Posted: Mon Nov 01, 2004 3:37 am
Maxwell felt that he should try and set things right with Liz. The night before he hadn’t responded as well as he could have to the news of her mother. He’d instantly been hit by this gut-wrenching panic that this one event would ruin her life.
He wanted her to have everything in the future and for a short moment he hated her mother for her weaknesses. This internal conflict had caused him to be bitter and knew his wife and Liz probably got the wrong impression.
It was a Monday morning so he got up early as usual and took his tea to the balcony. He hoped to speak to Liz before he left for the factory but she didn’t get up. He figured she had adequate reasoning not to get up and eagerly join the world today. He left her a note saying that she should have something to eat (the cook would make her anything) and then perhaps—if she wanted—she could come and visit him at work.
During the car ride to work he managed to switch his thoughts to business matters. Such as the launch of a new grainy fabric that was being shipped to Paris later that day. For him, this was such a mundane part of work and he wished only to hear about was going on in the British Parliament. Politics never ceased being fascinating to him.
“Good Morning Mr. Evans.” His secretary greeted him at the door. “How are we today?”
“Fine, thank you Margaret and yourself?”
She could hardly contain her excitement. Maxwell didn’t even need to see her smile to feel the energy pouring off of her. “My boyfriend finally proposed,” she said giddily.
“Well congratulations,” he replied genuinely. “That’s wonderful news.”
Margaret held the door open for him and they entered the factory floor. It was regularity for Maxwell to take a lap around the machines and have a quick chat with his employees on a Monday morning.
“He’ll want me to hand in my notice,” Margaret added.
Maxwell stopped smiling, finding a new secretary would be a hassle. Although, he was kind. He didn’t want to put a damper on her happy announcement. “Of course,” he said. “I understand.”
“I’ll be certain to help you search for a replacement,” she said.
He nodded. “That would be helpful.”
All day he kept thinking about when Liz would come and visit him but she never did. On and off he would ponder her future, like it was his responsibility to make sure that she got the best education and had nothing but the best care. At one point he got so horrified with himself for trying to act like her father that he had to go for a walk and drink a whisky at the same time.
That didn’t stop him from asking Margaret to look into Girls College’s in the region, preferably female and art orientated.
It was nearing five in the afternoon when Hannah stopped by his office. He was in a meeting at the time but she waited and then they went outside for a walk.
The two of them weren’t what you would call the best of friends, but because they had been forced together by their mutual love for Josephine they made an effort.
“I just brought some forms Josie wanted you to sign,” she explained. “They’re for the joint checking account; she wants to buy something or rather.”
Maxwell nodded. “Where is she now?”
“Shopping of course, with Liz I believe. Josephine really feels horrible about what happened with Mrs. Parker. She wants to make Liz feel happy as best she can.”
Maxwell didn’t know if Liz would enjoy Josephine’s pity. In getting to know her he’d learnt that she wasn’t the type that enjoyed sympathy—whether it was from someone else or herself.
He stopped walking and leaned against a tree. “Is it strange…” he asked slowly, “that I feel uneasy when she’s spending time with my friend?”
Hannah chuckled. “That’s called being possessive,” she said with amusement. “Is that the problem, you think?”
Maxwell wondered what the alternative to that could be. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’ll ask my psychiatrist when I go to my appointment in an hour.”
Hannah breathed in loudly. “It’s not good to rely on your psychiatrist for answers.”
“You and Josephine are giving me conflicting information.”
“Well Josephine isn’t always right,” Hannah said with amusement. “But we’d never let her know we think that, would we?”
“Never.”
Once Hannah had left Maxwell went back to his office and spoke on the phone to one of his exporters. He hoped that the transportation of his fabric would take under a week this time, the last delivery he made got lost heaven knows where and didn’t arrive for nearly a month. He was assured this wouldn’t happen again.
His psychiatrist tried not hide his aggravation when Maxwell turned up ten minutes behind schedule.
Through thinly pressed lips he said, “Better things to do today Mr. Evans?”
“Oh no,” Maxwell replied, “Nothing compares to these wonderfully expensive meetings I have with you.”
He took a seat and crossed his legs.
“Let’s begin shall we?”
~*~
Liz wondered if Josephine was afraid to leave her alone. By sunset she was thirsty for a moment to herself, if only for a few minutes. They’d been shopping all morning, followed by lunch and then tea with a lady named Victoria Matheson (or something along those lines). She’d been numbingly boring and had dyed black hair and too much blue eye makeup. Liz could still recall staring dumbly at the foundation-filled crevices in her face.
“You know what would be fabulous?” Josephine said. The two of them were now sorting through their purchases. They were in the guest room that Liz was occupying. “If you came to the company anniversary party. I’m sure Maxwell wouldn’t mind if you were there. It’s next Friday…oh and you’d get to wear one of the dresses I got you.”
Liz didn’t know how to say no.
But she did anyway.
“What do you mean no?!” Josephine cried. “Of course you’ll come! I’ll be fantastic.”
When Maxwell finally got home Liz couldn’t have been happier.
“Maxwell, I bought Liz a beautiful blue dress today. It goes so well with her brown hair, like you wouldn’t imagine!"
Maxwell cringed. “Josephine please, I’ve just walked in the door. Let me sit down first.”
She ignored his exasperated comment. “Did you go to your therapy?” she asked.
“Yes, that’s just where I’ve been.”
Liz found it fascinating to watch the two of them. Their very obvious differences in personality were amusing.
“Hello Maxwell,” she said. “We waited for you to have dinner.”
“Hello Liz,” he smiled. “You shouldn’t have waited, it’s quite late. I hope you aren’t starved.”
She was quick to reassure him, “No, I’m fine.”
Josephine decided not to stay and eat with them. Maxwell said, “Don’t you have someone at home waiting for you?” and she got the hint and left. Liz was so glad.
Josephine could be plain exhausting.
While at the dinner table she filled him in on what they’d done. “Maxwell…I’d wanted to go and visit my mother today but when your wife arrived I felt obliged to go out with her.”
“Don’t feel obliged,” he said. “Just tell her no. She’ll have no choice but to listen. I’m sorry she took up all of your time.”
Liz noticed how tired and grumpy Maxwell was when he got home. She felt sorry for him. It was clear that many things about his day made him dissatisfied. “No I’m not complaining,” she clarified. “I would just like to go and see my mother tomorrow perhaps.”
“Of course.” He sipped his drink and then continued eating.
She loved it how she could stare at his face all she wanted and he couldn’t catch her. Somehow, the more she got to know him the more handsome he seemed.
“I’d also like to…go home tomorrow,” she said.
He nodded. “To get more of your things? Yes, I understand…”
“Not to get more of my things,” Liz replied hesitantly. “To stay. I’d like to just…go home.”
He put down his fork and touched his knuckles to his lips. “You won’t stay here?”
She shook her head. “No. I really wouldn’t feel comfortable.”
He looked disappointed and she was surprised. She’d gotten the impression that he felt obliged to take her in. She told him that now.
“No, no,” he quickly said, barely letting her finish. “I wanted to speak to you about that. I reacted badly to the news of your mother and I’m sorry. The truth is, I was worried about you and that’s all.”
Liz swallowed “Are you sure?” she asked.
“Of course,” he said. “Liz…you’ve become my best friend. I want to do everything I can for you and that’s the truth.”
“You’ve become my best friend too,” she replied.
That night when Maxwell was sipping his whisky and Liz was listening to his records she decided she wanted to drink too. She asked him for a taste.
“I don’t think you’ll like it,” he said with amusement.
“So?” she took the glass from him. “Can I try your cigar too?”
“What?” he laughed. “Why?”
“Why not?”
The whisky burned her throat but she wanted to drink like him so she asked for a whole glass. “You like it?” he asked. “I wish I could see your face.”
“It’s…interesting,” she answered.
He laughed merrily. “Let me get you something not quite so strong.”
“What does Josephine usually have?”
“Cherry,” he answered. “Would you like that?”
“Yes please.”
~*~
It wasn’t until they were piling into his car and heading to the movies that Maxwell realized he had completely forgotten his bad mood. When he’d arrived home he’d been in such a depressed state that he didn’t know how he was going to make it through the evening. Therapy always did that to him.
The Psychiatrist tried to make him talk about things he wanted to keep tucked away. It made him so frustrated.
Liz had somehow cured him of his moodiness.
“I asked my secretary to look into colleges in the region,” he told her eventually.
“What for?” she asked, surprised.
Maxwell too, was surprised. “Aren’t you in the least interested in furthering your education?”
“Not right now, no.”
He didn’t continue the discussion but thought about it throughout the movie they ‘watched’. She wasn’t holding back from moving onto the next phase in her life because of him was she?
Lately he was getting the impression that maybe Liz thought of him as more than a friend. When she took his hand in the dark of the cinema he realized that he didn’t share those potential feelings. The idea of sharing anything other than friendship with her didn’t appeal to him at the moment.
All he wanted was her to continue making him laugh like she did now. He was willing to do anything to keep that, even if it meant pretending.
After they’d gone back to his place Liz asked if he would come to see her mother with her tomorrow.
“Would you like me to?” he asked. They were standing in the foyer, hanging up their coats.
“Yes please,” she answered. “I’m going to bed now. It’s been an exhausting day.”
“It has indeed.”
He knew what she was going to do. There was definitely going to be a repeat of the night before because he’d never said anything to stop her the last time.
Sure enough, she leaned up and pecked his lips softly.
“Goodnight,” she said.
“Goodnight.”
~*~
Hey.....man, i was looking at Jason's website yesterday and damn he is looking good. Even better than he used to. All I can think is Yum! What does everyone else think, better or no?
Anyway, hope you liked the part and thank you, thank you, thank you for your patience. I have exams for the next four weeks--wish me luck!
lots of love
~nicola
He wanted her to have everything in the future and for a short moment he hated her mother for her weaknesses. This internal conflict had caused him to be bitter and knew his wife and Liz probably got the wrong impression.
It was a Monday morning so he got up early as usual and took his tea to the balcony. He hoped to speak to Liz before he left for the factory but she didn’t get up. He figured she had adequate reasoning not to get up and eagerly join the world today. He left her a note saying that she should have something to eat (the cook would make her anything) and then perhaps—if she wanted—she could come and visit him at work.
During the car ride to work he managed to switch his thoughts to business matters. Such as the launch of a new grainy fabric that was being shipped to Paris later that day. For him, this was such a mundane part of work and he wished only to hear about was going on in the British Parliament. Politics never ceased being fascinating to him.
“Good Morning Mr. Evans.” His secretary greeted him at the door. “How are we today?”
“Fine, thank you Margaret and yourself?”
She could hardly contain her excitement. Maxwell didn’t even need to see her smile to feel the energy pouring off of her. “My boyfriend finally proposed,” she said giddily.
“Well congratulations,” he replied genuinely. “That’s wonderful news.”
Margaret held the door open for him and they entered the factory floor. It was regularity for Maxwell to take a lap around the machines and have a quick chat with his employees on a Monday morning.
“He’ll want me to hand in my notice,” Margaret added.
Maxwell stopped smiling, finding a new secretary would be a hassle. Although, he was kind. He didn’t want to put a damper on her happy announcement. “Of course,” he said. “I understand.”
“I’ll be certain to help you search for a replacement,” she said.
He nodded. “That would be helpful.”
All day he kept thinking about when Liz would come and visit him but she never did. On and off he would ponder her future, like it was his responsibility to make sure that she got the best education and had nothing but the best care. At one point he got so horrified with himself for trying to act like her father that he had to go for a walk and drink a whisky at the same time.
That didn’t stop him from asking Margaret to look into Girls College’s in the region, preferably female and art orientated.
It was nearing five in the afternoon when Hannah stopped by his office. He was in a meeting at the time but she waited and then they went outside for a walk.
The two of them weren’t what you would call the best of friends, but because they had been forced together by their mutual love for Josephine they made an effort.
“I just brought some forms Josie wanted you to sign,” she explained. “They’re for the joint checking account; she wants to buy something or rather.”
Maxwell nodded. “Where is she now?”
“Shopping of course, with Liz I believe. Josephine really feels horrible about what happened with Mrs. Parker. She wants to make Liz feel happy as best she can.”
Maxwell didn’t know if Liz would enjoy Josephine’s pity. In getting to know her he’d learnt that she wasn’t the type that enjoyed sympathy—whether it was from someone else or herself.
He stopped walking and leaned against a tree. “Is it strange…” he asked slowly, “that I feel uneasy when she’s spending time with my friend?”
Hannah chuckled. “That’s called being possessive,” she said with amusement. “Is that the problem, you think?”
Maxwell wondered what the alternative to that could be. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’ll ask my psychiatrist when I go to my appointment in an hour.”
Hannah breathed in loudly. “It’s not good to rely on your psychiatrist for answers.”
“You and Josephine are giving me conflicting information.”
“Well Josephine isn’t always right,” Hannah said with amusement. “But we’d never let her know we think that, would we?”
“Never.”
Once Hannah had left Maxwell went back to his office and spoke on the phone to one of his exporters. He hoped that the transportation of his fabric would take under a week this time, the last delivery he made got lost heaven knows where and didn’t arrive for nearly a month. He was assured this wouldn’t happen again.
His psychiatrist tried not hide his aggravation when Maxwell turned up ten minutes behind schedule.
Through thinly pressed lips he said, “Better things to do today Mr. Evans?”
“Oh no,” Maxwell replied, “Nothing compares to these wonderfully expensive meetings I have with you.”
He took a seat and crossed his legs.
“Let’s begin shall we?”
~*~
Liz wondered if Josephine was afraid to leave her alone. By sunset she was thirsty for a moment to herself, if only for a few minutes. They’d been shopping all morning, followed by lunch and then tea with a lady named Victoria Matheson (or something along those lines). She’d been numbingly boring and had dyed black hair and too much blue eye makeup. Liz could still recall staring dumbly at the foundation-filled crevices in her face.
“You know what would be fabulous?” Josephine said. The two of them were now sorting through their purchases. They were in the guest room that Liz was occupying. “If you came to the company anniversary party. I’m sure Maxwell wouldn’t mind if you were there. It’s next Friday…oh and you’d get to wear one of the dresses I got you.”
Liz didn’t know how to say no.
But she did anyway.
“What do you mean no?!” Josephine cried. “Of course you’ll come! I’ll be fantastic.”
When Maxwell finally got home Liz couldn’t have been happier.
“Maxwell, I bought Liz a beautiful blue dress today. It goes so well with her brown hair, like you wouldn’t imagine!"
Maxwell cringed. “Josephine please, I’ve just walked in the door. Let me sit down first.”
She ignored his exasperated comment. “Did you go to your therapy?” she asked.
“Yes, that’s just where I’ve been.”
Liz found it fascinating to watch the two of them. Their very obvious differences in personality were amusing.
“Hello Maxwell,” she said. “We waited for you to have dinner.”
“Hello Liz,” he smiled. “You shouldn’t have waited, it’s quite late. I hope you aren’t starved.”
She was quick to reassure him, “No, I’m fine.”
Josephine decided not to stay and eat with them. Maxwell said, “Don’t you have someone at home waiting for you?” and she got the hint and left. Liz was so glad.
Josephine could be plain exhausting.
While at the dinner table she filled him in on what they’d done. “Maxwell…I’d wanted to go and visit my mother today but when your wife arrived I felt obliged to go out with her.”
“Don’t feel obliged,” he said. “Just tell her no. She’ll have no choice but to listen. I’m sorry she took up all of your time.”
Liz noticed how tired and grumpy Maxwell was when he got home. She felt sorry for him. It was clear that many things about his day made him dissatisfied. “No I’m not complaining,” she clarified. “I would just like to go and see my mother tomorrow perhaps.”
“Of course.” He sipped his drink and then continued eating.
She loved it how she could stare at his face all she wanted and he couldn’t catch her. Somehow, the more she got to know him the more handsome he seemed.
“I’d also like to…go home tomorrow,” she said.
He nodded. “To get more of your things? Yes, I understand…”
“Not to get more of my things,” Liz replied hesitantly. “To stay. I’d like to just…go home.”
He put down his fork and touched his knuckles to his lips. “You won’t stay here?”
She shook her head. “No. I really wouldn’t feel comfortable.”
He looked disappointed and she was surprised. She’d gotten the impression that he felt obliged to take her in. She told him that now.
“No, no,” he quickly said, barely letting her finish. “I wanted to speak to you about that. I reacted badly to the news of your mother and I’m sorry. The truth is, I was worried about you and that’s all.”
Liz swallowed “Are you sure?” she asked.
“Of course,” he said. “Liz…you’ve become my best friend. I want to do everything I can for you and that’s the truth.”
“You’ve become my best friend too,” she replied.
That night when Maxwell was sipping his whisky and Liz was listening to his records she decided she wanted to drink too. She asked him for a taste.
“I don’t think you’ll like it,” he said with amusement.
“So?” she took the glass from him. “Can I try your cigar too?”
“What?” he laughed. “Why?”
“Why not?”
The whisky burned her throat but she wanted to drink like him so she asked for a whole glass. “You like it?” he asked. “I wish I could see your face.”
“It’s…interesting,” she answered.
He laughed merrily. “Let me get you something not quite so strong.”
“What does Josephine usually have?”
“Cherry,” he answered. “Would you like that?”
“Yes please.”
~*~
It wasn’t until they were piling into his car and heading to the movies that Maxwell realized he had completely forgotten his bad mood. When he’d arrived home he’d been in such a depressed state that he didn’t know how he was going to make it through the evening. Therapy always did that to him.
The Psychiatrist tried to make him talk about things he wanted to keep tucked away. It made him so frustrated.
Liz had somehow cured him of his moodiness.
“I asked my secretary to look into colleges in the region,” he told her eventually.
“What for?” she asked, surprised.
Maxwell too, was surprised. “Aren’t you in the least interested in furthering your education?”
“Not right now, no.”
He didn’t continue the discussion but thought about it throughout the movie they ‘watched’. She wasn’t holding back from moving onto the next phase in her life because of him was she?
Lately he was getting the impression that maybe Liz thought of him as more than a friend. When she took his hand in the dark of the cinema he realized that he didn’t share those potential feelings. The idea of sharing anything other than friendship with her didn’t appeal to him at the moment.
All he wanted was her to continue making him laugh like she did now. He was willing to do anything to keep that, even if it meant pretending.
After they’d gone back to his place Liz asked if he would come to see her mother with her tomorrow.
“Would you like me to?” he asked. They were standing in the foyer, hanging up their coats.
“Yes please,” she answered. “I’m going to bed now. It’s been an exhausting day.”
“It has indeed.”
He knew what she was going to do. There was definitely going to be a repeat of the night before because he’d never said anything to stop her the last time.
Sure enough, she leaned up and pecked his lips softly.
“Goodnight,” she said.
“Goodnight.”
~*~
Hey.....man, i was looking at Jason's website yesterday and damn he is looking good. Even better than he used to. All I can think is Yum! What does everyone else think, better or no?
Anyway, hope you liked the part and thank you, thank you, thank you for your patience. I have exams for the next four weeks--wish me luck!
lots of love
~nicola
