Ashes and Wine

Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed. I really appreciate it. As I went off on a bit of a tangent with this story, it's going to be three parts instead of two. Hope you enjoy it, reviews are appreciated! :)

Part 2.

When Olivia had composed herself enough to go and check on Rachel and Ella, she found them both curled up and asleep in the same bed. She pulled the covers up over them and kissed each of them on the cheek. Seeing Rachel look so vulnerable in her sleep suddenly made Olivia feel overwhelmed with guilt over what had just happened with Peter. She slipped out of the room and went to her own bedroom to get ready for bed.

Once in her pyjamas and between the covers, sleep just wouldn't come to Olivia. She thought about Greg, the damage it would cause if he did get custody of Ella, and how her working relationship with Peter would be ruined if they let their feelings get in the way.

After John she had vowed never to get romantically involved with a colleague but with Peter it was different. They had been through so much together over the past year that she had come to rely on him completely. Taking the step from co-workers to lovers could be messy. There were too many people involved, Rachel and Ella cared deeply for Peter and then there was Walter to consider. Olivia finally drifted off to sleep, imagining what Walter would say if she and Peter began dating.

"Did you have a nice evening with Agent Dunham?" Walter asked on the journey back to their new home. Astrid had been relieved when Peter had showed up at the lab to collect his father. She cared for Walter but sometimes he was more than she could handle.

Peter decided it would be better to lie, Walter would only be upset if he knew about the altercation with Greg. He also decided to leave out the part where he had kissed Olivia.

"Yes, thank you." He replied, and Walter was so full of his latest discoveries at the lab that Peter found he needed to say very little on the car ride home.

Walter's enthusiasm was infectious too and distracted Peter from his thoughts for a few moments. But, once they were back home, with Walter alternating between snoring and humming in his sleep, it was hard for Peter to think of anything other than Olivia. His mind replayed the kiss over and over; the feel of his lips against her's; the taste of wine on her tongue and the way her body had moulded to his.

He knew it was foolish to think this way, he'd had too much to drink and there had been too much upset that evening for anyone to be able to think clearly. Still, as sleep finally claimed him, he couldn't bring himself to regret it.

Rachel, so exhausted after the events of what had started as a really loved evening, had fallen asleep almost as soon as she had curled up beside her daughter. It didn't take long for her to wake up and return to her own bed where she tossed and turned restlessly for what seemed like hours. She wasn't like Olivia, her self sufficient big sister, she needed someone to rely on. As much as she loved her daughter, at her age Ella wasn't really company for Rachel. When she had met Greg she thought she was going to have it all; the husband, the children and the white picket fence. Now, as she lay staring at the ceiling of her sister's spare room, she wondered what had ever made her love Greg in the first place. He wasn't a really man like, well, like Peter.

Of all the things Greg had said this evening, the one comment that had stung the most was the one about stealing her sister's boyfriends. She hadn't known what had come over when she told him that Peter was her new partner. Now she felt guilty, both Olivia and Peter had protested that they were just colleagues, friends at best, but what if she had gotten in the way of something between them without even realising. Everything in her life was a confused mess and, not for the first time, she envied her older since and the way she seemed to be able to handle everything that came her way. Of course, the older Dunham had kept a lot of what she had been through over the past year a secret from Rachel, knowing that it was for the best.

Rachel was already up and cooking breakfast for the three of them when Olivia came out of the bathroom the following morning. She eyed her sister suspiciously, Rachel was usually the last of them to get up; never the first. The younger Dunham looked worse for wear, having had less sleep than Olivia the previous night. She debated going over to hug Rachel, but worried that a show of sisterly intimacy would break the cheerful facade she was wearing.

"How do you want your eggs, Liv?" Rachel asked, not turning around when she heard Olivia's footsteps.

"Scrambled please." She replied, as if on auto-pilot, trying to decide the best way to handle the situation.

Olivia had barely taken another step forward when Ella bounded into the kitchen, looking refreshed and bright eyed, especially compared to her older relatives. It was only now that Rachel turned her back on the congealing egg mixture to face her daughter, she pulled Ella into her arms and held the little girl tightly to her. Sensing that they needed a moment together, Olivia stepped passed them and took control of the breakfast.

For a moment Olivia thought things were going to be okay, and that perhaps last night had just been a nightmare when she heard Ella ask:

"Is daddy coming over again today?"

Peter was up long before Walter but found he couldn't stomach the French toast and coffee he had made. He, too, had not slept at all well that night. Usually, unless Walter was singing, snoring or up and about mixing some concoction, Peter fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Last night had been different, in more ways than one. He just had too much to think about and, having managed a few hours of sleep, his head wasn't any clearer now.

Part of him wanted to head straight to Olivia's house and do something; anything. For the first time he was beginning to wish he hadn't given in to his desires and kissed her. The pair of them both had enough on their plates without the complications of their romantic feelings for each other, if they even really had any. There was also the added factor of Rachel having lied to her husband about Peter being her boyfriend, that was going to be a difficult mess to get out of.

Peter took another sip of his now tepid coffee and felt his insides cringe as the caffeine entered his already hyper-sensitive system. He tipped the remainder of his coffee away down the sink and left a note for Walter, which he was sure he would ignore, and headed out to Olivia's apartment, to hell with the consequences.

When Peter arrived, he found Rachel alone at the apartment. She looked subdued and totally unlike the woman he had come to know quite well over the past few months. He didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed that Olivia was not there, taking Ella to the nearby park instead. Rachel said very little, and Peter sensed that if she opened up to him, even a little bit, she would fall apart.

"Would you like some coffee?" She asked, playing the part of the perfect hostess.

Without waiting for a reply, Rachel headed towards the kitchen not prepared for the fact that Peter would follow her.

"Listen Rachel," He began as he watched her potter about the kitchen looking for cream and sugar. "I don't think you should have told Greg that we're...together."

She turned to him, light blonde hair spilling around her face from the speed she had spun towards him.

"Don't you think I know that? Don't you think I'd do anything to stop Greg from getting custody of Ella; my daughter."

"Hey, I know," He said soothingly, taking the sugar bowl out of Rachel's hands and holding her to him. "I just think you need to be honest, if Greg does take you to court it won't go in your favour if you lie."

"I know." Rachel sighed, calmer now as she rested her forehead against Peter's shoulder. "I'm just so scared of losing her. She's my life."

Peter rubbed her back soothingly. "I know, I can see how much you love her but maybe..." He paused, the next part would be difficult to say and he still wasn't sure whether he was glad or not that Olivia wasn't there to hear it. "Maybe it might be for the best if you let Ella spend some time with Greg."

Rachel tore aware from his grasp, her eyes sparkling with anger. "How dare you!"

"Rach, please," He said, taking her hands now and forcing himself to meet her eyes. "What I mean is, if Ella stays with Greg for a little while, you'll have time to get yourself a place to live and a job, and then you can sue Greg for sole custody."

The fire in Rachel's eyes seemed to be dying down as she thought this through but no matter what happened she would not give over her precious daughter without a fight.

"I'm not letting that scumbag take my daughter Peter, no matter what you say. And I think you should leave now, before Olivia and Ella get home."

Holding his hands up in surrender, but still feeling that he had done the right thing someone, Peter left the apartment.

As he was making his way out of the building, he ran into Olivia and Ella on the way back from park, both flushed from the brisk Boston morning air.

"Hey Peter, what are you doing here?" Olivia asked, while Ella ran to him and hugged his legs. Seeing the happy little girl made Peter feel guilty for what he had suggested to Rachel, but he had only been thinking of their best interests.

"I came to see Rachel." He replied, while Ella ran on ahead to the apartment door and slipped inside.

Olivia looked a little disappointed, wondering if she had imagined the kiss and what he had said to her the previous night.

"She's pretty mad at me," Peter confessed. "But I promise I'm only trying to help, I care about you, all of your Dunhams." He tried to lighten the moment, running his hands down Olivia's forearms. She had little choice but to look him in the eye.

"Peter..." She began, not knowing what she was even going to say.

"You should get back to your sister, she needs you right now." Peter said, when it became clear that Olivia wasn't going to say anymore.

"I know." She paused. "Thank you." She brushed a kiss to his stubbly cheek and disappeared into her apartment before Peter could stop her.