Tokyo Hearts: A Japanese Love Story by Renae Lucas-Hall Read Free Book Online

the time if it was the way she flicked her hair back or the scent of her light perfume that attracted him, but he was transfixed by her almost immediately.
    Takashi hadn’t taken in one word from the lecturer that day, and he’d left the lecture hall without any notes at all, but that didn’t matter to him one bit because he’d only been concerned about getting Haruka’s phone number at the end of the class. Luckily, when he’d asked for her number she’d agreed to give it to him with a smile – and what a smile! As he got to know her better, he noticed she was always attentive and conscientious in her classes and she was basically a really nice girl, which added to her appeal. Ten months later, he’d been so disappointed when she’d dropped out of university, but he’d respected her reason for doing so.
    Haruka was an only child and her father had become very ill at the end of her first year at university. Both mother and daughter had looked after him and had catered to his every whim; there had been much to do. Her parents were fine, respectable people and Haruka had always been very close to them. Her father had suffered from a heart attack. It had been a terrible strain on both Haruka and her mother, but he’d made a full recovery. During this period, Takashi had stayed in touch with Haruka and he’d often spoken to her on the phone.
    A few years ago, Takashi had only been thinking of partying with his friends. After he’d met Haruka, she’d made a big impact on him and he’d started to take life a lot more seriously. Haruka had developed from a young girl into a wise woman that her mother had been able to completely depend upon.
    Even after her father had recovered, it was a long time before Takashi had been able to meet Haruka in person. But just over a month ago, Haruka had applied for work in the accounts division of an English language school. She’d been assigned to a branch in Harajuku and after this she had been able to meet him at the coffee shop Café hors et dans in Omotesando every week.
    During the time that Haruka had been busy helping her mother and looking after her father, Takashi had dated a series of different girls from university. Most of them had been slightly alternative in their thinking and style of dress, and he’d enjoyed being seen with them in front of his buddies. But not one of these girls had interested him as much as Haruka. Despite the fact that he’d liked the ultra-short skirts or revealing dresses on the other girls, he’d also felt that their minds were empty and their hearts were hollow.
    Three weeks after Takashi had started meeting Haruka on a regular basis, it had been easy to decide to only meet with her and leave the other girls for his mates at university to have fun with.
    Takashi got off his train at Kawasaki. He’d chosen to live in Kawasaki not only because it was such a convenient area in which to live, but also because it had become a really up and coming town over the past few years. The station’s plaza and the shops surrounding the area that led up to his apartment provided everything that one could need. He would most often take the east exit at the train station, as this was the most direct exit to reach his home and from there, he could check out the shops in the Marui or Be department stores or sit and enjoy a coffee at the Doutour coffee house. Sometimes he would drop in for a MOS Burger just outside the station. He’d also at one time or another contemplated joining the new and modern gym that he always passed just before he reached his apartment, but somehow he’d always talked himself out of that.
    If Takashi didn’t want to study some afternoons, he would occasionally wander around the shops that he could reach if he took the west exit. This area had recently been refurbished into a rotunda-style complex full of the trendiest boutiques. There was often a band playing in the courtyard and after he’d looked through most of the four