TWENTY THREE
Brenda was in bed sleeping when she felt Christian nibbling on her neck.
She squirmed and yawned. "Good morning."
He moved up to her lips and kissed her softly. "Good Morning. Are you ready to workout?"
"No, I changed my mind."
"No, you haven't. Let's get up, Brenda."
He got out of the bed and looked down at her.
She pulled the covers over her head. "I'm tired. I'll go tomorrow. I promise."
"Brenda, you are not tired."
"Christian, do you remember what happened last night?"
"I don't want to hear any excuses. I participated in the same activities as you did and I did all the damn work."
"But you are a machine, so that doesn't count."
He pulled the covers off her. "Since you are too tired, I'll carry you…to the bathroom, but you are working out."
He scooped her up and took her into the bathroom…..
Christian's trainer came over to train her.
Brenda didn't want to complain and act like a drama queen in front of him, so she just did what she was told.
He even gave her a compliment after they were done.
The trainer has just left, along with Taylor.
Brenda is lying on the floor staring up at the ceiling.
Christian reached down and pulled her to her feet. "You surprised me. I thought you were going to complain the whole time."
"I complained in my head. I didn't want to get on the man's nerves. I don't know, I think modeling has taught me to just shut up and take direction. I guess you also taught me that in bed."
He laughed. "Bullshit, you don't do everything I want you to do."
"There are simply some things I'm never going to do, Grey." She stretched. "My body hurts."
"I'll give you a massage after breakfast."
She lifted her arms. "Carry me?"
He laughed. "You can walk, you little spoiled brat."
"I can but you can carry me too."
He turned around with his back facing her. "Just jump on."
He leaned down and she jumped on his back…
They are sitting in the kitchen eating breakfast.
"Brenda, my family has been wondering when they will get to see you again. It has been three weeks and three dinners that you have missed."
"Why would they want to see the bitch that talked their pride and joy into marrying her, so she could get her claws on his money?"
"I don't know how many times I have to tell you, they don't think that. My mother really wants to see you."
"I just can't go back there, Christian."
"Brenda, you are my wife. You can't avoid them forever."
"Why not?"
"Because you can't. They are a big part of my life. I don't want to keep the two of you separate. If I really thought they were toxic, we wouldn't be having this conversation. They were just shocked, Brenda. My father has even asked about you…several times."
"I don't know, Christian. I have to think about it."
"Ok, at least you are thinking about it, because last week you wouldn't even consider it. So, I'll take that…."
It's later, they are in the shower.
Brenda is standing under the water rinsing off. "Christian, I think I want my own business."
"Oh, really? What kind?"
"A cosmetics company. Of course, I can't do that now, because I'm representing one, but I would love to learn the business, so that one day, I can run my own."
"I'll help you do whatever you want to do. We can start researching now."
"Would you help me?"
"Of course, I told you, Brenda, I will support you in whatever you want to do."
"Now, I'm really excited. I was worried that you were going to have doubts that I could do it."
"Why would you think that? I believe in you, Baby. And you can do whatever you want to do, with or without me. Brenda, you are a very hard worker. I noticed that when you worked at the restaurant. Look at you now, you are making a difference in these companies you are representing. Of course, you should start your own cosmetics company. I would even say, hire yourself to model."
"I didn't even think about that."
"You should. You are not only beautiful but you have a great personality, why do you think I fell in love with you?"
"Because I can deep throat you."
He laughed. "That didn't hurt."
He leaned over and kissed her. "I do love these soft lips….."
They finished their shower and got dressed.
It's Saturday and as they normally did, they spent it outside of the house.
They started out by doing a little shopping.
It helped that they both loved to shop and it wasn't just for clothes, jewelry, and shoes.
They loved looking at art and furniture too.
After spending a few hours shopping, Christian took her to an old school gaming place.
It was like being transported back in time.
Brenda and Christian had a blast.
They spent a few hours at that place.
It didn't matter what they decided to do, they always had fun.
They had so much fun they worked up an appetite.
The gaming place sold food but they decided to have lunch somewhere else.
Christian was not a chicken finger type of guy.
They ended up going to one of his favorite restaurants.
Christian managed to get them a somewhat secluded table.
They are sitting next to each other, as they often did.
He kissed her. "Are you having fun?"
"I always have fun with you. I'm so happy we are back to our regularly scheduled programming, I don't like fighting with you."
"I don't like fighting with you, but Brenda, we will have disagreements, we just have to handle it better. And don't walk past me like you don't know me. I'm still not over you waving at me."
She laughed. "You are still pissed about that?"
"Yes, I am. That was really fucked up."
She nodded. "Ok, Christian, it won't happen again. Let's switch gears, I have something I want to run by you."
"Run it."
"I think it's time for a new addition to our family."
His eyes widened. "A new addition? What kind of new addition?"
She laughed. "Not a baby. I would love to have your children one day, but no time soon. Christian, do you even want children?"
"I know you do."
"Yes, I do. I guess we should have discussed this before we got married. Everything happened so quickly."
"Brenda, I know you want children. You have told me that several times. I would not have married you if I wasn't willing to give them to you."
She smiled. "I can't wait to have your children, well yes I can. I like it being just us for now."
"Me too."
She continued. "I'm glad you thought about the kid thing, because I really didn't think about any of that."
"I did."
She leaned over and kissed him. "I'm going to have fun making babies with you."
"Me too. Now, tell me all about that new addition you want."
"I want a dog, Christian."
That caught him off guard. "A dog?"
"Yes, a dog. We are going to have even more room at the new house and we have all that land. A dog would have so much fun in that yard. What do you think?"
"I'm actually fine with that."
"I want a nice…cute little dog. I don't want a Cujo."
He laughed. "St. Bernards are actually nice dogs."
"No, Christian. I need to survive the attack."
He laughed. "Our dog won't be vicious."
"Are you going to teach it to not be vicious, because I'm not so sure I trust you. I mean, you can be vicious sometimes."
"I only attack when provoked."
She laughed. "But seriously, I don't really care about the breed. I just want a dog but not too big."
"We will start looking."
She kissed him again. "Yaaay."
"Christian….Brenda."
They looked up.
Christian's parents were standing in front of their table.
Christian looked at Brenda then back at them. "Mom…Dad, hello, what are you two doing here?"
His mom smiled. "We decided to get out of the house and eat out for lunch. Looks like we all had the same idea. Hello, Brenda."
"Hello, Dr. Grace. Hello, Mr. Grey."
His father nodded. "Hello, Brenda."
Christian stood up, hugged his mother, and sat back down.
Brenda really didn't know if she should do the same or not.
She decided against it, but to her surprise, his mother leaned down and hugged her.
That made her feel like shit.
She was not ready to see his parents…at all, but she guess life wanted her to suffer some more.
Brenda and Christian had yet to order.
They had only ordered their drinks.
She wished they were done eating so they could leave.
She was also hoping his parents would say their hellos and move along, but to her horror, Christian asked if they wanted to join them.
Of course, they accepted and now she is sitting across from his parents.
The people she did not want to see.
She wanted to just walk out of that restaurant.
All she could think about is what happened the last time she saw them.
His mother was crying and his dad was yelling.
And now she was stuck sitting across from them.
It was so incredibly awkward.
She knew they all felt it.
Christian reached up under the table and grabbed her hand.
They were all busy looking at the menu and after a few minutes they ordered.
Brenda wished she could stare at that menu for the rest of the meal, but the waitress took it away.
She didn't know where to look or what to say.
She really just wanted to leave.
His mother spoke first. "Brenda, I really wanted to apologize for how everything went down the last time we saw each other. I was just in shock. I apologize if you felt like you were not welcomed into the family. I just really wish I could have been there when you two got married. It was an important day for Christian and I was left out of it. I was just hurt."
"It's ok, Dr. Grace. I'm sorry that you were hurt by something we did. That was not my intention."
Christian spoke up. "I decided that I wanted it to be just us. And if we decide we want to have a bigger ceremony at a later date, then that's what we will do."
Mr. Grey apologized next. "I would like to apologize also. I was in shock. I won't lie, I was worried that he didn't take the necessary steps to protect himself."
"I didn't marry Christian for his money. I know me saying that means nothing because you don't know me, but I didn't."
Mr. Grey nodded. "You're right we don't, but we would love to get to know you. When you are ready, we would love for you to join us for dinner at our house."
Dr. Grace agreed. "We would love to have you there. You are Christian's wife and you obviously mean a lot to him-"
Christian interrupted. "I love her."
Brenda looked over at him. "I love you too."
He kissed her.
His mother teared up.
Christian looked across the table at his parents. "I didn't marry her because I was bored. This is the person I want to share everything with, including all of you. I was really disappointed in how you reacted, but you already know that."
His father sighed. "We were just caught off guard, and we can't apologize enough. And Brenda again, when you are ready, we would love it if you came to dinner."
She nodded. "Ok, can we just move on?"
Dr. Grace smiled. "Yes, we can."
Their lunch turned out better than expected.
His parents were not only smart but very funny.
They didn't part ways after lunch, they ended up spending the rest of the day together.
They just hung out, did some window shopping, and somehow they ended up at the movies.
The movie turned out to be pretty good.
It was some action flick that Christian and his father chose.
They have just made it home after breaking bread with his parents for the second time that day.
It was after nine and they were both tired.
They had been up since early that morning.
They showered and got into bed.
They are facing each other.
He questioned her. "How do you feel about everything now?"
"I'm not going to lie, I wanted to run out of that restaurant when I realized we were going to have lunch with your parents, but I'm actually happy we ran into them. It turned out to be a pretty good day."
"I told you everything would be fine."
"Christian, I still get butterflies when you tell people you love me."
He laughed. "Why?"
"Because I know you really mean it. It's not just a word you are saying."
"I do mean it. I still can't believe, out of all the places in this world you could have ended up, you ended up in Seattle. Lucky me."
"Lucky us."
She leaned over and kissed him.
The kiss quickly grew in intensity.
He broke the kiss. "Are you too tired?"
"It's not like I do anything. You do all the work, right?"
He laughed. "I do. Flip over."
"I don't know if I have the strength."
She flipped over onto her stomach.
He pulled the covers back and smacked her rear.
He moved behind her, pulled her cheeks apart, leaned down, and ran his tongue in between them, ending up at the very heart of her.
She closed her eyes and bit her lip.
If she was not in the mood, he always knew how to get her there.
He lifted his head and started massaging her back.
He stopped briefly and slid deep inside of her.
She moaned.
His hands continued to slide up and down her back, while his hips rotated.
Christian threw his head back and moaned.
She was getting slicker and slicker by the second.
He stopped massaging her back and started palming her rear. "Goddamn, Baby."
He smacked one of her cheeks then did the same to the other.
Brenda grabbed a handful of the sheet and moaned his name. "Christian."
He leaned down, latched onto her neck, and started driving himself deep inside her…
Brenda and Christian spent Sunday at home.
It was their last Sunday in the penthouse.
They spent the day lounging, reading, watching tv, and being intimate.
Brenda had to fly to New York early Monday.
She was going to celebrate Jax Cosmetics' success with the rest of the team.
She planned on flying in for the dinner and flying back out the next morning.
She had to pull herself out of bed when Monday came.
She did not want to leave.
They had a great weekend.
Christian took her to the airport, which didn't help things.
She really didn't want to leave him.
When things were good, they were so good.
And most of the time…things were…good.
She had to tear herself away from that man.
Her arms are wrapped around him. "I don't want to leave."
"Well, don't. They can celebrate without you."
"Yes, they can, but Jax would be disappointed."
"He will survive."
She laughed and kissed him. "I'm going to miss you. I'll see you tomorrow. I love you."
"I love you too, Baby."
He watched her walk into the airport..…
Brenda was happy she went to the dinner.
It ended up being a lot of fun, but she should have known it would be.
Jax Cosmetics had a great team.
There were plenty of speeches and plenty of laughs.
After dinner the real party started.
The drinks were flowing and the music was loud.
Everyone was on the dancefloor.
Everyone was also a little tipsy.
Jax and Brenda are sitting at the table talking.
"Jax, that was a wonderful speech."
"Thanks."
"It was. In case I haven't told you, you are a wonderful person to work for. You listen to suggestions and you consider them. It doesn't matter who they come from. These people love working for you."
Jax looked at the dancefloor. "I love working with them too. I carefully chose all of them, Brenda. No one wants to come to work and be in hell."
She laughed. "Yeah, I've had a few of those jobs."
"Hopefully, not this one."
She looked at him. "Of course, not. I have yet to experience a bad photo shoot with your company. They are not all like that."
He poured himself another glass of champagne. "I'm happy that you've had a great experience. We try to hire people we like and want to be around. I've turned away some very talented people, because their energy wasn't the greatest."
"Well, it has been a pleasure to work with everyone. I'm so happy that all the hard work paid off. It also helps that your company has great products."
"Yeah, that helps."
She jumped to her feet. "Come on, Jax! Let's join the party."
He finished off his champagne and followed her…..
It's later and Brenda is outside on the balcony getting some fresh air.
She heard the door open.
She turned and saw Jax walking out.
"I was wondering where you disappeared to."
She took a deep breath and blew it out. "Just getting some fresh air and admiring this view. This is insane isn't it?"
He looked out into the night sky. "This is why I love New York."
"Are they still dancing?"
Jax laughed. "Yes, I think there is some sort of competition going on. I'm beginning to believe having this on a Monday night…might not have been the smartest idea."
She grinned. "Yeah, you might have made a mistake. At least you started it early and everyone will have time to go home and sleep it off."
"I hope so. Maybe I'll tell them to take the day off? A paid day off."
She bumped him with her shoulder. "Ok, CEO of the year."
He laughed.
She continued. "But I'm sure they would love that."
Jax noticed how windy it was. "It is so windy."
Brenda nodded. "I'm glad my hair is in a bun. I'm surprised the wind hasn't ruined it."
All of a sudden Jax jumped and started rubbing his eye.
Brenda frowned. "What's wrong?"
"Something flew in my eye."
She watched him rub it for a few seconds. "Did you get it?"
"No, and it's driving me crazy."
There was a bench on the balcony.
Brenda grabbed his hand and took him over to it. "Sit down, I'm going to do what we used to do as kids."
He sat down. "What?"
"Blow in it."
He laughed. "Don't spit in my eye, Brenda."
She grinned. "I wouldn't dare. And if I make a mistake, your eye will just get bluer."
"Are you saying your spit has super powers?"
"Yes, it does." She sat down next to him. "Open up your eye."
He did as he was told.
She placed her hands on his face and blew a few times. "Did I get it?"
Her face was so close to his, their noses were almost touching.
Jax blinked. "No, I still feel it."
"I'll do it again."
She blew in his eye again. "Did I get it?"
She stared into his blue eyes.
And he gazed into her eyes. "I…think…you…did."
There was an awkward silence and then she felt his lips on hers.
It felt like it was happening in super slow motion.
His hands slipped up the sides of her face.
The kiss deepened and his tongue slipped inside of her mouth.
His hands moved down to the small of her back and he pulled her forward against him, while he continued to move his lips expertly against hers.
All of a sudden, the realization of what was taking place, hit her like a ton of bricks.
Brenda jerked away from him and jumped up.
She whispered his name. "Jax."
He ran his hand through his hair. "I'm sorry. I have no idea why I did that."
"I don't know why you did that either."
He stood up. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Brenda. That was a mistake."
She placed her hand over her mouth. "Yes, it was."
"Please, accept my apology. I…have no idea what I was thinking. I'm not normally that reckless."
She shook her head in disbelief. "Maybe…it was the champagne? I don't know."
"I'm not drunk, Brenda. I just made a stupid mistake and I own that."
"Let's…just forget about it, OK? I'm going to go back inside. Are you coming?"
"I'll be in there in a little bit."
She nodded. "OK."
She left…...
Brenda is back at her hotel.
She couldn't believe Jax kissed her.
She really believed it was a mistake but that kiss instantly changed things between them.
How could it not?
It already has.
He would normally walk her back to her hotel room, but he didn't that night.
She didn't really want him to.
He did text to make sure she got to her room safely.
She called Lois as soon as she got inside.
"Geez Louise, Brenda! You didn't kiss him back did you?"
"I mean…I don't…think so."
"You don't think so?! Brenda! You kissed him back!"
"I was so shocked that it even happened."
"I guess having your face so close to his, caused him to go over the edge. I told you Jax was in love with you."
"I don't know about that. I think he had too much champagne. And he was so apologetic. I believe that he is truly sorry."
"Are you going to tell Christian?"
"Yes, I can't keep that from him. I'm dreading it because he never trusted Jax."
"He never should have!"
"Jax has always supported my relationship with Christian, Lois."
"Maybe on the outside? How do you think Christian is going to react?"
"Not well but I can't keep this from him. I can't. I'll tell him as soon as I talk to him. I don't want to, but I know I have to. I don't want any secrets between us, especially not this one."
"Good luck."
"Thanks, I'll need it."
"So, what was the kiss like?"
"Lois, I'm not rating it. I was in shock, I don't remember."
"You remember. How long did it take you to pull away?"
"It only lasted a few seconds. I just can't believe it happened. We have spent so much time together. I don't know what got into him."
"The man is in love with you, Brenda. I don't know how many times I have to tell you that."
Brenda had a call coming in, she looked down at her phone.
"Oh God, Christian's calling. I'll call and let you know how it went."
"OK, love you."
"Love you too."
Brenda answered Christian's facetime call.
She smiled. "Hey."
"Hey, Baby. You look good. You must have just gotten back, because you are still dressed. What are you wearing?"
"A lilac suit with a lace corset top."
She opened up her jacket and showed him the top. "I don't know why I haven't taken it off. I've been here for over an hour."
She knew why, because she couldn't wait to call Lois and tell her about Jax.
She forgot about everything else.
"How was the dinner?"
"It was fun."
"So, who got drunk and started dancing on the table?"
No one, but Jax kissed me
She awkwardly chuckled. "They…behaved."
"Are you still coming back tomorrow?"
"Yep, my flight leaves at six in the morning."
"Of course, I'll be at work when you get here."
She got out of bed and walked towards the bathroom. "You are coming with me. I need to wash all of this makeup off and take a shower."
"I'm sure, I'll enjoy the view."
"Only from the neck up, Grey. I can't give the hackers a show."
He burst into laughter. "You are so paranoid."
"Not paranoid, just cautious."
She propped the phone up, removed her jacket, turned on the water, and started washing her face…..
It's later, Brenda is in bed and she is still talking to Christian.
He was in bed too. "I wish you were here."
"Do you miss your wife?"
"I do."
"And she misses her husband. I'll be home tomorrow."
Brenda had been talking to Christian for a few hours now and she still had not told him that Jax kissed her.
She just knew he was going to flip out and she wasn't ready to deal with that yet.
He could be a lot when he was angry.
And he was going to be so angry with her, because he warned her about Jax.
She was not ready for that.
"Christian, did I ever tell you that I was afraid to face you, the morning after we were first together?"
"Why?"
"I thought it was going to be awkward."
"To be honest, Brenda, I tried to be as nonchalant about it as possible, but I really wanted to just stay inside, and fuck you for the rest of the day. I knew that wasn't an option, because I didn't want to scare you off."
She laughed. "Oh, ok. That's honest."
"I mean since we are sharing things."
"Christian, what is going on in that head of yours?"
"Just ask, Baby, I'll tell you."
"I know you will, but I'm beginning to think, I don't want to know."
He laughed.
They spent the rest of the evening talking, until they fell asleep…on the phone.
Her first and him second…..…..
It took Brenda longer than expected to get back home because there were several delays.
And when she got there, a couple of men were carrying out a few pieces that were being donated.
She couldn't believe they would be in their new home by the end of the week.
The penthouse was almost empty.
They still had their rooms, the kitchen, and of course the gym, outside of that, it was basically empty.
She looked around.
She was going to miss this place.
She talked to Miss Jones for a while, then went into her and Christian's bedroom.
As soon as she walked into the room, she plugged up her phone because it was as dead as a doorknob.
She knew she probably had a million messages.
She had not checked them all day.
She took a quick shower.
She always showered after travelling, because she felt like she was a walking germ.
She wrapped herself in a towel, walked out of the room, and turned her phone on.
She logged into her voicemail and put it on speaker.
She went back into the bathroom to dry off and moisturize her body.
After that, she headed into the closet to put on a lounge set.
She listened to her messages while she got dressed.
The first few messages were from her agents in New York.
They had a few jobs they wanted to run by her.
Their messages were long, because they gave her a rundown of the jobs, which was standard practice if they couldn't reach her.
Jax was next.
Brenda, call me when you can. I just want to talk about what happened last night.
The next message was from Lois.
Brenda, you never called and told me what happened when you told Christian that Jax kissed you. I'm sitting here going crazy, call me back!
She walked out of the bathroom and stopped dead in her tracks, because Christian was sitting on the bed.
And he was pissed.
She could see it all over his face.
"When did Jax kiss you?"