AN: 13 CHAPTERS! Thank you so much for sticking with this story! This is my first one, and the response has been overwhelming! I love these two SOOO much and I'm glad you guys do too! I figured on this scandal-less Thursday I would update my story.

Better late than never, right?

LONGER CHAPTER...You're welcome!

Happy reading!

XOXO

PS: I OWN NOTHING! ALL PROPS TO SR!

TFTH

CH 14

Olivia was the first to wake up. The first thing that registered to her was the throbbing erection on her backside as she lay intertwined at the leg with Fitz. The only way to determine where one ended and another started was by the vast skin color of each body. Olivia glanced down and noticed her fingers interlocked with his. She marveled at how beautiful they looked next to each other.

As if it were possible to get any closer to him, Olivia nestled her body into him more. She was enjoying the closeness of their bodies and didn't want the moment to end at all. It was at that moment that she began to replay the recent events of her life. Two months had passed since the rendezvous at Fitz' family home. She smiled to herself thinking about what had transpired between her and the love of her life.

FLASHBACK

The morning after the fiasco at the family home, Fitz made breakfast in bed for Olivia. It amazed her how comfortable she was in her own skin around him. He had slipped on boxer briefs to fix her breakfast as she remained as naked as the day she was born in bed. When she woke up and found him missing, she took the opportunity to go to the bathroom and freshen up. When she returned to the bed, she began to notice just how sore she was.

Making love into the night can do that to you, she thought to herself.

Fitz entered the bedroom to find her laying on her stomach in bed, arms wrapped around his pillow. Olivia was wide awake, and was enjoying the feeling of him stare holes into her nude body. Fitz carefully sat the tray of morning goodies on the desk in the bedroom and stood there, marveling at the beautiful woman God had placed in his presence.

As he stood there and watched her, he couldn't help but think back to all they had already been though as a couple. The death of her grandmother was at the forefront of his mind, and he was grateful that he didn't lose her in that ordeal. Everything from the battle of Elijah Pope to the fallout with Mellie, to the backward ways of Natalie hadn't done a thing to deter the progress he was making with this incredible woman. He felt himself become slightly emotional as he watched her small frame lay on her tummy spread eagle in his bed.

This woman is the epitome of perfect, He thought to himself.

I wonder how long he's gonna stand there, she thought to herself.

Fitz shook himself out of his haze as he noticed her breathing pattern change. She was awake and aware that he was watching her. Fitz knew she was trying to play possum with him, and he took the opportunity to show her who was boss (on some occasions anyway).

Fitz made his way to the bed as quietly as he could. He thought once to slip his boxers off and make sweet love to her, but he thought better of it as he noticed her now glistening lower lips mocking him. He instead crawled on top of her, taking in her scent as he climbed her body and lay gentle kisses on the back of her neck. She began to moan in his embrace and turned over to face her now lover.

"Good morning to you too." She said as she kissed his lips quickly.

What was meant to be a simple peck on the lips turned into a battle of tongues as both began to get caught up in the moment. Olivia wrapped her arms around his neck as he tongued her down with all his might. When air became a necessity, Fitz broke the kiss, their lips remaining millimeters from each other. Olivia opened her eyes and met his, seeing only admiration and love in them.

"Good morning, beautiful." Fitz said as he pecked her lips again.

He slipped off the bed, grabbed the tray, and made his way back to his waiting girlfriend. Olivia wasn't used to the attention she was getting and she felt extremely lucky and grateful for what was happening to her. Fitz took his time feeding her fruit from their feast, as well as exchanging kisses and sweet words as well. Olivia took a sip of juice from the tray, and Fitz took this as an opportunity to tell her what was on his mind.

"Livvie, how would you like to meet my mother?"

Olivia felt juice slip into her nose as she began to choke.

"Hunh?" She asked in between coughs.

"My mother. My family isn't all color resistant in the head, ya know." Fitz grinned at her.

Olivia couldn't hide the concern in her voice. "Are you sure it's a good idea? Natalie has probably-"

"Screw Natalie. I don't care about her. I care about you and I want my family to know exactly how much I do. They will love you because I do. My mother especially." Fitz said casually as he popped a grape into his mouth.

Olivia pondered this as she attempted to sip her juice again, desperate for a few moments to think.

"Ok…if you think it's a good idea, then-"

Fitz cut her off again.

"I know it is. TRUST me."

/

A week after they returned to Fitz' home from the lake, Fitz set up a small family dinner at his mother's home. Rose Grant thought this was a wonderful idea as she wanted so badly to meet Olivia and see where her mind was. She was a great judge of character, just like Fitz, and wanted to meet the woman who finally took her son's breath away. Fitz wanted it to be small and intimate, only wanting it to be Olivia, him, his mother, and Nate. Rose insisted he invite Natalie. Fitz was cautious of this, but he knew if Rose said this, she likely had a plan.

Olivia spent that week contacting her team with her new idea. She wanted to stay in the south and wanted to open a new firm right in the heart of the state. Her team thought this was a great idea and thus the plan for expansion began. This occupied her week to the fullest, only getting to spend quality time with Fitz in the evening to go to bed so Fitz didn't exactly get to inform her of the dinner date being set until the night of.

"So, what do you want for dinner?" Olivia asked Fitz that evening.

"Whatever my mom decides is fine with me. She can cook, ya know." Fitz joked.

The room grew quiet and it took Fitz exactly 5 seconds to realize that Olivia had no idea what he was talking about.

"Oops…Ok, Livvie, don't freak out, but-"

"BUT!?" Olivia almost yelled.

It was too late. The freak-out session had already began.

"I sorta-kinda set up a dinner meeting for us with my family." Fitz revealed. Olivia wanted to be upset with him, but it was hard to do. As she spun around to face him, he looked as if he was flinching and shew as about to smack him in the face.

"You sorta-kinda? As in, it's already been planned, right?" Olivia confirmed.

"Yeah. Baby listen. I wasn't tryna go over your head. You've been so busy lately with your team doing God knows what and I didn't want to burden you anymore." Fitz was trying to explain.

Any sign of anger left Olivia quickly as she realized she too had a secret. She had yet to inform Fitz of her intention to move part of her business to the south to be close to him. She felt guilty and it must have been written on her face because the next sentence confirmed what she was thinking.

"Speaking of…what HAVE you guys been up to, Livvie?" Fitz asked. He could look at her facial expression and see something was different. She currently looked like the cat who ate the canary as she shuffled her feet and avoided his gaze.

"Nothing. So when were you gonna tell me about this dinner?" Olivia tried to mock anger, but her amusement was all over her face.

Fitz was slightly caught off guard by her not being upset. She began to seductively walk towards him, swaying her hips a little more than usual. He felt his pants begin to get tighter and swallowed the lump in this throat.

He was speechless.

"Hello?" Olivia asked as she was finally standing in front of him.

"Well, I- UH…" Fitz said as he looked her up and down. She was never more beautiful to him than when she bore her natural hair state, wore only panties, and one of his button down shirts.

"Doesn't matter." She said matter-of-factly as she put her fingers to his lips.

He went to wrap his hands around her waist, and she continued to tease him by licking her lips. She got on her tiptoes and licked the outer part of his ear, earning a generous groan from him. He attempted to slip his hands underneath the fabric of her shirt and pulled her closer to him, crashing her body into his now fully engorged penis.

"Oh no, you can put that back where it came from, cause since I have a DINNER to attend to night, I have to get ready." Olivia finished. She gave him a quick smooch on the lips and left his embrace. Fitz was left there with an erection that wouldn't wait and a dumb and defeated look on his face.

"Liivvviiiee?" he whined.

She walked her seductive walk into the bathroom to get dressed and he conceded that she had indeed won this round.

A few hours later, the couple arrived at Rose Grant's home. Olivia was the picture of calm until Fitz pulled into his mother's driveway. She began to feel her palms get sweaty and for a split second, contemplated cancelling the dinner. She was terrified that if someone in his family didn't like her, he would leave her and deep down, she had been dreading meeting his family for months now.

As if he could hear her thoughts, Fitz put the truck in park and grabbed her hand. He kissed her knuckles, looking deep in her eyes, and said, "Livvie, please calm down. They are going to LOVE you. You know why?"

Olivia shook her head.

"Because I do." Fitz kissed her until he could feel her body begin to calm down.

When they made it to the front door, Olivia smoothed out the imaginary wrinkles in her turquoise sundress and pulled imaginary lint off of his shirt. She also wore gold bangles on her wrist, her hair was in loose curls around her face, and she had on gold 4 inch sandals. Fitz wore a simple white button down, brown slacks, and loafers.

"You sure you wanna do this?" She asked him.

Fitz gave her a knowing smile and pressed the doorbell.

Olivia turned around to face whoever opened the door. She felt Fitz lean closer to her, kissing her cheek, and place his hand on her lower back. She glanced over at him and was able to catch his smooth and calm demeanor before the door was opened.

"Fitz! What's up, man?" Nathan asked. Fitz released her lower back to shake hands with his brother and give him a hug. He pulled back and Olivia swallowed as Nathan's gaze lowered to her.

"And this must be Olivia. It's nice to meet you." Nathan extended his hand to her and she grabbed it. She noticed how he didn't wipe his hand after shaking hers and this eased her nervousness a little.

"You as well. I've heard nothing but nice things about you."

"Well I wish I could say the same-"Nathan began, "but the negative things were from someone who doesn't even matter. Please, come in."

Olivia shot Fitz a look that said a thousand words and Fitz winked his eye at her. At that moment, Fitz wished Nathan had more of a brain-mouth filter than he actually had.

"Mom's in the kitchen. She's making your favorite and they've been in there for quite some time now." Nathan stated.

"They?" Olivia asked. At that moment, she wished she had gotten a guest list from Fitz.

"Yeah. Nat has her dumb ass in there too."

Olivia felt her stomach drop. Fitz placed his hand on her lower back again, and Nathan took this as his cue to continue.

"Don't worry, Olivia. I understand why Natalie said what she said now."

Olivia looked at Nathan and braced herself for something rude and vile to be spat at her.

Fitz waited for Nathan's charm to turn on. He didn't have to wait long.

"Cause you are extraordinarily beautiful. She probably couldn't help herself." Nathan winked at Olivia. She felt herself blush and Fitz tighten his grip around her waist now.

"Aye! Back off, Nate! NOT AVAILABLE." Fitz joked with his brother.

"Just stating the facts."

The kitchen door opened and Rose Grant appeared in the doorway.

"Fitzgerald!" Rose exclaimed. At first sight, you would think she hadn't seen her son in ages. In reality, it was only a few weeks.

"Hey mama." Olivia smiled at how he said this like a child. She inwardly cooed at how he and his mother embraced. Rose rubbed Fitz back as he bent down to hug his mother. Olivia stood to the side, admiring the love she felt radiate from mother and son.

"And you must be Olivia. My goodness, Fitz. She is a jewel." Rose approached Olivia. Olivia stuck her hand out to shake, and Rose ignored it, pulling her in for a hug.

"No, child. We hug in this house. Didn't you get the memo?" Rose joked with Olivia as she embraced her. Olivia laughed at Rose genuinely until she glanced up and Natalie was in her eyesight. Natalie looked like she smelled something and wanted to smile at the same time. Olivia thought to herself that this HAD to be making her uncomfortable.

"Olivia, nice to see you again." Natalie said though gritted teeth.

Rose released Olivia and Olivia wanted nothing more than to tell Natalie off. Instead, she chose to ignore her new enemy's demeanor and extended her hand to Natalie. They shook, and the dreaded pant wipe made an appearance again.

"Natalie, be polite. Olivia should probably wash her hands since there's no telling where YOURS have been." Nathan said.

Olivia tried to stifle a laugh, but Fitz failed and laughed out loud. Natalie's cheeks turned slightly red and Rose ended the small feud.

"Both of you, shush. Olivia, I was just finishing up dinner. Would you like to join me in the kitchen?"

Natalie's mouth hung open. Olivia accepted, leaving Nathan and Fitz to talk.

When dinner was finally served, Olivia sat next to Fitz, Natalie sat next to Nate, and Rose sat at the head of the table, leaving an empty seat on the other end. Dinner was slightly awkward when something was said that involved Natalie speaking, but conversation flowed easily between the other people at the table.

After desert was served, Rose asked Natalie and Nate to clear the table. Olivia offered to help, but Rose declined, saying they could handle it on their own. Natalie felt like someone had gut punched her as she cleared where Olivia had eaten. She was passed pissed at having to clean up after someone of color, thinking to herself that the roles should DEFINITELY be reversed. Rose caught onto Natalie's attitude and took the opportunity to speak on the elephant in the room.

"Olivia, I want to apologize for my daughter's behavior the other week. When I found out what happened, it angered me to no end. Dear child, my daughter was raised to believe a lie and getting that out of her will be the death of me, but know this: You are MORE than welcome in this household. Any friend of Fitz is a CHILD of mine. Do you understand me?" Rose spoke directly to Olivia, holding he hand.

"Yes Ma'am. I understand. You don't have to apologize for Natalie. Truth be told, there are probably people in my family that won't agree with what Fitz and I am doing either. People can think what they want. It isn't stopping our show." Olivia said as Fitz embraced her hand on the table now.

Natalie stood by the door in shock. Her own mother had taken Olivia in like she was her own and it angered her to see this happen. She was conflicted. She didn't want to feel like the outsider of her family, but she felt like she was destroying what her father had instilled in her. She silently slipped back into the kitchen and Rose winked her eye at Fitz.

Olivia excused herself to the bathroom, leaving Fitz and Rose in the dining area. Rose asked Fitz to accompany her to her bedroom and gave him two boxes.

"The first one is dear to me because it was from my childhood. My mother gave this to me and I was hoping to give this to Natalie one day, but I think it will be better for you. My mother was against racism as I am and she gave me this ring as a symbol of equality, making me promise to always treat people the way I want to be treated no matter what. I can see the love you have for her and if I know you like I think I do, your mind is moving awful fast. Don't scare her away, boy! Give her this ring as a promise also-not of a union, but as a promise to always be there for her no matter what." Rose gave Fitz the first ring. The beautiful gold ring was designed to split in the middle, giving it a double feature look, but was one solid piece.

"Mom, it's beautiful. Don't you think you are moving a bit fast? A ring this early would send any woman in their right mind running for the hills." Fitz joked as he leaned against his mother's dresser.

Rose smiled at her son. "I doubt it. Besides, I didn't tell you to give her this one." Rose opened the second box and Fitz was speechless. Inside he found a diamond encrusted engagement ring. The band was silver and shined so bright it was blinding. The diamond on the top was not too big and not too small and was accented by smaller diamond clusters on each side.

"Close your mouth, son." Rose laughed.

"Ma! Where on earth..? Fitz began. Rose shushed him.

"Quiet, boy. We don't have a lot of time to do this. I want you to have this because I know deep down you are gonna need it pretty soon. Olivia is as rare as the diamonds on this ring. It's worth more than your business cleared in the last 5 years and I want you to use it wisely. If Olivia doesn't turn out to be the one, which I doubt, then give it to whoever it turns out to be. I want you to have it because it is a symbol of what you are to each other. Different, but beautiful."

Fitz let a single tear slip down his cheek and hugged his mother with all his might.

When they arrived back at Fitz home, Olivia was knocked out. Rose's cooking definitely did the trick in giving her the 'itis, and Fitz smiled at her. He took the opportunity of her light snoring to look at the first ring Rose gave him. He took it out of the box and slipped it on her index finger, kissing it once he had it in place. Olivia didn't stir, so Fitz exited the car and carried her to bed. He lay her in bed and removed her clothing, leaving her in nothing but her bra and panties.

Fitz took this opportunity to go shower, hoping not to wake her. He wanted to be with her when she noticed the ring on her hand.

Olivia woke up to the smell of Fitz' body wash and smiled to herself. She stretched, running her fingers to her wild hair trying to tame it, and hissed when a lock of hair got snagged in the ring. She jumped off the bed and went to the nearest mirror, trying to detach her finger from her hair. That's when she noticed it.

She squinted at the image of a ring on her finger in the mirror, then snatched her hand from her head and looked at it as if it was a 6th finger. She twisted her finger around to see the ring better and rolled it around on her finger. She tried to process where she got it from, and at that very moment, Fitz emerged from the bathroom in only Navy blue stripped pajama pants.

"Fitz? Wha…?" Olivia began but was speechless.

Fitz walked a little closer to her and halted, wanting to give her ample space for when she began to pace.

"Look, Livvie. I love you. I am in love with you. You are the love of my life. We've been through so much together already and it has only made us stronger. I know a ring can mean a million things in a relationship. In this particular relationship, this particular ring is a promise. A promise from me to you that no matter what obstacles we face or what happens, you are it for me. I want you to look at this ring and think of me no matter where you are. I want you to know that even if I'm not with you, I'm really WITH you. Will you please accept this promise from me?" Fitz was not standing directly in front of Olivia, figuring if she was gonna pace she would have started by now.

Olivia couldn't hide the shock on her face. As she registered what Fitz was saying to her, she didn't say a word. She took the ring off and handed it to him.

Fitz' face dropped and he was about to protest when Olivia stopped him. Tears were now streaming down her face.

"Can I at least witness you putting it on for me?" She asked though even more tears and a cracking voice.

Fitz felt himself begin to cry also and placed the ring on her left pointer finger as she requested, sealing it with a kiss as he had earlier that night.

Olivia grabbed his face, kissing him with all her might that night and said the one thing she knew would allow her to show him how much she loved him.

"Fitz, take me to bed."

/

Now two months later, Olivia did as she had done every morning since that night. She kissed her hand that always seemed to be intertwined with his somehow in the morning. Fitz shifted in his sleep, waking up to the feel of her lips on his hand. He glanced down, smiling at her usual act of kissing their united hands and the ring he had given her.

"Good morning, beautiful." He said as he kissed her cheek from the side.

"Good morning, handsome."

The love he saw in her eyes seemed to grow daily and he too remembered that night like it was yesterday. The second box was beginning to burn a hole in his desk drawer at work and he now knew that it was time.

He was going to propose to Olivia.

AN: I hear wedding bells! I will go ahead and fore warn you guys now. There will be a bit of angst sooner or later, but NOTHING like losing Nana. I am OLITZ FOR LIFE and they ARE endgame. But hey, shit is going too good right now…Right?

Natalie feels left out! Serves her right for being so damn narrow minded! Nathan is an outspoken charmer and I think he and Olivia will become good friends-if he can keep his innocent paws to himself! Rose is so sweet and in love with Olivia. Rose reminds me of my own soon to be mother in law.

The rings! UGH, so sweet! I love writing their mush…

Review please!

Happy reading!

XOXO