And as promised, dropping this one quickly.

It didn't fully occur to him until halfway through the first course that he might have made an egregious error in judgement. He ate his crudo, wondering who had approved the seating arrangement. Tomoe was on his end of the table, away from Aya. However, Enishi had somehow ended up next to Kaoru. The blonde was blatantly flirting with her. He wasn't sure what was being said, but the woman, who had his ring on her finger, didn't appear to be shooting him down.

"So, Tomoe?" the voice piped up over the din of the conversation. "Tell us how you know the happy couple?"

Kenshin looked up sharply, his eyes on Yvonne. He was almost surprised the question hadn't come from Aya, as she was the one who had the incriminating evidence. He cast a glance at the woman. Sanosuke sat on his left and Tomoe on his other side. Her dark eyes flashed in his direction before focusing on the woman in the middle of the table.

"We've been business associates for a long time."

"And that's why he felt compelled to invite you tonight?"

"Our families have history." The comment came from Enishi. He sat back from the table, his glass in his fingers. "We delve mostly into the overseas market, but from time to time, we are required to come back here." He grinned at Kaoru. "But I could find reasons to return more often."

To her credit, the woman grinned, though it didn't reach her eyes. Kenshin recognized the smile from his few visits to watch her at work. "That doesn't explain why you're here. Surely your relationship is more than just business?" Now Aya spoke up, asking the question.

Tomoe merely shrugged. "At one point there was talk of us merging."

"Your businesses?"

"Come on sis, don't be modest."

For the first time since he'd known her, he saw Tomoe shoot a nasty look in her brother's direction. "No need to discuss ancient history." She stated snidely, sipping her wine. "It no longer matters."

"Ancient history?" Aya piped up. She paused as the servers began clearing their plates. "Are you saying you two had a thing? You and Kenshin?"

Kenshin glanced at Kaoru at the other end of the table. He watched her eyes dart from Enishi to Tomoe and then Aya and back to Tomoe before settling on him. The dark azure eyes widened slightly. Recognition dawned. He saw the light of accusation. Tomoe must have noticed it as well. "That ship has long sailed." She chimed in quickly. "Kenshin and I are no longer of any interest to each other and I'm happy to see he has found such a wonderful woman to discover his future with."

"How long have you been in town?" Aya asked.

"Since Monday." Enishi answered. He grinned, leaning his elbows on the table. "Why do you ask?"

Kaoru abruptly pushed back from the table. "I need to check on the next course."

Kenshin watched her leave the room as the waiters entered to begin marking for the next course. He offered a quick smile. "I'll be right back."

He ignored the smug look that Aya exchanged with Yvonne. As he left the room, he caught Tomoe's eye. She merely raised an eyebrow. He ignored her and followed Kaoru onto the balcony.

She moved to the railing, very similar to her move from the night before. "That's your ex?"

It was phrased as a question, but he recognized it for the accusation it was. "Yes."

"And you invited her here?"

He sighed. "I did."

The woman whirled around, the wind catching her dark hair and tossing it about her features. "What the hell was your plan?"

"There really wasn't a plan."

"How could you?" She hissed. "How could you invite her after what Aya saw?"

Kaoru went to hit him, but he grabbed her wrists and pulled her against him. "Just stop for one moment."

"No."

"Kaoru-dono, it isn't what you think. I should have put it all together, but I didn't."

"You invited her? After you kissed her? Even after Aya saw you?"

"Will you listen? I meant what I said last night."

That made her pause and Kaoru looked up at him. She swallowed thickly. "I don't recall." She said after a moment.

His purple eyes studied her a second. "Because you don't want to?"

Anxiously she licked her lips. "I genuinely just don't." She admitted.

Kenshin sighed. The woman had been pretty drunk the night before. "I promised you that while my ring was on your finger that I would never, in any way, make a fool of you."

"And yet you invite her?"

"Tomoe and I realized that our time is passed. The moment that Aya chose to record? It was a farewell kiss. If I honestly thought there was something else, I wouldn't have allowed it. She wanted to meet you; wanted to meet the woman who..."

Kenshin trailed off and pressed his lips together, not quite sure what he had been about to admit.

"She wanted to meet...me?"

Kenshin took her face in his hands. "Do you trust me?" The woman hesitated. "Yes, Tomoe and I were together for a long time. But it didn't work. When she returned, it was clear the passion was no longer there between the two of us. I'm sorry that Aya gave you credence to think I was making a fool of you. However, last night I promised, as long as my ring is on your finger, that I was yours. I will not break that promise. I believe we signed a contract to that effect."

"It was on a napkin."

"I signed my name in ink. I will not go against that."

The woman sighed and closed her eyes. "I don't know what to believe anymore." She murmured. Slowly she opened her eyes, her gaze studying him. "I trust you." Her words were just above a whisper.

"Then fuck Aya. In fact, you should let Tomoe in on it; she'll put the woman in her place immediately."

Her lips curled in a faint smile. "As much as I'd love to see that, I just want to get through this night intact."

"You sure?"

"It's better that no one else knows." She shifted. "We have our roles to play."

Her words left him feeling empty. "Then let's not keep them waiting." He held his hand out to her. Gingerly she placed her fingers in his. "I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it."

She returned to her seat and a plate was promptly put in front of her. She flashed a smile. "Forgive us." She met Kenshin's gaze across the table. She was still a little unsure about all this, but he seemed certain.

"We were just discussing Sanosuke and his photography." Yvonne retorted drily.

"I had no idea that you shot for the sports section." Misao chirped.

He shrugged, shifting in his suit jacket. Kaoru watched him, unable to hide the smirk on her lips. Getting dressed up wen completely against his nature. "Mostly local stuff."

"You should show me your portfolio." Misao took a thoughtful sip of her wine. "I could show it to some people."

"And then what?"

Misao shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe catch the eye of a magazine. Do something on a broader scale."

"I don't think Sano has any interest in doing anything on a broader scale." Aya chirped.

Kaoru opened her mouth to defend her best friend when a voice rang out across the table. "And what would you know about it? You sit at home claiming to do charity work when we all know all you do is fret about your next manicure appointment."

All eyes shifted to Megumi. She had been quiet, and she sat, her back stiff. Aya looked at her. The dark eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward. "Who the hell are you to lecture me on the day-to-day aspects of my life?"

Kaoru gestured to a server attempting to hide in the corner. He shifted and then vanished into the other room before reappearing with serval people to clear the plates. The tension in the room grew. "What is your relationship to Kenshin and Kaoru?" Aya finally demanded.

"Megumi is one of my dearest friends." Kenshin declared.

"And who are you to judge any of us?" Tomoe demanded as the third course was dropped.

Kaoru looked up startled from her glass of the Garnacha. Aya had whipped her head around. "Careful who you go throwing stones at considering you were making out with a certain someone yesterday."

There was a beat of silence. Kaoru felt her stomach drop and she stared at the Cornish hen in front of her. A chuckle came out across the table. "That's what your argument is?" She looked up at Tomoe. The woman threw her head back and laughed heartily.

Aya blinked at her and looked down at Yvonne who merely shrugged a shoulder. "You're talking about nonsense that you know nothing about." Tomoe stated.

"Please. You and Kenshin were involved, it's obvious. And I saw you two yesterday."

"So what?" Tomoe tossed her dark hair over her shoulder. "Our relationship is over." The dark eyes glanced in her direction before focusing in on the woman. "It ended years ago. He and I are nothing more than colleagues and friends."

"Really?" Aya crossed her arms. "Then why did I see you two going into the Palladium?"

For the first time since she had seen the picture, Kaoru relaxed. If that was what Aya had to go on, then the woman really might have misread the situation. Tomoe sat back, her wine in her hand. "What is your relationship to Kaoru? I know you have no connection to Kenshin; I'm assuming that's how you finagled your invite to this dinner."

The woman sat back with a gasp. "I did not finagle my invite here. We were once sorority sisters, one of my dearest friends."

"Then you should do your homework better." Tomoe leaned forward, her eyes glittering in the light. "Kenshin owns the Palladium and has his office there. You and Kaoru might have been sorority sisters but even I am aware that you have insulted her guests, which goes against the sisterhood. You should offer her your support; all I've witnessed is your antagonization of a woman who has invited you into her home."

Kaoru searched her memory, realizing she spoke the truth. Aya pressed her lips together, clearly also realizing that she had overstepped her bounds. "Perhaps; maybe I did not quite see clearly. The day was quite windy yesterday."

"Or maybe you should accept the fact you need glasses. Sight does weaken as one gets old."

"What exactly are you implying?" Aya demanded.

Tomoe merely shrugged. "Time and age are something no one can fend off forever." She smiled sweetly before digging into her meal. She picked up a bite of poultry on her fork. "Perhaps, you should consult your plastic surgeon. Although it doesn't appear he's as good as you might think." "She stated before relishing the bite.

Aya stared at her and then glared at her husband. He raised an eyebrow and took a sip of his wine. "You're the one insisting on the Botox." He snorted.

Aya's eyes widened, and she looked to Yvonne. Even her best friend seemed at a loss for words and offered no support.

"It really is quite something."

Kaoru leaned back startled at the voice on her right. "Sorry?"

Enishi grinned. "It's why they were so good together. A shame you came between their reconciliation."

"What do you mean?"

the dark grey eyes watched her. "She came back for him. To at least see if there was something. He turned her down because of you." His grin deepened as his gaze swept over her. "I now understand why."

"And just how do you factor into it?" She asked.

"I know better than to go up against Kenshin. But if it wasn't his ring on your finger, all bets would be off."

Kenshin approached the door cautiously. Her shoes were discards just inside and he could just see her silhouette in the city lights. Her dark hair tumbled down her back and he itched to see the expanse of creamy flesh again. He stepped onto the balcony.

He saw her shiver and wrap her arms about her torso. For a moment he thought to return inside to get her a blanket but didn't want to lose the moment.

"I like Tomoe." She finally stated.

Kenshin came to a stop next to her and stuck his hands in his pockets. "She is quite charming when she wants to be."

Her head tilted to the side. "Why didn't it work?"

"She moved to London to run the international PR department for her family's company. My interests required me to remain here. In the end we grew apart."

"Enishi claims she came here for you."

He glanced at her sharply at the mention of the blonde. "Enishi likes to claim a lot of things."

She looked at him. "You're saying it isn't true?"

He sighed, resigned to explain his actions from the day before. "It's possible."

"The day we met. You were in a jewelry store."

"Hai."

"Were you looking for something for her?"

He returned his attention to the skyline. "I was thinking about it."

"Why didn't you?"

"If you recall, a beautiful damsel in distress entered and asked me to play along." He answered wryly. He watched her out of the corner of his eye. She blushed looking at her toes. "But it was just as well."

"Why is that?"

Kenshin turned to her. "Kaoru-dono, Tomoe and I were together for a long time. But the passion faded. We grew complacent with each other. I think that's part of why she left; why I let her leave." She tilted her head in his direction. "When our paths crossed, we did what we did, but it was because we were conformable. Tomoe did come here to possibly entertain the notion of getting back together." He saw her stiffen. "I won't deny that seeing her there was a flash of something. However, when she kissed me, I realized that I wasn't interested." The woman pressed her lips together and looked up at the sky. "The moment that your friend witnessed. It was a farewell kiss between two people who recognized that they no longer had a future together."

"Then why did you invite her to dinner?"

"She wanted to meet you; wanted to meet the woman who had sparked my interest." Kenshin finally gave into his desire and reached out to wind a silken girl around his finger. "I don't want to be comfortable."

Slowly She turned her dark blue eyes towards him. He dropped the curl and ran a finger along her cheek. "What do you want?" She asked breathlessly.

He ran his fingertip along her jaw and down her neck. Gingerly, he trailed it across her collarbone and up to cup her cheek. Kenshin moved closer to her. "You." He murmured before lowering his mouth to hers.

Her lips were soft and pliant, and he could taste the remnants of the wine. He slid on arm around her waist, the other into her hair, angling for more. She opened her mouth and moaned softly as their tongues danced. HE pulled back slightly and brushed hair away from her face. "Koishi." He murmured, his eyes searching her face. The woman tared up at him. He caressed her cheek and dipped his head to kiss her again.

"Himura-san, oh, forgive me."

Kenshin fought the urge to swear and looked up. Beshimi stood in the door, his bag slung over his shoulder. Kaoru saw him and stepped out of his embrace. Kenshin reluctantly let her go. "Yes?"

"I'm finished. The rest of the crew should be done within the next ten minutes. I'll have someone come by tomorrow to pick up the extra pans and equipment."

"Thank you."

Kaoru stepped towards the chef, away from him. She offered him her hands. "Thank you. I know I'm a bit much but thank you. The food was wonderful."

He accepted her hands and bowed over them. "You might have been a bit neurotic, but I'll take that passion any day." He glanced over her shoulder to Kenshin. "I will see you at the hotel, sir."

"Good night." Kenshin nodded. He watched him leave and returned his focus to Kaoru.

Slowly she turned. "I'm sure you have an early morning."

He hesitated. "It's not that early."

"Still." The woman seemed unsure. "I've had a stressful few days. Monday was long making up for me being off tonight. And then yesterday with everything..." Her voice trailed off.

"Kaoru-dono."

"I think I'm just going to head off to bed."

Curse that man for interrupting. "I imagine you are working the next few evenings."

she nodded. "We're heading into the weekend. I work nights."

Kenshin took a few steps toward her and pause at the threshold of the door. "I would like to have dinner with you on your next evening off."

"Out?"

"No. Dinner here."

Until next time!