"Aw, please, Amy?" Amy Cahill's younger brother Dan whined. "The Fourth of July's tomorrow!"

"For the last time, no! We are not getting any fireworks; we're going to go see the display in the park like we do every year," Amy replied, gritting her teeth.

But of course, Dan wouldn't give up so easily. "But it would be a wasted opportunity if I didn't get to set anything on fire this Fourth of July!"

Amy sighed, "This is exactly why they don't sell fireworks to thirteen-year-olds! No means no, Dan."

"You're no fun," Dan grumbled, starting to leave the room.

That was when Amy's phone pinged, indicating she had a notification. She fished the device out of her pocket and turned it on. The screen flashed to life and informed her that she had one new Facetime request.

From Ian Kabra?!

Angling the phone screen away from Dan, who was looking at her from the doorway, Amy answered the call.

"Hey Ian..." Amy greeted shyly when the British boy's face filled the screen.

"Hello, Love," Ian answered, smirking at the nickname he had invented.

Amy blushed, but before she had time to say anything else, Dan came running over.

"You're Skyping the Cobra?" he yelled. "Amy, have you lost your mind?!"

"Quiet, Dan!" Amy hissed, moving away from her brother. Dan followed after her, attempting to grab her phone.

"But I'm only trying to protect you! Obviously, Ian's just brainwashed you with some love spell again, so it's up to me to save you!" Dan exclaimed, swiping at Amy's phone.

"Go away, dweeb!" Amy shouted at Dan. Holding her phone up and out of Dan's reach, Amy sprinted for her room on the second floor of the Cahill mansion. Once she got inside, she slammed the door and locked it. Then, breathing a sigh of relief, she plopped down on her bed and looked back at Ian on her phone.

"Sorry about that," Amy apologized. She could feel the heat rising to her cheeks once again, embarrassed that Ian had heard everything Dan said.

"Oh, it's quite alright," Ian replied smoothly.

"So...um...what did you want to talk to me about?" Amy asked, trying to get the conversation back on topic.

Ian, however, clearly wasn't done beating around the bush. "What, now you just assume that I want something every time I call you? Aren't I allowed to simply check in with you every once in a while? You know, I do care about how you're doing."

That comment flustered Amy all over again. "Well yes - I suppose - but I was just asking…" Amy trailed off, frustrated that she couldn't even string a sentence together. Why did this always happen around Ian?

"Well, since you asked, there was a little something I wanted to discuss with you." Then, getting straight to the point, Ian said, "I would like to cordially invite you, Amy Cahill, to a dinner party tomorrow night at the mansion of one of the most prestigious art dealers in Britain - a close associate of my parents."

Amy tried to speak, but no sound came out. Had Ian just asked her out on a date? Finally, Amy managed to untie her tongue. "But Ian, I -"

"Don't worry, I've already arranged for my private jet to pick you up in Massachusetts tomorrow morning. Then, when you arrive here, I've taken the liberty to book you an appointment with my sister Natalie's personal stylist, so you'll be perfectly prepared for the dinner."

Now this conversation was going from bad to worse. Amy knew there was no way she could go all the way to England tomorrow. But she would absolutely hate to disappoint Ian...he seemed to have worked so hard on this!

So Amy started off softly, "Ian, I'm just not so sure that a fancy party is really my thing. Thank you for the offer, but I would just feel so out of place…"

"But I'll be right there with you," Ian reminded her.

And that'll only make me feel more awkward and embarrassed! Amy wanted to say, but she kept quiet.

What could she possibly say that would convince Ian to go to the party without her? There was one thing…

"Well, you see, I sort of already have plans for tomorrow evening," Amy said.

She watched in despair as Ian's expression changed from excited to downcast.

"Oh, you do?" Ian said weakly.

"Yeah, after all, it is the Fourth of July tomorrow, and Dan and I were going to go to the picnic and fireworks show in the park, and it is kinda a tradition for us," Amy tried to explain, but in truth, hearing her lame excuse out loud only made her feel worse.

To Amy's surprise, by the time she was done explaining, Ian was smiling.

"Well in that case, Love, I guess I'll just have to take a short vacation to America tomorrow. Massachusetts, to be exact," Ian said triumphantly.

"What?" Amy blurted out. "You mean you're skipping the dinner party to come to a picnic?"

"Of course that's what I mean!" Ian said. "And why wouldn't I come? After all, it sounds like a jolly good time."

Amy couldn't believe that Ian was actually being serious right now. Ian wasn't even American! Why would he want to celebrate the Fourth of July at all, let alone with her?

Amy was determined to talk Ian out of this.

"But really, the celebration is nothing special. I- I think you should go to your party instead, you'd enjoy yourself much more there than here," Amy tried to tell him.

Ian would hear none of it. "Thank you for your opinion, Love, but I've made up my mind already. Expect me at your mansion some time tomorrow afternoon!"

Then the screen went black, and Amy realized that Ian had disconnected the call.

Frustrated, Amy dropped her phone on the sheets of her bed, then flopped face-first into the pillows. How did she get herself into these types of situations? Now Ian was coming to her small-town Fourth of July picnic. Ian Kabra, who was used to everything lavish and fancy, everything Amy and her hometown were not.

Not only would Ian have the worst time of his life tomorrow, but what about Dan? Amy thought that if her psychotic brother made it through the night without killing Ian, it would be a miracle.

Well, so much for having the perfect Fourth of July this year.

But on the bright side, Amy tried to reason, at least Dan wouldn't cause any small fires like he had a few years ago. That incident was when Amy had learned never to let Dan anywhere within 20 feet of fireworks. But, despite her refusal to give her brother anything flammable, Dan always seemed to find a way to get fireworks somewhere. Sometimes Amy seriously wondered how in the world he did it...

Amy sighed, thinking about the kind of day she had in for her tomorrow. It would certainly be an unforgettable Fourth of July - but in a good way, or a bad way?

That was the real question.


So I hope you enjoyed reading, and the second part will be posted tomorrow! So stay tuned...