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Mindy gets to meet some of her cousin's co-workers. If you wanna know how *that* turns out, keep reading.
_______________________________________________________________________
"You want me to *what*?" asked Berto.
"It's just a small favor. Besides, you could use a day off."
"You want me to go to an air show/fair to watch your cousin?"
"Basically," admitted Max. Somehow, it sounded different when Berto said it.
Berto shook his head in disbelief. "Max, Dread has what is potentially one of the deadliest weapons this world has ever seen, and you want me to take time off to go play bodyguard for Mindy. I can't take a day off. And even if I could, I'm *not* going to an air show."
"Why not?"
"Don't you remember what happened last time I went to an air show with you?"
"Oh, come on bro, what are the odds of that happening again?"
"Hermano, if there's one thing I have learned since we met, it's that, if *you're* involved, *anything* is possible."
Max didn't know whether to take that as an insult or a compliment. "Oh, come on bro," he pleaded. "Our mole in DREAD told us that whatever Smiley and Dread are planning, it won't be for at least a few more days. Why not have some fun while we can?"
"I don't think I would enjoy myself."
"Well, you never know. You might have fun."
"Did I hear the word 'fun'?"
Berto and Max turned to see Kat leaning against the doorway.
"You did," said Max.
"Ooh. What are we talking about?" She sauntered up to them.
Max quickly explained his situation. "Maybe you can help me convince him to go."
"Well, am I invited?" she asked.
Max hesitated. "I don't know Kat. You were at the ice rink. What if she recognizes you?"
"There were a hundred people there that night. What are the odds that she'll remember me?"
Max snorted. "You'd be surprised how much that girl notices."
"You know, Mindy was pretty much shoved out the door the second Kat got there. She probably didn't get a good look at her," pointed out Berto. "And Kat actually wants to go. Why not just take her?"
"Well, I *was* thinking about it," he said reluctantly.
"Besides, I want to meet her," added Kat. "Everyone's been curious after that little affectionate display at the the ice rink."
Max glared at her. He knew exactly what 'display' she was talking about. She was talking about when Mindy had hit him and yelled at him for scaring her. He'd been teased mercilessly for days after that had gotten around N'Tek. His glare moved to Berto as he heard him snicker. "It wasn't that funny," he informed them. "And this doesn't mean I don't still want you to go."
"Why do you want *me* to go so bad?" demanded Berto.
"I'd feel better if there was more than one N'Tek agent there."
"You *are* an N'Tek agent."
"She's my cousin, so I don't count."
"Wha-," said a now frusterated Berto. "Even if that last part made any sense, there are plenty of other agents who would probably be willing to go."
"Most of them aren't her age. I don't want her to feel wierd because I brought someone 15 years older than her."
"I'm not going Max," he stated firmly.
"Oh, come on Berto," said Kat. "Live a little. It's not like he's asking you to go shark diving with dead fish tied to you."
"I think I'd be safer with the sharks than I would with his cousin," mumbled Berto.
"Hey!" said Max. "What is *that* supposed to mean?"
"She's wierd Max."
"That may be, but that doesn't make her a bad person."
"You need to learn to have some fun," insisted Kat. "You never stop working."
"That is not true," he protested.
"Food and bathroom breaks do not qualify as time off," she said drily.
Berto's shoulders slumped. "Neither one of you is going to leave me alone until I agree to this, are you?"
The two older agents pretended to think for a second. "No," they told him.
"Alright," he relented.
"Great. See you tomorrow," said Max as he and Kat both left the room.
Berto plopped into his chair in front of the main console. "I could've worked at a major corporation and led a somewhat normal life. But *nooo*. I had to work for N'Tek. On Team Steel."
Berto and Kat arrived at the fair grounds entrance a few minutes early. It was a very large area surrounded by a high chain link fence. Last night they had arranged to meet the others there at 11:00am. Berto was still not even remotely looking forward to this day.
Josh had told Mindy, Laura and Pete that he had invited a couple of friends from work to join them today. Mindy and Laura seemed to have grown on the idea when they realized that his friends might know some embarassing things about Josh from work. Pete was the only one who knew the real reason why they'd been invited.
Josh grumbled as they searched for a parking space. The place was packed. After about five minutes of driving around, he found a spot. Everyone climbed out of the car and he activated the anti-theft system. They were about 150 feet from from the entrance. As they walked, Josh noticed that a lot of guys were looking in their direction. His first thought was that they were checking out Laura. That happened a lot. He'd gotten used to that a long time ago. Then it dawned on him that she wasn't the only one guys were giving appreciative looks to. "You know Morgan, I think maybe you should go back to the car and get your jacket," he suggested.
Mindy looked up at him, surprised. "Josh, it's only 5 after 11 and it's already like 80 degrees. I don't need a jacket."
"Well, then maybe we should buy you a shirt that covers a little more once we get inside."
Mindy looked down at her outfit as the other two looked at Josh like he was crazy. Her outfit consisted of a pair of blue jeans, running shoes, a black mini-backpack, and a gray v-neck t-shirt that gently hugged her figure. The v cut went just deep enough that top of the cleft of her breasts showed. It was like a quarter of an inch of cleavage. None of them could see anything really revealing about the outfit. "Josh," she looked back up at him, "you're acting like I'm dressed like Britney Spears or something. I don't look anywhere *near* that skanky."
Josh couldn't argue with that one.
"In fact, if I ever *do* look even *half* that bad, you have full permission to slap some sense into me."
They reached the main entrance then. Josh looked around for Berto and Kat. He spotted them leaning against the ticket booth. He waved them over. Laura and Pete had met Berto before, so there was no need for an introduction except to Mindy. She extended a hand as he was introduced. He was a little surprised but shook it. She had a very firm handshake, he noticed. Kat was next.
"So this is the famous Mindy," she said shaking her extended hand. "We've all heard so much about you."
Mindy raised her hands in an innocent gesture. "I deny everything."
This caused chuckles and a few mumbles of "yeah right" from Pete and Josh.
As they paid the entrance fee, everyone noticed the death glare that Josh gave to the guy in the booth when he caught him giving Mindy the once over. Once they were inside, Josh proceeded to give the same look to any guy who so much as glanced at his cousin. After a few minutes of this, Laura pulled Josh aside. "What are you doing?" she asked.
"I'm making sure the guys here keep their grubby mitts off my baby cousin."
She sighed. "Josh, she's about to turn 19 and you are still referring to her as your baby cousin. Do you see something wrong with this picture?"
"No."
"Josh, Mindy is more than capable of taking care of herself. You need to stop being so over-protective."
"I don't want to."
Laura shook her head and went to catch up with everyone else. She really wanted to talk to Kat and find out just how good of friends she and Josh were. Just out of curiosity of course. (A/N: Insert author's snicker here.)
When they caught up to the others, Kat and Mindy were talking quietly. Berto was standing off to the side, looking bored, and Pete was shamelessly trying to flirt with a girl whose body was barely covered by her tiny tank top. Laura noted that Mindy had positioned herself so that both of Josh's friends were between herself and Pete.
"Hi," said Laura. "What are we talking about?"
"Actually," answered Mindy, "we're placing bets on how Pete's new romantic interest is going to respond to him. Judging by the way his eyes keep wandering to her chest, I'm betting he gets either told off or slapped."
"That's what I think, too," said Kat.
"Well, if we all agree, how can we place a bet?" asked Laura.
"Good point," said Kat. "Oh well, let's just see if we're right." They nodded and watched.
Sure enough, after a minute, the girl looked furious at something Pete had said. She slapped him hard and stormed off. He turned when he heard giggling. Berto was carefully hiding his smile behind his hand while pretending to scratch his nose. Josh was biting his lip and looking in another direction. The girls, on the other hand, were flat out laughing at him.
"Smooth move, Casa Nova," commented Mindy. Pete's response was to glare at them, especially Mindy, and rub his now red cheek.
"*What* did you say to her?" asked Laura.
Pete turned a little pink and looked away.
"Let me guess, the other head took over and you accidentally made a comment about her boobs." Pete turned an interesting shade of purple at Mindy's guess. "I didn't know a human could turn that color," she commented, only making it worse.
"How did you know what he did?" asked Kat.
"You would be amazed how many guys I've hurt worse for doing kind of thing that to me."
That got Josh's attention. "What?"
Realizing her mistake in letting her very protective older cousin hear that, she tried to change the subject. "Oh, look ! A jewery booth. Let's go." She grabbed both Laura and Kat by the arm and dragged them off.
"Hold it," called Josh.
"Can't, got to look before everything good is gone."
"Ok," said Pete. He put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Just let it go. We all know she can take care of herself as far as guys are concerned."
"Not always," muttered Josh.
Pete sighed. So that's what had him hot under the collar. "Josh, that was different. And the only person at fault was him, not you or her. And she's a lot pickier about who she trusts now."
Berto didn't have a clue what they were talking about. It was obviously a touchy subject. He could find out later. "Um, if we're supposed to be watching Mindy, shouldn't we be over at the booth they're at?"
Josh looked over at him. Reluctantly, he nodded. Quickly recovering himself, he headed over to the booth where the three girls were looking through an assortment of necklaces, earings, and braclets.
Kat seemed to have hit it off with Laura and Mindy. Josh was grateful for that. It wasn't that surprising. Kat's enthusiasm for life was infectious. When Berto nudged him, he turned around.
"Don't you think it's about time for Max to give Mindy that little 'gift'?"
"I wanted her to have some fun before reminding her that her life is at risk."
"Don't you think she might have more fun knowing she has a way to contact Max if she needs him?"
He sighed. "Alright, alright. Just watch her till I get back." He went over to the girls. I'll be right back," he announced. "I got to go to the bathroom."
"Thanks for sharing," said Kat. In return, he gave her a look.
"I told ya you shouldn't have had that third cup of coffee," said Mindy. She got the same look.
As soon as he was out of earshot, Laura asked, "How much cologne is he wearing today?"
"Like half a bottle," said Mindy in a dry tone. "You should've seen him this morning. He spent more time in the bathroom than I did. He had to look perfect today."
"Why?"
"Honestly, he'll kill me if I tell you that."
"Tell me anyway."
"Well," she looked around to make sure the guys were out of earshot. "I, uh, I think he was trying to impress you."
"What?" Laura looked absolutly bewildered. "But... why? I mean we broke up and..."
"And I don't think he's over it," stated Mindy.
"But it was months ago," protested Laura.
"And he's been in love with you since forever. What happened between him and that Rachel chick was a mistake. He knows that. And at least he told you. Most guys wouldn't have done that much. And I'll tell you this, there are a lot of things he could've done with her besides kissing, but he didn't. He hasn't even been on a date since you two broke up."
"Seriously?"
Mindy nodded. "You should've seen him when he found out you were coming home. He was like a little kid that just found out he's going to Disney World. And when we went to pick you up, he was an absolute wreck. He was so afraid you wouldn't want anything to do with him ever again."
There was a moment of stunned silence. Just as Laura opened her mouth to speak, someone cleared their throat behind them. All three girls turned around. Laura and Mindy's eyes widened as they came face to face with Max Steel.
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Okay, a big thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing. And thank you for all the suggestions. However, I decided long ago how the story would end. It's just getting from point A to point B that's the problem. Seriously, it's not that I don't appreciate the attempts to help, I do. After all, I did complain of writer's block. And most of the suggestions are that Mindy finds out about Max and Josh. I'm not going to tell you if she does or not. I already know if that will happen or not. You, however, will just have to wait and see. And if you guys want one, I have some ideas for a sequel. Once again, I don't mean to be rude or anything and I do appreciate the suggestions, but I already know where the story is going.
Until the next update,
Rhiannon Faylinn
Mindy gets to meet some of her cousin's co-workers. If you wanna know how *that* turns out, keep reading.
_______________________________________________________________________
"You want me to *what*?" asked Berto.
"It's just a small favor. Besides, you could use a day off."
"You want me to go to an air show/fair to watch your cousin?"
"Basically," admitted Max. Somehow, it sounded different when Berto said it.
Berto shook his head in disbelief. "Max, Dread has what is potentially one of the deadliest weapons this world has ever seen, and you want me to take time off to go play bodyguard for Mindy. I can't take a day off. And even if I could, I'm *not* going to an air show."
"Why not?"
"Don't you remember what happened last time I went to an air show with you?"
"Oh, come on bro, what are the odds of that happening again?"
"Hermano, if there's one thing I have learned since we met, it's that, if *you're* involved, *anything* is possible."
Max didn't know whether to take that as an insult or a compliment. "Oh, come on bro," he pleaded. "Our mole in DREAD told us that whatever Smiley and Dread are planning, it won't be for at least a few more days. Why not have some fun while we can?"
"I don't think I would enjoy myself."
"Well, you never know. You might have fun."
"Did I hear the word 'fun'?"
Berto and Max turned to see Kat leaning against the doorway.
"You did," said Max.
"Ooh. What are we talking about?" She sauntered up to them.
Max quickly explained his situation. "Maybe you can help me convince him to go."
"Well, am I invited?" she asked.
Max hesitated. "I don't know Kat. You were at the ice rink. What if she recognizes you?"
"There were a hundred people there that night. What are the odds that she'll remember me?"
Max snorted. "You'd be surprised how much that girl notices."
"You know, Mindy was pretty much shoved out the door the second Kat got there. She probably didn't get a good look at her," pointed out Berto. "And Kat actually wants to go. Why not just take her?"
"Well, I *was* thinking about it," he said reluctantly.
"Besides, I want to meet her," added Kat. "Everyone's been curious after that little affectionate display at the the ice rink."
Max glared at her. He knew exactly what 'display' she was talking about. She was talking about when Mindy had hit him and yelled at him for scaring her. He'd been teased mercilessly for days after that had gotten around N'Tek. His glare moved to Berto as he heard him snicker. "It wasn't that funny," he informed them. "And this doesn't mean I don't still want you to go."
"Why do you want *me* to go so bad?" demanded Berto.
"I'd feel better if there was more than one N'Tek agent there."
"You *are* an N'Tek agent."
"She's my cousin, so I don't count."
"Wha-," said a now frusterated Berto. "Even if that last part made any sense, there are plenty of other agents who would probably be willing to go."
"Most of them aren't her age. I don't want her to feel wierd because I brought someone 15 years older than her."
"I'm not going Max," he stated firmly.
"Oh, come on Berto," said Kat. "Live a little. It's not like he's asking you to go shark diving with dead fish tied to you."
"I think I'd be safer with the sharks than I would with his cousin," mumbled Berto.
"Hey!" said Max. "What is *that* supposed to mean?"
"She's wierd Max."
"That may be, but that doesn't make her a bad person."
"You need to learn to have some fun," insisted Kat. "You never stop working."
"That is not true," he protested.
"Food and bathroom breaks do not qualify as time off," she said drily.
Berto's shoulders slumped. "Neither one of you is going to leave me alone until I agree to this, are you?"
The two older agents pretended to think for a second. "No," they told him.
"Alright," he relented.
"Great. See you tomorrow," said Max as he and Kat both left the room.
Berto plopped into his chair in front of the main console. "I could've worked at a major corporation and led a somewhat normal life. But *nooo*. I had to work for N'Tek. On Team Steel."
Berto and Kat arrived at the fair grounds entrance a few minutes early. It was a very large area surrounded by a high chain link fence. Last night they had arranged to meet the others there at 11:00am. Berto was still not even remotely looking forward to this day.
Josh had told Mindy, Laura and Pete that he had invited a couple of friends from work to join them today. Mindy and Laura seemed to have grown on the idea when they realized that his friends might know some embarassing things about Josh from work. Pete was the only one who knew the real reason why they'd been invited.
Josh grumbled as they searched for a parking space. The place was packed. After about five minutes of driving around, he found a spot. Everyone climbed out of the car and he activated the anti-theft system. They were about 150 feet from from the entrance. As they walked, Josh noticed that a lot of guys were looking in their direction. His first thought was that they were checking out Laura. That happened a lot. He'd gotten used to that a long time ago. Then it dawned on him that she wasn't the only one guys were giving appreciative looks to. "You know Morgan, I think maybe you should go back to the car and get your jacket," he suggested.
Mindy looked up at him, surprised. "Josh, it's only 5 after 11 and it's already like 80 degrees. I don't need a jacket."
"Well, then maybe we should buy you a shirt that covers a little more once we get inside."
Mindy looked down at her outfit as the other two looked at Josh like he was crazy. Her outfit consisted of a pair of blue jeans, running shoes, a black mini-backpack, and a gray v-neck t-shirt that gently hugged her figure. The v cut went just deep enough that top of the cleft of her breasts showed. It was like a quarter of an inch of cleavage. None of them could see anything really revealing about the outfit. "Josh," she looked back up at him, "you're acting like I'm dressed like Britney Spears or something. I don't look anywhere *near* that skanky."
Josh couldn't argue with that one.
"In fact, if I ever *do* look even *half* that bad, you have full permission to slap some sense into me."
They reached the main entrance then. Josh looked around for Berto and Kat. He spotted them leaning against the ticket booth. He waved them over. Laura and Pete had met Berto before, so there was no need for an introduction except to Mindy. She extended a hand as he was introduced. He was a little surprised but shook it. She had a very firm handshake, he noticed. Kat was next.
"So this is the famous Mindy," she said shaking her extended hand. "We've all heard so much about you."
Mindy raised her hands in an innocent gesture. "I deny everything."
This caused chuckles and a few mumbles of "yeah right" from Pete and Josh.
As they paid the entrance fee, everyone noticed the death glare that Josh gave to the guy in the booth when he caught him giving Mindy the once over. Once they were inside, Josh proceeded to give the same look to any guy who so much as glanced at his cousin. After a few minutes of this, Laura pulled Josh aside. "What are you doing?" she asked.
"I'm making sure the guys here keep their grubby mitts off my baby cousin."
She sighed. "Josh, she's about to turn 19 and you are still referring to her as your baby cousin. Do you see something wrong with this picture?"
"No."
"Josh, Mindy is more than capable of taking care of herself. You need to stop being so over-protective."
"I don't want to."
Laura shook her head and went to catch up with everyone else. She really wanted to talk to Kat and find out just how good of friends she and Josh were. Just out of curiosity of course. (A/N: Insert author's snicker here.)
When they caught up to the others, Kat and Mindy were talking quietly. Berto was standing off to the side, looking bored, and Pete was shamelessly trying to flirt with a girl whose body was barely covered by her tiny tank top. Laura noted that Mindy had positioned herself so that both of Josh's friends were between herself and Pete.
"Hi," said Laura. "What are we talking about?"
"Actually," answered Mindy, "we're placing bets on how Pete's new romantic interest is going to respond to him. Judging by the way his eyes keep wandering to her chest, I'm betting he gets either told off or slapped."
"That's what I think, too," said Kat.
"Well, if we all agree, how can we place a bet?" asked Laura.
"Good point," said Kat. "Oh well, let's just see if we're right." They nodded and watched.
Sure enough, after a minute, the girl looked furious at something Pete had said. She slapped him hard and stormed off. He turned when he heard giggling. Berto was carefully hiding his smile behind his hand while pretending to scratch his nose. Josh was biting his lip and looking in another direction. The girls, on the other hand, were flat out laughing at him.
"Smooth move, Casa Nova," commented Mindy. Pete's response was to glare at them, especially Mindy, and rub his now red cheek.
"*What* did you say to her?" asked Laura.
Pete turned a little pink and looked away.
"Let me guess, the other head took over and you accidentally made a comment about her boobs." Pete turned an interesting shade of purple at Mindy's guess. "I didn't know a human could turn that color," she commented, only making it worse.
"How did you know what he did?" asked Kat.
"You would be amazed how many guys I've hurt worse for doing kind of thing that to me."
That got Josh's attention. "What?"
Realizing her mistake in letting her very protective older cousin hear that, she tried to change the subject. "Oh, look ! A jewery booth. Let's go." She grabbed both Laura and Kat by the arm and dragged them off.
"Hold it," called Josh.
"Can't, got to look before everything good is gone."
"Ok," said Pete. He put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Just let it go. We all know she can take care of herself as far as guys are concerned."
"Not always," muttered Josh.
Pete sighed. So that's what had him hot under the collar. "Josh, that was different. And the only person at fault was him, not you or her. And she's a lot pickier about who she trusts now."
Berto didn't have a clue what they were talking about. It was obviously a touchy subject. He could find out later. "Um, if we're supposed to be watching Mindy, shouldn't we be over at the booth they're at?"
Josh looked over at him. Reluctantly, he nodded. Quickly recovering himself, he headed over to the booth where the three girls were looking through an assortment of necklaces, earings, and braclets.
Kat seemed to have hit it off with Laura and Mindy. Josh was grateful for that. It wasn't that surprising. Kat's enthusiasm for life was infectious. When Berto nudged him, he turned around.
"Don't you think it's about time for Max to give Mindy that little 'gift'?"
"I wanted her to have some fun before reminding her that her life is at risk."
"Don't you think she might have more fun knowing she has a way to contact Max if she needs him?"
He sighed. "Alright, alright. Just watch her till I get back." He went over to the girls. I'll be right back," he announced. "I got to go to the bathroom."
"Thanks for sharing," said Kat. In return, he gave her a look.
"I told ya you shouldn't have had that third cup of coffee," said Mindy. She got the same look.
As soon as he was out of earshot, Laura asked, "How much cologne is he wearing today?"
"Like half a bottle," said Mindy in a dry tone. "You should've seen him this morning. He spent more time in the bathroom than I did. He had to look perfect today."
"Why?"
"Honestly, he'll kill me if I tell you that."
"Tell me anyway."
"Well," she looked around to make sure the guys were out of earshot. "I, uh, I think he was trying to impress you."
"What?" Laura looked absolutly bewildered. "But... why? I mean we broke up and..."
"And I don't think he's over it," stated Mindy.
"But it was months ago," protested Laura.
"And he's been in love with you since forever. What happened between him and that Rachel chick was a mistake. He knows that. And at least he told you. Most guys wouldn't have done that much. And I'll tell you this, there are a lot of things he could've done with her besides kissing, but he didn't. He hasn't even been on a date since you two broke up."
"Seriously?"
Mindy nodded. "You should've seen him when he found out you were coming home. He was like a little kid that just found out he's going to Disney World. And when we went to pick you up, he was an absolute wreck. He was so afraid you wouldn't want anything to do with him ever again."
There was a moment of stunned silence. Just as Laura opened her mouth to speak, someone cleared their throat behind them. All three girls turned around. Laura and Mindy's eyes widened as they came face to face with Max Steel.
_______________________________________________________________________
Okay, a big thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing. And thank you for all the suggestions. However, I decided long ago how the story would end. It's just getting from point A to point B that's the problem. Seriously, it's not that I don't appreciate the attempts to help, I do. After all, I did complain of writer's block. And most of the suggestions are that Mindy finds out about Max and Josh. I'm not going to tell you if she does or not. I already know if that will happen or not. You, however, will just have to wait and see. And if you guys want one, I have some ideas for a sequel. Once again, I don't mean to be rude or anything and I do appreciate the suggestions, but I already know where the story is going.
Until the next update,
Rhiannon Faylinn