04.22.21

Thank you for all your well wishes. I'm on the mend but it's slow.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - The fuck did you just call me?

I hear my name being called and turn to look behind me. My face falls immediately and the anger surges through my entire body. This boy has some fucking nerve.

"What the fuck are you doing here? Do you have a deathwish?"

"Ana, I understand that you're upset after—"

"Upset?" I scoff. "Upset is what people are when their car gets towed or they lose out on a promotion they were promised or I don't know, when their favorite TV show gets cancelled. So no, I'm not upset, I'm fucking livid. I'm five seconds away from turning your life into a snapped episode."

He gulps and quickly looks around, so far no one has picked up on our exchange… yet.

"Let's just go up and take in private. I only need a few minutes of your time."

This is fucking embarrassing.

"Why should we talk in private? You had no problem humiliating me in PUBLIC, LEAVING ME AT THE ALTAR AND CHEATING ON ME WITH OUR BEST FRIEND!" I lower my volume when I notice in my periphery that some people have caught on to what's happening. "How about I return the favor? You know, to level the playing field."

"Look, I'm sorry." He whispers, trying to get a little closer but I take another step back. "I really am, truly sorry. I panicked. Please, let's just talk upstairs."

"No." I cross my arms. Cause if we go upstairs, I'm going for my gun.

"Ana."

"How long?" I ask. Don't you dare cry, Annie. "How long have you two been fooling me?"

He looks at me pleadingly. Not wanting to answer obviously but I need to know this so I can move the fuck on—to finally process all this and then never think of them again.

"Ana, please. I'm sorry, we both are. It just happened."

"Oh, you just happened to trip and have your dick fall into her vagina?"

"We're really sorry." He says again.

"Are you both really sorry cause your wife doesn't seem so supportive of this little declaration of yours… if she was, she'd fucking be here."

"Y-you k-know?" He stammers.

"THAT YOU MARRIED YOUR WHORE ON WHAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE MY HONEYMOON?" I scream. That turns a few more heads. "YEAH, I know. She posted that shit on instagram like she won some trashy award."

"Fuck." he mutters, shaking his head. "I didn't want you to find out like this. I swear to you, Ana, please, it just happened. I never meant for it to get this far. I wanted to give you everything after all that you had done for me but I couldn't deny my feelings for her either. I panicked that day, I tried my best to do the right—"

"HOW LONG?"

He closes his eyes and looks down, stalling again.

"Ma'am, is everything okay? Do you need help?" I look towards my right at a man in a suit who has approached us. Why the fuck is he interrupting me? I was on a fucking roll here.

"I don't know, you tell me. Do I look like a Ma'am to you? Do I look like I need help to deal with this lying, cheating piece of shit that I'm dressing down in public?" I raise an eyebrow, daring him to open his mouth and call me Ma'am again.

He gives a curt nod and holds his hands in defeat before backing away. I turn my gaze at José who's quiet as a mouse and no doubt internally begging me to not murder him in front of everyone. Don't worry, I wouldn't murder you with a slew of witnesses to catch me in the act.

"A few weeks before graduation." The scumbag finally reveals when we're alone again.

"Gradua—" My voice catches in my throat. "You asked me to marry you just a few weeks later." Another slap on the face, I spent all that time preparing for a wedding that… I shake my head. "You fucked her the night before the wedding didn't you? I caught her sneaking back into airbnb but she said she was with Sam."

His silence is confirmation enough. I look down at my shoes, feeling so small and stupid.

"I gave you everything I could, José. Everything. You guys were my best friends, my family. That's what hurts the most… I wish you would've just broken up with me when it first happened instead of leading me on." I whisper. "I was working my ass off, trying to provide for our future while you fucked her any chance you got and not only did you break my heart but you both humiliated me in front of our families and friends."

"Ana, it wasn't like that… not completely. I mean—let's just go upstairs and talk this out in private. I can explain better..."

"I know she's beautiful and smart but was I really that bad?" My eyes glisten but I blink back the tears. "I deserved honesty from you both. I would've understood that you didn't love me anymore and I would've eventually gotten over it but this, you didn't have to hurt me like this."

He shakes his head still not looking me in the eye. "I never meant for it to get this far. We're different people, Ana. Things changed, we grew apart and…" his voice trails into silence.

"No, you both just got greedy and started to believe you were better than everyone else." I say. "What did you think was going to happen here today? What more do you want from me? You want me to ease your guilt and forgive you so you can ride off into the sunset with her?"

He stares at me for a moment and I realize that I don't even recognize him. I've forgotten what he looks like. I used to think he was the most handsome guy but like the Regina Spektor song goes; thought I'd see your face in my mind for all time but I don't even remember what your ears looked like.

He was nothing more than one of the hottest guys in school who I happened to have grown up with and for some reason he made me believe that I was the one he wanted to be with. I get it, not all highschool sweethearts are supposed to end up together but more than that, he was my best friend. Someone who knew all my secrets, someone who I ran to when I wanted to share my accomplishments and difficulties with even if he didn't have a solution, I always looked to him but I guess that wasn't enough. Nothing I was ever going to do was ever going to be enough, not in front of Gaia… oh whatever, fuck this.

I'm so done. Tired of the hurt, the excuses, the feeling of not thinking I was good enough, that I was lacking. I'm done.

"Fuck this, I'm already late for work." I try to move past him but he moves quickly and stops me again.

"Cariña, please." He pleads from behind and grabs my arm. "Ana, babe...please, just hear me out I— I swear i'm really sorry and I still love—."

"THE FUCK DID YOU JUST CALL ME?" Spinning around and snatching my arm out of his grip, I don't even let him finish because my body goes into overdrive with a violent need to break something.

I see his eyes go wide in shock before I hear him grunt in excruciating pain shortly after.

"Touch me again and I swear to god, I will rip your balls off and shove them down your whore's throat." I warn through clenched teeth. "Comprendé?"

His face is contorted with a painful expression, while he lays in a fetal position from the impact of the meeting of my foot to his groin and hand to his cheek. I can still feel the sting on the slap on my palm. He nods slightly and I am glad he still retains some brain function.

There seems to be quite an audience gathered, including the security from the front lobby who are looking at me with wide and careful eyes. I know, I know, angry badger in the house or in this case, on your lawn.

"You can all go back to your day now." I shout and they all scurry off like rats abandoning ship. I swear I need to start charging for this shit.

CPOV

I'm ready to go down to her apartment building and beat the shit out of this punk when Taylor convinces me not to.

"Sir, she can take care of herself and Sawyer is on standby should something happen but I believe Miss Steele needs to do this on her own. If you go down there, it won't help matters."

He's right. My plan to acquire Acero hinges on them not knowing that I'm in any way connected to Ana but to hell with that if it means he's going to make her life difficult.

"She shouldn't have to deal with him." I mutter. Taylor takes out his phone and calls Sawyer to get an update. A smile creeps across his lips and he nods before hanging up. "What happened?"

"Sawyer got the Steele treatment when he tried to intervene." Taylor chuckles. "He asked if she needed help and she read him the riot act then Mr. Rodriguez grabbed her arm and she kicked him where the sun doesn't shine, making him cry like a little bitch."

"HE TOUCHED HER?" Grey, calm down. She kicked him in the nuts. Angry badger is never far away. I'm proud of my girl though.

"Sir, she's fine. She handled herself." Taylor does his best to calm me and looks down at his phone again to read an incoming message. "She's walking over to GEH. Sawyer is following her."

I nod and dismiss Taylor, telling him to alert me as soon as Ana walks through the front door. I take out my phone to call her but it goes to voicemail. Fuck. I want to talk to her and see if she's okay.

APOV

Leaving José struggling on the ground with a group of onlookers didn't feel as great as I had hoped. I walk haphazardly to the bus stop a block down from the apartment building but the excess energy had me feeling erratic and angry. I take out my phone and email Claire, letting her know that I had a personal emergency and would be coming in late.

I have to walk this out. GEH is only a 15 minute walk and hopefully that will help. I keep my head down and just focus on getting there. My hand still stings and I can't stop crying. Why are people like this? Why do they hurt others and break their hearts?

José and Gaia have, or I should say, had been in my life since I was a child. Didn't that matter at all? So what, he wanted to marry me out of pity? Some obligation or payback for all that I had done? I would have preferred honesty and freedom over the chains of lies. I mean, I'm still free but at what cost?

Treat others the way you want to be treated. That's what Dad always taught me… but where did that get us?

What the hell am I doing?

I couldn't even pick up on my two bestfriends fucking each other behind my back, how the hell can I trust a billionaire with top notch security to not do the same to me? I know what Kate said is also right, that Chrisitan and José are two different people but I'm still the same person and my peace of mind is going to take forever to find.

Christian could have anyone; he could literally walk into a bar and leave with every single woman's phone number and have them lining up to have the best sex of their life and I would never find out. I knew women looked at José but I chose to trust him because that's what you do in a relationship. You trust your partner to do the right thing. Christian is a whole other situation. I can't compete with that level of attention and put myself through that. And no one deserves to be subject to the constant scrutiny of doubt either, especially for a first relationship.

All this makes me wonder about myself. Maybe I too am incapable of being alone like Carla.

No, I'm nothing like her. I need time, I owe that to myself. Jumping into another relationship or situationship isn't a good idea. There's so much I need to resolve and figure out before I go down the path of being someone else again but at this point, Christian is the only person I want to see and talk to.

But first, I want what belongs to me. Acero is mine too. All those extra shifts at Clayton's, at the coffee shop, those last minute gigs to pick up extra cash and the graphic work, helping them polish their presentations? I want my third of all that.

I'm about three blocks away from GEH and I wonder if I can just go up to his office. It's worth a shot, what's the worst that can happen? They won't let me see him? I walk through the lobby towards the elevators and press for the 20th floor. When I exit the elevator it's eerily calm and quiet, unlike the 7th floor where SIP's new digs are. I quickly check my face in the camera app and I don't look bad but I don't look all that great either.

I walk to the receptionists desk and give them a small smile. They both look like blonde supermodels, dressed immaculately in what look like the best designer clothes, their ensembles look like they cost more than my life. What else is new?

Clearing my throat, I do my best to speak clearly. "May I please speak to Mr. Grey?"

"Do you have an appointment?" The younger stepford wife asks while the other one answers the phone.

I shake my head. "I work at SIP and was wondering if I could—"

"Your name?" She cuts me off, annoyed and rolling her eyes.

"Miss Steele is cleared to meet with Mr. Grey," I hear a voice behind me and look to see Taylor staring a hole into the blonde I was just talking to. She simply nods and goes back to typing on her computer. I smile gratefully at him.

The slightly older Stepford wife who was on the phone earlier stands up and walks around the desk. "Thank you, Taylor, I'll take it from here. Miss Steele, apologies for delay. May I get you anything to drink?"

"No, thank you" I give her a gracious smile which she returns equally. She points me into the direction and says that Christian has instructed her to let me in whenever I come up. "Is he busy though? I can wait, or come back later… it's no rush."

I should've called him instead. I'm such an idiot. He's running a billion dollar empire, Ana. Use your brain.

"Not at all." She smiles again. "That corridor will lead you to his office. I'll let him know you're here."

She walks away and I stare down the marble clad corridor, slowly making my way towards what looks like two solid oak doors. They weigh a ton as I try to push them open, this is a goddamn workout. Walking into his office, I'm met with an onslaught of natural light and an echoing white marble box that's pretty much empty. There he sits, powerful and enigmatic—such a stark contrast to the man I spent the weekend with and the playful guy who would call and text me throughout the week. He looks up at me but his expression is impassive.

Why do I feel so intimidated all of a sudden?

"Um, I..I.." My voice catches in my throat as I try not to not cry and look around to focus on something. "I'm sorry to bother you but I just needed to talk to someone. I ran into him outside of my apartment and—" I burst into tears, unable to complete my sentence. Feeling small and weak, I curse myself at this emotional display but I feel so alone and heartbroken all over again.

Christian's by my side in just a few strides and holds me close, kissing my temple and rubbing my back. His embrace and scent calm me immediately and I feel safe as I hold on to him for dear life and sob into his chest.

"It's okay, baby." He whispers.

"I want to go after them." I say and continue to blurt out additional facts. "The browser/search engine part of Acero is just one piece of the puzzle. They eventually are trying to get to a point where the app can completely cloak your phone so that no other entity can track you, not even the phone manufacturer. I want my piece of the pie. I worked just as hard and they took advantage of me."

"Whatever you want, we'll get you what you're owed." He promises me and then starts to inspect my arm. "Did he hurt you?"

Shaking my head, I focus on the feeling of skin to skin contact when everything in my brain comes to a screeching halt. "Wait a min—HOW did you know he grabbed my arm?" I look up at him incredulously and then it dawns on me. "YOU'RE HAVING ME FOLLOWED?"

He opens his mouth but then shuts it for a few moments before speaking again. "Not followed, he's there for protection."

"Excuse me?" I glare at him. "How long has he been following me?"

With a tight smile he swallows. "Ana, I just forgot to tell you about him over the weekend. I have CPO's for everyone that's close to me."

"HOW LONG CHRISTIAN?" He better not give me that I forgot bullshit.

Flinching a little, he tries to placate me. "Since we met."

"I knew it. That day at the market two weeks ago and every now and then…" I shake my head, I knew it. "I thought I was crazy but someone was watching me, weren't they?"

He nods, carefully still watching me like I'm a wild animal.

"You APE, that is a gross invasion of my privacy. You are spying on me. How dare you? Who do you think you are?" I poke his shoulder with my finger periodically as I continue on with my speech. "How would you feel if someone was watching your every move and reporting it to some megalomaniac who could potentially use that information against you?"

"What did you just call me?" He challenges, grabbing hold of my wrist to cease my poking finger attack. I called you several things, you ape.

Does this man really think I'm about to back out right now? I have enough in me right now to burn this ENTIRE building down. Open up the dictionary buddy and under motivation and rage you'll see the name Anastasia Steele in bold.

"I'm sorry, did I stutter or are you now deaf?" I narrow my eyes at him. I swear to God, I could just punch him right now for making me so god damn mad.

He crashes his lips to mine and pushes me against the wall by the door. It's a rough and dominating kiss like the ones he unleashed on me this past weekend and I had been missing since then. My body melts completely to his form, wanting to be impossibly close.

"Tell me to stop, and I will." he pants in between kisses. Really? You do this and you expect me to ask you to stop? I'm all revved up now and the earlier surge of adrenaline isn't helping either. I shake my head and kiss him again, feeling his erection hard and ready against my belly. That recognition alone has me wet and wanting.

As close as we are, it's not enough. I pull onto his hair and jacket, completely the mercy of his tongue in my mouth. He is relentless in his pursuit, tearing off my panties, the ones which he paid for anyway so I'm not going to complain. Lifting my one right leg to wrap around his hip, he quickly unzips his pants to free himself and not a second later he slams into me.

"Fucckkkk. You feel so good." He growls in appreciation. And he feels just as good. So damn good. 'I love how you're so wet for me."

I whimper in response against his open mouth.

"I missed you so much, baby." The vulnerability in his voice grips me but I can't seem to respond, I've forgotten to speak. His touch turns my body into a wildfire and there's no respite until we both find our release.

"Christian…" I moan loudly and then remember I should keep it down. This is already so wrong, not to mention that we're in his office. I cover my mouth with my free hand but he snatches it away.

"Soundproof." He grits out, still keeping up the pace. This man is on a mission that is in dire need of completion and who the hell am I to hold him back? Pulling the hem of my top out of my pencil skirt, he lifts it to expose my breasts and grins at the sight that I'm wearing the lingerie he sent earlier in the week. Releasing my breasts from the cups, he leans in and bites down hard. "Mmhmm, I missed these two."

This man gives multi-tasking a whole new meaning. I'm barely coherent enough to know my name and he's doing ten different things all at once while keeping the sex alive and well.

Like a true professional.

"Ohhh," my body arches with my head falling back and being the only point of contact on the wall for support. My body is so close, I'm right there… "Make me cum, please.. Christian… please." It's been three long days. I'm climbing higher and the combined heat between our bodies makes me feel like I might expire. I think I've become an addict or something now. His fingers find their way to my clitoris and it's go time. He's not even teasing me that much but just the sheer contact has me falling off the edge and crying out his name in ecstasy.

I don't even recognize my own voice. Hell, I can't hear anything anymore. I only feel.

His possession, the vibration of his voice against my skin, his taste, his scent and moreover, the heat of his essence filling me completely. His body is holding me in place against the wall and the moment he backs away even an inch, I'll fall to the ground with no shame whatsoever. I will have no shame in this game, I'm in lala land.

Bringing his hands to cradle my face, he engages me in a very slow and sensual kiss, giving me no purchase of control whatsoever. Not that I could have maintained any even if I tried.

"No one gets to look at you but me. No one gets to touch you but me. No one gets to love you but me." We're both out of breath but the command in his voice and look on his face is resolute. "You are mine."

"L-love?" I stutter. My mind is running a million miles a minute and my emotions are scattered. Love, as in he loves me?

"Yes, Anastasia."

"But why?"

And most importantly how? We barely know each other.

Without saying a word but keeping his eyes locked on me, he slowly undoes the first few buttons to this shirt then picks up my right hand, bringing it over his heart. Skin to skin contact. I can feel his accelerated heartbeat and see the tension in his face at first but as the seconds pass by, it seems to slowly fade. His eyes never leave me. His skin is warm and I keep myself very still as I frantically search for words to express my gratitude for the trust he's placing me but instead my vision blurs with tears.

He smiles and peppers my face with soft kisses while still keeping my hand on his chest.

"Well, why not, Miss Steele?"

A/N: Double the bomb drops? Damn, Annie's having an eventful day.