CHAPTER 3

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is chapter 3. I hope you guys enjoy. Please don't be too mad at Elliot. He's only human.

CHRISTIAN

I run back to my office and decide to change out of my suit. I find a pair of khakis and a dark blue polo and put that on. I put on some expensive ass cologne Ros got me last Christmas.

I instruct Taylor to come along but not to act as my body guard. I want Ana to think of me as a normal guy. Someone she can have some drinks with, talk to and get to know. I'm not sure how I'm going to do all of that since she won't even make eye contact with me for more than 2 seconds.

Taylor and I step in the elevator and head down to the lobby. There is a god because when the elevator doors open, Ana is in the lobby, walking towards the front door. I call out to her and suggest we walk together. To my great delight, she takes the arm I offer.

Taylor is behind following us. I see Ana look back at him curiously but thankfully she doesn't ask who he is. I'm not ready to explain the bodyguard yet, so I'm grateful.

The electrical surge is back and so are the goosebumps. We are both quiet as we cross the street. I'm once again tongue tied. Just as we are about to step on the sidewalk, Ana trips. I reach out to catch her and pull her close, to keep her upright. She grabs my forearms and looks up at me in shock. We both stand there, lost in each other's eyes. The world stops for I don't know how long while we share looks. Her eyes are so blue with little flecks of brown. Now I know why Shakespeare said that the eyes are the windows to the soul. At that moment I can see a future in her eyes. I can see us on The Grace, in the glider, in the back yard of a huge house on the sound chasing after a nameless, faceless little figure.

I grab on to both her hands while still looking into her eyes.

"Are you ok, Ana? Are you hurt?" I ask.

"Yes," she says so low I barely hear her. I wonder if she can feel my heart pounding in my chest.

"Yes, you're hurt?"

"Uh, yes, I'm fine," she says. She breaks eye contact then and takes her hands from mine. I miss her touch immediately. How the hell did this happen? I just met this woman about 2 hours ago and her I am ready to give up my Friday night to hang with her and others. Well it's not like I have any other plans for tonight, or any other Friday night. Even before Elenagate happened, I hadn't had a submissive in months. I had nothing to do on a Friday night other than catch up on work.

"I'm notorious for being clumsy," she says and giggles. I miss a step at the sound of her giggle. I get control of myself and open the door for her.

Prior to coming over here, I had my secretary, Andrea, call and request a private room. Since it's Friday, it would be damn near impossible to get a private room on such short notice, but this is one of the perks to being Christian Grey. My name and black Ammex can get me whatever I want.

She walks through and I have no choice but to hold the door for Taylor as well. I give him a dirty look and tell him to find a table far enough away. He better try his hardest to make his 6 foot 5 frame be as inconspicuous as possible.

The hostess takes me to the private room and Tayler gets a table right outside the door.

I see Elliot, Kate, Mia, and some dark-haired guy with glasses. He looks like he belongs on a Gap ad. I immediately don't like him. I get closer to Ana in order to send some sort of message to him.

"Hey, guys," Elliot says.

"Ana, this is Sam Hardy, the guy I've been tell you about. He's one of the engineers at Grey Construction. Sam, this is Ana, my friend and Kate's BFF." Elliot says jovially.

He looks my way.

"Oh, and this is my brother, Christian," he says with zero enthusiasm. That's all I get? Whatever. I'll make sure this Sam Hardy knows who the fuck I am soon enough. And what does he mean that this is the guy that he's told Ana about? Is this some kind of set up? It's a good thing I'm here.

"Hi, Sam. It's nice to meet you," Ana says as she reaches across the table to shake his hand. While she's reaching across the table, the back of her dress hikes up and I see the back of her thighs. They look so smooth and pale, and ready for my touch. What I wouldn't give to run my fingers up and down those thighs. Jesus, to have those legs wrapped around.

When I look up, I see Elliot looking at me. He shakes his head in disbelief and looks away.

"Come sit over here, Ana," Mia says. Over here is between Mia and Sam. Fuck! I push my way in next to Sam.

Ana, Mia and Sam start to make small talk. Kate is on her phone texting. I do notice, though, that he only looked at Ana briefly when introduced. They shook hands and as soon as he could, he turned his attention back to Mia. Though there were three of them there, he only really paid attention to Mia and was merely polite to Ana. Ana noticed it too because her smile slipped a little bit.

It upsets me to see her even slightly upset, but if I'm right and Sam is more interested in Mia, I'm thrilled.

Kate gets Ana's attention and tells her that someone by the name of Ethan can't make it. Before I can figure out who the hell Ethan is, Elliot starts in on me.

"I'm surprised you showed up, Christian," Elliot says.

"Shut up, Elliot. I invited him," Mia hears this and responds.

"It's Friday and I thought I'd hang out with my siblings and their friends. What's so surprising about that?" I say so that Ana can hear. I want her to think I do this sort of thing all the time. Now, shut up Elliot so I can hear Ana and Sam's conversation.

"How about a round of drinks for everyone? I'll start a tab," I offer.

"Sure, Mr. Moneybags. Isn't that what you call him, babe?" Elliot says to Kate.

She has the grace to flush and look embarrassed. I raise my eyebrows at her and she looks away. I see Ana and Sam talking. I call the waitress over and everyone orders. Elliot orders a gin and tonic, Sam and I order beers and the girls order a pitcher of margaritas. Elliot is usually a beer drinker so I'm surprised that he ordered a mixed drink.

"Ana, remember that time after finals when we go so drunk off margaritas? We were so wasted, we tried to hitch hike home. Thank goodness someone had the good sense to call Jose and he came and got us," Kate says.

Ana blushes and laughs.

"Ana Banana has a wild side," asshole Elliot says. "Tell me more." She giggles.

"It was my first time drinking and Kate kept filling my cup. I felt like absolute crap the next day," she says. Kate and her both laugh.

Drinking? Attempted hitch hiking and taking a ride from some Jose? Oh, no. It's a good thing she has me to look after her now.

"So, Sam, how long have you worked at Grey Construction?" I need to know what the fuck I'm up against.

"A little over a year," he says. "I got the job a few months after graduation. I didn't realize Elliot was your brother until a few months after I started. I never made the connection."

Just then the drinks arrive and Elliot drinks his in 3 gulps and orders another one.

"Well, Sam, it's not like he gets away from his ivory tower to hang out with the little people. Right, brother? Shouldn't you be leaving right about now to do some work, or whatever else you would normally do on a Friday night? Are you sure there's no one at home waiting for you?" Elliot is all but sneering at me. I'd really like to knock him on his ass but this is neither the time nor the place.

I've had enough of this fucker. How am I supposed to be my best for Ana if he keeps acting so hostile?

I meet his eyes. "I'm doing exactly what I want to do tonight, Elliot," I tell him. "Stop being such an ass."

The waitress comes back with his gin and tonic. While the waitress check on everyone else, Elliot finishes his drink and orders 3 more gin and tonics for the table.

"My brother is buying, so keep them coming. He's a big tipper," he tells her.

I look over and see Ana talking to Kate. After a few minutes, they head towards the ladies' room. Mia and Sam hardly notice as they carry on their conversation. Elliot goes to the bar to check on the drinks. Mia is leaning in to him and is hanging on his every word. He's telling her about growing up in Portland and how his father is a retired firefighter. I don't know what Mia says to him next, but he starts to laugh. Mia sees another group across the room and waves to them. She grabs Sam's arm and they walk over. I recognize them as some of Mia's friends from high school.

Elliot comes back with a tray of drinks and downs his third gin and tonic.

"You gonna feed us too, bro? I think you should since you invited yourself," he says.

"I didn't invite myself. Our sister invited me. Why are you being such a dick?" I bite back.

"I knew asshole Christian wasn't far away. Ana steps away and you're back to your old self. I see the way you've been looking at her. Well let me save you some time. She ain't your type, bro." He starts on his 4th drink. He's getting pretty drunk considering we haven't eaten.

"Do you have some kind of problem with me, Elliot? I'm sick of your passive aggressive bullshit. If you have something to say, grow some balls and say it. I'm standing right here. Say what the fuck you gotta say."

I've had enough of this fucker. I've been nothing but patient with his ass but I'm at the end of my rope.

"You sure you want to hear it? Ok! You want to know what my problem is with you? You're a fucking hypocrite. For years you've pushed the entire family away. For years, I've kissed your ass, trying to get close to you. Trying to be your brother and friend, but you've always been so cold and distant. You've always been such a prick to everyone. So aloof. I thought maybe that that was because you were still dealing with the shit you went through as a kid. I told myself that if I just continued to be there for you that eventually you would see that. You would let me be your brother. Then I find out that that's all a lie. You have this entire other life that we knew nothing about. You had a life of fucking Elena's rancid pussy, countless submissives or whatever the fuck you call them. You let Elena into your life, man. Can you see how twisted and sick that was, or are you too selfish? This woman was fucking her best friend's son and had no qualms about showing her face for Sunday dinner, or holidays, or birthdays. And worse than that, you trusted her with your issues. Her! After all the times I've reached out to you for you to reject me, you trusted Elena fucking Lincoln. You allowed that sick cunt to help you all the while keeping us at arms-length," he says.

He gets right in my face. "You rejected all of us for years. So guess what? I say fuck you, Christian," he shoves me as he attempts to walk away from me.

I grab his arm and force him to turn around. My back is now to our table.

I see Taylor start to walk towards us. He stands a few feet away, ready to diffuse the situation if need be.

"You're making the biggest fucking mistake I ever made about you?" I ask, incredulous.

"I said fuck you, Christian," this time he shoves me and I stumble back.

I've had enough and I shove him back. Hard. Elliot is stronger than I am but the alcohol must be really affecting him because he stumbles back 2 steps. He tries to lunge at me, but Taylor steps in between us. I tell Taylor to let him go.

"You want to talk about selfish, asshole? Look in the god damn mirror. What I went through had nothing to do with you. Yes, I was horrible to my family and I have to live with that every god damn day. You know I've had to deal with the fact that I was molested and you make this about your feelings. About how I rejected you? I didn't realize you were such a narcissist," I say as I shove him again.

He lunges at me then and I almost fall to the ground. I push him away and he gets up and decks me in the mouth. Without missing a beat, I punch him right back, making him stumble. He might be stronger, but I'm sober.

Taylor now gets in the middle and puts his hand on Elliot's chest to keep him away.

Mia must have seen what was happening because she rushes back with Sam following her.

"What the hell are you doing, Elliot. You drunk?" Mia asks.

"No, not drunk, little sis. Just telling this asshole here how I feel about him."

Kate and Ana come back in the room, now aware of the chaos.

"Look, Ana and Kate are back. Let's go Kate. I can't be in his presence for another second," Elliot is starting to slur his words and is swaying from side to side.

I thought he was done but I was wrong.

"Let's all go to my house, guys. Not you, Christian. Go back to your ivory tower. Hey, did you all know he likes to tie up women and beat them?" I hear Ana gasp.

"Elliot, shut the hell up," this from Mia.

"Mr. Grey, I'm going to escort you to your car so that Ms. Kavanaugh can drive you home," Taylor says.

"You don't work for me Taylor. I don't need you to handle me." Elliot tries to shove Taylor away but Taylor doesn't budge.

"So, you're done with me now because I kept shit from the family?" I ask him. "Is that what you're saying?"

"I'm saying that you can go straight to hell. You can take that old bitch you were fucking with you too. That's right, everyone. My baby brother, the one who everyone thought was either gay or a virgin, fucked our mom's best friend at 15. And she acted as some sort of pimp and found women for him after he got sick of fucking her," he says and starts to laugh.

"You're a big bad dom, right Christian? Full disclosure, everyone. I don't think Ana is into BDSM, brother," he laughs.

I see Ana standing there like a deer in the headlights.

Mia starts to cry and gets in Elliot's face. "Elliot, I said shut the hell up. He was taken advantage of. If you came to the family therapy sessions you would know that. Why are you making such an ass of yourself? Shut the fuck up," she says in an angry whisper.

"Let's all go somewhere and talk, guys. Please," says Mia.

"I'm gonna head out. This seems like a family thing. I'll call you tomorrow, Mia. Bye, everyone," Sam says and leaves the room.

"I'm done talking," Elliot says. He grabs Kate's hand and walks out.

"Taylor, please follow him and make sure he gets in the car. Don't let him drive," I instruct Taylor.

What a fucking disaster! And I'm such a fucking idiot. After all the years of therapy, I couldn't recognize the signs. Of course he's angry but I think he's more angry at himself for not saving me. What he doesn't understand is that I was a horny 15 year old and she offered me a way to get off without being touched. That was what got me hooked. How the hell could Elliot have helped me with that? He was just a kid himself. I was in it to get off, and I believed I needed to be punished. For so long I've had so much self-loathing. That is still something that I struggle with everyday.

Back then I credited Elena with the change in me. My grades got better. I stopped drinking. I stopped fighting. For once, Grace and Carrick were proud of me, but the ugliness within remained. The nightmares never went away and the memories of my mother lingered.

When I dropped out of college, Carrick was ready to disown me, but it was Elena who loaned me the money to start GEH. Once again, my parents were disappointed in me and she was someone I could go to. I didn't realize then that she was so manipulative. I should have gotten a clue when I told her I was ending our arrangement because I wanted to be a Dom. She helped me train and offered to supply me with women. I should have known then how inappropriate that was but I was busy starting my business and she knew my type. I didn't see that even though I was no longer her submissive, she still had all the control over me. She controlled who I fucked, how I saw myself. She prevented me from reaching any major milestones in therapy.

I was such a fool for so long. When I came clean, I felt a huge relief. When the family, with the exception of Elliot, asked me for forgiveness and stood by me, I realized how delusional I was not see the love my family has for me.

I'm seeing Flynn at least twice per week and he's brought in a therapist who specializes in touch issues. I'm able to bear some touch. That's why I didn't lose my shit and really pound Elliot's face when he shoved me earlier. I was going to wait to share the news with my family. I'm making huge strides now, but I feel cheated. I feel that if Elena hadn't been in our lives, I could have reached those milestones a decade ago.

I should have realized the signs that Elliot was showing. He's angry because he blames himself.

I shouldn't have let this go for so long to go and talk to him. I should have forced him to talk to me. We probably still would have ended up coming to blows, but we would have cleared the air sooner. Tomorrow, I'm going to his place and he'll have no choice but to talk to me. This time without any liquid courage.

I turn to Mia. She has tears in her eyes.

"I shouldn't have let this go on for this long, Mia. I'll fix this. I'll go over to his place and talk to him tomorrow.

"I'll come with you," Mia offers.

"No. We need to handle this brother to brother."

"Ok. I love you, Christian," Mia says and hugs me goodbye.

I see Ana at the table getting her purse so that she can leave.

"I'm sorry about tonight, Ana. I really wanted to just come out and have some fun, but things took a dark turn. I'm sorry you had to hear and see such an ugly scene."

"Don't worry about it. These things happen within families. I'm hardly one to judge. I heard what Elliot said about your mother's friend, though. I'm so sorry that happened to you," Ana says giving me a sad smile. Great. The last thing I want is for her to feel sorry for me.

I decide to change the subject.

"Sorry I ruined your date with Sam," I'm really not sorry about that. As much of a disaster as this night was, this is the one thing I'm not sorry about.

"He's more into Mia anyways," she shrugs. Good! Otherwise I was going to contact an engineering firm on the east coast and use my influence to get him a job. I still might do that if he's a jerk to my sister.

"Do you need a ride home?" I ask.

Before she can respond, Taylor comes back.

"I made sure he got into the car ok. Kate's driving. He's pretty wasted, sir," Taylor says. I see Ana looking at Taylor curiously.

She puts out her hand and introduces herself.

"Hi. I'm Ana."

"Taylor, ma'am."

"Are you two friends?" Taylor looks at me waiting for me to respond. I figure honesty is the best policy.

"Taylor works for me," I say vaguely. She looks at me waiting for me to elaborate.

"He's my bodyguard. I have to have a security detail," I don't offer anymore than that. She doesn't need to know about the threats I receive occasionally.

"Well thanks for the drinks. My car is at the GEH parking garage. Apparently one of the perks of being the daycare administrator is my very own parking spot," she says, trying to keep things light.

"I'll walk you to your car," I say. She doesn't respond so I follow her out. We cross the street, but this time I don't offer her my arm. I'm worried that she sees me as the tainted, damaged goods that I am. Fucking Elena ruins everything! I'm going to blame her for the disaster tonight was. I shake my head. I'm to blame for not reaching out to Elliot sooner.

We enter the garage and she walks towards this very ancient VW Beetle. It's powder blue with bits of rust. It was probably made the year Carrick was born.

She opens the driver's side door and I walk up and stand directly in front of her. She's practically pressed up against me.

She looks up at me nervously. We make eye contact for a few second but she looks down. I grab her chin between my forefingers and force her to look up at me again. Our eyes lock. Neither one of us seems to be able to look away.

"You're so beautiful," I say. She blushes profusely and tries to look away again. I hold her steady and lean down. I graze my lips against hers. So soft. She must feel what I feel because I can see goosebumps on her arms. I press my lips to hers. She doesn't pull back, so I deepen the kiss. I push my tongue into her mouth. She moans and opens her mouth wider. She tastes of tequila and salt. I think I hear myself moan. I pull her flush against me, holding her securely. She's so small, so soft. I pull her closer but she pushes me away.

"Stop," she says. "We can't. I just met you and you're my boss. Let's be honest, I don't think…," she stops and the sentence goes unfinished.

I'm breathing pretty heavily and willing my erection to go down.

"You don't think what?" I say.

"Never mind. I gotta go. Your bodyguard is waiting for you."

"Can I see you tomorrow?" I can't believe I'm practically begging this woman whom I've only known a few hours. When did I being such a whiney bitch?

"No. You're my boss."

"Is that the only reason? Why do I think you're not being completely honest with me? Is it what Elliot said because if it is, that stuff is in my past."

"No, it's not that. Your private life is your business. It's just that I work for you and I don't want to complicate things. Besides, we come from two different worlds and have nothing in common. You have a body guard, for god's sakes. I shouldn't have let that kiss happen," she says. She gets in the car and closes the door with me standing there. She drives off, heading towards the garage exit.

I turn around and I see Taylor standing by my car waiting for me. He couldn't have gotten into the driver' seat and wait for me? He has to stand there like some sort of sick voyeur? No wonder she drove out of here like a bat out of hell.

I walk and get in the car.

I make a mental calendar of my day tomorrow. Wake up, jerk off with thoughts of Ms. Steele, work out, have it out with Elliot, and come up with a plan to see Ana.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll do my best to have chapter 4 up by Sunday. In the next chapter, Christian and Elliot will have a heart to heart. Afterwards, he will focus on getting Ana to give him a chance.