The Perfect Gift

Ch. 15

Devon and Kourtney stay long enough to finish their slices of pie. They'd stay longer, Kourt points out, if it hadn't been for the mess Ricky had made.

Nini doesn't argue as she eyes the whipped cream in her hair tiredly.

She could have done without Kourt's suggestive wink at the mention of them 'needing to clean up', though.

Alas, as soon as they exchange their goodbyes and she closes the door, she turns to Ricky with an annoyed stare.

She gestures with a hand at her face and her hair. "Thanks for this, by the way," she says tonelessly.

He laughs brightly and leans down to kiss her sticky cheek. "You're welcome," he shoots back smoothly. He licks his lips. "Hm, you're even tastier than usual," he smirks suggestively as he moves to kiss her on the mouth.

His lips meet her palm instead, with a loud smack.

"Oh, no," she says in a stern voice as she gently pushes his face away. "No kisses for you. Kisses are for good boys." She points at the mess in her dining room. "Help me clean that up and maybe, just maybe, I'll let you kiss me before we go to bed tonight."

He turns around and winces at the mess he made during dessert. "It seemed like a good idea at the time," he mutters.

Nini can't help but chuckle. "C'mon. I'll get some rags and we'll be—"

"It's alright," he interrupts with a shake of his head. "I'll clean it up by myself."

She frowns and looks at him. "Are you sure?" she asks. Her eyes soften as he nods. "I'm not mad, you know," she says honestly.

Ricky smiles at her. "Yeah, it's fine. Why don't you just go take a shower?" He looks at her apologetically and runs his fingers through her mussed up hair. "Sorry for getting carried away," he mumbles guiltily as he tries to untangle some of her hair. His hand pulls away covered with cream and he sucks some of the dessert topping off a knuckle, but the apologetic look in his eyes doesn't go away.

Nini grins a little and shakes her head, making little bits of the whipped topping fall out of her hair. "I'm really not mad," she promises in a gentle voice. "But a shower does sound great," she admits as she looks down and pulls her shirt away from her body, wincing at the way it continued to stick to her.

He nudges her slightly with his elbow. "I'll take care of the dishes, too. Go take your shower," he urges in a soft voice.

She places a sticky hand on his chest and presses up onto her toes to peck him lightly on the cheek. "Thanks, baby," she murmurs gratefully as she pulls back with a grin.

Nini leaves her bathroom after her quick shower to find Ricky sitting on her couch, checking his phone. She makes her way quietly into the living room.

He hears her light footsteps across her carpeted floor and looks up at her with an upwards quirk of his lips. "Hey," he calls lightly as he places his phone on the coffee table.

She grins and moves to stand in front of him. She holds up a comb. "Do you mind?" she asks hopefully.

"Just don't ask me to braid your hair," he says warningly as he takes it from her. He makes room for her and leans comfortably into the corner, where the arm of the couch meets the back. His long legs take up a good portion of the seats as well. He gestures for her to make herself comfortable.

She laughs and settles in between his legs with her knees pulled up. "I think combing it will be fine," she murmurs as she rests her chin on a knee. She closes her eyes as Ricky begins to comb gently through her wet hair. "Remember to start from the bottom and work your way up," she says absently.