Being the sultan's daughter made everything easy to Nafize. But when she came of age marriage was a must and her parents chose the most unexpected person for her.
Malkoçoglu Bali Bey, was a military commander who was one of the most loyal men of th...
"How are you feeling darling?" My mother asked looking at me with a bright smile on her face. I sighed happily and looked down at the babe in my arms asleep like an angel.
"Perfect," I said making her laugh. I looked up and watched as the midwife and her helper left the room quietly to go tell my husband that he was allowed back in the room. I had been cleaned and so was the baby in my arms ready for visitors any minute.
The doors opened again and my husband speed-walked in with a smile on his face. He walked over to my side of the bed and sat down beside me after giving my mother a half-bow hurriedly.
"Are you okay?" He asked. My heart fluttered at the worry in his tone as he spoke to me.
"I'm just fine. Look Malkoçoglu we have a small prince" I said pushing the small babe forward for him to see. His smile brightened as he took the baby from between my arms and held him in his own.
"He's perfect" he muttered subconsciously. I loved the moments where he spoke without thinking for he was always afraid to get hurt again the sweet things he says were almost always an accident or when he knew he really had to say them when we fight or when I'm sick.
It didn't take long for my father to arrive with Hurrem sultan and Mihrimah and Cihangir. Selim and Beyazid must've still been in their lessons and couldn't come with the rest. And Mehmed must be training his fighting skills before he would be sent to his sanjak.
"Mashallah," my father said walking over to my husband who was now standing up with our son still in his arms. I looked at my very pregnant sister who was genuinely smiling for the first time in a while.
"Give him to me," father said opening his arms. Bali Bey placed our son in his arms and stood back as a maid handed me a headscarf to put on. My father said the Adan in his ear before he named the baby.
"Your name will be Mustafa" I grinned as my son was named after my brother who was absent at the moment in his sanjak.
My father handed the baby to me placing a kiss to my forehead as a good job. Hurrem sultan handed him a box to show a beautiful necklace inside, he pulled it out and placed it around my neck.
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"Thank you father," I said balancing Mustafa on one arm and took his hand in the other to kiss the back of it.
"It's an honor for you to name our son your majesty," Bali Bey said also kissing the back of my father's hand.
"May he grow up to be a brilliant knight just like his father" my father complimented patting Bali Bey on the shoulder before walking to stand beside my mother at the foot of the bed.
I looked down at the now awake baby. He looked up at me admiring my looks as if he was trying to memorize how I look already.
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"He's curious, just like you were," mother said snapping me out of the daze I fell in when I looked down at him and looked up at her with a smile on my face.
"Let's leave them alone so she could feed the baby," Hurrem sultan said obviously just wanting to be in a different room than my mother. At the mention of feeding the baby, I felt panic rise in my chest as I had no idea how to do it and looked up at my mother in panic who laughed and walked over to me shooing Bali Bey out of the room and taught me how to do it.
"There he goes" she chuckled as my son latched on to me sucking hungrily like he hasn't been fed in a long time.
"You just have to ease him in for the next couple of times," he said explained pushing my hair out of my face.
"I can't stop looking at him," I said. She laughed and patted my hand that was wrapped around the infant.
"Neither could I when you and Mustafa were born," she said having a look on her face like she was remembering those times.
"Mother, do you think he will survive?" I asked. This has been my fear for a while, many women told me how infants could have a hard time surviving.
"Don't have such dark thoughts Nafize" my mother scolded giving me a bed look. I pulled my dress back up as Mustafa finished eating and had fallen asleep in my arms.
"I'm just scared, especially after the miscarriage. I felt like I would be losing this baby too" I poured out my fears to her making her sigh and take the baby from my arms. I fight hard against myself to not protest and demand for the baby to be given to me again.
"God will protect him" she reassured placing him down in his small crib and pulled a cloth over it to block the sun from coming in and disturbing his sleep.
"Do you think that Bali Bey will stop caring for me if I don't give him the attention I used to?" I asked as she walked back over and sat down in front of me on the bed.
"You're a sultana Nafize, he should be the one chasing after you not the other way around" she pointed out making me sigh and nod.
"I don't chase after him I just give him attention" she shook her head and patted my arm. The doors opened again and Malkoçoglu walked in and over to where I sat.
"I'll go see his majesty," Mother said leaving the room and closing the door behind her. Malkoçoglu sat down in her spot and took my hands into his causing butterflies to erupt in my stomach at his touch.
"You did well my precious angel," he said kissing my hands.
