"It's alright, baby." He moves toward me, enveloping me in his arms, and kisses my hair. "Come on, you're tired. Bed."

"I was so worried," I murmur, rejoicing in his embrace and inhaling his sweet, sweet scent with my head against his chest.

"I know. We're all jumpy."

Sawyer has disappeared, presumably into the apartment.

"Honestly, your exes are proving to be very challenging, Mr. Grey," I mutter wryly.

Christian relaxes.

"Yes. They are."

He releases me and taking my hand, leads me across the hallway and into the great room.

"Taylor and his crew are checking all the closets and cupboards. I don't think she's here."

"Why would she be here?" It makes no sense.

"Exactly."

"Could she get in?"

"I don't see how. But Taylor is overcautious sometimes."

"Have you searched your playroom?" I whisper.

Christian glances quickly at me, his brow creasing. "Yes, it's locked-but Taylor and I checked."

I take a deep, cleansing breath.

"Do you want a drink or anything?" Christian asks.

"No." Fatigue sweeps through me-I just want to go to bed.

"Come. Let me put you to bed. You look exhausted." Christian's expression softens.

I frown. Isn't he coming, too? Does he want to sleep alone?

I'm relieved when he leads me into his bedroom. I place my clutch bag on the chest of drawers and open it to empty the contents. I spy Mrs. Robinson's note.

"Here." I pa.s.s it to Christian. "I don't know if you want to read this. I want to ignore it."

Christian scans it briefy and his jaw tenses.

"I'm not sure what blanks she can fll in," he says dismissively. "I need to talk to Tay- lor." He gazes down at me. "Let me unzip your dress.""Are you going to call the police about the car?" I ask as I turn around.

He sweeps my hair out of the way, his fngers softly grazing my naked back, and tugs down my zipper.

"No. I don't want the police involved. Leila needs help, not police intervention, and I don't want them here. We just have to double our efforts to fnd her." He leans down and plants a gentle kiss on my shoulder.

"Go to bed," he orders and then he's gone.

I lie, staring at the ceiling, waiting for him to return. So much has happened today, so much to process. Where to start?

I wake with a jolt-disorientated. Have I been asleep? Blinking in the dim glow the hallway casts through the slightly open bedroom door, I notice that Christian is not with me. Where is he? I glance up. Standing at the end of the bed is a shadow. A woman, maybe?

Dressed in black? It's diffcult to tell.

In my befuddled state, I reach across and switch on the bedside light, then turn back to look but there's no one there. I shake my head. Did I imagine it? Dream it?

I sit up and look around the room, a vague, insidious unease gripping me-but I am quite alone.

I rub my face. What time is it? Where's Christian? The alarm says it's two ffteen in the morning.

Climbing groggily out of bed, I set off to hunt him down, disconcerted by my overac- tive imagination. I am seeing things now. It must be a reaction to the dramatic events of the evening.

The main room is empty, the only light emanating from the three pendulum lamps above the breakfast bar. But his study door is ajar, and I hear him on the phone.

"I don't know why you're calling at this hour. I have nothing to say to you ... well, you can tell me now. You don't have to leave a message."

I stand motionless by the door, eavesdropping guiltily. Who is he talking to?

"No, you listen. I asked you, and now I am telling you. Leave her alone. She's nothing to do with you. Do you understand?"

He sounds belligerent and angry. I hesitate to knock.

"I know you do. But I mean it, Elena. Leave her the f.u.c.k alone. Do I need to put it in triplicate for you? Are you hearing me? ... Good. Good night." He slams the phone down on the desk.

Oh s.h.i.t. I knock tentatively on the door.

"What?" he snarls, and I almost want to run and hide.

He sits at his desk with his head in his hands. He glances up, his expression ferocious, but his face softens immediately when he sees me. His eyes are wide and cautious. Sud- denly, he looks so tired and my heart constricts.

He blinks, and his eyes sweep down my legs and back again. I am wearing one of his T-shirts."You should be in satin or silk, Anastasia," he breathes. "But even in my T-shirt you look beautiful."

Oh, an unexpected compliment. "I missed you. Come to bed."

He rises slowly out of the chair still in his white shirt and black dress pants. But now his eyes are shining and full of promise ... but there's a trace of sadness, too. He stands in front of me, staring intently but not touching me.

"Do you know what you mean to me?" he murmurs. "If something happened to you, because of me ..." His voice trails off, his brow creasing, and the pain that fashes across his face is almost palpable. He looks so vulnerable-his fear very much apparent.

"Nothing's going to happen to me," I rea.s.sure him, my voice soothing. I reach up and stroke his face, running my fngers through the stubble on his cheek. It's unexpectedly soft. "Your beard grows quickly," I whisper, unable to hide the wonder in my voice at this beautiful, f.u.c.ked-up man who stands before me.

I trace the line of his bottom lip then trail my fngers down his throat, to the faint smudge of lipstick at the base of his neck. He gazes down at me, still not touching me, his lips parted. I run my index fnger along the line, and he closes his eyes. His soft breathing quickens. My fngers reach the edge of his shirt, and I run them down to the next fastened b.u.t.ton.

"I'm not going to touch you. I just want to undo your shirt," I whisper.

His eyes open wide, regarding me with alarm. But he doesn't move, and he doesn't stop me. Very slowly I unfasten the b.u.t.ton, holding the material away from his skin, and move tentatively down to the next b.u.t.ton, repeating the process-slowly, concentrating on what I am doing.

I don't want to touch him. Well, I do ... but I won't. On the fourth b.u.t.ton, the red line reappears, and I smile shyly up at him.

"Back on home territory." I trace the line with my fngers before undoing the fnal but- ton. I pull his shirt open and move to his cuffs, removing his black polished stone cuffinks one at a time.

"Can I take your shirt off?" I ask, my voice low.

He nods, eyes still wide, as I reach up and pull his shirt over his shoulders. He frees his hands so he's standing in front of me naked from the waist up. With his shirt off, he seems to recover his equilibrium. He smirks down at me.

"What about my pants, Miss Steele?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.

"In the bedroom. I want you in your bed."

"Do you now? Miss Steele, you are insatiable."

"I can't think why." I grab his hand, pull him from his study, and lead him to his bed- room. The room is chilly.

"You opened the balcony door?" he asks, frowning down at me as we arrive in his room.

"No." I don't remember doing that. I recall scanning the room when I woke. The door was defnitely closed.

Oh s.h.i.t ... All the blood rushes from my face, and I stare at Christian as my mouth falls open.

"What?" he snaps, glaring at me."When I woke ... there was someone in here," I whisper. "I thought it was my imagi- nation."

"What?" He looks horrifed and dashes to the balcony door, peers out, then steps back into the room and locks the door behind him. "Are you sure? Who?" he asks his voice tight.

"A woman, I think. It was dark. I'd only just woken up."

"Get dressed," he snarls at me on his way back in. "Now!"

"My clothes are upstairs," I whimper.

He pulls open one of the drawers in his chest of drawers and fshes out a pair of sweat- pants.

"Put these on." They are far too big, but he is not to be argued with.

He swipes a T-shirt, too, and quickly pulls it over his head. Grabbing the bedside phone, he presses two b.u.t.tons.

"She's still f.u.c.king here," he hisses down the phone.

Approximately three seconds later, Taylor and one of the other security guys, burst into Christian's bedroom. Christian gives them a precis of what has happened.

"How long ago?" Taylor demands, staring at me all businesslike. He's still wearing his jacket. Does this man ever sleep?

"About ten minutes," I mutter, for some reason feeling guilty.

"She knows the apartment like the back of her hand," says Christian. "I am taking An- astasia away now. She's hiding here somewhere. Find her. When is Gail back?

"Tomorrow evening, sir."

"She's not to return until this place is secure. Understand?" Christian snaps.

"Yes, sir. Will you be going to Bellevue?"

"I'm not leading this problem to my parents. Book me somewhere."

"Yes. I'll call you."

"Aren't we all overreacting slightly?" I ask.

Christian glowers at me. "She may have a gun," he growls.

"Christian, she was standing at the end of the bed. She could have shot me then, if that's what she wanted to do."

Christian pauses for a moment to rein in his temper, I think. In a menacingly soft voice he says, "I'm not prepared to take the risk. Taylor, Anastasia needs shoes."

Christian disappears into his closet while the security guy watches me. I can't remem- ber his name, Ryan maybe. He looks alternately down the hall and to the balcony windows.

Christian emerges a couple of minutes later with a leather messenger bag, wearing jeans and his pinstriped blazer. He drapes a denim jacket around my shoulders.

"Come." He clasps my hand tightly, and I have to practically run to keep up with his long strides into the great room.

"I can't believe she could hide somewhere in here," I mutter, staring out the balcony doors.

"It's a big place. You haven't seen it all yet."

"Why don't you just call her ... tell her you want to talk to her?"

"Anastasia, she's unstable, and she may be armed," he says irritably.

"So we just run?"

"For now-yes.""Supposing she tries to shoot Taylor?"

"Taylor knows and understands guns," he says with distaste. "He'll be quicker with a gun than she is."

"Ray was in the army. He's taught me to shoot."

Christian raises his eyebrows and for a moment looks utterly bemused. "You, with a gun?" he says incredulously.

"Yes." I am affronted. "I can shoot, Mr. Grey, so you'd better beware. It's not just crazy ex-subs you need to worry about."

"I'll bear that in mind, Miss Steele," he answers dryly, amused, and it feels good to know that even in this ridiculously tense situation, I can make him smile.

Taylor meets us in the foyer and hands me my small suitcase and my black Converse.

I am stunned that he's packed me some clothes. I smile shyly at him with grat.i.tude, and his returning smile is swift and rea.s.suring. Before I can stop myself-I hug him, hard. He's taken by surprise, and when I release him, he's pink in both cheeks.