"Don't help," Yuta cautioned Noriko after dinner. "Hanako-san has often refused an assistant. She likes doing everything herself and we need her to know how much we value her. Anyway, you told me you can't cook."

Noriko favored her husband with a spuriously demure glance. Normally, a wife was the senior lady and responsible for the household. That included, as her job at the Inn of the Golden Phoenix had, supervising the cooking and kitchen staff. This household was not truly ...