Falling Into You (Geek to Chic) (14 page)

“I thought you
were sleeping, I was debating if I should wake you or just turn off the lights
and let you sleep.
 
I hope I didn’t wake
you.”
 
She moved to his side.
 
He pulled her into his lap as he opened his
eyes.
 

He kissed her
quickly.
 
“I am glad I woke up.
 
I would have missed kissing you.”
 
With that, he kissed her again. Her body
melted against his.
 

She
reluctantly broke the kiss to put her ‘get Derek to sleep plan’ into
effect.
 
“I was hoping to sweep you away
from here now that your meetings are done for the day.
 
We can grab some to go food and head to my
house, what do you say?”

Derek looked
like he was having the internal debate of a lifetime.
 
She would bet he had never left the office
while the sun was still up before.
 
She
sat patiently, waiting for the internal debate to conclude.

He slowly
smiled, running his hand chastely up her thigh.
 
“Ok, you win. I have hit a wall.
 
Food and more importantly spending some time with you, sounds great.
 
Let me close down all my programs and you go
grab your stuff and order something we can pick up on the way to your
house.”
 
He kissed her again, this time
with a little tongue and set her on her feet.
 

Too bad he was
so tired or else she would be having him for dessert.
 

***

Forty-five
minutes later they were snuggled on Roni’s couch watching
Entourage
reruns on HBO On Demand, eating their dinner they picked
up from Chili’s.
 
Again he wanted to stop
and eat somewhere expensive and she had insisted they keep it simple and
quick.
 
They ate their meal in a pleasant
silence, punctuated by their laughter at the show.
 

Despite his
protest that he would clean up, she took his food container in the trash in the
kitchen and returned to the couch with a blanket.
 
All part of her plan.
 

“Are you
trying to seduce me or get me to sleep?”
 
He asked her with a wry smile on his face.

“Why does it
have to be one or the other?”
 
She asked
innocently.
 

He only
laughed as he pulled her to lay in front of him on the couch.
 
Essentially spooning her when she
landed.
 
“Can I choose which one I think
we should do first?”
 
Derek said stifling
a yawn.

“I think that
yawn just chooses for you.”
 
She smiled
over her shoulder at him.
 

“Well, maybe a
quick nap wouldn’t be a bad thing.
 
But
when I wake up you are in trouble.”
 
He
said before kissing her almost desperately.
 
Once he released her from the powerful kiss that she felt all the way to
the apex of her legs, he snuggled her close and turned on another episode of
Entourage.
 
Before E and Vince had even
found a date for the night, Derek was out cold.
 
He held her tight as though she was his own security blanket.
 
She snuggled closer to him.
 
Enjoying being wrapped in his warm arms as
his spicy scent engulfed her.
 

Even though it
was still early and she had not worked half as many hours as Derek had, she
felt her eyes closing, suddenly very heavy.
 
Before the second show ended, she too was out cold.
 

***

Derek woke
with a start, when Roni kneed him in the groin in her sleep.
 
He had to restrain himself quickly before he
screamed out in pain.
 
He was amazed that
even in sleep, she could cause him bodily harm.
 
He reached down to gently move her knee away from his family jewels.
This got her to roll over.
 
He cupped his
boys, as the pain subsided.
 
Once he knew
he wasn’t going to cough up one of his balls, he tenderly moved her so he could
get up from the couch.
 
He used the
bathroom and returned to the couch.
 
Looking at the clock on the cable box, 10:45.
 
Wow, he slept for almost five solid
hours.
 

He knew he
should just snuggle back with Roni and give his body the rest it was screaming
for.
 
His mind on the other hand was
screaming for him to work.
 
To complete
his masterpiece.
 
He sat on the edge of
the couch stroking Roni’s hair.
 

“She won’t
wake up you know?” He looked up to see Izzy, standing in the kitchen
doorway.
 
Clad in
Hello
Kitty
pajamas.
 

“Sorry I
didn’t mean to wake you when I used the bathroom.”
 
He apologized quietly.

Izzy laughed,
taking a drink of her tea.
 
“It wasn’t
you moving around the house that woke me, it was the groan of pain I heard
prior to that.”
 
She smiled still
giggling a little. “She kneed you in the boys didn’t she?”

Derek
chuckled.
 
“Yes, how did you know?”

“Roni and I
have shared a bed on trips before, if I had been a guy I would have been
singing soprano too. She’s a kicker too, so be careful.”
 

Derek had to
chuckle again. “Thanks for the warning. I didn’t even hear you come in
earlier.”

“I went out
after work with Gracey for a bit.” She said all too quickly.
 
“When I got home you two were snoring up a
storm on the couch.”
 
As if on cue, Roni
snored loudly.
 
Causing both Izzy and
Derek to laugh loudly.
 

“Wow, she
really doesn’t wake up for anything, does she?”

“Nope, the
light rail could come barreling straight through the living room and she would
simply roll over. The girl likes her sleep.” Izzy replied with a shake of her
head.

“Should I
leave her here or take her to her bed before I go?”
 

Izzy’s face
scrunched tightly. “Leaving?”

“I need to get
back to work.
 
And home to shower.
 
I think I am out of clean suits at the
office.”
 
He replied shyly.
 

“Do you ever
just stop and enjoy the moment Derek?”
 
The way Izzy looked at him was the way Alex’s mom or Mrs. Frostberry
looked at him when they were concerned for him.
 

“When the
moment is important I do, I guess.
 
Right
now I have no time to enjoy the moment.
 
I have to work.”
 
He affirmed with
a speck of sadness intruding on his normally strong voice.

Izzy said
nothing, only stared at him for a few long minutes.
 
He was about to ask her what she was thinking
when she seemed to shake off her deep thought.
 
“You should put her in her bed so that she hears her alarm in the
morning.
 
Lock the door on your way
out.
 
Good night Derek.”
 
She turned to go to her room.

“Good night
Izzy.”
 
He was still confused over what
she could have possibly been thinking.
 

Derek shook
off the unease he suddenly felt. He stood, pulling the blanket from Roni so
that he could pick her up.
 
He easily
picked her up, her arms automatically wrapping around his neck.
 
He tucked her into bed and kissed her on the
forehead without her even so much as twitching in her sleep.
 
Not wanting to be a complete bastard, he
found paper and pen on her night stand leaving her a quick note.
 
One more kiss on the forehead and he was
gone.
 

Roni heard her
alarm going off, but could not bring herself to leave the security of her
dreams.
 
Finally, after the annoying
clock’s volume increased, she sat up smacking the blasted thing as hard as she
could out of frustration of having to leave her dream.
 
She was dreaming of her future with
Derek.
 

With happy
thoughts running though her brain, Roni stretched.
 
Suddenly she realized she was in her room.
Alone. Did she dream falling asleep with him on the couch?
 
Possibly.
 
She looked around and then listened to see if maybe he had gotten up
before her.
 
No such luck.
 

She got out of
bed, gathering her clothes for the day before she went to shower.
 
As she grabbed her panties and bra from her
drawer she saw a note.
 
She smiled,
knowing Derek had left it most likely because he could not wake up from her
death sleep state to actually say goodbye.
 

Roni,

I tried to wake you, but Izzy was right,
there is no waking you.
 

I am heading back to work, I know, I know,
but at least I slept first.
 
The best
nap, I have ever had!

I miss you before I even leave you.
 

Derek
.

Roni squealed
like a high school girl whose crush had left a note in her locker.
 
She read it again, and again, before finally
folding the note up and put it in her nightstand drawer.
 
Her happy mood was out of this world happy
mood.
 
She bounced into the shower and
through her morning routine.
 

She was in the
kitchen eating a bowl of oatmeal when a groggy Izzy came in looking for
coffee.
 
Roni had learned a long ago not
to even say ‘good morning’ to her before she had her coffee.
 
She waited as Izzy poured herself a cup and
drank down a few sips.
 
“Good
morning.”
 
She finally said, knowing it
was now safe.
 

“Morning.”
 
Izzy said between gulps of coffee.
 

“Did you see
Derek before he left?”

“Yes, that boy
works too much.
 
But he did make sure you
were comfortably tucked in bed before he left.
 
And he looked torn between his first love and you.”

“First love?”
 
Roni said through a smile.
 

“His
company.
 
He loves that place. And he
seems torn between being at work and being with you.
 
I take it as a good sign for you that he has
this inner debate going.”
 
Izzy replied
in her mother tone.
 

“But?” Roni
knew there was more.
 

“But, he is
eventually going to have to even out the time he spends with his ‘mistress’ and
the time he spends with you.”

Roni shook her
head at her friend. “His ‘mistress’? Izzy he is in the middle of a huge,
complicated government contract.
 
Work
will slow down and then he and I can go out more, get to know each other, you
know date.”

“By the look
on your face this morning I can already see that you are picking out china
patterns.” Izzy paused, before she continued in a more serious tone.
 
“I don’t want to see you get hurt. And this
has heartbreak written all over it.”

Roni knew her
friend’s opinion was correct.
 
Her heart
was in serious jeopardy here after only a week of really knowing Derek.
Sighing, Roni looked down as she spoke.
 
“I know.
 
I have been infatuated
with him for six months.
 
And the Derek
behind the workaholic CEO asshole façade, is worth the risk.”
 
Roni looked Izzy in the eyes as she
continued.
 
“I know that when it comes to
guys you like to play it safe.
 
Go after
the harmless men who are polite at all times, but that is not my type.
 
Love is about risk, and Derek is a huge
risk.”
 

Izzy stood
there motionless and soundless, for a few beats.
 
“Are you saying the guys I date are….
boring?”

Roni looked
up, her finger going to her mouth as she thought of a polite response.
 
“Let’s say they are all predictable, and that
is why they don’t last.
 
You need someone
fun, exciting, completely unpredictable.”

“Unpredictable
is trouble.
 
Trust me.”
 
Izzy muttered the last words under her
breath, but Roni still caught them.
 
“Anyway, I have to get ready to go mold some young minds.”
 

Izzy refilled
her coffee and headed back to her room to get ready for work.
 
How she spent all day with 30 kindergarteners
was beyond Roni.
 
She looked at her
watch, realizing she was going to be late if she didn’t get her butt out the
door.
 
Placing her bowl in the sink and
grabbing her things she was headed off for the day.
 

***

Derek had
worked at home last night instead of at the office for once.
 
The simple act of showering at his home
instead of the office was enjoyable.
 
Leaving Roni last night had been really hard.
 
He wanted nothing more than to lay down in
her bed, sleep the entire night with her in his arms.
 

If he was this
hung up on her after a week he could only imagine what he would feel for her
after a month.
 
Or ten years.
 
Or fifty.
 
He had to stop thinking that way.
 
After a week, those thoughts should not be in his mind.
 
He was a guy, he should be thinking about
getting her in bed, not keeping her forever.
 

Though he was
thinking of getting her into bed.
 
He
thought about it often.
 
After the
passionate kisses they had shared he knew when they finally did make it into
bed the sex would be incredible.
 
And who
could forget about those sext she accidently sent.
 
She had a naughty passionate side, he was
sure of that.
 
Now he just needed to find
the time for them to have some naked fun time together.
 

Shaking his
head to get his mind off Roni and back in the game.
 
He turned to his monitors and began signing
into his programs.
 
His iPhone rang as he
reached for his headphones.
 
Sighing, he
answered his phone. “Callaway.”

“Mr. Callaway,
its Jemma.”

Derek noticed
Jemma’s voice was weak and tired.
 
“Jemma, are you ok?”

There was
silence for a moment on the other end of the phone.
 
“I’m sorry, sir, what did you just ask me?”

It was at that
moment Derek realized he had never asked her that question or any of his
employees even how they were on any given day.
 
I am an asshole
.
 
The sentence passed through Derek’s brain
slowly as though to emphasize the fact.
 
At a loss for something better to say Derek simply repeated his
question. “I asked if you were ok.
 
You
sound upset. How is your mom doing? “

More stunned
silence greeted him.
 
“Um… actually
sir...”

“Jemma, call
me Derek. Not Mr. Callaway or sir.
 
You
have worked for me for too long to continue to address me so formally.
 
Now tell me how things are going at home.”
His voice softened at the end.
 

“Well… Derek…
…I called to check in to be sure everything there was being handled
accordingly. Since you asked, though,” Jemma sounded as though she was doing
her best not to cry. “Things are not going well.”

“Oh Jemma I am
so sorry I know your mom is all the family you have.
 
What can I do for you?”
 
The words tumbled from his mouth as though he
was speaking with a dear friend and not his employee.
 
A line he had never crossed in the past.

“I’m sorry,
sir, I mean Derek.
 
I’m not going to be
able to be back as soon as I anticipated.
 
My mother does not have the flu she has Leukemia.
 
And it has progressed since it has gone
undetected for so long.” Jemma was no longer able to hold in her emotion.
 
Derek could hear her sobbing on the other end
of the phone.
 

“Oh Jemma I am
so sorry.
 
You take as long as you need
your job will be waiting for you when you return. If you need anything else,
please don’t hesitate to ask.”
 
Derek’s
own mother might not mean much to him, but he knew that for Jemma her mom was
everything.
 

“Are you sure
you’re doing ok without me there?
 
I can
log on if need be, I brought my laptop.” Jemma almost sounded fearful.
 
Did she not believe him that her job would be
waiting?

Derek let out
a breath of agitation, not at Jemma but at himself.
 
“Jemma, listen.
 
I know I have not been the greatest
boss.
 
I want you to know that after only
a few days of you being gone I realize how much I value everything you do for
me.
 
Your job will be waiting, when and
only when you are ready to come back.
 
I
do not want you logging on for any reason.
 
Right now focus on your mom.”

“Thank you,
Derek.
 
Who did HR send up to help?
 
Does your new assistant have any questions?”

“I actually
brought in a friend to help.
 
She’s doing
ok.” He laughed, then thinking of Roni’s reaction to the computer. “Well, let’s
just say she is doing the best she can but her computer skills are nowhere near
yours and she makes me appreciate you.”
 

“You hired
someone without computer skills? That is a first.
 
If she needs anything please have her call
me.” He started to protest. “Really, it would be a welcome distraction.”
 
Her last words held such sadness.

“I promise to
have her call if she truly needs something.”
 
They spoke for a few more minutes about the work including the work she
was doing for Alex.
 
Before he hung up,
he emphasized one more time for her not to worry about her job and to take her
time.
 

He took a deep
sigh after hanging up with Jemma. He felt helpless that he could do nothing for
her.
 
He stared mindlessly at his
computer for a moment.
 
That is when he
heard laughter coming from just outside his office.
 
He knew both of the feminine laughs.
 
One belonged to Roni, the other to Caroline.
 
He smiled.
 
Then he realized he had not mentioned Roni to Caroline yet. He bolted
out of his chair and headed to Roni’s desk.
 
A sudden wave of panic hit him when he thought about what the two of
them would say to each other.
 

He whipped
open his door to find the two of them whispering and laughing like old
friends.
 
His male mind registered this
as a good thing that his sister seemed to like his... whatever she was and Roni
seemed to like his sister.
 
His male mind
also registered this as a very bad thing.
 
Caroline had way too many embarrassing stories of his past to
share.
 
Yep, definitely time to break up
this little hen party.
 

“And what have
the two of you in such a fit of laughter?”
 
He stood to the side of Roni’s desk with his arms crossed over his broad
chest. They both turned toward him with massive smiles on their faces and
amusement twinkling in their eyes.
 
Derek
knew that he was too late, Caroline had already spilled secrets.
 

“Derek, why
didn’t you tell me, Jemma was out?” Caroline said all too sweetly.
 

“Ok, what did
you tell her?” He stalked closer to the two women who were still holding in
laughter.
 

“Only that I
felt sorry for her for being put here by HR because my brother is a complete
jackass as a boss.
 
That is when Roni’s
face went white and I knew that HR had nothing to do with her being your
temporary assistant. Glad to see you get out of your bubble bro.”
 
Caroline’s face held far too much amusement
for that to have been the only conversation that transpired between the
two.
 
“Nice that you mentioned her to
me.
 
You know how I hate being left out
of the gossip.”
 
She fake pouted.

Derek
laughed.
 
“You are usually the one
spreading the gossip.
 
So it serves you
right to be left out every now and then.”

Caroline,
being a mature woman, stuck her tongue out at Derek.
 
Roni was laughing even harder now. “Wow, you
two act just a mature as my sister and I do.”