Black Sun, Red Moon by Rory Marron

Author:Rory Marron [Marron, Rory]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General Fiction
ISBN: 9780957630505
Publisher: Seventh Citadel
Published: 2014-01-15T05:00:00+00:00

When Ota awoke there was a pillow under his head. He sat up and looked at his watch. He had dozed for ten minutes. Kate was standing at a cabinet pouring two glasses of iced water. She had changed into a cream silk robe.

She caught his movement in an ornate oval wall mirror and turned. There was no trace of her tears. ‘I’m sorry I cried for so long,’ she said softly.

‘The time doesn’t matter,’ he said casually. Without thinking he added, ‘I bought you for the night.’

She blushed. He tried to apologise. ‘Sorry, I wanted—I meant to say that you can relax.’

Her shoulders shrugged and she pursed her lips. ‘I am relaxed now. Thanks to you.’

He looked at her carefully. It was still not the right time to ask but he desperately needed to know. ‘Will you go back?’ He deliberately avoided mentioning the camp.

She nodded quickly. ‘Yes. But I will owe Kiriko-san.’

‘No, I won’t ask for my money back. She won’t complain.’

Kate walked towards him and leant with one knee on the bed to hand him the glass of water. Her robe was clinging and his gaze dropped to the outline of her breasts under the thin cloth. She saw his look and sat down on the edge of the bed.

‘You bought me,’ she said deliberately. It was a statement not an accusation.

‘Yes.’ He was embarrassed again. ‘I just wanted to speak with you, to convince you to go back.’

‘How much did you pay?’

He laughed dismissively. ‘It doesn’t matter.’

‘It does to me!’ There was an edge to her voice and he knew that she was serious.

‘One thousand yen.’

Her surprise was genuine. ‘That’s a small fortune!’

‘I thought so too,’ he replied quietly, dropping his guard.

She knew then that the sum had stretched him. A sudden, mischievous thought struck her. ‘How much was the Frenchwoman standing next to me? She has short, dark hair.’

He shrugged. ‘I didn’t ask. Perhaps five hundred.’

‘Oh, but why so much more for me?’

‘Virgins are always expensive,’ he said casually. ‘Tomorrow you would have been much cheaper.’

For a moment Kate sat nonplussed, her lips parted but soundless. A tide of crimson surged over her face and on to her neck and chest. She rose hurriedly, trying to cover her embarrassment by refilling her glass.

He watched her colour deepen in the mirror and could not help laughing. ‘I’m sorry. You did ask me,’ he said making no attempt to hide the amusement in his voice.

She turned around, her face still crimson. ‘Yes, I did, didn’t I! I wasn’t expecting you to be so—so well informed!’ Sheepishly she went back to the bed and sat much closer. ‘Kenichi, what else do you know about me?’

‘Only that you are nineteen.’

‘How old are you?’

‘Twenty-four.’

She looked at the tiredness and the lines on his face. If he had said thirty-four she would have believed him. War does that, she thought to herself. Suddenly she needed to know more about him. ‘When is your birthday?’

‘February 4th.’

She clapped her hands in surprise. ‘Oh, an Aquarian!’

‘Aq— what?’

‘It’s your star sign, in the Zodiac.

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