A/N: Thanks so much for all of your comments. It's so much more enjoyable to write when you know there's an audience out there waiting to receive your work. I also heard your displeasure at Jake being Olivia's husband. I dislike the character as much as you do, but just like he's Shonda's tool on Scandal, he's my tool in this story. Our favorite couple can't go from where I started them to where we all want them to end without a push and Jake will be that push. Trust me, Olitz is endgame and Jake will be a minor character after this chapter.
Olivia heard the garage door open and Jake's footsteps as he entered the house. "Hey babe. I'm in the kitchen," she called to him.
"Yum…something smells delicious," Jake said, placing a brief kiss to her temple and giving her a side hug before releasing her to lift the pot lids to see what Olivia was cooking. "My favorite meal," he said, his face beaming briefly before slipping back into a mask of depression. "I take it you heard."
"I heard what?"
"We lost the bid for the Patterson Place project," Jake replied in a dejected tone.
"Oh, Jake," Olivia exclaimed, pulling her husband into a warm embrace. "I'm so sorry. I know how hard you and your team worked on that project. Your project design was brilliant. It's too bad the Patterson group couldn't see that."
Frustrated, Jake pulled away from her and slammed his fist on the quartz countertop, causing him to wince in pain. "I'm just so tired of putting in all this effort to lose out to one of the larger companies. This project means nothing to Grant Enterprises, but it would have been huge for my firm." Olivia looked away guiltily when Jake mentioned her place of employment. "Did you know that Grant Enterprises was also bidding on the project?"
"What? No! It never crossed my desk. I don't think Fitz had anything to do with the company's proposal."
"Of course not," Jake huffed. "It wasn't important enough for the company to warrant the COO's attention."
"Maybe Mr. Grant handled it," Olivia suggested, trying to derail Jake's pity train before it built a full head of steam. "Sometimes he handles these things directly rather than hand it off to Fitz."
Jake smiled weakly, "You're sweet to suggest it, but I don't think that's what happened. I think the Patterson group was seduced by the Grant name rather than the quality of their design."
Olivia was tempted to challenge Jake's assessment of the Grant Enterprises proposal, their reputation being well-earned in the community, but quickly decided against it. "You know," she started, pausing briefly to ensure she held his attention. "You could always apply for a position at Grant Enterprises. You're a talented architect and they would be lucky to have you. I could talk to Fitz…"
"I don't want to work for Grant Enterprises," he angrily interrupted, "and I definitely don't need any favors from Grant." A wave of hurt and embarrassment washed across Olivia's face. "I'm sorry," he offered. "It's been a long day and I'm a little on edge." Eager to change the subject, he asked, "If you didn't' know about the bid, what prompted you go through all this trouble for a Monday night dinner?"
"We can talk about it over dinner," Olivia deflected. "Right now, I think you need to get out of these stuffy clothes, take a long hot shower, and unwind a bit. By the time you're finished, dinner will be ready."
"You're better to me than I deserve." He pulled her in another embrace and kissed her sweetly.
Olivia smiled in response, suddenly feeling guilty that she had prepared this meal to soften him up before she told him about Fitz's request. "Let me pour you a drink before you head upstairs. It will help you relax." Olivia quickly poured the drink and shooed him out of the kitchen and up the stairs so she could think about how she was going to convince Jake that attending the Merkle retreat was the best thing for both of them.
Jake descended the stairs about 20 minutes later, dressed in sweatpants and t-shirt, his feet bare and his hair still wet from the shower. Olivia looked up at the sound of his reentry and smiled warmly at her husband. "Your timing is perfect; I was just about to set the table."
"I'll take care of it," he replied pressing a gentle kiss to the crown of her head before reaching above her to retrieve the plants from the cabinet.
Moments later they were seated in the dining room, starting their meal. Jake was the first to break the silence, "I'm sorry about losing my temper earlier. I know you were just trying to help. I just find the whole process so frustrating and I refuse the believe the only way to beat them is to join them. But, enough about me, I've been monopolizing the conversation. Considering all the effort you put in to make this meal, there must be something you want to talk about. How was your day?"
"It was…how should I say…Interesting."
"Really? What has Grant done now?"
"Mellie called off their engagement."
"What happened? Did she catch him in bed with the blond twins from Wonderland? What were their names?"
"Their names are Summer and Autumn and if I ever catch you near that place I'll castrate you and keep your dick in a formaldehyde jar." Jake instinctively covered his crotch with his left hand, involuntarily shuddering at the thought of such an injury. Olivia smiled wickedly at Jake's discomfort. "You were actually very close, she caught him in bed with a wine angel from Cibo."
Jake scoffed, "That's the Grant I knew in graduate school. Selfish prick. I don't know how you work for him."
"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about."
"You've decided to quit your job?" Jake asked with a little too much excitement in his voice.
"Why would I do that?"
"Because he's a womanizing, spoiled, manchild."
"So what? None of that has anything to do with me. He's professional at work and respects that I'm off limits," Olivia snapped.
"Olivia, why are you angry? If you're not quitting your job, what do you want to talk about?"
Olivia took a calming breath, exhaling deeply before continuing, "I'm not angry. I just get tired of the vitriol you're always slinging at Fitz. He's a generous boss. Grant Enterprises took a chance on me when we needed it most. So, if you're done…" Olivia paused for Jake to acknowledge her with a nod. "Have you heard of the Merkles' retreat, hosted by Stephen Merkle…"
"President and CEO of Merkle Industries," Jake finished. "Of course I've heard of the retreat. An invitation to the Merkles' retreat makes gods of men. Everyone that's ever 'arrived' in this business spent at least one weekend with the Merkles. I would have killed, quite literally, for an invitation when I was running Ballard and Associates. Why do you bring it up?"
"The retreat is this weekend and Fitz is attending to represent Grant Enterprises."
"How? Everyone knows the weekend is for couples only. Merkle is a notoriously conservative family man. There is no way he'll allow Grant within 100 miles of the retreat." Jake paused as the realization of Fitz's situation washed over him. "That explains his sudden relationship with Mellie. He knew Grant Enterprises scored an invitation and he needed a wife so that he could attend and secure Merkle's endorsement before the Board voted to appoint a new CEO of Grant Enterprises. He's really fucked himself this time. Dumb bastard, all he had to do was keep it in his pants for another week. He can't show up to the retreat without a wife or fiancée, someone else will have to attend to represent Grant Enterprises."
"Unless…"
"Unless, what? What's he going to do, try to pass one of his bimbos off as his fiancée? I wonder what Summer and Autumn are doing this weekend."
"Not them, me," Olivia mumbled into her plate. Mustering her confidence, Olivia held his gaze and continued, "He asked me to attend the retreat with him this weekend as his fiancée."
"What?" Jake asked incredulously. "Please tell me you're not considering this."
"He offered me $250 thousand to pretend to be his fiancée for the weekend."
"That's fucking insane. You're his married assistant, not an escort. He can't treat you like some cheap whore he found on the street."
"I'm going to pretend you just didn't call me a whore," Olivia replied coolly. "Think about what this money could mean for us, for our family. You said we needed to be financially stable before starting a family. This bonus would give us that security."
"That's before I knew your brilliant solution was to earn the money on your back."
"Fuck you, Jake. I'm not going to the Hamptons to sleep with Fitz. I wouldn't need the ruse of a business trip if that's what I wanted to do. I spend more time with him than I do with you. If I wanted to fuck him I would and I wouldn't be sitting here seeking your approval to do so."
"I knew when you were promoted to his office there would be trouble. I never should have let you work for that company. I knew it was just a matter of time before he tried something like this. I'm surprised it's taken him four years."
"You let me work for Grant Enterprises?" Olivia asked, her voice breaking with anger. "You didn't let me do anything. I deserved that job and I earned the promotion to Fitz's office. You didn't have anything to do with it. You are my husband and we used to be business partners. Why is it so hard for you to believe that Fitz is interested in something other than my body? You know how helpful I can be in these situations. How many times have I been in similar situations with you?"
"He didn't invite you to attend this retreat as his partner or as his assistant. He invited you as his fiancée, pulling this off requires a level of intimacy that shouldn't be present between a married woman and her boss. How do you know this isn't all a ploy to seduce you?"
"You're being ridiculous. Fitz didn't get engaged and then get caught cheating on his fiancée the week of the Merkle retreat just to whisk me away to the Hamptons to seduce me. Why are you always so negative when it comes to him?"
"Because I know Grant and I know you can't trust him?"
"Funny that you claim to know him."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I've been working for Fitz for four years and never once has he gotten your first name correct. I think you are far more worried about him than he is about you."
"He knows my first name. We were in grad school together."
"A fact you've reminded me of weekly since I started working for him. What is your deal with him? Why does he turn you into this crazy person?"
"You think defending my wife's honor and not willingly standing by while she falls into bed with another man makes me a crazy person. Who are you right now?"
"Who am I? I'm the same woman that gave up my dreams to work sixteen hour days by your side to help you build your dream. When you decided to leave Zyscovich Architects, I didn't question your judgement, I just stepped up and pitched in. When the company went under, I didn't judge you. Once again, I just rolled up my sleeves and pitched in. I understood that, in that economy, I had more marketable skills and experience than you did and it was up to me to support us. Now, I've been given the opportunity to earn a ridiculous sum of money doing something rather innocuous. I can help build our nest egg and help Fitz secure the CEO position, which would mean another promotion for me. All I need from you now is to support me without question and to trust that I would never do anything to hurt the family I'm trying to build."
"It sounds to me like you've already made up your mind. You weren't really asking me how I felt, you were just informing me how you would be spending your weekend. I thought we were partners. This should be a joint decision and I vote no."
Olivia angrily pushed her chair away from the table and jumped to her feet. "It's a good thing my life is not a democracy," she explained calmly as she headed out of the room. "You're on kitchen duty tonight. I'm going bed."
"Liv," he called after her as she exited the room.
"Don't," she replied without turning around. "You've already said enough. I'll let you know what I decide to do."
A/N: So, did you make it to the end? I want to hear what you think.