Nikki and Gina sat down with Stefania immediately to find a school for her to attend, since her old school was now an hour away. They narrowed down the choices and allowed Stefania to choose, with the only requirement being a private school. Nikki’s choice was the top private school in the state -- The Lawrenceville School -- but Stefania ultimately selected Notre Dame High School in nearby Lawrenceville.
Otherwise, Nikki and Stefania spent a significant amount of time getting reacquainted. Daniel was awkward around her at first, but they were receptive to each other. Nikki taught Stefania how to put the proper amount of makeup on, and the teenager toned down her skimpy clothing since making the move. Nikki was, however, a bit stunned with the amount Stefania had begun to smoke. She had become a pack-a-day smoker before moving and it stabilized now that she had a regular supply of cigarettes.
The first two weeks of the new arrangement went swimmingly and Stefania enjoyed her new school. She even announced that she wanted to tryout for the basketball team, which took Nikki aback at first, but she liked the idea and agreed to it. For Nikki’s part, she decided to forgo late nights at the club and all of the things that went with it.
In the middle of November, Stefania’s 15th birthday approached and Nikki asked her what she wanted to do to celebrate. The response was simple: she wanted to have an adult dinner with Nikki and Gina. They agreed to her request and decided to take her to Pacelli’s, which they had turned into one of the nicest Italian restaurants in town.
Nikki opted for a tight purple dress that went to the middle of her thighs, along with her knee-high black leather boots with a stiletto heel and her typical gold jewelry -- three necklaces, bangle bracelets and her large Rolex. She decided to keep her hair curly, but made a poof in the front.
After getting dressed, Nikki walked down the hall to Stefania’s bedroom to find her wearing a short miniskirt that wasn’t quite elegant enough for the restaurant. When she saw the teen standing in her room, Nikki smiled and chuckled, “Oh, honey. You need to come with me.”
Stefania followed Nikki to her own room and into her walk-in closet. The latter reached in and pulled out a navy blue dress that would fit Stefania and told her to put it on. Nikki also found Stefania a pair of black six-inch stiletto heels before exiting the room and walking downstairs, where she found her mother sitting on the couch in a black dress, smoking a cigarette.
Nikki found her cigarettes on the counter in the kitchen and lit one just as Jasmine walked in the door. She handed her bodyguard the keys to the Mercedes SUV to heat up and then walked to the stairs and called to Stefania that it was time to leave.
Gina put on a black leather coat like Nikki’s, except with ties around the waist that she let dangle. Meanwhile, Nikki went to the closet to grab her black leather coat -- like her blazer -- except it went to the top of her knees and slung it over her shoulders, cigarette dangling from her lips. Stefania finally came downstairs, looking elegant -- more like 25 than 15 -- in her borrowed dress, accentuated with a black leather motorcycle jacket.
Nikki smiled and said, “Now that looks way better.” The leather clad trio then exited the house, with Nikki telling Gina to sit in the front seat, nearly-finished cigarette in her mouth as she climbed into the back of the car with Stefania.
As they worked their way through dinner, Gina took a sip of wine and asked Stefania, “So this is the only thing you wanted for your birthday?”
“I wouldn’t mind if you took me shopping this weekend,” Stefania said to Nikki.
“Of course,” Nikki responded. “Is there anything you want?”
“Well I was hoping you would take me to get a tattoo,” she answered sheepishly.
“Why?” Gina asked in shock.
“Both of you have a lot of them,” Stefania answered. “I want to get one of your family tattoos.”
Neither Nikki or Gina responded immediately, both glancing at one another for a brief moment as if the other might have the proper answer written on their foreheads, but Stefania didn’t wait for them to conjure something.
“I know my last name isn’t Perrillo, but I figure it wasn’t mandatory,” Stefania continued. “Jasmine has one, Aunt Christina has one, Al and Erica have them, too.”
“Yeah, they do, honey,” Nikki answered. “But you’re only 15.”
“How old were you when you got your first tattoo?” asked Stefania, clearly hoping to use her own logic against her.
“I was 18 when I got the one on my back,” said Nikki in a matter-of-fact tone. “And Mom wanted to kill me.”
Gina nodded in agreement. “She got the one on her arm a month or two later and I wanted to kill her again,” she chimed in.
“But you have so many now,” Stefania said.
“They grew on me, sweetie,” Gina responded. “But they are permanent and I didn’t just decide I wanted them on a whim.”
“I’ll tell you what,” Nikki finally said. “Take another year to really think about whether or not you really want one. Then, when you are 16 and if you’ve stayed out of trouble and you still want one, we’ll talk about it again.”
“OK,” said Stefania in a defeated tone. Before she could be diverted to a new subject, she quickly posed another question. “Do you want me to wait because you have to be in the mob to have that tattoo?”
Gina nearly choked on her wine, while Nikki almost choked on a mouthful of pasta when the words left her lips. They weren’t concerned the conversation would be overheard as they sat in a private booth in the back corner of the restaurant, but rather that Stefania might ask a question like that.
“Why would you think that?” asked Nikki after swallowing her food properly.
“All of your friends have that tattoo, you have it on shirts and your motorcycle vests,” Stefania said.
“So?” Nikki asked once more. “Why do you think we are in the mob?”
“I don’t think it. I know it,” Stefania said.
As Stefania made her statement, Nikki noticed the waitress walking back to the table out of the corner of her eye. Before the waitress could come within earshot of the conversation, Nikki held up her left index finger -- causing her Rolex to slide down her forearm -- motioning that they needed a moment of privacy.
“How do you know that?” Gina asked quietly.
“I know what my dad does,” Stefania said in disgust. “It’s not exactly a secret. Kids in school used to ask me about or they would say things all the time.”
“So why does that mean I am too?” Nikki asked.
“Because of your tattoos, the logo being on everything, you’re really rich even though you’re really young,” Stefania answered. “Plus people just treat you differently when we go places and you always have a gun.”
Nikki and Gina once again waited to answer the question, almost hoping Stefania would let the two women on either side of her in the corner booth change the subject.
“First of all, Mom isn’t in the mob,” Nikki said after a deep breath. “Second of all, does it bother you if I am?”
“No,” Stefania said. “I want to be part of the family.”
“Babe, you’re too young,” Nikki said as she put her right arm around the teenager’s shoulder. “I want you worry about making new friends, having fun at your new school and to keep getting good grades so you can make a bunch of money with your college degree.”
“What if I still want to join after college?” Stefania asked.
“I can’t stop you from making your own decisions when you’re an adult,” Nikki said. “But don’t go through life thinking that’s what you have to do.”
Nikki’s final response ended the uncomfortable portion of dinner and the rest of the night was much more lighthearted. Through the remainder of dinner, they talked about new friends and her new school, along with her teammates on the basketball team.
When they arrived home for the night and Stefania went to bed, another uncomfortable conversation was on the horizon -- this time with an actual mother and daughter rather than a de facto mother and daughter.
Nikki walked down her basement office -- still wearing her dress and jewelry from dinner -- to relax with a glass of vodka and a cigar before going to bed herself. She reached into the humidor and pulled out a long cuban cigar, cut the end and sparked it up. Nikki dangled the large cigar in her mouth as she poured her drink and then sat down on the couch and turned on the television.
As Nikki was flipping through channels in search of something entertaining to watch, Gina entered the room -- wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants -- and sat down next to her daughter on the couch, clearly with something heavy weighing on her mind.
“That was some dinner,” Gina said.
“Why do you think I’m down here?” Nikki laughed, pausing for a moment to puff on her cigar. “Are you worried about her questions?”
“I’m not worried about the tattoo question -- if she was going to get one, she would’ve just done it,” Ginai said. “I’m not too worried about the other one right now, but it worries me that she’s starting to think about it.”
“So what are we going to do?” Nikki asked.
“Well, I think you have to be more careful now,” Gina said. “You should think about taking a step back.”
“What?” Nikki said with a surprised look on her face. “You want me to give it all up? I just really started to get things going.”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” Gina answered. “I’m saying you should step back. Between school and Stefania, you have a full plate. Let someone else take care of things that don’t require your input.”
“I don’t know,” Nikki said, taking another drag.
“She’s your top priority now,” Gina reminded her. “Stefania comes first.”
Nikki finished her vodka and stood up, walking over the to the counter to set down the glass. Instead of returning to the couch, she began to pace around the room. The now half-smoked cigar was still between her left index and middle fingers and the stiletto heels of her black leather boots clacked on the floor as she walked back and forth.
“I know she’s most important,” Nikki said. “But not being around all the time is risky. That’s how people start to steal money and edge out the boss.”
“Well I keep your books, so you don’t have to worry about one of them,” Gina answered. “And if you can’t trust one of those girls, do you really want to be around them anyway?”
“That’s a good point,” said Nikki, as she took another puff on her cigar. She paused for a moment as attempted to think about what she wanted to do and then made her decision.
The next day, Nikki went to visit Al at Pacelli’s during her lunch break and informed her that she would be spending less time at the club. Nikki decided she would come in a couple nights per week, but she wouldn’t be in daily and she wanted Al to handle daily operations.
“Between Stefania and school, I just don’t have the time,” Nikki said. “I have enough credits to graduate early in the spring, so in May, I’ll be back here full-time, but I need you to make sure things go smoothly for now.”
“Done,” Al said assuringly.
“Good,” Nikki answered. “You know enough to make most of the decisions, but I’ll still make big picture decisions and we’ll meet a couple times a week to talk about what’s going on.”
Al agreed to Nikki and was quite pleased that she was being entrusted with such responsibility by her best friend. She also told Al that Erica would manage Perrillo’s day-to-day since Al already had her own restaurant to worry about.
Before leaving, Nikki looked at Al -- wearing jeans and long-sleeved Perrillo shirt -- and said, “If you’re going to be in charge, you gotta start dressing like it.”
“I don’t really know how to start,” Al said.
“I’m taking Stef shopping on Saturday,” Nikki told her. “Come with us.”
“OK,” Al said with a smile.
____________________________________________________________________________
Nikki, Stefania and Al decided to drive into Manhattan on Saturday morning. Since Al came along, Jasmine was given the day off. Not only was Nikki helping Al find a new wardrobe, but Stefania also wanted a new outfit for Thanksgiving, which would be spent with Daniel’s parents.
Once they got into the city and parked, they exited the car and walked down the sidewalk to decide which store to try first. Nikki -- wearing a tight white long-sleeved shirt, tucked into a pair of red slacks, tied together with a thick black leather belt and her black leather high-heeled boots underneath, along with her gold jewelry and black leather blazer -- still had a half-smoke Marlboro in her left hand when Stefania opted to pop into Saks. Al hung back with Nikki, making giving her a few last-minute tips.
“Now, I ain’t buyin’ any dresses,” Al informed her.
“OK, tomboy,” Nikki laughed from behind a pair of full-shield designer sunglasses as she took one last drag on her cigarette and flicked it into the street, exhaling a jet of smoke before entering the store.
Nikki knew Al’s style preferences so she already had some ideas in her mind, but while Al wasn’t fat, she was tall and muscular so it could be hard to find clothes that fit. She was able to find some tops and business blazers that Al could still wear with jeans and her cowboy boots, along with a new business suit that pleased her best friend.
Surprisingly, it was not Al’s purchases that raised eyebrows for Nikki, but instead it was Stefania’s. She had moved away from the short skirts, but had increasing desire to dress like a stereotypical Italian-American princess, or like Nikki. She purchased a few tight, form-fitting dresses, along with some new gold hoop earrings and a thick gold necklace with a crucifix.
When they went into GUESS, Stefania pointed to a watch she wanted to buy, but Nikki decided to treat her to something special for her birthday. She grabbed her hand and guided her out of the store to a Rolex boutique down the street. There, Nikki purchased a new gold Rolex -- not with a thick band like hers, but a thinner one -- for Stefania, who was stunned. The former beamed as Stefania excited had it fitted to her liking.
____________________________________________________________________________
On Thanksgiving, Nikki and Stefania were to join Daniel’s family, meanwhile Gina had reached out to her sons and decided to attend Thanksgiving dinner with one of them in the city. This would be the first holiday Nikki spent with Stefania without Esposito, but she was excited. Nikki rose early to prepare a dish of stuffed shells to bring to dinner, while Al, Erica and Greta were also due to come over to discuss the week’s business dealings.
Nikki was already dressed when the three women arrived to talk. The met for an hour in her basement office, until she felt adequately briefed. After seeing them out, Nikki -- wearing a tight black long-sleeved shirt that accentuated her breasts, a black leather skirt that fell four inches above her knees and black leather knee-high boots with a four-inch stiletto heel, gold jewelry and her curly hair in a ponytail -- went upstairs to make sure Stefania was almost done getting ready.
When Nikki entered Stefania’s room, she found the teenager brushing her straight blonde hair and putting it into a side ponytail. When she saw Nikki, she immediately smiled and said in a teasing fashion, “Why were your friends here? Were you talking about important mob stuff?!”
Nikki’s response was a roll of the eyes and waltzed back downstairs. Finally, Stefania came downstairs in a tight maroon dress, a dark brown leather motorcycle jacket and dark brown knee-high riding boots, accentuated with her new large gold hoop earrings, her gold necklace and her new Rolex fitting loosely around her wrist. Nikki put on her black leather dress coat and full-shield sunglasses before heading to the car.
Just before pulling out of the garage, Nikki cracked the driver’s side window of her Mercedes SUV and lit a cigarette, letting it dangle in the center of her lips as she backed out. As they rounded the corner, she heard a flick and the passenger window roll down and Stefania exhaling.
“You better stop smoking if you want to be a basketball star,” Nikki teased.
“I’m young,” Stefania reasoned. “I think I can handle it.”
“Does your coach know?” Nikki asked.
“No,” Stefania responded, taking another drag on her Newport. “Neither do the other girls.”
“Why don’t the other girls?” Nikki questioned.
“None of them talk about it and they are all into sports,” Stefania answered. “So I just figured none of them smoke.”
“Don’t be afraid to be yourself, babe,” Nikki said reassuringly.
When they arrived at the Jensen house, Daniel came out to help the girls with their food. Nikki greeted Thomas and Susan with a hug and introduced Stefania to them for the first time. Meanwhile, Nikki met Susan’s sister Patti and her husband Jim for the first time, along with their three children, including a Julie, who was Stefania’s age.
Thomas, Jim and Daniel’s younger brother Shawn retreated to the living room to watch the traditional NFL games on television. Daniel joined them, but Nikki knew he was simply going with the rest of the men and had little interest in sports.
Nikki enjoyed watching football and it sometimes disappointed her that Daniel didn’t, but abstained for the day because she knew her thoughts would be consumed with how bets placed with her employees were doing. Instead she remained in the kitchen with Susan and Patti, while Stefania went with the kids to the basement.
With the dinner cooking, the three women were finally able to have a legitimate conversation, and of course, the first question lobbed in Nikki’s direction was regarding Stefania.
“So how are things going with her?” Susan asked.
“Oh my god, it’s so great,” Nikki exclaimed, leaning against the kitchen counter. “I never thought I would want to have kids, but she’s starting to change my mind.”
“Trust me, babies are much different than the older ones,” Susan laughed. “They don’t talk back, but you are awake all the time and you’re only clean once a day.”
“It’d be a shame to ruin those designer clothes,” Patti remarked.
Nikki thought the comment was a bit backhanded, but opted not to act as if it was and laughed it off for the sake of continuing the conversation. After about nearly a half an hour of talking with the women, it was time for a cigarette break. Nikki excused herself and grabbed her leather coat from the closet. Stefania happened to be exiting the bathroom at the same time and decided to join her.
The two leather-clad women stepped onto the back patio and into the brisk November afternoon air. They were visible from the kitchen, and while Susan was immune to Nikki’s frequent smoke breaks, she and her sister were taken aback to see her cupping her hands and bringing the flame to the tip of a cigarette in the 15-year-old lips of Stefania.
When Nikki came back inside and returned to the kitchen, Patti made another snide remark aimed at her, this time it wasn’t even subtle.
“Are you really comfortable letting her smoke?” Susan asked.
“Of course,” Nikki responded. “She’s going to smoke anyway, so she might as well do it in front of me. Her father attempted to cut her off after we broke up and it turned into a mess.”
“I guess that’s what happens when kids get to do whatever they want and then get some discipline,” said Patti, who was then immediately pinched by Susan, who was mortified at the comment.
Nikki was boiling inside, but remained undaunted on the exterior. Instead of retaliating, she simply smiled and said, “It was a little more complicated than that.”
“Children tend to be complicated, dear,” Patti said.
The second condescending comment would have sent Nikki into a rage, and she wanted to sock Patti with every fiber in her body, but again she decided to take the high road. Had Stefania not been in the house, Nikki likely would have decked this woman judging her without taking the time to get to know her, but having Stefania in her life had changed her. Instead the response was, “Well, I have a lot to learn from you, Patti.”
Nikki made a point to sit as far from Patti as possible at the dinner table and the meal went off without a hitch. After dinner ended, Nikki excused herself and grabbed her leather coat to step outside for another cigarette, once again with Stefania in toe.
When she returned, Nikki washed her hands in the kitchen sink and began to help Susan with dessert. As Susan went into the dining room with the first round of pies, Patti waltzed back into the kitchen with the empty dish of stuffed shells.
“I guess your dish was quite a hit,” Patti said. “I’m surprised there was no meat in it, were there enough dead animals in your closet?”
The comment was obviously directed at the amount of leather Nikki was wearing and this time she had enough. They were the only people in the kitchen, so she stepped towards Daniel’s aunt and whispered forcefully.
“Patti, I don’t know why you don’t like me,” Nikki began. “And I don’t care anymore, because you don’t even know me. But if you make another snide comment, I’m going to knock you the fuck out. Got it?”
Patti was taken aback, but she certainly got the point. Nikki resumed her dessert duties and attempted to carry on as if nothing happened. With everyone stuffed to the gills following dessert, Daniel and Nikki offered to do the dishes. As they were scrubbing, Daniel could sense that his girlfriend was angry about something.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Your goddamn aunt is a bitch,” Nikki responded curtly.
“Oh, she doesn’t mean anything by it,” said Daniel with a wave of his hand to brush it off.
Nikki stopped what she was doing and attempted to burn a hole through Daniel with the fury in her eyes. Instead she pointed to the patio and he knew it was best to follow her.
She stepped outside and lit another cigarette, sucking as hard as possible to calm her nerves so as not to blow up. Nikki looked over her shoulder to make sure nobody was looking and then she turned her attention to Daniel.
“Your aunt has done nothing but belittle me since we got here,” Nikki snapped. “I don’t know why she doesn’t like me, but I’ve had enough of that bitch speaking down to me.”
Nikki took another drag on her cigarette, dangling it from her lips in the process as she put on her form-fitting leather gloves to mask the cold night air.
“I’m not sure what you want me to do about it,” Daniel exclaimed. “That’s just the way it is.”
As soon as the words left his lips, Daniel wanted to reel them back in like a fish, but it was too late. Nikki was now furious with him as well. “That’s just the way it is?”
“Listen buddy,” she continued. “You need to step up and be a man. I’m supposed to be your girl, so you better step up and defend me when someone fucks with me or I’m not going to be your girl for much longer.”
Daniel could only get out an “OK” before Nikki exhaled a large stream of smoke and picked up where she left off pre-drag.
“The only reason the bitch’s head isn’t split open on the floor is because Stefania is here,” she ranted, jamming her leather-covered index finger into his chest. “You have no idea how bad I want to drop her. But now I have to deal with your bullshit too? It’s bad enough you don’t stand up for yourself, but you better start sticking up for me.”
Luckily for Daniel, Nikki had Patti terrified and there wasn’t another rude comment the rest of the night. When they finally left for the evening, Nikki was still angry and smoking profusely on the ride home. After her third consecutive cigarette, Stefania tried to break the silence.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“Listen Stef,” Nikki started. “Don’t ever let anyone put you down without a damn good reason. You always have to stand up for yourself because nobody will do it for you.”
Those were words that would become a common theme between Nikki and Stefania in the future, but for now they rang hollow in the ears of the teenager, who thought her mother figure was just upset.
Otherwise, Nikki and Stefania spent a significant amount of time getting reacquainted. Daniel was awkward around her at first, but they were receptive to each other. Nikki taught Stefania how to put the proper amount of makeup on, and the teenager toned down her skimpy clothing since making the move. Nikki was, however, a bit stunned with the amount Stefania had begun to smoke. She had become a pack-a-day smoker before moving and it stabilized now that she had a regular supply of cigarettes.
The first two weeks of the new arrangement went swimmingly and Stefania enjoyed her new school. She even announced that she wanted to tryout for the basketball team, which took Nikki aback at first, but she liked the idea and agreed to it. For Nikki’s part, she decided to forgo late nights at the club and all of the things that went with it.
In the middle of November, Stefania’s 15th birthday approached and Nikki asked her what she wanted to do to celebrate. The response was simple: she wanted to have an adult dinner with Nikki and Gina. They agreed to her request and decided to take her to Pacelli’s, which they had turned into one of the nicest Italian restaurants in town.
Nikki opted for a tight purple dress that went to the middle of her thighs, along with her knee-high black leather boots with a stiletto heel and her typical gold jewelry -- three necklaces, bangle bracelets and her large Rolex. She decided to keep her hair curly, but made a poof in the front.
After getting dressed, Nikki walked down the hall to Stefania’s bedroom to find her wearing a short miniskirt that wasn’t quite elegant enough for the restaurant. When she saw the teen standing in her room, Nikki smiled and chuckled, “Oh, honey. You need to come with me.”
Stefania followed Nikki to her own room and into her walk-in closet. The latter reached in and pulled out a navy blue dress that would fit Stefania and told her to put it on. Nikki also found Stefania a pair of black six-inch stiletto heels before exiting the room and walking downstairs, where she found her mother sitting on the couch in a black dress, smoking a cigarette.
Nikki found her cigarettes on the counter in the kitchen and lit one just as Jasmine walked in the door. She handed her bodyguard the keys to the Mercedes SUV to heat up and then walked to the stairs and called to Stefania that it was time to leave.
Gina put on a black leather coat like Nikki’s, except with ties around the waist that she let dangle. Meanwhile, Nikki went to the closet to grab her black leather coat -- like her blazer -- except it went to the top of her knees and slung it over her shoulders, cigarette dangling from her lips. Stefania finally came downstairs, looking elegant -- more like 25 than 15 -- in her borrowed dress, accentuated with a black leather motorcycle jacket.
Nikki smiled and said, “Now that looks way better.” The leather clad trio then exited the house, with Nikki telling Gina to sit in the front seat, nearly-finished cigarette in her mouth as she climbed into the back of the car with Stefania.
As they worked their way through dinner, Gina took a sip of wine and asked Stefania, “So this is the only thing you wanted for your birthday?”
“I wouldn’t mind if you took me shopping this weekend,” Stefania said to Nikki.
“Of course,” Nikki responded. “Is there anything you want?”
“Well I was hoping you would take me to get a tattoo,” she answered sheepishly.
“Why?” Gina asked in shock.
“Both of you have a lot of them,” Stefania answered. “I want to get one of your family tattoos.”
Neither Nikki or Gina responded immediately, both glancing at one another for a brief moment as if the other might have the proper answer written on their foreheads, but Stefania didn’t wait for them to conjure something.
“I know my last name isn’t Perrillo, but I figure it wasn’t mandatory,” Stefania continued. “Jasmine has one, Aunt Christina has one, Al and Erica have them, too.”
“Yeah, they do, honey,” Nikki answered. “But you’re only 15.”
“How old were you when you got your first tattoo?” asked Stefania, clearly hoping to use her own logic against her.
“I was 18 when I got the one on my back,” said Nikki in a matter-of-fact tone. “And Mom wanted to kill me.”
Gina nodded in agreement. “She got the one on her arm a month or two later and I wanted to kill her again,” she chimed in.
“But you have so many now,” Stefania said.
“They grew on me, sweetie,” Gina responded. “But they are permanent and I didn’t just decide I wanted them on a whim.”
“I’ll tell you what,” Nikki finally said. “Take another year to really think about whether or not you really want one. Then, when you are 16 and if you’ve stayed out of trouble and you still want one, we’ll talk about it again.”
“OK,” said Stefania in a defeated tone. Before she could be diverted to a new subject, she quickly posed another question. “Do you want me to wait because you have to be in the mob to have that tattoo?”
Gina nearly choked on her wine, while Nikki almost choked on a mouthful of pasta when the words left her lips. They weren’t concerned the conversation would be overheard as they sat in a private booth in the back corner of the restaurant, but rather that Stefania might ask a question like that.
“Why would you think that?” asked Nikki after swallowing her food properly.
“All of your friends have that tattoo, you have it on shirts and your motorcycle vests,” Stefania said.
“So?” Nikki asked once more. “Why do you think we are in the mob?”
“I don’t think it. I know it,” Stefania said.
As Stefania made her statement, Nikki noticed the waitress walking back to the table out of the corner of her eye. Before the waitress could come within earshot of the conversation, Nikki held up her left index finger -- causing her Rolex to slide down her forearm -- motioning that they needed a moment of privacy.
“How do you know that?” Gina asked quietly.
“I know what my dad does,” Stefania said in disgust. “It’s not exactly a secret. Kids in school used to ask me about or they would say things all the time.”
“So why does that mean I am too?” Nikki asked.
“Because of your tattoos, the logo being on everything, you’re really rich even though you’re really young,” Stefania answered. “Plus people just treat you differently when we go places and you always have a gun.”
Nikki and Gina once again waited to answer the question, almost hoping Stefania would let the two women on either side of her in the corner booth change the subject.
“First of all, Mom isn’t in the mob,” Nikki said after a deep breath. “Second of all, does it bother you if I am?”
“No,” Stefania said. “I want to be part of the family.”
“Babe, you’re too young,” Nikki said as she put her right arm around the teenager’s shoulder. “I want you worry about making new friends, having fun at your new school and to keep getting good grades so you can make a bunch of money with your college degree.”
“What if I still want to join after college?” Stefania asked.
“I can’t stop you from making your own decisions when you’re an adult,” Nikki said. “But don’t go through life thinking that’s what you have to do.”
Nikki’s final response ended the uncomfortable portion of dinner and the rest of the night was much more lighthearted. Through the remainder of dinner, they talked about new friends and her new school, along with her teammates on the basketball team.
When they arrived home for the night and Stefania went to bed, another uncomfortable conversation was on the horizon -- this time with an actual mother and daughter rather than a de facto mother and daughter.
Nikki walked down her basement office -- still wearing her dress and jewelry from dinner -- to relax with a glass of vodka and a cigar before going to bed herself. She reached into the humidor and pulled out a long cuban cigar, cut the end and sparked it up. Nikki dangled the large cigar in her mouth as she poured her drink and then sat down on the couch and turned on the television.
As Nikki was flipping through channels in search of something entertaining to watch, Gina entered the room -- wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants -- and sat down next to her daughter on the couch, clearly with something heavy weighing on her mind.
“That was some dinner,” Gina said.
“Why do you think I’m down here?” Nikki laughed, pausing for a moment to puff on her cigar. “Are you worried about her questions?”
“I’m not worried about the tattoo question -- if she was going to get one, she would’ve just done it,” Ginai said. “I’m not too worried about the other one right now, but it worries me that she’s starting to think about it.”
“So what are we going to do?” Nikki asked.
“Well, I think you have to be more careful now,” Gina said. “You should think about taking a step back.”
“What?” Nikki said with a surprised look on her face. “You want me to give it all up? I just really started to get things going.”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” Gina answered. “I’m saying you should step back. Between school and Stefania, you have a full plate. Let someone else take care of things that don’t require your input.”
“I don’t know,” Nikki said, taking another drag.
“She’s your top priority now,” Gina reminded her. “Stefania comes first.”
Nikki finished her vodka and stood up, walking over the to the counter to set down the glass. Instead of returning to the couch, she began to pace around the room. The now half-smoked cigar was still between her left index and middle fingers and the stiletto heels of her black leather boots clacked on the floor as she walked back and forth.
“I know she’s most important,” Nikki said. “But not being around all the time is risky. That’s how people start to steal money and edge out the boss.”
“Well I keep your books, so you don’t have to worry about one of them,” Gina answered. “And if you can’t trust one of those girls, do you really want to be around them anyway?”
“That’s a good point,” said Nikki, as she took another puff on her cigar. She paused for a moment as attempted to think about what she wanted to do and then made her decision.
The next day, Nikki went to visit Al at Pacelli’s during her lunch break and informed her that she would be spending less time at the club. Nikki decided she would come in a couple nights per week, but she wouldn’t be in daily and she wanted Al to handle daily operations.
“Between Stefania and school, I just don’t have the time,” Nikki said. “I have enough credits to graduate early in the spring, so in May, I’ll be back here full-time, but I need you to make sure things go smoothly for now.”
“Done,” Al said assuringly.
“Good,” Nikki answered. “You know enough to make most of the decisions, but I’ll still make big picture decisions and we’ll meet a couple times a week to talk about what’s going on.”
Al agreed to Nikki and was quite pleased that she was being entrusted with such responsibility by her best friend. She also told Al that Erica would manage Perrillo’s day-to-day since Al already had her own restaurant to worry about.
Before leaving, Nikki looked at Al -- wearing jeans and long-sleeved Perrillo shirt -- and said, “If you’re going to be in charge, you gotta start dressing like it.”
“I don’t really know how to start,” Al said.
“I’m taking Stef shopping on Saturday,” Nikki told her. “Come with us.”
“OK,” Al said with a smile.
____________________________________________________________________________
Nikki, Stefania and Al decided to drive into Manhattan on Saturday morning. Since Al came along, Jasmine was given the day off. Not only was Nikki helping Al find a new wardrobe, but Stefania also wanted a new outfit for Thanksgiving, which would be spent with Daniel’s parents.
Once they got into the city and parked, they exited the car and walked down the sidewalk to decide which store to try first. Nikki -- wearing a tight white long-sleeved shirt, tucked into a pair of red slacks, tied together with a thick black leather belt and her black leather high-heeled boots underneath, along with her gold jewelry and black leather blazer -- still had a half-smoke Marlboro in her left hand when Stefania opted to pop into Saks. Al hung back with Nikki, making giving her a few last-minute tips.
“Now, I ain’t buyin’ any dresses,” Al informed her.
“OK, tomboy,” Nikki laughed from behind a pair of full-shield designer sunglasses as she took one last drag on her cigarette and flicked it into the street, exhaling a jet of smoke before entering the store.
Nikki knew Al’s style preferences so she already had some ideas in her mind, but while Al wasn’t fat, she was tall and muscular so it could be hard to find clothes that fit. She was able to find some tops and business blazers that Al could still wear with jeans and her cowboy boots, along with a new business suit that pleased her best friend.
Surprisingly, it was not Al’s purchases that raised eyebrows for Nikki, but instead it was Stefania’s. She had moved away from the short skirts, but had increasing desire to dress like a stereotypical Italian-American princess, or like Nikki. She purchased a few tight, form-fitting dresses, along with some new gold hoop earrings and a thick gold necklace with a crucifix.
When they went into GUESS, Stefania pointed to a watch she wanted to buy, but Nikki decided to treat her to something special for her birthday. She grabbed her hand and guided her out of the store to a Rolex boutique down the street. There, Nikki purchased a new gold Rolex -- not with a thick band like hers, but a thinner one -- for Stefania, who was stunned. The former beamed as Stefania excited had it fitted to her liking.
____________________________________________________________________________
On Thanksgiving, Nikki and Stefania were to join Daniel’s family, meanwhile Gina had reached out to her sons and decided to attend Thanksgiving dinner with one of them in the city. This would be the first holiday Nikki spent with Stefania without Esposito, but she was excited. Nikki rose early to prepare a dish of stuffed shells to bring to dinner, while Al, Erica and Greta were also due to come over to discuss the week’s business dealings.
Nikki was already dressed when the three women arrived to talk. The met for an hour in her basement office, until she felt adequately briefed. After seeing them out, Nikki -- wearing a tight black long-sleeved shirt that accentuated her breasts, a black leather skirt that fell four inches above her knees and black leather knee-high boots with a four-inch stiletto heel, gold jewelry and her curly hair in a ponytail -- went upstairs to make sure Stefania was almost done getting ready.
When Nikki entered Stefania’s room, she found the teenager brushing her straight blonde hair and putting it into a side ponytail. When she saw Nikki, she immediately smiled and said in a teasing fashion, “Why were your friends here? Were you talking about important mob stuff?!”
Nikki’s response was a roll of the eyes and waltzed back downstairs. Finally, Stefania came downstairs in a tight maroon dress, a dark brown leather motorcycle jacket and dark brown knee-high riding boots, accentuated with her new large gold hoop earrings, her gold necklace and her new Rolex fitting loosely around her wrist. Nikki put on her black leather dress coat and full-shield sunglasses before heading to the car.
Just before pulling out of the garage, Nikki cracked the driver’s side window of her Mercedes SUV and lit a cigarette, letting it dangle in the center of her lips as she backed out. As they rounded the corner, she heard a flick and the passenger window roll down and Stefania exhaling.
“You better stop smoking if you want to be a basketball star,” Nikki teased.
“I’m young,” Stefania reasoned. “I think I can handle it.”
“Does your coach know?” Nikki asked.
“No,” Stefania responded, taking another drag on her Newport. “Neither do the other girls.”
“Why don’t the other girls?” Nikki questioned.
“None of them talk about it and they are all into sports,” Stefania answered. “So I just figured none of them smoke.”
“Don’t be afraid to be yourself, babe,” Nikki said reassuringly.
When they arrived at the Jensen house, Daniel came out to help the girls with their food. Nikki greeted Thomas and Susan with a hug and introduced Stefania to them for the first time. Meanwhile, Nikki met Susan’s sister Patti and her husband Jim for the first time, along with their three children, including a Julie, who was Stefania’s age.
Thomas, Jim and Daniel’s younger brother Shawn retreated to the living room to watch the traditional NFL games on television. Daniel joined them, but Nikki knew he was simply going with the rest of the men and had little interest in sports.
Nikki enjoyed watching football and it sometimes disappointed her that Daniel didn’t, but abstained for the day because she knew her thoughts would be consumed with how bets placed with her employees were doing. Instead she remained in the kitchen with Susan and Patti, while Stefania went with the kids to the basement.
With the dinner cooking, the three women were finally able to have a legitimate conversation, and of course, the first question lobbed in Nikki’s direction was regarding Stefania.
“So how are things going with her?” Susan asked.
“Oh my god, it’s so great,” Nikki exclaimed, leaning against the kitchen counter. “I never thought I would want to have kids, but she’s starting to change my mind.”
“Trust me, babies are much different than the older ones,” Susan laughed. “They don’t talk back, but you are awake all the time and you’re only clean once a day.”
“It’d be a shame to ruin those designer clothes,” Patti remarked.
Nikki thought the comment was a bit backhanded, but opted not to act as if it was and laughed it off for the sake of continuing the conversation. After about nearly a half an hour of talking with the women, it was time for a cigarette break. Nikki excused herself and grabbed her leather coat from the closet. Stefania happened to be exiting the bathroom at the same time and decided to join her.
The two leather-clad women stepped onto the back patio and into the brisk November afternoon air. They were visible from the kitchen, and while Susan was immune to Nikki’s frequent smoke breaks, she and her sister were taken aback to see her cupping her hands and bringing the flame to the tip of a cigarette in the 15-year-old lips of Stefania.
When Nikki came back inside and returned to the kitchen, Patti made another snide remark aimed at her, this time it wasn’t even subtle.
“Are you really comfortable letting her smoke?” Susan asked.
“Of course,” Nikki responded. “She’s going to smoke anyway, so she might as well do it in front of me. Her father attempted to cut her off after we broke up and it turned into a mess.”
“I guess that’s what happens when kids get to do whatever they want and then get some discipline,” said Patti, who was then immediately pinched by Susan, who was mortified at the comment.
Nikki was boiling inside, but remained undaunted on the exterior. Instead of retaliating, she simply smiled and said, “It was a little more complicated than that.”
“Children tend to be complicated, dear,” Patti said.
The second condescending comment would have sent Nikki into a rage, and she wanted to sock Patti with every fiber in her body, but again she decided to take the high road. Had Stefania not been in the house, Nikki likely would have decked this woman judging her without taking the time to get to know her, but having Stefania in her life had changed her. Instead the response was, “Well, I have a lot to learn from you, Patti.”
Nikki made a point to sit as far from Patti as possible at the dinner table and the meal went off without a hitch. After dinner ended, Nikki excused herself and grabbed her leather coat to step outside for another cigarette, once again with Stefania in toe.
When she returned, Nikki washed her hands in the kitchen sink and began to help Susan with dessert. As Susan went into the dining room with the first round of pies, Patti waltzed back into the kitchen with the empty dish of stuffed shells.
“I guess your dish was quite a hit,” Patti said. “I’m surprised there was no meat in it, were there enough dead animals in your closet?”
The comment was obviously directed at the amount of leather Nikki was wearing and this time she had enough. They were the only people in the kitchen, so she stepped towards Daniel’s aunt and whispered forcefully.
“Patti, I don’t know why you don’t like me,” Nikki began. “And I don’t care anymore, because you don’t even know me. But if you make another snide comment, I’m going to knock you the fuck out. Got it?”
Patti was taken aback, but she certainly got the point. Nikki resumed her dessert duties and attempted to carry on as if nothing happened. With everyone stuffed to the gills following dessert, Daniel and Nikki offered to do the dishes. As they were scrubbing, Daniel could sense that his girlfriend was angry about something.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Your goddamn aunt is a bitch,” Nikki responded curtly.
“Oh, she doesn’t mean anything by it,” said Daniel with a wave of his hand to brush it off.
Nikki stopped what she was doing and attempted to burn a hole through Daniel with the fury in her eyes. Instead she pointed to the patio and he knew it was best to follow her.
She stepped outside and lit another cigarette, sucking as hard as possible to calm her nerves so as not to blow up. Nikki looked over her shoulder to make sure nobody was looking and then she turned her attention to Daniel.
“Your aunt has done nothing but belittle me since we got here,” Nikki snapped. “I don’t know why she doesn’t like me, but I’ve had enough of that bitch speaking down to me.”
Nikki took another drag on her cigarette, dangling it from her lips in the process as she put on her form-fitting leather gloves to mask the cold night air.
“I’m not sure what you want me to do about it,” Daniel exclaimed. “That’s just the way it is.”
As soon as the words left his lips, Daniel wanted to reel them back in like a fish, but it was too late. Nikki was now furious with him as well. “That’s just the way it is?”
“Listen buddy,” she continued. “You need to step up and be a man. I’m supposed to be your girl, so you better step up and defend me when someone fucks with me or I’m not going to be your girl for much longer.”
Daniel could only get out an “OK” before Nikki exhaled a large stream of smoke and picked up where she left off pre-drag.
“The only reason the bitch’s head isn’t split open on the floor is because Stefania is here,” she ranted, jamming her leather-covered index finger into his chest. “You have no idea how bad I want to drop her. But now I have to deal with your bullshit too? It’s bad enough you don’t stand up for yourself, but you better start sticking up for me.”
Luckily for Daniel, Nikki had Patti terrified and there wasn’t another rude comment the rest of the night. When they finally left for the evening, Nikki was still angry and smoking profusely on the ride home. After her third consecutive cigarette, Stefania tried to break the silence.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“Listen Stef,” Nikki started. “Don’t ever let anyone put you down without a damn good reason. You always have to stand up for yourself because nobody will do it for you.”
Those were words that would become a common theme between Nikki and Stefania in the future, but for now they rang hollow in the ears of the teenager, who thought her mother figure was just upset.
When is Stefania going to learn how to shoot a gun i wonder?
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