Savior
Chapter 58
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Cate ran her hands up and down over her jeans as she looked up at the building ahead of her. Three years ago she sat in the parking lot of this building bawling her eyes out. Six weeks after her attack, she scheduled her debriefing – ironically enough with Derek – and absolutely lost it the second she walked out of the office building.
She let out a deep breath as she checked her cell phone once more. She had called Derek an hour before to let him know she was in the area at an inspection for a client and mentioned she could bring lunch by. The rest of the team had gone out for a case, leaving Derek at Quantico with Garcia, so the two were grateful for company.
Cate had brushed it off when Derek asked if she was okay coming to the building, but as she sat in front of it; her anxiety was getting the best of her. The flashbacks were all coming back at a rapid speed.
"He's really dead, right?" the brunette asked in a hushed voice. She looked across the table to the black man wearing a frown.
"I promise you, he can never hurt you again," he replied. He watched intently as she fumbled to slip her long bangs back behind her ear. The blonde highlights she wore made her hair seem closer to blonde than brown, but it was her deep blue eyes that he found himself lost in.
"Will I ever be okay?" Her eyes darted around the conference room, never once able to make eye contact with the agent across from her.
She watched out of the corner of her eye as he nodded. "I believe you will, Catherine." The lump in her throat had returned as she sat up as tall in the chair as she could. "You're an extremely strong woman, Miss Johnson." Her lips pursed into a tight smile as those blue eyes Derek found himself intrigued with connected with his brown. She watched him pull a business card from his jacket and placed her hand on it when he slid it across the table. "If you need anything, please do not hesitate to reach out."
She smiled gently as she ran her fingers over the raised letters on the business card.
Another deep breath passed through her lips as her cell phone lit up. Garcia will meet you in the lobby. Finishing a quick conference call with the team.
Cate reached for the two bags next to her and started out of her SUV. Every step that she took seemed to take ages as she neared the front door. The lump in her throat seemed to have returned. She smiled politely as the front door was held open for her before she stopped to check in with security.
She fought to hold her composure as she went through the security check, and contained her laughter as they checked the two bags. "Thank you," she mumbled as she stepped through the security check into the main lobby.
"Cate!" She turned to the bubbly blonde as Penelope started down the hallway towards her.
"Hi," Cate replied as she turned to finish signing in at the front desk.
"She's with me," Garcia mentioned to the woman behind the desk. Cate grinned as she clipped on her visitor badge. "You are my hero," Penelope said as she reached for one of the paper bags.
"I try," Cate countered with a laugh. "I just happened to be in the perfect place today."
Penelope grinned as the two stepped on to the elevator. Cate pursed her lips together as she gripped the bar as the elevator ascended. "Derek should only be a few minutes," Garcia explained as the elevator stopped outside of the BAU. "He's in the war room, so he said we could meet him in his office."
Cate smiled and nodded as she took a step towards the double doors leading to the bullpen. "Through here, right?" she asked when she noticed Penelope was not right behind her. Her eyes lingered on the desks; she remembered waiting next to Derek's desk in the bullpen years before.
The blonde shook her head. "He still uses that desk," she said as she remembered seeing Cate three years prior at his desk. "But he prefers his office. JJ and I set it up when he took over as Unit Chief." Penelope shrugged. "He likes his peace sometimes."
Cate laughed. "Lead the way," she said as she turned to follow the blonde.
"My office is down the end," Garcia pointed out the locked office. "And here is his chamber," she joked as the two stepped into the dark office. Penelope flipped on the light switches as they placed the bags on the table in the corner of the office. "I do need to go check on one thing. I'll be right back."
The brunette smiled and nodded as Penelope stepped out of the office. She giggled as she listened to Penelope's heels on the tile in the hallway.
Cate ran her hand over the front of Derek's desk, and smirked when she came to his name plate. He had given her a brief run down of the months he took over as Unit Chief – they were not too long after her attack – but never mentioned Garcia and JJ set him up his own office.
Fighting against her better judgment, Cate slipped behind Derek's desk and relaxed in the leather desk chair. She knew from dealing with his late nights that he had definitely broken the piece of furniture in. Cate figured she may get in trouble for sitting behind his desk, but she could not get out of the seat when she noticed the picture frames on his desk by the computer monitor.
It reminded her so much of her own desks; the framed photo of the two of them at the Gala – Derek has chosen a different one than she had; the two wrapped up in each other on the dance floor. Derek's back was to the camera, but the smile on Cate's face made the picture. And tucked beneath his monitor was the photo strip from their lunch date the week before. She grinned as she noticed he brought it to work with him.
"You look really good over there." Her eyes lifted to the door, but she knew it was him before she even looked up.
Her heart rate increased at the voice. He had pulled an all-nighter in the office with Penelope the night before so they could stay up to date with the team. The blonde seemed used to the hours in the office, but she could tell it was taking its toll on Derek not being in the field.
His navy blue t-shirt hung haphazardly over his gun holster; it was empty at the moment, and the gun was locked in under where Cate was sitting. It was habit for him to wear it whenever he was in the building.
"I feel like I should have brought coffee instead of lunch," she said with a laugh as she began to stand from behind the desk. She watched Derek closely as he closed and locked the door behind him. "You know Penelope is going to be back in a minute."
He nodded as he stepped across the room towards his girlfriend. "She can wait. I haven't seen you since yesterday morning."
Cate could only grin as Derek slid in between her in his chair and the desk. Her shoulders instantly relaxed as he placed a kiss to her lips. Any concern regarding the building she was in faded when he tenderly placed a hand to each cheek to hold her as close as possible. One hand moved to the base of her neck as they pulled away. A second kiss was interrupted by the knocking on the office door.
The brunette found herself licking her lips as Derek stepped away from the desk to unlock the door. He winked at her before opening the door for Penelope. "Sorry," the blonde mumbled as she stepped through the threshold. She looked between the two of them and laughed. "Was I interrupting? You never lock the door."
Derek smirked and watched Cate stand from behind his desk. "No, you're good, PG."
The blonde pursed her lips and nodded. "You're lying, but I'm starving,"
Cate chuckled as she removed the food from the bags on the table in the corner of Derek's office. As she handed out their lunches, Cate took a seat at the table and sighed. "Good call on Sam's, Penelope. I always forget that they do take out, and have the best wraps in the world."
The blonde chuckled. "They've been there forever," she exclaimed. "It was one of my first stops when I started here. You can't beat a good mom and pop shop!"
Derek nodded in agreement as he took a bite of his lunch. Cate watched him out of the corner of her eye. It was obvious – to her at least – that he barely slept the night before, and she wouldn't be surprised if he had skipped breakfast. His sling currently sat on the corner of his desk in a ball and she was positive he had made a trip to the gym in the building that morning.
"You said on the phone that you had something important," Derek said in between bites.
He turned his attention to Cate with an eyebrow raised. She smiled back at him. "I had an intriguing open house invite in my e-mail this morning."
"Oooh!" Penelope squealed from the other side of the table. "That's exciting! Well, you must get them all the time, but it must be good if you're telling Derek!"
Cate laughed. "It matches most of our interests, and the price is perfect." She took a sip of her bottle of water before continuing. "It's closer to here than most other places that I've seen lately, too."
"Spill the details," he urged.
Cate pulled out her cell phone and opened the e-mail she received. "Four bedroom, two and half baths; it sits on an acre of land. It's listed at $379,000, so it's well within budget."
Garcia coughed as she took a sip of her drink. "That's within budget? That would be my budget!"
"Cate's really good at what she does," Derek replied. "Between the two of us, we have a healthy account for a house. Everything we've liked has been in the four hundred range."
Cate handed her cell phone to Derek to read over the e-mail. She watched his face light up as he went through the listing. "I'm definitely going to swing by Saturday. I'd like you to join me if you're not working."
"I'll make sure I get there," he reassured her. "This is gorgeous, Cate. Nice pick."
She shrugged. "I know my real estate," she answered with a laugh. "But that little sitting area off of the kitchen is amazing!"
"Now I need to see it!" Garcia announced. "I won't tell anyone!"
Derek handed her the cell phone and watched her eyes light up as she flipped between photos. "I'm not getting my hopes up, but I am loving that one so far," Cate said before taking a bite of her lunch. "It's a tough market right now."
"With the Johnson women on the case, I'm not too worried," Derek replied. "If anyone can do it, you can."
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