I Only Have Eyes For You

by Khardine Gray

  He looked across at his beautiful angel sitting with him, smiling at him with complete adoration and felt his heart leap. What would he do when the day came and he would have to wait weeks on end to see her, or to hear her voice? The thought saddened him every time it popped into his mind.

  “I’m talking too much again, aren’t I?” She rested her hand on her chest and giggled.

  “No. I’m just listening, and it all sounds great.”

  She reached across the table and squeezed his hand gently, leaning in closer onto the dark green table cloth. “Thank you for supporting me. It’s meant a lot to me that you have.” She pulled in a breath. “And, for asking me to stay.”

  “You still want to?” He just wanted her to be sure.

  “Of course. It would be nice to just, I guess, not to have the magazine to worry about for a little while. Then we could do some fun stuff.” She smiled.

  He nodded, agreeing.

  “Then I’ll have to make a plan at some point.” She pursed her lips and widened her eyes.

  “Are you worried about a plan?” He knew he was.

  “Yeah.” She took a sip of her lychee juice.

  “Don’t, let’s just enjoy ourselves.”

  Excitement radiated from her eyes as she smiled back at him. “Okay,” she said with sweet resolution, then she looked around the restaurant and thoughtfully expressed, “I love it here.”

  He always chose a table that was secluded enough for them to have a private conversation and a good view. From where they sat they could see the calm, still flow of the river and the old stone bridge that ran across it. He followed her gaze outside the long French windows to the amber-colored streetlights that mingled with the soft fading daylight. It created a serene feeling of relaxation and solitude.

  Hiroshi then looked back to her. He always liked watching her and looking at every incredible detail about her that made her her. The fine oval shape of her face, the curve right there by her neck and her ear that he liked to kiss, the soft caramel color of her skin. She was very beautiful to look at, but what he loved most about her was her spirit, no words on Earth could describe her spirit. It radiated with beauty and appreciation for everything. There was so much to her, so much that had captivated him.

  “It’s a great restaurant,” he stated.

  “Not just the restaurant. Japan.” He watched in fascination as the corners of her pretty mouth turned up into a smile. She returned her gaze to him. “I love being in Japan. I feel like I can be myself here.”

  He knew exactly what she meant, because it was the same for him.

  They had a nice relaxing night, enjoying the restaurant and a walk along the river bank. She seemed fine when they went to bed, but he woke up in the early hours of the morning to find that she wasn’t.

  It was early, like before sunrise early. They lay together in their habitual way, with her cocooned in his arms. He could tell she was awake because of how she breathed against his chest, and she was troubled. That he knew from instinct.

  The faint light from outside crept into the room, making it just bright enough for him to see her. He wrapped his fingers around the ends of her velvety hair, letting her know he was awake, too.

  “What’s wrong, princess?” His voice broke the silence that had settled across the room.

  She ran her fingers across his chest and started tracing an outline over one of his tattoos. Although she couldn’t see, he knew she was going over the pattern correctly, she knew them by heart.

  “I’m just thinking,” came her sweet voice. He ran his fingers along her delicate jawline.

  “About what, baby?”

  Her fingers stilled, and she sat up slowly. It was only then that he could tell she’d been crying. He sat up immediately and switched on the bedside light. Yes, she had been crying.

  “What’s the matter?” He cupped her face. A fresh tear ran down her cheek.

  “Hiroshi…I don’t think the magazine wants me.” Her voice sounded thin and fragile like it might break.

  “Of course they want you. Your articles are amazing, and you’re doing extremely well.”

  It was natural for her to be worried about this. He was, too, because he just wished they’d let her know what their plans were. As a businessman, he thought he might have an idea on what they were doing. It seemed to him that they were making the most out of her as a freelancer because she’d done so well with their website. He thought they were most likely trying to work out what they wanted her to do, but they would definitely hire her. The risk of losing her was too great. Lose her and risk losing all those subscribers who’d signed up specifically to read her work.

  They’d also proven, although impliedly, that they would hire her. It wasn’t any old person who had a web page in a well-known magazine like that. And with free reign of the content.

  “I just thought I’d know if it was going to happen by now. But they haven’t said anything.” She sighed, leaning her face into his hands. “What if it never happens? I’ve been freelancing for them for nearly two years.” Her sad eyes looked at his, searching for an answer.

  Nearly two years was a long time, but maybe they’d take her work in Japan more into consideration.

  “They want you. It just takes time.” He nodded with assertion. “They won’t risk you leaving and losing money.”

  “Do you think so?”

  He’d come to notice that she valued his opinion and listened to his advice. He took her hands into his. “Yes. I do.”

  “It’s just exhausting. Thinking of a plan, thinking of the next destination with the hope that it’ll help me get what I want. I just want to write without that stipulation. Am I supposed to travel the whole world to impress them?”

  “Hey.” He stroked the soft skin of her cheek. “I promise it’ll be okay.” Yes, he knew it was a big thing to promise, but he knew things would work out for her. It had to. “Just let me buy them.” He joked just to cheer her up and see that smile of hers.

  There it was, her soft, beautiful smile, welcoming like watching the sunrise. Or seeing the first spring flower bloom.

  Listen to him. Like he was some kind of poet. When did he trade in thoughts on car engines and steering systems for sunrise and spring flowers? It was funny really when he thought about it. All he cared about at one point was finding ways to make his cars faster, then she came along and turned his brain to mush. And…captured his heart in the same breath.

  “You can’t do that,” her voice broke his thoughts.

  “You forget that I can.” He smiled, thinking he would do it if she asked him to. But that wasn’t her style. “Then you can make them jump through hoops to please you.”

  She laughed at the thought then shook her head. “Hiroshi.”

  “You’re my girl, and these people are making you worry unnecessarily. That’s unfair.”

  “Thank you. But, it has to be real.” She lifted her head and gazed at him. “They have to choose me because they want me. It wouldn’t be real if you just bought them.”

  He kissed the top of her nose. “Okay. I get it. But please stop worrying.”

  She nodded and offered a small smile.

  “How about we drive out to the mountains later, and I can take you drifting?”

  The surprise on her face made him smile. Throughout the whole time she’d been here he’d always promised to take her but never got around to it. There was also the fact that he was avoiding it a little because he didn’t want to appear to be slipping back into old habits.

  “Seriously?” she beamed, dabbing at her eyes.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Don’t you have to work?”

  Yes, he certainly did. But she needed him. He hated the thought of her being here all day worrying herself.

  “It’ll be okay.” He hoped it would be okay. His father wanted him to talk with the analysts in Washington and touch base with Pete and Cory. He would do it later. “You even get to pick the car.”

  “Re
ally?” she asked slyly. “Can we take the Mustang?”

  The Mustang. He allowed Sadu to drive it sometimes only to maintain it. He hadn’t actually driven the thing himself since his race with Kowalski, the day his grandfather died. Maybe it was time to drive it again.

  He nodded. “We can take the Mustang.”

  “Yay. But …are you sure. I know you had stuff planned for today.” Concern filled her fine features.

  “I’m never too busy for you.” He lifted her chin up towards him. “Stop worrying about the magazine.”

  “Okay. I’ll just have to wish harder.” She sighed and chuckled.

  “Well, you better wait for the evening star to come out again.”

  “The evening star?” she laughed.

  “Yes, the wishing star.” He looked at her like she should know this. His stare only made her laugh more. Even after being together for this long he still found himself doing whatever he could to made her laugh.

  She looked down at his hand in hers resting in her lap on the black lace of her negligée. She lifted her eyes and gazed back up to him. “I wished for you.”

  His heart expanded from the warmth she created from deep within him.

  “I wished for you, and that came true,” she confessed.

  Something happened to him as he listened to her, something he couldn’t explain. It was more of a feeling that could only be described if you could feel it too. It felt like some kind of force rushed over his entire body, filling every fiber of his being, rendering him powerless. He first felt a taste of it when they decided to be together. When he thought he might not get a chance to be with her. He felt it again in its purest form when he danced with her on Torii Beach, and watched the sunrise at the top of Mt. Fuji.

  He had to force himself to speak as she watched him. “It did, but you didn’t have to wish for me.” He pulled her closer so she could rest against his chest. “I was always yours. From day one.”

  He watched a single tear leave the corner of her eye and trickle down her cheek.

  “Hey there,” he said, wiping it away. She quickly wiped at her other eye.

  “I’m sorry. I—” She considered him, really looking at him, then said, “I was yours, too.”

  Could it be possible? This was how love felt, wasn’t it?

  But then, hadn’t he always felt this way about her? Literally, from day one. That was why he was always so drawn to her. He’d loved Savannah from day one.

  Considering how intelligent he was supposed to be, it amazed him that he hadn’t figured that out before. Or, maybe he had in the depths of his mind, but didn’t want to acknowledge it for the fear he would lose her.

  He looked at her and decided that he had to do everything in his power to be with her, and make her happy.

  Chapter 21

  He was brainstorming ideas as they sat together for breakfast with his mother and Sakiko.

  He held her hand, resting it on his knee and enjoying the pleasure of having her next to him. His mother smiled as she refilled the glass jug with homemade orange-and-pineapple juice. He watched her smile amplify as she set the jug down near them and exchanged a quick glance with Sakiko, who seemed unusually quiet.

  Come to think of it they both were, and it wasn’t the first time he’d caught them looking at each other in that conspiring way. Those two were always in such tight cahoots with each other. It wouldn’t surprise him if they’d developed telepathic abilities.

  They’d been talking about him. He could tell.

  “Here Savannah, have some more. You mustn’t get too thin.” His mother didn’t wait for her response, she just started serving Savannah more sausages and scrambled eggs.

  “Mom you can never be too thin,” Sakiko argued, taking the plate away and pushing it over to Hiroshi.

  “I’m stuffed,” Hiroshi protested, raising his hands. He didn’t know why she automatically assumed food should come his way if no one else wanted it.

  “Oh please.” Sakiko flicked her wrist at him and made a silly face. “You can never be too stuffed. You need nourishment, eat up.”

  Savannah started laughing.

  “Okay fine.” He gave in because he didn’t have the strength to argue today.

  “I’m going to start getting ready,” Savannah declared. “I should be ready in about half an hour.” She seemed more at ease now in comparison to earlier.

  It was habit that made him kiss her. Had he been thinking straight he would have been on guard for the two pairs of eyes that watched them keenly. His mother and sister exchanged looks again and smiled at each other deviously. Thank God Savannah didn’t see. To say they were embarrassing wasn’t expressive enough.

  “Take your time,” he told Savannah. She gave him one of those sweet smiles as she got up and left them.

  “Okay,” he began when he was sure she wasn’t in earshot of the room. “What’s with you two?” He pointed his fork at each of them. “You’re acting weird…er, than usual.”

  Sakiko looked at him and shook her head. “Best I leave. You take this one, Mom. He never listens to me anyway.”

  “Yes, I listen to you,” he argued, narrowing his eyes. “See just now I took the food, didn’t I?”

  “Hiroshi, last week I told you you needed a haircut. Now look at you, and you have that stuff all over your face that you think looks like a beard.” She circled her hand in his direction.

  He hadn’t shaved yet, and he’d booked in to get his hair cut tomorrow.

  “You look like Grizzly Adams,” she fired at him.

  He rolled his eyes at her. “No, I don’t.” He didn’t look that bad.

  “Well, you’re not far off.”

  “Kids, my gosh,” his mother jumped in.

  “Going now,” Sakiko said, standing up to leave.

  Once she left, he turned to his mother. “I’m sorting out my hair tomorrow, so you don’t have to start on me as well.” He wasn’t in the mood for talking about his hair or beard. The truth of it was he’d been so busy trying to balance everything that he hadn’t gotten around to it.

  “I don’t care about your hair,” she began. She took a piece of toast and smoothed it over with some garlic and herb butter.

  “Okay. What do you want to talk about?”

  “We’re all happy that you asked Savannah to stay. We thought you were going to let her just leave, never to return.” She smiled at him with wide, appreciative eyes.

  Oh. It was this talk. He was wondering when she was going to talk to him about Savannah. Last night when they told everyone she was staying in Japan until she arranged her next adventure he’d seen his mother’s eyes light up with excitement.

  “I wasn’t sure if I should ask her because I knew she had other plans.”

  She gave him that sort of endearing smile to humor him. He watched her long, elegant fingers bring the toast up to her bright red lips and linger there. She looked at him like she wanted him to elaborate, so he did.

  “She was supposed to be going to Mexico,” he added.

  “Oh, she didn’t talk about Mexico.” And that was significant because Savannah loved to talk and told his mom everything. With the way she loved to talk about her writing, that was something she would have mentioned a lot.

  She straightened up against the wooden back of the chair, her straight black hair moving across her shoulders as she focused on him with a warm expression on her face. “I’ve never seen you look so happy,” she pointed out, “and yet so troubled at the same time.”

  So it was that obvious. “I’m fine.”

  “That’s good, son, but have you thought about what will happen when she eventually does leave?”

  Every day, every minute of every day, and more frequent than that, too.

  “Yeah sure. I’ll just go see her wherever she goes.” It wasn’t going to be that simple, but it would be doable if he sorted out his work situation.

  As it stood, if she were to leave now he would be lucky if he could manage to see her maybe
twice a month. The traveling time would be the sting. Ten to twelve hours each way there and back. But he’d do it if that’s what it meant, and he was sure she’d do it too. The other problem was all dependent on where she went on her travels. He was thinking of San Francisco by default, but she wouldn’t just be in San Francisco, would she?

  Feeling defeated, he slumped his shoulders and settled the fork he’d been holding down to the plate. “Things are a little complicated.”

  “Why?”

  He narrowed his eyes at her. “There’s a lot to think about.”

  “Is there?” She looked surprised to hear this.

  His mother had the tendency to think and see things differently. If she didn’t think it sounded complicated, then he was interested to find out what she saw.

  “Okay Mom, let’s hear it. And no riddles.” He couldn’t bear to hear any Japanese riddles about the crane and the tortoise, or the fox and the raccoon, or whatever.

  She laughed, a light-hearted smooth laugh, then said, “Maybe just one.”

  “Okay.” He geared himself up.

  She pulled her teacup over and set it in front of him. It was filled with black tea. “Guy loves girl.” The declaration threw him off, and he looked back at her quickly, completely tongue tied. She pointed to the tea in the cup, she then reached for the little silver pot of milk and poured some in. “Girl loves guy.”

  Hiroshi blinked several times, too startled by her comment to offer any form of objection. She was known for her bluntness so he shouldn’t have been surprised, but this was…

  Well it…

  “Girl loves guy?” Did she really think that Savannah loved him? He was more eager to know that than anything else.

  She looked at him and nodded with deep conviction. The certainty in her expression amazed him. “Yes. She loves guy like the pond loved the moon.”

  Hearing that sent a sharp tingle down his spine. He continued to watch her as she took a teaspoon and tapped the cup. The milk swirled around and mixed with the tea, turning it a creamy brown color. “Guy loves girl, girl loves guy. It’s simple. They blend together, and they work. There’s nothing complicated.” She mixed the tea around in the cup. “Only simplicity.”