~ chapter 5 ~

Max's warning look seemed to only fuel Tess more. Locking eyes with Liz, her eyes twinkled with arrogance and her voice resonated with long-held triumph. "Oh, hello, Liz. I didn't see you there. What a sweet little dress. I wonder if it comes in my size..."

Liz's face turned a slight shade of red as her eyes flashed with fire from Tess' face to Max's. She caught a glimmer of anger sparking in his dark eyes and felt a sudden rush of satisfaction. Then came the familiar thud of disappointment as Max's eyes lowered uncomfortably and he bit his bottom lip before tightening it into a thin line.

He was retreating again. Retreating into his shell and letting Tess have complete control. Damn him for being so passive! Damn him for letting Tess walk all over her...again!

Time certainly hadn't changed him. Or their situation. What a fool to think for a split second that it might have. That by some miracle or twist of fate he'd come looking for her to steal her away to that happily ever after they had dreamed about together. The chance that their love could have survived all of this time disappeared when she heard that syrupy sweet voice floating in from the hallway. Now, standing in the same room with the two of them, it was apparent by Tess' possessive demeanor that Max was living their dreams with someone else.

Turning her thoughts once more to Tess, Liz summoned her will to form a retort that would show Tess Harding once and for all that Max Evans may be the same, but she, Liz Parker, was not. Before she had a chance to respond though, Maria took up the fight for her. "Being the witch you are why don't you do your Samantha-twitch-your-nose thingy, duplicate a dress and find out? On second thought, why choose white…isn't black the color of choice for those from the Dark Side?"

"Honey…" Michael took a step forward and began to address Maria.

Tess tossed an irritated look in Maria's direction. "Yes, Michael. Do reign your little wifey in. This really isn't the way to make a good impression on the family. Not that she'll ever be one of us anyway..."

Maria took a step forward, her hands clutched by her side. "Why you little…"

"Oh, God. Please tell me I didn't just hear what I think I just heard. Michael actually called someone 'honey'…and meant it." Isabel's voice startled the group as she stood in the doorway. Her eyes moved from Tess to Michael to Maria back to Michael. "It's a joke, right? She didn't really just say the two of you are…" Isabel swallowed hard. "…married."

Wrapped in his own world of misery, Max was lost to the conversation around him. She still believed it. She still believed he loved Tess. He saw that as plainly in her eyes as he'd seen love shining only a split second before. Or maybe it was just shock he'd seen. Maybe he'd dreamed of the moment their eyes would meet so many times that he saw what he wanted to.

That's what it was. He'd only dreamed it. That look she had always reserved for him and him alone. That look that spoke so much without uttering a word. The one that said he owned the world and everything beyond it...because her heart was his.

Max silently chided himself. How foolish to believe she'd still love him after all this time. After all the pain he'd caused. The tears he knew she had cried. No. Unlike him, it was obvious she had moved on. That's why she was here. Why she was trying on wedding dresses. Why she was wearing a diamond on her left hand. Liz Parker was in love...with someone other than him. She was getting married...to him...

Words finally made their way to Max's brain. His head snapped up at Isabel's question and all eyes turned to Michael and Maria as they unconsciously closed the gap between them and wrapped their arms around each other. "Nope. You didn't hear wrong." Michael paused to look down at Maria with a smile then turned back to the people their marriage would effect the most. "Maria and I were married two and a half months ago."

"WHAT???" For the first time since their eyes met, Max and Liz spoke…at the same time.

Their previous attention having been concentrated on making sense of the feelings racing through them at seeing each other again, they'd barely heard anything in the past several minutes but the beating of their own hearts. With Tess' entrance their focus had shifted to the others' reactions to her presence. Non-verbal reactions that only caused confusion about what they were feeling. In short, neither Max nor Liz had really heard anything any one had been saying.

But now they *were* paying attention and the immediate implications of this latest news was enormous. Their eyes met briefly in acknowledgment of that fact, then turned to their respective friends. "Maria…is this true?" Liz whispered.

Maria's face broke into a wide grin as she nodded her head quickly as she threw her left hand out to show the gold band she'd pulled from her pocket to put on her third finger. "Sure is, babe!"

"But…but how could you…"

"…not tell us?" Max finished for Liz without thinking.

Michael shrugged. "Why would we want to? We knew you'd freak out like this."

"No one's freaking out, Michael." Max began but was silenced by a disbelieving look from Michael and a confession from Isabel.

"I am." Isabel stated before she crossed her arms in front of her.

"I felt the same way when I first found out." Tess tossed in her opinion before smoothing her hair away from her face. "It'll pass."

"How? I mean..." Liz took a deep breath and tried to make sense of what she was hearing. "When did all of this happen?"

Maria's face became animated with pure happiness as she briefly filled the group in on the events leading up to the present situation. "A little over three months ago. My band was doing background music for this fancy-shmancy art gig and Michael happened to be one of the featured artists. We saw each other at the showing and..." Maria looked up into Michael's eyes as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"...and we started talking." Michael continued for her as he looked down at her with a smile and pulled her closer to him. "Really talking. We realized how much had changed in the last five years and..."

Maria turned back to the listening crowd. "...and just how much hadn't. Like how much we still love each other." Maria looked pointedly at Max then at Liz. "How we never stopped loving each other."

Max and Liz exchanged looks that held each other captive for a moment. So much was spoken in that look, but neither dared to claim the truth of it. The heartbreak should they be wrong would be too much to bear.

The moment was broken by Isabel's sudden outburst. "This is unbelievable! Have you two gone completely insane?" Isabel practically shouted. Then she turned to Max. "Well? Say something!"

"What do you want me to say, Iz?" Max asked feeling a sudden wave of jealousy sweep over him. Once again, he wish he could be like Michael. Daring to take the risks. Grabbing ahold of what he really wanted and never letting go. Maybe then his heart wouldn't be breaking right now.

"I don't know!" Isabel threw her hands up in the air. "Just...something! He'll listen to you..."

"They're married, Iz. There's nothing we can say that's going to change that. Besides, what I have to say to Michael, I'll say in private." Max replied evenly as his eyes shot to Ben then back to Isabel.

For the first time since her entrance Isabel noticed Ben's presence in the room. Stiffening suddenly her chin raised in arrogant defiance. "Who are you?"

Ben had been silently watching the scene unfold in front of him. His natural skills of observation that he'd developed in his law practice told him many things. There were so many dynamics to the group in front of him it would probably take years to decipher them all.

Then there were the dynamics that were all too easy to figure out. The ones he wasn't sure he wanted to admit to himself. And things he'd rather forget he saw. Like the shared looks between Liz and the dark-haired man referred to as 'Max'. Yes, he definitely wanted to forget those. And he knew just how to do it...

"Funny you should ask. I was just thinking the same thing…" Ben moved a pointed finger around the semi-circle in front of him. "…about all of you. And since I believe Maria and Liz are the only people who really have any kind of right to this room and I *am* Liz's fiance', then I should have the honor of hearing your names first."

Until Isabel addressed Ben, Liz had completely forgotten he was still standing there. His reference to their current status of engagement made her flush with guilt at having forgotten him so quickly in the midst of so many overwhelming emotions. Feeling a little more steady on her feet than she had since first seeing Max, she quickly made a move to stand by Ben and begin introductions when his next words stopped her from taking another step.

Ben smiled as he glanced around the group. "After that, I suggest we all go out to dinner together." Ben turned and stepped toward Liz wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her close to him. Noting the dazed look on her face at his suggestion, Ben added his voice warm and deep. "What do you say, dear? How about a night on the town with all of your friends celebrating the one thing we all seem to have in common?"

Tess chuckled with disbelief at Ben's assumption that they all had something in common. Where had he been the last few minutes? Liz must have completely gone off the deep end to want to claim this idiot for life. "You're joking, right? What on this earth could we all possibly have in common?"

Ben leveled Tess with his gaze and spoke his one word answer with conviction. "Love..."