Page 19 of Taming Nikki

Amara took my hand and leaned her head on my shoulder while Gemma petted my hair while flashing me her sweet smile. I still felt riled, but they took the edge off.

“Whatever it is, I’m sure you can figure it out. There’s no one smarter than you,” Amara reassured me. Gemma nodded enthusiastically.

“Yeah, and you kick butt!”

I snorted and wrapped my arm around her neck, pulling her against me. She squealed and wiggled to get free as I mussed up her hair. I relaxed my arm and dropped it to her shoulder, and threw the other around Amara.

“I’ll figure it out. Thank you for coming to check on me, though. It means a lot.”

Amara smiled softly. “You’re our sister. We’ll always be there for you.”

I hugged them tighter and rested my cheek on top of her head. Gemma only let us sit quietly for so long, though. She was still little, sitting still wasn’t in her DNA. She wiggled away and tugged on my hand.

“Let’s go swimming.”

Amara’s eyes lit up, and I sighed. I really need to figure out my next move. I was going to ask for a rain check, but they both pouted at me and gave me puppy dog eyes. I pursed my lips against a smile.

“That’s mean.”

They laid it on thick, Gemma’s lip going out as far as it could go. I tried looking away, tipping my chin up toward the ceiling, but Gemma climbed onto my bed and stood above me with big pleading eyes. I chuckled and threw up my hands in defeat.

“Alright, alright. Fine. Only for a little while. I’ve got stuff to do.”

They both squealed and ran out of the room to change. I flopped back onto the bed. I really need to figure out a way to say no to those girls. Just another thing to add to my growing to do list.

* * *

I knew Leo was coming back today. I remembered him and Papa discussing it in the kitchen. I didn’t have much of a plan yet, but I had a few tricks up my sleeve that I knew the men of the Cosa Nostra didn’t like.

My swimsuit was black, like most of the rest of my clothes. It showed enough skin that the tattoos I had gotten were more than a little apparent. Not even Papa knew about them. I usually wore a one piece when swimming with my sisters to keep them hidden or scheduled pool time when I knew he wouldn’t be around. I didn’t get them to piss off my papa, I got them because they make me happy. They just happen to be frowned upon for the women in the Cosa Nostra. Hopefully, it’d piss Leo off and he’d change the deal, though I’d be looking into keeping marriage out of it completely. I didn’t want Amara tied to that family, either.

I dropped my towel onto one of the lounge chairs. The girls followed suit and stripped off the cover-ups their mother made them wear just to cross the yard. I stood by the edge of the pool while I waited and dipped my toes in. It was hotter than hell outside, so the pool felt nice and cool without being too cold. I was going to go in slow, take the stairs, but the girls shared a mischievous look before tackling me into the shallow end.

I came up sputtering and laughing as they shrieked and tried to swim away. Amara might be fast enough, but Gemma wasn’t a strong swimmer. I was still giving her lessons every summer, so I caught up to her first, snatching her and throwing her away from me. We played for a while, then I made Amara practice her diving while I gave Gemma her lessons. When I finally dragged myself out of the pool, I was exhausted and the mind numbing shock from last night had finally worn off. Which was a good thing because I could see Papa heading our way, with Leo and Frankie trailing behind him. This would be fun.

I turned away from them and kept my focus on the girls still playing in the pool as I squeezed water out of my hair.

“Nikki, I–”

I turned and watched Papa’s face color as shock and fury washed over him. I was getting better at shocking him. His eyes trailed over the tattoos and the more he looked, the angrier he seemed to get. I had three so far, though I had an appointment for a new one soon. A flock of birds flew across my ribs towards my back, my little sisters’ birthdays on the inside of my wrist, and a cluster of roses high on my hip. The one on my wrist was the hardest to hide, and I usually wore a thick bracelet to cover it. Now that I didn’t need to hide them, I planned on extending the roses farther down my leg.

Amara and Gemma clung to the edge of the pool and watched as Papa basically vibrated with fury. Leo didn’t react other than to rub his hand over his jaw. He was hiding his reaction, which was more than a little annoying.

“What the hell did you do?” Papa choked.

I feigned ignorance, cocking my head. “What do you mean?”

Frankie snorted and tried to cover the noise with a cough. I winked at him and he flushed deep red, edging behind Leo again.

I was starting to feel like I may have broken Papa’s brain. His mouth gaped open and closed like a fish as he stared at me, horrified. I shrugged and turned away from him to drop myself onto an empty lounge chair.

Leo finally spoke, going for the casual look again as he shoved his hands into his pockets. “Frankie’s going to hang out with you for a bit. We’ve got some stuff to deal with and he’ll get bored.”

I pursed my lips and narrowed my eyes. I didn’t want to give Leo anything he might want, but I didn’t want to punish Frankie because he’s related to Leo either. I lifted a shoulder lazily. “Fine. He can stay. You can’t. Fuck off.”

That seemed to snap Papa out of his stupor, and he snarled at me. “Watch your mouth!”

I ignored him and pulled a pair of sunglasses out of the bag I brought out with my towel. I slid them on, effectively shutting them out. Amara chewed on her lip, she didn’t like conflict, but Gemma looked like she was trying not to laugh and her little eyes danced as she looked between us.

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