Blake Yasuda

Blake, a character in the "Rules of Engagement" series, is the manager of Nomade, a fine dine French restaurant on board the ship, and one of Party-Girl Sister's love interests. He is first seen in Book 1, Chapter 2.

Appearance
Blake has short, black hair, light skin and black eyes. Usually, he wears a gray suit with a blue checked shirt, a black tie, and a white pocket handkerchief. Noted for his looks by Party-Girl Sister.

Personality
Focused on work, Blake is very strict and stern. However, he has a softer side, shown through his interactions with his mom on the phone and his blossoming friendship/relationship with Party-Girl Sister.

Book 1

 * Chapter 2: Wine and Mixers
 * Chapter 3: Date with Destiny
 * Chapter 4: Dirty Work
 * Chapter 7: Sweet Sixteen
 * Chapter 10: Training Day
 * Chapter 11: Under Fire
 * Chapter 16: Seeing Red
 * Chapter 18: Last Call
 * Chapter 19: The Morning After

Book 2

 * Chapter 2: Dangerous Liaisons
 * Chapter 5: Trouble in Paradise
 * Chapter 6: The Way to a Man's Heart
 * Chapter 11: Hearts Wild
 * Chapter 14: Recipe for Disaster
 * Chapter 16: The Flavor of Love
 * Chapter 19: Finale I: Now or Never (Off-Screen)
 * Chapter 20: Finale II: High Tides
 * Chapter 21: Finale III: Just Say Yes

Book 3

 * Chapter 1: Setting Sail
 * Chapter 2: Piece of Cake (Determinant)
 * Chapter 5: Modern Mosaic
 * Chapter 8: The Bachelorette
 * Chapter 9: When in Rome
 * Chapter 12: Memory Lane
 * Chapter 13: The Tempest
 * Chapter 14: After the Storm
 * Chapter 15: Everything is Illuminated
 * Chapter 16: Save the Date
 * Chapter 18: Bon Voyage

Newlyweds

 * Chapter 1: Home Sweet Home
 * Chapter 2: Autumn Gatherings
 * Chapter 3: To the Lighthouse
 * Chapter 4: A Harvest Homecoming
 * Chapter 5: Into the Sunset

The Royal Heir

 * Chapter 6: Home, Home on the Range
 * Chapter 8: Ride Like the Wind (Mentioned; Determinant)

Party-Girl Sister
Blake meets Party-Girl Sister at the 'Wine and Mixers'. He later finds out that she's the new addition to the staff. Their relationship was rocky at first. He disapproved of her party ways and indifference to working hard. As Party-Girl Sister begins to prove herself at work, Blake recognizes and appreciates her drive. In Chapter 10, she can get some advice from him for the Pierce dinner party by doing a tasting some of the food and wines together. When she points out that this almost sounds like having a dinner, he blushes and starts to stutter. During the tasting she is initially surprised when she hears him laugh for the first time but then tells him he should laugh more often. She thinks that he only offered his advice because she was lagging behind and his last resort but he admits that he considers her to be "smart, [and] quick to improvise" and that she has promise and can prove to be "someone I can truly count on".

The night of the Captain's Ball, Blake and Party-Girl Sister stay behind to celebrate their raise from the Captain. They end up sleeping together. The morning after, Party-Girl Sister hastily leaves the room without talking to Blake. In a premium scene, she can regain her memory of the night. Later on, they meet in the hallway, where Blake apologizes for putting her in an awkward situation. She tells him that it was her idea. In Book 2, Chapter 6, she is able to help him make ningyo-yaki for his father's 60. birthday. They can kiss or keep things professional. When Party-Girl Sister thinks she might be pregnant, he is one of the first to find out. He immediately agrees to be there for her, even if they don't pursue a romantic relationship, because to him she is like family. He wants her to be careful and steps in when he she is about to carry heavy objects. When Aunt reveals to everyone that they have been seen together by Tina after the Captain's Ball which may cost them both their jobs, he offers to resign for her. However, she quits her job instead because his father is still ill.

In Book 3, he and Party-Girl Sister can spend some time in their free time since they no longer work together. She can join him in a couples' cooking class and they can go have ice cream together in Rome. In Chapter 13, they land on the same island after the shipwreck. If he and Party-Girl Sister go to the waterfall together in a premium scene, he will declare his love for her and she can either say that she loves him too or that she cares about him.

Parents
Blake's parents are not seen but it is mentioned that they and Blake are close. Blake always wanted to become a chef, especially since food played a huge role in the family. However, going to a culinary school was too expensive so he started working as busboy on different ships instead and worked his way up until he got the position at the Nomade. He says that his parents stood by him and his decision and that he thinks that it was the right decision to put his own hold to better help them, but he doesn't want to go into more detail at this moment. Later, Party-Girl Sister hears Blake speaking to his mother on the phone. He tells her he will send over some more money to pay for his dad's medical bills. In Book 2, Chapter 6, he can tell Party-Girl Sister that he misses his parents and that his father used to make him ningyo-yaki every year for his birthday. Now that his father has gotten ill and he doesn't know how much time they have left, he wants to make the same for his father who is about to turn sixty. His father's health gets more stabile towards the end of Book 2, and when they hear about Blake's success at the Nomade, they begin to support him about his wish to become a chef.

Trivia

 * He bears a resemblance to actors Ian Anthony Dale and Ben Affleck.
 * He grew up on a small island near Okinawa. This is one of the reasons why he was always drawn to the sea and started working as a busboy on different vessels.
 * He was born in the same month his grandmother passed away. When he was a child, he went every year to the Bon Festival to pay respects to her.
 * In Book 2, Chapter 6, he mentions his father is turning 60 years old.
 * He and the Party-Girl Sister make a cameo in Chapter 6 of The Royal Heir.