He tries to pawn it off on Tiffany

Considering that Nicki and Tiffany had both just scared him within an inch of his life, he figured Tiffany owed him one. "How about you give her the shower," he said. "Since you don't trust me with her anyway, maybe that would be better."

"Ooooh. Is someone feeling sorry for himself?" Tiffany said.

"Well, considering you were just pointing a semi-automatic at me with your finger tightening on the trigger, I think I have good reason to be a bit apprehensive."

"Yeah, I've had a rough day. Sorry."

"Really? I thought your interview with Dan Hughes went really well. He practically confessed to being involved in his wife's death. Now it's just a matter of--"

"Just a matter of whatever the Chief decides it is."

"You got taken off the case?" This was bad news.

"No. I got suspended without pay." That was worse news. No wonder Tiffany had been on a bit of a hair trigger when she'd heard Nicki screaming."

"We'll try to straighten this out," Rick promised.

"I know you'll try. Just like you're trying to help Kat and Usha with their gym."

Which, Rick had to admit, had not been going especially quickly. Had he become a sort of typhoid Mary, his mission of revenge on bio-DNA destroying everyone he came in contact with? It certainly seemed that way.

"Yeah, I get it. But I wasn't the one who killed Olivia."

Tiffany immediately softened. She stroked Rick's cheek. "I know, babe. It's those bio-DNA assholes. They've got the money and the power money buys and they can probably blackmail half the politicians in Texas by threatening to cut their access to bio-DNA or mess with the app. I'm just having a bad day."

"Trust me, I can sympathize with that." He turned to Nicki. "Okay, girl. You ready to take your shower?"

"Can you carry me? I'm not sure I can walk."

If Rick had been asked to walk immediately after a bio-DNA experience, he wouldn't have been sure he could walk, either. So he picked Nicki up and strode to the bathroom. He put her on the toilet, adjusted the water temperature, then picked her up again.

"Still can't stand," she whined.

"Fine." He stepped into the shower with her, letting the water roll over her and over the maintenance-man uniform he still wore.

"You might as well lose that ugly outfit."

He didn't think Nicki was up to attacking him so shortly after her adjustment, so he followed her suggestion, shedding the uniform and stripping down to his boxers. Those he left on... Nicki was looking more like a woman... to the point where being in the shower with her naked was having an effect on his dick. That said, she still looked too young for sex, eighteen or not.

Naturally Nicki reached for his dick. "Ooooh. Is that for me?"