Pom: Thank you so much for your kind words, I hope you aren't disappointed.
Carolyn: I was going to wait until Best Friend was posted but I couldn't wait, just like a kid...I hope you enjoy it and if I've made any geographical errors let me know and I'll fix them. I checked the map for a lot of it and a lot of it is from memory but it has been years since I was in San Antonio so I hope I got it right.
Eve: thank you, it will all come together, I hope. Oh, and in the U.S., a wildcatter is an oil field worker...sorry, I should have made that more clear.
Natalie: thank you so much.
Jan: Thanks so much.
Hunter: Thank you!
Lilloucfer: Thanks, I like cool!
Ken: You are so right!
*~*~*
Chapter: 2
On Saturday morning Max headed to the diner alone for a change…He intended to find a way to get to know Liz Parker better before the end of the summer if it was the last thing he ever did.
When he arrived at the homey little diner on the outskirts of town he pulled in to his usual parking space only this time he was driving a Mercedes and although Liz knew the truck by sight she had no idea that Max also owned a Mercedes. She knew Max as just one of the rig workers that frequented the place and had never associated the name Evans with Evans Oil, not that it should make any difference. At least he hoped it doesn’t.
Liz noticed the tall good looking gentleman getting out of the silver vehicle and thought that he looked familiar but she didn’t put two and two together until he walked through the door and gave her his killer smile.
She couldn’t believe it, “Max?” she thought to herself. ‘Wow…doesn’t he clean up nice! Great fitting jeans, gawd!!!…great ass, oh my! Black Lucchese boots, great tailored western cut shirt, no hat, hair nicely combed with a little bit of bangs hanging down on his forehead, it looks like he might have done that on purpose, maybe not though, it looks so natural.’ and she sighed out loud…“OH. MY.” …and whose car is he driving?
Max walked over and took a seat in Liz’s section and waited…he could tell by the look on Liz’s face that she was surprised to see him there and he got this funny feeling in the pit of his stomach, he couldn’t figure out what it was he was feeling but it felt damn good. As a matter of fact it happened every time he saw her now that he thought about it.
It didn’t take Liz very long to show up at his table with his usual coffee and a menu in her hand and as she handed Max the menu she smiled down at him…’God he’s gorgeous’ and she catches herself before she lets loose with another sigh.
Max:
“Good morning Max…where’s the rest of the crew?” Liz asks.
“Well, today is kind of special Liz. I wanted to see if I could convince you to have dinner with me without the others trying to horn in on my time.”
I feel just like a teenaged kid asking for a date to the prom but I plaster a smile on my face…trying to convince myself that I’m not nervous as hell and trying to convince Liz that I am serious at that same time.
Liz smiles down at me, then looks at me and says very seriously …”Max, don’t you think that line is getting a little old?”
I’m shocked, she doesn’t believe me!
“Oh God Liz, this isn’t a line…honest.”
I can’t believe she thought I was feeding her a line, now I am now practically begging…I never beg! Shit!@!! I’m telling myself to just calm down…just breathe deeply…there, that helps…I can’t let her see how nervous I really am.
“I really do want to take you out Liz…if you don’t want dinner then maybe a movie? Dancing? The zoo? A picnic? Anything Liz, honest, I’ll take you anywhere you want to go. Just say yes… I hate to beg, but if I thought it would help I’ll even get down on my knees.”
Boy, talk about desperate…shit, I wouldn’t blame her if she threw my sorry ass out the door. Okay Evans, just work with what you’ve got here, you’ve done this before. So I give her a shy grin and raise my eyebrows in question…don’t hold anything back I tell myself.
Liz starts to giggle, she thinks this is funny!?!
“The zoo huh? Max, please, just stop it.” Then she looks down at me and smiles shyly and says,
“What would you say if I said yes?” Now my hearts doing flip flops in my chest and I think I’m about to pass out…
“Well” I drawl…I’m cool remember? Yeah…cool! Bull shit!
I finally get a grip and grin, continuing hopefully,
“If you say yes I’ll sit here and wait for you until you get off work or I’ll come back when you tell me to or I can pick you up at your place…What do you say?”
Desperate again…I wouldn’t blame her if she took off running…
I am practically begging her now and I don’t give a damn what it sounds like…
*
Liz
“Tell you what Max…I get off at 2:00 today and then I have some errands to do. What time did you have in mind anyway.”
I smiled, if I am going out to dinner I need something to wear. Apparently the man with the Mercedes doesn’t plan on dinner in a diner I think to myself. I think he might actually be nervous about this, he seems to be acting a little differently this morning.
*
Max
“Would you like to go to dinner and then maybe a movie or something?”
Right about that time I wanted to get up and wrap her in my arms and twirl her around the restaurant but I was cool, I was a wreck but I wasn’t about to let her know that, no siree by God I was going to be cool if it killed me…and it just might!
“Dinner and a movie sounds nice Max, I haven’t been out in so long I don’t think I remember how to use a fork. I usually grab a sandwich and a book and sit at my table and study while I munch…so yes, dinner and a movie will be very nice.”
Liz seemed extremely calm about all of this compared to me, I was dancing a silent jig in my head and she seemed extremely comfortable with the entire scenario, but I’m cool…remember that, okay, moving forward here…
“Great, where and when? If you get off at 2:00 how about 3:00?”
Now I’m acting like a fool again…stay cool man, just stay cool.
Liz started laughing this time, she’s killing me here….
“Max, how about six or so. That way I’ll have time to get my errands finished and get dressed. I’ll write down my address for you and my phone number. Now, did you want something besides coffee?”
She’s too damned relaxed to suit me, at least she could show a little enthusiasm!
“Yes, I think I’ll have some breakfast…do you get a break, I could wait and we could eat together. What do you say Liz?” I ask, using my best Texas drawl and then I added a smile just for good measure, I’m cool! Remember that, I wish the hell I could remember that!
Liz
God, he’s getting a little pushy here, but then that could be a good thing …I really do feel comfortable with him. I have been waiting on him for over three years and he is always very polite and pleasant and very good looking doesn’t hurt either so I think I’m going to go for the whole program, watch this.
“Tell me what you want to eat and then drink your coffee Max, I’ll be back in half an hour with our orders. How’s that?”
I ask with a smile on my face…I really am trying to control myself and not show my excitement, I don’t want to look like I’m desperate or something, just stay calm is my motto…yeah, right…stay calm!
Max is beaming from ear to ear…can you see that…
“That’s excellent Liz. I’ll have the breakfast special with pancakes and I’ll be here when you get back.”
Oh he’s got that killer smile on his face again…Oh God!...breathe Liz, just breathe.
I return Max’s smile and place his order in the back of my order book for a few minutes while I go and pick up a full coffee pot and head out to make some more customers happy. About 15 minutes later I turn in Max’s order after having added a side of pancakes for myself and then I deliver orders to my last few tables before clocking out for my break. It was another 5 minutes before I was seated across from Max enjoying my breakfast and the view sitting across from me, I must say he certainly is easy on the eyes.
*
Max had the same feelings as Liz did as he watched her dig into her pancakes. ‘Oh God she’s beautiful’ he thought to himself, he didn’t know if he could hold it together until tonight he was so excited.
*
My break was over much too soon to suit me and I told Max that I would see him around 6:00 and then I got up to leave. Max grabs my hand and kisses the top of my knuckles as I start to walk away and I look down at him in utter shock…
“Liz, you don’t know how happy you’ve made me, honest.”
I don’t know what to do or how to act so I just give him a shy smile and say
“Thank you Max, I’ll see you later.”
I feel like I’m floating…I only hope he is as sweet as I think he is…I’m not in the mood for a wrestling match with some burly oil rig worker that’s for sure. I really don’t know what I’m feeling…everything is a jumbled up mess of giddiness, enthusiasm and apprehension all at the same time. I only hope I’m not making a mistake. It doesn’t seem right to me to start having dates after all of this time with just a few more months left in this state. God, what I have done? But he’s gorgeous I tell myself and as I clock back in.
*
Max
I left the diner and headed to my office to check on some business and to sign some checks before I headed on home to get ready for what I thought was one of the most important dates of My life. I have waited over three years for this and I wanted everything to be perfect, and if I had anything to do with it, it was going to be. I couldn’t wipe the smile off of my face to save my soul. She finally said yes!!! Could life get any better…I can’t remember anything ever making me this happy before.
*~*~*
Back at the diner there was a young waitress who was having the same problem and saying a silent prayer that she hadn’t made a mistake in accepting Max’s offer.
*
Liz got off at 2:00 that afternoon and headed for the bank where she made a deposit via the ATM machine and then headed to the little boutique around the corner to find something to wear for the evening. She found a very cute little basic black dress that could be dressed up or down, depending on the occasion, and some nice black beads and matching black stud earrings. She already had a nice pair of black leather three inch heels that would look very good with her outfit and she was all set. She even bought a pretty clip for her hair since she decided she would wear it up for a change. It had been a very long time since she dressed in anything but jeans and she was looking forward to this. The last time she had worn a dress was to her father’s funeral and she didn’t want to think about that. This was going to be nice, she just knew it was. She needed something nice for a change and she smiled as she headed home to get ready for her dinner date.
By the time she got home it was almost 4:30 so she decided to pamper herself with a nice bubble bath instead of a shower and then she started to work some magic with the curling iron and to apply some make up. She hadn’t worn anything but lip gloss in so long she almost felt ridiculous putting the foundation, blush and mascara on, but when she was finished she was very pleased with herself. She wasn’t going to get her hopes up with the anticipation of great things happening between her and Max but she was certainly going to enjoy the evening, no doubt about that, these types of occasions didn’t happen to her very often and she was going to make the most of it.
*~*~*
Max was walking on cloud nine right along with Liz… he was so excited he could hardly contain himself. He had been hoping for this evening for three years and he was going to make it everything he had been dreaming of as he stopped at the florist and bought Liz a dozen white roses.
Soon he was at his own home getting ready. He showered and then decided on a black tailored Armani that he had purchased in New York on his last trip there on business, a dark maroon shirt and a black and maroon silk tie finished things off. He had taken his shoes in to be shined last month and hadn’t worn them since so he gave them a quick going over with a chamois and when he stood before his mirror he was pleased with the result. He only hoped Liz would be pleased as well. He had made dinner reservations for 7:00 at one of the nicer restaurants in the San Antonio area as soon as he arrived at his office that morning and he did a print out of the movies that were playing at the local theaters so that Liz would be able to choose something she would like to see. He couldn’t think of anything else before leaving so at 5:30 he felt ready to start his evening. He still had that strange feeling in the pit of his stomach, but it was still a good feeling as he smiled to himself and locked his front door…’this is going to be wonderful’ he thought.
At 5:50 p.m. Max pulled into the parking lot of Liz’s apartment complex and headed toward apartment 3 B. She was on the third floor of a very large, very well kept complex. Max figured that there were many college students living here since the parking lot was full of the smaller vehicles that college kids usually drove. He made his way through the lobby and to the elevators without any trouble at all and when he got off the elevator on the third floor he was directly across from 3 B. He walked the short distance and knocked lightly on Liz’s door and she was there in a flash. She had seen him arrive through her living room window and when she saw him get out of his car he took her breath away. ‘God, I can’t believe I have a date with this gorgeous man’ she thought to herself.
“Hi Max, right on time…you look very handsome, I almost didn’t recognize you without your Stetson.” She teased.
“Hello Liz, you look absolutely beautiful and, in case I forget, thank you for allowing me the privilege of taking you out.”
Then he leaned in and kissed her on the cheek and handed her the roses. Her skin felt as soft as the petals on the roses and was just as smooth he thought to himself. his stomach started to flutter and he couldn’t get over the giddy feelings he was having, he felt like a seventeen year old kid picking up his high school crush for the first time. ‘God, this is worse than those dance lessons my mother made me take as a kid’ he continued with his thoughts.
Liz looked at the flowers and then up into Max’s eyes and she saw something there she couldn’t put her finger on…’His eyes are mesmerizing’ she thought to herself and she had to get away from him to collect her thoughts and to take control of herself. She excused herself to put her flowers in some water, that should give her time to get herself together and not make a fool of herself before the evening got started.
She had a vase in the top of her kitchen cabinet over the refrigerator and started hauling a kitchen chair over toward the cabinet in order to reach it and Max chuckled at the sight and gently guided her away from the chair and reached up over the refrigerator and opened the cabinet door for her and pointed to the vase…she nodded and he retrieved it for her and gave her a big smile…
“A little short there aren’t you?” he chuckled…
Liz looked up at him shyly and shook her head in agreement.
“A few extra inches would come in handy once in awhile.”
She said as she took the vase over to the sink to rinse it off and to fill it with water before putting the roses in it. They were positively gorgeous and she told Max so.
“They are my favorite Max.”
“I kind of thought so. I noticed that you would occasionally wear a white rose in your hair so I figured you must like them.” Max confessed.
“Oh…well… my father used to send me white roses on my birthday and for special occasions and I always wear one in remembrance of him. I miss him quite a bit actually, but that’s another story. Are you ready?” She confessed a little personal information to him as she reached for her purse.
“Yes, but we have a couple of minutes. Our reservation is for 7:00 and I have a printout of the current movies that are playing for us to go over. We can make the last show for any one of them very easily with time to spare if that’s what you would like to do. We can always do something else if you want to. I’m open for any suggestions Liz, as long as we do it together.” Liz smiled and sat her purse back down on the table by the front door.
Max didn’t know if he was being too pushy or just how to handle the situation but he was still walking on cloud nine, he just didn’t want to scare her off.
“Oh, well, let’s check out the movies first then and see if there’s something we would both enjoy. What types of movies do you like Max?”
She didn’t seem to be uncomfortable with him so he continued to follow her lead.
“The truth? Most comedies, light drama…James Bond, The Bourne series was good…stuff like that. Marley and Me was fun, how about you?”
“Pretty much the same…if there isn’t anything to our liking then we can just play it by ear. We could even rent something and watch it here if you would like.” Liz suggested. “I can pop some pop corn for us.” And she gave Max one of her killer smiles.
Max smiled and said…”Liz, I have a home theater… we could always go there.” Then he noticed the look on Liz’s face…it wasn’t really fear but it showed a little apprehension and he back pedaled pretty fast…
“Maybe that would be a bad idea for a first date…let’s just go to dinner and then the video store. We will come back here unless you would rather go have a cocktail later.”
Liz relaxed a little after his suggestion that they come back to her place and then she confessed that she didn’t really drink all that much. It wasn’t that she was opposed to it, she just didn’t enjoy it and Max just smiled. ‘She is definitely a keeper’ he thought to himself as he helped her on with her jacket and they headed out of the apartment. There would be plenty of time for her to get to know him before she had to leave in August and he definitely hoped they could come up with a feasible plan before she left that they could both live with because he was positive he wanted her in his life on a long term basis. So far she was everything he thought she would be.
*~*~*
The dining room of the restaurant overlooked the city skylight and it was beautiful. They could see for miles since the restaurant was located on the top floor of one of the taller buildings in the city. Most people in Texas weren’t too thrilled with all of the flat lands but there were a few hills around San Antonio, still it possessed a beauty all of it’s own. Just as the majestic mountains of the Sierra Cascades did in the NW of the U.S.. Another one of God’s beautiful paintings that man had adorned with buildings and concrete. Max loved it all and he so wanted to introduce Liz to the wealth of beauty the world had to offer. Max looked over at her beautiful face and had to smile…Liz took notice and wanted to know …
“What Max? What are you looking at?” She questioned with a shy smile, he was making her slightly uncomfortable.
“I’m enjoying you Liz, you are one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen and I feel so fortunate to be sitting here with you tonight, that I am overwhelmed. Please don’t let me make you uncomfortable but you asked and I have to be honest with you.”
Max noticed the slight blush form on Liz’s cheeks but he had to tell her how he felt, how he had been feeling for years. Maybe she wouldn’t like being with him and this would be the last chance he would ever have to make her understand.
About that time their waiter arrived at their table with water, wine glasses and a basket of bread, a tray of appetizers and some butter. Max nodded his appreciation and the man exited the scene without a word. Liz took in all of this and noticed that every table had their own waiter and then her practical side took over…’how do these guys make any money in tips if they only have one table to wait on?’ Her question would be answered in short order since she took this opportunity to read her menu and noticed there were no prices on it. What the…how would she know what was acceptable?
Max noticed the frown on Liz’s brow and asked…
“Liz, is something wrong…isn’t there anything on there that you like?” He was starting to get concerned…
“Oh Max, that’s not the problem, there aren’t any prices on this menu.” She said as she leaned forward and whispered across the table to him.
Max chuckled,
“There isn’t supposed to be Liz, just order what you want. It’s alright, honest.”
“But Max,….” Max held up his hand,
“Trust me Liz, I know there aren’t any prices on your menu. There isn’t supposed to be, honest.” Max was getting quite tickled at her concern…
“What do you mean, ‘there isn’t supposed to be’, how do you know how much something costs?” Liz queried.
“Honey, none of the ladies menu’s have prices, only the men’s do.” Max was trying to contain his urge to laugh, her expression was priceless.
“Why is that? You get to know what it costs and I don’t?” She was starting to get a little miffed with the whole idea.
“Because, now you can order what you want for dinner and never be concerned about whether or not you should or shouldn’t. I think it’s a great idea myself.”
Max nodded his head in agreement with himself and smiled at her for assurance as he popped a black olive into his mouth.
“Well, how about that! It sounds a little chauvinistic to me.” Liz muttered and started to contemplate her options more seriously while Max sat and enjoyed her from across the table. ‘She is just about the cutest thing I have ever met’ he thought to himself.
Finally Max made a suggestion…
“Liz, do you like Chateau Briand?”
“Well yes, doesn’t everybody?” Liz answered…she had filet many times but never served according to the description on the menu, it would give her a chance to try something familiar prepared a new way.
“How about we get Chateau Briand for two and a nice bottle of wine? Does that sound good?”
Liz smiled at Max and scrunched up her shoulders in happiness before answering…
“That sounds positively delicious Max.” She smiled…
“Good, shall we just let them serve whatever comes with it or would you like to change some of the sides?”
“No…let’s just see what they have back there to surprise us with.”
“Alright then, Chateau for two with all the trimmings.” And Max was still floating he was so happy.
“So Liz, tell me, where are you from originally?”
They continued to enjoy the appetizer plate and the cutting board with fresh baked bread that was placed on the table prior to being presented with their menus and each was enjoying the other’s company…
“Oh just a little town in New Mexico, Roswell to be exact. My parents owned a small restaurant there, an alien themed restaurant actually, that’s where I started to do waitress work. I can be more flexible doing that kind of work than I can with a regular 8 to 5 job. I can work as many or as few hours as I need in order to keep up with school and still live comfortably, as long as I’m not too extravagant. Mr. Johnson, the owner is very understanding with the students that work for him. Besides, he doesn’t have to pay benefits on employees that aren’t full time.” Liz smiled and continued… “My grandmother left me a small inheritance but I don’t want to tap into that in case I really need to and my parents left me the restaurant of course. I have a general manager taking care of it for me because I haven’t decided what to do with it yet. The family apartment is still up over the restaurant area but I haven’t the heart to go through it yet. My Mom passed away a few years ago and then my dad last year so I’ve left things the way they were. You never know what kind of lumps are headed your way until they rear their ugly heads.” And then she gave Max a big smile and asked about him and his job.
It took Max awhile to answer Liz’s question about himself because he was still wrapped up in the fact that she was all alone in the world and working herself ragged to achieve her goals. What a strong person for such a tiny little thing he thought to himself.
“Max, what about you? You and the rest of the guys?” Liz looked over at Max and he seemed to be in another world… “Max?”
“Huh…Oh, sorry Liz I got lost there for a minute.”
“I can see that. I asked, what about you and the other guys. The oil business must be doing very well for you to be driving that beauty out in the parking lot.”
Max had to chuckle at the way she put things,
“Well, yes it is, sort of. Michael has a degree in archaeology and scopes out new wells for me to drill. Alex is a computer genius who programs all of our equipment and is also married to my sister Isabelle and Kyle is a mechanical engineer and it’s obvious what his duties are. He is also married to his high school sweetheart Tess who is a registered nurse. And that leaves me, the scallywag of the bunch. I graduated from UT with a bachelor’s degree in business and then went to graduate school there as well. I work in the field because offices drive me crazy, I generally go in on Saturday mornings and check out the financial statements and read the mail for the week and by two or three in the afternoon I’ve had all I can handle for one week and I am ready to head back out to the fields and get dirty again come Monday morning.”
Max smiled over at Liz and noticed she was frowning at him and he just had to know what her problem was…
“Liz, do you have a question?”
“Well sort of…Max Evans…are you Evans Oil by any chance?”
Max chuckled at her question, he thought she knew…
“Yes Liz, I thought you knew that.”
“No, I had no idea. I thought you guys just worked the fields like the rest of the men that came into the diner. Wow, talk about surprises.”
Liz looked over at Max and shivered, one of the wealthiest men in Texas, probably the world if the truth was known and here she was worried about the price of a meal…he must think she’s a real dumb ass…jeeeese…could she get any dumber?
Max smiled at her and reached across the table and took her hand in his and asked,
“Does it make a difference? You know? Does it matter that I’m a little rich?”
“A little rich…holy God Max…I would say that you are a little more than that wouldn’t you?” Liz was flabbergasted!
“Well, I’m still me. I haven’t changed in the last 60 seconds have I?”
“Well…I don’t know…maybe…I guess not. God Max…and I’m worried about the price of dinner over here.” She could hardly form a coherent sentence.
Now Max really started to laugh…
“It’s okay Liz. I like that about you, please, don’t change a thing okay…please.”
“Well Max, I don’t think I could if I tried. I’ll always be plain old Liz Parker.”
“Liz, there’s nothing plain about you, believe me…please don’t ever think that okay.”
And the evening just got better after that. They continued to question and answer each other and got acquainted and enjoyed a beautiful meal and then around 9:00 they headed to the video store to find something they both might enjoy and bought some ice cream at 31 flavors to take back to Liz’s apartment for some more fun and relaxation.
Max couldn’t have asked for a better evening and Liz was still on cloud nine so things were progressing very nicely.
They arrived back at Liz’s apartment around 10:00 and after Liz let them in she excused herself before getting the bowls for the ice cream and headed to her bedroom to take her shoes and jewelry off. She didn’t want to make herself too comfortable but the heels and earrings had to go. She let her hair down and made her way back to the living room wearing her black dress and a pair of huge fuzzy slippers. Max took one look at her in that get up and could only chuckle, Lord how he wanted to take her in his arms and hold her to him and never let her go…this getting acquainted was the pits he was already sure of what he wanted.
“Liz, you look positively adorable. Do you mind if I take my jacket and tie off and get a little comfortable as well?”
“Oh my no Max…take your shoes off too unless you think your feet will get cold. I don’t have any slippers that will fit you but I can get a blanket or something.”
Max was positively delighted with her, there was no other word to describe his feelings…She was so natural, relaxed and sure of herself, he gave her a huge grin and said…
“Liz, just the tie and jacket will be fine, I’m not in the least bit cold. What can I help you with?”
Liz returned his smile and said,
“You just get yourself comfortable in there and get the movie set up…I’ll only be a couple of minutes.”
And that’s about all the longer it took her to dish out the ice cream and to join Max on the couch…Max started the DVD and they sat in comfortable silence, eating their ice cream and watching their movie.
Max sneaked a peak at Liz every so often and it wasn’t too long before her head started to nod and then she was out, he smiled down at her and didn’t know if he should leave or finish the movie so he made a decision…he wasn’t ready to leave, whether she was asleep or not he wanted to be near her. So he pulled her over to him and got her comfortable, he pulled the small coverlet from the back of the couch over her and continued to watch the movie through to the end. When the credits started to roll Liz started to move in closer to Max to get more comfortable and he smiled down at her and kissed the top of her head before getting up from the couch. He put a pillow under her head and found his jacket, stuck his tie in his pocket and let himself out. This was one of the best nights of his life and he was looking forward to many more.
*~*~*
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