10 Minutes

Back to the Begining

November 27, 2018

The gentle breeze held the smell of the special fragrance that signaled the advent of summer in Istanbul. Her studies were coming to an end and she was thrilled to be able to enjoy this particular summer. She felt lucky to have the job she did and even more so that the man she worked for was basically family. His sister Leyla was married to her older brother. Beautiful and generous with her smiles Leyla had transformed her hard nosed brother into a kitten. She knew Leyla had a brother and yet she had never met him. It was a huge surprise to them all, her getting the job on the spot without anyone realizing the connection to Emre. She hadn't made the known Cans was Leylas brother because Leyla used her mother maiden name at work. She had wanted to prove that she could work in the company her father founded without any special advantage and so when she started working, her coworkers only knew her as another marketing executive trying to make a name for herself. Since then she hadn't changed her last name unless it was for social reason even though by now most people knew who she was as the liaison to her family business with Cans own business-the magazine. He had dreamed it, created it and founded it without the help of anyone and still participated on the board of the family business. When Layla found out that Can had hired her soon to be sister-in-law they all had a great laugh and Sanem felt the job was perfect for her. Now as she stood next to the little antique store she liked to visit when she had a free moment she was grateful for fate or luck or whatever it had been to put her in the right place at the right time.  She giggled to herself remembering that she had raced to get to her interview and cursed up a storm at nearly getting run over by a crazy reckless driver. Only to discover that the crazy driver was the gorgeous man who helped her apply for a position he was himself was hiring for. Can Divit. She never got tired of saying his name. Month by month they had become almost inseparable. The night of her brothers wedding had really started it all. She had basically danced the night away with Can and only him saving a few dances for her brothers and her father/ nobody else got a chance as Can made sure he was always nearby. She recalled how complimentary he had been of her blue velvet dress and how he couldn't seem to keep his eyes of her. She also saw how her brothers watched her throughout the evening and by the time it was nearly over she had received a stern warning from Emre himself. Emre warned her that Can was known as a notorious ladies man and that he had never had a lasting relationship. She had been affronted at his suggestion that their was anything more than that of a boss and employee relationship between them. His words had been pointed however and as the head of the house, essential; since her father remained ill, his words mattered. "Sanem, listen to me. I'm the first to applaud Cans work ethic, work principles and even his gracious and gregarious personality but that doesn't blind me to his past little sister. I'm also not blind deaf or dumb. I've seen how he looks at you and you... well you might as well put a bib on to catch your drool when you look at him". She had been furious. Emre Aydin was a force to be contended with. He had graduated from university at the top of his class. Traveled to England to receive his masters In Business Finance and returned when his father got sick to take care of the family. She had felt bad for him then and promised herself that she would not be a burden on him financially. She had sought scholarships and worked to help her parents pay her tuition in order to relieve Emre of the cost of that as well. He was a good man. Honest and respectable and frankly a wonderful brother but he was tied to the  conservative upbringing and wouldn't sway from it when it came to her. Growing up in the májale as they had, it was ingrained into them and it was hard for him to see it any other way for his only sister. Now as he stood there towering above her with flashing blue eyes, he warned her again. "I have no doubt in my mind that Can Divit likes you, and likes you very much, but that and promising anything more than a passing flirtation is a very different thing. You little sister are worth more than a passing fling so do yourself a favor and keep that pretty head and intelligent mind of yours on the finish line. School, work and home. In that order. Once you have your degree and can be financially independent you will have all the choices in the world to make. Can Divit however isn't one of them."  It had been their very first fight,  right there at his own wedding reception; and she had been embarrassed and humiliated and then doubtful that what Emre had said might actually be true. She didn't want it to color her perception of Can. She knew him to be kind, funny, engaging and so charming. He was intelligent and business savvy but he was also humble, never letting an opportunity to thank or recognize someone for their efforts. The Can that Emre described was not the Can she had grown so fond of. Now as she stood paying the final payment for the item she had been making payments for that past few months she smiled to herself and carried the package out of the store. Can had asked her to meet him at his home to go over some of the details of the magazine layout and to go over the issue launch as well. It wasn't going to be the first time she had gone over but it was usually with a group from the office or with the graphics team. This time it would be just the two of them as it was a Saturday and they were on a crunch to make the deadline. She hailed a cab and soon was on her way with her gift in hand. His birthday was tomorrow and although she knew he would be reticent to celebrate it she felt that each person deserved to be recognized in their special day, even if she was a day early. He was generally uncomfortable when made a fuss over but today it would just be the two of them. When he had left the night before he had made sure to drop her off at home even though she had said it wasn't necessary. They agreed to meet just after lunch and he knew her parents would want her home for that but he promised he would prepare a wonderful evening meal for them. He was almost irresistible as they sat in the car for a few minutes while he reached out and played with a strand of her hair that had gotten loose. He watched her eyes and then moved lower to her lips and looked at her with such intensity she thought she might go up in smoke. She closed her eyes as the taxi drove in and recalled his words