Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 115388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 462(@250wpm)___ 385(@300wpm)
My nerves flared.
His jaw clenched, then unclenched. A shadow of something like regret passed over his face before he answered. “I should have told you this before, Tora, but I didn’t know that we would end up being this. . .”
“This?”
“I can’t even tell you what this means. I just know that I will never let this go. That this is important to me. You are important to me.”
I swallowed. “Just say it.”
The waitresses left with the bowls.
His breath hitched—barely audible—but I heard it. That quiet inhale men take when they’re about to drop a truth that might cost them everything.
Oh damn. This is going to be a lot.
And in that moment, I saw it. Not the Dragon. Not the untouchable menacing gangster.But. . .just a man trying not to lose the one woman who made him feel alive.
“Kenji. . .tell me.”
“Tora.” He frowned. "I may have twins on the way."
What the fuck?!
Chapter thirty-three
Between Fire and Forgiveness
Nyomi
Twins. . .
My mind didn’t catch the words right away. It was like they landed on the table, slid past the silverware, and cracked open under the low jazz.
I blinked.
Once.
Twice.
The air felt thicker. As if someone had poured honey into the room and told me to breathe through it. I couldn’t hear the clink of dishes or the music anymore. Just the blood rushing in my ears, the faintest whimper of my own breath trying to remember how lungs worked.
Twins.
My gaze didn’t leave his face, but something in me had stepped back. Just far enough to observe the damage without falling apart.
My chest stilled. The music didn’t, but the energy between us did. It cracked like porcelain—beautiful, but now fragile.
It took a few seconds for me to find my voice. “May have twins on the way?”
He nodded.
"With your ex-girlfriend?”
“No. There is no ex-girlfriend or anything like that, but there’s a woman. One of my Ears.”
I blinked. “The Ears are your spies. Right?”
“Yes. And there are levels. This type of Ear. . .she seduces powerful men. Gains their trust. Gathers secrets. She’s brilliant at it. Strategic. Cold when she needs to be.” He ran a finger along the rim of his glass. “I use her when I need to know things no one else can uncover.”
“Okay.”
“She was never a lover. She is only my spy. A weapon.”
“But. . .she might be the mother of your kids too?”
“She might be.”
My heartbeat boomed in my ears.
Kenji’s voice dropped an octave. “I was restless one night. She and I have crossed that line a few times over the years, but it was never romantic. Never emotional. Just something physical.”
“You don’t love her?”
“No, Tora. There are no emotions to what we had.”
“But does she love you?”
“No.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“She is my weapon.”
“That doesn’t mean she doesn’t love you, Kenji.” I picked up my cocktail, needing something to drink. “And she’s pregnant by you.”
“She’s five months along. She told me there was a chance the twins might be mine.” His frown deepened. “We used protection. But. . .I know there’s still a margin. A small one. Small enough to doubt. Big enough that I had her stop working immediately.”
I finished my cocktail and set the glass down.
He took a breath. “I put her up in a luxury home in Kyoto. Quiet. Safe. She has staff, a private physician, everything she needs.”
"Do you visit her?”
“No. Reo gives me reports on her medical visits.”
“But. . .you don’t talk to her?”
“There is no need to.”
“Maybe, she’s scared and alone.”
“No.” He was firm. “She’s not alone. She is well taken care of and has a great support system."
"But does she want you to be involved?"
"I don’t know, Tora."
“You should know.”
He blinked.
My mind spun with so many questions.
I sighed. "And will you be involved if the children are indeed yours?"
"I won't abandon my children if they are mine."
“Good. I would never want to be with a man that abandoned his kids.” A lump formed in my throat, a strange sensation of dread and relief.
“Because of the uncertainty of her children being mine only Reo and my brother, Hiro know.”
“And your father?”
Kenji looked at me like I’d just suggested he swallow glass. “I would never tell my father something like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because he would use it against me. He would turn the twins’ lives into leverage before they ever took their first breath.”
Holy shit, and I thought I had Daddy issues. . .
Kenji continued, “there’s no relationship or love between her and me, Tora. If the children are mine, I will be their father. I will protect them. But she and I will never live together. There was no further intimacy.”
“Wow. . .there’s children involved. And a pregnant woman. I’m not here to judge what happened. But I just. . .” I swallowed. “I don’t want to be part of any disrespect toward her. No matter who she is to you because. . .she’s carrying life.”