Roswell Fanatics

“Hey, Ria, you sounded wonderful,” Liz hugged Maria as she came off the stage and headed back to the green room with Liz. “Nobody does a better “America the Beautiful” than you,” Liz slipped her arm around Maria’s shoulders as they stepped back toward the dressing area where Liz’s costume lay waiting.

“Why, thank you,” Maria replied with a touch of pride as she started to help Liz with her outfit for the show. “Hey, Liz, do you already have your dance trunks on?” Maria noticed the critical piece of Liz’s costume was mysteriously missing as she lifted up Liz’s satin blouse and skirt.

“Um, no, I wonder where they could be?” Liz worriedly started poking through her dance bag.

“I wonder if that heinous bitch, Pam Troy, might have had something to do with it? She was whining and screeching after Kyle doused her with milk during their magic act,” Maria guessed at the likely culprit.

“The Disappearing Milk Trick didn’t quite go as planned?” Liz questioned.

“No, and since the magic act turned out to be a bust, Kyle turned it into a comedy act—Pam being on the receiving end of most of the jokes,” Maria explained. “I think Pam had curdled by the end.”

“Ahh,” Liz nodded. “Still, that’s no reason to take it out on me,” Liz shook her head as she glanced in the trash can.

“You know she’s always been jealous. I suppose she just wanted someone to be more embarrassed than she was,” Maria surmised as she continued to poke around the green room in hopes of finding the thick red trunks.

“Ria, go see if you can find Pam and beat the truth out of her if you have to, and I’ll keep looking,” Liz entreated as she slipped on her skirt and buttoned her blouse, tying it the front to reveal her midriff.

“No problem,” Maria left the room in haste, leaving Liz alone.

Maria searched backstage for Pam, but instead found Isabel who was waiting in the wings as Alex finished his very loud rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” much to the surprised expressions of the Ladies’ Auxiliary members who were running the show. Alex let the last chord ring out and finished to the loud applause of the vets of the 60’s and 70’s, highly appreciative of his efforts, a few even flicking their lighters in Alex’s honor.

“That was great, Alex,” Izzy squealed as Alex rushed to her arms. Isabel was dressed in the bikini top and sarong she was wearing for the short fashion show that followed Max and Liz’s dance.

“Thank you,” Alex waggled his eyebrows as he slung his free arm around his girlfriend, reveling in all the bare skin she was revealing.

“Awesome job, Alex. Hendrix couldn’t have done it better,” Maria rushed, “But Izzy, Liz needs you for a minute in the green room. I think Pam Troy made off with Liz’s dance trunks.”

“On my way,” Izzy pecked Alex on the cheek and headed back to the dressing area.
~~~
“Crap, we are up next,” Liz thought aloud. “Oh, well, I’ll just lie to Maria and say I found them.”

Liz hiked up her skirt and touched her black, lacy panties.

At that same moment, Izzy peeked through the crack of the door to see Liz’s state of undress before she opened the door wide to go in. Izzy held her breath and raised her eyebrow as she watched Liz turn her panties from black to red and thicken the fabric until they resembled the opaque dance trunks she required. She then fastened a few errant strands of hair from her pony tail with a little alien magic.

‘Almost ready,” she breathed as she passed her hand over her face, darkening her make up and bringing out the sparkles in her shadow and blush.

Izzy announced her arrival with a knock before she opened the door, “Liz, you alright in there?”

“Yeah, Iz, come on in,” Liz smiled, unaware as she was of Izzy’s presence before she knocked.

“Did you find your trunks?” Izzy queried, anxious to see what excuse Liz would offer for her new-found powers.

“Yeah, I guess Pam stuck them on top of the paper towel holder in the bathroom,” Liz swallowed at the lie. “I’d better get going,” she hurriedly pointed to the door as she made her escape.

“Ok,” Izzy replied as she followed Liz out the door. “What the hell is she up to?” Isabel wondered to herself as she waited in the wings to watch Liz and Max dance.
~~~~
Liz smiled at Max in his blue silk bowling shirt and white tie which he paired with black slacks and black and white oxfords.

Liz completed the patriotic picture in her red satin blouse and short, flippy skirt with its white satin lining underneath. Her saddle shoes and bobby socks were the finishing touch. They held their breath for a second as their names were announced and the familiar throbbing drum beat began.

Liz pulled a seemingly-unwilling Max onto the dance floor by his tie, as she backed into position, coaxing him along. During the drum and guitar intro, they started with some Charleston kicks as they faced each other, their fingers snapping low at their sides. As the pitch of the intro rose, Max and Liz again took turns beckoning each other and sliding across the floor at the waggle of the other’s finger. Though they wouldn’t admit it to anyone, they did use a little alien trickery to make the slides all the more impressive. They danced to center stage as Adam Ant crooned the first verse.

With the heartbreak open

Liz spun behind Max, fisting her hands underneath his shirt to mimic a heartbeat as Max held a playful look of desperation on his face. They danced in place throughout their opening choreography as they set the stage for all the tricks they had in store for later on.


So much you can't hide

Max then spun behind Liz as she put her palms up, seeming to look all around for Max.


Put on a little makeup, makeup

Liz slipped her hands to Max’s backside as his hands went to her face, pretending to powder her cheeks and chin. Liz’s eyes playfully glanced upward as she gave the audience a satisfied grin.


Make sure they get your good side, good side

“Mmm, my favorite part,” Liz purred silently.

Again, Max spun in front of Liz, but faced her this time as she palmed his backside while he wiggled his ass.

Whistles and applause sounded from the female members of the audience, young and old. Max couldn’t help but blush as they continued to dance.


If the words unspoken
Get stuck in your throat

Switching places, with one hand over Liz’s mouth and the other grasping her hand, Max twirled Liz out before bringing her back to his body.


Send a treasure token, token
Write it on a pound note, pound note

Reaching inside her bra, Liz scattered the altered Monopoly money across the first row in a fluttering rainbow.

“I could’ve done that for you,” Max teased.

“Maybe next time,” Liz replied, ”Our mothers are watching, you know.”

Goody two, goody two
Goody, goody two shoes
Goody two, goody two
Goody, goody two shoes

Max and Liz worked their way to opposite sides of the stage and back, turning their feet in and out, both amused at the irony of the lyrics—if their friends and family only knew the truth, they would certainly stop teasing the pair about being so sweet and innocent.

Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

Max took the first turn at pantomiming to the song lyrics, Liz holding up her palms in inquiry while rolling her eyes suggestively toward Max.

Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

Liz took a phantom shot and drag as Max struck the same quizzical pose that Liz had held.

Subtle innuendos follow

Liz spun around, moving behind Max. Max lifted Liz, then grabbed her by the back and waist, leaning forward till she swung around to land cradled between his thighs.

“Ooh, just where I like you,” Max teased as he finished the dip.

“Hey, remember what happened the last time we talked about flying cherries,” Liz retaliated with a silent smile.

There must be something inside

As Max stood up from his slight squat, Liz flew forward with Max immediately moving to catch her as they finished the trip out.


We don't follow fashion
That would be a joke

In a tandem Charleston, Max and Liz kicked to each side before he lifted her into a Russian, with Max kicking between her spread legs.

You know we're going to set them, set them
So everyone can take note, take note

Resuming their Charleston with Max holding Liz’s hands as he danced behind her, Max pulled Liz up by her hands as she jumped and flipped forward, still holding on to Max. Their first stunt was met with cheers and applause from the audience.

“Ready for boxcars?” Max inquired

“Sure.” Liz turned to face Max as she wrapped her hands around her neck

When they saw you kneeling
Crying words that you mean

Liz swung her legs to Max’s right, then left as he guided her at the waist, helping to propel her movement.

Opening their eyeballs, eyeballs

Liz spread her legs wide and straddled Max’s thighs.

“Aww, sure you can’t stay like that?” Max teased.

“You’ll have to wait till the show’s over,” Liz replied in playful condescension.

Pretending that you're Al Green, Al Green

Max lifted Liz into a candlestick position, her body straight and her feet high overhead. Liz kicked her legs back to the last four beats of the line before Max lowered her back to the dance floor.


Goody two, goody two
Goody, goody two shoes

Max and Liz returned to their sugar push with Liz giving a nice swivel at each beat, sending her skirt twirling.

Smiling at the fantastic show her friends were giving, Maria watched from the wings. Her attention was diverted by the parking lot light that shone through as the opposite stage door was opened. Maria noticed Pam Troy leaving in a huff, a wad of red fabric in her hand.

“Strange,” Maria thought as she returned her focus to Max and Liz.


Goody two, goody two
Goody, goody two shoes

Paying homage to the dance’s origins, Liz positioned herself for a Lindy flip, pushing off from Max’s shoulder, her body circling round his head, landing back where she started. Max immediately turned to stand back to back with Liz, locking arms and sending her flying over his back. The audience cheered to see the nostalgic moves.

Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

At the end of the swingout, Liz jumped high and back, with a throw from Max to land the Jersey bounce.

Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

Max and Liz repeated the move, this time Liz sent Max flying up and back, utilizing a little alien force to make up for her lack of stature.


Subtle innuendos follow
There must be something inside

Launching into the Around the World, Liz jumped into Max’s arms, then swung around his back and shoulders until he caught her again, giving her bare belly a discreet kiss as she flew by.

Liz giggled silently at his ticklish attentions.

She jumped over his shoulder once again, but Max caught her at the knees and threw her back in the direction she came from for the stylish ‘Frankie Snatch.’

No one's gonna tell me
What's wrong or what's right

Liz flipped over into a handstand as Max caught her, bringing her to his shoulders as she faced him.

“No nibbling—we’re in public,” Liz teased wordlessly.

“I’ll be good,” Max promised as Liz flipped forward and landed on her feet, completing the pancake flip.

Or tell me who to eat with, sleep with

Liz leapfrogged over Max as he squatted down, then immediately crouched down for Max’s turn.

Or that I've won the big fight, big fight

Max leapfrogged over Liz’s back, with Liz immediately standing to give Max a playful kick in the ass, to send him theatrically sprawling.

Look out or they'll tell you
You're a Superstar

Max flipped Liz in a cartwheel, the star-shaped pattern mimicking the lyrics of the song. He spun her around again so they were face-to-face.

Two weeks and you're an all time legend
I think the games have gone much too far

Liz placed her hands around Max’s neck once again, her right hand clasped to her left wrist.

He swung her around in a pendulum, lifting his legs every time her legs passed under, never missing a beat. Their ever-present synchronization with each other looked particularly impressive to the audience.

“It looks like they can almost read each other’s minds,” Nancy whispered to Diane as they sat in the audience.

“It wouldn’t surprise me a bit,” Diane responded as she grinned to herself, knowing that Max and Liz had long been able to communicate with each other secretly.


If the words unspoken
Get stuck in your throat
Send a treasure token, token
Write it on a pound note, pound note

Liz assumed her handstand again, Max picking her up and holding her high overhead as her thighs rested on his shoulders for a moment before he threw her over his head. Liz completed the waterfall as she slid down Max’s back, head first, then caught his thighs and slid between Max’s spread legs before he hoisted her back up. The impressive move was met with wild applause.


Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

In an impressive show of strength, Liz catapulted Max over her shoulder for an impressive flip. He turned again to face her and reached across her body while placing his right foot between hers. He completed the ‘Tomahawk’ with sending Liz into a body roll.

Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

Turning the single ‘Tomahawk’ into a ‘Viva Las Vegas’, Liz reached across Max and stepped behind, sending his body flying across the back of her own.

Subtle innuendos follow
Must be something inside

They continued the series of flips to the wild applause of the audience who were captivated by the stunt.

Michael stepped in behind Maria who was watching from the wings, “You think that’s all Liz?” he questioned quietly. Of course, Liz had always been athletic and graceful, but Michael wondered how someone so small could support Max’s weight.

“I don’t know,” Maria whispered in reply. “She always said she could carry him out of a building if she had to—you know—fire, earthquake, crazy stalker—but--I just don’t know…”


Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

Max lay down on the floor, as Liz placed her hands on either side of Max before she flipped over the length of his body with a little push from her partner.

Don't drink, don't smoke
What do you do?

Liz then assumed Max’s position as he flipped over her. Quickly pulling Liz up off the floor, they started one last swing out.

Subtle innuendos follow
Must be something inside

At the end of the last line, Liz jumped into Max’s arms, her shins on his thigh. In rehearsal, Max gave Liz a kiss on the cheek on the last word of the song, but instead, Liz turned at the last minute, meeting Max’s lips with her own, giving a big wink to the audience on the last solo drumbeats that finished the song. Their efforts were met with loud clapping and cheers from everyone in the audience.

Breathlessly, Liz and Max ran to the wings where Maria and Michael lay waiting.

“Great Job!” Maria hugged Max and Liz as they still breathed heavily.

Michael lightly pinched Liz’s bicep causing Liz to giggle.

“What are you doing, Michael?” Liz looked at him with humorous incredulity.

“Just wondering how tough you are, Parker? Able to pick up Max here and all,” Michael even lifted her by her arms, trying to surmise her strength.

“Hey, I’ll take you on any day, Guerin!” Liz laughed, “Now put me down!”

“Yeah, unhand the poor girl, Michael,” Max pulled Liz back to his side. Even though Michael was teasing, Max really didn’t want his inquiries to go any further.

“You guys rocked the joint,” Alex exclaimed as he high-fived Max and gave Liz a hug around her neck.

Isabel, in her bikini top and sarong, joined Alex, though she was about to enter the stage herself after three other girls made their passes in the seasons newest swimwear.

“Yeah, you guys were amazing!” she hugged Liz and then turned to hug her brother.

“Are you going to be home later?” Isabel whispered.

Max nodded slightly as he raised his eyebrows.

“I need to talk to you before you sneak back to Liz’s,” Isabel hissed into her brother’s ear, before breaking away and smiling to the group.

“Miss Isabel Evans is wearing…” the announcer called.

“Wish me luck!” Isabel entreated, “I’ll talk to you later,” she mouthed to her brother whose head rose with a slight defensiveness that only his sister and Liz noticed.

He gave her a short nod as she entered the stage, the sound of her heels dying in the round of applause.
~~~~~~
“I thought we agreed you two wouldn’t induce any heart attacks tonight,” Diane teased Max and Liz, “I think they had to cart some poor guy out of here after those stunts,” Diane hugged them both, cupping her son’s chin in her hand as he rolled his eyes a bit.

“Well, if that’s so, then we’ll have to pay him a visit,” Max retorted, with a mischievous gleam in his eye.

“And bring flowers,” Liz chimed in.

“Let’s all head to the Crash for a bite,” Nancy added as she hugged Max and Liz in congratulations.

“We’ve got to grab our stuff from backstage, and we’ll meet you there,” Liz replied, hungry now that the performance was over and the evening had proved to be a financial success for the DAV.

As they made their way backstage once more, Max leaned over to Liz, “I’ve got to talk to Izzy tonight. Something’s up.”

“Yeah, I figured,” Liz sighed. “Well, we’d better fatten you up before you face the firing squad,” she joked wryly as they grabbed their bags and made their way to the jeep.
~~~
After dinner with their friends and family at the Crashdown, Izzy piped up that she needed to run home to change. Bowing to the inevitable, Max offered to drive her. Once at home, Isabel began her interrogation.

“So what did you want to talk about, Iz?” Max sighed as he plopped onto his bed.

“Liz has powers—I’d like to know how and why,” an exasperated Izzy demanded.

“What do you mean, ‘Liz has powers?’” Max tried to play dumb, but to no avail.

“I saw her, Max. I saw her change the color of her panties when her dance trunks went missing. I saw her change her hair and make up. She knew what she was doing,” Izzy insisted.

“What’s the big deal, Iz. So she changes her panties from black to red. It’s not like she’s blowing up buildings or something.”

“So you know she was wearing black panties, huh?” Isabel inquired coyly, changing her tone.

“Iz, I woke up with her this morning. Yes, I know what color panties she was wearing. It wasn’t the first time I’d seen her in her underwear,” Max stated matter-a-factly.

“I’m just wondering if that has anything to do with her new powers?” Izzy waggled her fingers at Max with a smirk on her face.

“Iz, you know I’ve healed her several times over the years,” Max conceded. “We just guessed this must be a residual effect,” Max sighed as he gave his sister part of the truth.

“And when did you two plan on telling us this?” Izzy returned to her indignant line of questioning.

“It really just started recently—while we were gone to Albuquerque,” Max confessed.

“Well, I think everyone has a right to know,” Isabel insisted.

“And we will tell them when we are ready,” Max countered. “I know everyone has plenty to say when it concerns Liz and me, but we will—“ Max stammered in frustration, “We will let the others know when we have figured it out first,” Max stood up to his demanding sister.

“Now, Alex and I will be gone to Vegas for a few days, and I want you to call me if anything else happens,” Isabel instructed.

“Vegas?” Max asked wide-eyed.

“Now before you make some lame comment about us running off to get married, or some such nonsense, he is taking me to the fashion show at Caesar’s.”

“I wasn’t going to say that, Iz. You’re going to be perfectly happy with Alex—three kids on a cul-de-sac. Why does it matter if you start tomorrow or five years from now?” Max caught himself after he already had said too much. Isabel had pushed him, and he fought back with privileged information.

“What was that?” Isabel breathed out.

“Nothing—dammit, Isabel. Just forget it,” Max huffed as he started to pace the room.

“No—this is my life we’re talking about here. You better tell me what you know,” Isabel threatened.

Max breathed a heavy sigh, “The future’s not written in stone, Iz, but I do know that you and Alex aren’t running off to get married,” his expression softened as he held his sister’s arms, “You are definitely the huge church wedding, five bridesmaids kind of girl. And that sort of wedding takes planning,” Max conceded with a resigned smile.

“So she can see the future?” Izzy inquired softly, responding to her brother’s concession.

“Just flashes, nothing on demand,” Max smiled, “It’s a lot to adjust to, so we’re really trying to deal with this before everybody else throws in their opinion,” Max raised his eyebrow to make the point.

“You know I’ll end up telling Alex,” Isabel confessed sheepishly.

“I know,” Max hugged his sister. “Do well this week, and have fun in Vegas. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Max smiled as he opened his window and sat on the ledge.

Isabel laughed when she wondered what limitations Max’s demand would still hold.

“See you when you get back,” Max smiled as he cleared the sill and jogged off into the darkness.

As the festival opened and hordes of visiting aliens descended on Roswell, Max and Liz were incredibly busy at work, but always made time to see each other several times a day and spend each night wrapped in the other’s arms.

Though she could make considerably more modeling, Liz would never leave her dad in the lurch during the Crash Festival. After Max made his way out her window and around the block that morning, Liz came rushing down the stairs in her aqua dress, silver apron and antenna headband. Strains of David Bowie echoed from the dining room speakers.

There's a starman waiting in the sky
He'd like to come and meet us
But he thinks he'd blow our minds
There's a starman waiting in the sky
He's told us not to blow it
Cause he knows it's all worthwhile…
Jeff Parker crooned right along with Bowie while he worked the grill.

“Really, Dad?” Liz rolled her eyes at her father as she came through the kitchen.


“Hey, the tourists love it,” Jeff remarked confidently as he plated another convention special. “And the more they love it—the better your tips,” Jeff quipped then continued his Ziggy Stardust duet.

He told me:
Let the children lose it
Let the children use it
Let all the children boogie…

As Max seated himself at the counter, Liz gave him a playful wink and poured his coffee, “Be right back,” she whispered.

Liz approached her first customers of the day, a woman completely covered from head-to-toe in turquoise and purple polka dots and her four-year-old daughter who was similarly painted in lime green with orange lips and eye sockets.

“Good morning and welcome to the Crashdown. What can I get for you this morning?”

“I’m an alien!” the small girl piped up.

“Excuse me?” Liz looked down, surprised at the response.

“I’m an alien!” the little girl reiterated.

Liz smiled, under the green hair color and orange paint, she could see the little girl had dark eyes and hair, much like herself at that age.

Liz bent down to speak to the little girl in a theatrical whisper, “Well, don’t tell anyone, but I’m an alien, too,” Liz confided mischievously. Max was looking over his shoulder, smiling at the scene.

“Nuh-uh!” the pre-schooler argued. “Your face isn’t a funny color, and your hair’s just brown!” the little girl protested.

“But I have my very own antennae, and I can do some pretty cool alien tricks, too,” Liz flashed her eyes as her antennae bobbled.

“Liz!!!” Max screamed in her head.

Without missing a beat , Liz responded to the little girl while ignoring Max, “And my first trick will be to read your mind and decide if you want a glass of…the Milky Way,” the little girl turned up her nose at the offer of milk, “or orbiting orange,” again the offer was met with the child’s disdain, “or asteroid apple,” her face lit up under the green paint. “You want the asteroid apple,” Liz said confidently as the child’s eyes went wide with awe.

“Cosmic coffee for you?” Liz asked the blue and purple mother who nodded with a smile.

Liz raised her eyebrows in a playful challenge to Max who shook his head with a smile.

“So, can I get the least alien-looking customer in the place some breakfast? Green eggs and moon rock hash, perhaps?” Liz teased as she refilled Max’s coffee cup.

“How about a convention special with a side of don’t-scare-the-hell-out-of-me-again,” Max joked.

“The first one I can manage, the second…um, can’t make any promises there,” Liz winked as she turned to the pass through to give her dad the breakfast order.

Liz turned around at the sound of the tinkling of the bells against the glass door. A couple donning large, gray vinyl alien heads with over-sized dark, almond-shaped eyes and silver capes walked in. Their huge, masked heads turned to look for a free table. A few seconds behind them, a very bored and embarrassed teenager walked in and stood with them. She carried a rolled-up copy of Seventeen in her fist and a strappy, petite purse on her shoulder. This girl reminded Liz of a slightly younger version of Isabel.

“I have a table right over here,” Liz guided the trio to the booth as they were struggling to find an open spot considering their lack of peripheral vision.

The teenager slid into the spot next to wall and sank down in humiliation.

“What can I get for you this morning?” Liz questioned the three tourists, or make that two tourists and one unhappy teenager.

A muffled reply came from underneath the layers of latex.

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t quite get that?” Liz questioned sincerely.

The male of the species decided to give it a go, but Liz was still left thoroughly confused.

“Just bring us three convention specials and three glasses of orange juice, and, um, they’ll need straws,” the daughter sighed as she scooped up the menus and handed them to Liz. “Do your parents ever embarrass you?” the young blonde asked as she looked between her parents who refused to remove their costumes to eat.

Liz looked over to the pass-through at her father who had moved on to his rendition of “Space Oddity” and gave the girl a sympathetic nod and a resigned whimper.

“Be right back with your juice—and straws,” Liz smiled and blinked at the pair who remained in character despite the protests of their daughter. While they waited for their drinks to be served, the teenager ignored the embarrassment of her parents by flipping through her magazine.

“Order up!” Jeff called out as Liz went to fetch Max’s order along with meals for the multi-colored mother and daughter whom Liz had entertained earlier.

Liz took the visitors their breakfasts and then brought Max his plate.

“Your convention special,” Liz placed Max’s food in front of him with a sweet smile, “And, see, no alien high-jinx,” Liz noted.

“After yesterday’s little panty-switcheroo, I couldn’t be too certain,” Max whispered as he doused his plate with Tabasco.

“I said I was sorry about that,” Liz whispered back, “but I thought I was alone,” she reminded Max in a hushed, contrite response.

“Just be glad it was only Isabel,” Max conceded. “It’s ok, no harm, no foul,” Max discreetly rubbed his thumb across the back of Liz’s hand. They quickly separated as Maria and Michael entered to begin their shifts.

“Morning all!” Maria announced as she went behind the counter to pour coffee for Michael and herself.

“Morning,” Max and Liz responded in unison.

Liz noticed the teenager looking down at her magazine and then up at her several times before trying to get Liz’s attention.

“Be right back,” Liz mentioned to Max and Maria who faced each other across the counter.

“Can I get you something else?” Liz asked the girl who continued to look down and back up rapidly.

“This is you—in the ad! It’s you, isn’t it?” the bored teenager suddenly became very animated as she looked from the conditioner advertisement back to Liz.

Liz smiled shyly, “Yeah—yeah it is,” she nodded in the resignation of being discovered. Many locals had become accustomed to seeing Liz, Max and Isabel in magazines, so most people really didn’t think much about it.

“Hey, will you sign it for me?” the teen entreated as she shoved the magazine toward Liz. She fished in her small bag and brought forth a black Sharpie.

“Sure,” Liz graciously accepted the magazine and marker, signing her name and last initial.

“Wonder how long it will be before someone wants me to sign on my naked ass,” Liz thought wryly. Max nearly spit his mouthful of coffee all over Maria in a fit of unexplained laughter.

“What’s so funny?” Maria inquired.

“Oh, nothing, just an inside joke,” Max waved away the inquisition. Maria only rolled her eyes as she grabbed the coffee pot to make a circuit around the room.

Liz went behind the counter to refill the little alien’s apple juice.

“Hey, you laugh, but I bet somebody asks you to sign your tushie first,” Liz whispered.

Max continued to chuckle. “You’re on. What’s the wager?” he challenged.

Liz’s eyes narrowed mischievously, “I don’t know yet,” her eyes scanned the ceiling in thought, “but it should be something really good, something sexy,” Liz flashed her eyes at Max as she grabbed the little girl’s juice. “I’ll let you know when I decide,” she playfully called over her shoulder as she delivered the refill.

Max finished his breakfast, lay down dollar bills beside his plate, and spun around on his stool.

“I will see you at lunch,” Max smiled as a silent communication passed between himself and Liz. They kissed each other on the cheek and hugged as Max headed off for his shift at the UFO Center.

“I’ll have it ready for you,” Liz smiled as Max went out the door.

Max raised his eyebrows at Liz and smiled as he waved goodbye.

Michael brought a tray of clean glasses from the dishwasher and set them behind the counter before returning to his duties behind the grill.

“Hey, your dad’s running to the store for some more eggs, do you girls need anything up here?

“Maybe some more orange juice,” Liz considered as she checked the current supply.

“I’ll let him know,” Michael headed back to the through the turquoise door and into the kitchen. Moments later, Jeff Parker headed out the back door on his supply run.

Maria frantically swung behind the counter as she started to fill her drink order.

“Liz, you guys really should come to the concert tonight. It will be such a blast, and you are leaving for Santa Fe in a couple of days, so you really, really need to be there,” Maria pleaded with Liz as she absent-mindedly reached for a glass. In her distraction over goading Liz to attend the concert, Maria picked up a hot glass and filled it with icy cold juice.

“Dammit,” Maria shouted as the glass shattered in her hand.

“Maria!” Liz reacted as she swiped at Maria’s hand with the towel, collecting the broken shards in the terry cloth folds. Liz immediately placed her palm on Maria’s to stop the bleeding as anyone would have.

“Are you ok?” Liz looked up from Maria’s wound to catch her eyes, trying to judge the state of Maria’s injury. As soon as she looked up, Liz realized what she had done and nervously removed her palm from Maria’s. Maria’s palm was pristine.

“I guess you just scratched it,” Liz nervously tried to cover the fact that she had just healed Maria as she collected the glass-filled towel to throw away in the kitchen trash. “I’ll be right back,” Liz sighed as she scurried through the kitchen door.

“Maria, are you ok?” Michael passed Liz as he burst through the doorway to check on Maria. He ran behind the counter and clutched Maria’s hand in his own. “What happened?” Michael questioned as he looked down at Maria’s flawless palm and then up into her eyes.

Maria shook her head in a lack of understanding, “Liz said I must have just scratched it, but…” at that moment, Michael and Maria noticed two large dark spots on the floor.

Michael ran his finger through it, and the unmistakable red evidence collected on his fingertips, “Blood,” he said softly as Maria bent down to join him in examining her blood that had spilled to the floor.

In the shadows of the counter, shielded from the morning sun that shone through the large windows of the Crashdown, Maria looked at her palm once again.

“Michael,” Maria whispered as she drew Michael’s attention to her palm once again.

Staring at her pale hand, the pair watched as her skin began to glow with a visible silver sheen.

Michael stared at Maria and swallowed hard, then remembered himself and passed his hand over the bloodstains and orange juice, cleaning away the evidence of the accident. He curled Maria’s fingers over her shining palm and kissed her forehead, then shook his head slightly, indicating that he didn’t understand this new development any more than Maria did. He helped Maria rise to her feet until she was steady, then looked at a nervously busy Liz through the pass-through window.

“Michael—the grill,” Liz shouted from the kitchen as she flipped Michael’s pancakes in his absence.

“Be right there, Liz,” Michael gave Maria a half-smile as he turned to head back into the kitchen, giving Liz a quizzical look as they passed each other in the doorway.
~~~~
Though Liz and Max agreed to go to the concert with Maria and Michael, they were careful to remain in the thick of the crowd, with no possibility of having a private conversation. Before the last encore, Liz gave a theatrical yawn, and Max agreed that it was time to call it a night.
~~~
After lighting the candles around Liz’s room and crawling into bed, she and Max made love sweetly and tenderly, the day’s worries and frustrations melting away into each other for the moment. Their bodies sated, Liz rested on Max’s strong chest, his arm wrapped snuggly around her. As Liz lay there, her concerns crept back as she relived two days worth of slip ups and errors in judgment. Max ran his fingers through Liz’s silky dark hair as he searched her thoughts for all that unnerved her.

“Liz, do you know how many times I’ve made mistakes? How many times you’ve had to cover for me? Max asked rhetorically. Max could feel the slight nod of Liz’s head against his chest.

“Like when I was healing your chicken pox, and your mom walked in, wondering why your face was all spotty…”

“And I said I wanted to try out for Little Orphan Annie, so you were drawing on freckles for me,” Liz chuckled lightly.

“Or when Mrs. Smithson wanted to separate us and sit you next to Sean to help keep him in line,” Max recalled.

“So when she passed by our desk, you touched her and gave her a horrible, itchy rash,” Liz laughed.

“Then you told her you found some poison ivy growing by the teacher’s parking lot,” Max chuckled. A little embarrassed at his extreme behavior, he added, “What can I say--I don’t share well,” Max stated the obvious as he snuggled Liz even closer to him.

“She was gone for a week,” Liz recalled, “By the time she came back, the principal had already suspended Sean for torturing Alex,” Liz snickered at the memory of a wet and naked Alex being shoved into the girls’ locker room.

“Still—a week’s worth of itching—that was fairly extreme for you. You usually weren’t quite so mean to our teachers,” Liz playfully chastised as she looked up at Max.

“All I did was affect the dye and detergent molecules in her clothes. I just touched her sleeve,” Max defended his middle-school behavior. “She should’ve stopped itching when she changed clothes. I think she just needed a few extra days off,” Max said pointedly.

“She was probably glad for an excuse to get away from Sean,” Liz surmised.

“So, see, I have screwed up so many times, have always needed you to cover my ass, so, please, honey, stop feeling guilty about the past two days.”

“Yesterday, I should have double-checked to make sure no one was there, but today, I just—reacted—like it was…”

“Instinct—I know, Liz,” Max smiled down at her. “Remember—not a scratch since you were six?” Max recalled with a soft laugh, trying to restore Liz’s confidence in herself. “Baby, I’ve had years to try to figure out these powers and how to use them and conceal them at the same time—you’ve only had a couple of weeks,” Max’s voice was filled with compassion.

“I know,” Liz tried to rationalize her lapses in self-restraint. “Still, I am glad that we are leaving for Santa Fe in a couple of days. I mean, we’ll be working and all, but there won’t be the need for all this secrecy,” Liz tightened her arms around Max as she buried herself further into his chest.

“It’ll be good to see Grandma. She’ll give you a little perspective on the situation, I expect,” Max stroked Liz’s bare back with his fingers. As she shivered a little, Max pulled up the covers and flattened his palm against her back to send soothing, calming waves of energy to her.

“As far as Michael and Maria go, we’ll try to put them off awhile longer. The closer we can get to the last week of August, the safer I’ll feel,” Max drew Liz to the shelter of his body. “Of course, we’ll have to tell them before we leave, cause we’ll need their help,” he chuckled wryly to himself, passing his hand over the room to extinguish the candles.

Liz sighed a deep breath as she closed her eyes against Max’s warm chest. One more day of the festival, then off to Santa Fe,” Liz promised herself as she drifted off to sleep in Max’s arms.

“Grandma?” Liz called out as she and Max opened the bright blue front door of Grandma Claudia’s mountainside home.

“She’s probably still at the museum, Liz. We are a little early, you know,” Max noted as they mounted the stairs to rid themselves of their luggage.

They peeked in the guest rooms on the second floor. One was neat—the bed made, fresh towels set out, the other—heaped with stacked boxes, dusty artifacts that needed cataloging, and loads of sepia-toned and black and white photos scattered all around.

“Grandma has never been one for pretense,” Max chuckled at the assumption that he and Liz would share a bed.

“No, she hasn’t,” Liz concurred as she set her bag on the floor. “Let’s check and see if she is out back,” Liz grabbed Max’s hand to lead him out of the room.

“You know good and well she’s not home right now!” Max playfully chastised. “I know what you want…”
~~~~

“Ah, the hammock!” Liz sighed happily as they stepped through the patio door. “Come on, come on, come on,” she pulled a smiling Max toward the netted rope.

“It’s only 3:30 in the afternoon, and you’re already sleepy?” Max, laying down on his back with one foot on the ground, held out his arms and waggled his fingers for Liz to join him. He narrowly avoided injury when Liz jumped gleefully to the middle of the hammock as she wriggled between his legs and snuggled her head against his chest.

“Perfect time for a little siesta, and besides, last week was so long—the show, the crash festival, dealing with crazy, tentacled aliens…”

“What was that?” Max smiled wickedly as his fingers went to Liz’s ribs, tickling relentlessly. “Tentacles?” he poked at Liz playfully, making her squirm.

“Not you!” Liz wiggled ineffectually, unable to escape Max’s grasp.

Max laughed and stopped his tickling, his fingers reaching under the hem of her tee shirt and stroking her stomach softly instead.

“No, yesterday, I had this customer, and, literally, I was tripping over his tentacles all afternoon,” Liz chuckled at the recollection. “No, honey, you were the most normal person I saw all weekend. So, I know we have to report for work day after tomorrow, but if we could just stay in this hammock till then,” Liz yawned, “that would be ok with me.”

After giving the hammock a push, Max brought his leg up to rest on the hammock as its swinging and the gentle mountain breezes lulled them to sleep.
~~~~~

“I knew right where to find you two,” Claudia Parker announced as she walked out to the patio. The sun was sinking near the horizon as Max and Liz woke from their nap. “This has been your favorite spot here since you were six,” Claudia chuckled.

“Hi Grandma,” They sang out in unison, their eyes blinking against the warm light shining down on them. They struggled to hoist themselves out of the hammock, only to be stopped by Claudia.

“Don’t get up, yet. I just wanted to let you know I was home. I’m going to get started on dinner, and I’ll let you know when it’s ready,” Claudia smiled down on the pair.

“No, we’ll get up and help with dinner,” Liz tried to prop herself on her elbows.

“Nonsense, you and Max have worked almost every day since graduation—a little nap isn’t going to hurt anything,” Claudia insisted, patting Liz on the arm as Liz settled back to Max’s chest once again.

“All I have to do is put the pan of lasagna in the oven, open a bag of salad and put the bread in the toaster—nothing too taxing, I promise,” Claudia smiled as she left Max and Liz in the hammock.

Max and Liz lay in the hammock, slowly rousing from their late afternoon nap. Though they had spent the afternoon in relaxed bliss, the weight off all they had to reveal to their families returned to their thoughts. Before heading inside, Max and Liz considered how much Claudia understood about Max and his mysterious origins.

“So how much do you think Grandma knows?” Max asked casually as he ran his fingers down the length of Liz’s hair.

“Well, she’s an expert on the cave drawings, which is where we learned most of our information about you in the first place,” Liz recalled their conversation with Riverdog from several years ago. She shook her head slightly, “I don’t know for sure—she’s certainly never cornered me about it, but she’s always been pretty intuitive. And it seems that intuition has only gotten stronger over the years,” Liz gave Max a knowing smile and a little poke in the ribs, reminding Max that his influence had probably been at the root of Grandma Claudia’s enhanced perceptiveness.

“Hey!” Max playfully squirmed at Liz’s tickling. “I had no clue what I was doing when we were little—I was just a giving Grandma a hug,” Max looked across the mountain to the warm sunset breaking over the peaks. “Of course, as we got older, I just wanted to protect her—and you,” Max looked down at Liz and kissed her on the top of the head.

“So, what exactly have you cured over the years?” Liz finally mustered the courage to ask Max about her grandmother’s health, and the degree to which he had influenced it.

“Blood-flow issues mostly—I think I headed off a stroke a couple of years ago,” Max admitted. “When we were younger, I don’t really know…”

“You know that you can’t protect me from every bad thing that will ever happen,” Liz raised up on her elbow, looking Max directly in the eye.

“I know,” Max let go a heavy sigh, “But, we do know that Claudia is going to make a wonderful great-grandmother in a few years,” Max grinned as his fingers sought Liz’s ribs, “So you can quit giving me a hard time about it,” Max tickled Liz in retaliation.

“I’m not giving you a hard time,” Liz smiled warmly as Max stopped with his tickling and searched her face. “I’m the luckiest girl in the universe,” Liz’s eyes glazed a little with tears of gratitude, “And Grandma Claudia is pretty lucky herself,” Liz smiled as she rolled off the hammock and then stretched out her hands to hoist Max up.

“Luck? Luck!” Max shouted in playful indignation, “It’s all skill, baby,” Max teased, swatting Liz on the backside as she chased him into the house, ready to give Grandma Claudia a proper hello.

~~~
“Sorry we were so sleepy earlier,” Max gave Grandma Claudia one of his hugs reserved especially for her. “It had been a really long week and somebody wanted to leave extra early this morning,” Max winked at Liz who had moved in closer to embrace Claudia.

“I was anxious to see my grandma,” Liz teased as she gave Claudia a hug, sending warm, healing energy to her just as Max had done a moment ago.

Claudia’s eyebrows rose as she leaned back to give her granddaughter a pointed look, “I see there have been a few changes with you since I saw you last,” noting that Liz’s touch now seemed to carry the same kind of curative powers that Max possessed.

Uncertain as how to proceed, Liz tried to dismiss her grandmother’s question, “I don’t know what you mean, Grandma,” Liz swallowed hard, her eyes wide, trying to conceal the lie.

“No need to bullshit me, dear,” Claudia responded bluntly.

“Grandma!”

“So, let me get this straight,” Claudia looked from Liz to Max and back again, “Within the last few weeks you have inherited some of Max’s powers, but the surprising part of this conversation is that I said ‘bullshit’?”

Max tried to unsuccessfully stifle a laugh as Liz shot him a hard look. Then, realizing the ridiculousness of the situation, Liz couldn’t help but laugh as well.

“As least that answers at least one of our questions,” Max bluntly responded as he looked at Liz, her face a combination of relief and remorse.

“What was that?” Claudia turned to Max, an amused expression on her face.

“How much you know,” Max answered, his eyebrows raised as he propped his elbows on the kitchen island.

“Max, honey, I figured out a long time ago that you’re not exactly from around here,” Grandma Claudia moved to Max’s side and snugged her arm around his shoulders, giving him a few warm squeezes before tousling his hair. Claudia moved toward the cabinet and retrieved three dinner plates.

Liz, who was poised at the silverware drawer, froze as she looked at her grandmother with a wide-eyed expression, “You knew all this time and didn’t say anything?” Liz questioned as she absently picked up three forks from the tray without looking.

“Why would I need to say anything?” Claudia mused as she brought three glasses down from the cabinet. “It’s not like I have any more information than you two already know. And, I sure as hell wasn’t going to say anything to your father,” Claudia looked over her shoulder to Liz who was gathering the salad and bread in her hands to take out to the patio table.

Liz’s eyebrows rose in resigned agreement as she grimaced at the thought of revealing their deepest secrets to her father.

Claudia placed their filled glasses, plates and silverware on a tray to take outside while Max grabbed the pan of lasagna. As there was now no reason to hide his powers in front of Grandma Claudia, he opened the door with a flick of his finger. After everyone made their way through, Liz closed the door in the same manner.

Claudia chuckled lightly as they got settled at the table for supper. Claudia’s backyard was lit warmly by the glow of the candles that graced the tables and the moon and stars that shone clearly on the mountainside. As they began on their lasagna and salads, Liz asked her grandmother about their most pressing concern.

“Do you think it’s wrong—what we’re keeping from Dad?” Liz glanced down at her plate as Max clasped her hand. There was so much to confess, and Liz did not want to mar their departure for Harvard with a huge falling-out.

“No, I know my son. I know that he loves you, but he can be judgmental, reactionary, and close-minded. I love him dearly,” Claudia sighed, “But he can really be a jackass when he has a mind to.”

Liz’s face clouded with worry at her grandmother’s admission—her worst fears had been confirmed.

“Grandma, we’re going through with our plans, regardless,” Liz sought to explain their position, “But, when we leave next month, we want everyone to be happy and get along, you know?”

“I understand, sweetheart. When it’s time to tell Jeff and Nancy, I’ll be there; the Evans will be there…it will be ok,” Claudia patted Liz’s hand in encouragement. “I mean, Jeff’s going to—freak out—I guess you would say, but we will be there to help you through it,” Claudia smiled at Liz and Max in turn.

A confused look came over Liz’s face—how did her grandmother know she’d be there when it was time to tell her dad?

Claudia smiled knowingly, “Hmmm, it looks like I know something that even our little Lizzie doesn’t know,” Claudia teased.

Max’s eyes grew wide in the fear that Claudia was about to spoil his plans, “Grandma!” he mouthed, out of Liz’s line of sight.

Claudia chuckled to herself and winked at Max, indicating that she would keep his secret. “Anyway, Lizzie, would you go get the pie out of the kitchen?” Claudia asked as they finished up their meal.

“Sure, Grandma,” Liz rose as she eyed her grandmother with playful suspicion.

As soon as Liz went inside the patio, Claudia whispered to Max, “Quit worrying—I’m not going to tell her,” she conspired. “But you’d better know what to expect come the holidays,” Claudia narrowed her eyes at her surrogate grandson.

“I know, Grandma,” Max smiled as he hung his head a little.

“Who’s ready for pie?” Liz called as she brought out the dessert and whipped cream. Liz set the lattice-crusted pie on the table as the dessert forks clattered to the table.

"You know, for the last week or so, every time I thought about you two, I kept seeing cherries,” Claudia announced in all sincerity, “So I guess I had cherry pie on the brain,” Claudia laughed lightly as she sliced the wedges.

Liz and Max had to work hard to stifle the laughter that threatened to explode.

“One of my favorites,” Max said with a broad smile and a bit lip.
~~~
As Liz finished in the bathroom and switched off the light, she poked her head through the crack in her grandmother’s bedroom door to wish her goodnight, only to find that she was already fast asleep.

Smiling, she quietly pulled her grandma’s door closed and proceeded to the guest room she shared with Max. Though the bedside lamp was still on and the covers were thrown back, their bed was empty. Grinning, Liz grabbed an afghan and headed back downstairs and passed through the patio door.

“Hey there,” Liz called softly to Max as he lay in the hammock. She turned out the kitchen light on her way, so they could see the moon and stars distinctly. Max’s head craned around to see Liz as she made her way from the door. The white, summer nightgown fluttered in the breeze as Liz approached the hammock.

“I remember this nightgown,” Max smiled as he took Liz’s hand. The white, thin cotton garment was gathered at the neckline, flowing loosely all around. “It used to come down to your ankles,” he remarked, grinning at how the nightie now ended high on her thighs.

“I found it in the dresser drawer in our room. I had to adjust the straps a bit, but otherwise…” Liz twirled in the gown, her bare form underneath silhouetted by the moon, low in the sky behind her—the hardness of her nipples and her smooth mound contrasted crisply against the almost transparent fabric.

“Liz,” Max gasped as he raised up on the hammock, his hands sliding from her waist to the hem of her nightie.

“I just wear a little less underneath it than I used to,” Liz grinned as Max’s hands slid below the gown to touch her bare skin.

“But—“ Max’s eyes went to the second-story windows, concerned that they might be seen.

“She’s asleep—I checked,” Liz smiled mischievously as she tugged Max’s pajama pants down, freeing his erection that strained against the checkered cloth. Climbing on top, Liz straddled Max’s thighs. She pulled the afghan round them as she bent down to give Max a sultry kiss.

“This has always been our favorite spot at Grandma’s house,” Liz suggested as she slid her wet nether lips along Max’s rigid length.

“I wonder if a place can become ‘more favorite’?” Max teased as Liz caressed him with her slick folds.

“I think we should find out for ourselves,” Liz responded sultrily as she rocked her hips back and forward, sliding slowly over Max’s hard cock.

With the hem of her nightgown riding up to her hips, Liz’s bare mound peeked out from beneath, tantalizing Max with the seductive yet innocent image. His thumb traced her dark furrow, smiling as he felt the soft, sweet skin beneath him. Looking up at her moonlit face, Max smiled mischievously as he slid his thumb between her folds, finding the spot that would make Liz hunger for him all the more.

With his hands, Max drove Liz’s desire until her core ached for him. Clutching the knotted rope in her fingers, Liz rocked back and lowered herself onto Max’s rigid length, a sigh of satisfaction escaping her lips as his thick cock filled her.

Max gave a pleasured groan as he sank into Liz’s slick heat. The white frill of Liz’s nightie rested on Max’s arms, as he grasped her hips to help guide her movements while Liz rolled her body to meet Max’s thrusts. As he lifted the sheer cotton gown, Max uncovered her bare mound, watching as her wet lips clung to his cock. Liz rode him slowly, intensely. Max’s eyes trailed from her sweet mound to her flat stomach, also bared as he lifted her gown to hold her hips. The moonlight shone through the thin nightgown revealing her hard, dark nipples brushing against the underside of the transparent fabric. As his gaze traveled further up her body, he met her dark eyes, smiling down at him. Her face was framed by a blanket of stars and the moon surrounded her tan skin with a halo of light.

“You’re beautiful,” Max whispered as Liz continued to roll her body to meet his.

The demure smile of thank you that graced Liz’s lips was betrayed by her body’s desires. Underneath the frill and lace of her gown, Liz took Max’s thick cock deep into her passage, her tight walls clutching his rigid length as she slid her body onto his time and again. Her breath grew ragged as she rode Max, beads of perspiration rolling down her neck. Liz released the buttons of her gown with a pass of her hand, so the mountain breeze might cool her skin.

Max reveled at the sight of the flesh that Liz exposed, the fullness of her breasts revealed as she released the buttons. He raised up to tug at the loosened strap of her gown, exposing Liz’s dark nipple to the cool, night air.

Liz groaned in satisfaction as Max took the nipple in his mouth to suckle it, his tongue swirling around the firm peak. He pulled at the other strap, baring both her breasts and hungrily taking the other while his palm covered the one wet with his ministrations.

Liz wrapped one arm around Max’s neck, holding him to her breast, while the other held on to the strong muscles of his back and shoulders as she clung to him.

Max’s attentions served to increase Liz’s passion, and though she looked like an angel hovering above him, she ground her core to his body with a fiery intensity. Max reached behind him to steady the hammock, afraid that their lovemaking would throw them to the ground. Once secured, he returned his fingers to Liz’s clit, wanting to provide her the release she so desperately wanted.

With a few firm strokes at the juncture of their bodies and his tongue laving her nipples, Liz came apart in Max’s arms as they lay under the stars. Her climax brought on Max’s own, filling her body with his essence. Their bodies glowed with silvery trails that burst and faded like the fireflies that danced across Claudia’s backyard.

Visions of themselves snuggled in the hammock raced through their minds—the subtle changes that marked each year played in a montage of images. As they passed themselves in time, they saw another girl, a little girl whose hair hung in loose dark curls against the faded knots of the hammock. Behind her lay a young boy whose unruly blond hair and mischievous smile contrasted with his otherwise innocent expression as he held the young girl in his arms while they slept. Max and Liz laughed a little as they caught their breath, smiling at the sight of their future daughter and her soul-mate.

Panting and exhausted, Max brought Liz to lay on top of him, her breath still heavy against his chest. Pulling up the afghan to cover their bare bodies, they kissed goodnight and fell asleep under the night sky.

Monica-Thank you so much! This certainly would qualify as pure dreamer, just a few obscure jokes about Tess, but that's the extent of her appearance.

Carrie-Why, thank you. I'm glad you're enjoying it.

Natalie-Thanks--I was particularly happy with that part. More M/L romance coming up today.


Kate-

ps-so they know their daughter finds her soulmate, but do they know where she finds him? I mean, maybe something about him has given away his own parentage.

Hmmm...maybe so...

Certainly keeping the photos away from Jeff is a top priority--for everybody else, well, time will tell...

Tamashii-Well, Max and Claudia know exactly when Jeff will find out, but Liz doesn't. Trust me, it will make sense later on.

Jan- It will be a bit tough to tell Jeff, but Max and Liz will have plenty of back up. Glad you're enjoying it.

Ginger-It's not so much about control, but rather influence. I mean, it's one thing for a pair of 18-year-olds to tell you something is true, but when your dear, sweet, wise mother tells you it's true--that's something else entirely.

Eve-Yes, Claudia is certainly on board and will do all she can to help these two.


Alien_Friend-Why, thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it.


As the dawn broke over the mountaintops, Max was awakened by a faint hammering that sounded against the stucco walls in Claudia’s house.

“Grandma’s up,” Max whispered to Liz who stirred from their night of sleeping in the hammock.

Liz started to rise quickly, only to be stopped by Max who clung to the afghan that only barely covered his naked body.

“Liz!” Max pleaded, “Honey, button your nightgown,” a half-asleep Liz looked down to her breasts, plainly exposed, and began fumbling with the buttons, “And very carefully reach for my pajama pants,” Max instructed as he held the blanket tightly around his hips.

Once sufficiently awake, Liz giggled at Max’s predicament—bare-assed on the hammock and his pajama pants wadded up on the ground underneath. “Ok, hang on,” Liz finished buttoning her nightie, then tugged it down to her hips as she slowly sat up and reached for Max’s pants.

He slid them on as he concealed himself with the blanket, then once partly-dressed, gave the afghan to Liz, as her panties remained in their upstairs bedroom.

A bare-chested Max and afghan-draped Liz followed the sound of the hammering inside the patio door to find Grandma Claudia perched on a step stool, adjusting the picture wire against the nail she had just hammered into the wall. As she straightened the frame, she smiled at her handiwork.

“Grandma, I would’ve done that for you,” Max scolded as he came into the room, concerned about Claudia climbing the step stool.

“Now, what do you think I do every other day, wait till my grandkids come to visit before I hang a picture?” Claudia raised her eyebrows in amusement as she stepped down off the stool, giving Max and Liz a look at the photos that now hung above her fireplace.

In a large antique, oak frame hung two black and white 8x10s, side by side. On the left, was a photo of Max and Liz at six, cuddled together, asleep in Claudia’s hammock, their young faces looking angelic as they slept, with Max’s small arm holding Liz’s tiny body snugly against his. On the right side of the frame, were Max and Liz dozing in the backyard yesterday, sleeping in the same position as they did twelve years ago. Though now, their features had matured, and Max’s massive arms grazed the fullness of Liz’s breast, their expressions remained the same—loving, devoted, and protective.

Liz and Max drew a breath as their eyes went wide, taking in the images before them.

“Grandma, how did you--?” Liz stammered, wondering when Claudia had taken the photo yesterday.

“I knew right where you’d be, so I brought my camera out before I woke you up,” Claudia smiled mischievously. “You only thought I had just arrived home,” Claudia smirked good-naturedly.

Max wrapped his arms around Liz as they stood staring at the photos. It was amazing to see how much they had changed over the last twelve years, but they were equally awed by how much had stayed the same.

“You knew then, didn’t you?” Liz questioned her grandmother softly, turning back to look at her.

“Of course I did,” Claudia smiled, “It’s not my fault it took you twelve years to figure it out,” she chuckled as she put the hammer in her tool box and closed the lid. “And before you even ask, I’ve already framed a set for you to hang in your new apartment.”

“Thank you,” they said softly, still amazed by Claudia’s photographs. Max bent down and kissed the top of Liz’s head as she stood in front of him.

“Why don’t you two get cleaned up, and I’ll get started on breakfast,” Claudia suggested as she stowed the toolbox in the closet and headed toward the kitchen. “How do pancakes sound?”

“Great, as long as there is plenty of Tabasco,” Liz smiled as she pulled Max up the stairs and into the bathroom.
~~~

“Liz!” Grandma is just downstairs!” Max hissed in a whisper as Liz locked the bathroom door behind them then proceeded to frantically yank down his pajama pants.

Liz had turned on the shower to heat up the water and drown out the sound of their conversation and other activities she was hoping for. She slipped her hands inside the elastic waistband of Max’s pants, pulling them down over the curve of his ass.

“Come on,” Liz purred, “We didn’t get a chance to make love this morning,” she pouted devilishly. “I promise, I’ll be really quiet,” she whispered with a grin.

“Liz, she’s gonna’ know what we’re doing in here,” Max admonished, though his body was beginning to betray his conscience.

“Is there anything I can do to convince you?” Liz eased his pants down his thighs, sending them to a puddle on the floor. Kneeling down on the stone tiles, she took Max’s cock in hand as her warm lips wrapped around his head.

“Lizzzz,” Max groaned in an ineffectual warning, knowing he couldn’t possibly resist the heat of her mouth surrounding him.

Liz sucked at his length as she stroked his balls. Max’s eyes closed in pleasure as Liz continued coaxing him to life. His heavy eyes opened to see Liz’s bare bottom peek out from underneath the hem of the white nightie she still wore.

That was all it took for Max to give in. As much as he enjoyed Liz’s mouth licking and sucking him, he needed to thrust himself inside of her immediately.

“Come here, baby,” Max pulled Liz off the floor, grabbing the hem of the nightgown and pulling it over her head in a one movement. As Max lifted Liz up, his throbbing cock slid into her heat, causing an appreciative groan to escape her lips.


Max stepped through the steam and into the shower, Liz’s legs wrapped closely around him. The wall shook a little as they slammed into it—Max thrusting deeply as Liz clung to his body.

Liz ran her fingers through Max’s wet hair as he suckled her breast, the rivulets of water forced from their natural path as he laved her nipple. She smiled the satisfied smile of someone who met an obstacle and conquered it. A gasp escaped her lips at Max’s firm thrust, playful payback for her triumphant thoughts.

She countered, contracting her wet core around him, causing Max to catch his breath as she rolled her hips to him and gave his cock a firm squeeze. Smiling, Max gave Liz a long deep kiss as he continued burying himself in Liz’s body over and again.

Liz kissed the tender skin of Max’s neck, leaving little silver marks as she went. She nibbled on his earlobe, causing a little groan to escape his lips and his thrusts to increase in their intensity. Knowing she had him where she wanted him, Liz whispered in his ear,

“Say it.”

Max shook with laughter at her demand, stubbornly shaking his head ‘no’ as she smiled and continued to make love to Liz.

“Come on, say it,” Liz rolled her hips, grinding firmly against Max’s cock.

“Ok, fine,” Max smiled as he continued thrusting into Liz, “You are always right. You will always be right,” Max grinned, giving Liz credit for convincing him to make love to her even though Grandma Claudia was just downstairs.

Liz smiled in playful triumph, knowing that the spoils of war were sweet.

“But, can I be right about some things?” Max crooned seductively as he traced a line from Liz’s breast to the juncture of their bodies. There was nothing in the world Max liked more in the world than to see Liz come apart in his arms. To feel her lose control as she was wrapped around him was worth any admission.

“Mmm hmm,” Liz could only mutter with her eyes closed as Max stroked her clit and suckled at her breast. Max was satisfied that he would regain the upper-hand, if only for a moment.

“M—“ anything else Liz might have screamed in that moment was swallowed by the deep kiss that consumed her mouth. The water on the shower door rolled down like beads of mercury, weighted with their silvery sheen.

As her walls clamped down on Max’s cock, fluttering and pulsing against his flesh, he filled her body; Max’s head lay against Liz’s chest as he struggled to catch his breath.

Liz planted sweet kisses to the top of Max’s head as she held him to her body. Their heartbeats still thudded in their chests as the hot water began to cool.

Reaching for soap and washcloths they began to shower in earnest, even though Max refused to let Liz down.

“Ok, I agree,” Max freely admitted, “My day just can’t get started right without making love to you,” he grinned at Liz, her eyes alight at his words. “It’s even more important than—

“Breakfast!” Grandma Claudia called from downstairs.

“But breakfast does run a close second,” a grinning Liz added, as with rumbling stomachs, they finished their shower to head downstairs.

~~~~
“Hope you two are hungry,” Claudia called as Max and Liz bounded down the stairs.

“You could say that,” Liz winked at Max who gave her a little pinch for her cheeky remark.

“It looks delicious, Grandma,” Max added, lifting the plates out of the cabinet.

Liz poured coffee for everyone as she doctored two with Tabasco and sugar, Claudia smirking at her granddaughter.

“So, you two don’t have to work today—what were you planning on doing with yourselves?” Claudia asked as she ate a bite of her pancakes.

“We thought we would help you a little around here, you know, take care of a few things that are a bit out of your reach,” Max indicated some cracks in the plaster near the ceiling.

“And we thought we’d come into town and take you to lunch,” Liz added as she looked over her coffee cup.

“And maybe a little extra hammock time, just to tide us over,” Max smiled at Liz and waggled his eyebrows.

“Sounds like a plan,” Claudia commented as she took another bite of her breakfast. Finishing up her coffee, she took her dishes to the sink and rinsed them off, “So, I will see you guys, hmm, how about 11:30, get a jump on the lunch crowd, how about?”

“Sure,” Max and Liz replied in unison, rising to rinse their dishes.

“I’ll have to take a scarf, so I can ride in the jeep,” Claudia kissed Max and Liz on the cheek as she gathered her keys and bag. She opened the hall closet to dig through a coat pocket and obtain a forgotten headscarf.

“Grandma, we can drive your car to the restaurant, if you want,” Max suggested.

“And miss getting to ride in the jeep? No way!” Claudia smiled as she headed out the door.

“You wanna’ get started on the plaster and the outdoor stuff, and I’ll get started on the floors and cabinets,” Liz suggested to Max.

“No problem,” Max gave Liz a quick kiss before heading up the stairs to start on the plaster cracks near the ceiling. “Hey, Liz, I think this is a new one,” Max laughed as he touched the plaster on the wall just outside the bathroom, heating and spreading the molecules to knit them back together.

“This morning when we were in the shower?” Liz questioned as she cleaned around Claudia’s kitchen baseboards.

“I expect so,” Max called out as he went to work on the next repair.

Liz dusted Claudia’s artwork and collectables with a sweep of her hand, dropping the bits of dust into a trash can then passed her hand over the carpets as well, giving them a thorough cleaning.

“Are you about ready to head outside?” Max queried from the upstairs balcony.

“Yep, I’ll just clean up these breakfast dishes and be out there,” Liz washed the dishes and set them in the dish drainer, then dried her hands and walked out the patio door with Max.

They shielded their eyes with their hands as they looked up at the stucco on the house’s exterior.

“Have you seen a ladder anywhere?” Max looked around the side of the house trying to find the equipment he needed to reach the fractured plaster.

“We don’t need no stinkin’ ladder,” Liz joked, “Just put me on your shoulders—I can reach it.”

Max effortlessly popped Liz onto his shoulders so she could make the repairs.

“You wanna’ get those windows while you’re up there?” Max scooted over to the living room windows, so Liz could clean them of dirt. “Stray limb on the tree?”

“You just like having me up here, don’t you,” Liz teased as they made their way to one of the trees supporting the hammock.

“Of course I do,” Max laughed as Liz trimmed the overgrown branch. “But then again, I like you on other parts of my body as well.” Max flipped her over so that Liz’s legs wrapped around his waist, “Mmm…You’re getting warmer,” Max grinned as he gave Liz a long, deep kiss.

“Max, I’m all dirty and dusty,” Liz scrunched her nose at Max’s romantic overtures.

Max passed his hand over Liz, lifting any stray debris as he smiled, “All clean—so you wanna’ get dirty again?” Max waggled his eyebrows.

Liz thrust her heated core to Max’s groin, pulling him into a lusty kiss, “What do you think?”

Falling back against the hammock, Max and Liz started shedding clothes in the morning sunshine.

“I think it’s a good thing that Grandma doesn’t have any neighbors,” Max concluded as he unfastened Liz’s bra, sliding it off and taking a rosy nipple into his mouth.

“They’d be in for quite a show, wouldn’t they?” Liz teased as she slid Max’s boxers over the curve of his ass.

“Mmm,” Max agreed as he released her nipple to strip Liz of her panties as well. “That they would,” he smiled as he ran his hands along her soft, golden skin, lit by the slanting rays of the sun.

A songbird in the hammock’s tree whistled insistently, provoking a soft laugh from Max and Liz.

“Looks like we have at least one voyeur,” Liz looked up at the solitary bird.

“I don’t think he’s going to get nearly as lucky as I will,” Max joked lightly as he ran his fingers over Liz’s bare skin.

Just then another bird lit on the tree, greeting the one who had called so insistently.

“I don’t know about that. He may just get lucky too,” Liz smiled as she met Max’s lips for a sweet kiss as her hands continued to stroke the hard muscles of his back down to trace the cleft of his ass with her finger.

“Huh-uh,” Max shook his head slightly and grinned, “No one’s as lucky as I am,” he insisted as he ran his finger to Liz’s nether lips, already glistening with wet. With skillful fingers Max parted her swollen lips and slid them into her slick passage.

Liz groaned in pleasure as she slowly bucked against his hand. She reached for his firm shaft, stroking him with light feathery touches, inflaming his need to be completely surrounded by her.

“Liz?” Max panted, needing to be inside her once again.

“Come here, Max,” Liz pulled Max on top of her.

Parting Liz’s folds with his hard shaft, Max buried himself in her depths, closing his eyes against the warm sunshine in his contentment. Max nuzzled at the soft flesh of her neck, offering sweet kisses as he slowly thrust inside Liz.

Liz gazed at Max’s powerful body as he lay on top of her, his forehead against her shoulder. She ran her hands up the ridges and valleys of his back to rake her hands through his hair while his rigid shaft filled her in long, slow strokes. He leaned down to take her nipple between his lips again, her back arching as she received that pleasure. As she closed her eyes, her mind was filled with the image she had just taken in, her beautifully bare Max, lit with the dappled mid-morning sun, suckling at her breast as he thrust into her.

Liz felt Max’s lips smile against her breast as he read her thoughts; amazed at how she saw him, how she loved him. Liz considered the kindness of destiny—in the millions of miles that Max had traveled, she found him all those years ago, taken his hand, and crossed the street.

Liz reveled in the sensations coursing through her body, how Max filled her, not only in the physical spaces of her body, but in her mind and heart. She ran her fingers down his cheek, tracing her fingers at the soft flesh where his lips met her breast.

“This is when I feel the most complete,” Liz spoke to Max silently as he looked into her eyes.

Max smiled as he kissed her soft, creamy skin, her heartbeat resonating under his lips. As he continued making love to Liz, Max considered his good fortune—how he had come from a distant place to find Liz, how every good memory was with her, and how amazing it was that she loved him, too.

“This is when I’m truly home,” Max replied, his hand slipping between them, palming her smooth mound, where beneath, part of him was buried in her.

“Oh, Max,” Liz spoke aloud, her eyes glazed with unshed tears as Max rose, his lips crashing onto hers, driving into her depths as he felt her tight passage contract around him. Liz clutched Max to her body, her climax coming in powerful waves that brought on Max’s own.

The marks they left were like sliver infused on gold as they lay bare under the rising sun. They saw themselves as children on this mountain, visiting Claudia on vacations and holidays. They watched themselves running through the forest, playing chase and hide-and-go-seek in the spotty sunlight of the trees, knowing all along the joys of being ‘found’ by the other.

A/N-Bonus points for you if you find the inside joke in today's chapter

After showering and dressing for lunch in town, Max and Liz drove to the Historical Museum to pick up Grandma Claudia for lunch. Heading through a maze of weavings, pottery and primitive artwork, they made their way to Claudia’s office upstairs.

“Ready to go, Grandma?” Liz queried as she softly knocked on the door.

“You bet,” Claudia reached for her silky headscarf, wrapping it around her head and tying it underneath her chin.

“Grandma, we can take your car if you’d rather,” Max offered.

“Nonsense, in fact, give me the keys—I’ll drive,” Claudia ordered, holding her palm flat as Max dug in his pocket, laughing a little.

“Are you sure? It’s a little tough to shift,” Max responded, concerned.

“Hump, I’ve been driving in the desert for years, kiddo,” Claudia took the keys from Max with a grin. “Come on—day’s a wastin’.”

Grandma Claudia zoomed into the parking lot of the Cowgirl Bar and Grill, pulled the parking brake, and cut the ignition. Max had to pry his fingers from the dash in order to retrieve the keys from Claudia’s hand.

“We’re here,” Claudia said as she grabbed her handbag, ready to bound out of the jeep.

“Grandma,” Max firmly but gently placed his hand on her arm, “I’ll come around to help you out,” Max insisted as he got out on the passenger side of the jeep.

Running quickly to the driver’s side, he offered his hand to Claudia who graciously accepted Max’s assistance, then to Liz as she climbed out of the backseat.

Entering the restaurant, Claudia requested a table in the back where they could have a little privacy.

“Ok, we want two cherry cokes, an iced tea, the sweet tater fries, cabeza de ajo, 5 pepper nachos with salsa Diablo and the bar-be-que platter. Oh, and plenty of Tabasco with that, please,” Claudia instructed the server. Do you kids see anything else that sounds interesting?” Claudia perused the menu for anything that she may have missed.

“Grandma, we do have to work tomorrow. You ordered enough for a small army,” Liz responded in amusement.

“Yeah, Grandma, that’ll be plenty,” Max chuckled as he handed the server his menu.

“And three plates, please,” Claudia called out as the server left to place their order.

“Speaking of work, what are you modeling tomorrow?” Claudia placed her arms on the table and looked at Max and Liz in turn.

“It’s a shoot for the Columbia outdoor apparel catalog and website,” Liz responded.

“At least we’ll be wearing more clothes than we did for our last job,” Max chuckled.

“What was that?” Claudia inquired, faintly amused.

“I guess we should give you a heads up before they come out,” Liz smiled sheepishly. “When we were in Albuquerque, we were shooting for a three-part series on, um, sexual fantasies,” Liz confessed.

“Oh really?” Claudia wanted to burst out laughing but tried to restrain herself.

“It’s for Men’s Health in September, October, and November. Kind of a hers, his and theirs series,” Max tried to explain though his face was as red as the salsa the server sat on the table as she deposited their drinks.

“When we got there, they saw the two of us together, and decided to expand the shoot to include both of us, and basically, we spent most of the week in our underwear,” Liz looked quickly at Claudia, and then took sip of her cherry Coke.

“And some of it—not—in our underwear,” Max gave Claudia a resigned smile then ducked his head.

“Well, it’s tasteful, I assume,” Claudia questioned, as she slathered roasted garlic on a slice of toasted baguette.

“Well, yeah,” Liz considered, “Pretty sexy, I guess,” Liz blushed as she reached for a nacho and doused it with extra Tabasco.

“Then I’ll have to buy extras for all my friends,” Claudia teased as she took a bite of her appetizer.

“No!” Max choked out with wide eyes as he tried to take a sip of his soda.

“Well, if you do, then you have to get Max to sign his tushie—we have a bet going,” Liz grinned, finally accepting the inevitability of Claudia seeing the photos.

“I’ll remember that,” Claudia smiled at Max as he stuffed a forkful of brisket in his mouth, knowing the battle was lost.

“Anyway, how did you two spend your morning?” Claudia inquired with a sly smile.

Max jumped in before Liz had the opportunity to embarrass him further, “Um, we took care of the plaster cracks, the floors, the dusting, that stray limb on the tree,” Max listed before Liz could add any incriminating details.

“Thank you so much,” Claudia patted their hands. “That would’ve cost me a fortune if I’d had to hire it done.” As she dipped a sweet potato fry, she recalled the other little project she wanted Max and Liz to tend to, “While you’re here, would you see if you can get the old hot tub working?”

“The hot tub?!” Max and Liz replied in panic as a flash from their childhood suddenly came to mind.

“I want to have a little get-together in a couple of weeks, and I’d love to be able to use it again,” Claudia explained with a grin.

“Oh my God, I forgot all about the hot tub,” Liz stared at Max with her jaw dropped in astonishment.

“We got in so much trouble--I think we repressed the memory,” Max groaned as he took his head in his hands, his elbows propped against the table.
~~~

Twelve years ago at Claudia’s, Christmas break

“Momma, Max and I wanna’ go swimmin’,” a six-year-old Liz pleaded with Nancy Parker.

“Yeah, swimmin’,” Max chimed in to bolster Liz’s pleas.

“Guys, it’s the middle of December, there’s snow on the ground, and we didn’t bring your suits,” Nancy responded logically as she stowed away extra Christmas wrapping in Claudia’s hall closet. “Besides, it’s a hot tub, not a swimming pool,” she explained. “Why don’t you go see what Daddy is up to in the living room,” Nancy tried to foist the kids on Jeff while she finished cleaning up.

As she bit her lip in concentration, a young Lizzie Parker formed a plan. Max trailed behind her to the living room, content to go along with whatever scheme Liz was hatching.

“Daddy, Max and me don’t got no swimmin’ suits, and we want to play in the hod tub,” Liz whined to her dad, who was busying himself with the evening paper.

“I guess you’ll have to go skinny dipping,” Jeff casually remarked, not looking up from his paper, hoping the children would find some other diversion with which to occupy themselves. He turned the page of his paper, ignoring the quizzical looks on their faces.

With an exasperated huff, Liz trudged upstairs with Max at her side, holding her hand.

“What’s skinny dipping?” Max asked Liz, his little face scrunched up in confusion.

“I dunno,” Liz shrugged her shoulders. “Teacher always says we should look up what we don’t already know,” Liz’s raised her shoulders, then dropped them as they entered Claudia’s study to find her large dictionary.

“Here it is—skinny dip—‘to swim in the nude,’” Liz looked at Max, still confused at the instructions her dad had given them.

“What’s nude?” Liz questioned Max, who shrugged his shoulders as well.

“Let’s look up ‘nude,’” Max flipped the pages of the dictionary back to the N’s. “Nude-without clothing, naked,’” Max responded, looking quizzically up at Liz whose eyebrows raised as she shrugged and closed the book.

“Huh,” Liz chewed her lip in consideration before finally accepting her father’s unintended suggestion, “Come on then,” Liz grabbed Max’s hand, bounded down the stairs and out the side door to Claudia’s deck.

The two youngsters uncovered the long-abandoned hot tub to reveal the cold, still water underneath the vinyl topper.

Liz stuck her hand in the water and turned up her nose in disgust, “Momma said it was a hod tub, but this water’s cold,” she shook the frigid water from her fingertips, “and its s’posed to be all bubbly.”

“Like a bubble bath?” Max asked.

“Kinda’, but no soap. The bubbles come out of those holes down there,” Liz pointed to the circular jets that rested under the water line.

“Well,” Max looked sideways down each side of the deck, but no grown-ups were to be seen.

“Hang on,” Liz poked her index finger into the air and rose on her toes to peek in the window of the side door. She noticed her father in the living room still buried in his newspaper, paying no notice to them. After Liz gave Max the OK sign, he palmed the freezing water, bringing it up to a toasty temperature. Though he pressed the plastic button on the top of the tub, the water remained still. Grimacing slightly, Max touched the tub’s metal fittings, giving it an electrical jumpstart, sending air through the jets and creating the bubbles that Liz wanted.

“Help me put my hair up?” Liz turned around so that Max could secure her hair on the top of her head with a touch of his fingers.

Max looked uncertainly at the inviting water, “Skinny dipping?” he scrunched his forehead as he looked at Liz.

“That’s what Dad said,” Liz’s eyebrows and shoulders rose in the innocent assumption that her dad meant what he said. Liz unbuttoned her sweater and blouse underneath, her little body prickling with goose bumps. “Hurry, Max, it’s cold out here,” Liz quickly shucked off her boots and jeans, stripping out of her panties and climbing the steps to enter the bubbling, warm water. Max swallowed hard at the sight of Lizzie Parker with no clothes on.

Her knee on the top of the hot tub, Liz turned around to look insistently at Max who quickly shed his clothes. Settling into the heated water, Liz watched with curiosity as Max climbed into the hot tub after her. Cocking her head to the side, Liz suddenly considered the differences between boys and girls,

“Boys look funny,” she decided as she examined the specimen in front of her.

“We do not!” Max defended as he concealed the parts in question under the water. “Boys have a penis; girls have a vagina,” he explained matter-a-factly.

“I have a what?” the inquisitive Lizzie Parker asked.

“A vagina,” Max looked down at Liz’s lap before looking back up nervously, “Where babies come out,” he explained.

Liz palmed the flesh of her tummy, pulling up to try and see the mysterious region to which Max had referred. Unsatisfied, she questioned Max further.

“How do you know all this?” Liz scrunched her eyebrows together.

“Well, if I’m gonna’ be a doctor, then I have to know all this stuff, right?”

“Yeah,” Liz conceded.

“So, I looked it up,” Max explained simply.

Liz considered Max’s expertise in the matter, “Max, do you think we’ll have babies someday?” Liz chewed her lip as she looked at Max through the hot tub’s steamy haze.

“I dunno, probably,” Max shrugged as he looked back at Liz, considering the question.

“So, how do the babies get in there?” …

Inside Claudia’s house

“Jeff, have you seen the kids? It’s gotten kind of quiet in here,” Nancy questioned as she passed through the living room with a box of ornaments.

“I dunno,” Jeff mumbled from behind his paper.

Unsatisfied, Nancy pushed down the middle of the paper to force Jeff to pay attention to what she was saying.

“The kids?” Nancy questioned again.

“Nance, they were in here a few minutes ago, something about swim suits--I just told them to go play,” Jeff fluffed his paper back into place, his annoyance short-lived.

Nancy proceeded to the garage door to deposit the box as Claudia came through carrying a large wreath destined to be stowed away for another year.

“Claudia, have you seen the kids in the last few minutes?”

“No,” Claudia considered, a little worry clouding her face, “But—what’s that humming sound? It can’t be the—“

They opened the garage door and ran around to the side porch only to see two naked first-graders in Claudia’s hot tub, chatting away as if everything was perfectly normal.

“Elizabeth Parker! Maxwell Evans! What do you think you’re doing?” Nancy shrieked at the sight before her.

“We told Daddy that we didn’t have no swimmin’ suits, so he said we’d have to go skinny dippin’,” Liz explained innocently.

“We dind’t know what it was, so we looked it up,” Max continued the explanation.

Nancy could hear the barely restrained snickers of her mother-in-law behind her.

“Don’t you dare laugh, Claudia,” Nancy stated in low tones through gritted teeth.

“Don’t get them out till I get back with the towels,” Claudia patted an exasperated Nancy on the shoulder as she turned to go inside.

“First off, you never get in the water without an adult, do you understand?” Nancy looked at each of them in turn, the panic still coursing through her system.

“Yes, m’am,” they responded contritely.

“But, Momma, I can stand up and it’s not over my head,” Liz stood, her bare chest peeking out of the bubbling water.

“Sit back down,” an exasperated Nancy ordered, “That doesn’t matter,” she added.

“I already told you no—that should be enough reason not to. And--,” Nancy stammered, “Little boys and little girls just don’t skinny dip in hot tubs together, regardless of what your father says,” a frustrated Nancy glared through the window, ready to give her husband a piece of her mind when she got through dealing with more pressing matters.

Returning with two thick towels in hand, Claudia tried to diffuse the situation, “Alright, you two, get out and dry off,” Claudia instructed as she held up towels for each of them in turn. Climbing out of the tub, they shivered as the cold mountain air hit their bodies.

“Come on, upstairs and into your pajamas,” Nancy shooed the disgruntled pair into the house.

Finally able to let out a chuckle, Claudia began to pick up the clothes scattered around the deck, when she had a thought, ‘That old hot tub hasn’t run right in months. How did they get it to work?’ Claudia tried pushing the button, but it didn’t affect the old motor that continued to churn the warm water. Claudia thought that some switch must be stuck, so she went to the outdoor socket, only to discover, the motor was not plugged in at all.

Claudia shook with laughter as she sucked bar-b-que sauce from her thumb after throwing down a rib bone onto the empty plate.

“So, the first time Max and I saw each other naked—“ Liz considered.

“It was all your dad’s fault,” Claudia finished, still chuckling. Your mom wouldn’t let him say a word to you about it. Something about little kids and sarcasm,” Claudia commented off-handedly as she found a stray napkin.

“Yeah, the whole event was all rather traumatic,” Max laughed as he wiped the sauce from his hands. “But, we can get the hot tub working again for you, no problem. Um, what time will you be home, Grandma?” Max tried unsuccessfully to cover his true intentions with the seemingly innocent question. He shot Liz an image of what he would like to be doing after they worked on the hot tub, provided Claudia hadn’t returned home yet. Liz blushed a little as she rubbed his thigh under the table.

“I’ll be at the museum till 5:30, that should be plenty of time for you to work on the hot tub, don’t you think?” Claudia’s responded with a wink.

“Mmm,” Max agreed as he tried to hide his lust-filled thoughts behind his cherry Coke.

Claudia laid out several twenties on the table against Max and Liz’s protests.

“Grandma, we said we were going to take you to lunch,” they insisted.

“Are you kidding? With as much money as you saved me this morning, it’s my treat,” Claudia gathered her bag and scarf, putting up her hand to stop their further insistence.

“I suppose you two know better than to argue with your grandma?” Claudia looked at the pair pointedly with a sly smile.

“Yes, m’am,” they smiled as they ducked their heads slightly and made their way to the jeep.
~~~~~
“Aww, jeez, not nearly as inviting as I remember it,” Max groaned as they returned to Claudia’s to start repairs on the aging hot tub, lifting off the vinyl cover to reveal foul-smelling, stagnant water underneath.

“We’ve definitely got some work to do before that fantasy of yours will be taking place,” Liz grimaced, running a finger through the scum that floated on top of the water before examining it critically.

“How about you take the biological, I’ll take the mechanical?” Max offered.

“Sounds like a plan, but I’m not making any promises,” Liz grimaced as she wiped her hands on an old towel. She recoiled from the smell the stagnant water had left on her hands.

“I mean, I could get this running easy enough, but I need to fix it so Grandma can operate it herself.” Max removed the wooden panels that concealed the motor, the screws untwisting at his will. Removing the motor’s housing, he traced the route of power, switches and breakers, trying to determine what piece was missing or broken. Once he discovered the fried relay and busted impeller, it was time to locate the materials he needed to make the repair.

“Honey, I need Grandma’s toolbox and some old pennies—I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll be here, fishing out the algae and dead leaves,” Liz continued to lift out the unpleasant scum from the water and deposit it into a large trashcan. “Grab the ph kit in the garage on your way back, please?”

“Anything for you,” Max gave Liz a quick peck before heading inside.

Grabbing Claudia’s toolbox from the closet and some old pennies from a change jar, Max set to work to get the old hot tub running again. Returning to the deck, Max set down the tool box and stripped off his shirt before returning to his task.

“Don’t wanna’ get grease on the shirt,” Max explained.

“Mmm…good idea,” Liz agreed wholeheartedly, smiling at her boyfriend’s impressive form. She redoubled her efforts to clean the water and run the necessary ph tests, eager to make good use of the hot tub before Claudia returned.

Max leached the copper off the old pennies and created a thin strip of wire, using his powers to form a tight coil. Removing some screws from Claudia’s toolbox, he fashioned a replacement impeller by melting down the base metal and reforming it into the required shape.

Liz finished removing all the debris from the stagnant water and tested the ph. Upon reading the results from the test strip, she looked around for the spa chemicals, but found that the tubs of chlorine were nearly empty.

“We can pick up some more shock and chlorine tablets tomorrow, but for now…” Liz palmed the water and activated the dormant chemicals that still remained. Testing the water again, she was satisfied with the result.

Max rose from his squatted position after screwing the control panel back on to the tub. “Ok, here we go,” he pushed the plastic button on the top of the old tub, smiling as the water began to churn, “Ta-da—we have a hot tub again!”

Liz clapped and grinned at Max’s success. She took Max’s hands, helping to remove the grease from his fingertips before wrapping her arms around his waist and tracing his firm muscles with her hands.

“You know, Max, we don’t got no swimmin’ suits,” Liz commented playfully.

“Well, I guess that means we’ll have to go skinny dipping,” Max replied, feigning innocence as he reached for Liz’s hem and pulled her tee shirt over her head.

With a sultry look, Liz reached for the buttons on Max’s jeans, eagerly ripping them open. “At least now, we don’t have to look up ‘skinny dipping’ in the dictionary anymore,” Liz purred as she slid her hands into Max’s boxers, helping him shed the unnecessary garments.

“Mmm…we’re pretty experienced with the whole skinny dipping thing now,” Max unfastened Liz’s bra as he gathered the garment in his hands and laid it on top of her tee shirt. He slowly unfastened the button of Liz’s shorts before slowly unzipping them. Taking her shorts and panties in hand, he slid them down her tan legs.

After twelve years, Max and Liz again stood bare on Claudia’s deck, though this time, their plans were far different from those of their first-grade selves.

“So, do you still think boys look funny?” Max teased as he helped Liz into the water.

Eyeing Max appreciatively, Liz smiled, “A girl’s got a right to change her mind after twelve years, doesn’t she?”

“Absolutely,” Max smiled as he stepped down into the bubbling water and pulled Liz onto his lap, straddling his thighs. “Do you remember our little biology lesson from that night?” Max toyed with Liz as he slipped his hands between them, his fingers sinking into her slick core as his thumb drew a playful line up and down her clit.

“Sure, I do,” Liz bit her lip and grinned, recalling Max’s earnest explanation of the differences between boys and girls. Reaching behind her, Liz stroked Max’s balls and rigid shaft. “But, I think we could do with a little more ‘hands on’ research, now that we’re older,” Liz responded wickedly.

“Hands, mouths, other parts that got way more interesting after twelve years,” Max teased as he took a warm nipple in his mouth, one hand on her breast as the other went to her bottom, coaxing her closer.

Hungry for Max’s body again, Liz rocked back, Max’s thick cock sliding between her nether-lips. As she slipped her wet heat onto Max’s rigid length, Liz purred seductively, “Anything for the pursuit of science.”
~~~

Claudia’s office at the Historical Museum

Claudia was busily cataloging artifacts into her computer files when her cell phone rang.

“Hello, Nancy,” Claudia greeted her daughter-in-law after checking the caller id.

“Hi, Claudia. I just wanted to check and make sure the kids arrived ok. I saw that I had a missed call from them.

“They’re fine. They’ve been a real help, doing some work around the house, saved me a fortune on repairmen,” Claudia remarked. “I took them to lunch at Cowgirl’s to thank them for all their hard work.”

“I’m sure they loved that,” Nancy replied as she picked up a basket from Liz’s room, walking down the stairs with the cordless phone perched on her shoulder. Opening the laundry room doors, she turned out the basket of dirty laundry to sort it properly.

“They have to report for work tomorrow, but I have really enjoyed their visit. The hammock has been occupied pretty regularly for the past two days,” Claudia chuckled.

“I don’t doubt that,” Nancy said as she separated whites and colors into piles. “I tried to call them a few minutes ago, but I didn’t get an answer.”

“Oh, they probably couldn’t hear because of the hot tub,” Claudia explained matter-a-factly.

“The hot tub?” Nancy questioned, immediately remembering her mortification at dragging two naked six-year-olds out of the water all those years ago. She paused, a pair of dirty shorts in her hand.

Confident that Max and Liz had already made the necessary repairs and were now enjoying the fruits of their labor, Claudia surmised, “Yeah, I asked the kids to see if they could get it running today, so they were probably in the hot tub when you called.”

“Oh…Ok then…” Nancy considered as she pulled the last items from the pile of clothes. The only articles of dirty laundry left to sort were both of Liz’s swimsuits.

Ok-I haven't been able to get Monica to update "Holding On" today, but she did finish "Enigma" and also started a new fic as well, so I relented. Here is a little tidbit to tide you over till mid-week. I'll catch up on feedback then.

Later that afternoon
Claudia pulled into her driveway at dusk, stopping just behind Max’s jeep. Stepping onto her porch, she thought about the task she set out for Max and Liz this afternoon. Turning to the quiet side porch, Claudia approached the long-abandoned hot tub, noticing that the cover had been removed and the water was clean and clear. She pushed the button on the top of the tub, and the still water bubbled to life. Rather excited about her repaired spa, Claudia entered the house through the side door, looking around the living room and kitchen but not seeing any evidence of Max and Liz.

Heading upstairs to put away her handbag and change clothes, Claudia noticed that the door to the guest room was ajar. As she knocked softly, the door swung open a bit to reveal a sleeping Max and Liz under the covers, Liz’s bare back in view as she lay on Max’s chest. Smiling slyly, Claudia gently pulled the door closed, retiring to her room to slip on her swimsuit, get herself a drink, and enjoy her newly-repaired hot tub.
……..
Refreshed by a nap after their afternoon in the hot tub, Max and Liz dressed in shorts and tees, heading downstairs to greet Claudia. Hearing the now-familiar hum of the hot tub, Max and Liz went to the side porch to find Grandma Claudia sipping on a bottle of Corona with lime, her eyes closed in relaxed bliss.

“Hi, you two,” Grandma Claudia opened her eyes as heard Max and Liz’s step on the deck. “Come join me,” Claudia invited as the two approached the bubbling tub.

“Um, we would, but we didn’t exactly bring our swim suits,” Liz confessed as she blushed.

“We’ll pick up a couple of suits when we’re in town tomorrow,” Max volunteered, a little embarrassed at Claudia’s correct assumption concerning their propensity for skinny-dipping.

“Well, I’m getting a little bit pruny anyway,” Claudia wiggled her fingers, then took a sip of her beer. “Why don’t you kids get the sandwich stuff out of the refrigerator, I’ll get dried off and meet you out on the patio.”

“What kind of sandwich do you want, Grandma? We’ll get started on it,” Liz offered.

“Roast beef, longhorn, all the veggies, spicy mustard, with a little Tabasco on top,” Grandma Claudia listed, “On whole wheat, please,” she added.

“Coming right up,” Liz promised with a wink.
……

While Claudia was changing out of her swimsuit, Max and Liz busily prepared sandwiches, chips and drinks for dinner, carrying them out on a tray to the patio as Claudia had suggested. As Liz set the table, Claudia appeared at the patio door, “It looks yummy, you two.”

“It’s all ready, Grandma,” Max waved Claudia over, pulling out her chair and helping her into her seat.


“Why, thank you,” Claudia patted Max’s hand as he pushed her chair to the table.

Max helped Liz into her seat before taking his own, sipping his cherry coke as he settled himself.


“I was cataloging some items from near the reservation today, and it made me think of River Dog,” Claudia mused wistfully, “Have you guys seen him lately?” Claudia questioned as she cut her sandwich into two triangles.

“Um, back in May?” Max looked at Liz, trying to remember correctly.

“Yeah—I think so. We had a history project before graduation, so we went to talk to River Dog and photograph some artifacts. He seemed to be doing pretty well,” Liz reported.

“I think I’ll drop by and see him when I come down next month,” Claudia decided before taking a bite of her sandwich. “I kinda miss the old coot,” Claudia teased with a wink.

“How long have you known River Dog, Grandma? You’ve talked about him as long as I remember,” Liz asked, a little suspicious.

“Oh, I was about your age, I guess,” Claudia considered. “I met him when I started college and was doing some field work in Native American Studies,” Claudia reminisced. “He was such a hottie back then,” she sighed.

“Grandma!” Liz went ashen, having never heard her grandma say such a thing before.

“Oh, calm down,” Claudia’s brow furrowed playfully, as she waved away Liz’s chastisement. And before you even ask, your dark hair and eyes come from your Great-grandmother Parker. You’re the spitting image of her—and I have pictures to prove it,” she replied smugly.

“Oh, God,” Liz groaned as she dejectedly ate another bite of sandwich. “I cannot believe you’re thinking about hooking up with River Dog.”

Max was trying desperately to hide his laughter behind his sandwich. Liz playfully smacked him on the arm in retaliation.

“What???” Max choked out at Liz’s recrimination.

“Nobody wants to think about their grandma doing it!” Liz’s voice rose in exasperation.

“Well, nobody wants to think about their granddaughter doing it either, but somehow I manage,” Claudia responded pointedly with a sly grin.

Liz took a deep breath before responding, “Fair enough,” she conceded. “You go get your freak on with River Dog—I just don’t need the gory details,” Liz crunched a chip in emphasis.

“Likewise,” Claudia smiled in triumph.

“You know, River Dog and I have had several conversations about you two over the years,” Claudia commented as she sipped the last of her Corona.

“Oh really?” Max asked, his eyebrow raised as he licked the potato chip salt from his fingers.

“Of course, he called me when he realized our ‘visitors’ had made themselves known,” Claudia gave Max a little wink which was met with a small smile. “And I had to find out from him that my granddaughter had almost fallen to her death,” Claudia belatedly chastised Liz for her rock-climbing accident all those years ago.

“Hey, I take exception to that,” Max chimed in, “Liz did not have a scratch on her after that day,” Max playfully defended his success in protecting Liz from such a horrible end.

“And—and,” Liz continued, “That was when we were forced to let Alex and Maria in on the secret, which, though it was a little scary at the time, turned out to be a really good thing,” Liz added, considering the successful relationships that blossomed following that momentous day.

“Well, he will be very happy that you two are finally a couple,” Claudia added, brushing crumbs from her hands and crumpling her napkin on her plate.

“I suppose you’re going to tell us that he’s known all along as well?” Max questioned with a smile.

“Of course,” Claudia commented, “We all knew it was just a matter of time,” she commented off-handedly, “And, anyway, we’ve got more interesting things to discuss than you two,” Claudia waggled her eyebrows as she pushed her chair back and rose from her seat, “In fact, I think I’m going to go make a phone call right now,” Claudia gave a little wiggle as she made her way to the patio door. With a gleam in her eye, Claudia waggled her fingers as she went inside, “See you two in the morning.”

“Night,” Max and Liz groaned, shaking their heads in disbelief.

Eve-But it doesn't mean nothing, she could go in the jacuzzi with underwears, couldn't she?

The last line was just to plant the question in Nancy’s head—nothing definitive yet.

I think it kind of makes sense that Claudia might have had a fling or two with River Dog...all that time...alone in those caves...who knows?

Monica-I swear, I can’t hear the word ‘fairy’ now without thinking of you.

I understand about updating—but you know—I left Max and Liz getting it on in a hot tub—you left poor Liz writhing on the forest floor with her repressed memories and a motherless child flitting about the woods...now who really needs to update??? Just teasing

Back to EPTaS-Max saved Liz during a rock climbing trip back on page one—that was when Alex and Maria became members of the I-Know-an-Alien Club.

Keepsmiling- well, we’ll see...

Jan-This is really just adding another piece to the puzzle for Nancy. We’ll see further reaction to the incident later on.
Grandma is certainly a great deal of fun here.

Natalie-I do so love Claudia—she is the coolest
Re:Max and the hot tub—Well, you know—who doesn’t?

Alien_Friend-Yes, yes they do...

DreamerMaxBehrian-You are the absolute coolest!!! Glad you came out of lurkerdom!

Carrie-Thank you so much! I hope you are recovering from your wreck. We are all thinking about you

Tamashii-I thought it made for a nice little parallel scene. Nancy is doing a lot of supposing right now.

Grandma understands them both so well—she really is so important to the story.

Dziumka-I thought it would be a bit unhealthy for them to be completely isolated from their family and friends. Grandma certainly fit the bill.

Crazedearthgirl-Glad you’re back!

Ginger-I hope you’re liking our saucy, sassy grandma here!

If you didn’t catch dreamermaxbehrian’s fb on page 21—please check it out. There was more to my inside joke than I even realized!

On to the shoot in Santa Fe...

Very early the next morning-Diablo Canyon

“Remind me again why we let Janelle list all of these ‘skills’ of ours on our resumes?” Liz grunted as she stretched for the next hand-hold, the climbing rope taut between her legs.

“So we could get challenging jobs like this one,” Max chuckled as he pushed up from the rock.

The early-morning shoot for Columbia outdoor apparel had served a dual purpose, the photographer wanted to catch the sunrise in his shot for the catalog, and the location manager, Rebecca, wanted to make sure they were finished on the mountain before to grew too hot,and she sweated through her designer pantsuit.

“You two doing all right up there?” came a shout from the photographer, Rick, whose tripod was perched on an opposite boulder.

“We’re great—been doing this for years,” came the echoed reply from Liz, who was nearing a ledge on the Winter Wall, suitable for a rest stop. As they had spent much of their youth in Santa Fe--climbing, skiing, and rafting were second nature to Max and Liz. They knew the importance of not getting too cocky, however. Though they had alien powers, Mother Nature was still not someone to tangle with.

“When you get to the ledge, grab some water, and I’ll get some shots from the front,” Rick called as he continued to fire the shutter.

Max and Liz came to a ledge and decided to take a break from climbing, grateful they had made it this far on the steep ascent without incident. Grabbing water from their canteens, they refreshed themselves as Rick continued photographing them.

“I am going to miss this when we leave in a few weeks,” panting in between sips of water, Liz sighed wistfully as she looked from the ledge to the brilliant sunrise that colored the surrounding rocks in golds and oranges.

“Well, between the mountain climbing, hiking, biking, canoeing, rafting, and fishing over the next few days,” Max chuckled as they looked out at the brilliant sunrise, “I think we’ll get plenty of the great outdoors to last us till we get back.”

“I know,” Liz conceded as she thought of their hometown, “Roswell, New Mexico—all the heat, the dust, and mozzarella cheese you could want,” Liz laughed, “But still…”

“I know, honey. We’ll be back though,” Max touched her cheek and gave Liz a quick kiss, not wanting to disrupt the shoot too much. He checked the attachments on Liz’s harness before continuing their assent.

“Gotta’ make sure you’re safe,” Max winked at Liz, “Remember, the basalt is loose and chossy, and the ascent gets steeper from here,” he warned, “I’m not sure that Rick and Rebecca are quite ready to join the I-know-an-alien club,” remembering the rock-climbing slip so many years ago that solidified their group.

Max led-off, using the bolts when possible and setting cams when needed. Liz followed, collecting the cams as she continued her ascent behind Max. Small showers of loose stones rained down on their helmets as they neared a hundred feet.

”Keep your head down, Liz,” Max warned as he secured another cam in a crack, concerned about the frequent falling rocks they were encountering.

“They don’t call this the ‘Highway to Hell’ for nothing,” Liz concurred.

As Max looked up to reach for the next hold, the rock broke away and slipped from his grasp, hitting Max square in the forehead and knocking him out cold.

“Max!” Liz screamed as she was jerked higher, Max’s limp frame acting as a counter-weight.

Her shout attracted the attention of Rick and Rebecca, who after getting some great climbing shots, had begun stowing the camera equipment, preparing to meet Max and Liz on the trail down.

“You guys ok?” Rick shouted, holding his palm flat at his eyebrows, trying to see Max and Liz’s position through the morning glare.

“I think so,” Liz shouted back as she made her way to Max’s wounded body. Taking his head in her hands, she wiped the dirt from his face. “Max, look at me. Open your eyes and look at me,” Liz insisted, looking for any sign of consciousness.

His eyes fluttered as she shouted in his ear and in his head.

“Liz?” Max replied groggily as he tried to lift his head upright.

“Just look at me, honey,” Liz smiled broadly to see his blinking amber eyes finally meet hers, repairing the concussion caused by the fallen chunk of rock. Smoothing her thumb over the swollen bruise, she returned his forehead to its natural appearance and even rearranged his bangs the way he liked them.

“You’re getting really good at that, you know,” Max smiled and gave Liz a sweet kiss, knocking their helmets together a little as he did.

“I learned from the best,” Liz grinned as her hand cupped Max’s face.

He turned to kiss her palm, resting his head in its smooth warmth for a moment more. “So, do you think we could talk them into something a little more low-key for this afternoon?”

“I could paddle you around in a canoe on a very still lake,” Liz suggested as they neared the summit.

“I could live with that.”
~~~~

After reaching the top, Max and Liz waved their hands over their faces and bodies, freeing themselves of much of the dust they were coated with. Meeting Rick and Rebecca on the trail, Max and Liz were suddenly assaulted with questions.

“Are you all right? Do we need to take you to the hospital?” Rick looked in Max’s eyes, trying to ascertain the harm that had come to him during the rock fall.

“No, no, I’m fine. Just a little stunned—that’s all,” Max smiled as he waved away Rick’s concern. “My only request is that we save the white water rafting till tomorrow,” Max asked, a humorous plea in his voice.

“Sure, no problem, man,” Rick sighed with relief that these two were ok.

“Can we do a little canoeing and fishing instead?” Liz asked hopefully.

“You bet,” Rebecca replied. “I think we could all use a little relaxation.”

Hunter-We'll just have to tell your muse that her visa's expired and she better get her ass back home! I'm glad you're enjoying my fic!

Carrie-Thanks so much. I'm wondering if we could wheedle an update for 'The Haunting' from you. Hmmm...pretty please??? It has been over a month, you know... (Sneaky, huh?)

Jan-It would come in handy, huh? We have a few more scenes from Santa Fe, then we'll head back to Roswell and deal with the family and friends.

Alien_Friend-I promise there won't be any gory details concerning C/RD (hey-I wonder if anyone has created a shipper name for them? ). I really used that to help tie in Claudia's understanding of Max's background and a little teasing thrown Max and Liz's way.

I was completely blown away when DMB told me that. That was too funny!


Tamashii-The area I described really does exist. I did a little research, trying to find appropriate locations for the shoot. When you read the rest of the scenes concerning this shoot, it will make more sense.

Natalie-I would certainly agree!


Eve-Very useful, indeed.


Back to a little romance with Max and Liz...
Enjoy!

Thanks to my husband Tim for all his help with the outdoor scenes--also--the can can of Vienna Sausages really does exist...

~~~~

After a short ride to Abiquiu Lake, Max and Liz changed clothes for Rick’s next shots. The pair set up a tent, rolled out sleeping bags, and built a fire, almost forgetting that there was anyone else there. They hauled other camping equipment out of Rebecca’s SUV to arrange around the campsite and even pulled Max’s jeep into the shot for authenticity’s sake.

After changing for the photographs on the lake, Max and Liz boarded the canoe with fishing poles, tackle box, and cooler in hand, Rick and Rebecca remaining on the shore, Rick’s long lens in place to capture the action, Rebecca teetering beside him in three-inch heels and a black linen Armani pantsuit.

“Ok guys, I’m going to get some shots of you paddling and fishing, then we’ll meet you back at the campsite at dark to get some shots with the campfire,” Rick informed, helping them with a slight shove before he returned to his camera.

Liz picked up her paddle and took her seat in the middle with Max at the rear. Turning her head, Liz smiled at Max,

“I’ll trade you places if you want. I did promise to paddle you around this afternoon.”

“I’m ok,” Max grimaced, “Besides I don’t think it would look very manly to allow my girlfriend to do all the work,” Max smiled as he picked up his paddle to turn them around and head out to the middle of the lake.

Max smiled as he heard Liz softly sing an old campfire tune that Claudia had taught during the summers spent at Grandma’s years ago.

“A boy and a girl in a little canoe, with the moon shining all around,” Liz sang, then considered, “Well, no moon yet, but it won’t be long,” she commented matter-a-factly as she glanced at the reds and oranges that started to color the sky.

“Yeah,” Max sighed playfully, “You should’ve kissed me when I asked you back then—to think of all the time we wasted,” Max teased.

“Well, you get plenty of kisses now,” Liz bent back as Max leaned forward, happily giving Liz a playful peck on the lips, “And I don’t have to swim to shore,” she winked as she sat back up.

Max and Liz could hear Rick’s shutter snapping as they continued to row, the sun slanting against the surrounding hills as they waited for dusk. Finding the perfect fishing spot, Max and Liz stowed their paddles along the sides of the boat, Liz reaching for the tackle box and fishing poles that rested at the front of the boat.

“I think I’ll go for the three-and-a-half inch Gitzit,” Liz decided as she poked through the contents of the case and picked up the brown and black speckled lure, tying it onto her line.

“That’ll be good,” Max agreed, “Frying up a small-mouthed bass on the campfire will make for a nice shot.” Max continued tying on his lure as Liz cast out her line and started to slowly reel it back.

After a few casts and no luck, Max and Liz sighed in exasperation, glancing toward Rick and Rebecca who were waiting patiently on the shore to get some action shots of the two of them actually catching a fish.

“Well, if we don’t catch anything, we always have the emergency can of Vienna sausages in the glove box of the jeep,” Max considered glumly.

“Honey, that can has been in the glove box for years—don’t you think it’s time we replace it?”

“Now, sweetheart, just because the label is all faded and the can is a little rusty doesn’t mean it isn’t perfectly good to eat,” Max teased as he tried to stifle a laugh.

“There is no way I am eating a rusty can of Viennie Weenies,” Liz insisted. “We will be having fresh fish for dinner, I promise you that.”

Liz looked sideways and bit her lip as she ran the line through her hand, reeling in the slack line as it passed through the fingers of her left hand. Suddenly, Liz’s line went taut as her pole arched forward.

“Got one!” she claimed excitedly as she reeled in the bass, wriggling frantically as it broke the water. Liz grasped the fish with one hand as she pulled the lure’s hook from the side of the fish’s mouth.

“Nice one, Liz,” Max congratulated as he took the fish to hook onto the stringer and then let it down into the water. “Now, let’s see what I can find us,” not to be outdone, Max cast out again, trying to add to their evening’s meal.

As Max cast out and reeled in his line time and again he came up empty though Liz had caught another two large fish in the meantime.

“Good job, Liz,” Rick shouted from the shore. “We’ve got plenty of shots, so we’ll meet you back at camp when you’re done.” Rick and Rebecca began stowing the camera gear to make the short drive back to camp.

Liz gave a little triumphant wiggle as she unhooked her third fish, passing it off to Max with a gloating smile.

Max pouted in frustration as Liz grinned at him, her eyes twinkling in mischief. She could no longer contain herself as she busted out in laughter.

“You’re cheating!” Max accused with a smile and a poke to Liz’s ribs. “Cheater, cheater, cheater,” Max continued retaliating as he tickled Liz relentlessly. Liz squealed as the canoe tipped from side to side, water splashing as the gunwale dipped dangerously close to the water.

“Hey, now I know why you always caught more fish than I did when we were young,” Liz playfully retorted as she wiggled her fingers as Max, now realizing the advantage of sending a little extra energy to the lure, making it irresistible to the surrounding fish.

“I didn’t know what I was doing,” Max defended his childhood unsportsmanlike behavior, “I was just trying to catch you a fish,” he claimed with a soulful smile and puppy-dog eyes.

“Well come on then—biggest fish wins,” Liz taunted with a wicked grin.

“What’s the prize?” Max questioned huskily, a broad grin spread across his face.

“Sexual favors?” Liz offered playfully.

“You’re on!” Max’s amber eyes flashed in the golden sunset as he tied on a large jig and cast out, sending a little extra alien energy through the line. Liz did the same, not ready to be bested by Max.

“Well, look at what I caught,” Max teased as he brought in a twelve-pound walleye. “Won’t that make for a tasty dinner,” his words dripping with playful sarcasm.

“I’m sure it will,” Liz retorted with a wily smile as she poked through the tackle box, locating a package of stink bait and opening it with her teeth, spitting out the bit of torn plastic into the canoe.

“Nice, honey,” Max laughed at her tenacity.

“What are you going to with a fish that big, anyway?” Max’s eyebrows rose as Liz tied an extra-large hook onto her line.

“Feed it to you for breakfast,” she replied pointedly, casting toward the rocks and waiting patiently. Max shook his head and smiled as he cast again, planning to find another walleye in the depths of the lake.

Liz thumped her fingers on the side of her jaw impatiently, then sent a little extra energy through the line, helping the putrid bait release the odor so beloved by the blue cat she was seeking in hopes of emerging triumphant in their little contest.

Max smiled to himself as he read her thoughts, knowing what was about to happen.

“Max! Max! I’ve got one,” Liz cried, knowing that she had a large catfish on the end of her line. Reeling in furiously, Liz unconsciously stood, trying to gain leverage against the hefty fish.

“Liz!” Max instinctively dropped his rod and reel in the bottom of the canoe, rising to catch her. As Max’s arms reached for Liz’s waist, the catfish lurched forward again, trying to escape Liz’s hook, sending Max and Liz into the warm waters of Abiquiu Lake. Max pried Liz’s fingers from the fishing rod, snapped the line and threw the rod and reel back into the boat.

“Hey, I almost had him!” Liz pouted playfully as she wiped the water from her face.

“He almost drowned you,” Max laughed as he slipped his arms around Liz’s waist. “Now what was the wager again?” Max’s eyes grew dark in the shadow of the canoe as he held Liz tightly, her legs wrapping around his waist. “Something about sexual favors, if I remember correctly?”

“But I would have won if you hadn’t cut my line,” Liz insisted as she popped open the button on Max’s khaki shorts with a mischievous smile on her face.

“We could call it a draw,” Max bargained softly as he kissed Liz’s neck while he unbuttoned her camp shirt.

“That seems fair,” Liz responded as she pulled Max’s soaked shirt over his head, throwing it over the side of the canoe, the wet fabric slapping against the side.

Unfastening her bra and tossing it in the boat along with their other clothes, Max smiled as Liz’s naked breasts bobbed in the water. “You are just as good a fisherman as I am,” Max reached in for a kiss as he stripped Liz of her shorts and panties.

“Fisher-person,” Liz insisted as she reached down to shed Max of the shorts and boxers that had caught around his ankles.

“Angler,” Max declared in triumph as he wrapped Liz’s legs around him again, sliding his hard shaft into her silky depths.

“Oh, Max!” Liz gasped as his hard shaft filled her time and again while she clung to him in the water, little droplets splashing and rolling off their bodies in golden beads as they made love in the lake.

Their hands, still energized from their earlier contest, slid over each other’s bodies, tantalizing sensitive flesh with the merest touch.

“Mmm…it seems that fish certainly are biting,” Liz giggled seductively as their touches left each other tingling, their charged fingers making each other quiver.

“Oh, honey,” Max growled as his fingers slid to the juncture of their bodies, his thumb grazing her clit as he smiled, “It’s not the fish…”
~~~~~
Meanwhile back in Roswell…

“Ugh, what is that smell?” Maria questioned vociferously as she entered the backdoor of the Crashdown, Michael working at the grill and Jeff Parker standing at the sink.

“Catfish!” Jeff called out in response, “Tomorrow’s special—The Crashdown Catfish Platter,” he announced as the cleaver’s ‘thwack’ sounded against the cutting board, dispatching the fish’s head in the process.

Maria shuddered in disgust. Although she liked eating the catfish, she really didn’t relish the preliminary task of preparing it.

“Couldn’t we just buy the little frozen, pre-breaded chunks and throw them in the fryer, Mr. P?” she entreated.

“Nonsense!” Jeff retorted, “Nothing’s better than fresh catfish,” he grinned as his cleaver came down with another loud chop, slicing off another chunk of meat in the process.

“Well, turn on the exhaust fan if you have to do that here—you’ll drive all my customers away with that smell,” Maria flipped the switch and the noisy fan came to life.

Jeff waved Maria’s concern away as he returned to the task of preparing the fish.

“Good, less smell, and he can’t hear us now, either,” Maria raised her eyebrows as she sidled up to Michael at the grill. “Anyway, I was thinking everyone will be back this weekend, and we should all get together and do something,” Maria ran her finger up and down Michael’s arm as she scooted close enough so that her breasts grazed against him.

“We could watch the baseball game,” Michael offered, shrugging.

“Look, Max and Liz are in Santa Fe; Alex and Isabel are in Vegas—I want to go somewhere besides your living room couch for the evening.

Sighing, Michael accepted the inevitable, “Where do you want to go?” he asked, knowing that this was Maria’s tactic all along.

“Well, there is this new dance club in Artesia we could go to,” Maria’s eyes flickered with excitement.

“Dancing?” Michael groaned. “I just took you to prom!”

“That was in April!” she whacked Michael across the arm.

“Does this have anything to do with your ‘expose Max and Liz’ obsession?” Michael cocked in eyebrow in a playful warning.

“Maybe…” Maria responded sheepishly as she looked away in embarrassment.

“Cool—I’m in,” Michael responded with a wicked grin as he flipped another burger on the grill.
~~~
Back at the lake

After drying their clothes and getting dressed, Max and Liz paddled back to shore, cleaning their catch at the water’s edge and popping them into the cooler they had brought along. As nightfall came, they arrived back at camp with dinner ready to cook.

Rick and Rebecca had just finished setting up the extra lights around the campsite, and the fire had burned down so that flames no longer licked up from the kindling, but glowed like coals in the ash, ready for the cast-iron pan and the day’s catch.

As Max sat down the cooler and looked around for the pan, he noticed another ice chest near the campsite.

“What’s in there?” Max pointed at the Styrofoam chest, wondering if there might be something to drink inside.

“Oh, this?” Rebecca opened the box to reveal the contents inside, “I bought this at the grocery store in case the fish weren’t biting today,” she smiled sheepishly.

Max and Liz peered at the contents.

“You do realize you can’t catch that fish anywhere in the U.S.?” Liz questioned Rebecca as they stared at the frozen tilapia.

“Oh, no, I just thought it would look nice in the pan,” Rebecca quickly shut the lid, a little embarrassed at the oversight.

“You didn’t play outside much when you were a kid, huh?” Max teased lightly as he and Liz went behind a portable screen to change into their next outfits.

“No, sorry, more of an inside girl myself,” Rebecca reached into the back of the SUV to get drinks for the group from another cooler. “Sorry, the manager who does the outdoorsy stuff broke his leg water-skiing last month.”

“No, it’s fine. Everything’s been great,” Max tried to reassure Rebecca even though he knew someone more experienced probably wouldn’t have picked this morning’s climbing route. He and Liz emerged freshly dressed from behind the partition.

“Did you get some good shots while we were on the water?” Liz tried to change the subject as she found the cast-iron and slathered it in cooking oil.

“Yeah, they’ll be just what we need. I got a nice one of the two of you—I’ll send you a copy when we get back,” Rick offered as he adjusted the lights, getting ready to shoot Max and Liz cooking their dinner over the campfire.

Max and Liz gathered everything they would need for the dinner preparations and seated themselves on the camp chairs situated between the fire and the tent. As the fish hit the pan, the promising sizzle made their mouths water. Rock climbing, canoeing, fishing and making love this afternoon had certainly worked up their appetites.

Rick took shots of Max and Liz in front of the campfire, tending to their fish and other dinner preparations. Liz boiled water for coffee and found a can of beans to open with their supplies. When Max finished frying the fish, Liz found blue and white speckled tin plates and began serving up portions of fish, beans and coffee to the group.

“We’re really going to eat out here?” Rebecca looked uncertainly at the fish and then at the other three people around the campfire.

“Well, yeah, if you keep the fish, you’re supposed to eat it,” Max explained. “Dig in.”

Rick took some shots of Max and Liz enjoying their dinner, then happily returned to his own plate. Rebecca tried a hesitant bite, then smiled, loading up her fork with another piece of fish.

“This is really good, you guys,” she exclaimed, wide-eyed.

A muffled ‘thanks’ came from Max as he continued to eat. The sound of forks scraping against the tin plates signaled the end of a successful meal.

“We can fry up the rest of the fish if you guys are still hungry,” Liz offered as she collected the plates.

“Oh, no, I’ve had plenty. As soon as we get the shots of you two in the sleeping bags, I’ll need to head back to town,” Rebecca explained as she grabbed the pajamas for Max and Liz to change into.

Max and Liz changed clothes again and slipped in their sleeping bags, a lantern turned down low in between them as Rick took his shots with the tent flaps opened and pulled back. Max and Liz faced each other, smiling with their heads propped up on their hands.

After getting all his required shots, Rick and Rebecca started breaking down the equipment to stow in her SUV.

“Hey, if you guys don’t mind, can we just pack up the camping gear in the morning and bring it with us when we meet you at the Lower Gorge?” Max asked as Rick and Rebecca continued to load her vehicle.

“You’re going to stay out here?” Rebecca asked incredulously.

“Might as well,” Liz shrugged, “My grandma’s gone to a conference tonight, and, hey, we’re already ready for bed.”

“Babe, we’re already in bed for that matter,” Max added.

“Sure, that’s fine with me,” Rebecca had a perplexed look on her face, as if sleeping outdoors was an entirely foreign concept to her. A coyote howled in the distance, causing Rebecca’s eyes to widen in fear as her head turned, searching for the source of the call. “Are you sure you’ll be ok out here?”

“Yeah, we’ll be fine. I don’t think he’ll bother us at all,” Max grinned as he lowered the lantern’s flame.

Rick snickered as he lowered the tent flaps for Max and Liz, “See you in the morning,” he called as he helped Rebecca to her SUV. “Rebecca, why don’t you look through the clothes for the shoot and find some jeans and boots for tomorrow,” he suggested as her heels sank into the soft ground with each step.

“Good idea,” she concurred.

As Rick and Rebecca drove away, all they could hear was the long unzipping of the sleeping bags and a seductive giggle from Liz.
~~~~

Ok-This is for Hunter just for the sole purpose of helping her feel better. (God, I am such a pushover!) Now, Hunter, if I do this, I expect another chapter of 'Holding On' VERY soon!!!
I'll be back with my FB responses mid-week cause I've got to get ready for work and face the hordes of teenagers again.

So...here we go ...back to Santa Fe...and I'll even throw in the dirty part just for Hunter!


Las Vegas

“Ok—I promise, Maria—we’ll be there. No,” Alex rolled his eyes to the tall, painted ceiling as Isabel took a bite of his pizza. “No, Maria, we did not run off and get married.” Alex bobbed his head from side to side and rolled his hand forward, trying to get Maria off the phone, though she could only imagine his gestures. “Maria, of course I want to marry Isabel, and we will get married someday, but we did not get married today. She is working—and shopping, but that’s immaterial. We will be home this weekend, and we will try to help you get the dirt on Max and Liz. Yes, because we care—I understand. Isabel’s eating all my pizza, Maria. Gotta’ go,” Alex flipped his cell phone closed and breathed a heavy sigh before picking up a slice of his brick-oven pizza and relating the details of the conversation to Isabel.

Alex and Isabel dined in the shadow of the Roman gods at the Trevi Italian restaurant in the Forum. Though Isabel had ordered a salad, Alex’s pepperoni pizza seemed to be disappearing at an alarming rate.

“We come all the way to Vegas, and you order pepperoni pizza,” Izzy commented as she finished off another piece of Alex’s pie.

“I like pepperoni, so why shouldn’t I order it?” Alex questioned. “Should we order another one?” he questioned tactfully.

“No, Alex, I’ve still got to work tomorrow, so I shouldn’t. I’ll just have my salad,” Izzy smiled as she picked up her fork to spear a tomato.

“Uh-huh,” Alex nodded as he noticed that half his dinner was gone. As the waiter walked by their table, Alex stopped him mid-stride, “Ah, my good man, can we have the coppa spumone please, with two spoons,” he added before Isabel could protest.

“Anyway, that was Maria,” he continued as the waiter left to scoop up their gelato.

“I gathered,” Isabel nodded as she sipped her cola.

“She wants everyone to go out dancing this weekend when we get home. A new place in Artesia or something,” Alex folded the slice and bit off a generous piece.

“So what? We’ve gone out dancing plenty of times. What’s different about this?”

Alex snickered at Maria’s wiliness, “Her plan is to keep Max and Liz occupied throughout the day, so they don’t have a chance to be alone. Then when we go out, all that tension will have built up throughout the day, and then ‘boom’—they’ll expose themselves.”

“Ewww,” Isabel grimaced in disgust as she hid her face behind her napkin.

“Not like that,” Alex sighed, “They’ll kiss, or something.”

“It’s the ‘or something’ I’m worried about,” Isabel said, plucking the pizza crust from Alex’s hand and scarfing it down before he could protest.

“So, anyway, how did your brother explain these…” Alex lowered his voice to a whisper as he leaned in closer to Isabel, “new-found powers of Liz’s?”

“He suggested it was because he’s healed her so often over the years. It was like he couldn’t help himself, or some bullshit.”

“So, do you think it’s possible—that the healing’s the only reason she suddenly has powers?” Alex questioned.

“I don’t know—maybe. They’ve always lived in their own little Max and Liz world, you know,” Izzy considered off-handedly.

“Yeah, there have been plenty of times I had remind Liz she had to actually speak out loud to the rest of us,” Alex scoffed as he finished off his pizza and speared a bite of Izzy’s salad. “So, in our slightly-less murky future, did your brother mention any tall, lanky, stunningly-handsome sons?”

“Um, no,” Isabel laughed, “He just mentioned three kids—he wasn’t exactly specific.” Isabel sighed and picked hesitantly at her salad. “Look, Alex, please don’t get freaked out. I don’t want you to feel pressured because of what Liz saw.”

“Hmm…Let’s see. I get to marry my beautiful, intelligent, talented girlfriend, have a wonderful family, and live in a comfortable home—Oh! The horror!” Alex teased Izzy, eliciting a smug grin and a roll of her eyes. “But if you’re still feeling guilty, you could make me look twenty-one and fake my driver’s license so I can get in the casino,” Alex waggled his eyebrows to gently goad Isabel into using her powers. “A little scruff, a little bulk up to the chest and shoulders?” Alex grinned and nodded, encouraging Izzy to bend the rules a bit. Alex paused in his entreaty as the waiter approached with the icy concoction on a tray.

“Your coppa spumone, Sir.”

They smiled politely as the waiter delivered four generous scoops of pistachio, chocolate, vanilla and strawberry gelato in a large glass dish, then left the bill at Alex’s side.

“One roll of quarters,” Isabel conceded as she dug her spoon into Alex’s desert, enjoying it thoroughly.



Just past Pilar, New Mexico, on the Rio Grande

“Maaxx!” Liz screamed as cold water smacked the bow of the inflatable kayak, drenching Liz in the process.

“Just keep paddling, Liz, Rick is set up around the next bend,” Max panted as he paddled hard on the left, trying to keep Liz out of the rocks. The whitewater rapids broke hard against the jagged rocks jutting from the water, and Max’s heart beat rapidly as he dug harder to turn the boat safely out of danger.

“Honey,” Liz hollered behind her, “Would you object if I told Janelle to take white-water rafting off our resumes?” Frustrated with the demands of the river, Liz tried to calm herself by thinking of waking up that morning in the tent—snuggled into Max, making love while the morning stars were fading into the dawn. Her reverie was broken by another face full of chilly water.

Max couldn’t help but chuckle as Liz was so rudely snapped out of the pleasant memory.

“Whatever you want to tell Janelle is fine by me,” Max knew better than to disagree with Liz at a time like this. “But the river should be a little less rough after we pass that bend. Rick is set up at the most challenging part.”

“Challenging, huh? That’s one was to put it,” Liz paddled hard, giving her body quite a workout. As the current threw their boat toward another cropping of rocks, she stuck her paddle hard against the sharp stones, trying to push them back on course.

As they turned the bend of the river, Max noted Rick behind his tripod on shore. They paddled hard through the whitewater, their muscles taut and defined as drove their paddles firmly in the water.

“Hard on the left, honey,” Max instructed silently, knowing that they could work more efficiently that way and the photos would look better as well if they weren’t shouting directions at one another.

“Big branch up ahead,” Liz wordlessly informed Max as she helped steer them away from the debris.

“The only hard part left…” Max began.

“Is the falls!” Liz finished as she leaned back so far, she lay between Max’s knees.

They hung on for dear life as the boat plunged about twenty-five feet down. Liz grabbed Max’s legs as she felt herself pulled off the bottom of the kayak. Knowing they were safely out of range of Rick’s camera, Max poured his energy into steadying the boat and Liz, heaving a relieved sigh as the boat finally dropped to smoother waters, and they could catch their breath again.

Liz rolled over in the kayak to face Max, her head between his thighs and her arms folded across his knees.

“I don’t suppose you could hold that thought for a couple of hours?” Max panted and grinned at Liz’s position.

“How ‘bout I give you a rain check?” she smiled and blew Max a kiss before she turned over again to resume work at her paddle.

Liz wiped the water droplets from her face and turned toward the sun as they floated along in the kayak.

“So are you still going to call Janelle to make sure we only get jobs where we stand there and look pretty?” Max humorously questioned as he paddled them through the now-calm waters.

“Oh, I guess not,” Liz smiled as she paused to absorb the moment. “I mean, we could be home dealing with our parents and friends,” she turned and smiled wickedly.

“I’ll gladly take on the Rio Grande any day,” Max smiled as they headed toward the takeout and back to Claudia’s for the night.
~~~~

Meanwhile at the Crashdown

“Hey, Nancy,” Diane Evans called as she entered the Crashdown.

“Di, how are you?” Nancy Parker filled a coffee cup for her friend and herself.

“Going nuts—the house is too quiet with both of the kids gone this week. I don’t know what I’m going to do next month when they both head to school,” Diane was feeling a bit of the empty-nest blues and had come to visit Nancy for a little commiseration. “I don’t suppose you need another waitress? I’ll work for tips,” Diane grinned as she sipped her coffee.

“I couldn’t possibly subject Jeff on you,” Nancy laughed as she watched her husband rant and rave at a supplier on the telephone. “We’ll figure out something for you to do—maybe open up a boutique, bed and breakfast…”

“House of ill repute?” Diane laughed as she sipped her coffee. “I don’t know. I’ve got to come up with something. Catering, maybe?”

“Um, you might have a better shot with the bordello,” Nancy teased her friend as she sliced her a piece of coconut cream pie.

“Anyway,” Diane sank her fork through the fluffy meringue, “How are the kids doing in Santa Fe?” she questioned as she took a bite of the rich pie. “Of course, I’ve heard from Izzy every half hour—telling me all about all the great shopping in Vegas. But, Max, I get a two-word text message, ‘we’re here.’”

“Well, I talked to Claudia the other day, and the kids were having a great time. They did a lot of repairs around the house for her, fixed that old hot tub…”

“Hot tub?” Diane tried to recall, “The same hot tub you said you had to drag them out of when they were little?”

“Yeah, that was a fun phone call to make,” Nancy shook her head and laughed, remembering the conversation with her best friend. “Hell, I never realized that skinny-dipping was even in the dictionary,” she playfully glared through the pass-through at her husband who was still arguing on the phone, and then remembered her discovery when she was sorting the laundry, “But, I noticed that Liz didn’t pack either of her swimsuits to take to Santa Fe.”

“The one she keeps in the cabana at our house is still there,” Diane added, “I gathered all the suits and towels up the other day to wash,” she raised her eyebrows in uncertainty. “So did Claudia think they had taken up naked hot-tubbing again?” Diane whispered so Jeff couldn’t hear.

“She wouldn’t say. But, I tell, you, Di, that old woman knows more than she is telling. I promise you that,” Nancy smiled as she nodded her head and picked up a fork to share Diane’s pie.

“I wouldn’t surprise me a bit,” Diane considered as she took another bite.
~~
An exhausted Max and Liz slept soundly in the Claudia’s guest room, the soft white cotton sheets wadded around their lower bodies, their color a sharp contrast to the expanse of exposed, tanned skin they only partly covered. Liz had fallen asleep on Max’s chest, with his arms wrapped around her, her breasts pressed against his taut abdominals.

When Claudia returned from work, she knocked softly on their bedroom door, but they did not stir. She grinned and shook her head slightly, happy that Max and Liz had found a moment of peace in their hectic lives. Claudia pulled their door closed and headed downstairs to make a pot of tortilla soup, so they could eat whenever they decided to wake up.
~~~
Later that evening
Max was pulled from his slumber by the cool breeze of the ceiling fan hitting his empty chest. The feeling was so unfamiliar that he was immediately startled awake—he had become so accustomed to Liz against his chest and in his arms as they slept that it was quickly becoming impossible to sleep soundly without her.

That heat that he momentarily missed from his arms he soon found again between his legs. Max sucked in a deep breath as Liz’s mouth caressed his hardening length. He felt her smile when she heard his reaction to her ministrations.

“Honey…” Max breathed out as he pulled the sheet back to reveal her petite body between his legs.

“Mmmm hmmm?” Liz hummed against his cock as she took his full length into her mouth.

“Oh, God,” Max groaned as he fisted the sheets in his hands, knowing that he should make love to Liz right now, that he should be pleasuring her, too…”

“No, you don’t—you’re going to lay there and let me do exactly what I’m doing,” Liz purred silently as her warmth of her mouth caressed Max completely.

A low moaning chuckle escaped Max’s throat as he heard her words and saw the image of Liz’s head near his lap earlier that day after they had conquered the river’s rapids. His hands stroked her hair as he gave in to the pleasure that she was offering.

Liz’s lips surrounded Max’s thick shaft as she pulled up against its full length, licking the sensitive ridges as she sucked gently and stroked his balls with her fingertips. Peering through thick lashes, Max caught her stare as Liz’s eyes, dark with desire, looked up, smiling in self-satisfaction.
She had loosened the braid she wore during the day’s shoot, and her long hair hung about her in waves, leaving silky trails across Max’s thighs as her mouth caressed his length time and again.

Max wanted to conjure images of their lovemaking, of what he wanted to do to her, but Liz’s attentions had captivated all his thoughts, and he could do nothing but revel in the pleasure she was giving him.

Even though Liz herself was not being touched or tasted, she could feel all of Max’s desire, knew every muscle that tightened throughout his body, the sudden surge within his shaft that was the precursor to release.

As Liz cupped his balls and took his engorged cock completely within the wet warmth of her mouth, Max gave in to the euphoria, like riding the rollercoaster that reaches the crest of the track and then plummets, his mind and body searching for the release she gave.

Liz took him greedily, sharing his fulfillment. Max panted heavily in the darkened room, lit only by the moon outside their window and the iridescent glow from their bodies. His head still swam from his climax, the images produced spun incoherently in a blur. Liz smiled at herself for being able to bring Max pleasure this intense, pleasure that nearly left him a bumbling fool.

“Just give me a minute,” Max chuckled as his heart beat started to return to normal. Liz rested her chin on her hands that were folded across Max’s stomach. She grinned at him mischievously.

“So, did you enjoy your rain check?”

Max’s hands wrapped around Liz as he pulled her to him, “There’s definitely something to say for life outside the desert,” Max grinned as his lips sought Liz, pulling her into a deep, satisfied kiss.