Only yours

Men's night

It had been a long night. After Usagi left, I got lost in endless contract negotiations and business discussions. Father's list seemed never-ending, and I could only focus properly once I left the storage room. As a little bonus, I had put in a good word for Usagi with some artists, and they were now considering exclusive contracts with her.

My head was buzzing, and it couldn't just be from the champagne. The memory of the later part of the evening came back to me. I had moved on to a bar with a few people. The last drink seemed to have been a bad choice. This headache was almost unbearable. Suddenly, a loud knock on the door broke my concentration.

"Boss, I hate to interrupt, but we need to leave soon."

Slowly, I glanced at the clock. It was almost noon. "Alright, I'm awake. Give me 20 minutes and get me something for the headache," I grumbled to Massaru. I slowly dragged myself to the bathroom, and as the warm water cascaded over me, my senses finally cleared. I took a tablet and headed downstairs. Massaru had already taken care of everything else. At least I could always count on him.

By early afternoon, I finally landed in Tokyo after some delays. As soon as I entered the apartment, my phone vibrated.

> I'm in Tokyo now. Dinner? - Kunzite.

> With Kaori? <

>She had a layover in Davao. < - Kunzite.

>Then I'd love to. <

> You don't have something against my wife, do you?< - Kunzite.

>Nothing effective. <

> Hahaha. See you later.<  - Kunzite.

At least this meant I could speak openly later without Kaori poking her curious nose into my affairs. But first, I needed to get rid of this stupid hangover. I took another tablet and sat down in the office. I needed a plan to keep Saphir away from her. After hours of thinking, an idea came to me. For now, it would be enough if he stayed as far away from Japan as possible and kept busy.

Call Massaru. "Yes, Boss?" "Do we still have anyone from our team in Brazil?" "Yes, we do." "Then please tell them to go to Saphir's estate. Create chaos or something, anything that draws his attention and forces him to be there as soon as possible." "Understood."

Now I could only hope my plan would work. Even if only for a few days, Usagi would be safe for the time being.

Kunzite was already waiting for me at our usual spot. "You look like crap," he greeted me as I sat down next to him. "Long night," I grumbled back. At least the stupid headache had subsided. "The woman after Saphir?" he asked with a mischievous grin. "Yeah, and then there were a lot of artists and even more alcohol."

I didn't need to say more; Kunzite knew exactly what I meant. He had been to enough of these events and knew how they usually ended. A young waitress approached our table and handed us the menus. "Can I bring you something to drink?" "First, a large bottle of water, and then the house special for dinner," I said politely. "Same for me, thanks," Kunzite replied.

I sank into the menu when Kunzite's question pulled me back to reality. "What's the woman's name, anyway?" "Usagi," I answered without looking up, but I sensed he wanted to know more. "And how is this going to progress?" he asked curiously.

I ran my hand through my hair and looked at him, irritated. "If I knew that, I'd be a lot further along. I messed up in Brazil," I said matter-of-factly, rubbing my throbbing temple. Kunzite perked up, eagerly waiting for more details. "Saphir set a trap for me, and I fell right into it... Or rather, didn't fall in; that was the problem." "Don't make me drag everything out of you," Kunzite grumbled impatiently.