Tainted Pictures

  “Good evening, Kate.” It was Detective McCraig with several crime scene technicians behind him wearing matching windbreakers and carrying cases and boxes of supplies. Kate felt her entire face fall and practically hit the floor, she couldn’t possibly have looked more disappointed to see him. McCraig wrinkled his eyebrows at her furtively, wondering why she looked so startled to see him.

  She didn’t say hello back but instead just stepped to the side and motioned everyone into her apartment. She grabbed her jacket hanging near the door and pulled it on and stepped into some tennis shoes, getting ready to leave. She didn’t want to be here while they were making her apartment look like a crime scene again. She just stood there, dejectedly, and waited for the last person to walk in the door so that she could leave.

  “Kate?” Someone called her and she looked up to see the last crime scene technician walk past her, but behind him was a friendly face. Derrick stood in the doorway, almost blocking the entire entrance with his large, muscular frame.

  “You beckoned, beautiful?” He grinned at her, knowing that she needed a hint of normalcy right now. Kate burst into a smile and rushed to him, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face into his smooth, soft skin. He caught her with his arms around her waist and on her back, her feet dangling off the ground as he supported her.

  “Take me away from here.” Kate whispered to him.

  “You’re with me now and everything else doesn’t matter. Just you and me. This is all that matters. Let’s forget about everything else for tonight?” Derrick touched her chin, gently pulling her to face him. She nodded in agreement, eager to have him take over and just care for her. She was too worn out to keep pretending everything was fine. Everything was not fine. There was a psychotic killer hunting her. That’s really the very definition of not fine.

  Seeing Derrick here pushed all of those thoughts away. The way he expanded to take over the room and envelope her in his arms was mesmerizing. She glanced up at him, her arms still wrapped around his waist and he head leaning against his shoulder. His lips were only inches from hers. Her eyes were searching his, looking for any signs of doubt, any signs that he might betray her again. She wanted to push that fear away, she couldn’t keep holding onto this much fear. She loved Derrick and she knew he wasn’t the same man he had been before.

  “And I’m never going to leave you again.” He whispered, reading the fear in her gaze and stifling it immediately. He wished he had never made the mistake to abandon her in her time of need and he knew he would happily spend every day for the rest of his life reassuring her that he would never be that man again.

  The corners of her mouth lifted into a smile and she looked down at his lips and then back up at his deep, gentle eyes. He wasn’t going to deny her another moment and so he leaned down and kissed her gently. He squeezed her tighter against him as he did and then he smiled at her in the midst of their kiss and lowered her back down so her feet were on the ground. With one quick motion, he reached down and one of his arms swept up behind her knees lifting her straight up into his arms. She squeaked in surprise but didn’t try to fight him.

  “Let’s go home.” Derrick said to her, as he carried her down the hallway and she curled up in his large arms. Home sounded nice, this place didn’t feel that way anymore. Derrick felt like home and that’s where she wanted to be. Kate giggled, surprised that he was even able to pull the smallest bit of happiness out of her, as she leaned up to kiss him.

  “That sounds perfect. Let me just go throw some clothes into a bag.” She twisted her way out of his arms and he put her feet back down on the ground. She began to walk towards the bedroom but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back swiftly. She looked up at him, questioning, with her big, brown eyes still slightly misty from the events of the last hour.

  He smiled at her and kissed her so softly, it was barely a kiss yet the electricity that passed between them almost brought her to her knees. When he pulled away, she attempted to regain control of her breathing and then gave him a knowing look and grin as she headed back to the bedroom to pack.

  As she left his sight, Derrick quickly went in search of Detective Snow. He found her in the kitchen, ordering around technicians and scribbling things in a small, leather bound notebook. She glanced up and smiled at Derrick when he walked into the kitchen, then immediately furrowed her brow when she saw the look on his face.

  “Detective, I need to talk to you.” He said in a low voice, trying to keep his volume down so that only she would hear him.

  “Yeah, of course, what’s going on?” She asked him quizzically, motioning him to join her in the corner of the kitchen near the window where they wouldn’t be disturbed.

  “This isn’t the first time.” Derrick says, wringing his hands and looking guilty.

  “First time for what?” She shot back.

  “He has been watching her, I think. Or been in here before, I don’t know. That’s why you guys are here, right?” Derrick asked.

  “Yes, he left a photograph in her bedroom. He was here.” She confirmed.

  “Well, it’s not the first time. I’ve seen little signs that I thought was nothing but now I am not so sure. Awhile ago, when she first got out of the hospital or a week after, she was asleep here and I got up because I thought I heard something. There was a cigarette, still burning, on her fire escape. What if that was him looking in the windows?” Derrick said.

  “It’s possible but it could also have been someone smoking on the roof and tossing their cigarette over the edge.” She said to him, taking note of his observation but also trying to reassure him. She could see the worry on his face and she knew that she needed someone to be strong for Kate.

  “I know, that’s why I didn’t say anything. I brushed it off, but it’s been happening more. And not just here, at my apartment. The other day, there was a Styrofoam cup filled with cigarette butts on the balcony right across from mine. It was as if someone had been there all night, looking across into my apartment. That place has been empty for a while, so there is no way it was a resident or something like that. I’m telling you, he is close by. I don’t know when or where, but I think he is always close by.” Derrick finished his explanation and a chill shot up and down Detective Snow’s spine.

  ~~~~

  “Detective Snow just sent me a message that we should meet her at the police station in the morning so that everyone can get on the same page. I can take the day off work tomorrow, do you want to go in late or call out?” Derrick asked her as he pulled on some boxers and turned the lamps off around the room.

  Kate was already warm and cozy under the thick blankets, curled on her side hugging a pillow. She was just enjoying watching him walking around the room, getting ready for bed. She felt safe as she saw him check the locks on the windows and doors, carefully protecting her in his home. He smiled at her as he pulled up the blankets and climbed in underneath them next to her.

  “I will probably just go in late unless it takes a long time. I don’t know what there is to get on the same page about. She dodged my questions about the brother and maybe the forensic people will find something tonight. I don’t know what is going on anymore.” Kate sighed and her voice trailed off. Derrick reached over and pulled her towards him, her chest pressed against his and her head tucked into his neck.

  “Things really seemed like they were looking up for a bit there, huh.” Derrick mused, thinking about the events of the last twenty-four hours. He squeezed Kate a bit closer for a moment of comfort that they both needed.

  Kate pulled away slightly to look up at his face in the dark. His dark chocolate skin glistened in the moonlight and his eyes were as piercing as ever. He brushed some hair off her face with a gentle caress of his fingers.

  “What are you thinking about, beautiful?” Derrick said softly. Kate smiled at him, blushing hesitantly.

  “Just that I love you.” She stated, simple and elegant. She hadn’t told him that she loved him in a while. They both knew
how the other felt, but she hadn’t said it out loud much since the attack, maybe not at all. There was something powerful about saying it out loud that meant more than the knowing looks and smiles they had been exchanging. Something about saying those little words that strengthened the tether that had been almost worn in two between them for the last few weeks.

  Derrick looked at her intently, his lips weren’t smiling but his eyes clearly were. He leaned his face towards her, pushed her chin up with his finger, and kissed her delicate lips. She kissed him back eagerly and wrapped her leg over his legs, pulling herself tighter against him.

  “I love you, Kate.” He responded to her after a moment of passionate kisses and then quickly returned to devouring her lips. Her leg was wrapped around him and his arms were around her so with one swift motion he pulled her underneath him and was laying on top of her. He bore his weight on his arms so as not to crush her but he allowed his hips to press against hers firmly so she could feel every bit of how much he loved her.

  Kate slid her hands down his sides, feeling the ripples of his abs through his shirt but then grabbed the bottom of his shirt and tugged it upwards, urging him to take it off. He stopped her for a moment and paused, looking at her with concern.

  “Kate, are you sure?” He asked, remembering the other day when she had started screaming. He knew that after a month she was medically cleared but she certainly hadn’t seemed emotionally ready recently.

  “Derrick, there is nothing I am more sure of right now. I am so tired of being afraid. I want to start new, I want to start new with you. I want to be with you and only you. I want every piece of you and I want to give you every piece of me. Take me, take every single piece.” She spoke with a quiet confidence, caressing his cheek with the back of her hand and kissing a trail up his neck to his lips.

  He grinned at her, feeling his heart swelling in his chest. That was all the encouragement he needed. He was happy to oblige her wishes and lifted his shirt up over his head as she stared greedily at his defined chest and stomach. He leaned back down, covering her with his warm skin and immediately did the same thing to her, slipping her tank top up over her head leaving her in only a lacy bra and her pajama bottoms.

  His eyes were no longer smiling, but intense instead with a fiery gaze that made her feel like she was burning up. She felt feverish but in a sensual way and she craved the release only he could provide to help cool her down. She wriggled underneath him, feeling antsy as he kissed her slowly and moved his hands up and down her body. She pressed her hips up against his, begging him with her ragged breathing and panting. He was kissing her neck, switching between gentle nibbling and firm kissing. He trailed his lips and tongue further south until he was blocked by her bra, so he grabbed the delicate fabric in his teeth and ripped it off. One swift motion and it was gone, leaving her upper half completely exposed.

  Her mind jumped in a thousand direction at the sudden and harsh movement. She cried out sharply as intense fear gripped at her heart and she shrunk back into the bed away from Derrick. His face slipped into confusion and then immediate remorse as he realized that his rough handling of her bra had gone too far. He pushed away from her and leaned back on to his feet folded beneath him.

  “Kate, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean...” He stammered, looking down and rubbing his hand across the back of his neck. He had no idea what to say or do, his guilt was overtly transparent on his face.

  She sat up and looked at him, biting her lip in frustration. Her heart was still with him and she wanted him more than anything. Her reaction had been completely involuntary and the fear had subsided after just a moment or two. It had immediately been replaced with guilt when she saw the devastated look on Derrick’s face as she watched him mentally reprimand himself. She knew that he had been going above and beyond to take care of her, he didn’t deserve to feel guilty and yet she had just made him feel that way.

  Kate reached out and grabbed his forearm that was raised as he was still rubbing the back of his neck with anxiety. She pulled his arm down and towards her, placing it on her thigh. She felt a shiver that was almost fear but she steadied her breath and pushed that away into the recesses of her mind. She was going to be present, she was going to be in the moment, she was going to be with Derrick.

  He watched her as she left his hand firmly on her thigh and then reached her arms out to pull his torso towards her as her fingertips lightly clasped his ribs and coaxed him towards her. His breath caught in his throat as he felt her approval and persuasion which he quickly provided her. He leaned forward, stretching across her once again and found his lips with hers.

  The moment they touched again, she gasped and her body impulsively writhed beneath him, trying to find some way to satisfy the ache that had overtaken her once again. It only took the instant feeling of his heated skin pressing down on hers and his soft lips stealing hers to rebuild the fire inside of her. He slipped down kissing her neck more slowly this time, enjoying every nibble, caress, and taste of her skin as he moved further down her body.

  Soon he kissed her stomach softly and one of his hands grabbed the waistband of her panties and gently slipped them down. She assisted him by wiggling the rest of the way out of them and he slid back up her body to find her lips again. Kate reached down and pushed at the top of his boxers, mentally begging him to remove them and he quickly submitted to her request.

  There was nothing left between them anymore as her arms wrapped around his shoulders, anchoring herself to him. He maneuvered himself between her legs, pushing them apart and she hooked them behind his thighs attempting to pull him into her immediately. He wasn’t going to let that happen yet though, he wanted to make sure they both enjoyed every moment of this and didn’t rush anything. He kissed her softly, pulling back slightly when she fiercely kissed him back. He grinned at her as she moaned in frustration, not amused by his tortuously lingering movements.

  “You are always going to be safe with me, Kate. I will never let anything happen to you again. I am yours forever. I love you, Kate.” He whispered to her, kissing her cheek and down her jaw as she pressed herself up against him. She smiled and ran her hand down his back, basking in the reassurance of his words. She knew he was telling the truth and she felt completely safe and whole in his arms.

  “I love you, Derrick.” She replied and with that, he didn’t waste another moment. With gentle movements, the two became one and Kate knew that she was definitely not going to be getting a lot of sleep tonight.

  And that was perfectly fine with her.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Derrick yawned and stretched in bed as he felt the heat of the warm, morning sunlight hit him. He felt like he had only just fallen asleep and really wanted to roll right over and hit snooze on life, but he knew that meeting the detectives was important. He sat up gently in the bed, making sure not to disturb Kate who was still sleeping, her naked body tangled in the sheets. Her head was tilted to one side and her hair was cascading behind her on the pillow, making her look angelic and peaceful.

  He smiled as he walked over to his dresser and pulled out some boxers, slipping them up over his legs and around his waist. He walked out of the bedroom and went to start some coffee brewing. He opened the fridge and found some eggs and bacon and began cooking breakfast for the two of them. The kitchen quickly began to smell delicious as the bacon sizzled in the skillet. The wonderful smell wafted back to the bedroom and Kate lazily blinked her eyes open as she felt her stomach growling, eager to consume what she was smelling.

  She leisurely made her way out of bed and grabbed one of Derrick’s shirts that was lying over the top of a chair and slipped it over her head. It was large enough to drop just below her bum and hang loosely on her smaller frame. She left the bedroom and followed her nose into the kitchen, pausing in the doorway. Derrick was standing at the stove, stirring eggs in a pan. He was only wearing boxers and his back was gleaming and muscular. He was still unaware that she was there and so she stole a moment to enjoy w
atching him.

  She loved this man who had gotten up early to cook her breakfast, who took care of her, and wanted to be her everything. In that moment, Kate knew that she could forgive him for leaving her alone in the hospital. She didn’t see that scared boy anymore, she had seen a transformation even in these short few days. Before her was a man, a strong and powerful man who she knew she could now trust with everything. Her secrets, her life, and her safety.

  Kate felt this strong surge of energy and love pulse threw her body as she watched him and she knew that she had to have him right then and there. She rushed the last few steps across the room and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her face on his back. She gave him a squeeze and he turned around in her arms, grinning at her.

  “Morning, sleepyhead.” He kissed her and wrapped his arms around her, leaning back against the stove. They kissed for a moment longer and then it suddenly wasn’t a soft and gentle good morning kiss, it was deeper, passionate, and desperate. Their lips entangled, Derrick anchored his hands below her buttocks and lifted her up so her legs wrapped around his waist. He carried her a few steps over to the kitchen table and sat her on the edge then with one push, slipped his boxers down to the ground.

  Derrick leaned over the kitchen table, kissing her fiercely as she clutched on to him and pulled him into her. Her hips enticing his as they moved with one another and the creaking kitchen table. It didn’t last long and it didn’t need to because they were both so suddenly desperate for one another, desperate to be whole in a way that only being engulfed in one another could do. As the two began to calm down and the intensity of their pleasure slowed, Kate held onto Derrick tighter and pressed her head into his chest. He hugged her back and kissed the top of her head as he stood back up. He pulled apart and kissed her lips gently, pushing the hair out of her eyes and sliding it behind her ear. They smiled at one another dreamily.