Chapter 08
APOV
We crowd back into the limo, and I am sitting next to Christian. I still have the feeling from when he caught me. I can feel my heart beating faster. I can't even look at him. Ethan is sitting on the other side of me and his places his hand on my thigh. "You OK, Ana?"
"Oh, yeah. Thanks, Ethan." He smiles at me as he squeezes my thigh. We pull up to the next bar, the Prime Time Pub. It's karaoke night, which Kate loves. We get in the bar, it's crowded, but they have no problems finding a table for us. Mia and Kate rush over to the song book.
"Ana, are you going to sing?" Kate asks.
"Um, I don't think so. I'll just watch you." I wouldn't like all that attention on me.
"Oh, come on! You have to. Just one song. Pleeeeeease?" Now she's practically begging me.
"Why don't you go first and I'll join you later." They go and sign up to sing but won't tell me what song they've picked. Only a few minutes later their names are called. They jump up and head to the stage. The music starts and Kate and Mia break into "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" by Elton John. They were really great and the entire bar cheered for them.
They practically run back to the table. "You guys, that was awesome!" It really was. In addition to being funny and entertaining, their voices sounded fantastic.
"Good. Because we put you down on the list to sing with us!" Kate tells me and Mia giggles.
"What? No!" I think I am starting to panic. Elliot is even laughing at me now.
"Steele, you promised!" Kate claims and I know I won't get out of it.
"Ana, I think you're stuck," Ethan says to me. I can only shoot him a dirty look which makes Elliot laugh even harder. After another drink and a couple other singers, our names are called. Kate practically rips me out of my seat and drags me to the stage. Reluctantly, I get up on the stage with Kate and Mia.
CPOV
Ana is on the stage and she looks like a frightened lamb who's run into a hungry lion. The music starts and they only need to sing the first few lines and I know they are singing the Moulin Rouge version of Lady Marmalade. Ana seems very nervous but cheers from the crowd seem to make her feel more comfortable and she loosens up and has fun. I'm surprised she sings really well. With the way she was acting, I was sure she was going to be terrible.
The crowd cheers them all and begin to chant "encore! encore!" The girls huddle together with the DJ and the next song begins. Next, the girls break into "Don't Stop Believin" by Journey. It appears Ana has come out of her bookworm shell and what was underneath was a sexy siren. I feel my cock twitch just thinking about her.
Once they are done, Kate goes up to Ana and is talking to her. It appears she's trying to talk Ana into doing something and she keeps shaking her head no. Finally, it looks like Kate wins and goes over to the DJ before coming back to the table with Mia to join us.
"What's going on?" Elliot, who is just as confused by this as I am, asks Kate.
"Ana is a good singer but she's always too shy. I just talked her into doing a song." Kate smiles like she won a huge victory. Ana sits down on a stool, and when she's ready she nods to the DJ. The music begins to play and it's as if a stranger is on stage. She's singing Rihanna's "Stay" and she is absolutely amazing. She's so good, the entire bar quiets down to listen to her. I am mesmerized by her. She's this deep, soulful, and emotional woman who hides underneath this plain-Jane exterior. I would even venture to say she sings this song better than Rihanna herself. Everyone breaks into applause.
The DJ takes the mike, "looks like we have time for one more song. I don't know about you, but I want to hear another song from Ana. What about you?" The entire bar erupts into applause. Ana momentarily looks scared but the resigns herself to it and she nods. The DJ goes up to her and they whisper quietly. She remains on the stool. The music starts and she begins to sing "Royals". Everyone is clapping along and you can see her foot tapping to the beat. After the song finishes, Ana quickly makes her way back to our table to avoid attention so we can leave.
Suddenly, I feel protective of her and grab her hand to lead her to the limo. Her hand is small but fits in mine perfectly. We get in the limo and she is sitting next to me while we wait for everyone else to get in the limo which takes longer than normal since most of them are pretty drunk.
EPOV
We finally pile into the limo and head back to the house. Even late at night, traffic in LA is nuts so we have a bit of a ride. I sit down and notice Christian and Ana sitting next to each other. It strikes me odd since they don't really like each other. Then I see Christian take Ana's blazer and ask her if she's cold and places it around her shoulders. I don't really think anything of it since my brother would be polite to someone he hated. His manners are ingrained in him.
But then, I see his arm is wrapped around her shoulders, holding her to him. There's a lot to my brother, and he's a very private person, but I know him well. And I know he doesn't like people to touch him in any way if he can avoid it. I try to not make it obvious that I noticed this unusual behavior but I continue to watch him. A few minutes later, Ana rests her head on his shoulder and falls asleep. Christian closes his eyes as if he is trying to commit it to memory, then, he squeezes her closer to him still. In the 24 years that Christian has been my brother, I have never seen him like this. I am half tempted to show Mia because I can barely believe my eyes.
We get back to the house and Christian and Ana are the last people to exit the limo. By the time they reach the front door everyone else has gone to their rooms for the night. I stand in the kitchen out of the way but with a good view of them. He's almost carrying her in the house and vigilantly asks her if she is OK. She looks up at him and nods. He looks down at her with an expression I can't describe and smiles. He moves his right hand to her cheek lightly caressing it. "Do you need help, Ana?" he whispers to her. She responds that she is OK and doesn't need help. Almost urgently he says to her, "let me at least walk you to your bedroom. But first, let me take these shoes off you so you don't fall." He picks up her foot and she places her hands on his shoulders for balance. He gently removes both shoes and she smiles at him. Before he sees me witnessing this exchange, I quietly make my way to the bedroom. Kate is already asleep and slightly snoring. She snores when she drinks but denies she does it.
I just lay there thinking about what I witnessed. Christian has told me he doesn't believe in love which is why he has submissives. But, aside from Mia, I have never seen him be so loving and tender with anyone. This is definitely not a side of him he shows anyone.