Aisha: I’m coming to Istanbul as soon as I can and I’m kicking some serious ass until I find out what the fuck is going on.

It wasn’t like Aisha to swear, which told Yasmin her sister was genuinely upset. That bothered Yasmin almost more than the worry her mother had harboured. Aisha wasn’t just a sister; she was Yasmin’s confidant and best friend. She was hurting because she thought Yasmin was doing something as important as getting married without her big sister in attendance.

Yasmin chewed on her lip as she thought about what to say.

“Where is your mind at, my love?” Volkan asked, sitting on the bed next to her and bending to take his shoes and socks off.

She tossed her phone on the bedspread. “Aisha doesn’t believe a word of the lies we’ve been telling my parents. She wants to see me with her own eyes and… and I think she’s devastated that I would go ahead and have the wedding without her.” Her eyes filled with tears at the thought of what she was doing to her family.

Volkan turned to look at her. “Would you postpone the wedding if your sister could come?”

Her heart leapt with hope. “Yes, it would mean the world to me if she could be here.”

“Then she will be.”

“You’re going to postpone the wedding?”

“No, postponing isn’t an option. I want you as my wife and I won’t rest until I’ve made that happen,” he said firmly. “What I can do is make sure that your sister is available to attend.”

Yasmin stared at him in horror. “Don’t you dare kidnap my sister!”

He chuckled. “That wasn’t my intent, but I can ensure that her current case wraps up quickly.”

“How?” she asked.

“My naïve little fiancé,” he said with an indulgent smile. “Money is how I resolve everything. I’ll make the case go away with a large lump sum payment to whoever needs it in order to drop the case.”

“That’s…” Yasmin drifted off, looking for the correct word, “… diabolical.”

“It’s business,” he said with a shrug. “Money makes things happen. In my case, I have a lot of money, which means I can make things happen faster.”

“You’re also arrogant if you believe money can fix all your problems,” she said dryly.

He grabbed her by the waist and dragged her down onto the bed, climbing on top of her and straddling her hips. “Arrogant, am I? We’ll see about that.” He dug his fingers into her ribs until she was laughing and begging him to stop.

She was breathless when she said, “You’re also insufferable, overly confident, demanding and quick to anger when you don’t get your way.”