CHAPTER 12

(ANA)

I watch Eva in awe as she scribbles on the notepad in front of her. I have offered my input as to what I would like the statement to say and I see her as she scribbles something. Then she pauses and frowns and then crosses it out and scribbles some more. She pauses again and reads what she has written and adds a bit more. She is clearly gifted at this and she knows what she is doing. When we had been alone, and we had been generally chatting about our lives she had told me of the time a reporter had tried to write a damning article on Gideon, describing the brief encounter they had shared, before Gideon and Eva had started their relationship. From what she told me this woman had been left bent out of shape as a result of a one-night stand and she was determined to ruin his reputation as an act of revenge. Eva had come back with a plan to head her off by totally revamping Gideon's online presence and highlighting his work with the Crossroads foundation, something he had previously shied away from.

I look up at our husbands who are silently standing just waiting and watching. I realise that we had once again totally ignored them and I feel a moment of guilt. I leave Eva's side and walk towards Gideon and Christian.

"We sort of ignored you both didn't we?" I say sheepishly.

Gideon smiles at me and shakes his head, "Think nothing of it, you two just do what you need to do" he says kindly. I turn towards Christian and wrap my arms around him.

"Are you ok?" I ask, as I know this must be jarring for him with his control issues and his need to fix things where I am concerned, not to mention his very deep-seated issues with his need to protect me at all cost.

He responds and wraps his arms around me and kisses me gently on the top of my head before inhaling deeply, and when he does that, I know he is calming himself down and that this situation is getting to him.

"Don't worry about me baby" he says stoically and I smile, he is trying so hard and the fact he hasn't jumped in and tried to take over shows just how much he has grown since we have been together.

We are interrupted by Eva who stands up and speaks.

"Right then, I think this sounds ok, do you want to read this Ana?" she asks as she holds out the pad towards me.

I pull away from Christian and take the pad from my sister and start to read, as I do so I see she has pulled no punches and has been astonishingly open, candid and honest and by doing so she has very cleverly turned the tables on Frank, highlighting his behaviour and his actions which will focus the attention of the media on him rather than us.

"Wow" I say when I have read it, "that's just brilliant" I add.

Eva grins at me, "I do my best" she says with a shrug.

"May I?" Gideon asks and so I hand him the notepad and he starts to read; I watch as Christian steps up and Gideon glances at him before sharing the pad with him. My attention moves towards my sister and I see that Eva is watching Gideon's reaction closely. After a moment the two men look up.

"This is brilliant" Gideon says simply and Christian nods in agreement.

Eva swells with pride at the positive reaction and Gideon looks straight at her.

"This is an example of why I want you working with me" he states and Eva's eyes immediately harden and she shakes her head.

"Don't start that again, not now" she says sharply.

"I think I'm going to call my dad, give him a heads up on this" she adds, changing the subject after a moment's awkward silence.

"I'm sorry Angel" Gideon mutters and Eva glances up from her phone and just gives him a curt nod. I realise that this must be a bone of contention between the two and I make a mental note of speaking with my sister and asking her about it when we are alone.

"Hi daddy" she says and I can hear the love in her voice as she speaks to the man who she has always thought was her father.

"Listen dad, I have something important to tell you. It seems that guy who sent Ana the book manuscript was Frank… yeah… and he's a right piece of work I can tell you… oh yeah, he showed up alright! Yes… total narcissist not to mention complete fantasist… he sat there and told a load of lies about Ray and then changed around completely when Ray walked into the room as if he hadn't said anything when Ray had heard every word… You remember I told you about Ray – he's Ana's step dad… yeah the guy who raised her… well we put him in his place and he left threatening to go to the media and making it public about him being mine and Ana's sperm donor, which he has. Ray has already put into action the military going after him so I thought I'd give you a heads up about all of this because Ana and I are going to release a statement to the media. We are going to confirm his story but also lay out all the facts so there may be a chance that you will be drawn into this and the press will come knocking for a comment from you… I know… yes… we have to do it though dad, at this moment we are inside Grey Publishing in Seattle with a growing press pack outside… yes… well I'm hoping by doing it, it will divert their attention back to Frank… yeah… could we? I'd like that… I'll speak to Ana and see what she says but yeah I'd like that… ok, bye for now dad, love you… yeah bye and stay safe".

Eva ends the call and pushes her phone back into her pocket. "Dad says we are welcome to head down to San Diego and stay with him for a while till the media get this out of their system, he said he'd like to meet Ana and I think I'd like to go, so what do you say?"

I look at Christian hopefully, Eva had been talking about her father while we were alone and I am certain he and Ray would get along like a house on fire and I am also eager to meet him.

"I'd like to go" I say tentatively, "and if he wants to go, I'd like to take Ray with us to meet Victor as well" I add. I look at Eva questioningly and she nods enthusiastically.

"That sounds a great idea" she replies.

Christian nods, "Sure baby no problem" he says simply and I smile knowing that I have probably just messed up the rest of his schedule for this week by doing this but he loves me so much he will change it no questions asked. "Are you going to call Ray and ask him if he wants to go and I'll get Taylor to go and fetch him? We can release the statement, head back home to The Sound and then fly out to San Diego in the morning if that sounds agreeable with everyone". Christian looks around and Gideon nods in agreement.

"Fine with me" he says, and I watch as he is rapidly texting someone, so I am assuming he is making arrangements of his own to accommodate this unscheduled trip.

oooOOOooo

(CHRISTIAN)

Events are moving quickly; at this moment we are standing waiting to go out and face the growing media who have descended on Grey Publishing. Gideon has been talking with his security man, a guy called Raul who it appears accompanied Gideon and Eva to Seattle. I hadn't noticed anyone but he has obviously been around.

Taylor has informed me that he has sent Sawyer to collect Ray and is driving him to our home. It appears that some reporters have started showing up at his home looking for comment so I am relieved that Sawyer has managed to get him out of that situation. It reminds me of when Ana and I married and the media camped out on Ray's doorstep hoping to get some kind of comment from him about his daughter marrying a billionaire. Gideon appears to be organising accommodation for us in San Diego with his other man Angus and from what has been said it seems that Angus will be meeting us in California when we arrive there tomorrow. Eva and Ana are in deep discussion about who is going to deal with the press pack when they go out there and I'm not surprised when Ana defers to Eva and lets her do the talking.

"So, we are not taking any questions, although there shouldn't really be any need for them as everything is going to be laid out on a plate for them. But there is bound to be some idiot ask something" Eva says as she looks at the notes in her hand.

Ana nods and then looks at Gideon, "You've given your PR department a heads up on this haven't you?" she asks and Gideon nods.

"I have, they have been instructed to follow the no comment route and if anyone is persistent, they will be told to say that the statement is self-explanatory".

Ana looks questioningly at me and I nod my head, "All sorted baby, my PR team know what to do" I say confidently. I have instructed my PR team to do exactly the same as it is important that we show a united front and send out a consistent message.

I watch as Ana takes a deep breath and nods. "Ok then let's do it" she says.

We move towards the door where Taylor is waiting and watching, he is talking on his phone and it becomes apparent he is talking with Gideon's man Raul who is outside observing the situation.

"There is quite a large contingent out there but they are being fairly civilised at the moment. I have called in Ryan and Reynolds and they are outside liaising with Raul Huerta, Gideon's man" Taylor says as he hangs up.

I nod in understanding, "Thank you" I reply and I turn my attention back to Eva and Ana who are now ready to go. A moment of anxiety and fear shoots through me and I have to hold myself in check so that I don't say or do something inappropriate and embarrass Ana. At this moment all I want to do is bundle her up and whisk her away from all this. Logically I know this has to be done, but it doesn't make it any easier knowing that.

Eva turns to Ana and smiles reassuringly as she opens the door. As soon as the media see the ladies they break into a flurry of activity. Cameras click, flash bulbs are going off and they all surge forward shouting questions and generally behaving like animals.

Eva confidently holds up her hand to quieten them and while they calm down a little there is still constant questions being thrown.

"If you don't shut up you won't hear what I have to say" Eva says loudly and this has the desired effect and they all calm down and an eerie silence descends upon them.

"Thank you" she says, then she takes a deep breath before continuing.

"I am going to read a prepared statement; it will be self-explanatory and will answer all the questions you have about the situation I am going to speak of. There will be no questions as all the relevant details to this situation will be covered by what I am going to say".

Eva pauses and turns towards Ana and smiles, "Ok?" she whispers and Ana nods and steps closer to Eva. She slips her small hand into Eva's offering her, her support as Eva turns back to face the media.

"A while ago, I was given the life changing information that the man I always thought was my father, wasn't. This was naturally an unsettling and upsetting time to discover everything that I had taken as fact throughout my life was wrong. As a result of this revelation I obtained information as to who my biological father was and my husband reached out to an old college friend who agreed to help track down this person. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Finding Family Inc for their discreet, professional and painstaking work which helped me to uncover the truth about where I came from. It was discovered that the person who had been named as my father was now deceased, after sadly dying in a military training exercise a number of years previously. However, Finding Family also discovered that he had fathered another child, my sister Anastasia". Eva pauses and gestures towards Ana as she says this.

"Ana was approached by Finding Family and she confirmed that her biological father was Frank Lambert and that he had died the day after she was born. She agreed to meet me and we are currently building a relationship. However, through our investigations it became apparent very quickly that Frank Lambert had not died as was previously thought. Instead he had faked his own death, deserted the military and fled to Canada where he has been living under the assumed name of Francis Lamb. The US military have been informed of this and I believe that they are taking the appropriate action to arrest Mr Lambert for desertion. It appears that Mr Lambert was aware of Anastasia and has been following her throughout her life from a distance, due to the fact that one of his army colleagues and a man he called a friend stepped up and took on the role of parent and guardian for my sister. From the information Mr Lambert personally gave us and from what we have been able to determine, it appears he was motivated by greed due to the life my sister now enjoys and decided to come forward and make himself known to her. He was aware that he had previously fathered me but he had abandoned my mother years previously and had never made any effort to search for me or make contact with me, and as such he was unaware of me and unaware of how my life had turned out. My husband and I flew to Seattle to support my sister when the meeting with Mr Lambert was arranged and for me to confront my biological father with the information that I was also his daughter. The meeting ended badly when Mr Lambert refused to accept any responsibility for his actions when he had abandoned both our mothers and effectively faked his own death to avoid any parental responsibility. During that meeting he told a tissue of lies and became rude and abusive when we confronted him with the facts and when we asked him to leave, he threatened to go to the media to reveal his connection to us. Why Mr Lambert has chosen to make his connection with us public is unknown as he has nothing to gain from doing so. By going public he has now brought himself to the attention of the military who will hopefully be using the information we have provided to apprehend him. As far as I am concerned my father is the man who raised me, and the man who I always assumed was my father and Mr Lambert is irrelevant. That is all I need to say on the matter and I will hand you over to my sister who wants to add a few words".

Eva takes a step back as the media just stand there in stunned silence. Nobody expected that candid detailed statement and what has been said has literally shocked them into silence. I look at Gideon, the basic facts of the statement as we had read it were all there, but Eva had also gone into further detail offering a more emotional dialogue than is customary. I realise immediately why she did this, she was concentrating on painting Lambert as the villain to get the media to focus their attention on him rather than us, a very clever if somewhat manipulative strategy.

My attention moves to my wife as I watch as Ana looks out across the sea of faces. Once again, my protective instincts towards her go into overdrive and I move towards her and slip my arm around her, silently offering her my unconditional love and support. As she feels me touch her, she looks up at me and gives me a grateful smile before taking a deep breath and beginning to speak.

"Good Afternoon, my sister has laid out the facts and there isn't really much more I can add, other than I always knew Frank Lambert was my biological father but as far as I was aware, he was dead. The only father I have ever known and loved is my step father Raymond Steele. He has been the man who raised me and who has been there all my life. As far as I am concerned Frank Lambert died years ago and has no part to play in my life. The only positive thing to come out of his selfish actions was that he gave me a sister who I didn't know I had, until recently. With that in mind I would like to ask that you respect our privacy as Eva and I continue to get to know each other and build our own relationship, and that you do not harass our fathers and give them the respect and privacy that they deserve, as they also come to terms with everything that has transpired, thank you".

"That was perfect" I whisper as I gently squeeze Ana's shoulder.

"Are you alright Angel?" Gideon asks as he mirrors my protective stance with Eva. She smiles up at him and assures him she is fine.

We turn to leave as the media start shouting questions. Eva and Ana look at each other and both roll their eyes at the inane questions being thrown at them and we ignore them as we walk away.

I see Taylor and he ushers us towards the waiting cars and we clamber in. Taylor drives us while Gideon's man Raul drives the other Audi SUV with Gideon and Eva inside.

As soon as we are inside the car and making our way home Ana lets out a long sigh.

"Are you ok?" I ask and she nods and smiles at me.

"I'm fine, honestly I am. I just hate dealing with the press" she says.

I wrap my arms around her and pull her close, "I know baby and I'm sorry" I say sadly, knowing it is down to me and who I am, that causes the media to have such an interest in her.

Ana shakes her head, "It's not your fault" she says as she squeezes my hand.

We arrive home and as the car comes to a halt I climb out and open Ana's door. I look up to see the other SUV pull up and we see Gideon and Eva emerge, Eva looks upset and Gideon has a grim expression on his face.

Eva has her phone in her hand and she makes a beeline for Ana.

"Mom's having a meltdown, it's all over the news in New York and she has been approached for comment. She said she will never forgive me for embarrassing her like that" Eva says with a shrug.

She is trying to sound nonchalant but it is clear whatever her mother said to her has hurt her. I glance at Gideon who is hovering and clearly upset by his wife's distress.

"Let's go inside and sit down" I say.

We make our way inside and waiting for us with a mug of tea in front of him is Ray. He immediately stands and walks towards Ana.

"Annie are you ok?" he asks and then he turns his attention to Eva, "and you Eva how are you bearing up?" he adds.

The ladies smile at him kindly and Ana wraps her arms around him. He responds with an awkward hug but quickly pulls away.

Eva gives Ray a grateful smile and walks up to him and gives him a warm hug, "Hi Ray, I'm ok thanks". She quickly pulls away as she realises Ray isn't comfortable with this public show of affection.

I step forward and shake Ray's hand and then Gideon also greets him warmly.

"Are you coming to California with us?" Ana asks suddenly and Ray nods.

"If you want me to then I am here for you, you know that" he says gruffly.

"I am hoping you can offer my dad some of your wise words as I'm pretty sure he is still struggling with this" Eva adds and Ray nods.

"I'll do my best" he says modestly.

oooOOOooo

We are all starting to relax when Ana's phone starts to ring. She glances at it and freezes before looking up at me, which immediately puts me on full alert.

"What's wrong baby?" I ask.

"Carla is calling me" Ana says quietly.

I feel a surge of anger go through me as it always does when Ana's mother is mentioned. She was no mother to my wife and I am eternally grateful that she had Ray's influence in her life.

"Do you want me to speak to her?" I ask gently as I hold my hand out for Ana's phone. She hesitates a moment and then nods.

"Would you, I don't think I can deal with her at the moment. Can you put the call on speaker though, so I can hear what rubbish she is going to come out with" she says.

I take the phone from her and nod as I press the speaker button and answer the call.

"Hello Carla" I say coldly. There is a moments silence before I hear Carla's annoying voice.

"Where's Ana?" she asks simply.

"She doesn't want to talk to you, she asked me to take the call" I say and I hear a sharp intake of breath.

"It's not my fault, I thought Frank was dead" she begins somewhat defensively.

I roll my eyes, "I never said it was, nobody has even given you a thought Carla. This isn't about you. This is about Ana and Eva who are currently coming to terms with everything that has happened. Now I will ask you again, what do you want?" I say.

There is another brief silence before Carla speaks again, "I just wanted to ask Ana how Frank was, is he still as handsome as he was… I was wondering if she had a number for him?" She pauses and I cannot believe the selfishness of that woman. I hear both Ana and Eva let out a disgusted exclamation and I see Gideon shaking his head. Ray looks like he wants to commit murder and he reaches for Ana and wraps his arm around her which goes to show just how affected he is by what has just been said.

My anger is now at boiling point, but I try and control it for Ana's sake. "So, let's get this straight Carla, your call wasn't to ask how Ana is? You didn't think to call and see if your daughter needed the support of her mother? You didn't think to call because you were concerned about how she is dealing with this very unsettling and upsetting situation? You were calling hoping Ana could hook you up again with Frank. You are unbelievable Carla; do you have any maternal instincts in your selfish body? Are you so self-centred that your only thoughts are for what you can get out of this?" I pause as my voice is rising and I can feel my control on my temper weakening.

I hear a click and the line goes dead, she hung up on me. I end the call and throw Ana's phone onto the coffee table in front of me.

"Well I think that says it all" I say with a shrug, then I stand and move towards Ana pulling her from Rays arms into my own.

As I do so Eva stands and hovers at Ana's side. I reluctantly give way to her as I know she is also hurting from her own mothers' actions and she knows better than anyone else in the room how Ana is feeling at the moment. I walk over to Gideon and gesture with my head for him to follow me, Ray also stands and follows me out of the room as we leave Ana and Eva alone.