Between Patrick and Robin, there were quite a few relatives and friends that Maxie had never realized existed. She could, quite easily, merge into their conversations and use them as worthwhile distractions. She didn't let herself think about why she was in so desperate a need for distraction. But then she didn't have to voice it; the answer was in her flighty greeting as she made her way from one side of the Spencer house to the other, wondering why she didn't just go upstairs and hide. It was tempting—but then she would be admitting defeat and that was not something she wanted to do. It was one party, a few hours out of her day, and she was not going to let Ric Lansing of all people ruin it for her. She wanted to see Robin before she left, but the same group Maxie had mingled with seemed to swallow up the bride and groom quite efficiently. There would be no polite excuse to leave; she was stuck.

She knew he was watching her, but every time she turned her head, he wasn't there. Still, something told her he was observing at a cautious distance. She couldn't get their last conversation out of her mind, as brief as it had been, or forget what fueled the tension behind their words. Time didn't ease pain. She doubted she would ever feel like herself again, no matter how much time passed. It was so much easier to not think about him in L.A. Why hadn't she declined the invitation in the first place? But why would she? It wasn't like she could have anticipated he would be there, though she now recognized her logic as foolhardy. This event was not, by any means, a secret affair and he would have jumped at his first chance to see her in over a month. Why couldn't he just go back to his ex-wife and leave her to her own miserable loneliness? She didn't want to hear promises from him, had never wanted anything close to that. All she wanted, as she had told him before, was to be important to him. Important enough for him to not break her heart when she knew it was time for them to put whatever was going on between them to rest.

Slipping his hand out, he grasped her wrist and dragged into the corner he currently occupied before she could protest too loudly. "Imagine meeting you here."

"Strange, isn't it?" Maxie decided to play along, justifying to herself that she was going to have to give him the closure he so desperately sought after.

"Listen I just want a chance to explain things."

"Okay." Maxie's arms crossed in front of her chest. "Go ahead. I'm on the edge of my seat." She couldn't seem to keep the edginess out of her voice and, for once, didn't care if it reminded him of the drastic age difference between them.

"In the first place I should have never lied to you about Kate. Starting with the fact that she was going to Tucson. When my father had his heart attack, my sister called her first. I heard about it from Kate, not Charlotte."

"Well that sure makes you look blameless, doesn't it?" Maxie's voice didn't rise. It was, uncomfortably, numb.

"No it makes me look like the ass that I was."

"There's no one here for you to convince. As you can see." She demonstrated how effective a spot he had chosen to bear his soul to her. It was a dark corner, even on the brightest of days, hidden behind the massive staircase.

"Would you prefer we have this conversation in front of your family?" Ric took a step out from under the cover of the staircase. "Let's go."

"Why not? I heard my dad say something about loading his gun this morning, just in case Robin wanted to make a quick getaway." Maxie said dryly.

"Your father doesn't scare me." Ric promised her. "You can't hide behind him to get out of this conversation."

"You're the one suggesting we change venues, not me. I don't care where we have this conversation."

"Fine." Ric reached out and held onto her shoulders. "I was an idiot. I knew the one thing, the one person I shouldn't lie to you about was Kate and I did it anyway. Maybe it was to save my own skin or maybe I was just plain stupid. But whatever my reasons it wasn't worth it. It wasn't worth losing what we have."

"Were you trying to punish me?" Maxie found her voice somehow.

"Punish you? Why would I punish you?"

"For ignoring you." Maxie stated.

"No. It had nothing to do with that. You were only ignoring me because I was shutting you out."

"That's not true." Maxie shook her head.

"It is true. This wasn't about you. This was about me being stupid."

"No, I mean—that's not why I was ignoring you."

"It wasn't?"

"I called and your sister answered. She said you were out with—and that's how I knew."

Damn Charlotte, Ric mentally cursed his sister. She could never leave well enough alone. Now her smug attitude and her constant pushing toward Kate made sense. She knew she had helped torpedo his chance with Maxie. "My sister is a bitch."

"No. She just wanted what was best for you. She could tell that I wasn't..." Maxie decided she had said enough, maybe too much.

"Charlotte never has been and never will be the authority on what or who is best for me."

"It was going to happen eventually." Maxie reminded him solemnly.

"Says who?"

"Says me." Maxie spoke up.

"Maxie..." Ric took a cautious step toward her. "We can work this out."

"Do you finally have it?"

"Have what?"

"Your closure." Maxie explained coldly. "Do you have it, or do you wish to put me through more pain? Or is that the point?"

"You think this is about closure? I'm trying to make things right here Maxie!"

"What outcome are you expecting?" Maxie challenged. "The fact that I haven't punched you every time you reach for me..." Again, she felt no need to say more.

"Means you still care." Ric finished for her. "If you didn't you wouldn't still be talking to me."

"Don't analyze me please."

"I'm not." Ric promised her. "I'm just pointing out the truth."

"What would you know about truth?" Maxie spat, closing her eyes. This was why she had left. There was no solution to this fight. She didn't want to reconcile and the only reason he was tempted was because he was lonely.

"The truth is that you miss me as much as I miss you. Don't bother denying it because I know you. You're pissed as hell and hurt and it's with good reason but don't let this go without a fight Blondie. We've fought too hard to get here."

"Don't call me that. I don't want you to call me that." Maxie shook her head, her eyes still firmly closed.

"What do you want? Just tell me what you want so I can fix this."

"Let me go." Maxie answered, tears slipping beneath her lashes. "I need to be away from you."

"Don't run away from this Maxie."

"From what?" She demanded, her eyes angry. "This isn't getting us anywhere. Why can't we just be friends?" Inwardly, she wondered if that would ever be possible when his very touch made her dizzy.

"Because we were never friends Maxie." Ric pointed out.

"So all or nothing. That's what you're insinuating?"

"That's actually what you've always stated."

"Ric, why are we doing this?" Maxie's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Because we're too important. This means something Maxie. You know it does."

"I know it hurts." Maxie watched panic flash across his eyes.

"This isn't goodbye. I'm not going to let it be goodbye."

"We're just hurting each other if I stay." Maxie reasoned.

"No. You're only hurting me by leaving."

Maxie's bottom lip quivered and she quickly bit into it to still the open weakness. "You'll forget me. I'll just be some girl you knew once, shared your bed with a few times."

"You were never some girl Maxie. You never could be."

Maxie gulped under the look he was giving her. "I have to go say goodbye to my cousin. I'll be heading back tonight."

"Tonight?" Ric sputtered. He had thought she would spend at least a few days with her father and new stepmother before she returned to wherever the hell it was she was hiding. "Why do you have to leave tonight? You just got here."

"I have to work." The excuse sounded lame to her own ears.

"You're lying."

"I didn't ask for more than a day off and that leaves me enough time to fly there."

"Fly here? So you're not in state anymore?"

"No, but then, I assumed you guessed that when you talked to Georgie." Her sister hadn't brought it up, but she hadn't missed the way Georgie's voice tensed during their last telephone conversation.

"Your sister didn't tell me anything other than you left."

"Why did you come here today? What did you possibly think would be accomplished?" She couldn't help but sound patronizing.

"I came because I knew it was the only chance I would have to see you. And I hoped we could discuss this, find some way to work it out."

"And how would we do that? I have no intention of resigning and it's not logical for you to come with me."

"How do you know that?"

"Ric. Stop it." Maxie begged him.

"No. I want to know why it's so unfathomable for us to be together."

"It just is. We're not free."

"I can find a job in any hospital."

"You don't understand." Maxie sighed. "I don't want you to do that."

"Why not? What am I not understanding?"

"I told you: We aren't free. You're still in love with...and I…" Her voice withered and fell away.

"I'm not still in love with Kate. You know that. And you what?"

"I'm seeing someone else."

*****

Georgie tried to keep her worries at bay as she watched Maxie rush out of the wedding. Her sister had barely managed to say goodbye to Robin before she ran for the door. It hadn't escaped her notice that Ric Lansing had shown up, probably to try to corner Maxie once again. Damn that man. She had barely had time to talk to her sister since she settled in L.A. and if she knew Maxie at all, her sister was racing across the country to avoid him again.

Chewing her bottom lip, she debated the wisdom of following Maxie. On one hand, eventually Maxie would appreciate the support. On the other hand, trying to get Maxie to the point where she would appreciate the support was not fun. Getting her there usually involved copious amounts of alcohol. And while she loved her husband dearly, she still wasn't one hundred percent sure of his hangover cure routine.

Catching Steven's eye, she felt herself brighten. "Isn't this all beautiful?" she asked him, as she slid over to where he stood.

"It's no Eiffel Tower," Steven drawled.

"Well nothing is." Georgie wrapped her arms around his neck and started swaying to the beat of the music.

"I don't think you know this about me." Steven warned, twirling her around. "I happen to be an excellent dancer."

"They do say you learn something new every day." Georgie giggled. "You keep this up and I think we're covered until we're in our nineties."

"Only our nineties?" Steven lifted an eyebrow.

"It was a beautiful wedding wasn't it? Robin seems so happy."

"I got that impression when they almost started the honeymoon when they were announced man and wife."

"Sweetheart they started the honeymoon long before then." Georgie laughed.

"I wouldn't know anything about that." Steven chuckled.

"Count your blessings. If you thought my dad was mad about us eloping..." Georgie paused and shuddered. "I don't want to think what he would have done if I really had been pregnant."

"Do you regret any of it? Our ceremony I mean."

"Regret? Why would I regret our insanely movie-perfect wedding?"

"Well our family wasn't there..."

"Steven." Georgie's voice dropped a little to a concerned whisper. "I don't care about that. All that mattered is you were there."

"And you were there." He agreed, squeezing her hands. "It's just...I saw your face when your dad and uncle walked Robin down the aisle."

"What are you talking about it?"

"You looked sad."

"I did? I wasn't."

"I just don't want you to look back and regret."

"Steven, look at me. The only way I would regret anything is if I didn't marry you."

"Good." Steven nodded. "What do you say we steal some cake?"

"I say excellent plan. This is after all Patrick's wedding too."

"Have you heard anything back from the school yet?"

Georgie looked to the ground quickly, hoping he didn't see her hesitance. Not now. This wasn't the place to tell him. "No. Not yet. I'm hoping any day now." Surely by this time next week she could convince the chairman of the department.

"Let me when you know and I'll take you shopping for new clothes. Sound good?"

"Sounds like a plan." She plastered on her best smile that only Maxie could tell was fake. "Now how do we get that cake?"