Chocolate Smiles by Stella Mira

A Regrettable Shame

Sunset Miko's Once a Week Challenge: Puzzle

"Do you live alone, Kagome-san? What about your family?" Sesshoumaru inquired with a captivating smile as he turned towards her, draping an arm over the bench's back and crossing his long legs.

"My family lives in an old shrine on the outskirts of town. I moved out when I passed my university exams because commuting would be hard otherwise. Furthermore, my mother took a loan to cover for my tuitions, so I didn't want to inconvenience her more with living expenses," Kagome answered with a troubled expression when she remembered her mother's constant struggles with money after their father's death.

"That is very admirable, Kagome-san," Sesshoumaru complimented her with a genuine smile that warmed her heart at the bewitching sight.

"Your mother takes care of monetary issues in your family?" he then asked with a puzzled expression as he recalled her words.

"My father passed away in an accident when I was little. My mother couldn't support my younger brother and I on her own, so we moved back to my grandparents' house," she replied softly, sadness shadowing her features at the memory of her beloved father. Sesshoumaru vaguely reminded her of him with his deep laughter and the way he cared for his children.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Sesshoumaru uttered in a low baritone sincerely as he captured her small hand in his larger one, caressing her knuckles with his thumb, and gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"It happened a long time ago, Sesshoumaru-san," Kagome replied with misty eyes as she flashed him a grateful smile. She felt slender fingertips ghosting over her skin before a steady hand cupped her cheek gently. She stared at his sympathetic obsidian gaze enthralled, her breath caught in her throat, as he brushed his thumb below her lower lashes to wipe away a single tear that had spilled after bittersweet memories of her father resurfaced in her mind.

'My father would have liked you, Sesshoumaru-san. It's truly a regrettable shame you can't meet. I would have loved to see you two play with the children together,' Kagome thought wistfully, melting at the mental image of her father and Sesshoumaru chasing around a bunch of dark haired little angels.

'Whoa there, missy! Those were a lot of kids in the mix! You're way ahead of yourself here! How about you ask if he wants to date you first before you start thinking names for your future children!?' Kagome chastised herself silently, blaming her overactive imagination and his irresistible charm for her farfetched musings.

A tug at her dress brought her out of her self-berating session, and she looked down to see two chocolate covered smiles greeting her cheekily.

"You ate all of the chocolate wafers, you little gluttons!? You'll get a stomachache!" She exclaimed surprised, laughing at their guilty expressions after her light scolding.

"No need to worry over that, Kagome-san. My children's stomachs are like bottomless holes where sweets are considered," Sesshoumaru joined in her laughter with a light rumble, and she once again marveled at the way his whole face transformed from the simple action. This man's laughter was a rare feast for her ears; one she would be ecstatic listening to every day for the rest of her life.

"Come here, you tiny thieves!" She reached into her backpack to retrieve a few handkerchiefs, as she pulled Emiko on her lap, and began wiping her chocolate smeared face while the adorable girl giggled happily. Akira tried to climb on the bench quite unsuccessfully when his father picked him up easily and placed him between them to wait for his turn.

"There! You're all clean and pretty again, Emiko-chan!" Kagome remarked with a radiant smile as the dark haired girl crawled from her lap towards her father and wove her short arms around his neck to pull him into a tight hug.

"Am I pretty like Kagome, papa?" Emiko asked with an adorable pout while chewing on her lower lip as Kagome was busy trying to clean Akira's face as well.

"You are the prettiest girl in the whole world, Emiko," Sesshoumaru indulged his daughter's innocent question as he kissed her cheek affectionately. Kagome had nearly blacked out at the endearing sight, cursing herself for not bringing her camera along when he turned his attention to her.

"You will be a beautiful woman, exactly like Kagome-san, when you grow up," he added in a deep, sensual voice as his smoky gaze captured her own in a blazing torrent of potent lust. His compliment may have sounded light hearted, but his enrapturing stare spoke volumes of the scorching heat that had built between them with each passing meeting.

She was brought back to reality by Emiko's happy squeal as she kissed her father back, and tugged at his sleeve insistently, begging him to put her down when she saw a butterfly floating near them. Naturally, Akira wished to follow after his sister, so Kagome lowered him to the ground gently, and he sprinted after Emiko in a flash.

"I would like to see you again, Kagome-san. Alone." A deep, hypnotic voice dragged her back to that pleasurable realm, and she found herself reflected in dark, liquid pools.

"Alone?" She repeated breathlessly as she stared at him transfixed before an amused chuckle registered in her hazy mind.

"I am asking you out for dinner if you do not object. However, if you would prefer for us to be alone, I could cook for you at my place to repay you for the hospitality you have shown us," Sesshoumaru offered slowly in a velvet timbre, his black orbs dancing with mirth at how affected she was by that simple word.

"Dinner out would be lovely. I do not wish to inconvenience you by making you cook for me," she opted for the first suggestion, all the while cursing her growing addiction to his entrapping voice.

"Are you available on Saturday night?" he asked as his handsome face lit up with a pleased expression, and she nodded her agreement, awed by the welcome change on his masculine features.

"I will pick you up at eight o'clock. Until then, Kagome-san," he finished with a seductive grin as he brought her hand to his lips and pressed a soft kiss on her knuckles that had her shivering in want. Saturday could not come soon enough.