21. Nina
Nina
E lodie and Aria keep shooting me concerned looks while we sit around a table on Aria’s private jet. Looks I conveniently ignore.
“You’re going to have to tell us eventually what happened,” Aria says.
“No, I really don’t,” I say.
“Nina,” Elodie says seriously. “We’re worried and need to know what’s going on.”
I sigh and close my eyes. “I’m not ready to talk about it right now.”
“Did Evren hurt you?” Elodie asks.
“What?” My eyes pop open. “No, he didn’t do anything.”
“Then how did the presentation go?” Aria asks casually.
I wince, and they both zero in on my expression.
“It was bad?” Elodie asks, surprised. “Glam Pop is stupid if they can’t recognize your talent.”
“I don’t know what they think of my designs.”
“What do you mean?” Aria asks.
“I left before I could give the presentation.”
“And why the fuck would you do that?” Elodie asks.
“I’m not ready to talk about it. Let’s wait until we’re with Stella.”
After that, I pretend to sleep so that I don’t have to talk anymore. Eventually I must fall asleep for real, because I jolt awake when we land.
A car whisks us from the airport and to the city. I’ve never been to Europe before and Berlin doesn’t disappoint. It’s a mixture of sleek and old all at the same time.
“Where are we?” I ask as we walk up to a neoclassical apartment building complete with security, a doorman, and a sleek lobby.
“Mitte,” Aria says. “It’s where Berlin began in the twelfth century. In my opinion, it’s the best part of the city. Come, Stella’s already at the apartment.”
We enter an elevator where Aria swipes a card on a keypad before pressing the button for the top floor. When the doors open, I suck in a sharp breath. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that Aria is a billionaire, but not in moments like now.
The apartment is gorgeous. Floor-to-ceiling windows that make it light and airy, showcasing the elegance and luxury of it all. Gold fixtures, an open living room and kitchen, a terrace that has what I’m sure are the best views of the city. It’s more than impressive.
“Ahhhh,” Stella screeches when we enter and immediately hugs us. “I thought you were coming tomorrow. This is the best surprise ever!”
Stella’s six feet tall, with gorgeous, long blonde hair, an athletic body, and a beauty and personality that made people nickname her America’s Sweetheart.
She and Elodie are identical twins, but only a few people know that.
Elodie’s hair hides her features to keep it that way or else they could both end up in trouble if the truth got out that Elodie took over Stella’s life while she recovered from heart surgery.
“I’ve missed you so much,” Elodie says, holding Stella tight.
“Same, I’ve missed you all.” Stella and Elodie finally let go of each other and we all migrate to the couch.
Stella pours us each a glass of champagne and lifts her glass in the air. “To the best girls’ night ever.”
We all drink and then Aria and Elodie stare at me.
“What?” I ask.
“It’s time to tell us,” Aria says and then turns to Stella and says, “Nina’s the reason we came early.”
“What happened?” Stella asks.
I blow out a long breath, trying to buy time. I’ve kept this secret for so long, it’s difficult to even form the words. But at the same time, I’m so tired of keeping it all in.
“I was supposed to give that presentation, right?”
Everyone nods .
“So,” I say, “imagine my surprise when my father, and his son, walked into the meeting.”
“Wait,” Elodie says. “How do you know he was your dad?”
I wince. “I’ve known my entire life. Bonnie made sure of it and blamed me for the fact that he left us before I was born. I’m sorry for lying. It was just too painful to acknowledge that I knew who he was.”
“Then what happened?” Aria asks gently.
“I freaked the fuck out, left the room, and refused to give the presentation.”
“And what did Evren do?” Stella asks.
“He doesn’t know about my connection to Glam Pop, but he tried to help when I shut down. But I couldn’t go through with it, I couldn’t give a presentation in front of my father. So, I left. But right before I left, Evren hinted that he thinks I set him up.”
“Holy shit,” Aria says. “Are you okay?”
“Not really.” I swallow back the building tears.
“I’m so sorry,” Elodie says, hugging me.
“It is what it is.” I shrug, trying to play it off, but my friends won’t have any of that.
“Why would Evren think you set him up?” Aria asks.
“He has a history of people betraying him and wanting his money…”
“Makes sense,” Stella says.
Elodie frowns. “Why?”
“I think,” Aria says, “we’ve all dealt with our fair share of people trying to get their hands on our money. It’s disgusting.”
I hide my wince at the fact that my mother is one of their biggest threats, and they have no idea.
“Did you talk to Evren?” Elodie asks. “Tell him that you obviously didn’t set him up?”
“No, I left before he came home and now we’re here, so…”
“Why would you do that?” Stella asks. “He’s probably thinking the worst-case scenario, and you leaving doesn’t help.”
Oh shit, she’s right. I look more guilty by leaving the fucking country instead of talking to him. “What have I done?” I whisper. “I was shocked after seeing my father and wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“Call him,” Aria says. “Talk it out.”
I take out my phone, and with a shaky finger, I press his contact name. It rings out and then I look at them in confusion. “His phone is always with him…”
“Okay, so he’s ignoring you,” Elodie says. “Or maybe he’s in the shower? Or maybe he’s swimming?”
“Yeah…maybe,” I say. But the one thing I know about him is his schedule, and right now he should be drinking his coffee while eating breakfast.
“Okay, distraction time,” Aria says. “How do we feel about going on a boat tour right now?”
“With alcohol, right?” I ask.
Aria laughs and opens her huge purse, pulling out two bottles of tequila. “Of course. ”
A quick car ride, and we’re guided onto the boat by Kai, Stella’s bodyguard, and four others. A crew welcomes us aboard the long vessel where half is covered, and the other half is open.
We settle into the cushions and take in all the landmarks that I’ve always dreamt about seeing.
Museum Island, the train station, the Reichstag, monuments and palaces and gorgeous bridges that are the definition of picturesque.
For a moment, I forget all about my problems while absorbing the beauty around me.
“There are estimations,” Aria says quietly, “that one-third to one-half of Berlin was destroyed and needing to be rebuilt after the war. I always remind myself of that when I’m here, because you’d never know just by looking at it.”
Elodie and Stella give Aria soft looks and she giggles. “Sorry, I get sentimental when I’m here. It’s one of my favorite cities.”
“It is a special place,” Stella agrees. “All right, ladies, I need an update from everyone. Texts aren’t cutting it.”
“You go first,” Elodie says.
“I’m great,” Stella says. “Just busy with the shows, but it’s so amazing to be back on stage.”
“Is your heart okay?” I ask.
“Yup, I’m all healed. Just still trying to build up my stamina. It’s not on the same level as it was, but I’m managing. What about you, Elodie? What’s new with you?”
“I’ve signed up for a cake-decorating class,” Elodie says, “to learn some new techniques for the bakery. But honestly? Life is a little hard right now. I haven’t been able to find a balance between the bakery and Hunter.
I hope we fall into a better routine soon since I feel like I’m constantly falling short on all fronts, spreading myself too thin. ”
Stella hugs her. “It’s an adjustment period, for sure.”
“Yeah,” Elodie says, leaning into her. “What about you, Aria?”
“Nothing much is going on with me,” she says quickly, too quickly. “Lately, my life is all about the charity events my parents are making me attend. What about you, Nina?” Aria hurries to ask before anyone can question her about what she said. “What’s new?”
“Besides meeting my deadbeat dad? Umm… Evren and I are together. Or at least we were.” I swallow hard at the reminder of my stupidity.
“But things are good, better than good. I’m actually happy.
I never expected to connect with him so much, but he’s been amazing and even has a cute nickname for me in Turkish?—”
“Wait, what’s the nickname he calls you?” Stella asks.
“ Pariltim .”
“What does that mean?” Elodie asks.
“No clue.” I shrug. “I never looked it up.”
Aria whips out her phone and does a search. “OMG, it means my sparkle . How cute is that?”
The girls all ooh and aah over the nickname, and it kills me that it’s so sweet—worse, that I like it even more now that I know what it means .
“And what about working on the apparel line?” Elodie asks. “How was that?”
“Amazing.” I sigh. “My dreams were finally coming true…”
“Why didn’t you ever sell the jacket?” Stella asks.
“Oh. That.” I fidget in my seat. “It didn’t feel right.”
Stella frowns, but Aria cuts in and says, “I really think you should talk to Evren.”
“Yeah, but how?” I ask. “He’s ignoring me.”
“So?” Stella says. “Take my aircraft and go get your man.”
“You don’t mind?” I ask.
“Of course not.”
“Then I’ll take it after your show tonight.”
When I land in Skyrise, Mom calls. It’s almost three a.m., but I answer anyway.
“Niiiiina, baby, why didn’t you answer beforehand? Have you seen? Your website is somehow shut down.”
“I didn’t see that,” I lie. Of course, I was the one to initiate that.
“Is it Stella? Is she behind this? Trying to keep my baby from selling the jacket?”
“I don’t know…”
“We need to hire a lawyer, fight her on this.”
“She’s a billionaire. I feel like we’d lose against her.”
“That’s just what they want you to think,” she says. “I’m sure we can find someone to take our case.”
“I’m not sure…” I hedge. I’m too tired to deal with her right now.
“What if I come for a visit? Help you take care of it all since you seem ssssoo busy that you can’t be bothered.”