Sealed With A Vow

Chapter 31- Dog Days

"Fuck my life," Derek grumbled to himself as he bent down to clean up the dog poop in our backyard.

Currently, four dogs were chasing each other around the lawn- two of whom belonged to Keith Harrington. He had left for Washington to spend Christmas with his in-laws and asked us to watch over his dogs while he was gone.

It sounded like an easy task at first, but things took a turn on Christmas Day when an additional two puppies joined the household. Derek had received a yellow lab from me as a present, and coincidentally, he'd bought a dog for me, too- a female golden retriever to be exact.

They were the cutest puppies I'd ever seen in my entire life. Ever since I was little, I'd always wanted a pet, and now I finally had one. My mom, brother, and his girlfriend, Lauren, had flown down here to spend Christmas with us last week, and they just left yesterday. Getting to finally see them again was great.

Justin had helped me to come up with a name for my golden retriever, and after testing out dozens of them, we ended up choosing, 'Buttercup', because it sounded super adorable and sweet.

"Like Reese's chocolate," he had said.

As for Derek, he'd decided to name his lab, 'Buster'. It was the first thing that had popped into his head, and without a doubt, it went perfectly with my own puppy's name, too.

"You need any help, hon?", I asked, my eyes shining with amusement at the sight of Derek cleaning after our canine friends, irritation evident on his face.

"I'm good. Man, I thought two dogs were enough, but four? That's double the poop I have to clean."

"Yeah, I know. It's been a zoo lately. Thank god Keith is coming back tomorrow to pick them up."

Derek's nose was scrunched up as he proceeded with his less than enjoyable task, and I couldn't help but laugh at his facial expressions. If only he could see how hilarious he looked right now.

"What's so funny?", he demanded.

"You," I giggled.

"What? Never seen a CEO pick up dog shit before?"

I shook my head, and Derek pretended to roll his eyes in annoyance.

For December, it was unusually hot today. Beads of sweat formed on the back of my neck despite the fact that I was standing in the shade.

My gaze returned to Derek and the dogs as he began to slowly peel off his tshirt, his eyes never leaving mine. The sight of his rock-hard abs always sent my nerves in a frenzy.

He ran his tongue along his teeth, making me feel all hot and bothered. It took every ounce of my self-control to not throw myself at him and have him take me right then and there.

"I know what you're trying to do," I scolded, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

"What are you talking about?", he asked, feigning innocence.

"You're trying to seduce me, aren't you?"

"Um, no? I took off my shirt because it's hot."

"Sure..."

Derek chuckled and went to stand in front of me, tilting my chin up with his hand. His cool breath fanned my cheek and I closed my eyes, aching to feel his lips against mine.

...But just when I thought he was going to kiss me, a tshirt was thrown in my face.

"What the-!", I exclaimed.

"Oops, my bad."

My eyes shot daggers at Derek, and the devilish grin on his face widened.

"I hate you," I spat at him, turning on my heel to leave when he grabbed my arm, pulling me back towards him.