AN: Whee! I had fun writing this...I hope you're having fun reading it, too...This ended up being a fourshot, I think...I got carried away!

Chapter 2

The moment Derek stepped into her kitchen, Penelope realized it felt more heated than if she were baking one hundred batches of cookies. The man was magnetic...hot and spicy. They hadn't said a word as they made the short walk from her parking space to her apartment, nor had they spoken when they entered her apartment and toed off their shoes. He'd simply handed her the roses, and she'd followed.

At this point, she'd follow anywhere he wanted to lead her.

She watched as he reached into her junk drawer and removed her corkscrew. It was kitchy, with a dancing grape on top; she'd bought it in Napa Valley years ago on a tour of wine country. She'd been single then, and she'd gone with girlfriends, testing and trying every glass of wine from multiple vintners. She remembered wanting to have someone romantic to share it with someday...and thought immediately of Derek.

He'd be gorgeous, surrounded by vines and sunshine, offering her wine in a glass with a come hither look on his face. His long fingers—thick, yet tapered—wrapping around the bowl of the glass, the corner of his mouth raised just slightly. She could feel her wetness pooling between her legs just thinking about it.

And there he was...her daydream come true, holding the glass out to her. He'd placed two ice cubes in the drink, something he normally did not do. Wine never needed to be diluted, and Derek knew that.

"Is this going to cool me down?" she asked, raising both her brows in question. If that's what he meant, she was seriously disappointed.

He gave a soft snorting chuckle, and answered, "It's a start."

She took a sip, put the glass down, and then picked up her flowers. "I'd better put these in water." As she removed the paper over wrap and ribbons from the bouquet, she walked to her sink and began running the water. She reached under her sink, removed a vase, and began artfully arranging the beautiful bouquet.

A moment later, she felt his arm move around her abdomen, pulling her back to his front. She could feel the heat from his body, as if it belonged there. He raised the fall of her hair with one hand and began kissing the nape of her neck.

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