Olivia pulled her feet up into her chair and sighed softly as she brushed a stray lock of hair back up into the french twist behind her head. The laptop computer on the desk in front of her waited patiently for her to finish the press release explaining the construction delay. It was still a bit odd to explain the how the death of her blackmailer had affected an entire community.
Bette was partly to blame for all the fuss. Her last two gossip columns had been full of intrigue and supposition. Society blaockmail, suspicious murders and mafia connections were like candy to the people of Sunset Beach and she was tossing it out like a Fourth of July parade. Olivia did have to give her some credit, all of Bette's wild speculations had never been anywhere near the truth. Which was probably exactly what Gregory intended.
"Mafia murder in Sunset Beach..." She repeated aloud to herself as she set the paper aside to finish her article in earnest. Gregory may have hired someone to kill Cole, but he certainly would never be involved in the mafia. It was brilliant of Bette to even think of them.
The quiet knock on the door surprised her up from her work. Casey peered around her door and smiled shyly. "You busy?
"For you, Mr. Mitchum, of course not." Olivia shut her computer and settled back into her chair. "Come in come in. What can I help you with?"
Standing at the corner of her desk, hands nervously in his pockets, he looked like he was trying not to admit he was facing a firing squad. "How's being back at work?"
"I get the feeling this isn't about work, but it's nice." She gestured towards the door and her omnipresent bodyguards on the other side. "I know Gregory feels a little better with a whole building of security looking out for me and I like having things to do, keeps me from thinking too much."
"But that scumbag's dead." Casey pointed out with more enthusiasm than he believed was proper for a murdered man, but Olivia's quiet smile made him feel better. "Looks like all your excitement is over."
Nodding quickly, she pointed to the chair in front of her desk. "I hope you're right. Gregory and I could use some time to get used to the idea of being parents again."
Casey sat uneasily, perching on the edge of his chair as he tried to smile. "I heard through the grapevine that Gregory Junior's started moving around."
"Sounds like his father didn't waste any time telling the world about it-" Olivia's hands went unconsciously to her stomach as she beamed back at him. "But yes, 'Gregory Junior' has decided to make his presence felt."
"What's it like? It doesn't hurt you, does it?" His boyish grin made her laugh as she reached for his hand.
"Feels a little like this just from inside." Tapping two of her fingers lightly against his palm to demonstrate, Olivia shook her head and continued to smile warmly. "And no, it doesn't hurt, gets a little uncomfortable towards the end, but it never causes any real pain. But I'm sure you didn't come down here to hear about my baby."
He dropped his hands back to his lap and clasped them together nervously. "I hope you don't mind me bothering you like this, but I really needed a woman to talk to."
Olivia raised an eyebrow curiously. "Last I checked, I fit that description. I'll promise not to let Gregory Junior listen in too much if that makes you feel better."
Poor Casey's face just got more red. "I- uh-" He dropped his gaze to the floor and stuffed his hand into his suit pocket. Opening the little velvet box, he showed her the diamond ring it had taken him hours of agonizing to decide on.
"Oh Casey-" Olivia took the box from his hand and felt her heart melt. "You're going to ask Heather to marry you?"
Standing up from his chair, he paced to the window, running a hand nervously through his hair. "I've been practicing in front of the mirror, with Michael and Mark, but I needed a woman. I mean, I don't know how they, women, think and Michael and Mark don't have a clue either, and if I get nervous just talking to you, how am I ever going to bring it up with Heather?"
Olivia patted the chair in front of her and gave him a sympathetic smile. "You should have seen Gregory-" As the memory resurfaced she looked through Casey's adorable case of nerves and saw a very young, very nervous lawyer in front of her instead. "Or me for that matter. I'm sure you'll be fine."
"Easy for you to say, I bet Gregory had something so perfect he didn't even give you a chance to say no." Finally returning to his chair, he pointed to her stunning engagement ring. "He'd have to be rather confident to buy you something like that."
"Confidence has never been a problem for Gregory." Olivia told him with a knowing smile. "But I would have said yes if he proposed with a piece of string." She lowered her feet to the floor and she twisted her engagement ring off her finger. "Why don't you take this and practice with me. I promise to do my best impression of a young woman in love."
He chuckled softly and felt the warmth of her hand in metal band of her ring as he took it. "I really appreciate this."
Waving off his thanks, Olivia put her hands on her knees and waited for Casey to collect himself. "Oh don't thank me, this is kind of fun. It's been ages since I was proposed too, not that you're allowed to tell anyone just how long that is."
Gregory paused outside Olivia's door on his way back to his office. The contraband coffee in his hand reminded him that he couldn't visit her with it. Listening Olivia laughing in response to something Casey said, he decided to wait, drink his coffee and hear her story.
"It's been, god, twenty-two years since I got married." Olivia began softly. "I was so young and so madly in love with Gregory. The day he proposed to me was the first day of my life where I really thought about the future, or even had a future."
She paused and he could hear her suit rustle as she fidgeted in her chair. "The future had always been this big dark void, but when Gregory looked at me and talked about how wonderful he our life was going to be together, I believed. Not just in him, but in myself."
He could sense the way her eyes were filling up with tears, hear the way her voice caught in her throat as she continued. "And it was wonderful. Absolutely wonderful."
"What did he do?" Casey wondered, trying to think of something Gregory Richards would consider good enough to use as a proposal.
"He tricked me." Olivia announced cheerfully. "Had me entirely fooled. Don't know how long it must have taken to set it up, or how many people he must have had involved in it."
Even through the door, Gregory could hear her enthusiasm, sense the way her face lit up with pride. It was that passion that drew him to little Olivia Blake, her enthusiasm for life was what he needed when he was young and shut off from his own emotions. When he was cold, she'd been on fire. She let him have it when she was angry with him and sought him out to hold her when she was afraid. He needed that example, desperately needed her honesty and her trust because when he opened his heart to her, Olivia wanted to know what he held there.
The house at One Ocean Avenue was covered with lights, draped with tiny white lights like a hundred fallen stars. Music echoed out onto the street from the party within. Gregory pulled his car up into the driveway, slipping the little black convertible up to right in front of the house.
"I thought we'd have to park halfway down the street. Look at all these cars!" Olivia tossed her purse over her shoulder and turned to him with a nervous smile. "But, I suppose the guest of honor has to expect some special treatment doesn't he?"
"This party isn't just about me Liv, a lot of people in the firm worked on this trial." Jumping out of the car, he opened her door and gave her a hand up out of the convertible. "And I'm afraid with you on my arm, in that dress-" He looked down the deep red silk of her clingy cocktail dress with great appreciate for the figure beneath. "No one's even going to know I'm here."
She started towards the door, but he stopped her and pointed to the archway into the garden. "Let's go out here first, I want a moment with you before I have to share you with a room full of lawyers all starved for beauty such as yours."
The hint of a blush lit across her cheekbones but she giggled and followed him into the garden. "There's only one lawyer I'm interested in."
Gregory stopped in front of a glass table on the patio, picking up a little silver lighter he started on the candles. "We'll get some light here." His work with the candle illuminated a bottle of champagne and two glasses on the table. He undid the gold foil at the top of the bottle and started working on the cork.
Olivia's attention was captivated by the crowd of elegantly dressed people inside the beautiful house. Through the patio doors she could look in on high society of Sunset Beach. She sighed weakly, trying not to let herself think that she was where she'd always been, looking in at the people who mattered. She heard the champagne cork pop, and the hiss of bubbles as Gregory poured it out into the flutes he had waiting for them.
"What do you think of the house darling?" Gregory cleared his throat and tapped her with the base of the champagne flute. "Do you like it?"
Olivia started as he touched her and turned around with that radiant smile. "Oh it's lovely, just imagine how gorgeous the view must be from that balcony when the sun goes down." She took a sip of the champagne and felt the bubbles tickle her nose. "Remind me to complement our hosts."
He clinked their glasses together and caressed the thin gold bracelet on her wrist. "I'm sure they'll hear it all the time, just look at that ocean, right there at the end of the garden."
"Doesn't all this make you think about having a house someday?" She turned her hand around and caught hold of his. "Maybe host a few parties of your own?"
"Funny you should mention that." Gregory took their glasses and set them carefully on the table, wouldn't do to let Olivia shatter hers all over the beautiful stone terrace. Taking her left hand with one of his hands, the other disappeared into his pocket.
As he sank to one knee, her first thought was that he had dropped something. "Be careful darling, you'll get your suit all dirty." Her right hand closed down onto his shoulder protectively, but as soon as she saw the flash of light from the diamond in his hand she couldn't move.
"Olivia- Liv, you know how much I like to make plans. I've been thinking about the future lately, and the more I think, all I think about is you." Her hand went to her mouth, holding in her gasp of shock.
"Oh darling." She would have continued, but Gregory jumped up to his feet and hushed her.
"if you don't let me finish now, I'm never going to get this out." He took her hand and slipped the glittering diamond on her finger. "I love you Olivia. More than I thought I could ever care about anyone. I want you to marry me. You're the best person, the most wonderful woman I've ever known. I don't know if I deserve you, but I need you. Your love, your passion and your warmth- My life needs you in it." Gregory caught the tear in her eye before it got past her lashes. "And I'd like to start my life, right now."
"Gregory-" The ring was impossibly cold and heavy on her hand. Her heart was pounding in her chest, it was all she could do to stare at him dumbly. "Are you sure you want me?"
"I love you." Holding her hand tightly, Gregory kept her from trying to take the ring off. "So yes, Liv, you're exactly what I want." He cupped her chin and soaked up the adoration in her eyes. "Assuming you'll have me."
Olivia nodded and threw herself into his arms. "I love you."
Gregory started to laugh, mingling relief and the incredible feeling of euphoria as he wrapped his arms around her back. "I'm taking that as a yes."
"Then what happened?" Casey sat up from resting his elbows on his knees. "How was the party?"
"A blur." Olivia dug in one of her desk drawers and pulled out a stack of shortbread cookies. "It wasn't until after he announced to the entire party that I'd agreed to marry him that Gregory told me who the hosts of the party were."
"And who was that?" Casey prompted as she bit into a cookie.
She swallowed her bite and cleaned the crumbs off her mouth with her hand. "We were, Gregory and I. He was so certain I'd say yes that he bought the house for us and threw the party to announce our engagement."
Whistling, Casey stared at her in disbelief. "He bought a house and threw a party before he even asked you?"
"Yes he did." Olivia started her second cookie and nodded happily. "You were the one who brought up how confident he's always been."
"I suppose, but buying you a house. That's something special." Casey grinned knowingly but shook his head as she offered him one of her cookies. "Does he know you've been hiding those in there?"
"Nope." Olivia rested an elbow on the desk and smiled impishly. "He worries I'm going to ruin my dinner."
"Seems to be no chance of that." Casey commented wryly into the back of his hand. "I think I'm going to get a cup. You want some coffee with those?"
Olivia shook her head at him and gave him a melancholy smile. "I would absolutely love some coffee, but it'll be a few months before I can have that again. Thank you anyway."
In the hallway, Gregory watched patiently as Casey emerged from the office. They shared a look as Casey examined the nearly empty coffee cup in Gregory's hand. "Thought that was forbidden." The younger man whispered as Gregory finished it and tucked it away in a lower part of the cabinet.
"She hides how much her back hurts, I hide my coffee." Gregory patted Casey's shoulder. "But, I have to admit I overheard you proposing to my wife and I hope you understand I can't let you steal her from me."
Casey grinned and fidgeted with the ring box in his pocket. "She's been a huge help."
"She's really rather fond of you." Gregory offered as he started towards the door to her office. "And it seems I'll have to stop teasing her about the cookies if she's just going to hide them anyway."
Casey poured himself some coffee and stirred it idly. "It's really good for her, having St. John gone, isn't it? She seems happier, like some weight's been lifted."
"With a man like that, it was only a matter of time before someone got rid of him." Gregory felt the flash of anger resurface as he pictured Cole's arrogant face. "But I agree with you. Knowing that man is out of the way is the best thing to happen to us since we found out Olivia was pregnant."
Taking a sip of coffee, Casey looked over Gregory with renewed appreciation. "Buying the house and throwing a party was-"
"The act of a rash, conceited and arrogant young man who got very lucky that his feelings were reciprocated." Gregory finished with a chuckle. "I do own a few choice pieces of property on the shoreline, if you don't have a place picked out yet, it would save me the trouble of letting Olivia buy you a wedding present."
Nearly dropping his coffee, Casey had the sudden image of carrying Heather over the threshold of some mansion and he had to admit he didn't half mind the idea. "Let me ask her first, I don't think I'm quite the type-"
"She'll say yes." Gregory promised with iron certainty. "And I'm sure Olivia told you the same thing."
"She did." He swirled his coffee and gestured towards Olivia's office door. "Said she knew that 'look'."
"Ah." Watching the younger man sagely, Gregory leaned in. "That she does."