Taylor's POV
Excellent, with Ana at Escala then security will be easier, much easier so I call Welch to let him know and he says he will come and speak to the Boss as soon as we are all moved in but in the meantime will start screening all the staff that the Boss has already organised to come in – nurses for 24 hour rotation, physios to help with the rehab, any staff that Claude is going to need to assist with the rehab and anyone else that he has thought of in the hours since he woke up. Ana was knocked out by some strong drugs last night and they have allowed her to sleep right through thankfully and even the Boss looks rested but tense.
My gorgeous Gail appears with a container filled with breakfast, it will be hours before we can transfer Ana as the paper work to allow this irregular discharge is more than expected and the Boss is adamant that the nurses from last night need to be reprimanded and discharged, he will ensure that the worst one will never work locally again either, her manner was appalling. It is a measure of his attention to Ana that he somehow didn't set that into place last night, she's changing him already, it was more important for him to be present with her so he did and left the admin alone, amazing. There's something troubling about both women but I don't think the Evil One's reach includes sending in fake nurses – we will be investigating it anyway because their manner was awful, no-one let alone the little one deserved that treatment.
The smell wafting out of the container is making my stomach grumble and seems to be making its way to Ana as well as she starts to stir. The Boss is at her side the second she makes the smallest sound and is stroking her hand when she slowly opens her eyes. As she focuses on his face inches from hers, a small smile appears on her lips but disappears as she looks at him. "What's the matter Christian?" and he looks confused and asks "What do you mean?" and she continues to look at him and says quietly, realising that Gail is in the room and she doesn't know her "You look angry" and he chuckles and says, "Oh baby, there's nothing the matter then, this is my normal state." She doesn't look particularly convinced but accepts the quick peck he gives her and he continues "Ana, let me introduce Mrs Jones" and the smile that lights up her face is strong enough to light a stadium.
"Oh Mrs Jones, it's a pleasure to meet you, your chocolate cake is divine, may I have your recipe please?" and Gail laughs and says "Miss Steele, it is lovely to meet you too and yes you can have the recipe." Ana says "Thank you and please call me Ana". The Boss says, "All staff are requested to use formal names, so Mrs Jones and all staff will be calling you Miss Steele" like that's the end of the story. So Gail then says "Miss Steele, I hope you're hungry, I have breakfast, Mr Grey suggested you would like some pancakes with syrup and I have included some apple and cinnamon muffins as well" and the little one looks at the Boss with the tiniest touch of defiance and says "Well, even though it smells delicious, I am not going to eat a bite until you call me Ana." Gail looks at the Boss who shakes his head and looks indulgently down at Ana and says "Go ahead Mrs Jones otherwise this stubborn girl will not eat" and Gail says "Ok Ana, how many pancakes would you like?" and with a huge grin on her face, Ana giggles and says "I'll take 2 pancakes and a muffin please Mrs Jones, do you have a first name?." "Ana…." the Boss growls and she just throws him a cheeky look and happily accepts the plate.
I notice it and I see the Boss notices it too as he stiffens, Ana grimaced as she reached for the plate but didn't say anything and the smile dimmed a little "Ana, are you ok, where are you hurting? You had a rough night last night." Ana just shakes her head as if to say "ignore it" but he is not letting go "Ana, I am filling in the report at the moment about the despicable behaviour of those nurses" and her eyes fill with tears as she says quietly "They scared me half to death." Well she may not realise it but she was a lot closer than 'half to death" last night. She continues with pain in her voice, "One looked like the she-devil and the other one had the same eyes as Cecilia. The one like the she-devil kept pushing me in the chest and holding me by the shoulders, I tried throwing her off with a judo move that Ray had taught me but I don't have enough range of movement and my shoulder didn't cope so it's a bit sorer now. I'll be right but I must have blacked out" and she shakes her head trying to remember what happened. "What happened last night? I remember you coming in and then I don't really remember much else."
And she looks at the Boss with a bewildered look on her face and he says like he really doesn't want to tell her "You collapsed and once your heart rate stabilised, they had to do a complete body scan to see what damage had been done to you. Those fucking animals damaged your ribs, your shoulder again and your pelvic fracture seems to have worsened". Before he has a chance to say any more, her lip quivers and she says through tears "I'm never getting out of here am I? There's no chance of me making graduation is there?" and he is straight down to her and cradling her in his arms until she calms. Then smiling reassuringly at her he says "On the contrary, I have completed all the forms this morning and you are leaving here today" and she looks confused and he continues a little triumphantly as he stands back "I am having you discharged into my care under the medical control of my mother"
Suddenly I have this feeling of impending doom and even Gail feels it because she moves closer to me and the little one says in a voice with an edge "Umm, did you think that perhaps I might like a say in my treatment?"
The silence is deafening as she crosses her arms and shoots daggers at him, the effect is partially reduced as she winced when she crossed her arms. Interesting, the Boss is used to issuing orders and everyone jumping, used to making decisions and having no-one question them, so as he contemplates what she said, he somehow stands taller and looks like he is going to handle it like he handles dissenters in meetings. As the anger flashes in his eyes, she somehow straightens and looks angrier, I wonder what is happening, they are staring at each other and the tension is unbearable. I don't know if she is doing it so that he can see that he can't run roughshod over her or for some other reason and then I see it in her eyes.
She's afraid and the Boss to his credit sees it too because he simply concertinas down in the chair next to her and grabs hold of the hand he can reach and sits there looking at her with concern written all over his face. "Baby, I just want you out of here so that I can guarantee your security, guarantee that you get the best support possible, guarantee that you get the best rehabilitation possible, guarantee that some crazy nurse isn't going to try and kill you in the middle of the night, guarantee that you will have time to study and guarantee that I will get you to graduation. If you are in my apartment, I can work and look out for you at the same time without having to deal with strangers wandering in and out at all times. My mother is happy to make sure everything medical that needs to be done is done and I just want you as comfortable as possible." And he pauses and then says in a conciliatory tone "I'm sorry, I'm used to making all the decisions and I realise you are used to making all your decisions too, see I told you I'd stuff up yesterday. I can stop the whole process if you want to stay here but please consider that what happened last night will never happen if you are safe on my premises."
At the acknowledgment of why she was upset and that he should have let her make or at least be part of the decision, Ana says "It would be nice to be out of here, somewhere that doesn't smell like a hospital. Somewhere that hopefully I can forget that I am a broken mess." She pauses for a bit, looks down at her hands like she is trying to come to some sort of decision and then says "Do you have a view?" and he laughs. "What about the whole Seattle skyline? Is that enough?" he says teasingly and she says "Ok, I'm sold and thank you." And he kisses her and then she says quietly, looking directly at him and I guess, trying to make him understand, "I'm sorry, I know that sounded rude because you have done so much already and are paying for everything but " and she pauses as her voice breaks "I need to be able to make my own decisions because whenever someone else makes the decisions for me, everything turns out bad. Can you please include me before you make a decision on my behalf? Let me have a say? Or this" and she waves her hand between them "isn't going to work." Ah ha, that tells me that they still haven't defined what it is that they have with each other, I don't think either wants to put a label on it in case it breaks it…
"Since this" and he waves his hand as well "is more important to me than anything else, I will say yes but please forgive me because I am going to forget and make decisions and need your forgiveness and acceptance after it. Can I promise to try and ask you first but if it relates to your safety, I may do first and ask your forgiveness later, if I am wrong?" and my respect for the little one increases as I can see that she really doesn't want to cede any control but one little sentence has caught her, "more important to me than anything else?" she whispers looking at him and there is nothing but truth in his voice when he responds "Anything" and she just shyly nods and smiles at him.
And Gail who never displays anything but pure professionalism when not in our rooms squeezes my hand and is looking at me with tears in her eyes. At my surprised look at her she seems to remember where we are and hustles to pick up the plate and pack everything back away but not before giving Ana a small smile and pat on her hand, it's like she needs to touch her to see if she is real.
"Thank you Mrs Jones, that was delicious, will you be cooking for me too if I move in?" Ana asks and at Gail's nod, she turns to the Boss and says "That settles it then, why are we all still here?" earning herself a laugh from all of us.
Christian's POV
"Umm, did you think that perhaps I might like a say in my treatment?" God she sounds like a spoilt little teenager that's always had her own way and after everything I have done for her so far, what is her problem? Oh but she's so sexy when she's angry. I can't think about that! I do need her out of here, I can't function like I have been, I need her where I can see her at all times and make sure she's safe. I am a Dominant, I know that I am right and I look after everyone I care about, I know what's best, I have to look after her otherwise I might lose her, I can't lose her. She is the air that I breathe at the moment, although this hospital air is pretty disgusting.
Hang on, her eyes are the window to her soul and she looks scared, I know she's not scared of me, she hasn't had any reason to be scared of me. Yet. What is it? What am I missing? From everything I know of her I know she's not a petulant teenager. Why is she scared? Surely she's not scared that I'll do something to her? What is it? Her eyes have changed to the deepest blue and I am drowning in them, what is she trying to tell me….Let me think, how would I feel if that was me?... There, I've got it.
God, she's scared of losing control of her life, she has had to make decisions for herself all her life, oh I've got this honey, I understand exactly where you are coming from. Ha, if we weren't here I would be laughing about the fact that I thought Ana could be my submissive, she doesn't have a submissive bone in her or if she did, it has been broken by someone along the way so now she needs to be in control. I understand even though I came to that understanding through the ministrations of Elena rather than life in general. We are quite a pair, quite a pair. Baby, I'll give you whatever control you need but I will look after you first.
I so want to sing the Hunter Hayes song "Wanted" that I put on her iPad, it is not available for the public as he is still finessing it for market but owning a recording studio has benefits because I get to hear songs that aren't available to the public yet. However breaking into song right now wouldn't be appropriate so I will make sure she has a chance to listen to the song later by adding it to the playlist as the next song to play. The words in the song say what I need her to understand.
You know I'd fall apart without you
I don't know how you do what you do
'Cause everything that don't make sense about me
Makes sense when I'm with you
Like everything that's green, girl I need you
But it's more than one and one makes two
Put aside the math and the logic of it
You gotta know you want it too
'Cause I wanna wrap you up
Wanna kiss your lips
I wanna make you feel wanted
And I wanna call you mine
Wanna hold you hand forever
Never let you forget it
Yeah, I wanna make you feel wanted
Anyone can tell you you're pretty
You get that all the time, I know you do
But your beauty's deeper than the makeup
And I wanna show you what I see tonight
When I wrap you up
When I kiss your lips
I wanna make you feel wanted
And I wanna call you mine
Wanna hold you hand forever
Never let you forget it
'Cause baby I wanna make you feel wanted
As good as you make me feel
I wanna make you feel better
Better than your fairy tales
Better than your best dreams
You're more than everything I need
You're all I ever wanted
All I ever wanted
And I just wanna wrap you up
Wanna kiss your lips
I wanna make you feel wanted
And I wanna call you mine
Wanna hold you hand forever
Never let you forget it
Yeah, I wanna make you feel wanted
Yeah, baby I wanna make you feel
Wanted
'Cause you'll always be wanted
I don't know how it has happened but she is truly more important to me than anything else and while she may have a hard time believing it, it feels right to me. Having her where I can make decisions for her and take care of her is my driving force at the moment, it's more than when I was obligated as a Dom to look after my sub, it is much more. I don't know where these feelings are coming from but I need her to understand what I feel and so I quietly suggest she listen to my latest playlist before I go off in search of my mother and try and get us all out of here.
"Mom, this goes above you. This has to go to the board, how did two individuals like this make it into the hospital let alone being the carers of someone with such severe injuries. I didn't see their names, I was more worried about Ana but scarily, one looked like Elena and Ana said, the other one had the same eyes as the girl who ran her off the road. Can you make sure I get their names so I can do some background checking to see if there is any link to Elena, I wouldn't put it past her, at all?"
At Elena's name, Mom's back stiffens and she goes off to find the details for me and I continue to speak to the lead doctor on Ana's care. The doctor knows mom well and is happy with the care to continue although at any sign of distress, he wants Ana back and I am more than happy to oblige. He provides a detailed program of when she needs to be back for cast removal and replacement and the types of exercises that are to be undertaken at each stage, the results and problems we should be expecting and my body hurts on Ana's behalf, the next six weeks are going to be so tough for her.
My angst at the fact that this is my fault returns but I squash it down to re-enter the room where Ray has appeared and is sitting with Ana as she undertakes her exercises, grimacing as the pain in her pelvis restricts the amount of movement she can make. I see her determinedly do her shoulder exercises, knowing again that the strain on her shoulder must be killing her and I say "Remember the extra damage from last night and slow it down" and she shoots daggers at me as if I have reminded her of something she wanted to forget but it is Ray that says, "Morning Christian, what happened last night?" and looks at her. Ana blushes and then I realise that the physio may not have been told either and I say "Stop, have the notes been updated since last night?" and at the shake of the physio's head, I nearly combust on the spot. "Are you fucking kidding me? Ana collapsed last night after being effectively assaulted by two nurses after she had a night terror and they re-damaged her shoulder, made the ribs worse and have widened the pelvic fracture – surely the notes were updated? How fucking useless is this hospital, I'm so glad you won't be here any longer. Stop now, do not do any more exercises until you" and I point at the physio "know what has changed because of the extra damage."
I realise that Ana may not have told Ray about the move so I say "Ray, I don't know if you know that I have organised for Ana's security for her to be moved out of the hospital to be under the supervision of my mother and we are moving her out today" and for some reason I really don't want to say to my apartment as I don't want him to misconstrue my intentions but I want him to continue to assist and realise I have to bite the bullet and say "I have room at my apartment and with my onsite security and housekeeping staff, I can ensure that Ana is well looked after without worrying about who will appear in her room." He looks at me and I know his prior warnings are more than applicable and I add, "I have an additional guest room if you wish to stay or you are welcome to continue at the Fairmont and come in and assist as you have here, it's actually closer than here and I can ensure that Carla does not visit as we have a private elevator, it can only be accessed with a code." I feel damn uncomfortable and realise that one of the benefits of having subs was that I never had to meet the father of a sub, so I never had to feel like I was taking something of value from someone, with Ray I can tell that even though he doesn't seem to mind me, I am taking away his little girl.
Finally Ray says "I can't stay much longer as I have to get back to work, so if I could use the guest room and make sure that Ana is happy, then after a couple more days, I can go home and then drop in periodically, is that ok with you Ana?" and I can see she is upset that her father isn't going to be there for much longer but she nods and pushes back her shoulders, breathes in and grimaces, her eyes flick up to mine and she says apologetically "It's ok, somehow I keep forgetting!", the girl really doesn't have any self-preservation genes.
As the clearance and final tests are to take another hour or so, I decide that Taylor and I will return to Escala to organise it and we'll be back to pick up Ana and Ray before lunch in an SUV as the R8 is only a 2 seater, a quick kiss and I am out the door.
As we get to the car, Taylor says "Can I drive as I have some information that Welch gave me last night and you might react, so I'd like to be driving?" Sure, it's just an excuse to drive the car because he never gets the opportunity but I am strangely amenable to anything at the moment, Ana is moving into my apartment – woohoo!
However Taylor then goes onto to tell me how last night Welch figured out that he knew Frank Lambert, Ray and Carla on base and about Carla's sordidness from before Ana's birth. My non-existent heart clenches that my beautiful girl has had a less than ideal life from before birth and my estimation of Ray increases as I realise what he did, giving her the feeling of being wanted when she hadn't been from conception. I also understand his desire to protect Ana but then Taylor completely floors me with the giggle comment that Welch made. I know that Ana's giggle has the power to heal but to know that it literally had helped Welch back from the brink makes me more determined that Ana should never again know a life where giggles were not the norm. I vow to make it my mission to ensure that I hear her giggle at least once a day – for her sake and everyone around her including me.