Reese awkwardly followed Mr. Grey around the open layout of the 15,200 square foot luxury mansion complete with a large infinity pool, car garage, spa, and wrap around balcony overlooking the city; she didn't have a rebuttal for his comment about his wife because it was obviously a sore spot. She listened to his bitter tone as he raved about the elegant home, often stopping in areas that held some significance to him.

"Well, that's all the time I have for you Ms. Sutherlin," he said as they approached the front door.

"Oh," Reese said surprised, "I actually needed to discuss value with you. I can tell you spent a lot of time with all the renovations and upgrades so, I definitely want to get your opinion on what you want as far as listing price."

"I'll let you decide that," he said firmly, "Just don't go under twenty million."

"Twenty million. Got it," she smiled, "And how soon are you looking to sell?"

"As soon as possible. Like I said before, I'm on a tight schedule. Are we done here?" he said reaching for the door.

"Yes, as long as you don't have anything else for me."

"Not at the moment."

"Well here's my business card with my office and cell number," she smiled handing it to him, "It was great to finally get to talk to you about the property. I think it's gorgeous and it will sell fast. Let me know if you need anything, I'm here for you."

"Great," he said looking at the card, "Just what I need another person saying I'm here for you."

"I—"

"I'm sorry," he said shaking his head, "I'll be in touch."

The door slammed in Reese's face like punctuation as if Mr. Grey was saying "thanks for your time but get off my property now." Something during the tour had shifted his attitude; his emotions were all over the place and he was really hard to read. There were glimpses of the tour that he actually seemed human with real feelings. She walked down the smoothly paved driveway to her car and sat for a moment to collect her thoughts. She sent a quick text to Victor before leaving the property and heading home.

4:23 PM Reese: Just wrapped up at Melrose.

4:27 PM Victor: And...

4:28 PM Reese: Doesn't want to sell under twenty and wants it sold ASAP.

4:28 PM Victor: Well let's start marketing and get it done.

4:33 PM Reese: Okay, I'll have some ideas for you in the morning.

4:34 PM Victor: Sounds good.

The drive home was quick; Reese had wished that the traffic had been this forgiving when she was on her way to the listing appointment with Mr. Grey. She walked into her quiet dimly lit condo and headed straight to her home office to begin gathering ideas to present to Victor in the morning. Loki curled up under the table at Reese's feet as she worked. It was settled she would come in strong with a listing price of thirty-two million and pull out all the stops to get this listing sold in record time; after all she only had a week. Her phone buzzed loudly, she figured it was Naomi checking in after the appointment.

8:05 PM 3234933687: I wanted to apologize both times we met today...

8:06 PM 3234933687: My pending divorce has left me emotionally unhinged.

Reese stared blankly at the text message from the unknown number, Christian Grey. For a moment it had slipped her mind that she had offered her personal cellphone; it was a courtesy, not that any of her clients ever felt inclined to use it. It was nice he felt the need to apologize but she hoped he hadn't taken her professional availability to be anything else. She decided to play it safe and not respond. Instead she spent the rest of her evening with a glass of wine watching Netflix; it had been an emotionally draining day.