"The universe is out to get me."

"Ok, Liv, I think you're being a bit dramatic. I told you, you should have learned how to change a tire."

Olivia shifted the phone between her head and shoulder, kneeling to inspect her car tire. "Please, not right now. It's like everything that could possibly go wrong has turned to shit today. First Edison has to go out of town which wouldn't be so bad but then Avery got sick so I've got to tote her around with me all day and my editor keeps calling me and now this."

The forceful gusts of air from the cars speeding down the highway behind her rocked Olivia on her heels and she stood up to get back into the driver's seat. On the other end of the call she could hear her sister snickering.

"Lauryn are you going to come help me or not?" Olivia snapped, becoming increasingly impatient.

The laughter subsided. "Yes, baby sister, I'll leave right now. Where exactly are you?"

"Along the interstate, right before the exit to 495. And please hurry up this whole day is giving me one hell of a headache."

A tiny, high pitched giggle erupted from the back seat. "Mommy said a bad word!"

Olivia pitched her hear forward, letting it fall onto the steering wheel. "Oh God Lauryn, I'll see you when you get here." She quickly ended the call and turned to face her newly awakened daughter in the back seat. "Mommy is an adult and is allowed to say bad words but I really shouldn't use them around you. Are you feeling any better, Avi?"

As if suddenly remembering her poor state of health the little girl shifted her features into a tortured grimace and coughed loudly. "No. I wanna go home."

Sighing, Olivia extended a hand and smoothed a few flyaway hairs from Avery's face, feeling the girl's clammy forehead and she frowned. "I know, sweetie. Auntie will be here soon to help us."

From the corner of her eye Olivia saw an unfamiliar car pulling up behind them. She instinctively reached for her keys, turning the car off and wielding them like a weapon. She turned around in her seat and watched through the rearview mirror as the door opened and a man got out, walking quickly through the brisk fall weather and stopping at her window. In her mind she went over every self-defense maneuver she had ever heard and steeled herself for whatever she might have to do. When he rapped on the window, she jumped and cursed herself quietly for losing her cool.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you, ma'am. I was just trying to see if you needed any help."

Her first thought was that he had a beautiful voice; a deep, smooth baritone that soothed her nerves enough to loosen her grip on the keys that had begun to bite into her hand. As she turned to look at him through the window, her only thought was that the man standing there was as close to perfect as a man could get. He was tall and lean but his toned muscles could be seen clearly through the tight black thermal shirt he was wearing. His windswept hair was dark brown but the sun glinting behind him revealed gold undertones that highlighted his face. His jaw was chiseled and strong and his eyes – Olivia found herself getting lost in his eyes which were a clear and steely bright grey.

"So do you need any help?"

Olivia shook her head, clearing all of the inappropriate thoughts she was battling away and turned the car back on so she could lower the automatic window. "Um, hi. I mean, uh, my tire is flat," she replied absently, gesturing at the rear tire that was the culprit. She scolded herself for not telling him that she did in fact have help on the way but something inside of her was remiss to send this man away so quickly. Aside from his physical appearance there was something about him that drew Olivia to him completely. As he left her side to inspect the tire she gave herself over to the internal battle.

Lauryn will be here any minute. You don't need his help.

Ok but let's be real. She probably hasn't even left the house yet.

Probably. But what good could come of this?

I'd get my tire fixed quickly. I'd get to admire his physique while he does it.

And how would your husband feel about that?

Well he's not here, now is he? It's not like I'm about to sleep with this man. I'm not cheating. I just want a few moments to talk to him. Nothing else.

Who are you trying to convince?

Oh hush. I'll never see this man again. He's some stranger I met on the side of the highway.

That sounds safe.

To hell with you.

"Mama, you look constipated. You should eat more veggies."

Olivia shook her head again, sending her thoughts flying to the back of her mind. She sent a quick text message to Lauryn telling her never mind and checked herself in the visor mirror. She halted as she began to fix her lipstick, not sure why she was even bothering.

"Avery, sit right there, okay? We're going home in a few minutes."

Squaring her shoulders, Olivia took a deep breath and climbed out of the car. The man was just standing up as she turned to face him and she found herself looking further up than she had expected. She had always been quite short, and she was not wearing heels, but it still took her by surprise.

He smiled and her heart fluttered involuntarily. "Yep, it's definitely flat. Pop your trunk and I'll get the spare."

Olivia quickly returned to the front of the car, kneeling next to the seat and pretending to fumble for the trunk lock while trying to catch her breath. It was definitely throwing her off to have such little control over her body because of some guy she had just met. She was used to having a complete handle on everything around her, but the day had been out of her hands for some time and she attributed the whole situation to just that: the chaotic nature of her day. There was nothing special about this man or his movie-star looks or calming voice. He was just another man, one who happened to catch her eye for purely physical reasons and one who probably had a wife and family, much like she had a husband and two kids. She quickly composed herself and stood again.

When she turned back around he was kneeling again with a brand new tire and a jack lying next to him as he expertly worked on removing the flat tire. Olivia felt she should offer some kind of assistance but she really had no clue what to do and she was very much enjoying the view he had to offer. His muscles rippled as he unscrewed the bolts on the old tire and his butt was firm in his worn jeans. The simultaneous waves of arousal and guilt and washed over Olivia had her fighting to look away.

"I'm Fitz, by the way."

There it was again, that voice. Even though he was only introducing himself the lilt of his words had her feeling very warm and she flushed prettily. "Olivia." She was sure if she tried to speak anymore nothing appropriate would come out. "I'm married." She fought the urge to smack herself for opening her mouth. Of course it did not matter whether or not he knew if she was married, because either way nothing was going to occur between them. That was what she told herself.

He chuckled lightly. "That's good to hear. I was worried you were a jewel thief."

Flushing an even deeper shade of red, Olivia automatically shifted her left hand behind her back. "I didn't mean-"

Fitz cut her off. "It's okay. You should want to let me know. A beautiful woman like you, I imagine you get asked out all the time, despite your marital status. It's too bad I didn't find you sooner, Olivia."

She shivered at the way he pronounced her name and ran a hand through her hair for lack of something to do. This man really was something and it was making her thought process hazy. She opted to keep her mouth shut while he finished the job and they remained there in silence. It took him less than ten minutes to complete the job and he stood up, beaming proudly as he wiped his hands together.

"That should do it. I'll throw the flat one back into your trunk. You wouldn't happen to have a napkin, would you?"

Of course, as a mother, she kept a myriad of cleaning supplies in her car and she nodded at him as they moved in opposite directions. When she returned with a handful of baby wipes to give him he was closing her trunk and turned to her with another panty-dropping smile that had her knees wobbling. She felt like a pathetic teenage girl, drooling over some man she knew nothing about but that he looked good and could fix tires like a professional. She idly wondered if perhaps that was exactly what he did but his car looked much too expensive for a mechanic.

Olivia held the wipes out for him and he thanked her as he reached a large hand for them. Their fingers brushed as the wipes exchanged hands and Olivia felt a jolt run through her body at the contact. It warmed her insides and made her head swim. She almost swayed on her feet but was brought back to reality at the sight of her daughter, nose pressed up against the glass of the back window.

"Thank you. For your help, I mean," she said to him quietly, wordlessly pointing at the car seat to tell Avery to strap herself back in.

Fitz grabbed his jack from the asphalt and began to walk her back around to the driver's seat. "It's no problem. I'm a sucker for a good flat tire." He jerked his head towards the back seat as Olivia got into the car. "Is that your daughter?" At her nod, he replied, "She's as beautiful as you. Goodbye, Olivia." He waved goodbye to Avery and turned on his heel to get back into his car.

"Fitz, wait." He stopped in his tracks at the sound of her voice. It finally sounded convicted and not like she was unsure of what to say next like she had been for the duration of their encounter. This time he only turned his head and made a questioning face at her. "What do you do for a living?"

"Me? I teach. What about you?"

"Nothing, really." She thought about it for a moment, and admitted, "I'm a writer."

He nodded knowingly and gave one last smile before sauntering back to his car.

As a child Fitz had always believed in fate. His father, on the other hand, had believed in power and money and prostitutes. He had wanted Fitz to have the same future as him: sell his soul to corporate America and become the CEO of Grant Enterprises. For most of his life Fitz had gone along with it, up until the day he had needed an extra credit at university and had to take Introduction to Art. From that day forward, he told his father to go fuck himself and began to build his own destiny as a painter.

It was fate that that intro class was the only one that had any room that late in the semester, and it was fate that he had encountered Olivia on the side of the highway. It was the only explanation that he felt so connected to someone he had only just met and had barely spoken to. He felt like he knew more about her than anyone else, yet he did not know enough.

He knew she was embarrassed about the direction of her career, but he did not know where she had grown up. He knew she was always prepared (unless there was a flat tire), but he did not know what kind of shampoo she used. He knew she was very protective of hers, but he did not know her favorite song. He knew that she was as attracted to him as he was to her. And he knew that she was married.

As he took the exit nearest to his apartment, Fitz had never felt as conflicted as he did in that moment. This woman had completely enchanted him, but she had enchanted someone else first. And this man, whoever he was, had been good enough to her that she had married him and he had given her a daughter and provided for her and they were probably the happiest of families when together.

These revelations did nothing to ease the fire that Olivia had started in Fitz's heart. They did nothing to appease the jealousy he was feeling. He had met a woman who had captivated him so completely in fifteen short minutes and she was someone else's. Fate certainly did exist, but it was not always kind.

The phone rang the entire time Olivia was racing back and forth between the car and the house, unloading groceries while toting Avery, who had gotten progressively whinier. When she had finally gotten everything in its proper place and managed to distract the restless four year old with a bowl of macaroni and cheese and a marathon of Blue's Clues, she fell gracelessly onto her lounge chaise in the next room and pulled the finally silent phone from her purse. Four missed calls, three voicemails and six text messages from her sister, ranging chronologically from curious to concerned to panicky. Lauryn had always been very protective of Olivia because Liv had been very fragile as a child, and now that she was a grown woman, the over protectiveness that had once been endearing had become a bit of a bother. But she loved her sister and did not want her sick with worry, so she called Lauryn back.

"Olivia Pope, what the hell is wrong with you? I mean you tell me not to come get you and my niece off the side of the highway and then I don't hear from you for hours! I thought you'd tried to hitchhike or something."

"Calm down. I'm not completely stupid. Someone stopped and asked if I needed help and since I know you were probably taking your sweet time coming to get me, I accepted. That's all there is to it."

"Mm hmm. I know you, Liv. And anytime you say 'that's all there is to it' you are lying like a cobbler."

Olivia shook her head and laughed. Only her big sister would quote Russian literature while yelling at her. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, bullshit. I may have been born at night but I wasn't born last night. And later we'll have a long talk about how I'm turning into Mom but for now you better start talking."

Knowing her sister, and knowing that it really had no effect on her life, Olivia decided to tell Lauryn what happened. She left out the part about being overwhelmingly attracted to the man but something about the way she was telling the story – or maybe the way she sighed his name – gave her true feelings away.

"Baby sister, I am only going to say this once because you are a smart girl and I shouldn't even have to tell you this but you realize that nothing can happen between you and this guy?"

"Don't you think I know that, Lauryn? I would never even dream of cheating on Edison. I love him but I just… I can look. I'm a woman and I have needs and maybe I can check an attractive guy out every once in a while so when my husband is out of town I can picture a new face during 'me-time'."

"What you just described is literally you dreaming about cheating on Edison. I know what you mean though, and I believe you. You don't even know anything about this guy and the chances of you two seeing each other ever again are slim to none. And girl, you are a grown ass woman, did you really just use the term 'me-time'?"

Both women began to laugh and tease each other for a few moments before Olivia heard a car pull up and bade her sister goodbye. She met their babysitter at the front door and thanked her profusely for working at the last minute, accepting Connor and retreating back into the house. Avery came speeding into the room at the sound of her brother, who was being very rowdy as he twisted and wriggled in his mother's arms. Both of Olivia's children seemed to have gotten their energy from her parents because they moved nonstop, something Olivia had never understood. She made a few futile attempts to calm them down before simply depositing Connor into his playpen and putting on a movie they had all seen countless times before settling onto the floor with Avery in her lap.

It was around eight, after two hours of consistent shouting and roughhousing and sprinting around the den, that the children began to exhibit the telltale signs of sleepiness – struggling to keep their eyes open, talking incoherently, fighting with each other. They both protested when Olivia announced it was bedtime but did not fight as she gathered Connor in her arms, took Avery's hand, and moved them upstairs.

"Avi, go get your PJ's on while I put your brother down." The girl nodded firmly and moved into her room to do as she was told. Avery was going through a phase where she did not want help doing anything, following her "I'm a big baby phase" when Connor was born just a year and a half ago.

When both kids had had stories and kisses and songs and a moment to lament the fact that Daddy wasn't there to do his special bedtime ritual, they finally succumbed to the weight of their heavy eyelids and drifted into peaceful sleep as quickly as only a child can. Olivia took a moment to admire her two beautiful children and wonder, for the millionth time, how her life had become so domesticated. She loved her children dearly and would not trade them for all the adventure in the world, but as a young girl had always pictured her life as being one big enterprise.

No use wondering now, she thought, struggling to keep the bitter thoughts away as she shut herself in her bedroom. It had been a long day and all she wanted was to sleep but it never came easily to her. She took off her sweater and jeans, leaving her clad in only her underwear, and settled under the heavy brown comforter that Edison had insisted they get. It was for adults, he had said, and they were adults now. No more dreaming and adventuring for them.

Olivia placed a cold hand over her stomach, feeling goose bumps rise there, as she made an effort to think of something positive.

Think of your kids. Think of writing. Think of something that makes you happy, Liv. Think of…

Fitz.

She gasped aloud as his name penetrated her thoughts. It had truly come from out of nowhere and she was not sure how long this infatuation was going to last, but she hoped it would be over by the time Edison got back. Nothing good could come of her constantly thinking about another man while her husband was in the room. For now, though, she could let the thoughts consume her and they soon had her breathing quickly and she felt her hand trailing downward of its own volition. The house was silent and dark and she was alone: it was the perfect moment for some me-time.

A/N: I promised myself I was going to take a break but I had a dream about something like this last night and that's got to be a sign, right? So here I am again. I can never stay away for long. This will be my first story that's really plot driven. No more one-shots for me, I'm moving up. But tell me what you guys think and I'll update accordingly, if you like it. And if you don't I still want to hear about it. I can take the heat. xo