When I’m sure I can form a coherent sentence I return to the family room. Nika sends me a knowing smile and asks, “Tell us about your photo shoot. Casey told me you’re Burton Board’s poster girl.”
“Yeah, it’s part of my sponsorship. I get free equipment and clothes. In return, I pose for their marketing poster that goes to board shops, and I attend various promo events. It’s a good deal for me.” I take a sip of my wine and suffer a flicker of regret when Derrick’s unique flavor is replaced.
Cleo lets out a sigh as she lies down by Derrick’s feet. Nika says, “I want to see the poster that gave you your nickname.”
Derrick asks, “Nickname?”
I snort. “It’s not very clever. Some of the guys at the local tune shop call me Poster Gretchen.”
His dark eyes simmer. Oh, no. Time to diffuse this before it explodes.
“Don’t go there. I get my picture taken, and then an art department turns me into an impossibly beautiful figure to sell product.”
He sits back and crosses his arms. “I don’t like you doing it any more than I liked it when Nika did. It explains why you’re so skinny. I should have known.”
Anger flickers on the edge of my vision, and before I can stop myself, I speak. “You don’t have a say in this. And my weight is never up for discussion. If you find it so unattractive, then maybe you should find a way to keep your hands off me.”
Energy surges in my muscles, and I can’t stay still. I get up and pace. Jake rises, too, and shadows me while Ollie and Cleo lift their heads to watch. I say, “If you’re the jealous type, we’re going to have a serious problem. So my likeness is on a bunch of posters. Deal with it.”
Derrick throws his hands up as he stands. “That’s not what bothers me. I hate to see you care what people think of you, and starving yourself because you think you’re fat.”
My anger dissipates. “Oh. I don’t really care what people think about me. And I don’t starve myself. I get cut.” I raise my arm and flex even though my bicep isn’t visible under the loose silk.
He rakes a hand through his hair. “So you’re okay with guys looking at you like you’re naked?”
“Some of them. Want to see my rock-hard abs?” I walk closer to him and his smile threatens to break loose. “I can’t help what people think when they see me any more than you can. In case you haven’t noticed, women fall all over themselves looking at you.” I drag a finger over the outline of his pecs.
Nika pipes in. “It’s true, Derrick. It gets old. Seriously.”
He sighs and asks me, “Are you going to eat tonight?”
I smile. “Hell yeah. You should’ve seen how much greasy pizza and beer I had the night after the shoot.” I step a little closer. His scent surrounds me, and the hint of mine mixed in intoxicates me. How is it my mood does a one-eighty so quickly around him?
He presses against me, and his hands land on my shoulders as I wrap my arms around his waist and gaze up at his beautifully chiseled face.
He asks, “Even dessert?”
I turn to his sister. “As long as Nika lets me have some.”
Derrick kisses the top of my head and says, “I’ll make sure of it.”
Nika says, “Okay, now that we’ve cleared that up, this fat girl wants dinner. Go turn on the grill, Derrick.”
He releases me and pokes Nika in the stomach. “Nope, not fat enough. I’ll get to work.” He winks at me.
I say, “You poke me with that finger and you may not live to tell the story.”
He leers at me, and throws a sideways glance at his sister as he walks to the kitchen. “If I poke you, it won’t be with my finger.”
Nika says, “Eewww, Derrick. You’re disgusting.” But she smiles, knowing he said it for her reaction.
He grabs the steaks from the refrigerator and calls the dogs. Once he’s outside, Nika says, “Okay, tell me all about the shoot now that the prude is gone.”
I giggle because prude is hardly the word I would use for the Derrick that was in the wine cellar. The deck is off the windowed area where the kitchen table is set up, and the back yard is illuminated with a motion-activated light. Brightness floods the yard, and I watch the muscles ripple along Derrick’s back when he throws a ball for the dogs.
I tell her about the shoot. When she tells me a funny story about a male model she worked with having trouble with his arousal, I share the Xander story.
The odor of roasting meat wafts in the door when Derrick enters to the two of us laughing so hard tears stream down Nika’s cheeks. He grins at us and asks, “What’s so funny?”
Nika tries to say something, but all she can do is crook her finger, which makes me laugh too hard to speak either.
Derrick shakes his head at us, and refills his wine glass. “Nika, when you recover, please start the broccoli.” He chuckles and goes back to the grill.
We walk to the kitchen and I say, “I don’t think I’ll be sharing this with Derrick.”
Nika nods as the cutting board lands on the counter with a thud. “Yeah, somehow I don’t think he would find it as funny as we do.” She snorts and breaks into laughter again.
I nudge her out of the way with my hip and take the knife from her hand. “I wish he wasn’t so hung up on the model thing.” I bring the blade down with a satisfying crack against the plastic cutting board.
Metal clangs as she rummages in a cabinet for a pot and lid. “I know. But it’s because of me. I have issues with people pleasing. I’m sure it’s because we lost our parents at such a young age.”
Dying to know the story, I figure this is my opening. “I’m so sorry Nika. How old were you?”
“Thirteen. My dad had a single-engine plane and they went down over the ocean.” Water splashes into the pot.
“That had to have been awful.” Tears fill my eyes as I remember my fear of losing my dad not so long ago.
“It was. We went to live with my aunt and uncle. They were nice enough to us, but I was horrible to them. So was Derrick. We were both mad and took our anger out on those that loved us enough to take us in. That’s how we ended up at Phillips Exeter Academy.”
The knife scrapes against the cutting board as I slide broccoli into the pan Nika holds for me. “Was it lonely?”
“Oh, no. It was the best thing they could have done for us. Kids from all over the world go there, and the classes are so hard you don’t have much time to get in trouble.” She clicks the burner on to high and picks up her wine glass.
“I’m glad you had each other.” The rich flavor of merlot lingers in my mouth from my sip of wine.
Nika smiles. “We’re kind of pathetic. When D went off to college in Boston, I did too.” Plates clatter as she sets them out on the counter.
“Where did you go?” I take the matches she hands me and move to the table to light the candles.
The match hisses with a flare of light and Nika says, “I went to Wellesley and Derrick went to Tufts.”
“Tufts?” That’s where Cooper went. I wonder if they knew each other.
Nika continues, “I partied hard and D studied.”
Leaning against the cool granite counter I ask, “So when did you start modeling?”
“A scout discovered me my freshman year.” Her face sobers. “I probably should have said no, but the idea that someone thought I was pretty enough to model captivated me. Nobody thought I was attractive in high school, and all I ever wanted was to have a boyfriend. I figured if I was a model, then I might get a date.”
“Seriously? I know you said that the other night, but I can’t believe you really didn’t have a boyfriend in high school.”
“In high school. I made up for it in college.” Nika winks at me, and we turn to the light clicking of nails on the wood floor as Derrick and the dogs make an entrance.
I move close to Nika, and in a low voice say, “So you’re a wild one. I like it.” I give her a light hip check as she removes the steaming broccoli pot from the burner.
She snorts. “You
have no idea.”
I grin, wondering if she likes it rough too. The thought sends an electric current through my body, and I glance at Derrick. He’s staring at me, and my core quivers in anticipation of later tonight.
I lick my lips seductively and say, “I can’t wait to sink my teeth into that steak.” Dropping my eyes to his crotch I think the bulge twitches a bit, and a satisfied grin covers my face. Letting things happen is working well for us.
Chapter 36
My stomach is full, but I eat the last bit of my potato skin. Drenched in butter and sour cream, the salty goodness makes me want to moan. Nika actually does.
Leaning back in her chair, she undoes the button on her jeans. “That steak was so good. And butter? Never again will I go a day without butter.”
I close my eyes and savor a mouthful of merlot. I’m on my fourth glass and pleasantly buzzed. “I don’t ever want to go a day without wine. I’m so happy right now.”
“Well you’re with the right guy; did you see all the wine he has?” Nika grunts as she reaches for her wine glass.
I giggle. “There was wine in that room?”
Nika smiles and holds up her hand. “Stop right there. I’m envisioning you two kissing and that’s all. Don’t ruin it for me.”
Derrick’s smoldering glare makes me cross my legs. I wish we could skip pie and the movie, and get to the real dessert. I ask, “Should we clean the kitchen and have pie later?”
Derrick answers, “No, let’s finish this bottle and talk for a while.” Liquid gurgles in my glass as he adds more. “I want to hear about the snowboard movie you were in.”
“There’s not much to tell. Two summers ago I went to Chile with a couple guys, and we rode crazy-steep terrain.” A tequila memory plays in my mind and I know that I’d better warn Derrick. “Oh, and if you ever watch it, there’s a bar scene where I give Kaleb a body shot.”
I lean forward and focus on Derrick’s face. “It looks way worse than it was. And the narrator makes it sound like I licked a lot more than his chest. I didn’t, and never have. Kaleb is, and always will be, just a friend.”
I’m not sure if it’s the wine or that I’ve stopped surprising Derrick because he just nods.
I say, “Want to hear about my new poster?”
He rolls his palm out to indicate yes, but doesn’t speak. “It’s going to look like a stop-motion picture of me on a board and jumping into the air. I start off completely dressed, and my clothes peel off me as I transform into something tastefully naked.”
Derrick snorts. “Tastefully naked?”
Okay, so I was trying to lighten the blow. “Well, I haven’t seen it yet, but it’s going to hang in board shops. It can’t be porn, and I was never completely naked anyway.”
Nika steps in. “D, they dress the model in nude-colored underwear.” I send her a mental thank you for not mentioning the top is like pasties.
He nods and his tongue is working as if he’s choking down words. I know I should tell him about the possibility of one with me pressed against Cooper, but because it’s not a sure thing, I think I’ll keep quiet for now.
“So, now that you know all my secrets, can I ask you about one of yours?”
“Sure.” He leans back and crosses his arms.
“How did you get so much money?”
“Family. Our grandfather was in oil, and my father sold everything when we were young. He created nice trust funds for me and Dannika and lived a philanthropic lifestyle.”
“So you’ve always had it.”
Nika answers, “Yeah, but my parents didn’t want us to be spoiled brats, so we lived a pretty normal childhood. Until. Well, you know.”
“That explains why you both are so ambitious. Your parents must have been great people.”
Nika’s eyes glisten in the candlelight. “They were.” I reach over and take her hand and she squeezes tight.
Derrick clears his throat. “Pie?”
Nika stands. “I’ll get it.” She winks at me. “Derrick cuts the pieces way too small.”
I smile and think of Casey. No wonder she and Nika have so much fun together.
I eat a piece for Derrick’s sake. Just a bit over comfortably full, I’m grateful I started off with jeans loose enough to give me plenty of room for my bloated stomach.
After dessert, Derrick takes the dogs out while Nika and I clean the kitchen. The beep from the dishwasher sounds as I turn it on and hear the faintest whirl as it starts. “I think Derrick has fallen in love with the dogs.”
“He totally has. He even talks to them like they’re people.”
“He does?” Water runs as I rinse out the empty wine bottles.
She grins. “Yup, and the other day I caught him holding Cleo in his lap.” Nika is removing the leftover pie from my plate and putting it in a plastic container.
“Aw, that’s cute.” I point the knife I dried at the pie. “Casey loves that with a cup of coffee for breakfast.”
“My plan exactly. Should I make coffee for the movie?”
“I’m so full I don’t think I could drink it. I think I’ll just have the rest of my wine.” Our three glasses are still on the table, and all are at least half full.
“Okay, come on up with me.” Nika grabs her glass and blows out the candles. The smell of burnt wax makes me think of the Bike Shop, and I long to get on the snow. I follow with Derrick’s and mine.
She brings me down the hall to a large room that must be over the garage. Plush chocolate-brown carpet muffles our footsteps as we enter from the hardwood floors of the hall. Three black leather couches form a semi-circle sitting area facing the largest flat screen I’ve ever seen.
Nika plops on a couch with a whoosh, and sets her glass down on one of the three pale wood side tables. “Have you ever seen Breakfast at Tiffany’s?”
“No.”
“I love this movie. Derrick will suffer through with us, but I think you’ll like it. Audrey Hepburn was so beautiful.”
I set the glasses down on the table between the two empty couches and remove my shoes. I sit on the middle couch, sure a dog or two will climb up to be with Nika. The leather is soft and heats up instantly to my body temperature and I hope Derrick plans to sit next to me.
Nika cues up the movie, and it’s ready when the sound of Derrick and his entourage’s footsteps reach our ears. Nika pats the couch and Ollie and Jake jump up next to her. Cleo watches Derrick to see where he’ll sit.
He asks me, “Is there room for me and Cleo on your couch?”
“Certainly.” I slide over, and he sits next to me. Drawn to his essence, I let it warm me to my core. He wraps his arm around my shoulder and I cuddle against him. Cleo hops up on his other side and leans into him too.
“Looks like I have competition.”
Derrick nuzzles my hair and whispers, “I’m happy to pet you both.”
Delicious twinges make my stomach flex when he glides a hand down my arm. The movie starts, and I do my best to watch. But as it progresses, my thoughts are focused on the body next to me.
Specifically, Derrick’s hand. He teases me by stroking the skin under my shirt. His caress coaxes my desire, and it bubbles at the surface. While he doesn’t quite make it to my breasts, my nipples are pebbled, and I’m quivering with need.
Near the end of the movie, I’m fighting to control my urge to squirm, and the crotch of my jeans is damp. I could probably come from this, and it’s driving me wild.
When the credits roll, Derrick whispers in my ear, “I thought that would never end. I’ve been imagining the things I’m going to do to you for what feels like hours.”
I glance over at Nika, and she’s holding a tissue. I smile. “Cat?”
She sniffs, “Yes, Cat, and more.” She stands and claps once for the dogs. “C’mon, beasts. Time for bed.” She scans my disheveled appearance and says, “Don’t get too wild, you two. I can’t usually hear much at my end of the hall, but I don’t think we ever tested screaming.”
Nika grimaces. “Eewww! So not the visual I want. Good night.” Derrick chuckles as she walks down the hall.
When he hears her door shut, he presses me down on the couch and lifts my hands above my head. Crouched over me he says, “Gagged? How would you feel if I gagged your pretty little mouth?”
I shake my head. “That wouldn’t work for me. I’d feel like I was being strangled.” I move my eyes up to where he’s holding my wrists. “But this is turning me on.”
“So you’d like being tied up? Interesting. Just your hands, or feet too?” Putting both wrists in one hand, he uses the other to undo the belt over my blouse. It lands on the floor with a soft thud, and he grazes my belly with his fingernails on his way up to my breasts. I arch up and a small noise crosses my lips.
Derrick stops and speaks in a husky voice. “Let’s move this to my room.”
My voice is shaky. “Good idea.” I get up, grab my belt and shoes, and sprint down the hall.
Chapter 37
Derrick catches up to me at his room and throws me over his shoulder. We enter; he locks the door and sets me down. “Strip for me.”
“Do you mean like a dancing kind of strip, or something more efficient?” I’m hoping for the later.
He rakes my body with his smoldering gaze. “Efficient.”
My silk shirt is slippery under my fingers as I begin to unbutton my blouse. “You too.”
His voice rumbles. “With pleasure.” A powerful arm reaches behind his head and he does that one-handed T-shirt removal thing. I gasp.
“Do you have any idea how sexy that move is?” Whisper soft fabric slides off my arms and to the floor.
I hear the grind of his zipper as he says, “Do you have any idea how sexy you are when you’re removing any bit of clothing?”
I raise my eyebrows at him and exaggerate the wiggle out of my jeans.
Derrick’s pants fall to the floor, and he gives me his own show as he rotates his hips and removes his boxer briefs. It makes me giggle.
“I’m not going to tie you up right now, but I want you to keep your hands by your sides. No touching, okay?”
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