Savior
Chapter 61
-xx-
Cate took a hearty sip of her coffee and let out a content sigh. She still could not believe Derek was able to pull off the surprise the night before. She bombarded him for a week to get a hint or two, but he never budged. And then he surprised her with a trip backstage after the show was over.
"I'll give it to him," Cate muttered on the way home, "he is attractive." She saw Derek's eyebrow rise from the corner of her eye. "But he's no Derek Morgan."
Derek could only chuckle as he watched his girlfriend flip through photos on her phone. He knew he'd owe his buddy for the hookup, but it was worth it to watch her reaction to stepping backstage.
"My man is a real life super hero," Cate said with a grin on her face.
Derek's friend not only got them backstage for photos, but Cate walked away with a signed set list. She could already see it framed on the wall in her office in their new house. They need to accept our offer first, she reminded herself.
Her open house was finally coming to an end; she knew it was going to be a big pay day when this house finally sold so she took the four hours in stride. She checked Snap Chat every once in a while to see videos from her brothers and her boyfriend on the golf course.
She rolled her eyes during some of them; he wasn't one hundred percent medically cleared to go back to work yet, but his shoulder looked pretty good swinging a golf club. Cate noticed in the background of some of the pictures the cases of beer in the golf carts. Teddy Johnson loved having his boys together for his favorite past time, and the boys loved their day of day drinking with their Pops.
Cate glanced down at her cell phone and laughed when she saw a text message from her sister. Maddy is asking for a nail appointment. What are your plans for the afternoon?
Sleep, Cate thought to herself. They may not have been out too late after the show, but they definitely did not get to sleep until the early hours of the morning. Finishing up here and then I can meet you two at our usual spot.
She sent off the text and slipped her phone into her blazer pocket.
-xx-
"Hey you," Cate said as she answered her cell phone.
"Hey baby," the brunette grinned at the voice on the other end of the line as it echoed throughout her truck. "What are you up to?"
"I am just about to pull into the nail salon parking lot," she answered as she stopped at a red light. "What are you boys doing?"
He chuckled, "Your father is trying to sober up your brothers by going to lunch." Cate laughed; it was definitely tradition. "But I was hoping you'd like to join me for dinner tonight?"
Cate smiled, "That sounds like a plan." She could hear Alex in the background ragging on Derek for being on the phone. She's got you whipped already, he yelled from the background. "Go," she said with a laugh. "Have fun."
"I love you," he said as he shushed the background noise.
"Love you too," she responded before disconnecting the call as she pulled into the parking lot.
-xx-
Cate took a deep breath, letting the scents of Galli Ristorante fill her senses as she waited for Derek to come back from the restroom. She could not contain her smile as she looked around the restaurant as her mind was filled with memories of their first date.
Six months seemed to have flown by in a bat of an eyelash. Their work schedules never really helped and they always had to make the best of it whenever they wound up with time off together. Cate was thankful for her career; she was able to work from home when Derek was injured and was always able to work around their stolen moments.
She grinned as she spotted Derek walking back towards their table. Sometimes she had to pinch herself when she looked at him; he was all hers. There was just something so perfect about the man heading in her direction. He took her with all of her scars; he held her when her nightmares got the best of her.
"What are you thinking about, beautiful," Derek asked as he returned to his seat across from the brunette.
She smiled. "Nothing in particular," she answered.
Cate reached for her wine glass and released a content sigh. "Did you get a lot of traffic at your open house?"
Cate nodded. "A lot," she replied. "I'll be sorting through bids for a few days."
Derek smirked. "It's a gorgeous lot," he said nonchalantly. "It's not as nice as Cardinal Road, though."
The brunette grinned. "That's true," she agreed. "But it'll help pay for Cardinal Road."
The man across from her laughed softly. "Has your mom said anything else about it?"
Cate shook her head before taking a sip of her wine. "She has a call scheduled for tomorrow afternoon with their seller. We'll probably find out at dinner tomorrow night."
Derek watched the woman across from him settle with a soft smile on her lips. With her packed afternoon, she never stopped at home to change from her open house, but Derek was not complaining about the view. The pencil skirt she wore seemed to have been made specifically for her and the rose colored flowing tank top she wore tucked in to the skirt showed just enough for him. She left her matching jacket in her truck, but still wore her kitten heels.
He felt underdressed sitting across from her; Derek wore his cargo shorts and polo from his morning of golfing. She was so effortlessly beautiful. Her hair still held the curls from the night before, but sat in a loose ponytail at the moment. He knew she rushed to get ready in the morning so she barely wore any makeup.
"It's a cat and mouse game," she said, forcing him to stop watching her intently. "You find out who really wants it when you get down to the three final bids."
"Your mom knows to go all in, right?"
Cate pursed her lips into a tight smile. "Not all in, exactly, but yes, she knows what we can afford. I won't overpay for it, though."
Derek laughed. "If this is the house you want, I'll pay anything."
"She knows four is the limit," Cate said as she blotted her lips with her napkin. "The estimate is a little under that, but with the renovations we want to make, it'll all work out."
"I'll make sure it's your dream house."
She caught herself smiling more so at the twinkle in Derek's eye than the words that came out of his mouth. "My dream home is wherever I am with you."
-xx-
Derek lost himself watching Cate sleep next to him. After dinner, they decided to call it an early night due to how late they were up the night before. They opted for Netflix in bed instead of making use of the balcony for a night cap.
He laughed in spite of himself as she snuggled further into her pillow. Derek pulled her closer to him and situated the twosome under the comforter. Subconsciously, she reached for his hand and snuggled closer to him.
I could get used to this, Derek thought to himself, enjoying their lazy Sunday. Both had set their cell phones to silent as to not let anyone disturb their sleep. They had no plans until later that evening when they were expected at her parent's house for dinner.
"Catie," he whispered against her shoulder. His lips lingered against the fabric of the t-shirt she had taken from his closet. She was always stealing his FBI Academy t-shirts, explaining that they were so soft and smelled like him.
She shrugged away from his voice, tucking her face further into the pillow and blanket. Derek dodged strands of hair sticking out of her messy bun as he placed a kiss to the side of her neck. "Go back to sleep," she whined.
He grinned as she finally curled back up against him. "I can't," he responded. The brunette rolled over and tucked her head under his chin. It was her favorite spot to be, curled up close to Derek. "I have a question for you."
She placed her finger to her lips, "shh." He kissed her forehead as she got herself comfortable in her new position. "Ask me later."
"No can do," he said as he moved his hand under her t-shirt to the back of her neck and slowly massaged the bare skin.
Cate gave in to the massage on her neck and closed her eyes again, letting the feeling wash over her. She tried to snuggle closer to Derek as he moved his hand slowly down her back. She sighed when he pulled his hand out from under her shirt, but did not open her eyes when she felt him stretch across the bed to his bedside table.
"Catie," he muttered again, waiting for those dazzling blue eyes to open for him, but sighed when they didn't.
A sleepy smile crossed her face as she settled as close to him as possible. Their feet tangled under the blankets as Cate slid her leg around his. This was the best way to wake up.
"Marry me?"
-xx-