Prologue

The room was dark, too dark. Her head felt heavy. No, this wasn't the way it was supposed to go. Something was wrong. This wasn't Vienna.

"Where am I? Who are you? Where have you taken me? Look ... just... just let me go and it'll be fine... there's people looking for me right now"

A cackled voice breaks in the room, there's static, it's over an intercom.

"No one is looking for you... Anastasia Grey... they're never going to look for you again."

"What are you talking about?" Rage and fear unfurled slowly in her gut. "Christian... he... he's looking for me, I know he is... he'll never stop looking for me... he's going to find me... and kill you!"

Laughter over the intercom...

"No, Anastasia, he won't be looking for you... because he's got no use for you any more"

Chapter 1

"No, Ana, I said no!" Gray eyes clouded with fury turned on me.

"I can't allow this! You've lost your mind if you think I'd let you take off to Vienna! Alone at that! And with everything else that's going on! No absolutely not"

"Christian, you can't forbid me! I never said I'd obey remember!" I could be just as stubborn as him.

That's it Ana, you tell him, my subconscious was out dressed in her Xena outfit. This was something I had to do.

"Look if it's Vienna, then let me take you, once the deal with the Japanese is done, we can take a vacation there"

Urgh, why is this man so infuriating, what am I a child? I've had two children for god's sake!

"It's not about Vienna or a vacation, Christian, I want to go for the conference, it's part of my job to represent GP at these things... You know this already! It's only for a few days, I'll be back before you even have a chance to miss me" I tried to reason with him gently.

"And what about Ted and Phoebe? What will they do while you're off gallivanting on your own?"

Petulant as ever, my fifty, but I was beginning to wear him down.

"Christian, you make it sound like I'm going for some crazy clandestine canoodling! It's. A. Conference... Ted and Phoebe will be fine, they can do without me for a week and it'll do them some good to see their mom work. Besides, Gail will have everything under control here"

"I just don't see why Hannah can't go instead of you, you should be home, resting and taking care of the children, not off on your own in some strange place"

"I'm not arguing this with you any longer, Christian, I'm telling you I'm going, so you might as well make your peace with it."

"So that's it then?"

I turned to face him and was taken by surprise. I expected pools of rage, but saw only heartbreak.

"Christian, it's not a big deal," I said softly, hoping I could reach him. "It's just a few days baby, I'll be home soon."

I could feel his need for me, his irrational compulsion to keep me locked up in his ivory tower. "It's not like I'm leaving for months, it's just a book expo. I need to do this, you know I do, you've always known that this is who I am."

'Do you really think I'd leave our children or you?' My subconscious was being a bit of a wiseass.

Ted and Phoebe were older now, they had school and their friends, and honestly it would be nice to do things for myself again.

"It's important to me. I wish you'd understand that"

He looked at me with his still hurt expression. My fifty had always been so possessive.

"Alright... fine" he said softly.

He's not happy but he's giving in.

"But you're taking the jet ... and Taylor.. and Sawyer ... and you have to make sure you take care of yourself!"

He takes my face in his hands and kisses me, a deep passionate kiss.

"I'd never forgive myself if anything happened to you Ana, I just want to keep you safe, I love you, you have to know that"

"I know that baby, I love you too, and I promise I'll take care of myself."

It had been two weeks since my little fainting spell and Christian had been unrelenting in his protectiveness of me. He'd been in Japan and I'd been so caught up in errands that I'd completely forgotten to eat during the day. Normally this wouldn't have been an issue, since Gail always packs lunch, but just my luck that she'd been off that day. Between getting both kids ready for school and running around with picking out the furniture for Ted's new room, I'd just gotten completely sidetracked. And that led to the great Starbucks fall of 2018, because well, why fall without an audience after all. One call from a worried bodyguard, one trip to Seattle General, a follow up with Grace and two furious dominant sessions later, and my loving husband was still smarting from my slip up. Ten years of marriage and Christian could still be as possessive and protective as he was in the beginning. Time and our children had tempered him a bit, but underneath he was still the little boy aching for love, and the young man trying desperately to protect his family. I understood his need to protect us and I loved him for it, but we found a way for his needs to coexist with mine. I guess that's what made our marriage so great.

A sound of the main door opening, it was time for Ted and Phoebe to be home from school. Christian and I had debated extensively on whether to put them in private schools or not, I'd been firmly against the idea, but in the end he'd won me over. It wasn't that I was against private school, but growing up in the public school system, I had great faith in the contribution it made to a child's social skills. Of course, fifty would have none of it. For someone who would buy a company just so his kids could have custom made toys, it was unfathomable to put them in the 'drug addled toxic environment of a public school, out of the question!'

"Alright fine! No public school, but please Christian you've got to let them have some normal childhood experiences, you can't have them growing up thinking everything will be handed over in a platter"

"They deserve everything on a platter, and I've worked very hard my whole life Ana, why shouldn't they benefit from it?"

"They need to know that the real world isn't like this, they need to face rejection once in a while Christian."

"I don't ever want them to feel rejection Ana, I want them to have what I never did as a child. I just want them to feel loved unconditionally"

In the end, he'd won out of course, we'd settled on private school and summer camps up in the mountains. So that they could meet all kinds of people, post background checks of course. Christian would always be Christian.