Chapter 20
Ana POV
Sunday, March 1st, 2015
Christian has been acting weird for the last few days, and to say that it's making me nervous would be an understatement. I don't know what is going through his mind, and whenever I ask him, he just gives me mono-syllable answers.
I can't help but wonder if he's having second thoughts about the baby. We had a checkup a couple of days ago, where we had Elliot and Jose join us so that Dr. Greene would tell them about the gender. Grace and Carrick are hosting us a gender reveal party today, and it's been killing me that Jose and Elliot know what I'm carrying when Christian and I don't.
It was Mia's idea to have a gender reveal party, and once Christian heard about it, he was all for it. He was more excited about it than Mia was, if that was even possible, but the minute Jose and Elliot left us to plan for the party, his entire mood changed, and he's been acting off since.
I'm worried things are becoming too serious for him. I've taken Jose's advice about dropping hints in regards to getting married, but I have a feeling he's ignoring me, because even after the wonderful time we had in Dubai for Valentine's day, he never mentioned us getting married. He used to bring it up whenever he had the chance, but for the past two weeks, nothing.
Today's party is rather a casual affair, so I put on a cotton long sleeve loose navy blue dress, and I pair it with silver ankle boots. As usual, I let my hair down in waves over my shoulder, just the way Christian likes it.
I let out a sigh as I think of Christian. Should we really be doing this if he's changed his mind about the baby?
I shake my head in an attempt to rid away the negative thoughts. I've come a long way in my confidence when it comes to Christian, and I really shouldn't let my mind get the better of me. He might just be having a difficult time with a deal at work.
"You look beautiful." Christian says, making me gasp in surprise. I was so deep in my head that I didn't hear him walk in.
"Thank you." I say, letting my eyes linger over him for a bit. He's wearing a pair of dark grey jeans, with a white dress and a black blazer over it. As always, he looks good enough to eat, but we're already running late.
"We should head out." He says, making me reach for my grey clutch.
"I'm ready."
Once we make it down to the garage, Christian opens the door for me, then stays back to talk to Taylor about something he obviously doesn't want me to hear. A minute later, he gets in the car and lets out a deep breath.
"Are you ok?" I ask for what seems like the millionth time in the past few days, and he just holds my hand and gives me a small smile.
I can't bring myself to press for an explanation about his behavior, so I just let it drop for now. Today, I just want to find out what I'm having and enjoy the good time while it lasts.
It doesn't take us long to reach Bellevue, and I'm confused as we drive by the Greys' house and head further down the road.
"Where are we going?" I ask, and for the first time in days, Christian gives me a genuine smile.
"Trust me?"
"With my life." I answer, not missing a beat.
"I have a surprise for you." He says, and I just stare out the window to see where we are heading. A few minutes later, the car stops in front of a large steel gate, and I see Taylor punch in a code, making the gate open up to let us in.
I notice Taylor slow down, obviously to let me take in the beautiful surrounding, as he drives up a small driveway with large trees on either side. The car then comes to a stop in front of a stunning mansion, and I feel my breath catch in my throat.
"Whose house is this?" I ask, but Christian just smiles at me as he gets out of the car. I don't wait for Taylor to open the door for me, and I just get out, only to freeze in my spot as I just stare open-mouthed at the house in front of me.
The front of the house has a small roundabout in the middle, already planted with a tree and flowers. It has 4 garage doors to obviously house 4 cars, and it's built to give the illusion of it being two houses rather than one.
"Don't you want to come in?" I hear Christian ask.
"Whose house is this, Christian?" I ask, but somehow, I already know the answer to that question.
"It's ours." Christian says with a shrug and a shy smile.
"Oh my God!" I gasp and jump into his open arms, making him spin me around. "When did you do this?"
"I found this a couple of weeks ago, and I just couldn't pass out the opportunity." He says before he places a quick kiss on my lips. "The house is fully ready and furnished, but you can change anything you don't like."
"If it's half as stunning as the exterior, I'm going to love it!" I say, now bouncing on my feet waiting to go inside, the whole gender reveal party completely forgotten for now.
For the next hour, Christian shows me around the mansion, and for the life of me, I can't find anything I don't like about it. It has 5 bedrooms, 6 full bathrooms, 2 partial bathrooms, a media/game room, and a stunning kitchen. Nevertheless, the one thing that has caught my heart was the back of the house overlooking the sound. I can already see myself sitting out here and playing with our baby.
"When can we move in?"
"Whenever you want." Christian says as he walks to wrap his arms around me from behind, making me lean back into him. "You like it?"
"I love it." I say as I turn around to face him. "It's stunning."
"Do you want to change anything?"
"I wouldn't dream of it." I sigh, looking over the back of the house.
I really can't wait to move here.
"Should we go to my parents' now?" He asks, and for a second, I'm tempted to stay back for a little longer.
"Do we have to?" I ask, making Christian give out a booming laugh.
"Yes, we do." He says as he kisses the tip of my nose. "I really can't wait to find out what we're having."
"Jose is really getting better at keeping secrets!" I joke as we walk back to the car.
"Yes, he is." Christian huffs, which tells me that he too has tried to bribe the information out of Jose.
For the past two days, I've tried to bribe Jose with food, wine, wedding gifts, favors, but he just wouldn't budge. I have a feeling that both Elliot and Ethan threatened him, that's why he's not letting the secret out.
10 minutes after we get back to the car, we drive up to the Greys' house, and I'm back to feeling excited. I ignore the fact that Christian is suddenly acting cold again, and I decide that it's because he's also nervous to find out what we're having.
I refuse to let my negative thoughts ruin the moment for me.
As soon as we walk inside the house, we're greeted with hugs and kisses from our closest friends and family. I'm really happy to see everyone here. The entire Grey family is here, Jose, Ethan, Hanna, my Dad, Sandra, Flynn and his wife Rihann, and even my boss, Jack, who has become more like an uncle after Christian bought out SIP, now Grey Publishing.
"Ok, what are we having?" Christian asks as soon as we've greeted everyone, making the room burst in laughter.
I was hoping that the decorations would give away the secret, but the whole room is filled with pink and blue balloons and decorations. There's a banner hanging across the ceiling with cardboard shaped onesies in pink and blue and questions marks on them.
"Not so fast, dear brother." Elliot says as he nods at Mia, who walks up to him with a bowl in her hands. "First of all, we're going to play a game."
Mia starts moving around the room, offering the bowl for all the guests, and I notice them taking out pink and blue clothe pins to attach to their clothes.
"Take your guess on what Christian and Ana are having." Elliot announces, and once Mia reaches us, I take out a blue pin while Christian takes a pink one.
"You want a girl?" I ask, genuinely surprised.
"I don't care, as long as the baby is healthy." He says, making me smile at him.
"Those who guess correctly will be excused from the baby shower duties. Those who guess wrongly, well, you will be responsible for throwing the most epic baby shower Seattle every heard of." Mia says, and that's when I notice that neither her, Elliot, Jose, nor Ethan have taken out pins, and I narrow my eyes at them.
"You know!" I say, pointing an accusatory finger at them.
"Sweetie, it's a miracle we're the only ones who know." Ethan says as he wraps his arm around Jose's shoulder. "You two chose the two people in the world who barely know how to keep a secret!"
"Which means, they're going to help planning the shower party." Sandra announces, and somehow, I know she's not going to accept being left out even if she makes the wrong guess.
"Elliot, if you and Jose don't reveal the news in the next few minutes, I'm going to kick your ass." Christian says, and I'm surprised to see that he's not joking. However, when I look around the room, I notice everyone nodding, obviously waiting to find out as well.
"Ok, ok!" Jose now says. "Let's go outside, shall we?"
We all move out to the back yard to find a huge cake and a large box on the table next to it. I had no idea what Jose and Elliot had planned for today, but I can safely assume they couldn't settle on one idea, so they went with two.
"Ana, you're going to cut the cake to reveal the filling, and Christian, you're going to open the box to reveal the balloons." Elliot says as he hands me a knife. Christian looks at me with an exited grin, and then he takes my hand and leads me to the table.
"Together?" He asks, making me nod at him.
I'm too excited to find words right now.
I cut a slice from the cake, and before I pull it out, I look at Christian, who now has his hands on the box. In almost a whisper, we count to three, and then I pull out the knife just as Christian opens the box, revealing a blue filling and releasing blue balloons into the sky.
"A boy!" We both gasp at the same time.
"We're having a boy!" I say, dropping the cake to the table and jumping to hug Christian. "We're having a baby boy!"
"We're having a boy." Christian says before he crashes his lips to mine in a kiss that borders on indecent in front of all our family and friends.
"How many times do I have to tell you that I'm not that cool of a dad to see you and my daughter sucking face?" I hear my dad yell at us, making us break away as everyone bursts out laughing at our red faces.
Our loved ones then surround us, hugging and congratulating us for the news, but I'm too overwhelmed to find words.
We're having a baby boy. A baby boy who I can only hope is a spitting image of Christian.
10 minutes later, we're back inside the house, eating cake and while everyone enjoys their wine, I enjoy a glass of apple juice.
Once the initial excitement wears off, I look at Christian from across the room where he's talking to Elliot, and I notice that his stance is that of a nervous man. The realization makes my heart sink, simply because I thought that once the gender of our baby is revealed, he'll relax.
Apparently, I was wrong.
"Are you ok?" I hear Mia ask.
"I don't know." I say, never taking my eyes away from Christian. "Something's wrong with Christian."
"I'm sure it's just work." She says as she rubs my arm, but somehow, I think she's just trying to placate me.
"He's been like this for a few days." I say, finally looking at Mia, who has a sympathetic look in her eyes. "Is he breaking up with me?"
"What?" She shrieks, making everyone look at us.
"Keep your voice down!" I whisper-yell at her. "He's been distant and acting weird lately. He's never let his work affect us, and I can't help but wonder."
"Christian loves you more than life itself, Ana." Mia says, making me sigh just as my dad approaches us.
"A baby boy." He says as he stands beside me with a proud smile. "I still can't believe you're making me a grandfather, Annie."
"Excuse me." Mia says as she walks straight to Christian, and I know she's going to tell him about my worries.
I'm going to kill her.
"Yeah, I'm still trying to wrap my head around it myself." I say, my eyes fixed on Christian again. I see Mia whisper in his ear, and his head snaps towards me with wide eyes.
"Is everything ok between you two?" Dad asks, having noticed the scene in front of him.
"I don't know." I sigh, making my dad just smile at me.
"Do I have to clean out my shotgun?" He asks, making me giggle, even though I'm not really amused. "That boy worships you, Annie. Don't let your head go wild."
I see Christian quickly walk towards me, making my dad walk away silently, and I brace myself for whatever he has to tell me.
"Are you fucking crazy?" He snaps at me. "After everything we've been through, you're still not sure about us?"
"What am I supposed to think?" I snap right back at him, not missing the fact that everyone is now looking at us. "You've been distant and cold towards me for the past few days!"
"Come with me." He says as he takes my glass from my hand and places it on the table in front of us.
"What?" I ask, confused by his sudden change in tone.
"I'm going to show you why I've been distant." He says as he takes my hand in his and rubs his thumb over it. "I'm sorry if I seemed cold. I guess that's how it seems when I'm nervous."
"What are you nervous about?" I ask, making him take a deep breath and let it out in a sigh.
"Come with me?" He asks, and I just nod at him, making him pull me towards the stairs. I notice everyone following us, but as soon as Christian shoots them a glare, they stop at the end of the stairs and watch us as we go up to the second floor where the bedrooms are.
He walks me to his old bedroom, and then he stops in front of the closed door.
"You're scaring me, Christian." I say, not able to imagine what could be behind the door that has him so nervous.
"My parents decided to change my old bedroom into a nursery for the baby." He says and takes yet another deep breath. "Jose and Mia have been working nonstop to get it ready for today. I just had two things that I wanted to get here before I showed it to you."
"Open the door, Christian." I say, my voice betraying me.
What is going on?
With slow and shaking hands, Christian opens the door to reveal a jungle themed nursery. I notice that he points me away from the wall at the far left of the room, and I gasp at how beautiful everything is. There is a big brown crib at the far right wall, with a nursing chair next to it. The wall is painted with a giraffe and a tree with its branch going over the front wall, cutting over the window, then continuing to have a monkey sitting on the other end of it. The curtains are blue, with two blue boxes on the floor in front of it; the only indication of our baby's gender.
"It's beautiful, Christian." I say, my voice catching in my throat. "But I don't understand why you're so nervous about this?"
He doesn't answer me with words. He just turns me to face the far left wall where there's a small drawers chest and a changing table, but I let out a very loud gasp at the two frames hanging on the wall.
One of the frames holds our latest sonogram picture, blown up, and below it, in fine print, is the one question I've been waiting for.
Mommy, will you marry my daddy?
I have to fight back my tears to look at the second frame, which has a cute white onesie, and printed on it is Officially a Grey!
"Christian!" I gasp through my tears and turn to look at him, only to find him down on one knee, holding an opened box with the most stunning ring I've ever seen inside.
"Ana, I told you this when I first met you, and I'm going to say it again. You're the breath of fresh air to my once stale life. You've shown me that love exists, that I'm capable of loving someone other than my family. You've given meaning to my life." He says, and I let out a sob as the words catch in his throat. "You've given me the most precious gift any man could ever dream of having. You've given me a family, and now I'm asking you to officially make our family whole. To make my life whole. Will you marry me?"
"Yes." I sob out. "Yes, I'll marry you!"
Hearing that, Christian jumps to his feet, pulling my hand towards him before he pulls out the ring and places it on my still shaking hand.
"Thank you!" He whispers before he smashes his lips against mine. His lips move expertly over mine, and I moan into his mouth as he pulls me closer to his strong body.
"I love you." I say once we break away, the need to breathe forcing us apart.
"I love you, more than you can ever imagine." He says as he plays with the ring on my finger. "I can't believe you though I was breaking up with you."
"And I can't believe you were nervous about my answer!" I say, smacking him over the chest. "Are you fucking crazy?"
He just snickers at me before he kisses me again, this time with more passion than he ever shown me before, if that is even possible.
"We're waiting down here!" We hear Elliot yell at us from the floor below, making us break out in a loud laugh.
"They knew?" I ask with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, Jose and Elliot aren't the only ones who can't keep a secret." He admits with a shy shrug, making me giggle at him.
"Let's go get them out of their misery." I say as I grab his hand and lead him out of the nursery and down the stairs to our waiting family and friends.
"She said yes!" Christian announces, making everyone break out in loud cheers, and for the second time today, we're pulled in hugs and given congratulations over the wonderful news.
"Welcome to the family, sweet girl." Grace says as she pulls me in a tight hug.
"Thank you, Grace." I say as I wipe away at my tears that don't seem to stop.
"Let me see the ring!" Sandra says as she pulls me to her, holding my hand out and letting out a loud gasp.
Christian has given me a Trinity Ruban ring, and I only know this because it was the first thing that Mia said when she saw the ring. It's a bejeweled ribbon of platinum paved with diamonds that coils around a central solitaire diamond.
"You did well, handsome." Jose says as he takes his turn in inspecting my ring. He then drops my hand and gasps loudly, making me look at him with confused eyes. "Oh my God! Do you know what this means?"
"That I'm engaged?" I ask, and I receive a wide smile from Christian when I say that.
"We can plan our weddings together!" Jose shrieks, and I actually see tears in his eyes. "Oh my God! I've always dreamt about us doing this together!"
"Oh, Jose." I say as I wrap my arms around him, and to everyone's shock, he breaks down in open sobs. Suddenly, he pulls away from my hug and moves to hug Christian, and for a second, I freeze, worrying about Christian's reaction, but I get tears in my own eyes when I see Christian hug him back without even flinching.
Until today, Christian has only allowed me and his immediate family to hug him, and I can't even find the words to explain how proud I feel of him for having come this far.
"Oh my sweet girl." Grace says from beside me, wiping away her own tears. "Thank you."
"Thank you." I hear Jose tell Christian. "Thank you for making this happen."
"You're an amazing person, Jose, and you deserve to have all your dreams come true." Christian says as he pats Jose on the back, before handing him over to Ethan. My dad moves to Christian next, and he offers him his hand, but Christian just pulls my dad in a quick man-hug, promising him to take care of the baby and me.
For the next hour, we have a small impromptu celebration for our engagement, and I find myself inspecting the ring every now and then. Christian hasn't left my side for one second, and he even apologized for behaving the way he did more than once. He only stopped when I told him to just stop it, because he's ruining my joy over the engagement.
As if anything could ruin my joy, but he doesn't need to know that.
"Oh my God! I can't believe I didn't ask about this!" Mia shrieks from across the room, making everyone look at her. "What did you think of the house?"
"You really can't keep a secret, can you?" I ask Christian, making him just shrug at me.
"Well?" Grace asks, waiting for my answer.
"What house?" Dad asks.
"It's not a house, it's a freaking mansion!" I say, then I start ranting about the house and how beautiful it is. I only stop talking when I notice Christian looking at me with loving eyes and a proud smile on his face.
"We should get married there." He says, and my face breaks into a beaming smile.
"Yes!" I say, already picturing having our wedding in the backyard. Surprisingly, I immediately imagine myself in a maternity wedding gown, walking down the aisle with a baby bump.
"Do you want to get married before or after the baby is born?" Carrick now asks.
"Before." Both Christian and I answer at the same time.
"What?" Mia shrieks again. "That's not enough time to plan a wedding!"
"It is, for what I have in mind." I say, making everyone look at me with questioning eyes. "I want something small and intimate, just our closest family and friends." I say and look at Christian. "Is that ok with you?"
"Whatever you want, sweetheart." Christian says as he places a kiss at the top of my head.
"Anastasia! You fiancé is one of Seattle's most important people. He's the biggest CEO on the west coast; this has to be a VIP event!" Mia says, making my heart drop to my knees.
She's right! How selfish of me!
"Ana wants a small wedding; she'll have a small wedding." Christian says, shooting his sister a dirty look. "Besides, I don't want our wedding to be a business meeting, and that's what it'll be if we invite everyone I know."
"Christian…" I start, but he cuts me off with a quick kiss to my lips.
"I want a small wedding too." He says, and the sincerity in his eyes makes me smile. "I would've given you a huge wedding if that's what you wanted, but I'm actually glad you want a small one."
"Good."
"Fine." Mia huffs, obviously disappointed that she won't be planning the wedding of the year, and even though I'm glad I will have her help in planning my wedding, I also know that I won't let her control everything.
God knows I'll end up with a pink, glittery theme if I do that.
"Do you have a date in mind?" I hear Sandra ask, and I immediately know that I won't be alone in this craziness of wedding-planning.
"July?" I ask, just as Christian says "May."
"How about June?" Grace asks, giving us a middle-ground option. "The weather would be amazing for an outdoor wedding."
"June would be good." Christian says as he pulls out his phone, and I notice him opening up his calendar. "First weekend? The 6th is a Saturday."
"That's a nice date. June 6th." I say with a smile.
"I guess we have a date then!" Christian says with his own beaming smile, making everyone smile at us.
"We need to talk colors, party, and dress." Jose says, not taking his eyes off his phone, making everyone laugh.
"Can this wait?" I ask with a laugh, earning an evil look from both him and Mia.
"I guess that's our queue for us men to head to the office." Carrick says as he stands up, making my dad and Elliot jump to their feet.
"And that's my queue to head home. I have an early meeting tomorrow with my boss, and he can be a hardass." Jack says with a smile as he stands up, earning a small laugh from the room, and then he moves to pull me into a strong hug. "Congratulations girl. You deserve all the happiness in the world."
"Thank you, Jack." I say with a smile.
John and his wife, as well as Hanna, leave as well, leaving the closest family members to discuss the wedding. The men, with the exception of Jose, retire to Carrick's office, and I'm suddenly bombarded with questions from Jose and Mia about what I have in mind for the wedding.
"Guys, guys, GUYS!" Sandra yells when she notices that all their questions are overwhelming me, making them shut up. "One question at a time!"
"Thank you!" I tell her, earning a soft smile from her.
"Well, I was thinking purple and grey for the colors." I say, making Jose and Mia both beam at me.
Good to know they approve!
For the next hour, we discuss the details of what I have in mind, and by the time we're done talking, I've decided on the color themes, a rough idea of what flowers I want, and the suits for Christian, Jose, and the groomsmen.
Suddenly, Christian walks into the room with a murderous look on his face, and I'm immediately on alert.
"What's wrong?" I ask, quickly jumping to my feet.
"We're leaving." He says, not saying anything else as he pulls me to the door.
"What happened?"
"Not now." He says through grit teeth, making me pull my hand away from his. "Anastasia, I said not now."
Anastasia? Shit, this must be serious.
"Baby, talk to me. What's going on?" I ask calmly, trying to get him to open up to me. I notice my dad coming out from Carrick's office with a mixed look of anger and hurt on his face, and I feel my heart skip a beat or two.
"What part of not now did you not understand?" Christian snaps, and for the first time in my life, I actually feel intimidated by him.
"Baby girl, go home." My dad says as he approaches us. "Christian is not upset with you, he just needs to calm down a little bit, and it's best he does that away from here."
"What the hell happened?" I ask in exasperation.
"God damn it, Ana!" Christian bellows, making me flinch, and I quickly feel the tears sting the back of my eyes.
"Fine." I say, my voice coming out in almost a whisper. "I'm just going to grab my purse."
I don't give him a chance to say anything else as I make my way back to the living room, where I find Jose and Ethan whispering in the back of the room, Mia looking at her father with wide eyes, and Sandra shooting Carrick daggers with her eyes.
"Where's Grace?" I ask, trying to get my voice under control.
"She's in the kitchen." Sandra tells me as she moves to stand beside my father.
"Could you tell her that I had to leave, and give her my thanks for everything she's done tonight?" I ask as I wipe away the stray tear that managed to escape my eye. "Mia, thank you for everything as well. We'll talk more about the wedding."
"Of course." Mia says as she comes towards me and give me a tight hug. "I'm sorry about my dad."
I only nod at her, because I simply don't know what went on in the privacy of Carrick's office, but I can now guess that Carrick did something to piss Christian off.
Quietly, I make my way out to the car, and Christian is already inside. Once I have my seatbelt buckled up, Taylor drives off towards Escala.
"I'm sorry." Christian says after 5 minutes of complete silence. "I shouldn't have snapped at you like that, it's just…"
"You're right, you shouldn't." I say as I wipe away the tears that have been silently falling since we drove away from the Greys'. "Whatever Carrick did, you should take your anger on him, not me. We just got engaged today for crying out loud. This should be a happy day for us. It should not end with you yelling at me and me crying over it."
"Baby…" Christian begins, and I can literally feel the pain in his voice. "I'm really sorry."
"You already said that, and until you explain why you yelled at me, I can't respond to your apology."
"Dad brought up a prenup." Christian says after a minute of silence, making look at him with confused eyes.
That's it?
"Christian, he's your father, and he's a lawyer." I say as I reach to hold his hand. "He's just looking out for you."
"He basically called you a gold-digger, Ana!" Christian snaps again, making me pull my hand away. "And in front of Ray!"
"Oh."
Ok, that was a bad move to make.
"I don't care what he says, or what he thinks. You're not signing a prenup!"
"But…"
"No!" He snaps again, effectively shutting me up. "I will not start our marriage by planning its end. Besides, you might as well take everything if you decide to leave me. I'm nothing without you, Ana."
"Oh, baby." I say as I unbuckled my seatbelt and quickly crawl into his lap. "I'm not leaving you, Christian. Not now, not ever."
"I can't live without you, Ana." He says as he buries his face in my hair and inhales deep. "You and this baby are my life."
"We can't live without you either." I say as I run my fingers through his hair. For the next five minutes, we stay like that, and I can feel the tension leave his body slowly with every stroke of my fingers against his scalp.
We only pull away when the car comes to a stop, and as soon as we're out of the car, Christian pulls me in his arms again and carries me to the elevator.
"I need you." He whispers against my neck as he walks through the apartment straight to the bedroom.
"Take me." I say as I start placing small kisses against his face, making him shudder.
In record time, we're both naked, and before I can even moan out his name, he pushed through my wet fold, slowly, making me throw my head back in ecstasy.
"I'm so sorry." He whispers as he makes love to me.
"It's ok." I manage to whisper as he brushes against my g-spot, making me let out a loud moan. "Oh Christian."
"I love you."
"I love you." I say, my voice coming out in a whisper. "I love you so much."
I feel his body tense over mine, and then I feel his hand touching me where we are joined, his fingers rubbing against my bundle of nerves, and effectively throwing me over the edge of pleasure.
"Ana!" He moans out as he reaches his own climax, and then he collapses next to me, careful not to smother me with his weight.
After a few minutes of complete silence where we try to catch our breaths, Christian starts playing with the ring on my finger, bringing a smile to my face.
"We're engaged." He simply says, making me giggle.
"Yes, we're engaged." I say and watch him as he props himself on my elbow before he places his hand on my abdomen. "How do you feel about the colors purple and grey for the wedding?"
"As long I'm not wearing a purple suit, I'm ok." He says, making me giggle again. "Would you like me to be involved in the planning?"
"I know that it could get extremely boring for you, but I would love to hear your input." I say as I entwine my finger with his over my abdomen. "I promise I won't drive you crazy with questions and details."
"I don't mind, but to be honest, I'm not worried about you. I'm more worried about Jose and Mia." He says with a snicker, earning a groan from me.
"They are going to go overboard, aren't they?"
"Not if we control them and make it clear what we want early on."
"I'll call them tomorrow and set a lunch date." I say with a sigh. "I also need to talk to my dad and see how much he has saved for my wedding. I'll look into my account as well."
Christian suddenly stiffens beside me, and before I can even ask what's wrong, he leaves the bed and pulls his pants on so quickly, I'm surprised he didn't hurt himself.
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean, Ana?"
"What?" I ask, genuinely confused by his sudden anger. "What did I say?"
"No one will be paying for our wedding except me!" He snaps, and I can't stop myself from covering up with his pillow.
"Christian, my dad has been waiting for me to find someone my whole life, especially after the craziness I kept talking about until I met you." I say, trying to reason with him. "He'll expect to pay for it."
"I don't care what he expects." Christian says a little more calmly now. "I want you to have the best of everything, baby."
"Are you saying that my dad can't give me the best?" I ask, and I can literally feel the anger bubbling up inside me.
"What?" He asks in shock. "No! I didn't mean that! I just meant…"
"What exactly did you mean, Christian? Because that sure sounded like you're patronizing my dad and my humble upbringing." I snap, and I don't miss the look of horror that flashes across his face, but right now, I really don't care how he feels.
Better explain yourself quickly, Grey.
"Baby, I swear, I didn't mean it like that." Christian says and takes a deep breath. "I know how hard Ray works to give you the best, even now that you're with me. I know how much he loves you, and how far he would go to make your every dream come true, but it's not his responsibility any more. You're with me now, you're mine, and I'm the one who should make all your dreams come true, including your dream wedding."
That was good, I have to give you that.
"He's my father, Christian." I say with a sigh. "He'll always be responsible for my happiness and making my dreams come true, even after I'm married and I have children of my own. You'll understand that when our baby boy wants to get married, or when we have a girl and she meets someone special."
Christian goes silent for a long minute, obviously letting my work sink in, and a long sigh leaves his lungs, as he finally understands what I mean.
"He'll only use whatever he has saved up, anything else I'll pay for." Christian says as he moves to sit beside me again. "I just want you to promise me one thing."
"What is it?"
"Promise me that you won't hold back on what you want." Christian says as he holds my hand. "I know we come from different backgrounds, Ana, and I respect that fully, but I want you to have your dream wedding, and I know how expensive it can get. I don't want you to worry about money ever again."
"I want to pay for part of the wedding as well." I say, bracing myself for his reaction.
"Ana…" He groans as he throws himself back on the bed and covers his face with his hands.
"I'm not bringing anything into this marriage, Christian!" I sigh. "At least give me that!"
"Why is it so hard for you to understand that what's mine is yours?" He asks from behind his hands. "The minute we get married, you'll own half of everything I own, Ana. I would have done that sooner but I knew you wouldn't accept it."
I'm shocked into silence as his words fully register, and I feel like I'm close to hyperventilating.
"What?" I finally manage to croak out.
"You can't really be surprised by that." He says as he removes his hands and looks at my still shocked face. "I already had my lawyers started on the paperwork so that it'll be ready by the time we get married."
"I can't own half of everything you have!" I squeak. "I wouldn't know what to do with a fraction of that money!"
"I don't care what you do with it, baby, it'll be yours." He says as he sits up and grabs my face between his hands. "You're marrying a billionaire, Ana, you better get used to it."
"But…" I start, but my mouth clamps shut, as I don't even know what to think anymore, let alone form a full sentence.
"No buts." He says with a small smile.
Fuck!
Shit!
Fucking shit!
"I think I need more time to fully grasp what you're saying." I finally manage to say, deciding not to think about this now.
I just can't think about this now.
"Ok, I can take that." Christian says as he places a soft kiss on my lips. "How about you get some sleep? You're probably tired after today."
I only nod at him, still not fully able to form coherent sentences, and he helps me lay back on the bed.
"I'm going to finish some work in my office." He says as he brushes my hair with his hand. "I'll join you in a little bit."
Nodding at him, he kisses my forehead before he leaves the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I'm pretty sure that if I weren't pregnant, I would've stayed up with the crazy thoughts going through my head, but growing a baby can have its toll on your body, and sleep claims me within minutes.
The last thought before I drift into dream world is that I'm marrying a freaking billionaire!
AN: Please check my pinterest for pictures of the house, the nursery at the Greys', and the engagement ring!