Chapter 2

"I did it, daddy. I got the deal!" I'm standing at my father's grave, telling him the good news. I rarely do this. I visit my dad less and less because of my busy schedule, but this was a major event. He should know.

I am at the Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent, Washington. It is a wonderful cemetery, where a few of my father's comrades were buried. He wanted to be with them after he died, and I was not going to argue with that.

I told dad that our dreams officially came true yesterday; we are expanding AMC nationally. I signed the contract yesterday morning with Mr. Grey, even though we had a verbal agreement about a month ago. Several lawyers got involved because this has the potential to be a booming business and everything must be right, but luckily there were no conflicts.

Ros was thrilled at the contract signing. She had a smile on her face the whole time. Kate took pictures. I wasn't sure if it was professional, but Mr. Grey didn't seem to mind. He smiled, even though he was distant the whole day.

"I'm so happy you pushed me to do this. I was worried I was making a mistake. I am not much of a businesswoman, more like a chef. I had to hire someone to do taxes for goodness sake. But, I guess someone believes in me." Even after falling on your ass. I made a fool of myself at the end of the meeting, but Mr. Grey still accepted my offer. He has not said much this past month, but I'm not sure how our business relationship should work yet.

"I'm going to work my hardest, day and night. For the longest, I thought I was doing this for you. You were the one who wanted to run a movie theater, remember? But now, I know this is my dream too. I think we have a really great company." I am getting excited about the possibilities. Having GEH and Christian himself back AMC is huge! There was an article in Business Weekly about it. Not a lot of people get this opportunity, especially someone like me, a young, first-time restaurant owner. But here I am, closing my first big deal.

"I'm nervous about what to do next. I'm still unsure what it means for GEH and Mr. Grey to be investing in our company." I should really call Ros. She would explain this to me, but I didn't realize she was only helping me get the deal. That is her main role at GEH, acquisitions. So, she will not be helping me much further. You should be able to do this on your own Ana. You still own the company...but hell! I'm scared too. Ros is also good at selling companies for profit. Now I'm scared to have her call me thinking it will be my departure from GEH. Mr. Grey is the one who manages companies. Am I supposed to call him? Oh god no! Not after the way you 'fell' for him.

"I remember once you told me don't let pride and stubbornness get in your way from what needs to be done. Should I include fear as well daddy?" I giggle at my silly comment. I shouldn't be afraid to call an investor. We should be partners, equals. Psh. Yeah right.

"I am going to do it, dad. I am going to call Mr. Grey, and figure this...thing out. Give me the courage dad...wherever you are. I always love you." I give my air kiss to his grave and walk away. I head out of the cemetery to my old and unreliable light blue VW Beetle. I have got to get rid of this car considering how much I drive. I need to get something reliable and professional, not something I bought used in college.

But first, the phone call. Might as well do it now, while you have the guts. I call GEH offices on my cell phone.

"Grey Enterprise Holdings, how may I direct your call?" I get the secretary for GEH, not Andrea though. Let's see if I can.

"Hello, my name is Anastasia Steele. May I speak to Andrea Wilks please?"

"What is the meaning of your phone call?" Should I lie? I don't think so. I should be able to get to Mr. Grey. You should lie. You should really lie.

"I need to speak to Mr. Grey. He invested in my company recently, and I had a question for him."

"Mr. Grey will only talk to people who scheduled a meeting with him. Do you have one?"

"I did, yesterday, but I have a question for him now."

"You will have to set up a meeting with him. Have a nice day." (Click) She just hung up on me. I should've lied. Told you! How do I set up a meeting with Mr. Grey? The only reason I got a meeting with him in the first place was cause Ros.

I look in my purse for my business notepad. I like to keep thorough notes after all business meetings. I should type them, but I don't have a laptop, only my PC at home. I should buy a laptop soon as well. And a car. How about a business degree, while we are at it. Sounds like you need one. I'm starting to freak out a little, but calm down after I find Ros's work number. I decide to call her. Maybe she can direct me to Mr. Grey. Doubtful.

"Ros Bailey's office, how may I help you?" A male secretary answers the phone.

"Hello, my name is Anastasia Steele. I would like to talk to Ros Bailey please."

"Do you have a meeting with Ms. Bailey?" Lie!

"She worked at acquiring my business recently, and I was supposed to get a phone number from her today."

"Please hold." I have no clue what he is checking, but if I can get to Ros, I could get to Mr. Grey. "You are not in her schedule, and I cannot reach her right now. Would you like to leave a message?" I have no clue what message I would leave, so I have to go in a different direction.

"I actually have her cell phone number written on her business card here, but it is a little hard to read." Which I actually don't, but hopefully this will work. "It's 206-454-8711, correct?" There's a pause.

"Nice try." (Click) Are you fucking kidding me! Great, that was dumb. Now I'm not sure what to do. Maybe I should wait to see what happens with Mr. Grey and how my business will be managed. But, I don't want to start this business relationship uncertain. I need to go for it. No more being hesitant and shy when it comes to AMC. You do have Barney Sullivan's number. I do!

A few days after my presentation, Barney came into AMC Seattle to see the movie Attack the Block. We had a discussion about alien invasion movies and what were our favorites. My favorite is The Thing. His was Mars Attack! He's a weird man. He also got the BLT panini, which he enjoyed again. He gave me his business card, so we could set up a meeting to make the website better. Maybe he can help me get to Mr. Grey. Offer him free food at AMC. He will definitely take the bribe. I call him.

"Hey, Ana." He answered his phone immediately. This is a great start.

"Hey, Barney. How did you know it was me?"

"Caller ID of course."

"Oh. I thought you had to have people's phone number programmed in your phone in order to get their name."

"Legally, yes." Don't ask questions, just get what you want.

"Anyways, I need to get hold of Mr. Grey and am having trouble reaching him. Could you help me?"

"What do you need?" I am not going to lie to Barney. He seems willing to help. Plus he could probably figure out you are lying with some computer magic.

"I need to ask him about the next steps with our expansion of AMC, and how he is involved."

"Very proactive. I'll forward you to Andrea."

"Thank you, Barney. You will get a free sandwich from me for this."

"I may give you his cell phone number for that if I knew I wouldn't get fired." I giggle, thinking his comment is a joke, but he is serious. I hope I don't get him in trouble. "Here she is." That was fast. I am getting nervous, but sitting in my VW calms me down a bit, knowing I am in my element.

"Hello, Ms. Steele," Andrea answers politely.

"Oh, Andrea, I mean Mrs. Wilks. I'm so glad to hear from you. I need your help. And please, call me Ana."

"Only if you call me Andrea. How may I help you?"

"Will do, Andrea. I need to quickly talk to Mr. Grey, but I don't have a meeting. I promise it will not take too long. I just need to clarify something with him really quickly with AMC. Could you see if he has time to talk today?"

"Let me check." I am feeling good about this. Once I have this conversation with him, I will feel so much better about everything. "Ana, he is available an hour and a half. Are you available then?"

"Perfect. That works with me."

"Great! I will see you then." Wait, what?! At the office? No, I meant on the phone. I don't know if I can say everything I want to say in front of him. What should I do? Tell her you to have a stomach ache! No, wait, tell her you to have a fever and are developing a cold! Tell her suddenly your car broke down and need to go to the mechanic! That's most likely going to happen anyways.

"See you there." (Click) That was the last thing I wanted to say.

~oOo~

Well, I look like a mess.

I am in the GEH elevator going up to Mr. Grey's office. I am looking at my reflection on the elevator door, realizing I have no makeup, my hair is pulled back in a messy ponytail, and I'm wearing jeans and a Le Cordon Bleu blue hoodie sweatshirt. To complete the outfit, I am using my old brown laptop bag to hold my purse and business documents. I look like a college student. At best, you look like someone's kid sister just leaving high school. With traffic, I had no time to change clothes. I was thinking I was going to spend time at the cemetery and do the rest of my work at home today. But now, I'm at GEH, not looking or feeling my best.

That's when the elevators open on the 15th floor to Mr. Grey. Don't speak, just look at the perfection. He is in a perfectly fitted black suit, with a dark green tie. His hair is a mess, looking like he ran his hands through it all day. But it's such a sexy mess. I want to just fix it. I am staring at him, embarrassed at my own appearance. He looks a little surprised to see me but hides it quickly when he enters the elevator.

"Ms. Steele." He gives me a nod, then turns away from me looking straight at the elevator, selecting his office floor, but stops when he sees it lit up.

"Hello, Mr. Grey." It is completely silent, but it feels like the temperature is rising in the elevator. I can't help but breathe a little faster and wish I could take this sweatshirt off. I decided to continue speaking to Mr. Grey, even though he looks like he is not in the mood. "I really appreciate meeting with you today. I hope I am not taking too much of your time."

"You're not."

I'm starting to uncontrollably blush now. It is like the heater was turned up higher. I don't want to look more of a mess, so I decide to take off my sweatshirt. I place my bag on the elevator floor. I turn slightly away from Mr. Grey for a sense of privacy. While taking off my sweatshirt over my head, my blue t-shirt rises, almost revealing my bra. Yeah! Take it off! I quickly push my shirt down. Doesn't matter, he got a peek. I turn around to see Mr. Grey staring at me, intensely looking at my body. I don't know how to take his reaction. He is turned on.

"Sorry about my attire. I didn't think I was meeting with you."

"It's not a problem." He turns away from me again. He takes his suit coat off. "You look fine." He rolls up his sleeves to his elbows, revealing his incredible forearms. "Is it hot in here?" He asks, looking at me confused.

"It is definitely hot in here," I respond back, airing out my shirt. It doesn't seem like it with your hard nipples. I look down at my round chest, and my nipples are definitely protruding through my bra and shirt. I quickly cross my arms over them. I think I'm turned on now. It makes no sense. I never felt like this before. He then loosens his tie. If he takes off any more clothes, I'm going to pass out. Fainting in his sexy presence would be an honor. Luckily the elevator door opens. He allows me to walk out first, and he follows.

"Mrs. Wilks, I need someone to check the elevator. The heater was way too hot in there." He commands while walking to his office.

"Yes, Mr. Grey." Andrea picks up a phone, most likely calling maintenance. She also waves towards me. I wave back, while Mr. Grey opens his door, allowing me to enter.

His office is exquisite, with a view of downtown Seattle surrounding him. He has a conference table at one end, a leather couch and sofa chairs in the middle, and a large l-shaped desk at the other end, with modern artwork, sporadically decorating the room. I don't want to get distracted looking at his office. So I sit at one of the comfy guest chairs across from his desk.

"Did you have something planned earlier today? We could have rescheduled," Mr. Grey asks, as he places his coat and tie on the coat rack. He offers to take my sweatshirt, but I shake my head no. I am holding it like Linus' security blanket in the Peanuts comics. I don't want to let it go. Really! Be like awesome Snoopy, not lame Linus. Great! Now I am talking in entertainment references like you. I actually take the advice and sit up straight, placing my sweatshirt to the side. I don't want Mr. Grey to look at me and regret his decision.

"No, I was telling my father of the good news about the contract signing." He sits, looking confused. I just realize he knows my father is dead, so I probably sound like a liar. "I was visiting him at his grave. I talk to him every so often. Just about stuff that is happening in my life. It is kind of weird, but it helps clear my head." I got to stop babbling. This is not why I am here.

"I can understand that," he says nodding his head. He actually looks a little compassionate, but his business appearance completely comes to life, as he leans on his desk closer to me, but looking at his computer, continuing to work on something else. "How may I help you, Ms. Steele?"

"I am here about our relationship." Instantly his eyebrows arch up in surprise. "Our business relationship," I clarify. He continues back with his work on his computer. "Because GEH invested in my company as well as you, what exactly is your role at AMC?"

"What role do you want it to be?" He asks. He rests his chin in his hand, waiting for me to come up with an answer. I must have taken too long because he turns back to his computer again.

"I know you are a very busy man and do not expect to drop everything for me. At the same time, I don't want to talk to 20 different employees and never hear from you."

"Have I not been accessible to you?"

"Honestly?" He nods yes. "No, not in the way I was hoping." He leans on his desk again, clasping his hands in front of him. He is finally looking at me. "Initially I was thinking Ros was going to be managing our agreement, but finding out it will be you, I'm not sure what to expect."

"What do you want from me, Ms. Steele? You got my money." He sounds bitter. I'm not going to back down.

"I want to be able to ask you questions. I want to be able to tell you about the setbacks and amazing accomplishments we had that day, orrrr...whatever day. I want to tell you how much money I made us with an expansion. I want to recommend you a movie to watch. I want to at least be able to talk to you directly." I rush out. He is looking down at his desk, considering my words. "And if I am lucky, I would like a friendship." And a boyfriend. Shut up! He looks at me with a smug grin. I am hoping I didn't say something stupid out loud.

"I won't be able to hold your hand through all this." Damn it!

"I don't want you to. I am more than capable."

"But maybe we can figure something out." I want to melt. "I will make sure Andrea knows when you call, you will be forwarded to me as long as I am not in a meeting."

"That works with me."

"I think it will be important for you to work with our marketing director, Mrs. Walker, to set up a plan. We want people begging for an AMC in their area."

"I completely agree."

"I want my brother to look at this LA site you mentioned. If it is not up to standards, I don't want to waste our time on it."

"Already done. He has time next week."

"I also want your website upgraded. It's solid, but can be faster."

"I already have a meeting with Barney. He is going to recommend me your best website developer to work with."

"That would be Todd Cruz. I will have a meeting set up with him tomorrow morning."

"Perfect."

"I also want your business plan updated to where you want AMC in 5 years."

"Will do. I will have it by the end of the week." He leans back in his chair in amusement.

"Is this what you want Ms. Steele?"

"Absolutely…..I would also like to meet with you once a month unless one of us is out of town."

"Done. Tuesday, the first week of every month, at 1:00 pm. I will have Andrea schedule it. We will talk on the phone otherwise."

"Grea!" Now I lean back with a giant smile on my face. This is exactly what I want. "I want to make sure you get your investment back Mr. Grey and then some," I say sincerely.

"You will." I assume the meeting is over, but he seems like he has something else to say. "So, you want to recommend me movies?" I make movie recommendations to anyone and everyone. It is something my father did, and now I do it, but I never thought I would do this for Mr. Grey. The idea slipped out.

"Yes."

"You think I need recommendations?" He asks with his eyebrows arched up.

"Honestly?" He nods "I wasn't sure if you even knew what a movie was," I joke. Did you just make a rude comment? But he slowly starts laughing. I begin laughing with him.

"I probably don't."

Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Damn it! I did it again!

~oOo~

6 Months Later

"Our social media numbers have increased like crazy within six months. The interests is there, we have to make sure interests turns into ticket sales." Kate says into the phone's speaker on our conference call with Rachel Walker. We are currently sitting at the desk in our suite at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills. It is late in the workday, but Kate and I have no problems continuing to work in such a nice hotel. It is easily the nicest hotel in Los Angeles. I feel like a celebrity. Ana, focus!

"Absolutely, the interests are there. I think the grand opening will be a sellout. It was smart to place it around The Dark Knight Rises release. Just with the popularity of that movie, there will be going to AMC LA 2 anyways. Keeping them long term is key. I think the movie club will be the next adventure for us." Rachel, the head of marketing, speaks enthusiastically. Kate and I look at each other instantly nodding our heads in excitement. Kate mouths, 'play it cool', so we don't sound too eager. We wanted to do a movie club from the very beginning of our expansion, but we didn't have the resources to manage it. People would be able to sign up to our club for $30 month and see as many movies they want that month at an AMC. I am smiling so hard, my face hurts.

"I am very excited to hear that, but would Christian, …I mean Mr. Grey approve of our idea?" I doubt he approves of offering discounted tickets to regulars already. Opening the first AMC LA went so well, we quickly opened another. We had a soft opening, which went smoothly, and we are having our grand opening the same day The Dark Knight Rises releases into theaters Thursday. My conversation with Christian has informed me that he wants to grow AMC efficiently, only opening up a place where there's demand, which I agree with. I want people hoping an AMC opens near them.

"Mr. Grey already approved. We both think it's best that we wait awhile till AMC LA 2 grows in popularity, but I think before Christmas we will have the club running." Kate and I immediately hug. "Actually Kate, if you can write up a blurb on what the AMC movie club would entail that would be great."

"No problem, I can write that up by tomorrow." Kate still writes a draft of all our advertisements for AMC. She knows exactly what to say. She then gives it to the marketing staff at GEH to edit and advertise at the appropriate locations. "I think that is all we had for our meeting Mrs. Walker. Thank you for working with me and Ana." Kate loves working with Rachel. We have gained such customer growth with her, it's amazing. "I hope you have a wonderful night."

"You are welcome. You all know this is secretly my favorite GEH company. Good night ladies. Don't have too much fun in LA." She giggles and then hangs up. That is when our celebration begins. We are jumping up and down doing a happy dance in the middle of the living room of our two bedroom suite. Christian treats you well.

AMC LA has already been a success, with theater tickets selling out daily. I thought that was great for business, but Christian wanted us to open another AMC LA. 'Why have customers leave AMC LA to go to our competitor. They should be able to go to another AMC just as easily,' he would tell me.

His team quickly researched another site in the LA area. There was an independent movie theater in Beverly Hills that wasn't making enough money to keep up with their expenses. I was willing to lease the building, but Christian wanted to buy them out, afraid they would raise the rent. GEH quickly bought the building. All of a sudden, we had another movie theater that I was working with Elliot to redesign. It happened so fast, I didn't know what was happening all the time. But, it was Christian who helped me through the deal step by step. AMC LA 2, as we like to call it, already has a great buzz. At this point, Christian has his team looking into movie theaters in northern California and Portland. My main job has been to make sure every new theater is meeting and keeping up with our high standards.

Now we get to have a movie club. I always wanted to start AMC movie club.

"Oh my god! I wish we had a Rachel and a 'Mr. Grey' from the very beginning. They are making things happen so quickly, I can only of dreamt of us having our own movie club! No other movie theater has this Ana. No one!" Kate says to me in an exasperated tone, only to then throw herself on to the hotel's couch with a content smile. I love Kate!

"I know. I can't believe this is all happening already, and the year is not even up yet." I quickly sit at the desk to write down on our company's MacBook on what we need to do next and finishing our meeting notes. I take notes on every change and new thing that is happening to our company. Almost like a business diary. Christian seems to like it. Right, Christian seems to like the business diary ;) "He believes in this company." I didn't mean to say that out loud.

"Uh, yeah he does! I never heard of an investor so actively working with a company to get what they want. It is usually all about what makes money and nothing else. And, he doesn't even own half the business. It is almost like he has a personal interest in AMC." Kate always wants to know what Christian's intentions are, but I think he knows AMC could be a multi-million dollar franchise.

"AMC is making money that's all that matters." I quickly change the topic, not wanting to discuss Christian with Kate anymore. "We should celebrate tonight, dinner on me!"

"Oh, about that…." I already know the answer will be no, but I like messing with Kate when it comes to her love affair with Elliot Grey. "Elliot asked me to come to check out AMC LA 2. We want to start getting pictures on the website. It is practically done. Then we might go out afterward..."

"You are fooling anyone Kavanaugh! I know you are in looooove." I say in such an exaggerated voice and a wiggle of my hips, you think I was a teenager again. I feel like a teen again, for once. A happy teen.

"Ana, stop it. You know I don't believe in love. My parents taught me exactly what love and marriage are; a business deal between two parties." Kate's parents are definitely married, but not happily. They stay together because they both profit from each other. Kate thinks they cheat, but as she says 'it is not really cheating if the other person doesn't care.' I would never want that. "Besides, we are only hanging out together."

"Naked!"

"Ana, really?! How old are we?"

I look at her sternly, only to jump into my song, "Elliot and Kate, sitting in a tree" I decide to add a jumping up and down dance, "K.I.S.S.I.N.G!"

(Knock, knock, knock)

"Shhhhhh, I think that's him," Kate whispers, and we immediately freeze. "He supposed to pick me up a few minutes from now."

"Shouldn't we open it?" I then walk to the door to let him in only for Kate to run to her side of the suite and close her door.

"I NEED 5 MINUTES!" She yells behind the door.

"Hey, Elliot! It is nice to see you." I happily greet him with a friendly hug.

"Hello, Ana Banana, how are you?" Elliot teasingly says. He only calls me that because one day he saw me scarf down a banana in 25 seconds flat. We were running late for our flight back to Seattle, and I was hungry. He was impressed, and thus a nickname was born.

"I am doing well. How are you?" I ask him, inviting him to come in and sit down on our luxurious couch. "Oh, by the way, Kate needs 5 minutes to get ready."

"I am doing very well. And how do you know I am here to see Kate?" He responds in a questioning matter, but we all know why he's here.

"I just know Mr. Elliot." I then sit across from him in the sofa chair. "So, how're the final touches with AMC LA 2?" Elliot goes on about the work they did to the theater today to give it a more personal look. He likes to make the theaters structured the same, but have slight changes in the artwork and finishing based on location. He usually does this by contracting local companies to complete the design. The theaters usually come out perfect.

It is amazing how two brothers can look so alike, yet be adopted. Well, they don't look exactly alike. While Christian looks like Superman, Elliot looks like Thor the Norse mythological god. He is tall, blonde and handsome. He could have been an arrogant asshole, and women would still flock to him. I was thinking to fuck him, but 'flock' works. He is the sweetest person I ever met. He is playful and funny. He likes to keep everyone in a lighthearted mood but knows when to get down to business.

When I was most stressful when we received the wrong paint color for AMC LA, disturbing blood red instead of a red rose color we ordered for our lobby, I started to freak out we were spending too much money after replacing the paint. I don't want Christian to think I was wasting money. Elliot's response was to grab a brush, put some paint on his white Calvin Klein t-shirt, and said completely seriously, "It would look great for your zombie movie marathon. We can all dress up using the paint and run around scaring people to go into the theater. Would increase ticket sales." I couldn't help but smile. "Don't worry Ana Banana, extra costs are in the budget." He is perfect for the job. And perfect for Kate!

"Oh Elliot, I didn't realize you were here," Kate says in a rather surprised voice. Oh, brother! She is wearing her vibrant blue tight dress that shows the perfect amount of cleavage. Her hair went from a messy bun to waves that fall down past her shoulders. She looks great, and by Elliot's look of awe, I am not the only one to think this.

"Well, you two crazy kids better get going. And Kate, make sure Elliot has those pipes cleaned, at the theater of course." I wink at her.

Kate only shakes her head in disbelief. "Good night, Ana."

Elliot leads her out of the hotel room with his hand gently placed on her lower back. "Oh, by the way, we will be doing more than K.I.S.S.I.N.G. tonight Ana Banana," Elliot stated in a very sing-song voice.

"ELLIOT!" Kate says in an exasperated voice. They are so cute together.

"Laters, baby."

~oOo~

Before I finish my notes and get ready for bed, I decided to call Christian. I wanted to thank him for supporting our idea for a movie club, and we missed our monthly meeting anyways. Our meeting is usually earlier, but today, we both had to reschedule for this evening to accommodate our schedules. I don't mind though. I like having our monthly meetings. And luckily, we have not been taking off our clothes before them, like in the elevator. Uh, not luckily. I only have to wait about a minute before Andrea picks up.

"Hey Ana, how are you?" Andrea and I have become close since we make sure all the necessary documents are forwarded to the right people and put in the right places. We also talk for a little bit before she transfers me over to Christian's office. We usually talk about her husband and her four kids. She has a big family, with children who are reaching the teenage age. She is sad to see them grow up so fast but glad to have more time with her husband of 21 years.

"I am doing really well. Hot in LA, but everything else is good. I don't want to hold you up considering it is almost the end of the workday. I wanted to talk to Christian really quick for our monthly meeting."

"I am leaving now, but no problem. I will see if Mr. Grey is available." I have got to stop calling him by his first name if no one else is. Less than minute later, "I will transfer you to Mr. Grey now. Have a lovely evening Ana."

"You too Andrea." She ends the call. I then hear the dial tone once before Christian pick up.

"Hello, Ms. Steele." AH! I love his voice!

"Hello, Mr. Grey." I politely respond back.

"You can call me Christian. I like when you call me Christian." What does that mean! AH!

"Ok, Christian. I want to thank you for supporting our Movie Club idea."

"It was an easy decision. No other movie theater franchise does it, and you have loyal customers. Why not bring more customers on by rewarding loyalty."

"I thought you might of find it silly considering it's like having a coupon."

"What other companies do are coupons. What you are doing is a reward service. You are encouraging people to stay at your company and not go to others. I find that to be smart in the early stages of growth. Plus, I would never think your ideas are silly." See! Well, I guess that shuts me up. I promise to never call you a silly little girl….unless I forget.

"Thank you, Christian."

I doubt he talks to any of his business partners like this, but I won't argue against it. He has been so supportive. "Also! Did you watch the Godfather yet?" I have been giving Christian movie recommendations. I found out that in fact, I was right. He has not really seen any films. That is crazy to me! I wasn't even sure where to start. I decided to go with the classics first, and 1970s movies, like how my father started with me.

"I watched it last night! Holly shit! At first, I thought it was some family drama you try to get me to watch. But then, when I saw that one guy starting to get into the family business."

"Al Pacino?!"

"Yeah! I all of a sudden could relate to him."

"Please tell me your father is not like the Godfather?"

"I think he wanted to be." I couldn't help but laugh. "I also got a few good business tips out of it."

"Oh no!" I start to laugh, and I hear Christian chuckling with me. "I hope you didn't. No need to have a Grey mafia. You pretty much already have with your security team."

"What can I say, I made them an offer they can't refuse." I giggle at Christian comment.

"Well, I'm glad you liked the movie."

"I loved it, Ms. Steele."

"And, I just wanted you to know we had a great day here, and I hope you had a great day as well."

"Tell me about your day Anastasia."

"Ok…, I will start from the beginning..."

Two and half hours later, our conversation was done.

~oOo~

Several Months Later

I am all ready for bed with my pink and purple striped pajamas. We have an early flight to return to Seattle the next morning. I decided to stay in for the night in my luxurious hotel room, watching the television, and finishing up my review of AMC LA 2.

With the help of GEH quickly opening our first and second Los Angeles theaters and several months in production, I came back to LA to review AMC LA 1 and 2. They are both running smoothly. We were working to open one Los Angeles site when another site came up, and it was an easy turnaround. So, we jumped at the opportunity. Elliot Grey moved like a madman to open both of those theaters, and he did it in a short time period.

Today I reviewed the LA sites since they only been open for a few months. I want to make sure they are exceeding AMC standards. I only had a problem with AMC LA 2 first morning service. The food should have been better prepared in the morning for all the kid meals, knowing that families see movies earlier in the day. Food delivery was slow, but they were able to finish on time. I wanted them to be better prepared in their meal service.

I finish up my business diary, ready to send to Christian. He seems to like it, something no one else does in his company. He tells me I am one of the best owners he has ever worked with. That made me very pleased.

Christian and I talk to each other on the phone more and more, even though our initial agreement was once a month. Usually, it is about business. In many ways, he is mentoring me to become a better businesswoman, which I greatly appreciate. We also talk about our day. He has a much more stressful workload, and I am impressed with everything he manages. I manage one company, he manages several. Sometimes I feel like I am bothering him, which he assures me, I'm not. He wouldn't have given me his cell phone number otherwise. I think we are becoming friends.

Every so often, we talk about personal things. I tell him about my dad. He will talk about his parents and siblings. We talk about the things we love to do in our free time. Sometimes he seems reserved, but all of sudden he will tell me a story about when he was making a business deal with a potential client early in his career, and he accidentally called the client the wrong name. He had so many clients at once, his assistant got the calls mixed up. He covered himself by stating how he was referencing a person who was in the room; a person who never existed. He was going to fire his assistant that day, but she assured him it would never happen again. Andrea has never made that mistake.

I decide to call him now, thinking of something I want to tell him. In normal circumstance, I would tell you NOT to call your business partner at 11:27 pm at night, but I know he'll pick up. He always does.

"Hello, Ms. Steele," Christian responds after the first ring.

"Are you ever going to call me Ana? You let me call you Christian."

"I like hearing you say my first name, Anastasia."

"Well, if you say my first name like that, then I won't mind going by that instead of Ms. Steel. I feel old when people call me Ms. Steele."

"What is wrong with being old?" Christian asks in a jokingly hurt tone. Christian is eight years older than me. I think the age gap is great. Men my age are still immature. I love he is in his 30s.

"Nothing is wrong with being old. I like that you are older than me." This is becoming a little weird. No, it's not! Keep going! "Anyways, I called because I was finishing up my business diary and thought of you."

"Mixing business with pleasure, I see."

"I like to think my business is my pleasure." Real smooth Ana. Real smooth.

"If that is the case, you are not receiving the right kind of pleasure."

"And where could I get the right kind of pleasure Mr. Grey?" We flirt like this every so often, but this is the closest I ever wanted to push further.

"I wish I could help you with that Ms. Steele." You can help! Please help! Christian clears his throat. "Anyway,s how're the AMC LA sites running?"

I give him a summary of what I saw. It is quite a boring conversation compared to what we were first talking about, but it needs to be done. I am snuggling more in bed, getting comfortable, listening to some advice Christian has on how to whip staff into shape. There is a moment of silence that got me wondering if he is ready to end the conversation.

"Anastasia, I was wondering, if you are available to attend the Coping-Together Fundraiser my mother organizes? Usually…I have a business associate come with me, and I thought it would be good for you to meet Seattle business owners at the fundraiser."

"What is the fundraiser for?"

"It is a charity that helps physically and emotionally abused women and children start a better life. The money raised at the fundraiser helps pay for housing, job location, any hospital bills they might of acquire; things that would help people get away from the abuse they experienced. I donate money every year." Oh my god!

"I could have used something like that." I humorlessly chuckle.

"What do you mean Anastasia?" I don't know what has come over me, but I want to tell him. I want to be free of this burden that I carry of my past. Do it, Ana! Why not? He obviously supports this charity.

"I was sexually abused when I was 15. I always wanted to find a way out, but I couldn't. I told myself it wasn't that bad. It wasn't until my dad took me away from the situation in the middle of the night, once he found out. I realized it was bad if my father was that angry and scared." Oh, my poor little girl.

"I had the same experience when I was 15." I can't believe he admitted that to me. I can't believe I admitted that to him. He is a poor little boy too.

"I would say I'm sorry, but I hate when people tell me that. I feel like I'm a kicked puppy or something."

"I never told anyone except my therapist, but I hate when he says 'I'm sorry' to me." He never told anyone else. That means his parents. Oh no. Christian continues, "I honestly didn't see it as abuse until recently." I can relate. I kept denying the abuse until recently. "It felt like I was finally getting the help I needed."

"He would tell me I was being a good girl."

"She told it was punishment for being a bad boy."

"He would tell me, 'I'm only loving my favorite girl.'"

"Who did this to you, Anastasia?" All of sudden his voice sounds very stern.

"You first?"

"I can't. She's still very present in my life. But I plan to disconnect from her."

"Good. It is those things that hold you back, forces us to carry an unnecessary burden."

"Yea."

"I guess I am the lucky one. He's in prison. Won't be released for a long time."

"Good."

"Sometimes, I wish he was dead. It would be like it never happened."

"I know what you mean." This conversation is becoming too deep; deeper than we ever get.

"I would love to go with you Christian, to the fundraiser I mean. Let me know when and where it is going to be."

"Good. I will email you the information. It is a black-tie event, so you will have to dress up, but I can have my personal shopper get you something."

"No need. I'm sure I have something nice to wear." I have nothing, but Kate will help.

"Good…Thank you, Anastasia."

"You are taking me to a black tie event, which I'm sure will be amazing. I should thank you."

"Not for that Ana."

"Oh...Well...no problem. Anytime. I am glad we can talk."

"Me too, more then you know."

"So…" the air is thick even though we are not even in the same room. I have to change the subject. "What did you think of Cabaret?"

"You mean the musical Cabaret." Christian corrects me in an amused tone. I can already hear the ease in his voice.

"Yes, the musical."

"Did you think I would like musicals, Anastasia?"

"Hey, you never know. My military father loved a good musical."

"Really? Ray Steele, a marine, loving musicals?"

"Yep." I proudly state. "His favorite was Singing in the Rain."

"I haven't seen it."

"Cabaret is a test run. So…what did you think?" It is easily one of my favorite films of all time. I hope he likes it.

"At first, once again, like many of your film recommendations, I thought you were fucking with me. A musical set in Germany, before World War II. I didn't get why this was good." Oh boy. "Then, we are supposed to care about a whore? I don't think so." Oh no. No one hates on Ms. Sally Bowles. "But, I fell in a love with her." That was a close one. "She had the biggest balls I have ever seen from a woman."

"I hope so." I laugh at his comment.

"You know what I mean. She didn't take shit from anyone, even her prick of a boyfriend."

"Brian? He's not a prick,...naïve more like it."

"More like an inexperienced, adolescent, dumb ass, who had no clue how to handle a real woman. NO. FUCKING. WAY the sex was good!" I never laughed harder at that comment. "She had to of been controlling everything. He probably didn't know where his dick was supposed to go."

"Christian!" I laughed even harder. "Remind me to never show you The Graduate."

"I will." Christian chuckles, calming down a bit. "I have to say, Sally was very brave."

"She was," I respond, no longer laughing.

"It was easy to fall in love with her."

"I hope you would."

We continued our conversation for another hour and a half before I started closing my eyes. I was getting really tired. As I was drifting off to sleep, I thought I heard Christian say, "Definitely easy to fall in love with."

A/N: That phone trick worked with someone I knew once. They gave an incorrect cell phone number, and the secretary corrected her and gave out someone's phone number without permission. Crazy!

There will be time jumps in the story because I want to capture those good, bad and kinky moments in their lives, instead of day today. I remember my own life in memories, not day to day nonsense. Thus, that is how I am going to write about their lives.