A month had gone by and Fitz was still angry with Olivia. She didn't blame him; he had every right to be angry. He hadn't let her in the White House since the last time. Since Ella was a few months old, Olivia would take her for the weekend so James and Cyrus could have alone time. But since Fitz found out about Ella being his, he was taking her instead. Fitz was keeping Ella as long as he could through the week and on the weekends. Olivia had tried to get Cyrus to talk to him about letting her take Ella even for a few hours but he refused. Fitz had never seen the stitches from her injury. After Huck took out the stitches from her forehead, there was a scar.
At the end of the month, both divorces were final. Edison had admitted to Olivia that he had cheated on her and was in love with another woman in Georgia, so he didn't fight the divorce. Mellie had taken all three of her children back to California to live. Her divorce from Fitz was a public as could be, but they were friendly about it. He was allowed to see his children any time he wanted. And now that he knew about Ella, he was going to do the same with her.
Olivia was watching the news in the afternoon when the doorbell rang.
Cyrus stood on the other side holding Ella with diaper bag in hand. "I need you to watch her for a few hours. James and I need to go visit his dad in the hospital and it's a long car ride for her."
"Okay," she took Ella from him and closed the door as he got on the elevator.
Together they sat on the floor playing with Ella's doll and playing dress up. Liv made her a snack and sat at the table while she ate, and the doorbell rang again.
Slowly, she went to answer it, knowing it was him.
"Ms. Pope, the President sent me to get Ella," Tom informed her.
"I've barely had her an hour. Tom please, just for a few more hours. I've haven't seen her in a month," Liv begged.
Tom was compassionate towards her but he had to take Ella to the White House. "I'm sorry ma'am. I have to."
Olivia nodded and went to the table as Ella finished her snack while Tom picked up her toys. She got down to her level and spoke to her. "You're going to go see Fitz, okay? We can play another time." Liv was getting teary but knew she couldn't actually cry in front of Ella. If she did, she would think that something was wrong; even though it was.
"I stay, we can play dolls. Please Livia?"
"I bet Fitz will play with your dolls with you." Liv wiped away the tears and hugged Ella.
"We play later," Ella told her.
Tom picked her up and went to the car. As instructed, he took her straight to the Oval for time with Fitz before his last meeting.
When Tom put her on the floor, Ella sat down at his feet and babbled at her doll. Normally, Ella would run towards Fitz and tell him things that he didn't quite understand but he pretended he did.
Taken back, Fitz looked at Tom for a clue.
"She didn't want to leave Ms. Pope. She begged her to stay," Tom informed him.
Fitz was a bit sad that Ella didn't want to come spend time with him. But then he remembered that she hadn't seen Olivia in a month, and to a three year old, it was a lifetime. He let Tom leave and got on the floor with Ella.
"We'll see Olivia later," Fitz told her as he kissed her cheek.
After his meeting was over, Cyrus and James were already back. When Fitz went in the Oval with Ella, he saw Cyrus going through the agenda for the next day.
"What's Ella doing here? I left her with Liv," Cyrus questioned.
"I don't trust Olivia with her. God knows what she'd do to her. So I had Tom bring Ella here," Fitz replied.
Cyrus picked Ella up and placed her on his knee. "Can play with Livia?" Ella asked.
"So you took her away from Olivia because she what? She might spend time with her?"
"Olivia gave her away once, who knows what she'd do now," Fitz spat.
"Don't you think that's a bit hostile? You've had Ella to yourself all month. She asked where Olivia was last night, so I thought I could leave her with Liv. Nothing bad would ever happen to Ella while she's with her. Just like with you. Fitz, you have to get a grip on reality. Ella is Olivia's as much as she is yours. And since she is mine and James', you cannot go around and have someone pick her up just because she is with someone you don't like. You and Olivia need to have it out. Go talk to her, yell at her if needed but get a handle on it. We want Ella to grow up with both you and Olivia around. And not just around on holidays and her birthday, but all the time. Liv knows that what she did was wrong. She's told you that, and she's apologized for that too. It's killing her that she hasn't seen Ella in a month."
"You don't think it's killed me to know that I haven't been able to see my daughter every day of her life? Or even know that she exists? Exists as my daughter? Olivia's had it easy this month."
"Fitz, what would you do if Mellie said you couldn't see Teddy anymore? Or that you couldn't be part of his life anymore?"
"I'd be very angry and probably depressed. But I'd give it my all to fight her."
"That's what Olivia's going through now. Didn't you find it funny that Olivia was home in the middle of the day? And was able to watch Ella? Liv hasn't been to work in weeks. I got there this afternoon and she was still in her pajamas and she looked like she hadn't brushed her hair in several days. Olivia's not fighting because she thinks this is what she deserves. She took away something that belonged to you and now she's dealing with the consequences. The last time she left her apartment was the day she came here. She didn't even go to the doctor to get her stitches taken out, she had Huck come over and do it. Her team is worried about her and so am I. And if you give a damn, you would be too."
Fitz heard every word Cyrus said. "Stitches? What about stitches?"
"Oh, she fell into the coffee table and cut her forehead open. Looked pretty bad too. Huck put in seven stitches and took them out a week later."
Immediately, Fitz felt guilty. "She didn't fall into the coffee table, I threw her into it."
"I know."
"She told you?"
"She didn't have to. She stuttered and looked away when I asked about the stitches."
Cyrus took Ella home after their conversation, leaving Fitz to feel extremely guilty for the damage he had done. He realized he was wrong to deny Olivia seeing Ella the past month. And the more he thought about it, the more he understood that Olivia giving James and Cyrus a baby that was really theirs, was for the better. He had never actually missed a day of her life or any celebration or milestone that she had. His guilt was overwhelming to him as he started to drink the Scotch at his desk. Cyrus was right. What could Olivia do to ever hurt Ella? Absolutely nothing. She would never harm Ella or Fitz. Fitz knew that now was when he had to talk to Olivia. He sat the glass down half full and called Tom to bring the limo around.
