Note: There are characters and references in this story that were introduced in my first story, "Writer's Block." This story serves as the sequel.

Chapter 1 – Pushing The Envelope

"So Ana…I have this quirky new idea. Now – just hear me out," Jerry pleads with his boss after witnessing a slight frown dusting across her porcelain face.

"I'm listening," she now smiles in anticipation of one of Jerry Roach's rare pushing-the-envelope ideas.

It's the start of 2015 and Ana Grey is back in full swing at Grey Publishing. She gave birth to a healthy, beautiful baby girl back in August and took a three-month maternity leave afterwards. In December, Ana began working from home in order to make her full-time transition back to work much easier.

Ana sits with Jerry Roach in her office hoping that his "quirky new idea" will in fact take GP to the next level.

"Book clubs are very big with working moms and stay-at-home moms alike. I think Grey Publishing should register on that very popular meeting place website and sponsor a book club. And I think that you should be the book club leader, Ana," Roach beams. Ana arches a mordant brow at him.

"Jerry, with all due respect...why me?" Ana breathes, taken aback.

"Ana you are such a prime example of a successful working woman who's also a loving wife and a mother of two. Not to mention, you're our beloved CEO. It would put GP in such a positive light once others see that our CEO cares about other busy moms out there so much that she is personally willing to host a book club during her very little spare time," Jerry coaxes. Ana continues to eye her mentor with skepticism.

"Look Ana – you can have the group meet in person once a month. And you get to pick the books for the club to read. They don't necessarily have to be GP published works. Announce each month's book on the club's page. Then meet up for two hours or so to discuss the book at the end of the month. That's it! Every newspaper will be talking about it! It's going to be huge!" hypes Roach.

"I – I don't know. Let me think about it and get back to you. I'm just getting back in the game. I'm not sure if I'm ready to take on any new projects just yet," Ana nervously grins.

"Sure thing, Ana. And again – welcome back!" beams Roach.

Shortly after Roach leaves, Ana's assistant Hannah enters the room.

"Ana!" she radiates. Ana grins, stands to her feet and warmly hugs her assistant.

"Hannah! It's so good to be back. How's that handsome little man of yours?" Ana gushes.

"He is absolutely amazing! Charlie is a dream. I can't believe that he'll be turning one this month," Hannah sighs.

"Wow, where has the time gone?" Ana grins.

"And that little angel of yours – Little Miss Phoebe Grey? And what about Big Brother Teddy?" Hannah beams.

"My world is absolutely complete, Hannah. Phoebe and Teddy are simply heaven sent. Christian and I are…over the moon," breathes Ana, starry eyed.

"Wow. I'm sure it was hard for you to finally leave them this morning," Hannah says.

"It was, but sometimes, it's good for Mommy to get a break," Ana chuckles. Hannah giggles and nods. "And our housekeeper's sister from Portland is in for an extended visit, so she helps out with the kids. It's been wonderful," beams Ana.

"Well, I for one am glad that you are back in the office. I've missed you," Hannah gleams.

"Same here. Let's do lunch today," Ana offers.

"Sure thing! I'll go ahead and grab tea for you and we can go over your schedule for the week," says Hannah.

"Sounds good," Ana smiles.

Approximately thirty minutes later, Hannah exits Ana's office for the morning after reviewing Ana's schedule. Ana is then finally left alone to check her emails.

From: Christian Grey
Subject: Welcome Back
Date: January 5, 2015 9:44
To: Anastasia Grey

Dear Mrs. Grey,

I hope you are having a stellar first day back in the office thus far. By now, your caffeine should have kicked in…although I am sure that the little bit that's in your favorite tea won't quite do the trick.

Phoebe must have known that her mother would not be home the next morning, hence her unwillingness to stay asleep for long periods of time. Here's to hoping that she will have a better night this evening.

Mrs. Grey, you are indeed Superwoman. However, it is perfectly fine if you want to take off your cape every once in a while. You are in fact the CEO of GP, so you don't have to be in the office every single day. Even if you choose to show up once a month, your boss would be quite fine with that. :)

Laters, Baby. – C X

Christian Grey
CEO, Grey Enterprises Holdings, Inc.

Ana suppresses a grin and sighs while rolling her eyes before replying.

From: Anastasia Grey
Subject: I Know What You Are Up To
Date: January 5, 2015 9:50
To: Christian Grey

Dear Mr. Grey,

I appreciate your concern for my lack of sleep last night. However, you buttering me up will not convince me to stop showing up to the office. I'd have you know that I had a wonderful "Welcome Back" reception from my team this morning. They love it when I show up to the office and it is great for morale for them to see their CEO working alongside them. I'm sure you can relate to what I am saying, Mr. Grey. You're the CEO of GEH, and yet you also fail to exercise your freedom to stay home and only work in person at Grey House once a month. You know where I am going with this, don't you, Mr. Grey? ;)

But thanks for checking up on me. I love you. :) – A X

Anastasia Grey
CEO, Grey Publishing

From: Christian Grey
Subject: Welcome Back
Date: January 5, 2015 9:55
To: Anastasia Grey

Mrs. Grey,

I'm simply calling attention to your most excellent abilities. However, I am also letting you know that you don't have to be afraid to admit that you are also human. It's much different with two young children than it is with just one. If it finally gets to be too overwhelming for you, I am just letting you know that you do indeed have options. That's all…nothing else.

I love you more and I'll see you at home tonight. – C

Christian Grey
CEO, Grey Enterprises Holdings, Inc.

Ana knows that her dear husband means well. However, part of her wonders that if her lack of energy in the evenings, which so happens to be severely effecting her libido, has anything to do with Christian's making her aware of her 'options.'

They haven't truly had a sexual moment in their bed since Little Miss Phoebe's arrival. Midway through the start of something hot, like clockwork, Phoebe will begin to wail over the baby monitor at the top of her tiny lungs. This causes Mommy to interrupt Daddy's foreplay and pounce to her feet before throwing on a robe and scurrying down the corridor to the nursery. Afterwards, it takes about a good hour, maybe two, to get her baby girl settled down again and back to sleep. By the time Ana returns to bed, Christian remains wide-awake, but she's on empty and crashes as soon as her head touches the pillow.

They've also tried it where Christian goes into the nursery instead to calm Phoebe down. But alas, when he returns to bed, Ana has already conked out. Christian once told Ana that he is convinced that Phoebe was sent here to earth to ensure that they never have sex ever again. Ana got a big laugh out of that remark, even though Christian didn't laugh along with her.

Christian eventually got Grace involved. His mother is one of the top pediatricians in the state. Christian feared that baby Phoebe's nightly colicky episodes could be a result of an underlying issue that perhaps their regular pediatrician may have missed. But after examining her granddaughter and finding her completely healthy, Grace concluded that he and Ana might just have to ride it out for a while, or maybe even just let the baby cry alone for ten minutes without rushing directly to her aid. Christian wasn't pleased with that answer. So while Ana sleeps, he checks search engines and parenting message community boards to find solutions for what he deems to be a serious issue.

During the day, Phoebe is an extremely happy baby girl. She smiles at everyone, she adores all the love and attention that her parents and big brother give her. However at night, she's someone else's child. Christian has even contemplated that his baby daughter may have even inherited his past issue with nightmares. However, that notion fell by the wayside after Christian realized that Phoebe would've actually had to endure trauma for nightmares like the ones that he has in mind to take shape in her tender infant brain.

Phoebe is approaching five-months-old and Christian believes that it's a good age to allow his parents, Grace and Carrick to watch her overnight along with her brother Ted. However, Ana remains reluctant to releasing her baby girl overnight due to her irregular sleeping habits. Christian's argument is that his mother is a pediatrician and their daughter would be in excellent care. This still doesn't move Ana to agree with Christian's notion.

More than anything, it's Ana's pride prohibiting her from allowing her colicky daughter from staying the night with her grandparents. She's heard Grace and Carrick rave in the past about how much of a dream Baby Ava is to babysit overnight. Ava is Elliot and Kate's ten-month-old little girl. Ana dreads the possibility of hearing the opposite report on her daughter. This is something that she has yet to share with Christian because she knows that this isn't something that will move him to side along with her. Christian could care less about people comparing his kids against others, just as long as he believes the world of his children – which he absolutely does.

After a busy day at GP, time slips away from Ana and it is now time to go home. Ana continues to work from her iPad and accompanying Bluetooth keyboard in the back seat of the car while her CPO Luke Sawyer drives her home. Ana's iPhone rings and she beams at the caller.

"Hey Kate!" Ana says warmly.

"Ana! So…how was your first day back in the saddle from maternity leave?" her best friend and sister-in-law lovingly inquires.

"Fantastic. The team was just so sweet all day to me. My office was like a revolving door with so many people wanting to give me a hug and catch up. I hardly had the chance to get anything done today, so I'm working now in the back seat of the car on the way home," Ana says. Kate sighs.

"Just make sure that you're taking it easy. You've been running non-stop since giving birth to Phoebe. Make sure you're taking some time out for you," Kate advises.

"I know," Ana says, rolling her eyes. Ana is constantly getting the same lecture from Kate, Christian, Gail, Grace, and her mother Carla.

"I mean it, Ana. Don't burn yourself out. I keep telling you to let Grace watch the kids so that you, Mia, Martha and me can hang out again. The girls all miss you. In fact, Martha says that she can never get ahold of you. She's almost convinced that you've been avoiding her," Kate informs. Ana sighs.

"You know I've been busy with the children, Kate. Tell Martha that I miss her and will see her soon," Ana softly replies. Reality is that Ana has in fact been avoiding Mrs. Martha Newsome.

Ana and Martha became fast and close friends back in 2013 when Martha worked as a literary agent for then-popular novelist, Bryan Ashford. Martha is now the Vice President of Operations at Grey Enterprises Holdings, Incorporated and is thriving in that role. Martha is the reason why Christian is able to spend more time at home with Ana and the children.

Like Ana, Martha is also a working mom. Martha and husband, high school history teacher and football coach Steven Newsome are proud parents of a soon-to-be eleven-month-old boy, Matthew. Steven is able to spend much more time with their son due to his seasonal work schedule, while Martha is able to pull anywhere from 45 to 60 hours of solid work for GEH. Even though work at GEH can be grueling, the salary Christian Grey pays her remains unmatched and affords her family to live a lifestyle that they couldn't have otherwise lived had she remained a literary agent. They have already vacationed along with baby Matthew in the Maldives and Jamaica, and Matthew hasn't even turned one year old yet.

One thing in all of this that Martha truly misses is Ana's friendship. Martha will occasionally ask Christian how Ana and the kids are doing before the start of meetings, but takes care in not asking anything too detailed in order not to cross professional lines at work. Martha stays in constant contact with Kate and Mia and hangs out with them on occasion on weekends. Kate and Mia continue to tell Martha that she shouldn't be alarmed about Ana being off the grid since she recently gave birth to Phoebe. However, Martha can't help but wonder if she reminds Ana too much of the whole traumatic ordeal with her former client and friend, Bryan Ashford.

Ana continues to work through trust issues as well as recognizing the signs of potential negative relationships with her therapist, Dr. Sarah Carlson. Ana makes the effort not to mention Martha or Bryan during her sessions with Sarah, but Sarah knows that this is in fact an area that Ana needs to concentrate on now that Ana has overcome the hump in 2013 with her abrupt departure and later return to Grey Publishing. Ana now realizes how valuable she is to the team at GP and no longer second-guesses her leadership ability at the small but thriving publishing house.

However, when it comes to friendships outside of family and longtime bff José Rodriguez, Ana still does not trust herself. The entire ordeal with Bryan Ashford has unfortunately weakened her faith in humankind. Therefore, Ana keeps her inner circle very small and tight. So small and tight in fact, that she pretty much squeezed Martha Newsome out of it. Christian even realizes this as the case, but he doesn't pressure Ana into allowing Martha back into her inner circle, so to speak.

Martha herself has excommunicated Bryan Ashford since he was convicted over a year ago for impersonating a federal agent as well as for the attempted murder of her boss, Christian Grey. Ashford is now serving twenty years in a federal prison, but he'll be eligible for parole after serving ten years. This is a sore spot for the entire Grey clan as well as for Martha and Steven Newsome. They all feel that Ashford should have received a much harsher sentence, especially since his actions led to the injury of Grey's longtime right-hand-man, Jason Taylor. Taylor fortunately has fully recovered from the chest wound. He returned back to working full-time just after four months of recovery and rehabilitation.

Ana finally arrives at her enormous, plush mansion overlooking Puget Sound. "Mommy! Mommy!" Ted happily cries out as his tiny bare feet patter swiftly across the foyer as Ana enters in from the garage. Ana has on a gray full-length wool coat, which is unbuttoned revealing a ruffled satin off-white blouse and knee length pencil gray skirt. Her long brown hair is propped up in a messy bun with sporadic stray tendrils hanging all over. Ted runs up to her with his Christian Grey-inherited floppy copper locks wearing little toddler blue jeans and a Minion t-shirt.

"Teddy Bear!" Ana exclaims as she scoops up her joyful two-and-a-half year old son and squeezes him tightly in her embrace. She litters his cheeks with kisses, which sends the child into a giggle frenzy.

"Mommy missed you and Baby Sissy so much today," Ana coos.

"Sissy with Miss Gail! I help feed Sissy!" Ted shouts proudly. Ana gasps animatedly.

"You did! That is so awesome, Teddy! You are the best big brother ever – you know that?" Ana beams, kissing Ted on his cheek once more. Ted giggles.

"Yep! Ted's the best!" he beams. Ana kisses him one last time before placing him back on solid ground.

"Mommy has to change out of her work clothes. When I'm done, you and me will eat dinner, okay?" Ana smiles down at Ted.

"Okay!" Ted simply says before he takes off running again. Ana laughs at his cheeriness and high-level of energy.

"I wish you could bottle up some of that energy for Mommy," Ana chuckles to herself.

….

It's nighttime and the children are now asleep in their beds.

"Oh, Christian!" Ana cries out. Her husband sensually torments her sex with his mouth while in their bed. They didn't bother dressing up in nightwear after their relaxing bath together. The couple washed one another in the tub and then Christian massaged Ana's feet before they got lost in each other's kiss. They quickly dried off and moved the action into the bedroom.

Ana pants uncontrollably as she wholly surrenders to the moment.

"Ana, I'm going to take you now," Christian breathes out in desperation.

"Yes," Ana murmurs, equally desperate.

Christian springs up and parts his wife's legs wide before crawling up in between them and meeting her face to face, eye to eye. Ana's chest deeply elevates and retracts over and over again in heated anticipation.

"Waaaaa! Waaaaa! Waaaaaaaaaa!" the baby monitor suddenly calls out. Ana's libido goes from 100 to 0 in an instant. Christian's eyes bulge and his sexual swagger morphs into seething annoyance.

"Phoebeee!" Christian angrily shouts. Ana softly pushes his chest to move him out of her way. Her baby girl calls and she is now a Mama on a Mission.

"This has got to stop! There is something truly wrong with her!" Christian snaps as he sits up stark naked on the edge of the bed. Ana ignores him as she quickly runs into the bathroom to throw on a terry cloth white robe. She tightly pulls on the sash with each hand and securely ties it. After exiting the bathroom, she slides on her matching slippers.

"I'm calling Mom tomorrow!" Christian resolves, full of exasperation. Still ignoring him, Ana exits the bedroom, quickly shutting the door behind her. Christian falls in bed on his back and throws his hands over his forehead and eyes, shaking his head in defeat.

….

"So how was your first day back in the office yesterday?" Sarah asks. Ana is visiting Dr. Carlson's office during her lunch break on Tuesday.

"It was great. It was so good seeing everyone again. It was hard being away from the kids, but once I got back into the swing of things in the office, my day just flew by," Ana beams.

"That's great. So the kids were fine? Nothing different?" inquires Sarah.

"They were just themselves. All smiles and giggles. I think I have the best kids on earth," Ana cheerfully gloats. Sarah gleams at her starry-eyed client.

"So, is there anything going on in particular that you would like to discuss today?" Sarah asks. Ana pauses to ponder.

"Well – I'm slowly re-acclimating myself into working fulltime, so I'm not quite in the risk-taking mood. However, my president came up with an innovative idea yesterday. I really want to execute it, but he suggests that I'd be the one to see it through. Pretty much, he wants me to sponsor and lead a book club for women. On the surface, it's a masterful idea. However, between being CEO and mother of two, I just can't find the time to do it," Ana pours out. Sarah sits stoic momentarily before a light bulb goes off.

"Ana, hosting a book club for women is a brilliant idea!" Sarah exclaims. Ana frowns.

"Sarah, did you hear the part about me being CEO and mother of two?" Ana arches a sardonic brow.

"Absolutely. But Ana, you need a life outside of that too. You need to be a part of something that gives you internal rest. You love books. This concept of leading a book club brings it all back to your initial love of literature. And to top it off, you get to meet other women like yourself. Maybe you'll even get to chip away at this fear of letting new people in," winks Sarah. Ana is not totally sold on the idea.

"I told Christian about it when he got home last night, and he agrees with me. There's just not enough time for me to dedicate to running a book club," Ana breathes in regret.

"Ana, with all due respect, I don't think that Christian is seeing past his own will. He's not seeing the bigger picture. He's not seeing the greater good…for you," Sarah respectfully rebuts. Ana is taken back by the notion. Sarah continues.

"It's not intentional. All he wants is his wife back. But you are too tied up with being mom and CEO. I think that if you take it back to the art itself and begin to appreciate the art form of books once again instead of just focusing on the business-side of books, it'll rejuvenate you. And cultivating friendships – new friendships – it will only strengthen you. Not just you as a CEO and a mom, but also as a wife. You'll be replete, and Christian will definitely reap the benefits of that…if you know what I mean," Sarah arches a suggestive brow. Ana blushes.

….

Ana is back at her GP office after lunch hour when Christian calls her on her cell phone.

"Hey," she murmurs.

"Hey. I just got off the phone with Mom," Christian says. Ana sighs.

"You should try taking Phoebe off of breast milk and putting her on formula for colic and allergies," Christian adds in an authoritative tone.

"Phoebe's pediatrician didn't suggest doing that," Ana says sternly.

"My mother is probably the number one pediatrician in the state, Ana. You know this. All we can do is try. Obviously, the plan that the current pediatrician prescribed isn't working," Christian says plainly. Ana takes a deep breath.

"I think Phoebe just doesn't like being alone in the nursery for long periods of time. We should just move her to our room like I suggest…"

"No!" Christian cuts her off.

"Well, I will just continue being up in the wee hours of the night calming her down then!" Ana strikes back.

"We're putting her on special formula, Ana. I can't take this shit anymore," Christian says quietly through gritted teeth.

"I breastfed Ted until he was seven months. Phoebe is going on five months. Just give it two more months, Christian," Ana pleads.

"Ana, Phoebe can have allergies that we don't even know about. It could be something that's passing through your breast milk. The only way of knowing is if we just try what my mom suggested. Okay?" Christian says attempting to calm down, but frustration still lingers in his tone of voice. Ana takes a deep breath.

"Let me call the pediatrician. If she agrees, then I'll do it," Ana resolves. Christian sighs a frustrated sigh.

"Fine," he grunts. Ana shakes her head and a smile slowly appears on her face.

"Is it that bad, Mr. Grey?" Ana teases.

"Yes. It's unbearable. I'm shriveling up here," Christian laments. Ana chuckles.

"You're not shriveling up, Christian," Ana counters.

"I'm developing a severe case of blue balls, Mrs. Grey. It's having a detrimental effect on my work and home life," Christian borderline pouts. Ana snorts a giggle.

"Look, we'll just have to take a shower tonight – a fast one. Hopefully we can begin to reverse your…problem," Ana murmurs.

"Now you're talking, Mrs. Grey," Christian perks up.