The Devil Inside

by Amano, Mia

  I must have raised my voice on that last bit, because both of Masa’s buddies are staring at me. Another of the hostesses, who is holding a tray of drinks, has an expression of shock plastered across her face, her mouth agape.

  “The fuck did you just say, bitch?” Masa’s voice is deceptively soft, and he’s smiling. His perfect teeth are showing, but his black eyes are hard like tiny diamonds.

  “You heard me.” I raise my eyebrows, brushing imaginary dirt from my thigh. “And don’t you dare insult my boyfriend.”

  “Aiyah,” Masa runs a hand through his perfect hair. “Mama-san really fucked up when she recruited you. You are not cut out for this line of work.” His hand slides up the side of my face, his fingers becoming tangled in my hair. He pulls hard, and I wince in pain as my hair stretches taut. “Now do you stay, or do you go?” He pauses, his dark eyes roaming over my face. “That will depend on how co-operative you’re willing to be.”

  “Get your hands off me,” I snarl, but Masa increases the pressure, his hard fingers digging into my skull. I wince. He laughs. I squirm and kick with one of my spiked feet, catching him in the shin. He gasps in pain and releases his grip on me.

  Tonight is going just great.

  I stand, and Masa gets up, both of his buddies rising out of their seats. “Take her out the back,” he snaps. I edge away, but Eiji and Kevin are closing in. “That’s the problem with girls like you. Popular with the customers, but no understanding of how things work around here. This is getting embarrassing. We’ll finish the rest of this interview in private.”

  I shake my head. There’s no way I’m going out the back with this guy. I’m about to take a step back and gauge the distance to the exit when a strong arm slides around my waist.

  “What interview are you talking about, Masahiro?”

  Masa’s eyes go wide.

  I look up in surprise. It’s Kaito. I didn’t hear him at all. He’s appeared behind us like a silent shadow. He pulls me into him, pressing me against his hard frame. His warmth seeps into me. I exhale in relief as his familiar, reassuring scent surrounds me.

  The way he’s holding me is protective, possessive. His voice is low and soft and terrifyingly cold. “Adele is with me.”

  The cruel expression leaves Masa’s face, replaced by wariness. He’s turned about two shades paler. Kaito’s warm fingers slide beneath my jacket and my top, unseen, caressing my bare skin. His touch is reassuring. “From now on, you do not speak to her, you do not fucking touch her, you do not even look at her.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see Masa’s two buddies react with outrage at the words, but Masa makes a little gesture with his hand and they stay where they are.

  The way Masa’s acting, you’d almost think he’s scared of Kaito.

  Who the hell is Kaito to these people?

  Masa swallows, and bows. “Sorry, aniki. I had no idea.”

  “Well, now you know.” Kaito gives me a comforting squeeze. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Adele

  Kaito leads me down the stairway, and we make our way out onto the street. The night’s still young; there are people passing by and a few of the restaurants and bars beckon, the warm glow of their lights spilling out onto the sidewalk.

  “Let’s walk for a while.” His arm hasn’t left my waist and I don’t protest. As we start off, he pulls me close and buries his face in my hair, taking a deep breath. He plants a light kiss on my head. “You okay?”

  “I’m fine.” I’m not, really. I’m shaken by what happened up in Black Rose. I shudder as I try to imagine what some of the other girls must have to put up with. Not all of them have someone like Kaito to protect them. I glance up at Kaito. His eyes are shadowed under the streetlight. “How does that Masa guy know you, Kaito?”

  Kaito hesitates a bit, his face giving nothing away. “We grew up in the same neighborhood.” He stops abruptly, turning to face me. We move to the side of the pavement, my back resting against a brick wall. “You can’t work there anymore.”

  “I need the cash.” I try to keep the desperation out of my voice. Kaito studies me long and hard. He sighs.

  “I don’t know what kind of trouble you’re in, but I’ll give it to you. How much?”

  “Twenty thousand,” I murmur doubtfully, expecting Kaito to retract his offer. It’s not a small amount, certainly not an amount I’m expecting to receive from someone I’ve only recently met, no matter how good he makes me feel. “Minus what I earned last night.”

  To my surprise, Kaito doesn’t even flinch. He just nods. “Okay.”

  “What? That’s it?” We’re facing each other now. I put my hands on his chest, feeling the hard curve of his pectorals beneath the smooth fabric. “You can’t give it to me, just like that. I can’t accept it.”

  It goes against all my morals. I can’t accept money for free, even if Kaito is giving it to me out of some odd, misguided sense of charity. A darker thought tugs at me. What’s in it for him, really?

  Kaito shrugs. “If you can’t accept a gift, then I’ll just have to buy something from you.”

  “What are you suggesting?” My heart stops cold. “You trying to buy my company? Buy your way into my pants? Because that’s insulting.”

  “Don’t be fucking stupid.” Kaito has both hands on the wall, on either side of my face. He leans over me, his depthless eyes intense. I could lose myself in his gaze. Nervous as this makes me, I can’t help but appreciate his beautiful, angular features. The grazes and bruises from the fight with the mobsters have almost healed. His skin is smooth and cleanly shaved, just a shade darker than my own. His expressive lips are pressed together in a frown. He’s suddenly intimidating, overwhelming, impossible.

  Desire rises in me, blossoming through my core. I rage against it, helpless. This is not the time to be losing control. Not out here, out on the street, when Kaito has just suggested the unthinkable. Too late for that. My panties are already wet.

  “You misunderstand.” Kaito’s voice is low and deep, filled with heat. It reverberates through me. He’s so different now to the cold, hard man I saw just moments ago in Black Rose. “I would never suggest anything like that.”

  “Then what?”

  “You’re an artist, aren’t you? Think of it as a down-payment. I want a piece of your art.”

  I blink, surprised. “I haven’t done anything decent in a long time.”

  “Then get creative, lover.” The last word rolls off his tongue slowly, as if he’s savoring the sound of it. A thrill courses through me. For the first time, Kaito’s acknowledged that there might be something deeper between us.

  “So we’re lovers now?” I grin, enjoying the thought.

  “You said it.” Kaito returns the smile. The expression on his face is gloriously sexy, transforming the hardness of his features. I melt a little bit inside. “Now let’s go and find my car, before I do something indecent to you in public.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Adele

  Kaito takes me back to his apartment. On the ride over, he’s quiet, stealing glances at me when he stops at the lights, his hungry eyes roaming over my body. I return the look, watching his face as we speed through the streets of downtown LA. I study the smooth slope of his forehead, the dark slash of his eyebrows, his strong, straight nose and the soft, rounded curve of his lips. His lean, angular jaw. His dark, wolflike eyes, that miss nothing.

  He’s got me trapped in his gaze, and the sexual tension between us is amped up so much I can barely stand it. He shifts gear precisely, deliberately, his long fingers taut on the steering wheel. Every inch in control. I imagine his hands on me. I bite my lower lip and slide my hand down the front of my pants, touching myself through the moist silk of my panties.

  “Do you know how incredibly hot you look right now?” Kaito speeds up and rounds a corner, his eyes flicking back and forth, between me and the road. “You don’t stop that, I’m going to crash the car.”

  “Well, you better concentrate
then,” I murmur. Kaito growls, a low, deep rumble in his throat.

  “You’re gonna be the death of me.”

  “Speak for yourself.”

  We enter an underground parking lot. Kaito’s place is inside a tall apartment complex in the city. As we exit his car, he comes around to my side, sliding his arm around me, pulling me into his strong, hard body.

  We go up in an elevator. As we reach the door of his apartment, his hand slides up underneath my top, fingers caressing my bare skin, curving around my breast, stroking my hard nipple.

  The door opens and we’re in, his hot mouth on mine. He tastes like cinnamon and smoke. His tongue darts between my lips, sure and assertive, searching, finding.

  His hands are curled around my breasts, finding my nipples, tracing around the sensitive skin. I moan in approval.

  “I love this outfit, Adele, but it’s coming off.”

  I raise my arms as Kaito pulls the jacket off me, then the top. The cool air kisses my bare breasts, as Kaito slides his hands down to my waist. He touches his lips to my nipple, sucking it lightly. His hands are sliding to my pants, undoing the button, then the zipper, pulling them down around my ankles. I step out of my shoes and kick them off, leaving me standing in only my black silk panties.

  “Leave the shoes on.” Kaito’s on his knees before me, tucking his thumbs under the edge of my panties. “I like the shoes.”

  I slide my feet back into the heels, twining my fingers in his thick, black hair. I’m all but naked before him. He’s still fully clothed. He’s wearing a black suit jacket, black trousers and a tailored white shirt. His usual attire. The jacket emphasizes his wide shoulders, tapering to narrow hips.

  “Get up.” I tug on the lapels of his jacket, and Kaito rises, running his clever fingers over my body. I shudder under the electric warmth of his touch. “Now that you’ve so skillfully undressed me, it’s my turn.”

  I’m pushing the jacket over his broad shoulders, letting it drop to the floor. I go for his belt buckle next, sliding my hand into his trousers, letting them drop. His erection springs free, and I take his dick into my hand, rubbing the moist tip against the smooth, damp fabric of my panties, against my clit.

  We both let out a low, shuddering moan of pleasure.

  My hands slide up to Kaito’s chest, fumbling with the top button of his perfectly crisp white shirt. He grabs my wrist and stalls, a cautious look in his eyes. He breaks away from my gaze, looking down.

  Hesitating.

  “Show me.” I slide down to the next button, and the next. His shirt opens at the front, revealing a smooth, toned chest, I plant a soft, slow kiss at the centre of his chest, trailing down hard, rigid muscle. I undo the rest of the buttons, revealing a taut, sculpted six pack. “I want to know you. All of you.”

  Holy hell. I rise and pull his shirt down, entranced. Slowly, I reveal broad shoulders and lean, muscular arms. A riot of color plays over his arms.

  I take a deep breath.

  Under the conservative suit, Kaito is hiding something incredible.

  The tattoos curl around the upper part of his chest, stretching over his shoulders and extending down the length of both arms. There’s a dragon over his left shoulder and a riot of cherry blossoms over his right shoulder. They swirl on a backdrop of striking, fanlike black curves, around vibrant, scaled orange koi and lotus flowers, cherry blossom petals scattered in a perfect storm amongst them.

  It’s the most amazing artwork I’ve ever seen. It’s intricate, mesmerizing and frightening.

  These are not ordinary tattoos. The significance of these markings doesn’t escape me.

  But I’m beyond caring.

  “Turn around,” I whisper, and Kaito obeys. The artwork continues down the broad expanse of his back, a menacing demon’s mask staring out at me, grotesque and beautiful at the same time.

  The ink stops just above his well defined ass.

  “Hiding in plain sight,” I marvel. He’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. The pieces I didn’t quite understand before fall into place. This is the real Kaito Araki. Under the controlled, polished exterior is something wild and forbidden.

  Kaito turns and presses me against the wall, his hips grinding into mine. “Now you’ve seen me. Now you know what I am. Second thoughts?”

  I run my fingers up his back, over his smooth, warm skin. “Never.”

  “Good.” He tugs my panties, pulling them down. They fall at my ankles. He lifts me up, both hands gripping my thighs. I curl my legs around his strong torso.

  Kaito trails deep, warm kisses down my neck, reaching that hollow where my collarbone is. He returns to plant his mouth on, my jaw, my earlobe. He holds me up with one arm as fingers find my pussy, and he growls in satisfaction as they slip between the moist folds, feeling my wetness.

  I move my hips back and forth, allowing the tip of his fingers to slide over my most sensitive area. Kaito moves with me, and I feel his hard length up against me, teasing. He pushes me against the wall and enters me. A feeling of intense pleasure builds in my core and I moan, clenching my legs tighter around his hard frame. Kaito thrusts into me, harder and harder, pressing my back against the wall. We move together. I wrap my arms around his neck, threading my fingers through his thick hair, the pressure of our combined bodies suspending me above the floor. Kaito growls and grinds his hips, harder, deeper, and the feeling of pleasure in me builds.

  He pushes my hair back from my face with one hand and meets my gaze, lips pressed together, his expression dark and intense. I stare into his eyes. They’re like endless black pools in the dim light. I’m feeling this insane, erotic pleasure as he thrusts deeper, and I’m responding, moving with him, closing my eyes now the tension builds, and he takes me higher, and higher. I wish it would never end, but I need it to end, need to climax, and I’m crying out, a sound of pure, ecstatic joy, as he comes inside of me, and waves and waves of bliss overtake me. I arc my body and dig my fingers into his back, shuddering as the orgasm courses through me. I sigh, sliding down the wall a fraction, my legs like jelly.

  Kaito pulls away from the wall, lifting me with ease, gently setting me down on my feet. He plants a slow, lingering kiss on my lips.

  The warm glow of a corner lamp reveals a spartan, clean space. Polished wooden floors lead to high, glass windows, revealing the sprawling, glittering city spread out before us. Our clothes are strewn around at our feet. We’re both naked.

  Kaito pulls on his black pants. They sit low on his hips, resting just beneath the taut outline of his stomach muscles. “Welcome to my home.” He grins, and I realize it’s the first time I’ve seen a full, genuine smile from him. Without reservations. Without that razor edge of self-control he seems to wrap around him sometimes, making his thoughts unreadable, his intentions unreadable.

  Here, in his sanctuary, the mask is off and he’s comfortable in his glorious skin.

  “You sure know how to welcome a girl.” The cool air raises fine goosebumps on my skin. I pull on my trousers and jacket, kicking off my spiked heels. They’ve been on the whole time. I follow Kaito into his kitchen. There’s a gleaming island bench and stainless steel appliances that look as if they’ve never been touched. Kaito’s apartment looks barely lived in.

  I spot something on the bench. It’s a cloth wrapped bundle. There’s something that looks like a knife handle at one end, with a black and white diamond pattern along it. It reminds me of a samurai sword, but it’s nowhere near long enough.

  Kaito notices my glance and smoothly whips the mysterious item off the bench, stowing it in a cupboard below.

  I’m about to ask what the hell that was all about, but his bare torso is distracting me. He sets a kettle to boil. “Tea, Adele?”

  “Sure.” I like the way may name rolls off his tongue, as if he’s savoring it.

  Kaito pats the sleek, marble counter. “Sit.” He lifts me up, and leans into me, resting his hands on my thighs. My legs swing back and forth. He looks at me long and hard, h
is expression cryptic.

  I stare back. “What is it?”

  He blinks, as if bringing himself back to the present. “Just that you’re so fucking beautiful.” Kaito shakes his head. “But seriously, I need to know, what do you see in me?”

  “What?”

  “What I do, the way I look, these marks on my body. What do you think it means, Adele?”

  “You told me yourself,” I shrug. “You were mixed up in some bad shit. Who am I to judge? I know what kind of men get tattoos like yours. I think I know what it all means, Kaito. Deep down, ever since that night you beat up those two mob guys, I’ve known. That doesn’t stop the artist in me from appreciating your amazing ink. I don’t care what you’ve done in the past, how you’ve come to be here. I see something beautiful in front of me and I can’t let go of it.”

  Kaito laughs, a low, bitter sound. “That’s the first, and probably the last time anyone’s ever going to describe me that way.” I’m surprised at the shadow of self-loathing that crosses his features. He hides it so quickly I almost miss it. “Self-preservation isn’t your strong point, is it?”

  “That’s why I’m with you.” I take his warm hands into mine. My hands look small and delicate against his long, rough fingers. “You’ve saved my ass twice now.”

  Kaito quirks an eyebrow. “I’m not as honorable as you make me out to be. I have selfish motivations when it comes to you.”

  The kettle starts to boil, steam rising into the cool air. Kaito disengages from me to retrieve a set of teacups and a tin of tea. “You’re mine, Adele. Nobody else is going to touch you. I’d kill them.”

  He pours boiling water and green powder into the cups. His expression is fierce, his hard features shadowed in the low light. I accept a cup of steaming tea, inhaling the rich, aromatic scent. I’m not quite sure if Kaito is serious or not. I half believe he would be very capable of killing someone.