Chapter 4

AN: This one, some angst-ridden one, and then I think I can settle this! :D Again, thanks so much, reviewers and dear readers!!

"Thanks for the coffee," Derek said, over the cup of steaming Joe Diane made. She was a remarkably nice woman. All in all, his friends picked well for him. It would have worked; if he wasn't already taken.

"So, what are your plans?" she asked, patting his knee. "I take it you're not just going to sit back and be miserable."

He just looked over at her blankly. "I've been trying to move on. It isn't working."

"I'll say," Diane laughed, and he smiled in spite of himself. "Derek, you need to have a plan. You're an incredibly good guy, you know you're handsome. I can vouch that you are a great kisser…"

He grinned over at her and she blushed. "Thanks."

"So, why not just try to win her over from this other guy?" she said. "Is he cuter? A better guy? A better kisser?"

"Lynch?" he said with disgust. "Hell, no."

"Well," Diane said, looking over her cup of coffee at him. "There has to be some reason he has your girl."

"I told you, she was my best friend," he said, immediately correcting. "Is. Is my best friend. You don't seduce your best friend."

"Does she ever flirt with you?" Diane asked. Derek's winsome grin answered that question for her. "If she is flirting with you, she may see you in a different light than you think. There have been a lot of great films with best friends that fall in love. Seen 'When Harry Met Sally'?"

"Shit," Derek said, giving a low whistle. "You're good at this."

"I should be," she said, grinning back. "I'm a behavioral psychoanalyist!"

The rest of the week went much better for Derek. He was taking Diane's advice to heart. They talked a lot about best friends that fell in love. There were a lot of obstacles, but none he didn't think he could pass.

He already passed the first couple at Diane's house. He knew Garcia was attracted to him. As joking as their flirting was, you did not tell someone that he's a "chocolate Adonis" and think that they were ugly! Diane laughed at the nicknames he and Garcia had for each other. "How did you two not end up together long before this?" she said. "You're both baffling me."

And she didn't think of him as a brother, either. Too much sexual tension there. Reid, she thought of him as a brother, but Derek knew he was on a way different level.

He was back to smiling, and flirting, and laughing. He was getting better at getting his libido in check, but he wasn't a miracle worker on that behest. He stopped by Garcia's office. She was wearing something fantastic in sunny yellow. "You look good enough to eat, my queen," he said, smiling lazily at her. He knelt in front of her and held her hand. Looking into her eyes, he kissed the back of her hand, and then the palm. "I'm really not worthy."

"Derek," she said, blushing at the intent look in his eyes. "Arise, Sir Knight."

He smiled and winked at her before leaving the room. He was quite pleased that her pulse went so much faster when he kissed her hand. He wasn't the only one affected by their closeness. Check three, Diane.

In fact, the week was going so well, that he planned on talking to her on movie night. He was going to bare it all to her, figuratively (Then hopefully literally!). He was going to tell her he loved her, that he'd loved her for years, and that he hoped she'd give him a chance to prove it. He thought he was even on the right track; he had champagne and that sappy boat movie, although it was his choice tonight.

After all, if he didn't tell her, they'd stay friends, but he wanted much more than just mere friendship. He wanted her heart, her mind, her body. He wanted it all.

Then the phone rang.