Chapter 92: Family Dinner Catastrophe

"Derek!" Meredith hissed out of the corner of her lips; her face indifferent but her body burning. "Your hand is on my ass!"

"What's the problem?" he quipped. "You like having my hand on your ass. In fact, you like having my hand on your boobs, between your-"

"Derek! We're in the lobby!" she chided him. Of course, normally she liked, scratch that, she loved and fully enjoyed him using his talented hands on her but not in front of a wall of her subordinates who gathered to greet their newest coworker – her mother, Dr. Ellis Grey herself. Derek was standing beside appearing to have his hands behind him, but the little smirks and winks told her everyone knew what exactly they were engaged in.

"Dr. Shepherd!" she addressed him sternly, the hot weight of his hand still torturously present on her backside. "I am the Chief, which means, your boss!"

"Ah, and in so many ways," he said sexily, his eyes almost half-lidded. Her jaw clenched, she glared at him as he not only continued his intimate hold on her, but his hand also began to slowly wander up and down.

"What do you think you're doing?" she squeaked, her voice strained as she cursed herself in her head ashamedly for dripping wet for him on instant despite, and partly because of, his impish disrespectful behavior.

"I'm just… massaging you," he replied slyly. "You seem so tense."

"Oh, thank you, Dr. Shepherd," she rolled her eyes. "Ass-groping as a relaxation technique, that just calls for the next Harper Avery."

"We have already established I'm a genius, haven't we?" he winked at her, this time pinching her buttock.

"You!" she gasped with intention of throwing a longer rant, but her mother appeared right in front of them with an expression of impatient disapproval.

"Will I ever see you two without the air of kids entering the phallic stage?"

"Derek, keep your hands to yourself!" ordered Meredith and for once he acquiesced.

"Thank you," she answered exaggeratedly and turned back to her mother. "Mother, we've already talked about this, but you seem to need a reminder. Here, I am the Chief. You are my employee. I pay you. You listen to my orders and you fulfill them. Is that clear?"

Ellis just waved her hand dismissively and asked, "Where's my office?"

"Dr. Grey, it's an honor to have you here." Jennings from the board cut in with two other members and captured Ellis' attention temporarily. Undoubtedly, she was missing the flattery and admiration since she left Boston.

"Keep your credit card at ready, Derek," muttered Meredith through clenched teeth.

"What?"

"Because I'm sure you'll have to bail me out of jail," she replied, deadpanned. "I'll be a murder suspect by the end of the day."

"It's just so cliché," complained Cristina grumpily from her seat behind the counter.

"What is?" asked lightly Izzie, her own eyes observing eagerly the scene before them.

"A family feud, a conflict of generations," Cristina went on monotonously. "Now love proves stronger than hatred blah blah blah and everyone is happy."

"Do you always have to look for a bad side of everything, Cristina?" laughed Izzie. "They just talked and explained their problems like adult people should. I'm happy for them."

"Talked and explained?" snorted Cristina. "Have you met the Greys?"

"I heard the old witch snuck Shepherd and Grey's sex tape out of the house and blackmailed her into hiring her," cut in Alex earning a smack over the head from his girlfriend.

Cristina, on the other hand, looked elated, "Now we're talking!"

"Interested much?" he snickered.

"What?" shrugged Cristina. "I would watch it; they look like they'd be good."

"You're disgusting, you know that?" Izzie shook her head, a grimace on her face.

"Come on, Iz," Cristina glanced at her, her eyebrow raised skeptically. "Don't tell me you're not curious what he does to make her scream like that."

"My beast is satisfied," huffed the blonde.

"It is," confirmed Alex proudly. "Hunt isn't meeting your expectations, Yang?"

"Hunt is a beast," bit back Cristina, "but it's never too late to learn some new tricks."

"Or to watch some good porn," agreed Alex.

"You're… impossible!" yelped Izzie and stalked off with an expression of utter abhorrence.

"Prude!" called after her Cristina. "So, what do you think is their secret?"

"Sex toys?" wondered Alex curiously.

"Nah," she scrunched her face. "Role play?"

"So, Derek, how is it going with your monster-in-law flying around the corridors like a bloodthirsty bat?" asked Mark as he, Derek and Owen were making their way up from the cafeteria.

"Can't complain," smiled Derek, completely relaxed.

"You can drop the act man," said Mark looking around. "We're not in your wifey's radar."

"I'm serious," chuckled Derek. "Ellis is behaving like an almost human being."

"Meredith?" asked Owen. "How is she coping with that?"

"Oh, well, most of the time she's pissed," grinned Derek happily.

"That's a good thing?" frowned Owen.

"You see, Mer is… like a battery," he explained finding a not-so-subtle comparison.

"A battery?"

"She absorbs all this energy, ultimately she has to give it out, spend it," went on Derek, his mind transporting him somewhere else already.

While Owen remained in the dark, Mark mouthed to him, "Sex."

"Ah," nodded Hunt with a chuckle and a shake of his head. "That good?"

"She's unbelievable," sighed Derek reverently. "And I can't get enough of her."

"Yeah, we saw," Mark rolled his eyes. "Just remember she is a couple of years younger; you'll have to resort to the blue pill in order to keep up with her in a few years' time."

Derek scowled at him and was ready to reciprocate with a witty response but in the corner of his eye, he spotted his wife in a patient's room… in his patient's room… talking to his patient…

"Excuse me," he muttered to his colleagues hurriedly.

"Morning, Dr. Bailey," Meredith greeted her head of general as she passed her in front of the OR board, supervising a nurse who was filling in the grid.

"Morning, Chief."

Meredith's eyes swept the board out of a habit, noting the recent changes critically.

"Nurse Kristie, there's a mistake. Please, correct it," she admonished. "I don't want to see such a sloppy board ever again."

"A mistake?" asked the nurse, squinting at the board. "Nope, I see none."

"But there is!" insisted Meredith. "Joyce twins' surgery. My, Dr. Torres and Dr. Bailey's surgery. I see my name written twice."

"Oh, it's not your name," interrupted Miranda knowledgeably. "It's the other Dr. Grey."

"Excuse me? What?" gasped Meredith, her brain unwilling to process the information.

"Haven't your mother talked to you about the swap?"

"The swap?" repeated Meredith with horror.

"Dr. Grey asked me to kindly let her operate," shrugged Miranda. "She couldn't wait to be back in the OR."

"One could think we didn't have any other patients," snorted Meredith folding her arms over her chest defensively.

"Apparently, any other case didn't present such a level of difficulty as to interest Dr. Grey," replied Miranda indifferently.

"Right, sure!" exclaimed Meredith. "She has no idea about the case!"

"She's studying the files right now," argued Miranda. "It's not at all a problem for a surgeon as experienced as Dr. Grey. Do you have a problem working with her, Chief?" she asked shrewdly.

"I don't have… any problems whatsoever!" she hissed angrily and turned away to scan the board once more. She didn't want to be in the same OR as her mother. She was aware such a situation might arise when she agreed to sign a contract with Ellis but she figured there would always be a way to tweak things up a bit. She was the Chief after all.

Damn it, it was a slow day for neuro. But… Derek had a shunt surgery just before her own. A bit more swapping wouldn't hurt.

Fifteen minutes later, she marched into Ms. Cheryl Lewison's room confidently, opening the chart. Derek's ex-patient was an 18-year-old girl with a hydrocephalus syndrome discovered two weeks prior.

"Hello, Ms. Lewison," she gave the girl a wide smile. "I'm Dr. Grey and I'm taking over your case."

"You are?" the girl asked skeptically. "You're a doctor?"

"Yes, I am," assured her Meredith. She was accustomed to the expression of surprise that a woman so young could be an experienced practician, she even took it as a compliment. "In fact, I'm the Chief of surgery here. You're in the best hands possible."

"Oh," nodded Cheryl, her face still visibly dejected.

"Is something wrong?" asked Meredith.

"No… I mean," sighed Cheryl. "No offence but I thought the other doctor's hands were quite good."

"Excuse me?" frowned Meredith feeling she wouldn't like the rest of the conversation.

Cheryl leaned forward a bit on the bed and said excitedly with a low voice, "The other doctor, you know with the blue eyes and black hair?"

"Dr. Shepherd?" nodded Meredith with reservation.

"Yeah, Dr. Shepherd," agreed Cheryl eagerly. "He was cute, like sexy cute… with all the leaning and smiling-"

"Do you… do you have any questions about your surgery, or did Dr. Shepherd explain everything?" Meredith asked quickly, trying hard not to get irritated with her patient. Her husband was an attractive man, she reasoned with herself. It was quite understandable that women liked to look at him.

"Yeah, Dr. Shepherd," giggled Cheryl. "He's an eye candy, isn't he? And you know I wanted to check… if… I watch this hospital drama show where everyone sleeps with everybody… in on-call rooms, supply closets-"

"Reality is nothing like that," stated Meredith, her voice high-pitched. "Hospital work is… busy and boring and… celibate… completely. Also, Dr. Shepherd is married!" she added viciously. He has a ring on his finger, you blind moron!

"Seriously?" frowned Cheryl.

"Yeah," went on Meredith and decided to plod on. "And he's no spring chicken, he has performance problems if you know what I mean-"

"Dr. Grey!"

Assuming the most repentant facial expression she could muster, Meredith turned her head towards the door seeing exactly what she expected, a furious Derek.

"Dr. Grey has just told me…" giggled Cheryl covering her mouth, "I mean, she told me you were no longer my surgeon…"

"I am still your surgeon," assured crisply Derek, striding the room and grabbing his wife under her arm. "Dr. Grey just forgot to take her pills this morning."

He flashed her an angry look and nudged her towards the door.

"The surgery is still on schedule, Cheryl, don't worry."

"I'm not even sure I want to know what it was all about," he said sternly once they were in the corridor, his eyes boring into hers.

"Oh, okay," she grinned briefly and made to move away as quickly as she could.

"Not so fast!" he warned grabbing her arm to hold her in place.

"You told me-" she began innocently.

"Meredith, don't push your luck," he shook his head threateningly. "Can you possibly explain me why you were trying to start these awful rumors about my… about my… false rumors? Again?!"

Meredith mirrored his stance and spat back, "She practically told me she wanted to do you, oh great McDreamy!"

"Don't McDreamy me!" he shouted back. "You harangue me that I'm the jealous one but you're always trying to talk any woman into believing I'm impotent! We're just the same! Do you want to tattoo your name on my penis?"

Only when he concluded his rant, did he notice people around them walk slower than usual pricking their ears to pick up more. Yang and Karev were standing a few feet away staring shamelessly.

"Pray continue," she encouraged with an expression of professional curiosity.

"Yeah, don't mind us," shrugged Karev.

Derek rolled his eyes and turned on his heel dragging Meredith behind him to the nearest on-call room.

"Interesting," commented Cristina.

Alex raised his eyebrow dubiously. "A tattoo on the dick? Not sure I'd go there."

"Weird sex rocks apparently…"

"I'm listening," said Derek looking, or rather scowling at her, expectantly.

"To what?" she replied cheekily.

"Meredith!" he groaned. "And you tell me I'm unprofessional! You try to steal my surgery and lie to my patient because you're jealous?"

"Oh, please," snorted Meredith. "Get over yourself already. You, me and your ego can't fit into this room."

"Then, please, enlighten me why you're kicking me off my case I've been on since the beginning?"

"Because I don't want to operate alongside my mother!" she revealed turning away from him and pacing nervously.

"What?" he asked in a softer voice.

"She's taken over Bailey in our separation surgery. You know which one, Joyce twins," said Meredith, rubbing her temples.

"The conjoined spinal cords?" he recollected. "Ellis is to operate with you? You have never done a surgery together?"

"Surprisingly, no. I'm sure she did it on purpose!" Meredith threw her hands with irritation. "She always pushes for more and more. I should have never let her stay!"

"Love, you can now go through the whole dinner without snapping at each other," reasoned Derek. "I'm sure you can spend some time together in the OR too, it's the place you both love and feel at ease."

"How am I supposed to feel at ease with her breathing down my neck?" she yelled. "You are taking this case," she ordered. "I'm taking your shunt."

"No," he said firmly shaking his head.

"I'm not asking, I'm telling you the schedule has been changed, Dr. Shepherd," she snapped.

"I don't care," he shrugged. "I'm not taking your case and certainly you're not taking mine just to chicken out of yours."

"I am your Chief, Derek!" she shouted at him.

"Then, act like it!"

"Fine," she gritted through her teeth and made to storm past him, but he caught her around the middle before she even reached the door.

"You're not walking out on me!"

"Let go off me!" she gasped out of breath. "If you don't want to help me-"

"God damn it, Meredith!" he cursed straining unsuccessfully to make her face him. The relatively minor argument was getting out of handle.

"Leave me alone, Derek!"

They struggled for a good moment, Meredith trying to pull free, Derek not letting her out of his arms.

"Are you going to listen to me or be a stubborn bitch?" he breathed out into her neck.

"Fuck you, jackass!" she spat at him. "Fuck you!"

"With pleasure!" he growled and decided to deal with her the best way he knew. His lips wandered briefly on her neck, biting on her skin. He pinned her to the wall holding her hostage with one arm while the other frenziedly tugged at the cord holding up her scrub pants. Breathing hard, she tried to fight him off pushing back into him but despite all her stamina he was stronger. He was a man after all. He pushed her pants down along with her flimsy panties. His own pants and boxers soon joined hers pooling around his ankles.

He entered her hard and fast from behind, not even checking if she was ready for him. But it was obvious given the ease with which he filled her slippery channel. She growled at the joined pleasure and pain of her husband's sudden penetration. Breathing hard, she braced herself against the wall as he thrust back into her with double force. One of his hands dived under her bra to squeeze her full breast while his rock-hard cock drove back into her over and over, in a manner that was almost animalistic.

Her thighs shook uncontrollably, and she came hard with a piercing shriek but that didn't make him go easier on her. His pace didn't waver as he repeatedly speared her core. Out of a sudden, before she could come for the second time, he pulled out of her completely and she would have fallen if he hadn't held her tight. He turned her in his arms and reentered her molten warmth, this time looking deep into her eyes. Relief spread through his limbs as he saw no former hostility in her emerald orbs. With the final push, she exploded once more as did he, spraying her walls with his seed.

Their legs wobbly, they fell heavily on the nearest bed. After a moment of silence, Derek grabbed a tissue from the box on the table and tenderly wiped the outcome of their steamy lovemaking off her body, his delicate movements completely opposite to the rash passion of the last few minutes.

"I'm just afraid," said Meredith quietly, her eyes closed. "I can be afraid too."

"I know you can," he agreed softly. "What are you afraid of? Tell me…"

"In the OR, nothing can get me," she said looking at him as his finger caressed her cheek. "It's my second home, was my first home for years. It's my stronghold and I'm its master. And now I'm supposed to let her in…"

"She's not a threat to you in any way, you know that" said Derek soothingly.

"She's going to do something, that's what I know," she riposted. "There's always something she doesn't like, and according to her, it's supposed to make me stronger if she points it out loud and clear. She won't like the way I ask for instruments, my posture will be too inefficient, my hands wasting too much energy, my scrub cap too childish… Possibilities are endless, take this surgery, Derek."

"At work you're my superior and I respect that, honey," he sighed pulling her closer to him. "I will take it if that is your order. But I hope you change your mind because it would be a mistake."

"Damn it, Derek, I didn't ask you for commentary," she complained but her voice was more dejected than annoyed.

"Which means, you realize I'm right," he chuckled. "You'll go into that OR and be the amazing surgeon. Not for your mother but because you are one of the best doctors, I've had the pleasure to meet."

"I think I always tried to prove something to her," she confessed. "That I was stronger than she thought that I had it in me to be a surgeon. I don't want to feel that again, that need to be perfect in her eyes."

"And you don't need to," he stated firmly. "Listen, just be yourself, the beautiful confident woman. And I'll be up in the gallery if you want me watching your back okay? I don't think I ever paid you back for being my doctor during Isaac's surgery."

"I hate it when you're being all reasonable and righteous," she rolled her eyes.

"You love it," he quipped.

They lay in silence for a few minutes before Meredith spoke up biting on her lip, "You don't think we've just thrown eight months' worth of therapy out of the window, do you?"

"No," he chuckled slightly. "We didn't have sex instead of talking. We had sex and then talked. And… and what's the story behind the scrub cap?"

"It's just a scrub cup," she answered scrunching her nose. "It doesn't have a story."

"Evert lucky scrub cap has a story," he insisted.

"Mine doesn't. I just like butterflies."

After another moment of silence, Derek sighed apologetically, "I'm sorry for calling you a bitch."

"Sorry for calling you a jackass."

A couple of hours later, Derek scrubbed out of his shunt procedure at the top speed and rushed to the gallery just as he promised his wife. When he arrived at the place, it turned out the room was so crowded it was impossible to stick a needle inside. He noticed Richard waving his hand at him and he elbowed his way to where Webber saved him a seat.

"What are you doing here?" asked Derek as they shook hands.

"Two Greys operating together?" chuckled Richard. "I wouldn't miss the spectacle for anything."

"Meredith was a bit restless," sighed Derek scanning the room below. His mother-in-law was already bustling inside, giving the last instructions to the residents and nurses that were going to assist. He couldn't yet fish out Meredith's slim silhouette.

"So was Ellis, quite unnecessarily," stated Richard pensively. "I remember as it was yesterday… Ellis, she walked into the OR a resident, left a legend. So did Meredith. I would bet my year's pension your child will do as well."

Derek only smiled at his old mentor's words. He would love to see that prediction come to life one day.

"What I regret the most is wasting all these years when we could be a family," the older man confessed in a quiet voice. "But when I see her back here, it's like not a day passed since she fled from Seattle. And I like to think you and Meredith will make better use of the time you have."

"I'm sure of that," Derek nodded confidently and smiled seeing his wife appearing beside her mother. She raised her head and he winked at her reassuringly as their regards crossed. He saw the sparkle flickering in her eyes and he knew everything was going to be alright.

"Derek?" Richard glanced at him with a frown. "What happened to your neck?"

He quickly covered the side of his neck with his hand. "I… uhm… it's…"

Richard cleared his throat meaningfully. "The hickeys on the other side."

When Meredith washed her hands vigorously in the scrub room, there was no panic left in her organism. The little tryst in the on-call room helped her considerably to get rid of the overwhelming tension. Derek, along with little Derek, was infallible, she smirked at the recollection of the harsh way he took her against the wall. And they talked. Derek kept her grounded.

She walked into the OR, her regard immediately clashing with her mother's. She felt as she was sizing her up, just like when they went through the procedure plan an hour before, but Meredith was unfazed. She was as much entitled to be there, if not more. She glanced up towards the gallery and saw Derek already there, winking at her.

Ellis commenced the surgery making the initial cut. Her task was to part the muscles and make sure the internal organs of five-year-old twin sisters remained intact. Meredith could feel the awe of the observers as they watched her mother work. Her hands moved with such an ease as though she was slicing warm butter. Not the most sympathetic comparison but Meredith knew it wouldn't bother Ellis Grey. She always distanced herself from her patients. So as she did. At the point when she was supposed to cut and heal, she would forget their voice, the hope in their eyes, their laughter or tears. Instead she engaged herself wholeheartedly in what she was supposed to do, cutting and healing.

"Work your magic, Dr. Grey," Ellis nodded at her and Meredith answered with a challenging look. The attention was now almost solely on her, just as the weight of the procedure. The future of these little girls was on her hands, the future in which they would be happily running or one which they would have to live through paralyzed.

The instruments in her hand moved swiftly, deliberately and rhythmically. No unnecessary pauses but also no hurry, she was well on schedule. She anticipated every development and acted ahead, making sure no false movement of hers could irreversibly impair the precious nerves.

Finally, the time for the last move. She was very aware everyone was holding their breaths; she could almost feel the heat of their gazes on her latex-covered hands. But she attributed no special importance to the final cut, she would never make herself choke on the finish line. It was just another step of the procedure. One glance at the monitors, a quick decision…

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have two healthy pairs of legs," she announced with satisfaction to general applause.

The atmosphere in the operating theatre through the final stages of the surgery was unbelievably light and cheerful. Meredith could swear even her mother cracked a smile under her surgical mask. But the most unexpected came afterwards when she was scrubbing out, her mother at her side.

"Thank you, Dr. Grey," Ellis nodded opening the tap.

"Likewise, Dr. Grey," nodded politely Meredith. "Likewise."

"So, the scrub cap," began Ellis making her daughter roll her eyes. Didn't she tell Derek about the scrap cap? "When I saw it on your head, I felt like you were three all over again."

Meredith sighed with resignation, why hid her mother must spoil it every time they were having "a moment".

"You were fascinated with all things flying since we took you to the Space Needle with Thatch," went on Ellis. "We had to watch you 24/7, you almost broke your neck in an attempt to learn to fly."

"Oh," breathed out Meredith. Maybe she was the one too hasty to judge after all.

"The truth is…" her mother's voice became somewhat strained and reluctant as though what she wanted to say was coming out with great difficulty. "I wanted to find myself in the same OR as you for a long time."

"You did?" asked Meredith with total bewilderment, fully facing her at the sinks. "Seriously? Why?"

"I wanted that since the moment you announced you were going to med school," admitted Ellis.

"Yet, you told me I wasn't cut out for surgery," reproached her Meredith.

"I knew you'd try even harder," shrugged her mother. "The more obstacles on our way, the more doggedly we fight."

"You and your logic," sighed Meredith.

"I knew if we were ever work together, the whole world would stop to watch in amazement," she said quietly, her eyes alit. She moved closer and completely unexpectedly took her daughter's hand in hers. "I knew that it would be extraordinary."

"It was," simply said Meredith, smiling gently. She didn't remember ever being as close to her mother as in that moment.

"Which makes it look very foolish of you to threaten your last employer at Mount Sinai to quit if he let me consult on your cases," Ellis's voice returned to her usual crispness.

"Thank you, mother," replied Meredith sarcastically but in the corner of her lips, she was smiling.

"You're welcome, Meredith," assured Ellis energetically. "You know you can always count on my honesty."

"All too well," muttered Meredith throwing the wet paper towel into the bin and going away. However, step after step, she felt a considerable discomfort at walking. It was like… her ass was hurting her. The material of her scrub pants brushed painfully against her skin, forcing her to limp in attempt to avoid the harsh contact. She distinctly remembered Derek thumping her against the wall while filling her with his cock over and over… Looked like adrenaline levels that rocketed due to the surgery dropped enough to unblock the physical stimuli. Fantastic.

Meredith peeked around the corner looking for either Derek's or Addison's head in the ER. Where was her husband when she needed him to fulfill the being together in need part of their vows?

"Yang!" she hissed at Cristina who was chatting with Alex and Izzie. "Have you seen Derek? Or at least Addison?"

"Nope, why are you walking like that?" frowned Cristina noticing without fail Meredith's blundering.

"Ugh, I've got a burn," she replied dismissively looking around in hope of seeing the face of her husband or her best friend. The only thing she achieved was attracting the attention of Karev and Izzie.

"Where?" Cristina insisted with growing curiosity.

"Go away," scoffed Meredith.

"Well, we're both doctors. No need to be embarrassed," shrugged Yang.

"I'm not embarrassed. I'm just waiting for my husband!"

"You've got burns on your girl parts?" smirked Cristina knowingly.

"I do not!" gasped Meredith. "It's not on... on my girl parts!"

"Well, then they're on your ass- Ouch!" she yelped as her chief pulled her into the nearest exam room.

Not seeing another option for the time being, Meredith pulled her pants down and sprawled on the exam table on her stomach.

"Oh, my God!" exclaimed Cristina, her wide eyes fixed on the signs on Meredith's butt.

"Not so loud!" she hissed at her.

"How did you... what did...? You have grate marks burned into your ass!" Cristina managed to stammer out in awe.

"I was busy having sex," muttered Meredith, tapping her fingers impatiently on the table. "Will you please just dress the wound?"

"So, Shepherd's an animal, huh?" Cristina grinned while taking to cleanse the wound. Meredith continued to lie with her head propped on one hand, her face impassive.

"And you and your hubby's sex tape library…" went on Cristina lightly, "is it for private use, rent or YouTube?"

"What?!" she scoffed wriggling around just as the door opened violently, both Izzie Stevens and Alex Karev staring at her battered derriere.

"Oh, wow!"

"Hot cross burns!" nodded Alex approvingly.

"Can you just get out of here?" huffed Meredith.

"Is this a sex injury?"

"Oh, my God. That's going to blister."

"Shepherd's one lucky bastard," whistled Karev.

"Shepherd's what?" Derek himself appeared in the door that was left ajar by the newcomers. His eyes almost popped out of his skull as they stopped on Meredith sprawled on the exam table, Karev, Meredith's bare butt and again Karev…

"What the hell is going on in here?" he demanded furiously and rounded at the younger man. "And what the hell are you looking at? That's my wife you're leering at!"

Meredith slapped herself on the forehead. Great, Derek was getting back into the possessive caveman mode. Her ass was going to be in shreds by the evening.

"Easy, man," Alex eyed him warily. "We're just… consulting…"

"Yeah, Derek, and we've consulted and… are going out," added hastily Izzie pushing her boyfriend out.

"I ever catch you looking at her below her waist, there'll be a similar cross on your forehead!" threw after him Derek.

Meanwhile, Cristina who was standing at the other side of the table was laughing so hard, tears started to run down her cheeks.

"Please, don't cry on my ass," said Meredith.

"Out, Yang, out!" barked Derek and she walked out laughing her head off. "Why is half the hospital staring at your naked ass?"

"You were nowhere to be found when I was looking for you five minutes ago," Meredith rolled her eyes. "Besides, my ass is not naked. I'm wearing a thong."

"Oh please, Mer," snorted Derek as he resumed Cristina's place and work. "A thong is not supposed to cover anything, it's supposed to make horny males want to uncover everything."

"God, I married a chauvinist!" she ranted. "Get down to work, I'm paying you over two million for something, am I not?"

"I'm..." Derek cleared his throat while dressing his wife's injury, "I'm sorry for that… Does it hurt much?"

"Whatever," she shrugged. "It was worth two mind-blowing orgasms."

"Still, I'm sorry," he sighed. "And I'm exceedingly proud. As Richard put it, you and your mother were a spectacle to watch."

A genuine smile graced her lips. "I had brief conversation with Dr. Wyatt in the elevator. Apparently… I'm whole and healed."

"Dr. Wyatt said that?" breathed out Derek.

"It was kind of breaking point or something… I'm still welcome when I need to talk but… regular sessions don't seem necessary…"

"That's great news." He briefly squeezed her hand before finishing with her dressing. "There you go."

She sat up flinching a little. "It looks like I might need that massage of yours," she joked knowing Derek would feel bad about hurting her.

"It looks like it will have to wait," he answered seriously stepping between her legs and cupping her face delicately in his hands.

"Oh, come on," she chuckled playing with the tie on his scrub pants. "You can still have sex with a burn on your ass."

He laughed lightly and pressed a kiss to her nose.

"You know, my lucky scrub cap may have a story after all," she sighed as he helped her jump off the table.

"Told you every scrub cap has a story," he grinned. "Care to tell me?"

"When we're home," she promised. "I feel like a dinner by the lake."

"Dinner by the lake it is," he smiled putting an arm around her as they walked out.

"And…" she bit her lip, "we need to go through our library."

"What library?"

"Well, we're rumored to have an extensive sex tape collection," she wiggled her eyebrows at him.

"What?" he gasped, the corners of his mouth twitching.

"You heard me, Mr. Porn Star," she sang and they both laughed heartily.

"My shift is over," said Derek shaking his head.

"Let's go home," she proposed nuzzling into the crook of his neck.

"Yeah, and I think we should finally unpack that recorder we got from Amelia and her husband for our wedding," he said innocently.

She giggled mischievously as the thoughts of both drifted already to their land and another wonderful evening, they were going to spend celebrating their love.