Sorry about the lack of updates. My life is insane now...and I barely have time to be on the computer. I hope it was worth the wait and thank you all for your wonderful comments. They make my day.

-Marci

As Derek stares down at the strong woman curled up in his lap, he feels his heart begin to pound loudly against the walls of his chest. Everything that she has been through, everything that she has endured, only makes the pounding increase in intensity. A smile tugs at the corner of his lips as a small snore escapes from her tiny form. He knows that they will only get louder, but he now finds comfort in a sound that once drove him insane. He finds comfort because it is Meredith's sound. It is Meredith's sound and he knows that those snores indicate that she is in a deep sleep.

She shifts slightly in his lap and he automatically reaches down to run his fingers through her tangled hair. She had fallen asleep after only fifteen minutes of the drama she had chosen without any argument from him. They hadn't even opened the junk food.

Now the credits are rolling silently down the muted television as their sounds of existence are the only ones in the room. He runs his fingers slowly up her bare forearm, silently chuckling as goosebumps erupt immediately behind his trail.

"Hmmm," she mumbles as she shifts and stretches out her legs.

His heart rate increases as she turns, her head brushing across his groin as she buries her face in his stomach. He can feel her take a deep breath before she reaches up and clutches the cotton material of his white shirt in her first.

"Derek?" she mutters, her eyes still closed, her voice laced with the heaviness of sleep.

"Yeah?" he instinctively whispers in response.

"Hmmm," she mumbles again as she buries her face even further into his shirt. "You smell good."

Derek chuckles as his fingers dance across the small of her back. "Thanks."

"Welcome," she mutters sleepily as she turns her head to look up at him. Her eyes open slowly as she attempts to remove the weight of sleep from their lids.

He traces the tip of his forefinger under her left eye. "Did you have a nice nap?" he asks with a warm smile.

She smiles sheepishly. "I did. Sorry for falling asleep."

"No need to apologize," he says warmly.

"Was the movie good?" she asks as she starts to slowly sit up.

He chuckles as he helps her sit up, only to hug her body against his. "I wouldn't know. I was watching you."

She jerks her head in his direction. "Watching me?" she asks, confusion wrinkling her brow.

He leans in and places a kiss on her forehead. "Mmhmm…you are adorable when you sleep."

She rolls her eyes. "I think that qualifies you as a creeper."

Derek tilts his head back and laughs heartily. "A creeper?" he asks amused.

She nods seriously. "The substantive form of the noun creep. Creeper," she states factually.

"And here I thought it would qualify me as a romantic," he says as he tries to force his smile into a frown, but fails miserably.

A serious look crosses Meredith's face as she turns to face him. "You don't have to be a romantic," she says emphatically.

"Of course I do," he says with a smile.

Meredith pulls back from him slightly. "No, you don't. I just want you to be you. You don't have to try with me. I don't need the romantic gestures of the outrageously expensive restaurants."

Derek frowns as he furrows his brow. "But I want to do romantic things for you. I want to pamper you and shower you with gifts" he says somewhat confused.

"My father has showered me with gifts all my life when all I've ever wanted was his time. The best thing you could ever give me is you. I don't need anything else," she says as the tears well.

He wraps his arms around her. "Oh, Mer," he whispers into her hair. "I'm a given. You couldn't get rid of me if you tried. My gifts, my pampering, will not be a substitute for my time, but my way of thanking you for giving me yours."

Meredith places her hand over her mouth as she tries to keep a sob at bay. He can feel her hot tears on the skin of his neck.

"What's wrong?" he asks worriedly as he pulls back to look into her eyes.

"No one…" she gasps "has ever said anything like that to me," she manages in a strangled voice.

A sad smile graces Derek's lips as he leans forward to kiss away a tear just escaping from the confines of her eye. He opens his mouth to speak, but finds his words muted by Meredith's hungry lips descending upon his. It takes him a moment to wraps his arms tighter around her body, pulling her closer, as he recovers from the shock. Her fingers tangle in his hair as she moves to straddle his lap. Derek groans appreciatively into her mouth as their tongues mesh together.

She finally pulls back after a moment, her eyes closed and her forehead resting against his. Derek runs his hands silently up and down her back. She can feel the blood rushing to her head as desire floods her body. Her hands trail slowly down his chiseled chest as she imprints the feel of his muscles in her memory.

"Derek?" she asks somewhat breathless.

"Hmm?" he murmurs.

She can almost feel his adam's apple vibrating against her skin as the thousands of nerves along her skin suddenly become inflamed. "You know what we did the other night?" she asks as a blush creeps up her neck and into her cheeks.

Derek opens his eyes and smiles broadly at the memory. "I do," he says with a small nod. "I remember it very well," he says in a deeper voice.

Meredith can feel her body almost tremble at his words. "Can we do it again?" she asks quietly. "Only…this time…can…will you…can I?" she stumbles over the words.

Derek moves his hands from her back to her face. "We can do whatever you want," he whispers, his hot breath fanning across her face as his own desire begins to grow, causing him to shift uncomfortably.

As Meredith opens her eyes, a small, seductive smile curving the corner of his lips, Derek silently vows to give Meredith more than just his time. He vows to give everything he has to this tiny siren who has captivated the rowdy soccer player's heart and has continued to hold in hostage in her delicate hands.