Schooled(18)
Her eyes searched his. “Do you?”
“Yeah.” He framed her face in his hands. Then he gave her that wicked, wicked grin. “But you can give me a reminder like that anytime.”
Chapter Five
Amery told herself it was natural to be nervous.
She held the platter of muffins as she started up the long path to the front door. Ronin hadn’t been clear on whether the place where he trained was Sensei Daichi’s home, or a training facility.
The place was certainly off the beaten path. Trees arched in a canopy over the walkway. A barrier of thorny bushes lined either side of the structure—nature’s way of saying KEEP OUT. The door itself was imposing; heavy iron strips crisscrossing the distressed wood. As far as she could tell there wasn’t a handle anywhere.
Then how the devil did anyone get in?
She lifted the heavy knocker and banged it into the rusted metal plate.
The door creaked open and an older Japanese man stood in the doorway. He bowed to her. “Welcome, Amery Black.”
“How’d you know who I am?”
“Ronin-san sent photos from your wedding.”
“Oh.”
He gestured for her to come inside.
“Thank you.” Amery stepped onto the mat and immediately kicked off her shoes. “Forgive me for asking, but are you Master Daichi?”
The man barked out a laugh. “No. Master Daichi doesn’t answer the door since he prefers no visitors. I am Yasuji. I live here and I’m delighted with visitors. Especially beautiful ones.”
Amery blushed. “Thank you. Your English is very good.”
“I spend more time with English speakers than Daichi.”
“It shows, Mr. Yasuji.”
“Not Mr. Yasuji. Just Yasuji.”
“Okay.” She handed Yasuji the platter. “These are chocolate chip muffins.”
“Thank you. Would you like tea?”
Tea? Crap. Protocol for a formal tea ceremony was one thing she hadn’t studied. Since Ronin loathed tea she assumed it wouldn’t be a possibility. “Ah, sure. But I don’t want you to go to any trouble.”
He smiled. “Do you share Ronin’s dislike of tea?”
“No, sir.”
“Then I will prepare it for us.”
Left alone in the foyer, she wasn’t sure if she should follow. Offering to help him would be an insult. Wouldn’t it?
Maybe not.
Yasuji didn’t seem surprised to see her enter the kitchen. He gestured for her to be seated at the low table in the corner. After she’d settled on the cushion on her knees, Yasuji brought over the tea service. He poured the pale brown liquid into two delicate teacups.
“This is wonderful. Such an unexpected treat.”
“For me also. We have few visitors this time of year.” He slipped three small squares—a lemon bar, a date-filled pastry, and a marshmallow cookie on each of the two plates, pushing one toward her. “The older Daichi gets, the more he turns into a . . .” He tapped his lips as if searching for the right word. “Troll?”
Amery managed not to choke on her tea. “You mean a hermit. Someone who doesn’t leave the house.”
“Yes, a hermit.”
Yasuji used chopsticks to pick up a morsel and popped it in his mouth.
Her chopsticks skills had improved since she’d married Ronin. She chose the marshmallow cookie. It wasn’t as sweet as American desserts but it was still tasty.
“So are you here to visit Ronin?”
“I assume there’s a ‘no observation’ rule here as it’s a rule my husband has implemented at his dojo.”
“That is not an answer,” Yasuji chided with humor.
“Yes, since it’s the last day of this first training session, I hoped to watch him so I have some idea of what he’s been doing these last three weeks.”
“Ronin doesn’t tell you?”
Amery snorted. “Are you kidding? He never divulges his secret ninja stuff. Not that I haven’t asked.” She sent him a sly look. “Or tried to get a sneak peek.”
“You get in trouble for breaking the dojo rules in America,” he guessed.
“Once in a while. Gotta keep Master Black on his toes. Besides, his punishment for breaking his rules can be very creative.” Amery froze. Had she really just blurted that out?
Yasuji laughed—a real gut-buster. “Ah, Amery-san. You are the perfect match for Hachidan. A woman who challenges him.”
“He challenges me too. He has from the moment we met.”
His dark brown eyes twinkled. “Shall we break some rules and watch him train?”
“Is this a trick question?”
“No. I’ve been interested to see what torture my brother has been putting him through.”