Sofia’s eyes widened, blinking in surprise. Then, in classic Sofia fashion, she simply muttered, “Sticazzi.” He had learned that was her way of sayingDamn, that’s wild,and it made him smile even in that moment.
“Amira and I never wanted a relationship with them. My mother almost burned the place down when she found out. So… tensions are high. But Ghita said Yasmine might know something about Thomas, so I guess I have to put my pride aside and ask.”
“It’s okay,” Sofia said gently, her fingers brushing his. “Us against the world, remember?”
“I didn’t tell you because I felt stupid. Embarrassed,” he admitted. “I’m a grown man, but I was shattered when I found out my dad had slept with someone practically my age, had a kid with her… and was happy. That was the last fight we had. It was chaos.”
“All your feelings are valid, Ilias. You don’t need to justify them with me. You had every right to be upset.” Then, she made one of those Sofia faces, where you could clearly see she was about to say something politically incorrect or rude. Now that he had met her father, he understood where those expressions came from. “I mean, I would be fuming if I knew my father had a double life, and with someone half his age.”
He smiled, pulling her into a hug. “I truly needed you here.”
“And I’m here, as you were there for me,” she replied, caressing his cheek. “Let’s go see what she knows.”
The restaurant was bright, overlooking the Bay, where they had surfed the day before. It was decorated in vibrant yet soft Moroccan colors—earthy reds, muted aquas, warm oranges. Last time he was there, he had been celebrating his second USL title. The same night he had fought with his father and made a scene in front of everyone, Yasmine and Emir—his half-brother—included. If Amira and Ghita hadn’t dragged him away, while his mother cried in a corner, he would have probably punched him.
The moment they stepped inside, all those memories came back. Hitting him like a blow. It was a version of himself he didn’t like, never did truthfully. It was the reason why he stopped drinking, why he started therapy. Because no matter what had happened, he shouldn’t have reacted that way and his reactivity had almost cost his career again in Ericeira if Alejandra and her absurd PR Stunt had actually worked, bringing Sofia into his life and turning it brighter.
As they rounded the corner, Yasmine appeared. Her smile faltered when her eyes landed on Ilias.
“Look who’s back. What do you want, Ilias?” she asked flatly in Darija.
He lifted his hands in surrender. “I’m not here to cause trouble. I already apologized for what I did that night.”
“Yes, you did,” she replied, lips pursed. Her gaze moved to Sofia, who offered her hand with a warm smile.
“I’m Sofia, his girlfriend. Nice to meet you.” She introduced herself in French.
“I’m Yasmine. Nice to meet you too.” Yasmine switched to French too, allowing Sofia to understand the rest of the conversation.
“I’m here for something that might help Imsouane,” Ilias said. “Something bigger than family drama.”
“You want to talk about that American businessman sniffing around? The one trying to buy everything up?” Yasmine folded her arms. “Before you ask—I already told Ghita. I will do what’s best for my family, for Emir’s future.”
Ilias clenched his jaw. That wasn’t good news. “How much money did he offer?”
“Ilias…” Sofia hissed his name, warning him. Definitely not the best question he could do accompanied with a very accusatory tone, which made Yasmine recoil and went defensive.
“It’s none of your business, Ilias. You have all your money from surfing and brands. You can throw money into Azul and be content with it. I can’t. This restaurant–” she sighed. “You have no right to come here and judge me.”
“He clearly shouldn’t have asked that,” Sofia interjected, her French coming out half broken, like her version of Portuguese, but Yasmine understood her.
“I think he meant exactly that,” Yasmine crossed her arms. “I don’t know you, Sofia, but Ilias has always been selfish enoughto think just about himself, his mother, and his sister, and never even considered Emir and I were as hurt from the discovery as they were.”
“You knew, Yasmine. Don’t play dumb with me,” Ilias raised his voice, unable to control his reaction.
Yasmine’s nostrils flared. “He told me Zainab and him had broken up, that’s why he was always here and never in Málaga. We were played as much as you were.”
“And you never considered asking?” Ilias asked. “We’ve been around for years before the shitshow came out.”
“Zainab wasn’t around. Always in Málaga. You and Amira came down just when you weren’t surfing around the world. And José Antonio was here, alone, dealing with Azul. He convinced me he wasn’t in love with her anymore, and that he went back to Spain just for you two.”
“I know it shouldn’t be my time to speak since I didn’t know…him. But I know Ilias, and by what you are telling me, you both were hurt by a man who didn’t have the skills to deal with how he processed love and lies,” Sofia declared, pausing several times to gather words, saying them in Spanish so that Ilias could translate them to her.
“Whatever,” Yasmine shrugged. “I’m going to do what’s best for me and Emir. Your father left me this, and now I can do with it whatever I want. Maybe selling it will free me from the debts that man left me.”
Ilias clenched his jaw. The reading of the will had been a shitshow too, with Amira and him discovering they had inherited Azul, and Yasmine had inherited the restaurant on the beach. While their mother absolutely nothing. His father had been a piece of shit until the very end.
“Selling it to Whitmore LLC will just destroy Imsouane, destroy its beauty, destroy its environment, hurt the ecosystem, terrestrial and maritime,” Sofia continued. “I understand youneed the money, and I would never judge someone to take the money in case of need, but consider the consequences of you selling it to him.”
