Page 39 of My Turkish Fling
I staggered away as Emir stepped in front of Len, towering over him. “You should stay away from her, for your own good.”
“Who is this guy?” Len demanded as I retreated around my car and slipped behind the wheel. “Janie?”
I was too mortified to answer, and so angry I immediately decided to leave Emir behind to make his own way back. But he was quicker, catching the door handle as I released the handbrake, sliding into my moving car as I reversed and turned to get out of the tight parking spot.
My face burned as I sped down the road, tears streaming down my face. “Emir!” I screamed at him. “What the fuck was that?!”
“I’m sorry.” His voice came out so strained I barely heard it. “I’m sorry.”
“What are you? An ape? Who does that?”
“I’m sorry, Janie. But you were too nice. You were encouraging him. He would have kept calling.”
“So what? You don’t think I can turn him down if I want to? I don’t need some prehistoric idiot with an underdeveloped frontal cortex protecting me! I’m not yours. You don’t get to do that. Do you understand?”
He didn’t reply, but from the corner of my eye, I saw him nod. In the light of the passing streetlights, I noticed his eyes glisten, and felt a weight on my chest. What was he doing to me?
“Even if we were together, I’d hate that caveman shit,” I added, but my voice had lost its edge and came out more sad than angry.
“I don’t know why I… I’m sorry, Janie. I just couldn’t take it. I don’t want this guy around you.”
“He was perfectly pleasant and respectful and behaved a whole lot better than you. So, tell me, what is wrong with him?”
Emir looked out the window, his voice distant. “Nothing.”
“So, you just don’t want any man around me?”
“Stop the car, Janie.”
Despite the rage shaking my body, I found myself slowing down and pulling over on the side of the road. We were just outside of town, with no more streetlights. Was he going to get out and slam the door? I waited; my muscles seized in a full-body cramp. As much as he riled me, I didn’t want him to leave me alone.
“Now what?” I asked when he didn’t move.
In the dark, I could barely see his face. After a moment, I noticed the crescent moon and my eyes adjusted to its low light, making out his features. The moonlight reflected off his eyes, begging me to keep watch.
He blinked, staring ahead, mouth a straight line.
“I want to be someone else. Someone who could take a chance on this… whatever is happening between us. But I’m not. I thought I’d someday get back to dating, but not like this. Not here. Not—”
“With someone like me? I’m older than you, Emir. Is that aproblem? My kids are grown. You must be looking for someone younger, to start a family with.”
That was it. I could never have him, for real. The only thing I could imagine was a fling, and even that might not be in the cards.
His shook his head slightly, looking at his hands. “I never saw myself with a family. Even my mom knows that. She’s pinned her hopes on Cem. But I’ve been burned before, and it’s hard to take the leap when you know how much the crash-landing hurts.”
I reached for his hand. His fingers curled around mine. “What happened?”
We sat in silence for a long time. When I’d all but given up hope, Emir spoke. “I was engaged to be married. Her name was Hande. She was beautiful, talented. An actress. I met her on set when visiting Cem. I should have known. She played a minor role on his show. I thought she loved me for me, but it turned out she was in love with my brother. I was the consolation prize. I mean, it makes sense. He’s the movie star. I’m the brother who looks a bit like him. I only wish I’d found out earlier, before I proposed, and we got the families involved. We were only a week away from the wedding when I found the photos. She had an entire folder of Cem on her phone. Every fucking angle.”
I held my breath. “How did you find them?”
“She’d been acting a bit odd. Everyone told me it was the wedding jitters or something, but then Burcu, my brother’s co-star, came to see me. She said she’d noticed something on set, told me to look through Hande’s phone. I didn’t want to. I said I trusted her. But Burcu insisted. So, I did it, to prove her wrong.And that’s when I found them.”
“So, you confronted Hande?”
“She confessed immediately, like she’d been holding it in and was relieved to finally tell me. She’d been in love with Cem for years. That’s why she’d taken the role on my brother’s show and of course it killed her to watch Cem and Burcu become an item.”
“How did she manage to hide it? You must have spent a lot of time together. I don’t think I could ever do that. I struggled with keeping it together for one date.”
