InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Head Over Heels ❯ Striking Out ( Chapter 31 )

 

Chapter Thirty-One

Striking Out

 

_-_-_

Sesshomaru:

There was a small tile table between myself and my `date' and I found myself wishing it was a football field.

She clicked her tongue against her teeth and tossed a wealth of platinum hair over her bare shoulders. She then leaned forward giving me a view of her bountiful assets jiggling unappetizingly in her skin tight silver sheath. “Sesshomaru, we vile make an excellent pair.”

Vile was an apt description of her unbearable fake Euro-trash accent. She leaned back and summoned the waiter for yet another glass of wine. “Our love vill be so great the media will eat it alive. We shall be bigger van even Tom and Katie! Just the thing to soothe your image as ze dreadful Captain Hook.”

She was silenced only by a long sip of wine, that with any luck she might choke on. This meeting was shame piled atop even more humiliation. Chloe was a Victoria Secret model, shameful yes, but the only true full blooded Inu-youki who returned Jaken's call. Most mortal men would drool at the idea of dating such a creature but customarily, the parading around of one's spouse in scant covering was a punishment not an honor.

Chloe was speaking again and I forced myself to pay attention. “A merger of our families and not to mention my celebrity would be a great asset to you, especially after your family's… insy weensy scandal.” She narrowed her fake eyelash framed eyes. “I think I shall require allot to make dis work.”

She thought she was doing me a great favor and no doubt intended to extract a great price. Bile rose in the back of my throat but I said nothing.

“You want children and a companion.” She spat out the world children, no doubt imagining what one would do to her figure.

I answered, “Only to events where we are expected to attend as a couple. The rest of your time will be your own.”

She gave a fast smile, flashing her fangs, a smaller version of my own. This time her tones were fast and accent free. “Of course, of course. Now I will expect,” She began ticking each item off on her acrylic tipped clawless fingers, “A full time staff of nannies, separate bedrooms, two personal assistants, a house in Milan, at the very hub of fashion, you will provide all of my clothes, spending money, and let's not forget jewelry.”

She paused to sniff and dabbed her nose with the linen napkin. “When we… I mean IF in the event of divorce I want the pre-nup to show I get half of your assets, liquid and otherwise.”

My claws dug into the grout between the table tiles. I had expected a wife to cost me but this was insane. I fought to keep my face expressionless, after all this was just another business deal. I owed it to the family to procure an heir. I just needed to negotiate her down to a reasonable agreement.

She took a sip of wine and then let out a soft giggle. “Oh and how could I forget? The human rat child pet… thing you keep.” The smile dropped from her face. “Get rid of it.”

My arm moved of it's own accord knocking the wine bottle to the floor where it shattered and sent a red spray over her shoes.

I was losing my hard won composure. And over a cheap bitch! This was unacceptable.

Chloe jumped up and looked down frowning at the stains on her shoes, “My new Jimmy Choos! Oh! Deese are going on de bill!”

I touched the cold skin of her arm and guided her back down to her seat. “Chloe, while I am wealthy I hardly rival the economy of a major country.”

Her lips thinned. “Go on.”

“We don't seem… personally compatible.” I glanced up in time to see her hide a snort behind her hand.

“How about a less complex arrangement, give me a healthy child. If it's male I'll give you one million. Should it be female and you will get two hundred and fifty thousand, with an additional hundred thousand dollar bonus if you agree to try again for a son.”

She sighed, disappointed to have lost her golden ticket, yet intrigued by the lure of cold hard cash without the attachment of a ring. “I suppose a few nights wouldn't be too much of a sacrifice. And if done right, I could have the brat on the off season and be back in shape in time for the next show.” Her thin brows shot up the frozen lines of her forehead. “But even a girl will cost you at least a million.”

She was giving in; I could feel her buckling to her greed. “Of course you will be responsible for all medical bills and plastic surgery I will need to… recover.”

The waiter paused by our table and uncorked a bottle of sparkling wine. Finally she was speaking my language, negotiation. “But of course.”

She pulled a Blackberry from her micro purse and began paging through her calendar. “I suppose the best time to start will be June. We can have it induced before the spring season.” She lifted a well groomed slender brow, “Shall I have my people call your people?”

I smiled. I always win. Life is nothing more then one deal after another. Of course not everything can be bought or won.

That was a truth I'd never expect to encounter. I'd beaten back the creatures that haunted the witch and in exchange she now haunted me. Every night she was there, every waking moment she was with me.

Today she was laughing at me and shaking her head. `Only you could turn sex into cold hard business. What talent.'

Then she glared at me, boring into my mind with those fire eyes, `And why are you wasting your time with this over paid prostitute? Aren't you afraid your kid will be born fifty percent plastic? Or hooked on Botox?'

I swallowed and worked to tune her out, because I knew she was right. But I had a duty and I refused to let my own fears control me.

Chloe bent down and began dabbing the spots on her shoes with her napkin. Kagura snorted, `You should've given the new bottle of wine a good shake and made that dress match DOSE shoes.'

I put my hand in my lap, gave my inner thigh a hard pinch and she was gone. It was unfortunate the same trick didn't work on my lunch date.

_-_-_

 

Kagura:

I've always hated watching home improvement television. It just seems allot like work. But you want to know what's even more harder?

Actual renovations.

I did as much of the work in the bookstore as I could myself but as it turns out, I may be mistress of the winds, but I sure as hell ain't Miss Homes and Gardens; or in this case Miss Bookstores and Store fronts. Also the whole mess cost me more than I ever expected.

I was grateful I'd let Bill talk me into borrowing more than I thought I'd need. The hazmat team who cleaned up the smoke damage, alone cost me than a few months of my old meager bookstore paychecks. Every other moment I was sure Miroku was right. It was the Money Pit of bookstores and I was making a huge mistake. But in the even moments I was happier than I'd been in years. So I traded my Steve Maddens in for Pay Less sneakers and old tee shirts.

 

My arms and back ached from painting. I ran a roller over every inch of the walls, saturating them in bright colors of my own choosing.

I would like to tell you painting is therapeutic but I'd be lying. It's just damned hard work. But I loved the instant change it brought the space. I had what was left of the coffee bar ripped out. In a city with a Starbucks on every corner, it was a sad waste of space. I fully intended to recruit Kohaku for cheap labor and it would be a shame for him to repeat his accidentally arsonist past. So of course I made sure the fire sprinklers and alarms were state of the art and up to code.

I divided the store into two spaces. The front would be full of regular books, classics, popular fiction and magazines. The rest was reserved for rare books and volumes shown only upon request. I decided to deal in first editions and finders fees for rare books in addition to an extensive collection of books that catered exclusively to the Yokai community.

I had the place fumigated and was surprised to find a small thriving cricket colony. I almost felt guilty about killing them, but their lives had already gone on much longer than the common cricket deserved. Gone were Miroku's nudie magazines, the self help books, the ancient cash registers and the old, stained, uneven carpets.

My store had shiny hard wood floors; track lighting filled even the darkest of corners and the back room was clean, complete with a mini fridge. None of my shelves were high enough to warrant a book ladder. That was one mistake I'd never make again.

Sesshomaru hadn't so much as called or stopped by. I wasn't sure what it meant. I missed him but the store made time fly by and it felt good to work on my own. Stuff him. I didn't need him; I can succeed on my own.        

_-_-_

Sesshomaru:

 

I stood facing my closet, looking for my suit jacket. I found it wrapped in plastic fresh from the cleaners and began pulling it free. A small yank on my shirt cuff stopped me. “Sesshomaru-sama?”

I sighed and turned around, “Rin, it is well past your bed time.”

She was dressed in a long night dress covered in the puffy pink words Hannah Montana. “But I wanna go to the fashion show.”

Fashion show? How the hell had she figured out where I was going? “No Rin. Go to bed.”

“I miss Kagura. I wanna go.” Her eye lids were heavy but her temper short. Beneath that innocence swam the instincts of a shark, perhaps I'd taught her too much.

“You know very well Kagura isn't going either.” I pulled the jack down and began fastening the buttons.

My sad monkey shook her head and whined, “You're going with that mean lady aren't you! I don't like her.”

I fumbled the last button. “Rin!”

But my disapproval failed to faze her. “Sesshomaru-sama?”

I kept my tone flat. “Yes?”

“What's a gold digger?” Her mouth was pink and innocent but her dark eyes sparked with mischief.

“Someone who pans for gold.” I turned to my chest of drawers to hunt down my cuff links.

“What's a floozy?”

I saw the glint of a gold cufflink towards the back of the cedar drawer. “Someone who is overly enamored with flutes.”

“Oh.” I heard her spin on her toes, playing ballerina. “Then who's the trampy Ice Queen?”

I shut my eyes as a dull thudding headache began taking over my skull. “Rin, where did you hear this?”

Her eyes went wide and she pursed her lips. “I can't tell, I promised.”

Damn gossiping servants! I should fire the lot of them. It disgusted me to no end that the Help was so bold about my private affairs. It was even more appalling that their concerns were so in line with my own.

Tonight I had a front row seat at Chloe's latest show. She'd summoned me in the hope I would see how popular she is and be willing to pay more. She was wrong. I'd already found her price. I was only attending the show to pacify her. I decided once I had my son, I would pay her to sign away all parental rights and banish her from our lives.

This was the ideal outcome. I was keeping the family blood line pure. I would never be at risk of losing assets in a divorce courtroom and Rin could stay.

Kagura was too impulsive not to mention she wasn't an Inu-yokai. But she was fiercely loyal. She wasn't a bitchy underwear model, she liked Rin and she didn't mind Inuyasha. Hell they might even be friends, all the more proof our relationship was damned and unnatural. Chloe was predictable, greedy and conveniently easy to control. She was perfect and I was a fool for ever doubting myself.

_-_-_-_

Kagura:

The grand opening of my store, Rare Finds wasn't so grand. Sango and I sat out balloons, cookies, tea and punch. We advertised but only a few people showed up, not enough to rock my cash register's world.

I had dressed up for the occasion and tried not to let it get me down. Sango was sitting at the computer while I watched the front door that wasn't opening.

“Wow, today is a complete bust.” I sat on the counter and crossed my legs. I started to get back up when I realized I was the boss and could sit where ever I damn well pleased.

Sango, who was here on a volunteer basis only, said nothing. Her fingers flew over the keyboard. If today went well she'd sign on as an employee. I wasn't sure what kind of boss I'd be. I hoped to be a good one.

I picked up a cookie and contemplated the growing list of mistakes I'd made in my life. Eventually I stopped counting and resorted to good old fashion cookie therapy. Oatmeal and raisin had never let me down and today was no different.

“Kagura?”

I swung around to face Sango and mumbled around a mouthful of cookie, “Yeah?”

“Your website. It's racking up the hits. We have 50 orders today alone.” She turned the screen towards me.

“Wow.” I almost slipped off the smooth counter and fell on my head. “Who knew yokai dating books would be so popular?”

She shook her head, “It's not just that, we're selling the good stuff. There are orders for signed books, some good old fashioned first editions, art prints and…” her nose wrinkled, “cook books?”

I shrugged and hoped down to do a happy jig. “Me thinks we're gonna need a bigger boat!”

Of course I wasn't getting rich but this was a good start. I could see the store was capable of paying for itself. A smile crept across my face as I leaned against my counter. And hell, maybe someday I would go strictly online and rent out the store. I was a now a business woman and only the sky was the limit.

_-_-_

 

Seven pm rolled around and we shut the doors but not before Mrs. Rogers, the local whack-a-loon from the apartment next door came to pay us a visit. She took a stroll around the store then stopped at the counter.

“Cookie?” I generously held out the plate that I'd been planning on hoarding later.

She sniffed and asked, “Where are the Harlequins?”

“I'm sorry but we don't carry serial romances here. We specialize in the rare and unusual.” I sat the cookie plate down. I hated formula romances and was thrilled to disappoint her. “Try the Barnes and Nobles down the way.”

“And you call yourself a bookstore.” She stopped to examine a display of rose scented candles I carried at Sango's insistence. “You'll fall flat on your faces if you keep selling this new age crap.”

I bit my lip to keep a straight face. “Thank you for the advice.”

She set the candle down atop a locked glass case of autographed first editions and huffed loudly on her way out, “The first book store was in the MOB and this one's run by Satanists!”

The door shut behind her as Sango and I broke down into hearty gales of laughter. I watched Mrs. Rodgers turn towards her apartment, in the opposite direction of the Barnes and Noble. Had she even wanted a book? I doubted it.

I gasped for breath, “I suppose somethings never change.”

Sango shook her head. “Looks that way.”

I pulled a phone book out from under the counter and began flipping through its yellow pages. Sango turned on the small TV I'd picked up for the store, and began channel surfing. “Kagura, what are you doing?”

I picked up my cell phone, “I'm ordering delivery sushi.”

“How can you be hungry when we just ate an hour ago?” She stopped on a local news station and glanced at me over her shoulder.

I gave her a wicked grin. “It's for Mrs. Rogers, compliments from the Sushi mafia.”

Sango rolled her eyes, “Must you pick on the weak?”

I snorted, “Weak minded, you mean.” I chewed on the end of my pen. “I wonder what holidays Satanists get? I mean if it's more than Christians, then they might have something.”

Sango ignored my blatantly blasphemous comment and clicked to another channel. I called in a lovely order of California rolls and paid over the phone. I made sure the tip was good; after all it's bad karma to piss off your favorite sushi delivery place.

I giggled as I skipped to the door and turned off the open sign and threw the deadbolts. Sango called to me, “Kagura, Sesshomaru's on TV.”

Damnit. It would seem I was not fated to have even one moment free from thoughts of him. “So? Who cares?”

“Obviously you do. Now get over here.” She spun the screen around. It was a fashion show; the stage was filled with nearly nude women decked out in ridiculous angel wings.

My mouth went dry, “He's at a Victoria Secret show?”

At first I was shocked; it was so un-Sesshomaru to care about a fashion show. Then the helpful announcer came on. “It maybe cold now but we can see how hot this summer will be.”

He laughed as the last model trounced down the run away and through the curtain. Then the commentary continued, “Next up is Chloe Le Faire, a very up and coming model/actress and rumor has it she's been seeing Inu-Sesshomaru, the real estate mogul.”

I pressed my short nose hard against the 13 inch screen and saw a long legged beauty decked out in a silver sequenced thong and a blue sapphire encrusted bra. She had silver gossamer fairy wings strapped to her back and long silver hair that framed her perfectly pointed ears. She was an Inu-yokai.

I swallowed hard.

A very well endowed Inu-yokai. Now everything clicked and I knew why Sesshomaru hadn't so much as called.

“Those sapphires are real folks. That fancy brazier runs a cool twenty grand and is the highlight of the summer collection, inspired by the enchanting sparkling blue Caribbean waters.” The toupee donned news anchor laughed, “And how enchanting it is. Perhaps if Chloe asks nicely, her new beau can arrange for her to keep it.”

His colleague added, “That'd be a hell of a gift Chuck.”

Chuck looked directly in the camera and smirked, “He can afford it Bob.”

CLICK!

Sango leaned over and turned the TV off. I swung around taking in my shiny, perfect, new store. I was okay. I never needed him. Which was good because he'd already found what he needed. I slapped the palm of my hand against my forehead.

No he hadn't found her, he'd BOUGHT her. He realized I wasn't useful and he moved on to the shiniest new car in the lot.

Or maybe that had been his plan all along. I was for fun or whatever he could get from me. He couldn't marry me. He needed some pure blood bitch.

Dog.

Inu meant dog. It was all too much. Well he certainly had found his bitch.

I didn't realize I was on the floor with tears streaming down my face until Sango sat next to me and pulled me into her arms. “Shhh it's okay.”

“No it's not. I can't believe this!” I tried to fight it but I was shaking with anger. “He gave me his sword!”

Sango hugged me tighter, “Maybe that's his gimmick. Giving girls swords…”

My fingers tightened into a fist, “No it's a special sword. I thought… I thought it meant I was special.”

“You are. He's an asshole.” Sango began pushing my hair out of my face. “You don't need him. Look at this place. It's going to be a huge success.”

I tried to push her away but she held on to my shoulders. “All this for a guy you haven't even seen for nearly an entire month?”

I closed my eyes, “I fucked up so bad.”

Sango was insistent. “No. No, you didn't.”

The world was suddenly crystal clear, much like the sparkling waters of the cursed Caribbean. “I… I let him go.”

Sango frowned, “That's not quite what happened. If I recall, you tried to blow him out of your apartment, then you told him to never come back. Kagura, the guy can take a hint.”

I blubbered, “Yes but then…” HICCUP! “…he gave me his sword.”

Sango pulled me to my feet. “It's okay. I don't know what kind of kinky you're talking about but I do know this. IT WILL BE OKAY. He's just one man. The city is full of so many more! And unlike Sesshomaru, most of them don't even have their heads shoved up their asses.”

I couldn't imagine any other man. I was willing to give up everything but not now. “But things were different, now I'm different. I'm safe now.”

As far as Sango could tell, I was speaking in tongues. She answered, “Yes, you are! He was controlling, manipulative and rude. Trust me, you are better off.”

I followed her around as she shut off lights and emptied the trash. “You don't understand!”

Sango swung around to face me, a clear trash bag balanced on her hip. “Yes I do. I understand that we are going out to celebrate your big grand opening. We will be happy. You will be okay and tomorrow will be a new day.”

“But she's a Victoria Secret model!” For some reason this inane fact seemed so important.

Sango threw up her free hand, “And she's God awful. She's a walking skeleton. And those boobs! They look like giant balloon ticks about to pop any moment. How can anyone take her seriously?”

I shook my head, “I read somewhere that underwear models can't have boob jobs, the bras won't fit right.”

Sango laughed as she pulled me out the back door. “Kagura, that's a load of bullshit.”

I glanced down at my own meager assets, “You really think so?”

She slammed the door behind us as I dug the key out of my seemingly bottomless purse. “Girl I know so.”

Of course that didn't make me feel better but in some minuscule way, it helped.

_-_-_

The Devil's Dictionary

Mouse: An animal which strews its path with fainting women

More: The comparative degree of too much.

_-_-_

Thanks for all the kind words about Isabel.

I just got baby Harley Hedgehog. He doesn't give a whit for editing but he makes up for it by being utterly adorable.