Melting Magnets

Chapter Twenty-Five:

Confidence is Tragic

Quietly cracking the door open, Fitz slipped into the darkened home. Shutting the door behind him and locking it, he was quick to key in his code on the alarm pad. Dropping his overnight bag on the floor and kicking his shoes off, he treaded softly across the carpet toward his bedroom. Pausing at the entranceway to the living room, he peered in to see Mellie sound asleep on the couch, snoring. So Olivia had invited her over. Continuing down the hall, he frowned as the door to his room creaked just the smallest amount, and slipped inside the bedroom, closing the door behind him.

Olivia was sound asleep, laying on her stomach with her arm buried under the pillow. He smirked at the sight of her cuddling his pillow, commandeering his side of the bed. Unbuttoning his shirt, he tossed the starched material into his clothes basket and slipped out of his pants. Pulling his socks off his feet, he tossed them in the basket as well before edging toward the bed. Bending over the bed, he brushed Olivia's hair out of her face and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Mmm-mmm," Olivia groaned, swiping at his face and rolling onto her back, her eyes slowly sliding open. It took a moment for her gaze to adjust to the darkened room and the man standing over her. A slow smile spread across her face after the initial shock wore off and she realised just who was in the room.

"You're home," she grinned, rolling over just enough for him to slip into the bed beside her. Propping his elbow on the pillow and his head in his hand, he smiled gently as she scooted closer to him, laying her head on the pillow beside his elbow. Eyes barely open, she struggled to toss the covers over his body as well until he reached for the grey, soft blankets, yanking them over the two of them.

"Go back to sleep, Liv," he whispered, kissing her forehead one last time before resting his head against the pillow, pulling her close and rubbing her back. He was exhausted - flying always took away his energy and the meeting he had just had…Sometimes he wondered if it wouldn't be better to find a different line of work. Glancing down at Olivia, he smiled at her peaceful expression. It hadn't taken long for her to fall back asleep. Closing his eyes, he tried to fall asleep.

/

"I am so glad I wasn't dreaming."

Fitz woke up barely three hours later to Olivia's excited whisper and the feel of her lips pressed against his. Pulling away and cracking an eye open, he rolled onto his back, bringing a hand to wipe the sleep from his eyes. Olivia placed her hand on the other side of his head, leaning over him and grinning.

"You said you weren't going to be back until this evening."

"I caught a red-eye," he yawned, bringing his hands to her hips and yanking her over him. She giggled, straddling him, and met his lips in a searing kiss.

"I wish Mellie wasn't sleeping on the sofa," Olivia pulled away, pouting.

"You'll just have to be quiet." His eyes twinkled, hand moving up her back to grasp the back of her head.

"Fitz," she protested, eagerly pecking his lips, "your mother is here, too."

"Why is she here?" he relaxed his grip just enough for her to straighten, glancing down at him.

"To see you."

Shaking his head, he dropped his hands and allowed her to stand from the bed. Slipping at of bed himself, he watched as she stretched, the silky white top of her pyjamas rising enough to show off her toned stomach. Rolling his shoulders, he moved behind her, placing his hands on her hips and whispering in her ear:

"Come take a shower with me."

"Fitz," she sighed.

"Come on."

She hadn't heard him beg before. It was something new. Snorting, she twisted out of his embrace and started walking toward the bathroom. Along the way, she discarded her pyjama top. Inside the bathroom, she slipped out of her shorts and turned the shower on.

"Damn I missed you."

She jumped when he surprised her, wrapping his arms around her from behind. Settling against his chest, watching through the glass as the water fell in cascades, she sighed when he moved his hands up her torso, cupping her breasts.

"I can tell," she grinned, moving a hand between their bodies and rubbing his hardening length through his boxers.

"Only for you, babe," he smirked against the nape of her neck, planting a steamy, open-mouthed kiss on her smooth skin. Releasing her, he stepped away to slip his boxers from his body. Turning around, she watched with hooded eyes as his hard cock sprang out of the material, curling upward toward his stomach. Licking her lips, she allowed him to reach around her, throwing the shower door open, and backed under the warm spray of water. He shut the door behind himself, moving under the warm spray of water. Backing her against the marble wall, he placed a hand by her head:

"Aren't you happy you aren't missing out on this?"

She threw a coy smile his way, wrapping her arms around his neck. He brought a hand to her face, cupping her chin. The slow, sensual kiss didn't last for long. Lifting a leg to wrap around his waist, she ground against his hardened length. Their kiss became more insistent, rough even, as she moved a hand between their bodies, guiding him to her entrance. This wouldn't be slow or gentle. They had plenty of time for slow and gentle later. Right now…right now they both just needed to satisfy their needs.

After, they stood at the double vanity together wrapped in soft, plush white towels. Olivia was busy brushing her teeth as Fitz worked on shaving his morning stubble. She raised a brow in his direction, watching in the mirror as he slowly sat his razor on the counter and sighed heavily.

"What?"

"I forgot a condom." He sighed again, lowering his gaze and rubbing a hand across his face. She frowned - that wasn't the reaction she had been expecting. He seemed disappointed…and angry.

"So?"

"You're on the pill, right?" he waited for her nod before dropping his shoulders, picking his razor off the counter again and watching his actions intently in the mirror, "It's not as effective as using both. Here's to hoping we weren't extremely unlucky."

"Unlucky?" Now she was offended. Seeming to sense her change in mood as she rinsed her toothbrush, he met her gaze in the mirror:

"Before we even think about kids and/or marriage, you have to finish school. I'm not going to be the one that derails your plans."

Placing her toothbrush back in its holder, she mulled over his words, a small smile crossing her face.

"You've thought about having kids and getting married?"

Rinsing his razor and placing it on the counter, he turned around, leaning his back against the sink. "It's hard not to when you've met the right person. But I don't want to scare you away."

"You're not going to scare me away," she moved in front of him, wrapping her arms around his neck, "But had you left it at us being unlucky, you would have."

"I want a future with you, Liv," he placed his hands on her hips, lowering his lips to hers, "And I want you to accomplish every dream you've had."

/

"He'll be out in a minute." Olivia closed the bedroom door behind her and finished sweeping her hair into a bun. Deborah stood on the other side, hand poised to knock against the wooden door, when Olivia had exited. Glancing at the black pantsuit Fitz's mother was wearing, Olivia suddenly felt underdressed in her white, denim shorts and one of Fitz's white and blue plaid button-ups. She had developed a penchant for stealing his clothes - not that he complained.

"Mellie left about an hour ago. She said she would text you later."

Olivia nodded, leading the older woman toward the kitchen. "Sorry. I didn't mean to sleep in - Fitz wasn't supposed to be home until this evening. Surprise red-eye. Do you want coffee?"

Olivia bit her tongue, realising that she had been rambling a tad too much. Her heart beat wildly in her chest as she tried not to overthink the amused grin Deborah had thrown her way.

"Tea, please."

Olivia nodded, grabbing a mug from the cabinet and setting it under the Keurig. Running hot water, she grabbed a teabag from the carousel by the coffee machine. Grasping the warm mug, she placed the teabag in the water and sat it on the island in front of Deborah.

"Do you want anything to eat?"

"Dear, you don't have to make me food or get me drinks. I'm quite capable of doing it for myself."

Olivia nodded, fidgeting with her hands. After the morning she had had with Fitz, she was determined to be on Deborah's good side. This may be her first true relationship, but even she knew how detrimental parents could be in their acceptance. And right now, Deborah's studying gaze was making her uneasy.

"We may not know one another well just yet, but if you need to talk, Olivia, I am a very good listener."

Olivia tilted her head, furrowing her brows at the thinly veiled double meaning to Deborah's words. How had she…?

"You could call it a sixth sense," Deborah answered her unspoken question, "In my line of work, I encounter a lot of individuals who have suffered significant trauma. You're happy with my son, but there's an underlying feeling of underwhelming and despair."

"What do you do?" She knew the answer, but she wanted to hear Deborah say it.

"I'm a psychiatrist. That's actually why I'm here."

"Fitz didn't invite you?"

"No, dear. After what he did, I doubt he wants to see me at the moment."

"What did he do?"

"His company decided to cut a very important research program simply because the president asked him to."

"His company? The president?" Olivia had a lot of questions. Fitz still hadn't told her what he did and this revelation was new. He spoke to the president?

"We were close to making a breakthrough on schizophrenia, but the president," Deborah took the moment to swear under her breath, causing Olivia to smile at the barely audible 'damn Republicans', "We were close to a cure, but Big Pharma doesn't like it when there's a possibility that their expensive treatments are about to become obsolete."

"Why would the president have any…"

"You have no clue what Fitz does, do you?"

"No."

"It isn't my place to say, then, dear. But his company mainly deals with government contracts. They always have. It's the way my ex-husband established Grant Enterprises," Deborah reached across the counter, patting Olivia's hand, "Don't give me that look. It's nothing bad. You like comics, right?"

"How?" Olivia tilted her head, intrigued that Deborah had that bit of information about her and doubly intrigued as to how it fit into the conversation.

"Mellie and I spoke a bit about you, last night. As I said, she's a big fan," Deborah smiled, "Think of Fitz as a real, live Tony Stark. Other than this serious lapse in judgement regarding my research, his company isn't bad."

"Mother."

Olivia turned toward the doorway at the sound of Fitz's voice, smiling to herself at the way his eyes lit up at the sight of his mom. Moving her gaze toward Deborah, she noticed that the older woman's eyes had lit up, as well, when she saw her son. The two were quick to make strides toward one another, meeting halfway, and throw their arms around the other.

"Fitz," Deborah was all smiles, pulling away from her son and looking up at his face, "We need to talk about Project Tilly later."

Olivia watched as Fitz's face fell for a moment and his shoulders drooped before he nodded his head, wrapping his arm around his mom and turning to face Liv.

"I see you've met Olivia."

"I have. We'll have to have lunch together. Just the two of us," Deborah winked at Olivia, patting Fitz on the back and whispering, "You did good with this one."

"I think so, too, Mama." Fitz moved away from Deborah, walking around the island to give Olivia a chaste kiss before heading toward the Keurig.

"You could help Olivia and I plan the employee appreciation event," Fitz suggested, sitting a mug under the Keurig.

"I heard about that. I assume it was your idea?" Deborah turned her attention to Olivia, who nodded. "It was a wonderful gesture."

"If we can pull it off," Olivia laughed, nervously. "Fitz isn't the best at planning."

"Neither was his father," Deborah winked, "We'll get it done."