Page 4 of Patience
He’d done that. No one else could do to Eli what Haruka could. The rest of breakfast was silent, but Haruka was intensely aware of the tiny, shy glances Eli kept shooting him across the table. Fuck, he was weak for this boy.
When the remnants of their breakfast had been cleared—Haruka had managed to get Eli to eat half of his food and counted it a victory—he finally turned on his phone to call his assistant, Chiharu.
She’d been with him for years and they were like family, only he trusted her more than he did his family. Chiharu was the only person he ever used an honorific with. As far as he was concerned, she was the only person in his life that deserved it. Eli didn’t count since he was American and Haruka’s lover. For him there was no need.
“Chiharu-neesan, I need you to—” He was cut off before he got any further.
“Haru-kun! Thank the gods you called. Chiba-san found out you were back in Japan and is driving me crazy trying to find you.” There was a touch of hysteria in his assistant’s voice.
Haruka resisted the urge to rub his forehead or react outwardly in any way. It was possible he could handle the situation quickly, leaving Eli blissfully unaware of his aunt’s machinations. He hadn’t informed her of their visit for a reason.
“I’ll be right back,” Haruka informed Eli, then stepped out onto the porch leading to their private garden and slid the door closed behind him. “What’s wrong? What does she need?”
Nothing. He knew very well his aunt didn’t need a damned thing from him. But ever since he’d blown his cover as a trust-fund baby, she’d taken an interest in him, delighting in butting into his life every chance she got.
“She’s on the other line right now. Can you talk to her?” The hysteria in Chiharu’s voice had reached epic proportions, which meant his aunt had been tormenting her for hours. His assistant was generally unflappable.
Haruka sighed. “Go ahead and connect us.”
“Thank you, Haru-kun. I’m sorry for disturbing your vacation, but—”
“Don’t worry about it.” It was Chiharu’s job to make Haruka’s life easier, but that didn’t mean he’d let her suffer needlessly on his behalf.It wasn’t kindness, it was simply common sense. Loyal assistants were difficult to come by and he planned to keep her for a long time.
There was a beep, and his aunt’s voice filled his ear. “Haru-chan! I need you, where have you been?”
Like hell, he’d tell her. “Nowhere. What do you want?” Haruka saw Eli peering at him curiously through the sliding glass door, and he waved.Nothing to see here. Everything is fine.
“There’s an emergency board meeting. I need you there, otherwise, the takeover will fall through.”
Unlikely. Everyone knew how he was going to vote. There didn’t need to be a meeting about it. “I haven’t changed my vote. I can do it remotely at noon like I planned.” It would take five minutes.
“But there’s a last-minute proposal. The board wants to hear it before the final vote. You need to be there.”
Haruka, in fact, did not need to be there. There were dozens of last-minute proposals a week, and his aunt handled all of them. The only time she pulled him into the boardroom for emergency meetings was when she wanted to try to bully him into doing something.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “What do you want, Obasan?”
“What do you take me for, Haru-chan? I only have the best interests of the company in mind.”
Haruka waited patiently for thebut.
“But . . . since we’re on the phone, I did want to talk to you about something.”
“There’s been movement in Thailand and—”
“No.”
“Wait, Haru-chan, just hear me out.”
“Absolutely not.”
“But it will be a perfect opportunity for him to—”
“You’re not going near him. I’ve already told you he’s off-limits,” Haruka snapped.
Ever since his aunt had found out Eli wanted to work for the UN, she’d been ecstatic.
“But we could use a family member in the UN. It’s never too early for him to start laying the groundwork.”
