now. What are they like?"
The waiter returned with the wine, and Yi-jun paid him and sent him on his way while he filled their glasses. "Let me see.
Yori is the leader. He's tall and good looking but a little too stiff in the sense of humor department. He has been mistaken for a girl many times because of his pretty face, but he does have a masculine physique."
"So that just leaves Ichiro."
Yi-jun sighed contently. "Ichiro you have to see to believe.
He defies explanation."
"Meaning?" Cristal asked now that Yi-jun had piqued her curiosity.
"He has some quirks."
"Quirks?"
Yi-jun nodded. "Imagine a six-foot geisha with long, flowing black hair and blue eyes."
"Yeah, I've heard about those eyes. Geisha? Do you mean he looks like a transvestite and you're too embarrassed to say?"
"No, it's more like he has delicate features. He's too beautiful to be masculine, and he wears kimonos most of the time and hides his face behind fans."
"Wait, isn't he married?"
"So I've heard, though it threw me for a loop since he's so shy and hardly speaks."
"Then what's the attraction? Why would a woman marry a man who looks like a woman?"
"I don't know. Maybe she a closet lesbian and with this she can have the best of both worlds. But you'll find out when you return. Don't be too quick to judge. Ichiro is the best songwriter in the country and a master chef too."
"He cooks?" Cristal asked as she sipped her wine.
"And keeps house. It's his contribution to the group."
"Ah, the group thing. Strange custom. So he's the mother?"
Yi-jun nodded. "He's also a martial arts expert and can kick some serious ass in a fight."
Cristal laughed. "You make me want to hurry back just to meet him."
"Sorry, but you're stuck with me for another couple of days. But I guess I can dress up like a geisha if that's what you like."
"Don't you dare," Cristal replied. "I prefer manly men."
"You might change your mind once you meet the other two."
"I don't think so," Cristal said.
Yi-jun just picked up his glass and chuckled.
Paris by moonlight was something that had to be experienced and seen for oneself. Cristal sat back in the carriage seat, huddling beneath a thick blue blanket with Yi- jun as the driver described each building, nook and crevice they passed. Picture books did not do justice to the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre. The two historical buildings cast huge shadows against the starry night sky.
"Isn't it magnificent?" Yi-jun asked with a contented sigh.
"It certainly is. It's almost better than seeing the cherry blossoms in the spring."
"See - and you didn't think you'd have any fun."
Cristal lifted her Styrofoam cup of hot chocolate to her lips and sipped. "No, I said I didn't come here to have fun. But alas, things like this just break down my work ethic." She sighed. "This is so relaxing."
Yi-jun chuckled. "It's the ninety proof rum that's mixed with your chocolate."
"I just let the man add a little to help ward off the chill,"
Cristal confessed.
He nuzzled closer to her. "That's what I'm here for. You are welcome to share my body heat all night if you want to."
Cristal chuckled. "No thank you...not that the offer isn't tempting. But I don't think you'd respect me in the morning if we shared body heat all night long."
"Yes, I would," Yi-jun answered quickly. "But we might not make it to Basil Degare's fashion show tomorrow."
"Then I won't be able to return to Korea. I bet Mr. Niigata will have someone waiting for me at the airport on the day we return to either take the article from me or give me a pink slip if I don't deliver."
"Why would you want to work for someone like that?"
"Because he pays a damn good salary."
"Money isn't everything, Cristal."
"Says the man who has it all." Cristal shifted in her seat again.
"I do not have it all," Yi-jun said in his own defense.
"Oh, no. When was the last time you missed a meal because you couldn't afford to pay for food, or had your lights disconnected by the power company, or bought a suit off the rack?"
"Okay, but should I feel guilty because I make a lot of money?"
"No, but..."
"But nothing. I might have a lot of money, but it can't buy me true love."
She turned her head to face him. "Is that what you truly seek?"
"Oh yes," Yi-jun replied just as he lowered his lips onto hers.
Chapter Seven
Foolish, foolish, foolish girl, Cristal thought as the clock in Yi-jun's bedroom struck two.