Love Unexpected

If you are under 18 years of age, this is not for you.

If you are offended by male/male relationships, then do not read this work.

All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

This is a copyrighted work of fiction. All right reserved.

This is the second part of Paul and Derek's story. It's time for their first date! I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. Thank you for all of your encouraging comments, they really do make my day! I'm so excited to be able to say I have readers! To my editor, Colandra, thank you for all your help and encouragement. Let's continue helping Paul and Derek come to life together!

*

"Dude. You have changed clothes like five times! If I didn't know you were gay before, I would definitely know now." John was laughing good-naturedly at Paul.

"I seem to remember someone asking me what shirt looked better with their eyes a few weeks ago when you had that date with Amber," Paul replied.

John laughed and said, "Well, I guess you do have me there. If I were you I'd go with that green button-up and the dark jeans."

Paul was freshly showered, shaved, and dressed in the outfit John had suggested. He sprayed on a little of his favorite cologne before he did one last check in the mirror to make sure he looked okay. It seemed word had spread of his first date as he stepped out of the shared bathroom to a room full of well wishers. Cat calls and whistles greeted him and yells of advice and good luck followed him all the way to his truck. He had to admit that his team had given him more support than he ever hoped for.

"Hey!" John yelled at him from the crowd. "Don't get worn out before the game tonight!" John winked, and the team burst in to uproarious laughter as Paul grinned and hopped into the truck. They were still cheering as he pulled away.

Paul arrived at Derek's apartment ten minutes early and knocked on the door. Derek invited him in and told him he was almost ready. He looked Paul up and down and said, "You look nice," a hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "This is the first time since we met that you showed up with shoes on."

Laughing, Paul replied, "Well, I am trying to impress someone, so I figured I should do my best." He watched Derek's blush creep up his face and resisted the urge to grab him and kiss him breathless. Paul didn't want to scare him off.

"Want to see my apartment?" Derek asked.

"Sure," Paul answered, "I wish I could afford to live in an apartment, but I get free board with my rugby scholarship so I guess I shouldn't complain."

Derek's apartment was small but cozy. The kitchen was connected to the living room and there was a hall that had the bathroom and bedroom off to each side. Derek shuffled back and forth between his injured and healthy foot when he had shown Paul his bedroom. The room was a decent size, but most of it was taken up by the queen size bed. There were posters all over the walls and a very nice sound system off in one corner. A small computer desk was set up in a another corner and there were several CD towers filled to capacity.

"Give me a few minutes and I'll be ready. I had to talk to my professor after class, so I got home a little late." Paul noticed that Derek seemed as nervous as Paul felt. The sight of Derek's bedroom had Paul's mind off in very dirty places. Paul cleared his throat.

"Take your time, I'll wait in the living room."

Paul sat down on the couch and daydreamed about what was being revealed by the sound of clothes rustling in Derek's room. The sound of Velcro signaled the removal of Derek's brace. A few minutes later Derek emerged wearing a different outfit. The shirt was grey and fit snugly on Derek's frame. Paul realized that Derek was actually pretty built, even though he was much smaller than Paul. The shirt had hot pink print on it, and Paul recognized a local band name. The black jeans Derek were wearing sat low on his hips, they were tight on his thighs and relaxed more towards his knees. Paul could see a hot pink belt with metal studs peeking out from the edge of the shirt. Paul noticed that the lime green Converse had been replaced with a hot pink one on Derek's good foot. It matched the writing on Derek's tee shirt. Paul stood up and hoped that Derek didn't notice the hardness he could feel pressing into the left leg of his jeans. He had a feeling he had failed as Derek began blushing again.

"You look really...Um, really..." Paul paused and took a deep breath. Then he said exactly what he was thinking. "You look hot. Really hot."

"Thanks. You, too."

"Thanks."

Paul smiled down at Derek and asked, "So, are you ready to go eat something? I thought we could go to the Mexican place that just opened. I'd like to go somewhere nicer, but I have a game tonight. Maybe this weekend we could go into town and eat."

"Already planning a second date before we even start our first one? What happens if I accept now, and you find out you can't stand me during lunch today?" Derek was smiling, but Paul sensed that he was actually very serious.

"That's not going to happen," Paul replied. "I'm actually more worried that you are going to be bored hanging out with me." Derek's loud bark of laughter startled Paul.

"You can stop worrying about that, Paul. Something is always going on when you're around."

Paul stared down into Derek's dark eyes and felt a rush of emotions. He knew in his heart that this was what he wanted for himself. He wanted Derek, and not just sexually, he wanted to protect him, to discover everything about him. And Paul wanted to share himself with Derek. Paul wondered if Derek could see what he was thinking, because he was sure it was written all over his face. Derek continued to look up into Paul's eyes as Paul slowly leaned down, shrinking the distance between them inch by inch. Paul was carefully gauging Derek's reaction. As Derek's eyes began to slowly close, Paul closed the last few inches between their lips.

Paul wanted the kiss to be soft and sweet, it certainly started that way. Paul pressed his lips softly to Derek's and was rewarded with a soft sigh. Paul continued to gently tease Derek's bottom lip between his own. He moved his attention to the top lip and began to gently suck at the small orb of Derek's Monroe piercing. Derek issued a low moan. That was all it took to transform the kiss from soft and sweet into something else.

Paul reached out and crushed Derek's small frame into his own. He stood, lifting Derek's feet off the ground and felt Derek's arms wrap around his neck. Paul groaned into Derek's mouth, and felt Derek's tongue seeking entrance to his own mouth. He granted it immediately and let his own tongue venture into Derek's mouth. He tasted and explored the soft cavern, encouraged by Derek's moans. Paul was suddenly made painfully aware of his own growing erection when Derek's smaller erection pressed into his stomach. Paul slowly moved his hands to Derek's firm ass and squeezed it. Derek gasped and opened his legs, putting one on each side of Paul. Without ever breaking the kiss, Paul slowly slid Derek down his body until their hips were on the same level . Derek began grinding their erections together as Paul kneaded the firm ass in his hands.

The blood roared in Paul's ears, and he knew they desperately needed to stop. He didn't want this to be some cheap thing, and he was afraid if this went on that Derek might think Paul was only after sex. With a gasp and a groan he pulled his mouth from Derek's and looked down into his flushed face. Derek's eyes were hooded and shone with his arousal and he was panting. He continued to grind his hips onto Paul's throbbing member, and Paul was trying to remind himself why he was stopping this. His voice was thick with lust when he finally spoke.

"Derek, I would love to keep doing this, but I want a lot more than a fling. I want to be serious with you. I know we don't really know each other that well, but I know that my feelings are real. I don't want to do anything that either of us might regret later." He leaned down and kissed Derek again, this time very careful to keep it soft and close lipped.

Derek stared up into his eyes with a tiny smile on his face and said, "I'm glad you feel that way, because I do, too. Your just so damn hot I lost control of myself." Paul gently lowered Derek to the floor, being careful of his injured foot. He couldn't help himself and kissed Derek gently one more time before releasing him. Paul chuckled as they both reached to adjust the bulges in their jeans.

Derek's shirt had ridden up when Paul had slid him down his front, and Paul was granted a glimpse of a tight stomach with a tiny treasure trail disappearing below the waist of Derek's jeans. Derek turned towards the door, and Paul caught a peek of a tattoo down the length of Derek's side. It was a delicate shading of what appeared to be the stem of a flower, and Paul had to restrain himself from tracing it with his finger to find out kind of flower it was. Paul watched the tattoo become hidden again as Derek pulled his shirt back into place. He made a silent promise to himself that he would definitely see it as he waited for Derek.

Paul walked to the apartment door and stepped outside to wait for Derek to follow and lock the door. Once the apartment was secured they walked to Paul's truck, and he held the door open for Derek. He helped him get in, since Derek's foot made it awkward to use the runner as a step with his brace on. Paul climbed in started the truck, and they headed to their first date.

*****

The restaurant they were going to was really close to campus, so Paul and Derek were seated and ordering their food in just a few minutes. They began talking in between bites of tortilla chips and salsa.

"You said you had a rugby game tonight?" Derek asked.

"Yeah," Paul answered, "It starts at 7:00, but I have to be there by 5:30 for warm ups and stuff. It's not even 3:00 yet so I figure we would have plenty of time to eat and maybe hang out before I have to go to the field."

"Sounds good to me," said Derek with a smile.

Paul was once again struck with how gorgeous Derek was. He honestly couldn't put his finger on what it was about Derek that drew him in. He had never been attracted to someone with Derek's style before, but he was sure he would have felt the same no matter what Derek's outward appearance was. There was something about him, the way he wasn't afraid of his sexuality, how he had refused to give up when he was faced with bad odds; Paul considered being attacked by three men pretty bad odds. The only time Paul had heard Derek raise his voice was when he had been attacked, but Paul knew firsthand that the ability was there. Derek seemed to be gentle, but Paul knew that didn't mean he was weak. He was also sexy as hell without being feminine. Paul remembered the punch that Derek had received when he was attacked. It occurred to him that he hadn't heard Derek complain even once that night or now. He suddenly remembered that he hadn't even asked about what had happened since then. His thoughts were interrupted as the waitress brought out their orders. Both men tucked into their plates hungrily. Paul laughed when Derek got some guacamole on the corner of his mouth.

Once they had finished eating, and Derek had gotten a to-go box for his leftovers, Paul paid for the meal, to some resistance. While they were walking back to the truck Paul suggested that they go to a nearby park and hang out until it was time for him to get ready for the game. Derek readily agreed, and they arrived at the park with about an hour to spend and still have enough time for Paul to drive Derek back home. Paul pulled out a blanket from behind his seat, and they waked a short distance before he spread it on the ground and sat on it. Paul heard Derek chuckle at him as he kicked off his shoes, and Paul smiled at him. Derek sat down carefully, adjusting his injured foot, and laid back on the blanket. Paul took the opportunity to stare at the reclining form.

"How tall are you?" Derek asked while perusing Paul from the corner of his eye.

"I'm 6' 5" and around 240 pounds."

"Holy crap. You're a foot taller than me and outweigh me by seventy pounds. It's a good thing you're gentle, or I could be in serious trouble." At that statement Paul turned to look Derek in the eye. He wanted to be sure the smaller man knew he was serious.

"I would never hurt you intentionally. If you didn't like anything I was doing all you would have to say is stop, and I would." He paused for a second. "I mean it."

Derek nodded back at him and said, "I know you do. And I want to tell you something, just to get it out there. If you change your mind about anything after this, I'd understand." Paul watched as Derek closed his eyes and took a deep breath, when he opened them he looked straight at Paul and said, "I'm a virgin. I have done other stuff with guys but I haven't ever...Well, you know." Paul didn't know what he had been expecting Derek to say, but it sure as hell wasn't that.

"Actually," Paul replied, "I am too." Paul wondered if Derek was feeling as vulnerable as he was.

They each stared at the other for a moment.

"Okay," was all Derek said, but Paul noticed the tension he had felt before and noticed in Derek's posture, disappeared. Paul set his cell phone alarm to remind them when it was time to leave and laid back on the blanket next to Derek.

"So what happened the other night when you left?" Paul asked.

"Well, the cops took me to the hospital to get me checked out, since I didn't want them to call an ambulance. That guy knocked the breath out of me pretty good, but I was mainly worried about my foot. One of the jackasses was standing on it when I went down. I think I have a pretty high tolerance for pain, but I felt something snap when that happened and I blacked out. Turns out he worsened the sprain I already had. It turned out that wasn't the first time those guys had done something like that, there was an issue here last semester with another guy. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time I guess."

Paul reached out and took Derek's hand. He could feel Derek trembling slightly, but he just held his hand silently, allowing Derek to say what he needed.

"I decided to press charges, so I don't really know what's going to happen with that, but my parents said they would help with everything. I think they were really upset that they couldn't make it down that night, but they hired a lawyer. It took some convincing on my part to assure them that I was okay. I have the medical reports from the hospital, not to mention a whole rugby team full of witnesses. I'm sure someone will be giving you a call sometime too, since you actually saw everything." Paul watched as Derek opened and closed his mouth like he was going to say something. Paul waited and was rewarded with a quiet voice saying, "Thank you for saving me. If you hadn't been there...Well, just thanks. I know a lot of people who would have pretended not to notice or would've just called the police, but by that time it would have been to late."

Paul simply said, "You're welcome." The couple held hands as they laid there, silently looking at the clouds for a while.

"So how did you hurt you foot originally?" Paul asked after several minutes.

"Some jackass hit me at a crosswalk Monday while I was on my bike. The chick was talking to her boyfriend or something and she bumped into me. She was hardly moving, but when a car bumps into you, you feel it. My bike was still pretty messed up, so Mom and Dad promised to buy me a new one when they come down to check on me."

"Wow, I can't believe you were actually hit by a car and attacked all in the same week." Paul huffed and added, "That's a pretty crappy week."

"It was a good week," that quiet voice Paul was growing to love said," I met you."

Paul felt warmth suffuse his entire body. Aware of where they were, but certain that they were well enough secluded, he propped himself on his elbow as he leaned over Derek and kissed him tenderly.

"So, are you interested in being my boyfriend?" Paul asked as he pulled his lips away for a moment.

"I thought I made that pretty clear earlier today," Derek answered him before pulling Paul back down for another kiss.

"So, would my boyfriend like to come to my game tonight and watch me play?" Paul asked between kisses.

"You bet." Derek said as he pulled Paul down for another kiss.

Paul loved every second of it. He kept pulling away, just so Derek would pull him back down. He groaned when the alarm from his cell went off, warning him that it was time to go. After a few more kisses he had to pull away for real. Paul looked at Derek's kiss swollen lips, and cursed rugby for the first time in his life. He stood up and helped Derek get to his feet before shaking out the blanket and finding his shoes.

"Did you want to go ahead with me now?" Paul asked, "You can sit in the bleachers or my truck until game time if you want."

"That sounds good to me," Derek said. "I just need to pick up a few things from my apartment so I can work on them while I'm waiting, if that's ok."

Paul grinned and said "Whatever you need, Baby." He hadn't meant to say that, and the bright pink blush that crept up Derek's face had him backpedaling. "I'm sorry! It just slipped out! If you don't like it I won't say it again, I promise."

Paul could barely hear the tiny voice that answered, "I like it."

Paul held hands with Derek as they walked back to the truck. Paul helped Derek in and they headed to Derek's apartment to pick up what he needed to work on. Once he had everything Paul took the bag, waited until Derek locked the door, and walked him back to the truck. Once he had helped him get back in they headed to the field. It was a short drive, and when they arrived Paul helped Derek out of the truck. They walked up to the bleachers together. Some of his teammates girlfriends were in the stands already, and Derek moved towards them so Paul followed. The girls called out greetings and Paul said, "This is Derek," he paused and looked to Derek, unsure how to introduce him.

"I'm Paul's boyfriend." Derek said to the girls. They all said hello and told them who their boyfriends were.

"You okay here?" Paul asked Derek.

"Yeah, I'm good. I'll see you after the game." Derek answered with a smile. Paul leaned down and kissed the top of his head. As he walked away he heard Derek tell the girls, "I need a crash course in rugby. Who wants to help me out?" Paul chuckled and knew that soon Derek would have all of them charmed. That thought brought a small frown to his face as he felt an unfamiliar stab of jealousy. He looked back one more time to see Derek laughing with the girls. Derek noticed him looking and smiled at him shyly before giving him a small wave. Paul smiled and waved back before heading into the locker room.

*****

"Hey Paul, were going out tonight after the game. You wanna go with us?" It was John asking.

"I don't know, I'll have to ask Derek if he wants to." Paul answered.

He had gone out with the team a few times after gamed, but he wasn't sure if Derek would want to or not, even though Paul really wanted to introduce him around. The team hadn't missed his mention of Derek's name and he was soon overwhelmed with congratulations and quite a few raunchy comments. He laughed at them good naturedly, knowing that was the way the guys showed their support.

"You should definitely bring him, we promise to play nice. Right guys?" John asked the team and was met with loud and boisterous agreement. John added, "I'm still curious to find out what your thing is, I never did get a good look at the kid."