Page 6 of Derek

A well-done kiss, if I do say so myself.

“Good morning, babygirl. Would you like coffee or tea with your breakfast?”

“Coffee, please.”

“Regular, espresso, cappuccino, café latte, macchiato or mochaccino?” he asked, gesturing to a professional coffee machine that wouldn’t have been out of place in her cafe.

“What? No Italian blend?” she teased.

“I’m not from Italy; I’m Greek.” He put his hand to his chest and pretended he was insulted. She threw back her head and laughed.

Damn.

He loved her no-holds-barred response with tears running down her face and her whole body shaking.

The sight of her bouncy breasts robbed him of breath and made it impossible to join in with her laughter. Now all his blood was rushing to his stiffening, twitching cock. He was going to be painfully hard during breakfast if he kept staring at her chest.

Derek waited for her to relax and grinned as she wiped away her tears with the sleeves of his bathrobe. Her gesture was sweet and innocent, drawing a response from him, unbidden—oh, babygirl, let me take care of you.

He cocked his head and gave her an expectant look.

She raised a questioning eyebrow, before remembering his question earlier. “I’d love a cappuccino, please.”

The smell of burning pancakes had him cursing under his breath as he turned back to the stove and pulled the griddle offthe burner. He started scraping the remnants into the trash and hoped he could get it clean enough to keep using it.

“Sit down while I make the coffee and more pancakes,” he said, pouring more batter on the griddle. “I hope you like pancakes?” he asked as he started the machine to grind the coffee beans.

“I love all food,” she said, and the derisive manner she spoke had him spinning back to her.

“Can you explain why you said it in that tone?” Derek made sure to let his disapproval ring through his words. It should be a fair warning that she was heading to dangerous territory, but she didn’t seem to catch on to it.

Sonja shrugged. “It’s not like it’s a secret that I enjoy eating.” She looked down her body. She noticed the gaping bathrobe, frowned, and gripped the lapels to tuck it over her breasts.

“Leave it like it is.”

He growled the words, and she froze.

“I happen to like your body just like it is, baby. You have a spankable ass, thighs a man can hold on to while fucking you, and the most magnificent breasts I’ve ever seen.”

She snorted, and he glared at her.

“You don’t agree?” he asked in a deceptively soft voice.

Did she realize she was adding up punishments as she kept putting herself down?

“Of course not. I’ve heard the comments, and I’ve seen the looks. Haven’t you ever heard of fat-shaming?” Sonja answered, evidently unaware of his mood.

Derek closed his eyes to control his temper. He was a calm person ninety percent of the time, but at moments like this, his Mediterranean temperament appeared. His grandfather had been just like that, going berserk if someone wasn’t respectful to his wife and family. Sonja might not be his yet, but he sure as hell felt possessive and protective of her—even against herself.

“Babygirl, this is the moment when you accept my compliment and stop talking down to yourself or you find out how spankable I think your ass is.”

Sonja straightened and glared back at him. “You wouldn’t.” She sounded less confident than her demeanor suggested.

“Try me,” he answered before turning back to the stove and flipping the pancakes just in time.

CHAPTER FIVE

Sonja relaxed back in her chair, studying the rippling muscles under his tight T-shirt as he plated the pancakes and prepared the coffee. Dressed casually like this, or more formally, as he’d been the previous night at the club, the man oozed control and strength, which did all kinds of funny things to her insides. His authoritative tone turned her on, and she hoped she wouldn’t leave a wet spot on the chair.

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