20. Evren
Evren
C ompartmentalizing everything, I push aside my fear that Nina’s somehow working against me, or that Mick is. It’s too much of a coincidence for it to not be planned in some way. I straighten out my suit jacket and paste a smile onto my face when I reenter the room.
“All okay?” Mick asks.
“Of course,” I say, taking note of the similarities between him and Nina. She said she’s never met him, but he has a knowing look on his face, like he recognizes Nina. “My designer is feeling ill, so I’ll be taking over the presentation today.”
“Was that Nina Martin?” Ben asks, glancing at the windows facing the hallway.
“It was.”
“Her designs are epic,” Ben says. “I love what she did for that jacket with your team and Stella. Did she design what you’re about to show us?”
Mick glares at Ben, but Ben doesn’t notice.
“Yes, and I’ll happily show you the designs,” I say, “but I want to take a moment to remind you of the NDA you signed. All information about the designs and the fact that Nina is the designer stays in this room.”
“Of course,” Ben says seriously. See, that’s why I like him. He’s passionate, smart, and young, but also knows when to be more serious.
I pick up the clicker that changes the slides for me and begin the presentation that Nina should be giving.
I show off her designs, the ideas on the dress forms she spent hours on end sewing.
There’s the fit-and-flare dress she originally made me, and pictures of mockups for how it’d look in different colors.
Additionally, she made a green crop top with the logo at the top of the straps and paired it with a short, black skirt.
For summer, she made a white-and-green geometric-patterned long dress.
Lastly, she made a black jumpsuit with white details and the logo around the waist.
“None of the designs are obvious it’s for the Sentinels at first glance,” I say.
“They look like everyday items someone might use or need, and that’s exactly our approach.
We wanted to create something that’s wearable for any woman who wants to look good whether she’s going to a game or having a day out with friends. ”
Ben’s eating up every word I say, but Mick has a sour look on his face .
“I love the idea,” Ben says. “Nina did an amazing job. Right, Dad?”
“I guess.”
Zeki frowns in confusion and I’m right along there with him. There is no “I guess” about it.
“Perhaps you’d like to expand on your comment?” Zeki asks Mick.
“This Nina did an okay job with the designs and approach, but if she’s the designer, then I want more from this deal. I want her to sell that viral jacket, but add our logo on there somewhere and have it run as a special item to announce our partnership.”
“That jacket isn’t part of this discussion,” I say. “It was made for a charity event and has Stella Wilde’s face on it. But I do like your proposal to have a special item designed to announce our partnership.”
“No, Stella has to stay on it,” Mick says.
“Dad,” Ben hisses under his breath, but Mick stands firm in his demand.
“What about ensuring our brands align?” I ask, confused about this turn of events.
“Yeah, yeah, you’ve shown that. Of course you have,” he says almost dismissively. “But I need that jacket to be included in the deal, or else we won’t sponsor you.”
Ben frowns at his dad, but he doesn’t speak up. Mick’s demand is outrageous, and it’s all the confirmation I need that Nina didn’t know about his involvement in Glam Pop. She’s refused to sell the jacket since day one. There’s no way she’d be working with Mick if that’s what he’s after.
“Well,” Zeki says, “that jacket requires Stella’s approval.”
“Then make it happen.” Mick stands and Ben follows suit. “We’ll be in touch.”
They leave in a hurry after that and Zeki and I remain in the room, both of us in shock.
“What the hell just happened?” I ask.
“He wants the jacket?” Zeki frowns. “Why didn’t he say that from the beginning? And where the hell is Nina?”
“I don’t think he wants it,” I say. “I have a feeling he wants it just to hurt Nina. She alluded to the fact that she knew him and that’s why she couldn’t go through with the presentation.” Nina told me that no one knows about her father, and I refuse to break her confidence now.
“Shit.” Zeki rubs his temples. “Since when did this become a clusterfuck? I thought we had it in the bag.”
“Me, too.” I stand and collect my things. “I need to get home, to find out what’s going on with Nina.”
“All right, call me later and keep me updated.” Zeki meets my gaze. “We’ll figure it out.”
“I hope so.”
I rush up the stairs to Nina’s room, propelled by an urgency I don’t understand. The house is silent, too silent. Normally, there’s always some sort of indication that Nina is around. Whether it’s her music playing, or a sewing machine whirring, or the smell of paint.
But not now.
I knock on her door, but she doesn’t answer. I knock again, louder, and still nothing. Turning the handle, I open it fully, expecting to find her in bed, but she’s not here.
I check the entire house, and nothing.
She’s gone.
Worried, I call her, but her phone goes straight to voicemail. Nina already ran from me, from the meeting, but now she’s left the house? I run back to her room and whip open her closet door. At least her clothes are still here. But where the hell is she?
I call Hunter.
“Hey,” he answers, “I?—”
“Do you know where Nina is?”
“Yes, why?”
“Is she safe?”
“I hope so. She’s with Elodie and Aria. They went to Berlin to surprise Stella. I don’t think they were supposed to leave for another day, but I guess they decided to go early.”
“Shit,” I murmur. She left? Without an explanation? Without even caring how that’d make me feel? A tornado of anger and hurt spins inside me.
“Is everything okay?” Hunter asks.
“Yeah, of course. I got to go.” I hang up, not wanting Hunter to ask more questions. Calling Zeki, he answers on the first ring.
“Nina left,” I say without preamble.
“She did what now?” he asks incredulously.
“She left the country with her friends.”
“Without saying anything? That doesn’t seem like her.”
“Well, maybe we didn’t know her at all.” And that’s the painful part of all this.
I get that seeing her father would be shocking, and why she had to go home.
But why would she run from me? I thought we had more trust than that, that we were stronger than this.
I want to believe the age difference between us doesn’t matter, but maybe it does—because instead of facing it together, she bolted at the first sign of trouble.
Maybe she’s not ready for what I thought we were building.
“I would recommend,” Zeki says, “you reserve judgment until you hear her side of the story.”
“If I ever hear it. She…left.” The weight of it hits me again, and I can’t stop the tremor in my voice. Just saying it out loud feels like reopening the wound.
“I know.” Zeki sighs. “I’m coming over with a bottle of raki and we can come up with a game plan.”
“I’m not in the mood.”
“Since when aren’t you in the mood to discuss work?” Zeki asks, surprise lacing his voice.
“Since now, I guess.”
“Well then, we’ll drink a bottle of raki, eat good food, and watch shitty movies. ”
“Now that, I can do.”
When Zeki hangs up, I go to the pool house to find Nate. He looks up from the screens when I enter.
“Everything okay?” he asks.
“Do you have any update on the repairs on my house?”
“Yes, everything is going according to plan, but we’re still a month out, if not more.”
Shit. If she doesn’t want to be with me, I’ll have to move somewhere temporarily while the repairs finish.
I mutter my thanks and head for the kitchen to wait for Zeki.
On the dining room table, something catches my eye—a folded piece of paper.
I quickly read the note from Nina, noticing the ink smudged in random places, as if she was crying while writing it.
A rush of relief sweeps over me. At least she wrote and didn’t leave without a goodbye.
But even with the note in hand, there’s still a weight in my chest, an emptiness.
I don’t know where we stand, or what’s even wrong.
It kills me to think that she doesn’t trust me enough to tell me what’s happening.
With a sigh, I send her a message asking her to call me when she lands.