Fitz ran a ragged hand across his face and rubbed his eyes hard. Not again, he thought to himself. Please...not again. Fitz felt Olivia's side of the bed and found that while it hadn't fully cooled, it wasn't overly warm with remnants of her body heat, telling him that Olivia couldn't have left him that long ago. His sadness was overshadowed by feelings of annoyance and slight anger at being played once more, by the same woman. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. The old cliché ran as a loop in Fitz's head as he flung the covers off of his naked body and went into his en suite bathroom, which showed no signs of Olivia. Within ten minutes, he relieved himself, brushed his teeth, and showered. After returning back to his room and checking his iHome clock which read 7:57 a.m., Fitz dressed himself in a grey Oxford t-shirt and black sweatpants figuring that he could be comfortable in his home while he got some extra work done.

He walked down the short hallway back to the common areas, noting the silence that greeted him throughout his apartment, and found himself in his living room, which he now saw as the scene of the crime. The room was bright and airy, the table clean and gleaming. Instead of clothes being strewn about on the floor, he found his clothes in a neatly folded pile waiting for him on his couch. Olivia's clothes were gone. The open concept kitchen was also empty. Deflated, Fitz made his way toward the refrigerator to check its contents. He'd had hoped that Olivia would be puttering in his apartment making herself comfortable, giving herself a tour, fixing them breakfast...something, anything except her not being here and dashing his hopes once more.

Fitz was peering into the refrigerator trying to figure out what he wanted to eat when he heard the distinct sound of keys jangling and locks trying to unlatch waif to his ears. Looking back, Fitz knew that his reaction of just standing there confused and lost wasn't the wisest thing to do. What if someone was trying to break in? Though his building's security was excellent, you just never knew. But instead going to investigate Fitz, now standing straight up, focused his gaze past the living room and toward the enclosed foyer and entryway. Soon he heard the door open, close and lock, followed by light footsteps.

To say Fitz was shocked to see Olivia round the foyer's sharp corner would have been an understatement. There she was, in dark big sunglasses, wearing the same dress from last night under her trench coat. Instead of heels, she wore ballet flats. In one had she carried take out bag from one of Fitz's favorite neighborhood diners and in the other hand was a medium sized gym bag.

Olivia walked through his home as if she belonged there, and it took some moments before she realized Fitz was staring at her with a dumbfounded look on his face.

"Good morning! I brought us some breakfast," Olivia said as she walked over to him. "Where do you want to eat? Also, do you mind if I brush my teeth and wash my face quickly? I had a quick swish of your mouthwash but I rather brush before eating." Olivia said all of this in a rush as she walked past Fitz and deposited the take out bag on a kitchen counter. All the while Fitz started at Olivia, still confused. When Olivia didn't get an answer, she have him her full attention. "Fitz? Is something wrong?"

"What are you doing?"

Olivia blinked. Wasn't it self-explanatory? "Well, I figured I owed you breakfast. But, I'm a wine and popcorn girl myself. I thought that it would be better if I bought us breakfast instead of running the risk of embarrassing myself in your kitchen."

"Not that, I just..." Fitz trailed off. He didn't want to say I thought you'd left me again, for it would show a lack of trust. But damn if that wasn't the thought going through his head over and over again from the moment he'd woken up until now.

Ever astute, Olivia figured it out. "I'm sorry if you thought I left - again. I thought I'd be back before you woke up. I wanted to get us breakfast." She paused and motioned to the gym bag that was still in her hand. "And I wanted to get some clothes to change. I was hoping we could spend the morning together. That is, if you don't have other plans..." Olivia trailed off, now unsure about her morning epiphany.

Finally believing that all was well and things were fine, Fitz smiled. "I think that's a great idea." Fitz walked up to her and kissed her forehead. Looking down at her, Fitz said "you're really short, Olivia." This was the first time Fitz actually noticed the sizable height difference between the two of them; all other times she'd either worn sky high heels or they were in the throes of passion and, therefore, the differences in their heights was not his area of focus.

"Ha ha. I'm not short, I'm petite," Olivia huffed.

"Whatever you say. What's with the shades?"

"Raccoon eyes aren't particularly enticing. I didn't feel like being bothered with looks while I was out."

"Oh. Well you're in the house now, take them off," Fitz said while reaching to pull off the glasses. Olivia backed away quickly out of his reach.

"Not until I've washed my face."

"Ok then." Fitz paused. "Do you want to shower?"

"If you don't mind."

"I don't mind at all, the food will still be warm. You can use the bathroom in my room or the guest one down the hall. There are extra towels in both bathrooms."

"Thank you, Fitz." Olivia stepped back in front of him and reached up on her tip toes to give Fitz a quick peck on the mouth before darting off to the en suite bathroom in Fitz's room, gym bag in tow.

About 15 minutes later, Olivia walked out of the bathroom, refreshed with a clean face and brushed teeth, her hair pulled up into a sloppy bun, wearing a pair of black leggings, fitted cobalt blue long sleeved v-neck sweater whose hem stopped right under her behind, and her ballet flats. Olivia was pleased with the casually sexy look that came courtesy of the extra clothes she kept just in case work required an all-nighter. When Olivia finally made her way back to Fitz, she found him taking food out of the microwave.

"I put our food in for a minute once I heard the shower stop." Fitz eyed Olivia and took in her appear bed, careful to control the quick physical reaction his body had upon seeing her. Breakfast first, Fitz. We both need food, he thought to himself. He looked down and saw her gym bag in her hand. "You could have left your bag in the room, you know."

"I know. I figured I'd just leave it in the foyer with my coat."

Fitz shrugged. "Whatever you like. You go do that and I'll take our food. I have everything set up."

"Where? Do you have a dining room?"

Fitz laughed. "A very small one that I've never used. But no, I actually have a small balcony off of the living room." Olivia looked into the living room and saw that the long and heavy curtains had been pulled back to reveal a glass sliding door. Sure enough there was a small set up out there, big enough for two, with a table that already had plates and oranges juice for two.

"This is nice, Fitz."

Pleased, Fitz picked up the food and began walking towards the balcony. "I thought it would be nice to take advantage of the extra nice weather today. You'd think it was the beginning of summer instead of early days of spring."

Wasting no time, Olivia dropped her bag off of in the foyer, and made her way to the balcony where she found Fitz standing and waiting so that he could seat her. Before sitting, Olivia took in the gorgeous view of Central Park. The breakfast she'd brought - bacon, sausage links, croissants, scrambled omelets, home fries and fresh strawberries and pineapple slices - was spread out neatly before them accompanied by orange juice.

"I didn't know what you might like, so I figured I'd bring a little bit of everything," Olivia explained, motioning toward the food spread.

"Fine with me. You made some good choices. I rarely treat myself to a nice breakfast, so this is perfect," Fitz said while filing his plate with food.

"So what do you eat in the morning?" Olivia grabbed some fruit, eggs, a croissant and sausage while waiting for Fitz's answer.

"Usually a protein shake or a smoothie. I take advantage of the gym in the building and try to work out in the mornings at least four times a week." Olivia eyed Fitz as he reached over for some ketchup, the simple action making his bicep bulge. She thought of their nights together and the strength of his body and knew that his gym and protein shake routine was definitely paying off, for both him and her.

Over breakfast the two shared secretive smiles while they talked about mundane things. It was as if this was their first date, though very informal. There was a certain ease of conversation that was only rarely taken over by nerves brought on by the fact that their interactions seemed both backwards and at an escalated pace.

"So, Oxford huh?" Olivia motioned toward Fitz's shirt right before sticking a fork full of eggs into her mouth.

Fitz nodded. "Yep. Spent two years there. I loved it."

"Being a Rhodes Scholar is a pretty nice feather in your cap."

He grinned. "You looked me up?"

Laughing, Olivia responded. "As if you didn't look me up the first second you could!"

"Guilty as charged. Graduating Order of the Coif is nothing to sneeze at. I did well in law school, but clearly you would have given me a run for my money if we were in school together and in the same section."

"Speaking of me giving you a run for your money, what are we going to do?" Olivia pushed her empty plate away from her and leaned back into her seat, her gaze fixed on Fitz who seemed to want to focus on eat the remaining food on his plate instead of looking at her.

"Do about what?" Despite his own admonishment of her the previous night, Fitz played dumb, not wanting to think about the future and the fact that this time they knowingly entered ethical murky waters. However, as much as Fitz liked his career and even had moments of actually loving it (very rare for those in his field), he was willing to risk it to see where things could go between them. It would kill him if she didn't feel the same, especially after last night, hence his reluctance to broach the topic.

Olivia eyes him speculatively. "Is it my turn to tell you that you're are too smart to play dumb?"

Fitz chewed up the last bit of bacon and washed it down with the remaining orange juice in his glass. Fortified and without any valid stall tactics coming to mind, Fitz gave Olivia his full attention and nodded his head letting her know he wanted her to take the lead and go first.

"I think we should-" Olivia stopped herself when she say the dejected look come across Fitz's face. It was as if he was preparing himself for her to walk away. Again. "I think we need to figure out how we're going to be discrete about this while the case is still ongoing."

Surprise, shock, exhilaration and a host of other emotions took over, and now his face no longer bore the signs preparing to be rejected. No, Fitz actually looked like an excited little boy and reminded Olivia very much of Jamie. And, in his excitement, Fitz began to get up, for he wanted to kiss Olivia badly. But instead, he sat back down when Olivia told him - firmly - that there would be no kissing until they figure this out, lest they find themselves distracted.

"Discrete. Right. I can do that." The pair spoke about making sure they were always professional in meetings and that they limit their public outings together. Fitz could work with that, but he was dying to take her out and date her properly. He couldn't do that if they were always watching their backs. "How long?"

"Until the case settles."

"But what if it doesn't settle and we go to trial? You know that with all of the various pieces of a trial, it could take years!"

Olivia scoffed. "We won't go to trial. We will settle."

"Yea, we'll settle once your client sees reason."

"You are the one who needs to see reason and accept our offer. The sooner you do that, the faster worries about being discrete disappear."

"Well," Fitz began, "sorry to disappoint you. As much as I would love to skip or shorten the whole "discrete" phase, I'm not willing to settle unless your client is fair and gives us what we want, which if I'm being honest, is less than what we'd likely win in a jury trial."

Olivia could feel herself ticking, her eyes narrowing as a result of feeling as if she were playing defense at the office or in court. She counted to ten before releasing a gulp of air. "We can't do this."

"Do what? Second thoughts again?"

"No, this, we can't do this. We can't argue back and forth about this case on personal time. It's not fair to us and it's not fair to our clients. For now, there needs to be a Chinese wall between us."

After taking a few moments to think, Fitz agreed. "But I don't want this to be our modus-operandi." Fitz reached over the table to grab Olivia's hand. "I want us to be able to talk about things, share ideas and all of that."

Beaming, she replied. "I would like that too, Fitz. Apart from this case, we should feel free to talk about work and bounce ideas off of each other. As long as our firms aren't adverse to each other, of course."

"Agreed. But, what happens if we are assigned to be opposite each other again? Olivia, one we are out in the open, I don't want to have to worry about hiding."

"Well once this is over and we're out, I don't think it will be a problem. We could easily step back from a case." Olivia knew exactly what was going to come out of Fitz's mouth next. "And, we are assigned to be opposite each other, we could take turns stepping down. If it's a really big case, you can have it."

Fitz's mouth gaped open. "Why?"

Olivia shrugged before pushing away from the table. Standing, she began stacking dishes and cartoons. Though he still wanted an answer, Fitz followed her lead and helped her clean up. The pair walked back into the apartment and straight to the kitchen. She threw away the used food cartoons and napkins, while Fitz placed their dishes in the sink. They did this in silence, their movements in sync with them never bumping into each other. After they finished, and Olivia plugged in her almost dead iPhone in its charger, they made their way to the couch in the living room. Olivia's eyes locked on to the table and she instantly remembered being spread out on it, while Fitz did magical things with his tongue. Shaking her head to get rid of the images, Olivia peered at Fitz, who was sitting there quietly while he waited for her to collect her thoughts.

"You told my mom that you were on partner track at your firm."

"Yes I am. I have a pretty diverse practice, and a couple of the bigwigs at my firm have already told me that my partnership chances are quite good."

"Ok. Well, that's why, in the event that we are both staffed on a big case, you can have it. It's more important for you than for me."

Still confused, Fitz pressed the issue. "And you aren't? I got the impression that you moved back here and work at your parents' firm because they want you to be partner there."

Olivia sighed. "In theory, that's the plan. I just don't know if that's really what I want long term."

"That means what? You want to leave the law? There's nothing wrong with that. I'd bet good money that most of the people I graduated with no longer practice. My friend Harrison stopped practicing a couple of years back."

"You're right. I'm good at what I do. There are times when I'm content with being an attorney. But I don't think I ever loved it or would love doing it for the long haul." She paused, contemplating whether to continue. "While living in DC and being up close and personal with all of the scandals, I began thinking about starting my own crisis management firm." There, she said it. She waited for him to gently tell her it was a foolish idea. In the months before returning to New York, she'd told her parents of her desire. There was no hint of gentleness as both parents too her that her idea was foolhardy and that she should grow up and take her rightful place in the firm. According to them, they'd given her enough time in DC to do what she wanted and it was now time to come "home." Alex, the only other person she'd discussed her idea with was, of course, supportive. While she yearned for her little sister to live closer, she wanted Olivia to do what made her happy. In the end, of course, the combination of her subconscious desire to garner her parents' approval combined with being nervous and scared to branch out with this entrepreneurial endeavor led to her coming back to New York.

"Well, why don't you? I'm sure you'd be excellent at that, particularly with you experience as an attorney. It could be a hybrid crisis management and preemptive consulting firm. I like the idea of it." Fitz's enthusiasm over the idea was evident and genuine. Olivia could tell that it wasn't coming from a place of telling her what she wanted to hear or due to just keeping her pleased so she'd stick around. He meant it. "My friend Harrison that I mentioned...do you remember him? He was with me the night we met, he was dancing with one of your friends.

Olivia searched her memory and finally came up with the picture of a good looking black guy dancing with Quinn. "Yea I remember him."

"Well, as I said a few minutes ago, he stopped practicing a few years ago. He said that he thought his MBA was more useful, so now he does consulting. He's definitely happier. When I introduce you two, I'm sure he'd be okay with you picking his brain about transitioning out into that field."

Listening intently, Olivia marveled at the fact that Fitz was already trying to find ways of making a seldom expressed desire happen. It didn't escape her that Fitz spoke of her meeting his friends and this making plans for them and the future. It felt good.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Fitz. I have time to think about it. For now, I'm just trying to settle back into New York as well as the firm."

Grabbing her chin, Fitz leaned over and kissed her softly. Pulling back, he looked her in the eye: "Ok. But I'll support you 100% with whatever you want to do. I promise."

Overcome with emotion over his support, she closed the slight distance between their bodies and quickly straddled him. Olivia wasted no time kissing him, but this time their kisses were slow and thorough, urgency replaced by the feeling that they had time because this thing between them was going to happen for it now had a chance to grow.

At first Fitz's hands were idle, simply resting on Olivia's firm thighs. He was trying his best to control himself and his physical reaction to her. But when he felt the beginnings of a slow grind against him, he felt his control slipping away from him. Just as he was about to cup her ass to bring her closer to his growing erection, Olivia pulled her mouth away from him and placed her hands gently against his chest.

"Though I can't seem to get enough of you, I think we should slow down a bit. Things are moving kind of -"

"Fast?" Fitz interjected, his hand moving up to play with the wisps of hair that had freed themselves via help from the nice breeze while out on the balcony. "I understand." He pecked her lips and helped eased her off of his lap. Olivia made herself comfortable and sat as close to Fitz as she could without winding back atop him.

"Well, just a bit. We don't have to stop...you know..." Olivia trailed off, somewhat embarrassed that she was essentially saying that even though she wanted to slow thing up a bit, she wasn't going to close herself off to some more fabulous sex with him.

Luckily, Fitz understood, and though he wore a smirk on his face, he told Olivia held the reigns and things could go her way until they were both comfortable. Happy that they were on the same page, Olivia asked Fitz to give her a tour of his apartment. Though Olivia had already seen much of the apartment, they walked hand in hand throughout it, with Fitz showing her the small dining room, the guest bathroom, and the second bedroom that also doubled as his in home office. On a whim, Fitz grabbed his keys and their coats, and took Olivia throughout the complex and showed her the gym, the laundry room, and the roof top living area with grills and private spacing for use by the building's tenants. Once back in his apartment, their coats hung up, Olivia marveled at how much she really liked his building and asked how long he'd lived there.

"I think I bought this place almost three years ago. I was fine with continuing to rent, but my mother thought it would be a good idea to buy something to begin building equity." The pair found themselves once more on the couch, after Olivia declined something to drink.

"Smart woman."

"Yes. Margaret Grant is a smart woman. And funny. And eccentric. And a whole host of other things. She's a character, to say the least." Fitz went on talk effusively about the Grant matriarch and how much he missed her, given that she lived in California. "Yes, that's her. I have a younger brother and sister too. Jonathan is still in California, but Sarah lives here on the east coast in Boston."

"What about your dad?" Olivia asked, an expectant look on her face, after having heard so much about his mother and siblings.

Talking about his dad was always tough for Fitz. Actually, he was surprised she didn't know anything about his dad. "My dad is with my mom in California."

"Ok…" She got the distinct impression he didn't want to talk about his dad, but couldn't fully understand why. "Look, if you don't want to talk about your dad it's fine."

Sighing, Fitz decided to just lay everything bare. "It's not that. I just generally don't talk about my dad much because he was – is, in some respects – a public figure. I try not to make a big deal of it."

"I get it. Did people try to use you because of him or compare you to him?"

"Yes to both."

Without much thought, Olivia grabbed one of Fitz's hands and held it between hers. "If you feel more comfortable waiting for a bit longer it's fine with me."

Touched, he responded. "I trust you, Livvie."

"Livvie?"

"You don't like it?"

Olivia felt her face heating and she smiled shyly at him. "No, I like it. Usually people call me Olivia or Liv. Livvie is cute."

"Good. So my dad…he used to be in politics."

"Politics? Really?" She was quiet for a few moments and worked toward putting the dots together. At the same moment when Fitz was going to tell her exactly who his father is, she cried out. "Wait, your father is Fitzgerald Grant, II, former governor and senator from California?"

"He's the one."

"Wow, Fitz. That's…wow."

Fitz spoke about his Big Jerry, as they called him, in terms of being a man, a father, and a politician. "He was tough, but he was fair. And, he loved all of his kids even if he didn't always show it the right way. And after he had a double bypass surgery a few years after his heart attack, both he and my mom thought it best that he stepped down from being Senator. He was upset and a bit lost for a while. He'd worked his whole life to get to that point. But, after a while he got used to his new life. Both of my parents are very active in community affairs, as well as various charities and philanthropic endeavors. They're happy."

"It sounds nice, Fitz."

He nodded in agreement, a small smile on his face and thoughts of his childhood ran through his head. "There were some challenges. It can be hard to be a politician's kid. Luckily, Mom was there and never let us get big heads nor have our childhoods ruined. Let me show you some pictures."

Fitz disappeared for a minute and then returned with a fairly big photo album. For the next half hour, the pair looked at each photo as Fitz told her bits and pieces of his childhood. As she listened to him regale her with the tales of mischief he and his siblings got into, Olivia found herself falling for him even more. This time, though, she wasn't scared enough to run. She was happy she took a chance and it paid off. I should listen to Alex more often.

"Well you already know about my parents. And, honestly, I could tell you more, but we're having such a nice time, I don't want to change the tone. I don't know if you remember, but the night we met my older sister was there. Her name is Alexandra, Alex for short when I'm not annoyed with her." Olivia got up to retrieve her phone. Sitting next to Fitz, she showed him a few photos of her and her sister.

"Are you two close?"

"Very. She's my best friend. I loved living in DC, but I missed her terribly. Being near her has been one of the best things about coming back to New York." Suddenly remembering the other pictures she had, she grabbed her phone from Fitz and quickly flipped through the photo album until she saw what she wanted. She handed her phone back to Fitz and glowed as she watched his eyes begin to gleam and a sexy smile take over his face.

"You still have our pictures?" he asked, referring to the selfies they'd taken the night they met.

"Well…" Olivia trailed off and rubbed her hands together in a small fit of embarrassment. "I actually deleted them when I told you I wanted to keep things strictly professional. The pictures were too much of a bittersweet reminder. But Alex retrieved them from the photostream I didn't know I had and told me to rethink my decision."

"Oh. So that means I'm in Alex's debt. I'll have to repay her for making you change your mind," Fitz smirked while wiggling his eyebrows.

Laughing, Olivia playfully shoved his shoulder. "Yes, one day. But, I'm sorry Fitz, I have to leave. I have a lot of work I need to catch up on today."

"I understand, I have some work to do too." They got up and Fitz walked Olivia to the door. Ever the gentleman, Fitz helped Olivia put on her trench and even belted it for her. Not being able to help himself, Fitz grabbed Olivia's collar and pulled her into his body. Framing her face, he wasted no time kissing her. Bending at the knees so that their height difference wouldn't put a crick in her neck, they kissed for what seemed like forever. Fitz groaned into her mouth as Olivia sucked his tongue and squeezed his ass. They both knew that if they didn't stop, then Olivia would never leave. Finally, and regretfully, they pair pulled away free each other. Their chests heaved as they tried to regain their breaths.

"Can I see you tomorrow? You can come back here, or we can meet wherever you'd think we'd have privacy."

"I'd love to Fitz, but I can't. I have a date."

"A date? Really?" It took everything in him to remain calm. While he fought to give away nothing via his facial expression, Olivia just laughed. She knew exactly what Fitz was doing and it tickled her.

"Yes, a date. With this guy right here." Fishing her phone from her pocket, Olivia punched in the passcode and quickly pulled up a picked of Jamie smiling for the cameras. "This is my nephew Jamie. I promised him that I would take him to the park and he'd have a fun filled day with his favorite auntie." Olivia took the phone and slipped it back into her pocket.

"Ha ha. You did that on purpose."

"I did!"

Fitz bent down to grab Olivia's bag and handed it to her. "Does this mean I won't be able to see you until Tuesday?"

"I'm afraid so. But, I'll give you a call tomorrow, ok?"

"Ok. Let me walk you to the garage."

Grabbing his keys, Fitz showed Olivia out and they made their way to the garage. After sharing another kiss, Fitz put Olivia into the car and watched as she drove off. Back in his apartment and in his makeshift office, Fitz began to do some work of his own, but found that he couldn't concentrate. Forty minutes of him reading the same bit of reading the same over and over on Westlaw passed before his turned off his billing timer and lay his head back in his chair. Closing his eyes, he replayed the events of the last twelve or so hours. He was thankful to have been given a second chance, thankful that Olivia changed her mind. Their conversations this morning only served to reaffirm Fitz's initial feeling that they had something was right. And they were going to make it work. At that same moment, his phone chimed alerting him to a text message. It was Olivia. Keying in his code, Fitz saw that she'd sent him their pictures from the night they'd met. And, right under it, she said "Thought you might like these. Livvie."

Yes, Fitz thought to himself, it can work. It will.

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this! Sorry for the wait. Leave me some reviews! xoxo