Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story. I'll tell you if I add any new ones.

Saturday morning brought with it rain. So much so that everyone in the McDonald-Venturi household thought it best to stay inside. Therefore when Sunday morning brought sunshine everyone was in agreement that they would not waste anytime getting out of the house.

The question was where to go and enjoy the nice day that they had been given. It was quickly decided that everyone was a little lazy so the backyard was just as good as anywhere they could go.

That was how Derek found himself laying on a chaise in the backyard overlooking the large pool that his father and Nora had installed after his father made partner at his firm. Lizzie and Edwin were both in the pool fighting for possession of the floating blow up chair, Marti was stretched out on the chaise next to him and Casey and Sam were somewhere inside the house. Even knowing Casey was only in there to get drinks he couldn't help the scenarios that ran through his mind every time she was alone with Sam. Not that she shouldn't be they were engaged afterwards but just the though left him with chest pains.

Before he could torture himself anymore however he felt a large blast of cold water hit the side of his head. He jumped up and looked in the direction of the blast and soon realized he was on the wrong end of Sam's water gun. Just before the second blast hit him he jumped up and ran for the hose that lay on the ground near the pool and aimed it at Sam, quickly firing back. This was what started the water war. They chased one another around both soaked from head to toe.

Lizzie and Edwin moved to the other end of the pool and stayed out of there way. Marti when seeing what was going on yelled that she was going to Dimi's and ran off next door.

Sam was running low on water Derek knew but before he could take advantage of this fact he heard the back door slam shut and looked at Sam knowing it would be Casey. "What do you say we get Casey in on the fun?" Sam smiled at him and they both turned and shot at her.

Casey had just set down the drinks and was about to yell to Sam that Ralph was here to see him when she saw that they had changed targets from each other to her. As the water came towards her on impulse she pulled Ralph outside and in front of her. She crouched behind him and waited until it stopped.

Once the water had stopped and she looked up at Ralph and couldn't help but laugh at his expression.

"Hey what gives?" Ralph wiped his face with his already wet t-shirt.

Derek and Sam looked each other and then the very wet Ralph and burst out laughing.

It didn't take long for Ralph and Casey to join in the laughing as the two men got closer.

"This is what I get for coming to warn you that your sister is out for blood." Ralph looked at Sam with a small smile.

Sam wiped his forehead with his hand and sighed. "Great, what did I do now?"

"You forgot to tell her Camren was out of diapers when you babysat the other night."

"Why would she be mad about that now┘it was like a week ago?"

Ralph shrugged. "You know Carrianne she lets things simmer for a few days and then explodes."

Sam slapped his hand on Ralph's shoulder and smiled at the other man. "You are gonna have to learn to control your wife Ralph. Let me guess you did something stupid and instead of being a man and standing up to her you moved the blame back to me."

Ralph gave a guilty look and mumbled. "Maybe..."

Derek looked at the exchange between the two people who used to be his best friends. "Wait so you married Carrianne?"

Ralph looked up and noticed Derek for what seemed the first time. "Hey D, didn't know you were here." Ralph and Derek exchanged a handshake they had come up with in the 10 grade and smiled. "Yeah Carri and I got married 3 years ago." Ralph took out his wallet and flipped it open showing Derek the pictures. "We got two kids. This is Jamie he's 5." He pointed at the little boy with the sandy hair and big smile holding a little baby. "And that there that's my baby, Camren. She'll be 6 months next week."

Derek smiled at the pictures. Things certainly had changed around here. "Nice Ralph, congrats." He patted him on the back.

Ralph's face was lit up with a huge smile as he looked at his kids. Then he looked up like he just remembered something. "Oh yeah...so Sam the reason I'm here is to ask to borrow your barbeque out of storage ours gave out and with the barbeque tonight..."

"So you didn't come to warn me at all." Sam smiled at his friend. "You came to con me out of my barbeque."

"Well...""

But before he could continue Casey flipped him around to look at her. "Wait a minute the barbeque is tonight. As in 6 hours from now." She looked a little shocked.

"Yeah you forget?"

Casey looked like she had just been broadsided with a bus. "Oh no...I told Carri I would make the salads and bake the pies and..." She was pacing now.

Sam grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her to face him. "Case, calm down ok. We can just run out and buy some pies."

"No...no I promised I would make them from scratch. You know that Jamie is expecting my blueberry pie. I just have to...I can't make the salads too."

"I'll help ok."

Ralph came into the conversation at this point. "Actually I mean I know your tryin' to help her feel better but I need your help with the storage unit. They won't let anyone that isn't on the list in and I can't carry it out by myself."

"Shit." Sam looked over at Lizzie and Edwin as they were making there way towards the house. "Liz can you help Casey with the salads for the barbeque?"

"I wish I could help really but Edwin and I are going to a play this afternoon that a friend of ours is in. We have to leave now so we can get there. Sorry Casey." Lizzie gave her sister a guilty look as her and Edwin made there way into the house.

"I'll help." Everyone turned to Derek.

"Seriously?" Sam and Ralph both questioned.

"Yeah why not salads aren't that hard to make and I'm not busy."

"Thanks D." Sam clapped him on the shoulder.

"Yeah and Derek your welcome to come to the barbeque. Its not a big crowd could be fun. Steaks all around."

Derek smiled at Ralph's offer. "Sounds good."

"Great. So Sam you ready."

"Yeah I just got to change."

"Ok well I don't have clothes so I guess the seat is getting wet. I'll be waiting out front."

"Ok, be there in a minute." Then he turned to Derek. "Thanks again." Sam pulled Casey into his arms and kissed her softly. "I'll be back soon. Don't go running off with Derek or anything while I'm gone." He laughed as he went in to get changed.

So here she was yet again in the kitchen with Derek and the silence was deafening. She rolled out the crust for the pie and placed it in the two pans. Then went to get the blueberries. Adding them and the top crust and placing them in the oven.

As she went to see how Derek was doing she noticed the mess Derek was making of the macaroni salad. She took the fork from him and started to mix in the egg. "How exactly do you mess up macaroni salad?"

"I was doing just fine until you interfered." He moved her out of the way and took the fork from her continuing what he was doing.

"Der-ek you have to mix in the mayo all the way up before you add the ham and the cheese." She again went for the fork but he wasn't letting go. She pulled and he pulled and then macaroni went flying into her hair.

"Look what you did Derek. Why couldn't you just..." She stopped when he burst out laughing.

"Oh yeah...you think that's funny. What do you think about this?" She took a handful of the salad and smashed it on his head.

"Oh you are so gonna pay for that." She laughed and ran around the island as he gave chase. He threw beet salad and she threw some mashed potato. They rounded the island and squared off, laughing to kill themselves.

She made a dash for the backdoor but he was just too fast for her. He caught her in his arms and held a handful of beet salad over her face. "You wouldn't." He laughed and moved it closer. She smiled and then it was like all of a sudden they realized just how close they were.

He laid the salad down in the bowl and looked at her. "You have salad still in your hair." He reached out and started to pull it out. Laying the bits on the counter.

"We should..." She spoke softly.

"I know..." He rubbed finished with the macaroni, his thumb running softly over her cheek.

"This is bad..."

"I know..." He leaned in closer and her eyes were closing when all of a sudden he moved back as if coming to his senses.

She reached out her hand behind his head and pulled his lips to hers. The second their lips touched it was like an explosion. He pulled her closer attacking her mouth with a fever not being able to get enough of her.

She was pretty much feeling the same. Hands went everywhere, hearts beating out of control, breathe coming in short bursts.

He pushed her backwards until her back came up upon the counter. He moved his lips from her mouth kissing his way down her neck. Her hands went to the back of his head as he moved her up onto the counter.

Her legs wrapped around his waist. She reached her hands down to the bottom of his shirt; he lifted his lips from her shoulder long enough for her to pull it over his head. He then went back to her lips as her hands moved up his chest and around his back.

Her fingers bit into his skin as he kissed her chin, her cheek, her ear.

"Casey..."

"Derek..." She moaned.

"Casey, your pies." Then she smelled it.

"Oh..." She pushed him off of her and then jumped down and moved to the oven. Pulling on oven mitts and quickly extracting the pies. Laying them on the rack on the top of the oven.

"Thank God, they didn't burn." She waved the oven mitt over the pies.

He leaned back on the counter and crossed his arms over his chest.

Once she saw that the pies were good she turned back to him. Then she blushed seeing his chest just bare to her like that. He certainly toned up in the time he had been gone. She noticed a when they kissed a few days ago but seeing it was certainly a different experience. She swallowed and held onto the counter behind her.

"Umm...maybe...maybe you should put your shirt back on."

He gave her a look she couldn't quite understand and then picked up his shirt off the floor. "I wasn't the one that took it off if I remember correctly."

She didn't really know she could blush any more then she already was.

"I know I just...Derek this...this is..." She looked down, not really able to look him in the eye at this point.

He lifted her chin with his finger and made her look him in the eye his t-shirt forgotten fell from his hand as he reached up to cup her cheek. "Casey I can't do this anymore."

She looked at him not really sure what to say to that. "I just...I didn't mean...I know we can't..."

"Look Casey we can dance around this thing until the cows come home but the fact is there is something here. I never really expected it but for some reason it's not that surprising to me. But I can't do this. I can't be near you, smell you and get brief glimpses into what it is like to be able to touch you." He ran his thumb over her bottom lip. "It kills me you know, knowing that this has the potential to shatter him and yet what ultimately hurts the most is the knowledge that he touches you, feels you, kisses you, holds you." He felt the tears as they ran over his thumb. Her face turned into his hand and her eyes closed.

"I just...I don't know what to do Derek. I love him. I have a life with him. He doesn't deserve to be hurt. But this..." She looked him in the eye then, gesturing between them. "This is different...I've felt attraction before but this, whatever it is, is something more then that. I'm drawn to you. I think about you all the time since you came back and when I'm not thinking about you I'm feeling guilty about thinking about you or wanting to touch you or kiss you." She leaned in closer and he leaned in but just as they were about to kiss he moved away from her. Putting distance between them before anything else could happen.

Derek reached down and picked up his shirt again but this time pulled it over his head. "Ok here's the new game plan. I'm gonna stay until next Saturday so I'm here for the party. I promised Dad I'd stay that long. Then I'm gonna pack up my things and get back to my life and try to forget this. Then you can go back to your happy little life with Sam and he doesn't have to know anything about this. Until then I say we keep our distance. Try not to be alone and go from there. Sound like a plan?" He waited for her response, waited for her to look up.

When she did she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I think your right. Whatever this is isn't worth ruining my life over. But you don't have to leave. The apartment will be ready on Wednesday, we'll be moving out then. You should stay, visit."

"I'll think about it." Then he moved to her again. Running his hand along her neck to the back and pulled her lips to his. The kiss was short and sweet and to the point but it was still fireworks. "Last time I promise." Then he left her standing in the kitchen with mess all around her and tears threatening to fall once again.

There you go another chapter. Hope you enjoy and review.

So what do you think? Is it time for Derek to go back to work? Should Casey tell Sam either way?