Page 19

Chapter 19

Yoshi

W eeks passed in a blur following the Emperor’s visit. Most of the town had returned to normal, but life in the castle remained a coiled spring, tense and ready to burst free with even the slightest motion. Father had refused to send troops on the ships that bore the Emperor and his retinue back to Bara, the Empire’s capital. The Son of Heaven frowned, his Grand Minister sneered, and the Dai Shogun stared with steely intent.

When the royal fleet sailed, Father sent word to each of the leaders within our province, calling them to Tooi for a council. Such gatherings were rare, especially given the weeks or months of travel required to reach the far northern capital of the island, but the Emperor’s call to war could not be ignored, and Father needed the support of his banner men, whatever he decided.

Prince Haru and Esumi remained as carefree and irreverent as the day they’d arrived. Kaneko and I spent a fair amount of time with the pair, drinking, dicing, and laughing as Haru regaled us with tales from his youth—he had terrorized the Imperial palace and her staff. Esumi was quick to add his own recollections, correcting the Prince without so much as a thought for the impropriety of such an act. For his part, Haru seemed to relish in his lover’s embellishments.

Twice, the Prince again asked what lay between Kaneko and me.

Twice, we fidgeted, looked away, made up insane excuses, and denied more than friendship bound us.

None of us, not one of the four, believed it to be true, no more than the people of the capital believed Haru and Esumi were merely childhood friends. But respect held the Prince’s tongue. I saw in his eyes that he understood our struggle to admit, even to ourselves, the secrets of our hearts—especially ones that might cause others to see us differently. Esumi, the softer spoken of the pair, rested his hand on my shoulder and said, “Time will loosen both your hearts and tongues.”

If only he knew.

Our tongues had already learned that lesson, though not in quite the way he meant. We’d become inseparable following our Trials, and even that time together was never enough. I’d come to crave Kaneko’s smile like flowers bend toward sunlight. His very presence lifted my spirits and filled me with hope for a brighter day.

Prince Haru grinned as he looked between us the day he boarded his ship. I thought he might turn away without speaking, but at the last moment, he stepped down and placed a hand on each of our shoulders and said, “Yoshi, Kaneko, cherish each other. No matter what anyone, royal or commoner, god or man, has to say about it. The bond you share is deeper than the sea herself. I see it in your eyes, in your touch, in the way you follow each other when you think the other is not looking. I hear it in your words and the words you do not speak. By the will of the gods, you two were brought together, and only by their will should you be torn apart.”

Then the Prince broke every protocol, the last lines of etiquette shattered, by leaning forward and kissing each of us on the cheek.

I wasn’t sure it was wise for any to consider a member of the Emperor’s family a friend, but as the Prince and Esumi departed, I felt the loss of an unexpected kinship and knew, deep in my heart, we would meet again.

At least, I hoped we would.

“We should go into the mountains beyond the shrine, spend a night beneath the stars.”

I cocked a brow. “Are you trying to get me alone so you can maul me with kisses like some love-crazed bear and his sloppy tongue? Should I be afraid?”

Kaneko grinned. “If that frightens you, you really don’t want to know what I have planned.”

My mouth formed an O, but no words escaped.

“So, are you in?”

I nodded, dumbly. “I have this, um, thing. With Father. And Uncle Takeo. It’s like a council but only us, maybe Mother and a few others. We need to talk and, well, stuff.”

Kaneko barked a laugh. “And stuff? I’m so relieved the Anzu are in such capable—and well-spoken—hands.”

I shoved his shoulder, only making him laugh harder.

Bastard.

“I’ll meet you at the castle gate at sundown. Get us a pair of horses. I really don’t want to walk all the way past the shrine.”

Now it was my turn to chuckle. “Yes, Princess. Heaven knows, we wouldn’t want to blister those precious feet of yours.”

He removed a sandal and smacked me with it.

“Ow!” I gripped my arm.

“Serves you right.” He jutted out his chin. “Should I kiss it and make it feel better?”

I groaned. “Okay, I see you now. Hurt me so you can kiss and make up. Got it.”

His grin was maniacal. “You see through me. Prepare for the beating of your life tonight.”

My eyes rolled. “You know, I might be willing to give you whatever you want without actual harm coming to either of us. I don’t recall Father ever raising a hand to Mother, and yet, they were able to make me.”

Kaneko threw up his hands and screwed up his face. “No talking about parent sex, please. That’s disgusting.”

“You gut fish for a living.”

“Similar smell, but not the same fish!”

I covered my mouth. “Gods, I might hurl.”

He laughed. “That counts as pain. Should I kiss something?”

“Get out of my castle before I have the guards show you what a beating looks like.”

He leaned over and pressed his lips to mine. “Got my kiss.”

I couldn’t hold back the smile that bloomed. “You can have more later. Promise.”

He cupped my cheek. “A Daimyo always keeps his promises.”

“I’m not Daimyo yet.”

He wiggled his brows. “In my heart, you are.”

In a most undignified, most un- Daimyo- like moment, I giggled as I watched him walk away.

The sun was nearly kissing the horizon when I reached the castle gates to find Kaneko joking and laughing with one of the guards. The usually stoic men were supposed to be ever vigilant in case some unruly citizen or foreigner chose to attack their ruling family. In truth, their days were long, often sweltering beneath Mugen’s unforgiving sun, and utterly boring.

Tooi was home to thousands, but most knew each other—if not by name then by whatever function they performed, like An Jun. Many knew the man. He was a farmer whose crops landed on virtually every table across the northern end of the island. He was an amiable fellow, inspiring smiles and waves as he passed. Most called him “Farmer” because his name had never been known to them. An Jun was one of many well-recognized, nameless faces in a large town that often felt like a small village.

So, seeing Kaneko, a frequent visitor to the castle since before he could walk, joking with our most valiant protectors was yet another reason the man brought a smile to my lips. With his flippant tongue and sharp wit, Kaneko carried his own brand of sunlight to most any conversation.

“Yoshi- san !” He finally noticed me staring like some dumbstruck child and was now waving madly over the heads of the guard, who was turning to see what had captured his attention. My face colored from seeing Kaneko beam like a star falling to earth.

The guard stiffened as I approached, the reins of a horse in each hand.

“Why are you distracting our guards?” I said, putting on my best imitation of Father’s irritation. “They are here to protect us, not throw dice with the likes of you.”

I could feel the guard’s butthole puckering, though I had yet to even look in his direction.

Kaneko’s smile widened as he bowed far lower than my station required. “Great Nagao , forgive this one. He is not worthy to stand in the Nagao ’s presence.”

“Get up, you idiot,” I laughed.

The guard unclenched . . . a little.

Kaneko straightened, but wasn’t finished. “Please, Honored Nagao , punish this one. He has erred and must be corrected. May I suggest spanking, with the hand, not the cane. Canes leave such nasty marks, and this one’s buttocks are far too precious to the homeland to mar.”

The guard Kaneko had “not been joking with” choked back a laugh. When I turned to eye him, he lost his composure and doubled over. The word “spanking” tumbled out with a stream of other unintelligible utterances.

My blush deepened.

Kaneko’s beaming reached blinding brightness.

The puckered guard’s eyes darted so fast I thought his eyeballs might try to pop out and escape.

“Are you done?” I asked, threading annoyance in my voice despite wanting to join the guard in bursting out laughing. Kaneko was in rare form.

“Not even close,” my rebellious friend answered. “But we should go before it gets too dark. I know the Great Nagao to be the bravest man in all the Empire, but darkness frightens this humble servant.”

The laughing guard had to turn away to wipe tears from his eyes.

I shook my head and handed him the reins of one horse, then stepped around and mounted the other. From an imperious height, I made a sharp gesture and said, “Come, trusty servant. Let us be gone from this place. Fear not the darkness. My visage will frighten even the demons from our path.”

Kaneko snorted as he mounted, then got the last word. “Your visage could frighten small children, too. Perhaps you should wear a mask.”

The howling of the guards followed us many yards as we trotted away.

“What has you in such a good mood?” I asked once we were well away from the castle—and beyond the hearing of the guards.

He shrugged. “I get to spend time with you. How could I not smile?”

And just like that, the warm sensation that crept across my skin each time I saw Kaneko flared to life, setting alight fires I barely knew or understood. The urge to touch him, to pull him close, to kiss him and never take my lips away was almost too much to bear. This man, this unbearable, irreverent, frustrating man, had wheedled his way into my heart and now consumed my thoughts.

“What should we do when we get to the campsite?” he asked.

“Before or after your punishment?”

His eyes widened, then another smile crawled across his face. “I have been a very, very bad boy. This punishment may take a very long time.”

I waggled my brows. “So be it. The work of the Daimyo requires a certain—how should I say it—thoroughness? Yes, thoroughness. You shall be thoroughly punished.”

Kaneko clapped his hands like a small child and squealed, “A spanking! A spanking! Yay!”

I laughed. “You aren’t supposed to enjoy a punishment, you barbarian.”

His voice dropped as we passed the farrier’s hut, and I waved at a bored-looking old man sitting out front.

“There is nothing you could do to me, Anzu Yoshi, that I would not love.”

Love.

He said that word.

Did he mean it? Was it merely a turn of phrase? Like, did he mean he loved being together and doing things, but didn’t love me? I mean, really love me? Gods, he couldn’t mean that. Sure, we’d been friends forever. We knew each other better than our own parents.

But love?

That meant . . . oh, gods . . . love meant more than kissing, didn’t it? We’d become quite the experts in using our lips, but our closeness had not progressed to a state of undress. Did his use of that word mean he wanted to—

Did I want to—?

By all the spirits, yes, I wanted Kaneko naked and beneath me . . . or over me . . . or beside me. I wanted him every way a man could want another. I craved him. I needed him. If he truly loved me—and wasn’t merely giving lip service—was this camping trip more of a trial than those of the Five Virtues we’d passed nearly a month ago?

Could I pass such a trial?

I’d never—

Oh, sweet Amaterasu. Would I even know what to do? Where to lie? How to touch or tease or stroke or whatever I was supposed to do?

Then a thought struck.

Did Kaneko have experience? I couldn’t remember ever asking him.

Had he lain with another man or woman?

A woman? The thought made me shudder. I’m not sure why.

It shouldn’t matter to me if he’d lain with another, as long as he or she was a mammal, right? Well, preferably a human. Animals were forbidden. But . . . what if he knew what he was doing and was so put out by my inexperience that he didn’t want me anymore?

I couldn’t bear that.

Images of Kaneko naked, standing over me, shaking his head as he glared down at me and my shame flashed to the fore. I tried to shake them away, but they resolved further. I saw his jawline, his broad shoulders, the bronzed, sun-kissed skin of his hairless chest. His nipples, darker than his chest, stood proud and looking like treats for the nibbling. My dreaming eyes traveled down his torso to the trail of curls that led to—

My back stiffened. My arms went rigid.

The ride was suddenly very uncomfortable, as every part of me grew stiff.

“You okay over there?” Kaneko asked as I shifted in my saddle, unable to get comfortable again.

“Fine. Good. Great. I’m just . . . great.”

He narrowed his eyes, then chuckled. Knowing each other as well as we did, the prick likely knew my thoughts. Hells, he probably felt my erection throbbing against the pommel.

Thunder clapped in the distance.

A few heartbeats later, lightning streaked across the sky.

Thick, dark clouds crept toward us.

“We need to pick up the pace,” Kaneko said, his voice turning intense. “That looks like a bad one.”

When I didn’t react, he spurred his horse and called over his shoulder, “Last one there gets extra punishment!”