There was a long pause on Volkan’s part, and Yasmin knew what he was thinking. He’d had difficulty with both women over the past several months, and it had taken a lot of work on Yasmin’s and Defne’s parts to reconcile him to his family members once more.

He’d been angry when Narin continued to support Demir after his arrest. She visited him in prison and begged Volkan to intervene and use his influence to lessen Demir’s sentence. When he’d refused, Narin had been upset, which Yasmin explained to Volkan, was only natural. It would be difficult for any mother to see her child jailed with very little hope of release in the near future.

Volkan’s anger at Zeynep for her part in Yasmin’s traumatic island experience had begun to cool, but he was a long way from wanting to spend time with his ex-sister-in-law. He tolerated her existence for Yasmin’s benefit, but he refused to have much to do with her otherwise.

Yasmin did her best to gently influence her husband toward forgiveness and it was working, slowly and with effort.

Finally, Volkan answered in exactly the way she knew he would, “If it will make you happy to invite Narin and Zeynep, then by all means, make it a family affair. I will make a dinner reservation for 5:30 at your favourite restaurant on the beach.”

Yasmin grinned. “Just you and the ladies. Sounds like a perfect evening.”

“Or torture, depending on the topics under discussion,” Volkan chuckled.

“Don’t be sexist,” she said with a laugh.

“Tell Defne not to talk about purses and shoes all night and I’ll see about changing my attitude.”

“I love you,” Yasmin said spontaneously. She loved hearing him so relaxed and making jokes. This was the side of him she most enjoyed.

“And I love you, küçük olan,” Volkan said, his deep voice indulgent. “I look forward to seeing you after your appointment.”

They hung up and Yasmin gathered her purse and jacket, heading to the door where Defne waited for her. Henry was downstairs, ready to accompany them to the hospital. On their way out, Yasmin secured Narin’s promise to meet them at the dockyard where they would all go out to supper. She sent Zeynep a quick text as she was sliding into the car.

As they drove to the hospital, Yasmin contemplated how much her life had changed. A year ago, she’d been finishing school and looking forward to entering the field of archaeology. She’d been excited to fly halfway around the world for a job in her chosen field.

Now, she was on a completely different trajectory. She still studied archeology and was working on her Master’s degree through the University of Istanbul, specializing in Middle Eastern pre-history, but she was about to have a baby, and much of her focus was on her impending motherhood.