AN: Sorry you guys, I know I promised I would have updated over the weekend, but we did lots of cooking both on Saturday and Sunday, so time sort of slipped away. Thank you for all the reviews, likes and following, as usual; it's nice to see people enjoying my story. Here is chapter 9, I can't believe the next one will be the 10th already!

Little by little

Derek woke up with a sense of calm, he was finally feeling like life was slowly going back to normal, he was back at home, with his family. He had another chance. He still felt confused, his memories jumbled, but he felt a sense of peace and belonging when he was in this house. It was quite similar to what he had felt like in his parents' home, back when he was a kid. He was sure that being able to sleep in his own bed, with his wife by his side, was a big help for his recovery. He got to spend all day with the kids, who were having a blast, Meredith was patiently showing him pictures from the last three years and narrating him all the biggest events that had happened, and he was doted on by his mother. On the Saturday after he was released, they organized a barbecue to celebrate his return home and Cristina who was flying back to Zurich on Sunday. When Meredith and Alex took her to the airport the following day, she promised to be back at the end of July to spend her summer holidays in Seattle. She made Meredith swear to have the infamous pool installed by then, and Alex was definitely supporting her on this campaign "we haven't told the kids yet" Meredith grinned at her friends "but the company Derek had contacted before the accident is going to come to inspect the land next Wednesday and, if everything goes according to plan, we should have the pool in 4 to 6 weeks... keep your fingers crossed for dry weather"

"Sweet" Alex chuckled "just in time for summer!"

"I have to concur wit Evil Spawn here..." Cristina smirked reviving the old nickname she had given Alex long ago.

"I just did it so it can be an incentive for you to come back and visit" it was Meredith's turn to smirk.

Cristina just laughed "take care you guys, especially you!" she ordered the two of them, staring at Meredith in particular.

"We will" she reassured her person.

"Alex, keep an eye on her"

"I'll do my best" he promised "you have to take care of yourself as well, though" ha added.

"Don't you worry about me" she shrugged her shoulders.

"Hey, I never asked you how it went with Owen in the end" Meredith changed subject, observing Cristina.

"It went all right" she paused, looking at Meredith, as if she was searching for the right words to say "I told him that I'm happy that he found someone to move on with and that I hope she can give him what he deserves..." she trailed off "he said that things aren't really serious yet, but they might become... I think he was happy to get the green light from me"

"I'm proud of you" Meredith gave her a bone crushing hug.

"Yeah, I'm pretty proud of me too actually" she took another pause, her eyes lighting up with the memory of the talk she had with Owen "he's a great man, he deserves good things" she returned the hug "will you check up on him anyway?"

"I sure will"

"And I will too" Alex added for good measure.

"Thanks, Alex" she turned to give him a hug as well.

"I thought you didn't hug" he snorted, hugging her back.

"Don't push it, Karev!" her tone was stern, but her eyes were laughing.

"I'm going to miss you" Meredith sneaked in another hug as they got close to the impending separation.

"I'll call you as soon as I land"

"You better!" she challenged.

"I'll see you guys soon" Cristina promised as she waved "be sure to tell McDreamy that I expect him to be fully recovered when I get back!"

Meredith chuckled "I'll tell him, you know he hates to disappoint people"

"That's exactly what I had in mind!"

"Be sure to bring chocolate the next time you come!" Alex grinned broadly as he shouted for Cristina to hear and ducked Meredith's punch in his left arm.

"I'll definitely bring some for the kids... for you, I'm not so sure" she chuckled as she passed security.

Monday was a slow day at the Shepherd-Grey residence. It was a typical rainy spring day, so Carolyn suggested to bake cookies, the kids would have fun and they all would have something to eat while they watched a movie later.

"I could go buy cookies at the store..." Meredith's suggestion came out feeble.

"Why would you do that? We got all the supplies to bake home-made cookies when we were at the supermarket the other day" Carolyn looked pretty bewildered at the thought of buying cookies instead of making them from scratch and Derek burst out laughing.

"Mom, you need to know that Meredith's skills in the kitchen are not so great..." he smirked.

She just swatted his hand and shushed him "I must admit that he's mostly right" she shrugged "my mother was not very mother-y" she added after a brief pause, twisting her hands nervously and lowering her eyes to them "I never baked cookies growing up" she confessed.

"You're never too late to start baking cookies" Carolyn coaxed her as she placed a comforting hand on her back.

"I don't think I'll be a very good student... a friend tried to teach me the wonders of baking once, but it didn't go too well" she bit the inside of her mouth as she focused on an afternoon in which Izzie had tried, unsuccessfully, to show her how to make muffins.

"That's nonsense, dear!" Carolyn patted her on the shoulder as she sat next to her daughter in law "I managed to teach all of my kids some basics kitchen skills, Nancy included and she was absolutely helpless" she murmured in a hushed, conspiratorial tone.

"Oh yeah, I remember when she burned a pan trying to hard-boil an egg" Derek grinned at the memory.

"Wow, maybe she really was worse than me..."

"I can assure you that learning to bake cookies will be a walk in the park compared to earning a degree in medical school" she winked at the younger woman.

"You sound so sure..."

"I really am, want me to help gather the supplies?"

"Sure!" both women got up and Meredith stuck her tongue out at her husband.

"Hey, why are you picking on me?" his tone was mock-hurt.

"Because you don't have an ounce of faith in my cooking skills"

"Of course I do..." he gave her his best McDreamy smile "I did promise you cooking lessons, if I remember correctly" he added.

"Yes you did, but it looks like your mom will be the one giving me lessons for now" she challenged as she took out the chocolate from a cupboard.

"She will give you a lesson in baking, but I will teach you the fine art of cooking pasta" he wiggled his eyebrows.

"He makes all kinds of pretty divine pasta" Carolyn added quickly as she placed the flour and yeast on the counter "it was his dad who taught him"

"I guess I'll take your lessons as well" Meredith was quick to agree, placing a warm, wet kiss on his lips "you know how much I love pasta".

"Good choice" he whispered after the kiss had ended.

Carolyn had finished placing all the supplies on the counter "are you ready for your first lesson in baking?"

"As ready as I'll ever be" Meredith sounded skeptical.

"Shouldn't we call the kids?" Derek pointed vaguely in the direction of the playroom, where they could hear the shrieks and laughters Zola and Bailey were making.

"I'll go fetch them" Carolyn was already halfway into the living room.

"You never told me that your dad gave you cooking lessons"

"Uh, yeah... I guess it slipped my mind" he gave her a sad smile "it was our special time together"

"Why did you guys do precisely that?"

"My grandmother had taught him, she wanted to be sure that he could manage to survive once he left home and she also assured him that a good meal could be the best way to win a woman's heart"

"Smart woman" she smirked.

"She was pretty amazing, my dad was a lot like her..."

"How so?"

"They were both impulsive, with a big heart" he smiled, remembering both of them "he would have absolutely loved you"

"Really?"

"Definitely" he nodded, his eyes glistening with unshed tears "he would have been a great grandpa"

"I bet" she placed a hand on his shoulder and pressed a kiss on his forehead.

"I miss him everyday" he confessed, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I can understand that, sounds like he was an amazing father, but most of all a wonderful man"

"He was, I just hope to be at least half the man he was... if I will succeed I'll be a happy man"

"I can assure you that you are a great dad, Zola and Bailey both adore you" she squeezed his shoulder "and you are not too bad of a husband either" she winked at him "I'm sure that you're making him very proud, Derek "

"That's good to hear" he chuckled.

She kissed him once more, happy to still be able to do that, tangling her hands in his hair to keep him close to her "I love you" he murmured as their lips were still brushing one another.

"We should start working on adding another chatty child to the bunch, what do you say?" his tone was playful.

"I'd say we need for you to get better first" she snorted, smiling.

"It's not my fault if we make the prettiest babies" he admitted.

"That's true" she had to agree, placing one last kiss on his lips as the heard the kids and Carolyn coming back.

"We'll talk more about this, okay?" he whispered hopeful.

"Yes we will, once we are alone" she agreed, unable to tell him no.

"Who's ready to bake cookies?!" Derek asked enthusiastically as the three of them arrived in the kitchen.

"I am!" both kids cried out excitedly.

"That's good, because Nana is going to teach us all to make chocolate chip cookies today" Meredith bent down to pick up Bailey and place him on a stool.

"Yay, we wuv cookies!" Zola's voice was full of excitement as she looked up expectantly at her grandmother.

"You guys will be the best little helpers" Carolyn winked at her grandkids and gave both of them a high five.

After the cookies were placed in the oven the family had lunch together. Derek made marinara sauce for the pasta, while Meredith put together a salad.

"See, I do have some kitchen skills!" she challenged.

"My bad" he bowed his head pretending to be sorry for his assumption.

"Stop making fun of me" she chastised him.

"I can't help it" he defended himself "you're so cute when you're mad"

"We'll see if you're as good of a teacher as your mom is" she challenged him as she washed the tomatoes "she managed to teach me how to bake, we'll see if you will be able to teach me how to make amazing pasta"

"Challenge accepted" he smirked.

After lunch the kids took a brief nap and, by three o' clock they were both up, demanding cookies. After they tried one each Zola managed to convince the rest of them to watch Frozen for the millionth time. They all settled on the couch and popped the dvd in the player, preparing for a fun afternoon.

When Amelia got back, around 5 o' clock, she found them finishing the cartoon, the remaining cookies in a platter on the counter.

"Hey, it smells great in here!" she called as she spot the treats.

"We made cookies anty!" Zola's excited voice explained her, as if it wasn't obvious.

"I see that, princess" she answered, snagging a couple of cookies and settling on the floor next to the four years old.

"How are you?" she asked her brother after she had finished the first pastry.

"Pretty good, my leg itches like crazy though"

"We'll ask Callie what you can do about that" Meredith patted him on the casted leg affectionately.

"Hey, I asked Owen if he wants to come by for dinner" she said a little while later "I hope it's okay"

"Sure" both Meredith and Derek nodded in agreement.

After the movie ended the kids played some more, then, as Amelia surveilled them during their baths, Carolyn popped a chicken in the oven and settled to prepare a vegetable casserole and potatoes to go with the meat.

Meredith and Derek had gone back to their room to get ready for dinner. After she had helped him wash himself she took a quick shower, going back to the bedroom to wear clean clothes.

"Are you planning to take advantage of me?" he mumbled as she entered the room, wearing only a terrycloth.

"Maybe" she smirked, taking a long look at his naked torso as she picked out some clean underwear.

"You're killing me here" he lamented as she wore a lacy red bra with matching panties.

She smirked "that was the plan" she managed to say, before she felt the urge to ran to the bathroom and empty the contents of her stomach.

"Are you all right?" his voice was full of concern, he hated the fact that he couldn't get up and follow her.

"Yes, I'm fine" she answered "I think the stress is catching up with me" she shrugged, getting up to wash her mouth and teeth quickly.

"Are you sure?" he pressed as she reentered the room.

"Positive" she sat next to him and kissed him sweetly.

"Okay" he gathered her into his arms and kissed her hungrily "if only this stupid cast wasn't in the way" he complained after the kiss ended.

"You will get rid of it soon enough" she promised, losing herself in his warm embrace.

So, here was chapter 9, some big news are on the way... I hope you liked it, sorry again for the delay. Leave me a review and let me know what you thought of it. I plan to update between Sunday and Tuesday!