Dirty, Dirty Liars [Mature/Editing]

[11] 十一

Ryuzo seemed nervous as we walked down the sidewalk into a neighborhood. I should have been worried about getting kidnapped or murdered. My mind raced with all the reasons he would be more worried than me.

This was his private space, and I had just invited myself over with an unintentional ultimatum. Maybe he had a roommate. Maybe he was embarrassed about where he lived. None seemed to fit as we passed by the new houses sticking out over metal gates.

Just a few blocks from my apartment and the restaurant, he opened a metal gate with a fob and led me to his building. The building was divided into two narrow volumes, one made of black wood and the other of white stucco, tied together with cedar accents and a slate roof. New and modern, the aesthetic played off the materials and lines of traditional houses, and his half was still huge compared to everywhere else I had seen.

Inside, there was no hallway or signs of another person. Just an entryway with three pairs of his shoes lined up next to a worn pair of slippers and another still wrapped in plastic.

No housemates, and no visitors. At least not recently.

Still, without speaking, he helped me remove my coat and hang it up. I took off my shoes while he untied his.

I peeked into the living space. Even in the dark, it was beautiful. The moonlight spilled through a large triple-panel patio door, and over a small deck shrouded in the red leaves of Japanese maples. To the right was an entryway into another room. I couldn't see deeper inside, but I saw enough to know this was a single-family house, not a duplex as I had assumed.

A house in Tokyo — a new, big house in Tokyo. I tried my best not to do calculations in my head while I grabbed the condoms from my bag.

"So . . . You live in a house," I said as casually as I could manage. Ryuzo didn't look offended, but he didn't look happy either. "You've been bending me over on a futon five feet from a mini fridge when you had a bedroom the whole time?"

He gave into my joke with a weak laugh, but his mood was still tepid. I didn't know what to make of that.

When I looked into the room again, a glowing pair of eyes made me jump. Ryuzo looked at me with a raised eyebrow. A black cat stalked into the light and sat at the edge of the step.

"You have a cat?" I asked with surprise.

His eyes drifted down. "Two."

A fluffy version of the same cat appeared, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with the first. It squeaked out little mews until Ryuzo crouched down. He petted both, whispering something to them in Japanese. I melted.

A man with cats. Why was that so hot to me?

He stepped up into the living space, holding his hand out for me to take. I did so, failing to ignore the excitement I felt when my hand was in his. When I looked back, the short-haired cat hissed at me. Cute.

I had so many questions, but it didn't seem like he was in the mood to answer anything else. We went through the dark room, the light from the entryway outlined the modern furniture and large kitchen.

He led me up a flight of stairs. Still, he was silent.

When we made it to the top, I gripped his hand tighter. He turned to face me. "Zo, I'm sorry if I've made you uncomfortable," I apologized. "I didn't mean to invite myself over, I just . . ."

I trailed off when he took my face in his hands and tilted my head up to look him in the eye. "I want you here, Mina," he whispered. "When do I not want you with me?"

He looked down at me with that odd expression, but when his lips took mine, his kiss was anything but ambiguous. The passion in every slow suck of my lips, the slip of his tongue, and its sultry caress of mine. His deep hum of pleasure breathed life into my body again.