Afterwards, they just lay in bed together. Azhar held her in his arms, trying desperately not to fall asleep. He usually did that after sex, it drove Angela nuts, and now he wanted to do things better with Barbara. To his great amusement, she knocked out pretty much immediately.
She slept like a baby, looking content and at peace. Azhar was so happy, he could just have cried. Everthing would be all right. They'd organise their weird little family in the best of ways, and he'd marry Barbara as soon as Hadiyyah was recuperating from the trauma with Angela leaving.
A new chapter in both of their lives had begun.
FIN