Tormented

“The Rape of Nanjing during World War II. The Chinese government estimates that over three hundred thousand civilians were raped and killed by the Imperial Japanese Army.”

“That’s harsh.”

“My grandfather refused to drive Japanese cars, eat Japanese food, or even use an electronic device if it was made by a Japanese company.”

“You don’t feel the same way?”

“I don’t fault my grandfather. I can’t imagine what it would be like to live through mass murder and mass rape. But it doesn’t serve subsequent generations. At some point, you have to move on.”

“True that. I remember having a lot of discussions at Stanford about whether or not slavery is forgivable.”

“Is it?”

“I think it’s a personal decision. Some people worry that forgiving means condoning the travesty, and moving on means forgetting. We shouldn’t ever forget, but my father used to say that forgiveness is really about freeing yourself.”

“Sounds like a wise man.”

“Yeah, I probably should listen to him more.”

The chef came to check on them, but Ben kept the conversation short. If there was a chance he would return her to Jake, he wanted to max every minute with her.

The next few courses consisted of charcoal-grilled salmon, squid garnished with roe and seasonal vegetables, and a hot pot of Japanese duck dumplings. Each course was paired with its own sake. Although sake usually had a low proof, he could see it having an effect on Kimani, who excused herself to go to the ladies’ room.

He was glad that she had appeared at ease throughout the dinner. Save for the moment when he had pulled his chair to hers to show her the proper way to hold chopsticks. So it would seem she didn’t hate his guts. But even though she had admitted she’d exaggerated her answers to the BDSM questionnaire, he didn’t have any plans on going easy with her punishment.

A waiter came by and refilled his sake cup.

And after he punished her, then what? Would he give her back to Jake before his time was up? He would need some assurances that Jake would treat her properly. Maybe he would make that a condition if Jake wanted to keep the full two hundred thousand.

Problem was, Ben didn’t think he could be in the same room with Kimani without wanting to claim her for his own. He’d have to quit the cabin.

His mobile rang.

It was Jake.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

“Are you the one having dinner with Benji Lee?” the middle-aged Asian woman in the restroom asked.

“Why do you ask?” Kimani returned as she washed her hands.

“Just curious. I tried to set him up with my niece, but my family back in China told me not to bother. Seems Benji has a lot of different girlfriends. I thought maybe you were the flavor of the week.”

Kimani flushed. “Hardly. We’re not on a date.”

The woman raised her heavily tweezed brows. “Oh? It’s kind of a romantic setting up there on the private patio.”

“He felt like having kesiki, so here we are.”

“You mean kaiseki. This restaurant is renowned for that type of food.”

Kimani bit back a retort that she didn’t care so much about the food as long as the sex with Ben was good. Instead, she smiled and said, “Good to know. And I should probably share with you that Ben hates being called Benji by anyone other than his family.”

Leaving the restroom, she returned to the patio and saw that Ben was on his cell, standing near the glass wall.

“If I decide to give her back to you, it’s not going to be tonight,” Ben was saying, his back to her. “What do you mean, you’re bored with Claire? Use your fuckin’ imagination. ... No, I’m not interested in swapping. And you told me it’s against the contract terms to loan out your subs. ... I told you we can talk about it tomorrow.”

Hanging up, Ben shook his head.