Christian's POV

Everything felt so hard on that Tuesday morning. I was hard. For fuck's sake, if I held Ana few minutes more in the previous night, I'd done something that could have ruined everything. I was angry over the information Ana revealed. I really needed to punch something, anything, everything. I was so drawn to Ana. Holding her close felt so right previous night but I couldn't take advantage. She was so fragile and had been through so much.

But she smiled at me at breakfast. She blushed and smiled. I simply couldn't help but to wonder about if her bottom cheeks would turn that rosy color – with a pink hand print on them. I shook myself and cursed everything I had in me. She had been through hell. I might wonder about if her ass would turn pink after a spanking; but then+ I realized that I could never hurt her. I didn't want pain with her. Her mouth was meant to smile. Her eyes were designed to sparkle with laughter.

I had real problems with concentration when I went to work. I, the CEO of GEH, was constantly thinking about one gorgeous girl. I also tried to figure out how to avoid half of the conversation I was going to have with Elena. My plan was to stick with truth on some points, because it was obvious that she knew me well enough to not fully lie.

When the evening went on, I knew I'd made the right choice. So after Tuesday she knew that I had virgin blood on my sheets, but also I was worried about my slave's physical health and preferred some noises and begging sometimes. After few hours Elena also dug out about her escape attempt and I confirmed that all the wrong deeds were dealt with. At one point I complained that her body was covered with bruises.

"But all the coming bruises are yours to do," she smiled.

I can't say I was unhappy when Taylor took me home at last. Ana was already sleeping or at least in her own room so I tried to keep silent. But when I reached her door, she came out.

Wow! I'd like to say it was that nightgown must have been the sexiest item in her closet. Fabric played on her curves and her slim body was beyond perfect. I was hard in a nanosecond. She came closer and smiled, her hips slowly dancing with each step. She looked aroused and smelled aroused. I leaned closer, kissed her hair and wished her good night. This young woman was going to be the death of me!

Next morning she continued her silent seduction but I knew it had nothing to do with me. She needed to heal from forced addiction of being overused and abused into multiple orgasms per day. I saw her blush while her body swayed. I saw embarrassment when she felt her body wanting an orgasm.

Don't get me wrong. I wanted her and I wanted her badly; but I knew that it would have broken her even more. So I gritted my teeth and hoped that my first heart attack could wait few more years.

We still had our nightly chats or early morning ones. Whenever I woke up and went to play the piano, she came out. She wanted me to play. Through some bargaining I got bits and pieces of her mind. I knew her favorite color and who she thought were the best writers. I found out that Taylor reminded her father and that's why she felt sad whenever he was around. But she also explained that he gave her a secure feeling so she didn't mind him.

Days came and went and soon it was Thursday already. I had to go to the graduation day in Portland. I had to do few things that day. For one, there was that graduation ceremony where Ana couldn't be. It should have been her big day but instead I crossed my fingers and hoped she didn't look at the calendar that day.

But before graduation, I went to see my brother who was already waking up in Kate's room that morning. When I got there, Kate was sitting in the middle of the room; watching the boxes in front of her.

"I don't know how to cheer her up," my brother said quietly.

"What's the main problem?" I asked.

"The main problem!" Kate startled at my question. "The main problem is that my best friend is missing too long but I'm not ready to give up on her. These are her things and I should probably take these to her father before I move to Seattle. But I'm not ready!"

Well, I knew how Kate felt and took the full advantage of the situation.

"If it's somewhere near Montesano, I could take these with me." I offered.

"It's in Montesano," she whispered.

" I promised to visit one of my business partners there," I said.

So, we packed her things in my SUV, After the ceremony we went to Montesano. I really wanted to see famous Ray Steele. I knew from Ana's background check that Mr. Steele adopted her in early age and that he divorced her mother. He took her back into his home later when she all the sudden just ran off from her mother. We all knew there had to be bigger story and I often wondered if it had correlation with that round scar on her thigh.

We ran some heavy background checks. Welch spoke with people who knew Mr. Steele. Taylor's thought no father should be kept in dark while their daughter was still alive. I agreed with him. So we agreed to use any possibility to see him face to face and confirm his ability to handle the situation and keep quiet about it. Kate made it easy for me and I couldn't resist the opportunity.