Chapter 9 – Epilogue

A few months later…

"Ana!" said a woman behind her, making Ana turn so quickly she dropped her packages. She was at the Westlake Center Mall, people bustling about, and it took Ana a moment to recognize Elena, the woman she'd met on that remarkable weekend she'd spent with Christian during Christmas.

To the consternation of both of them, Ana burst into tears.

With a motherly arm about the younger woman's shoulders, Elena led Ana to a tiled seat surrounding a quietly splashing fountain, then handed her a clean tissue and waited while Ana calmed herself.

"I am so sorry. I have no idea what is wrong with me. I seem to be bursting into tears constantly. I really am glad to see you. How is everyone? Sean and Hannah?"

"Fine," Elena said, smiling. "Everyone is fine. So, when is your baby due?"

For several minutes Ana worked to control her tears. "Is it that obvious?"

"Only to another mother. Now, why don't you tell me what is bothering you and Christian? He is marrying you, isn't he?"

Ana blew her nose. "Yes, we're to be married in two months in a perfect little ceremony. You're on the guest list." She looked down to her sodden tissue. "Nothing is wrong. Nothing at all. It's just…"

"Come on, you can tell me."

"I'm not sure Christian wants to marry me," she burst out. "I tricked him. I…I seduced him. I wanted a baby so much, and he…" She broke off because Elena was laughing.

"I beg your pardon," Ana said stiffly, and started to get up. "I did not mean to amuse you with my problems."

Elena grabbed Ana's arm and pulled her to sit back down. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh; it's just that I've never seen a man pursue a woman as hard as Christian pursued you. Whatever could have made you think he doesn't want to marry you?"

"You really have no idea what you're talking about. If you knew the truth about what went on between us, you'd know that this will be more of a business arrangement than a real marriage. Everything was my idea and…"

"Ana, forgive me, but you're the one who doesn't know what you're talking about. Did you know that there were only to be six bridesmaids in the wedding? Christian called Sean in a panic, said he'd met the love of his life and he had to have an excuse to spend the weekend with her. The addition of another bridesmaid to the wedding was his idea. He paid triple for a custom-made dress in your size, then paid for a tux for a friend of his so there'd be a seventh groomsman."

Ana stared at Elena. "Love of his life?" But he told me just after he met me about his problem with finding someone to fit the dress."

"Sean and Hannah have plenty of friends, they didn't need one of Christian's girlfriends. Certainly not when his girlfriends changed as often as Christian's did."

Ana shook her head. "But I don't understand. I don't think he'd even seen me before the night of the Christmas party. What made him make up such a story? Why would he want to? I don't understand."

Elena smiled. "There's a saying in the Grey family, 'Marry the one who can tell the twins apart.'"

Ana's face showed no understanding.

"In Christian's office, there is a photo of a man holding a string of fish, isn't there?"

Ana searched her memory, then remembered that night when she'd been snooping in Christian's office and picked up the photo from the shelf, then dropped it when Christian's voice startled her. "Yes, I remember the picture. It's one of his brothers, isn't it? I remember saying that I'd never seen the man before."

Elena smiled knowingly. "That was a photo of Christian's twin, Caleb, a man who looks exactly like Christian."

"He doesn't look anything like him! Christian is much better looking than that man. He…" She stopped, then looked away from Elena's laughter, taking a moment to compose herself, then looked back. "He made up the whole bridesmaid story?" she asked softly.

"Completely. He offered to pay for the entire wedding if Sean would allow you to be in the ceremony. And he gave Sean free use of his precious boat for six months in return for putting both of you in the same bedroom. Those earrings Christian gave you came from the family vault, an heirloom, something given only to wives. Not girlfriends, wives. And I happen to know that twice that weekend he called home and told his family in detail about you, telling them how intelligent and beautiful you were and that he was doing everything he could to make you love him."

Elena gave Ana's hand a squeeze. "You must have noticed how tongue-tied Christian was around you. We were all laughing because he was so afraid of saying the wrong thing, that often he wouldn't say anything. He told Sean that he kept pretending to ignore you because he'd been told by a man in the office that you ran from any man who showed the least interest in you."

"He told his sisters-in-law and family about the store I wanted to open," she said softly.

"Dear, if he wasn't with you, he was talking about you."

"But I thought he asked me to marry him because…" She broke off, looking into Elena's eyes. "Because I asked for something from him."

"I have never seen a man fall as hard in love with a woman at first sight as he fell for you. He said you picked up a photo in his office, he looked into your eyes, and he fell in love with you in that single moment."

"Why didn't he tell me?" Ana said.

"You mean Christian hasn't told you that he loves you?" Elena asked in horror.

"Yes, he has, many times, but I…" Ana stood. She wasn't going to say out loud that she hadn't believed him, that she couldn't believe that a man like Christian Grey could…

"I have to go," Ana said abruptly. "I have to…Oh, Elena, thank you," she said, then as Elena stood, she hugged her enthusiastically. "Thank you more than you could possibly know. You have made me the happiest woman on earth. I have to go and tell Christian that…that…"

Elena laughed. "Go! What are you waiting for? Go!"

But Ana was already gone.

AN: Thank you for reading and leaving a review and following me. I will let everyone know when I post my next story, which is currently in the works. Yeah…2017 is finally here and can't wait for February 10th!