by Taylor Lee
With a sob, she ran across the courtyard to her room, ignoring the sounds from the celebration dinner. The last thing she wanted to do was celebrate anything, not even being the dojo champion. Especially if it meant seeing Wyatt again. It was bad enough watching all the students fight for crumbs of his attention. It didn’t help that he was as coolly indifferent to the rest of them as he was to her.
~~~
The next morning, Wan Chang, Lei and Ri’s father, arrived at the ranch. He was a powerful man, hard and muscular. His eyes were cold, distant. He rarely smiled, except when he was with his son and beloved daughter. No one approached him without permission.
Wan went first to Joey’s quarters, where he met with Lei, Ri, and Joey, his friend of thirty years. The three of them gave him and two bodyguards a tour of the ranch, ending up at the dojo.
Wyatt came out of Joey’s office at the back of the dojo when Wan and the others entered. Wyatt saw the surprised looks on many of the students’ faces when they recognized Wan Chang. All fighting came to an abrupt halt. Silence fell over the dojo as a path cleared in front of the Sing Leon leader. Wyatt caught Joey’s gaze and frowned, but Joey shrugged as if to say, ‘It is what it is.’
With an easy smile, Wyatt walked toward the group. The two men with Wan Chang moved forward aggressively. Almost imperceptibly, Wan signaled and they stepped back. Wyatt saw the exchange, but ignored it. He approached Wan Chang and bowed. Lei’s father bowed lower and, to Wyatt’s surprise, touched his hands to his forehead in a sign of humility.
With the barest hint of a smile, Wan Chang looked up at the tall man. “I’m confident you do not remember me. I was here with you and Joey when you killed our leader, Chinbau Li.”
Wyatt was surprised.
“You were a Sing Leon back then?”
“Yes. Then as now.”
“And now I understand that you are…”
Wan interrupted him. “I am Wan Chang, leader of the Sing Leon.”
Wyatt nodded. With a slight smile, he asked, “You are the head of the Sing Leon and yet you sent your son and daughter to Joey for training in my dojo?”
Wan Chang nodded. “He trained you. I wanted them to be taught by the best. And to have the opportunity to observe the best.”
Wyatt gave a slight bow, acknowledging the compliment.
Wan Chang continued, “I am honored to see you again.”
Wyatt responded, “The honor is mine.”
They discussed the training facilities in the dojo for several minutes, then Wyatt asked, “When are you leaving?”
“Joey has insisted I stay until tomorrow morning.”
“In that case, I would be pleased if you and Joey, and Lei and Ri, would join me and my family for dinner.”
Wan Chang bowed. “We would be honored.”
As they were preparing to leave, Wyatt looked at the bodyguards and his eyes narrowed. Looking directly at Wan Chang, he said, “We haven’t found the need for armed guards inside the dojo.”
With a slight smile that like Wyatt’s didn’t reach his eyes, Wan replied, “You might consider the possibility that you and I have different adversaries.”
Wyatt smiled and nodded his understanding, but his eyes were cold. “That may be. Nevertheless, I don’t permit weapons in the dojo.”
Pointing to the two armed bodyguards, Wyatt added, “They also will not be permitted inside my home tonight.”
Wan Chang nodded coldly. With a dismissive toss of his head, he said, “Of course.”
Without saying good-by, Wan put a proprietary hand on Lei’s elbow. Together they turned and left the dojo. The rest of his entourage followed at a respectful distance.
Wyatt stood back. He watched them leave, a slight frown creasing his forehead.
~~~
Chapter 6
That evening, when the Changs and Joey arrived at the cottage, Elena and Alex met them at the door dancing with excitement.
Elena went immediately to Lei and touched her silk trousers.
“Ooh, these are beautiful and shiny! They feel so soft.”
Wyatt came up behind the children with a grin. “Please excuse my incorrigible children. We don’t have company often. They are excited to be included.”
Lei was wearing an elegant Oriental silk ensemble. The trousers clung to her slim legs and hugged her shapely bottom. The top of the blouse was a shimmery silk material that draped just low enough to reveal an enticing glimpse of her full breasts. Wyatt was struck again by her unusual features. Her exotic beauty was breathtaking. And, God, her body! He remembered how lush and voluptuous she felt when he kissed her. It would have been easy to continue to hold her, touch her even more intimately, but he knew it was wrong. He reminded himself, she is a student. Joey is her sensei. And she’s young – too young.
He smiled at her in appreciation.
“Elena is right. You look lovely tonight, Lei. That is a beautiful ensemble. The trousers are most unusual. I don’t know that I have ever seen anything quite like it.
She nodded and said simply, “Thank you.”
Lei looked away, not wanting to meet his eyes. Instead, she turned her attention to the children. She was surprised when Wyatt invited her family to dinner and equally surprised that her father accepted. Of course, neither of them had asked if she wanted to attend. In truth, she didn’t know how she would respond if they did. She knew it was likely that she would be leaving in the morning with her father. Moreover, she knew what happened that night in the dojo meant nothing to Wyatt. Last night, after many tears, she decided it would no longer mean anything to her.
With a bright smile, she turned to Alex and Elena. She listened to their eager chatter about kung fu and patiently explained some of the moves they saw her make in the tournament.
The dinner table was crowded, festive. The tension between Wyatt and Wan seemed to have lessened. In addition to the Changs, Zhi Pang, and Joey, Chief and Alono joined them. Theresa and Randy, who headed up Wyatt’s household staff, and Daniel, Theresa’s fifteen year old brother, also attended. Wyatt brought out several bottles of expensive champagne. He filled glasses all around, including small amounts for the children, who laughed and giggled when the bubbles went up in their noses.
After a round of toasts, Wan Chang’s expression grew serious. He spoke in a low voice. “I came here to apologize to you, Wyatt. My daughter grievously insulted you in your dojo. She also dishonored my dear friend, who agreed to be her sensei,” he added, nodding to Joey. “She disgraced our family and me. I apologize for her behavior.”
Lei knew this was her father’s reason for coming to the ranch. Even so, she was surprised, angry that he chose to apologize for her in front of everyone. Sitting here with all the adults, even the children, staring at her, she wished with all her heart she had followed her instincts and refused to come to the dinner. It was bad enough that to her lasting shame she cried and shrieked helplessly in the dojo in front of the entire class. Now this, this was too much. Her face was hot with anger and shame. She stared hard at the table trying to squelch the tears fighting against the backs of her eyelids.
Wyatt broke the awkward silence.
“I appreciate your apology, Wan. But I have already accepted Lei’s apology. She apologized to me in front of all who were present in the dojo. In my view, that apology was appropriate and a credit to you and your family. I consider the matter closed. I hope you will, as well.”
Wan looked surprised and relieved.
“You are a gracious man, Wyatt.”
He looked at Alex and Elena. His voice was gruff. “You probably do understand better than most the challenges of raising children alone, especially young women.”
Wyatt responded with a pleasant smile. “That I do. But you should feel nothing but pride in your daughter and your son, Wan. They are honorable, talented young people. In addition, Lei is the dojo champion.”
He smiled and raised his glass to her in a toast.
Joey said, “Here, here!
” and everyone followed suit.
Lei was shaking with embarrassment. She stared at the table trying to recover her composure. Pushing her anger aside, she took a deep breath. “Thank you.” She added with a mischievous smile, “I think every dojo should have a woman as their champion, don’t you, Elena?”
Wyatt admired her spunk and ability to rise above a hard situation. He knew she was humiliated, and that she was angry with her father. He grinned at her. “I especially like that you not only beat Win Li, you kicked his ass.”
Everyone laughed as the tension eased out of the room.
Attempting to grab the moment and move forward, Wyatt said, “Wan, I understand that you taught Lei her unusually effective fighting style.”
Wan responded with a slight smile.
“She insisted she was going to be a fighter. Nothing I could say or do convinced her she couldn’t. I knew she would need to learn moves that would compensate for her lack of strength. I think she has done that. When she does not let her anger crowd out her skill, she is able to overcome much stronger fighters.”
Wyatt, Chief, and Joey shared an appreciative look. “I think we can all relate to that,” Chief said with a grin.
Lei was annoyed that the four men were discussing her as though she wasn’t present. They dismissed her as a woman, or worse, a girl who had no say in her future. She was angry her father embarrassed her by publically apologizing for her behavior. It stung that he was likely to take her home tomorrow, as though she was a wayward child -- not an accomplished fighter.
With a toss of her head, she broke into the conversation and confronted her father directly. She looked him in the eye. Her voice was cool. “I want to stay here, Father. There is much I can learn. I do not want to go back with you.”
Wan appeared surprised, clearly annoyed that she had challenged him in front of the others. When she met his eyes with a fierce glare, he retreated. He turned to Wyatt as though inviting him to intercede.
Wyatt shrugged with a shake of his head. “Joey decides who he teaches.”
Without looking at Lei, Joey said, “Let’s discuss this after dinner.”
Elena piped up in her chirpy bossy little voice.
“I want Lei to stay, don’t you, Alex?”
Alex said, “She is the dojo champion, why wouldn’t she stay?”
Joey looked up with a laugh, attempting to break the tension. “Have you been lining up your forces, Lei?”
She gave him a hard glare then threw her father a similar stare. She smiled pleasantly, but there was a definite edge to her voice. “No, Joey. I haven’t been “lining” up my forces. But it is nice to have support, even if it comes in small packages. Particularly since those who know me and my skills best choose to withhold their support.”
Both men looked surprised at her impudence, but at least at this point neither chose to respond.
Wyatt regarded her with a half smile. He was impressed she was willing to take on both Joey and her father. He thought to himself with an appreciative grin, she is as feisty as she is beautiful; quite a combination.
At that point, Elena jumped up and ran over to Lei and looked up at her adoringly.
“Lei, will you teach me to fly through the air like you do, Please, please?”
Lei smiled. “I would love to. It is a lot of fun to fly.”
As she looked up she saw an annoyed look and a flash of anger on Wyatt’s face. Remembering that Wyatt never let anyone else in the dojo when the children were practicing, she quickly added, “But I think the best person to teach you is your father.”
Elena shook her head, an angry pout crossing her face.
“No, he teaches me everything. I want you to teach me!”
Lei smiled seeking to forestall the controversy. “My father taught me everything I learned when I was a little girl, like you, Elena.”
She turned to her father with a loving smile, making amends for her earlier tart response.
“I still don’t know how you taught me to fly, Father, when you couldn’t get a foot off the ground.”
Wan smiled back at her with a look that said he could never be angry with her or refuse her anything. It was a look no one except Lei ever received, including her brother, who glanced down. His pained expression confirmed that, as always, he was not a part of the conversation between his father and sister.
Wan continued. “You never seemed to notice how earthbound I was. If you did, you pretended you didn’t. In truth, my dear, you taught yourself to fly.”
That might have closed the discussion, but Elena, with the single - mindedness of a five year old, was not about to give up. She tossed her cloud of red-gold curls and with a sharp stamp of her foot for emphasis, she said, “I don’t care. I want Lei to teach me!”
Wyatt gave her a stern look.
“That’s enough, Elena. We’ll talk about this later.”
When she looked as though she was going to cry, Wyatt added, “I think Theresa is about to bring in dessert. Are you going to have some of those apple dumplings you like so much? If you are, you need to come back to your chair and sit down.”
Elena quickly forgot about anything else and ran back to her chair. “Daddy, you know I want them! They are my favorites!”
Everyone laughed at her quick change of mood.
Wyatt saw Joey and Wan exchange a look when he spurned Lei’s offer to teach Elena. He also saw how possessive Wan was of Lei. He knew he offended him—but wanted to make a point.
“Wan, I’m sure you understand why I insist that I teach Alex and Elena at this young age. I imagine you wouldn’t let anyone near Lei when she was a child.”
Wan’s tone was cold, insinuating. “I didn’t have a choice, Wyatt. No one I knew would teach a girl. Even now, Lei faces discrimination. Many senseis – all men – don’t think that a woman belongs in a dojo except to mop the floors or otherwise service them. I hope, because of women like Lei, your daughter will have an easier time being taken seriously.”
Wyatt heard the criticism in his words. He looked hard at Wan, who returned his glare.
Chief stepped in with his usual easy wit.
“Now, gentlemen, from what I can see, these two young women that you are protecting with such fierceness seem to be doing just fine. Including this little scallywag who has somehow wheedled her third apple dumpling out of Theresa when no one was looking!”
After dessert was served, Elena jumped up and said,” Please, Daddy, can Lei come up and see the new dolls you brought me from Santa Fe? Please!”
A flash of annoyance crossed Wyatt’s face. He knew he was protective of his children and discouraged outsiders from getting too close, but after the discussion about who should be teaching her kung fu, Wyatt didn’t think he could refuse without further insulting Wan Chang. Elena persisted with a wheedling look that never failed and as usual, Wyatt nodded and gave in.
He said with a sigh, “Where do they learn that? Alex doesn’t do that!”
Wan Chang smiled at Lei. “I think we teach them.”
Ri, Zhi, and Daniel decided to go to the dojo and spar. Alono offered to go with them, while Lei went upstairs with the children, grateful for the chance to gather her thoughts. This evening had been challenging at best. The rest of the men went into Wyatt’s study.
Over cigars and bourbon, Wan and Joey agreed that Lei should stay at the dojo.
Joey said, “Lei is right, Wan. There is much she can learn here. As I told you before her disgraceful behavior in the dojo, I was honored to be her sensei and I still am.”
Wan was cautious. “I appreciate that Joey. As you can see, Lei is determined, spirited. She is not easily cowed. I hope this experience will help her overcome her anger.”
Joey said, “I will be working with her on that, Wan.”
He looked at Wyatt and smiled.
“I have a good deal of experience working with talented fighters who needed to learn to control their anger.”
Wyatt nodded. “Having a level
of anger is not a bad thing. She won’t get over her anger, Wan, but she can learn to use it to her advantage, the way these two teachers of mine taught me. Yesterday, she was in control and fought brilliantly. Win Li never knew what hit him. Last night, we worked on that double thrust side kick of hers. I think with some adjustments and adding another front or back flip she can create a killer move.”
He stopped, seeing all three men looking at him in surprise.
He responded with a sheepish grin. “I know, I know. I don’t usually get involved with the students. But if you have no objection, Joey, I would like to work with Lei -- particularly on some signature moves. She needs practical outlets to channel both her anger and her talent and to put the fear of God into other fighters. I also think with her aerial ability, she might be a good candidate for some of the washu moves I use.”
Joey shrugged, his eyes twinkling.
“I don’t have an objection, Wyatt. But you may need to talk to Wan. I’ve noticed that the fathers of girl fighters seem protective—you might even say possessive--about who teaches their daughters.”
Wyatt flushed. “Okay, Joey. I deserved that.”
Turning to Wan, he asked, “Do you object to me supplementing the work Joey does with her?”
“I would be honored. I know that Lei will be, as well. I ask you to remember that much of her anger comes from the way that she has been dismissed by teachers and other fighters because she is a girl.”
Wyatt smiled. “I can tell you, sure as hell, that no one who was in the dojo yesterday will dismiss her again.”