Fifty Shades of Maybes

Chapter 2

APOV

Kate woke me up early this morning. She wanted to go shopping as neither of us had class today and I oddly had the day off from Claytons. I rarely if ever I had a day off from the store when I didn't have class so it was a bit of a reprieve for me not to have anything that I had to do. Though I had planned on sleeping in and then cleaning up the apartment that Kate and I share, she had other plans.

"Steele! Come on! I NEED you with me. You know I will need a second opinion."

Laughing at her whiny pout, "No Kate. You don't need a second opinion. You have an uncannily marvelous sense of style. You just don't want to go shopping alone."

Plopping down next to me on my bed she says, "You're right. I don't. Besides, it's been a long time since you and I have had a girl's day. Please, just come with me? We'll head into Seattle; we can walk Pike Place Market, get to know the area a little. Maybe look around for stuff for the new apartment. I'll call daddy, tell him we want to see the apartment to get an idea of what we might want to do to decorate it. It's near the Market so …"

I begin laughing as she just continues to ramble trying to convince me that we both need to go shopping. In all honesty, Kate wants to see the apartment, as neither of us has actually seen anything more than photos. This way she can see what she wants changed and what she can talk her parents into doing to it before we graduate in May and move in.

She stops and looks at me with wide blue eyes before I address the real issue, "Kate if you want a second opinion on the apartment, fine. I'll be happy to go with you. You could have just said that instead of making it sound like you were going to torture me all day." Still giggling.

Standing with a huff, "Shopping is not torture, Ana. Get dressed; we can stop at Starbucks on the way." Then she sweeps out of the room, I'm assuming to get dressed herself.

Throwing back the blankets and swinging my legs over the side of the bed, I let out I sigh before turning to make my bed. This was something that was just ingrained in me from going up with Ray.

Ray. I smile comes to my face just thinking about the man. The best thing that ever happened to me. The one thing that I can honestly and truly thank my mother for was bringing this man into our lives. Mom can be a bit scattered but marrying Ray when I was just a baby had to be one of the best decisions she ever made. He was my dad. He was there when I fell and skinned a knee, and let's face it that was a lot. He was there when I was sick, sitting in my room watching over me. He was the one that taught me to ride a bicycle and roller skate; though surprisingly he took more falls on the roller states than I did. He was the one that was there when everything went all wrong with husband #3. He protected me the only way he could. Ray fought for custody, and won.

All the big occasions in my life he had been there for. He was my one constant. The one person that I have been able to count on continuously in my life. Ray didn't have any children of his own; I am his daughter though, in every way that matters. Blood, to Ray, doesn't matter. I am his. I am daddy's little girl. The man sacrificed so much to give me everything that he possibly could.

He retired early from the Navy just to take care of me. He went to work as a consultant for the Department of Defense and the FBI. The job gave him the ability and flexibility to be there for me at the drop of a hat; and when he couldn't be, well then there was Uncle Alex. They served together in the military and are as close to brothers as any I have ever met. Dad trusted Uncle Alex with his life, therefore he trusted him with me.

If Ray had to leave town, usually to Quantico, the FBI's training headquarters or to speak in Washington for any reason, he would call Uncle Alex to come and take care of me. Actually, I think that it was Uncle Alex's idea to come to me instead of me going to his house while dad was away. He did that until end of my junior year in high school. He'd just taken on a new job that caused the need for him to move to Seattle and seems to take up a lot more of his time than I am used to. Matter of fact, I haven't seen him in almost a year.