Charlotte skidded into a clumsy stop when she suddenly found herself face to face with Sano in the train's dining car, which served everything from A5 wagyu steak on stone grills to blowfish sashimi on a conveyor belt round table. Her surroundings definitely deserved more than a cursory look, but right now all she had eyes for were Sano, and she was unable to tear her gaze away from him even as she shakily asked the waiter behind the conveyor belt to give them a moment alone.
The younger man said something in Japanese as he bowed before leaving, and she saw Sano's lips tighten when it was just the two of them alone. This was the longest time for them not to be on speaking terms, but the realization only made Charlotte feel even more ashamed.
She had been with him for over ten years before her husband...went away, and in all those years, Landon had never needed more than a few seconds before taking the first step to fix things between them. That was how much he had loved her, and so now, it was her turn—-
Charlotte bowed as low as possible. "I'm sorry, L—-Sano." It was her first time to directly call him by his name, and she heard him suck his breath in at the sound. "I'm sorry," she went on jerkily, "for never saying sorry in the past, and for always making you take the first step."
She waited for him to speak, but when he remained silent, she slowly straightened up, and her heart ached. His gorgeous face was still impassive, but Charlotte refused to let this get to her.
"Addie's text means nothing," she insisted, "just like Lukas has never meant anything to me and never will, so please..." Charlotte looked at him entreatingly. "Please don't be mad anymore?" She waited and waited, but when Sano only continued to look at her, she told herself it was time, and so she slowly curled her fingers into fists like she practiced.
Oh God, oh God, this is already making me want to throw up, but here goes—-
She looked up at Sano with what she hoped were like kitten eyes full of appeal and moved her fists as she said, "Meow."
Sano's brows shot up.
"Meow, meow, meow. Please don't be mad any—-oooow!"
Sano was once again pinching her cheeks.
"Where the hell did you learn to be this cute?"
It was that line again, and a laugh escaped her even as her eyes started to sting. "Anime," she managed to tell him, and for some reason this had Sano groaning as he yanked her close. His arms wrapped around her, and even though he was hugging her hard enough to crack her ribs, Charlotte didn't care. She hugged him right back, and her eyes squeezed shut at how painfully familiar everything felt. The angles of his body were different, but the essence of it remained the same. This was the man she loved, the only man she had loved and would ever love—-
"You're too cute, Charles. Always too damn cute."
She had never thought she would miss hearing him say such words, but she did. She had missed hearing them. She had missed him. So, so much. She had missed being with Land so, so much, and when she thought about how many hours they had left—-
"I want to kiss you so bad, Charles," Sano groaned under his breath.
It was enough to rid Charlotte of all of her inhibitions, and she found herself tiptoeing as she whispered into his ear, "Then do it. Take me to our room—-"
A powerful shudder rocked Sano's body. "Don't tempt me, Charles—-"
She wriggled out of his arms and took hold of his hand. "I mean it. And you can do more than kiss—-"
"Fuck."
A gasp spilled past her lips as Sano grabbed her hand and practically dragged her with him as they left the dining car and walked briskly back to the front of the train.
"Now's the time to change your mind," Sano muttered. "Once I have you inside—-"
"You won't even have to undress me," Charlotte heard herself say even as her cheeks started to turn pink. "You can just f-fuck me—-"
Sano tripped over his own feet, and Charlotte couldn't help laughing despite her nervousness. Even though she knew Landon was Sano and vice versa, it was still another man's body that she would soon be intimate with, and the thought left her feeling out of sorts.
A part of her was frightened, another part of her was secretly and shamefully thrilled. It was like a fantasy coming to life, to have a stranger make love to her and feel no guilt about it, since Sano also happened to be her husband.
"Last chance," Sano gritted out when they finally reached their suite.
Charlotte answered this by using her own key card to unlock their door.