Author's Note: This story is set after Bound and will extend through Terra Prime. The story will make more sense if you've read my previous story, Rebound. I've always wondered why Trip/T'Pol share a kiss in the corridor at the end of Bound and then in Demons, Trip is "sick and tired" of the bond and T'Pol "doesn't particularly enjoy it." Why does Trip think T'Pol is lying about being pregnant and how will baby Elizabeth change their relationship dynamic? Here's my version of the answers to those questions.

Conversations taking place between Trip and T'Pol through the bond will be italicized. Reviews welcome and appreciated.

Chapter 1

As the NX-01 soared through the starlight- dappled fabric of space at warp speed, the nagging irregularities in the hum of her engines operating at less than peak efficiency taunted its Chief Engineer. The trace deviation in sound patterns would probably go undetected by most officers with one exception. Commander Charles Tucker III had a talent for sensing the most miniscule of differences when it came to his engines. Legend had it, he had some kind of sixth sense when even the tiniest of relays were out of place by giving them a cursory glance. Tucker, having been intimately acquainted with the inner-workings of the engines through their many tribulations together, could feel it in his bones when something was even the slightest bit off with them. He took a deep breath, willing himself to focus. The Enterprise had taken a beating at the hands of a hostile species and the crew had been forced to hide in a nebula to complete repairs. The damage had been extensive and although the repairs had been completed to the best of the crew's ability in deep space, the truth was that they were barely holding the ship together. He knew nothing could be done about it until they returned to Jupiter Station for repairs and they were already en route.

Trying to ignore the whining groan of his engines, he pursed his lips and glanced over at the growing pile of engineering logs awaiting his signature accumulating on his desk. This was something he could resolve now at least, however mundane a task it might be. He settled into his desk chair. The soft, diaphanous glow of the illuminated warp core bathed his office in an ethereal blue hue that was reminiscent of a moonlit night on his home planet. Tucker had seen his share of clear moonlit nights when he lived on Earth, but after the Xindi weapon had taken out of his hometown, it now felt about as alien to him as any of the new worlds they had explored. Engineering was his home now and it was safe to say he had been homesick over the last few weeks he had spent recently recovering from the serious injuries he had sustained on a disastrous away mission. It was good to be home.

Tucker's department, usually bustling with activity, was quiet and relatively desolate at this hour. With the exception of Ensign Masaro who was on duty working the Gamma shift, there wasn't another crewman within sight at the moment and the Commander was grateful for the solace. Still recovering from his injuries, he winced as he reached for the PADD perched atop the precariously arranged stack cluttering his desk. The Chief Engineer was also not operating at peak capacity, much like the engines.

As he began reading the engineering log reports Kelby had completed in his absence, he had a persistent thought overtake him that he should have been sleeping at this hour, but he was going stir crazy during his convalescence. Ordinarily he would not have even thought of sleep before it was too late and he had burned the proverbial candle at both ends. It was not unusual for insomnia, his old, familiar adversary to make its presence known during times of stress. Truthfully, he was often very productive when he worked late at night, so he typically did not mind foregoing sleep. As Chief Engineer of the Enterprise, many of the ship's issues had been resolved during the ungodly hours not fit for most aboard the ship, with the exception of a few of Doctor Phlox and a few of the Denoubulan's nocturnal creatures. This evening was not shaping up to be one of those instances. He found he quite literally had other matters on his mind and had difficulty focusing on his reading.

The bond. It was always there, flowing between him and T'Pol Still in its infancy, they were still attempting to navigate the footing of its implications on both their private and professional lives. To the relief of both, they had finally committed to their relationship. The bond and their mind-meld they had shared while being stranded for the away mission had urged them along that path, but figuring out what exactly that meant in the context of serving together aboard the Enterprise–well, it was complicated.

Just like a stubborn engineering challenge aboard Enterprise, the other beautiful lady in his life, navigating the boundaries of this new relationship with T'Pol was going to take time and care. He had an easier time coaxing the warp core of the ship to respond in a predictable manner than he did with his Vulcan bondmate. Both possessed a beauty that could take his breath away, one in her womanly form and the other, as a marvel of engineering. Both demanded all of him and he would gladly serve them both or would give his life trying. Wryly, Trip recognized the peculiar duality and shook his head. He was in deep trouble.

He continued to progress through the logs on his desk which had appeared strewn there carelessly in his absence. Tucker was typically meticulous about completing any documentation required by the end of each shift, but after a recent brush with a hostile species and a particularly difficult away mission that had left a crewman dead and Tucker with serious injuries to his legs and skin, he had been off the official duty roster for some time and Kelby had been in charge in his absence. Kelby may have been a fine engineer, but his organizational skills apparently needed some work. Trip decided not to address these shortcomings. Kelby was probably still somewhat bitter after Trip reassumed the role of Chief Engineer Kelby had been enjoying prior to Trip's return from Columbia.

With Tucker's penchant for mishaps and injuries, he was no stranger to being off the active duty roster, but in the past, Trip had made a sport out of finding creative ways to circumvent the restrictions in order to oversee the happenings in Engineering before someone, usually Phlox or T'Pol, would foil his plans. Under normal circumstances, he would have evaded the two for some time before he had been discovered, but his current circumstances were anything but normal these days.

He felt a nagging sensation that he was about to be the proverbial kid with his hand about to be caught in the candy jar. He tried to force the intrusive thought to the back of his mind, shield his thoughts and focus on the task at hand, but there it was, biting at his conscience. Sighing, he put down the PADD on his desk in frustration much too hastily, which caused the haphazard lot of them to come toppling down onto the floor. He wasn't usually prone to clumsiness and he swore under his breath, knowing that the sudden movement and his subsequent frustration were about to trigger an unfortunate series of events.

And here it was, right on cue, inside his mind. She was nothing if not consistent.

It is 0300 hours. Why are you awake?

He could almost hear her disapproval even though no words were spoken aloud.

Maybe if he didn't respond, she would forget about it, think he was dreaming, he thought hopefully.

You are on medical leave. You should not be straining yourself by working.

Of course she wouldn't forget. She's a Vulcan, he chastised himself internally.

I'm just reading! I'm not going to reinjure myself by doing that!

But his mental protest was currently being ignored. Given that she was a proper telepath, T'Pol was skilled at cutting off the flow of the bond whenever she saw fit and apparently this was one of those times. Trip on the other hand, was unable to do the same and lately he found himself at a disadvantage. Whenever she scolded him across the bond, what would follow would be a vigorous argument once she was off duty which always left him vexed and full of passion, a fiery combination leading him to want to take her right then and there in the moment. But apparently that activity was also on the restricted list while he was recovering from being injured. Needless to say, he was frustrated. He swept the remaining PADDs off his desk and stormed out of Engineering.

This was just the latest in a string of admonishments he had been subjected to since they had returned from the away mission. Trip understood that his mate was concerned about his health and at first he found it endearing, but with each subsequent policing episode, he was becoming increasingly restless and irritated.

He had attempted to discuss the matter with her over their recent meditation session in their shared white space, but found her unwilling to compromise and being that the shift assignments fell under the purview of her role as the first officer, he wondered if he'd ever be back on a normal duty schedule. This was going to require all of his resourcefulness. He would have to find a way around her. Trip thought of appealing to Doctor Phlox's soft spot he knew he harbored for him. Maybe the Doctor would be able to help him.

As he limped into Sickbay, Trip found the Doctor tending to a vibrating habitat for some type of alien creature that undoubtedly possessed mysterious healing properties. The Denoubulan spoke in dulcet tones to the animal before realizing he was not alone and he turned to the doors of Sickbay to see who awaited his attention.

"Ah, Commander Tucker!" The doctor greeted him warmly. "I assume you're here for your Physical Therapy session? Isn't it a bit on the late side?" He asked cheerfully.

Trip scowled inwardly. He had agreed to return to Sickbay three nights a week for physical therapy and to maintain an adequate rest schedule as a contingency for being released to his quarters. The first of these conditions had not proved problematic for him as he always exercised regularly and he was anxious to heal his physical wounds sustained during the away mission. He knew from the outset that the rest requirement on the other hand was going to be an issue. The Captain wanted the ship in tip top shape before it returned to Earth for the diplomatic conference. It wouldn't look very good for Starfleet's flagship to be limping into spacedock, especially when Earth's government was endeavoring to convince other world governments to form an alliance. With being out of commission due to his injuries, he had to rely on Kelby to mind the store and. In the aftermath of the incident with the Orion females, Kelby had been eager to restore himself to Trip's good graces. He had figured that one way he could prove himself was to bother the Commander as little as possible during his convalescence, but this had the opposite effect and had aggravated Tucker more. He had to get back in that engine room.

"Actually, Doc. I think I might need a different type of therapy," he related as he began the exercises that had been prescribed.

Phlox eyed him with interest as he adjusted the angle of the Engineer's foot on the physio machine.

"What is troubling you, Commander?"

Trip grimaced as he pushed against the machine with great effort, his words punctuated by his breathing.

"It's this bond with T'Pol. She has been watching my every move and I can't get near Engineering without tickling her Vulcan alert. I can't even read Kelby's engineering logs to get up to speed without her busting me. I can't take much more of this!" he growled as the weight clanked down to the stack as he completed his first set of the exercise.

The Doctor smiled gently. With as many wives as he had, he knew very well the types of growing pains a new relationship could have.

"It sounds like you need to have a conversation about boundaries. T'Pol is probably just concerned about you. Frankly, with your ability to injure yourself repeatedly, can you blame her?" he questioned, looking at the young engineer pointedly.

Tucker sighed, "I guess not, but I don't need her babysitting me every time I eat a slice of pie or do some light reading," he exclaimed with irritation.

"I'm sure Commander T'Pol only has your wellbeing in mind. Try talking to her. You may find the talk can lead to a satisfying conclusion. Why with Feezel, there were a great many…satisfying conclusions, sometimes two or three in a row when we were first married if you know what I mean." The Doctor chuckled amiably.

Tucker could guess what he meant and had heard quite enough and cleared his throat uncomfortably.

He averted his gaze. "That activity is also on the restricted activity, Doc as you might remember," Tucker grimaced.

"Patience, Commander. You will be back to your normal self before you know it, but you must respect the process. Your body has been through a lot."

"It's not my body I'm worried about. T'Pol might as well have me wrapped up in a cocoon. I need to return to duty. Please." He begged, blue eyes boring into the Doctor's empathetic gaze.

"Very well, Commander. You may resume light duty. No lifting or working with heavy machinery of any kind. And you will only work half shifts. But you can resume any, ahem, other activities that may be done in the privacy of your quarters."

His cheeks flushed having achieved the result he had been hoping for, Tucker grinned. "Thanks Doc."

His grin slowly faded as he realized he hadn't been alone with his Doctor in Sickbay, not really. A frosty presence brushed in the forefront of his mind. Boundaries. Right.

He steadied his resolve and squared his shoulders, projecting more confidence than he actually felt and began to make his way back to E Deck to his office. Firmly, the connection between the two of them snapped shut and he felt the aloneness more keenly than he would have thought. He realized he had not been truly alone since they returned from the away mission and he felt adrift in the way he had when he had left for Columbia. He swore under his breath and turned around to head to her quarters.

Engineering would have to wait.