Chapter 19

Danielle

"Astari, will you be coming to the meeting?" Kurtis questions upon his return. Khelani and Astari turn to face him.

"Yea. I will go." She says. "Will you be coming?" She asks Khelani and me.

"I'll come with you." Khelani answers to everyone's surprise.

"Kurtis, before you go, can I talk to you? It will be quick."

He leans against the closed door and nods.

"I'm not going to pry into your feelings, but I just ask that you take Han with you when you return. He needs something to do, and I don't really have anything. My guard is here, and I will have Chief Yaotián decide how best to handle them for now. I would come too, but Li would have a fit." Kurtis stares at the screen for a long time. He doesn't respond. I look at Astari, who just watches her fiancé sadly.

"You want me to take Lee back with me?" He finally speaks. But that impenetrable wall is up, and I cannot tell what he's thinking.

"Yes." I also type this, even though I could say it without issue. I have a feeling if I speak, it may ruin my chances.

"Hyun-Ki will most likely follow him there." Astari mentions. He looks at her for a long time before eventually responding.

"If that is your wish, I will bring him with me." He says, "The meeting will start soon. Are you not coming?" He asks me.

"I will wait for Li." He nods, then holds his hand out to Astari, who rises and takes his hand. Khelani follows closely behind them. This day has been very social yet educational.

Astari told me that she used her fans to help give her information. She created a fan page, and only fans who pass an entrance test are allowed to be a part. Then they all talk about the goings on in their areas in real-time. Astari claims to have wanted to go to Japan to expand down there, but alas, she had to give up that idea. Now with her getting married, she's unsure how she wants to proceed.

We both agreed that once we knew what was going on, we would speak to Lady Yanyun as her brother suggested. Neither of us knows how long Kurtis will want to stay down here. Currently, she's more than upset with him and is not wanting to return. Says he refuses to do more than kiss her. For someone as innocent as her about these things, Astari is really eager to jump him.

I reminded her they could not just go to the courthouse, get married, and call it a day. She's the next Matron of the Alliance, and he is the next Chief. She just rolled her eyes and said nothing more. Then Kurtis came and took her away. Seems to me everyone is having problems romantically. My phone chimes and I see a message from my uncle.

"Dani. Forewarning, I will not be there. Keep your wits about you and try to prevent your fiancé from reacting."

"What do you mean? Why won't you be here? Isn't this a major blow for the Syndicate?"

"Things have gotten more complicated. You'll find out soon enough. It's best if I return to Korea for a while. I am boarding the plane as we speak."

"Why do I feel like you are leaving me with yet another mess to clean up?"

"This… this one is more for Chief Yaotián and Kurtis to figure out. I am leaving to give him time to decide what he wants to do."

"Kurtis will not be happy about this. You really just abandoned him again? I love you, Uncle, but were there really no other options?"

"Dani, if they knew he was my son back then, they would have forced an abortion. Yua would have gone through so much more than this. It was the only way I could think of where he lived, and I could protect them both."

"Then couldn't you have just taken her away before that?"

"They would have kept an eye out for a child that matched Kurtis's age. I could only hide Han."

"I just feel like there had to be other options."

"Whether there were or not doesn't matter now as the choices were already made. This doesn't concern you. I am boarding the plane. Don't forget what I told you. Keep your heads calm and let Bo Chen figure out the rest."

I closed my phone and massaged my temples. Knowing my uncle, he won't talk about this again.

"Bad news?" Li asks as he walks in my door.

"Sounds like it will not be a good time at the meeting. We should go." I answer him rising and grabbing my phone.

"What happened?"

"My father and uncle are on a plane headed back to Korea. They don't plan to come back for a while. My uncle says it's the best course they could take in this situation."

"Hmm…" He says, "Speaking of best courses, we should just get married. Start a family. It's best to keep Kyoto and the Shin from amassing a crew to attack you."

"I don't think Stephanie or whatever she goes by now will come for me. She said that we were even when she did what she did."

"There's still Matsume. And are you saying you'll let her go now?"

"No, I am not saying that. I am just saying that I don't think Stephanie will come for me."

"Okay, but there's still Matsume. I would feel better knowing that my name protects you. Xie-yu has a point. The partners will be more hesitant to attack you if you are married to me and with a child. You're untouchable at that point."

"I really don't want to talk about this right now. I just came to terms with being with you again and now marriage. It's too soon."

"Do you plan to leave me?"

"No, don't be ridiculous."

"I'm not. What difference does a month to a year make if you don't plan to leave me? At the end of the day, we will still be married." He's getting angry and frustrated.

I'm not much better; I just don't want to commit to marriage so soon. I get what Li's saying. I know he's right, but we just got together. Remembering what my uncle said about not getting him riled up, I take a few deep breaths, then wrap my arms around his waist. I look into his eyes, full of conflicting emotions resting my chin on his sternum. I forgot how tall he was.

"Okay, let's just figure that out after the meeting. One thing at a time." I speak to him. Rising on my tiptoes, I gently kiss his lips. Backing up, I take his hand and lead him out of the room. Li's shocked expressions are always so adorable.