Chapter 21: A different proposition
AKA: Office dalliances, new sceneries, and a question

She was not

A chapter.

She was

The whole

Story.

Tuesday marked three months since Anastasia and I had first met outside the club. I commemorated it only in my head, as a month ago Anastasia had recoiled at the number of anniversaries I wished to celebrate, and I was already planning something overwhelming for our actual anniversary in the upcoming weekend. Still, I had been intending on being extra attentive that night at home, but Ros had to go and throw a wrench into my plans with some issues regarding the final draft of a contract.

It was just after half past six when Andrea knocked on my door, opened it, and said, "If that'll be all, sir, I'll be taking my leave."

"Yes, of course, Andrea. Have a good night."

She smiled unusually wide.

"You too, Mr Grey. And Miss Steele is here to see you."

Oh.

How unexpected; but what a pleasant surprise.

"Mr Grey will see you now," I heard her say after she'd turned around.

Having caught up on the game—it was too much of a coincidence for her to have shown up today of all days in my office, especially after I'd revealed I'd fantasized about re-enacting the interview and fucking her in my office—I stood up by the window, just like I'd been doing when she'd first walked into my office three months ago. I would never forget turning around to look into her eyes for the first time; my instant recognition of my Kitty standing on the other side of my office, now with a name to match.

Anastasia was wearing the very same grey dress she had during the original interview. She was blushing just as much, too, amusingly enough.

My eyes focused on her, recalling the first time I'd dived into that warm blue sea.

"Miss Steele? A pleasure to meet you," I said, walking towards her before extending my right hand in greeting.

She bit that delicious lip of hers, trying to hide a smile, and shook my hand.

"Mast—Mr Grey," she stuttered.

"Good afternoon, Kitty. It is a nice surprise to see you here," I said huskily as I took a step closer, invading her personal space and feeling the warmth coming out of her body.

I let go of her hand and reached out behind her to close and lock the door, not even trying to respect her personal space.

I could hear her breathing accelerate.

I took a step back and, pointing at the couch, asked, "Shall we?"

She nodded silently.

On the table, she placed a small brown paper bag I hadn't even known she'd been carrying. I gave her a questioning look and she shook her head, so I let it go momentarily and continued with the game. She opened her purse and took out a small notebook, a pencil, and a piece of paper. She glanced at the latter, and read, "You're very young to have amassed such an empire, Mr Grey. To what do you owe your success?"

I clicked my tongue in disappointment. "You wouldn't believe how many times I've heard that question. That's not very original."

"Maybe I'll be able to get some unprecedented answers out of you," she flirted with a slightly familiar line. That's what she had answered back then, wasn't it? My Nymph.

"Maybe you will," I conceded before giving her a brief version of my standard answer.

"Do you have any interests outside of work?" she asked then, and I gave her the same cryptic answer as back then. "I have varied interests, Miss Steele. Very varied..."

"But if you work so hard, what do you do to relax?"

I do you.

"I fly, sail and indulge myself in other... physical pursuits," I replied as my eyes travelled over her body, following the roadmap of my favourite spots hidden behind her dress.

"Physical pursuits? Like football or swimming? Or maybe working out?"

I smiled salaciously.

"I do work out, Miss Steele. But I do prefer more… indecent activities," I volunteered as one of my hands slid on top of her naked knee. She gasped.

"I see," she said breathlessly and then cleared her throat.

"Do you have a philosophy? If so, what is it?"

"I don't have a philosophy as such. Maybe a guiding principle—Carnegie's: 'A man who acquires the ability to take full possession of his own mind may take possession of anything else to which he is justly entitled.'"

"So you want to possess things?" she asked with an ironic smile.

It's funny she should ask that. I blinked, thinking about what I'd reflected on the day before, and revealed to her thoughts that had been plaguing my mind as I looked into her eyes: "I don't think 'possess' is the word, no… Carnegie doesn't speak about owning things, but of seizing every given opportunity to achieve great success in life. I have been recently re-reading his words, you see, and he also said that 'the mind like the body can be moved from the shade into sunshine.'" She gasped, but this time it wasn't out of lust. She placed her hand on top of mine, joining me above her knee. "So, bottom line, I want not to possess things, but to keep my eyes open to any good opportunity. Much like I did the night we met, Kitty."

She smiled bashfully at me and everted her eyes, looking back at her piece of paper.

"Did you have to sacrifice your family for work?" she asked.

"Only at first," I answered truthfully. "When GEH was barely months old, it was as needy as a baby."

Had I been willing to make a larger sacrifice though? While I hadn't spent as much time with my family as I ought to in the past, my job had only been one of many reasons—and the lesser reason, really. But beyond that, my working hours and dedication to GEH wouldn't have made room for a wife and children. Now though, that GEH was more settled, I was welcoming the more reasonable and healthy working hours.

Then arrived the killing question: "Are you gay, Mr Grey?"

"I think you know the answer to that question, Kitty," I answered huskily. My hand travelled from her knee, up her thigh, caressing her warm skin. "What I would like to know is why that's relevant to my business."

"I don't think it is," she replayed as my thumb caressed her inner thigh, "but I'm sure the college students that will be reading this interview are terribly curious about your sexual orientation."

"Why don't I show you?" I suggested and then kissed her deeply and passionately, this time knowing my advance would be welcome—unlike the first time she'd been at my office.

My hand slid further south and cupped her sex as my free palm held her face.

She pushed me away unforcefully and unexpectedly.

"We've already gone through this, Sir," she said, standing up and taking a few steps away from me. "I'm not the kind of Sub that you want."

"But you are the woman that I need, Anastasia," I answered. Truer words had never been spoken.

I stood up to follow her. I'd never be letting her go.

"But the contract you—"

"Fuck the contract," I answered before kissing her passionately. She relaxed in my arms and kissed me back.

I eventually had to pull back for air. My lips travelled down her chin and neck.

"I'm not going to ask 'how high?' when you ask me to jump, Mr Grey."

"I gathered as much, Kitty. You're not much of a Submissive, are you?" I asked as my fingers grabbed the zipper of her dress.

"Not really," she agreed as I lowered the zip.

"Lift your arms," I ordered and she smiled, amusement reaching her eyes.

"What's in it for me?"

"So this is what it will be like?" I asked.

Wasn't it how it had always been? I'd just been too stubborn to listen.

"I'm far more complicated than what you think, Sir."

"I doubt it. I'm aware you're the most complicated person I know," I assured her, looking into her eyes. My hands caressed down her arms, trying to seduce her into complying. "A tiger in kitty's clothing, innocent looking but dangerous and with claws."

Without warning, I gripped her wrists and rose them suddenly, bringing up her arms. "May I take off your dress?" I asked with a smirk, not truly intoning it like a question.

"Help yourself."

I let go of her arms but she kept them up as I reached for the bottom of her dress and removed it.

Underneath, I found the sheer black lingerie I'd gifted her on our last anniversary.

"Damn," I muttered. It looked fantastic on her.

"Do you like it, Sir?"

"You are divine, Anastasia."

"Thank you, Sir. You clean up nicely. Now I'd like to see what's underneath," she said, grabbing the lapels of my suit and brazenly pulling me towards her. She took control of the kiss and then the situation altogether, devouring my mouth and removing my jacket as she would not have dared to three months before. She was a Goddess and she had me entranced: her assertiveness, her confidence, her curves and the lace covering them were driving me insane. I caressed her through the baby doll as she unbuttoned my shirt like I had allowed no woman before her. The instant she'd removed the white garment, I picked her up by her upper thighs and carried her to my unchristened desk.

"I've never fucked a woman in my desk before, Miss Steele, and I'm afraid that after today I won't be able to focus on my work again."

"I'd hope so. I'd like to think I'm more stimulating than Excel sheets."

"Oh, you are, baby. Much more so."

It wasn't easy to remove her black baby doll while she was sitting on my desk, but I managed. As soon as I had her naked, I sat down on my chair, arm-length away from her.

Unashamed and with the smile of a vixen, she crossed her legs and reclined slightly, supporting her weight with her hands. I found her position lacking and rolled my chair close to the desk. I grabbed her ankles and delicately uncrossed them. She complied and allowed me to place her feet on my chair's armrests.

What a view.

The following day, when I sat on my desk and tried to focus on my computer,

all I could see was her.

She was on top of my desk, on my couch, even against a wall, bending over a chair and holding onto a window...

I saw her where she had been and where I wanted her to be someday.

She was everywhere.

She was everything.

"You are most exquisite, Miss Steele, and I can't wait to taste you."

Without more preamble, I bent down to do just that. I used my mouth and lips to bring her pleasure, and soon she was whimpering and moaning and crushing my head against her thighs.

"Come now, Anastasia," I instructed when I knew I'd bought her to the edge. She came spectacularly in my mouth, and I leapt at everything she had to give me.

I gave her a few minutes to recover and memorized every centimetre of her flushed skin as she panted, eyes closed and hands still supporting her weight. Meanwhile, I removed the rest of my clothes.

Once her breathing had slowed down and her eyes had opened, I helped her climb down from my desk and asked her, "Are you ready for round two?"

"Of course, Sir."

We then christened the white couch as I marvelled at her beauty and whispered to her how lucky I was to have her in my life.

To think we may have never met again if Katherine had interviewed me instead.

Exhausted, we finally collapsed on the couch. I kissed her shoulder and noticed something brown in the corner of my eyes. The paper bag Anastasia had brought with her still sat on my coffee table.

"What's in the bag?"

"Oh. A snack." My Kitty blushed. "My poor excuse to visit my boyfriend at work after office hours, when there's no one around," she explained, caressing my back. "I don't think anyone bought it."

I chuckled.

"No person who knows us would fall for it, love. Is it a happy coincidence that I got held back today of all days?"

"Mmm… no. Seeing as how I interviewed you exactly three months ago, I asked Ros to create a diversion. I guess that's another person on the list who knows," she said, biting her lip nervously.

I wanted to be the one biting that lip, so I bend down to do just that.

"There's no shame in fucking like rabbits, Anastasia."

She chuckled.

"That doesn't mean I'm comfortable with people knowing we're naked in your office right now."

"I'm the one who will get teased by Ros tomorrow. But I'm very proud to have taken you in my desk and couch. We'll do the door and at least one of the walls next time."

She laughed.

By Saturday, I had written my proposal to Anastasia, spoken with the estate agent to confirm our appointment, and ensured the ring was as shiny and polished as it had been in the store. I wasn't one to suffer from anxiety and nerves, and knowing I had done everything possible to avoid a scathing refusal helped. That is not to say I wasn't apprehensive during the morning, but life—and particularly, being a cutthroat CEO—had taught me to act naturally when I was feeling down. Also, following the morning routine Anastasia and I usually shared helped.

I did lock myself in my office for an hour and a half during the morning, to try and make up for the time I'd spent organizing the anniversary surprise. Luckily, I mostly had numbers to go through, and I tended to focus on them so much that I forgot the rest of the world existed. I may have followed along with Anastasia's joke, but I did find Excel sheets stimulating. Soon, I was so deep in the math, I'd forgotten to worry about the house and the proposal.

Once I'd soothed myself, I was ready to find some solace in Anastasia's arms. We played for an hour in the red room of pleasure before our stomachs started asking for food.

After a more tranquil afternoon, the time to leave was suddenly upon us. Anastasia was surprised to hear I had plans for us outside the apartment, but she was excited by the prospect.

I decided to drive my convertible Audi R8 'Spyder.' Anastasia put her hair up as we exited the underground garage. It was a beautiful day outside but the sun was hitting us at an uncomfortable angle, so I asked Anastasia to take out a couple of sunglasses I had in the glove compartment.

"Are we going to London?" she asked as soon as I'd taken the first turn right. I chuckled at her miserable attempt.

I also took it as an obvious suggestion for the honeymoon.

"Not that far."

"Elliot's apartment?"

"A bit further away," I answered as I carefully turned into Pike St.

"Your parent's house?" It wasn't a bad guess, as we were headed toward that direction.

"A bit closer."

She huffed, apparently out of ideas.

She was silent as I turned right into Boren Eve, and then left in Madison St. As we drove northeast, tall grey buildings became green trees and smaller colourful structures. With time, the number of houses and trees increased. We were silent as we enjoyed the view. Once we'd made it past Washington Park, I turned right in Lake Washington Blvd.

Suddenly, there was lush green grass by the sidewalks, tall trees concealing us from the sun, and large houses half-hidden behind the greenery. The drive was twisting and pleasant. The landscape wasn't one I'd mind contemplating every day while I drove to work.

As we got closer to the house, we drove through Lakeview Park. The name gave credit to the beautiful sight of Lake Washington to our left. I noticed Anastasia staring, but we didn't have time to stop and admire it. Plus, the view was supposed to be just as good from the house.

Soon, my GPS announced we were close and I slowed down. Once we reached the house's driveway, I turned left. The building itself was well hidden behind the trees, giving the owners privacy, but after a few seconds, we were able to see it fully. The house was grey and sand-coloured, three storeys high, and had large windows. It was nicer in person than in the pictures. Warmer. Homier. It wasn't so large one could get lost in its countless rooms and cold hallways, but rather so big one could invite over as many family and friends as wanted, and still have room for more.

Off to the right, there was a large garage with a guest house above it. A place for Taylor and Gail to live in.

Next to the garage, there was already a red car parked and enough space for my own. I parked the Audi in the free space just as Mrs Darling, the estate agent, walked out of the house. I recognized her from the picture on the webpage. She seemed to be in her late thirties and had dirty blond hair, similar to my mother's.

We climbed out of the car and walked towards the main entrance.

"Mrs Darling, this is my girlfriend, Anastasia Steele," I introduced her. I had already spoken with her on the phone when I confirmed the appointment. She had asked how many people would be joining us in the house, and I told her I'd be surprising my girlfriend with the visit. "Baby, this is Mrs Darling, an estate agent."

"An estate agent?"

"Yes, beautiful. I've been thinking about investing in a house. For us," I said, squeezing her hand.

She turned to look at me, wide-eyed.

"Shall we?" Mrs Darling invited us, gesturing towards the door.

The pictures hadn't done the house justice. Sure, the floors were old and in need of replacement, and the walls were begging for a new layer of paint, but the main room was spacious and luminous. It was two storeys tall, with huge windows covering all of the back wall. There was a breath-taking view of the backyard and the lake behind it. Off to the right, we could see the pool in its glass enclosure—the cold or the rain wouldn't prevent us from using it.

"Wow," whispered Anastasia.

Mrs Darling began the tour of the house. The room we were standing in was meant to be the living room. At the left of the main entrance, there was a home office that was larger than my current one. Then, there was a library, which was connected to a second study that had an inspiring view of the backyard and plenty of natural light. I could picture Anastasia settled there, happily working among sunlight and books.

On that side of the house, there was also a small half-bathroom accessible from the living room, and a separate one accessible from the backyard.

We then walked across the family room, to the kitchen. This room also had large windows with a lake view. It was terribly outdated, but it was nothing that Elliot couldn't fix. Mrs Darling pointed us at the doors that led to the backyard, the garage and the guest house.

"Where does that door lead to?" Anastasia asked, pointing towards yet another door, this one hidden off to one side.

Mrs Darling opened it to show us a short corridor with two more doors and a set of stairs.

"The stairs will take you to the basement. It holds the laundry room, a storage room, a small bathroom, and what used to be a recording studio. The children of the current owners were very fond of music, and they installed their studio downstairs—soundproof, so as not to disturb the rest of the family or the neighbours."

Soundproof? I didn't recall reading about that feature.

Anastasia and I shared a smirk and a conspiratorial look. We had just found ourselves a new playroom. What was not to like?

"I can show it to you afterwards," suggested Mrs Darling, uninterested in the basement. "It could be a good music room or gym. But first…."

She then opened the door on the left of the hall to show us a smaller room with a long bar. It seemed like the perfect place for my billiard table. The 'Balls room,' as Elliot liked to call it.

The remaining door led to the dining room, which was as large as my parents'. From there, I could see the private driveway and my car. A double door led us back to the living room.

The house didn't have the open concept Escala or my New York penthouse did, but the living room was communicated to the kitchen and the dining room through wooden double sliding doors. When left open, they looked like wide archways. Plus, each room was so large and well-illuminated, the walls didn't make the space feel smaller.

Having finished exploring the main floor, we walked up the first set of stairs.

To our right, above the office and library, there was the master room. It was huge, maybe twice as large as the one in Escala. It also boasted a view of the backyard and lake, as well as a ridiculously large bathroom, two separate walk-in closets—each slightly smaller than the single one in the penthouse—and a balcony that was placed above what would be Anastasia's studio.

I could picture Anastasia and I living here: waking up next to each other every morning with the amazing view of the lake, getting ready for the day, and then coming together at night, hopefully like husband and wife.

Anastasia beamed at me, filling me with hope. Could she picture it, too? I smiled back at her, happy with the house, the view, and her response to it all.

I'd surprised her with a house for us—a bigger commitment than moving in with me to a place I'd already owned by myself—and she'd taken it in stride, with the largest of smiles.

Mrs Darling got us back on track. She led us through a corridor—to our left, the living room and the lake; to our right, the front yard—to the other side of the house. First, there was a larger room that Mrs Darling called the family room, which I thought could work as the TV room. It had two attached rooms, which the current owners had used as a gym and an art studio. We'd still be needing the gym, but maybe the second room could be an appropriate place for my piano. I had the feeling we would be entertaining more often than I'd used to, and I was rather zealous of my piano—it didn't need other people's hands all over it.

Finally, we made it to the last floor. There wasn't much to see: an additional sitting room, and six similar bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms and walk-in closets of reasonable size. Would we be turning those bedrooms into the perfect guest rooms for our current family? Or would we someday dare to have children of our own?

I shook my head and focused on the structure of the house. Just like downstairs, all the floors were worn and needed replacements, and the walls needed to be painted. Much like the kitchen, all the bathrooms needed to be revamped.

I had thought that maybe Anastasia and I would choose to remodel the downstairs and even change the distribution, but I quite liked what I'd seen.

"May we take a look at the basement?" I asked.

Having shown us the main parts of the house, Mrs Darling was happy to lead us downstairs to the laundry room, storage room, bathroom, and former recording studio. The wall and glass separating the control room and recording room had been removed, leaving behind a rather spacious soundproof room that would be perfect for a playroom.

"How do you like it, baby?" I asked Anastasia once we were back in the living room, standing by the back windows.

"I love it, Christian! It's perfect!"

"I'm glad you like it. I'll put in an offer for it."

"Alright," she agreed with a smile.

She looked at the lawn through the window, as if she couldn't believe her eyes. The sun had begun to set and the sky was turning orange. It seemed like the perfect place and time to ask her the most important of questions.

"Why don't we take a look at the backyard?" I suggested.

We stepped back to the kitchen and through the door that led outside.

The yard reminded me of my parents'. It was large, well kept, and by Washington Lake, albeit on the west shore. I guided Anastasia through the lush grass to the water's edge, where the dock was indeed well-kept and large enough for The Grace.

Anastasia turned to look at the house and the view of the sunset behind it. It may not be as spectacular as the view from Bellevue, with the sun setting behind the lake, but it was still beautiful. Anastasia cut a striking figure in a short white dress that contrasted against the darkening blue sky. Her eyes and hair shone under the orange light of the sunset.

While she was distracted, I got down on one knee. It was several seconds later that Anastasia turned to look at me with a smile. She seemed confused for a second when she didn't see me standing next to her, but soon her eyes found me closer to the ground.

Her eyes widened and her jaw popped open.

"Anastasia Rose Steele," I began before I could lose my nerve, reciting the words I'd practised a few dozen times. "It took me a while to figure out I loved you, but when I did, there was no turning back for me.

"I fell in love with your smiles and your laugh; your compassion and your stubbornness; your blush and your bravery; your lips and your touch; your heart and your quirks." She covered her mouth with her hands and began to cry silently. "You're my sunshine and my rock; my healing balm and my inspiration. And I hope—I trust—I am the same to you.

"And I know that we've been together for a short time, but you captivate me in ways no soul ever will. We are not blind fools who fell in love: we knew what we were walking into when we decided to be together against all odds, and we grew together in ways that we couldn't have had imagined.

"You are everything I want and everything I need, and I don't want to be a single day without you.

"I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Grow with you. Have a family with you. I want not to give you the moon and the stars, but to go for them with you.

"But before I ask you a very important question, I want to tell you that I've had the chance to think about this for a while and I want to let you do the same as well. I don't want to rush you—and I know how much you like thinking things through.

"So Anastasia Rose Steele, would you give me the honour of thinking about marrying me?"

Her shoulders relaxed and she dropped her hands. She smiled at me and nodded frantically.

"I'll think about it."

I stood up, glad she hadn't outright refused me. I could feel a beam spread out in my face and a couple of lost tears sliding down my cheeks.

She hugged me tightly and said, "I love you. Thank you for giving me a while to consider this. I.. Wow!... I truly didn't expect this. I can't imagine my life with anyone else but…"

"I know, beautiful," I said, kissing her forehead. "I believe in marriage, and in staying married to the same person—you—for the rest of my life. I don't want you to have any doubts."

She looked into my eyes.

"I love you, and any doubts I may have all derive from my parent's faulty marriage—not you. I don't doubt you, or our commitment to each other. The moment I realised I love you, I knew no man could ever compare to you, and resigned myself to loving you from afar for the rest of my life. I didn't believe you'd ever allow yourself to love me back, yet look at us now…"

I waited patiently as she thought of her next words for a minute.

"Someone once said that if we wait until we're ready we'll be waiting for the rest of our lives. And while I don't know if I'll ever be ready to marry, I'm ready to say I will love you for the rest of my life, through good times and bad."

Did she mean—?

"I love you Christian Grey, and I'd be ecstatic to marry you. Let's begin the rest of our lives together."

Yes!

She had said yes!

I picked her up immediately, overwhelmed by happiness, and twirled her around, making her laugh.

"I was hoping you'd say so," I confessed, placing her back on the grass.

From my jeans' front pocket, I took out her engagement ring.

She gasped and stared at the ring in awe.

"May I?" I inquired, gesturing at her left hand. She rose it and I slid in the ring.

"A perfect fit," she muttered.

"I may have measured your ring finger while you were sleeping," I confessed and she chuckled.

"It's beautiful, Christian. Thank you," she said, still crying happy tears.

"I'm glad you like it. The sapphire is the September gemstone," I added, hugging her. "I gathered you're not the diamond kind of girl." Granted, I'd figured it out after inspecting several rings, but still.

"I love it," she reassured me.

I brought her back into my arms and kissed her, my fiancée!

"Can we get married here?" she asked, twirling around to look at the garden under the twilight. "The backyard looks very well kept, and the paint of the outer walls of the house seems new." She then turned to look at me. "I want to start the rest of our lives in the home in which we'll grow old together."

That sounded like a brilliant idea—both romantic, and practical. We would have no issues with security, or picking a date.

"Sounds good, baby. We can rent the same white pergolas and portable restrooms my parents do. And meanwhile, we can get started on fixing the two upper floors of the house."

We stood silently for a minute, contemplating our future home, my arm around her waist and her head resting on my shoulder.

"When would you like to get married?" she whispered.

I snorted.

"I'd marry you tomorrow if you'd have me."

"I can't get a dress and a full wedding planned in 24 hours, even with Kate's, Mia's and Grace's help."

"What about in a month? The weekend after your birthday."

She looked at me as if I'd grown a second head.

"In a month?"

"Why not? I love you, and I'm not going to change my mind anytime soon—or ever. I'd better strike while the iron is hot."

"I'm not going anywhere. And truly, I'd rather not spend a whole year planning our wedding."

"A year?" I asked horrified. I would not be waiting a whole year—or planning an event for so long.

She chuckled and agreed, "Let's get married in a month."

"Let's."

"Without the press finding out…"

"I'm good at hiding from the press," I assured her. After all, I'd been a Dom for as long as I'd been a CEO, but the paparazzi had never found out.

As the weather grew colder, we walked back to the house hand in hand. Mrs Darling was standing by the living room windows with glistening eyes.

She smiled at us when we walked in and said, "That was beautiful. I hope you don't mind, but I took a few pictures, thinking you may want them. I'll email them to you later, Mr Grey."

"Thank you, Mrs Darling," I answered, beaming.

After promising I'd contact her Monday about making an offer, Anastasia and I were on our way back home.

"I was thinking maybe we could share the good news with my parents tomorrow—at Bellevue, I mean," I said.

"About the house or the engagement?" she asked, still smiling widely.

"About the engagement. I don't want to tell anyone about the house until it's paid for. I wouldn't want to jinx it."

"Wouldn't it be better to have Elliot take a look at it first?"

"Hmm… You're probably right. I'll see if he's got time Monday morning. I wouldn't want to lose our dream house."

"So we've been invited to have lunch at your parent's house tomorrow?"

"No, but I was thinking we could drop by for coffee. Mum will be ecstatic. And the sooner we begin with the planning, the better."

"Yes. There're some things that we should decide before being attacked by Mia," she added. "The size of the wedding, the colour, the menu… At least we've got the location."

I was glad she was being so active about the wedding. Hopefully, she wouldn't wake up the following day to decide everything was happening too soon.

"I'd prefer a small wedding," I said, "and I'm willing to bet so would you."

"With only close family and friends," she agreed. "Maybe a few co-workers. Colour… Maybe navy blue and grey? And you could use that nice tie of yours." Blue had become my favourite colour, and I wouldn't be surprised if Anastasia felt the same about the colour of my eyes.

"You've got yourself a deal, baby. And we can let Mia deal with the menu."

"Sounds good. The bridal party… I'd like Kate as my Maid of Honour, and Mia as my Bridesmaid."

"And I'll have Elliot as my Best Man. And…" I'd also need someone to pair up with Mia, wouldn't I? There weren't many people I was fond of, less of all men, but if I had to choose a friend, I knew who it'd be. "Ros as my Groomswoman?"

Anastasia giggled.

"She'll love that," she agreed, squeezing my knee. "Who would have thought we'd have an easier time planning the wedding than entering in a relationship?"

I turned to look at her with a smirk as I stopped the car at a red light. "We already knew we have similar tastes, Kitty."

She bit her lip.

"Will you ever explain to me why you call me Kitty?"

"Maybe as a wedding present."

"Or an engagement one?"

I chuckled. "That's what the ring's for."

She huffed and pouted.

I thought about it during the rest of the ride. It was actually a good time to tell her about it. In its own way, it was romantic—at least, for someone like Anastasia, who prided in her inner tiger and her deceiving outer Kitty, and who'd probably enjoyed listening about me making a fool of myself.

Soon thereafter, I was parking my car in the underground garage. I helped Anastasia out of the low car and held her hand as we walked towards the elevator. As soon as its doors slid shut behind us, I jumped at Anastasia. I'd been meaning on kissing the living days out of her from the instant she'd agreed to become my wife.

I pressed her against one of the metal walls and kissed her, my hands caressing her cheeks and neck, hers buried in my hair.

"I love you so much," I muttered after I'd pulled back for air. I peppered kisses down the side of her neck. "You belong with me, and now we'll make it official."

She moaned in apparent agreement.

The elevator doors opened behind us. I led a dizzy Anastasia into the penthouse, through the living room and into our bedroom.

"Did you know I love you in white?"

She looked down at the white dress she was wearing and snickered.

"I gathered as much; my wardrobe is full of white clothes."

"Maybe it was an unconscious wish to marry you, even when we were no more than Dom and Sub," I joked with a wink. My hands caressed her sides lovingly and she settled her own hands on my shoulders. "But when I bought your wardrobe, all I could think about was how sweet and angelical you'd look in white. And you do. You look young and free. It's lovely and enticing."

She blushed and smiled shyly.

"You look like a sweet, innocent Kitty," I explained, grabbing her hand and guiding her towards the bed. We sat down next to each other and I continued my tale.

"When we first met in the club, you were shy and demure. You looked like a kitty—a Kitty that didn't stand a chance." I recalled the day at the club, her sitting in the bar with matching braids and lowered eyes. Now I knew it wasn't out of natural submission, but rather because she had to follow the club's rules. "You didn't have much experience, and I wanted to be your first in as many things as you'd allow, not thinking for a second you'd be my first in plenty of things, too.

"I knew how lucky I was when you agreed to be my Sub: you were sexy and docile."

I snorted at my old self and Anastasia chuckled too.

"And sometimes you'd get mad at me and look like an angry kitten. Pissed off but not dangerous. Those were the times when you'd bite back your retorts. But every now and again you'd get so mad at me that your submissive act would falter, and you'd show me there's a tiger hidden within. It turned out my complacent but brave Kitty was a fierce tiger in disguise!"

"The first time the tiger came out to play it was a surprise to me. I was so dazed! I didn't admonish you for it, partly because of the shock and partly because I felt I disserved it. I surprised myself; rarely do I let someone talk to me like that. But I had been trying to convince you to let me punish you in a way you didn't deem acceptable, so I felt to blame.

"While I hadn't allowed any Sub to talk to me like that before, the thought of ending the contract didn't even cross my mind. I was so enticed by you! Part of me already loved your body, your bravery and how you looked like when you came. But that day I started to fall in love with your smart mouth without even realising it."

She was crying once again. I reached out to caress the tears away.

"You were my favourite Dom," she said. "I was fairly new, and hadn't had had a Master for longer than a month; I was still trying to figure out what I wanted and how this new piece of me fit in my life… Other Doms seemed to tiptoe around me. They were either afraid to touch me too roughly or uninterested in an inexperienced Sub with a never-ending list of limits. But you were never like that; you challenged me and showed me a passion I had never felt before. And I fell in love with your hands," She grabbed them. "And your sexy voice, and your feet—they're very nice." I chuckled.

"But sometimes you pushed too hard, yet I was never afraid to push back. It was worth being with you because you had taken me to places I didn't know existed. And I may have liked to provoke you and piss you off."

"May have?" I asked and freed my hands to tickle her. She giggled.

"You were always so in control, all Dom-CEO-big-boss. I loved making your restrains come down, if only for a little bit."

"It did take me a while to notice it," I admitted. "You are a siren, and I was too enticed with your naked body and the way you arched it when you came to notice much more."

I caressed her cheek, still submerged in the memories. Suddenly, she was kissing me passionately and her hands were all over me. We eventually had to interrupt the kiss as she removed my t-shit. I stood up and dragged her up with me. We took off the rest of our clothes speedily and joined each other again in our bed.

I made love to her then, taking my time to venerate my Goddess. I kissed her and caressed her all over her body, leaving no skin uncherished. I made her see the stars and cry out my name before joining her in passion till we came together, screaming each other's name like we would for years to come.

She said yes!

If you haven't read Ana's POV yet, please notice this is an angst-free fic! Please don't go expecting a big conflict that will never come.

Also, if you haven't cheched it out yet, go to my Pinterest borad for this story! My user is also JustValeP.

Until the next time! Only five more chapter to go :O