What Men Want - Chapter 14

The guest room was spacious and nicely decorated. Amaya could see there was a woman’s touch to the furniture and drapes. And not only to that room. The entire apartment, at least the parts she glimpsed, betrayed a woman’s hand. She couldn’t imagine Saeba choosing the sheer white drapes that billowed in front of open windows. Or the little round lamps adorning the two nightstands at the sides of the queen-sized bed. They added a tad of romance and femininity to the room, and Amaya suspected Kaori picked them deliberately, trying to make her feel at peace and at home.

She gently touched the white coverlet on the bed. It was a lovely vintage piece, embroidered with white and cream flowers. She slowly sat, running her palms on the bed. It felt like touching little dainty daisies on a spring-dusted meadow.

Kaori watched her from the doorway. She smiled slightly, proud of herself for how the room looked. Since the last guest there, Ryo has turned it into a storage of some kind, stashing in it everything that happened under his hand. When she’d opened the door that morning, the room was littered with carton boxes of all shapes and sizes, and spiders partied shamelessly in the corners while the dust made it almost impossible to breathe.

And as she was scrubbing the floorboards, simultaneously checking for secret passages that could grant him instantaneous access to their client, gritting her teeth all the while, she stumbled upon a find that made her see red. Lucky for him, he was out of the house at that moment, or she would have cleanly wrung his neck.

Knocking on the floorboards, one of them, right in the corner by the door, sounded hollow, so she pried it up...only to find a linen-wrapped box. Rolling her eyes, expecting to find another stash of porn magazines and videos—how could those compensate for the real thing, she had no idea, even though she’s never experienced the real thing in her life—she gasped, finding a nice collection of underwear. Her underwear! A few pieces of which she’s almost forgotten to have ever possessed.

And she sure as hell hadn’t been the one to put it in that box and hide it under the floorboards. What was he doing with her underwear anyway? Wasn’t he the one always claiming she was the only woman in the world unable to get him a boner?

And then she found an old photo under that pile of lingerie. An old photo of her, the one her brother shot on a picnic all those years ago. It’s been one of the last picnics they’ve shared just the two of them, before she once more stumbled into Ryo’s life and he started insinuating on their private time—not that she minded that much. If she closed her eyes, she could see the blossoming cherry trees, smell the fragrant perfumes of spring, feel the warm lick of the sun on her skin, the breeze caressing her hair.

She could still recall the intense stare Yuki gave her at one time, saying he was sorry for never noticing just how beautiful she was. Of course she turned immediately purple, and he laughed, so she pushed him onto his back, running away. He chased her with the camera, teasing and laughing, and when she turned, he snapped that picture of her. She loved that picture. It was one of her favorites she had in her family album. Her, smiling, feeling free, with blossoming cherry trees in the background. It looked like an illustration out of a fairytale...

How did Ryo get a hold of that picture? And why did he keep it? Why did he keep it hidden?

“Is there something wrong?” a soft voice pulled her out of her reverie.

Kaori blinked rapidly to disperse the images of that peaceful day, finding herself once again in their guest bedroom with their guest still seated on the bed, looking at her with an inquisitive expression, her head cocked.

Kaori flashed a sheepish smile. “Oh, nothing much, just woolgathering.” She shot a quick glance around, making sure everything was where it was supposed to be. Satisfied with her quick inspection, she grinned at her guest. “I’ll just leave you to settle in. Is there anything else you might need?”

Amaya slowly shook her head.

“Okay, then. Dinner’s in an hour. If you need anything, I’ll be in the kitchen.”

As she made to close the door, Amaya’s voice stopped her. “Excuse me, where is the bathroom? I need to freshen up.”

“Across the hall.” Back straight, Kaori turned with a grave expression. “Unfortunately the lock is broken.” She gritted her teeth. “But there’s a small, sturdy cabinet you can use to block the door.”

“Beg your pardon?” Amaya blinked. “Why do I need to bar the door? It’s just you, me, and Saeba-sa—”

“Exactly.” Kaori’s face was grim. “It’s just the three of us. For your own sake, do as I say.”

As she closed the door behind her, she muttered, “I can’t be everywhere at once.”

The dinner passed in complete silence. One could hear a fly fart a mile away; such was the silence in that apartment.

Amaya, hands clasped in her lap, didn’t dare utter a word, despite desperately wishing to. Her two hosts looked ready to kill her the instant she opened her mouth. And to think she was supposed to feel protected and at ease in their household. She slid a quick glance at Saeba and then at Kaori. The two didn’t look at each other but the tension between them was palpable. The atmosphere was completely different from the one that afternoon when Saeba had quickly caught the woman before she fell. The air around the dinner table seemed cold, icy even. As if she was sitting down with two strangers who barely tolerated each other’s presence.

Ryo was still pondering what Kaori said to Amaya that afternoon after burying him under her mallet. She knew he was teasing her only to spur her into action. She knew those were just words, and they didn’t mean anything? How did she know it? How did she learn about it? Or has she known it from the start? No, he refused to believe it. She must have learned it recently. But, how? Did someone tell her? Was it Mick? He was going to cut him open and use his rib cage as a hat!

What if it wasn’t Mick to tell her? She wouldn’t have believed the bastard even if he did. That girl had the lowest self-esteem possible.

Kaori growled slightly. Amaya looked at her questioningly. And Ryo didn’t appear to hear anything.

Could she really read him that easily? He prided himself on not transpiring any emotions, but could she see through his act? And why now? What happened? Was it because of the fall? She’s been acting strangely ever since she’d woken up in the hospital. Staring at him with those enormous eyes of hers as if trying to read his soul, read his mind, which was impossible. But she’s been weird ever since. Did something go wrong? The doctor said she was fine, as good as new, but could he be wrong? Or maybe they simply didn’t want to give him any bad news. What was wrong with Kaori?

Kaori reeled from the waves of panic swamping her from Ryo’s direction. He could just stop worrying; there was nothing wrong with her! Except being able to read his mind most of the time. She was fine; thank you very much, so he could just stop worrying.

Her eyes dilated as her stomach roiled.

Seriously, he should stop! Right now!

A feeling of blind terror started spreading through his body, tightening his muscles. His heart pumped like crazy, his heartbeat echoed in his ears. A red haze descended over his eyes as he clenched his fists. What was wrong with Kaori? Was it terminal? She must be okay; she must return to normal. What was he to do if something happened to her? She couldn’t leave him! He wouldn’t be able to handle it! She couldn’t leave him alone!

“S-Saeba-san,” Amaya whispered, seriously freaked at that point. He was pale as death, his eyes fathomless, his gaze terrifying, while Kaori was slowly turning green, her breath coming in shallow gasps. What was wrong with these people?

Kaori concentrated on breathing. Right now all she needed to do was breathe. She tried to keep Ryo out, but he seemed to be stuck in her head, his emotions, his fear playing on loop inside her skull. The waves of terror and panic haven’t subsided; if possible, they grew stronger and stronger until she feared she might drown in them. Her stomach kept rolling and lurching, and she instantly regretted that extra piece of pie she’d chowed down.

“Saeba-san,” Amaya whispered again, a bit more loudly. He was giving her the creeps. His fists were clenched so tight, his knuckles were completely white, the tendon in his forearms taut. “Saeba-san...”

Another dark wave of panic and blind terror hit her, and Kaori has had it! Shooting to her feet, knocking the chair backwards, she slammed her palm over her mouth, rushing out of the kitchen.

Ryo snapped out of his panic world. “What happened?”

Amaya blinked. “I think she wasn’t feeling very well. Haven’t you noticed?”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” he asked savagely.

“Well, I...”

Following Kaori, he didn’t hear the rest.

Grimacing at the sounds coming from her bathroom, Ryo turned the doorknob. It didn’t budge. She locked the door? He gently knocked. “Kaori?”

She coughed.

“Kaori, are you okay?”

“Do I sound okay to you?”

He smiled slightly. As a matter of fact, she did sound okay.

“Bite me,” she growled.

Scratching his head, he sighed. “Why did you lock the door?”

“Some people need privacy when puking!” Another wet coughing sound.

“Do you need anything?”

“Just to be left alone—” Cough. “If it isn’t too much of a bother!”

“Kaori...”

“Leave me alone.”

He sighed. “Kaori...”

“Go away, Ryo.”

He was starting to panic again. Why was she sending him away?! “Kaori!”

“Get the fuck out of my room, Ryo!”

He stared in shock at the closed door, trying to bring his turbulent emotions under control. Taking a deep breath, he tried again: “Kaori?”

“Get out!”

His eyes dark and sad, he slowly turned. With one last lingering glance toward the bathroom, he slowly left her room, softly closing the door behind his back.