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Erica claims she’s unpredictable, and she loves shocking people with the things she says and the things she does. However, even a fierce girl like her has to have some routines. She steps into Hale’s Orgasms and taps her red heels on the floor. Something is different today. She surveys the room.
"Morning, Reyes," Derek says in greeting. She lifts her chin in the smallest acknowledgement. Then she realizes that the chocolate hottie who is always sitting in the corner table alone isn’t there today. He always gives her such appreciative looks about her wild outfit choices. Dammit, because she looks extra hot today.
Her hair’s curled, her lips and heels are fire red, and her outfit is tight. She opted for the black mini-skirt she had bought two years before being turned into a werewolf. Sad, Pathetic Erica would have never pulled it off, but she’d fallen in love with the damn thing and couldn’t leave it at the store. She’d searched for it after she’d turned, in hopes she could finally wear it. Her shirt isn’t much of a shirt but a corset. And dammit, she looks hot.
This look would be lost on Derek. He never blinked twice at her because he was always drooling over Stiles. Not that he’d ever admit that. Heaven forbid Derek had a crush on a person. Although, considering how his last three romances had played out, Erica doesn’t really blame him for the denial.
"Morning, Hale," she responds as she walks up to the counter. "You gonna ask Stilinski to bowling tonight or not?"
Despite his denial, the pack had banded together to force Derek to be the one to ask Stiles to Pack Night. Everyone knows how much Stiles hates being left in the dark about things, and Derek hated to disappoint him, so the pack’s hoping this can get the ball rolling for them.
Despite herself, she glances over to where the hottie would have been sitting. Normally, Erica had no problems walking up to a guy and seducing him. However, something was different about this guy. Erica had this strange gut feeling about him. She knows it’s dumb so she never voiced it, but his gaze, the way his lips curl in amusement, and how he watches her without hiding it makes her feel as though he already gets her, already understands her. He looks at her as though he sees her.
"I already did," Derek says. His voice is confident but his heart skips a beat.
"Liar," Erica says, laughing. "Just text him or something. God, Derek, it’s Pack Night. He’s not gonna reject you."
"But—"
"But nothing. Get me my damn coffee and text your lover boy that you want to pick him up for bowling," Erica says, her tone lazily but her words serious.
Derek sighs and says, “Hang on. I’m training the new guy.”
"New guy?" Erica echoes questioningly.
Derek goes into the kitchen, and Erica listens in. When Derek asks if the trainee wants to attempt his first vanilla bean, she hears a small grunt and shuffling. Then Derek’s walking back out with her hottie trailing behind him. Her hottie gives her outfit a quick look, and smiles as her as though he knows she feels hot today.
She lifts her hand and waves her fingers, lips parting. He nods at her before he listens carefully to Derek’s instructions. Oh dear, her hottie is going to be behind the counter for now. Erica smirks. She can work with this. He’s working in one of the dirtiest shops around - thanks to the help of Stiles, Derek is the proud owner of Hale’s Orgasms, the best coffee bakery shop in town. All of the titles of his baked goods are sexualized somehow.
Erica just might have to break her routine up a little. She scans her hottie’s shirt for a name tag but Derek mustn’t have printed on yet. She smiles when he hands her the drink she always gets on hot days. “Thank you.”
He nods. Derek nudges him and whispers, “Treat her like a normal customer.”
Boyd doesn’t move his eyes from Erica’s when he says, “Have a nice day.”
Her lips tug upwards a little more. “You too.”
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"Why didn’t you tell me you hired the hottie?" Erica demands when Derek and Stiles show up to bowling together. Neither look happy, so she decides to distract them with (much more important) other issues.
Derek tilts his head. “You mean Vernon Boyd?”
"Yes," she breathes because he has a name now. No matter how casually she’d ask Derek, he had never given information about the guy before. "You should have told me."
"Why?"
"Obviously Erica’s interested, dumbass," Stiles mutters. He shakes his head and adds, "How are you always so fucking blind to that shit?"
"You’re into Boyd?" Derek asks, surprised as always. "Why haven’t you gone for him? You’ve both been coming into the bakery for over a year now."
"And you’re so dumb that you missed it?" Stiles demands.
Derek shrugs. “It’s Erica. She always pounces on that kind of thing - just like you. If she’s interested, she goes for it…what?”
Stiles lets out an exasperated groan before he storms away to pick out his shoes.
Derek blinks and then looks pleadingly at Erica for help. She raises her hands and says, “You’re on your own for that one, puppy. Might want to fix it fast.”
Derek merely nods, and looks lost in his own thoughts. Erica heads back to her friends, family rather, and sits down. Vernon Boyd. Derek had called him Boyd but…she likes the ring to Vernon.
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"Morning Vernon," Erica greets a few weeks later. She clutches her cell phone in her hand, and it trembles slightly. "Is Derek in?"
"No, it’s my first morning alone," Boyd tells her. He adds, "Everything okay?"
She glances down at her phone before she shakes her head. “No, not this morning. If Derek checks in on you, can you tell him to call me immediately?”
"Sure thing, Erica." It’s the first time he’s used her name so her eyes snap up to meet his. He looks at her with concern. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
She huffs a little. “Not unless you want to be my fake boyfriend for my crazy grandmother’s visit tonight.”
"I get off at four," Boyd says. "I’ve been told I can be quite the charmer when I want to be."
It’s the first time they’ve held a conversation without Derek hovering around, and Erica’s wishing they’d done this before. She smiles a little. “I’m sure you could charm the pants off anyone if you wanted to.”
"Oh yeah?" Boyd asks, looking highly amused. "What do you say?"
"I say I would owe you huge if you pretended to be my boyfriend tonight. She let it slip to my mother that she’s bringing a young boy with her, and I know what that means. You’d be saving my life," Erica says, relaxing a little more.
"Nothing quite as dramatic, but I’d be happy to help."
"Thanks. Here, I’ll give you my number." She starts scribbling it onto a napkin with the pen from the counter. She doesn’t know that Boyd asked Derek for it three weeks ago. Erica just writes "xoxo" in the corner and pushes it towards Boyd. "Thank you. The dinner is at my place at six-thirty."
"I’ll be there by six-fifteen," Boyd promises her. "I’ll be wearing grey."
"We don’t have to match outfits," Erica says but she’s laughing now. She has a small suspicion that that was Boyd’s goal. "But duly noted. Have a great day."
"See you tonight."
"See you tonight," she echoes.
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STILES: your crazy grandma is coming in tonight?
STILES: do you need me to cancel my plans with d?
ERICA: no, no, I have a fake boyfriend already
ERICA: besides you two have been acting all weird
ERICA: fix that
STILES: wait what who?!
STILES: have not, he’s just so painfully dumb
STILES: I think the pack’s wrong, he isn’t into me at all
ERICA: untrue, he acts like a total puppy around you
ERICA: just make things crystal clear to him - make a move dude
STILES: ARE YOU KIDDING ME NO WAY!
STILES: who is your fake date?!
ERICA: uh YES WAY and maybe idk Boyd
STILES: what. the. hell. Reyes. HOW DID YOU NOT START WITH THAT
ERICA: no big deal dude he just offered to take Derek’s place
STILES: boyyyyd and ericaaaa sitting in a treeeee
ERICA: every time?
STILES: yep but omg are you nervous??
ERICA: oddly no?
STILES: really? I’d be shitting my pants!
ERICA: I think it’ll be fine
STILES: don’t end the night with sex
STILES: not while Grandma Reyes is there
ERICA: gee, thanks jackass
STILES: Erica I just meant that
ERICA: yeah I got it
STILES: sometimes you move too fast
ERICA: I don’t think 15 months is moving too fast
STILES: it’s been fifteen months?? how did you not make a move before?
ERICA: it’s different this time I think
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"Hi," Erica breathes when she opens the door.
"Hi," Boyd repeats. He smiles at her and holds out a potted rose bush. She laughs in surprise. "I figured you wouldn’t see the point in flowers that are going to die in the next week, so hopefully this is acceptable."
Erica nods, touching her finger tips to her lips. “Yes, it’s great. Thank you, come in.”
She takes the small pot from him and sets it on the table in the hall. When Erica turns back to him, she steps forward and wraps her arms around Boyd’s shoulders. He seems surprised at first, but then he wraps his hands around her waist and tugs her in closer. She whispers, “Three, two…”
For a split second, Erica thinks he’s going to kiss her. “One.”
"Who’s at the door, child?" Her grandmother’s voice comes from as it enters the hallway. "Uh, Erica, who is this?"
Erica, who’s dressed a bit more modestly tonight, turns on her heels and smiles. “Grandma, I’d like you to meet my boyfriend. This is Vernon Boyd.”
"Boyfriend?" her grandmother sputters. "Your mother didn’t tell me about any boyfriend. Why do you think I brought Charlie along? So you could finally meet a young, respectable boy."
Erica tilts her head up at Boyd. He puts his hand into hers and squeezes for support. Still looking at him, she says, “I think I found a keeper, Grandma. Give him a chance.”
Boyd sticks his free hand out. “Vernon Boyd, miss.”
Her grandmother smiles. “Thank god you didn’t call me ‘ma’am’. I would have socked you. Alright boy, come on. Let’s see why my granddaughter is looking at you with hearts in her eyes.”
Erica is almost surprised that Boyd doesn’t let go of her hand when they enter the living room, but it’s overtaken by the overwhelming sense of glee.
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"Oh my god!" Erica says, giggling beside Boyd’s car a few hours later. "You charmed the socks off her. No one’s done that before! She’s such a hard ass and she loved you immediately. You’re my knight in shining armour."
Boyd grins and pulls Erica into him by her waist. They hadn’t been able to stop touching each other all night. If they weren’t holding hands, they were hitting one another’s knees under the table or her hand rested on his thigh. He had tugged her hair a couple of times and had buried his face into her neck whenever they were alone. “I’m glad I could be of service, m’lady.”
Laughing, she steps forward. Just a little more. “Boyd, you were incredible. Even Charlie was in love with you. How am I supposed to ever thank you?”
"I could think of a couple ways," Boyd says. "I had a lot of fun with you tonight."
"Same."
"Erica?"
"Yeah?"
"Your eyes just flashed yellow."
"I—" Erica pulls away, embarrassed and confused. She doesn’t get very far because Boyd is tugging her back towards him.
"Maybe that’s a conversation for another night," Boyd whispers. He pushes a piece of her hair away from her face. "This is insane."
"I’m not the only one who feels it?" Erica asks.
"Since I laid my eyes on you, I knew. There’s…"
"Something," Erica finishes for him. She leans up on her tiptoes and closes her eyes. His lips are on hers and while she expected a light, gentle kiss, she finds herself wrapped up in one filled with unexplainable passion and heat. Suddenly, Boyd’s hand is moving up her back, and his grip on her is almost too tight. She doesn’t want him to let go, to ever stop.
When he deepens the kiss, she’s pressed against his car. She runs her nails very carefully up his chest and then back down. She focuses enough to keep her claws in. It was another conversation for another night.
He pulls away and whispers, “Tomorrow night. I work until six. I’ll pick you up and we’ll go back to my place.”
Realizing he was talking about sex, and nothing else, Erica shoves him back a little. He wants her for her body just like everyone else. Boyd tilts his head and quietly says, “I’ll cook you dinner, we can watch a movie.”
"What?" she breathes.
"I know you think I meant sex, but Erica, that’s not what this is about for me."
"Me neither," she whispers. Her heart’s beating too fast and too loudly. Then she’s kissing him again.
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"You told him only three days after your fake date?" Derek asks, stunned. "And he’s okay with it?"
"Yeah," Erica says, shrugging. They might have only been seeing each other for a week now, but Erica has this gut feeling that he’s the one. She’s already half in love with him, and if she hadn’t trusted him explicably, she wouldn’t be planning her wedding in her mind. Not that she’d ever admit it. She’d always sworn she’d never marry but Boyd. It was different. Boyd is different.
"He knows you’re a werewolf and he’s…okay with it?" Derek asks again.
"Yeah, he thinks it’s kinds cool. He might ask you to change him. Not yet, not for a while. But maybe," Erica says, shrugging. "For now, he’s going to stay human for me."
"And you’re happy? He’s happy?"
Erica snorts. “Derek, just ask Stiles out already. Please.”
"I can’t."
"Why not?" she asks.
"What if…what if I hurt him?" Derek whispers.
"I’m a big boy," Stiles says, walking up to them. They both turn. For werewolves, they can be pretty shitty at it. Both of them had been so wrapped up in their own thoughts, they hadn’t heard Stiles come in. Erica smiles in amusement and Derek stands up.
"Stiles—" Derek runs a hand through his hair.
"Aren’t you worried I might hurt you?"
"Yes," Derek admits. "But that doesn’t mean anything if you get hurt."
"Oh fuck off with your whole I’m-a-bad-guy routine. I think I’ve made it very clear that I want to be with you."
"I—no."
Stiles sighs in frustration. Erica slips out and the next time she sees them, they’re making out.
She calls out, “Boyd and I are cuter!”
"Good," Derek says, "because we’re hotter."
"Oh god, idiot. Run!" Stiles shouts as Erica starts to lunge at them. She listens to them laughing as they run through the bakery and smirks. When Boyd shows up fifteen minutes, she puts the CLOSED sign on display and yanks him into the closet.
"This is insanity," Erica murmurs against his lips.
"Crazy. Nuts. Wild," Boyd says. "Right."
"So right," Erica agrees. "It’s never been like this before."
"I…should we slow down?"
Erica snorts, unapologetically. She kisses him hard before she whispers, “I don’t think I can do slow with you.”
"Good," Boyd whispers. "Because I think I’m half in love with you already."
She inhales sharply. Then she jumps on him, wrapping go her legs around his waist. “Same, ditto, exactly. Yep. Now take my top off.”
"I never thought I’d hear those words."
"Well you did, so get to work, hottie."
He laughs and she smiles triumphantly. When Boyd spins them around, she lets out a loud laugh and lifts one fist into the air. She leans down to kiss him and when she pulls away, she says, “I’m half in love with you too.”
"Insanity."
"Actually, I don’t think I’ve ever been so sure of something." She pauses. "I’m sure of this."
"Me too."
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