Until that night at the gazino, when Muhsin whispered those words, and that wave of happiness coursed through her, while her heart beat ever faster.

Now, for the first time, she could dare. She could open herself up. Leave the world behind, to bask in heavenly bliss.

Even in the privacy and security of marriage, Ahmet had never come so close to her as this stranger now was.

Because Celile had always, always, kept Ahmet from her inner world. Never had she let down her guard.

And now she was handing herself over to a man she knew only by his eyes, his gaze, his silences. Holding nothing back.