Page 56 of Secrets & Sake

Unless maybe Namikawa or Takada are the ones behind the disappearances. Namikawa can control Raiden, but that doesn’t mean he’s responsible. What would he have to gain by abducting people? Takada, on the other hand, has a motive to make the Namikawa-kai look weak and incapable. People being abducted on their turf would certainly make them look bad. But then what’s Takada doing with them if he’s abducting them? Ah, this whole case is making my head hurt.

Frantic breath hits the back of my neck. Raiden makes an odd, panicked sound in the back of his throat. Shocked, I turn around and find his face scrunched up. His chest rises and falls fast, and he whimpers again.

“Raiden?” My heart breaks in two. “Hey. Baby, it’s okay. I’m right here.” I kiss his jaw, then his cheek.

Raiden jolts awake, gasping. Wide brown eyes find mine. He lurches upright and looks around frantically. “W-where did I go? Did I hurt anyone?”

“What are you talking about?”

Shaking his head, Raiden pushes his hair back and slumps back down to the bed. “Nothing. Never mind. Did I disturb you?”

I shake my head and he envelops me in his arms, dropping kisses over my shoulder.

I wish I could savor the warmth of his arms and this rare display of affection. Our relationship has mostly been purely physical, but it’s shifting fast into something else. I don’t know when it started or how. I’ve never cared for anyone the way I care for him.

I wish I didn’t have to choose between him or my career.

When he tugs down the collar of my tee and drops warm kisses over my bare skin, I know I need to pull away. It isn’t right, what I’m doing. If he knows I’m a reporter, using him for my next big story… it would destroy him.

“I, uh…” I squirm out of his arms. “Need to head back to my place.”

“Oh.” He frowns, clearly disappointed, and I want to jump back into bed with him and never leave. “I’ll drive you.”

“It’s really okay—”

He glowers at me. “I’ll drive you.” He swings his long legs out of bed and marches to the dresser.

See, Jinta? He’s controlling. That’s a red flag. Then there’s the fact he’s a criminal, which is bad. Really bad. We shouldn’t be together. I shouldn’t feel bad about ending things between us at all! It’s for the better. Right?

I follow him out into the sunlit streets. Raiden holds my hand in his the whole way.

To my surprise, Hideyoshi is downstairs. He darts his gaze between us worriedly. “Namikawa told me you had returned! Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Sorry,” Raiden says, and he hangs his head in remorse. “Last night was… it was a lot.”

Hideyoshi’s brow furrows in worry. “Are you well?”

“I am.”

Some of the tension bleeds from Hideyoshi’s shoulders. “Good. I’ll drive you.”

“You don’t have to—”

“Oh, hush and get in the car.”

With a fond huff, Raiden climbs into the back seat.

“How are you?” I ask.

“Good, good.” Hideyoshi puts a hand on my arm and leads me away from the car. Surprised but curious, I follow him a few paces away. “I must say, it’s been a long time since Raiden has let someone so close to him. He has a guarded heart, you know.”

I nod, remembering our talk last night. “Because of his parents and what his mom did.”

“He told you?” Hideyoshi looks surprised.

“He did. His parents aren’t exactly winning parent of the year awards.” His dad was a cheater, and his mom sold him to the yakuza to save her skin. I hate the both of them, and I haven’t even met them.

Anger wrinkles Hideyoshi’s brow. “My son was a fool. He betrayed the woman who loved him and abandoned his own child. And when I thought things could get no worse, his mother sold him into our gang. I begged Namikawa, you know. I begged him not to bring my grandson into this life. This life…” He shakes his head. “I wanted so much more for him.”

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