When William had offered him the position as hospital director of Stanhope's Vancouver satellite, Konstantin had accepted it with only minimal reservation. Eve had still been pregnant then, but they'd both agreed they couldn't see themselves raising their child in New York. Vancouver had been an ideal alternative. Close to the mountains Eve loved. Far enough from Manhattan that Stefano wouldn't grow up thinking yellow taxis were a force of nature.
Almost perfect, except for the fact that Konstantin was friends with Kazeyuki, and he'd first wanted to make sure that his promotion wouldn't cause any professional misunderstanding between the two of them. Kazeyuki had been at the Vancouver satellite ahead of him, as well as a few years older. He could have made things difficult. He could have viewed the appointment asa slight, an outsider being placed above him in the hierarchy of a hospital where Kazeyuki had already established himself.
He hadn't.
"Do you remember the time I asked you to meet me at the Aehrenthal?"
"Of course." Kazeyuki's tone was solemn. "It was a beautiful place to catch up."
Konstantin could only flush at the dig. “The timingcouldhave been better.”
“Indeed.”
Konstantin was starting to feel defensive. How was he supposed to know that the same night he'd suggested the Aehrenthal's lobby for a drink, Minuit Rogue, one of the world's most popular bands, would be performing at the hotel? The lobby had been a sea of photographers and camera flashes when they'd arrived, and within minutes of those photos being posted, the usual women in search of a wealthy benefactor had followed. Some tried from a distance, finding excuses to drift close with drinks in their hands. Others simply walked up and introduced themselves with smiles that promised everything.
Konstantin at that time had been of a mind to simply call it a night, cancel the whole thing and reschedule.
Kazeyuki, however, had been the one to suggest they stay. And so they'd stayed. They'd taken their drinks to a quieter corner of the lobby, and Konstantin had watched, over the course of the evening, as his friend handled every unwanted advance with the same mild, impeccable courtesy that never once wavered, never once sharpened, never once revealed even a trace of theirritation that any man in his position would have been entitled to feel. A woman touched his arm; he smiled and moved it. Another sat uninvited in the empty chair beside him; he stood, offered her his seat with a small nod, and excused himself to get another drink. Each time, effortless. Each time, kind. Each time, leaving the woman feeling she'd been treated with grace rather than rejected.
It was the first time Konstantin had realized there was something very wrong with how right Kazeyuki always seemed.
The conversation they'd had that night, after the lobby had finally emptied and it was just the two of them with whisky and the city glittering through the tall windows, had stayed with Konstantin ever since.
"It's fine, Konstantin. You have a family now. I don't. I should be the one to continue as the hospital's chief neurosurgeon."
"And what of the future?"
"I will never have a family of my own. Trust me."
That was the first time Konstantin had heard his friend speak in a tone that was as gentle as it was cold, and with a smile that didn't reach his eyes at all.
That smile was now making its second appearance.
"I owe you a favor," Konstantin said.
Kazeyuki frowned. “There’s no need—"
"It's the truth. You could've made things difficult for me back then,” Konstantin acknowledged. “But you didn't. And it's a favor I'm more than willing to pay back. What I still haven't figured out is how."
"There's nothing—"
Konstantin cut him off, saying simply, "Kitty has been in love with you for the past two years."
Kazeyuki's gaze narrowed. "Since when have you been on a first-name basis with her?"
"She's friends with Eve and me." Konstantin watched Kazeyuki's shoulders resettle at his answer and nearly raised a brow. Did his friend not realize how jealous he was acting?
"I wasn't aware of that."
"Because you went out of your way to not know anything about her," Konstantin murmured.
“I was being professional.”
“But you don’t have to be unprofessional to see what everyone sees.”
Kazeyuki’s jaw clenched. “She’s young. Girls her age—”
“She’s not infatuated, Kazeyuki—”
