A little later in the morning

Christian

"So basically you've got a couple of mills, and the tourist industry."

"Are the mills public companies?"

"Well, now here's where you get lucky. They're family owned, third generation."

Grey smiled at his reflection in the vending machine glass. His wife had a craving for peanut M&Ms. He'd just found the vending machines when Welch's call had come in. And yes, the man was right, that was lucky. By the third generation, people were either getting lazy and the company was going to hell, or it was thriving and they needed capital. Either one would work for his purposes.

"The two brothers running the place aren't seeing eye to eye," Welch's news just kept getting better, "One of them is definitely interested in selling. Company's in trouble either way. I've sent the complete report to your office."

"Good. Keep digging."

Christian disconnected, and reached down to pull the candy from the machine. He slipped them in his pocket and dialed Roz.

It didn't even ring once, "Grey for fuck's sake, go be with your wife. I've got this."

"We're buying an authentic Scottish Wool Mill."

Silence greeted his abrupt announcement then, "No shit?"

"No shit."

"Hot damn, I love those sweaters."

"Welch is sending you everything you need. I want a proposal asap."

"Finance is still working on that Tokyo deal."

"Put it on hold. I want everyone on this It gets top priority. TKO isn't going anywhere."

"Sure, sure...no problem..so when did you become such a fan of wool?"

"It's a natural fabric. It breathes. It's warm. What's not to love."

"Right. Okay then, you're gonna be a Miller."

"Looks like it."

Mckenna

"Hey Auntie, we're getting on the plane within the hour, I'll look over everything as soon as we're airborne..." My message ends abruptly when a large hand grabs my phone, "Hey.." I jump up trying to grab it back, but being as he's a giant, Gavin easily holds me off.

"Lou, Mckenna's exhausted. We're heading to Santa Cruz. She's going to rest a couple of days and get back to you." He shuts the phone and hands it back to me, a sexy smirk on his face. The ass.

"Aunite's worried Gavin..."

"Sis, you need to give that brain of yours a rest," Lena shoots over her shoulder, she's walking ahead of us, clearing the way in the now busy hospital, carrying a Stuffed Bear bigger than she is..She'd seen it in the gift shop downstairs and insisted Teddy needed a giant Teddy. Beside her Christy has got about three dozen of those big metal looking balloons. Between the two of them, they're blazing a hell of a trail.

"But if Auntie's worried..it's important.

"Mac..you're worn out and you know it." Christy joins the argument, "Besides, you like hard copies better. Lena can print everything out for you while your recuperating."

"Yeah... no sweat."

"Yeah Okay..."

"You need the rest Mac." Allie speaks up from behind a huge flower arrangement. Apparently my sisters feel the need to load up Ana 's room with as much stuff as possible to remember us by before we take off for the compromised destination of Santa Cruz.

Well, not so much of a compromise, as a Gavin mini-bellow moment. After listening to us bickering for the entire drive back to the Grey house, argue incessantly while we packed and loaded our stuff, including our demon possessed One-Eyed Jack into the SUV, then rant over one another on the fifteen minute drive to collect Trudy...He snapped.

"ENOUGH! It's my plane...I'm drivin' and we're going to Santa Cruz. Anybody not on board with that plan can fly back to Virginia...coach!"

"Santa Cruz is nice."

"Great surfin'"

"They have a Neiman's"

"Lots of pet friendly hotels."

Thing is, knowing a guy with his own jet, you get spoiled. To us, coach class is the equivalent of the seventh ring of hell. So...Santa Cruz, here we come. Right after we pay a visit to Auntie's namesake.

"Holy Mackerel, that's a big ass bear." Sawyer's voice. I look up to see him standing with Taylor in the hall outside Ana's room.

"Hey there hot-buns." Lena strides right up to him, moves the giant bear to one hip, her hand reaching up behind his neck and pulling him down for a quick, hot kiss, "You surf?"

"Yeah," he gazes down at her all starry-eyed. Wow, Sawyer's a goner.

Lena turns to Taylor..."He's earned a couple days off, don't you think?"

Taylor tries to hide his smile. He's not very successful, "That would be up to Mr Grey."

"And I agree. Luke, take a few days off." Grey's coming toward us from the other end of the hall, a large Starbucks cup in each hand.

Lena releases Sawyer's neck, shoves the giant bear into his arms... and pounces, "Whatcha got there, hot-stuff?"

"Ah, two vanilla Latte's." Grey raises that one brow at her.

"Uh-huh, I'll give you twenty bucks for 'em."

Grey's eyes light up, a small smile ghosting his mouth, "How about I just give you one. "

Lena makes a grab and is gulping before he finishes speaking. After she's downed at least half of it, "Even better," she gives him a little punch on the arm, "You know, normally I don't care much for richy-rich pretty boys, but you're alright."

Grey blinks down at her for a second, then a with a wry smile, and a slight nod of his head, "Thank-you. Normally, leather-clad, sarcastic, foul-mouthed women irritate the hell out of me, but you wear it well."

Lena blinks back at him then bursts out laughing, "Damn, he cracked a joke. Shit, the sky might just fall."

Allie steps up then, "Is Ana awake, we'd like to say good-bye,"

Grey's eyes take in the massive arrangement of blue and green Hydrangeas, then widen at the sight of the three dozen balloons, and the giant bear Lena grabs back from Sawyer, "Uh, yes, of course, she'd love to see you," he leads us into the room, holding the door open as my sisters have their hands full, but as I walk by his eyes narrow, "Mckenna, as Lena would say...you look like hell."

"Thanks, pretty boy," I manage a weary smile. I am seriously exhausted.

I see a brief flash of grin, then he looks up and behind me, "I trust you'll be taking her somewhere quiet."

"Heading to Santa Cruz" Gavin informs him, one large hand, going to my neck massing the tight muscles, holy wow the man's hands are just amazing,. "got a friend who owns a resort has two private beach houses ready and waiting.."

"Two..." Grey's eyes go from my weary face to my sisters clustered around Ana, "that's good."

"Grey, get your woman's coffee over here. She hasn't had the real thing in nine months," Lena's voice rings out, "What are you some kind of sadist?"an audible wince and a pause "uh, wait..yeah..don't answer that."

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