Phoebe's POV

I am sitting in the driver's seat of my new Audi, and the overwhelming feeling starts to build again. Deep breath, Phoebe. You can do this. I made progress yesterday when Trevor convinced me to drive a go kart. That was the first time I ever operated a moving object while being inside of it. I smile at the memory. It felt great. I felt so free, like nothing could touch me. Why can't I feel that way now?

"This car is much bigger than a go kart" I say to myself, but I say it out loud.

"That it is" my father agrees with me. "I realize it is a step up from what you did yesterday, but you can do this Phoebe."

"You sound so confident" I say nervously. I am anything but.

"I have faith in you. You need to have faith in you. Stop telling yourself you can't do things because you can. And you can do this."

I take a deep breath and let it out again. I can do this. If my father says it, then it must be true. I slowly go through the motions. My hands are at the ten and two. I bring my right hand down and put the car in drive while my foot is on the brake. I feel my father's eyes on me, but I keep my eyes forward. After a few seconds I take my foot off the brake and ease it onto the gas pedal. I gently press and the car moves. It doesn't jerk forward this time, much to my relief. I keep my foot on the gas and slowly cruise down the empty dirt road. I look at the speedometer and notice that I am only going fifteen. Geez, that's really nothing. My father doesn't say a word. I give the gas pedal a little more force and the speedometer dial increases to twenty, then twenty five. I'm really doing this. Holy cow! I'm driving a car. I feel the smile on my face as I keep the car at a low speed. A few seconds go by before I hear my father's voice.

"You can go faster, you know."

I bite my lip as I give the gas pedal more force, and the speed increases to thirty five. This is comfortable. I think I'll stay at this speed. Before I know it we start to approach a four way intersection and I need to stop.

"Now, just gently press your foot on the brake" he says to me when we are about a hundred yards away from the intersection. I do as he says and gradually put pressure on the brake so that we come to a smooth stop. I look around and there are no cars, so I repeat the process of pressing on the gas, slowly increasing the car's speed.

"Phoebe, I am so proud of you. You are really doing this" he says. I can hear such pride in his voice and it hits me hard. I feel the tears threaten and have to work hard to suppress it. Dad is proud of me, and it means a lot to hear him say that. "Would you like to try a main road?"

I start to feel nervous. "Not the interstate" I say immediately. As fun and comfortable as this is, I am not ready for that.

"No, not the interstate. We'll try that another time. We can try something smaller."

"Okay." I smile and start to relax. My father directs me to a residential neighborhood.

"The speed limit here is twenty five, but we can drive through here to a road that is forty five." I keep my speed low and notice that some families are outside with their kids in their Halloween costumes. They are at the corners waiting for the school bus. It makes me wonder.

"Dad, have you heard anything about my school?" I don't have to look at my father to know that the question makes him tense up. He's just as affected by the school shooting as I am. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up."

"No, it's okay" he says softly. "You have a right to know. Are you sure you want to talk about this now?"

Hmmm, do I want to have this discussion while I'm driving? Do I want to have this discussion at all? Of course I do, otherwise I wouldn't have brought it up. "Did they make a decision?"

"Yes, they have."

"What's going to happen?"

"Well, they've decided that renovating the school would be more practical then knocking it down and rebuilding."

"Oh" is all I say.

"They want the students to be able to return in a few weeks." He sounds sad, conflicted. I'm sure it's because he doesn't want me to return to the school. I'm not sure I want me to return to the school. I miss my friends, and I would like to be in school for my senior year. But I'm not sure how I'll feel when I walk back into that building. "Peanut, when the school re-opens, and you don't feel comfortable going back, you don't have to. We can continue with the homeschool."

Homeschool. Now that I think about it, I really don't like the alternative. The workload mixed with the inconsistent routine is kicking my butt. I internally groan at the thought. "Do I have to decide right now?"

"No. Of course not. You have time. I just want what's best for you. We can talk more about it in the next few weeks if you'd like."

"Thanks Dad." And just like that, the conversation is over. We reach the main road he was referring to that has a forty five mile an hour speed limit. I start to feel nervous since there are other cars. I am stopped at the stop sign waiting for an opening.

"You can do this, Phoebe. You are just going to stay in the right lane. You don't have to go forty five if you don't want to." I take a deep breath and let it out as I watch the cars pass by. Finally, I see a big opening and I take it. I turn and press on the gas until we are going forty miles an hour. I am comfortable with this, so I keep this speed. I notice several cars pass me. "Don't worry about those cars" Dad says. "They want to pass you, let them do it. That's what the left lane is for." Even though I don't want to drive fast, I'm still bothered by all the cars that pass me. I guess this is what fuels road rage. Even though these people don't know me, it can easily feel insulting. Dad's phone rings and he briefly takes the call. I concentrate on my driving by I can hear his part of the conversation. I realize that I am keeping him from his work. It is nearly nine in the morning and he is usually at his office by now.

When he disconnects the call he seems agitated. "Dad, can I drive home?" I ask him.

"Of course, but are you sure you want to stop now?"

"Yes. I don't want to push my luck. And it's like you said, I need to keep up with my school work."

I feel his smile even though I'm not looking at him. "That's my girl."

When we arrive home, I carefully pull onto our private road and stop outside of the gate. I open my window to key in the code, and I can't help but feel excited. This is the first time I get to do this. I've always known the code. It's a backwards combination of Mom and Dad's wedding anniversary and mine and Teddy's birthdays. The gates open and I drive slowly up the drive and park the car outside of our big garage. Dad and I climb out and he is by my side instantly, pulling me into a hug. I feel how proud he is of me and start to feel emotional again. I'm grateful that he doesn't let go right away.

"You did great, Peanut. How do you feel?" He kisses my head and then pulls away slightly to look down at me. I'm busted. "Hey, why the tears?"

He wipes them away with his thumb, and I start to feel foolish for crying. I try to laugh it off. "It's nothing."

"Tell me."

I take a deep breath and sigh, still feeling foolish. "You said you were proud of me. It's nice to hear."

He wraps his arms around me in a tighter hug this time and kisses my hair again. "I am proud of you. It's my fault for not saying it enough. You've come a long way in the past few weeks. And then just now with driving."

"Thanks Dad" I say as he releases me. "The next step is going to be a biggie. Going back to school."

"We'll get there" he assures me. "You can try to go back in a few weeks. If that doesn't work, you can try again after the holidays."

"Okay. Before I forget, I need to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" he asks me as we walk toward the front of the house.

"Miss Jenna has been working with me on a lyrical solo. We're both really happy with it, and she'd like to enter it in a competition next month."

Dad looks at me, and I can see those proud eyes again. He's smiling. "Your first solo?"

I nod and look down for a moment. "Yeah. We've just been playing around with it. I didn't think it would turn into anything. But she turned it into something really beautiful and she thinks it is competition worthy."

"When's the competition?"

"Next month, in Vancouver."

"You should do it" he says. "I'll talk to your mother about it later, see if Aunt Kate or Aunt Mia could take Natalie and then we can drive there."

I wrap my arms around his waist again. "Thanks, Dad."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Ana's POV

I feel like such a whale. I can't believe I can be this big already at six months. Dr Greene said it is normal for women carrying twins. But seriously, how much bigger am I going to get?

I am in the back seat of the Audi SUV with Natalie and Collins is driving us to Grey Enterprises. Christian had started a Halloween tradition when Teddy was three and Phoebe was one. Ever since then, we've been bringing the kids there to walk around with their costumes and mingle with families of his employees. There is always a Halloween party on the main floor with fruit, pizza, sandwiches, hors d'oeuvres for the adults and of course candy.

When we arrive, I have Natalie stand in front of me in the car so that I can put her costume on her. We've decided that she could be Belle for Halloween, and Mia made the dress for her. It's gorgeous, but it's too big for her to wear while in her car seat. She smiles happily and jumps up in down after I slip the dress on her. Once we are ready, we exit the SUV with Collins' assistance and walk into the building. We are greeted kindly by Arlene, the receptionist. She knows me, but she hasn't seen my pregnancy belly at its largest. I can tell by her facial expression that she is surprised, but she remains kind and sincere with her words. I am holding my belly with one hand and Natalie's hand with the other. After speaking with Arlene for a few minutes we make our way over to the elevators and punch in the code for Christian's floor.

"Mommy, I wanna see Daddy" Natalie says in her sweet voice.

"We are going to see Daddy, Baby. Right after we ride the elevator."

The elevator starts to move, and then it stops and the lights blink on and off a few times. "Mommy" Natalie says before her little hands dig into my legs. That sure smarts. I try to get her to loosen her grip, but then the lights go out and stay out. I start to feel nervous, and then I'm reminded of the two year old digging her fingers into my leg. She starts to cry. My poor baby is scared. "Collins, help me sit down." Collins takes my elbows and helps me lower myself to the floor of the elevator. Once I'm seated I wrap my arms around my baby girl and rub her back. I shush her and tell her that everything is going to be fine, but she continues to cry. "Oh Christian, please come and get us."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Christian's POV

Damn power outage. Of all days for this to happen. We are about to open our doors to four times the amount of GEH employees for our Halloween festivities, and the whole building's power is out. Cell service is also shot. I have to fight the urge to throw my blackberry across my office. I look up and see a few of my security personnel rush in. "See that the building is secure, inside and out" I order them. "I want someone stationed on every floor until the power is back on. Nobody leaves. I don't want anyone other than security personnel in that stairwell." They scurry out like the good employees I pay them to be. After they leave I look up to see Andrea rush in. The lights are out, but the sunlight is providing enough light for us to see. She has panic in her face. "What is it, Andrea?"

"Mr Grey, your wife is here. We think she was in the elevator when the power went out."

Fuck! I rush out of the office and sprint over to the stairwell. I run down the steps and past several security personnel, not even considering my own personal safety. My blackberry provides very little light for me to see the steps. I don't care. I need to get to my pregnant wife. I reach the bottom level and work to catch my breath as I rush over to the elevators. I try to open the doors with my hands, but it doesn't work. "Ana!" I breathlessly call for her. "Ana, can you hear me?"

"Christian" I hear her voice, but it doesn't sound like it is coming from the other side of these doors. Taylor comes up behind me.

"Taylor the second floor" I tell him before rushing toward the stairwell. He follows and we both take the steps two at a time. Some of my employees also follow. One is from facilities. We arrive at the elevators on the second floor and I try to open those doors. Again, they don't budge. I pound on it out of frustration before calling for my wife again. "Ana!"

"Christian, I'm here."

I can hear her voice, but it is still not right in front of me. I can also hear Natalie crying. My poor baby must be so scared.

"Do something!" I order anyone that will listen to me. "My wife and child are in there. We need to get them out."

"Fire department is on their way" one of my employees assures me. I try the door again but I am unsuccessful. Taylor also tries, but even his strength cannot get the doors to open.

"Third floor" I say as I head for the stairwell again. Everyone follows and we gather in front of the elevators on the third floor. "Ana!" I call her again. I can hear Natalie's cries and they are much louder. I hate this. I can't get to my wife and child. I pound on the elevator doors again before running both hands through my hair. "We need to get them out" I say again. "Taylor, has anyone checked the cause of the power outage?"

"I sent Barlow and Daniels to check outside and in the basement, Sir. However cell service is down so I have no update."

I sigh hard and run my hands through my hair again. It feels like hours have gone by since learning that my wife and child are stuck in the elevator, but it's only been minutes.

"Christian, are you there?" I hear Ana's voice. I press my hands and forehead against the elevator doors as though it would make a difference.

"I am here, Baby. Hang tight, okay, we are going to get you out." I can still hear Natalie crying. It is a screaming cry, so I know she's scared. This is torture. "Ana, Baby maybe you should sit down. Have Collins help you."

"Great minds think alike, Grey. I'm already sitting down."

"Good girl" I manage to smile. She seems so calm. "Natalie, Baby everything's going to be alright. Mommy and Daddy are both here" I try to soothe her with my voice, but she is crying so hard she probably doesn't even hear me.

The fire department finally arrives with tools. I stand back but can't help but bark orders at them. They give me dirty looks as Taylor pushes me further back. They aren't working nearly fast enough for me. I need Ana in my arms. I need to hold my baby girl. I am itching for it. I run both hands through my hair again as I watch the slow process of the firemen working on the elevator doors. Once they are open, I push myself toward them and pick Natalie up. I hold her tight as she cries into my shoulder. Collins helps Ana stand up and we all step out of the elevator together. Ana wraps her arms around me and I wrap an arm around her, kissing her hair and saying "thank you" over and over again. My girls are safe, but Natalie is clearly shaken. I walk us away from the elevator and over to a sitting area. I help Ana sit on one of the sofas and then I sit down next to her with Natalie in my lap. She buries her face in my chest and continues to cry.

"Daddy's here, Baby. It's okay." I kiss the top of her head and wrap my other arm around Ana. "Are you okay, Baby? You're shaking."

Ana rests her head on my shoulder. "I'm okay now. Thank you for getting us out."

"I can't take the credit. It was Seattle's finest."

"I heard you shouting orders at them. You can be a real A-R-S-E sometimes."

I smile and look over at her. "An A-R-S-E?" She giggles, and I can't help but chuckle. She's right, I am an ass sometimes. But I need to be, especially when it concerns the welfare of my family. I kiss Natalie's hair and start to pat her bottom in an effort to soothe her.

"What about you, Grey? Are you okay?"

"I am now" I say to her softly. "I have you both in my arms and I know you're safe."

Natalie starts to calm down as Ana and I continue to chat about our recent crisis. Her cries have reduced to whimpers, but her head is still buried in my chest and she's curled up into a little ball on my lap surrounded by the yellow lacey material of her Belle dress. I continue to pat her bottom and bring my other hand down to rub up and down her back.

"Maybe she'll fall asleep" Ana says.

I shake my head. "No, I'd like her to eat lunch first. Then she can take a nap in my office."

"Your office?" she asks, curiosity clear in her voice.

I smile at her and distract her with a kiss on the lips. I give her a few pecks before we are interrupted by Barlow.

"Sir" he says to get my attention. "I apologize for the interruption."

"Do you know what caused the power outage?"

"A vehicle accident just outside the building. The power was cut in our building as well as the building across the street to make it safe for workers to clear away the mess."

"How long?"

"Should only be a few more minutes, Sir. They are nearly finished."

"Thank you. The families are going to start arriving. I don't want anyone to be alarmed with the power outage. Take Daniels and greet everyone that comes through the door. They each know they can only enter with invitations. Check IDs with the invitations and have them sit comfortably in the lobby until the power is back on."

"Yes Sir."

Barlow walks away and Taylor follows, leaving Collins with us. Ana reaches over and caresses Natalie's wet cheek. "Hey Baby Girl, you doing okay?"

"It was dawk, Mommy. I scayoood."

"I know you were scared, Baby. But it's over now."

"Daddy, I don't like the dawk."

"I know you don't" I say softly. I lift her so that she is seated on my lap and I can look at her face. I kiss her cheek and dry her tears with a handkerchief. "Let's talk about what happened, okay?" She nods, so I continue. "The power lines control all of the light in the building. You know about the power lines that you see outside when we ride in the car?" She nods again. "Well, one of those power lines broke, and that's why the lights are out. Somebody's going to fix it so that the lights come back on."

"And it won't be dawk?"

That's right. When they fix the power lines, it won't be dark."

"Can I still weaw my dwess?"

I smile and kiss her hair again. "Of course you can wear your dress. You look really beautiful Sweet Pea."

After a few minutes, the lights come back on. I am so fucking relieved. I was not looking forward to having a lobby full of disappointed families. I have a technician check the elevators and they are safe, so I take Ana and Natalie and lead them in. Ana is fine with it, but Natalie insists that I hold her. She buries her face in my shoulder as Ana and I walk into the elevator hand and hand and ride it down to the lobby.

We carry on with our Halloween festivities. Natalie has a great time showing off her costume with the other kids. There are a few other little girls wearing Princess dresses and she gets a kick out of them. Some of the boys are dressed as Batman and Spiderman, and one is dressed as a monster from Monster's Inc. Some of the families used a theme for their costumes like the Addams Family and the Flintstones. Ana jokes that she'd like to do that some year. I glare at her, but it has no effect on her.

After spending two hours at the party, I walk Ana to the car that Collins pulled in front of the building. I have Natalie in my arms again. She's ready for her nap. Before Ana can get into the car, I tug on her elbow and lean in and kiss her. I just love this woman so much. When we pull away we lean our foreheads against each other's.

"You need to get back to work, Mr Grey."

"That I do" I agree. "Back to my world of exciting mergers and acquisitions, and little girls."

"What?" she giggles. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm keeping Natalie with me" I tell her with a big grin on my face. I have a surprise for her.

"Is that right?"

"That's right."

"Well, Mr Grey. You are sending me on my way in favor of keeping our daughter with you. Should I be jealous?"

"Not in the slightest" I say with the goofy grin still plastered on my face. "You see, our daughter will be napping, and you will be getting pampered."

I see the excitement start to grow in her eyes. "What are you up to?"

"Me? I'm up to my elbows in acquisitions. But you, my dear, sweet, wonderful Anastasia will be relaxing at the spa this afternoon."

"The spa?"

"That's right. I have you signed up for a pedicure, manicure, facial and shoulder massage. And you'll be done in time to meet us a Kate and Elliot's."

"Christian" she says excitedly. Tears start to form in her beautiful eyes. I reach up and dry them with one of my thumbs since I am still holding Natalie.

"Go and enjoy yourself, Baby. I love you." With that, I grasp her chin and place a gentle kiss on her lips."

"I love you too."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Christian's POV

I have been in my office for the past three hours trying to finish a project that I'd started before the power went out. I have my eye on a small company in Vancouver, and I am working on putting a team together that is relatively new to my company but strong enough to handle the project without too much guidance from me. This will put us in the early part of next year, and I plan to spend the entire month of January at home with Ana and the kids since that is when the twins are due. Some of the people I am choosing for the team have been with my company for a few months, just fresh out of college. I am also choosing at least two that have been with the company for three or more years.

I look over at the sofa that I keep in my office and see that Natalie is starting to stir. She had been sleeping the entire time. Even if she wasn't, she wouldn't have been a bother. She'd been used to going to work with Ana for so long, she knows how to entertain herself when it's necessary. Although I'm glad she was asleep the whole time. That means she won't be tired later and she'll be pleasant when we trick-or-treat at Escala with her cousins.

I finish my work for the day and shut down my computer, happy to have the rest of the day reserved for family time. I walk over to the sofa and sit down so that I can look down at my daughter. She opens her eyes and smiles when she sees me.

"Daddy"

"Hi Sweet Pea. Did you have a nice nap?"

I gently pick her up and sit her on my lap. She cuddles to me and wipes the sleep out of her eyes. "I wuv you Daddy" she says softly.

"I love you too, Sweet Pea. Very much. Did you have fun today with all of the kids at the party?"

"Yes"

"Good. I'm glad. How about some fruit snacks?" She nods her head and allows me to place her on the sofa while I collect her fruit snacks and juice from her bag. I sit with her while she enjoys her snack.

"Thank you Daddy"

"You're welcome. Eat them one at a time, okay?"

"Okay" she says and does as she's told. Andrea knocks on the door and I invite her in. I rarely have Natalie here with me, so my employees don't ever get to see her unless Ana visits for lunch. She comes in and sits with Natalie for a few minutes while I take a call. Andrea has a daughter around Natalie's age, so they talk about Princesses and movies that she likes. I watch Natalie's face and see that she is taken to Andrea. I love seeing my baby girl smile. I end the call and join her again.

"How are we doing over here?"

"Mr Grey, your daughter is just lovely. You need to bring her here more often."

"Thank you Andrea." She says goodbye to Natalie and leaves.

"Daddy she has a pwincess just like me" she says animatedly.

"That she does. And you know, all princesses deserve to have a pretty dress. Are you ready to put yours back on?" She nods excitedly. "Okay, let's get you changed first and then we can put your dress back on."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Ana's POV

I have the most sweetest, most wonderful husband. He surprised me with a day at the spa. I was able to get a manicure, pedicure, facial and shoulder massage. I usually get a back massage at the spa, but there is no way I can do that with my pregnancy belly. I feel so relaxed right now. That was just what I needed after the incident in the elevator. I honestly was a little freaked out by it, but I needed to stay cool for my daughter. Poor baby was so scared and I couldn't get her to calm. It was so dark in that elevator, and Natalie doesn't do well with the dark.

I think back to last evening. Out of the blue Christian told me he was going to shave my legs. I smile at the memory. I love his hands on me no matter what he is doing. This was his plan all along, to have my legs nice and smooth so that I wouldn't feel embarrassed during my pedicure. That man thinks of everything. I have to think of something I can do to show my appreciation. But how do I even match that? What can I possibly do for this man that could measure up to all of the sweet wonderful things that he does for me?

Collins interrupts my thoughts to let me know that we have arrived at Escala. He helps me out of the car and we ride the lift to Kate and Elliot's suite. Every time I'm in this lift I think of Christian and the electricity between us. We haven't lived here for some time, but the feelings are still fresh in my memory. I love being reminded of the days when we were just starting out. I was so young and so inexperienced. I was confused about this complicated man that by his own admission was fifty shades of fucked up. I never knew what was going to happen next, and I was excited by that. I catch myself smiling giddily and I bite my lip.

When we arrive in their suite I am immediately welcomed by my daughter, nieces and nephew. They are very excited about Halloween and look absolutely adorable in their costumes. Elizabeth is dressed as a flapper complete with a bobbed wig and a hot pink dress with fringe. Christopher is dressed as a Jake from Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Mia said that is currently his favorite show. And of course Sophia is dressed as Cinderella. Mia made all of their costumes. Kate and Elliot dressed Cameron up as a monkey. He is so cute. I wish I could pick him up.

Christian greets me with a kiss and asks me about my afternoon. "You always know just what I need when I need it" I tell him. Because it's true. I've always felt that he knew me better than I knew myself. He kisses me again and his lips linger on my cheek.

"You smell so good Mrs Grey" he whispers to me. I look down and notice that the kids' eyes are on us.

"There are kids present" I softly remind him. He finishes kissing me and takes my hand in his.

"Thirsty?"

"I can go for some water" I tell him. He helps me sit comfortably on the sofa and saunters off to the kitchen. Kate comes over and sits Cameron down in between us. I guess she read my mind. "You are just the cutest monkey in the world" I tell him. He looks up at me and smiles before he shoves his fingers in his mouth. Kate gives him some toys to play with while we chat. I don't get to spend nearly enough time with my best friend. I miss her so much. We try to have lunch together anytime we can and we catch up anytime we have family functions. It's amazing how much things change when you start a family. Before I met Christian, I lived with Kate and got to see her every day. And now it's Christian that I see every day. I wouldn't change that for anything of course. I love my life right now.

Mia joins us and we talk about the kids. She raves about Sophia's preschool and tries to talk me into enrolling Natalie. I'm still not ready for that, and it's just not necessary at the moment. I'm home during the day and Christian and I plan on teaching her everything she needs to know at her age. "I'd like to hold off for now, you know, until she's four or five" I tell her.

Christian, Elliot and Ethan join us and my husband hands me a glass of water. I take an appreciative sip before I put it on a coaster. Everyone else enjoys wine and beer as we chat about miscellaneous things. The kids are playing nicely at the moment, so might as well take advantage while we can. Ethan announces that he's decided to stop commuting to California for work and find a job local. He doesn't like being away from his family so much during the week. Christian tells him that he might have something for him at GEH and he happily accepts a meeting to discuss his skills. I look at Mia and she is beaming and her husband and brother.

We are interrupted when the girls start fussing. We look over in time to witness Sophia hit Natalie and Natalie shove her back. I start to stand but Christian stops me. "I got this" he assures me. I watch as Christian and Ethan walk over to break up their little fight, but not before Natalie's dress is ripped. Oh no!

Natalie starts to cry when she realizes that her dress is ripped. The other kids just sit and watch. Ethan picks Sophia up and whisks her out of the room. Mia explains that this is a common occurrence at school. Some of the kids hit and Sophia has picked up on it. She's been put in time out a few times for hitting. Oh yeah, that would definitely be a winning argument for me to put Natalie in school. No thanks. Christian picks Natalie up and tries to calm her. Mia walks over to them and offers to sew her dress. "Sweet Pea, why don't we take your dress off and let Aunt Mia make it all better?" She nods and allows them to take her dress off. Mia retrieves her huge sewing kit and brings it into the great room. Natalie sits on Christian's lap next to me and we watch as Mia threads the needle and makes quick work to fix the dress. Elizabeth also walks over and stands next to her mother to watch. Everyone seems very fascinated by it and nobody speaks for a few minutes. We can hear Sophia crying in the other room. I know that Mia and Ethan don't spank their kids, but their kids do react badly to punishment. It takes some time for their kids to calm down and accept that they are being punished.

"I'm so sorry about Sophie" Mia says when she's half way through sewing. "She's going through this phase right now with hitting and we've been trying to correct her behavior."

I look over at Christian and will him not to say anything. I know what he is thinking, but saying it out loud would only start a fight amongst our family. He's always disagreed with how his brother and sister disciplined their kids. He always felt Ava got away with way too much, and Mia's kids are in time out maybe four times a day. Elizabeth is the exception. She doesn't misbehave very often. I always felt sad whenever Christian had to spank our kids, but I trusted him when he said it was necessary. The results speak for themselves. He didn't have to punish very often and our kids were for the most part respectful and well behaved.

Once Mia is finished her handy work, she holds up the dress to show Natalie. Natalie's little face lights up when she sees that it's all fixed. "All better" Mia says as she passes the dress to Christian. Christian helps her put the dress back on and it is perfect. You would never know it had been ripped. Mia is definitely talented.

"What do we say to Aunt Mia?" he asks our daughter.

"Thank you" she says as she walks over to Mia and gives her a hug. Mia lifts her into her lap and squeezes her.

"You're welcome, Baby girl. You look gorgeous." I look up to see Ethan walk back into the room without Sophia. "Where's Sophie?"

"I'm sorry, Dear, but Sophie won't be going tonight. I'm going to stay here with her."

"Ethan…"

"What happened?" I ask, interrupting Mia's protests.

"I gave her a chance to apologize to Natalie, but she won't do it. I'm really sorry for her behavior and for what she did to Natalie's dress."

"It's okay, Ethan. Mia fixed it. It's as good as new" I try to assure him.

"Ethan, I don't want Sophie to miss out on Halloween" Mia says. I start to feel like we are intruding on a discussion they should be having privately.

"I don't either" he says, and I can see that he is struggling with this. "But Honey, we cannot award bad behavior. She's gotta learn that she can't hit people."

I don't know what comes over me, but suddenly I am intervening. "Do you mind if I have a talk with her?" I ask. Mia and Ethan both look over at me and I start to feel guilty for getting involved. But Ethan surprises me.

"Yeah, sure. She's in the guest room next to Ava's."

Christian helps me up and I make my way to the guest room.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Christian's POV

I watch my sister and brother-in-law struggle with what just happened with Sophia. If it were my daughter displaying that behavior, it wouldn't be a struggle at all. She wouldn't be missing out on Halloween and Ana and I wouldn't be at odds on how to handle it. She would get a spanking and that would be it. We would talk about it, lesson would be learned and we would move on. I never enjoyed punishing my kids, but I always appreciated the results. They learned that what they did was wrong and they wouldn't repeat the behavior. It only became a problem for me when Phoebe became a teenager and I didn't get the results that I'd expected. She rebelled against it and my controlling tendencies. But it still worked because she learned from her mistakes.

I pull Natalie into my lap again and kiss her hair. She plays with one of Sophia's dolls while I chat with Kate and Elliot. Ethan and Mia have moved their conversation to the other side of the room. Elliot tells me about his company's next big building project and Kate is hanging onto his every word. He's very excited about it. His company hasn't had a big project for some time so this is really good for him.

After some time, Ana walks back into the room and she is holding Sophia's hand. They walk over to us until Sophia is standing in front of me.

"Natalie, Sophie has something to say" Ana says gently. Mia and Ethan join us as well.

"I'm sowwy I wipped your dwess" she says, and she seems contrite. I can tell she's been crying. "And I'm sowwy I hit you."

"Natalie, Sophie said she was sorry. Do you think you can forgive her?" I ask her.

"I don't know what folgive means" she says sweetly.

Ana sits down next to me. "Well, Sophie feels really bad for what she did and she is sorry. If you forgive her, that means you know that she is sorry and you won't be upset with her anymore."

"So, Sweet Pea, can you forgive her?"

A few seconds go by as she thinks about it. "Okay" she says with her sweet voice. I put her on the ground so that she can hug her cousin. Ethan squats down to talk to Sophia, so I pull Natalie back into my lap.

"That was very good, Sophie" he says to her. "Would you like to go trick-or-treating with Natalie?" She nods and wipes a tear from her eye. "Okay, we can go. But you need to be a good girl. No more hitting, or I will take you home and put you to bed. Understand?" She nods again and puts her head down. Ethan kisses her and hugs her. I feel awkward witnessing this exchange. Any form of punishment should be private. I look over at Mia and see that she's relieved. She takes Sophia and tells us she's going to get her cleaned up and put her back in her Cinderella dress.

After the kids are ready, we make our way through the building for trick-or-treating. Each of them has a Halloween bag that Grace and Carrick had given them for the occasion. They are going to stop by later to see the kids in their costumes. I walk with Ana hand in hand and remember the times we used to take Teddy, Ava and Phoebe through the building for trick-or-treating. Since there aren't any houses around us, trick-or-treating at Escala was always practical. The girls outgrew the tradition when they were thirteen, so we stopped. We started again this year since our little one is old enough and Mia and Ethan's kids now live in Seattle.

Phoebe is at the hospital helping Brooke with the Halloween festivities for the cancer patients. I am so proud of my daughter. I told her that this morning and then realized how much those words meant to her. I have got to make sure I tell her that more often. Teddy told me that he has plans to attend a Halloween party on campus and promised to send us pictures. I'm proud of him as well. I didn't get the same reaction from him when I said those words, I'm proud of you Son, but that's the difference between my kids. Teddy doesn't need to hear those words quite as often as Phoebe does.

Each time we need to use the elevator, Natalie rushes to me and raises her hands up for me to pick her up. I can tell it will take some time for her to get over today's incident with the elevator at GEH. I hold her each time we use the elevator and then put her down to join the kids as they knock on each door. It is a delight to see her have a great time. She loves her dress, and all of the residents make a great fuss over the kids and their costumes. I don't think she really cares for the candy. We don't give her much candy at home. Only M&Ms. I don't think she'll eat much of the candy she collects. It's really the experience of trick-or-treating Ana and I wanted her to have. When Teddy and Phoebe were little, they didn't eat much of the candy either. They donated most of it to the kids at the hospital.

After we've hit about five floors, the kids start to get tired. Elizabeth tells us she is done, but Christopher wants to keep going. Ethan agrees to take him to a few more units while we take the other kids back up to Kate and Elliot's suite. Elliot has been giving out the candy, so we have the kids knock for him. He acts really surprised and gives them each candy before inviting all of us in. Mom and Dad are here and they greet each of us with kisses and hugs. They, of course, make a huge fuss over the kids and their costumes. The kids are very excited to see them and show them all of the candy they've collected.

Once Ethan and Christopher return, we all sit and have dinner together. Kate had the day off today and prepared a great beef stew, which she left cooking for hours. I have to say it's quite good. Kate doesn't usually cook for us. She never has to since most of our parties are catered. She said she wanted to keep it simple and prepare something that could just sit in crock pots while Elliot was here giving out candy. We all have a laugh at Elliot's expense. He's never been much of a cook, and he knows it. He can handle pancakes but that's about it.

Natalie starts to fall asleep in my lap after dinner, so Ana and I say our goodbyes. We climb into the Audi SUV and settle Natalie in her car seat. She's fast asleep. I watch her for a few minutes until Ana pulls my attention her way. We are holding hands again. I bring her hand up to my lips and plant gentle kisses on her knuckles. "What you did for me today was very sweet and thoughtful" she says softly as to not wake our daughter. "To this day you still manage to surprise me."

"I'm glad. I never want to stop surprising you."

"What can I do to show my appreciation?"

"I can think of a few things" I say to her seductively as I kiss her knuckles again.

"I'm serious. What could I possibly do to show you just how much I appreciate you?"

She catches me off guard. Is she serious right now? "What do you mean?"

"You do so much for me, Christian. You take care of me and you take care of our kids, you shave my legs and set up surprise spa appointments for me, you work so hard to make sure our lives are comfortable and as uncomplicated as possible…."

I shift so that I am facing her. "Anastasia, I live for that. I wouldn't want it any other way. And…. as far as appreciating me, it goes both ways. You are carrying our twins." I place my hand on her ever growing pregnancy belly and she places her hand on top of mine. "I don't think there's anything I could ever do to show you how much I appreciate what you go through to have our kids. But, I'll never stop trying."

"I love you" she says softly. I lean in and kiss her.

"I love you too, Mrs Grey."

Finally, I have finished chapter 41. I am so sorry it took me so long. I appreciate everyone that is reading this story even though updates take me some time. Work has been crazy, but I'm not going to complain about that. I'm happy and lucky to be employed. Writing this story also makes me happy and I will keep going. I read the trilogy last summer, so I wanted to take some time and read the first book again. I'm surprised about some of the things I've forgotten. I enjoyed reading it again. It also really helped me get back into the heads of Christian and Anastasia and why I love these two characters. So much so that I wanted to write fanfiction for them. Thank you again and Happy Reading!