Chapter 12

Chapter 12

T he next morning dawns gray and ominous, just as the weather reports had warned. Leaden storm clouds roil overhead, threatening to unleash their payload of wind and rain at any moment. But despite the foreboding skies, we make it through the day with very little precipitation. Phew. Maybe it’ll hold through the evening open house?

I throw open the Book Club’s doors at seven to welcome our first visitors.

Within minutes, families are streaming inside, eyes wide with delight at the cozy, welcoming ambiance we’ve worked so hard to cultivate. The lobby is a whirlwind of warmth and activity, with staff stationed at various displays to provide information or field questions. And of course, our furry ambassadors are out in full force — dogs, cats, raccoons, ferrets, bunnies, even a few birds perched on stands — all ready to greet potential new human friends. Possibly, even their pairs…

“This place is awesome!” A young girl glances around in awe as her parents lead her over to a rambunctious litter of puppies frolicking in a pen. “Look at all the puppies!”

Her father chuckles. “That’s right, sweetie. Any of these could be your perfect soulmate if you keep an open heart.”

She’s too young to get the animal translation chip, but in a few years, she’ll be hunting for her very own pair.

The words send a fierce surge of pride shooting through me. This is it. This is why we’ve fought so hard for the Book Club’s survival. For them.

“Winta! Over here, come look at this.” Gia’s voice rings out over the cheerful din, drawing my attention to her by the front windows.

“What?” I ask as I join her.

There’s Itsuko, totally loving her job as the club’s cheeky mascot. The sleek little fox zips between guests’ legs, yipping playfully before darting off. She leads a fun chase for anyone brave enough to try to catch her.

“Isn’t she a stitch?” Gia laughs, shaking her head. “That little fur-ball is gonna keep us on our toes all night, I can already tell.”

“What else is new? I’m just glad she’s channeling her chaotic energy productively for once.”

Around the club, families mix and chat, sharing stories about their bonds with their pairs. The community vibe brings a smile to my face.

Yes, this is what I hoped would happen. I’m glad I didn’t give up.

Itsuko seems to sense my thoughts, pausing long enough to come inside, bound over, and butt her sleek head against my shin affectionately.

“Having fun there, you little troublemaker?” I crouch down to give her velvety ears an indulgent scratch.

Itsuko trills up at me, dark eyes sparkling with delight. Then, her gaze shifts over my shoulder, and I don’t need to turn around to know who’s joined us.

“Well, it seems our favorite four-legged hostess has already made her rounds and charmed the entire crowd.” Daichi’s rich voice washes over me, warm and amused.

I look back and see him standing there, smiling comfortably. He looks right at home in the happy mess around him, and for a moment, I can’t breathe, amazed at how well he fits in.

Like he was meant to be part of this all along.

The thought hits me with surprising force.

Shit.

I can’t deny the steadily growing sense that Daichi Kaga is far more than just a kind soul lending his support to a friend.

He’s something more, despite trying to push him aside… several times now.

As the open house rolls on, the warmth of Daichi’s steady presence is at my side, no matter where I go. He’s like my personal shadow — always there with a soft smile, a quip about the hilarious antics of Itsuko leading the kids on a merry chase, or an affectionate brush of his hand at the small of my back whenever I greet a new family.

My insides are a gelatinous mush now, alternately hot with the need for his touch or cold with the realization that people are witnessing his displays.

His casual, harmless touches are driving me crazy. It’s like he’s marking his territory with every glance, every whisper.

My cheeks are on fire. I’m both turned on and infuriated.

A part of me wants to stop this slow flirting that Daichi is indulging in. Doesn’t he know how fast rumors spread? I bet new ones have started in the last ten minutes. But a bigger part of me doesn’t want him to stop. That spark of longing I’ve been trying to ignore is growing stronger with every minute, every touch of his rough fingers on my skin.

By the time the open house has been going for an hour, I cannot concentrate on anything except the electric awareness of Daichi’s proximity thrumming through my veins. The way his warm eyes seem to burn whenever they meet mine, the intoxicating blend of his cologne and the fresh, earthy scent of his soap making my head spin…

I have to get us away from prying eyes before I do something reckless, like grabbing him and kissing him senseless right here in the middle of the Book Club.

Reaching back, I curl my fingers around his wrist and tug him along behind me as I beeline for the supply closet to the left of the staff break room.

“Follow me, please,” I tell him, and Daichi follows without protest, that half-smile still playing about his lips as I usher him inside and shut the door behind us.

For a long moment, we regard each other in weighted silence. I can hear the thunderous pounding of my pulse echoing in my ears as I struggle to find the words to address… whatever this is rapidly becoming between us.

“Winta…” Daichi’s low rumble breaks the tension first, his expression turning serious yet infinitely gentle. “We should probably talk about what’s happening here, don’t you think?”

I let out a shaky exhalation, nodding. This is it, the make-or-break moment to either surrender to him or shut it down for good before it consumes me.

“I can’t… I can’t keep doing this back-and-forth any longer,” I say, unable to meet the heat of his gaze. “Your attention has been incredibly flattering, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t affect me on some level. But we both know the rumors circulating about us are only going to keep escalating if we don’t put some distance between us.”

I chance a glance up at him.

I shouldn’t have looked. He is intent, like a bird swooping in to grab its prey.

Despite my insides flipping around like a gymnast on a liter of coffee, I sigh. “Are you going to keep pursuing this?” My voice is caught in my chest. “Or would you prefer I put an end to it before either of us gets hurt? The Yamato rumor mill is not kind. It ended five of my past relationships, and it almost destroyed my sister, my father…”

For a beat, Daichi is silent, seeming to weigh his response. Then, slowly, he steps closer until the heated line of his body is brushing against mine. My breath catches in my throat as he reaches up to touch my jaw, his thumb stroking along my flushed cheekbone.

“Does it seem like I want to put an end to this?” he murmurs, holding my gaze. “Because I can promise you, the only thing I want is you. I’ve thought of nothing else for days. The rumors, the gossips — I don’t care about any of that.”

My heart stutters in my chest, heat blooming across my skin everywhere his touch ghosts over me. My face, the side of my neck, my collarbone…

What is happening?

“I… I’m not sure that you understand what you’re getting yourself into,” I whisper, hardly daring to believe the words leaving my lips. “There’s a connection here, but you are way, way out of my league, and I’m… damaged.”

He smiles and instead of answering, he leans in closer, so close that I can taste the whiskey and cedar of his cologne on my tongue, can count the dusting of freckles across the bridge of his nose. His lips are a hairsbreadth from brushing against mine as he murmurs, “See for yourself…”

My breath catches as he cups my face in his warm, calloused palms. His eyes search mine for the briefest of moments, silently asking permission, giving me one last chance to pull away before we cross this line for good.

But I’m powerless to refuse the molten heat of his gaze, the undeniable magnetism drawing us together. I should resist. I should say no. But I’m weak.

Instead of retreating, I let my eyes flutter closed and lean in, tilting my face up in wordless invitation.

The first brush of Daichi’s lips against mine is like a spark being struck, igniting a raging inferno inside me. I inhale through my nose as his mouth moves over mine with slow, deliberate intensity, coaxing me open in a low rumble of approval when I can’t stop a desperate whimper.

This is better than I imagined it would be. Better. Hotter.

My hands rise to the solid plane of his chest, fingers clenching in the soft fabric of his shirt as I press closer, suddenly ravenous for more of his taste and the addictive slide of his tongue across mine. Daichi seems just as hungry, one broad palm cradling the back of my head while the other skates down my spine to pull me flush against the hard line of his body.

We both groan into the deepening kiss. I can feel the power in his frame, the restrained strength thrumming through those roped forearms and across his shoulders. It should terrify me, being pressed against such primal, masculine intensity.

Instead, it only pushes me further, faster, stoking the reckless, wild need coiling low in my belly into an insistent ache. I wrap my arms around his neck and rock shamelessly against him, pleading for friction, for release, for anything to slake this sudden, desperate thirst.

Daichi seems to understand without words. His hand leaves a scorching trail down the curve of my spine to grasp my hip, anchoring me against him as he rolls his hips in one slow, filthy grind. The delicious friction has me choking back a moan, nails scoring across his back as I chase that dizzying high.

We become a tangle of questing hands and panting breaths, the world narrowing down to nothing but searing kisses and the molten slide of skin against skin. I lose all sense of time and place, consumed by the electric energy arcing between us.

This… this is what I’ve been missing. What I’ve been yearning for without ever being able to put it into words. The heat of two souls colliding. It’s rapturous, transcendent… utterly sacred.

It’s fucking scary as hell.

And just like that, the haze of passion shatters around me.

Daichi senses the shift, the way the frantic urgency has cooled. He pulls back just enough to meet my panicked gaze.

“There you are,” he murmurs, brushing the pad of his thumb over the swollen curve of my lower lip. “I was wondering when you’d finally let yourself feel it too…” He frowns. “Winta, are you okay?”

“I… I’ve never been kissed like that before.” The confession as it leaves my lips saddens me, shames me, pushes me into a hole.

He tilts his head to the side and smiles as he takes my hand in his. “Then let’s not let it be the last time.”

“No,” I mumble, dropping his hand and hugging myself. “I can’t do this again. Men don’t want that from me. They want…” I swallow to keep the bile in my stomach where it belongs. “They either want a one-night stand or a baby maker.”

His smile evaporates in a flash. “Who… What…?” He’s at a loss for words.

I nod. “You’re probably hoping for a one-night stand, right?” I sigh as his jaw hardens. The lust that swirled between us quickly turns me cold. “Oh yeah, I know all the men talk. Get slutty Winta into bed for a quick fuck? ‘She’s so nice, so easy to manipulate.’ Don’t bother denying it. I’ve heard it all before, straight to my face.” I clear my throat and lift my chin. “Nope. Not going to happen. I don’t do that anymore.”

His mouth is open, his lips forming an astonished O. Yeah, he thought he’d take me home tonight and use me just like the others.

No way. I’m stronger than that.

I shake my head, right my clothes, open the door, and leave him before he can run after me.