After I had composed myself and straightened my clothes enough to step out of the carriage without being stared at by passers and Sadiq's own erection had subsided, the coach stopped in front of a large white gate which opened to reveal a small palace decorated in which I recognised to be the typical Ottoman architectural style as I had read in books about Turkey. I couldn't believe Sadiq lived in that house all by himself and figured that perhaps he felt a little lonely some times. I would love to make him company. He climbed out of the carriage and opened the door for me, holding his hand out. I stepped out of the carriage and looked up at the small palace in awe. Sadiq smiled as the coach drove off and rubbed my arm with his hands.

"Do you like it?"

"Oh, my God, it's so... cute"

I said with a wide smile, clenching my fists together as I admired the compact palace. It looked like an imperial palace, but, well, smaller and cuter. Suddenly, the doors opened and a tall brunette woman came out, walking down the stairs with a sway of her hips. She was dressed à la European, wearing a pale pink dress with white lace cleavage, tall white gloves, a long pearl necklace wrapped around her elegant slender caramel neck and a pink flowered capeline tilted to the side. I instantly thought that that woman, so attractive would be something of Sadiq's. He had never mentioned anyone and he had told me that his parents had died several years before. My mind began to wonder around a thought then: what if she was his wife? He had never said anything about not having a wife, and it could be possible that with me it had only been an affair. Tears started to gather in my eyes as we made our way to the front of the small palace, where the tall woman was waiting with a lopsided grin on her beautiful face.

"Vanya, this is my sister Ayşe"

Suddenly everything vanished and I felt like bursting out laughing, but realised that that would not be seen as correct, so I just grinned like an idiot and kissed the back of Ayşe's hand, which she offered to me after her brother introduced her to me. Her eyes were brown, just like her brother's and the sparkled just as beautifully. I realised she reached my shoulder, an impressive height for a woman and thought that she, perhaps, might have many suitors all around the Ottoman Empire.

"Ayşe, this is Ivan Braginski, I'm sorry... Menekşe"

Sadiq said with a proud smile, making me blush a little. Ayşe nodded and looked up at me.

"I'm glad to finally meet the famous Menekşe. My brother talks about you a lot"

She said with a smirk on her face and I blushed, realising what could Sadiq possibly had told her about me. We stepped inside the house and were greeted by a muscular brunette man with a tired look and bright green eyes that appeared to be the servant. Ayşe took off her capeline gracefully and handed it over to the servant, who bowed to her.

"Sadiq bey, Ayşe hanım, lunch will be ready in fifteen minutes"

Sadiq smirked at the servant and hugged him with one arm while rubbing his head with his hand, making the servant clench his fists.

"You know I just love it when you call me "Sadiq bey". Say hi to Ivan Braginski, Heracles"

Heracles looked at me and bowed. I was a little confused as to why Sadiq had such a friendly relation with the servant, but Ayşe didn't seem to be bothered by that. In fact, it seemed pretty normal.

Ayşe seemed to notice my confusion and decided to explain.

"He lost a bet to my brother and so he has been forced to work at our house as his personal servant. After our butler died, we needed staff, so he bet that the 1908 Revolution wouldn't succeed and go figure"

Ayşe said nonchalantly as her brother laughed and continued to hug Heracles tightly with one arm and suddenly I found myself feeling a little bit uncomfortable because of the familiarity they all shared, and even though Sadiq and I had made love, I didn't feel as part of him as even Heracles seemed to be.

"Those Young Turks be damned"

Heracles mumbled grimly as he made his way to the kitchen, leaving us behind and Sadiq to laugh his butt off. Ayşe shook her head, with a smile on her face and climbed the stairs after asking her brother to tell her whenever lunch was ready.

"We are alone now"

Sadiq said with a smirk, approaching me lecherously. I backed against the wall and put my hands on his chest, effectively keeping him away. He groaned in frustration, but then he gripped one of my wrists.

"Come on, I'll show you your room"

Sadiq then showed me around the house. It was exquisitely decorated, with expensive looking vases in every corner filled to the brim with tulips of every single colour in existence and furnished like an 18th Century palace. When he was showing me the living room, we came across a large painting of a man and a woman dressed in European clothing that resembled Sadiq and his sister. The man looked like he could have been the Sultan himself, standing with one of his hands behind his back and the other one grasping the back of the Louis XIV style chair in which the woman was sitting, with her crossed hands over her lap. Sadiq seemed to notice the way I was staring in awe at the big picture hanging over the chimney.

"Those were my parents. The owners of this house, they made their fortune with hard work back when everything was more difficult than it is today. My father died in the war against Greece back in 1897 and my mother committed suicide shortly after. It was hard for us"

Suddenly I realised that not only poor people like me had had a hard life, but also people as wealthy as Sadiq's family had experienced great tragedies. I hadn't been the only one growing up without his parents. I put my arm around Sadiq and kissed his cheek discretely. He chuckled.

"You don't have to be discrete here, love. Everybody here knows"

I blushed madly and looked down at him in surprise. If there was the slightest chance that he had told either his sister or his servant about what we had done in Russia, I would be mortified for life.

"W-What do you mean they know?"

Sadiq chuckled and kissed me on the lips, not caring if there was anyone around that could see us. I pulled him apart from me and breathed heavily.

"I don't think I would ever grow accustomed to your kisses... they make me lightheaded"

We both laughed until Heracles appeared and announced lunch. Ayşe walked down the stairs a couple seconds after and joined us in the large dining room.

I thought I could grow accustomed to the high life.