The next morning, Lana found Yuki sitting by herself in the kitchen, reading a newspaper, a cup of tea in hand. "Good morning, Yuki sama, how did you sleep?"

"Very well, thank you, and yourself?"

"Hmm, not so well, a lot of things on my mind. Do you know where goshujin sama is?"

"Oh, he already left. He's in meetings all morning, but he'll be back after lunch. Anything I can help you with?"

Lana hesitated. "No, I wanted to talk with him, but it can wait tonight."

"You look preoccupied, what's bothering you?"

It was pointless to share her paranoia-fueled anxiety. "Some dojo matters. Please don't worry." A thought struck her. "Ah, I briefly talked with Inoue shihan last night. He seems to know goshujin sama very well. Do you know him as well?"

"Oh, Inoue shihan is someone particular in goshujin sama's life. In our lives. He was first his sempai, and then was one of his instructors for about ten years, until he was appointed dojo-cho of the school after his father's passing."

"I see, so he has... significant influence."

"All sempai and sensei do when you train with them from early on in your practice. But their bond is somewhat special. Inoue shihan has always cared a lot for goshujin sama, providing him with guidance and... yes, support, during difficult times. A real mentor. He was actually one of the most fervent proponents of our union."

"Oh! How so?"

"My father and Inoue shihan graduated from the same high school. A few years ago, I learned he had talked extensively with my father to convince him to approve our marriage. At our wedding, he told me he was... relieved I would be the one to take care of goshujin sama. He was so frank and direct about it, it was almost improper. But his sincerity was such, I felt obliged to pledge toward him personally that I would tend to all of goshujin sama's needs, whatever they would be." Yuki stopped and then smiled sadly. "Hmm, as we both know, I failed."

Lana jumped from her chair and knelt at Yuki's feet, grabbing her hand. "Oh no, please don't say that, Yuki sama. You have done, and still do, all you can for him."

Yuki cupped Lana's cheek. "And still, it isn't enough," she went on, pensive. "He needs something else, something more, something you are able to offer... thank goodness. I can't help but think that while I supported his search for solutions elsewhere, I should have done more. Duty required it from me if only I had known what and how things would be different... including for you."

"We are all performing our duty here, oku sama, and you have sacrificed so much already. I challenge anyone to reproach you anything."

Yuki leaned in and gave Lana a deep kiss, filled with many unnamed emotions, which left both women trembling. "As I would if anyone attacked you, sweetling," Yuki growled, a glint of something deadly serious flashing in her brown eyes. "We share delightful moments, of course. Your pleasure is deep and sincere, and I know how much you take away from your arrangement with him, and with me. Still, what he put you through last month, what you endured... this is not what I had in mind when we first met, and I pushed you to come back to him."

Lana's heart clenched at the pain flashing on her companion's face. It was astonishing that Yuki had more problems with what had transpired than she did, but this was precisely the crux of their complex relationship.

She rested her head on Yuki's lap, providing silent comfort and reassurances, and basked in the bittersweet exchange, her worry regarding Inoue's probing now forgotten. After a few minutes, she got up, but back on her feet, a wave of dizziness made her head spin, and she had to catch herself on the counter table. Hmm, time to drink more water.

"I have to run now, oku sama. I have too many things to do this week to take this day off. I will try to be home early, though."

"It would be nice to have dinner all together and enjoy some more intimate moments afterward, all of us? I have a couple of ideas in mind." Yuki whispered with a smile so full of suggestive promises that butterflies filled Lana's stomach.

The younger woman smiled back, happy to see her companion relaxed again. "It would be delightful, Yuki sama. Until then, have a very nice day."

The morning flew by and to her satisfaction, Lana tackled several issues resulting from her exclusion from the Dos Santos deal, but also some others related to the Brexit bombshell that had hit the business and political world earlier in June. It was well past 2pm when she realized she needed to eat something. Her head was spinning again; her taste buds craved something fat or sweet. Or both. She was considering her options when her desk phone rang.

"Lana, ciao, I knew you would be chained to your desk today. I was out shopping this morning, and I am in the lobby right now. Have you already had lunch?"

"Nope and it's getting urgent that I do. I'm thinking Chinese. Are you in?"

"Always! Let's go to our favorite place. It's been too long since I had a double dose of their fried apple and honey rings."

"Oh what a lovely idea! Let me grab my things, I'll be downstairs in a minute." True to her word, Lana was on the ground floor of their building in a blink.

She engulfed Gabriella in a warm hug. "Cara mia, how long has it been already since we had some time together?" Lana wondered aloud as they walked out under the blistering midday sun. The asphalt under their shoes was so hot it burned through their thin pump soles. With her business slacks and conservative white blouse, Lana began to sweat right away.

"Terribly long... three, four weeks maybe? I got buried under our department Q2 report all past month, and barely saw the light of day."

"We've got a lot of catch up to do, but let's eat first please!"

"Of course!" Gabriella exclaimed with a laugh. "Greasy food always comes first."

They headed for the nearby Sichuan restaurant which had seen many of their quick lunches and late-hour dinners over the past three years. The friends sighed with relief when the cool air inside greeted them. The head cook gave them a big smile, and they sat at their usual spot, a small table for two by the window, that provided the best angle to indulge in people watching.

"Here you go! Take your time please," the waitress said, putting generous plates of steamed dumplings, sautéed spicy beef and fried rice in front of them, not forgetting the apple rings they craved. Both women gulped everything down too quickly for their own good, in reverent silence.

Lana sighed with satisfaction as she licked her fingers glistening with honey. "Ah, just what I needed. After the izakaya party of yesterday, my skin will hate me, but hey, a girl needs to have her priorities straight," she chuckled, emptying her glass of chilled water for the third time in a row. Cool air or not, it was well over 28°C in the restaurant. Much better than the 35°C outside, but still...

"Call me when you become the saint of temperance and balance, for food or... anything else. It will be a miraculous day," Gabriella snorted, and both friends cackled in agreement.

"You know, I realize I haven't been so available for you recently, cara mia, while of course, you've been such an amazing support," Lana said with an apologetic smile, grabbing the brunette's hand. "So, what's new on your end?"

Gabriella smiled and patted her friend's hand. "Nothing as thrilling and unusual as you, of course, but... well, I've been meaning to tell you...Despite my impossible schedule, I met someone, can you believe it?"

Lana beamed at the happiness shining in her eyes. "Oh, how wonderful!" Lana exclaimed, clapping hands. "Spit it out! Who is it? How serious is this?"

Her friend burst out laughing. "I knew you would be excited! Well, it is not so serious for now, but I have to say it's nice. Scratch that, it's amazing! His name is Yoshiro, and he lives three blocks from me, near the shopping street running to the station, on the south side? He owns a motorcycle and car repair shop, and this is where I met him."

"Oh, wait, don't tell me. I can see what happened from here: you walked by, there was this amazing bike you had to touch, then this Apollo came out from under the hood of a car, and you fell on your knees!" Gabriella threw a chopstick at Lana with a shriek.

"Ah, come on! Why so cheesy? Well, OK, it was something like this. There were three beautiful bikes just outside his shop, and you know me, what do I love more than a man's powerful chest and chiseled abs?"

"Custom bikes!" Both friends said together before laughing again.

"Guilty as charged! So here I was, drooling over a customized Yamaha, a real blue and steel beauty, when Yoshiro showed up. Right away, I started firing off my usual round of questions, and he was so happy he ended up inviting me for a drink. You bet I accepted. I could see the guy had some powerful chest and chiseled abs to go along with his bikes." The two women snickered.

"This was three weeks ago. Everything's going well, except for one big thing, which isn't so serious for now, but could become a problem."

Lana quirked an eyebrow. "What is it? He's married?"

"Nah, it's your thing, right?" Gabriella snickered. "But his family really, really wants him to tie the knot, and they keep introducing him to very nice, suitable and proper young ladies who have been vouched for, screened, and background checked up to at least four generations. Needless to say, none of them are Italian or love bikes, and they're all under 25. So I think we're heading for a big clash. Yoshiro seems unable and unwilling to confront his parents and tell them about us. We've been very hush-hush, he's gone out of his way to bring me to places where nobody knows him."

"Oh gosh, is he ashamed of you? How old is he?"

"Our age, he just turned 40! No, he isn't ashamed, but do I need to tell you what family duty means in this country?"

Lana made a face. "Of course not. Wow, and so you're still on it, this doesn't cool you down?"

"No, because I'm enjoying myself way too much, but also because it's my hope Yoshiro will open his eyes, find his manly courage and tell his parents about me."

"Are you actually considering marrying him? That would be quick and quite unexpected."

"No! Well, not for now, but I would like him to draw a limit, and at least tell his parents the kind of woman he would like to have in his life, you know... Anyway. I'll keep you posted. For now, it's a lot of fun, and we're even planning to go on a road trip in August! I can't wait!"

Lana smiled at her friend's happiness. "It's so good to see you like this Gabriella, you deserve this so much. I hope Yoshiro doesn't blow it."

The brunette winked. "You and me both! Your guy could teach him a couple of things about getting what you want even when you're not supposed to, don't you think? Anyway, the other thing I'm considering these days is starting some martial arts. I need to do something to keep me in shape. I have this burning urge to hit people -- go figure -- so I should channel this into something constructive. I'm seriously considering kendo, but I don't know where to start, and I lack the courage to show up at a dojo to try."

"Kendo is awesome! But you know what? Yuki sama is a third dan in that budo. Why don't you come over, and ask her to show you some basic moves? I'm sure she would be happy to."

"Oh, really? It's a good idea. Would you mind asking her for me? Although... seeing her in full attire and go all samurai on me might not be such a good idea. It's hard to stay focused around her," Gabriella said with a faint blush. Lana burst out laughing.

"Oh, look who's having a serious crush! I can't blame you, though. She is distracting, and like him, she's not afraid to get what she wants. But don't let it stop you. Come over next Sunday, we'll have some tea and then she can show us her... moves," Lana snickered, making Gabriella giggle, but then the brunette turned serious.

"Speaking of the diabolical couple. What about you? How are things? The other day, at the all-department meeting, you seemed so tired."

"Uh? Oh! That meeting. Yeah, well, remember, it was right after Richard had put me on forced leave, and we had just had words about our damned Dos Santos deal. I'm getting more and more frustrated with him, you know. On the one hand, when it comes to dealing with Michelle and the like, he's always so glad to push me on the front line and let me show the teeth he lacks. But then, as soon as someone barks a bit too loud, he folds down and is too happy to blame it on me. I don't know how much longer I'll tolerate this because there's this very sexist undercurrent driving me crazy. So there was that, and on top of it, the night before had been busy."

Her friend rolled her eyes. "Seriously? But what does your man eat? Is he sniffing drugs or drinking too much special Chinese medicine? Like ginseng or powdered rhino horn?"

Lana burst out laughing and couldn't stop until her sides hurt. "Oh, cara mia, thank you so much for being you, it's so good for my mental health! No... no, I don't think he does, but there are two of us so..."

"Exactly! He should take it easy unless you want him to die in your arms or something," Gabriella winked.

"Yeah, well, I won't be the one pointing this out, I'd like to keep my head on my shoulders, thank you very much." She sighed and turned serious. "In any case, it wasn't an easy night, for any of us, so it's why I was a bit... tired."

Gabriella dropped her goofy act. "Hey, you want to talk about it? Is there a lot of drama going on?"

Lana winced, unsure of what she could tell her dearest friend and confidant without waddling into matters which were way too personal. "Not that much, and nothing I can't or won't handle. And although we like to push things quite far now and then, I do have the last word. But I sense there are some serious reasons why he tries to be so utterly in control of himself, and sometimes even he gets overwhelmed. Also, for better or worse, I've inserted myself into a freaking marriage, between two people but who have both a cargo load of backstory I've just begun to scratch and understand. They are open and... yeah, shameless when it comes to bedroom stuff, but it's Fort Knox for so many other things. I often get to figure things out after I've triggered the booby trap."

"Hmm... Lana... sorry to be so blunt, but is there any room for you over there, other than for... you know...?"

Lana watched the passing crowd outside the window. "I think so. It turns out I bring things both were missing, and can't find in each other for a universe of reasons. And each of them gives me something I deeply need in return. So... I believe we can make this work in the long run, provided we keep this fragile balance and nobody busts us," Lana added with a small grimace.

Gabriella was pensive and nodded slowly. "Well, for now, I will trust your judgment cara mia. But you know I keep a close watch, and for example, you seem tired again today. I know it's sizzling hot, but still..."

Lana groaned and stretched her arms. "I am exhausted and don't know why. Right now, I'm dizzy again, it's been like this since this morning. I'd fall asleep under the table if you let me."

"Go home then! It's a holiday, and it's useless staying behind your desk if you can't keep your eyes open."

"Yeah, you're right. I've done most of what I came to do anyway. I could use a nap."

"See? Come on, nobody will say anything because everyone is home busy doing nothing except eating ice cream under the A/C unit. But please see a doctor if you don't feel better tomorrow!"

"Si, Mamma."

Gabriella picked up her shopping bags, and they went to the cashier in front of the door. "I'll leave you here, cara mia, I've still a couple of errands to run. Call me if there's anything, ok?" Gabriella said, hugging her friend goodbye in front the restaurant.

"Likewise! And I haven't forgotten about your kendo thing, so I will definitely ask Yuki san about a demonstration," Lana winked.

Gabriella pretended to groan in despair before waving goodbye to her friend. Chuckling, Lana put her earphones on and headed back to the train station with her favorite electro-jazz playlist in her ears.