Page 26 of Twisted Love

“I understand and it’s fine.” She walked into his arms, kissed his jaw, and rested her head on his chest. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Probably.” He said without conviction.

She didn’t comment on that, just called Rosa to come over so she wouldn’t be alone. Luckily, her friend joined her without hesitation. It was while they were on their second glass of wine that she got a reply from one of the pageant organizers. Her mother had turned down the car in lieu of a cash payment. A cash payment that Keily never received from her mother.

“Um, girl? Don’t you think your mother should pay you back for all this stuff she stole from you?” Rosa asked, her eyes on the email Keily showed her.

“I don’t know. Can you have your mother arrested for theft?”

Rosa eyed Keily with pity and doubt in her eyes. “Would you really press charges?”

“Now that I’m adding it all up, seeing how she’s still not clean, and doesn’t even care that she screwed me over? Yeah, I kind of am.”

“I don’t blame you and whatever you decide, I support you.” Rosa nodded her head, her lips pressed flat in a grim line.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Keily answered and leaned against her friend, dressed in a summery peasant dress of cherry red cotton that Keily adored. “Does that mean I can borrow this dress?”

“No, but I can tell you where to get one of your own.” Rosa laughed and hugged Keily tightly.

“You’re such a good friend.” Keily joked back, but as she slipped her arms around Rosa’s waist, she really meant it.

14

Logan

“Fuck me.” He muttered a week after he’d spilled his guts to her. She was a picture of summer seduction as she came out the door dressed in a knee-skimming cherry red peasant dress that fell subtly off of her shoulders, a pair of matching red heels on her feet. There was even a thin, patent red leather belt around her waist.

Red. The color of passion, ardor, love, and most of all…lust. And how he lusted for her.

The heels weren’t a color he’d have chosen, not from any of the choices he’d seen online so far, but on her? They were perfect, as was the dress.

“Wow.” He said as she let herself into the car and slid down into the passenger seat.

“You like it? Rosa got it for me.” Keily smiled her wide, pageant-winning smile at him, ready for a night out with one of his clients.

He knew she hated the dinner meetings, but she was a good sport and played along.

“Yeah, I love it. And you’re getting a tan, too.” He waited until she had her seat belt on then pulled the car out of the driveway.

“Thanks, all that time spent around the pool during the day reading, and in the evenings with Rosa.” She took a deep breath, looked around, and turned to him. “Where are we going?”

“Some place that makes buffalo wings the client likes. Willy’s Wild and Wily Wings.” Logan paused to shudder. “Not a place I’d choose, but that’s where he wanted to go.”

“Probably to stare at the girls. It’s not Hooters, but it might as well be.” Keily laughed and put her arm on his right thigh. “It’s not bad, at least the buffalo wings do actually taste good there.”

“I guess.”

They’d been sitting at the restaurant for fifteen minutes, had already gone through two glasses of iced tea, and were getting annoyed by the time the client called Logan.

“Hey, buddy, listen, I got a family crisis I have to deal with. Can we meet up tomorrow?” The client, a man named Jim, asked and Logan had to pull the phone away as a woman screamed in the background. Something about two-timing man-whore and then the sound of glass shattering.

“Uh yeah, you deal with your crisis, Jim, and we’ll get in touch when you’re ready to talk.”

“Thanks, man. Gotta go. Bye.”

“Cancelled, has he?” Keily asked, sipping her tea innocently. But the way her lips wrapped around that straw wasn’t innocent at all.

“Not a totally bad thing, I have to say.” Logan moved around in the bench seat, trying to ease the pressure of his pants over the erection that had sprung to life as he watched her full lips sipping sweet tea.