Tea on Tuesday at Four

Chapter 6

Elena

I just got off the phone with Gail. Last night was it. She's one lucky bitch. Taylor has decided that Christian has been upset enough by all of the events of the last few weeks to make any sudden staff changes. She still has her job. But if she has any more contact with me, she's out. I sigh. Oh, well, she never really told me anything that I didn't know or suspect anyway until last night. I knew that Taylor never liked me. But I guess that he "likes" Gail enough not to have her fired.

But I can't believe that all that shit went down with Leila last night and I still haven't heard from Christian himself about it. Normally, such momentous events would have had him on the phone to me the first thing this morning looking, at the very least, for sympathy. I suspect that it's all because of her. I still don't understand what he sees in her. She did good quite good on Saturday night thanks to Franco. And to think that I let him go over to the apartment to do her hair.

But I can see that she is a jealous, insecure little thing. If I had her lack of polish and sophistication, I probably would too. I think that she's keeping Christian away from me because she is afraid that I might make a play for him again. And then there is that business of thinking that I somehow "ruined" him. And then there is that stunt she pulled running out on that like him after he saved her from Leila. She obviously still doesn't truly understand him. I'm sorry that my contact with Gail has been broken. She was a very handy little stooge, and almost as bad as Grace when it comes to trusting me. I wonder what Taylor said to her?

The phone rings again.

"Hello?" I ask tentatively. I don't recognize the number.

"Hi Elena! It's Mia Grey!"

It's Mia's voice, positively dripping with enthusiasm as usual. That girl is one of the most annoying people that I know. But she also doesn't know when to keep her mouth shut and I'm sure that Christian has never made her sign an NDA. Maybe I can get something out of her.

"Oh, hello, Mia!" I reply. "How are you doing today?"

"I'm bored."

I can almost hear her pouting on the other end of the line.

"So I decided to arrange a surprise birthday for Christian on Saturday night," she says in her more typical perky voice. "And Mom told me to be sure to invite you!"

Oh, with all that has been going on recently, I had forgotten that Saturday was his birthday.

"Well," I say hesitantly. "I'm not sure if I don't have another engagement for that night. This is very late you know."

"But Elena!" more pouting on the other end, I'm sure. "You have to come! I'm sure that Christian will be so disappointed if you don't!"

And I'm sure that Ana will be so disappointed if I do. But it's Grace who is asking me to be there. Still, I don't want to appear too eager. I make a few noises by flipping pages.

"Let's see," I say. "Oh, you're in luck. I don't have an engagements."

"Oh goody!" she exclaims. "I told Christian to be there for a family dinner at seven, so you'll need to be there by six-thirty or so. Oh, and don't park in the driveway. He'll be suspicious if he sees too many cars!"

"Okay, Mia," I reply. "I'll be there."

Now I know why Christian would never make her sign any NDA. It's better to just tell her nothing.

Well this is a rather interesting turn of events. I will be very interesting in seeing the "happy couple." I am going to play it cool until then. I am not going to call Christian, I will wait for him to call me. After his annoyance on Monday night, I don't want to seem too pushy. Especially since he reacted so cheerfully when I called him yesterday morning to let him know about the origin of the "blackmail" request. I wonder if he told Ana. I doubt it.

Grace

I really don't know what is wrong with Christian today. He seemed very much on edge when he called to tell me that he was flying down Portland this morning for a meeting. Something seemed to be bothering him. Normally, the opportunity to fly Charlie Tango has him in a very good mood. I hope that he is not having another little spat with Ana. Mia is working so hard to plan his birthday party. I really don't want anything to spoil it.

Oh, where is Carrick? He knows that I wanted him to come home early because we have a dinner to attend tonight. It's so unlike him not to call if he is going to be late. I know that Elliot is home safely from Barbados because he called from the airport. He seems to be quite enamored of Kate. It would be good if he could finally settle down.

Mia had lunch yesterday with Kate's brother Ethan and she seems to be quite smitten with him. It's sometimes hard to tell how she feels about things because she is also overly enthusiastic about things. And this young man is a bit older than her and thinking about graduate school. I am not sure that Mia will be able to keep up with him, intellectually that is. I am looking forward to meeting him.

The phone rings and I see that it is Carrick and he is still at work.

"Dear, I thought that I told you to be back early tonight," I say as soon as I pick up the phone.

"Grace, please listen and try to stay calm," he replies.

My heart nearly stops.

"Elliot will be there in a few minutes to pick you up," he says briefly. "We don't have any solid information yet, but Christian never returned from Portland this afternoon. He filed a flight plan and took off, but he is already four hours late."

"How do you know?" I ask weakly.

"I just had a call from Taylor," he replies. "He wasn't with him. When he was late returning home, he called Andrea and found out that he and Ros never got back to the office. He called Sea-Tac to see what happened. I'm warning you, dear. Don't turn on the news. One of the stations got ahold of the story and now they're all running it."

"Carrick, what are we going to do?" I ask frantically. "Does Ana know?"

"Elliot called Kate because she was with her," he says. "She's going to the apartment with her friends. I told Taylor that we would meet them there."

"But can't we do anything?" I ask .

"There are search parties out looking," he replies more calmly. "We are all going to stay there and wait. Do you know where Mia is?"

"I'm not sure, but I'll call her cell phone and tell her to meet us there," I say. "Are you sure that there's nothing that we can do?"

"Everything that can be done is being done," he answers. "Taylor has been on it since he first got word. Now, I want to get over there. I want all of us over there so that we can wait this out together."

I hang up and look outside. Elliot is speeding up the driveway. But it's starting to get dark. Can they look for him in the dark?

Elena

I can't believe what I am seeing on the news. Christian is missing! He left Portland at two and should have been back by three, but he never got back to Seattle. All I can think is that the last time we spoke it was so brief. I just told him about the blackmail note being part of a scene that Isaac was putting together for us. We barely said anything. And before that, there was my uncomfortable visit to his apartment.

I have no way of knowing what is happening. I tried calling Grace at home and on her cell, but she wasn't picking up either. She may not even be home and she's always been careless about carrying her cell phone. She still prefers to use her pager for hospital business. I know that I could call the apartment, but I am sure that no one would speak to me. Neither Ana nor Taylor certainly would. I doubt that Gail would have the nerve after her dressing down by Taylor a few weeks ago.

What a time to be on the outs with Christian! In all the years that I have known him, we have never had any kind of disagreement. It's that little bitch! I know it! No doubt she has been whining to him about me all week. And now, I cannot get information out of anyone. I feel like some kind of outsider, relying on the same news reports as everyone else for news.

The hours pass and there is still no word. Isaac has come and gone. I can't think about anything but Christian, perhaps lost and hurt in the wilderness. And then the update flashes on the screen. Christian and Ros just showed up in town. The helicopter crashed but they managed to escape and get a ride home. But there are no details.

Filled with relief, I can't resist it. I call his cell phone and it immediately goes to voice mail. It probably lost power. Those Blackberries have terrible batteries. They never hold their charge for very long. I have told Christian over and over to get an iPhone, but he insists that no self respecting businessman would have such a toy. I think that he just doesn't want to bother making the switch. But at last I am able to go to bed, knowing that I will see him tomorrow night. Hopefully, he will call me back tomorrow.

Grace

I just got off the phone with Christian and I can't believe it! He and Ana are engaged to be married! I knew that there was something special between them and it wasn't just because she was the first girl that he ever introduced to us. There is an almost magical chemistry between them that was evident last Saturday night. Mother and Father saw it. Even Carrick had to admit that it was there.

And she was just so completely devastated last night when she thought that he was . . . lost. I could see the minute that he entered the apartment that he only wanted to be with her, but I couldn't help myself. I had to throw myself into his arms and make sure that he was really and truly alive and well. I know that he was shocked by my response, by everyone's response, but what did he expect? Has he really felt all of these years that we didn't love him as he was, warts and all, so to speak? I know that it's Ana. She is the one who has finally convinced him that we all love him.

But he has told me that I am not allowed to tell anyone about the engagement but Carrick. Her parents don't even know yet. He is the one who wants to make he announcement and of course as soon as Mia finds out, we might as well call the local television station. He has even told me that although he has officially asked her and she's accepted, he wants to make a more romantic proposal. A local florist will becoming this afternoon to decorate the boathouse.

"Carrick," I say. "May I speak with you privately?"

"Yes, of course, dear," he replies. Of course Mia has to pout because she is excluded. I am growing rather tired of her pouting and other childish behavior. I must speak to her about it later, and about Ethan. She actually thought that she would be spending the night with him last night. Thankfully, he had the good sense to send her back home with us. Perhaps if she matures a little, he will show more interest.

"What is it, dear?" asks Carrick, when we are alone.

"I just got off the phone with Christian and he has informed me that he has asked Ana to marry him and she accepted!" I exclaim.

My husband is silent.

"Grace, are you sure that this isn't a response to almost losing his life yesterday?" He finally asks. "I mean, it was a very great shock."

"Well, I am sure that it was," I agree. "But maybe it has made him feel as though he needs to move on with his life. Maybe he has finally realized that he is missing out on so much by living in that kind of solitary confinement that he has created for himself."

More silence.

"Carrick," I say. "Christian is a changed man since he met Ana. He laughs and smiles. He seems more interested in more of the simpler things in life. Maybe he realized that life is too short to waste on doing nothing but making money."

"You talk about making money as if it was a bad thing," he replies. "However, it has turned out to be the thing that he does best. I am just afraid that he is infatuated with this girl and will be sorry in the long run. I hope that it will be a long engagement."

"Carrick, did you see them together last night when he finally made it home?" I answer forcefully. "They love each other. There is no infatuation about it. You know how Christian is. It makes complete sense that he would know what true love was when he finally found it. I think that it has been love at first sight since the day that they met. You know that when two people meet, sometimes they just sense the chemistry between themselves."

He looks at me and smiles indulgently.

"No, I haven't forgotten the day we met," he says. "You were rushing across the New Haven green on your way to class because you were late and crashed right into me."

"And my books went flying in all directions," I reply. "I believe that you were quite annoyed with me. But as I recall, you did help me pick them up and carried them for me to the door of my classroom."

"Yes," he says. "And then I waited in that corridor until your class was over."

"Because you wanted my number," I continue.

"You didn't object," he comments.

"That's because I spent most of the class thinking about the handsome young man who was so gentlemanly after I bumped into him," I say. "I don't think that I heard a word of that lecture."

"And I cut a class on contract law to wait for you," he finishes.

"Yes," I reply. "And then when you called my father at the end of the term to ask for my hand in marriage. And he told you that you were rushing things."

"Okay, Grace," he grins as he holds up his hands. "You have made your case very effectively. Who am I to argue against precedent? I am really very glad that Christian has fallen in love with such a wonderful girl. I just hope that she's strong-willed enough to keep him in line."

"Oh, I'm not worried about that," I say dismissively. "She may be shy, but she seems to be very strong. And she is clearly devoted to him. I believe that they will be very happy together."

"Yes, you're right," he says. "Now if we can just get Elliot to settle down, we can stop worrying about our sons. Rather interesting the way that they turned out."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, one son can't seem to get enough women in his life and the other never had any, that we knew of anyway," he replies. "A little ironic, don't you think?"

"I don't believe that Elliot is a lost cause," I answer. "After all, he's been dating Kate now for, what? A whole month almost."

"Yes, I believe that she holds the record," he says.

"Carrick! How can you say that about your son?" I ask in annoyance.

"Name me another who has lasted that long," he challenges me.

And, darn it, I can't think of one. Well, if Christian can find love after all these years, then there is no reason why Elliot can't as well. The boys always were competitive. Maybe this will spur him on.

Oh, I do wish that I could call Elena to tell her and discuss it, but Christian expressly forbad me from telling anyone else, even my best friend. But then, I suppose that he wants to have the pleasure of telling everyone himself. Well, I can't blame him for that. It's his big announcement. I can't wait until tonight. What a wonderful celebration we are going to have!

Elena

I can't believe that Christian has been ignoring my calls. I thought that he would at the very least phone to let me know that he was alright. In the past, I know that I would have heard from him by now, even though we are going to see each other tonight. Things seem to have changed course in a rather unpleasant direction.

I hadn't even thought of this, I have been so upset. Mia's surprise party means that he doesn't know that he will see me tonight. This situation is worse than I had thought! It's her! I know that it's her. She is refusing to accept that I am an important part of Christian's life. She ha been feeding him all of that nonsense about how I have hurt him, damaged him even. What does she know about it anyway?

Does she actually think that she has that degree of control over him? Does she actually think that she is better for him than I am? And if it wasn't for me, doe she actually think that he would be around today for her to manipulate? I knew that she was trouble the minute that Christian told me about her. Does he even realize that he could be making a huge mistake?

He needs me. I am the one that understands him and his needs. If she continues to play this game, she is going to be one very sorry little girl. If she forces him to choose, it will be all over for her. Christian has been mine for almost thirteen years now. And nothing is going to change that. Nothing.

To my readers: I know that some of you are bothered by the fact that Gail appeared to be in league, so to speak, with the Bitch Troll. In the books, we never see any interaction between her and Elena. I wanted Elena to know what had happened between Christian and Leila, but I didn't want him to be the one to tell her. Almost no one knew, and certainly she wasn't going to hear from Ana, Taylor, or Flynn.

Chapter 5 set the stage for this chapter, where it becomes abundantly clear that Elena is losing her grip on Christian. She was able to deny it before, but that fact that so much shit has gone down in his life and he isn't telling her anything is driving her crazy. In my mind, it explains to me why she finally lost control at the birthday party/engagement announcement and showed her true colors in a semi-public environment.

The power shift from Elena to Ana is obvious on Tuesday night. And that fact that Ana refuses to accept Christian when he offers himself her submissive because she doesn't want to become like the Bitch Troll is clearly stated. It is my personal analysis that it is at this point that Christian realizes that the only way that he will win Ana is to fully commit himself to her.

He attempts to do this the only way that he knows how. It is only after he realizes that this is not the way to win her that he asks her to marry him. I believe that this is the true Damascene moment to which Flynn later alludes. It is here that she finally is able to drag him into the light.

I never intended to vilify Gail (I actually like her character because she is so sympathetic towards Ana and very protective of Christian). Instead, I decided that she, like Grace, would be taken in by Elena's pretense of caring for Christian. It is important to remember that she only came into Christian's life four years ago. Therefore, she would have had fewer opportunities to find out about her than Taylor did. And we all know that Taylor would never talk out of turn.

I also was looking for a subtle way of implying Taylor's true feelings for Gail. The fact that she doesn't get fired for her indiscretion is meant to tell us that. After all, they are married in the epilogue three years later. There was certainly more to it than physical attraction.

One of the limits that I have been working with in this story is that I am only working from Grace's and Elena's POVs. The books are written pretty much only from Ana's POV. That actually leaves a lot of latitude for filling in the blanks.

Thanks for all the great feedback. It has been very useful as I draw this story towards its final conclusion.