"Christian, please leave?" her voice a mere whisper, while it trembled heavily, making his heart break into bits.
As those words reached Christian's ear, his heart dropped and instantly he felt a gnawing pain in his gut. Ana was sobbing and all he wanted to do right now, was to pick her up and put her in his pocket so nothing and no one could ever do her any harm— if that were possible, but it wasn't. The reality was harder than what he hoped or wished.
"Ana… please, I can't leave you like this. You do know that I would never do anything to hurt you, right?" he pleaded, trying to swallow the huge lump that had formed in his throat.
But Ana didn't reply, she kept sobbing, her arms still wrapped around herself.
After a few minutes she did reply." Christian… please go." Ana whispered.
At that, he ran a hand through his hair out of frustration and let out a deep breath.
"Ana." He tried once more, but she didn't look up, her head still down.
At that, Christian picked up his shirt from the floor and quietly put it on. Before he walked out her bedroom door, he picked up her white blouse from the floor also and folded it neatly. Christian then placed it gently on her bed and watched her one last time.
"Ana, I don't know what happened to you. All I know is that I am here for you if you decide to confide in me. I'm not going anywhere, OK?" he pleaded.
At that Ana finally looked up, catching his gaze. Her eyes were teary and the look in them made a gut wrenching pain go through his heart and soul. It pained him to see his whirlwind this way. As much as he wanted to comfort her, he couldn't at this moment. Ana had completely shut him out.
Christian ignored the gnawing pain in his heart and told her one more thing, before walking out the door." Ana… sweet, beautiful Ana, my whirlwind. Please remember this: life won't always be easy, but you will always be safe in my arms." He said, his voice a mere whisper.
XXX XX XXX
The next morning Christian woke up, remembering what had happened between him and Ana the evening before. The ache in his heart returned, the second he thought back on how Ana was sobbing on the bed. As a sigh escaped his lips, he got up on his own. The last few days Christian refused to use his crutches like before. While walking to the bathroom, he did pause a couple of times because of the pain, and yet he stubbornly didn't grab his crutches. After he had taken a shower, he walked back into his bedroom.
His eyes landed on the bed, and noticed that Calinico had already taken out his clothes for the day from the closet and placed it there for him. Christian also saw a note from his butler.
'Don't forget to swallow your medicine and if you go out, please bring your crutches and do not push your body to its limit!' The note said.
After he was dressed, Christian combed his hair, and looked at his own reflection in the mirror. As a sigh escaped his lips, he took the time today to study his own face. It had been a long time since he had done that. The last few years, he took a quick look in the mirror, but hadn't really looked at his own face, because of Demetrios. He refused to do that, because he didn't want to see the failure that he had become.
All those years, Christian had blamed himself for what happened to his son and was disgusted by himself! In his opinion he had failed as a father, not being able to protect his own flesh and blood from the evil in the world. That's why Christian didn't have the courage to look at himself.
But now that Ana has come into his life, he felt like life had given him a second chance, to make things right. Christian vowed that this time he wasn't going to fail the one he truly cared about. No. Christian was determined to take away Ana's fears, so that they can be together.
XXX XX XXX
Ana woke up, by hearing a constant knock on the bedroom door." Come in." she said.
At that, Kate walked in and had a huge smile on her face. Ana was still lazily lying on the bed, and stared up at the ceiling. Her best friend walked towards the bed and lied down next to her, grabbing her arm and held it tightly.
"Morning, Ana." She said.
"Morning, Kate." Ana replied.
After a couple of minutes, Kate sat up and observed Ana. Her right eyebrow was raised, while she waited for Ana to say something.
Ana frowned at that." What is it, Kate? Do you have something to ask or tell me?" she commented.
"No… yes! Yes, I do… I thought that Christian would be in your bed right now…" Kate replied shamelessly.
"Kate! Why would you… nothing happened last night, OK? Well… some things did happen, but…" Ana attempted to explain, but wasn't able to.
"Hey, relax. Just breathe and then try again." Kate advised, while squeezing her best friend's hand lightly.
At that, Ana sighed deeply and shook her head furiously." Kate, I … uhmm… I thought that I was over it… I thought that I had moved on from the pain that Philip had caused me, but uhmm… I am so not over it!" she blurted out, and then the loud sobs started.
At the moment, tears were pooling in Kate's eyes, feeling sad because Ana was sad. At that, Kate wrapped her arms around her best friend, and held her tightly.
"I … I thought that I was OK with being touched by a man… Christian is wonderful, but… uhmm… I just couldn't help how I reacted. I panicked and asked him to leave! That was the last thing I… I wanted! I didn't want Christian to leave, but… yet I asked him to." Ana said, as heart wrenching sobs escaped her pale lips.
"Shhhh, it's OK, Ana. I'm here for you and so is your father. It's OK." Kate whispered, while stroking Ana's hair gently.
"Do you think that Christian hates me now? Maybe he thinks I'm damaged, just like I told my dad once before… Christian doesn't deserve a damaged woman… I, I have to get outta here! Now!" Ana said, panic in her eyes, while she hastily jumped out of bed, and began grabbing her clothes out of the closet.
Ana was just about to put said clothes inside her bags, when Kate gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, Ana. Why are you running away? I don't know Christian very long, but I do know that he is not a coward or a jerk or a moron… and I am sure he is nothing like Philip. Talk to him. Tell him what happened to you. He will listen. Do you know why? Cause he is in love with you…" Kate said her voice soft.
Ana immediately stopped packing, walked over to the bed, and took a seat on it, her eyes focused on a certain spot on the wall.
At that, Kate gently kissed her best friend on the top of her head and walked out the room, leaving Ana alone with her thoughts. Oh, her best friend was sometimes very wise, yes indeed.
XXX XX XXX
At the moment, Christian was having breakfast and was reading the newspaper. Mr. Steele had joined him and began a conversation. They were discussing the profits of Christian's marble company, when an idea hit him.
"Didn't your daughter tell you on the first day here that she wanted to see fresh, uncut marbles up close in one of the mountains?" Christian asked.
Mr. Steele smiled at that." You remembered that?" he asked, surprised that Christian didn't forget.
"Well… you know me. I try to remember important stuff." he replied.
Mr. Steele chuckled at that." You mean, you remember every little detail of everything, as long as it involved my daughter." he stated.
At that, Christian nervously ran a hand through his thick hair and attempted to explain.
Mr. Steele held his hand up at that, and looked him straight in the eyes." It's OK, Christian." he said and paused for a moment.
And then continued." I know you like my daughter. You like her very much, do you? I can see it. Well, she likes you too. I don't know exactly what's going on between you two, if it's serious or not. But I know that you are a good guy and you would never do anything to hurt her. And besides, it's Ana's life and she's a grown woman. So there you go, whatever it is the thing between you two; you both have my blessing." Mr. Steele said, and nodded.
Christian had been holding his breath the whole time that the older man was speaking, so after hearing the last sentence, he let it out, feeling extremely relieved.
At that, Mr. Steele began to chuckle and so did Christian.
After a few minutes though, Christian looked at Ana's father and decided to ask him about what had happened to her." Ray, I'm so sorry to put you in this position. But… uhmm… you told me before that you wanted to bring Ana here, because she had to deal with a lot of stress back home in New York. That… uhmm… that Ana had been through something horrible in her personal life. May I ask what happened to her?" he said.
At hearing that, Ray swallowed hard, trying to keep his composure. Anger always rose inside of him, whenever he was reminded of what his daughter had experienced. After a few moments, he got up and looked over at Christian.
"She uhmm… Ana doesn't wanna tell you?" he asked.
"No. She was too shaken up. She didn't tell me." Christian said, feeling very uncomfortable right now.
Ray shook his head at that." I think that uhmm… that she should tell you herself. I'm sorry; I don't want to overstep any boundaries. And it's her life, so Ana should be the one to tell you… if she wants you to know." He said.
Christian nodded at that." I… uhmm, I understand, Ray. You're right." He replied, sounding very disappointed at that moment.
XXX XX XXX
At the moment, Ana walked out the bedroom door, wearing a tank top and a dark blue skirt. Her straw hat was in her hand, her sunglasses on her nose. Her bathing suit was of course underneath her clothes and her bag over her shoulder. In the hall, she met Kate so they walked down the stairs hand in hand, like they used to.
"So, I see that you aren't running away." Kate stated.
Ana smiled at that." No. I am staying, bestie. Why should I go? You're right, instead of running away; I should be facing my fears. I shouldn't let it bring me down." Ana said, sounding confident.
"Yay!" Kate exclaimed and smiled from ear to ear. She also squeezed her best friend's hand lightly for encouragement. She was so proud of Ana!
At that, they both walked towards Christian and Ana's father.
"Oh! Your dad likes Christian, Ana. That's one obstacle you don't have to overcome." Kate said, making Ana shake her head, smiling.
As the two women reached the breakfast table, Christian looked up and instantly locked eyes with Ana. His gorgeous eyes were full of love, making Ana blush. Why did he always seem to look at her as if he was able to see right through her soul? Ana noticed that his eyes were telling her something, like he was pleading for her to let him in— into her heart, mind and soul. At that, Ana wanted to look away, but at the moment she was incapable of breaking eye contact with Christian.
He had caught her gaze, and was determined to hold onto it as long as possible. At that, Ana's heart fluttered in her chest, her stomach doing the infamous flip flops. All Ana could think about was how close they were last evening, how he was making her whimper, how he had been making her feel so good with his fingers and his lips… well until STUPID Philip popped up into her head that is. God, she hated Philip! And boy, did she care about Christian.
XXX XX XXX
They all sat at the table, talking and eating the fresh fruits from Christian's garden.
"So, what are your plans for today, girls?" Mr. Steele asked.
"I am going sightseeing with Elena!" Kate replied.
Elena frowned at that, but received a 'look' from Kate, so she instantly nodded in agreement.
"Aaaaaah, yes! Kate and I have plans. We are going into town, taking pictures, trying to speak Greek." She explained.
Everyone began to laugh at that, because they all knew Elena's Greek sucked.
"Well, I think I should go along with you two, because I don't want to bail you two outta jail. We all know Elena's Greek is horrible." Mr. Steele teased.
"Hey! That was a misunderstanding and it happened one time! I wanted to BUY the fruit from the man from the market place. It's not my fault that his wife came barging in and accused me of hitting on her husband!" she tried to defend herself, but it was no use.
They all burst out into laughter, making Elena huff loudly." You all are mean! Mean people, I say! I'm outta here." She said, and walked away.
"I better follow her, before she will leave without us, Mr. Steele." Kate said and walked behind Elena.
"And Ana, what are your plans for today?" Mr. Steele asked.
At that, Ana threw her hands up in the air, not sure what to do.
Christian grabbed the opportunity and cleared his throat" Ana, there are some mountains nearby, full of some of the most beautiful green marbles in all of Greece. Would you like to see it up close? The marbles are untouched by man." He asked, his voice sounding very hopeful.
At that, the wheels in Ana's head instantly turned, not sure what she should say to him. Her eyes darted towards her father, and when he nodded, they darted back towards Christian." Yes, I'd like that very much." She replied, making both her dad and Christian sigh in relief.
"That's settled then. You both have fun, OK?" Mr. Steele said and then kissed Ana on the forehead, before walking away.
XXX XX XXX
At the moment, Ana was in the jeep with Christian while the radio was on. He was driving on a dirt road and telling her some Greek history. Christian was concentrating on the road, his eyes fixed on it, so Ana had the opportunity to observe him.
Even after the fiasco from the evening before, he still seemed to want to make ' it' work. Ana was still shaken up a bit about it, but decided to face her fears. She wanted to make things between her and Christian work also.
As a sigh escaped her lips, Ana studied the features of Christian's face; to be honest she was in total awe. God! He was so handsome… From his gorgeous eyes to his well-defined nose, to his talented lips to his strong, attractive jawline and his thick hair.
'He looked like a Greek God… Was he a descendant of one?' was what went through her head at that moment.
"Are you listening to me, Ana?" she heard him say all of a sudden.
"Huh? Yeah, of course I am…" she said, heat instantly spreading towards her cheeks.
"Really? Then what did I just ask you?" he tested.
"Huh? You were asking me… OK, I wasn't listening to the last part… sorry. My mind was somewhere else." Ana explained, while running her hand nervously through her shiny hair.
He sighed at that." May I know what you were thinking about?" Christian carefully asked.
At that, Ana mentally kicked herself! Oh, she didn't want to tell him that she was gawking at him! Ana had to think of a lie… like really fast.
"Uhmm… well, I…" she began, but then Ana heard a song on the radio, so she decided to change the subject. Ana pumped up the volume and smiled widely.
"Hey, this is my jam! I love it!" she said, while looking at him, her eyes twinkling like stars.
At that, Christian watched as Ana sang along with a huge smile on her face and dancing in her seat. God! She was so endearing… and pretty… and amazing… and God, he cared so much about her." Nice tune." He said and listened how Ana was singing along, like she didn't have a care in the world.
Christian then looked at the young woman who was sitting next to him in the car, and promised himself that he'd do anything to keep her safe from harm. That was a promise he intended on keeping…
XXX XX XXX
At the moment, Ana was staring her eyes out. She and Christian were looking at the green marbles. They had been walking through the tunnels and ended up in a cave full of green marbles— shiny, precious marbles! Ana had a helmet on top of her head and a flashlight on her forehead, because it was a bit dark in the cave.
As Ana admired the gems, her mouth opened slightly, her eyes almost falling out of their sockets. She was too afraid to touch them, afraid that they would lose their value.
At that, Christian smiled." Go on. Touch it." He dared.
"No! I'm not gonna. They are so beautiful and so…" she began.
"Untouched?" he finished for her.
"Well, yeah. Thank you for bringing me here, Christian! This place is a paradise." She complimented.
"You're welcome." Christian croaked, as he had trouble standing on his own feet all of a sudden.
"So, there are no other people in here?" Ana asked.
He shook his head at that." No, not on this side of the mountain." Christian replied, his face turning red.
At that, Ana had noticed that something wasn't right with him. She then took a good look at Christian.
"Christian, are you OK?" she asked, worry and concern instantly washing over her.
He shook his head weakly at that. At one point, Christian was panting and almost lost his balance, so Ana helped him to stay on his feet. He was holding onto Ana, his fingers gripping at her soft flesh through the fabric of her clothes.
"Christian! What's wrong?" she asked, panic in her voice obvious.
In her opinion, he looked awful and very exhausted!
"I… uhmm… this morning I didn't swallow my pain killers. My knees are killing me." he said, his breathing labored at a certain point.
"OK, so where… where is your medicine? Tell me, is it in your back pack or in the car?" Ana asked, her voice trembling heavily.
"No, I didn't bring any." Christian replied, looking at her very dazed.
"Christian, you are scaring the hell outta me! What must I do? Did you bring your crutches?" she asked.
He shook his head at that, while gasping for air. Christian was still gripping her tightly, making tears pool in Ana's eyes. She didn't know what to do!
Here she was alone with Christian in her arms, in a cave with no one else around! On the other side of the mountain were workers, but she and Christian were so deep in the caves. There was no signal on her phone, so she wasn't able to make a phone call! What to do?!
Ana could leave him here, so she could go and ask the mine workers for help. She knew which path to take to reach them, but Ana didn't want to leave Christian alone! No. She was not going to leave him!
At that very moment, Ana had just one option left. So, she did exactly the only thing that she was capable of doing in that particular situation.
"HELP! SOMEBODY HELP US! HELP! Help, PLEASE?" Ana yelled as loud as her lungs were able to, praying for someone to come to their aid.
Note: Oh, boy! What now? Will Christian get help on time?!
So... Ana wanted to run. Oh, boy! Good thing that Kate talked her out of it, huh!
Well, this is chap 17!
Let me know what you think of the chapter? I really LOVE reading your comments, you all! :)
They literally make my day. Thank you in advance. ;)
And of course THANK YOU for the support and feedback. :) :)
Till next chapter!
J
