Playing with Fire (Book One of The Kazuya Series) (✔️)

三十三 (Thirty-Three)

A/N:

Only a one or two chapters left...🥺

I'm so sad! 🥺🥺

Enjoy....😘😉

Especially my dirty birds. 😉🔥🧸

Mature Content Ahead! 🤤😮‍💨

-B.🧸🔥❤️🧸❤️🔥

~~~~~~~~~~~
(Arielle's POV)

"Do you need any help?"

"You can start on the potatoes, if you want."

"Anything else I can do?" I asked, leaning against the island.

"You can go check to see if the...kids have torn anything down yet. They're notorious for picking stuff off the tree. Especially Kintaro." Izumi joked.

"And tell your father that if he has anymore eggnog then he's not going home with me. Last year at the Christmas party he had eight glasses and barely made it home."

"Sure thing." I laughed.

I walked into the living room and found the tree still intact. The candy canes were still there and so was the garland made of popcorn. Izumi told me that, when the boys were little, she made them sit down and string the popcorn to keep them occupied while she wrapped their presents in a different room. To this day, she still does that. She says they're notorious for eating all the candy canes and popcorn hours after putting them on the tree.

Of course, she said Koan was the odd one out. He never participated and didn't offer to help his brothers. He didn't want to. He would just sit and watch.

Laughter drew my attention away from the tree and to the couch and fireplace where everyone was gathered. I smiled at the sight of Kintaro, Satoru, Doc, and my dad drinking eggnog, talking, and laughing together by the fireplace. Colten, Koan's brothers, Kenta, and Asuka were sitting on the couch cracking jokes and hardcore eyeballing the presents under the tree like children.

My mom was in the kitchen with Izumi, Hana, Doc's wife, and one of the housekeepers working on dinner. I'd made a few desserts, ones without cinnamon, and Hana was working on ones with cinnamon.

I still didn't like her and I knew she still didn't like me. Izumi apologized multiple times for her and Asuka being there, but Kintaro considered them family.

"How's it going in there?" Dad asked as I walked over to him.

"Good. Mom says any more eggnog and you're staying here for the night."

Dad rolled his eyes.

"You can stay and my wife can go home with yours." Kintaro laughed.

Ever since they had dinner together they've been as buddy-buddy as a detective and yakuza boss can get. My parents have almost become regulars are Kazuya family dinners. My brother joins too since he has become best friends with all of Koan's brothers and Kenta.

Kenta and Satoru have apologized countless of times because of Emiko. They were saddened about her death, but not as much as you'd expect. They came to visit us in the hospital the day I was discharged and apologized over and over again. It didn't matter to Koan, but I accepted their apology on both of our behalf.

Our bruises and injuries have healed almost completely. Koan still technically has fractured ribs, but they're almost 100% healed.