Hello Readers! If you're new to the story, you can disregard this Author's Message! If you are returning, I would recommend going back to the Preface. I re-wrote some of it (finally after about a year) and added some vital information to the storyline.

Thank you all for reading!

Chapter 1 – Love You in Silence

One Month Later

Ana walked down one of the enormous hallways that resided in the Bellevue Palace. Chandeliers and huge golden adornments filled the hall as extravagances. Mirrors lined the walls like giant canvases filled with bright reflections.

The past month in her new placement has kept her busy. She was unsure if she could handle her promotion from Andrea's assistant to the Prince's personal assistant. Yet, she owed it to the Prince to try her hardest. She owed everything to the Prince. He was, after all, the one who gave her the job to keep her afloat while living in the Palace.

Lost in thought, Ana almost ran into Prince Elliot's chest.

At the young age of twenty-three, Elliot flaunted his Royal status for his daily liaisons and nightly escapades. Nevertheless, Elliot and Ana had been best friends since their youth, and her three-year stay away did not change that fact.

"I am so sorry Prince Elliot!" Ana exclaimed.

"It's alright Ana, and stop calling me Prince, there's no one else around in this hall," Elliot laughed. "Where are you off to? You seemed lost in your head a minute ago?"

"I'm headed to the Crown Prince's study, I've been summoned to bring these meeting papers to him," she gestured to the stack of papers she was carrying.

"Christians office you say? I think I'll pay him a visit also; you know I like to ruffle his feathers. He's always too damn serious!" Elliot exclaimed.

Elliot hardly followed in his older brothers' footsteps and, for the most part, chose to ignore his Royal duties much to the King and Queen's chagrin.

Ana giggled in agreeance. "He can be a bit serious sometimes, but he is going to be the King one day," she stressed.

"I would hate to be the king if I had to be all stuffy and square like Christian and my Father," Elliot grumbled.

"Yes, well we know how stuffy you are," she quipped back. His boisterous laugh was his response.

Ana giggled alongside him and continued her way down the hall. Elliot followed her making idle chit-chat.

"Say... Ana, is that cousin of yours I see around here steady with anyone? I would love to take her out on a date," Elliot questioned as he bumped elbows with her on their walk towards Prince Christian's office.

"Katherine?" Ana hesitated, "No, she's not tied to anyone, but Elliot, no offense, you're a little bit of a player." She would never say that to any monarch, but Elliot was no common royal. His boyish charm and friendly ambiance make it easy to forget which family he belonged to. She would compare her relationship with Elliot to a brother and sister bond, no matter the amount of times the Queen has tried to set them up together. Something about Ana breaking Elliot out of his ways or whatnot.

"I know, I know, but I like her and I want to see if we can start a relationship," Elliot said in response with no mind of her previous statement.

"I can ask her, but I wouldn't get your hopes up," she replied.

Elliot exhaled for a beat, then, "Can you ask her now?"

Ana gave Elliot a sideways glance. She had never seen him this anxious over a girl before.

"Elliot, I need to get these papers to your brother," she sighed exasperatedly.

"Please Ana, I really like her."

"You mean you like her looks," she jested.

"Well… yes, but if she's anything like you, I'm sure she'll be lovely."

Ana laughed out loud, "Kate, like me? Definitely not." She cracked a smile, "Let me give her a call real quick. Here can you hold these?"

She handed the papers to Elliot, relieving her arms from the heavy stack to find a phone. As quickly as she could, she found a telephone and rang the other girl, who picked up immediately.

"Hello?"

"Hi Kate, it's Ana, I have a pressing question for you… I hope you are not busy" Ana glanced over at Elliot to find him with a big smile on his face. He looked like a giddy little boy.

"No, I'm not busy. Is everything alright? It's not some arse trying to harass you is it?"

"No, no! Um actually I was wondering if you wanted to go on a date with someone?" Ana replied slowly.

"Who?" Kate jumped to ask.

"Prince Elliot…" Ana was sure that Kate would decline, knowing that her cousin had heard all the tales Ana told about Elliot and his troop of women.

"Yes!" she exclaimed.

Ana stilled and was shocked for a second. She glanced over at Elliot and gave him a thumbs up and a nod of her head. He beamed in delight.

"Ok… um… Ok good, I'll let him…" Ana was interrupted by Elliot grabbing the phone from her and putting it to his ear.

"Hello, Katherine, it's Elliot," He voiced happily. "Are you free tonight?"

Ana heard a garbled response through the phone, as she grabbed the stack of papers out of Elliot's arms. She gave him one more smile before she left him to talk on the phone with her cousin.

She made it halfway down the hall when she heard Elliot call her name, jogging to catch up with her.

"Oh Hey, I thought you would be on the phone with her for a while," Ana thought out loud, surprised that Elliot ended the call so soon.

"No, we solidified the time I would pick her up tonight." He ran one hand through his hair and with the other, fidgeted with a pocket as he looked at her. "She was actually wondering if you wanted to go on a Double Date tonight?" Elliot inquired.

"What, no, I don't have anyone to go with…" Ana replied bewildered.

"Well, Kate was saying how you haven't been on a date, or out in general, for a while, and that it might be good to get away from the castle…" Elliot trailed off.

"Um… ok, I guess I could go," Ana conceded. "You know how much I love being the third-wheel," Ana grumbled sarcastically, making Elliot laugh.

"I'll see if one of my friends could come with, who knows, maybe you'll end up liking him." Elliot teased her. "She will meet us here tonight at 7," He added.

She chewed on her lip. It's not that she didn't want to date, it was that her heart belonged to another...

"Ana, it's going to be great!" Elliot exclaimed. "Don't worry too much about it, we'll have fun."

Ana nodded and smiled. She forced herself to believe that she'd have a good time.

They reached the door of the Crown Prince's office, which had two guards standing post in front.

"Hey Taylor, Hi Sawyer!" Ana's sweet voice greeted them. Both guards had become fond of Ana, or at least she would like to believe that they had. She could never figure out what Taylor was feeling, but Sawyer was easy to read.

It has been the same routine since day one: Sawyer blushed a light shade of pink and greeted her while Taylor kindly nodded.

"Good Morning, Gentlemen," Elliot dragged out and nodded in the way men usually greet each other. The guards, without fail, followed decorum around the Royal family. Meanwhile, Ana had a tendency of forgetting all etiquette around Elliot and Mia, and sometimes Queen Grace.

"Your Royal Highness," they responded in unison. It made Ana giggle, causing Sawyer to redden once again while Taylor remained stoic. After a brief knock, Sawyer opened the giant mahogany door.

He walked in, Elliot and Ana following close behind, while Taylor stayed on guard outside.

"His Royal Highness Prince Elliot Grey and Miss Anastasia Steele," Sawyer announced respectfully.

Ana giggled again at Sawyers's bravado, it was after all his job. Luke Sawyer was as young as the guards came, at only 24, he was muscular and quite handsome, but could be awkward at times. Ana thought it was endearing. Elliot chuckled at Ana's giggle, capitalizing on his playful personality. She found Sawyer to be cute, and if she weren't so attracted to someone else in the room, she would possibly consider going on a date with him. He had asked a couple of times in secret, but she has always said no. She knew that she should say yes, if only she could get over her hope that Prince Christian might take a romantic notice of her. Ana rolled her eyes at herself knowing that will never happen.

"Thank you, Sawyer, you are dismissed," the Crown Prince said with his demanding nature. Ana stopped giggling and looked over to her only love who was standing near a window behind his desk. Her heart fluttered at that moment, and not for the first time did she wonder if her heart constantly fluttering around him was good for her. Perhaps she should quit her position for the sake of her health.

"Your Royal Highness," Ana acknowledged with a slight curtsy, which was hard with all the stuff she was carrying.

He stopped glaring at Sawyer and turned to grin at her. Ana shivered with delight once she got a glance of him fully. He looked incredibly attractive; his smile will one day kill her with the way it made her heartbeat speed up to a dangerous rate.

"Hey Bro!" Elliot called out, interrupting Ana and Christian's burning, at least in her mind, eye contact.

Prince Christian slid his eyes over to Elliot, his smile diminishing infinitesimally.

"Elliot, to what do I owe the pleasure," He swept his eyes back over to Ana, "You can put those papers on my desk," He demanded more than suggested.

Ana shuffled her way to his desk, almost tripping on a snag in the carpet. Hoping no one saw her little episode, she peered around the room to make sure, catching only Prince Christian's eye, who gave her a slight smirk. A little mortified, she intensified her walk to his desk and arranged the papers in an organized pile.

"Just came to see what my brother is doing, although by the looks of it, he's drinking before noon," Elliot gestured to the glass in his hand that contained a small amount of a dark amber liquid. "Must be a stressful morning," Elliot surmised while he plopped down in one of the cushioned maroon chairs to the side of Prince Christians' giant wooden desk. The older Prince rolled his eyes at Elliot's immaturity and lack of preamble.

"Elliot, I would love to sit and chat but some of us have a country to run," Christian gruffly replied.

"Christian, you aren't the King yet, not until the old man croaks, and by the looks of it, he'll be here forever. Take a break for a while," Elliot snapped as he stretched his legs out and made himself comfy.

Ana stood to the side quietly, witnessing the back and forth repartee between the two brothers.

Elliot turned his head towards Ana, "Sit," he demanded, which was unlike him. Ana glanced back at the standing prince, who after a beat slumped his shoulder, tilted back the rest of his drink, and motioned for her to take a seat next to Elliot. The Prince came around from behind his desk and took the seat next to Ana.

"So got any plans tonight, Brother?" Elliot asked after a brief pause while grinning like a Chesire cat. The older brother relaxed into his seat, something that was very rare to see.

Ana belatedly wondered if she should offer to get anyone a drink but knew that it would be rude to interrupt the flow of conversation.

"Other than plan foreign meetings, go over the household budget, review father's new proposal, confer with mother on The Coping Together gala, and welcoming the Spanish dignitary, not much," Prince Christian replied with a slight eye roll, as if bothered by Elliot's obliviousness to his long list of responsibilities. "Unlike some people who roam about the Palace's halls without a care in the world, I have obligations that need constant oversight," Prince Christian added teasingly, but his serious expression relayed his annoyance with his brother.

"Great!" Elliot was unbothered by his brother's small gibe towards him. "I hope you don't need Ana tonight. I'm taking her out on a date," Elliot said with an air of confidence, purposefully leaving Kate's name out to perturb his brother. Just like Ana, Prince Christian knew of Elliot's modus operandi concerning women and has always disproved of it, along with any mentions from the Queen of a possible relationship between Elliot and Ana.

The older Prince's back stiffened. "Absolutely not, why am I only hearing of this now?" he harshly demanded as his eyes became laser-focused on the two.

Ana decided to play along with Elliot, even though she knew she shouldn't allow Elliot's little games.

"He only asked me this morning. I was hoping my assistant, whom we hired last week, would be able to take my place for the night, your Highness." Ana replied softly.

"No, you both know how much I disapprove of this," was Prince Christian's reply. "This will greatly over complicate things, especially now that Anastasia is my principal assistant."

"Come on, Christian, I've been looking forward to this for a long, long time," stressed Elliot.

Ana chuckled, loving a little too much how fun it was to mess with the future King.

"No Elliot, Anastasia and I have an endless list to do today." Prince Christian's stance was unwavering.

Elliot sighed but Ana giggled. Both men looked towards her. She glanced over to Elliot and winked, knowing that he will love the alone time he'll get with Kate. "It's alright Elliot, I'll catch up with you tomorrow."

Elliot smirked back and stood up, readying himself to leave since his mission to rattle his brother had succeeded. Ana waited for Prince Christian to stand before she did.

"Well, I best head off and complete my royal duties of the day," he turned to Ana. "I'll see you tomorrow Ana. If my brother dearest allows you an hour free, I'll steal you away for a lunch date and spill all of my secrets to you," Elliot said in mock seriousness but cracked a grin when Ana chuckled.

Ana waved goodbye, as Prince Christian bid farewell to his fledgling brother. When the door shut, the Prince made his way behind his desk. It was quiet for a few minutes too long as Ana waited for the Prince to engage her in conversation or demands. She sauntered to the lavish bar, on the far side of the room, slightly dismissing her etiquette. She grabbed a mug and filled it with hot water from a dispenser, and a teabag, something Prince Christian has kept in full stock knowing her love for tea. She made her way over to the seat in front of the Prince's desk, waiting for the briefing to start. She received the unexpected instead.

"Why did you not notify me of this date with Elliot?" he fumed with a glare on his face.

Ana was taken aback, unmoving when the Prince gestured for her to sit with a rigid sweep of his hand. She could see the suspense getting on his nerves. She finally sat down after she regained herself from shock at his small outburst.

"Like I said, I was only asked to accompany him this morning, on the way to your office." Ana kindly replied.

The Prince bristled once again, "You're telling me that you were wondering about the palace while you should have been bringing papers to me?"

"Well no," Ana felt caught for a moment, unsure of how to reply, "I only stopped to talk to him because I almost ran into the Prince. Elliot abruptly asked me where I was headed and then he started a conversation with me, to which he then asked for a date…" Ana's rambling was interrupted by the Prince.

"I'm the only person in this household that was your top priority right now. I know you are fairly new to being my closest assistant, but if I ask you to do something, I expect you to do it fast and without any dalliances," he scolded.

Ana felt chastised and cast her eyes down. Her hurt must have shown on her face as the Prince sighed after a minute of silence.

"I didn't mean to be harsh on you," he apologizes. Her eyes, lost in the grooves on his dark desk, made no move to stray upwards. She knew she wouldn't be good at this job.

"Anastasia, look at me." She slowly slid her gaze back up to him. "Your job is very important, as you have come to learn in the past few months. I need it to be your number one priority, not some boy, especially my brother."

Ana decided to admit the full truth, in hopes to ease the conversation.

"When I bumped into your brother in the hallway, he asked me if I could ask my cousin Katherine if she would like to go on a date with him," she admitted. She chose to ignore the slight widening of the Prince's eyes as she continued. "He then asked me if I could call her, and since I knew that these papers were not of utmost importance to you, I decided I would do it quickly for Prince Elliot. Katherine said yes and then he asked me to go with them in hopes that it might create a comfortable atmosphere. So as a nicety, I said yes." She finished.

The Prince sat quietly, digesting what he heard. He finally replied after a few moments, his voice not hiding his shock, "You're telling me that you are accompanying Elliot on a date with your cousin Katherine as a nice favor?"

"Yes, Your Highness," she nodded.

His only response was a nod.

She didn't give it a second thought as to why the Prince looked relieved at her admission.

Before she could mull over his behaviors further, he switched the conversation and dived into the daily briefing. She stood to find her purse, which she had placed on the floor next to the chair she was sitting in earlier. The Prince continued talking as he skimmed the papers on his desk. She bent over to grab her purse and simultaneously pulled out her agenda. While she knew she was being informal, it was not uncommon to break propriety around the Royals when there were no other persons around. She would never act this way, wandering about the office and not fully engaging in conversation if there was someone else in the room.

She heard a slight nuance; a small pause in his briefing. She straightened up and turned around to see why he paused. He quickly continued his speech, and when she finally looked at him, his stare was blank, while reading the splayed-out papers in front of him.

She walked back over to her seat, leaning over to put her purse down and pull out a pen.

"Miss Steele, are you listening?" He cut off his droning to ensure she was paying attention.

"Yes, your Highness," she stated as she continued to look for a pen in her purse.

"What are you doing?" He asked, slightly annoyed.

"I'm looking for a pen, it should be right here, it normally is," she replied.

"Here, just take this." He handed her a pen when she finally looked up to him. He breathed in fast, something she found odd but reached for the pen without questioning it. Their hand's brushed, causing her heart to flutter and her hand to tingle.

"Thank you, Your Highness." She sat back down across the desk from him.

"You know," he began, with the briefing momentarily forgotten, "You do not need to call me Your Highness when we're alone.." He trailed off. Ana's eyes quickly focused onto his gray ones.

She paused her movements, "I know," she breathed.

"I have noticed over the past few months, the informality between you and my siblings. I have come to admire it." He continued, " but no matter how many times I tell you that you can call me by my birth name, you rarely do," he spoke with a small frown. "When you were a young girl, we couldn't stop you from saying our names, including mine, no matter how many etiquette lessons your father put you through." He chuckled lightly.

"Right," was all Ana could say for a second. She chewed on her lip, something she did when she was unsure of the situation.

"Well, uh, yes, Elliot and Mia are like family to me," Ana continued her earlier thought. A small flash of hurt ran across the Prince's face, before he turned passive once again. "and you… you have always been there for me, but since I've been back in the palace, you have had this air of regality about you that I don't think I entirely noticed as a young girl," Ana made up an excuse with barely any conviction.

In reality, she rarely called him Christian to, in a small way, protect her heart from the inevitable heartbreak she would receive if she and the man sitting across from her ever became close again.

"I don't believe that, Anastasia." He replied gruffly. He paused, and observed her, his eyes dark and dilated. She studied him back, still chewing on her lower lip. Ana was unsure what to make of this conversation, or of his stare.

"What's on my agenda?" He suddenly turned the conversation back to the main reason she was in his office and shifted in his chair.

They talked for an hour about things that need to be done and other important obligations calling the Prince's name.

"I need you to run a revised copy of the proposed household budget to the left wing of the Palace, preferably to my father instead of my mother, and then I need you to change for the luncheon. I will meet you back here at 11:30 and escort you to the Grand Hall." He dismissed her.

She stood to leave and grabbed her empty tea mug to put on the dirty dishes tray near the bar. As she headed for the exit the Prince called out her name. She turned to look at him.

"About tonight, I've decided to give you the evening off to attend supper with Elliot and Katherine," he informed. "You have proven to me these past few months that you work diligently, and that's deserving of some time off," he nodded and turned back to the tasks demanding his attention on his desk.

Ana's face transformed into pure happiness. "Thank you, Christian" she beamed and practically skipped out the door.

Christian's face broke out into a smile. He gave a slight chuckle to Ana's antics before re-focusing on the papers sprawled on his desk.

Before the door fully closed, she heard Christian dial his phone.

"Hello? Yes, I would like to speak with Elliot Grey…"

"I choose to love you in silence…For in silence I find no rejection,

I choose to love you in loneliness…For in loneliness no one owns you but me,

I choose to adore you from a distance…For distance will shield me from pain,

I choose to kiss you in the wind…For the wind is gentler than my lips,

I choose to hold you in my dreams…For in my dreams, you have no end."

Rumi