"Catch me." I call out laughing and run down the hallway but of course Christian catches me within five seconds, swings me around, and kisses me.
I have been in Canada for a week now and Christian and I are almost as close as we have been before. Slowly but surely I have allowed myself to put my guard down and with that I have been able to let Christian in. It still feels different but at least I know why. It just irks me that he is always so quick to agree over everything with his mom. He was never such a momma's boy and it's annoying me. Though, as long as I ignore it, he still is the same Christian I have known for so long.
He just leaned in to kiss me again when we hear Grace.
"No, you are not welcome here, now leave or I'll call the cops!" She shouts at someone and we both hurry to see what is going on. When we reach the front door I gasp when I see Mia, sobbing outside and Grace yelling at her.
"Please, he is my brother... please let me see him." She begs.
"No and don't you dare call my son your brother. You are the daughter of Elena and Carrick and my son is not... you are nothing to him." Grace says and I gasp.
"He is my brother..." Mia sobs and I cannot take this and move closer.
"Grace, please let her in... they grew up together..."
"Ana, please stay out of this."
"But..."
"No, Christian tell her." Grace says and I can tell that Christian is distraught as he moves closer.
"You are not my sister and I don't want you here. Leave!" He says so harshly that my mouth drops open, but he turns around and leaves.
"You heard it, now please, leave." Grace says but I can't watch this any longer and step outside where I pull Mia into my arms.
"Come, let's walk for a bit." I say and hold her while we walk to the end of the driveway where we sit down on the sidewalk.
"He hates me." Mia cries.
"No, he doesn't, Mia."
"But he does... I knew and I lied to his face... and now he hates me." She cries.
"What do you mean?" I ask and hand her a tissue from my pants pocket.
"He asked me if our mom... Elena... whatever... if she ever had acted inappropriately towards me and I said no... but it's not true."
"She did... I mean towards you?"
"No, but I saw her trying to touch Christian and I didn't say anything... he is my brother and I just looked the other way because I was scared this would ruin our family. I have never told anyone but I always thought if I had said something he might have never left... and now he hates me." She sobs and I pull her into my arms again.
"Mia nothing you or Elliot or I could have done would have changed what happened that night. Your parents did that... to all of us and Christian doesn't hate you. He has changed... it's his mom..."
"What do you mean?"
"She has turned him into her puppet. He is normal whenever she is not around but as soon as she is around it's basically her saying jump and he asks how high. His reaction to you was just her doing... I think he is trying to make up for all the time they have lost by doing everything she wants."
"Elliot told me not to come here, he said Christian isn't the same anymore... but I just had to see him... I just wanted to hold him once. Tell him how much I have missed him and that I'm sorry that I wasn't a better sister."
"Don't do this to yourself, Mia... look, I'll try to talk to Christian, maybe when his mother isn't around he will come around."
"No... that man isn't my brother... I want to go home, Ana." Mia says and stands up.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes... he knows where to find me... I can't go back there..." She says and I watch as she gets into her car which is parked across the street and leaves.
I just stand there for a little while torn as to what to do but then I decide that I need to talk to Christian. Mia has been his sister since she was a baby... he can't just treat her like that. So, I walk back into the house and down the hallway until I reach his apartment but inside I stop when I find him looking at a framed picture which he stuffs back into a drawer when he hears me enter.
"Please don't say it." He says.
"Christian this isn't you... you love your sister."
"She is not my fucking sister!" He yells at me and storms off but this time I'm not having it and storm after him.
"Do not run away from me!" I yell and he stops.
"Ok, then get it over with."
"I understand that you want your mom happy but you can't forget your own happiness because of it. You love Mia... she is your sister... has been since the day the Greys brought her home and it doesn't make you a bad son to still love her. Elena and Carrick are horrible people... no doubt about it... but they still raised three wonderful children who turned into wonderful people despite their parents... just keep that in mind." I say kiss him gently and walk away to give him time to think but of course I run right into Jason.
"A word in my study, Ana?"
"Sure, Jason." I sigh and follow him. While I sit down he closes the door and I looks at me.
"I heard what you said about Mia and Elliot... you are right... I tried to tell Grace but she just can't stand to have anything near her and her children that reminds her of the Greys."
"Jason... look... I know you love your wife... but you are enabling her... and it's not for her or for anyone's best interest in this family. I mean imagine one day Lilly, Sophie, or Caleb want to go to college and not here in Vancouver... she will lose it... she has to learn to let go just a little. That she can't control everything around her or one day she'll end up alone because by clinging on that hard she will end up pushing everyone away."
"It's not that easy, Ana. I can't ask her to go to therapy... she is terrified of that thanks to her sister. I know she is clinging onto Christian especially but he doesn't seem to mind."
"He does... believe me... but he loves the people closest to him to a fault and wouldn't do anything to hurt them. He loves Grace so much he is sacrificing Mia because of it and it's killing him on the inside. I can't just stand by and watch it happen because I love Christian just as you love your wife."
"We'll figure it out." He says but honestly I don't think we will. This has been going on for too long now.
In the evening Christian and I have some time alone and sit on the patio.
"Have you stayed in touch with them?"
"No, it was too painful for Elliot and Mia to live with the what ifs and I couldn't stop asking questions. We all lost touch. Today was the first time I saw Mia since I was fifteen."
"She'll get over it." He says and I decide to say nothing. I can see the pain in his eyes and don't want to add to it.
"There is a fair nearby, how about we take CJ there tomorrow... we can bring your siblings too."
"My mom wouldn't like it if we take the kids. She would worry one of them gets lost but we can take CJ."
"Ok, sounds good..." I say, but this entire my mom here my mom there is slowly but surely killing me. I want to shake him or yell at him to finally wake up and take control of his life again but I know it will only lead to a fight between us.
Siobhan thinks that I need to leave, that I will never be happy with Christian as long as he is basically kissing his mom's ass. I said nothing, which according to her is telling a lot. Fact is, I just don't want her to be right. I want her to be wrong because her being wrong means that Christian and I will make it as a couple.
"Stay with me tonight, Ana." Christian says and I look at him. So far, we haven't slept together mostly because every time we tried either CJ woke up from a nightmare or his mother came in to ask Christian to do something for her, which made me want to strangle her.
"Why? So we can do something like this?" I ask grinning and straddle him on his lounger and lean down to kiss him.
"Yes... or maybe something like this." He whispers against my lips, gets up with me on his hips and walks towards the bedroom.
"Oh, I hope I wasn't interrupting you." I hear Grace's voice behind us and want to scream while Christian puts me to my feet.
"No, you didn't, Mom."
"Good, I was thinking it is such a lovely evening, why don't you join Jason and I for a glass of wine on the patio?" She asks.
"Actually, I'm pretty tired." I say hoping she'll take the hint and leaves.
"Oh..."
"I'll join you, mom... go to sleep, baby." Christian says and gives me a quick kiss to the cheek before he wraps one arm around his mom's shoulder and leaves with her, leaving me standing there like a complete idiot.
Turning around swiftly I march into the guestroom flop down on the bed and scream into my pillow. This is a nightmare, it's like this woman knows exactly when the worst time to come in here is and does just that.
But it's not just her I want to strangle, it's Christian too. He could have said no, could have told his mom that it's a bad timing but instead he went with her... again.
I'm just about to scream into my pillow again when my phone beeps with an incoming text and I smile when I see that it's from Elliot. We have been texting, talking on the phone quiet often lately and by now he is the only one who can cheer me up in the midst of the dilemma I have found myself in.
*Hey Ana banana, just checking in to see if your sanity is still intact.*
*This crazy woman seems to have a sixth sense when it comes to sex... she just came in and ruined the mood again.*
*Drive over to Bellevue and I help you with your... tension ;)*
*Ha ha, not funny, El. Honestly, this was the fifth time she came in and stopped Christian and I from having sex.*
*Well, her husband is in security... she probably has the place bugged.*
*Haha, goodnight you weirdo.*
With that I put my phone aside, change into my pj's and lay down. But the longer I'm lying in bed the more I think about what Elliot said in his last text. It's crazy... not even someone as controlling as Grace would bug her house or place hidden cameras... but what if she does.
Fifteen minutes later I cannot stay in bed any longer. So, I get up and walk around the apartment trying to find hidden cameras.
"Stop it, Ana... you are going insane." I mutter to myself after twenty minutes of looking around and decide to stop when my gaze lands on the picture frame in the bookshelf. I walk over to it, pick it up and sure enough there it is a hidden camera.
You have got to be fucking kidding me...
