Page 53 of My Turkish Fling
“They both look like you. The younger has your eyes,” he said, studying the photo. “What are they like?”
“Alex is eighteen. He’s artistic, easy-going… an extrovert. Josh is only thirteen. He’s a thinker. Very smart. Quiet. Always thinkingof others.” I sighed, looking at the photo. “I miss them so much.”
Emir rubbed my shoulder. “When are they coming to visit?”
“In a couple of weeks.”
“I bet they miss you.”
I smiled. “Alex would never admit it. Josh does. He’s my baby.”
Emir brushed a strand of hair behind my ear, his eyes sad. “I know you can’t leave, but maybe you can visit? Maybe I can come back. We won’t give up hope.”
I nodded, staring at him, hopelessly trying to freeze time.
When I had the muffins rising in the oven, Gru shot towards the door, signaling the arrival of our guests before anyone even knocked on the door. He was such a good boy. What had happened during the break-in? I couldn’t see any signs of harm or injury on him, yet he’d somehow ended up outside. Had my dog been trying to protect the house or just wagged his tail at the criminal?
Judging by his reaction to Aria and Cem, he’d likely drooled from enthusiasm.
“Welcome!” I called from the kitchen as Emir opened the door to his brother holding several paper bags.
“We brought decorations,” Aria announced, placing two more bags on the dining table. “And muffins.”
I gave her a pained grin. “Excuse me but I’m baking muffins!”
Her mouth hung for a second, then stretched into a smile. “We’ll have a muffin tasting! Yours will win and you get a trophy.”
“I can live with that.”
As Cem and Emir unpacked the decorations, Aria met me in the kitchen, peering into my oven. “They smell amazing. So much better than store bought. Store bought are awful.”
“It’s okay,” I assured her, smiling to myself. “How was the premiere?”
Aria let out a long, dreamy sigh. “Incredible. Seeing myself on the big screen in a real film like that… I can’t even describe that feeling. And seeing Cem! He did so well. He’s going to get more English-speaking roles because of that, I know it.”
“What about you? Do you want to do more acting?”
“Yes… and no. I’d do a film like that any day, but I’m not desperate to take any role, you know? I’m happy to wait for a good one.”
“As you should!”
After a moment, she gave me a concerned look. “How are you? The break-in sounds scary! I hope Emir is looking after you.”
All the blood in my body surged into my cheeks. For a moment, I was convinced our sexy times were playing on my forehead like a dirty film cast by a tiny projector. But as I tried to wipe the wildly peculiar expression off my face, I realized she’d only picked up on a vibe. A strong one, though.
“Oh, my God, Janie. Has he… did he… sorry, I’m not sure why my mind’s going down these tracks.” Aria fanned herself, giving me an apologetic look.
“It’s okay. It’s been good to have a man around.” I focused on finding oven mitts, to buy time.
We’d agreed on telling Aria and Cem, but now I felt reluctant to do so. Whatever was happening between us felt too fragile and too important. I was afraid putting it into words would flatten it, making it sound insignificant or cheesy.
Aria looked over my shoulder at Cem and Emir, and her eyes widened. It took me a moment to realize what she was reacting to. It wasn’t Cem pulling turquoise paper ribbon out of a bag, unravelling it as he went. It was Emir, laughing.
Aria turned to me in shock. “What have you done to him?”
I decided to start with the easy one. “I… gave him a massage. Helps with his headache, apparently.”
“He had a headache? It was all a headache?” Her volume rose.
