Christian's POV
It's the end of Anna's first week at SIP and our purchase is going ahead as quickly as I can force it, the things I have been finding out about their processes but more importantly their HR practices have been making it hard for me to kiss Ana goodbye each morning without warning her. I believe my uneasy feelings about one Jack Hyde are about to be borne out by evidence and he will be out on his ear before he can say boo.
I have tried several times to warn Ana about him but she waves it off saying she is careful and can handle herself. I know she says she did Judo and could fling me across a room but she isn't well enough to do that yet and until she is able to protect herself, I will worry. I think I'll worry all the time anyway but she doesn't like me mentioning it and I think will do anything to not listen to me, to simply defy me.
In fact, on Tuesday, she looked so exhausted because of our shenanigans during the night plus the slip down the stairs that I thought she was going to collapse. A suggestion that she stay home was met with such a visceral response though that I, and my mother would be proud, decided to put my hands up in the air and stop talking. It certainly put some colour in her cheeks and livened her up, if she could have stomped her foot and not hurt herself, I think she would have done so just to prove how annoyed she was with me. Mumbles of "master of the universe" and "can do what he likes" reached my ears as she abruptly spun away and then hobbled to the bathroom rather than continue to talk to me.
As sexy as feisty Ana is, it's the only time I want to spank her and that's exactly how I felt when she did that but then I remembered all punishments are off the table and wondered what Elena would think if she saw me now. That thought sent a cold chill through me and I physically shuddered realising that the evil one had insidiously made it back into my thoughts and I needed to get to Ana.
I rushed into the bathroom without knocking and while Ana fixed me with a glare and her toothbrush stopped in mid-air, I simply wrapped my arms around her and pulled her against me. I needed to feel her in my arms, make my world tilt correctly again, my lips on her neck grounded me and when she twisted to give me greater access, I knew she understood that I needed this.
A strangled mmmhmm alerted me to that fact that I had to let her go so she could empty her mouth and as I did so, she quickly rinsed and then turned and came back into my arms, questioning eyes raised to mine but not saying anything, she curled up like a kitten against my legs as I sat on the edge of the bath, giving me the comfort I craved.
Finally, in a really quiet voice, she said "I have to go to work. Christian are you going to be ok?" and all I could do was nod and squeeze her tight one last time and then standing with her, I carried her back to the bedroom and was rewarded by a kiss on the nose when I put her down.
"Let me grab your clothes," I said finding her an outfit and helping her into them so that at least one part of her day would be stress free and then without waiting for any more comments, I picked her up and carried her down the stairs, steadfastly avoiding looking at her until her giggles filled the air.
"You're impossible!" she said and gave no further explanation, pushing me towards a stool so that she could reach my lips, "Bye baby, I will be fine today, I will. Are you going to have lunch with me though so that I can discuss this book about the tired maiden that you will no doubt email me about during the morning?"
Tacit acknowledgment that I would email her, whatever the policy and that I would need to see her at lunchtime reinforced my realisation that it's her brain that attracts me time and again, over and above her stunning beauty and I simply pulled her in for one last hug and whisper, "I love you beautiful girl," and I felt her answering shiver and it took everything in me to let her go and not take her back up to bed.
The week continued in the same vein, I managed emails to her and stolen lunches and then last night when I was about to say that I had some plans for this weekend, she told me that all of SIP were going to have drinks tonight at the bar across from work and that she thought she should go to get to know more of the staff. While I wanted to have her all to myself, when she asked if I would I join her, I decided it would be a good way to work out the characters of most of the staff and so I said I'd meet her there and made sure that Sawyer knew who to look out for, most particularly, one Jack Hyde.
It's now the allotted time for my entrance and despite having been on tenterhooks all day, I enter the room quietly, taking in the atmosphere and as I make my way to the bar I can hear the obnoxious brute before I even see him. He has his arm around Ana's shoulder, she is standing with just one crutch, the other against the chair and she is holding a beer and looking decidedly unimpressed with his closeness, especially when I see him squeeze her arm. It is obvious she is uncomfortable, the tight smile on her face, the unhappy eyes and I can't get to her fast enough and it's like she feels my presence because she straightens and looks up with the most beautiful smile when she sees me, the effect so obvious that it stops me in my tracks.
I can't believe it then when time moves in slow motion, Hyde looks up, a sneer passes across his face and as he moves, his foot kicks her bad leg, hooks into Ana's crutch and he lurches backwards, he's already wasted by the looks of it and because he had his arm around Ana's shoulders he latches on and she starts to fall as well and I am too far to catch her. Thankfully Sawyer appears and manages to simultaneously fling Hyde against the bar and stop Ana from falling and twisting any further.
"What the fuck, man?" Hyde splutters as he gingerly lifts himself off the edge of the bar and fixes his eyes on Sawyer looking like he wants to square off in a fight but as Sawyer draws himself up to full size having made sure Ana is safe in my arms, Hyde backs off. However once Sawyer moves, Hyde's eyes alight on me and it is a look of pure hatred that flashes across them and I know then that Ana is not safe with him, he wants Ana and there is no way that is going to happen.
"Oh lover boy is it?" he slurs towards me and I wonder how he could be this drunk at just 6pm after no more than an hour at the bar, "The name's Jack Hyde and I'm her boss. She does what I tell her to do, when I tell her to do it, and with pleasure." The last bit is said with a leer towards Ana who I feel shudder under my hands and I know then that she doesn't trust him either, no matter the bravado she has been putting on all week and all I want to do is punch him. It's Taylor's movement out of the corner of my eye and Ana grabbing hold of my arm that slows me down.
I don't want to shake his hand because I consider him vermin but the civility ingrained in me by Grace overrides my basic desire to punch him and I put out my hand, "Christian Grey, we'll be leaving now." I watch his face change, hatred and then some strange gloating look flashes in his eyes and he mumbles something about joining him for another drink. I notice that all the SIP staff that were there when I entered have taken the opportunity of the falling kerfuffle to disappear and I say "Sorry, but we have plans," and turn away to help Ana out of the bar.
Handing Ana her crutches, as much as I want to carry her out, I support her so that she is quickly to the door and into the car, Taylor's expression of concern shows that Sawyer has already relayed what happened but there's something about his look at me when we climb in that alerts me that we need to talk as soon as we get back to the security room, so I nod and pull Ana into my lap. "Baby, are you hurting anywhere? Did…"
She cuts me off, "Christian, I am ok, nothing that a nice warm bath won't fix." It is said with such finality that I know she doesn't want to talk about it and I will leave it for now but I need to know what it was about Jack that had her shuddering as I have a feeling that Taylor needs to know.
"Baby, please tell me what it is about Hyde that has you feeling scared." I say and her startled look at me tells me that I am right and again my heart clenches and I wish I had hit him in the bar.
"If I tell you something, promise me that you won't do anything stupid," she says, clasping my hand and squeezing it and it takes all my effort to bring my breathing under control and show a calm façade even though I am like a volcano underneath. I don't know that I succeed though as her eyes widen and her eyes flick across mine and then she shakes her head and doesn't talk.
"Come on baby, I won't do anything stupid." I promise knowing that if he has hurt her in anyway, I will do something more than stupid.
She twists and I see the pain even though she doesn't say anything about it and I want to kill him for that alone and she reaches for my hand and I can feel how cold it is. Not only that, she is shaking and I can feel it as the rest of her body starts to shake too. I'm pretty sure shock is setting in and I squeeze her tighter, taking her hand between both of mine to warm her and then she says it in a rush, "I think he kicked my leg and crutch out from under me, it wasn't an accident and he was twisting me on purpose," she finishes quickly as the blood rushes to my head and all I can see is red.
"Sir, that was Sawyer's impression too," I hear from Taylor as though through a fog.
I desperately want to go back and beat the fucker into a pulp but Ana's shaking is reaching a decidedly uncontrollable point and I know part of it is her fear to my reaction so I count to ten and press my lips to her hair so that she knows I'm calming.
"Baby, when we get home, you have that nice warm bath and then if you want mom to come and check you.." but I feel the determined head shake.
"I'll be fine, it just scared me,…. he just scared me that's all. He was being nasty about you before you turned up and his hands were all over me but not in a way that I could make a fuss, he was doing that to a few of the other girls too." She shudders as she remembers but at least the shaking is subsiding and she has to be my first priority. I can't believe that every time we make some movement forward, there has to be a huge step back.
Carrying Ana into the bathroom, I am eternally grateful that I have such wonderful staff, Taylor has obviously notified Gail that Ana was to have a bath and it has been drawn and nice hot towels and bath oils are all set out waiting for our use. I check as best I can for any obvious signs of injury but Ana smiles at me and says "I know you like putting your hands all over me and I am happy for you to do that, but I am ok, there's nothing broken, I'm ok, truly I am."
I desperately want to join her in the bath but my need to speak to Taylor is greater so I kiss her with all my being before lifting her in and she reaches up around my neck as I try to leave, pulling me down for one last deep connection, moaning into my mouth and testing my resolve. Her mumbled "I'm just borrowing a kiss so you need to come back soon so that I can return it" has me smiling and while I wish I could stay, her safety has to come before my enjoyment and I reluctantly let her go with a peck on her nose and I am rewarded, as I turn to leave, by a cheeky smile although it doesn't quite reach her sad eyes.
Jack Hyde does not know what is going to hit him, no stone shall be left unturned if I can help it to have him removed from Ana's life before he does any further damage.
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Author's Note: Again, I apologise but updates are going to be sporadic between now and Christmas as my business and family, basically real life have to take precedence. There just aren't enough hours in a day and when I can write I do but there is no way I can provide any surety of when I can update.
Thank you always for reviewing, I love reviews and read them as soon as they come and will respond, sorry, it is taking me longer than normal to do so.