[Elizabeth’s Point of View]

There was a laughter of relief from both me and Derek when the door gave a ‘click’.

“Yes!!” I exclaimed in victory, bubbly, as the door swung open.

“Ahh!” Derek groaned dramatically as he adjusted my weight in his arms. “Finally! That was intense,” he joked, causing more giggles to escape me.

As soon as he got us inside, Derek kicked my door back and closed it with his left feet without even so much as taking his amused chocolate eyes off of my face. I giggled.

“I see this is not your first rodeo, my chocolate cowboy,” I teased as Derek walked us towards my couch, “Sweep the girl off her feet; get her alone in her home. Kick her door close and get right down to business,” I said with a sing song.

Derek gently lowered me down on the couch, minding my still injured leg. A sexy smile–I noted–pulled on his lips as he responded to my teasing.

“We don’t always make it inside,” Derek replied huskily. The sultry look in his chocolate eyes as he said those words made me squirm. Heat crept up my neck, and my fine specimen of chocolate goodness chuckled at me, pleased to see my silly reaction, knowing that my teasing had come back biting me on the ass. He gave me a tiny Eskimo kiss on my nose before releasing me. Instantly, I felt myself missing his warmth. “I’ll be right back, cookie.”

With that, Derek left and out the door to probably get my crutches and our bags. Derek had, in a way, invited himself to spend the night at my place–at least until he was confident that I was able to stand back on my own two feet.

The very moment Derek left, and the sound of his steps disappeared, was the moment I felt that the emptiness of my apartment settled in. I looked around; there was something different about the place that I used to call home before. It was still mine; but the memory of Jonathan’s presence had tainted it. I looked at the vinyl floor of my living room and vividly remember the way my palms had dragged across the synthetic wooden floor as I crawled on them; desperately trying to call for help.

“Hey, baby.”

“Hey.” My smile came on its own the moment Derek walked back in into my apartment. As he locked the door and put down our bags, I let my eyes wonder to his form appreciatively. His dark grey henley shirt fitted perfectly on his hard body, accentuating the taut muscles on his biceps and his chest. His skin was a beautiful mocha color that had a healthy glow in it. He was like a work of art; sculpted into perfection by the hands of a magnificent artist. 

Derek flashed me an attractive smile, as if confirming my thoughts: that he was indeed, tall, dark and devastatingly handsome.

What was he doing with someone like me?

I didn’t know. But when he sat on the couch next to me, I selfishly melted into his arms and nuzzled his neck, seeking comfort from him.

“What is in your pretty little head?” he asked, his voice mumbled a bit as he dipped his nose to my hair.

“Lunch,” I lied, smiling to myself. “Do you think we can–“ I was about to ask if we can eat out, finding reason to get out from the apartment, but the recollection of the broken elevator situation was quick to deflate me. I didn't want to make Derek carry me up and down three-story-floor through the stairs. I changed my mind last minute, “–do you think we can order?”

“That’s the plan, baby,” he replied, caressing my hair as his intelligent chocolate eyes were studying me. “What do you feel like having?”

“How about Thai?” I suggested randomly, procuring a smile to hide the sinking feeling in my stomach, knowing that we'd have to spend the day in the apartment–at least until the elevator got fixed.

At least I have Morgan with me.

“Your wish is my command, Queen Elizabeth,” he said with a smirk, reminding me of The Dominatrix case and the shenanigans that ensued. I chuckled.

Half an hour later, both of us were sitting side by side on the couch, our shoulders touching as we ate from our take out box. I fixed my eyes on the tv, not particularly paying attention to it as I nibbled on my lunch.

“Alright. That’s it,” Derek said out of the blue, putting a pause on his eating and lay down his lunch on the coffee table before us. He placed a hand on the couch behind my back, his body turned to me as he regarded me with his serious eyes. “Spill.”

I frowned slightly. “What? Do you want to try my mango sticky rice?” I said, offering him my dessert. “Here. They are the perfect combination of sweet, salty and fruity.”

Derek lifted his hand. “No, baby. You have been quiet ever since we got here. You eat like a bird. We both know you are capable for more. Not even once now you try to sabotage my meal, which is off.”

I blushed in embarrassment when he put it that way. I never really thought of having to behave a certain way around Derek before, but now I felt kind of ashamed of myself. I haven’t been very lady like around the poor guy. Stealing his food, eating really fast…

For once after a long time, I found myself wanting to please a man again. 

Derek continued. “Something’s bothering you, sweetheart. What is it?” he drilled, “I know nothing’s wrong with the food.”

I shrunk internally under his intense gaze. At times like this, I felt some kind of sympathy for the people that had the unfortunate chance to be interrogated by Agent Derek Morgan.

“We both had passed the stage where there is no secret left between us, hadn’t we?” he tried again with a gentler voice, his chocolate eyes softened at me. “Talk to me, sweetie.”

He was right. There was no need for me to hide anything from him anymore since he already knew every single dark secrets I harbored–and I knew his.

I looked around my apartment. “This place used to be my safe space. A shelter. You guys told me when I woke up that Jonathan Carver had died–most likely by my hand,” I began, looking up at him, forcing a smile, “I finally won, Morgan. But coming back here, seeing this place again–that same floor–“ I gestured at my floor in despise, “It’s weird to know that even in his death, he still managed to keep me in his tight grasp.”

As I stared at the abandoned mango sticky rice on my hands, I felt Derek’s fingers gently tugging my red hair back behind my ear. Oddly enough, his touch lifted a bit of the heaviness that I had been carrying for years on top of my shoulders. For a moment, as I gazed into his compassionate chocolate eyes, I felt as if I could breathe again.

“Thank you for being here with me,” I told him sincerely, “I don’t know what I’d do with myself without you right now."

Derek flicked my nose playfully, a soft smile played on his lips. "I aim to please."

I chuckled in response and went back to look at the dessert on my hand, picking on it mindlessly as I pushed down the pain of the memory of Jonathan's touch all over my place and all over me. 

“Now that I’m right here," Derek began, getting my attention back to him, "I know exactly what to do. Something we can try,” Derek replied with a smirk; his eyes mischievous.

Oh Derek, I said to myself, my heart fluttered. I knew what he was doing; he was distracting me from the pain.

“One kiss,” Derek breathed, his eyes fleeted slowly to my lips. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach happily at the suggestion. He continued solemnly. “One kiss to rule them all, one kiss to find them, one kiss to bring them all; and in darkness bind them.”

It took all of me not to squeal–Derek had paid attention to my favorite movie that we watched! I covered my heated cheek with both my hands. Derek let out an easy laugh; obviously proud of himself for quoting Lady Galadriel from Lord of The Rings, right down to the T.

“Aw, Derek,” I sighed happily, my heart practically melted inside my chest, “You were listening.”

“Hell yeah I do, baby,” he replied with a handsome grin on his face.

“How could I say no to that?” my blush deepened, “You’ve hit me right on my soft spot. That is really sweet.”

“Trust me, baby,” he said with his lover voice as he took away the takeout box on my hand and put it on the coffee table next to his. He shifted, closing the gap between us. My heart hammered inside my chest when he took my chin between his fingers and tilted my head, “I have a lot more than that to offer.”

A promise, sealed with a kiss.

To say that Derek Morgan was a good kisser was a serious understatement. His kisses were charged with electricity that got my whole body tingling with want. I had never been kissed quite like that before. In no time, he got my senses all over the place. The mixture of his expensive aftershave and his Derek scent–heady, masculine and alluring– and the way his lips moving tenderly against mine made me feel lightheaded and bothered.

Derek’s lips pulled away from mine briefly, soundly and deliciously, but not for long. He tilted his head the opposite way, kissing me yet again from another angle as he cupped my neck with his hand, controlling the kiss. I happily followed his lead as he set the pace–it wasn’t like I could even think–not when he kissed me with such heat and passion. 

“Open, baby,” he nudged my lips with his; his voice husky with desire. I obediently did what he asked and parted my lips for him.

The moment the tip of his wet tongue touched mine, a mewl of pleasure escaped me. His tongue explored my mouth sensually, leaving me wanting for more with each stroke. He alternated between soft strokes, tasting slowly, to little thrusts of the tip of his tongue that felt just right–as if taunting me with the promise of what other part of his body could do exactly that movement. How he could bring me so much pleasure.

Desire pooled between my legs at his heady kisses. I felt his hold on me tightened before lifting my weight so that I was sitting on his lap. He broke the kiss momentarily, just to make sure not to disturb my injured leg with this new position before looking back back up into mine with desperation in his darkened eyes. My heart trembled at the sight–Derek Morgan was intoxicating.

I kissed him again with more fervor, feeling his big hands traveled up and down my back and my sides sensually. His lips and tongue moved with mine, druggingly. This time, I boldly explored the insides of his sweet mouth, tasting him. Derek let out a muffled guttural sound that sent heat straight to my core.

I didn’t know if I was able to ever stop kissing him. He was addictive. 

The sound of my phone ringing entered my ears. In the midst of our heated kiss, the instinct that FBI had instilled in me resurfaced: that with every ring of a call, a life could be on the line.

Reluctantly I broke our kiss, but Derek kept on pulling me down for more, making me smile.

“Derek…” I sighed between kisses.

He looked up at me with blackened eyes that was almost pleading. “Don’t leave me,” he murmured, his voice sultry, as if his words meant a lot more than a simple request not to end the kiss. “I ignore it.”

Derek continued his ministration on me, this time kissing my jaw, leaving trails of heat wherever his lips went.

“It could be something important,” I sighed breathlessly. Derek’s hold loosened as I maneuvered to reach for my phone on the coffee table. I was aware of how his hands caressed my sides lovingly, almost possessively. When I returned to my original position, snug in his protective embrace, he locked me in his arms again, this time opted to nuzzle my neck, leaving another yet of wet kisses on my now overly sensitive skin.

Through the shiver of pleasure that he inflicted on me, I fought to speak normally to whoever was on the phone. “Hello?”

“Ms. Dawson! Hello, this is Dr. Hopper from Reston Hospital Center,” said a man at the end of the line.

“Oh, hello Dr. Hopper. I remember you,” I replied, closing my eyes at the feeling of the tip of Derek’s tongue teasing my skin as he kissed my neck. My lips parted in pleasure. Then another kiss and a suckle right under my ear–instinctively I rubbed my thighs together in a futile attempt to smother the heat between my legs. 

It was a miracle I was able to sound somewhat normal, considering the chocolate Adonis that was currently seducing me mercilessly with his simmering touches. “What can I do for you?”

“I am calling regarding your blood test. We found something. When is the earliest you can come by to the hospital so that I can explain it more to you?”

“I thought you cleared me. The antibiotics worked, right?”

“I did. That was settled, you were free from infection when we released you from the hospital. But while we were studying your blood we found something else, so we did another series of tests, and that’s why I call. We waited to let you know until we were 100% sure.”

“Um, can’t you just tell me now?” I asked, anxiety crawling into my chest. Beneath me, I felt Derek began to cease his kisses, listening in to my conversation on the phone.

“This is something that I’d rather we talk in person.”

I paused, letting it sink in. I nodded, “Okay. I’ll see you soon, doctor.”

“Thank you, Ms. Dawson. I will see you later. Have a good day.”

With that, the call ended, and I felt a certain numbness slithered down my chest. A soft scoff tainted with disbelief left me. When I looked back to Derek, he was already looking up at me, lust still lingered in his eyes, but also with worry swimming in his chocolate depth.

“What was that about, Lizzy?” he asked, his thumb caressing my hips comfortingly.

But it wasn't enough to get rid of the sinking feeling I had in my chest. 

“I think that was God punishing me,” I told him, “They found something in my blood.”

***

[Author’s Note: DEREK MORGAN IS HAWT. Like/vote/comment if you agree. Any theories on Dawson’s situation? Shout out to AG Hutchinson in Wattpad for your fun comments and your support! Thank you all for reading and commenting, I love you all!]