AN: This is still Madison's friend. I just want to clarify something. A guest reviewer, that reviewed Unwritten,thought maybe my system was set to the Chinese dialect. And that was what was causing all my problems. I guess I should have thought of a different way to explain it. When I say that it unreadable like it's written in Chinese. What I mean is it's unreadable because there's just line after line of computer code. It's not actually Chinese writing.
After this there may not be new updates for several days. Yesterday morning my elderly father who has dementia. Fell on his face. He broke his nose and got a mild concussion. He of course went to the emergency room. Where they were so overrun with COVID-19 patients. That he spent the whole time he was at the emergency room on a gurney in the hallway. When he left the ER yesterday night it was our understanding that they were not going to do surgery on his broken nose. We got a very unexpected call this afternoon. And tomorrow morning he will be having surgery to fix his broken nose. So I will be busy over the next several days taking care of him. But I promise I have not forgotten you. Hopefully by next week I will be back to a more regular update schedule.
I would like to thank everyone that left birthday wishes for me in the reviews. It meant a great deal to me. I truly appreciate it.
Chpt. 11: Ana's POV
Kate and I spent the entire afternoon shopping and finally found the perfect dress for my dinner tonight. It's a short black cocktail style dress with a flowing skirt that falls to just below my mid-thigh. The back of the dress fully covers everything but is of a mesh fabric to the middle of my back. The front of the dress has a sweetheart neckline that plunges just enough to show a tasteful amount of cleavage. The cap sleeves have the same mesh fabric as the back of the dress. The outfit is complete with a pair of Kate's silver heels and a couple bracelets.
"Ana! You look beautiful!" Kate exclaims as she puts the final touches on my hair and make up.
"Thank you Kate!" I respond. "I couldn't have done it without your fashion assistance today!"
"Well, we all know what great fashion sense I have" she says laughing. "What time is your meeting with billing on campus tomorrow?"
"Oh! I completely forgot to tell you!" I answer. "I stopped by the billing office because I had to get a few things from the library. Turns out they weren't calling to discuss my bill but to inform me I had one a scholarship!"
"What? I didn't know you applied for one?" Kate says. "But that's wonderful news!"
"I didn't apply for it," I explain. "A couple of my professors nominated me for the scholarship which provides not only tuition assistance but provides extra funds to help students preparing for the real world."
"Congratulations Ana!" Kate says hugging me.
We hear the buzzer alerting us that someone is requesting access to Kate's building.
"Yes?" Kate asks.
"It's Christian," a voice over the intercom says.
"Come on up. Second floor, apartment 204," Kate responds.
"I'm going to use the bathroom again…" I say, feeling the butterflies starting in my stomach already. I've never been out on a real date and I'm nervous as hell.
"Christian, please come in," Kate says inviting Christian into her apartment.
"Thank you Ms. Kavanaugh" Christian says.
"Ana will be out in one moment," Kate states.
"Of course," Christian responds.
"I'm only going to say this once," Kate says in a hushed tone. "If you hurt my best friend, I will personally hunt you down and kill you. She is a wonderful person who doesn't deserve any more pain to come to her."
"I couldn't agree more and have no plans of hurting her," Christian says.
"What are you two whispering about?" I ask walking out of the room and seeing Christian and Kate talking very quietly at the breakfast bar.
"How absolutely stunning you look tonight," Christian says walking over to me and kissing me on the cheek.
"I doubt it, but thank you," I answer. "Kate, I will see you later tonight."
"You have your spare key?" Kate asks; Kate had given me a spare key to her apartment a year or so ago just incase she ever lost her key.
"Yes Kate," I answer hugging her good bye.
Christian takes my hand and leads me out the building to his car where his driver is once again waiting for us.
"Ana this is Taylor my head of security and driver" Christian says. "Taylor, this is Ana Steele my date for this evening."
"It's a pleasure to meet you ma'am," Taylor says shaking my hand.
"Please it's Ana" I respond. "Ma'am makes me sound old."
"I have reservations booked at the Harbor View Inn for us this evening, I hope you like it," Christian says as we start to pull away from Kate's apartment.
"I've never been there but I have heard wonderful things about it," I answer. In realty I've heard a few customers talk about it but could never afford to go there on my own. The prices there are double what Antonio charges for meals.
"The food is well known through Seattle and has received reviews by several popular food and wine magazines," Christian explains. "Almost just as important as the food, is the view. The restaurant sits on the water and beautiful views of the harbor from almost every table in the dining room."
"It sounds beautiful," I say in awe.
We ride in a silence for a few minutes before arriving at the Harbor View Inn; as Christian described the view even from outside the building is amazing. You can see boats sailing in the distance just as the sun sets over the water.
"Christian this is breathtaking," I sigh.
"It really is," Christian says looking at me as I gaze out at the view.
Christian reaches down, tilting my chin up and gently places his lips on mine. Just like our last kiss, it starts out very gently but quickly becomes more passionate. My hands are around his neck as I twirl his hair in my fingertips. Christian's hands thankfully remain firmly planted on my hips; I can't help but think he is afraid to move too much after what happened at the club. Just as I begin to worry about his hands, Christian pulls apart leaving us both breathless.
"We should get inside before we give everyone a show," Christian says giggling.
"Good idea," I say following Christian inside.
"Reservations for Grey, table for two," Christian says to the hostess.
We follow the hostess to a secluded section of the restaurant where we are seated at a small table next to the window. The view is breathtaking and I can't help but stare out at the water as we sit down. I barely hear the waitress telling us the specials for this evening as I watch a boat pulling into the dock near the restaurant.
"Ana?" Christian asks.
"Oh, sorry," I say, turning my attention back to Christian and the waitress.
"Would you like some wine?" Christian asks.
"That would be nice," I respond.
"We will have a bottle of the Primal Cut Cabernet Sauvignon," Christian says dismissing the waitress.
"Beautiful view," I say as I begin looking over the menu.
"This is one of my favorite restaurants in Seattle in part because of the view," Christian explains. "The food is the other reason I come here often."
"Excuse me, are you ready to order?" The waitress asks.
"Ana?" Christian asks.
"Yes" I say. "I will have the pan seared scallops with mushroom risotto and the garden medley vegetables."
"That sounds good, I think I will have the same," Christian states.
"Tell me about yourself Ana," Christian says as the waitress returns to the kitchen.
"There's not much to tell," I say. "As you already know, I'm graduating in a few months from college and then hope to enter the real world. Kate and I have been best friends since our freshman year of college when we met in orientation."
"You don't live with Kate?" Christian asks.
"No, I rent a place not far from Kate so we can still see each other often," I say stretching the truth about the closeness my room is to her apartment. "I'm thinking of moving in with Kate though when my lease is up."
"Oh?" Christian says surprised.
"She's been bugging me for a year or two now to room with her and I figure her place is closer to the downtown area which is likely where I will be working after graduation" I explain. "What about you? You told me a little about your job when we were at the club the other night."
"Let's see," Christian says pausing. "I dropped out of Harvard during my sophomore year much to my father's disappointment. I couldn't tolerate sitting in classes for hours listening to someone lecture about business when I felt I should be out there experiencing it for myself. I took at loan out and started my business a few months after dropping out of college. The first couple years were rough but my company started to become known in the business industry and things started to get a little easier. I now employee hundreds of employees if you count all of the companies who fall under GEH's umbrella."
"That's amazing," I say in shock that someone so young could accomplish so much. "Your parents must be very proud."
"They are" Christian says. "But they are equally proud of all three of their children."
"Elliot is your older brother right?" I ask.
"Yes and I have a younger sister Mia," Christian answers. "We were all adopted by my parents when we were young."
"What do your parents do? And your siblings?" I ask.
"My mother is a pediatrician at Seattle Hospital, my father is lawyer," Christian explains. "Elliot owns a construction business that I often partner with to handle the remodeling needs of the companies GEH takes over. Mia just finished culinary school in France and is looking for a position in Seattle."
"Wow, you have all had such success" I say in amazement.
"Do you have any siblings?" Christian asks.
"No," I say just as the waitress returns with our food. "This looks delicious."
We sit quietly enjoying each other's company as we eat. I feel at ease with Christian and the nervousness I felt earlier today is gone. Over dinner Christian tells me more about a few acquisitions his company has had in the past couple of years. I am truly impressed that this young man sitting in front of me has taken over so many large companies yet still gives back to the community as he describes some of the grants he has provided to several universities.
"Christian, Darling! What a wonderful surprise," says a woman approaching our table speaking directly to Christian and ignoring my presence at the table.
"Elena, I would like you to meet my date Ana," Christian says introducing me to the woman I quickly recognize as the blond bitch from the restaurant and the holiday party.
"Ana," Elena says extending her hand.
"It's nice to meet you," I lie shaking her hand.
"Christian, I wasn't expecting to see you here tonight," Elena says turning her back to me. "Did you get the email I sent you with the pictures the other day?"
"Yes Elena; we discussed those earlier today and I believe I made my opinion of those known to you," Christian says angrily.
"Of course," Elena says. "I will send you some additional photos when I get home tonight and we can discuss it tomorrow. Maybe I will stop by Escala tomorrow."
"That won't be necessary," Christian says.
"Oh I'm sorry," Elena says. "I will wait until this one leaves tomorrow before stopping by. Let's say around 6?"
"Excuse me" I say, now I'm pissed. "We are in the middle of dinner and our food is getting cold."
"What?" Elena says clearly surprised that I spoke up. "Christian, you are not going to allow her to speak to me like that are you? I mean, come on she is just a waitress where your parents had a party. She doesn't belong with someone like you."
"Excuse me," I interrupt her as I feel my anger reaching its limit. "Please leave us to enjoy our dinner."
"Good night Elena," Christian says dismissing her. "Please call my office to schedule an appointment."
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmm," Elena says giving me a dirty look before leaving our table.
"I am so sorry," Christian says. "I had no idea she would be here and never would have expected her to say something like that."
"It's not your fault she has no manners Christian," I say taking a deep breath.
"Please don't let her ruin our evening; I will address her rudeness with her the next time I speak to her. She knows nothing about you and should learn not to make assumptions about people she doesn't know," Christian says.
"It's okay Christian," I reply. "People do it more often than they realize."
"So tell me what got you interested in publishing?" Christian says, changing the subject.
"Growing up I always loved to read; my dad started reading to me when I was very young and it just sort of stuck with me. He would travel often for business but whenever he came home he would bring me a new book and we would start reading it together. I love the idea of getting lost in a story and forgetting about all your worries while you read. Sometimes you need to escape reality and a book is a perfect way to do that" I explain.
"You must have a large collection of books," Christian says.
"I did" I say sadly. "My dad died when I was young and my mother had a difficult time following his death. We moved around a lot growing up and each time we had to take less and less with us. Unfortunately my books were often left behind since she did not consider it a necessity."
"I'm so sorry the loss of your father," Christian says. "It's obvious listening to you that you were very close to him."
"We were close; everyone said I had him wrapped around my finger. Whenever he wasn't working we spent time together," I explained recalling some of my fond memories of my father.
"Are you close with your mother?" Christian asks.
"No" I say sighing. It's difficult to explain to someone who doesn't know your past why you aren't close to your mother. I could never forgive my mother for standing by and doing nothing while I was abused all those years. "She lives in Georgia but we don't speak often."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Christian says sadly.
"It is what it is," I reply.
"Would you like some desert this evening?" The waitress asks thankfully interrupting us at the perfect time.
"Ana?" Christian asks.
"No thank you," I answer. "Dinner was very good though."
"I will prepare your bill and be back shortly," the waitress says.
"Speaking of bills," I say suddenly remembering an issue I needed to discuss with Christian.
"Yes?" Christian asks confused.
"I can't accept this tip," I say returning the $100 to him from yesterday.
"Why not? It is a tip for the service you provided," Christian explains.
"Yes but your bill was only about a third of the amount of the tip you left. Typically people tip a percentage of the bill," I explain.
"Well it was exceptional service you provided," Christian explains pushing my hand back to me with the money still in it.
"Christian I can't accept it, it's too much," I say.
"Well I can't accept it back," Christian says angrily. Why is he getting so upset that I'm giving him his money back?
"Then I will leave it for this waitress," I say putting the money on the table.
"Why would you do that?" Christian asks.
"She needs a tip and my guess is this bill will far exceed the amount you spent on lunch yesterday so it's likely more appropriate for her than for me," I explain.
"I can afford to leave you both the same tip and I think your service called for an extravagant tip," Christian says still looking angry.
"I'm sure you can," I say defiantly.
"Ugh," Christian says sighing just as the waitress returns with the bill.
We sit the next few moments in silence as we wait for the waitress tor return with his receipt and credit card. I'm still confused as to why Christian is angry that I can't accept his tip; surely he sees that leaving a tip more than three times the cost of the meal is inappropriate! I assume the only reason he left such a large tip was because of the time spent together at the club and that I agreed to have dinner with him.
"Would you like to take a walk with me?" Christian asks.
"Sure," I answer glad to see that he doesn't seem as angry any longer.
We leave the table and I notice Christian has left the money on the table in addition to whatever he left in the bill holder. Christian takes my hand as we leave the restaurant and head in the opposite direction of where the car is parked. We walk a short distance before we come to a pier which Christian leads me out onto. We walk towards the end of the pier and sit on bench still holding hands.
"This is amazing, thank you," I say quietly. The view here is even better than that of the restaurant which I didn't think was even possible.
"I enjoyed spending time with you tonight Ana," Christian says.
"As did I Christian," I reply quietly.
We sit gazing out at the harbor for what feels like an eternity. I swear I could sit here all night; the peacefulness is very comforting. I may have to see if there are any buses that run near here; I would love to come out here again and enjoy the view. I look over at Christian and find him staring at me instead of enjoying the view of the water.
"What?" I say suddenly nervous.
"You're beautiful" Christian says leaning in for a kiss. Once again our kiss becomes very passionate and I find myself wanting to be closer to him. Christian begins sucking on my bottom lip which causes me to moan into his mouth further. Christian takes control of the kiss and deepens it even further as I feel his hands move me closer to him. We are now almost sitting on our sides facing each other and having quite a heavy make out session oblivious to the fact that we are in public. I'm pulling Christian's head closer to me and place my hand on the center of his back urging him closer to me still. Christian moans at this gesture and moves his hand to my hip mimicking my gesture urging me closer to him. After a few more minutes Christian pulls away panting.
"Wow," he says quietly.
"Yeah," I agree. "Wow."
"We should head back to the car," Christian says, taking my hand and leading me back to the car.
"I'm surprised no one else is out here. This view is amazing. I had no idea this place existed," I say.
"This place is usually packed," Christian explains showing me the closed sign at the end of the pier that I overlooked earlier.
"Taylor, we ready to take Ms. Steele home," Christian says to Taylor who was standing at the end of the pier. I blush suddenly realizing he was there the entire time we were making out.
"Christian, why was the pier closed tonight but we were still able to sit on it?" I ask.
"Because I asked for it to be closed," Christian explained as if it were no big deal. "I wanted you to enjoy the view and the experiencing without having people in the way."
"Oh," I sigh. "Thank you, it truly was memorable."
We drove back to Kate's apartment making small talk along the way mostly about the Seattle area. Although I have lived in Seattle for several years now I have not explored the city beyond the areas near campus, Kate's apartment and the shelters I have stayed in. I am eager to finish college and find a real job downtown to explore that section of the city. We quickly arrive at Kate's apartment where Christian kisses me goodbye and promises to call me in the next day or two.
"Kate?" I say walking into the apartment where Kate is nowhere to be seen.
"In my room," Kate says.
I enter Kate's room and start laughing. Her clothes are thrown all over the bedroom and suitcases are half open on her bed some empty and some with piles of clothes in it. We start packing her clothes as I tell her about my date with Christian. I am still shocked that the date went so well and that I felt so comfortable with him. There was no nervousness and I didn't feel awkward with him which was my fear when I was getting ready for tonight. I thought it would be weird because we obviously come from very different backgrounds and social circles. I was afraid we wouldn't have much to talk about but that couldn't be further from the truth.
"Oh, guess what?" Kate says interrupting me replaying the date in my mind.
"What?" I ask.
"Elliot is going to come to the Bahamas for a few days after Christmas!" Kate exclaims.
"Really?" I asked surprised. "That's wonderful! You guys are moving pretty quick aren't you?"
"I know!" She exclaims. "It's so unlike me! I have never fallen for a guy as hard as I am falling for Elliot! He said he couldn't bear the thought of being away from me for more than two weeks so he decided to book a hotel room near our villa and come down for a few days. His parents wouldn't let him miss out on Christmas with them, which I get, so he is flying out the day after Christmas."
"When will you be returning?" I ask.
"On January 5th just in time for the start of the spring semester a couple days later" Kate answers. "Oh that reminds me, I need the biggest favor!"
"Of course Kate, anything you need" I answer.
"My neighbor was supposed to take care of Murray while I'm gone but she just told me today she is leaving tonight to be with her mother who had a stroke yesterday. She isn't sure when she will be back. Could you come and feed Murray every couple of days? Maybe spend a night or two a few times so he isn't lonely? You know how Murray hates to be alone," Kate says just as her cat Murray jumps into her suitcase and falls asleep.
"Sure, no problem Kate" I say.
"Thank you! I owe you big time Ana!" Kate says hugging me.
I sleep peacefully that night without a nightmare and wake up feeling rested. I make Kate coffee and an omelet for breakfast. She must smell the bacon cooking because she quickly emerges from her room just as breakfast is finished. Kate can't boil water let along cook a meal; I'm convinced she only gets a real meal when I stay over or when she goes home to her visit her parents. I make a mental note to cook up some dinner dishes while she is gone and freeze them for her so she meals she can heat up quickly. I consider buying a small fridge for my room so I can bring a couple frozen meals to heat up. I have a little extra cash now so I think I will keep an eye out for the holiday sales at the stores and see if I can't find a good deal on one.
"Oh I almost forgot to tell you," Kate says finishing breakfast. "Elliot said he was shocked to see you and Christian on the dance floor at the club the other night."
"Why would he be surprised?" I ask.
"He says he hasn't seen Christian with a woman before," Kate says. "Elliot says he doesn't date and never brings a date home or to any of his parent's parties. Apparently his family thinks he is gay."
"Really?" I ask surprised. "Well I can tell you with certainty that Christian is not gay" I say blushing.
We both starting giggling and decide to watch a couple movies before we need to part ways. It will be strange not seeing Kate for a couple weeks; she has become a regular fixture in my life. We typically see each other at least a couple times a week and talk or text almost daily. After pizza and beer for dinner we quickly say goodbye promising to call each other even while she is away. I'm not sure that will be possible as I doubt my prepaid cell phone has the capabilities of calling the Bahamas but I agree nonetheless. I could always call from Kate's apartment when I am here checking on the cat.