Chapter Twenty-Nine: What A Day
Olivia woke up this morning, in a pretty good mood. She woke up because she had to pee, and not because her stomach was turning. Normally her morning wake up call, came from the need to puke. She got lucky this morning. Olivia quickly noticed that Fitz wasn't in the bed. She reached over, and the sheets were cold on his side of the bed, she knew he'd been gone for a while. He was on his morning run, it was unlikely that he was anywhere else. Dipstick was the only warm body on the bed other than hers. He was curled up at the foot of the bed. He knew he could only get away with that when Fitz wasn't around. Pongo was outside on their bedroom balcony. Olivia kept the door open on most nights to let in a breeze.
Lately, Fitz had been getting up at the crack of dawn for a morning run. Olivia hated it. She loved that Fitz took pride in his body and kept himself fit and healthy, but she didn't love waking up to an empty bed each morning. She missed their lazy mornings together. They didn't last long, because he had to leave for work, but they were something. Whether it was just pillow talk or an early morning quickie before he had to leave. But now there wasn't either one.
When she got up in the mornings, Fitz would already be on his run. And when he got back, he showered got ready for work, ate a quick breakfast, sometimes, and was back out the door. Olivia didn't see him again until he got off from work that afternoon or night if he worked late. It was safe to say Olivia was bored out of her freaking mind, al lonely didn't even begin to cover it. All the staff had been given time off, so she was the only one in the penthouse with Pongo and Dipstick. Alex had a job herself and couldn't come keep Olivia busy, and her parents hated coming to the city, not that Olivia wanted to spend her days with them anyway.
She tried to work on her paintings, but every time she went to work on something new, she would draw a blank. She'd sit in front of her blank canvas and nothing would come to mind. Olivia had never had this problem before, so she didn't know how to fix it.
Realizing she couldn't hold her pee anymore, Olivia got up out of bed. She went to the bathroom to relieve herself and then took a shower. She had no idea how long she was in that shower, but she knew it was quite long. Fitz always got on her about her hot and lengthy showers. And the fact that shew washed her hair, added a lot more time.
She walked back into the bedroom, with only her towel wrapped around herself, towel drying her. She sat on the edge of the bed, and rubbed her body butter on her skin. She was still in that spot, when Fitz came back from his run.
He was pulling his headphones from his ears, as he walked in the room. He immediately recognized the smell of Olivia's shower gel and shampoo wafting in the room. He saw her sitting on the edge of the bed, putting her lotion on. She looked up at him when he came into the room and smiled.
"Hi."
"Hi." Fitz walked over to her side of the bed. He leaned down and pecked her lips twice. "Good morning."
"Morning." Olivia reached up and kissed him again. "How was your run?"
"Good. I ran two more miles than I normally do and I got chased by some stray mutt."
Olivia laughed. "What?"
"Yeah, I thought he was gonna bite my ass off, but he was surprisingly sweet." Fitz said. "Unlike that beast." Fitz pointed to Dipstick who was still on the bed. "And what is he doing on my bed?" Fitz swatted at Dipstick's behind, and the dog hopped off the bed, joining Pongo out on the balcony.
"Leave him alone, and stop calling him a beast. That's why he doesn't like you, because you're mean to him."
"He tried to bite my ankle and I'm the mean one?"
Olivia laughed, although Fitz didn't find it funny. Dipstick wasn't an aggressive dog at all. He was protective. Fitz and Olivia had been play fighting one day, and Dipstick being the loyal dog he was tried to protect Olivia by biting his ankle.
"Glad you find that funny." Fitz walked away, talking off his shirt and putting it in the hamper with the rest of his sweaty clothes. He stripped out of his shorts as well. The entire time, Olivia was watching his every move. She'd forgotten all about her body butter, now all she could focus on was Fitz's half naked body walking around the room.
Fitz saw her staring at him. He smirked at her as he walked back to where she was sitting on the bed. He leaned down, hovering over, with his arms on either side of her. He kissed the side of her neck, inhaling the scent of her soap and shampoo. He would never get tired of her citrus scent, it was intoxicating.
Olivia was already getting riled up, and all Fitz had down was kiss her neck a few times. It didn't take much to get her going, she learned that the first time she and Fitz were intimate. She didn't resist, when Fitz pushed her onto her back on the bed. Nor did she protest when his kisses moved to the valley between her breast, the towel she was wearing was slipping down. She moved her hands to his hair, guiding his face and kisses to her lips.
She boldly slipped her tongue in his mouth, loving how he used his own tongue to play with hers. Kissing Fitz was her favorite thing to do. He always kissed her so passionately and intensely. He took his time, savoring each kiss, making sure every part of her mouth got equal attention. Fitz's hand snaked up the top of Olivia's thigh and underneath her towel. She moved her leg, wrapping it around his waist, hiking up her towel in the process.
Fitz pulled on the part of the towel that was tucked and opened it up. He was soon met by Olivia's bare skin. With Fitz moving around so much, his funk was beginning to waft in the air, and Olivia definitely smelled it.
"Fitz you stink." Olivia was really trying to ignore his funk, but she couldn't. They'd had sex before after one of Fitz's runs or after a workout session in the gym and his funk didn't bother her then. But she also wasn't four months pregnant then either.
Without acknowledging what she said, Fitz lifted Olivia up in his arms. He walked off to the bathroom. "Fitz I've already taken a shower." He still didn't pay her any attention, and walked right into the walk-in shower, turning on the water. He stood back away from the water, allowing time for it to get hot first. "I don't want to get wet again." Olivia said.
Fitz looked at her, she was still in his arms and eye level to him. Olivia smirked at him. "I know you hear me." He didn't respond, but he smirked as he slowly walked them under the spray of the water. Olivia felt the warm spray of the water against her back, before the water tumbled on top of her head and down her face. "I hate you."
"You love me." Fitz finally spoke. When Olivia smiled, he leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips. It had been a while, since they'd had a morning quickie. And Fitz knew it was his own fault. He was gone on his run before she woke up in the morning, and when he got back, he got ready for work and was back out the door. He didn't even eat breakfast on most mornings. He felt bad, he knew Olivia didn't like their routine. And he also knew she hated being left at his apartment everyday by herself. She'd been moping around the house for weeks now. And when he got home from work, she'd be right there waiting for him when he walked through the door. Asking him about his day, wanting to know each and every detail of his day. She was bored out of her mind, and he didn't know what to do about it.
Fitz broke out of his thoughts, and wrapped Olivia's legs around his waist, instead of dangling down like she'd had them before. He had no intentions of taking his time, or being gentle. He'd been thinking about this moment all morning long, and he couldn't wait any longer. He took hold of his already painfully hard penis, aligned himself with Olivia's opening and rammed inside of her.
Olivia yelped, almost jumping out of Fitz's tight hold. She hadn't expected him to enter her so roughly. Olivia had quickly learned, that Fitz wasn't always a gentle lover, she learned that their first night together. And she also come to realize that she loved his rough caveman sex too. "Fitz." Olivia moaned in his ear, and that only spurred his actions even more. Olivia tried holding his shoulders, but she couldn't keep still. Her hands were all over the place. His shoulders, back, her own hair.
Fitz was growling in her ear, as he pumped in her over and over again, each time felt more powerful than the last. Her back was gliding up and down on the shower wall. She reached out with one hand, holding onto a rack on the wall, while the other help the back of Fitz's head. He was currently biting the side of her neck, and she wanted to keep him in that exact spot. It felt too good for him to stop.
Olivia would never grow tired of making love to Fitz. She never in her life thought sex with someone could feel as good as it did with Fitzgerald Grant. Sure, she didn't have anyone to compare him to, but Olivia was convinced it didn't get any better than what her body was feeling right now. And she never wanted to find out otherwise. Olivia just knew no other man could make her toes curl just from a kiss. No one could make her body convulse and shake just from the way he touched her. And no one could make her orgasm the way Fitz did.
Fitz moved his mouth to Olivia's breast. He for sure noticed the change in Olivia's body, since her pregnancy. She was fuller than normal. And softer, where her body had been more toned. Fitz was enjoying her ever changing body. He cradled her left breast in his hands, using his thumb to play with her nipple, until they were standing at attention. He lowered his mouth and suck hard on her nipple. Olivia's eye flew back, smacking into the shower wall. She almost didn't even notice, because she was so consumed with ecstasy. She'd feel it later though.
"Fitz." She moaned. She was close, she could feel it. She didn't know how much longer he could hold out. "Don't stop." Fitz picked up his pace, if that was even possible. His hips moved faster than before, harder than before, giving Olivia everything he had. "Fitz!" She couldn't stop screaming his name. It was eithe3r that or a slew of expletives. Just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore, her stomach started to twist and clench. But this wasn't an orgasm, Olivia knew better than that. No please She pleaded with her body, more specifically, her baby. Please don't, not right now. Just two more minutes.
Olivia had made the mistake of thinking she was safe this morning, when she didn't wake up with morning sickness. She might have gotten the early morning off, but her morning sickness was back with a vengeance, and could not have any worse timing. Olivia thought she could hold it in, just until she and Fitz finished, but she couldn't. Her stomach was twisted in too many knots and she could feel the rising in her throat.
"Stop." She said, but wasn't loud enough for Fitz to hear her. She didn't want to yell or even open her mouth, because she was completely sure she wouldn't throw up on Fitz. "Fitz stop. Stop." This time Olivia smacked him hard on the back, and his head shot up.
"Ow!" Fitz looked up at her, and instantly knew something wasn't right. That was not her orgasm face. "What? What's wrong?"
Without answering him, Olivia pushed him off her, causing him to let her down on her feet. The second her feet touched the ground, she was pushing the shower door open and dashing to the toilet. She slipped on the tile, but she was able to catch herself before she fell. She'd just made it to the toilet when she emptied the contents of her belly.
Fitz followed after her, turning off the water in the shower. He saw her kneeling in front of the toilet, squeezing the lid tightly as she threw up her dinner from last night. He didn't really know what to do, but he did know that he shouldn't just stand there looking helpless. He grabbed an extra rag and towel from the rack. After he wet the rag with cold water, he kneeled beside Olivia at the toilet. They were both still naked from their shower, and he used the towel to cover her. Then he tried to put the cold rag on her neck, he'd seen people do that in TV and movies, he figured it was what you're supposed to do. But when he tried to put the rag on the back of Olivia's neck, she swatted his hand away.
"Stop." Olivia swatted his hand a second time, when he came back with the rag. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate his help, she was just embarrassed. They were in the middle of the best sex of her life, and she had to stop to throw up. This was so not sexy, this was the complete and absolute opposite of sexy. He must be so disgusted Olivia thought.
"Olivia stop it." He commanded, and she moved her hand and let him put the rag on her neck. He held her hair back as she dry heaved into the toilet. Her back arching up like a stretching cat. Fitz hated the sound of other people throwing up, but that wasn't going to stop him from helping Olivia.
When there was nothing else for her to throw up, Olivia lazily slumped back against Fitz. Her head ended up in his lap and she was reminded that he was as naked as she was, when she felt his dick pressing against the back of her neck.
"I'm sorry." She mumbled.
"You don't have anything to be sorry for.
"I'm so embarrassed." She pulled the towel tighter around herself.
"You also don't have anything to be embarrassed for."
"I just threw up my dinner while we were in the middle of… You must be so disgusted."
"I never said that." Fitz pulled her up, so she was sitting in between his legs, her back against his chest. "You're pregnant Olivia. Pregnant women throw up. This time just happen to have the worst timing."
"You're telling me? I was so close. She couldn't wait just one more minute."
"Well Livvie I'm pretty sure the baby didn't know what we were doing. At least I hope she didn't." Olivia laughed, thankful for the light mood. She was still beyond embarrassed, that she almost threw up on Fitz while they were in the middle of having sex. And she was also pissed that they didn't get to finish. She had no idea when she'd get another morning quickie.
Olivia moved from behind Olivia and stood up. Olivia refused to look behind her, she knew what was right behind her head. "Come one. Now you really do need that second shower."
X
Fitz stood in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches to Olivia's breakfast. He was going to be late for work this morning, but he was the boss, he could come in a little late. After he'd bathed Olivia and himself in the shower, Fitz helped her get dressed and he and Olivia had spent a while just laying in bed. Olivia had been worn out after their morning activities and her morning sickness. She'd taken a short nap in his arms, then woke up from hunger. Fitz left Olivia in the bedroom snuggled in the bed then left her in bed to go make her breakfast, so she didn't have to do it this morning. It was times like these, when his staff would have come in handy, but Olivia still insisted on not having them.
She didn't eat too heavy in the mornings, because she couldn't keep it down, and lately she'd been eating the same thing every single day. Toast with peanut butter and avocado slices, drizzled with honey and a bowl of raspberries. Her cravings weren't nearly as disgusting as he thought they would be. Her breakfast didn't look half bad, except for the peanut butter with her avocado. After he poured some naked juice into a small glass, Fitz set up everything on a tray and walked it back to his bedroom.
Olivia was laying on her side, rubbing on one of the dogs, Fitz wasn't sure which one it was. He couldn't tell them apart, unless he was looking at their tails. Olivia knew which was which just by looking at their faces. When Olivia saw Fitz come back in the room, with food she sat up on the bed.
"I made your breakfast. Peanut butter, avocado toast and blueberries."
Olivia gave him a look and whined. "Raspberries."
"I'm kidding." Fitz sat the tray on her lap, with a wink.
"Funny." Olivia ate one of the raspberries, when Pongo and Dipstick came sniffing around, she gave them each one before shooing them away.
"You feeling better?"
"Yeah." Olivia bit her toast, licking the peanut butter from her fingers. "Just morning sickness."
"You still look a little tired. Maybe you should take it easy today." Fitz suggested.
"Fitz I always take it easy. I have nothing else to do. Besides taking the dogs for their walk, I don't leave the apartment. It why I'm always so bored."
"Why don't you call your sister to come over or you two go do something together."
"She works Fitz. Everyone is working except me."
"How about Tabitha. She could help you pick out some of the stuff you wanted for the baby."
"You're supposed to do that stuff with me."
"And I will. Later. Right now I have to get to work." Fitz got up to get his suit tie and jacket. He already had on his pants and shirt.
Olivia followed him around the room with her eyes. "You're leaving?"
"Yeah, I gotta go to work."
"Why?" Olivia whined again. She was enjoying their morning together. Although they were rudely interrupted earlier this morning, what followed after was lovely. They sat and cuddled in bed for a while talking, before sleep overcame Olivia and she drifted off in his arms. "You've already missed the morning, just take the day."
"I can't Liv. Because I didn't go in this morning, I had to push back a few meetings until this afternoon. I can't miss them." After Fitz finished adjusting his tie, he sat back on the bed to put on his shoes.
"It's just one day Fitz."
"One very important day that I can't afford to miss. How about we go out to dinner tonight when I get off work?" He leaned over to soothe her over with a kiss, but when he leaned in to kiss her, Olivia moved away. "Don't do that."
"What." Olivia said. She wasn't looking at him as they spoke, she was now looking down at her food, rolling raspberries around her plate with her fork.
"The pouting. Stop it."
"I'm not pouting." She was absolutely pouting. Her face was the exact depiction of a child being denied candy. She was upset, although she probably had no real right to be. She couldn't be mad at the man because he had to work. But she'd spent the morning with him without any interruptions, and she was enjoying it too much. She didn't want it to end so soon.
"You are, and you need to stop it." Olivia only rolled her eyes. "I have to work Olivia."
"You're the boss, I'm sure you can take one day off."
"I can, but not today. What is your problem all of a sudden? You were fine ten minutes ago, now you're acting like a brat because I'm leaving?"
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me Olivia. I told you no, and you're being a brat about it. And maybe that's my fault, because I always tell you yes, but I am going to tell you no sometimes Olivia. So stop acting like child and get use to it."
Olivia was beyond pissed. Name calling that's what they'd resulted to? Well she had a few names for him herself. "Whatever Fitz, just go." Olivia moved the tray off her lap, and slumped down on the bed. "Leave me here alone like you always do."
Fitz rubbed his hands down his face. She was frustrating him. She was acting like he just left her alone at home to go hang out with his friends and party, He was working. "Olivia don't make it sound like I'm leaving you here to go fucking partying or something. I'm working. And if you're so bored, call one of your friends. Call your sister."
"They all have jobs Fitz." Yes, they all had jobs. All her friends, everyone she knew. Everyone had somewhere to be except her. And in truth, that might be why she was so pissy right now. Olivia had a job, a great job, until some asshole decided to ruin it all. So now, instead of going to her awesome job every day, she got to sit around a watch boring television all day.
"Then call Tabitha."
Olivia scoffed. "I don't need a pity date from your sister when you could just stay here."
Fitz sighed frustrated. "Olivia you know I hate repeating myself. You can't act like a child every time I tell you no. I can't always give you everything you want."
"When was the last time I asked you for anything? Don't act as if I'm asking for jewelry and clothes every second." Olivia honestly didn't ask Fitz for those types of things. She didn't want to seem like she was only with Fitz for him money or because he could buy her nice things. Besides, she had her own money.
"And what am I asking for now? For my boyfriend to spend the day with me? One freaking day? That's not a big ask Fitz." Fitz didn't answer her, he just stared at her with a blank expression. Olivia hated when he did that. Fitz always did that whenever he was done with a conversation, or didn't want whoever to know what he was feeling. And it worked. Olivia could never read him when he made that face at her.
"Whatever, just go." Since Fitz was done with the conversation, then she was done talking too. Olivia turned on her side and pulled the covers up to her neck. The duvet on the bed, was nice and thick, so Fitz couldn't see her face.
X
Fitz was finally returning to his office around four that afternoon. He'd been in meeting after meeting since he walked in the building. He was in a terrible mood. His argument with Olivia that morning was just the beginning. It was as if everything that could go wrong that morning, happened. Getting stuck in traffic this morning was a norm, but getting a flat tired right in the middle of traffic wasn't. And being forced to take a cab to work sure wasn't the norm. Fitz hated public transportation, he was aware that made him sound like a snob, but he didn't care. Bus, trains, cab and especially the subway were a big no fir Fitz. Too many people, dirty atmosphere and no control, no thank you.
After almost an hour in traffic in a cab that smelled like cats, with a gentleman who wouldn't stop talking and Fitz was beyond annoyed. He breathed a sigh of relief, when he finally made it to the office, because he didn't have to smell cat anymore. When he got inside the building, whoever, he was displeased to see a new guard at the front desk. Every employee in the building had to show their personalized key card to get into the building, except for Fitz. It was his company after all. Only this new guard apparently didn't know who he was working for. It took him almost twenty minutes to convince the new guard that he was Fitzgerald Grant, before the man let him pass. And after the day he was having, that guard was for sure working his first and last day at Grant Art Inc.
After a few more mishaps that day, including the monitor screens now working during one of his presentations and Lauren spilling hot coffee in his lap, it was safe to say Fitz was completely done with today.
Fitz now sat in his office, nursing his third scotch and holding a small ice pack to the inside of his thigh, while he read over a few emails. The coffee Lauren had spilled on him had done some damage to the inside of his thigh. He now had a nice red patch on the inside of his left thigh. Fitz was just glad it was only his thigh with some damage. Lauren was lucky she as the best assistant Fitz had ever had, because with the way he was feeling today, Lauren could've been the second person he fired today.
There was a knock on his door. "Yes?" Lauren poked her head in the door.
"I have some mail for you sir." Fitz waved his hand for her to come in. "Also Mr. Larsen is here to see you. He says he has some urgent news." Lauren tentatively placed the mail on Fitz desk. She didn't even look at him. She was still both embarrassed and scared after she'd basically burned him this morning. She knew Fitz was in a bad mood this morning, yelling at anyone who did even the smallest thing to piss him off. She didn't want to be next on his firing list.
"Send him in Lauren."
"Yes sir." Lauren noticed the ice pack Fitz was holding to his thigh. She felt bad. "And again sir. I'm really sorry about-"
"Lauren, it's fine. No need to keep apologizing. Let's just please get back to work."
Lauren smiled. "Yes sir." Lauren walked away, and seconds after she'd left, Tom walked Fitz's office.
"Sir." Tome was holding a manila envelope.
"What is it Tom?" Fitz used his letter opener to rip open one of letters Lauren had given him.
"I heard back from my guy at the police department in Sag." Fitz had told Tom to keep his ear opened for any news about Olivia's case. They hadn't heard anything about the case, until now.
"What is it?"
"They believe they've identified the man who broke into Ms. Pope's business." Tome opened the envelope and pulled out a CD. "This is the security footage from a business across the street of the gallery. They have outside cameras and they were on the night of the break-in. It caught a glimpse of the man leaving the gallery."
"They've had video this whole time, and you're just now getting it?" Fitz asked annoyed. He took the CD from Tom and put it into his laptop on his desk.
"My guy on the inside wasn't assigned to this case. He had to sneak it out of the evidence locker in order to make us this copy." Tom explained, while the video loaded. He walked to the other side of the desk, standing beside Fitz's chair. "The video quality is poor, and the person is wearing a hood to cover his face." Tom explained. "But at one point, when he looks down the street, the camera caught a decent look at his face-"
"I still can't tell who this is."
"No, but I had my guys clean up the video and enhance the face. They were able to come up with this picture." Tom showed a picture to Fitz from the envelope. It was a still picture from the video. The picture was still dark and fuzzy, but you could see the man a little better. "Later I ran it through the New York DMV database and got a hit." Fitz took one more thing out the envelope and gave it to Fitz. It was a print out of a New York driver's license. "His name is Rodger Calhoun. We don't have much on him right now, but I have my guys doing a full background check and family history right now."
"The license says he lives in The Bronx. This address is only about twenty minutes from Liv's old place."
"I had some guys go by there, he wasn't there. He doesn't even live there anymore, the new owners told us the last guy got evicted for non-payment. She's been living there for almost a year now."
"Well that just makes me even more unsettled. He could be anywhere now, and we don't even know the first place to look." Fitz sat back in his chair. "First things first. I want security on Olivia at all times. I want guys posted at the penthouse and I want her followed anytime she takes a step out of that building. And have some guys stay with her sister as well, this guy might go there looking for Olivia." Fitz didn't want Alex getting hurt either. "Tell them to keep close but discrete. Olivia nor her sister know they're being followed."
"Yes sir."
"So far, all he's guilty of is breaking and entering and some graffiti, but since we don't know what his real motive is and whether or not he's violent, I want your guys armed. Instruct them, if they see this guy near Olivia or her sister, they take his ass down."
"Yes sir." Tom took the CD, and pictures back, slipping them into the folder.
"And Tom. I want to know everything there is to know about Rodger Calhoun since the day he was born."
"Yes Sir." Tom turned to leave, and just as he opened the door, Lauren entered with two New York police officers behind her.
"Mr. Grant. I have two officers here to see you." Lauren said.
Fitz stood, and walked around the front of his desk. "Officers." Fitz shook both their hands. "What's this about?"
"Mr. Grant you are the owner Grant's Collectibles on Madison Avenue?"
"Yes. Is there a problem."
"Yes sir. Sorry to have to tell you this, but earlier this evening your store was burned down. It seems to be the act of an arsonist."
Well this day just keeps getting better and better.
X
After walking the dogs and letting them play at the park for a while, Olivia made her way home. She took the dogs off their leashes, and they ran off to wherever they go. Most of the time it was to Fitz's bedroom. They just loved that California kings size bed, and they knew when Fitz was around, that was a non-starter.
Having not eaten since breakfast that morning, Olivia was starving. She still wasn't a great cook, but she was learning. She realized that her baby wouldn't be able to maintain on breastmilk alone forever. So since she didn't want to hire a cook, Olivia had to learn to cook to be able to feed her child. And being able to cook Fitz a meal here and there would be nice, instead of ordering takeout all the time.
Not in the mood to attempt one of the meals in one of her cookbooks, Olivia opted for some a quicker and easier meal in a sandwich. She stomach was loudly growing, even as she made it. It took her longer to make it, because she kept eating the slices of ham before they got to her plate. When she was finished, she was shocked at how big she'd made it. She'd put just about everything she saw in the fridge on her sandwich. After finishing her sandwich with some arugula and the biggest dill pickle on the side, Olivia made her way to the balcony to enjoy her lunch. She gotten use to being out on the balcony. Although she was still afraid of heights and wouldn't dare go near the railing.
This was what she did on most days, it was almost the same routine every day. Sometimes she would switch it up by eating out, but today she wasn't feeling it. Part of her sour mood was the result of her argument with Fitz that morning. Now after having a few hours to think about it, she realized she was in the wrong. How could she get mad at Fitz because he had to work.
Olivia felt awful for how she acted earlier. She was just enjoying having Fitz to herself for a few extra hours. And when it was about to end, she threw a fit. Fitz was right, she was being a brat. She wanted to blame her overreaction and childish behavior on her pregnancy hormones but she knew she couldn't cast all the blame.
Olivia was telling the truth about not asking Fitz for a lot of things, and for the most part, she got whatever it was she was asking for. But on the rare occasion that Fitz actually told her no she behaved like a spoiled and pouty child. She did the same thing to her father when she was a girl. Olivia and Alex were both spoiled by their father, getting almost anything they wanted. And whenever he said no, it was as if he'd never agreed to the thousands of other things the girls asked for. Olivia would apologize to him when he got home that day. This was a dumb argument to be having, and she wasn't going to let it live longer than it needed to.
X
Marilyn and Tabitha made their way to the elevator of Fitz's building. They were on a mission today. Planning Fitz's thirty-third birthday party. Every year, against Fitz's best wishes, Marilyn threw Fitz an extravagant birthday party. Fitz hated them, because it was always over the top and exaggerated just like Marilyn Grant. Fitz didn't really like celebrating his birthday anyway and he especially hated schmoozing with a bunch of his mother's friends, that he didn't even know. Dodging a bunch of overly aggressive women, who spent too much time at the open bar, was not Fitz's idea of a good time. He hated when people crowded around him, he didn't like to be made a fuss over and he absolutely hated being the center of attention. Unlike his younger brother and sister.
The bar was normally where Fitz spent his night. Hiding, until his mother eventually would whisk him away to introduce him to her friends and their single daughters. Marilyn was always trying to find an excuse for her son to leave Mellie. And although Fitz hated these parties, every year his mother ignored him and insisted on a party. Marilyn was the same way with Patrick and Tabitha on their birthday's as well. The only difference was Fitz's sibling loved the their bog and over the top parties. And now that Marilyn had a grandchild and one on the way, she will for sure be planning more parties in her future.
"Momma I don't see why you keep planning these parties for Fitz every year, knowing he hates them." Tabitha shifted Theo on her hip, as they stepped into the elevator. She was now regretting leaving his stroller in the car. Theo was a growing boy, and it was not easy to lug him around all the time. Theo knew how to walk, but he was a tad bit lazy and only walked when it benefited him.
"Fitz is my child Tabitha. And I love celebrating my children."
"Even if he doesn't love being celebrated? Fitz hates celebrating his birthday, he doesn't even really like parties not that I think of it."
"And I don't know why. He's been this way ever since he was a boy. He use to run off and hideout in his room whenever I had guest over. He'd stay in there for hours until they left. Who doesn't love a good party? You and Patty still love your parties don't you?"
"Of course I do! Any party where I'm the center of attention is my kind of party." Spoken like the true baby in the family. "Mom, you're just going to have to accept that fact that Fitz is weird. He's never going to be like Pat, that's just not who he is. I'm still trying to figure out how a stuffy suit like him, snagged Olivia."
"He is not stuffy, he's focused."
"Uptight is more like it."
"Enough. Stop talking about your brother so negatively."
"Don't get me wrong, I love my brother. But boy is he a-"
"Enough Tabitha."
Tabitha rolled her eyes and mumbled, "Whatever."
The elevator dinged, and the doors opened up to the penthouse. Marilyn stepped off first, almost asking where the staff was. They normally were waiting by the elevator doors, waiting to greet Fitz's guest and take their coats. She'd forgotten Olivia requested that they be given some time off. Although, it was looking as if they wouldn't be coming back. Marilyn didn't understand why Olivia wouldn't want help around the house. She'd go crazy if she didn't have all the help she did at her home.
"It's awfully quiet in here." Marilynn noted.
"Maybe Olivia isn't even here. I told you we should've called first." Tabitha sneered. She was going to be pissed if they came all this way just to turn around. "Olivia?" Tabi yelled out. But the only response she got was from Pongo and Dipstick now making their way into the living room. "Hi buddy." Scratched one of the dogs head, she wasn't sure which one.
"I still cant believe Fitz allows those dogs in his home."
"Well maybe he's not as stuffy as I thought." Tabitha stopped petting the pups head, and followed after him when he trotted away. "Oh there she is." She spotted Olivia out on the balcony, curled on one of the chairs under a blanket. There was a plate sitting on the table beside her, with a few bites of a sandwich left. She had a book rested in her hand, but her eyes were closed. She was out.
Marilyn came up behind Tabitha. "Poor thing. The baby must be tiring her out already. That's one thing I don't miss about being pregnant. You babies sucking out all my energy before my day even began. You were the worst one of all."
Tabi shrugged. "Sorry?"
"Olivia. Honey." Marilyn shook her a few times, but that had no affect. "Wow she's really out isn't she." Marilyn shook her again, this time much harder. That did the trick, Olivia woke up startled. "Sorry dear, I didn't mean to frighten you."
It took Olivia a second to realize who was standing in front of her. She didn't know how long she'd been out, but she guessed quite a while had passed. She could feel a bit of dried drool on her cheek, her eyes were foggy and her leg had been asleep for some time now due to the position she had it in.
"Marilyn hi." Olivia rubbed at her eyes, trying to clear them out. "Tabitha, I wasn't expecting you. Fitz didn't tell me you were stopping by."
"That's because he doesn't know." Marilyn answered.
"Is something wrong?" Olivia suddenly became alarmed.
"Oh no. I just need you help with something."
"Oh?"
"Yes. Fitz's birthday is coming up soon and I'm planning his party. I thought you'd like to help us out this year."
Olivia frowned. She'd completely forgotten about Fitz's birthday. He never talked about his birthday, because she knew he hated to celebrate it. Still, she should know when her boyfriend's birthday was. She knew she'd be upset if he didn't remember her birthday.
"I feel bad. I completely forgot about his birthday." Olivia face palmed herself. "I feel like the worst girlfriend ever." To her surprise, Marilyn and Tabitha started laughing.
"Don't. I'm sure Fitz hasn't even mention his birthday once. How could you not forget?" Tabitha said.
"And besides, you have an excuse. You're pregnant. That's your excuse for everything until you give birth." Marilyn added. "I remember one time, when I was pregnant with Patty. I had loaded Fitz up in the car had gotten all out things in the trunk. But instead of leaving, we sat in the car for a good ten minutes, because I'd forgotten where we were going in the first place." The ladies laughed. "Now come on inside, so we can plan this party."
Olivia removed the blanket from her lap, and immediately became embarrassed. She was barely wearing clothes. Just one of Fitz's t-shirts and a pair of boy shorts. They were more comfortable than her regular underwear.
Olivia stood up from the chair, pulling the shirt down as far as it would go. "I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting anyone."
"Oh don't apologize to us. We were the ones who showed up unannounced." Marilyn gazed down at Olivia's belly and smiled. Because she was pulling her shirt down, it was stretching and tightening over her growing belly, making it visible. "Isn't that the cutest thing?" Olivia's bump wasn't large, but she was growing and for sure was showing now. Marilyn couldn't help herself, and she reached out to rub on Olivia's stomach. She couldn't believe she was going to be a grandmother again. She never thought Tabi and Fitz would be the first to give her a grandbaby. She'd already prepared herself for the fay Pat came home to tell her he'd knocked up some girl.
"My stomach was never perfectly round like this when I was pregnant. Tabi had a perfect round stomach too. I always had an egg shape going when I was pregnant." After Marilyn got her feel of Olivia's stomach, she finally let her go so she could put on some pants. When she came back, she'd changed into a pair of leggings and one of her own shirts.
They spent the next few hours, planning every detail of Fitz's party. Marilyn already had her own ideas, of what she wanted the night to be, she just needed Tabi and Olivia to help her fill in some of the gaps. Olivia knew Fitz hated to celebrate his birthday, mostly because he didn't like to be around a lot of people all at once and that was mostly because he didn't really like people. But she wanted him to have a good time at this party. It was his birthday after all. This wasn't just another one of the many parties his mother was throwing, just because she could. This was celebrating him and she wanted him to enjoy it. She tried thinking of things she thought Fitz would enjoy, stuff that would help him have a good time and possibly keep him there, instead of escaping.
After getting the majority of the details down for his party, the ladies decided to call it a day. None of them noticed the time slipping away, but the sun was now beginning to set.
"Well we best get going. I didn't realize how late it was getting." Marilyn stood, and so did everyone else. "I'm sure your father is half way to losing his mind by now." She gathered her belongings, helping Tabi carry some of her as well, since she had to carry a now sleeping Theo to the car. "Thank you again Olivia."
"My pleasure, I'm happy to help." Olivia gave both the women and hug and kissed Theo on the forehead. She offered to walk them to their car, but they declined. So instead she just walked them to the elevator. She waited until the doors closed behind them, before she moved.
She checked the clock on the wall, and wondered where Fitz was. He hadn't mentioned being late today, so he should've been home by now. Although, he might be still upset about the morning, Olivia thought. She tried calling him on his cell, but it rang out and she hung up, deciding not to leave a message. She figured, since he wasn't here yet, that she'd try to make dinner tonight instead of ordering take-out. She'd just look up one of the quick recipes in one of her books.
After flipping through three different books looking for the simplest thing to make, she finally decided on a tortellini bake. All she had to do was boil some to some tortellini, pour some sauce over it with cheese and pop it in the oven. And it also helped that she was in the mood for some pasta. It only too about twenty minutes to make, and when it was done, she mixed up a Caesar salad and popped a few pieces of garlic bread in the oven. When she was finished with everything, she checked her watch again. It was rearing closer to nine o'clock and Fitz had yet to walk through the door or call. When nine o'clock came around, Olivia couldn't hold on any longer. She tried to wait until Fitz got home, to start eating, but she had no idea when he was going to be home, and she was starving.
X
Fitz made it home around ten o'clock that night. He hadn't meant to stay at the office that long, but after leaving the store and review security footage back at his office, Fitz lost track of time. The officers informed Fitz that they didn't have much to go by, because the fire had destroyed the security cameras inside the store. And the witnesses, Fitz's employees, all saw that the man came in waving a gun, and forced everyone face down on the floor. He was wearing a ski mask, black hoodie and pants, they never saw his face. After he forced them down on the ground, He began pouring some type of accelerant all around the store. And just before he pulled out a lighter, he told everyone to get out. They all said that he didn't seem to want to hurt anyone. He was just concerned about causing some damage.
After the officers asked him a few questions, Fitz left. Later in his office, Tom informed him that he was able to pull the extra security cameras from the building before the officers made him leave. Fitz was serious when it came to security. So he had extra cameras installed in his businesses, not even his employees knew about it. Just in case one of them had sticky fingers. These cameras were small, able to hide anywhere, they were also water and heat resistant and virtually indestructible.
Fitz watched as the man came into the store, behind another customer, catching his security off guard. He pointed the gun at the guard and made him toss his gun away. And like the witnesses said, he forced them all on the ground. There was audio, so Fitz could hear the man telling them to get down. But it was strange, it was almost as if he was asking them to lay down, instead of demanding. Even as he poured lighter fluid all over the store, he was reassuring everyone that they would be alright and this would be over soon. He was awfully polite, for an arsonist endangering people's lives. The video ended shortly after the building caught fire.
"Are we certain that this is the same man that broke into Olivia's gallery?"
"We're not certain sir. But I would put money on it. We have no reason to believe that this is anyone else."
Fitz got up and poured himself a glass of scotch. "What a fucking day." He downed the drink in one gulp and poured himself another. "Do you have anything on him?"
"Not yet sir."
"What is taking so fucking long?" It had only been a few hours, but that was long enough for Fitz's patience.
"We're working on it sir. But it is difficult to track someone, when they don't leave an apparent trail behind. In the last year, Rodger Calhoun hasn't so much as bought a pack of gum. There is no activity on his bank statements, no withdrawals or deposits. No cellphone activity-"
"Everyone has a cellphone."
Tom nodded. "We figure he's using a burner phone. Now I can track it, but it's going to take some time."
"We don't have time Tom." Fitz said. "He's already trashed Olivia's place and burned down my fucking business. We have no idea what this guy is planning next. Now it's clear that this guy has a problem with Olivia and I. And right now, he hasn't hurt anyone, but we don't know how long that is going to last. Now I have a family to think about. To protect. And I can't do that with this lunatic running wild! Now NYPD is useless, so I'm depending on you to find this asshole!" That vein in Fitz's neck was bulging out. "Because I swear to God Tom. If anything… happens to Olivia-"
"I will find him sir."
"You better."
X
The next chapter will pick up where this left off.
Until Next Time...