Chapter 20

In her room, Ana sat down for a little while, whilst checking her phone. She'd done a lot of walking today but the coffee she'd had earlier helped with her fatigue. It was a little after 9pm and she thought about going to a bar close by.

She spent some time on her laptop, searching google for a suitable bar nearby that she could check out, but she didn't feel like venturing out, but at the same time, she didn't want to stay cooped up in her room.

After a little more research, she discovered that the hotel actually had a bar located on the rooftop that was open when the weather permitted. Ana thought it sounded perfect for her, so she called reception to check if it was open today and to check the dress code.

She freshened herself up and rummaged through her suitcase to look for an outfit. She found a dark grey mini slip dress that she hadn't worn much but it was one of her favourite dresses and she located the black heels she wore for work. The dress made her feel like a million bucks and of course she wanted to feel like that in nyc. She touched up her makeup, putting on lipstick and more mascara and then she just brushed her hair out leaving it as is.

If the lobby and restaurant were that quiet, then the bar was probably going to be quiet too and she was worried she was overdressed but she dismissed the thought. She dressed for herself and no one else so it doesn't matter in no one sees her.

Ana hopped on the elevator to the rooftop and walked out. The area was pretty large with the bar under a little gazebo on the side with barstools in front and there were quite a few chairs and tables scattered around as well. Fairy lights in the shape of light bulbs were wrapped around the place giving it a magical vibe against the darkened sky. And not to mention the view. From every side, you could see a different part of the city. The empire state building was just visible. Soft jazz music was playing from somewhere and as she walked towards the bar, she saw a piano placed on a platform just off to the side. She wondered if people were allowed to play or if it was just for decoration.

There were a good few people here, some alone while others were speaking in low voices. There was a certain level of sophistication about this place and Ana was glad she wore what she did. She didn't stick out.

Taking a seat at the bar, she ordered a gin and tonic. She wasn't a big drinker and she had no plans to get drunk tonight; maybe achieve just a slight buzz. For a while, she just sat quietly with her thoughts while taking sporadic sips of her drink here and there. The air was calm, and she felt at peace. The bartender came to speak to her a few times, asking her little things about her life like where she was from etc, but he didn't linger too long and Ana was a fan of the service. She hated when people hovered around her; it made her feel scrutinised.

She crossed her arms on top of the bar and leant forward, looking at the view of Manhattan. Her thoughts turned to Christian. She didn't know what to think of him really. Her thoughts were all over the place when it came to him. She liked him, he was an amazing guy who made her laugh. Of course, she liked him romantically too, but she didn't want to be that girl who felt the need to date every man in her life. Some things needed to stay as they are, and she wondered if this was one of those things.

He was CEO of a huge company; never in her life did Ana think that she could date someone like that. She'd always imagined that she'd end up with an ordinary guy who she met randomly somewhere. Although she was beginning to realise that behind the extraordinary exterior, Christian was just an ordinary guy who appreciated the smaller things.

"Fancy seeing you here Miss Steele." A voice from her right startled her out of her thoughts. Speak – or more like think of the devil and he shall appear.

She turned to see Christian smiling as he stood beside her, dressed in a suit, sans tie. "Hi." She said surprised, returning his smile.

"Mind if I join you? Or are you expecting someone?" He asked cautiously, gesturing to the stool next to her.

Ana shook her head once. "Nope. It's all yours."

He sat on the stool and ordered a scotch for himself and when he saw Ana's nearly finished drink, he glanced at her questioningly to see if she wanted another. Ana opened her mouth to say she could get herself one, but he quickly ordered another gin and tonic before she could say anything, and the bartender went off to get them.

Ana looked at him wryly. "You didn't have to."

"I know, but I wanted to." He shrugged.

They got their drinks and Ana thanked him shyly. "Let's toast." Christian suggested.

"To what?"

"To New York." They clinked their glasses and were silent for a few moments.

"You look beautiful tonight." Christian said quietly. Ana glanced at him and met his intense grey eyes that seemed to want to burn into hers, but his shy smile reduced the intensity a little.

"Thanks Christian." She said bashfully, a thankfulness shining in her eyes that made Christian feel on top of the world. She nudged him with her shoulder lightly. "You don't look so bad yourself." They chuckled.

"I thought you had a date or something when I first saw you."

"Nope. Just wanted to dress up for myself."

Christian mumbled 'thank god' into his glass, hoping Ana didn't hear him. She on the other hand just heard some grumbling coming from him but didn't make out any words. Composing himself, he turned his stool to face her. "So how was the rest of your day?"

Ana placed her drink on the coaster and turned to him. Her bare knees rested against his and warmth flooded through both of them, but Ana paid it no mind. "I had the most amazing time. This city is everything I expected it to be and more." She said in admiration.

Christian was struck with the wide-eyed look of awe in her eyes. They were twinkling it seemed. "I'm glad you like it. It is pretty great. Tell me what you did." He urged her. He wanted to know about it. Sawyer had been vague when Christian had asked him and all he had said was she was very precautious, and she was safe the whole time.

Ana gave him a curious look. "It was nothing special. I didn't do any life changing things today." She shrugged. Why would he want to know about her day?

"It doesn't matter how 'not special' you think it was. I still want to know; It's interesting to me. I'm just curious."

Ana raised a brow at him, lips twitching. "Curiosity killed the cat."

Christian levelled her with a knowing look. "But satisfaction bought it back." He grinned boyishly, proud of himself for that one. Ana laughed. "I've been waiting to say that to someone for the longest time." He grinned.

Ana chuckled at his expression before she launched into a step by step replay of her day. He listened attentively, asking questions here and there and laughing at her encounter with the dog.

"Of course, you'd get carried away at bookstores." He chuckled endearingly. "I'm surprised you didn't spend the whole afternoon there."

"It was tempting, but I refrained." Ana held out her hands. "I would love to own a bookstore in a big city like this one day. There'd never be a shortage of customers unlike in a smaller town. And you'd meet people from all walks of life. It would be so great."

Christian looked just past her shoulder, squinting his eyes in thought, "I could see you doing that." He nodded.

"Don't encourage me." Ana joked. "How about you? How did you spend the day?" Ana leaned an elbow on the bar, resting her cheek on her hand.

Christian ran a hand through his hair. "I actually didn't really do much. My mom wanted some chocolate that is only available here, so I went out and got that, got some things that Mia wanted and then I had dinner with Taylor at a restaurant. Not as exciting as yours I'm afraid."

Ana looked at him with slightly narrowed eyed. "Mhm. And how about Sawyer? No dinner with him?"

He had looked away from her and at her question he froze for a fraction of a second. It wouldn't have been noticeable, but she was watching him carefully. "Sawyer? No… he… was doing his own thing. I'm not sure." He replied coolly but Ana noticed a change in him. He was almost jittery.

"Hmm. Right." She said doubtfully. His eyes flashed to her at her tone. She took a sip of her drink, making him squirm under her gaze. This was too funny. She put her glass back down and levelled him with a stare. "Christian, I know you had Sawyer tail me all afternoon."

He choked on the sip he'd just taken, and Ana patted him on the back and held her smile back as he spluttered. "How did you find out?" He wheezed out.

"I just noticed him." She said nonchalantly.

Christian looked at her in confusion. "Wait. You aren't mad at me?"

"I thought about it. But no, I'm not. There are worse things that could be done. Why didn't you just tell me that Sawyer would be with me? Or ask me if he could?" She was genuinely curious; she wasn't asking to be spiteful.

"I knew you would have said no. I don't think you understand how worried I was about you. If something were to happen to you here, it would have been because of me and your safety is of the utmost importance to me. Honestly, I would have come with you if I thought you'd want me to. I would have done anything." His eyes were so open; Ana could see every flicker of emotion in them.

"You should have asked me! If I knew you would come, I would have asked! It would have been better than going alone."

"I thought you probably wanted to go on your own. I didn't want to barge in on your own time. You see enough of me at work." He said dryly.

"Don't be stupid. Of course, I would have wanted you with me." She slapped his forearm lightly. "I would gladly see you all day every day." She said off-handedly, not realising.

Christian's brows rose at that sentence. What did she mean by that? Gathering his wits about him again, he replied. "Next time then."

"Deal." They clinked glasses again.

Ana was feeling a light buzz which was what she wanted. People were trickling out of the bar and soon enough there was only about five others left.

"Wait. You said you noticed Sawyer?" Christian asked.

"Yep. I was being extra, extra vigilant like I told you and I noticed basically everything and everyone around me. It wasn't too difficult to notice him. He was constantly ten steps behind me and in a city this big you don't see the same people twice. The casual clothes threw me off though." Ana leaned towards him. "Don't be mad at him. He didn't do anything wrong. And once I realised, I felt safer walking around so thank you." She bowed her head slightly. It was becoming obvious that she was tipsy now.

Christian blew out a breath. "Okay. I won't reprimand him. And thank you for being 'extra extra vigilant." He grinned.

They spoke about nothing and everything; whatever came to their minds. There was a break in the conversation as they both listened to the music and got lost in their thoughts. While neither of them anticipated this, they both were glad at this turn of events and wouldn't want to spend their night in any other way.

Ana sighed. "I wish I could bring my dad here someday. He'd love it. He deserves the world. One day, I'll make it happen." She said firmly, watching the sky.

"I have no doubt that you will." He gazed at her side profile. "Tell me about him."

She blew out a breath. "He... is the best thing in my life. He's been through so much and I think he's just afraid to let himself live. Like he'd be betraying my mom. Don't get me wrong, sometimes I get the same feeling. But I know my mom would have wanted me to live my best life."

Christian was silent, just letting her speak. She had this faraway look in her eyes.

"After she died, he had to work so much to pay off medical bills and to support us. I barely saw him and was left to my own devices most of the time. I was okay with it at first. I went through all that grief almost on my own and I wanted to be left alone so it was okay but after a while I rebelled a little. Put him through hell when he was already going through it. I didn't go crazy like go drinking and do drugs or things like that. But I complained, whined, shouted at him for the smallest things. Like if there wasn't bread in the house and I wanted some then I'd go off it. I was 13 and my hormones were raging so everything combined… just made me explode. He barely raised his voice at me too. I was selfish and didn't see past my own feelings. God I would totally slap myself if I could go back in time." Her fingers teared at a napkin as she gazed out at the view, not seeing.

Christian didn't think about his actions and he placed his hand on hers to get her to stop. Instead she started fiddling with his fingers. Touching him made her feel grounded and calmed the emotions raging inside her.

She sighed heavily staring at their hands now. "It went on for a few months and usually I just went out of my way to avoid him which wasn't too hard. I was always a quiet, shy kid but I basically went mute during then. No extended family lived near us, so it was a really solitary life. I don't remember much else." She went silent.

"What changed?" Christian asked softly. Ana peered into his eyes, seemingly searching for something before continuing.

"I came home from school one day and thought I was alone as usual but then I walked past my parents' room and heard sniffling, so I quietly listened, and I knew he was crying. I don't know what happened to me. My heart felt like it was breaking and being squeezed in my chest. I've never heard him cry. Not even when she died. A few tears escaped maybe but not sob like that. I started crying too and didn't know what to do with myself. I didn't want him to see me, so I just grabbed my backpack and ran. I ended up at a nearby park and just sat for a good while. God it was so hard. Everything came crashing down on me. I was causing him so much more pain and he was already suffering enough as it was." Tears built up in her eyes and a few escaped that she quickly wiped away not wanting him to see her cry.

She clenched her jaw to stop herself from crying more. Christian squeezed her fingers. "I came home and just cried to him and apologised for everything that I had done. A lot of tears were shed that night, but it was the best thing that could have happened otherwise I wouldn't have the relationship I have with him now. I found out that he just didn't like being in the house much anymore without mom, but he made an effort to spend more time there for me. We couldn't move out. She had decorated that home and it was a piece of her. We both communicated more and just tried more and it paid off. I don't know what I'd do without him."

She was silent again, drawing pattens on his palm. "It all happened so fast. My mom got diagnosed out of the blue and then six months later she was gone. And nobody told me anything. They say I was too young at the time which is fair. No one actually said she was going to die though. I had no idea it was that bad. I always had this feeling that she would be okay, you know. That she'd pull through. Nothing could happen to her. I never saw the worst of it, they tried to keep me away. I realised how bad it was the day before she died. I went to see her in the hospital, but they said I couldn't stay long. She could barely breathe or speak and was so restless. Everyone was just trying to make her comfortable. I'm not religious and never have been but that night I went home and prayed to whatever entity that was up there that she'd make it."

She made a little huffing sound before continuing. "The next morning, I was woken up by crying. My aunt was crying, loudly. And after I asked what happened she said that mom had died. My world stopped. I swear time just stopped. I didn't believe it at first. I have no idea why, its not like she'd lie about that. But I just had to see her with my bare eyes to believe it. When I finally saw her, I broke down. It looked like she was asleep. She looked so peaceful which was a sharp contract to the night before. I remember walking through the empty hospital halls just crying." She blew out a breath as one hand rubbed her chest, as if trying to ease away the pain. "It was the worst time of my life." She looked at him finally, with watery eyes.

Christian pulled her in for a hug. He didn't care. She needed it right now. He squeezed her as tightly as he could and rubbed her back comfortingly. Ana sniffled and rested her head on his shoulder. She felt safe in his arms and the squeezing in her chest eased. Christian kissed her hair and Ana felt lighter. They stayed like that for a while.

They eventually straightened. "I'm sorry. I just unloaded all of that on you." Ana backtracked.

"No don't be Ana. I'm glad that you trust me enough to tell me all this." He said quietly.

"You probably think I'm the worst person for treating my dad like that." She muttered not looking at him.

"Of course, I don't. You were going through a lot and you were a kid. That person back then was not the real you and still isn't. That person has helped you become the person you are today and believe me when I say you are one of the most extraordinary people I've ever met. You don't have a bad bone in your body." He said fiercely, keeping a hold of her hand. "You bring light to the lives of everyone you meet, and you leave them feeling happier than they were. I know that for sure because it's what you've done to me."

Ana squeezed his hand. His words were powerful.

"I had a rebellious phase too when I was that age. A bit like you actually, except I fought a lot as well and had siblings to get into arguments with. But I'm not that person. Everyone goes through things as teenagers and I think it's necessary to go through all that for you to become who you really are. It's real and it's a part of life." His eyes burned with emotion.

Ana nodded once after studying his face. "Thank you for listening to me pouring my heart out. I just couldn't stop once I started."

"I'll be here with a lending ear whenever you need to talk."

Ana ran a hand through her hair. "I can't believe I've just unloaded all that to my boss though."

Christian shook his head. "I'm not your boss right now. I'm your friend. Outside of GEH, we are always friends and I'd go as far as to say that you're one of the people closest to me. And as much as I dread it, I probably won't be your boss for much longer anyway so what does it matter?"

They were both quiet as Christian ordered another drink and a water for Ana. He thought it would help her feel a bit better. He saw her shiver and without speaking he took off his jacket and draped it on her shoulders. She looked up in surprise and Christian knew she would have protested but for some reason she just smiled at him in thanks, eyes crinkling.

Ana rubbed her face. "A bit heavy for New York huh?" Ana said self-consciously, laughing it off.

"I think anything goes in New York." He smiled. He glanced around the bar and saw there was literally only two other people left. Checking his watch, he noted it was nearly midnight. He spotted the baby grand piano from the corner of his eye and got an idea.

"I'll be right back." He said to Ana, walking off.

He went to find someone to ask if he could play and once he got the green light, he placed his drink on top and tested out the keys.

He started playing a piece that he learnt when he was a kid. It was slow but not too slow and it was almost melancholy sounding. He focused all his attention on the keys, not looking up once but he knew Ana's eyes were on him.

Ana on the other hand was watching him with wide eyes. He kept surprising her. Who knew he could play piano? And was amazing at it? She pulled the lapels of his jacket closer to her body and walked to the glass railing leaning on it with her hip so she could get a better view of him. She crossed her arms as she watched him in fascination.

His brows were knitted in concentration and his eyes remained downcast the whole time while his arms moved over the keys seamlessly. The piece he was playing was beautiful, but it had nostalgic undertones and it got Ana missing something, but she didn't know what.

She kept her eyes on him while he started a new piece without missing a beat. The string lights above him made him glow. Ana glanced around the bar and found that the two bartenders, waitress and two other patrons were all mesmerised by Christian's performance. They had all stopped what they were doing and were watching him in appreciation. Ana smiled to herself. The Christian effect. He demanded people's attention no matter what.

Christian finished the piece and looked up when he heard very loud clapping. He felt his face get warm at the attention. Everyone in the bar was clapping for him with smiles on their faces and one of the bartender's was whistling. Finally, his eyes found Ana who had the biggest grin on her face and was cheering for him. Christian grinned back at her. She looked breath-taking, standing there against the New York skyline, his jacket on her shoulders and the happiness leaking out of her.

He stood up and bowed, before picking up his drink and walking over to Ana.

"Christian!" Ana exclaimed in delight as he approached her. He looked down at his feet shyly, smiling at the ground. "Oh my god, that was amazing. You can play piano!"

"Thanks Ana. I've been playing since I was a kid. It's not common knowledge." He said, leaning a hip on the railing, mirroring her position.

"Why not? That is a gift! Is there anything you can't do?" Ana said.

He shrugged. "Playing piano is personal to me."

"I wish I learnt how to play an instrument when I was younger." She said wistfully.

"It's never too late to start." Christian offered.

"There's so much I want to do in life. It's overwhelming sometimes." Ana mumbled.

"You can do anything you put your mind to Ana." He winked at her cheesily. She laughed at his goofy expression. "I mean it." He said, lips twitching.

Both of them turned to look out at the view. Ana looked down out the few people that were walking around this late at night.

"You want to know what I've realised being up here? And just being here in general?" She gestured towards the city biting her lip.

"What's that?"

"I've been so focused on the future that I've been neglecting the present and not really living. I'm going through the motions and treating this part of my life like a transition period; delaying really living until I get that publishing job. But I've realised that wherever you are right now, it's where you're meant to be so instead of waiting for this to be over, I need to inhabit my life completely. The future is going to be okay. Everything is going to work out. I can't sit around just letting this part of my life pass me by."

Her hair blew carelessly in the breeze and Christian watched the strands fly. "Can't wait to get away from me eh?" He teased.

"You know that's not what I mean. I meant as in maybe I should cool it with chasing after publishing for a while. It will happen one day, I'll make sure of it but when I do, there won't be spreadsheets for me to complete. There won't be the need to spend a whole day fighting with the copy machine to get copies for twenty people. All this stuff that I do now, no matter how mundane it is won't be there in publishing or at least not likely. And there won't be no Andrea and no you." She looked at him from the corner of her eye as she said the last part.

"I'm sure you're stuck with Andrea for god knows how long. She's a loyal woman and you won't be getting rid of her that easily. And as for me? We'll be in each other lives for a while. My family loves you." He didn't say that he wanted to be in her life, it didn't matter as what. "So what you're saying is that you want me to send you to make more copies and send you more spreadsheets?" He joked.

She nudged the forearm that was closest to her lightly. "You know what I mean." She huffed. Christian chuckled.

"I do get it. I think I've been doing somewhat the same thing, just going through the motion's day by day. I've said it before, but I do think I'm quite jaded and I'm not even 30 yet." He muttered.

"I don't think you're jaded. I think you've been focused on work for so long and trying to prove yourself that you just forgot about the rest of it. I've seen how excited you get over cream puffs so you can't be that jaded." She said, eyes twinkling in amusement.

"Yeah." He chuckled sheepishly.

"But now that you've accomplished all that you can focus on the rest of it and discover your newfound zest for life." Ana suggested. She had such a unique perspective of things that it made him question everything he knew.

The was a break in the music playing and the place was completely silent, all that could be heard was cars honking in the distance somewhere. There was something eerily serene about it.

"There's something magical about cities at night. I can't explain." Christian mused. Ana hummed in agreement.

There was a tall apartment building across from them and they could see inside a few of the apartments and make out figures. Ana spotted a couple dancing together in their living room against the light from the television and it bought a smile to her face.

Ana sighed. "it's crazy how we're all so small in this world. Practically insignificant. But we all live such vastly complex lives. All those people there have a first kiss, a favourite person, a song that makes them break out into a dance and something that makes them cry every time without fail. It's crazy how we can be so small yet so big at the same time." She breathed out.

Christian glanced at her in wonder. Her eyes were cast slightly downward, emphasising the length of her lashes. There was a pink hue to her cheeks, likely from the cold. She was chewing her lip and he realised that she did it whenever she was nervous or just deep in thought and she wasn't aware she was chewing on it.

She never said anything he expected. The things she said always surprised him and he found himself wondering, not for the first time, what was going on in her mind. Ana was many things, but she was never once boring, and Christian found himself hoping that she never lost that spark.

Her soul was so pure. All she wants is to spread goodness and light in a world that hasn't been too kind to her. She said that New York makes her feel like anything is possible, but she is the one that makes Christian feel like anything is possible. She's a living, breathing reminder to him to believe better things. She gives him hope. She inspires him every day. She gets him to question the things he thought he once knew.

"Okay I need to stop peeking into these peoples' homes. I'm being creepy." She turned so her back was against the railing. Christian chuckled.

He followed suit. They were the only two left and the staff were starting to clean up for the night.

"I have an idea. Come with me." Christian said, offering her his hand. She regarded him questioningly. Lightly placing her hands into his, he grasped her fingers lightly and pulled her along with him.

He took them over to one of the staff members where he asked them if they minded if they sat at the piano while they cleaned up. The staff member gave them the affirmative and asked them if they wanted one last drink and Christian looked at Ana.

She narrowed her eyes playfully. "Hmmm. I think I'll have a Manhattan. I have to do it." She said with a bashful grin while her cheeks warmed up, embarrassedly.

Christian smirked. It was such an Ana thing to do. "Make that two please. Thank you."

He led her to the piano and they both sat down on the bench. It was quite small, and they were sat shoulder to shoulder.

"Any requests?" Christian asked, testing out a few keys.

Ana shook her head. "No. Play anything."

Christian started playing the first few notes, and he glanced at Ana. "This one's called things are good." He smiled at her and returned his attention to the keys.

Ana was unable to do anything except watch his hands. Halfway through the bartender bought their drinks over but neither noticed.

Once the song was over, Christian looked up and took a sip of his drink and put it back down. Ana followed suit but kept her drink in her hands.

"Do you sing as well?" Ana asked.

Christian moved his head side to side. "Eh, sometimes." He said meekly.

Ana widened her eyes in disbelief. "Of course. I shouldn't be surprised really."

"Only in private though. You'll probably never hear me sing."

"Oh, come on. There's no one here." Ana begged.

Christian shook his head. "Doesn't matter. I won't be singing in front of anyone."

"Fine." Ana took a gulp of her drink before placing it down next to his and tentatively pressing a few keys. "Being able to play the piano is one of the most impressive things out there."

Christian taught her how to play twinkle twinkle little star and after a bit of practising, she managed to play the whole thing on her own. The proud grin that overtook her face when she finished was bright enough to light times square. Christian's breath left him. "I did it!" She giggled. The cocktail was taking her back towards tipsy. Christian had discovered that she was a bit of a light weight. She hiccupped all of a sudden. "I'll leave it to the professionals unless I'm performing in front of kindergarteners."

He started playing Leaving on a Jet Plane which was Mia's favourite as a kid and had remained her favourite because it sounded like the soundtrack of a fairy-tale. Halfway through, Ana leaned her head on his shoulder and sagged into him almost. It filled him up with this warm feeling. Christian was afraid that she had fallen asleep but glancing down quickly, she had her eyes trained on the keys, so he relaxed his shoulders and allowed her to use him as a pillow. He could smell her hair and it was quite the pleasant smell.

He went straight into an instrumental version of Faithfully, thinking of his parents.

"My parents' favourite song." He muttered into her hair. Ana could feel his breath blowing on the strands and it was oddly comforting and if he kept it up, it would send her into a slumber.

"I remember." She peered up at him. Ana could just sit here for hours on end. She was so content.

Leaning on his shoulder, listening and watching him play piano, on a rooftop bar in New York City. Who would have ever thought this would be her life? Never would she have imagined herself in this moment in time.

Without missing a beat, Christian looked up and saw the staff were all but done and decided to wrap it up. He didn't want the night to end. He had the best time. To anyone else, it probably would have not looked like much; just sitting, talking with Ana but to him it felt like the world and there was no other way he would have rather spent the night.

He played River Flows in You and Ana was still on his shoulder, only shoulders moving slightly as she breathed. He finished the peace and the two of them didn't move for a few moments. Christian couldn't help but lean his cheek on the top of her head.

"I think that's my favourite piece you've played tonight." She uttered softly, not wanting to disturb the atmosphere he'd created. "I used to listen to that all the time when I was studying throughout high school and college, but it feels different now." Her voice echoed through him. "The melody is so beautiful."

"I performed that at my 6th grade recital. The melody is probably my favourite." He said. His voice vibrated through Ana and she liked this closeness.

Christian sighed. "I think they're finished for the night. We should get going." Ana reluctantly removed her head from his shoulders and sat while he went to give their glasses back and pay both their tabs. He was going to do it anyway, so Ana didn't see the point in protesting.

"Come on." He offered her his arm and as she hooked hers on, his jacket nearly slipped off her shoulders, but she righted it. She needed to give it back, but she wasn't ready to part with it just yet.

In the short elevator ride down, they were both silent. They had become unintentionally closer tonight and their bond had gotten stronger. Something had changed between them.

Christian skipped his floor and got off on Ana's wanting to walk her to her door. Her eyes were slightly droopy and the combination of the emotions she experienced tonight, the alcohol she had consumed and the peaceful music lulling her had made her exhausted. Retrieving Ana's card from her purse, Christian opened the door for her, and she stepped in.

She started to take his jacket off, but he stopped her. "It's fine. I'll get it from you tomorrow."

Ana gazed at him with unreadable eyes. Stepping forward she leaned up on her tip toes and kissed his stubbly cheek. "Night Christian. Thank you." She whispered the last part.

Christian's heart raced as she stepped closer. Heat bloomed on his face from her kiss and he was aware of every single movement that she made. Her lips were soft and warm. Peering into her eyes, he knew what she was thanking him for. He flashed her a soft smile. "Night Ana. I'll see you tomorrow."


Clear skies by dan musselman = first song Christian played for everyone.

Things are good by dan musselman

not been doing great recently but reading the reviews you all leave, warms my heart so thank you 3

I hope you liked the chapter :)