“Detective,” I say as I walk down the stairs.
“Camilla,” Jon replies, smiling at me.

He takes a few steps forward, meeting me at the second to last step, and reaches out to me. I place my hand in his as I continue down the steps.

 Art by @konturava.art

“You look absolutely beautiful, Camilla,” he says softly.
“Thank you, Jonathan. You scrub up nicely as well,” I reply, smirking at him.
“Thank you.” He shoots me a wink.
“How are you?” He asks sweetly.
“I’m good, a little nervous, but otherwise good.” I smile up at him.
“Me too,” he says as he pretends to wipe his brow.

We both giggle, instantly relieving some of the awkward tension between us.

“I hope you’re hungry.”
“Famished,” I replied playfully.
“Good,” he smiles. “Shall we make a move?” He gestures towards his car.
“Absolutely!”

As I reach to open the car door, Jonathan stops me.

“Let me, Melek.” He reaches forward and opens the door.

Keeping a tight hold of my hand, he helps me step down off the curb and into the car. Gently shutting the door, he walks around the front of the car and gets in the driver’s side. 

“Put some music on if you’d like,” he says while putting the key in the ignition.
“Oh, Jonathan.” I shake my head at him. “That’s a big mistake.”
“Why is that, Camilla?”
“Two words,” I replied playfully. “Taylor Swift.” I wink at him, leaning forward and plugging my phone into the USB cable.
“And what would you say if I said I liked Taylor Swift?”
“Excuse me?” I choke out. “Well, I’d say you’re my dream man, and we should head straight to the courthouse and elope.” I tease.
“That was easy.”
“Right?” A small laugh escapes my lips before we both just burst out laughing.

As we drive through the streets of Brooklyn, Jonathan and I chat, belt out old school Taylor, and joke around. It’s just so easy to be around him; it feels like I’m hanging out with my best friend.

“We’re here!” He announces as he pulls up to the curb.
“Wow, that was quick, Detective.” I giggle.
“What can I say? I’m excited to have breakfast with a beautiful woman.” He smiles at me.
“Are you always this smooth, Jonathan?” I tilt my head to the side, giving him a cheeky smile.
“Only with you, Melek,” he says softly before slipping out of the driver’s side and walking around to my door.

Jonathan opens it slowly, giving me his hand again. I can’t help but smile up at him. He is just so unbelievably sweet.

“Come,” he says quietly.

Letting go of my hand, I feel his hand lightly rest on the base of my back as we walk up to the café. 

I love the feeling of his touch on me, I think to myself.

The first thing that catches my attention is the name, ‘Opera Café and Lounge*’. The name is in a bright Orange, making it pop against the all-black background. The outside has cute wooden chairs and tables with little flower pot plants scattered around. They’re busy, but there are still places to sit; the aroma is out of this world. My mouth instantly starts watering. I can’t wait to taste what’s waiting inside. We approach the small counter just inside the doors, and Jonathan rings the bell. Out of nowhere, an older woman approaches us.

“Good morning,” she chimes at us
“Good morning, ma’am,” Jon replies very respectfully.
“Morning!” I chime back at her with a smile.
“Dining in?”
“We are,” Jonathan says softly.

“Brilliant! Well, sit anywhere you’d like, and I’ll be right out with the menus,” she says sweetly. As I turn around and scan the outside area, I feel Jonathan’s fingertips lightly brush a piece of hair off the side of my face, and tuck it behind my ear. It instantly sends chills up my spine. I shiver a little as a cold wind has hit me, Jonathan notices, leans in, and whispers, “Are you cold, Camilla?”

I turn my head to the side. “No, I’m fine. Thank you.” I reassure him while smiling to myself.

We walk over to a cute little table near the beautiful flower baskets in the corner of the cafe. It’s quiet and a little secluded from the other patrons. Jonathan is right beside me. He soon moves in front of me and pulls my chair out. 

“Thank you,” I say, sitting down.
“You’re welcome, Melek.” He smiles down at me before making his way over to the chair directly across from me and sitting down. 

I disappeared into my mind, worrying this was all a dream, and I’d wake up any minute. It must have been written all over my face because Jonathan interrupts my thoughts quietly, “Penny, for your thoughts, Camilla?”

“Why do you keep calling me Melek?” I blurt out.

Jonathan immediately chuckles, leaning forward, and places his hand on the table. I place my hand in his as he interlocks his fingers with mine. His expression turns soft as he looks at our hands together; rubbing the side of my hand with his thumb, he says softly, “Melek means angel in Turkish.” His gaze never leaves our hands.”And you are the most beautiful angel I have ever seen.” His eyes move off our hands to meet my eyes.

Melting. My inner voice purrs.

“I-” Before I can finish my thought, the elderly lady approaches the table.
“Your menus,” she says in a cheerful tone, handing them to us. 

I let out a little grizzle as the warmth of Jonathan’s hand leaves mine; Jonathan hears it and shoots me a cheeky wink before opening the menu up. I open my menu, scanning over it. I recognise some things, but not all. I look at Jonathan in hopes that he knows, so it’ll save me the embarrassment of asking.

“My name is Mae; I’ll be your waitress today,” she smiles at us. “Can I start you off with any drinks?” She looks at Jonathan and then at me.

“Is there anything that has caught your eye, Camilla?” Jonathan asks.
“Ummm, no, I’m happy with whatever you want to order,” I smile at him.
“Ok, we’ll start with the Crimes of Passion tea.” He smiles softly at me before looking back at Mae, who is writing it down.
“Brilliant! Do you know what you’d like to eat?” She cheerfully replies.

I put my hands up in front of me. “You choose; everything looks amazing.” I smile back at him.

“You’re making this too easy for me, Melek,” he smirks at me. “Let’s get the Opera breakfast platter, please?”
“Yuuuum,” I mumble out, closing my menu and handing it to Mae.

“Beautiful choice. I’ll be back with your order in a jiffy!” She takes Jonathan’s menu, puts both under her arm, smiles, and then heads back into the café.

“So.. tell me, Detective,” I say, moving my gaze from him to his car. “How does one get their hands on such a beautiful beast?’

Jonathan laughs. “Beast?” He repeats.
“Yes,” my tone, playful.
“That, Melek, is my baba’s car; he’s had it from brand new.”
“Ba… ba?” I turn back, looking at him, confused.
“My bad, Camilla. Baba means dad.” He smiles at me.

“Impressive. Your baba has brilliant taste.” I try my best not to destroy the world, but it comes out sounding more like a dying sheep than anything else. I clear my throat in an attempt to cover my embarrassment.

Jonathan laughs. “It’s cute when you try to pronounce Turkish words.”

“Are you having a laugh at my expense, Detective?” I raise my eyebrows at him.

He puts his hands up in front of him. “I wouldn’t dream of it, Melek.”

“Damn right, you wouldn’t,” I snap back, my tone dripping with sarcasm before it breaks, and we both start laughing.

Mae walks up to the table. “Your tea,” she says, smiling, placing the cups down on the table in front of us.

“Thank you,” we both reply.
“Not a problem. Enjoy!” She winks and then walks away.

The little glass is absolutely adorable and unlike anything I have ever seen before. The aroma coming from the glass is out of this world.

“Oh my gosh, Jonathan, this tea smells amazing,” I gush at him. “What’s in it?’

“If my memory serves me right, papaya, sunflower petals, passion fruit, and green tea,” he leans forward, slowly turning my saucer. “You can choose to put sugar in it or not. It’s totally up to you, Melek, but I like my tea sweet.” He winks.

“Well, sweet it is,” I wink back at him, dropping two sugar cubes into my tea. Stirring my tea, I feel Jonathan watching me. His gaze makes my stomach flutter, but at the same time, makes me nervous.

“So,” he says softly, “Tell me about Camilla.”
“There isn’t much to tell, Detective,” I reply, placing my spoon on the saucer and looking up at him.
“Now I know that’s a lie.” He leans back in his chair, propping himself up on one elbow and resting his chin on the back of his hand.
“I mean, the last time we spoke in person, I kinda gave you the low down.”

“That was the quick overview of who you are, Melek. I wanna know the things you didn’t get time to tell me.” He smiles.

“Ok. well, I’m from Australia, which you already know,” I gesture towards him. “I grew up in a small town, and I’m an only child.” I pause, trying to think of anything else that might be of interest to him. Jonathan doesn’t say a thing; he’s just listening intently.

“Ummm, I studied English and Journalism at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane. Once I finished that, I worked in a few publishing houses before I decided I needed a change and moved to NYC.” I shrug my shoulders.

Tell him you like the colour pink—my inner voice chimes in.

“And my favourite colour is pink,” I blurt out.

Oh shit! Why did I say that? What’s he meant to do with that, you idiot! I think to myself.

Jonathan chuckles, and I quickly try to cover my embarrassment by laughing along with him.

“Sorry, sometimes my mouth speaks before my brain has time to catch up.” I nervously look away from him.
“Don’t worry about it. I like that about you, Melek,” he says softly.

My eyes darted back to him, and my cheeks began to heat up rapidly. I wriggled in my seat nervously. 

“How long have you been in Brooklyn?”

“Huh?” I reply absentmindedly.
“How long have you been in Brooklyn?” He repeats.
“18 Months!” The answer came out louder and faster than I wanted it to.

You are wrecking this, Camilla! My inner voice yells at me.

Jonathan smirks. “Do you like it?” He asks, leaning forward and taking a small sip of his tea.

“I do; I feel oddly at home here,” I reply, nodding my head slightly.
“Good. Brooklyn has copped a bad rep in the past, but it’s quite a close and friendly place to live,” he says, placing his tea back on the saucer.

Tilting my head to the side, I smirk at Jonathan. “Coming from a true native.”

He lets out a small chuckle. “Guilty as charged,” he says, putting his hands up in front of him.

“I’ll try not to hold it against you,” I say playfully.
“Phew, thank you, Camilla,” he smirks at me.
“So.. does your entire family live in Brooklyn?”
“They did, but they’re now back in Turkey,” he says softly.

“Oh, thank goodness!” I sigh. “No awkward run-ins with the family,” I say as I pretend to wipe sweat from my forehead.

“Not a chance,” he smiles back at me.

Like popping up from a hole in the ground, Mae appears next to the table, smiling.

“Your meal,” she says, placing the many bowls down on the table in front of us.

“Thank you, Mae,” we both say.
“Not a problem, kids. Is there anything else?” She smiles at us.
“No, that’s it, ma’am,” Jonathan replies.

“So…” Jonathan says, leaning over and handing me a napkin. “Tell me about your family, Camilla.”

My stomach instantly churns at the mention of my family. I don’t like talking about them or even thinking about them.

“Not much to tell; they are back in Australia doing their own thing,” I say in an icy manner. He instantly picks up on the signals. “Got it,” he says, winking at me.

“Ummm, Jonathan?” I say nervously.
“Yes?” He says sweetly.
“How do we-” Before I finish that thought, Jonathan hands me a beautifully hand-painted plate.
“So, what you do is you take small amounts of food from each bowl and place it on your plate.” He smiles at me softly.
“Oh, thank God! I was worried for a minute there.” I giggle.
“I got you, Melek.” He winks at me.

We waste no time digging in. The food smells far too delicious to waste another minute looking at it.

“Yuuuum,” I mumble between mouthfuls.

Jonathan giggles. “Enjoying the meal, Camilla?” He says, smirking.

“It’s AMAZING, Jonathan.” I close my eyes, savouring every flavour.
“Call me, Jon,” he says quietly.
“Huh?” I open my eyes, looking at him.
“Call me, Jon,” he repeats.
“Ok, Jon.” I smile at him.

As he adjusts himself in his seat, I can’t help but admire him. He is just so handsome, yet so unaware of it. I stop eating for a moment. I want to know all of his secrets, and I want to share mine with him.

“Are you ok, Camilla?” He asks, smiling at me warmly.
“I’m fine, Jon,” I smile at him. “But I think you owe me your story.” I point my fork at him.
“You caught me!” He says playfully. “What would you like to know, Melek?”
“Anything and everything,” I say playfully.

“Ok, well, I was born in Turkey, lived there until I was eight before my parents decided to move back to America.” He picks up a roll, cuts it in half, and hands it to me.

“Thank you.” I reach over and take the roll from his hand. “Do you miss Turkey?”
“I remember very little of my time there. NYC is more home to me than Turkey,” he replies.
“That makes sense.” I shrug my shoulders.
“Do you miss Australia?”
“No, not in the slightest,” my tone, cold.
“Ok,” he says, nodding at me.
“Do you have any siblings?”
“I have one brother, Emir. He is ten years older than me, but we’re close.”
“I would have loved a brother or sister growing up, older or younger, wouldn’t have mattered.” 

“They’re ok, Emir wasn’t home much while I was growing up, but he did have my back when I needed it.”

“Lucky,” I sigh, “But enough about my lonely childhood.” I giggle. “How did you get into law enforcement?”

“Long story,” he chuckles. “It started when I thought studying law was what I wanted, but I realised very quickly that I was a hands-on type of guy, not a book kinda guy. So, I dropped out in freshman year and enrolled in the NYPD Police Academy. I did five years as a beat cop, then decided it was time to move up, so I took the detectives exam, passed it, and was placed in cybercrime for about three years before finally getting my transfer into the Organised Crime Unit. I’ve been with them for three years now.”

“Wow-“I begin to say before Jonathan jumps in. “Oh, and my favourite colour is red,” he says playfully.

I can’t help but giggle at that last statement. I know he did that to make me feel less stupid, and it worked. However, the moment was fleeting as the strong scent of an expensive perfume filled my senses. Before I even get a chance to look for who or where it’s coming from, a beautiful, beachy-haired, tall blonde supermodel is bent over in front of me with her deep red, pouty lips locked on Jonathan’s. Her black high-waisted linen shorts in my face while the matching white spaghetti strapped linen top hangs open for all to see her assets. 

You should kick her perfect nude pumps out from underneath her—my inner voice giggles to herself.

I clear my throat in an attempt to make my presence known. She doesn’t even acknowledge me but instead turns on her perfect heels and glides over to the free table next to us; picking up a chair, she places it next to our table facing Jonathan. Sitting down, she reaches forward and wraps her long, well-manicured fingers around the chain Jonathan is wearing.

“Jonny, you look delicious today,” she purrs at him.

Gag! My inner voice chokes out while dry retching. 

He grabs her hand and pulls it away from him. “Don’t, Sienna,” he says coldly while shaking his head and rolling his eyes at her.

Sienna, that’s this bitches name, I think to myself.

She giggles at Jonathan like he was the exact reaction she was wanting. Jonathan just looks confused and angry as he rubs his brow in frustration.

“Awwww, Jonny, you look upset,” she says, her hand sliding up his thigh. “I can make you feel better, darling.” She winks at him while biting her lip.

“Christ, Sienna!” He sighs out as he picks her hand up and places it back on her lap.
“Aren’t you happy to see me, darling?” She pouts at him.
“No, Sienna,” Jonathan replies. “How did you find me?”

“I was dress-shopping across the road when Lucy,” she stops and points to another tall model-looking woman standing across the road on her phone. “You remember my best friend, don’t you, Jonny?” She says suggestively as he looks over and sees her.

Why did she say it like that? I think to myself.

“Jesus!” Jonathan huffs out in frustration as he turns back and buries his face in his hands.

“Anyway, darling, she saw you, and I simply couldn’t not come over and see my favourite Detective,” she purrs at him.

“Sienna, you need to leave,” he says quietly but sternly as he lifts his head out of his hands.
“But I just got here, Jonny!” Her tone, almost childish sounding.

Up until this point, I have remained pretty quiet after my first attempt to engage with her went ignored. Sometimes you have to let people like Sienna have their moment because the more they speak, the more stupid they sound. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m seething inside, but the Leo side of me knows when to keep her shit together and deal with situations like this with dignity. 

Sienna is, after all, just a tall, fantastic-smelling, beautiful model-like woman that acts like a spoiled baby, and we aren’t mean to babies. I clear my throat and lean forward just enough to come in line with her ear and politely say, “Sienna, is it?” She turns her head slightly towards me.

She’s heard me, I think to myself.

“Hi, I’m Camilla.” I offer my hand to shake.

She turns in her seat and smiles at me. “I’m Sienna Cole, Jonathan’s girlfriend.”