High Stakes

It was over quickly, and the conversation that followed was quiet.

They came back inside later, together, and there was no animosity, although we left soon after.

Driving home, Theo, asked. "Did you hear?"

"Yes." I replied.

"You do know that nothing could be further from the truth. I don't care about the money?"

"I never considered it, actually." As I glared at him, I asked, "Should I?"

"No, absolutely not. Whatever happens between us, you must never think that. I love you for you."

"Now that we have started this conversation. I guess we should open it right up. The one thing that has always worried me is the age difference."

"Sage, please don't go there again. I don't care. It's not important."

"What about children? Judging by your family, children must be important to you. I am past that stage of my life. I never wanted children."

"That's fine with me. You met my family. I love them, but sheesh, they're hard work. Big deal if we don't have kids. Just means more time for each other."

"Are you sure, Theo? You have to be honest with me."

"I have never lied to you. I have always been honest. I love you, Sage. In fact, I would like you to be my wife."

"Wife," I spluttered.

"Yes, now that we're having the talk. Sage, would you do the honor of becoming my wife."

"Theo, that's a big step."

"Don't care, I have never been so sure of anything in my whole life."

I felt the air being sucked out of my body. I felt like I was in free fall. My mind spun, I couldn't breathe. Images exploded in front of me... Married... I never considered it, never once.

Staring at him, his face was full of hope, expectations.

"Yes," I whispered breathlessly. Oh my god, did I say yes?

His smile answered my question. "Mrs. Sage Walters. Damn, that sounds good."

"Mr. Theo Mathews sounds better," I snapped back.

"You won't take my name?"

"Will you take mine?"

He chuckled softly. "What about Mrs. Sage Walters hyphen Mathews?"

"I was thinking more Mathews, hyphen Walters."

He shrugged, "You know I don't care, right?"

"I know."

He reached into his denim jacket and pulled out a little box. "This is for you. I've been carrying it around for weeks."

Hesitantly, I opened the box, and sitting inside was a beautiful diamond engagement ring. As I peeked across at him he said. "Sorry it's not much, but I'm only a poor poet."

"A poet, huh? I thought you were an assistant manager?"

"Nope, that's just my day job, I'm actually a poet. You know I'm published, I can now officially call myself poet."

"Yes, and it has been selling very well. Original expectations have already been exceeded."

"Cool, I might be able to get a better wedding ring then."

I guess it was time. I met his family. It was now time for him to meet mine.

The drive out to the Hamptons was nice. The Audi purred along, the wind wafted across the screen. It was chilly, but refreshing.

"Jesus H Christ. What a place," Theo gushed as we pulled up outside. Mom and Dad came out to greet us. There were hugs and kisses all round, Theo and Dad exchanging a firm hand shake.

Mom looked completely shocked. She was amazed when I said I was bringing somebody home for them to meet. I hadn't described Theo, or said much about him. Dad was less shocked, but still surprised; he tried to hide it, but I could see the confusion on his face. All those times I said to him, "I'm never getting tied down to one man," had to be running through his mind.

When Theo asked to talk to him in private, I knew what was coming. He was asking for Dad's permission to take my hand.

They walked back in, Dad's arm draped across Theo's shoulder, and Dad just shook his head in disbelief. "Nyalla, you're not going to believe this. Theo just asked for our daughters hand in marriage."

Mom turned to look at me, and I held out my hand to show her the ring. "Oh my god, Sage. You're getting married?"

"Yes, Mom, we are." She rushed over and embraced Theo in a huge hug. "Thank you, Theo. You have made me very happy."

We went out to celebrate, a lunch filled with laughter and conversation. This time, it was Theo getting the grilling, and it was nice to see. He was as uncomfortable as I had been at his parents' house. The difference was, he had completely charmed my parents, whereas his viewed me as some kind of weird cougar.

With the wedding planning well under way, I was surprised when Theo laid some papers down on my desk at home. "Read these papers. I think it's important."

As I opened the large envelope, I realized it contained a pre-nup. "Theo, we do not need this."

"Yes we do, Sage. Ever since my dumb brother made that stupid comment, I haven't been able to get it out of my head. I never want you to think that's the reason I married you."

"No, I don't want it, Theo. It is not important."

"It is to me, it pretty much says if we split up, we walk away with only what we took into the marriage, unless it is something we mutually buy."

Seeing my perplexed expression, he added, "I need to protect myself. Once I become a rich and famous poet, I'll be worth millions."

I giggled. "Yes, I can see that."

I'm serious, Sage. Please, get your lawyer to go over them with you."

"It seems wrong. It's like we are waiting for it to fail. Is that how you feel?"

"No, nothing is farther from the truth. I never want to lose you, I just need you to know I don't want your money."

"What about the honeymoon? Who's paying for that?" I asked.

He gave me a confused look, and I held out my hand. "Come, I want to show you what I planned."

When he saw my honeymoon plans, he freaked. "I can't afford that, babe. Jesus, it'll cost megabucks."

"I know, which is why I need you to let me pay for it. It's why we are starting in the Cayman Islands."

I saw him shiver. "What did you say?"

"The Caymans; it's where I stash the cash, dummy."

"Jesus, please tell me you're kidding," he spluttered.

"Of course, wow, I really had you going, didn't I?"

"God damn it, Sage. Never do that again. I could never afford to bail you out. So how the hell am I going to pay for this damn trip?""

I could see the argument building in his eyes, so I went on the offensive. "Theo, it's been years since I had a decent holiday. The Caribbean is somewhere I've always wanted to go, but never quite made it for one reason or another."

He nodded, and seeing the determination in my eyes, he sighed. "Yeah, okay. I get it, but you have to let me pay for some of it. What say you pay for the flights, the accommodation, and the food. I pay for the drinks."

I laughed loudly, the tension easing. "Done deal, buddy, although, you have to know, I drink a lot on holiday."

We went over the trip in detail. I wanted to start in Trinidad and Tobago, then travel north to Grenada, on to St. Vincent, then Barbados, St. Lucia, Martinique, all the way to Puerto Rico, Then the Dominican republic, Haiti and finishing in Jamaica.

I didn't care about the wedding, although my mother went mad. She and Dad took over completely. It was during the organizing that the two families met. We were both worried about it, but we needn't have bothered. Our moms bonded immediately; Dad wasn't quite so enamored, but after a bottle of his favored Glen Fiddich, everything sort of fell into place.

I was surprised at how David and my father got along. Seeing them talk together was like watching two old friends catching up. They were such polar opposites, it was hard to comprehend.

David was a proud independent man. He worked his whole life to support his family. It showed in his health. He was old before his time. His life had been hard, often working two or more jobs to put food on the table. Theo told a story of how his father slapped his face, all because Theo offered him money.

They eventually got over it. Theo got around it by slipping it to his mom. Her principles weren't that rigid, or unbending. She liked to be able to get things for the grandchildren. She liked not having bill collectors hounding them.

Over the months of the planning for the wedding, I saw a new side of David, and we had spoken. He apologized for our first meeting. He explained he couldn't understand what I saw in his son. He came to understand it was love, and it was mutual.

He did love Theo, all he was doing was looking out for him.

I guess it wasn't hard to understand. None of my friends believed it either. They took great pleasure in making fun of my old statements about not getting married, although several were envious, once they met Theo. I swear, he could charm the pants off anyone.

The holiday started of so well. The Caribbean is remarkable. The people are amazing. The beaches were spectacular, all of the Islands offered different opportunities. I was happy just to laze around the resorts and take the day tours. Theo, he wasn't happy with that. His idea of a holiday was to explore. That's when things changed for me.

I can't really explain this, but the children, the gorgeous happy little children. They had nothing, less than nothing, but they smiled broadly, swamped us, begging for attention. They managed to infiltrate my defenses. My plans never included children. Over the years, I managed to consign to oblivion my feelings towards maternity. Now I looked on the smiling faces, they were so angelic, so happy go lucky.

I had traveled a lot with my parents, and it was always the same. We stayed at the most famous resorts. We took the tours and enjoyed the touristy things.

Traveling with Theo was different. He wanted to see the real places, he didn't want to see the tourist sites, unless they were something special. He wanted to get off the beaten track. He wanted to meet the real people, see everything, scabs and all.

We hired scooters, hiked. Yes, okay, it was dangerous, because once you did get away from the resorts. There is an evil luring, poverty is rife. People starving, living in wooden boxes. It took my breath away.

I wasn't naive, sheltered, or closeted. I mean, I read the papers, I saw the news on TV. This, however, was different. The desperation took my breath away. None more so than Haiti. Has one place on earth suffered more? I don't think so. If you believed the publicity, the brochures. Haiti was doing fine.

The reality was far different. There were no smiling faces there. The children were starving

Since 2010, the island nation had been devastated. Three major earthquakes, all over magnitude seven. Four major hurricanes, and to top that, a cholera epidemic. It was like an evil curse had been cast on the island nation.

As we ventured off the beaten paths, the real devastation became clearly apparent. Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced and homeless.

I was heartbroken, the absolute deprivation. It was mind boggling. As we wandered around, I wanted to do something, I wanted to help, but how, what could I do? Money, yes I could give money, and I did. I found a charity organization that worked at giving a home and education to the displaced children. Now orphans, all they had was what the charity could provide.

I met Sister Grace at their headquarters, and she offered to take me to the orphanage and show me the difference my money could make.

It was a different world. We walked in through the front gates and we were swarmed by children. Happy screaming children. Literally, there were hundreds.

I looked at Sister Grace and she smiled warmly. "Can you not find homes for them?" I asked.

"We try, but it is hard. They have no families. Other families here cannot afford another mouth to feed. We try to find International homes for them, but regulations and immigration make it so difficult. It is impossible."

She showed us around the grounds, the gardens, where the children worked, trying to grow enough to keep them going. That's where we met Auralie. She was gorgeous; how do you describe something so beautiful? She had huge dark eyes, glistening liquid pools of despondency, highlighted by her chocolate-colored skin. She looked so desolate, her curly black hair in tight little pigtails. Wearing only a raggedy old dirty dress, she was Lilliputian.

I saw her sitting alone and crying. Sister Grace saw me staring and said, "She only just arrived, only four years old. Her family was gunned down in a drug deal gone wrong. She watched her parents die in a hail of bullets. Auralie's eyes fixed on mine, and I was lost. Her sorrow was complete. Her body shuddered as she sobbed.

It was impossible not to be affected by her need. Without hesitation, I hoisted her into my arms, her wet cheeks rubbing mine as she cried, her arms wrapped tightly around my neck. She was terrified. "I'm not going to hurt you my little angel," I whispered.

"She doesn't speak English," Sister Grace said, when I got no response.

I didn't need words, I felt her exigency, her fears. I felt it all. I drew her in tightly, my arms her blanket. I glanced at Theo and tears rolled down his cheeks. He felt it, as well. He walked over and held us both.

"She has a sister; her name is Isabella," Sister Grace said sadly.

"Where is she?" I asked. I don't know why. I was drowning in emotions so deep I couldn't see the surface.

We were taken into a classroom, where Isabella was in class. The moment she saw Auralie, she ran towards us. In her broken English, she glared angrily at Sister Grace. "What's going on?"

Again, the fear was deep. She didn't know what was going on. All I knew is, I wasn't putting that little girl down. She clung to me so tightly.

I knelt down beside Isabella, and she joined our hug. "Are you taking my sister?" she whimpered tearfully.

"I don't know," I replied truthfully. "I want to help, that's all I know."

"Please don't take her away from me," Isabella sobbed. "She's all I have."

"We wouldn't do that, sweetheart."

Sister Grace knelt down beside me. "Shall I take Auralie?"

"No." I said determinedly. "I'm sorry, Sister, but I can't do that."

Theo came and joined us. "Honey, what are you doing?"

"I'm not letting her go, Theo."

Trying to placate me he said. "Okay, but we can't stay here all day. What are we going to do?"

"I don't know, but this little angel needs us. I cannot just walk away."

"We can help, Sage, we can donate. There's lots of things we can do to help."

"You don't understand. I'm not letting go."

"For god's sake, Sage, you're not making sense."

"Theo, she's going with us, and so is Isabella."

"What?" he spluttered, standing up, and walking around. "That's ridiculous, Sage. We can't just take them. There are regulations. Rules." He stared at me, concern etched into his face. "Sage, we live in an apartment."

"Then we'll move," I spat back.

Sister Grace stroked my arm comfortingly. "Are you serious? I have seen this before. You put her down, walk out the gate and forget. I have seen it before."

"No, this is different. I feel a connection. I am not abandoning these children." Glancing down at Isabella, I said. "Would you like to live with us in America?"

Her smile broadened. "America?"

"Yes, we want you to come with us, both of you."

"Jesus, Sage." Theo snorted. "We can't just take them. We'll get arrested."

Sister Grace intervened. "If you really are serious, we can make arrangements. We have ways."

"They have ways, Theo."

"Oh yeah, right. What the hell do you think would happen when we get back to the USA? We would never get through customs."

"We could adopt them here. They will be our children, Theo. They can't stop us."

He stared at Sister Grace, his eyes pleading for help. It wasn't forthcoming. He knelt back down in front of me, Isabella sneaked into his arms and just like that, he was as lost as me. He hugged her tighter than Auralie hugged me.

"What have you done, Sage?"

He fell backwards, Isabella still in his arms, and I sat back, Auralie still clinging on like her life depended on it.

Theo sat up with Isabella on his lap. He stared up at Sister Grace, and he said. "These ways you have. Are they legal?"

She nodded, a big smile replacing her concern. "Yes, you would have to adopt both girls, You would have to prove that you are serious, and capable of looking after them."

"Would a million dollars convince you?" I said with determination.

The mention of money did more than convince Sister Grace, she was already thinking how she would be spending the money: new books for classrooms, new facilities, toilets that worked.

We walked back to the offices, the other members of staff gathered around and the talks began in earnest. Theo looked like he was zoned out. He just nodded. We had to give over our passports, and I showed that the transfer of the million dollars was happening for real. We walked back to our hotel with two additional bodies. One who refused to let me go.

On the way we stopped and shopped like we never had. Both girls needed clothes, as well as baths. There was another fight at the hotel; the bridal suite was no longer going to cut it.

*****

When I broke the news to my mother, she was stunned, "You did what?" she shrieked. "Oh my god, we are coming right over."

They walked in, and Mom just melted. She picked up little Auralie, and that was it. They both cried. Dad was just dumbfounded. When Isabella slipped her hand into his and took him into their bedroom, he was in grandparent heaven.

It wasn't all good. The girls were never comfortable in our apartment. They refused to go near the floor to ceiling windows. It was a huge change from the orphanage. Mom picked up on it immediately, not that we had to be told. "Sage, this apartment is lovely, but it is not a home for young children."

"We know, Mom, we have started looking for something more suitable."

"There is an amazing place for sale on Long Beach, on Ocean Boulevard. It is only a few minutes from our home."

Theo gave me a thoughtful look. "It would be a hell drive every day for work, though."

"Oh rubbish," Dad grumbled. "I've been doing that drive for over twenty years, it only takes me just over an hour."

Theo raised his eyebrows in a thoughtful gesture. "An hour, wow. That sounds pretty good. There's probably people out there who would baby sit, as well."

Mom laughed teasingly. "There probably is." The bond between her and Auralie was instantaneous, just as it had been with me.

Life changed forever: sleepless nights, the girls, as you would expect, had their share of nightmares. That meant sad little faces at the side of the bed, wanting in. It was nothing to wake in the morning and find both Auralie and Isabella snuggled in with us.

That sort of slowed down our sex life. Until then, it was amazing, we made love whenever we wanted. Now we almost had to schedule times.

Still, I wouldn't change it for the world. Having those two beautiful creatures depending and relying on me took me to new heights of joy.

It drove me to learn Creole. Isabella did translate, and Auralie was starting to learn English, as well. Our world changed. With Mom's insistence, we went out to long Island to view the house she raved about. The girls loved it right off the bat. It faced the ocean, and the long sandy beaches won them over.

Theo liked it, as well, we made an offer, and by the end of the month, we were moved. The apartment sold quickly, which boosted the bank balance. My parents weren't the only ones in love with our two little additions. Theo's family loved them every bit as much as my parents.

The hardest thing for me was work. With both of us working, we had to employ a nanny, and as wonderful as she was, I hated it. Auralie hated it, as well. She was still struggling to come to terms with abandonment issues. Watching me drive off to work every day ate away at her. Every day had dramatic bawling sessions. It wasn't helped by Isabella starting school.