(See first part for disclaimer, notes, spoilers, etc.)
Pt 3: "Comfort"
Olivia stirs n the early hours of the morning. The sun has not yet risen, but pales hues of orange already streak across the sky. She opens her eyes slowly and tucks her hands under her head.
The bathroom door is open slightly, allowing a small amount of light into the dark bedroom. She watches as Gregory closes his suitcase and places it by the door.
"Where are you going?" she asks sleepily.
Gregory turns away from his closet and says, "I didn't mean to wake you." He comes over to sit next to her. "San Francisco for meetings. I'll be gone through Monday. Did you forget?"
Olivia sighs and shrugs her shoulders. She removes one hand from under her head and reaches out to stroke Gregory's ring finger.
"I'll miss you," she whispers.
"It's only three days," he resonds as he bends down and kisses her cheek. "I love you, Liv."
She smiles tiredly and closes her eyes again.
Gregory rubs her shoulder and says softly, "I'll call you tonight from the hotel." He gets up from the bed and picks up his suitcase on the way out of the room. Halfway down the hall, he hears his name. He turns around and sees Olivia standing in the doorway of their bedroom, wearing a short silk robe. She walks to meet him and kisses him softly on the lips.
"I love you too," she says.
Gregory drops his suitcase and pulls Olivia to him, hugging her body close to his.
Downstairs, a car horn sounds twice and they pull away reluctantly. Gregory bends his forehead down to touch Olivia's.
"I'll call you tonight," he repeats. With a final peck on the cheek, he turns and strides down the stairs.
Bryan meets Gregory outside in the driveway and takes the suitcase.
"Your briefcase is on the backseat, sir. And the jet is on standby, ready when you are."
"Thank you. Bryan, I want you to keep an eye on Mrs. Richards while I'm gone," Gregory orders as he gets into the back of the car. "Make sure nothing happens to her...and call me immediately if there is any sort of problems, with either her or the children." Children, he thinks. Which children?
Bryan nods and closes the door after Gregory.
While Bryan stores the luggage in the trunk of the car, Gregory pulls out his cell phone and punches in a code for the auto-dialer. "Stanton? It's Gregory Richards...I don't care what time it is...I need you to track down some medical information for me...I need a very discreet paternity test conducted...Myself and a local lifeguard, Casey Mitchum...I don't care how you get the test done or how much it costs...You have three days. I'll be on a business trip until Monday; I expect results by then," he says, ending the call and putting the phone back in his inner jacket pocket.
He leans back in the seat and thinks, In three days, I'll be able to forget about this nonsense or I'll have an even bigger problem when I explain to Olivia that I fathered a son with another woman.
"Well, Livy," Bette Katzenkazrahi says teasingly as Olivia walks down the stairs, "aren't you looking...fit."
"I don't know what you mean," Olivia says innocently as she sits down on the sofa.
"Oh, I think you do," Bette says knowingly. "I think you know exactly what I'm talking about. You and Greggy-poo have certainly been closer these past few months since Sean's surgery."
"That we have. But not that close it seems."
Bette sighs down next to Olivia and grabs her hand. "What's wrong?"
Olivia looks at Bette and says quickly, "Nothing. Did you want to do Grenadine's for lunch? Or the country club?" She stands up and walks over to the phone.
"Hold it! Livy, get your tush over here. What's going on with you and Gregory that I don't know about and should?"
Olivia turns around and replies, "Bette, I can honestly tell you that there is nothing you need to know about."
Bette walks over to Olivia and puts her hands on her shoulders. "Then what do I not need to know? Hmmm?"
"Please, Bette," Olivia whispers, looking down at the ground. "Not now...I can't talk about it. At least not until Gregory and I have a chance to discuss it."
"Livy, I may be the town gossip but you know that I would never -."
"Oh Bette, I know that," Olivia sighs. She moves away from her friend and walks over to the patio doors. The sun is shining bright in all its glory and causes the water to glitter like diamonds. "Its just..."
"Just what?"
Olivia turns back to face her friend and says, "I overheard a private coversation that I wasn't meant to."
Bette clucks her tongue and says with a tinge of disappointment, "Is that all? Livy, I do that all the time."
Olivia sighs and walks out onto the patio. Bette's eyes widen in confusion and she follows her friend outside. Olivia is staring down at the beach where a lifeguard is hammering in rip-tide alert flag.
"Boy, that Casey Mitchum is a real cutie. It's hard to imagine we were ever that young, huh?"
Olivia continues to watch the lifeguard and responds dryly, "We did a lot of thing when we were young."
Bette looks sharply at her dark haired friend and says seriously, "Olivia." She pauses until Olivia looks at her. "This is me you're talking to," she continues. "What's wrong?"
Olivia directs her attention back to Casey and says, "Bette, did Gregory and Alex Mitchum have a relationship? Before he met me, I mean?"
Bette raises her eyes to the sky in thought and sighs, "Oh my...That's so long ago! Let's see...Well, you know that they've been friends since they were in college." Olivia nods. "I know they dated the summer after they graduated college. But it was just a summer thing. I mean, Greggy went to law school and Alex went to Europe. Then she got married over there and you married Gregg a few years later...but I'm sure you remember that part."
"Were you friendly with them at that point?" Olivia questions.
"Well, I knew Alex, of course. Greggy, I only knew as a friend of Del's. I really didn't get to know Gregory until I became close to you and you started dating him," Bette replies. "Olivia, what's with the walk down memory lane? And who are you staring at?"
Olivia directs Bette attention down to the beach with her head. Bette follows her line of vision and exclaims, "Casey! Toots, I admit he's gorgeous but isn't he a bit young for you?"
"Oh god, Bette! Are you insane? I have the love of my life back...I don't need anyone else," Olivia insists. She sighs deeply and asks, "Do you think he looks like Gregory?"
"Who? Casey? Why would he look like Greggy?
"Sons often look like their fathers," Olivia mutters.
"Olivia, where did you hear something as ridic," Bette trails off. "Livy, whose conversation did you overhear?" Olivia's look tells her all she needs to know. "Oh Livy," Bette sighs.
Both women look down to the beach and watch Casey climb into his yellow work jeep. Within moments, the jeep rolls slowly down the beach and eventually out of sight. Olivia turns to Bette and stares at her.
"Livy, I don't know what to say."
"What can you say?"
"Well, what did Gregory say when you confronted him?" Olivia looks away and Bette cries, "You didn't talk to him about it!"
"Oh, Bette," Olivia sighs with exasperation. "You don't understand! I overheard Alex break the news to Gregory; he never knew! So you see, I can't say anything. Not until he comes to me first."
"I take it he hasn't yet."
Olivia shakes her head and explains, "He left on a business trip this morning and he'll be gone for the entire weekend. There was a moment, last night, when I thought tht he would say something but we were interrupted by the phone."
"What are you going to say to him when he comes to you with this?"
"I don't know, Bette. I don't know. I don't know anything anymore except," Olivia says as she turns and looks at her friend, "that I love Gregory more than words can describe."
"Oh, Livy...," Bette sighs.
"You want to hear something funny?" Olivia asks but continues before Bette has a chance to answer. "Even during the bad years, when I was drunk out of my mind and Gregory and I cheated on each other, one of the things I was sure of, the one thing that couldn't be taken away was my role in Gregory's life. I was the mother of his children! The two things I gave him that no other woman did!" She laughs bitterly. "I can't say that anymore, can I?"
Bette sighs and pulls her longtime friend into an embrace.
"It'll work out," she says soothingly. "It'll work out."