Kagome felt the heat return to her face. She'd hoped to convince him to further their relationship when she'd first decided to check in on him, heart soaring when he hadn't pushed her away after finding her in his bed, but she hadn't realized how open he'd been to the idea in the first place.
Had the need for survival bloomed into something more potent without them even realizing it?
"I didn't know."
"How could you? My son is not one to divulge his secrets—or his emotions, should he have them—even to his own mother." Inukimi lifted her cup to her lips. "Perhaps it is time you asked him about it."
"We'd started to this morning," Kagome admitted.
"I will apologize for interrupting if that is the case." Kagome's jaw dropped. The same daiyoukai who'd belittled her humanity not even an hour prior was apologizing? "But if my dear son had remembered his manners and informed me of your visit beforehand, I would have delayed my arrival."
There it was.
Kagome's reply was overshadowed by a literal shadow. Sesshoumaru stood over them, a wary scowl pinching his features, and she realized his mother's complaint wasn't meant for her.
"Mother."
"Son," she taunted.
Kagome barely stifled her laughter as his eyes narrowed. "I was told you would be receiving your tea in your quarters."
"Why would I do that when the view out here is so lovely?" She clinked her cup against Kagome's. "And before you chastise your healer for not following your orders, I shall inform you that she has been most gracious after I forced her to join me." The smirk that found her lips was feral. "Isn't that right, Kagome?"