Nikki pulled her cell phone from her pocket and dialed Tony’s number. He answered in one ring and announced, without even greeting her, “If you’re going to say anything other than thanks, don’t bother. That’s the only word I’ll accept right now.”
“Tony, I . . . thanks. But I can’t take it.”
“Yes, you can. And you will. It’s safe, it’s an automatic, and it’s red. What more could you possibly want?”
“I want you to know that I can take care of myself,” Nikki said very bluntly.
“I know you can. But last night was scary; god, honey, I thought I’d lost you. I’ll feel better if you’re driving that thing. Please don’t give me any trouble on this, baby. Just don’t, okay? I’ve got enough on my plate right now. I’m already worried enough about you, and this takes care of one worry.”
Nikki stopped for a second before she agreed. “Okay, I won’t argue right now. But we’re going to talk about this later.”
“About later.” Oh, god, what now?, she thought. “I need you to come over here to the office after lunch, say about three thirty? There are some things we need to discuss.”
“That sounds scary,” Nikki said, holding her breath.
“Nothing scary. Something good – you’ll see.”
“Okay. I’m sure it’ll be fine with Marla; I’ll be there. And thanks again. I love you. I’ll see you then.”
“See you then, babe. And I love you too.”
Nikki stepped into Tony’s office mid-afternoon. “What’s this all about?” She was greeted by the sight of Tony, Clayton, Cal, Steve, and Vic all sitting there, and all apparently waiting for her, and suddenly she felt like she was on the hot seat, maybe even in front of the firing squad. “Is something else wrong?”
“Nope, baby. Just sit down and we’ll get right to business. Want coffee? Water? Anything?” Tony kissed her before she sat down.
“No, I’m fine.” I’m not fine. What the hell is going on?
“All right then,” Steve said, starting the ball rolling. “First of all, neither of you are going back to the gym for the time being.” Nikki started to protest, but Tony shot her a look. Steve continued by saying, “It’s not safe for the others who go there. One of them could’ve been seriously injured last night if they’d been near your SUV.” Nikki hadn’t thought about that, but he did have a point. She certainly didn’t want that.
Tony responded quickly, “I’d already thought about that and I’ve ordered some gym equipment for the garage at the house here in town.”
“So,” Steve asked, “Nikki, can we agree this is the best thing for right now?”
She nodded. “I don’t like it, but yes, it is best.”
“Good. We’ve got that settled. Now, Tony, you had something you wanted to tell Nikki?”
“Yes.” Tony rose from his desk chair and walked to where Nikki sat on the big white sofa, sitting down next to her. He took both of her hands in his and looked straight into her eyes. “Nikki, do you trust me?”
Nikki was taken aback. “Yes, of course! Completely! Why?”
“To make decisions you don’t like but that are for your own good?”
“What’s this about?” Uh-oh, here it comes, Nikki thought, instantly suspicious.
“Nik, I want you to come to work here at Walters Construction.”
“Oh, no, I can’t . . .”
“Look, it’s partly for your safety, honestly. But otherwise, if you’re going to be with me and be part of this family, you should be working here.”
“But Tony, what if . . .”
“Stop it,” he said abruptly, a look of frustration washing over his features, and she blushed in embarrassment. “You’re coming to work here, end of discussion. We’ll go this evening and get you work clothes and steel-toes. You can hang out with me to start – there’s an enormous amount of stuff I need to teach you before you go into anything else. I’ve decided I want to groom you to take over as chief operations officer, COO. So what do you think?”
“I think this is a mistake and you’ve possibly lost your mind.” She was pretty sure the top of her head was about to blow off. “First of all, I don’t know anything about the construction industry.” Tony frowned at her. “And second, don’t you feel the least bit bad about letting these people rule our lives this way? Isn’t this pandering to them?”
“Well, first, you do know more about the construction industry than you give yourself credit for, and I know this because I’ve watched you working around the house, not to mention the conversations we have over dinner. You’re far from clueless. And second, no – I don’t give a rat’s ass about those people, whoever they are. I only care about keeping you safe. And there are other aspects you don’t know about, but I’m sure my mother will enlighten you soon.” Nikki gave him a puzzled look, but he ignored it; it was Tony that Raffaella had called and talked to, not Nikki, so his little girlfriend was in for a big surprise. “You can call Marla tonight and talk to her, tell her you won’t be back. Under the circumstances I’m sure she’ll understand. As far as their safety goes, she’ll probably be relieved.”
Nikki started to protest, but Steve broke in. “Nikki, every time you walk into that shop, your coworkers are in danger. Is that really what you want?” Nikki’s mouth snapped shut. No, she didn’t want anyone getting hurt because of her.
“Good. It’s settled.” Tony patted her hands and went back to sit behind his desk. “Oh, and by the way, Steve, I want her name put on all of the accounts. All of the business accounts should be me, Clayton, Nikki, and Vic. And put her on my household and personal accounts too, and get her debit cards for everything. And I do mean everything.” Nikki opened her mouth, then closed it – nothing she’d said to that point had mattered, so why would this time be any different? Tony hit a couple of buttons on his phone and a voice answered over the speaker: “Central supply. Brandon here; may I help you?”
He picked up the handset and put it to his ear. “Brandon, it’s Tony. I need a new truck issued. Ford F-250 Super Duty; exactly like my truck. Outfitted the same, winch, generator, brush guard, everything. Automatic transmission. Lots of chrome.” Tony looked at Nikki, then said, “What have they got?” He listened, then said, “The blue one. Walters signage. All the GPS links. When can we have it?” Nikki heard the muffled voice on the other end of the phone, then Tony said, “Being issued to Nicolette Renee Wilkes. I’ll get you all the personal information tomorrow. Thanks, Brandon.”
He ended the call, then punched a few more buttons. The call was answered almost instantly.
“Hey, yeah, Brenda, this is Tony. Listen, I need a new employee added to payroll and a company credit card issued to Nicolette Renee Wilkes. How soon can we get that?” He listened. “Next Tuesday? Yeah, fine. When it comes, bring it straight to me. Send over all of the employment paperwork and we’ll fill it out. Thanks.”
He ended that call and wrote something on his desk blotter. Nikki was in shock – he wasn’t kidding about this. She wanted to say, What if you get tired of me? What do I do then? But she didn’t. That should be a private conversation, and this was anything but private.
Tony looked at Nikki, then Clayton. “Can we move her into your office? It’s the biggest in the building.”
“Sure, Dad. Besides, I’ve never done anything with it.” Clayton turned to Nikki. “Maybe you could do something in there. It looks like a storage space.”
“Unless you want to share this office with me?” Tony asked Nikki.
“Whatever you want.” She was so confused and bewildered that she really couldn’t think. “At least I think that’s the answer you’re looking for.” Tony frowned. Vic cleared his throat and Cal and Clayton both turned away.
“We’ll have that conversation at home,” Tony said curtly. “But I want to add something here. If anything happens, anything, and I’m not around or not available, you go to Clayton or Vic. If I can’t protect you, these two would lay their lives down for you, Nik. No question in my
mind.” Clayton and Vic nodded in agreement. “You’ll always be safe with any of the three of us. Steve too, for that matter.”
“Yep,” Steve interjected. “Speaking of which, we’re installing cameras and motion sensors all over your house and property. I’m adding more employees, and I’ve decided to incorporate the business into Citadel Security. Are you comfortable with the people I’ve got on you?” he asked, turning to Nikki.
“I like Peyton and José,” Nikki answered. “I haven’t really met the lady yet.”
“Laura. Laura Butler. She’s good. She’s, well, not much I can tell you, but she’s tough as nails.”
“One more thing.” Tony pointed at Clayton and Cal. “If I hear anything about any of the guys being disrespectful to Nikki, making rude comments, touching her in any way,” he added, a menacing look coming over his face, “I expect you to put a stop to it immediately. I won’t have it. First infraction, stern warning. Second infraction, termination. No exceptions.” Cal and Clayton nodded their understanding. “Good. Glad we got that straight up front. Okay, everybody back to work. Except you, Vic. Sit tight. Steve, thanks for being here.”
“Any time. We’ve got you covered, big guy,” Steve told him as he walked out.
Clayton started out the door, then turned and walked back to Nikki. He hugged her tight, then stepped back with his hands on her upper arms, smiled a huge smile, and kissed her on the cheek before turning and walking out the door. She’d wondered what he thought about all of this, and now she knew. That was the thing with Clayton; he didn’t talk much, but he had a way of letting you know how he felt.
Once everyone else was gone, Vic moved over to the sofa beside Nikki and hugged her. They sat with his arm around her shoulder, and Tony turned to both of them. “I wanted to talk to you two together. Nikki, this man sitting here beside you? I’d trust him with anything, even your life. He’s easily the most intelligent person I know besides you, and the most trustworthy and loyal. If you need anything, anything at all, go to Vic.”
Tony looked at Vic. “This woman is my life. I haven’t made this official, and we haven’t had the definitive discussion, but I have every intention of making her my wife before the end of the year, if she’ll have me.” Nikki tried not to look too shocked, but her mind went into overdrive. “If anything happens to me, I expect you to take care of her. That puts both of you in a very difficult position, I know, so I don’t even care how far that goes, as long as I know you’re involved and she’s safe. You and I, we’re closer than I am to my brothers, and I trust you implicitly. Please, please don’t let me down in this; I really need to know you’ll be there for her.”
Vic nodded to Tony, then looked at Nikki. “Little girl, I love you too.” He gave her a squeeze. “I’d do anything for you.” The feeling was mutual; when Vic had returned with the dinner rolls on the Fourth, Nikki knew she didn’t ever want to spend too many days without being graced by his presence. Vic turned back to Tony. “You have my word. They’ll have to kill me to get to her. You’ll never have to worry about her as long as I’m around.”
“Well, that’s settled. I feel better; well, a little better. I’ll feel a whole lot better as soon as we find this bunch of idiots and put an end to this. Vic, want to stay at the house tonight? It’s Bennie and Mark’s last night here, and we’re all going out, even Mamma, so come to dinner with us.”
“Sure! I’d love to!” Vic looked positively thrilled.
Great, Nikki thought. Dinner with everybody. Even longer until I can get him alone and have a long talk.
And then it hit her – Tony had said I have every intention of making her my wife before the end of the year, if she’ll have me. He wanted to marry her. Suddenly, everything became crystal clear. She was worried about a lot of things, but Tony and how he felt about her didn’t have to be one of them.
Molly was still mad – that was obvious. She was barely polite to Nikki all evening and spent most of her time stewing. Kathy and Victoria chatted with Raffaella. Nikki spent most of the evening trying to engage Caroline, but it was really hard; it almost seemed like she had no life so she had next to nothing to talk about. Kathy, Victoria, and Raffaella had sensed Nikki’s efforts and tried to help her out, but it was almost a lost cause.
The guys talked business; well, most of the guys talked business. Bennie hung on the edge of everything and, if he talked to anyone, it was most likely to be Mark. Nikki assumed that was because neither of them lived in Louisville. Tony, Vic, and Bart had the most in common, and at least Freddie also lived in Louisville and knew a lot of the same people, so they had more to talk about.
When dinner was over and some of the family members were enjoying coffee, Tony stood. “I have something to announce.” He motioned to Nikki. “Babe, would you join me here please?” Nikki stood awkwardly and moved to his spot at the table, wondering what he was up to. He put one arm around her waist.
“I’d like to let everyone know that as of tomorrow, Nikki will be a full-time employee of Walters Construction. I’ll be working her into the position of chief operations officer. She’s a very quick learner, and I don’t expect it to take her very long before she’s making herself invaluable to the company.” Nikki had noticed a swarm of servers buzzing around, and she realized it was champagne they were carrying. They served everyone, and Tony raised his glass. “A toast to my lovely girlfriend and newest coworker. Baby, may this be the most perfect job you weren’t really looking for.”
“Congratulazioni e buona fortuna!” Vic called out, laughing. Nikki was truly surprised. She’d expected someone to make some kind of snide comment about how it would never work, but no one said anything unwelcoming. She glanced over at Raffaella, who gave her a small smile and nodded. Even Molly kept her mouth shut. Nikki didn’t really know what to make of it, and she hoped no one noticed she wasn’t smiling, because she sure didn’t feel like smiling.
As the champagne started flowing, everyone was laughing and talking, and Nikki excused herself to go to the restroom. She went into a stall and sat. There, in the quiet, she took a deep breath and tried to get her mind to still, but she was almost dizzy from the way her thoughts were racing. She finished, flushed, and came out of the stall, only to find Raffaella sitting in one of the chairs in the lounge area of the restroom. Nikki washed her hands, then walked over to where Raffaella was sitting, curious as to what the older woman wanted. “Please, sit,” Raffaella directed, sweeping her hand toward an empty chair. Nikki sat and waited.
After a minute, Raffaella started hesitantly. “I suppose you wonder why I would come to speak to you in here, but I have no other place. Too many family members around, and I must speak now.” If she was looking for Nikki’s full attention, she’d gotten it.
“I have four daughters-in-law. They are all lovely women; well, most of them. Molly can be, how you say, trying sometimes.” That was sure an understatement. “I must be blunt. Through the years, I have tried in vain to find the qualities in these women that must be present for one of them to become the matriarch of this family. But none of them possess those qualities. You, however, have them all – strong sense of loyalty and family, bravery, intelligence, compassion, and resourcefulness. And more than that, you love my son and his children – this is plain to see.” Raffaella took a deep breath. “Nikki, I wish for you to begin to think like la matriarca of this family, to do for this family what I would do, to be what I would be. I am not getting any younger. You have the ability to hold it, hold them, together when things get difficult.”
Nikki was taken aback. “Oh, Raffaella, I feel so honored, but . . .”
“Then it is settled. I trust your judgment to do or say whatever you need to. And I am sorry it could not wait until a more private setting, but I felt the need to move this forward.” Raffaella leaned over and patted the younger woman on the hand. “You are the best thing that has happened to our family in many years. Your love for my son and my family has put my mind at ease, and your character is above r
eproach. I am sorry our relationship started with such a painful test, but it had to be so. I apologize if I hurt you, but I think you can understand my original concern, which I now realize was totally unfounded. If I can ever help you in any way, please come to me.” She rose and, without another word, walked out the restroom door.
Nikki sat and blinked. What had just happened? She stood to go back to the table, but her feet felt like lead. When she got back to the group, Tony took one look at her and helped her get into her seat. “Are you okay?” he asked in a whisper. “You look like you’ve just seen a train wreck.”
“I feel like I’ve been in one,” was all she could manage to whisper back.
“Night, Vic. See you in the morning,” Nikki called down the hallway as she closed the door to the master bedroom. Tony was already in bed, sitting quietly propped against the headboard, pillows everywhere. Neither said anything as Nikki went into the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth.
Finished, she came out into the bedroom and crawled under the sheets, then reached to turn out the light on her side of the bed. Everyone was settled, dogs and cousin. Mark, Victoria, Bennie, and Caroline were back at the big house, getting a good night’s sleep before heading home the next day. The house was finally quiet – really, really quiet.
Tony made no move to touch Nikki or to lie down, just sat with his light on, her back to him. After what seemed like forever, he said quietly, “Please, say something. Anything. Get mad at me. But please don’t shut me out.”
Nikki rolled to her back and let out a loud sigh. “I’m not shutting you out. I’m just exhausted and I really don’t know what to think. I spent the latter part of this day getting railroaded by everybody in my cone of influence until I feel like I’ve got tire treads up the middle of my face.” There – that pretty much described her feelings to perfection. “I was hoping to talk to you this evening, but I really don’t think I’m up to a heavy-duty discussion right now.”