The idea of a Royal ball at the palace had never excited Christian before. Usually the event was one of his parent's futile attempts to get him to speak to women and hopefully find a wife so he could never enjoy himself and have a good time. His mother would take his arm from the minute he walked into the room and walk him around to meet all the potential suitors that she'd handpicked to come to the ball to meet him.
He'd have to make small talk and kiss hands all night whilst being bored out of his mind and silently praying for the whole charade to end. Then, once it was all over, he'd go up to his room where his mother would give him the 'you need to find yourself a wife, you're going to be the future king and you need a queen' speech. Everything was tiring and repetitive and he'd grown to dread them.
But tonight's ball would be different. For starters, he wouldn't have to make small talk with a load of princess's hand selected by his mother to be his future wife and secondly, he got to spend the night with his beautiful girlfriend. He could twirl her around the dancefloor and show her off as his own to all of the guests and knowing that she would be by his side all night was thrilling. He looked down at the mess of brown hair and silky skin lying in bed with him and smiled.
She was laying on top of him as the morning sun broke through the window of his bedroom. Her head was buried in the crook of his neck where he could feel her even breathing showing him that she was still fast asleep. One of her hands was on his shoulder and the other was behind his head resting on the pillow and her whole body was aligned with his. He ran his fingers through her hair gently relishing in the feel of her.
He loved that even in her sleep she felt the need to be close to him and touch him. He cherished the fact that she was here in bed with him - loving him even when she was deep in her dreams. He brushed the tips of his fingers down her bare back to where the sheets lay curled loosely around her hips and back up again making her sigh peacefully against him, still asleep with a small smile on her face. The love and need he had for this woman was relentless and all-consuming and tonight he'd get to show her off to the world as his and his alone.
She'd crashed hard last night after he made love to her. Their conversation in the library had made him worry. He knew that Ana wouldn't leave him willingly, but his thoughts were running away from him. He'd needed her desperately and she was more than willing to give him everything he asked for and more.
He was insatiable. His lips sucked her skin until it was raw, his hands held her as close as possible until they were practically breathing the same air. He told her over and over again that he loved her, that he needed her, that she was his lifeline and that he couldn't live without her.
They went at it for hours in his bed, in the bath, against the wall in the bathroom - only stopping when they were both too tired for another round. Ana was his drug and he was a hopeless addict constantly craving his next fix of her. She was simply everything to him. She stirred slightly on top of him and he kissed the top of her head, stroking a hand down the silky skin of her bare back as she came to her senses.
"Morning my love," he whispered, kissing her head again and humming in contentment. The sun was creeping into the room through a gap in the curtains spreading a glow of light across Ana's bare back and it felt heavenly. She never wanted to move from the position she was in right now.
"What time is it?" she mumbled sleepily against his chest still not awake enough to open her eyes to the world just yet. She was content and warm lying against his chest, his gentle heartbeat a soothing rhythm against her skin. She didn't know why she even had a pillow anymore when she always ended up curled around Christian or resting her head on his bicep as he spooned her from behind.
"It's almost midday, sweetheart," he replied, turning his head slightly to the left so he could kiss every inch of skin available to him from her forehead down to her cheeks. She giggled and finally opened her eyes to look at his handsome face.
She was simply stunning first thing in the morning - the eighth wonder of the world, lying in his arms. The sun on her back, her hair cascading all around them and a sparkle in her eyes that made his heart beat a little bit faster in his chest. She was happy and that was all he cared about.
"Mm, I could lay here with you forever," she mumbled, closing her eyes again and kissing his chest, nuzzling her nose into his sternum, his slight chest hair tickling her. "You're so comfy and warm," her fingers brushed over his arms and down the sides of his body and all the blood in his body rushed down to his morning semi which was currently pushing up against the covers begging for Ana's touch.
"Laying here with you forever sounds pretty amazing," he told her, she nodded against him enjoying the skin-to-skin contact before slowly lifting her head off his chest once more and smiling at him with sleepy eyes. "God you're beautiful," he groaned taking her in from her flushed cheeks to her sea blue eyes to the gorgeous body that was his and his alone to touch.
He was one lucky man and he knew it - god did he know it. He grabbed her face to smash their lips together, smiling against her closed lips when she refused to let him deepen it remembering her 'no kissing whilst I have morning breath rule'.
She stood from the bed in her naked glory and he could only watch on in awe as the masterpiece that was Anastasia Rose Steele walked from his bed and towards his bathroom.
"We have things to do today, Mr Grey," she said, turning to face him at the door to the bathroom. She bit her lip and his cock twitched under the covers. He had to have her right now.
"I have an appointment with Gloria at two and a silver ball gown to try on. I then have to meet my devastatingly handsome date," she winked at him, "and we have a ball to attend," he smiled at her words.
"That sounds like a very busy day, Miss Steele," Christian said lounging on the bed with a content smile on his face. "But I know your date wouldn't care if you showed up in a burlap sack to the ball as long as he got to have you at his side," her heart melted at his words and she gave him a soft smile.
"I love you with all my heart and I want to look worthy of you tonight my Prince," Ana replied.
He wanted to tell her that he was the one who was unworthy of her. That she was perfect and he was simply going to watch on proudly tonight as everyone in the room fell to her feet. He was about to reply when he noticed her starting to walk towards him.
She leaned down to peck his lips once and giggled when his hands immediately found her backside, squeezing the globes in his grip. "I need to save time this morning Mr Grey so that I can look like a princess, so how about you come and help me get nice and clean?" she gave him a wicked grin before turning and shaking her beautiful behind as she headed quickly into the bathroom enticing him into action.
He practically jumped from the bed and raced to the bathroom, slamming the door behind them and scooping her up in his arms in the hopes of making her a little dirty before they got clean.
After their long but very productive shower, they headed in opposite directions with a kiss and an 'I love you'. Christian had to attend two meetings and then he had a Royal visit to a electricity company in the hopes of resolving recent threats of strike action. He went to find Taylor and his father downstairs and then they set off towards the city.
Ana was walking down to meet Gloria for a pampering session and to get her makeup and hair done before two of the maids in the palace were coming to help her with her dress. The ball was due to start at seven so she had plenty of time to get ready and maybe get in a little bit of writing for her column. She just had to put a few finishing touches and edit it a little before it was sent to her publisher.
She was finding that she didn't have much time lately to write. She was so wrapped up in Christian that she'd had to rush the last two articles lest she miss her slot. It was her choice of course and she'd much rather spend her time with him than writing book reviews, but she wanted to get a head start today knowing she'd have a little time.
Ana followed Gretchen, Grace's maid, to where Gloria was waiting for her down at the palace spa. Ana couldn't help but detect some sort of animosity about Gretchen's behaviour towards her. She'd notice her stare in her direction every so often with sharp eyes, but Ana imagined she was probably seeing things. Gretchen and herself had barely even spoken two words to each other so she couldn't imagine why she wouldn't like her.
When they reached the spa, Ana couldn't help but wish Kate and Mia could be here with her. Mia was obviously in Paris still and Kate had booked for her and Ethan to go and visit their parents in New York and couldn't change the dates much to Ana's dismay.
It would have been nice to have spent the day having some girl talk and then to have gotten ready together but as soon as Ana saw Gloria's smiling face, her mood instantly lightened. The woman had a knack for making people feel welcome and happy - something Ana appreciated greatly whilst missing her friends.
"Miss Ana, it's so good to see you again!" Gloria said, coming towards her and pulling her into a big hug. Ana smiled and accepted the embrace from the older woman. She smelled of soap and nail polish and Ana grinned widely at the older woman as they pulled back from their embrace.
"It's great to see you too, Gloria," Ana said, taking a seat on one of the massage tables. The palace spa must have been created with Mia in mind. Ana wouldn't have been surprised if Mia had designed the whole place herself. It was a large room with white tiles going around the edge. There were massage tables, a sauna, drawers and cupboards full of products designed for relaxation. Mia was the Queen of style and this place was certainly stylish.
Gloria started with a cream serum that made her hair feel like pure silk before she applied a charcoal mask to her skin. While that dried, she did her nails a beautiful shimmery silver to go with her ball dress. Gloria then plucked Ana's eyebrows after noticing a few stray hairs and asked Ana if she wanted a wax. She agreed immediately to the leg wax having had one of them from Kate before, but she wasn't sure about getting a wax down there.
Christian was the only person other than herself who saw her there and he didn't seem to mind her pubic hair - quite the opposite actually. But maybe she should try it. Kate had said before that it lasts a while and men tend to like it to be bare. If she didn't like it, the hair would grow back anyway so with a slight hesitation she decided to go for it.
After the painful but very thorough wax and some finishing touches to Ana's nails Gloria washed, cut and then blow-dried Ana's hair into ringlet curls that framed her face perfectly. Her hair was so soft after the treatment and she knew Christian wouldn't be able to keep his hands off it all night.
Gloria did her make up next - silvers and shimmery glitter to match her dress with a lilac shimmery highlight and some contouring. Her lipstick was red and matte on request so that she could kiss her boyfriend without worrying about smudging or going all over his face. By the time Ana was done she felt like a completely new person.
"How do you like it?" Gloria asked, her while spraying some hairspray on Ana's curls to hold them in place for longer. They had dropped slightly from their original position, but they were still soft and bouncy.
"I love it, Gloria. Thank you so much," Ana said, turning around to give the woman a beaming smile through the mirror. Gloria applied a clear gloss over Ana's lips to savour the red popping lipstick she was wearing. Ana headed back up to her room afterwards after thanking Gloria once again. She didn't want to see Christian just yet wanting him to see her for the first time in her silver ball gown later on when she took his arm and they headed into the ballroom.
She was safe in the knowledge that he was heading to the electricity company so knew that she would be alright for now and took advantage of the time she had left to make herself look her very best and get some writing done.
She wanted Christian to be proud to have her on his arm tonight and she wanted everyone else to see just how in love they were and how happy he made her. It was stupid she knew, he'd be proud to have her with him anyway and it was clear in everything he did how much he loved her but she wanted to look her best for him anyway.
One of her favourite things in the world was watching Christian's reactions to her. He wore his heart on his sleeve and she could read him like a book - every emotion there for her to absorb. Every time he saw her in a dress - whether it was a fancy one like she was wearing tonight or one of the summer dresses she liked to wear around the house - his eyes would grow dark and he'd lick his lips showing her exactly how much he loved what she was wearing. He wouldn't be able to keep his hands off her tonight she was sure.
Two maids came and took her to a dressing room where they helped Ana to put on the dress. They both smiled politely the whole time, helping Ana as best as they could and gushing about how incredible she looked when she had it on. Ana looked at herself in the mirror and smiled at her reflection and gasped.
She couldn't believe that she was looking at herself - Ana Steele the journalist bookworm. She looked like a real princess, all she needed was a tiara on her head and her prince on her arm. She bit her lip at the thought of Christian - he wasn't going to be able to keep his hands off her tonight in this dress and the thought made her giddy. She couldn't wait to dance with him properly tonight. She giggled to herself remembering their first dance in her sitting room - so much had changed since then.
Taylor knocked on the door and briefly spoke to one of the maid who informed her that her Prince was waiting for her at the foot of the stairs. She looked at herself one last time in the mirror and grinned. It was like they were going to a prom together as teenagers.
Looking at her reflection in the mirror she saw a happy woman looking back and knew that this was the right decision, not that she had any real doubts before. Her father had always said to her to only do what made her happy and to walk away if it didn't. She couldn't walk away if she tried to - her feet only walked towards the staircase to meet the man of her dreams.
He was wearing a tuxedo again and she instantly felt her insides clench at the sight of him. He was fixing his cuff link mumbling to himself in frustration not having noticed her yet and she giggled at the concentration on his face. He immediately looking up, cufflink long forgotten and stared at her in awe. She smiled shyly at his heated gaze.
He didn't move his grey eyes from her body for one second, standing as still as a statue with his mouth slightly parted in wonder before he licked his lips.
She got down to the last step and walked towards his slowly, her dress shimmering under the lights. There were people all around them - maids, butlers, Taylor, secret service men but all she could see was him as they stood in the entrance of the palace looking at each other in a trance. The tension between them was palpable; it always was. He was wringing his hands together and she knew that he was desperate to grab her and kiss her like his life depended on it but couldn't in the crowded entrance.
"Hi, handsome," she grinned, reaching her hand to grab his and gently fastening his cuff link. He watched her in awe and felt light headed at the sensations running through his body as he looked at her. His hard on was digging into the zipper of his trousers and he felt like he was on fire. She brushed his hand after she finished with his cufflink and he visibly shivered before finally finding his voice.
"Ana," he whispered, she gulped at the hoarseness of his voice. "Baby this dress," he was once again speechless for a moment. "You're actually trying to kill me aren't you," he smirked at her, running his fingers through his unruly hair. She giggled. "How am I meant to get through this evening when all I want to do is take you against the nearest piece of furniture."
"I love you far too much to kill you honey," Ana responded. He smiled at her words and then reached to grab her face between his cheeks.
"You're too beautiful," he kissed her lightly on the lips. "I'm so lucky" kiss "And I love you," kiss "More than anything," Kiss. She smiled against his lips and clutched his arm in both of hers, leaning against his shoulder. He made her feel like a giggly school girl, her heart fluttering in her chest. "Are you ready, baby?" he whispered, starting to walk down the hall, following Taylor and two secret service guards to where the ball was being held. Most of the guests had already arrived through the back entrance to the palace for privacy leaving Christian and Ana to make their grand entrance.
"I'm nervous," she admitted.
"I'll be there the whole time with you my love, if you think I'm letting you out of my sight looking like that then you have another thing coming," he smirked, "plus, you might have to stand in front of me when we get in there or else our guests might see the just how much I love your dress," he discreetly adjusted himself and she laughed.
She moved her hand to lace their fingers together and he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles in order to sooth her as they arrived at the double doors. She could hear loud chatter inside and felt butterflies in her stomach but the strong man next to her gave her the strength she needed.
"Dad's going to announce us baby, then we just walk in, smile at a few people, have a drink, have some food and then dance the night away," Christian said reassuringly. She nodded and waited for the loud booming voice of the King to announce them into the ballroom. She squeezed Christians hand and he leaned down to kiss her hair lovingly. A bell was rung and then a hush went over the room behind the doors.
"Everyone please welcome my son, Prince Christian Trevelyan Grey and his girlfriend Anastasia Steele," came the voice of the King. This was it. She let out a shaky breath causing her Prince to look down at her worriedly.
"Just breathe baby, I'm right beside you," Christian whispered as the doors were opened exposing them to hundreds of curious eyes and she clutched his hand in a vice grip, trying not to make her nerves obvious.
She wanted to be the image of confidence in front of these people but instead, all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball. The second they set foot to enter they were met by applause and Ana smiled following Christians lead. She looked around the room seeing so many people she'd seen on magazines or read about in her Royal research papers but had never actually met in real life. It was incredible and after hearing the applause she found it a lot easier to walk inside the room, Christian's hand clutched in hers and a smile on her face as she waved to the clapping audience.
"You're a natural, baby," Christian said, leaning in close to kiss her cheek as the applause started to come to a close. "I'm so, so proud of you my love," she smiled at him and encased his hand in both of hers knowing she couldn't kiss him the way she wanted to right now with so many prying eyes watching them.
"Anastasia," came a voice behind her. She turned to see the editor of the Kings unofficial autobiography that came out a few years back Nancy Teller. Ana smiled at her, she had quoted her book many times whilst writing her columns.
"Hello, Nancy, it's an honour to meet you," she said.
"The honour is all mine believe me," Nancy said. After speaking to her for a few moments about journalism she spoke to another person and then another until they were swamped with various people wanting to come and introduce themselves to the royal couple - or more specifically, Ana.
She was a natural and Christian watched her fondly as she spoke with such kindness, a smile on her face and confidence in her voice. She was incredible. She took it all in her stride. Christian turned his head slightly to see his father watching them with a proud smile on his face as well while sitting at the head table waiting for them.
A couple came and gained Christian's attention. Ana looked up and saw him smiling at them, his hand still in hers and was about to make herself known when she caught the tail end of a conversation happening between three women at the table behind them. It was obvious that the women didn't think that Ana or Christian could hear them, and they were chatting and gossiping freely.
"I can't actually believe this went ahead," one woman said. "I thought she was just some Paris whore,"
"So, did I. What's so special about her? He's so gorgeous and she's just so ... ordinary. She's a journalist, isn't she?" a second woman asked.
"That's what I heard. She'll never be able to satisfy a man like that. He'll be having an affair by the time they're engaged - if they even get that far. I'll be happy to step in if he needs comforting," the third woman said eliciting giggles from the other two.
Ana had heard enough. She turned around and all three women immediately looked up. Two of them had the decency to look embarrassed while the other, who had said Ana wouldn't be able to satisfy her prince, was trying not to laugh.
"Thank you for your concern about my boyfriend, but there is no need. I completely satisfy Christian numerous times a day. I may just be some ordinary girl, but you can't help who you fall in love with. Envy isn't a good look on anyone and I think you should watch what you say in future." Ana stated. The three women stared at Ana in shock before looking behind her. She felt two strong hands on her shoulders and a familiar voice in her ear.
"Come on, baby, let's go and sit down," he whispered. She nodded, walking away from the table without another word. Christian knew that something had happened, but he also knew that he couldn't ask her about it yet with so many people around.
They walked through the crowd stopping politely to talk to the various people who wanted to say hello. Christian told her they needed to go and talk to his parents and steered them towards the table.
"What happened back there?" he whispered to her as they walked.
"Just a couple of the millions of women who don't think I'm good enough for you. I think I put them in their place. Who are they?" Ana asked turning to look at Christian.
"No idea, baby. I'll have secret service kick them out," Christian said raising his hand to signal one of the guards. He wouldn't let anyone hurt Ana.
"No," Ana said, "don't do that. I want them to see how happy we are and that nothing will break us apart." He grinned at her explanation, brushing his thumb across her knuckles as they walked.
"Enough about them, they're just jealous because they want you and I'm the one who gets to have you," Ana said smugly.
"That's right, baby. I'm all yours," Christian winked. Ana giggled squeezing his hand.
"I'm so proud of you, so unbelievably proud. You're a natural at all of this baby," Christian said, putting his arm around Ana. She blushed at his praise and it sent a warm feeling through her. She'd wanted to make him proud and she was so glad that she had. She was taking it in her stride.
"Thank you, I love you," she beamed, leaning into him a little and putting her arm around his waist. He smelled so good and his body was warm against her.
"I love you too, sweetheart," he kissed her head and lead them to the table they were to sit on tonight. She smiled when the King came and pulled her into a hug immediately like they were close friends. That was one of the main things she liked most about Carrick - there were no airs about him. He knew he was the king but he didn't act like it. He kind of reminded her of her dad and she could see why Christian loved and admired him so much.
"Anastasia, you look stunning dear," he smiled.
"Thank you.. Carrick," he winked at her and she glanced quickly at Grace who gave her a weak smile. She hadn't seen the woman since her confession the day before.
It was slightly awkward between them but Ana didn't want to dwell on that, she was just thankful that there was no longer animosity between them and she finally understood why Grace had been so aloof with her - she hoped that maybe they would be able to have a relationship in the future. Christian moved to push Ana's chair in once she'd sat down much to the dismay of the server who was ready to do it for her.
"What do we do now?" Ana asked once Christian had sat down next to her.
"We have a meal with everyone baby and then we go and dance and mingle," Ana smiled, she was looking forward to the dancing part. She looked up at the man beside her with a wide grin on her face.
"Remember the first time we danced?" she asked. He grinned at the memory of her standing on his feet as he moved them around her sitting room. It was so intimate and Christian knew in that moment that Ana was the one.
That night was also the first time they slept together and he had to stifle a moan as visions of her writhing beneath him as he pounded into her, the headboard smacking against the wall with every thrust came into his mind.
"Vividly," he smirked, trying to shake himself out of his thoughts, "you can stand on my feet again if you want to baby and I'll take you on a trip around this dance floor too," she giggled and shook her head at him.
"I think I'll save that for when we dance alone. I'll just let you lead and I'll follow you," he nodded bringing her hand to his lips and gently kissing her knuckles.
"I hope no one else asks you to dance or I'll have to send them packing," Christian said looking around the room as though to spot anyone who might ask Ana to dance. She laughed at him and moved a hand to stroke his arm.
"You'd kick someone out just for asking me to dance?" she asked him raising his eyebrows. He smirked at her.
"Oh baby, I'd do a lot more than that. I want to kick some of these men out just for looking at you," he said, looking around again. His eyes kept going to one table in particular where a man with dark blonde hair, green eyes and a slimy smile was staring at her.
"I want to go and rip that man over there's eyes out," he growled, his arm clenching under her hand. She looked at Christian and then followed his eyes to where a creepy looking man was staring at them.
"Who is he?" she asked, turning away to see Christian jaw clenching as he glared at the man.
"Jack Hyde, my third cousin on my mothers side, he used to steal from us a child and then it got even worse as a teenager. We hate each other, we always have done and always will. He has always been jealous of me being the heir to the throne and we've gotten into our fair share of fights over the years that ended in us needing to be dragged apart. I even broke his nose once and now he's staring at you," Christian said angrily.
Ana noticed her boyfriends fists clench and reached over to place her hands over them. She didn't want anything to potentially ruin tonight and she certainly didn't want Christian to fight anyone.
"Christian, look at me," she said. He and Jack were still in a staring war and he wasn't paying any attention to anything else in the room. She waited for a moment before grabbing his chin and turning him to face her.
He'd been so angry at Jack that she was sure he hadn't even heard her. Angry grey eyes locked onto loving blue ones and softened immediately. "I'm all yours, I love you and only you. He can look but only you can touch. You're the only man I want and you're the only man who I'd ever let touch me anywhere, you're the man I'm going to go to bed with later on. If Jack asks me to dance, I will say no, you don't need to fight him, ok?"
She could see the fire rise inside him at her words and gulped knowing exactly what he wanted. She felt herself becoming aroused at that look as always and she knew that if he had his way, he'd be dragging her away right now and locking her in his bedroom for the rest of the night. "Mine," he mouthed at her and she repeated it back to him.
Dinner was served at 8pm - a buffet in the middle of each table that looked like it could feed the whole ballroom. Ana laughed when Carrick and Christian immediately dug in, grabbing spoon and forkfuls of everything they could as though they hadn't eaten in days.
She looked at Grace who rolled her eyes at them making Ana smile at her. Ana scooped a little of what she knew she liked onto her plate and started eating while Christian wolfed down as much as he could. She knew how much he liked to eat, not that she was complaining. How could she with the way he looked without clothes on? She practically drooled at his muscular body every single time she saw it.
"Want to try some things, baby? I'll tell you what's nice and what to avoid," Christian asked noticing her empty plate.
"Sure," she nodded. She could do with some guidance.
"This is Iranian Beluga caviar, the best in the world," he said, scooping up some of the little fish eggs onto his spoon and placing it near her mouth. She opened her mouth and let him feed her the caviar and almost wanted to spit it out. It tasted disgusting and Christian laughed loudly at the grimace on her face. She knew she had to swallow it but it took a few attempts.
"Want to try something else?" he asked and she shook her head making her boyfriend laugh once more. She took a sip of wine to get the rancid taste out of her mouth. How anyone liked that stuff was beyond her. Christian finished the rest of his food and then wiped his mouth, shuffling in his chair. She wouldn't be surprised if he had indigestion with how much he ate.
"I'm just going to head to the mens room, baby. I'll be right back," he said, leaning over to kiss her cheek. She watched him go feeling a little lost. Grace and Carrick were in conversation across from her and she didn't know anyone well enough to go and converse with them off the cuff.
She looked around the room for a moment and her eyes nearly popped out of her head, her mouth gaping open. Flashes were going off in the corner as a photographer tried to get everyone's best angles and when he turned around, Ana saw that it was Jose. She excused herself from the table and walked straight over to him where he was taking photos.
"Hello, stranger," she said behind him and he spun around so quick he almost dropped his camera.
"Ana!" the beaming smile on his face was infectious and he pulled her into a hug. "Long time no see, huh?" he said, continuing to hug her.
"How come you didn't tell me you were the photographer they hired for tonight?" she asked pulling back. He grabbed her hand in his.
"Well, I didn't find out until this morning and then I tried to call but you weren't at home. I was going to come and see you were you first came in but you got mobbed," Ana nodded with a giggle, "so, you and the Royals, huh?" he asked, gesturing around the room.
He never saw Ana as this type of girl - in fact, he always hoped that one day they'd get together. He'd made subtle hints to her before but she'd never given him any indication that she liked him back and after hearing about her rejection of Ethan, he decided to keep quiet. He was regretting that decision now though.
"Yep, me and the Royals ... or one in particular," smiling as she thought of Christian. She wondered if he was back at the table yet.
"Well, he's a very lucky man," Jose stated looking a little disappointed. Ana was about to reply when she felt someone behind her.
"That I am," a deep voice said and two familiar arms came around Ana's stomach pulling her into a very familiar chest.
Jose glared at Christian for a moment as he kissed Ana's neck and then cleared his throat to get the Prince's attention. Christian saw the look on Jose's face and smirked at him. He'd seen almost the entire interaction between them; he'd seen Ana hug him and watched as Jose looked at her like she hung the moon.
The possessive streak inside of him was coming out once again and he wanted to rub Jose's nose in the fact that Ana was his and only his. His beautiful girlfriend didn't have a clue as to how many men were staring at her right now wishing they were him.
"Hello I'm Prince Trevelyan, Ana's boyfriend," Christian said with a smug smile holding out one of his hands, the other still firmly trapping Ana against him. She was content in his arms, holding his hand but had noticed the look of anger on Jose's face when Christian had come over. She didn't know why he was angry - she'd never known Jose to have an issue with the Royal family and she was sure he would be getting paid a good amount for tonight.
"I'm Jose, Ana's very dear friend," Jose said stepping forward to shake the Prince's hand. They squeezed down on each others hands hard as they shook, trying to see who would eventually break from the hold.
Jose was the first to let go shaking his hand slightly from the pressure of their handshake and Christian's smug smile widened. Ana, noticing the tension between the men and hearing music starting to play and the King and Lady Grace getting up to dance quickly turned in Christians arms to gain his attention. He looked down at her with dark, jealous eyes. She put her arms around his neck and gave him a quick peck on his lips which seemed to sooth him a little.
"Come and dance with me," she said and he nodded at her, running his hands up and down the back of her dress and then looking up at Jose once more with a piercing gaze. Ana turned around to Jose as well and leaned over to hug him again.
"I'll talk to you later Jose," she smiled pulling back. Jose caught her hand before she could move to the dance floor and Christian gritted his teeth wishing that the annoying photographer would get the hint and leave Ana alone.
"Save me a dance?" he asked and she nodded politely not noticing her boyfriend practically shooting lasers at Jose's head in anger. Ana turned around to face Christian as Jose walked a few steps away, taking photos while subtly watching them. He was looking at her with heated, angry eyes and Ana felt hot under his stare - he was the sun and she was wilting under his gaze, becoming weak at the knees with every passing moment.
He opened his mouth to speak but she shook her head knowing whatever he said wasn't going to be nice and was going to be about Jose who was stood mere feet away from them. She held out her hand and after a moment he took it in his and she pulled them over to where other couples had joined the dance floor.
She could see the King dancing with Lady Grace, Nancy Teller was dancing with Jack who she noticed had his eyes glued on her. She looked up at Christian worriedly knowing that seeing Jack would probably be the final spark to his already burning fuse but thankfully his eyes were still glaring at Jose from across the room.
She quickly pulled them to the far corner, a few feet away from the nearest couple and near the secret service. She wrapped her arms around his neck and moved her lips to his left ear.
"What are you all grouchy about mister?" she asked knowing full well why he was angry. He moved one of his hands and placed it firmly to her jaw, while the other was planted on her back.
"He wants you, Anastasia," Christian growled, "he wants you and you're mine," he said, matter factly. She felt a shiver go through her body at his words. Christian's possessiveness was a turn on like no other and she could feel herself getting wet, but she knew they couldn't do anything about it right now.
"Christian, Jose's an old friend, he doesn't want me like that," Ana whispered.
To anyone else it would look like they were just having a private conversation of sweet nothings, but the fire in Christian's eyes showed another side of him no one else knew about. It was a tell-tale sign to Ana of just how jealous he'd gotten while watching the exchange between her and Jose. She had hope that dark Christian with the delicious voice and sexy commands would be back tonight.
"You must have seen the way he was looking at you, and the way he hugged you, like he never wanted to let you go. That fucker wants you so badly he can't even see straight," Christian breathed. "He practically drooled on your dress when you were hugging him and the way he was glaring at me like I was the one who was in the wrong. God Ana, I'm going to be beating off the men in this room with a stick tonight, they're going to all want to dance with you, everyone wants a piece of my girl," he growled. "I'd fight any man that tried to take you from me, Anastasia." His gaze penetrated hers as she gulped at his fiery words.
"Christian..." she was about to speak when a voice interrupted their rather heated conversation.
"Would you do me the honour of a dance?" a man's voice spoke, behind them.
Ana felt Christian tense up in her arms as they both turned their heads towards Jack Hyde.
Great, this is all we need, Ana thought. He had a salacious smile on his face and a look in his eyes that made Ana turn cold. Nothing about tonight was going to plan.
A/N - Oo what do you think is going to happen with Jack? I love writing about jealous Christian and there will be more of that in the next part. Sorry to leave it on a cliff-hanger but just as I thought, my mind ran away with me the other night and the Royal ball chapter ended up at nearly 15,000 words ... so I decided to split it into two to make it easier for you to read. The other half of the ball still needs a bit of tweaking and is with my lovely beta at the moment, it will be up soon. Thank you for all of the reviews and messages, I appreciate them immeasurably and love hearing what you think of this story.