Tension

Inuyasha growled again when the miko finished cleaning the lesion on the daiyoukai's chest. Sesshomaru relished at the thought of the hanyou's evident discomfort whenever the woman touched his skin.

"Sesshomaru-sama, I will have to invade your personal space." The miko's eyes flickered to him inquiringly and he subtly nodded. When she bent closer, her scent hit him in big waves. Rain, garden herbs, and cherry blossoms. He had never smelled another human as appealing as her. He took another indiscreet whiff and internally sighed.

Why does this little human miko baffle me so? She remained a mystery to him and her secrets taunted him deeply. It was utterly frustrating.

Her hands continued to weave around his chest and shoulder as she wrapped the bandages. She moved with such precision and gentleness that could only be borne from years of tending to her companions' wounds and injuries. He recognized no tinge of fear in her scent as she continued to invade his personal space, something that he, Sesshomaru, simply did not allow.

But the miko was his exception. His. Somehow, that word stirred something inside him. Something raw. Primal. Something he had never felt before.

###

Kagome desperately tried to keep her face from blushing fiercely under the daiyoukai's intense gaze. She was embarrassed enough of the loud hammering in her chest that he surely heard with his sensitive senses. But he gave no indication as he continued to look at her with smoldering golden orbs.

Please stop looking at me like that. She was getting lightheaded from just being this close to Sesshomaru. Who knew the killing perfection smelled so good? He smelled of winter and mint, fitting for someone as cold-hearted as he, and yet… as her hands lightly touched his skin, he was so… warm. His pale skin was smooth like marble and yet so soft like velvet. His eternally-stoic face hinted no emotion and yet his eyes… Kami-sama, those eyes burned with unspoken expressions she could not decipher.

The Lord of the Western Lands was full of contradictions. He was a mystery she wanted to unravel. Somehow, that thought sent a shiver down her spine.