A.N
I don't know about you guys but when I have a daughter, I really hope she is like Lily-Rose! Haha! She is too cute for words!
Enjoy the chapter!
Much Love
K xx
"So let me get this straight…" Ray began as he looked between his daughter and Christian before his eyes settled on his daughter. "You didn't tell him you were pregnant? Why would you not tell him?" He asked with a frown to her.
Ana was tempted to roll her eyes but refrained. She had explained everything to him, but it seemed like Ray was currently in shock as he kept asking the same questions over and over. Luckily Luke had taken Lily-Rose to play in her bedroom, though she could kill him right now for not giving her a heads up that their dad was at their place. "That is correct." Ana commented looking to him. "Look dad…at the time I thought Christian wouldn't want to know so I didn't tell him. If it wasn't for the fact Christian was here for work, he still wouldn't have known. The whole situation has been very unexpected but now I see I should have told him a long time and given him the chance to be a real dad to Lily-Rose. I made a mistake and I see that now."
"And how do you feel about the whole thing?" Ray asked looking to Christian.
"I'll admit I was angry." He told him honestly with a slight shrug. "I would have wanted to have known so I could have been there for Ana and Lily-Rose, but now having met Lily-Rose and spending time with her, I can't imagine her not being in my life. She's an amazing little girl and I know why Ana did what she did. I might not agree with it but she was just trying to protect herself and our daughter. I shouldn't have told her the next morning we should keep it as a onetime thing. Perhaps if I said I wanted to carry on…things may have been very different."
Ray gave a little nod. "And what is happening between the two of you now?" He asked looking to them.
"We are taking things slowly." Ana told him. "It's not just us we have to think about, we have to think about Lily-Rose. We have to get to know each other properly."
"And whether you are together or not are you willing to provide for your daughter?" Ray asked deadpan to Christian.
"Dad!" Ana hissed looking to him.
"It's okay." Christian reassured Ana with a smile before looking to Ray. "I can assure you sir; I have every intention of providing for my daughter."
"And what about living arrangements? I take it you don't live here in California."
"I don't, I live in Seattle, but Ana and I have yet to discuss how things are going to progress. I am very willing to move my company here so I can be closer to them both."
"Your company?"
"Yes. I'm the CEO of Grey Enterprises."
"I thought your name sounded familiar. Mergers and acquisitions, right?"
"That's right sir."
Ray nodded. "Well…it seems like you two know what you are doing." He commented as he got up. "Your sister will be back tomorrow. She's told your mom she wants the entire family at the house. Something about wanting to make an announcement." He looked to Christian. "You are more than welcome to attend." He looked to Ana. "You better tell your mother. I think if you turn up tomorrow and not told her she would probably end up having a heart attack."
Ana nodded. "I will ring her later when Lily-Rose is in bed. Or you know. You could tell her." She mused with a grin to her.
Ray laughed. "Nice try. You are on your own for this kiddo." He got to his feet. "Three o'clock sharp, tomorrow."
"Yes sir." Ana mocked with a salute before she got to her feet. "Lily-Rose come and say goodbye to grandpa!" She called down to her daughter.
Getting to his feet, Christian offered Ray his hand. "It was nice to meet you, sir."
Ray nodded as he shook Christian's hand "Likewise." He smiled before looking up as Lily-Rose came barrelling like a hurricane and jumped into his arms. "I'll see you tomorrow princess." He told her as he hugged her tightly.
"We sees you tomorrow?" She asked curiously to him as she hugged him tightly.
Ray nodded. "You will. Auntie Katie is back from her holiday and wants to see everyone."
Lily-Rose gasped as she looked to her grandfather. "Does she made cookies?" She asked wide eyed.
Ray laughed. "No baby girl, she's been busy on holiday."
Lily-Rose sighed and rested her head on her grandfather's shoulder. "I miss her cookies."
Ray rubbed her back. "I'm sure she'll make you some as soon as you can. Now give me a squeeze."
Lily-Rose grinned as she squeezed her grandfather and kissed his cheeks. "Loves you."
"Love you too. Now be good and I'll see you tomorrow." He promised as he put her down on her feet.
"Otays!" She grinned before running over to the sofa and plonking herself down.
"See you all tomorrow." Ray commented as he looked to his children and Christian before leaving them to it, closing the door behind him.
As her father left, Ana looked to Luke and glared at him. "Thanks for the heads up!"
"Hey he showed up literally five minutes before you did. I tried to get rid of him but he insisted on staying because he wanted to see you and Lils." He told her before shrugging. "Least he knows now and Christian is still breathing."
Ana rolled her eyes before she went over to the kitchen and put the over on to heat up the pizzas and popped the desserts in the fridge. "Lily-Rose come and wash your hands please ready for something to eat."
"Yes mommy." She chimed as she climbed down from the sofa and went over to the kitchen. As Ana got her step and helped her up, she quickly washed her hands, drying them off as Ana gave her before climbing down and heading to the table. "Daddy yous must wash your handsies to. Yucky germs are on your hands." She told him matter of factly.
Christian smiled and nodded as he headed over to the kitchen and washed his hands, looking to Ana he rested his one hand on her hip. "Are you okay?" He whispered to her.
Ana looked to him and nodded. "Just took me by surprise is all. Guess it was nice just us lot knowing for the time being so we could spend time as a family before everyone else stuck their nose in."
"As least I'm still breathing." He mused with a smirk to her to try and lighten the mood.
Ana couldn't help but chuckle at him before she smiled. "Take a seat." She gestured to the table where their daughter was currently waiting patiently for her food.
Sitting on the one side of his daughter, Christian smiled. "So…what's your favourite topping on your pizza?"
"I loves cheese." Lily-Rose told him with a grin. "And I loves it when it has chunks of chicken and bacon and shrooms and peppers."
Christian raised an eyebrow, expecting a simple pepperoni pizza being her answer. "That sounds like a good pizza."
"It's the bestest." She grinned to him.
"Blame Luke for that. He gave her a slice once and she has always asked for it ever since." Ana commented as she put a small plate in front of Lily-Rose before putting the pizza's in the middle of the table. "So, we have her favourite here with extra cheese and a classic meat feast." She explained.
"Meaty goodness." Luke grinned as he sat down and took a slice.
Rolling her eyes at her brother, Ana then put a slice onto Lily-Rose's plate before she took the seat next to her and grabbed her own slice and tucked in.
"Yum, yum, yum in my tum." Lily-Rose sang with a giggle as she happily tucked into her slice of pizza.
Ana smiled. "Remember not to eat too fast. The food is not going anywhere."
Lily-Rose nodded. "Otays mommy. I don't wants to go blue again."
Christian choked on his mouthful of food before looking to his daughter horrified then looking to Ana. "Blue?"
Ana sighed. "It was a couple of months ago. Numb nut over here was rushing his food so he could watch a game. Little miss here decided to copy. She got a bit of steak stuck in her throat. I'm giving her back slaps while he's crying in the corner. Safe to say we haven't had steak since."
Luke looked to her. "I can't believe you told him I cried."
"Well you did!"
"And I've lived with the guilt ever since!" He declared with a huff before looking to Lily-Rose. "We take it nice and slow now don't we pudding?"
Lily-Rose nodded. "Yes. Mommy says I got to chew my food at lest ten times before I swallow. If it's big chunks I gots to count to twenty." She explained looking to her dad.
Christian nodded. "That's a good rule to remember." He told her with a smile before he looked to Ana. "Her eyes have gone grey again…does it happen a lot?" He asked with a smile. The thought of his daughter inheriting something from him made him giddy.
Ana looked to Lily-Rose before back to Christian. "It used to be when she would cry, or she was upset they'd start to change and it depends what way the light hits them, but the last couple of months I have noticed they tend to go grey when she's tired. When she was first born, they were really blue like mine but the older she gets the more they go grey like yours." She told him with a smile. "And she loves it when her hair goes copper in the sunlight."
"Its not copper its reddy."
Ana rolled her eyes playfully. "Sorry. Reddy." She chuckled and smiled to her. "Do any of your other family members have grey eyes?" She asked curiously. She knew a little bit about his siblings but nothing in detail.
Christian shook his head. "No, we are all different actually. I'm grey, Elliot's blue and Mia's green." He told her with a chuckle. "My dad has blue eyes and my mom has brown eyes. I have a copper tone to my hair; Elliot is brown but he has blonde streaks in it. I think he secretly has highlights but he is in denial about that. And Mia…well she's naturally blonde but she could be a different colour every week." He told her with a slight shrug. "She likes to experiment with colour."
"Auntie Katie has yellow hair." Lily-Rose told her dad with a grin. "And grandma has brown hair like uncle Lukey and grandpa's silver."
"Grandpa hasn't got much hair left." Ana told her with a chuckle before she finished off her slice of pizza and got to her feet. "Drink?" She asked looking to Christian and Luke.
"Beer please." Luke replied.
"Just a water for me please." Christian replied with a smile.
Ana nodded as she headed over to the kitchen area. Grabbing a beet for Luke she gave it to him before making a glass of water for Christian and Lily-Rose and popping them down in front of them. Grabbing herself a drink of water she then sat back down. "Would you like another slice?" Ana asked looking to Lily-Rose who had finished her first slice.
"Yes pwease mommy." She replied as she grabbed her drink and took a sip before carefully placing it back down.
Ana smiled placing another slice on her plate before grabbing another slice for herself before looking to Christian. "How would you like to bath her and put her to bed?" She asked curiously.
Christian smiled and nodded. "I'd love to."
"You got a swim suit?" Luke asked looking to him.
Christian frowned. "No, why?"
"You're going to need one." He commented with a chuckle.
"Oh, behave she's not that bad." She looked to Christian. "She loves bath time and gets a bit excited." She shrugged. "It's only water anyway."
Luke smirked. "We'll see."
Christian shrugged before looking to Lily-Rose. "What story would you like me to read tonight?" He asked to her.
Lily-Rose thought for a minute. "Urm…" She gasped and grinned. "Bear hunt!"
"Bear hunt? That sounds like an exciting story."
"It is! I love it, it has a doggy in and a bear at the end!"
"Well I'm looking forward to reading this one. Will I get scared?"
"Nooo. But don't worry if you do because I wills be there to holds your hands." She happily told him.
If he could have melted on the spot, he would have. She was so thoughtful and adorable. "Thank you, princess." He told her with a smile before he took another slice of pizza.
"Yous welcome daddy." Lily-Rose chimed back to him before she happily tucked into her second slice of pizza.
Ana smiled to her daughter before she then looked to Luke. "What have you got planned for the rest of the evening?" She asked curiously to him.
"I'm actually heading out." He told her. "One of my old army buddies are in town so we are going to catch up. He's going to come here so we are going to catch up downstairs. May head out to another bar when the one downstairs closes."
Ana nodded. "Just remember not to be singing at the top of your lungs when you stroll in." She commented with a smirk.
"I'll behave I promise." He chuckled before he checked the time. "I better start getting ready. I'm just going to dive in the shower before you over take the bathroom." Getting up he took his plate and washed it before leaving it on the drying rack. Kissing his niece's head, he then headed down towards the bathroom.
"I's stuffed." Lily-Rose told her parents as she pushed her plate away and took a sip of her drink before placing her cup back on the table.
"Good girl, would you like to watch some television before you have a bath?"
Lily-Rose nodded as she got down from her chair and went over to the sofa.
Getting up, Ana went over to the sofa and turned the television on. "What do you want on?" She asked looking to her daughter.
"The Little Mermaid pwease." She told her as she got comfy on the sofa before grabbing her unicorn Teddy and holding it tightly to her.
Putting the film on, Ana smiled before she headed back over to the table and started to clear up. Gathering all the dishes up she put the left-over pizza on one plate before putting it in the microwave knowing Luke would probably eat it later before putting the rest in the sink as she began to wash the dishes.
Getting to his feet, Christian smiled as he looked to Lily-Rose hugging her unicorn teddy to her. Moving over to Ana, he grabbed a dish towel and began to dry the dishes.
"You don't have to do that." Ana told him with a smile.
"I know but I want to." He told her with a smile. Not being able to help himself any longer, he leant in and stole a kiss off her. Although they had agreed to take things slow, his feelings for her where manifesting at a rate that shocked him. The way she was with Lily-Rose and how attractive he found her in general, trying not to take her there and then was proving to be difficult.
Ana smiled before she happily kissed him back. Blushing slightly as she pulled away, she then carried on washing the rest of the dishes. The chemistry between them was through the roof but they had a daughter to think about right now, especially seeing as that said daughter, was only a few feet away from them.
"Okay I'm off." Luke commented as he came into the living room area. Leaning down he kissed Lily-Rose's head. "See you tomorrow pudding."
"Bye, bye Uncle Luke!" Lily-Rose replied before her attention went back to the television.
Drying her hands Ana smiled. "Have fun. I've put the left-over pizza in the microwave in case you get peckish when you get home."
"Thanks sis." He smiled and kissed her cheek. "See you guys tomorrow." Waving to Christian he then left the suite.
"Right little miss, are you ready for your bath?" Ana asked as she headed over to Lily-Rose.
Lily-Rose nodded as she got down from the sofa and headed over to her mother and put her arms up for her to pick her up.
Ana couldn't help but smile as she picked up her daughter and held her close. "Is someone tired?" She mused as she headed to the bathroom, smiling as Lily-Rose nodded against her shoulder. Kissing her head, she put her down as they reached the bathroom and put in the plug and turned the water on. Helping her daughter strip off, Ana tossed her clothes into the laundry hamper before moving the unicorn teddy out of the way so it didn't get wet. Checking the temperature of the water she then lifted Lily-Rose into the water before grabbing some toys for her to play with, tying Lily-Rose's hair into a messy bun on top of her head so she didn't get her hair wet. Looking to Christian she smiled. "She's all yours." She mused. "I'm going to get her pyjamas ready. She plays for a couple of minutes then just help her clean up. Her flannel is there and her soap." She told him, kissing his cheek as she walked past, grabbing the unicorn on her way so she could put it in Lily-Rose's bed ready.
Christian smiled before he moved into the bathroom more. Kneeling by the side of the bath he looked at Lily-Rose who was playing with some toys. "What you got there princess?"
"Fishies!" Lily-Rose beamed showing him, bringing the fish out of the water to show him before splashing the fish back into the water. "Ands I got a mermaid like Ariel!" She told him showing him the doll in her other hand. "Uncle Lukey bought this for me." She grinned and splashed the mermaid into the water.
Christian couldn't help but chuckle as every time she splashed her toys into the water, he was getting wet. But he didn't mind. He was just happy to be having this moment with her. "Shall we get you all cleaned up?" He asked as he grabbed a flannel and her soap. Wetting the flannel, he then rubbed some of the soap into it, letting it lather up before he smiled to her. "Ready?"
Lily-Rose nodded as she took the flannel off her father and began to wash herself down…well best she could.
Christian smiled as he watched how independent she was, now and then he would help her when she missed parts but for most of the part, she did a pretty good job. When she was ready to get out, he got her fluffy towel from the side before he scooped her up in the towel, smiling at the little squeal that left her lips. Heading to her bedroom he then smiled seeing Ana was waiting for them.
"Did you two have fun?" Ana asked with a smile.
Lily-Rose nodded. "Daddy helped me get all my nooks and crannies."
Ana laughed before smiling. "Do you need the potty before we get changed for bed?"
Lily-Rose thought for a minute before shaking her head. "I wents in the bath before daddy took me out." She admitted, her little cheeks going pink.
"Hey you don't have to be embarrassed." Christian told her with a smile. "Whenever you need to go to the potty you tell me just like you tell your mom okay?"
"Otays." Lily-Rose smiled snuggling into her dad.
Christian smiled and kissed her head before he put her down on her feet. "Let's get you dry and into your pjs." He told her with a smile as he began to dry her off.
"Which pull up tonight? Cinderella or Snow White?" Ana asked showing her daughter the choices.
"Snow White pwease mommy."
Ana nodded before passing it to Christian. As he looked to it gone off Ana smirked. "Put them on like pants. It's like a diaper, she only uses it for the night as she's not quite dry yet."
Christian nodded as he then helped Lily-Rose put the pull up on before taking the pyjamas Ana handed to him and slipped them on his daughter. As she was ready for bed he smiled. "Do you want to get your book and I'll read it to you?"
Lily-Rose nodded as she ran over to her bookshelf and picked the book she wanted before running back to her dad and passing him the book. Going over to her bed she climbed in, grabbing her unicorn teddy and hugging it tightly to her.
Ana smiled before she looked to Christian. "You okay while I have a quick shower?"
Christian nodded. "Sure, you go ahead." He smiled to her before getting on the floor next to Lily-Rose's bed. "You ready princess?"
Lily-Rose nodded. "I's ready."
Ana smiled as she went over to her daughter and kissed her head. "Goodnight baby. See you in the morning."
"Night, night mommy." Lily-Rose replied as she got comfy in her bed, resting her head on her pillow.
Ana kissed her head again before she smiled to Christian and made her way out of the bedroom and towards the bathroom.
Christian opened the page and looked to Lily-Rose as he began the story. "We're going on a bear hunt…" Happily reading the story to his daughter, he smiled as she held onto his hand during the 'scary' part. Softly stroking her little hand with his as he read the book, he finished the story and looked to his sleeping little girl. Putting the book down he gently pulled his hand from Lily-Rose's and tucked her in more before kissing her head. "Goodnight princess." He whispered to her before he quietly got up, putting the book back where it belonged before leaving her room quietly, double checking on her one more time before he left, going in search of Ana.
"Yes mom…I know." Ana sighed as she sat on her bed. She had just got dressed from her shower and she had bucked up the courage to tell her mother about Christian and it was safe to say that she now had a headache from the lecture she was giving her. "You'll meet him tomorrow anyway when we come over. Dad said it would be fine to bring him…just be nice and don't embarrass me…" Looking up as she saw Christian in the doorway, she smiled to him. "Look mom I have to go. We will see you tomorrow." She rolled her eyes. "Yes, we will come by earlier so you can meet him. Bye." Hanging up the phone she looked to Christian. "She's sleeping then?"
"Out like a light. She's had a busy day." He smiled. "Nice chat with your mom?"
Ana groaned. "No. I felt like I was ten years old again being told off. She's extremely curious to meet you."
"Yay?" He laughed and shrugged. "Did she find anyone else after her divorce?"
Ana scoffed as she looked to him. "She and my father got back together."
"Oh really?"
"Really." She laughed and shook her head before tying her hair up in messy bun. "Beer?" She then asked him.
Christian shook his head. "I better go and answer some work emails. Plus, I need to sort out the asshole from yesterday. Can I come back in about an hour? It shouldn't take me long."
"Sure, we can slowly work through those desserts I bought earlier."
"I'll be back in half hour." He told her giving her a cheeky wink before stealing a kiss off her.
Ana laughed against his lips before she saw him to the door. As they kissed one more time she then smiled as she closed the door behind her before she made her way over to the sofa and sat herself down. Grabbing the remote she turned on the television, putting something random before she then smiled as she reflected back on the day. It had been a pretty special and memorable day and she hoped that they could carry on making memories. Her feelings for Christian were getting stronger the more time they spent together but now she knew she had to make a choice. Christian has said he would bring his business here but would that be fair on him? She has hotels all over the country…she could stay at any of them if she wanted to. She could branch out in Seattle, she already has a hotel in Portland, having one is Seattle couldn't hurt. She needed to decide if she wanted to stay here or move to Seattle.
