Story description:

In a struggle to survive, Ana becomes a modern mail-order-bride, hoping against hope for a happily ever after. But you can't start a new chapter of your life if you keep re-reading your last one.

Chapter One

Ana POV

I swallowed down the bile that rose in my throat as I stepped through the arrivals gate looking for the agency representative holding a sign with my name on it.

My gaze settled on the blonde woman with the big sign sticking up from the crowd. She was loudly-dressed as though she was at a party. She stood out like a sore thumb among the crowd at the airport.

"Hello," I mumbled, feeling nervous, and self-conscious.

"Anastasia?" The woman inquired. The way she was frowning at me while attempting to smile made me deeply uncomfortable.

"Yes," I answered, taking in the woman's moon-lit blonde hair and bright red lipstick. Something about her shades seemed unnatural.

"You're certainly prettier in person," she regarded me warily. Then, suddenly, her face broke into a wide phony smile. She was studying me as though I was a show pony.

"I'm Elena Lincoln, I'll be your escort to your new husband," the brash American woman smiled again and I wondered what role this woman would play in my new life. Was she a permanent fixture, or was she destined to become nothing more than a passing acquaintance?

I bit my lip I followed the woman to the luggage claim, taking in the new sights around me. I've never been to an airport before, I never imagined it would be this busy.

"Is this all?" Elena said with a sneer at the sight of my tattered suitcase. I didn't have many worldly possessions. I came to this country to save my family. The agency would be providing me with money in six monthly installments to put on the table for her mother and little sister. My mother's mental illness meant she couldn't make a decent living. My sister Maria was only fourteen; I didn't want to see her resort to begging or worse, selling her body to survive.

Answering the ad in the newspaper had been Jose's idea. My heart skipped a beat as she thought of my boyfriend of three years. I tried not to think of the fact that he had willingly married me off to someone else; it hurt too much. It had been an impossible situation, the only possible choice, I told my self over and over again. I hoped against hope that the man I was marrying would have enough money so that I could still send them money when the monthly installments ran out.

My eyes widened as we drove through the streets of Seattle and arrived at his place of residence. His home was a lot nicer than the mayor's house in my hometown. My thighs stuck to the leather seat of Elena Lincoln's plush car as we pulled into the circle driveway.

"Remember your new husband paid a lot of money for your company. Don't forget your training. Always smile and make sure you're always pleasant and entertaining company. Always defer to your husband's opinions and don't ever question his judgment. Understood? The last thing you want to do is upset him and have him send you back now, would you?" Elena's shrill laugh chilled me to the core. "I hope the agency didn't make a mistake in recruiting you."

I said nothing and the woman's gaze intensified. What could I possibly say to such a hostile comment?

"You don't speak much do you?" She looked at me with suspicion. " You do speak English, don't you?"

"I speak English," I replied curtly as we headed to the front steps to the house with impeccably manicured lawns. For the umpteenth time, I wondered who awaited me behind that door. Who would possibly want me considering I had been so surly and unbecoming in my interview video? I hoped my future husband valued honesty but I feared he might be a brute who liked a challenge. In any event, I was psychologically prepared in case the man was violent. I would never let my guard down, I would threaten to hit him with the next blunt object if I had to. It had certainly worked in the past.

I was not prepared for the brilliant gray eyes of the man who greeted me at the door.

"Welcome, Anastasia!" He said warmly, his hand equally warm as he shook mine. That smile of his eased a little the apprehension in my gut. "I'm Christian Grey." He was young and attractive and his voice was deep and smooth; he was nothing like the painfully lonely, crippled or repulsive man I had anticipated. If I didn't know for certain that this man had purchased me, I would have never pegged him for the type of man who would order a foreign bride without meeting her first.

Elena suddenly positioned herself between us breaking our eye contact. "Come with me," She demanded, grabbing me by the arm and whisking me away before I realized what was happening. "I'll show you to your room."

The bedroom she took me to was larger than I could have possibly imagined, something out of a storybook. I was absolutely speechless as I took in my luxurious surroundings.

"Here, take this," Elena spoke harshly pulling a rectangular box out of her purse. "It's a pregnancy test. Go in the bathroom, do your business and bring it back to me."

I looked at her in shock.

"Don't play all innocent. You surely didn't think a man like Christian Grey could trust a woman he's never met. Hurry up, he's waiting for you to sign the final papers."

I figured I didn't really have a choice. I entered the bathroom and shut the door behind me. My hands shook as I tore open the box and fumbled with the instructions. Oh, no, God, please let it be negative! I repeated over and over like an incantation.

"Hey, what's taking so long?" Elena knocked on the door.

"Wait, please!" I called in a thin voice. My hands continued to shake even as I unwrapped the stick and quickly read the instructions. Where I came from, pregnancy tests were hard to come by. There were two types of lines pictured. Next to the one-lined picture, it said NOT PREGNANT; whereas next to the two-lined picture it said, PREGNANT. So one line for negative, two lines for positive.

I peed on the stick and stared at it like it was a bomb that was about to explode. Knowing that woman was out there waiting for me made me even more nervous. God, please, I prayed. I've been good. I just want a chance. Don't let me be pregnant. I repent from all my sins. If you help me out here, I promise I will be your loyal faithful servant for the rest of my life. PLEASE!

Once again, Elena's voice rudely jarred me from my thoughts as she continued pounding on the door. A minute passed. I opened one eye,and then the other, and braced myself for the worst.

I blinked in disbelief. Two lines. NO, NO! I cried.