He stared at her for a moment, those cerulean eyes piercing into her unmercifully. Usagi had expected surprise, anger, or perhaps violence but she certinally didn't expect the emotionless mask his face had suddenly become as he just stood there silently, looking at her with an intensity to melt her bones. Slowly he reached up to her hand, his movement languid as if he had all the time in the world in her cozy office. He lay her delicate fingers onto his palm. His thumb began to slide over the jeweled ring in a slow, almost rhythmic motion all the while never taking his eyes off hers.

"Oh this?" His smile was sharp and instant when he saw the confusion flash in her exquisite eyes. "This means nothing." And with that he tossed her hand aside. "It’s just a piece of tawdry jewelry given to you by your little puppy."

"It’s not just some piece of ‘tawdry’ jewelry you damn bastard! It’s there so I know how much he loves me and I him."

"That’s a lie and we both know it. You’re mine just accept it." He looked smugly at her as if he had just placed the answers to all her problems on a silver platter for her. Seeing her outraged look, Mamoru sighed. "My God Usagi you haven’t even slept with this man... your so called future husband." He finished with a sneer. Her face suddenly grew crimson as her mouth compressed into a thin line of anger at his statement.

"How the hell do you know about who I sleep with?!" She repressed the irresistible urge to stomp her foot at him. Stepping back from her he leaned back easily against her massive desk, crossing his arms across his chest as he eyed her with amusement.

"Really Usa I thought we had covered this already."

"Don’t call me Usa you fucking prick. And no, some well placed phone calls and a few background checks are not going to tell you who I’ve had in my bed." Marching up to him she angrily jabbed her finger into his hard and completely immobile chest. "So how exactly do you know if I’ve slept with Jason or not?!"

He smiled down at her for a moment, taking in her flushed skin and ruffled hair, her lips still swollen from their earlier encounter. He felt the urge to yank her to him and kiss the breath out of her all over again, but carefully resisted the urge, reminding himself that all that would come soon enough.

"Well Usa it’s really quite simple. If you’d slept with him I would have killed him." It wasn’t an empty boast, Usagi knew that at least. His voice was calm, his eyes hard glints of steel as he regarded her. His smile had disappeared as he continued on. "I nearly did kill him when I found out you were dating him. God the thought of his hands on your smooth skin, of his lips anywhere near that delectable mouth." His eyes swung downward to stare at her soft pink lips and again Mamoru had to restrain himself from just taking her there.

He’d gone through hell to find her after that party. He didn’t know why he’d left her, some drunk asshole had come out and suddenly reality had come crashing down around Mamoru. Normally he couldn’t have cared less about who had seen them, and hell he probably would have taken her again with how wound up he was. But standing there, his head pillowed between her breast and her hot skin pressed against him, he just couldn’t face her. Couldn’t face the look of hurt and confusion that he knew would be there and so he’d set her down, readjusted his jacket and stalked off into the crowd without a backward glance.

He supposed somewhere in the back of his mind he’d assumed it would be easy to find her, so simple to just walk through the crowd again and drag her back into his arms. He’d just needed a minute to get his composure back, but it had been a minute to long. The night had been young and he’d assumed that she would be forced to stay since she had obviously worked for one of the companies involved in the merger. Her authoritative air had revealed that much to him as he had silently watched her for a good portion of the night. Panic had gripped him when he’d threaded back through the crowd, searching for that golden hair and milky skin but to no avail. She’d been gone and he had nearly howled in rage that she’d gotten away. As he stood in the cooling air outside the elegant building, determination and anger had swelled in him and he’d vowed to find her and get her back at all costs.

It had taken him months to find out that she had worked for the Nitsa company, they organized high end business functions like that fateful merger celebration. From there, it had been deceptively simple to locate her and it was then that he realized that it probably wouldn’t go over terribly well if he just waltzed in to her office and ravished her, though the idea had a certain appeal. He smiled at the thought of the blonde beauty beneath him on her desk, or the plushly carpeted floor. Shaking his head to clear it of the quickly multiplying erotic fantasies, he eyed her again. Her angelic face was white as she stared wide eyed at him.

"You’d what?" Her voice was choked as him disbelief that he had actually just threatened to kill Jason.

"You heard me. I would have and still will kill anyone who so much as touches you." His voice heal a deadly calm as he straightened his tall frame to stand in front of her. Slowly he reached his hand out and slipped it behind her neck, his fingers softly rubbing the delicate flesh. "You’re mine!" He growled at her and then quickly drew her forward, crushing her mouth to his in a blatantly possessive manner as his other hand drew her luscious hips towards him. She could feel his entire frame pressed against her and it sent involuntary shivers down her spine as the kiss slowly became tender and languid. He moved his lips across hers, his tongue tasting her bottom lip as he drew it into his mouth and nibbled on it.

They were both breathing hard when he finally pulled away and stared into her blue eyes, arrogantly pleased when he saw the haze of passion still there. "Remember that."

"Remember what?" She asked dazed from the tantalizing kiss they’d just shared. Her body ached from his unfulfilled promise and she wanted nothing more for than for him to pull her close and kiss her again. It was this that drew her out of her haze and his arms.

"Remember what?" She asked again when she saw his grin of amusement. God did he have to look even more gorgeous when he smiled? Maybe delicious was more the word because she bet he would taste nice, sweet even. She imagined herself running her tongue along his neck and then.... snapping her head up she was horrified at her wanton thoughts and tried desperately not to blush. She was a grown woman for Christ’s sake!

She was blushing a bright red that Mamoru found adorable because he had a fairly good idea what she was thinking about, if his line of thought was anything to go by. Hell, the air fairly crackled with sexual tension.

"Remember that you’re mine. And I. Do. Not. Share." His tone was low and menacing as he stared at her, using every bit of his height to let her know just how serious he was. God the thought of anyone, anyone but him, made his vision go red with rage. By God he would rip anyone who dared to touch her limb from limb. Mamoru didn’t know where this raw possessiveness came from, but he didn’t question it.

Abruptly he broke eye contact and Usagi let out a small sigh of relief until she saw that he was leaning over her desk to grab something. Wordlessly he shoved the phone at her.

"Ooookay and exactly what the hell am I supposed to do with this?" She asked angrily as she shoved the blue cordless phone back at him.

"Why call Jason of course." Usagi huffed at this as he stared at her like it was the most obvious thing in the world. She stood there for a moment, estimating the damage the phone would do upon impact with his arrogant head but then decided against it as she decided it wouldn’t possibly do enough damage. A freight train wouldn’t do enough damage in her opinion.

"Oh of course. Why exactly am I calling Jason?" Sarcasm dripped off every word as she stared at the infuriating man, willing him to be sane for a few seconds and explain his demented actions. "To tell him I have an egotistical, self-important asshole parading around my office and claiming I apparently belong to him? Or perhaps to discuss the weather?" One delicately arched eyebrow lifted cynically.

"Ahh yes to discuss the weather? An interesting idea, but no." Now he walked around her desk and sat down in her oversized leather chair, swiveling it slightly so he faced her. For a moment she could swear he was going to say "and now Mr. bond." She wished she had some of 007’s nifty gadgets right now, exploding gum or earrings filled with sleeping gas. Ok, so bond probably didn’t wear earrings but she would still have liked them. Instead, all she had was a useless phone and some expensive heels that she might be able to smack him with. A pretty pitiful arsenal, she admitted.

"You’re going to break your engagement with him." Usagi’s head snapped up as he suddenly had her undivided attention.

"What the hell is wrong with you? There is no way in hell I am doing that, and what in God’s name made you think I would just because you told me to?!" She was nearly screaming now, but she didn’t care, and the fact that the bastard didn’t even look surprised just added fuel to the blaze inside her. "I love him you stupid ass! I’m going to marry him and live happily ever after. Hopefully without ever having to see you again!" She did throw the phone at him now, deciding some damage was better than none, but he merely shifted to the side as the phone flew past him to smash into the window behind with a resounding smack.

Turning her back on him she headed quickly towards the door, the need to get away from him was overwhelming and she didn’t care if she had to walk home as long as she didn’t have to spend one more second with him. She only got the door open a hand’s width before he slammed it shut from behind her.

"I insist you stay." His voice was a little too cheerful for her tastes. She suddenly felt sick as she realized he had something up his sleeve, another card to play in this little game of his.

"I would really prefer to leave." She spoke without turning around, trying and failing not to tremble as she felt his breath caress her neck with every breath he took.

His warm hands were on her shoulders then, their heat burning through her thin slip as he slowly turned her around. She suddenly came face to face with Mamoru’s sculpted chest as his hands slip down her bare arms with alarming intimacy.

"Usa." He sighed when she stubbornly refused to look at him.

"Don’t call me Usa." Her voice was whisper and he had to lean in slightly to hear her and Mamoru sighed again, this time in annoyance.

"All right." He said as he walked away from her. Usagi’s head snapped up at the easy victory, a victory easily won. Now she looked at his broad back with suspicion, waiting for the catch she knew was coming. "I guess I’ll just have to call you .... hmmm ... Usako should do nicely."

"What?! I’m not you damn lover!" He only smiled at her, that infuriating smile that made her want to hit him with something big and heavy.

He’d been silently thinking of her as his Usako for months now, and it felt so sweet to let the name pass his lips. He wasn’t at all perturbed by her reaction, she’d come around, eventually.

"Yes Usako, a nice ring to it." She knew he was goading her but she could do little but rise to the bait.

"No it does not! And stop trying to change the subject, why made you think I was going to call Jason and break our engagement? You don’t look insane though as of the past few minutes I’ve been having my doubts. I know you Chiba, and you never go into battle unprepared, so just lay your damnable card on the table so I can go!" Anger and frustration were making short work of her hard won temper and him calling her pet names certainly didn’t help matters.

"Oh but you are going to call your little puppy." He reassured her.

"Stop calling him my ‘little puppy’ you bastard, he’d my fiancé! And no I’m not calling him." She crossed her arms over her chest in defiance and proceeded to glare at him as he leaned against her desk, looking all too at ease.

"Oh yes you are. You’re going to tell him you’ve changed your mind about your hasty engagement too. You know why?" He asked before she could supply her sharp retort.

"No but I have a sneaking suspicion you’re going to tell me."

"Hmm perceptive little thing aren’t you?" He said matching her sarcasm with a perfection that only grated Usagi’s nerves more. "You’re going to call Andrews and tell him your wedding plans are off or I’m going to ruin him."

Usagi couldn’t help it that she had laughed. He’d acted all foreboding as if he were going to threaten to smite her or something. Hmm could you smite someone? It appeared a zillion and one times in the bible didn’t it? God smited so and so and then....

"Will you stop laughing. I’m completely serious." He didn’t much like her reaction, but smiled slightly when he thought of her reaction when she realized just how serious he was. He had said he would get her back at all costs, and that’s exactly what he’d meant.

"Oh you’re going to ‘ruin’ him are you?" She couldn’t keep the laughter from her voice, and finally just stopped trying. "And how pray tell are you going to do that? Even you, Mamoru Chiba, can’t take all Jase’s money, it’s a family fortune and he doesn’t own any companies that you can sabotage. He’s old money Chiba. So how exactly are you going to ruin him again?"

His only response was to smirk at her and as the moments passed Usagi’s laughter faded and her smile fell. Something wasn’t right, Mamoru was just a little to confident. Fear coiled tightly in the pit of her stomach the longer he waited to play his hand.

"Oh? I wouldn’t be so sure Usako. It seems Andrews’ fortune isn’t as substantial as you think. But you’re right it’s tied into the family so I suppose I will just have to destroy the family as well. His uncle is a congressman you know."

Usagi seethed. What the hell did his uncle have to do with anything? "Scandals are horrible, especially nowadays with the media being so blood thirsty."

Realization dawned on her suddenly. "Shit."

"What was that Usako?" He asked sweetly. He knew she’d just figured it out. He had a good number of rather interesting photographs involving Andrews’ uncle in some fairly "compromising" situations. If he released them, the man would be ruined and his family would go down by association, but he knew this wasn’t enough to bring them into ruin, and from the way she was glaring at him, she knew it too.

"Ok, so you bring the man down by scandal and the family looks bad for a few years, eventually everyone will forget."

"True, but the Andrews’ family has invested a good deal of their money in various projects. Ahh you didn’t know I see." Her face had blanched at the news and she knew that he had found the chink in the armor that only moments ago had seemed so impenetrable. "Well I’m going to hazard a guess that those projects may just suddenly start to fail. Reputation and trust are everything in business. A few well placed words and everyone will know that those investments are about to fail. That coupled with a national scandal should be sufficient I think, to humble the mighty Andrews."

"Money isn’t everything." She said defiantly as she squared her shoulders and met his gaze with scorching anger flashing in her eyes. "I didn’t agree to marry him for his fortune, and I won’t leave him if he looses it."

"Ahh so noble, of course I plan to take you and your family down too, of course."

"What?" Her voice was shaking now as he got up and stalked towards her. All of a sudden she felt all to much like the prey watching the hunter. It was a disconcerting feeling and she felt the almost irrepressible need to run as far from this hellish situation as she could.

"I already bought this company and as of now you are fired. No one is going to hire you after I get through ‘singing your praises.’ Of course then there’s your mother. Aren’t you supporting her? Hmm where would they go without baby’s little check every month?"

His sarcastic words stripped her bare, and she felt the sting to her bones. She knew he was right. Her mother had been a housewife all her life, growing up in the era when good little girls grew up, got married and had lots of children all the while vacuuming the living room and making pancakes or whatever housewives did. She had bluntly told Usagi that she was going to college under threats of death and other horrible tortures. Usagi smiled slightly at the memory of her mother threatening her with a dough covered rolling pin. Only her mother could looking menacing covered in flour and holding and rolling pin of all things.

Her father had died a few years ago and her mother had been devastated. Grief had nearly destroyed her and when she finally began to put her life back together, she’d realized that without any skills, she couldn’t get a job. After a lifetime devoted to her family, the world was ready to turn its back on her. But Usagi wasn’t. She supported her mother, paid the bills diligently and let her mother have the peace she so deserved. And now this man was threatening to take that all away from her.

"Why are you doing this? You don’t even know them. Hell you barely know me." She whimpered softly. Suddenly they stood with only a breath separating them, their bodies almost touching, but not. He reached down and grasped her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze.

"You’re wrong little Usako. I know you. I want you so much it’s driving me insane. I love the taste of your mouth, your skin. I love the feel of your hair running through my fingers. I love you and I’m going to keep you." And with that he kissed her soft mouth, determination flashing in his cerulean eyes.