Disclaimer: Don't own it!

Author's Note: Okay here's the new chapter. I hope the last few chapters didn't ruin this story for you, I know I didn't get as many reviews. Thanks to the people that did review! I'll keep on updating until no one reviews!
Jenna

Chapter 9

Casey's POV

"Casey? Can you take me to Edwin's?" Lizzie called to me from her room.

I inwardly sighed with irritation. Not with Lizzie, but with the fact that I have to go to the Venturi's house. Hopefully he won't be there.

"Sure." I told her as I stood in her doorway.

"Thanks." She grinned.

We walked downstairs and told Mom where we were going. She told us to be back by 5 for dinner and then we were on our way.

When we arrived, I sat in the car for a few minutes looking at the house. So this is where Derek lived. It was a large brick house.

I walked up the front door with Lizzie and she knocked. A disheveled looking Derek opened the front door. He looked like he had just rolled out of bed.

"Hey! Is Edwin here?" Lizzie exclaimed, ever cheerful.

He groaned and shut the door.

Lizzie looked at me in surprise. "What was that about?"

The door flew open and Edwin stood there. "Sorry about that." He apologized.

"It's okay." Lizzie smiled reassuringly at him as we walked inside.

"You really shouldn't apologize for your brother!" I told him.

"Casey!" Lizzie shot me a dirty look.

"No, no, she's right. I shouldn't." Edwin agreed.

"Then why do you?" I looked at him questioningly.

"Because he won't." He replied simply.

He had a point. I walked into the living room and sat down on the couch with Lizzie.

"Want a drink?" Edwin asked.

"No thanks." Lizzie and I answered in unison.

He sat down in the recliner next to the couch.

Lizzie immediately started a conversation about a soccer game that they were both attending that day.

I sat there looking around the room. It was done in deep reds and blues. Whoever had decorated it had good taste.

"What's the freakette doing here?" Derek's deep voice rumbled from the other side of the room.
I whipped around to see another entrance that obviously led to his room.

I rolled my eyes.

"Must have wanted to get a good look at my hot body." Derek stretched lazily before throwing himself down on the beanbag chair by the TV.

"Oh yeah that's it." I deadpanned. "Because I've given every indication that I've wanted to see it."

"That's the only reason you could be here so early. Tell me again why you're here at 8:30 on a Saturday morning?" He asked.

"I never answered your friendly question to begin with." I retorted.

"I came to see Edwin." Lizzie offered.

"Your cheerfulness is making my head hurt, so stop talking." He looked pointedly at Lizzie.

She stood up and walked over to him. "You, Derek Venturi, are the biggest jerk! I don't see how you're so popular!" She got her adorable little mad face on and shook her finger in his face.

Suddenly a small thing came hurtling into the room. "Get away from Smerek!"

It was a little girl, she was absolutely cute!
"That's Marti." Edwin explained. "Our little sister, she's 6 and fiercely defensive of Derek."

"I've noticed." I commented dryly. Marti stood in front of Derek with her arms crossed, glaring at Lizzie stubbornly.

Lizzie turned around and giggled.

"Stop laughing!" Marti demanded.

Derek chuckled. "Come here Smarti." He pulled her into his lap.

"Good morning Smerek." She smiled and looked up adoringly at her big brother.

"Did you have a good nights sleep?" he asked her.

"Yes." She nodded.

"You didn't let any bed bugs bite or any monsters from under the bed get you?" He playfully tugged on her hair.

"Nope." She giggled.

"That's good. We wouldn't want anything to happen to Smerek's Smarti, would we?" He kissed her forehead.

For a big butthead, he was a really sweet older brother. I was shocked.

She shook her head and sighed. "What are we having for breakfast?"
"How about some waffles?" he asked her.

"Waffles! LEGGO MY EGGO!" She got up and ran to the kitchen screaming the Eggo commercial tag line over and over.

Derek stood up and and noticed me staring at him.

"Told you, you couldn't resist staring at my hotness." He smirked before walking out of the room. I gave him a withering look and chose to ignore the utter ridiculousness of that comment.

"Is he always that way with Marti?" Lizzie asked.

"Yeah." Edwin shrugged.

I leaned back and thought about what I had just seen.

So engrossed was I in my thoughts, I didn't notice that Lizzie had said my name until she waved her hand in front of my face.

"Casey, we need to go to the rec park now." She explained.

"Oh, oh sure." I shook my head to clear my thoughts and stood up.

I drove them to the rec park and left with the promise to pick them up at lunchtime.

I drove around aimlessly before realizing that Emily lived next to Derek, so I stopped by her house.

We talked for a couple of hours and then I went and picked Lizzie and Edwin up.

"Where to now?" I questioned.

"Back to Edwin's." Lizzie sat back in her seat, exhausted from the game of soccer they had engaged in.

When we got back to his house, Mrs. Venturi had two large glasses of lemonade and a plate of cookies waiting for them.

"Hi, I'm Casey." I introduced myself, not wanting her to think I was a snob.

"Hey Casey, I'm Abby, Mrs. Venturi makes me feel old." She smiled warmly.

I nodded. I could see where Derek got his looks from. Abby Venturi was a tall, graceful woman with long reddish brown hair and sparkling brown eyes. I immediately felt comfortable around her. We sat at the kitchen table and talked for about an hour.

"Do you do any babysitting?" She asked me.

"Yeah, actually that's what I did where I used to live." I explained.

"Would you mind watching Marti and Edwin Monday night? I'm going out with George and I need someone responsible to watch them." She grinned.

"Sure." I agreed. I liked Derek's mom, she was really nice, unlike him.

"Thanks." She said, relieved. "Ordinarily I would get Derek to do it, but when he does, he just makes Edwin do everything."

"Older brothers." I shook my head as if I had any idea what an older brother was like.

"You can bring Lizzie if you like. I know how much she and Edwin enjoy hanging out."

Abby moved about the kitchen getting stuff ready for dinner.

"Hey mom…oh you're still here." Derek smile faded when he saw me sitting at his kitchen table drinking lemonade.

I smiled sweetly at him before answering. "Your mom and I were just discussing Monday night."

"Monday night?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. I'm coming over here to baby-sit." I calmly placed my glass down and brushed at a few imaginary crumbs on my blouse.

Derek's POV

I looked at her, sitting so calmly in my kitchen, and got angry.

"Mom, why is she babysitting Marti and Edwin." I moved around the table and confronted my mom.

"I thought I would give you a break. You can hang out with Sam or one of your other buddies if you like. You don't have to hang out here." She moved towards the stove and ignored my glare.

I shot a frustrated glance in Casey's direction.

She just smirked at me and looked away.

"So Abby, whatever you're making smells delicious!" She sniffed in appreciation.

She's on first name basis with my mother and they just met! "Thanks, you're welcome to stay for dinner if you like."

"Okay. If its okay with you I'd like to call my mom and let her know."
" Go ahead and invite her too. I'd like to meet this person who raised such a delightful young woman."

Casey beamed at the compliment and reached for the phone.

I understood then what she was up to. She was going to get me back for the dinner at her house.

That's so low.

Not that I wouldn't have done it but still.

This was going to be a long night.

Hopefully y'all will like this chapter; I think they seem a little bit more in character than in the last few but let me know. The next chapter will be the dinner. It should be pretty funny. Let me know if you have any ideas about what should happen, I've kind of reached the writer's block point in my story. Hehe. Anyways please review. I love it when people review!

Jenna