Power Over Me

Early 2023

“It’s so good to finally have my baby girl back in L.A!” My dad exclaims as we are hanging out poolside. “It’s nice to have you and Nicolette here. I miss having both of you close by.”

“Is Tommy Lee going soft?” I smirk before taking a swig of my beer. “Never thought I’d see the day.”

“Hey, I loved you and you brothers.” He reminds me. “I was just constantly on tour…”

“Or in jail for beating the fuck out of one of your wives?” I add, causing him to glare at me. “I know you loved us, you just had a funny way of showing it over the years. It’s nice to see you truly love a human being.” I motion to the little girl that has him wrapped around his finger.

“So are you gonna talk about it?” HE asks, causing me to give him a confused look. “Something is up, Nikkole. You swore off coming to L.A. But here you are, looking for a home in L.A. What’s wrong? Everything okay with you and Doug?”

“Not exactly.” I sigh, biting my lower lip. “We’re kinda separated.” My dad gasps, causing me to roll my eyes. “Covid killed more than just people. I think us being stuck in the same apartment during lockdown kinda killed the romance. We fought constantly.”

He moves closer to me, pulling me into a hug. “Does Nikki know?”

I groan, knowing damn well if my godfather knew that Doug and I weren’t together, the Brit would be dead. “No and you’re not gonna tell him either. I remember the first breakup. Nikki seriously wanted to kill Doug.”

“Are you guys separated or divorced?” He asks. “And how is Nicolette handling it?”

“Just separated.” I reply. “And Letty is doing great for a 3 year old. Sure she misses Daddy but we video chat every night..”

“Are you moving back to L.A or Nashville?”

“I’m selling my house in Nashville and moving back to L.A…permanently.” I reply, causing my father to frown. “Dad, it’s fine. I think I need to be in L.A. I’ll be closer to you and mom and you guys can finally be in your granddaughter’s life. It sucks but, it’s life. Why did I think my marriage would work? You’ve had 4 wives and mom had 2 husbands. A successful first and only marriage wasn’t gonna be in the cards for me. I should have known that.”

“Nikkole…” His voice is full of concern. “He didn’t cheat on you again?”

I feel the tears building up in my eyes. “Why was I never good enough for him? Did we burn too hot and fast and it all just fizzled out whenever things got serious? He’s so happy with her, why couldn’t I make him that happy? Did he just ask me to marry him because I was pregnant?”

My dad just pulls me into a hug, letting me cry into his chest. I need to be in L.A. I need to be with my dad and my friends. Staying in London or even Nashville isn’t an option.

“Need me and Nikki to kill him?”

I pull away, glaring at him. “He’s still Letty’s daddy. He needs to remain alive for the time being.”

“So Princess, what are you gonna do?”

“Write an album and kill him metaphorically.” I chuckle. “I already have a couple songs written, I just need to get into a studio and start recording.”

“Whatever you need, I’ll be there for you.” He smiles at me.

“Nikki Lee is about to enter her villain era.” I smirk. “She’s back…” I say in a sing-song voice.