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He slung his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. ‘Life’s not fair. Anyway, I want to meet your cantankerous old grandmother.’
Now she felt horrified. ‘Why would you want to do that?’
He smiled down at her. ‘I want to see if you’ve inherited any of her traits.’
CHAPTER SEVEN
AS A DOCTOR, Avery Flynn had met a lot of cantankerous patients in his time. But he’d never met anyone like Hiroko Satou. She definitely won the prize.
From the second they left their shoes at the entranceway and entered her single-storey home he could sense the tension in the air. Not that he could understand a word of what was going on.
She didn’t shout, but her tone spoke a thousand words. Katsuko tried to introduce him but he was instantly dismissed with one look. Then the tirade clearly aimed at Katsuko started.
Avery had never been rude, but as the staccato words flowed freely he started to get annoyed. It was clear Katsuko was doing everything she could to placate her grandmother, who clearly wasn’t listening.
After about fifteen minutes Katsuko threw her hands in the air, walked through to the kitchen and started banging things around. She’d already warned him she’d need to make something for her grandmother’s dinner.
He folded his arms and leaned against the wall. It could appear impertinent. But he was a twenty-eight-year-old man—not a boy—and now he could understand clearly why Katsuko had looked nervous on the way over.
The smell of food cooking quickly wafted from the kitchen. ‘Can I do anything to help?’ he asked.
There was a tiny rise of the old woman’s eyebrows. Interesting. Katsuko had said she didn’t speak or understand a word of English. Avery wasn’t so sure.
‘No, thanks’ came the reply from the kitchen. ‘She wouldn’t like it.’
Avery caught the sharp gaze of the woman in the wheelchair currently scowling at him and gave her a knowing smile.
He started to walk slowly around the room. As expected, it was clutter-free with everything in easy reach. She had a giant modern television on the wall and her tablet sitting on the table next to her. It seemed she wasn’t entirely steeped in tradition.
He stopped as he caught sight of a photograph in a frame on the wall. A beautiful young Japanese woman, around Katsuko’s age, dressed in a traditional red kimono smiled back at him. The photo had aged a little around the edges. It had obviously been there for a while. He glanced around the rest of the room, looking for any photos of Katsuko. There were none.
‘Your daughter was beautiful,’ he said quietly. ‘You must miss her.’
She blinked and her scowl deepened.
He kept walking. Her eyes occasionally darted towards the kitchen. She could hear Katsuko making dinner. Avery kept walking slowly, aware that the old lady’s eyes were following his every move.
‘Katsuko’s a great nurse. A real credit to you.’ He pointed to the photo. ‘I can see she gets her beauty from her mother.’ He paused. The old woman really did have an unwavering glare.
He faced her square on. ‘You must be very proud of her.’
Finally, she drew her eyes off him, giving him a look of disgust. She understood a whole lot more than she admitted to.
Katsuko stuck her head back through the doorway. ‘Dinner will be ready soon. I’ll just go and get her bed ready for later.’ She crossed through the main room.
Avery leaned against the wall again. Hiroko Satou watched her granddaughter leave the room, then turned to glare at Avery again. He crossed one leg over the other and folded his arms. It was like a Mexican stand-off. But he wasn’t afraid.
He could see the fury emanating from the old woman. In a lot of ways he felt sorry for her. Her gnarled hands were sitting on her lap. Her bare feet were visible under her blanket. The toe joints looked swollen and distended. Every bone in her body must ache. How many years must she have felt like this?
Had she been frustrated when she’d been unable to look after her granddaughter? Was that why she had such a poor relationship with the General?
But what was her excuse for the way she made Katsuko feel? There was no excuse for that.
He opened his mouth to speak again just as Katsuko came back into the room. Her grandmother started talking instantly, her eyes darting between Avery and Katsuko, her words low and fierce.
It took around ten seconds to realise that the latest rant was about him. Katsuko looked uncomfortable and she kept trying to answer, but her grandmother cut her off at every turn. It appeared that all her venom was now aimed at Avery.
He hated this. He had no clue what the words were, and he didn’t care in the least that they were about him—all he cared about was the fact that Katsuko looked as though she was about to burst into tears.
If they were in the emergency department and a patient or relative spoke to her like this, she wouldn’t be long in putting them in their place. But here, in her grandmother’s home, she looked the most vulnerable he’d ever seen her.
He straightened up and walked over to her, putting his arm around her waist. Every muscle in her body stiffened but he pretended he didn’t notice. He was sending a clear message to the woman who was upsetting the woman he cared about.
‘Let me help. What can I do?’
The words were simple but he hoped the look in his eyes told her a whole lot more. She stared up at him for a few seconds. Her brown eyes fixed on his and he could see her swallow nervously. ‘Let me help you,’ he urged.
Her grandmother spat out some more words and Katsuko blinked back tears before turning and going back into the kitchen. Two minutes later she appeared with a bowl of food for her grandmother.
Avery went into autopilot. He wheeled the chair over to the nearby table and positioned her carefully. Katsuko brought some chopsticks and a napkin for her grandmother and gestured for Avery to sit down at the other side of the room. A few seconds later she joined him. ‘She doesn’t like people watching her eat. She struggles to hold the chopsticks now.’
She stared down at her hands and he put his arm around her again, staring across at her grandmother defiantly. It was ridiculous. It made him feel like a teenager again, but he wasn’t intimidated by the woman and he could see the affect she had on Katsuko. It was almost poisonous.
‘Why do you come when she texts?’
Her eyes were wet. ‘Who else would come?’
He pressed his lips together. ‘I get that she’s in pain. I get that she’s from a different generation. But I’m struggling to see what you get from this relationship.’
She blinked in surprise. ‘What does that mean? She’s my grandmother.’
‘She is. But you don’t have to like her. And you don’t have to jump when she texts.’
She shook her head in bewilderment. ‘But then she’d have no one.’ She sighed. ‘I try not to. Sometimes I text back and tell her I’m at work. One time she threw her carers out seven days in a row.’
‘Did she treat your mother like this?’
Her lips trembled. ‘I remember lots of arguments. My father used to refuse to visit. He didn’t want my mother to bring me here.’
‘But here you are.’
He left the statement hanging between them.
There was so much he could say here. So much he wanted to say. But he wasn’t sure how appropriate it was. It certainly wasn’t appropriate to say it in her grandmother’s house.
He took a deep breath and spoke quietly. ‘As I’ve grown older I’ve realised the old adage that blood is thicker than water means nothing. You should surround yourself with people who love you—or no people at all. People who have a positive impact on your life.’
Her brow furrowed. ‘Does that mean you don’t see your family?’
A wave of sadness flooded over h
im. ‘My parents aren’t the best example of family. And my sister seems to have learned from their examples. The air force helps me keep a distance. It’s my family now.’
Katsuko glanced over towards her grandmother. She’d finished her food, her slightly trembling hands were back in her lap and her eyes were closed. Katsuko reached over and laced her fingers through Avery’s. ‘That’s sad,’ she whispered.
‘So is this,’ he replied.
CHAPTER EIGHT
THE CATCALLING STARTED as soon he walked in.
‘Woo-hoo, Captain Flynn, how are those kissable lips?’
‘Hey, Avery, do you have a death wish or something?’
Frank walked past, shaking his head and tutting. ‘The things some people will do to try and get a transfer out of here.’
Avery looked about, catching a few raised eyebrows. He walked down to the desk where the majority of the staff were standing.
‘Well, if it isn’t our very own Romeo,’ said one of the nurses. The rest of the staff were laughing and looked at him in expectation. He felt a weird prickle go down his spine.
For the last few weeks he’d continued to see Katsuko on a regular basis. They weren’t entirely keeping it a secret, he just hadn’t discussed it with anyone he was working with.
And things had been a little awkward. After the visit to her grandmother’s house Katsuko had pulled back. She hadn’t said the words, but she’d been distant.
It should have dented his confidence but it hadn’t. It wasn’t his confidence he was worried about. It was hers. The visit to her grandmother’s had taken the sparkle from her eyes and the shine from her confidence. He hated that—probably more than he should for a guy that was a temporary arrangement and only looking for some kind of fling.
