Sneak Peek: In Cold Blood

"Yoichi… Where's Mika?" Yuuichirou whined as he rolled restlessly on his nest with his black teddy bear, the Salt King, in his arms, his form curled into a ball on the soft mattress while he pouted his mouth. Tears were glazing his green eyes as he gave his servant the most pitiful look he could muster up. "I want to see him – no – I need to see him. Please. I can't stand this!"

The omega couldn't help but chuckle at how adorable Yuuichirou looked and he raised a hand to rub on his scent glands to calm the other down as he entered the room. He sat down on the soft bedding where Yuuichirou was and patted him gently like a mother to a child would. It was proven effective because Yuuichirou immediately sighed in relief and his body practically sagged to relaxation on the bed, purring at the caresses of his friend.

"Shh… Mika-kun just left fifteen minutes ago since he still has lessons to take with Guren-sama, Yuu-kun." Yoichi explained as he caressed Yuuichirou's black locks and massaged his scalp. "He would soon become the patriarch of the Ichinose family, and besides, he still has to catch up with his internship, after all. Please understand."

"I know that, but…" The beta muttered against his teddy bear as his grip on it tightened and he glanced at Yoichi. "I just… I have to see him. I've been growing irritable this past weeks when I don't see him often. Is this an effect of being pregnant?"

"Hmm, perhaps..." Yoichi hummed as he gently urged Yuuichirou to roll on his back, his eyes immediately noticing the small baby bump on his master's belly underneath the hoodie he wore. "I don't really know how pregnancy works for betas so I can't say for certain. Maybe it's your instinct that made you want to see Mika-kun, to make sure he's safe? It's a pretty natural reaction since the two of you are mates."

"… M-Maybe." The beta agreed with a nod as he trailed a hand down on his belly to rub the round bump tenderly. "It's been... four months since the whole incident in France… Time sure flies; it almost feels like a dream."

"Indeed, it is." Yoichi agreed, idly remembering what had occurred in those past months. "A lot of things happened, huh? We learn more stuff, and at the same time, regret things too."

Yuuichirou hummed in agreement as he closed his eyes slowly with his hand resting protectively on his belly where his child was growing. A contented smile curled on his lips as he began to relax against the bed, feeling sleep slowly overcoming him. Yet, before he could allow sleep to come, he opened one eye on Yoichi and patted his belly softly.

"You can touch them too, you know…" He said which surprised Yoichi a bit. "You're one of their uncles so I'm sure they'll like to get to know you too."

Yoichi fretted, feeling embarrassed. "Oh, no, Yuu-kun. I can't possibly…"

"Touch them." The beta insisted with a fond smile for his friend.

Hesitantly, Yoichi reached a hand out to touch Yuuichirou's small, round belly. A look of amazement and warmth flashed on the omega's face as he rubbed the skin further before he jumped when he felt something touch his hand from the inside. Yoichi immediately recognized that it was a baby kick.

"O-Oh, was that…?"

"They're saying 'Hi' to you." Yuuichirou said with a grin. "Look at that… I bet they can't wait to see you, along with the others."

The beta's hearty laugh was endearing to hear.

"That's so cute." Yoichi chuckled as he leaned close to Yuuichirou's belly to whisper against it. "Aw, I also can't wait to see you too, little guy. I bet you'll look just as cool and amazing as your parents when you come here."

"Y-Yoichi…" Yuuichirou whined a bit as his face flushed in embarrassment at the compliment.

"I'm just saying the truth, Yuu-kun." Yoichi winked playfully as he leaned back. "Thank you, though, for letting me get closer to them. I know how protective you and Mika-kun could be, and I tell you, you two can be quite scary when someone you don't trust comes close to your child. It's really amazing."

Yuuichirou made a pouting face after hearing that. "But I do trust you, Yoichi. You were one of my childhood friends, so it's totally okay if you want to touch my child."

"With your permission, though." Yoichi added. "I won't do anything that might be uncomfortable to you unless I was given your consent. You're my master and it's my role to serve you as your personal butler, Yuu-kun. And besides..." The omega gave a short uneasy laugh. "Mika-kun can be frightening to other people, even me…"

"Ah…" Yuuichirou's mouth hang open in surprise before he puffed his cheeks with a frown. "Mika, seriously…"

"B-But, don't get mad at him, please." Yoichi immediately assured while raising his hands and waving it frantically. "I kind of understand why he would act like that since he was just here for nearly three months and he's still getting to know the people around you. Give him some time to know others in his own pace, okay?"

Yuuichirou thinned his lips in a line before he let out a tired sigh, rolling onto his side. "I'll talk to him about that when he comes back later, but for now, I want to take a rest…"

"I agree. Having proper rest is good to both you and the child." Yoichi said with a nod before standing up. "I'll prepare you some tea and cookies later on in case you want something to eat."

"Thanks a lot, Yoichi." Yuuichirou purred as he curled comfortably on his nest, nuzzling against the sheets like a cat as sleep eventually overcame him. The cute display made Yoichi smile.

However, his smile didn't last long when a knock made its way to Yuuichirou's room door. The brunet turn his head to see Shihou opening the door a bit to check the occupants of the room before sighing.

"There you are." He said hastily.

Yoichi tilt his head in confusion. "Shihou, what's up?"

"You have a call from the phone over the lobby." Shihou explained as he raised a hand up to scratch the back of his head with annoyance radiating in his being. "The caller was very insistent to speak with you and is practically very stubborn into giving any information as to why he wants to call you. So I thought that I should let you speak with him just to shut him up."

The omega covered his mouth a bit when a short laugh escaped his lips. "I see, thank you for telling me this."

He walked towards the door so that Yuuichirou could be left alone to sleep and closed the furniture behind them with a soft click. Olive green eyes looked up to Shihou with a smile as he bowed gratefully to the alpha which caused Shihou to blush lightly in embarrassment.

"You don't have to be so formal..."

"I can't help it. You have this air that spoke of authority so I think it's only right for me to polite." Yoichi giggled as he began to walk away in the hallways with Shihou following suite. "You're part of the secret service serving under the Ichinose's, after all, not to mention an alpha, so…"

"Yoichi." Shihou called out which made Yoichi stop walking. "You're no longer a victim of your past. In this house, you're free. Even Yuu said it himself, that the moment you were taken in by the Ichinose's to be trained as his personal butler, you can do whatever you want provided that you don't violate any rules of your job."

"I'm aware of that, Shihou." Yoichi nearly snapped yet he didn't look back at Shihou as one of his arms was raised to hold himself protectively. "... But I guess old habits die hard."

Pursing his lips, Yoichi continued to walk on, but this time, Shihou didn't trail behind him as he eventually reached the lobby floor. He immediately spotted the phone and took it on his ear to answer it.

"Hello…?"

"Is this Yoichi Saotome that I'm speaking to?" A deep voice asked on the line which made Yoichi hesitant to answer back but he did what he needed to as he spoke.

"... Yes, it is. May I ask who you are and why you're calling?"

The voice made an eerie chuckle that sent goosebumps on Yoichi's skin. "There's no need to know such unimportant things. After all, I just called in to deliver a message."

The omega felt slightly uneasy by that but he continued on. "And what kind of message is that, sir?"

"It's rather simple... We have your sister, Tomoe Saotome."

PRIME MINISTER'S BUTLER

COMING SOON