‘It means we have a date.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘And it starts in five hours.’
CHAPTER FOUR
SHE APPEARED AT his door within an hour of them finishing their shifts. She wrinkled her nose as she walked inside. ‘What did you do?’
He shook his head. ‘What didn’t I do? I’ve used every air freshener on the base, I’ve tried industrial-strength cleaner... This place was borderline cold last night because of the amount of windows I had to open.’
He lifted his T-shirt from his chest and smelled it. ‘I’m just worried that the smell will start to permeate me. If I start to smell like this place you need to tell me.’
She laughed. ‘Believe me, if you start to smell like this place I’ll be nowhere near you.’
He picked up his fedora and stuck it on his head. ‘Well, we can’t have that, can we?’
‘Are you really going to wear that?’
‘I told you. It’s a family heirloom. Can’t leave home without it.’
She’d thought he’d been joking before, but now it seemed he was serious.
‘There has to be a story there.’
He shrugged. ‘There might be.’
He opened his front door and picked up his keys. ‘This will be my first time off base. My first time in Japan—my first experience of Tokyo. What do you have planned for me?’
She felt a mild sense of panic. She hadn’t even thought about anything like that. Normally, if she had friends visiting from abroad she’d plan a whole host of things for them to do. When new people started at the base she’d sometimes take them on a city tour, or at least sit down with them and make some recommendations.
‘I’d only planned on taking you to a book store. What do you have in mind?’ She walked out the door ahead of him.
He closed the door behind them and fell into step beside her. She was conscious of the fact that anyone who saw them would realise they were going off base together. It was no big deal. None. So why did it bother her?
‘How about you try some sushi this time? Or some karaoke?’ She let out a laugh. ‘Or maybe I’ll introduce you to a sento or an onsen.’
He looked at her curiously. ‘What do you mean?’
She waved her hand. ‘No. I’ll save that for another day.’ A breeze swept by them, giving her another dose of his aftershave.
She stopped walking. ‘That’s what we’ll do.’
‘What?’
‘We’ll go somewhere you can find some new aftershave. You smell like all the teenage boys around here when they’ve stolen some of their father’s aftershave for the first time.’
He lifted an eyebrow at her. ‘That bad, eh?’ She almost laughed out loud. The move, and the line delivery was almost like something from a movie.
There was something about this guy that was so infectious. Most of the staff had been talking about him today. They were impressed by his quick actions the day before and his clinical skills. There had been the inevitable discussion about his good looks and whether he was attached or not. Then there had been a few comments about the fact that he seemed to have homed in on the Major General’s daughter already.
Those comments had made her distinctly uncomfortable. She was almost sure that he hadn’t known initially—no one did. But by the time he’d asked her to show him where to eat he had known.
Part of that made her skin prickle. She’d like to think that who her father was didn’t matter to him, but she really didn’t know him that well yet.
It didn’t help that the first thing she’d noticed had been how well his dark blue jeans fitted around his backside, or that the thin designer T-shirt showed the definition of his pecs.
She almost jumped when he slung his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. ‘Hey? Where are you?’
She stopped walking. ‘What?’
‘You looked a million miles away. You had a strange expression on your face. Everything okay?’
She stepped out from under his arm. He’d already got too close.
‘I’m fine.’ She gave herself a shake as they approached the base exit and held out her arm. ‘Here we are, the prefecture of Tokyo.’
‘Don’t you mean city?’
She shook her head. ‘Tokyo isn’t a city. It’s a prefecture. It has twenty-three wards, twenty-six cities, five towns and eight villages. Not to mention the two island chains. It’s the most populous metropolis in the world.’ She laughed and said, ‘We could stand here all day and argue about the size of the population.’
His eyes widened. ‘Wow.’
She nodded as they left the base. ‘Let’s head to the subway. It’s the quickest way to get to where we want to go.’
‘You’ve still not told me where we’re going or what we’re doing.’
She gave a little shudder. ‘Feel free to pile the pressure on. There’s a million things to do in Tokyo. But most of them have to be planned. I could take you to Shibuya’s shopping district and the famous Hachiko crossing.’
This time he gave a shudder. ‘Not tonight.’
She smiled as they bought tickets for the subway. ‘What about the Imperial Palace? Or the Meiji Shrine? Do you like the outdoors? We could visit the Japanese Gardens. Or plan for another day and go on the bullet train or visit Mount Fuji.’
The subway was fast and efficient and only took a few minutes to appear. ‘Sounds like there’s too much to do in Tokyo.’
She nodded. ‘There is. Whatever it is you want to find, I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to find it. You just need to plan. Tokyo and its districts are a big place. It would take around two and a half hours to get to Mount Fuji from here.’
Avery fixed his eyes on the snow-topped peak in the distance. ‘It looks fantastic. I’d love to go there one day.’ He met her gaze and smiled as the subway rolled along. The shudder of the subway echoed the shudder in her body. The smile seemed genuine. He seemed a warm and friendly guy. But did she really want to get involved with someone she worked with?
Wow. Where had that thought come from?
He reached up and put his hand on her shoulder. Touch. He seemed to be big on touch.
‘But from the list you gave me there’s a whole lot of Tokyo out there. Seems like I’ll be spending most of my time off exploring the place.’
Someone jostled her from behind and she stumbled forward a little, pressing right up against Avery’s chest. She looked up. ‘Sorry.’
He put his hand on her hip. ‘It’s fine. It seems really busy around here. I guess we should just get used to being up close and personal.’
It was the way he’d said it. Half joking, half serious. She wasn’t quite sure which. And she wasn’t quite sure which one she wanted.
She pressed her lips together and gave him a nudge. ‘Get ready to wrestle your way out of here. The next stop is ours.’
Three minutes later they were standing in front of the multi-storey bookshop. ‘I thought these places had gone out of fashion. Doesn’t everyone read on phones these days?’
She gave him a shocked glance. ‘Shame on you. There’s nothing nicer than the smell of a brand-new book. Don’t you just love the way they feel in your hands? Can’t you remember the excitement of being a kid and been taken to a bookstore and told to pick what you wanted?’
He had an amused expression on his face, with tiny crinkles around his eyes. He glanced upwards at the huge store, which had windows lined with books. ‘I can’t say that I did. I was more a racing-track and cars kind of kid.’
They walked through the main entrance and she shot him a curious glance. ‘You mean you didn’t have a mini-stethoscope and medical kit?’
He shook his head as she pointed at the escalator towards the kids’ books. ‘No way. I didn’t want to be a doctor then.’
She
turned to face him as they rode up the escalator. ‘Really? What did you want to be?’
He tipped his hat at her. ‘Can’t you tell?’
‘No way. You wanted to be Indiana Jones?’
‘Doesn’t every small boy?’
She reached up and touched his hat. ‘I thought you said it was a family heirloom? Oops!’
He grabbed her arm as she fell backwards. She’d been so engrossed in quizzing Avery that she’d forgotten the escalator would reach the top quickly. But his timing wasn’t so good. As she fell back she pulled him with her and they both landed on the floor at the top of the elevator, Avery flat on top of her.
A teenage boy with wide eyes stepped over them as Avery rolled her to the side.
‘We’ve got to stop meeting like this,’ he groaned.
He was squished right up against her. She’d thought they’d been close on the subway. But now she could feel every one of his tight muscles pressed against her. She could actually feel the beat of his heart against her chest. She didn’t even want to think too hard about anything else she could feel.
She pushed back and scrambled to her feet. ‘Sorry, I should have been paying attention. I got distracted. It’s just that—’
He stood up next to her and shook his head. ‘We’re fine, Katsuko. You’re babbling.’
Her reaction was instant. She wrinkled her nose and put her hands on her hips. ‘I am not.’
Her cheeks started to flush. Maybe she had been babbling just a little. He grabbed her hand. ‘Come on. Let’s find the kids’ books. There has to be a caterpillar in here somewhere.’
She was trying not to focus on the fact that his hand was encircling hers. She was trying to completely ignore the tiny sparks that were shooting up her arm directly into her chest.
The kids’ section had huge signs hanging above it—some in Japanese and some in English. It didn’t take long to find the children’s picture books. They had a number of little sets and the caterpillar book was among them. Avery smiled as he picked it up. ‘She was right, you know. Mainly green and yellow with a red face and purple...things.’
Katsuko laughed. ‘That would be antennae, Captain Flynn.’
‘Yeah, yeah. Well, I’m a doctor, not a vet.’
She frowned for a second. ‘So how come you’re so good with kids? You said you don’t have any of your own—does someone in your family have kids? Are you really Avery, the fun uncle?’ She was curious.
He gave a visible shudder.
‘What?’
He gave his head a shake. ‘Thankfully, my sister doesn’t have kids.’ He put his hand on his chest. ‘I do however, have a number of good friends who have children. In fact, two of my friends seem to be having a competition of fitting in the most number of kids under the age of five.’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘It’s currently a draw.’
‘How many kids do they actually have?’ She was leaving the sister comment, even though she was still curious. It was clear that was for another day.
‘Tess and Ray have four—a set of twins of eight months, a son of two and a son of four. Jamal and Aiysha have four too. They’re like stepping stones. Four, three, two and one.’
‘And what are you, chief babysitter?’
He gave her a beaming smile and nodded. ‘Of course I am. It helps that I’m a big kid myself. Letting any of them get a few hours for dinner, or an evening to themselves, is no big deal. It might take me a few days to recover but it’s worth it.’
He pulled some money from his pocket. ‘How are you going to get this to Abigail?’
She thought for a few seconds. ‘It should be easy enough. I’ll just take it out of the box and pretend I found it in the ER and wondered if it was hers. It’s almost true.’
He paid for the boxed set and they walked back to the escalators. He gave her a wicked smile and gestured towards the moving stairs. ‘After you. Don’t want to land on you again.’
She stepped onto the escalator and turned to face him again. ‘What if I like living dangerously?’ She leaned back a little and held her hands up as they travelled downwards. ‘Hey, look at me, I’m going to fall. Woo...!’ She gave him a cheeky wink. ‘Don’t worry, you’re safe. I knocked you down and now you did the same to me. I think we’re even.’ She spun around just as they reached the bottom and stepped off sharply.
‘I’m not sure we’re even,’ murmured Avery. ‘I’m sure both times it was your fault.’ He had a mischievous gleam in his eye that she’d no intention of falling for.
She planted her hands on her hips as they walked back out into the crowds. Darkness had fallen and Tokyo was lit up with a whole array of coloured lights. ‘What kind of gratitude is that? You drag me out after a busy shift to take you shopping and introduce you to life in Tokyo, then you hit me with the guilt trip?’
He kept going. ‘I’m just pointing out that you seem to like me flat on my back.’ For a second she was mesmerised. Those pale green eyes were quite startling under the brown fedora and bathed by neon lights. The noise and bustle around her seemed to dull. All she could feel right now was the electricity in the air between them. It didn’t matter that he was teasing. It didn’t matter that his blatant flirting was ridiculous.
She liked it. She could feel herself start to react it. To flirt back. She was comfortable around him. Already, in the space of two days.
She bit the inside of her cheek. She could tell that shopping wasn’t really his thing. But she wasn’t ready to go home yet. Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket, glanced at the message and quickly pushed it back in her jeans. Her grandmother. Not what she needed right now. ‘How about I promise you somewhere really cool to go and eat genuine Japanese sushi?’
‘Now, that does sound tempting. Do you promise not to get me flat on my back again?’
‘Not unless you want me to.’ It came out before she thought about it. Like a lightning flash in her brain that reached her lips before the mute part of her brain started to function.
He raised his eyebrows. ‘Oh, touché, First Lieutenant Williams.’
‘Touché? What’s that?’
He waved his hand. ‘Never mind. Tell me more about where we’re going to get some food.’
She gave him a knowing smile. ‘Well, strangely enough, it’s right next to one of the main tourist attractions.’
‘Which one?’
‘The one you’re most excited about seeing. Come on, it’s just a quick jump on the subway.’
* * *
Ten minutes later Avery found himself in the middle of a film set. At least, that was what it looked like and felt like.
He’d never seen so many people before. The sun had set quickly and darkness had fallen across Tokyo. The whole street was lit up by the biggest array of neon lights he’d ever seen. It reminded him partly of Times Square and partly of a futuristic film.
But the thing that was most noticeable was the number of people in one area. He’d never seen a busier place in his life.
Yes, he’d realised that Tokyo was busy. It was the most populated place in the world—of course it would be busy.
But as they exited Shibuya station he had a sudden realisation that he’d never truly understood the definition of busy before. He spent every second step stopping to avoid crashing into someone.
Katsuko, on the other hand, moved nimbly and ably through the throngs of people. His eyes were repeatedly drawn to her neat bum in the bright red skinny jeans. She pointed to the crossing before them. ‘Watch out because when the lights turn red they turn red everywhere. People just surge forward onto the road. Keep close or you’ll get lost.’
He resisted the temptation to reach out and grab her hand. He’d made a few close moves around her and got the distinct impression she wasn’t quite sure what to make of them. Truth was, neithe
r was he.
It felt natural to touch Katsuko—even though he’d no right to, or had any invitation to. If he’d been challenged about it, he’d claim he touched all his female friends. It was casual. It was friendly. But the buzz that flooded his body every time he came into contact with her skin was telling him a whole other story.
Would it be fine to date the General’s daughter? Or would it be frowned upon? Because in the space of two days those thoughts were definitely starting to float around his mind.
She seemed fun. She was good at her job. And she knew the area like the back of her hand. She bordered on flirtatious without being forward.
It didn’t matter that he never settled anywhere. It didn’t matter that his longest relationship had only lasted the length of time of his posting.
His family was the best ever example of things not lasting for ever. With a father who’d married four times, and was about to move on to number five, a mother who latched onto the nearest guy with money until she’d spent it all, and a sister who was learning from her mother’s example, it was no wonder he didn’t do any kind of family gatherings.
His last stepmother had been a woman only a few years older than him and she had insisted on inviting him around at New Year. The last New Year’s dinner had been a complete disaster. His father had got horribly drunk, insulted just about everyone sitting around the dinner table, then passed out on the sofa.
Never. Ever. Again.
He hadn’t even told any of them his orders had changed and he was in Japan now. They probably wouldn’t care.
The only person he’d really respected in the family had been the owner of the fedora—his uncle Stu. He’d been a real life Indiana Jones, disappearing into parts of the continents that no one had heard of and coming back with artefacts for the museum he’d worked for and a whole host of fantastic stories.
Because he’d been a kid, Avery hadn’t really understood the politics of it all—or the danger. All he’d known was that Uncle Stu had been shot at a few times, been threatened on occasion and had had to run from a bunch of robbers in more than one set of circumstances.
One Kiss in Tokyo... Page 6
