AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Keiko took a step back, narrowing her eyes. She’d been on the receiving end of my dragon’s wrath before. “You wouldn’t.”
I kept my voice low and dangerous. “Wouldn’t I?”
This time, Aaron rolled his eyes and stood straight, sweat dripping down his tan cheeks. “Admit it, Dominic. She’s got you whipped over a fucking massage. And it wasn’t even a rub and tug.”
“This’s about that masseuse? The one I met at your place yesterday?” Rin’s eyes widened, and then he nodded. “She was a fox.”
Had it been anyone else making a comment like that about Marissa, I might have felt threatened enough to attack. Instead, I dropped my arms in defeat.
My friends were right. I was completely distracted by that brown-haired beauty. More of an auburn with those streaks of red that glittered like gold in the light. I’d never thought of a woman’s hair like that before, hardly gave the color more than a cursory glance.
But Marissa was different.
Everything about her was different, unique, seductive. Her essence called to me at all hours, day and night, and it had only been a day. No, not even twenty-four hours.
I found myself wondering what kind of shampoo she used and how she took her coffee. All the little details that made up a person. A vivid fantasy of her laughing over breakfast in little more than one of my t-shirts flashed through my mind, and I shook my head to dispel it.
“Fine, I admit it,” I said and shrugged it off. “But it’ll pass, like all the others.”
Rin headed to the side benches and grabbed a bottle of water. “Bullshit it’s like all the others. We’re not blind. Want me to run a background check?”
Brushing wet strands of hair back from my face, I followed. Aaron and Keiko were hot on my heels. “No, I’ve got this handled.”
I leaned against the wall, trying to slow my pulse and clear my mind. But unwanted thoughts of Marissa persisted, haunting me. She was like a drug, and I was an addict after just one hit.
Keiko sidled up next to me with a knowing smirk. “So again, what’s her name?”
I cast her a withering glare. “There is no her because it’s not happening.”
“Yeah, and I’m the tooth fairy.” Aaron stretched his arms behind his back in a languid manner. “Come on, we’ve known you for most of our lives. Who is she?”
“Megan?” Rin rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Melissa?”
“Marissa, and this conversation is over. She wasn’t interested.”
Aaron laughed. “So that’s what’s got you all twisted up, huh? The great Dominic Sato shot down at last.”
Irritation flared, but beneath it, a traitorous part of me couldn’t deny the truth in Aaron’s words. The masseuse had caught me off guard in a way no woman ever had. And that both thrilled and unsettled me.
“Since when has that stopped you from getting what you wanted?” Keiko crossed her arms and cocked her hip to the side. “She won’t say no forever, if only to say she went on a date with a Sato.”
I shook my head, knowing Marissa was different. She would have been a challenge, a thought that excited me, but now was not the time.
“Seriously, Nic, we want to see you happy for once.” Keiko’s voice had taken on a soft tone, and I met her gaze. “You deserve happiness.”
“I can’t afford to think about happiness,” I shot back, my voice tense as I conveyed my hidden meaning. “Not when I’m so close.”
Although we were alone in the training facility, cameras and hidden microphones were as abundant here as in my penthouse, except there they were all mine. The old man wasn’t any more paranoid than any other ruler sitting on a precarious throne.
Still, we kept any discussions about our plans with Ichiro to more secure locations. Even discussing Marissa at all felt like a risk. If my grandfather knew I had a weakness, Ichiro wouldn’t hesitate to use her against me.
“Who says you can’t do both?” Rin countered. “Maybe this is exactly what you need—someone who challenges you, makes you question things, and ultimately makes you stronger.”
“Is she Gifted?” Keiko asked. After I nodded, she said, “Good, that’ll make things easier.”
Exhaustion clung to me like a second skin, but beneath the fatigue was a restless energy I couldn’t shake. My friends’ words echoed in my mind, their persuasion wearing away at my resistance. Maybe they were right.
I knew I should focus on the impossible—gaining Ichiro’s favor. Pursuing a woman, no matter how intriguing, was trouble waiting to happen. Once I took over the empire and made some massive changes to the way business was run, then I could focus on my own happiness.
