~ chapter 5 ~

Max's arms were warm around her waist as he pulled her closer. His breath on her skin was hot and the fire in his eyes seemed to scorch her skin as he caressed her face with his gaze. Liz was drowning fast. Drowning in his touch...in his eyes. She felt suddenly lightheaded as the air closed in around her. Liz's breathing was stilled and her heart was racing a mile a minute knowing she was on the verge of the kiss she'd been waiting for all her life.

That's when it happened. Soft, warm lips gently grazed hers and sent a ripple of liquid fire pulsating through her. Every nerve in her body came alive at that one simple touch and even when his lips left hers she still felt a sweet tingling sensation not just at the focal point of contact but everywhere...even in the air around her. Their eyes locked in a moment of realization and awareness then darkness blurred their vision as eyes closed and lips met once more with urgency. Need. Desire. Passion.

Grand music swelled in the background. A swirl of clouds engulfed their feet. And they were floating. Rising high above the earth. Turning in perfect time to the music, a simultaneous moan of pleasure from both of them clashed with the softly lilting chords that were floating all around. Tongues met and danced in rhythm with the pounding of their hearts as their bodies flushed hot against one another.

Max's lips left hers creating a trail of fire down her throat and Liz's arms wrapped around his neck for support. Her knees grew weak at just the thought of his upcoming assault as his lips moved lower. In all of her dreams she never knew it would be like this. "Oh, God. Max…Max, I…" Max's mouth swallowed her words as his lips captured hers once more. Releasing her lips, Max moved once more down the other side of her neck and she managed to find the strength to breathe somehow. "This is...like a dream…"

"Liz. Oh...Liz." The whisper was in her ear calling to her to open her eyes. "Liz...you need to...wake up..."

The background music came to a screeching halt and Liz felt the force of being yanked from that beautifully torrid dream world of Max. A warm hand gently tugged at her shoulder and Liz felt obligated to open her eyes at least a little. That's when she saw it. The gently smiling face only inches above hers. That twinkle in those dark eyes that spoke of quiet amusement. "Hey, sleepyhead. We're getting ready to land."

"Max?" Liz squinted up at Max and brought one hand up lazily to cover a yawn. "How long have I been asleep?"

Max chuckled. "I think you dozed somewhere after we passed the Mississippi and you've been out like a light ever since." A deep grin spread over his face. "Made for quite a peaceful journey. Although I am interested in knowing what you were dreaming about…"

Liz gulped. "W…what?" She lifted her head off of Max's shoulder, her eyes blinking a few times as she tried to furiously search her memory for anything that might have escaped her in her sleep-induced state. Suddenly her cheeks colored as a faint image began to float back to her and she slowly raised her wide eyes to meet Max's. "I…didn't…did I talk at all?" She pushed a strand of hair nervously behind her ear. "You know…like, in my sleep."

Max shrugged and leaned his head back against his seat as a Cheshire grin spread over his face. "Maybe."

Liz's mouth suddenly went dry and her face flamed red with mortification. Oh, no. That look on his face. What had she said? In her dream…what had she said to him? They were dancing. No, they were… Oh, God. They were kissing. Their first kiss. Boy, was it incredible. They were really getting into it… Max was kissing her neck…and somewhere in there was a…(gulp) moan. Wasn't there?

Her eyes flicked back to his face now turned toward her waiting patiently for her to pull pieces of the puzzle from the foggy haze of sleep and put them together. Please, God. Please don't tell me I moaned in my sleep. Or worse yet…called out his name…

"You don't happen to have a dog named Max do you?" Max asked suddenly.

"A...a...dog? Named Max?" Liz shook her head slowly and her eyes widened even further, if that was possible. She tried to gauge where that question came from but his expression gave nothing away. Damn him for having such control! "No. No, I don't have a dog named Max. Why? Why would you ask such a thing?" Her final question came out in a sort of squeak.

Max had to bite his lower lip to keep from laughing at the pure fear in her eyes in reaction to his questions. It was true that she'd been sleeping a while. It was even more true that it had been one of the most peaceful periods of time Max had ever spent in his life. Liz's head had fit so perfectly on his shoulder and her steady breathing along with the sweet vanilla scent that surrounded him had lulled him into a pleasant fantasy as he slept.

And about that fantasy. It wasn't new. In fact, this particular fantasy had played over and over in Max's mind so many times he knew the part of each character by heart. His part. Liz's part. And on the occasional times his fantasy took place in the future, he even knew the parts of their children. Children he didn't even know if it was possible for him to have. But with Liz, in his fantasies, anything and everything goes. And usually did. Max thought devilishly to himself.

This time in the fantasy there was a difference though. This time, there was a hint of reality that threatened to anchor the visions in his mind and the desires of his heart to the physical presence of the woman in his arms. This time he was in real danger...of actually believing it.

Max pulled himself back to the present and tried to play off his comments casually. If he played this right, it could be rather…entertaining. "Oh, no reason in particular." Max shrugged his statement off but Liz's eyes boring into him didn't help. Again, he had to stop himself from bursting into laughter at her reaction. She looked positively panicked. Which only spurred him to tease her more. Rolling his eyes he let out a little sigh. "Okay. So, there was the little stroking thing you did with your hand..."

Liz's hand flew to her mouth to stop the loud gasp that could still be heard by the people four aisles away and her eyes widened in mortification as Max continued. "Look, it's no big deal. I only asked because you were kinda stroking my arm and then later my chest like you would a puppy, you know?" He threw her a sexy smile. "Not that I'm complaining, mind you. It's just I did get a little concerned when your hand dropped to...uh..."

Max allowed his eyes to drop suggestively to his lap and Liz's eyes followed suit causing her cheeks to flare to a color even deeper than crimson. "Oh...my...God. Max, I'm...I'm...so..." She couldn't think of the right words to say. Sorry for groping you in my sleep? Like hell she was! The only thing she was sorry about was that she hadn't been aware she was doing it and therefore couldn't remember every last detail. 'Embarrassed' would work, but why point out the obvious to someone intelligent enough to figure that one out on his own.

Wait a second. He was enjoying this. She could tell he was by the twinkle in his eyes. The smirk on his lips that he was trying so hard to hide. He was enjoying it…a little too much. Well, Mr. Evans. Two can play this game…

Liz's expression cleared miraculously as a plan quickly formed in her mind. A sly smile turned the corner of her lips upward and she looked up at Max seductively. "You know what they say about dreams, don't you?"

Max swallowed hard at the instant change he saw in Liz's expression. She was no longer the teased. Somehow, somewhere they had switched places and she was now the teaser. Completely in control. Suddenly in seduction mode. Oh, boy, Evans. Hang on to your seat...

Blinking quickly in dazed confusion, Max's gaze dropped to his leg where Liz's hand just 'happened' to fall so delicately then began to teasingly slid upward. Max swallowed hard. "Um…uh...no. No, I don't. What...uh...do they say?"

"Well." Liz's voice was low and husky from her recent trip from the peaceful world of sleep. "They say our dreams are just our subconscious trying to show us what we really want." Her fingers trailed their way up Max's leg to his chest where Liz's hand lost no time in slowly, lightly running over the hard, taut muscles she could easily feel through his shirt.

"That we act out our deepest desires in our dreams." She tilted her head and sighed with uncertainty allowing her warm breath to skip across the exposed skin where his top buttons were open. Her smile was full of innocence, but her eyes sparkled with hidden meaning. "Do you? Believe that, I mean?"

Max nodded his head speechlessly as a thousand feelings were raging through his body. Her touch. Oh, God. It was so light but sensual. Like a feather sending a light fluttery feeling from his furthest extremities to the pit of his stomach. And could it be any hotter in this plane? Or was it just him and the way that 'come hither' look in her eyes sent his temperature skyrocketing. His mouth was dry. And there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it because every time he tried to swallow, her eyes seemed to brighten a notch letting him know she was taking note of her affect on him.

Max tried so hard to focus on what she was saying, but the feel of random and deliberate contact between their bodies was distracting him beyond belief. Earlier in the flight, his arm wrapped around her, Liz had gazed up at him and asked him to kiss her. Only the interruption of a flight attendant delivering their meals at that precise moment had stopped him from following through on that request. The moment of mutual desire had been broken and until she had laid her head against his shoulder in sleep, Max and Liz had shared a comfortable conversation about home...Roswell. Memories of their time there and shared acquaintances.

Now, she wasn't asking in words, but every move and look was begging for what he'd not been able to do earlier.

And Max was terrified. It was one thing to kiss Liz senseless in his dreams, but in reality? What would happen? Would she be disappointed in him? Would he be able to control himself if his lips touched hers just once? He knew he couldn't. Not after years of wanting only her. Dreaming of only her. And where could it lead, really? No where. Not without revealing his secret. Not without her seeing him as he truly was...an alien from another planet. A completely different, disgusting life form.

No. As...intoxicating...as her actions were, he needed to stop this from going any further. This wasn't a fulfillment of his every wish. They were still on assignment on a very important case. He was the lead agent and he needed to set the example. Let her know that although the roles they were set to play were of a romantic nature, they were, after all, only roles. Imaginary parts that had absolutely no foundation in truth.

So why couldn't he stop?

Liz's voice floated back to him. "You do? Well, then...why don't you..." Liz wrapped her arm around Max's neck and pulled his head down toward her till they were cheek to cheek. She felt him shiver when her fingers grazed the back of his neck and her warm breath tickled his ear. "Tell me what you dream about, Max..."

Max's eyes drifted closed and he breathed in the scent of her hair, felt the softness of her skin against his...the goose bumps that suddenly raised on his arm simultaneous with the heated flush on his face.

His hand came up to graze her face before his fingers automatically raked through her hair and he felt himself falling. His lips sought the softness of her skin and he instinctively teased her by brushing his lips over the air millimeters above her jawline. The kiss that ran along her skin was of sheer electric heat instead of actual contact and Liz's breath quickened as she let out a quiet sound from deep inside her throat.

"You want to know what I dream about?" Max's whisper was so soft and so charged with possibilities, Liz's fingers move with a will of their own across the nape of Max's neck to lace through his hair as she slowly nodded her head and held her breath.

Max pulled away from her allowing his eyes to open and gaze intently into Liz's. One thumb brushed across her cheek lazily as his hand molded the side of her face and he whispered the culmination of all his dreams in one word against her waiting lips. "Liz..."

"Well, it's nice to see the two of you are finally awake. I really hated the idea of having to break into that peaceful sleep you had both drifted into." A voice behind Max broke the intensity of the moment and Liz held back a groan as Max dropped his hand from her face and jumped away from her so fast she almost fell forward at the absence of his support. "In fact, I saved the two of you till last. We need you to put your trays into upright positions now and make sure you're buckled in for a safe landing."

"Um...thanks." Max spoke quietly as he tried to regain control of his racing heart by concentrating on the stewardess' last commands. His eyes focused on returning the tray in front of him to its rightful place and then on making sure his belt was secure. Anything but where his eyes wanted so desperately to drift...to Liz's face.

Liz chose to focus on the stewardess' earlier statements instead. She glanced at Max then back up at the stewardess who was just turning to go. "Wait, miss."

The pretty blonde stepped back and smiled down at Liz. "Yes?"

"Did you just say that we were *both* asleep?" Liz asked and she could see Max stiffen in his seat at the sound of her question.

She nodded. "Yes. Pretty much since the moment I picked up your trays."

"I see. And you're sure this one..." Liz pointed to Max blocking the most likely excuse he was apt to give her. "...was asleep as well and not just 'resting his eyes'."

The friendly stewardess laughed at what she was sure was an inside joke. "Sure. If resting his eyes included snoring." She shook her head and grinned. "I honestly don't see how you sleep with 'this one'. He's got a snore that could wake the dead." Just then someone called out to the stewardess and she left to attend their question.

Liz tried to hide her smile when Max commented defensively. "I do not snore."

"Uh-huh. Whatever you say." Liz let out a little sigh and flipped her hair behind her ears. "That is unless what you say is that you heard me talk in my sleep..."

"I said 'maybe' and just so you know, it was a test." Max shot back dryly as he kept his eyes focused on the seat in front of him. Damn stewardess. If she'd never said anything, Liz would have never known...

Liz turned to him with a chuckle. "A test? What kind of test?"

Max shrugged trying to buy himself enough time to come with a good idea. "A test...a test to..."

"Yes?"

His eyes lit up and Liz imagined she could almost see the light bulb go on above his head. "A test to see if you were up to the challenge of being my girlfriend. I mean, we're supposed to be 'involved' so I wanted to see how you handled that concept. You never know when the subject might come up about us being..." Max took a breath and continued. "...intimate and I needed to know how you'd react. You know, before we get out in the field where reactions will make or break us."

"Oh, I see..." Liz said as her eyes began to dance with laughter. "So. How did I do?"

Max tried to keep his smile in check and managed to keep it from touching his lips, but the lightness of his eyes and the softness of his voice betrayed him. "Passed with flying colors."

"Good." Liz gazed at the back of the seat in front of her in silence for a moment before turning back to Max. "I was testing you too, you know."

A disbelieving smile broke out on Max's face. "Oh, really? And did *I* pass?"

Liz chuckled and turned to look out the window. "Nope."

"What?" Max leaned forward in surprise and tried to look in Liz's face. "You're kidding, right? Were you here with me just a few minutes ago? I mean, you and I were on..." Max abruptly stopped himself from finishing that sentence with the word 'fire'.

"Fire." Liz answered softly as she turned back to Max with a coy smile and a twinkle in her eyes. "I know."

Seeing the adorable way Max's cheeks began to color and how his eyes faltered from hers when he realized she'd read his thoughts, Liz's grin deepened when she thought about how the famously-controlled Max Evans had been on the verge of losing that control...and she reveled in the fact that she was the one that had brought him there. Liz turned back to the window with a satisfied sigh. "That wasn't the test you failed..."

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Having decided they needed independent transportation for their investigation, Max and Liz had decided to rent a car and drive from the airport to Liz's house when they arrived. So after landing, Max and Liz split from each other in the small Roswell airport. Liz headed for the baggage claim and Max went to check on their rental car.

Standing in the middle of the airport with both her baggage and Max's at her feet, Liz turned when she felt a hand on her arm. She smiled at the old lady that had been on their flight sitting across the aisle from them. Wordlessly, the woman held something out to Liz and she looked at it curiously before glancing back at the woman's kind, wrinkled face. "Here. Take it. When you don't know who to turn to, remember the trust that allowed you to sleep so peacefully in his arms..."

Liz looked down at the envelope in her hand then back up at the woman. But curiously, the woman had disappeared. Liz turned in a circle to see if she could spot her anywhere, but like an apparition with an aversion to dawn...she was gone.

Opening the envelope, Liz pulled out a picture of her and Max on the plane. Her head was resting on his shoulder and his head was resting on top of hers while his hand covered hers as it laid gently on his chest. They both wore the most peaceful smiles on their faces and Liz's heart stopped when she realized that was perhaps the first peaceful sleep she'd had in years.

"Liz? You get everything? I've got the car out front." Max came up to Liz and glanced down at the envelope Liz had hastily sealed back up. "What's that?"

Liz shrugged and smiled up at him answering cryptically. "Inspiration." She reached down and grabbed one of her bags. "Well, Mr. Evans. Are you ready?"

Max grabbed his bags and chuckled. "I was just going to ask you the same thing..."

"Well, then. It looks like we're on the same track."

"And that track being?"

"The one that leads us home." Liz answered softly before squaring her shoulders and glancing back up at Max to receive a sympathetic smile and a wink.

"Watch out Roswell...here we come..."