Chapter Fifteen
Elsa stared at the woman sitting across from her, sitting next to her aunt Mia. She wasn't sure how she felt about her aunt yet, considering the fact that she was the sole reason why she is just now meeting her father and his family, but she definitely knew how she felt about the woman sitting across from her. She was trouble. They were sitting at the kitchen island. Her uncle Elliot, who she adored already, was standing to the right her, his wife Kate next to him. Her grandmother was behind them making a fast lunch while her grandfather sat on the left of Mia.
Her parents went on a walk some time ago and haven't returned. Christian announced that he was showing Ana's the grounds, but Elsa wasn't an idiot. She could see the look in her parents' eyes when they thought no one was looking. She was happy to see her mother happy and she was even more thrilled to finally have a father in her life. She knew of her father, but she didn't think she would ever have the chance to meet him, or if she really wanted to meet him. Her mother never once said anything bad about her father or his family, but Elsa could still see the hesitation in her mother's eyes whenever she asked to just fly out and meet them, meaning that there was still some doubt that they would completely accept Elsa. Obviously there was at least two people in the Grey household that wasn't that receptive to Elsa or Ana, but now Elsa was afraid of another leach trying to squirm her way back into her father's life, potentially forcing her mother out of the picture. Elsa wasn't going to let that happen.
"I heard through the grapevine that Christian finally left Elena," Lily, Mia's best friend, snickered in her nasally voice. Elsa rolled her eyes. It seemed the only thing the woman could talk about was her father. It surprised Elsa that Mia hadn't told her to shut up yet, but by the distracted look on Mia's face it didn't look like she was paying attention anyway. "It's about time he finally left her," Lily griped with an unattractive flip of her hair. "He was way too good for. He needs to find himself a real woman this time around."
Everyone seemed to be ignoring her but it was impossible for Elsa to just sit back and let Lily talk about her father like her mother wasn't even worthy enough to be in the picture. She felt disrespected on behalf of her mother and she felt herself getting angry at her new family, especially Mia, because no one was putting her in her place. How can they let Lily continue to have such delusional fantasies?
"Grace, do you know who he'll be taking the Saving Grace charity event this year?" Lily asked, trying to sound sweet and uninterested, but she came off like a black widow spinning her web, waiting for the moment to trap her prey.
Before Grace could answer, Elsa said, "He'll be taking my mother." She didn't know what Lily was talking about, but she didn't want her to think that there would ever be a chance that she would be anywhere with her father in a more than friendly setting.
Lily blinked and looked at Elsa, staring at her as if she was just noticing her for the first time. Lily laughed and pushed some hair behind her face again as she gazed at Elsa, confused.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't even realize there was someone new here. Who's your mother, darling?" Lily asked. The way she said darling grated on Elsa's nerves and she glared at Lily.
"My father's soul mate," Elsa said, her eyes narrowed dangerously but Lily paid her no attention.
Lily breathed impatiently through her nose and raised a brow. "And who might your father be?"
"Christian Grey," Elsa said, her tone hard.
Lily blinked at her for a beat and then laughed. "Oh, that's hilarious! What a nice little joke, darling, but we all know Christian Grey has no children. He has no time for that. And when he does have the time, I'll be the one who has his babies."
Elsa's eyes widened and this time she laughed, the sound incredulous. "Wow, you are a really dumb-ass bitch."
Lily gasped indignantly just as everyone else stopped talking and stared at Elsa with opened mouths. Mia looked up at Elsa with her mouth hanging open.
"Who do you think you are? You can't talk to me like that!" Lily screeched at her. She looked over at Mia with enraged eyes. "Mia did you hear what she just called me? Who is she anyway?"
Mia pursed her lips and then let out a long sigh. "Come on, Lily, let's just go. This was a mistake anyway."
"No!" Lily yelled. "I want to see Christian, and I want to put this little brat in her place!" She took a step closer to Elsa and stared at her. Since Elsa was a few inches taller than her, Lily had to lift her head slightly to make eye contact. Elsa reveled in that satisfaction. She had to admit that Lily was attractive with her shoulder length white blond her, hazel eyes and svelte body, but her personality left a lot to be desired. Besides, she wasn't Anastasia Steele, and no one was good enough for her father other than her mother. "Listen here you little snot-nosed shit, I don't what your problem is or what your purpose is, but Christian Grey will be mine and no one, not even a desperate whore like you, will stand in my way!"
Everyone gasped at Lily's words and before anyone can step in in Elsa's defense, Elsa lifted her hand and slapped her so hard Lily stumbled backward. Everyone gasped again and hell broke loose as everyone started yelling at one another. Lily tried to grab at Elsa as Elsa yelled at Lily to stay away from her father. Mia struggled to hold Lily back. Grace was trying to placate everyone just as Elliot was yelling at Mia for even bringing Lily over. Kate was trying to calm down Elliot and Carrick tried to soothe Elsa as tears streamed down her face as she continued to scream at Lily.
It was at that very moment that Ana and Christian walked into the room and it only took them a moment to assess the situation. Christian's eyes immediately zoned in on Mia and Lily and he instantly knew what the cause of all the screaming was. Then he saw Elsa was crying and he felt his fury explode inside of him.
"What the hell is going on in here?" Christian bellowed in a booming voice. Everyone stopped talking at the same time and as one turned their heads to look at Ana and Christian. Ana noticed the tears streaming down her daughter's face and let go of Christian's hand to pull Elsa into her arms as she wiped her tears away and asked her what was wrong.
Lily pulled away from Mia and took a step toward Christian. She donned on a wounded expression, playing the ever present victim, holding the side of her face as if in pain. "Christian, that bitch hit me in the face!" she wailed pointing her finger at Elsa.
Christian's nostrils flared and he glared at Lily. She took a slight step back as she registered the fury in his eyes.
"That bitch you're referring to is my daughter, Miss Howard," Christian said in a low steady voice.
Lily opened and closed her mouth, her hand slowly sliding from her face as she stared at Christian in disbelief and fear. "I—It's . . . true?" Lily whispered.
"You've obviously been told by someone in this room that it is true, and yet you still had the gumption to call my daughter a bitch to my face." The disdain was dripping for Christian's voice, and if that wasn't hint enough of his attitude toward Lily, then the deathly glare he was shooting her said it all.
"Christian, please, I—I—"
"I think it's best we leave, Lily," Mia said in a small, defeated voice. She kept giving Christian small glances, and when she caught his eye she saw the fury still in them directed at her. Christian saw the tears welling up in her eyes, and for a moment he wanted to comfort her, but when he heard Elsa sniffle, he hardened his heart against his sister and continued to glare at her. He wasn't ready to forgive her yet. Maybe one day soon he could stand to look at her without feeling betrayed, but right now he had nothing to say or do with her.
"Goodbye," Christian said with finality, his tone broking no argument.
Everyone watched as Mia pulled a reluctant Lily out of the kitchen and a few moments later they heard the door open and close. Christian took a deep breath once his sister and her stupid little friend were finally out of his sight and went to Ana and Elsa, then turned to his family.
"What the hell happened? We were gone for only an hour and come back to a brawl!" Christian said, placing his hand on Elsa's back, rubbing gentle circles as he tried in his own way to calm her. He didn't like to see her tearful face. She looked just like her mother when she cried and he remembered how his heart always ached whenever Ana cried. It was worse seeing his own flesh and blood so upset.
"It was just a misunderstanding, son," Carrick spoke.
Elsa shook her head, a severe frown on her face. "No it wasn't. That woman made it perfectly clear what her intentions were with you!" she muttered looking up at Christian, then looked at everyone else. "And everyone just let her go on like they were in agreement!" Shocked faces stared back at her.
"Elsa, dear, I don't think you understand—"
"Oh, no, I think I understand perfectly! You can guys can act like you like my mother all you want but we're a package deal. Wherever she goes, I go, and just because you guys may not agree with what she did doesn't mean I'm going sit back and let you push out of her the picture! You may be my family but in reality you're still strangers and I will never choose you over my mother!" Tears bubbled over and began flowing down Elsa's face again as she said her last words. Wordlessly, she ran out of the kitchen and to the front door. Ana gave Christian a bewildered look before she ran after her daughter.
Christian stared at them with a disturbed, confused look on his face.
"What gave that girl the idea that we don't want Ana in this family?" Carrick said aloud, wearing a frown that mirrored Christian's.
Everyone was so preoccupied with their own thoughts at what could have caused Elsa's outburst that no one noticed the housekeeper enter the kitchen or the satisfied smirk she hid behind her veil of light brown hair.
Later that evening when Christian and Ana were sitting on the couch, glasses of wine in their hands, Ana told Christian what Elsa had told her after she got her to calm down enough to tell her why she was so upset.
"She overhead someone saying that the Grey family shouldn't trust me and that I needed to prove that I was here for more than just a paycheck," Ana said with a sigh. She rubbed her forehead in aggravation. She could handle people saying whatever they wanted about her, but when it came to her daughter she had a hard time not stressing over things she knew she couldn't control.
Christian's lips were pinched in fury, his fists balled into such tight fists that his fingernails dug almost painfully into his palms. "Did she tell you who she overheard saying it?"
Ana shook her head. "The voice was too low to distinguish, but she knows it was a woman."
Christian scoffed in irritation. "Well it wouldn't take a genius to figure out it was Mia," Christian muttered with contempt.
Ana huffed and rolled her eyes but didn't say anything. She didn't believe it was Mia, but she wasn't going to argue with Christian about it, knowing he would get defensive. She wasn't going to push him to forgive his sister, knowing he would probably end up resenting her if she did, but she wasn't going to sit back and idly let him defame her more for something she may have not even done.
"There's no proof that it was Mia, Christian. But that's not really important right now. Elsa thinks that your family is trying to set you up with other women to get me out of the picture. She said that she just found you and doesn't want have to choose between us, but . . ."
"She'd choose you if she had to," Christian finished. Ana somberly nodded her head. Christian sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "I wish she came to us and told us what she heard instead of blowing up like that. Now my parents think that she hates them."
Ana sighed heavily. "The drama never ends," she muttered.
"Welcome to the Grey family, baby."
"Not the sort of welcome greeting I would like, and we're not married, Mr. Grey, so technically I'm not part of the family," Ana said, smirking as she looked over at him.
Christian reached over and set his wine glass on the coffee table. "No yet, Miss Steele, but soon you will be Mrs. Grey."
Ana chuckled and shook her head. "You're not going to let that go anytime soon, are you?"
"Not until I'm watching you walk down the aisle," Christian said, leaning closer to her and rubbing the tip of his nose along the side of her cheek.
Ana sighed, it sounded like a mix of lust and exasperation. "Christian . . ."
Christian smiled against her skin and pulled back slightly. "I know, I know, we're giving it a few months. But, baby, seriously can you blame me for wanting you to be mine not just body and soul, but name too?"
Ana pursed her lips and set her glass down next to Christian's. "No, I want that to. Just not yet. We obviously need to work out some family issues before we can even think about tying the knot."
Christian frowned and leaned away from her. "Ana, what's going on with my family should not have anything to do with our relationship."
"How can you say that? Of course it does. Someone obviously thinks that I'm here for a paycheck, which doesn't make sense given the time of my return."
Christian grabbed her hand and squeezed her fingers. "People are going to say things no matter what, whether they have the facts or not, I'm not going to let ignorant people—family or not—stop me from making you my wife within the next 10 months."
Ana sighed, pursing her lips she looked up at him with a raised brow. "You've already made your mind up about this haven't you?"
"My mind was made up the moment I saw you again, Ana. We spent fifteen years apart that we could have spent as man and wife. I don't care what people say, I don't care what happens, I don't care if the world is ending. I'm going to spend the rest of my life with you. No one will ever be better suited for me than you, Ana. I love you."
Ana stared at him with glossy eyes and then launched herself at him, taking his face in her hands and kissing him passionately. When they broke for air, she whispered "I love you too" against his mouth.
Christian pulled her closer against him so her legs were straddling his hips. He held the back of her head so she couldn't move and repeatedly pecked her on the mouth, before peppering kisses all over her face, making her giggle in delight.
"Wanna take a bath with me?" Christian asked.
"Mmm, trying to kill two birds with one stone, Mr. Grey?"
He raised a brow. "What do you mean?"
"You want to make me all good and dirty in the same place you want me all squeaky clean?"
Christian laughed. "I was thinking more along the lines of getting every inch of you slippery wet." He whispered seductively and winked at her.
Ana gasped in faux indignation. "Mr. Grey, you have no shame."
"Not where you're concerned. Go get the bath ready, minx, while I clean up." Christian lightly smacked her butt after he helped her off his lap and sent her along.
Christian picked up their wine glasses and the plate of cheese, grapes and crackers they were nibbling on, and took it to the kitchen.
"Mom?" he heard Elsa call out just as he placed the dishes in the sink.
Christian looked around from the breakfast bar and made eye contact with her. "Your mother is getting ready for our—um, to shower," Christian said, a little too late catching his slip up. He shook his head at himself and looked at his daughter. She was looking down at her feet uncertainly, an expression he hadn't seen on her since they met. It was unsettling to him. "Is something wrong?" he asked, walking closer to her.
She shook her heard. "No, I just wanted to ask Mom if she had . . . something."
"Well what is it? Maybe I can get it for you?"
Else quickly shook her head and Christian noted that her cheeks were turning a light shade of pink. He could only imagine what she was embarrassed about. "Is it something urgent that you need now?"
"No, but I'll need it soon."
Christian's strong suit was not one of patience and was getting tired of trying to get a proper answer out of her. He thought about what she would need that she would be comfortable asking her mother for, but made her embarrassed when she talked to him about and could be urgent. It didn't take him long to guess, and he thought it could be only one of two things, both which pertained to her period: either pads or tampons, or birth control. Christian about balked at the thought of his fifteen year old daughter needing birth control, so he decided not even to focus on that and instead asked, "Do you need more pads or tampons?"
Elsa's face turned a bright shade of red, answering his question without having to answer it, but let out a small "Yes" anyway. Christian almost let a sigh of relief at her agreement, thankful he wouldn't have to get into a discussion as to why she was on birth control already.
Shaking his uncomfortable thoughts aside, he kept a straight face to show her he wasn't bothered by it and nodded his head. "I'll go ask you mother if she has some. Now that I think about it, I'm surprised Gail didn't supply you with the things you'd need when we were discussing your room."
Elsa only limply shrugged her shoulders as she continued to look everywhere but at Christian. He wasn't sure if her attitude was more due to her period or to what happened this evening. He decided to clear the air, whether her attitude was about the Grey's or not.
"You know you're grandparents adore you, right?" Christian said as he took a step closer. "And they adore your mother. They would never do anything to separate your mother and me."
Elsa finally made eye contact with him and she saw the anger and confusion in her gaze. "Well they didn't seem to show any obvious displeasure at that lady who thought she was going to marry you and have all of your kids," Elsa said with disdain.
Christian felt his irritation increase that Lily was actually deranged enough to think that he would ever want her, let alone saying such ridiculous things in the presence of someone she had never met.
"Lily has always had an unhealthy obsession with me. My family and I have both told her that I would never want her, but she never bothered to hear anything other than her own delusions. My parents didn't say anything to her because they knew she wouldn't listen to them. I'm sorry you had to listen to Lily's bullsh—loney, but trust me when I tell you that no one wants you or your mother out of my life," Christian says sincerely, imploring her to believe him by his serious expression.
Elsa nodded slowly, letting his words sink in. "I guess that make sense. But what about that woman who thinks mom only wants you for your money? She obviously doesn't think that we belong here."
"Do you have any idea who it could have been that said that?" Christian asked.
"No. But I don't think it was Aunt Mia or Grandma Grace, I've heard their voices before and that didn't sound like them. The lady was on the phone," Elsa added.
Christian frowned as he thought about who would say something like that. "Do you think it could have been Kate—your Aunt Kate?"
Elsa shrugged. "I don't know. I don't really remember what her voice sounds like."
Christian continued to frown but nodded his head as his mind went through every female there at the time that Elsa could have overheard. "Alright, well, all secrets said in the dark are eventually written in the light. I wouldn't worry about it. I'll go ask you mother for your, um, girl stuff," he said awkwardly.
He went to turn on his heel but Elsa called out to him. "Wait!" He turned around and looked at her. "What is bullshhloney?" Elsa grinned widely at him, her eyes sparkling in laughter as she waited for his answer.
Christian smirked but shook his head at her. "Go up to your bathroom and see if you have your stuff in there."
Elsa ran up the stairs, her giggles following behind her. Christian couldn't help but smile and laugh to himself. He realized that he was feeling lighter now because he managed to make her smile and laugh, although it was unintentional. He was grinning by the time he entered his bedroom. When he realized the bed was empty and the light was on in the bathroom, he stepped through the en-suite and was hit by the scent of sandalwood, and got a full sight of Ana completely submerged and naked in the bath.
"Oh, Mr. Grey, there you are. I was beginning to think you forgot all about me. I thought I was going to have to hunt you down only to find you in your office." She gave him a salacious smirk as she raised a brow and looked at him up and down.
"Um . . ." Christian had a nerve shortage as he stared at Ana's naked body, wet and smooth, in full view. Everything was bared to him and he felt his own body react in a primal way, and he knew if he couldn't put his hands on her soon, he might combust.
"You're clearly having a hard time finding your words, but last time I checked you didn't need to talk to undress."
Christian shook his head to get his thoughts in order, but that didn't seem to do him any good when he blurted out, "Tampons."
Ana frowned at him and gave him an odd look. "Tampons? Is that a code for something?"
Christian closed his eyes, shook his head again, and ran his fingers through his hair. When he opened his eyes again he kept his eyes only on hers. "No. Elsa needs tampons."
"Oh," Ana said, drawing the sound out, then smirking at him. "Well that explains more than you were giving away. For a quick moment I thought you were trying to tell me that you needed tampons."
"Uh, no, definitely not. I'm entirely man, baby."
Ana laughed and then winked at him. "Oh, I know."
They both stared at each other, silently, as their eyes roamed up and down the other's bodies. They were interrupted by a knock on the semi-open door.
"Um, I'm not sure if I even want to know what's going on in there, but I don't need anything. There's like a three month supply of everything in the cabinet I didn't even know existed in the attached bathroom."
"That's great, sweetheart, but aren't you getting low on your birth control?"
"What?" Christian asked sharply, his arousal completely deflating.
"MOM!" Elsa screeched at the same time.
Christian glared at Ana as she looked at him with a frown. "What did I say now?" Ana asked, reaching over to grab the towel off the hook before standing up and quickly wrapping the fluffy white cotton around her. She drained the water as she padded over to the entrance to the closet from the bathroom and disappeared inside.
Christian threw open the door all the way and stood tall over Elsa. "You're on birth control?" He didn't yell but his voice was raised and he noticed Elsa flinch slightly, so he toned down the hostility.
Ana could still be heard loud and clear as she said, "Calm down, Christian, it's for her periods. They were too irregular. Plus she's fifteen now and I've given her 'the talk' already."
"She just turned fifteen, you shouldn't even be thinking about sex!" Christian said, glaring at his daughter, his hands firmly on his hips.
"Well it's kind of hard not to when you two are doing it every chance you get!"
"Not the point, Elsa," Ana said as she stepped out of the closet in her pajamas. "Your father and I are responsible adults and we're prepared if something were to happen."
"What, you think I'm stupid enough to get pregnant?" Elsa muttered defensively.
"No one said that and that's not the point," Christian griped. "But what were to happen if you did get pregnant, huh, what then? Are you ready to take care of a child?"
"Ohhh, my God!" Elsa moaned as she threw her hands over her face and dramatically dragged them down. "I can't believe we're actually having this conversation!" she murmured as she threw her hands in the air.
"Christian, I've already discussed this with her you don't—"
"Did you discuss STDs with her, too? Did you discuss the risk she could be taking? No. No." He glared at his daughter and he felt an emotion he never felt before swirling in his chest. He shook his head in consternation. "I'd like to meet that boyfriend of yours. There's no chance in hell I'm letting some dickhead have his hands and mouth all over my daughter!"
Elsa's mouth dropped open and her arms hung lifelessly at her sides, before she lifted her arms again and waved them in front of her. "No! You're just going to scare him away!"
"Damn right I am. You're only allowed to date boys I've met and approve of," Christian said, crossing his arms across his chest, his tone and stance resolute.
"Mom! Would you please talk some sense into him? When Justin visits once he can afford his ticket I don't want him scared off by the Big Bad Wolf here!"
"He doesn't live here?" Christian asked with a confused frown.
Elsa crossed her arms and pouted. "No. He lives back in London."
Christian was quiet for a moment. "Oh. Well that's okay then."
"But he plans to visit soon and he asked if he could crash here for the week?"
Ana narrowed her eyes at her daughter. "When were you planning on giving me that little detail, young lady?"
"I told you that already."
"No. You said he was coming for a week. You said nothing about him staying here."
"Well, can he stay here?"
"Over my dead body!" Christian yelled. "Like I'm actually going to let him stay here so he can have free access when he thinks we're sleeping? No. Not happening. End of story."
"Are you serious right now? Mom's let him spend the night before!"
"WHAT?" Christian threw hot daggers at Ana as he clenched his jaw. "You let a boy stay the night at your house, with our teenage daughter? Have you lost your damn mind?"
"Don't you dare take that tone with me, Christian Grey. His mother happened to be a close friend who had a business trip to go to overnight. Justin's father bailed and Sara had nowhere else to send him so I allowed him to use the guestroom overnight."
"And how do you know he didn't try any of that sneaky shit?"
Elsa let out a faux dramatic gasp. "Language!"
Christian shot her a hot look, which quickly wiped the sparkle in Elsa's eye. She looked down quickly at her feet, but a small defiant smile was still tugging at her lips.
Ana rolled her eyes. "Justin and Elsa hadn't even known each other well before that, and they didn't start hanging out more until after he stayed the night. Plus those walls were thin already, add that with my supernatural mommy ears and nothing can get past me."
Elsa scoffed and rolled her eyes, causing Ana to smirk in amusement at her. Elsa tried multiple nights to sneak out and raid the cookie jar, not even making it five feet before Ana yelled at her to get back into bed.
"I don't care. That boy—or any other, for that matter—is not allowed to stay the night here unless he is related. Got that? And no more damn birth control. That crap is just an excuse to have sex without condoms, and that won't be happening!"
Elsa clenched her fists and held them at her sides as she stared, mouth gaping, eyes bulging at her father.
"Christian, she's on birth control to regulate her periods," Ana told him again, grabbing his arm to make sure she had his attention. "She's irregular and has painful cramps without it."
"Well do you know it's only been used for just her periods?" Christian asked, staring down indignantly at Ana.
Ana raised a brow and narrowed her eyes at him.
"I can't believe you! I'm a virgin, okay! I've never even seen a naked guy other than on TV, so can I please keep my birth control!" she huffed, then glared at Christian before shaking her head at him and stomping out of the room, muttering to herself.
Christian completely deflated as he stared at his daughter, and when she was out of his line of vision, he perked up and a look of relief flashed across his face. He ran his hand through his hair. "This daughter thing isn't exactly what I thought it'd be," he murmured sheepishly as Ana glared at him, her hand on her hip and a raised brow.
She shook her head at him and rolled her eyes as she turned away and went to the edge of the bed. "That was very smooth, Mr. Grey. I'm sure your daughter will be open now more than ever about her next boyfriends."
Christian stiffened. In his mind the boy back in London was already old news, and now Ana was mentioning more boys. How was he going to keep all of them away?
"There's not going to be anymore boyfriends," Christian said, walking over to his side of the bed, watching Ana as she threw the covers back before she climbed in.
Ana sighed but paid him no attention, grabbing her book from the nightstand and opening to the page she last left off on.
"Do you hear me, Ana?"
"Mhmm."
"Ana?"
"What?"
"I said did you hear me?"
"Yes, Christian, I heard you."
"So you don't have anything to say then?"
"Nope. I'm just going to let you think what you want."
"That girl is not to date until she's married."
Ana sighed and put her book into her lap with a thud and looked over at Christian as he towered over the bed, his arms crossed and his lips set into a thin unbending line.
"Do you hear yourself, Christian? How can she get married if she can't date first?"
"I don't want her having sex."
Ana rolled her eyes and lifted the book back up to eye level. "Don't be a hypocrite. I gave my virginity to you when I was fifteen."
"That was different!"
Ana looked over at him. "How so?"
"Because . . . because we were in love and we used protection!"
"And yet I still ended up pregnant." Ana sighed and put the book down, then crawled across the bed and kneeled in front of him, throwing her arms over his shoulders. "Christian, I understand how you're feeling. I get it, I really do, though I think you may be feeling it more intensely than I did, but still, I went through this stage, too. Which is why since before she even started her period I talked to her about sex and about all the bad things that can come with it if the right precautions aren't taken. She knows all about pregnancy and STDs, and I've let her know that she can always talk to me about how she's feeling, and she has, which is why I trust her to make the right choices. I told her that I would rather wait until she's married, you know just so she knows that the one she is with is the right one, but I also told her that when two people are in love and not married they want to share that love and that's okay. She understands and you freaking out on her like that is showing her that you don't trust her to make the right decisions."
"I didn't freak out," Christian mumbled sullenly.
Ana leaned away from him to give him a look and then chuckled. "Yeah, okay, Mr. Grey, whatever you say."
Christian rolled his eyes at her, but held her about the waist. He sighed deeply and then closed his eyes, leaning his head against Ana's. "I do trust her because she had a mother sharper than a blade." He looked up at her and smiled at her. "It's just those boys I don't trust. You have to remember I was once fifteen, Ana, and I know exactly what those boys think about when they look at her. She deserves the world and more and I don't want some little shit that doesn't even know what to do with a woman's body taking that away from her."
Ana ran one hand on the back of his neck, smoothing down his soft hair as the other one ran down the side of his face. "That's why we have to be supportive of what she's feeling and guide her to make the right decision. We can't make her feel like her opinions or actions are stupid, even if that's what they are. We have to encourage her growth by trusting her to make the right decisions—and sometimes to make the wrong ones—so she can live the happy, healthy life we both want for her. Stumping her growth will only make her rebel and resent us. You don't want that, do you?"
Christian shook his head. "No, of course not."
Ana smiled at him. "Good. Then how about next time you tone down the heat on the fifth degree and hear her out before going batshit crazy, okay?" She smiled at him playfully, laughing when he glared at her.
"I did not go batshit crazy," Christian said indignantly.
Ana laughed as she sat on her hunches and looked up at Christian. "Oh yeah you did, but good thing you looked cute! I've never seen you, or any man for that matter, get so upset about his daughter virginity." She grinned at him, then looked up at him up and down. "Honestly, there's nothing sexier than a man who loves his kid."
Christian narrowed his eyes at her, then smirked smugly. "You think I'm sexy?" he asked, his looked of irritation turning into salacious intrigue.
Ana smirked at him as she leaned her arms back behind her and stretched out her legs, the tips of her toes just grazing the top of his clothed thighs. She wiggled them playfully against him as she looked up at him through her lashes. "Uh huh," she breathed.
Christian raised a brow, a boyish smirk playing on his lips, before he grabbed her by the ankles and pulled her closer to him. Ana squealed as she slid across the bed until her feet were dangling over the edge. Christian's legs were wedged between her thighs as he leaned over her, placing his hands on either side of her head and staring down at her. His eyes were a smoky gray, while hers were a heated blue, lust swirling in both colors, their body temperatures rising as the electricity flowed through them.
"What am I going to do with you, Miss Steele?" Christian asked silkily as he stared down at her.
Ana smirked at him as she lifted her fingers to his chest, dragging them down his torso slowly until they reached the waistband of his pants.
"Um, I have a few ideas . . ."
Christian only managed to get her wet in one particular place, but he did get her all good and dirty before they both collapsed in a heap on top of his bed, both exhausted and utterly sated.
I know it's been a couple months, but I appreciate your guys patience! I hope every single one of you had a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful time bringing in the New Year. I hope 2019 serves all of you well!
Thank you all for the follows, favorites and reviews! I read every one of them and the support keeps me motivated to share this story with you!
And speaking of reviews, I just wanted to remind all guests that if you're going to post an ignorant review, at least sign in so I can properly educated you on the dynamic of author and reader on this site. Just so we have an understanding this is my story and I don't appreciate anyone telling me how I should write it. If you don't like my story line so far please feel free to stop reading it. Also, to the guest who corrected my spelling, I don't have a beta and I'm human, so even though I proofread every chapter I post, I'm going to miss a few mistakes. If you can't handle that, read the dictionary. I'm sure that will satisfy your peculiarities.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm in the process of writing chapter sixteen, so I hope to have that posted soon.
Happy reading! Until next time,
I am TiedUpinGrey xx