flow completely hidden from sight. A stream wound around three sides of the room, collecting the water from the waterfalls. The stream housed small koi fish, which swam in lazy circles in the two feet of water. A dry wall sat opposite the doors and a bridge went from the doorway to the center of the room, allowing customers to enter. Clusters of chairs sat in the room, each grouping consisting of only two or three chairs. Kagome and Sango crossed the bridge and approached the desk that sat against the dry wall. A tall, cheerful woman with bright, curly red hair smiled at them as they drew near.

"Hello. Welcome to zenSpa. Do you have an appointment, or would you like to make one?"

Sango spoke up. "We have an appointment. For the 'pamper' package."

"Ah, yes, you must be Sango and Kagome." The woman hadn't even consulted the computer in front of her. Sango was impressed with her memory. "Please, come with me." The woman walked out from behind the countertop, her soft white dress flowing around her legs to stop at knee length. "My name is Elizabeth, and I'm the receptionist. Our first stop will be the changing rooms." Elizabeth led a pleased Sango and a bemused Kagome to a hallway with several doors on each side. "In each of these rooms, there is a locker for you to place your clothes in and a robe for you to put on. You will not need any of your clothes today. Enjoy your visit." She smiled serenely and left the two women to pick a room with an "unoccupied" sign on the door.

Kagome sighed and entered the room she had chosen. She came back out a few minutes later and found Sango waiting for her impatiently in the hallway, her robe fitting her tall, slender stature well. Kagome, on the other hand, felt like a drowned puppy in her overly large robe. Then again, her friend had three inches of height on her. Another woman, also in all white clothes, walked up them at almost the exact second Kagome entered the hall, leaving her feeling decidedly off balance.

"If you will come with me, I will take you to your first stop of the Pamper experience." The woman smiled slightly and turned and strolled down the hall at a quick pace. Kagome felt like she'd be dropped down the rabbit hole. 'No wonder Alice acts likes a nutter during the whole movie', she thought to herself. 'She had no clue what was going on.' Her thoughts froze as she entered the next room. There were flat tables in the middle of the room, and tubs of goo sat on a counter top in the corner. 'Oh, kami…' The woman who had led them was joined by a second woman, who entered completely silently. Kagome jumped, feeling decidedly unsettled as the woman came up beside her.

"If you would like to lie down, face up, on one of the tables, we will begin with the skin treatments." Kagome warily eyes the table but went to lay down on the one nearest to her, anyways. "You need to take off your robe, ma'am." Kagome just stared at the woman like she was nuts. Why the heck did she want to be naked? She didn't know anyone present but Sango. While she couldn't have cared less if Sango saw her naked (really, they had been best friends for years and had been roommates in college), she certainly had no desire to be naked in front of these strangers.

"Kagome- Robe. Now." Sango cheerfully reprimanded her friend as she stripped off her robe and lay down on her table.

"Sango-"

"No arguments. You. Are. Relaxing. Now strip."

"But I don't find this relaxing," Kagome muttered to herself as she slowly took off her robe and lay down. No one heard her, though, and the woman who was do her treatment cheerfully introduced herself as Sue and began to slather Kagome's skin with something that felt and smelt suspiciously like mud. She shuddered, lay back, closed her eyes and thought of clothes, colors, and fabrics. If she didn't think about it, she wouldn't be grossed out. She would, however, kill Sango later for this, especially since Sango seemed to be really enjoying herself, if her cheerful humming was any indication.

The pattern of Kagome not liking what was going on and Sango cheerfully enjoying herself lasted through the rest of the mud treatments, facials, pedicures, and the manicure. To be fair, Kagome thought to herself, she normally liked having her nails done, but really, by that point, she was so grumpy it didn't matter at all. She hated being touched so much by complete strangers. And she was much too ticklish to think a pedicure was a good way to spend an hour of her life.

Sango and yet another one of the women in the white outfits led her to a different room. She sighed to herself. 'Please, let this be the last stop' she thought, 'please.' A massage table sat in the room, much to her joy. A good massage was exactly what she needed at this point. Her masseuse walked into the room, and asked her if she had any allergies, and what sort of oil she would prefer. Kagome cheerfully chose tangerine essential oil; she needed a good mood-lifter. She settled in for the massage and soon felt much, much happier than she had all day. 'Screw everything else- this is what relaxing is all about!' Her muscles seemed to melt slowly, leaving her feeling languid and oh, so peaceful. At the end of the hour, she had to be dragged out of the room by Sango. She walked right past Sango and headed back to their room, intent on a nap to keep the happy, relaxed feeling going.

Sango caught up to her at the elevators and pounced on her. Pounced. After a massage, she ought to have be calm and languid- but no, she went straight to high energy the second it was over. Kagome sighed.

"Now, to shower, put on a fancy dress, go to dinner, and back to the casino." Sango beamed at her friend.

"No."

"No?"

"No. I am napping."

"But we need to go to dinner! We need to get every penny possible out of the asshole and since our entire bill is being written off, let's live it up!"

Kagome sighed. She knew that happy, puppy expression all too well. She'd never win outright. "Let me nap for an hour, then you can drag me to dinner. But no casino. Not tonight."

Sango smirked, evil plots already filling her head. They went back to room, and Sango turned on the TV, only to promptly ignore it. Her schemes all involved ways to get Kagome back into the casino, and talking to the sexy owner of said casino. Sango had noticed the sexual currents surrounding them as they argued. As far as she was concerned, Kagome need to date more. Heck, to be brutally honest, the girl needed to get laid. End of story. And if it took a hunky bastard of a casino owner to get her to relax, then Sango would make sure it happened. Sango paused, then frowned. As long as that hentai wasn't with him, all would work out perfectly.

SKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSKSK

Sesshomaru frowned, but continued forward on his path towards the entrance to the casino. He was going to sit in the corner and watch his employees, find the mistakes they made, then fire them. He still was not appeased that the events of the night before had been handled appropriately. In his estimation, termination of employment was the only correct answer. And being Sesshomaru, he was, of course, always correct.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes as he watched his older brother continue to be a twit. He and Miroku had followed Sesshomaru down from their floor to the casino in hopes of making him lighten up. Miroku thought they ought to find him a good demoness to sniff around. Inuyasha, however, had other plans for his big brother's love life. He had noticed the way Sesshomaru reacted to the small ningen the day before and he thought there might be something there. He planned on throwing them into each other's paths as often as he possibly could. If nothing else, it would make for some darned entertaining evenings. Inuyasha frowned. His plan would only work if he could find the woman. He didn't sense her anywhere on the casino floor. It was early, yet though- she might still be at the shops. He had checked them earlier on that very possibility, but he hadn't found her there. Still, no matter- all women loved to shop. Surely she would be here once she was done buying shoes. This is Vegas, after all.

Miroku suddenly tensed next to him. He followed the monk's eyes and found him staring at the top of a head covered in thick black hair. He glanced at his friend.

"It's her." Miroku shook his head, disgust evident in his voice. "You'd think they wouldn't let people like that back in this place."

Inuyasha stared at Miroku.

"What? I don't have a second head or something, do I?"

"Nope."

"Then why are you staring at me like that?"

"Because you're a nimrod. She's a woman, not a thing. A beautiful, smart woman, at that." Inuyasha smirked to himself as he saw his friend's expression turn to jealousy. He was going to enjoy watching both couples come together. "Besides, I need to talk to her."

Inuyasha made it only one step before Miroku grabbed his arm and stopped him. "Why?"

"Kagome- remember? The tiny woman who got arrested with Sesshomaru- she is our ticket to getting the ass to relax. And she's clearly good friends with the woman you so dearly hate."

Miroku eyed the half demon with interest. "You think? You don't really think it could happen, do you? I mean, she's a miko and he's a demon."

Inuyasha gaped at the monk. "What?!"

Miroku rolled his eyes. Since the average population didn't believe in the existence of monks, mikos, or demons, they all hid the attributes that made them stand out. Since Miroku was a well trained, powerful monk who spent most of his time with demons, he was instinctively used to keeping an eye out for these attributes. Inuyashas ability to sense others was much weaker, though, which meant he likely had not spotted the woman's power. Inuyasha thought for a moment.

"Well, maybe he won't notice. After all, they did seem pretty intent on each other last night."

"You might have a point for a change."

"For a change?"

"Excuse me, I need to slip by you- You!" Sango glared at Miroku, completely ignoring Inuyasha presence.

"Why? Do you need to get back to your street corner?"

"Did you just call me a whore?!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. Two seconds in, and those two were arguing. At least, if Sango was nearby, her friend Kagome had to be near, also. He carefully screened the crowd around him, and, sure enough, there was the tiny raven haired woman, trying to slip into the crowd, looking thoroughly embarrassed by her friend's behavior.

"Hi."

Kagome startled. She hadn't heard the tall, white haired man approach. He looked familiar… the night before, though, was a fog, hidden behind her exhaustion at the time.

"I'm sorry, you look familiar, but..."

"You did kinda faint not five minutes after meeting me. I suppose I'd be more surprised if you did remember my name. I'm Inuyasha." He held out his hand and Kagome, on auto pilot, shook it.

Suddenly a light lit in her eyes. "I remember you now! You're the one who got us out of that terrible interrogation."

Inuyasha found himself blushing under the gratitude in the small woman's voice. There was something soothing about her, and to receive gratitude from such a kind woman was almost too much. He wasn't sure how he knew that she was inherently a nice woman, but he did.

"I'm happy to have helped, especially since it was my brother that caused the problem." Setting up this woman with Sesshomaru was suddenly the last thought on his mind. He wanted this woman for himself. He smiled at Kagome and was pleased when she smiled back. "Would you like to get a drink and find a table to play?"

Kagome shrugged internally. The man seemed nice enough, and was cute in a playful sort of way. If she was stuck in the casino for a few more days, she might as well spend part of her time with a cute guy. "Sure. Lead the way."

Within minutes, Kagome and Inuyasha were settled in at a baccarat table, her with a daiquiri and him with a beer. They laughed and talked about nothing as they played. Neither was winning much, but that didn't matter when they were having so much fun. Inuyasha reveled in the attention of this tiny, amazing woman. Kagome enjoyed the cute mans sense of humor and his ability to make her laugh. Across the casino, though, sat one man who was distinctively not enjoying their evening of togetherness.

Sesshomaru's piercing gaze watched them from the opposite end of the room. His claws flexed, then clenched into a fist when he saw Kagomes head tilt back as she laughed, exposing the long, smooth line of her throat. He wanted to bury his face there, and lick the crook of her neck, where her elegant collar bone gave way and the graceful column of her neck began to rise. He somehow knew she'd melt when he did. He paused at his own thoughts. The woman was a ningen! Ningen! He needed to remember this. First, last night when he'd wanted to crawl into the bed with her and hold her close through the long hours till dawn. Then he would wake her up by stoking her into readiness for mating, his calloused hands running over her soft skin. They would spend the morning there in bed. Then tonight, again, his mind ran away from him, once again placing this woman in bed with him. But this time it was his bed, with the gray drapes blocking out the rest of the world, leaving only the two of them in a sensual paradise that he would create. Before he realized what was happening, he was moving across the room towards his brother and the woman.

"Inuyasha." His voice was cold and condescending as he spoke to his brother. His woman was looking at him with censure in her eyes. Wait, his woman? Where had that come from? Still, he felt the need to separate the two, no matter what the cost. "I need your assistance with some work."

"No you don't."

"Excuse me?" Ice dripped from his words, the cold tone making Kagome shiver. She had no desire to spend time with this man, not matter how attracted to him she was. It didn't matter that she wanted to run her fingers through his long, silver hair, or lick his chest, or nibble his ears… wait! No more of that. She huffed, drawing the attention of both tall, striking men. She couldn't help but notice though, that Inuyasha was shorter, and his hair was more white than silver. The pure silver tones of Sesshomaru's hair were more striking. Her mind snapped back to the moment when Inuyasha spoke.

"You don't have any work to do. That's why we're here- to escape work. This is the first vacation any of us have taken in four long years and I plan on enjoying myself."

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes slightly and continued to stare down his brother. He desperately needed to get Inuyasha away, so he could take his brothers place. He wanted the woman to look at him with laughter in her eyes, to relax in his presence. He growled low, under his breath. He knew the human woman wouldn't hear him, but Inuyasha certainly did. Inuyashas eyes widened- there had been a note of warning, and of possession, in the growl. It was the same sort of growl he'd heard males utter when other males approached their mates. Could it be that Sesshomaru's beast instincts felt possessive of this woman already? They had never even spoken. But the mere possibility of such a thing was enough to panic Inuyasha.

He turned to Kagome. "I am so sorry, but I just remembered there is a document I need to send out tonight so we don't miss this merger."

Kagome looked from the younger brother to the older, confused as to what had passed between the two that she had missed in last minute. She smiled at Inuyasha. "Of course. Work comes first."

"Sadly." Inuyasha did indeed look sad to be leaving the table. Kagome felt compelled to say something.

"Would you like to have lunch tomorrow? We're going to be here for a few more days, Sango and I."

"I would love to. I'll call your room at noon." Inuyasha purposely did not look at his brother as he left the casino.

Sesshomaru looked down at the tiny woman so ruthlessly dominating his thoughts with a slight scowl on his face. "He's not serious. He's never serious."

"Serious about what?"

"Everything. If your expecting a relationship with him, don't. He's not capable."

"I flirt with a cute guy and I'm automatically looking for a long term relationship? Do you hold all women in this high of esteem or is it just me?" Kagome was positively seething. First, this man had the audacity to get her arrested the day before. Now, he was making assumptions about her when they had hardly spoken to one another! Ass.

Sesshomaru was also seething. She had just referred to his brother in a positive light. She wasn't supposed to think positively of his moron of a brother. She was supposed to like him. Never mind that he had done nothing yet to assure the woman's positive opinion.

Kagome eyed the still silent man. "I see no reason to stay here and be insulted. I'm going back to my room." She stood and began walking towards the elevators lining the far wall. She could have sworn she was being followed. She turned and saw Sesshomaru standing immediately behind her, his chest only inches from her nose. She was so very tempted to lean into him and nuzzle his chest, to smell him. All men have a unique scent- she wondered what he smelt like. 'Snap out of it, Kagome!' She immediately stepped back one large step and looked up into his face.

"Why are you following me?"

"Your friend is preoccupied." Sesshomaru motioned to where Sango and Miroku sat playing blackjack and glaring at one another. "I will walk to your room to ensure that you arrive there safely."

"I am perfectly capable of walking myself to my room, thank you."

"The men here are drunk and you are beautiful. You cannot walk by yourself."

His words gave Kagome pause- had he really just referred to her as beautiful? Sesshomaru appeared to have just realized what he'd said, also. He looked rather mad at himself at any rate. Kagome shrugged.

"Let me tell Sango where I'm going, so she doesn't worry." Kagome didn't wait for the man's reply. She had no desire to be near him and hoped to lose him in the crowds on their way to Sango's table, or between Sango's table and the elevators. She had a feeling arguing with him would get her nowhere- losing him was her best option. She made it to her friend's side with the silver haired man only one step behind. She sighed to herself- looked like losing him wasn't going to happen either. Then she would ignore him.

"Sango, I'm going back to the room. I have a bit of a headache."

"You want me to come with you?"

"No, no, you stay and play." Kagome noticed the amethyst eyes of the man carefully watching Sango relax. She remembered him from the night before- Miroku. He clearly wanted Sango's presence, whether he would admit it to anyone or not. She smiled to herself and an idea began to form- if Sango was busy with a relationship, she'd have less time to torture Kagome.

"You sure? You know I'd be happy to come up with you."

"No, no, it's not that bad. I just am not a big fan of all the noise in here right now."

"Okay. You call me- I have my cell- if you need anything."

"Yes, mother."

Sango smiled and hugged her best friend. "I love you, you know that, right?"

"Of course. You're the best sister ever."

"I know." Sango grinned, and Kagome returned Sesshomaru continued to follow her, and she continued to ignore him. She entered an elevator, hit the button, and stood with her back in one corner. Her shadow stood in the opposite corner and watched her from half closed eyes. She steadfastly ignored him. The numbers ticked by one the digital display- floor 10, floor 16, floor 21. Two more floors to go. Suddenly the lights flickered and the elevator ground to a halt. The lights went out, plunging the elevator into darkness.