A/N: Hello dear readers. Just an FYI, Edison is back in this chapter and there is discussion of his attempted assault of Olivia. This may be uncomfortable for some, if so I would recommend skipping this chapter. For those of you who choose to read, I hope you enjoy.

I'm a Real Man

Fitz tightened his fingers around the steering wheel, visions of his drunk 18 year old daughter haunting his consciousness. Olivia braced herself and clutched her phone as the car raced towards the bar, speeding through yellow lights, taking turns at a high rate of speed. She wasn't sure whether Ellie would call her again but she was sure she wouldn't expect to see Fitz walk in with Olivia. She bit her bottom lip in anticipation of the confrontation Fitz's presence would undoubtedly cause. It had been silly to think that Fitz would let her leave alone in the middle of the night, and once he learned of Ellie's predicament, there was no question.

"Why is Edison in my restaurant?" he asked rhetorically.

"She just said he was there. She didn't say why," Olivia whispered, still biting her lip.

Fitz glanced in her direction, wondering what was going through her mind as she nervously gnawed her lip. Was it the prospect of seeing Edison again or the fact that Ellie had called her? He questioned why Ellie hadn't called Heather or even Megan. And what would make Olivia think that he would let her face Edison alone? His mind swam with doubts.

Olivia knitted her fingers together in her lap, looking down at her jeans and oversized sweatshirt. She was certain she looked a mess but hadn't taken the time to straighten herself any further than pulling her hair into a ponytail. Reaching into her purse she pulled out her lip gloss, swiping it over her lips more as means to keep herself occupied than any attempt at improving her appearance.

They arrived at the restaurant, the apprehension heavy. Olivia unbuckled her seatbelt and reached for the door handle but Fitz caught her wrist, "You stay here, I'll go get her."

"No Fitz, she called me. I'll go get her," she appeared resolute when she met his eyes, then her visage softened when she saw the concern in his eyes, "I'll be fine."

He thought about letting her go in alone, long enough for her to get out of the car and start towards the entrance to the restaurant. But the memories came swiftly flooding back, the marks on her arms and legs, her tears, how she flinched at even his touch after Edison had attacked her, and he was out of the car.

She turned when she heard his approaching footsteps, "Fitz, I said I'll be fine."

"I'm not letting him hurt you again," Fitz slid his palm along her arm, finally grasping her hand.

Olivia released a loud breath, her hands trembled faintly as Fitz held the door open for her. She noticed Ellie and Josh sitting near the end of the bar, thankful Edison was nowhere in sight.

"Liv," Ellie brightened at her approach, "Thank goodness…"

Fitz walked around the corner and Ellie's face dropped, "Daddy…"

"What are you doing drinking? And how could you be so stupid to drink in my restaurant?" Fitz's jaw twitched.

"I'm going to go talk to Josh," Olivia excused herself.

"What were you thinking?" Fitz said a little louder, pulling Ellie in the direction of his office.

"Daddy….we were bored after the movie and I was the only one who wasn't twenty-one," Ellie tried to explain before Fitz cut her off.

"Do you know what could happen if Edison calls the police?"

"He won't," Ellie pouted.

X-X

"Josh, what happened? Why did you let her drink? What were you thinking?" Olivia leaned close so she wasn't overheard.

"You look like crap Liv," he slurred, "Have a drink."

"Josh, you fucked up," she insisted, "She's eighteen, this is her father's restaurant, and Edison."

"We were just havin' fun Liv," his bleary eyes searched her face, "You're mad."

"Yeah, I'm mad, more importantly Fitz is furious."

"She wanted to get a drink, everyone else was twenty-one. We knew that Jeremy would serve her," Josh tipped his chin towards the bartender, "We didn't know Mr. Davis would come in."

Olivia scanned the room, hopeful that she and Fitz could somehow avoid a run-in with Edison. Leaning on the bar she asked Jeremy for a glass of water, then took a long drink as she waited for Fitz and Ellie.

"Mmm…..that ass looks better than I remember," his words were like ice through her veins and she visibly shivered. A curl of fear rose in her belly, his scent invading her nostrils, his hand sliding over her rear end and underneath the hem at the back of her shirt.

She set her jaw, an attempt to hide her fear, "Get your hand off me."

"Imagine my surprise when I saw the youngest Grant drinking at the bar," there was an eerie calm in his voice, "And how fortuitous that you should come along to collect her."

"Edison," Olivia again made it clear she didn't like him touching her, "I said get your hand off me."

"So the rumors are true?" he was close enough that she could feel his breath on her neck and she was suddenly nauseous, "You and Grant? No wonder he coldcocked me after our date."

Olivia spun to face him, his hand sliding across her hip, "I think you're mistaken Edison. You and I did not have a date."

She looked around franticly, hoping someone in the nearly empty restaurant would notice her plight but whether by chance or by choice no help was forthcoming. She took a step back, he was standing too close and she needed to think, and she wondered where Fitz had gone.

X-X

"I am so disappointed in you," Fitz paced his eyes on Ellie as she sat with her head in her hands.

"Daddy, I said I was sorry," she lifted her face from her hands, tears streamed down her cheeks.

His heart lurched, "El…."

"I'll never do it again," she whispered, "I'm sorry I bothered you and Liv. I know how important she is to you."

"You know that you and Heather will always be most important to me," he ran his hands through his hair, torn between his feelings of guilt and anger over her misbehavior.

Ellie used the back of her hand to wipe the tears from her eyes and concentrated on her father pacing in front of her. She had called Olivia in hopes of avoiding this precise situation, her father looking disappointed and angry and hurt. Everything would have been fine if her father's former partner hadn't showed up and threatened to call the police.

"I am really sorry," Ellie looked at Fitz expectantly.

"I think we're going to have to talk about it later," Fitz shook his head, "I don't think I can be objective about this right now. Let's go."

X-X

Josh rose quickly from his barstool, heading in the direction of the restrooms; a sudden bout of nausea overtaking him. Olivia looked around at the bar area, a couple huddled in a corner booth and two businessmen at the far end of the bar talking with Jeremy, the only patrons left. Edison's proximity continued to make her uncomfortable, only made worse by the fact that now there was no one close by, and she took another sip of water in order to stall him a few minutes longer. She looked down at the baggy sweatshirt, hoping it camouflaged her growing bump well enough that she wouldn't be reading about her pregnancy on TMZ.

"When are you going to let me take you out again?" he slithered closer, the stench of bourbon seeping from his pores causing her stomach to roil, "I can't get this body out of my head."

His hand touched her hip and she instinctively recoiled, "I have to go find Fitz," she choked, attempting to extricate herself from him without causing too much of a scene.

"Oh Livvie, don't go so soon," he sneered, his hands now digging painfully into her hips, "You know Grant can't give you what I can."

Edison punctuated his statement by drawing Olivia's hip against the bulge in his pants. One hand slipped from her hip and found her backside sending renewed apprehension from her head to her toes. She reviled the use of Fitz's nickname for her by the repulsive man pawing all over her.

"Grant's busy, let me take you somewhere and show you what a real man can do," Edison's voice was unnerving, bringing the memory of the night in his car flooding back to her consciousness.

"Let go of me," she urged, turning her hips in an attempt to free herself from his grasp.

"Oh, I like a girl who resists, makes it that much better when you finally give in," Edison's face was mere inches from hers.

Olivia's entire focus was on Edison and freeing herself from his lascivious hold. Her hands pressed into the muscles of his chest, arms shaking from the exertion. The panic of the night he attacked her coursed through her veins, tensing her muscles and raising her heartrate to a steady thud beneath her ribcage. He was stronger, just as he had been that night, only tonight there would be no Abby and Charlie to save her. Where is Fitz? She wondered.

Edison's hand ran to the front of her jeans and began the ascent of her upper body.

"What's this?" he asked, pausing on her swollen abdomen.

Panic struck Olivia, her head swam, her legs suddenly felt weak, and she mustered every ounce of strength she had left to push herself free of him. His hands had just found their ideal place on her midsection when a streak moved through her vision and Fitz was on him.

"You don't learn do you Edison?"

Edison put his hands up in a gesture of compliance but he was far from congenial when his eyes met the stormy blue of Fitz's. Olivia shuttered at the sight of Fitz. She hadn't seen him that angry since the night of Edison's attack. He had Edison pinned against the bar and the few heads in the restaurant turned in his direction. She knew she had to stop him, as much as she wanted to watch Fitz beat Edison to a bloody pulp, to fight for her honor, to assure him who she wanted, she also knew that their altercation would lead to questions.

"Fitz stop," she urged from a safe distance. But he was like a man possessed, white knuckles gripping his shirt tighter by the second, nostrils flaring in rage, fists at the ready.

"Fitz!" she insisted just a mark louder, "People are looking at you."

"I don't care," Fitz snarled, his eyes never leaving those of the man who cowered in his grasp, "Once and for all I'm going to teach this asshole a lesson."

Olivia took a tentative step in Fitz's direction, her hand gripping his right bicep in an attempt to bring him back to her. The air seemed too viscid to supply oxygen to her pounding heart and her throbbing muscles. Potential headlines flashed in her mind bringing her anxiety to the level of desperation. The end of her privacy, public scrutiny, judgment, and speculation. It wasn't Edison's business, not Megan's business nor Ellie's, and it most certainly was not the business of the public that she was dating Fitz or carrying his child but that wouldn't stop it.

"Please…..Fitz…stop….." Fitz continued his hold on Edison, "for me…"

Whether the tone of her voice or the words she spoke, his grip loosened and his eyes moved to her.

"Smart decision," Edison murmured, straightening his shirt. Fitz began towards him again but his eyes met Ellie's and the fear he saw there froze him.

"Daddy…." She held tightly to Josh's side, the haze of her intoxication waning.

"Man the tabloids are gonna love this," Edison continued to speak, "Drunk underage daughter, knocked up mistress...are you even divorced yet Buddy?"

The self-satisfied smile returned to Edison's face as he considered his advantageous position. Fitz had effectively ruined any chance Edison had at finding a new investment partner and Edison saw this as his opportunity for retribution.

"You ruined me. Personally and financially, you and your mistress destroyed me," he fumed looking from Fitz to Olivia and back again, "I can't tell you how much I will enjoy watching your fall from grace…..both of you."

"I get your beef with me," Fitz took a half step towards Edison, "This perceived competition over Olivia, you're angry about me breaking our partnership. I get it. But leave my family out of it."

Edison swallowed another mouthful of bourbon, liquid courage to stand up to his former partner, "You got pissed off because Olivia went out with me, because I was available and she went out with me instead of you."

Fitz bit back the urge to correct Edison's misinformation. Edison was fishing for information, trying to determine the specifics of their relationship, and any information they divulged would just add to Edison's growing arsenal.

"You know that my hands were all over her," Edison leered at Olivia, his gaze traveling over her curves as he taunted Fitz, "And you know she liked it."

"Get out of my restaurant," Fitz's hands were clenched in white knuckled fists, "before I call the police."

Edison tipped back the glass of amber liquid, cherishing the sting as he placed the glass back on the bar. He pulled on his overcoat, tossing several bills down on the wooden bar top before he fished his keys out of his pocket.

He let his hand travel over Olivia's midsection on his way past her, "Bye Livvie," he looked back towards Fitz, "She couldn't handle a real man. Enjoy my sloppy seconds."

Olivia instinctively reached for Fitz again, aware that if he began hitting Edison she would be unlikely to get him to stop. Rationally Fitz knew that an altercation with Edison was the worst thing he could do but his instincts to defend his family were fierce. He watched Ellie grasp tighter onto Josh and felt Olivia's fingers clutch deeper into his forearm. He knew that he would do anything for either of them, hoped that they would find a way to their own truce, and wondered if he would be able to effectively protect Heather, Ellie, Olivia, and his unborn child.

"Fitz," Olivia shook his arm gently, drawing his gaze to her, "we should probably get going. It's nearly two o'clock and it's been a long night for everyone."

"Right," he absently agreed.

"I'm going to stay at Heather's," Ellie's voice still held a note of inebriation and her gait was less than perfect.

"Fine," Fitz was still deep in thought. Ellie's expression was one of surprise when she looked in Josh's direction. She threw her arms around Fitz's neck and pulled him down into an awkward embrace.

"I love you Daddy and I'm sorry," she choked back tears. Realizing she wasn't getting a response from her father she directed her attention at Olivia, hugging her, "Thank you so much Liv. I know it wasn't easy for you to come."

Olivia smiled and weakly hugged her back. She searched for the proper words, what she should say, but the only sentiment she could summon was anger and she felt those thoughts best left unspoken for the time being. Josh and Ellie walked hand in hand through the front door and Olivia watched through the window as they pulled from the parking lot.

Several minutes later, Olivia led Fitz to the car, keenly aware of the few other people around, how close to her Fitz was walking, and the nagging pain low in her belly. She slid the keys from Fitz's hand and kissed his temple before slipping the key into the ignition and driving in the direction of Fitz's house. They rode largely in silence, the only words exchanged, almost meaningless apologies for the events of the evening. Fitz's simple regrets were bringing Edison into her life and Ellie complicating their relationship. Olivia was apologizing for ever agreeing to have a drink with Edison and her inability to allow their story to go public.

They were met with the remains of their interrupted evening together when they stepped through the front door. Clothes strewn about, a bottle of water lay on its side on the nightstand, and a re-run of "Smash" was on the television.

Fitz followed her into the bedroom and watched as she pulled the grey sweatshirt over her head. The tank top she wore beneath it strained at her midsection and he saw the weariness of the evening color her features when she unbuttoned her jeans and slid them down her slender legs. He busied himself changing into pajama pants and brushing his teeth, all the while hoping that she would say something.

She peeked at the flexing muscles of his bare chest. He was quiet and brooding, she correctly speculated that he was ruminating on Edison's words. My hands were all over her, he tossed his shirt into the hamper. She liked it, he pulled the thin cotton pants up his legs, knotting them at the waist. Livvie, he wet his toothbrush. She couldn't handle a real man, he forcefully swept the toothbrush over his teeth. Enjoy my sloppy seconds, he spit. Livvie, spit again. Mistress, he rinsed his mouth. Livvie, splashed the cold water onto his face. I'm available, dried his hands on the nearby towel. Livvie, he threw the towel down roughly to the edge of the sink with an audible sigh.

He emerged from the bathroom, still lost in his contemplations. He wanted to reach out to her, to hold her, but she felt so distant. He stared absently at the television, searching for something to say, anything to break the strain in the room.

"Megan worked on the pilot of this show," he looked as shocked as Olivia at his words, they stood, staring wide-eyed at one another. Emotions flickered in their eyes; fear, regret, apprehension, and detachment.

Fitz broke their eye contact first, "Livvie….."

"Its fine," Olivia assured him in a soft voice, climbing beneath the duvet and pulling the covers up over her shoulders. Tears streaked her cheeks and she concentrated on maintaining even breaths so Fitz wouldn't become aware of her plight.

Fitz stared at her back, even breaths rising and falling beneath the blanket. Her curls fell haphazard over the pillow and he felt compelled to draw her into his arms.

"I'm so sorry, Livvie," his breath blew over her ear as he spoke, sending a shiver through her. Even when they disagreed his proximity still stoked the always smoldering flame in the pit of her stomach.

"Me too."

"It was a really dumb thing to say. It just came out, I don't know why…"

"It's been a long night," she rolled to face him, "Why don't we talk about it in the morning."

"I'm sorry you got dragged into Ellie's mess tonight and I'm sorry I couldn't do a better job defending you," Fitz whispered against her jaw.

"I'm sorry I wouldn't let you," she returned, "Believe me there are few things I want more in this world than to see you kick Edison's ass."

"It wouldn't have been smart," he smiled, a finger tracing the curve of her neck, the shell of her ear, the angle of her jaw, the bow of her lips.

"I promise we won't have to be a secret forever," Olivia kissed the fingertip that tempted her lips.

"We'll do it when it's the right time for you, and the right time for our child," his lips replaced his finger at the corner of her mouth, "You have far more to lose than I do."

"Thank you for understanding," she smiled, "and for defending me."

"Thank you for loving me Livvie."

"Edison has taken so much from us," the tears started anew.

"Shh….Livvie, he can never take this."

He pressed his lips gently against hers, allowing her to control their contact. Her lips were soft, yielding, she needed the effortless connection. Soon desire overcame her and she let her tongue venture into his mouth, exploring, healing, comforting. She appreciated his patience and understanding. They were surely not perfect but they were beginning to welcome their imperfection.

Looking forward to reading your feedback. This was a tough chapter to write. Edison is an asshole and will always be a reminder of what happened to Olivia. I hope I did justice to how all involved would handle the situation given the secret nature of the Olitz relationship and Olivia's pregnancy. Hope you enjoyed and thanks in advance for your reviews.