"This one is doing very well indeed, de gozaru," Kenshin assured her, always glad to see that he could still make her smile in spite of the darkness she'd witnessed in him the night before. The desire had been his alone, but the unrestrained need to possess her had been the Battousai's darker nature. After what had happened, the rurouni knew that it was within Sayuri's right to know more about him so that she could determine for herself what she wanted of such a man.
No. No longer a man. Those times were long past.
"When you are finished, there are words that should perhaps be said. Stories that perhaps Sayuri-dono should hear, de gozaru," he added softly, placing one, calloused hand on her knee.