Ta da! Another chapter. I have been wanting to do this chapter for a while and I really hope you all like it. I'm not sure if I like the ending, but I wanted to leave it off on a sort of cliffhanger note. Please read and review!
Disclaimer: Sometimes, I like to pretend I'm a lot of different things and that I can control Television channels like The Family Channel. But sadly, it's all pretend. :(
Casey made a noise of contentment as she tossed her carry-on bag onto the elegant chair by the door as she stepped into the room. The air was a little stifling, but it was European air and she breathed in deeply as she took in the large four poster bed in the middle of the room with the matching furniture and the large, picturesque window that over looked the blue sea.
"Stop grinning like that Space-Case. You look like someone just popped your cherry."
Casey turned around, rolling her eyes at her step-brother with his arms full of their luggage. She smacked him on the arm. "Don't knock this for me. You know how much I've always wanted to come here. Spain, Derek! I can't believe it! We're in Spain!"
She squealed, clapping her hands before doing the mad dash over to the window and stepping out onto the balcony. Derek shook his head, amused. It was hard not to be amused when Casey acted like this. It was a big reminder to him, how light and carefree she could actually be.
Derek stacked the suitcases up and kicked off his sandals before moving to follow her out onto the deck. Casey grinned when she saw him slide up alongside her, where she was currently leaning over the balcony.
"Thank you for bring me here Derek!" She beamed at him and he shook his head, focusing his eyes on the fountain across the street to stop the weird feelings that had been forming in his chest for the past few weeks. It was harder to squash them when he was looking at the petite brunette beside him, and he hadn't really figured out what to make of the feelings yet, so he was stuck with avoiding her gaze.
"You can thank my Mom, not me. I didn't even want to bring you." Derek snorted, shoulder bumping her with a small smile.
Casey rolled her eyes at him, but she was smiling too so her fake annoyed look didn't count. "Liar. You know you'd rather bring me then any of your hockey friends. They'd leave you alone for the first Spanish girl who wiggled her chest at them."
Derek chuckled. "How do you know it wouldn't be me leaving them?"
Casey raised an eyebrow. "Because for some reason even I can't figure out, you haven't been on a serious date with any girl since my birthday."
"So?"
"My birthday was four months ago Derek! Seriously! Hasn't your libido had enough of this abstinence yet?"
Derek just shrugged...okay, so maybe these unknown, bizarre feelings he's been having around Casey haven't been around for the past few weeks, rather than more along the lines of months.
"Does it even matter?" He asked her slightly exasperated. "Abby invited me to Spain with the big, Motherly notion of how we haven't spent nearly enough time together and I'm almost done University blah blah. Mother/Son quality time was very important at my critical stage or some other bogus shit." Casey snorted, shifting away from him slightly and he found he instantly missed the way her bare arm would brush against his. What was happening to him? "Anyways," He cleared his throat. "She said that because she still was working hard on her latest project or whatever, I could bring a friend along so I wouldn't be so bored and alone. She did specify that I had to bring a male friend, but since you guessed why I didn't want to do that...and since you don't really count as a girl...I figured there would be no harm with taking you."
He gave her a small smirk, trying to let the honesty shine through his eyes. The last thing anyone in this country wanted was a hostile Casey.
Casey simply pursued her lips and crossed her arms over her chest. Derek became momentarily distracted by this and his breath caught as he took her all in. Sun kissed skin from their time last week at the lake with Lizzie and Edwin, light brown hair pushed back by her sunglasses and her soft pink dress the was shaped almost as if it was designed to fit her and her alone. I'm becoming an OOC. An Obsessive-Over-Casey freak. Great.
"Derek!" The small hand that was waved in front of his face brought him out of his stupor.
"What?" He asked annoyed, swatting her hand out of the way.
Casey huffed. "I was trying to talk to you, but you just got this glazed look in your eyes and began smirking in that stupid way of yours. Snap out of it!"
Derek ran a tired hand over his face. This was going to be a long two weeks.
"Alright, so my Mom will be back around seven for supper so you can just stay in your room or whatever..."
"Wait, wait..." Casey held up a hand, silencing him. "So you're not even planning on telling your Mother that I'm here?" She asked, infuriated. "I'm going to have to spend all of my evenings alone in this room while you drink wine and eat pasta?"
Derek rolled his eyes, slipping an arm around her shoulders and pushing away the weird feeling that gripped his stomach at the feel of her hair licking his skin.
"Call down Klutizilla." She shot him a look and tried to wiggle out of his hold but he held on tight, moving them over to the couch in the corner and plopping down onto it. "Abby was very strict on the Don't Bring Girls rule...and I did. So I'm just going to test the waters a bit tonight at dinner, she where she stands and if it's okay, I'll mention that I brought you."
"What are you going to say when she asks why your hockey buddy," She emphasized the words and he rolled his eyes. "Isn't at the supper table?"
"I'll just tell her that he scored with a hot chick and is...otherwise...engaged in a different sort of activity."
"Der-ek!"
He burst out laughing, pulling her closer so she fell more onto him. Eventually she was laughing too, and Derek felt his heart start to beat faster.
"It's all going to work out Princess. You'll see. Now, how about we go prowl the streets and see what we can find?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she laughed, pushing on his chest to sit a little straighter. "You look like a parakeet that has recently suffered from a stroke when you do that. Stop it." She laughed some more before standing up and smoothing out her skirt.
"But I am up for some prowling." She instantly began to jump up and down with her hands clasped tightly under her chin. "Oh Derek! Can we please?" She begged. "I know you're not going to want to, but the history in this town is so rich and the places I want to go..." She flew over to where she had dumped her carry-on and grabbed a few brochures, all highlighted and sticky-noted with the correct and appropriate notes that any University professor would be ecstatic about.
"I was doing some research and-"
Now it was Derek's turn to raise a hand. "Enough with the babbling."
Casey opened her mouth to protest but Derek cut her off. "This is what we're going to do. I have a compromise. I will go to whatever castle, museum or anything else you have highlighted in those history book notes if, when I want to go out to a club or a bar, you come with me with no complaints. When I order us drinks, you drink yours without bitching. If you can agree to that, I think this is going to work out fabulous." He grinned at her and began mimicking her earlier actions by hopping up and down with his hands clasped.
"Oh please, Casey? Please!"
Casey just rolled her eyes, a small smile gracing her features as she grabbed his hand and yanked him out the bedroom door.
It was around one o'clock and Derek was currently enjoying a light lunch in a small café with his step-sister.
"I can't believe I got those shoes for half off! They're gorgeous!"
He rolled his eyes, picking up his beer and taking a swig. "It's truly a miracle, Case." He replied sarcastically before picking up his sandwich.
"I know right!" She answered, completely oblivious, as she looked at the shopping bags beside her on the booth's bench with a warm longing.
"So," Derek swallowed the bite he was chewing and reached for his bottle again. "I was thinking that since we've spent the better part of the morning at that museum and then that quick stop at the shoe boutique, we could maybe spend the rest of the afternoon doing what I want to do?" He smiled at her convincingly and tried to use the puppy-dog-eye look to the best of his ability. "Please?"
"Wow," She raised her eyebrows. "That's what? Twice in one day? Doesn't that word just burn your tongue as it works its way out?" Casey smiled at him though, to show she was teasing and he smiled back, relieved.
"I'll tell you what," she said, wrapping up some of the pasta on her plate with her fork. You pay for this meal and I'll do whatever it is you want."
Derek swallowed and hastily reached for his beer and began thinking of Marti picking her nose, Edwin playing Rock Band in his underwear and his Dad and Nora making out in the kitchen. Anything but his step-sister in the tight pink dress leaning over the table to look at him, her own beer in her hands as she watched him with a twinkle in her eye.
Thank God his Mom made sure there were two rooms available for them in her condo.
Maybe the whole, "Let's go back to my Mom's and swim in the pool for a while." Idea...was a bad one.
Casey was currently lounging on one of those fancy bamboo chairs with a glass of iced tea beside her. Her sunglasses were pushed down over her eyes and her hair was tied up in a messy bun. The worst...or best part, depending on how you looked at it, was the fact that her body was barely covered by a dark purple bikini with little white hearts decorating the fabric.
Derek tried to pretend he was doing laps in the pool, but it was hard to focus when a girl wearing...was just a few feet...it was difficult.
He climbed out of the pool and made his way, slowly, over to the edge closest to her, hating the fact that he couldn't see her eyes. He took a deep breath before jumping cannonball style into the water, creating one of the biggest splashes.
"Der-ek!" She screeched, sitting up and whipping off her sunglasses. He didn't even have a chance to laugh at her expression before he was caught up with staring at her. Her chest was heaving and blue eyes were dark and little drops of water were still slowly rolling off her skin.
"Do you have to be so immature?" She continued, arms flailing and he took a deep breath and sunk a little lower in the water.
"Oh suck it up Case, I barely even splashed you."
She rolled her eyes. "That's not the point and you know it."
"Then what is the point?" He challenged, swimming over to the side by the latter and hoisting himself up.
"The...t-th-th-the point?" She stammered and Derek squinted at her, momentarily confused. He reached over for her iced tea and took a swig before handing it back to her, not noticing the way her eyes tore up and down his body as she took him in. Body soaking wet from the pool with his auburn hair hanging around his face. University hockey had done him good. His body definitely wasn't what it had been in high school.
Derek blinked; taking in the situation before a grin slowly appeared on his face.
"Der...Derek? Why are you grinning at me like that?" Casey questioned hesitantly, sitting up a little straighter. Before she could stammer any more words out, Derek had reached down and slipped an arm under her knees and one around her shoulders before he took off for the pool.
"Der-ek!" Casey shrieked before they both plummeted over the edge and into the water. By the time they surfaced, limbs slashing about and sputtering pool water, Derek was laughing while Casey was in a far worse mood than she was to begin with.
"You know I hate when you do that! I hated it last week at the lake and I still hate it now!"
Derek rolled his eyes, still chuckling as he dragged them over to the shallow end. When they both could stand on solid ground, Casey shoved him into the pool wall. Hard.
Derek swallowed loudly, glancing back at his Mom's house. It really would be awkward to explain this all to her now...so it would be better if she didn't come home early to "Greet her son." And by the way Casey was looking at him, all flushed and eyes dark...
"Um...Case? What'cha doing?"
Frankly, Casey didn't know. With the Spanish sun beating down on them, the jet-lag and the way Derek's wet skin felt against hers...it was all too much. And when her hands slid slowly down his shoulders, his arms and then back up, she took a timid step closer to him.
"Derek?" She whispered her breath warm on his lips. His eyes fluttered shut and before she could do anything to stop him, Derek had leaned forward the extra inch and closed the gap between them. Their lips pressed together slowly at first, before the passion started to build.
Casey's arms slipped around his neck and her fingers wove themselves into his wet hair, pulling his head closer to hers and deepening the kiss. His arms found their way around her waist, tugging her against him and slipping his tongue into her mouth where they battled and twirled together. The water felt like it was getting warmer and Derek groaned into her mouth as their wet skin slid against each others. His arm wound its way around her hip and he hoisted her higher. Their kisses became more hot and wet and Derek found the depletion of oxygen to be too much and he wrenched his lips from hers, breathing deeply.
Casey's eyes flew open, wide with panic. Her arms stayed wrapped around him though, and he took this as a good sign.
"Wow. Who knew you could kiss like that, Case?" He tried to smirk at her, but it dipped into a real smile and Casey pulled back slightly with a confused expression on her face.
"Why did we do that?"
Derek's smile faded off. "Why did we kiss?" He shifted and moved the arm underneath her leg that was holding her to him so she could fall back down onto her own feet. "Are you honestly asking me this? Case...I'm shocked this hasn't happened sooner. I mean you...and me. It just sort of makes sense, no?"
Casey took a few deep breaths, squeezing her eyes shut. "I am trying very hard not to freak out right now, Derek." She murmured and he felt himself grinning at the confused, innocent look on her face.
"And you're doing a fantastic job." He smiled helpfully at her and she shot him a look. "But you do an even better job at making out...with me. So maybe we should get back to that and you can finish you're freaking out later?"
From the look she gave him, Derek instantly dropped his arms from around her and shifted slightly away. "Or maybe not." He reached to scratch the back of his neck awkwardly.
"Derek." Casey took a deep breath. "We just...kissed. Kissed! We're step-siblings. Our parents share a child. What do we do?" Her eyes were wide and when she began hyperventilating Derek's arms shot out and pulled her into him.
"Relax Princess, I only want a hug."
Casey sighed, slipping her arms around him slowly as she tried to slow her breathing down. "What the hell are we going to do?" She moaned.
"Well..."
"Hey Mom." Derek grinned, reaching out to hug his Mom as she opened the dining room door to him.
"Derek! Oh you look so handsome and dignified." Abby pulled back and grinned up at him. She looked the same, a little older maybe and more smartly dressed but still the same crazy, hectic Mother that he remembered from his childhood.
"I'm so glad you came! This is going to be so great!"
Derek grinned. "It already has been great."
"So," Abby clapped her hands and gestured to the elaborate dinner table behind her. "Shall we?"
As they moved towards the food Abby mentioned something Derek wasn't particularly looking forward too. "So where's your friend...Justin?"
"Uh...Mom, I actually didn't bring Justin."
"Oh?" Abby questioned, helping herself to some salad.
"Yeah..." Derek cleared his throat. "I know you told me not to, but...I brought my girlfriend." Abby raised an eyebrow and Derek had a flashback to when he was six, sitting on the couch and admitting to his Mom how he had sneaked a twenty out of her purse.
"But she wasn't my girlfriend when I brought her." Derek stammered. "That was a new development."
"Well," Abby sighed, reaching for her wine glass. "Who is this girlfriend of yours?"
Derek took a deep breath. "Um...Casey?"
And there you have it! The first kiss. I hope it satisfied all your Dasey cravings. Please review! I love hearing what you all think!
xoxoTaraxoxo
