roswell3053
Carolyn
Natalie36
Maiqu
dreambeliever
behr_able
Ginger
LilithAnn
Eve
zaneri1
Jan
smileeUK
angelina
KJ and I thank you so so much for all your amazing fb! Sorry this took so long!
Chapter 11
Stepping onto the busy streets of the city Liz felt confused.
Watching as Max haled a cab she caught him looking back quickly with regret in his eyes.
She knew he loved her that she never doubted, she was more concerned with the way he felt about her, as a person, as a partner in their relationship.
Watching her mother repeatedly degraded by her father over the years seriously affected LIz. The fact that her mom was completely dependent on him financially and emotionally was something Liz swore would never happen to her.
She was determined to be her own person, a professional strong independent woman who was respected for her mind and loved for exactly who she was.
It was vital that she be considered an equal partner in their relationship, that he hold her opinions and feelings in high regard, whether he agreed with her or not.
She went through many bad relationships looking for someone with these qualities.
She was so convinced that Max was this person, the 'right' person, it took her by surprise that he would just go over her head and discount her feelings.
In a nutshell, it scared her.
Brushing her hair from her eyes she wondered if she was transferring all her insecure feelings into this one act.
Sighing deeply she eyed a bar across the street.
“I need a drink, or two…maybe even three.”
Pushing open the heavy mahogany door Liz looked around the near empty bar. It wasn't quite happy hour yet so the place was pretty much empty.
Spotting a vacant seat at the end of the bar she headed that way. Not long after taking her seat a smiling bartender came over to take her order.
"Hi my name's Sean what would you like?"
Giving the bartender a slight smile of her own Liz thought for a moment.
“A glass of your house red please.”
Nodding Sean threw a white rag over his shoulder and backed away to go fill her order.
As he reached high on the top shelf to retreive a bottle of their house Merlot Kyle's voice suddenly went off in Liz's head.
"You know Lizzie Bear when it's time to do some serious drinking nothing beats vodka! God bless those Russians! I mean who would have ever thought of getting such a great liquor out of a potato?!"
“Wait!" Liz shouted out and than blushed when Sean turned back her way with a puzzled look on his face "Sorry, but could you make that a vodka tonic? I’m not sure wine is going to help today.”
Hesitating briefly Sean looked over the pretty brunette who was in obvious distress.
“Sure thing Miss.” He cheerfully replied before coming back to the bar with a bottle of Grey Goose and a glass.
Placing the tumbler in front of Liz he raised the tall cold bottle high in the air tipping it slightly causing the smooth liquid to stream perfectly into the glass below.
Adding the tonic and slice of lime a crooked smile crossed his lips as he eyed her impressed expression.
“Bad day?” Sean asked as he slid the freshly made drink to Liz.
Taking a tiny sip Liz breathed out slowly before raising her chocolate eyes back to him.
“You could say that.”
Holding his finger up in the air giving the universally known 'wait just one second' gesture he pulled a Bud Light from the cooler and placed it in front of a regular at the opposite side of the bar.
“Waiting for your date Jason?”
“Yep, Carolyn should be here in a few. Just wanted to catch the last inning of the game before dinner.”
Gazing back at Liz, Sean nodded. “Well let me know if you need a second, I believe someone is in need of my vast wisdom.”
Laughing loudly as if he had partaken in some of the bartender’s knowledge in the past Jason tipped his beer in Liz’s direction.
“Listen to the man, he’s smarter than he looks.”
By the time Sean made his way back to her she was sliding her empty glass towards him.
“Another please.”
Sean looked down at the empty glass a tad shocked at how fast the young lady had downed it.
"Hey you know this stuff is pretty strong right? Maybe you should take it a bit slow and - "
"Another… please." Liz said a bit forceful this time.
“Oookaayy," sighed Sean as he started to once again grab the bottle of vodka to rework his magic "coming right up.”
Slipping her trench coat off Liz stretched her tired neck as the vodka began to relax her nerves.
“Would you like to talk about it?” Sean asked as he slid a fresh drink in front of Liz.
Liz smoothed her petite hands around the big glass solemnly. "Talk about what?"
"What ever it is that's bothering you?"
Sean smiled as he flipped the rag off his shoulder and began wiping down the bar.
"What makes you think something is bothering me?"
Leaning his palms against the bar Sean tilted his head to the side and narrowed his eyes as if he was honing in on her.
"Well you see I'm a bartender. And as cliché as this might sound we bartenders have certain…people skills. Intuition being one of them. I couldn’t help but pick up a few things about you for instance when you first walked in.”
Liz took a small sip of her drink this time, "Like what?"
"Well for starters you're a painter. Or at least you work around artwork some how."
Choking a bit on her drink Liz looked up in shock.
"How the hell did you know that?"
Smiling Sean reached across the counter and took hold of Liz's right hand and held it up to the light over the bar.
"You have bits of colored paint under your nails. Now you might work in the paint department at Home Depot for all I know, but I don't think so. You give off this creative vibe that just screams artist to me."
"Wow you're good." Liz shook her head in wonderment.
"Well I've always been good at reading people. It’s gotten me out of a few jams here and there."
Sean let go off Liz's hand and went back to tidying up his bar preparing for the evening rush.
Feeling the burn of the smooth liquor down her throat Liz gazed back up at the bartender with the kind eyes and thought ‘why not’.
“Do you have a girlfriend...or a wife?"
As soon as the words came out of her mouth Liz realized how that must have sounded and started to blush profusely.
"Oh god! I'm so sorry! That's not how I meant it to - "
"It's okay I understood what you meant," laughed Sean as he held up his hand to stop Liz's embarrassed babbling "and yes, I do have a wife...for ten years now. Her name is Serena."
"Wow ten years."
"Yep," nodded Sean "so you're needing relationship advice huh?"
”You could say that, “ sighed Liz unhappily while finishing her second drink and gesturing for more, "I have to warn you though, it's a long story."
Folding his arms Sean leaned against the counter and smiled widely. “ I’m here for most of the night so you have my full attention.”
Five vodka tonics and two hours later Liz had described in detail her relationship with Max.
Beaming with excitement she explained the wrong number that she clearly believed to be an unbelievable twist of fate that brought them together.
With equal enthusiasm she went into detail about their amazing phone conversations that lasted till they were both too exhausted to speak, and how that eventually brought them to the most romantic moment of her life when they first set eyes on each other.
Lowering her long dark eyelashes wistfully, regret filled her heart when she finally spoke of the disastrous day and their first real and very painful argument.
Waiting patiently till she was finished Sean came from around the bar and took a seat next to her.
With baited breath Liz rested her chin on her palm and her elbow on the counter for this ‘wisdom’ she was promised.
Eyeing her he chuckled to himself as her elbow slipped off the bar taking her body with it in the momentum.
“Whoa! Steady there.” Grabbing her just in time before she landed on the floor Sean signalled to his co-worker to watch the bar for a second.
“Ok, first of all I have to say that was without a doubt the strangest first meeting I have ever heard of in my life. When I was single the closest I ever came to your story were telemarketers and obscene phone calls."
Liz let out a loud drunk snort and than covered her mouth in embarrassment while at the same time spilling some of her drink onto her and Sean.
"Sorry!" Cringing Liz pulled the rag from his shoulder and handed it to him.
"It's okay happens all the time," Sean smiled as he wiped the vodka from his shirt then handed it to her so she could do the same, "now onto your man. This Max you told me about doesn’t strike me as the controlling, macho caveman type.”
Widening her eyes she shook her head back and forth making herself slightly dizzy in the process.
“No, oh my never. Max has always been very kind and …respectful towards me.”
Hesitating she glanced back up at Sean as she heard her own words coming back to haunt her.
"Let me tell you about men Liz. We have this stuff in us called testosterone; I like to call it idiot juice. For it can make even the smartest man do very dumb things when it flows through our systems. When Max heard about how you were being treated at work.... well his idiot juice went into over drive and it was telling him to protect you."
Noticing that business was starting to pick up Sean got up and went back around the bar to take some orders but first he stopped to take one last look at Liz.
"You know most women come in here talking about how the men in their lives never do anything for them, how bad they're treated. I've even had some tell me after a few drinks about how they're abused. But here you have a guy who is willing to go to jail to protect you. It sounds to me like he really loves you."
Smiling empathetically Sean signalled for his co-worker to hail a cab while he helped Liz with her coat.
"Forgive me for getting too personal here but could it be that you're just afraid of getting hurt? Because honestly Liz real love doesn't come around that often, for most people it doesn't happen at all. I've listen to the way you've talked about him, it's obvious how much you care. Don't let fear take away your chance at happiness, go to him. Tell him how you feel."
Watching as Sean walked to the other side of the bar to wait on a new customer Liz suddenly had a revelation. All at once she understood that all of his crazy uncharacteristic behaviour was done out of love, out of an urgent need to protect her...to keep her safe.
She realized without a doubt that he really loved her.
And as far as she was concerned at that moment she couldn’t have loved him more.
Just then a sharp pain shot through her heart as she recalled all the mean things she had said to him.
"Oh my god! I’ve got to talk to him!"
Grabbing her purse Liz drunkenly fumbled around for her cell phone.
Finding the object of her hunt she opened it up but was forced to blink a few times due to the fact that she was now seeing two phones instead of one.
The vodka had begun to exact it revenge.
After several failed attempts she was finally successful, nervously her heart pounded away against her small frame, as she grew desperate to hear him again.
After many seemingly endless rings she was finally rewarded by the deep husky tone of his unmistakable voice.
“Hello?”
Physically moved by the sound of him it hit her all at once what she needed to do.
Swaying back and forth she pushed opened the heavy door to the waiting taxi on the curb, looking over her outfit she released the top button on her blouse while wicked ideas flowed through her intoxicated mind.
Breathlessly she slurred her words as she attempted to work her sensual magic on him.
“M-Maxx it’s me, I’ll be right… ovverr.”
Steadying herself as the cab took a sharp corner Liz struggled with the thin belt that was secured around her skirt.
She had done enough talking for one day.
He had proved how much he loved her …
Now it was her turn.
.
