What you can never have will always set your heart astir—those words applied to both men and women.
Imagawa Ori glanced sideways at Kiryu Kazusuke.
Nakamori Sachiko’s voice had clearly been very low when she spoke; he shouldn’t have been able to hear her. So why had he suddenly said something like that to her?
But…
There was truth in it.
Nakamori Sachiko only showed such fervent fighting spirit when she was competing with other women for Ori’s company.
But after no one fought her for it anymore, her interest had waned. Later on, she would only help when Ori said she wanted to make a push for the club’s No. 1 spot.
If Ori agreed to go home with Nakamori Sachiko today, then the other woman probably would not come to Kagura Club again, would she?
But…
That was the logic, yes. Yet in the club, air was not what she relied on to survive—sales were.
What if, after she refused Nakamori Sachiko, she really was abandoned?
No matter what she did, there was risk.
Nakamori Sachiko, seated beside her, noticed Imagawa Ori’s hesitation.
In her eyes, Kiryu Kazusuke was merely making one last struggle. What could he possibly say? What could he possibly promise?
But Imagawa Ori’s hesitation displeased her.
Was there really anything to think about?
She had already gone this far. From tonight’s champagne tower alone, Imagawa-kun would likely receive a considerable commission.
Was that still not enough to satisfy her?
After Kiryu Kazusuke returned to his seat, Imagawa Ori turned her head and glanced at Nakamori Sachiko.
Yes.
She remembered now.
Back then, when Nakamori Sachiko had tried to obtain exclusive rights to her, her obsession had been so deep.
And the club’s waiter had also told her why Nakamori Sachiko had brought a man in, warning her to be careful.
Now, with a little thought, she could more or less understand the reason.
Nakamori Sachiko had brought Kiryu Kazusuke in to tell her that if she still refused to agree to her demands, then she would cheat.
But Kiryu Kazusuke’s moves—requesting Ori by name and ordering champagne—had disrupted Nakamori Sachiko’s plan.
So when Nakamori Sachiko had just threatened to cheat, the person she used to replace Kiryu Kazusuke had become Koizumi-kun from the club instead.
If that was the case…
Then she, Imagawa Ori, could also turn around and make use of Kiryu Kazusuke.
Only by making Nakamori Sachiko feel the anxiety of “being neglected” and “possibly losing her” would she invest more money and emotion to consolidate her position.
Hadn’t Ori used the same method before to make customers spend money on her?
Once she figured that out, things became simple.
Imagawa Ori slowly stood up and gave a slight bow.
“I’m sorry, Nakamori-san.”
Under Nakamori Sachiko’s baffled gaze, she walked around the table and went straight to Kiryu Kazusuke’s side.
Then she sat down.
Nakamori Sachiko, watching this happen before her eyes, froze.
Huh?
What was this?
She wasn’t seeing things, was she? Imagawa-kun had abandoned her and thrown herself into the arms of that stinking man across from them?
That phrasing was a little exaggerated.
But even if she had only gone over to sit beside him, it was still unacceptable!
The hand Nakamori Sachiko had placed on Imagawa Ori’s shoulder was still suspended in midair, the posture looking somewhat ridiculous.
“Imagawa-kun, do you know what you’re doing?”
The smile on Nakamori Sachiko’s face vanished inch by inch.
Imagawa Ori, who had suddenly sat down opposite her, showed an innocent expression tinged with apology.
“I truly am very sorry.”
“But after all, this guest requested me first. There’s nothing I can do about it.”
“Although I am very, very moved that Nakamori-san opened a champagne tower for me, I still can’t break the club’s rules because of that and neglect the first guest who requested me. Don’t you agree?”
This reason could not be said to be completely untenable. It was just that, normally speaking, she had the right to choose and could refuse a request.
Nakamori Sachiko’s expression became extremely ugly.
Rules?
Talking about rules in front of her—wasn’t that a little too amusing?
So Nakamori Sachiko wanted to flip the table right then and there.
But she could not. Losing her composure in front of Kiryu Kazusuke—how was that any different from admitting defeat?
At that moment.
The manager personally pushed over a small cart decorated with golden satin.
“Nakamori-san, and this honored guest as well, thank you for waiting. We will now begin assembling the champagne tower.”
The manager bowed deeply to Nakamori Sachiko, then turned and gave Kiryu Kazusuke a slight bow as well.
Several waiters wearing white gloves began building the triangular champagne tower.
The bottom tier required an equilateral triangle made up of 36 glasses. The second tier had 28 glasses, the third tier 21 glasses…
Taking advantage of the gap while the tower of glasses rose layer by layer—
“Doctor Imagawa.”
Kiryu Kazusuke straightened where he sat. His eyes fixed on the crystal pyramid before him, he lowered his voice.
That form of address instantly put Imagawa Ori on alert.
Kiryu Kazusuke had raised Nakamori Sachiko’s champagne tower to eight tiers, which meant he would have to buy at least three bottles of Louis Roederer Cristal—600,000 yen.
With his income as a resident physician, that money would certainly take him several months to save.
If it was only to attract her attention, the price was far too high.
Then that meant he wanted something from her.
Likewise, Imagawa Ori lowered her voice and said, “Considering you’ve spent money, I can hear what you want to say.”
Kiryu Kazusuke did not beat around the bush. “I hope to perform the temporary Kirschner-wire fixation during Suzuki Shinya’s surgery. In other words, I want to be the first assistant.”
The moment his words fell—
The composed, practiced business smile on Imagawa Ori’s face vanished without a trace.
Suzuki Shinya’s surgery was a task Professor Mizutani had assigned to her.
And temporary Kirschner-wire fixation was one of the most critical steps in the procedure, directly related to the success or failure of the fracture reduction. Normally, only the lead surgeon or an experienced first assistant was qualified to perform it.
Kiryu Kazusuke, a resident physician who had only recently arrived in the department, actually dared to make such a request?
Was he insane?
A doctor who did not take patients seriously had no right to stand at her operating table.
Could it be that he thought, because he had grasped the secret of her part-time work at Kagura Club, he could do whatever he wanted?
At that thought, Imagawa Ori felt blood and anger surge up in her chest.
“Nakamori-san, please excuse me for a moment.”
After saying this hurriedly, she gave no room for argument and pulled Kiryu Kazusuke up, striding quickly toward the staff-only break area backstage.
Imagawa Ori’s actions were too fast, too sudden.
Nakamori Sachiko stared blankly at the backs of the two as they disappeared at the end of the corridor.
Imagawa Ori was holding that stinking man’s hand.
She had actually held that stinking man’s hand and walked away right in front of her?
Imagawa Ori had abandoned her, who had spent lavishly for her, abandoned this four-million-yen champagne tower that was about to be lit up for her, all for a stinking man?
And yet Nakamori Sachiko still sat there expressionlessly, not saying a word.
A few seconds later.
She suddenly reached out, grabbed the bottle of Dom Pérignon Rosé that Kiryu Kazusuke had initially ordered from the table, and with all her strength, smashed it hard onto the marble floor.
Bang!
The thick glass bottle instantly shattered into pieces.
Pale pink liquor mingled with countless shards of glass and splashed in every direction.
The surrounding clamor came to an abrupt halt.
Everyone was stunned by the sudden scene.
One of the waiters building the champagne tower trembled so badly that he nearly dropped the glass in his hand.
However, Nakamori Sachiko’s loss of composure lasted only a brief instant.
She took a deep breath, then took a handkerchief from her handbag and unhurriedly wiped the fingers that had been stained with champagne.
“Ah, I’m terribly sorry.”
“My hand slipped just now, and I accidentally knocked over the champagne.”
“Come clean this up, please.”