Loving Emma
Author
Jenny Asp
Reads
122K
Chapters
35
Emma escapes her everyday life and finds herself swept into a love that feels bold, cinematic, and impossible to ignore. When she meets Can, sparks fly fast and fierce, and the world suddenly feels brighter, louder, and full of promise. Their connection is deep, dizzying, and utterly consuming, the kind that changes how you breathe. Then life intervenes, leaving behind unanswered feelings and a love that never truly fades. When their paths cross again, emotions stir, memories resurface, and hearts are tested. Can believes some love stories are worth fighting for, even when the past still hurts. But is love brave enough to begin again when everything is on the line?
Chapter 1
It was her; he was certain. He looked over to Zeki, his new security guy, and said, “That girl over there, with the red hair. Follow her, and whatever the fuck you do, do not lose her. And let me know where she goes.”
“Mr. Can, I’m supposed to be with you. There are not only press here, but there are also about seventy to a hundred people outside wanting to get a piece of you.”
Can thought he would lose his mind. Had it been Emma he saw at the club yesterday? He had thought it had been his mind playing tricks on him again. But maybe it had been her. His insides felt frozen and frantic at the same time.
“Your job is to do whatever the fuck I ask you to. And if you lose that girl, you’ll be unemployed.”
That did the trick. He watched Zeki run to catch up with Veronica.
It had to be her. He was certain. And this was his first lead on Emma in over a year.
Emma.
His heart squeezed at the thought of her. He never let himself think of her in the daylight. The thoughts and memories of her came creeping up on him at nighttime. When it was dark and silent. Over a year, and he could still smell her scent, taste her kisses, and feel her touch.
Jesus Christ, he was going to lose his goddamn mind. Over a year and no word. He hadn’t known if she was dead or alive. She just vanished into thin air.
He could still remember their last conversation before they parted. She hadn’t even allowed him to drive her to the airport. Too much attention. She had held him close, kissed him, and whispered, “Don’t worry, give me a few weeks, and I’ll be back. And we will start our life together.”
It hadn’t been the start of anything. It had been the end. And it had broken him.
Completely.
The not knowing was almost harder to bear than not having her with him. God, he missed her. Would have given anything, sacrificed his soul for another day with her.
For the first time in over a year, he felt hope. And hope was a dangerous thing.
Hope was the enemy of any heartbroken person out there. Because even though it should, it rarely, if ever, left you. It resided in that small part of your soul you didn’t let anyone see. That tiny hope within you was the only thing that kept you alive. But at the same time, it crushed you again and again.
Without mercy.
Once hope was gone—if you ever managed to rid yourself of it—then you could at least have been able to start dealing with the ashes of your burned dreams. That would have been a start. But he had never gotten there. Never been able to fully let go. And now he felt the rekindling of that tiny light inside of him.
That told him things would be okay. There would be a happily ever after, after all. There was no other possible outcome. It couldn’t end like this. Wasn’t supposed to end at all.
Twenty minutes went by before the call came.
“Zeki? Where did she go?”
“Pera Palace, Mr. Can.”
“Was she with someone? A short blonde woman?”
“No, she was by herself.”
“Are you sure?”
“Completely. She walked in on her own five minutes ago and hasn’t come back out.”
“Then stay there. I’ll be right over. If she leaves again, you follow and let me know.”
“I should be there with you.”
“I can handle the press and a few fans. It may take me a bit, but I can handle it on my own. You just stay put and do what I ask. I’ll see you soon.”
With that, he hung up.
Pera Palace. They were back to the place they’d stayed just over a year ago when he had first met her. He would go there and refuse to leave until he saw her. He would demand an explanation.
Something.
And then he would get her back. He didn’t care how he did it, what he had to do.
He could feel the adrenaline pumping through him. He was fucking furious, hurt beyond belief, heartbroken. But strip everything else away, the bottom line was—he just wanted her back.
FOURTEEN MONTHS AGO
Emma was getting more frustrated by the minute. They’d been standing by the baggage carousel for over twenty minutes, and so far, Veronica’s bag was nowhere in sight. “Why did you have to check a bag for a five-night trip? Why couldn’t you just have listened to me and done a carry-on?”
Veronica gave her that mischievous look she always had on when she was about to get snarky. “Because I have more style than you, and I couldn’t possibly fit ten outfits with the accompanying accessories and makeup in a carry-on bag. That’s why.”
“Why do you even need ten outfits? Why couldn’t you have reused a few? Or better yet, you love shopping. You could have brought four and then shopped for a few more here.”
“We’re in Istanbul, Emma. How do I know what kind of stores they have? I might find a lot, or I find nothing at all. It’s better to come prepared for all possibilities.”
“Well, I don’t see why the hell you insisted on Istanbul to begin with. What’s wrong with Paris? Or Rome? At least there we would know what to expect and could have planned accordingly.”
“Exactly. It’s boring. Everyone from London goes there for a long weekend stay. I wanted something different, something edgier. And it was cheap.”
“True.”
“I mean we couldn’t have gone to Paris for five nights and paid ninety pounds per person a night to stay in a five-star hotel. It would have cost an arm and a leg.”
“I know.”
“And it’s cheap and fast to fly here. I mean four hours is nothing, Emma.”
“I know. You don’t have to try and convince me. We are already here. I’m just tired, that’s all. And I wish your goddamn bag would arrive already so we could get out of here.”
All of a sudden, they spotted a pink leopard bag rolling down onto the band. Veronica started to jump from joy. “Oh, look, Emma. Your wish was granted. This is going to be a kick-ass vacation; I just know it.”
Emma wished she shared Veronica’s excitement. But she had a bad feeling. Maybe it was the fact that she was on vacation at all. Work was crazy, and she had a lot of things to do. Well, a lot of things to decide on would be a more accurate statement.
She’d been trying to manage the coffeehouse she and Brad had started and owned together since his death two years ago. But it was getting increasingly difficult. The long hours alone were starting to take their toll. She needed more employees. She needed to expand their selection, and that would require almost all her savings. And for some reason, she was hesitant.
She had been offered a fair deal from Mr. Langham. He had wanted the coffeehouse since they opened it five years ago. Well, he wanted the building that Brad had inherited from his grandfather. She knew if she gave in and either sold him the property, which she didn’t think she would ever do, or more likely, decided to give him a long lease, Mr. Langham would not keep it open. He would change it. Open one of his own stores in the location. And how many accessories shops did one city need?
If she were being honest with herself, the problem wasn’t what Mr. Langham would open. It was what he would be closing.
Hometown Café had been her and Brad’s dream. They had worked day and night to make it happen, and they had succeeded. It wasn’t a massive chain of stores. They hadn’t gotten rich. But they had built a nice little life together and a secure future for themselves. And if she agreed to let it go, if she stopped working on that dream, it felt like a betrayal.
Or maybe she was simply scared of letting go of that final link between them. Brad was no longer here, but his spirit lived on in that coffee shop. She felt close to him there, and she didn’t know if she was ready to let go of that.
“Emma? Are you coming?”
She needed to stop thinking about all this stuff. She needed a vacation. Veronica was right. It was time to relax and have a good time. She was in a new city with her cousin, who also happened to be her best friend. It was time for a break from reality and some fun.
“Yes. Let’s go.”
***
Pulling up at Pera Palace was, in itself, a magical moment. It looked majestic, to say the least. But stepping inside the building was nothing short of breathtaking. The opulence, the warm colors, and the grandeur of it were beautiful. But at the same time, they had managed to make it cozy.
The service was exemplary, and they were quickly checked in and shown up to their room. The room was airy with the high ceilings, cozy with the warm color scheme of red and gold. And the gentle lighting gave a feeling of class, especially combined with the old-style crown molding decorating the ceiling, windows, and walls.
By the time they had unpacked, showered, and dressed, it was seven thirty, and they were heading to dinner. Which caused another disagreement.
“Why can’t we just have dinner here at the hotel?”
Veronica looked at her like she was crazy. “Because they don’t have an adequate nightclub.”
Emma was getting more exasperated than usual. “Why do you need a nightclub to have dinner?”
“For afterward.”
“But it’s our first day. Why can’t we just take it easy? Have dinner in the hotel and then get a good night’s sleep and wake up rested, ready to take on Istanbul in full force?”
“Come on, Emma. Please, this place is supposed to have delicious food and an amazing nightclub. I made the reservation when we booked the trip, and this day was the only one available. People that eat there can access the nightclub as well. Otherwise, we would never get in. I really want to go.”
Emma sometimes wondered how they came to be such good friends. They were family, yes. But beyond that, they had a unique friendship and closeness. And they were like night and day. Nothing much in common, vastly different as people, and yet it worked.
“Fine. Have it your way, but tomorrow it will be my way.” Emma couldn’t help but feel a little smug at the “I am almost afraid to ask” look Veronica gave her.
“And what does that entail?”
Emma didn’t have any problem letting her smugness shine through. “Breakfast and sightseeing, then afternoon tea here at the hotel followed by a leisurely shopping excursion. After that, dinner at the hotel and early to bed.”
Veronica looked pained, and Emma loved it. “I hate afternoon tea. It’s so dreadfully dull, and the piano music usually makes me really sleepy.”
“And I hate nightclubs. Really loud music gives me a headache.”
They had a short staring contest until Veronica started laughing. “Deal. But if this is my night, I don’t want to hear any complaining. You go for as long as I want today. And tomorrow you’re in charge.”
“Deal.”
***
Can Kaplan was standing in the fairly crowded VIP area, sipping his whiskey, looking at two of his good friends drinking their fifth shot of Fireball, wondering to himself, What the hell are you doing here?
He was bored. He had been for a while. It was funny how you changed. He was thirty-three, and he was getting too old for this shit. It was always the same between jobs. Drinking and partying. Then sleeping until early afternoon, usually waking up next to someone he didn’t even remember meeting.
And then doing it all over again. He had wrapped his latest TV series two months ago, and he had another two months until he started his new gig.
He couldn’t wait.
It was tiring working on set. He would usually be there, working fifteen to sixteen hours a day, six days a week for nine to twelve months before it was done. But the structure worked for him. There was no downtime. It made him happy.
He loved his job. Which was good because it was basically the only thing he had in life. And that was starting to bother him.
He was a sought-after actor. He drew crowds of cheering fans wherever he went. He made a lot of money. He should be happy. But the truth was, he wasn’t. Not anymore. Something was missing. He was ten years older than when he had started in this industry, and he still lived his life the same way.
There were no changes, no growth. And it was beginning to make him feel a little restless. And that he didn’t like. It was better to get back to work and lose yourself in that for a year than to sit around and dwell on the fact that he felt lonely.
Lonely? Where the hell had that come from? He had a lot of friends. A lot of women. Crowds around him. But yes. Within all that, he felt lonely.
Jesus. He was getting maudlin. Too much free time on his hands. Thank God people couldn’t read minds.
He knew what his friends would say if he ever voiced those feelings. Cry me a fucking river, Can. You are attractive, famous, and rich. What the fuck do you have to complain about? And he agreed with them to a certain extent, which was why he never said these things out loud.
He took another sip and looked out over the crowded downstairs. It looked more fun being down there, but that would cause a fucking riot. And that would be bad.
He scanned the area again, and his eyes caught sight of a woman who looked just as bored as he felt. And that made him smile. First smile today. She was petite, blonde, and she was really irritated but trying extremely hard not to show it.
She was also alone. Something in him felt drawn to her. And he decided, fuck it. He wanted to meet her. As he headed toward the stairs, he heard his friends ask, “Where are you going?”
He didn’t even pause; he just threw over his shoulder, “I’ll be back.”
