Chapter Seven Continued

Lyssa woke in Sabrin’s arms. She felt green again, hopped from the bed and discovered just how yellow stomach acid was. She turned to see Sabrin holding a glass of water and a wet washcloth for her to wipe her face. The retching caused her eyes to water too. Once she had carefully brushed her teeth, noting that even this upset her stomach, Sabrin had crackers ready. She thanked him and ate one while sitting weakly on the side of the bed.

“Pregnancy definitely proves what a fallacy the belief that women are the weaker sex is. I could never handle this, Lyssa!” He rubbed her back, comfortingly.

“I think that may have been the babies way of saying “good morning, mommy and daddy!” she answered with a weak smile.

"I hope they don't do this every morning. For your sake."

"Me too but it shouldn't last too much longer," Lyssa said hopefully. "The book I was reading said it usually only lasts for the first trimester. I hope that's true."

"We'll definitely ask the doctor this afternoon. I have a whole list of things I want to ask him about."

"Don't you think you should start getting ready? You have to be to rehearsal soon," she prodded. He looked at her with concern in his eyes. "I'm fine now...really."

Sabrin went to take a quick shower and shave. Lyssa put on a bathrobe and headed to the kitchen to make breakfast. She had bought some bagels and low fat cream cheese the day before at the deli. She cut three bagels in half and began to toast them. As the last bagel popped out of the toaster, Lyssa could hear Sabrin making his way to the kitchen.

"Just cream cheese or would you like some lox too?" she asked.

"You bought some lox? I haven't had it years!" he smiled. "Lox too would be great."

Lyssa finished preparing the bagels and brought them to the table along with a cup of coffee for Sabrin and a glass of milk for herself.

As Sabrin ate, he kept staring at Lyssa. He smiled behind his coffee and reached for her hand often. When breakfast was over, Lyssa told him to leave the dishes, she would get them later. He pulled her to a stand, kissing her very tenderly.

"You know...you don't just turn me on. You fill my heart. I said it before, I'm going to say it again. You're the piece of the puzzle I was missing." He put a hand on her belly. "I didn’t know I wanted these pieces until you told me, but now, I can't imagine not sharing this with you. We're going to be...no, we are a family already. I've never wanted anything more than everything you have given me. I've never loved anyone as much as I love you." He kissed her once more, again, very tenderly then went to the door, got his coat and was gone. Lyssa found herself crying for twenty minutes.

As soon as she regained her composure, Lyssa had a shower and got dressed. She washed up the breakfast dishes before sitting down to read more of her book. She kept a pad of paper and a pen next to her so she could write down any questions for the doctor at the appointment that afternoon. She became so enthralled in what she was doing she was surprised when she heard the key in the door and saw Sabrin was home for lunch.

"Is it lunch time already?"

"I'm glad to see you too!" Sabrin laughed.

Lyssa put down her book and walked over to Sabrin.

"I'm glad you're home," she said before she kissed him. "I was reading and lost track of time. I haven't made anything for lunch yet. What would you like?"

"You on the kitchen table," he answered, following her into the kitchen.

“Not very filling,” she scolded, rolling her eyes at him.

“Have you ever had you on the kitchen table? How can you know that?” He pulled her back into his arms and kissed her neck from behind.

“I can make you a cold sandwich,” she offered. Sabrin agreed, but did his best to get in her way and make a playful pest out of himself as she did her best to get around him.

Lyssa made a sandwich for each of them which Sabrin ate rather quickly as he was quite intent of playing a little before he had to leave. He stood behind Lyssa and began to caress her arm softly. He then leaned down and began to nibble her neck. When Lyssa finished the last bite of her sandwich, she stood up and took the dirty dishes to the kitchen, much to Sabrin’s disappointment. When she came back, Lyssa climbed up to sit on the table with her dress draped on the top. She held her arms out to Sabrin and he rushed to her.

Just the sight of her and Sabrin felt himself grow hard. When he slipped a hand under her dress, he discovered she was not wearing anything underneath. This excited him even more.

"No time for pretty," he told her and unzipped his pants. He pulled her close to the edge of the table and plunged into her.

Lyssa wrapped her legs around his butt, pulling him deeper.

~ God, she can make me so horny! ~ he thought to himself as he thrust into her again and again.

It wasn't pretty but it was good. Lyssa's orgasm started moments before Sabrin’s. Lyssa collapsed into Sabrin’s arms with a big smile on her face. She kissed him tenderly.

"Are you going to be late?" she asked. He took a quick glance at his watch.

"No, I have time," he smiled and kissed her. "You are so amazing."

Sabrin reached down to pull his pants back up. He kissed her passionately before saying he had to go.

"Do you want me to come back here or meet you at the doctor's office?" he asked before leaving.

"Meet me there. I'm going to go shopping first."

Sabrin threw on his coat and kissed Lyssa before leaving.

Lyssa had yet to even look for a dress for the opening night of Sabrin’s play. She also needed a new dress for dinner with the Smythes. Lyssa had mentioned she was going to go shopping yesterday and Sabrin had gone to his wallet and pulled out a credit card. Lyssa had been embarrassed and had tried to refuse, but he had asked her what money she was going to use to pay it off when she got the bill. Having no job was going to make that rather difficult.

“I could get a job for-“

“Like hell you could!” Sabrin had interrupted. “Your full time job is to carry our babies and spoiling me rotten,” he said with an impish grin. “And I get to spoil you rotten right back. Now take the card!”

So she had taken the card.

It was almost like living a little fairy tale trying on some of these dresses. Lyssa had asked the sales woman for help in what one would wear to this type of function and was surprised they were not as dressy as she would have expected. She found a simple black dress that hugged the curves of her body. It would go perfectly with the black heels and pearls she already owned. For the dinner, she found a blue, knee-length drape neck dress. It was simple, but stylish. She stopped by the building, asking Rich Carlton, the doorman, if she could leave them there until she returned.  She then headed for her doctor’s office.

Lyssa was checking in at the reception desk when Sabrin arrived. He slid up next to her and kissed her cheek.

"Is this your husband?" the receptionist asked.

"We're not married," Lyssa replied as she filled out the forms required for a first visit. When she got to the area of insurance, Lyssa stopped and turned to Sabrin. "I don't have insurance coverage anymore. What are we going to do?" she asked.

"Don't worry. You're covered. I added your name on my health insurance. I checked the mail when I left at lunch and your card finally arrived." Sabrin pulled out his wallet and gave Lyssa the insurance card. Lyssa finished filling out the forms with Sabrin’s help. They sat in the waiting room to wait for her name to be called.

"You didn't tell me about putting me on your insurance. Is there anything else I need to know about?"

"Actually I was going to talk to you about this later. I've already changed my will and the beneficiary on my life insurance. You and our children will be well taken care of should anything happen to me," he assured her. Before Lyssa could respond a nurse appeared and called out her name. She and Sabrin followed the nurse to an examination room and were told the doctor would be in right away. She hadn't even closed the door to the room when the doctor appeared.

The doctor greeted Lyssa. She introduced Sabrin as the father and the two men shook hands.

"Well we have been forwarded your records, Lyssa. You’re progressing fine. Taking your vitamins daily?" Lyssa nodded. "Great. Now, I want you both to understand, having twins is not like having a singleton birth. So, we will be doing things differently and paying a lot more attention to you even now. Since most twins are born pre-term, we want you to gain now rather than later. You need to eat frequently. You may feel like you're turning into a glutton, but it’s mostly for the little ones you’re carrying," he joked with a grin. "Now we men are going to step outside and let you get undressed. I’ll ask a nurse in to help with the exam. Here’s a gown. I'll be back in a flash." The doctor led Sabrin outside and turned to him. "I hope you understand. This is not going to be easy for your girlfriend. Twins are a huge commitment and she is going to need help."

"I'll make sure she has all the help she needs doctor. That's a promise," Sabrin assured him.

"While Lyssa is changing, are there any questions you have?" the doctor asked Sabrin.

"Well there are a few," Sabrin responded as he pulled out his list.

The doctor laughed. "Are these your first too?"

"You can tell?" Sabrin laughed.

"I like it when the parents come prepared," the doctor smiled as he looked over Sabrin’s list of questions. He answered most then explained he would answer the others in the exam room as they were in areas he wanted to discuss with Lyssa as well.

The nurse checked on Lyssa and, seeing she was ready, the three entered the room to begin the examination.

The doctor checked her size and did a brief internal exam. Then the fun part came.

"Now we see if we can hear some heartbeats." The nurse handed him a blue box about the size of a computer mouse. Once the doctor had spread some KY jelly on Lyssa’s belly, he placed the devise over it, searching. It was a strange thing to listen to, but finally there was a familiar pattern to the sound, the doctor looked up and smiled at the two awestruck parents. Sabrin, who was close to tears, squeezed Lyssa's hand.

"That's it?" he asked. "That's one of our babies?"

"I think I found the other one too. Here," the doctor moved the devise and another heartbeat could be heard. It sounded the same, but the device was over a different area of Lyssa's womb.

Sabrin looked down at Lyssa, eyes brimming with tears.

"Baby beats," he said and kissed her with awe and tenderness.

"Can we do that again, I almost forgot I brought a tape recorder. Can you get it from purse please?"

Sabrin opened Lyssa's purse and saw the handheld tape recorder on top. He took it out and handed it to Lyssa. The doctor found the heartbeats again and Lyssa recorded each one for about twenty seconds each.

"Thank you doctor." Lyssa then turned to Sabrin. "Your mother and my parents are going to love to hear this."

Sabrin beamed, "and I'll be wanting to hear it over and over again too."

When the doctor had finished the exam, he answered the rest of Sabrin’s questions and all of Lyssa's too. The doctor, nurse and Sabrin left Lyssa alone while she got dressed.

"Thank you for everything doctor. I really appreciate you taking the time to answer all of our questions and there were a lot."

"If you have any other questions don't hesitate to call the office," he told Sabrin as Lyssa came out of the exam room. "Now...I want to see you back in three weeks. Okay? The nurse can book an appointment for you now. Bye."

Sabrin and Lyssa said goodbye to the doctor and then made their next appointment for early afternoon on April 4.

As they left the office, hand in hand, Sabrin reached over to her purse, indicating for her to open it. Grinning, he pulled out the recorder and listened to the heartbeats again. Sabrin wrapped an arm around Lyssa's waist as they walked. His expression, was once again, misty.

"I'm scared, Lyssa. What if I'm terrible? What if they hate me?" he asked with a sad laugh.

Lyssa shook her head at him, giving him a gentle smile.

"This is going to be new for me too. We'll just have to learn as we go and depend on each other. I love you, and the babies are going to love you." Sabrin smiled and rewound the tape again.

"Wonder what they are. Two girls or two boys?"

"Or one of each. They should be able to tell by the next visit. What are you hoping for?" she asked, curious.

Sabrin thought for a moment. "One of each sounds perfect. I'd like a son to carry on the family name, and a daughter...who looks like you...that would wonderful," he smiled.

When they arrived home, the message light was flashing on the answering machine. Both Sabrin and Lyssa's parents knew about the appointment that day and messages from both mothers had been left with instructions to call. Sabrin went first. He spoke to his mother. His voice filled with pride. He played the tape of the heartbeats for her and once again his eyes became moist. When he hung up, he told Lyssa his mother had started to cry as she heard the heartbeats. She was a very happy woman.

Lyssa called her mother and got similar results. Lots of tears and happiness. Any doubts her parents still had regarding Lyssa's relationship with Sabrin evaporated with the sound of the thump, thump on the tape.

After she hung up, Lyssa went to the kitchen to start dinner. There was a knock at the door, which Sabrin answered. The doorman had brought the purchases Lyssa had left with him earlier in the day. She had completely forgotten about them when she and Sabrin had arrived home.

"You didn't even say a word about what you got today. I like this blue number. Very nice!" Sabrin teased, coming into the kitchen with the bags in hand.

"I was distracted by the babies!" she defended from the stove.

Sabrin came up behind her after draping the bags across the back of one of the dining room chairs. He wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her tiny belly with affection.

"I believe that is going to be happening a lot more in the future. Two babies...there may be a time when I don't get to make love to you for days," he teased.

"You did read the part in the book where it says after birth, I can't have sex for six weeks, didn't you?" Lyssa asked.

"God forbid!" he gasped as Lyssa giggled.

"I'll do my best to help you in other ways but I might be pretty tired. Twins are a lot of work you know."

"And that's why I want to hire someone to help you."

"So I won't be too tired to have sex?" Lyssa teased.

"That too!" he laughed. "Seriously, twins are a lot of work. We can afford help so I want to take advantage of that so it won't be so hard.”

"We can afford...I can't afford anything. All my funds are tied up in the house."

"We need to visit the bank too...so I can add you to my account. I called the credit cards I have and you'll be getting cards in your name on all my accounts...are you good with money...it sounds like it. Will you handle the bills for us?"

Lyssa turned around, looking stunned. "Are we going to be visiting a lawyer soon too?" she asked, cautiously.

"No, why? Do we need to?" Sabrin asked, confused.

"To draw up an agreement like you had with...Niki."

Sabrin smiled, shook his head and kissed her nose.

"No, you are not Niki. I don't want one with you...unless you feel the need to protect yourself from me?" he offered, totally serious.

Lyssa laughed. "No, I don't. Are you sure about this? I'll sign one if you want."

Sabrin pulled her close. "I’m sure. I trust you. You won't take me to the cleaners, because I am not letting you go!"

"Good because you won't be able to get rid of me even if you did. You are stuck with me Sabrin Berry so get used to it!" she laughed.

"I'm very used to it and lovin' every minute!" he kissed Lyssa hard.

"If you want to eat, we better stop this now or everything will be burned," Lyssa teased as turned her attention back to the vegetables steaming on the stove.

"That smells delicious. I have a question for you, Lyssa. Are the men in Illinois really stupid?" he asked seriously.

"What? Why would you think that?" She was puzzled.

"You are beautiful, smart, funny. A really incredible woman who is an amazing lover and a terrific cook. I don't understand why no man swept you off your feet and whisked you down the aisle."

Lyssa laughed. "Well, maybe some tried to sweep me off my feet but you are the first one to be successful. As for being whisked down the aisle, no one's ever asked."

"What if I asked?" he said, but his nervousness was showing.

Lyssa’s heart was racing. Being married to him was something she had not even dared hope for. “I know you’re not fond of the idea of marriage, Sabrin.” She turned from him and stirred the sauce that was to go over the pasta she was boiling. “I wasn’t going to ask that of you.”

Sabrin stood behind her in silence for a long, uncomfortable moment. Finally he moved...away.

“Is there anything I can do to help with dinner?” he asked.

Lyssa took a deep breath to try and regain control of her emotions. “You can set the table.”

Sabrin went to the cabinets and retrieved the proper items. As he moved about the kitchen behind her, Lyssa realized she was continuing to sigh softly.

~ What is it about marriage that turns him off? ~ Lyssa wondered.

Sabrin was having the same thoughts. It was true he had been in a couple of very long term relationships but the idea of wanting to marry either woman had not been something he had considered. Each woman had, but not him. He looked at Lyssa and thought how he hadn't wanted children even more than he didn't want to marry and now look at him. He was seven, possibly six, months away from becoming a father of twins and he had never been happier. ~ If I could be so wrong about wanting children, ~ he thought ~ maybe I'm just as wrong about the idea of marriage. ~ He knew his feelings for Lyssa were so much stronger than he had ever felt for anyone. ~ Lyssa Berry. ~ He smiled at the thought. ~ Damn that sounds good. It sounds...right. ~

Sabrin released a breath he had unconsciously been holding. But if this was going to be done, it had to be done right. And perhaps when there was more time. Opening night was coming up fast...he was going to be very busy for the next few days. Sabrin sighed. He noticed an identical sound coming for the lips of his lover.

She was just about done with the cooking by the look and wonderful smell of it.

Sabrin went to her elbow, smiling. "Can I take that to the table for you?"

"Sure, thanks." Lyssa didn’t sound right, he noted. He took the plate to the table and returned to pull her to face him.

"You know I love you, don't you?" he asked, holding her chin lightly in his fingers.

"Yes, I know that." Lyssa smiled, but it was only half hearted, and he knew it.

"That's not going to change, Lyssa. I mean it." He kissed her tenderly.

"I know," she smiled. "I know."

Sabrin carried the rest of their dinner to the table as Lyssa followed. She wished Sabrin hadn’t made that comment about why no one had whisked her down the aisle. She hadn’t given marriage a lot of thought because she knew Sabrin was not keen on the idea. Still, there had been moments when she thought how wonderful it would be to be his wife. Dinner was a little quieter this evening although they talked about what the doctor had said and about dinner the next evening. Sabrin noticed Lyssa seemed a little subdued.

Sabrin offered to help Lyssa with the dishes, but she gave him a gentle smile and told him to go take a nice hot bath. "You look tense. Opening night is in two days and you need to relax. I'll take care of the dishes. You go ahead."

"Join me soon?" he asked, hopeful.

"I'm going to read some. I want to make sure this food stays down. The hot water makes me woozy a bit. Maybe I'll come wash your back later." She gave him a kiss and shooed him off.

Sabrin reluctantly went.

Lyssa watched him go, thinking about the events of the day...and marriage. He was here, she was here. He loved her, was not leaving at the mention of twins, he was not going to take her to a lawyer and he was going to put her in charge of their day-to-day finances. He obviously trusted her. He was going to try to go to Temple with her and he loved Sonny. Marriage was not needed. She already had more of him than she had ever imagined possible. It was selfish and foolish to want a silly piece of paper that could not tell her what she already knew.

Sabrin, with eyes closed, was laying back in the water when Lyssa entered and knelt down next to the tub. Sabrin opened his eyes and smiled.

"I love you," Lyssa smiled. She tested the water with her hand to see how hot it was. It felt nice. Lyssa began to get undressed.

"I thought you weren't going to join me. I don't want you to get sick," Sabrin cautioned.

"I'll be fine. The water's nice, not too hot but if you don't want me to join you..."

Sabrin reached out his hand, which Lyssa accepted as she stepped in the tub. She sat between his legs, leaned back and rested her head on his chest as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I was just thinking about how lucky I am.” Lyssa looked him in the eyes. "You're here and...we are together. I love you so much, I can't even express it properly."

"I love you too, Lyssa. I love you and I'm never going to leave you!"

They relaxed in the tub for another fifteen minutes before Sabrin suggested they get out. They were almost finished toweling each other off when Lyssa suddenly started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Sabrin asked her.

"I was just thinking that it's a good thing I watched Seinfeld or I never would have known about shrinkage," she laughed.

"Oh, you're so bad!"

"And you love it," she said as she ran from the bathroom to the bedroom. Sabrin followed her, watching as she climbed on to the bed before joining her. He wrapped his arms around Lyssa and kissed her.

"Shrinkage isn't a problem now!" he smirked.

"If it had been a problem, you would have been sleeping on the couch!" she teased, but only by half.

"Are you saying you only want me for my erect penis!?"

"Ah huh," she said nodding.

"You are horrible!!!" he cried, grabbing her by the legs and trying to pull her under him, as she had moved away while making that statement.

Lyssa giggled and pulled away again. Sabrin crawled over to grab her, but she slipped away a third time.

"You playing hard to get?" he asked, grimacing at her from the opposite side of the bed. Lyssa grinned at him challengingly.

"No, I'm being evasive, you're the one playing at being hard."

"PLAYING at being hard?” he repeated, insulted.

"You have yet to sheath that sword. It’s futile to have a sharp blade unless you have something to plunge it into." The sultry expression on her face was enough to drive Sabrin half crazy. He lunged at her again and this time, he caught her!

Sabrin pulled Lyssa towards him, maneuvering himself to be straddling her legs while he held her wrists above her head. Lyssa was breathing heavily from their game. Sabrin stared down at Lyssa.

"Damn, you're so beautiful!" he said as he moved between her legs and released her wrists. He lowered himself down to kiss her.

"You are the sexiest man I have ever known. No man affects me like you do. Sheath that sword, NOW!"

Sabrin grinned for a second, until the tip of his erection made contact with Lyssa. He rubbed against her clit for a moment until it seemed she was holding her breath. She released her breath in a long, deep sigh as he finally impaled her. Lyssa arched her back and sunk her nails into his back. The pain mixed with pleasure pulled Sabrin deeper and deeper. Sabrin kissed her, soft and teasingly at first, then deeper and harder. His thrusts were deeper and harder too.

Lyssa moaned with pleasure from the feel of Sabrin within her. His hot kisses were driving her wild. The intensity of the sensations seemed even greater. No man ever made her feel like this. Her body began to writhe, her back arching so she pressed against him even closer. Her orgasm coursed through her body with such ferocity she was literally shaking. Sabrin kept going, bringing her to the brink again. Lyssa grabbed onto the sheets as she cried his name. He came within her like a volcano erupting.

"Don't stop!" Lyssa pleaded. She grabbed his face, begging him not to lose his erection.

"I don't know if I can keep it, Lyssa, I-"

"Picture a glass elevator. You and I are in this elevator, going up to a party in a penthouse suite. The car gets stuck on the seventh floor. Only you and I are in the car. I am wearing a very short skirt and black spiked heels. You know I'm not wearing anything underneath." Sabrin listened to Lyssa's sexy voice paint a picture in his mind as he continued to evenly thrust into her.

"The car is going to be stuck for at least an hour. You and I have been apart for days and have not been able to make love since your return. You want me, but the glass is clear and the place is crowded below. I'm bored. I lean over, resting my elbows on the railing and my forehead on the glass. From behind me, you can see the curve of my ass and a hint of something more. You feel yourself getting hard. You move to run your hand over my behind. Your hands are so hot on me. Nothing is in your way, but your own clothing." Sabrin had totally regained his erection and was pumping into her again with enthusiasm.

"Tell me the rest," he pleaded, panting now.

"You can't take it anymore. You move your hand down and begin to finger my clit. You can feel it getting hard. You insert two fingers in me. You want to make sure I'm nice and wet. I am. You undo your pants and let them fall to your ankles. You thrust your hardness into me. You feel so good, you always feel so good inside me. You thrust hard within me - your body is slamming against my butt. My moans are getting louder. Suddenly the elevator begins to move. We can't stop. You thrust harder and harder as I cry out in ecstasy. You explode within me a moment later. You lean against me for a moment as we catch our breath. We barely have our clothes in place as the doors to the elevator open. But you know everyone on the ground floor saw us. Their eyes were wide as the elevator began to rise to the 40th floor."

Sabrin cut off any possible addition to the story by claiming Lyssa’s mouth in a savage kiss. He moaned through it as he had been in Lyssa's imagery, he was slamming against her hard. He was almost wild with the need to come inside her again. He felt on fire with the heat stoked by the Lyssa’s words. Her erotic story had touched Sabrin on a deep subconscious level. It was a secret fantasy. To make love in public. To be seen and caught, but still get away with it. It was base, but it struck a cord with him and brought him to the brink of passion once more. Lyssa was arching her back beneath him. She broke their kiss to cry out. The world spun for a moment and Sabrin was sucked into it. He let loose with a great guttural cry as he was released from this void and his seed rushed in to the woman he loved.

Lyssa grabbed hold of Sabrin and held him tightly as her body began to relax from the incredible climaxes she had just experienced. She loved the way her story had turned him on so much. Sharing one of her fantasies with him and seeing his reaction to it was incredible. Sabrin withdrew from Lyssa and moved next to her. He kissed her forehead and she sighed. ~ My life is so wonderful. I know how much he loves me. I don't need a piece of paper to validate this, ~ she thought.