Chapter Ten

Life was going well for Sabrin and Lyssa. The play was still going on before packed houses every performance and there was talk of Sabrin being nominated for a Tony Award. None of that was as important to Sabrin as Lyssa's continued blooming. He loved wrapping his arms around Lyssa to measure her expanding waistline. He looked forward much more than Lyssa did to the day when his hands would not be able to touch each other.

It was late May when Sabrin received a call from his lawyer in LA about the sale of the house having gone through and the money being divided between him and Niki. The lawyer had sent Niki her check and would have Sabrin’s money deposited into his account after lawyer's fees were deducted. Sabrin was relieved that his last tie to Niki had now been severed.

It was a few days later that Sabrin was contacted by a friend inviting him to the New York premiere of his latest film. The event was occurring on a Monday so Sabrin had agreed. When the evening of May 19 finally came Lyssa was feeling very tired but insisted Sabrin attend so he reluctantly went.

He missed Lyssa terribly, but the movie, a thriller, was wonderful. The press was all over the place when the movie let out, as usual, so he put on his best happy actor's face and waited his turn. Just before the crew from Entertainment Tonight was to reach him, an arm slipped through his. Sabrin turned to see Niki Edger smiling up at him from his elbow.

"Hi, handsome. Here alone?" she asked, with an innocent grin.

"I-I...what do you want, Niki?" he asked, making it clear her comment was not pleasing.

"I just wanted to say hi. I was assuming that your new young squeeze would be with you and I wanted to meet her. Am I too late? Is it past her bedtime or did she leave you for Elijah Wood?"

Before Sabrin could grind his teeth and answer, the interviewer from ET called to him and the camera was on. With Niki still hanging possessively on his arm, Sabrin told the camera how much he had enjoyed the film.

"You mean, we. It was a wonderful film, quite innovative. Sabrin always loves to come to John's films. They have been good friends for years." Niki told the camera. Sabrin cringed, but she was right, and there was nothing there to contradict.

As the crew finally passed them, Sabrin pulled his arm from Niki's, but she seemed nonplused.

“I guess you think that was funny. I’m not with you anymore, Niki. I’m with someone else and I’m happy,” he told her sternly.

“You don’t look happy, you look alone and lonely. I miss you,” she told him running her hand over his chest and looking at this part of his body admiringly.

“I don’t miss you.”

“Don’t you? I would never have let you go to one of these boring things alone if you wanted me to go. I know that you didn’t always want me there, but if you asked, I went.” She was right, on both counts. “Why are you alone now? Did she break it off or did she just not give a damn that it wasn’t good for your image to come here alone?”

"Niki, just go please," he told her as he walked over to the reception next door.

"Oh, Sabrin, we are both going to the reception so why can't we walk together?" she smiled as she strode next to him and smiled for the paparazzi.

"Because we aren't together," he answered as he kept walking. When he arrived at the reception he made sure to put as much distance between himself and Niki as he could. He met up with his friend John and sat with him at his table to have a drink and discuss the film. What Sabrin did not realize until after a photographer thanked him for the great shot of him and his date was that Niki had positioned herself at the table next to Sabrin. Sabrin said good night to John and left the reception. Niki smiled at John and mouthed "he's tired" before following Sabrin to the door. Once he was outside Sabrin hailed a taxi.

"Can we share?" Niki asked. Sabrin cringed.

"Take it. I'll walk," he replied. He waited until Niki was in the taxi and it had pulled away before trying to hail another. A few minutes later he was back at the apartment. It was after 1:00 a.m. when Sabrin crawled into bed next to Lyssa. Lyssa woke up and smiled at Sabrin.

"Did you have a good time?" she asked. Sabrin nodded his head and then kissed Lyssa good night. He pulled her close and fell asleep. Lyssa had a problem falling back to sleep though as the smell of a woman's fragrance was emanating from Sabrin.

Lyssa finally went to sleep, thinking that smell was very familiar.

The couple decided to do a little shopping the following day. Sabrin wanted to put the unpleasantness of last night behind him and focus fully on his family. They had bagels at a little shop for breakfast and then headed to a boutique to look at baby clothes. They had a ball looking through, and picking out little things for the twins. Lyssa also found some maternity clothes since she was really showing now.

They had a late lunch before heading back to the apartment with all their new purchases. They fell into bed to cuddle and kiss.

"Oh, I should have brought my suit with us. It needs to be cleaned," Sabrin said, pulling out of a kiss for a second.

"I can take care of that for you while you’re out," she offered with a grin.

"Working on that good wife award even before we're married?" he teased.

"Maybe..." she said with a grin and pulled him back into the kiss. After Sabrin left for the theatre, Lyssa went into his closet to retrieve the suit. The strong scent of that perfume hit her again. The smell turned her stomach, but it also triggered a memory. This was something she had smelled before and it had also been on Sabrin then.

Lyssa found an old plastic dry cleaners bag and wrapped the suit up in it. She made sure her stun gun was in her purse and headed out to the cleaners. It was around 7:30 when Lyssa arrived, but this place stayed open until 8:00. The elderly woman that was behind the counter was watching television when Lyssa came in. She seemed reluctant to leave her chair, but did. Lyssa handed over the suit and asked the woman to make sure the foul odor was removed. "You’re Mr. Berry's lady, right?" the woman asked. "I like Mr. Berry. He's always nice when he comes in. He was at that movie premiere last night, wasn’t he?" Just then the woman looked over at the television in time to see the segment of Entertainment Tonight, as they covered the premiere. "Oh, look," the woman said. Lyssa looked over and watched with her as Sabrin’s friend, John was spoken to and then a host of other celebrities. One of the last interviewed was Sabrin, with Niki hanging all over him. Lyssa felt like she had just been punched in the stomach. She could not breath. Niki looked wonderful and just clung to Sabrin. The memory of the scent on Sabrin’s suit finally made sense - it was Niki's scent.

Lyssa left the dry cleaners and began to walk quickly back to the apartment. She rushed passed the doorman to the elevator.

"Ms Page, are you okay?" he called out but Lyssa did not answer as the elevator doors quickly closed.

She fumbled with the keys trying to let herself in when she heard a voice behind her. She grabbed her stun gun and turned to face the voice. It was the very surprised doorman.

"I'm sorry, Ms Page. I didn't mean to startle you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm sorry. I'm fine. Thank you for you concern but I'm fine," she responded as she put the stun gun away and continued to fumble with the keys. The doorman reached for them and unlocked the door for her, opening it slightly before handing the keys back to her.

"If you need anything, please let me know," he said concerned.

"Thank you for everything," Lyssa said as she entered the apartment and closed the door behind her. She rushed to the computer and turned it on. The answering machine was flashing and she went to listen to the messages as the computer was coming on. There were messages from Rose, her mother and Sonny all talking about the television coverage of the movie premiere. She ignored them all and sat down at the computer calling up first the Entertainment Tonight web site to see their coverage again. Lyssa then went to the official web site of the movie to see more coverage of the premiere and the reception only to see image after image of Sabrin and Niki together and smiling. She surfed the net and found some more sites only to be bombarded by more images. Lyssa was stunned. She got up from the computer and sat on the couch staring at the images still visible on the computer monitor until the screensaver came on.

The phone rang, but Lyssa did not move. The machine came on again, but Lyssa did not move. Sabrin called, Lyssa moved. She ripped the phone cord out of the wall and threw the phone across the room hard enough to destroy the unit and leave a nasty mark on the wall. It was very broken, but it was no longer ringing.

Sabrin got home at 10:30 on the dot. The room was dark with the exception of the light coming from the computer screen. Confused, Sabrin went to turn it off, but when he moved the mouse, the screensaver popped off and he was confronted with a page full of pictures from last night and Niki.

"Lyssa!" he called, frozen inside to his soul. "Lyssa!" He called again, tearing towards their bedroom, intending to head for her closet and make sure her clothes were still there. He almost tripped over the ripped out phone. His eyes went wide with terror. "Lyssa!" He cried, racing through the doorway and turning on the light by the wall switch. She was sitting there in the chair that sat by the table where he had left her engagement ring.

"Did you really think no one would see, Sabrin?" she asked with venom. "Well, you're a bigger fool them I am. Everyone saw. The phone was ringing off the hook with people wanting to know what you were doing out with her!"

Sabrin came slowly over to Lyssa. She was shaking with rage. "Lyssa, I didn't tell you, because-" her hand smacking him across the face cut short his sentence.

"I don't want to hear any lame excuse. You've played me for a fool, but you will not have the last laugh. These babies are yours and you will support them. I will have a lawyer contact you with the address to send your checks. Good bye!" She rose from the chair and it was at that moment that Sabrin noted her bags were packed and at her side. This absolutely could not be happening.

"Lyssa, please don't leave. Let me tell you what happened...what didn't happen. Please, Lyssa, I love YOU, not her!" Sabrin pleaded.

"Are you sure about that?" Lyssa said coldly.

"Yes, Lyssa, please! Hear me out!" Sabrin moved the bags as far away from Lyssa as he could put them and stood in front of her. "Please!"

"I'm listening," her tone had not changed as she sat back in the chair.

"She was just there. I didn't know she was going to be there," he started.

"Just like I was just there?" she asked.

"No! She and I weren't together. It was all Niki's doing. I didn't know she was there until just before they put the camera on me. I-I couldn't push her away on camera", he said.

"Why? Oh, could it be that it wouldn't look good to the fans to see you pull away from her. Is the public's perception of you more important than me? Even if I believed that, how do you explain all of the pictures of the two of you walking together, sitting at the table with your friend. Oh wait, I know...you didn't know she was there. Lyssa's stupid enough to believe that, isn't she," Lyssa seethed.

"Lyssa, please, nothing happened. I only want you!" Sabrin pleaded.

Lyssa stood up but Sabrin blocked her from getting her bags. She picked up the overnight bag next to her and her purse and walked out the door. She turned back to look at Sabrin. She slid the ring off her finger and placed it on the table next to the door. Sabrin watched with a stunned look on his face.

"I'll send for the rest of my things tomorrow," she stated.

"Please, Lyssa, no. I love you," he said as the tears streamed down his cheeks.

"You're an even better actor than I thought," she said as she walked out the door.

It took Sabrin three minutes to realize that the annoying sound he kept hearing was his cell phone. He had turned it off while he was at the theatre, but as he rolled over the bed trying to decide what to do, he must have inadvertently turned it back on. He sat up and looked at the readout. It was his mother. With a mournful sigh, he hit to answer the call.

"Hi, Mom." he said. His voice had no life to it.

"What the hell is going on there, Sabrin?" she asked him, with irritation. "I've been calling for hours! Why didn't Lyssa answer the phone before?" she asked.

"She's gone," he said, tonelessly.

"Gone where? It's late there, isn't it? You let her go out at night alone, Sabrin?"

"No, she didn’t go out, she left. She saw pictures from the premiere I attended Monday night. Niki appeared out of the blue and wouldn’t leave me alone. The cameras were flashing and she was hanging on my arm and telling me that she missed me. I told her to leave me alone, but she kept appearing. Lyssa wouldn’t believe that it was not a planned meeting and she left me.”

“Oh, God in heaven. God of this Earth! Where did she go?” Rose asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t even know what time it is or how long ago she left. I can’t live without her, mom. I can’t do it. I should’ve told her what happened. I have no idea why I didn’t. I hate Niki and I just wanted to forget about her being there.”

“You never said you hated her before,” his mother reminded him.

“Maybe I didn’t before, but I sure as hell do now! She planned this, mom. She had to have. She knew I’d come to the premiere and if Lyssa had come I bet she would have waited until she left me for a second and then would have made her move.”

“Son, what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to get her back, or die trying,” he said with conviction.

When he hung up from talking to his mother Sabrin knew he would need a very important ally if he were going to have a chance in getting Lyssa back. He hit the speed dial on his cell to call Sonny.

"Hello?" Sonny answered.

"Sonny, it's Sabrin. I need to talk to you about Lyssa. Has she called you?"

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few seconds before Sonny responded. "No, she hasn't but I've seen the reports and pictures from that movie premiere. I take it she's gone."

"Yes. I don't know where she is. Sonny, it's not how it looked, I swear to God. You know I love Lyssa more than anything. You know it."

"Tell me what happened," Sonny replied.

Sabrin told Sonny what had happened and waited for him to respond. It seemed like forever to Sabrin before Sonny spoke.

"You really think Niki planned this to hurt Lyssa?" Sonny questioned.

"I'm sure of it. Sonny, I need your help. If Lyssa calls you, please help me. I have to get her back. My life is nothing without her. Please."

"If she calls me, I'll do what I can to help," he sighed.

The next call Sabrin made was to the credit card companies. He hoped Lyssa used one of their joint credit cards to pay for wherever she was. He got lucky on the second call. There had been a charge made that evening at the Hilton Times Square. Now he had to figure out a way to convince Lyssa to come back to him.

Sabrin was physically tired, but he could not sleep in this bed without Lyssa. He refused to do that. Everything in the apartment reminded him of her, so he found himself leaving. He knew there was a bar that many of the actors from the local Broadway shows frequented, so he headed there. He was hoping for a light crowd, but was disappointed to realize that a new show had opened that night off Broadway and had sold out, so the cast was here with the press celebrating. It was a smaller show, so they did not have a huge budget for the normal opening night blockbuster, but the turnout had still been impressive. Sabrin went to the bar and tried to stay out of the way. He ordered his typical depression drink, Scotch on the rocks, only as depressed as he was he ordered a double.

“You’re here and alone again. Or at least, you were.”

Rage ran thought Sabrin as he realized who was talking and that it was to him. He turned to furiously face Niki who had appeared at his elbow as though she had materialized there.

“What the hell do you want now?” he roared.

“Tut, tut. Not so loud, Sabrin. You’ll draw attention to yourself. You know how you hate that. You and your private life,” she sneered.

“You are a bitch, Niki. I don’t know why I stayed with you as long as I did,” he told her, his face inches from hers.

“Calm down, darling. Here come the cameras,” she smirked.

Sabrin glared at her and turned away. He took a deep breath to collect himself and just happened to look towards the floor. God must be into comedy, Sabrin decided, because as he looked, a huge roach went ambling under his stool, trying to stay in the shadow. Knowing how much Niki hated roaches, Sabrin bent down and picked it up. Waiting until the camera was turning on them, Sabrin held the roach by the wings and placed it in front of Niki’s face. She let go of a wild scream, spilled her drink down the front of her dress and even got some in her hair. Sabrin dropped the roach into her lap and almost died laughing as she ran out of the bar. The bartender knew she had not paid for her drink yet, so he started to run after her. The cameraman followed the action, so Sabrin threw down a twenty dollar bill, upended his drink and made for the back door.

Sabrin walked to the twenty-four hour convenience store a few blocks from the apartment to buy a six pack of beer. He felt the emptiness of the apartment as soon as he entered. He turned the lights on hoping the apartment would be back to normal and this had all been a nightmare. When he saw the telephone still on the floor, he picked it up and put it and the beer on the table in front of the couch. He made his way to the bedroom and opened a dresser drawer where he and Lyssa had put the few baby clothes they had bought earlier that day. He also took the picture of Lyssa that had gotten him through so many tough days before. He laid the clothes out on the coffee table along with Lyssa's picture and the engagement ring that was no longer on her finger. He sat back staring at his collection and drank one and then another of the beer he had purchased. He picked up the picture of Lyssa, laid back on the couch, pressing it against his heart and fell asleep.

Lyssa had checked into the Hilton Times Square. It was the same hotel her parents had stayed at and the only place she could think of to tell the taxi driver to take her. She lay on the bed in her room staring at the ceiling trying to figure out what to do. She reached for the phone a few times but could not decide who to call. She did not want to talk to her parents but she knew they would be worried. She thought of calling one of the rabbis at the Temple but decided against that. Finally she picked up the phone and called the only person she knew she could talk to about this - Sonny. The phone rang once before Sonny answered it.

"Sonny, I hope I’m not interrupting anything?"

"No, Honey, I've been waiting for your call. How are you doing?" he asked.

"Waiting for my call?" Lyssa responded confused.

"Sabrin called me. He told me you left him. Talk to me, Honey," Sonny encouraged.

Lyssa told him about seeing the report on ET at the dry cleaners of all places, and how humiliated she had been. Then finding out from that answering machine that everyone else knew too. The final blow had been seeing all of the shots on the different web sites. It had just been too much. She had packed her bags and waited, at a boiling point, for Sabrin to return. He had seemed upset and tried to convince her it had all been an act, but Lyssa was not buying it.

“Honey, my love. I know you would have preferred that he push her away or toss a drink in her face, but his career is not only important to him for him, it is what he will use to support you and those sweet little babies. Before, it was only his own foot that he would be shooting, now he would have put you all on the line. Maybe he was not being a heartless bastard, maybe he was trying to be a responsible future husband and father.”

Lyssa was stunned. She had not even considered that for a second. “But he looked happy to be with her,” she objected.

“Did he? He was smiling but did it reach his eyes? After I talked to Sabrin, I went to that ET site. You can see it, Lyssa. He did not want to be there with her. She is holding on to him, but he is not holding on to her. If you look hard enough, I think you can even see that he was mad.”

“No,” she whispered.

“Honey?” Sonny asked.

“I’m just not sure. Have a made a terrible mistake?”

“He should have told you when he got home, Honey. Find out why he didn’t. If you want to wait until morning, that’s fine, but you need to know. If he is a heartless bastard, you will come live with me. I’ll even marry you if you want, but I ain’t giving up my nightlife.”

Despite herself, Lyssa found herself laughing. Sonny always knew what to say. “I love you, Sonny,” she told him.

“And I love you, but you love him more.”

After hanging up with Sonny, Lyssa stared at the phone for a moment before picking it up and starting to dial the apartment. She had almost finished dialing when she remembered that she had pulled the phone out of the wall so she hung up. She knew she would not be able to sleep so she picked up her bag and headed to the front desk to check out. She took a taxi to the apartment and hesitated for only a moment before entering the building. When she reached the door, she quietly unlocked it and stepped inside. She could see Sabrin lying on the couch. She frowned when she saw the two empty beer cans on the floor until she got closer and saw the neat arrangement of the baby clothes and ring on the coffee table. She could not help but smile when she saw the picture he was clutching to his chest. Lyssa quietly picked up the empty beer cans and the remainder of the six pack and took them to the kitchen. She bumped the computer as she came back and discovered it was still on. She went back to the ET site and looked again.

~ Sonny was right. ~ She had seen the smile on his face but now she could see the anger in his eyes. ~ How could I have been so blind? ~ She shut down the computer and swiveled the chair so she could look at Sabrin, banging the back of the chair into the desk. The noise jarred Sabrin from his sleep causing him to bolt upright on the couch. He turned to the direction of the noise and saw Lyssa sitting at the desk.

“Lyssa! My God, you came back for your bags, didn’t you?” he asked, carefully placing the beloved picture on the table and trying to stretch without looking like he was. The couch was not the best place for him to have slept.

“I came to talk,” she told him.

Sabrin got to his feet so quickly that he nearly fell as a wave of dizziness swept over him. He stopped to grab his head and to regain his balance. Lyssa rushed to his side, feeling terribly guilty. The evidence before her was overwhelming. This man had not done anything wrong, except for not telling her what had happened. She took hold of his arm, trying to help him steady himself. He brought his hands away from his face and looked into her eyes, desperate hope shining in his.

“Why didn’t you tell me she was there?” Lyssa asked him. Her tone was calm. It was just a question. Sabrin’s face displayed intense guilt, but he tentatively reached for her fingers. He let go of the breath he had been holding when she did not pull away.

“I didn’t want to think about her. I kept telling her to leave me alone, that I wasn’t with her anymore, but she kept finding ways to be in pictures with me. It was like some bad dream and I just didn’t want to think about it. I was so wrong not to tell you. I swear to you that will never happen again.” He looked very pained as he opened his mouth to continue. “So, I have to tell you that I saw her again.”

“What?” Lyssa said, with a shocked gasp. She pulled her hand away from Sabrin’s.

“No, not like that! I swear! I went to a bar to get drunk out of my mind. It was a bar that actors frequent, there was a celebration going on for the opening of this small play so there was some media coverage. Niki must have thought I would go to try and get some face time. She knows about the bar, so I think she has been camping out there to trap me. I swear, I didn’t know she would be there!”

“What happened,” Lyssa demanded.

With a worried expression, his face lowered, Sabrin said. “I wasn’t very nice to her.”

“What did you do?”

“I-I sort of threw a roach at her right when a camera was turning to face us. She screamed,” he admitted. But Lyssa could tell that was not the end of the story.

“And?”

“Well, she kind of spilled her drink when I showed her the roach and then when I dropped it in her lap, she screamed again and ran out of the bar without paying her tab. While the bartender ran after her and the cameras were on her, I slipped out the back and came home. I swear!”

Lyssa covered her mouth, but it did not help. She was laughing too hard for a full body cast to hide in seconds.

Lyssa could not stop laughing over what Sabrin had done. Sabrin quickly moved to take her hand again. Lyssa leaned her head back against the couch while she caught her breath.

"I'll never keep anything from you again, Lyssa. Forgive me?" he asked, his eyes pleading for her to come back.

"On one condition," she replied.

"Anything," he answered quickly.

"You'll forgive me too. I really over-reacted and I'm so sorry."

Sabrin moved closer to Lyssa and kissed her tenderly.

"I'm so glad you're back. I'm nothing without you,” he whispered in her ear before kissing her again. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Sabrin picked up the ring from the coffee table and took hold of Lyssa's left hand. "Lyssa Page, will you marry me?" he asked.

"Yes," she smiled back as Sabrin slid the ring back on her finger. Lyssa stared at the ring and then looked at Sabrin and started to laugh. "You threw a roach at her?" Sabrin took her in his arms and they both sat back and laughed.

"I was very angry with her. She was trying to drive us apart and it was working," he said with an unsure expression.

"Are you saying you think that was her intention?"

"Yes. The very first thing she said to me was a comment intended to mean she thinks you’re too young for me. She made slurs about you not being with me. She was just plain unpleasant to be around. She told me that she missed me. I told her I didn't miss her and that was an understatement."

Lyssa caressed his cheek and smiled at him. "One more thing, why did you lay down here? It seems like you intended to sleep here, this couch is too small for you."

"The bed was too empty without you. I didn't want to sleep there if you weren't there. I couldn't. I just couldn't."

Lyssa pulled his face to hers and kissed him. "You're not going to have to do that, unless you keep things from me again. Now, let’s go to bed. I'm exhausted and you are about dead."

"No argument there. I am. And still a little drunk. I love you," he said, once he got to his feet and caught up with her.

"And I love you, now to sleep."

After they had crawled into bed, Sabrin wrapped his arms around Lyssa pulling her as close to him as he could. They shared another tender kiss before falling asleep.

It was just after 9:00 a.m. when Lyssa was awakened by the ringing sound that seemed to be coming from the end of the bed. She sat up to see Sabrin’s cell phone at the foot of the bed. She reached for the phone and answered.

"Lyssa!"

Lyssa recognized Rose's voice instantly. "Good morning, Rose."

"Thank you God. You're home, Lyssa," Rose cried.

"Yes, I am. Right where I belong," she smiled as she looked down at the still sleeping Sabrin. "Sabrin’s still sleeping. Would you like me to wake him-"

"No, no" Rose interrupted. "I want to talk with you. I am so happy to be talking with you."

"I'm sorry I worried you," Lyssa whispered, slipping out of the bed and out of the room. "I over-reacted and flew off the handle."

"No, I think I understand, dear. The timing of this could not have been worse. We women are very emotional at this time. I was furious with Sabrin when I saw those pictures. But I have the unfortunate advantage of having known Niki. When I spoke with Sabrin, I could just see her evil little plot. Had you been there, it may have been akin to what happened at the play."

"You think Niki would have attacked me?" Lyssa gasped.

"Well, maybe not, but I'm not sure. In my view, she clung to Sabrin for his money. Her only hobby was shopping and it was rarely for him. I'm so glad you're nothing like her. And I'm so glad you came back."

"So am I, Rose. So am I."

Lyssa was just getting out of the shower when Sabrin knocked on the door.

"There is a man out here who had too much to drink last night and needs to get in there, please," he pleaded. Lyssa wrapped herself up in a towel and opened the door. Sabrin rushed in, kissed her on the nose and raced in. Lyssa chuckled and went to get dressed.

Lyssa walked to the bedroom realizing that to get dressed she would have to unpack first. She could not help but grin when she discovered the bathroom had actually been Sabrin’s second priority. He had unpacked all of her things making sure each item was exactly where it had been and had put the bags away. She sat at the end of the bed for a moment and sighed.

"You don't mind that I unpacked your things, do you? Sabrin asked.

Lyssa smiled. "Of course not. Thank you for doing it for me."

Sabrin walked over and stood in front of Lyssa and pulled her up by the towel. "You don't have to great dressed right away," he told Lyssa before he kissed the nape of her neck.

"You have a matinee today," she reminded him.

"We have the time," he said before kissing her hard on the mouth. He let go of the towel and wrapped his arms around Lyssa.

The towel quickly hit the floor. Sabrin kissed her and ran his hands over her body. Her pregnancy had advanced to the point were it meant that sex was a little different now. Grinning with an idea, Sabrin plucked the towel from the floor, wrapped it back around her and took her hand. He was only dressed in a pair of shorts as he led her out of their bedroom and into the kitchen.

"I hope the idea of sex in the kitchen doesn't bother you," he said.

"The only thing about sex that could bother me is if I wasn't getting any or if it wasn't with you. What did you have in mind?" Lyssa asked with a grin.

Before answering, he pulled her over and kissed her tenderly. "I love you," he told her, with a happy sigh. "Okay, I was thinking that the counters in here are the perfect height. If you leaned back, the babies wouldn't be in the way and...well, you get the idea."

She giggled. "Yes, I do. Sounds great. Get me a pillow from the bedroom to sit on?" she asked. Sabrin nodded and raced to comply. When he returned, Lyssa was pulling a chair up to the island in the center of the kitchen and was just about to climb on to it.

"Whoa there, woman. Just what do you think you're doing?" Sabrin asked, racing to her side and grabbing her arm with care.

"I was getting ready, silly."

"Don't climb on something without me being here to make sure you don't fall, Lyssa. I have almost lost you too many times already," Sabrin pleaded.

She smiled at him. "Okay. Help me up." He shook his head at her with a sigh, but did so. As soon as Lyssa was seated comfortably, Sabrin sat down on the chair and grinned at her.

"I need a snack first," he said with an evil grin, and parted her legs. He eyed his target with hungry eyes.

He gently caressed Lyssa's inner thighs with his hands before lowering his head between her legs. He gently parted the labia with his fingers and ran his tongue over Lyssa's clit. He could feel it hardening in his mouth as he sucked on it. He inserted his fingers and began to thrust them in and out as he continued licking and sucking on Lyssa's clit. Her moans were like music to Sabrin’s ears. He removed his fingers from Lyssa, replacing them with his tongue. He massaged her clit while his tongue darted in and out of Lyssa's wet vagina. Lyssa cried out as her orgasm ran through her body. Sabrin stood up and thrust his erection deeply into Lyssa causing her to gasp in delight.

Lyssa wanted to hold him, but she had to lean back to keep her balance, but Sabrin could touch her. He slid his hands over the creamy skin of her outer thighs until he could reach her sexy ass. He gripped it gently and continued his thrust, making sure not to move too roughly. He watched her face closely for any indication of discomfort, but Lyssa was moaning with desire at almost every thrust.

She threw her head forward, crying out with release. Sabrin held her shoulders and found himself slipping over the edge as well.

Sabrin helped Lyssa sit up and wrapped his arms around her. He kissed her tenderly.

"Who says I don't know my way around the kitchen?" he smiled.

Lyssa laughed. "I'll never think that again." Sabrin helped her down from the counter. They looked at the clock in the kitchen and both frowned as they saw that Sabrin was going to have to leave for the theatre shortly.

"Your mother called this morning when you were still asleep," Lyssa mentioned to Sabrin as they walked to the bedroom to get dressed. "We had a nice talk. She’s such a great lady."

"I bet she was very relieved to hear your voice. I think she would have killed me if-" Lyssa stopped him from finishing his sentence by kissing him.

"So you called Sonny last night. Smart move," Lyssa complimented him.

"I always knew you were marrying me for my brains," he joked.

"Well, actually, I'm marrying you for your body," she teased.

"As soon as we get settled in LA, will you help me pick out a car for Sonny?" Sabrin asked.

"I think the boxers he stole from you were enough, but I agree that we owe him quite a bit."

Sabrin turned back, looked her deeply in the eyes and shook his head. "No, Lyssa. I owe that man everything for giving me back my world. You’re everything to me. You're my beginning and ending. Everything in my life now is because of or for you." Sabrin pulled her close again and kissed her forehead, feeling tears run down his face. "You're everything...everything."

Lyssa pulled free and wiped his tears away. "You're pretty damn important to me too. I'm so sorry I over-reacted. I was so sure my world had just collapsed around me."

Sabrin kissed her to stop any further apology.

"I think we need to agree to put that behind us and never think about it again. It’s a waste of time and it would make Niki way too happy."

"AH! Don't say her name in my home. That name is forbidden in my home," Lyssa commanded.

"Your home?" Sabrin questioned with amusement.

"Yes, my home," she repeated, poking him in the chest and grinning.

"Aye, Captain," Sabrin teased and pulled her into the bedroom so he could play while he got dressed.

After Sabrin left for the theatre, Lyssa looked around the apartment trying to decide what to do first. She decided the first thing she would do was get a new phone. She grabbed her purse before heading out, checking to make sure she had everything she needed. She looked at her stun gun and thought ~ Bagheera, I hope I never need to use you but I'm glad you're here ~ as she put the Panther model back into her purse. When she reached the lobby, the doorman greeted her warmly.

"Good afternoon, Ms Page. I'm glad to see you're feeling better today," he smiled.

"Thank you. I feel wonderful. I'm so sorry about pulling my stun gun on you-" she said before he interrupted.

"No need to apologize. With everything you've been through, I was glad to see you have such quick reflexes."

Lyssa found a replacement phone at one store and then browsed at a baby boutique, looking at some of the beautiful cribs that were on display. She started to walk home but decided to stop at her favorite deli for a snack. It was such a beautiful day she decided to eat at one of the tables they had set up outside. Lyssa was surprised when a woman suddenly sat across from her at the table.

"You're Lyssa, aren't you. I recognize you from some pictures I saw once. Do you know who I am?" she asked Lyssa.

"Yes, Niki, I know who you are," she replied.

“I’m sorry Sabrin was so late getting back Monday night. There was just so much to talk about between us.” Niki’s smile was not the least bit apologetic, but then Lyssa knew her words were a lie.

“I’m sure there was. Such as, did you get your check from the sale of the house and who gets the living room sofa - things like that. There are so many details to go through after a break-up,” Lyssa agreed and took a bite of potato salad. Looking down, Lyssa realized her protruding belly was hidden by the table and Niki could see no evidence of her pregnancy. She decided to wait and see how far this woman went, but from under the table, Lyssa pulled the stun gun out of her purse and put it in what was left of her lap.

“There were so many old friends there that night. I know all of his friends. We were together for a very long time.”

“Fourteen years. Yes, I know.” Lyssa did her best to look bored. “You may as well get up, Niki. You tried to drive a wedge between us, but we saw through your ploy. Sabrin and I are together and we’re staying together for good.” Lyssa stared straight in Niki’s eyes, waiting with her hand on the stun gun.

“He told me we were staying together too. I’ll get him back. He’s left before and he always came back to me,” Niki stressed, glaring at Lyssa.

Lyssa pulled out the first of her trump cards. Slowly, she lifted her left hand from her lap and lowered her right hand to the stun gun. Resting her elbow on the table and her hand against her chin, Lyssa said, “Not this time, I’m afraid.”

It took Niki’s eyes only a fraction of a second to lock on to the ring on Lyssa’s hand. The redhead jumped to her feet and reached out to grab Lyssa’s hand. Niki had a strong grip and Lyssa could not pull away. She locked on to the stun gun, with her finger on the trigger, but gave Niki a chance to release her.

“It’s a fake! He refuses to marry!” Niki almost threw Lyssa’s hand back.

Bringing the stun gun into view, Lyssa slowly got to her feet. “He changed his mind.”

Niki staggered backwards as though the visual evidence of Lyssa’s pregnancy had struck her like a blow.

"You're-you're pregnant," Niki gasped.

"He's changed his mind about a lot of things," Lyssa smirked. "Sabrin is very excited about the babies."

"Babies?" Niki repeated.

"We're having twins," Lyssa stated.

"That son of a bitch!" Niki seethed. The anger in Niki's face scared Lyssa but she did her best to not show she was frightened. Niki started to take a step closer to Lyssa when she suddenly noticed the presence of another person. It was Parker Jackson, the owner of Lyssa's favorite market.

"Good afternoon, Lyssa. I'm glad I saw you here. We just got in some fresh strawberries today. I've picked out the best ones and put them aside for you," he smiled.

"Thank you. You are so good to me," Lyssa told him, beaming.

"Anything for my favorite customer. May I escort you to the store?" he asked.

"I would be honored," Lyssa smiled. She turned to look at the still stunned woman. "Goodbye, Niki." Lyssa left Niki at the table and crossed the street to the market.

"I'm going to have my son walk you home, Lyssa. I didn't like the way that woman was looking at you," her protective grocer told her.

“Then I’d say you have one hell of an eye. I didn’t much care for the way she was looking at me either. Thank you so much for coming to my rescue.” Lyssa gave the man’s arm an affectionate squeeze causing him to blush with pride.

“Any time, Lyssa. It was my pleasure.”

After returning home to put away the purchases she had made at the grocery, which had been kindly carried for her by Parker’s son, Lyssa rested until it was nearly time for Sabrin’s evening performance. She called a taxi since Sabrin had the car, and went to the theater. The producer felt so bad about the attack on Lyssa that he had told her, should she wish, she was always welcome to attend as many of the future shows as she liked. He had reserved a seat for her and it was hers anytime she wanted it. Lyssa had called ahead, just to be polite.

She arrived a little early, but refrained from going backstage, even though the producer offered to take her to Sabrin’s dressing room. She did not want to distract him and Lyssa doubted she would be able to keep her mouth shut about running into Niki. That was exactly what he did not need to hear right before a performance and Lyssa decided she had been the cause for him to miss too many performances already.

Seeing Sabrin on stage and hearing his sexy tenor singing voice was just what Lyssa needed to relax and cheer her up. The loud noise also seemed to calm the babies who must have been reacting to her tension and had been kicking vigorously. It was also possible they too enjoyed daddy’s singing.

Sabrin was delighted to know Lyssa was in the audience. Vowing to keep her mouth shut, she went backstage during intermission. As Lyssa entered the dressing room, Sabrin turned in his chair and paused from touching up his make-up and smiled. Lyssa sat in a chair next to him and kissed him carefully.

"Your performance is brilliant as usual," she gushed.

"You'd say that if I sucked out there," he laughed.

"Well, that is something you will never know because you will never suck on stage," she retorted.

"How was your day today, my love?" he asked.

"I got us a new phone and saw some really beautiful cribs. Parker Jackson had put aside some wonderful strawberries for us so I picked up a few things at the market too," she told him.

"Did you carry all of those things yourself? he asked concerned.

"No. Parker had his son carry everything for me. He's a sweet man," she commented.

"He's been great, hasn't he? Wait, should I be jealous?" Sabrin teased.

"Hmmm...he is a very handsome man and I do have a thing for older men..." she teased back.

"Did anything else happen today?" he asked.

"We can talk about everything when we get home. I should get back to my seat if I'm going to enjoy the rest of the show. There is this guy...when he sings it makes me so hot. Damn, I wish I could remember his name," she continued her teasing.

Lyssa kissed Sabrin before heading back to her seat.

After the show, Lyssa made her way backstage again and was greeted by many of the other actors as she headed to Sabrin’s dressing room. All of them knew about the attack on her and wanted to be sure she was feeling all right. The lovely young actress who played Juliet told Lyssa she was all Sabrin ever talked about and how he always had a glitter in his eyes as he did. Lyssa was beaming with giddy happiness when two hands touched her shoulders. Lyssa turned and looked into the sparkling blue eyes that she loved.

“Hi, beautiful,” Sabrin told her, pulling her into his arms for a polite hug.

“Hi, handsome.”

Sabrin led her back to his dressing room and watched her glow as all his fellow actors waved at her and wished her well.

Lyssa decided to wait until they arrived home before telling Sabrin about Niki. He was livid, but Lyssa assured him that she had her stun gun in her lap and that Parker had seen what was going on and had come to her rescue.

“I think we are shopping only at his store when we’re in New York. I wonder if he’d like to take his wife to see the play?” Sabrin pondered.

“Tickets to the play would be a nice thank you. That and just a face to face thanks from both of us would be more than enough. He is a good hearted man, but modest.”

Sabrin sighed. “It’s worse than being Batman’s girlfriend. I keep putting you in danger.” He looked very ashamed and worried. Lyssa took his hands in hers and smiled at him.

“I think she was in more danger than I was. Parker wasn’t pleased with her and he’s a big man. If Niki hadn’t let go of my hand when she had, she would’ve been picking herself up off the ground after getting over being very stunned.

"I still wish you didn't need to carry that," Sabrin said of the stun gun.

"I know. Bagheera does make me feel a little safer but I always feel safest with you."

"Bagheera? You've named your stun gun?" Sabrin laughed. "Why Bagheera?"

"I loved Disney's The Jungle Book when I was a kid and the panther’s name was Bagheera so... Are you prepared for all the kids' programs you'll be watching - Barney, Teletubbies, Mister Rogers and Sesame Street. You do know your Muppets, don't you?" Lyssa laughed.

"I'm going to need your help with some of those. You think it will impress our children to see their daddy on Sesame Street? Maybe I could try to get a spot on it,” he mused.

"I'm sure our children will be impressed no matter what show they see you on," Lyssa teased. "Now if you want to really impress them, you'll have to get a picture of you and Elmo."

"Elmo?" he asked.

"The furry red monster from Sesame Street. It would appear that we have a lot of work to do to get you Muppet literate," she laughed.

"You're not going to make me watch this stuff now, are you?" he asked with a groan.

"I may go get a bunch of the videos for us to watch together Monday. You'll love it. The Teletubbies are like space alien babies. And they live in a house that looks like a landed flying saucer." Lyssa kissed Sabrin as he glared at her with extreme distaste. Lyssa laughed and he shook his head at her.

"You're an evil woman."

"I know. Isn't that one of the things you love about me?" she asked, tilting her head to the side and looking innocently at him.

"Well, okay, you got me there. Yes, I love it when you're evil. But mostly in the bedroom," he said with a suggestive grin.

“You're such a sweet talker. I guess we can wait a while before watching Teletubbies," she laughed.

"Thank you!" Sabrin leaned over and kissed Lyssa. He took Lyssa's hand and led her to the bedroom. Lyssa reached out and squeezed his butt firmly as he walked in front of her. He turned and wrapped his arms around Lyssa as best he could, kissing her.

Lyssa gave him a guilty grin. "I can't help it. You have a sexy ass. I'm surprised when we walk down the street, women don't stop us just to grab your buns. Hell, the fact no one ever stops the scenes you are in during the play to squeeze that sexy butt of yours continues to astound me."

"You know flattery with get you everywhere," he told her.

"I just want it to get me taken to bed," she said with a grin.

Sabrin grinned and carefully lowered Lyssa to their bed. He joined her there, drawing her into his arms and kissing her tenderly.

Both Sabrin and Lyssa were very excited about her doctor's appointment. The doctor was going to perform another ultrasound and they would be finding out the sex of the babies. They sat anxiously in the exam room waiting. The doctor did his usual exam of Lyssa and then the ultrasound machine was hooked up. The doctor let the proud soon-to-be parents know they were expecting a boy and a girl. Sabrin and Lyssa were absolutely thrilled.