The deal (the third one)

Max poured a second glass of wine for both of them and thought about the current situation.

The day was turbulent, and he had to resort to using his non-advertised people manipulation skills more than once, but it all ended much better than he thought it will: with him and Elizabeth on his boat, on the ocean… just the two of them (and an occasional seagull).

Earlier that day, when he heard that Liz accepted the lunch invitation from the snobby doctor, Max's goal was to crash the lunch and to make sure he prevents the doctor from coming too close to her.

Max smiled: mission accomplished. Sure, he used Hunter's help and the fact that Liz is so straightforward and innocent, but hey… it worked, and he was happy with the result: he scored an invitation.

As soon as he met the doctor, the rivalry was impossible to hide. How dares that snobby doctor have any intentions toward Liz? Max saw her first! 

Max decided to mess with the man and see what will happen. Max used every opportunity to sabotage any conversation the snobby doctor started with Liz and as soon as Liz stepped away Max attacked doctor's ego. Ha! Max was always good in reading people, but this doctor is like an open book. Max is all giddy at the memory of Chris' furious expression when he called him a monk. Max can tell that the snobby doctor is not experienced with the ladies but based on Chris' reaction it seems that he is really-really inexperienced, and Max's confidence riled doctor up to the point of pushing him over the edge and causing him to act rashly.

Max's impression is that the snobby doctor is not the one to give up easily, but no matter what doctor's next move is, his name will be forever stained in Liz's eyes.

Max can't be happier about this.

After her second glass of wine, Liz turned toward Max and observed him for some time before speaking: "You are not going to ask me what happened?"

Max shrugged. "If you want to tell me, you will do it without me asking. If I ask and you are not ready to talk about it, I risk bringing back unpleasant memories."

"What makes you think it's unpleasant?", Liz asked.

"I saw him holding onto your hand forcibly. And you were not happy about it.", he said matter-of-factly.

Elizabeth nodded. That makes sense. Only then she remembered a detail which she somehow pushed at the back of her mind. "You hit him."

"Yes, I did." Max knows that there is no point in denying the facts or coming up with excuses. He will own this.

Liz was surprised by Max's admission without any reluctance. No matter how she thinks about it, was there any need for violence? "Why?"

"I saw him holding onto your hand forcibly. And you were not happy about it.", he said matter-of-factly.

Liz stifled a laugh when she realized that he repeated the same answer as for her previous question. Even his tone was the same.

"Is me not being happy a reason to hit people?"

"Liz, your smile can light up the whole room. Whoever makes you frown deserves a taste of my fist." He balled his hand into a fist and waved it around few times.

Liz was not sure how to respond to this. It is childish and violent and… she was touched that he will go to the lengths of hitting someone just because they made her unhappy. She remembered that the previous evening, in the Black Rose nightclub, he also saved her from a man who was holding her.

"This is the second time you came to my rescue in two days. I don't know how to thank you."

Max thought for a second before responding: "Well, there is one thing…"

Liz remembered how he always sneaked kisses whenever he thanked her, so she leaned closer and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you.", she smiled.

Max was genuinely surprised by that kiss. He blinked few times. "That was not it, but I will take it."

"Oh… sorry.", Liz awkwardly said and internally facepalmed while wondering, what got into her to kiss him? "What do you have on your mind?"

Max laughed. "Forget it. You already gave me a kiss, now I don't dare ask for more."

Liz sank in the cushions of the sofa while scolding herself. Why did she assume that he wanted a kiss? Even if he wanted one, knowing him, he would probably request one on the lips. Thinking about that… he kissed her once, and it was nice. It was more than nice. Liz scolded herself again. Why is she thinking about that kiss? Must be the wine. Yes. Blame it on the wine. She shook her head while trying to shoo those kiss-thoughts away.

"Max, I need to know. What is the thing you wanted from me?"

Max looked at Liz and wondered if he will push her too much. She is already upset because of that snobby doctor, and it probably won't take much to get her super-stressed up again. But she is looking at him with her dark eyes full of sincerity, so he needs to give her an answer.

Max decided to give a disclaimer first: "OK. I will tell you. But keep in mind that I'm not forcing you into anything. It's just a request and if you say no to it, I will be perfectly fine. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable in any way, so if this is too much, feel free to reject me. I will not hold it against you…"

"Now you are making me nervous!", Liz exclaimed while all kinds of scenarios (mostly involving naked bodies) flooded her mind.

"Next weekend is Hunter's birthday.", Max said after one endless second.

Liz paused. "And?"

Max gave her a knowing look. "My family will be there, and they expect that I will come with my girlfriend."

Liz released the breath she was holding. This… was unexpected but much milder than her original thoughts (the naked ones). "I thought that by now you will come up with a breakup story. We agreed that my girlfriend act for your family was a onetime thing and that was the lunch with Sabrina and Hunter. The meetup with your parents in the hospital was not planned, and I did it to help you out in a moment."

Max leaned back on the sofa and sighed. He avoided addressing her point about the two of them breaking up and focused on other things: "I know. That is why I didn't say anything even though my mom and Rina are planning his birthday for more than a month. But you asked me what I would want from you in return, so I said it." He shook his head. "Don't worry about it. I will come up with something. Maybe I can have a fever and not go. That will be better than answering all the questions why I came without you."

Liz felt guilty. She told herself that it's not a big deal to attend one party with Max. "Well, it's one afternoon…"

"No.", Max interrupted her. "It's a weekend in Hawaii. And we would need to share a room for two nights. There, I said it all. I know it's a lot and I don't expect you to do this without something big in return, and at this point I don't have anything to offer."

Liz was happy that he stopped pushing for this. She is sorry that she can't help him, but the weekend while sharing a room in the night and pretending to be a couple during the day is… too much.

Several voices rang in Liz's head: "Is it too much? … Of course, it is! It's sleeping with him! … You two slept in the same bed twice and you are just fine … OK. OK. Nights are fine. What about the day? … What about the day? Is it too much to spend time with him? … Rina is great, and Hunter is nice also. But what about Max?... What about him? You are spending your weekends with Max anyway! … Didn't you say that he makes you feel safe? … Don't you trust him? … Even right now, it's just the two of you on a boat. Can it get more intimate than this? … No, weekend in Hawaii is too much… Of course, it's too much for a person who does not know how to have fun! …"

Liz remembered that she is the non-fun girl. Always with books and latest research, spending her weekends in the library when her college roommates attended parties. Even Bri and Mia said how Liz does not know how to have fun... And Dr. Snow described Max as a guy who only knows how to have fun.

"Can you teach me how to have fun?", Liz asked.

Max didn't understand the question. "What?"

"Can you teach me how to have fun?", she repeated.

Max's handsome eyebrow arched. He heard her, but he still didn't understand. Who needs lessons in having fun? His confusion was apparent.

Liz took a deep breath and said seriously: "More than one person told me that I don't know how to enjoy the moment and have fun. We can make a deal. You teach me how to have fun, and I will go with you to Hawaii. As your girlfriend."

Max glanced at her extended hand, waiting for a handshake, unable to believe his luck.

"Deal.", he shook her hand after a second of delay.

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