A beautiful morning;

A beautiful morning;

When Arzu returned home, the sun had already risen and the first rays of morning light were illuminating the villa. She quietly opened the door and stepped inside, trying to keep her footsteps as light as possible. The traces of that night still lingered in her body and soul.

Natya was making coffee in the kitchen. Seeing Arzu, she approached her with a worried expression. She immediately murmured in broken Turkish.

"Mrs. Azu, how are you? Are you very tired?.."

Arzu smiled reluctantly.

"I'm fine, Natya. It was just... a long meeting. Is Mert asleep?"

"Yes, he hasn't gotten up yet. Would you like me to bring you some coffee?"

Arzu touched the young woman's arm and said with a warm smile,

"Thank you, but I want to take a shower and get myself together first."

As Arzu climbed the stairs, she noticed her steps were heavy. Her body felt as if it didn't belong to her. When she looked in the bathroom mirror, she saw an unfamiliar expression in her eyes. Was it fear, or... something else?

The warm water of the shower caressed her skin, but it couldn't wash away the turmoil inside her. Worse still, why had her body reacted so strongly to those moments? It was as if Ateş's hands were still roaming her body. She felt such a strong urge to caress her womanhood. She couldn't understand why she still felt a lustful hunger even as she was about to faint with pleasure. Moreover, these feelings belonged to Yaman. But it was as if she wanted Ateş's bad boy attitude and sexy body. How could this be? Was it possible to love two men at the same time?

Then she pushed those thoughts out of her head, and darker thoughts took their place. Ateş... How had that innocent boy turned into someone like this? What had happened after school? Had he found a job? Had he started a family? How had he entered this dark world? 
"Ahh! I'm going crazy, how could he upset my whole balance in one night!" she muttered. Just then, a voice startled him.

"Mom!"

Mert's cheerful voice at the door pulled him out of his thoughts. He quickly put on his robe and went outside.

"Good morning, my dear son," she said, hugging him.

Mert looked closely at his mother's face. His small but sharp mind sensed the change in her.

"Mom, you look tired. Were you up late last night?"

Arzu noticed how attentively her son was observing her. This child... sometimes acted much more mature than his age. She smiled.

"A little, yes. But it's okay, I'm fine," she said.

Mert planted a big kiss on his mother's smiling face and ran downstairs laughing, "The last one gets the rotten egg!"

A little later, Katya prepared a carefully arranged Turkish breakfast. Cooked eggs, sausage omelet, honey, clotted cream, yogurt, and a cheese plate were accompanied by plenty of greens. At the head of the table was a large plate of Turkish pastries. 

Natya turned to Mert, who was running around, and said, "Come on, little man, if you're late for school, I'll take you there, just so you know."

Mert smiled mischievously and said, "When are you thinking of getting your driver's license, Natya? If you want, wait a little longer. When I turn 18, we'll get it together." Then he pulled up a chair and sat down at the table.

Arzu smiled, pulled up a chair, and sat down. Natya, however, sniffed angrily and muttered, "Ms. Azu, why is this kid teasing me?"

Arzu giggled, "Mert, apologize right now."

The day had started with beautiful laughter...

A little later, during breakfast, Mert spoke shyly, playing with the egg on his plate:

"Mom... there's a soccer game at school. Next week. Some kids can come with their dads..." 

His voice trailed off, his hopeful eyes turning to his mother.

"Uncle Yaman... do you think he'll come? I mean, if you want him to..." he said. 

Arzu's heart tightened. The innocent desire in her son's eyes hurt her. But after what she had experienced that morning, she saw more clearly how complicated her relationship with Yaman was. After officially embarking on dangerous games last night, it would be unfair to keep a clean man like him in her life.

Mert looked at his mother. Seeing the tired and shaken look on her face, he immediately backtracked:

"I'm sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to put you in a difficult position. You're already so busy..." he said, forcing a smile.

When Arzu saw how thoughtful her son was, her eyes filled with tears. Even at such a young age, he was capable of thinking of others.

"You're such a smart boy," she said, hugging him tightly. "And no, it's not hard for me. It's just... I'm going through some complicated things. But you're always my priority, you know that."

"Then... can you call Uncle Yaman?"

Arzu hesitated for a moment. Then she nodded.

"I'll call him, I promise. Of course, if you finish the eggs on your plate."

Mert grabbed his fork happily and headed for his plate.

After Mert left for school, Arzu locked herself in her study. First, she searched for something about this so-called football club, but it didn't make sense for such a dirty game to be out in the open. She couldn't find anything on social media or search engines.

Maybe I can find a clue from someone at the event, she thought, but everyone was wearing masks, as per the rules of the game.

Then Ateş came to mind again. His eyes shining behind that black mask, his touch. Her hands immediately flew over the keyboard, determined to find everything that was on her mind about him. 

Ateş Yamanoğlu owned a large group of holdings, dozens of real estate investment partnerships, and many companies ranging from import-export to entertainment. Had he taken control of all these companies with this extortion technique, or were things even darker?

Then he closed his eyes in stress and leaned back in his chair. He thought about years ago. Ateş's father was a young entrepreneur at the time, managing a large investment for Arzu's father's company. But less than a year later, his name became entangled in rumors of fraud and illegal transactions. He was arrested immediately afterward. 

His heart tightened as he thought about the bullying Ateş had endured during that period. He wondered then, when did his father get out of prison? He wondered how this man, whom he remembered as having a clean character, had allowed Ateş to become a mafia leader.

He immediately began researching his father. Then he couldn't believe what he saw. It said, "Fraudulent entrepreneur commits suicide in prison." The date was about six months after Arzu left Ateş. 

She suddenly stood up and paced the porch nervously. How could this have happened? Arzu wasn't with Ateş when all this happened! Now her body and heart were burning with guilt.

In the afternoon, when Mert came home from school, the doorbell rang. The child ran excitedly to open the door. When he suddenly saw Yaman standing there, he screamed in a high-pitched voice,

"Uncle Yaman!"

Ateş, disguised as Yaman, was standing at the door. He had a small gift package in his hand and that familiar smile on his face. But in his eyes, you could also see a shadow left over from last night.

"Hello, little man. How are you?"

"I'm great! My mom called you, didn't she? For the soccer game! I can't believe it, that's why you came!" he said, running up and hugging him.

Yaman was happy with the little boy's joy and immediately joined in the game. "Yes, she called. Of course I'm coming. I even got you some new cleats."

As Mert excitedly opened the package, Ateş also entered the house. Arzu was waiting in the living room. When the two met, there was an electric tension in the air.

When Arzu looked into Yaman's eyes, did she see the shadow of what happened last night, or was she imagining it? 'Am I starting to see every man as Ateş now?' she thought.

Ateş, tall and heavily built, unbuttoned his tailored jacket and spoke with a relaxed smile.
"Hello, Arzu. How are you?"

His voice was as soft and caring as ever, but there was a different tone underneath. More... intense.

"I'm fine, thank you. I'm so sorry, I think Mert annoyed you a little..."

"It's no bother, on the contrary, I was happy," said Ateş.

While Mert was trying to put on his new cleats, Yaman approached Arzu. That familiar scent was in Arzu's nose. Suddenly, she flinched; this scent was like that masculine scent from last night. Arzu thought, "Oh, I'm really seeing things now."

Just like what she had experienced last night, she couldn't make sense of this dangerous attraction.