The gigantic, shiny, automatic metal doors of Yamada Industries reminded twenty six year old Nadia Stone of a death trap. The metallic, sturdy pillars were a minor nuisance but a necessary one. It was a constant reminder to the workers and visitors of the building that Yamada Industries was a forced to be reckoned with. Slowly, but surely, the third largest technology conglomerate in America would surpass its rivals. That being said, a bit of tasteless decorative architecture should be tolerated.
Momentarily forgetting her disdain of the building’s design, Nadia checked her make up several times, knowing that she must look like a monster. Her normally clear skin, the color of russet brown, was now flushed due to her running up three flights of stairs after exiting the train. She always tried to avoid the rude morning rush of people exiting the train station at Gibson Street and Hirsch Avenue, but she soon learned that just like the other commuters, expecting politeness was a fairy tale. Nadia cursed the subway, and even more than that, she cursed the obnoxious jerks that didn’t know what ‘yield to the right for faster passengers’ meant.
Her natural, fluffy shoulder length hair, normally worn in an afro was a lovely shade of darkened cinnamon, but had since lost its luster because of her unexpected jog. The Seiko watch that her best friend Angela Davidson had given her on her birthday last July signified that she had three minutes to get to work on time. Managing to catch a relatively empty elevator, Nadia leaned against the wall, ignoring the other riders. As the other workers exited on their particular floor, Nadia realized that she was on the elevator alone with the one other person. She gathered her briefcase and removed her coat, taking a brief glance at the other passenger.
The man was listening to someone speaking rapidly in another language on his cell phone. It was a sleek silver gadget, no doubt loaded with all the current software that upwardly mobile enjoyed. The electronic toy certainly helped to reinforce the carefully crafted stereotyped image of the technologically advanced businessman. Still, the phone helped to accentuate his features. He was in his late twenties, maybe early thirties and remarkably handsome. He was clearly of Asian descent, and his almond shaped eyes were the color of sepia shined through a clear glass. His skin was nicely tan, no doubt evidence of summers spent in warm, island-like climates. His smile was vibrant, and he was rather tall, considering that she stood at an above average height of 5’8.
His suit had to be Armani and she knew that his watch was an expensive brand as well. Finished with his call, he promptly closed the clam shell style cell phone, and took notice of the other rider in the car. He seemed amused by her staring. Nadia, embarrassed at being caught, looked away quickly. She coughed gently into her hand, desperately hoping to quell the reddish hue spreading across her cheeks. As a black woman of medium brown complexion, there was an inherent advantage against blushing. The darker the skin, the harder it was to make out the redness of her cheeks.
The plateau of silence continued, only this time it was more pronounced. Never one for awkward situations, Nadia stared at everything in the elevator but the man. Brushing an errant strand of hair behind her ears, Nadia bit her lower lip nervously. She hoped that she hadn’t offended the man, but a little staring never hurt anyone.
His deep chuckle silenced her inner monologue, and she couldn’t help but notice that he had a nice laugh. She wondered if his voice was just as nice. She could imagine him whispering deep naughty thoughts in her ear. Biting her lower lips to quell her moans, she clench her legs together tighter, grateful that she had wore a pantsuit today. What was wrong with her? Never had any man, by the sound of his voice alone, made her body want with desire.
Glancing at the flashing numbers before her, Nadia was grateful that her floor was only two stops away. Just as the elevator passed the 17th floor, Nadia adjusted her bag, grateful that the strange moment would soon be over. She turned to him once more, to enjoy one last stolen glance.
He smirked at her behavior, and the congenial smile that usually resided on her face disappeared in a flash. He pressed the elevator’s emergency stop button, and they both wobbled for a moment, before regaining their balance. He looked prepared to say something sarcastic, but before giving him the opportunity, Nadia heard the familiar ‘ding’ of the bell.
“What are you doing? Don’t you know it’s dangerous to play with the elevator buttons like that?!”
She spat out indignantly, wondering if her initial assessment of him was incorrect. She pushed past him, pressing the “resume” button. She returned to the corner, stepping off the elevator. Not bothering to spare the strange man another glance, she steeled herself for another day in the grind. Nadia just couldn’t understand it. Why were all the people in this building a bunch of oddballs?
Her father’s words reverberated through her head, a constant reminder of what she had gotten herself into. He considered writing to be a soft skill and had always wanted her to major in a more hands on program of study. His daughter was supposed to be the next best black scientist or engineer. He always believed that Nadia’s Bachelor’s degree in English was useless if she didn’t properly market herself. Like a fool, she listened to her father, and found herself stuck in a job she hated. Her once vibrant dreams of penning the great American novel had at been halted when she began working at YamaIn, as the company was lovingly called by its employees a.k.a. peons.
Her dismal world view hadn’t always been so apathetic. There was a time when she had been an idealistic, wide eyed grad, looking to work for a company that offered not only an impressive benefits and pay package, but also allowed for her to further cultivate her skills. How could that happen however, when she worked for one of the most toxic bosses in existence? The only thing she could cultivate in this office was a headache and an eventual tumor from the stress!
“Stone, I needed that PDF on chapter thirty-six last Thursday! What the hell were you and section four doing yesterday? I have to turn in the eighth section next week!”
A shrill voice interrupted her thoughts once more, and Nadia wondered how long it would be before she opened fire on everyone in this godforsaken place. Her supervisor, the blond, bossy, Cassidee Jamison was once again at her throat. Had she done anything in a past life to offend the gods to deserve such a fate? Sipping her warm cocoa, Nadia nodded along diligently. Cassidee could be talking about the hot date that she had last night, but she still wouldn’t care.
“If you’ll recall, I turned in section four last week. I also emailed and faxed sections five through seven to you, Cassidee. I am waiting your final proofs.”
Nadia stated, stifling a yawn. She sipped her morning cocoachinno, enjoying the taste of French vanilla and cocoa mixed together to create a beautiful medley of flavors that her deserving palate yearned for. Although the liquid treat was delicious, it threw her dieting plans into the shit hole. She was already 180 pounds! Frowning at the thought gaining more weight, Nadia guiltily sipped on, refusing to have her mood dampened.
Though she had long reconciled with the fact that she would never be a size eight, Nadia still endeavored to lose weight if not for aesthetic purposes than for her own health. She had always been large, but she found herself sexy. Apparently she wasn’t the only one if the ogling men on the street were any indication of her sexiness. She stood up, and downed the remaining caffeine laced beverage in one gulp. She would need as much energy as possible to deal with Cassidee Jamison for the rest of week. God she hated Mondays.
“Stone, I want chapters twelve through seventeen of the high school mechanics book by 9:00 am sharp tomorrow.”
Cassidee growled, and with a flip of her long blonde hair she went off to terrorize someone else in the department. Nadia groaned as she settled herself into her snug little cubicle. She hated these boxed-in mini offices more than anything else in the world. She never understood why the inventor of cubicles would want to torture disgruntled office workers with the cramped box from hell. The cubicle offered no privacy, and she could barely turn around in there.
Turning on her computer, and reading over the massive footnotes, highlights, and post its all over the 560 page manuscript, Nadia knew she would get a headache today. As a technical writer, it was her responsibility to ensure that the author of the book wrote in language that was understandable to the reader, but effectively conveyed useful information. She heavily edited several popular technical books, although she never got name credentials on the flap jackets of textbooks, or do-it-yourself manuals. Taking a deep breath, she began to tear through the manuscript.
She was so engrossed in her work that she hadn’t noticed the hours wasting away. The good thing about this particular assignment was that the author was a fairly good writer, who tended to avoid making many grammatical errors or using verbose language. The bad thing was that this writer packed the pages with unnecessary notations to the “bleeding moron assigned my groundbreaking text”. She had already breezed through seventy pages and it was only thirty minutes to lunch time.
By 1:30, Nadia realized that she had missed her normal lunch hour because she had been so involved in editing. Standing, she stretched her limbs, needing to get the blood flowing once more. Grabbing her purse and jacket, Nadia headed for the elevator, being sure to avoid “Crazy Cassidee” on the way down. This time she noted that the elevator compartment was empty. Why was she going up when she had clearly pressed the down button?
“Great, you’ve done it again, Dia. Now you’re headed to the executive offices.”
No matter how much she hated working at Yamada Industries, she still needed a job. There was a benefit to being a mindless drone in the company—complete and total anonymity. She was just another worker in a group of thousands. The last thing that she wanted or needed was to be known as a trouble making low level employee that didn’t know when to stay out of sight.
This belief was further accentuated when the elevator opened to the 33rd floor. The executive floor was sleekly designed and indicative of the Japanese heritage shared by the founder of the company. Although the corporation’s American Branch was based in Atlanta, the higher ups didn’t succumb to Southern culture. All around the room was Japanese artwork from wall scrolls to tatami mats. The receptionist even wore a traditional yukata. Nervous enough, Nadia bit her lip before quickly pressing the ‘close door’ button.
Before the doors closed however, a tan hand wrenched it back open. Again, Nadia found herself face to face with the annoying guy from this morning. If his smirk was any indication, he was amused to see her. Rolling her eyes, and stepping back into the corner of the elevator, she tried to ignore his presence as they headed towards the ground floor.
“Well, well, if it isn’t Little Miss Ogle. What’s the matter? Have you not gotten in the required staring dosage for the day?”
He grinned, showing off two rows of perfectly white teeth. He leaned a bit closer to her and his cologne drew Nadia in even more. He was a good 6’2 at least, an uncommon, but certainly not rare height among his race.
“Please. You’re not that fine no way. I just stared a bit because you look like a guy I saw on tv, that’s all.”
“So you think that I’m fine huh? I can’t argue with you there.”
Who did this guy think he was anyway? Did he fancy himself some sort of Asian Don Juan? Yes he was sexy as all get out, but there was no way in hell she was going to mention this aloud. Besides, he was annoyingly self confident. Guys like that always meant trouble. Her best option was to ignore him.
“Hey? Hey?! Earth to Miss Ogle, I’m asking you a question.”
She would just ignore him. The ground floor was only 24 stops away. It certainly was odd that no one had gotten on the elevator yet. Nadia glanced at her watch once more. 1:46 p.m. Cassidee would not be pleased when she returned, but dammit she deserved a lunch break!
“I’m sorry were you talking to me?”
She responded, finally acknowledging the man. He frowned, moving to push to ‘stop’ button. Once again, the car was brought to a screeching halt, sending her careening into his arms. Nadia yanked her body away from his, cursing herself for enjoying the feel of his hard body against hers. She went to press the ‘resume’ button, but his hand reached out to her pulling her back to him.
“Why are you so crabby, baby? Are you on your period or something?”
The first thing that ran through her mind was that his eyes were even more beautiful up close. The second thing was that this fool had the nerve to grab her arm. She restarted the elevator, and he stopped it again, until finally, the lights went off and the car stopped moving completely.
“Now I know you have lost your ever loving mind. First of all you do not grab me. You do not know me like that! Secondly, the car has stopped, and we are now stuck in here because of you. There goes my break, asshole!”
“Chill out, babe. These shortages happen all the time. We’ll be moving shortly. Besides, you look like you need the break.”
Where did this guy get off calling her babe? Nadia fumed, crossing her arms petulantly. She began to rant like she always did when she was angry. It had always been a bad habit of hers. She would go off into a long tirade, completely disregarding present company.
“Ryochi.”
His voice interrupted her thoughts, and she couldn’t help but narrow her eyes in anger. His outstretched hand was waiting to be shaken, but the childish part of Nadia refused to give in. Her adult side won out, and she weakly shook his hand. They both withdrew as if suddenly shocked.
“I’m Ms. Pissed Off, but you can call me Nadia.”
Ryochi couldn’t help but stare at this woman in wonder. There was something amusing about teasing her. When he had caught her staring, he expected her to do what women normally did when caught ogling him—go in for the kill. He didn’t really peg her as the man-eater type. Speaking of types, she wasn’t really his, but there was her candor to like. She was taller than most of the women he dated, with darker skin and eyes. She also weighed more than his average date by more than 50 pounds.
Still, despite her earlier tirade, she possessed a certain innocent quality that intrigued him. She was dressed nicely enough to be considered a working professional. There was nothing remotely provocative about her, and yet he found himself drawn to her whiskey brown eyes as if they held the key to the universe.
She obviously worked for the company, but in what department? He remembered her getting off on the 19th floor this morning. That was where mid to low level employees worked. Most likely, Nadia worked in Human Resources, Acquisitions, or Publishing.
“Hmm… it’s 2:05. It looks like we will be here for a while longer. I better call my boss.”
Ryochi watched as she pulled out a blue phone, quickly punching in the numbers. She pulled back her fluffy hair and he noticed that her ears weren’t pierced either.
“Hello Rita? Hi, it’s Nadia. Could you put Cassidee on the phone? Thanks.”
She waited for the Cassidee person, while Ryochi watched her twirl her hair in silence.
“Cassidee, it’s Nadia. Listen, I can’t get back to my desk by 2:25 like I promised. Why? It’s because some jerk got me trapped in the elevator with him! Yeah. Oh, okay. Bye.”
“Ooh, that sounded harsh.”
Ryouchi said, bringing Nadia from her reverie.
“You don’t know the half of it. I’ve been working for Cassidee Jamison since I was hired fresh out of college, and she’s been like this since I’ve known her.”
“You don’t get along huh?”
He asked, loosening his tie. With the car not working, the enclosed space was getting hotter by the second. Already a thin sheen of sweat had developed all over Nadia’s body.
“Let’s just say that there are bosses, and then there are toxic bosses. I guess that I had hoped that I could move out from under her and eventually leave my banal career as a YamaIn worker bee.”
Ouch. Ryochi hadn’t realized that some employees would have negative experiences working at Yamada Industries. The company had been founded with workers in mind, or so he was always taught.
“You don’t like working for the company?”
He asked, curious about her opinion. If Adrian were here he would probably congratulate him for showing a genuine interest in the morale of his employees.
“It’s not that I don’t enjoy working here. It’s just that I feel as if all of my creativity is slowly being drained by this building and its inhabitants. I’ve applied to the creative branches of the company with little success.”
“What do you do?”
He asked, sliding down to sit on the carpeted floor. Nadia raised a brow at this, but joined him anyway. She didn’t think he was the type that could stand to have his Armani sullied.
“Officially, I am a technical writer. I would like to apply my skills to more interesting outlets, however.”
“Oh! You must work in the publishing offices then. I know the head of the department. DeJuan Sparks, about 6’4 loves to golf, married with three kids.”
“Uh, yeah he’s my boss’ boss. Although I have spoken a total of ten words from him in the four years since I’ve been here.”
Suddenly, the whirr of an overhead fan returned. The two occupants sighed with relief as the elevator head downward. Nadia pressed the 19th floor button and straightened her suit. No doubt the lack of cool air had frizzled her hairstyle.
“See, whaddya know? We’re moving again!”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s no thanks to you. You just cost me lunch pal!”
“Did I? How about the next time we meet, I’ll treat okay?”
As the elevator reached her floor, Nadia couldn’t help but feel relief. Waving Ryochi off, Nadia exited the car before being pulled back once again.
“In case I forget, what was your last name?”
“It’s Stone. Nadia Stone.”
He smiled, mouthing her name as if he were burning it into his mind forever. His actions were peculiar, but if there was one thing Nadia learned today, it was that Ryochi was a peculiar man.
“I’m Yamada. Ryouchi Yamada.”
He said before leaning in to chastely kiss her cheek in front of everyone near the reception area, including her obviously pissed boss Cassidee. Just before the doors completely closed, she could hear him whisper—
“Until we meet again Ms. Stone.”
CHAPTER TWO
One week later, on the 19th floor of the Yamada Industries building, Nadia Stone still could not get Ryochi Yamada out of her mind. The harmless, casual flirting had been fun, but her overt insults towards the company and her boss was not only unwise, but she may have very well risked her position in the company.
However, after a week of silence from the higher-ups, maybe it was safe for her to say that she had successfully dodged a bullet.
Of course, just because her job was secure, didn’t mean gossip didn’t continue. As soon as she had exited the elevator, everyone began to coalesce around the reception area, and among the pack was her obviously perturbed boss, Cassidee.
Just looking at the older woman, Nadia knew that she was in hot water. Despite being known around the company as a quiet, complacent worker, gossip in such confined corners was not uncommon. Nadia had just become cannon fodder for the wolves who had nothing better to do than speculate on the romantic adventures of their colleagues.
No matter, Ryochi Yamada was out of her league. He didn’t go for women like her and certainly not the ones who challenged his egotism. Cracking her fingers, Nadia typed furiously on her keyboard, dead set on meeting the pushed up deadlines that Cassidee so unreasonably set forth. She was so occupied by her work that she didn’t realize that her phone was ringing until her coworker, Jason Mikkos reminded her to answer the phone.
“Nadia Stone, Assistant Technical Writer.”
She could hear nothing but the sound of crackling audio. She repeated her name and title a total two times before finally giving up and disconnecting the line. It was probably just a wrong number. She herself had accidentally called wrong numbers just by transposing a single digit. Besides, she didn’t have time for chit chat. She needed to finish the final draft of the user guide of an upcoming Microsoft MP3 music player by week’s end.
As her hands hovered over the keys, Nadia suddenly wondered if what she was doing really mattered in the scheme of things. Whether she worked at a furious pace, or as slow as a snail, she would still get paid the same, and she would remain a cog in the wheel of an industry giant. Like her father said “goals without ambition or initiative were nothing more than pipe dreams.”
How many times had she bemoaned her fellow coworkers about the pointless drivel that they directed towards Cassidee? Though sycophantic gestures had never been her style, it had made a few of her coworkers become more alluring to Cassidee’s eyes. Promotions had not been plentiful, and they came at the cost of one’s dignity.
All of the butt kissing and insincere words hadn’t got many of them what they wanted or where they wanted to be. Instead, Cassidee reveled in their praise, never once considering that they had dreams and aspirations of their own. Then again, Cassidee was like a thorny rose, beautiful and elegant, but also painful and prickly.
Frowning, Nadia stood and stretched, needing to get the blood flowing in her legs. Today just wasn’t a good day for her. She had barely managed to finish some of the assignments and she was only just now meeting her productivity schedule. This was good news because she would be free of these projects by the end of week, leaving her time to go home and relax. Yet to whom was she heading? Max, her newly adopted Jack Russell terrier puppy Jacques was the man of the house.
Although he was cuddly and at times too cute for human comprehension, Max couldn’t give her the affection that a human companion could. She wanted to be loved, kissed, and desired unconditionally. Unfortunately, her beloved pet could not satiate the needs that only a man could satisfy. Well, there was her Hitachi Magic Wand, but eventually she tired of self pleasure.
“Without loved ones, an empty home is not a home, but merely a place to hang your hat.” Her mother’s words echoed in her mind. Lettie Stone was not an easy woman to love, and an even more difficult woman to like. Her mother was not a cold hearted woman, but Nadia always felt as if there was something missing in their relationship.
She knew that her mother had loved her, but it was the sort of obligatory love that one shares with family. It was a silently conditional love, contingent upon success, wealth, happiness, and a man on her arm.
Shaking her head, Nadia patted her curls and decided to take the stairs. Yes, even her hair, with its natural elasticity had not been up to par for Mrs. Stone, and this, just like her weight, career choices, and the lack of man never would.
Once she reached the ground floor, a light sheen of sweat had already formed on her body, and she felt as if her legs were made of rubber. Nevertheless, she needed the exercise and the break away from the mindless chatter of her peers.
As she walked into the modest building, she could see that aside from a few patrons, the building was relatively empty. The lunch crowd had just left an hour ago, which meant a nice peaceful meal. The menu listed foods that she could hardly pronounce, but she had learned long ago, not to judge a book by its cover.
Besides, those who were hungry had no right to complain. The ambiance was nice, if not quiet and comfortable. There was a soft harp playing on the speakers above, mingling harmoniously with what sounded like a lute or violin. Listening to the music, she became lost in her thoughts oblivious to others around her.
Then she felt an unfamiliar cool breath on the nape of her neck. Turning swiftly, she came face to face with the Japanese Adonis she met earlier.
His smile was brighter than before, and he glanced at her like he was a cat who caught the canary. While his face may have seemed unnaturally handsome, Nadia knew enough about him to know that she wanted to be near him as much as she wanted a root canal. He joined her table, unasked, all while motioning for the waitress to return with his order.
“Okay, Ms. Stone, I think that you are starting to follow me. It must be kismet that we meet again like this.”
Yeah right, she thought. They both just happened to be hungry and interested in Thai for lunch today. Rolling her eyes, Nadia leaned back against her chair, sizing him up. He accepted her nonverbal challenge and did the same thing. This confounding woman was clearly not his type, yet he wanted to know more about her.
“Shouldn’t you be at work by now? I thought your lunch break was an hour and a half ago.”
He mused, as he focused on his sepia colored eyes at her dazzling ones. His eyes traveled a little lower, admiring her ample cleavage which she tried to hide by wearing conservative clothes that met work place standards but wouldn’t stand the scrutiny of most fashionistas.
“Are you keeping tabs on me, Mr. Yamada? Then again, this is not at all surprising considering the fact that you are the CEO.”
She said with a smile as her chicken salad arrived. Ryochi silently regarded her demeanor as she ate. There was nothing remarkable about her meal choice, but he did note that she ate daintily and quickly. She was obviously not one of those women who felt that they had to regurgitate a meal previously eaten or survive on two carrots and a grape for sustenance.
Ryochi had eaten lunch earlier. He couldn’t help but notice her from one of the restaurant’s window as he headed back from his own lunch next door with his best friend Takashi Honda. He wasn’t even going to say anything to Nadia, but since he hadn’t seen her since last week, he thought it would be fun to catch up.
Still, he couldn’t help but notice that this woman was not like the Greek supermodel with whom he had once been enamored, or the Russian rock climber that he dated previously.
They had been two sides of an extreme that as a regular gym guy, he couldn’t abide. Janeane Papadakis was one of the world’s top grossing models with classic Grecian features. Her skin was like ivory cream and her hair a healthy apple red.
Her beauty was genuine, which astounded him considering the fact that she was a truly vain and superficial person on the inside.
Then there was Katherine Sidorova, the rock climbing expert who he met on a resort trip with friends. She was gorgeous, all five feet of her. She had a great smile, pretty eyes, and the cutest button nose.
Their relationship ended when she insisted that he wake up each morning for yoga exercises, followed by calisthenics, which was preceded by strenuous Pilates.
Then there were the sea weed and kelp energy boosters which were disgusting going down, as they were going up because of his unsettled stomach.
She argued that as an Asian male, raised in a country where seafood was pervasive, he should be able to stomach, nay enjoy the revolting liquid drink.
Needless to say Katherine and her racial stereotyping, along with her over stimulated wackiness didn’t last long in his bed or his heart. Still, she was great in the sack. Now that was a fact that he would never contend.
All of the reminiscing about past flames drew his mind back to the intriguing female in front of him. She seemed completely unaware of how interesting she truly was. She had the Atlanta Journal Constitution spread out in front of her, her mind deeply engaged in the stories, completely ignoring his presence.
His fingers tapped out an uneven, nervous rhythm on the lacquered wooden table as his lunch partner munched on croutons. Tired of her blatant dismissal of him, he cleared his throat loudly, leaning over to enjoy a sip of his passion fruit medley beverage. She looked up at him, mildly amused by his antics.
“Something to say Mr. Yamada?”
Her smile turned into a smirk, as she lay the newspaper down. Folding her arms, she leaned back into her chair staring intently at the man who seemed to exude arrogance.
“You are quite the conundrum Ms. Stone. I’m amazed that you’ve yet to marry.”
Arching a perfect eyebrow, Nadia rolled her eyes at the man who ran Yamada Industries. Not only was he presumptuous, he took some sort of pleasure in being a thorn in her side. What had she done to deserve his interest?
He was the kind of guy that at best would be nothing more than the man who thought he could say anything about anyone because of his wealth and power.
Nadia didn’t know if she should be indignant or surprised by his comment. Where did he get off speculating on her love life? Biting her tongue, Nadia swallowed the last of her salad, eager to get away from the exasperating man.
“I didn’t realize the love lives of employees were the concern of Yamada executives. “
It was probably best to play things cool. She still needed a job after all and cursing out her boss at lunch time in a downtown restaurant was a great way to get fired.
“By no means do I make it a priority to know the romantic proclivities of my employees Ms. Stone. I just find your particular romantic entanglements,” he glanced at her ringless fingers “or lack thereof very interesting.”
Nadia looked at him cautiously, finding it hard to look away from his handsome face. He probably seduced many women with those sensual eyes, but she wouldn’t fall for it. He may think that she is fun sport, but she is not some sort of chocolate diversion, here for his amusement.
“If you must know Mr. Yamada, no I am not married and my relationship status is not any of your business.”
Ryochi shrugged his shoulders, clearly dismissing her aversion to his probing questions. He smiled genuinely then, leaning over and using his thumb, to wipe a little Italian dressing from her supple lower lip. He retracted his thumb, sucking the tangy vinaigrette off of his finger.
Nadia’s breath hitched, and her heart began to thump vigorously. She had never experienced something so banal and sensual at the same time. This man was certainly aware of his charm.
“You had a bit of salad dressing on your lip. I couldn’t resist.”
Nadia smiled at him humorlessly and stood, grateful that was able to enjoy a lunch away from the noisy din. Reaching for her purse she signaled the waitress over.
Ryochi grabbed the receipt, leaving a crisp fifty dollar bill on the table. Ignoring her quirked eyebrow, he offered Nadia his arm.
“But you barely ate anything. You don’t have to pay for my meal.”
Nadia protested, reaching for the bill. She didn’t want Ryochi to think that she couldn’t even afford to pay for her own meals. She paused then, upset with where her mind had taken her. He may be the big kahuna at the office, but Nadia didn’t really care about what this guy thought right?
“Ah ah, think nothing of the bill. It was my treat for a most entertaining meal. Shall we return to the office?”
Nadia removed herself from his arm, looking around to see if anyone saw her walking in linked arms with the CEO. This was certainly shaping up to be a weird day!
“I think that I can make it there on my own Mr. Yamada. Thank you for your company at lunch. Have a good day.”
Nadia back away from him as they neared the lobby of the building. She didn’t want to inspire further gossip by catching the same elevator as the boss again. He was charming and all, but certainly off limits.
“I have to rush for a late conference meeting. Perhaps we could have lunch again?”
They both seem surprised by his request. Ryochi didn’t think that he would want to spend more time with this woman because she seemed to be uncomfortable with his harmless flirting.
Nadia obviously wasn’t used to guys asking her out. Perhaps she was surprised that he, the CEO had asked for the pleasure of her company. Maybe she didn’t want to get involved with a coworker, least of all the figurehead of the corporation.
She stared at him comically; her mouth slightly agape and he couldn’t help but be amused. She shook her head, as if awakening from a catatonic state. When she gazed at him with her whiskey brown eyes and Ryochi felt his manhood briefly stir to life.
“What do you say Ms. Stone? How about you and me have dinner this Friday, hmm?”
Turning left and right and seeing no one, Nadia ushered him over to a secluded seating area. She leaned in so close to whisper in his ear, that Ryochi felt like he was sharing a conspiratorial secret.
“Mr. Yamada I do not think that it would be appropriate to involve myself with a fellow employee.”
Ryochi could easily tell that she was not being honest. What was she afraid of exactly?
“Are you saying this because I am Asian? Do you not date interracially? Is that it?”
Her eyes widened, as if scandalized by his accusation. Based on her reaction, that was obviously not the reason for her apprehension.
“No! I don’t have a problem dating interracially. However, you are the CEO of this company! I am your employee. Can you not see the conflict of interest here? I am sure that a policy exists about fraternization of employees.”
He leaned in close to her, so that they would appear to be kissing from afar. His warm breath on her ear made her shiver.
“Is that all you are worried about—it’s no big deal. All we have to do is sign a few forms and submit it to HR. It is completely private so that there is nothing to worry about.”
“I also do not want to be your little brown sugar on the side. Have you ever dated a black woman Mr. Yamada? I do not want to be your experiment on the wild side.”
He smirked at her, giving her a look that in the past would probably have left the panties of many women sopping wet.
“I assure you Ms. Stone that you are no diversion. No, I have never dated a black woman, and I am not seeing anyone currently. Why should that stop me from asking you out? I find you very fascinating and I am interested in a date. I promise to be the perfect gentleman.”
Glancing at her watch, Nadia headed back to the bank of elevators. She wasted too much time and if she didn’t hurry she would be late getting back to the office.
Nadia was so engrossed in her thoughts, that she didn’t see or hear Ryochi saddle up next to her. She looked at him warily when the elevator doors opened, obviously not eager to relive last week’s stop elevator disaster.
“I have to get back to work Mr. Yamada.”
“It’s no reason why we can’t ride up together. My offices are on the top floor. Besides, it will give us a chance to plan for our date.”
Nadia rolled her eyes, apparently annoyed by Ryochi’s arrogance. Why did the handsome ones always have to be egotistical?
“I haven’t agreed to a date Mr. Yamada. In any case, I have to work overtime this week to finish two projects. I won’t have time because I am a technical writer with several deadlines to meet.”
He nodded, accepting her response for now. There would be other times to plan. She seemed to be pretty fun and after the disaster of his last few girlfriends, Ryochi wanted to see someone who was the complete opposite of the women he had previously dated.
“Well what about next week then? It’s just one little date. You don’t have to agree, unless you are scared that you’ll have fun.”
Never one to back down from a challenge, Nadia’s interest was piqued. As the elevator reached her floor, she turned back to grace him with a small smile. Nodding her head in agreement, Nadia leaned in closely again.
“Meet me in the building’s front entrance at 7:00 pm on Monday evening.”
He gave her his most dazzling smile. Reaching for her hand, Ryochi gently pressed his lips to her wrist.
“Very well, I will wait with bated breath until we meet again Ms. Stone. Please, feel free to call me Ryochi when we are alone.”
He released her, watching with delight as she walked off quickly to her cubicle. There was certainly the sway of her lips to like. She walked with a relaxed gait, which was very different from Aoi’s more refined stride.
As he rode up to his office, Ryochi did his best to forget his ex-fiancé Aoi Sato. She was out of his life for good, and he wasn’t going to let an opportunity to explore this new whatever-it-was with Nadia Stone pass by.
So lost was he in his thoughts that he didn’t almost didn’t see the two elegantly dressed Asian women sitting on the sofa in his office. The older woman wore a traditional floral patterned kimono, which appeared to be made from the finest Japanese silk.
Her long graying black hair was expertly shaped into a bun. She wore colorful zori and the frown on her face indicated that she was less than pleased.
Seeing his mother in his office was uncommon, but not completely unusual. He could not think of a reason why his mother would come to the American based headquarters of the Yamada Industries. She hated the humidity of Atlanta, in addition to the loud, boisterous gaijin bustling about.
No, it was the young woman who was dressed in the finest that Rodeo Drive had the offer which caught his attention. Long black hair, flawless pearls, and a diamond ring on her finger, immediately alerted him to the trouble that was brewing. Aoi came with his mother, wearing the ring that he had given her two years ago.
“What the hell are you doing here?!”
Pleasant thoughts of Nadia and his good day just said sayonara.
