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Chapter 14: Marina Savalas

Ana

TROUBLE IN PARADISE?

Rumors of a split between Christian Trevelyan Grey and long-time girlfriend Leila St. James are circulating among the newsrooms here at the Seattle Times. Neither of the lovebirds have been seen in public together for several weeks now - could it be that the two have finally called it quits?

SEATTLE'S FAVORITE POWER COUPLE HAS OFFICIALLY SPLIT UP

We at The Nooz have confirmed that Seattle-native billionaire Christian Grey has split up with long-time girlfriend Leila St. James. Both Mr. Grey and Miss St. James have declined to comment on their split, but rest assured that our reporters are on the case for any updates regarding their relationship!

THE SUPER MOGUL AND THE SUPERMODEL: WHAT WENT WRONG?

We all thought the famous businessman Christian Grey and the gorgeous Seattle fashionista Leila St. James had the perfect relationship - so WTF went wrong? Had Mr. Grey's massive success with Grey Enterprises finally gotten to be too much for the Lady Leila? Perhaps she dodged a bullet with this particular megalomaniac? More news on the matter to come!

Over the next two weeks, article after article of Mr. Grey's break-up with Leila St. James showed up on various local news sites, making their rounds among the workers at GEH. The first articles to come out were only speculative, meaning they were easy to ignore, but once Mr. Grey's PR people confirmed the break-up, it seemed to be all anyone at work was able to talk about. A lot of the young women at GEH were absolutely thrilled by the news, having the same ridiculous fantasy of getting the gorgeous billionaire bachelor fall in love with them.

Ana wasn't really sure what to think about Mr. Grey and Leila ending their relationship - while she was sorry that Mr. Grey had to go through a very public breakup, she was actually kind of relieved that he had finally ended things with that woman. Ana had only met Leila once, but she could tell almost immediately that Leila was a very spoiled and arrogant young woman, and Mr. Grey could definitely do better. Not that Ana would ever say that to him, though… she wasn't entirely sure if it was her place to say anything to Mr. Grey about the matter. She knew that, as his employee, she wasn't permitted to discuss personal matters with him, but at the same time she felt that the two of them had actually become sort of friends over her short time at GEH. She opted to continue acting as if nothing had happened, however, and Mr. Grey seemed okay with that.

Luckily, the GEH anniversary party was coming up in a few days, which distracted many of the workers from Mr. Grey's personal life. The party was apparently going to be a fancy, black-tie affair at the Four Seasons, and Ana was very excited to go - she had never been to a high-class party like this before, and so this was her one chance to do something she would probably never get the chance to do again. She was also excited because she thought she may just have a date for the event as well: though Josh hadn't technically asked her to go with him, he had dropped a lot of hints over the last two weeks that he was really looking forward to seeing her there. Ana didn't know why he hadn't asked her out yet, but tried not to worry about it too much as she prepared herself for the upcoming party.

It was finally Friday, the day of the anniversary party, and Ana went into work that morning in high spirits, excited for what was to come. When she reached the top floor and stepped out of the elevator, she saw Mr. Grey already standing at the front desk with Andrea, going through his morning schedule.

"Good morning, Ms. Steele," Mr. Grey said as soon as she approached. "How are you today?"

"Very good, sir," Ana said brightly, taking her seat behind the desk. "I'm excited for the party tonight."

"Ah yes," Mr. Grey smiled at her. "This is your first one at GEH, isn't it?"

"Yes, sir."

"And hopefully not her last," Andrea piped up, and Mr. Grey chuckled. Ana merely smiled.

The elevator doors suddenly dinged open, and Ana looked to see who had come up - out of the elevator stepped a gorgeous, olive-skinned woman flanked by two men in suits. She looked to be in her mid- to late-forties, but had the body of a woman half her age - all long legs, skinny waist, and curvy hips. Her raven-colored hair hung in loose waves around her shoulders, matching the figure-hugging, sleeveless black dress she rocked with five-inch metallic heels. Ana was momentarily stunned by the beauty of this woman as she approached them, her heels clicking on the marble floor and a huge smile on her stunning face as she looked around her.

"Buenos dias Grey Casa!" she exclaimed loudly in Spanish, holding out her arms in a welcoming gesture. Everybody in the area turned to look and her, smiling once they recognized her.

"Marina," Mr. Grey greeted her warmly, looking legitimately pleased to see her. He walked forward and the two of them embraced like old friends.

"Chreestian," she beamed, speaking with a heavy accent. She pecked him on both cheeks before holding him at arm's length, examining him like a proud mother. "How have you been, my friend? Es bueno to be seeing you!"

Mr. Grey smiled at her. "It's good to see you too, Marina. Although I thought you were going to be arriving later this afternoon."

"Bah, why wait?" she waved a manicured hand dismissively while moving to walk past him. "I arrive too early at the airport this morning, so I thought I come early to visit Grey Casa." She turned around to give Mr. Grey a piercing stare, her hands on her hips. "Those company jets you give us, Chreestian - they fly much too fast! Verdad! Do you not care for poor Marina's safety?"

Andrea giggled, and Marina turned to look at her, her whole face lighting up when she noticed her. "Andrea!" she exclaimed happily, beaming widely. "Come here, mi belle!" Marina opened her arms, and Andrea moved around the desk, embracing her warmly. "How are you, dear girl?"

"I'm good, Marina," Andrea said, pulling away to smile brightly at her. "I'm so glad you could make it for the party."

"Oh, I am glad to be here," Marina smiled, holding Andrea's face in her hands in an almost motherly gesture. "I am so happy to be seeing all of you again!"

Marina looked past her at Ana, and suddenly gasped excitedly. "And who is this?" she asked, moving toward Ana with obvious interest. Ana finally stood up from her seat to greet her.

"Marina, this is Anastasia. Our newest assistant," Mr. Grey explained to her with a smile. Marina gasped again.

"Oh… Anastasia," she said reverentially, pressing a hand to her heart. "Muy bonita! That is beautiful name for beautiful girl!"

Ana could feel herself blush and smile embarrassedly as Marina gestured for her to step out from behind the desk toward her. Once Ana was near her, Marina grasped her hands, giving Ana a loving smile that made her understand why everyone was so infatuated with this woman. Her smile alone made you feel so loved and accepted.

"Anastasia - you are happy working here, yes?" Marina asked seriously, looking her in the eye.

"Yes, I'm very happy working here," Ana smiled sincerely, and Marina beamed.

"She's an excellent employee," Mr. Grey piped up, and Ana turned to smile at him too.

"I am glad to hear that," Marina said, and Ana turned to look back at her. "Always take pride in your work, Anastasia - that is only way to be happy." Marina wagged a manicured finger at her, looking like a strict mother. "No matter if you do work of a secretary or a CEO… always remember that. Bien?"

Ana nodded. "That's what my dad always taught me," she said truthfully.

Marina's beautiful face broke out into a wide smile, and she laughed. "Oh, I like her," she said to Mr. Grey, giving Ana a loving pat on the cheek. "She is a smart one!"

"I agree." Mr. Grey smiled as well, causing Ana to blush all over again.

"Good! Now, I think I will say hello to everyone else," Marina said, finally stepping away from Ana and turning to Mr. Grey. "I am hoping that is okay with you?"

"By all means," Mr. Grey said kindly. "I'm sure everyone here is excited to see you. I actually heard that some people in our marketing department baked you a cake."

Marina pressed her hand to her heart again, looking touched. "Verdad! Oh, everybody here spoils me with such kindness! That is only reason I come to America, you know," she added to Ana, giving her a conspiratorial wink, and Ana giggled. Marina then turned to the two suits that came with her and snapped her manicured fingers.

"Pedro, Javi - with me! Rápidamente!"

The two men hurried to walk beside Marina as she began to make her way down the corridor. She hooked her arm through the one named Pedro's elbow and continued on her way, babbling to them in Spanish.

Once they were gone, Ana turned to look at Andrea, who was smiling at her with her eyebrows raised. Ana couldn't help but giggle.

"Andrea, we need to get these contracts to Legal," Mr. Grey said, unable to fight the small, amused smile on his face. "You guys can chat about Marina later."

"Yes sir," Andrea nodded, grabbing the file from her desk and shooting Ana another smile before turning and walking away. Ana silently moved back to her place behind the desk.

"Marina's like that with pretty much everyone," Mr. Grey explained to Ana once she had sat down. "I know she can come off a bit strong to people who aren't used to her personality."

"Oh, no sir. It's okay," Ana said, smiling at him. "I actually like her. She's very… affectionate."

Mr. Grey laughed. "Well, that's one way to describe Marina."

"So how long has she been with GEH?" Ana asked.

"About five years now. I actually first met her about a year after I started my company, when I was in Madrid for a distillery acquisition. She was running her late husband's hotel chain by herself, and I took notice of her business-running tactics: her financials were excellent, and she hadn't let go of a single employee since she took over the company. Needless to say, I was impressed, and I knew that I wanted her on my team."

"So you convinced her to come work for GEH?"

Mr. Grey smirked and rolled his eyes. "Not at first. She was very adamant about staying and running the Savala de Diosa by herself, but I wasn't going to give up that easily. You see, I was kind of arrogant back then," he said conspiratorially, and Ana couldn't help but giggle.

"So then what happened?"

"I suggested GEH do business with her conjointly, and she agreed to that - we advertised her hotels here in America while she provided free room and board for all GEH employees travelling to Europe. It worked well for us for a couple years, and she and I actually became pretty good friends as GEH kept growing and I had to keep travelling to Europe for acquisitions. I kept bugging her about her working for me, though, and after a few years, she finally agreed to leave her hotels in the hands of her nephew and run the then newly-formed European division of GEH. She's been running it for five years now, and it's been very profitable ever since."

"Wow," Ana said, impressed, and Mr. Grey nodded.

"Yes, she's very good." he agreed. "If she wasn't my friend, I'd almost be afraid she would try to run me out of business."

Ana laughed. "Oh, she seems much too nice to do that to you, sir."

"Don't let her sweet words fool you, Anastasia - she can be pretty brutal when it comes to her job," Mr. Grey joked.

"Well, then, I can understand your attraction to her," Ana joked back, realizing what she said a moment too late.

Mr. Grey said nothing, and Ana's heart started pounding with embarrassment. God, why did that sound so wrong? "I-I mean in a business sense…" she stammered quickly, the heat rising to her face. "Not in a… a personal sense. I mean, I'm-I'm just saying that I think you're a very shrewd businessman -"

"I know what you meant, Ms. Steele," Mr. Grey cut her off, putting her out of her misery. He even smiled at her. "But rest assured, nothing personal is going on between me and Marina."

Ana nodded, and a short silence stretched between them. Ana still felt a strong need to apologize. "I'm sorry, sir," she said to him regretfully. "I know you're going through some issues in your personal life right now, and I didn't mean to say something that might come off as insensitive. I hope you don't think I was trying to make a jab at you or something…"

"Anastasia, I know you would never do that," Mr. Grey said firmly, frowning at her. "The newspapers have been spinning stories about me and Leila for weeks now, but that's just the tabloids - I know you're smart enough not to take that shit seriously."

Ana was unsure of what she was supposed to say to that, so she settled on a nod and a "Yes sir" before looking down at her hands. There was a short silence between them.

"I hope you don't feel like you have walk on eggshells around me because of what happened, Ana," Mr. Grey went on, and Ana glanced up at him again, blinking in surprise. He was gazing at her with an unreadable expression on his face, but offered her a small smile all the same. "I've actually come to really enjoy having conversations with you."

Ana stared at him for a moment before a smile broke out across her face. He enjoyed talking to her? That was such a sweet thing to say, and Ana could feel her heart speeding up with delight as she gazed back at him. "I enjoy our conversations too, sir," she said sincerely, a blush rising to her cheeks.

Mr. Grey didn't say anything, but continued to look into her eyes, the unreadable expression back on his face. For some reason, his gaze made Ana's heart beat at a frenetic pace, but before she could say anything, the elevator dinged open and Andrea stepped out.

She had clearly just returned from bringing the contracts to Legal; she walked forward before stopping and looking curiously between Mr. Grey and Ana, clearly wondering why he was still standing and talking at their desk. Mr. Grey took that as his cue to leave.

"Have a good day, Ms. Steele," he said, offering Ana another smile before turning and walking back toward his office. Ana watched him leave, feeling strangely happy.

~later that evening~

"Come on, Ana - let me see you!"

Ana finally stepped out from her bathroom and into her room, in front of her laptop where Kate was visible on-screen. When Ana had told her about the anniversary party, Kate excitedly offered to help her find the perfect dress - the two of them then exchanged Skype usernames and subsequently spent several enjoyable evenings together via Skype, drinking wine and looking through fashion magazines. Once they had found the perfect dress, Ana went to the nearest David's Bridal and purchased it; while it was a little pricier than what she had anticipated, she checked their return policy, and figured she could return it tomorrow and get her money back if she needed.

She now turned around in a circle so Kate could see her dress from all angles, and Kate gasped. "Oh Ana - you look like a princess!" she said excitedly.

"Really?" Ana said doubtfully, looking down at her dress. "I mean, when I saw it in person, I was afraid the gray color would look too drab on me…"

"No way, girl - even through a computer screen, you look totally hot!" Kate insisted, and Ana giggled self-consciously. "Do you have the necklace and earrings?"

"Just the earrings," Ana moved over to her vanity and picked up the small silver chandelier earrings with Swarovski crystals Kate had found for her. "The necklace looked a little too 'statement' for me."

"Agreed," Kate said with a grimace. "Good call."

"…There," Ana said once she put the earrings in and rotated her head so Kate could see them. "What do you think?"

"Gorgeous!" Kate clapped her hands together. "Oh my God, Ana, I wish I could come with you to this thing - it looks like so much fun!"

"I know," Ana said brightly, moving over to her bed to grab her purse. "I'll take some pictures for you, I promise."

"You better," Kate said, checking her watch. "When does it start again?"

"Around seven," Ana wrapped her shawl around her shoulders. "I should probably head out soon."

"Okay." Kate waved goodbye to her, smiling. "Have fun tonight!"

"I will. Thanks for all your help, Kate," Ana said sincerely, moving to sit in front of her laptop. "I'm sorry we couldn't do this in person."

Kate pouted. "Me too. Maybe when my job stops sucking the life out of me, I could come visit you."

"I'd like that," Ana smiled. "I'll call you later?"

"Definitely. Bye Ana!"

"Bye Kate."

Ana signed out of their Skype session, feeling more nervous and excited than ever for this evening to begin. Her heart pounded, and, taking a deep breath, she pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders, grasped her clutch tighter in her hand and stood up, teetering for a moment on her heels before making her way out of her room.

Tonight was going to be a good night. She just knew it.

A/N: I've never written a character like Marina before, so I'm curious as to how you all liked her. (She will NOT be a romantic foil for Christian and Ana, in case that wasn't clear in the chapter.)

Next chapter will be the anniversary party! Perhaps some sparks will fly between our fav couple ;)

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