Chapter 16: Ana's POV
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
I woke to the most glorious feeling. Christian's tongue was working its magic, and damn, what a way to wake up! The sun was already streaming through the windows of Christian's bedroom. November sun in Seattle is not that common, so it would have been welcome, except that it was way too early in the morning. But this way of waking up to it... Oh, Yes... I could get used to this. Holy shit!
I had to see this. Feeling it was amazing, but I wanted to watch him. I lifted the blanket and looked down at his copper mop, where he was nestled between my legs. As the blanket lifted, he glanced up at me without slowing down on his ministrations, and our eyes connected. Fire!
"Mmmm... Oh, God! Yes! Christian!" I cried out, as he brought me to orgasm in no time at all. He didn't slow down as I started to come, so it was powerful. So fucking powerful.
He was smiling at me smugly as I recovered my senses. "Good morning," he said in that incredibly sexy voice.
"Mmm... VERY good morning," I responded. "How are you?" I wondered how much his shoulder was hurting him, and how he was feeling after the big reveal to his parents last night.
"Better now," he answered. "Matilda is delicious this morning."
I did my goofy snort thing that I somehow haven't been able to stop, no matter how embarrassing it is. I guessed that the name Matilda for my petunia was here to stay.
"What time is it?" I asked Christian.
He snorted. "You're obsessed with the time, aren't you?" That's because I was always checking the time when we were at work, and keeping him on track.
"No, it's just that it seems bright outside for November," I explained.
"That's because I forgot to draw the blackout curtains last night. It's just as well, though, because we have to wake up. It's a little past 8:00."
"Oh, shit, we're running late!" I exclaimed.
"No, we aren't," he replied calmly. "We're not going in until 10:30. The only thing we're doing today is the interviews. Everything else can wait."
That was news to me. "Oh, OK. You're the boss."
He smirked at me. "Not right now, I'm not. Do you want to take a shower with me?"
I smiled back at him and nodded.
Moments later, we were brushing our teeth, naked and ready to shower. Little Grey was hard and begging for my attention, but I ignored him for the time being. I'd give him some attention very soon.
"How's your shoulder?" I finally asked Christian the question I'd been wondering since I woke up. His bandage was still in place, just like it looked last night.
"It hurts, but not like last night," he replied. "I had to be careful in the bed earlier, and I'll have to wear that damn sling again today. It's more annoying than anything else. How's yours?"
"It's sore, but it only really hurts when I lift my arm," I answered. "I'm fine."
"I'm so glad you weren't hurt worse," he told me as he gazed in my eyes.
"Me too," I replied, gazing back at him. I could get lost in those gray orbits. Christian has beautiful eyes, and I feel like our hearts connect every time we make eye contact.
"So, you think we can figure these things out?" Christian asked, referring to the bandage covers Grace gave him last night. They were these plastic sheet things that taped into place over our bandages to keep them dry in the shower.
It turned out, they weren't that hard to figure out. I did Christian's for him first, and then he did mine. Mine was much too large for my bandage, but that was OK.
As we got into the shower, I had a great idea of how I could pay Christian back for the amazing way he'd awakened me this morning. I dropped to my knees, finally giving Little Grey the attention he was begging for.
"Ahh, shit! Damn, baby! Yes, just like that!"
Christian's reactions encouraged me, and so I took him deeper. If I kept practicing at this, I'd be able to deep throat him the way I wanted to. I didn't make it this time though, because Christian came before I had a chance.
"Normally... I'd try to hold out... a little longer than that..." Christian told be between pants, as he recovered from his orgasm. "But you're just so... and besides... we have to get ready... to go to work... and my parents are probably still here... waiting for us."
Shit! I'd forgotten about them. Elliot, too. They were probably in the living room already, wondering where we were. As I stood up and began to wash Christian's perfect body, I thought back to Grace's behavior towards me the night before, and then her heartfelt repeated apologies. I'd felt incredibly hurt by her reaction towards me at the hospital, but I realized even then that she'd been hoodwinked by Elena Lincoln, her friend for years. When she apologized, I had to forgive her. I had to, for Christian's sake. But I hadn't forgotten, and it would take some time for me to completely trust Grace Trevelyan Grey. Time would tell how serious she was about wanting to be a mother figure to me. I already had a mother. Well, one that left a lot to be desired, to be honest. If Grace began to treat me the way she did her own kids, the way she had treated me last night after the big reveal... then I think I could get used to that. But I wasn't going to hold my breath that it was going to happen. My own mother had hurt me enough; I wasn't ready to trust another one.
"Where are you?" Christian asked as his hand brushed my nipple, getting my attention in more ways than one. I'd finished bathing him, and now he was returning the favor.
"Just remembering last night," I told him honestly, but I wasn't going to mention Grace unless he did first. "It was really brave of you to tell them everything. I'm glad you did."
"I had to," he replied simply. He didn't seem to want to talk about it, and I was OK with that.
"Your hickeys have faded, but they're still visible," he told me after a moment.
"Yeah, Grace told me last night... aloe vera gel works. You had some in your medicine cabinet, so she helped herself to it." Shit, I'd said I wasn't going to mention Grace.
Christian looked surprised. "She saw your hickeys and gave you advice about them?" he asked.
I nodded. "She said something about a cold spoon, but that it was too late for that, that I needed to do it right afterwards. She also mentioned that a banana peel would work wonders."
Christian looked a little flabbergasted. "Wow! I was hoping she wouldn't notice them. I knew it would embarrass you."
"It did," I admitted. "But she set my mind at ease right away by talking about her own younger days. Kind of awkward, actually, but good to know how much she loves your dad, and how long they've been together, and how much they still love each other."
"OK, I could have gone without the mental picture of my mom with hickeys," Christian muttered, but then he smiled. "She loves you, Ana. I knew she would, once she realized the truth about you."
I nodded, but I didn't want to talk about that, and besides, we were finished with our shower. I turned off the tap and got out, grabbing a towel for Christian first, because I knew he was only able to use one arm freely. We dried off in silence, probably both thinking about everything that happened the previous night. It was really too much to process, even now, hours later.
"I need to talk with Jason before we leave," Christian finally said. "We need to make some changes to security immediately, and I'm sure he already has a plan in place."
I nodded. "I'll help you shave if you want," I offered. I knew he'd have a hard time with just his left hand.
"Nah, I think I'll let it grow today. It doesn't look too bad, does it?" He looked much more uncertain than Christian Grey should ever look.
"You look sexy as fuck," I told him, earning his sexy smirk.
"Not as sexy as you," he told me. Yes, I was completely naked in front of him, and yes, he was staring at my body, making me really self conscious.
"Then let me help you get dressed," I offered, attempting to take the attention off of me. Besides, I knew he'd have trouble with his buttons if he was careful not to use his right hand.
He smiled back at me. "Only if you let me help you too," he told me, still ogling me.
"I don't even know what I'm going to wear. That was one of the things I was going to pick up last night from my apartment. Work clothes. But you know how that went."
We went into his closet, where he started putting on his boxer briefs. I got lost for a moment watching him. Gorgeous. I understood why so many women made fools of themselves around him.
"I know how it went, and I also know how it could have gone. Ana... please don't ever scare me like that again," Christian said imploringly.
I nodded at him, because I realized belatedly how much I'd scared him by insisting on going to my apartment without waiting for him. "I promise," I told him. I continued talking as I helped him put on his shirt, "I was convinced that I could take care of things before you got there. I mean, I had Luke AND Belinda. Two armed guards, plus I'm trained in self defense. I was certain that she couldn't hurt me. But in hindsight... things could have gone much worse than they did. I promise to listen to our security from now on."
Christian looked relieved. "Thank you," he said, and he kissed my lips chastely. Then he got his trousers and pulled them on, not needing my help. I insisted on helping him with his belt though.
"So... umm... about your clothes. I have something for you here. It's a bit more casual than you usually wear to the office, but I think it looks professional enough." He sounded nervous, for some reason. When I saw what he was referring to, I was confused as to why he was nervous.
"A sweater dress?" I asked. "Sure, that will work. And it's a turtle neck too, so it will hide my hickeys. It's perfect. Nice color, too. Where did you get it?" It was a dark plum, one of my favorite colors to wear.
He looked relieved as he answered, "It's Mia's. She left a few things in her room here. She won't mind, I promise. She's taller than you, but I think you wear about the same size, so I think it will fit you."
I was happy to hear that he was loaning me his sister's clothes instead of sending Jason or Gail out to purchase me clothing in the middle of the night.
"Thankfully, I have plenty of underwear and casual clothes that I washed here over the weekend. I even have some black tights that will go perfectly with this dress."
With Christian's help, I was dressed in no time at all. My bandage was completely covered by the sweater dress, so nobody would be able to see that I was injured. My hickeys were hidden too. Christian was right that I normally wouldn't wear a sweater dress to work, because I preferred a nice business suit with a pencil skirt, but it was dressy enough. I liked it.
Christian helped me pull my hair back into a low ponytail, since using my right arm to do that was painful. It was awkward, because both of us were only able to use our left hands, but somehow we managed to make it look OK. I kept my make-up light, as usual for work, so I was ready in just a couple more minutes. I helped Christian with his socks and shoes, slipped on my own black pumps, and then we went out to the living area together.
The scrumptious smell from the kitchen hit us at the same time.
"Is that chocolate?" I asked.
At the same time, Christian exclaimed like a little boy, "Chocolate chip pancakes!"
Grace and Gail were both in the kitchen, and Carrick was sitting at the breakfast bar drinking coffee and reading something on his phone. They all heard us and looked towards us.
"Good morning," Grace was first to greet us.
"How are you two feeling this morning?" Carrick asked, examining us with a worried father's concern.
"You look lovely," Grace told me, giving me a look of adoration that was completely opposite from the look she'd given me in the hospital the night before. In fact, her expression was making me feel a little smothered.
"What about me, Mom?" Christian asked sardonically. "Do I look lovely, too?" I suspected he was saying that because he knew Grace's attention to me was making me uncomfortable.
"I've never seen a lovelier sight," she answered sincerely. I think she really wanted to hug us both, but she held back, thankfully.
"Is that chocolate chip pancakes I smell?" Elliot called out excitedly as he entered the room.
"It is," Grace answered. "And don't worry, boys, there's enough for everyone. And bacon, too, thanks to Gail here. Fresh fruit, as well. Orange juice, coffee and tea. I even made some chocolate milk, just like I used to for you boys. What would everyone like?" Nobody needed to remind Grace that her sons were no longer boys, that they were 26 and 29-year-old successful businessmen. No, her boys were both obviously enjoying the attention their mom was giving them. It was actually very cute.
"Oh, and Ana... I saved a banana peel for you," Grace told me pointedly.
"A banana peel? Whatever for?" Carrick asked confusedly.
Shit! Were my love bites now going to be the talk of the entire family? Elliot walked over to Carrick and whispered something in his ear. Carrick glanced at me, and then his eyes seemed to comprehend something. Great! Now they were talking about me and my neck right there in front of me. This was so embarrassing.
Christian saw my discomfort, so he decided to address it head-on, to my chagrin. "You know, Mom, I didn't know that banana peel worked on hickeys. Did you know that, Elliot?"
Elliot looked at Christian like he was an idiot, but he answered kind of smugly. "Yeah, I learned that trick from Mom when I was a teenager.
"Boys, enough," Grace said. "Ana doesn't like this kind of attention. I'm sorry, dear." Great, she was apologizing. Again.
As we made our way to the dining table, Elliot told me with a brotherly smirk, "You know, your nickname 'Banana' has a whole new meaning now."
Christian went a little caveman when Elliot said that. He made sure he was sitting between me and Elliot at the table. That was fine with me, actually. Christian needed to get over his jealousy, at least where his brother was concerned. Elliot clearly saw me as a little sister, which was why he felt so comfortable teasing me. In fact, he was clearly thrilled that I loved his brother. Christian was just insecure, and it would take time in our new relationship for him to feel secure. I understood that.
We all sat down at the dining table and had a feast for breakfast. Christian and Elliot reminisced about their childhood, when Grace would make this very breakfast on their birthdays or other special occasions. Nobody was surprised when they helped themselves to the chocolate milk. Well, Elliot helped himself; Christian got some help from his mom because of his injured shoulder. Grace insisted on taking a look at it before we left for work. In fact, she looked at both of our wounds shortly after breakfast, checking for signs of infection and replacing the bandages.
Since everyone had intentionally avoided any mention of the evil one or any of the bad things that happened the previous night, conversation during breakfast had been kept light and carefree. But that ended immediately after Grace was finished examining our wounds. Jason asked Christian for a word, and the three of us ended up in Christian's office.
"So, how bad are things with the media?" Christian asked first.
"There was cell phone footage of the shooting, posted online almost immediately," Jason answered. "We're currently searching through them for Hyde. We know it was him, but we need to tie him to it."
"So, I take it the paps are doing their usual shit this morning?" Christian confirmed.
"Yes, sir, there are numerous news stories about last night's event. Nothing about Ms. Williams, but a lot about the shooting. And yes, there are about two dozen paps outside, but they aren't a big concern at the moment. We can leave from your private basement garage and enter Grey House through your private basement garage. They can't get access to you."
"So, then, what about Jack Hyde? Is he in police custody yet?" Christian asked.
"Negative," Jason answered. "He has disappeared, sir."
"I thought we had somebody keeping an eye on him," Christian said angrily.
"We did," Jason responded. "He lost him."
"Lost him?" Christian questioned, getting angrier.
"We should have put at least two, probably three people on him, sir. It was my mistake. One of several I made yesterday."
Christian nodded but didn't respond to Jason's confession. He also amazingly seemed to calm down. "OK, what else do you have for me, Jason?" he asked.
Jason got to the point with no beating around the bush. "I think you need to hire a new head of personal security, immediately."
Christian's shock was evident. "Jason... are you quitting on me?"
"You should be firing me, sir, after what happened last night" Jason answered. "The only reason you aren't is because you've come to see me as a friend. And I appreciate that. So no, I'm not quitting. That's not what I mean."
"Well, then, what the fuck do you mean?" Christian asked, his anger quickly reappearing.
Jason clarified,"I would like to continue on as one of your CPOs. But doing that job and also heading up your security is more than one person can do well. And quite honestly, I don't have the tactical training that your head of security needs to have. I have some, but not to the extent that I think you need, now that we have a better idea of the threats against you. Threats that are not going to go away. Even when these specific threats are handled, there will always be others. You need someone who is more equipped for this specific kind of threat."
"You already have someone in mind, don't you?" Christian questioned.
"I do," Jason answered. "Remember Welch's friends who bugged Lincoln's phone?"
"The two FBI chicks?" Christian asked.
"Former-FBI," Jason clarified. "I'm recommending that you hire them both, but for your new head of personal security, Kendra Simon is the one you want. She was the mastermind behind the bugging of the phone, but that's child's play compared to what she's capable of. She'd worked her way up to a Supervisory Special Agent, and was in line for a promotion to Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge. But she quit instead of taking the promotion. Said she got burnt out. It happens more often than you'd think."
"Wait," Christian interrupted. "So this... Kendra Simon? Did you do a background check?"
"Of course," Jason answered, looking a little offended. "And besides, Welch knows them both well. Kendra Marie Simon. Divorced. 42-years-old. Originally from Festus, Missouri. Joined the Navy straight out of high school, served one tour, then went to college. Did the FBI training after that and was a Fed for about a decade. Just visiting Seattle, but Welch thinks she can be convinced to stay put."
Christian nodded thoughtfully. He rubbed his left hand over his face and scratched the short beard that he now sported. So fucking sexy.
"And what about the other one?" he asked. "What's her story?"
"Pamela Cornwall," Jason answered. "In Seattle for personal reasons. Welch has been dating her for about a year, mostly long distance. She's here visiting him. He says they're serious, and that she wants to move here permanently."
"That's all well and good, but is she qualified?" Christian asked.
"Just as qualified as any of us," Jason answered. She and Simon worked together in the FBI. She was a special agent under Simon's command. They quit at the same time."
"What do you want me to hire her for?" Christian asked. "What job?"
Jason answered, "I'm recommending that you hire her as Ms. Steele's second CPO, in addition to Prescott."
"Wait, what about Luke?" I asked. Even if he had gotten on my nerves the day before, I didn't want him to get fired.
"He'll stay with you, Ms. Steele, for the next week or two, until Prescott recovers. Then, I want to leave it to Simon to assign Sawyer to the best position for him, either as your second CPO, Mr. Grey, or for one of your family members. You've also got Ryan and Reynolds, and I'd like to leave it to Simon to assign each of them, as well as new officers that we need to hire. I have recommendations, but ultimately it will be her decision. If you agree to hire her, sir."
I didn't miss the fact that Jason was calling me Ms. Steele, something he hadn't done in months. He'd gone back to being as formal as he'd been when we first met. Interesting. And he was calling Christian "Mr. Grey" and "sir," which I knew Christian had already told him not to do any longer.
Christian scratched his beard again, looking pensive. "So... let me see if I have this right," he told Jason. "You want me to hire one FBI chick to be your boss, and the other one to protect Ana. Is that it?"
"That about sums it up, sir," Jason answered. "Except... I'd refrain from referring to either of them as an 'FBI chick,' since I don't expect either of them would appreciate that reference all that much."
Christian didn't look happy. He continued to press Jason. "And you think... you, Sawyer, Ryan, and Reynolds... You think you'll all be able to take orders from... the new girl?"
"Yes, sir," Jason answered confidently. "And... she isn't a girl, sir. She's 42. Very well qualified and accustomed to being the one in charge."
"Why, Jason?" Christian ignored Jason's comment and finally asked the question I know he'd been pondering all this time. I was wondering the same thing. "And by the way, you don't have to call me 'sir' any more. You know that."
"Yes, sir," Jason answered. "New protocol. I'm on duty. You're 'Mr. Grey' and 'Ms. Steele.' I'll relax and call you 'Christian' and 'Ana' when I'm off duty from now on. I relaxed too much, and you both nearly got killed. If Hyde had been a better shot... or if he'd hired a professional instead of doing it himself, you would both be dead right now. I know my own strengths and weaknesses. I'm good at following orders, especially from someone I know is well qualified and damn good at the job. That's Kendra Simon. I can keep you safer if I'm following her command. I know it. I can't see the big picture if I'm focused on protecting you in the moment. I failed at both things last night. That can't happen again."
Christian nodded. "Well, I agree with that. I just wasn't expecting this. OK, so when do we meet Kendra Simon and Pamela Cornwall? I at least want to have a conversation with each of them before I agree to this."
"They're waiting for you at Grey House," Jason answered.
"Can I ask a question?" I asked. Both of them looked at me expectantly. "Just out of curiosity, why are you moving Luke to a new position and giving me a new CPO? Not that I'm complaining, but I'm OK with Luke, too. I don't have a problem with him."
"With all due respect, your behavior yesterday would prove otherwise," Jason responded stoically.
"Well, he pissed me off when I was already angry," I admitted.
Jason responded, still with his characteristic stoicism, "Yes, and before that, you suggested that he let you and Prescott out while he parked the car. I wonder, would you have gone ahead and rushed into danger the way you did if Sawyer had followed your instructions and had been outside parking the car? He made repeated attempts to stop you from endangering yourself, but you ignored him. Only Prescott was able to persuade you to hold back and let them enter the apartment before you."
Now Christian was glaring at me. Shit! I was in trouble now, and I knew it. I shouldn't have asked the question.
Christian's voice was calm. Too calm. I knew he was seething. "What's this? You ignored Sawyer? And me too, actually. I distinctly remember you promising me that you'd keep them both at your side at all times, and then you went and told him to let you out at the door, Ana? What the fuck were you thinking?" OK, he didn't sound so calm there at the end.
"I'm sorry," I muttered, and I was. They were right, I had endangered myself. Even so, I needed to explain. "I honestly don't know what I would have done if Luke had been parking the car. But he wasn't. And with it being the two of them, I was confident that I'd be able to confront Leila Williams and take care of her before you got there. And that's exactly what happened."
"This time," Jason added. "You were lucky. Ms. Williams was in the shower instead of waiting for you with that loaded gun she was carrying. You might not have been so lucky had it been Lincoln or Hyde you were confronting."
"I get it, OK?" I said contritely. "I promise, it won't happen again. I'll listen to my security from now on. I promise."
Christian was still looking at me with that angry look on his face, like I'd betrayed him. Shit! I wasn't sure what I could do to get that look off his face.
"You seemed to respond well to Prescott," Jason continued. "Besides, I believe that it will be better for you to have two female CPOs instead of a male and female. This way, both of them can go with you everywhere, including the ladies' room. Shopping for... personal items. Things that might be awkward for a male CPO."
Well, he had a good point there. I really didn't like the idea of hanging out with Luke Sawyer while I tried on lingerie for Christian. I could just hear Luke's voice in my head: "I need to keep an eye on you at all times." Umm... No. OK, then. I guessed I was getting a new CPO. And I guessed I needed to be more careful to listen to them from now on.
We left shortly after that, so we got to Grey House just past 10 a.m. We had less than an hour before the first CFO interview, which didn't leave much time to interview the new security. Christian decided that talking to them together would be OK, so he called ahead and instructed Andrea to set them up in the small conference room by his office. He was still giving me the stink eye, but at least he wanted me to be there for this interview. Jason Taylor and Alex Welch were both also present.
Kendra Simon stood and greeted us as soon as we entered the conference room where she and the others had been waiting. Pamela Cornwall stood too, but only for a moment, as Kendra was clearly the one in charge here. She had a very commanding presence, which immediately made me feel more secure. The first thing that struck me about Kendra was her height. She was nearly as tall as Christian, so she had to be at least 6 feet. She was more muscular than most women, too, with broad shoulders; in spite of that, she didn't look manly. She was wearing make-up: brown eye shadow, some blush on her cheeks, and pink lip gloss. She was dressed simply but professionally in black slacks and a brown jacket with a beige button-up blouse under it. Her straight blonde hair was pulled back. She removed her brown tortoise-shell glasses, which somehow suited her well, as she stood to face us. She had a very pretty face.
"Mr. Grey. Ms. Steele. It's a pleasure to meet you both. I'm Kendra Simon."
"Ms. Simon," Christian replied politely, "the pleasure is all mine." Actually, he didn't look pleased at all, but at least he sounded polite. "I understand you're considering the position of heading up my personal security. Have you been briefed on all this job entails?"
"Briefed would be the operative word," she replied. "Welch here has filled me in on the basics. I understand that your CPO, Taylor here, has been in charge of your own personal security. That job has recently outgrown itself and you need someone new to head up your personal security. I guess I only have one question."
"What would that be?" Christian asked.
"Why should I take this job?" she asked.
Christian raised his eyebrows a little, but other than that, his expression didn't change. "You're making an assumption that the job is already yours. Why should I hire you?"
She chuckled. "Oh, you want me for the job. There's no question there. Welch is sweating a little because he's afraid you're going to let me get out the door without accepting the job. And it has nothing to do with his personal life, since you can easily hire Pam even if you don't hire me, or Pam can easily find another job and stay here in Seattle. No, he knows you need me because he knows my reputation."
"Which is...?" Christian asked, his expression unchanging.
"To put it simply, I always get the bad guy. And I've only ever lost one team member, but that was because he didn't follow orders. That was my last operation with the FBI. We still got the bad guy, but we lost a good agent. I HATE losing people, and I've vowed to NEVER let that happen again."
"Was that why you quit the FBI?" Christian asked.
"Part of it," she answered. "Mainly... I needed a... change of scenery."
"And how do you like the scenery of Seattle?" Christian asked.
"It's a beautiful part of the country," she answered. "Expensive to live here in the city though. This job would have to cover my expenses."
Christian nodded thoughtfully. He glanced at Alex and Jason, and I'm sure he noticed how nervous they both looked. They both clearly wanted him to hire Kendra Simon, and they were afraid Christian was going to let her get away.
"How about we step into my office for a private conversation for just a moment?" Christian suggested. Kendra got up immediately and walked towards the door. "Ana," Christian motioned for me to come too. He didn't make eye contact, but at least he still wanted me there.
Christian didn't waste any time when we sat down in his office. "Whatever you were making at the FBI when you quit, I will double it," he offered.
Kendra looked surprised. And impressed. "I was a supervisory special agent, and I'd been in that position for a few years, Mr. Grey. I made a pretty good salary at $146,000. Are you saying you're willing to pay me $292,000?"
"Why don't we round it up to 300," Christian suggested. "And of course, all of my full-time employees get a benefits package which includes health insurance and retirement. We can also provide moving expenses, if you need them."
Kendra didn't need to think anything over. She reached out her hand to shake Christian's. It was a bit awkward, as she had to shake his left hand instead of his right, because of his shoulder injury and the fact that his right arm was in a sling, but she did not seem to notice the awkwardness. "I look forward to working for you, sir. When do I start?"
"When can you start?" Christian asked. "I'd prefer immediately. The sooner the better."
"Immediately it is, then," she responded.
"Good," Christian said. "Now... what can you tell me about Pamela Cornwall?"
"Best damn agent I've ever had working under me," she answered. "Shoots better than I do, and that's pretty damn good. I've never seen a better shot than Pam, actually. Gets the target dead center every time. I'm talking about moving targets in volatile situations. Anyway, it's more than that. She's an empath. She's great at profiling, but she's also great at reading the mood of team members. Invaluable at conflict resolution, as a result."
Christian nodded. "You mentioned you lost a team member in your last operation," he recalled. "What happened?"
"Long story, and most of it is classified," she answered. "Agent Gregg was a good man. He had a family, with small kids. I can't tell you the details of how he was killed, except that he went out on his own, against my orders. Pam took it the hardest of all of us. Being the empath that she is, she understood why he did it. Makes me sick to think about it, to this day."
Christian stood up, so both of us followed suit. This conversation was clearly finished. Christian wasn't going to push Kendra to give us answers that she clearly didn't want to or couldn't discuss. "Welcome, Ms. Simon. I guess we're under your leadership now when it comes to our personal security."
"In that case, my first recommendation is that you hire Pam Cornwall to be Ms. Steele's CPO."
"Noted," Christian responded. "So you don't see any issues with her personal relationship with Alex Welch?"
"None at all, sir," she replied with no hesitation. "They're both professionals."
We all stepped back inside the conference room where Jason and Alex were still waiting with my apparent new CPO, Pamela Cornwall. She was around my height and size, but beyond that, her resemblance to me ended. For one thing, she was older... probably around Kendra's age. She was also much more muscular than me. What was it about these former-FBI women? They must take working out very seriously. Anyway, Pamela also had bright red hair that was cut in a cute bob that framed her face. She had the greenest eyes I'd ever seen, and freckles covered her nose and cheeks. She even had freckles on her neck, and probably her shoulders, but they were covered in the green sweater she was wearing, which was the same color as her eyes. She also had on brown slacks and boots.
Again, Christian didn't waste any time. "Ms. Cornwall, are you aware of what happened to us yesterday?"
"Yes, sir, I've been briefed," she answered. "Alex contracted us to assist with the cell phone footage, to find the shooter. He also made us aware of the incident in Ms. Steele's apartment beforehand, since it could have been related."
"Then I just have one other question for you," Christian said. "What would you have done in that situation if you were Ms. Steele's CPO?"
She only needed to give it a moment's thought before she replied, "I probably would have done much of the same that Belinda Prescott did, except I would have tried harder to stop Ms. Steele from entering her apartment in the first place. I understand that Luke Sawyer attempted to stop her, but his manner was... uncompelling. Ms. Steele isn't accustomed to taking orders, especially from security officers. I need to get to know her a little better, and she needs to get to know me better too, before I can be effective at this, but I would have reasoned with her, and helped her see the danger in the situation. I believe that all Ms. Steele was able to see in the moment was the compromised position of her personal property. And I think... Ms. Steele is from a fairly humble background, so whatever she owns... I think she would have wanted to do all she could to protect it."
Well damn. She understood me, and she didn't even know me yet. I felt tears coming to my eyes, and I quickly blinked them away. Christian was mad at me for not following Luke's orders, but this woman understood why I'd had a hard time doing that yesterday.
I felt Christian's eyes on me, but I didn't look at him. I couldn't, because if I did, I would cry.
Pamela continued speaking. "As for what happened when you were leaving, I think Prescott and Sawyer did their jobs well, and I don't know what I would have done differently in the same situation. But it won't happen like that again. You've obviously just hired Kendra Simon to be your head of personal security, so we're all under her command now. We would have known about the threat before we walked out that door."
"How can you be so sure about that?" Christian asked.
Kendra was the one to answer. "That announcement you made to the press yesterday morning? You were inviting exactly what you got. If I'd been working for you yesterday, I would have been prepared for it. And Jack Hyde? We know it was him. Not just Taylor's hunch any more. As Pam mentioned, we've spent most of the night searching the cell phone footage posted on social media. We found it, just about ten minutes ago. It's grainy, but there's no question as to his identity. If I'd been working for you already, you would have known long before yesterday that Jack Hyde is after your hide. He didn't just want to destroy your company. He wants you dead."
I blinked again as I processed her play on words. The literature nerd in me appreciated her just a little more. Not that I wasn't already impressed with both of them.
"You're both hired," Christian said. I guessed he was equally impressed. He turned to Kendra and added, "You're in charge, so you can work out the details of Ms. Cornwall's salary and benefits package. Taylor can assist with that. I'd like for Jason Taylor to remain your second in command, but beyond that, assignment of security personnel is totally up to your own discretion. You'll have an office here at GEH and also at my penthouse at Escala. Taylor can show you all of that too. You will be working closely with Welch, but he's in charge here at Grey House. In matters that concern both my personal security and Grey House security, you will need to coordinate your efforts. I assume you've already communicated with Seattle PD concerning the video footage you just made reference to, so I'll leave that in your capable hands. Any questions?"
They didn't have any questions at the moment, so our meeting ended. I went immediately to the ladies' room, where I badly needed to freshen up. Mainly, I just needed a moment to myself. It bothered me that Christian was angry with me, and that this woman who'd never met me seemed to understand something about me better than he did.
When I made it back to Christian's office, Ros was already there, and they were prepping for the first CFO interview of the day, Nathaniel Roggen. Christian looked up at me as I entered, and we made eye contact. He looked more concerned than angry now, so that was a good sign. I couldn't maintain eye contact though, because I was afraid he was still angry with me, and I didn't want to see that in his eyes again.
