Accident Prone

"What took you so long?", Quentin greeted Max with a frown.
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Max swallowed his words. He wanted to tell Quentin that he never got ready for a night out so quickly! "You said that Liz is here?"

Quentin nodded and gestured with his chin toward the bar.

Max"s face darkened when he saw three guys hovering around Elizabeth and her two friends.

"They are the fourth group of guys who approached them.", Quentin informed Max.

"Them?" Max"s question indicated that he does not know who Liz"s companions are.

"Liz came with the fiery G.o.ddess and that other girl."

Max glanced at Quentin questionably. What fiery G.o.ddess? But then he noticed that Bri has red hair, so that must be the G.o.ddess person. Quentin always had a soft spot for redheads.

Max propped his chin with the root of his palm while his gaze was locked on Liz. He can see that she is not comfortable talking with those men, especially not with the one in black leather jacket who is getting too close to her. Whenever he leans closer, she moves away. And her expression is stiff. She was much more relaxed when she was talking to him. Right… there was a time when they talked, he held her hand and she slept off while leaning on his shoulder. And now she told him to stay away, and to treat her as nothing more than a neighbor. He sighed.

"M, why are you so out of it?", Quentin nudged Max.

"What do you expect me to do?"

"Go talk to Liz. Invite her and her friends to join us in a booth. It"s more comfortable and it will prevent random creeps from approaching."

Max shook his head dejectedly. "She does not want to talk to me. Last time we spoke she told me to keep our interaction within borders of neighbors."

Quentin paused while thinking how it was a waste of time to call Max. He thought that Max can help him get closer to the fiery G.o.ddess, but this… is depressing.

However, Quentin is not the one who gives up easily.

"Neighbors? If I see my neighbor in a nightclub, I would go and say hi… and offer a more comfortable spot to sit if I have one available."

Max thought about Quentin"s words, but he was not convinced.

"How long are they here?"

Quentin checked the time. "About one hour."

Max frowned. "This is her second gla.s.s of wine since I"m watching."

"So?"

"She does not drink much. She is probably buzzed already.", Max"s concerned gaze didn"t leave Liz.

Quentin didn"t understand why Max does not seem excited about the prospect of Liz being tipsy. "That is a good thing, right?"

"How can that be a good thing?", Max grumbled while thinking that if Elizabeth is tipsy then that man next to her might get his chance. And Elizabeth is NOT interested in him. What if he manages to kiss her? And she likes it?!

To Max"s relief, he observed that the three men left. It seems that Elizabeth and her two friends told them to scram. He likes that.

"Now, M…", Quentin nudged Max.

Max frowned when he saw Quentin giving him eye-signals to go to the bar. "Q, she does NOT want to talk to me."

Quentin could not believe how non-cooperative Max is. "So, you are just going to sit here and stare at her?"

Max sighed helplessly. "I guess…"

Max straightened his back when he saw Elizabeth getting off from her barstool. She spoke with her two friends shortly before walking away in the direction of the restrooms. Max noticed that her steps are slower than usually, and it confirmed to him that she is tipsy. Silly woman, why does she allow herself to get tipsy on a Friday night in a club full of lecherous men?

Max narrowed his eyes when he observed the man in black leather jacket walking after Elizabeth. Isn"t that the same b.a.s.t.a.r.d who tried getting close to her? What are the chances that he is also going to the restroom at the same time as Liz?

…

Elizabeth is waiting in the line for the ladies" room. It"s not a long line, but it"s boring when there is no one to talk to. When she told Mia and Brianna that she is going to the restroom, they offered to accompany her, but Liz told them that there is no need.

"I will be back in a minute. It is safer to go to the restroom by myself, than to have one of you here alone. And if both of you come, we will lose these seats…", Liz reasoned with them.

Mia and Brianna agreed. With the amount of guys ogling at them, it"s not safe for a lady to stay by herself next to the bar. That is like holding a neon sign: "come and hit on me!"

Mia and Brianna are not against having fun with guys, but the ones which came to talk to them were overconfident creeps who didn"t show restraint in telling them how attractive they look.

Elizabeth finished her business in the ladies" room, washed her hands and walked out.

She was surprised when a man grabbed her hand, pulled her to the side and towered above her. Liz tried inching away, but the wall was behind her back, and the man was too close. It took her few seconds to recognize him as the one in the black leather jacket who was. .h.i.tting on her few minutes earlier at the bar.

"Can I help you?", she asked while putting her hands between the two of them.

Liz is tipsy, but not tipsy enough to let this man get close to her.

"There is some unfinished business between us.", the man grinned while leaning his head closer to Liz"s.

Liz snorted. "Dream on… but before that, get lost."

"Let me show you how dreams become reality…", his vodkinfused breath splashed on her face.

PAK!

Liz slapped him hard on the cheek.

The man didn"t expect that. He took two steps back and looked at her in disbelief.

He rubbed his throbbing cheek for a second before his eyes flashed in anger. "You!", he squeezed through his teeth and grabbed her arm, pulling her toward him.

Liz was happy that the wall is not obstructing her from behind, and she swung her leg backward as hard as she could, ready to kick him where it counts.

"Get lost!", Max"s voice came from the side, and he pulled the man by his collar away from Liz.

Liz was caught unprepared that her leg will not find its target and she lost her balance as her leg moved higher in the air.

She closed her eyes, ready to feel the pain of her bottom hitting the floor, but the only thing she felt is a strong arm around her waist.

"Careful…", Max said while pulling her closer to him.

Liz wanted to protest when she felt her face stuck to Max"s chest, but the man in the black jacket was complaining about Max"s interference.

"What gives you the right to barge in?", he spat while straightening his clothes. His expression showed that he is not willing to give up easily.

"I am her neighbor.", Max said with a straight face.

The man was unsure how to answer to this.

Liz didn"t know what to think about this either. She looked up at Max and his threatening expression directed at that man who was trying to force a kiss on her, and she was… touched.

One man, obviously troublemaker"s friend approached them and pulled the man"s arm. "Dude, let it be. Don"t you know that is Anderson?"

The man glared at Max and then at Liz for few seconds before turning away and leaving.

"Are you OK?", Max asked Liz when he let go of her.

"Yeah. Thanks.", Liz responded awkwardly while avoiding to look at Max.

Max chuckled. "It seems that your impulse IS to kick people when you panic."

Liz stifled a laugh when she remembered that she kicked Max out of her bed that morning when she woke up by his side.

"I was not panicking this time.", Liz denied it. "I was going for a kick deliberately."

Max didn"t believe her. He saw that she was desperate to get out of that man"s grasp. Who wouldn"t be? But he didn"t want to talk about it anymore. He knows that it"s an unpleasant topic for Liz.

"Let me escort you to your seat.", he offered.

"No need.", Liz rejected him curtly and stepped on the side to walk around him.

Max stepped to the side as well, blocking her path. "Liz… don"t push me away."

She looked him in the eyes. "Max, you hurt me."

He ran his hand through his hair few times. He does that when he is not sure how to handle the situation. But he knows that he hurt her and the only thing he can do is not to deny it. "I know. And I am sorry. Please, give me a chance to fix it."

Liz was glad to hear that he is not running away from this, and he looked sincere. "How will you fix it?"

"Can we start over?"

Liz thought about it. She told herself that she wants to erase everything that happened between them, good and bad and that she only knows that he is Maximilian Anderson, her neighbor. But this time she will be more cautious and keep her distance. Isn"t that starting over?

She nodded slightly before responding: "Only if you promise that you will not play games with me. I want you to be honest with me and to treat me with respect."

Max"s face lit up and he extended his hand, asking for a handshake. "Deal."

Liz looked at his hand with confusion apparent on her face. "A deal?"

He nodded enthusiastically. "You accept that we start over, and we are back to friends. I promise, no playing games with you, no lies and I will treat you with respect. Do we have a deal?"

Liz thought about it while looking at his expectant face and his extended hand waiting for hers, and concluded that it"s… acceptable.

"Deal..." She shook his hand.

Charming smile bloomed on Max"s face. "Now… allow me to escort you to your seat."

Liz sighed, unaware that she is smiling as well. "Fine…"

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