ANA

It had all happened so fast. One day, they were a small little company privately owned by Scott Kennedy, showing up daily at their little office she'd become quite fond of, because it had been representative of everything Scott had done to build this company from nothing. Years ago, after working from his home no longer served their best interests, she and Scott had toured multiple business locations in an effort to find a place for the expanding company. He didn't have too much extra money to spend, because the company was still just getting on its feet, but in order to take the next step, they had to have a place for him to hold meetings, a place to house the growing staff. Most of what had been in their price range had been awful- either tiny, run down, or in a location that would make the company appear unfavorable before anyone even had a chance to walk in the door.

Then one day, when she was doing the research to find them a place, this one popped up on the market. It was perfect. Nothing glamorous. Only slightly dated. But the location was ideal, and the money was manageable. She'd jumped on it, scheduling them a viewing immediately before running it by Scott. They'd gone as soon as the realtor had responded, and Scott was as swayed by it in person as she'd been on paper. He'd been ecstatic. He'd told her over and over how proud it was of her for her initiative. They'd made an offer immediately, and the moment it was accepted and Scott had the keys in hand, he'd taken her there, telling her he wanted to tour it again now that it was his. He'd described to her in great detail his plans for the building, room by room, where people would go, both current employees and the ones he expected to hire into new departments as the company grew.

Touring the building with keys in hand was a culmination of all the hard work they'd done since the day he quit teaching and asked her to stand with him and build GHI. It made GHI real. When they'd reached the office he deemed as his own, he told her he was going to reward her for all of her hard work. He'd pulled tools from his playroom that he'd obviously hidden in his briefcase for this moment. A moment he'd planned for the two of them. A moment to celebrate and remember this day, this feeling. He'd flogged her for pleasure, teased her with vibrators, his mouth, and his fingers, then finally he'd fucked her to orgasm right on the floor in the middle of the office. It was a memory she enjoyed, because he'd been so unabashedly generous and happy that day.

And now, they stood here, just outside the sleek and modern building named Grey House. It was beautiful and incredibly efficient, but lacked the personality of their old office. She'd always know that one day GHI would be so big that they'd have to move on, with or without GEH attached to them. But still, she'd loved that office. It was home. But this place was… cold. Impersonal. It made their old building look like a rundown hole in the wall. And she hated that. She hated that this place tainted that one. She hated that moving them here told the world that what they had been, what they'd worked so hard for, wasn't good enough.

With a small sigh, Ana adjusted her purse on her shoulder and walked in the main entrance. The bustle around the main floor was borderline chaotic. There were so many people. Her eyes darted around, landing on each person, one by one, all dressed impeccably. She hadn't really noticed the last time they'd come here, but she sure noticed now. All the women around her were either in tailored suits or other pristine, professional work clothes. Perfect hair and makeup. Clearly high-end accessories- purses, shoes, jewelry.

And there she was, wearing literally the nicest outfit she owned, designer just like them, but she still felt like she was in hand-me-downs in comparison to these beautiful women. Scott had always taken care of her. It was part of his job as her Dom, and it was something he took pride it. As GHI had really started to make money, he'd instantly begun lavishing her with expensive gifts. He bought her jewelry, bought her a new car, paid for visits to an exclusive salon, bought her designer clothes. He was always buying her these things to try and make her feel confident and beautiful. But, truthfully, they rarely did. At the end of the day, she knew she could never compare with women like these. They all looked like Stepford wives turned business women, and no matter how many beautiful outfits Scott bought her, she always felt like she looked like a dowdy little girl. Too skinny, hair a dull, boring mousy brown. Her face didn't wear makeup well. She just didn't fit in with this kind of crowd. She felt her shoulders sink down and in as she felt embarrassment creep from her chest out. No matter what she did, she could never compare to other women.

Until she felt a strong hand take hold of her arm just above the elbow. She looked up, her eyes locking with Scott's. He arched an eyebrow so slightly anyone else would have missed it, but to her, it was as if he was speaking clear words. Stand tall. Eyes up. Chin high. Confidence, Ana. As long as you're confident, you can fit in anywhere.

So with a deep, cleansing breath, she pulled up straighter, raised her head, and walked into the building. The receptionist, who she'd expected to give her a look of disapproval, made eye contact and smiled. She let her eyes run over Scott, a look of appreciation on her face as her smile become somewhat less friendly and more… carnal.

"Welcome to Grey House. How can I help you today?"

"I'm Anastasia Steele and this is Scott Kennedy. We are starting work in this building today. We were told to report to the front desk first."

"Are you from Greener Horizon's Inc?" she asked, already turning to rifle through a stack of envelopes on her desk.

"Yes, ma'am," Ana responded.

"Yes, right here," she said, pulling two of the envelopes from the pile. "Steele and Kennedy. These are just some packets of information about the building. Maps, locations for breakrooms, conference rooms, what departments are located on what floors, etc, until you get accustomed to your new surroundings. You will be stationed on the twelfth floor yourselves. If you take these," she said, handing a paper to each of them, "to that door over there labeled 'Security Suite' you will be issued your name badges, which will allow you to access the various locked doors as well as the elevators. This paper tells the security guys what level of clearance your badge gives access to. We have keyless access to everything here at GEH. Anything you need to access can be done with your badge, as long as you have clearance to do so. Full information about you can and cannot access is in your individual packets."

Ana's eyes flitted over the paperwork, seeing a long list of things her badge would access and what it wouldn't each location clearly delineated with a 'Yes' or 'No' to make it obvious. She had full access to their entire floor, as well as to the floors containing HR and accounting, but not to floors that strictly held other business entities like their own. And not to the top floor, which held the offices of Mr. Grey and a 'Ms. Bailey'. But the paper stated that in the event that she needed to access any other places, she could be granted temporary access by said location for a pre-determined amount of time, to be entered by the staff of that location itself. I.E. If she, for example, was required to be present for a meeting with Mr. Grey, she needed to contact Ms. Andrea Parker, his PA, who would give her temporary access for the scheduled meeting time. It all honestly seemed very convoluted to her, but she supposed there must be a good reason for security being so strict.

After going to the security office and getting their badges, Scott led the way to the elevator bank. As the doors across from them slid open and they stepped on, she couldn't help but notice how excited Scott was. He wasn't like her, feeling the sadness and longing for their old, familiar building. He was as thrilled to be here as he was that day they stepped into the old place. Scott was always look up and out for the next bigger and better thing. He didn't live in the nostalgia of the past. This was what he wanted. If it wasn't, he never would have sold to GEH to begin with. This was the access to the opportunities he desired. And Ana knew she had to get on board with that mentality. Scott would not be happy to see her moping for the familiar. The familiar meant complacency. And he'd spent years trying to pull her from that mindset. Complacency was a haven for her introverted self, and Scott would punish her if he saw her relying on that for comfort. She didn't want to upset him on this big day.

So she forced herself to try and feel the excitement as the doors opened and they stepped onto the twelfth floor. A sign greeted them, one that said 'Greener Horizons Inc.' then smaller- 'a division of Grey Enterprise Holding, Inc.' The sign had a new logo, more modern and sleeker than their old one.

"Don't you love it?" Scott asked, his grin wide. "Grey suggested a makeover of the logo, and his people gave me a few options. I thought this one was perfect."

Ana looked up at him, a smile plastered on her face. "It's great."

She watched his smile falter a little bit. Shit. He saw right through her. Of course he did. He always did.

"Come, Ana," he said, his voice stern, no longer holding the giddy excitement from a moment ago.

She followed immediately. Scott had already been aware of the layout of the space since he'd had to approve where all the sections of employees would be. So he knew exactly where is office was. They walked past reception, past other offices and cubicles, conference rooms and 'think-tank' rooms- an important part of the company's whole process. Finally he led her to their space- but he halted for a moment before slowly making his way to the desk outside the office bearing his name. On said desk was a large arrangement of various flowers. He strode to it, yanking the card from the envelope and reading it quickly before tossing it at her.

She fumbled slightly at the unexpected move, but managed to trap it between her arm and her body. She read it too.

Welcome to Grey House.

-Christian Grey

She looked up to see Scott absolutely seething and she had no idea why. But she knew better than to ask. She would let him speak first. Scott always got to speak first and last.

"Why is it that the CEO of the company is sending you flowers Anastasia?"

Sending her flowers? These weren't for her! They weren't addressed to her. They were a welcoming gesture. Probably not even done by Mr. Grey. More likely done by his assistant, and meant for the whole company. Not her. But lord knew she couldn't say any of that to him. It would be insubordinate. What should she say? What could she say? She had to say something.

She felt him step closer, the anger radiating off of him. "I asked you a question, Ana," he said, the low vibration of his voice thick in the air. Shit.

"Sir," she said, her voice a little breathy from fear, "I don't believe these were for me, sir. They aren't addressed to anyone in particular. I believe they are for the whole company. A friendly gesture. Likely a routine move from his secretary. I've sent similar arrangements to corporations we've worked with in the past, sir."

"They were on your desk, Ana. Your desk. Not the front reception desk. Your desk. That means someone was told to walk all the way back here to place them in this specific spot. That was intentional. These are for you."

"Sir," she started, but he interrupted her.

"He wants you Ana. He wants you, but you are mine."

"Yes, sir," she said automatically.

"Yes, sir, what? Yes, sir, he wants you?"

"No, sir. I was agreeing that I belong to you, sir," she said, panic in her voice.

"That's right, Anastasia. You belong to me."

"I'll get rid of the flowers, sir," she said, trying to show him that she didn't even care about the damn flowers. Even if they were for her, she didn't ask for them, didn't want them.

"No, you won't," he said, his voice deceptively soft. "In fact you will not move them an inch. You will leave them exactly where they are, in the middle of your desk." He stood a little distance away from her, which was unusual. Normally when he spoke to her like this, he did it with his hard body pressed against hers dominantly. "I was blind before, but I see now that we had fallen into quite an easy routine for a while there, Ana. We had a long run of very few harsh punishments because life had been stasis for years. But Christian Grey seems to have changed everything. You affect him, and he affects you. And the fact that you're allowing him to do so is proving that I have been too lax with you for too long. That changes today. Things are going to be different from now on Ana. Until you can remember your place in this arrangement, the Dom you knew will be gone, replaced with a Dom you'll wish you'd never met. And you have no one to blame but yourself."

Ana had stopped breathing, afraid to move. Scott was right, Christian Grey was ruining everything. She'd liked things the way they were between them. She didn't want them to change. She wanted to argue, but she knew that would only add to his anger right now, so she just remain still and silent, eyes down, waiting to see what he did or said next.

"There are cameras out here, but not in my office. In exactly two minutes, I want you to meet me in there. When you enter, you will close the door, then open your blouse. You will pull your breasts from the cups of your bra, then bring your nipples to attention with you index and middle fingers. Then you will hike up your skirt to your waist, pull your panties down to your mid thighs, then turn around and place both hands on the door and bend forward. I am going to fuck you. You will be still and silent. You will not come. I will come in you. You will pull your panties back up, fix your bra, and redo your shirt. You will not use the restroom. You will go out there and work your full day with me still inside of you. Then every time you look up and see those flowers on your desk, you will think about my cum inside of you, and remember that you are mine."

XXX

Ana shifted uncomfortably in front of the coffee pot, the feeling of her sodden underwear driving her as close to madness as she'd ever been. It was so busy today. So much to set up, to get in order. The office was chaotic, buzzing with excitement as the staff became accustomed to their new surroundings, their new company issued laptops, iPad's, and other state of the concept equipment provided in the think-tank and development rooms for them to make the most of their abilities in creating new tech. It was impressive, even she had to admit, and she had no idea what the equipment was truly capable of.

Not only was everyone thrilled with the new work space, but they were over the moon about everything else that came with being a part of GEH. Working for Scott had provided with a lot. He gave them the time, space and freedom to work to provide the world with the tech they loved. The only thing lacking was the financial capital to take their work to this level. Scott always gave them as much as he could, but it he couldn't help that he was limited by financial constraints, and the staff always knew and appreciated that. They were thankful for every dollar he did sink into their ideas, and worked diligently to make the most of it for him. But now, with just the snap of his fingers, Christian Grey swooped in and handed everything they ever dreamed of to them on a silver platter. They were like kids in a candy store. There was so much happening…

…And all she could think of was her wet panties. Scott had been right. Every time her eyes landed on the flowers, she thought of him between her thighs in his office. She'd gone so far as to turn her chair, resting her laptop on her legs while she set up it up, but still the overpowering scent of the flowers filled her nose with every breath, and she found herself still focusing on the unyielding dampness between her legs. She'd gotten so sick of it, she'd snapped, and left the office in search of coffee, which she didn't even like.

And so there she stood, looking at the coffee pot, trying to figure out how the hell to use it. Shit, even the coffee pot was some kind of space age technology.

"How are you enjoying the new space?"

The voice startled her, causing her to jump, her hand over her heart as it raced momentarily in her chest.

"Mr. Grey," she muttered, realizing who was standing behind her. Like, right behind her.

"Sorry," he chuckled, "I didn't mean to scare you." He took a step to the side, leaning his hip against the counter.

"It's fine," she dismissed, turning back to the coffee pot so she didn't have to look at him.

"Did you get the flowers I sent?" he asked. He sent them? He really sent them, not his assistant? He'd been honest when she told Scott she didn't think he'd done it himself. She'd have bet money that he hasn't even known it was done at all.

"The bouquet for the office? Yes, they were waiting on my desk this morning. It was a nice welcoming gesture. Thank you," she said with all the professional grace she could muster.

"They weren't for the office," he said, leaning in to whisper and punctuating his sentence with a conspiratorial wink when he resumed his original position again. "I sent them for you to replace those awful fake ones on your desk."

"You sent them? To me? Personally?" she practically squeaked. She needed him to clarify that she'd heard that correctly.

"I did," he said with a little smirk. "It was addressed to you from me, was it not?"

She shook her head. "It was signed your name. But it wasn't addressed to anyone."

"It wasn't? Hmm…," he said, with a look of confusion on his face, "Maybe not the note itself, but the envelope was addressed to you. I remember writing it," he said, with certainty. He'd handwritten the freaking note? Wait—envelope? She didn't remember- Shit! Scott had opened it! He had seen that it was addressed to her. No wonder he felt such a need to prove who she belonged too. Scott had gotten increasingly possessive over the years, that was for sure. Though she did wonder why she hadn't shown her the envelope in order to prove he was right, rather than let her stand there and deny herself as Mr. Grey's intended recipient.

Either way, the last thing she needed was to be here, in a room with Mr. Grey, discussing any of this. She had no idea what to even say to him. Flowers! Seriously! A man had never sent her flowers before. And it could only mean trouble that this man had done so. Her boss. Her boss's boss. Her Dom's boss. Shit. Why did he even do it? He couldn't truly be interested in her, could he? Look at him! He was… gorgeous. And successful and charming and seemingly genuinely nice. What would someone like that want with someone like her? She was so out of her element here. She felt her heart speed up and her breathing shallow. Panicky. She was starting to feel panicky. She needed to get out of here.

"Excuse me, Mr. Grey, I have to get back to work," she said quickly, desperate to get out of the suddenly small room and away from him.

CHRISTIAN

"Stop," he insisted as he caught her arm before she should flee. The second he touched her, she came to a halt, facing away from him. He was sure any second she would bolt, but as he waited in silence, she stayed stalk still and silent. She seemed very lost in thought, and her eyes were almost… panicky.

"Ana?" he spoke softly trying to pull her attention to him. No luck though. He rounded her body so he was now standing in front of her. "Ana," he said again, imploring her. Still nothing. It was frustrating, Normally women were falling all over him at any sign of interest, any modicum of attention. He would pay a sizeable amount of his fortune to even just cut the amount of unwanted female attention he got in a day by half. But why, now, when he wanted that attention, was this woman fighting it? Could she not feel between them what he did?

"Ana look at me," he insisted this time, his voice strong and demanding like when he was in the boardroom. And like he'd said some secret magic work, those baby blues snapped to him immediately. He tried to read her but he couldn't. Her look said she was receptive to him at this moment, almost like she was awaiting instruction from him or something. But other than that, she was giving him nothing, and it was confusing him. Regardless, he knew what he wanted, even if he didn't know what she wanted. And being the master of his universe had made him a man who didn't hesitate when it came to trying to obtain what he desired most. "I want you to have dinner with me," he said firmly. He watched her face closely, hoping to see the inkling of happiness, excitement- something in her eyes at the mention of going out with him, but instead he was met with a flicker of panic before her mask slipped back on.

"A business dinner, sir?" she asked, almost confidently. Almost. But he detected the slight quake to her voice, giving away the fact that she already knew that this was no invite to discuss business.

"No, Anastasia," he said slowly. "Not a business dinner."

"Mr. Grey—"

"Christian," he insisted, his tongue swiping his bottom lip as let his eyes wonder her body for a moment. She was dressed so modestly in a black pencil skirt that hit just at the knee and a light blue button down that was done up all the way except to the top button. Even his staff at GEH showed more skin than this, and he had a strict dress code. Regardless, she looked beautiful and the more she covered, the more he found himself fantasizing about every inch of skin he could uncover.

"Mr. Grey," she said, her voice more breathy. She looked about to break, he almost had her.

"Ana?" His and Ana's head both snapped to the doorway just as a middle aged redheaded woman stepped to the threshold. She looked at the pair oddly for a moment. They were close, still, but Christian had managed to put a little bit of space between them as she'd rounded the door frame. "Scott's looking for you."

Ana nodded. "I'm coming. Thanks Megan," she said with a smile.

Megan turned and left, and Ana was quick to try and follow. Christian caught her arm again. "You didn't answer my question. Dinner? Tonight, perhaps?"

"No, Mr. Grey. I am not available for dinner tonight or any night. Now please, I need to see what Mr. Kennedy needs." Her eyes once again never met his, and a moment later, he was standing in the twelfth floor break room all alone.