It was late at night but the landing zone lights were bright enough to make it feel like the middle of the day. Christian ducked his head as he jumped off the helicopter with Ryan right on his heels. He'd left Reynolds behind at the hospital to assist in the search for Martinez. Sawyer wanted a location on Sean MacaBee. According to Luke, even if Martinez had been able to make that shot in the past, there was no way he'd be making it after the stomping his hands took.

Christian started up the steps and saw an armed man with a German Shepherd who appeared to be some kind of sentry. Welch came out on the porch and called the man over. Welch introduced Christian to Klaus and his canine companion Blitz. Klaus requested Christian to stand still and allow the dog to sniff him. As the dog sniffed an uneasy Christian, Klaus spoke to him in German, identifying Christian as a friend.

As he walked into the house, a frustrated, tired, sweating Christian demanded angrily, "Whose fucking idea was that? I hate fucking dogs."

"Actually, it was mine."

Christian froze, amid step. Slowly he turned and saw Ana standing just outside the door to their bedroom.

"I would have asked you but you were never here and you never called. I guess out of sight, out of mind, eh?"

Christian stared at the petite brunette with the striking blue eyes. She was wrapped in a long, flowing silk robe and barefoot. He stood staring as he felt all the tension in his life melt away. How did she do that? He felt the stiffness leave his posture, he felt the tension in his neck fade away,and slowly, ever so slowly, he smiled. "I'm late, aren't I?"

Ana nodded.

"A friend of ours went into labor."

"I know."

Christian's grin widened. "I have pictures!" he announced.

Ana squealed with delight and ran to his side. "I wanted to go with her so bad." She lamented.

"It's okay. She had Taylor."

"How are they doing?"

"The doctor said they will know more after 48 hours. Some problems take a while to manifest, like digestive issues. They're both on respirators but that's almost normal for their size." Christian answered as he handed his phone to Ana.

"Oh my god! They are so beautiful!" Ana cooed as her free hand automatically went to her belly. Christian watched her hand caress her bulging belly, somewhat shocked by the prominent baby bump. Christian looked down at Ana in dismay. How could he have ever left her side? He felt a sea of conflicting emotions rise inside him, tender love and joyful pride over Ana's pregnancy, shame and a dogged fear he would prove a disastrous husband and an even worse father. "Ana, I'm sor..."

Ana cut off his apology by putting her index finger against his lips and whispered softly, "Not now."

He sighed in acceptance and silently nodded.

"Are you hungry?" She asked softly.

Christian shook his head no as he felt her hand clasp his and with a gentle tug, she started leading him to their bedroom. He felt his heart rate spike and his breathing quicken. Flynn's advice echoed in his mind, actions speak louder than words. Every touch, every kiss has to express his love, the depth of his love, but he didn't want to scare her. As obsessed as Christian was with Ana, Flynn said any normal woman would run away a long time ago. Christian had asked him then, did that mean Ana wasn't normal? Flynn had replied, "What's normal? Ana needs you, warts and all. Many women would find you an overbearing, arrogant ass. Ana doesn't. She is not submissive, she chooses to allow your love full reign. She chooses to bask in your love. You will have to wait and see what changes this latest escapade of yours has created in your relationship."

Christian heard the door shut and found himself standing in their bedroom in front of twin beds.

Ana nodded at the single bed on the right, "That is yours."

Christian felt his heart sink, but managed to nod his agreement as he wondered what separate beds meant. Was their physical relationship over? Temporarily suspended? Was she done with him? The sheer terror the thoughts brought had him suddenly gasping for air? Immediately, she was by his side her hand interwoven with his, kneeling in front of him, blue eyes filled with concern. Her other hand slowly meandered through his hair, gently massaging his scalp and gradually, his breathing evened out.

"What was that? " she asked softly, her blue eyes filled with concern.

Christian hung his head in shame.

Ana observed his reaction with dismay, wondering what, if anything, this new wrinkle in Christian's personality meant.

"Remember when you told me you were fifty shades of fucked up? I think we need to edit that. You are at least 52 shades of fucked up, and, if it's any consolation, I am at least 51." She continued, trying to put them on equal footing,

Christian couldn't help the snort that came out of his mouth. He looked up at Ana with a grin. "Are you trying to say we deserve each other?"

"No, just that we are more alike than we are different. We have to be able to forgive each other for the crazy things we sometimes do and say and remember neither one of us asked for any of these fifty shades we were given and the only way we can learn to live with them is if we do it together."

Christian listened to her soft, husky voice, and reached for her, knowing she was close to tears, but before he could console her, the tears started to fall and she fell forward against his chest and just started sobbing, "Please don't leave again. Please! I can't go through this again, I'm not strong enough, I need you, here with me, by my side. Please, please, don't leave mel"

In the far corner of the room, comfortably curled up in a large pet bed, a white dog lifted her head and quietly observed her mistress and the new intruder. Concerned at her Mistress's distress, she sniffed the air, catching the man's scent. He had a pleasing scent, and had mated with the Mistress before. No doubt he was the father of the pup Mistress carried. She then carefully studied his posture. Confident the new male presented no threat to her Mistress, the dog dropped her head, resting it on the dog bed, content to observe the two from afar.

Christian scooted over a bit on the bed, then pulled Ana close to him. He pulled the blankets over the two of them and held her close. His hands trembled ever so slightly. He wanted to say something, anything to reassure her but the lump in his throat wouldn't let him. His arms tightened around her, trying to protect from everything, trying to let her know she was safe, safe from anyone who ever wanted to hurt her, himself included, but he still couldn't talk. He paced a reverent kiss on her cheek and commanded in a hoarse whisper, "Sleep." She immediately opened her eyes, forcing Christian to grin. "If you so choose," he added cheekily. Ana smiled back and closed her eyes. Both fell asleep almost immediately.

Christian awoke to the harsh rays of the early morning sun. He tried to open his eyes but they were thick with sleep and the bright light of the sun hurt. Then he felt it. Something wet on his face. It almost felt like a tongue but Ana's tongue...oh my god! Christian's heart started to hammer in his body as sheer panic claimed him. It was a dog. A big dog. He was also pretty certain it was one of the huge vicious dogs used to guard against intruders. He had to protect Ana. He shifted his body completely covering her. The dog suddenly leaped up into the bed and carefully weaving around the human occupants, found just enough room to curl up by Christian's feet. Then the long rough tongue started washing his foot. Christian didn't know what to do. He couldn't reach his phone and he was afraid to move. Then Ana poked her head up, shoving his arm out of the way. She smiled as she saw Bianca washing Christian's feet. She shook her head from side to side, "Geez, Grey, even Bianca knows you're the boss. She's grooming you."

"It's not funny, Ana. This is a dangerous situation. This dog is a trained killer, isn't she?"

"No, Christian. This dog is a stray I took in. I'd like to say I adopted her but I think it's more the other way around. I think she adopted me. She is a terrific watch dog. Sawyer has worked with her and she knows some simple commands, in Spanish, of course. Please don't be afraid. You are safe. She acknowledges you as her alpha. She just wants to please you."

"Can you get her off the bed?" Christian asked, unable to hide all his fear.

"Have you tried telling her to get down?" Ana asked knowingly.

"Please, Ana, now is not the time."

"If you want her to get off, call her name, point to the floor and tell her in a firm voice, "get off!" If she doesn't get off, give her a gentle nudge with your foot."

"Are you crazy?"

"Try it, please?" Ana implored.

"I don't even know her name." Christian hissed.

"Bianca." Ana whispered softly.

Christian sighed and said softly, "Bianca, get off the bed."

Bianca paused in her grooming of Christian's foot. She lifted her head and turned to stare at him. Quickly deciding her master would be far happier being groomed, she returned to washing the underside of Christian's foot.

"Oh, god," he groaned.

"Christian! Be firm. Say it like you mean it. Pretend it's Elliot sitting on your desk with mud and cement all over his pants."

"Bianca! Off!" Christian commanded.

The big, white shepherd like dog immediately stood and leaped off the bed, only to immediately spot the pile of discarded clothes Christian had left on the floor. Bianca sniffed them happily and then immediately circled and collapsed her body over the pile.

"Boy, she sure likes you. What did you do, get up in the middle of the night and feed her a steak?"

"Hardly. What is she doing in here?"

"You didn't figure it out yet? She sleeps with me. It's just an added precaution. She's kind of like my close security. Blitz is like covert security. I know he's there, but I usually don't see him. Bianca, on the other hand, is always nearby, she always has her eyes on me. She is very discerning and she's just very protective. If she doesn't like someone, if they make her growl, then they're banished.

"You are not trying to say if this dog didn't like me, I would be banished?"

"You watch her Christian, you will see. She seems to know instinctively who is safe to trust and who is a threat."

"Ana, that's ridiculous."

"In Ecuador, background checks are non existent or meaningless. Bianca, on the other hand, one whiff of a new worker and she either accepts them or growls. If she growls, well, it's like failing a background check. She unmasked an electrician who was actually working for TMZ. I am certain Security would have caught on to him eventually, but Bianca knew from the beginning. She would always growl whenever she saw him."

Christian grunted. "How about breakfast in bed?"

Ana burst out laughing, "Christian! Look around you, we are not in Escala, not to mention Maria made breakfast at six this morning. It's almost 12:30, so it's lunch time now."

"Are you trying to say I can't have breakfast?"

"Maria is very busy. She makes all our meals from scratch and cleans our room and does our laundry. Today she is training someone to take over cooking for security. She has lunch set up and we can just serve ourselves."

"Are you telling me I am paying someone to be my personal chef and I can't have whatever I want? That is ridiculous. I want breakfast and I want it now. If I can't have it, she's fired."

Ana sighed. "Christian, please. Listen to me. Everything has been running very smoothly. Everyone is happy. You can't just show up and disrupt everything. If Maria is unhappy, she will leave. Her husband and sister will leave, her four nephews will leave. There will be no one to cook or clean, no one to take care of the animals and the garden, no one to fix whatever breaks, and no one to maintain the grounds. No one will want to work here when they find out the owner is a demanding asshole."

"I'll have staff flown in from the States."

Ana laughed long and hard. "The States! Do you honestly expect someone from the States to make the two dozen loaves of bread we gave been going through every other day from scratch? Are they ready to go to market everyday to buy fresh killed chickens and pluck them? Life here is very labor intensive. You will have a very hard time hiring someone. Stop thinking of yourself and think of others."

"Actually, I was thinking of you. I want you to be able to have whatever you want, whenever you want it."

"That is so sweet, but i dont need anything. Now, come on. I'm getting hungry. Go. Take a shower and get dressed, we will see what Maria left us."