As we exited my apartment, hand in hand, I could feel anxiety begin to blossom in my stomach. My insides felt as though they were being twisted in knots. I couldn't even begin to comprehend how to process my feelings and if I could I still hadn't the slightest idea of what to do about it. I looked down and stared at our linked hands and I prayed to God that he didn't think my palms were gross and sweaty, he would be so repulsed. As I looked back up at his face I saw a look of concentration. His brows were furrowed, his eyes were hard and his lips formed a subtle scowl. I almost shuddered in fear as I quickly discovered that I would hate to be on the receiving end of that look and I would do absolutely anything in my power to avoid it. Instantly, I grew curious as to who was on the receiving end of that look. I turned my head and looked straight ahead and I quickly realized what was happening. I instantly tightened my hand around Mr. Grey's and shifted myself so I was half hidden behind his back. He looked down at me curiously and locked his jaw in fury, he pulled me farther back behind him as if he was trying to hide me completely.

It was the same group of people who were in front of the apartment building last night. They were now huddled in a group in front of the Mr. Grey's vehicle. His driver was standing outside of the car holding the door open for us. As we got closer to the car, they drew closer to us. I desperately hoped that they wouldn't open their mouths and say something stupid. The last thing I need is for them to say something stupid and make Mr. Grey judge my living arrangements once again. I don't think I can tolerate any more negative feedback from him. He's this high-class, rich person who is constantly surrounding by luxury and I'm not even close to that. I almost don't feel worthy to be in his presence.

As we arrived closer to the car Mr. Grey pulled me from behind his back and gently pushed me into the backseat of the vehicle. As I climbed further into the seat, he gently shut the door behind me and seemed to stand outside of the door and talk to his driver. Mr. Grey kept looking back towards the group of men and then back at me. It wasn't until I saw that his driver had to grab ahold of him and pull him back to the car that I realized that they had managed to say something extremely offensive and profane due to the smug look on their faces. I quickly buckled my seat belt as Mr. Grey made his way to the other side of the car and I put my head in my heads and closed my eyes while I rubbed my temples. Mr. Grey opened the door quickly and slammed it shut. I flinched. I could feel the anger radiating off of him in tsunamic waves. I thought it would be best if I just keep to myself.

He never turned to look at me. Instead he pulled out his phone and started typing away. I lifted my head up and turned to look out the window. I knew this was a horrible idea to begin with and now I couldn't help but wonder why I had ever agreed to go with him. Since now I was stuck in a moving vehicle with someone who clearly no longer wanted to be around me. I briefly debated the pros and cons to hopping out of the vehicle at a red light. There was a part of me that wanted to desperately flee and never see Mr. Grey again but the other part felt comforted and safe in his presence. It was an odd feeling and I didn't quite know what to make of it.

"Do they normally behave like that?" Mr. Grey finally asked, breaking the silence.

I tore my gaze from the window and glanced at him. He was staring at me intently, his grey eyes were piercing and I could quickly feel myself getting lost in them. I stared at him as I gathered my bearings and nodded my head in confirmation to his question. He hissed under his breath letting his rage consume him once again.

"It's not so bad…" I mutter quietly, mostly to myself.

He sighed.

"Men like that can be extremely dangerous. I'd prefer it if you take up my offer of coming to stay with me for a while." He said nervously while raking his hand through his hair.

"Thank you for your offer but I'm afraid that I must decline, again. I barely know you." I whispered the last part.

"I know that we hardly know each other but I can't help but feel the overwhelming need to protect you." He said gruffly.

"Why?" I looked up at him curiously.

He just stared back at me, not saying a word. I quickly looked down in my lap and played absentmindedly with the fringe in my scarf. Neither of us spoke after that. It wasn't until we came to a complete stop and his driver got out of the car did I realize that we had already arrived. As I look around, I become even more confused with my surroundings. Mr. Grey got out first and made his way over to me and held my door open for me.

"Thank you," I manage to mutter as I grasp ahold of his hand again. I instantly realize what I've done when he doesn't grab it back and I quickly pull my hand away in embarrassment. I feel the heat spread to my cheeks and I bite my lip nervous and cross my arms over my chest.

"Where are we and what are we doing in a parking deck?" I say as I look around confused as to why he'd bring me here.

"We're at Escala," he said while looking nervous. "My home," he added quietly under his breath.

"I see. Why did you bring me here? Are you trying to change my mind?" I said through gritted teeth while looking up at him accusingly. This was not alright I couldn't believe he'd do this.

He took a deep breath before speaking. "I would be thrilled if you were to change your mind in regards to staying with me. Also, if I'm being completely honest then yes, I'm going to do everything I can in order to get you to change your mind. I can protect you here and you would want for nothing but alas I already know that, that will not happen anytime soon; so instead I brought you here for lunch. My housekeeper is a killer cook and I thought you would appreciate a home-cooked meal versus something from a restaurant. Although, if you'd prefer to eat somewhere else we could do that too." He looked at me expectantly, clearly he was waiting for my answer before we headed towards the elevator.

I was at a complete loss for words so I could only nod my head. He instantly let out a sigh of relief and headed towards the elevator. It took me a moment to realize he was moving away from me and I hurried after him after I saw the elevator doors open. He stared back at me amusingly as I quickly ran into the elevator and stumbled over my feet. I was flushed with embarrassment.

"Don't." I said harshly.

"I would never, Miss Steele." He said back with a smirk.

The elevator ride was tense and awkward for the most part. There was an undeniable electric energy between us that had me staring at the floor and biting my lip nervously. I could feel Mr. Grey staring down at me and he had me fidgeting in my seat. Suddenly, I heard the ding of the elevator alerting us that we have arrived at our destination and the moment the doors opened I bolted out as quickly as I possibly could. As I looked up to take in my surroundings, I came to a complete sudden stop causing Mr. Grey to bump into me and push my down to floor. In the midst of our fall Mr. Grey managed to pull me a top of him so when we hit the ground, he took the brunt of the fall and not me. My body was mostly between his legs, my hair was fanned to the side of his body, my hands were pressed gently against his chest and my face was nuzzled into his neck. To anyone else it would look as though we were a loving couple in a passionate embrace but I knew the truth. It was not like that at all.

As I slowly came to the realization of what happened I instantly wanted the ground to swallow me up whole and bury me alive. If I never saw the light of day again I would be perfectly alright. All too quickly I felt Mr. Grey shift underneath me uncomfortably. I realized that now was probably a good time to get off top of him and check to see if he was hurt since he did take the fall directly on his back. I was getting ready to lift my head to get a read of his expression until I felt one arm tighten around me and another arm gently caress my back. Even though I knew what we were doing wasn't right, I still didn't want this moment to ever end. I nuzzled my face deeper into the crook of his neck and inhaled his scent. I felt safe and protected in his embrace and I didn't want to ever be without it. I never want to leave the safety net of his warm embrace ever again. Maybe moving in with him won't be too bad…

It suddenly felt like hours have passed when in all actuality it had only been a mere three minutes and thirty seven seconds; not like I was keeping count or anything. I heard him sigh softly and I realized that our moment was done and it was time to get up. I quickly shimmied myself down his body until I was situated in front of him resting on my knees. I soon became reacquainted with his grey eyes and heated stare and instant reaction I parted my lips dramatically. My pulse began to quicken as I took in his disheveled hair and the bulge of his muscles through his shirt. I couldn't believe that only a minute ago was I up close and personal with those bulges.

He gave me a devilish smirk and quickly sat up so that now we were almost touching one another. He had somehow successfully trapped me between his legs and if he wrapped his arms around me I would be completely trapped and at his mercy. If only…

I decided to mess with him a bit and I quickly stood straight up and stepped over him, further entering the apartment. I looked back and I successfully saw him staring back at me with his mouth wide open. Not even a moment later I heard him get up and come stand behind me making the back of my neck prickle with anticipation.

"Thank you." I whispered softly, praying that voice didn't betray me.

"For?" He asked confusingly.

"For everything. You've been incredibly kind to me and I've just been completely awful to you." I say while lowering my head.

"There is no need to thank me. To be perfectly honest, I haven't been the nicest to you either." He remarked, suddenly seeming agitated.

"That's where you wrong. No one has ever been as nice to me as you have and I suppose that I just didn't know how to act in light of it." I realized that I needed to shut down the conversation immediately or else I would start crying like a baby. "So now that, that's settled, what about lunch?"

He could sense that I wanted to end this conversation and grabbed my hand to pull me into the kitchen. As we entered past the foyer of the apartment I lost the ability to speak entirely. His apartment was the most spectacular thing I have ever seen.

"You…you…you have a beautiful apartment. It's so…white." I said thoughtfully.

He raised his eyebrow. "White?"

"Yes. White." I said while heading towards to floor to ceiling windows. I was mesmerized as I overlooked Seattle. I almost felt as though I was princess looking out of my window from my tower as I awaited my prince to come and rescue me.

"Do you like it?" He asked while staring at me.

"I love it. It's absolutely breathtaking. I could only imagine what it looks like when it rains. If I lived here and it was raining I would build a fort and camp out right here and spend the whole day reading." I said as I imagined doing just that, dreamily.

"Well…" he started to say.

"Well nothing. I was only day dreaming." I quickly shoot back, effectively stopping whatever he was about to say.

He ran his hand through his hair while pulling at it dramatically. "Come on, let's eat."

Lunch was beyond spectacular. His housekeeper made a delicious Greek salad with smoked salmon. While eating it I felt as though I had died and gone to heaven. After lunch I was in a feeling of complete bliss and I couldn't remember the last time I had a meal this good. It was in this moment that I was truly grateful for everything Mr. Grey has done for me. He made it seem as though he really did care. Even though lunch was relatively quiet, it wasn't awkward. It was peaceful and felt natural.

"So…how did you like it?" Mr. Grey asked while breaking the silence.

"It was absolutely fantastic. Please tell your housekeeper I said thank you and that the meal was absolutely exquisite. Thank you so much for bringing me here, Mr. Grey." I beamed at him.

"I will. Would you like a tour?" He asked suddenly seeming nervous for some reason. I couldn't help but find his sudden change of behavior rather odd but I didn't look to deep into it.

"Sure." I said while picking up our plates and setting them in the sink. As I turned on the water, Mr. Grey leaned over me and shut off the faucet.

"I have a housekeeper that does that. Come on, let's begin." He said as he grabbed my hand and started heading towards the hallway.

AN:

Sorry I've been MIA. I wanted to put this up Monday night but I failed due to the worst case of writers block but luckily I'm out of it and I'm feeling completely inspired. I've already started on the next chapter. Here's the thing though, when I write a chapter I write a few different versions of I go from there, that's why it took me so long to post and I will try to be better about it in regards to the upcoming chapters. I do have a question...would you rather there be BDSM or no BDSM? I'm currently unsure of what to do in regards to that aspect and I really want to know what you guys would prefer. Let me know in the reviews or send me a PM. Looking forward to hearing what you guys think. Also shout out to mellzeau for making me realize how much long I've been away from this story you made me really get inspired to finish this chapter and post it.

midnightkennedy