Page 18 of Pomegranates and Olive

"And I'm never going to lay eyes on him again." Slapping my head lightly I mumble under my breath. "Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!"

Ginny watches me silently while I chastise myself before leaning in conspicuously. "Tell me you've still got your panties on."

"Panties? Seriously?" I slide my sunglasses over my eyes and shrug nonchalantly. "I'll never tell."

"Well you've finally gone and shocked me."

"Then it was worth it." I throw myself into her arms again for another hug. "Are we going?"

"Not quite. I'm just waiting on Aydin's cousin, Deniz. He was also on your flight."

"Oh? I wish I'd known. We could have flown over together."

"It was all very last minute. Aydin needs an extra hand and Deniz was coming next month anyway for the olive harvest so it all works out well." Ginny nudges me with her foot for good measure. "Anyway, you don't need another gorgeous man lusting after you, and trust me, if you saw this guy, you'd definitely remember him."

"Was he the one that was with the ex-wife?"

"Yep, but let's talk about it later. He's here."

I plaster a smile on my face, ready to meet Aydin's cousin. "Yilmaz!" I gasp, as my eyes lock with the slate-grey eyes of the man I had sexually assaulted less than an hour earlier.

Ginger's eyes dart back and forth between me and Deniz several times as realisation sweeps over her. "This isn't the least bit awkward."

"What a small world!" His intense gaze was almost sensual as it held mine. Blood rushed to my cheeks at his arrogant grin. "Hello, Russo."

I point at him in defeat. "It's Yilmaz."

"Thought you said you didn't know his name."

"And I thought destiny had finished playing pranks on me."

"Still not destiny, Russo."

"You're right." I glare at them both. "It's rotten luck."

"I was going to hang this on a wall at home but —" Yilmaz pulls my white, lacy, bra out of his backpack and hands it to me with a smirk. "— I think we both got a little lucky, didn't we?"

"You just can't help being disgusting, can you?"

"I'm just really enjoying myself."

"It looks like you both enjoyed yourselves." Ginger snorts as she grabs the bra out of my hand and stuffs it in her handbag. "But can we put a pause on this for now. I think we should probably get a move on because you two are really making a spectacle of yourselves. Kill each other or bonk each other, I'll go along with whatever you decide, but either way it's probably best not to do it in such a public place."

I sat beside Ginger in the front seat of her tiny, white car knowing that Deniz's eyes were burning into the back of my head. I could feel them penetrating my skin, sending shards of heat from my head down to certain other body parts. All against my will, of course.

Conversation was stilted, by me at least, while Ginger and Deniz caught up. It seems he has been travelling for the past few months. This is the first time he has seen Ginger since she left Istanbul last year.

"You look beautiful,askim."

"Tesekkürler, Abi."

"Türkçen çok iyi!"

"My Turkish is actuallyterriblebut I want to be able totryand help Aydin. He's been run off his feet."

"That's why I'm here."

I refuse to acknowledge the conversation and instead fix my gaze firmly out the window and at the Turkish countryside which was giving off a rather pinkish glow in the early morning sunshine.

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