Savior

Chapter 19

-xx-

Cate laughed as she parked her SUV in the sprawling driveway of the Johnson residence. "What's so funny?" Derek asked from the passenger seat.

She grinned as she killed the engine and rested her head back against the headrest. "What worried you more; my driving or the realization that you're finally meeting the rest of my family?"

Derek frowned at her amusement. He couldn't remember the last time he got to the stage of a relationship where meeting the family was necessary. Derek Morgan was not the type you brought home to meet the parents.

Cate tried her best to give him a rundown of the family members expected at dinner tonight. Helena enjoyed hosting her four children and their families at least once a month. She would cook all day, and they'd celebrate any birthdays of the adults, or anniversaries. The kids usually got their own special days with Nana and Papa.

She had twin older brothers, Alexander and Nathaniel. Alex followed in their father's footsteps and became a police officer, while Nate went into financials. Jackie and her husband, Steve, rarely missed a family dinner.

"Your driving would make any sane person nervous." Cate shrugged as Derek slid his cell phone into his pocket after turning the ringer off. "Speed limits were created for a reason, Catie."

The brunette's eyebrow rose as she turned to her boyfriend. "If someone didn't take so long in the shower, I would not have had to bend some laws of the road."

"Bend," Derek repeated with a laugh as the two exited the vehicle. "Broke is more like it."

She shrugged. "You lived, didn't you?"

Derek could only shake his head as he followed her up the pathway. Besides his girlfriend's erratic driving to arrive at her mother's home, Derek Morgan definitely decided on the way over that he was head over heels with the brunette in the driver's seat. He was not the guy that someone brought home to meet Mom and Dad, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't excited to get to know the family he was hoping to one day become a part of.

"Cate, wine's in the kitchen," Jackie called from the living room. The brunette laughed at her older sister's welcome as the twosome entered the house.

Cate had texted her earlier in the day to admit she was a little nervous.

Daddy isn't always the biggest fan of the men in our lives, she sent by text.

Theodore Johnson stood in the door way to the kitchen and held his arms out to his youngest daughter. "Say hi to your Papa first before wine, Catherine."

She grinned before hugging her father. "Hi Daddy," she greeted. He released her as Derek stepped next to the brunette. "Daddy, this is Derek Morgan. Derek, this is my father, Theodore Johnson."

The two men shook hands, and Cate watched her father's expression. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Johnson," Derek never once wavered under the scrutiny of the Johnson patriarch. He seemed to stand taller and more confident than any other time she had introduced him to someone.

"The pleasure is mine," her father returned. "But please, call me Teddy."

Teddy led the two into the kitchen where Helena was putting the finishing touches on her hors d'hoeurves trays. "Hi Mama," Cate said as they entered the spacious kitchen.

Helena placed the tray on the counter and sauntered around the island. "My girl," the older brunette wrapped her arms around her daughter. "Wine is in the fridge. I told Daddy to go easy on him" she whispered into Cate's ear.

The brunette grinned and started towards the refrigerator. Helena had Derek in an embrace when she looked over her shoulder. She could only smile as she watched Derek ease into conversation with both of her parents.

She could watch him forever; the perfect smile, the quick glances in her direction. His eyes lit up and became animated as he talked with her father.

Cate gave him a slight wave as Theodore invited him to the back deck, as well as her two brothers. Jackie slid up next to Cate as she sat at the kitchen island, watching out the window as the three other men in her life grilled Derek.

"Steve is kind of jealous that he wasn't invite to break in the new boyfriend," Jackie sighed as she refilled her wine glass. "So I left him in the living room with the kids."

Helena giggled from the stove. "I told Daddy to be nice, but that doesn't mean your brothers will."

"He's a big boy, Mama. He can handle himself." Cate watched the French doors that led to the back patio. Her father stood with his arms crossed over his chest, and winked at his daughters through the glass. She smiled back before turning her attention back to the wine in front of her. "I'm going to need your help, Mom." The elder Johnson female turned to her daughters. "Derek and I are going to look for our own place."

Teddy could control his facial features, but Helena lacked in that department. "So soon, Cate?"

The brunette shrugged. "It doesn't feel soon, Mama." Cate took a sip of the liquid courage in front of her. "It just feels," she paused and smiled. "Right."

Helena beamed at her daughter's admission. She would always be the first to admit that she never liked Cole, and she did not hide her disdain for him very well. As she got to know Derek better, she was extremely proud of the choices her youngest daughter had made.

"What's the rush?" Jackie asked from next to her as she popped a piece of cheese into her mouth. She blotted her mouth with a napkin. "It's been like two month, Cate. Even by my standards, that's a little quick."

Cate rolled her eyes. "Four months," she corrected. "But to answer your question," The younger sister sighed. "I finally feel like something is so right, and this is what we both want." Helena beamed from the other side of the island.

"And," her sister urged.

Cate turned to her with an eyebrow raised. "And what?" Jackie held her hands up defensively. Cate took a deep breath, "I also received my condo paperwork the other day." She swirled the wine in her glass. "I e-mailed Antonio back thanking him for the past six years, but explained that I'm ready to move on to something new."

"I've always liked that Antonio," her mother chimed in. "Did he take it okay?"

The brunette nodded. "He was a little upset because I've never had an issue, but he gets it." She focused her attention on her nail polish and pursed her lips. "I just want something to call my own. That condo wasn't mine," she emphasized.

Her mother grinned. "That's why we do our jobs, Cate. And I would love to help you and Derek find your new home." The older Johnson reached across the counter and patted her daughter's hand.

The youngest brunette was about to open her mouth when Teddy walked back in to the kitchen, followed by Derek and Cate's brothers. Both brothers came over to say hello to their sister. "He's a good one, C," Alex whispered in her ear when he hugged her.

She beamed. "He's the best," she replied. "Daddy wasn't too bad, right?"

Alex smirked as he stood up. "Not nearly as bad at Nate." The younger twin shrugged.

"The two cops weren't doing anything," the dirty blonde man said.

"Two cops, one FBI agent and you," Jackie pointed out. "Someone's the odd man out, Nate." Nate jokingly pushed his little sister.

Cate caught Derek's gaze from across the kitchen and grinned. He winked back in her direction. She could have sworn her heart was beating in overdrive at seeing all of her favorite people in the world in one room together.

"Auntie Cate!" the adults turned to the holler coming from the living room. Cate pushed her wine further on to the counter before proceeding in to the living room where her nieces and nephews were playing with their parents.

-xx-

The twins had both taken their families home, leaving Cate, Derek, Jackie and Steve in the kitchen with Helena and Theodore, as Madison watched a movie in the living room.

Cate and Jackie had just finished helping their mother clean up the kitchen from the elaborate dinner she cooked. "We always get asked if we have two sets of twins," Helena stated as she motioned to her daughters. "These two have been so close for as long as I can remember."

"We look more like twins that Nate and Alex, too," Jackie added. "Well, except that time when Cate decided to experiment with color in high school."

The family members broke out in laughter as Cate's cheeks grew red. "I'm sorry; you were the one in Cosmetology. If it's anyone's fault, it's yours." Cate turned to her sister and laughed. She smiled in Derek's direction and continued her story. "Jackie was determined to color my hair when she first started Cosmo classes."

"It was a really nice shade of 'auburn'," Steve complimented jokingly.

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Thanks jackass."

Steve and Jackie started dating in high school, and finally married when he graduated from college. To say that Steve was a third brother was almost an understatement. He had been good friends with Nate through football, and finally got the courage to ask Jackie to his junior prom. The rest was history.

"We'll need to find those pictures to show Derek," Helena quipped.

"Laugh all you want, Mama," Cate replied. "You paid for it to be fixed." The brunette rested her head on her sister's shoulder. "I never would have thought you'd own your own salon one day, back when you were butchering my hair."

Jackie jokingly patted her sister's cheek. "I don't know who enjoys it more; you or Madison."

Cate grinned and raised her arm. "Definitely me!" She took another sip of her wine as she noticed Derek checking his watch. She winked in his direction. "I think we're going to head out," she reached across the island to place her hand on top of her mother's. "I'll probably have my phone off tomorrow," she mentioned, letting the statement linger in the air.

She noticed her mother take a sharp breath at the reminder as she averted her daughter's gaze. "We'll be here all day if you need us, sweetheart," her father offered.

Cate gave him a tight lipped smile as a thank you.

-xx-

As Cate said her goodbyes to her family, Theodore walked Derek to the front door. "You're good for her," he stated.

Derek pursed his lips into a smile. "Thank you, Sir." The two men shook hands, but Derek noticed Teddy did not let up so quickly.

"That's my baby girl, Derek, and I want the best for her." The black man nodded. "I think you're it."

"Daddy, let him go," Cate laughed as she walked up to the two. "That's enough grilling for one night."

Her father wrapped her in his arms. "Love you Catie Girl," he said as he placed a kiss to the top of her head.

"I love you too, Daddy," she replied. She stepped back, a bright smile on her face as she saw the interaction between her father and her boyfriend.

Derek had opened the front door for the brunette. "I want you to bring him back," her father mentioned and gestured towards Derek. "I like him."

Cate grinned. "Will do, Daddy." The two exited the house, and Cate slipped her arm around Derek's. "Ten bucks says my dad is watching us from the living room window."

Derek peeked over his shoulder and chuckled when he saw Teddy standing in the window watching the two walk out. "You're his baby girl, Cate. He's just watching out for you."

"He's used the same tactics since I was a teenager," Cate said as she rolled her eyes. "Good to know that some things never change."

-xx-