All's Fair in Love and Tennis (AU M/L MATURE) [COMPLETE] 7/6

[Heavenli24]

Banner by RosDude

Title: All’s Fair in Love and Tennis
Author: Heavenli24
Pairings/Couples/Category: M/L
Rating: MATURE
Disclaimer: The characters of "Roswell" belong to Jason Katims, Melinda Metz, WB, and UPN. They are not mine and no infringement is intended.
Summary: Response to Poison Ivy’s Wimbledon challenge (page 6 on the Taken Challenge thread). Max Evans is an aspiring tennis player from London, whose hero and inspiration is Jeff Parker, 9-times Grand Slam winner and former British and world number one. Liz Parker is Jeff’s daughter, who has followed in her dad’s footsteps to become an up-and-coming new tennis star. What happens when Max and Liz meet at their first ever Grand Slam tournament?
Author’s Note: I took this challenge all the way back when Wimbledon was on last year, but then suffered from major writer's block . However, I've been working on it for the last few weeks and I think it's now ready to post. Unfortunately, I don't have as much time to write as I'd like, so updates will be limited to once or twice a week for now.
A/N #2 I apologise for the very short Prologue - the other parts are longer, I promise .



Round 11: Best Challenge Response Fic - Runner Up

***

Prologue

July 8th 2007 – Men’s Singles Final, Wimbledon 2007

‘Okay, you can do this; just take deep breaths and stay calm,’ twenty-six-year-old Max Evans repeated to himself silently as he bounced the tennis ball on the ground once…twice…three times, preparing for the serve.

He closed his eyes in concentration as he geared up his body to begin the match. When he opened them, the first thing he saw was Liz Parker watching him from the side of the court. A small grin tugged at his lips as she sent him a smile of encouragement and gave a thumbs-up. He nodded in response, sucking in one final breath as he threw the ball in the air and brought his racket smashing down, thereby opening the match.

As he watched his opponent hit the ball back over the net, he lunged forward to return it, a burst of adrenaline shooting through him. He almost couldn’t believe this was really happening; he’d made it to the Wimbledon final – something he’d been dreaming about since he was a small boy, watching the legendary Jeff Parker win his third consecutive Wimbledon title back in 1986.

The first rally of the match was well underway and Max was playing well. Every now and then, he’d glimpse her flowing dark hair and pensive gaze on him as he moved and a smile would slide across his face at the sight. Liz Parker, daughter of famous tennis player, Jeff Parker, was the most beautiful girl he’d ever laid eyes on and the woman who, after years of struggles and hurting, was actually back in his life again. And being honest, if it weren’t for her, he wouldn’t be standing here today, competing for the championship cup, with a 50:50 chance of actually winning it.

“Game, Evans.”

Liz was definitely his good luck charm today, he decided, as the umpire called his name: he’d won the first game. He jogged back to his chair for a quick swig of water. His eyes flew to her once more as he picked up his racket again and made his way back onto the court. At one time, she had been everything to him: his best friend, his support, and his other half, and back then, he couldn’t have imagined being without her. However, there had been obstacles in their way over the last few years, things that had kept them apart and now it amazed him that she was actually here supporting him today.

Right this moment, life was great, and if he could manage to stay on top and play his best today, in a couple of hours, his life could be perfect once again.

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for your feedback :

FSU/MSW-94
youre my dreamgirl
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***

Part One

One month earlier – Thursday June 7th 2007

“…Okay, I know this one… it’s Prince Charles on his visit to the Chelsea Flower Show last week wearing that God-awful green jacket…” stated Paul Merton confidently.

“…is the wrong answer,” replied Angus Deayton, drawing out the well-known catchphrase. “It was actually…”

Max Evans rolled his eyes and pressed the mute button on the TV remote. It was ten-thirty on a Thursday night and there was nothing on TV but “Have I Got News For You” reruns on UKTV G2, which were really getting old…and they weren’t even that funny anymore, especially considering that the so-called ‘News’ was now almost ten years out of date. He let out a sigh as he began channel-hopping mindlessly, only stopping when he reached the BBC’s sports news. With interest, he turned the sound up again.

“So, John, what do you think of the rumours going around that a certain Liz Parker may be making a comeback at Wimbledon this year?” asked Sue Barker with a warm smile. “After two years away, I’d imagine she’d be itching to get back on the court.”

Max shifted on his bed, sitting up straight at the words coming from the former tennis professional turned sports TV presenter.

“Well, Sue,” replied John Lloyd, her guest-host on the programme. “I sincerely doubt there’s any truth to these rumours. After all, the press do like to stir things up before every big tournament. There have been rumours of her return for months now, but there’s been no sign of her as of yet.”

Max let out a sigh of relief. He’d spent the last few months working so hard to get to where he was now and seeing Liz Parker again would completely ruin everything for him. He didn’t need any distractions right now; if he was going to win Wimbledon once and for all, he needed to concentrate on his game.

Stifling a yawn, he slid of the bed, turned off the TV and made his way into the bathroom to get ready for bed. He needed an early night if he was going to be on the practice courts all day tomorrow. However, he stopped in his tracks as, halfway to the bathroom, his mobile began blasting the ‘Match of the Day’ theme tune – hey, he might be a tennis player, but he still enjoyed his football! With a roll of his eyes, he reached over to grab the phone from his bedside table.

“Yes?”

“Max, I’m glad I caught you before you went to bed,” came a slightly breathless voice on the other end. It was his coach, Todd Davis – one of the best in the country, but totally lousy with timing.

“What’s up, Todd?”

“Sorry to call you so late, mate, but I’ve just had an email from the Wimbledon committee and I have a favour to ask of you.”

Oh no, here we go, thought Max with an internal sigh, before replying with an almost impatient, “Yes?”

“Well, since you seem to be back on track this year, the committee were hoping I could persuade you to participate in the mixed doubles again,” said Todd, somewhat hesitantly.

“What?!” exclaimed Max, his eyes widening in disbelief. “Todd, you know I don’t play mixed anymore…not since…” he trailed off, his meaning implied.

“I know that, mate, but you and I both know you never really got closure on that period of your life. I think this would be a good opportunity to put the past behind you, once and for all.”

“And how exactly do you expect me to do that?” burst out Max in frustration. “I sincerely doubt that I’m going to get closure by playing doubles with some girl I’ve never met before.”

“Ah, see that’s the thing, Max,” replied Todd. “You wouldn’t be partnering just anyone. They want you to play with Liz Parker.”

Max almost dropped the phone in shock as his coach’s words registered. Liz? She was back? After practically dropping off the face of the Earth for almost two years, she was making a comeback…now? And they wanted him to play with her. No way… there was no way in hell he was going to play with Liz Parker again.

“What?!” he screeched down the phone in outrage. “You’re having a laugh. No fucking way!”

“Max, Max, just listen to me, okay? I know it’s not the ideal situation, but think about the publicity you’ll get from this –”

“No, you listen to me, Todd,” he retorted, cutting Todd off in mid-sentence. “After years of trying, I’m finally where I want to be – I might actually have a chance of winning this year; I can’t jeopardise that; and if I have to deal with Liz Parker during this tournament it could ruin me.”

“Look, Max,” piped up Todd sympathetically. “I know it’d be difficult for you, but can you just give it some thought? Please? Think what this would do for you in the public eye: the great Evans and Parker team back together again. You’d be all over the news.”

“Exactly,” Max responded dryly. “I don’t want that kind of publicity right now. I’m here to concentrate on my game, not my image. The answer is no.”

“But, Max – ”

Max hung up the phone, abruptly cutting Todd off, and angrily tossed it onto his bed before marching into the bathroom. He braced his hands on the edge of the sink as he shook his head at his reflection. He had to admit that the anger he’d expressed on the phone was really just a front to mask his true feelings. In all honesty, just the thought of Liz Parker being here in London and competing in the same Grand Slam tournament as him, for the first time in two years, scared the shit out of him. He had no desire to ever talk to the girl ever again and avoiding her would be pretty much impossible if he were to partner her in the mixed doubles.

After all the pain and suffering he’d been through these past few months, he didn’t think his heart could survive seeing her again. He splashed water onto his face and as he reached for a towel to dry off, his thoughts wandered back to the first time he’d ever met Liz Parker…

***

Friday May 25th 2001 – French Open, Paris, France

Max sucked in a deep breath as he prepared to open the large white door in front of him and enter the posh conference room where Jeff Parker’s good luck party was being held. He almost couldn’t believe he was actually here in Paris, a qualifier for the French Open, which began in just a couple of days and he was about to meet some of the greatest tennis players in the world, including his idol – nine-times grand-slam winner and one of the most admired tennis players of all time, Jeff Parker.

He was both excited and extremely nervous at the prospect of actually playing in a grand slam tournament. He would be amongst the big guns now and it was all very daunting. He’d been dreaming of making it as a professional tennis player for fifteen years – ever since he was five years old – and now his dream seemed to finally be coming true. With trembling hands, he reached for the doorknob and pulled open the large door. This was it, the beginning of everything he’d ever wanted…

… Or maybe not, he thought twenty minutes later, as he stood beside the refreshment table, nursing a glass of beer in one hand, at least not the socialising side of the tennis world. Max plastered a fake smile on his face as yet another socialite woman complimented him on his recent profile in Ace tennis magazine and told him he was so much better-looking in the flesh. As the woman continued to gush, he quickly made an excuse to leave and let out a sigh of relief as he slipped away towards the men’s toilets. God, these people were so… superficial… it made him want to throw up.

As he exited the toilets a couple of minutes later, he was greeted by his current coach, Mark Wilson, who exclaimed that he’d been looking for him everywhere and then proceeded to drag him off to introduce him to some people he knew. Thirty minutes later, he’d made small talk with more people than he could remember and he felt like his head was spinning from all the information he’d received in such a short time. He really needed to sit down and take a breather.

He began scanning the room for an empty seat, but before he could find one, his eyes caught on someone standing by the far wall, a girl with long, dark, shiny hair, a girl who looked familiar. She held a glass of wine in one hand and an interesting-looking hors d’oeuvre in the other, which she occasionally brought up to her mouth to take a nibble on. Max frowned as she tried to place her… Wait a minute, of course he knew who she was – she was Jeff Parker’s daughter, Elizabeth. Wow, she had really grown up since he’d last seen pictures of her a few years ago – she must be about seventeen now, he mused. He’d heard that she was a budding tennis player, but he hadn’t considered that she might be at this party – although considering that her dad was the host, he shouldn’t have been all that surprised.

He watched her for a moment before deciding to take the plunge and approach her. He weaved his way through the crowd and eventually came to a stop beside her. He exhaled lightly before plastering a smile on his face and opening his mouth to speak.

“It’s pathetic, isn’t it?” he murmured, watching as Elizabeth glanced up at him in surprise.

“I’m sorry?” she queried. She had a nice voice, decided Max; it was friendly and warm.

“All these attention-seeking, tennis-world wannabes,” replied Max, raising a hand towards the crowd. “I mean, I bet half of them don’t know shit about the sport, yet here they are, mingling and sucking up to everyone in sight.”

She giggled and took a sip of wine. His smile widened and he turned to face her with a grin, stretching out his hand to her.

“Max Evans, up and coming star of British tennis,” he quoted with a teasing wink. That’s what they’d called him in a recent newspaper article – his mum had called him up just to read it to him.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and he grinned again. He didn’t know what had come over him. He wasn’t usually this forward or cheeky, but somehow this girl seemed to bring it out in him.

“Liz Parker, most famous tennis player in the world,” she joked back as she shook his hand.

“Touché,” he chuckled, as she sighed and then returned the grin.

“Okay, so technically I’m his daughter, but one day I will be the most famous player in the world,” she declared.

“Ah,” said Max airily, enjoying their banter. “So you must be that Parker girl everyone’s talking about. You know, I personally don’t see the big deal, but you know, whatever,” he shrugged.

“Oh, ha ha,” mocked Liz, her hand still gripping his. They stared each other down for a moment, before Liz gave him a genuine smile. “Nice to meet you, Max Evans.”

“You too, Liz Parker,” he returned the smile, finally letting his hand slip from hers. “So, what do you say we stick together the next two weeks, get away from all these awful people?”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” she grinned. “Although I know how to handle these kinds of people; I’ve been doing it all my life,” she added airily.

“Oh, well aren’t you the experienced one,” he retorted cheekily.

Liz raised an eyebrow at him, “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Are you propositioning me, Ms. Parker?” asked Max playfully.

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” replied Liz sweetly.

“Of course not,” he agreed, hiding a grin. “Can I get you another drink?”

“Oh, um, I already have –”

Max smirked at she stopped abruptly, looking down at her now-empty wine glass.

“You know what? Another drink would be great,” she said quickly. “Thanks.”

“White wine?” he asked.

“Sure.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Max chuckled to himself as he made his way through the crowd, towards the bar. Who knew Jeff Parker’s daughter would be such a tease? He had to admit though, that she was fun to be around and he couldn’t deny that he was looking forward to hanging out with her over the next few days. Once at the bar, he ordered another white wine for Liz and gin and tonic for himself, but as he made his way back over to Liz, a thought occurred to him.

“You know,” he said, as he reached her side once again. “I’m not entirely sure you should be drinking this; after all, you are underage.”

“I’m legal here,” she informed him, as she took the glass from him, but raised her eyebrows questioningly, “And anyway, what do you know about my age? You only just met me.”

Damn. How was he going to explain this one?

“Um, well,” he fumbled, looking away as he felt the heat rising in his cheeks. He sucked in a breath before he turning back to her. “Okay, here’s the thing. I’m a big fan of your dad – have been since I was a kid. I even remember seeing you in pictures with him when you were younger, so it’s not hard to work out how old you are now.”

“Oh God,” Liz groaned, and Max could see a blush tingeing her cheeks too. “I looked awful back then.”

“Look, it’s not a big thing, alright?” Max quickly backtracked. “Just forget I mentioned it.”

“Okay, I’ll agree to that” Liz was quick to add.

“Great,” replied Max, taking a sip of his drink. Whew, he’d almost blown it then. He didn’t want Liz Parker thinking that he had an unhealthy obsession with her father or anything – that might have scared her off.

They stood together in silence for a few minutes, just observing their surroundings, until the annoying woman that had gushed over Max earlier suddenly slipped on a spilled drink next to the buffet table and fell flat on her back. He tried not to laugh at the sight, but it was proving difficult, especially since Liz was openly giggling beside him. He turned to her and their eyes met as they both succumbed to their laughter. To avoid drawing attention, Max quickly ushered Liz out of the room, towards the pool area, where they took a seat beside the water and spent the rest of the evening chatting and generally getting to know each other.

***

As the memory faded and Max discarded the towel, he realised that his eyes were damp. He quickly shook his head to clear it and with a scowl, he left the bathroom and got changed for bed. As he slid beneath the covers and turned off the light, he vowed to himself that he would never let Liz Parker close to him again.

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for all your feedback :

LairaBehr4 (x2) - Thanks , although you know you don't have to read the part as soon as it's posted - especially if it's 2 am your time !

youre my dreamgirl - Thanks . Yeah, something big definitely happened between them. Since the fic is set in England, I thought I'd take advantage of as many British things as I could, .

begonia9508 - Thanks . I hope you can keep enjoying the story even though you're not a tennis fan. Also, where would we be if we didn't have at least some angst in the story, ?

Natalie36 - Yeah, Liz definitely did some damage, and whilst she was young at the time, we also don't know what exactly happened yet.

clueless - Thanks . The truth will be revealed as the story progresses.

Natz - Thanks .

behralicious87 - Thanks . Oh, and you should also thank Poison Ivy for coming up with the story idea in the first place .

Sweet Liz - Thank you .

pandas2001 - You'll find out eventually, don't worry .

Alien_Friend - Thanks - I tried to start months ago, but nothing happened! Wimbledon has always been an integral part of the summer in our house, so it's great to be able to write a story about it. Although I don't play, my parents are both tennis players (they play for local teams) - my mum even beat Sue Barker (former world number 3) in a county tournament when they were teenagers!

Nz_Roswell - Thanks .

Blink1lit - Thank you .



***

Part Two

Friday June 8th 2007

Liz Parker eyed the automatic ball machine warily as she prepared to hit the next tennis ball it shot out in her direction. She was struggling to concentrate on her training today, not just because she’d been out of the game for two years and this year’s Wimbledon was her big comeback, but also because she knew who else would be playing here over the coming weeks.

Max Evans.

Although she’d done her best to forget him and everything he once was to her over the past few months, she couldn’t help but keep up to date with his tennis career. She knew that despite being considered one of the best players of 2005, for some reason his career had gone downhill during 2006. However, last August something had changed and he had crashed back onto the scene in spectacular style, winning first the US Open, then the Australian Open and even the French Open just a couple of weeks ago. He was back on form as the tennis star of the moment and according to the papers, was well on track for winning Wimbledon this year too.

Whoosh.

Liz sucked in a loaded breath as a brand new yellow tennis ball shot out of the machine on the other side of the court and she swung her racket back in preparation.

Whack.

The head of the racket connected with the ball and the force of her swing sent it flying right into the wire netting at the back of the court. Putting all thoughts of Max Evans and the past behind her, Liz recovered quickly and returned to the centre of the court, ready to hit the next ball. For the next thirty minutes, she continued to practice her shots, stopping only to collect up the balls scattered around the court and reload the automatic ball machine, until the sound of a throat clearing at the side of the court distracted her. Liz jogged over to the machine, turning it off, before turning to the intruder, who was watching her with an unreadable expression, his arms crossed over his chest.

“Hey, David,” she greeted her coach breathlessly. “How’s it going today?”

He raised an eyebrow, “Maybe I should be asking you that question, Liz. Don’t you think you might be going over the top with this training schedule of yours? You’ve only been back on the courts for a few weeks; I don’t want to see you overdoing it before the tournament even begins.”

Liz just rolled her eyes, “I’m fine, David. I’m almost back up to the level of fitness I was two years and if I want to succeed at Wimbledon this year, then I’m going to have to train hard over the next couple of weeks.”

David sighed, “Okay, I get it. But just be careful out here, alright? I don’t want you spraining an ankle or twisting a knee just because you haven’t bothered to warm up properly.”

“Yes, sir,” Liz agreed with a solemn nod, although there was a twinkle in her eye as she lifted her hand to her forehead and gave a quick salute.

David Johnson gave her a slightly amused nod before opening his mouth to speak again, “Right, well, now that’s out of the way, let’s get down to the reason I’m here – apart from to coach you, that is – I’ve got a proposition for you.”

“And what proposition is that?” wondered Liz aloud, as she reached down for her water bottle, which was placed at the side of the net, and took a gulp of water.

“Okay, here’s the thing: I got an email from the tournament committee last night. It seems they want you to enter into the mixed doubles as well as the singles.”

“What?” exclaimed Liz, almost choking on her water. “Me, play mixed again? Are they crazy? I’m barely in good enough shape to play my singles matches, let alone any others!”

“Liz, you said it yourself just now: you’re almost back to your old standard already. I’m sure you can handle a few extra matches.”

Liz snorted, “Says the guy who just told me not to overdo it.” She sighed, “Look, David, I’m out of practice; I can’t just jump into playing mixed in a grand slam with some bloke I’ve never played with before – it would just be a mess on the court.”

At this, her coach fidgeted slightly and avoided her gaze. Liz narrowed her eyes.

“What aren’t you telling me, David?”

He gave her a somewhat sheepish glance, “See, the thing is… you wouldn’t be playing with just anyone…”

“Oh?”

“They want you and Max Evans to play together again,” he blurted out quickly, closing his eyes as if bracing himself for the inevitable outburst from his student.

But none came. Liz just stood in front of him, her mouth opening and closing mindlessly, her mind reeling with shock. It was several seconds before she managed to form words.

“No, no, no, I can’t,” she muttered, vigorously shaking her head in the negative. “There is no way that I’m playing with Max Evans. Not now, not ever. And that’s final.”

“Liz, please, won’t you just consider it? Think what this could do for your career – it’s wouldn’t just be your comeback in the news… it’d be the great Evans and Parker team, back together again. Think of the press and publicity you’d get if you did it.”

“I don’t care about the publicity, okay?” stated Liz, through her teeth. “It’s going to be hard enough knowing that Max is here, in Wimbledon, at the same time as me. I don’t think I can handle being around him in person too.”

David’s expression softened and he moved to put an arm around Liz’s shoulders, “Look, I know this isn’t the ideal situation for you right now, but don’t you think it would be good for the public to see that you and Max are still friends, even after all this time?”

“But, we’re not friends, are we?” murmured Liz bitterly. “We haven’t even spoken in almost two years.” She shook her head. “No… no, David… I’m not going to do it. End of story.”

Her coach released her and looked down at her sad, vulnerable expression before sighing in defeat, “Okay, you win. I’ll tell the committee you’re unable to enter the mixed this year.”

Liz let out a sigh of relief, “Thank you, David. Thank you so much.”

He simply nodded sadly and made his way back towards the gate at the side of the court, “Well, I guess I have a phone call to make. Keep practicing, and I’ll come by later so we can work on your footwork some more.”

Liz watched him go, before picking up her racket once more and returning to her practice shots. As she began methodically hitting the balls as they were released from the machine, her mind travelled back to a time when life was simple and she had just made a new friend by the name of Max Evans…

***

Saturday June 2nd 2001 – French Open, Paris, France

Liz was sitting at a table, staring glumly out of the window of the Roland Garros coffee bar, one hand propping up her chin as the other absentmindedly stirred her coffee with a spoon.

She felt as if the whole day had just been a terrible blur. It wasn’t fair: she’d been playing her best all week, yet this morning she’d been knocked out in the third round of the tournament. Although she knew it was a big achievement to have made it to the third round of her first Grand Slam, she couldn’t help but be disappointed in herself for not getting further.

She let out a sigh as her thoughts drifted back to her game earlier that day. If she was honest, she didn’t’ suppose there was much she could have done about the outcome of the match. She hadn’t played badly by any means, but the fact of the matter was that her opponent had been a better player.

“Hey there, stranger,” came a now familiar tone from behind her.

Pulled from her thoughts, Liz lifted her head to see a sweaty and tired-looking Max Evans sliding into the seat opposite her, a sympathetic expression on his face.

“Oh, hey, Max,” she greeted softly.

“Liz,” he returned. “I heard about your match this morning… I just wanted to offer my commiserations to you.”

“Yeah, well,” shrugged Liz, in a ‘watcha you gonna do?’ manner. “My opponent was the better player.”

“Still,” said Max gently. “It’s never a good feeling when you lose a match. Believe me, I know.”

Liz nodded in agreement, before asking hesitantly, “Dare I ask how your third round match went?”

“It pretty much sucked,” admitted Max with a sigh. “He beat me in straight sets.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” replied Liz, her expression softening. “So, I guess we’re both big losers here then.”

“Yeah… as glad as I am to have made it to the third round, losing just sucks.”

“Tell me about it,” murmured Liz, before suddenly perking up, a smile on her face as a thought occurred to her. “Although… being out of the tournament does have a couple of merits…”

“Oh?” wondered Max.

“We no longer need to get a good night’s sleep, nor do we have to avoid alcohol anymore this week – so what do you say we go for a night on the town tonight? You, me and lots of booze.”

Max looked apprehensive at first, but Liz just fixed him with the puppy-dog expression that never failed to wear her father down, and he soon relented.

“Okay, Miss Parker, you’re on,” he announced with a grin.

“Great,” said Liz happily. “We’ll go back to the hotel to shower and change and then we can meet in the lobby at eight for a night of fun.”

“Sounds good,” agreed Max. “I could do with some fun after the intensity of the last few days.”

***

Three hours and several drinks later, Liz and Max were sitting at the bar of a smoky Paris brasserie engaged in an apparently serious, but not entirely coherent conversation. During a lull in the discussion, Liz turned to Max with a drunken smile, winked at him and then turned to the barman to order more drinks.

“Excuse-moi, monsieur?” she asked the dark-haired, good-looking man behind the bar.

“Oui, mademoiselle?” the bartender gave her a smile.

“Tequilas, s’il vous plait; deux,” she stated, holding up two fingers to indicated how many she wanted.

“Un moment, mademoiselle,” smiled the barman, as he pulled out two shot glasses.

Two minutes later, two shots of tequila were placed in front of Liz, along with two slices of lime and a salt-shaker.

“Merci,” Liz thanked the barman and paid for the drinks, before turning to Max twinkle in her eye, “You ready?”

“Yep,” he said firmly.

“Okay, on three,” said Liz, as she picked up her glass in preparation. “One…two…three.”

Simultaneously, the two of them licked salt of the backs of their hands, downed the shot and reached for the slices of lime.

“Ahh,” sighed Liz, putting the lime back down on the plate. “Just what I needed. How about you?”

“Oh, definitely,” agreed Max, although his words were slightly slurred and he was currently swaying a little in his seat. He leaned his arm on the side of the bar as he studied Liz carefully. “So, Lizzie… can I call you Lizzie?”

“Sure,” Liz chuckled, amused at Max’s behaviour; he obviously didn’t drink a lot. “Go ahead.”

“Okay, Lizzie, I have a question for you.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“What’s your favourite…” Max paused, as if he was trying to remember what he wanted to ask. Liz bit her lip to hide her smile “Film?”

“My favourite film?” she wondered aloud. “Hmm… I guess it would have to be… Ever After.”

Max frowned quizzically for a moment before asking, “That Cinderella one with Drew Barrymore?”

“Yeah,” grinned Liz. “I love it… it’s so romantic.”

“Huh,” Max rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t have pegged you for a romantic.”

“Really? Why not?” wondered Liz with a giggle.

“Well, you seem… sorta wild and outgoing. Thought you’d prefer action films.”

Liz shrugged and her expression turned thoughtful at that. “Nah, not really,” she replied, before turning the question around on him, “So, what’s your favourite film then, Mr. Evans?”

Max shrugged, “You know, I don’t really have one.”

“Oh, come on, you have to have a favourite!” exclaimed Liz incredulously.

“Well, I don’t,” retorted Max. “I like lots of films.”

“Fine,” Liz pouted. “Spoilsport.”

Max frowned. “I’m not a spoilsport,” he pouted drunkenly.

“Yes, you are,” returned Liz with a grin. “You’re a big ole’ tennis-playing spoilsport.”

“If you say so,” mumbled Max, apparently too inebriated to argue any further.

“Hey, let’s go clubbing,” announced Liz, suddenly changing the subject as she hopped off her bar stool and grabbed Max’s arm.

“Okay,” Max agreed and Liz pulled him out of the brasserie.

Max slung his arm around Liz’s shoulders as they weaved in and out of the pedestrians on the pavements of the Paris streets. Liz smiled to herself; she felt so comfortable around Max – more so than she had around any of her other male friends – and as they reached the nightclub, she decided that he was going to become one of her best friends in the months to come…

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for the feedback :

Alien_Friend - Thank you . I try to watch Wimbledon when it's on, and occasionally we can get tickets for it from my parents tennis club - I've watched one day of matches at No.1 court and my parents have managed to get seats for the Women's Singles Final in the past.
For the story, I'm thinking that in 2007 Max has become the latest Roddick or Federer (who are surprisingly absent in my fic ) and is on a major winning streak. The question is, can Max win Wimbledon knowing that Liz is back in the picture?

youre my dreamgirl - Thanks . I figured that since they were both new to grand slam tournaments, it wouldn't be very likely that they both went right ahead and won everything... also, you know what British tennis players are like about pulling out all the stops when they need to win - Tim Henman usually fell to pieces when he got to match point!

LairaBehr4 - Before you say anthing, I know I'm stil posting at some ungodly hour for you, but today it's much easier to post early before everyone else in the house gets up and decides to interrupt me and try to kick me off my own computer!

clueless - Thanks .

alizaleven - Thank you . It took me a long time to decide how to structure the story, so I'm glad you like it.

Natz - Yes, it could change soon .

behralicious87 - Thank you . It could be a misunderstanding, or perhaps one of them did something really bad... I'm afraid you'll just have to keep reading to find out .

begonia9508 - Thanks .

Tamashii - Thanks ... here's the next chapter for you to get stuck in to...


***

Part Three

Friday June 8th 2007

Out on the practice courts, Max was trying his hardest to concentrate on his footwork, but this morning, he was definitely more than distracted. Despite what he’d told Todd on the phone last night about not wanting to deal with Liz being here at Wimbledon, he couldn’t stop his mind from wandering to her and where on earth she could have been for the past two years.

Although, months ago, he’d vowed not to dwell on the past and what she’d once meant to him, he couldn’t help but wonder how she was doing. There was also this little nagging feeling in the back of his mind that nothing about their relationship had yet been resolved… it was a feeling that he knew wouldn’t go away until he found out the real reason she left that summer.

He’d been angry about that for a long time, angry at her for what she’d done, and even now, when he’d finally found some peace of mind and had moved on, his thoughts would still occasionally drift back to her. If he was totally honest, there was a part of him that was tempted to agree to play in the mixed doubles, just so he could finally confront the perfect Liz Parker and demand to know why she had stopped loving him, why she had thrown away everything they meant to each other, only to disappear from the face of the earth, never to contact him again.

But he knew that it was a bad idea, because if he even got so much as a glimpse of Liz Parker in the flesh right now, his defences would drop. Everything would just come rushing back and his heart probably would never recover again. And if that wasn’t bad enough, he was sure he would no longer be able to concentrate on his game if she was there, and his career would therefore be in the toilet.

No, it was better all around if he stayed as far away from Liz Parker as possible.

With this thought in mind, Max spent the next hour releasing his frustrations over the Liz situation on the court and by the time he stopped for a breather, his game was back on track. He felt energised and ready to take on Wimbledon 2007 and would have continued to train for several more hours if it weren’t for his best friend and practice partner, Nathan Thomas showing up at the edge of the court barely a minute later.

“Oi, Max!” called Nathan through the metal wire netting surrounding the court. Max raised a hand in greeting as he took one last swig from his water bottle and then ran a towel over his face to wipe away the sweat. “Up for a pint?”

“Alright, Nathe?” he greeted tiredly as he gathered his belongings and trudged off the court. “What’s going on?”

His friend shrugged. “Not much… saw you working your bum off out here and thought you could use a break and maybe a beer? They’re showing the Arsenal match in the Dog and Bone this afternoon,” he revealed temptingly.

A smile tugged at the corners of Max’s mouth, “Fine, you got me. Looks like I’m spending the afternoon at the pub.”

***

“He wants you to what?” exclaimed Nathan in surprise, putting his pint glass back down on the table to prevent the beer inside from spilling out.

“Not he, they – the committee,” clarified Max. “They want me to play the mixed with Liz Parker.”

“Wow,” his friend breathed. “That’s…God, mate, what did you say to that?”

“I told Todd no fucking way,” stated Max, taking a gulp of his drink. “I have no plans to be anywhere near Liz Parker in the next few weeks.”

Nathan regarded Max thoughtfully for a few moments before speaking again, “You know, when you first introduced me to Liz, I said to myself, ‘those two are going to end up together one day; they’re perfect for each other’.” Max raised an eyebrow cynically, but Nathan continued, “And I know you guys aren’t together at the moment, but I still think there’s hope for the two of you yet.”

“Nathe,” started Max, shaking his head. “All hope I ever had of spending my life with Liz Parker flew out of the window the day she just up and left me without a word. I don’t need the stress of getting into it with her all over again, especially not now.”

“But don’t you think it’s worth trying to reconcile your differences, even if it’s just to find out the reason she left?” argued Nathan. “After all, if the tournament goes well for both of you, then you’re going to have to deal with her at all the other tournaments in the future too. Why not just get it over with and settle your differences now whilst you have the chance?”

Max sighed; Nathan did have a point and deep down he knew that this would just be the beginning of his trying to avoid Liz at tournaments. But, although he knew the best thing to do would be to finally get an explanation from her, he didn’t think that competing in the mixed doubles at Wimbledon together when they weren’t even on speaking terms, was the best way to go about it.

“I don’t know, Nathan,” he muttered. “God, why did this have to happen now, just when I’m getting back on track again?”

Nathan gave him a sympathetic smile, “Hey, do you remember when you told me about your first ever meeting with Liz’s dad? What he said to you about being a successful player and not letting anything interfere with that?”

Max nodded reluctantly.

“Well, don’t you think that applies now?”

Max’s expression became thoughtful as he remembered that day, when he’d met Jeff Parker for the first time…

***

Tuesday September 4th 2001 – US Open, Queens, New York

“Congratulations,” stated Max warmly, as he pulled Liz into a hug at the side of the court.

She’d just won her first quarterfinal in a Grand Slam and as Max had lost own his fourth round match yesterday, he’d made it a point to go and watch Liz play today.

“Thanks,” she grinned when he released her. “Look, my father promised he’d take me and my mum out to celebrate tonight if I won today and I was hoping you’d join us for dinner?”

Dinner with Liz and her parents… dinner with Jeff Parker? Of course he wanted to go!

“I’d love to, Liz,” he grinned. “Thank you.”

“No problem,” smiled Liz. “Let me just finish up here and we’ll go meet Dad at my hotel.”

“Great,” agreed Max. “You go and talk to the press and I’ll wait for you outside the courts, alright?”

“Okay, great. I won’t be long,” she told him, before collecting her things and making her way out to the changing rooms.

Max left the courtside and waited patiently while Liz gave interviews to the press and then got changed out of her tennis gear. He couldn’t stop grinning… he was about to officially meet Jeff Parker – a man he’d idolised since he was a kid and the person who had inspired him to become a tennis player all those years ago.

***

Max and Liz entered the hotel to find Jeff already waiting for them in the lobby. Jeff’s face lit up with a beaming smile when he spotted his daughter, and Max watched as he stood up from his comfy chair to pull her into a hug.

“I’m so proud of you, Lizzie,” he murmured into her hair, gripping her tightly. “But I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there to watch you this afternoon.”

“Thanks, Dad,” said Liz, as she pulled back to look up at her father. “And it’s okay, I know you would have come if you could.”

Jeff smiled down at his daughter, before turning to face Max. He held out his hand in invitation.

“So, you must be the Max Evans that Lizzie’s been telling me so much about. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Um, thank you,” managed Max, as he numbly shook hands with his hero. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mr Parker.”

Liz’s dad just smiled at him.

“Call me Jeff,” he said warmly. “I’ve been hearing good things about your game, Max. Apparently you’re supposed to be the next big thing around here.”

“Yeah, well,” shrugged Max, slightly embarrassed at receiving praise from such a high-profile ex- player. “I’m trying my best.”

“He’s really good, Dad,” added Liz with a smile, before apparently sensing that he was uncomfortable under her dad’s scrutiny and quickly changing the subject. “So, where’s Mum? Is she still coming for dinner?”

“She is, but you know how long it takes her to get ready for these things,” replied Jeff. “She’ll be joining us in a few minutes. Actually, I’ll just go and see if she’s on her way now. Excuse me, kids.”

Liz and Max nodded and then proceeded to make small talk until Jeff returned with Nancy Parker on his arm. Introductions were made and Max found himself warming considerably to both Liz’s parents as they made their way out of the hotel. Thirty minutes later, the four of them were seated in a posh Manhattan restaurant for Liz’s celebratory dinner.

“So, Max,” said Jeff, after they’d ordered and were waiting for the food to arrive. “What made you decide to pursue a career in tennis?”

Max stole a quick, embarrassed glance at Liz, whose lips twitched at the question. She knew exactly who had inspired him as a child, and he wasn’t sure if it was appropriate to admit that to Jeff himself, however, she just smiled at him encouragingly, so he turned back to Jeff.

“Well, actually, I’ve wanted to be a professional tennis player since I was five years old,” he revealed. “In fact, it was the 1986 Wimbledon men’s final that did it for me.”

“1986? Now, I seem to remember winning that year,” said Jeff, as he began to catch on to what Max was saying. “Ah, I see.”

“This is kind of embarrassing to admit, but I’m a big fan of yours, Jeff. You were my inspiration as a kid and it was my childhood dream to be able to play at Wimbledon too one day.”

“Wow,” grinned Jeff. “Well, thank you, Max. I’m glad I was able to inspire you” He turned to Liz with a twinkle in his eyes. “I think you’ve chosen a great friend here, Lizzie.”

Liz laughed lightly, causing Max to duck his head in embarrassment. Across the table, Nancy Parker smiled and reached over to pat the back of Max’s hand.

“Well, I imagine this must quite a day for you, Max. You know what I would do?” Max raised his eyes to look at her quizzically. “I’d take this opportunity to grill my husband on his winning techniques,” she told him with a wink.

“Oh, of course,” piped up Jeff. “Feel free to ask me anything you like – I’d be happy to offer you some tips and advice about your game.”

Max had to physically force himself not to stare at the Parkers in wonder. He was being given the opportunity to quiz Jeff Parker on how to be a successful player? This was crazy!

“Um, well… thank you, Jeff,” he stuttered, in awe of Liz and her family.

“Nothing to thank me for,” Liz’s dad smiled. “So, is there anything you’d like to know?”

“Well, actually, I’ve recently noticed that quite a few of my friends have become distracted by personal problems and outside relationships, so I’ve been wondering what the best way to stay focused on the tennis is and not let any of the outside stuff affect your game?”

“That’s a good question actually, Max,” replied Jeff thoughtfully. “It’s always been my policy to leave feelings at the edge of the court when I’m playing in a tournament. No matter what is going on in my personal life, when I’m on court, the sport comes first and I’m out there to play my best. Even if my opponent or partner is someone I don’t like at all, or even one of my best friends, I don’t let that affect how I play.” Max nodded, that made sense. “You know, Max, it’s basically like acting out there. No matter how you feel inside, whether you’re tired or ill, or just having a bad day – you can’t let that show in your performance. You put on a brave face and try your best, and that’s how you succeed…”

***

Max sighed as he recalled the wise words Liz’s father had said to him all those years ago. He was right; the game was the most important thing and god knew, he and Liz had been a great doubles team – one of the best, even – and no doubt they could be again. And Todd was right, it would be good publicity for him to partner Liz in the mixed after so long apart, but could he really bury all those old feelings of hurt and betrayal far enough inside to be able to occupy the same court space as her and not completely lose it?

To be honest, he had no idea, but as he shared a look with Nathan and pulled out his mobile to call his coach, he knew he would find out soon enough.

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for the feedback :

Alien_Friend - Thanks . Honestly, I wasn't that big a fan of tennis when I went to Wimbledon. We had two tickets for one day in the first week and I was able to go because I was on exam study leave and was not in school that day!
I do like Roddick and Federer, but the man I will be rooting for this year is Andy Murray - he's our number 1 player and our only chance of ever winning anything now that Henman's over the hill! Plus, he went to high school with my cousins and they know his family .

begonia9508 - Thanks . I'm sure Liz had her reasons for leaving... unfortunately, we're not going to find out what they were just yet .

clueless - Thanks . You'll find out eventually !

LairaBehr4 - Thanks . I'm posting after 9am - are you happy now ? Although, I do have to post according to my own RL schedule rather than taking into consideration whether you're going to be awake when I do ! In fact, the only reason I'm posting the part now is because my car's having problems again and I can't get into uni today .

behralicious87 - Thanks .

Addicted2AmberEyes - Thank you - I keep picturing him on a tennis court too... yum !!

PitchouLiz - Thanks .

youre my dreamgirl - Thanks . I agree, it's unlikely to be as clean cut as Max believes.

Tamashii - Thanks . I'm finding myself wondering what your theory might be, considering we're only three parts into the story - I haven't even written that far ahead yet !

Natz - Thanks .

lazza - Thanks , although I have to warn you that even though the challenge mentioned the movie, the only thing I'm actually taking from the film is the type of sport played!!


***

Part Four

Friday June 8th 2007

I am so pathetic, mused Liz internally as she lay on the couch in her parents’ living room and stared at the TV. Look at me: It’s nine pm on a Friday night and I’m spending the evening at my parents’ house.

Although Liz had purchased a flat in Chelsea when she’d returned to the UK a few weeks ago, she’d been spending the weekends at her parents’ house, just outside Guildford in Surrey. This weekend was no exception; despite Wimbledon being only two weeks away, Liz had to admit that right now, she felt more comfortable and relaxed at home with her parents in the countryside than at her newly furnished flat in the centre of London.

She let out a sigh and snuggled down into the cushions of her mother’s sofa as she used the remote to flick through the channels. However, she just couldn’t concentrate on what was happening on large flat-screen TV mounted on the wall opposite her. No, Liz only had one thing on her mind at the moment: the proposal that she enter the mixed doubles with Max as her partner.

To be honest, she had no idea what to do. She had to admit that a small part of her was eager to see Max again, but a much bigger part realised that seeing him again could be completely disastrous, not just emotionally, but it could seriously affect her playing abilities… and she really didn’t need any kind of distraction to jeopardise her game right now; in fact, especially not now, when things were going so well for her on the court.

Just as Liz decided to settle for watching the latest episode of Ugly Betty on Channel 4, her mobile began to vibrate on the coffee table in front of her. She pressed the mute button on the remote and sat up to answer the phone.

“Hello?”

“Liz, it’s David. Where are you?” came her coach’s voice on the other end.

“I’m at my dad’s,” she replied tiredly. “But don’t worry, I’ll be driving back into London in the morning for our training session.”

“That’s not why I’m calling,” he said. “There’s been a development.”

“Oh?” questioned Liz, having no idea what this could be a development in.

“It seems Max Evans has agreed to play in the mixed. With you,” revealed David, sounding slightly hesitant about telling her.

“What?” she exclaimed, almost dropping the phone in surprise. “He’s agreed?” she questioned incredulously; she’d imagined he would be even more against the idea than she was.

“Look, I don’t know the details,” David told her. “All I know is that thirty minutes ago, I got a call from the committee informing me that Max is in. So, now the ball’s in your court, so to speak. What do you want to do?”

“Oh, God, I don’t know,” muttered Liz, her mind reeling.

How was it possible that Max had agreed to play with her? The last thing she knew of his opinion of her (via an implied suggestion in a magazine interview) was that he hated her and never wanted to see her face again. In all honesty, she couldn’t understand why he would say yes to this.

“Alright, you don’t have to make your decision right this minute,” relented her coach. “Why don’t you think about it tonight and let me know in the morning?”

“Um, well, okay,” mumbled Liz, still slightly in shock at David’s revelation. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow, then. Thanks for letting me know, David.”

“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow morning, then,” he replied. “Bright and early. Bye, Liz.”

“Bye, David,” replied Liz.

She hung up the phone, holding it to her chest as she sank back down against the cushions, letting her head fall back onto the armrest. What was she going to do?

“You okay?”

Liz lifted her head at the sound of her father’s voice. He was standing in the doorway, watching her with a small smile on his face.

“Yeah…no…well, not really,” admitted Liz after a pause.

“What’s up, sweetie?” asked Jeff, as he entered the living room. Liz lifted her feet so he could take a seat on the sofa beside her.

Liz sighed, “I don’t know what to do, Dad.”

“About what?”

“David told me this morning that the committee want me to play in the mixed doubles for the tournament.”

“Okay,” said Jeff. “Well, do you think you’re up to playing the doubles as well as the singles?”

“It’s not just a question of that, Dad. They want me to play with Max,” she told him softly.

“Oh,” replied Jeff, looking slightly taken aback. “Right, well… Max, huh?”

“Yeah,” nodded Liz.

“And how do you feel about that?”

“Well, this morning I told David there was no way I could do it. I mean, I haven’t seen Max in almost two years and the last I heard he pretty much hated my guts. Playing together would just be a big, awkward… disaster.”

“I can understand you feeling that way,” nodded Jeff. “But what about now… how do you feel about it now?”

“This is the confusing part, Dad. David just called to tell me that apparently Max has agreed to play… and now I don’t know what to do. I mean, why would he agree to this? I’m probably the last person he wants to be around right now.”

“I don’t know, Lizzie,” her father told her softly, shifting so that he could put his arm around her. “Maybe he’s decided that he’s willing to put the past behind him for the sake of the game.”

Liz let out a soft snort and shook her head, “I sincerely doubt that. After everything I’ve put him through… if I were him, I wouldn’t want anything to do with me.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, sweetie. Alright, so you hurt Max, but –”

“I broke his heart, Dad! That’s pretty much unforgivable.”

“You hurt Max,” continued Jeff gently. “And you’re right, it is inexcusable, but remember, he doesn’t know the whole story about why you left. If he did, I’m sure he wouldn’t hate you as much as he claims to.”

Liz sighed, “Maybe not, but that still doesn’t explain why he would say yes to playing without knowing the truth first.”

“Do you remember the day you first introduced me to Max?” said Jeff after a moment’s pause. “At the US Open all those years ago.”

“Yeah,” muttered Liz softly.

“Do you remember what we talked about over dinner and what I told him about being successful in his career?”

Liz nodded, “You said that you didn’t let your feelings for your opponent or your partner affect your game.”

“Exactly,” replied Jeff. “Perhaps that is what Max is doing here. He knows that the two of you make a great doubles pair and perhaps he has decided to go through with it regardless of the history between you because he knows that you will play well together and he also knows what the publicity will do for him.”

Liz mulled over her father’s words for a couple of minutes before sighing, “Well, I guess if he can be willing to forget about the past on the court, then I can too. In the morning, I’ll tell David that my I’ll do it. After all, Max is the best doubles partner I’ve ever had…”

***

Tuesday October 23rd 2001

“Okay, you ready?” called Liz, bouncing a tennis ball on the ground a couple of times, as she got ready to serve.

“Ready and waiting,” replied Max, from the other side of the net. He shifted his weight from side to side in preparation for Liz’s serve.

“Alright, here we go,” said Liz, as she bounced the ball one more time before throwing it in the air, bringing her racket back behind her head and smashing it down, sending the ball over the net at full speed.

The two friends had become close over the past few weeks and after they’d returned to England from New York last month, they had begun practicing together on the courts once or twice a week.

As Max sent the ball back over the net, he couldn’t help but smile at how well he and Liz played together, despite being of the opposite sex and obviously having differing strengths in the game. Unsurprisingly, Max had a much more powerful serve than Liz, yet she was much lighter on her feet and could move a great deal faster than him, so although they were not evenly matched in ability, they could still play a good game.

The rally continued for several more strokes, until Max got in a sneaky drop shot and won the point. They continued to play until Liz was ahead three games to two and they were ready to begin the next game, but an interruption came in the form of two newcomers, a brunet male and a blonde girl – well, they were newcomers to Liz; Max, however, broke into a grin when he noticed them standing at the corner of the court and instead of returning Liz’s serve, he ran to greet them, leaving Liz looking bewildered, but with no choice but to follow him.

She watched Max exchange a hug and a pat on the back with the bloke and then shook hands with the girl, before placing a quick kiss on her cheek.

“Liz,” said Max, turning to her with a smile. “Meet my best friend, Nathan Thomas, and his girlfriend, Sarah Wilcox. Guys, this is Liz –”

“ – Parker, I know,” grinned Nathan as he stepped forward to shake Liz’s hand. “Nice to meet you, Liz.”

“Likewise,” replied Liz with a smile, quickly warming to Max’s friend. “And nice to meet you too, Sarah,” she added, moving to shake her hand as well.

“So, what are you guys doing here?” asked Max, after the introductions had been made.

“Oh, well, since it’s half-term this week, we thought we’d come down to the club for a quick game,” said Nathan.

“Half-term?” questioned Liz. “You work in a school?”

“Oh, um, no, not exactly,” he replied. “I’m a tennis coach for the local area and most of my pupils are school kids. Since they have a week off this week, I decided to make the most of not having to teach them.”

“Really, you’re a coach? That’s great,” smiled Liz. “So, how do you and Max know each other?”

“Well, we actually went to school together… and took tennis lessons together when we were kids,” supplied Max.

“Yeah, except he was the good one who made it to the top ten in the country while I got stuck coaching the little kids,” added Nathan.

“You did not get stuck, you chose to do it” objected Max. “Admit it, you love coaching as much as I love playing in tournaments.”

“Okay, you got me,” smiled Nathan. “I really do love it. There’s nothing like it.”

“Good for you,” congratulated Liz.

“Thanks,” he grinned. “So, anyway, we were watching you two play… what do you say Sarah and I join you in a game of mixed doubles?”

Liz glanced up at Max, who nodded at her in agreement.

“Sure, why not?” she agreed.

“Okay, great,” said Nathan, sharing a quick look with his girlfriend, before turning to Max with a cocky grin. “I’m gonna kick your arse, Evans.”

“Oh, yeah, I bet,” retorted Max. “Don’t forget who you’re playing against, Thomas.”

“Bring it on,” taunted Nathan.

“Come on, guys,” interrupted Sarah with a roll of her eyes, causing Liz to smirk. “Stop pissing around and let’s started, okay?”

“Sure, hon,” said Nathan quickly, obviously not wanting to get into trouble, and the four of them took their positions on the court.

Max and Liz took the first serve and within moments, the game was underway. The two couples were pretty evenly matched, despite Liz and Max’s obvious advantage, and the first set ended in a close tiebreak, which Nathan and Sarah eventually won.

Although she’d lost the first set, Liz found herself smiling regardless. It seemed that Max was an excellent doubles player and the two of them were on fire on the court. Encouraged by their performance so far, Liz put her all into the second set and she and Max won it easily. Nathan and Sarah put up a fight in the third set, but a lucky shot from Max allowed he and Liz to break serve and they went on to win the friendly match

Afterwards, as they collected their things and began to head off the courts, Max stopped Liz, holding her back for a second.

“Well, that was a pretty good match, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, it was,” she smiled. “It seems you and I play well together, Evans.”

“I guess we do,” he agreed. “Which is why I was thinking… why don’t we team up as partners for mixed doubles?”

“You know, I’ve never really considered playing mixed doubles before,” mused Liz. “But you know what? I think we could make a great team.” Max grinned. “Alright, let’s do it.”

“Okay. Let’s shake on it then,” grinned Max, holding out a hand. Liz took it and they shook, sealing the deal…and thereby indicating the beginning of a great partnership…

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for your feedback :

LairaBehr4 - Thanks . Now the reason for today's later posting is that I've had the worst week ever so far:

Monday - Got up at 6 am to drive my car to the garage (the passenger window had fallen right down into the door, so i couldn't close it) and it cost $200 to repair !

Tuesday - Got up at 6 am to go into uni - after only 3 hours sleep because I was ill with a stomach bug - I felt like crap all day !

Today - Got up at 6 am for work - went in an hour early (6.30am) so I could make my 11am lecture... still feel like crap!

Plus, I'm still trying to get the next part finished (it's been almost done for days) and I've only had 8 hours sleep since Monday - there's been no time for early updates this week, lol!

clueless - Thanks .

begonia9508 - Thanks .

Alien_Friend - Thanks . I only really follow the Grand Slam tournaments, but will sometimes watch others if my dad is watching them on TV. I'm afraid I've never been a huge fan of Roddick (looks-wise), but that's mostly because he reminds me of my younger brother! When he was younger, my brother had a lazy eyes, which got corrected, but he still sometimes has a similar intense stare to Roddick (if you get what I mean) that makes me think they look alike!

So you know how they say six degrees of separation we all know each other, so since your cousin went to school with Murray and they know his family, and Andy Murray and Andy Roddick have played against each other a few times then i like to think since we know each other like this that I've met Andy Roddick. I think that's super cool lol. Anyhoo looking forward to the next part!!!

Sweet Liz - Thanks .

Tamashii - I didn't think about including that interview, but you never know, it might pop up in a future part .

behralicious87 - Thanks .



***


Part Five

Monday June 11th 2007

I don’t think I can do this thought Max to himself, as he sat nervously on the wooden bench at the side of the practice courts. This is just a really, really bad idea.

Any minute now, Liz Parker was going to show up. He was actually going to be in her presence for the first time in almost two years… and he had absolutely no idea how he was going to handle it. Part of him was incensed – he’d been waiting for so long to finally have it out with her face to face and now this was his opportunity to do so. He could finally yell and scream at her; blame her for ruining his life and their life together. He could actually ask all those questions he’d been longing to hear the answers to ever since she’d left. Questions like… Why did she leave without saying a word? What had he done wrong? What gave her the right to mess with his life and his feelings like that? Why had she stopped loving him?

The worst part about this situation though, was that there was also a part of him that was almost looking forward to seeing her again. Despite how angry he had been, and to some extent still was, with her, and despite all his protests to the contrary, he’d never stopped loving her, not really. She’d once been the most beautiful woman in the world to him; she was the love of his life. He had to admit that he was somewhat curious about seeing her again after so long.

Max absentmindedly twirled his racket handle round and round in his hand, as he waited for Liz. He had no idea how today was going to go. He and Liz had once been the most favoured mixed doubles pair in tennis and while they had clicked from day one back then, who was to say that they could pull it off again now – after two years of not playing together? Would they even be able to spend that much time in each other’s presence without something going terribly wrong?

He was saved from fretting internally any longer, when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye.

Liz Parker was here.

***

Liz sucked in a breath as she exited the clubhouse with David and noticed Max sitting on the bench beside one of the courts. It was like a shock to the system to see him in the flesh after so long and neither the TV and nor the magazines did him justice.

He was half-sitting, half-slumping on the wooden bench, his gaze fixed on the racket in his hands as it twirled around and around. From where she was standing, she couldn’t tell if he was angry about something, or perhaps fed-up, or maybe he was simply mentally preparing for training. She didn’t even want to entertain the idea that he might be tense because the two of them were about to meet again for the first time in so long – after all, it was very likely that he was still mad at her for leaving him.

As she and David made their way towards the practice court, Liz tried to mentally prepare herself for coming face-to-face with Max. What was she going to say to him? What could she say to him that could even begin to make up for what she’d put him through? In all actuality, the only thing she could do was recall the first ever big tournament they’d played together as double partners, back in 2002, and hope that they might be able to recreate that level of play now, for Wimbledon 2007…

***

Saturday January 26th 2002 – Australian Open, Melbourne

Liz couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face as Max executed a powerful shot over the net, winning the game. She almost couldn’t believe how well their matches were going, especially considering that she and Max had only been training together for a couple of months… and now, here they were in of the Australian Open quarter-finals, one set up and four games to two up in the second. If they could just win the next couple of games, they would be through to the semis.

Max gave her a high-five as they made their way off the court for the quick two-minute break between games.

“Way to go, huh, Parker?” he grinned.

“I know,” replied Liz as she took her seat and reached for a towel to wipe the sweat off her face with. It was so hot out here – approaching 40 degrees Celsius – and the extreme heat of the Australian summer only served to make playing tennis harder. “I can’t believe we’re doing so well.”

“Oh, I can,” replied Max airily. “I always knew we’d make a great team.”

“I bet you did,” chuckled Liz, certain that when they’d met, Max hadn’t even entertained the idea of playing mixed doubles with her.

“Come on,” said Max a moment later, before taking one last sip from his drinks bottle and placing it on the floor. “Our time is up. Let’s go win this thing.”

***

“Here you go,” said Liz, as she took a seat beside Max in the hotel lounge and handed him a glass of champagne. “A celebratory drink.”

They had won the quarterfinal match easily earlier that day – the final score against their opponents had been an impressive 6-2, 6-2, with no need for a third set. If truth be told, she and Max almost played better together than on their own in singles.

“Um, Liz,” Max started hesitantly. “Are you sure this is a good idea? We have to play again tomorrow afternoon.”

“Oh, lighten up, would you, Max? It’s just one glass to celebrate our win. It’s not gonna do you any harm.”

Max shook his head, “God, you must have been a handful when you were younger.”

Liz’s mouth dropped open.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she demanded, only half-seriously. Of course, she knew exactly what he meant. One more than one occasion, she’d been labelled a wild child – in fact, it was usually her father doing the labelling.

“You know what it means, Lizzie,” retorted Max.

“Well, there’s nothing wrong with having some fun every now and then,” replied Liz, with a sip of her champagne.

“I completely agree; all I’m saying is that it’s not wise to get drunk on champagne the night before the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament.”

“I know that,” Liz rolled her eyes. “But we’re not getting drunk, we’re having one glass of champagne to celebrate our win today. You know, maybe it’ll do you some good – loosen you up a bit.”

Max narrowed his eyes, “Are you suggesting that I’m uptight?”

Liz looked at him with wide, yet not-so-innocent eyes, “All I’m saying is that you’re only twenty, Max. Live a little.”

“I live plenty, thank you very much,” returned Max, as he tried to suppress a smile. Although she could be annoying at times (like right now, for example), he did rather enjoy their petty arguments. It made playing together all that more interesting.

“Actually,” murmured Liz thoughtfully. “Perhaps you do live a little after all… I noticed there was someone cheering you on at the side of the court this afternoon… a rather attractive blonde, in fact. And I also noticed you glancing her way more than once during the match. Care to fill me in?”

“Liz,” Max rolled his eyes, embarrassed that she had noticed.

“Max,” she returned, with a grin.

“Fine,” he sighed. “Her name is Jessica. We met briefly at that challenger tournament a couple of months ago, you know, the one you couldn’t make, and we spent some time together. Anyway, we happened to bump into each other here a couple of days ago; Her brother is playing in the junior tournaments.”

“Oh? And are there any… possibilities there for the two of you?”

“I don’t know,” he shifted uncomfortably.

“Well, do you think she’s shaggable?” asked Liz, bluntly.

“Liz!” exclaimed Max at her inappropriate question.

“What? I’m just asking,” she shrugged.

“Okay, that’s it,” stated Max. “We’re not talking about this any more.”

“Spoilsport,” pouted Liz.

Max rolled his eyes, “Just drink your champagne, Liz…”

***

Liz shook her head as she remembered the conversation she and Max had shared that night. It seemed so long ago that they had been that comfortable together and could joke around like that. Now, though, so much had happened that just the thought of sharing the same space as him made her uncomfortable and left her feeling awkward.

As she approached the bench Max was sitting on, she sucked in a steadying breath and steeled herself for the inevitable confrontation.

“Hi, Max.”

***

Max stood up as he heard the soft, female voice and saw Liz come to a stop a couple of metres from him. His breath caught in his throat as he took in her appearance. If possible, she looked even more beautiful than he remembered… and definitely more grown up than before. She was twenty-three years old now and looked every bit of it. Her shiny, dark hair was now shoulder-length and glimmered with reddish highlights, which only accentuated her eyes, and although she still possessed that petite, athletic figure, she was definitely more curvaceous than she’d been two years ago.

However, it only took a moment for his shock at seeing her again to dissipate and for anger to fill its place. His eyes narrowed and he set his jaw as he greeted her.

“Liz.”

“So, um…” she seemed nervous. “H-how are you?”

He raised an eyebrow. How was he? That was all she could say to him? No apology, no explanations for her sudden disappearance from his life… just ‘how are you?’

“Cut the crap, Liz, okay?” he snapped, his defence mechanism kicking in. “I’m not here to exchange pleasantries with you. I’m here to play tennis.”

If Liz was taken aback by his harsh words, she didn’t show it. Instead, she simply nodded, placed her sports bag down on the other end of the bench and pulled out her racket and a tube of tennis balls, setting them down on the bench.

“Okay, then. Let’s play.”

He watched as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail, then gathered up her things and headed onto the court. He sucked in a steadying breath and then glanced at her coach, who simply quirked an eyebrow and jerked his head in Liz’s direction, indicating that Max get on with it and get out there. With a sigh, he grabbed his racket and moved to join Liz on the court.

Oh, this was definitely going to be a fun morning.

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for your feedback :

LairaBehr4 - Thank you , but please don't wish more car trouble on me - I only need the car for another 6 months and I've already been told that it needs more repairs in order to pass its MOT. At this rate, the repairs are gonna cost more than the car did!!
PS. I know I'm posting too early for you again, but this is the only time I have today to post .

alizaleven - Thanks .

begonia9508 - They do have to talk, but at the moment, the only way Max can deal with Liz being back is to go on the defensive and not let his feelings show.

clueless - Thank you .

Natz - Thanks .

Alien_Friend - Thanks.

Tamashii - Thanks . Max has spent a lot of time trying to put Liz behind him and get on with his life and just as he manages to get back on track and win the big tournaments, Liz reappears with no explanation as to why she left - he's got every right to be angry .

behralicious87 - Sorry to dissapoint you, but it will be a few more parts before we find out why Liz left .

Addicted2AmberEyes - Thanks . Your questions will be answered in due course - it wouldn't be any fun if I gave you all the answers right away, now would it ?

kittens - I'm with Laira, here - did you mean Jeff was behind Max and Liz playing together or behind Liz leaving in the first place?

BioGirl804 - Thank you .



***

Part Six

Wednesday June 13th 2007

“Okay, guys, let’s try that again,” called David from the other side of the net during Max and Liz’s practice session.

Liz nodded her consent, but as she did so, she heard a slightly impatient sigh coming from behind her. Closing her eyes briefly, she turned round and shot her partner a glare, which he readily returned. She rolled her eyes and turned back to face their coach. What was his problem? He’d been the one to agree to this first; yet now that they were training together, he was acting as if this was the last place he wanted to be.

Granted, she knew that his current behaviour was probably her fault and that she did still owe him a multitude of explanations, but it wasn’t that simple. She just wasn’t ready to talk with him about what had happened to their relationship, and what he obviously couldn’t understand right now was that it was hard enough just being here, on the same court as him, trying to play tennis with him again, without bringing up all their issues from the past.

Despite Max’s obvious reluctance to keep working on their movement across the court and doubles footwork techniques, the two of them managed to accomplish another hour of training, although by the end of it, Liz was left wondering whether this whole mixed doubles thing was entirely worth the effort.

Even after two-and-a-half days of playing together, Liz had no idea how to act around her former lover. He seemed so closed off and unapproachable right now – something he’d never been towards her before – and she was at a loss for what to say. At one time, they’d been able to talk about anything and everything; no holds barred. But now, now they were like strangers… strangers who apparently disliked each other with a passion, at least from Max’s side, anyway.

“Okay, guys, take a break,” called David, pulling Liz out of her thoughts.

She nodded and headed to the side of the court, grabbing a towel and a bottle of water. Max, however, gave her a hard stare and deliberately strode over to the bench on the other side, despite the fact that, apart from his water bottle, all his belongings were still lying on her bench.

Liz sighed. This was all just a really bad idea. Why had she ever agreed to it? And for that matter, why on Earth had had Max? Honestly, who cared about publicity and making a good impression on the press, if all it was going to bring was awkwardness and heartbreak to the players?

She’d tried a couple of times to start a conversation with him after they’d finished training for the day, but he’d simply ignored her and walked straight off the court. There was a tension present between them that had never, ever been there before and it almost made Liz wish she’d never decided to make a comeback at all. She’d been so stupid to believe that just because Max had been the first to agree to play in the mixed, he was willing to put the past behind him.

If only she could just talk to him like she used to be able to…

***

Friday March 14th 2002 – London

There was a knock at the door and Liz ceased her frantic rush around her flat for a moment to just stare at the door in exasperation. He was early and she still hadn’t found her purse… or her shoes… or her cardigan.

“Come on, Liz!” called Max through the door. “You said you were going to be ready this time.”

“Yeah, well, I might have been if you weren’t…” she glanced at the clock on the wall. “Fifteen minutes early.”

“Hey, that’s not entirely my fault,” he protested. “For some unknown reason, the tube was on time this morning – it was a very rare occurrence.”

“Now, that is a miracle,” muttered Liz, under her breath, as she bent down to search under the sofa and succeeded on hitting her head on the coffee table. “Oww!”

“Liz, what are you doing in there?” called Max again.

“Looking for my purse… and my shoes… and stuff,” she returned, her annoyance obvious in her tone.

“Why don’t you let me in and I’ll help you look, okay?”

“Fine,” Liz muttered and stood up to open the door, bracing herself for his reaction to her appearance.

She heard a sharp intake of breath, before, “Bloody hell, Liz, you look terrible! What did you get up to last night?” And there it was.

“None of your damn business,” she snapped, irritated by the disapproving look in his eyes. “I am allowed to have fun once in a while, you know.”

“Yeah, well, there’s fun and then there’s going out clubbing three nights a week… and bringing strange men back to your flat” he retorted, eyeing several empty cans of beer and two pint glasses on the coffee table. “We’re professional sportspeople, we don’t have the freedom of busy social lives.”

“Just stop with the lecture, okay, Max?” sighed Liz. “I’m hung over enough as it is, I don’t need you getting on your high horse about my personal life.”

Max’s expression softened, “I’m just trying to look out for you, Liz. You’re my partner, and as your partner, I have an obligation to look out for you. I don’t want you to have to pull out of a tournament or a match because you’ve overdone the partying, okay?”

She nodded slowly, “Okay, I get it. I’ll be more careful in future. But right now, I need you to help my find my things so we can get out of here.”

Max rolled his eyes, but smiled regardless, and set about searching through her apartment for her shoes.

***

“So, what exactly did you get up to last night?” questioned Max later, as they strolled across the Millennium Bridge in Central London. “’Cause you’ve been pretty elusive all day, and you were fine at practice yesterday, so I can only guess that whatever happened last night is what’s distracting you now.”

“I –” Liz sighed, and came to a stop in the middle of the bridge, resting her arms on the silver railings as she looked down over the Thames. After a moment, she lifted her head to face Max. “Does it really matter?”

“It does if it’s got you acting this uneasy today,” he replied, resting his arms on the railings beside her. “What’s wrong?”

Liz thought for a moment, before speaking again, “Last night, Maria and I… you know Maria? My friend from school?” Max nodded. “Well, she and I went clubbing in Bar Rumba last night and we got a bit drunk…” At Max’s suspicious look, she relented, “Okay, we got very drunk… and we started talking to some blokes at the bar…”

“And?” asked Max, expectantly.

“Well, it turned out we knew one of them, it was a guy called Matt and he went to school with us in Surrey.” She paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts, “Anyway, we got to talking and he told me that he’d fancied me when we were younger… actually, he told me that he still fancied me now.”

Max raised his eyebrows, “So, what happened?”

“Well, I was really flattered by the attention and I’d already had way too much to drink to think rationally, and even though I hadn’t seen him in years, I-I pulled him right there in the middle of the club… and then I invited him back to my flat and we…slept together… and now I feel really awful about it.”

Max looked a little confused, “Why do you feel so bad about it? No offence, but you’ve been in similar situations before and you’ve felt fine about them afterwards.”

“Because I led him on, Max,” admitted Liz suddenly. “Even when we were at school, I never saw him as anything but a friend, but last night when he told me how he felt, I used it to my advantage and let him believe that I liked him too. And now he’s going to expect more from me and right now, I don’t have more to give. God, I’m so stupid!” she exclaimed, burying her face in her arms.

“Hey, you’re not stupid,” murmured Max, shifting as that he could slip a comforting arm around her shoulders. “You just made a mistake.”

“I used him, Max,” she protested, feeling disgusted with herself. “That’s not just a mistake.”

“Okay, so you were wrong; but, Liz, we all do things we regret sometimes. It doesn’t make us bad people.”

“We all do, huh? When was the last time you used a girl just for sex, Max?” she retorted sarcastically, shrugging his arm away from her shoulders.

“The fifteenth of May, 1998,” he replied unexpectedly.

“What?” Liz’s lifted her head in surprise.

“I was seventeen and feeling all this pressure from everyone to experiment with… well, everything, really,” he admitted softly, staring out over the water. “I was at a party one night… my friends were all on the pull, and they were trying to get me to join in. They wouldn’t shut up about it, so in the end, I just gave in and approached this really pretty girl. One thing led to another and I woke up the next morning with a major hangover and a stranger in my bed. It turned out she was looking for more than one night and I just wasn’t in a position to give her that. I regret that night more than I regret anything else I’ve ever done.”

“Oh,” murmured Liz, lost for words.

Max nodded, “You’re definitely not the only one to have been in this situation before.”

A smile tugged at her lips, “We’re quite a pair, aren’t we?”

“We certainly are,” smiled Max, slipping his arm around her again as they began walking. “Look, I wouldn’t worry too much about this guy… Matt. If he calls you, just be honest about not wanting a relationship and you should be fine.”

“Thanks, partner,” smiled Liz, gratefully.

“No problem, partner,” returned Max as they reached the other side of the bridge. “You up for an afternoon of fun now, Ms. Parker?”

“I think I can just about manage it, Mr. Evans,” she replied, her heart feeling much lighter than it had been all morning.

Max was turning into a great friend… and doubles partner too, of course.

***

After their daily practice was over, Liz watched, for the third day in a row, as Max put away his rackets, grabbed his stuff and walked straight off the court without even so much as a glance in her direction. She shook her head sadly. She knew why he was so mad at her… he wanted an explanation from her. He wanted the truth. But the problem was that she just wasn’t ready to admit the reasons behind her sudden reappearance… to him, or to anyone else at this particular time. And he was just going to have to deal with the fact that she wasn’t going to be coming clean anytime soon.

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Hey guys, thank you for your feedback :

LairaBehr4 (x2) - Thanks, !

Natalie36 - Thank you .

clueless (x2) - Thanks .

Natz - Thanks .

behralicious87 - Thanks . Max has every right to be mad at Liz right now - for all he knows, she's the bad guy here .

Addicted2AmberEyes - Thanks . Max is letting his anger control his actions at the moment, which is why he's being 'bull headed', but although Liz is being secretive, perhaps she's not doing it to spite Max, but instead is not planning on admitting the truth soon for personal reasons.

begonia9508 - I'll agree that Max was being an idiot at the beginning of the part, but apart from that, he's cooperating and playing well with Liz when the ball's in play. They are still capable of playing good tennis together - and they do - but at this point, Max pretty much hates Liz's guts, so some of that is bound to show in practice. I think of it as a similar situation to acting - you might hate you co-star, but when the camera's rolling and you're on show, you don't let it affect your performance.

BioGirl804 - Thanks .

Alien_Friend - Thanks . We'll find out more about the past as the story continues .

kittens - Oh, okay - I will tell you that Jeff had no idea about the mixed doubles proposal until after Max had already agreed to it and only mintues before Liz agreed too! I'm not sure he'd have had the time to set it up .

behrluv3 - Thank you . I know I shouldnt' say it, but I'm flattered that you'd find the story a distraction from your schoolwork !

Tamashii - Yes, Liz does like to party a lot, but remember that she grew up in the spotlight of her father - it's kind of a teenage rebellion thing. Sportspeople do have their moments on the partying front - my gymnast brother used to train more than 20 hours a week in preparation for the British championships and other big competitions, yet still go out with his mates and get drunk on Friday and Saturday nights!! Granted, he does give up alcohol just before a competition, but his sport doesn't stop him the rest of the time.
Apart from the odd annoyed grunt, the majority of Max's bad attitutude towards Liz occurs when they are not actually playing - once play begins, he is professional towards her.


***

Part Seven

Friday June 15th 2007

As he headed home from the tennis club after training, it struck Max as funny how some things could change so much over a period of time, yet others just seemed to always remain the same. Like, for example, this situation with Liz Parker.

So much had changed in the last two years. They were practically strangers now and weren’t even speaking to each other, yet when they got on court together and began playing, it was like nothing had changed. They still clicked on the court; they still played as if they were made to be partners, and when he was out there with her, Max could almost imagine that they were gearing up for Wimbledon 2005 once again.

That was, until they stopped playing. As soon as the racket was out of his hands, the past came rushing back, accompanied by the old anger he felt over Liz’s betrayal. In fact, it came back with such a force that he could barely bring himself to look at her, let alone talk to her afterwards. She was the one who was in the wrong, yet she had been acting as if she had nothing to apologise for… as if nothing bad had ever happened between them… and it made his blood boil.

Admittedly, he knew that the way he was acting towards her wasn’t exactly giving her much opportunity to apologise, but he was pretty sure that if he did let her in enough to start up a conversation, she wouldn’t even broach the subject of the past, at least not judging by her recent smiles and attempts to make small talk with him rather than serious conversation.

He spent the next fifteen minutes going through in his mind all the reasons why he never should have allowed Liz Parker back into his life on Monday morning, and by the time he arrived back at his flat, he was so wound up that he failed to notice a certain shiny red Mini parked just a few yards down the road from his own car. He said a quick hello to the doorman as he entered the building and headed for the lift. Once inside, he pushed the button for the top floor flat and as the lift carried him up to his flat, Max took the opportunity to take some calming breaths in an attempt to forget about the stressful week he’d just had.

However, his reprieve only lasted until the lift came to a stop and the doors slid open with a ‘ping’. The second he stepped out into the penthouse hallway and headed for his door; he knew something wasn’t quite right. For a start, when he let himself into the flat, he noticed two designer label shoulder bags lying on the floor beside the door, accompanied by two pairs of heeled shoes and a turquoise jacket. He rolled his eyes in annoyance when the sound of girlish giggles floated to his ears from the living room. Letting his training bag fall to the floor beside the shoes, he headed towards the noise.

Max pushed open the door and sighed at the sight of the two blonde girls sitting on his sofa, watching TV and giggling about something.

“Izzy Evans, what have I told you about using my flat as a hideout when you and Tess decide to bunk off school?”

The girl on the left jumped in surprise and turned to face him.

“Max, hi! What are you doing here? I thought you’d be at training all day,” she exclaimed, a guilty expression marring her pretty features.

“I finished early,” he said flatly, crossing his arms over his chest. “But more to the point, what are you doing here? Aren’t the two of you supposed to be in school?”

Isabel rolled her eyes, “God, Max, give it a rest with the parenting routine. You’re not my dad and it’s not your business.”

“But I am your big brother,” he replied coolly, “And you are in my flat, so technically it is my business.”

His seventeen-year-old sister replied by sticking two fingers up at him in a rude gesture and turning back to her conversation with her best friend Tess Harding.

Max rolled his eyes at his sister’s behaviour, but didn’t back down. He wasn’t done yet.

“And speaking of parents… do mum and dad know what you get up to when you’re supposed to be in school, studying for your A-levels?”

A guilty look passed between the two girls, before Isabel’s expression hardened and she looked back over at Max.

“You’re one to talk,” she retorted. “You weren’t exactly a model student yourself when you were my age. In fact, I seem to remember that you dropped out of your A-levels after a year.”

Max frowned, “That was totally different. I was in training for international tournaments, not skiving off to go shopping and hang out at my older brother’s house.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s right; you were such a mummy’s boy back then. You were Max ‘I can do no wrong’ Evans,” snorted Isabel. “Yeah right. I bet Mum and Dad don’t know about those parties you used to go to with your friends.”

At this, Max saw red and began to advance on his sister.

“And what the hell do you know about that?” he demanded angrily, unfolding his arms and pointing a finger at her. “You were only eight at the time.”

“What can I say,” she shrugged. “Word gets around school when an ex-pupil is famous. You know, everyone’s still talking about you and Liz Parker and how she dumped you just like that. God, for such a ‘great’ guy, you really are crap at relationships,” she added spitefully.

“Don’t you ever say anything like that to me again,” shouted Max, all his pent-up emotions from the last few days suddenly bubbling over. “You understand?”

“Um, guys,” piped up Tess tentatively, interrupting their argument. “I just realised I have to get going now… so I’ll just grab my stuff and… go.”

Isabel turned her attention away from Max and to her best friend. “No, wait, I’ll come with you,” she said quickly, shooting her brother a look. “I don’t think I’m welcome here anymore.”

“Too right, you’re not welcome,” spat Max. “If you think it’s acceptable to visit someone’s home uninvited and then proceed to insult them when they arrive home, then you’ve got a lot to learn about life.”

“Yeah, whatever, Max,” she muttered as she followed Tess out to the hallway. “Bye, big brother.”

Max simply stood stiffly in the middle of the living room, his hands clenched into fists as he listened to the two girls leaving his flat.

It was only after the door had closed firmly behind them that Max allowed himself to breathe out and sink down onto the sofa, his head in his hands. God, what a disaster. He didn’t know why he let his sister wind him up so much today. Usually, their arguing was nothing more than banter, which, while insulting, was not taken literally. However, Isabel’s words had hit home today. The stress of dealing with Liz all week as well as trying to gear up for his upcoming singles matches had just worn him out and he’d snapped.

He knew it was childish to retaliate to her jibes, but she had a knack of picking up on all of his insecurities and exploiting them… as younger siblings often do. He sucked in a deep breath to calm down, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out his mobile to call Nathan. He was in serious need of some unwinding and he was sure that a few drinks down the pub would do just that.

After a quick chat with his best mate, Max headed into his bedroom to take a shower. With an exhausted sigh, he pulled off his aertex shirt and tennis shorts, dropping them to the floor, before grabbing a clean towel and heading for his en suite bathroom. As he turned on the shower as waited for the water to heat up, his gaze fell on the pile of old tennis magazines in the corner. Sticking out of the pile was the issue of Ace that had featured his and Liz’s first interview as a mixed doubles pair. As he pulled off his boxers and stepped into the shower, he closed his eyes at the memory of that interview. They’d been so excited about playing together in big tournaments and had been eagerly looking forward to a doubles career together. Max scoffed, and what a career that had turned out to be; they could barely stand to be in each other’s presence anymore.

***

“So, it’s really that bad, huh?” asked Nathan an hour later, as he handed Max a pint of Carling and took a seat in the beer garden of the busy pub.

“Yeah, it’s really that bad,” confirmed Max. “She’s being so… nice and… friendly and it’s doing my head in! It’s like she’s not even aware that it’s her fault we broke up.”

“Maybe she just doesn’t know what to say to you,” suggested Nathan.

“Maybe,” he muttered, taking a sip of his beer. “It just… every time I see her, all the crap comes flooding back to me and I feel so angry with her. We’ve been playing so well together, but off the court, I can’t even bring myself to look in her direction.”

“Well–”

“And she still looks as good as ever… better than ever, in fact,” Max cut his friend off. “But her presence makes my blood boil. I spent so long getting over her… and to be honest, I just wish she’d never come back.”

Nathan looked thoughtful for a moment as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette, swiftly lighting it and taking a drag.

“There’s something you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” said Max, taking another gulp of beer.

“Yes, you do, mate,” replied Nathan, intuitively. “So what is it? No, wait; let me guess… Truth is, you’re not as over Liz as you thought,” he stated bluntly. “In fact, the reason you’re so angry is not so much because of what Liz did, but more because you still have feelings for her despite what she did. You’re mad at yourself for letting her get to you like she used to.”

Max just stared at his best friend, his mouth hanging open slightly.

“How did you–?”

“Max, I’ve known you for longer than I can remember, I know how your mind works… and also, it’s happened to me before, so I get how you’re feeling.”

Max sighed, running a hand through his hair. It was true; there was just something about Liz Parker that he couldn’t ignore… that he’d never been able to ignore. Every time he looked her way, he found himself being sucked right back into her beauty, the way he had been all those years ago when they first got together. As much as he hated to admit it, the sight of her smile still made his heart skip a beat and her laugh was like heaven to his ears. And it pissed him off so much that she could still do that to him after all this time.

“Okay, so you’re right,” he admitted softly. “I am still attracted to her; but at the same time, I also can’t forgive her, and it makes me so mad that she seems to be so willing to forget that she was in the wrong. God, I don’t know what to do.”

“Maybe you should just talk to her,” suggested Nathan.

“I know I should talk to her, but what if she doesn’t apologise or doesn’t tell me the truth about what happened two years ago? What if I fall in love with her all over again and she just rips on my heart and stomps on it… again? I’ve worked so hard to put this behind me that I can’t let it ruin my life again.”

“Well-, then, I don’t know what else to suggest,” his friend shrugged, taking another drag of his cigarette. “Either you push your feelings aside and enter Wimbledon with a purely professional attitude or you talk to Liz and settle things once and for all. It’s up to you.”

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

If anyone is interested in checking it out, the French Open is taking place this week and next, although unfortunately both Tim Henman and Andy Roddick were beaten in the first round .

Thanks for the feedback :

LairaBehr4 - Early? I posted about 3 hours later than originally planned !!
And before you comment on today's update being too early, all I'm gonna say is: it's my birthday and I'll post when I want to !!

Natz - Thanks .

behrluv32 - Don't worry, this is definitely dreamer insured . Liz is the one who left, so technically Max ought to be the one trying to track her down - maybe she didn't want to be found? As for her feelings for him... we'll have to wait and see.

behralicious87 - Thanks . You'll find out eventually.

Natalie36 - I'm sure they'll talk eventually... just perhaps not quite yet .

Addicted2AmberEyes - Thanks . I think that may be why Max has been so stand-offish with Liz - despite all his hard wok to get over her and move on with his life, he knows that he'll never really love anyone but her - he hates that he's still attracted to her even though she broke his heart.

clueless - Thanks .

Alien_Friend - Thanks . Believe me, I know all about younger siblings!!

Nz_Roswell - Thanks .

begonia9508 - I'm sorry it's making you crazy, but there's still a way to go before the truth comes out, I'm afraid. Izzy's not necessarily a bitch, she's just being a teenager - she's doing it to get a reaction from her older brother. Perhaps her attitude towards him is her way of dealing with his fame and feeling second-best to him.

Tamashii - I agree with you on the older brothers and sisters - I've had 2 younger siblings to deal with - the youngest is just coming up to Izzy's age and can be a real pain at times (I'm actually looking foward to next year - I'll be living 5000 miles away from him - I've been living back at home with my parents for the last 2 years and it's getting on my nerves ).

roswell3053 - Thank you . I'm glad you like the story .



***

Part Eight

Monday June 18th 2007

“Okay, guys,” said David, addressing Liz and Max on the court as they warmed up. “Before we get down to it this morning, I have some news to break to you.”

“What news?” asked Liz, slightly apprehensively.

“It seems the press has got wind of your partnership for the championships this year and the BBC wants to interview the two of you,” revealed David. “This afternoon.”

“What?” questioned Liz, sharply. She stole a glance at Max, who was looking less than pleased at her coach’s announcement. “Um, you know, I don’t think that’s such a good idea at the moment.”

To her left, Max made a kind of spluttering sound before covering up his response of “Too right,” with a cough. Liz shrugged and raised an eyebrow at David in a ‘See what I mean?’ gesture.

“Look, I know that you two are not exactly on… speaking terms… these days, but if you want to get through the next three weeks without causing rumours and speculation, you’re gonna have to come to some kind of compromise. You’re gonna have a lot of contact with the press during the tournament, so I suggest you put whatever it is that’s going on behind you and work together off the court as well as on.”

“Fine,” muttered Max in reply, without looking at Liz. “We’ll do the interview. What time and where?”

Liz’s head snapped up at his words, and she looked round at Max in surprise. He’d barely said two words to her in a week, and now he was willing to cooperate? What had changed?

David smiled, “The interview’s at four. Conference room B in the All England Club.”

“Okay, we’ll be there,” she agreed.

“Great. Why don’t you finish warming up and I’ll call the club to let them know it’s on.”

David pulled out his mobile, dialling as he walked off the court.

Meanwhile, Liz turned to Max, “Well, I guess we need to work out our interview strategy for this afternoon, then.”

“Guess so,” replied Max shortly, although his eyes seemed to linger on her face before he turned away to grab his racket.

Liz shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, watching him in puzzlement when he moved away from her. He seemed slightly different this morning; of course the attitude towards her was still present and he was barely paying attention to her as per usual, but something was different today and she had no idea what.

***

“Max, Liz, great to see you both again,” smiled Sue Barker, as Max and Liz entered the BBC sports studio. And great to have you back on court again, Liz.”

“Thanks, Sue,” smiled Liz politely, as she took a seat beside Max on the interviewing sofa. “It’s great to be back.”

“It certainly is,” smiled Sue. “Don’t you agree, Max?”

Liz glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, awaiting his reaction. Please be nice, Max, she begged silently.

“Sure, it’s great,” he replied, with a smile that seemed natural, but Liz could tell it was forced. She tried not to roll her eyes at the overuse of the word great so far in the interview.

“So, it’s been a long time since you last played together. How’s the training going?” Sue started the interview with a safe question, for which Liz was glad. Of course she knew that the inevitable questions about her sudden disappearance and their relationship were bound to come up, but at least she was starting with the easy stuff.

“Oh, it’s going really well,” she replied, when it was obvious that Max wasn’t going to. “Almost like old times.”

“Well, perhaps this means the two of you will be heading straight for the final, then. What do you think, Max?”

“Well, I don’t want to jinx it, but we’re definitely getting back on track. So, fingers crossed for the final,” he replied, not a hint of his earlier bad attitude in his friendly tone. Liz silently thanked the Lord that he wasn’t being difficult today.

Sue nodded, “And with your recent success, I hear you could well be heading for the men’s final this year, too, Max. So, how does it feel to be the most hyped male player for this year’s tournament? You’ve had some disappointments at Wimbledon in the past.”

Max simply smiled, “I’ve been training exceptionally hard for this, and having won the Australian and French Open titles already this year, I’m confident that I can play my best at Wimbledon this year, too.”

“That’s great to hear. I wish you the best of luck.”

“Thank you,” replied Max, with a nod, as Sue turned her attention to Liz.

“Now, Liz, you’ve been out of the game for almost two years,” she started.

“Yes, I have,” she nodded, slightly wary of where the questions might be going.

“And since then, we’ve had a influx of good female players. How do you think you’ll fare against these younger women?”

“Well, Sue, although I’ve been out of training for a while, I’ve been working hard on my techniques over the last few weeks and by next week, I’m positive I shall be back to my old standard and ready to take on anything the tournament throws at me.”

“That’s good to hear,” smiled Sue. “But now, I’m afraid I have to get down to the questions everybody’s been dying to know the answers to for the last two years…”

Both Liz and Max shifted uncomfortably on the sofa, careful not to look at each other. They knew what was coming.

“… Can you tell us what exactly happened to break up our favourite couple just a few weeks after you publicly announced your engagement? Why did you leave, Liz and where have you been for the past two years? We’re all dying to know.”

“Um,” Liz fumbled for words. How was she supposed to answer that question on national TV? Only a handful of people knew the truth about her disappearance and she wasn’t even ready to tell Max about it, let alone the rest of the world. “I–”

“Sorry, I’m afraid that’s going to have to remain private for now,” cut in Max, causing Liz to turn to him in surprise for the second time that day. He didn’t look at her, but continued to speak to Sue. “Liz and I are trying to work things through right now and until we’ve done that, it’s going to have to remain between us.”

Sue looked between the two of them, as Liz nodded in agreement.

“Fair enough, I suppose,” she relented. “Well, let’s move on, shall we? Max, what do you feel about your chances in Wimbledon 2008…?”

The interview continued for another twenty minutes, during which time, Liz noticed that Sue Barker was careful to steer clear of any topic involving their relationship, which she was glad of. As they exited the BBC studios, she turned to Max.

“Thank you for the save in there,” she said softly. “I’m sorry, I’m just not ready to talk about what happened.”

Max shrugged, avoiding her eyes, “It’s what I do, isn’t it? Save you when you get into a tight spot?”

Liz frowned for a moment, before she understood what he meant. He was referring to one of their first interviews as double partners, where she’d been put on the spot and he’d had to step in and save her that time too…

***

Tuesday 28th May 2002 – French Open, Paris

“Good evening, Max, Liz,” greeted Bob Ackerman, an interviewer from Tennis World magazine. “Nice to have you here.”

“Thank you, Bob,” smiled Liz, shaking his hand warmly.

“Thanks,” said Max, also holding out his hand in greeting, before they all took their seats in the small meeting room in their Paris hotel.

“Well, let’s get started, shall we?” suggested Bob, as he arranged his notes on his lap and switched on his Dictaphone. “First off, how are you both?”

Max and Liz shared a smile, before Liz replied, “We’re doing great, thanks.”

“That’s good to know. I’m sure you must be pleased with your singles victories in the first round this morning.”

“Oh, yes, definitely,” said Liz, giving Max another happy smile.

“Of course,” he added. “And looking forward to the next round. It’s our intention to remain in this tournament for as long as possible.”

“Understandable,” nodded Bob, smiling as he made a couple of notes. “And your doubles matches? I assume you’ve been training hard for those as well.”

“We have,” nodded Liz, and Max agreed. “After losing in the semi-finals at the Australian Open in January, we’re more determined than ever to make it to the final here in Paris.”

“Well, then, I wish you the best of luck.”

“Thank you,” smiled Max.

“Okay, so you both started your careers as singles players. Can I ask what made you decide to play mixed doubles together?”

“Certainly,” said Liz. “We were actually practicing together back in October last year and a good friend of Max’s suggested we play a game of mixed doubles against he and his partner. We agreed and found that we played really well together, so afterwards, Max came up with the idea of teaming up in the mixed doubles and I guess the rest is history.”

“Yes, you certainly surprised us all by reaching the semi-finals of your first big tournament together,” Bob told them.

“Yeah, it was a surprise to us, too,” admitted Max. “We had no idea at the time how good we’d be together.”

“Moving onto a slightly more personal question: Do you think there’s a particular reason you make such a great doubles pair? There have been several rumours going around lately that the two of you might be involved with each other. Is there any truth to those rumours?” asked their interviewer with obvious interest.

Max turned to Liz with raised eyebrow and a smirk before answering the question, “Not at all, Bob. Sorry to disappoint you, but Liz and I are simply great friends and doubles partners. Nothing more than that.”

“Well, I suppose that settles it, then; and perhaps I can ask about the recent tabloid stories involving you, Liz? Is there any truth in the statement that you have recently been linked to a number of young London bachelors? It’s well documented that you are something of a wild-child; do you find that your social life affects your game in any way? And what does your father think about your off-court exploits?”

Liz grew tense, “I’m not sure those are relevant questions here, Bob.”

“I’m only reiterating what has been said before, Liz. In fact, I’d like to get your opinion on the reports that you may have an alcohol problem.”

Liz froze in her seat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Max sit up, watching her with concern.

“Look,” he turned to the interviewer. “Liz is right; this isn’t relevant to the French Open or to our doubles partnership. What Liz does in her own time is her business and no one else’s.”

Liz shot Max a grateful look, before facing Bob Ackerman once more, with a stony expression on her face.

“I’m sorry. I can’t do this,” she announced, rising from her seat as she prepared to leave the room. Max reached forward and caught her arm, but she shrugged him off and strode to the door. “I’m afraid you’ll have to finish without me. Goodbye.”

She left the meeting room and angrily headed for her hotel bedroom. Once inside, she began to pace, in an attempt to calm down. How dare the press pry into her personal life like that? Max was right; it was none of their business!

Ten minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Liz stopped her pacing to look through the peephole and then open the door to let Max in.

“Are you okay?” he questioned gently.

“Yeah, I think so,” she sighed. “Thank you for sticking up for me in there. Although, I guess I just overreacted.”

Max shook his head. “You didn’t overreact; he shouldn’t have asked you such personal questions. We were there to talk about our tennis game, not our social lives,” he said, as he pulled her into a hug. “Don’t worry about it, okay? Let’s just forget all about the interview and concentrate on playing well over the next two weeks.”

“Okay,” nodded Liz, as she extracted herself from his arms. “Do you feel like watching a film with me tonight? They’re showing some English-language movies on pay-per-view tonight.”

“Sounds good,” agreed Max. “As long as there’s no tennis involved.”

“You got it,” said Liz, with a nod, turning on the TV as they got settled on her bed, ready for a night of relaxation…

***

Liz was pulled from her memories by the sound of Max calling her name. She looked up to find him waiting impatiently at the open door of a taxi.

“Liz, are you coming or what?” he questioned in exasperation. “I have places to be tonight.”

“Yes, I’m coming,” she replied, her heart sinking as the memory of Max, her best friend, faded and was replaced by Max, the moody bastard.

Somehow, she didn’t think this Grand Slam was going to be as great an experience as the French Open had been back in 2002.

TBC…

[Heavenli24]

Thank you for the feedback, everyone :

LairaBehr4 - Thanks .

Strawberry88 - Thank you .

behralicious87 - Thanks .

Natz - Thank you - yes, Liz left after they got engaged, but that's all I'm saying for now .

roswell3053 (x2) - Thanks . I won't say yet why Liz left, but remember that there were 3 years between the press interrogating her about her lifestyle and when she left. A lot can happen in three years - especially when you're growing up and becoming an adult.

Alien_Friend (x2) - Thank you . Have you been keeping up with the French Open? I know Roddick got knocked out last week, but there have been some great matches in the last few days .

Nz_Roswell (x2) - Thanks .

clueless (x2) - Thank you .

Michelle in Yonkers (x2) - Ah, see, you've caught me out by using psychological arguments. Yes, technically, Max isn't 'moody', but in this case we've been fooled by British slang. It's very common here to call just about anybody 'a moody bastard' or 'a fucking bitch' without meaning it in the literal sense. My best school friends used to greet each other with 'hello, bitch' or 'alright, you moody slag?' and it was just an 'affectionate' greeting, nothing more. Here, Liz is showing her disappointment that Max's kindness in the interview was only for show by calling him moody- she doesn't mean that his mood are literally all over the place.
Which actually brings me to the next thing - I agree with you that Liz is being stupid. She probably hasn't even considered that Max might be worrying that he did something to make her leave.
Honestly, she's trying to push aside her problems and is pretending to be upbeat about it because she doesn't want to face up to the past and she's so scared to admit her reasons for leaving to Max that she's convinced herself that unless he's being nice to her, she won't be able to handle the conversation. Unfortunately, she's overlooking the fact that he's not going to change his attitude until she talks to him - it's a vicious circle right now.

Liz is being very naive at the moment - of course she knows that the press will hound her and Max about their relationship, but she's been trying to ignore that aspect of her life - especially since, for the first time in her life, she's spent 2 years away from the press and the limelight and she's been able to let her guard down.

She's famous, known to be a wild child, have alcohol problems, and she's been mysteriously AWOL for the last couple of years -- abandoning a storybook romance with America's other little sweetheart -- and she thinks no one will be curious?

Just a quick note - apart from the US Open tournaments, there have been no other mentions of America in this story. It is set in England, with English characters. If anything, Max and Liz are 'Britain's sweethearts', and to be honest, the British tabloids print stories similar to Liz's (minus the tennis part, obviously) every week here, Also, I get the impression that most British celebs are much more laidback in interviews compared to in the US - just last week, Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber was talking about the size of his penis in my weekly gossip magazine!!


sylvia37 - Thanks. Please read the reply to MIY's post above, in regards to your thoughts, because I'd rather not write it all out again !

BioGirl804 - Thanks .

Addicted2AmberEyes - Thank you . Right now, Liz is too caught up in her own worries, that she's not really seeing how it's affecting Max. She's so scared about how admitting the truth in public will affect her, that she's almost deliberately ignoring Max's pain - it's not fair, but then she's not perfect.

Tamashii - Thanks .


***

Part Nine

Wednesday June 20th 2007

Max arrived at the courts at two pm to find Liz still doing her singles training with David. Yesterday morning, they’d arranged to take some time off from practice together so that he and Liz could concentrate on singles for the rest of the day and the following morning. The suggestion, put forward by David, worked fine from Max’s point of view, since there had been a new awkwardness between them after the BBC interview on Monday afternoon and he was glad for the extra space and time away from her.

Now, however, as he approached the court she was playing on, he found he could barely take his eyes off her. She was bouncing from one foot to the other, eagerly awaiting David’s shot over the net, her hair swaying from side-to-side in its bouncy ponytail. Max drank in her appearance; her eyes sparkled with determination and enjoyment as she took a swing and gracefully returned the ball back over the net.
She hadn’t noticed his presence yet, so Max took the opportunity to stand back and watch her play. A small involuntary smile graced his lips as he admired her technique and her graceful movements. It was something he had been unable to do during their doubles training.

A couple of minutes later, David called for a break and as she walked over to the bench to grab a drink, Liz finally noticed him standing there. Max quickly straightened up and moved to place his tennis bag next to hers on the bench.

“Hi,” he greeted with a little more warmth than had been in his voice for the past week and a half. “You were playing well out there.”

“Oh,” said Liz in surprise. She obviously wasn’t used to him being nice to her. “Um, thanks.”

She watched him in confusion as he bent down to retrieve his rackets from his bag, but the arrival of David at the side of the court interrupted the moment.

”Afternoon, Max,” greeted Liz’s coach.

“Afternoon, David,” replied Max, as he stood up.

“Are you two ready to get started or do you need a breather first, Liz?” questioned David in a friendly tone.

“Just give me a couple more minutes and I’ll be ready,” replied Liz, as she picked up her towel and ran it over her face to absorb the sweat.

“Okay, no problem,” smiled David, before addressing Max. “You fancy taking some practice shots while Liz is catching her breath?”

“Sure,” he agreed easily, following David onto the court.

He and David spent the next few minutes knocking up, until Liz stood up to join them on the court and they began their daily training. However, after just thirty minutes, Max noticed that Liz seemed much more tired than usual. At first, he chalked it up to the fact that she had spent the morning doing singles training with David, but as they continued to play, he realised that she’d only played the same amount of tennis as she did when they trained together. Becoming slightly worried when she missed the third shot in a row, he quietly asked her if she was alright. She shrugged him off with an ‘I’m fine,’ and a slightly tense expression, but when she stumbled a few minutes later and almost went crashing to the ground, Max called for a break.

When David agreed, Liz sighed and rubbed her neck as she made her way off the court and took a seat on the bench. With a slight frown, Max followed her and slid onto the seat beside her.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked hesitantly.

“I’m fine, just a bit tired,” she told him. “And what’s it to you anyway?”

“Well, you’re my partner in this tournament and if you’re not fit to play next week, then that’s kind of my concern, isn’t it?” he returned.

“Who said anything about not being fit?” retorted Liz. “I’m having a bad day today, alright? It doesn’t mean I’m pulling out of the tournament!”

“Fine,” sighed Max. “I was just trying to help.”

They sat in silence for a moment or two, until Max realised how thirsty he was and he reached down between them to grab his water bottle from the ground. However, Liz seemed to choose that exact moment to reach down for her drink too and first their arms and then their hands brushed against each other. Max’s head immediately snapped up, the contact with her skin like a shock to the system and their eyes met. Max was drawn into her gaze and with it came memories of a certain time several years ago…

***

Monday July 1st 2002 – Wimbledon 2002, London

“Hey, Liz, are you in there?” questioned Max, as he knocked on Liz’s hotel room door. “Are you okay?”

He’d been worried about her ever since she’d disappeared off court at the end of her fourth round match that afternoon. She’d been off her game today and it had definitely showed in her playing. Since he’d already played his fourth round earlier in the day, Max had chosen to watch from the VIP box at the side of the court and it was obvious that something was up with Liz. She’d missed all the important shots and had fumbled over her serves, committing two double faults during the final set. Although she’d put up a fight and kept the match going for three sets, eventually it seemed as though the pressure just became too much and in the end, she’d lost.

After the match, he’d waited for her to emerge from the dressing room so he could console her, but she’d never appeared and after waiting several minutes, he’d realised she must have slipped out unnoticed. So he went looking for her…which was how he’d ended up knocking on her hotel room door at this very moment.

“Liz?” he questioned again.

“What?” her annoyed, but muffled tone floated through the door. “Just bugger off, Max, okay?”

“I just wanted to see if you were okay,” he called out to her. “Can I come in?”

There was a pause and a faint sigh, before, “Fine, come in.”

Max turned the handle and gently pushed the door open so he could slip inside the room. However, as he moved to close the door, the sight in front of him made his heart sink. Liz was sitting on the side of her bed, her head down and her hands in her lap. Her shoulders were shaking slightly and she was holding a half-shredded, soggy tissue in her hands.

“Hey,” he murmured as he quickly crossed the room and slid onto the bed next to her. “What’s wrong?”

Liz just shrugged and shook her head, but Max could clearly see the tears sliding down her cheeks.

“Hey,” he said again, this time sliding an arm around her shoulders and urging her close. “You’re crying.”

“God, what’s the matter with me, Max?” she muttered. “Everything’s just going wrong and I don’t know how to fix it.”

“What’s going wrong?” he wondered softly, as he gently moved his hand up and down her arm in a comforting gesture. “Apart from this afternoon, you’ve played some brilliant tennis over the last few days. Okay, so you had a bad day today; we all do occasionally, but it’s not the end of the world.”

“It’s not just that,” she sniffled. “It’s everything… my training schedule, the pressure of Wimbledon… the press.”

“Oh,” he murmured in sudden understanding. The more popular Liz had become lately, the more juicy stories the papers had been printing about her personal life. Just a couple of days ago, ‘The Sun’ printed an exclusive kiss-and-tell, from a man who claimed to have spent the night with her a few weeks ago. Needless to say, the story hadn’t exactly shown Liz in the best light. “You know, Liz, you shouldn’t pay any attention to the stuff they put in the tabloids these days. It’s all exaggerated to boost ratings.”

“I know I shouldn’t let it get to me,” she admitted. “But with all the stress of the tournament as well, I just can’t help it.”

“I know,” he agreed softly.

“God, am I really that bad, Max?” she asked, waving her hand in the direction of a newspaper lying on the floor. “Is that really how people see me?”

“Of course not,” he told her gently, releasing his hold on her and turning her to face him. “You’re young and beautiful… it’s only natural to want to go out and have fun while you can.”

“Really?” she wondered, lifting her eyes to his.

“Yes, really,” he smiled.

“You… you think I’m beautiful?”

“I do,” admitted Max, surprised that he wasn’t more embarrassed to be admitting that fact to her. “You’re very beautiful. I’ve always thought so.”

“Thank you,” she murmured.

Max simply smiled and reached up to wipe away her tears with his thumb in what was supposed to be an innocent gesture, but he suddenly found himself unable to tear his eyes away from hers and his hand lingered on her face. As he gazed down at her, looking so vulnerable, he felt his heart begin to beat faster in his chest and unable to stop himself, he lowered his lips to hers. The kiss was gentle and soft and only lasted a few short seconds, before he pulled away and watched as her eyes fluttered open.

“You’re beautiful, Lizzie, and smart, and fun,” he murmured softly, as he stroked her cheek with his thumb. “And any guy would be lucky to have you.”

A small smile lit up her face briefly, before she leaned forward, sliding one hand up to his neck as she brought his mouth to hers once more. The second kiss was tender and slightly hesitant at first, but it didn’t take long for them both to relax and enjoy the embrace. It was almost as if they’d been previously unaware of any kind of attraction between them before this moment, but now that it had finally been acknowledged, there was no longer anything to hold them back.

“Liz,” Max murmured against her lips, his hands sliding up her arms, gently caressing her bare skin as he deepened the kiss. He felt Liz sigh into his mouth at the increased contact between them.

Eventually, however, the need for air became too great and Max was forced to pull away, instead choosing to smile down at her, as his fingers gently caressed her face.

“Max,” murmured Liz breathlessly as her eyes began to search his gaze. “What…?”

“I like you, Liz,” he supplied, partly surprising himself at the admission. “I suppose I’ve liked you since the day we met, but I just didn’t realise it fully until this moment.”

“Me, too,” she breathed, her expression a mixture of surprise and wonder. “You know, I’ve never really considered the possibility of you and me before, but now… it just seems to make perfect sense.”

Max couldn’t hide the happy smile that tugged at his lips, “Well, if that’s the case, Miss Parker… then, will you go out with me?”

She stared up at him for a moment, before a wide grin lit up her face, “Yes.”

“Really?” he questioned, almost unable to grasp that this was actually happening.

“Yes, really,” she nodded. “After all, we make great partners… I don’t see any reason why we couldn’t we make a great couple too.”

Max shifted backwards a little to take in her appearance more fully, before letting out a slightly awed, “Wow!”

“Yeah,” chuckled Liz.

“I never even imagined that this could happen,” he admitted softly.

“Me either,” she replied. However, a hint of apprehension appearing on her face as she added, “But, God, what do you think the press are going to make of it?”

“We’re not going to worry about the press,” Max stated firmly, as he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. “Although, it might be best if we kept this to ourselves until the tournament is over. Neither of us needs anymore outside stress right now.”

“Good idea,” murmured Liz, lifting her head to place a gentle kiss on the underside of his jaw. “But right now I’m hungry, so what do you say we go get something to eat… as friends only, of course.”

“Sounds good to me,” he smiled, as he stood up and held his hand out to her. She took it and gave him a smile before grabbing some clothes to change into and heading for the en suite bathroom.

A few minutes later, the two of them left Liz’s hotel room and headed for the lift. On the way out of the hotel, Liz turned to Max with a soft smile.

“Thank you for cheering me up, Max.”

“Anytime, Liz. Anytime,” he returned with a grin, unable to resist the urge to wrap his arm around her and pull her close for a brief moment.

To anyone else, it looked like an innocent friendly gesture, but as Liz and Max shared a secretive smile, they knew it was anything but. In fact, it was the start of a very special relationship.

TBC…