Sofia rolled her eyes, placing her hand on her cocked hip. “Just saying, you’re amongstfriendsnow,” she said, emphasizing the word that described Niko and me. “Are you seeing anyone? If so, you can invite her to the next game night. Then Leyla could team up with Mike, and we’ll be even.”
Psychotic.That was the only word that described her at the moment.
Niko was so flustered that he nearly knocked over his drink. Mike’s sweet smile took on a mischievous look as he answered for his friend.
“Actually, Niko isveryinterested in someone. She’s pretty special to him, but he’s been a little shy about approaching her.”
My throat was suddenly dry, and I hoped the smile I plastered on didn’t look maniacal.
Niko looked like he was about to toss his cookies all over Mike’s shoes. The way he was glaring at Mike, he may have enjoyed doing just that to shut him up. It felt like everyone was in on a joke that had Niko and me right in the middle of it.
“Well, that’s convenient, because Leyla…” Sofia was interrupted when Luke grabbed her by the hand and pulled her out of the kitchen, saying something I couldn’t hear.
She protested and said, “But the baby’s not here.” Then they disappeared. I would have to thank Luke for the save later.
“Anyone want some cake?” Vicky asked in a high-pitched voice while Miles shook his head in amusement.
“Cake! Yes, I’m down,” Mike said, rubbing his hands together. This guy had strong golden retriever vibes.
When Sofia and Luke returned, she behaved for the rest of the evening. The conversation moved to places in San Diego we loved, and Niko told us his favorite things about Istanbul that had us all intrigued.
“It’s the only country in the world that is separated by two continents. Asia and Europe,” he explained. We all asked questions that made me double down on my interest in visiting.
“Miles, I’d love to hear more about your tech company and the health app you’ve created. My grandmother lives in an assisted living facility nearby, and she and her friends are always complaining about navigating their doctors’ appointments and other online health tasks,” Mike said as we moved back into the living room.
“Absolutely. Put your number in my phone, and we can talk when you’re ready. I’ll even go over there and talk to them as a group to get them started. We’ve really made it user-friendly. There’s so much they can do with the app. Do they all have smartphones or tablets?” Miles asked, leaning his elbows on his knees.
Mike burst out laughing. “Oh yeah. How else will they get on Facebook?” That made us all laugh. “There’s a group of four of them that run that place like the mafia. I call them the Granny Squad, and you do not want to mess with them. I swear, I don’t know whether it was the best or worst thing for me to get my Grammy that tablet and introduce her to social media. Now she texts me inappropriate emojis all day.”
“Oh, wow. I can’t wait to meet them,” Miles said, giving Mike his phone to exchange numbers. Mike and I exchanged knowing looks. Miles didn’t have a clue what he was getting himself into with those four.
“Sounds like the nonnas from my town back in Rome,” Vicky said with a huff of laughter.
Everyone traded funny grandparent stories, but I could see Niko was getting antsy, pulling out his phone from time to time. It looked like he was more than ready to go.
Giving him an out, I said, “Well, I don’t know about you party people, but my bed is calling me.”
Niko looked at me with a wide grin and a heavy sigh of relief.
We all hugged and made loose plans to get together again soon.
Sofia pulled me into a tight hug at the door and whispered in my ear, “Don’t be mad. I was just doing reconnaissance on your behalf. We’ll find out who this chick is and get her out of the picture.”
Pulling away, I made the sign across my neck with my finger, letting her know she was going down soon. She wouldn’t get off that easily.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Nikolas
After some deliberationand nonstop conversations with Defne and Mike, I decided to make the first move and confirm a date with Leyla. Just thinking about it had my palms sweating again.
Pretend date. Pretend date.
Somehow, my nervous system couldn’t distinguish between the two. Nearly a week after game night, I decided to take my shot. We were awaiting confirmation from an outside source on the sunscreen project, so I had an unusual hour free.
I had made several passes outside Leyla’s office in the last hour, spying through the glass for a chance to catch her off the phone. Nodding to a few people nearby, luckily busy at their computers, I was impressed with my stealthiness.
On another walk-by, I saw that she was still on the phone, her face stern as she spoke. After making sure Jaz was nowhere around, I let myself have a moment to just watch Leyla. She was so brilliant at her job, always commanding the room when she stepped in, yet understanding and kind when needed.
