In Deep Kimchi - By Imari Jade Page 0,93

him. You think I don't remember you stepping out with him when you arrived in Tokyo."

Shaundra rubbed her head. "Why do you insist in making me out to be a hoochie? I haven't slept with Yori either." "What's wrong with them? Are they gay?"

"No, Juanda, they aren't gay."

"You two looked pretty chummy to me on YouTube."

"Looks can be deceiving. Why didn't you believe me before when I told you that nothing was going on between me and him?" She didn't miss the look Tricia gave her. Baby girl could read her inside and out.

The door to her room opened and Yori entered.

"Come on in and meet my kids."

"We've already met," he said rudely. "Can we talk?"

The boys moved away from the bed and pulled their puzzled-faced sisters out of the room behind them.

"Where's Ich?"

"Out in the waiting area talking with Mr. Niigata and Masaaki." He walked over to the bed, took her hand and kissed it like he had that night in the hallway outside her hotel room. Passion flowed through her body. If only things had been different. "How are you feeling? You gave me quite the scare." He stood at the side of her bed.

"I'm okay. I just have a slight headache."

"You were lucky to survive such an explosion without a scar." He paused, still holding her hand. "The police have the culprit in custody. It was a male fan of yours. He's the president of your New York fan club."

Shaundra groaned. "Isn't that something? I thought for sure one of your fan girls decided to take me out." She chuckled weakly. "They do love them some Yori."

"Do you?" Yori asked.

Shaundra didn't answer. She just raised her hand and showed him her engagement ring. He let go of her other hand.

"Ichiro?"

Shaundra nodded. "I knew you were going to go there when you found out."

He moved away from the bed and paced the floor in the room. "Damn right. What did you expect me to do when I heard the news?"

"Why does it matter so much to you? In a couple of months, you will be a married man." The pacing made her dizzy.

He ran his fingers through his hair, mussing up his bangs. "Did you accept his proposal because of that? We could have made some kind of arrangement."

Shaundra's head popped up from the pillow. "What? You think I wanted to be your mistress?"

Yori stopped pacing. "That was an option."

"Not for me. I don't share men."

He turned back toward her. "But Ichiro is a child."

"He's six months younger than Satoshi."

He moved to the foot of the bed. "But he's never been with a woman before."

Shaundra smirked. "Yes, I know." Ichiro was a glorified virgin. The though made her feel all giggly inside.

"I hope that's not the reason you accepted. He won't be able to satisfy you."

Shaundra raised up slightly in the bed. "How do you know that?"

He wiggled the middle finger of his right hand at her.

Shaundra rolled her eyes at him. "Leave it to you to remember that.

No, I didn't accept his proposal because he was a virgin and I'm a cougar.

But I will admit, it was a bargaining chip."

Yori sat down in a chair. "I thought I made a wise decision by setting that wedding date. I thought I could buy us more time and keep you safe from all those who threatened you. I didn't even mind Ichiro dating you after a while. I knew he wouldn't let anything happen to you and he would be there for you when I couldn't be." He paused. "But if I knew the little fairy would have taken advantage of the situation, I would have kicked his ass. If I had only known..."

"What? What would you have done differently, and don't call him a fairy."

"How can you marry him when we feel the way we feel toward each other? I've loved you from the moment you fell into my arms in that hotel lobby on the night you arrived in Tokyo."

"Don't do this, Yori. It's too hard. I've already made my decision."

"The wrong one. You chose Ichiro. I think that's a worse decision than the one I made. I could have accepted it, though, had it been Satoshi. He's wanted you from the first night he met you in that hotel lounge."

"What would you have done if I had chosen Takumijo?"

"That never would have happened. You're not Takumijo's type."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Never mind, this isn't about him."

"What is wrong with Ichiro? He's good, kind and the