He was more than a little stunned. All he could see when he looked at Katsuko was her beauty. He hadn’t thought much deeper than that. Oh, sure, when he’d first seen her he’d been a little curious. But that was all.
Working in the air force all around the world meant that race had never really been an issue for him to consider. His life had been full of people with varied nationalities and more mixed genetics than he could ever imagine.
He chose his words carefully. ‘What does Don say about this?’
She sucked in her cheeks. ‘Oh, Don is mad. Don has always been mad about the way she treats me. He was mad long before my mother and father died. When I was younger, he took me to visit her every two weeks. But he sat outside in the car for two hours, then knocked on the door to pick me up again. I gather they exchanged words during the custody issues—but neither of them has ever spoken about it.’ She glanced out at the street again. ‘When I turned eighteen, he told me it was up to me if I wanted to visit. I could drive by then. He just let me know he wouldn’t force me to go.’
Avery tilted his head to the side. ‘Was he trying to stop you going?’
‘I don’t think so. I think he’d just felt some sort of duty up until then. In Japan, you’re not officially an adult until you’re twenty. But I think Don’s patience had worn thin by that point. I’d already been accepted for nursing. He told me it was up to me to decide what I wanted to do.’
Avery was watching her closely. She liked to keep things guarded, as if she held them close to her chest. Oh, she was talking. But years of being in the medical profession had frequently taught him that it wasn’t what was said that was important—it was what wasn’t said.
‘What did you do?’
Her eyes fixed on the table. ‘I visit when I can.’
‘And you don’t want to?’
Her fingers slid up and down the stem of the wine glass. ‘Not really.’ Her voice was barely a whisper.
He reached over. This time he didn’t squeeze her hand. This time his fingers interlocked with hers. ‘She doesn’t know how lucky she is to have you.’
Her deep brown eyes met his and he could see her swallow. It was odd how he understood the awkwardness of family. The not-quite-fitting-in part. Their circumstances were completely different. But strangely similar. She’d lived here her whole life. He’d spent most of his adult life flitting around.
But the connection between them was real.
He hated the fact that she looked unhappy. ‘Surely there must be lots of people on the base who are hafu?’
She nodded. ‘On the base there are quite a few. I don’t think there’s anyone else that’s Japanese and African-American, though. I guess I stand out a little because of the colour of my skin.’
‘And that causes problems?’
She shrugged. ‘It depends entirely on where you are. My mother wanted me to attend the same Japanese school that she did instead of a school on the base. But after a year of my being bullied for being “different” she changed her mind. I had some interviews at universities before I decided on becoming a nurse. Some of them were awkward. They asked me outright where I fitted. A lot of Japanese companies are very traditional. In a way, I think they were trying to prepare me for the adult working world. The truth is, even with a university degree, I might have found it difficult to find a job. The base is really the only place that makes me feel comfortable.’
Avery’s brain was spinning. She looked so sad when she spoke that it was clear these experiences had really affected her. Who did she have to talk to about them?
The city he’d lived in as a child had people of every nationality—as did most of the bases he’d worked on. What he really wanted to do right now was hug her. She looked like she needed one. Instead, he leaned forward. ‘Just for the record, I think you’re pretty much perfect just the way you are.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘You’re flirting again.’
‘Of course I am. I’m with the prettiest woman in the room. I’d be a fool not to.’
He couldn’t help it. Katsuko could give blasé and smart answers. She was good at that. He’d thought before she was just sparky. Now he was realising it was part of the barriers she erected around herself. Self-protection.
He recognised them. He just wasn’t ready to tell her why.
In his head, part of him was already walking away. No matter how much bravado she had, Katsuko wasn’t the kind of woman he wanted to toy with.
He wasn’t planning on being around her. He couldn’t give her what she really needed. Someone to stand by her side. Someone to tell her how beautiful she was, and how good she was. He wasn’t sure he could ever be that person.
The thing was, it didn’t stop him wanting her.
In fact, it just magnified it.
No matter how wrong it was, he knew exactly what he’d do next.
He stood up. ‘Let’s go. There’s something I want to do before we go back to the base.’
She gave a little start and made a grab for her jacket as he signalled to the waiter and settled the bill.
‘No. Wait. Let me pay for part of that.’
He waved his hand. ‘You can buy dessert.’ He waited until she’d slid her arms into her jacket, then took her hand, leading her towards the elevator. There was already a crowd waiting and space was tight.
He smiled all the way down in the elevator, keeping her hand in his.
‘What are we doing?’
He bent his head. ‘Let’s just say I’m still a tourist and I’m living the dream. Hachiko Crossing just made my bucket list.’
Outside it was even busier than before. The streets looked even more magical with their bright neon lights and flashing signs. They joined the crowd waiting to cross.
His thumb brushed against the inside of her palm. She gave him a curious smile. The lights changed and he shouted, ‘Run!’
The shocked expression on her face was priceless. He wasn’t quite sure how he managed it, but they darted in and out of the crowd without any injuries to either of them. As they approached the midway point of the crossing he stopped dead. Katsuko barrelled straight into the back of him. ‘What?’
He spun around. They were dead centre. Exactly where he wanted to be.
A few eyebrows rose from people who sidestepped around them.
‘What are you doing? Are you crazy? We need to cross before the lights change.’
Katsuko’s head was darting from side to side. Time was running out.
But not for Avery.
He caught her head between both his hands. Her hair shone in the neon lights and her eyes sparkled. ‘This is what I’m doing,’ he said as he bent down and caught her perfect strawberry lips in his.
He felt her breath catch. But she was only rigid for the tiniest moment. One second later her body relaxed against his. Her lips were soft, pliable and seemed like they were moulded just for his.
His hands moved from her cheeks and tangled through her silky-soft hair. He could smell her. He could smell the perfume she was wearing, the shampoo from her hair and the strawberry from her lip gloss. He’d be happy if he could just stay here all night, inhaling her essence.
Her hands moved up to his shoulders, her fingers brushing against the skin at the side of his neck.
Reactions. That was just what he needed. Right in the middle of the busiest crossing in the world.
But somehow he knew Katsuko could cause this reaction in him anywhere.
There was a shout near them. She jumped back, pulling her lips from his.
The crowd had virtually disappeared around them, the last few stragglers reaching the far sidewalk. ‘Come on!’ she shouted with a flash of panic.
For a second he wanted to object. To tell the world that his only priority right now was to get his
lips back on hers.
But any second now they would resemble two squashed bugs.
He grabbed her hand and ran, sprinting as fast as they could towards the further sidewalk. He was laughing now. He couldn’t help it. The whole thing was so ridiculous. It had flashed into his head in the restaurant, an overwhelming urge to have their first kiss in the middle of the monumental crossing.
People parted around them, amused expressions on their faces.
Avery and Katsuko bent over, both gasping for breath. She was laughing now too. ‘What on earth were you thinking? Are you completely crazy?’
He shook his head as he caught his breath. There was something else in her eyes now. A sparkle that hadn’t been there before. The sadness that had been there in the restaurant had vanished and he didn’t ever want to see it again.
For a few minutes he pushed away his doubts about whether he could give her what she needed. This was all about the here and now.
He was still laughing. He straightened up and grabbed hold of her wrist again, pulling her over to the side of the street and into a doorway. ‘I must be completely crazy.’ He couldn’t wipe the smile from his face. ‘Because I’m going to do this again.’
And he did.
CHAPTER FIVE
HER SKIN FELT ITCHY, as if it prickled when she walked down the corridor at work.
She’d never felt self-conscious at work before. She could see her colleagues standing at one of the desks, talking in low voices. Were they talking about her? Did they know?
Then she saw who was standing among them. He was telling them some kind of story and his arms were waving around just like he did when he was excited.
A little shiver ran down her spine. She knew. She knew what he did when he was excited. Was that a good shiver or a bad shiver?
He leaned back and laughed and caught her eye. No. That was a shiver. One that sent electric pulses around her body.
She fixed her eyes on the floor and kept walking towards the treatment room. Her cheeks were warm and she wasn’t normally the kind of girl who blushed. She wasn’t normally the type of girl to lose sleep after a few kisses. Her lips had tingled for most of the night and when she’d taken her jacket off she’d caught a whiff of his aftershave. Just how close had they got?
She’d pulled back, laughing again, after the second kiss. Her stomach was doing backward flips and, with a mixture of alarm bells going off in her head and imaginary white unicorns charging around before her eyes, she wasn’t quite sure what to think.
He’d looked thoughtful when she’d stepped back and hadn’t pressed things any further. He’d slipped his hand into hers and they’d taken the subway back to the base.
Her skin had trembled as he’d walked her to the door of her house. She had felt like a teenager again, waiting for Don to throw the front door open and demand an introduction. But Avery was much cooler than she’d expected, he’d squeezed her hand and dropped a kiss on her head before walking away.
Don had been engrossed in his computer but had stood up when she’d appeared. ‘Coffee?’ he asked as he walked to the kitchen. ‘I think I’ve missed dinner.’
No explanations were asked for. She was an adult. He didn’t generally ask for a list of her activities. But once he realised she might be seeing a colleague she was quite sure Avery’s file would fall across his desk.
Lily, one of the other nurses, looked up as she walked in. ‘Katsuko—great. Can you check some diamorph with me? I’ve got a patient with a fractured femur and the Entonox gas is wearing off fast.’
Katsuko nodded, pleased to have something—anything—to do that would distract her. Checking controlled medicines was an everyday part of the job. She counted the vials, drew up the prescribed amount and locked up the cupboard. The patient in cubicle three was wincing as he moved. They double-checked his name and date of birth before administering the injection. ‘Who are you on shift with today?’ asked Lily.
Katsuko shook her head. ‘Not sure. Haven’t had the handover yet.’
They rounded the corner. Lily beamed. ‘Oh, lucky you. It’s our very own superhero, Avery. I kind of like him. He’s fitting in well.’
The words were easy for Lily and she threw them out without a second thought. She was happily married, with her first baby on the way, and was currently seeing the world through a pink or blue hazy glow.
She’d been put onto night shift for the last part of her pregnancy as she hadn’t been sleeping well and the night shifts were generally a little quieter.
Katsuko kept her gaze somewhere else. ‘Yeah, he seems fine.’
Lily gave her a nudge. ‘More than fine.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ It must have come out sharper than she’d meant because Lily looked surprised.
‘Nothing.’ She picked up her bag and stretched her back. ‘Time for me to go. Keep an eye on my patient, will you? They’ll be here to collect him soon for Theatre.’
Katsuko nodded and headed over to the desk for the handover report. It was swift. Twelve patients in the department. One for theatre, three kids with minor ailments, four elderly patients with a variety of chest conditions, one guy with an anaphylactic reaction to something and three other adults with minor ailments. The staff shared the patients out between them and got to work.
She was trying her absolute best to be cool. She was always calm and collected at work—nothing usually fazed her. So why did she feel like a bumbling wreck?
She messed up a sterile trolley while doing a simple dressing, then tripped over her own feet while walking to the treatment room.
The whole time she was working she was constantly looking over her shoulder, wondering where Avery was, and if anyone would notice something between them.
It was a couple of hours before he finally spoke to her. ‘Katsuko, there’s an ambulance bringing in one of the servicemen’s teenagers. Can you give me a hand?’
Her response was automatic. She walked over to the sink to wash her hands. Avery walked up behind her, his hand brushing against her bum.
‘Don’t!’ she snapped.
They were at work. She was a professional. She wasn’t the kind of girl to be caught in a compromising position in the treatment room or in the store.
At least that was the excuse she was letting bump around in her head.
It was nothing to do with the fact his kiss had driven her crazy. It was nothing to do with the things she’d shared with him—things she would never normally tell people. She’d worked with some of the people here for years and had never really shared about her grandmother. She could almost feel herself retreating a little. Trying to take back some of what she’d said.
Avery raised his eyebrows at her but didn’t say a single word. He gave her a little hip-bump and washed his hands at the sink too. Katsuko grabbed an apron and some gloves and walked out to the receiving door. ‘Do you know what’s wrong?’
He frowned. ‘Not clear. No accident. Sleepy and agitated.’
Katsuko joined in his frown. It wasn’t exactly anything to go on. ‘Age?’ she asked. It could be anything. Alcohol, drugs, infection—the list was endless.
The ambulance appeared in the distance with the siren blaring. ‘Nineteen.’
As it pulled up, Avery moved quickly to open the doors and pull the trolley towards him. The wheels automatically snapped down and allowed them to pull the trolley straight inside. The ambulance technician was talking rapidly in Japanese.
Katsuko walked alongside, translating as best she could. ‘This is Jay Lim. He’s nineteen. Came home last night and told his mother he wasn’t feeling too well and went to bed. When she tried to wake him for breakfast this morning she realised something was wrong and called an ambulance.’
‘Let’s take him into Resus.’
She wasn’t
surprised at those words. Although the report seemed bland—the condition of the patient wasn’t. The technician shot out another round of words.
‘Respirations high, forty, heart rate one-forty, and blood pressure one hundred over fifty-five. He’s been aggressive and extremely tired. They haven’t understood all of what he’s saying.’
As soon as they hit the resus room Katsuko started hooking up the monitors for Jay. She turned to the technician and asked a quick question.
Her eyes met Avery’s as she glanced at the oxygen saturation. ‘No history of asthma so we can put him on oxygen.’
Frank Kelly hurried into the room. ‘What do you need?’
‘I need bloods—lots of them—and set up an IV.’
Avery turned back to Katsuko. ‘Can they give us anything else?’
She looked over at the technician, asking swiftly in Japanese. A few seconds later she turned back to Avery. ‘He’s a keen windsurfer and was away for the last two nights at a competition.’
‘Any chance he used drugs or alcohol?’
‘The technician said they’ve had no report of that.’
He was the ultimate professional. She was starting to cringe at snapping at him a few minutes ago. A quiet word was all it would have taken. It was hard enough to fit in. The last thing she wanted was to give her colleagues anything to talk about.
Avery moved around the teenager quickly, pulling out his stethoscope and listening to his chest. He lifted his hand. ‘Ask the technician to hang around for another few minutes.’
He carefully examined Jay’s head and checked his pupils as Jay tried to bat him away. Then he checked his ears, which nearly earned him a punch.
‘No chance he could have an undiagnosed head injury from the surfing?’
She asked again. ‘Nothing reported.’
This was baffling her just as much as Avery.
He looked up. ‘What’s his temperature?’
She lifted a tympanic thermometer as she asked the technician. It was unusual he hadn’t mentioned it in the handover. The technician shook his head. ‘They couldn’t get near his ears to get a temperature. He does feel warm to touch.’
One Kiss in Tokyo... Page 8
