Page 64 of Derek
“I thought you wanted–” I wrinkle my nose and shake my head before giving him my best fake smile.
“I’m tired, and the food isn’t that good.”
Once we are in his Yukon and on the road, I let out a breath. “Are you alright?” I ask softly, unsure of where he is mentally. He looked so panicked back there.
“I’m fine.” He mutters. Perfect, we are back to this. I’m about to resign myself to staring out the dark window when he looks over at me. “Are you alright?”
I give him my best smile. “Yeah.” I manage out, though I’m really not. Liam flirting with other women when I was heading to him humiliated me, and I really thought I looked pretty, but Derek’s words earlier still played in my mind. Then I couldn’t get him to relax and talk with me. I thought about swimming and stargazing, the ice cream and the truck, he was so open talking to me then, but now, he just seems scared.
Derek pulls up into his driveway and parks the vehicle. “Don’t lie to me Darlin’. If you don’t want to talk about it, say that, but don’t lie.”
“H-how do you know I’m lying?” I furrow my brows.
“Besides the fact that you never give a one-word answer? For anything.” He gives me a small smirk that sends butterflies to my belly. “Your dimples don’t show when you’re upset or trying to appease others.” I blink slowly.
“My… dimples?” He nods.
“It’s how I know whether you’re really happy or not.” My lip wobbles, and I turn to look away, unsure how to react to this.
“Well,” I breathe out. “That’s not fair. You know how to tell if I’m happy, but I don’t know how to tell if you are.”
Derek huffs out a laugh. “Baby girl, that’s easy. I’m happy when I’m around you, and when you aren’t there, I’m not.” My mouth falls open, and I shake my head slowly.
“Don’t,” I hear the crack in my voice. “Don’t say that when all you want is–”
“You.” He finishes, and a literal squeak leaves my mouth, causing him to chuckle. “Indy, I want you, I do. I don’t deserve you… at all, but I want you.”
“What about your rules? What about mine? What about how you acted like you wanted to run away at the bar?” He shrugs as his fingers play with the tips of my hair.
“I don’t know. Everything in my head is screaming not to let you in. But even as it does, I know you’ve already planted a flag and set up a base camp.” I laugh at his exasperated tone. “And as for your rules, I can’t say anything about those Darlin’. You’re an adult, and you make your own decisions. Just know these two things if you decide to adhere to your rules. First, you will have to come up with a better excuse than being a burden because you aren’t one, and I will start flicking you in the head if need be to rid you of those asinine thoughts. And second, you will not be allowed to see other men.”
I blink in confusion. “That sounds wrong. Why couldn’t I see other men if we aren’t really together?” He shrugs nonchalantly.
“I mean, you can try, but I will, without a doubt, beat the fucking hell out of each and every one of them.” I can’t help the laugh that leaves me as I stare at him.
“And what about how you were acting at the bar? You didn’t act like someone that wanted to be around me.” His face falls, and he stares at me, eyes wide.
“I didn’t want to be in that bar. It was packed and loud, and the table was sticky, and there was a group of guys that kept looking at you, and it made me want to rip their throats out.” He looks away, and my heart aches from the look on his face. I know what he’s thinking about. He’s thinking about his ex and how she didn’t think he showed his feelings enough.
“So we don’t go to gross sticky bars.” I shrug while giving him a smile. “I am way more of a take-out and tv type of girl, anyway.” I giggle as he visibly relaxes.
“So, my rules,” I say, turning in my seat to face him better. He nods, giving me his full attention. “No long-term commitments. I don’t want you declaring your love for me next week.”
“Well shit, there goes my next date idea.” He smirks, and I laugh while shoving him.
“I’m serious! No deep confessions of love! No pretty pebbles!”
“Indy, baby girl, we’re not penguins. You gotta stop with the pebbles.”
“Pfft… Trust me, I know. If we were penguins, I would already have my pebble.” I pout, only partially serious.
“If we were penguins, your ass would’ve gotten eaten because you tried to befriend a fucking sea lion.” I mull over his theory.
“Yeah, you’re probably right. Alright, no pebbles, but I do require furniture.” His face falls.
“Well, this has been nice.” He states as he hops out of the vehicle. I laugh and follow.
“Come on, Daddy!” I whine as I bounce next to him, watching his face twist at the name.
