In Deep Kimchi (37 page)

Harper shook his head. “No, I think they’d both be better off without you.”

Shaundra clenched her fists. That’s a cruel thing to say.”

“Not cruel, honest. They’re young, impressionable young men and they are best friends. What do you think is going to happen if you choose one of them over the other?”

“Nothing, because I’m not going to make that decision. Hopefully, things will return to normal between them once I leave.”

He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her gently. “You can’t believe that’s how it’s going to turn out.”

Why was he getting all over her case? If she was such an evil person, she would have slept with both of them.

Harper released her. “Maybe we shouldn’t attend the party tomorrow night.”

“That would be rude. Mrs. Niigata has gone out of her way to do this in our honor. The least we can do is show up to say good-bye to everyone.”

“You are aware that the Saitama’s are going to be there?” Harper asked.

“So what? There’s nothing going on between me and Yori. As far as I’m concerned, he’s made his decision. And like you said, I’m going home in two days so what difference does any of this make? It was fun, but now it’s over.”

“Maybe you have yourself convinced of that. Maybe you think by walking away you can forget about them and make them forget about you. I know what I saw in your eyes when you danced with Yori that night at that club in Shibuya, and I know what I saw in your eyes when you danced with Ichiro at the publishing party.”

Shaundra’s eyes misted. Harper was too smart for his own good. She turned away, refusing to let him see her one moment of weakness.

“I’m sorry if I hurt you, Shaundra, but you do realize that this farce can’t go on any longer? Let’s face it. You’re really in love with one of them and I know which one. Why don’t you tell him?”

“I can’t, Harper,” Shaundra cried.

“Why not?”

“Because it just wouldn’t be right. Look, I know I’ve made a mess of this. I didn’t come here looking for a relationship or to fall in love. But when I did, I fell hard, and for a while I thought I could pull this off. But reality has a way of setting in late at night when I’m alone. I cannot tell him because I don’t want to see the hurt look on his face. Long distance relationships don’t work and I can’t ask him to give up his career and his citizenship and come back with me to the United States. That would be unfair.” She sat down in a chair tired and exhausted.

“What about you? Don’t you deserve to be happy?”

“I’m fifty and he’s twenty-five. I can’t give him kids or speak Japanese. It just wouldn’t be fair. I think it is best just to walk away friends and let him go on with his life. In just two days it will all be over and I’ll be doped up and on my way back to New York.”

Harper patted her hand. “You’ll always have me.”

“That’s not very comforting, especially since all of this is your fault anyway.”

* * * *

Good old American soil. Shaundra didn’t even bitch about all the traffic two days later as the cab drove her from the airport to her home in suburbia. New York hadn’t changed much in two months. The air was still polluted and the people still walked around caring only about themselves.

It was late when she arrived and she was glad that she hadn’t told her family when she would be arriving because she wasn’t prepared for all the questions. Shaundra paid the taxi driver, rolled her cases up to the front door and left them there, deciding to check the mail before entering. Usually, Tricia got the mail, but she had gone off for the weekend with some friends and would not be returning until much later.

Shaundra opened the mailbox, reached in and pulled out the mail. She turned, walked back to the door and put the key in the lock. She turned the knob and prepared to take the luggage inside. All of a sudden, there was a very loud explosion and then, everything went black.

* * * *

“Mama, can you hear me?”

It sounded like Tricia.

“Please, wake up.”

Shaundra tried to open her eyes, but it made her head hurt.

“She’s semi-comatose,” another voice said. “It may take some time before the medication wears off or she regains consciousness.”

Medication? Where the hell am I at
? What was the last thing she remembered? Everything was fuzzy. She remembered the Niigata’s party, Yori’s strained facial expression as he and Amaya announced the date of their wedding, Ichiro’s beautiful new song that he played for everyone there, and the good-byes.

“Wake up, Mama.”

I just need a little more rest. I’m so tired
. Even if she wanted to wake up, she couldn’t. Hmm, Yori’s marriage announcement. She felt her chest rise and fall.

“What’s wrong with her?” Tricia asked.

“Her blood pressure just spiked. I’ll give her something to stabilize it.”

Wedding date, January 16, 2011
. Yori had tried to make eye contact with her, but she’d ignored him. She wasn’t going to give either him or Harper the pleasure of seeing her reaction.

Ichiro’s reaction to her leaving had been calm, peaceful and serene, which was an interesting parting surprise for Aomori. They thought he would cry and act like a child. Hmm, nothing was ever as it seems. She tried to move around, but her body and head ached.
I’m injured. How? The house! It blew up. Why? Oh lord…the fan girl contract. Stupid Harper
. She’d told him that women were vindictive. She dozed off again.

Chapter Nineteen

Yori yawned, wondering how much longer before their plane touched down in New York. They had been flying over twenty-four hours and he was tired of being in his seat, and Ichiro and Takumijo’s constant prattle and excitement about being in the United States. Satoshi was sleeping in his seat oblivious to anything around him.

The time change also had him a bit loopy. He looked down at his watch. It was six in the morning.

“We’ll be there in less than an hour,” Masaaki told him as he left his seat across the aisle and sat down next to him.

“I’m beginning to hate flying. There’s nothing for me to do.”

“You should be sleeping.”

“I can’t sleep. I’m too excited.”

The pilot made an announcement about landing. “We will be arriving in New York shortly. Please fasten your seatbelt and turn off all cell phones and laptop computers. It’s a beautiful eighty degrees. Thanks for flying with us.”

Yori looked out of the window. It was smoggy. Then he saw the tall buildings and skyscrapers. It reminded him of Japan. The plane descended and he felt the wheels drop. Moments later, they touched down.

Masaaki rose, walked over and shook Satoshi awake. He opened his eyes, yawned and then stretched. Takumijo’s long legs appeared and then the rest of his body. Ichiro bounced up and down excitedly, waiting to get off the plane to see New York. Yori had his suspicions that Ichiro was anxious to get to the hotel room so he could telephone Shaundra, which he promised not to do. They had made a pact that no contact with her was better than getting involved with her again.

It had been a week since they’d seen her and poor Ichiro was climbing the walls. The announcement of Yori’s and Amaya’s wedding date guaranteed that he would not have any contact with her. It was the hardest thing he ever had to do, but in the end, he could see that it was for the best. Hopefully, he could get through the next week without making contact with her. They were just there to do a concert and then off on the next leg of their tour, New Orleans.

He rose, grabbed his carryon bag and followed the rest of the passengers off the plane.

There was a long wait at the Custom line. After he finished, he sat down in one of the seats and watched the American news on a television while waiting for the others to get through Customs.

“Local news. Romance writer, Shaundra Love Morrison, is still recovering at a local hospital after an explosion rocked her home two days ago. Ms. Morrison, known for her erotic romance
Temptation
had just arrived home from a two month publicity tour in Japan.”

Everything in Yori’s mind moved in slow motion as the news reporter continued to talk. Satoshi walked over and sat down next to him. “What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Yori pointed at the screen.

Satoshi looked down, listened and then gasped, “No!”

Yori tried to quiet him before he could draw attention over to them.

The gasp drew Ichiro over. “What’s going on?”

“It’s Shaundra,” Yori explained. “She’s in a hospital.”

Ichiro placed his bag in a chair. “What happened?”

“Someone blew up her house.”

Ichiro bolted for the exit doors. Satoshi and Yori ran and tackled him down to the floor to stop him from going off like a lunatic.

Tons of fans waited as they hurried through the terminal. Normally, the sight would have pleased him and the others. Yori didn’t remember much of what happened, recalling only hearing his name shouted countless times and flashes from cameras in his face. A news reporter tried to get an interview, but the guards ended it so they could get out of the terminal as quickly as possible once the others traveling with them found out what had happened.

Masaaki made a couple of calls to find out more information while he got Mr. Niigata and the rest of the entourage out of the airport and into the cars without incident. He advised the drivers to take them immediately to the hotel so they could get the details from the police on what had happened before storming the hospital.

Ichiro rode in silence, staring out the window at the crowds of fans that lined the streets. He’d gone silent again and was probably thinking of a way to get to see Shaundra.

On the way to the hotel, Yori saw their images flashing on big screens in Times Square. On a normal day, he would have been impressed, but his mind kept darting back to the previous two months when Shaundra Morrison had first entered their lives.

Fans were camped out all along the roadway and in front of the hotel when they arrived, but unfortunately, none of them could stop to give autographs because Masaaki didn’t think it was safe. He didn’t know whether most of these fans knew about what was going on or what their connection to Shaundra was, but until they found out, everyone was a threat.

Tourists and employees gawked at them as they got their keys at the registration desk and walked through the lobby to the elevators. Masaaki’s phone went off just as the doors to the elevator opened. “Yes, thank you very much,” he said after a few minutes of conversation with whoever was on the other line. “She’s at a nearby hospital and she is unconscious. Luckily, she does not have any serious physical burns or lacerations.”

Yori said a silent prayer.

Ichiro tried to exit the elevator, but Masaaki stopped him. “It will do you no good to go off angry and half-cocked. Let’s take our things up to our rooms and plot our strategy. The police seem to think that someone intentionally set a small bomb in her home. Thankfully, no one else was there at the time. It happened just after she arrived from the airport.”

The elevator door opened and Aomori and their entourage found their rooms and put away their luggage. Less than an hour later, they were on their way to the hospital.