Chapter 13

Christian PoV

"You do?" I asked, astonished.

"Of course I do," she replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "More than anything. And, I'll have you know that I even dodged the 3rd degree from my sister this morning to get over here quicker and tell you. And that is no easy feat."

"You're amazing," I told her. "I love you."

"I love you, too, Christian." And she'd said the words. Out loud. To my face. Looking at me as if I was her most precious possession. And she did possess me. Mind, body, and soul, I was hers. And she was mine. I scooped her up off the stool and dashed into the bedroom with her.

"I need to lose myself in you," I whispered in her ear. She groaned in response. Within seconds we were naked and I was buried to the hilt inside her. I moved slowly in and out of her, not wanting to frighten her. God, she felt so amazing. So deliciously warm, tight, and wet. It was so hard to keep from coming just upon entering her. Even in just the bedroom, no other woman could ever compare to my Anastasia. In the rest of life, no one could even hold a candle; she'd melt them on the spot.

"I had a dream last night," she grunted. I locked eyes with her, wanting to know more. "We were in the playroom. You hit me with a flogger and tied me to the cross thingy." Her eyes didn't betray any fear of that idea.

"And?" I asked.

"And then you fucked me senseless," she added, blushing. "And I liked it. All of it."

That surprised me. I'd have to ask her more about it later. At the moment, I was focused on one single task, making love to this incredible woman. "Perhaps you could fuck me senseless right now?" she asked.

"You want me to be rougher?" I asked.

"Oh yes, that was the best part of the dream. And I'd hate for you to be jealous of Dream Christian. He made me come pretty hard. So you'd better show him up." She looked up at me with hooded eyes, darkening the more I moved. She wanted me to fuck her. I had to admit, I was a bit jealous of the Dream me. She should only have mind blowing orgasms when I'm present to give them to her. I wanted all of her pleasure.

"Oh, Miss Steele. We aim to please." I sped up and thrust into her harder and harder. Her fingers went into my hair and clenched it roughly. She begged me to go faster and harder. I was only too willing to oblige. I was slamming into her with all the force I could muster. She was groaning, moaning, yelling, and screaming to god and to me to not stop.

I could feel her muscles begin to tighten around me, her release coming quickly. "Let it go for me, baby. I want to feel you come all over me," I said. Within seconds she exploded, screaming my name. I felt my own release and spilled into her.

"Oh Ana Baby," I grunted as I came down from my climax and pulled out of her. "I love you so much." I peppered her face with kisses, listening to her giggle.

"Ow," she groaned.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" I asked, concerned. I knew I shouldn't have been so rough with her. She wasn't ready for that. Even though she begged me for it; I should have known better.

"No, no. it's not like that. I um, worked out a lot last night, and woke up super sore this morning. Laughing hurts my abs." Oh, well that was different.

"Hmm, I thought we gave each other quite the workout yesterday morning," I said, kissing along her neck and across her collar bone.

"Yes, indeed we did. But I wasn't working out for the exercise. It's my way of decompression, how I clear my head, and incidentally, my heart. I may have slightly over done it in my attempt to make my head and heart on the same page."

"How did you come to your conclusion?" I asked. I wanted to know her exact thought process. From the moment I declared myself to the moment she made the alphabet pancakes.

"When you said the 'three little words,' I was in complete shock. I mean I had just had that meltdown in Flynn's office, then the near panic attack with the security guard, so I was already on edge. And your words just sent me over. I didn't know how to handle them; I didn't know how to respond. So I did the only thing I knew to do and that was pull away.

"I can tell you that as soon as you drove off, I ached for your arms to be around me. Being away from you feels so foreign. That was part of my realization that I love you. My heart knew it, and my head knew that my heart felt that way, but my head kept screaming that it was too soon, and it was a red flag. I'd seen my sister's heart broken so many times by men who would declare their feelings, then do something abhorrent like cheat or lie. I can't tell you how many men I had to beat down because they did that to her.

"So naturally, hearing those words freaked me out a bit. We've only known each other a week and a day. Only been intimate for the past two days. But once I woke up from that dream this morning, I knew. I knew that there was no way I, Anastasia Steele, victim of being tied up, beaten, and raped, could ever let someone tie me up, hit me with something and have me so roughly. I could never ever do that, unless I loved that person.

"And I'm not saying I'm ready for you to haul me up there and do rude things to me, but someday. We can try it someday."

"Do rude things to you?" I asked, chuckling. "I'm glad you came to the conclusion you did. And I'm no longer jealous of Dream Christian. He led you back here. Back to my arms. How could I be jealous of someone that helped me?"

"Touché," she replied. "I don't suppose you have a hot tub, do you?" she asked, wincing as she stretched.

"No. A big bath tub, yes, but no jets. Why?"

"Well after thoroughly working out last night, slaving over those pancakes this morning, and being good and well fucked just now, my body is aching to soak in a hot tub. I have one at my house. We could spend the day there. It's on the way to your parents' house, anyway."

"Sounds great!" I hopped off the bed and into the closet where I put on a pair of flannel pants and a t-shirt. I grabbed more clothes for the barbecue and then helped her out of bed and back into her own clothes. Wow, she was really sore. Perhaps that was why she nearly had a grimace on her face all morning; she was in a lot of pain from her excessive exercise.

We drove to her house, this time in her R8 that she'd driven to my place. She was behind the wheel and that made me all kinds of uncomfortable. "Why are you squirming so much?" she asked.

"I don't like to be driven," I replied.

"Taylor drives you all the time," she countered.

"Yes, but that's different. I'm in the back seat for that, and well, it's different."

"Oh for heaven's sake, Christian. Stow your controlling nature for ten minutes and let me drive." She shook her head but was smiling as we continued on our trek to her house.

Once we arrived, she got out of the car carefully, wincing slightly as she felt her muscles working. "That's the last time I do that. I should have known better." She led me into the house, past the kitchen, dining room, living room and up the stairs to her master bedroom. Out on the balcony of her master suite, there was a hot tub. She grabbed a stack of towels from her bathroom and headed out onto the balcony. I followed silently, wondering when she was going to change into a swimming suit.

I watched in awe as she removed all of her clothing, folded it neatly on a table and stepped into the water. Completely naked. Oh my. "Are you coming?" she asked. I was still frozen in the doorway.

I shook my head to clear it, and then quickly disrobed. I stepped into the hot water and moved across the tub to take her in my arms. "This feels lovely," I told her. I pulled her into one of the corners and wrapped my arms around her.

"Mmm," she replied as she leaned back against me and let the jets work over her sore muscles. I reached up and began to massage her shoulders. I could feel the tension she had worked up there; her muscles were hard as rocks. She moaned as I dug my knuckles into her firm flesh. "That's amazing. More pressure," she requested. I pushed harder, kneading her muscles with all the strength I could give. I moved down her back, massaging over her shoulder blades and lower back. After a few minutes she fell asleep. Normally this would be very dangerous in a hot tub, but she was secure in my arms.

She was out cold. I must have exhausted her this morning. I carefully picked her up and lifted her out of the pool. With much difficulty, I wrapped a towel around her and laid another towel across the pillows of her bed and laid her down upon it. I quickly dried off myself, grabbed a throw blanket from the nearby chair and draped it over the both of us. Before drifting off, I set an alarm on my phone so we could be up and get ready in time for the barbecue.

Ana PoV

I will cross the ocean for you

I will go and bring you the moon

I will be your hero your friend anything you need.

I woke up to hearing that song play. I hadn't heard that song in a long time… where was it coming from. Opening my eyes, I saw Christian lying next to me. He woke up moments after me and reached over to where I could tell the song was coming from. He swiped his finger across the screen of his phone and the song stopped. Oh. An alarm, I realized after I was more coherent.

"We took a nap?" I asked. I didn't remember climbing into bed. I remembered Christian giving me the most glorious massage in the hot tub, and then… nothing.

"You fell asleep in the hot tub, which is mighty dangerous, might I add. But I held you in my arms for a few minutes. Then I carried you in here, set an alarm on my phone and then fell asleep too. Hot tubs make us sleepy, eh?" he explained.

I leaned over, placed my head on his chest and wrapped my arm around his waist. "Waking up next to you is the best thing ever," I told him. "How long until we have to leave?"

"Just about an hour. I figured that would be sufficient time for us both to get ready."

"Ana!" I heard Kate call from the hallway. Oh dear. I'm in bed, naked with Christian Grey. Was the door locked? She had a tendency to just barge in.

"My sister," I groaned. I slid off the bed, feeling kind of like jello, but not nearly as sore as I was earlier in the day. I grabbed my robe from the back of the bathroom door and went out into the hall to greet her, closing the door behind me.

"Whose shoes are those in the foyer? They're too big to be Ethan's and I know they're not Elliot's," she began.

"Kate, you know exactly whose shoes they are," I replied, exhausted by her enthusiasm. "We came back here to have a dip in my hot tub, and then took a nap. Now we're going to get ready for the barbecue."

"Just wait 'til you taste my ribs, Ana," Elliot said as he sauntered up the stairs.

"Elliot's ribs are pretty amazing," Christian said from behind me. He was wearing his flannel pants again. I gazed at him, looking at how the pants hang off his hips. He had a delicious v-shaped muscle that disappeared into his pants. Yum. "But they don't hold a candle to mom's calico beans."

"Whoa, Chris! It's really you! It's true! You're here, Ana's in only a robe. Holy shit!" Elliot exclaimed.

"I told you, baby," Kate replied, condescendingly.

"Yeah, but seeing is truly believing and all that. Nicely done, bro!"

"Oh that reminds me, shouldn't we bring something? Deviled eggs or potato salad or something? I make a mean potato chip dip."

"That sounds good, Ana," Elliot replied. "Mom and Dad will have most things, but if your dip is as mean as you say, you should bring that." I nodded and headed back into the bedroom to get dressed.

I chose a sundress that started as a pale yellow at the top and ended as a bright orange at the bottom. Pure sunshine, it looked like. My hair was thrown into a messy bun; I put on a bit of mascara and lip gloss, grabbed a pair of yellow flip flops and headed down to the kitchen to make the dip.

Christian was still standing in the hall way, speaking with my sister, who was grilling him for details about our relationship. I could tell he needed rescuing, but I left him to his own devices. He needed to deal with her eventually.

Elliot was in the kitchen, wanting to watch my dip making skills. I pulled out the dry ingredients, garlic salt, dried Vidalia onions, a bit of black pepper, dried chives, parsley and my secret ingredient. I mixed them together in a bowl and then added a tub of sour cream a bit of ranch dressing and a bit of cream cheese for thickness. "Want to taste test?" I asked, holding out the spoon for Elliot. He licked it seductively and winked at me.

Thank god Christian didn't see that. It was his brother, but I had a feeling that his jealous nature knew no bounds. I didn't blush, thank god, and waited for Elliot's approval of my dip. "Damn woman, that's some good dip. What's in that black container?" he asked, pointing at the container that held my secret ingredient.

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you," I deadpanned.

Elliot burst out laughing just as Christian walked into the room. "Christian, you hold on to her. She can cook, she's hot, and she can make you laugh." Christian was sex on legs again, dressed in black fitted jeans and a grey t-shirt that read, "Grey is the new pink." I could have just eaten him up.

"I fully intend to," Christian agreed, smiling warmly at me. "You look lovely," he whispered into my ear and kissed my cheek. Now blushing, I transferred the dip into a serving bowl, grabbed a couple bags of chips and we all piled into my Audi q7 to head over to the barbecue. I let Christian drive, since he was so damn fidgety on the way to my house.

We arrived and pulled up alongside Ethan's car. Kate had informed me that he got here early to help out with setting up the grill. "Anything to score points with Mia's parents," she'd said.

"Christian!" Grace exclaimed as she saw him step out of the car. "It's so lovely to see you. And Ana, too. You look fantastic. I love that dress." I thanked her and asked where I could set up my dip.

"Oh, you didn't have to bring anything," Grace said, a small frown forming on her face.

"Yes she did," Elliot interjected. "Just wait until you taste her chip dip, Ma. It's amazing."

"Oh, very well. The table over there has snacks on it. I'm sure you can find some space there." I went to the indicated table and set up my dip with a spoon and opened a bag of chips nearby.

"Imagine my surprise when I arrive here and Grace tells me my daughter Ana will be here with Christian," my mother said as she stepped over to the table. My father was hot on her heels wanting to hear everything.

"Hi mom," I greeted. "And surprise! I've got a boyfriend." I shook my hands in the air to emphasize my words. My dad was beaming at me.

"I've got my eye on that boy," he said, as any good father would. "And on Elliot too, for Kate," he added. He'd never had to worry about boys with me before, it was a revelation for him, and I think he liked it. It gave him more of a protective feeling over me, which I'd never given him before. In one of my boldest moves ever, I reached out and pulled him and my mother in for a hug.

They gasped simultaneously but then hesitantly, each wrapped an arm around me. "I love you both. So much. I don't think I say that often enough." Releasing them, I saw my mother wipe a tear from her eye.

"Christian!" My dad hollered in his army drill sergeant voice. Christian hurried over, gazed at me confused, but then turned his attention to my dad. "Who is this woman and what have you done with my daughter?"

"Sir?" Christian replied, still confused.

"She just hugged me and my wife for the first time in her life and said she loved us. What have you done to her?" Christian realized my dad was joking, and kept along with the game.

"Mr. Steele, I confess. I absconded with your daughter and took a plaster of her entire body. I made a clone out of the mold and that is who you see here today. I had hoped you wouldn't see through it." I was barely containing my laughter, and my father who hardly smiled in his entire life unless he was truly happy or found something ridiculously funny, cracked a smile. A huge megawatt grin from ear to ear. I couldn't remember the last time I saw him smile that big.

"Well, whatever it is you've done. Keep it up, son. I can't tell you how amazing it just felt to have my daughter in my arms like that." Christian nodded and stepped to my side, wrapping his arm around my waist.

"I fully intend to keep it up, sir. For a long time. Forever if she'll have me." I gasped. Should we really have been telling my parents about the depth of his feelings for me? After only a week? Surely not. Christian saw the panic in my eyes. "But that's a conversation for a while down the road, of course."

I relaxed and saw my dad relax his shoulders too. He'd read too far into that statement, just as I worried he might. I wondered if he'd pull me aside and ask about Christian's intentions for me.

"Do my eyes deceive me?" Ethan said as he walked over, mimicking a southern accent. Rather poorly I might add, considering we were from the south. I stepped away from Christian and pulled my brother in for a hug, giving him almost the same words I said to my parents. He gasped, too, but wrapped me tightly in his arms. He swayed me back and forth commenting on how amazing this was.

"If I'd known you'd give hugs like that, I would have pestered you about it a lot more than I ever did," he joked. "Let's go meet up with everyone else," he suggested. I wrapped my hand in his, holding my other out for Christian and the three of us walked into the tented area where our families were converged.

We joked, we ate, we played games; it was a perfect afternoon. Grace pulled me aside and asked me what I had done to make Christian so happy. I shrugged and said he made me happy, too. She could see the changes in both of us, even after having only met me a couple times.

In the early evening, I was helping clean up the barbecue dishes when my phone rang. I'd kept it in Christian's pocket, as I hadn't any. He handed me the phone. I frowned at the display. "Reynolds? Why are you calling me? It's Sunday." Sundays were his official day off. No contact so he could spend time with his family. I gave him most Saturdays, too, but he was technically "on call" those days.

"I normally wouldn't ma'am, but I discovered a piece of information that you wouldn't want me to wait to inform you of."

"Okay, what is it?" I asked.

"I've been informed that Jack Hyde has been released from prison on parole," he replied. There were more words, but I didn't hear them.

My world came crashing down around me. The phone fell from my hand and I dropped to the ground, unable to hold myself upright anymore. "Anastasia?" Christian's seeming distant voice called out. "What's wrong?" He was pulling me into his lap trying to pull me out of my catatonic state. I couldn't respond.

"Reynolds, what did you tell her?" I heard my Dad yell, probably into the phone. I couldn't see anything. Only the face of Jack Hyde filled my senses. His terrible smell. His deep, scary voice. The tattoos that covered both his arms. The red hair that fell into my face when he…

"Oh no," my dad said. "Jack Hyde is out of prison," he told everyone. I heard several gasps.

"Who the hell is Jack Hyde?" Christian asked.

"The man who raped her."