In Which Nicola Successfully Negotiates a Rent Reduction

Diane, and in particular Liam, were left open mouthed and astonished as a naked Nicola stormed past them and stomped down the stairs towards the front door.

"Nicola, I'm not sure it's a good idea for you to talk to him like that!" Diane cautioned.

"Screw that, it will probably catch the old letch off guard!" Nicola shouted back over her shoulder, knowing full well how her landlord looked at her if she was showing so much as an inch of cleavage, even when she was fully dressed.

All of a sudden, her modesty wasn't important to her. Or maybe it was, somewhere in the back of her mind where a small voice was screaming out not to do this, but her overriding urge was to give her landlord a piece of her mind and nothing was going to stop her.

She opened the front door to reveal a visibly stunned Tommy, who seemed to instantly forget whatever it was he was planning to say and was frozen on the doorstep, looking at Nicola with a glazed expression.

"Well don't just stand there gawping at me! Have you never seen a naked woman before? Come in so I can shut the front door, that breeze is quite harsh on my skin without any clothes on"

Still unable to form words, Tommy obediently followed Nicola into the front room where she continued to admonish him in front of her disbelieving housemates.

"Now what's this - eyes up here, buddy - what's this shit you are trying to pull with a fifteen per cent rent hike? I only just found out about it. I was actually trying to rest in bed because I wasn't feeling well and now you've made me come all the way down here without even having a chance to get dressed to deal with your crap. Are you happy now?!"

"I'm s-sorry it's just that..." Tommy stammered, totally blindsided by this.

"We have rights as your tenants you know, and don't think I won't fight for them - naked if I have to. You've seen the lengths I'm willing to go to to get my way, do you really want to take me on? You are trying to put our rent up but haven't done any of the basic repairs we keep asking you for. If anything you should be paying us to live in this shithole. Or at least drop the rent by fifteen per cent"

"Y-you can't be serious?"

"Do I look like I'm joking to you?" Nicola demanded to know as she tapped her foot impatiently "We want a fifteen per cent reduction. I'd say that is more than fair"

It really wasn't, Tommy wanted to argue back, but could barely think straight.

"Maybe I could give you five per cent?"

Liam and Diane gave each other a look of astonishment. Had Nicola really managed to negotiate a rent reduction? A five per cent raise would have been a great result from where they had started.

"I said fifteen per cent" she continued to jab her finger angrily at Tommy.

"Um, uh..." Their landlord was usually a very assertive guy, but seemed to have totally lost that ability just now "Ten per cent?"

Diane and Liam gasped at each other again.

"Would you prefer I make it twenty?" Nicola continued to argue.

Tommy looked at her again. It was like she was superpowered when she was nude. He just couldn't say no to anything she asked for.

"Fine, I'll give you a fifteen per cent reduction for the next twelve months"

Liam and Diane instinctively high fived each other.

"And you'll send someone over about the repairs tomorrow?"

"Sure, whatever you say"

"Then we have a deal" Nicola extended her hand and shook a shell shocked looking Tommy's "I want you to text me that now so I have it in writing"

Nicola stood over her landlord with her hands on her bare hips as he did as he was told, finding himself completely unable to protest.

"Good" Nicola nodded once she had received the text "Now can you leave us to quietly enjoy the property we're paying you for? I have a job interview tomorrow and I don't need this nonsense!"

A shamefaced Tommy nodded and left. Once he was gone, Liam and Diane both broke into applause.

"Holy shit Nicky, you really kicked ass there!" Liam enthused.

"Negotiating naked was a stroke of genius" Diane added with a chuckle "He was too horny to know what he was doing. Honestly, I think you could have got him to pay us to live here if you had really wanted"

With the compulsion to stand up for herself now faded and her mind returning to normal, an unfortunate realisation suddenly hit Nicola. She was standing stark naked in her front room in front of her housemates, having just completely exposed herself to her landlord.

"Oh God, I'm totally in the buff!" she squealed, before running back upstairs and locking herself in her bedroom.

"She's crazier than I thought, but I'm starting to really like her" Diane smirked.