The Body #4: Nico and Cosi

Chapter 7 (Desti): You Got A Problem With That?

Copyright © 2024 by GroveltoHEA

If life had taught me anything, it's that life wasn't fair.

I'd learned that at a young age when my mother had died, and then only months later, my father had married a widow who had just lost her husband. She had a little girl not quite a year younger than I was. Cosi turned out to be a good step-sister, a little too shy and scared, but I learned pretty quickly that meant I could always be center stage with my more forceful personality and she'd be happier in the background. I could also get recognition from our parents for protecting her at school, standing up for her, and after a while, it felt like she was actually my little sister. Cosi was in need of protection and I could provide it.

As we grew up, things were good between us since there was no competition. I was in the spotlight and Cosi was off in the wings where she preferred to be. It wasn't until we were thirteen that we began to lead somewhat separate, independent lives. She was way more into studying than I was, and she was always at some friend's house studying every single day. Why, I had no idea since Body girls didn't need to know more than cooking, cleaning and caring for the inevitable children they'd pop out.

I hung with my friends, and studying didn't even cross our minds. All we talked about was boys, boys and more boys. As we approached our sixteenth birthdays, my friends and I were wild in anticipation of seeing who our fathers would betroth us to. It was all we could talk about. When I tried to talk with Cosi about it, she wasn't interested.

"Your papa will get someone nice for me," she'd shrugged. "No sense thinking about something I can't control. I just hope he's nice."

"How can you be so calm about it?"

Cosi just grinned at me. Rolling my eyes at her, I flopped on her bed.

"It's all I can think about," I told her. "Will he be high-level enough? Will he be hot?"

Cosi tsked-tsked me. "It's more important for him to be nice, Desti."

I laughed at her. "Shows what you know. Maria's older sister got married and she told Maria that sex is crazy good. So I also want a husband who's good in bed."

"You have your list and I have mine," Cosi said.

I loved my little sister, but she could be boring. She didn't do anything but study with her friends, cook and clean. She was always helping her mama out when she was at home.

The day of my sixteenth birthday was beyond exciting. Papa told me he had completed negotiations but he wouldn't tell me who.

"I want you to be surprised, Desti," he'd said.

"Is it Nico Marchetti, Papa?" I'd asked. Nico was hot, big, strong and powerful, and even though he was nowhere near a pretty boy, he had caught my eye the one time I'd run into him. My father slammed his palms down on his desk. 

"Nico's a thug, Desti. Do you really think I'd betroth my only daughter  to a mere thug?"

Oh. I hadn't been aware that Nico was that low in the Body. Of course, Papa wouldn't want me connected to him.

Apparently Papa didn't want me connected to anyone because there hadn't been a betrothal announcement on my birthday. I was confused, but Papa had closed himself off in his office after my party, and I'd hidden away in my secret place on our property. I was trying to figure out how to face the humiliation of no betrothal, and I stayed in my spot way too late, so I had to sneak into my house.

Papa never would discuss what happened; he would only say the negotiation had fallen through at the last minute, but he was working on another one. At school, my friends asked me what had happened, but they weren't too mean. I just had to watch throughout the year as all my friends, one after the other, became betrothed.