A/N: A few of you weren't crazy about the reemergence of Mellie. Her motives, because Mellie will always be Mellie, will be revealed in the next few chapters. But rest assured she won't be around long. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm rotating through the three stories I'm working on, writing one chapter at a time. Unfortunately this leads to longer times between updates but hopefully readers of each get updates in a reasonable amount of time. Thanks for sticking with me. Enjoy and please let me know what you think!

Chapter 3

Olivia stood in the pitch black of the hotel suite in the wee hours of the morning pulling on her jeans. She was careful not to wake Fitz when she slid out of bed. Mornings like this were the hardest for her, she knew there were good reasons why she and Fitz couldn't go public with their relationship but sneaking out of his room in the middle of the night made her feel like what they were doing was wrong. She checked her pocket for her room key then turned to take one final look at Fitz who was sleeping with his head partially on the pillow she had occupied and his arm across where she had slept. His hair was curlier than usual; a product of their passion the night before, and the sheet barely covered his chiseled torso. It was hard to believe the man was in his late forties. He had a body any twenty year old would covet. She smiled thinking of how women responded to him, herself included. He had the ability to leave women speechless with a simple smile and she knew better than anyone about his true superpowers. She walked to the edge of the bed then leaned down to kiss him. Her lips met the top of his shoulder and she heard him mumble her name bringing a smile to her face.

"I love you" she whispered and turned to leave. She took a half step before being dragged back onto the bed.

"You're not going anywhere" his voice was still groggy. He held her around her waist and buried his face in her neck, "Why are you trying to sneak away from me?"

"I need to get back to my room" she turned so she was facing him, "I don't want to leave but I can't be seen…"

"You can stay a little while longer" he didn't loosen his grip, "Today is a big day for me…for us Liv. You don't want me all tense for the primary do you?" His hand moved to her side, sliding beneath her shirt. Heat radiated from where he made contact with her skin.

"How gullible do you think I am?" she giggled at his tactics, "You really think I'm going to fall for the 'I need to screw you so I can relax' strategy?"

"No" he tried to sound wounded. His hand slid to touch her satin covered breast then her flat abdomen, "I don't need to screw you" he left a line of kisses from her jaw to her earlobe, "I need to make love to you, Olivia."

Her senses began to swim from the feeling of his mouth and the rush of his breath on her skin. She loved the way he smelled in the morning after they had spent all night making love. His cologne still lingered mixed with her perfume and what she could only describe as sex. He had small red marks on his shoulder from her nails and teeth. She had love bites on the inside of her upper arm and bruises on her hips from his fingers. They were used to the marks each left on the other and there were times she would absently touch a bruise here or a bite there and get lost in the memory.

"Fitz, it's almost five and if someone sees me…" her words were muffled by his mouth crashing against hers. He kissed her hard, increasing the pressure of his hands as well. He completely possessed her, unbuttoning her jeans and sliding a hand beneath her satiny thong.

"If I promise to get you out of here without anyone noticing?" he said between kisses. Olivia moaned quietly at the feeling of his fingers sliding through her folds and teasing her bundle of nerves. He paused and looked into her eyes, "Do you want to stop?"

"We can be quick, right?" she ran her fingers through the curls at his temple. He looked so handsome with his hair tousled from sleep and his eyes glazed in pleasure. He snickered at her question. As usual, she would give in without relinquishing control. She prided herself on being the master of her life and he knew she saw her feelings for him as a weakness at times. He knew that she struggled with her two personas. She was hard-hitting and no nonsense Olivia Pope when others were around but when they were alone she allowed herself to just be Livvie.

"I'll do it any way you want Livvie," he was already pulling her shirt over her head and pushing her pants down her legs. His mouth sampled her warm cocoa skin from her shoulder to her hip, gliding over her perfectly flat belly and following the curve of her breast. Her hands meshed in his hair, nails gently grazing his scalp. He groaned at the touch of her fingers, the contact encouraging his movements. Their early morning lovemaking was usually slow and tender. One or the other would generally wake first and start touching the other. Their hands would caress one another then they would follow with their mouths and what was sometimes hours later they would drag themselves from the bed absolutely relaxed and ready to start their day. Fitz hated that this morning needed to be different. Those long, slow sessions reinvigorated his soul and reconnected him with Olivia. He feared they would lose touch in the hustle and bustle, he knew they needed to make time for themselves whenever they could. But, true to his word, Fitz would do it any way Olivia wanted.

She raked her fingers through his hair as his mouth ventured over the peaks and valleys of her body. His mouth returned to hers and she took his top lip between her teeth luring a deep growl from him. He felt her smile against his mouth and nipped at her lip in response, catching her bottom lip between his teeth and nibbling lightly. She whimpered, needing deeper contact. He responded without a word, shifting over her. He nipped several times along her collarbone then kissed away the sting. He vaguely wondered if he was leaving marks but decided he didn't care. She was nearly purring beneath him, her body begging for more. She felt the recognizable pressure of his cock at the edge of her heat. Her entire body flushed. Then, a loud knock at the door, shattering their bliss. Olivia stilled immediately.

"Whoever it is will go away" Fitz growled.

"It might be important" she whispered in return. They paused, listening for a moment. Just as Fitz began to kiss along Olivia's neck again there was a second knock, this time followed by a voice.

"Governor" it was Cyrus.

"Does that man ever sleep?" Olivia's irritation was apparent, "What could be so important at five in the morning?"

"I'll get rid of him," Fitz pushed himself off of her and searched for his boxer briefs, pulling them on and moving towards the door. He turned to Olivia, "Don't move Sexy. I'm not finished with you." She blushed and pulled the sheet around her. She heard voices when Fitz opened the door to the suite but couldn't make out what they were saying.

X-X

Fitz collected himself then pulled the door open, "Cyrus, man, you have to get a hobby or take an Ambien, something."

"I'm really sorry to bother you Sir" Cyrus looked at Fitz, red scratches on his biceps and shoulders, purple marks at the base of his neck, and hair that was the definition of bedhead, "I wouldn't have come if it wasn't important."

"Come in Cy" Fitz stepped aside and let the older man into the room. Flipping on a light, he squinted and rubbed his eyes, absently running his fingers over the scratches on his shoulder.

"I really hate to bother you" Cyrus took a seat on the sofa while Fitz slumped into an adjacent armchair, "I know you need your rest."

"Well I'm up now, what's so important it couldn't wait?" Fitz pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. He knew the longer it took him to get rid of Cyrus the less chance he would get to finish what he started with Olivia.

"I thought you should see this" Fitz accepted the newspaper Cyrus passed in his direction, "This could be catastrophic in light of the primary."

Fitz sighed deeply as his eyes focused on the type then he felt his chest burn and heart rate increase. The color drained from his face, he wasn't sure whether he was going to vomit or pass out. He read the headline several times sure it must be a mistake, a bad dream.

"I have to tell Livvie" he muttered, his eyes not leaving the paper.

"I can tell her if you think she'd rather hear the news from me" Cyrus' voice had softened when he saw the effect the newspaper had on Fitz, "I can go to her room right now. I'm sure she's up."

"She is…" Fitz's eyes left the paper and moved to Cyrus. He ran his hands through his hair, "I'll tell her….she's awake….what the hell are we going to do Cyrus?"

Cyrus watched Fitz stand, stumbling slightly, and walk towards the bedroom, "Do you want me to call her, Sir?" the concern registering in his voice.

"That won't be necessary," Fitz disappeared into the bedroom. Cyrus heard voices then several minutes later Olivia appeared, hair askew, wearing only Fitz's Navy t-shirt.

"Good morning Liv" the lack of even an off-kilter glance from Cyrus spoke to the urgency of the situation. The world was waking up, sitting down to their breakfast and opening their newspapers.

"We need to write up a statement and get you in front of a camera as soon as we can" Olivia's eyes flared with a strange mix of fear, desperation, and anger.

"First we need to get you out of this room without anyone noticing" Cyrus' eyes were on Olivia, "and it might be a good idea if you were wearing a little more clothing."

Olivia, irritated, returned Cyrus' hard stare, "Not the time Cyrus" she managed, her jaw tense.

"I'm simply saying that the morning that every paper in the land accuses you of being a presidential candidate's mistress probably isn't the time to be parading around a hotel in only the man's shirt" he returned her terse tone.

"Should I go put on a ball gown?" sneered Olivia dropping her eyes to the newspaper.

"Enough" Fitz's voice was harsh, "Olivia, go get dressed. Cyrus, I would appreciate it if you spoke to Olivia with a little more respect."

Olivia rose without saying a word and retreated into the bedroom. Fitz watched her move, allowing a seed of doubt to settle in the corner of his mind. He saw the look she wore when suggesting he needed to make a statement and he saw the tension in her body as she moved. He wondered if she was having second thoughts about them. This was the day they had dreaded, the day they had hoped to avoid until he had been elected. It wasn't the ideal way for them to go public but he was determined not to lose her and he prayed she felt the same way.

"Sir, I think we should…" Cyrus was all business.

"Give her a break" Fitz interrupted, "She never asked for any of this and now her name is going to be dragged through the mud."

Cyrus considered him for a second, wondering if he should speak his mind, "With all due respect, Sir, you both asked for this" his face hardened again, "You could have stopped this months ago, she could have left the campaign or at least continued to work from New York, or you two could have been fucking adults and never gotten involved in the first place."

"Screw you, Cyrus" Fitz spat, "You don't think Liv and I should be together you've made that abundantly clear. But you know what, I don't give a damn what you think or what Mellie thinks or what the front desk clerk thinks. I'm not interested in the optics of all of this for me. I'm going to stand in front of the cameras and make a statement, not because I give a damn what this country thinks about me but because no one is going to have the wrong idea about Olivia" his back was to the bedroom door and he didn't see her step from the room as he continued, "She is brilliant and funny and lovely and sweet" Olivia took several quiet steps into the room while Fitz persisted, "She warm and caring and strong. She's the love of my life and I'll do whatever needs to be done to protect her and the rest of my family."

Olivia felt tears brimming in her eyes and caught her bottom lip between her teeth. This was the day, she thought, the day they had tried to prepare for, the day that would inevitably arrive. She had hoped it would come after Fitz was in the White House or when they chose to make their relationship public in their own time. But there she was in the hotel room of her, until very recently, married boss, a candidate for president. It was so clichéd it was nearly laughable and she let an eerie chuckle escape drawing Fitz's eyes to her.

"Livvie? What's so funny?" he was clearly worried and he wore that worry as a furrowed brow.

"This is perfect" she began to laugh harder, a strange, nearly maniacal laugh as she took a seat on the couch and picked up the newspaper again, "Of course this would happen after I've spent the night in your hotel room. The only thing that could make it any better would be pictures. I'm the Governor's mistress and the entire stale story is playing itself out as if from a script."

"Liv" Cyrus took a step towards her, reaching his hand for her shoulder. She shrugged him off and stood again, tears slipping haphazardly down her cheeks. She began to pace across the living room, feeling the stares of both Fitz and Cyrus upon her. They heard her mutter something unintelligible but watched in silence. She was wearing the wrinkled outfit she'd worn the night before and Fitz fought to keep the memory of their shared passion from his consciousness. She looked absolutely stunning, even with worried, tired eyes; passion mussed hair, and wrinkled clothes. Olivia looked nothing like the hard-nosed lawyer and press manager that she was, instead she was the raw, exposed Olivia so few got to see. She was a woman preparing herself to be called every vulgar name the press could come up with, vulnerable and, Fitz thought, in need of his protection.

After allowing her to pace and mutter for several minutes, Fitz took a step in her direction, catching her upper arms in his strong hands, forcing her to stop in front of him. Even her arms felt frail in his embrace.

"Olivia?" the name sounded different than it ever had leaving his lips, "You know you aren't my mistress." The statement brought her eyes to lock with his. She considered the time they had been together. She thought of that first day when she met him in Cyrus' office, how their hands had lingered together and her body felt drawn to his. It was the day that her life had been changed forever even if she didn't know it at the time. Then there was the night she followed him into the elevator and they first made love, she could have stopped it then. She could have left the campaign or worked from New York as Cyrus had suggested. She could have avoided Fitz, never started any of this. Tears sprung to her eyes anew.

"We never should have done this" she whispered, moving into his chest.

"You don't mean that" he returned into her hair, "I love you Livvie. I've loved you since the day you rushed into my life like a summer breeze. You will never convince me that this is a mistake and I'm not letting you run away."

Fitz leaned down to lightly kiss her lips while his fingers roamed softly over her jaw. The contact muddled her senses further. She wanted this, right or wrong, she wanted to be with Fitz but the hotel room they stood in seemed to be closing in on her.

"What if you lose?" her voice was still quiet, she was afraid.

"Then I lose" he answered so quickly, she searched for any signs of apprehension but found none, "That's not what I'm concerned about right now."

"It should be" she sounded a little stronger, "We need to work on your statement."

"You need to hear me first" Fitz didn't release his hold on her, "I love you. No matter what happens with the campaign I will always love you." Olivia felt the tears stinging her eyes and she wanted to say something though she wasn't sure exactly what. Fitz pulled her flush against his chest, "You can't leave Liv. If you run away you won't just be leaving me. What about Karen and Gerry? They love you."

She hadn't thought about the two people sleeping in the adjoining suite. Two innocent children whose lives were going to change and they had no say in it. She loved them like they were her own and she felt protective of them as if she were their mother. Their world had just been rocked by their parents' divorce and being on the campaign trail had been a challenge.

"I love them too" Olivia admitted allowing her hands to begin roaming over his muscular back, "and I love you."

The words had barely left her lips before his grip tightened and he urged his lips against hers in a demanding kiss. Their tongues explored one another's mouth, hands knotting in hair and teeth nipping at flesh.

Cyrus cleared his throat, "Sir? Liv? We should probably work on the statement for the press."

The pair paused, suddenly remembering that they were not alone. "Of course" Fitz pulled back, maintaining eye contact with Olivia.

X-X

Olivia stood just off-stage straightening Fitz's tie and fussing with his suit jacket, "You are going to knock this one out of the park," she cooed, allowing a smile to dance across her lips, "I'm so proud of you."

"I love you, Livvie" he sounded so anxious.

"I love you too" Olivia replied with a small kiss then watched him turn and stride onto the stage to address the reporters.

"Good Morning. I am here to speak to the rumors about the relationship between my Media Relations Director, Olivia Pope, and myself" Cyrus and Olivia watched as Fitz delivered their prepared remarks. He smiled genuinely as he told a slightly sanitized version of their courtship. Olivia's breath caught when he delivered the end of his speech, "Olivia and I certainly never intended for this relationship to become what it has and, to most, this is probably terrible timing" he paused for a beat, taking a deep breath, "but we are, indeed, in a relationship and we ask that you give our family the time and space to allow our relationship to grow. And I sincerely hope that you will give me the opportunity to regain your trust and earn your vote" Fitz looked off-stage in her direction with a sweet smile, "Come on up, Livvie" he held out his hand to her.

Olivia felt Cyrus nudge her towards the podium as she willed her legs to function, finally moving to Fitz's side, this wasn't what they had planned. He took her hand and placed a kiss lightly on her cheek then turned back to the throng of cameras and reporters, "Any questions?"