Ceylan Ela Aslan was pretending I didn’t exist. Two hours had passed since our confrontation, yet she hadn’t glanced my way even for a second.
I had hurt her badly. But after all this time, I’d hoped we would have moved past it. I hadn’t been in a good place then.
Not that I was making excuses for my behavior, but nine years was a very long time to hold a grudge against someone. Note to self: never cross Ceylan.
Making peace with her wasn’t going to be easy. That had been my thought the moment Baris suggested this reunion.
It was understandable that he would want his best friend and sister to be on good terms, especially now when he wanted us to work together.
“You’ve been gawking at her all evening.”
“I wouldn’t call it gawking. It’s occasionally looking.”
Max’s brow lifted. “Okay. Maybe it’s a little more than occasionally.”
He nodded in agreement.
“You’ve never told me why she is mad at you? And don’t give me the same explanation you gave Baris. Ceylan’s reaction indicates there is more.”
I sighed in resignation.
“There is.” My eyes found Baris in the crowd. He was standing a few steps away from us, talking with a businessman I recognized as the owner of a medical device company.
“But this isn’t the right place to talk about it.”
“I take it it’s something you wouldn’t want Baris to know.”
“Yeah, the dude would kill me.”
At the front of the ballroom, a man escorted Dacey up the stage. Seeing his father being prepped with a microphone, Baris broke free and went ahead to join Ruya and Ceylan.
“Good evening.” The crowd fell silent and all the conversations stopped.
“On behalf of my family and every employee of Aslan Consolidated, I would like to thank everyone for joining us to celebrate our company’s twentieth anniversary. We wouldn’t know what to do with all this food and drink.”
Laughter filled the room.
He went on to narrate how he moved his family from Turkey and how he built his company from the ground up here. He took pride in his success.
Who wouldn’t after all the achievements he’d made? At every step, he didn’t fail to point out he couldn’t have done all this without the support of his family.
A wave of sadness washed over me, thinking of all the things the accident, ten years ago, had taken from me. I embraced the emotions.
Therapy, after many years of trying to lock everything inside, had taught me that.
I wanted to have what Dacey Aslan had. I was going to build Chase Hotels to his level of greatness.
And then I would build myself a family. After all, what was the point of having an empire if there was no one to inherit it?
But it would be a while before the latter happened. For months now, Chase Grand, the heart of Chase Hotels, had been incurring losses.
Despite all my efforts, nothing I did was working, and the board breathing down my neck wasn’t making the situation easier.
I wished this weekend wouldn’t end. There was no part of me looking forward to the board meeting on Monday.
“Now to the most important part of my speech. I’d like to call my family up here.”
The three were standing around a table less than ten feet from the stage, so they didn’t take long.
Once they had formed a line at his side, Dacey carried on, “I’ve worked tirelessly in the company for twenty years, and before that, I was working in Harika Hudut, my father’s company, for even longer. I feel it’s time to take a permanent break.”
Murmurs filled the room.
“You would all agree I’m getting a little old and that it’s time for the younger generation. So as of today, my children will be taking over. My eldest, Baris, as the CEO, and my beautiful girl as the COO of Aslan Consolidated.”
“Baris just became richer than us,” I pointed out to Max.
“Wasn’t he always?”
“I was always richer. I still am. The dude is being handed everything by his father.”
“I seem to remember you inherited everything from your parents.”
True, but I’d built hotels twice the number my parents left me with.
“Technically I’m the richest. Everything I have, I built on my own.”
“You seem to forget my money was used to start your tech company.”
He faked realization on his face. “Now I get why you don’t want me to pay you back. You want to keep bragging about it.”
I smirked. “Took you long enough.”
He chuckled.
When Dacey had come to the end of his speech, he let his wife step into the spotlight.
Ruya only had a few words to say. Then it was Ceylan’s turn.
My memories of Ceylan were very different from the woman I saw now.
And because she rarely had a picture of herself on socials, all I knew was the shy and silent lean nineteen-year-old.
That was to be expected. I too wasn’t anymore the twenty-three-year-old who didn’t care about anyone’s feelings if it meant he could ease his own pain.
This Ceylan was bold and confident, with curves in all the right places.
If I’d thought her irresistible then, I had no idea what to call her now.
I’d screwed things up and Ceylan would never be mine. All I wanted now was her forgiveness.
Ceylan wasn’t just beautiful; she had brains too.
One year in Turkey and she’d single-handedly turned Harika Hudut around.
I had no doubt she would do wonders at Aslan Consolidated. Their father was leaving the company in good hands.
Her speech affirmed it too.
The Aslan family stepped off the stage after Baris had spoken.
Max and I took a casual stroll toward them.
With several people hovering around him, it took a while before we had the new CEO to ourselves.
“Congratulations, man,” I pulled him into a hug.
He’d been waiting for this moment his whole life, and I couldn’t be happier for him.
“Nice speech, by the way,” Max added, giving him another congratulatory hug.
“Totally CEO worthy.”
He beamed. “Thank you.”
My eyes searched for the lady of the hour, who was now wrapped in her father’s arm.
“Dacey Aslan laughs?! I didn’t even know he was the smiling type.”
The man always wore an “all business” face, and it could be intimidating to anyone who didn’t know him.
Baris glanced in that direction. “If anyone can get him to laugh, it’s his princess.”
If I didn’t know my friend better, I would say he was jealous.
But Baris had long ago given up on having the kind of relationship Ceylan had with their father.
“Aren’t you going to congratulate her? We agreed you would make peace.”
I shook my head.
“I don’t think this is the right place.”
“Now is the right moment. You know we are racing against time.”
I nodded.
“Right. I’ll go talk to her.”
I sucked in a deep breath before marching toward her.
If my business was doing well, I wouldn’t be risking embarrassment in front of Manhattan’s elite group.
“Mr. Aslan.”
I stretched out my arm for him.
“Congratulations on your retirement.”
He glanced at it for a while.
Just when I thought I would have to lower my hand, he took it.
“I didn’t know Baris was bringing his little friends.”
“I’m surprised Liam is still here. I thought he was asked to leave.”
“I decided to stay a little longer because I want to talk to you, Ceylan. Can I please have a moment of your time?”
He nodded.
When he was out of earshot, I parted my lips to begin the small speech I’d rehearsed earlier, but she cut me short.
“I’m not interested in what you have to say, so don’t waste your breath.”
“I want us to make peace.”
“Make peace?” she snickered.
“I hate you, Liam. And do you know what happens to the kind of hate I feel for you?”
I wanted to say no, but I knew that would piss her off even more.
“It grows, Liam. Never goes down, doesn’t stay the same; it only grows.”
