The Uninvited
Olivia was running late this morning which is unusual for her but she woke up with a headache that came out of nowhere. She spent the first half of the morning drinking tea and taking some Tylenol to relieve the pain in her head. She went to bed the night before with a lot on her mind so she figured the stress of it all led to the headache.
The OPA team has been working overtime on their latest case and the client is not as forthcoming with information as he should be which always makes the situation harder to contain. She's also been dealing with the fact that she hasn't spoken to Fitz in three weeks since Verna's funeral. He never called to explain why he didn't show the night he promised and he kept his distance at the funeral. All of this has been weighing heavily on her because she feels that he's back to hating her again. She spoke to Cyrus a few times but he didn't have any answers either but he did agree that Fitz is still dealing with the fallout of the election.
Olivia arrived at the office twenty minutes late but her gladiators already had the day in motion. They were in the conference room going over the latest details on the client and were ready to update Olivia on the progress. As Liv was putting away her purse, she heard her cell phone ringing. She dug it out of purse and checked the screen to see who was calling. She let out a big sigh and shook her head when she recognized who was calling. She prepared herself to answer it and get the caller off the phone with a quick "I'll call you back" response.
"Hi Evee, I'm kind of busy right now, can I call you back?"
Little did Liv know the caller was ready for that response and had one to counteract it.
"Liv are you at work?"
"Yes, why?"
"Oh perfect, I'm leaving Dulles Airport now and according to the GPS system, I should be there in 25 minutes. See you then."
The caller laughed as she hung up the phone and Olivia was speechless.
She didn't realize that her mouth was hanging open and she had a stunned look on her face. Everyone was looking at her and Abby spoke first.
"Liv, Liv are you okay? Who was that?"
Olivia quickly shook her head and refocused herself. She couldn't believe what she just heard.
"That was my sister and apparently she's on her way here."
Everyone started smiling and Harrison chimed in.
"Finally we get to meet her. Her name is Evelyn, right?"
Liv looked at Harrison sarcastically.
"Yes, her name is Evelyn and I guess she'll be here shortly."
With all that she had going on, Olivia was definitely not ready for unexpected visitors. She last saw her sister and family on Christmas and usually the holiday gatherings and occasional phone calls was enough for everyone so why was she in town, uninvited? She asked Huck let her know when her sister arrives while she continued with everyone else reviewing the latest case information.
About a half hour later, she heard Huck call out from the hallway.
"I think she's here Olivia."
The front door of the office opens and in walks a very beautiful woman who was dressed to the nines.
Everyone comes out of the conference room to greet her and Olivia rushes over to embrace her.
"Evee what are you doing here? Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"
"It was a last minute decision on my way back from Japan. I'm meeting Reggie in Maryland Friday night so I thought instead of going home and catching another flight here, why don't I just come earlier and check up on my little sister at the same time."
"Well that sounds great but I wish you would have called me first."
"So you can ruin the surprise? No. I know you too well. I'll only be here for two and half days so I won't get in your way I promise. I just wanted to see you."
The team was standing there while the sisters were talking and Abby decided to get there attention by clearing her throat.
'Eh hem. Aren't you going to introduce us Liv?"
Olivia turned around and faced the others. She was so caught up in trying to figure out why her sister decided to show up out of the blue that she forgot that there were other people in the room.
"Everyone, this is my sister Evelyn Pope-Collins, we call her Evee. Evee this is Harrison Wright, Abby Whelan, Quinn Perkins, and Huck."
"It's s nice to finally meet all of you. Olivia doesn't talk much about her work but she always says how much she loves working with you guys."
Everyone walked over to greet her and they subconsciously made comparisons between her and Olivia. They bared a strong resemblance to one another but Evelyn was three years older, a little taller with long straight brown hair and obviously married as evidenced by the huge ring on her finger. She is the CEO of one of the top investment groups in America and she lives in Illinois. She is the opposite of Liv in many ways but they were equally smart and successful women.
After a few minutes of mingling with everyone, Olivia brought Evelyn to her office and closed the door.
"So Evee, what brings you here so unexpectantly?"
Evelyn placed her purse and coat on the couch and sat down.
"Oh Liv what's the harm in a surprise visit now and then? And besides, I've been a little worried about you since the holidays. You weren't yourself and I wanted us to spend some time together and just talk and hangout for a few days."
"But I have to work so we can't do much hanging out."
"That's okay, you do go home every night, right?'
"Yeah."
"Okay then we'll hang out every night on your couch just like when we were younger. Lighten up Liv, we'll have fun. So do you want me to hang around here for the day or do you mind if I go to your place? The flight was long and I would love to take a shower and lay down for a while."
"Sure. Did you drive here yourself or did you hire a driver?'
"I picked up a rental at the airport so I'm driving and I have a GPS device but your place isn't far from here so I'll find it."
"No my place isn't that far. I'll have Huck walk you to your car and give you directions. Here's the key, Make yourself at home and I'll see you later."
Evee gathered her things and they headed for the door. Olivia felt kind of guilty for kicking her out so quickly but she felt uncomfortable with her sister in the office. She asked Huck to walk her down stairs and tell her how to get to her place.
When they reached the door, they hugged each other and Olivia told her to rest and she would be home later. She went back to the conference room to catch up with the team but all everyone wanted to talk about was Evelyn. Quinn was the first to comment.
"Olivia you and your sister look so much alike. How long will she be here for? Maybe we can all go out for dinner or drinks."
Harrison gave Quinn a side-eye look. He knows Olivia tends to be very private so she would never agree to a dinner like that.
"She's only her for two days and we're really busy right now so that's not possible. Maybe some other time. Lets get back on track here. Somebody catch me up please."
Everyone knew at that point they wouldn't be seeing Evelyn again while she's here so they left it alone and went back to working on the case.
The White House staff was getting their day started as well. Fitz concluded his daily briefing and prepared for a meeting with the Joint Chiefs of Staff on security issues. Cyrus was going over some talking points with him in the oval office and then Mellie walks in. She went directly over to Fitz's desk and waited until Cyrus finished his last sentence before she began to speak.
"Good morning Cyrus. Honey, the nurse wants to know if you will be available for Teddy's lunchtime? She says he goes right to sleep after you feed him but you mentioned that you may be busy today around that time so she just wanted to confirm."
Fitz looked at Mellie with dismay and thought to himself, why isn't she handling this? She's his mother so it should be a natural thing. But looking her up and down from head-to-toe he was reminded of whom he is married too. Babies are definitely not her "thing" so a sarcastic remark at this point would be meaningless.
"I'm very busy today so that won't be possible. I'll try to pop in later and see how he is doing."
Mellie turns around and heads for the door.
"Alright I'll let her know and I'll be out for the rest of the day for my speaking engagements."
"Yeah, Okay. Fine."
Fitz pretended not to care that she would be gone for the day but in fact he was happy to hear it. He's able to relax when she's out of the White House even for a few hours which is heaven to him.
Cyrus turns to him to gage his response to her intrusion.
"Sit, I'll be back in ten minutes to get you for the meeting."
"Ok Cy."
Fitz let out a deep breath and leaned back in his chair. He took a moment to just breathe and tune everything out and clear his mind. He spun around in his chair to gaze out of the window and suddenly his thoughts turned to Olivia. He has been missing her a lot lately and he feels guilty for not calling or seeing her that night three weeks ago but he was so angry all over again that he just didn't want to for fear of what he may say or do. But now her absence was weighing on him. He knew it was time for them to really talk about everything and try to make sense of it all. He wants to fully forgive her and get past all of this but he's not sure if they can start over and how. He needed talk to her and see her to find out if she still feels the same. He decided that he'll give her a call later when he thinks she's home.
Evee arrived at Olivia's apartment and let herself in. She visited a few years back when Olivia first moved in and she loved it. As usual, Liv kept her place in immaculate condition which, in Evee's mind, was both good and bad.
Everything was showroom perfect like no one really lived there. She was hesitant to touch anything but she had no choice. She made her way to spare bedroom to put her things down. She unpacked her clothes and went into to the bathroom to take a quick shower. The flight back from Japan was long and she was feeling a little jetlagged even though she slept for a few hours on the plane. She slipped into to some shorts and a tee shirt and laid down in the warm bed. She had been staying in a Japanese hotel for the past week and the beds were not that comfortable for her so it felt like instant pleasure when she laid her head on the pillow. As she dozed off, she thought about making dinner for her and Olivia once she woke up. She set her phone alarm for 6pm thinking that that would give her enough time to get a good afternoon rest and wake up refreshed.
As the day wound down, Olivia and her crew were finishing up their day. They made last minute assessments of the evidence they had so far for their current client. Olivia was also prepping notes for the client's press conference in the morning. Her cell phone rang and as she reached for it, she already had a feeling who was calling.
"Hey sis, I'm standing here in your kitchen and there's no real food in here! All I see is bags upon bags of popcorn and enough wine to start your own cellar. Where's the food? Have you given up on eating real food?"
Olivia started laughing. She knew they would eventually get to this conversation because Evee loves to cook.
"I'm hardly ever home at a decent hour so I just eat a quick snack and go to bed. Groceries would just go to waste that's why I don't bother with them. Don't worry about cooking, we can order in."
Olivia knew that statement would not sit well with her sister but she said it anyway as payback for showing up unannounced.
"Order in? I've been eating restaurant food for the past week."
"Well one more night won't kill you so Chinese or Italian?"
Evelyn paused for a moment before responding. She hates when things don't work out as planned.
"Chinese. Beef with mushrooms. When are you leaving work?"
"In about an hour and I'll pick up the food on the way home."
"Okay but I'm going grocery shopping tomorrow. I will cook a meal in this kitchen before I leave your house."
Olivia laughed even though she knew Evelyn was being serious.
"That's fine with me sis. See you in a little bit."
Evelyn hung up the phone and opened the refrigerator for another look. As she stared at the empty shelves, she shook her head in disbelief and closed the door. As she made her way to the living room, Olivia's home phone rang. She thought about just letting it go to the answering machine but she was close enough already so she picked it up instead.
"Hello?"
"Liv? It's me."
"Oh no I'm sorry. I'm not Liv…Olivia, although people say we do sound alike."
"Excuse me?" Fitz leaned forward in his chair. He thought he may have dialed the wrong number.
"Let's start over. Hi, Olivia is not here. This is her sister Evelyn. I'm just visiting for a few days. And you are…?"
Fitz froze for a second. He couldn't say who he was so he came up with the next best thing.
"Uh just a friend giving her a call. I'll try her again later."
He hung up the phone quickly so Evelyn didn't have enough time to respond.
On the other end, Evelyn was left holding the phone looking dismayed. Out of curiosity, she looked at the caller id screen but the number was showing as blank and name unknown. This piqued her curiosity because she has been wondering for some time if Olivia is dating anyone because she is super secretive about everything.
Olivia left work and stopped at the Chinese restaurant to pick up the order she placed earlier. As she was standing in line, she noticed a very handsome gentleman to her left. He was dressed casually, short cut wavy hair and very tall. He was looking kind of perplexed as he was reviewing the menu. She decided to be a little friendly (flirty) and give him a suggestion.
"The teriyaki beef is pretty good and so is the moo shoo pork."
The guy turns his head to the right and locks eyes with Olivia.
"Really? And why should I take your word for it?" He said this with a sly smile that made Olivia notice just how good looking he is.
"Because I'm a regular customer which is rare for me but I do love this place. So trust me, the food is good."
At this point, they were looking directly at each other. He was taken by how attractive she is and thought to himself that she had a pretty smile.
"Well so far your word is convincing so I guess I'll try the teriyaki beef but I'm going to need your number to give you a review when I finish my meal."
Olivia half smiled and then laughed.
"Ah, I don't give out my number for restaurant reviews. You can google that instead."
He looked down at her and smiled.
"By the way, my name is Marcus and you are?"
She hesitated before answering.
"Olivia."
The server called for the next person in line and Olivia allowed Marcus to go ahead of her to place his order. She did this purposely because she wanted to listen to him speak and try to feel him out a little. She also needed more time to think about giving him her number or taking his. These decisions don't come easy since Fitz has been in her life off and on for the past 3 years and she's not sure just where they stand right now but distractions are almost always welcomed to take her mind off of everything.
Marcus completed his order and stepped aside so Olivia can request hers. He waited patiently to her distant left as she paid for her food. As she began to walk away, she turned and looked at him.
"So my number is one I don't freely give out but I tell you what, give me yours instead and maybe I'll call you. For a review of course."
Marcus looked puzzled at first. Women don't usually give him a hard time about giving him their number but this one was throwing him off.
"I guess I can do that."
He recites his number and Olivia types it into her phone along with his name.
"Well I guess I shouldn't hold my breath huh? Maybe you'll call. Maybe you won't."
Olivia smiles and begins to walk away. As she reached the door, she turned and around at looked at Marcus who was still staring at her. "Maybe." she in a playfully sarcastic way as she opened the door to leave.
As she drove home, her thoughts, as always, turned to Fitz. She wondered what he was doing at the moment and if he was alright. She's still not sure what had gone wrong since they last saw each other but she knew that the whole Defiance fiasco would take time to process and heal. She also thought about the encounter at the restaurant. Marcus was polite and really good looking but he didn't look familiar so she knew right away he wasn't in the political arena. It's been a while since she has encountered a "regular" guy so she was kind of smitten by his charm.
Olivia arrived at her apartment door and she took a deep breath before turning the key in the lock. She used that pause to prepare herself mentally for a night with her sister and the endless questions she knows Evee will ask.
"Finally, you're home. Oh the aroma of food! I'm starving!"
Evelyn rushed over to Olivia and helped with the bag of food. She took it over to the kitchen and Olivia walked towards her bedroom.
"Well you're still alive so couldn't be starving that bad. Did you get enough rest earlier?"
Evelyn was barely listening to Olivia. She was so hungry that all she could think about was where are the plates and glasses.
"I'm fine just hurry up and come sit with me at the table. I take it you'll be drinking a glass of wine with yours because the only other beverage you have is water."
"Damn straight. It helps me unwind at the end of my crazy days."
Evelyn set the plates, glasses and food on the table. She started to dig in and Olivia finally joined her.
"Water? You're not having wine with yours?"
Evelyn smiled at Olivia.
"No not tonight, this water is fine and plus I can't have it any way. I'm eating for two these days."
Olivia stopped pouring the wine in her glass and looked at her sister with her mouth half opened.
"Did you just say two? Are you pregnant?"
Evelyn started laughing and looked up at Olivia.
"Yes sis, I am pregnant. I was going to tell you earlier at your office but you seemed distracted and eager to rush me out the door so I figured I would tell you later. I'm about 6 weeks right now so it looks like you'll officially be an "aunt" in October."
Olivia sat down and looked at her sister. Evelyn was beaming and she was right. She was so busy rushing her out of the office today that she didn't take the time to actually look at her or else she would have known something was different all along. She also realized that this visit wasn't an intrusion just unexpected good news.
"I'm so happy for you. I know Reggie must be ecstatic."
"Oh. I haven't told him yet. I just found out before I left for Japan and he probably would have made me cancel the trip if I told him then. You know how over protective he can be. But we Pope women keep our promises to our clients so I had to go. But I do have a romantic time planned for us while we're in Maryland for his convention so he'll be happy either way."
Olivia felt happy and sad at the same time. Evelyn is 3 years older than her but she was always so busy working that she never imagined her as a mother some day. She and Reggie have been together for ten years but she hadn't heard them mention having kids for the last eight of them so this was definitely a surprise. She can't help but want this for herself as well and never really thought about it until Fitz came into her life. She would sometimes envision the two of them together and having at least one child but those dreams have died and resurrected themselves in her mind so many times that she finally gave up on them especially as of late with all that has happened.
Olivia realized she was drifting off a bit so she shook off her thoughts and refocused on her sister.
"How are you going to handle your busy schedule as you get closer to your due date? I can't imagine you cutting back on work."
Evelyn smiled and looked at Olivia.
"You know me too well sis. I may cut back on the travel but not on my day to day schedule unless I start having problems. My doctor said that pregnancy in your late thirties can be challenging but as I long I follow his instructions, I shouldn't have to change much about my daily routine for now so we'll see. I know Reggie will think differently but that's an argument he won't win so I'm not worried about that."
"Well you know I'm always here for you Evee."
Olivia reached over and took her sister's hand and they lovingly looked at on another.
As they continued to eat, Evelyn remembered the phone call that came for Olivia earlier.
"Oh by the way, some guy called you earlier but he didn't leave his name or number."
Olivia looked puzzled. She didn't give Marcus either of her numbers and everyone else usually calls her cell first before calling her home number. And then her heart began to flutter. She got up from the table and walked over to her phone. She looked at the caller id and instantly knew who it was but she couldn't say it out loud.
"Hmm, I don't know who that could have been. No number and no name? Must not be that important or maybe they'll call back."
"Yeah, I guess but at first he though I was you. He didn't say hello he just immediately said your name when I answered."
"And what did you say?"
"I corrected him and told him I'm your sister and that you weren't home yet. He hung up before I could say anything else. Must be some secret boyfriend huh?"
Evelyn laughed as she teased Olivia who faked a smile back at her. The truth is she knows that it was Fitz calling and he must have been surprised when Evelyn answered. She silently hoped he would call back later. She also thought about calling Cyrus to relay a message to him but he's not on Fitz's favorite list at the moment either so she abandoned that idea. "He'll call back" she thought to herself as she walked back to the table.
As the evening went on, Olivia and Evelyn spent the time chatting away like schoolgirls. Evelyn caught Olivia on a lot of family gossip and had her laughing at their favorite aunt's latest adventures.
"I tell you Liv, aunt Theresa has more of an adventurous love life than James Bond. I swear that woman has never been single for less than a minute. Speaking of which, what's going on with you? I know you dumped Edison again and I really don't know what you saw in him anyway he seemed so opposite of you. So is there anybody special now that I need to know about? The mystery caller earlier sounded sexy so I need details missy!"
Olivia threw her head back and laughed. She could never tell her sister the truth about her love life. The shock alone would probably send her into early labor. And Olivia was never one to share much any way.
"No there's no one right now. I don't have time to date because my job keeps me busy 24/7."
"But Liv your job can't keep you warm at night. You're telling me that you don't get lonely in this big ass condo? Olivia work isn't everything. You need a break sometimes. When was the last time you took a vacation? Maybe you need to get out of DC for a while and meet some new people."
"Evelyn it's not that simple. I think about getting away sometimes but I'm needed here on a daily basis and I've gotten used to that I guess. I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything but I do plan on getting back in the dating game at some point just not right now."
"Don't tell me you're not over Edison? You and I both know you were not in love with him this last time or the time before that. That relationship was comfortable and convenient but definitely not full of love and passion. You forget that I know you all to well Olivia Carolyn Pope. You always run from love like mom did the only difference is she doesn't like the way it ties her down and so she rejects it but you, – I'm convinced that you're afraid of love because it makes you feel vulnerable. What you fail to realize is that any wall can be broken down and one day you will find that one man who will be able to do just that and in your moment of vulnerability you will discover the most beautiful treasure that life has to offer us – love. I only hope that you will stop running then and surrender to it. It's a lesson that I had to learn also but I wasn't so resistant as I was convinced that I would never find it until I met Reggie and he turned out to be my everything. I've learned that marriage isn't always easy but it's worth it as long as you love each other because that along with the passion and the friendship is what holds it all together."
Olivia listened to Evelyn intently and she quietly agreed with every word she said. She tried hard to hold back the tears she felt welling up inside because if she let them fall, then the confessions would flow out of her mouth as well. So she toughed up and tried to change the subject a little.
"Have you heard from mom lately?"
"Yes, right before Christmas. I guess the band's next stop was somewhere in Europe and she wouldn't be back in the states until sometime this year. She sounded okay though but she kept the conversation generic as usual. I'm just glad she's okay and hopefully she'll retire soon and settle down somewhere here in the states. She did tell me that she left you a voicemail message. Do you think you'll ever take or return her calls? I mean we're grown now Liv and I think we both understand why she left Dad the way she did. This is another one of those areas of love that you should let that wall down on so you can forgive her."
Olivia picked up her wine glass and looked down into it like she was looking for the right thing to say in response to her sister.
"I listen to her voicemails I just… I can't bring myself to actually talk to her and I don't know if I'll ever be able to. I think I have forgiven her but I can't forget how she left us. I think that's why I try fix things for people because when she left it was like Dad was broken and even though I was young, I wanted to fix that for him but I didn't know how."
"But Liv you're missing the point. He loved her and yes he was broken when she left but I think he always knew she wouldn't stay. She loved him and us but she was and still is "in love" with music. Singing, traveling, and that band is her life and her first love and it was hard for her to give it up even for a little while. But Dad loved her enough to let her go and he's done fine since then. They even talk sometimes and she knows he moved on and married someone else so they're in a good place now and that goes to show that some things don't need to be fixed they just need time to heal instead."
They both looked at each other lovingly and Evelyn reached over and pulled Olivia in for a hug. Olivia once again fought back the tears and held her sister close. She was feeling every word they had spoken tonight and she knows her sister is right but there so much that she can't explain right now.
"Well you've just about talked my ear off so I think I'll go take a shower and get to bed."
"See aren't you glad I showed up? " They both laughed and Evelyn headed for the kitchen.
Olivia walked into her room and closed the behind her and immediately, the tears began to flow. The weight of her love for Fitz and the inability to freely talk to anyone about it cut through her like a knife. She knows now more than ever that her and Fitz need to talk and somehow figure where they stand and where things are headed. She slowly got undressed and stepped into the shower where lingered for a while so the tears and the water would become one.
The shower relaxed her a little and she put on her pajamas and glanced over at the clock. it was almost 1am and she figured Fitz must be sleeping right and didn't get a chance to call back earlier. She then pulled back the covers and climbed into bed and for the first time, she realized just how cold her bed was as she drifted off to sleep.
At the residence quarters in the White House, Fitz suddenly woke up to find himself sitting across from Teddy's crib. He had put him to bed and sat next to the crib as he watched Teddy fall asleep but didn't realize he had done the same. He looked at his watch and saw that it was a little past 1 am. He intended to call Liv earlier but he lost track of time with Teddy and he didn't anticipate falling asleep. He stood up and walked over to the crib. He covered Teddy with his blanket and leaned over to give him a kiss. He closed the door gently as he walked out and made his way to the master bedroom. He was relieved that Mellie was already asleep and he went directly to the bathroom to take a quick shower. He was a little angry with himself because he didn't call Liv as he planned but he thought to himself, maybe it was good thing because she probably couldn't talk anyway with her sister around but he also wished that he was able to meet her while she was here. Olivia had always talked about her and their Dad but she didn't say much about her mom which was a painful subject for her. He decided to wait a few more days and try calling her again over the weekend if time allowed. He reluctantly left the shower and dried himself off and put on his pajamas. He walked over to bed and stood there for a moment looking down at Mellie and he wondered how he has been able to do this for so long. A part of him loves Mellie because she is the mother of his children but he couldn't find a reason to be "in love" with her a part from that. She is who she is and knew that from the start but it never dawned on him that he never envisioned a future like this with her because he was always living day to day and the love never grew into much more than it was from the start. He shook his head and pulled back covers and as he laid down the one thing he noticed is the distance between them in the bed. It's always been there he just never really acknowledged it until now. That distance also held a cold space between them that neither one ever warmed during the night it just remained as such; a cold distant space.
The next day, Olivia cut her day short at OPA to spend time with Evelyn. She came home early enough for them to catch a movie and meet Cyrus for dinner afterward. He and Evelyn adored each other and could always talk for hours. He recalled when he first met the Pope sisters when Evelyn was in college. She attended his on campus seminars on economics and foreign affairs and would purposely wait to talk to him afterwards. They became friends and Cyrus gave Evelyn her first internship at the factory he ran. She introduced him to Olivia and encouraged her to attend his seminars and pick his political brain to help her through law school. After their wonderful evening, Olivia pulled Cyrus to the side to ask him how were things with Fitz.
"Well we're talking a little more and I think he's starting to trust me again but I know how stubborn he can be so I'm giving all the time he needs. Mellie on the other hand is push push push as usual but he ignores her as much as he can. All in all he's doing better with each day. I know he'll want to talk about everything when he's ready but for now, he's trying to be a better president more than ever before."
"I'm happy to hear that. Hopefully he and I will be able to talk one of these days."
"You will just give him time and space like me. He'll come around."
They walked back over to Evelyn and they each hugged each other. Cyrus told Evelyn to come visit more often and he'll take on a tour of the White House. He also reminded her to keep him posted on the pregnancy and to call him if she needed anything. They parted ways and Evee and Liv made their way back to Olivia's place. When they arrived home, they were both so tired that they bid each other goodnight and went into their rooms.
The next morning they were both up early. It was Friday and Evelyn was packing up to leave and meet her husband in Maryland. Olivia helped her carry her things down to the car and they embraced each other one more time.
"Take care Evee and you were right, I'm happy you showed up. It was definitely the right I really miss you. Be careful with my niece or nephew in their and call me when you land."
"I will Liv and thanks for having me. By the way, I filled your refrigerator and pantry with FOOD. Real FOOD. Please eat like a normal person from now on. Popcorn is not always good for you and neither is excessive wine so try something new please. I'm sure you'll like some of the things I bought and maybe not other but eat them anyway."
They both laughed as Olivia replied, "Yeah….we'll see."
Olivia watched as her sister as she drove off.
Liv went back up to her place and finished getting dressed for work. As she picked up her cell phone, she accidently touched the contacts but and Marcus' telephone number popped up. She hadn't called him since they met at the Chinese restaurant. As she stared at the number, she found herself feeling a little flirty so she called him.
"Hello, is this Marcus?"
"Yes, who's this?"
"Olivia – we met at the Chinese restraint a few days ago."
"Oh, hello. I can't believe you called. It was such as 50/50 chance that you would. Wow, this is exciting."
"How is it exciting" I'm not a celebrity and you probably get dozens of calls everyday."
"Not really but I just hoped that you would call and you finally did."
"Well I do have a busy day ahead of me so I guess I'll call you back later for that review on the Chinese food you eat."
"Oh yes I do have my review and it ready to go over it with you."
They both laughed and Olivia assured him that she would call him later. They hung up and Olivia had a smile on her face.