room that was the complete opposite of the raucous party going on beyond the study walls.
Saito-san blocked the view of the two bodies at the desk, but I was pretty damn sure I’d seen blood and gauze along with the glimmer of a knife. Double fuck.
Ken’Ichi was leaned up against the wall by the window, mimicking a shadow. Black from head to sole. Black hair slicked back. Black eyes cast in shadows by the dim desk lamp that was the only light in the room. Black suit that probably cost enough to fund a food bank. Only his white skin stood out as a contrast to the darkness he radiated.
“Shit. Sorry, man,” I said with a drunken smirk toward the small group.
The woman attached to my body giggled.
“I think you should return to the party,” Saito-san said.
I kissed the woman one more time, patted her on the ass in a way that made me cringe from the inside out, and then twirled her out the door. “Sorry, honey, looks like I’ve got other plans.”
I shut the door in her shocked and angry face.
I was going to hell.
Ken’Ichi hadn’t moved, but his voice dripped with disdain when he spoke. “Go back to the party, Langley.”
“Are you sure? We talking about the Ada Mae?” I asked, throwing out the name of my yacht that was at the forefront of our business dealings. I faked a stumble as I stepped another foot into the room. I was trying to see around Saito-san and the suited goon at his side to what was going on at the desk. I was pushing my luck. I’d never forced myself in on any of their talks. I’d posed myself as Jada’s party-happy friend who just so happened to have a suggestion for moving their products.
A groan manifested itself from a body hidden from view.
“This is none of your business.” Saito-san was ominous as he stepped toward me. As Ken’Ichi’s Wakagashira-hosa, it was his job to make sure his boss wasn’t interrupted. To make sure that anything the Oyabun and Ken’Ichi needed done happened, no matter the cost. The scar on his forehead and the one on his neck proved that the work he’d done hadn’t come easily.
“Ken’Ichi, my man, need some help?” I said, leaning a head toward the bodies I couldn’t see.
Ken’Ichi’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly. He hated the disrespect I showed him by using his proper name. I refused to call him Wakagashira or Matsuda-sama like I would if I truly gave a shit. It was the perfect way to get under his skin whenever I could. The crass American, refusing to bow to the honorifics their Japanese culture―and company―held precious.
“Hosa-san, show our guest the door,” Ken’Ichi said to Saito-san before turning away to the window. In the reflection of the glass, he could watch my exit while still having the power of giving me his back.
Saito-san took two steps toward me, but I was already opening the door and stepping out where I bumped into Jada as if she’d been about to enter the room. My eyes tried to send her a warning, but if she saw it, she ignored me.
“Your guests are bored, Ken’Ichi.” Her voice rang out across the room. “Don’t you think you should let them out to have some fun?”
Ken’Ichi turned ever so slowly, his face a blank slate, but even across the room, I could feel the steel in his gaze as it landed on Jada. She was in a tank top that showed her bellybutton ring, with straps so thin they were almost nonexistent. One had slid down her pale shoulder. Her skirt was leather and short, barely covering her ass, and her shoes were stilettos so high I wasn’t sure how she stayed upright. On someone else, the skimpiness might have looked over-the-top. On Jada, it looked like she should have been a movie star.
Ken’Ichi had refused to be moved from his position by me, but her appearance had him stalking toward us. He brushed past Saito-san and landed next to me. He looked from me to Jada and then back.
“You want to help, Langley? Make sure my fiancée gets put to bed―alone―and then clear out the villa.”
Jada rarely had a filter sober, but drunk, it was even more limited. “You don’t own this house. You don’t own me. My guests will leave when I’m ready.”
Ken’Ichi turned to her. “I hope you’ve enjoyed yourself this week, Jada-chan, because this is the last of your parties. No