“She doesn’t know our traditions. How is she supposed to run a household?” the aunt asked. “Look at her—she doesn’t even hold her fork properly. What exactly did your smart son see in her? A pretty face?”
“That only gets you so far,” Felis went on. Then she added, with a nasty little edge, “Girls like this look for men from wealthy families. Let one into a good home and before long she’ll leave a mess behind.”
Joanna kept eating, listening, and saying nothing. Inside, though, a hot wave of humiliation kept rising. Every whispered remark felt like a jab under the skin.
But she held herself together and stayed quiet. That lasted until Felis said something that made Joanna’s ears ring. “Are you sure she won’t end up deceiving you?”
“Foreign girls can be very calculating, especially the ones from modest backgrounds.” Joanna slowly lifted her eyes to the two women. Kasim hadn’t heard any of it. He had stepped into another room to take a business call on his cell phone.
And these women were talking about her as if she were a lamp in the corner, not a human being sitting at the table. After dinner, Nevin politely offered her tea. Kasim still hadn’t returned from his office.
To Joanna, the timing felt a little too convenient—and she was right. Nevin leaned toward Felis and spoke in Turkish, louder than before. “This girl is a mistake. Kasim is thinking with his feelings, not his head.”
“I will not allow this marriage to happen,” his mother said flatly. Felis gave a short, satisfied laugh. “I agree. She’s not from our world. Just look at her—too plain, and clearly after security.”
“Do you really want a daughter-in-law like that?” the aunt asked. “No,” Nevin answered coolly. “I’ll make sure she leaves on her own.”
Joanna set her cup down so gently the china didn’t even clink. In that moment, she knew she could not stay a silent observer any longer. She stood up.
“Excuse me,” she said calmly. “I need a moment.” She stepped into the hallway, but she wasn’t heading for the front door.
She was headed straight for the office where Kasim was. She could hear his voice; he was still on the phone. But no conversation in her life had ever mattered as much as the one she was about to have.
And right then, she made her final decision. She was done sitting there and taking it. She was not going to let these smug people keep humiliating her.
Joanna opened the heavy office door and stepped inside quietly. Kasim, just finishing his call, looked up in surprise. “Joanna, what happened?” he asked, concern in his voice.
She took a slow, steady breath and said, “Kasim, I understand Turkish.” The room went silent all at once. The silence was thick, almost physical.
Kasim blinked several times, clearly not processing it at first. “What?” he said. “Joanna… what do you mean?” he asked, staring at her in disbelief…
