Page 40 of Burn Me Down

Rebecca

Every part of my body ached, and it felt incredible. I reached for Derek, but the other side of the bed was cool, and I sighed. Pushing myself up, I looked around the room, but there was no sign of him.

My lip curled up as images of last night and early this morning played in my mind. No one else had ever made me feel like this. Not only sexually satisfied, but my heart soared. If I had a half decent voice I’d be like Cinderella when she sang her morning song and danced with the little birds and mice, except for the fact that it hurt to sit up.

Swinging my legs over the side of the bed, I knew this wasn’t going to get easier and sucked in a deep breath to brace against the lactic acid and the sensitivity between my legs. Ten fucking piercings. I shivered at the memory of how they felt, sliding into me and rubbing in a way that made me shudder in the best way possible. Derek had to be part horse. That was all there was to it. I still couldn’t believe he’d been a virgin, but he was mine now. I wasn’t letting him get away.

I winced as I limped for the bathroom and decided that a hot shower was on the menu. Running the water, I waited until it was good and steamy before stepping under the spray. As I lathered soap and rubbed it all over my body, I went over everything Derek had told me. Parts of his past were so traumatizing that I’d broken down in tears for him and Asher. I had a new mission to get them to speak again. Vi would hate it, but there was so much old pain that the three of them needed to sit down and sort the fuck out so everyone could move on. I was determined to make that happen.

When I emerged from the shower, I felt like I could take on the world. It would probably freak Derek out, but I had ideas and plans. Starting with getting out of this room and seeing where the heck I was. That would be the next step in earning his trust, and I wanted him to trust me. No, I needed him to see me differently than everyone else in his life who had treated him like shit.

“Good morning,” Derek said, making me jump as I stepped out of the small bathroom, twisting my hair in a towel.

“Good morning to you,” I said, smiling as I looked up, and he wrapped me in a hug. He buried his head in the crook of my neck and held me like I might disappear. Even that simple act melted my heart all over again.

I knew he was still dangerous. Derek had deeply rooted trauma that needed to be handled with care, but my heart was trying to jump all in with both feet even as I struggled to rein in my emotions.

“You always smell so good. Why do you smell like baked cookies? You make me want to lay you down and eat you up all over again.”

I laughed and leaned back to look at his face. His eyes could still cut your soul with a single look, but he seemed different. Some of the shadows around his eyes were gone. There was a warmth to him that had been concealed before.

“I fully appreciate your endurance and appetite, but I may need a few hours to recover before we attempt round eight hundred,” I teased, and his cheeks pinked as a shy smile turned his mouth up.

“Is that a new goal? I do like a challenge,” he said, and I laughed.

“No, not unless you really do want to kill me,” I said jokingly, but Derek’s smile fell.

“I’ll never hurt you.” He cupped my cheek. “To keep you safe, I will burn the world down until there is nothing but smoldering ash.” He rested his forehead against mine. “I promise I will protect you with my dying breath,” he growled, and my body flushed hot all over.

The sweetness I’d seen in his eyes moments ago was gone, replaced with a look that made me shiver. There was no doubt in my mind that he meant every word, and what worried me was that I was pretty sure he could do it if he set his mind to it.

I placed my hand over his. “I know,” I said, turning my head enough to kiss his palm. “I won’t joke about it again.”

“No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gotten so upset. I knew it was a joke.”

“It’s okay, I promise.” I nodded at the table. “You brought breakfast? Or, I guess, lunch at this time of day.” His sexy smile returned with the change of topic.

“Yeah, I made blueberry banana pancakes with pecans since I know they’re your fav. Oh, and there is bacon and whipped cream. Sorry, I only had canned,” he said, pulling he canister from the back of his jean’s pocket.

Laughing, I stole it from his hand and squirted some on my tongue. Derek bent down and opened his mouth, and I gave him some before pushing him down on the chair. Smirking, I drew a line along his face and licked it off.

Derek laughed and pulled me down on his lap. “I don’t know what to do or expect from you. I love it,” he said, grabbing my hand with the can. He made me put a dab on my bottom lip. “You’re amazing.” He dropped his lips to mine, his tongue cleaning off the whipped cream, and as impossible as it should be, my body responded. Desire swirled in my gut as Derek deepened the kiss.

“If we don’t eat the food, I’m afraid I’ll drag you back to the bed,” he said.

“Mmm, that is very tempting, but I better wait, or I won’t walk right for days,” I teased, shifting off his lap to sit beside him. The food smelled incredible, and I didn’t realize how hungry I was until the first bite. “These are amazing,” I said and moaned. Derek picked at his food but didn’t eat much. “You okay?”

“I’m better than okay.”

“Then why aren’t you eating?”

He looked down at his plate as if he’d forgotten it was in front of him. “Just a lot on my mind.”

“Is Asher one of those things?” Derek grumbled and leaned back in his chair. “I’ll take that as a yes.” I ate a few more bites of food as I formulated my plan. “I want the four of us to have dinner. You, me, Asher, and Vi.”

“What? You do know they are trying to put me in jail, and for good reason. I almost killed them both,” he said and stood up. I expected him to storm out, but instead, he began to pace, much like I’d done the day before.

“Yes, I know, and I’m not justifying what you did. It scares me how close you came to taking my best friend from me.” Derek paused, his eyes guarded as he stared at me.