Chapter 1

"Do you have to get married so early?"

Yoshino looked up at her friend who laid stretched out on the couch next to her. Ayane was scrolling through her phone absentmindedly as she spoke, ignoring the mess of crafting supplies scattered across their carpet.

"It seems like a lot of work to me," she added.

With a light chuckle, Yoshino finished up one of the centerpieces and grabbed a flower to start the next.

"It is a lot of work," Yoshino admitted, "but it's been something Shikaku and I have been looking forward to."

"We're still kind of young to be tied down, don't you think?" In reality, Ayane was sick and tired of seeing everyone around her getting engaged and married, though she supposed that was bound to happen now that all her peers were in their mid to late 20s.

"You just need to get yourself a new boo." Yoshino replied, throwing a spare flower at her friend who caught it in the air. "You've been all grumpy since your break up. I think it's time you move on."

Ayane knew her friend was right. Not that she needed to find herself another man, but that her life had been turned upside down since then. She had quit her job because her ex was working in the same company, and that resulted in her just moping around in their shared house. Now that her best friend was soon to be married and moving out, she decided to get her butt into gear if she wanted to keep living in the uptown neighbourhood she had grown to love.

"And you need to get some rest." Ayane scolded as she got up from the couch and stretched. "Your wedding is tomorrow. Just let me finish this up so you can get some sleep."

"I'm almost done. We both know I won't be able to sleep tonight anyways." Yoshino giggled. "Oh, and you're horrible at arts and crafts. Of your many strengths, Ayane, this is definitely not one of them."

With a light laugh, Ayane agreed. Despite her tiny frame and innocent looks, she had never been one to be graceful and delicate, nor was she one to have patience for the arts.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed then." Ayane yawned. "It's going to be a long day tomorrow."

As she turned to walk toward her bedroom, her friend called her back. "Ayane."

"Hm?"

"Thank you for helping me plan this wedding. I wouldn't have been able to do it without you."

With a light friendly smile, the petite girl waved off her friend. "I manage and organize things for a living. Your little wedding is the least of my worries."

Yoshino shook her head in disbelief. Her wedding was anything but little. Her fiance was a high up executivet in Japan's largest security company and many, many details needed to be arranged for their hundreds of guests. Not to mention, the press would be present as well. She understood her friend though, in that Ayane was always modest about her work and contributions. It was something she truly loved about her.

"Still though, thank you. I know you didn't want to go to the wedding tomorrow but I'm glad you'll be there."

"You're right. I don't like going to weddings, but it's yours." Ayane smiled softly at the best friend that she had grown up with for all her life. "How can I not be there?"

With one more final wave, Ayane made her way down the hall. "Goodnight! Try to get some rest!"

Ayane hated going to weddings. She truly, from the bottom of her heart, hated going to weddings. She never understood the need to stand in front of the crowd, especially in crowds of many people you have barely met before, to proclaim your love publicly. While small, intimate weddings were fine, the ones in her world were huge, extravagant, and very superficial.

If it weren't for the fact that she was the wedding planner, part of the bridal party, and roommates with the bride, she wouldn't have gone. At least the worst of it was over. The ceremony had gone by without a hitch despite the heavy media presence, and now, she was busy zoning out as the customary father-daughter dance took place.

She took a glance at the other three bridesmaids at the table. Yoshino's older sister and maid of honour Yuka, was by far the only tolerable one of the bunch as she sat in her seat, tearing up at the sight of her baby sister getting married. The other two were busy giggling to themselves as they stared across from them at the groomsmen on the other side.

Ayane rolled her eyes. Sure, all of the men at Shikaku's table were young, and terrifyingly well off, but none of them were appealing in Ayane's eyes. Well...except one.

She froze as she made eye contact with the ocean blue eyes of a very familiar businessman. Minato Namikaze was well known to anyone in the business world, and was even on celebrity gossip magazines. The man was only 28 and just recently had acquired a majority share of Uzumaki Technology Corporation, one of the most popular cyber security companies in all of Japan. Shikaku, the groom, held a high position in the company, so many of the other executives were present.

Ayane found Minato particularly alluring, and she felt herself getting drawn into the blue eyes. The blonde haired man seemed to be oblivious of this though as he smiled softly and looked away. Ayane wondered if the dusted pink on his cheeks were from the plethora of champagne they had already consumed or if it was something else…

Chugging the remainder of her own champagne flute, Ayane applauded with the crowd as the dance came to an end. A sigh of relief escaped her when she realized all that was left was the cake cutting and a thank you speech, and then she could disappear from the front of the room once the party started. Her plan? To hit the bar, and then retire for the night up in her hotel suite which was attached to the venue.

It was almost 11:00pm when the DJ began blasting music and a crowd rushed to the front. Yoshino came to pull her bridesmaids out to the dance floor, but allowed Ayane to escape, knowing fully well that the petite girl was not going to dance.

Once the crowd had grown large enough, Ayane stood from her seat and began making her way to the bar. She cursed as she stumbled on her floor length dress after having snagged it on her high heels as she got up. Due to her shorter stature, she always hated wearing full length dresses and today was no exception as she ungracefully picked up the end in one hand and lifted it so that at least her shins and ankles were free.

She walked to the back of the room where the quieter of the two open bars were and took a seat on a bar stool away from anyone else.

"What can I get for you?" the young bartender asked. He looked awfully happy to be working for such a large and busy party, but with one glance at the tip jar in the corner, Ayane could see why.

"A vodka cranberry with a lime wedge please."

She watched as he picked up a bottle of Grey Goose and poured a generous amount into a glass. As the boy finished up her drink she wondered how much Shikaku made that he could afford not just the most expensive open bar drink package, but also the large venue for hundreds of guests. She, as the wedding planner, knew every detail of the costs of the wedding, but still, it surprised her that the man could afford it all.

As she sipped her drink, Ayane scanned the room for any signs of familiar faces. Some, she recognized because they were highschool or college peers of Yoshino. Others, she only knew because she had researched the heads of Uzumaki Tech as part of her previous job. The difference was apparent between the two crowds as the Vice Presidents dressed in a league that was far beyond what anyone from their hometown highschool or college peers could afford.

Ayane rolled her eyes and scoffed at the pretentious fools, many of which were socializing in their own little cliques in the corner of the room, sipping their expensive wine. As she turned back to her drink, she caught a glimpse of a familiar head of blonde hair sliding onto the stool next to her.

"What can I get for you sir?" The bartender was glancing at the already outstretched $20 bill as he asked.

"Johnnie Walker Blue. Make it a double please." The man replied as he slipped the tip into the jar.

"On the rocks?"

"No. Just straight will be fine." With a nod, the young man set to work, grabbing the expensive bottle off the rack. Ayane eyed it with disgust and wondered how many of the bottles they had gone through already that night.

"Looks like I'm not the only one wanting to get away from the party." Ayane froze when she heard the soft voice being directed at her. From one single sentence, she was already able to decipher many things about the man next to her.

For one, he too, was not a people person despite the need in their world to network and make connections. The tone of his voice also told Ayane that he worked in a laid back manner, was a people pleaser, and was very gentle and nice. In their line of business, that would have been called a pushover. She figured he must have relied on his knowledge, his staff, and his good looks to be able to even reach his status as CEO.

Still though, she couldn't help but feel attracted to the gaze of his very blue eyes who stared intently at her despite the fact that they hadn't formally met yet.

"You're right. I didn't really want to come to begin with." She replied as she chugged the rest of her drink. Immediately, she signalled to the young man to get her another one. She knew she would need it if she wanted to continue the conversation with confidence.

"Why is that?" Minato's eyes seemed genuinely curious, like he actually cared about this mere stranger in front of him. Ayane instantly shook the thought out of her head. She reminded herself that he was simply a nice guy.

"Mr. Namikaze…"

"Call me Minato," he interrupted.

"...it's a touchy subject," she finished. Her drink arrived and she downed it again. Minato gave her a questioning look and finished his drink too. He motioned for the bartender for another glass each and this time, he dropped a 50 in the jar.

"Sorry," his apology seemed wholehearted. "I was just curious, I didn't mean to pry. I too, didn't want to come."

"Really? Why?" Ayane let slip without hesitation. She bit her lip in nervousness when she realized she was doing the same thing he just did.

He winked, "it's a touchy subject." Chuckling at the girl's disappointed expression, he continued instead. "I had to come though, it's my best friend's wedding. Besides, it's a good way to take my mind off of things."

Ayane had heard of some things on the news, but she disregarded them because the tech business world wasn't her world anymore after she had quit. She stared at the grinning man and was wondering if what she heard was true. Perhaps that's why he needed to get his mind off as well.

"Yeah...that's what Yoshino told me to do. To come and take my mind off of things."

"Well," he raised his new glass and nodded to hers. "We can help each other with that. Cheers."

With a small grin on her face, Ayane brought her glass up to clink against his. Her head was already spinning after many flutes of champagne throughout the night and her two vodka cranberries. She wanted to remind herself to stay level headed and slowly drink her next one, but Minato was right, maybe tonight was the night to get her mind emptied of her shitty ex, her lost job, and the pretentious wedding she was forced to attend.

Besides, if she ignored the status and wealth of the man in front of her, she would have loved to spend a night with him on any regular day. So pushing her doubts aside, she decided to lose herself in drinks and conversations with the handsome stranger across from her.

Things don't always go as planned though and as they talked, they began flirting while still keeping each other at arm's distance. Flirting became light, sensitive touches. And then, touches became kisses which turned into a hot makeout session with Ayane leaning against Minato at the bar. Through heavy breathing and intense eye contact, they decided it was about time to head to a more private venue before things got too out of hand with many pairs of eyes watching them.

The bridal party had rooms booked out for them for the night, knowing that more likely than not, drinks would have been had and possibly even an after party might have taken place. Minato, being the CEO that he was, and the best friend and boss of the groom, of course had one of the top suites in the hotel to himself.

Ayane barely took notice of the modern and spacious interior, and she had lost count of how many rooms she had passed before they made it to the bedroom. When she did become more aware, she was being thrown onto the large king size mattress.

Minato quickly made do of his suit jacket, pants, and shoes, before climbing on top of the petite girl. With a wide grin, Ayane pulled him down so that she could meet his lips hungrily. Her fingers threaded their way into his long blonde hair as his roamed up her long dress, pushing the abundance of fabric aside to try to reach the goods.

With an annoyed groan, she placed a hand on Minato's chest and pushed him so that she could sit up. He looked at her with concern, wondering even in his drunken haze, if he had gone too far. To his delight, Ayane reached behind her and undid the clasp before pulling the zipper down as far as she could get it.

"I hate this stupid dress." She complained as she struggled to get out of it.

WIth a light chuckle, Minato shuffled his way around her body so that he was sitting behind her. "It looks good on you though," he commented as he took hold of the zipper.

It was almost painful how slowly he pulled the metal piece down. Ayane could feel his breath against her hot skin, making her shiver at the proximity. After the zipper was down the whole way, his hands went up to the two straps sitting on her delicate shoulders before lightly pulling them off on either side.

He leaned forward, pressing his lips gently against her neck in a way that was completely contrasting to the heated moment they were sharing before. Ayane groaned as Minato gave her a quick bite on the corner of her shoulder and neck. His lips travelled upward toward her ear lobe, and she could feel it brushing against her skin as he spoke.

"Although you look absolutely beautiful without it on."

The drunkenness in Ayane's mind didn't stop her from wondering if Minato treated every woman he slept with like this: like the most important person in the world. She figured with the status that he had, he probably had been with many women and could be with any woman that he wanted. So in order to protect her own heart from his soothing gestures, she decided to ignite the lust filled passion again by quickly slipping out of her dress and mounting his lap on either side.

Minato was taken aback by the sudden burst of excitement from the woman, but he didn't mind. In fact, he met her actions eagerly as he grinded his hips against her core.

When the CEO began to reciprocate her actions, Ayane almost let out a breath of relief. She convinced herself that this was the way to go. Afterall, she wouldn't want to leave tonight with any regrets or baggage. A relationship was too much. She was just here to have fun with a good looking man.

"Fuck me." She pleaded against his lips after she couldn't take the slow contact anymore. Her thong was dripping wet by now and all she wanted to do was rid of it and his boxer briefs.

When he finally stopped his grinding to allow them to strip the rest of their clothes, Ayane couldn't help but relish in the beauty of the man under her. She got on top of him again, this time, making sure to align his parts with hers.

A loud moan escaped both of them as she sat down and he buried himself deep inside of her. Her body craved him immediately. She loved the way he fit inside of her, and the way her body felt in his arms. She loved the way his strong hands felt as it held onto her hips, guiding it up and down as she bounced on his lap.

"Fuck baby, you feel so good."

"M-Mr. Namikaze."

MInato leaned forward and placed another bite on her shoulder, making her scream in ecstasy as he gave pointed thrusts into her body. "I told you to call me Minato."

"M-MInato…."

She loved the way his name rolled off her tongue. She loved calling out to him and hearing him grunt in return. She must have been crazy drunk, she figured, or sex deprived, if she was loving every way in which he held her, but regardless, she decided to enjoy it while the night lasted.

Maybe it was the alcohol. Maybe it was how handsome he was to begin with. Maybe it was the taboo idea of a one night stand, that she finally got to take part of, but within minutes, Minato had her cumming hard on top of him. She shook as a wave of ecstasy rolled through her and she clung onto the man for dear life.

When the high had finally calmed to a gentle breeze, Ayane collapsed onto Minato, allowing his body to support her. With a chuckle he brushed her hair out of her face. He only allowed her a brief break before he rolled her over.

Ayane yelped when her back hit the bed again, this time, it made her a bit dizzy with the liquor and the orgasm. Minato leaned over and reinserted himself into the sensitive warmth. She cried out as she grasped onto him in desperation. With a low chuckle, he continued.

"I'm still not done yet."

Breaking out of her trance, Ayane smirked. "Good, me neither."

With that, they spent the rest of the night in each other's presence, filling the room with the aroma of sweat and sex. Eventually, as exhaustion came over them and the alcohol took its toll, they both collapsed onto the mattress and fell asleep-their troubles gone for the night.