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This chapter is a little bit angsty. I wanted to explore how they would handle some of the demons from the past. I hope you'll enjoy it, I really enjoyed writing this.

Alex was thoroughly confused. In all five years of his life, he has never seen his parents NOT talking to each other. They sometimes yelled, sometimes they were giving each other attitudes or eye rolls, but most of the time they were in his eyes normal parents, spending a lot of time together cuddling, kissing and locking the door to their bedroom so that Alex could not walk in unannounced and see what they were actually up to there.

Then, after sending his brother Teddy to the soccer camp he really wanted to attend, something happened, and they stopped talking to each other. It has been going on for five days now, if he counted the days correctly, and Alex was getting really tired and fed up with silent breakfasts, lack of activities and spending time with both of his parents at once. If only Teddy or Karen were at home, he would go and ask them for help or explanation why mom and dad were so weird with each other. But they were both out of town, and poor Alex was thoroughly confused.

Olivia woke up to the bright sunlight streaming through the bay windows of their bedroom. Waking up in Vermont, in Fitz' arms, was the most exquisite pleasure and the best reward for her lonely years. She could feel him behind her and around her, his chest pressed to her back, his arms snaked around her, holding her breast under her nightshirt tightly, his morning erection rubbing her backside provocatively, making her wet and horny. She smiled and stretched, before she became more awake and her consciousness kicked in. They were fighting! They were fighting so badly they were not talking. It started five days ago, and there was no resolution in sight.

Their days were filled with Alex-related activities, with Fitz taking the little boy hiking and horseback riding. They would come back red-faced, excited and tired, smelling of horses and nature, but Fitz' enthusiasm would soon be replaced with aloofness and sadness. Olivia would then take over and take Alex swimming, and they would spend the evening reading, baking cooking or watching cartoons on TV. Fitz in the meantime would be brooding in the study, reading newspapers and books he bought in downtown Burlington bookstore.

Olivia could tell that Alex started picking up on the discord and discomfort in the family. He tried to make them talk to each other, drag them out for walks or make them do anything that didn't require them spending the time on the opposite ends of their sprawling house. It didn't work so far, and Fitz kept his distance and the bad mood, and Olivia let him brood, mourn and withdraw.

They retired to the same bed at night, as Alex saw them one morning emerge from different bedroom, and the look of sadness and confusion on her son's face nearly broke Olivia's heart, so she stuck to sleeping in their bedroom, even though they didn't share a word after they closed the door for the evening.

At night though, when Fitz was unconscious and asleep, his body, craving her closeness, would gravitate towards her and they would wake up wrapped around each other only to untangle themselves awkwardly early in the morning and start their silent and sullen days.

Olivia relaxed into Fitz' body and decided to enjoy his closeness before he would rouse from his sleep and retreat into his shell. She knew that they needed to sit down and talk about their fight and what caused it, but she was too much of a coward to be the first one to bring it up.

That day, the day of their fight, they took Alex to the day camp he wanted to attend since his big brother Teddy was in a camp away for two whole weeks, started so splendidly. They woke up early and took a joint shower that stretched into a long make out session. Only after Olivia's third orgasm did Fitz let her go and get ready for the day. They shared a boisterous breakfast with Alex, who was jumping up and down in his seat from excitement, and drove into Burlington to drop him off. Olivia had a client for the summer in Burlington, a local politician with ambitions to be a mayor, and she was helping out with his campaign. It kept her busy during the summer not to drive Fitz crazy with her unrestefulness about Vermont's quiet summers, but didn't take all of her time so she could spend the summer with her family too. When the camp started and Olivia left for her meetings, Fitz decided to spend a day in Burlington, walking around coffee shops and farmer's market, buying some books and chatting with locals. Secret Service was ready to lynch him, but Fitz really enjoyed himself.

Olivia, on the other hand, had a horrible day at the campaign office, everything seemed to go against her plans and she spent a few hours arguing with everyone and their mother about the mistakes they made in the campaign so far. When she finally drove to the camp to meet Fitz and collect Alex from his day's adventure, she was tired, extremely irritated and ready to bite someone's head off.

The sight greeting her at the camp nearly made her lose it. Fitz was already there, standing in a group of 4 women, who were all oohing and aahing around him, by the looks and sounds of it. One woman in particular was so bold and brazen, she couldn't seem to stop touching his bicep and batting her eyelashes at him. Olivia was enraged, and Fitz was absolutely confused by her attitude and mood.

They drove back home in what would have been complete silence if not for Alex excitedly telling them about his day and all new friends he made. In the evening, before Fitz finished making their dinner, Olivia gulped down a bottle of wine, hoping that alcohol would relax her and sooth her nerves. It had the opposite effect, and her unpleasant disposition turned downward nasty after Fitz came downstairs to check up on her, having tucked Alex in.

"I swear, he fell asleep the moment I put him to bed, the camp wore him out. Maybe we should send him there a couple of times a week to get a break from his boundless energy" – he joked, waiting for some kind reaction from her.

Olivia raised her eyes at him, regarding him silently and almost with animosity over the brim of her glass, her gaze drunk and unsteady.

"How much did you have to drink, and why are you drinking?"

Fitz took her unfinished glass and picked up a bottle which was nearly empty.

"You almost didn't eat anything for dinner either. What's going on? Is everything ok?"

Olivia rolled her eyes at him, and huffed. She was behaving like a five year old, and she knew it, but she crossed some invisible line and was beyond irritated and upset. When Fitz realized that no straightforward answer was coming from him, he knew he needed to probe further to get her to open up.

"Come on, don't give me that look. I really have no clue why you are so mad. Why don't you just tell me?"

"Oh, you want to know why I am mad? Well, where do I start. I had the shittiest day of the summer, arguing with everyone over their incompetence. Then, when I finally got rid of all these idiots in the office, I come to the camp to pick up our son only to see you surrounded by women pushing up to you, flirting and sweet talking, and there you stand, soaking up all their attention. So yeah, that's the rundown of my day"

Fitz stared at her incredulously:

"I am not sure what I am more upset about – you calling these hard-working people who are trying to make things better in Burlington idiots, or you insinuating that I was flirting with someone. These ladies were excited to see me, they don't see former Presidents on a regular basis, so I tried to be polite and friendly. There was nothing more to this conversation I had, and you know it"

"Well, it certainly didn't look like it!" – she went into full-rage mode and nearly screamed. She thought about Alex asleep upstairs and that she could possibly wake him up, but she was beyond caring.

"Are you getting too tired of me already, flirting with all these women and having a blast doing it?!"

"Olivia, what are you talking about, I was not flirting with anyone"

"I know what I saw, and I saw you smiling at that woman who was feeling you up. What was that about? Are you ready to find your next mistress and move on, am I not enough anymore?!"

Fitz stared back at her in shock and the look of hurt and despair on his face made Olivia sober up and regret her words immediately. He took a step back from her, unsure of who she was right now and why was she saying these preposterous things.

"Fitz, I didn't mean that" – she drawled…

"Olivia, I understood perfectly well what you said and what you meant. I think I should go to bed now"

He turned around and sprinted upstairs, sleeping in the guest bedroom that night. Next morning, after their previous explosive evening, they stopped talking altogether, and only Alex's confusion about their sleeping arrangements made them retire to the same room and bed every night.

Now, five days later, Olivia was lying in bed with her husband, feeling unbelievable guilt and regret at the horrible words she uttered to him and how much pain she brought to him with her drunken tirade. She could feel him waking up, his muscles flexing and the pattern of breathing changing. Olivia brought her hand to his and interlaced their fingers, not willing to let him go now that he was awake. She could feel him breathing, awake, behind her and tensed, waiting for his next move.

"Good morning" – his voice was low and raspy.

"Good morning, baby" – his voice sent a current of desire right to her core, and she squirmed in his arms unconsciously.

"Did you sleep well?" – it felt nice to have a semblance of conversation with him. Not seeing his face and hurt in his eyes helped her feel braver and broached another topic:

"I slept well… Do you want to go to the library today? Alex kept on talking about it"

"Sounds good. I will go and take a shower"

He released her from his arms and she immediately felt cold and sad. Olivia turned around to see his retreating back, her heart beating faster at the sight of his rippling muscles.

The day went much better than the previous five, and Alex was almost bouncing with joy. They decided not to go to the library, choosing to spend some time at the farmer's market instead. Alex charmed everyone who came to talk to them, and Olivia and Fitz picked fresh produce for that night's dinner. After a swim in the lake in the afternoon that they finally did as a family, Alex announced that he wanted to have "tomato pasta" for dinner and promptly fell asleep on the couch, watching cartoons, completely worn out by the day's activities.

Olivia turned off the TV and covered the little boy with a pled. She had half a mind to wake him up so that he would not mess up his bed time, but he looked so sweet and peaceful with his rosy cheeks, mussed up curls and light snore, she didn't have a heart to go with it.

Feeling shy and unsure if she could intrude on Fitz and his time in the kitchen, she padded over to him and watched him from the counter.

"Do you need any help here?"

Fitz gave her a serious look first, followed by a small smile, that she returned gratefully.

"Sure, you will be on the tomatoes duty. I need at least 7 of them, and finely chopped"

"Coming right up!"

They worked in the kitchen quietly, their silence comfortable and comforting this time around.

When the pasta was boiling and the sauce was cooking on the stove, Olivia took a glass of wine that Fitz gave her and approached him. She stood in his personal space, making him shift from foot to foot, unable to catch her eyes"

"I am so sorry, baby. I didn't mean to hurt you. I was drunk and upset, and I didn't think about what I was saying. I know it's not an excuse, and I can't take my words back, but I am so sorry. You didn't deserve to hear any of that"

He watched her wearily but didn't retreat when she molded their bodies together and touched her palm to his cheek.

"I love you. I love you so much, Fitz. I know that you love me too, and we have this amazing life together, but seeing you with this woman brought something up in me. It reminded me of the time when I was the other woman, when I could not walk up to you and kiss you, or hold your hand, or claim you as mine, and I just lashed out. Please forgive me"

Fitz exhaled shakily and draw her into his arms. They held each other, drawing strength from the embrace, and Olivia let all her pent up anger and frustration and guilt escape in one loud sob, then another and another, and before she knew it, she was clutching his sweater desperately, trying to get closer, her near hysterics getting the best of her.

Fitz picked her up and walked them to the study, his intent was to ensure their privacy and not wake Alex up in the middle of their serious conversation. He sat them down on the couch, never releasing her from his arms. He rubbed her back and scattered kissed on her hair, whispered that he loved her and that it was ok, he was ok, and they were ok, and that she needed to stop crying.

"Livvie. I am sorry I gave you such a cold shoulder. I never thought about what you felt or thought and what you went through and why you reacted to seeing me with her that way"

"No, no Fitz, please don't apologize. This one is on me alone" – she hiccupped in the middle of her sentence, soliciting a small laugh from Fitz.

"It was really horrible what I said to you, and I wish more than anything that I could just go back in time and undo it. I promise I will be on my best behavior until the end of the summer and never once complain about lack of shopping and beauty saloons"

Fitz chuckled at her and shook his head in disbelief:

"I would not put any money on this bet, my love"

Olivia brought his head closer to hers and finally connected their lips in deep, heated kiss. She missed this, the warmth of his body, his lips scorching hers, his tongue playing in her mouth, the small sounds and groans that he made when she bit his lip or pulled his curls.

They broke the kiss reluctantly when they felt they were getting carried away and discovered that their hands ended up close or on the most sensitive parts of their bodies.

Breathing heavily, Fitz stared at Olivia, delighted to see her eyes bright with love and affection.

"Livvie, what brought this on? I know you were irritated and I know that you had too much wine to drink, but there was something else that made you so moody, right?"

Olivia fiddled with her fingers, shifted on his lap, finally getting the courage to raise her head and catch his eyes.

"I read an article about us" – she almost whispered.

"Article? What do you mean article?"

"When we went to town last week, some people took pictures of us and posted them on Twitter. So, some asshole of a blogger picked them up and gave our day a minute-by-minute run of how unaffectionate we were with each other, how we never took our son anywhere with us, and how you were probably getting tired of me and will move on to your next mistress soon"

"Liv, what are you talking about, you have never been my mistress, and you are my wife now. Even then, why do we care what some random, irrelevant blogger says?"

"I know I should not care… But I found it that morning before I started working and it just riled me up. I didn't know how much it upset me until I saw you with those women at Alex's camp and I just saw red. I wanted to scratch their eyes out and murder you"

"Oh-so-brutal! I love it" - Fitz smiled against her lips and they went for another few minutes gently kissing and caressing each other, catching up on a few days on no touching.

"Momma?" – they broke apart to find Alex standing in the doorway, sleepy eyes and tousled hair making him look even more adorable than he was. He broke into a huge, toothy smile when he saw his parents in a tight embrace on a couch, no longer wondering where they were when he woke up from his unplanned nap.

Alex ran over to them and inserted himself in the middle, enjoying the kisses they both placed on his head. He would never admit it, but he liked having his mom and dad to himself and not share them with his brother or sister, at least for a few days.

"Did you have a good nap, sweetie. Daddy made us pasta and tomato sauce, like we wanted!"

Alex grinned at his mother whose smile was identical, and Fitz could feel his heart swell looking at his family. It felt good not to be ad at each other anymore and finally enjoy some tranquil dinnertime with two of them.

Pasta dinner and smores on the porch later, Alex finally passed out when it was closer to midnight. His tired parents made to their bedroom only to shed the clothes and engage each other into two intense rounds of sex.

Olivia laid on her back, watching the ceiling fan, with Fitz by her side, his hands around her and his head on her breasts. He lazily dragged his hands up and down her sides, playing with her nipples, making her twitch and squirm. They were both spent and exhausted, but pleasantly so, the feeling of physical reconnection washing the aftereffects of their ugly fight away.

When Fitz tried to stir and raise up, Olivia grabbed his shoulders and brought him back into her embrace.

"Where are you going?"

"I want to get you a warm towel to clean you up from this" – his hand travelled down her body and played in her wet folds, the fluids of both their releases seeping out of her.

"Don't, I want to feel it"

"What?" – he raised himself on his elbow and stared at her incredulously. "You always like to clean up"

"I know.. But tonight, I want to feel you on me when I sleep, and want to feel US" – her voice trembled and fresh tears appeared in her eyes.

"Oh baby, please don't cry. We are good, the fight is over, we just had amazing make us sex" – he tried to joke to cheer her up.

"I know, I am sorry, I promise I will stop crying now"

They kissed on it and snuggled closer into the embrace. They slept tightly, not leaving each others' arms even for a minute, and the next morning was finally not awkward when they woke intertwined and started off where they left it the night before…

A/N: Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think! Until next time!