The Gray Man Ch. 45 - Conversion Therapy

TJ and Ana had just returned from Palm Springs and a much needed sabbatical break. He felt more like himself than he had in a year. He was still an Army Ranger at heart, when a Ranger was on leave, things got taken care of because the unit needed to continue training and operations. He hoped that the corporate world would provide for just as smooth a transition back into the daily grind.

He quickly realized that fantasy was false. As he stepped into his cluttered office, his heart sank at the sight of the mountain of paperwork and emails awaiting his attention. It seemed that the world hadn't paused in his absence, and the tasks had only multiplied. He shook his head as he muttered to himself, "When did I sign up for this shit?"

As he sunk into his chair, the feeling of being overwhelmed returned. Less than a minute after he sat down and looked at the pile, Ana slipped into the room, grumbling under her breath about the lack of organization in their absence. Without waiting for direction, she swiftly gathered the stack of papers from his desk and marched over to the large round table at the center of the room.

With practiced efficiency, Ana began sorting through the papers, muttering to herself as she categorized them into four distinct piles: URGENT, NEEDED, CURIOUS, and DESTROY. TJ watched her work, feeling a sense of relief knowing that Ana was so much more than a slave, or a good fuck. She was truly indispensable in his corporate life.

As Ana sorted papers, files, and mail, TJ delved into his overflowing inbox, his fingers flying across the keyboard as he responded to emails and addressed pressing matters. The constant clicking of keys provided a steady rhythm in the otherwise tense atmosphere of the office.

After what felt like an eternity, but was only thirty minutes, Rebecca peeked her head into the office, interrupting the focused silence. "Hey boss, got a minute?" she asked tentatively, her voice breaking through the concentration that had settled over the room.

TJ glanced up from his screen, offering Rebecca a weary smile. "Anything is better than this. Whatcha got?" he replied, already mentally preparing himself for another task to add to his ever-growing list.

"Boss," she began, her voice steady, "Wanted to give you an update on what we've learned about Parisia. While we haven't pinpointed Fatima's compound just yet. But we do have a lead. We have some SIGINT (signal intelligence) and Davey has put some of his HUMINT (human intelligence) boots on the ground, sending feelers out into the region to try and narrow down the location."

TJ leaned forward, his brow furrowed in concentration. "And what have you found?" he asked, his tone betraying the weight of the situation.

Rebecca didn't hesitate. "All signs point to La Pampa Province," she declared, her words punctuated by a sense of conviction. "The intelligence we've gathered suggests that's where Fatima's stronghold is located."

TJ exhaled slowly, the tension in his shoulders easing slightly. "Thank you, Rebecca," he said, his voice filled with gratitude. "You and the team have been doing outstanding work. Has Leila been cooperative?"

Rebecca nodded, "She hesitates at times, the kid is scared, but when Thompson shows up she sings like a canary."

TJ smirked, "Good work, and keep me in the loop."

Rebecca nodded, a small smile of satisfaction tugging at the corners of her lips. "On it, boss." She knew they were getting closer to their target, maybe even closer than she had shared with her boss. The last thing she wanted on the heels of his PTSD episode was to give him hope and then leave him disappointed.

The day had been a whirlwind of activity for TJ and Ana. TJ made a dent in the pile on his desk and his email while being updated on the agency's activities, the merger, and other details. Allen and Gretchen brought him up to date on the much better real estate terms they were getting from Bianca which caused them all to chuckle.

Allen even asked, "You've got to tell me, are those tits real?"

Gray shrugged, "If they were fake, she had a damn fine surgeon. Not one scar and let's just say they bounced very naturally. You saw the pictures and videos."

Allen nodded, "They looked real, but pics can be deceiving."

Finally, Gray sent Ana home around 5:30. She was going to go to the grocery store, then head home to start supper. TJ was going to go for a run, then head home. The run was chilly as late fall in the DC area was very different from 3 weeks in Palm Springs.

Gray ran, showered, then made his way to the house. TJ expected the aroma of dinner to greet him when he walked in. Instead, when TJ walked through the door of their home and found Ana sitting on the couch, tears streaming down her cheeks. Without a word, he crossed the room and knelt in front of her, opened her thin legs and wrapped his arms around her.

"What's wrong, pet?" he asked softly, his voice filled with concern.

Ana tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat, choked off by the weight of her emotions. TJ's gaze bore into hers, his eyes searching for answers, and she knew she couldn't hide from him.

"It's... it's nothing, Master, and you shouldn't kneel for me," she finally managed to choke out, her voice barely above a whisper.

TJ's expression hardened, the intensity in his green eyes caused her to look away as he spoke. "I'm the Master, I decide what I do and do not do, not you. Also, let me remind you that you are the slave and you will not under any circumstances hide anything from me. When I ask, I expect an answer." His voice was firm, gentle and loving. Ana didn't know that combination was possible, but her Master had found it.

With a heavy sigh, Ana relented, her shoulders slumping with defeat. "Yes, Master. I ran into an old friend from college and my early work years. Abigail Montgomery."

As Ana recounted her encounter with Abigail to TJ, her voice trembled with a mix of frustration and hurt. They sat in the comfort of their home, Ana nestled close to TJ, finding solace in his embrace as she unraveled the painful memory.

"Sir, she's... attractive," Ana admitted, her voice tinged with reluctant admiration. "Blonde hair, blue eyes, always perfectly put together in a bohemian way. She's petite, small breasts. I don't know how she looks so professional and yet like a hippie at the same time."

TJ, more than most humans had learned to hear what was unsaid as much as what was said. As Ana described Abi she was actually saying that the young woman was prettier, more attractive, more desirable than Ana felt about herself. Most would have stopped her to correct her, but TJ knew to not respond to what was unsaid. He remained silent, urging her to continue.

"We went to Georgetown together," Ana explained, her voice soft with reminiscence. "Worked at the same firm until... until I left to come to Pelican and to you. People knew that I hated that rat race, that lifestyle. They knew that I was returning to my spiritual roots - and many made assumptions, correct ones that I would be a servant - maybe even some thought that I'd be what I am, a slave."

As Ana recounted the conversation with Abigail, TJ listened with a mix of anger and concern, his grip tightening around Ana's shoulders in silent support.

Abigail's words had been like poison, each one laced with venomous contempt. "You're nothing but a whore," she had sneered, her disdain dripping from every syllable. "A slave, throwing away your talent and sending the cause of women back fifty years."

Ana's voice faltered as she relived the moment, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. "She ridiculed me, TJ," she confessed, her voice barely above a whisper. "Mocked my bracelets and ankle bells, made me feel... ashamed."

TJ knew how wounded Ana was as she did not use an honorific instead his given name. His eyes grew intense as he calmed himself before he spoke. "You are none of those things, Ana," he reassured her firmly, his voice unwavering. "You are strong, capable, and independent. You identify yourself as a slave. A slave is mistreated, has no rights, no say. Is that how I treat you?"

She cried, "No."

TJ went on, "A slave wouldn't go to powerful meetings with me, sit - SIT NOT KNEEL - in a corporate board room and have her thoughts heard, would they?"

Again she sniffed, "No."

TJ sighed, "Ana, you are a slave - but you do get paid, you do have rights, you have the power and freedom to walk away at any time. I never want to treat you as a slave - as an assistant, as a submissive - but not a slave."

Ana started to cry even harder as TJ went on, "One other thing that I want to be clear about. You are a slut, maybe some would demean you as a whore - but you are not. You are MY slut, MY whore. I would never share you in a way to demean or hurt you. I will not ever pimp you out to close a deal. You need to wrap your heart around that truth."

As Ana buried her face in TJ's chest, her tears dampening his shirt, she felt a sense of peace wash over her. In that moment, surrounded by TJ's embrace he heard her as she whispered, "I love you, Master."

TJ simply smiled, picked Ana up and carried her up to the master suite. "Undress, pet."

Ana was honestly not in the mood for sex, but she moved to obey her Master's command. As she watched TJ undressed, the familiar longing began to take over. She was in no way prepared for what came next as he bent, picked her up by the waist and turned her upside down. He held her as if she were a pillow as his mouth found her pussy.

Ana's hand instinctively reached for his cock as his lips locked themselves onto her clit. It amazed her how she could go from 'not really in the mood' to 'oh my god I'm going to cum' so fast with TJ. She finally did grab his cock and lift it to her lips. She slid the first three or four inches into her mouth in the awkward upside down position, her hair almost touching Gray's shins. She gripped his ass with her hands for support.

Ana felt his moan more than she heard it as it vibrated through his throat directly to her clit. She almost came undone right then. She wanted to hold off her first orgasm as long as she could, to let the ecstasy build.

Ana sucked his cock for a bit, her head bobbing back and forth on his thick prick as his lips and tongues tormented her clit. She was using every jedi mind trick she could to delay the inevitable for as long as she could.

She moaned and ground her hips into his tongue. It felt so good, however her moan was her undoing as TJ gently bit at her clit. The sharp pain pushed her into another dimension, her legs locked to his ears as she fucked his tongue, her orgasm crashing into her so powerfully she had to get his cock out of her mouth so she could scream without biting him. This wasn't the low groan that she often let out, this was a scream that if the neighbors heard it they would call 911. It also wasn't a short scream, but a long wailing. She let go of his ass and her little fists pounded against his thighs. She no longer cared if he dropped her. Her body was in automatic overdrive, she had no conscious control over what she was doing

When she finally relaxed and took a deep breath she opened her eyes to find his now raging erection demanding her attention. She should be dizzy, she thought with all of the blood rushing to her head, but as if on command she opened her mouth and pulled his cock back into her mouth, again getting an animalistic growl that she heard and felt through her pussy.

Ana was adrift on a sea of pleasure as his tongue worked her and strong arms held her off the ground. Ana's mouth and throat sucked him as best she could being in that position and unable to think about anything other than what he was doing to her cunt.

Without warning, Ana started to cum again, just as powerful as the last one. Instead of spitting his cock out she buried it into her throat, her throat bulging at the intruder as she milked her Master's cock.

Ana moaned around his cock and mere seconds later he groaned again into her pussy and began cumming in her mouth. Ana moaned, trying to swallow upside down was nearly impossible but she tried as his tongue brought her yet another climax and her mouth worked him.

Ana tried to swallow as best she could, but some dripped out of her mouth onto his thigh, while some actually squirted out her nose. Mercifully, he stopped licking her and she drifted back down to Earth. TJ again turned her around as if she were weightless and laid her on the bed. He chuckled at the cum bubbles coming out of her nose. She felt them and jumped up as TJ laughed harder, "What?" she protested, "it's my nose, I want to see."

TJ followed her to the bathroom and picked up a washcloth. Ana stood at the sink, her protector, her King standing broad and tall behind her. "You are just fine as you are, pet, don't let a jealous bitch steal your joy."

Ana nodded, "Thank you, Sir. I try to remember that." Just then a sharp spank cracked against her ass, "Sir," she panted, "What was that for?"

TJ swatted her again, "The second one was for asking, I can blister that ass at my pleasure."

Ana lowered her eyes, "Yes, Master."

TJ kissed the top of her head, "The first one was for forgetting whose nose that is."

Ana thought for a bit, wrinkled up her nose and stuck out her tongue as TJ laughed. "Take a shower pet, tonight I'll cook."

Ana walked into the same shower that she shared with Bianca just a while before. She showered in the dark and marveled at how completely her Master saw her. Her strengths and her anxieties, her gifts and her growing edges. She realized that she had given him the power and control to handle her as brutally as he wanted, but even when he was rough he was tender. She slid to the floor of the shower and pulled her legs to her chest and wept - wept not from shame or hurt, but from being completely seen and accepted for who she truly was.

When she finally left the shower she put on a thick plush robe and fuzzy slippers and walked downstairs. TJ had indeed cooked. He had made a chopped salad, using just about every vegetable in the fridge. Baked Potatoes in the pressure cooker, he had grilled in the snow both steaks and asparagus. Dinner was waiting for Ana at the kitchen bar, and the smell of brownies filled the air as they were baking in the oven.

She wanted to cry again, "Master," she whispered, "It is my job to take care of you, not yours to take care of me."

TJ smirked, "Sometimes we all need to be cared for. Thank you would have been enough. Eat."

Dinner was delicious, Ana had to admit that TJ was an amazing cook. Unlike the stereotypical white guy that only used salt, he seasoned things perfectly, and seasoned throughout the cooking process. She ate silently as she watched her Master, her heart swelled with pride, wondering if there was anything this man couldn't do.

She would soon find out that there was something that Gray could not do. As Ana was cleaning up from dinner the garbage disposal stopped working and the sink backed up. When she mentioned it to TJ he chuckled, "Call somebody, I am not a DIY guy, my way of doing a project is to pound on it with a hammer until it needs to be replaced, and then calling someone to replace it. Let's save the first step of the process."

Ana smiled, "Yes, Sir - I have yet to see you completely lose your temper, and I'd like to be far far away if that ever does happen."

TJ winked at his slave, "I'll be sure to give you fair warning."

Later that week, Gretchen, Davey, Olivia, Renee, and TJ huddled around the conference table at the Strategic Solutions Group offices. They team were poring over legal documents with a diligence that spoke volumes about their dedication.

"Hell, if I had known there'd be this much paperwork I may have let that nutcase in Bahrain kill me years ago. This would drive a sane person mad," Davey remarked, his eyes scanning the dense text as he shuffled through papers.

Gretchen nodded in agreement, her fingers flipping through pages with practiced ease. "The SEC doesn't play around. It's the playing field of the filthy rich and they don't want to let everyone into their club. But it's all worth it once we get this merger finalized."

Olivia, her gaze fixed on her laptop screen, chimed in, "To think that Gretchen and I left lucrative law careers to die on a mountain of documents "

As the clock crept closer to 8:00, Davey glanced at his watch and then at Gretchen. "Hey, Gretch, our dinner reservations are for 8:30. We should probably start wrapping things up."

Gretchen nodded, a small smile playing on her lips. "You're right. Let's finish up and get going."

As they gathered their belongings, TJ shot Olivia a questioning look, but she only grinned in response. "Oh, TJ, you'll find out soon enough," she teased, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

At 8:15, Olivia rose from her seat, offering her apologies. "I hate to cut out early, but I've got to work on a couple of other projects for an 8 AM with a realtor."

TJ nodded, "Which realtor?"

Olivia put her computer into her bag, "Bianca Shey-Snider, why?"

TJ smiled, "Want some company?"

Olivia nodded, "Bianca is a bitch, I'll take all the back up I can get. We are meeting at Table Talk. I wanted to meet in public so her screaming is kept to a minimum."

TJ nodded, "Zero-eight hundred at Table Talk. I'll see you there."

With Olivia's departure, TJ began packing up his belongings, his mind still lingering on her cryptic words. Before he could dwell too much, Renee's voice broke through his thoughts.

"Hey, TJ," she said, her gray bangs falling gently over her eyes as she leaned against her desk. "I'm going to pour a scotch before I head home, too much of this in my brain will keep me up all night. Care to join me?"

TJ hesitated for a moment before nodding, a grateful smile spreading across his face. "I like that plan, especially if you've got bourbon hanging around."

Renee laughed, "Davey Thompson is the CEO of this place, bourbon is about all we have, but I prefer Scotch so I bring my own."

The pair moved from the conference room to Renee's office where she poured Gray two fingers of Woodford Reserve Batch Proof and herself a healthy pour of Glenlivet 12 year old Scotch. TJ took the glass and smiled, "That's the good stuff"

Renee's voice softened as she unbuttoned her gray blazer, "Life's too short to drink the cheap shit."

TJ lifted his glass in a toast, "To new friendships, partnerships, and The Sentinel Group."

Renee lifted hers, "To the men and women with the courage to forge ahead."

Renee moved to a stereo that TJ had not noticed before and took a vinyl copy of Robert Cray's album Strong Persuader before she took a seat in one of the large leather chairs. She curled her legs under her and put her head back as the scotch and the music began to warm her veins.

TJ leaned back in his chair, his eyes fixed on Renee with a curious intensity as he sipped his bourbon, "So, Renee, I've been meaning to ask you... why leave a high-flying career at JP Morgan to become the CFO of a private contracting firm?"

Renee's lips curved into a wistful smile as she met TJ's gaze. "Well, you see, TJ, sometimes life has a way of leading us down unexpected paths. Davey, he's a persuasive man. He had this vision, this passion, and he made me see that there was something more fulfilling waiting for me beyond the confines of corporate finance."

TJ nodded, understanding dawning in his eyes. "I can see that. Davey has that effect on people."

A somber shadow passed over Renee's features, her gaze drifting momentarily as she spoke again, her voice tinged with a hint of sadness. "And... there's something else, TJ. Something deeper."

Curiosity flickered in TJ's eyes as he leaned forward, silently urging her to continue.