Fifty Shades of Sacrifice

Chapter 12

Author's Note: Muuaahhh, the plot thickens! Sorry this is short. The next chapter will be longer but I'm still working on it.

Compared to the morose ass he'd been all week, Christian arrived the next day at GEH practically giddy, convinced he was taking the first crucial baby steps with Ana to atone for his yearlong absence. He'd spent an hour on the phone with her the night before talking about her new job, sidestepping the issue of SIP's new ownership for now, and she had texted him first thing in the morning like he'd asked her to.

He was so engrossed in sending flirty texts back to Ana that he hadn't even bothered to go inside yet. Instead, he stood outside the front doors grinning like a loon at his phone, oblivious to the stray paparazzi who camped outside his building ever since he was named on some rag's "hottest businessmen bachelors in the world" rankings a few weeks earlier. Christian promptly served the publication with a cease and desist order and sued the owners for libel for mislabeling him a bachelor when in fact he was married.

But Stacie noticed the cameras — and Christian. Her morning routine had always been to linger in the lobby hoping to catch some elevator alone time with Christian when he came in, but now there was a sense of urgency in her machinations.

She had received an email yesterday from the boss himself informing her that she was being transitioned to a project at GEH's sister office in New York, where she would be spending the bulk of her time.

The pending move drastically sped up Stacie's plans.

She walked outside and immediately tripped on an invisible crack in the sidewalk, landing squarely in Christian's arms. He flinched, uncomfortable with anyone touching his arms but his wife, though his ingrained civility won out and he helped Stacie to her feet.

"Are you alright Ms. Abramson?"

"Yes, I'm so sorry Mr. Grey," she said, lingering on his arm as she pretended to regain her balance from a nonexistent broken heel. "I was just going out for some coffee. Would you like some?"

"No I'm fine," he said distractedly, returning to his Blackberry.

In the periphery of her vision, Stacie saw the cameras clicking away, so she decided to give them a show. Shrewdly maneuvering herself closer to Christian, she brought up the one topic that always broke his cantankerous shell.

"Once again, my apologies for my klutziness. I'm in good company from what I hear though. Ros tells me that Mrs. Grey suffers from the same affliction as I do and has tripped on more than one occasion at GEH, so at least I'm not alone," Stacie smiled.

Ana does have a habit of that. Christian fondly reminisced about all the times his wife had bumbled into his office, literally. His ear-to-ear grin was enough to illuminate the bleak Seattle skyline. Fortunately, I'm always there to catch her, Christian ruminated, lost in a trance. I always will be.

"Maybe clumsiness is just a female thing," Stacie joked, strategically placing her hand on Christian's forearm while his thoughts were preoccupied with his wife. His haphephobia had waned significantly since he'd met Ana, so he didn't instantly recoil like he used to, but Christian still pulled his arm back and glowered at her.

"Well, I better be off. Sorry again Mr. Grey." She promptly walked away as Christian brushed off their exchange. At least she has the decency to know when she's being a nuisance.

All in all, the encounter lasted barely a minute, but it was just long enough for the vultures circling overhead to get their money shot.