Page 60 of Reign

Dom visibly relaxes at this and nods, his shoulders dropping two inches as the tension leaves before yelling, “Nikita!” through the doorway.

“I’ve got them, Dom. They’re safe,” he replies, knowing exactly what Dominic needs to hear.

I can’t help but tease him just a little. “No matter how many times I save his ass, he never thinks I can handle myself.”

Dominic growls and yanks on my arm making me yelp as my body slams into his. “I know youcan, I’d just rather you didn’thaveto.”

~

THE FOLLOWING DAY, Nikita, Joelle, Camila, and I are all relaxing in Joelle’s pool when Dominic arrives with Diego. We all pitch in to help get him settled with his feet in the shallow end, an umbrella casting shade over his frame since the sun decided to make a reappearance today and is threatening to scorch the earth…or at least Miami, FL.

Everyone is relaxing peacefully, taking deep breaths, talking occasionally but otherwise just enjoying the peace of the moment. Joelle is on the steps of the pool, playing Q&A with Diego. Obviously, the physical attraction was there but now they’re playing catch up. It seems to be going well though if the quiet laughter and light touches are any indication. They’ve completely forgotten anyone else is in this pool.

Nikita has his forearms braced on Camila’s float, his hands drawing lazy circles around her stomach while she floats on her back with her arms propped behind her head. She borrowed a bikini from Joelle and seems at peace not having to hide her scars in front of this crowd. She and Niki, too, are talking in hushed whispers.

Dom is leaning his back into the edge of the pool, his arms loosely wrapped around my back. He hasn’t gone fifteen seconds without kissing me since we were reunited.

“Diego doesn’t want Santos empire.”

My eyes go wide. That’s a helluva deal to turn down. No one back in Venezuela would contest that it belongs to him now. But if that news shocked me, nothing has me prepared for his next words.

“He doesn’t want to go back at all. He wants to stay here in Miami.”

“I guess Joelle really made an impression,” I tease, only half kidding.

Before we can continue the conversation, we hear footsteps approaching the pool. The atmosphere in the pool is immediately tense. Dom drops his arms from me and spins around. Nikita pulls Camila off the float and places her directly behind him, ready to shield her from whatever is coming our way.

Everyone relaxes a fraction when we see Victoria. Well, everyone relaxes except Nikita. And then I remember, Max is dead.

She doesn’t know.

“Isn’t this cozy?” she asks, firing her venom at Nikita who still has Camila pushed behind him, his hand on her back protectively over her scars.

Joelle rallies first and places a hand on Diego’s uninjured shoulder as she climbs the steps out of the pool.

“Victoria, why don’t we go inside? I have something I need to tell you.” Victoria eyes her suspiciously and narrows her eyes at Nikita before turning on her heel and following Joelle.

Five minutes go by and we hear no sobbing, no wailing, no glass breaking, nothing. Calmly, Victoria steps out of the back door and stops in front of Nikita at the side of the pool.

“I look forward to working with you. The best is yet to come for our clubs.” Her haughty tone tells me she doesn’t have the full story. With Max gone, the clubs fall into her name, but that’s only because Antonov was still a threat. She doesn’t know he and Alexei have been taken off the board.

“I think you meanmyclubs. I’ll have the paperwork drawn up today.”

There ain’t no rest for the wicked…got that part right, didn’t they?

“What will you do when Antonov finds out?” she asks, losing steam but trying to maintain her ground.

“That’s my problem. I just want my clubs.”

Victoria’s eyes flit to Camila over Nikita’s shoulder, “And apparently, the company of whores.” We all start shouting at once but it’s Nikita’s voice that booms above the rest.

“Get the fuck out of my sister’s house right now.”

Without realizing the other had done it, Joelle and I have flanked Camila’s sides, ready to go to battle for her again.

Victoria flashes a wicked smile. “This isn’t over, Niki. I’ll make you realize I’m the one youreallywant.”

He’s apparently willing to pull the trump card out for Camila. “Threatening the head of the Russian mafia isn’t a smart move, Victoria. I can have you extinguished from the face of this planet with one phone call.” When she loses the color in her face, it becomes obvious that she was told Max is gone but not filled in on the rest of the details about who now runs this city. Realization dawns that he doesn’t need her anymore. Perhaps she also realizes that she is now truly free and isn’t sure what to do or where to go. Her snarl indicates anger but her eyes indicate fear as she turns on her heel to leave without another word.

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