4/25/18

A/N: Thanks for the amazing words in your reviews yesterday. Seriously, writers wants your reviews more than you want your deleted Freed scenes.

I don't own FSoG or it's characters. Please remember this story is being developed as an original and adapted to FanFiction for preposting. Once the story has been posted in it's entirety, it will remain on FFN while I edit my final draft. These chapters are rough drafts. A week before I send this story to Amazon for publication it will be pulled from FFN. If you're on my author Facebook page, thanks already. If not, you should find it, Steele Heart. Next month I will be changing the name to my publishing pen name. I'll also likely give away arc copies of the final version of Falling Undercover in exchange for reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.

Shout out to the bestest bestie in the world, Lady Champ. An even bigger nod to my husband. He won't read any of this till he has a paperback in his hand, but he's the one pushing me the last few days to meet my goal, even if it means he has to spend an extra $10 to buy the Starbucks coffee I like and go to bed alone so I can type in peace. What can I say? I love him.

Laters


Falling Undercover

Chapter 9

Kate had come in at the clutch once again for Ana. The doctor cleared her this afternoon to remove the arm stabilizer, but she had another week before they would remove her stitches. Until then, they had to stay clean and covered. Ana was thankful she had thought to ask Kate to find a new dress. Kate being the clothes whore that she is was able to locate an emerald couture gown with the required long sleeves with no problem.

"Ana, are you sure you want to play this game with the shadow? You might give him a heart attack." Kate had come over to help her dress. Ana's favorite hairdresser Franco had met them at the penthouse to do her hair and makeup. Ana now stood in front of the mirror smoothing her dress down. The heavy satin was shiny and looked perfect against her porcelain skin. The neckline was a deep plunging v, ending just below her bust line. The fabric gathered into a belt across the bottom of her chest, the bottom flared into a full skirt, but it was the mid-thigh high split that was just on the safe side of obscene. She sported a pair of emerald green heels. The toe of the shoe featured a silver frame for embellishment. Her hair sported soft waves, the right side pulled back from her face and secured by a vintage emerald and gold hair comb. The emeralds patterned into leaves. A beautiful pair of emerald drop earrings adorned her ears. Baguette shaped diamonds framed the emeralds and above the frame of diamonds was a large half carat round diamond. Kate had even procured a matching necklace, a large emerald dangling just above her cleavage. "You know that necklace is part of the Elizabeth Taylor collection. It's on loan for the night. Lucky for us you can afford to pay the three-million-dollar price tag if something happens to it. Otherwise, you'd have three armed guards all night."

Ana gaped at her best friend. She didn't dare question if she was serious or not, Kate was always serious about clothes and jewelry. "Thank you for helping me, Kate. I'd have been left with Gail to help me dress if not for you."

"Well, you're lucky the doctor wrapped the arm tight. Otherwise, Nana would need to come in here and take care of the wound for you. I love you Banana, but I don't deal with bloody flesh." Ana winced and hoped that Gail wasn't lurking.

"Be nice. Gail's only 38, you get caught calling her Nana again, and I'm not stopping her from taking her pound of flesh from your hide." Gail heard Kate call her Nana the first time and thought it was a Peter Pan reference. When she asked Kate about it, and Kate gave her a confused look, Gail had narrowed her eyes and warned her that she was still in her prime. She was a nurturer, but that didn't make her an old granny.

"Let's get you to your date." Ana groaned. She was not looking forward to playing pretend with Tate for the night. He made her practice calling him Christopher all day so that she wouldn't slip tonight. They walked out to the great room, Kate in front of Ana. Ana was enjoying being able to move her arm as well as she was now. The doctor warned her not to lift or push it too much till the stitches came out. He was confident that she wouldn't need physical therapy, which was a plus in Ana's opinion.

Ana was checking the contents of her satin clutch when she heard a sharp intake of air. Stopping in her tracks, Ana looked up and saw that she was only a few feet from Tate, Christopher. Damn, Ana thought to herself. She had to be careful not to slip tonight. He was standing in front of her in a black tux with a crisp white shirt and black bow tie. He'd trimmed his bear once again, and Ana had to admit that he looked better than ever.

"You look beautiful Ana." Christian was breathless, a state he was never in. He'd seen many beautiful women in his lifetime, but no one compared to the vision in front of him right now. He stopped to kiss her cheek, letting his lips linger a bit longer than was necessary. "We should go, Ryan is waiting downstairs in the car."

Ana took his offered arm and walked side by side with him to the elevator. Inside the enclosed space, Ana had to take several calming breaths. The energy buzzing around her was setting her libido on fire. Ana risked a look at Christopher and saw him looking at her as well. She'd seen a similar look before. Lust. Pure unadulterated lust. She looked back to the floor of the elevator and counted down from one hundred wishing for the doors to hurry up and open. She made it to seventy-four before they did.


The red carpet at the Fairmont was the same as always. Ana was quick to push Christopher along. They posed for a few pictures, but she didn't answer any questions or give his name out. Once inside the ballroom, it was a whole other game. "Relax. Just don't let go of me. I can be charming." Christian could feel the tension radiating through his charge, and he would be lying if he claimed he wasn't excited by her presence. Being enclosed in the elevator and then the car with her was torture. He needed her to relax though. Taylor had sent three men to watch around the ballroom, and he needed to keep a level head. They would report everything they saw to his boss.

"I need something to drink. I need you to help me though. I only ever drink one drink while I'm at these things. There is a dinner, and they'll serve wine. I'll sip it, but I won't finish the glass. Try to keep the servers away from me. They can get pushy when they're paid to deliver drinks." Ana hadn't had more than one drink in public since her college graduation. She tried to suppress the memory of that night, but the shiver she felt pass through her did not go unnoticed by Christopher. "Story for another time." It was the only thing she could give him in response to his questioning look.

For the next thirty minutes, Ana walked around holding her untouched champagne glass as the talked with the movers and shakers of Seattle's business elite. Just before time to sit down, Jack Hyde stepped into their direct path. Ana groaned inwardly. Jack Hyde's termination was the first objective SHE had once the ink was dry on the final paperwork next week.

Jack held his hand out for Christopher and Ana wished she had told him about Jack before coming. "Jack Hyde. Lead Editor of Seattle Independent Press."

Christian had seen many men looking at Ana tonight, but none had looked at her the way this man had. "Christopher Tate, Tate Securities." Tate Securities was a real LLC. It was a good cover, flawless.

"It was nice of you to guard our dear Anastasia here tonight." Jack leered at Ana licking his lips as his eyes raked over her.

"I'm not guarding her. She has other professionals for that. I'm her boyfriend." Christian moved his hand from the small of her back to around her waist and pulled her in close. "My company focuses on financial security for businesses. We set up roadblocks to prevent hackers from stealing their money." Ana nodded her head, Christopher had told her this would be the cover they told everyone outside the ones that already know the situation.

"Well isn't that fortuitous. I take it you work for SHE? That how you met?" Jack Hyde didn't hide his disdain for the man next to the woman he wanted more than anything he had ever possessed.

"No, we met in the park running. I don't work for SHE. Ana has her own security department to take care of that. I consult with smaller businesses, not international conglomerates." Ana smiled at Christopher; she was enjoying watching the pissing contest happening before her.

"Well, it must be nice to have a woman that takes care of the bill for once." Ana shook her head. That was the same train of thought that prevented most second dates for her.

"I don't need Ana to pay the bill at the end of the night for me. I do well enough for to take care of her for a change." Christian hated that this man saw Ana as a cash cow. Ana was looking up at him like he was the eighth wonder of the world and before he even thought about what he was doing, Christian had dipped down and placed a kiss to her neck, just below her ear. Christian caught a whiff of vanilla and coconut. Pavlov's Dog he thought.

Ana jerked her head ever so slightly and looked Christopher in the eyes. "Excuse us Jack, but I have someone I need to speak with before we sit down. I'll see you in the office next week." Ana knew it would be the last time she saw him, hopefully.

Christian allowed Ana to steer him away and toward a group of women, as she explained the hidden HR file, they found on Jack Hyde when they audited SIP's servers last month. "He's been screwing the head of HR so that she hides all the complaints. A week after each intern or assistant lodges a complaint, Elizabeth finds a reason to fire them. She even fabricated a relationship with an editor that had left the company the month before. She claimed the intern had received her position quid pro quo. Once the ink is dry on the paperwork, they'll be fired unless legal tells me otherwise."

Before Christian could respond to her and ask more about Jack Hyde, a tall woman stepped into their path, having turned from the group Ana was walking toward. "Anastasia Steele, as I live and breathe. I'm in the presence of greatness everyone." The woman had dark curly hair and if Christian had to guess he would say she was of Indian descent. "Rosalind Bailey."

The woman thrust her hand out to Christopher, and Ana snickered. If she had to say she had an archnemesis in life, it was Ros Bailey. "Chris, honey, this is the other woman that made the Forbes list with me." Yes, that's right, Ros was rich in her own right, but even at 17 on the list, her millions were nowhere close to Ana's billions. "She's the CEO of the Bailey Financial Group. I hear you just opened an office in Seattle, Ros."

Christian wanted to scratch his head. Ana had abandoned her champagne on a passing tray and was now rubbing his chest with her left hand, the right arm wrapped around his back. Christian tightened his hold on her in warning. She was playing with fire. Ana and Ros were trading verbal insults, and Christian had to think of Taylor in a tutu to keep his erection under control.

"Ros, I was sorry to hear that you didn't get the historic post office near downtown. It's a beautiful building." Ana smiled at Ros before she looked up at Christopher and winked at him.

"I know you're not sorry at all. I have it on good authority that SHE bought the building." Ros looks pissed, and Ana smiles. She did buy the building but not for the reason that Ros thinks she bought it.

"I paid the same as you offered, the city just liked my offer more. SHE is planning to renovate the building and turn it into a literacy center. There's going to be an adult outreach program as well as programs for all grade levels." It was a no-brainer when Kate suggested the idea. The city was announcing the plans for the building tonight during the dinner. Part of the funds from tonight would go to help fund the program.

"So, goody-two-shoes Steele wins again." Ros turned toward Christopher and smiled at him. Ana supposed it was supposed to be a come-hither type of smile, but it looked desperate to her.

"Ros, one of these days, you'll learn. I get everything I want eventually." Christian listened as Ana practically purred the words. He looked down at her, and before he could object, her hand was around his neck pulling him down. The minute their lips touched, bam.

Ana had never felt the tingle that graced her lips when she brushed them against his. She captured his thick bottom lip between her teeth and felt Christopher's tongue tease her top lip. They were lost in the kiss, oblivious to anyone else in the room. It wasn't a tangle of tongues, but it was full of passion none the less.

Christian pulled back the moment he remembered why he was there. He didn't know what men were here, but he was sure that this kiss would make it back to Taylor. Christian reminded himself this was a job. He had no room for personal entanglements. It always gets messy.

"We should find our seats." Ana's words brought Christian out of his internal struggles.

"Let's find where we are." Christian guided Ana through the tables. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sawyer at the edge of the room staring intently at them. Christian wondered what he was doing there. Luke didn't mention coming to the event. He had to remember to ask Ana if she knew he was going to be here.