Ana
I wake up while it is still pitch black in my room and reach for my phone to see what time it is. I hear my mother walk around the apartment making too much noise and roll my eyes, she must have had one too many cocktails. When I finally find my phone I freeze, because there is a message from my mom, telling me that she will stay at her friend's house tonight, because she wasn't up to driving her car anymore.
If my mother isn't home…suddenly my heart starts to race. Someone is out there in my apartment and it is not my mother. Shit! I get up as quietly as possible and tiptoe to the door to lock it. If it wasn't for me being pregnant I might have had just grabbed the baseball bat my Dad insists I keep near my bed at all times if something like this was to happen, but I can't do that now and risk my son's life by playing the superhero.
Instead, I do what every good coward would do, I hide in my closet and start to dial 911, but stop myself last second from calling. Suppose my mom decided to come home anyway and the cops shoot her, because they believe she is an intruder. For a second I want to call out for her, but that is probably the single most stupid thing to do, because with my luck it's a junkie who just wants to find something of value for his next fix and kills me by accident when he discovers I'm awake.
So I dial the one person I know will make feel safe immediately.
"Ana?" I hear Christian's sleepy voice and I instantly feel a lot calmer.
"Christian, there is someone in my apartment." I whisper.
"What?!" He whisper-screams.
"I woke up because of the noise in the apartment and thought it was my mom, but then I saw her text that she is staying at a friend's house because she had too much to drink to drive."
"Fuck, have you called the cops?"
"No, what if my mom decided to come home and they shoot her?" I reply and hear him open a door, followed by quick footsteps.
"Are you in your room?"
"Yes, I just locked the door and now I'm hiding in the closet." I confess embarrassed.
"That is good, stay there, try not to make any sounds." He says and I hear him talk to Taylor.
"Ana, listen we are on our way and we will be there soon, until then we'll stay on the line, but I don't want you to talk anymore, remain quiet so whoever the intruder is won't notice that you are home." He says and I hold my phone close, trying not to burst into tears because I'm just scared, not so much for me, but for my son. Shit, my Dad taught me how to defend myself, but right now, I don't know if I would even try, because it could bring even more harm to my child.
"Ana, Taylor has called the cops now, we will be there in a minute, so if it is your Mom we are there first and nothing will happen. Do you still hear noise coming from the living area?"
"Yes, it's coming closer to my room." I whisper barely audible.
"We are almost there, baby… please don't be scared, nothing is going to happen to you or our son, I won't let it happen." He says and I nod, too scared to even breathe too loudly because now someone is trying to get into my room.
"We are here!" Christian says and I hear them running before there is a loud bang, I hear screaming, cussing and I know it is not my mom, because neither of them would ever yell like that at her.
I wait, wanting to get out and see what is happening, but too afraid to actually move. Suddenly the apartment goes silent and then I hear Christian's voice.
"Open the door, Ana, it's ok, I'm here." He calls out and I get up on shaky legs and find my way to the door in the darkness. As soon as I see Christian I throw myself into his arms and start to sob.
"I was so scared." I cry and he kisses the top of my head.
"I know, baby, but you are safe, it's okay." He murmurs into my hair and that is when I hear someone behind us.
"Get your fucking hands off me!" A male voice hisses and I freeze, this is not true!
"Jose?!" I get out and look up at Christian.
"Yes, we caught the fucker in your hallway, he was setting up a hidden camera, Taylor will sweep your apartment to remove any other camera he has hidden in here. Don't worry about him, the cops will take care of it and my Dad will go to court first thing tomorrow morning to get the restraining order against him in place." Christian says and just then the cops arrive.
I'm glad when they finally remove Jose from the apartment which is a mess, all the drawers and cupboards are open, things are on the floor and two of my mom's huge potted plants have been knocked over. I look around the mess and then to Taylor and Christian. I didn't even notice it until now, but both men are bare feet in their pajama bottoms and t-shirts. I can't help it; I start to giggle.
"Something amusing you Miss Steele?" Christian asks amused when he follows my gaze between him and Taylor.
"Nice pj's." I giggle looking at Taylor who is wearing bottoms with Christmas ornaments printed on them.
"My daughter picked them out, Ma'am." He says with a slight blush.
"Cute." I giggle and look around to see the mess in my living room. "Um… Christian, does your offer from earlier still stand? You know, that I can sleep at your place?" I ask and Christian rolls his eyes.
"Ana, if you believe for one second that I would allow you to stay here tonight you clearly don't know me at all." He says raising an eyebrow and I smile.
"I'm just getting a few things; I'll be right back." I hurry into the bathroom, throw what I need into my toiletry bag and continue to get clothes for work tomorrow. Since it's cold I outside I put my Uggs and a cardigan on and get back into the living room where Christian grabs my stuff and the men lead me outside and into the waiting SUV.
"Are you ok?" Christian's ask when I deflate into the seat.
"Yes, I just don't get it, why would he sat up cameras in my apartment and go through all the drawers. I mean, did he think I wouldn't notice the mess or just clean it up without calling the cops, it's like he wanted to get caught." I murmur and I see Christian and Taylor exchange looks through the rearview mirror.
"What aren't you telling me?" I ask.
"I'll tell you once we are at Escala, you can have my bedroom."
"I can sleep upstairs." I say even though I really don't want to sleep there.
"I have thrown all the furniture out; it has to be refurnished but I didn't have the time to give my decorator a call yet. So, you take my bedroom and I'll sleep on the couch.
"I can take the couch." I reply, not wanting to throw him out of his bedroom.
"Ana, I have watched you sleep many times and you move around in your sleep so much that I would have to tie you to the couch in order to make sure that you won't fall off in your sleep. Please let's not argue about this." He says and I just nod. It's almost 2 am and I am bone tired, if he wants to offer me his bed, I'll take it gladly.
At Escala I decide, that whatever he hasn't told me can wait until tomorrow, it's late and we both need our sleep. I watch as he puts a blanket and pillows on the couch and feel bad for him.
"We could just share your bed." I offer.
"Ana, I'm not a fucking saint, I'm trying to do the right thing here and take things slow… but if we share a bed, I can promise you that neither of us will get any sleep." He says and I blush.
"Um… okay, goodnight." I murmur in the end and get into bed.
In the morning I get up still a little tired and take a long shower before I get dressed and step out into the great room from where I can see Christian already sitting at the breakfast bar.
"I have called my Dad; he will stop by tonight with the restraining order. I have also called your Mom and booked her a suite at the Fairmont for the next two days, the police wants to sweep your apartment again this afternoon and after that I'll have Taylor over there to get the place secure, so if you want you can stay here again tonight or you can stay with your mom." Christian says when I sit down next to him.
"Oh… okay, how about I'll stay here and we can watch a movie together tonight?" I reply and he gives me a dazzling smile.
"Perfect… so what are your plans for today?"
"I'm working until noon, after that I'll have lunch and then I need to go shopping. I need a few dresses for work and Kate told me about this boutique downtown that has a lot of nice maternity clothes, so I want to check the place out, because I really don't have anything to wear for work that still fits. After that I'll be back here and get my list ready, have you finished yours?" I ask him.
Christian and I are still trying to figure out the first name for our son, so we decided to both make a list with names that we like, see if we have names we both like on it and then decide on a name.
"Almost ready, we can discuss his name tonight… I have two hours around lunch, how about I pick you up, we have lunch together and go look at some strollers before you go shopping?" He asks.
"Yes, that's great."
"Good, I'll pick you up around noon, oh and Elliot called me yesterday, his crew has started the renovations on the house. He said if we want tomorrow would be a good time to stop by and have a look at the house. He also wants your input on the plans… after all, it's going to be your home." He says.
"Our home." I answer with a smile and place his hand on my belly. If last night has shown me anything then it is that I want to be with Christian. He makes me feel safe like no one else and even in what little time we have spent together; I feel closer to him than ever before. If we keep talking and spending time, I'm sure with a little time we can find a way to make our relationship work.
"Our home." He repeats and just seeing how those two little words make him happy makes me happy too.
"Miss Steele?" I turn around when Taylor approaches and look at him.
"Good morning, Taylor… and thank you for coming over last night."
"You're very welcome. Ma'am, I will need your apartment keys. I'll have Reynolds drive over this afternoon to let the police in, after that we will need the keys to get in and secure the place."
"Sure, I'll give you my spare set, I always have several sets, I swear I'm not just losing my keys, they run away from me screaming." I confess a little embarrassed.
"Thank you…and in that case I will give Barney a call, he is head of IT at GEH and I'm sure he can help us get a lock with fingerprint scan for your apartment. It's safe and you can't lose your keys anymore." He says.
"Is that even possible… I only know them from office buildings." I reply and he gives me a brief smile.
"It's possible, Ma'am. We will also get an alarm system installed and make sure that the windows are more secure." He says and I just nod and thank him. I know this is going to be expensive, but this is also about the safety of my unborn son, so I can live with it.
At work, I start to read a new manuscript for Courtney and type a few letters she will need to have sent out until I have to leave and before I know it is noon and my office phone buzzes.
"Courtney Miller's office, Anastasia Steele speaking."
"Hey, it's me, Claire. Your boyfriend is waiting for you, Ana." Claire tells me all exciting and I giggle.
"I'll be there in a minute." I hang up, grab my purse and coat and head for the lobby when my phone rings.
"Ana Steele?"
"Miss Steele, this is Detective Rollins, we met yesterday. Are you free this evening, we have searched Mr. Rodriguez' apartment and found something that we need to show you."
"Oh… okay, I'm staying at Escala with Mr. Grey for the next few days, can we meet there say at 7 pm?" I ask, whatever it is, I want Christian to be there and he told me that he will be home tonight at six, so this gives us time to have dinner before the Detective arrives.
"Sure, I'll meet you there, Ma'am." He says and hangs up, I stuff my phone back into my purse just when I reach the lobby where Christian is waiting for me.
"Hi, is something wrong? You look stressed." He says when he sees me.
"Detective Rollins called, he wants to meet with me, the police found something when they searched Jose's place. I hope you don't mind, but I have asked him to come to Escala tonight around 7 pm. I don't know… it sounded like they have found something bad and I don't think I face whatever they have found without you." I confess and he pulls me into his embrace.
"I'm glad you asked to come by at Escala tonight, I want to know what they have found too. I'll call my Dad to be there too, whatever it is, he can tell us what legal steps we will have to take." He says and I blush when my stomach rumbles in the most unladylike way.
"Come, you need to eat, there is a nice Deli just two blocks from here, would you like to go there?"
"Oh my gosh, yes! Their cheese ravioli with mushrooms and chicken breast are to die for, you have to try it too."
"I was actually thinking about a light lunch, but you eat whatever you feel like." He says and ushers me out of the building. I would have loved to walk to the Deli, but it is raining cats and dogs, so we let Taylor drive us and are lucky to find a nice table in a corner at the packed Deli.
"You never told me what that look you've exchanged with Taylor was about last night." I say as we are waiting for our food.
"He had a backpack with him, it held rope, duct tape, chloroform. We believe that he saw you leave for Escala and got the cameras to hide at your place. He didn't expect anyone to return, so he snooped through the drawers. Surely he would have cleaned everything up if given the chance… we also believe that he had that shit in his backpack to kidnap you in case you would return." He says and I bury my face in my hands.
"How could I not notice what a sick human being he is? He seemed so normal… he was my friend." I murmur; I can't believe that never realized that something wasn't right with Jose.
"Speaking from experience, some people are so manipulative and exceptionally good liars that no one would ever expect that something wasn't right with them." He says and I look up. I know he is talking about Elena and it hurts me that she was his only friend… at least I have Kate.
"Looks like we both need to find better friends." I shrug, glad to get off the topic when our food arrives and I dig right in.
"Hmm, delicious." I hum in appreciation spear a ravioli with my fork and hold it out to him. He looks surprised for a second but then takes it.
"Wow, that's really good." He says and eyes my plate.
"We can share, it's way too much for me anyway, I usually take half of it back home for dinner." I explain and push my plate a bit closer to him so we can share and he digs right in.
After lunch, we had to a baby market and look at my strollers. There are a few I really like and Christian surprises me when he buys four in total.
"You do know that we are only having one baby?" I say in surprise and he smiles.
"I'm fully aware of that, but this way both of us can have one in the car, we have one we can use in the house and one for the grounds of our new home."
"Grounds?" I squeak and now he is laughing.
"Yes, it comes with a huge meadow, backyard and some more land. The estate is bigger than my parents' home, but you'll see tomorrow." He says, but all I hear is the word meadow.
"A meadow?"
"Yes, it's a bit overgrown, but it will be great for our son to run around and for all of us to have picnics. You know, with me being who I am it will always be a security nightmare to take him to a park, so I was looking for a home with lots of outside space, so you wouldn't have to take him to a park. There are other families with small children in the neighborhood so he can have playdates and make friends." He explains and the thought that taking my child to a park could be a potential risk is really upsetting, but I smile anyway. It's not Christian fault, he never asked for all the media attention he gets, so I can't blame him.
"Sounds like a great place." I reply with a smile and he scowls when his phone rings.
"Everything alright?" I ask when he hangs up after a few minutes.
"Ros, my COO, called. There is an issue with a project we are working on in Detroit, we are trying to fix it without me having to go to Detroit, but it looks like I might need to fly down to keep them on their toes." He says looking less than pleased, but recovers quickly and so we look around for a bit more and buy a few other things for our son before he has to head back to the office and Sawyer follows me to the boutique Kate told me about, where I buy some new clothes for work.
Back at Escala I take a shower and sit at the breakfast while Gail is in the kitchen. I have seen her a few times while I was Christian's sub and we get along really well. She is just so warm and welcoming that you have to like her.
"Can I make you a snack, Miss Steele?"
"It's Ana, Gail; and no thanks, I'm fine, I had a big lunch. So, when does Christian usually start to decorate for the holiday season?" I ask, the penthouse is such a big place, it's going to be so much fun to decorate it.
"Oh… well, Ana, Mr. Grey doesn't really celebrate the holidays, he usually works." She says and I stare at her for a moment.
"Wouldn't he go to his parent's place to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas?"
"No, well of course, all of his family would call him… but I guess there are only so many times one can ask before he stops." She says sadly and I make a mental note to make sure to ask him why he wouldn't celebrate with his family. This year he will celebrate, because I am going to make sure of it. Christian works so hard each day, he needs some down time and what better time to just enjoy life than the holiday season.
"This year he is going to celebrate." I smile at Gail saying this and she smiles too.
When Christian arrives we sit down to have dinner and he seems tense.
"What is wrong, Christian? You seem tense."
"I have talked with Roach today, they are all very pleased with your work… but with your pregnancy they need to know when and if you are going to return to work. Have you thought about how long you want to go into maternity leave?" He asks and I think about it for a moment.
"Well, I don't want to return right away, if I could I would stay home for the first three or four years, but that's not an option."
"You would stay at home with our son?" Christian asks and I can tell that he really likes the idea.
"Yes, but I have to work and…" the moment these words have come out of my mouth Christian drops his fork and glares at me.
"Ana, you do not have to work!" He says and I frown, but then it dawns on me.
"Christian I have to work for a living and…"
"No you don't have to work for a living, I can take care of you, it's what I want, it makes me happy to know that I can support not just my son but you too." He says and I sigh.
"You are not fighting fair." I pout.
"Ana, why is it so hard for you to let someone take care of you?" He asks and I stare at my hands.
"I don't know, growing up it was always like the roles between my mother and I had been reversed, so I had to make sure her crazy ideas wouldn't get her into trouble from a very early age on. When I moved back in with Ray, I was the one who took care of everything, you know, I would cook, clean, do the laundry, make sure the bills are paid on time and then in college I lived with Kate and just continued to do all of that. I've always been the one taking care of others and it's just hard for me to let that go. Plus, you have to see that I grew up in a completely different world from yours. My Dad always taught me that if I want something, I have to work for it, so to just let someone else take over feels wrong."
"Can you try to get used to it? I don't want our son to go into daycare or be raised by a nanny, not when I'm in the lucky position to be able to support my family without a second income."
I look at him and I know he is right. I have a choice; I can stay home with our son if that is what I want. Having him raised by a nanny is not what I want and a daycare center would be an option, but I don't want my baby to spends half the day with someone else, when it could be me who he is spending time with.
"Okay, I'll try and yes I want to stay home at least until he starts pre-school." I reply after thinking about it for a moment and Christian gives me a huge smile.
"Thank you, baby. You have no idea how much that means to me." He says and I want to reply, but Taylor interrupts us, letting us know that Detective Rollins is here. Well, let's see what he has found…