Well guys, we've made it. I think this might be a chapter you've all been waiting for. It's fluffy, porny, and packed full of romance. Only MerDer appears in the chapter but I think that's okay with you guys.

I do want to address this is rated M. Most of it is so if that's something you're not interested in, that's perfectly okay but there is important and serious things happening this chapter as well.

We've surpassed 12,000 views I think I might faint. The amount of love you guys are giving to this story warms my heart to pieces. For those of you who review every chapter, I see you and I appreciate you SO SO MUCH. For those who take time out of their day to leave longer comments just really get to me. You'll never understand how much the feedback means.

Before we begin, I want to thank all who reviewed; writer-in-newyork, TeamMerDer4Ever, nourseholly, Patsy, Sandra, GayleLynn, Your Fan, Lina, izgreysfan, dempsxys, carolinelee, Leann Nickerson, savannah617, Lili, 098, all the guests, and the ones from my other outlets and Instagram!

Also, someone asked about my handles. You can see updates and sneak peeks on postitdempseyfanfics or ferryboatts on Instagram and my Twitter is patrickdempsea!

Thank you guys and please enjoy this really beautiful chapter. (PS I think the fanfic community has dubbed Elizabeth as Meredith's middle name, right?)

Meredith Elizabeth Grey was turning a year older. Normally, a birthday for her was nothing but another day in the year. The occasion held no special value, at least not for her benefit. Of course Meredith relished celebrating her children's birthdays or even her sisters, sometimes even Alex's on occasion. But never her own. The day's recollections were only brimmed by excruciating childhood trauma. Spending years alone on her special day. Not even a cupcake with a candle plopped before her. Ellis Grey's utmost important priority was the hospital, never her daughter.

"Birthday's mean nothing, Meredith. It's just another day and it doesn't mean I'm going to spend money I worked hard to earn just to buy you a plastic doll and a cake from the grocery store." Her mother would hiss. For the longest time Meredith took that phrase to heart. The same or similar spiel came around during Christmas or any akin holiday.

Derek flipped her mental tables completely. It was he who got her interested in the family traditions her mother swore off. It was the first year of their marriage she really began to celebrate her birthday. Derek always came prepared with a chocolate chip cake with a candle plunged in the center. Even after she insisted no presents, Derek purchased one anyways.

When he passed the newfound appreciation for her day of birth fizzled. Why celebrate a holiday when the one person she cared for most couldn't be there with her? It was sickening the first year he was away to wake up and go about her day without a single Happy birthday, I love you from her husband. Others wished her a joyful day but it never felt the same. She halted celebrating all together. The day only brought her to tears.

This year though, was different. For the first time in three years Meredith held a reason for the celebration. Her husband was alive. Derek Christopher Shepherd was back in Seattle, in her home, making her gooey in all the proper places.

Not only was this Saturday her birthday but it would mark their first time since his return, making the day all the more special. Meredith wasn't the sort of person to get nervous regarding sex. It was one of the only languages she fluently spoke. Albeit, tinges of anxiety were fiddling at her internally.

Things were different since the last she had been with Derek. Her body was different. She underwent an emergency c-section and a patient attack that kept her out of work for months. Derek witnessed her silhouette nude in the shower or tub a handful of times since coming back. But sex was an entire turnaround from those things. The intimacy crescendoed. Derek would be gazing head on. His fingers gliding across the lose skin of her belly or the stretch marks of her thighs. Pink, fleshy scars below her navel. A few decorated her hips. Would he still find her attractive? Sexy enough to make love to?

She allowed these thoughts to overrule her through the remainder of her day. Her sour assumptions were shaken away however when her Lexus pulled up at Harper Lane around 5:30 that evening. She pranced into a dark home. Not a single form of life twiddling about in the house. Meredith called for her husband, but no answer was reciprocated.

Originally her instincts pointed to Derek not even being home. Fear asphyxiated her. He whispered a warm birthday greeting earlier in the morning when they were both still groggy, curled under thick sheets and blankets. He prepared her coffee and planted a kiss on her lips that nearly flew her into the stratosphere.

That was the last she saw or heard from him. From what she knew, his physical therapy session for that Saturday was cancelled at his own admission. Amelia didn't need him for the Catherine case either. Which left him home, alone.

She wasn't worried he forgot her birthday but maybe their plans for that evening slipped his mind. What on earth could he have been doing? Derek was supposed to be cognizant of the time she got off work. They scheduled to just rip off the bandaid. Get it over with.

How naive had Meredith been to actually believe Derek bought into that bull shit? This was her husband. The same man who serenaded her with long winded speeches of his love and built her dream homes. Derek didn't do quick and dirty.

"Der?" She voiced once more, creeping up the stairs, slipping down the corridor, cracking open their bedroom door. Meredith swears her heart stopped beating the moment she stepped over the threshold.

Their entire bedroom eclipsed by the same vanilla scented candles she used to formate their dream house years ago. The fire flickered within each cylinder of wax. Frillier pillows that usually decorated the bed spread were neatly placed by the oversized lounge chair adjacent to the window. The comforter drawn back. A single notecard planted at the apex of their bed.

Here is to my beautiful Meredith on her birthday. I drew you a bath and I put in the good bath salts you like not those other ones that make you sneeze. I'll be back in a half hour. I left your robe on the knob. (:

I love you, Derek.

She left the message lying at the foot of their bed. Her head shook and giggles managed to slip when she thought only Derek would do something of this nature. Candles illuminate the bathroom as well. She shucks her clothes by the hamper and eases her tense muscles into the scolding elixir. For the next thirty minutes, Meredith soaks up the relaxation in her tub. Granted her bath might be even more perfect if Derek's solid body lie flush behind her own. She's nearly a puddle down the drain though. He managed to soothe her tension without even being present, almost causing her to forget what the rest of the evening has in store.

"Hey, Mer you in there?" Derek's softer bravado stirs her from the cat nap she succumbed to.

With a yawn, she pushes her palm across the skin of her face to jolt her senses. The bath water gurgles, splashing over the lip of her claw foot tub. "Mmhmm. Sorry, fell 'sleep." She mumbles.

His laughter rivets from beyond the door. If it weren't for the soapy bubbles and the nakedness she might have slid out from the tub just to beat him with her pillow. But her brain opts against that notion, for now at least.

"Are you coming in?" Meredith adds.

Silence meets her question. After a long pause, he answers, "No. I'm going to be out here. When you're ready just pull on your robe and meet me in the bedroom."

It was unlike Derek to pass up an offer in the bathtub. Especially when said bath included Meredith unclothed and soapy in all the right places. She doesn't argue the matter though. Clearly he's cooked up something. The man flooded their own bedroom with vanilla candles for crying out loud. His message was concise; romance was awaiting them.

Minutes pass, languorous ones in which she does her best to soak in the remaining moments of her perfect birthday bath. A fresh layer of goose clips her flesh when wet skin meets cold air. A plush towel encases her body. She uses the device to pat away the dampness. Her cream robe replaces the fibered cloth. The hair clip holding back her tangle of waves unfurls and leaves feral tendrils running down her shoulders.

When Meredith glances in the mirror, she's met with the picturesque of a woman with rosy cheeks and a freckled nose. Should she have dabbed a bit of makeup on for the occasion? Not that Derek desired the mask of foundation and mascara slathered lashes but for her own benefit. This was their first real time joining as a union since he died and that changed a lot of things. What if she wasn't good enough for him anymore? He did have a sexual relationship with this Alice girl back in London. Would he be comparing them? She wasn't typically the type of girl to get nervous about sleeping with someone except now she was. Trepidation wrapped her in knots.

But she digresses. There were too many other factors playing into the evening that outweighed her emotional fear of not being enough. If she wasn't sexy enough would his erection always poke her spine in the tub or when they spooned? As an added, it was her birthday. Any woman desires spending her special day alone with the person they cherish. And Meredith really wanted that. Making love with someone she cared about sounded like the most perfect gift. One she's been deprived of for many years. It was Derek who taught her sex wasn't just something physical. That love making was a complete shift from screwing. She missed that. He'd been the only man she's ever made love to. All the rest were hookups and they were meaningless.

Swallowing her courage, Meredith inhales a cleansing breath to rid herself of all negative vibes. This was it. After tonight things would definitely be different. A good different. She embraces the change when turning the knob and exposing herself to the bedroom.

It's difficult to sustain laughter when her husband is positioned cross legged on the edge of his side of their bed. Candles continue to flicker and spread its vanilla aroma. There's a small wrapped box perched in his palms.

"Hey." He says quietly. Derek is dressed in the navy bathrobe she bought upon his return. Derek used to own one similar before the accident but she guiltily threw it in a plastic tub in their garage to avoid glancing at it.

"Hi." Meredith responds.

He brings himself to a standing position. The soles of his feet patter across the hardwood. "Happy birthday." His lips interlock with hers. Their kiss is heavy and crescendoes with heat immediately. She smiles against his cavern. Truly, Meredith Grey is happy. For once in her life things were going according to plan.

"I got you something." Derek purrs. Their kiss fizzles when she tugs away. The rule was no gifts. With his birthday coming in January she made it clear the best gift they could provide was simply being alive and healthy.

Of course, this was Derek and it was no shock to the system he would disregard the rules. Her husband was a risk taker. "I said no gifts." Meredith tugs at her bottom lip with her front tooth. The package is neatly wrapped in red paper.

"I think you'll like this one. Just open it."

It's contents beneath the pretty paper make her nearly wheeze with chortles. A package of latex free glow in the dark condoms rest in between her fingers. Vegan she reads in italicized font toward the bottom of the box.

Meredith giggles uncontrollably.

"You bought me vegan glow in the dark condoms for my birthday?"

Derek's hand strokes her arm. He too joins in on the giggle fest. "I felt like it would break the ice or something. We used to use these remember?"

"Oh I remember." She counters. "You said they were fun when really a floating penis in the pitch black darkness is honestly a little petrifying. Plus, Derek we haven't even used a condom since we got married like nine years ago." The box of contraband did bring back memories for her. Good ones. The sort that made her belly warm and fuzzy and fluttery. DeLuca tried to offer using them once. Meredith refused solely for the purpose that this was something only she and Derek shared.

He snorts. "You liked the glowing condoms don't lie."

"Maybe a little."

He brings her further inward. Derek smells delightful. The soft terrycloth of his robe brushes her own. Their noses are proximal. "We don't have to use them for the first round. I know you're on the pill it's so much more personal without it. But it was totally worth the cashier's dirty look at Target the other day when I bought them."

This time, she kisses him. The box of condoms falls with a thud on the bed somewhere. She uses each of her hands to cup his chiseled face. Derek tastes good. Like mint toothpaste or a gum. She doesn't know which it is. Their tongues tangle; a push and pull. They're riding a teeter totter, working together to evenly bring the contraption up and down.

"Are we still doing what we talked about?" Derek whispers in a breathless pant. The old Meredith would have disregarded his question and pushed him back to the mattress. She was wildly impatient or used to be anyways.

Now, she nods at his request. This was their special time. Their first union since he's come back should mean something. Neither should be running into the fire without a little repercussion. What fun was love making without a bit of foreplay anyways?

With a cheshire grin, Meredith makes a mad dash for her side of the bed. They're standing opposite of one another.

"You go first. You're the birthday girl after all." Derek smiles softly.

"You're only saying that because you just don't want to go first." Meredith retorts slyly.

Blush eclipses the plane of his neck and the open slit of his bathrobe showcasing his chest. But he continues grinning. "Maybe you caught me."

Meredith's fingers come to a pause near the thick tie of her garment. Fiddling with the fabric, reality hits her. When her robe pools by her feet, there's no going back. This is it. The moment she can give herself to Derek Shepherd after years without.

She jumps the gun or races off the cliff, however the saying goes. The soft fabric slips from her creamy shoulders, sloping down her arms, puddling at the rug. Meredith extricates a languorous breath. Her chest heaves. Fire licks flames across her bare flesh.

"Is this stupid?" Meredith mumbles. Perspiration dots her hairline.

Meredith feels perpetually ignorant to even suggest this notion when he doesn't respond. It had been her doing. A couple days ago when they were discussing what was going to happen during their special evening, she stupidly blurts that they gaze at one another. Give each other a good overlook.

Except when her chin lifts and she meets his gaze, love brims the sparkling periwinkles. "No, no it's not. You're breathtaking Meredith." Derek whispers. "I could look at you forever."

The hint of a smile quivers at her cheeks.

GA

Derek's wife without a doubt may be the most gorgeous creature he has ever laid eyes on. From the wispy flyaway tendrils at her scalp all the way to her polished purple toes. When he gazed upon Meredith, he saw not even an inch of imperfections. It was the stretch marks at her hips and the fading c-section scars that made her perfect in his perspective.

Meredith's irises were a blazing emerald in this light. The candles brought out their flame.

With the distance her freckles melted into her flesh. He was certain once they joined he would be able map out every single mark. Derek relished her cinnamon freckles. So many, he lost track counting one evening after making it to 145. One thing he remembers from before is how much his wife adored the attentiveness to her beauty marks. Derek laved her body in love. To every crease, dent, and corner with his lips, tongue, and fingers as much as humanly possible.

From the looks of it Meredith seemed embarrassed at his appraisal. Perhaps she was sensitive to the notion of his optics glued on her this way. It had been three years since they were together. Their bodies had changed. With Meredith birthing another child and the damages the semi did to his own frame. Things were different certainly. But as he hoped she would do for him, Derek desired to verbally and physically communicate that he loved her body in any shape or fashion.

There were specifics about himself he didn't particular favor. The pudgy scars of his neck were never flattering. He didn't relish the weight he lost. Albeit Derek could push those insecurities aside for his wife. When they were together this way, the world faded around them. The imperfections disappeared because the only importance was the moment. That magic dripping from every pore.

He swallows his pride. In the truest form of, I'll show you mine if you show me yours, Derek discards his dark robe, mimicking his wife's gesture. The initial couple seconds are awkward. It's rather strange to be standing adjacent to each other, completely naked, staring. But it doesn't pry from the primitive objective. This moment is surreal. His wife had been completely right when she suggested they try this.

"I saw it in a magazine a couple weeks ago." Meredith sighs, snuggling closer. "It says couples may increase their intimacy by letting each other gaze. It's a form of bonding or whatever."

Derek curls his arm around her shoulder. "So, Like eye sex but we're naked?"

"Yeah, kind of I guess."

He does feel closer to her. Further attached than he had before this started. "You're pretty breathtaking yourself." Meredith breaks the eternal silence. The smallest of smiles is curving at her expression.

Derek can't help but glance down on himself. He's ready for her. Hard, thick, and pumped full with blood. He was being honest when saying she's breathtaking. Meredith turned him on. His throbbing anatomy full proof of that admission.

Was she as ready for him as he was for her? God, he hopes so.

"How do you want to, um, start this?" It was a ridiculous question. Much of a mood killer. But it couldn't be helped. Not when this was their first time and Meredith's birthday. He felt that she should get to decipher their position.

"Let's at least get to the bed first." Derek nods at her decision. Slowly they ease theirselves onto the mattress, robes forgotten by the floor. He took the liberty of getting the bed ready. Pulling down the sheets and ridding any pillows that their heads didn't sleep on.

They're flush. Face to face in a cornucopia of tangled legs. Her breasts barely brush his pectorals. Her nipples are pointed, ripe, ready to be fondled. Derek's fingers snake around her waist. They land near her spine and he strokes with gracious care. She's ticklish near her tailbone, his ministrations elicit the most exquisite giggle from between her lips.

"Stop it you know that's my ticklish spot." Meredith scolds but her eyes say otherwise. Somewhere deep down his wife enjoys the tiny antics.

He does relocate his hand. This time his fingertips graze her thigh. Derek feels for the indents, curves, crevices. A smile bursts when he feels uneven skin lacing her flesh. It was a tired and true sign that she was indeed a real woman. Not one who hid behind plastic surgeries to correct the details.

"So," Derek murmurs. "Are you into foreplay?" His tone is sultry. Meredith nearly howls with laughter.

"Mm, no but I do like role playing if that's something you'd be interested in." Their noses touch when he laughs at her joke. It's when her toes scrunch over his calve that he shivers.

Derek kisses her temple. Then her cheek. Nose. Lips. "I got a Brazilian just for this." Meredith admits. They kiss again.

"Hmm?" He's lost in the sensation of their open mouthed kisses. She tastes amazing. Sweet and soft. Meredith's mouth is warm and she eagerly entices his welcome with her needy tongue. They tango.

"A wax." Her body heats against his touch. "During my lunch break I left and got a Brazilian wax which I know is dumb and only something Kardashian's and porn stars do but- I wanted one. I wanted to feel sexy for our date."

Being a man, he can't help but glance down. Earlier when he was giving her body appraisal, his orbs focused on the perky swell of her breasts and the way her eyes sparkled in the dim light rather than the organ that gave her sexuality. Her confession is confirmed though. His wife traded the carpet for hardwood.

"I think you're sexy always." Derek reminds her. His thumb brushes across her pelvic floor. "But if this makes you feel good, then by all means wax away."

Meredith's eyes roll but she continues their kisses. Derek didn't care whether she was smooth as a baby or forest. He found her at any shape or form beautiful. He adored that she was so unapologetically herself. Meredith being so Meredith just had to affirm that she got a wax on her lady parts because it's never something she would try and hide. A lot of woman relished pretending unruly body hair was non existent to the female silhouette. He remembers the way Addison used to groom herself consistently. He doesn't think he's ever even seen that woman with a hair on her own leg before.

"Missionary." Meredith mewls at his lips. He nearly loses it when her fingers grip his backside. "Let's start slow. Then we can switch with me on top or something else, okay?" She maneuvers her supple mouth to the cleft in his chin, over the jaw, and to the adam's apple bulging in his neck.

Derek exudes a moan of appreciation. "It's your birthday. We do whatever you want." At the count of three, their bodies roll. She's beneath him, panting, glistening in sheen, her locks wild against the pillow. She's so perfect in his eyes.

"Here let me..." Derek reaches to his side. Grabbing an extra pillow. "Lift up for me." He assists his wife in moving her hips, placating the pillow beneath her tush. A sigh of satisfaction elicits from her cavern.

"You remember." Meredith whispers.

This was a trick they used to use. The pillow under her hips gave him a better angle on her channel. He could sift deeper. Their connection was stronger. "How could I forget?"

They share a kilowatt grin. It was happening. This moment was finally here. Derek crouches on his knees to prevent placing an abundance of weight on her chest. He smoothes golden hair stuck to her forehead. His fingers intertwine within her locks. The palms of his hands cup her skull like a personal halo.

Rain starts to patter on the roof. It sets a steady rhythm for them to start. The noise is relaxing as well. "Make love to me. Please." She traces the faint stubble on his jaw with her fingernail. Her tone nothing short of a hoarse whisper.

Derek's nose nudges Meredith's. The mood is subsequently perfect. "Happy birthday, beautiful." He announces. "I love you and I'm so happy I get to be here with you now." Emotion clogs his throat. Tears threaten to well but he won't allow the feeling to overpower him. Not now. Not when he's about to make love to his wife on her birthday.

"I love you too." She coos back. The lovers share another kiss. This one slow, lazy, detailed. When their tongues are sheathed, Derek's hands wander down the path of her body. Her skin is soft. His nail traces the freckle by her navel, eliciting the softest of giggles from Meredith's lips.

Derek pries her legs apart. One foot remains firm to the mattress while another brushes his waistline. Her thigh gently presses against his ribcage.

His index finger nudges between her lower set of lips. The sharp gasp she whimpers furls down his spine like a somersault. He circles the digit around her soft flesh there; creating an easy rhythm to accustom her to. She's already plenty moist for his insertion and that brings a sly grin.

Meredith's body shivers and shakes under his ministrations. Already her moans of appreciation fuel his desire to keep at it. The slot between her legs is a slick heat. His fingers slip and slide against her moisture. The purrs eliciting with every breath she makes causes his heart to quicken in beats.

Gently, Derek placates another finger to the mix. The intrusion makes her yelp and writhe. He pushes her folds apart, sliding the middle and index around just the way she enjoys. Derek's fingertips find her G-Spot. One he spent a manifold of hours over the years in search of. "Shh." Derek whispers upon her sweltering skin. His lips meet her jawline, he dabbles several kisses there. "It's okay. You're okay, relax." He asserts after noticing the shortening of her breath. The dissonance slips from her body. Her muscles ease into the sheets and he can feet the tightening of her open womanhood ease away.

Meredith is plenty wet and it's getting more difficult to continue the foreplay when she's so open and ready for him. He listens to her breathing. The inhalation's informing him of when her climax is due. Soon he thinks. His wife will be sky rocketing like tomorrow if he keeps going.

Derek slips his fingers away. Meredith whines. "No." Comes a whisper. "Put it back I-I was so close." Blush spreads across her chest. Derek admires how wound up he managed to get her. With his fingers coated in her elixir, he takes the liberty of cleaning them with his own mouth and tongue. She tastes sweet like honey.

He moves his fingers to her breast. Brushing the pad of his thumb across her perked nipple. Meredith in turn pushes her hand against his own. Their fingers entwine like a woven basket. With their hands migrating across her right breast, Derek takes the liberty of encasing his cavern around the left.

"Ohhh." Comes a shaky moan of desire. He sucks and licks and blows air at the bud, feeling her free hand yank on the curls of his head. He loved undoing her. That for him, and him only, she shed that wall.

He takes the moment when her eyes are clenched and she's off in another galaxy to join their bodies. Inch by inch, his length intrudes her tight channel. Her body adjusts to his girth, stretching to accommodate the newfound muscle inserting itself within. Meredith's body pauses mid arc. Her nails create crescent moons over his shoulder blade. The low moan that drops from her mouth indicates he's done everything right.

"Hi." Meredith managed to peep. She giggles but is cut off by a striving moan.

"Hello." Derek reciprocates the greeting.

"Derek." Meredith whispers into their heat. Their eyes meet. Now they're gazing with intensity. Blue on green. He finds Meredith wildly attractive in this moment. Even with the crazy hair, red nose, and perspiring skin. Three years apart. Finally, they can share this perfect union together. Something he's dreamt of even before the memories flooded back.

"Mer..." Derek pulls a hand from her messy tresses and laces it underneath her thigh. Pulling it forward, now both of her legs circle loose around his back. He can feel her heels digging at his tailbone.

Her gorgeous opening squeezes around his lengthening penis. If she continues the taunting, embarrassingly enough he might come undone right then and there. They fit though. Just as they always have. He pushes forward, as far as her body will allow. The scent of their sex and sweat mingles in the air.

Their lips touch. He entangles his tongue to her cavern in a similar fashion of his hardened muscle to her womanhood. Derek finds an even rhythm with the beats of their hearts and downpour outside. Candles flicker, ever so often giving him flashes of his wife's awestruck stance. They showcase her perpetual freckles. His favorites dot over the bridge of Meredith's nose. Derek's hips roll and she in turn adjusts her hips to meet his thrusting. Often he'll nearly revoke himself completely, only to push back in with quaking force, hitting her cervix every time.

In, out, in, out. Pleasure her. Give her. Love her. Make love to her. His current mantra.

"You feel good." Meredith coos. "So, so good." She squeezes her thighs against his waist. Their snouts brush. His forehead close to hers.

"You too." He replies, a sweet smile forming. Shouts or screams don't permeate this love making session. Their headboard isn't cracking the wall behind them and the box springs don't squeal. But the passion and intimacy is off the charts. He can't remember the last time, before the trauma of his accident occurred, a love making session this intense. A lot of the sex he enjoyed with Meredith was brimmed by hatred and anger. Those were the times they rocked the boat so intensely, picture frames fell off side tables. Derek's prideful that love and companionship created this bond. No drunken one night stands or arguments to be hashed out.

When she constricts him, Derek mewls. He was close but his wife wasn't far behind. For her, penetration could get her off but with he being so sensitive to her body, Derek normally didn't last long enough to get her going. It was his fingers toying with her soaked clit that usually made her soar. He desired they come together. He wanted them to share their first union high and make it all the more special. Gently fumbling with her ripe, rosy nipples. He fondles her breasts like a stress ball between his digits. Meredith whimpers in unbridled pleasure.

"A little higher." Derek whispers to the crease beneath her ear. Meredith follows commands easily, lifting her knees to the space just below Derek's underarms. This time his tempo speeds up, just a tad.

"I-I need-" Meredith never finishes her sentence. But Derek is cognizant with exactly what his wife desires.

Her hips widen for him. They stretch about as far as he thinks they'll go. "I know, I know what you need." His voice laced by panting. With his blood brimmed bone slipping in an out at a rapid speed, Derek pushes the fingers on his right hand back into the cluster of nerves just above her canal.

In soothing circles, her fondles her soaked sexuality. Her pussy quivers at his touch. He feels her opening contract around him, hinting that an orgasm is ready to spiral.

Derek so desperately wants this to be about her. Even when his cock twitches in an attempt to explode deep within her body, an urge overpowers him. With a single swift motion, he dislodges their well working machine. Before Meredith is able to complain about their loss of connection, his mouth lands on her perfect sex. His actions receive a shout of appraisal from his wife. Derek grins against the delicate skin there.

"It's your birthday." Derek murmurs, stroking his tongue down below. "You deserve this. So come undone when you're ready and then I'll finish." The crease of her knee rests at his shoulder. Derek takes his time in French kissing the bundle of heightened nerves. Her drenched clit tastes like them. Their sexuality working together to create something beautiful beyond reality. He uses his fingers to keep her loose folds parted.

"So sweet..." Derek mumbles gruff at her most private spot. Something only he, of all men in this world, may gander at.

His blue eyes quickly shoot up to find her shivering above his head. Both arms lie across her forehead. Her chest pushing and pulling as deep, concentrated breaths exude. "Oooh, I'm close." She scrunches her nose.

His tongue flings against the sensitive bud. The gorgeous pink flesh begins to clench. "Let it go. It'll feel so good I promise." Derek gives her permission to fly away. She, more than anyone he knows including himself, deserves this pleasure. She's been to hell and back these last couple of years. The least he can do is give her a ticket to heaven, even if it only lasts a minutes.

Her body tightens. The feeling of her toes curling around his clavicle is a sure fire sign that an orgasm is taking over. No longer is her mind able to keep the heat or tingling under wraps because his gesture is all too powerful. His mouth and tongue release their hold on her drenched mound. Derek watches the intense high wash her over. She makes a grimace and a gnarly noise escapes.

In the midst of her high, Derek rejoins their bodies for a last hoorah before he pours himself inward. "Holy crap." Meredith gasps, still shaking from her orgasm. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Derek quiets her trembles with his lips. Their tongues duel in tune with his fast paced thrusts. The lip lock is needy. Lips are swollen from their messy kisses.

She too pleases him. With his hands fumbling inside Meredith's slick heat, her fingers grip and fondle with his sack. Derek groans akin to a lion. She's stroking him just the way he likes. They're union is a give and take, just as it always was before.

Kissing, loving, trusting.

She's still shaking when he finds his own climax, triggering Meredith to come again. Her name rolls off his tongue like velvet. She too moans his. Derek shoots his seed deep within her depths. They share the express train to cloud nine together. Jumping off that cliff. He keeps her body cradled close. She holds onto him. Their bed disappears beneath them and soon they're free falling. Somewhere beyond this bedroom, their souls lie free.

Tears of joy prick his eyes. Never could he have imagined this moment would happen. Derek loves his wife. He is so in love with her to the point that losing her again would rip him in two. They share a sweet, beautiful kiss coming down from the high. Their skin is slick, coated in their own sweat from the workout they just endured.

Derek finds a home between her breasts. He pants against her mound. Meredith's fingers wrench through his slick raven tresses. His lips lightly pucker and gently print a kiss on her flesh. "I love you." Derek says. His tired muscle slips from her fatigued canal.

"I love you too." She responds.

And then he drifts.

GA

It's Derek's fingers touching her naked shoulder that bring her senses alive. The room is spinning when her eyes crack to slits. Her body is sticky and wet to the touch. A throw is draped across her hips. Her bare breasts sink firm into the mattress.

He smiles at her. A wide grinned smile that reminds her of what happened before she succumbed to sleep. They made love. Beautiful, perfect, wonderful love that made her bones ache and her nether regions tingle. It was her birthday and Derek Shepherd provided the best gift she could have asked for.

"There you are." Derek strokes his thumb over her forehead. He's dressed in casual sweats. A draw string hoodie from Bowdoin encasing his torso. "How was your nap Sleeping Beauty?"

Meredith yawns in response to his question. "Mm, tired." She mumbles.

He chuckles faintly. "I know but there's a surprise waiting for you downstairs and you gotta get up if you want to see it." Even when her brain insists it could sleep for another forty eight hours, she moves against its wishes. The cover shifts from her body, leaving her exposed to the naked eye. She notices the candles remain but their fire is burned out. The bedside lamps illuminate their bedroom.

"How long was I asleep?" She asks.

Derek's rummaging through their dresser. She watches when he plucks a pair of cotton panties, some thick socks, and one of his long sleeved tees. Derek crouches in front of her, motioning that she lift her legs. He pulls her underwear up. "Uh, it's almost nine so maybe an hour and fifteen minutes?"

She grips his shoulder to help him continue the voyage up her thighs. Derek plants a sneaky but soft kiss to her hip. "You didn't sleep with me?" Her arms lift so that he can pull the shirt over her head.

"For like ten minutes. I had to get some stuff done." Meredith pushes on her own socks without his assistance.

She's nearly made it to the bedroom door when the feeling of Derek's left arm circles behind her waist a the bristles of a brush comb gently through her locks. "Your hair is a little... tangled." Physically, she isn't able to see his face but something nips at her he is indeed smirking.

Not that Meredith is complaining. Being pampered this way by her husband was everything she could have asked for. They join hands when her hair doesn't resemble a birds nest any longer. He brings her downstairs and into the kitchen.

The table is set. Two candles lit. Derek broke out the good China and she wants to giggle thinking they're eating on it in pajamas. A bottle of wine and two glasses. Carbonara is the dish served.

Derek pulls out a seat and motions for her to sit. "Did you make this?" Meredith asks softly. She breathes its delicious fragrance in. Her stomach growls. She's famished for food.

"Yes, well I actually had a little help from Link. The man can cook. But anyways, we cooked a test batch earlier in the week and it didn't go well but we tried again and here's the result." Derek mentions, his dimples deep as his smile grows.

Meredith seeps her fork into pasta. Soon it's delicacy is melting on her tastebuds. She moans. "This is so freaking good." Meredith mumbles, mouth brimmed.

Derek leans over the table to wipe bits of sauce from her lip. "I'm glad you like it." Minutes pass with the sounds of Meredith devouring her dinner. Their sex date worked her up an appetite most definitely. Her plate is nearly gone when she looks up to find Derek's barely began eating. She flushes with embarrassment.

"I was hungry." Meredith defends herself, not that she needed to anyways. Her husband has always been vocal about the way he admires the insatiable appetite.

You're like, a bottomless garbage disposal.

Hey!

"I'm not judging." He retorts, slipping a longer noodle between his lips. "This is your birthday dinner. Eat all the carbonara you want." Derek flashes her a smirk.

Meredith's heart flutters being cognizant he put this together for her. The entire evening has been nothing but magical. From the first moment she stepped in the house to right now, sitting across from him at their dinner table. Derek made her feel loved in more ways than one tonight.

"I do have a present for you." He interrupts her thoughts. His chair scratches against the floor.

Sipping at her Chardonnay, she says, "You already gave me my gift. Remember, the glowing condoms and the really amazing sex?"

He wiggles his eyebrows at her. "I like to think of those as gifts for the both of us. I know you said not to get anything but you know I can't do that."

A box is planted before her. A navy one with a pretty white bow twisted around it. She unties the ribbon and its strings fall flat to the table. Her heart skips a beat at the boxes contents.

"Before you say anything, this isn't any ordinary ring. I know that you're a simple girl and I get that, we got married on a post-it note. But hear me out." Derek kneels next to her seat. He grabs her hand, entwining their fingers, he squeezes. "It's my mothers ring but I made some adjustments to it. It's not too flashy and I sized it down. Plus if you don't want to wear it on your finger, there's a chain you can put it on. You can also put it on the chain if you do decide to wear it but can't because you know, surgeon and all. I just wanted something more permanent for us than a piece of paper. This way you'll know I'm going to be there, I'm right here with you, always."

Meredith slips the ring from its velvet encasing. The silver glimmers against the candles fire. One, sparkling diamond stands center of the band. "There's something engraved on the inside. That's the special part of the ring."

Everything becomes glossy. Her eyes well with tears. Right there, smack dab in the middle, the words "This is forever" are inscribed.

"Seriously, Meredith if-"

"I want to wear it. On my hand I mean, I don't just want it on my neck I want it on the marriage finger or whatever." She cuts him off mid sentence. She easily slips the ring onto her left hand. "I'll wear it everyday. For the rest of my life. And I'll use the chain when I'm doing surgery because I don't want to go anywhere without it."

It might be the most perfect gift she's ever received. Meredith wasn't typically a woman who gushed over jewelry and the flashier items in life. Materialism was just things in her book. Except this ring her husband had given her was different. This was unlike the ring he primarily tried to give when they were to be wed so many years before. This ring was special because it was made for her and her only. Then he went as far to engrave the most meaningful portion of their post-it vows inside the item, making it all the more special.

Meredith cups his cheeks. "I'm never taking it off." They kiss.

"Never?" A sly smirk forms against his cheeks.

"Nope. Not at work, not when I'm doing the dishes, not in the shower, especially not when we're making love." Her tone sprawls into a purr nearing the ending statement of her sentence.

This time he kisses her and shakily lifts himself from the ground. "I'm glad you love it then." He leaves her in solitude at the table. He's rummaging in the fridge for something but she's too entranced by her perfect gift to ask what.

"Okay, last surprise and I promise I'll turn the McDreamy factor off." Derek chuckles. He's holding a round, chocolate buttercream iced cake. There's a single strawberry lying near the edge, surrounding by pretty frosting flowers.

Happy Birthday Meredith the cake announces in cursive script. A single candle burns. "You got me a cake?" She asks.

"I got you a cake." Derek takes the opportunity to kiss her. He tastes like Italian pasta and moscato. Meredith thinks she could kiss him forever if oxygen wasn't a necessity. "Take a breath woman and then we can play a little." He teases. Immediately her brain jumps to the notion of kitchen table sex.

"Make a wish." Derek adds.

The corniest and most cliche line comes to mind but Meredith couldn't care less. "I don't need to. You made me whole, Derek. Our family is our family again. I don't need to make a wish because I already have it."

"Well, then just wish nothing changes." He strokes back her hair. "Happy birthday, love." Derek is behind her now. His arms loosely wrapped around her neck. With his chin positioned at the top of her head, she glances up. They're eyes meet. She laughs.

"I love you." Meredith whispers. With her hand over his, she leans forward to blow out her candle.

Phew okay, so there's that. I've been writing non-stop this week and I wanted to get this out on Thursday because it's Grey's Anatomy day and I'm sure it'll bring us MerDer lovers sadness and disappointment as it normally does.

I'm trying to create a realistic Meredith and Derek but one that includes all the things the show wouldn't give. The ring is something so important for this story and I will continue to bring it up. Let me know if you guys want Derek to have one! I can totally incorporate that.

I hope you enjoyed the intimate scene between them. I wanted it to be special and I really hate when I read MerDer stories it's just them screaming "Fuck me harder please!" At each other because I feel like the MerDer on the show would never be like that sexually. There will definitely be more in the future, maybe not so graphic or detailed for time sake purposes but there nonetheless.

Also wanted to address I haven't forgotten about Derek's run with PTSD or his therapy they talked about, it is coming guys! Carolyn and the Shepherd sisters are coming full force next chapter. I'm pretty sure it's going to be a thanksgiving themed one but I'm not too sure yet.

This is random but would any of you want to see a Shepherd-Grey family dog? I loved Doc so much and it hurt me when they never wanted to get another pet.

Anyways, enough of the rambling I just wanted to say thank you for the reviews! We are so close to 200 that is like insane to me. This is the most consistent I've ever been with a story and I want to continue at it. Please leave a review they mean the world. I love when you guys give me your full thoughts, opinions, ideas. They are wonderful!

Thank you for reading and I hope you all are having a wonderful day.