CHAPTER ONE

He couldn't do this. 

Distracting himself by watching travelers come and go, greeting their loved ones and handing off their luggages, he tried to calm his nerves with meditative breathing. 

It wasn't working. 

He couldn't do this. 

From the start, he knew this was a bad idea but he'd let his annoyance of a cousin convince him otherwise and now, he was kicking himself for being so credulous. 

Turning his attention to his team, he sighed. All five of them. including himself were decked out in matching t-shirts. The offensive neon orange, green and purple tie-dye t-shirts had a black print on the front that read, "The Adventures of Iona." 

The Adventures of Iona was an animation movie based off of a children's book, starring the wonderful, beautiful and highly talented actress Lavender Sky Jones. 

The same Lavender Sky Jones he and his co-workers were assigned to escort today from the airport to a public library where she was scheduled to do a reading of said book to a group of children. 

The same Lavender Sky Jones, Pete Handler had a huge crush on. 

The same Lavender Sky Jones who would be walking out of the gates at any moment. 

He couldn't do this. 

Pete thought back to just this morning, when he was woken up by an ominous phone call from his cousin, Mark. 

"What do you want?" he asked sharply. He had just gotten back the day before from touring with an indie pop band for six months and Mark knew that. Pete needed at least a week off before he could even think about work. 

"Did I ever tell you that you are my favourite cousin?" Mark greeted. 

Pete hung up. 

Mark called back within three seconds. 

Pete declined the call. 

Mark sent a text message. "If you don't pick up my next call, I'm coming over." 

Mark called again.

Pete answered. 

"Don't hang up!" Mark yelled into the phone. When silence was all he was met with, he continued. "I really need your help today, man. I know you just got back but you're the only one I can count on."

"You run a bodyguard company," Pete said into the phone with clenched teeth. "If you can't count on all of your employees, that's your problem, not mine."

"I need you to help escort someone from the airport," Mark pressed on as if Pete hadn't spoken. "Someone got sick last minute and he needs to stay home and recover." 

"Ask someone else," Pete said. He was beginning to wake up and the longer this phone call continued, the harder it would be for him to fall back asleep. 

"No one is going to take a job the day of!" Mark said in a raised voice. He was starting to lose patience. 

"And you think I will?" Pete closed his eyes again. He could sleep through this conversation. He would make Mark hang up himself. 

"You're my family! You have to help me!" Mark reasoned. 

Mark was met with silence. 

Pete was on the edge of falling asleep when Mark said, "The client is Lavender Sky Jones." 

Pete was up in an instant. 

"Who?" he breathed into the phone, sitting up on his bed. 

"Lavender Sky Jones," Mark repeated. The smile he was sporting could be heard through the phone. 

Pete paused. Lavender Sky Jones was an actress who had been in the industry for over a decade but as of late, she was quickly becoming a household name after winning an Oscar and a Bafta for her role in "The Black Hour."

She was also the woman Pete had a raging crush on. He was a huge fan of hers - since the beginning of her career, and he admired her a lot. 

From a distance.

Never did he think he would meet her.

"No," Pete anwered. 

"What?" Mark yelled. "Buy you like her!"

"Exactly," Pete said, lying back down in his bed. It had cooled down. "It's inappropriate and highly unprofessional." 

"Pete, are you stupid?" Mark softly asked. "Look, it's being hidden from the public but Lavender is being threatened by some stalker." 

Pete's body temperature spiked at the news. He sat up again. "Seriously?" From what he has seen in interviews and such, Lavender Sky was kind, friendly and caring. It didn't make sense for anyone to threaten her. 

"Yeah," Mark confirmed. 

"I can't do it," Pete said. Regardless of his feelings, he couldn't do it. Lavender Sky deserved a bodyguard who would be focused on their job and task at hand, not a bodyguard who would be too distracted by her beauty.

"Think of it as a way of getting over her," Mark suggested. "You'll see her true colours."

Pete rubbed his eyes, then scratched his head, confused. "What are you talking about?"

"She's been traveling a lot for her movie's press tour so she's tired. She's going to come back to town after a long flight and instead of going home, she's going to a library to read to a bunch of kids. She's being threatened by some creep. From what I heard from her agency, Lavender doesn't even want bodyguards around her. This is a perfect recipe for someone to behave exactly like they are without putting up a front."

"Mark...," Pete sighed, pleading. With himself or with Mark, he wasn't sure yet. 

"Who wouldn't be frustrated and irritated in these circumstances?" Mark pressed. "You'll see first hand who she really is and how much she sucks and then you'll be over her. I promise."

So here he was, two hours later, waiting for Lavender Sky's arrival. 

"She'll be here any second now," one of the two female bodyguards said, looking at her wristwatch. 

Being new to the job, Pete didn't know a lot of his co-workers. He got the jobs no one else wanted. He traveled a lot with touring bands. From new ones that hardly anyone had ever heard of to old ones that people had forgotten and all inbetween. Being cousins with the boss didn't have any perks. Well...not for him at least. Maybe for Mark. 

Pete was in the middle of cursing Mark's name once again when his coworker next to him perked up. 

"There she is."

Pete froze. 

He couldn't do this. 

Pete's mouth suddenly went dry as he heart began racing. This was such a bad idea. 

Slowly, he turned his gaze to the gates and time stopped. Lavender Sky Jones was much more beautiful in person. Much too beautiful. She had on a denim bucket hat that matched her denim overalls. Underneath her overalls, she wore a beautiful neon orange, green and purple tie-dye t-shirt. It matched her beautiful dark skin tone perfectly. 

This was wrong. Pete's feet shuffled as he thought of an escape plan but then a voice that sounded a lot like his jerk-of-a cousin's told him to stay exactly where he was. 

"Right," Pete whispered to himself. "She'll be a total grump and I'll be over her quickly." 

All Pete had to do today was accompany Lavender Sky to the library and then to her agency and that was it. He would keep his distance, do his job and never have to see her again. There were four other people he could put between him and her. 

"Hi!" Lavender Sky greeted. Her eyes were shining and her smile was bright. Nothing like how someone should look after a 13 hour flight. "I love your shirts!" she claimed, laughing while pointing at our shirts. "We all match!" she pointed at her own, beaming.

Pete looked around to see if someone was filming us. Lavender Sky was so kind and cute. This couldn't be real.

"We wanted to show support, Miss Jones," Will said. Will was the most senior member of the team so he would be the one closest to Lavender Sky all day. 

"Please call me Lavender," she said. Lavender watched all of them carefully. Pete looked at the side of her face to avoid eye contact. "You guys are; Will, Rob, Cate, Lauren and Richard, right?" she asked. 

"Oh! You know our names already?" Will asked, surprised. 

"Yes, my agency told me who to expect," Lavender smiled. 

"Richard is not feeling well today so he's not here. This is Pete," Will introduced, pointing to Pete. Lavender quickly scrunched her eyebrows but she schooled her face just as quickly. A small smile grew on her face.

Surprisingly, Lavender stepped up to shake all of their hands individually. Pete quickly and discreetly wiped his palm on the side of his pants before he shook Lavender's hand. Her hand was warm and soft in his.

Rob stepped up to grab Lavender's luggage and Pete, remembering he was supposed to be working, made to grab Lavender's duffel bag but she stopped him. "I'd like to hold onto this if you don't mind," Lavender said. 

"Sure, ma'am," Pete said, backing off.

Lavender laughed. It was soft and bright. "Ma'am? I insist you call me Lavender, ok?" 

Pete could only nod. 

They quickly escorted her out of the airport to the airport garage where the black seven seater SUV was parked. Like they had done it before, everyone got in the car quickly and they pulled out of the airport, headed for the library. 

"Thank you all for meeting me at the airport. I know you must've waited a long time," Lavender said, looking around the car. She was seated in the second row on the right hand side. 

"No need to apologize, Miss Jones," Will said from  the driver's seat. All the guards, including Pete, nodded in agreement. 

There was silence in the car for about a minute before Lavender's phone rang. "Excuse me," she said, pulling it from her duffle bag along with her wireless earphones.

For the entire ride to the public library, Lavender spoke on her phone to her manager in whispers. She would type something on her phone every now and then, but for the most part, she just stared outside through the window. An unreadable expression on her face.

Parking at a private lot behind the library, Lavender ended her conversation and addressed the guards. 

"I'm so sorry about that," she sheepishly apologized. Unzipping her duffel bag, she pulled out several small gift bags. "I was in Dubai yesterday when I was told about you guys, so I couldn't pack a lot but I wanted to get you guys something either way." 

One by one, she handed out the small gift bags to all the stunned guards in the car. With pursed lips, she gave a bag to Pete last. She hesitated to give it to him and he hesitated to accept it. 

Pete peered into the bag. Inside the bag were candies, chocolates and dates. There was a keychain in there as well as oud. The biggest surprise of all was the sand art that was inscripted with their names. Pete's sand art said, "Richard." 

"I'm sorry, Pete," Lavender said, watching him closely. "I thought it would be Richard today. You can keep everything else in the bag and pass the sand art along to him," Lavender suggested. 

"Thank you," was all Pete could say, finally meeting Lavender's eyes.

Lavender smiled at him. 

"Thank you so much," Will said, breathlessly. A collection of thank yous followed after, Lavender smiling at all of them. 

Pete wondered if Mark was mistaken about Lavender not wanting any bodyguards around her. 

"We have to go," Lavender said with a huge grin on her face. "I have a bunch of kids waiting to be read a story! Leave your bags in the car." Not waiting for anyone, Lavender opened the car door and walked out, leaving her duffle bag behind. There was a pause where none of the guards moved before they all scampered out of the car, following Lavender.

The book reading was uneventful for the guards and eventful for the kids in attendance. They - and their parents - were excited to see a celebrity in person. 

Putting up a front of being volunteers for the event, the guards were watchful and attentive to all the attendees, even the children. 

Pete, having a newfound respect for Lavender, was extra cautious of the crowd. And extra cautious of his respectful distance with Lavender. His hope of her being an awful person was crushed but he couldn't be angry because he was too busy being proud of having a crush on such an amazing person. 

The event took longer than scheduled because Lavender took the time to sign autographs for everyone in attendance, including the guards. 

Rushing to her meeting at the agency, everything felt like a blur to Pete. 

Just like the drive from the airport, Lavender was once again speaking with her manager on the phone. 

Once they got to the agency, Lavender took the time to thank them all for their time and assistance for the day. In a flash, she was out of the car and running to her agency's building, Will hot on his feet behind her. He would be the one to meet her manager and sign off for the day. 

Waiting in the car, Pete released a slow breath. He finally felt like he could breathe again.

He was in serious trouble. 

Lavender Sky Jones was amazing. Much more amazing than he had previously thought. His crush on her didn't go away, it only grew.

*******************************************************************

Pete groaned into his pillow when he was rudely awaken by his phone ringing, the next day. 

He groaned again when he saw who was calling. He should really consider blocking his cousin. 

Pete answered the phone. 

"I need you to pretend to be Lavender Sky's boyfriend for three months," Mark said, straight to the point. 

Pete hung up. 

"Welcome! Welcome!" Mark exclaimed, ushering his cousin Pete into his home. 

Pete squinted at him as he cautiously stepped inside the house. Mark seemed happy. Too happy. 

He was also dressed far too formally for a day in at home with the family. His outfit also looked too stuffy for such a hot humid day.

"Why are you dressed like that?" Pete asked.

"Like what?" Mark asked back, his voice slightly raised and off pitch. "I just wanted to dress nice for you, man." Mark patted Pete on the shoulder and simultaneously shoved him further inside the home. 

Mark was dressed in a fancy button up white shirt and charcoal pants. The pants looked tailored. His hair was slicked back, something he only did when he had a special appointment with a client. Or if he was going to a fancy event. 

Pete knew for a fact that Mark didn't have any special events to go to. If Mark had a work event, every single one of his employees would know about it. Alternatively, if he had a family event, Pete would know, because, as a family member, he'd be at the event too. 

Pete took a half step back from Mark. Something wasn't adding up and he wouldn't subject himself to his cousin's antics until he knew what he was in for. 

Noticing his hesitation, Mark grabbed onto Pete's wrist, he didn't pull Pete forward, he just held him there. 

Looking around the house, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The oak wood coffee table had a stack of books and magazines on one corner. The rest of the coffee table was taken over by a half finished puzzle piece. 

There were random lego pieces on the white couch. How it was still white with three kids in the house was an unsolved mystery to Pete. 

From the ceiling above him, Pete could hear faint noises coming from one of the kids' rooms. The kids weren't as rowdy as usual.

It all seemed too quiet. 

It wouldn't be a big deal had it been anyone else, but coming from Mark and his family, it was unsettling. 

Coming over, he'd expected to enter the house without anyone greeting him at the door (after knocking for about five minutes) because the house was usually so loud and chaotic, no one heard any knocking. 

He'd expected to be jumped by one of the kids, demanding he play with them at once. He'd expected Mark in the backyard struggling to grill burgers and hotdogs. He'd also expected to see Mark's wife running around the house trying to keep the kids from killing each other and trying to keep Mark from killing himself grilling. 

"Where's Mary?" Pete asked, looking around for Mark's wife.

Mark looked at his watch and sighed. "She's being held up at work. You know how crazy things get over there." 

Pete's eyes narrowed. He sighed. He could feel a headache coming on. Mary was an IT technician. She worked a regular 9-5 job Monday through Friday. It was Saturday.

"It's Saturday," Pete said, speaking his mind. 

"It's a busy time of year for them. They're all pulling overtime," Mark replied. It was ridiculous how this man could lie with ease and confidence. 

Pete scoffed. Mary had personally told him countless times how boring and mundane her job could be. She'd never worked overtime or weekends before. 

Snatching his hand out of Mark's grip, Pete turned for the front door. 

Behind him, in a booming voice, Mark yelled, "Kids! Uncle Pete is here!" 

Pete froze. Time stood still for about five seconds before three loud shrieks could be heard from the floor above. Then came the rumbling sounds of kids running through the house without care.

Pete stared at Mark, affronted. Mark shrugged and mumbled. "You left me no choice." 

Before Pete could yell at Mark for using the kids against him, he was attacked. 

"Uncle Pete!"

One child jumped onto his back, while another jumped onto his front and the last one latched onto his side. 

"Uncle Pete, we missed you," his eldest nephew said, squeezing him tighter from the back. 

"Yeah!" echoed the other two. 

"I missed you guys more," Pete said, trying to give each child a squeeze and a kiss on the head. 

Pete genuinely loved his nephews and niece. They were some of his favourite people on Earth. Their father on the other hand, was another story. 

"Uncle Pete, did you see my puzzle? I'm almost done. You gotta help me finish it!" his nephew screamed into his ear.

"I got an A plus on my math test!" the other nephew yelled, trying to be heard over his brother.

"I got a new plushie! It's a giraffe!" Pete's niece yelled, trying to outdo her brothers. 

"I scored the winning goal at my soccer club!"

"Mom and Dad got me some new shoes!"

"I want a pet dog!"

"Did you cut your hair?"

"Why doesn't it snow in the summer?"

Walking towards the white couch, one by one, Pete carefully threw each child onto the couch. Giggling, they jumped up and latched onto Pete once more. "Again! Again! Again!" they cheered. 

One day, Pete was going to have to tell these kids no to one of their requests...today was not that day. 

He'd thrown each child about three times before Mark spoke up, waving his phone in the air. "Hate to ruin all the fun, but I need to talk to my favourite cousin for a second." 

Pete sighed. Here it was. Whatever Mark was hiding was finally going to be revealed. 

"Sure," Pete said. "Do you want to talk out in the backyard?" 

Pete took a step forward, heading to the backyard but Mark quickly held him back with a hand to his chest. "No!" he shouted, panicked. "Let's talk here."

Pete looked back at the kids staring at them from the couch and let out a laugh. Whatever it was, Mark wanted to say it in front of the kids so Pete couldn't react. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He waved his hand in the air, indicating Mark to start talking. 

"Something came up at work and I have to go," Mark started. "Can I leave the kids with you for a few hours? It won't take long."

Pete didn't say a word. He didn't sigh, didn't frown, nor did he glare at his cousin. He just shooed Mark away, accepting it. 

The grin Mark had on his face was enough to make Pete want to punch him, but he couldn't do that in front of the kids...and Mark knew it. 

"Hot dogs and burger patties are in the fridge," Mark said, walking around Pete to get to the front door. "Drinks are in there too. The kids have water guns outside so they can play with those or whatever. You know what to do," he said, putting his shoes on. "Kids!" Mark yelled, pocketing his wallet and keys. "I'm leaving, come give me a hug."

The kids hopped off the couch and ran to their father to envelope him in a hug. He gave them each a kiss and told them to be good for their uncle. He told them to have fun and to tell him all about their day when he got back. 

Pete watched them from the living room. Arms crossed but with a small smile on his face. 

"Later," Mark shouted before he closed the door leaving Pete alone with the kids. 

At the sound of the door slamming shut, Pete turned to the kids and stared at each of them. They stared right back, bouncing on the heels of their toes, waiting for him to speak. 

"What do you guys want to do today?"

"Pool!" they shouted in unison. 

Pete knew there was a local pool 15 minutes away. He'd seen it on his drive to the house. He also knew how packed it was. It would be hard for him to focus on all three kids at the same time with so many people around.  

"They're closed today," he lied. "What else?" 

"No, they're not!" Max, the eldest (10) argued, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Yeah!" Mason, the middle child (8) echoed, mirroring his brother. 

Megan, the baby of the group (5), looked at her brothers and copied their posture. Her arms not quite crossing. One arm was just lying on top of the other. Pete bit his lip to stop himself from smiling. 

"Yeah," Megan said. "Daddy said you would take us to the pool today." 

Pete arched his brow. "Did he now?" he asked the siblings. When all three nodded, he asked, "When?"

"This morning at breakfast," Mason said, uncrossing his arms. 

So it was confirmed. Pete knew there wasn't a "work emergency." He just got played.

"What are your parents doing," he asked, making his way to the couch. He was tired of standing around. The kids followed him onto the couch on autopilot.  

"Mommy went to the spa!" Megan giggled. "Daddy said he was giving her a nice day off!"

"She's doing her nails, too," Max chimed in.

"The spa, huh?" Pete had no problem with Mary going to the spa or getting her nails done or whatever. She could do that all she wanted. She deserved it. But Pete also deserved transparency, not trickery by his dumb cousin. Pete was 99 percent sure that Mary knew nothing about Mark's setup. 

"Yeah," Max confirmed. "Then Mommy and Daddy are going to go to dinner."

"Dinner?" Pete questioned. 

Megan, the one sitting next to Pete, stood up on the couch and wrapped her arms around his neck. She wanted to climb on top of his shoulders. Pete put his arm around her so she wouldn't fall. 

It was early afternoon, dinner meant after 6pm. Pete was on babysitting duty at least until after 8pm. 

"So can we go to the pool?" Max asked, shaking Pete's leg to get his attention. 

"They're closed," Pete said again, sticking to his lie. "I saw the sign when I was driving here." 

The kids all looked at him skeptically, but they couldn't prove anything so they had to take his word for it. 

"How about we go play basketball?" Pete asked. "We can be in teams of two."

"We don't have a basketball ball at home," Max said. 

"I'll buy us one on the way to the court." There was a recreation building near Pete's house and he knew the indoor basketball court was almost always free. Plus, they had air conditioning. 

"Can you buy me a lego set?" Max asked, grinning up at his uncle. 

"Sure," Pete agreed.

"Can I get Hot Wheels?" Mason asked, if his brother was getting a gift, he sure would be too.

"Sure." Megan was still trying to climb onto Pete's shoulders but it was difficult to do with him sitting on the couch. "What would you like, Princess?"

Megan thought about it for a second. Her finger on her chin. "Art stuff!"

"Do you guys want to have lunch first, go play basketball and then go watch a movie?" Just like the basketball court, the movie theatre was close to his house. After watching a movie, Pete thought he could treat the kids to some ice cream.

"Yes!" all three kids cheered, collectively. 

Pete would have to think about dinner later. He didn't have enough food at his house for all of them so he'd either have to take them out to eat or order food in.  

Getting up from the couch and stretching a bit, Pete ordered the kids to keep themselves busy while he went out to the backyard to fire up the grill. Pete wasn't a grill master by any chance but he was much better than most of the people in his family. 

Just as he was about to open the sliding door to the backyard, he phone rang in his pocket. The name flashing on the screen made him pause. His eyebrows scrunching up. 

Lavender Sky was calling him. 

Lavender had never called him before. She wasn't scheduled to go out anywhere today so there was no reason for her to need security. 

Pete answered the phone quickly.

"Hello?" 

"Pete?" Lavender's voice chimed.

"Yeah! What's going on?" Pete asked, his mind already racing. If Lavender needed his help, he'd have to figure out what to do with the kids. Maybe he could call another one of his and Mark's cousins. Or even call Mark himself and tell him to come home.

"I was just wondering when you were planning on taking me out on our second date? It's your turn to make an itinerary."

Pete paused. The frown on his face deepened, but for a different reason. 

"Huh?" he whispered into the phone, confused.

"You said you would take me on a date, remember?" Lavender teased into the phone. "You said you'd blow my socks off."

Pete remembered saying that. Of course he did. He just hadn't expected Lavender to actually want to go on another date with him. 

"Do you want to do something today?" Lavender asked, undeterred by Pete's silence.

Pete stammered into the phone. He shook his head to clear his mind. "I can't. I'm sorry."

"Oh!" Lavender said, her tone still bright and cheery. "I know it's pretty sudden, but I just thought I should ask. I'll leave you to -." 

"I'm watching my nephews and niece," Pete said quickly, not wanting Lavender to think he was dodging her or anything. Though he knew deep down she wouldn't think that. 

"That sounds like fun!" Lavender exclaimed. "What are you guys going to do today?" she asked.

Finally knowing that Lavender wasn't in actual need of him, Pete opened the backyard door to go set up the grill. 

"We're going to eat some burgers and stuff, go to an indoor basketball court and then watch a movie after," Pete listed off to Lavender Sky.

Pete paused his actions when Lavender didn't speak right away. After about five seconds of silence, Lavender made a strange noise. 

"Uhh... don't they want to go to the pool or the beach or something? Isn't that what kids want?" Lavender asked. 

Pete huffed into the phone. "Yeah, they do but there were way too many people at the local pool and these kids are a handful. I can't watch all three of them at once." 

Pete knew the kids well. He knew that - if they were to go to the pool, instead of sticking together and playing together, each child would venture out to meet new people, make new friends and play with them. There was no way Pete would be able to watch all three of them simultaneously. 

"Well I have a pool at my house, they can come swim here," Lavender offered. "I can watch them with you."

Pete blinked, stunned by Lavender's offer. His face was getting warm, not from the heat of the sun but from Lavender and her kindness. 

"Pete?" Lavender called, grabbing his attention back.

Pete hesitated. "I wouldn't want to impose on you like that," he said. He looked around the backyard. The kids' water guns looked sad on the grass.

"It's no imposition at all. Let the kids have some fun here. They can spend the whole day here, I don't mind."  

It was a good idea and the kids would absolutely love it, but he only had so much power when it came to them. "I'd have to ask their parents for permission."

"Of course," she agreed, immediately. 

"If they say yes, we'll eat lunch here before coming over," Pete informed. 

"Okay! Text me when you're on your way!" Lavender said, brightly. Without waiting for a response, Lavender hung up the phone.

Pete grinned as he stared down at his phone. So she was one of those people. Hanging up without saying bye. 

Scrolling through his contact list, Pete had one of two options. One, he could call Mark and ask him permission. Mark knew about Lavender's stalker but he also knew that her home was safe. Lavender lived in a secure gated community that didn't let just anyone in. Lavender hasn't had any issues with the stalker coming to her home. Plus, Lavender Sky was his client and Mark was his boss. 

His other option was to call Mary - Mark's wife. Though she wasn't involved in the body guarding business, she knew almost everything going on within the company because Mark could never keep his mouth shut around her. 

Pete sighed. He really only had one choice. 

The phone rang three times before it was picked up. 

"Hello?" Mary answered. 

"Hey, how's it going, Mary?" Pete asked. 

Mark may have been Pete's boss, but Mary was Mark's. 

Additionally, Pete was still bitter about Mark tricking him.

"Fantastic," she replied. "It's been a long time since I've been pampered."

"You deserve it," Pete affirmed. 

"I could only have a day like today because you agreed to watch the kids," Mary said. "I never got to thank you." 

Just as he'd suspected, Mary had no clue about what Mark had done. 

"Are the kids being good?" Mary asked. 

"Yeah, they're fine. I was just calling to ask you permission for something," Pete began, "I'm sure you know the situation about Lavender Sky Jones. She's invited the kids over to her house to swim in her pool. Is that okay?"

Mary squealed into the phone. "Of course, it's ok! I wish I was coming with you guys! My girl friends would lose their minds if I told them I hung out with a famous celebrity!" 

Pete couldn't help but laugh. "I just wanted to make sure you were ok with it."

"Absolutely. Mark has told me that her residence is safe and the kids are with you, so I'm absolutely ok with it. Take lots of pictures of the kids in the pool for me!"

Finally turning on the grill, Pete went back inside the house to grab the meats. 

The kids were in the living room watching tv. 

"Guys," he said, grabbing their attention. "My friend invited us to her house. We'll go there after lunch." When the kids stared blankly back at him and shrugged, he added, "she has a pool." 

The resounding scream the kids let out made Pete genuinely worry the neighbours were going to call the cops. 

********************************************************************

Lavender Sky was already waiting at the front of her house when Pete and the kids pulled up. She was casually sitting down on her patio furniture, scrolling through her phone. 

Pete tried to calm his racing heart at the sight of her. He honked once to grab her attention and when he did, he tried not to laugh at her outfit. 

At the sound of the horn, Lavender shot up from the chair and waved enthusiastically at them. She was wearing the typical BBQ Uncle outfit. She had on an oversized turquoise button up short sleeved shirt on, as well as matching oversized shorts. The shorts went past her knees.

"Alright kids," Pete addressed them, turning off the car engine. He twisted around in his seat to face them. "Remember what I told you. You have to respect her house and her rules. Don't break anything. Don't touch things you don't have permission to touch. Don't raid her fridge." 

The kids were barely listening to him. Bouncing in their seats, seatbelts already off, ready to go. 

Exiting the car, the boys immediately ran over to Lavender to greet her, their towels and water guns in hand. Megan stayed behind and patiently waited for her uncle. When he got around the car to her side, she grabbed onto his hand and they walked up to Lavender together.

"Hi there!" Lavender said. "I'm Lavender! What's your name?" she asked Megan. 

Megan -who like her brothers was usually very extroverted, hid behind her Uncle's leg. She looked up at Pete, her eyes wide. 

Pete chuckled softly, stroking her hair. "Why are you being shy all of a sudden?" he asked, not used to seeing her like this. 

She mumbled something into his leg, so he crouched down to hear her properly. 

"What was that?" he asked, gently. 

"She's really pretty," Megan mumbled again. 

Pete laughed quietly. "I know, princess. Trust me, I know. But you don't have to be nervous about anything, she's really nice." Megan looked at Lavender and then looked back at Pete. "Would I ever lie to you?" Pete asked, Megan shook her head. 

Yes, he lied about the pool but that was different, he wouldn't lie about something like this. 

"Would I ever bring you to someone who was mean?" Megan shook her head again. "Just be yourself and be comfortable. If you aren't happy in an hour, I'll take you guys back home, ok?"

Much more at ease, Megan got out of her metaphorical shell and finally approached Lavender. "I'm Megan," she introduced. "You're very pretty."

"Well not as pretty as you," Lavender said, squeezing Megan's cheek. The gesture made Megan giggle. Her nerves were completely forgotten. 

Pete, realizing he hadn't actually greeted Lavender yet, raised his hand and waved. 

Lavender scrunched up her nose at him in return. 

"Come on in, kiddos," she invited, opening her door. Her house was nice and air conditioned. It looked spacious and clean, yet also well lived in. She pointed towards the kitchen, "I have a bunch of ice cream so you guys can grab some anytime." 

Unlike Mark's house, whose backyard was through the kitchen, Lavender's backyard was through her living room. Pete didn't even have a backyard, he lived in an apartment.

"Kitties!" Megan screeched when she saw three cats lying around on the couch. She ran over to them but remembered herself and stopped. She turned to Lavender and asked, "Can I pet them?"

"Of course!"

Lavender had a black cat, a grey cat and a black and white cat. Pete wasn't too familiar with cats and their breeds. 

The cats got off the couch and approached the kids. Curious about them.

"What are their names," Max asked, reaching down to pet the black cat. Each child was petting a cat.

Max, a lover of animals, bravely picked up the cat. Luckily for him, the cat was ok with it.

"Max," Lavender started, pointing to the cat in his arms, "You have Indigo."

Pete bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. 

Mason, wanting to copy his brother, tried to pick up the grey cat but the cat was having none of it. The cat meowed and jumped out of his arms every time he tried to grab it. 

"Mason," Lavender continued, "that cat's name is Periwinkle." 

At that, Pete let out a laugh. This was too funny. The cats and their owner were all named after shades of purple.

"Let me guess," he teased, "the last cat is called Lilac." 

Lavender looked at him with a straight face. "No, that's my eldest sister's name," she said, unamused. 

Reading the room wrong, Pete chuckled, thinking she was joking. When Lavender didn't laugh, he coughed. 

"Seriously?" he asked.

"I'm so serious." 

Megan giggled, watching their exchange. She sat on the floor with the black and white cat on her lap. That cat seemed very friendly. 

Lavender, for being in the spotlight a lot, was very private. Pete knew she had siblings but he didn't know how many (though he did know she was the youngest). Apart from that he knew nothing else, so he definitely didn't know their names. He was a fan, not a stalker. 

"Try again," Lavender challenged, an arch in her brow.

Pete's first instinct was to say Violet, but given his track record and that Violet was a common human name, he went with something outlandish. 

"Mauve," he said.

Lavender cocked her head to the side, a hint of a smile on her face. "That's my other older sister's name," she said. 

Now it looked like she was laughing at him. She bit her lip to stop from laughing and took a deep breath to compose herself.

"One more guess," Lavender said, holding up a finger. "Do you want a hint?" She looked delighted.

Wanting to win this challenge, Pete tried a different tactic.

"Do you have a sister named Violet?" he asked. 

"No," Lavender answered, shaking her head. "But I have a cat with that name." 

This got a laugh out of everybody. Lavender laughed the hardest. When she finally got a hold of herself, wiping tears from her eyes, she said, "My other sister's name is Orchid." 

"Of course," Pete joked, lightly smacking himself on the forehead. 

It seemed like Lavender continued her parents' tradition of naming their kids shades of purple onto her cats. In a way, she was just like Mark and Mary, having all their kids' names also begin with the letter M.

Lavender waited for the kids to have their fill of the cats before leading them to her backyard pool. Pete didn't know what he was expecting, but he wasn't expecting an inground 16 x 40 swimming pool. A large wooden fence was surrounding the yard -along its sides were small trees, bushes and flowers. There was a shed at the far end of the yard, there were about four pool chairs, a huge patio umbrella shading a table with a quartet of cushioned wicker patio chairs. On the table, was a pitcher of lemonade and tall empty glasses. 

Without a moment's hesitation, the kids dropped their towels and water guns on the ground, ran and jumped into the pool. Their laughter boisterous and their happiness palpable.

"Let's have some lemonade while we play some cards," Lavender offered, pulling out a deck of cards from her shorts. "What do you say?" she asked, waving the deck in Pete's face.  

Lavender grinned cunningly when Pete nodded. "Do you know how to play Crazy Eights Countdown?", she inquired. 

Pete scoffed. "Do I know how to play? I basically invented it." 

Pete was going to show her. 

*****************************************************************

Pete was showing her nothing. 

They'd played two games and Lavender had won by a landslide in both. They first started with one game and when Lavender won that, Pete demanded they play a best of three. When she won the second game, he demanded they play a best of five. Lavender was well on her way to winning the third game. Pete was beginning to seriously think that Lavender Sky was a secret professional Crazy Eights player.

Pete was momentarily distracted by the cards in his hands so he didn't notice the kids creeping up on them with their water guns in tow. It came to a shock to both him and Lavender when they were sprayed with cold water from the guns. Lavender shot out of her chair, he cards falling- some on the table, some on the floor. 

Pete didn't know how to react. On one hand, he was two seconds away from scolding the kids for doing that to Lavender at her own house...on the other hand, he was a bit glad she'd dropped her cards and the round was defaulted. 

Pete stood up to check on Lavender to see if she was okay, but she stepped away before he could even ask. 

Without looking or acknowledging anyone, Lavender stepped around her chair and went around the side of her house, out of everyone's view.  

The kids looked on in silence. Their rude actions dawned on them. 

"Guys, what was that?" Pete hissed. "How could you do that? We will leave after you have all apologized to her." 

He wanted to scold them more, but he couldn't bring himself to when the kids looked at him with solemn faces. 

He opened his mouth to say more, when something cold hit his back and he instinctively arched his back at the contact. The kids screeched and dispersed. Confused, Pete looked around to see what was going on. Just at the side of the house, stood Lavender with a large hose in her hand. She was laughing maniacally. spraying all of them with water. 

"Water fight," she yelled, running up to them. 

The kids were running around in glee, spraying each other with water. Lavender and Pete included. 

There she stood, spraying his nephews and niece with absolute joy on her face. Pete couldn't help but laugh, totally in awe of Lavender. 

She turned her attention and nozzle to him. 

"No," Pete said, shaking his head and backing away slowly. "I'm on your side, I'm a victim too." 

"No mercy!" Lavender shouted, spraying him. Pete grabbed the nearest child and used them as a shield. Their laughter was the brightest it had been all day.

Pete couldn't remember the last time he had that much fun. His anger at Mark long forgotten. With the way the day ended up going, Pete thought it would be nice to send Mary and her husband a fruit basket.