Ambivalence

6

Derek twisted the knob that stopped water from pouring and he stepped out of the shower, wrapping one of her towels around his waist. The first thing that caught his attention was the aroma of some concoction of Meredith's that was coating his nostrils.

When he walked out of her bedroom still dressed in nothing but the cotton towel, he spotted her standing near the stove stirring a wooden spoon into a saucepan.

Meredith was so wrapped up in making her pasta sauce perfection that she didn't notice his presence until he was standing directly behind her with his hands on her waist. "What are you doing?" she asked and her breathing started to quicken as Derek smoothed his hands up and down her hips.

"I'm watching you cook,'' he murmured with his chin resting on her shoulder. Meredith grasped her spoon tighter when she leaned back against his chest to find that he wasn't wearing a shirt.

"Didn't I ban you from the kitchen after that fiasco that cost thousands of dollars to repair?" Meredith reminded him of the time he attempted to make her a grilled cheese when she had the flu; which only led to her having to get up and help him put out the fire that he started.

"That was years ago," he left one hand firmly grasping her hip and let the other slide under her shirt to roam her stomach. "I've improved since then." His voice was low against her ear and it made her shiver. Meredith bit her lip involuntarily and continued stirring her flavorful sauce.

"Have you?" she contained the sounds that were begging to emit from her lips and cleared her throat. "Can anything that you make taste this good?" she turned her head to the side and took a spoonful of her boiling marinara sauce, bringing it to his lips.

Derek moaned as he tasted one of his favorite dishes that she somehow managed to remember after all these years. "I don't think so," he admitted. "But my grilled cheese recipe has gotten a whole lot better,'' he nodded and returned to his previous position with his chin rested against her shoulder.

"If I remember correctly you made me two of them and only managed to burn the second one," Meredith sighed as his lips hovered over her ear enough for her to feel his breath against her skin. Her heavy breathing combated with her ability to speak at a normal speed. "The first one wasn't that bad...but then again I was sick so I'm not sure my tastebuds were working to their fullest abilities."

"Well are they working now?" The lust in Derek's voice was evident as he asked her a question that made her turn her head in confusion.

That question was answered when his hand covered hers and he grabbed the wooden spoon, holding it in his hand and scooping up a spoonful of sauce for her to taste. Meredith's eyes shut and she lolled her head back as the sensations of the sauce on her tongue and Derek's mouth on her neck took over her. Her shaky hands had trouble retrieving the spoon when he handed it to her and Derek chuckled into the crook of her neck before kissing it again.

Meredith returned the favor and gave him another spoonful of the marinara, giggling when it dripped down his lip. All noble thoughts left her mind and she turned her body enough to trace her tongue against his bottom lip and lick the sauce that didn't make it in his mouth. His hand tangled in her hair and the other held her waist firmly as he opened his mouth, allowing her tongue to make its presence known. Just as he began to react to the new limits she was allowing them to cross, Meredith's apartment intercom buzzed and Derek's mother's voice was blaring through the speakers in hopes of finding out the code to her building.

After repeating the passcode multiple times when Carolyn failed to hear her, Meredith shifted out of his embrace and turned off the stove. "Go put some pants on, your parents will be here soon and I'm not sure seeing you naked was on their list of catching up activities," she ordered. Derek groaned in retaliation but followed her instructions and let go of his hold on her waist. She observed his toned back as he walked towards her bedroom, her eyes shifting lower onto the area covered by her towel.