Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

What Money Can Buy	By : monophobian Category: InuYasha AU/AR > Het - Male/Female Views: 1549 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own or make money off of Inuyasha.

Chapter List
- 1-Chapter 1
- 2-Chapter 2
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- 2
Listen, if you squint, you can see the coffee shop part of the au, promise.
The black credit card had been burning a hole in her pocket all week. Every time she opened her wallet, it caught her eye. Hard not to considering how out of place it was. Still, even with the compromise they came to, she shied away from it and either used her own debit card or the little bit of cash she had each time she paid.
Kagome wasn’t certain how long it was going to take before the sight of that black sliver didn’t shock her or if she would ever get used to it. The entire idea was completely foreign, but her protests hadn’t worked and he continued reminding her of the crazy arrangement she made, so she simply ignored it instead.
Until now. Apparently, Kouga really didn’t like her not using his card and he had the uncanny ability to call at the worst possible times.
“Kagome,” he said as her coffee order was called, his voice a mix of affection and exasperation, “I gave you the card so you can use it.”
“Yeah, but I have it covered.”
Miroku handed her the drink when she neared the counter, his raised eyebrow indicating that he knew exactly the conversation she was having on the phone. No privacy anywhere.
“The schedule’s posted,” he said, glancing at the new customers that just walked in. “Tell Kouga hi for me.”
Cup of coffee and lemon scone in one hand, phone to her ear in the other, Kagome didn’t hesitate to escape the noise of the cafe and slip into the back. Her eyes went to the bulletin board just as she realized the silence coming from the other end of the line.
“Kouga?”
“I’m here,” he said, something warm curling in her stomach at the adoration still in his tone. “How’s your schedule look for next week?”
Damn the man for asking about the one thing she didn’t want to tell him.
“It’s…alright.”
Her pause had been too noticeable.
“How many hours?”
She blew out a breath. “Eighteen.”
The beat of silence that came after that told her all she needed to know: her streak of ignoring the shiny new card in her wallet was about to end.
“Kouga, I’m fine, I prom—”
“We made a deal, right?” Concern started to thread through the other emotions in his voice, but she focused on the affection instead. “I agreed that I won’t pay your bills, you agreed to let me pay for everything else.”
“I haven’t needed to buy—”
“And we also agreed that food doesn’t count as a bill,” he continued, confirming her suspicions. He knew she paid for her coffee. “Nor do clothes or dinners with friends or the new book you’ve had your eye on for three weeks.”
“Kouga—”
“Use the card, beautiful.” Wise of him not to let her speak, especially paired with that pet name that sent her stomach fluttering, and they’d been dating long enough for him to utilize the knowledge effectively. “Go shopping, get your groceries, meet Sango for drinks, and have fun. Please. Use the card.”
“Kouga, I told you the slow season was coming up—”
“If you don’t use that card, I’m going to shop for you.”
She froze, knowing Kouga just won. The last time he’d purchased something for her, she came home to a box containing shoes more expensive than her rent and a jewelry set that could have supplied lunch to a small army. Considering he hadn’t even touched clothes, Kagome couldn’t take the risk of him dropping a fortune in retaliation and stocking that in her closet.
And then expect her wear said fortune.
“I love you,” he said softly, breaking through the mental struggle she was experiencing.
“I love you, too.”
“Have fun today. See you tonight.”
Kagome stared at her phone, running through the conversation again in her head. Her thumb moved and she tapped Sango’s name before putting the phone to her ear.
It appeared that she was going shopping.
***
She was heading toward the line at the bookstore when Sango showed up. Kagome hadn’t intended to start there, but one look at the store amidst a sea of clothes and expenses, she knew it would be easier. A book was simple. Small and easy, something she would have afforded herself and something she knew without a doubt he would have gifted her with.
So with book in one hand and wallet in the other, Kagome made her way to the register before she was interrupted by Sango.
“He finally get to you?” her friend asked with obvious amusement.
“He threatened to go shopping for me himself if I didn’t start using his card.”
Her complaint was received with a laugh.
“You’re not supposed to be on his side,” Kagome spouted in annoyance. “What happened to being strong, independent women?”
“Strong, independent women get to be strong, independent women because they’re smart, Kagome,” Sango shot back easily. “So when a strong, independent woman falls in love with a strong, handsome man who’s so in love with her, he wants to give her the world—and just so happens to make enough money to do so—said strong, independent woman thanks her lucky stars and accepts her new sugar daddy.”
“Don’t call him that!” she hissed, looking around at anyone who might have heard. “He doesn’t have to give me his money to give me the world. He doesn’t have to give me money at all.”
Sango’s response was interrupted by the line moving and one of the cashiers calling for Kagome, so she took the interruption and placed her book on the counter. Her fingers stuttered over the black card, not even able to touch it, before she shook her head and—
Use the card, beautiful.
Kagome didn’t blink as she passed over the thick, black credit card, finished out her transaction, and tucked the card and receipt in her wallet. Sango was waiting for her and if she focused on that, she could grab the bag and get going and be out of the bookstore and into the mall before she finally realized what she actually did.
“Oh my God, I have a sugar daddy.”
“Now she’s getting it,” Sango cheered, bumping her shoulder into Kagome’s.
“I’m a total slut.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Sango, I have a sugar daddy.”
“And you fell in love with him before you knew how much money he had.”
“But—“
“Kagome.”
That hard tone had her gaze shooting up.
“Are you with Kouga because of his money?”
Kagome shook her head.
“If Kouga was just as broke as you, would you leave him?”
She shook her head again.
“Are you using Kouga?”
Another shake, this one with wide eyes, but Sango continued before she could speak.
“Then stop.”
Standing there in the middle of the mall, Kagome reflected over their relationship and how it progressed over the last year since he first came into the coffee shop she worked at. How he continued coming in to talk to her, how he finally asked her out for lunch, and then how he nurtured a relationship between the two of them before she finally fell in love.
“Do you think he gets something out of buying stuff for me?” Kagome blurted out.
“Probably,” Sango shrugged. “I would be surprised if he didn’t, but I think it’s more to do with taking care of you than some type of power trip.”
“So me not using his card,” she paused, not quite certain what she thought of her own realization, “is like an insult?”
Sango’s eyes softened and she leaned in. “I can’t answer that, Kagome. You have to ask him. But you said you needed some new bras, right?”
Oof, good hit. Kagome was wearing her last good one and that was saying something considering it was holding on by a thread.
Sango read her expression correctly. “Let’s go get you some bras. You can rationalize it later when you remember what Kouga gets out of you buying lingerie.”
***
Shopping turned out to be a good idea.
First, Kouga noticed. Ten minutes after she left the bookstore, he sent her a text containing a single, red heart. After she left the lingerie shop, his text told her he was taking her out that evening on a date paired with that knowing eyes emoji. Sango took one look at “date” and made sure she found a new dress to go with her sexy underwear. And after the dress, she stumbled upon a few clothing essentials and Kagome spent more in one afternoon than she could remember spending in months, but each purchase was rewarded with sweet words from Kouga. It made the whole thing easy to swallow.
Second, she really did need the clothes. Well, maybe not everything she bought, but the underwear, definitely. And nice fitting jeans were hard to find, especially when they were on sale — which they were. And comfortable shorts that didn’t show off her butt cheeks almost didn’t exist anymore, but she found a few pairs anyway. So with all of that, Kagome ended up with more clothing than she had been anticipating, but it was all clothing she would wear.
Exception to the dress. Not many places would she wear that, but she was getting use out of it on their date and it was nice to have a nice gown in her closet in case something like this happened again.
And it was a wonderful date. Kouga took her to a really nice restaurant where he was dressed in a button down with no tie and good-fitting slacks that showed off the length of his legs. He always looked good no matter what he wore, but in her new dress and heels, Kagome almost felt like she finally fit next to him.
She still preferred him in jeans and a tee hanging out at the park. Their casual dates were where she fell in love with him and she wouldn’t trade them for all the nice champagne in the world.
But Kouga loved taking her out, showing her off to anyone they saw. He asked about her shopping and what she got, Sango and how she was doing with her upcoming summer classes, even about work and life and Kagome’s other friends and reminding her all over again why she loved him. Even with his ridiculous amount of money.
It was only on their way to his home when Kagome finally plucked up the courage to ask him the question she’d been wondering for days.
“Kouga, why do you want me to spend your money?”
“Because I like taking care of you,” he answered immediately.
“Yeah, but you already take care of me.”
He tore his eyes away from the road for a split second to study her. “Not in the same way.”
“But I don’t need you to,” she said, trying to sort through her own thoughts. “I don’t need all of this. The dress is nice, but completely unnecessary if I get to be with you.”
The came to a stop in front of a red light and Kouga took the opportunity to reach out and squeeze her hand. “It’s necessary to me.”
She jerked, but he continued talking.
“Let me explain.” He squeezed her hand again. “No, you don’t need any of this. You are more than capable of surviving on your own and you were doing a damn good job of it before I met you. I don’t want to take that from you, Kagome, because I know how important it is to you.”
So far, so good; he was making sense and still acknowledging her pride.
“You’re a giving person. I’ve never seen someone hand out their heart to so many people in so many ways. You remember the day I finally talked to you? I watched you pull out your own wallet to paid for a little girl to get a cookie because she just so happened to walk in from the rain.”
“Every child deserves a cookie when they’re scared and looking for their mother,” she protested quietly.
His face broke out in an immediate, large smile. “See? You’re still doing it now.” Kouga turned back to the road as the light turned green. “Kagome, you give and give and give all the time. I look at you and all I want to do is give back.”
“You already give back.”
“Not enough.”
“Kouga,” she stressed, “it is enough.”
He was quiet, a frown starting to furrow his eyebrows and she let him have the moment to think. “It’s enough for you because you’re happy with me, something I’m damned lucky for and always will be. But it’s not enough for me, not when there’s so much more I can give you.”
Sango’s words echoed in Kagome’s ear.
“And since you’re so stubborn and won’t let me take care of you the way I really want to,” he continued, his tone turning teasing, “I do it this way. You want to pay your bills? I understand and respect that. But a shopping spree? Nice clothes and pretty dresses and good books you’re going to read and the peace of mind that you’ll have all of that even when you have slow hours at work? That is what I want to give you.”
She never thought of it that way, not in the sense of what Kouga was feeling. After being on the receiving end of pity masked as care far too many times, Kagome learned to refuse help she didn’t earn. But if giving her a credit card made Kouga feel at ease, that made it a little different.
Only one question left to ask and it was one she really wanted the answer to, but she wasn’t sure it was an answer she wanted to face.
“Was it insulting when I didn’t use your card?”
His silence said everything.
“I didn’t mean—”
“I know you didn’t mean it, Kagome,” he interrupted softly, “and I didn’t tell you for a reason.”
“Why?”
“I didn’t think it was fair to guilt you into doing something you really didn’t want to do.”
Her heart warmed with affection for this man. “Is that why you kept calling me when you noticed I wasn’t using it?”
“Part of it,” he grinned, “but mostly because I really enjoy seeing just how stubborn you can be.”
“I still bought way too much today,” she said. “Some of it has got to be taken back—”
“Oh no, you don’t.” Kouga squeezed her hand again. “I’ll rip the tags off and steal your receipts if I have to, but you’re not returning anything after I finally got you to spoil yourself.”
That tugged at her heart even more, a small smile growing on her lips as she realized just how much it meant to him.
Still, she couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling. “I still feel weird.”
“I know and I think you’ll feel weird for a while.” Kouga pulled into the driveway to his home, parking in the garage before turning to face her. “But thank you for doing it, anyway.”
“You’re welcome.”
He looked at her in the dim lights of his garage, his eyes dancing over her face and then down her dress. His grin turned dirty and Kagome’s cheeks instantly heated as she remembered what the grin was for. “Please tell me you’re wearing your new lingerie. I’ve been dying to see what you bought all day.”
“You think I bought them for you?” she asked, feigning propriety in order to hide the sudden bout of bashfulness.
“I know you did.” He undid his seatbelt and slid out of the car and Kagome knew better than to open her door before he got to it. Some things, she was learning, meant a lot to him and Kouga really wanted to take care of her in his own way.
He helped her out of the car, pulling her up and into his body as he let his hands slide down the silk covering her sides before they settled on her hips. “This dress looks fantastic.”
“Sango helped me pick it out,” she answered, sliding her arms up and around his neck.
“I’ll have to thank her.” He crowded her against the car door. “But first, I need to see what you have on under here.”
“Nothing special,” she lied.
His eyes were knowing as he leaned down and touched his lips to hers. Her heels made kissing him easier, a simple tilt of her neck as she pressed her body against his, welcoming the slide of his tongue.
“Do you work tomorrow?” he murmured in her ear as he nipped the sensitive skin of her neck.
“No,” she breathed.
“Good.” His tongue slid down her neck and he sucked gently on the curve of her shoulder. “You can spend the day showing me everything you bought.”
“Is this going to become a thing?” she asked, desperately focusing on the feel of his mouth rather than the reminder of her day. “A fashion show every time I use your card?”
Something in her voice must have tipped him off because he pulled back, his eyes finding hers and searching out answers to questions he didn’t ask. He didn’t need to; his concern was etched over his face.
“Does it really bother you?”
She swallowed, forcing herself to meet his gaze, consider his feelings, swallow her pride, and be truthful about her day. “At first, yes. But after talking to you, I think…I think I feel a little better.”
The silence stretched as he watched her, but then he must have found whatever he had been looking for and a grin tugged at the corner of his lips. “If you’re really struggling, I don’t mind shopping for you.”
“Oh no,” she returned immediately, already picturing the monstrosities she’d come home to. “Please don’t. I’ll be fine with this.”
“Good.” Kouga kissed her again, then pulled her away from the car. “Now come on — it’s about time I really appreciate some of your purchases.”
I know the focus about the credit card sounds like ridiculous consumerism, but if you guys ever get the chance to hold a black American Express card, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. I’ve had a few come through my register when I worked at a bookstore in college and oh man, you know something’s different the instant it touches your fingers. It’s insane.
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What Money Can Buy