Twisted Read online

  Twisted

  By Imari Jade

  Copyright © September 2011, Imari Jade

  Cover art by For The Muses Design © September 2011

  ISBN: 978-1-936668-28-1

  This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this novel are fictitious or used fictitiously. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form.

  Sugar and Spice Press

  North Carolina, USA

  www.sugarnspicepress.com

  Chapter One

  Oh shit. He had a whopper of an erection that wasn’t going anywhere fast. Kevin Chen tried to take his concentration off of his student, Ballentina Ferrari’s, cologne and put it elsewhere…anywhere. Nothing like this had ever happened to him before, especially not during a Kung Fu demonstration. The nearness of her body as he helped her perfect her battle stance made him lose focus. His eyes traveled up her back, taking in every curve of her body. Tina, as everyone referred to her, had a great ass, long, shapely legs, and a narrow waist that begged to be seized by his hands.

  Kevin shook the illusion of him touching her away. At this rate, the bothersome erection would never go away. Thankfully, his Taiji jacket came down to his hips to help hide it. He walked over to his other student, Alexis Bryant, the twenty-five-year-old secretary and best friend of Tina’s. Alexis wasn’t as tall as the statuesque five-foot-nine, Tina, but she was cute with short brown hair with blonde highlights. Alexis was just beginning to learn martial arts. She wore a beginner’s Tai Chi uniform…a black short-sleeved top with a low-cut mandarin collar and loose fitting matching pants. The jacket had seven frog buttons to decorate and seal the front of the jacket while the pants had an elastic waist to give her free movement. Two tiny, brown feet peeped out from the hem of the pants. There, some of the pressure had been eliminated. Alexis’ perfume didn’t do to him what Tina’s did.

  “A fighter’s stance is very important,” Kevin explained to Alexis. “I will teach you how to control your body and to make it an immovable object.” He demonstrated for the two young women. “Try to move me.”

  Alexis approached him first, pushed him gently, but did not move him from his spot.

  “Try a little harder,” Kevin told her. “I won’t break.”

  Alexis used a little brute strength this time. Still, she couldn’t budge him. “Wow,” she said to Tina. “It’s like trying to move a brick wall.”

  “That’s exactly what it is meant to feel like. This is to keep the enemy from snatching you into a car or knocking you down,” Kevin told her.

  “See if you can move him,” Alexis said to Tina.

  Kevin steadied his stance again and kept his eyes on Tina. The young woman walked over to him, bowed, and then kicked his legs from under him. Kevin landed on his back on the floor.

  Alexis laughed. “Wow, girl. That was one powerful kick.”

  Kevin looked up and found Tina staring down at him with those big brown eyes and a concerned look on her face.

  “Are you okay, Sensei? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  The sound of her deep, sultry voice made him weak in the knees and overconfident in other places.

  “No, Tina, I’m fine,” he said.

  “Yeah, only his pride is hurting,” Alexis said, glancing shamelessly between his legs and noticing the condition that he was in. The erection had disappeared until Tina spoke to him. Fortunately, Tina hadn’t seen it. She just extended a hand to help him up. Alexis, on the other hand, better knew how to keep a secret.

  Kevin accepted the hand, rose to his feet, and quickly pulled down the hem of his jacket. He bowed to Tina.

  Tina bowed back. She lifted her head and innocently gazed into his eyes.

  Kevin gulped, trying to remember that she was his student, as well as his new business partner. Letting her know that she was the object of his desire and the girl of his fantasies would surely ruin everything. For the last three years, she’d been trying to get him to join one of her New York companies as a designer, and for three years, he had turned her down with every excuse in the book until she broached him with the subject of helping her create toys for handicapped kids. That really got to him that she cared enough to want to help kids have a happy life. Ballentina might be one of the richest women in the world, but she had a heart as big as all outdoors. So, he’d be joining her company in a couple of days and was looking forward to working with the award-winning inventor, but dreading having to see her live-in boyfriend Erik Masters who also worked at the company. He’d met the man only once, and that had proven too much. He didn’t feel that the man had Tina’s best interests in mind, since he noticed almost immediately the way Erik tried to manipulate her into agreeing to something she didn’t want to do. In the end, he wore her down and Tina gave into him. He wondered how much money Erik’s little proposition had cost her.

  “I think we’ve done enough for today, but next week, we’re going to practice Qi.”

  “What’s Qi?” Alexis asked him, still with this silly smirk on her face.

  “Qi is your life force. It’s the energy inside you. I will teach you how to use it to properly align your skeletal frame to promote good health.”

  “Kinky,” Alexis replied. “My skeleton can use a good aligning.”

  Tina smirked, but did not comment.

  “I’ll see you two ladies in a couple of minutes,” he told them. “I need to shower and change.” He bowed to them again.

  The two women bowed back and headed toward the ladies’ shower room while he limped toward his office.

  ****

  “I think Kevin likes you,” Alexis said to Tina once they had finished showering and began dressing.

  Tina sat on a stool, pulling on a pair of pantyhose. “Why would you think that?”

  “Because he didn’t take his eyes off you the entire practice.” Alexis reached behind her and zipped her black skirt, then slipped her feet into a pair of red stiletto heels.

  Tina stepped into a navy blue skirt and tugged it up over her generous hips and then followed it up with putting on a light blue blouse that she tucked into the waist of the skirt before zipping it. “I haven’t noticed a thing.”

  “Of course you haven’t, sweetheart. Your mind is always off somewhere. You really need to think less about work and more on the things in front of you.”

  Tina ignored her best friend’s advice. Alexis had been trying to get her to loosen up ever since they were kids. Why did everyone assume that she led a boring life? “Kevin is just a friend, nothing else.”

  “You never told me he was so good-looking,” Alexis continued as she slipped on the matching black jacket.

  “His looks never came up in the conversation,” Tina replied as she donned her long-sleeved, double breasted blue jacket. She hadn’t thought of Kevin in that way. She supposed he was handsome. She had been taking Kung Fu, or Wu-su as it was correctly known, for three years and had been trying to get him to partner up with her on a project for just as long. Kevin always turned her down, professing that he liked working alone when he designed.

  “What’s wrong, you don’t like him because he’s Chinese?” Alexis asked as she fixed her hair and makeup.

  “He’s Taiwanese, and no, I don’t have a problem with his ethnic origin. I’ve been living with Erik for five years, or have you forgotten?”

  “I’m trying to,” Alexis said.

  Tina smirked. Her best friend had never liked Erik, but she didn’t know why. Erik was a fine black man and all their clients loved him. “And why are checking out Kevin? Aren’t you still dating Jerome?” Jerome Bennett was a sexy pediatrician Alexis had met three years ago at a club in Manhattan.

  “Yes, of course I’m still dating him. Do I look crazy? He’s a doctor
. My mother didn’t raise no fool.”

  Tina took down her shoulder length dark brown hair, brushed it, and then twisted it back up in a neat chignon, wondering where this conversation was leading.

  “All I’m saying is that if a man looked at me the way Kevin looks at you, it would be very hard for me to ignore.”

  Tina reached for her purse, slid it up her arm, and secured it to her shoulder. “I’m not interested,” Tina said. “Erik is plenty enough man for me.” She headed toward the door with Alexis close on her heels. Erik might not be perfect, but she believed in monogamy. One man in her life was enough because she barely had time for him with all her charity work and her business obligations. She sighed. Being a billionairess had its disadvantages.

  They found Kevin waiting for them in the foyer of the dojo. He had promised to take them to a Thai restaurant that had just opened in the neighborhood. She’d never had Thai food before, but had always wanted to try it. Kevin had changed into a double-breasted black suit with a high white mandarin collar. He’d taken his long black hair out of the pony tail and let it hang. Tina looked hard because she’d never seen it down before. He had really nice hair, dark, silky and unbelievably soft-looking. He even had bangs, which was something different. It drew attention to his dark brown, almond shaped eyes and long lashes. She blinked absently. Why hadn’t she noticed how pearly white his skin was or how full his lips were?

  “Are you ladies ready to go?” Kevin asked, meeting her stare.

  Tina nodded absently.

  “Yes,” Alexis answered, pulling her forward. “What do you use on your face? Your complexion is flawless.”

  “Nothing special,” Kevin said, holding the door open for them. “I just moisturize twice a day.”

  Men use moisturizer? Tina wondered as they stepped outside. The sun had just started to set. And what is that amazing cologne he’s wearing? She noticed the streets lights beginning to come on. A dark blue late model BMW passed on the street in front of them.

  “Isn’t that Erik?” Alexis asked as the car stopped for a red light.

  “It looks like his car,” Tina said, looking over at it and trying to make out the driver. “But I don’t think it’s him.” She could make out a man’s image in the driver’s seat and a woman was seated next to him.

  “It sure looks like him to me and who is that chick riding with him?” Alexis asked.

  The light turned green and the car moved away from the corner.

  “I don’t think it’s him,” Tina said, embarrassed that she did not know Erik’s license plate number on a car she had purchased for him. And besides, Erik had better sense than to ride some woman around in his car. “He’s supposed to be in a business meeting with an important client.” That’s the only reason why she had agreed to join the two of them for dinner.

  “My car is around back in the garage,” Kevin said. “I’ll get it and pick the two of you up shortly.”

  Tina watched him walk away with his hands in his pockets. He should wear suits more often. He has a nice set of shoulders.

  “The butt’s not bad either,” Alexis said, as if reading her mind.

  “I wasn’t looking at the man’s butt,” Tina said as she walked down the stairs to the sidewalk.

  “Sure, tell me anything,” Alexis said, coming down to join her. “The man is a brilliant rich designer and inventor. He owns one of the biggest dojos in New York and he has a nice butt. What more can a girl ask for?” She shuddered like a love-struck teen. “And did you see those bangs? Makes my stomach twitch.”

  Tina shook her head as a black town car turned the corner and then stopped at the curve before them. Alexis is out of her mind. Kevin is just a friend.

  ****

  “Looks like we got here just in time,” Alexis said as they stepped inside the busy Thai restaurant.

  A young woman bowed and greeted them pleasantly. “Welcome to our restaurant. How many in your party?”

  “Three,” Kevin told her.

  “Right this way,” the waitress said. She led them into the main body of the restaurant. Soothing Taiwanese music filtered out through speakers.

  Alexis looked around. “This is nice.” The room was dimly lit with high-backed black booths and an assortment of tables strategically arranged away from doors and walkways. Business seemed booming, she noted. Almost every table and booth was filled with customers. The waitress stopped by one of the booths. Good, it has a window view. Alexis slid into one side of the booth while Tina slid in on the other side. Kevin slid in next to Tina. Alexis smirked. That girl wouldn’t know a good man if he bit her on the butt.

  The waitress gave then menus. “I’ll be back shortly to take your order,” she told them. She walked way.

  Alexis opened her menu. Every now and then she’d peek over the top. Kevin was busy trying to explain the dishes to Tina when the waitress returned with glasses of water, napkins and silverware.

  “Are you ready to order?” she asked.

  “It all seems so good,” Tina said. “Why don’t you do the honors?” she told Kevin.

  Kevin looked over at Alexis.

  “I’m game if you are,” Alexis told him.

  “Well, we’ll start with Mu pin….marinated grilled pork on a stick,” he told the waitress. “Followed by Keng Phet Yang, Tom Yam Khon and Khao Phat.”

  “That sounds interesting,” Tina said sarcastically.

  “Don’t worry,” Kevin assured her. “You’ll like it.”

  “What about dessert?” the waitress asked.

  “We’ll decide on that after dinner,” Kevin told her.

  “Would you like something to drink?”

  “I’ll have a Coke,” Alexis said.

  “Me too,” Tina agreed.

  “I’ll have iced tea,” Kevin said.

  The waitress left to put in their order.

  “This place is nice and homey,” Tina said. “They’re bound to do good business.”

  “One of these days, I’d like to take you to Thailand,” Kevin told her. “Then you can try the authentic thing.”

  Alexis busied herself looking out of the window and trying not to eavesdrop on their conversation. She spotted a familiar looking dark blue BMW in the parking lot, but didn’t comment on it. Moments later, the waitress returned with their drinks, followed by the appetizers.

  “This is Mu Pin,” Kevin explained as each one of them picked up a stick. “It is marinated grill pork.”

  Alexis heard a familiar-sounding deep laugh. “Would you excuse me for a moment?” she asked. “I need to use the ladies room.” She slid out of the booth and headed in the direction of the laugh. She heard it again. It came from a nearby booth. She looked. Sure enough, the laugh belonged to Erik Masters.

  Alexis hurried past before he could spot her. The lying, cheating bastard was seated in a booth all hugged up with some woman. She couldn’t get a good look at the woman’s face because a large flower decoration hid her and obscured the view. But the man was definitely Erik.

  Alexis ducked into the ladies room for a few minutes and then made her way back past the booth where Erik and that woman were still sitting and hugging. She headed back to their booth. There was no way Tina would believe her if she told her so she decided to let her see for herself. Erik and the woman had to pass right by their booth since it was the only way out.

  Alexis arrived at the booth just in time for the main dishes…Keng Phet Yang, roasted duck in red curry, Tom Yam Kung Nam Khon, prawns in coconut milk, and Khao Phat, chicken and pork fried rice. They finished the delicious meal up with Khanom Tan, a palm flavored cake with shredded coconut on top.

  Alexis lifted her dessert spoon. She heard Erik laugh again, but this time, he sounded closer. She looked up. He was headed toward them with the woman.

  “Tina,” she said, getting her friend’s attention.

  Both Tina and Kevin looked up to where Alexis pointed. Tina’s eyes widened and she gasped loudly.

  Erik was holding the
young woman’s arm and like a fool. leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

  Alexis still couldn’t get a good look at the woman’s face, but she could check out everything else. She was short, about five-feet-four, with rolls and rolls of curves, breasts, and ass squeezed into a yellow mini dress. She teetered on high heels…the kind that looked good but were horrible to walk in. They left the restaurant.

  Alexis looked over at Tina, who still watched the door after Erik and the woman left. She didn’t say a word. She just turned her head toward the window.

  Alexis peered over, too, just in time to see Erik give the woman an affectionate pat on the rear end while helping her into the front passenger seat of the car.

  Tina went back to her dessert.

  Alexis looked over at Kevin. Their eyes met. His dark eyebrows knitted together, indicating anger. No one spoke. They just finished up dessert. Kevin signaled for the waitress to bring the bill. Moments later, they were back in his car headed for home.

  ****

  Tina busied herself getting dinner prepared. True, she wasn’t hungry after eating Thai with Kevin and Alexis, but she made it a point to fix Erik a hot meal whenever he came home from work. Hell, she had even fired her cook so that she could do it personally. It didn’t matter that she’d seen him in the same Thai restaurant earlier…tradition was tradition.

  She removed the baked chicken from the oven and set the baking pan on a butcher block to cool while she fixed the au-gratin potatoes and green beans. She added the little cocktail onions to the beans just the way Erik liked it. Once both of them were done, she busied herself washing the dishes and setting the table. Erik came home three hours later looking tired, and the food was cold.

  Erik carried his jacket over his shoulder and his briefcase in his other hand.

  “Hard day?” Tina asked, coming down to greet him.

  Erik nodded and kissed her weakly on the cheek. “Sometimes clients are very disagreeable.”

  “Are you hungry?” she asked.