Anastasia

Although the day spent at home, well at Christian's home since my flat is still surrounded by paparazzi, was wonderful, I feel restless and am in need of work. There's no news of Carla, which is both good and bad I suppose. I keep on imagining all the different scenarios that might play out if we would meet. I'm imagining that Carla would have changed, that she would now be the mother I always hoped she were, but it's not realistic, I know. It's just as farfetched as the scenario where Rob throws a sack over my head and drags me away kicking and screaming.

I've not made up my mind yet, do I want to see her? I'm curious, and if dad's will really has some issues I'd like to know about it. Carrick has kept us posted about the quest to find out everything about dad's last will and testament, but he hasn't gotten far, as another case at the office has taken up a lot of his time.

I turn my head towards the floor to ceiling windows, and watch the morning sun bring the city to life. I stretch and feel Christian's breath on my skin just before he presses a gentle kiss onto my bare shoulder.

"Good morning beautiful." He wraps his arms around me and pokes me with his erection.

"Morning Christian."

"I love waking up with you... I can't resist your body." He glides his hands over my breasts, down my tummy and down to my hips, where he stops as he feels that I'm wearing PJs.

"Why are you dressed?" He sounds confused.

"Um..." I don't quite know how to sugarcoat this, so I don't. "I'm bleeding."

"What?!" He jolts up, scanning my body for injuries. I roll my eyes, and smile.

"You know, shark week, strawberry days... Also known as the period."

"Oh. Jeez, I thought you were hurt, it almost gave me a fucking heart attack." He drops back onto the bed and throws his arm over his eyes.

I can't help smiling at his reaction as I snuggle into his armpit and lay my head on his chest. I sigh, as he places the arm that was on his face, around my body. His fingers stroke my back, drawing circles and spirals as we just lay there silent.

"So you are ok?"

"Yeah... I'm fine I suppose."

I trail my fingers over his chest, drawing just as mindless spirals on his skin as he does on mine. The familiar current buzzes between the tips of our fingers and the skin it's moving on. Before I even realize it, I've reached his happy trail and a few inches lower his morning wood is still on full mast.

I grip his cock and stroke it, slowly twisting my wrist and flicking my thumb over the tip. Christian groans and catches my hand, stopping me from moving.

"What are you doing?"

"Fondling my boyfriend... Something wrong?"

I move my hand up and down his shaft again, Christian is still holding his hand on mine, but I feel his grip soften.

"Ah... Definitely nothing wrong with that. Just if you're... How do I put this... out of order."

Did I hear that right? I bite the inside of my cheek not to burst into laughter.

"That's... Um... One way to put it." And that's as far as I get until I can't hold in the laughter anymore.

Christian looks at me, his lips slowly turning into an amused smile as laugh so hard I have to wipe off tears from my eyes.

"Or are you up for sex?" He asks.

"On my period?! Oh God, no! That's just..." I shudder and can't even find a word for it, with the cramps I usually get and the amount of bleeding the bedroom will look like a damn crime scene.

"People do it, you know."

"Yeah, I know. But those people don't have my period." Christian's confused expression requires me to explain a bit better. "How would I describe it...? Um... It's like my whole uterus is being torn apart with tweezers, yeah. That's fairly accurate. So really, there's no fucking way, anything is going in."

Christian frowns.

"Are you in pain now?" Huh? I pause and actually think about how I'm feeling before I answer him.

"No, and that's a bit odd. But maybe it's the hormones of the pills that changed it?"

"That might be." Christian replies me barely audibly. As I realize that I'm still gripping his cock, I start to stroke him with renewed determination.

"Now, where was I?" I give him a cheeky smile as he sighs, clearly enjoying my touch.

"I believe you were fondling your boyfriend… Ah…" He gasps as I twist my wrist while I pump him.

I look straight into his beautiful grey eyes and then let my eyes wonder over his body until reaching his erection. I see the tip glisten so I bend down and lick off the salty dewdrop, making Christian hiss through his teeth. I take the tip into my mouth and flick my tongue around it before taking him in as far as I can, and then repeating it all over again, while continuing to stroke him at the same time with my hand. Christian starts to thrust, his fingers weaved into my hair, holding me in my place, controlling the accelerating rhythm.

"Oh... Fuck... Ana!" he moans loudly as he thrusts one final time and I feel him shooting his load into my throat.

I swallow and feel utterly satisfied with myself. Christian somehow manages to flip us over so that he is on top of me and he kisses me, our tongues twisting and turning around each other.

"Oh, I definitely love waking up next to you… I owe you one though." He pecks me on the lips once more.

"I'll keep that in mind," I wink at him.

"So, I'm going to the office, what are you doing today?" Christian asks after showering and getting dressed.

"I'm going to the shelter… Hanging around here all day long, doing nothing but paint, is driving me nuts."

He frowns, but doesn't complain.

"Just take Gwen with you, and be careful, ok?"

"Yes, dear." I resist rolling my eyes as I know he only means well.

An hour later we drop Christian off at GEH, and Taylor drives Gwen and me to the shelter. Since Christian hasn't mentioned anything about Carla, I decide to take advantage of the situation.

"Taylor…" His eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror. "Have you heard any news about Carla?"

He purses his lips and shakes his head no, before he starts to talk.

"They are still waiting in Portland it seems."

"They are expecting me to call again?"

"Most likely."

"Didn't Welch's report say that they are broke? How can they stay at a hotel for this long?" I ask out loud, not really expecting an answer.

"We are trying to find that out. We have a lead, but nothing concrete." Taylor says and turns his focus to the traffic and I sit back in my seat and look at the houses going by, not really focusing on anything.

We sit in silence for the rest of the way. I'm grateful for the few answers he gave me, at least we know that they are in Portland, as that's better than Seattle anyway. I glance at Taylor through the mirror and smile wistfully, as I realize that this is the most we've ever spoken without Christian present.

As we get closer to the shelter I start to feel anxious. It's annoying really, since I was actually looking forward to working today, but again the thought of Carla and Rob has gotten to me. I wonder if I'll ever be at ease with them this close to me, I prefer them at least a few states further away. And to top it all off, Leila will probably be all over my case, since I was MIA yesterday and I'm so not in the mood to talk to her.

We arrive at the shelter and get indoors without any hassle, there are no paparazzi waiting, nor anything else out of the ordinary. Taylor leaves us with the instructions to call him when we need to leave. He'll arrange a driver, or come to pick us up himself, depending on the situation at GEH.

"I think I'll check the to-do list first, you want to come with me, or you want to stay here?" I look at Gwen who has taken off her jacket and is rolling up her sleeves.

"I'll come with you, what's the point in me loitering around, right? Besides, I like helping over here." She gives me a smile.

Walking over to Leila's office I get nervous, as I have no idea what I will meet there, is it the third degree, the cold shoulder or the regular Leila. I knock on the door, noticing for the first time the chipped paint and the worn handle. I really haven't noticed it before, the Escala effect is obviously getting to me though. Man, I'm totally out of touch what it's like to exist in the real world, after being just a few weeks at the penthouse.

"Come in." I look at Gwen, who looks back at me with a confused expression. That voice is definitely not Leila's. I know whose it is, but what is she doing here?


Christian

The meeting with the department heads was surprisingly easy, and to my delight they've reached their goals for the second week in a row now. I have to say, that I'm pleased that they've managed to turn around and fix the glitches in the procedures of their respective departments. I'm also relieved, because it proves that my people reading skills haven't been trashed by Elena's trial and the whole damn bachelor of the year thing.

I sit by my desk and go through the memo Ros has left for me. I asked her to research the opportunities for GEH to participate in local charities, especially focusing on shelters and runaway children. She gave me a funny look, but didn't comment anything, and now I've got 4 concrete suggestions on the table.

I haven't told Ana yet, but I'm seriously thinking that GEH might take over the shelter, or at least invest in it officially. I never told her that I invested in it personally, and I wonder if she has guessed who the anonymous donor was. I lean back in my chair and close my eyes, imagining the spark in her baby blue eyes as she finds out, how she'll jump into my arms and I'll lift her up and kiss her while hugging her and turning us around. Get a grip, Grey, why don't you run with her through the meadow and throw daisies for fuck's sake. Oh yes, I imagine her lying naked beneath my body in the meadow… The sun is warming us, not that we need to be warmed as we are making love, sweat glistening on our bodies…

My daydream is rudely interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Mr. Grey. There's someone here to see you. Matthew, from downstairs, told them that they needed to make an appointment, but they refuse to leave without meeting you." Andrea frowns, probably cursing the new employee for not following procedure.

"Do you know who it is?"

"A woman and a man, but I don't know their names, sir."

"Notify Taylor. I'll meet with him first and then I'll go to meet this couple if we decide that it's safe. Clear the downstairs conference room, I don't want them any further into GEH than necessary." The fact that the room is monitored and the cameras will be rolling is another reason to keep the meeting there.

"Alright, I'll let security know, just to keep them alert, in case there's an issue."

"Thank you, Andrea." I nod at her, and she goes to do as I told her, no questions asked, no questions needed.

A few minutes later, Taylor enters my office.

"So, do we know who they are?"

"Yes, sir." The frown on his face is all I need to know.

"Carla and the fucker?"

He purses his lips, and nods.

"How can they be here? Why the fuck didn't Welch's guy notify us that they've left Portland?"

"Welch is looking into it, but it seems that someone fucked up." That's putting it mildly.

"Is it that same fucking guy who lost them before? If it is, he is gone. And even if it isn't, he's gone anyway unless he has some fucking good reason for not notifying us." I have no idea what reason could be good enough to save his ass, and I'm fucking furious at this gross incompetence. I'm supposed to have the best of the best on my team, not some shitheads who don't know their asses from their elbows.

"Yes, sir."

I button my jacket and push my fingers through my hair, trying to reign my emotions. I don't want Carla and the fucktard to see that they've got to me.

"Let's go see what they want," I say already halfway to the elevator.

I breathe deeply while the elevator descends to street level, Taylor is standing behind me, and as I look at him through the mirror his expression is totally unreadable. He's calm cool and collected, while I barely manage to control my emotions, the memory of the fear in Anastasia's eyes as she smelled the whiskey on my breath is all that's needed for my blood to start boil with fury again. Control yourself, Grey.

The elevator opens and we step outside, immediately scanning the lobby and locating Carla with Rob sitting on the leather couches by the window. They are sitting and talking, their voices quiet but her body language is screaming of disagreement. She realizes my presence first, and nudges him with her elbow as I approach. He turns around and plasters a fake smile on his face as he stands up to shake my hand.

I'm a lot taller than him, so I just look down at him and his outstretched hand, until he realizes I'm not going to shake it and he pulls it back, wiping his obviously sweaty palms on his trousers. Carla has also stood up, but she does not make a move towards me.

They both look worn, the years of excessive alcohol use clearly visible on their faces, but they don't seem drunk now, not even hung over.

"Mr. Grey. I'm Rob Thomas and this is Carla Steele, I'm sure Carla's daughter Anastasia has told you about us." He starts talking and my stomach turns as he says her name.

"I know who you are," I reply him curtly. "Let's do this in private." I turn around and walk to the conference room Matthew has emptied for us.

Taylor stands by the door as Rob and Carla walk through it, I notice her eyeing him and looking confused as he closes the door and stays inside with us.

"He's security." I answer her unasked question. He's here to keep me safe, and to keep me from ripping your sorry asses into pieces.

"Mr. Grey. May I call you Christian?" Carla finally speaks.

"Mr. Grey will do for now." My tone is serious and she swallows, clearly intimidated by me.

"Mr. Grey, I'm worried about my daughter." She starts and catches my attention, the tone of her voice is definitely not what I was expecting. She twists her fingers in her lap and glances towards Rob every now and then, as if seeking his approval. I lean forward in my chair at the end of the desk, giving her my full attention, while ignoring Rob totally.

"Go on Mrs. Steele."

"I've tried to contact her. I am sure you are aware of that, but as I've not gotten any reply from her, I started to feel worried that something might have happened to her." I have to work very hard to keep my posture as the lies just roll off her tongue. Clearly she doesn't know, that I was with Ana when she made the call.

"I've heard that you have been seeing her, so I thought maybe you'd know where she is."

"Yes, we are together, but I have no intention to disclose her whereabouts to you."

"Can you at least tell me that she's alright?" She attempts to sound like a distraught mother, but she's not fooling me.

"She was alright, before you left her the letters. She has made a good life for herself, in spite of what she went through."

Rob scoffs. "She told you those old lies?"

I shoot him a deadly glare, which he ignores.

"She was so jealous for my relationship with Carla, so she made up these crazy ideas, and turned her grandparents against us." Rob continues.

I meet Taylor's eyes, and I see him flexing his jaw. Can you believe this fucker? I glance at Carla, who is looking down, picking on her fingernails.

"I'm sure that the officers who took her statement and were soon after reassigned, would be of a different opinion." I chose my words carefully, as I want him to know that I know, but I don't want him to know how much I know.

"Feel free to ask them, I'm sure they'll be more than pleased to talk to you." He answers with a smug grin on his face. I'm sure that he knows, that the officers are six feet under by now.

"Maybe I should talk to Petersen instead, he might shed some light on the situation, with a bit of persuasion." I realize Rob's shoulders twitch by the mention of Petersen's name, but Carla seems once again confused as she glances at Rob.

A heavy silence falls over the room as we look at each other. Rob soon starts to fidget under my stare, he might be an ex-cop, but I have the upper hand here, and he knows it.

"So, will you tell her that we are here to see her or not?" Carla breaks the silence.

"No, I will not."

"See, I told you she was right." Rob remarks, and this seems to light a fire in Carla.

"Mr. Grey, I do not appreciate that you are keeping my daughter from seeing me. Is she allowed to leave the apartment even?" Carla's voice raises. "Who do you think you are? Telling her what she can or can't do."

What the fuck?

"I am not telling her anything. She makes her own decisions and she has made it perfectly clear that she does not want to see you. Especially you." I point at Rob. "I'm sure you are aware of your daughter's feelings, since you lied to her on the phone." Carla's cheeks go pale as she realizes that I knew about the phone call all along.

"What about her inheritance? You'll keep that from her too?" She tries again, not bothering to defend herself for lying about the call.

"If, and I emphasize if, there is an inheritance that belongs to her, her lawyer will handle it."

"What about my share?" Carla obviously trips over some pre-agreed line as Rob nudges her below the table and gives her a nasty look.

"If the will includes your name, you'll get what's rightfully yours, and after that I expect you and that," I nod towards Rob, "to crawl back to from wherever the hell you came from."

I stand up and leave, not being able to take these people any longer.

"Make sure they leave." I tell Taylor as I pass him, and head straight for the elevator not looking back.


AN: Thank you for reading! A special thank you for the reviewers, I read them all although I have not had time to reply.

I know there's been a break in updates, and I can say that it'll take some time before the following chapter will be ready since I really have no time to write. Besides, living in a box jungle doesn't help my creative juices to flow. I reserve the right to change my mind and update sooner if possible.

H xx