Round 9 Winner
Max
Round 4 Winner
Max the Dog bites Max on the butt.
Round 3 Winner
Max the Dog
Max and Liz make love in the shower.
Author: Debbi aka Breathless
Category: Max and Liz, AU
Rating: Adult for adult language/content
Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer. Borrowing Max Evans, Liz Parker, and a few other Roswell characters who don’t belong to me.
Second disclaimer: I began writing this story a long time ago. I was just about to start posting it, when someone else posted a story with the same title (I can’t remember what board it was on). I thought over new titles, which I didn’t want to do because I felt the title was integral to the story, so I put this fic aside while I wrote Maxeo and Lizziet. Now that I’ve taken this story up again, I can’t find that other story anywhere (I think it was a Zan fic) so I don’t know who to give title credit to. I’m going to use the title I started with, and hope I don’t step on any toes.
Summary: This story is a first for me. It’s totally AU, with NO aliens.
(Edited to add: This fic is lighter, on the fluffier side like Maxeo and Lizziet, but don't let that kleenex box get too far away! You might need it later.)
This story takes place in New York City. Liz is 23. She’s quiet, a little shy, the girl next door type, and a bit of a mystery. Max is 27 and a lawyer, and be warned, he's not mama's virginal little boy. He's a ladies man, what you might call a player, that is until he meets someone during a chance encounter in the park . . .
A Walk in the Park
Part 1
Liz Parker exited a New York City apartment building on a pleasant fall night heading straight toward the park across the street, feeling the tug on her hand as Max led the way. He was eager to make his usual rounds and it made her happy to know he was happy. They ambled along the sidewalk, with Max stopping at all his usual spots, and Liz humoring him. He was such a big lug!
The locals acknowledged him as he passed by, with a wave or a smile. Everyone thought he was a real sweetheart. They reached the street corner and he stood patiently beside Liz, looking at her with those puppy dog eyes of his, until the light changed and he took off running. Liz had to run just to keep up with him.
“Max!” she laughed. “Wait!” His enthusiasm was unbounded and she loved him with all her heart.
He pulled her into the park and came to a stop at a nearby tree, the same tree he stopped at every night. After sniffing and sniffing and walking round and round the base of it, he finally lifted his leg and relieved himself. Happy that he had made his mark, he abandoned the tree and set off down the trail once again, his tail wagging in sheer bliss.
* * * * * *
Max Evans stretched out his legs, going through his warm-up exercises before starting out on his nightly run. Jogging through the park late in the evening was his therapy, a way to combat the stresses of his job and his life. Not that his life was usually stressful. Hell no! He was a well-respected defense attorney, following in the footsteps of his father, doing a job that he loved. He had money, position, authority, and his choice of any woman that he wanted, anytime he wanted. Who would complain about that? He had no entanglements to weigh him down, no commitments to hamper his pleasure. Life was good. Wasn’t it?
He kept to the lighted pathways when he ran, but he wasn’t too concerned about his personal safety. He could take care of himself. He was well toned, muscular and knew self-defense. The night didn’t bother him. He used to run in the morning, in the pre-dawn hours when the city was still mostly sleeping, but that was before he saw her.
* * * * *
Liz moved deeper into the park, knowing that it was discouraged for a woman to be out, alone, unaccompanied, at this time of night. But the night had always been her friend. She enjoyed the darkness, when there were less people out to bother you, or ask questions of you, or intrude on your solitude.
Besides, this was the park where she had seen him.
She never saw him jogging during the day. He was probably busy then. She was sure a man like him had a full life to live. Work. Women. A man that gorgeous probably had lots of women. Lord knows, he’d never be interested in a mousy girl like her. Oh no, that wasn’t even remotely possible.
* * * * *
Max continued stretching his muscles, thinking back to the first time he’d seen her, on a night like this, a few months ago, when he’d made a late night visit to his favorite deli just before closing time. He’d been just about ready to leave, with a pastrami on rye, and she’d walked by on the sidewalk pulled by the biggest damn dog he’d ever seen. Her hair, long and dark and shiny, framed her beautiful face, and he stopped dead in the doorway of the deli just to stare at her. An acquaintance from work had chosen that moment to ‘bump’ into him, and by the time he could extricate himself from her prattle, the dark haired angel had disappeared.
It’d been weeks before he’d seen her again, this time from the inside of a cab on his way home late one night. She’d been headed for the park again, leading the mammoth German Shepard, a monster of a dog who at least equaled her weight, and he’d fleetingly wondered how in the world she could control a dog that size. She smiled as the dog pulled her along, the world’s most beautiful smile, and Max had uncharacteristically stuck his head out the window to shout at her, but the cab turned a corner and he lost sight of her. He’d quickly told the driver to go around the block, but she was gone by the time they got back. He’d lost her again.
Over the next few weeks he thought he’d seen her once or twice, and he’d followed but it always turned out to be someone else. Then, just a week ago, he’d seen her again. He’d been jogging along and suddenly she was there, walking, or rather being walked by, the mammoth dog. He thought he’d heard her call his name once or twice and it’d made his pulse race, but it couldn’t be. She never even looked his way. How could she know his name? She disappeared into the park that night, and he’d been looking for her every night since. Somehow, she’d gotten under his skin in a way no one had ever done before.
Usually when he saw a woman that he wanted, he’d introduce himself and in no time at all he’d bed her and then move on. Some people called him a player, but he didn’t mind. The girls didn’t seem to either. He was never left wanting for female companionship, and the sex was great. No strings. No commitments. No love connections or declarations to tie him down.
But this time, there was something about this dark haired angel that made him act stupid. Rolling down the window of a cab and shouting out to someone he didn’t know – that wasn’t his style. She made him act crazy, totally out of character, yet he didn’t even know her name.
He should have gone up to her by now, introduced himself and laid the groundwork for his seduction, but he hadn’t yet. Maybe because every time he saw her, his stomach started churning with anxiety and his hands would get sweaty and – what the hell was wrong with him? He was good at this. Meeting women, making them happy, making himself happy, moving on. What was it about this girl that was so different? Why couldn’t he get her out of his head?
Suitably warmed up, Max began his nightly run, taking him over the familiar paths of Central Park. His dark hair lifted off his forehead as he ran. The cool night air felt good on his heated skin as he set a steady pace, pumping up his muscles and letting the stresses of the day fall behind him.
He couldn’t help but wonder if he would see her tonight. She was, after all, the reason that he chose to run in this park, at this time of night.
* * * * *
“Good boy!” Liz exclaimed when Max finished leaving his mark on the grass. She opened her doggie bag, as was her duty, and removed the steaming residue from the grass. She enclosed it in the plastic bag she had brought along and disposed of the offending material in the nearby trash. Max seemed quite pleased with himself, and she decided to give him a few more minutes to romp in the park before returning to the apartment for some much needed beauty sleep. Yeah, right. Like it was gonna help.
She hadn’t seen him yet, the man with the dark hair that made her pulse race. He usually came out at night, jogging along the lighted paths of the park. He moved with such sensual grace, his muscles flexing and straining as he jogged. She felt her cheeks heating up just thinking about him.
She’d first noticed him months ago, ordering a sandwich in a local deli. He was drop dead gorgeous with his dark hair framing his handsome face and his eyes, those beautiful eyes, a color somewhere between hazel and honey. He’d had a buxom blonde on his arm, chatting away with her in the doorway of the deli, and she scolded herself for even thinking about him. Someone like him would never even notice someone like her.
But it was always nice to dream.
* * * * *
Max scanned the pathways as he ran, moving past couples walking hand in hand, drunks resting on park benches, solitary figures moving quickly to some unknown destination. He paid none of them any heed, only looking for the girl with the dark hair and a giant of a dog. He crossed over the footbridge, feeling the burn in his muscles, knowing his run was almost over. Just another corner and he would complete his circuit and go into his cool down. He was disappointed that he hadn’t seen her tonight, but maybe tomorrow. There was always tomorrow.
* * * * *
Max sat patiently by his mistress while she bent over to tie her shoe, happily darting his tongue out to lick her cheek. His tail stuck out into the middle of the path, just lying there minding its own business, when suddenly a Nike clad foot came down hard on it. He yelped in pain and whirled around, which startled Liz unexpectedly. His leash wrapped around her legs and sent her sprawling. The dog’s normally pleasant demeanor was suddenly replaced by his inherent nature to protect his owner. He lunged, snapping and growling after what he perceived to be her attacker. Liz held on tight to the leash as she scrambled back to her feet, trying to pull Max away from the poor hapless jogger that had just run past them.
“MAX, NO! MAX! STOP!”
She pulled hard on the leash but Max was a big dog and she couldn’t control him. He weighed nearly as much as she did and it was naive of her to think she could stop him if he really wanted to attack this guy. His ferocious growl echoed through the park and he lunged at the poor man, nearly yanking her arm out of her shoulder socket.
“MAX! STOP!”
In horror, Liz watched as Max opened his mouth and sank his teeth into the back of the jogger’s thigh. She could hear the sound of cloth ripping and an agonized yelp, and then the man went down, sprawling on the pathway. He desperately tried to crawl away, to escape the barrage of biting teeth and tearing flesh while Liz pounced on the dog, trying frantically to pull him away from his victim.
“Jesus Christ!” Max cried out as the pain of teeth sinking into the back of his thighs reached his brain. The weight of the dog barreling into him from behind had sent him skidding across the cement pathway, scraping the skin off the palms of his hands and his elbows when he tried to break his fall. He kicked out at the dog in self-defense, trying to keep those snapping teeth away from him.
“Oh Jesus! Oh God!” The words escaped unbidden from her lips as Liz pulled the dog away from the stricken man. Shit! Shit, shit, shit! She’d told her brother that Max was too damn big for her to handle! Why hadn’t he listened to her? Now he’d mauled some poor innocent schmuck and she’d probably get her ass sued.
“Oh my God! Are you all right?”
The jogger lifted his head then, and that’s when she saw his face. The shock of it forced her to take a step back. Oh God, no! Why did it have to be him? Of all the people in New York City that Max could have attacked, why did it have to be him? He was the only man that had ever caused her heart to skip a beat just by looking at him, and this pussycat of a dog turned psycho killer from hell had decided to eat him for dinner.
Why, God, why?
“Holy Shit!” Max bellowed as he huddled in agony on the ground. “Can’t you control your fucking dog?” His tirade was cut short as his eyes focused on the girl struggling with the monster on a leash. The shock of it made him snap his mouth closed.
It was her. Holy Shit! It was her!
“God! I’m so sorry!” Liz exclaimed. “He’s never done anything like this before! Are you hurt? Did he bite you?”
“Hell yes, he bit me!” Max exclaimed. His hand reached for the back of one thigh and then the other, feeling the torn fabric of his sweatpants. The pain in both legs was intense, and he knew he had puncture holes from that dog’s formidable teeth.
“Jesus, I’m so sorry! I don’t know why he acted that way!” Liz tried to explain. “I think,” she was shaking inside and out from anxiety and adrenaline. “I think he was trying to protect me. He must have seen you as a threat to me or something . . .”
She didn’t know what else to say. She had no idea why Max had decided to attack this guy.
“God!” Max writhed in agony on the ground, clutching the backs of his thighs. He liked to think of himself as a pretty macho guy, but that dog had definitely left his mark.
“Maybe I should take you to the hospital?” Liz suggested. Her brother’s dog had attacked this poor innocent --- gorgeous man --- and she felt totally responsible. Max had finally settled down and stopped barking and now the stupid mutt was sitting on his haunches wagging his tail. Like he thought he’d done good!
“No, I don’t think it’s that bad,” Max said through gritted teeth. He was in agony from the dog bites, but if she called an ambulance, then he wouldn’t get to talk to her anymore and he’d rather be in agony with her, than at peace in an ambulance on the way to the hospital without her.
“My apartment is right over there,” Liz pointed across the street. “Let me take you up there and I can see what Max did to you. If it looks bad, I’ll take you to the hospital myself.”
Liz held her hand out to help him to his feet and at first she thought he was going to rebuff her. He eyed her hand suspiciously, and then looked at the dog, before tentatively lifting his hand to hers. When their fingers made contact for the first time, the jolt of electricity that surged through them surprised them both. As he rose to his feet he pulled his hand back as if the contact was too intense. His weight settled on his feet as he stood, flinching as the pain in his legs intensified.
“You’re hurt,” Liz noticed him wince, and cringed inside with sympathy pains. “Come with me.”
She led him toward a posh apartment building across the street from the park, with Max limping along beside her. He noticed how the doorman seemed to know her, tipping his hat at her respectfully, then eyeing Max up and down as if judging whether he was good enough to be in her presence. Even through his pain hindered mind, Max found that interesting.
The elevator opened as soon as they reached it and they stepped inside, with Max looking at the dog warily. The big guy seemed a model dog now, calm and relaxed, taking up a position between him and the girl. The monster’s tongue was hanging out of his mouth, panting the way dogs do, and Max could have sworn the thing was smiling! To emphasize that, the dog turned his big brown eyes up to look at him, then shot his tongue out to lick his hand. Max pulled his hand back quickly.
“I don’t know what came over him,” Liz apologized again, holding onto the dog’s leash tightly. “He’s never done anything like this before. Max is a good dog.”
Max thumped his tail on the floor when he heard his name and looked up with happy eyes at the two people that flanked him. He let out a small bark, agreeing with his mistress. He was a good dog!
Max stiffened and took a step back when the dog barked, causing the dog to dart his head in his direction, lifting his ears up curiously. He moved closer to the man and Max moved closer to the wall of the elevator, trying to get away from him.
“Max! Stop!” Liz commanded.
“Are you talking to me, or him?” Max stared down at the dog. The beast was smelling his hand now. What the hell was he doing trapped in this cramped little elevator with a psycho dog from hell and a tiny little beauty who couldn’t control him?
“I was talking to him,” Liz scratched the dog affectionately on his back, watching how he nuzzled the man’s hand. The poor guy cringed away from him, obviously afraid Max was going to bite him again. Max’s tongue darted out trying to lick the guy’s fingers.
“Max. Sit!”
The dog happily did as she commanded and sat his rump on the elevator floor, with his tail swishing back and forth. For a moment Liz thought Mr. Gorgeous was going to sit too. The doors to the elevator slid open and Liz checked the lighted panel on the wall, indicating they’d reached the 14th floor.
“Here we are,” Liz announced and led Max and Max out of the elevator. The dog stayed on her left and Max limped along right behind her as they made their way down the hallway. His leg muscles were tightening up and he knew it was going to hurt even worse tomorrow. His eyes focused on the girl and even through his pain he couldn’t help noticing the way her body moved as she walked. She was so small, but so . . . so . . . so beautiful. And gorgeous and captivating and arousing and . . . sexy. The dog gave a little bark and looked back at him as if he was agreeing.
When they reached apartment 1427 Liz retrieved her keys from her pocket and ushered them inside. As she flipped the lights on Max noticed the masculine appearance of the apartment right away. Chrome and glass tables flanking a black leather couch and chairs. He saw a few feminine touches here and there, white roses in a vase on the coffee table and a Barbara Cartland romance novel on the end table by the couch, but the overall appearance was that a man lived in this apartment.
Max felt a surge of something unfamiliar and when he realized what it was he was shocked. He was jealous. Him! Mr. Avoid a Relationship At All Costs, Mr. One Night Stand, Mr. Love ‘Em and Leave ‘Em! Max Evans was jealous that this girl was living with some other man, and he didn’t even know her name! What was wrong with him?
Liz took Max off his leash and he sauntered off, ignoring the humans as he sought out his water dish in the kitchen. She set the leash on a table by the door, then turned to Max and said, “Come into the bathroom and let’s take a look at what Max did to you.”
She noticed he was looking at her with an amused smirk on his face and she hoped that meant he wasn’t going to sue her. God, his eyes were gorgeous. Were they light brown or were they hazel? With flecks of gold making them almost glow. And that dark hair framing that chiseled face, that strong jaw, those luscious lips. God! Just looking at him made her knees weak.
“I take it your dog’s name is Max,” Max said with a smile, even though his legs were killing him.
God! What a smile! A girl could get lost in that smile. If she thought her knees were weak a minute ago, now she was nothing but a puddle of goo ready to melt into the floor. He kept staring at her and it finally sunk in that she was supposed to respond.
“Yes, his name is Max. Maximus the Great.”
“Mine too,” Max smiled even deeper, showing the dimple in his cheek. Her eyebrows arched in surprise and he laughed, “Well, not the Maximus the Great part. Just Max.”
“Oh!” Liz laughed and covered her mouth with her hand.
God, she had the sexiest laugh he had ever heard. It was almost chemical the way he was reacting to her. He’d never felt this way before in his life. It was unsettling to say the least. It wasn’t like him to go weak kneed over a girl.
“Well Max, come on,” Liz said and tried to keep the nervous flutter out of her voice. “Let’s get you fixed up.”
She put her hand on his arm and Max felt that electricity surge through him again. Just her touch was making him react in a way that was totally foreign, and totally intoxicating. She led him down a hallway and through a large bedroom into an oversized master bathroom. He felt that surge of jealousy again as he limped by the king sized bed, picturing her luscious body buried in the sheets with some other guy all over her; doing the things he wanted to do –
Christ! Where were these thoughts coming from? He didn’t even know this girl! Then again, when had he ever worried about getting to know a girl first? What was it about her that made him so crazy?
She led him over to the bathroom counter and turned the faucet on, letting the sink fill with warm water. He gingerly rested his hands on the countertop, and she noticed the scrapes on his skin and the torn material at the elbows of his long sleeve t-shirt.
“Oh God, look at you,” she lifted his hands and looked at the damage on his palms.
Max was well aware of the extent of his injuries, but he didn’t hurt nearly as much now that she was holding his hands. In fact, looking down into her deep brown eyes was making him forget he had any injuries at all.
“Your elbows are scraped too,” she lamented. “Why don’t you take your shirt off and I’ll try to get you cleaned up?”
Liz went to the closet on the far wall to get a washcloth and a towel while Max pulled his shirt over his head, ruffling his hair slightly in the process. Damn, he liked that shirt, but since it got him into her apartment, into her bathroom, it was worth the loss. His eyes lifted to look in the mirror, watching her reflection as she crossed the room, unable to keep his eyes off her.
Turning back from the closet, Liz stopped short at the breathtaking sight of his broad naked back, and his muscular bare chest reflected in the oversized mirror above the sink. Holy Sweet Mother of God! What a body! It was obvious that he worked out. A lot. His chest muscles looked rock hard. His nipples, in a rich shade of chestnut brown, were perfectly placed. The ridges of his stomach looked more defined than any body builder she’d ever seen. His sweatpants hung loosely on his hips, making her mouth water at the sight of the dark line of hair that started underneath his navel and disappeared below his waistband.
Her eyes slowly rose up to see him staring back at her in the mirror and instantly a blush began to color her cheeks. Had her expression given her thoughts away? She cleared her throat and said, “I’m really sorry about all this. I have no idea why Max acted that way. He’s really a gentle dog, and he’s never bitten anyone before. I hope . . . I hope . . .”
“What?” Max looked over his shoulder at her as she neared. “You hope what?”
“I hope you don’t make them put him down, for being a vicious dog. He’s really a good dog.”
Max could see the concern on her face and he shook his head, about to respond that attacking someone out of the blue wasn’t the sign of a good dog. He held back the comment when she said, “It would just kill my brother to lose Max.”
“Your brother?” he asked with keen interest.
Max felt his pulse quicken when she came up beside him and lifted his hand to cradle it in hers. She dipped it in the warm water and he sucked in his breath at the sharp sting it caused.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized quickly, looking up at him with guilt all over her face.
“It’s okay,” Max tried not to wince. Her eyes dropped back to his hand, and he watched her gently clean the dirt and the blood and the bits of gravel away from his scraped flesh. She had the softest hands, the gentlest hands he had ever felt. Tiny little hands. Tiny little fingers. Delicate little bones. God he wanted to kiss her.
She finished cleaning his left hand and then reached for his right, dipping that one in the water now. He kept his reaction internal as the pain flared once again, trying not to let her know how much it really hurt. She felt bad enough as it was, without him adding to it.
“You said your brother?” Max reminded her.
“Yes,” she took his hand out of the water and patted it dry with the towel. “My brother. Max is his dog.”
She raised his arm so she could see the damage to his elbow, trying not to stare at the way his muscles flexed as his arm moved. She distracted herself by filling the sink with fresh water, and then went about the task of cleaning his elbows and tending to his wounds. She opened a drawer filled with first aid supplies, and removed a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a bag of cotton balls. Saturating one with the liquid, she dabbed it against the injuries on his hands. He sucked in his breath as it foamed up and began to sting.
“Sorry,” she said again, looking at him with those big chocolate eyes.
“It’s okay. Really.” He could get lost in those big dark eyes. She saturated another cotton ball and moved to his elbows, dabbing the stinging liquid there as well, and then covered the deeper scrapes with Band-Aids.
“Thanks,” Max said when she finished. He could smell her scent all around him, her sweet perfume permeating the air, making him lean in a little closer.
“It’s the least I can do,” Liz replied. “Just lean against the counter now.”
Max faced the mirror and Liz knelt behind him, taking a closer look at the tear in his pants. She hoped Max only got a good bite of the cloth and not the skin underneath, but the way he was limping that probably wasn’t the case.
“Is this your brother’s apartment?” Max asked, feeling oddly happy when her head nodded in assent.
“Yes, he –”
Max hissed as her hand touched the back of his thigh. The pain shot through him like a knife, but it wasn’t half as shocking as the burst of attraction her hand touching him caused.
“I’m sorry!” she cringed again. She felt terrible about what Max had done, and her inability to stop the big dog from biting him. Looking up at Max, she said, “I guess you’d better slip your pants down so I can take a look at the damage.”
Max stared at her with his mouth hanging open in surprise. Had he just heard her right? Had his dark haired angel, the girl who had filled his thoughts, his dreams, for weeks, just asked him to take off his pants?
What was he supposed to do now?
Join me next Wednesday to see what happens next!