The Wedding Night...

Promises...

The weekend had arrived, and there was no wedding to attend. Ms. Azade finally seemed to accept that fact. She was not as moody as the previous day. Still, there was damage control to do. The press had been alerted of the event, and so were the guests. Everything needed to be canceled and dealt with. That task was left to Baran. With his father, his secretary, and Dilan's help, they managed to get it done in time. However, in Baran's mind was the pendant. He was still waiting on news from Okhan. He was standing outside drinking coffee when he heard Dilan approach. She was talking on the phone, and he suspected the person on the other side was Gül. "As long as you are sure... Right, I'll call you again." She ended the call and looked in his direction. Baran extended his hand to her. "Would you care to join me, Ms. Dilan?" She smiled at him, her most beautiful smile. "I sure will, Mr. Baran." She held on to his hand, and he helped her sit. He gave her his cup for her to drink some coffee.

"Was that Gül on the phone?" She returned the cup to him. "Yes, I was curious about how she was doing, so I called her." "And?" She glanced at him from the corner of her eyes. "Firat was right. She is determined. She won't come back. It is not about Firat anymore; I think she wants to do this herself." He gave the cup to her. "I see... And how about you, Dilan? How is my wife today?" The way she looked at him, her eyes were shining; he was sure she was preparing for something. "Well, first of all, the coffee was good, thank you!" She returned the cup to him. It was empty. She cleaned the corners of her mouth with her finger. "I'm afraid nothing is left for you, Mr. Baran." She said while preparing to leave. But she was not getting away with this. Baran grabbed her wrist and pulled her to him. "Is that so?" "Uh-hum." "I think there is a last sip left." He dove in and kissed her, pulling at her tongue to savor the coffee on her. He felt her hands on his neck, and he broke the kiss. He mimicked her gesture and cleaned the corner of his mouth. "Hmmm. Good coffee, no?" He got up before she could say anything and left for his office.

"Baran!" Dilan was upset. How could he leave after a kiss like that?... Dilan shook her head. She needed to compose herself and continue with her agenda for the day. The first thing was to call Gul. Second was to talk with her brother. After much thought, there was no other way to discover the truth about the pendant. Baran was trying, but his way will take some time. And she needed answers. Her parents would refuse her, but they would never deny her brother. He was always their favorite, and she had made peace with that. But she didn't want to do it over the phone; she didn't want to call him to the mansion either. It was best if they met outside. The problem was Baran. Whenever she needed to go out, he would go with her or have his father or brother go with her. But she felt she needed to go alone to converse more comfortably with Cevdet.

She decided to call her brother to see if he was available. "Brother, how are you?" He sounded excited. "Dilan! I was thinking about you, little sis." "Really? Why?" "Don't know, I'm here with Yağmur, and I was reminded of you as I watched her play. You two are very similar as if you were really niece and aunt. By the way, I gave her some of your toys. I hope you don't mind." "Of course no... Brother, I was wondering..." "Dilan, is something wrong?" "No, no, I was just wondering If we could meet." "Of course, we can. Come by the house..." She interrupted her. "Let's meet outside. Just the two of us, okay?" Dilan heard silence at the other end of the line. After what seemed forever to her, he spoke. "Of course, Dilan. But are you sure everything is alright?" "Yes, brother, I just want to talk to you." When he spoke, he didn't sound at all convinced. "I'll be at the restaurant today at 11 am; I'll be by myself. Meet me there." "Would do, brother. See you there." She ended the call, and her eyes went to Baran's office. Now, how would she get away from her overprotective husband?"

Baran was in his office talking to Okhan. "Are you sure there is nothing?" "I'm sure, Baran, there is no indication that Ms. Gözde had a sister. I had a colleague of mine stationed in Mardin to investigate a little. Everyone says she was the only child of that family. They did say a girl around Ms. Gözde's age was always with her. But we dug further, and she turned out to be their maid's daughter. So, it is a dead end, my friend." Baran was furious. He punched the desk with his fist. "Then why would she say that?" "I don't know. Maybe to fool you." Baran thought about it. "No, she didn't intend to share that information with me. It was evident in her body language." "I believe your instincts, Baran, but I don't know what else we can do..." Baran didn't know either; it was so frustrating. "Let me think about it some more; I won't stop pursuing this yet." "Thank you, Okhan." "Nothing to thank, Baran; you know I will be there whatever you need." "Same. Okhan."