Chapter 35: Proving Himself

Meredith's Point-of-View

"Rise and shine!"

I shot up in bed, blinking furiously at the annoying male voice. I focused my bleary eyes on the figure in the door, peering through the dim light coming from my window.

"What the hell are you doing here…at…" I focused in on the clock and frowned. "…five a.m.? Are you fucking nuts?"

Derek smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry it is so early. I have a surgery at six or I would have done this later." He explained.

"Done what later?" I asked suspiciously. I hadn't heard shit from him in almost three days.

"Prove myself. I made breakfast. Hungry?"

"For breakfast?" I asked.

"Yeah." He said simply, smiling eagerly. I was surprised that he wasn't bouncing up and down like Laura.

I sighed. I did tell him to prove it.

"It better be a good breakfast. If I am getting my ass out of my warm bed a full two hours before I have to for a piece of toast, I am going to kick your ass." I grumbled, trudging out of bed.

"Nice outfit." He smirked.

I looked down at my white tee shirt that barely covered my upper thighs and rolled my eyes. I grabbed my worn red robe and shrugged into it.

"Better?"

"Not really." He looked like he was in mourning. I gestured for him to go first. I wasn't giving him the chance to ogle my ass…I was gonna ogle his. I walked into the kitchen and sat down heavily on the kitchen chair and sniffed appreciatively.

"Smells good." I said grudgingly.

"Thanks." He said, placing food on my plate and setting it in front of me.

I looked down and looked back at him.

"Do you think that is enough?" I asked sarcastically.

On my plate were pancakes, scrambled eggs, hash browns, toast and a bagel.

"There is more to make a happy plate." He told me smiling.

I couldn't help it, I giggled.

"A happy plate? What am I? Five?" I asked.

Derek sat down with his own plate and smiled. He shrugged.

"I didn't know what you liked, so I just made everything."

I looked around at the spotless kitchen.

He followed my gaze.

"I clean as I cook." He told me knowingly.

I blushed and looked down at my plate.

"Eat up. Oh, you want some coffee?" He got up before I could answer and poured me a cup. "Cream and sugar?" He asked.

"Yes please. Thank you." I said. I dug down deep trying to pinpoint my emotions. I was having trouble. I soon realized it was because it was several emotions…nervousness, confusion, anxiousness and happiness.

"Is everything okay?" He asked. I looked deep into his eyes and realized he was just as nervous as I was.

"Yes. I think it is." I said. We both knew I wasn't just talking about the food.

I gave him one last look and started eating.

Oh. My. God. This man could cook!

I moaned…loudly.

He cleared his throat and shifted in his chair, smiling and cringing at the same time.

"This is really great!" I told him, taking another bite.

"Thanks." He said.

Derek's Point-of-View

I watched her consume her food. Boy for as thin as she was, she could pack away some food. It would almost be amusing if not for the fuck worthy moans and groans coming loudly out of her mouth. The way her full lips grasped the fork as she took each bite and the way her eyes rolled back in her head…I was sporting full on wood.

I shifted again in my chair, wondering if it would be rude to run to the bathroom and rip one out.

Yes, yes it would be rude. On the other hand, it would be embarrassing to get up from the table with my cock peeking out of the waistband of my jeans too.

"So you cook…you clean…you are well off, not that that matters to me in any way, mind you…you are a successful neurosurgeon…a good son and brother? If you could just stop porking all the women you meet, you would be the perfect man." She said.

I winced. Yeah, that hurt. DJ was gone...for now. You know the saying about how you can't keep a good man down...

The realization of what she just said showed in her eyes and she dropped her fork, making it clang against her half-eaten plate of food. She clapped both of her hands to her mouth.

"Oh my God! I'm sorry. It's really early and I didn't sleep well. My filter is not working. You are being so nice, you cooked, you are trying, and I am being a bitch… I am rambling…sorry." She said.

I looked at her in concentration as I tried to decipher her very long rambling sentence. I lean back and looked at her.

"Don't worry about it. I deserved that." I said, shrugging. It hurt, what she said, but it was the truth. I hadn't led the life that I really wanted.

"No. You didn't. You are trying and by me saying that, it shows that I am not." She took a deep breath. "So, thank you very much for breakfast. It was really good. But it is almost time for you to go to work and I have to take a shower."

I looked at my watch. I had twenty minutes to get across the street. I smiled and got up to clear the table. Her hand stopped me.

"You cooked; I can finish up in here." She told me.

I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Shut up! I can clean, I do clean. I was trying to piss you off." She huffed.

"You failed." I told her honestly.

"I did not!"

"You did too." I laughed. "I was shocked, but I was happy you were there. If it had been anyone else, I would kick their ass right out my door. You are different, we are different than anything I have ever done."

"You said you lived with someone before." She stated.

"Yes, Addison. We were mutually exclusive several years back. It lasted all of five months. I was always looking at other girl's asses, she would berate me for it, withhold sex and then fucked her boss in our bed…repeatedly." I shook my head.

"And did that hurt?" She asked.

"No, it didn't. I didn't feel that way about her. I was trying to make my mom happy, but turns out, she hated Addison. So, I decided to keep on living my life the way I had been, and my mom didn't give me any outside interference after that."

"You weren't happy." She stated.

"I thought I was, until you." I told her.

She nodded.

"So, now what?" She asked.

"Now, we get to know each other, really know each other. Maybe go out some night after work, maybe eat lunch with each other sometime?" I asked.

"We can do that. But no sex." She stated firmly.

I slowly nodded. I had expected as much. Thank God for my large collection of porn.

"I can live with that."

"Well you have Nasty Naughty Nurses 1-4 to keep you company." She giggled. "Wait right here."

She rushed into her room and came back out minutes later with a bag. She handed it to me.

"What's this?" I asked, rifling through it. I pulled out a bottle of…

I looked at her in astonishment.

"Seriously? You are giving me lube?" I asked.

"I wouldn't want you to chafe." She said seriously, though her eyes danced with amusement.

"Yeah, that would be uncomfortable. I am…yeah." I shook my head in disbelief. "I am going to go to work. Thanks…for the...um...gift and for eating breakfast with me."

"No problem." She said, biting her lip. She opened the door for me, and I stepped out. I turned back to her. "I will see you later."

"Later." She agreed. She softly shut the door and I waited until I heard her laughter through the door.

That woman was going to be the death of me. But what a way to go.