I drive up to José's exhibit, briefly taken aback by the cop cars lingering outside. I quickly step out and make my way inside, all while searching for any sign of José.
"Ana!", he calls out and I turn to see him running toward me, arms outstretched as he pulls me in for a hug.
"Ana, thank God you're here."
"What happened?", I enquire as he pulls away.
"I closed up after setting up some new photographs, and about an hour later, I got a call from the cops. I ran here as fast as I could."
"How did they get in?"
"They broke in the back door; apparently they broke the lock not too long after I left."
"What did they steal?" I can't fucking believe this! Why would anyone rob from José?
"Portraits of you. They took the whole lot." What?
"Why would they take those?"
"I have no idea. No offense, but they weren't worth very much. Everyone only cares about my landscapes and they hardly know who you are."
"That's odd. Surely they'd steal something a little more valuable?"
"You would think so but no, they wanted you." As he says this, it suddenly dawns on me on who the culprit might be; Jack. It has to be Jack Hyde.
"Do you have any idea who could've done this?", I press further, hoping he can't read my mind when I do.
"No clue. Honestly, all I care about is getting my pictures back. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be here at all."
"Don't worry," I say as I give him another hug. "We're gonna find who did this, José; I promise you that."
"I hope so, Ana. God, you don't know how much," he sighs and I instantly feel sorry for him. Photography's always been José's passion and apart from his shows and family, it's the only thing he cares about, so it makes sense why he would be so upset.
God, fuck you Jack for this.
"Do you want me to stay?"
"Please. The police keep asking me questions but I can only handle it for so long," he jokes and I laugh in response. I take his arm and lead him to a group of officers, all while thinking about what I'm going to do about Jack.
An hour or so goes by and we finally finish up. I bid a final farewell to José and once he's out of earshot, I pull out my phone and call an old friend.
"Hey, Liz," I answer once she finally picks up.
"Ana? God, how long has it been?"
"Too long. Do you have a second?"
"Sure. What's going on?"
"Can I come by your place? It's pretty urgent."
"Sure, of course."
"Would right now be okay?"
"Absolutely. Just press the button and I'll let you right up."
"Good, thanks. I'll be there as soon as I can."
I arrive at Liz's place and after she buzzes me up, I climb the stairs to her shabby apartment, chuckling to myself because of her strange taste in real estate. I guess when you're a millionaire, you can live wherever you want. I knock on her door and she answers within a few seconds, and immediately pulls me in for a long overdue hug.
"Ana, it's so good to see you again."
"You too, Liz," I smile, obviously glad to see her. Liz was one of my best friends in college but after we landed our first jobs, we've been too busy to hang out. Honestly, it's good to see a friendly face. Without her, I probably wouldn't have graduated, next to Kate as well.
"Please, come in. I was just about to have dinner; I made my famous lasagna." Okay, now that's an offer I refuse to ignore.
"And you're sure it's him?", Liz asks after pouring me my second cup of tea.
"Absolutely. Why else would anyone steal pictures of me?"
"Oh please, anyone would want something like that."
"But none of them are as insane as Jack."
"Hmm, you have a point," she says as she takes another bite of lasagna. "So, what do you want to do about it?"
"Maybe run a private investigation? I don't want José to worry if he knows that Jack's somehow involved."
"Ana, you can't keep this from him forever. His work means a lot to him."
"I know, but I just wanna be sure. Besides, the cops are gonna need more evidence before they take a run at Hyde. I highly doubt my fling with him would be enough testimony for now, even if I can prove it."
"You might have a point. But why on earth would he want pictures of you? And to that extent?"
"Knowing him, I'm sure it's nothing good," I sigh before finishing my cup of tea.
"Ana," Liz starts, causing me to look at her. "It's not your fault with what happened with Hyde."
"Trust me, I wish I could believe that." After me and Jack slept together that night, I started to get the feeling that it was all he wanted from me and when I refused it, he started getting aggressive without caring how I felt. I knew I had to get away, which is why I moved to Seattle, but I only know it made it worse since I left without telling him where I was going. Hence why we hadn't spoken since the other day. Why he's doing this now, I have no idea but like I said, I know it's nothing good. Jack's never been one to take no for an answer.
"So, how do you want me to investigate this case?", Liz asks me after I'm silent for a moment.
"Just do some digging into Hyde. If he's as insane as I last remembered, then who knows what he'll do next."
"Are you planning on telling José at some point?"
"Right after we prove that Jack's behind this and we throw his ass in jail. I'm not gonna let what he did to me ruin José's life AND his exhibition."
"Okay, if you say so, Ana. I'll call you in a week if I find anything important."
"Thanks. I knew I could count on you."
After a little reunion with Liz, I check my phone and suddenly realize that I'm late for my appointment with Christian Grey.
Fuck. I quickly hop in my car and turn on the ignition, before speeding down the street and heading to my office. Shit, how the fuck could I forget? God, Ana, you need some fucking help.
I arrive at my office with barely a few minutes to spare and after checking my reflection in the mirror above my visor, I instantly step out and lock my car behind me, before heading for the doors and making my way to the elevator, hoping and praying I didn't keep him waiting for too long. As soon as the elevator doors open, I step out and find Hannah at her desk, secretly hoping she doesn't how late I am when I arrived.
"Ana! I tried calling you. Where have you been?" Shit, why does it feel like senior year all over again?
"Sorry, I was taking care of some business. Is he here?"
"I told him to wait in your office and said you'd only be a second."
"Fuck. Okay, thanks," I smile and after checking myself, I step inside my office and see Christian looking out the window, admiring the view. He turns and grins broadly when he sees me, and I instantly feel like I did when I had my first date. God, why does he make me so nervous? He's my client; nothing more.
"Mr. Grey," I greet him, hoping I sound professional.
"Miss Steele. I was wondering if you forgot."
"I'm sorry. I was helping out a friend and just lost track of time."
"Is everything okay?", he inquires, looking concerned.
"It will be. Are you ready to start?" He nods and after taking our seats, I pull out my notepad and we start on our session.
About an hour or so passes and once again, my heart constricts for Christian.
"And how did it go?", I ask, quickly noticing how torn he looks when I do.
"Honestly, it couldn't have gone worse."
"What made you decide to call her when you did?"
"I was actually hoping that she might take me back. I figured if I called her, then maybe she realized we made a mistake and come back so we could start again. Unfortunately, she never picked up the phone."
"Christian, don't you think it's time for you to move on?"
"What do you mean?"
"Christian, you had a bad divorce; I get it. But calling your ex after finding out she's pregnant with hopes of getting back together, no offense, but it doesn't exactly sound like a good plan."
"What else am I supposed to do? I've been aching inside and nothing makes it go away."
"Christian," I start as I take a seat beside him. "It always takes time for a broken heart to heal. Trust me, I know. But if she decided to leave because of a little conflict you both had, what's the point in trying to win her back when you know it wasn't meant to be?"
"But I love her, Ana."
"I'm sorry, Christian, but I don't think that you do. You're just upset because you made a mistake and feel some punishment without any hopes of erasing it. You want happiness—and I don't blame you for a second—but maybe this is a sign that you were meant for someone else, and they were meant for you."
"Then how am I supposed to get over her at all?"
"Honestly, I can't tell you how you can. But the only way you can be happy is if you accept the past, learn from it, and move on before it tears you apart. If you spend the rest of your life living in guilt over Lottie, then how do you expect to be happy at all?" As I say this, I'm strangely surprised by my own line of advice. After I broke things off with Jack, I was hardly able to move forward after him and, now, I'm not sure if I have. Christian, on the other hand, is hurting more than I am, and yet I know deep down that what he had with Lottie isn't what he needed at all. Maybe it's time for both of us to move on but, unfortunately, I'm not sure how we can.
"You're a very insightful therapist, you know that?", Christian inquires unexpectedly, interrupting my reverie.
"For what you pay me an hour, I sure hope that I am," I joke and he laughs in response. Before I know it, he reaches up and gently strokes my cheek, making me gasp at his unexpected touch. He runs his thumb over my bottom lip and I feel my heart beating frantically in my chest, as if it wants to break out. I close my eyes as he runs his fingers through my hair and when I open them again, he slowly pulls me forward and before I have a chance to protest, he kisses me gently on my lips, his lips molding perfectly onto mine. An involuntary moan emanates from my throat and when he pulls away, I feel a shyness that I haven't felt since I first slept with Jack; but much better with him. I smile shyly at Christian and bite my bottom lip, all before the alarm on my phone goes off and I inwardly curse myself inside. At always the wrong time...
"I think that's enough time for today," I grin and stand from the couch before putting my things away and after a moment, Christian stands as well.
"I'll see you next week?", I inquire as I show him to the door.
"Of course. I'll have Andrea call and set up an appointment."
"Good," I reply before biting my bottom lip again and staring at the floor.
"Anastasia?" I look up at Christian and I can tell he's nervous. Oh?
"Yes?", I breathe. Why am I so nervous?
"I think you were right. I need to move on from Lottie and stop beating myself up over how things ended between us." Oh. Where's he going at with this?
"And?", I press.
"Would it be alright if I cooked dinner for you tomorrow?" What?
"You mean like a date?" Is he seriously asking me on a date?
"Only if you want to. If I don't burn dinner, then I'd call it a success." I giggle at his comment and he seems to relax when I do.
"Okay. I'd love to."
"Great. I'll text you tomorrow when I'm free."
"Okay. I'll see you then." He then pulls me in for another kiss, and I feel the butterflies in my stomach fluttering as he does. He pulls away, leaving me quivering, before exiting my office and leaving me on my own. Oh my God, I'm going out with Christian Grey.