Page 15 of Taming Nikki

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Leo’s cryptic words bugged me for the rest of the day. I eventually got fed up and snuck into Papa’s office when he went out to dinner with Viola. He generally put the important shit away, but I figured it was better to look instead of wonder.

Sure enough, his desk was cleared of paperwork. I sat behind it and checked the drawers, but I came up empty. They were all locked. I was about to give up when Gino walked in. He paused, narrowing his eyes.

“What are you doing in here?”

“Research. What about you?”

He rolled his eyes. “Try again.”

Gino and I didn’t spend much time together. He and DiAngelo both were in the deep end of the family business and couldn’t care less about the women in the family. We had conversations here and there, but up until recently, we ‌just let the other be.

“Vitale said something that bugged me. I’m trying to figure out what he met Papa about this morning.”

His eyebrows went up. “They didn’t tell you?”

I made a face. In what universe would Papa want to share the goings ons about the family business with me? Gino crossed his arms, looking thoughtful but didn’t elaborate, and I resisted the urge to growl.

“No, why would they?”

He shrugged, officially done talking to me. He spun on his heel and headed for the door. Oh, hell no.

“Stop. Tell me what they were meeting about.”

He didn’t even bother to turn around. “Or what?”

“Or I’ll tell Emily you’re fucking her sister.”

He froze with his hand on the doorknob. Slowly, he turned to face me. “How do you know about that?”

I crossed my arms and leaned back in Papa’s chair. “I don’t give information away for free, Gino. Tell me what I want to know and I’ll tell you how to not get caught again.”

He ground his teeth. “We aren’t fucking kids anymore, Nikki. How the fuck did you know that?”

I gave him a bored look before pretending to check my nails. I walked a fine line with Gino. He was the volatile one. If people pissed him off, they got hurt, simple as that. But he wouldn’t get shit from me unless he started talking, and he knew it.

“Tell me how you know first.”

I shrugged. “Your car is easy to spot, dumb dumb. Besides, I saw you two holding hands as you walked to her apartment.”

He snarled and stormed toward me. “Why didn’t you tell me? Who else knows?”

I shook my head. “I give you information, you give me information, that’s how it works. Equal exchange. Start talking.” I pointed to the chair beside him. He dropped into it, frowning, but didn’t answer right away. He was in his own little world, so I snapped my fingers to get his attention. He scowled at me.

“They were meeting about the deal for the ports. Who else knows?”

“No one that I know of. What changed about the deal since last night?” Leo said it wasn’t what I was thinking, so I was obviously missing something.

He grumbled, his arms crossed. “The marriage changed. Why didn’t you tell me?”

I bit the inside of my cheek, fighting back a growl. I was annoyed but kept up with the game because I was getting somewhere. “Figured I could use it against you later. Who’s getting married?”

“You’re a fucking bitch, Nikki!” he shouted, hauling to his feet. He looked ready to throttle me, but like I said, I didn’t intimidate easily.

“Who’s getting married, Gino?”

He seethed and his hands clenched open and closed. I thought he was going to refuse to answer, but he took a deep breath and a slow grin spread across his face.

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