Hello again, thank you for reading my ramblings. I said in the first chapter the story beguna with something that was funny in my mind, Inuyasha and Kagome fighting over food and making out in the end. But as I kept on writing it become something darker. Here is when the darkness begins.

I don´t believe the angst is too strong, but keep in mind the I have warned you

DISCLAIMER: All the charachters of Inuyasha belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

2- Looking back

Kagome waited at the front door of the office building as Inuyasha had instructed. She had a nice view from there, it was getting late and most of the skyscrapers had their lights on while the sky was painted pink and purple by the receding twilight. She knew the gorgeous colors were just a byproduct of pollution but she just decided to ignore that fact and enjoy nature´s performance. It was almost springtime, soon the cherry trees would be blooming and the city would be covered in pink.

The thought of pink cherry trees managed to bring a smile to her lips and she welcomed the little moment of solace. Lately, all she could think about were problems. Her mother left alone to run the shrine while her Jii-chan recovered in hospital and her little brother struggling to pay his tuition at Kyoto University, where he had decided to attend to become a marine biologist.

If money and the health of her family weren´t enough problems, she had to add her romantic life to list. Not that it was problematic per sei, it was just plain and dull.

After a disastrous relationship with a wolf youkai, her pride and self-confidence had taken a major blow. She had met Kouga when she was a freshman at Tokio University, she was still a virgin and quite naive back then. He was a senior, as well as a popular athlete. Kouga was always surrounded by women, so she had loved the fact that he had set his eyes on her, she should have suspected then that he wasn´t going to remain faithful. However, she fell for his smooth talk and his sex appeal, she had been too eager to explore her blooming sexuality but after their first time together she only got frustrated and dissatisfied. Kagome had been too shy to bring up the subject to her lover, but every succeeding hurried encounter left her with a fouler taste in her mouth.

Nonetheless, she wasn´t a quitter and she had her mind set on mastering the sexual experience. A few months later she found out Kouga was cheating on her with several women, when she confronted him he claimed she was a lousy fuck and he needed the other women to satisfy his needs.

That had been the last nail that sealed the coffin of her sex life. She had cried for days, mourning the loss of her relationship, her innocence and any hope of ever trusting a man with her body ever again. Since that day, whatever needs she may have she trusted only herself to satisfy them, and that was only after making sure it couldn´t be ignored any longer.

Kagome had managed to collect the pieces of her shattered heart focusing on graduating college, only to find out later that she couldn´t rely on painting to make a decent living, she needed a job to pay the rent. Bottom line, she had to let go of her dreams and become a productive member of society.

Meaningless job succeeded by meaningless job before Kagome realized the only place where she was comfortable was on the phone. Her dear friend Sango, whose fiancé was a sales representative with SNT, had been able to get her an interview and here she was now, saving every penny she could to help her family.

Her whole life was lacking, especially in the love department, but Kagome didn´t mind. Sex only meant pain and disappointment to her, it had nothing to do with love or even pleasure.

After being reunited with the boy she had a crush on high school, they started seeing each other and had reached an agreement, they would go out on dates, spend time together and with each other´s family and if by the time they reached 30 they were still in this platonic relationship they would marry each other. Sango suspected Hojo was gay but too afraid to come out of the closet, Kagome didn´t want to believe that. Whatever the reason Hojo had for accepting that deal, Kagome knew she could trust the sweet guy to fulfill his part in it.

Sexual attraction was something she had vowed long ago to never again give in to. What had happened between her and Inuyasha today only served to remind her how dangerous it could be. It had only been a mishap, that was all, It wouldn´t happen again, she would make sure.

Sitting at his desk while shutting down his computer, Inuyasha pondered on his meeting with Kagome Higurashi. The nagging sensation he was trying to neglect was too powerful and exciting to just ignore it.

It had been a while since he had felt so strong a pull towards a woman, not since Kikyo.

"Kikyo." he thought to himself.

As usual, he was enveloped in a shroud of sadness when he thought about Kikyo. She was younger than Kagome at the time they met, yet she had never responded with such honest passion to his advances. She was beautiful, serene and kind, which had him head over heels for her. Her stepfather, Onigumo Ikeda was a senior partner at SNT while Inuyasha´s brother, Sesshomaru, was the CEO and major shareholder. According to his brother, their match was very convenient, for Inuyasha it was a chance at the happiness he had seen only in his dreams.

In the beginning, Kikyo seemed happy just to be close to Inuyasha always smiling brightly when she saw him. Inuyasha had been so smitten he didn´t notice the change in her demeanor when they started dating. Their first time together had been awkward but he didn´t delve into it. He had thought she was shy and needed time to get to know him. But as their relationship developed into something more serious he noticed that the woman couldn´t stand his touch. She was sweet and affectionate but unable to enjoy the intimacy he relished.

All that changed one new moon night, when he finally entrusted her with his best-kept secret. She had been fascinated, unable to keep from touching him. That wonderful night they had made love frantically, she shed her inhibitions and fully embraced her sexuality with him. Inuyasha had been so happy, at last, his relationship with Kikyo was blossoming. That was the confirmation he needed before proposing to her. After a lifetime of loneliness, Inuyasha wanted a family of his own. He was just a toddler when his parents died, all he had left was a half-brother that hated his guts and tried his best to avoid him. Naturally, when the opportunity to love and be loved by a beautiful woman presented itself, Inuyasha held on to it with both hands.

Sadly, his happiness only lasted one night. The next time he tried to make love to her, she was back to her frigid old self, unreceptive and barely tolerating his passionate embrace. The following new moon he was able to confirm it, the woman he so desperately loved could only enjoy sex with him on his human form. When he tried to break up with her she just begged him to stay with her until she could accept his youkai heritage. Her upbringing as the descendant of a long line of Shinto mikos had prejudiced her against demons, that was all. She confessed it would not be easy to overcome, she only needed some time.

Kikyo´s family had her life planned for her but she had never wanted to be a priestess, she only wished to have a normal life. Unfortunately, not many humans wanted to tie their family´s destiny to hers.

The daughter of a young maiden that abandoned the life at the shrine while single and pregnant after being disowned by her parents. Her mother had a happy life as a common woman, away from the duties of a miko. When Kikyo´s father died leaving her with a teenage daughter and pregnant once again, she found comfort in the arms of Onigumo Ikeda. The man became the father figure the girls needed and remained in charge of them after their mother´s demise. Kikyo´s grandparents had wanted both their grandchildren to come back to the shrine and train to become mikos, Kaede conceded but Kikyo refused. She stayed with her stepfather against her grandparent´s will. She knew her chances of meeting eligible men were slim but she took the risk. She had been a loner until Inuyasha came along. Kikyo´s history was no secret to him, and being an outcast like her, he was more than willing to try to have a normal life with the young woman.

A couple of months went by, things hadn´t changed much between them when Kikyo told him the news, she was pregnant, they needed to be married soon. Inuyasha was beaming with joy, all thoughts of a frigid partner took a back seat to becoming a father.

His dreams of a happy family came crashing down shortly after their engagement was announced. Kikyo was visiting her sister to tell her the good news when she had a miscarriage. Inuyasha wanted to go to her but she didn´t want him around, the consequences had been far too great. Her body was too weak to carry his hybrid child, her uterus had to be removed along with the fetus in order to save her life. Inuyasha ached to be by her side, comforting her would help ease their shared pain. Kikyo thought different, in her mind, Inuyasha had ruined her life, she didn´t want to see him nor hear from him.

Inuyasha sighed heavily. He had let his mind wander off without realizing it, that "kiss" he shared with Kagome had affected him more than he had expected.

It´s not like he hadn´t dated after Kikyo. He wasn´t a womanizer but he had slept with his fair share of women, both human and demon, never allowing any of them into his heart, love was nothing but suffering, he had learned the hard way. He was no longer the young naive hanyou who was desperate for human contact. His heart had been crushed after Kikyo, now he just took what life had to offer and moved on. Even though they both wanted to avoid each other, he still had to see Kikyo often at work, they had to be civil towards each other whenever their paths crossed.

Kikyo again, why did his mind go down that road. He hadn´t thought about their past in a long time. Kagome had reminded him of her, he had to admit. Physically, they looked like they could be sisters. In spite of Kagome covering her body, he could tell it was as curvy as Kikyo´s. They also shared the same eyes and hair color, only Kagome´s hair was wild and wavy. Kagome was also younger and a little shorter than Kikyo. And after just one taste of her lips, Inuyasha could tell she would be a passionate lover, he had felt her yearning with desire under his touch.

"That´s the main difference." He said out loud.

Kikyo had always been cool and aloof while Kagome was like a contained fire, he suspected, if he could tear down her barriers chances are they might be hot as blazes together.

Inuyasha heaved a deep sigh. First things first, he needed to convince Kagome that she could lend a helping hand to their project. He had promised Kikyo he would help Onigumo´s project. He could never refuse her; after all, he still felt in debt with her.

Grabbing his messenger bag, he tossed his laptop inside and headed to the elevator. He didn´t want to keep the woman waiting, she had already shown signs of being feisty, he wouldn´t risk maddening her now that he had set his mind on winning her over.

"Only for this project." He reminded himself. "Nothing else." He had to keep that in mind.