Payback Time, Baby

by Sabel Simmons

  “There was an … incident. But you are fine now; you just lost a lot of blood.” His voice was hoarse, but soothing at the same time.

  “Did I … Oh no … Did I lose it? Tristan, please tell me I didn’t lose our baby!”

  She cried near hysterically and he pressed the bell to summons the nurse.

  “Shh, honey. Everything is fine!”

  “No it is not! Tell me! Please, Baby … I have to know!”

  He took her in his arms and held her tight, his eyes swam in moisture. Now, after four years, he heard the news and experienced first-hand how happy she was about the pregnancy then; how important it was to her.

  “Relax honey, everything is fine …”

  The nurse and the specialist came rushing in and immediately did a thorough examination. Before he started bombarding her with questions, Tristan pulled him to the side and told him about her amnesia.

  He ordered some tests immediately and Tristan warned him that the last thing she remembered was that she was pregnant and not to inform her otherwise.

  The doctor frowned and paged through the results in the file in his hand. He smiled broadly.

  “Well, it is one thing we would not have to lie about. She is five weeks pregnant. The last set of tests we did, confirmed it.”

  “What?”

  He was in shock, and then the joy swelled his heart so big, he worried it would burst. The proud smile on his lips spoke for itself and the specialist grinned at him.

  “I suppose you are the happy father?”

  “Of course!”

  He couldn’t stop smiling, but then turned to the specialist with worry in his eyes.

  “How long would this last?”

  “I am not sure. It is short term amnesia of course, and it seems she blocked something out that she couldn’t deal with and remembered a happy time in her life.”

  “Do we tell her?”

  “She thought she was pregnant. I assume it is not this pregnancy?”

  “No, it was four years ago. We had twins.”

  “Then we will have to, but bits by bits. I am relatively sure it is not long term and her memory will come back soon. Something could trigger it or she might start remembering things in bits and pieces. I’ll know more once we have the test results.”

  Tristan moved back to her side and took her in his arms, settling next to her on the bed and she winced.

  “Sorry, honey, I nearly forgot. Are you up to a chat?”

  She snuggled close to his side and leaned her head on his chest. “Hmm.”

  “The incident seemed to have caused you to have some … amnesia.

  She stiffened and struggled upright to look into his eyes. “Amnesia? I lost my memory? How … how much?”

  “Four … four years.”

  “What! But … but, our baby?”

  He smiled tenderly at her. “We had twins.”

  Her eyes widened and then tears rolled down her cheeks. “Twins?”

  “Yes, Jason and Tiffany.”

  “A boy and a girl! Oh my God! How could I not remember them, Tristan? My own children!”

  “Shh, please calm down. It is not good for you to get so upset. The doctor is positive it is short term and you will start remembering soon. Please, do not worry about it.”

  “What happened? What was the incident you mentioned?” He hesitated.

  “Let’s not talk about it now. We can …”

  “No, I need to know what happened!” He sighed and pulled her back in his arms.

  “We were doing a Security Protocol for the Pentagon and a terrorist group tried to stop it. They used you to get me to withdraw it. Everything was under control, but then one of the men drew a gun and shot at me. You jumped up to push me out of the way, and he … you took the bullet instead.”

  Worry immediately filled her eyes. “The twins! Where they there too?”

  “No, you took them to your mother a few days before. You were alone, whilst I was in Washington busy with the Implant of the system.”

  “The twins … are they okay?”

  “Not really. They have never been apart from you for so long and I didn’t want them to see you unconscious, so they only know you are sick. They are very worried and miss you something terrible.”

  “Please … will you bring them here? I need to see them!”

  “Of course! I’ll phone your Mom and ask her to bring them here.”

  She nodded and watched him make the call, the happy smile when he told her mother she has come too and to bring the kids to the hospital. She frowned when she noticed his naked ring finger and asked the question the moment he ended the call.

  “Tristan, why are you not wearing your wedding band?”

  He froze and stared at her, his lips pressed in a thin line. Then he smiled and kissed her softly on the lips.

  “Why don’t we leave all the questions for now and prepare you for the twins.”

  “Tristan, you are avoiding the question!” He sighed and closed his eyes in frustration.

  “A lot has happened in the four years, honey. Let’s give your memory time to recover and not spend time on …”

  “Tristan Wade! You better start talking!”

  “I see your amnesia triggered a new side of your personality!” He sighed when she glared at him and grimly responded.

  “We … never got married.”

  The devastation in her eyes nearly unmanned him and he took her hands in his.

  “Honey, don’t worry about it too much. It is all in the past.”

  “But the twins … where how … what happened?”

  He sighed. “You are upsetting yourself and the doctor distinctly said you have to remain calm. Besides … we are getting married soon. So what happened in the past is exactly that … in the past.”

  He lifted her hand and kissed the finger with her glittering diamond ring.

  “See, we are still engaged! Now put that lovely smile back on those rosy lips. You don’t want to worry the twins. They are two very perceptive rascals!”

  The look on Savannah’s face when she saw the twins brought tears to both her mother and Tristan. Their excitement and joy to see her were too much for her and she burst out in tears, causing the twins to do the same.

  Tristan had a hard time to get the three of them to calm down and the twins clung to her, not prepared to let go. He had to put his foot down when he saw her flinch when they hugged her too tight.

  “Come now, rascals, give Mommy some space. Her shoulder is very sore, so be careful when you hug her.” They immediately pulled away from her and Tiffany gently stroked her hand.

  “We miss you Mommy. It’s no fun when you’re not home.”

  She smiled through her tears and could not get enough of touching them. She stroked their hair, their cheeks and kept hugging them.

  “Daddy said we may have a puppy!” Jason informed her with an excited smile.

  “Two puppies!” Tiffany piped in. Tristan shook his head and frowned at them.

  “Now, that is not quite true. What did I say?”

  Jason twiddled his thumbs and mumbled. Tristan ruffled his hair.

  “Come on, scamp. Speak up.”

  “Daddy said maybe, but only if we asked you first.”

  “Yes, and?”

  “And if we do get one, to promise to look after it always.”

  “Two puppies, not just one!”

  Tristan shook his head and noticed that Savannah’s eyes started drooping. They said a teary goodbye and they left unwillingly with their Nana.

  “They are the most beautiful and sweetest children ever! How were we so blessed, my love?”

  “They have such a beautiful and sweet mother; who is very tired and should now get some rest.”

  Her emerald eyes rose to his pleadingly. “I want to go home, Tristan! Please speak to the doctor!”

  He shook his head adamantly. “It is too soon. You only just came to and they still need to do some tests. But, I promise, I wil
l not let them keep you here any longer than necessary.”

  She fell asleep in his arms, having insisted he squeeze in on the bed with her.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Tristan watched Savannah frolicking in the pool with the twins. She was released from hospital a week ago and has been building up her strength since then.

  He frowned, recalling the discussion he had with the Specialist after she came to. Her agitation about her memory loss seemed to have increased and they decided not to tell her about the pregnancy. He found it difficult to accept, but agreed with him to keep it quiet for another few weeks. His happiness about the news was something he wanted to share with her and their families, so they could all share in the excitement from the beginning. Something all of them were denied the first time.

  She laughed at his fascination with her belly all of a sudden. He rubbed and stroked it all the time, laid his face against the soft skin and kissed it tenderly every night and every morning. For him, it was his special bonding period with his child, a bonding she should be sharing in, but was kept from her. He frowned and wondered how she would react when told at a later stage. For now she did not show any signs of pregnancy. She was healthy, did not suffer from nausea or dizziness. He prayed she started to remember before she realized she didn’t have her monthly period.

  They left the pool and the twins ran to the swings, happy that their mother was back and well again. Savannah stood next to him, drying her hair and wrapped the towel around her body. He grabbed the edge of the towel and ripped it from her body, drawing her on his lap with his other hand.

  She fell into his lap, smiling into his eyes and wrapped her arms around his neck. She drew his head down and kissed him deeply. His shaft rose demandingly against her hip when she delved deep into his mouth, drinking as if savoring an aged old whiskey. He growled against her mouth and his arms folded her tight against him.

  She nibbled his jaw and stroked fire over his neck to pull his earlobe into her mouth, sucking softly. She moaned as his seeking hand found and stroked her breast. His shaft now painfully aroused, pressed against her. He only held her close every night and it felt like a lifetime ago since he made love to her.

  “You were there when the doctor said I am healthy and can carry on with normal activities, right love?” she whispered

  “Hmm …” He kissed the pulsing vein in her neck.

  “Do I assume correctly then that making love would be a normal activity we used to indulge in … hopefully regularly?”

  He stiffened under her probing fingers that were aiming for his groin.

  “Savannah, honey … you’re still not well enough.”

  “You seem to have developed the bad habit over the past four years to avoid direct answers, my love. Did we or did we not make love regularly?”

  He groaned, knowing that if she had her memories, her immediate answer would be no! That he initially only indulged in a passionate retribution, and since then only a few times when he tried to give her time to forgive him for how he did it. Good Lord, he needed to make love to her … in all aspects of the word.

  ‘Yes honey, we did.”

  “Well thank goodness! I started to think you were not interested anymore after four years! Sooo, my love … do you think we could put the twins to bed early tonight … “

  She walked her fingers down his chest, over his belly that tightened expectantly to hesitate for a moment before they closed around his pulsing shaft straining in his shorts.

  He heaved his breath in sharply and closed his eyes, enjoying the pleasure she evoked with her stroking fingers. He pushed her off his lap and rose from the deck chair, frowning at her.

  “You are playing with fire to seduce me in view of the twins, honey. They are way too young to witness the pleasures of the flesh … but that is what they will see if you don’t seize right this minute!”

  She smiled seductively at him and walked closer slowly. She reached for his naked torso and stroked his quivering steely abs softly. She yelped when he picked her up and ran to the pool. He jumped in with her in his arms. When her head cleared the water she glared at him but he only grinned at her.

  “You clearly needed to cool off, honey.”

  The twins came screeching from the swings when they saw their parents in the pool and both jumped in to crawl their way to Tristan for attention.

  Tristan stood watching Savannah smile happily at her Mother and then called him closer. He hesitated for a moment, his stomach tied in a knot. He had a fairly good idea what they were discussing and did not really know how to deal with it.

  He committed to the wedding in the hospital, but knew deep in his heart it was the wrong thing to do. At least until she recovered her memories. He wanted her as his wife, but only if she wanted it too. And as the current Savannah, who remembered what he did and how he treated her over the past few months and would still agree to marry him. Not as the Savannah that only has the happy memories of four years ago.

  She wrapped her arms around his waist and lifted her lips for his kiss, which he happily complied to give her, warmth filling his heart. Their eyes locked together lovingly for seconds.

  “You called, my love?”

  “Mom and I were wondering about the wedding. Have we set a date yet?”

  “Uh … not really, but we did not plan on waiting long.”

  “Well in that case … How about Saturday the 16th?”

  He frowned. “That’s in three weeks. Why the hurry? You haven’t started remembering anything and it has been two weeks since your release from hospital. I think we should rather wait …”

  Her eyes turned smoky. “You don’t remember?”

  He frowned at her, his mind searching and his heart contracted. His voice softened and he placed a soft kiss against her temple.

  “I remember honey.”

  It was the same date they would have gotten married four years ago. He wrapped his hands around her cheeks and kissed her tenderly on her lips. They stood close together with his forehead resting against hers. He sighed heavily and pulled away from her, wearily keeping her close.

  “I still think we should wait until your memories return. Honey, please don’t cry! I want our wedding to be special, something we will both treasure and remember always. I don’t want to take the chance that you might lose these memories once the others return!”

  “What if I never remember? Will history repeat itself?”

  “No, not this time! You will remember, all the tests indicate it is short term.”

  “But I try all the time and I still do not remember anything!”

  “Stop trying so hard. It will happen, but not if you force it. Who knows, maybe still in time for the 16th.’

  “I agree with Tristan, love. But in the meantime nothing prevents us from making arrangements and buying your wedding dress, right? Savannah’s mother asked Tristan.

  He smiled wanly. “Your mother’s right. Start planning and have a dress made. Don’t spare any costs. This must be a very special wedding!”

  Tristan was very busy at work over the following week. They were still working very closely with the Government on the Security protocols they implanted to ensure everything ran smoothly. They were also busy with a Security development for Global International Bank. He attended meeting after meeting and had to go out of town to meet with the CEO of the Bank in Washington DC as well.

  He was tired, missed the twins and Savannah. The worst scene he could have walked in on was Savannah laughing with her former manager, James Wilson, who played with the twins on the floor.

  The moment the twins noticed him, they jumped up with a screech and threw themselves into his arms. He hugged and kissed them but his eyes grilled into Savannah’s.

  She frowned and did not understand the anger in his eyes. She rose and walked towards him. He turned to James and asked rudely.

  “What are you doing here?”

  James frowned and rose from where he still sat on the floor.


  “I came to see how they were, and I guess I am on my way.” He sighed and then looked directly at Tristan. “I can only guess at the reason for your resentment, but it is uncalled for. Their happiness is just as important to me as they are to you. I will fight you if you try and cut me out of their lives completely.” He swallowed hard and his voice became husky. “They are the closest I ever came to having a daughter and grandchildren.”

  Tristan just glared at him and he gathered his jacket and keys, hugged the twins, gave Savannah a peck on her cheek and left, without a further word to anyone. Savannah glared at Tristan who ignored her and took the twins by their hands.

  “Come rascals, Daddy is going to help you bath tonight.”

  “Yeah! We missed you Daddy!”

  He turned to Savannah at the bottom of the stairs, with a child in each arm.

  “I suggest you get ready for bed too. You have some explaining to do. No … I do not want to hear a word now!”

  He turned and disappeared upstairs, leaving a confounded and confused Savannah behind. She stormed upstairs and took a quick shower, not willing to antagonize him any further. Not that she had any idea what he was so angry about in the first place. She worried her lip as she walked to the twins’ room, wearing only a dressing gown. Tristan made it clear she slept naked in his arms, so after he tore her second nightgown the second night she came out of the hospital, she stopped wearing them.

  He already tucked the kids in their beds when she walked in and Tiffany smiled at her sleepily.

  “Will you read us a story, Mommy?”

  “Of course, Poppet. Which one tonight? The rabbit and the tortoise?”

  “Yes please,” they cried in unison.

  “They are already half asleep. You can read to them another time.”

  She glanced at him and frowned. “I will read to them now. As soon as they fall asleep I will join you. Please, I can see you are tired, go and take a shower, I won’t be long.”

  “Make sure you’re not.”

  It sounded like a threat and she frowned. This was a Tristan she did not know. He has never been this short with her, this angry and she did not understand it. He was gone for two days and he did not even greet her! She swallowed the lump in her throat at the thought and started reading.