Author's Note: My sincere apology for taking too long to update. Real life got in the way. Please enjoy!

:::

Chapter Two

He blinked once. Then twice. His mind was trying to convince himself that he wasn't imagining, that the woman in his arm at the moment wasn't just a fantasy, that it was really her.

"A-Ana," He whispered her name, afraid that he was only being deceived.

How many times did Christian assume that it was her whenever he saw a woman with long brown hair in a distance only to be sadly mistaken? How many instances did he envision her, hoping to ease the ache and longing he was feeling since she left? How many nights did she haunt him in his dreams and when he was to about to reach for her, she disappeared, fading into nothingness?

"Ana," He repeated.

"Christian," She did the same and softly uttered his name for the second time that night.

"You cut your hair." Of all the words he deduced he would first say to her once he saw her again, speaking about her now short mane wasn't in his list. But her much shorter hair instantly caught his gaze. Gone was her long strands which used to cascade below her shoulders before. Ana's hair was now short, barely reaching her chin. Its dark brown color was now shades lighter. He lifted his free hand and was about to touch it but changed his mind at the last second.

"Your facial hair is thicker." Ana blurted out before she could stop better. What once used to be a five o' clock shadow, his stubble was now much thicker, covering his mouth and jawline in a more dangerous and sexier way.

His chuckle made people's eyes flickered to them. Realizing their position, Christian carefully let her go and Ana slowly took a step back. Both did with great hesitation.

Although knowing several glances were being thrown at them, Christian couldn't care less. He had only one focus and it was the woman standing before him whose blue eyes were staring at him in surprise.

In that moment, nothing else mattered except her.

"Y-You are here," He choked out, eyes brimming with emotions.

Teary, she nodded. "I-I am here."

:::

From his position, standing a few steps from her with his back leaning against the brick wall and hands deep in his jeans' pockets, Christian stared at her as she talked to her parents on her cellphone.

When they both collected themselves from the shock of seeing each other once more, Ana excused herself, telling him she needed to make a quick call. He knew she was expecting him to wait for her inside but he couldn't let her out of his sight so he followed her in the street and kept a distance while she dialed her parents' number.

Despite the inadequacy of lights outside, Christian couldn't stop himself from running his gaze over her lithe form, admiring how the long sleeves red dress she was donning was hugging her body perfectly. It was tight and fitted her like a second skin. Its length gave him great view of her slender thighs and flawless legs. The black stilettos on her feet made her already long legs seemed endless. Four years after, Ana had turned into a more confident and sexier woman and he still found himself captivated by her just like he was in the past.

Feeling his heated gaze on her, Ana was having a hard time concentrating on her conversation with her parents. She couldn't believe how she was just as affected by his presence as she once was. Christian could still make her stutter and fumble just by gawking at her.

She glanced at him and noted his appearance. He seemed larger. Ana was aware that he used to spend an hour or two in his house gym and it looked to have paid out. His upper body appeared to be broader than before, making her curious if underneath his jacket and shirt were the same hard muscles she loved running her fingers over. Thinking about Christian without a shirt on had her lost her focus on Carla.

"Ana, dear, are you still there?" She heard her mother asked, pulling her back to their conversation.

"Yes, mom. I'm sorry. I'll call you again tomorrow alright?"

"Okay. Take care. We love you."

"Love you too, mom and dad."

Seeing Ana put her gadget back in her clutch, he stood up straight.

She walked to him with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry about that. I need to call them before they panic and assume I'm missing."

He smiled. "It's alright."

Silence fell between them, both trying to discern what to do next.

"Can we-" "I want-" They spoke at the same time.

"You go first. What is it?" Christian urged.

"I want to talk to you." She spoke with confidence she didn't know she had. "To catch up on things."

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Really? We can go to a quieter place if you like." She suggested. Emotions, with its loud music constantly blaring in the room, was not a preferable place to talk.

"I would love that. But I have to see and talk to my assistant first."

"Andrea is in there? I didn't see her."

Christian shook his head. "It's not Andrea. She resigned a week ago. Sensitive pregnancy."

"She's having a baby? I'm happy for her." She said with delight. "I need to go inside too and say goodbye to my friends." Ana knew Denise and Nikki had witnessed her moment with Christian a while ago and were probably curious as to who he was.

"Can I meet them?" He wasn't shock to see the startled look on her face. Even he was stunned at his own question. His interest in her and what she had been up to all these years prompted him to blurt out his query without thinking twice.

"Of course, I'll introduce you to them." She answered.

They started heading towards the entrance.

"Is this your first time at Emotions?" Ana inquired.

"Yes."

"Did you know Emotions serves the best burger in town? You must try it. I love their cheeseburgers. I just had one, actually." She knew was rambling but Ana was anxious.

She heard running into your ex was awkward. It couldn't be more true, she knew about it now. Especially if said ex was once had been the love of your life, Ana thought.

He still is. Her heart argued. Christian has been, still is and will always be the love of her life.

"Yeah, my assistant, Warren, has told me about it. He is related to the owner, I remember he mentioned about it."

She paused and turned to him. "Warren is your assistant?"

Christian's brows furrowed, curious as to how she knew about Warren. "Yes. Do you know him?"

Ana smiled widely. "I met him a while ago. Gab, the bar owner, introduced him to us. They are cousins. I can't believe it. It's a small world."

"Small world, it is." He couldn't agree more.

:::

"Do you still run?" As his gaze returned to her after scanning the room, Christian asked but immediately regretted his action when she almost choked on her coffee upon hearing his question.

He couldn't help but remember their first meeting when he roamed his eyes around the coffeehouse they entered after leaving Emotions. Memories of their accidental meeting flooded his mind as soon as they stepped inside. Christian recalled how he patiently waited for her that particular night, already knowing she would pass by in front of her favorite coffee shop while doing her evening run.

"Ana, I'm so-"

She shook her head, halting his apology. "Actually, I still do."

He wanted to hit himself for being insensitive. Making her recall how they first met, which he orchestrated as part of his stupid plan, was a foolish move. "This is a lot harder than I thought." Christian admitted in a low voice.

Ana gazed at him with understanding.

It had been almost two hours since they saw each other again and things had been a little awkward as soon as they left the bar.

When they entered Emotions, she introduced Christian to her friends, Denise and Nikki, who both eyed him from head to toe with curiosity. He got to taste Gabriel's cheeseburger and agreed that it was the best.

To say Warren was stunned to see Christian stepped inside the bar with her was an understatement. The younger man couldn't stop babbling, stating what Christian and Ana had realized just moments ago- it was indeed a small world.

After consuming his burger, they left the bar and walked to the nearest coffeehouse to continue their conversation. Once inside, Christian ordered two cups of coffee for them while she picked a table. She opted for seats on the far corner of the room.

For a moment, they just sat opposite each other and took sips of their coffee in silence, neither one knew what to say.

They were no longer in a place where lights were dim and loud music was filling the quietness between them. Inside the coffeehouse, bright lights were making them see each other clearly and the soft music in the background wasn't enough to disturb them once they decided to finally talk and not just look at each other.

"I agree. Maybe that's why there are Do's and Don't's and Things To Remember When Running Into Your Ex Again lists in the Internet." She spoke, giggling at the ludicrousness of it.

Christian's face showed disbelief. "There are?"

Ana nodded.

"Well, that would have been a big help had I known." He murmured, loud enough for her to hear.

The chuckles that erupted from both of them melted what once had been awkwardness between them, making them recall how comfortable they had been in each other's presence before.

"You don't have to feel like you're walking on eggshells with me, Christian." Ana uttered softly when she recovered.

"I don't know how to do this."

"Me too. But what I know is bringing up something from the past- our past- is inevitable. It will happen for sure. How about let's do our best not to be particular about it?"

Christian nodded his agreement.

"I know I said I wanted to talk to you but I don't think we can do that right now."

"Why not?"

She glanced at her wristwatch. 10:00pm. If he left now, he still would have an extra hour to go back to his hotel room, check out and drive to the airport to catch his flight back to Seattle. "Warren mentioned your schedule."

"I'm staying."

"Christian,"

"No. I'm staying. Don't expect me to just go and leave you because that won't happen. Four years, Ana. Four years of not seeing you, not knowing where and how you are or what you have been doing, I can't do that again. Don't make me go through with that again." He didn't want to tell her but he was scared. He was scared that if he left now, she would be gone when he returned.

There was despair in his voice that Ana understood too well. The truth was, she hated the fact that he was about to leave, not knowing if she was going to see him again after tonight.

"Okay." She conceded. "But I live here, Christian. I've been living here since I left Seattle. I have a place of my own and a job here. I'm saying these because I want you to know that I'm not going anywhere. When you leave tonight, I'll still be here if you come back."

"It's when not if."

"What?"

"If I leave New York, it's a matter of when I'm returning and not if I'm returning. I just want to make that clear with you."

Flabbergasted at his determined face and firmly spoken words, she could only stare at him. Did she hear it correctly? Did he mean she would be seeing more of him? Ana's heart fluttered at the thought.

Christian could see how his statement caught her off guard. Didn't she know how he had been waiting for this moment for years? Didn't she think that if given the chance again, there would be no letting go nor goodbye this time? He was resolved to make it up to her for his past mistakes, hoping to be eventually forgiven.

"I'm staying, Ana. Let me call Warren and Taylor. They are probably waiting for me at the hotel right now." He stood up and dug out his cellphone from his pocket.

Ana was pulled from her thought at the mention of his driver/bodyguard. "Taylor came with you?"

"Yes. He'll be happy to see you."

In her nod, Christian stepped out of the coffeehouse and into the street. Ana glanced at him from the glass window. A part of her still couldn't believe that he was there right now, standing only a few steps away from her. She had dreamt of that moment many times than she could count. Plenty of times she imagined different scenarios where, when and how they would see each other again. None of those scenes brought justice to what happened moments ago. The familiar feeling of being wrapped around his arm, the intensity she saw in his grey eyes as he gazed at her and the warmth of his body when it was pressed against hers exceeded her expectations and made her ache for him to tighten his hold on her, to kiss her like there was no tomorrow and to never let her go.

When he turned and saw her gawking at him, Ana's cheeks turned a deeper shade of pink. She looked away shyly.

:::

"I saw you this afternoon." Ana disclosed.

After talking to both Taylor and Warren, Christian returned inside and they continued their conversation.

"At Ben Tower." She went on, seeing his confused look. "My office, Big Leaves Publishing Company, is on the 12th floor of that building. You passed by me while you're exiting the elevator. Our shoulders kind of bumped into each other. You said sorry."

"I'm sorry, I didn't notice you." He confessed, quietly berating himself for missing seeing her earlier.

She grinned. "Don't apologize. I didn't see you actually. I was busy with my cellphone. It was your voice that I recognized."

"I'd like to think we are destined to see each other again today."

"I'd like to think that too."

"You work at a publishing company?"

"Yes. Umm... I'm one of Big Leaves' signed up authors."

Christian's eyes widened. "You're a writer?"

Ana raised and waved her hand, trying to wave off her shyness. "It's no big deal. I'm not famous or anything. I doubt you'll know it's me if you came across my works -which are romance books by the way- because I'm using a pen name."

"What's your pen name?"

"Addison Rose."

"You are Addison Rose? Grace, Mia and Kate love your books."

Christian had come across her novels once in his parents' house one Sunday afternoon. He had arrived early for the family weekend dinner and spotted his mother, sister and Kate spread out in the living room, discussing names he couldn't recognize. He then saw multiple copies of what seemed like a book series scattered amongst them. He glanced at them and read some of the titles- One Last Time, Why Goodbye, Waiting For You. All written by one author- Addison Rose.

Curious, he grabbed one and ran his eyes on the cover. It was an image of a man and a woman hugging each other, their eyes were closed but tears streaked their faces. A creased formed on his forehead, wondering since when did his mother and sister read romantic novels. Presuming it was Kate's influence, he put the book down back on the table and left the room to see Carrick and Elliot. Unbeknownst to him, three pairs of eyes followed his retreating form with interest.

"Yeah, they do. Mia is always bugging me for spoilers." She spoke.

When she told him how she had been, he didn't expect that the Anastasia, who left Seattle years ago, was now a successful author. Already aware of her potential even before, he knew she was capable to be who she wanted to be.

He was happy for her success and everything she had accomplished after leaving Seattle. How he just wished he was there, by her side, as she did those things. How nice it must have been to witness her first book release, feeling just as excited as he knew she was and whispering words of encouragement to her because he knew, without a doubt, her work was going to be phenomenal and people would definitely love it. But he didn't get to experience it and he deduced he would always envy those who had been there with her during one of the most important moments of her life.

"I'm happy for you, Ana. I really am. I'm proud of who you've become." He said sincerely.

At the end, Christian would never change a thing. If what it took for her to succeed was her being away from him, he would, albeit with great reluctance, let her go. Ana deserved every best thing in life and his selfishness and possessiveness weren't those things.

"Your words mean a lot, Christian. I-I hope you understand why I left. It was hard..."

He didn't need to voice it out but Ana knew she hurt him when she resigned at SIP and left Seattle. She learned from Kate, who was told by Elliot and Mia, how her abrupt departure affected him. She didn't regret her decisions but she did regret its effect on him. She didn't mean to cause him added pain, aware that he, too, was hurt by their break up.

It took a lot for Christian, who was capable of finding her in a snap of his fingers, to respect what she wanted. He was trying to change, she realized one week after she had arrived to New York and he never showed up on her doorstep. If he was still the same man he once was, the man who had her dossier in his home, the man who had her followed without her knowledge, the man who planned on hurting her, she knew he would arrive in her apartment, wanting her to return with him to Seattle. But he didn't. Instead, he let her be.

"You did what you had to do. I hurt you, Ana, and it's something I will regret for the rest of my life."

I've forgiven you. The words were at the tip of her tongue but for some unknown reason, she couldn't utter them. Looking at him, she tried to feel the familiar ache in her heart but there was none. But why she was finding it hard to say she had forgiven him? Just earlier that night, she was confident she could tell those words to him so easily.

"Ana? Are you okay?"

Christian's question pulled her to present. "I'm fine. I-I'm just glad to see you again."

:::

If Taylor was surprised to the quick embrace she gave him upon seeing him, Ana couldn't read it on his stoic face but she did notice the corner of his mouth lifted.

"It's good to see you, Ms. Steele." Taylor said, smiling warmly.

"It's good to see you too, Taylor. Have you and Gail been well?" She asked, fondly remembering the older man's wife.

"We have. Thank you for asking."

Christian and Ana had lost track of time as they traded stories.

She listened while he talked about GEH's expansion. Ana could see how proud he was of his company, which had been included in the world's most profitable companies list for the past two years. GEH's success had always been because of his and his employees' work attitude and hardwork.

His face showed delight as Ana spoke of how she had become an author. What started out as a pastime she used to do whenever she couldn't sleep at night, had made her discover what she really wanted to do in her life and who she wanted to be.

It was almost midnight when they noticed the time. Deciding to call it a night, Christian phoned Taylor, who pulled into the coffee shop's front minutes later.

After her exchanged greeting with the older man, Ana climbed in the backseat of the vehicle with Christian and Taylor drove them to her place.

:::

She stopped in front of her apartment door and turned to Christian. "Do you want to come inside?"

He shook his head. "It's already late. You should rest." He wanted to say yes to her invitation but noticing her droopy eyes, he opted to decline.

"Okay."

"I'm staying at the Hilton and it's not far from here." Drawing in a deep breath, he paused to stare at her. "If it's alright with you, I want to see you again, Ana. I can come and bring you breakfast tomorrow morning. That is if you have don't have any plans."

She smiled. "Breakfast with you sounds good. I'll see you in the morning."

Seconds passed and they just stood in front of each other, neither knew how to end the night, neither wanted to end the night.

Aware of their closeness, Ana tilted her head up and met his eyes. Their faces were merely inches apart.

Time seemed to stop.

Their breaths turned ragged.

Their heartbeats became louder and faster.

Lost in his gaze, she bit her lower lip. Her action elicited a groan from Christian.

It happened so fast but not surprisingly.

Ana saw him closing the distance between their faces and without an ounce of doubt of what she was about to do, she met him halfway, crushing her lips against his.

His arms encircled her in an instant. Her hands reached for him. Their bodies now pressed against each other.

Parting her lips, she felt him deepened their kiss and she returned it with the same passion and intensity.

Home. Her mind cried as tears started falling from her closed eyes.

She was home.

:::

tbc...