At the party that night, Liz sat in a corner of the room by the window. There, she felt safer from the view of the guests. Sitting there among all the people dressed up, Liz could not help being transported back in her memory to her old life. Her parents had always used her to be a decoration piece almost, showing her off so that they could hear the compliments of how lucky they were to have such a beautiful daughter, etc. Liz had always known that those words were as shallow as the people were.
Liz could not have known then how true those compliments were though. She seemed to possess a natural beauty that she did not even know she had. But here, even tucked away in the corner, others saw it. Liz had on a simple dress that she had always liked when she was living back with her parents.
Max then came into the room and all the people just seemed to flock toward him. From her vantage point, Liz now could not keep her eyes off him. Even though she knew she shouldn't feel the way she did, Liz could not stop herself from falling in love with him now that she had started. In her eyes, Max was a man who was not perfect, but that was partly why she loved him even more. The spirit and fire he had just seemed to spark something in her that she never thought she had.
Even as she saw him talk to Tess, she could not help it. Even though she saw him talk to her more than the others, she could not stop the feelings that were stirring inside her. As the night wore on, she saw more of Tess that she did not like. Liz would have given up all hope of being with Max without a fight if she thought that Tess was worthy of his attention, but she knew Tess wasn't. Tess may have seemed intelligent to the others because she seemed to know about everything, but Liz knew that Tess was only conniving. She played off everyone's words so that it seemed to be her own words.
Liz felt alone in her corner and was looking around when she heard Tess mention her. She was standing nearby with Max and asked, "Such a big place and you have such few help, Mr. Evans?"
"I don't clean the place myself, Miss Harding, so I really wouldn't know," Max replied casually.
"Oh, but you employ the housekeepers. I saw one of them here before, where is she? Oh there, hiding away in the corner. Honestly, Mr. Evans, why do you have help coming to parties like this?" Tess giggled. Liz could feel her jaw clenching but she knew she could not make a scene.
"Because it is my prerogative," Max answered back curtly. "Come, Miss Harding, why do you not grace the company with one of your songs."
Liz took this opportunity to slip out the door. She was going up the stairs when she noticed that her shoe had become loose. She bent down to fasten it securely and was standing back up when she heard someone coming. Straightening up, she turned around to see Max.
"Hello," he said softly.
"Hello," Liz replied. Looking into Max's eyes, Liz could feel her deep unhappiness rising. She quickly looked away and shifted uncomfortably.
"Are you all right, Liz? You seem a bit pale."
"I am fine, sir. And you?"
"Oh, as well as to be expected after I almost caught pneumonia after you soaked me with snow that day, Liz," Max said with a hint of a smile, hoping to see something in her react.
Liz tried to smile back, but couldn't. "Yes, sir, I am fine."
"Are you? Please, why don't you call me Max from now on."
"No, sir, that would not seem very professional. As Miss Harding said before…"
"Oh, damn what Miss Harding says," Max interrupted semi-harshly. Then, taking a deep breath, he began again, "I mean, it is my wish to have you at the party, no matter what Miss Harding thinks. You are leaving too early, go back."
Liz shook her head, "No, I am tired, sir."
"And a little unhappy. Why?"
"I'm not," Liz denied, even though she could feel the tears start to well up in her eyes.
"But you are. Why?" Then without waiting for her to answer, he went on, "Very well. I bid you good night then, Liz."
Over the next few days and nights, Liz saw very little of Max. He no longer asked for her to go to the nightly gatherings and she spent the time drawing in her room. She had just picked up a sheet of paper and started sketching. Almost before she knew it, she had a rough sketch of Max on the paper. She was tempted to crumple it and start on something else, but couldn't. 'Oh, well. Why not continue with this?' And so she did, taking her time with the picture.
On the fourth day of the party, a man was waiting for Liz in the parlor. One of the maids tracked Liz down and brought her in. Once inside, Liz stood still. In front of her was her parents' lawyer, Mr. Whitman. He had been one of the few people that her parents knew that Liz liked. "Mr. Whitman?"
"Yes, Elizabeth. How are you doing, dear?"
"Very well, Mr. Whitman. How did you find me?" she couldn't help asking.
"Well," he began with a teasing smile. "I am a very intelligent man, my dear, and I have my sources…"
"I see, I see," Liz laughed. "Why are you here? Did my parents send you to fetch me?" Liz asked softly.
Alex Whitman sobered up then. His face took on a sad expression and his eyes turned mournful. "Well, they are partly why I am here, Elizabeth, darling." Liz had almost seemed like a daughter to him all the years that he had been her parents' lawyer. He had seen the way they ignored her and had tried to show her as much parental affection he could when he saw her. In return, Liz saw him as the closest thing to a parent.
"Why?" Liz asked, a pit growing in her stomach.
"I'm afraid that I have some rather bad news. You parents… they have… I don't quite know how to say this," he started, looking down at the floor.
"Please, Mr. Whitman, just say it," Liz said sadly, half already knowing what he had to say.
"Your parents have passed away," Alex said quickly.
Liz slowly nodded her head. "How did it happen?"
"It was a carriage accident. They were on their way to…"
",,,a party," Liz finished. 'Why am I not surprised,' Liz asked herself.
"It would be best if you could come back as quickly as possible. The funeral must be held and the estate must be settled."
"Yes, of course. I must go speak with Mr. Evans though," Liz stated, almost as if she was in a haze. She then left to go look for Max. She found him in his study.
Thank you for everyone that has left feedback!! I appreciate it soo much that I can't even begin to tell you!! Well, I hate to say this, but this fic is winding down! :( Sad, I know, but all good things must come to an end. ;) Only two or three parts left - but Max and Liz will be together, I promise!