Unbreakable - A Beautiful Lie · (Roswell Fanfiction) · √

TEN

My heart struck a double beat and I suddenly felt really warm. I wanted to curl my clammy hands into my thighs nervously, but I couldn't move. I had a fleeting thought of something being terribly wrong, but it was gone from my mind before I could catch it.

I watched Sean's lips turn into a smirk and was slightly confounded by the fact that I found that very attractive, very sexy. A tremble went through my body.

"Do you mind, Evans?" Sean snarled. "We would like to be alone."

My back was starting to hurt from the straight positioning of my spine and I wanted to react when Max's warm and solid body sat down next to me. I wanted to scoot over to give him room, or just turn my head to glare at him for invading this personal date, but I was glued to the seat. Instead, the side of Max's body molded against mine in the crammed booth and my breathing escalated with awareness.

"Liz," Max addressed me and I craved to look at him.

Was he okay? Was he healing alright?

But the thoughts were forcibly pushed out of my head until I could only register Sean's beautiful eyes, his soft lips, the attractive lines of his jaw-

"Liz," Max said again and cradled my chin in his hand, intending to turn my head away from Sean.

It was like swinging a door in the wrong direction, against the hinges.

"Carter," Max hissed and I shivered at his tone as I tried to relax my neck. Why couldn't I turn my head?

Maybe he was afraid of hurting me or maybe the resistance in my neck stopped him, but Max's warm fingers left my chin and I finally got a view of Max - of the back of his head - as he lunged across the table and grabbed Sean by the collar.

"Let. Her. Go."

As I lost sight of Sean's eyes with Max blocking my view, my strained body fell limply back against the cushion of the seat and I blinked my dry eyes.

"Chill, Evans," I heard Sean say as I flexed and straightened my fingers, before I looked at Max's profile, of his body reaching over the table, of the redness of the skin at the back of his neck and the way his thin T-shirt was outlining his prominent back muscles.

I took a deep shuddering breath, before putting my hands on his back, fisting a part of the T-shirt in my hand for leverage, and pulled. "Max..." I licked my lips. Why was my voice shaking? Why was I so tired? Why was my head pounding? "Max. Calm down."

Max tensed at my voice, shook Sean once more by the collar and then followed the pull of my hand on his shirt, leaning back in the seat. My reaction was too slow, my hand still against his back as he leaned back. The pressure of his back against my hand as it was pressed between the cushion and his body exhilarated my breathing.

I felt dizzy.

He reached between us and grabbed me gently by the wrist, rescuing my hand from the position, even though I wasn't convinced I wanted it to be rescued.

I finally got to look at him. I swallowed as his dark eyes came into view. There was so many emotions on display in his eyes that I felt like I was falling. He didn't say anything, just silently letting his eyes search my face. I tore my eyes from his and took in the rest of his appearance. The almost healed cut on his lip, the normal healthy appearance of his nose, the light bruising around his right eye, the taped wound at the top of his forehead.

"You look..." I croaked and had to clear my throat.

The emotional whirl disappeared from his eyes and he smirked, oddly enough making me feel at ease. I was familiar with this version of Max Evans.