Wheels of Steel Book 4

  Belinda piped in, “Or maybe they have a back room with a mattresses. Y ask them if they can give Jason and Peter a massage-“

  “Fuck no!” Peter exclaimed.

  “I’m ready to leave. This lady smells funny,” Jason said while turning his head away from her constant begging for drinks, money, or sex. Jason didn’t know which and didn’t want to find out.

  Y asked for the check and Robin tried to hold back her laughter. The big black man was the one to bring the check and he placed it in the center of the table.

  Jason’s brow went up in surprise. “Um … that says 92,500 yen. I know the conversion is really weird but that seems to be a lot of money.”

  Peter’s mouth dropped. “Yeah, how much is that Y?”

  “That’s roughly $750,” Y stated matter-of-factly.

  “What?!” Jason exclaimed.

  Belinda sipped her drink. “I guess we’re going to be doing dishes,” she stated, not nearly as outraged as Peter and Jason who were talking together about how much cash each had and arguing about the merits of using a credit card here.

  Y pulled out his wallet and counted out some bills. He placed it on the table on top of the check and the big black man scowled.

  “Not enough,” he said in choppy English.

  Yagano’s face lost the humor that he’d been wearing. He stood and replaced the wallet back in his pants.

  “Come on,” He gestured to the group to follow him out the door. They looked at the scary black man who seemed at a loss for words.

  “Wait! You pay!” He demanded.

  The bartender had joined the black man. “You pay or we call police!”

  Y laughed. He laughed hard and with true merriment. “Call them. We’ll wait. And I’ll take back the money that I was willing to pay in order to play this joke on my friends. But if you want to call the police, go right ahead.”

  Y reached for the money still sitting on the table and the bartender intercepted it swiftly.

  “You go! You leave now!”

  Amberly watched the exchange with big eyes as they exited the bar. “You knew they were scamming us?” She asked once they were safely back on the street.

  “Yeah. I know this place. They get you once but never twice,” He laughed.

  “Well how much did you pay?” Jason asked while patting his wallet. “We’ll pay you back-“

  Y gave his comment a dismissive wave. “They got about two hundred dollars which was more than those watered down drinks were worth.”

  “I don’t like this place anymore.” Peter said, still appearing traumatized by the event.

  Y patted his shoulder. “I’ll make it up to you and take you to a real bar where they have pretty hostesses that will feed you and sing to you. Good?”

  Jason raised a finger. “And they’ll be pretty?”

  “Beautiful.” Y promised. “But no touching. These are not whores.”

  Robin, who had been listening while wearing a dubious expression finally nodded her head. “Okay, I’m down with it.”

  Once everyone agreed Y took them to a more refined establishment, crowded with businessmen. They ordered food and were served by pretty Asian women who, although dressed in traditional Kimonos explained that they were not Geisha. The girls didn’t feel sexually threatened because the servers were fun and attentive, playing drinking games and one even fed sushi to Jason.

  Amberly watched the women with interest and then turned to her husband.

  “Is this the type of thing you’d want in our marriage? For me to serve you and pour your drinks and fix your plate?”

  Everyone watched discreetly while Y lied.

  “No. I don’t need this type of attention … on a daily basis. Well, it would be nice once in a while.”

  Amberly frowned and took a drink of sake.

  Peter turned to Belinda. “I want this type of treatment. I’m not scared to say it. I want you to massage my neck when I get home from work and have a drink waiting for me at the door. I want-“

  Belinda smacked him lightly in the head.

  Jason guffawed but then when he saw Robin staring at him he choked back his laughter.

  “Do you like this type of attention, Jason? Is this something you’d want in our relationship?” Robin asked.

  “No.” He said simply garnering him a smile. “Slave days are over and …”

  Robin looked at him in surprise.

  “Are you saying that if slave days were still around you’d have me serving you like this?” Robin asked.

  Jason’s face turned bright red. “Well you’d have to if slavery was still … legal.”

  Robin turned in her seat and faced Jason fully.

  “You would have me as your slave?” Robin’s voice remained low but had gone up an octave.

  “No!” Jason shook his head adamantly. “I would be an abolitionist. I swear!”

  Robin relaxed and then squeezed his hand. “Thanks, babe.”

  The hostesses smartly began another drinking game and by the time the driver arrived with the limo to take them back to the house, everyone was happily buzzed and asleep by the time they reached the house.

  Chapter Fifteen

  When Robin opened her eyes the next morning she was surprised to see that Jason was beside her in bed, still sleeping. For the last few nights he had risen before her and had gone off with Peter to the recording studio.

  “Jason,” she whispered while gently nudging his shoulder. “Babe you over-slept.”

  He woke up with a slight shake of his head and then he pulled her into his arms. “No I didn’t. I wanted to spend the day with you. I haven’t done that since we got to Japan.”

  Robin smiled happily. She couldn’t think of anything she’d like better than to spend the entire day with Jason. She kissed him.

  “Are you sure? I know you guys want to get the album out as quickly as possible.”

  “Yeah. But we don’t need twenty guys standing around trying to give their input. So me and Peter are taking the day off.” He gave her a hug. “I want to sleep in and I want to hang with my girl. And plus I want to talk to you about the label contract,” he yawned into his fist.

  Robin snuggled in Jason’s arms and together they drifted back to sleep. No one was around by the time they finally rose for breakfast—which was now brunch and they kissed and found some of Y’s fermented soybeans that they both had acquired a taste for. They ate and kissed and talked and kissed some more.

  Peter came into the room wearing just a t-shirt and boxers. He seemed surprised to see them.

  “Oh, I thought you two would be gone by now.”

  “Gone where?” Robin asked while popping a grape into her mouth. She turned to look at Jason who was frantically gesturing for Peter to shut up.

  Peter turned around and just wheeled out of the kitchen without another word.

  “What?” She asked.

  “I have no idea,” Jason said evasively. “Let’s go outside. I love that garden.”

  Robin smiled and grabbed two juice boxes from the fridge. Here in Japan juice boxes weren’t just for little kids.

  She followed him out back and took a deep breath enjoying the fresh mountain air. It was cooler in Karuizawa than in Tokyo and Robin decided that if you were going to live in Japan this was the place to do it.

  He sat down on the bench overlooking the koi pond—the most peaceful place on the face of the earth, in Robin’s humble opinion.

  “Isn’t this the life?” She asked with a sigh.

  “It’s awesome here,” Jason replied. “I’m happy that Amberly and Y get to keep this house.”

  “Me too.” Jason placed his arm around her and she settled against him comfortably. “I’m happy I came. This has been an amazing adventure.”

  “We are really in the beginning of something big, babe.” He said. “Both of us have been offered label deals, plus we’re getting noticed by important people in the industry. It’s the beginning of everything and I’m doing this
with my best friend.”

  Robin smiled and kissed him. She was just about to say that this moment could only get better if they had some music playing when Jason stood up and stepped in front of her.

  She looked at him curiously.

  “I’d get down on my knee but these damn leg braces …”

  Robin’s face froze.

  Jason reached into his pocket and retrieved a little black velvet box.

  “Jason …” Robin thought her voice sounded like it was coming from inside a tunnel.

  Jason opened the box and the sunlight twinkled off the diamond of a ring. At first the twinkling of the diamond was too dazzling to see the beauty of the ring and so she just stared at it while Jason spoke. And then she could see it; a simple princess cut diamond ring that was probably the most beautiful thing she’d ever laid her eyes on.

  “Robin, you are my best friend, you are my lover and my partner in all ways. I can’t imagine doing any of the things that are in my future without you by my side. And I want to be by your side as you embark on all of the wonderful things that are to be in your future. Robin Mathena will you marry me?”

  Robin’s eyes had moved from the ring to Jason. Her heart felt as if it was ready to slam its way out of her chest. She came to her feet and then threw her arms around his neck and squealed.

  Jason hugged her and spun her lightly before setting her back onto her feet. He was laughing and smiling and then he offered her the ring.

  Robin accepted it as if it was a fragile piece of glass.

  “So that’s a yes-?“ He began.

  “YES!” She squealed and jumped up and down before hugging Jason again.

  One of the windows went up in the house and Robin heard Belinda screaming out in laughter.

  “We got it all on video!”

  When Robin looked up she saw Peter, Belinda, Y and Amberly crowded in the window watching them with Belinda holding a camcorder.

  She waved at them and then kissed her fiancée.

  Robin spent an hour on the phone talking to her mother about Jason’s surprise proposal. Despite their rocky past, Robin’s mother screamed in delight at the news. Robin’s mother remembered a time when her daughter’s life had been thrown into a tailspin. It was during those times that Betty had felt the most regret over her previous dislike of Jason. Things might be moving fast for the couple but she knew that Robin loved Jason and that he loved her. Betty also knew that when it came to love, there really was no timeframe.

  “Oh Robin, I’m so excited for you! I can’t believe that you and I got engaged within a year of each other.”

  It seemed that marriage was all around Robin. Her mom and stepfather had just tied the knot in the spring just as Amberly and Y had. Peter and Belinda were engaged and now she and Jason were.

  The newly engaged couple went off on their own to check out Karuizawa, visiting all of the beautiful sites including the waterfall that Jason had tried to get her to go to with Y.

  Periodically Robin would look at him, so handsome with his red hair grown so long that it now flowed over his shoulder. Sometimes he wore a headband to keep it out of his face, or a crazy hat.

  She loved everything she saw from his crooked smile to the way his head periodically jerked to and fro due to his Cerebral Palsy. She loved his green eyes and the freckles on his skin that had become bronzed by the Japanese sun. She loved the muscles visible beneath his shirt and the gentle way that he touched objects with fingers that he had to force to move in a certain way. She thought to herself, ‘this man will be my husband, the father of my children, my partner for life.’

  She loved him totally and completely and she had no doubt that he felt the same for her.

  Jason had decided to propose to Robin while at Akita Tom’s funeral. He was struck by how fleeting life was and how young Akita had been when the accident had taken his life. He had no wife and no children—probably assuming that he would have many years to fill his life with such things. But nothing was promised to them.

  And then Robin had gotten up before the church and had begun to sing. Her voice and words touched him—he loved her so that was a given. But it also affected everyone that heard her. He had looked around the audience and saw that everyone else could see that Robin had a gift.

  He had been fortunate enough to discover that gift and to be able to help her share it with others. In that moment as he watched Robin sing to the memory of Akita Tom, Jason knew that there was no one else that he would want to live his life with. And if Robin wasn’t with him when he did make it big, then it wouldn’t mean anything to him. She was the prize at the end of it all.

  Belinda and Amberly got a call to begin work on a video. It was the first video project that they had been assigned to work on since the release of Akita’s album featuring Wheels of Steel. The next set of videos were supposed to be for the new Wheels of Steel Album. But the unfortunate death of Akita required them to begin production on a special set of videos—ones for his tribute album.

  Belinda and Amberly wanted to make it special so they were going to put all of their technical knowledge into making an innovative video to compliment the first release from the album. The release would be over thirty minutes long and would feature all seventeen artists that were included on the album. Some thought it was the best work they had ever completed. The one song traversed the gamut from funky, techno, hip-hop and trans. To put it in basically—the song was amazing.

  Y had just dropped the girls off at the studio when he got a call from his uncle requesting a meeting. He hated when his uncle had to meet face to face instead of handling business over the phone. The drive sometimes ate up three hours of his day—not counting the meeting itself.

  But Y would never tell his uncle no. It just wasn’t done in the Yakuza. He had come close only once and that was when it was suggested that he not marry a gaikokujin. His uncle had not expressly forbidden it. That would have been impolite. But it had been implied that there should be no marriage between him and Amberly—and Y had ignored that suggestion.

  Yori Akhiro was not Y’s blood uncle but he was the man that had been more family to him than even his own father and for that reason alone Y always made sure to show the utmost in respect. Except when it came to his decision to marry Amberly, Y had never gone against anything his uncle requested.

  Luckily it was just a short drive from the Tokyo studio to his uncle’s home. Y was escorted to Yori Akhiro who was relaxing on his lavish penthouse deck. There was an infinity pool that he’d never seen his uncle use even though the older man wore swim trunks and sat by the pool.

  They hugged and then Y bowed politely in greeting to his uncle. Yori asked about Amberly and about his health and Y did the same. Once the formalities had ended the two men sat on the lawn chairs, which faced the hustle and bustle of Tokyo.

  Y remained quiet as his uncle lit a cigar and once he’d gotten it going to his satisfaction the older man looked at Yagano.

  “How is the record company?”

  “Business is going very well ojisan,” Y replied, assuming that his uncle was still making polite inquiries. “In fact, business has never been better. Due to the unfortunate death of Akita we are selling more songs than ever before. The internet radio channels are playing his music in heavy rotation which means more money for us.”

  Y could have gone on but his uncle interrupted him. “And what happens when interest fades?”

  Y thought before speaking, his internal alarms going off at his uncle’s interest. The two had made a deal that there would be no interference from the family when it came to Akita Tom’s affairs. They put him there to keep him occupied and out of Yakuza affairs—specifically out of sight of his father’s son; Riyu.

  “I’m not sure that I understand, ojisan … When interest wanes we will still be ahead of the game because now there are more fans than ever before learning about Akita’s sound-“

  “But the label will be relying on royalties to keep it afloat. Without
new Akita Tom music the label will never make the money that it could make. The label needs music to produce. It needs the unreleased music that Wheels of Steel and Hidalgo are holding.”

  Y inhaled deeply wondering who had fed his uncle this information. Only someone who knew the workings of Akita Tom Productions would know about the unreleased music. His thoughts settled on James Edelson.

  “That unreleased music is only going to get the company so far—and then we are back to square one.”

  “Yes. That’s why the label needs to sign musicians; specifically the group that still holds the unreleased music—Wheels of Steel”

  Y sat back in his chair. “So who has been giving you this information?”

  Yori put his cigar in a nearby ashtray and then he gave Y a stern look. “The true question isn’t who gave me this information. The true question is why it didn’t come from you?”

  Y’s brow drew together. “My apologies Yori-oji-san. Since the company was doing so well, I did not think to tell you about the unreleased music.” Because in reality there was nothing to tell. Akita’s death was no secret and it was no secret that the label had no other artists. James had filled his uncle’s ear with information supporting his own agenda. Y intended to hurt James … badly.

  Yori looked at Y. “You are friends with the group Wheels of Steel. Your wife was once a member. They now have the music that the label needs to keep it in the music making business instead of the royalty collection business. Do you understand?”

  “Yes ojisan,” Y said while growing pale. He had to get Wheels of Steel to sign with Akita Tom Productions … one way or another.

  “Are you getting tired?” Robin asked. She and Jason had been walking around Karuizawa for most of the day but Jason said that he wasn’t ready to return to the house yet.

  “When should we get hitched?” Jason asked as they strolled down a shopping plaza. Jason had purchased some undies and other necessities due to his prolonged trip. He squeezed Robin’s hand with the one not holding the shopping bag and cane.