31

Zayed was tossing and turning in his bed and he didn't have the courage to touch Aveline after her last words.

'It didn't hurt as much as it did when I had to hear it from my own husband. Oops! I was never given the right of a wife as the man who married me without my consent didn't accept that marriage. What exactly did you expect me to tell them?'

He had no idea when sleep overtook him but when he opened his eyes next time the only light in the room was of the tiny night lamp on the bedside table. He was pressed onto the bed by Zada who was partially on his chest.

He smiled at his daughter who had unknowingly crept onto him some time during her sleep.

He turned to his side to see Zahir and Zian sleeping peacefully with the little zoo, but Aveline was missing.

He frowned and looked at his watch and saw it was three in the morning.

Where the hell is Aveline, he wondered.

He slowly extricated himself from Zada's hold, without waking the little girl and walked out of the bedroom only to see a small overhead light shining over the coffee table in the corridor and Aveline sitting there sifting through things, seemingly some photos.

"Aveline," He called and saw her stiffening at his voice.

"You want something, Zayed?" Aveline asked stiffly.

"Why are you up at this time?" Zayed asked frowning in worry.

"I couldn't sleep," Aveline murmured and Zayed wouldn't have heard it if he wasn't paying keen attention to her every word.

"What are you looking at?" He asked.

"Oh, it's just some photos of the triplets." She said and he saw there were around six photo albums on the coffee table.

"May I??" He asked eager to see the photos himself. He has missed so much of their lives.

"Sure." Aveline said and pushed the album towards him and as he took the chair across her.

He first took a scrapbook model album with the picture of a pregnant woman being back hugged by a man on the cover page.

Oh how he wishes!

He opened the book and the first thing he saw was the photo of himself and Aveline, taken sometime during their eight months together.

And the caption below the photo was 'we love you babies'

"You included my photo in the album?" He asked in absolute wonder. Can this woman ever cease to surprise him?

"It's just, the triplets would have seen the scrapbook sometime in the future and I wanted them to know that both their parents loved them and wanted them." Aveline said with a casual shrug.

"Then why didn't you tell me about your pregnancy, Aveline?" Zayed asked, the pain evident in his voice.

"You wouldn't have believed me, Zayed." Aveline said.

"I did believe you once, Aveline. And you knew too well how much I loved a baby which never existed." Zayed said and Aveline winced as she remembered that long ago incident.

"We never talked about that. But that doesn't mean I wasn’t hurt, Aveline. I loved that baby. I was preparing for fatherhood and wanted to be the best dad in the world. I wanted my baby to have what I never had in my childhood, a happy family. And I wanted it with you, Aveline. Do you have any idea how worried I was for you and the baby when you got sick. I felt like I was dying, Aveline. And you know all this well. You have seen it all. You have been there. So don't tell me you didn't think I would have believed you." Zayed said, his voice choking at the remembered pain of the loss of a baby who never existed.

"That was before you accused me of infidelity, Zayed. Getting pregnant after being accused of infidelity. It was not easy for me, Zayed. I would have been totally destroyed if you had asked me for a paternity test. I was protecting myself and my babies. I am sorry I couldn't consider your feelings at that point in my life, Zayed. I was hurt too much for that. You were nowhere in my priority at that point of my life." Aveline said and that was like a punch in the gut for Zayed

Obviously he had no right to accuse her of hiding her pregnancy.

Saying sorry wouldn't be enough and she wouldn't believe him either.

He sighed and turned the page of the scrapbook and saw a picture of a heavily pregnant Aveline.

He never thought he would find a pregnant woman sexy.

Not until now!

Damn!! A Neanderthal feeling of possession ran through his spine seeing Aveline with his babies inside her womb.

And he wanted to see that for real.

He wanted to see her smooth as a silk belly rounded with his baby within.

And he can't wait.

He turned the page again and saw the photo of Aveline in the hospital gown with a baby in her arms and the other two in the baby bassinets on the bed she was sitting on.

"That's on the day they were born," Aveline said, pointing at the photo.

And he felt his blood simmering.

He should have been there with her, with them.

With his arms around Aveline's shoulder looking adoringly at the babies just like she is looking at the babies.

He kept on turning the pages and there were all the photos of the babies during their first year of their life.

He saw each album holding the photos of that particular year starting with their birthdays.

On the forth album he saw the birthday picture with Zahir smiling widely and Zian and Zada crying looking at the camera.

"Why are they crying??" Zayed asked and Aveline chuckled.

"Zahir blew the candles alone before the count of five was over. Zian and Zada threw a big tantrum." Aveline said with a smile as she pictured the incident in her mind.

On the fifth album he saw the birthday picture with the triplets standing in front of three different cakes.

"You got three cakes for them next time?" Zayed asked, amused.

"Can't say what Zahir is upto. He keeps me on my toes all the time," Aveline said, chuckling.

After going through all the album, Aveline stood up from her chair and walked towards the bedroom and stopped shortly before entering the room.

"Zayed, I am sorry" she said, startling him.

"For what?" Zayed asked, confused.

"For lying to you about the baby. I didn't think it through. All I was concerned about was your safety and I had no choice but to lie. Or else Great aunt Sabina would have either thrown me out of the house or killed me. I just couldn't go before I brought her truth out in front of everyone. I didn't want to hurt you, Zayed." Aveline said and walked into the room without waiting for his response.