AN: Thank you so much for the reviews. Second update of the day! Here is where my hubby's idea comes into play. This was a lot of fun to write. Remember: happily ever after, I promise...

Chapter 3

Derek's POV

Fucking A. It was the first thing I thought while looking at the closed door of Penelope Garcia, my Baby Girl, my dream girl, my colleague, and apparently, my next door neighbor. The look of acute disappointment she had before shutting her door... She wasn't very good at hiding her emotions. Everything was there to read like an open book.

"Derek, babe," Carissa, my date for the week, purred, tugging on my collar. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

I said immediately what popped into my head: "Hell, no."

She blinked at me, then shoved me rather hard, walking down the hall and out the door.

I had no desire whatsoever to be with Carissa Jones anymore. I hadn't really wanted to be with her in the first place. I wanted to be with the blonde across the hall from me. Why the hell I had accepted the movie invitation when Carissa called, I would never know.

My damn libido kicked in after dinner and the movie. It wasn't surprising; I'm young, and my Baby Girl had kept me in a constant state of arousal since I met her. Carissa was cheap, easy, and she wanted to have some fun. She'd offered herself up along with the tiramisu we had for dessert. My dick had overruled my head, and I'd decided to go for it.

Now, I felt both sleazy and stupid. As I walked into my apartment, all I could think was that I would never forget the sad look in those big brown eyes of my neighbor across the hall.

The next day at work, Penelope was her usual, flirty self. She looked gorgeous in a little red skirt and a white top. She met me with a big grin. "Good morning, Hot Stuff. Did you have a good time last night?"

I took a moment to look her over. She was sincere in her question. That was surprising to me. I expected her to be a bit angry, a bit upset, but she didn't seem that way. She acted like nothing was different at all.

"It was okay. How are your nails?"

She held them up for my inspection.

I reached out, holding her hands in both of mine, then I leaned forward to kiss the backs of her hands. "Very nice."

"Thank you," she said with a radiant grin. With a sigh, she removed her hands from mine. "See you around."

I watched her turn to leave, but I reached for her arm. "Penelope? Are you available for lunch?"

She sighed again and gave me a regretful look. "Sorry. I'm going out with one of the other techs today."

"How about dinner?"

"No, I'm busy. Sorry," she said, adding the last word with another regretful look.

"Dinner tomorrow?" She shook her head, so I added, "Saturday?"

"No, I'm really, really sorry-"

I couldn't hold my sarcasm back; it was obvious she was trying to blow me off. "How about breakfast on Sunday?" Well, I could be a bulldog when I want something, and I really wanted Penelope Garcia.

"Sure," she said, completely surprising me. I began to smile, but then she added, "If I'm not out too late on Saturday, I'd be more than pleased to go with you on Sunday."

"Okay." That was a less than suave answer, but I seriously couldn't come up with anything better.

"Have a nice day, Derek."

Perplexed, I watched her little red butt sashay into her office.

The more I thought about it that day, the more I was convinced she was lying, just trying to get my goat. It was an effective missile; I hadn't dodged it at all. No one was that busy.

So that evening when I went home, I found a reason to check my hallway a number of times, just to see if she was around. I even wandered outside to see if her car was there, and it wasn't.

The next morning at work, I stood outside her office, holding my coffee when she walked in. "Good morning, Princess."

"I'll show you a good morning, Hot Stuff," she returned. A moment later, she yawned. "Oh, excuse me."

"Tired?"

She smiled sheepishly. "I was out late."

I could vouch for her.

It was the same situation for the next two nights. Her car was missing and there was no sign of her anywhere. She'd come to work, gorgeous but exhausted.

I started feeling like I was doing surveillance on her.

Finally, Saturday came around, and her car was there. Thinking that whomever she was going out with had canceled, I knocked on her door. Maybe she'd want to do something?

After a moment, Penelope appeared in the doorway. "Derek," she answered. She looked rather surprised.

"Hi, Penelope." Now that I was standing there, I felt really nervous. It was an unusual feeling for me. I never felt nervous around women!

"What do you need? I'm kind of busy," she said, opening the door a little more. There was a linebacker sitting at her kitchen table. This guy was huge and strong looking.

"Uh... flour. I'm out of flour." I couldn't think of anything else at that moment.

She arched a brow. "Flour?"

"Yeah. I'm making pancakes, and I'm a half cup short," I said. I hated lying with a passion; it made my stomach churn. I would probably end up making pancakes for supper tonight now.

"Oh. Okay." She headed towards the kitchen. "Gary, I'll be with you in a second."

"Sure, Pen, no problem," the deep voice of the linebacker rumbled.

A moment later, she handed me the flour. "See you tomorrow morning, okay?" she whispered with a grin, before shutting the door.

I stood there, holding her flour, feeling miserable. I really wished I was Gary, doing whatever he was doing with Penelope, instead of myself, eating pancakes alone.