Sorry for the long delay! Midterms were kicking my butt so thanks for being patient.
Why the fuck does this always happen? Christian had promised that there would be no more talk of punishments, and yet, here they were again. This turn of events left them squaring off on the roof of the casino, each trying to decide how to get the upper hand in the confrontation. The energy that fizzled between them was electric.
Ana felt a shiver rack her body, though the temperature had to still be in the high 90's. The look on Christian's face was enough to make her feel cold all over. "I didn't have a choice," she whispered, willing for him to understand why she had not told him about the previous note. "I was being blackmailed."
Christian's eyes softened only slightly as she admitted the last portion. Perhaps he could see how much this was killing her. Unfortunately, even his momentary expression of compassion did not sway him from seeking the information he wanted. "What were you being blackmailed over, Ana?"
"There were some, uh... photos of me that were less than flattering. I didn't want to have to show them to you." Ana gave a weak smile and hoped that explanation would stow Christian's twitching palm. Instead, it made him withdraw slightly, his brow furrowed. Suddenly, something seemed to dawn on him and he closed his eyes before voicing his next concern.
"Were they indiscrete photos, Ana?" Unable to confirm or deny, she just shrugged. Well, they sure look sketchy as hell. Christian opened his eyes and examined her closely, as though for the first time.
"Were they pictures of you and Ethan?" Ana felt her mouth drop open. How could he have known that? She felt her cheeks redden at the thought that Christian could have seen them. Christ, what he must think if he had seen some of the ones of them out together.
Christian watched impassively as she attempted to collect herself. "How did you know? Did they send them to you, too?" He rolled is eyes at her and took a deep breath.
"No, Anastasia, they did not send them to me, which is a good thing because I would have killed that fucker myself if they had," he said, running his hands through his hair once again. Ana frowned at his reference to Ethan. He really needed to give up on that whole screwed up night if he expected her to get passed the Leila debacle.
"So is that all? Being blackmailed by some creep? You don't have any other information about who this might be, do you?" His questions came in fast succession, but Ana was expecting them. She shook her head and Christian gave her a tense nod before taking out his cell to update Taylor about the situation.
Taking advantage of Christian's distracted state, Ana walked over to the ledge of the roof to get a better view of the people walking on the ground. It was a tall building and everything below, above and side to side was flashing and shimmering. Everyone on the sidewalks seemed to be in such a hurry, so much like her Fifty. Wistfully, she began daydreaming of simpler times for her and Christian after they were married.
Married? Holy crap, she had forgotten the entire purpose of the trip during Christian's interrogation. The idea that they would be married within a matter of days was flooring. Days, hours, even minutes; Christian had not relayed his plans for this crazy scheme. She giggled at the thought that her wedding could very well be minutes into her future and an hour ago she had no idea that it was impending.
She glanced back at Christian, who even with his back turned appeared way too serious for his own good. Without hesitating, she climbed up one of the beams that supported the rooftop neon sign. Using the vertical beam for balance, she twirled around, leaning back as she swung in a display of relatively good motor skills.
The twirling flushed her face and the exhilaration of being so high made her feel on top of the world. The ledge was far enough away, but the ability to see the ground was pure adrenaline.
"Ana!" The sudden noise from Christian made her lose her grip and land hard on her butt. In an attempt to catch herself she had scuffed up her left arm and both of her hands, but the look of outrage and concern that Christian had as he knelt beside her was almost comical.
"What the hell were you doing? Can you not tell how close to the ledge you were? Christ, Ana, have you no sense at all?" His words were expected, but she could not help rolling her eyes. Somewhat tender, she slowly stood up by herself, effectively swatting his hands away as he tried to help her.
"Christian, I was several yards away from the ledge and in no danger at all. At least, until you startled me. Now, if you are done being a maniac I think we should take a look around Las Vegas. I have never been here and you owe me a drink to ease the pain my butt is in."
Christian narrowed his eyes at her, displeased with her outburst and her high-handed manner. Her inner goddess cheered at her command of the situation. Slowly, he began to smirk. "Well, Ms. Steele, I guess your pink ass will have to be your punishment this time. Although I do belive that I could do a more thorough job should the need arise."
Ana stiffened. That was not the response she had expected, but it had helped to lighten the mood so she decided to play along. She batted her eyelashes at him and gave him a coy expression. "I am afraid you are right, sir. It does sting a little, but not as much as it should. I have been behaving very badly tonight."
She watched as Christian's mouth dropped in disbelief. He swallowed hard and gave her a carnal look. Fully enjoying her moment of control, Ana continued. "But you have been pretty bad yourself," she said, taking a step toward him and twisting his tie with her fingers. "I think I am going to make you beg for it this time, Mr. Grey."
God, this is so hot. Christian growled at her words and quickly attempted to unfasten her belt. Her pulse was racing so fast that she almost let him start undressing her. Pulling upon every ounce of her self-control, she placed her hands over his and stilled his motions. "No way is it going to be that easy, Mr. Grey. I said that you would have to beg and I meant it."
He gave her a pathetic look, but she just kissed him on the nose. Realising that he was not going to get anywhere while they remained on the roof, he sighed deeply and glared at her. "Fine, Ana, but two can play it that way."
Unfazed, Ana assessed him before speaking. "Until our wedding night, then, Mr. Grey? I would not want to compromise your integrity."
Christian choked out a laugh before picking her up and twirling her around. As he set her down, she could feel that he was still rock hard. The expression on her face must have given her realization away. "Yes, Ana, if you are going to keep toying with me then this will be the condition I will remain in for the duration," he whispered as he kissed her hair. "God, I love you so much."
She is going to be the death of me. Christian could kick himself not taking off her pants on the roof when he had the chance. Between all of the tension and Ana's refusal to stay at his apartment, their sex life had been lacking and his hunger for it was mounting. As it were, he was now left with an empty room with a tease of a fiancée and the worst hard on of his life.
Ana had decided to take a quick shower before heading down for dinner and it had taken all of his strength not to follow her into the bathroom and demand what was rightfully his. God help him if he gave her that kind of satisfaction since this whole stunt was intended to make him beg.
Grumbling, he pulled out his laptop and settled in to get some work done. He opened his email and scanned quickly to see if there was any pressing news. He frowned at the unfamiliar address and clicked to open it. He never received span because his security was top notch.
The email had two attachments, but the main text only included one short sentence: How much do you like to share? Puzzled, he clicked on the first attachment and he felt his blood pressure rise as a picture came into view. It was a photo of Ethan and Ana, no doubt one of the pictures she had worried that he had seen.
There was nothing explicitly scandalous about the photo; the two of them were walking on a sidewalk together in what appeared to be downtown Seattle. Ethan had his arm around Ana and was smiling about something. Ana looked as radiant as ever as she gazed at him with admiration. Christian could tell that she was amused as well. I have never made her that happy.
Even though Christian's heart was breaking, he forced himself to open the other document, knowing that if he didn't it would haunt him. The second picture was of Ana and Ethan on Kate's couch. They were cuddling under a blanket and it looked as though the picture was taken from the outside of a window. Disgusted, Christian couldn't help but wonder who had been sneaking around the outside of the apartment taking the pictures.
Just as he was about to close out of the document something caught his eye. The date in the corner of the photograph was the night that Ana had told him that Ethan would be gone. She had lied to him to spend the night with that fucker! Slamming the laptop shut, he gripped his hair with both hands and closed his eyes.
Am I losing her? The thought of Ana leaving him was too much to bear, so he mentally went over his options to keep her. He could show Ana the pictures and confront her about her lie and the cheating, but if he did that she might get mad enough to call off the wedding and he knew that he could not spend more time apart. If he continued as though nothing had happened he might go crazy. Already Christian could feel the jealousy and the anger rising like bile in his mouth.
The sight of that fucker and Ana on the couch together kept flashing in his mind. He heard the shower stop in the bathroom and knew that he only had minutes to decide what to do. Picking up his phone, he dialed Taylor.
"Jason, I need you to track some emails for me."