Ana and Christian continue to have problems such as what is the plot? and we’re rich, what now? Also, Christian might be realising that people in his life love him for some reason.
Darker Chapter 10 (Part 3):
Christian listens to all the voicemails he received during the five pages he went missing. They are from loved ones, and he is apparently deeply moved:
I save all the messages bar Elena’s and return to the most important voice mail, from the florist in Bellevue.
STEP ASIDE, FRIENDS AND FAMILY! THE FLORIST CALLED!
We get summary of Christian making phone calls to the florist, jewellery store, and to his publicist, Sam. Poor Sam just wants to get some good PR from Christian after the helicopter accident! But Christian’s having none of it!
He’s silent for a moment, publicity whore that he is. “Yes, Mr. Grey,” he says, tight-lipped. I hear, and ignore, his reluctance, but I’m beginning to think I need a new PR person. His credentials were seriously overstated when we checked his references.
The most compelling line of the series told from Christian’s POV is whether Sam will have a job by the end Freed.
Ana emails Christian from the other room to tell him lunch is almost ready and she likes having sex with him. Christian abruptly calls his mother to announce that he and Ana are getting married. He arranges for flowers to be delivered to the house so he can properly propose to Ana. Then he tries to call Ray (Ana’s stepfather), but he doesn’t pick up! Oh no! What a problem that will be so difficult to overcome. Seriously, how were these books published? How is any of this a story?
While I have Ana’s file on my desk, I decide to deposit some money into her bank account. She’ll have to get used to having money.
“Twenty-four thousand dollars!”
“Twenty-four thousand dollars, to the lovely lady in silver, going once, going twice. Sold!”
I chuckle, remembering her audacity at the auction.
Ha…ha…good times…and oh my god why do you still have a file on Ana?
I wonder what she’ll make of this. I’m sure it will be an interesting discussion.
There is a 100000% chance he is wrong.
Christian then transfers $50,000 to Ana. These people sure do have such relatable problems and conflicts that are compelling.
Ray calls back. What was even the point of him missing the call if he was just going to call back instantly?
“Yes. Of course. Um. I called because, um, I’d like your permission to marry your daughter.” The words tumble out like I’ve never negotiated or clinched a deal in my life. What’s more, they’re met with a resounding silence.
I guess this is supposed to be cute, but I just don’t buy it. It feels really forced.
Ray asks to speak to Ana, and I just realise how fucked up this whole thing is. Christian and Ana are already engaged. Putting aside how gross the tradition is where the man asks the woman’s father for permission to marry her, at this point they are fucking engaged. It is up to Ana when she gets to tell her father about this, and Christian just swooped in without asking her first. After what feels like six hundred years writing about this series, can you tell I hate Christian Grey?
Ana, unperturbed, takes the call outside.
Her body language gives nothing away. Suddenly, she stops and beams. Her smile could light Seattle. He’s either said yes … or no.
He said no, and Ana was so overjoyed that someone finally finally spoke some sense to her.
Ana puts Christian back on the phone, and everything is good to go! Ray gives his blessing! Whew. What a close call there. Really touch and go for a minute.
After this joyous revelation…Ana shifts gears and confronts Christian for some photographs she found in his closet. I don’t remember these photos as all, quite frankly, but apparently they’re a big deal.
Confess, Grey.
You’ve already alluded to the depths of your depravity.
This is it, baby. Fifty shades.
“This is going to sound cold, but— they’re an insurance policy.”
“Insurance policy?”
“Against exposure.”
It’s not clear what the issue is, but it’s resolved when Christian reassures Ana he loves her. I thought maybe she was just grossed out he still had the photos or something…but apparently it was just about whether she’s the only woman for him? To be fair, though, if the situation was reversed, you know Christian would go nuclear.
The issue is resolved as quickly as it was introduced, so again, not really clear on why it was introduced at all.
Christian wonders how the photographs got into his closer when they were supposed to be in his safe. Probably Leila, he thinks thirty times. He decides once and for all he’ll ask Dr Flynn to confirm. I still think it’s bonkers that Dr. Flynn is also Leila’s therapist now. He should definitely not be asking Leila questions on behalf of Christian. None of this can be healthy or ethical for anyone involved.
As he shreds the photos, Christian kind of goes down memory lane. I don’t actually fully understand how the photographs are an insurance policy. If any of his former subs wanted to tell the world what he was into and the NDAs weren’t enough to deter them…I don’t see what these photographs would achieve. By nature of “coming forward”, the women would have revealed themselves to be Christian’s submissives, and I can’t imagine the one thing standing between them and fame (if that’s what they were after) would be some photographs of them bound and gagged.
Christian listens to his voicemails again, but this time he deletes them all and grows increasingly annoyed with Elena’s attempts to reach out to him. Things are really getting wild in this last chapter.
“He’s either said yes … or no.”
I’m so glad Christian enlightened us about the possibilities, otherwise I would never have guessed what the options were.
Equal chances that E L James doesn’t know about patient confidentiality laws or that she thinks Christian can somehow buy his way around them, I think.
Hahahaha I love that Christian’s musing came right after Ana looked happy too. Wouldn’t he have thought, “He probably said yes!” That bit made me lol.
The patient confidentiality stuff is genuinely alarming!
I hope Sam the PR guy isn’t the employee who needed the green card, or he’s screwed.
“I decide to deposit some money into her bank account. She’ll have to get used to having money.”
Christian asked to Ana if she wants this money?
Of course not. It’s much easier to justify to himself if she doesn’t have the opportunity to say no to him.
Unfortunately I do remember the photos, I even remember that they were sort of brought up again in book three when Ana tries to get him to “objectify” her by taking pictures during their honeymoon (dear GOD why do I remember all this???). And yeah, it still makes no sense to me, in the same way that Jack using sex tapes for blackmail makes little sense. I mean, on the one hand I can understand that it would probably be humiliating/traumatizing to have those images of yourself put out in the world without your consent, but at the same time, if the woman in question had already went public about her D/s relationship with Christian, than releasing the photos of her would really only be evidence to support what she’s saying. With Jack Hyde I can understand the sex tape as blackmail a little more, since the books at least acknowledge that HIS behavior is criminal and wrong, and then again it still doesn’t make sense because isn’t it implied that he coerced/raped the women he taped, and would the tapes therefore not be damning evidence against him?
Yeah, there’s an astounding lack of logic in the idea that “if you tell people you were my submissive, I’ll have no choice but to prove you were my submissive!” is compelling blackmail.
But it makes perfect sense if, like James, you assume that everyone who participates in BDSM activities is actually super ashamed of their “darkness” and mentally/emotionally damaged.