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Disclaimer: Far as I'm aware Daphne still isn't handing over the rights to LWD, much less to me :(

Chapter Twenty-Five

I paced around in front of the coffee shop, trying to get my feet to carry me in there. So what if he was in there? I found this place first, I always had my coffee there. Why should I leave just because my annoyingly attractive step-brother was currently sat inside with three girls hanging over his shoulders looking at something on his phone?

I took a deep breath and walked over to the door, but froze with my hand half-way to the bar. I couldn't. I wouldn't enjoy my coffee one little bit if Derek was there flirting with girls in my line of sight. I'd just pick up a bottle of juice from the mini convenience store near the lecture hall. With any luck they'd stock one of the ones with guarana in it to replace the caffeine kick. Lord knows I needed it after the night's sleep I'd had.

Someone pushed past me with an irritated 'excuse me', opening the door and making me stumble through it a little. I turned to go but it was too late.

"Space-Case!" A cheerful voice called out. I turned to face the origin of said voice and found that I was being gestured over.

I reluctantly complied. "Hey Derek." I gave a strained smile.

"Case, this is Sandra, Cameron and Beth." He pointed at the girls in turn. "Girls, this is Casey."

The girls said hello with just a touch of hostility. I returned the sentiment.

"I was just showing these lovely girls some pictures of our little brother." He turned the phone to face me. A picture of Simon gnawing my mom's chin gazed out at me and I couldn't help but grin at the image.

The girls' smiles turned more genuine and friendly the second the words 'our little brother' left his lips. I wished they'd stayed hostile.

"He's adorable." A blonde whom I was pretty sure was either Cameron or Beth crooned.

"Yeah." I agreed, more that a little disgusted that Derek was using our baby brother to pick up girls. I sent him a glare. "Anyway, I'd better go get my coffee." I excused myself with yet another fake smile and turned towards the counter.

"Oh, yeah. I wanted a refill actually. Why don't you stay here and I'll get yours too?" Derek stood and strode off before I had the chance to object. I wasn't sure whether I was pleased that he was getting me coffee, or annoyed that he'd left me with his groupies. I decided to opt for the latter.

After a few moments of awkward silence, a girl who was almost certainly Sandra glanced at her phone screen. "We'd really better be going, class starts in ten."

At her words they all stood and chorused 'bye Derek' before leaving.

I sighed in relief and sat down in one of the now empty chairs. Derek was going to pay for this. It was one thing flirting in front of me, he'd always done it and he didn't know how I felt, but it was another using Simon to get laid. I wondered how many times he'd done it in the past. I took out my phone and looked at some of my own pictures of the baby. I hoped he'd got more than his share of McDonald in him to even out the jerk Venturi genes.

I jumped as Derek appeared behind me, looking over my shoulder at the picture on my phone. "I like that one." He said, and I could feel his breath pass through my hair. "Got you what you had last time, hope that's okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah, thanks." I locked my phone and put it away, reaching for my drink.

"I can see why you come to this place, the coffee's great and the girls..." He let out a low whistle as he sat down.

"I don't come here for the girls." I said witheringly.

He laughed, "Course not. You're strictly into... What word is socially acceptable to say out loud in a coffee shop?"

"There isn't one. And I don't come here to meet guys either." I said firmly.

"Oh, I'm sorry Princess, did I offend your delicate sensibilities by assuming you might actually have a libido?"

I pointedly looked away.

"Though it's not really an assumption; you definitely didn't go out with Truman or Max for their stunning intellect and great personalities." He continued.

I shot him a death glare, but wasn't really sure what to say to that so I changed the subject instead. "So which one are you going out with? Or two. I doubt even you could manage all three without getting castrated."

He looked confused for moment before his face cleared and he let out another short laugh."None. They're great girls an' all, but too easy." He rolled his eyes as I opened my mouth to lecture him on talking about girls that way. "Before you get your panties in a twist, I didn't mean it in an offensive way. I meant I want a challenge, and you saw them, they were already hanging on my every word."

"You want another Sally." I reasoned.

He pulled a face. "Don't get me wrong, Sally was, and probably still is, great, but once was enough."

"Then what do you want?" I asked with an eye roll.

"I dunno, someone who puts up a fight when I'm being a jerk, and not just when I'm being me. Sally was amazing, but she knew what I was like when I got into that relationship and she still pushed me to do things I wasn't comfortable with just because she wanted to know she could." He picked at a dry coffee drip on the outside of his mug.

I tried to drown out the part of me that wanted to say 'why not me' by laughing it off. "And the difference between you being you and you being a jerk is..?"

"Ha ha." He said sarcastically.

"Seriously though, you never know who might be the person you're looking for until you give them a chance." I took a sip of my coffee before anything else could come out of my mouth.

He gave me a strange look."You'd be surprised."

I swallowed and looked down at my mug. "So what was it all about if you're not interested in them?"

"Because you of course have never flirted with someone you didn't want to sleep with." He snarked.

"A lack of interest only means you don't want to sleep with them to a man slut like you; I don't have to be interested in someone's pants interested in them." I retorted, ignoring the fact that wanting to get laid was exactly what I'd meant when I'd asked him.

"Man slut." He chuckled. "Cool name. I almost like it better than skirt chasing cad."

"Only you would actually want to be called a slut." I sighed.

"Not true, Kendra really liked it being called a slut. She's a real demon for dirty talk." He winked.

"Ugh." I pulled a disgusted face while trying to hide a blush; hearing what he did with his ex-girlfriend made me more than a little uncomfortable.

"Oh no, I've hurt you poor virgin ears again, haven't I?" He teased. "Would you prefer we talk about puppies?"

A sudden memory of a certain teacher and a certain imaginary pet came to mind. "No. And besides, just because I don't sleep with anything that moves, doesn't mean I'm any less able to talk about it than you." I inwardly groaned when I realised what I'd just left myself open for but it was too late to take it back.

His teasing smirk widened into a wicked grin. "So do you spit or swallow?"

I choked, spraying a few droplets of coffee across the table.

"Well I guess that answers that question." He laughed.

"Der-ek!" I managed through coughs.

"I'm sorry Case, you want me to let you reconsider puppies?" He said in the most patronizing tone he could muster.

I shook my head defiantly.

"You sure? 'Cause I don't want to explain to Nora how her eldest choked to death because I had an adult conversation with her." He goaded.

"I wouldn't call any conversation with you 'adult'." I muttered.

"Case, you wound me." He clutched his chest dramatically.

"Well, you do have the mental maturity of a twelve year old. At best." I raised my cup to me lips again.

He seemed to wait for me to take a sip before answering. "I can assure you, I'm all man where it counts."

I spluttered a little, but managed to keep all the coffee in my mouth this time, only coughing twice before swallowing it down. "I'm sure you are." I tried to make my voice drip with sarcasm and condescension, but I wasn't sure if I quite managed it.

"Did you want me to prove it?" He waggled his eyebrows.

This time there was no chance he didn't see my blush, I was glowing like a lightbulb. "Grow up." I frowned at him.

"Oh, I 'grow up' quite a bit when handled properly." He winked, clearly trying to test just how red I could go.

"Are you going to turn everything I say into a double entendre?" I sulked. Why did I have to blush so darn easily?

"Are you going to make it so easy?"

I decided to try him at his own game; maybe I'd feel less mortified if I could just see him turn a little pink. "I can assure you, I'm not easy."

He laughed delightedly. "Now who's speaking double entendres?"

"I've no idea what you mean." I widened my eyes innocently. "Nothing so vulgar could get past my lips." I pouted purposefully, inwardly squealing in triumph when his gaze lowered to my mouth.

"Maybe we should test that theory." He smirked.

"And how would you suggest we do that?" I leaned forward across the table. This wasn't taking the direction I'd thought it would, but there was no way I was leaving without seeing him embarrassed.

"What's the dirtiest thing you've ever done?" He asked, his tone still teasing but his eyes still darting back to my mouth every few seconds.

"On my own or with help?" I smirked, trying to suppress a resurgence of my blush at my own words.

I was rewarded by a faint tinge on Derek's face that I never would have noticed if I hadn't been looking for it. "Oh, um, okay, I was not expecting you to say that." He admitted.

I leaned back. "Too much for you?"

His eyes flicked back to my lips for a moment. "Definitely not."

I smiled in what I hoped was a wicked way, before catching sight of the time. "I'd better get going."

I was pleased to see he was a little flustered. "Right, okay. Well, I'll see you soon? I mean maybe tomorrow. Here. When you get your coffee."

I nodded, fighting back a giggle. "Sure. Goodbye man slut."

"Bye."