Fifty Shades Darker(229)

"Anytime," Christian smiles.

Jose hugs me quickly. "Stay safe, Ana."

"Sure. Great to see you. Next time we'll have a proper evening out."

"I'll hold you to that." He waves at us from inside the elevator, and then he's gone.

"See, he's not so bad."

"He still wants into your panties, Ana. But can't say I blame him."

"Christian, that's not true!"

"You have no idea, do you?" He smirks down at me. "He wants you. Big time. "

I frown. "Christian, he's just a friend, a good friend." And I'm suddenly aware that I sound like Christian when he's talking about Mrs. Robinson. The thought is unsettling.

Christian holds up his hands in a placating gesture.

"I don't want to fight," he says softly.

Oh! We're not fighting... are we? "Me neither."

"You didn't tell him we were getting married."

"No. I figured I ought to tell Mom and Ray first." Shit. It's the first time I've thought about this since I said yes. Jeez - what are my parents going to say?

Christian nods. "Yes, you're right. And I... um, I should ask your father."

I laugh. "Oh, Christian - this isn't the eighteenth century."

Holy shit. What will Ray say? The thought of that conversation fills me with horror.

"It's traditional." Christian shrugs.

"Let's talk about that later. I want to give you your other present." My aim is to distract him. The thought of my present is burning a hole in my consciousness. I need to give it to him and see how he reacts.

He gives me his shy smile, and my heart skips a beat. For as long as I live, I'll never tire of looking at that smile.

"You're biting your lip," he says and pulls on my chin.

A thrill runs through my body as his fingers touch me. Without a word, and while I still have a modicum of courage, I take his hand and lead him back to the bedroom. I drop his hand, leaving him standing by the bed, and from under my side of the bed, I take out the two remaining gift boxes.

"Two?" he says, surprised.

I take a deep breath. "I bought this before the, um... incident yesterday. I'm not sure about it now." I quickly hand him one of the parcels before I can change my mind. He gazes at me, puzzled, sensing my uncertainty.

"Sure you want me to open it?"

I nod, anxious.

Christian tears off the packaging and gazes in surprise at the box.

"Charlie Tango," I whisper.

He grins. The box contains a small wooden helicopter with a large, solar-powered rotor blade. He opens it up.

"Solar powered," he murmurs. "Wow." And before I know it he's sitting on the bed assembling it. It snaps together quickly, and Christian holds it up in the palm of his hand.

A blue wooden helicopter. He looks up at me and gives me his glorious, all-American-boy smile, then heads to the window so that the little helicopter is bathed in sunlight and the rotor starts to spin.

"Look at that," he breathes, examining it closely. "What we can already do with this technology." He holds it at eye level, watching the blades spin. He's fascinated and fascinating to watch as he loses himself in thought, staring at the little helicopter. What is he thinking?

"You like it?"

"Ana, I love it. Thank you." He grabs me and kisses me swiftly, then turns back to watch the rotor spin. "I'll add it to the glider in my office," he says distractedly, watching the blade spin. He moves his hand out of the sunlight, and the blade slows down and comes to a stop.