A/N: Thanks for reading. Enjoy!
"Go ahead and tell me whatever it is you need to tell me." I wave my hands out at Christian who's just finished looking at his phone. "It's about Leila, isn't it?" He rolls his head on his shoulders and nods.
"I had Reynolds at the airport waiting for her flight to arrive. Once she arrived, she was walking alongside a guy who apparently was on the same flight. They were laughing and seemed to be enjoying each others company."
"Could he be a guy who she knows from New York? Maybe he decided to join her."
"No. She boarded the plane in New York alone.", he answers before handing me half of his blueberry muffin.
"What's this for?", I ask with amusement.
"I saw you eyeing it." I grab and his hand and bring it to my mouth, kissing it tenderly.
"Ok so back to Leila. What happened next?"
"Reynolds followed her and the guy after they got into a cab. They ended up at the Edgewater Hotel and haven't emerged since."
"She and the guy might have hit it off so well on the plane that they wanted to continue to get to know each other better. If that's case, good for her. I'm not worried about wanting her, but as for her wanting you, I'm not so sure. She told her friend she was considering coming back to Seattle, but the timing of her actually deciding to come back is kind of odd."
"You mean with the baby announcement?", he asks. "Believe me, that hasn't escaped my attention. Her intentions might be well, but I'm not going to take any chances."
"Me either. Are you excited about tonight's dinner with Mia and Will?" Even though Christian's seen Will several times since he and Mia started dating, Mia felt Christian and Will hadn't gotten to know each other well enough. So we're having dinner with them tonight.
"Can't you see my excitement?" He pulls the corners of his mouth to force a smile. "I don't understand why she feels I need to get to know him better. Why not Elliot?" I cock my head and sigh.
"Elliot and Kate had dinner with Mia and Wil last week. Besides, according to Mia, you come across as kind of intimidating to Will. She wants him to know that you're not the scary guy he thinks you are."
"But I am.", he smirks. "The guy is dating my sister who I've always been protective of. I need him to know that if he hurts her, I'll hurt him."
"I see your reasoning. I really do, but I also think you need to ease up a little. Your sister's happy. Isn't that the important thing?"
"Yes but..."
"No.", I mutter while shaking my head. "Don't finish that sentence. Positive thoughts. That's all we need."
"Are you sure you're ok with covering the soapbox derby on Saturday?", I ask Kate as I sit I sit down in the chair from my old desk. The chamber of commerce is sponsoring a soapbox derby on Saturday, and I assigned Kate to cover it.
"Yes. You do realize since you're now my boss that you don't have to ask if I'm ok with an assignment? It's part of my job. Olivia would never ask me such a thing."
"You're right. I've still got a lot to learn."
"It's going to take some time to get used to it. Don't think for a single second that I've got an issue with taking commands from you. You're my superior now. What you say goes." I start to stand when I see Christian walk through the door with a large bouquet of pink roses. "Ah, if it isn't the hubby." Although I told Olivia that Christian's buying the magazine, Kate and the rest of the office still don't know. Christian wants to hold off until the deal is finalized.
"Hi baby.", Christian grins. He looks at Kate and nods. "Kate, hello."
"Hey. I like the roses, but you really shouldn't have brought them for me.", she says.
"Well then It's a good thing I didn't get them for you. These are for my gorgeous wife as a way of saying congratulations on her new position." I get out of the chair and lean forward to smell the arrangement.
"These are beautiful. Thank you. Let's go and find a place for them in my office." Christian follows me to my office, closing the door behind him once we're inside. "On the desk would be a nice spot."
"I agree." He sets the flowers down and starts scanning the room. "How does it feel being in here?"
"Odd.", I murmur. I settle behind the desk and watch as Christian takes the chair across from me. "Sitting at a desk isn't new, yet sitting at this desk is different."
"You look good behind it, but you look good any where."
"Have you heard anything from Reynolds?"
"I hope you haven't been worrying about her all day.", he murmurs.
"I haven't. I'm only asking because I still find her arrival timing sketchy. No taking chances, right?"
"Right. I want proof that her return has nothing to do with us. Reynolds went into Edgewater and found out Leila and her mystery companion did indeed check in to a room under the name Timothy Erickson. Welch ran a quick check on the name and found he's a chiropractor here in Seattle."
"Does Leila have family or friends who she might be planning on staying with?", I ask, trying to figure out another piece of the mystery.
"Her family lives in Connecticut. As far as friends go, she only had a few friends although they weren't close. She might have been planning on staying in a hotel for now. This Erickson guy could have been nice enough to pay for her room."
"A nice gesture for a guy who she just met on the plane." Christian rubs the bottom of his chin, grinning while also studying me. "What?"
"This is nice, us communicating and discussing things."
"You mean me not being all emotional?"
"That's not what I'm saying. I mean we're talking this out. It's nice, yet I don't want it to be too much for you.", he sighs. "I need you and the baby to be ok."
"We are ok. We have you watching over us and bearing the best husband and father anyone could ask for."
"Fuck, I'd love to take you right here on this desk, but I don't think I would be able to keep you from screaming and drawing the attention of the entire office."
"Considering this is only my second day as the head of the department, I'm going to agree with you. The idea is tempting though." He slightly raises out of his chair and stretches across the desk so he can take engulf me in a deep kiss. "Mmm." When he pulls away, I'm left with a smile and an even fuller heart.
"I'm going to let you get back to work, but I'll see you this evening."
"And then we'll see Mia and Will."
"Must you go and ruin my good mood?", he teases.
"Ana, I haven't decided what I'm going to do, but rest assured, the photos will turn out perfect.", Ethan says over the phone. I called to let him know I'm looking forward to the maternity photo shoot Christian suggested.
"I have no doubt they're going to be great." I grab my glass of milk and sit down at the kitchen table. Already showered and dressed for dinner, I'm waiting on Christian to finish showering so we can go and meet up with Mia and Will. "What are you and Max up to tonight?"
"We're going to my parents. I'm convinced they like him more than me.", he sighs.
"That's not true.", I giggle.
"I went over there alone the other day, and the first thing my mom asked was, "Where's Max?"
"She was probably just wondering."
"The disappointed look she gave me when I told her that he was working tells a different story. I'm kidding. It pleases me that they like him. It wasn't very long ago that I was terrified of introducing my boyfriend to them, and now they adore him."
"Things have a way of working out.", I say as Christian comes into the room. "Ethan, my husband is finally dressed and ready to go."
"Finally!", Ethan shouts. "Tell Christian I said hi. Have a good time tonight."
"Thanks you too. Bye." I place my phone on the table and see Christian rolling his eyes.
"I wasn't taking too long to get ready.", he scoffs with a chuckle. "Do you want to finish your milk before we go?"
"Not really. I thought I wanted milk, but once I got it poured into the glass, I changed my mind. I'm ready to go." He gives me his hand and helps me to my feet just as I hear someone crying. "Who is that?"
"I don't know." The wailing gets louder by the second until we finally see the source, Mia. She staggers into the kitchen with red eyes. "Mia, what in the hell is wrong?"
"I can't believe he...", she struggles to say. "How could I be stupid?"
"You're not stupid.", I tell her. "Why would you say such a thing?" Christian and I each take a hand and help her sit down. I grab the chair next to her while Christian stands. "What happened?"
"I was supposed to meet Will at his place, and we were going to head to dinner from there. I called to let him know I was on my way. He didn't answer. I assumed he was busy getting ready. When I got there, I knocked and knocked, but he didn't come to the door. I remembered he kept a key underneath the welcome mat. I took the key and opened the door. I didn't see him at first, but then I started hearing loud thumps." My heart races at where I fear Mia's story is going to end. "The noise was coming from the bedroom." She covers her face with her hands. "He was in there, but he wasn't alone."
"That fucker!", Christian snarls.
"He had a blonde propped up on the dresser and was screwing her. The drawers were rattling from the intensity of it. I guess he saw my reflection in the mirror because he turned his head and just looked at me. The girl was grinning like she had just won the lottery or something. As I ran out, I could hear him rushing after me."
"Mia, I'm so sorry.", I murmur.
"I refused to stop so he could try to explain himself. His little friend kept pleading with him to let me go, and that I wasn't worth it."
"What a bitch!"
"She's definitely something.", Mia snarls. "There's something about the girl that I need to tell you. Although she was naked tonight, it wasn't the first time I've seen her."
"Where else have you seen her?", Christian asks.
"At the anniversary party for Donald and Eleanor Thompson." Mia's eyes land on me as I think back to that evening. Christian and I were having a nice evening until Rachel showed up. No. It can't be. Seattle is filled with blondes. "Ana, you pointed her out to me."
"So the girl who Will was having sex with was..."
"Rachel."