The Return To Love

Chapter Three

      Can watched as Sanem got in the elevator, he waved childishly as the doors closed and she was gone. 

      He turned and started out to the taxi, his heart bursting with hope. Had this really just happened, he wondered, as he slide into the backseat of the taxi. Her scent still lingered there inside, filling him with undeniable desire, " This is going to be a long and lonely night.... With only her memory to keep me company.."  He thought, as he gave the taxi driver the address to his cabin..

      Sanem opened the door to the suite. Her eyes gazed about the room in total surprise at how large and open it was. " The girl at the desk was definitely right,... the view from here is breathtaking." She thought, stepping out onto the huge balcony. 

      She sank down in one of the chairs almost weak from what had happened. "Can Divit is here....i have seen him, touched him with my hands, felt the same uncontrollable feeling that I  had for him 8 years ago."....

     Her arms wrapped around her body, and she closed her eyes, letting that heat of desire for him fill her like nothing else could.... " Yes, he is still here... still inside me....still the only man I have ever wanted."  She mumbled quietly to herself, as if she were telling her deep dark secret to a stranger....

      She let herself enjoy her thoughts for a moment, savoring what had just happened, and what was going to happen...that is if she would allow herself to be happy....

      Sanem sat up abruptly, " Happy....when was the last time you were truly "happy"....She asked, thinking back over the past years. All the years she spent in San Cristobal were wonderful...a dream come true, but she never thought of herself as "happy"...

      All of her memories opened up in her head, all the moments that had stuck in her mind....they were all of Can. The time, the first time, he brought her to his cabin.... the first time he cooked for her, and gave her wine....too much wine, and she woke up the next morning on his sofa....

      Even the day she was lost in the woods and fell in that huge hole in the ground....That day she was happy... happy because she was with him. He was the one to find her and bring her out... 

      It was even better later that night when she stumbled upon Can in the woods, drunk and full of jealousy. She let him know in no uncertain terms.....that he was hers, and only hers, then she kissed him... The memory of that night still made her blush...

      "Yes, every moment in her life that she considered happiness, was associated with Can. Her first real kiss,... the first time she was afraid of losing someone, the only time she went against her parents wishes.... All of those times had brought her to this, ..this moment in her life....And she wasn't about to let it slip away.".... She thought, as she prepared to make that much needed call to her friend....

      " You like to live out here all alone. You're pretty secluded out here. But I have to say, it's a beautiful place." The taxi driver said as he pulled up to the cabin...

     Can smiled, handing him the fare, " This is the only place that feels like home. So yes, I like it here... but hopefully I won't be alone here forever." He told him, giving him a wink and a nod.

      Can fished in his pocket the key, then fumbled to find the keyhole in the dark. He opened the door and stepped inside, letting that feeling of "home" soak in.. He had been there just earlier in the day....  On his way to the airport, when he thought his life in Istanbul was over. 

      He had come to terms with the thought of never returning to this place, not unless he absolutely had too... But now, here he was, standing in the same spot as before.... making plans of how to fix the place up... even make it bigger, better..... more of a house for a family...

      He shook his head, " No Divit,...don't count your chickens before they hatch....i think that's the saying." He thought with a chuckle.... 

      He swung open the big double doors and switched on the outside lights, " Now, that's more like it... all I need now is a fire."  He gathered the wood and placed it strategically in the fire ring, remembering one of the last times he had done this... The night he had found out about Sanem selling her perfume to Fabri...... That night was the night he burned all of her pictures... all except one...

      The fire was just taking off, the crackling and sparking of the flames was a sound he had always loved. He settled down on the ground next to the fire pit, letting the heat from it warm him. 

      There was the question that always entered his mind, one he never could figure it out, " Why was everyone around them trying to keep them apart. CeyCey, Leila, and he was sure his brother was in on it too..... why had they all lied about Sanem being in Istanbul..."   He knew he had to confront them, all of them...

       Sanem left the glass doors open, letting the fresh sea air blow in. She hadn't realized how hungry she was, or even the last time she ate. So she ordered up a tray of meat and cheese, along with a plate of fruit. She ordered a bottle of wine to go with it, "If there was ever a time I needed a stiff drink it is now, but I will settle on a nice glass of wine."  She told herself, knowing she had to keep her wits about her..

      " This food is delicious."  She thought, as she shoved another one of those sweet, tantalizing strawberries into her mouth. She poured her second glass of wine, and sank back on the sofa. 

      " Ok Sanem, you have put off making that call to CeyCey long enough.  He deserves what ever it is you say to him...and more, for what he has done."   The voice in her head said.

     She scrolled to his name on her phone and made the call,... on the second ring he answered. " Sanem, honey, are you already in Barcelona?" He answered, his voice sounding so happy. She closed her eyes, feeling the disappointment of what he had done....

      " No CeyCey, I am not. I'm still right here in Istanbul. Sorry to disappoint you, but your plan didn't work." She snipped with hostility. 

      CeyCey didn't respond at first. He wasn't quite sure how to decipher her tone of voice. So after a few seconds, she continued, " You will not believe who I ran into at the airport my friend....No, you probably would."  Then her voice cracked with emotion, and CeyCey knew who she was talking about..

      " Yes, I literally ran right into him....none other than Can Divit." She spit out with anger. " And it seems that you knew all along that he was here, but " you, my friend"  thought it best for me not to know." Sanem sobbed, letting out the hurt she felt inside....

      CeyCey shuddered. He hated what he had done, but he was only thinking of his best friend. Now, he may have lost the only family that he had... He took a deep breath before speaking...

      " Sanem, my love, I thought it was best for you not to know he was here. You had been hurt so much already, I just didn't want it to happen again." He muttered, praying she would understand....

      The tears were already streaming down her face, but she knew he had done it because he loved her..... " CeyCey, you no longer get to make those decisions...not anymore. I will decide who I let into my life....not you."...