A/N: Thank you everyone for bearing with me, I've had the busiest year of my life workwise and I apologise for the huge wait.
Taylor's POV – 11 August 2011
Life is looking interesting ahead but I'm looking forward to it, just one thing would make it that much better.
"So Daniel, are you going to move to Seattle? You know that with the baby the Boss will probably ask you." I try not to sound too eager but I hope against hope that he will make the move. "Are you ready to come back? Come live on the Sound? The house is all set up, the security staff have quarters right next to the house and we're just over the fence."
"Aye, the demons have been quieted a little over the years but this last week I …. I don't know what's happened but I have finally slept through the night every night." He shakes his head, "It's been one of the most stressful weeks in terms of planning and yet…." Daniel's tone is reflective and I think it's a combination of the thinking he's had to do that has taken him outside of his own head as well as the Ana effect. It's like the knowledge of her horrors and to be fair, the Boss' too, now that we know his story, negate ours in some way and the desire to protect her and the Boss, override our own personal demons.
Way back when I was looking for security work, I knew that a certain upstart Christian Grey was looking for a CPO but I thought it'd be too easy for me to quiet my demons and wasn't really interested, he was a young kid, how hard could it be? Well, that thinking lasted a day. I was scoping him to see if it was worthwhile work and happened to be in a hotel when an attempted ambush by six men occurred, some disgruntled takeover target didn't take to well to his brash style and sent henchmen to attack him. His response to that ambush, his own strength and sensibility as well as the severity of the attack meant that I decided that this might be exciting after all and stepped in to help him out, he asked me to join his team that day and that really was the best decision I've ever made. Mind you the last three months have aged me probably ten years as the security net has widened and so many things have happened that I just couldn't have imagined and never want to see repeated.
To have Daniel, my twin on the squad would be extremely helpful, we work as a phenomenal team, knowing what the other is going to do without as much as a look or a word, so I'm so happy to hear him entertain the idea of moving to Seattle. Now though, we have to work out how to keep a horde of Italian relatives at a safe distance from the Boss and Ana and god forbid, feed her anything that isn't allowed. When the Boss realises the list of things that a pregnant woman shouldn't eat, I feel that poor Ana will have every single morsel examined and once again I'm glad that Gail is the gorgeous woman she is as I am sure she'll bring sense to whatever rules the Boss imposes on Ana.
Taking a deep breath at the same time as Daniel, we stand, off to deal with feuding Italian relatives, overwrought older relatives, angry younger ones, extremely curious hordes of people and two fragile individuals who have just had the most important news of their lives revealed to them and don't speak the language of everyone clambering around and wanting to touch them. This shall be fun!
Ana's POV – 11 August 2011
Sinking into the bath, everything aches, who knew that meeting long lost, completely unknown relatives could be so physical. My cheeks ache from the pinching and I think Christian has aged ten years today. At times I could feel his tension rolling off him like waves across the room at me as yet another person touched me or worse attempted to hug him too. I'm sure the fact that I have a baby on board made it that much more unbearable for him and he watched me like a hawk, the smile though every time he noticed that I'd seen him looking, made up for all the angst and to be honest, I wanted to just be with him but the hubbub certainly took my mind off things.
Every time I have a minute to think, I feel the tug of panic and I have to look for Christian and take a deep breath, no, nothing that has happened in the last three months was expected, I'm still only twenty one and there is no way that I ever thought I'd be with someone, let alone married and pregnant.
As these thoughts waved through me during the day, I only had to look at Christian and he'd be back by my side, extricating himself from whoever was fawning over him and his arm was around me, calming, his open nuzzling of my neck a revelation but I think also an active thought re-router, there was no way I could fall down the rabbit hole with him doing that. He did do the same thing when some of the neighbours came into the house and according to him, seemed to take way too much interest in me, that time it was an obvious pissing contest and I had to frown at him a little, there is no way any of those boys would interest me.
Christian's love I am slowly accepting and it's taken the three months to know that I'm valued, the family love I am struggling with a lot more. I've never had a family, it was at most just Ray and Carla and now here I am with what seems like fifty extra family members, all wanting to know about me and to be honest, I have not much to say, I am twenty one, I'm just out of university and I'm about to start working, they really don't need to know what has happened lately however I am intrigued about the rest of the family's history is, these people that I had always wondered about, wanted to know.
Somehow I feel that the love for three missing generations was being made up for today. Mine and Carla's was obvious but what I realised really quickly was that my Nonno had been a rather ordinary fellow and had ostracised the entire family when he went to the United States. Relations apparently had been strained on his side between he and his various siblings over various property decisions but he'd made my Nonna cut ties with her side entirely as well through feuds that he instigated or participated in on her behalf, never with her approval. When he died recently they discovered his last vindictive action had been to leave his wife destitute and given his money to various disreputable persons and some valid charities too but nothing to his wife and her mother who lived with them.
Somewhere along the way, Carla's sister, my aunt had also been banished and it was Welch who had found her and enabled my Nonna to once again see her daughter after attending our wedding, Welch wasn't able to find her in time for the wedding otherwise I have no doubt, she would have been there too. I don't know much about my uncle, he seemed to not have been ostracised but from what I can tell, he isn't of the same ilk as his father but I assume he has a family and it will be nice one day to meet him too however he lives in New York.
One of the other things that came out of today was that not only had my Nonna never been back to Italy, it became obvious as to why as the day continued, money or rather, the lack of, wasn't the only reason.
The famous Italian temper bubbled to the top a couple of times and Gail whispered to me that there were various malicious accusations being levelled at various family members including my Nonna. Things like she had chosen to not communicate with her family, that she had stolen money and was greedy, that her husband had been so rich so why was she crying poor. It sounded like a convoluted tangled nasty web and she was looking less and less like she was enjoying being back in Italy and with family. A quiet comment to a sympathetic Gail was "I knew there was a reason I never came back. I'd heard malicious rumours over the years from people that had come back from my older sister but I never thought it was this bad. I don't think I'll ever be back, why bother, I don't fit in here. I never did and I was so young when I left, America is my home and always will be, I can't wait to go home."
Her mother on the other hand was revelling in the fact that she'd found some other old ladies from their original little portico house terrace and was merrily chatting away, hands flying, head thrown back in laughter. It was interesting to see the different generations and sides to the family. I know which ones Taylor and Daniel were being instructed to both keep an eye on now and into the future and those that might find themselves a little better off given their kindness and demeanour today.
It was interesting meeting cousins and finding that words were starting to turn off my tongue as naturally as though I'd been speaking them all my life and my understanding is growing, the last few days have been extremely helpful in this regard however it was so overwhelming. Gail was amazing, Christian even more so and thankfully some of the cousins were attempting to practice their English and with much hand waving, we were able to communicate.
I am so proud about the fact that if it had not been for Christian, my Nonna's hunt for her daughters and any of their offspring would have taken a lot longer, perhaps years and my great grandmother might never have known me and while it hasn't been the perfect return to Italy for my Nonna, at least she's had the opportunity that had eluded her for so many years.
The whole family meeting though has taken a lot out of me, I don't think it has anything to do with being pregnant, I am not really happy in large crowds, I don't like being the centre of attention and there were a lot of people and everyone seemed to want to have a piece of me. My Nonna included, I kept seeing her looking at us with some sort of sense of wonder and I'm glad that out of the day, she is still happy that she has found me. I could feel her sadness whenever someone asked about Carla, she was explained away as being busy and unable to attend as was my aunt, I look forward to going home and meeting my aunt, I just hope she is nothing like Carla, that I couldn't deal with at all.
I also don't think I have eaten so much in my life and even little Christian seems sated, my stomach hasn't growled once and I couldn't help but notice that certain things were moved away by Christian, some of the delicious looking salami, the soft cheeses moved and the harder cheeses pressed into my hand, I know that somehow in the space of just a few minutes when I was dressing he must have read something about food. Surprisingly, it was Taylor who was being the most judicious and he only shrugged when Gail lifted her eyebrow at him at one point so I gather he's remembering some of the food rules of pregnancy. I know nothing but there was so much food, I didn't really care about the few bits I missed out on eating.
Walking back to our hotel very late into the night, no matter how Christian kept trying to wrap it up, a bunch of Italian ladies are more than a match for a single business man, no matter how important he is, no matter how powerful he is, it was just my explaining that I was in pain because of the accident I had a few months ago that finally had them letting me go and I dare not look at Christian's face as I know the concern will be too much for me to bear. Not to mention that I was supposed to tell him when the pain started, not when it was excruciating, which it had become.
As soon as we had made it out of sight, Christian lifted me, his annoyance vibrating off him and carried me back to the hotel, stomping along, trying not to jolt me as he walked, grumbling at the fact that we were on foot as no car would fit in the tiny alleyways, wide enough for horse or cows and carts but not vehicles.
I'm so tired now and I'm happy to receive the ministrations that Christian is heaping on me. I flatly defied him when he said that tomorrow we are staying at the hotel because I need to rest. I'll have plenty of time to rest soon as I know my pelvis won't cope and I will be on bed rest or Christian won't let me work, we've already had this conversation or shouted argument and we are only several hours into knowing about the baby! We will be discussing this in detail, I have a feeling that our emotional safe words will make a return however, in my heart, I know that I will need to take it easy, I can't risk anything happening to the baby or to my body, I need to be a healthy mother.
….. I'm going to be a mother, that thought makes my heart race and I'm immediately held in a hug, he has caught me once again but I'm so tired that I can't think coherently and am ready to cry.
"Ana, do you remember when we were in your room and I touched that quilt on your bed?" and I nod warily.
Turning my face so that he is looking deep into my eyes as he holds me, "At the time I said "Oh Baby, you'll make a great mother," and it was at that point when I realised that I'd always shied away from the idea of being a father but with you, the idea didn't seem so bad, but when you asked me when I proposed if I would look after our children if you couldn't, not only did I acknowledge that we will make mistakes but I promised to look after you and our children. My wedding vows reinforced that, baby, you must know there is nothing that I wouldn't do to make you successful and happy and," he pauses with an arched eyebrow, "and healthy so let me please, you are driving me crazy with your lack of self-preservation, please let me relax you so you can sleep."
His lips make their way over my body, his arms tighten around me and then as I calm down, he makes a suggestion that has me smiling and wearily accepting.
Halfway through the divine foot rub, I realise I've fallen asleep and wake to concerned eyes and arms holding me tight as I'm carried to the bed. "I'd just closed my eyes enjoying the massage," I protest and am responded to with a look of pure concern.
"Harrumph, you fell asleep and were snoring," isn't even said in jest and it looks like he's going to continue with some sort of extra concern.
"I was not," I quickly retort horrified.
"Well it wasn't a roaring snore, more of a snuffly snore," followed by a lopsided smile as he conceded "but it was a snore nonetheless and I don't want you ever overdoing it like you did today, I can feel your muscles twitching and I know you're sore, please take the painkillers." And then he stops, "Oh, I don't know if you can take the painkillers because of the baby."
"I won't take them Christian, I will be ok and I am not going to risk the baby, I'm ok," and I try to look as calm and pain free as possible, I can't have him worrying about that too.
By this stage I'm wrapped up and ensconced in the huge bed and all I can see is the light shining in his hair and I reach to pull him down to me and he backs away with an almost terrified look on his face.
"What? What's the matter?" I ask and with a look of confused disappointment, he stops me as I try to sit up.
His whispered, "I don't know if we can? I need to speak to Dr Green, you'll see her tomorrow," and my eyes bug open.
"Tomorrow?" I almost shout at him, "We are NOT going home tomorrow!"
"Calm down! No, I've organised for her to be flown in, you need to be checked and I need to know what's going to happen"
My open mouthed goldfish impression is all I can manage until I huff out "Ohhhhh you're impossible" and rollover away from him burying my face in my pillow to stop myself saying anything else, I'm never going to get used to his money and how he uses it.
"Ana look at me", he's sitting on the bed, I can feel the tension, he can feel the stiffness in my body but then I hear it, that voice and the demeanour and I open my eyes wide watching his face with amazement and a tiny frisson of tension running down my spine. It's almost otherworldly.
"I will always make sure the best services are available to look after you and our children, don't ever question that, you are mine and I will always look after you, don't ever ask me not to," and I stop him.
"I think it's time we go back into the room"
"Pardon?" This time, true confusion is writ large across his face.