Let Me Help You, Good Doctor Ch. 04

"Right," Dominique quickly said pulling away from him, "because they would ask questions if we do it in the house?" she nodded.

"Well, knowing my folks, we will be in the pool house because my room is no longer my room."

"Really? They converted your room?"

"Yea, show you how much they love me." He shrugged, closing the back trunk and heading to the door.

She followed behind him and her nose was assaulted by the fresh flowery scent. Dominique gawked at the array of roses arranged in front of the house. His mom must have a real green thumb. He knocked on the door and she could hear the foreign tongue behind the door which made her a little bit nervous.

"Quick! How do I say hello?" she whispered.

"Ciao but for my mom and dad you may want to say Buon pormeriggio." He said.

"Bueno who?" she said as her eyes widen.

"Just say ciao and I will explain it later." He smiled shaking his head and looked back up as the door swung open.

"Ciao fratello." The man said enveloping Nik in a big hug. He must be Rafaela, he looked like a younger version of Nik but shorter.

"Ciao, come siete, grande testa?" Nik smiled and Rafael just shook his head,

"I see you still have jokes." He said. Finally some English, Dominique thought.

"Hey, I have to pick on my little brother." Rafael's eyes shifted to Dominique.

"Who is this? Is this a girl you are bringing home?"

"This is my friend, Dominique."

"Um, ciao." She meekly said and he took her hand.

"Ciao bella. Why don't you come in? I see why mom can't wait to see you." He said making room for the both of them to come in.

Dominique took a look around the house. It reminded her of the pictures that Jade said she wanted to decorate the bed and breakfast that James was working on. She would love this house then. Dominique loved the colors that meshed so well together. She suddenly looked up when she heard chatter coming from the kitchen from four different voices.

"Mamma!" Nik called and all chattering stopped.

Suddenly a beautiful older woman came through the door with a big smile on her face, "Oh, mio bambino!" She said rushing to him and delivering kisses on his cheeks, "Siete cosi bello ma voi sia troppo scarno."

"Mamma." He whined which made Dominique smile harder.

After the mother, three more beautiful girls came out of the kitchen; two of them looking just like his mom. Those must be his sisters, she thought. They all came and hugged Nik, firing off in Italian to him. Rafael stood close by Dominique waiting for the moment.

"I don't know if you ever been around Italian women Dominique, but this is going to be an interesting experience for you. See they pounce on him first because they know about you coming, but wait till he actually acknowledges that you are here." Rafael whispered.

"Should I be afraid?" she smiled looking up at him.

"Definitely." He smiled back and she just chuckled.

"Mamma," Nik finally got out walking towards Dominique, "this is Dominique, my friend."

"Ciao." Dominique meekly waived.

"Ciao, I am Giada, but you can call me Ada. Well, aren't you a beautiful girl that somehow got mixed up with my son?" her voice was as smooth as silk with her accent.

"How did that happen?" one of the raven haired girls responded.

"I guess it was his lucky day." Dominique shrugged.

"Well, I obviously still have to teach my son's some manners for letting you carry your own bag." She said noticing Dominique's hand still on her bag.

"Oh, um, I told him to let me bring it here. I didn't want him to hurt himself carrying my bag and his." She breathed.

"Are you nervous, caro?" Ada asked.

"I maybe a little bit." She smiled.

"Oh don't be. We are just a normal family and you can relax as if we were your family." If you only knew, Dominique thought with a smile, "I should also talk to my son about not teaching you some Italian."

"Mamma, there was no time." Nik sighed.

"Maybe when you were cooking for her, you could have taught her." One of the sisters teased with shorter hair.

Dominique was starting to realize that she like that these women can make him feel so uncomfortable. She looked up at him and saw him shaking his head.

"Figlio, you are not a rock star, you can take the sunglasses off in the house. Now you and Rafael take the bags into the pool house. Dominique is coming in the kitchen with us." She smiled and Dominique saw the smiles on the other three faces. Suddenly she felt like she was being thrown to the wolves.

"Um, am I going to be grilled?" Dominique asked.

"Of course not honey." Ada smiled.

"That means yes." Rafael and Nik chimed.

"Nonsense, come on. You can help us cook for tonight." Dominique nodded with a smile.

"Mamma, where is papa and Gianni?" Nik asked.

"Oh, Papa, Gianni, and Armad went to get some wood for tonight; you know it gets cold out here."

"Yep, it gets cold enough for people to snuggle up with each other." The short hair sister said laughing and Dominique looked back at Nik with pleading eyes before she disappeared into the kitchen.

The more Dominique sat with the ladies and talked, the more she was loosening up to them. She was shocked at how much they opened themselves up to her and how sweet they were. Ada reminded her of Aunt Crystal, so warm and nurturing; the way she always wanted her mom to be. His two sisters reminded her of her brothers: Amadora was the oldest and free spirit that talked about constantly changing her hair and Fiorenza was the youngest that constantly talked about her husband Armad and how happy she was now. The other woman with the dark brown hair was Rafael fiancée, Mika and she reminded her of Katrina. Her and Rafael grew up together and fell in love back in high school. Now they were preparing for a wedding which she still wasn't sure what date to set. Dominique was actually content helping the ladies prepare dinner and learning more embarrassing stories about Nik and the family.

"Was Nik really that big when he was younger?" Dominique asked, helping Mika with vegetables.

"Oh dear, he was a huge little ball." Amadora said, giggling, "He outweighed all the little kids back in school." She laughed with Fiorenza.

"Now don't pick on my little fudge ball." Ada softly said, but instantly quieted the two sisters, "He was a little big for his age, but when he started working out with Gianni, he started to feel a lot better. Nik always thought his siblings looked better than him and he used to be so sad when he was younger, but now he knows he is handsome." She proudly smiled.

Wow, Dominique couldn't really imagine Nik with low self esteem, it was actually kind of refreshing to hear that, "So, Dominique, what do you do?" Fiorenza asked.

"I'm a therapist. I have a small practice back home."

"Oh, so maybe you can figure out what's wrong with our brothers." Amadora said with a smile.

"Hey now, my Rafael is good, he can be a little special at times, but I love him all the same." Mika said with a smile.

"How did you and my Nik meet, Dominique?" Ada asked.

"Well, he is friends with my friend's husband, Scott."

"Oh Scotty, that's a nice looking young man." Amadora said, "His wife is really pretty too. So, what's going on between you and Nik?"

Dominique was actually prepared for this question, "Well, we are just friends. He lives next door to me and we have just been helping each other out."

"Oh, that's it?" Fiorenza asked with a smile. Dominique quickly cleared her throat, "Yes, that's it. He has been a nice guy and a good friend."

"Well, Alfonso and I started out as good friends and you see where I am now. That's the best type of relationship to have is when you start off as friends and grow into something else because that person knows you already and excepts all your faults. It's a wonderful feeling to have your husband as your best friend." Ada said.

"Yes it is." Mika chimed and Dominique just smiled.

How far did they really expect them to go? They were just friends, true she did enjoy kissing him, but they were nothing but friends. After this, Nik would go back to what he usually do and ignore her.

Dominique was just about to say something when Nik, Rafaela, and an older looking version of Nik walked in the door. Wow, he was really good looking for an older man; his hair was covered in gray which only made him look more distinguish. He still had a lean body with muscled arms. That has to be his dad and she could see how they made such beautiful children.

"Il mio amore, you didn't tell me I would have another beautiful woman in my kitchen." He said, kissing Ada on her forehead.

"Blame your son, she is his friend. Dominique, this is my husband Alfonso."

He walked over to her and grabbed her hand to kiss the back of it, "Ciao." Dominique meekly said with a smile.

"Come siete, bella signora?" oh yea he was definitely Nik's dad.

So, that's who he learned his skills from. Nik came and stood next to Dominique as Alfonso went back over to Ada.

"Well Nikky, looks like you found a very lovely woman. You know your mother doesn't let just anybody in her kitchen." Alfonso said with his heavy accent.

"I know papa, but Dominique is a friend of mine." He said and both of his sisters looked at him with a quizzical stare.

"Yes friends. Well, I was friends with Ada before. When we were kids back in Italy, I use to terrorize her and tease her mercilessly. Then one day after I took one of her barrettes out of her and pushed her down on the ground. She got up, smacked me across the face, took back her barrette and walked over me as if nothing happened." Dominique started laughing as Ada nodded her head.

"My grandmother just bought me that barrette so I wasn't going to let him take it." Ada added.

"After that we became friends and then she moved away to the states three years later. When I came to the states, I found her at a dance club and I found out that she was the one; when I danced with her."

"That's so sweet." Dominique smiled, "So, what are you going to do now that you are retiring, sir?"

"Well, after getting past tomorrow, I plan on helping out around the house and possibly taking some trips with my wife. We are thinking about going back to Italy and visit some family."

"That will be nice." Dominique said, "So, what's the plan for tomorrow?"

"Well, the guys decided to hold off the retirement party till Sunday, but we are going to have our anniversary tomorrow night." Ada said, "I just need to confirm some things with the hotel we are having it at and go shopping. Dominique, you should come with us. My friend that owns a dress store has a killer dress that would be perfect for you."

"Really for me? Sure, I would love to come with you."

"Great, I can't wait to go shopping." Ama said going over to rinse off the lettuce.

"Please Ama, something that covers all the important parts up." Alfonso said and Ama just pouted as everyone else laughed.

"So Dominique, you heard about us, what about your family?" Ada asked.

Now that question she wasn't prepared for. Dominique's mouth dropped and she quickly closed it, trying to think in her head what to say.

"So dad, where is Gianni?" Nik interrupted, bringing everyone's attention to him.

"Well, he said he will be back. He had some work that he had to do. You know Gianni is always busy working." Alfonso smiled, shaking his head.

Nik meekly smiled thinking in his head if they only knew what he did. The subject of Dominique's family was dropped as they finished preparing dinner. They ate together at the huge table and sat around afterwards as the men started the fireplaces. Dominique went ahead and called her friends to let them know she made it and she was okay. Before they could ask anything else about her and Nik, she went ahead and made up some excuse about having to go. Things were confusing enough without them confusing her further.

She needed some fresh air and wanted to see more of their house. She marveled at the acres of land they had out in the back. In the center was a small pool house and then behind it was a crystal blue lake. Everything was so plush and green, even when she took a deep inhale, she could smell the various flowers. Wow, his dad picked a great spot when he built this house. A sudden chill came over her and she wrapped her arms around her but felt something being draped over her shoulders. She looked up and saw Nik standing next to her.

"Thanks." She smiled quickly looking away from him.

"No worries; have you gotten tired of everyone hounding over you?" he asked with a smile.

"No, your family is great. Your mom and dad are so cute. I hope that one day I can have something like that."

"I told you, they really inspired me." She nodded, "Well everyone is about to turn in, if you want, you can go ahead and go the pool house."

"Okay, it's so nice out here. How did you not fall in love with being here?"

"I did. That little swing over there." He pointed to a small swing in front of the lake, "I built that with my dad. I use to come out here and relax, especially after the days some of the kids would pick on me. It helped out a bit."

"I thought you were going to say that you brought your dates out here."

"Remember, you are the first girl that I brought to my house. Besides, something about sharing that moment with someone else, that's sacred to me." Dominique smiled as she looked up at Nik staring at the lake.

She couldn't explain why, but she wanted to kiss him again. She admits the kissing thing was getting out of hand but at this point she didn't mind or care. She just urgently wanted to feel his lips. Her hand touched his forearm, lightly tugging him to face her. His green eyes stared back into hers as they darkened. It was nice to know that he felt the same way. She was about to kiss him, when the glass door slide open. They both turned at the intruder that had a smile on his hard face.

"Well, well, Nikky. I had to see it to believe." He said.

Dominique instantly notices the tension in Nik's arm and she knew who he was, "Hello Gianni." Nik responded.

"Long time, no see and this must be the lovely lady that I heard about. Dominique right?" he said taking her hand, "You brought home a cute one I see." He said leering at her and kissing the back of her hand.

"Hello." Dominique smiled, ready to take her hand away.

"Please to meet you." He said staring back at her but didn't let go of her hand.

"Dominique, can you go to the pool house please?" Nik said not taking his eyes off Gianni.

That seemed like a good idea, Dominique thought as she took her hand away and walked over to the pool house, leaving the two giant men alone.

"Got you a cute little blasian girl, I see." Gianni said with a smile.

"What's going on with you Gianni? Still telling mom and dad you doing honest work?"

"Nikky, I told you before, do not judge me on what I do."

"Well I can't help but think it's something you shouldn't be doing in the first place. Do you know how dangerous it is? Then God forbid if something happens to you, what do you expect me to tell mom and dad?"

"That's why I'm getting out." He said softly, but Nik quickly caught it.

Nik closed his mouth finding his voice, "What?"

"I'm getting out. I can't do this anymore." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and Nik relaxed a bit, "I'm 35 years old, never been married, seen and done some things that you never believe and in the end I have nothing to show for it. Hell, Fiorenza is married, Rafaela is getting married, and even you brought home someone. I know it shouldn't be long till Amadora says she is getting married to that artist dude she has been dating. Me? I have nothing."

"When did you tell them you are getting out?"

"It was a week ago. I have been setting up some place to go. I need to get away from here, so I won't have the past come back for me."

"Come back home with me. My friends Scott and James are there and it's very relaxing and not only that but I have the police force behind me."

"I don't know man."

"That's where Scott met Katrina and that's where I met Dominique." Nik hinted.

"Oh, so they got women that look like that over there? Well, maybe I should come and check it out." He said with a smile and Nik laughed, "But, I am going to need your help baby brother if I do. Just get me a place and a job."

"You got it."

"Well, I will let you get back to your girl." Gianni smiled.

"She's just my friend." Nik reminded, Gianni looked back at him and chuckled, "Yea, right." He said going back into the house.

Nik shook his head and headed over to the pool house. His body was worn out and tired so he was ready to hit the sheets. He went into the bedroom and saw Dominique sitting at the edge of the bed with that same satin short robe and her hair down around her face. Damn she looked so cute sitting there waiting on him, at least he can dream she is waiting on him.

"Are you okay?" she asked staring back at him.

"Yea, he told me is getting out."

"That's great." She smiled.

"I know, it just seems a little unreal after so long."

"Um, they didn't mention that this has just one bed." She chuckled and he shook his head.

"Yea," he said scratching the back of his head, "if it makes you feel comfortable I can sleep on the couch out there and you can take the bed." He said hoping that she wouldn't take that deal.

"Nik, we are two adults. I think we can handle sleeping in the same bed together." She said before she could stop herself. She has been having a lot of slips of the tongue around him lately.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yea, I'm sure. Like I said we can handle it." She smiled standing up from bed and untying her robe.

Nik went and grabbed his pajama pants and caught a glimpse of Dominique sliding the robe down her shoulders revealing the satin light blue camisole top with matching shorts. Now, he wasn't sure if he can handle it. He took a deep inhale and went into the bathroom to get all his hormones together.

Dominique snuggled in bed bundling the covers around her. If she had known that they were going to be sharing a bed, she would have packed more appropriate night wear. She sighed to herself as he came out of the bathroom baring his hard chiseled chest. Dominique wanted to pull the covers over her head so he wouldn't catch her staring. She turned on her side with the covers pulled up to her neck. She felt the bed dip and some of the covers being pulled away from her. She took a deep inhale feeling his body heat. Okay, you can do this, she tried to calm her body down

"Dominique, thanks again for coming." She heard him say.

"Oh, no problem. I'm happy I came." She quickly said, "Good night."

"Night." She heard him mutter and then the room was cast into darkness. She finally relaxed a little and felt her eye lids get heavy as she fell into slumber.

The next morning, Dominique felt so warm, but something was poking her bottom. She backed into it, trying to see if she could push it out of the bed, but no matter how much she pushed it didn't budge. She wasn't sure what it was, but it was thick.

"Dominique, if you don't want something to happen this morning, I suggest you stop backing into me." She heard Nik mutter and she instantly sat up.

"Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry." She repeated looking over at him.

"It's no problem Dominique, just be a little careful." He smiled.

She ran her fingers through her hair and laid back down, "Is there a specific time that your family gets up for breakfast? It seems like your family would have breakfast together."

"We do, it's usually around nine, which means, and you have an extra hour to spare."

"Oh no, I have to get up and go jogging or something." She said about to get out of bed and Nik quickly pulled her back in.