AN: This is still a friend of Madison's. My birthday is tomorrow August 15th. So, I thought I would post an update for everyone for my birthday. But I don't know if I'm going to be successful. I truly don't know what I keep doing wrong. But I have tried for the last hour to upload chapter 10 of unwritten. And it is still unreadable. I'm very sorry for all the frustration. I'm starting to think maybe there is a problem with the website itself. Because I've watched countless videos on how to upload new chapters. And I'm doing it the way the videos and Madison say to do it. Seriously everyone fanfic authors deserve so much more respect than I would've ever realized before I started trying to upload her stories. I am still willing to upload Madison stories. But if you all are getting too frustrated with me. Leave a note in the comments. And we can go back to Madison updating on her schedule. If that's what you all want.

Chpt. 10 APOV:

"That's exactly who I am Christian! I'm just some girl whose dad happened to know Taylor. Some girl who-"

Before I can finish my sentence, he shocks me by silencing me with his lips. Other than his soft lips, he doesn't touch me. I'm so stunned than I swear I don't react, I don't respond to him in any way for several minutes. But when I feel him at my lips I gasp in surprise which he takes full advantage of. He tastes like coffee, something sweet and….like Christian. For as many times as I imagined Christian kissing me, I never expected it to be on his office floor. He moans when I cautiously explore his mouth; I find myself leaning into him, wanting him to touch me which surprises me almost as much as the kiss did. I didn't think I'd want someone to touch me again; I thought it would be ages before I wanted to be close to someone again.

"You're not just some girl," Christian pulls back just enough to whisper the words against my lips. "Not to me, Ana."

"Christian…"

"I admire you; you're the strongest person I know. I know you're going through hell right now, a hell that I can't even imagine, but despite that Ana…I can't stop thinking about you. I find myself looking forward to our talks on the balcony even if I hate the reason we're both out there in the middle of the night. I…"

"I look forward to them too," I admit so quietly that I'm not sure that Christian can even hear me.

But then his lips are mine and I know he heard me; he leans into me, his hand finding mine on the floor between us and squeezing it gently. I tense when I sense his other hand moving closer to me, an instinct now more than anything. I sigh when he cups my head; his touch is gentle, almost cautious even.

"BA!"

Teddy's voice has us both pulling back from each other, yet Christian doesn't take his hand off of mine. A quick glance at Teddy confirms he's still playing peacefully on the blanket in front of us. He's rolled around but has pretty stayed in the same spot he was in when I first set him down after Christian led us in here. I watch Teddy, for no other reason other than I don't want to look at Christian. I don't know what to say to him. Hell, I don't know what to think right now. I haven't let myself even consider that a guy would want me after all of this is over, especially not a guy like Christian. He doesn't need someone with all the baggage I come with. I don't even have a place to live when this is over. And of course I'll still have Teddy; Christian's been great with him, but he isn't going to want-

"Whatever you're thinking, stop," he lifts my chin so I'm looking at him. "I can practically see the wheels turning in your head. You're thinking too much."

"Kind of hard not to," I shrug.

"How about we get out of here and go grab some dinner?" he suggests surprising me.

"What?"

"Let's go out for dinner."

"No, I can't-"

"I know the owner of a restaurant not far from here; we can use the private room there so you won't need to worry. Besides, we have eyes on that bastard and his guys; we know that he's in Maine right now."

"I don't know Christian, maybe we should just go back to Escala."

"If that's what you want Ana, we'll go back to the apartment. But, if Taylor and Sawyer both feel that the restaurant is safe I'd like you to consider going to dinner there instead. It would be good for you to get out of the apartment a little. It's up to you though, if you don't feel safe we'll go home."

"I don't know," I repeat.

"Why don't you think about? I'll go speak with Taylor and see if he has any concerns."

"Okay."

I know Christian's right, with him being in Maine right now, the chances of anything happening are slim to none. Plus Christian, Taylor and Sawyer would all be there and none of them would let anything happen to me or Teddy. As much as I know that, part of me still panics each time we leave Escala. Getting caught the first time was because of my own stupidity; I won't risk that again especially not now when I have Teddy. A private room at a restaurant would be less risky; I wouldn't have to be concerned that someone would spot us and take a picture that will somehow get back to him I suppose. I have my gun and knife on me, plus both Taylor and Sawyer are armed. It would be a public setting…and Christian would be there.

Christian…I don't know what to think about that man. I don't understand why he's doing all of this for us. He says I'm not just some girl, but the reality is that's all I am. I'm some girl whose father happened to know the right person who happens to work for him. I don't see myself the way he does; I don't see myself as strong. If I was strong I wouldn't have let them get me the first time; I wouldn't have had to go through…that if I was stronger. I wouldn't have had what I now know was thirty three hours of living hell, if I was strong.

I wanted to argue with him, to point out all the ways that I'm not the person he thinks I am but the moment he said he looked forward to our nights on the balcony any thought of arguing left. As much as I hated that he had seen me the last couple of nights right after the nightmare, I've found myself looking forward to sitting out there with him. I've come to expect him to be there each night. I don't know what it is, but it's the only time I feel…completely comfortable. Maybe it's because it's so dark and that most of the city is sleeping by the time we're out there. Maybe it's because he doesn't pressure me to talk about anything. Maybe it's because he has nightmares too and understands how hard they can be. Or maybe it's none of that…maybe it's just having someone out there that makes me feel that way.

The door to the office suddenly opening has me quickly finding the knife on my ankle as I move closer to Teddy. When Christian walks through the door, I immediately relax. Even though I knew Sawyer was on the other side of the door and that this building is near impossible to get into, my first assumption was that it wasn't Christian coming through the door. That somehow he had gotten from Maine to Seattle or found out we were here and sent someone after us.

"It's just me Ana," Christian says softly.

"I know," I take a deep breath and sit back down on the floor.

"Taylor said that if you wanted to go to the restaurant that he didn't see any safety risks with it. Welch confirmed we have eyes on the hotel room where that bastard and his buddies are. But if you would rather go back to Escala, we'll phone in an order and Sawyer will pick it up and bring it to us."

"We can go," I say after several minutes of consideration. If Taylor believes there's no risk, than I need to trust in his judgment. He's kept us safe this far; he's kept us safer than I would have.

"Are you sure?"

"No," I admit. "But I…I still want to go."

"I'll have Taylor make sure the private room is available," he types a message on his phone quickly.

"They'll be okay with Teddy being there? I mean, obviously he doesn't need to anything to eat but is it the type of place where they don't expect children to be? I know some restaurants are like that-"

"It won't be an issue," he interrupts.

"Okay."

Christian helps me repack the diaper bag a few minutes later; without asking he puts the bag over his shoulder while I secure Teddy in the carrier. With a firm hand on my back, Christian leads me out of his office where Taylor and Sawyer are waiting for us. I don't miss Taylor taking notice to Christian's hand on my back but I can't read the look on his face about it. He doesn't seem angry or upset by it. He speaks highly of Christian so I can't see him having an issue with….

Whatever seems to be going on between us. Until today, I assumed we were just getting to know each other, as friends, since I'm living in his apartment and all. I didn't think it was anything beyond that. But then he kissed me…and now I have no idea what is going on or what the kiss meant if anything. The sad thing I can't remember the last time I was kissed like that; I had been so busy helping Kate with Teddy when he was born and even when she was pregnant that I put my personal life on hold. Not that I complained, because I loved helping her prepare his nursery and shop for him before he arrived. Once he was born I even took time off of work to help her adjust to being a new mom and trying to do everything by herself. I wouldn't have traded those months for anything.

"You okay?" Christian whispers.

"Yeah, I'm good," I wipe the tears away that I hadn't realized were falling at the memory of Kate.

"If you're ready, we're here," he nods towards the window which makes me realize at some point we stopped driving. "Or if you'd rather not we can still pick up dinner and take it back to Escala."

"No, we can go in," I take a deep breath and try to settle the sudden nerves.

"I can carry in his car seat for you," Christian offers.

"Oh…ummmm…"

"How about if you carry him and I'll carry the seat so you have somewhere to put him down while we eat?"

"He's sleeping," I look over next to me and realize.

Christian doesn't say anything and I appreciate him giving me a few minutes to figure out what to do on my own. I don't want to wake Teddy up, he's still catching up on sleep from being sick so I know it's important for him to stay asleep. As much as I hate the thought of not having him in my arms as we walk through a public space, I need Teddy to be healthy which means he needs sleep. Grace said rest was important for him to start feeling better.

"If you wouldn't mind…"

"Not at all," he smiles at me as I just made his day which doesn't make any sense because I can't see how letting him carry a sleeping baby in a car seat is a something special. "I'll get out and then you can hand him to me."

I unclip the seat from the base and rest it on my lap while Christian gets out of the car. I can see Taylor and Sawyer both standing next to him on the sidewalk which reassures me. I take another deep breath, reminding myself that everyone is here to keep Teddy and me safe, and I lift the car seat up to Christian's waiting hands. He gently takes the seat from me, not even jostling Teddy in the process. My eyes are on Teddy the entire time as we enter the restaurant. As soon as we walk in, we're immediately led to a private dining room just off the waiting area; I'm relieved that no one pays us any attention as we walk through the small number of people waiting for tables and into the dining room. The wait staff had set up some type of a contraption next to the table that was meant to hold the car seat which I had never seen before. The hostess explained how the car seat sat on it when both Christian and I looked at the object confused. Once the seat was secure, she provided our menus to us and left the room. I glance around the room, surprised at how large the space really is. The table could easily sit six or maybe eight people, if all the other chairs were still around the table. The dark walls and dim lighting make the space seem smaller than it really is; it's warm, inviting and relaxing which is seems perfect for tonight. I don't think I could have handled being out in the main dining area with so many people constantly walking by us. A heavy curtain closes the room off from the main area but it's enough to make it seem as if we're completely alone.

"I'll be right outside if you need anything," Taylor says.

"Sawyer?" Christian asks.

"He's monitoring the exits and the parking lot for any suspicious activity."

"Good," Christian nods and Taylor leaves the room.

"It probably would have been easier to just pick up food on the way home," I giggle.

"Yes, but then you wouldn't have gotten out. I know you don't complain, but you have to be going stir crazy in the apartment day in and day out."

"It's not so bad," I shrug. "I mean, of course I'd much rather be able to leave the apartment and go somewhere whenever I wanted. But, it's a small price to pay for Teddy's safety. If it means keeping him safe, I'll stay in the apartment for as long as it takes without complaining."

"Hopefully it won't be too much longer. I'm confident that with the bastard's access to money cut off the risk will decrease. Then we just need to find the evidence to send him away so neither you nor Teddy ever have to worry about him again."

"Unless he manages to get locked away for life, I don't know that I'll ever stop worrying about him. Kate thought that after he signed over his parental rights that she wouldn't need to worry about him, but apparently that meant nothing."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why do you think he wants Teddy? I mean, if he signed over his rights he obviously didn't want the child from the start-"

"He didn't," I interrupt. "He was furious when Kate told him she was pregnant. He demanded she 'get rid of it' which Kate refused. She thought he was just shocked by the news since obviously it wasn't something they planned; she thought after a few days that he would calm down and be happy."

"But he didn't," Christian states rather than asks.

"No, he came home late one night drunk off his ass and with a girl on his arm. They weren't living together officially, but Kate had keys to his apartment and would often stay there. He had just gotten home from a road trip with the team so Kate thought she would surprise him by being in his bed when he arrived. They hadn't spoken while he was gone, but Kate was convinced that he would have changed his mind about the baby. Instead, she was woken up by him nearly screwing some stranger against the wall in the entryway."

"Fuck."

"When Kate walked out of his bedroom, he was pissed; obviously he wasn't expecting her to be there. He threw the girl out, literally half naked according to Kate and then he started at her. She said at first he was just screaming at her and calling her all sorts of names, but then…" I shudder at the memory of what Kate told me.

"Your dad told Taylor that…the bastard tried to force Kate to miscarry," Christian thankfully fills in the blanks.

"Yes," I sigh. "He stormed out after…and left her alone. She called me; I only lived a few miles away from him condo. We went to the hospital immediately; she was kept overnight and had to be put on bed rest for a few weeks but there was no permanent damage from him."

"She didn't press charges?"

"She did," I say firmly. "She had everything documented by the hospital; pictures were taken and the police came to interview her."

"So what happened? How come the bastard wasn't put away for assault and attempted murder?"

"We were told he would only be charged with assault, but before it could go to court the police department just happened to lose all the evidence for the case."

"Someone was paid off."

"That was our assumption."

"What the hell did she in that guy?" he runs his hands through his hair. "I'm sorry-"

"No, don't be," I interrupt him quickly. "By that time all of us were asking the same question. He wasn't always…a sick bastard. Kate first met him after winning box suite tickets from a radio station for a game against the Braves. She and her girlfriend went and they ran into each other at a pregame meet and greet or something like that. They hit it off and he came back to her suite during the game. Kate said he was the perfect gentleman; he wined and dined her, complemented her and made her feel like she was a princess. Kate always loved being the center of attention…"

"You don't have to-"

"It's just hard…she was so happy when she told me what a great guy he was," I sigh. "They quickly became an item, even though they lived hours away from each other. After only knowing him for a month, he convinced her to move to Atlanta to be closer to him. He put her up in a condo the team owned until she found a job and eventually she found her own place. The first few months, things seemed…normal."

"But?"

"Once she moved, we started hearing less and less from her. She used to call my Dad every weekend, no matter what was going on, just to check in. She and I would text throughout the week and talk at least three to four times. We were incredibly close; always had been. But, all of that slowly stopped. I asked her about it once but she blew me off saying she was busy. I ran into one of her best friends one day at the mall; he was just as close to Kate as I was. Everyone said they were get married one day, but since he had a steady boyfriend that he was going to propose to we all knew that was going to happen. When I ran into him, he asked me how Kate was which surprised me because they used to talk on the phone at least once a day, sometimes even more. He said that she stopped calling him and even stopped returning his calls."

"That bastard was cutting her friends and family out of her life."

"I talked to my dad that night and he said her calls to him had dropped as well. He was lucky to hear form her once a month," I sigh. "Anytime we tried to talk to her about it she blew us off. She had every excuse you could think of and denied that he wasn't allowing her to talk to us. Slowly over the next six months, she stopped talking to all of her friends and contact with us was nearly nonexistent. I landed a job just outside of Atlanta shortly after she moved; although my dad wasn't happy about me going so far away I only applied for the job because that's where Kate was. I knew something was going on and I figured if I could get closer to her I'd figure out what it was."

"Did you?"

"No, she blew me off even then. I found an apartment only a few miles from her, but any time I invited her over or tried to get together with her she had an excuse. I lived there for three months before I finally saw her and that was only when she called me after he beat her and tried to get her to miscarry. After that night, she finally opened up. He was controlling her, even when he wasn't in the same state. She said he constantly had people watching her; if she went out to the store on her lunch break he would somehow know about it. She was convinced he was monitoring her phone calls and her email; he would become furious anytime one of her friends contacted her. She said that he was convinced we were all trying to take her away from him."

"Controlling bastard."

"He was," I agree. "She stayed with me for a couple of weeks, but then it became obvious that she needed to move out of the area. He would sit outside my apartment and watch us; when he was traveling with the team, there was always another car out there. Someone would follow her to work every day; his calls came daily, sometimes hourly even throughout the night. The police wouldn't do a damn thing even though we had a restraining order against him. So she changed her name and left the state; she moved to Virginia, hoping that by putting some distance between them he would leave her alone."

"Did you stay in Atlanta?"

"God no," I shake my head. "My dad helped get Kate away so she wasn't followed and then once she was settled, I quit my job and moved back home. Things were good for those few months; the old Kate was back. We would talk daily; every weekend I would drive the three hours to her apartment and help her get ready for Teddy's arrival. We thought the nightmare was over."

"But he found her."

"We think he followed me there on one of my weekend trips," I admit. "I was the only person other than my dad who knew where she was and the name she was living under. I thought I had been careful to make sure that no one was following me but…"

"It wasn't your fault, Ana," he puts his hand on top of mine. "He could have found her through other methods. If she was working, her social security number could have been tracked. She was obviously seeing a doctor, so her medical records could have been flagged. It could have been anything…"

"Part of me wants to think that," I sigh. "But the other part of me remembers feeling as if someone was following me on one of the trips. I took a different route, taking several back roads so it would be obvious if someone was tailing me."

"And?"

"I never saw them, but the feeling was always there."

"You can't blame yourself Ana."

"It's hard not to," I whisper. "I feel like I let her down."

"You didn't," he surprises me by getting up and coming around the table so he's sitting next to me. He gently tugs me against him, wrapping his arms around me; I rest my head on his chest comforted by his scent. He tenses against me and I immediately try to pull away from him thinking that I must be hurting him somehow but he tightens his arms around me preventing me from moving. "You didn't let her down Ana. She would be so proud of you; of everything you've done to keep Teddy safe, of how wonderful you are with and of how happy you've made him."

"I hope you're right."

Joseph Braxton Jr.'s POV:

"Hello?" I answer the annoying ringing phone that is waking me up.

"Where the fuck are you?" the booming voice immediately has me sitting up.

"In Maine, I told you I was following a lead."

"Yeah well we have a problem."

"What now?"

"You've been fired-"

"Wait! What? You're firing me?!"

"It's out of my hands-"

"What do you mean it's out of your hands? You own the fucking team!"

"Not anymore."

"What?"

"Someone bought out Gary's shares-"

"Who?"

"No idea," he sighs loudly. "It was bought by some company who has sent a lawyer here to act on their behalf. I've had my guys looking into this all fucking day and they can't figure out who the company belongs to or why they bought Gary's shares."

"And this company is the one that fired me?"

"They reviewed the financials of the team and made several cuts, including your position."

"Fuck."

"Listen, I can only fund your project a little longer, I can't foot the bill for everything-"

"But-"

"If you would have fucking handled this the first time we wouldn't be having this conversation!"

"I tried! How the fuck was I to know that she wasn't going to take the fucking kid to day care that day?!"

"You need to get rid of him," he reminds me for the umpteenth time. "I will not have this girl's family coming after us to support some bastard that you fathered because you couldn't keep yourself covered."

"They won't; my rights have been signed away. According to our lawyers-"

"That won't stop them from going to the press and ripping our names through the media. Telling everyone how you fucking knocked up their daughter and then refused to pay support for the bastard. I can't make that disappear, not like everything else. You made this fucking mess, now get the hell rid of it. You have one month…"

"One month?" fuck

"If the problem isn't gone by then, you're done. You'll be cut off completely. You'll have nothing; not the condo that I own, not a fucking dollar to your name."

"But-"

"Handle the fucking problem, once and for all."

"Yes father."