Chapter 5
With all of the presents opened and paired with their rightful recipients, Grace instructed her two strapping sons that they were to shovel the driveway and the walkways in both the front and the back. Elliott grumbled that no one would be using the back walk that led to the boathouse and the dock. Christian complained that he could hire someone to do the work just as soon as the roads were drivable. Grace insisted that the boys get to work. When Ana volunteered to help with the shoveling, she was told that in no uncertain terms was she allowed to do any work in the cold so soon after her own brush with hypothermia.
Christian and Elliott were joined by Taylor and Carrick and, later, the two teenage sons of their neighbors. Elliott had seen the boys shoveling their own driveway. He and Christian offered the teenagers an obscene amount of money to hop the fence and help on the Grey's side. With all of the helping hands, it still took the group the better part of the afternoon to shovel the drive and the sidewalks. Although she was prohibited from helping, Ana frequently took the guys hot cocoa to keep them warm. When Christian mentioned how much he liked the mini-marshmallows, she was sure to give him extra the next time. Just as the guys were putting up the shovels, Grace met them by the garage and sent them down to the boathouse for another chore. When Grace pulled her sons close to give them their instructions, they nodded and trotted off without complaint.
While the guys were finishing their chores, Ana took a bath with her new bath salts and changed into borrowed sweats from Mia. She picked a book from the library and sat with her back to the fireplace hoping that her hair would dry quickly. Without her usual styling tools, her long hair dried with loose, errant curls that framed her face. Although she missed her father terribly, Ana felt immeasurably blessed to feel so welcomed into the home of such a wonderful family.
It was just after another candlelight dinner of finger foods and killer cocktails when Ana was able to pull Christian and Elliott aside. So far, Ana had managed to provide Elliott with his favorite apple pie and to help Christian pull off an epic Christmas prank. Now she wanted to recreate some of Mia and Grace's favorite Christmas traditions. Elliott was always onboard for merriment. Christian needed no convincing when it came to Ana. The trio raided the linen closet and the attic and headed down to the living room. Ana found the book that they would need. Christian played Christmas carols on the piano. Elliott gathered the rest of the family.
When the fire was stoked and the cocktails were refilled, Ana explained their evening activity.
"Tonight, we are going to read the Christmas story and recreate your Church's Christmas pageant. Only this year, Mia gets to be Mary," she giggled. Mia clapped her hands in delight. "Elliott and Murphy will be wise men, Christian will be a shepherd, and we found this doll to be baby Jesus." Ana handed Mia a doll swaddled in towels. "Grace and Carrick, will you do the honor of narrating the story?" Ana handed them the family Bible.
"What about you, Ana? What will you be?" Mia queried.
"I am the Christmas angel," she said with a grin from ear to ear.
With that, Elliott and Murphy donned their home-done wise men duds. Mia donned her Mary costume that looked suspiciously like the dress she wore in the 8th grade Thanksgiving play. No one noted it's historical inaccuracy. Christian put on a bathrobe and secured a pillowcase on his head with a belt. He carried Carrick's oversized golf umbrella in place of a shepherd's crook. Ana put on her bathrobe and fashioned a halo from some old golden tinsel.
Grace and Carrick took turns reading the story of the first Christmas. Murphy took his role seriously and brought a can from the recycle bin to offer as "gold" for the newly born baby. Elliott offered a scented candle in place of the frankincense and myrrh. Out of all of the many Church pageants and school plays that her children had been in, Grace knew that this one in front of their fireplace starring her slightly-buzzed adult children, a geriatric golden retriever, and the young woman her son had rescued from the cold would forever be her favorite.
When the 'pageant' was done, Grace insisted on taking lots of pictures of her children and their houseguest still wearing their Bethlehem garb. Laughter and joy was plentiful when Christian sat down at the piano to play all of his mother's favorite Christmas carols - Silent Night, Hark the Herald, and Joy to the World. Grace mouthed a tearful thank you to Ana for remembering her favorite holiday tradition. Ana hugged the kind doctor and whispered her own thank you right back.
After the carols were sung, Carrick, Christian and Elliott took Murphy outside to once again enjoy his patch of freshly-shoveled grass. Ana was just settling down to read by the fire when Mia and Grace appeared with snow boots, mittens, and a hat for her. They led Ana out the front door to a breathtaking site. The length of the driveway was illuminated with votive candles lining each side.
"I know it's not the same as driving around Montesano looking at Christmas lights with your step father, but we wanted to do something to make your Christmas extra special," Grace explained. Ana wiped the tears from her cheeks. Christian grabbed her hand and led her down the driveway. When they reached the road, they stopped for a moment to look back over the lights that the men had expertly lined up and lit. The expanse of candles was breathtaking. At some point, Elliott and Mia started singing silly Christmas carols like Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer and merry Christmas from the Family. They all joined in as they walked back up the magical drive.
When they got back to the house, Christian and Ana split off from the rest of the family. Christian wrapped his arm around Ana's shoulders and led her along the walk to the backyard. The winding paths to the boathouse and docks were lit with even more luminaries. Candles on ornate stakes lined the waterfront. The gardens was a magical site.
They reached the dock and stood looking out into the still waters of the lake that reflected the lights into thousands of fractionated twinkles. Christian stood behind Ana and wrapped his arms around her waist. He pressed his cheek to her temple as they enjoyed the view before them. Ana placed her hands on top of his and focused on being present in the moment. She supposed that when the roads were cleared and power was restored and they all returned to their normal lives, this would be the moment that she remembered with the greatest fondness.
Wanting no regrets, Ana turned to face Christian. She tilted her head so that she could get lost in his beautiful grey eyes.
"Hi," she whispered.
""Hi," Christian whispered back.
Very slowly Ana stood on her tiptoes as Christian pulled her closer. Finally, their lips met. Christian cradled the back of her head. Ana raised her hand to rest at the base of his neck. Her fingertips ran through his hair. Their kiss started out soft as they explored each other's lips. Christian made a primal moan when Ana's lips parted, granting him entrance. He had never tasted anything so sweet.
They broke apart, their passion punctuated by the smoke they exhaled in the cold air. Christian leaned his forehead against Ana's. "Please don't say this is a dream."
"God, no," Ana exhaled back.
Christian kissed her forehead and grabbed her hand. They meandered their way back up the path towards the darkened house. Every so often, the two would pause for a moment to get lost in another kiss. Had the pair looked hard enough, they would have seen the silhouettes of Grace and Mia watching them from the kitchen window. From the darkness, Mia snapped photos of her brother and their new friend. She managed to get one of Christian cradling Ana's face in his hands as they kissed. Snowflakes swirled as candles twinkled all around the two. The picture captured the tenderness and vulnerability of what felt like the beginning of something very big.
Christian and Ana entered the house through the mud room. His family gathered in the living room so as not to crowd the lovebirds. Christian pulled a laughing Ana up the back stairs to his childhood bedroom on the third floor.
It felt very naughty for the 27 year old, billionaire to sneak a girl up to his room. The couple kissed intermittently between lazily removing their gloves and outerwear. Ana removed her snow-dampened sweat pants and stripped down to her dry long johns. Christian did the same. When Ana shivered, he wrapped her in a throw blanket and pulled her close. They held each other at his bedroom window enjoying the candlelight from the backyard.
"Spend the night with me," Christian implored. He could not imagine a fate worse than parting with this vexing beauty.
Ana turned to look up into his eyes. His arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her close.
"I want to, but I would be uncomfortable with your family knowing that we were up here, together, alone…"
Christian laughed from his belly. "I assure you that my family would be delighted to know that I have a girl in my room," he teased.
Ana playfully slapped his arm, "Christian!" She giggled.
Christian was disappointed but also found her resistance charming. What an angel she was. He gave her a long kiss that made her reconsider her decision. She pressed her body to his and pulled him tight. She sucked on his bottom lip eliciting a torturous groan. He felt her lips curl into a smile of satisfaction. It took all of Christian's willpower to keep from tossing her on to his bed. God, he wanted this woman.
Knowing her own self control was waning, Ana grabbed Christian's hand and led him back to the living room. With smiles on their faces, Ana and Christian joined the rest of the Greys in the living room. Christian ignored Elliott's wiggling eyebrows noting that the two were in their long johns. After two days in pajamas, wearing thermals seemed just as natural. Carrick refilled their hot cider. For the second night in a row, Christian and Ana found themselves getting lost together in front of the crackling logs of the roaring fire.
Ana and Christian declined Grace's invitation to play cards with the others. The couple stayed behind as the rest of the group made their way to the kitchen table for a game of rummy. Ana snuggled into Christian's chest as he pulled her to rest between his legs. He kept one leg stretched the length of the sofa and the other one hung off the edge. Ana nestled her cheek against his shoulder. Her lips rested dangerously close to his neck. From this position, Ana could get lost in his intoxicating scent. When Ana pulled her legs onto the couch, Christian wrapped one of his around them. Christian picked up his gift and thumbed through Shakespeare's anthology. The words rolled off his tongue like honey as Christian quietly read the verses to Ana. His warm breath flowed over her cheek when she turned to watch the fire. The moment felt incredibly intimate as the rise and fall of their chests naturally synced. Christian occasionally paused to kiss Ana's temple. The gesture fanned the flames building at her core.
When Christian put the book down, Ana turned to run her lips along his jawline. Christian bent his head and gave her lips the softest of kisses. She exhaled and tucked her nose into the spot on his neck right below his ear when he turned his face back towards the fire.
At some point, their bodies reclined back into the cushions and Christian brought his other leg from the floor to wrap around her. They enjoyed this closeness. Neither was ready to let the other go. They alternated between easy conversation and comfortable silence. Mia passed the doorway as she headed upstairs. She stole another picture of the couple, this time bathed in the glow of the firelight. When Grace and Carrick headed up to bed, Christian's mother could not help but to grab a warm quilt to cover the sleeping lovebirds.
When each of her children were adopted, Grace began a journal for them. Through the years, she would journal letters to her children to mark momentous occasions such as birthdays and graduations. She would share her hopes and wishes. When Christian hit his tumultuous teen years, Grace took to writing down her prayers for her most angst-ridden child. When Christian was at his darkest, her letters in his journal reflected a mother's unwavering faith that her son would make it through. Grace intended to give her children their journals when they themselves became parents.
At some point, Grace accepted that Christian might never have a family of his own. He had never shown any interest in either women or men. GEH was his baby.
Despite his commitment to building his empire, Grace never let her middle child forget that he had the love and support of his family. When Christian skipped too many Sunday dinners at Grey Manor, Grace and Carrick would drop in to see their son at his penthouse. Secretly, Grace hoped that she might run into a girlfriend (or boyfriend if her son was so inclined) during one of these unannounced visits. Much to his mother's disappointment, she and her husband always found their son alone. Christian seemed happy enough. Although he was always alone, he never gave any indication that he was lonely.
On the night of Christian's twenty-seventh Christmas, his mother pulled out his journal for the first time in several years. She wrote of their family's day and all that made it so special. She described the laughter over opening the wrong presents. She wrote about the pageant and singing carols together. She filled several pages with these memories. In the deepest part of Grace Grey's heart, she believed that this day was one of the most important days of her son's life. When she finished her letter to her son, Grace wrote another letter in his journal. She began the letter 'Dear Ana.' Grace knew that when Christian welcomed his first child to the world, she would give this journal to him, and he would share this letter of gratitude with the woman who made it possible.