Page 82 of Taming Nikki

When I walked into the club, they were all waiting for me. Gio snorted, shaking his head and held out his palm. Each one of them started slapping money into his hand, muttering.

“Come on, man. We set you up perfectly!”

“I fucking told you. We’d need to lock them in a room together to get them to talk to one another.”

I closed my eyes, reaching for what little patience I had left. I thought it was strange that Gio asked me to join him for lunch back at the house. What little time I spent there in the last few days was wrought with awkward tension. Nicole was beyond pissed and refused to speak to me. A couple times I thought about pointing out that the deal said no fighting me, but it would only make things worse, so I left her alone, hoping she’d eventually cool off.

Apparently, the guys didn’t like my plan and took it upon themselves to force a meeting. And it probably would’ve worked if I didn’t chicken out and run like a fucking coward. For the first time since the run in with her uncle, she was looking at me without pure hatred in her eyes and I just walked away.

“Don’t you assholes have work you should be doing?”

A few of them grumbled and walked away, but Gio and Mikey followed me to my office. Gio was there for a reason. He’s supposed to give me updates on the two blackmailers’ whereabouts. Mikey was only there to be a dick because he immediately started complaining.

“You have any idea how much money I have riding on you two? You can’t even put in the effort to sit and watch a baseball game with her?”

“This isn’t a fucking game, Mikey,” I growled, dropping into my seat. I lit a cigarette before either of them could even fully sit down. I’d been so wound up I was flying through them. It was ridiculous and why I quit in the first place. I was too damn reliant on them to regulate my mood. “Stay the fuck out of my relationship with Nikki.”

Mikey shook his head. “No can do, boss. You obviously can’t be trusted to fix it on your own and you’re less of a dick when you’ve been spending time with her.”

This was one reason I was contemplating letting Nicole go. She had my entire family in an uproar and people were talking back to me and questioning me, like I wasn’t the head of the fucking family.

“Mikey, get the fuck out of my office before I start shooting cousins.”

My voice dripped with enough venom that he took the hint and ducked back out the door. Gio smothered his amusement with a cough, rubbing his jaw. He was smart enough to stick to business while we were here and didn’t start his own pitch on Nicole until we were headed home for dinner. She refused to eat my food thus far, but it didn’t stop me from making my way home every evening and cooking for her. Like a goddamn lovesick puppy. I ground my teeth, hoping I didn’t crack one from the amount of stress I’d been under this past week.

“You want to talk about it?”

“No.”

He nodded, his lips pursed, but like the rest of my idiot cousins, he wasn’t through yet. “Did you want me to talk to her?”

I pulled out another cigarette, contemplating lighting up in the car. I rolled it between my fingers, my eyes on the road.

“We could set up another lunch. Maybe this time you won’t chicken out if you know it’s coming.”

I jerked the wheel, pulling over. “Get out.”

Gio sighed heavily. “I’m only trying to help. The guys might be doing it for the bets, but I don’t have a stake in that game.” When I frowned, he raised his eyebrows. “What? Hard to imagine?”

I scowled. “I don’t need you idiots trying to get us back together. It’s not what she wants and I’m not going to fucking force her.”

He ignored me, scratching his chin. “Ya know, I’ve been wondering since the restaurant. Who does Nikki call when she wants to talk shit out?”

I had no fucking clue. I frowned, and he nodded. “See, I couldn’t come up with anyone either. So it had me thinking, with all the shit going on with you two, she might be needing someone to talk to so she can decide what she wants. Girls like shit like that, talking it out.”

I couldn't imagine Nicole wanting to share her problems with someone. She’s always on the defensive. She never let anyone get close enough to talk about anything real.

“What are you suggesting, Gio? Because she won’t fucking talk to me. She barely leaves her room.”

He shrugged. “Maybe you should let her see her sisters. Frankie says Amara’s been asking about her. She probably misses them. And with Frankie as a go between, he can let us know where Nikki is at in terms of wanting to murder you.”

I huffed out a laugh. “Fine. I’ll see what I can do. Now get the fuck out.”

His jaw dropped. “You’re still going to make me walk?”

“Yes. You fuckers are on my last nerve, and I’m done being nice about it. Call Mikey for a ride.” I gave him an enigmatic stare until his ass got out of my car and the door shut behind him. His suggestion wasn’t bad. I was just still pissed they decided to try and force us together in the first place.

After the shitshow from the last time I picked up Nicole’s sisters, Morelli and I had agreed to do business in his office or mine. He didn’t want me around his wife. Getting him to agree to let the girls come see Nicole would be a near impossibility without help, and most of her family couldn’t stand me at this point. I pulled up in front of my house, staring at the window to the guest room. I couldn’t see her, but the light was on. I made a quick call, my focus on the shadow that passed by the window.

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