Chapter 3

Some Assembly Required

"No. No, I-I-I'm fine, Ben. I'm at home now safe and sound. You don't have to—" Olivia tried to explain.

"But I don't understand it, Ms. Pope. I was only gone for 15 minutes," Ben said, a nagging worry in his voice, "maybe a little over that. You should not have left the car. I don't care about you throwing up . I—"

Olivia squeezed her eyes shut and pinched the space between her eyebrows. She couldn't decide what emotion would prevail. She felt guilty for lying to Ben whose voice was growing more frantic by the moment. A swath of pain was spreading from her eyes, radiating to the top of her head. The fear she felt when she was first taken was now replaced with a burning anger at the man responsible for her exit from Ben's car. She could feel him watching her from across the room where he was perched on the arm of a leather couch as if he were waiting to give a press conference instead of trying to eavesdrop on the woman he had effectively kidnapped. Olivia wondered if this was some executive suite he used for business meetings or to escape the prying eyes of the press. She sighed, realizing she had stopped listening to Ben on the other line.

"Ben, please, please stop explaining. You did nothing wrong. I felt nauseous so I left the car. After I vomited, I felt better. I didn't return to the car because I didn't want to risk throwing up inside the car or the pharmacy. Walking helped my headache so when a taxi passed I hailed it and went home. I know it doesn't make sense, but you know how I get when I have these migraines. Thanks for buying the tea. I'll get it tomorrow. You go home and get some rest. I'll call you in the morning," Olivia said as softly as she could manage, hoping to both calm Ben with her lie and prevent the governor from eavesdropping.

Ben was silent for a while before he spoke. "Okay. I just don't like this, but I'm glad you are home. Call me first thing in the morning. Maybe you should make a doctor's appointment," he suggested.

"You're right, Ben. I probably should. I will. I'll see you tomorrow. Good night," she said hastily, hanging up before he could respond.

"You have a very dedicated driver," Fitz said.

Olivia jumped at his voice, realizing he was no longer across the room, but standing behind her, only a couple of feet away. She swung around and moved back against the table that held the phone. The momentum of her turn brought on a fresh frisson of pain. She grabbed her head to stave it off. Before she could react, he was steering her by the elbow to parts unknown. When they reached the sofa, she lowered herself down.

"I'll make you some coffee, black. Do you think that'll help your pain?" he said.

Olivia gave a ginger nod. She wanted to demand that he let her go, but the pain wouldn't allow for such demonstrations. There was no threat to her life she was sure, but it wasn't clear exactly what he wanted. It was obvious he had read the Vanity Fair article and put all the pieces together. What wasn't clear was his intentions toward her, why he had taken her so dramatically. She believed they were alone since his driver and the goon who had taken her was nowhere in sight.

"Here take this," he said, handing her a cool cloth.

Olivia lifted her head from her hands and reached for it wondering how he moved so stealthily. She figured her lack of awareness had more to do with her pain than any special talent on his part.

"You should lie back," he said, swiveling her around and lifting her legs onto the sofa in one smooth motion. Before she could protest, the compress was on her brow and she felt the zipper from the back of her stilettos give way.

"No..don't," she protested, lifting up.

"Walking in these very high heeled boot contraptions can't be helping... all these ties and that heel have to be cutting off your circulation. Don't worry. My intentions are pure. I need you coherent so you can give me some answers, Ms. Pope. Relax. I'll have the coffee ready in a minute," he said.

Olivia's anger continued to grow. She hated his snide tone and the way he felt entitled to handle her. She took a deep breath noting how much better she did feel to have her feet free of those gladiator stilettos. Flexing her toes she pulled the cloth over her eyes and listened to the sounds. The swish and bump of a drawer opening and closing; the whooshing noises of coffee brewing; and the clink clank of dishes were strangely soothing. All the preparations for the opening of Spa Bliss had kept her in a constant state of motion. Lying here on the sofa, her body still with no freedom to leave in the present moment made her realize how bone tired and weary she was. The soft noises coming from the kitchen area and the robust smell of coffee gave her comfort. Her pain, still very present, had reduced to a dull ache. Thoughts of her father came unbidden. It was Christmas Eve and he was tucking her into bed pleading with her to sleep so that Santa Claus could visit her. She had frowned deeply and pleaded to stay up late since she no longer believed in Santa Claus after finding her gifts in her mom's sewing closet.

"Ms. Pope, one coffee, black," Fitz said.

Olivia's eyes shot open, she removed the cold compress and sat up. The realization of where she wasn't: at home, and where she was: at the governor's unknown abode, flooded into her, causing her dull ache to morph into a painful pounding. She reached for the cup and saucer, but he, noting her unsteadiness, set it before her on the glass coffee table and took a seat across from her on a matching leather chair.

"Thank you," she said with a glance his way. She noticed he had removed his dark blue suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his crisp white dress shirt. He was looking at her like someone trying to figure out a puzzle, his brows slightly knit together. For a small moment, she cared what he thought about her. Then she imagined that her eyeliner was probably smudged from all the eye rubbing. Her hair felt limp signaling that her curls had probably fallen. She knew her linen sheath was bent into countless wrinkles. Pursing her lips, she abandoned her self-consciousness and focused her energy on drinking the coffee and devising her exit strategy.

The chiming of a cell phone, his not hers, made her wonder where hers had gone. "Your belongings are by the door. Please excuse me. I have to take this," he said, rising and exiting the room.

Olivia blew on the coffee and took a tentative sip. It was surprisingly smooth without creamer. She took another sip, letting the warmth spread over her. After a couple of minutes, she began to feel alert. Slipping into her shoes, she zipped them up to her calf and then blotted her face with the cold towel. By the time she returned, she was beginning to feel almost like her normal self.

"My apologies. That was my Chief of Staff. You can imagine how nervous he must be knowing that I've brought you here using...unconventional methods and knowing he is to blame. Had he done his job perhaps you wouldn't have been able to deceive me so well. You look better now so I guess we should get to the reason you are here," he said, resuming his seat.

Olivia finished her last sip. "Governor, I'll admit to questionable methods, yes, when I presented myself as-"

"Mary Joseph of Morality Watch when you're really Olivia Pope, CEO and founder of an adult entertainment company. Mary Joseph, Mary Joseph!...that was some theater you put on with your conservative garb and your big boxy glasses. You fooled me or better yet made a fool out of me. Now I have Sanders on my case and he doesn't even know a Mary Joseph or anything about a deal. He's now threatening to pull his support. Then the latest issue of Vanity Fair crosses my desk and whom do I see on the cover? Mary Joseph. But this Mary Joseph is actually selling-"

Olivia held up her hand. "Governor Grant, with all due respect, I don't have time to sit here for a lecture, rehashing what I already know. Yes, I deceived you, in protest to your highhandedness that threatened to block the progress of my business. You did this all in the service of your own political interests. Truthfully, what you are doing now, taking me against my will is still in service to your own political interests. Now unless, you want me to go to the press with a full report of how you dragged me from my car like a piece of property, I suggest you get to the point. What do you want? How can we come to some sort of deal."

By the look of surprise on his face, she thought she'd gotten through to him. He rose from his chair and reached for her empty cup.

"I see you like the coffee. It's a Sumatra blend. More?" he asked.

Olivia rose to her feet and strolled to the impressive cherrywood coat rack. She collected her wrap and purse. Turning around she jumped in surprise. He was only an arm's length away.

"Ms. Pope, I'll tell you what I want over another cup," he said.

Attempting to reassert her authority, she looked at him straight on. "No. You tell me what you want now. This kidnapping is not turning into a social call. I don't even want to ask how you knew where I'd be. I want to get this done and over with. What do you want?" she emphasized.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Okay. When you came to my office, you said that Sanders and the owners of the sex shops had reached an agreement. A portion of the proceeds from the sells of each company would go to Morality Watch. Even though you were feeding me line of bull, in reality it is a good deal. If I was seen as brokering it, I would gain in the polls. This is what I want. You will make it happen. Do what you have to do to get Morality Watch and your friends, competitors, and allies in the adult industry to sign on. You do that, and we can call it even."

"Are you serious? I don't have time to make deals like that. My company just launched a major new venture. I can't...I won't do that. It won't be aligned with the mission and vision of my company. I don't need to make alliances with a group like Morality Watch for obvious reasons. Euphoria gives liberally to charitable organizations that support women," she said, impatiently.

Fitz crossed his arms. "If you'd stay for another cup, I could explain, but you are in a rush so I'll be quick. You will be making this deal in my name as a sort of surrogate for my campaign. You'd be effectively working for me," he said nonchalantly.

"Working for you? Working for you? No, I can't work for you. I don't know anything about you aside from what is in the press and what you've shown me with your illegal actions. I know nothing about politics," she emphasized, slipping on her wrap and palming inside her purse for her phone.

"Yes, working for me. It's the same no matter what word you stress. At first, you got the better of me with this game you played. I thought you were working for Langston's campaign. After reading the article about you, my people did some digging and found out some interesting things. You're just full of lies or should I say surprises. Why was that article another line of bull? You want people to think you are some self-made woman without formal higher education when you actually have several degrees and have worked in politics, maybe not long, but you do have experience," he explained.

Olivia was nonplussed, but she recovered fast and glared at him. "I don't have time for this. I'll make a sizable contribution to your campaign," she said.

"I'm a busy man as you can imagine. I have a state to run. I'm raising two teenagers alone. I'm supposed to be dating, and I have a campaign to win. I could take your money and make my Chief of Staff fix this, but I don't want to do it that way," he said evenly.

"Why?" she asked, at a loss for words. She was having intense feelings of disdain for him, and she didn't try to hide it from her face. She hoped this man wasn't attracted to her. Was this the reason for this attempt to tie them together? she reasoned. Was this another instance of a person making a one-to-one correlation between what she did and who she was? Olivia thought about Abiba's declaration that she was asexual. Should she adopt that label to prevent people from making assumptions about her?

"Why you ask? Well, Ms. Pope. You've intrigued me. I want to get to know you-" he said.

Olivia grunted. "Look, I sell sex. I don't do sex! I am..I'm..I identify as asexual. There is nothing here for you. I suggest you focus on the things you just said...your job, your kids, and your dating. I know what I did was a set back for your campaign, but as you said, you can get one of your surrogates to make the deal. You can direct your intrigue elsewhere. I'll have a check messengered over to you by the end of the week for $30,000. I'll include a Euphoria gift card you can use for whomever you choose. On second thought, I'll send the check to your SuperPac that way it can't be traced to Euphoria, Inc. Thanks for the coffee," she said. She reached for the door knob and turned, surprised when it opened. Outside stood a hulking man dressed in a suit and sport coat. She guessed it was the goon who dragged her from Ben's car. She gave him a quick glance and pushed the elevator button, not looking back and hoping the governor was not following her.

When the elevator door opened, she stepped inside. She glanced up and saw that he was standing there watching her from across the hallway.

She glanced away and pressed the button.

"Ms. Pope, I don't believe you," he said as the elevator door closed.

Olivia ignored his comment and grabbed her phone. She had multiple missed calls, mostly from Abby and Harrison.

She dialed Abby.

"Liv, where did you go? We've been calling you for the last three hours," Abby said.

"Abby, I need a car sent to..." she said, but stopped when she realized she didn't know where she was.

"Liv? Are you there? A car sent where?" Abby asked.

Olivia stepped outside of the high rise building, named The Concordia. There were taxis and town cars lining the street.

"Never mind Abby," she said throwing up her hand to hail the taxi, "what I really need to know is how long have you been sleeping with Harrison and Abiba's apprentice."

From the silence on the other end, Olivia knew she had caught Abby by surprise. She hadn't intended to address this tonight, but she needed something to take her mind off the very peculiar encounter she'd had with the governor.

It felt very good to update this story. I'm a day late and a dollar short on many updates. I'm not sure when I'll get back to this one or those others as my teaching is sort of all consuming right now. But I will get back to them. I like this Liv and this Fitz and am looking forward to exploring what will happen with them.

Thanks for reading, BP