"What the hell was that?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡehA9MxPinn
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Imran didn’t wait until they were out of the building. The door had barely clicked shut before he tossed the question like a grenade between them.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0rjLGxVNZb
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Ayub sighed. "What was what?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUoWsfQeRi1
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Imran turned on his heel to face him, grinning like the proud older brother of a man who had just learned how to throw a punch. "That line. That delivery. That tone. You know exactly what."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡROY0HYukYj
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Ayub kept walking toward the elevator. "She pushed. I responded."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJuKQtgTKHR
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"Responded? That wasn’t a response. That was flirting, and not even the accidental kind. You actually had bass in your voice, bro. I almost blushed."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1bvpesfzH
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Ayub rubbed the back of his neck. "She was messing with me the whole meeting. It was... a lot."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5vysYfzbWj
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Imran hit the elevator button, still grinning. "She put you with Jasmina. That was the ultimate middle finger."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAusJOhCc0e
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"Trust me, I know."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVl3XdZe8k
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"Jasmina's been glowing all day, by the way. Like she just got nominated for an award. 'I get to work with Lamija's Ayub,'" Imran mimicked in a pitch-perfect impression.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoyZxuGZyZc
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Ayub gave him a flat look.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKv4N6m7fgV
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"You don’t like her?" Imran asked.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX7fA7feDkz
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"She’s nice. Not for me."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLaZNLUQRJY
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Imran raised a brow. "Because she’s not Lamija."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkbyNazslv
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Ayub said nothing.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb8T28HHGwL
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The elevator doors opened. They stepped in. The silence stretched.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWxsrHhpnS
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Imran looked at him sideways. "So what is this then?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91s3RWqu0q
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"What?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1iJ6XabXXD
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"Are you... hoping for something now? With her?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh9NDWyvjRt
119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡigE9BbWbzA
Ayub stared straight ahead, the numbers lighting up one by one above the doors.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMNYsAE14T
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He didn’t answer.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC90wl7a3Ly
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But the tightness in his jaw said enough.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrHz0cHGOO
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Imran nodded slowly. "Man. You’re really in it now."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9iVUwgsMGb
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They drove in mostly silence until Imran turned down a narrow street. He had told Lamija they were checking out the property on Marindvor. This was not it. 119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLPi1se5PiB
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"Where are we going?" Ayub asked.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfzI3XCfa8I
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Imran smirked. "To see a site I’m working on. New project. Off the company books, more personal."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8LniqNSGWd
119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡitXoVJFBhs
Ayub raised a brow. "You’re not usually one for side ventures."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXnQFLkenqK
119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9CdKSFPlhy
"This one’s different. I want to open a gym. Full training setup. MMA, strength, discipline. Talha will run it.”
Ayub turned to him, startled. "Talha?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDJcyS0MkC2
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Imran nodded. "Yeah. I haven’t told him yet. He thinks I’m moving him to northern logistics."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo2hWXsb7P8
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Ayub let out a low laugh. "He’s going to think you’ve lost your mind."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHCuP2ZRp4
119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDzZdbbnik
"Maybe. But he’s ready. He just doesn’t know it yet."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2vfrkL33a
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Ayub hesitated, glancing toward the building. "You sure? Talha looks one bad day away from a lawsuit half the time. He’s intense."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPvyFtEykY
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Imran shrugged. "So are most people with greatness in them. He needs direction. And he needs to know we believe he can lead, not just fight."
They stepped out of the car and stood in front of the building—tall windows covered in dust, scaffolding still clinging to one side. From the outside it didn’t look like much yet.
But inside?
Inside, it had bones.
High ceilings. Reinforced walls. The echo of potential.
They moved through slowly, dodging ladders, exposed wires, and half-unwrapped fixtures. Imran rattled off specs—bag layout, ventilation, locker spacing—but Ayub barely heard him. He was already seeing it. The mats. The sweat. The chaos with rules. He could picture Talha in the middle of it all—loud, focused, alive in a way he rarely was outside a ring.
"This could be good for him," Ayub said. "The kind of good he doesn’t think he deserves."
Imran just nodded.
Ayub kept walking.
And the more he saw, the harder it was to ignore the weight sitting in his chest.
Because this wasn’t just a gym.
This was a gift.
Not the flashy kind. Not for show. This was the kind of thing you gave to people you considered your own. Something that said, You belong here, even if you don’t believe it yet.
Ayub glanced back at Imran—at the way he moved through the site like he was laying down pieces of a future that already had space for all of them in it.
No fanfare. No speeches. Just action.
That’s what the Begovićs did. They didn’t hand you pity. They handed you responsibility. Ownership. Purpose. And somehow, they made you feel like it had always been yours.
Ayub looked around again, jaw tight.
This family—Imran, his father, even Lamija—they spent their wealth like it was a shared resource. Like it belonged to all of them. Not just blood, but anyone who stayed long enough to earn a place.
They took him in when his own family left him on a doorstep.
Now Imran was building Talha a gym.
He didn’t say thank you. Not out loud.
He just stood there, letting it sink in.
This was what legacy looked like.
Not power. Not reputation.
Just people investing in each other like they meant it.
"You ever going to admit how far gone you are?" Imran asked, not even bothering to look up from his clipboard.
Ayub shot him a look. “I told you—I’m not letting her mess with me anymore.”
Imran grinned. “Look at you. Boundaries. Words. Growth. Ayub 2.0.”
Ayub snorted. “She pushed. I pushed back. That’s all it was.”
Imran didn’t push it. Just raised an eyebrow and went back to checking off specs.
Then Ayub asked, almost offhand, “You still chasing Selma?”
Imran looked up, unfazed. “I wouldn’t call it chasing.”
Ayub scoffed. “She pushes you away like it’s her job, and you just keep showing up like it’s yours.”
Imran smirked. “We’re persistent. Not reckless.”
Ayub raised a brow. “You Begovićs don’t know when to back off. It’s admirable. And deeply concerning.”
Imran laughed, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “She’s different.”
“I know.”
“She keeps me at a distance like I’m a grenade with the pin halfway out.",” Imran said, quieter now. “And I get it. She’s been through hell.”
Ayub nodded. She had a look in her eyes that he often saw in himself and Talha. Like she was always bracing for something to fall apart. "Someone like you would be good for her," Ayub said aloud before he could stop himself.
Imran was silent for a second, then said, “I just want her to let me love her. Her and Sanel—both of them. That’s all.”
Ayub didn’t respond right away.
Then, quietly: “You’d be good for her.”
Imran didn’t react. He just held his clipboard a little tighter.
And Ayub didn’t say anything else.
Because some things didn’t need to be unpacked in the middle of a construction site.
Some things just needed to be said once—and meant.
They walked the rest of the site in silence. When they stepped back out into the sun, Ayub glanced once more over his shoulder at the building.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmw03JbEYQF
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It didn’t look like much.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGxipqld6tK
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But it would.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wMc6vWLQo
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They climbed into the car, the doors closing with a thud. Imran tapped the ignition. Just as the engine came to life, so did the screen.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDRTp2aO3Fn
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The caller ID lit up.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiKI5CmgDS6
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Adil.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ453UE9HQDy
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Both men groaned in unison.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYB6HHybp7l
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"Why is it always him?" Ayub muttered. 119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEdI36mkFL
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Imran didn’t answer right away. His jaw had already locked.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyUOqpMY6Ul
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Adil’s older brother—Nedim—had been circling Lamija like a vulture for months. It was never about romance. Never about her. It was strategy. A merger dressed in gold cufflinks and tailored suits.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡktq3iidHwz
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Nedim marries Lamija. Their logistics company folds into Begović Industries. The families become one on paper.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu91wJ0xMJr
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Ayub’s stomach turned every time he thought about it.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNq2lDqgpU
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Husine had built the company with ruthless precision, but when it came to his daughters? They were never pawns. They were the jewels in his crown. And Imran lived to protect those jewels. 119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUj9Xk1de6p
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Lamija had turned Nedim down in every language they shared—blunt, cold, unmoved.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPdSfvmX3io
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She wasn’t interested.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAr9b8Fe3x2
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And if she ever did lose her senses and gave that bastard a chance, Imran would burn the whole board before he let her become someone’s strategic win.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSWXnnklNu
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He jabbed the speaker icon.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYaqxYnxBbf
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“Adil,” he said, voice flat.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGhQDk0JPW3
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“Imran!” Adil’s voice poured through the car, smooth and smug as ever. “Still hiding from society in dusty construction zones?”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwP7GyHndII
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Imran didn’t answer. Ayub stayed silent.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtyPTr1Jn1U
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“Listen,” Adil continued, “I need a favor. Nedim saw that Lamija’s been eyeing the new Solène bag—you know, the crazy limited drop, three per country. He wants to get it for her.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ1jwsmYOpY
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Imran’s expression didn’t shift. “Already got it.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqRquhvxU9
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Adil laughed. “Of course you did. Always a step ahead. Then maybe give it to Amina instead? Let Nedim take care of Lamija. It might open a door.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMdkgHqdLb
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Imran’s voice dropped into ice. “As long as I breathe, Lamija and Amina will be taken care of. Tell Nedim to back off. She’s off limits.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZXz9tBtWc
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There was a pause on the line.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPjwEQLzx5
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“I’m serious, Adil,” Imran continued. “It will never happen. My father would burn your company to the ground before he marries her off like cattle. And I’ll burn everything your family has ever built down just for the fucking fun of it.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4hqQ2cvbun
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Adil gave a short, uneasy laugh. “Alright, alright. No offense meant.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltz78oLzT0
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“Then stop acting like this is business,” Imran snapped. “She’s not part of your portfolio.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8PWNNvWdAR
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The call ended.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmAuQHxxWX
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Imran tapped the screen off and stared ahead, jaw tight.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRiC9FdWUBq
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Neither of them spoke for a while.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrGQo0SodaS
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Then Ayub muttered, “I hate that guy.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIWCR55m9lm
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Imran’s fists flexed on the wheel. “Same.”
Ayub watched him in silence. There was nothing to say—because he knew if it ever came down to it, Imran would burn it all.
That was the difference.
Men like Imran protected from the front.
Men like Ayub watched from the edge, unsure if they were even allowed to step into the fight.
And for the first time all day, Ayub wasn’t just angry.
He was reminded.
That no matter how steady he stood, no matter how much he gave, a woman like Lamija might never see him as more than a shadow behind her father’s throne.
"What the hell was that?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡenoPUwFSCN
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Imran didn’t wait until they were out of the building. The door had barely clicked shut before he tossed the question like a grenade between them.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyClFqcxR74
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Ayub sighed. "What was what?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTIkDszE3fO
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Imran turned on his heel to face him, grinning like the proud older brother of a man who had just learned how to throw a punch. "That line. That delivery. That tone. You know exactly what."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHaZj8FpjW
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Ayub kept walking toward the elevator. "She pushed. I responded."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT6KkQJeArv
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"Responded? That wasn’t a response. That was flirting, and not even the accidental kind. You actually had bass in your voice, bro. I almost blushed."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRu5bvltqXi
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Ayub rubbed the back of his neck. "She was messing with me the whole meeting. It was... a lot."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ789Lve8NTn
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Imran hit the elevator button, still grinning. "She put you with Jasmina. That was the ultimate middle finger."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk8KGqGRSlo
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"Trust me, I know."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJpeImVnfoJ
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"Jasmina's been glowing all day, by the way. Like she just got nominated for an award. 'I get to work with Lamija's Ayub,'" Imran mimicked in a pitch-perfect impression.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMiRC6jqXw4
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Ayub gave him a flat look.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFS2vTmfU1f
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"You don’t like her?" Imran asked.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1wmwkvotAd
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"She’s nice. Not for me."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzEAYEM8ux
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Imran raised a brow. "Because she’s not Lamija."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJCjMbWWC66
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Ayub said nothing.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOT1Zg1MQ8
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The elevator doors opened. They stepped in. The silence stretched.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVHyq7C06qc
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Imran looked at him sideways. "So what is this then?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ19FgMJcthY
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"What?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMWEEGEklOy
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"Are you... hoping for something now? With her?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7O65N9QRkV
119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPlCFGbu8bM
Ayub stared straight ahead, the numbers lighting up one by one above the doors.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡviWGsQuJVq
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He didn’t answer.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC4rKDPFbJw
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But the tightness in his jaw said enough.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSzkzzdMz2w
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Imran nodded slowly. "Man. You’re really in it now."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOtlRDuOuXC
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They drove in mostly silence until Imran turned down a narrow street. He had told Lamija they were checking out the property on Marindvor. This was not it. 119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUswUG0xo4
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"Where are we going?" Ayub asked.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3XAIWhqggU
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Imran smirked. "To see a site I’m working on. New project. Off the company books, more personal."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB1cRYesbbx
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Ayub raised a brow. "You’re not usually one for side ventures."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpFY1PrYDkC
119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyji0AGexW3
"This one’s different. I want to open a gym. Full training setup. MMA, strength, discipline. Talha will run it.”
Ayub turned to him, startled. "Talha?"119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiNehax4dAK
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Imran nodded. "Yeah. I haven’t told him yet. He thinks I’m moving him to northern logistics."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Zmz9CDV04
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Ayub let out a low laugh. "He’s going to think you’ve lost your mind."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpoQ0wXDQMK
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"Maybe. But he’s ready. He just doesn’t know it yet."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡptUAhHoYA8
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Ayub hesitated, glancing toward the building. "You sure? Talha looks one bad day away from a lawsuit half the time. He’s intense."119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ63WEMLQZCI
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Imran shrugged. "So are most people with greatness in them. He needs direction. And he needs to know we believe he can lead, not just fight."
They stepped out of the car and stood in front of the building—tall windows covered in dust, scaffolding still clinging to one side. From the outside it didn’t look like much yet.
But inside?
Inside, it had bones.
High ceilings. Reinforced walls. The echo of potential.
They moved through slowly, dodging ladders, exposed wires, and half-unwrapped fixtures. Imran rattled off specs—bag layout, ventilation, locker spacing—but Ayub barely heard him. He was already seeing it. The mats. The sweat. The chaos with rules. He could picture Talha in the middle of it all—loud, focused, alive in a way he rarely was outside a ring.
"This could be good for him," Ayub said. "The kind of good he doesn’t think he deserves."
Imran just nodded.
Ayub kept walking.
And the more he saw, the harder it was to ignore the weight sitting in his chest.
Because this wasn’t just a gym.
This was a gift.
Not the flashy kind. Not for show. This was the kind of thing you gave to people you considered your own. Something that said, You belong here, even if you don’t believe it yet.
Ayub glanced back at Imran—at the way he moved through the site like he was laying down pieces of a future that already had space for all of them in it.
No fanfare. No speeches. Just action.
That’s what the Begovićs did. They didn’t hand you pity. They handed you responsibility. Ownership. Purpose. And somehow, they made you feel like it had always been yours.
Ayub looked around again, jaw tight.
This family—Imran, his father, even Lamija—they spent their wealth like it was a shared resource. Like it belonged to all of them. Not just blood, but anyone who stayed long enough to earn a place.
They took him in when his own family left him on a doorstep.
Now Imran was building Talha a gym.
He didn’t say thank you. Not out loud.
He just stood there, letting it sink in.
This was what legacy looked like.
Not power. Not reputation.
Just people investing in each other like they meant it.
"You ever going to admit how far gone you are?" Imran asked, not even bothering to look up from his clipboard.
Ayub shot him a look. “I told you—I’m not letting her mess with me anymore.”
Imran grinned. “Look at you. Boundaries. Words. Growth. Ayub 2.0.”
Ayub snorted. “She pushed. I pushed back. That’s all it was.”
Imran didn’t push it. Just raised an eyebrow and went back to checking off specs.
Then Ayub asked, almost offhand, “You still chasing Selma?”
Imran looked up, unfazed. “I wouldn’t call it chasing.”
Ayub scoffed. “She pushes you away like it’s her job, and you just keep showing up like it’s yours.”
Imran smirked. “We’re persistent. Not reckless.”
Ayub raised a brow. “You Begovićs don’t know when to back off. It’s admirable. And deeply concerning.”
Imran laughed, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “She’s different.”
“I know.”
“She keeps me at a distance like I’m a grenade with the pin halfway out.",” Imran said, quieter now. “And I get it. She’s been through hell.”
Ayub nodded. She had a look in her eyes that he often saw in himself and Talha. Like she was always bracing for something to fall apart. "Someone like you would be good for her," Ayub said aloud before he could stop himself.
Imran was silent for a second, then said, “I just want her to let me love her. Her and Sanel—both of them. That’s all.”
Ayub didn’t respond right away.
Then, quietly: “You’d be good for her.”
Imran didn’t react. He just held his clipboard a little tighter.
And Ayub didn’t say anything else.
Because some things didn’t need to be unpacked in the middle of a construction site.
Some things just needed to be said once—and meant.
They walked the rest of the site in silence. When they stepped back out into the sun, Ayub glanced once more over his shoulder at the building.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5A7JZ9R4G7
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It didn’t look like much.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUouCgNF8F2
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But it would.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ77zmDiSsen
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They climbed into the car, the doors closing with a thud. Imran tapped the ignition. Just as the engine came to life, so did the screen.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ322IOBR50E
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The caller ID lit up.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPeUkAzGcmw
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Adil.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiWQ5jv3SiC
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Both men groaned in unison.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ13oGa8j8fV
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"Why is it always him?" Ayub muttered. 119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtVW8YIEJvd
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Imran didn’t answer right away. His jaw had already locked.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pRFWhW6W3
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Adil’s older brother—Nedim—had been circling Lamija like a vulture for months. It was never about romance. Never about her. It was strategy. A merger dressed in gold cufflinks and tailored suits.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDKenuVcim8
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Nedim marries Lamija. Their logistics company folds into Begović Industries. The families become one on paper.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0j0FsYzoHa
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Ayub’s stomach turned every time he thought about it.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkf6vPplAhi
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Husine had built the company with ruthless precision, but when it came to his daughters? They were never pawns. They were the jewels in his crown. And Imran lived to protect those jewels. 119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVowco995Cv
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Lamija had turned Nedim down in every language they shared—blunt, cold, unmoved.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJQpXMhTAW1
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She wasn’t interested.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ66JKRdyOBl
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And if she ever did lose her senses and gave that bastard a chance, Imran would burn the whole board before he let her become someone’s strategic win.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ85KgYHMbVM
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He jabbed the speaker icon.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE87ABqMqVi
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“Adil,” he said, voice flat.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzHqLH6cNbg
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“Imran!” Adil’s voice poured through the car, smooth and smug as ever. “Still hiding from society in dusty construction zones?”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5lKpRdcqdv
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Imran didn’t answer. Ayub stayed silent.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbGKY6BO6c
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“Listen,” Adil continued, “I need a favor. Nedim saw that Lamija’s been eyeing the new Solène bag—you know, the crazy limited drop, three per country. He wants to get it for her.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJtglTf4c1o
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Imran’s expression didn’t shift. “Already got it.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYLjb0gvA2s
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Adil laughed. “Of course you did. Always a step ahead. Then maybe give it to Amina instead? Let Nedim take care of Lamija. It might open a door.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFb0WRZauiG
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Imran’s voice dropped into ice. “As long as I breathe, Lamija and Amina will be taken care of. Tell Nedim to back off. She’s off limits.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsz6GKZFEDh
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There was a pause on the line.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvtjP1CoD7H
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“I’m serious, Adil,” Imran continued. “It will never happen. My father would burn your company to the ground before he marries her off like cattle. And I’ll burn everything your family has ever built down just for the fucking fun of it.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2cMrvmPrCw
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Adil gave a short, uneasy laugh. “Alright, alright. No offense meant.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQgYdNZZFm0
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“Then stop acting like this is business,” Imran snapped. “She’s not part of your portfolio.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRhgqvKOEGn
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The call ended.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZx9AQifGB
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Imran tapped the screen off and stared ahead, jaw tight.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6wYsvD5QEh
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Neither of them spoke for a while.119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjL2kiF86wy
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Then Ayub muttered, “I hate that guy.”119Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnLArR4Jrw
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Imran’s fists flexed on the wheel. “Same.”
Ayub watched him in silence. There was nothing to say—because he knew if it ever came down to it, Imran would burn it all.
That was the difference.
Men like Imran protected from the front.
Men like Ayub watched from the edge, unsure if they were even allowed to step into the fight.
And for the first time all day, Ayub wasn’t just angry.
He was reminded.
That no matter how steady he stood, no matter how much he gave, a woman like Lamija might never see him as more than a shadow behind her father’s throne.
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