4 comments/ 42388 views/ 16 favorites Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 01 By: Goldeniangel Author's Note: This story began as a reader's request, and I'm grateful for the detail that they asked for which has allowed me to begin creating a truly interesting story (to me at least). However, this is going to be an ongoing story and is a little slow to start, so if you're looking for a quickie story please check out one of my other offerings (trust me, I have plenty ;). This particular chapter does not have any sex in it, but is laying the foundation for what, I believe will be, a very sexy and fulfilling story. Enjoy! ********** Sarah Brown stood at the graveside of her husband of the past fourteen years, wondering why she wasn't crying harder as the pastor wrapped up the words he was saying over the hole where Martin would soon be buried. They'd been together since early college. He'd been the fifth boy she'd ever kissed, the third to get to second base with her, and the first that she'd ever made love with. And she would miss him, she knew, but she'd also always known that she was marrying her friend. Not her one great love. Because Sarah had never felt anything like great love, if such a thing even existed. So she wept over her husband's grave, feeling almost as guilty as she did grief, because she felt like she should be much more miserable at the loss of a spouse. No one standing at the graveside, none of her husband's employees or his business partner Vincent saw anything out of place, however. Vincent even put his arm around her, soothing her with soft meaningless words and rubbing her shoulder with his hand. But Sarah didn't lean into him. She wasn't going to put up a fuss, because right now she couldn't bring herself to care, but she'd never liked Vincent. Not since he tried to put the moves on her, at the Christmas party two years ago. Just because Martin's interest in her sexually had been long gone, she'd resented Vincent using his insider knowledge to try and take advantage of her. At thirty eight years old and already a widow, Sarah considered her romantic life pretty much over. Not that she'd had much of a romantic life before this. She had loved Martin, she truly had, and cared deeply for him as a person. They'd enjoyed a life of common interests in movies and museums, art and Redskins football. But there hadn't been a lot of spark between them, and the older they'd gotten the more their sex life had suffered. It didn't help that Martin had been well... quick on the draw, was the nice way of saying it. Now Sarah sobbed even harder, wondering why she was thinking all these negative things about their life together, now that he was dead. It just seemed unfair that her life was over already, and suddenly the knowledge of her loss slammed into her even harder, and she let Vincent draw her into his shoulder, not caring who she sobbed against. She lay her auburn head against him and cried her heart out for the loss of her best friend, the man who had known her hopes and dreams and who was supposed to keep her company as they grew old together. They'd never had children, Martin had a low sperm count and had refused to adopt or try any kind of "unnatural" interference. He'd left her all alone. And she would miss him. Terribly. What a waste. If only he'd listened to her when she'd tried to get him to stop smoking and eating so badly. Owning a restaurant didn't mean that you should eat every single fried item on the menu on a constant basis. Dead at forty five. Was it awful that her words of warning kept echoing in her head? She was so angry at him for not taking better care of himself, for not letting her take better care of him and fervently wished that he was actually there for her to yell at. **** By the time everyone returned to Sarah's house she was seriously wondering why she'd invited everyone over anyway because now all she wanted to do was curl up and have some space and time to herself. She felt completely drained. "Here, let me take care of that," Angela said, one of the waitresses from Martin's restaurant, Polenta. Sarah gratefully relinquished the plate of assorted fruits and cheeses to the younger woman, a sweet-faced twenty two year old who seemed to have taken charge of the food service today. That was more than fine with Sarah. Angela handed the plate off to another server and gave a few more orders to the staff that was there and then turned back to Sarah, compassion brimming in her warm brown eyes. "Go sit down Sarah, you have enough to deal with today. Food's our thing, we'll handle it." Normally Sarah would have protested, hosting the party was her job after all, but today she just felt gratitude for the competence and loyalty of Martin's staff. Well, everyone except Vincent, whom she saw was sitting in a corner when she walked into the living room, nursing some kind of drink. Probably straight alcohol with maybe a little ice knowing him. She grimaced, wishing that she hadn't fallen apart all over his shoulder. It hadn't taken him longer than a walk to her car for him to try and kiss her - 'for comfort' he'd said. Asshole was lucky she hadn't kneed him in the balls. Unfortunately his eyes lit up as soon as he saw her. She had to admit that he wasn't exactly unattractive physically, with his silvering blonde hair and light blue eyes, and his body was mostly fit with just a bit of a potbelly, but she'd always thought there was something slimy about him. But he and Martin had been best buddies for years so she'd tolerated his presence. Now she wouldn't have to anymore, at least outside of the restaurant. "Sarah, come sit down with us." She turned, recognizing her best friend Patricia's voice. Gratefully she turned and headed over to the couch where Patricia was sitting in a circle with her husband Lloyd and a few more of the restaurant's staff. One of the best things about Martin's restaurant being owned by him and Vincent, although Martin had the controlling share, and being a small family restaurant rather than a chain, was that the staff truly was like family. Even though Sarah had never had anything to do with running the business, she knew all of them and they knew her. Most of her friends were from there, the main exception being Patricia, whom she'd known since college. But they'd all celebrated at enough holiday parties together, and Patricia came with her to Polenta's often enough that she was also welcomed as part of the family. Only Vincent ever stayed on the outside, and that was because he insisted on maintaining a distance between management and staff. That was something he and Martin had had different views on, thank goodness. Sarah was a naturally friendly person and it would have hurt her to not be able to make friends with people that she'd known for years. Settling herself between Patricia and Polenta's long-time bartender, Q, Sarah kicked off her shoes and let herself slump back into the couch before sitting back up straight again. "What's wrong honey," Q asked, his southern drawl thick as he set his hand down on her dress, keeping her in place. "I meant to get a drink before sitting down and forgot," Sarah said, readying herself to get back up again. "No, you stay here, I'll get it." And Q was up and moving before she could even say anything. So she let him. It wasn't like Q didn't know her preferences. The 33 year old black man had been working for Martin for the past twelve years. Even though he'd gotten the job originally just to get him through college, he still played bartender two nights a week just to keep making extra money, and because - as he said, that's where all his friends and family were. Well that was true for everyone sitting in this circle. Patricia had met Lloyd when he'd become the kitchen manager for Polenta five years ago. The avowed bachelor had spent weeks harassing the cooks for special dishes that he could personally bring out to the pretty brunette and the owner's wife. Fortunately Cara, the head chef, thought that Lloyd was perfect for her good friend Patricia and had catered to him. Normally she was a little spit fire of an Italian and wouldn't have put up with anyone interfering with the flow of her kitchen... but for a man wooing Patricia with such fervor? The roly poly little black haired woman had eagerly helped. And plotted with Sarah throughout the entire courtship. With Lloyed, Patricia, Sarah and Q on the couch, they were facing Cara, her boyfriend Christian and two of the long-time servers, Gloria and Andrew. Gloria was a true redhead, not like Sarah's own dark auburn hair, with short curls that were always tucked back into a pony-tail. She was 25 and spent most of her time mothering the rest of the staff, whether they were older or younger than her. That was just how she'd been, ever since she started working as a hostess at the age of 15. Dressed in black skirt and blouse, she was looking Sarah over as if trying to decide whether or not Sarah should be tucked into bed to sleep or allowed to stay up with the grown-ups. "You're handling everything beautifully," Andrew said, catching Sarah's attention. "Take a load off for now and let us serve you. It is what we do after all." He winked at her flamboyantly. But then again, Andrew did everything flamboyantly. He'd been working for Polenta for about two years and by now everyone was used to his flirtatious antics and outrageous statements. Slender with creamy cocoa skin and dark brown hair, he was one of two gay men working at the restaurant, the other was the pantry chef named Brian. Unlike Andrew, Brian didn't do the flamboyant effeminate thing, but it suited Andrew down to his wingtip shoes. You never had to wonder if it was an act, it was just wonderfully, effortlessly him. "Have you had anything to eat?" asked Gloria. Even though she was thirteen years younger than Sarah and technically now her employee that never stopped the mothering. Sarah actually managed to crack a smile, touched by both of them. "Thanks, I'm fine, I'm not sure I could manage anything to eat right now. Thank you," she said, directing her second statement of thanks to Q as he returned handing her a glass with diluted looking diet coke in it. Even before she took a sip she could smell the raspberry vodka that he'd mixed with the diet coke. Her favorite drink, although a little heavier on the vodka than he usually made it for her. On the other hand it's not like she was going to be driving anywhere and she could certainly use it. Somehow the evening ended up almost being like a party, everyone eventually joining the circle that Sarah was sitting in - even Vincent lingered on the outskirts - and telling stories about Martin. They laughed, cried a little more, and talked well past the point when Sarah had originally planned to have people over. And, of course, as people started leaving and Sarah stood to try and clean up, Gloria hustled her protesting from the room and sent her to bed like a child, stating that she and Angela had things well in hand. Which was true. "Are you sure you want to be alone tonight Sarah?" Patricia had asked the same question earlier, before she and Lloyd had gone home to feed and walk their dog, but coming from Vincent the question just sounded smarmy. Sarah stiffened her spine and controlled her disgust. Maybe he hadn't realized the way his tone of voice sounded. Or maybe he'd just been hitting the scotch too hard. Yes she wanted to be alone, and even if she hadn't, she wouldn't want Vincent to be the one staying over. Planting her social smile firmly on her face she turned to face him square on. "Yes, quite alone, thank you Vincent. I know Martin would have appreciated you looking after me." The name of his dead best friend made Vincent wince a little. The expression in his eyes changed from predatory to a little lost and she almost felt sorry for him. That pity and because she knew Martin would have wanted her to look after his friend prompted her next question. "Are you alright to drive? Do you need a taxi?" Immediately she wished she hadn't asked as the predatory look returned to his face. "I'm not sure I should drive... or that you should be alone." The innuendo in his voice made her sick and she sharpened her tone. "You've had too much to drink Vincent, but you can't stay here. I need some peace and quiet." "Come on Vincent." The new voice to the conversation made both of them turn, and Sarah almost wept with relief when she saw Cara. God bless her. No nonsense, fifty years old and a force of nature. Most chefs were like that, the good ones anyway. Her boyfriend Christian stood with her, a distinguished looking older gentleman who was always very quiet but polite, and anyone sitting next to him for any length of time knew what a fantastic sense of humor he had, but he only made jokes under his breath. "We'll take you home." Even Vincent didn't argue with Cara. Resuming his normal oily charm, he smiled and made a little bow at Sarah. "Good night then, sleep well." "Good night," she said succinctly. And then turned a more natural smile to Cara. "Good night Cara." "Take care," said the chef. Her eyes were sympathetic. "We'll see you at the restaurant tomorrow for the meeting?" Ah yes. One thing after another. The restaurant still went on and according to Martin's will she was the sole beneficiary of his controlling interest in it. Which meant that she had to go. Well, at least they'd given her until after the funeral to get herself together. Sarah nodded, suddenly feeling incredibly weary, before heading up the stairs. ****** Vincent cornered her the next day before the meeting, almost as soon as she walked through the back entrance into the kitchen. He wanted to buy Martin's share of course, and at first Sarah just felt relief... but could she really just hand the entire business over to him? Even though Martin had been friends with Vincent for years, he'd always been careful to maintain controlling interest and she'd never asked why. Never though she would need to know. Now it felt like a grotesque oversight on her part. But how would she know that Martin would have a heart attack so young, or that he'd leave it to her? Why had he left it to her? Because this was where all her friends were of course, the family that he'd never been able to give her. Standing in the middle of the kitchen with its stainless steel equipment, she sighed. Normally this area was bustling with activity and smelled of garlic, oregano and tomato sauce, but at 9am there was no one and no delicious aromas in the air yet. The prep cooks were down in the prep kitchen, rolling out pasta and dough for the lunch shift, slicing vegetables and putting together mirepoix for stock. Although Vincent had assured her that she'd always be welcome here, she couldn't just hand over the entire company to him without knowing more about him... and she truly didn't want to get to know him better. Maybe she could hire a private investigator. People still did that, right? There had to be someone making a living off of that. She'd always loved Dick Tracey growing up. Maybe she could get her own private dick. Sarah giggled and then sobered. Should she be making sexual jokes so close to her husband's death? Not that they'd had much of a sex life for the past few years. If she had to give their sex life a movie title it would have been Gone With the Wind. But sex had never been a big thing for her anyway. At this point in her life, Sarah knew that she was just one of those unfortunate women destined to go through life without an orgasm. Playing with herself was just icky. And now there was no way she was getting back out in the dating world. Ugh. Definitely too soon to think about that. Although Sarah was aware that she was worried more about what people would think than anything else. She and Martin had been best friends, sure, but they'd never had a lot of sexual chemistry. Most of their marriage it didn't feel like she had a husband, at least not the way most people talked about having a husband. It felt like having a roommate that she had a lot in common with and occasionally held hands with or kissed. Sometimes she wished there was more... her romances always made her wistful, wanting more... but that just made her feel silly and out of touch. They were books after all, real life didn't work like that. She should just be happy that she'd had a husband who cared about her, supported her, and was faithful to her. So they didn't have kids. Or a lot of chemistry. At least she'd spent the best of her years with a man who, in everything but romance and sex, made her content. That sounded so bland. Sarah made a face at herself. Okay, she'd be lying if she didn't admit that she'd thought about leaving him. More than once. Thinking that there must be something better out there. But she'd given up on those fantasies three years ago when she'd turned thirty-five. Who knows. Maybe thirty eight wasn't that old. But she felt old. Old and bitter and cranky. Sighing, Sarah went into the manager's meeting. ***** "Vincent offered to buy Martin's share," she said to Patricia later over lunch. Not at Polenta. She'd wanted to talk to her friend about the morning and she couldn't do that if they were surrounded by the staff, who would all be shamelessly eavesdropping. "Seriously?" Patricia asked. "Lloyd said that he never seems like he cares that much about the place." "Well that's weird," said Sarah, struggling to get a piece of chicken and lettuce on the same fork. Damn salads anyway. Other women made it seem so effortless to pick up lettuce, chicken, tomato, bacon and a whole plethora of tasty things at once and she couldn't even manage two. "He seemed really intent on it this morning. I was thinking maybe I should have someone check him out though. I never know why Martin had the controlling share rather than splitting fifty-fifty with Vincent." "Maybe he thinks he could sell the whole kit and kaboodle?" Sarah watched with envy as Patricia took a bite of her cheeseburger. She should have just ordered one of those. Comfort food. But she'd wanted to have something light for lunch, something healthy. All of her meals lately had consisted of macaroni and cheese and casseroles that people had brought over so that she wouldn't have to cook. None of them were particularly healthy and she was worried that she was already packing on a few pounds. "I hope not," she said, pursing her lips. That would seem like something Vincent would do. Buy the entire operation and then sell it off for a profit. She was sure that he could get one for it, Martin had told her about several offers, but they were all from larger companies. One of the things that Sarah had always loved about Polenta's was that it was a family operation, which kept it warm and friendly and personal for the staff. "I wouldn't sell if that's what he wanted." "But it's not like he has to tell you," Patricia pointed out. "He just has to buy it and then do what he wants with the money." "Well I won't sell until I'm sure. I'll have to do an internet search and see if there are still any private investigators out there." "Doesn't Q have a family member that's a private investigator? I'm sure Lloyd mentioned that at some point. They were making jokes about private dicks." She winked at Sarah across the table, and Sarah laughed. "I made the same joke in my head earlier today. Seems kind of wrong, hiring a private dick right after my husband's died," Sarah joked. And then immediately felt bad. She shouldn't make jokes about Martin's passing like that. Patricia reached across the table and patted her hand soothingly. "It's okay honey, a little black humor helps us get past the rough spots in life. You aren't being disrespectful. And to tell the truth, maybe you could use a little private dicking." "Patricia!" Sarah was shocked at her friend's blunt comment, although she shouldn't have been that surprised. She and Patricia had always shared all their secrets, and Patricia had made no bones about the fact that she thought that Sarah should date more guys than Martin before settling down with him. But she'd always respected Sarah's choice and hadn't said a word about it since Martin had asked her to marry him and she'd said yes. Patricia just shrugged unapolagetically. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 01 "I know you cared about him, loved him even, but honey... there were no signs that either of you were ever in love with each other. And I know you'll miss him, but you seem more like you're grieving your best friend than the love of your life." Sarah blinked and looked away, feeling tears of shame spark in her eyes, knowing that her friend was right. She wanted to protest and say that she'd been in love, but was that really true? She wasn't even sure what that would feel like. "You two had a great friendship. And it made for a decent marriage. But I know you, you're ready to just go back in your shell, working on making jewelry, and letting life slip you by. You'll feel guilty for not feeling more grief and that'll keep you all bottled up, but no one's going to judge you for not grieving more. We could all see Martin's health getting worse, and it's awful that he passed so young, but no one was really shocked by it either." Harsh but true. That was Patricia. No beating around the bush from this friend. And at the same time, it was like a balm for Sarah to hear it, to have someone reassure her that she wasn't a heartless bitch because she didn't feel like the world was ending just because her husband had died. It felt like... there was a loss. A hole inside of her. But her world was still going. "I'm not going to let you sell the restaurant and just disappear into your house," Patricia said. "I'll come drag you out kicking and screaming if I have to. You know I will." Sarah laughed, she could see her friend doing just that. "I won't," she said, making the promise to both Patricia and herself. "I don't want to be completely shut off from everyone. I actually had fun at the meeting this morning, finding out more about how the restaurant runs." It had been a pleasant surprise actually. Martin had talked so often about the restaurant with her that she was on the same page as everyone else for the most part, knowing what the problems were and even what some of the solutions he'd wanted to suggest were. Mostly because he usually talked those problems out with her, seriously taking her advice on a lot of the suggestions she made. Even though Sarah had been a housewife, spending most of her time cooking, cleaning, or indulging her passion for making jewelry which she sold on Etsy, she'd realized this morning how invested she felt in the restaurant and making sure that everything was running smoothly. Everyone had been so welcoming to her, which was wonderful. Vincent had seemed rather surprised at her knowledge; he'd started the meeting treating her very patronizingly until he'd realized how informed she was. That had been a good moment, being able to knock him back because she knew exactly the issues they'd been having with their seafood supplier showing up late recently, and the other suppliers that Martin had been looking into. "Good," said Patricia, pleased by Sarah's statement. "Lloyd texted me, said that you did as good a job as Martin with running the meeting." She flushed with pleasure at the compliment. "That's nice of him." "No, it's true. Lloyd doesn't beat around the bush, it's why I married him." Well that was also very true. Sarah laughed and relaxed for the first time in ages. It was so easy being around Patricia. She was the most loyal, unjudgmental and caring friend Sarah had ever had. ***** When his phone rang and Derrick saw the caller ID he picked up immediately. "Quintin." "Don't start that," his cousin drawled, with his best Southern flare. "You're the only person besides my parents who call me that." "Q," Derrick said agreeably. "What's up?" "Are you still doing that investigating thing?" "Sort of. I'm trying to get out of it," he said. The private investigating "thing" as Q liked to call it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Mostly spying on trophy wives or their lecherous husbands, occasionally getting to do something satisfying like hunting down an abuser who had kidnapped his (and once her) kid from the spouse. Of course, not all of those cases were satisfying, satisfaction depended on it being a successful hunt. Derrick was tired of spying on people and tired of all the cruelty that he saw in his line of work. He'd been searching for awhile to find something different, but so far hadn't succeeded in finding anything that interested him. He'd tried a year of college, but unlike Q he wasn't one for the educational environment. The basic classes bored him to tears and he considered it a waste of time and money. Now he kind of wished he'd taken more of them, just because then maybe he'd have an idea of what the hell he wanted to do with his life. He had no idea what his talents were, other than being able to charm information out of people. Maybe he should go into sales. Yeah... that didn't sound boring at all. "Could you take on a case? As a favor for a family member?" Derrick groaned. The last time he'd taken on a case for a family member he'd ended up with a broken arm, a broken nose and a niece who had previously had no idea that her boyfriend was a crack dealer, but was now more terrified of him than of her ex. He rubbed the ridge on his nose where the break had been. If he crossed his eyes he could just barely see it. At least the crack dealer had come out of that one looking a hell of a lot worse. But he still wished he'd been able to take the asshole out somewhere other than right in front of his nineteen year old niece Caroline. Watching her Uncle beat her boyfriend into submission had given the poor girl nightmares for weeks. And despite the fact that his sister had asked him to intervene and knew that he'd had to beat up the guy in self defense - okay and maybe a little anger about a 32 year old being with a nineteen year old and messing up her life - they hadn't talked much since the incident other than at holidays. "No drug dealers or anything, I promise." The overly cheerful sincerity in Q's voice grated on his nerves. "What's the case? And I'm not saying yes until I hear it." "The restaurant I've been at -" "I thought you quit that." "No, I still work a couple times a week, just to get some extra spending money. And they're good people. Anyway, Martin, our owner, died two weeks ago and left his share of the restaurant to the widow. The other owner wants to buy her portion, but she's feeling weird about selling it to him. Wants a background check, see if there's any dirt, or maybe if his intentions aren't honorable. She doesn't want to sell it to him and have it turn around and make it into a corporate place. I'd mentioned I knew a guy before, and she asked me about it. I was wondering if I could have her call you." Grieving widow. Trying to make the best of her loss while also taking care of the people she cared about. Making sure that her husband's work wasn't for nothing and that his employees were looked after. One of whom was his cousin. Damn. Q knew him too well. "What's the buyer like?" Q hesitated. Ah ha. Here was the catch. "Vincent. He's... okay. Didn't have much to do with running the restaurant, more like a silent backer except that he's always around. Martin was definitely the one in charge though, always. Drinks a lot. No one really knew much about him, just that he and Martin were best friends. He doesn't get close to anyone else, not even the management. Really into clear lines and boundaries." Well that didn't sound so bad. Didn't sound like a great guy, but at least he wasn't dealing drugs or beating women. Derrick could deal with that. "Yeah, alright. Have her call me." "Thanks man. So how've you been?" As the conversation devolved into small talk and ribbing, Derrick was able to relax and enjoy just chatting with Q. They'd always gotten along well, although they hadn't had much time together growing up since Q was from Alabama and Derrick was Washington DC born and raised. Even after Q had moved up here they hadn't spent a lot of time together. They were just both always busy. And Derrick's job didn't exactly allow for regular hours. He was glad to be able to do Q a favor. Just, hopefully, unlike the last time he did a favor for a family member, he wouldn't end up regretting it. ******* Sarah wandered through her house, alone, feeling both sad and unexpectedly freed. She couldn't help it, even though it made her feel guilty. When Martin was alive he'd expected her to keep the house exactly to his standards, snapping at her for dust - anywhere - or a smudge on a window or dinner five minutes late on the table. Those days he'd been home for dinner anyway. The restaurant life was so busy that she was used to being home alone, but she'd been anxious about him coming home to join her. Hoping that maybe he'd bring her flowers or some chocolates or wine. He never did. Worrying that he'd find something wrong with the house. He was supportive of her making jewelry, a creative activity that took a lot of her focus and helped her to relax, but he hadn't considered that a real job that took time or helped with the finances. Now he'd been gone for two and a half weeks, and the house felt a little empty, and yet she didn't feel lonely. Part of her wished that she had some children to fill that emptiness, but she wouldn't wish losing a father on any children of hers, not at such a young age. Even if she and Martin had had children when they'd first gotten married, the kids would still be in high school now. For a moment she flushed, thinking about how wonderful that would be, to have children... and then the image faded. She was too old. Even if she wanted to find someone - which she didn't - she was too old. Maybe eventually she'd look into fostering or something. Heading into the television room, Sarah kicked off her slippers. Her feet were starting to get too warm, and she'd always liked the thick cream carpet in this room anyway, feeling it squish pleasantly between her feet. Snuggling up in her favorite chair she turned on the television. She'd spent a lot of nights like this, in her pajama pants and tank top, hugging a pillow, and watching TV. Martin was always busy at work, and she appreciated how hard she worked. The best thing about it, in retrospect, was that she was used to being at home alone all evening. Going to sleep alone. Waking up alone was still strange, but after the first few days she'd gotten used to it. Flipping through the channels, Sarah came across a re-run of Murder She Wrote, which reminded her that she needed to call the Private Investigator that Q had recommended. It just seemed so weird to be hiring a person to nose around in someone else's business... but she really shouldn't put it off any longer. Vincent had taken her out to dinner over the weekend to discuss business. Although she'd tried to hint to him that it was too soon after Martin's death to make any decisions, he'd made the very good point that life does go on, whether we want it to or not. He'd dropped a few other hints as well, that she had thought best to ignore completely. Well if he annoyed her that much then she needed to just go ahead and get him investigated. That way she hopefully wouldn't have to have anything to do with him other than when she went in to visit her friends at Polenta, and then only in passing. Hitting the mute button on the TV, Sarah pulled her cell phone out of her pajama pocket and pulled up the number that Q had given her. Derrick Blake. She gnawed on her lower lip a moment, indecisively. This was not the first time that she'd pulled up the number. Was it nerves over invading someone's privacy? Or was she starting to want to keep her portion of Polenta? Then Sarah shook her head. Even if she did want to keep her portion, she knew nothing about running a restaurant, not really. Just the things that she and Martin had talked about over breakfasts and on his days off. It was enough for her to get by for now, when her opinion was needed, but it was best for the restaurant and the staff if the person in charge knew what they were doing, and Sarah had never actually worked in a restaurant. They deserved better than someone with no practical experience. And Q wouldn't send her to someone untrustworthy. She felt much better about calling his contact, someone who was recommended, rather than looking through search engine pages. It was only 8:07 pm. Q had told her she could call Derrick anytime before 10pm. Okay. She'd do it now. Steeling herself, Sarah punched the call button and put the phone to her ear. He'd obviously never changed his ringtone from the default setting that his phone company used. Boring elevator music. If she were a private investigator she'd have the theme music from Dick Tracey. Or James Bond. Although he was technically a spy, but still, something more exciting - "Hello, this is Derrick Blake." Holy cripes... the richest, deepest, most velvety voice she'd ever heard was coming out of her cell phone. The kind of voice that made a person's insides rumble and tighten, the way it would to a steady bass beat. It was like hearing a sexy version of James Earl Jones. Liquid, smooth... and Sarah realized, waiting for an answer. "Um, hello. Sorry, I've never... um, this is Sarah Brown. I'm a friend of Q's, he told me that I could call you." Thank god they were on the phone. Sarah banged her head into the cushy armrest of her chair, wishing it was a brick wall. She had an urgent desire to hang up and never call again, but then she'd have to face Q and explain that she'd felt too idiotic to continue. That didn't really seem like a good enough reason. The deep chuckle that reverberated through the phone sent some kind of electrical current zinging through her. Geezus, what was with this guy? Who had a voice that actually sounded like that? "Yeah, he mentioned you, but I thought you would've called a few days ago." Sarah blushed. "Oh. I'm sorry." Another laugh. She was okay with making him laugh, even though it was at her. Hell, hearing his laugh set off all sorts of tingles throughout her body and made her feel things she hadn't felt in... years. In fact, feeling those tingles was probably the closest she'd gotten to sex in years. Suddenly reminded of Martin and the fact that she was supposed to be a grieving widow, Sarah clamped down on her body's responses. How embarrassing. Not to mention demoralizing. What the hell was wrong with her? "I meant to call sooner," she said, trying to get control back over the situation. Man she missed the ways when phones had cords. She used to twine the curling cord around her fingers when she got nervous. Now all she could do was smooth out the same spot on her fuzzy pajama pants over and over again. "I've been a bit of a mess lately." "Ah, yes," he replied, his voice suddenly turning more grave and serious. "I'm very sorry for your loss, Mrs. Brown." He sounded like he meant it too, there was a lot of compassion in his expressive voice and Sarah felt tears pricking at her eyes. "Q told me a little bit about your situation, you'd like me to look into a buyer for the restaurant?" "Yes, he's actually owner of the minority share of Polenta," she said. And then, with his encouragement, found herself pouring out all of her worries about Vincent and wondering why Martin had the majority share, her concerns that Vincent's intentions with the restaurant weren't what Martin would have wanted (or what she wanted, for that matter), and her lack of experience with the restaurant business and her determination to do the best for the staff there. Throughout the entire recital he was supportive, listened attentively, and asked concise questions that never demeaned her intelligence. It wasn't at all like talking to Vincent. More like talking to Martin, except that all of the focus was on her. Most of the time her conversations with Martin had been focused entirely on the restaurant, but Derrick wanted to know her impressions, her insecurities with Vincent, even just the niggling that her instincts were giving her. And he made several small jokes, releasing some of her tension. By the end of the conversation she was feeling very comfortable talking to him, which he assured her she should as that was why he was so good at his job, and even more comfortable handing over her uncertainties about Vincent to him. There was a thoroughness to the questions that he'd asked her, he was obviously very competent and not the type to leave a single stone unturned. Mostly she felt relief, finally feeling that she was making the right decision. "Can you come by my office sometime this week and drop off the papers? Or I could come pick them up some time that's convenient for you?" Sarah thought it over. She had the keys to everything in Matt's work and home office. Fortunately all of the past years' accounting books and his notes were in the home office, at the end of every fiscal year he moved all of that paperwork home so that it wouldn't clutter up the office at the restaurant. Only the current year's numbers were at Polenta. "I have all of Matt's notes and books from previous years here at home," she said. "If you wouldn't mind coming by and getting it. I'd bring it by but I'm not entirely sure what you'll need and there's a lot of papers. I'll be home Wednesday evening, if that works for you." Today was Monday but she and Patricia were going to Polenta for dinner tomorrow, and she'd rather not cancel if she didn't have to. "Wednesday is fine," he said. "I'll start doing the preliminary background check on Vincent in the meantime, based off the information you've given me." "Thank you so much." "My pleasure. Have a good night Mrs. Brown." "You too, Mr. Blake," Sarah said, and hung up the phone. Glancing at the timer she saw that she'd been on the phone for over two hours. Oops. She'd kept him past his 10pm limit. Although he didn't seem to mind. Leaning back in her chair she felt... strange. Talking to him had been almost as fun as talking to Patricia, and letting all of her worries out made her feel strangely empty inside. And his voice... good grief. Sarah shivered a little. He should do voice overs for commercials. She'd buy what he was selling. Immediately Sarah felt guilty again, but she brushed it away. A girl couldn't help how her body reacted. There had been other times throughout her marriage when she'd been attracted to some aspect of another man, but she'd always kept her vows, even though Martin hadn't exactly made her feel sexy or sexual. That just wasn't what their marriage had been about. For a moment Sarah wondered what Derrick would look like, and then she giggled. He'd probably look like a troll. No one could have that fantastic of a voice and be good looking. Not unless he was a movie star, which he obviously wasn't. Definitely time for bed. Even though Martin was gone she always slept on her side. Sarah didn't need that much space... just her small corner of the world. Snuggling under the covers she soon drifted away to her dreams. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 02 Author's Note: This chapter, like the one before it, doesn't have any sex in it... although things do get a little bit steamier ;) I hope you enjoy! ****** Derrick walked up to Mrs. Brown's small, two story single family home with his leather file case securely in hand.  He'd already started investigating Vincent Holme, just the basics, and so far hadn't come up with anything unusual.  Forty six years old, never married, attended college and obtained a degree in business management, which is where he met Martin Brown, who had majored in History. Which did beg the question why Vincent wasn't running the show at Polenta, until he'd looked up their work records and found out that Martin had been working in restaurants since he was 16, whereas Vincent had not practical experience until after they graduated.  Still... why not split it fifty-fifty?  No wonder Mrs. Brown was nervous. Taking in the small but exquisitely landscaped yard, he wondered if she was the one who hand planted the bushes that were flowering pink and cream in a row under the first story windows or if they had always been there.  He'd done a little digging on his employer too - standard stuff. Sarah Brown, maiden name Fairchild, thirty-eight years old, 5'3" and 133 pounds according to her driver's license.  Tiny woman really. Compared to him anyway. Her license picture had been pretty enough, brown hair, nice smile.  He liked that she'd attempted to smile at it, showed the same kind of cheerful personality that he'd noticed on the phone, talking with her.  Working for clients that he liked was always a nice perk. She'd worked in a retail store for a few years, but had soon become a housewife. No children strangely enough. That might require deeper digging... did he really need to know that? Probably not. It was just a curiosity that niggled at him. A loose end. He didn't like those. It's what made him such an effective investigator. Martin and Vincent had opened Polenta fifteen years ago. It had a rough couple of years at first but had eventually gained a crowd of regulars and now was one of the locals favorite places to go for family friendly food and drink, or just to hang out and have a nice night at a bar.  A lot of bars and restaurants were switching over to becoming dance clubs on weekend nights, Polenta was one of the few places left where you could just go and have a conversation.  Made it popular for people who wanted to be able to talk without having to scream over a throbbing techno beat.  Sounded like his kind of place, actually. He'd have to visit it sometime.  Normally he didn't come out of the city, but obviously if the suburbs had more places like Polenta then he'd start making exceptions. Finishing his observation of the house, nothing out of the ordinary about it at all, Derrick started walking towards the blue front door.  He could spy matching blue curtains in the front lower windows; the curtains upstairs were white and lacy looking. The house was obviously newer and well maintained, the white paint coat on the exterior couldn't have been more than a year or two old at the most. The grass was cut low, the bushes kept trim, and the windows were squeaky clean, inside and out. All in all it looked like a pretty nice place to live. Ringing the doorbell, Derrick straightened himself up and waited.  Even having her driver's license, he hadn't been quite prepared for the reality of Mrs. Sarah Brown.  For instance, in the picture her hair looked brown, but it was actually a deep auburn, shining with lighter red tints.  Her eyes were hazel with flecks of green and gold in them, and as they took in the full sight of him they were also very, very wide.  The mouth that dropped open was pouty, pink, sweet looking... and with her mouth hanging open like that he could feel his cock stirring as he had an extremely inappropriate thought about his employer.  God she was so tiny compared to him, she might not even need to get on her knees, she could just lean over and... enough of that. Derrick cleared his throat, which was feeling suspiciously tight and held out his hand. "Mrs. Brown? Hi, I'm Derrick Blake, it's nice to meet you." Sarah's mouth closed with a snap as the man's huge hand reached out towards her.  She was getting a crick in her neck just from looking up at him... and there was a lot to look at. He towered over her, a huge looming hunk of muscle with broad shoulders, biceps that were barely encased in the simple black t-shirt he was wearing, and an easy smile on his dark face.  A gleaming smile actually, pearly white against the smooth ebony of his skin.  Wordlessly, Sarah reached out her hand and shook it, feeling almost dream-like as she stared up at him. The hand that was engulfing hers made her feel tiny - heck all of him made her feel tiny! And at the same time, she'd never been so aware of a man in her life. He exuded masculinity. Sexuality.  His voice reverberated through her bones, the sight of him made her want to melt into a molten heap of sex, sex, sex and more sex.  Good golly Miss Molly...  Sarah's blush heated her cheeks as she stared at the contrast of their skin, her tiny white palm completely encased in his very large, very black hand.  The biggest fingers she'd ever seen... they were like sausages! What would that feel like for a woman, to have those big fingers pushing... "Um. Hi. I mean hello. It's nice to meet you Mr. Blake," Sarah managed to stammer out as she forced her eyes back up to his. Deep brown. Like melting chocolate.  Intense melting chocolate. She felt trapped as she looked at him, unable to break away from his gaze. "Please call me Sarah." She didn't know why she said that. Maybe because it felt too weird, this man who already knew so much about her anxieties, calling her by such a formal name. After all he was going to come into her house, investigate Martin's best friend and his business. Might as well call her by her first name. Or maybe just because she was searching for something to say, anything to say that didn't make her sound like an idiot.  It wasn't right that a man could be that good looking and also have that fantastic of a voice.  Hearing it in person just made her want to have him sit down and talk to her. "Then call me Derrick, please. May I come in, Sarah?" he asked, and she realized that she was still standing in the doorway holding his hand.  The way he looked down at her made her suddenly very aware that she was wearing a low cut shirt.  Her jeans were fine, they covered plenty, but her cleavage had never seemed more visible.  Immediately she snatched her hand away and backed up, trying to pretend that she was just getting out of his way.  Pretend she wasn't retreating. "Sorry, like I said, I've been a bit out of it." "Completely understandable." She felt like such a liar, seeing him standing there with those warm, sympathetic dark eyes.  Obviously he saw a grieving widow, but that's not what was making her out of it. That's not what she felt like.  Thinking about Martin still made her sad, and it was odd sometimes to wake up without him, but it had been three weeks and she wasn't truly mourning anymore. Last night, at dinner with Patricia, she'd admitted how guilty that made her feel, but her friend made the good point that it wasn't like Martin had been around the house a lot anyway, so she wasn't used to having him there... how could she miss what she hadn't really had?  Sometimes she wished he was around to talk about Polenta now, but more so that she could bounce ideas off of him.  Like Cara wanting to utilize the local farmer's market to get fresh ingredients.  Vincent was against it, not wanting to anger their suppliers, Sarah was for it because she liked the idea of supporting local business and having super fresh ingredients, but she wasn't sure that she should really have a say at all. "Come on, I'll show you Martin's office," she said, brusquely, trying to shed her body's reactions to him.  Fake it till you make it. That was one of Patricia's quips when Sarah had asked her for advice on being sexy and enticing Martin. She figured it worked well enough in reverse too.  She couldn't help her body's reaction, but that didn't mean she had to give into it or show it. And the more she acted like there was no reaction, hopefully the more she'd cool down. It only took a few minutes to show Derrick around the small home office, how the files were organized and then Sarah headed for the door, trying not to feel like she was running.  In the doorway she paused. "Can I get you anything to drink? Soda? Coffee?" Derrick smiled appreciatively at her thoughtfulness. "Coffee please, I wouldn't mind a pick me up. No cream or sugar. I shouldn't be here for more than a couple of hours." Sarah nodded and disappeared. He definitely wouldn't be here for more than a couple of hours. His reaction to the breathtaking widow, who was also his employer, had been extremely inappropriate.  It wasn't her fault she was gorgeous. With luscious curves that a man could easily fall into. Pouty lips that begged to be kissed, to be opened and... yeah okay. Don't go there. Focus. Job. Work. Her late husband.  That should cool his dick down, but it didn't.  Grimly he reached into his pants and shifted the rebellious member so that at least he'd be able to sit and work. Those jeans she was wearing showed off her curvy hips and the sweet swell of her ass far too well.  And the deep v of her cleavage was nice. In fact, the whole package was pretty spectacular.  Also, very off limits.  Taking advantage of a grieving widow didn't exactly get a guy any brownie points. It would also be extremely unprofessional to flirt with an employer. Anymore than he already had.  Right then, Derrick resolved to keep thinking of her as "the widow," to help and keep his hormones under control. When was the last time a woman had effected him so much? He liked women, always had, but there was something special about this one. Something in her eyes maybe. Probably grief asshole, get back to work. Sighing, Derrick started pulling out drawers and looking through the contents of the office. **** It took fifteen minutes for Sarah to get her act together and bring Derrick his coffee even though it only took about five minutes to make the coffee. She was spending the rest of the time trying to control her insane reaction to him. Not once in her entire life had she ever met a man who inspired such instant... lust. There was no other word for it. How humiliating.  And he was so professional and polite, not at all interested in her and yet she felt like she was a bitch in heat.  Definitely in heat. It was pure chemical attraction on her part, and her body apparently didn't care that Martin had died three weeks ago and that her arousal on sight was more than unseemly, it could even be considered disrespectful to Martin's memory. So she quivered and stalled and tried to get her body back under her control.  Coffee. Black. Ebony, like onyx, really... okay woman get a hold of yourself.  By the time she walked into the office she had herself completely under control again. At least, until she saw him sitting behind the big oak desk.  The desk had always seemed to dwarf Martin, she'd sometimes thought to herself that he looked like a child playing at his father's desk. It was a big, heavy piece of furniture, set higher than most desks she'd seen, and simply made without any ornate carvings or woodwork.  An intimidating and stark piece of furniture.  Derrick looked completely at home behind it, his dark skin lit with the soft light of the lamp on the desk, his brow furrowed as he looked through the files.  She wondered what it would feel like if she stroked her fingers over the satiny smooth looking skin on his bald head. Or down the hard lines of those bulging muscles. When her pussy clenched, that's when she realized she needed to get out of there.  Martin's office had been decorated to be masculine, nothing soft or feminine about it, and he'd always seemed to use it to show how he was masculine. Derrick just settled right in there like he belonged, and it was enough to send a wave of shivering, and incredibly inappropriate heat through her body. "Thank you," he said, lifting those gorgeous eyes to hers, his voice rippling like a current along her nerves and zinging straight to her clit. Damn her traitorous body anyway.  "You're welcome," she said, as smoothly as she could. And then she fled.  Huddled in a chair in front of the television she realized that her jeans suddenly felt too tight, the low-cut v-neck shirt suddenly too hot and too revealing.  Her long lost libido stirred, making her want to moan as it threw up images of fantasy in front of her face.  Derrick's large fingers on her breasts, against her cream skin and pink nipples, the thick digits pushing into her body... god just two of his fingers would be as thick as Martin had... And that cut her off again.  She felt sick. Like a terrible person. Terrible wife.  Terrible widow. So what if she had Martin's sex life had died out long before he'd passed, he'd still only been gone for three weeks and here she was, with a body that was aroused and on edge for another man.  But she hadn't succumbed.  Sarah comforted herself with that thought.  She hadn't flirted, hadn't expressed her interest, and she was doing her best to shove the fantasies away.  Surely people in monogamous relationships occasionally ran into someone that they were inadvertently and unabashedly attracted to, but the important thing was that they didn't act on that attraction. Plus, hadn't she heard somewhere that it was normal, after a death of someone close, to feel the urge to copulate? Sex tended to be reaffirming.  In fact, the last time she and Martin had made love it was the day after his grandmother's funeral.  It hadn't been very satisfying sex for her, but that hadn't been the point. It had comforted Martin, been what he needed.  They just hadn't had much of a sexual spark between them, although when they'd first been married she'd still been hopeful that perhaps her romances had it right and her married life would be filled with hot sex and incredible orgasms... but that had just manifested. Martin had never been interested more than once a month, and slowly the time period between had lengthened.  Sarah hadn't minded because sex just hadn't been that big a thing for her. But Martin had never made her feel as aroused as just the sight of P.I. Derrick Blake did either. Sarah buried her face in her hands, rubbing it harshly over her skin.  For the first time in her life she felt like trying to masturbate. See if she could bring herself to orgasm. Maybe she'd try that tonight.  It wasn't unfaithful if it was just in her head, right? Blearily, Sarah blinked her eyes and tried to concentrate on the TV program.  It took her a few minutes before she realized she was watching Jersey Shore. Immediately she recoiled and changed the channel. ******* Derrick needed an accountant. There was something odd about the books, but he couldn’t for the life of him figure out what. Fortunately, his best friend Nick just happened to be a stellar accountant and since it was after October 15 already, Nick wouldn’t be too busy again until the end of January when the businesses would start doing their taxes again.  Glancing at the clock he saw that he’d been here about almost three hours, more time that he’d originally planned to. He ignored the part of him that said it was because of the pretty woman in the other room. As if such a lackluster word as “pretty” could ever really be used to adequately describe her.  When she’d brought the coffee in it had taken all of his acting skills to pretend that he wasn’t watching her cross the room.  There was something in the way she looked at him, nerves maybe? Afraid of being alone with him here in the house? It wasn’t his skin color, because she’d found him through Q. But Derrick was well aware that his size made him a lot more intimidating that his skinny cousin (who had grown up with the nickname Q-Tip for a reason). He’d done what he could to settle her nerves by not appearing to pay much attention to her, but he’d seen the pretty blush of heat across her creamy skin as she’d looked at him, the trembling of her small hands as she put the coffee down.  A petite beauty, far too tempting in every way.  There was a picture of her on the desk, all big eyes and those pouty lips… he’d had to plant it face down because it had been too distracting. Down boy. Definitely time to get out of here and stop thinking about The Widow. Dumbass.  He quickly and efficiently packed up the books that he wanted to take with him into a box and grabbed his leather folder.  Hefting the box under one arm, he went out into the hallway, heading towards the front door. “Mrs. Brown?” he asked, loudly, as he headed down the stairs and to the entrance. Almost as though she’d been waiting for him she came trotting around the corner, a sweet smile on her face. “I thought I told you to call me Sarah,” she said, reminding him.  The closer she got to him, the more she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes and the harder it was not to drop the box, pick her up and set her against the wall so that he could get his hands all over that luscious little body. Instead he just gripped the box tighter. “Sarah,” he said, smiling down at her. Oomph. This man packed a sexual punch.  Just seeing that flash of white teeth in his dark face and hearing his deep voice saying her first name made her insides tighten.  The easy way he carried the box of files said that he was every bit as bit and strong as he looked. “I’m going to take some of the accounting files if that’s okay.” “Yes, of course, whatever you need,” she said, almost mindlessly.  The remembered joke about private dicking flashed through her mind and she immediately heated with a blush, feeling her nipples harden under her shirt. Dear god… please don’t notice. Fortunately his eyes remained firmly on her face. Of course, that might not be much better considering how red she was at the moment. Derrick was fascinated with the rosy color suffusing Sarah’s cheeks. What thought had triggered that?  Was she feeling just as off balance as he was? Even if she was it was time to go.  “I’ll give you a call as soon as I have something,” he said. “Thank you so much,” Sarah replied, smiling up at him. The trust in her eyes was enough to make his heart give an extra thud in his chest.  Didn’t even know him and yet she looked like she believed he could solve all of her problems. Strangest thing was that he found himself hoping he could. Sarah breathed a sigh of relief after closing the door, slumping against it. Her body was still… hot. Maybe it was time for a shower. Trotting upstairs, she tried not to think too much about Derrick’s strong arms. Huge body. Sarah wasn’t a tall woman, but Martin had only been 5’9”.  At one point in her life she’d thought that was very tall, now she knew better. Derrick had loomed over her, making her feel absolutely tiny. Delicate, even with her rounded body. What would it be like to be under someone that massive… he’d pin her down to the bed just with his weight… This wasn’t helping her cool her arousal at all.  Stripping down quickly, Sarah looked at herself in the mirror. Well that helped.  Short. Dumpy.  Big melon breasts.  Soft stomach, no muscle at all.  Wide hips. Round cheeks and boring hazel eyes. The only thing she really liked about herself was her hair, with its dark reddish color that would flame up with brighter reds and gold in the sunlight. Of course as soon as she got in the shower and couldn’t see all of herself, she started looking at her various body parts and imagining what Derrick’s dark hands would look like against her ivory skin.  Heat, that had nothing to do with the hot temperature of the shower, quivered inside of her.  Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 02 Crap, she wasn’t going to be able to get anything done. Sarah looked at her showerhead. It was removable.  Once, when she was in a women’s locker room, she’d overheard some of the women giggling about how showerheads could be used for masturbation.  It might be worth an experiment, just to see if she could even masturbate.  And maybe if she did it would get these erotic imagines out of her mind and she could go back to being plain old Sarah Brown.  Licking her lips with nervousness, feeling as though she was doing something utterly naughty and the morality police were going to come breaking into her bathroom, Sarah reached up and pulled the shower head out of its holster.  Okay.  That was the first step. Turning it towards her, she directed the spray at her chest.  It felt nice, the hot water pounding against her breasts, especially when she targeted jets against her nipples.  The little buds ached and throbbed.  How pretty would they look against obsidian skin, dark as night to set off the cream and rose of her own body? The imagined visual was enough to make her feel sexy. Water trickled down her stomach and over her the pubic hair on her mound, clinging to the hairs, teasing and tantalizing her swollen tissues.  And she did feel swollen.  Had she ever felt this turned on before in her life? Maybe... a long, long time ago. There were no occurrences springing to her mind at the moment.  With a small moan, she lifted one of her hands to her breasts, pinching the nipple.  It hurt a little, but it felt good too... no one had every pinched her nipple before, but it felt right. The throbbing of her nipple went straight to her clit, the two buds beating in tandem. Moving the jets of water down her stomach, Sarah sucked in air as she spread her legs and the spray hit her tender pussy. Closing her eyes she imagined that it was Derrick's dark hand on her breast, that the water was his fingers, teasing her outer folds.  Leaning back against the wall, Sarah could feel her legs trembling as pleasure coursed through her.  Wet... hot... what if it wasn't his fingers, but his mouth? She gasped as she imagined Derrick's hands on her creamy thighs, his arms were like unyielding bars of obsidian, pushing her legs apart, opening her for him.  Leaning her head back against the cold tile of the shower, the heat in her pussy seemed even greater as she brought the shower head closer to her body, intensifying the power of the jets against her.  Rocking her hips she moaned, imagining that the wet warmth was Derrick's tongue, sliding out between his dark lips as his gleaming white teeth flashed in a sensual smile, his dark, bald head bobbing between her creamy thighs... The jets of water rattled against her clit, which was rabidly swelling, and Sarah cried out with pleasure, her body shuddering and struggling to stay standing as her orgasm rushed through her, her mind filled with erotic imagery of the man who had just been in her house.  Ecstasy coursed through her and throbbed, before gently rushing away, leaving her empty and naked in the shower.  It was fulfilling physically, but not so much emotionally.  Feeling drained, Sarah put the shower head back where it had started and picked up her cherry blossom scented shampoo.  Her loins felt sated, but for the first time, she really felt kind of lonely. It had been nice having company in the house, knowing that she wasn't all alone.  Although she'd really enjoyed having him here much more than she should have, considering that they hadn't interacted at all.  And how incredible was it that she had a better orgasm fantasizing about Derrick than she'd ever had during sex. Sarah made a face. Maybe she should have been masturbating more often. Even though it made her feel lonely afterwards, perhaps her problem with sex had been that she was just able to get herself off better than any man would ever be able to. That kind of made sense, considering how complex women’s bodies were to men’s. Or at least, so it seemed.  It had always been a surprise when she had an orgasm with Martin, it certainly didn't seem to be something he strove for.  Then again, she'd never complained either. At least she’d been a good wife to him. Thank goodness she hadn’t met Derrick before this, she would have felt awful having such an attraction to another man while Martin was still alive. With him gone it seemed a little disrespectful to his memory, but at least it wasn’t blatantly wrong. Getting out of the shower Sarah sighed. The hardest part about her life now was all the changes. Before, things had been so secure. She hadn’t had to think too much. Or, really live too much when it came right down to it. In fact, she’d lived vicariously through Martin and Patricia in a lot of ways - career wise she’d lived through Martin as he’d built up the restaurant and made it successful, and love / adventure wise she’d lived through Patricia. Hearing about the restaurant, making her own small contributions of suggestions, had kept her satisfied and she’d been able to burrow into her room, making pretty pieces of jewelry because she’d already felt like she was being useful. Patricia and Lloyd’s courtship had warmed her heart, much more than anything Martin ever did for her (partially because he rarely did anything for her) and now when the couple would travel she would pore over their pictures, listen avidly to their stories, and pretend that she was satisfied with that. But truthfully… she’d always wished that she and Martin could go with them. But he hadn’t wanted to leave the restaurant. As awful as it sounded, Sarah realized that she was free. If she wanted to go on Patricia and Lloyd’s next trip she could. The restaurant wouldn’t need taking care of, and Martin wouldn’t need her here at home to take care of cooking, the housework and the garden. That had always been his reason for keeping her at home, otherwise she and Patricia could have gone on some girl trips, but she couldn’t just leave him to his own devices when he needed her at home… the long hours of working at the restaurant had exhausted him. And, despite the fact that he owned a restaurant, he had been a pretty wretched cook. Letting him live for a week off of Easy Mac wouldn’t have helped his heart any. But now that responsibility was gone. Sarah felt a weight lift off of her heart. And she refused to feel guilty about it. Of course she wished Martin was still alive, but it wasn’t wrong of her to find something that was good in her life now, finding new ways to be happy. It was a little scary too, she’d always felt comforted in knowing exactly how her life was going to be. Now she had no idea at all. ***** Derrick woke up at 5am with an aching erection, floundering his way out of an embarrassingly erotic dream involving his employer. He’d been running his hands over her face, her pale pink lips, through that gorgeous, silky hair, and marveling at the contrast between her small, delicately pale features and his rough, large black as night hands. It only took a few pumps of his dick before he was spurting white cream all over his belly. Unfortunately he was the kind of person that couldn’t get back to sleep once he was awake. Groaning, he got up and took a shower, washing his seed off of his belly and chest, and got to his morning work out early, planning out his day. He’d try to see if he could get any more information on Vincent. And he needed to call Nick and see if he could come drop off the files. There was just something that didn’t add up (pun intended) about those accounting books. The thing was, he wasn’t sure that the discrepancy had anything to do with Vincent. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 03 Author's Note: There is no sex in this chapter, just sexy-tension-building plot ;) I hope you enjoy! ********** The more Derrick found out about Vincent Holme, the less he liked the guy. There had been a few sexual harassment complaints about him in college, but none since he and Martin opened up the restaurant. At least, none that were recorded anywhere. Had Martin been protecting his friend? Or had Vincent cleaned up his acting. Growling under his breath as he pumped iron, Derrick had a feeling it was the former. After all, why would the guy clean up his act when he hadn't even really been punished? Not that there was much proof of that. He spent a lot of time drinking, rather than attending to the restaurant. A lot of time with hookers too, usually ones off of the street. The cheaper ones, the more desperate ones who were willing to do more for less. The ones who probably didn't have much choice in their lives. When he wasn't drinking or fucking, he was either at the restaurant or at home. Derrick had no idea what Vincent got up to at home, but today he was going to find out. He already had Vincent's schedule down pretty pat. Monday through Friday Vincent would visit the restaurant in the afternoon and then head out before the dinner shift, when having top management around might actually be useful. On Saturdays he would be there during the evening, but spend most of his time in the bar hitting on the clientele. Sometimes successfully. He wasn't entirely without charm or looks after all, although the more drunk the woman the better his chances. Sundays he never came into the restaurant. The weekend had passed uneventfully enough, although the dreams about The Widow hadn't stopped. Rather than calling her, Derrick had emailed her to tell her that he'd handed the files over to an accountant that he trusted and that he was still working on his investigation. It was better than hearing her soft voice over the phone and fantasizing about her sweetly perfect lips as she talked. Seeing her return email in his inbox had been inappropriately exciting. Like being a teenager again and having the girl he liked in class pass him a note. Telling himself that it was just her unavailability that he craved, because it wasn't too often that he came across a woman that he just couldn't have, Derrick forced himself to concentrate on the investigation. Planning out snooping around Vincent's house. Possibly he'd need to go by the restaurant and snoop around the office there, but he'd want to let Sarah - Mrs. Brown - The Widow know before he did that, and right now that just didn't seem like a great idea. When his phone went off it was a relief from his thoughts. And the sinking feeling he got in his stomach when it was Nick instead of The Widow was probably just indigestion. "Hey man, what's up?" "I've got good news and bad news." "What's the good news?" "Someone has definitely been skimming money from the restaurant." "That's good news?" Well, in a way it kind of was. At least Derrick knew that his instincts hadn't gone flying out the window just for a pretty face and a killer body... and god, that hair... "Yeah okay, so what's the bad news?" "I'm pretty sure it was the husband doing the skimming." Well crap. So not Vincent at all. "How sure?" "As sure as I can be just from looking at the books, but there's nothing in here to show where the money went, so I can't be completely sure." "Alright, I'll try to get you some more information. Thanks for looking at all of this." "No problem. You busy on Friday? Janie wants you to come over for dinner." That was Nick's code for 'my wife Janie has another friend of hers that she wants you to meet.' While Derrick loved hanging out with Nick and Janie, it was always a toss up whether or not he wanted to meet yet another 'friend' of Janie's. Blind dates weren't really his thing. On the other hand, he could definitely use a distraction from The Widow... "Yeah sure." "Really?" The surprise in Nick's voice was because Derrick hadn't accepted one of these invitations in awhile. "He's coming," Derrick heard Nick say, not to him, and then Janie's voice cheering in the background. He had to grin. Nick had been his best friend for ages, and Janie was like the annoying older sister that he'd never had. Well, sort of an older sister. Or an interfering mother. Both. Ever since the two of them had been married she'd started searching for the perfect woman for Derrick. She had good intentions, so he couldn't take offense, but sometimes he did get tired of the endless stream of women she introduced him to. Nick gave Derrick the details for the dinner and then they hung up the phone, leaving Derrick feeling unreasonably tense. He drummed his fingers on his desk, feeling annoyed with the cheap plastic. Just the few hours sitting behind Martin Brown's heavy wooden desk had spoiled him; it had been pure pleasure to sit at such a well made desk, big enough for anything a man could store in it and perfectly suited for someone with a large frame like himself. Idly he wondered if the couple had ever engaged in extracurriculars on that desk. It was the perfect height to bend a woman over, or lay her down and... when the woman in his head began to distinctly resemble The Widow he made himself stop with the fantasies. Time to work out, take a cold shower and then give The Widow a call. He needed to go through the restaurant office. And possibly Martin's again. He wouldn't tell her anything yet though, because they didn't have proof. Even though it wasn't his job to protect her, he didn't want to upset her with ungrounded theories. ****** Sarah showed up at the restaurant Thursday morning feeling rather nervous. When Derrick had called and told her that there was something off about the accounting books and that he'd need to get into the restaurant's management office, she realized that she was more nervous about seeing him than about what might be wrong with the books. In fact, this morning it had taken her nearly an hour to get ready. She'd tried on and discarded a small mountain of outfits, before deciding on casual jeans and a plain blue t-shirt, forcing herself not to overdress or wear anything that was remotely sexy. When she got there the restaurant was already bustling, as it was ten o'clock and would be open for lunch in an hour. Cara was in the kitchen, giving orders like a general going into battle, a flurry of activity following in her wake. The opening servers had arrived and were making coffee, iced tea and folding napkins, making sure the tables were all set appropriately and setting everything up to ensure a good shift. Sarah walked through the dining room with pleasure, happy to see how orderly everything was. "Hey Sarah!" She turned to see Gloria hurrying towards her, a big grin on her face. The enthusiastic young woman gave Sarah a big hug. "Hey yourself," she said, grinning. "How's everything going here?" "Oh pretty good," said Gloria. A small expression flitted over her face and then was gone, subsumed by a smile, before Sarah could figure out what it was. "Are you here for lunch?" "No, I've just got to pick up a few things in the office." Well that was close enough to the truth, although she didn't know what she was going to be picking up yet. Suddenly Gloria's eyes got huge as she looked at something over Sarah's shoulder. "Oh my goodness... who is tall, dark and studly, what is he doing here and please tell me he's single." Sarah turned to see Derrick, standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the dining room, watching her and Angela. Tall, dark and studly indeed. Today he was wearing a crisp light blue shirt button down shirt that highlighted exactly how dreamily dark his skin was, the contrast between the two was startling and sexy. The shirt was untucked and he was wearing it with jeans that fit without being too tight. Even with the looser shirt, compared to the t-shirt that he'd worn to her house - it was obvious how well muscled he was. Just looking at him made Sarah's insides clench and reminded her of exactly how many times she'd masturbated to fantasies of him in her shower over that past week. "That's Q's cousin Derrick, he's here to help me with a few things and I have no idea." Something in her voice must have given her repressed sensuality away, or maybe it was the slightly delayed and weak wave she gave him after he raised his hand in greeting, because Gloria turned to look at her with a little sparkle in her eyes. "Help you with what?" "Now don't you go getting ideas," Sarah said, hating that her cheeks were rapidly heating up. "He's helping me with some things from Martin's estate. There is absolutely nothing going on that would be disrespectful to Martin's memory." Gloria smiled at her. "Of course not. Although I seriously doubt Martin would have minded, he never struck me as the kind of guy who would want you to grieve forever. There was more sexual tension in the look you just gave that man than I ever saw between you and Martin." "Just what do you know about sexual tension?" asked Sarah, a little crossly, glaring at the young woman. She giggled, completely irrepressible. "I'm twenty-two, not fifteen anymore," Gloria said, teasing. "Oh look, he's talking to Cara!" Derrick had been enjoying watching the sexy widow far too much as she talked to the young redheaded server. Walking in through the employee entrance, he'd been able to get a good look at the kitchen and then an even better look at Sarah's - The Widow's - backside when he'd walked into the dining room. A wonderfully curvy backside that was snugly encased in denim, wrapped around her slim little legs and emphasizing her hips. The t-shirt that she was wearing hugged her body, showing nothing and hinting at everything. Her long auburn hair was tied back into a simple ponytail, begging to be released. Or used as... never mind. Fortunately the two women hadn't seen him right away and he'd been able to drink in his fill before Sarah had turned and he'd waved his greeting. It looked like they were pretty involved in the conversation, so he'd been waiting patiently for her to finish when a snappy little woman with grey-streaked black hair had come up and demanded to know what he was doing there. All the other chefs that he'd seen had been wearing black chef coat, but hers was white and said Moretti on it, so he knew this had to be the Executive Chef. Treating her with proper deference and complimenting the smells from the kitchen had turned her from a plump little firecracker to a happy Italian momma who wanted to feed him. He let her drag him back into the kitchen, to get away from The Widow a little bit, and also because he figured that this woman would probably have some of the goods on Vincent and Martin. As he tasted her pesto sauce and the bruschetta tomato mix, he started adroitly questioning her. "Martin was a very good boss," she said. "He knew when to leave me alone and when to steer me. I don't know what's going to happen now that he's gone. Sarah's very good, she knows more than she thinks she does, but I don't know if she's interested in staying with us." "What happens if Vincent takes over?" Cara scowled. "I hope he doesn't. He's lazy. That's why Martin never gave him much responsibility. But you couldn't separate the two of them, they were always going off and-" Her lips clamped shut. "Here," she said, lifting a hand-rolled sausage to his mouth. "Try this, it's my own special recipe." Derrick didn't press, but he'd be a pretty shoddy detective if that hadn't made it obvious that something else was going on. Something that Cara knew about, but that she didn't want other people knowing. Protecting someone. Probably not Vincent. Martin's memory perhaps? Or Sarah? "Mmmm delicious. I haven't tasted anything quite like it... secret recipe?" he asked, and Cara nodded, her eyes sparkling. "I taste oregano, basil, rosemary, garlic, and - cumin?" Delighted, Cara nodded again, laughing at his knowledge. "Something else though, what?" "Ah, that's the secret!" she said, laughing. "And good luck trying to get it out of her," said a smooth, soft voice to their right. Both of them turned to see Sarah standing there. Looking damn near as edible as the sausage, as far as Derrick was concerned. As she came closer Cara held out her arms and the two women hugged a hello. "I can't tell you how many times I've tried to get her drunk enough to spill, but she always passes out before telling me!" Derrick chuckled as Cara let out a throaty laugh. "I bet it makes for a popular restaurant," he said, smoothly changing the subject but keeping it to topics that he wanted more information about. "No wonder Q won't leave." "Very busy," said Cara. "Especially on the weekends. Last weekend we did over two hundred tables a night." Sarah smiled at her. "It's a good place to work, we have pretty good employee retention." "Everyone loved Martin," said Cara. "And you. You have good managers. And me." "You're the important one," said Sarah, winking. "Yes I am, and now I have important things that need to be done, so you two scat." As the chef bustled off, Sarah thought she saw Cara wink. She was probably just imagining things though. Turning towards Derrick, she tried not to let her gaze linger over his body as he leaned against the stainless steel counter where they expedited the food. Now that Cara was gone, even though there were people moving all around them, she suddenly felt very alone with him. The sensation was more than a little unsettling. Being around him made her so nervous. "So um... the office is this way," she said, gesturing with her hand. He shifted his weight forward to standing position, and put out his hand, indicating she should lead the way. Trying not to feel too anxious about having him at her back, looming behind her, Sarah started walking. Even though Derrick had already noted the location of the manager's office there was no way he was going to pass up the opportunity to follow behind Sarah and watch that delectable ass move. The jeans she was wearing hugged her curves, showing off the bounciness of the firm bubble of her butt as she moved. Seeing Sarah walking away from him really made him understand the country song he'd heard one time at a bar - "We' hate to see her go, but love to watch her leave!" Past the stoves and in the hallway filled with employee lockers that led to the office, Vincent was standing with one of the younger servers. She was trapped between his arms, which were placed on the lockers right next to either side of her shoulders. "Vincent? Brandy?" Sarah asked. "What's going on?" Immediately Vincent jolted back, as if the server had punched him, although the young woman just stood there with her big blue eyes, still pressed against the locker. Sarah hurried to them, forgetting about the man following behind her. "We were just having a discussion on proper restaurant etiquette," said Vincent, shoving his hands in his pockets lazily. Brandy pursed her lips, looking upset, but if she'd been getting lecture that wouldn't be entirely surprising. Sarah frowned and was about to ask Brandy to come into the office and talk with her when Vincent looked over her shoulder. "Who's that?" Sarah turned. "Oh, sorry. This is Derrick, Q's cousin. He's helping me with some of Martin's estate things." "Oh?" Vincent looked the other man up and down challengingly. Derrick just smiled and held out his hand. "You must be Vincent, nice to meet you." Although Vincent looked slightly mollified at being recognized, that didn't stop him from trying to shake Derrick's hand with a crushing grip. However, even though Vincent wasn't in bad shape, Derrick was in great shape. He just grinned and let the other man do what he wanted. No need to get into power games with this idiot. "Brandy, go help Gloria," Sarah said. She was concerned, but she also needed some privacy right now. Whether or not Vincent was lecturing Brandy on something, the way he had been holding himself over her like that worried Sarah. But she couldn't dress down management for that in front of the server. "I'll talk to you later. Derrick, the management office is right there, go ahead in." Vincent turned to her with an outraged look in his eyes, but Sarah stared him down and spoke before he could. "Vincent, I'd like a word with you." Derrick had to admire the way Sarah took immediate control of the situation. He hadn't liked the predatory body language Vincent had been displaying over that young woman. It seemed like perhaps he hadn't learned much from the accusations of sexual harassment when he was in college. Derrick would have to give Sarah - crap, The Widow - a heads up about that, as soon as possible. Obviously she'd realized something was wrong, but he wasn't sure if she knew Vincent's history. Would that be something her husband would have told her? Either way, she was a little pistol when she wanted to get something done. No wonder she and Cara got along so well, they were cut from the same clothe, only from The Widow it was surprising and delightful when that side of her came out. With Cara it was out all the time. He sat down at the desk in the office, metal and plastic, nothing like Martin's desk back home, and started looking around. "Vincent, I'm not sure if you realized this," Sarah said, temporizing a little, "but your body language while you were talking to Brandy was completely inappropriate. You had her trapped against the lockers." "Oh?" His question invited her to continue, the contemptuous tone in his voice said she didn't know what she was talking about. "You can't talk to employees like that, even if you are lecturing them. It looked entirely unprofessional," Sarah said, laying down the law as she saw it. Vincent drew himself up, looking affronted. "Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" She bit the inside of her cheek. Since she hadn't talked to Brandy yet, of course she didn't know if she had any basis to suggest anything, but she knew how leering and inappropriate Vincent could be first hand. "I'm not suggesting anything," she said finally. "I'm saying that you might not have realized what it looked like, but it was inappropriate." "I'm sorry," said Vincent, surprising her with his apology. "I certainly didn't mean to do anything that would make you jealous." Her mouth dropped open in complete shock. "Jealous?!" "Well yes, sweetheart," Vincent said, moving closer to her. Sarah stepped back immediately, trying to maintain her personal space. Vincent just looked at her and smirked, as if she was playing hard to get rather than feeling in discomfort. "We both know that there's always been some tension between us." "You're wrong," she said. It was the only thing she could think of to say. Her stomach twisted with nausea, rejecting his words for the completely fabrications that they were. Not once in her entire life had she ever been attracted to Vincent. "Now sweetheart, you know that's not true," he said. Even though he remained standing right where he was, Sarah still felt like stepping back a pace. The smarmy look in his blue eyes made her feel dirty. "You can't try to say that you're holding onto Martin's memory, I know very well that he didn't satisfy you." What had Martin said about her, what had he confessed to this man? Sarah really was starting to feel like she was going to vomit. "I could satisfy you Sarah," said Vincent, leering at her. Her skin prickled, making her want to take a shower. Would she ever be able to wash off the feeling of him mentally undressing her as his eyes flowed down her body. She was now extremely grateful that she'd worn such covering clothes today. If she'd been wearing something sexy she couldn't have withstood the urge to run. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 03 "I don't know what Martin told you, but it doesn't matter," Sarah said, lying. She was dying to know what Martin had told him, but damned if she'd give him that satisfaction. "I have no interest in you. Never have, never will. You cannot and will not satisfy me. Ever." Vincent's eyes flashed with anger. "Then who?" Suddenly he sneered, his eyes darting towards the door to the management office, only twenty feet away. "Him?" "No," she said coolly, unable to suppress the flash of heat that went through her. Vincent's eyes narrowed at the flush in her cheeks. "Not that it's any of your business." "What is he doing here anyway?" Vincent finally asked, realizing that it was odd that she'd let Q's cousin into the office by himself. "Are you fulfilling a sex at work fantasy?" The crassness of Vincent's words made her flinch. Especially because as soon as he said it, she did have a quick vision of exactly that... Derrick pounding into her, holding her up against the office door. Her pale lily-white hands grabbing his shoulders and hanging on for dear life. "I told you, he's helping me with some things for Martin's estate?" "What things?" Vincent asked. Had he paled? "What does he do?" "I'm a private investigator," said Derrick, his deep rich voice rolling through the hallway. Sarah glanced up to see him standing in the doorway to the office. Her pussy gave a little throb as the vision of them having sex against the door whispered through her mind again. Derrick was interested to see Vincent blanch at finding out his occupation. "What are you investigating?" Vincent demanded, bristling visibly. Using anger to hide his reaction, possibly? "Just some things about the estate," Derrick said mildly. He looked at Sarah. "I'm done here. Thanks for letting me look through the offices." "Offices?" Vincent asked. His body was tensing visibly. Derrick nodded. "Yes, the one here and Martin's at home." The silence dragged out for a minute and then Vincent nodded. Even though he was now keeping his emotions tightly contained, Derrick recognized the slight relaxation of Vincent's facial muscles. That was relief. Carefully hidden. "Well good," Vincent said finally. "I have things to do. Goodbye." He nodded and turned on his heel, stalking very quickly to the employee entrance. Sarah shifted on her feet back and forth, trying to get her own emotions under control. She roiled with anxiety, disgust with herself, a slight tinge of fear of Vincent, shame that she was attracted to Derrick and the unsettling feeling that something important had just happened and she'd missed it. Derrick smiled down at her, adding another jolt of sexual arousal to the chaotic mix inside of her. "Actually, I need to come back over and look through Martin's office again, if that's okay," he said. Sarah nodded, feeling numb. Have Derrick in her house again? But if he needed to... There was no way to deny that her body responded to him in ways that it shouldn't. Hearing Vincent talk about her and Derrick that way had just made her feel even more ashamed. Not that she should care what he thought, but what would everyone else think if they knew she was having sexual fantasies about a man that she'd just met, only a month after Martin had died? Heck, she judged herself for it, she didn't need anyone else to. And Vincent's words had sullied the fantasy for her, at least for now. Although her body was still attracted. "We can go now," she said. Might as well get it over with and get him out, as quickly as possible. Then she remembered Brandy. "Oh, wait, I wanted to talk to Brandy before I go." "Ah, Sarah," Derrick said as she started to turn. Sarah looked back at him. "I don't have any proof of this on me, and there haven't been reports in years, but in college there were some reports filed against Vincent for sexual harassment. Innocent until proven guilty, but the way he looked with her wasn't good." Sarah's lips tightened. That rat bastard, she thought. But then she clamped down on the reaction. It's possible he was just lecturing Brandy and it looked bad. She wasn't going to let herself judge just because she didn't like him, not until she talked to the girl. Leaving Derrick in the kitchen, Sarah headed out into the dining room, beckoning to Brandy. On her way over to Sarah, Angela joined her. Sarah gave Angela a questioning look, but didn't say anything. "Brandy," Sarah said, feeling like she was kicking a puppy. The sweet-faced twenty year old was staring at her feet. "Brandy, can you look at me?" The expression on Brandy's face, once she lifted it, was pure fear. Fear of being fired? Or fear of not being believed? "It's okay sweetheart, no matter what you say you're not going to be in trouble," Sarah said. She looked around and then grabbed a chair, pushing it towards Brandy, and then grabbed one for Angela and one for herself. Across the room she could see Gloria looking over at them, concerned, but for once she didn't come over to find out what was going on. Sarah could feel her muscles tensing. This couldn't be good. "Can you tell me what you and Vincent were talking about?" Brandy's voice was so soft that Sarah had to lean forward to hear it. "He was talking to me about how I liked working here and how I was doing, and then he started asking me about my personal life and if I was getting enough time off to have a life... and then he asked me if I had a boyfriend. I was getting uncomfortable and I told him that was none of his business and I tried to leave, and that's when he trapped me against the lockers. He was saying that after a shift sometime he and I should get a drink, and that's when you came." Tapping her foot, Sarah gnawed on her lip. Definitely inappropriate. And Vincent had lied. But at the same time, he hadn't quite pushed the bounds of sexual harassment. What could she do in a situation like this? "He's getting worse," said Angela. Sarah raised her eyes to the young woman, who was looking at her with a steady gaze. "Over the past month. Ever since Martin died. It used to be he'd only hit on us when he was drunk. He just barely tiptoes the line of what can be reported and what can't. Now he's getting closer to crossing it." "Did anyone tell Martin about this?" "We tried... he didn't want to hear anything bad about Vincent. But he knew, I think he just thought he could keep a handle on him." Sarah tried to assimilate this information. She'd always thought of Martin as being the father of this little family, but it sounded like he'd been protecting the pervy uncle, not the young women in his car. Then again, if Vincent hadn't actually done anything... but he had done enough to make them uncomfortable. That should have been enough right? Toeing the line wasn't okay. Not with her anyway. "Why isn't Gloria over here?" she asked, for lack of anything else to say. "Martin wouldn't let Vincent anywhere near her," Angela said. "He still stays away." Well that was interesting. Gloria had started working for them when she was fifteen. Sarah felt a surge of fury that Martin had known about Vincent, enough that he'd taken steps to protect the underage girl. Why not the rest of them? Well no, Angela had said that he'd protected them somewhat. But it wasn't enough. Why hadn't Martin ever told her these things about Vincent? Maybe because she already didn't like him. Hearing this wouldn't have helped. And she wouldn't have wanted him anywhere near the restaurant. Didn't want him anywhere near the restaurant. "Okay," said Sarah. "Okay." She looked directly at both girls. "I don't know what I can do yet, but I will find out. I can promise you I'm not going to sell him my share." Both of the woman immediately relaxed, and Angela grinned at her. "I'll talk to the managers and see what we can do about keeping him out of the restaurant as much as possible, and tell all the woman to try and make sure they aren't ever caught alone with him." "We already do that," said Brandy softly. "I was just running late this morning and he caught me after I had put my purse in my locker." Sarah sighed, feeling unworthy of the trust that was in this young woman's eyes. Looking at her to make it right. Unfortunately Sarah had no idea what to do or what her legal options were. But she would find out. Her chin lifted as she made that promise to herself, and to Brandy and Angela and all the other women in the restaurant. The two women hurried back to work, since the restaurant was going to be opening in a few minutes, sitting down for line-up with Rick, the day time manager, and getting information about the daily specials and any announcements. Feeling incredibly weary, Sarah just stayed in her seat and listened. Mmmm. Chicken and artichoke risotto with parmesan cheese. That sounded delicious. When line-up finished and the servers scattered, Sarah got up from her seat. Just as she was turning to head back into the kitchen, the door opened and Cara led Derrick out into the restaurant. Why did seeing him always pack such a visceral punch? Her body tingled, her nipples tightened, and she had to fight the urge to blatantly stare at him. Cara's gaze swept around the room, landing on Sarah. "You two are staying for lunch," she announced, and then grinned up at Derrick fondly. The chef was just barely taller than Sarah, and she could see how incredibly tiny she must look next to his tall and muscular body. So tiny. So vulnerable. Why was that so sexy? "But-" Sarah started to protest, and Cara's hand waved, immediately cutting her off. "I made today's special with you in mind," she said, giving Sarah a sharp look. Yes, Cara knew exactly how much of a weakness Sarah had for artichokes. And risotto. And cheese. "And this delightful young man must try some of my actual dishes so that he can compliment me some more." Derrick grinned down at her, amused at being called a young man. Thirty five didn't feel that young. But then again it didn't feel that old either. Cara was a small force of nature. She'd taken him around the entire kitchen, introduced him to everyone, and had him tasting sauces and tidbits until his tongue was exploding with flavors. When she'd heard his stomach rumble hungrily that had been the final straw. Although part of him knew it was a bad idea, his stomach and his dick had outvoted his brain. He was having lunch with Sarah. It was obvious when she caved too, her soft brown eyes giving in to her friend's demand. The redheaded server she'd been talking to when he first came in immediately took charge of them, leading them to a small corner booth in her section. After giving Sarah a rather enigmatic look, she poured the water as she rattled off the specials, and then retreated. Leaving her alone with Derrick, quite obviously intentionally. If she hadn't been so distracted by keeping her leg away from him underneath the table, which was really meant for cuddling couples, she'd have been fuming at the staff's assumptions. Did they really think she'd just abandon all common decency and dishonor Martin's memory like that? She should be in mourning for... well, she didn't know how long, but more than a month surely, before it would be all right for her to even indicate interest in another man. Or was she just reading too much into it because that's what her secret, deep, dark desires wanted? As their legs brushed, once again, underneath the table, Sarah felt the heat rise in her face and she studiously looked over the menu, which she already had memorized, and pretending to be trying to find something to eat, when she already knew that she was getting the special. "So what's good?" Derrick asked, finally, breaking the ice. He couldn't just sit in silence anymore, tormenting himself with the light touches their calves occasionally made as they shifted in their seats. The staff was all very friendly with him, but they seemed a little intimidated by Sarah. Their server had given them the fastest rundown of specials he'd ever heard and then fled, leaving him alone with this gorgeous woman who starred in all sorts of unwarranted fantasies in his head. If he had to sit next to her then they needed to get a conversation flowing or he'd never be able to stop thinking about how much he wanted to do so much more then let their legs touch. "Oh um... pretty much everything. Sarah's a really fantastic cook. If you liked the sausage she gave you then you'd probably like the meat and ziti platter that she does, it has a couple different kinds of meat that she makes with a side of the most incredible baked ziti." "That does sound good," he said, grinning at her and leaning back. She tried not to let her eyes follow the play of muscles, just barely visible under the thin fabric of his shirt. He really had the most incredible shoulders. "I'm determined to figure out what she puts in those sausages." "You seemed to know your way around her flavors," Sarah said, trying not to jump as their legs brushed again. Also trying not to think about double entendres involving him having a talented tongue. "That was pretty impressive. If you figure out the secret ingredient, you'd better share it with me." "Of course." He flashed her another one of those stunning grins that set her heart pumping, the gleaming blaze of his white teeth so startling in that handsome dark face. "So how do you know so much about spices anyway?" "Well, with Italian cooking there's a lot of basics," he said, smiling at her again as she realized that he was pointing out the obvious. But then he started to tell her about the cooking lessons that his mother had given him growing up and how much he'd enjoyed experimenting with the food. And some of the truly awful dishes he'd served his unsuspecting family. Getting him to talk had been a mistake, she wished that they'd just sat there in silence so that she could concentrate on not letting their legs touch and keeping her wayward libido under control. Right now, listening to the sexy rumble of his voice, it was all she could do to keep her thighs tightly together, squeezing her insides tightly to relieve some of the throbbing in her aching vagina. Even worse, listening to his story of how he'd accidentally mixed up the salt with the sugar while making a cake, and then describing the dogged attempts of his family to it eat before tried a bite, had her nearly crying with laughter. Self-effacing humor, utterly gorgeous, and knew his way around a kitchen (at least, now he did). Could the man get any more perfect? Sarah suddenly realized that they'd been sitting there for at least fifteen minutes and Gloria hadn't even been by to get their drink order. With a quick glance around the room she caught the redhead's eye and gave her a stern look. The mischievous smile that she got in return did nothing to quell her inner turmoil. When Gloria finally came over she took their order quickly and efficiently, gamely ignoring the gimlet stare that Sarah was giving her. When she turned to go she even winked! Good grief. And yet that wink made some of Sarah's anxieties unwind. Was it possible that people might not judge her for being attracted to someone else? The thought lingered in the back of her mind for about five minutes, until Derrick asked her about her own upbringing, and they fell into a comparison of family dynamics. His sounded wonderful, he had a bundle of nieces and nephews and it was a close-knit clan. Sarah had been an only child - part of why she had wanted a lot of children of her own - and although she loved her parents very much, they lived several hours away so she only saw them on weekends. It sounded like Derrick had a fair amount of family in the area and just as much out of it. When the food arrived they both tucked in with gusto, but it didn't derail the conversation at all as they compared interests in books and movies, flowing easily from one topic to the next. And, of course, the requisite amount of time spent gushing over the food. Although Derrick still couldn't place the secret ingredient. At the end of the lunch Sarah was shocked to realize that it was the most fun she'd had with a man during a meal in years. Eating with Patricia was this much fun, but she and Martin had never had even a dinner conversation that flowed so easily or covered so many interesting subjects. In fact, she'd been so involved in the conversation that she hadn't thought of Martin once, or noticed that Derrick's calf was now pressing against hers. Suddenly aware of the impropriety she jerked her leg away and turned to her purse, rooting around for a ten dollar bill to leave as a tip for Gloria, using the movements to cover the blush on her face. Derrick was perturbed to find that he was sad the meal was over. Sarah was truly an interesting and engaging woman, not just beautiful but easy to talk to, and she had a wonderful laugh. He'd told story after embarrassing story just to hear that husky laugh and the little giggles that she made. What was personal humiliation compared to that? "So ah," he said, suddenly uncomfortable for the first time since he'd started the conversation, as she laid the tip down on the table. "I guess we should go to your place so I can check out the office again?" "Yes that's fine," said Sarah, not meeting his eyes. Quickly she stood up, trying not to watch as he eased himself along the seat and out of the booth. Despite the tight fit of his muscular body between the table and booth, he moved with the easy grace of a cat. More like a panther. She pulled her car keys out and fiddled with them nervously. "I'll meet you there?" "Yes. Thank you for a wonderful lunch." Smiling, she said her own thank you as she automatically looked up into his eyes. Her voice caught in her throat again. He was standing so close, looming over her and making her feel so small and delicate. Something stirred in his eyes, the way a man looked when he found himself next to an attractive woman, and she felt an answering wave of lust roll through her. Definitely time to back away. She was already hyperaware of him as it was, if he looked at her like that again she'd be a goner. They both went through the kitchen to thank Cara for the wonderful lunch. In the middle of the busy rush, she smiled at them beatifically as she called tickets and put the final garnishes on the dishes in front of her before handing them off to the runners. Obviously she couldn't talk though, so Sarah just gave her a quick hug and then she and Derrick were off. When she got in the car she let her head fall onto the steering wheel with a thud. He was going to be back in her house again. She tried to tell herself that it wasn't a big deal, but the truth was her body was humming with anticipation. Down girl. No reason to get excited. Because she was so not going to go there. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 04 Derrick beat Sarah to her house by about five minutes. It was possible that he'd been going a little faster than normal, feeling a little too excited to be there. Staring at the garden in front, which was just as immaculate as the last time, he wondered again if she was the one who took care of it. From what she'd said over lunch about being a housewife, he thought that was probably the case. Keeping her at home was a crime, as far as he was concerned. She obviously knew a lot about the restaurant, but instead of utilizing her, her husband had just bottled her up in the house and gotten ideas from her in private then implemented them in public. Probably without giving her any of the credit. From everything he was learning, Martin didn't seem much better than Vincent, other than the fact that he hadn't been preying upon the young women who worked at Polenta. Not a great guy in his opinion. Not that anyone had asked. Fortunately he had a lot of practice at keeping a poker face and not letting anyone know his true feelings. Investigators always garnered a lot of experience at play devil's advocate and pretending not to judge anyone. When Sarah pulled up to the house he didn't know whether to be relieved or anxious. Being next to her in the restaurant had been hard enough. Their conversation had been almost too easy. The second he saw her it was like the starting bell of a race; his heart rate picked up, his adrenaline started pumping and he was hyperaware of every single one of her movements. His mind made every single one of them into sensuous, sinuous beauty. Probably would have helped if he hadn't let her precede him up to the house, not that walking side by side with her would have been any better really but at least he wouldn't have had to watch that perfect ass twitch inside of her jeans. Sarah actually felt herself trembling as she unlocked the door to the house, feeling the looming presence of the far-too-attractive man behind her. How could she not be aware of him? He was huge, and somehow his personality seemed to exude beyond the physical space that he actually filled. "So ah, do you need me to show you the way to the office again?" she asked. "No, I think I can find it, as long as you trust me not to rob you blind," he said, joking. Sarah giggled, but as soon as she looked up at him, meeting that dark gaze, she lost the urge to laugh. The expression on his face made her blood feel like it was boiling, it was humming so fast through her veins. It was an expression that she'd seen before, on other men's faces as they looked at their girlfriends or wives and she'd felt envy. She'd even seen it on Vincent's face, but all it had roused was disgust. Seeing Derrick looking at her like that now made her want to fall to her knees. Or back. Yes, on her back so that he could - STOP IT. "Of c-c-c-c-course," she stuttered, tearing her eyes away before she completely lost control over her body. "Um, I'll get you a glass of water." She fled, stepping so quickly down the hall that he didn't even have a chance to respond. Dammit, why had she done that? Avoid! Avoid! But now she'd promised him a glass of water. Which he might not even want. Sarah gripped the eddied marble of her countertop next to the sink, leaning forward and pressing her stomach against the cool, hard surface. Get a grip woman! Okay, so she'd been surprised to see that look on his face. The look that said he found her just as attractive as she'd found him. This was probably the first time in her life that she'd been this attracted to a man and so of course realizing that he returned the attraction was going to effect her deeply. But it didn't mean anything. People were attracted to each other all the time. Now that she knew what to expect she could face him and it wouldn't be so bad. Mostly convinced, Sarah let go of the counter and got herself a glass of water, drinking the entire thing and cooling down her insides. The time that she took to calm herself down and drink the water helped a lot. She was feeling much less shaky by the time she filled a glass of water for Derrick and took it up to the home office. Then she lost all that shakiness when their fingers touched as she handed him the glass, shooting electric awareness through her body and straight to her loins. So she did the only sensible thing and fled again. ***** An hour and a half later Derrick was extremely frustrated. And not just because of the sexy woman who he could occasionally hear moving around the house. Although every time he heard her, he immediately started imagining what she might be doing and then his dick started to stir. But mostly he was frustrated because he'd been over the entire office for a second time and he couldn't figure out what Vincent had been so worried about. Unless he'd completely read the man wrong, there was something in this office that Vincent didn't want them to find. Hm. Maybe Martin didn't want anyone to find it either. Derrick looked back at the heavy monstrosity of a desk. After pulling out all of the drawers he finally found it, tucked away behind the shallow drawer over the leg space of the desk. Only he couldn't get it out. He didn't want to damage the desk if he didn't have to, so he went looking for Sarah. The house was completely silent and he wondered if maybe she'd gone out, but that didn't seem right. "Mrs. Brown? I mean, Sarah?" Using her first name seemed wrongly intimate. Maybe because he couldn't say it without thinking of her in an intimate setting. "Back here, hold on, I'll be right out!" Her voice was coming from a room on the main floor, just on the other side of the kitchen. The door was open so he figured it probably wasn't a bathroom and he walked over, curious to see what she was doing. The room wasn't exactly furnished, it was filled with bin-shelves from the container store and in the center of the room was a table where Sarah was sitting and on the table next to her were a bunch of the bins that had been pulled out, filled with colorful, sparkly things. As he walked closer he could see that she was bending some wire, making what looked like a choker made out of chain mail and decorated with sparkling gems. "That's pretty," he said, and she jumped. It took everything she had not to scream actually, for such a big man he moved ridiculously quietly and she honestly hadn't heard him approach or come in. Now he was here, in her private sanctuary, complimenting her on her work. Sitting in a chair looking up at him just made her feel even smaller as he loomed over her. When she realized that his eyes were roaming over the mounds of her breasts she blushed deeply and quickly stood. For a moment she wondered if what Gloria had said was really true, that people wouldn't think it was bad if she happened to be attracted to a man... but Gloria was so young. Sarah had her own standards and she knew that a lot of other people wouldn't think it was right either. If nothing else, Sarah had prided herself on being the perfect wife for Martin and she wasn't going to sully his memory just because there was a dead-sexy man in her house. "Thanks," she said. "Um, sorry, what did you need?" She was always apologizing around him. Derrick thought that she was just too cute. It was becoming increasingly obvious to him that she was just as attracted to him as he was to her. Which, of course, made everything much harder. Figuratively and literally. It didn't help that the moment she'd realized he was standing there her nipples had popped out. He hadn't been able to look away from her breasts and she'd caught him at it. Of course, his dark skin didn't show his embarrassed flush the way her ivory cheeks did. A beautiful rosy hue that brought quite a bit of color to her face. "There's a hidden drawer on the desk upstairs, I was hoping you might know how to get into it." She frowned. "A hidden drawer?" Derrick nodded. "Some desks have those, if there are things people want to hold on to but don't want other people to know about. I don't know if there's anything in it, but I think that Vincent was afraid of us finding something in the office here and now that I've found the drawer I think that might be where it is." "Can you show me?" Sarah asked. "I can't remember anything about a hidden drawer, I rarely spent any time in there." Not at all loathe to spend some time with her, even though he was now obviously thinking with his lower brain, Derrick nodded and led the way back up the stairs. Too bad he couldn't walk behind Sarah up the stairs again. That had been a sight worth seeing the first time. **** Sarah was shocked when Derrick showed her the hidden drawer. It seemed fused to the desk above it, but as she crawled underneath the desk she could see that it was clearly holding something. Holding up the flashlight that she'd picked up to get a better view, she looking at the machine work around the drawer. "Do you think it has a hidden latch somewhere?" she asked. The heavy wood of the desk muffled her voice somewhat but her question was clear enough. Derrick had been wondering the same thing, of course, although he'd hoped she'd know how to unlatch it. Obviously this was something Martin hadn't shared with his wife. Looking down at the dainty barefoot feet that were poking out from underneath the desk, Derrick did his best not to place the two of them in a boss / secretary fantasy in his head. Instead he crouched down and looked at the pretty widow. She was running her hands around the wood, looking absolutely entranced and slightly excited. That made him grin. Apparently she liked a little mystery in her life. "I haven't been able to find one," he told her. "Do you want me to keep looking or go ahead and just take it out by brute force." Nibbling on her lip Sarah thought over the options as she scooted out from under the desk. Which, of course, put her right next to Derrick's crouched form. When she looked up at him their faces were only a few inches apart. Suddenly it was hard to breathe. Or think. Was it actually possible to drown in a pair of eyes? She felt like she couldn't get any air. "Um," she said. And then cursed herself for sounding like an idiot. Oh whatever. "Yeah, go ahead and bring it out." Then she scooted out of the way and stood up as he folded his large frame into the space under the desk. When she'd been down there it had seemed almost spacious, now it looked cramped and tiny as his entire body seemed to fill it. What on earth had Martin been keeping in a secret drawer? Things that he'd meant for her to find, one day after his death? A hidden will? Piles of money? Well she wouldn't mind that last one at all if that was the case. There were some heavy creaking sounds from beneath the desk. "Do you need a crowbar or anything?" SNAP. Well that answered that question. Sarah's jaw dropped. Wow. Derrick brought the term 'brute strength' to a whole new level. Considering that he wouldn't be able to get much leverage in that position, or much of a grip, he must have the most insanely strong fingers, hands and arms. Which brought up a whole new set of fantasies for her head to obsess over. Not that she hadn't already been fantasizing about what those dusky fingers could do to her body. "Sh- shoot," he muttered under his breath as he got a little stuck trying to get out from under the table, obviously changing the word he had been about to use. Like she hadn't heard curse words before. Sarah almost giggled. As he wrenched himself free of the space under the desk the contents of the drawer spilled out, scattering across the floor, and all urge to laugh died a sudden and brutal death. Photos. Hundreds of them. For a moment Sarah's eyes couldn't take in what she was seeing and then it all coalesced into a horrible big picture. Martin and Vincent with women who were obviously prostitutes. Young women. Some with just Martin and a woman, some with just Vincent and a woman, and the worst were the ones with both of them sharing a woman. No... no those weren't even the worst. She reached out with trembling fingers. "Sarah." Derrick's voice pierced through the fog that had become her brain and she looked up at him automatically, all the color drained from her face, nerveless fingers holding the picture of Martin with Paula, a server that had worked Polenta up until three yeas ago. How many other women that Sarah actually knew would be in the pile. For a moment she couldn't even see the beautiful dark face in front of her, all she could see was her husband, sweaty limbs entangled with woman after woman... well no wonder he hadn't been interested in sex with her. Even the prostitutes in the pictures were prettier than her, almost all of them were blonde, they were all bustier, skinnier and younger than her. Paula. Dammit. She could remember being concerned about Paula's schoolgirl crush on Martin, not because she thought anything would happen but because she knew that it would eventually break Paula's heart. How wrong she'd been. "Sarah, look at me." She realized that she was blinking back tears as she looked at Derrick's face, his fingers cupped beneath her chin to keep her from looking down. From seeing any more of the pictures. But the damage was already done. All this time, all these years, she'd been the good, faithful wife. Neglected but determined to be happy and makes the best of things. Fury ran through her, flushing her pale cheeks. Those late nights that Martin had claimed to be working, his inability to take a real vacation, it had been because he'd been sleeping with other women. While she'd been at home, alone, faithful and childless. Even now she'd felt guilty just about being attracted to someone else. Someone that she hadn't done anything with! The photo in her hand was taken from her and strong arms wrapped around her. The trembling in her body only increased as her spirits suddenly plummeted again. Sure, she and Martin hadn't had much of a romantic spark, but had he really tried? Or was she so unattractive, so undesirable that he hadn't had any choice but to go to other women for sexual satisfaction? Doubts assailed her as she compared herself to the women that she'd glimpsed in the pictures. As she remembered Paula's flat stomach and slim thighs when the company had had a summer pool party. Sarah had worn a tankini. Paula's bikini had been tied with strings. "Sarah, Sarah, shhhh.... I'm so sorry." The deep rich voice of her private investigator pulled her back into the present. His arms were around her and he was holding her, keeping his body in between her and the photos that had been scattered across the floor. Even though what he really wanted to do was find someone to pound into the ground, preferably Vincent since her husband was no longer available, Derrick managed to keep the raging fury out of his voice. Making sure that Sarah was alright after such a shocking revelation was the most important thing. And he had no doubt that it had shocked her. When she'd seen the pictures all the blood had drained from her face, leaving her looking like a corpse, and her eyes had gotten a glazed, glassy look that was absolutely terrifying as it leeched the personality from her expression. She hadn't seemed to hear anything he was saying. Alternating emotions had made her flush red and then pale again, and the way she shivered against him made him want to wrap her up in his limbs and warm her. Hold her and tell her that everything was okay. Even though it obviously wasn't. "How could he?" she whispered. And then she let out a wail. "Why?" Why indeed. What a fucking idiot her husband had been. At home he'd had a real woman, sweetly compliant, sensually gorgeous, funny, sweet and intelligent. What on earth had possessed the asshole to sleep around like that? Maybe just the thrill of sharing women with his friend? At least now Derrick had a pretty good idea where the money Martin had been skimming went. Prostitutes that looked like the ones in the pictures could cost a pretty penny. Although not all of them looked like hookers or escorts, the picture Sarah had been holding before he took it away from her was probably someone she knew or had known, judging by her reaction. He could tell that one had been the most painful of all to look at. As she began to cry he didn't know what to do so he just held her and murmured over and over again that he was sorry. He hated being helpless but no solution presented itself immediately. He wished to hell that he'd never told her about the hidden drawer, but how were either of them to know how damaging the contents would be to her? Lost in his own fury and frustration, it took him a few minutes to realize that she was talking, rather brokenly, and when he started to make some sense of what she was saying it made him feel ice cold. Not just asking why or how could he, she was answering the question herself. Berating herself for not being prettier, skinnier, sexier. It was incredibly unprofessional, but he couldn't just sit here silently and let her think those things about herself. Gripping her shoulders he pulled her out of his arms and turned her to face him, setting her on her knees so that she was at about the same level as him in his current crouched position. She wasn't sobbing really, but tears were leaking out of her reddened eyes and he could tell that she was holding onto her emotions with an iron grip. The expression that she had was full of anger and self-loathing. "Sarah, look at me," he said, shaking her a little bit. It seemed to get through to her and her unfocused hazel eyes seemed to narrow and focus in on him. Good enough. "This has nothing to do with you. He was a jerk. You're an incredibly sexy, vibrant woman. Do you hear me?" She heard. The laugh that she gave him was low and bitter. "You're just saying that to stop me from crying." She gave him a nicely ironic smile. "I appreciate it, I really do, but you don't have to say that." Derrick growled at her, shocking her into really seeing him. Grabbing her hand he placed it on his crotch, letting her feel the hard ridge of his erection. His dick hadn't cared that she was crying, he'd just liked having her in his arms, holding onto her and smelling the sweet flowery scent she was wearing. Feeling her soft hair brushing against his bicep muscles. Even though he hadn't allowed himself to focus on the soft curves of her body against him, his libido had responded anyway. When she realized what she was touching, her fingers splayed across his jeans, her eyes got very wide but she didn't pull away. "You're sexy," he grated at her. "And he was an idiot. None of those women in any of those pictures hold a candle to you." Then he let go of her wrist, expecting her to drop her hand away from him. Not even entirely sure why he'd used such an extreme measure; her distress had his own emotions in turmoil and he was quickly realizing that he wasn't thinking too clearly. "Oh," she said, letting her breath out in almost a sigh. Then, before he could react, she leaned forward and kissed him. He responded immediately. Derrick's lips were as soft as his cock was hard and Sarah let her fingers grip him through his jeans. Huge. He was absolutely huge if that's really what she was feeling. When his lips pulled away from hers she leaned into him, kissing the soft, dark skin of his neck, leaning into his body. "Fuck... Sarah, I don't... we can't... I don't want to take advantage of you," he said, stuttering his words, trying to get across his meaning without giving her anything that could be taken as rejection. That restraint on his part just made her even more determined. The sensual heat that was pouring into her body wasn't something she wanted to deny any longer. Why should she? With the glaring proof of Martin's infidelity spread across the floor of his home office, why the hell shouldn't she give in to her overwhelming attraction for this gorgeous man? Especially when he'd just proved to her, beyond a doubt, that he was pretty damn attractive to her too. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 04 "You aren't," she said reassuringly. Her body felt warm, hot in fact, and her repressed libido thought this was a wonderful idea. There was no expectation on her part that he would stick around after this, she just needed to feel pretty and wanted. "Touch me, please, Derrick. Make me feel good. Make it better." It would take a better man then Derrick not to respond to that plea. Hell it would take a saint. "Not in here," he said. Even though he'd had fantasies of bending her over the desk, he was coherent enough to know that she needed to be pampered and cherished, and that an office wasn't the place to do it. "The next room on the left," she said, running her hands over his hard chest muscles. She could barely think, it was like the fire between her legs had burned away all rational thought. When he picked her up, his hands spanning her waist, Sarah wrapped her legs around his waist, rubbing her crotch against his hard erection and looping her arms around his neck. The hard muscles of his body rippled and moved against her as he stood, like her weight was nothing. With both of his hands underneath her buttocks, Derrick could barely concentrate enough to walk as she sucked on his earlobe. "Fuck Sarah," he muttered as he stumbled into the bedroom, practically falling on top of her onto the bed. He had the barest impression of dark wood and then he was staring down at her. Grabbing her ponytail he pulled out the elastic band holding it in place and spread her auburn hair across the navy blue of the comforter. "You're so beautiful." She responded to the praise like a flower opening, her entire face brightening with pleasure. With her legs wrapped around him he was becoming more and more aware of the urgent need to bury himself inside of her. Claim her. Bring her to heights of ecstasy that she'd never experienced before and make her his. The sudden possessiveness that was sweeping through him was shocking in its intensity. But he found that he didn't want any other man ever putting this expression on her face. He wanted her to be his. It was a primal, Neanderthal urge, far too soon for him to be feeling like this. In fact he wasn't sure if he'd ever felt like this before in his life. Something about this woman, her vulnerability, her innocent sensuality, the sweet and funny personality that he'd discovered at lunch today, was taking down all of his defenses. When her fingers ran down the sides of his face he could see the awestruck wonderment in her eyes, that he was here, that he found her attractive. He was going to fuck that surprise right out of her if he had anything to say about it. Make her realize what a gorgeous, sexy woman she was. Part of him was still saying that this was a bad idea, but it was a very, very small part. The raw look of lust and gentle intention on Derrick's face was balm to Sarah's broken self-esteem. That this stunningly sexy man was so attracted to her made her feel like the sexiest woman alive. Her body was on fire like it had never been in her entire life. For the first time she felt like sex was something she needed, rather than something that she put up with. When Derrick's hands slid under her shirt, up the soft skin of her stomach and pulled her shirt over her head, it set every nerve ending on fire with anticipation. His upper body loomed over hers as he crouched between her thighs, watching her expression as he pulled her breasts from her bra, making sure she wasn't changing her mind. If he stopped she'd kill him. Sarah arched her back, moaning, as his thumbs rubbed over her nipples. Her legs tightened around him as the pleasure shot through her, the sensitive buds coming alive under his fingers. Looking down at her chest she could see how his strong fingers gently kneaded her soft flesh, the dark ebony of his skin was shocking against the cream of her skin and the pink of her nipples, and just as sexy as it had been in her fantasy. When he lowered his head to her chest, taking one pert, rosy nipples between his dark lips, she thought she might cum just from that. The contrast of their skin color was so intensely erotic, it fascinated her as he stroked her breasts. Reaching up she grasped his head in her hands, rubbing the top of his bald head and marveling at the feeling of smooth skin. When she reached down to unbutton his blue shirt Derrick pulled away and Sarah made a disappointed whimpering sound. "Shh," he said as he began kissing down her stomach. "Just feel." At the moment he was barely keeping himself under control. A gentleman's instincts, knowing that she was emotionally vulnerable right now. If he kept his clothes on, he might have a chance at not letting this go too far. If she started touching him, the way he was touching her, then he'd be buried inside of her within five minutes. Maybe less. "Please, please, please," she said, her hips rocking upwards as he unbuttoned her jeans. The plain cotton of her panties matched the bra she was wearing, which was holding her breasts up because of the way he'd folded the cups under her soft flesh. As soon as he started tugging off her jeans he could smell her arousal and he hooked his fingers around her underwear, pulling all of it off of her at once. Sarah spread her legs, the trimmed patch of auburn hair over her mound and the wet pink flesh at the apex of her thighs was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. When he started to slide his hands up her inner thighs, spreading her further and watching his dark hands caress her ivory flesh, Sarah cried out and tried to close her legs. When he looked up at her, surprised, he realized that she was flushed with embarrassment. "Open up beautiful," he said, huskily. "I want to see your pretty pink pussy." The shiver that went through Sarah at his words washed away her immediate reaction. She'd never made love like this, never had a man studying her so closely between her thighs. When he stroked a finger down her center her hips jerked upwards and she let out a moan. This was pure torture, like she'd never experienced before. Is this what sex was like for other women? What the hell had she been missing out on all these years? His fingertip swirled around her sensitive folds, lubricating her clitoris and Sarah's head thrashed as she gripped the sheets on either side of her. Martin had never spent any time arousing her like this, not even close. Not that Derrick had needed to do anything more to turn her on. She'd been ready for him ever since he'd walked into the restaurant this morning. Now that he was touching her she thought she might explode. Sarah's unrestrained responses were absolutely beautiful and making it that much harder on Derrick. It was obvious from the surprise on her face, her inherent modesty, that she'd never had anyone pay attention to her body this way. He wanted to worship it, to show her with his hands and mouth how beautiful and desirable she was. The cave-man in him still wanted to bury himself inside of her but he stamped that part down. For now. Using her copious pussy juices, he circled his finger around her clit, wetting the little bud. First he nuzzled one side and then the other, making Sarah's body jerk as she moaned relentlessly, her legs quivering as he manipulated her pussy. "Oh please Derrick!" she cried out as he pressed one of his fingers against her hole, pushing it in very slightly. The channel was exquisitely tight, molten hot with her cream. When he slid his tongue along her pussy lips, lapping delicately around his finger as it slowly sank into her body, Sarah came apart at the seams, screaming with ecstasy as she tightened down on him. It was the fastest he'd ever made a woman cum and it took him completely by surprise. Moving his lips up to the top of her pussy, he was thankful for her well-trimmed mound as he sucked her clit into his mouth, suckling on the little nub. Sarah's back arched upwards and her hands moved from her sides up to either side of her head, her elbows bending as she used them to help her body arch, pressing her pussy against Derrick's finger and mouth. It was the most intense sensation she'd ever experienced and her orgasm was shattering, rippling through her with white hot shards of passion, just like the romances she'd read and scoffed at. When Derrick pulled his mouth away from her pussy, leaving his finger inside of her, she opened her eyes to see him licking her juices from his lips and she blushed. Seeing her expression he chuckled. "It's a little late to be blushing, isn't it?" he teased her gently, twisting his finger inside of her. Sarah moaned. Even though she'd just had the most incredible orgasm of her life - and now she was wondering if what she'd felt before had even been orgasms - she could feel her body's excitement starting to build again. Licking her own lips she looked up at him with pleasure-glazed eyes. His finger felt huge, just as wonderful as she'd fantasized about. It stretched her wonderfully. Reluctantly Derrick pulled out of her. "Don't stop," she said, sitting up quickly, afraid that he was going to go away. The expression on his face turned a little stubborn. "Sarah, if I don't stop touching you now then this isn't going to end until I'm cumming inside of your sweet pussy." The utter carnality of his words made everything inside of her clench with desire. "Yes please," she said immediately, her voice breathless. For a moment he looked like he was going to turn her down, reject her and Sarah's face turned pleading as she pushed herself up on her knees, her hands coming down on his chest. Even on their knees he towered over her. Tilting her face up for a kiss, she rubbed her fingers over his nipples. Even through his shirt she could feel the wiry hair on his chest, the hard tips of his sensitive nipples. Derrick groaned and gave in, his lips swooping down to catch hers. This wasn't a gentle kiss, it wasn't for comfort or reassurance. His mouth claimed hers, took hers, his tongue sweeping in and rubbing against hers in a sensuous dance. Moaning, Sarah pressed against him, feeling her breasts flatten against the hard planes of his body. His hands ran down her back, unclasped her bra and pulled it from her, leaving her completely naked. As he continued to caress her, strong fingers digging into the soft curves of her ass, she frantically unbuttoned his shirt, eager to get her hands onto his bare skin. His hips moved, rubbing the front of his body against hers and she became even more wild with need as the hard length of his jean-clad erection dug into her stomach. His chest had enough hair to be masculine but not so much that he could really be called hair. She ran slim fingers through it, pulling her mouth away so that she could see the contrast of their skin, the black hairs even darker than his skin. Trailing kisses over his chest, she scrabbled at his jeans, struggling to unbutton them. The throbbing erection underneath made her job harder and Derrick wasn't helping at all, he was too involved in running his fingers through her hair, a sensual delight for both of them. Everything about Sarah was soft and feminine, and having his hands in her hair was just as glorious as he'd imagined. Her frantic need for him was the kind of thing that could make a man's ego. So was the gasping shocked sound she made when she pulled his dick out of his pants. The look on her face was part fear, part excitement as she wrapped her slim, pale hand around the large piece of male equipment, studying the dark length and the thick purple-y head. How on earth would that fit inside her? Martin had barely been half this long and not nearly as thick. Sarah knew she was rather petite and little, and being around Derrick had made her feel even more so, but this was the first time that she felt absolutely tiny next to him. The deep chuckling interrupted her reverie and she stared up at him, looking anxious. "Don't worry gorgeous," he said, reassuringly. "It will fit." Sarah moaned and he caught her lips in another kiss, pulling her against him with one arm while the other went between her legs. Still slippery with wetness. Derrick ran two fingers back and forth along the length of her, devouring her with his mouth as she clung to him, and then he began to push two fingers inside of her, swallowing her cries of pleasure. Two fingers were so much thicker than one and Sarah could feel her legs trembling beneath her as she knelt on the bed, rocking against Derrick's hand. His palm was pressed against her clit as he stretched her out with his fingers. She wondered what it looked like, the dark black of his skin against the pretty shell pink of her interior, invading her, rubbing her. The arm around her body was like a steel bar, keeping her in place as he began to move his fingers in rhythm, sapping the strength from her muscles as he mimicked the sex act with his fingers. Running her hand down his body, Sarah wrapped slender fingers around his cock again. It felt like silk wrapped around steel, hot and throbbing in her hand as she began to pump it. The answering shudder in Derrick's body gave her the most incredible feeling of power. She reveled in it for all of two seconds before she found herself being pulled on top of him. His muscular body was so wide that she could feel her thighs straining as she straddled him, her knees barely touching the bed. Then he rolled over, settling her beneath him, and she moaned. He was so big, in every way, pinning her down with his body. They were like darkness and moonlight intertwined on the navy comforter, the light and dark of their limbs wrapping around each other. Looking down at her, he hesitated again. "Please," she begged. "I want you. I've wanted you ever since I met you." His expression changed from unsure to lustful and he moved his hips. The thick wide head of his meat pressed against her and Sarah drew in a quick, sharp breath. "I'll go slow," he said. As if he really had a choice. She was so incredibly tight that he couldn't have done anything but. At first he'd wanted to have her on top of him, but remembering how her muscles had strained around his fingers he had realized that missionary position would be the easiest way to open her up for him. Just getting the head of his dick inside of her took slow pumps of his hips, spreading her for him. Sarah gasped and moaned, writhing beneath him as her legs spread wider to help her accommodate the biggest thing she'd ever had inside of her. "Oh Derrick!" she cried out, her body arching as his head pushed all the way inside of her. The muscles of her inner walls rippled and clenched around him and he was able to push in another inch as she let out another cry of pleasure. Leaning his weight onto one forearm, he slid his hand down the milky skin of her stomach and splayed his fingers over her hip, pressing his thumb through her auburn mound and against her clit. Making small circles with his thumb, Derrick held still as Sarah's hips began to pump up and down, working more of him inside of her as she bucked beneath him. As her muscles tightened around him he knew that she was getting close to another orgasm. Curling his back, he leaned over and took one of her pretty pink nipples between his lips again, biting down gently on the tender bud as he rubbed her clit. The rubbery mushroom ridge of his dick was rubbing against her g-spot in just the right way and Sarah screamed with pleasure as she came, stretched open so much farther than she'd ever been in her life. As all of her muscles released, her insides loosened and spasmed, and Derrick worked his hips in rhythm with her waves of ecstasy, pushing deeper into her as she quivered around him. The deep thrust of his body into hers took Sarah's breath away. She hadn't realized how much of his length hadn't been inside of her yet. The long press of his cock went so deep into her body that she could almost feel it in her throat, her vagina spasming around the thick, midnight-black spear that had pierced and filled her completely. Derrick held himself inside of her, fingers digging into the bed sheets beneath her as he forced himself to remain still, letting her hips move beneath him as she adjusted to her new proportions. She was the tightest, wettest sheathe he'd ever sunk into and he felt ready to cum just from being held inside of her gorgeous body. When Sarah looked up at him with wide hazel eyes, completely in awe, he pulled his fingers away from stroking her clit and let himself settle on top of her, kissing her lips gently. "I told you I'd fit," he said. She half-laughed, half-groaned, the jiggling and laughter making her ripple around him and against him as he lay between her splayed thighs, his hard rod buried inside of her. It felt good and right. "Last chance," he said. If she said no, he could still pull out now. Go jerk off and take a freezing cold shower. He was trying so hard to make sure that this was really what she wanted. Sarah felt a small burst of emotion for his generosity and selflessness. He'd given her two incredible orgasms already, he was rigidly hard inside of her, and yet he was still trying to do the right thing. Even though she was a little frightened of what it would feel like to be beneath his hard thrusting body she wanted him. She wanted this. Running her hands over the broad muscles of his shoulders she clasped them behind his neck, running her feet up the backs of his thighs until they were tucked under his muscular butt, which opened her thighs even further for him. "Don't stop," she said, and moved her hips against him. The first shove of his hips was immediate and hard, splitting her open, and Sarah gasped at he power in his body as he began to ride her. The wiry hair of his groin rubbed against her pussy lips as she humped back against him, meeting him thrust for thrust, the walls of her pussy convulsing around him as he emptied and filled her. It was erotically hard, sensually pounding. Her pale skin practically glowed against his, her breasts bouncing between their bodies, nipples rubbing against the hard planes of his muscle, being tickled by the hair on his chest. Arching her back only increased the exquisite sensations. Considering that she had already cum twice and he was now inside of her, Sarah wasn't expecting to have another orgasm. Especially because her experience with Martin had been that once he was inside of her it didn't take long for him to cum. But Derrick just kept pounding at her, reaching dark recesses in her body that no man had touched before as he dug deeper, tilting his body to press against her clit every time their bodies' met. Sarah cried out, writhing underneath him as the familiar feeling of passion began to climb again. Surely she couldn't cum again... His dick rubbed and dragged against her insides, continuously stretching her. "Oh.... Oh... Oh Derrick," she said, breathlessly, almost unbelieving as her pleasure began to build, winding her muscles tighter and tighter. "Oh Derrick... Oh fuck... Oh Derrick..." The way she was saying his name over and over again was seriously dissolving Derrick's control as he slid back and forth against her slick walls, riding her for all he was worth. Fortunately he had a feeling that it meant she was as close as he was. Her head tilted back and she let out an erotic scream as he began to thicken inside of her, his balls tightening he rammed her hard and fast. As her legs closed around him, pulling him into her body, urging him deeper, Derrick let out a bellow as thick, creamy white cum barreled out of him, spurting deep inside of her. His hips kept moving, riding out their orgasms, pushing the heights of their mutual ecstasy as Sarah undulated beneath him, breathlessly gasping as she surged beneath him, her tight pussy milking him of every jet of cream. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 04 Their movements slowed as they shuddered out the last wringing aftershocks of orgasmic rapture. Sarah felt absolutely blissful, completely satiated. Derrick's heavy weight on top of her was almost delicious, heavy but not crushing. She felt warm and protected beneath him. Running her fingers along his inky-dark shoulders, she kissed the broad chest in front of her. Derrick chuckled and rolled to the side of her, scooting down on the bed so that they were face to face. His crotch was covered with her cream and she could feel his cum dripping out of her sore pussy. It was perfect. They exchanged small kisses, looking at each other with something like wonderment. All of the sudden Sarah's face tightened with something like horror and then segued into relief and trepidation. "What?" asked Derrick. "I'm not on birth control," Sarah said, and then hurriedly continued. "Don't worry though, I'm at the completely wrong time in my cycle. And I'll take a morning after pill." To his utter shock, the first emotion Derrick had when Sarah said she wasn't on birth control was pure, unadulterated masculine triumph. He liked the idea that she was unprotected. Which was unheard of for him. Then again, having sex with a woman without asking if she was protected was unheard of for him. And considering how many women Martin had been screwing, although at least he'd seen condoms in all of the pictures, they probably should have used protection. But he'd wanted to be snugly encased in her wet pussy, skin to skin, and even now he couldn't find himself regretting it. Of course if they both tested for something nasty he would. The same play of emotions seemed to swell over Sarah, her thoughts completely in line with his. "Oh God... Martin... I have to get tested for... oh Derrick I'm so sorry, I wasn't even thinking." Of course not. She'd only ever had sex with one man besides him, and not much of a man in Derrick's opinion, she'd lived her entire life assuming she was safe. "It's okay," he said, pulling her in close and comforting her. "You go to the doctor regularly, right?" "Yes," she replied, relaxing. "Every year for a physical. And they do blood work." "Then you're probably okay." "I'm going to get a full screening, just in case." Derrick nodded, stroking the silky softness of her hair. Unbelievably having her pressed up against him, despite the discussion, was giving his dick ideas all over again. She was just so soft and curvy, so delectably feminine. And the startling contrast of her ivory and flame against his black night coloring was breathtaking. "I'm clean," he said. "Okay." She breathed a sigh of relief. So incredibly trusting. He wasn't sure he deserved that but he sure as hell wasn't going to let her down. "So why aren't you on birth control?" he asked and then immediately shook his head. "Sorry, I didn't mean that the way it sounded." Sarah laughed. "No, I understand. But Martin and I never needed it. He wasn't very interested in having kids and he was totally against doing anything 'unnatural' so I just never used it." Her face fell a little. "Although now I wonder if that was the whole truth." Immediately Derrick felt like an idiot, bringing that mess back to her attention, and he stroked the hair back from her face, trying not to think about how good it felt just to be touching her. He barely knew this woman but every cell in his body was screaming various messages to him, all along the lines of 'protect' and 'claim.' Good thing she didn't know or she'd probably run screaming. "You wanted kids?" Dammit, why couldn't he just leave it alone? Her face got even sadder at the question. "Yes." That one quiet word broke his heart. Another way in which her asswipe of a husband had let her down. The cell in his body that were rooting for 'claiming' were making his dick stir the longer he lay next to her, wanting to plant his seed in her again. Not an urge he'd ever had before. "There's still time," he said, doing his best not to sound excited about that. Or like he wanted to be the one having them with her. Even though he kind of did. Fortunately at that moment his stomach rumbled and Sarah laughed. "Would you like some dinner? It's been awhile since lunch, I'm sure I can whip something up." "Tell you what, do you trust me in your kitchen?" She nodded immediately. Of course she did. The woman had let him into her home, asked him to investigate her most private affairs, turned to him when she was feeling undesirable, and believed him when he said he was clean after he'd just rode her bareback. "You go take a nice relaxing bath and I'll whip up something for us." "Oh you don't have to do that," she said, but her eyes were big and wistful, like it was the nicest thing anyone had ever offered to do for her. "I like cooking, you go. Bath." He sat up and helped her off the bed, feeling way too pleased about the way his cum looked coating her skin and making her inner thighs all nice and shiny. Taking a few tissues he cleaned himself off quickly enough and then pulled on his jeans and shirt again before urging Sarah towards the bathroom. She seemed rather reluctant to go, but he insisted. And on his way to the kitchen he'd take care of a little clean-up in the office. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 05 Sarah sank into her cherry blossom scented bubble bath with the strangest mix of emotions. Satisfaction: she'd just had the most arousing and fulfilling sexual experience of her life. Guilt: Martin had barely been dead for a month and she'd already slept with someone. Anger: Martin had cheated on her, with some of his employees as well as prostitutes and put her at risk for who knew what diseases. Also anger at herself for feeling guilty when he obviously didn't deserve that emotion from her. Trepidation: What was Derrick thinking right now? Sarah had no experience with this kind of thing. Especially when she'd told him that she wasn't on birth control, the most fierce expression had crossed his face. The most anxiety-inducing part was that she realized she didn't particularly mind the idea of having his children, specifically his, but she wasn't going to put that on him. Some men might not care if they had children out there in the world, from the way Derrick had talked about his family she knew that he wouldn't be that kind of man. Fear: What if Martin had given her something? The reminder that she got a yearly physical, with blood work, had helped alleviate some of her fear about that. Especially since she and Martin hadn't had sex in the past couple of years anyway. Now she knew why. Anger rose up in her again, along with shame that she hadn't been able to keep her husband sexually satisfied. But why should she feel ashamed? It wasn't as if she wouldn't have been willing. Just because she hadn't felt a major chemical spark with him didn't mean she wouldn't have done her duty. But maybe he didn't want someone who would do her duty, maybe he wanted someone who would set him on fire. The way Derrick had made her body blaze up with lust and passion. Okay, she could understand that, especially now, but why did he hang onto her? Why hadn't he just asked for a divorce instead of cheating on her? Tears dripped down her face and into her bath. It wasn't like she'd been one hundred percent happy with their marriage either, but it had never even occurred to her to look for the missing parts elsewhere. Even now, if she hadn't seen the proof of Martin's betrayal, if she hadn't been so shocked and needy of some kind of positive attention and so attracted to Derrick, she'd still be faithful to Martin's memory. Hell maybe she owed him. Would she have ever had the courage to even consider letting loose with her attraction to Derrick, without the shock and shame of Martin's betrayal? To throw herself at the gorgeous black man like she had? Probably not. When the bubbles were almost gone in her bath Sarah reluctantly got out. Baths were so soothing for her and she loved the way the cherry blossom scent clung to her skin. Lightly fragrant. Now she had to go and face the reality and the man in her kitchen. Wrapping herself in her favorite soft sea green colored robe, she decided to skip getting all the way dressed. Not like he hadn't seen it anyway. The soft fluffy material comforted her and she could use a little bit of that right now, especially if he'd taken the opportunity to run while she'd be in the bath. She wouldn't blame him if he had. Glancing in Martin's office on the way down, thinking to look through the pictures again now that she was less emotional and see if there were any other employees - especially current ones, she saw that at the very least Derrick had cleared those away. Where had he put them? As soon as she hit the stairs it became obvious that Derrick had definitely not run and whatever he was doing in the kitchen smelled fabulous. The sounds of pans gently clanking became audible as she approached the kitchen. Tightening the belt around her robe she suddenly felt like running back upstairs and putting on some more clothing. What had she been thinking coming down here in nothing but a robe? Apparently she hadn't been thinking at all? "Sarah?" Before she had a chance to turn and run Derrick was in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room, his eyes sweeping over her appreciatively. She looked calmer, although her eyes were still a little red rimmed, probably due to her fair skin, and the soft green robe looked wonderful against the darkness of her wet hair as it made little wet curls on her shoulders and chest. The temptation to rub his hands over the fuzziness of her robe was too much to bear and he strode forward and swept her up into his arms, pulling her against him for a kiss. It didn't occur to him until his mouth was on hers that maybe she wouldn't still feel the same way about him now that the shock of her husband's infidelity had died, but after a moment she pressed back against him, opening her lips to his tongue, her small hands curling around the front collar of his shirt. Feeling her response to him just got his dick going again and he had to pull away before he tore the robe from her sweet body and took her all over again. "Sorry, I didn't mean to jump on you the second you walked in here," he said, not feeling sorry at all. He winked at her. "I like your robe." Sarah blushed, feeling wet and horny all over again, and also incredibly pleased. Everything about Derrick turned her on right now. The way he looked at her appreciatively, the feeling of his hands rubbing her through the robe, and especially the smells coming from the kitchen. Had Martin ever cooked for her? Not that she could remember. That had always been her 'job,' as far as he was concerned. "Thank you. Something smells delicious. I'm glad I trusted you in the kitchen." Grinning at her, Derrick took her hand and pulled her into the kitchen behind him. She was so tiny next to him, like a curvy little pixie. That robe made him think of Tinker Bell, except that Sarah was all woman, and the hints of red were already starting to glint in her hair as it dried. "Turkey breasts with marsala sauce and an artichoke and potato hash. Salad." The turkey breasts were lightly breaded with egg and Panko bread crumbs before he'd cooked them in oil on the stove top and then made the marsala sauce in the same pan with some chopped onions and marsala cooking wine. The artichoke and potato has was even easier; just regular potatoes in the oven and he'd eventually added some artichoke hearts to them, seasoning it all with salt, lemon pepper, garlic and thyme. It hadn't escaped his notice how much Sarah loved artichokes. Even if he hadn't noticed at the restaurant when she'd ordered the risotto and happily exclaimed over the large chunks of it, the four jars of bulk size hearts in her cupboard were a pretty big clue, along with the half empty open jar in the fridge. She was an artichoke fiend apparently. The salad he'd found in the fridge, apparently she liked the ready made bags. That was fine. Seeing the food made Sarah's eyes light up. Plenty of protein and carbs to replenish her energy and enough veggies to make her feel good and healthy. Plus even the breading on the turkey breasts looked light. It was the perfect meal, and she was astounded that he'd managed to make all of this just by scrounging around her kitchen. She cooked plenty often but she wouldn't have thought to make anything like this. Who put potatoes and artichokes together? But it was perfect. Delicious. The textures worked well and complimented the turkey and tangy marsala sauce. During dinner they found it just as easy to converse as before. Derrick asked her about her jewelry making and showed genuine interest, which she flowered under. While Martin had thought it an appropriate hobby for her and had supported her, praised her for the sales she made on Etsy, he had never really asked much about what she was doing. Now she was able to share her happiness with finding just the right kind of beads, talk about the inspiration she had in her mind - she liked to make pieces that reminded her of something, whether it was a plant, the ocean, an animal, a feeling, whatever. And not only did Derrick appear to be paying attention, he asked leading questions that proved he was listening. In turn she questioned him about his own work, wanting to know what it was like to be a private investigator. Apparently she'd romantacized the job quite a bit in her head, because it sounded like it was mostly cheating spouses and following lies. Her stomach knotted with anxiety for a moment before she made herself relax again. Derrick was incredibly observant, she found. Immediately recognizing the tension she gained when he talked about cheating spouses, he changed topic slightly and started telling her about one of his successful hunts for a kid, eventually returning him to his mother after his father had taken him. He told her that he wanted to start trying to do something new, which would have surprised her if she hadn't just listened to all the pains of the job. When he confessed that he didn't know what he wanted to do next she found herself feeling even more of an affinity for him. Nice to know that she wasn't the only one in the world feeling like that. Also seeing him open up, admit that he didn't know what to do or where to go next, showed a little bit of his personal vulnerability and she was touched by that. Martin never admitted any kind of vulnerability, not during the entire time she'd known him. The meal passed all too quickly and Sarah found herself disappointed, knowing that he was going to leave soon. To her surprise he helped her clear off the table and do the dishes. Although he let her wash them he insisted on drying. Every time their fingers touched as she handed a dish over to him she felt another fission of lust go through her. It made her feel both horny and guilty - what kind of woman was she that she got so turned on again so quickly? Her body had never reacted like this before and she didn't know how to handle the physical sensations or the emotions that went with them. "So," said Derrick, leaning against the damp counter as she wiped the sink area down with a sponge. "How about dessert?" "Dessert?" Sarah was so full that she was sure she couldn't eat another bite, the dinner had been so delicious, but he actually looked rather cute looking at her with those expectant eyes. How did such a large and muscular man manage to pull off cute? But the gleam in his eyes was almost boyish and she had to giggle as she looked at him. "Okay." She wanted him to stay longer. She couldn't deny that. So might as well do dessert. "Good, because I already know what I want." To her surprise he grasped her around the waist, lifting her effortlessly to the counter. The movement undid the knot on her robe and it fell open as he set her down. "Derrick!" "Mmmm," he said as he wrapped his lips around one of her nipples. His tongue flicked against it as it hardened in his mouth and Sarah groaned, her resistance melting away. The gentle suckling on her nipple was so incredibly erotic, especially as she looked down at him, the dark, masculine planes of his face against the creamy whiteness of her skin. When he released her nipple and gave it a final lick, both his tongue and the tiny bud were a shocking pink next to the black marble of his skin. Transferring his attentions to her other breast, Derrick sucked hard. Seeing Sarah in this sexy robe while she made little happy moans over his food had been far too much for his eager dick. It had been hard from the moment he'd seen her standing in her living room and had only gotten harder. He was tall enough that as he kissed down her stomach, spreading her thighs with his hands, that kneeling on the floor put him at the perfect height to lick at her pretty pink pussy. Sarah moaned, her fingers pressing against his scalp as he licked all around her outer pussy. The touch of her hands on his head was surprisingly erotic, or maybe it was just the way she was humping her hips against him as much as she possibly could. Stroking one dark finger down the center of her pussy, he marveled at how sexy her pink lips looked against his finger. Easing it inside of her, he licked around the digit, teasing her with his tongue. The sweet taste of her cream as he lapped at her was better than any dessert he could have made for her. The sheer level of attraction hadn't lessened any once he'd had her once, in fact it had only made him want her again. And again. Dinner had been far too comfortable in a lot of ways, it was easy to imagine sitting down with her every night and talking. He had to remember that he barely knew this woman. And yet, at the same time he did. Her unfeigned responses showed him a slice of her heart and soul. That gorgeous face and body was wonderfully expressive. Their conversations showed him a fascinating woman of substance, someone who had lived and loved and lost. Someone who wouldn't back down or let life kick her down, not without getting back up again. Everything he learned about her only drew him to her more. But he wasn't sure that she felt the same way or that she'd let herself go like this again, so he was going to press his advantage now, tonight. Give her a night that she could never forget and keep her coming back for me. It shouldn't be that hard. He'd seen the look of surprise and awe after the orgasms he'd given her upstairs. Pulling her butt forward, his hands gripped her butt, keeping her in place. Sarah leaned back onto her hands, having to let his head go in order to stay upright as she opened her body more fully to him. Never had she ever done anything sexual in her kitchen. Now she was sitting on her counter, leaning back with her legs spread wide so that the sexiest man she'd ever met, dark as knight, was kneeling on her floor with his face and fingers between her legs. Just the imagined visual made her hot. It was so much better than any fantasy she could have ever created for herself, because she couldn't have imagined ever doing something like this before. His finger inside of her wiggled and rubbed against a spot that made her entire body tighten as his tongue lashed against the soft folds of her pussy, stroking the flames of her pleasure higher and higher. The broadness of his shoulders kept her legs spread wide, forcing her to take everything that he was giving her, making her wild with passion as he took control of her body. "Derrick!" She cried out his name as he withdrew his finger from her body and rubbed it against her anus. No one had ever touched her there before and she was both frightened and aroused by the stroking of her crinkled bud. Ignoring her protest, he rubbed his finger in a circle around the tiny hole, continuing to suck on her pussy. Slowly she relaxed as he did nothing but tease the nerves there, making them flare with new and strange sensations. It was so perverse, so wanton, that it made her feel even more brazen. Leaning back onto her elbows, she was just barely petite enough to fit her body on the counter, she opened herself to him completely, bending her knees and settling her feet on his shoulders, she gave herself over to him completely. Another finger pushed into her pussy, then a second, as he continued to tease her asshole with his other finger. Pressing gently against the sensitive whirl, finger lubricated with her juices, he played with the amount of pressure against her tightest hole, teasing her as he licked and touched her in more conventional ways. She'd never had attention paid to her like this before and she drank it in, her body responding with increasing tension as her orgasm wound up, building to the crest. When the tip of his finger eased inside of her asshole, Sarah's entire body tightened down and she cried out with ecstasy, losing control of her body as it shuddered. Derrick sucked hard on her clit, flicking it with his tongue to increase the sensations running through her quivering body as she broke apart for him. Juices flooded his mouth, and he lapped at her, drinking in the sweet reward of his work as she gasped and moaned. God she was beautiful. While she got herself back together he stood, pulling his fingers from her pussy and the tip of his finger from her ass. Her response to the anal teasing had told him she was inexperienced, but she hadn't made him stopped. She'd liked it. Damn she was gorgeous like this, face and chest flushed, nipples slowly softening in the aftermath of her orgasm. The spread of her thighs showed off her glistening pussy, swollen with satisfaction. The hazy, half-lidded look of her eyes made him even harder. Exactly how a woman should look when she was being pleasured. Scooping her up in his arms he headed for the stairs. Sarah stirred in his arms as she realized they were moving. "Where-?" "Back up to the bedroom, beautiful," Derrick said, lifting his left arm to bring her face closer to his. He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and kissed her thoroughly, leaving her breathless as he pulled away. "Unless you tell me no." Good grief... more? Could she take more? Her body was flush with satisfaction, but as his hand stroked the outside of her thigh and she looked at the lustful and hungry expression on his face, she didn't want to deny him. One night of impossible bliss, one night of fantasies and dreams come true. Sarah didn't fool herself that a man like this would want more than that from her, but she was more than willing to take whatever he was willing to give. She'd be a fool not to, considering the way he made her feel, the way he skillfully played her body. Unable to speak, too shy or too anxious, Sarah nodded her head and Derrick bounded up the stairs. The ease with which he carried her made her feel absolutely tiny and vulnerable. It was amazing that this huge man would considered himself stymied by mere words if she denied him. Curious to see if she could still affect him, worried he was indulging her out of pity, Sarah lifted a hand and pressed it against his neck. The look of pure lust that Derrick gave her reassured her immensely. He wanted her. For some reason. But she wasn't going to question that, not right now. Tossing her on the bed Derrick stripped down quickly, peeling his shirt and jeans off of his dark muscular body. Sarah shimmied out of her robe as she watched him, marveling at the rippling play of his muscles as he moved, reminding her of the controlled force of a jaguar on a hunt. Even though she'd been more sexually satisfied today than ever before in her life, her loins were already throbbing again, wanting him inside of her. "Um... Derrick, are you sure you want to do this?" The responses of her body had almost overwhelmed her reason again and she suddenly remembered that Martin might have infected her with something. For a moment she shrank in on herself. "When was the last time you had sex?" he asked. Sarah actually had to think about it. "Um, a couple years ago I think." "And you've had several physicals since then?" He started crawling on the bed towards her, stalking her and she scooted back as her heart rate sped up again. Oh dear. "Yes." "We've already done this once - no, don't look guilty. I don't regret it. And I think you're fine." There was no where else for her to back up, she was up against the headboard and he was getting closer. Responsibility was trying hard to win over sheer passion, but it was becoming a losing battle as he invaded her personal space with that look in his eyes. "But you're risking-" "My choice." And he shut her up with a kiss. Of course Derrick knew that what he was doing was potentially stupid, but his hormones didn't care. And his own logic made him feel fine about it. Sarah wanted to argue with him more but he had made some good points and since she'd just finished her period a couple of days ago she was in completely the wrong part of her cycle to get pregnant. So she opened her lips, allowing his tongue to thrust inside as he drank her in through his mouth. She could taste her orgasm on him and it just turned her on even more. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 05 When he pulled her into his arms as he rolled over, bringing her on top of him, Sarah yelped with surprise. Was he going to truly let her be on top this time? Martin had never allowed her on top. She had thought Derrick was going to earlier but than he'd pinned her beneath him. Which had been wonderful. Her body shivered a little with the memory. "Touch me, Sarah," he said, his voice thick with lust as he ran his hands up from her waist to the heavy pendulums of her breasts, hanging over him as she leaned forward. Taking his invitation at face value she stroked her fingers down the center of his chest, drinking in the sight with her eyes as she traced the clearly defined muscles of his hard body with a light touch. The wiry hair was rough against her palm. Derrick's hands became rougher on her breasts as she brushed a finger over his nipple, and she could see a muscle in his jaw clench. "That's it baby. Keep touching me." Emboldened, Sarah started to scoot further down his body, but she froze as the hard head of his cock nudged against the soft curve of her buttocks. Derrick's eyes glinted appreciatively at the contact. "Sit on me baby. You don't have to ride me yet, just straddle me and sit down." Feeling awkward Sarah followed his instruction, the spread of her thighs making her pussy splay wide as she sad down over his hips. His dick was so long that when she looked down she could see the head peeking out from the brownish red hair of her mound, her pussy lips separated by the wide girth of his shaft. "Like this?" she asked, rubbing her hips back and forth, pressing his dick between their bodies. "Yes, fuck... just like that." His hips lifted upwards and the mushroom ridge of his dick rubbed her clit, making Sarah cry out and wiggle. Even though she was sitting with his meat between her pussy lips he wasn't actually even inside her yet and it already felt wonderful. The teasing and anticipation was driving her wild, even while she wasn't sure that her body could take him again. Rubbing herself back and forth along his length made her wetter and hotter, she arched above him as he pinched her nipples, the sensation sweeping through her. Using her nipples for leverage Derrick pulled her upwards, making her lean forward. Sarah's eyes got big as she realized his intention. "Ride me baby," he said, pulling her head for another kiss. Their lips met as her body moved enough to let his dick spring free from underneath her, and he reached between them, rubbing the thick head along her slit. Sarah moaned into his mouth as she moved her hips, wiggling around to get him in the right spot. The size of him took her breath away as she tried to press down. No wonder he'd turned them over last time, even though he'd already stretched her out once today, her insides were so small compared to the tool he was trying to fit into her. With a gasp as the head of his cock pressed into her, Sarah sat up, trying to get some more control over the movements. "Oh Derrick... I don't think it's going to fit..." "It's going to fit just fine baby, take your time." The determined and anxious expression on her face was too cute for words as she started bouncing up and down on top of him, working more and more of herself over his hard length. Derrick shuddered and controlled himself, not allowing himself to thrust his hips up the way he wanted to. Right now Sarah needed to do this for herself, her body was so tight and wet around him, the stretch of her muscles felt good, he could tell, but he didn't want to strain her. As she moved on top of him, starting to get more into a rhythm, her breasts wobbled and bounced on her chest. Reaching up again he squeezed them, just a little hard. Like she had before, Sarah arched her back, pushing the soft mounds into his hands. It only took a few more movements before she was firmly impaled on top of him. Sarah shuddered, feeling the thick length of him filling her up impossibly. The second man she'd ever made love to and she doubted she would ever be able to find another man larger - she was pretty sure she didn't want to. Derrick barely fit inside her as it was, if he was any bigger it would hurt. Although she didn't have any doubt that it would hurt if he moved too fast anyway, but so far he'd been incredibly careful of her, very gentle until she was wet and stretched enough to take him. It was a kind of consideration that Martin had never shown her. No wonder she'd rarely orgasmed with him, he'd been so intent on his own pleasure rather than hers. And no wonder he needed prostitutes. Shoving Martin from her mind, despite the thought that she was now making love to Derrick on her marital bed, Sarah opened her eyes and trained them on the gorgeous man lying beneath her. She rose up and moved down, reveling in the feeling of power as his head fell back and his hands squeezed her breasts again. With her eyes full of Derrick she couldn't think about anything else, didn't care about anything else, other than the way she was making him feel. The way he made her feel. With a low growl in her throat she started riding him, her thighs burning as she began moving harder and faster. Derrick's body came alive underneath her, as if he intuitively understood that her pussy was ready for harder thrusting, that she burned to feel him splitting her open. Having him buck beneath her as she moved added an entirely new dynamic of sensation. He continued to play with her nipples as she ground herself down on top of him, her pussy starting to quiver and convulse every time she engulfed him completely. "Oh Derrick..." She gasped and moaned as he made a rolling motion with his hips, making her rise and fall on top of him as though he was an ocean wave, surging upwards between her legs and filling her with bliss. "Oh Derrick... oh that feels so good... oh... OH... OH DERRICK!" Ungentle hands held her upright as she started to convulse on top of him, his strong fingers digging into her ass as she twitched and shivered, ecstasy controlling her movements. She would have collapsed on top of him if he hadn't held her upright, moving her body back and forth on top of him. The friction of his pubic bone against her clit sent her careening through another pulsing orgasm, screaming with pleasure that sucked her down and shattered her. The entire world seemed to spin as Derrick executed another one of those swift rolling motions that put him on top of her. He gave her a moment to readjust, waited until some sense came back into her eyes, and then he started to drag his dick out of her still quivering pussy. Watching Sarah go wild on top of him had made it nearly impossible for him not to flood her with his spunk, but he wanted to keep the party rolling for a little longer. When he was halfway out of her pussy he grabbed her ankles and put them on his shoulders. They barely reached. Sarah's eyes were shocked as he started to press back in. She cried out. This position was so incredible dominant, she'd gone from being on top of the world and totally in control to trapped beneath this thrusting man, unable to move. Out of all the things he'd done today, this might be the sexiest. She had no idea that she was this flexible. The positioning of her legs allowed Derrick to thrust even deeper, until he ran into a barrier and she realized that his cockhead was nudging the entrance of her woman. She climaxed, immediately, something primal and carnal inside of her completely taking over her body and screaming with rapture. As he began to pound into her, Derrick was astounded at Sarah's capacity for pleasure. Although setting one orgasm off usually did make the next one easier as her soft, swollen folds became more and more sensitive. From the noises she was making she was moving from one glorious height of ecstasy to the next. She was a lost, wild, wanton creature beneath him, so exquisitely tight, and he was only able to last a few more minutes before groaning his own release as his fluids poured into her. Sarah's pussy spasmed, milking him as she felt the hot blast of cum, so deep inside of her that she wasn't entirely sure he couldn't impregnate her, fertile cycle or no fertile cycle. It made her pussy clench. Letting her legs fall to the side, Derrick fell to the other side, pulling her against him and snuggling her against his body. Confirmed bachelor or not, he'd always liked cuddling. Especially after fantastic sex. Sarah moaned fitfully, shuddering a little as his arm wound possessively around her. His other arm nudged underneath her head, providing a surprisingly soft pillow considering how muscular his beefy arms were. "The things you do to me woman," he murmured into her gorgeous hair. It was loose and fully dry now, completely out of control. Just like her. He loved the feeling of the silky strands against her face. Sarah giggled, stroking his hand. "I could say the same thing," she said. And then she yawned. "Sorry, you're not boring. I'm just... so worn out." The deep bark of laughter vibrated through her back. "I'll take that as a compliment." "You should." Silence reigned as they curled up together, just enjoying the feel of each other's bodies'. The ache between Sarah's legs was so wonderfully sore, another sensation she'd never experienced before. Feeling blissfully happy in this one moment, which she knew she would treasure for the rest of her life, Sarah fell asleep. ***** In the middle of the night Derrick woke from an extremely erotic dream to find that he was holding the soft, sweet curves of a woman. And not just any woman. Sarah. He'd fallen asleep with her. When she'd drifted off in his arms he'd meant to just enjoy holding her for awhile before leaving, not wanting to intrude into her life too much. Especially in case she changed her mind. Now he realized he didn't care. He wanted to intrude into her space. Intrude, mark some territory and stay there. Barring that, he wanted to push his dick into her again. It was already hard and ready at her entrance. She was even a little wet, enough to get the head damp. No wonder he'd woken up horny. Even sleeping his body wanted her and hers responded. Kissing the back of her neck and shoulders, Derrick caressed her breasts, holding her against him. Sarah's hips moved in a way that told him her sleeping self was enjoying his attentions and her pussy got wetter against the head of his shaft. Reaching down between her legs with one hand he delicately stroked her folds and she moaned a little. A quick pinch to her nipple and she writhed. "Derrick?" Her voice was low with sleepiness and confusion. "Sarah," he murmured her name. "You're so hot." She moaned again and her pussy gushed fluid, just from the confirmation that it was him. "I don't know if I can again," she said a little plaintively. "Tell me no and I'll stop." His offer was met with silence and Derrick chuckled again. Swirling his finger in her pussy he felt her juices increase even more. So incredibly responsive. It was incredible that her husband hadn't found satisfaction with her. What an idiot. "I'm going to take silence to mean assent in this case," he whispered into her hair, and then he gently bit the back of her neck as he penetrated her pussy with his finger. Sarah cried out, pressing the soft cheeks of her ass back against him, the curves of her buttocks clenching around the hard shaft wedged between them. He'd intended to go slower, to be more careful, but her sweet kittenish moans and the press of her body against his was too much. With a few swift adjustments he had removed his finger from her pussy, gripped her hips, and pulled them into position with him kneeling behind her while she was on all fours in front of him. Even though everything about Derrick turned Sarah on, one of the biggest turn ons was the way he manhandled her body. The man had the most incredible throw-downs. Quick, decisive and erotic, it set her entire body quivering. Even though her pussy felt almost bruised after the thorough poundings he'd given her, lust now raged through her, wiping away the remnants of sleep. Her body was quivering, ready for him. This new position and the darkness set her heart pounding. She couldn't see him in this position. When she looked over her shoulder, he blended into the darkness. It was like being sexually taken by shadows. The imagery was incredibly hot. When he began to push inside of her she gasped. While her muscles had gotten more used to the incredible size of him, this position gave her all sorts of new sensations as he rubbed completely different places entering her. She moaned, dipping her head down and thrusting her ass upwards, feeling sweetly submissive before him. Being on all fours as he took her from behind was carnally animalistic. This hadn't been a position she'd ever thought about trying before, now that she was in it she wondered why. Sarah's pale skin almost glowed with the very dim light coming in through the window, and Derrick was fascinated by the way it looked where he gripped her body. His own body parts practically drank in the darkness, so that this nocturnal lack of light made their differences all the more clear. It was almost dream like, the way they looked together. Shadow entering the light, encompassing it, but never truly covering it. Thrusting his hips powerfully, he could feel her response in the way she rubbed her backside against him, the gorgeous arch of her back as she bowed down in front of him, turning their love-making into an act of submission and possession. Because he truly did, he wanted to possess her, be her lover in the night, take her and make her his. Caveman? Perhaps. But this was the first woman he'd ever met that made him feel that way. Sarah was unique, not just in her character and personality, but in the response she elicited from him. Derrick wanted, not just to pleasure her over and over again, but to take care of her and give her the things she hadn't gotten out of her life so far. Obviously incredible mind-blowing sex was one of those things and he was more than happy to oblige. Making love to her was like a drug. He'd always treated women with respect and had some fantastic sex, but it had been a need like hunger. Not this powerful, emotional, sweeping thing that it was with Sarah. The gorgeous hair, curvy figure and sweet hazel eyes took his breath away. When she laughed or moaned with pleasure he found himself resolving to coax that sound from her again. Her unrestrained reactions completely undid him. Slamming into her from behind, he took his time as he pulled out of her, before abruptly thrusting forward. Sarah's soft cries filled his ears as he wallowed in her body, eliciting every last drop of pleasure for both of them. He could tell that she was tired, her muscles unaccustomed to this kind of use, so he reached around between her legs and began to circle her clit with his finger, not quite touching the little nub, but teasing it. Sarah gasped and moaned, her insides tightening down on him as she pushed back, using her forearms for support as Derrick plowed into her from behind. The skillful manipulation of her body was exquisite. When the thumb of his other hand pressed against her anus, she cried out, her thighs quivering. The hand between her legs, arm wrapped around her hip, helped support her as the reaction from that surprising erogenous zone nearly blew her through the roof. Bucking back against him she sobbed into the mattress at the powerful waves of orgasm that were shuddering through her tired and over stimulated body. It was passion and ecstasy like she'd never experienced before. In that moment she completely gave over to him and she found herself almost floating, buoyed by the crests of pleasure. The hot blast of fluid inside of her culminated her rise, and she felt herself shatter into a million pieces. And with his strong arms and hands, Derrick held her together and brought her back home. ******** Author's Note: In case you're wondering, this is the end of this chapter, but it's not the end of this series yet. I hope you're enjoying! Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 06 Author's Note: There is no sex in this chapter, if you'd like the sexy time check out chapters 4 & 5, if you're following the story - enjoy!!! This is a reader request story, thank you so much for the idea! ******** Sarah woke up the next morning to the sound of her phone going off with Patricia's ringtone. Moaning she rolled over, wincing at the soreness between her legs. Sitting up she realized that she was alone in the bed, Derrick's warm presence gone. Going by the coolness of the sheets he'd been gone for awhile. What time was it? Oh... ten o'clock. She hadn't slept this late since college. The phone stopped ringing and gave the little beep that indicated a missed call. Almost immediately it started up again. Snatching it off the bedside table she flipped it open. "What?" "Did you forget that we were supposed to have breakfast today? Are you still asleep? I'm outside, come let me in." The rapid fire questions and demand didn't give Sarah any time to answer before her impatient friend hung up. Grimacing, Sarah forced herself out of bed. Her leg muscles felt weak and watery and her interior muscles had definitely been strained. She let out a small cry as she straightened into standing, feeling a sharp ache inside. It felt like she was hobbling rather than walking as she grabbed a pair of flannel pants and a t-shirt, not bothering with underwear. As she put on the pants she was shocked to see there was no cum on her thighs. Until she looked at herself it hadn't occurred to her that there should have been quite a bit. Had Derrick cleaned her off before he left? Her phone rang again, interrupting her reverie. "I'm coming, I'm coming," she said into it and then hanging up, getting a little of her own back by not allowing Patricia to actually speak. Getting down the stairs was interesting. Her muscles started to loosen and feel a little more workable the more she moved. Well, the exterior ones at least. Her vagina felt like she might have broken it. Part of her thought that it would have been worth it, except that now she wanted more nights like last night. Where was Derrick? Going down the stairs she became aware of the smell of coffee intermixed with something that smelled sweet, like a bakery. When she opened the door Patricia gaped at her in shock. "What?" Patricia burst out laughing and Sarah felt like snarling at her. She considered slamming the door in her best friend's face, but Patricia managed to tamper her laughter down to giggles. "Have you looked in the mirror?" she asked. "What?" Turning Sarah headed over to the mirror on the wall next to the coat closet. When she got a good look at herself her jaw dropped immediately. No wonder Patricia was laughing at her. Not only was her hair a ridiculous, tousled disarray of a bird's nest, her t-shirt was on backwards, and her lips looked swollen. Probably from all the kissing. Despite her hair and the slight bags under her eyes she looked kind of... glowy. Side effect of multiple screaming orgasms perhaps? "Oh my God." "Do I smell muffins?" Patricia asked, heading towards the kitchen. Sarah scurried along behind her, not sure whether or not to hope Derrick was still in her house. The kitchen was empty except for a plate of freshly baked muffins on the counter, not entirely cooled, and a full coffee pot. Underneath the plate of muffins waved a piece of paper. If her vagina hadn't been broken Sarah would have been able to move more quickly, but as it was Patricia spotted the paper first anyway, having preceded Sarah into the room, and she pounced on it before Sarah could do anything. And being Patricia, she immediately began to read it out loud. Sarah, I had a wonderful time last night, you're an amazing woman. I'm sorry I had to leave so early, you were sleeping so peacefully that I didn't want to wake you up. Enjoy the muffins. ~D "And who, pray tell, is 'D'?" asked Patricia archly, grinning as she dangled the paper in front of Sarah, enjoying the blushing look of pleasure on her friend's face. "Give me that," said Sarah, grabbing the note. Quickly she tucked it into the pocket of her pants. "D is... hopefully not a mistake." "Is D the same tall, dark and studly that you had lunch with at the restaurant yesterday?" Sarah groaned. "You've been talking to Angela." "Honey, everyone's been talking to everyone." Even worse. Sarah turned and sat down at the kitchen table heavily, a lot of mixed emotions now running rampant through her body. It was a good thing that Derrick had left and Patricia was here, she had a lot she needed to think through, but she didn't want to be alone right now. Plus Patricia usually helped her think. Once she was done being annoying, anyway. With a sympathetic look Patricia took charge. "You stay right there honey, I'll get you the coffee and a muffin." Coffee... yes, coffee would help. The incredible thoughtfulness that Derrick had shown in leaving her coffee and breakfast before leaving was just dawning on Sarah. She truly wasn't quite awake yet. Part of her worried that he regretted last night, but then why would he take the time to make her coffee, much less muffins? Truly fresh muffins, she realized with a start as Patricia placed a plate in front of her. The blueberries were obviously the fresh ones she'd had in her fridge, not the tiny ones that came in a can with the mix. Wow. Amazing sex, explosive orgasm and he cooks. What on earth did he see in her? And would he hate her this morning, in the light of day when he had the chance to think about what she'd exposed him to last night? Her hormones had gone completely wild, his dark, muscular body and talented fingers and tongue wiping away all her resistance, but that really wasn't an excuse. Sarah prided herself on her self-control, her intellect. What about Derrick had completely wiped out that part of her? "Earth to Sarah," she heard her best friend say, and looked up to see Patricia watching her with concerned eyes. "What's going on honey?" Sarah spilled. She cried a little again as she told Patricia about Martin's infidelity, the graphic pictures. And was angry at herself for still feeling betrayed and hurt over that rather than outraged. Although it looked like Patricia was enraged enough for both of them, from the way her fingers gripped her coffee cup, until her knuckles went white. Quickly Sarah moved on to the much more enjoyable, and shaming parts of the night. The incredible sex, Derrick's dinner, more incredible sex, and ended with her worry about what she had exposed him to. On one hand, she couldn't regret it at all, and on the other hand she knew she'd regret it for the rest of her life if it ended up turning him away from her. "I don't know why I didn't stop him, I should have." "He's a grown man honey, he can make his own decisions," said Patricia, but she looked a little worried. "The best thing we can do is get you in to be tested today." "Right," said Sarah. She rubbed at her face. "I need to go by the restaurant too. I don't want Vincent around any of the women there anymore." "What are you going to do?" Patricia asked. "Do you have the money to buy him out?" "Maybe... once Martin's estate is settled." Patricia pursed her lips. "You know, Lloyd has mentioned before that he wouldn't mind owning a stake. Maybe not as much as much of a share as Vincent has, but we might be able to help you out. I'll talk to him." "Oh, you don't have to do that," Sarah said, although she felt a rush of relief go through her at the idea that the restaurant wouldn't be her complete and whole responsibility. "I said he'd already mentioned it before," Patricia reminded her, smiling. "It's not an out of nowhere offer. I mean, it sort of it, but not out of nowhere for me. So what do you want to do first? Restaurant or clinic?" Sarah ended up calling the clinic and making an appointment for that afternoon, so they decided to go to the restaurant first. ******** Derrick felt unexpectedly reluctant to leave Sarah's house that morning. He'd wanted to stay curled up next to her in bed, although he didn't think she'd be up for another go around. Not that he should anyway. What had he been thinking? She needed to be tested. And now he did too. Although he would have needed to be tested anyway, after their first bout of incredible sex. Maybe that's what he'd been thinking. Already exposed, might as well just keep on going and get the maximum of pleasure out of it. Yeah, real smart. It was pretty obvious which head had been doing the thinking last night. At the same time, he couldn't regret it. He might if he turned out to have something, but some goofy inner instinct kept telling him that everything would be okay. It was probably wishful thinking. Ignoring that little voice seemed like the best idea for the moment. Even if it had led to one of the best nights of his life. Sarah was like an addiction. He couldn't get the taste of her out of his mouth, the feel of her off of his skin, or the image of her out of his head. Truth be told, he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to badly enough. But he had things to do. Underneath all those pictures had been an entirely new set of ledgers. He'd packed the pictures into an envelope and put them back in the drawer, tucking it under the desk so that Sarah didn't have to look at them unless she really wanted to, and then taken the ledgers with him. Hopefully these ledgers were for the missing money that Martin had been skimming. He'd called Nick and let him know he was on his way over. "Hey buddy," he said when Nick answered the door, thrusting the small stack of papers at him. Nick rolled his expressive dark brown eyes. Derrick's best friend looked like an accountant, although a very in shape one. Tall and slightly gawky, he had a good amount of muscle from running constantly. Definitely not a body builder, his lanky and lean body was incredibly fit and he'd never had any trouble picking up girls who went for the geeky type. The two of them made an interesting looking pair, both so tall, but Derrick being much broader and dark as night where as Nick had lily-fair Irish skin that burned the second he stepped into the sun. Even though he wasn't a redhead he hadn't been able to escape the curse of the fair skin. And, being Derrick's best friend, Nick knew something was up the moment he looked at his friend. A man couldn't have a night of incredible, mind-blowing sex without it leaving behind a kind of glow. He raised his eyebrows at Derrick as he let him into the house. "What have you been doing?" Derrick realized that he had a rather goofy grin plastered on his face. One that wouldn't quit even when he tried to tone it down. "Ah. Gathering evidence." He nodded at the stack of papers that Nick was now holding. Nick eyed him suspiciously. "Gathering anything else while you were at it?" Although it was impossible to see a blush on Derrick's dark face, he could feel his mouth stretch even more. Damn smile gave him away completely. Not that he ever lied to Nick anyway. "Ah... maybe." "Not an immediate yes followed by a shrug? She must be special." Huh. Despite the many times Derrick had responded to Nick's question about a woman, he'd never noticed his automatic response before. Yes, Sarah was special. He didn't want to shrug her off. He wanted to go back and do it again, and again, and again... after a moment he realized that he was staring into space and now Nick was looking at him with his own loony grin. Letting out a low whistle, Nick laughed. "Oh, you've got it bad. Who is she?" This time Derrick did shrug, but in a defensive kind of way. "The client. Her name's Sarah." "You dog!" It was not said in a complimentary way, and Nick punched his shoulder. Hard. "She's a widow!" "I know," Derrick said, backing up with his hands in the air. "It just kind of happened. I found a hidden drawer that those," he pointed at the papers as he backed away from his righteously indignant friend, "were in and it also had a bunch of pictures of her husband and several other woman. And then she just... kissed me." Nick stopped advancing, but he was still glaring. "What, so you threw her a bone? Pun intended." "No. Look... I like her. We had lunch yesterday, sort of by accident, when I went by to check out the office at the restaurant. I liked talking to her. And then we went back to her place so I could look through the home office again, and I found that stuff...." He ran his hand over the top of his bald head in frustration. "Look, it would have taken a saint not to respond when she kissed me like that. She's gorgeous. She wanted me. I made her dinner afterwards. And breakfast this morning." "THIS MORNING?!" Aw crap. That's what he got for babbling. Derrick spread his hands wide in front of him, shrugging helplessly. To his surprise, Nick burst out laughing. "Man have you got it bad." Shaking his head, Nick turned and headed towards the kitchen. Relieved that the third degree was over, Derrick followed. Was Nick right? How bad did he have it? Considering that part of him was already thinking about making another stop by her house today, for no other reason than to tell her that his friend was looking over the ledgers that he'd found, Derrick was sure that Nick was right. He had it pretty bad. ****** With Patricia for moral support, Sarah arrived at the restaurant. She gave the manager on duty, Veronica, instructions to make sure Vincent stayed away from the staff and to tell him to call her. After visiting with the servers and the kitchen for about half an hour, just overseeing the general flow of the restaurant and talking to some of the regulars, Sarah was feeling much more relaxed. Also, still sore. While she couldn't move without thinking of Derrick, she was able to distract herself somewhat by immersing herself in the busy bustle of the lunch rush. A few of the servers came to her, as much as they did Veronica, with small issues and requesting that she stop by a table to say hello or reassure an anxious customer that their lunch would be out shortly. Patricia sat at the bar and had a Bloody Mary, talking with Linda who was tending bar that day, while she waited for Sarah. Being at the restaurant, involved in an actual shift, made Sarah feel a lot more confident about taking Vincent's share of the restaurant away from him. She still might sell it one day, if she ever found someone that she trusted, but for now she realized that she could handle being the owner. That she wanted to be just as involved as Martin. Well, not that she knew when he was actually working and when he was sleeping around with other women. For a moment she saw red, but she pushed it away. There was no reason to let him ruin her day today. After a couple of house she picked up Patricia from the bar and they headed out to the back, where they found Vincent smoking just outside the employee entrance. "Sarah," he said, by way of greeting with a lascivious smile on his face. What a pig. She got an iron grip on her emotions. "Vincent. I'm glad you're here." It was almost true. She was glad to be able to get this over with and glad that Patricia was here to back her up. "I'm going to have to say no to your offer to buy my portion of the restaurant. However I'd like to offer to buy out your share." "What?" Sarah fixed him with a glare. "I found the drawer with the pictures, Vincent," she said, her voice dripping contempt. The man suddenly looked terrified. Was he that scared about having his sex with prostitutes discovered? Or maybe it was the former employees. Sarah hadn't really looked through the picture. Were any of the girls under age? She quelled her stomach, which had heaved with that thought. "I don't think you're a suitable owner. Even if you don't sell me your share then I don't want you anywhere near the premises of this restaurant." For a moment Vincent looked confused. Then something shifty entered his eyes. "Fine. That's fine. You can buy my share. I'll have the attorney draw up the paperwork this afternoon." "Okay..." said Sarah, suddenly suspicious. She exchanged a glance with Patricia, who was frowning. Sending the paperwork to the attorney that they used for the restaurant was exactly what she had been going to suggest When they turned back, Vincent was scurrying off. Both of the women watched him hurry away, completely perplexed. Patricia turned to her friend. "I definitely missed something, what just happened?" ******* The two women exchanged several theories that day, none of which seemed particularly realistic, as they waited for Sarah's turn at the doctor's office. Dr. Margolis not only took her blood, but he reassured her that Martin was regularly tested for STDs and had been clean as of his last test, last year. Trust Martin not to take care of his diet or exercise, but to make sure that he didn't catch gonorrhea. Obviously he hadn't realized which had been the greater threat to her life. She still wanted to get herself tested, just to make herself feel better, but it was a major relief to hear that Martin had at least taken care of that part of his health. The part which would have effected her the most. Was that why? Probably not the entire reason considering that their sex life had completely stopped several years ago. But it made her feel a little better, to think that he might have been trying to protect her. After all, Martin wasn't really a bad guy. Finding out what she'd been missing all these years, that spark of attraction and chemistry, not to mention the phenomenal orgasm with Derrick, had made her slightly more sympathetic to Martin searching for sexual satisfaction outside of their marriage. Neither of them had been getting it. That didn't make her less mad at him, because he should have let her go so that she could find someone that she actually clicked with. Like Derrick. Rather than living like a roommate with her best friend when there was no real romance between them. "Do you want to get away?" asked Patricia, breaking the silence in the car. "Go for a spa weekend or something? Maybe a trip to the beach for a week?" "I don't know," Sarah said slowly. "I'm not sure I can leave the restaurant right now." She made a face as she repeated Martin's phrase, but this time it was true. "Oh, right," Patricia said with a small laugh. "I'm so silly. Don't worry about it, you're absolutely right. I was just thinking that for your sanity it might be good to get away. But work is good too, and you'll be out of that house." She gave Sarah a sly look. "Plus, tall, dark and studly looks like he's done wonders for you already." "Oh hush," Sarah scolded. "No, seriously. You're glowing today. I mean, you're also walking funny, but you're glowing." Patricia laughed as Sarah smacked her on the arm, blushing furiously. It was probably true. She was very tender between her legs today, but in the best way possible. And knowing that Martin had been disease-free had taken a major weight off of her mind. Speaking of... "I should call him, shouldn't I?" "Aren't you too sore for that today?" "Patricia!" Sarah threw up her hands in exasperation at her friend as she chuckled without one iota of remorse. "I meant to tell him that Martin tested clean last year, so he doesn't have to worry about any STDs." "You should absolutely tell him, as soon as possible, so that he knows he can come over and do it again, and again, and again." "Hush," Sarah ordered, holding up her phone, indicating that she was going to call him. Patricia smirked and turned her attention back to the road. The phone rang twice before Derrick picked up. "Hello? Sarah?" The phone really did absolutely nothing to lessen the effect his deep, rich voice had on her. The bass reverberated down into her bones, and even though she was sore she could feel herself dampen a little bit just hearing it. The man was like an aphrodisiac. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 06 "Hi Derrick," she said, suddenly feeling shy. What if he didn't want to talk to her after last night? "Hi, how are you?" Well he sounded pleased to hear from her at least. "Um, I'm good!" Ugh, there really was no classy way to phrase what she was about to say. She really should have thought this through before calling him. "I um, I just wanted you to know that I just came from the doctor and um... what I mean to say is..." Patricia's shoulders were shaking as she held in her laughter and Sarah could feel her face getting hotter and hotter. "We're good." What I mean to say is, we're good." "Better than good from what I remember," he said smoothly, his voice rippling over her skin like silk. She shivered a little, a high pitched giggle escaping her. Oh good grief, she sounded like an idiot schoolgirl, not a grown woman. Even Patricia was giving her a look, the obviously hilarity on her face not helping Sarah's anxiety at all. Like she needed someone else's opinion to know that she sounded stupid. "I meant... I mean..." Derrick laughed. "It's okay, I think I know what you mean. How do you know already though? I always thought it took longer than that." "Oh well, apparently Martin was tested regularly," she said, still blushing. Was it okay to bring up the only man you'd had sex with prior to the man you just recently had sex with? If it wasn't, Derrick didn't seem to mind. "Good. Thanks for letting me know. Can I take you to dinner tonight?" "What? Oh... um... Derrick, I'm kind of sore..." More laughter from the phone, and since they were at a red light this time Patricia didn't bother to contain her own amusement. She laid her head down on the steering wheel and laughed her ass off while Sarah debated pounding her head on the dashboard. It would probably just make Patricia laugh even harder. "Just dinner, Sarah. I have some official stuff to talk to you about, and I'd like to see you again, if that's alright with you." "That's very alright with me," she said. He wanted to see her? Like a date? "Um, is 7 o'clock okay?" "Sure, where would you like to go?" "Oh gosh, I don't know. I rarely go anywhere but Polenta." "I'll chose a place then. I'll pick you up at 7." "Okay, See you then. Oh, and thanks for the muffins," she blurted out, wanting to make sure that he knew she'd gotten them and appreciated them. "I've never had homemade blueberry muffins that weren't from a box before." "Really?" He sounded pleased. "You're welcome. I'll see you tonight, Sarah. Bye." She loved the way he said her name. "Bye." As soon as she clicked off the phone Patricia started cheering. "Sarah's got a date! Sarah's got a date!" Normally Sarah would have felt like strangling her friend, but she was too excited, so she just joined in the chanting. ******* The rest of the afternoon ended up getting hectic. Vincent had moved incredible fast on getting the papers together to sell his share; the lawyer called and told her the price, so then she and Patricia had to talk to Lloyd about whether or not he wanted to buy in. Patricia and Lloyd decided to buy half of Vincent's share, but that still meant that Sarah had to find the money for the other half. To her dismay there was less in the savings account than she'd always thought, she'd be able to cover the cost but it was going to deplete the account. It also meant that she needed to be more frugal with her spending. So instead of going out and getting a new dress for dinner with Derrick, the way that she wanted to, she ended up borrowing a dress from Patricia. It was simple but pretty, the dark purple color emphasizing the red in her hair and making her hazel eyes seem more prominent. She didn't get home till 6:30, at which point she was rushing to get her make-up on. Since she didn't have much time to do anything fancy with her hair she just brushed it out so that it hung long and loose in waves down her back and put hair clips on either side of her head to keep it out of her face. Even though she knew she wasn't going to be having sex tonight, Sarah couldn't help the moistness of her pussy. You'd think that one night would satisfy her, but apparently not. When the doorbell rang, at exactly 7 pm, Sarah had just finished putting a coat of mascara on her eyelashes. Taking a deep breath, she looked herself over. Not bad for an almost forty-year old. Before she could lose her nerve, she went to answer the door. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 07 Author's Note: This is a series written at a reader's request; thank you for the fantastic idea! ********* Derrick couldn't believe how good Sarah looked when she opened the door. Being so much taller than her was definitely a bonus when she wore a low cut dress like that, he had the most incredible view of her creamy cleavage. That was the first place his eyes went, in fact, before he dragged them up to her killer smile as she watched him look her over. The dress hugged every single one of her curves, and the deep purple made her hair stand out like a flame as it waved back from her shoulders in long tendrils. She'd done something with make-up that made her hazel eyes look huge in her face, and her lips look eminently soft and kissable. Sarah stepped back to let him in, and he was able to admire the way her skirt rippled around those killer legs, which looked fantastic in some very high heels. Even wearing those she was so tiny that if he wanted to follow his body's response he'd have to pick her up to hold her against the wall and... Yeah. Snap back to attention and be a gentleman. Stepping through the doorway he shoved his hands in his pockets, to ensure that he would keep them to himself. Otherwise they'd never get to dinner. "You look beautiful," he said. She smiled back at him with pleasure. "You're looking pretty good yourself." It was true. Even if she hadn't had her usual, immediate reaction of damp panties the second she'd opened the door and seen the outline of his muscular body, a good long look at him would have provided the same response. He was wearing black slacks that made him look even taller, a crisp white button down shirt that contrasted sharply with his skin and the pants, and a medium gray jacket. It was like looking at a piece of chiaroscuro artwork. A sexy, masculine piece that would have women crowded around it to admire the clean lines and foreboding authority. Whereas she was all bright colors, he was shadows and light; despite her doubts about her own level of attractiveness she knew they were going to look incredibly good together tonight. Grabbing her purse, a simple silver clutch that matched her shoes, Sarah was very aware of Derrick's eyes following her every move. Just the way he watched her made her feel sexy and desirable. She still couldn't believe her luck that he wanted to see her again, and apparently for more than sex. If he'd called and asked to just come over and pleasure her silly again she would have told him that she was too sore today, but tried to make plans for tomorrow. Instead he wanted dinner. For business, he'd said, but also just because he wanted to see her. She felt as anxiously giddy as a high school girl at prom. And just as special as Derrick escorted her out the door and to his car, his eyes shining with admiration the entire way as he asked how her day was. Huffing a laugh, considering the very hectic past 12 hours, she said it had been fine, but he could tell there was obviously more to the story. Even though she was all for females rights and equality, she still thought it was a nice touch that he opened the door for her and helped her in. "So where are we going?" she asked brightly as he got into the car. "My favorite restaurant," he said. "Well, my favorite restaurant before I tried eating at Polenta." Sarah laughed. "You don't have to say Polenta is your new favorite." "But what if it is?" Derrick gave her a sidelong grin, flashing those gorgeous pearly whites, as he pulled down the street and headed out to the main road. She found herself fascinated with the way his hands gripped the steering wheel, making her remember the way he'd gripped her limbs last night. Licking her lips, she smiled back at him. "Well then I'm glad to hear it." Derrick's car was obviously only a couple years old, not very flashy (not that Sarah knew much about cars) and incredibly comfortable. She preferred clothe seats to leather, she hated the way the latter stuck to her skin in the summer. Or the winter when the heat was on high enough to warm it up. It was a bigger car than Martin and she had ever had, but Derrick also needed a lot more space to fold his large frame into. The space between them seemed to loom and she wished that she was closer to him. "You still didn't tell me where we're going." He laughed. "Persistent little thing aren't you?" Coming from someone else she may have apologized for pushing things, but Derrick just sounded amused and indulgent, so Sarah grinned at him, daring to reach across the space over the emergency break and cup holders and poke his arm. Geezus. Her eyes bulged. It was like poking a tree trunk, there was absolutely no give to that muscle. "Hey now, now poking, that's not nice. We're going to Founded by Farmers." Reaching towards her, Derrick scooped her hand up in his, completely engulfing it. Sarah flushed with pleasure again at the contact, his thumb stroking gently across her knuckles. Just that one small touch and suddenly her entire body felt like a spark had been lit within her. The palm of his hand was just as smooth as she remembered, despite the callouses that indicated he was no stranger to work. Just the kind of hands that turned a woman on. "Oh, I've heard of them. They're farm to table, right?" She worked on keeping her voice casual, even though she was squeezing her legs together because she was so turned on. The soreness of her tender folds did nothing to decrease her arousal. "Yep." Derrick gave her a pleased smile. "I think you'll like it a lot." "So what did you do today?" she asked, partly to keep the conversation going and partly out of genuine interest. "Ah... well. Did you want to talk business now or at the restaurant?" Hmm. That was a good question. "Now please, that way we can get it out of the way before dinner." For a moment she felt a little worried that she had mistaken his intention for asking her out, but the squeeze he gave her hand and the approving smile on his face told her that he liked the idea of spending dinner getting to know each other better instead of talking about the case that she'd hired him for. So he told her about dropping off the books at Nick's and his friend's hope that they might be able to figure out exactly how much money and where it had gone based off of the notes Martin had left. Sarah listened intently, chewing her lower lip. She was glad that they were talking about this now, her stomach was all in knots and if they'd tried to talk about it over dinner she would have been too angry to eat. By the time they got to the restaurant they'd moved onto Sarah's day and she told him about Patricia's offer to buy a portion of Vincent's share of Polenta, Vincent's immediate capitulation and his sudden disappearance from the restaurant, and the lawyer's call during the afternoon. "I'm going over tomorrow to the attorney's office tomorrow with a check," she finished up her story, just as their meals arrived at the table. Sarah hadn't been able to resist the "Adult Grilled Cheese" dinner consisting of a grilled cheese sandwich with gouda, provolone and prosciutto with a side of roasted red pepper and tomato soup. Derrick thought she looked utterly adorable dipping the corner of her sandwich into the creamy red soup and eating it just like a little kid. "How are you going to pay for the portion of his share that Lloyd and Patricia aren't buying, if you don't mind my asking." Waiting for her answer, Derrick dug into his own meal of country fried steak, mashed potatoes and green beans. Sarah made a face. "I'm going to have to dip into the savings account, although Martin didn't put aside nearly as much as he told me. Hopefully I don't end up needing the money for anything else anytime soon, but I don't think I can find another buyer on such short notice." "What about me?" Derrick asked. The words were out of his mouth before he could think them through, but as Sarah gaped at him his mind raced ahead of him. It wasn't a bad idea at all, actually. He'd enjoyed the tour that he'd gotten of the restaurant before, it was obviously successful, and he had been looking to get out of the PI business. Cooking and food was something he actually knew about and he was good at working with people. And if anyone tried to mess with Sarah or her restaurant he'd be there to hunt them down. The idea was sounding better and better as he thought about it. Completely taken aback it took Sarah a few minutes to answer. Her own thoughts were along the same line as Derrick's, from what she'd seen of his people and cooking skills, but she was worried about their personal life as well. They hadn't known each other for very long, would he want to keep seeing her in a more than business partners and friendly way if they were both involved in the restaurant? "Are you sure?" she asked, feeling anxious and unsure whether she wanted him to say yes or no. "What happens um, between us if.... I mean..." "We work it out," Derrick said, shrugging and reaching out to take her free hand, the one that didn't have a sandwich half in it. "I want to keep seeing you if you're amenable and if we end up deciding not to see each other anymore then I promise I won't leave you high and dry on the business end. Or you can buy my share out then, once you've gotten more in your savings account. But I'd like to try. I told you I've been wanting to do something new, and this fits so well with the things that I enjoy I feel like I'd be an idiot to pass up an opportunity like this. Not to mention that it gives me an excuse to spend even more time with you." The confident smile he gave her sent shivers whizzing right through her susceptible body. Sarah's fingers curved around his hand, squeezing it tightly to try and express all the things she couldn't bring herself to say. "I'm amenable," she whispered. This kind of honest come-on was completely new to her, and Derrick's obvious interest in her and his self confidence in expressing it kept her off balance. She was so glad that he was still interested in her, and yet unsure if it was too soon for the overwhelming feelings and attraction that was always sweeping through her in his presence. In some ways she felt more connected to him than she ever had to Martin, as if Derrick understood her on a deeper level even in the short time that they'd known each other. Certainly he seemed to have more respect and interest in what had happened during her day than Martin ever had. So they ended up talking some business during dinner after all, and Derrick was relieved to hear that he had more than enough to buy out the portion of Vincent's share that Patricia and Lloyd weren't taking. After that the conversation turned to their pasts, learning more about each other's school days and the trouble they'd each gotten into. Sarah was completely taken aback by Derrick's descriptions of eavesdropping on his neighbors as a teenager, usually by climbing onto their roofs. He told her a hilarious story about how he'd almost been caught and had ended up having to jump off of one of the roofs - right into a compost bin. That was the one and only time he'd gotten caught, since it was pretty obvious from the smell that he was the culprit. After dinner Derrick took Sarah back to her house and walked her to the door. "I had a wonderful time tonight," she said, looking up at him, not sure whether or not he was going to kiss her but definitely hoping that he would. Automatically her lips parted invitingly. And he was not the guy to turn down that kind of invitation. "Me too," he said as he pulled her into his arms, lowering his head to hers. Even though she was in heels, Sarah went up on tiptoes to meet his kiss, and Derrick groaned, his hard arms practically picking her up off the ground as he held her against him. Their tongues danced together, his lips sealed against hers, and heat flowed through her body. When he pulled away her lips were swollen as she swayed in the circle his arms made around her. "Would you like to come inside?" she asked, and then bit her lip remembering that she was still really sore from the night before. "Um... I'm not sure I'll be able to... I mean..." "You're still sore," he said, his eyes filled with laughter as he looked down at her. "Yes," she replied, feeling the hot blush rising in her cheeks. "That's just what a man likes to hear," he said, kissing her again. Sarah moaned into his mouth, letting her body arch and press against him, feeling his hard bulge pressing against her upper stomach. "There are other things we can do." She shivered and nodded as his lips moved over her ear and down her neck. Turning, she felt him press against her back, his hands caressing her stomach and moving upwards to her breasts as she unlocked the door, trembling so much that she actually missed the key hole a couple times. Which gave Derrick ample opportunity to cup and squeeze her breasts, his lips brushing the sides of her neck. Sarah shoved the door open and was turning to grab at him when he scooped her up in his arms, making her giggle madly as he strode purposefully into the house and kicked the front door shut behind him. "That's hot," she said, dropping her purse and keys to the floor and grabbing his collar. Pulling herself up, she sucked his earlobe into her mouth, reveling in his low groan as the sensation went straight to his dick. With her soft curves pressing against his body and her teeth nibbling at his sensitive lobe, Derrick hurried up the stairs as fast as he could go, the span of his right hand gripping her ass cheek and kneading it. Not making love to her was going to be torturous, but he'd get his hands on her however he could. When they got to the bedroom Sarah released his earlobe and started unbuttoning his shirt. Her eager wantonness was an incredible turn on and he let her legs go, letting them drop to the floor, although he kept his other arm securely wrapped around his waist. Clothing fell as they kissed and moved towards the bed, Sarah's backward steps in heels making her wobbly but she knew that Derrick wouldn't let her fall. Just as they reached the piece of furniture he kicked off his own shoes and pants, hoisting her up and pressing himself against her. She moaned as wetness seeped through her pussy. Poking him in the chest with her finger, Sarah pulled her mouth away. "Get on the bed," she ordered, eyes sparkling. There was something she had always wanted to do, something Patricia said that Lloyd loved but Sarah had always been too scared to bring up to Martin. Somehow she didn't think Derrick would mind. He laughed at her sudden show of bossiness. Normally he liked being in charge, but the petite redhead was so cute in her excitement that he didn't mind giving her control for a little bit. After all, they were both aware that he could take it back anytime they liked. Lying down in the center of the bed, Derrick wrapped his hand around himself and stroked, looking at her with a lazy smile. "Scoot down," she said, climbing up on the bed next to him. Amused, he followed her orders, scooting down a few inches so that his feet were at the very end of the bed and his head was no longer resting on the pillows. To his delight Sarah spread her creamy thighs and straddled his face, giving him a first rate view of her leaking folds, still slightly reddened from the workout he'd put them through last night. Removing his hand from himself, he reached up and grabbed her breasts, squeezing them as she leaned over, her thighs spreading even more to lower her gorgeous pussy to his mouth. As he began gently tonguing her outer labia, teasing her, he felt a delicate hand wrap around the base of his dick as her own tongue laved over the tip. Immediately his hips thrust upwards, wanting more contact. Sarah didn't have much experience with blow jobs, she'd only given a few in her entire life, but she wanted to pleasure Derrick. Too nervous to try and put him in her mouth right away, she licked up and down his length like he was a giant lollipop, teasing him with her tongue and the press of her lips as she discovered his sensitive spots. She could tell that he liked it, but she didn't realize exactly how wild she was driving him until his hands became rougher on her breasts from his passion. But he remained considerate of her tender core, his mouth gentle as he laved away the soreness, teasing arousal and pleasure from her aching folds. The consideration he was showing her with his gentle touches to her sore folds, allowing her to experience pleasure despite their increased sensitivity, touched Sarah more than physically. It also gave her the courage to open her mouth and slide his dark shaft between her rose lips. Derrick shuddered beneath her, moaning as her pale hands splayed across his muscular thighs, his thick meat filling her mouth. Feeling him in her mouth, the thick shaft pressing heavily on her tongue, was incredibly erotic. Especially because he was simultaneously licking and pleasuring her wonderfully. When a finger ran lightly over her anus, teasing the sensitive nerves there, she tensed and then relaxed, moaning as she realized that it felt good. The vibrations of her moan caused Derrick's hips to jerk upwards as they played over his erection, and he pressed his finger a little more firmly against her anus, rubbing it gently. He couldn't believe how responsive and eager a lover Sarah was, despite the fact that he'd over extended her body the night before. The dark pink of her pussy was gorgeous, cupped between the creamy paleness of her thighs and buttocks. The teasing of her mouth and now her eagerness at sucking him was incredibly hot. Soft breasts pressed against his stomach, her hard nipples rubbing against the firm muscles of his belly, and he found it harder and hard to control himself as he ate her out. The lubricated tip of his finger pressed into her back door and Sarah cried out with the incredible pleasure. Derrick's mouth was becoming more insistent and the throbbing ache between her legs increased, her hips moving up and down over his face as her body's natural instincts took over. The soreness of her pussy was lost in a release of adrenalin and endorphins as her orgasm started to build. More and more of Derrick's cock slipped between her lips as her body undulated on top of him, the eager sucking of her mouth as she lost herself in pleasure helping her throat to relax. She'd never had much of a gag reflex anyway, and it wasn't until her lungs were burning for air that she realized she'd taken him deep into her throat. Derrick's heavy groans into her pussy vibrated the tender folds. Bobbing her head up and down on top of him, she was on automatic, feeling almost delirious with the sensations that were coiling inside of her. The tip of his finger pressing deeper into her anus completed the full feeling that she needed and she cried out around the meat in her mouth as ecstasy shuddered through her body. Derrick's hips lifted, muffling her cries. Her throat rippled around him and she sucked hard, her eyes glazed over with pleasure as her cream dripped down into his mouth, his finger moving back and forth in her anus as she shook with ecstasy. The meat in her mouth swelled and pulsed, and she swallowed as jets of frothy cum shot into her body, still quivering from her own orgasm. Derrick's loud groans of pleasure into her pussy sent a few more ripples of pleasure spasming through her satiated body. Sarah felt incredibly proud of herself for having tried something new and have it go so successfully. Letting his shrinking dick fall from her mouth, she shifted herself around to snuggle up to him. "You're incredible," he told her, securing his arm around her shoulders and pulling her upwards for a kiss. She could taste herself on his lips but she didn't care. If he was willing to kiss her after she'd swallowed his cum then she could deal with it too. Somehow with Derrick it didn't seem gross or unsanitary, it didn't seem to matter at all. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 07 "You're pretty fantastic yourself," she replied, giggling after he released her lips from the tender kiss. She felt like a giddy high school girl all over again, slightly awkward but too happy to care. "Thank you." "For what? The orgasm?" Sarah laughed. "Yes. For being so gentle and wonderful." The fact that she was thanking him for something that he felt like he should be giving her broke his heart a little. What kind of sex life had she had before him that she thought she should express her gratitude for something beautiful and natural? Derrick knew that he was falling more and more into the emotional connection between the two of them; his offer to take part in her restaurant had been a spontaneous thing, but he knew it was because he was in deeper with her than any woman he'd ever met before in his life. He liked the idea of being tied to her, of having her tied to him, so that he could take the time to get to know her better and continue doing what they were doing. Everything about Sarah appealed to him. She was independent, smart, charming, funny and fun to be around. On the other hand she was also strangely vulnerable, appealed to his protective nature, and enjoyably innocent in a lot of ways. Derrick didn't want to just enjoy himself and run, like he had often before, with women who felt the same way. For the first time in his life, he found himself wanting to enjoy himself and stay and keep enjoying himself. So he cuddled Sarah to his side and did something he'd never done before with a woman. He fell asleep. ****************** When Sarah woke up it was immediately obvious that she wasn't in the bed alone, but she also knew it wasn't Martin there with her. Sleeping in the bed with Martin had been about the same as sleeping alone, since they'd always woken up on completely opposite sides of the bed, not even touching. Derrick didn't sleep like that at all. Her back was pressed against his chest, his heavy arm draped over her waist keeping her tight against him, and his legs curled up under hers. The hard, insistent ridge pressed against her buttocks was probably why she had woken up. For a few moments she toyed with the idea of morning sex. But she was too worried about morning breath, not to mention the fact that when she gently probed the soft folds between her legs she found them to still be sensitive to the touch. Despite her attempt to keep her movements small and unobtrusive, she apparently woken Derrick. "Good morning beautiful," he said, burying his face in her gorgeous hair. The lovely flow of auburn was soft against his face and it smelled good, like delicate flowers and something distinctly Sarah. Waking up to find her pressed against him had been quite enjoyable. Why had he always resisted sleeping over at a woman's house before? Probably because most of the women who chased him weren't really looking for a future anyway, they hadn't been looking for more than fantastic sex and a muscular date. And occasionally a discount on his PI services. Not sweetly pliant, strangely innocent Sarah though. She was worth waking up next to, especially after the good night of sleep that he'd gotten. "Good morning," she said, but she sounded a little strange. Not regretful, but anxious about something. Frowning, Derrick pulled away from her far enough that he could turn her onto her back so that he could see her face while still keeping his arm wrapped around her wonderful softness. She looked fantastic, all tousled and warm from sleep, the sheet just covering the soft mounds of her breasts. As her naked thigh pressed against his groin he was very aware that his body was more than ready for her again. But he also knew that he needed to give her more time to rest, so he just very gently leaned over and kissed her lips, brushing against them and then pressing down for a harder kiss. When he pulled away Sarah's arms were clinging around his neck and her pale cheeks were becomingly flushed. She still looked anxious though. Maybe she was worried that he'd cut and run. Not damn likely. He'd get them some coffee and breakfast and see if that didn't help her worries. "Are you hungry?" he asked, slipping from the bed and pulling on his pants from last night. Sarah sat up, clutching the sheet to her chest. The disarray of her hair was so incredibly cute and yet wonderfully sexual, chipping away at his resolve to let her body get some rest from his erotic demands. The worry still hadn't gone from her face, which confused him. Maybe she just wasn't fully awake yet. "Do you mind if I rummage through your kitchen and get some breakfast ready." "Yes, yes that's fine," Sarah said, running a hand over her hair. She was incredibly confused. Derrick was obviously still aroused, but he had covered himself up instead of pleasuring himself with her again. Part of her was relieved because she had wanted more time for the overused area between her legs to recover, but she also found herself feeling rather disappointed. Not to mention worried that he'd lost interest in her already. She was sure that he was used to much more experienced lovers than she knew herself to be, but she'd been hoping that perhaps her enthusiasm for him might help counteract that. Glancing over at the mirror on her vanity, she could just see herself in it now that she was sitting up, Sarah's mouth dropped open in horror. No wonder Derrick wasn't interested in having sex with her, even with an erection! Her hair was an absolute mess, there were a few dark smudges under her eyes from not taking off her make-up last night, and her face was flushed and blotchy. Before she knew it she had hopped out of bed, completely forgetting her completely naked state, and was across the room grabbing up her hairbrush, running it through her hair. "What are you doing?" asked Derrick, incredibly amused. He hadn't missed the look on her face, although he didn't understand what had her so upset, but he wasn't unhappy about watching all of her delicious female curvy parts jiggling as she had bolted over to the vanity. A gloriously naked Sarah firwst thing in the morning was a very nice sight to see. Realizing what she had done, and the fact that she was naked, Sarah's blush felt like it was heating her entire body. She turned to scurry back to the bed and cover herself up again, but Derrick had already moved around behind her, his large bulk standing between her and the bed. "Um," she said as he came closer, her head tilting back to continue looking up at him. Shirtless and in slightly wrinkled slacks he was still far too good looking. It really wasn't fair that he didn't have any hair to get messed up, his dark skin never showed a blush, and the defined muscles covering his frame didn't jiggle one bit. Just looking at him made Sarah feel frumpy and unattractive, at least until she looked in his eyes and saw the growing desire reflected there. It also occurred to her that the bulge in the front of his pants hadn't gone down one bit. Derrick pressed two fingertips under her chin, tilting her head up even further as he bent down to kiss her, running his tongue over her lips before pulling away. Sarah stared up at him, transfixed. "You look beautiful first thing in the morning," he said softly. Embarrassed by his perceptiveness, Sarah lowered her eyes, although he didn't let her pull her face away from his hand. "Then why don't you... I mean... I thought..." She glanced up at him to see him arching an eyebrow at her as she stammered. Exasperated Sarah let out a huff of air. "You're hard." "So I am," Derrick said, chuckling. "But I'm trying to be a gentleman because I thought you might still be sore." "I am," she admitted. "So let me be a gentleman. I'm going to go make us some breakfast." And then he kissed her again, quite thoroughly, pulling her into his arms so that he could press his body against hers and show her exactly how much he wanted to NOT be a gentleman. Then he pulled away and left the room, whistling cheerfully and leaving a rather confused, but happy, woman behind him. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 08 The breakfast that Derrick cooked Sarah that morning was fantastic. A bacon and egg omelet seasoned with onions and herbs, with a side of fresh sliced melon. Despite his reassurance she'd still taken the time to brush out her hair and pull it back into a ponytail so that it would have some semblance of order. Since he'd gone downstairs in nothing but his slacks she'd put on some yoga pants that hugged her curves and bottom quite nicely in the stretchy fabric. Paired with a tank top that had some lace stretched over the bosom she felt and looked both comfortable and a little sexy. The appreciative look Derrick gave her when she came into the kitchen made her feel even more attractive. It was incredible how much she'd blossomed under his attention, even before they'd consummated their attraction. The effect that he had on her body and her emotions was incredible. Right now she didn't know how long he planned on continuing to see her, but she wasn't going to complain. However much time he spent with her she knew she would cherish, and she certainly didn't expect anything more than that. Derrick was so far out of her league, with his rippling muscles that she was drooling over even as he cooked her breakfast, his capable determination and sweetly fun loving personality. But being around him made Sarah feel like more than a drab housewife trying to cope with inheriting a restaurant from her unfaithful husband. They ate together companionably, and Sarah reflected on how nice it was not to be the one who had to cook. But she wouldn't let Derrick do the dishes afterwards, it should be a fair trade after all. He insisted on drying as she washed, and every time their fingers touched she felt that same electric current of excitement flowing through her, despite the fact that it was only their fingers brushing against each other. From the amused look in his eyes as she blushed, he was not unaware of her distraction. Unfortunately, just as they had started kissing again after finishing breakfast, the phone rang and all of Sarah's plans for a relaxed day were gone out the window. The attorney had called her in, saying that Victor had agreed to sell only if she was there by noon, which through her into a flurry of activity. She called Patricia and Lloyd while Derrick was on the phone with his bank, and then she called her bank while he drove her over to the attorney's. To her relief she didn't have to face Victor again, and it was a surprisingly fast time - only a couple of hours - before all the business was concluded and the portions of ownership were properly allocated in the paperwork. The entire time Patricia was shooting her little darting glances of surprise and speculation, although she didn't say anything in front of Lloyd or the attorney. Sarah knew that her friend was dying to interrogate her about why Derrick, of all people, was buying into the restaurant. To tell the truth Sarah wasn't entirely sure either but at the moment she was glad of it. Even if things didn't work out between them in the long run, she truly appreciated him giving her the time to build up her savings. And in the meantime, both of them being involved in the restaurant would mean that they would get much more time together. As they left the attorney's office and stepped out into the bright sunshine of the day, Lloyd let out a heart chuckle and slapped Derrick on the back. "Well, it's been wonderful doing business with you. Now who's hungry?" "Yes, I think we should all go to lunch together," Patricia put in immediately, her eyes lighting up. "Now that we all own parts of the restaurant we should get to know each other better." Considering that Patricia was her best friend Sarah knew that what her friend was really saying was that she wanted to get to know Derrick. Sarah shot Patricia a sharp look which, as usual, her friend ignored. "Why don't we go to Polenta?" Patricia suggested brightly, turning slightly away from Sarah and grinning up at Derrick. Simultaneously she looped her arm through Lloyd's, as if ensuring that everyone got the message that she truly wanted Derrick to join them for lunch, but that her interest in his company was in no way sexual because she was so devoted to her husband. Sarah had to admire Patricia's mastery of body language; she always did everything deliberately and was never thrown off guard by other people's assumptions or misunderstandings, because she was so very clear in what she was saying. "We'll need to announce the changes to everyone anyway, and by the time we're done eating the lunch shift will be just wrapping up and the dinner shift arriving. It's perfect timing." Sarah looked up at Derrick. "I'm free," he said, smiling down at her. The look on his face was both hopeful and a little pleading, and she realized that he didn't really want to be left alone to the interrogation techniques of her best friend. She laughed. "That sounds fine to me," she said. Derrick really wasn't entirely free. Nick had left a voicemail for him while they'd been in the attorney's office, which he hadn't gotten a chance to listen to yet, but the truth was that he found himself reluctant to leave Sarah's side. And he wanted to make a good impression on her friends, who were now also his business partners. And Patricia's logic about the restaurant did make a lot of sense. He found it all to easy to push aside his work and concentrate on his conversation with Sarah as they headed to Polenta. He could tell that she was both excited and anxious about the changes, as she'd been planning on relinquishing her responsibility to others. Now she had a lot of support from Patricia and her husband, not to mention himself, but she was still obviously feeling a little under qualified. As she confessed some of her fears to him in the car on the way over he reached out and held her hand again, enjoying the feel of her small hand in his. Being privileged to hear her anxieties was not an honor that he dismissed lightly. From her hesitancy when she first started, he had been able to tell that she was a little nervous about showing any fear, but he'd coaxed it out of her on the ride over and then countered all of her fears with support. By the time they arrived at the restaurant Sarah was feeling ready to take on the world. She couldn't believe how easy it had been to unload everything on Derrick, he not only seemed genuinely interested, but he didn't appear to look down on her at all for her insecurities. Instead he'd pointed out that she'd been running things since Martin had left and the restaurant didn't seem to be suffering any. Then he'd asked several pointed questions about what it took to be a partial owner, for his own education, and she found that she was able to answer all of them fully, which gave her even more confidence. And his reminder that he was even newer to the situation than she was made her feel even better. Walking into the restaurant, Derrick didn't hold her hand but he did keep his on the small of her back. Not that she felt like he was pushing her anywhere, it was a remarkably possessive feeling gesture that made her feel like the two of them were still connected in a special way. Patricia saw everything of course, although Lloyd didn't seem to be noticing. "Girl's trip to the bathroom," Patricia said in a sing song voice, grabbing Sarah's arm before she could sit down. Derrick and Lloyd both looked amused, nodding, as they took their seats and picked up their menus. As Patricia dragged her off to the ladies' room, she glanced back to see the two men already in deep discussion. Well that was good at least. "So? Spill," demanded Patricia as soon as she got Sarah alone. "How on earth did tall dark and studly end up as one of our partners? Not that I'm complaining, mind you. He's great scenery, and considering that he seems to know your value I've got to give him a lot of props for intelligence. But are you sure this is smart? I can see the way you look at him and how he is around you; what if things go bad and you're tied to him financially?" Sarah held up her hand to stem the flow of questions. "I know. But we did talk about that, I promise. He's even the one who brought it up. While we were out at dinner last night I was telling him about my day and your offer and how I still needed to cover some of the costs, and he just upped and offered. I have no idea what he was thinking. But he said that if things didn't work out between us and we didn't want to see each other anymore that he'd sell it to me, and by then I'd have more in savings to pay for it with." "Wait, he actually said that? As in, there are things to work out between you and that he wants to be around for awhile?" Patricia squealed and did a happy victory dance around the bathroom as Sarah laughed at her. The implications of Derrick's actions and words hadn't really sunk in, what with all her other confused emotions, and the realization was a little overwhelming. "I can't really date him yet, you know," Sarah said, trying to calm her friend down. "I mean, what would people say?" "They would say that you deserve to be happy," Patricia said brutally. "And that you can't help when you meet someone." Sarah gave her a look and Patricia rolled her eyes. "Oh okay, some jerks might gossip a little, but no one who knows you and cares about you would ever think badly of you just because you met a guy. Even before he died you and Martin barely had a marriage, you were more like roommates than anything else. Friends." Which pretty much summed up Sarah's own thoughts. Maybe she really didn't need to feel that slight twinge of guilt at how much she was enjoying herself. Or how much she liked Derrick and was attracted to him. He made her feel sexy, and at the same time like he respected her. Being around him made her feel like she really could do anything she wanted. And she wanted to get out of the house more. Be more involved in the restaurant. "We should probably get back to the men," Sarah said, feeling suddenly eager to be back in Derrick's company, without any of the slight shame that usually tinged a thought like that. "Ooooo our first double date," Patricia gushed as they left the restroom. Wow. It really was. A silly grin lit up Sarah's face and she couldn't stop it. On their way back to the table she saw that the two men both already had beers in front of them and were still deep in conversation. When Derrick glanced up and saw her coming his dark face split open to reveal those gorgeous white teeth, a shining smile that warmed her from the inside out. Obviously not caring what her friends thought of their relationship, Derrick grabbed her hand and pulled her into the booth next to him, sliding his arm around her waist and tugging him close enough that their bodies were touching from their hips all the way down their legs. Lloyd raised his eyebrows in surprise but didn't say anything as he and Derrick continued to talk about the inner workings of the restaurant. It sounded like Derrick really was interested and wanted to learn everything he could from the manager, preferably within the next five minutes. She felt a surge of emotion for him. Although she knew that she was falling for him, and that the more time she spent with him the deeper she fell, she couldn't bring herself to want to stay away. Sure, he probably had a few faults, but nothing that had come up yet that she couldn't live with. Unless she counted the fact that she had no idea how he actually felt about her and whether or not he was interested in any kind of committed relationship. Considering that he was a bachelor at 35 she was guessing not. So that was a pretty major fault. Finally accepting that it was alright if she moved on from Martin had also made her start thinking about what she wanted in a relationship. Derrick fit all of those things except that she wanted commitment and children; two things that this man had obviously avoided for awhile. Maybe they could keep this up for a little bit, but unless she changed her mind about what she wanted, there was no future here. The thought made her sad and she realized that she was kind of hoping that maybe there could be some kind of future with Derrick. Was this what people meant by rebounding? But she didn't feel like she was rebounding, because she didn't have any dependence on Martin to transfer to anyone. No, for the first time in her life she felt like the romance books she'd read, like the other women who talked about their boyfriends or husbands. She was falling in love. She really should have thought through all the implications of her feelings before agreeing that Derrick should get involved in the restaurant. On the other hand, didn't she deserve a little bit of love and happiness? Even if it wasn't returned from him, at least she'd know what it felt like for a little bit. But it could only be for a short period of time, because she wasn't getting any younger and she definitely still wanted children. If she could find someone to fall in love with who also wanted them. For a moment her shoulders sagged and she felt Derrick squeeze her lip. Looking up she could see concern in his eyes and she dredged up a smile for him. If only he wasn't so damn perfect; he'd even noticed that her silence meant something was wrong. Because he cared. Even if he wasn't in love with her too, he did care. Sarah's smile became a little more genuine. By the time dinner was over Sarah had made a decision. Derrick was an incredible lover, he cared about her, and he was part of the restaurant team now. Most importantly, it made her happy to spend time with him. So she'd appreciate the time that she'd get with him, save up her money to buy him out, and explore as much of her sexuality as she could while she was with him. Who knew if the next guy that came along in her life would have the kind of chemistry that she and Derrick did together. Several times throughout the meal she'd thought about some new things that she wanted to try out with him, things that she had never thought about before in her life, and had been hard put to pay attention to the conversation. For his part, Derrick wondered about the heat that infused Sarah's face occasionally. The conversation never seemed to be anything that should put that look on his face. She looked rather lustful in fact. Aroused. God knew he was aroused just from sitting next to her. He wanted to get her back home, strip her down and make love to her all night. If she wasn't still too sore anyway. ***** The announcement to the staff went really well, apparently Vincent had been even less well liked than Sarah had realized. Everyone was thrilled that Patricia was now officially part of the restaurant family - Linda and Angela practically mobbed her with hugs. When she introduced Derrick to them there was a veritable flood of whispers and a few knowing winks, which she tried to ignore although she knew she was blushing. To her relief everyone was grinning about it and no one seemed upset at all. Since they were catching both the lunch and the dinner staff, only a few were missing the official announcement. One of which was Q, since he was part time. She wondered if Derrick had let his cousin know what he was up to. Sarah was elated when Derrick asked her if she wanted to come back to his place for dinner. She'd already been wondering whether or not to invite him into her house when he took her home, since she didn't want to seem clingy or desperate but she truly did want to spend the night with him if she could. That he not only wanted to spend the night with her, but also wanted to show her his home, made her feel joyously happy. Really, too happy considering that she didn't know where this - whatever it was they were doing - was going, but she pushed the negative thoughts aside. While Derrick checked out the options in his refrigerator and opened a bottle of wine she explored his bachelor pad. It was a lot cleaner than any bachelor pad she'd ever been in. A two bedroom condo, the smaller of which had both a bed for a guest and a desk with a computer for working, with a large den area, the entire feeling was very masculine and comfortable. All of the decor was done in soft earth tones, including a handmade afghan draped over the back of a dark brown leather couch that was far too comfortable to sit down on. She giggled as she sank into the seat, feeling like a child playing on her father's furniture. The couch cushion practically swallowed up her petite form. Across from her was a very large television with bookshelves on either side, some with DVDs on them and some with books. "Do you like mahi-mahi?" Derrick asked as he came into the room to hand her a glass of crisp white wine. "Mahi-mahi sounds lovely," she replied as she accepted the glass. "Thank you." Seeing Sarah sitting on his couch in her business suit that she'd worn for going to the attorney's, her shoes off on the floor in front of her, with her legs curled underneath her cute little butt, sent an unexpected thrill through Derrick. She should have looked out of place with her petite, feminine form in his masculine apartment with the large furniture that was suited to his frame, but she didn't. Somehow she just seemed to fit right in with his home, something that probably should have scared him but right now it was just making him feel good. This woman was all to easy to be comfortable around. And the more he had her around, the more he liked it. Some part of him wondered why he wasn't fighting that, but the truth was he liked the feeling. Maybe he was starting to get old enough to think about settling down. Or something. And watching her taste the wine, with a little purr of pleasure as she licked her lips was enough to stir the arousal that always seemed to be waiting in his groin when she was around. For a moment he debated just scooping her up and carrying her off to his bedroom caveman style to have his way with her and getting to dinner later, but he thought the better of it. After all, she deserved to be wined and dined, and he would just have to control the impulses of his body. The wine Derrick had brought her was wonderfully chilled. Although it was crisp it was a good sipping wine with hints of apples and pear, depending on what he did with the fish, it would probably pair well with the mahi-mahi. Perhaps she should turn on the television, but mostly what she wanted to do was sit and think. It had been an extremely hectic couple of days. She'd had a couple of days to integrate Martin's deception and betrayal and to get very used to having Derrick in her life and she didn't fancy pondering the future with him anymore. At the moment she'd just wait and see what happened one day at a time. What she wanted to think about was Vincent. Not that he was a pleasant topic of thinking for her, but she couldn't figure out why he had capitulated so quickly over his shares in the restaurant. It would be one thing if he truly wasn't interested, but since he'd been thinking about buying her out then that didn't make sense. The other curiosity was how quickly he'd moved on selling her his portion, especially his confusing insistence that it had to be done today. Biting her lip she pondered what it meant. In her rush to secure his shares, the excitement and distraction of Derrick, and her worry and elation over maintaining her own portion of the restaurant, she hadn't really taken the time to think about why he might have wanted his shares off his hands, and why it had to be so quickly. Getting up from her seat on the couch, she left her shoes behind and walked barefoot over to the kitchen. Watching Derrick make dinner was a treat. He flashed her a quick grin as she appeared in the door way, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows to show off his muscular forearms and a hand towel draped over one broad shoulder. Every movement was quick and precise. It was nearly as good as watching Cara at work in Polenta. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 08 "That smells delicious," she said, watching as he slid the delicate fish into the pan to sauté. Another pan already held a mix of asparagus and oranges simmering in some kind of sauce that was slowly reducing, which would probably be going over the fish when it was finished. On the counter a rice maker was filled with steam. Once again she was impressed, not just with his culinary skills but with his care in making her a delicious meal. She was really starting to feel bad about not having returned the favor yet. "Hopefully it will taste delicious too," he said, winking at her as he leaned over for a quick kiss. The gesture made her heart flutter, she couldn't believe that a man who was feeling casual about her would do that so naturally. Tilting her head to lean against the doorway she smiled back at him, feeling happier than she had in years. But that's not the real reason she'd come in here to talk to him. "Did you end up finding anything out about Victor?" she asked. "After the strange way he was acting yesterday when Patricia and I confronted him, and his insistence that the deal for selling out his shares go through this morning for noon... I just can't help but feel like there's something going on that I don't know about." Derrick winced. He'd forgotten to call Nick. Again. "I'm sorry, I should have told you earlier. I've got a voicemail from my accountant friend that I told you about, still waiting to be listened to one my phone. I'm hoping that he'll have some insights for use. I'll call him back after dinner." "Oh good," Sarah smiled up at him. "No apologies necessary, I was just wondering. I know I've kept you a bit busy today. And last night." The last three words just seemed to slide out of her, in a lowered tone that made her blush furiously even as she said the words. No, she wasn't quite ready to play seductress, but at the same time she'd enjoyed trying. The heated look that Derrick gave her before he snaked out his arm, wrapping it around her waist and bending it back for a much deeper and more thorough kiss than the one he'd giving her a few minutes ago, made her attempt worth it. He didn't seem to mind that she turned into a tomato at the first hint of innuendo, no matter how subtle. "I'd like to keep you busy tonight again, if that's okay with you," he said, his eyes glinting down at her. The sheer magnetism of this gentle giant had Sarah enthralled as she stared up at him. Her heart was pounding as she flicked her tongue out to lick suddenly dry lips. The expression on Derrick's face as his eyes dropped to her mouth sent lust surging through her. He chuckled, and she swore she could feel it all the way down to where liquid heat was pooling in her core. "I'll take that as a yes." "Oh," said Sarah, blushing furiously again as she realized that she'd gotten too distracted by her arousal to answer him. "I'm sorry." "Sweetheart, you can look at me like that anytime," he replied, chuckling again as he released her. Sarah leaned against the doorway again, although much less casually this time and more because she actually needed it to help support her trembling body. This time she remained silent, just watching him move. While part of her might want to continue to ponder the mystery of Vincent, all she could think about now was how incredible Derrick made her feel, how sexy he was as he plated their food. Her nipples tightened just thinking about what was in store after dinner. This would be their first time having sex at his house. The fact that they'd soon have been intimate in both of their homes seemed to mean something, although Sarah was too timid to actually admit to herself just how much it meant to her. Dinner was delicious. Of course. She hadn't expected anything else. And eating at his table, playing footsie with him as she ate the delicate fish with the flavorful oranges and asparagus, made her feel like a little kid again. They talked about the restaurant a little bit, but mostly about their childhoods, trying to top each other with the funniest or most outrageous story. She even found herself telling him about the time in middle school when she'd accidentally run face first into a locked door, trying to escape the humiliation of having her friends point her out to the guy she liked, only to end up humiliating herself in a different way entirely. Of course, as soon as they both had clean plates she became anxious again. She'd also had several glasses of wine, enough to make her feel warm and fizzy with anticipation. When she licked her lips after the last bite, sweeping away the small drop of sauce that had been caught, Derrick's eyes locked onto her mouth like a homing beacon. The smoldering heat in his eyes nearly made her moan, she was so turned on just by having him look at her. It was like her body had become primed for him - she was Pavlov's dog and he really rang her bell. The analogy made her giggle. "What?" asked Derrick. Sarah just shook her head, unable to answer as she laughed even harder at the thought of trying to explain her amusement. No way was that happening. He mock scowled at her. "You'd better tell me," he said threateningly, but Sarah just laughed harder. She was still laughing as he growled at her and practically darted around the table, scooping her up in his arms and heading to the back of the condo where the bedrooms were located. "The dishes!" she managed to say between giggles. "Later," he said as he strode into his room. "I have to find out what's so amusing in that pretty head of yours." Sarah shook her pretty head, her blush blooming again. "Mmmm I think I can torture it out of you," he said playfully as he tossed her to the middle of his bed, crawling up behind her and over her, trapping her between his knees and hands on either side of her body. Sarah reached up and caressed his face, admiring the glorious contrast of their skin tones. In that moment she decided she wasn't even going to bother trying to get a tan ever again. She'd never been able to achieve much color and she loved the way her creamy tone looked against the jet black of his skin. The alcohol was making it hard for her to concentrate on one thing at a time. "Is it something about me?" "Ding ding ding!" Sarah said and then burst into hysterical laughter, so much so that her sides ached as Derrick stared down at her in complete astonishment. The look on his face set her off again and her eyes filled with tears at the force of her amusement. "I'm not sure I like you laughing at me," he said bemusedly, starting to unbutton her shirt. Sarah managed to stifle the hilarity back down to giggles, helped along by the coiling tension that was beginning between her legs as his fingers stroked the soft skin of her stomach. When his lips followed his fingers she let out a small gasp of pleasure that turned into a moan as he cupped her breasts, caressing them through the fabric of her bra. It didn't take long for Derrick to strip her to her waist, his mouth and hands eager to worship the creamy mounds with their sweet pink tips. Sarah's legs wrapped around his body, hiking up the skirt she was wearing, as she tried to rub herself against him. Holding his head in her hands, she arched her back upwards at the wonderful sensation of him suckling at her nipple, his dark hands full of her ivory flesh. "Derrick, please!" she begged as he continued to lave her breasts with affection, ignoring her squirming lower body. She needed him to touch her, lower, fill her. "Please what?" he asked, giving her an almost mischievous look as he ran his tongue across her nipple. Sarah shuddered and moaned, the beautiful pink flush spreading across her face again. "Tell me what you want Sarah, and I'll do it." "Touch me." Her voice and eyes were pleading. "I am touching you." "Under my skirt, please Derrick." "Say it Sarah." A few more moments of squirming beneath him, her hot little body trapped and unable to get the friction she wanted, needed from him. "Touch my pussy please," she whispered. Derrick gave a low groan at her soft words, practically tearing her skirt and panties away from her body. The primly proper Sarah saying words like that, in her breathy little voice, was almost unbearable. Despite the fact that she'd been a married woman until a couple of months ago, there was something so incredibly innocent about her as if she was just learning about her sexuality. "Like this, sweetheart?" he asked, leaning over her so that he could fully see her expression as he stroked his fingers up the center of her folds, circling her clit and coating it with juices. "Yes!" Sarah cried out, her hips moving against his hand as she clutched at the front of her shirt. The wild look in her eyes made him feel about ten feet tall, that he could elicit this passionate response from a woman who was usually so reserved, so in control. "Please... put your finger in me... and..." her voice trailed off and she blushed even harder, some sense coming back into her eyes. "And what?" Derrick asked, suddenly dying to know. The combination of a few glasses of wine and his teasing had uninhibited her a little bit, but apparently not all the way. What more did she want? Sarah shook her head. Lowering his head to her chest, Derrick sucked her nipple into his mouth again, biting down on the sensitive bud and rolling it through his teeth as his fingers dipped very briefly into her hot little hole, not going further than teasing the entrance to her body. Sarah cried out, thrashing beneath him hard enough that the top two buttons of his shirt ripped off, baring some of his chest to her. Immediately she slid her hands in, touching him and trying to tease him back. "What were you going to say, Sarah?" His voice was demanding as he ran his thumb across her clit, torturing her wonderfully. He knew he had to get the answer out of her soon, her hands running across his chest was quickly unraveling the self control he was restraining himself with. Nothing would make him happier right now than to bury himself between her thighs, but he didn't want any part of her desires to go unexplored. There was nothing that he didn't want to give to her. She squeezed her eyes shut as her cheeks blazed with color. The whisper was so low he almost didn't hear it. "Touch my butt please." The soft request was like a tidal wave ripping through him, shredding his control. Dirty, passionate Sarah, hiding beneath the prim exterior of a housewife. Fortunately he was still mostly clothed or he would have buried himself inside of her right then. The fact that his pants were still on was the only reason he had any restraint left. Sliding down the bed he grabbed her beneath her knees and forced her to bend in half, his hands pressing against the folded backs of her knees and tilting her hips up, offering her splayed pink pants to his eager mouth. The sweet taste of her exploded on his tongue as he delved between her slick folds, causing her to spasm against his mouth. The cries of pleasure coming from her throat increased under his oral assault. When he moved his mouth down to rub his tongue over her exposed anus her hips bucked so hard that she almost threw him off. He did it again, enjoying the feel of the little crinkles of her rosebud. "Fuck!" Oh hell no. The crude word flying out of Sarah's mouth as he tongued her ass was too much. Derrick didn't have time to fully undress, he got his pants down to mid-thigh, his shirt still hanging partially torn open on his upper body, and he was on top of her, kissing her deeply. Moaning and shuddering beneath him, Sarah spread her legs farther as she felt the head of his cock pushing into her sore pussy. She had recovered just enough that she could accommodate him. Although Derrick tried to go slowly, to give her time to adjust, the slick erotic glide into her body frayed his restraint. His cock pushed deep, moving her muscles out of the way and burying its length inside of her as she clenched around him. "Oh my god you're so big," Sarah said, moaning. Shit. The last of Derrick's iron control shredded and he began to thrust, hard and fast into her willing but strained body. Sarah cried out, arching beneath him as his cock plundered her. The aching soreness between her legs that had taken days to subside was wiped away in a wave of ecstatic quivering as the endorphins and adrenaline pumped through her body. The drawn out foreplay, the begging, and her forced dirty talk had turned Sarah on immeasurably, especially admitting that she had enjoyed having Derrick touch her most forbidden hole and then having him lick her there. This was sinful sex, the kind of passion she'd only dreamed about before reality with Martin had swept those half realized fantasies away under lackluster and passionless coupling. Feeling Derrick moving inside of her, the thick girth of his dark cock stretching her open, made Sarah feel like an entirely new woman. One who was brazenly sensual, openly erotic. The ecstasy rushing through her body was kicking down her normal modesty. "Fuck me, oh Derrick fuck me hard!" Shit, the woman had no idea what she was doing to him. If he didn't get her to shut up soon then he'd explode inside of her without even giving her the chance to cum, and there was no way he was missing on out the incredible feeling of her pussy convulsing around him as she came apart beneath him. So he kissed her, deep and hard, thrusting his tongue into her mouth the same way he was thrusting deep into her body. The exquisite tightness of her channel tugged at him, sucking him back in every time he pulled his hips away. It was at the last moment, just as her body tensed beneath him, that he realized he wasn't wearing a condom. Again. Sarah's screams of rapture filled the room, her small pale body shuddering as her nails dug into the upper part of his buttocks, hugging him against her splayed legs. The combination of her colossal orgasm and the idea of impregnating her set him completely over the edge and he spurted, deep inside of her before he could pull out; his need to possess her and claim her as his own overtaking his sensibilities. Half collapsing on top of her as, he could feel the occasional quiver of her insides, tensing around him and making him thrust a little in response. The aftershocks of their lovemaking was damn near as powerful as the foreplay. In fact.... Derrick pulled out, rolling off to the side and wrapping his arm around her shoulders, pulling her snugly against him before he could get hard again. Stroking her soft auburn hair, he curled the glossy reddish strands around his finger, admiring their hue. Sarah sighed in contentment and nuzzled her face into his shoulder. He felt like a heel. "I'm sorry Sarah," he said softly. "Sorry?" She blinked a little owlishly and pushed up a little bit so that she could see his face. "Whatever for?" "I brought condoms, I meant to use them but I just... forgot," he finished lamely. Yeah, grade A heel. As flattering and truthful as it was to say that she had made him too wild to have her for him to remember, the other truth was that it was his responsibility and he'd let her down. "Oh." Well she didn't look upset. And she wasn't kicking him out of bed yet. Instead she just looked thoughtful and pensive. Seeing the worry on Derrick's dark face she planted a kiss. Sarah had never had sex with a condom so it hadn't even occurred to her. "If... let me know if there's... consequences. I want to be there," he said firmly. Him and his family. In fact his mom would probably be jubilant over a grandchild from him, no matter the circumstances. The thought didn't horrify him like it had in the past. Neither did the thought that Sarah would then become a permanent fixture in his life. But it was way too soon to go around expressing sentimental, committed stuff like that after such a short amount of time. She'd probably think he was insane. "Are you feeling okay about this?" Sarah chewed on her lower lip. "I always wanted kids," she admitted. "But it seems kind of soon for... well whatever it is we're doing. But I wouldn't regret having a baby, if that's what you're asking." Whatever they were doing. Well that was as good a way of putting it as any. "I know we haven't known each other for very long, but I really like you Sarah," he said, stroking back her hair from her face, admiring the satiny glow of her creamy skin against his dark fingers. Everything about her looked lighter and more ethereal next to his dark hues, except her hair which just seemed to shine brighter. She giggled at him. Actually giggled. And wrinkled her nose in a way that he found utterly adorable. "Is this the talk?" she asked. "I've heard about this. Are you going to ask me to be your girlfriend?" "Well not anymore," he said, rolling over on top of her as she squealed. He liked this playful side of Sarah that he was seeing tonight. Whether it was the wine or just being in his bed that brought it out, he was really enjoying it. "Now I'm just going to have sex with you until you can't walk." Her hips wiggled underneath him, pretty much guaranteeing that he was going to be true to his word in about 2.5 seconds. "Again?!" she said, giving him big eyes, her small hand curving around his head. She really didn't know what had gotten into her tonight, but she loved seeing that look in Derrick's eyes that said she was cute and sexy and that he wanted her. It was bringing out a much more playful side that she hadn't seen since her college days. It occurred to Derrick that Sarah was not his normal type of woman. And he really liked that too. He also remembered (why now?) that he really did need to listen to the voicemail from Nick and call him back. As Sarah's lips pressed against his chest and her little pink tongue flicked across his nipple, he decided that could wait a little longer. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 09 This is a reader request story - thank you so much for the idea! I had a wonderful time with these characters and really enjoyed writing this story. I hope everyone else has enjoyed reading it! ****** When Derrick woke up the next morning he was curled around Sarah, her small body tucked into his and his face buried in her sweet smelling hair. It was the best night's rest he'd ever gotten, including the nights that he'd spent at her house. Apparently his body liked having her in his bed with him. Liked it quite a bit, in fact, going by his response to waking up to find his arms full of beautiful, soft Sarah. But he didn't want to impose on her body, considering that she had already been a little sore last night before they'd made love. So he got up and hit the shower, making it cold. When he got out, his bed was empty and someone was moving around in his kitchen making something that smelled delicious. Walking into the other room he found Sarah, looking gorgeous wearing nothing but one of his t-shirts which covered her almost to her knees and past her elbows, making breakfast. With her hair pulled back into a casual ponytail, she was humming under her breath as she sizzled bacon and watched over the french toast she was making. To her right was a small pile of sliced strawberries and blueberries, obviously meant to go with the French Toast. "Good morning," he said. It really was a great morning. The best he'd had in a long time in fact. "Good morning," Sarah said, turning to face him. "You're so good about making food for me I thought I'd return the favor." "I appreciate it," Derrick replied as he pulled her into his arms and gave her a very thorough good morning kiss. While she finished cooking up breakfast he finally went and listened to the voicemail that Nick had left for him. Not that Nick had left much detail, just that he wanted Derrick to come by so that they could go over the papers together. Not surprising, Nick hated to talk business over the phone; he'd want to be able to go over point by point how he came to his conclusion and show Derrick the paper trail on the way. Breakfast was delicious and the best kick off to a morning that he'd had in forever. Not only did he like Sarah being in his bed, he liked her in his apartment period. Just being around her and seeing her all tousled from last night made him want to do it again and again and again. Yeah, he was falling hard. But at least he was man enough to admit it. Not that he was going to tell her yet. Considering her most recent relationship experience she'd probably go running for the hills. And she deserved the chance to date other men, even if that thought made him want to punch walls. But he covered that up and just enjoyed having her at his table for breakfast in the morning. And then he took her home, explaining that Nick wanted him to come by. After walking her to her door and giving her yet another thorough kissing, he headed off to see his friend. ****** Sarah spent the morning back at the restaurant, feeling very good about life in general. "So what's going on with you and Derrick?" Angel asked, sidling up to Sarah and startling her as she walked through the dining room. "Oh um..." She had no idea what to say but the red flush that went across her face definitely said it all. Shockingly, Angela hooted and hugged her. "You go girl!" "But... we're not... I mean..." Sarah stammered, unsure of how to say it. It's not like she and Derrick had had a real conversation about what they were doing. And she wasn't sure how he would feel about people pairing them up in their minds. Although she had to admit that in her mind they were already rather paired up. Sarah was pretty much a one man kind of woman and Derrick was an absolutely incredible man. But that didn't mean that he felt the same way about her and she didn't want people making assumptions. After all she was going to assume anything. Considering how often Martin had taken her for granted, that was one thing she knew she definitely did not want to do with Derrick. "Not official?" Angela asked, practically bouncing with giddiness. "That's okay, you will be. I can tell." "You can?" She felt completely out of her league. The bouncing young woman in front of her probably did have more experience and knowledge when it came to men then she did. How depressing. But it's not like Sarah had too much pride to listen to her. "Oh yeah. There were major sparks flying at the meeting yesterday," Angela said. "Hey Linda!" She gave the other woman a thumbs up across the restaurant. "What was that about?" "You and Derrick." Sarah groaned and buried her face in her hands. "I'm not ready for this." "Sure you are. You and Derrick have ten times the chemistry than you and Martin did. You better not let him get away from you," Angela warned. Suddenly the bottom of Sarah's stomach seemed to drop. How could she possibly keep a man like Derrick when a man like Martin didn't stay faithful to her? Sure there was attraction, but what about when that was gone? Maybe it would be better to just let him go now. "Oh no. I know that look. Whatever you are thinking you're wrong. I can tell." Angela pulled Sarah to a stop and peered into her face. "I know you've been out of the dating game for awhile but don't you dare surrender. Does he have another woman or something?" "I don't know," Sarah said softly. "He hasn't said so, but would he?" "Probably not," Angela admitted. "But I don't think he does. He doesn't seem like the kind of guy." Well that was true enough. "When are you seeing him again?" "I don't know." Angela looked Sarah over. "Can Linda and I give you a makeover after lunch shift?" A makeover? Actually, why the heck not. She hadn't had one since high school and that hadn't been much of one. At the very least it would be something she wasn't used to doing. "Sure, why not." "LINDA!" ***** Derrick stared at the papers and evidence that Nick had put together. What a fucking asshole. Both of them. Only some of the money embezzled from Polenta had gone to paying for high priced call girls and escorts. The rest of it had been put into offshore bank accounts, once for Vincent and one for Martin. Considering the lackluster bank accounts that Vincent had at home, Derrick now had a pretty good idea what money he was going to use to buy out Polenta from Sarah. His hands clenched, crumpling the papers in them. What a fucking asshole. He must have thought he was so slick, buying out the restaurant with money that he'd embezzled from it, and then would probably have continued to do so until he ran the restaurant into the ground or decided to run off with the money that he'd taken. Which begged the question, where was he now? No wonder he'd been in such a rush to get Polenta signed over to Sarah. Dammit. Derrick should have been more curious about that. He should have investigated further and faster and returned Nick's call when the man first called him. Groaning, Derrick put the papers down on Nick's coffee table and leaned back on the couch he was sitting on. "What?" asked his friend. "I know it's bad but you look... I mean you look like you're taking this personally." "I let her down." Derrick sighed, rubbing his hand over his head and then down his face. "There is no way this asshole is still in town. I should have called you back yesterday. I should have... I should have done a lot of things." And because he'd had less self control than a horny teenager, Vincent had probably gotten away. "Yeah, why didn't you call me back?" Nick asked. Derrick looked at him and gave a rather sheepish grin and shrug of the shoulders and watched as Nick's mouth dropped open. "Seriously?" He cracked up laughing as Derrick sighed heavily. "Man you have got it bad." "I know. And now I'm kicking myself over it. Maybe it's a good thing I'm getting into the restaurant business, it's pretty obvious my head isn't in the game anymore when it comes to investigations." Stifling his laughter, Nick patted his shoulder reassuringly. "If she's as into you as you are into her she'll understand your distraction. That or maybe you can just distract her from being mad." He winked and Derrick scowled at him. "Let's see if we can figure out whether or not Vincent is still in town." ****** Sarah hadn't heard from Derrick all day, which was rather depressing. She'd left him a voicemail on his cell phone but she refused to call him again. Gotta have some pride after all. Even if she had spent all afternoon being fussed over by Angela and Linda. And she had to admit, the results looked good. Although she'd refused highlights, the new haircut that she'd gotten kept her hair long except for some shorter strands that curled around her face seductively. She'd gotten new make-up too, to give her a completely natural look that made her eyes pop out like she'd never seen before. Add to that the first sexy lingerie she'd ever bought, which she was wearing right now, and Sarah was feeling pretty good. Except that he hadn't called. All dressed up and no one to show it off to. Washing up her dinner dishes and putting away the leftovers in a violet silk negligee and robe made her feel feminine and pretty, but at the same time she really wished that Derrick was there to appreciate it. How strange that she wanted his company so badly when she'd felt completely fine being independent when Martin didn't come home late. But she wanted to hear about what he'd been doing all day and tell him about the lunch shift at the restaurant - although she wasn't sure that she should mention Q's big hug and "welcome to the family" speech since that seemed rather pushy - and about her afternoon with the girls. Find out what he thought about her new sleeping attire. Sigh. So when her cell phone did ring, at about quarter past nine, she practically killed herself diving for it and was rewarded when she saw that it was Derrick calling. "Hello?" "Hi Sarah," he said, sounding very tired and somewhat removed. Her heart sank a little. Was their little affair over already? "Hi, what's wrong?" No beating around the bush for her. Life was too short. If it was over then she'd deal with that and move on and just be happy for the short time that she'd gotten with him. After all, no promises had been made and he owed her nothing. "I'm really sorry," he said and Sarah shut down her emotions a little, twisting the sash on her robe around her hand anxiously. She promised herself that she wouldn't cry. "I messed up. Vincent got away." "What?" That was not at all where she thought this conversation was going. "He and Martin had some of the embezzled money put away into offshore accounts. Nick and I spent all day trying to track down Vincent but he left the country early this morning. I was too late. I've alerted the authorities for you and turned over all the information; they're going to try to track him down but it's never a certain thing. There's still the money in Martin's account and we managed to put a freeze on the money that we paid him for his shares of the restaurant, but he got away with everything in his embezzled account. I'm really sorry, Sarah. I didn't mean to let you down and I'll understand if you don't want to see me anymore." She burst out laughing. "Sarah?" "Sorry, sorry," she managed to get out as she stifled her laughter down to giggles. Even though she knew that she should be mad at Vincent, outraged even, she was too relieved that Derrick still seemed to be interested in her. Money didn't mean that much to her as long as she had financial stability, which wasn't a problem. While she was mad at both Martin and Vincent for stealing from the restaurant, she'd already accepted the fact too. That Vincent had tried to go even further with his money fraud only confirmed her opinion of him. "I don't blame you, Derrick. I already knew Vincent was a slimy jerk." "You should." "Should what?" "Blame me." Good grief, he almost sounded disappointed that she wasn't giving him a harder time. Misplaced guilt perhaps? She realized that she was feeling pretty good, just being able to talk to him. Hearing his deep rumbling voice. She wanted to reassure him but she also wanted him to just keep talking to her. That bass voice of his just made her think of sex, sex and more sex. Especially when she was wearing silky sexiness. "Why on earth would I blame you? You're the one that's been helping me." Derrick groaned. "I got distracted Sarah and I let you down. My mind wasn't on the job and I'm sorry." "Why be sorry?" she asked, feeling a little hurt now. "If your mind was what I hope it was one then I don't want you to be sorry about that." Silence for a moment and then he gave one of those chuckles that made her insides tighten. Amusement intertwined with erotic promise. "I'm not sorry about spending a moment with you, Sarah. I'm just sorry that I didn't do my job better." "Want to come over and show me how sorry you are?" Sarah asked, trying to make her voice sound sultry. She had a feeling that she failed miserably, but she didn't care. Her heart was practically jumping in her chest from nerves at how forward she was being. But she was holding true to her thoughts that life was too short and if she wanted something then she should go for it. And she wanted Derrick. Fortunately he didn't disappoint. "Why yes, yes I would." ***** Derrick pulled up to Sarah's house, still wondering at his good fortune. Not only had Sarah not sounded mad at him, she'd actually propositioned him. And he'd been hard every since she'd done it. Sure he felt like he'd let her down, but he was more than willing to meet her demands to make it up to her. Quite happily. After spending a frustrating day trying to figure out where Vincent had gone to and doing his best to mitigate the damage, having Sarah support him without being angry actually meant a great deal to him. She was unlike any other woman that he'd ever met, who would probably have been furious over her loss of money and would have shrilly bitched him out. He would have put up with it, knowing that he deserved it, but Sarah's understanding and lack of anger was a gift that he wasn't going to take for granted. When she opened the door and he got his first good look at her, he thought his dick might break through his zipper. Her auburn hair was down, curling around her face and shoulders and it looked different. He wasn't sure what she had done to it, but it looked good. Of course he barely noticed her hair because she was wearing the sexiest silk nightie trimmed with lace, visible through her matching open robe. The silk hugged her curves, the color setting off the creaminess of her skin and the fiery highlights in her hair. As he stared at her, taking in the entire visual, she shifted and the skirt swayed against her thighs, a small smile on her face. He didn't speak. He couldn't. He just swept her up in his arms and kicked the door closed as he pulled her in for a kiss. Sarah melted against him, feeling almost boneless with the desire that was running through her. The expression on Derrick's face as he'd looked her over had made up for years of Martin's lack of interest; with just a look he'd made her feel sexy and desirable. Her soft breasts pressed against his chest as his tongue danced with hers, hands gripping her buttocks and running over the silky material covering her skin. When he realized that she wasn't wearing any underwear he groaned, swinging her around and wedging her between him and the door as he got to his knees. "What are you doing?" Sarah asked, gasping. She was trembling with her need for him, her pussy throbbing with desire. "Getting on my knees and begging forgiveness." Any reply she might have made was lost as his hot breath flowed across her pussy lips. Sarah leaned back against the door, letting most of her weight rest on it, her legs trembling as Derrick's tongue slid between her feminine folds, lapping at the sweet juices that had gathered there. His hands cupped her buttocks, helping hold her up and presenting her pussy to him. Sarah's palms were pressed flat against the door, the silky fabric of her negligee rubbing sensually over her nipples as they hardened, increasing her pleasure. Derrick stiffened his tongue and thrust it inside of her, eliciting a cry that echoed around the entry way. She tasted sweet on his tongue, her small gasps and moans only making him harder as he longed to bury himself in her body. But they had all night for that. Right now he wanted to pleasure her, taste her, eat her until she screamed her orgasm. Bucking her hips, Sarah did something she'd never done before. Trusting Derrick to keep helping hold her up, she removed her hands from the door behind her and began running them over her body, rubbing across her stomach and her breasts, sensually teasing herself as Derrick's tongue lashed at her most intimate parts. She felt sensual and sexy in a way that she never had, almost like Derrick was worshiping her on his knees as he pleasured her. Looking down and seeing this fully dressed man, dark head pressed between her creamy thighs, was incredibly arousing. She rolled her nipples between her fingers through the silk and shuddered at the sensation. With Derrick's talented mouth it didn't take long before she was crying out his name, her nipples tightly pinched between her fingers as she writhed against the door. His hands took the brunt of her weight as she shuddered with orgasm, sweet juices spilling into his eager mouth as he laved his tongue between her folds and over her clit, drawing out her orgasm. As her shivering decreased and her body relaxed, he took one final swipe down her center before standing. Sarah looked up at him blissfully, her eyes half hooded and lazy with pleasure. "Thank you," she said. "You're forgiven." "Nope," he grinned at her as her eyes opened all the way in surprise. "I think I need to try much, much harder to make this up to you." And with that he flipped her over his shoulder, hand wedged between her thighs so that he could run this thumb along her pussy lips as he carried her to the stairs. Laughing, Sarah tried to order him to put her down, but he just ignored her. She had to admit, the caveman routine was getting her pretty hot. The muscles of his shoulder rippled beneath her body and she could feel this thumb stirring her folds, his broad palm pressed against her thigh. Running her hands down his back, she pulled on his shirt to untuck it as he carried her up the stairs, getting her hands on his smooth skin. She loved seeing the contrast of her pale hands and the dark muscles moving in his back. Unfortunately she was too short to slide her hands down the back of his pants like she wanted to. "I'm not sure I feel like this is really the act of a man looking for forgiveness," she teased him as they headed into the bedroom. Derrick laughed, making her bounce on his shoulder as his thumb pressed into her wet hole and she moaned. "I think this is exactly how men should beg for forgiveness." He tossed her onto the bed and crawled over her, trapping her with his body before she even registered where she was. Lowering his head, he captured her lips with his, plundering her mouth with his tongue. Sarah felt herself melting underneath him, molten liquid gathering between her legs. Okay, so maybe he had a point. If she had been mad, she probably wouldn't be now. The robe and straps of her negligee were rolled off of her shoulders, the bunched fabric trapping her elbows to her sides as Derrick exposed her breasts to him. Straddling her body, he kept her pinned down beneath him as his dark hands engulfed her creamy breasts with splayed fingers, like a raven's wing spread across a cloud. Sarah's Private Dick Ch. 09 Sarah wanted to touch him, but between the fabric holding her elbows against her body and Derrick's legs straddled over the tops of her thighs, she didn't have much wiggle room. Instead she made anxious, whimpering noises as she wriggled underneath him, feeling on fire from the way his hands cupped her breasts, squeezing them gently and occasionally running a finger over one of her nipples, teasing her wonderfully as he rubbed across the erect little buds. Her hips moved automatically, trying to reach him, as the need in her loins throbbed. Derrick pinched each of her nipples between two fingers, rubbing back and forth on either side and she shuddered as she cried out with sexual frustration from the heavy teasing. When he pulled back from the kiss she was flushed and panting, her body straining for him. She looked beautiful. "If you keep that up, I'm never going to forgive you," she threatened. "Oh dear," he murmured, pinching her little pink nipples more tightly so that her back arched, thrusting her breasts upwards at him as she gasped. "Well I suppose I'll have to change my tactics." And with that he released her breasts. Sarah almost moaned in disappointment, but then he started unbuttoning his shirt. It was maddening not being able to touch him, but she could deny that she loved watching him strip for her, slowly baring the hard muscles of his chest and the ridges of his stomach. The dark shine of his skin in the light made her mouth go dry with desire as he pulled his shirt off, revealing his broad shoulders, tapered waist and bulging arm muscles. The hot lust in her eyes was enough to make his dick pulse behind the zipper of his pants. In less than a minute he had his pants off, kicking them free and was tugging her robe and nightie off of her, pulling it down her body and over her legs, revealing her to him one splendid inch at a time. Her nipples and pussy were dark pink and swollen, her pale curves looked lovely against the dark fabric of her sheets, and the apex of her thighs was wet and glistening. Derrick pushed her legs apart with his hands on her knees, kissing up her thighs as Sarah writhed and clutched at the sheets beneath her. Sliding his hands up her legs, he admired the darkness of his skin against her pink folds as he used his thumbs to pull her lips apart. Sarah blushed, feeling embarrassed. No one had ever examined her so minutely before. Derrick's hot breath flowed across her most sensitive areas and her legs involuntarily flexed. Her nipples were throbbing and her pussy felt swollen with need. She moaned as he began to flick his tongue across her flesh, drawing small designs with the tip and making her hips buck as he teased her mercilessly. A hot swipe of tongue across her anus made her moan as that small bundle of nerves sizzled to life, setting her entire lower body on fire. "Derrick!" she cried out as his tongue swept up her center, circling around her clit. His hands were cupping her buttocks, squeezing the soft flesh and holding her lower body up for his marauding mouth. There was a small movement and then she felt his thumb rubbing over the outside of her anus, teasing the crinkled rosebud as he lapped at her slit. When he sucked her clit into his mouth she fairly screamed her orgasm. Each tug of his suckling mouth sent her on another wave of ecstasy as she writhed against his lips, the sensation of his thumb rubbing against her tiny asshole only increasing the heady pleasure. As the waves began to recede and her moans decreased to satisfied sighs, Derrick began kissing his way back up her body, letting his mouth linger over the soft curves of her stomach, the swell of her breasts, and her slowly flattening nipples. As he laved his tongue over her sensitive buds they sparked to life again, pressing upwards as if to tempt him to more stimulation. Something hard and insistent pressed against her inner thigh and Sarah moaned, moving her leg a little to rub the soft head of his cock, enjoying the answering shudder that rippled through his body. A small smile played on her lips. He wasn't the only one who could tease! Stroking her hands over his back, she reached down as far as she could and then turned her nails on him, dragging them up his skin just hard enough to be felt. Derrick surged forward with a groan, his dark body covering hers, her pale limbs wrapping around him as his lips crushed hers, his tongue forcing her mouth open to receive him. The head of his cock rubbed against the wet folds of her pussy, lubricating its tip, and then he was pushing into her, wild with need. Feeling her own wildness, Sarah dug her nails into his shoulders, thrusting her hips upwards to meet his hard stroke. She cried out as her body was stretched open, her insides pulsing against the wide intruder. It felt so good it was almost painful. When his groin pressed against the apex of her thighs he shuddered on top of her, feeling the wet, warmth of her body squeezing him tightly. He wished he could stay there forever. That kind of thinking was foreign to him, but it was true. Sarah felt made for him, her soft passionate cries as he buried himself inside of her, the sweet way she held him, the wanton way she scratched his back... he thrust hard into her pink hole, enjoying the way her wet flesh rippled around him. Sarah tilted her head upwards, looking down the length of their bodies so that she could see the muscular, sexy V of Derrick's pelvis as it thrust against her, his black cock shiny with the juices of her body as it moved back and forth inside of her. He looked impossibly huge, the thick girth and the long length of him as he pulled away. She didn't know how he could possibly fit in her body, but he did just barely. Curving even further, Sarah got her lips around one of his nipples and she sucked hard, making Derrick's thrusting even harder and faster as the sensation went straight to his groin. His right hand pulled her left leg up onto his shoulder and then she felt his hand gripping her ass, curving over the cheek. Juices had trickled down into her crack and she felt his fingers rub through the wetness. It wasn't until his forefinger was pressing against her anus that she realized his intention behind the lubrication. She released his nipple from her lips just as his finger plunged into her tightest hole, made even tighter by the huge dick that was filling her pussy. Sarah cried out wordlessly, writhing with insane ecstasy at the forbidden sensation. Full, she felt so incredibly full of fire and heat, molten bliss that was pooling in her core and swirling with tension. When his finger pumped back and forth it felt like everything inside of her tightened down, increasing the friction, the burning pleasure, and the intense fullness. Sarah could feel her orgasm coiling, heavy in her stomach, deeper inside of her than she'd ever experienced. It was almost frightening in its intensity, and it kept building and building and building... Sarah's ass was tight around his finger, pulsing madly as he stroked her, rubbed her inside and out. Having her leg on his shoulder opened her in new ways, allowing him to drag the head of his dick over her g-spot with almost every thrust. Normally he would have slowed down, let the pleasure build for her even more, but he could tell that she was doing it herself, trying to hold off her orgasm. Naturally that just created a challenge for him. Every time he buried himself full inside of her he began to do a small bump and grind against her body with his hips, rubbing her swollen clit with his pubic bone in a circular motion, making his dick bounce inside of her. Her anus greedily sucked at his finger every time he did that and Sarah's nails dug into his shoulders with abandon. That might hurt tomorrow but right now it felt fucking fantastic. She was coming apart beneath him, shattering to pieces as he picked up the pace. Cries of ecstasy began to spill from her lips, sounding almost panicked, out of control with the pleasure that he was bringing her to. Her pussy spasmed uncontrollably, fluttering around him, sucking at him, as her ass clenched hard enough that it felt like she was going to cut off the circulation to his finger. It was the most intense climax of her life. The fullness of her body sent multiple explosions surging, like fireworks going off from various locations and blending together into a symphony of light and noise, heat and beauty. Sarah's entire body curled backwards, pressing her against him, her nipples rubbing against his chest and only sending her surging further forward into mindless rapture. Inside of her Derrick swelled and lengthened, pulsing against her shuddering walls as hot fluid gushed forth, his low groans of orgasm in sweet counterpoint to her higher cries and gasps. Derrick's thrusts slowed and gentled, slowly stroking them down, until his hips were barely moving. With a small sigh he settled on top of her, burying his face in her soft hair and cradling her against him. Small lips pressed against his shoulder, licking the salt from his skin. Smiling, he pulled away enough to see Sarah's flushed face, lazy with satisfied pleasure, her swollen lips curved in a smile. That was a look he liked seeing. In fact, he could get used to seeing that look every day for the rest of his life. "Would it be too soon for me to say that I could see doing this with you for a very, very long time?" he asked. Putting himself out there was scary, but he'd realized today that his feelings for her went pretty deep. Worrying that he might lose her because of how he'd handled Vincent's investigation and let the asshole get away had shown him just how much he wanted to keep her. To his delight, Sarah flushed even further, opening her eyes wide with wonder and joy. Then she got a small, mischievous smile on her face. "Just this?" she asked, looking completely innocent as she bumped her hips up and flexed her inner muscles around his slowly softening dick. Which, of course, made it jerk right back to attention. "If you keep that up then we're going to be doing it again real soon," he growled at her. In fact, even if she didn't. He just liked being inside her too damned much. Softening his tone he added, "But I meant the nights together, mornings together, working together, dinners together, whole nine yards thing." "Oh," Sarah said. While she'd been making the joke to tease, she'd also been doing it because she hadn't wanted to get her hopes up or make him think that she had too many expectations. The fact that he felt as much for her as she did for him was almost mind-boggling as a revelation. Tears sparked in her eyes as she nodded, twining her arms around his neck. "I'd love to go the whole nine yards with you." "Thank God," he said, winking down at her, before smothering her with another kiss. ********** One Year Later: Gloria stood in the center of Polenta, looking gorgeous in a black dress that highlighted her bright red hair, with a wine glass in one hand and a microphone in the other, eyes sparkling merrily. "I've known Sarah for eleven years now, she's practically a second mother to me - when I'm not turning the tables on her, that is." The entire room laughed, acknowledging Gloria's well-known habit of acting like a mother hen, no matter the age difference between her and the other person. "I have to say that in all that time, I have never seen her so happy as she has been in the past year. She is the best owner we've ever had because she truly cares about every single person who works here. I'm so overjoyed to see that she has found someone who cares about her in the same way that she cares about everyone else. Derrick, I would love to make dire threats about all the awful things that I would do to you if you ever hurt this wonderful woman," everyone laughed again as Derrick pretended to look terrified under Gloria's mock - threatening glare, "but anyone who has seen the two of you over the past year can bear witness to the fact that you don't need a single one of those threats. Thank you so much for taking care of our Sarah." Everyone cheered and raised their glasses, whether it was wine, champagne, beer, a mixed drink or - in Sarah's case - sparkling cider. "It's a good thing she's not making threats," Derrick whispered as he brought Sarah's hand to his mouth to kiss. "She had me shaking in my boots." Sarah rolled her eyes, although she wasn't able to keep the silly grin off of her face. "Oh yeah, because Gloria's about as threatening to you as a kitten attacking a Great Dane." Derrick chuckled, snaking his arm around her and pressing his hand against her stomach as he pulled her in for a kiss. The happiness that rushed through Sarah was overwhelming. Who knew that one year could make such an incredible difference in her life. She was on top of the world. Even though Vincent hadn't been caught yet, she found that she truly didn't care. He had no effect on her life. Polenta was more successful than ever under her, Derrick, Patricia and Lloyd's management, so much so that they were thinking of opening a second location sometime soon. That location would run by Patricia and Lloyd, because Sarah wouldn't have as much time to put forth with a new restaurant, not with the baby on the way. Derrick's hand rubbed against her tummy, even though she wasn't really showing yet, and she knew that he was having similar thoughts as well. "Are you sure we have to wait till tomorrow to announce?" he asked, caressing her stomach. "I'm pretty sure some people have already guessed. Sarah glared at him. "And who's fault is that?" "You're so cute when you're angry," he said, deflecting her and dazzling her with another one of those gorgeous grins, white teeth flashing in his dark face. Sarah sighed, knowing already that she wasn't going to be able to stay mad at him just because he'd nearly pitched a fit when Gloria had handed Sarah a glass of white wine earlier and replaced it very obviously with the cider. And the way he kept touching her stomach. She was pretty sure that the majority of the conversations going on around them had to do with speculation about whether or not she was pregnant. Derrick's mother was practically quivering in her seat with excitement, continuously shooting ecstatic smiles at them. Well everyone would just have to wait until after the ceremony for the official announcement tomorrow. Sarah smiled at her soon-to-be husband. "Have I mentioned lately how much I love you?" "Yeah, but I never get tired of hearing it." And he pulled her in for another long, sweet kiss, so wrapped up in each other that they were completely oblivious to the cheers around them.