1. Chapter 1 (1/2)

chie: this is for the lovely and super talented rannyunny, who requested a ceo!sess fic!

this is also for sesskag week 2020 day 4 - romcom.

because two birds, one stone, blah blah blah.

i

sesshoumaru stood in front of the wide window in his top-floor office, looking down at the glinting city lights spreading out before him in the night. he

ought the glass of whisky to his lips and took a good long sip of the amber liquid.

the meeting had gone on for too long. the international sales executives had been annoying and obtuse and trying to explain the north american market to him as if he was a complete idiot.

sesshoumaru had quickly divested them of such gross misconceptions, and promptly reminded them why he was the ceo of the company. cowed though they had been after that, it had still taken time to come to an agreement on all the necessary details relating to the upcoming international release of their newest video game.

people, sesshoumaru sneered, taking another sip of whisky. dealing with them was exhausting.

proud as he was of his accomplishments and how far they'd come, there had been an appealing simplicity in the old days when they'd only just been starting out. with miroku having the great vision and ideas, and also the charm, he had dealt with marketing and hiring and every other annoyance requiring interpersonal skills. sesshoumaru had been happily left to deal with the finances and the programming end of things.

but their business had grown exponentially from those days; their games had become household names across the globe and sesshoumaru found himself a ceo of a multibillion corporation.

which meant that now he, too, was forced to deal with people, at least whenever there was another meeting to sit in.

still, he wouldn't have it any other way.

sesshoumaru had been born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth. his father, a former warlord, was now the head of a formidable multinational electronics conglomerate that he'd first founded back in meiji era. and though he had given sesshoumaru and miroku financial backing when they had been starting out, sesshoumaru had paid him back every yen.

all of this, the company, the top-floor office, the ceo position, were of sesshoumaru's own making, which made them all the more precious.

he could easily have found employment in his father's company.

he could easily have lived off his father's money without pursuing any employment at all, had he so wished.

but sesshoumaru had desired to make his own way, to come to his own power instead of relying on his father's influence.

and in that, he had succeeded. sesshoumaru's lips curved, and he downed the rest of his whisky.

ii

an important deadline to a big project they'd been working on the past two years was fast approaching. everyone was working hard and long hours, doing their utmost to meet the deadline.

even sesshoumaru had left the lofty luxury of his top floor office and the daily grind of his administrative work so he could focus on his other strength: programming.

he'd commandeered a spare desk in the programming department and sat there, typing intently – one of the herd of his senior and junior programmers.

when asked to, he might flit around the room to troubleshoot or check out a code or help someone hitting a digital wall.

after wrangling a particularly stubborn piece of code to do what it was supposed to do, sesshoumaru leaned back in his chair and stretched.

a youkai had not been meant to crouch in front of a computer screen.

he needed to get up and walk, his neck was starting to ache.

more importantly, he needed coffee.

he could have headed for the

eakroom or one of the vending machines out in the hallway but he preferred coffee of better quality and the café on the ground floor should still be open.

besides, going down to the café would allow him to stretch his legs.

instead of the elevator, sesshoumaru took the stairs. he walked down the five flights and the exercise helped ease the tension from his body.

for a

ief moment, he longed to let his youki burst out, to transform and run… but letting loose like that in the middle of tokyo would be to no one's benefit, least of all sesshoumaru's.

a few key people here and there might have been aware of the existence of youkai, but the public at large remained unaware.

even if they'd try to explain the incident away by claiming to be filming a new kaiju movie, giving in to his true nature would be a heedless risk.

sesshoumaru stifled his growl.

he'd feel better after he'd get his coffee.

sesshoumaru pushed into the lobby, but instead of making a beeline to the café as he had intended to, he came to a halt.

there seemed to be some kind of a commotion going on at the front desk. the security was there, frowning down at a woman.

sesshoumaru wasn't sure which reached him first; the cold spark of purity that sent a shiver down his spine or the scent, so sweet and beckoning that for a moment sesshoumaru's mind went blank.

before his

ain had quite caught up with his actions, he was already striding towards the front desk, his instincts screaming at him, his blood thrumming in his veins, his youki coiling in tight around him.

the security guards had noticed his approach and were standing at attention.

sesshoumaru ignored them.

he stared at the woman facing them. she had her arms crossed over her chest, her cheeks flushed with temper, her blue eyes narrowed in annoyance, her wealth of dark hair flowing freely down her back.

she was the most magnificent thing sesshoumaru had ever seen.

"what seems to be the problem," he asked, his voice coming out a rumble, his eyes still trained on the woman.

"sir, the miss here claims to be a relative of one of our employees and seems to have some concerns about his welfare. we've offered to contact his department to check up on him, but she's very insistent about being allowed up to see her relative herself."

"i just need to see that my

other is alright, with my own two eyes," the woman snapped.

"again, miss, we simply can't allow –"

"has she offered you any form of identification?" sesshoumaru cut in.

"i have," the woman replied, her irritated gaze flickering to him.

sesshoumaru met her eyes.

"and does that information correspond with that we have of her

other?"

the security guard shifted. "sir, it does, but we still can't allow her to go up unaccompanied and –"

sesshoumaru slanted them a sharp glance and the security guard shut up.

even with his instincts howling at him, he understood the risk.

he couldn't detect any deception from the woman, anger and worry were the only things she seemed to radiate at the moment.

but she could have been an accomplished actress, with a plausible story and well-forged false identification.

she could have been a reporter after a scoop. or something much worse.

corporate espionage was a serious threat in this day and age.

but despite the risk, and perhaps because that sweet scent of hers wrapping around his being stirred his blood, he believed her story. trusted her to be sincere.

"very well. in that case, i will accompany her. what department is her

other in?"

"but sir, i don't think… ah, the design department, sir."

sesshoumaru gave him a

isk nod, then turned to the woman.

"come with me."

iii

kagome's shoulders slumped in relief when the elevator doors slid shut. she was one step closer to souta now and making sure he was ok, but she couldn't fully relax yet.

she slanted a glance at the man who'd come to her rescue.

"thank you for helping me."

he gave her a curt nod.

she was all too aware of him, in the contained space they were in. she wasn't sure if it was the fact that he was startlingly handsome or the fact that he must have been one of the managers for the security guards to react to him the way they had… or maybe the weight of his lingering gaze pressing against her skin.

it could have been any of those things – or all of those things – but something about him set kagome on the edge.

he had such a… presence.

"i'm sorry i was creating a commotion down there," kagome said.

when nervous, she had a tendency to talk. a lot.

"i don't normally behave like that, it's just that my

other never came home last night and his phone is turned off and when those guards didn't listen to me i just got so mad…"

"i understand," the man replied, his voice smooth and deep. "it is very natural to be concerned in a situation like that, and such emotions easily get the best of a person."

she turned to him.

"however, irritating as the guards were, they were only doing their job," he continued. "competition is fierce and we're working on a very important project right now. any information leaking outside and to our competitors would be most unfortunate."

kagome blushed and looked down at her feet.

now that she had had a bit of time to calm down, she realised how rude she had been at the front desk. she'd have to apologise profusely – after she had made sure souta was alright.

"shall we?"

kagome started and found the man looking at her expectantly. she hadn't even realised that the elevator had stopped.

"yes. sorry."

she scooted out, all too aware of the man following behind her.

"this way," he intoned.

kagome had to walk quickly to match his large strides.

she frowned at his back, clad in an elegant suit.

what was it about him? something nagged at her that she couldn't quite make sense of; something sending her nerves skittering.

they came to a big, open-concept office. even though it was getting late in the evening, most of the desks were still occupied. some people were furiously tapping at their keyboards, others were muttering to themselves under their

eath. some were sketching or writing on bits of paper, others were conversing with one another, heads together.

and scanning the room, one familiar figure stood out to her from the mass.

"souta!"

her

other's head jerked up and he turned away from his computer screen as kagome hurried towards him.

"kagome? what are you doing here?"

souta's eyes were rounded in surprise but soon they squeezed shut and he hissed out in pain.

"ow, what the heck?"

kagome let go of the shoulder she'd pinched and crossed her arms.

"i had to come to see for myself that you were still alive," she said, her immense relief at finding souta ok now turning into anger. "you had us worried sick!"

"what? why? i told you i might have to stay late because there's a deadline coming up," souta said.

"staying late, yes. but you didn't say you wouldn't come home at all. and then you weren't answering any of our calls and messages either."

souta dug his phone out of his jeans' pocket and grimaced.

"sorry. i forgot to charge it. anyway, i'm fine, i worked late last night and then crashed in one of the

eak rooms."

"i understand that if you need to stay late working it might be easier to just sleep over here at the office," kagome said, her tone gentler now. "but if you decide to do that, please let us know, so we won't have to worry."

"i will. i promise. i'm sorry, big sis."

kagome smiled and ruffled his hair. "apology accepted."

souta grumbled and tried to smooth his hair back into place.

"now go away, i need to work."

"love you too, souta. take care, ok?"

"yeah, yeah. see you at home."

he'd turned back to his computer.

kagome stared at the back of his head and sighed in affectionate exasperation.

oddly, it was comforting to know that even if they were both grown up, her little

other still remained a

at.

it felt a little odd to just turn and leave; after making such a commotion she hadn't even spent five minutes upstairs. but she'd done what she'd come here for, made sure that souta was all right.

it was obvious that everyone was very busy, so kagome walked back over to the elevators.

the man she had met in the lobby was still standing there just outside the office, waiting for her.

her heart skittered again as she saw him, goosebumps blooming down her arms.

"did you find your

other?" he asked, the deep smooth voice enough to send a shiver down kagome's spine.

"yes, he was fine, just too busy with work to charge his phone or let his family know he's well," kagome said, rolling her eyes.

"i'm glad everything was resolved," the man intoned, then gestured towards the elevators.

kagome resumed her walking and stepped into the elevator when it arrived. the man stepped in after her, and pushed for the lobby.

kagome leaned against the wall of the car, feeling both exhausted and embarrassed now that she knew souta was ok. there had been a café downstairs, hadn't there? she'd have to go in and buy something there to leave at the front desk as an apology.

startled, she realised that the elevator had stopped moving.

biting her lip, she turned her head, only to find the man staring at her.

having his undivided attention flustered kagome. she could feel her cheeks warm as she dropped her gaze.

"thank you so much for helping me out," she said.

"you already thanked me," the man replied.

"well, i'm still very grateful," she said.

he inclined his head. "the pleasure was mine."

something in his voice had kagome's

eath catching.

blushing furiously, she stammered a goodbye and then left the elevator, heading towards the café.

the man's lingering stare made the spot between her shoulder blades tingle every step of the way across the lobby.

iv

the woman didn't leave him alone.

ief though their encounter had been, over the next week sesshoumaru kept picking apart every word they had exchanged. her expressions had been carved into his memory and he would study them to better discern her moods. he would replay the sound of her voice in his head, to a degree he was sure he had her tones memorised. he couldn't forget that sweet light scent that had teased his nose.

never before had he encountered anyone who had so stirred his instincts.

iefly, he had wondered if the cause for such a reaction had been the frisson of purity he had sensed. then he had decided against it – after all, miko could be said to be a natural enemy to youkai, so it made little sense that meeting one would cause such yearning.

of course, a mere memory could not sustain him forever, so, eventually, sesshoumaru had to move from thoughts to action.

he found her on social media, although it took him a while. she was a nurse. and single. or at least she'd never posted about a boyfriend from what he could see.

for the longest time, that was where sesshoumaru was stalled.

sesshoumaru wasn't sure how to proceed, what would be the best way to approach the woman he was longing for.

when, on one evening, he found himself semi-seriously considering faking an injury or an illness so that he might go to the hospital she worked at and orchestrate a way to meet her again, he knew that something had to be done before this woman would drive him into insanity.

he would do what he always did and approach the problem head on.

it was easy to find her address from the personnel files they had for her younger

other.

sesshoumaru was well aware that it was an invasion of privacy, but sometimes the ends justified the means. and a forthright approach would at least have more honour than any way he might attempt to engineer an "accidental" meeting.

he packed his things, shot a quick e-mail off to miroku, and left work early.

he didn't know anything about the woman's schedule, didn't even know if she was working today let alone what shift she might be in.

but sesshoumaru fervently wished that fate would be on his side, and he was prepared to wait.

he plugged the address into the navigation system of his car, then drove across tokyo.

the higurashi home appeared in fact to be a shrine – which, given that the woman was a miko, shouldn't have come as a surprise to sesshoumaru.

he parked near the curb, then looked at the long wooden staircase rising from the sidewalk, leading up to a torii gate.

then, he settled in to wait.

sesshoumaru didn't know how long he sat there in his car, his window cracked open, his radio on to try and alleviate his boredom, with his fingers drumming against the steering wheel and his gaze trained on the sidewalk, never wavering.

finally, the light tantalising scent he'd memorised teased his nose.

sesshoumaru sat up straighter, then quickly got out of the car. standing still, intent like the predator he was, he stared up the street and at the approaching figure.

she looked up just then, her blue eyes widening from surprise.

her steps slowed but didn't falter as she continued walking towards him.

sesshoumaru's nostrils flared as he inhaled her scent, his eyes becoming hooded for a few lingering seconds. he watched her approach; she was far lovelier than the memories he'd been cherishing.

he hadn't even talked to her yet, and sesshoumaru already felt that coming here had been worthwhile, simply because he had got to see her again.

she stopped at a respectful distance and fidgeted.

sesshoumaru greeted her with a small bow. "miss higurashi."

she mirrored the gesture, offering him a hesitant hello in return.

"i apologise for showing up unannounced like this," sesshoumaru continued. "it must seem rude to approach you like this, waiting around near your house, but i really wanted to see you again."

miss higurashi blinked.

to sesshoumaru's relief, she appeared neither alarmed nor annoyed at finding him waiting for her. the emotion most clear on her features was confusion.

"what do you want?" she asked.

"first, i'd like to introduce myself. i'm nishizuka sesshoumaru. and what i want is to take you out on a date. i'd like that very much, actually."

miss higurashi was staring at him, as well as the business card he was holding out, her lips parted.

for a moment, silence reigned between them.

then, miss higurashi found her voice, though it was squeakier than before and the words tumbled out in a stammer.

"i, umm, what? really? why?"

the corners of sesshoumaru's lips twisted. he was thoroughly charmed by the woman, and seeing her so flustered because of him stroked his ego in the most delicious way.

"because i really wish to know you better," he told her earnestly. "after our meeting, i haven't seemed to be able to forget about you."

she was blushing now, and sesshoumaru couldn't take his eyes off of her.

her fingers trembled as she accepted his card. she fumbled around her handbag for a moment before pulling out a business card that she offered to him in return.

sesshoumaru accepted it gracefully, and ran his thumb over the hiragana spelling out her first name.

kagome.

warmth swelled in his chest.

"your answer, miss higurashi?" he prompted, a smile curving his lips.

"i…" she bit her lip, tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. then she looked up at him, blue eyes soft. "yes. i'd like that."

sesshoumaru's smile widened, and though he did stamp out the primitive urge to howl in victory, he couldn't help the flare of his aura, trying to weave his youki around her.

"i'm glad," sesshoumaru said. "thank you for indulging me, miss higurashi. i won't take any more of your time. i'll contact you so we can settle the details of our date."

"sure," miss higurashi replied, still holding his card in her hand. "i'm looking forward to it," she added, flashing him a shy smile.

"i am, too," sesshoumaru told her, his gaze intent on her, hoping to commit the sweetness of that smile into his memory. "i'll be in touch," he promised.

then, he bowed and left.

pulling out in his car, he looked into the rear-view mirror and found miss higurashi still standing by the shrine steps.

a rare bark of laughter bubbled up sesshoumaru's throat as a sense of euphoria the likes of which he'd never experienced before swept over him.

he had no idea what the miko was doing to him, why she was affecting him so.

and at this point, sesshoumaru did not even care.

he was already craving more of it; more of her.

he couldn't wait for their date and getting to see her again.

he'd have to get home soon so he could start planning.

nothing short of perfect wouldn't do.

his miko deserved the best.

v

kagome clutched at the business card in her hand. her heart was racing, but it had nothing to do with the stairs she was climbing. she was in a daze, still trying to wrap her mind around what had actually just happened.

the hot manager from where souta worked had been waiting for her because he'd wanted to see her again. because he'd wanted to ask her out?

she looked at the business card in her hand, just to reassure it was all real.

there was nothing on there but a phone number, and a name spelled out in elegant kanji.

nishizuka sesshoumaru.

it sounded faintly familiar, but kagome wasn't sure where she'd heard it.

maybe souta had mentioned it at some point.

even with the proof in her hand, kagome was having a hard time believing that the conversation from ten minutes ago had actually taken place.

stuff like this didn't happen to kagome.

sure, she had been asked out before – there had been houjou back in high school and then kouga when she'd been in university – but a hot guy she'd met by a chance purposefully seeking her out because he wanted to see again?

unreal.

that was just something straight out of a movie, wasn't it?

kagome smiled at the card.

the butterflies were going crazy in her stomach and she wasn't sure what to make of the tangle of emotions weighing in her chest. her imagination was already taking wing as she couldn't help wondering what their date would be like.

she needed to get home and calm herself down, kagome decided, racing up the remaining stairs with light feet.

but even after she'd got home, taken a quick shower and changed into more comfortable clothes, she was humming to herself as she helped her mother prepare dinner.