Behrsgirl1230 – I know you weren’t expecting it, but hey it had to happen sometime didn’t it? Thanks!
Earth2Mama – What’s next? Oh, maybe you should just read this part! Thanks!
kay_b – Hey sweetie, how will Alexis take the next step? Well, that I’m afraid you are going to have to wait for, after this part. Thanks!
Martine – Yeah, Max couldn’t hold out. But don’t forget it had been a while and Liz is different than the other girls he’d been with. Thanks!
Kismet – Thanks, and to answer your question the man that winked at Max, was simply someone he had paid to get everything ready for the proposal. Not an important character, but the wink was to signify, him knowing what was going on.
roswell3053 – I think you’re right, Alexis will be happy WHEN she finds out. Thank you!
Aussietrueblue – First of all, thank you for your very kind words. I miss writing this fic. This part took a lot longer than I wanted mainly because I had to get things set up right. Hope you enjoy!
Timelord31 – Yes, Liz is still a little hesitant but I think Max has shown her enough times that this is the real thing. Thank you!
begonia9508 – Thank you, glad to know I can still write some romance from time to time!
frenchkiss70 – Tiph, if I could clone Max I’d send one your way, and towards Rebecca’s way! Tell her I said hi and I miss her! Thanks!
BehrObsession – Can I just say, every time I read your feedback I have to smile. Usually the first sentence of your feedback sums up your emotions. I don’t know how to describe it, but whether you’re frustrated or elated, it comes across so clearly. Ah, will Max buy the team? Or will something interfere with this? Thanks!
VeronicB – Aww, thanks! I’m glad you thought it was sweet. Sometimes I have to really try hard with this sweet, slightly romantic parts especially if I’m just not feeling that way!
Guelbebek – Yes, usually people enjoy the proposal and sex…what a great combination no? LOL Thanks!
Sweet Liz – Exactly the 2 most important things…esp with Max and Liz! Thanks!
tijuana_lady – Jules! Girl, please, you know you’d marry him even without the speech! Thanks!
Mareli – I am always envious of Liz! Thanks!
Anonymousarfan – I think a few people would want to cause me harm if I had Liz say no. I think they have come too far, and Max is genuine with his feelings. Thanks!
Dreamer06 – Thanks! And I’ll try not to make you wait forever for the next part, since this one is a cliffy!
Shadowlynxbehr – You make me blush! Thank you!!
paper – Ah, Serena, I know you want to know who she is, maybe this part will help a little. Thanks!
Heavenli24 – You missed 4 parts the same way I miss them…haha! Now as far as Serena I hope to put some ease with this part about who she really is. And as far as things going off without a hitch…well….read on… Thanks!
PSW2001 – I think Alexis wants Max to be her father more than anything right now, let’s just see how this plays out, shall we? Thanks!
Lurkers…I hope you enjoy!
I know took me a while to get back into the groove of things with writing. And all I can say is that most of the next part is written so it won’t be too long until I post. You guys are so patient with me, and if you only knew what my life was like right now, you’d know how amazing that is for me
Tanya
Chapter 35
The very next morning found Max Evans lying quite content in his bed. The only problem was, when he rolled over to pull his fiancé into his arms, she was gone.
“Liz?” he croaked out groggily, but no response came. Pulling the sheets from around his waist, he stood and pulled on the pair of jeans that were lying haphazardly on the floor beside the bed.
It wasn’t until he turned towards their terrace window that he noticed her. The light from the early morning sky had cast a soft glow around her, and he couldn’t help the smile that formed on his lips a moment later.
Coming up behind her quietly, he wrapped his arms around her petite form and squeezed.
“Morning,” he whispered out as he felt her lean back into his warm embrace. He clasped his hands around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder.
“Can I ask you something?” she asked not looking at him. Instantly, she felt his body tense against hers.
“Of course,” he offered softly.
“How long do you want to wait to get married?” came her unexpected question, and it was received by an unexpected response.
“I don’t want to wait. Liz,” he began softly turning her around in his arms to face him. She looked beautiful, as she always did, but there was an extra gleam in her eyes that morning which made his heart race.
“I know we’ve had some rough patches, but I feel like I’ve found the person I’m supposed to be with, and I don’t want to wait. But, if you do, I can understand. We still have to talk to Alexis, and then we have to decide what to do with the house and…”
“Wait,” she cut him off, placing her hand in the air.
“What do you mean, the house? You aren’t going to get rid of it are you?” she asked, her brows creased in confusion.
“It was something I wanted to talk to you about, later. Wouldn’t you want a house of our own? One that we design and fill with our memories?” he asked with enthusiasm. He wanted Liz to be his wife, and Alexis his daughter more than anything, but still he felt like they were living his life, not their own.
“Max, that’s your house!”
“It started off that way, but I want to make new memories Liz, with you and Alexis in our home. I know the house is a bit much for your taste…don’t shake your head,” he chuckled lightly when he watched her begin to protest.
“Max, I don’t want you giving up the things you love,” she explained sincerely.
“So long as I don’t have to give up my family, then I think I can part with a house, Liz.” He smiled and pulled her flush against his body. His lips descended upon hers a moment later.
“I love you, Max. I don’t want to wait, but I do want to get everything settled with Alexis and with Serena. Max if she is your sister, then I’d like her to attend our wedding not as a guest of the groom, but as family of the groom. And I want a small wedding, on the beach someplace secluded and I want colorful flowers and…” she trailed off and began to list everything that came to her that she’d remembered from last night. Long after they had fallen asleep she had awaken, with thoughts of how she wanted to get married. She’d allowed herself to think about the fantasy for years, but now it was a reality and she wanted it to be perfect, not just for her but especially for Max. It would, after all be the first and last time they would get married.
“Baby, I’ll give you world however you want it be.” Max smiled and lifted her in his arms. “But right now, I want to make love to you as the sun rises,” came his soft request as he turned to lay her down on the bed. Taking the time to remove her robe and his jeans, he then settled beside her, kissing every piece of exposed skin he could reach. And then loved her body as he did the previous night.
<center>*****</center>
“Max! Stop! You are going to be late if you keep messing around,” she reprimanded him a few hours later as he chased her around the room.
“Come on baby, stop running, I just want to kiss you.” He watched as she leapt onto the bed and jumped up and down laughing with excitement. He couldn’t believe she was his. After all this time, he still had to remind himself that the angel in front of him, wearing nothing but a white towel, was his. He vowed at that moment no one would ever take her away, he would never allow it. She belonged to him. Max wasn’t the type of man that was possessive, but this was Liz, and she was different than any woman he’d ever known. He wanted her to love him for the rest of his life. That was all, his one simple request.
“Liar! You just want to get me naked again!” she cried with a bright smile on her face and jumped off the bed into his arms.
Max caught her and pulled her towel from her body in the process, he knew she’d reprimand him, but he couldn’t have cared less.
“Max! You have to leave in about five minutes.” Even as she chided him, she kissed him soundly on the lips. She loved him more than any words could ever describe, and she was the happiest she’d ever remember being, second only to the birth of her daughter.
“I know. I just don’t want to leave you.” Max smiled down at her, after he placed her on her feet and handed her the towel to wrap back around herself.
“Max, you’re not leaving me. I’ll be at the game with everyone else.”
“I know. Liz, are you sure you want to come? You don’t have to,” he started softly, as he rubbed her cheek gently.
“Are you kidding?” she questioned and then realized his reasoning. “Max, I know I stopped watching football a long time ago, but this is different. Kyle will be playing, which should be fun to watch. And I have Lexi, Maria and Michael there with me in the stands. Oh, and let’s not forget my sexy fiancé to keep my eyes occupied for hours,” she drawled out with a click of her tongue.
“Sexy?”
“Please, Max come off it. I already told you, so you can stop pretending like you don’t know this. Just your body alone is enough…” she trailed off, running her nails lightly down his shirt clad chest.
“Enough for wh-?” his question was cut off a second later by a knock on the door. Liz quickly scurried into the bathroom while Max answered the door.
“Hey, Max.”
“Kyle, what are you doing here?” Max asked curiously, since he knew that Kyle should be at the stadium already. He eyed Kyle and noticed how taught his shoulders were, and at that moment Max moved to the side to let Kyle in.
“I needed to talk to you.”
“Okay, how about we step outside on the terrace for a minute?” Max asked, already gesturing toward the screened glass doors. Once they were outside, Max turned to Kyle, still waiting for him to explain what was wrong.
“It’s Serena. She’s here, Max.”
“Okay,” he said in a steady voice, trying to hide the trepidation he felt in knowing this new information.
“Of course I invited her, but ever since Michael’s party she’s been distant. Then, this morning she calls me and asks me to pick her up at the airport. Don’t you think that’s weird?” Kyle asked, not wanting to give Max false hopes, but he had to wonder if it had anything to do with him.
Max chose his words carefully, “I think maybe she just changed her mind and wanted to see you. You told me she needed time to think, and maybe she’d taken it and was ready to be with you.” Max noticed he was rambling, which he never did. He couldn’t help the anxiousness he felt in seeing Serena again. Maybe, he thought, she’d spoken to her parents again and they were able to shed some light on the situation.
“Yeah, see that’s what I thought at first. I mean, don’t get me wrong, she seemed really happy to see me, if you know what I mean.” Kyle winked and Max visibly grimaced at the thought. Especially since there was a great possibility that Serena was his sister, and that was just not something he wanted to hear. Ever.
“Could you move along?”
“Oh right! So, there was something about her that was different and she asked if you were going to be here. I told her of course, you’re the assistant coach, where else would you be? I didn’t want to give your hopes up or anything, because it could go any way at this point,” Kyle offered with a shrug of his shoulders.
“Kyle, you know at this point I can’t change anything, nor can I regret it. So I’ll just deal with it, when the time comes.” Max offered somewhat distant and Kyle took that to mean he was done talking to him, and that maybe it was best if he left.
“Kyle,” Max called out when he saw Kyle move towards the door once they made their way back inside the room.
“Yeah?”
“I don’t think I’ve said thank you.”
“For what?” Kyle questioned as he turned to fully face Max.
“For being someone I could trust, as much as I trust Michael. I know I haven’t always been easy on you, but I want you to know that I never thought any less of you and I didn’t do what I did to put you down. I just didn’t want you turn out like me, or rather who I used to be.” Max offered a crooked smile looking at Kyle.
“I’m going to be honest with you here, Max. I thought you were just an arrogant asshole, but for some reason, I think the reason why I stuck around was because I knew that that wasn’t who you really were. And the advice you gave me, it didn’t fall on deaf ears. I heeded all your warnings and I think because of you, I was able to avoid all the pitfalls of this sport.” Kyle nodded his head and offered a thin smile, before turning and leaving the room.
“Well, well, well, I guess someone has finally found some confidence,” Liz whispered from behind Max. Now fully dressed in a pair of dark blue jeans and a pink and white football jersey, which Max had made especially for her as well as for Alexis.
He spun on his heels to face her with a bright smile. “I thought you fell in, what took you so long?” he questioned already knowing the answer.
“I wanted to give you the time you needed with him. I’m proud of you, Max. Kyle looks up to you and I think that’s wonderful.”
“Thank you, Liz. Now, I’m going to be really late. I’m going to stop by Maria’s room to get Alexis and then bring her here,” he said, placing a kiss on her lips.
Liz watched as he left. She had purposely not mentioned Serena, even though her heart was pounding at the thought of why she had decided to come at the last minute. Nevertheless, Liz knew today was going to be a very special day. It was after all the first time she’d be watching a football game live in over five years.
<center>*****</center>
“Mommy, I want a hot dog!” Alexis yelled out over the roar of the crowd. Liz turned to see her daughter, who had already swallowed more food than she’d ever seen her eat in her life. Now she wanted another hot dog?
“Lexi, you already had one, I think we need to take it easy. I don’t want you getting sick.” Liz lifted her daughter in her arms and placed her on her lap. Alexis had a matching jersey on, as well as a denim skirt she insisted on wearing.
“Hey Michael, I think she can pack even more food than you,” Maria called out to her right. Michael was so involved in the game; he’d just about missed her comment.
“Ha ha, you are just so funny. I’ll get you back…after the game. Damn it! Fumble!” he yelled out a second later.
“Ooh mommy! He said the ‘D’ word!” Alexis said as she reached over the seat to stick her hands in the popcorn Serena had in her lap.
“Lexi, I know. Bad Michael!” Liz reprimanded and then noticed her daughter leaning over the seat once again.
“What are you…Alexis stop taking Serena’s popcorn. I’m so sorry, she isn’t normally this…hungry.” Liz let out a little laugh; even though she was trying to reprimand her daughter the look on Alexis’ face was priceless.
“But mommy, she wasn’t even eating it. It was gonna go bad,” Alexis reasoned with a pout.
“It’s okay, Liz.” Serena offered with an unsteady smile.
“Thank you. But still, she should have asked you. Your manners young lady.” Liz turned to Alexis who was now drinking the soda from Maria’s cup.
“Sorry, mommy. I wanna go see Max.” Alexis pushed the curls that managed to make their way out of her ponytail away from her face, to find Max once again.
“There he is mommy!” Alexis pointed and then clapped and then began to scream for him.
Max turned around at the sound of Alexis’ voice, and he waved and smiled at her. She was simply adorable and he couldn’t wait until tonight. He and Liz had decided to tell her the great news over dinner after the game. Liz had decided she wanted Max to tell Alexis about them getting married. Max protested that it should be her, but Liz wouldn’t hear of it. And as much as Max hated Liz to take her ring off, she had promised it would be the only time she would. They didn’t want anyone knowing until the announced it, least of all Alexis. They felt she should be the first to know.
“I see him sweetie, but we have to wait until after the game. You remember Max promised to take us down there for a few minutes before we left?”
“I remember, but I wanna see him now,” she said, her lip already quivering. Alexis was in rare form, and Liz chalked it up to this all being so new and different. The crowd and the noise were unlike anything she was used to.
“Give me the little squirt,” Michael said, already standing to take Alexis back out to the concession stand. Both Liz and Maria were confused, they figured Michael wouldn’t move until the game was over, but they were wrong. Then again, they knew the power of Alexis’ quivering bottom lip on men.
“Thank you,” Liz said handing Alexis over. Maria then turned to Liz and they both snickered behind their hands.
“Serena how was your flight?” Liz asked after a few minutes. It had been a good hour and Serena had said but a few words.
“It wasn’t bad. I was just glad I made it in time to not miss the game.”
“Me too. I know Kyle was happy you came.” Liz decided to leave Max’s name out of the conversation for fear the girl would run.
“Yeah…me too,” she trailed off when she eyed Kyle running off the field. Liz watched her intently with a smile. Serena was definitely in love with Kyle.
“Kyle and Max are like brothers, you know?” Liz decided to find common ground without seeming too obvious to throw Max’s name out there to garner a reaction.
“I know. Kyle has told me so much about Max, I feel like I’ve known him forever.” Serena’s gaze moved over to Max’s. Kyle was now standing in front of him and they were talking animatedly at the moment.
“It’s uncanny isn’t it?” came Serena’s soft question. So soft that Liz had to lean closer to hear her.
“What is?”
“How much we look alike.” Liz’s eyes went wide when she saw a smile form on Serena’s lips. Was it true? Liz’s heart began thrumming in her chest. Max would be so happy! Liz wanted to run onto the field and drag him over to find out.
“Yes. Very much so.” Liz opted to act indifferent for the moment. They both turned their attention back to the game.
“Mommy look what Mike got me!” came her daughter’s voice twenty minutes later. Liz turned and saw that her daughter now had an ice cream bar. Liz groaned and threw Michael a glare.
“Hey, don’t blame me. She was nearly in tears, what was I supposed to do?” Michael shrugged handing Alexis over to Liz.
“Just say no, Michael. Just say no,” Maria said slapping his arm playfully.
The game had begun to pick up once again and everyone’s attention fell back on the field.
<center>*****</center>
The crowd roared louder than Liz thought was ever possible. Max’s team had won, which she was happy for, however for her it was exhilarating to see Max in action. She wished at that moment she was able to see him play, even if just once. She never knew what she was really missing out on. Yet another thing she had to thank Max for. Later she thought she would thank him properly.
“Hey baby,” Max said as he reached the sidelines coming stand in front of Liz and Alexis.
“I’m not a baby!” Alexis said as she reached out for Max to lift her up over the side to stand with him.
“I know that, I was talking to your mother.” He smiled as he lifted Alexis in his arms and kissed her cheek before placing her on her feet beside him.
“Now, come here beautiful.” Max winked as he reached out for Liz. She went without hesitation into his arms and then safely to the ground. Michael had jumped over the side and then lifted Maria over. The only person left was Serena. She looked a little hesitant but when Max offered she nodded her head in agreement.
“Thank you,” she said softly not able to look him in the eyes. Max nodded, “No problem. I think Kyle is waiting for you.” Max said and watched as she moved past him and then stopped.
“Can we talk later?” she asked, her eyes finally meeting his.
“Sure. Kyle knows where to find me.” Max smiled as she walked towards Kyle, who was standing just a few feet away.
“Max!” He turned and looked down to see Alexis, who was tugging on his pant leg.
“Yes?”
“Can you carry me on your shoulders?” she asked innocently.
“Of course. Let me just…”
“Hey Evans.” Max froze when the sound of the familiar voice came from behind him. His eyes narrowed in anger; then he turned to face what some would call his enemy.
“Stephens,” Max ground out, fists forming at his sides. Kyle had seen who’d just approached Max and quickly excused himself from Serena. Making his way over as hastily as possible, he knew things could get ugly between the two.
“What are you doing here? I thought this game had all it was going to see of you?” Max turned to see Kyle approaching, he stood right beside Max now. One thing they definitely had in common was their dislike for Sean Stephens.
Liz had been involved in a conversation with Maria about wanting nothing more than a good meal that didn’t consist of hot dogs and nachos that she didn’t notice the confrontation going on right behind her. She turned around a moment later and called out to Max, “Hey boys, we’re hungry and we want real food. How about we get out…”
“Oh my God!” Liz gasped aloud. It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t! She managed the few steps it took to come to Max’s side, and pulled her daughter protectively behind her.
“Hi Liz, long time no see.” Sean drawled out eyeing her up and down, which only served to fuel Max’s fury.
“Liz, you know him?” Max narrowed his eyes in confusion. Why the hell did it seem that Sean and Liz knew each other? And why had Liz pulled Alexis behind her the instant she reached her? His heart was thundering in his chest, his blood pounding in his ears.
“Liz?” Max reached out a hand to her shoulder when she didn’t answer. She finally blinked and turned to Max and looked him square in the eyes and whispered, “Jimmy.”
TBC…
In any event you want to read…so read and thank you so much for the feedback! I could feel your emotions…good stuff! Hope you enjoy!! 
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Which means I need to get things ready in preperation for her week long visit. So that means, I will probably not update until the end of August. I'm sorry, if I could avoid it I would, and I will tell you the only two that will be updated are MTML and LLI, during this time.
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