Lead Me Down the Garden Path

by princesspvmpernickel

Fear of unemployment made Kagome accept the first job offered: a job introducing her to infamous celebrity, Inuyasha Taisho. As the two get closer, she learns of dark secrets and a global scandal that make her question herself, her feelings, and Inuyasha. She didn't intend to get caught up in the violence and corruption of Inuyasha's past. She also didn't intend to fall in love.

32. Dainty Little Things

Lead Me Down the Garden Path

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Dainty Little Things

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We don't have to do anything. We just have to show up.

She knew she had originally agreed with him, but good God, looking at the black brick one-storey, on a foundation of interlocking grey stones, Kagome wanted to take it back. Her nervousness skittered up and down her body like a caged animal trying to free itself. Her mind was racing, her heart hammered, her stomach was fluttering, an ache throbbed low in her stomach, her feet were restless.

Can you just show up for me, Kagome? I promise I will not ask anything else of you.

Watching Totosai exit the luxury sedan and round the car's hood felt like hours and seconds all at the same time. It gave Kagome enough time to anguish over their location. It gave pedestrians time to take in the vehicle, recognize the license plate, and line the sidewalk, phones at the ready. Kagome could hear excited shrieks and wails from her safety in the car's interior. People knew. Oh sweet God, people knew she and Inuyasha were here and they were excited about it.

I'm not going in. There's no way I can do this. I refuse. God, this was such a mistake. You're an idiot, Kagome, for letting Kagura do this to us. Her eyes turned to look at Inuyasha, his own head turned to acknowledge Totosai as the car door opened and the shouts became deafening. How can he go along with this? Why is he so calm about this? I'll never be able to look him in the face again. I think I'm going to kill Kagura if I don't die of embarrassment first.

"Time to go." Inuyasha's hand hovered in wait for hers. "Reservation's under your name," he teased.

Kagome gripped her phone tighter in one hand before reaching with her other for Inuyasha's outstretched palm. Miroku had apparently worked with Yura to make the reservation, the woman organizing the reservation details on Kagome's behalf, and the man texting details of the reservation to Kagome on the car ride over. Miroku had been nothing but the picture of tactfulness during his exchanges with Kagome; however, Kagome wasn't ignorant to the fact that someone had been lighting up Inuyasha's phone. Text after text after text. Inuyasha's growl and red face had become increasingly more violent as he went from responding, to then adjusting the device to vibrate only, to then turning the device off entirely. If Miroku had been the one texting Inuyasha, Kagome could only imagine the ribbing and teasing the lecherous assistant threw his friend's way.

Inuyasha's fingers giving hers a reassuring squeeze, Kagome adjusted the skirt of her dress under her legs as she slid across the car's bench seat and then placed a hesitant booted foot on the sidewalk. Her name was everywhere, shouted from every which direction. Phones were up. Cameras were in her face. People held out magazines and markers hoping for her autograph. Others held out record albums, CDs, and t-shirts towards Inuyasha with drastic, pleading arms.

Kagome couldn't fight the blush that accentuated her features from the neck up. Inuyasha's gaze was exclusively on her. His brow held an earnest, calm expression. He had an air about him that suggested he barely registered the pandemonium around them; there was only him, her, and their joined hands. Kagome didn't, however, fail to notice that Inuyasha strategically used his body to separate her from the crowd pressing in as close as they could to the vehicle. How was he so...chill about all of this? Was the reaction from him so mild and unresisting because they were in public? Because people could see them and they needed to keep up appearances? Was he back in character as Kagome Higurashi's Lover?

Kagome inwardly rolled her eyes at herself as she fully emerged from the vehicle. Totosai shut the door behind her, cutting off her exit. She never should have thought to use that label for Inuyasha. Not now. Especially knowing where the two of them were headed. Where everyone around them obviously knew they were headed. For some reason, the strangest thought came to her mind as Inuyasha led her to the front door, doing her best to ignore the frenzied crowd around them. The thought coating her cheeks in a deeper shade of red, she felt like she was participating in an old time tradition where a crowd lingered and cheered as the couple went to consummate their marriage.

Oh yes, Kagome, that's a helpful thought, her mind griped, self-conscious of the spectators surrounding her.

How could Kagura do this to her?

An erotically luxurious experience… That's what the website had claimed. Kagome had decided to look up the establishment on the way over, hoping to find comfort in the knowledge of what she could expect, knowing what she'd be up against. Unfortunately, the more she scrolled the website, the more she wanted to perish on the spot. Her core was so hot she had worried she would combust before they even got there.

Exquisite lingerie, classic corsetry, sumptuous nightwear, striking hosiery, sensual beauty products, and playful bodysuits and bustiers. All in an environment curated for play.

How could Kagome let Kagura do this to her?

Online reviews described the experience as intimate, dark and sexy, naughty, romantic, and fun. And the pictures of some scandalous but severely sexy outfits scattered throughout the webpage? Kagome's blush had been furious. Turning off her phone screen, she had lowered her head, as if her hair could hide her from Inuyasha's peripheral vision.

Kagome couldn't help but tongue her bottom lip as Inuyasha held open the front door for her, a small antechamber awaiting them. The entrance to Dainty was locked and awaiting the keycode Miroku sent over as part of the reservation details. Her heartbeat was savage as she looked up at the three-step entry and black glass door. She and Inuyasha had this place to themselves for the next two hours.

I'm going to kill Kagura, Kagome thought again.

Inuyasha cleared his throat before reaching tentative fingers for Kagome's hand. She had been so engrossed in her own thoughts she didn't realize they had stopped holding hands at some point. His calluses felt strangely intimate as they dragged across her skin, his fingers falling into place between hers. He gave her hand a small tug towards the entrance.

"Ready?"

No.

"Yeah," she replied after a pause.

She waited for Inuyasha to take the first step, ushering her to follow. Drawing her shoulders behind her, straightening her posture, she tried to ignore the commotion behind them, beyond the antechamber, as she entered the keycode to grant them access.

Sixteen flashes. There exist as least sixteen different pictures proving that Inuyasha and I have entered a place people book to have sex. At least there was going to be proof out there that she actually showed up for said appointment. Kagura was probably beside herself with wicked delight.

The door in front of her clicked as it unlocked and Inuyasha extended an arm to hold it open for Kagome to enter. The hand he placed above her tailbone urged her forward with gentle pressure. She was uncomfortably aware of how her shoulder brushed his chest as she walked past him, officially entering Dainty.

Unsurprisingly, the space before them was dark. She blinked her eyes a few times in quick succession to acclimate to the dimness. As her eyes adjusted, her senses were lovingly accosted by the scent of sweet almond and black currant. Retro-looking bronze lightbulbs crisscrossed the ceiling above them. Exquisite spiraled light fixtures dangled from metal chains. The interior was a lavish amethyst dream with dark wallpaper and bronze accents. The black leather settee was a central and prominent presence in the space, sitting atop a thick, plush ivory rug. The piece of furniture was foreboding in its antiquated beauty, contrasting the modernism of the rest of the space. A self-conscious shiver ignited down Kagome's spine upon noticing the exquisitely giant mirror on the ceiling above the settee. Her mouth dried as she contemplated the usefulness of a reflective surface on a ceiling of all places. The bar on the far side of the room was so pretty it looked more like a vanity on a cart. A wine fridge was nestled beneath the wooden frame, along with a smaller black box that looked like a small fridge or warming unit. Next to the bar sat a black cylindrical wicker basket, likely for garbage or laundry.

Aromatic misters and diffusers in every corner gave the room an otherworldly ambience as vapor sparkled and ebbed through the low light. The entire right-side accent wall was black brick, like the outside. A large dusty rose neon sign graced the wall as the only formal decoration in the space. The cursive font held an ethereal glow as the most prominent lighting in the entire space shouted, All I need is you, me, and these Dainty little things. Kagome recognized the sign and phrase from the website. A bass-driven instrumental soundtrack soared above them, loud enough to encourage dancing but not to require shouting to communicate. Kagome couldn't help the rogue thought that it sounded like the type of music a stripper would dance to.

Kagome's eyes were drawn to the settee once more. Which was obviously the point. She felt dizzy thinking about all the things that furnishing must have witnessed within these four walls. Or to what sort of things it had been an accomplice. Finally, her eyes settled on the bronze rack on the opposite side of the room, kiddy-cornered from the settee. The rack held no more than a dozen items hung from delicate wire hangers, all some form or combination of red and black. Kagome felt her blush heighten as her eyes took in what had apparently been hand-selected for her to wear—for Inuyasha no less. Where were the clothes? Most of the items were exclusively straps or bands or belts in multiple dangling or hanging sections. She had never seen such an assortment of risqué, barely there, lingerie. Kagome remembered reading online that Dainty staff liked to take into consideration the guest's preferences when curating the rack. Something heavy sank in Kagome's stomach as she observed what were likely Inuyasha's lingerie colour preferences, likely even his favoured female undergarments. Kagome didn't want to know how Yura would have known those intimate predilections when making the reservation.

The room screamed sex. Kagome didn't know why that surprised her. But it did. And it made her lick her lips while a slow churning sensation developed beneath her naval.

Looking around the room once more, Kagome refused to make eye contact with Inuyasha, despite his intimidating presence beside her. He hadn't uttered a sound since they left the antechamber, standing at the entrance, taking it all in. She was grateful their hands had detached upon entry as they evaluated the space. Somehow touching him, even as innocently as holding his hand, felt way too familiar and intense in this hyper-sexualized space. Her eyes turning back to the clothing rack, Kagome's gaze widened with the realization there was no change room. She made a face at there not even being a privacy screen. Kagome didn't realize why a lack of change room hadn't previously occurred to her when she learned that Dainty was only one room. She took a steadying breath as her mind chose to remind her of the words striptease and foreplay, words she had seen while skimming several of the online reviews.

I mean, I don't technically have to try on any of those things, her mind tried to reason. We could just talk. Sit and... Following the mention of sitting, her eyes fell back on the settee as another voice in her mind chanted sex, sex, sex, sex.

She wrinkled her nose. Or we could stand...for two hours...

"Drink?"

"Fuck yes."

Kagome's response brought a barking laugh from Inuyasha's mouth as he approached the bar. "Kagura's clearly gotten under your skin for you to resort to that kinda language."

"I don't want to talk about it." Kagome crossed her arms and focused wary eyes on the settee. She hated that it was the only seating option. "But, I am now officially on Team Go-to-Hell-Kagura. Sorry it took me so long to get here."

Inuyasha huffed a laugh, exploring the liqueurs and spirits nestled in the bar. "It's about fucking time." She could almost hear his eye roll.

"Yes, yes," Kagome waved away, watching Inuyasha crouch to inspect the items in the wine fridge. "I'm stupid, slash a moron, slash an idiot, for willingly going along with whatever she wants. And for allowing her to manipulate my good intentions. And for putting myself directly in harm's way by flaunting myself around with you with minimal precautions or protections." She cocked an eyebrow at him. "Did I miss anything?"

"I dunno," he quipped, casting an amused expression at her over his shoulder, "that seemed pretty thorough."

"I should hope so. I've only been hearing it thrown in my face for the past weeks."

Inuyasha hummed. "Glad to know the message finally got through that thick skull of yours, Kagome. Hopefully, it'll make you think twice the next time you want to play hero without consulting me first. Also, unrelated, guess what I found?"

Kagome crossed her arms and turned her attention to Inuyasha. He held open the small black box that sat beside the wine fridge. The roguish up-turned curve of his mouth made her gulp nervously. "I haven't a clue. The world's most expensive bottle of wine?"

"Not quite," Inuyasha smirked. "Lube." Kagome's saliva felt thick in her mouth. Why did he sound so enthralled by that? "At least," he paused to count, "five different types. There's also massage oil in here. Oh, and hot towels." His tone rose with pleased discovery of the last item.

Kagome watched Inuyasha stand, wiping his hands with a steaming, plush white square before tossing it in the wicker basket. Kagome scowled at the black box, a grimace sprouting from her mouth, her brows pinching. Lube? Massage oil? "Ew...all of that is in the bar?"

"No." Inuyasha stood, his attention directed back to the bar's contents. "They're in the warmer beneath the bar." He exhaled a laugh in response to Kagome's dismissive snort then reached for two glasses.

"So much for the art of suggestion. Supply people with lube and it's like they're encouraging them to have sex in here." Inuyasha sniggered, distracting Kagome for a brief moment. She scoffed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she said, "You'd think massage oil—" She blushed despite her heavily sarcastic tone— "wouldn't be ideal since it would stain their lovely garments."

Inuyasha didn't miss a beat. "The oil is likely for after those lovely garments come off, Kagome."

Kagome bit her lip in response, swiftly turning her gaze away from Inuyasha. Her hands made busy work of picking at the decorative tie of her wrap dress to distract herself from the rushing wave of warmth in her chest and face. The banter with Inuyasha felt surprisingly easy despite the fluttering and churning of her insides. Perhaps that was Miroku's advice at work—do something often enough and eventually it will become second-nature. It almost shocked Kagome then, how easy the blatant flirting with Inuyasha had become. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips as she considered that his sharp responses likely meant he felt an easiness with her too.

"I may have been wrong with my earlier word choice," she mumbled, more to herself, as her attention turned back to the collection of risqué finery. "Garment seems too generous a term for these pieces of fabric." Hoping to give her hands something to do other than pick at her clothes or fingers, she approached the rack, giving the settee a wide berth. Leather and lace and ribbon and satin held Kagome's attention, her fingers floating from her sides with interest to touch and feel. Her avid fingertips brushed across the hangers, causing cords, straps, buckles, and ties to sway beneath her gestures. Kagome's breath hitched as she locked onto one of the hangers directly in front of her. "Like, this is supposed to be a bra? Where are the cups?"

Inuyasha turned over his shoulder with a half-smile and an arched eyebrow. "I'm guessing you've never heard of cupless bras, Kagome?" Kagome shook her head, her face a deep shade of pink. Inuyasha grinned, a playful smirk revealing his canines. "They're a staple in ouvert lingerie."

Kagome's stomach did a little flip. "Sorry. I'm not cultured enough, apparently, to know what that is."

"It's a fancy French word meaning open." Kagome tried to distract herself with the wire hangers to ignore the look she received from Inuyasha. "You know, cutouts, harnesses, open cups, crotchless pan—"

"—I get it," Kagome interrupted fiercely. Her fingers stilled on the hangers she'd been playing with. She sucked her lip between her teeth and blinked her eyes several times, hoping to dispel the aroused sheen that started to cloud her vision.

Well, I guess that confirms Inuyasha proclivities for women's lingerie...

"I'm guessing we have Yura to thank for this assortment of tasteful items." She tried to keep her tone uninterested, nonchalant.

"Most likely. Yura has a keen eye for things like this." Inuyasha smirked again, adding garnishes to the drinks before turning to face Kagome. "She also knows what I like."

Oh my...

Kagome retracted her hand from the rack as if burned. She felt her Kegel muscles shudder involuntary, which led her to become uncomfortably aware of a low building pressure that she dealt with by clearing her throat.

"The staff—" She cleared her throat again, hoping to dispel the huskiness that coated her tone— "The staff curate this rack based on the guest's preferences, right?" She hesitantly glanced at Inuyasha. "I know you said you've never been a guest here before, but—" Her focus shifted back to the garment rack— "I never would have guessed you...liked this sorta stuff."

Kagome lowered her flushed gaze as Inuyasha approached her. A wave of nervousness came upon her with the words she just uttered. The rack and what could be found on it became a large presence between them. She heard the low rumble of laughter in his throat as he neared.

"You wouldn't think I like lingerie?" His uncharacteristically subdued mannerism made the question provocatively intimidating.

Kagome nodded her thanks as she accepted the drink from Inuyasha's outstretched hand. She felt like she was losing a battle to keep her breathing steady. "Not...this kind."

"There're undergarments," he replied with a playful tilt of his head. "And then there's lingerie." She felt a surge of pressure between her legs at the way he looked at her. "Why do I get the feeling, Kagome, that you are only familiar with the former?"

She nursed the glass in both hands, her reddened stare intense on the cubes of ice. Her blood felt loud in her ears. Releasing a weighty exhale, she raised trembling fingers to take a tentative sip. "Wow," she coughed, emerging from the drink. "That's...strong."

"You seemed like you could use help taking the edge off."

"Always the gentleman," she shot back, a facetious smile on her lips. She then forced herself to take another swallow. An involuntary shudder rocked her shoulders. Inuyasha chuckled before tasting his own drink, the ice cubes clinking against the glass. Kagome couldn't help but watch the thick column of his throat bob as he swallowed. She tongued her bottom lip and Inuyasha watched her mouth with interest and a half-lidded stare.

He cleared his throat. "Is your drink okay?"

"Yeah," she rasped. "Acid is my favourite flavour."

"Jesus, Kagome. You're all kinds of feisty tonight."

"Thanks for the observation, Inuyasha."

He raised a scowling eyebrow at her. "Alright, out with it. What's bothering you?"

A silence grew between them as she contemplated her answer. She sighed, her shoulders falling with the motion. "I'm allowed to be pissed off, okay?" She forced another mouthful of her drink then blinked away the tears that prickled as she swallowed the burning gulp, warming all the way down to her stomach.

"At me?"

Her eyes shot to his. There was something in his tone that made her heart lurch in her chest. "No. At Kagura. And...at myself," she added after a pause. "For making it too easy for her to manipulate me. For being gullible and allowing her to take advantage of that." Kagome's countenance softened, her eyes lowering to watch the ice cubes in her drink. "Why would you assume I'm mad at you?"

Inuyasha shrugged with one shoulder before shooting back the rest of his drink. "Well, for one, you were definitely pissed at me this morning; I just assumed nothing's changed." He paused to inspect his empty glass. "I know I've given you shit for playing Kagura's lackey; but," he shrugged again, "I suppose I've been kinda a dick to you about it."

Kagome covered her mouth with a feigned a gasp and Inuyasha shot a vulgar gesture at her that made her laugh. "We've both been on edge, Inuyasha," she smiled softly coming down from a bout of giggles. "And I can appreciate how...hard it must be for you to be working with her again. Sure, I can't say I've loved having you tell me off again and again and again and ag—"

"—Point made, Kagome!"

She cracked a wry grin. "But I get where you were coming from, even if your approach kinda sucked. If our roles were reversed I'd probably feel something similar to you, honestly. After all, you've known Kagura a lot longer than I have. Maybe I should have given you benefit of the doubt when you tried to warn me about her." A lingering pause followed on the footsteps of her comment and Kagome felt awkward under the intensity of his stare. Deciding she felt inspired by his earlier motion, she tipped back her head and opened her throat for the rest of the dark amber liquid. "God, that's gross," she shivered. Inuyasha laughed as he held out his hand for her glass. She smiled at him as their fingers touched. "But, I will accept your apology, Inuyasha. Let's consider it water under the bridge."

Inuyasha turned to refill their drinks, grunting testily at Kagome. A chuckle escaped the woman as her focus fell to the garment rack once again. She felt lighter after their exchange. Or, maybe that was just the alcohol working.

Fixated on the beautifully scanty outfits, Kagome recalled reading on the website that all curated items had been fully catalogued so that any used or discarded outfits, or anything missing from the rack at the end of the reservation window, would be charged to the credit card on file. There was something oddly business-like about that. But then again, Dainty was obviously very good at managing whatever sort of business they chose to run, evident by the eight month long waitlist just to spend two hours here. Kagome's thoughts drifted, giving her pause as she wondered how many reservation holders actually had sex for the entirety of that timeframe. Her brow crinkled as she gave her head a little shake. She pulled a face at the settee and exhaled hotly.

Allowing herself the grace to browse the garment rack judgement-free, her head nodded to the beat of an insistent kickdrum-centric melody. The hangers screeched as Kagome flipped through the offerings, blatantly pulling items towards her to inspect in better detail. Some items she even dared to remove from the rack to hold in front of her. Replacing one particular hanger, a new garment immediately caught her eye: a black silk chemise. Kagome lifted it off the rack without hesitation. Perhaps she was drawn to it because the nightgown was just so pretty with its intricate lace straps and plunging yet somehow still supportive neckline. Or perhaps because it was the most modest article the rack had to offer. Although, Kagome had to laugh at herself for using the word modest to describe the shift. Holding it by the hanger in front of her, turning it around to inspect the front and back, it was obviously meant to reveal generous cleavage and ample amounts of thigh. It was a heartbreakingly sexy and appealing piece of negligee.

"Find something you like?"

Kagome's head shot up at Inuyasha's sudden proximity. He offered her a shameless half-smile as he held out the full glass to her. Biting her lip, Kagome quickly placed the nightgown back on the rack. A hesitant and curt thanks left her mouth as she accepted the second drink. She wasted no time bringing it to her lips and taking a hearty swill.

"Mm—this one's sweeter," she happily observed with wide eyes. "Not nearly as much battery acid as that first one you made."

Inuyasha scoffed. "I smashed the maraschino cherries this time. And added extra bitters. You know, since you're not tough enough for a real drink."

Kagome rolled her eyes at him. "Next time, I'll just drink whatever liquid the maraschino cherries come in."

"That's actually disgusting, Kagome."

She laughed then took another gulp. A comfortable buzz brought a warmth up her stomach and coated her throat. Inuyasha took a step to place his mostly empty glass on a small pedestal table near them, which surprised Kagome given it was the first time she noticed it. With his hands now free, he shot Kagome a shameless grin as he removed the chemise she had been holding from the clothing rack. Her heart leapt into her throat.

"What drew your eye to this one?"

She tried to hide her blushing expression behind the lip of her glass. The shift looked that much daintier in his large hands. She pressed her thighs together as a heat expanded low in her stomach. "What? I can't find it pretty?"

He smirked. "I didn't say that."

She returned his smile, the liquor feeling warm and heavy and confidence-boosting in her stomach. "I dunno, maybe I was drawn to it because it's one of the few items I would actually know how to wear." She giggled at the intrigued eyebrow Inuyasha raised. "Some of this other stuff is just...a lot. Like, this..." Kagome lifted an item from the rack that looked like a red bodysuit. "Is just...something." For a bodysuit it was strappy, open, and just all kinds of pornographic. There were no cups at the breasts and the entire thing was comprised of a handful of thin silk bands that crossed throughout the torso and back. There was barely a covering in the crotch and the derriere was completely open except for a single line of silk thong. "Just...how?"

Inuyasha didn't dare take his eyes off the negligee in her grasp. "How what?"

"How would someone even put something like this on?"

Inuyasha sucked his teeth. "I would assume it is either tied on or one would step into it."

Kagome paused to take a bravery-inducing swallow of her drink. "It looks—" God help me, she thought. "—complicated," she breathed at last.

Seeing her now empty glass, Inuyasha plucked it from Kagome's hands. He placed her cup on the table, then downed the remnants of his in one swig before turning his attention back to his female companion.

"And I still don't understand..." Her puzzled tone was soft and inviting as her sparkling brown eyes lingered intensely on the bodysuit.

"What don't you understand?"

"What is the point of the whole...cupless thing? Like, why even bother wearing anything at all at that point?"

Inuyasha paused to clear his throat, feeling a hardening tug against the seam of his pants. "Do you really need me to explain it, Kagome?" His voice was hoarse. "It—It's incredibly sexy."

"Well, yeah, I can see that," Kagome uttered hotly.

A seductive grumble of laughter curled from Inuyasha's chest. "I guess I like that the point is simply to highlight the appeal of the feminine body." An alluring smirk grew from the left-side of his mouth. "Plus who's not to love that it leaves nipples exposed for...play?"

Oh God...

Kagome hadn't realized she had closed her eyes as she listened to his words. The gravelly, deep tone of his voice had coaxed a moist warmth from her, and she bit the inside of her cheek in hopes of snapping out of whatever trance his voice put her in. Why was it so hard to get her breathing under control? This room, the alcohol...Inuyasha...it was all starting to go to her head...and certain other parts of her. Kagome opened her eyes as she felt Inuyasha's body shift behind her. She turned her head to the side to observe him through her peripherals. He reached an arm around her, not touching her, but close enough to if he wanted. He removed the bodysuit from Kagome's grip and replaced it on the rack. Kagome sucked her bottom lip between her teeth as all her attention focused on the radiating warmth of Inuyasha's body behind her. She fought the desire to close her eyes and lose herself in the pine-tar and tobacco smell of him.

"What else draws your attention, Kagome?"

"What draws yours?"

Inuyasha chuckled breathily. "I'm glad you asked. I've had my eye on this little number since we walked in."

He removed a dark red leather bodysuit that was exclusively straps. Her eyes widened and cheeks enflamed as she pondered the item as it dangled in front of them. It was so, so open. Everything would be on display in that bodysuit; exposed and outlined and accentuated by red leather straps. Kagome's chest ached as her gaze focused on the buckled collar that was the most solid material part of the negligee.

"That is," she exhaled, "very intimidating."

Her scent was intoxicating from his position behind her. He could sense the rigidity of her body, the angle of her almost leaning into the arm he extended around her. He heard the throatiness of her voice, saw how she held herself in such a way as if she was fighting arousal. Inuyasha's cock gave a pressing lunge, which he took a deep, silent breath to try and settle.

"Not at all, Kagome," he breathed. "See, this part—" His fingers grazed the collar— "would attach here." He drew Kagome's hair over her shoulder then brushed the gentlest of touches across the nape of her neck. He felt her stiffen at the same time he heard her breath catch. "And then this part goes along your shoulders." His fingers followed suit, using a knuckle to coax a light stroke down her neck and across her shoulder in one fluid motion. "Then this would go across your stomach." He drew the faintest of tickling sensations in a line above her naval as he spoke. "Then these straps here?" The music of his voice deepened, causing a shuddering breath to coat Kagome's lips and her eyelashes to flutter. "They'd go under and around your brea—"

"—I think I need another drink." Her words were feverish as she grabbed the hanger from Inuyasha's hands and fitfully returned the garment to the rack in front of them.

Inuyasha's laugh was breathy and distracting, dense with amusement. Without a word more, he stepped away from her, collected their glasses from the pedestal table, and returned to the bar.

What are you doing, Kagome? God...Would he—would he really have touched me just now if I hadn't interjected? Oh man, this place is getting to him too. Looking like that...sounding like that...He's going to be the death of me.

"How strong would you like it, Kagome?"

The question caused a throb to pulse at the apex of her thighs and Kagome sucked her lips between her teeth before answering. "Strong." A throaty snigger answered her and she turned heavy-lidded eyes to the settee once more. She really hated that that was the only seating option. She closed her eyes as she inhaled the smoky sweet scent of the diffusers. Kagome debated counting her breaths to try to relax her pounding heart. The current playfulness with Inuyasha felt more devastating than when they had been in his jacuzzi.

"For milady."

Kagome's eyes snapped open at the nearness of his voice. She turned her head slightly, taking in the shine of his eyes, the playfully arched eyebrows, and raised corners of his lips. God, he was beautiful. She needed to deescalate, and fast.

"I think that little term of endearment is one of the weirdest things since we started this whole charade."

Inuyasha's brows drew together with a curious expression. "How so?"

"It's too...I dunno...endearing. I wouldn't have thought you to be the kinda guy to give pet names to someone."

"People like hearing sentimental crap like that, or so I'm told. I dunno, Miroku does the PR shit, not me. He said to do it because people would like to hear me say it to you so..." Inuyasha concluded the statement with a raised shoulder. "It was either that or dummy," he smirked, "and neither Miroku or Kagura seemed too keen on the latter."

So, he is pretending after all...

Kagome felt her heart deflate a little with Inuyasha's comment. "Ah, yes," she lamented despite trying to keep her tone light, "how could I forget? You are rather fond of insulting me."

"Only when it's deserved, Kagome," he winked.

How she just felt was encroaching far too close to real territory and she needed to lock that down. So, Kagome wrinkled her nose at him and plucked her drink from his hand. Inuyasha smirked at her, clinking his glass to hers before taking a hearty gulp that emptied half his cup. Kagome felt her heart in her throat as her eyes once again feasted on the strong breadth of his neck. She turned her eyes, then, to her drink, observing it to be the same rugged amber colour of her first beverage. "More battery acid for me, Inuyasha?"

"There still seems to be an awful lot of edge to you, Kagome."

"What would I do without you?" She sneered at him before resting the glass against her lips and tipping her head back. Kagome hoped to force the liquid over her tongue and directly down the back of her throat.

"Careful, Kagome. There's enough booze in there I'll have to carry you out of here if you keep going at that rate." She came away from her drink with a sputtering inhalation, wincing as the burn from the alcohol coated her senses. "But, at least now that you seem properly liquored," he joked, a canine poking between his smirking lips, "I have a suggestion for you."

She wiped at her lip with her thumb, careful not to smudge her lipstick. "I'm not going to like this suggestion, am I?"

"Oh, I suspect you're gonna hate it." He grinned smugly.

Kagome met his eye for only a few lingering seconds before she clinked her glass against his, whispered bottom's up, and then downed the remainder of her drink. As the blunt taste of alcohol enraptured her every sense, she shook her head and shoulders, her tongue poking out of her mouth with a gag. A giggle and a rush of air leaving her mouth, she passed the empty glass to Inuyasha. "Okay. That should do it. What's your suggestion?"

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed at her with wicked amusement as he chugged the rest of his drink then placed both empty glasses on the pedestal table once more. "Remember how I said we'd give Kagura a show? Give people something to talk about?" A coiling sensation tightened in Kagome's stomach as she nodded. She watched Inuyasha with a hesitant expression as he reached for the clothing rack and removed the black silk chemise that Kagome had drawn their attention to earlier. "Put this on."

Kagome's brow furrowed. "Uh—what?" What was he saying? Didn't he say earlier that all she had to do was show up, that he wouldn't ask anything more of her? Oh God, was this real? Why was he telling her to put on some of the lingerie? Did he...want her?

Jeez, he couldn't even ask nicely?

"Why?"

"I want you to take a picture of us. Post it on your social media."

A curt, incredulous laugh exploded from her mouth. "Absolutely not. Inuyasha!" she admonished. "I'm not posting a picture of me in lingerie online! I—I have my little brother on my social media!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "I'm not asking you to do anything scandalous, Kagome. I wouldn't ever ask you to do something like that. But," he pressed, taking a step towards her, "I'm ask you to play the part. Put on the mask I know you wear with me in public, the one that gives you all that confidence. A picture of us, by us, is the kinda thing that will make people go crazy. It's the kinda thing Kagura would never expect from us, seeing us go along with it."

"I—" Kagome paused, taking a steadying inhale. "Why do I have to put on the lingerie though? Can't we just take a selfie and be done with it?"

"Just think about it, Kagome." He reached for her hand, wrapping his large fingers around her, tugging her forward until her feet were moving. "Visualize it with me." He led her around the clothing rack to stand in front of the settee. "I'll sit here." He detached their hands to motion to the settee. "You—" he picked up her fingers once more and guided her to stand behind the settee with a sweep of his arm, each of them bookended on either side— "You'll go around here, lean over my shoulder, and then take the picture. Think about it," he repeated, his tone heady and eager. "Just these lacy straps visible, nothing else visible," he added in response to the look Kagome gave him, "with that sign behind us? That would be enough to make people go fucking ballistic."

Kagome made a show of chewing on her lower lip, her gaze flipflopping between the settee, Inuyasha, and the nightgown Inuyasha held in front of him by the hanger.

"You want me to play the part?"

He nodded. "If Kagura's to be believed, we need to be convincing for Naraku. We need the attention on us. We need the Family to think we've forgotten about them. Posting a picture of ourselves serves two purposes. One, it'll make Naraku think we're too distracted with each other to pay him and his kobun assholes any attention. And two, Kagura seemed to think sending us here was a good publicity stunt. I'm sure you'd like to rub it in her face that you're not actually all that miserable about it." A smile blossomed from Kagome's face, mirroring the one Inuyasha wore. "Wearing this—" He shook the chemise— "is part of that ruse, part of owning it." She turned skeptical eyes to the sensual nightdress as it billowed under the motion of his hand. Inuyasha followed her line of sight then said, "You don't need to be embarrassed, Kagome. Remember my brother's show? How was that sexy satin number you wore any more revealing than this?"

He thought I looked sexy? She mentally gave her head a shake before opening her mouth to respond.

"That thing," she nodded to the nightgown, "is far more indecent than what I wore to the fashion show. But..." she paused to sigh, ignoring Inuyasha's smirk, chewing on her lip once more. She hated that he had a point. That his idea may have been somewhat decent. Kagome wouldn't argue that she liked the nightgown, and she certainly didn't dislike the idea of getting to try it on. Yes, there was the worry that there wasn't anywhere to change into the item but... Her stomach floundered upon recalling a time when she had stripped down to nothing in Inuyasha's ensuite bathroom with only his back turned for privacy. And then he had joined her. Naked. In his jacuzzi. A flexing Kegel muscle made her cross her arms.

She met his impish expression with a challenging one of her own.

"You'll turn around while I change?"

"I'll go make us another round."

"Just a picture?" She eyed him suspiciously.

Inuyasha snorted. "What else would I be implying, Kagome? Who do you think I am? Miroku?"

"Fine," she sighed, looking him over. "Surprisingly, what you say makes sense, Inuyasha. Plus, I do like the idea of taking the wind out of Kagura's sails a bit. So, fine. I'll do it. Hand it over."

Inuyasha's smirk shone in his eyes as he passed the garment to Kagome over the settee. The silk was luxuriously tempting against her skin. However, the flushing heat rose from Kagome's chest as she watched Inuyasha turn to grab their once again empty glasses. He winked at her before turning his back to her, his attention fully on the bar perpendicular to her.

She held the chemise to her chest. "I swear, Inuyasha, if you peek..."

"Oh, please," he snorted. "Give me a little credit, Kagome."

"Mm-hmm..."

Using the clothing rack as a sort of barrier for her modesty, Kagome made quick work of untying her wrap dress and removing her bra. For a short second she contemplated if she should also remove her panties, but then decided against it. That just seemed...too much. Her nipples peaked with the exposure and it took everything in Kagome's power not to cover herself out of embarrassment. She quickly removed the shift from the hanger and stepped into it. She didn't want to give her mind enough time to come up with some remark about nakedness in this space, with Inuyasha so very nearby. Kagome pulled the garment up her body by the straps. Her skin rippled with a shiver as the satiny material drifted over her skin. It felt expensive. The shift wasn't even fully on her body yet and Kagome already felt sexy. Watching her nipples disappear against the lace bodice, the mounds of her breasts propped upwards with the garment's tight support, Kagome felt a warmth in her stomach as a confidence settled throughout her. She adjusted the kinks out of the lace straps so the thin, intricate design was smooth against her skin. She looked over her shoulder to observe her rear and the backs of her legs. Running her hands over the chemise, Kagome felt her heart flutter as her fingers grazed the material just below the cheeks of her bum, barely scraping her thighs. She'd need to be very careful how she carried herself in this thing or else she was going to show off a lot more to Inuyasha than she meant to.

Yeah, right...like my boobs aren't already screaming at the top of their lungs at him in this thing...

Oh man, that's not remotely helpful to be thinking right now...

"You almost done over there, Kagome? Drinks are ready."

She toyed with the ends of her hair, her eyes roving over her curves as she looked herself over once more. She tried to think of a way she could get that drink from Inuyasha without him seeing her. She felt like she could use the additional liquid boost of confidence despite the potent buzz that already coated her senses.

"Uh...yeah..."

Kagome's response gave Inuyasha pause. "How, uh, how do you want this to go?" She felt her heart skip a beat at the hesitation in his tone. "Do you want me to stay here so you can position yourself at the settee or...I can go sit down?"

"You can sit," she offered, her eyes low and cheeks burning. "I want my drink at the ready though."

Inuyasha laughed. "Of course."

Kagome's insides felt hollow as she listened to the alluring combination of Inuyasha's footfalls, the settee's leather giving way as he sat, and the bass-driven beat in the speakers around her.

"Should I close my eyes?"

Kagome snorted. "Now you're just teasing me."

"I'm trying to be...accommodating." He chuckled. "I don't want to ruin your first time wearing lingerie."

"I didn't say this was my first time!"

"It's your first time wearing lingerie for me."

A hot, whispered breath of air left her mouth. "You're not helping, Inuyasha." Her face was blazing. Her heart throbbed a heavy beat in her chest. Her fingers held tight to the lacy trim of the shift against her legs as she closed her eyes with a calming breath. She used those few breaths to help herself get back into character. Don the mask. There had been other times in the past few weeks she'd felt more uncomfortable, felt more out of her skin than she did now, and she had been able to stomach the apprehension and move forward those other times.

Just grin and bear it, Kagome.

I can do this.

I've already been naked with him in a bathtub. How is this any worse?

God, that's not helpful...

Removing her fingers from the nightgown, Kagome held her head high as she emerged from behind the clothing rack. Inuyasha's eyes were downturned, observing their drinks; however, every one of his senses was attuned to the sounds of her steps, her breathing. Her eyes intent on the crown of his head, the cadence of her steps slowed and then stopped. Her feet appreciated the luxuriousness of the ivory rug beneath them, her toes curling to ground herself where she stood before the settee. She felt her confidence wane as she lingered, watching him. Inuyasha's eyes still didn't lift. Whatever he saw in their two beverages seemed to be enrapturing his full attention. Kagome released a small, silent smile as she rounded the settee. She drew her shoulders back and exhaled, her eyes steeling as she watched him, waiting for his eyes to raise, waiting for his reaction. She had gone from standing in front of him to now beside him, and he still had not looked up at her.

"You're dawdling," she accused, her tone playful but edgy as she slowed her steps beside him.

"Again," he smirked, finally turning his head to face her, "I'm just trying to be accom—"

Jesus. Fucking. Christ.

She stole the words from his mouth. She looked so deliciously, heart-stoppingly striking, that she actually stole the fucking words from his mouth.

"Kagome, you..."

His amber eyes couldn't absorb her fast enough, well enough, as she moved to stand behind him, behind the settee. It took all his strength, all his willpower, not to fully turn in his seat to drink in the sight of her. Her presence screamed at his senses from where she stood behind him. He closed his eyes, the achingly short vision of her he'd been granted burned the backs of his eyelids. Every inch of skin that was on display. The contrast of the rich black garment against the creamy glow of her flesh. Her hair cascading around her shoulders, an intoxicating aura of jasmine curls. The teasing exhibition of lusciously round cheeks attached to long, lean thighs with each of her steps. Those tiny little straps tautly exhausting themselves under the exertion of bearing certain...assets.

Jesus Christ, her tits... Inuyasha was hard instantly.

"You—"

"My ice is melting, Inuyasha," she interrupted, musical amusement lacing her tone. A hand appeared beside him, her palm facing up. "I'd like my drink, please, before it gets any more watered down."

He raised the glass in his hand with a grin as she plucked it from him with a low mumble of thanks. He could hear her shiver following a gulp and the smack of her lips parting. Inuyasha stood, then. Removing her cellphone from his back pocket and dropping it on the settee—he had grabbed it from a compartment of her purse while she changed—he went to collect the pedestal table from near the garment rack. Barely exerting any effort to lift the small iron table one-handed, he tried to ignore the appealing puddle of her clothes behind the rack. Inuyasha greedily slurped back three-quarters of his drink before he returned to the settee, table in hand. He could hear her palms stroking the decorative, dimpled buttons along the settee, and his eyes rose in response to the sound.

Their eyes met. His widened with dazed allure. Hers narrowed with devilish merriment as she smirked at him. Actually smirked at him. Inuyasha didn't know if he felt disappointed or not by how obviously she wore her mask, which protected her behind an emotional wall of pretend. There was a part of him that longed for the real, bashful Kagome. The one that would be so intoxicatingly endearing with her flushed cheeks and aroused, downturned stare. However, Inuyasha would have been lying to himself if he said he didn't like the way she looked at him now, the mask readily in place. She met his eye, matching his hungry, devouring stare with a sensual intensity of her own. She held her head high, her gorgeous and full, pink-painted lips tilted upwards at the corners. Her face held a toothy expression that crinkled the corners of her eyes with a pleased grin and a knowing air. Inuyasha couldn't help but laugh at how she reacted to his wordlessness. She was cocky. She knew she looked good. Her body was positioned in a way that told him she knew exactly how good she looked. Whether it was the alcohol or the mask he knew she wore, he didn't care. She looked confident. Fuck, did he ever like that.

"Now your ice is melting, Inuyasha." Her grin deepened. "Although, there doesn't seem to be much of your drink left."

God, even her voice felt steadier, confident. Her tone was a low, husky warble. Really fucking seductive. The woman before him amazed him. Her transformation over the months he'd known her was evident and impressive. He only wished her self-confidence and her playfulness towards him in that moment was real. He wished she knew and owned just how painfully gorgeous she was, and that she willfully behaved this way for him, knowing exactly what she did to him, to his heart.

The throbbing in Inuyasha's chest moved up his throat, resonating in his ears. He took a steadying swallow of his drink, emptying it, before discarding the glass on the table and allowed his own mask to fall into place. "There," he gestured, "now that's no longer an issue then, is it, Kagome?"

She smirked at him once more then tilted her head back to drain her own cup. Inuyasha bit down on the inside of his cheek at the tempting length of neck her gesture exposed. Her fingers clenched on the back of the settee as she fought the body-quaking quiver of disgust that temporarily lowered her mask. Inuyasha chuckled loudly, stealing her empty glass from her hand and placing it next to his.

"Shall we?" The words were a purr from his lips as he sat, offering his hand up to her. Her fingers slid against his palm, threading themselves between his. He tightened his fingers against her.

With his other hand he offered up her phone, which Kagome accepted with a breathy giggle. He watched her open the camera app and adjust it to selfie mode. Inuyasha withheld an aroused hiss when he felt Kagome's fingers gently pull against his hair, lifting his strands from where they had fallen over his shoulders, across his chest. He had never been more grateful for the mask of confident pertinacity that he had perfected over the years. Her nails scraped his skin as she brushed his hair back, exposing his neck, forcing his silver tresses to fall down the length of his back. His cock strained against his pants as her breasts pressed into his shoulder, her cheek resting against his as she leaned over the settee into him.

"Smile for the camera," she chuckled, raising her phone. Neither one of them dared to move more than they needed to. Their eyes became glued to their technological reflection.

Her gaze solely on herself, Inuyasha watched Kagome frown and adjust her positioning against his shoulder. He couldn't look away from the phone's image of her, the chemise revealing abundant cleavage, exaggerated by her leaning over the settee against him. Jesus, at one point he could have sworn he saw the briefest flash of part of her areola. He tried to ignore the fact that her breasts kept sliding and pushing against him as she twisted and angled her shoulders and upper torso. But damn it all to hell, he was failing. He was so aware of every minute adjustment of her breasts against him. His cock was aching for her, and all he could do was slightly adjust himself, hopefully not to draw her attention to his erection.

"This is way too racy," she muttered under her breath, her cheeks turning the most delicious shade of red. She pulled at one of the lacy straps, as if those delicate bits of thread could do anything to better contain how much of her bosom was on display.

A gruff rumble hummed in his chest. "I can't say I'm minding it, Kagome."

"Do not, Inuyasha." Embarrassment shone in her chocolate eyes and painted her tone.

A pause. "Here," Inuyasha uttered softly, taking her phone. He couldn't help but feel his mask slip as her own veil stumbled, self-consciousness flaring to the surface. "Let me."

He gave Kagome a moment to steel her breath and regain her emotional footing. He waited until she leaned herself against him once more before he angled the phone above them. The length of his arm held the device far enough away that her collarbone was the only thing visible above the strong curve of his shoulders.

He turned his face towards her, startling her by how close he was, his breath coating her neck. "Smile for me," he whispered against the line of her jaw. His heart drummed wildly at the breathy rush of air between her lips following his words, at the goosebumps that snaked across her forearms. Her eyelashes lowered, a smile blooming from one side of her mouth as she turned her face inwards, closer to him. Inuyasha planted his lips against her jaw before snapping the photo. She stood suddenly, tucking a flustered strand of hair behind her ear, her breathing laboured. She couldn't fight the deep pink shade that blanketed her features. God, his lips had felt so good, the small puff of air from his exhale tickling the sensitive area underneath her ear.

"There." Inuyasha extended his arm towards her. "It's done."

Kagome sucked a lip between her teeth as she reached tentative fingers to grip her phone. Her eyes widened. Inuyasha had posted the image to her Instagram account. A roaring thud pounded from her stomach, her throat dried. That picture...

Oh my God...

Kagome felt her breath hitch at the beauty of the image before her. The way the two of them looked. The hard line of Inuyasha's jaw and the angle of his face as he kissed her. The expression on her face. The genuine way she smiled in receipt of his gentle kiss. Where he placed the kiss... Kagome tongued her bottom lip. Her eyes ravaged the image for several seconds before she observed how Inuyasha had posted the picture with no filters and the simple title, xo with a lips emoji. Kagome couldn't help the shuddering breath that lowered her shoulders as she watched the likes come in, the comments that exploded into a wall of text and emoticons.

For a moment, Kagome forgot about her near nakedness, or where they were, or that her hands were still touching the settee, or that Inuyasha had taken their glasses for another refill. The thought of more alcohol overtook her body with an awareness of slightly blurred vision and weakening knees. But her phone burned against the palm of her hand as she brought the screen back to life and her eyes soaked in the picture Inuyasha had taken of them. She hated how much she loved this photo.

It almost hurt, how real it looked. Why had he chosen to kiss her instead of just looking at the camera and smiling? Why did her stupid face have to be immortalized with that honest expression? She wished her body hadn't reacted to his kiss like that. A vulnerability shook her heart as she continued to watch her followers comment on the picture, strangers giving voice to the evidence of how she so clearly felt about Inuyasha. Her face was an open book entirely. Her eyes reveling in the pretty compliments people made, her brain chose to remind Kagome then of Inuyasha's earlier comment, about his being forced to refer to her with a term of endearment. His admitted reluctance had felt almost palpable.

"Your ice is melting." Kagome startled with Inuyasha's words. A fierce blush bloomed up her neck at not having noticed him or the extended glass. Inuyasha's grin softened as she accepted the drink from him. "Do the masses like it?" Her eyes turned back to her phone, sneaking another look at the photo as she angled her wrist to show Inuyasha the insane amount of likes and comments the picture had received in mere minutes.

"See, Kagome? Turns out I do have pretty good ideas from time to time." Inuyasha nudged her shoulder with an unspoken playfulness that shouted told you, before he brought his glass to his lips and sucked back a mouthful.

Her body gave an impulsive shudder at the first sip of her new drink, her vision lagging behind as she turned her expression to Inuyasha. "I need to slow down," she admitted, leaning her nightdress-covered hip against the settee. "Your handiwork seems to be working." She waggled the glass at him for effect, the ice cubes clinking loudly.

Inuyasha chuckled.

I need to change, her thoughts droned in the silence between them. Why am I still wearing this?

Whether from the outfit she still wore or from the latest drink, Kagome's skin sprouted with goosebumps. She wished her nipples, peaked from the chill, weren't so obvious in the nightgown, and she rested a protective arm across her chest while she paused the glass against her lips. The booze really wasn't helping how flushed and warm her face felt. Noticing how she puckered from a chill, Inuyasha reached for her hand, his heated palm wrapping her fingers, and he led her around the back of settee. As if anticipating his intentions, Kagome turned flustered eyes to the settee, watching him sit, feeling the pull of his hand as he encouraged her to do so as well.

Sex, sex, sex, sex, the lone, unwanted voice chanted from within her mind.

Kagome took a hesitant step away from the settee, their hands detaching, her face—her body—boiling.

"Everything okay, Kagome?"

She nodded, uncomfortably aware that she had lost her mask at some point. She worried that her emotions were on display for Inuyasha almost as openly as her body was in the silk chemise. In her peripherals, she noticed Inuyasha open his mouth to say something and Kagome brought her glass fervently to her lips, sucking back an eager swallow. "I think this one wins compared to the others you've made," she told him, her eyes taking in the wateriness of the remaining ice cubes. She was desperate for a distraction.

"It was mostly grenadine," Inuyasha breathed after a pause, prompting a curt laugh from Kagome's teeth. "But good to know for next time." His eyes narrowed at her. "You seem...off, Kagome." Her eyes lowered with the comment. "You sure everything's okay? You can..." he paused, licking his tongue over his bottom lip. "You don't have to wear that anymore, you know, if you don't want to," he added with quiet reserve. Her gaze met his as her fingers picked at the decorative embossment on her glass. Inuyasha gave her a knowing smile. "You're afraid to sit on the settee, aren't you?"

Her shoulders tightened and she released an indignant puff of air from her nose. "What makes you say that?"

"Have you sat at all in the entire time we've been here?" She scowled at him over her nose and he looked up at her with a smugness that made her stomach twist. "I thought so," he chuckled. "You know it's clean, right?"

She flushed. "You...you don't know that."

"For how much money this damn place costs, I'm pretty sure I can say with absolute confidence that they hire probably the most expensive cleaning company after each reservation. This settee is likely covered in more bleach than...anything else."

"Gross." Kagome wrinkled her nose as she widened her stance, focusing her attention on flexing her toes against the ivory rug. "I'm just..." She paused, swallowing past the lump in her throat. "I'm just very aware of what has been done on that settee."

"People have very likely had sex in the same hotel rooms you've slept in. Yet that doesn't stop you from sleeping in those beds, Kagome."

A horrified expression overtook Kagome's face and she placed a palm against her cheek in hopes of calming her invigorated heart. "That doesn't help anything, Inuyasha. It especially doesn't make me want to sit on that anymore than before." He smiled in response, reaching for her hand again. He tugged on her fingers, her arm shaking with the gesture.

"Sit with me." He placed his palm next to him.

"I think I'd rather sit on the rug."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Kagome, but people have, without a doubt, also fucked on the rug." Kagome's mouth upturned with a horrified expression as she shot a concerned look to her feet. Inuyasha bellowed a laugh. "You're debating not standing on it anymore, aren't you?"

Kagome hated how transparent she could be to him. "No," she lied.

"Sit with me," he repeated. "I promise you're not going to contract anything from sitting here."

Kagome scrunched her nose. "I'd rather my skin not touch something that hundreds of other people's naked butts have also touched."

Inuyasha laughed. "So sit on me then."

A surprised cackle blew between her lips. "You can't be serious?"

"Why not?"

"Yeah," she chuckled, "no thanks."

Inuyasha bristled. "What's with that reaction? Need I remind you that you have, in fact, sat in my lap before? More than once!" Kagome flushed with the reminder. Not that she really needed the reminder. "Remember that baseball game we attended? You seemed to have no issue falling into my lap then."

"Okay, first," she pouted, "I didn't fall into your lap. You know it was the result of a bet that Kagura thought would be funny. And it was barely for half an inning. It was a publicity stunt—"

"Mm-hmm..."

"—And second, I wore actual clothes then."

"And that's a problem, how?"

Kagome tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "Really, Inuyasha? You see nothing indecent about me sitting on your lap with my current ensemble? It's a bit ridiculous. God, I feel ridiculous."

"You know, Kagome," he said, his lips thinning into a hard line as an ill-humoured mood seemed to fall over him. "You keep bringing up the indecency of this nightgown but you're the one who picked it from the rack initially. You agreed to put it on. If you're feeling that ridiculous about it then stop complaining and just go take it off."

Kagome recoiled. "You're the one who encouraged me to wear this stupid thing," she spat. "Basically begged me to wear it with the whole visualize it with me, Kagome speech you put on."

"Feh," he hissed, turning his head away from her sharply. "My mistake for making the assumption that you had the balls to go through with all of this. But I'm done hearing you bitch about it, Kagome. We took the picture. Kagura got what she wanted. We don't have a crazy long time left in this place and then we can just pretend like it never happened."

Pretend. Back to pretending...

"Except it did happen," she cried, fisting both hands. "I have photographic evidence, in case you forgot."

"Then fucking delete it—I don't care!"

Something ruptured in Kagome's chest, something small and delicate that she had wanted to protect all evening. That she had wanted to protect for a lot longer than that if she was honest. She had allowed it to dance around her in the shadows, on the edge of her words, in the way that she looked at him. But with his tone and his words, Inuyasha had exposed that fragile part of her and stomped on it.

"You know what, Inuyasha," she snipped, her cheeks red as her heart pounded, tears threatening behind her eyes. "I'm done. I don't want to pretend with you anymore. I don't want to spend another second of my time playing games or questioning if any of it is real. I've done so much for you, to try and help you, and all I'm left with is this awful feeling that you—Ugh!" She cried, turning away from him. "Nevermind. What a fucking mistake."

Inuyasha stood from the settee so fast it made Kagome jump. He grabbed her wrist and turned her body towards him, but Kagome reticently looked away. His chest ached with how defeated she sounded, how resolutely she refused to meet his eye.

"Please just let me go, Inuyasha," she whispered hotly, a cry stuck in her throat. "I just want to get changed and leave. I think I remember seeing something in Miroku's reservation details that there's a staff only door next to the bathroom out back. I'll go out that way—no one will need to know I left early." She could feel his stare burning into the side of her face. Coupled with the heat of his hand on her wrist and the gnawing ache that burned in her chest, she felt sweltered, like she was drowning in a suffocating heat.

God, why wasn't he saying anything? Why wasn't he letting her go?

"What did you mean you don't want to pretend with me anymore?" Kagome shook her arm from his grip and took a step away, covering her chest with her arms. "What do you mean questioning if any of it is real?"

"I—I don't..."

"Tell me."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Inuyasha, I..."

"I want to understand, Kagome." God, his eyes were like molten gold with the intensity of his stare. His tone was muted, a hard contrast to his earlier tenacity. "Please."

You have no idea how much you are wanted; don't you dare think otherwise...You make me feel like a fucking pup. When you're here, I can protect you. But, when Jakotsu took you away from me, and we didn't know where you were—I was scared."

Maybe it was the memory of heartfelt honesty he had uttered in the intimacy of a previous moment. Maybe it was the way he begged her, the way he said that one word: please. Somehow, she went from feeling desperate to escape to yearning to relieve the emotional heaviness she carried within her breast.

"Sometimes," she began, pausing to lick her lips. "Sometimes it's too easy for me to forget that what we do out there isn't real."

Inuyasha took a step towards her, resting his hand on her bicep. The heat that radiated from the pressure of his fingers made the rest of her feel cold. Her eyes swept up to his and then abruptly turned away. She lacked the courage to look him in the eye. She felt too flimsy and vulnerable to meet his stare, to face the meaning behind his eyes. Inuyasha's expression hardened. "What isn't real?"

She sighed. "You know what I mean, Inuyasha. Everything. The looks, the...the touching. It's not like it was before when we were together at the house." She stopped herself to sigh once more but this time it was heavy with frustration. "What am I saying? Just...just ignore me."

"No, tell me. What do you mean?"

Oh man, what have I done...what have I started? Panic fluttered in her chest.

"So much has happened between us," she said after a long pause, her beating heart esurient in her chest. "Like yeah, we've been...closer in private once upon a time than we've been in public recently—" The clearing. My bed. Your bathroom. The locations of their previous intimacies caused a heat to dry her tongue and make something drum in her throat. "But what we're doing out there. How we're acting together. What's happened between us tonight, even. It's not the same. We have to do that. This. You said it yourself. We have to be convincing. But I..."

Say it, her mind prodded. I hate pretending. I want it to be real.

"We don't have to do anything," he growled.

I hate pretending. I want it to be real.

"Yes. We do. Otherwise, you'll be attached to Naraku forever. And I won't let that happen, Inuyasha. If pretending with you is the only thing in my power that will help you escape him forever then I will happily, happily, play that role."

"This isn't a fucking game, Kagome. We—"

"—I know it's not," she interrupted, her expression softening despite the edge in her tone. "What's happening with the Kuzawari...I've never once treated this like a game."

"Coulda fooled me," snapped Inuyasha, leaning away from her.

"Don't do that," Kagome cried. She reached for his hand but he pulled away too fast she grabbed his wrist instead. "Don't pull away from me. Don't pretend with me, Inuyasha. We do enough of that crap already."

"What do you want from me, Kagome?"

"I want you to be honest with me. Is any of this real?" Her pulse pounded in her ears. She hadn't meant for that to come out, for her truth, her feelings, to be laid out like this to him. Kagome turned his hand over in her palms and gripped him between both of hers, closing her fingers around his fist. When did she start trembling? Jesus, how was she still only wearing this stupid nightgown? As if he could read her thoughts, she watched Inuyasha's eyes lower beneath thick lashes to survey her body before returning his gaze to her face. She bit the inside of her lower lip in response to the molten expression in his stare. "The way you look at me sometimes," she uttered, daring herself to continue. "The way you touch me. The," she gulped. "The kisses? I..." she paused to take a steadying breath. "I know you're mad at me for doing this. For agreeing to do any of this. For being out in public with you, making it easier for the Kuzawari to hurt me, for agreeing to help Kagura." Inuyasha opened his mouth to inhale before releasing whatever condemning retort came to mind. She squeezed his hand to stop him from speaking. "But I would do anything for you, Inuyasha."

I hate pretending. I want it to be real.

"If this works, if we convince Naraku about us, and Kagura's trap works, I would do all of this again, in a heartbeat. Knowing that I was able to do something to help you. Even if what we had to do, how we've acted towards each other, was disingenuous."

"Kagome..."

"After all you've done for me," she pressed on, keeping her stare low. "After that first night at your house, after my apartment fire, after," she paused to laugh, "every rescue of me..." Inuyasha reached for her chin to lift her gaze to his but Kagome turned her face away, a flush heavy on her brow. She knew she'd lose her confidence to go on if she saw the way he looked at her now. "And don't say it's nothing, or that you haven't done anything because that's a bullshit answer," she laughed again. "You've done so much for me, Inuyasha. I know accepting help is hard for you. I understand that you've had to rely on yourself your whole life, that trust has never been easy or available. Or when it has been, it was broken. I know it's easier for you to hate me for sticking my neck out, being ignorant of the risk to help you. I get it. But, I don't care. I don't care that you're mad at me, that you've been mad at me all these weeks. We're friends. And...and you can suck it up."

Friends...

Inuyasha laughed softly, just a faint entertained exhale leaving his nose. He opened his fist and grabbed hold of her fingers, rubbing the length of her digits with his thumb. His other hand gripped her palm, his thumb drawing sweeping circles over her wrist. The weight of his emotions found him perched on the edge of the settee. He drew their connected hands towards him, his pull on her hands almost pleading, and Kagome acquiesced to the persistence of his grasp. Without a further thought, she allowed Inuyasha to pull her down onto the settee, her knee pressed against his from where she now sat.

"You're right," he said after a moment of silence, their eyes lingering on where their bodies connected, their hands, their knees. His voice was thick. "It's not easy for me to accept help. You see the hard time I give Miroku, and I barely like that bastard." She smirked. "I..." he sighed, his eyes searching for words that stuck in his throat. "I care about you, Kagome, and that's fucking terrifying for me. My entire childhood was learning how to manipulate people based on what they care about most."

"They prey on weakness."

We believe Naraku has identified you as Inuyasha's weakness, and they are using you to get to him.

He nodded. "I hate that you're doing this. Playing games. Not playing games. Either way, I fucking hate it, Kagome. That you agreed to work with that two-faced manipulative bitch, that you stupidly put yourself in danger for me. Fuck, that you're even willing to take pictures with me that are meant to get you mixed up in even more shit. Miroku tells you you're being targeted as my weakness and you just go and make yourself a bigger fucking target. Willingly. That fucking scares me."

"What does it mean? To be your weakness exactly?" Inuyasha's face offered a blank vulnerability in answer and she pressed her lips together in a tight smile. "I mean, I understand that the literal definition can mean a condition of lacking strength, or a quality that can be seen as a disadvantage or fault, or a shortcoming, something that can't be resisted. But, what does that mean to you, Inuyasha? What do I mean to you to be considered all those things to you?" A smile crept from the corner of her mouth. "I care about you too, Inuyasha." He drew his attention away from their hands to meet her gaze. Her eyes had softened, lined with silver, moisture glistening at her tear duct. She shifted herself closer to him on the settee so the entire length of her thigh rested against his. His circling fingers stopped and he held her hands firmly in his grip. His warmth was...intense. She knew she just asked him a question, a really personal question, but she had just opened herself up to him and there wasn't anyway she could stop more words, more honesties, from coming out. "I'm sorry I scare you. I'm sorry my wanting to help you causes you distress. But, I'm most sorry that I allowed myself to believe for a second that any of what I feel for you is pretend."

"Kag—"

"—The way I've acted out there, knowing that others are watching me...I've listened to Kagura, mimicking exactly what she says the people want from me, want for us. People want to love us, Inuyasha. I get that. They want to see us touch and be close and appear in love or lust or whatever. And I know how I've behaved falls in line with those expectations. Yes, I've behaved a certain way for the cameras, but holding your hand like this." She tugged on him for emphasis. "Seeking you out, always? Fl—flirting with you?"

Say it...

"None of that has ever been pretend for me, and I'm sorry that—"

Inuyasha's fingers quickly detached from her hand and entwined themselves in her hair. Faster than she could emit the words, he had tipped her head back and pressed his lips against hers. Her heart thrummed a heightened staccato. While appreciating all of the kisses to her hair, temple, and hand over the past weeks, it so unbelievably paled in comparison to the sensation of his lips on hers. A soft moan escaped her mouth as Inuyasha cupped her face between the heat of his palms. His tongue begged for entrance, gently stroking her lower lip. She immediately opened for him and a growl curled from his throat in gratitude.

"It's been real for me too," he breathed against her lips, his forehead resting against hers. He ran his palm down the length of her hair, cupping her neck once he reached her shoulder. "What Kagura or anyone else wants from us? They can go fuck themselves. I hate that I ever made you think, for a fucking second, that none of it was real. Touching you..." He ran a finger along the line of her jaw. "All the times I kissed you..." She shuddered as his breath coated the shell of her ear. "I only ever did it because I wanted to, Kagome. Because I want to. Because I can't help myself around you."

"Inuyasha," she sighed, assuaging relief coating her breath. She circled his neck with her arms and drew his mouth to hers. He happily and greedily kissed her.

Their lips were frantic, desperate, pleading. Their moans and sighs danced between them, every small sound escaping Kagome's throat spurring Inuyasha forward. They were a flurry of hands, tongues, and frenzied breath.

"These fucking little straps," Inuyasha groaned into Kagome's mouth as she sucked on his lower lip. His hands left her nest of hair to cup her shoulders, his fingers toying with the delicate lace atop her skin. Inuyasha's left hand returned to her hair, tugging with enough gentle force that she angled her head, bearing her neck to him. Inuyasha worshiped the offered flesh with tongue, lips, and teeth, her moans encouraging him to suck on the sensitive place beneath her ear. He continued his assault, his hands rubbing the length of her arms, his lips puckering with wet kisses where her neck met her shoulders, finally settling on her shoulders where the lace straps were in his way. Scooping his fingers under the lace, he drew the material away from her skin, down the length of her arm until it settled limply against her bicep. Kagome moaned as Inuyasha kissed her bared shoulder, his name a heavy and erotic breath in her mouth.

Inuyasha turned his attention from her shoulders back to her neck, her collarbone, the sensitive 'v' where her neck met her chest. Her hands were furious in his hair, her head tilted back, her fingers bent into his scalp in response to the lavish kisses. He mirrored his attention to her other shoulder, removing the strap, coating her skin with his breath and saliva. The nightgown drooped and bowed away from her chest, emphasized by her arching her back towards him. Inuyasha gripped her elbows and tugged her towards him. A surprised squeak escaped Kagome, causing him to smile, as Kagome sat straddling his lap. With a hand on the small of her back, Inuyasha scooted them backwards until he reclined, his back rested against the black leather of the settee. He loved the weight of her above him.

"In case you need reminding in the future, here's another example of a time you willingly sat in my lap, Kagome."

"Noted," she breathed leaning forward against his mouth, her tongue finding purchase against his bottom lip, begging for his attention, his heat.

He broke their kiss with a sharp smack as their lips detached. Inuyasha's chest heaved with the weight of his aroused breaths, his hands running down the length of Kagome's hair. "You're so fucking beautiful," he said before his lips sieged her neck, collarbone, and shoulders once more.

"God, Inuyasha..." she moaned, her hair brushing her tailbone as she arched her back in response to his kisses. Snapping forward, she reached for his face, cupping his cheeks as their lips reunited once more. She was molten on the inside. A churning desperate coil started beneath her naval and flowed all the way to her toes. She ached for him with ever fiber of her body. Her nipples ached under the satin confines of her shift. Her breasts ached with a heaviness from her desire. "I can't get enough of you," she moaned into his hair as his tongue devoured the length of her collarbone once more. Her womanhood was on fire with a sensitivity and longing she hadn't felt in far too long.

Leaning Kagome back on his lap, Inuyasha's hard length arced as he felt her thighs squeeze his legs with need. Inuyasha's sultry topaz met Kagome's aroused chocolate, and the pure carnal pleading he saw in her eyes let loose something feral in him. He watched her gulp as he palmed his hands up her arms, resting eager fingers on the slackened chemise straps. With painstaking slowness, he lowered both lace strips simultaneously until her breasts were fully bared to him.

"Inu—"

He leapt upon her breasts with hands and mouth. She bucked against him, her head thrown back.

"These," he growled around a hard, red nipple, wet with his saliva. She moaned and arched into his touch, relishing the feel of his hardness as she ground herself against him. She was spinning with wanton need and desire. "These are fucking amazing."

Inuyasha sucked her nipple and most of her areola into his mouth with such force she groaned at the sharpness of his teeth, rough against her flesh. Inuyasha clenched her breast in his fist, molding and massaging in his palm, alternating which breast, which nipple, was in his mouth. Kagome held onto the back of his head, embracing his hair to hold him against her chest, his name a whimper under the scrutiny of his attention. She ground her hips against him, gasping as he raised his hips in response, their bodies communicating in a language only for them two.

"I can tell how wet you are for me, Kagome," he groaned against her mouth. God, he couldn't stop touching her breasts. "I can feel your heat."

"I'm so wet for you," she parroted, her lips a beautiful, swollen shade of red as she emerged from their kiss. "Please," she keened as she bucked against his hardness once more. The word, the begging, continued the uncoiling of that beast inside Inuyasha. "Touch me. I need you—" she gasped as he bit down and pulled on her nipple, the pain bordering on a sickening sweet pleasure she didn't know she enjoyed. "I need to feel you. I—" She gasped again, bucking her hips. "Please, Inuyasha."

"You want me to feel how wet you are?"

"Yes," she cried instantly, stealing his lips once more in a kiss that was a mash of teeth and tongue.

"You want my fingers inside you?" A throaty moan was her immediate response.

His attention to her breasts was going to be her underdoing. Attention wasn't even the right word. He worshipped her breasts, lavishing them with such wet, biting, rough attentiveness that had her soaking wet and throbbing with an ache only he could address. "Touch me, Inuyasha," her guttural voice demanded. "I'm going to burn up and die if you don't touch me. Please."

Fuck, he loved hearing her beg.

He needed no further instruction or utterance as he leaned away from her kiss, appreciating the sinful appeal of Kagome's bared upper torso, the nightgown puddled around her waist, above her bellybutton, flowing down to her thighs. He ran his palms down her arms, growling into the handful of her breasts, his mouth losing himself against a nipple. He bit down against the swollen puckered flesh and let loose a pleased rumble in his chest as she ground herself against him once more.

"Stop teasing me," she cried, rolling her hips, pushing her wetness into him.

"Oh Kagome," he smirked into her breasts, "I haven't even fucking started."

She felt another surge of wetness gather in her panties as Inuyasha began to lift the chemise up her thighs, his fingernails scraping her skin. The instrumental dance music floated around her, reminding her of a long ago time when she had been pressed up against Inuyasha, basically a stranger, and he had raked desirous nails against her thigh while she wore a tube of sequins. This was so much better. The need she had now was so much bigger, so much hotter. Their mouths came together with urgent, demanding kisses that held no softness. It was a libidinous joining of desperate relief, of longing. Tongues and teeth and lips. That's all they were. Until Kagome became so hopelessly aware of Inuyasha's body pressed against hers, the impressively hard length of him rubbing against her intimate heat as their hips moved against each other.

Inuyasha's palms left fire in their wake as his calluses scraped along the softness of her thighs, up and up until his fingers gripped her hips. Kagome groaned into his mouth, against his tongue, as his fingers sunk into her flesh and pulled her into him, slamming her against his hardness with such force it made her eyelids flutter. He was so fucking hard for her.

"You are so fucking wet for me, Kagome," he growled. "I love how much your body wants me. Wants this—" He grabbed her hand and made her palm his erection. She ground her hips against him with a moan in response. Inuyasha smirked against her lips and greedily, toothily, sucked the length of her tongue, then bit down on it.

His hands found her hips once more, pulling her against him, making her ride him above his pants. Breaking away from Kagome's mouth, Inuyasha's eyes devoured the sight of his fingers lifting the shift until it fully bunched at her waist, exposing the wetness of her panties to him. "You. Are. Soaked." He licked a nipple before siphoning her red, puckered areola into his mouth. Kagome leaned into his touch, as if she could encourage him to take more of her in his mouth. It was the most exquisite and erotic thing he had ever seen: This glorious, uninhibited creature with the most beautiful tits he's ever tasted, with nothing but a bunched belt of cloth around her midsection and pale pink panties absolutely drenched with her arousal. Fuck, he couldn't wait to taste her. The smell of her arousal was like musky peaches and honeydew. The vision of laying her back and licking her right up the centre caused Inuyasha's dick to throb with an aching desire for warm, tight release.

"You like what you see?" The raging fire in her eye, the husky utterance of her question, made Inuyasha's mouth dry with desire.

Inuyasha growled a smirk at her, capturing her mouth, sinking his hands into her rear and grinding himself against her. "Fuck yes, I do."

"Then fucking touch me."

Inuyasha could barely control himself at the sheer, uncharacteristic fierceness of Kagome's demand. He had never seen a side to her like this before. Like all the teasing and waiting had been left to build and build and she was coming undone for him, needing release. The woman knew what she wanted. And who was Inuyasha to deny her?

"Impatient girl," he cooed against her lips, pushing his cock against her and holding her there. She tried to buck against him but he stilled her by grabbing onto her ass. "Slow down." He kissed her. "There's no rush." He entwined his fingers in her hair and pulled her head back, sucking on her neck. "I'll fuck you with my fingers when I'm good and ready to."

"Inuyasha."

His one hand buried in her hair while his other ran the length of her thigh, roaming up her hip and over her belly. His fingers grazed that delicious space between her naval and the edge of her panties. He pushed on her shoulder, leaning her back until her palms cupped his knees, so he could better view the discolouration of her wet panties. He could clearly make out the lips of her vulva, a darker pink where her wetness coated them. Kagome would have felt embarrassed with his blatant staring if she hadn't found it so devastatingly sexy.

"Pink, wet, and beautiful," he moaned. The comment put Kagome in a frenzy, bucking her hips against him and pushing her breasts towards him, desperate for his touch, for the pleasurable ministrations of his hands. She groaned his name into his mouth as he captured her lips, her fingers stroking his face and hair, feeling like this closeness just wasn't close enough.

Inuyasha pinched her nipples, appreciating her moaning shriek at the pressure of his fingers, indenting her flesh. Drifting his fingers along her sides, he cupped her ass, using the handful to grind himself against her, feeling a pleasing hum in his throat at how her body stroked his. His palms dragged up and down her thighs, once, twice. On the third assault, his gaze affixed to every small expression of her pleasure, Inuyasha allowed his thumb to stroke over her pubic mound, ever so tauntingly close to the bundle of nerves that begged to be touched. Kagome gasped, her hips moved, her eyelashes fluttered as arousal shone in her heavy-lidded stare.

"Did you like that, Kagome?" She nodded, licking her lips. A pause. "Use your words."

God, it's just like that time in his jacuzzi. Controlling jerk...

"Yes," she answered hoarsely, her heart racing.

"Do you want me to do it again?"

She licked her lips. "And then some." Inuyasha laughed, taking a pause to dip his head towards her and coat her lips with an appreciative, worshipping kiss. Kagome sighed against him, leaning into him, leaving no space between their bodies.

Sucking her bottom lip between his teeth and pulling and drawing on her, Inuyasha lowered his right hand and fully cupped her sex. Kagome gasped wildly, her eyes turning to his, her arms joining around his neck. She leaned her forehead against his, her breathing ragged.

God, how much time did they have left in their reservation? Maybe Inuyasha couldn't take as long as wanted with her...

Inuyasha released his palm from her, using the gentlest of touches, barely his fingertips, to circle her vulva. His cock lurched at how she shivered as his fingers grazed and mapped the wetness of her labia. Following the line of her panties, Inuyasha released a pleased growl as his fingertips drifted over her primary heat, feeling the material disappear between the cheeks of her sumptuous ass. Inuyasha growled with delight upon discovery of her thong. He was torn then, between wanting to kiss her while he felt her and wanting to hold her an arm's length away so he could watch her, so he could appreciate every moment and reaction of the pleasure he gave her.

Inuyasha's fingers scraped against her clitoris again and Kagome hissed, her head collapsing onto his shoulder. He planted a kiss to the side of her head as he repeated the action. Her moan was guttural, deep, as her hips rolled against his hand. His thumb circled the little bud, a proud, masculine smirk coating his face upon noticing that she elicited a stronger moan when he focused his attention on the delicate spot underneath where her clitoris met her labia. Fucking noted.

Inuyasha ran his index finger along the seam of her thong, leaving a tickling sensation against Kagome's inner thigh. She wiggled against him, using her body to try and beg him for more. Grinning against her mouth, her lips grazing his teeth, Inuyasha lifted the side of her thong and slide his hand underneath, cupping her naked vulva. Her smooth vulva. The realization of her hairlessness caused a gruff curse to escape him. Kagome bucked against him, her moan a tantalizing chant of encouragement at the feeling of his fingers touching her most intimate area. Hissing against her lips, kissing her chin, the corner of her mouth, her jaw, Inuyasha used his fingers to skillfully separate her lips then slid a finger up and down along her slick centre.

"Dear God, Inuyasha," Kagome cried, her head crashing into his neck, sucking a mound of his skin into her mouth and biting.

"You are so fucking drenched," he whispered. "Fuck, Kagome."

His fingers continued their ministrations. She felt wetter the longer he touched her, the more he stroked her. He didn't necessarily focus on any area in particular, he just used a finger to sweep the length of her, spreading her wetness. As Kagome began to buck her hips once more, Inuyasha used the movement to press against her clit, loving the hitched breath that caught in her throat as she tried to gasp around her pleasure. Her hips rocked. Her breasts pressed into the hardness of his chest. And Inuyasha licked his lips, finding that spot on her clit that made her eyes roll closed, that caused her to curse under her breath.

Tearing his hand away from her sex, Inuyasha forced Kagome to meet his eye and watch as he slid a moistened finger between his lips, sucking her juices from his skin. She bit her lip and moaned in such a musically pleasing way.

"I can't begin to tell you how good you taste," he growled.

"More," Kagome whimpered, wrapping an arm around his neck, trying to pull herself against him. "Please, Inuyasha. More."

"Fuck, I love hearing you beg, Kagome."

Pulling her head back so she met his eye once more, Inuyasha refused to break their eye contact as he lowered his hand and slid a long, heedful finger into her. The sound Kagome made as he entered her almost destroyed him. He could feel her squeezing him, her vaginal juices coating his finger, the rest of his hand. Inuyasha wanted to worship and revere every glorious dripping inch of her. She was tight and warm and exactly what he wanted.

Inuyasha slowly pulsed his finger in her centre, drawing it out to the tip and plunging it back in. Her breathing was a steady increase as her pleasure soared, a twisting, coiling deliciousness was pooling in her stomach, winding up her legs, stretching up her spine. Inuyasha added a second finger and cursed as Kagome cried out with the pleasure. He paused his motions, giving her a moment to adjust to the newness of his two fingers, stretching her. As she started to rock her hips against his hand, Inuyasha no longer held back. His palm and thumb rubbed against her clit as she rocked herself against him. As she fucked herself with his hand. Kagome hissed and cursed and begged and moaned as Inuyasha's fingers plunged and curved, hitting that mouthwatering spot that made her head spin and that coil inside her to tighten.

"You like that?" He murmured huskily against the shell of her ear. "You like fucking my fingers, Kagome?"

"I-Inuyasha," she cried. "I'm," she paused to tilt her head back, her mouth open, her brow furrowed. "Fuck, Inuyasha, I'm getting close."

"I want to feel you come on my fingers, Kagome," he told her, pulling her face to his, kissing her, bringing their foreheads together. "I want you to find release by fucking my fingers until your legs shake."

Kagome moaned so deeply Inuyasha's cock spasmed, begging for release to the mounting desire that threatened to be his undoing. But he knew that would come later. He would bring himself release once they returned to their hotel room. He would pleasure himself thinking about this moment, remembering how Kagome rode his hand until she found her release. Now. Right now was about her.

His fingers didn't stop. They didn't falter. Kagome growled as she grabbed Inuyasha's wrist, holding him exactly where she wanted him as she rode him, bucking her hips until her breasts shook in his face, her hair a dark nimbus around her. Her lips quivered. Her brow creased. Her eyes pinched shut. She was so fucking close.

"Play with your clit," Inuyasha instructed. "Touch yourself, Kagome."

Her fingers immediately took over from Inuyasha's thumb, circling her clit with an impressive speed. A wry grin on his face, Inuyasha adjusted his arm so he could unleash himself on her, fucking her thoroughly, in hard, unforgiving strokes.

"Inu-Inuyasha," Kagome warned. "I...I..."

"Come for me, Kagome."

"I...Fuck, Inuyasha."

And just like he dreamed, from that time he walked in on her in the pool house, when he had witnessed her pleasuring herself on the jet, she orgasmed to his name on her lips. The breathiness of the last syllable of his name a keening, begging, breathy moan that was the most beautiful fucking thing Inuyasha had ever heard. Kagome's vaginal walls quaked around his fingers, squeezing him as her muscles contracted with the frenzy of her orgasm. Kagome gripped his wrist, forcing him to be still as she twitched around him, her mouth open, her head tilted back. God, she was a sight.

Kagome licked her lips as she opened her eyes, a sated glean coating her lashes that made Inuyasha smirk with masculine pride. He removed his fingers from her and waited until they made eye contact before he sucked every last drop of her from him.

"Oh my," Kagome uttered quietly, hotly, her features beautifully dusted with aroused satisfaction.

"You," Inuyasha growled, drawing her in for a glutinous kiss, "are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

Kagome flushed and laughed against his mouth, their teeth coming together with the expression. "That was hot," she chuckled, her cheeks pink with bashfulness. "Thank you, Inuyasha." He kissed her again, softer this time. "But," her eyes widened as she pulled away from him slightly, "what about you?"

"Next time," he purred against her neck, stroking underneath her chin with his nose and then his tongue, planting a kiss there before returning to meet her stare. Kagome licked her lower lip then drew the reddened swelling between her teeth at the promise of next time.

"I should..." Kagome paused, a demure expression coming over her features as she turned to acknowledge her pile of clothes behind the clothing rack. Inuyasha nodded in understanding as his hands grazed her thighs. She slowly, unsteadily stood from him. The quiver in her legs as she found her footing brought a wickedly contented grin to Inuyasha's face. Kagome was just grateful he didn't say anything about it. She adjusted the shift as she stood, turning her back towards Inuyasha slightly as she slid the straps over her shoulders and lowered the hem. She didn't know where that wildness had come from with him; she had never been like that before with any previous lover. She'd never been that delirious with wanton need and desire. It almost frightened her in a pleasing way...how feral she became for him.

"You said earlier there's a door and bathroom in a back area somewhere?"

Kagome nodded. "Yeah, Miroku referenced something about Japanese Building Code requirements, needing at least two fire exits." She shrugged, scooping up her dress and bra. "It also would make zero sense if this place didn't have a bathroom."

Inuyasha smiled. "I'll be right back, then, Kagome." She blushed as she nodded her head, her eyes lowering as she realized he was probably going to go wash his hands. Go wash her off of him. Next to the bar cart, Inuyasha brushed back a piece of the wallpaper that was actually a fabric door cover. It was almost impossible to see unless one was standing right next to it. He offered her a smile before he disappeared behind the fabric, giving Kagome a moment of privacy to dress.

A satisfied, feminine smile coated her face as she made quick action of dressing. Holding the chemise in her hands, Kagome flushed and decided she'd fold it away in her purse. After all, she had read that staff would charge the credit card on file whether the item was purchased or dry cleaned. Kagome felt a thrill coil in her stomach at the realization that she wanted to keep the shift, perhaps as a reminder of tonight but also in the hopes that it could encourage future...activity.

The sound of a slamming door made Kagome startle and she shot her eyes towards where she had seen Inuyasha disappear behind the fabric wall cover. She rested a hand over her racing heart, still not fully deescalated from her joining with Inuyasha and the pleasure he brought her with his fingers. The memory brought an impure heat to her face.

A guttural, wet roar rocked the silence around Kagome. With wide, panicked eyes she turned to see Inuyasha stumble through the partially hidden opening, his hands frantic over his midsection. A katana impaled his stomach. Inuyasha struggled to utter Kagome's name before he collapsed against the bar cart then fell to the floor. The sounds of crashing and shattering glass accompanied the pained scream that Kagome released, deafening the space around her. She was about to lunge for Inuyasha when a man she didn't recognize entered the room, penetrating the cocoon of pleasure she and Inuyasha had made for themselves not even ten minutes ago.

Kagome screamed as the man made eye contact with her, as she watched him reach for Inuyasha and pin him to the wall.

"You must be Kagome," the man groaned under the strain of Inuyasha's weight. "I'm Renkotsu. I'm here for this bastard."

---

Author's Note

I can't begin to explain how much I loved writing this chapter. I think I've had a draft or roadmap for how I wanted this chapter to look for (not being dramatic) years! Finally getting to share it with you, to make it formally part of Inuyasha and Kagome's story, brought a lot of joy to me. I hope it brings a lot of joy for you as well. Well, despite the obvious cliffhanger (sorry not sorry bahaha).

Until next time, friends!