Disclaimer: I do not own Fifty Shades of Grey Trilogy, or the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

This is my first attempt at a fan-fiction.

I was born and raised in England, so some of the words may be spelt the English way and not the American.

I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 36

Austin's POV

This is it. It's time. I need to talk to the man that is going to decide my future. I should wait. Most men don't do this unless they've been with their partners for a year or two. But I know what I want. I raise my hand and knock, knock, knock on the door.

"Come in" Christian's stern voice is heard on the other side. I puff my chest out and then open his home office door.

"Austin. Is everything ok?" He looks up from his desk.

"Yes Christian. Everything is just fine. Lola is with Ana, and Phoebe is taking a bubble bath. I just wanted to know if you were busy. I want to talk to you about something" That is why I chose now to talk to Christian. I know that Phoebe will be in that bathtub for about 45 minutes. Giving me plenty of time to talk to or perhaps persuade Christian.

"No. I can talk now. Take a seat" He motions to the seat in front of his desk. I sit down, and fuck, I feel like a lamb going to the slaughter house. He crosses his arms in an 'I'm waiting' gesture. I take another deep breath and then speak.

"I want to ask your permission to ask Phoebe to marry me" I say slowly, while looking up at Christian to watch his reaction. His eyes widen and he uncrosses his arms to lean forward on his desk.

"What did you say?" He says, impassively. I don't detect anything. Fuck, maybe I should have come in here with some sort of self-defence. I really, really don't want to be strangled right now. Shockingly enough, I want a family. I want a life exactly like my dad led. He found the girl of his dreams, and now I've found mine. Phoebe's small speech the other just cemented my need to fully make her mine. She's my other half, and makes me complete.

"I want to ask your permission to ask Phoebe to marry me" I say again and try to keep my voice as calm and straight as possible. Damn, Phoebe was right. Her father can make even grown men extremely nervous. But I can't let Christian know I'm nervous. This guy is going to be my future father-in-law. Hopefully. He rubs his jaw and then finally speaks.

"Surely you are both too young for a commitment as big as this one" He says. Of course, he would be concerned about our ages.

"I understand your concern. But with all due respect, sir, age is just a number. I know what I feel for Phoebe and she feels the same for me. And, my parents got married fairly young. My mom was 20 and my dad was 22, and their marriage was a happy and successful one. Right up until my mom died 22 years later. Trust me when I say that age isn't a concern and won't ever be" I hope he listens. And I hope he takes me seriously. That I'm not a joke, because of my age.

"Okay, but, well surely, it's a bit soon for marriage?" he still finding reasons to doubt us. But, again I start a rebuttal.

"I'm not going to pressure her to marry me immediately. I know that Phoebe wants to go back to school and I'm going to support her 100% on this. Not to mention that we've got a growing baby. Our attention will be on our daughter. Anyway, I'm pretty sure that Phoebe is going to want to be able to legally drink at her own wedding. And I understand your concern that we've only been together for 4 months. But we also spent a good 8 months previous to that dating. I just know. I know Phoebe is the one for me, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her" Hopefully, I starting to wear him down slightly, and get him on my side.

"Look, I know you say that you love Phoebe…" he begins. Maybe he hasn't really been listening to me.

"No-" I don't know where I get the guts to interrupt him. But I have to try and get my point across. "I… I can't express how much I love your daughter. She's beautiful, kind, funny and just …amazing really is the only word. I've massively messed up with her before. And trust me when I say, that I've learnt from my mistakes and I won't let her go again. The months that I spent away from her, were the most miserable times of my life. And then when I saw the fire-"I have to stop and gulp. The image of the flames coming out of the windows is going to be forever seared into my brain. "-I felt like… my life ended right there. I didn't want to believe it. I just prayed that god would give her back to me and I would never let her go again. Then she was in hospital and I didn't ever want to leave her. There was only one person in this world that could drag me away from her. That's Lola. Even that was so god damn painful.

"I know you don't think that I'm good enough for Phoebe. And I agree, neither do I. But regardless, I'm going to do everything I can to prove that I'm someone worthy of her. We've got a beautiful girl together. And I'm going to be forever thankful for that. Phoebe is one of the two most important people in the world to me. And she gave the other. I love her so much. Please, sir. Try to listen to what I'm saying" I would never have pictured myself begging with this man. A couple of years ago I almost hated this man. Back then, he was a major obstacle in my trying to spend time with Phoebe. Then before I was dating Phoebe, I started to respect him. His attitude towards his business and family life was impressive. And because of Lola, I now understand why he is so protective of his daughter. Now I like him. But at this moment, man, he is making me fucking nervous. I wipe my sweaty palms on my jeans and then clasp my hands, almost preying. He looks down, shakes his head and breathes out.

"You just said all the right things" He says with a small smile. What did I just hear him right?

"Excuse me?" I ask. I don't know whether I should believe my ears.

"…You have my blessing to ask for Phoebe's hand in marriage" he says slowly. I just stare wide eyed and mouth hanging slightly open.

"You're right. I don't think you're good enough for my daughter. But I'll be honest, I don't think anyone is good enough for daughter. But, I hope you prove me wrong. And be a man worthy of my Pheebs. But I'm only going to say this once. No matter what, Phoebe will always be my daughter and I'll always be her father. And if you hurt her just once or make her regret being married to you. I'll come after you, and make you wish you weren't born. I won't just be me; it'll be my dad, brother, sons, Taylor and our security. She's very special to us, and you better understand how big this is for me to say you can ask Phoebe to marry you" He says sternly.

"Yes… Yes. I understand" I guess I'm a little dumbstruck right now. But I know how special Phoebe is. And how fucking lucky I am.

"And before you think of going up to propose right now, you have to get my wife's and sons' permission as well. I'm not going to tell them, you have to do that. We are a tight knit family and they need to show their approval as well" he says. This is also something that I was well aware of.

"I know. I just wanted to ask you first, because, well, you are her father. I want to do this right" I say and he smiles in approval. He stands up and then sticks his hand out. I stand up, wipe my palm on my jeans again before I shake his hand. I shake his hand. It's a friendly, firm handshake. I'm going to have to put all of my effort into making this magic for Phoebe, and not fucking it up. I let go and then go to head out of the door.

"Son, just one thing. Make the first proposal count. Don't fuck it up and have to do it again" He says. I noticed that he called me son, but I don't dwell much on it. He had to propose more than once? When I see Ana and Christian together it's hard to believe that they've been anything but in love right from the beginning.

"Okay then. Thank you again, Christian" I say and then leave the office. I look around my surroundings. There's nobody around. I can't help myself. I throw my fist in the air.

Christian's POV

"…No… Have you received a call back from Mr Reed yet?" I shuffle the papers on my desk, whilst keeping my phone balanced against my shoulder and my ear. "Get on the phone with him, Andrea and organise a meeting with him in my office… Whenever, I'm free. But remember, Andrea, I'm only in on the mornings. When I'm assured that my daughter is 100% better, I'll come back into the office full-time… She's ok. Still a little shook up. But she will be fine. I'll tell Phoebe you were asking about her… Yeah… Thank you Andrea" I hang up my blackberry and throw it down on my desk.

I lean back in my chair and run my hand through my hair. I should be back at the office. But I can't go back full-time until I know that Phoebe is ok. I look down at the photos on my desk and the one of Phoebe draws my eye. She's 5 year old in this picture, her brown hair tied in pigtails, and she has one of her front teeth missing. I always knew she was going to make me nervous at some points in my life and she didn't disappoint. And now she's going to get engaged.

I know she will say yes. I've seen the way she looks at Austin. I know she's a romantic. She's much like her mother in that way. But, I have to say, If Ray felt the same way I do right now, at my daughter getting married, I have to call him and get advice. I have to give her away. She's going to be a wife. I feel melancholy about it all. I wonder if it's normal to feel this way.

I hear Lola suddenly cry out. I thought Phoebe and Lola were upstairs? Apparently not, because she sounds fairly close. Not only is my daughter going to get engaged, but she's a mommy. And it's a role she fits very well. She's extremely loving, and part of her mind is always on Lola. But she's firm, and holds her own with Lola. Austin is the same. He's adamant against pacifiers, and refuses to let Lola have one. They are both fine parents, despite what some people may have thought. I was one of those people that had doubts. They were both still kids themselves and had very limited experience with children. But they dealt with it very well.

I decide to get out of this office. It's fairly quiet in the house today. Ana has gone to work this afternoon. Ted and Ollie are both off seeing some friends. Lola's cries become more frequent and I decide to see if I can help out. I walk out of my office and follow the sounds of the baby cries. I find Phoebe holding Lola on her hip in the kitchen. Phoebe is pointing at things outside and while Lola does seem somewhat intrigued at what is outside, she quickly loses interest and starts wailing again. She swings her head back but Phoebe puts her hand on Lola's back to prevent her from falling backwards.

"I know baby girl. I know" Phoebe speaks softly to Lola and strokes her hair tenderly whilst doing so. Lola brings her head back up and rests it on Phoebe's shoulder. But she continues to wail and clenches her tiny fists. Teething is not fun, for the babies or the parents. It's awful seeing your child so uncomfortable and not being able to completely soothe it.

"I know it's not nice. But, please. We don't want to disturb Grampa, huh?" Phoebe starts to walk back and forth while gently rocking Lola, but it's doing little to soothe her. I decide to step in at this point.

"Don't worry about that" I say. Phoebe swings around at the sound of my voice, her face showing some worry. I start to walk towards her.

"I'm so sorry. I really didn't want to disturb you but she just wouldn't settle upstairs" she says, regrettably.

"I mean it, Princess. Don't worry about it. It's about time I got out of that office anyway" I say and stand next to them.

"You should go back working full-time. Then you wouldn't have to spend so much time in your office" she says. Ana is most definitely her mother. Neither of them like it when I do so much work at home.

"I will be soon" I'm looking down at Lola. Her gray eyes are full of tears, her cheeks are red and her bottom lip is sticking out. I hold my arms out and she immediately leans towards them. I take her into my arms. Her tiny arms reach up a little and she rests her head on my shoulder. Once again, I'm forever grateful for Ana helping me overcome my fear of being touched. Once Lola is settled and her cries begin to fade, I look over at Phoebe and she is glaring at me slightly.

"That's just not fair" I grin. Together, we walk into the sitting room and sit down on one of the sofas. I rub Lola's back. Maybe I can get her to sleep for a little while so Phoebe can rest for a little.

"Why don't you sleep for a little while?" I ask my daughter.

"No. If I sleep anymore, I'll start missing days. I can't believe she completely calmed down for you" she says, and rests her head on my other shoulder.

"Magic of grandparents" I say simply. I saw it between my parents and children. It something that can't be truly replicated. "Where's Austin gone?"

"He's gone to see some of his co-workers. He invited me to come along with him. But I don't know, I didn't want to go" She says quietly. This is something that most of the people around Phoebe have noticed; she hasn't really gone outside. She's only gone out into our meadow twice and that was for about 20 minutes at a time. Before the fire, Phoebe always spent a lot of time outside. I don't know how to bring something this sensitive up.

"Princess. You know that in my perfect world, I'd keep you inside to keep you safe from the world-" Yeah, great job at doing that Grey "- But, we've all noticed that you haven't been outside at all much over the past 5 days" I say. She breathes out.

"Dad…"

"We're just still worried about you" I say quickly.

"I get you are. But it just don't want to go out and get stared at" She says simply.

"…Your scars?" I ask tentatively. She just stays quiet. "Princess, you are beautiful. Always have been, always will be" I say and turn my head to look at her. Her head is still down and she's staring off into space.

"So I've been told. But I've looked in a mirror. I know what I look like" This is so wrong. Phoebe has never been self-conscious at her looks. Well if I can't help, maybe a professional can.

"Phoebe. Talk to the doctor about this. It's not right to feel like you can't go outside" I say. As I've said before, whenever there is a part of my children that I can't fix, it fucking destroys me. Phoebe's fear of elevators and now going outside.

"I'm sorry" I say after a few moments of silence.

"For what?" I sigh.

"After Lola was born, I promised you that nothing would ever happen to either to you. I failed at doing that" I say. I'm supposed to protect my family at all costs. When Ana was is hospital after being beat by Jack Hyde, I was so angry. At Hyde, Ana, Sawyer and Myself. Especially myself. If I hadn't gone to Portland, and instead just stayed in Seattle and talked with Ana, she wouldn't have been in hospital. That was my job as her husband. And I failed again when Phoebe was in hospital. As her father, I'm supposed to protect her as well.

"Please don't Daddy. I'm having a hard enough time trying to tell Austin that this wasn't his fault in anyway. Please don't feel guilty over this" she says.

"Can't help it, princess. It's a man thing" I try to explain.

"Still it's not your fault either, Dad. Please don't think that" She says. That's my princess, always thinking of others. She's always showed concern for others. Maybe her getting into a long term engagement will be a good thing. I always believe that Phoebe should have someone looking after her. But she's just so god damn stubborn and independent.

"You're my little princess, Phoebe. I can't help it"

"And you're important to me too. I love you Daddy" she says and leans more into my shoulder.

"I love you too, Princess" Then we go quiet. Lola's soft snoring the only real noise in the room. This is a treasured moment. And not one that happens often. Having children and having grand-children are completely different experiences. And I think I've taken to the role of grandfather well. I can't wait for more. However, that does not mean that I want Phoebe to get pregnant again. But thankfully, Ana has told me that Phoebe is being much more responsible and have no plans for children within the next few years. I want Phoebe to go to school, and get a decent qualification to get a good job.

"Alright Dad, Can you watch her for me for a minute. I just want to call Austin and see how he's doing" she says and goes to stand up.

"Of course I can" I smile and shift Lola so that's she in a more comfortable position to sleep.

"Thanks" she says, and walks out of the room to call Austin. For some reason it brings back a vivid memory of Phoebe when she was young. The first time she ever made me nervous.

-xXx-

…13 years ago

I roll my neck, and I hear it click. It's finally the end of the work week, and I'm looking forward to spending the weekend with Ana and the kids. I open the door to my home and I'm surprised that I'm not greeted by my kids barrelling down the hallway. It's completely quiet. I walk further into the house until I hear the sounds of Ana and the kids laughing coming from the TV room. I walk into the TV room and lean against the door frame taking in the scene before me. My beautiful wife, Ana is sat on the floor with my sons, playing with some Lego. All three have smiles on their faces and are totally oblivious that I'm watching them.

"Can I join in?" I say after a few minutes of just standing and watching them. All three turn around at the sound of my voice.

"Daddy!" My 4 year old son Oliver shouts. He jumps up to his feet and runs towards me. As soon as he is close to me I lift him in my arms and swing him around. Such a nice change from the crying I got from him this morning when he had to wake up for breakfast.

"How was today, bud? Have fun with mommy?" I ask him.

"Good. We played outside a lot today, and made a snowman" he says, and I can't help but get a little worried. After Phoebe's incident at school, I've made sure all of my children are extra careful about going out in the cold. I walk over to Ana and set Ollie down as I bend down and give Ana a lingering kiss on the lips. I hear a groan and I realise it's Ted.

"Dad, why do you have to kiss mom like that? Brandon's dad doesn't kiss Brandon's mom like that"

"I love your mom too much not too, son. You'll realise that eventually" I say, he raises his eyebrow and I ruffle his hair.

"How are you baby?" I ask Ana. She left work this afternoon to pick the kids up from school and be with them this afternoon while I stayed a work for an extra hour or so.

"I'm good. Your sons have been keeping me busy" She says and motions towards the half-way built Lego model.

"Where's Pheebs?" I ask. The presence of my daughter has not gone unnoticed.

"She's upstairs in her room. I think she's playing with her dolls" she explains and I nod. Phoebe has been playing in her room a lot lately.

"Daddy, will you help us?" Ollie asks.

"I'm just going to see Phoebe, then we'll see" I say.

"Dad will you help me with my homework?" Ted asks. I must be the go-to-guy for homework. Never has he once asked for Ana's help.

"Sure thing, champ. Later on, okay?" I check with him and he nods. My boys and Ana get back to their lego and I go in search of my little princess. I open her door and the pink of her bedroom strikes me. Just like it does every time. She is such as little girly-girl, and it drives me insane. I have to say I'll be glad when this phase ends; well, myself and Elliot. Thanks to our daughters; we know everything about the Disney princesses; from their names, to the movies they're in, to the songs they sing. We even did a knowledge quiz on them created by my father. I open her bedroom door even more and I see her. My little 6 year old daughter is dressed in Elsa's princess outfit, colouring in a picture that she's drawn. She only becomes aware of my presence when I sit down next to her.

"Daddy!" she says and crawls into my lap. she throws her arms around my neck and holds onto me. I, too, hold onto her.

"Hey princess. What are you doing in here?" I ask her, curious as to why she's not playing with Ana and the boys. She just shrugs.

"I didn't want to play with Lego" she slides off my lap and goes back to her colouring. I look at her for a few seconds before I grab a piece of paper and some of her crayons and draw along with her.

"What are you drawing Pheebs?" I ask, as I carefully put crayon to paper. I'm no artist, but maybe I can impress my 6-year-old.

"You and mommy" she says and I take a peek. There's me stood in a black suit with a crown on my head and Ana is stood in a full-length gown with a tiara on hers. Of course. I say to myself and shake my head but smile at the same time.

"Daddy, will I have a prince one day?" she asks and it confuses me.

"You have a prince right now. I'm your prince aren't I?" I ask seeking clarification.

"No, you're mommy's prince. Just like Uncle Lelliot is Auntie Katie's prince. When will I get a prince?" she asks looking directly at me with her curious grey eyes. What's she is really asking is; am I going to have a boyfriend/husband one day? I don't answer straight away. As soon as I found out that we were going to have a girl, I panicked because I knew that one day I was going to have this conversation with her. Then as soon as Phoebe was born, I knew I was totally fucked and that this little girl owned me. I'm dreading when she grows up. She has long brown hair and has a similar personality to Ana. In fact the only thing she got from me was her grey eyes. She is so sweet and innocent, and I'm determined to keep her that way. Although if she's having these conversations, well, I'm sweating slightly.

"Well... sweetie... you're too young for that, princess" Phoebe has never made me nervous like this before.

"But they make them happy. You make mommy happy. Prince charming makes Cinderella happy. I want to be happy too" she says, and drops her crayon to look at me. How do I explain this to a 6 year old? It's far too early for me to get into sex and how guys might use her. But I don't want to scare her into believing that the world is a scary place. The thought makes my fist clench. I suddenly think of the perfect way to explain it to her.

"Not everyone you meet are going to be princesses and princes. There are some frogs in the world. And it's my job as your daddy to make sure that you don't meet any frogs" I say. If I have it my way. She won't go on a date until she's about 30. Only then will she move out and be with a someone who treats her amazingly, and whom I approve of. Even that thought scares me a little.

"How do you know that you will pick the right one?" she asks, inquisitive little mind.

"Because Daddies always know what is best for their little princesses" I explain. She looks to the side for a minute, twists her lip like she is contemplating something and then comes right up to me.

"Make sure he is nice daddy, and that he lives in a big castle" she orders me.

"Of course, Miss Grey. But until then, I'm your prince. Ok?" I smile. She nods back at me and smiles. I have to make sure that Phoebe gets the best. I finish sketching and then hand it to Phoebe. It's a picture of her with a crown on her head.

"Thank you Daddy" she says. "I don't want to be big" she says and she walks away from me. She places the drawing on the desk.

"Why not princess?" I ask her. Although, I don't want her to grow up either.

"Because then I have to go to smelly work. I want to stay at school and do lots of paintings" she says. And I smile.

"Come on princess. How about we go downstairs and sit with mommy, Ted and Ollie" I ask her. I don't like her being upstairs on her own.

"I don't want to play with Lego" she says. I still believe that she is more stubborn than Ana.

"We'll find something on T.V. to watch" I say and hold my hand out for her to take it. I start to walk downstairs with Phoebe but then she says something that piques my interest.

"Has Uncle Lelliot picked a prince for Ava?" she asks.

"Why do you ask princess?"

"Because Jamie kissed Ava on the lips" I stop. Excuse me?

"What? What did you say Phoebe?" I ask her.

"We were playing and Jamie ran up to us and then kissed Ava and then he ran away again. Is Jamie Ava's prince?" I'm a little speechless. When Theodore was 6, he started to think that girls and kissing were 'gross'.

"Wait, princess, he hasn't tried anything with you has he?" I ask her.

"No Daddy" she says innocently. Wait until I tell Elliot about this. Shit will hit the fan.

"Ok well. You come and tell me right away if any boy does that to you. Got that, princess?" I ask her.

"Yeah… Why?" She asks. She can't have any concept of what this conversation means. I get it, they're kids. But no boy is coming near my daughter in that way.

"Because I said so" I run my fingers through my hair. I don't say that often, and because of that. My kids know to drop a subject whenever I say those words.

"Okay" she says simply. Hopefully I've dodged that bullet. We reach the bottom of the stairs and I pick Phoebe up and swing her to settle her on my shoulders. All the while she giggles. A wonderful, childish, innocent laugh. Why can't she stay this way forever? I hope she stays this way forever. A true daddy's girl. As the little girl who comes and sits on my knee and tells me all about what happened at school. I know that Elliot is having some minor troubles with Ava already in regards to make-up and clothes. But hopefully I can keep Phoebe young and dependent for a long while longer, and she will always be my little princess.

A/N

Again thank you to everyone who views, reviews, follows and favourites. You guys are amazing.

Danielle xX