InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Hijacked Honeymoon ❯ Chapter 21

Hijacked Honeymoon

 

Chapter 21

 

Sesshomaru's magical hands and clever fingers had Kagome awash in fiery sensations that left her breathless. With every cell in her body demanding more of his touch, holding still while he applied lotion to her heated skin was an exercise in futility. She'd never known lovemaking could be so erotic or playful or fun. Or that she could be so needy for more.

 

With her senses responding to Sesshomaru like a finely tuned piano, her blood sang with joy, her heart beat to his melody. She'd never felt so alive or natural. Being with him held a rightness that overwhelmed her usual practical self. Once again she found herself yielding to the pleasure of his touch and his giving nature.

 

“When…do I get…to put the lotion…on you?” she asked as heat singed a blaze straight to her core.

 

“Later.”

 

His fingers moved faster, making speech difficult. “How much…later?”

 

“After we make love.”

 

“That's not…ah…I can't think when you…”

 

“Don't think, babe. Tell me how you feel.”

 

“Hot.”

 

“What else?”

 

“Ragged. On edge.”

 

“Tell me.” He withdrew his hand from between her legs and kissed her shoulder.

 

“I feel like a train about to run off the track. Like a sky diver about to leap into space. You've…left me hanging on by a thread.” She turned from her stomach to her back, grapped him and pulled him close for a long, thorough kiss.

 

Even as her lips claimed his, even as she slipped desire from his mouth that stoked her to new heights, her fingers clenched him with the beginnings of desperation. “Sesshomaru, make love to me.”

 

“I will.” He reached for the lotion, a gleam of hunger in his eyes, a touch of deviltry on his mouth. Then he flicked droplets of lotion over her neck, her chest, her stomach.

 

A spurt of heat fired between her thighs as she realized that he meant to spread the lotion over this side of her, too. “But I want you now,” she complained.

 

He took her nipple between his teeth, worked his tongue over the sensitive nub, holding her exactly where he wanted her. His hand closed over her other breast, spreading the lotion, licking circles of heat until her back arched, and soft uncontrollable moans of pleasure danced up her throat.

 

When she could take no more, she tried to roll him to his back, but he wouldn't budge. Instead he raised his head, looked straight into her eyes, his own expression both fierce and tender. “I love you, Kagome.”

 

She raised her hands to either side of his face. “Then make love to me.”

 

He shook his head. “You aren't listening to my words or your own heart.”

 

“Damn, ,you, Sesshomaru. This is no time for a serious conversation. I can't think… You told me not to think…and now you…” hot frustration rose up her throat to almost choke her. She knew he had feelings for her but she hadn't realized they were so strong. But she was having so much trouble with her own powerful need for him that she couldn't cope with his declaration of love. Her eyes brimmed with unshed tears, and he gathered her into his arms as if he'd realized he'd pushed her too far.

 

“It's okay. There's no rush. I'll give you all the time in the world.” He planted kissed on her forehead, her nose, her cheeks, her chin, suffusing her with a different kind of need.

 

She'd seen Sesshomaru's gentleness, his ferocity, his compassion and his tenderness. But until this moment she hadn't seen his vulnerability. When he'd told her, “I love you,” he expected some other response then her holding back tears.

 

But she couldn't give him the words he wanted to hear. She didn't know how she felt, didn't trust her own judgement. And with her blood surging, she only knew that the intensity of her emotions scared her. She could give him that at least.

 

“Sesshomaru, I've never felt like this about anyone before and I'm frightened.”

 

“Of me?” he smoothed back her hair, his eyes puzzled.

 

“Of us. When I'm with you, I don't feel as if I'm in my right mind. My senses are off-kilter. And I want you to hold me so badly that if you let go, I'd be lost.”

 

“I won't let go,” he promised.

 

She knew he wouldn't. and that she could have such an effect on him scared her as much as it empowered her. “hold me, Sesshomaru.”

 

He cradled her against his chest, rocking her, soothing her and at the same time, the friction of her oiled skin against his chest was stoking her up all over again. Only this time the passion wasn't hers alone. She could feel his erection pressing against her and opened her legs, but Sesshomaru still wasn't in a hurry. In fact, she could have sworn from the gleam in his eyes that he fully intended to follow through on his initial plan of diving her wild.

 

However, with her flesh aching for more of his wondrous touches, she couldn't seem to think of a way to change his mind. And she no longer knew if she wanted to. There was something erotic about giving up total control to him. Of simply experiencing all he had to give.

 

And she found lovemaking with Sesshomaru incredibly exciting because she hadn't known she could feel so much, want so much, need so much. When he'd explored her face and neck and slathered lotion over her stomach and legs, when he finally came back to her center and buried himself in her heat, the sweetness of the moment burst in her mind like sunshine.

 

And afterward, as they lay together in the sheets, their legs entwined, she still didn't want to let go. Together, they had found a special place, created an exclusive haven from the outside world that would intrude all too soon.

 

But for now, cocooned in warmth, she clung to him, napped and awakened to find him watching her with a sleepy tenderness that melted her heart. Not wanting to spoil the moment with words, she reached for the bottle of lotion, pleased to find he'd left enough for another bout of lovemaking.

 

Because this time she wanted to be the one to drive him to the brink. She wanted to be the one to explore every muscular inch of him. She wanted to be the one who gave him a special night to remember.

 

And when the sun first spread pink fingers of dawn across the morning shy, Kagome awakened energized. And ready to face what must be done. Knowing that Sesshomaru would be with her in spirit and covering her back, she was sure she was up to taking on Hojo. Sesshomaru's strength gave her the courage to believe she could do what was needed.

 

As Sesshomaru made final plans with Kagome, she realized that she'd been wrong. Sesshomaru's strength hadn't lent her courage. His strength had allowed her to tap into what had always been inside her. Sesshomaru had given her so much. And no matter what happened between them she would always be thankful for his showing her what kind of woman she was.

 

 

During the drive back home, Sesshomaru drilled her on procedure. She listened to his instructions, wondering if his lecture was more for his sake then hers. While she'd try to follow his directions and meet Hojo in public places or at her home where Sesshomaru's team had bugged the place, if Hojo were suspicious, and he would be, he'd have his own agenda. She would attempt to follow Sesshomaru's rules, but if Hojo suddenly decided to take her for a walk or ask her over for dinner at his place, she couldn't refuse every time.

 

Sesshomaru dropped her off around the corner from the tiny home she'd inherited from her mother. Despite Sesshomaru's having told her that what the Shey Group could bug, Hojo could debug, Kincaid had assured them his people had the latest in electronic equipment that not even the FBI could detect. The Shey Group had already placed those highly advanced electronic listening devices in every room except her bathroom, and they would monitor her phone line 24/7 through the FBI tap that Hojo already had in place. In addition Sesshomaru and Kagome had provided a cover story for her that would hold up to FBI scrutiny.

 

Kagome's next-door neighbour on her north side, Mr. Knox, had been encouraged to take a vacation, and from his home, the Shey Group had set up surveillance. Help, should she need it, was simply a shout away. However, unless her life was in immediate danger she was not supposed to call Sesshomaru, which would blow their carefully laid plans. Kagome would have to trust Sesshomaru and his people to keep her safe, even if Hojo tried to force her out of town.

 

As she walked up the driveway, apprehension battled with relief at being home. The frivolous dolphin-shaped mailbox, the green lawn and the familiar rhododendron and the sweeping oak tree that shaped the entire front yard welcome her with their familiarity. The nine-hundred-square-foot brick house might be tiny but it was comfortable. The front door opened into a living area of brown carpeting, paneled walls and a comfortable burnt orange couch. The living and kitchen areas were connected and she headed straight for the phone that hung on the wall by the cozy dining area.

 

She dialled Hojo's cell phone and swallowed hard as she waited for him to pick up. Her choice would have been to get settled, but Sesshomaru had insisted that she call Hojo immediately upon arriving, before he found her.

 

“Special Agent Tachibana,” Hojo answered, his voice sounding irritated and crisp. As usual, he probably hadn't checked his caller ID or he wouldn't have answered the phone in such a businesslike manner.

 

“Hojo, it's Kagome.”

 

“Kagome?” Hojo's voice was odd; excited as if he didn't quite believe it was her. “Where are you? Are you okay?”

 

“I'm home. Could you come by? We need to talk.”

 

“Where have you been?” he demanded. “Why didn't you show up at our wedding?”

 

“That's why we need to talk.” She wondered if he'd always been so cold. There was no I've missed you. No I'm glad you're alive. No I was worried about you.

 

“It's the middle of morning. Why don't you come to my office?”

 

“We need to talk by ourselves.”

 

“Are you in trouble?”

 

“I don't want to do this over the phone or in front of your colleagues. Please, Hojo. Can't you take as early lunch?”

 

“You're never offered to make me lunch before.”

 

Was that suspicion in his tone?

 

“I was actually thinking you could pick something up on the way. But I can heat up soup and crackers if you prefer.”

 

Why were they talking about food? Her stomach was in a hundred knots. She wouldn't be able to swallow water, never mind soup and crackers. Sesshomaru had warned her that fooling Hojo would be emotionally difficult, but she hadn't really understood until now. Sesshomaru had told her that sticking to the truth was always the easiest and best way to act and she held on to that. If cold feet had been the reason that she'd run from her wedding and she'd had to return to face her groom, no doubt she would be nervous. She'd wonder if he would forgive her. Wonder if they'd get back together. So nerves were natural under the real circumstances or the fake ones.

 

However, she didn't just have to deal with Hojo. Sesshomaru was next door, listening to every word. She had to wonder what he thought of Hojo's coldness and what kind of woman she'd been to not only put up with the man but to have been ready to marry him. Talk about complexity, and the beginnings of a headache started to come on.

 

“Fine,” Hojo agreed. “I'll be there in thirty minutes. And I'll need some answers.”

 

It would take him only half that amount of time to drive over. Did he have things on his desk to clear up so he could leave work for the entire day? Or was he notifying his fellow cohorts that she was alive and back in town where he could once again try to manipulate her?

 

She reminded herself that she Shey Group would monitor Hojo's every phone call, his every conversation. The entire point of her pretending to come back to him was to get him to act. She had to be patient. The operation would take time to unfold. This conversation would be the first of many. And if Hojo was indeed guilty of treason, she didn't have to worry over his forgiveness. He would appear cordial and concerned because his role required him to let her work her way back into his good graces.

 

She wished she could talk to Sesshomaru over a radio or walkie-talkie, but he'd told her that kind of communication could be too easily monitored. She'd have to wait to hear his voice until after Hojo left and Sesshomaru could come over under cover of darkness.

 

In the meantime she poured herself a glass of water and swallowed two aspirin. To distracted herself, she paid her bills and had just begun to throw away some rotting fruit and vegetables when Hojo squealed to a stop in her driveway. He might have appeared to have driven quickly, but according to her grandfather clock, he'd taken thirty-five minutes.

 

Kagome rinsed her shaking hands in the sink, dried them on a dish towel and met Hojo at the door. Shorter then Sesshomaru, Hojo was leaner, his hair damp as if he'd stopped and taken a quick shower. She opened the door and stepped back, wondering if she should just throw herself into his arms. The thought of Sesshomaru watching from next door stopped her as much as the fact that she and Hojo had such a reserved relationship that such an action would have seemed desperate to him. And very possibly unwanted.

 

Kagome wanted to appear thoughtful and reasonable, not desperate, and was pleased when her voice came out sounding almost normal. “Come in.”

 

Hojo stepped inside with his usual arrogance. It wasn't as if he looked down snobbishly at her modest home, but as if he didn't deign to notice the comfortable if shabby furnishings. “I was worried sick about you. I've missed you. where the hell have you been?”

 

The first two lines sounded rehearsed. Although he'd obviously tried to put felling into his words, they seemed forced and insincere now that she knew what to look for. Compared to Sesshomaru's genuine warmth, Hojo's tepid voice left her cold and so glad that she hadn't married him and made the biggest mistake of her live.

 

On the other hand, his angry demand about her whereabouts sounded real enough. While his damp brunette hair was neatly combed and he projected concern, she wondered if his brown eyes had always been so sharp, and if his line lips were always drawn into such a tight line that he appeared to have swallowed something bitter.

 

“Please have a seat.” When he stiffly sat on the sofa, she asked, “Would you like some sweet tea or a cola?”

 

“What I'd like is an explanation for why you left me standing at the altar, looking like a fool.”

 

This time she heard real embarrassment mixed with a feigned sadness. Sitting in her easy chair opposite the couch, she gave him the cover story Sesshomaru and she had concocted. “On the way to the wedding, I got scared.”

 

“Why?” this time he revealed bewilderment.

 

“It was so soon after my mother's death. I was afraid I was depending on you instead of standing on my own two feet. And I wasn't sure I was marrying you for the right reasons.”

 

“Most brides consider these issues when the man proposes, not on the way to the wedding ceremony.”

 

“I needed to be certain our marriage was the right thing for me. I had so many doubts. If Mom had been alive she would have reassured me. If Sango had been there she would have told me I was just being silly. But I was alone, and I didn't want to do the wrong thing.”

 

“Not showing up was the wrong thing.” Hojo's voice was compassionate. And sour. “Where did you go? Did you realize the police were looking for you?”

 

“I had no idea.” Since the limo driver had been part of the Shey Group operation, he'd disappeared after returning the car, and no one had been able to trace him and question him. His employment records had been faked as well as his address and social security number. Not even Hojo's fellow FBI agents had been able to trace him. So this part of her story couldn't be verified. “I had the limo driver turn around and take me to an old friend of my mother's. she lives about an hour north of Canfield. I stayed with her until I sorted things out.”

 

“What was her name and address?” he asked.

 

Interesting how he was more concerned with verifying her story them what she'd sorted out about their relationship. If she hadn't been certain he was everything Sesshomaru had claimed—his last question solidified in her mind that Hojo wasn't the upstanding FBI agent he claimed to be.

 

“What does my location matter?” she snapped at him, then put hurt in her tone. “Don't you want to know what I think about us?”

 

“Of course I do, dear.” He leaned over and patted her hand and backtracked. “I just like to get details straight in my mind. And I don't understand why you were so concerned about leaning on me for support. That's what husbands are for.”

 

Oh, he was smooth all right. Once she would have fallen for that kind of line. But now she saw that his words were simply a veneer to cover up his lack of real feeling.

 

“Then you understand that I also had to get things straight in my mind?” she tossed his own words back in his face but smiled sweetly to take the sting out of her reply.

 

She suspected he wanted to press her for facts a about her whereabouts during her absence but realized how out of character that would be for a man in love. So he swallowed back his curiosity and leaned forward, his eyes intent as if his very future hinged on her.

 

“And what did you deicide about us?” his hands twitched. A muscle in his jaw tightened and he held his breath, the picture of an ardent suitor on pins and needles.

 

For a brief moment guilt stabbed her. She wasn't a cruel person and to put a man through what she'd put Hojo through was not only heartless but sadistic. What kind of bride-to-be wouldn't have at least phoned to reassure hr love that she was safe?

 

But then Kagome realized that Hojo had never been worried about her—only that her disappearance had compromised his mission. No doubt, somewhere his superior was highly annoyed with him and putting pressure on him to complete his assignment. That strain was the stress she saw in his eyes and felt emanating from him hot enough to burn—not desire for her, certainly not passion.

 

“I think…I need mo time.”

 

His eyes narrowed. “What are you saying?”

 

“I'm still just not sure. Marriage is such a big decision and I don't want to make a mistake.”

 

“So you ending…us?” anger, but not one hint of hurt suffused his tone. “This is goodbye?”

 

“No. No. No. I'm sorry.” She raised her hands in the air and let them flutter helplessly to her lap, then warned herself not to overdo the theatrics. “I'm just so upset I'm not being clear.”

 

“So you want to get married. That would be great. We can reschedule and—“

 

“ No, Hojo. I'm saying I'm still not sure and want to give us more time.”

 

His posture changed from stiff to stiffer. “How much more time?”

 

“As long as it takes?”

 

“I don't understand.” He was probably attempting to sound confused ut to her ears his tone came out strangled. “Are you having doubts about me? Or about yourself?”

 

“Both.”

 

“What can I do to fix that?” his eyes projected kindness and a can-do attitude. Clearly, Hojo thrived on a challenge, and she couldn't help admiring his stick-to-it-ness that made it easier for her to continue as Sesshomaru had suggested.

 

She figured she was doing okay. Holding up her end of the bargain with Sesshomaru. She hadn't ended her relationship with Hojo and by the time he left, he'd agreed to “date” for a while until she could get a handle on her feelings. Step number one had been accomplished and she prayed the rest would go down just as easily.

 

 

“We've got a problem,” Sesshomaru said after making sure the shades were down and greeting her with a kiss that told her though they'd only been separated for hours, it had seemed longer. And she was surprised at how much she'd missed him, wanting his arms around her and his kiss much more then his explanation.

 

Sesshomaru kissed her thoroughly and pulled back reluctantly, admiration in his eyes. “You did great with Hojo. I was proud of you. if I hadn't known better, I would have thought you a professionally trained agent.”

 

“Thanks.” She hugged him, warmed by his praise, so happy to see him after the trying afternoon. Compared to Hojo, Sesshomaru's honest praise was like taking a how shower after coming in from the rain.

 

With a grin Sesshomaru handed Kagome a bag of groceries, and she unpacked a flank streak, Idaho potatoes, salad greens, fresh asparagus and ice cream. Yet her thoughts weren't on food but on how much she'd missed Sesshomaru today. After Hojo had left, it had seemed to take forever until dark, until he could he certain no one was watching. As she waited impatiently for Sesshomaru to arrive, she'd finished cleaning out her fridge and cleaning hr home until it was spotless. She'd thrown an afghan over a lamp to soften the glow and drawn the shades. She fluffed the pillows on the couch, changed the sheets on the bed, regretting that she and Sesshomaru couldn't make love because of microphones planted in her bedroom, so instead she dreamed of holding him, kissing, talking to him.

 

And now that he was finally here, she couldn't take her gaze off him. But best of all she could be herself once more. There was an ease between Sesshomaru and her that had grown over the past few days. An ease that she appreciated all the more after the stiff conversation with Hojo.

 

After placing the ice cream in the fridge, she plucked a lighter from a drawer and tossed it to him. “Grill's on the back porch.” With her fenced backyard, they were safe from prying eyes and not even satellite surveillance of her home could penetrate the old wooden porch roof. “What's the problem?”

 

Sesshomaru headed out the back door and kept talking over his shoulder. “After Hojo left, he went to the mall.”

 

Since the house was so small, she had no trouble hearing him as she rinsed and dried the vegetables, potatoes and making of a salad. “So?”

 

The gas grill huffed as he lit the burners. “We think Hojo made a contact there.”

 

Kagome dried the potatoes with a paper towel, placed them on a plate and into the microwave but didn't turn it on. “Sesshomaru, I don't understand. Isn't that what we wanted? Isn't the plan to get Hojo to reveal his people?”

 

“Yeah, but we almost interrupted a legitimate operation. Hojo does lots of authentic work. So determining when he's on a real case for the FBI or his own is going to be difficult.”

 

She took out a cutting board and began to chop celery and carrots. “We knew this going in, right?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“So, I'm confused.”

 

“I should have said that Hojo has a problem.” Sesshomaru opened her fridge door and took out a bottle of barbecue sauce, then headed back with the steak in one hand, the sauce in the other. “With him involved in multi operations, he can't easily get out of town or take a vacation.”

 

Placing butter in a frying pan, she added garlic salt and let the better and spice simmer on low before adding the asparagus. “And?” she prodded.

 

“We have a lot of men tied up in this operation. The longer it goes on, the greater a chance of a leak.”

 

“Are you worried about the expense?”

 

“No. if Hojo discovers we're watching him, he won't do anything at all and we won't catch him.”

 

She tore apart leaves of lettuce and tossed them into a bowl. “How can I help?”

 

“We need to think of a way for him to get time off. Time to make a move.”

 

“Can't his superior give him vacation time?”

 

“We don't know if his superior is in on his duplicity.”

“Oh, I should have thought of that.” She tossed the celery and carrots into the salad, added pine nuts, raisins and mandarin oranges from a can, and turned on the microwave. “don't you want me to suggest that we need to spend some private time together? I can't guarantee he'll agree. He's very picky about his work schedule. In fact it took him months to pick just the right date for our honeymoon.”

 

“I don't like the idea of you being along with him. Of goading him into spending private time together,” Sesshomaru admitted.

 

“Why?”

 

“You know why.”

 

Sesshomaru's tone was calm and firm. She had to remind herself that every word they spoke was being picked up by those microphones. She didn't have a stereo system, but her radio might make their conversation. She turned it to a local country station, adjusted the volume higher then she would have normally, then joined him on the back porch. “If we whisper, can your friends hear us?”

 

“He shook his head. “Not unless they turn over the tapes to an expert to clean out the background noise—which they won't do without a damn good reason.”

 

Reassured, she wrapped her arms around him and kept her voice low. “Did I tell you how much I missed you today?”

 

“Did you?”

 

she tilted back her head and locked gazes with him. “After Hojo left, I didn't feel clean. I let in fresh air and scrubbed the house and then took a shower, but until you arrived, I didn't feel like myself.”

 

“The thought of you with that bastard—“

 

“Don't.” she placed a finger over Sesshomaru's lips. “Don't do that to yourself. He didn't hug me or kiss me. Out only contact was when he touched my hand and I had to force myself not to jerk back.” She shuddered and let Sesshomaru see her distaste. “I'm not sure what I ever saw in him—except at the time he seemed safe.”

 

“For years he's fooled lots of people. Don't be hard on yourself.”

 

“It's not that.”

 

“Then what?”

 

“I want you to know that my feelings for you are nothing at all like—“

 

“Good.” His mouth angled down over hers.

 

And the lights went out.

 

A/N I have nothing to say…hahahahaha…