Previously: Kai and Hilary practice getting comfortable with each other; Hilary moves into her new place and prepares for dinner with Kai's family.

A bit of improvisation

The entrance is grand; warmed with bright lights as we walk up the wide concrete steps, surrounded by lush green foliage and perfectly trimmed trees in planters. The front door is large, made mostly of glass and wood, with iron inlays. Everything feels huge and old and impressive as I stand before it in my new fancy dress and heels. It gives me a good taste of what waits behind.

Kai never answered my question about if I could trust him, and his silence on the matter rings empty and hollow in my head. We walk up the steps slowly, side by side. The seconds tick by and my nervousness grows.

"Stop," I cry, coming to a halt. "We need a code word."

Kai's startled expression crosses into one of annoyance. "A code word?"

"Yes, for when you need me to stop talking because I'm saying the wrong thing, or if we need to have a private conversation. You know, so that we can communicate without them knowing."

"If we need to have a private conversation, I'll say 'I need to speak with you in private,' and then pull you away. Is that subtle enough of a code word for you?"

I narrow my eyes. He's not taking this seriously. "Fine, but if I mess up, it's on you."

"Just don't mess up," Kai says as he continues walking up the path to the front door.

We get to the large entrance, where Kai stands motionless before the door. I wait. He is frozen in time, staring blankly in front of him. Does he need to ring the bell to enter his own family home? What are we waiting for?

Kai turns to me. "They're going to be difficult. Remember, you're not trying to convince them you're anyone else. But don't try to go head to head with them; let me take the brunt of it." His face and tone are stern.

I nod, trying understandingly. As he said before, there's not much he can say to explain the situations we'll face. I just hope I'm quick enough to keep up.

His chest heaves with a heavy sigh. Stirred by his unusual display of nervousness, I reach out and grab his hand, folding it between my own. Maybe he just needs to know he's not walking in alone. A warm flood of joy spreads through me as he accepts my hand, interlacing our fingers as we practiced. I tell myself it's because of the role that I'm playing. However, there's a knot in my stomach that calls me a liar.

I was bothered by his obvious distress, I reason. And spurred on my compassion. That's not a bad thing to feel for a friend. Not at all.

I don't have time to convince myself of anything else.

If Kai's surprised by my actions, he doesn't show it. I look down at our entwined hands. I'm shocked still to see a small simple ring on his finger, having forgotten that he would need to wear one as well. When I look up to see his expression, dying for any crumble of what he's thinking, he's turned away from me and is now ringing the bell.

So, Kai doesn't have the freedom to come and go. It's a weird notion. If my parents know I'm coming, I walk right in and kick off my shoes like I never left. No matter how long I'm away, Mom and Dad's place is always home.

A butler opens the door, bowing respectfully as Kai leads me through. He's an older man with a stone face who guides us down the expansive hall made of floors that are dark wood, laid in a beautiful geometric pattern. Expensive art with ornate frames, blinding chandeliers, and a large curved staircase to our right - all of it is from another world.

Though I can see down the long hall clear to the back of the house, Kai comes to an abrupt stop just outside the entrance of the next room to our left. Inside, I can hear the murmur of conversation.

"I don't know what he's thinking,"

"I've looked into the girl. She comes from nothing. Just pure worthless trash, and he's ready to give her the Hiwatari name and fortune like it means nothing to him. He's exactly like his father."

"Dad, please tell me you're going to do something to stop him."

They're talking about us. Obviously. Kai said they would be this way. I'm not surprised but it's still difficult things to hear. Kai looks down at me, I guess to gauge my reaction. I put a smile on. A bright one, like how I used to give him in the elevators before I knew who he was. For extra reassurance, I nod and squeeze his hand.

I'm here and I'm ready, I want to say. I hope my actions convey enough of that.

He steps around the corner and into the light. I follow right behind him, standing at his side as I look at the individuals who were just cursing my existence.

The room is longer than it is wide. To the left is a massive fireplace and to the right is a series of glass doors that lead out to what looks like a patio garden. Stiff chairs and sofas make up most of the furniture in the room, all centered around the fireplace. On one sofa is a woman, with dark hair and even darker eyes. There are two men in the room. One stands along the doors leading outside.

The other sits in front of the crackling fire.

"Grandfather," Kai says, bobbing his head in respect to the older gentleman, sitting in a high back chair, hand on the head of a cane. It reminds me eerily of a throne, which isn't helped by the chilling stare he's watching us with. As if he comes to some sudden conclusion, his mouth breaks into a grim crack.

"Grandson, welcome home. Please," he pauses, waving to the rest of his family, "introduce your bride."

"It seems you might already know of her," Kai replies. He looks pointedly at a man standing by the glass doors. He's got with winged purple and black a narrow, pointy face that morphs into a scowl at Kai's words.

"Do it anyway, Kai. It's what's proper and expected. It seems you still need lessons in that."

Kai steps farther into the room with a lament breath. I come in behind, waiting for his signal. "Grandfather, everyone," he starts.

Then he urges me forward and his hand leaves mine to wrap around my waist. I'm grateful that I don't jump and instead, I'm comforted by the gesture. Kai's close; I'm not alone in a den full of wolves.

"This is Hilary Tachibana – my wife to be."

I try to contort my face into what I think is a pleasant expression as I look around the room at each of them. My eyes feel too wide and I'm sure I've blown our cover. I can't dwell on that now, though.

As soon as I make eye contact with Kai, my throat constricts. His expression is so...fond. That's the only way I can describe it. He's managed to soften his gaze so that he looks as though he's having actual thoughts of love and affection.

"Look at that, she's blushing. A true blushing bride." The woman in the room snips. "I didn't think any of those existed."

I break away from Kai's gaze and look to the ground. How embarrassing. Pulling on every last strand of my composer, I lift my face to beam at all of them. "It's a pleasure to meet everyone. I look forward to getting to know you."

The woman chuckles heartily. "Oh, do you? That's so cute. Either Kai hasn't prepared you at all or you're just as stupid as I thought."

This must be the aunt Kai spoke about on the way here. The one that wants everyone to call her doctor. Clearly, she has a disproportionate amount of pride. Too bad for her, I have been prepared for this. But not because of Kai.

"I was just being polite," I say. "Kai hasn't mentioned you at all."

"I'm Dr. Hiwatari," she answers haughtily, raising her chin to look at me through narrow eyes. "Technically, I'm Kai's aunt. You can either refer to me as Doctor or Dr. Hiwatari and nothing else."

Oh, please. No wonder Kai can't stand her.

"But you're too pretty to be a doctor." I blink it faux-wonder. Then, glancing at Gideon, I nod understandably. "Explains a lot."

I feel triumphant when her lip pulls up. She huffs and takes a sip from her martini glass. I glance back at Kai to see how I'm doing and find that he has a smug grin. So far, so good.

His grandfather invites us to sit down. Kai leads me to our own small sofa, and I'm grateful I don't have to sit next to the woman. The other man comes around and sits next to the woman and it all feels very formal for a family. But this is what Kai indicated. I shouldn't have expected any different.

We sit in absolute silence for what feels like hours but is probably only a few awkward minutes.

Finally, the woman breaks. "This is ridiculous. Why are we sitting here acting as though this is going to happen? Dad, please. Tell him to end this ridiculous sham. He's embarrassing the family."

Kai doesn't respond to her outcries and neither does his grandfather. Instead, his grandfather only stares directly at me. I look away, pretending I don't notice but when I look back, he's still staring.

"Now, Kay," the other man says, putting a hand on her arm to draw her back. "Leave them be. She's only using him for the money. She'll be gone long enough."

"Gideon," Kai says in warning.

I know I shouldn't. Kai told me not to go head to head with them, but I can't help the words from leaving my mouth. I lean forward, my eyes set on him. "And what makes that so clear?"

He chortles. "It's obvious. Up until a few days ago, you lived in a tiny one-bedroom, walked to work – a job you suddenly no longer have. I've spoken to your previous boss. You were an underperforming employee. You wouldn't have lasted there much longer -"

"Underperforming?" I'm incredulous. Of all the accusations they could have pinned to me, that is the only one that wouldn't hold any truth.

"-you had no other prospects. So you decided to bag a rich man." He laughs and the woman smiles. "You certainly found the richest."

"That's enough," Kai says to him. "If you have a problem, you talk it to me, not my fiancée. I won't let you attack her."

I'm ashamed to admit it, but when I was a child I had an explosive temper. One that would burn anything within a five-foot radius of me if set off. Having three cousins that liked to poke sleeping bears, I spent a good long time learning to control it. Truth is, no one can when a battle by throwing a tantrum. You have can only outsmart them.

However, all of those lessons have disappeared and at this moment I can feel it rising like I haven't felt in years. It burns up my spine and crackles on my tongue. I can breathe fire like a dragon if only I'd give way to it.

"Uncle Gideon," I turn back to him, emphasizing the title just to twist the knife that I would be family. "You've done all this research and yet you overlooked one crucial piece of evidence."

"And what is that?"

"I'm incredibly plain," I say. My tone is neutral, stating a well-known and observable fact. I continue on, "In all my life, I've only had two boyfriends. And that's not for lack of wanting. It's because I'm usually too busy working to bother with a social life. I know this dress is pretty, but underneath all of this, I'm really nothing special."

"Yes. I can see." He and Kay laugh to themselves.

"So then, how did I bag a rich man, as you said? Unless you think Kai is stupid enough to fall into such an awful trap. Do you think Kai's stupid?"

I've done some research too. In doing so, I learned that it was Kai's grandfather that appointed him CEO. To insult Kai would be to question Soichiro Hiwatari's decision. His intelligence.

Gideon considers his options. "No, Kai's not stupid by any means. But perhaps a bit naïve at times."

That seems a safe enough answer for Soichiro and the conversation ends there.

I lean back in my seat, holding my hands to keep from visibly shaking. The anger has ebbed, leaving only anxiety in its place as I realize what I've just done. I feel Kai's hand settle over my clenched hands in my lap and immediately I calm.

"Kai!"

All heads turn at the joyous shout. Before I can process, a young red-haired girl rushes across the room in a floor-length dress and a leather jacket, no consideration for the tension that sits over us. Kai stands, leaving my side momentarily as she wraps her arms around his broad chest.

"Salima, please." Kai's aunt groans. "Remember your etiquette classes."

Salima ignores her, continuing to hold on to Kai. "I've missed you. You never come to family things anymore. Only work ones." Then she breaks away from him. Pushing Kai aside, she sits in his previous spot, facing me. Her eyes are a deep brown that speaks to the kindness I didn't anticipate seeing from a member of this family.

"Salima," she introduces, "the only one here with any heart."

"Hilary,"

"I'd wish you a happy welcome, but this family isn't very welcoming. Or happy."

I can't believe she's saying any that in front of the current company. Quickly glancing at Kai to see how I should be reacting, I see he's distracted by another newcomer. The tallest of everyone here with deep purple hair and narrow eyes. Kai shakes his hand firmly.

"Ralf," Salima supplies, whispering to me. "The eldest Hiwatari, though we go by Jurgens to the world. Our father's name."

Salima seems more than willing to part with information and I file that away for later. She also doesn't seem to care too much about what her family thinks of her.

Kai eventually comes back to my side, motioning for Salima to move. Dismayed, she moves to sit next to her mother, Kay. I'm thankful as Kai rests his hand on mine, which are folded in my lap. It's a surprising anchor to ground me. As nice as Salima is, I'm here for Kai and he's the one I trust the most at the moment. Ralf sits next to Gideon. He's quiet, dark, and brooding, but nothing else to note.

'Quiet, dark, and brooding' seems to be the Hiwatari MO. Only Salima sticks out as a bright light. She continues the conversation, speaking mostly about her days at school. She's currently attending university and is involved in several clubs and activities. Kay interrupts only to call them a waste of time.

Salima only smiles whenever Kay groans.

Eventually, dinner is served. Everyone raises and waits for Kai's grandfather to exit the room before moving. Kai's hand grips mine and I wait beside him until the others are mostly out of the room and out of hearing range.

"You're doing better than I expected," he whispers in my ear as we trail behind.

The comment thrills me, but I restrain my smile. "I don't take well to insults, but I've had years of practice responding to them."

"Remind me to thank Emily for antagonizing you if we ever see her again."

"Emily, sure. But she's got nothing on King and Queen."

"Them too, then. Should I send flowers? A card? Maybe a stuffed bear?" "Only if you want them set on fire."

I flick my eyes up just in time to catch his mischievous gleam before we join everyone in the dining room. We gather around a large table where I'm seated across from Gideon, and between Salima and Ralf. I can't say I'm comfortable, but I can say that I'm more comfortable over here than I would be in his place – just to the right of his grandfather.

The eldest Hiwatari sits at the head of the table in front of another large stone fireplace that already has a fire blazing despite it being a warm night. The glow from the flames gives him a shadowed look.

The conversation starts off light but eventually moves to business, with Kai and his grandfather doing most of the talking. Ralf adds his thoughts occasionally, urged on by Gideon. Though his voice sounds posh and arrogant to me, Kai tolerates his input. Some of it I understand – the business language is something I'm familiar with – but some of it is so specific to the Hiwatari Empire that I get lost. Looking to Salima for information, I can tell by the way that she scrapes her fork across the plate that she's more than bored by the conversation.

As I scan back across the table, my eyes catch Kay's. She stares at me like a cat that's cornered a mouse. Taking a sip of her water, her dark red lipstick stains the rim. I force myself to look away.

Kai is engrossed though. He and his grandfather spit ideas back and forth. I give a silent cheer when Gideon offers his two cents and Kai immediately refutes it, backing up his point with cool logic. It's all I can do not to stick my tongue out at the old man.

After three courses end with dessert (a delectable chocolate cake, finally something I'm familiar with, though I'm sure the chocolate was imported from somewhere, it was so rich) the men retire to the den to do...whatever men do, I guess. I follow Kay and Salima back to the living room where we're served hot tea. I accept it, trying to be gracious. I'm already exhausted. How long is this night going to last?

"Now that the men are gone, we can get to the good stuff," Salima says. She kicks off her heels and curls up on the sofa next to me despite her mother's objections. "Have you started the wedding plans?"

"Oh!" I choke on my tea. I put the cup down before I spill any. "Oh. No. I've been busy this week."

She waves her hand. "You guys are only just engaged. Probably want to sit with it for a while."

"No. I should get started. Kai wants the wedding to be in early December I think."

Salima blinks in surprise while Kay croaks. "That soon. And so close to your birthday, Salima."

"Oh, you're birthday's in December?"

"Late November," Salima answers. Her eyes drift away. "My twenty-first. We've already got everything planned."

"That's a big day," I reply cheerfully. I think I might have said the wrong thing because Salima is distracted and Kay is mad. "I'm sure we won't be stealing any of your thunder."

"Oh, no It's not that. I just wasn't expecting Kai to rush the wedding, is all."

"God," Kay sneers, "you're not pregnant, are you?"

"Mom!"

"Absolutely not!"

"It's not out of the realm of possibilities. It certainly would explain...well, you in general, and the rush to the altar."

"It explains nothing because I'm not pregnant. We'd need to be having sex for that."

I bite my lip. I'm so overly horrified at what's come from my mouth that I can barely process anything else.

Salima and her mom exchange confused looks. "How long did you say you've been dating?" Kay asks curiously.

"We didn't," I reply. I'm trying to think quickly. We discussed how we met but not how long our relationship been. If I say the wrong thing, we'll be caught in a lie and I've already messed up too much in one night.

That predatory look returns and I can see Kay piecing things together. It's interesting how similar her eyes are to Kai's when they're thinking.

Salima jumps in. "Well, that's still good. This way you guys and enjoy your married lives together before bringing a child into it."

She's trying to salvage the situation. She carries on with asking about a theme for the wedding and I'm grateful for her presence. Kay sips her tea.

The sound of a door banging open startles us all. I set my cup down on the coffee table as a voice echoes from down the hall, "Kai, you must listen!"

It sounds like his grandfather. Salima and I stand as Kai appears in the entryway of the room.

"We're going," is all he says.

I barely have a chance to say my goodbyes as I follow him out. When I reach him, Kai grips my hand to lead me to the front door. Waiting there like a guard is his grandfather, staring at Kai in resigned disappointment.

"You're making a rash decision, young man," he says.

Kai doesn't answer. He ushers me out the door and to his car.

"What happened?" I ask once we're safely in the car.

"Nothing." He tells me as Spencer drives off. The curt word has me hesitating. It reminds me of the day in his office when I told him about Emily. He pulls out his phone and starts texting someone.

The silence is awkward. I struggle with what to say next. If we were real friends, I'd push for more information. But I still don't know him well enough to handle him like this. "Salima seems nice," I offer as a way to start the conversation.

Kai doesn't bother to respond.

"It seemed like you were having a good time before that."

He huffs.

"Kai," I say, putting my hand on his arm to get his attention. It works and he looks at me with tense eyes.

He relaxes after a moment, patting my hand but then removing it from his sleeve. "You did a good job tonight," he says, sounding passive. "I was impressed with how you responded to Kay and Gideon, but make no mistake; they were going easy tonight. They meant for you to hear that conversation, to get a reaction from you. The more you challenge them, the more threatened they'll feel. I don't want you to be their target."

"Thanks," I sigh, "but I think I'll be a target no matter what you do. I'm here, and that's the problem. Besides, I might have messed up when you were in the other room."

His look is sharp again. "What do you mean?"

It was embarrassing when it happened and it's even more embarrassing to recount it under his intense eye. "I accidentally told Salima and your aunt that we haven't...slept together yet," I say, trying to be delicate with my words.

Kai swears, pinching the bridge between his eyes. "Why would you say that?"

"It just came out," I'm much quicker to defend myself. "She was asking – insisting, really – that I am pregnant and that's the reason we're rushing. I said that we'd had to have sex for that. It was stupid, I know."

Kai rubs his face and it's the first time I think I've ever gotten the impression that he's worn-out. And understandably so. I don't know how I would feel having to play so many fields in a day, and at his level. I could guess that I wouldn't feel fresh at the end of the day.

He gets back on his phone. "I'll fix it."

I'm confused. I'm not sure how he plans on fixing my slip of the tongue. Unless he plans on calling me a liar, I don't know if there is a fix. And that's not really a good way to start an engagement.

Before I can ask anymore, we're arriving back at my new home. I am taken by surprise, though I don't know why. He picked me up from here. It only makes sense that's this is where he'd leave me.

I wait for Spencer to open my door. I smile at him as I step out and give my customary thanks. His green eyes are soft as he nods. Comforting.

Thinking that Kai won't get out, I head for the front doors to the lobby with my head hung. It's only been a few hours since I left, but it feels like a lifetime of events has transpired.

"Hilary," Kai calls. He's right behind me when I turn suddenly and I jump back. His hands reach out and grasp my upper arms gently, steading me. In doing so, he prevents me from putting any distance between us.

Up close, I'm reminded of last night. I exhale too harshly. "Yes?"

He takes my hand and we walk in together. As we go, he leans in and whispers, "Brad Best is over there."

"Who?" I turn to look behind us but Kai puts his arm over my shoulder, preventing me from seeing.

"Remember the paparazzi?" he answers.

"How'd he get through the gate?"

"I plan on finding out,"

I sigh as he follows me into the elevator and we start heading up. I mentally chastise my heart for leaping when he called out to me. Of course, he wasn't doing it for any other reason than to keep up appearances.

When we reach my floor, the door opens and I step out. Kai doesn't. He leans against the sliding door to keep it from closing.

Realizing that he's not going to walk me to my door (because, duh, this isn't a date. The quicker you get that through your head, the better off you'll be, Hilary!), I smile and wave. "Good night,"

"I'll call you tomorrow,"

My smile widens. "Okay."

"We'll go over our next move."

"Right."

He steps back and allows the door to close. Once I'm behind my door, in my new, beautifully decorated but empty apartment, I feel everything I've been holding back flood my entire system.

All of the anxiety and nervousness, both from Kai and his family, weigh me down. It was our first night out and I've already messed it up.

If this is just the start of it, I may not be as ready as I thought.

Hello everyone! So we've met some of Kai's family now. What do you think? I would love to hear any thoughts or theories you may have! even if it's just a bunch of random words.

All of your words have been so kind, I can't thank you enough. And over the past month or so, I've seen a huge boost in views too. A specially thank you to all those who keep track of this story come back again and again. Your readership means so much.

Updates are weekly. I'll see you next Wednesday. Take care!