Chapter Thirty-Three: No More Fear
Fitz couldn't sit still. He paced back and forth across the hospital room, arms crossed, face scrunched in a worried scowl. He didn't know what to do with himself. All he kept thinking about was how close Olivia was to being hit by that car and how he might have caused her damage anyway when he grabbed her to pull her away from the car. It all happened so fast, and Fitz reached out for Olivia on instinct. He didn't think about where he was grabbing her, he just wanted to get her way from the car speeding her way. And now, he couldn't help but think that he caused some kind of harm to his unborn child. He just knew Olivia would never forgive him and he would never forgive himself. He was just getting used to the fact that Olivia was pregnant and that he was going to be a father. And to have it all snatched away would be devastating to both of them.
Olivia watched from her hospital bed. She watched Fitz walk back and forth from wall to wall over and over again. She could tell that he was worried and pissed off all at the same time. She knew he was scared that he had hurt her or the baby, but she was confident that their baby would be just fine. On the way to the hospital, she was worried because she'd started bleeding. But when they arrived, she felt the baby kicking. She tried to get Fitz to calm down, but he wasn't going to be convinced until the doctor himself told him that both Olivia and the baby were fine. They had run some tests when they first got to the hospital and now they were just waiting to hear that everything looked fine.
"Fitz, please. Everything will be fine." Fitz ignored her and kept walking. "Fitz please, you're stressing me out. Just come and sit with me." This time Fitz acknowledged her and walked over to her bed. He was hesitant to touch her, but she reached out her hand and he laced his fingers with hers. "I'm fine Fitz. We both are." Olivia put Fitz's hand on her stomach so he could feel the baby's light kicking.
"But what if it isn't."
"It is."
"I grabbed you so hard. I wasn't thinking. I could have grabbed your arm or-"
"Fitz you saved me from being hit by a car." Olivia knew just how close she was from being hit by that car. She never saw it coming, until it passed by her. "I wouldn't be here right now if you hadn't have done what you did."
"I just wish the doctor would hurry up."
"Just relax." Olivia caressed Fitz's face with her free hand and they sat in silence together, waiting on the doctor to hopefully give them some good news.
X
It took about another forty-five minutes before a doctor came to their room. Fitz was getting angrier and angrier every minute they sat in that room without a doctor coming in. There was a knock on the door and Fitz stood as the door opened and the doctor walked in.
"Hello Ms. Pope."
"Well it's about damn time." Fitz said before Olivia could respond. "We've been waiting two hours because apparently you are the only person in this hospital qualified to read some results from a piece of paper."
"Fitz."
"I'm sorry about your wait Mr. Grant." The doctor dealt with anxious and impatient assholes all day long, he wasn't phased. "I've looked over your test the nurses took when you got here and…" He looked through the papers in his hand. Fitz was about to snatch the papers from the man's hands if he didn't hurry up.
"And everything looks great" Both Olivia and Fitz exhaled. Although Olivia could feel the baby moving, she was still worried that something could be wrong. "Baby's heart rate is nice and strong, no further signs of distress."
"So I'm okay?" Olivi needed confirmation.
"Yes ma'am. Although your blood pressure is quite high. But that could just be from the stress of the day. A nurse told me you were almost hit by a car."
"Yeah."
"A stressful event such as that can cause a person's blood pressure to spike. But because it's so elevated, I'm going to keep you here overnight just for observation. Just to ensure your blood pressure goes back down to normal. And after today, I need you to do your best to stay as stress-free as possible."
Olivia didn't know how she was going to do that. This entire year had been nothing but stress, and she didn't see an end anytime soon. "I'll do my best."
"Alright. Well I'm going to have you moved to a room upstairs. And throughout the night there will be nurses coming to check on you and make sure your blood pressure is lowering. And if all goes well tonight you should be fine to go home in the morning." The doctor smiled at the both of them before leaving to check on his other patients.
When the door closed behind him, Fitz finally relaxed. He sat back down and held Olivia's hand in his. Fitz raised her hand to his lips and kissed it over and over.
"I was truly frightened." Fitz admitted.
"I know." Olivia let a tear fall down her cheek. It wasn't a tear of sadness, just of utter relief that their baby was actually fine.
"I'm sorry Olivia."
"Fitz I told you this was not your fault-"
"No." Fitz sighed. "I meant for how I've been acting since we found out you were pregnant. I admit that I was not happy about you being pregnant, and I was nervous about becoming a father. I haven't been here for you these past months like I should have been. I haven't been involved enough with this pregnancy and I'm sorry. I would hate for my child to be born thinking that I didn't want him or her. And after this, I know that without a doubt I want this more than anything. And although I'm still unsure about being a father, I want this. I want you, this baby and I want our family. And I promise from here on out, I'll be here with you every step of the way."
"I love you."
"I love you too."
X
"I cannot believe you would not tell your parents about this Olivia! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Eli shouted. He, his wife, and Alex had arrived at the hospital after Fitz called them to tell them what happened and that Olivia was in the hospital for the night. He called his parents as well and while they wanted to come see Olivia as well, but Fitz convinced them to settle for a facetime call. Fitz knew Olivia's parents were coming to the hospital and he didn't want to overcrowd Olivia with too many visitors. She was supposed to be resting, so Fitz wanted to get everyone in and out as soon as possible so she could get some sleep. He had left for a moment to take a phone call.
"Daddy please." Olivia was beyond tired, and right now all she wanted to do was sleep.
"Olivia your no good ex-boyfriend has been stalking you for how long and you're just now telling us. He was responsible for your gallery being vandalized and apparently he burned down Fitz's business? ANd you've just decided to keep all this to yourself."
"I didn't want to worry you." Olivia recognized the irony, as Fitz told her the same thing when she was on him about keeping secrets from her.
"Worry us?! Don't you think us finding out that you were dead would have been more worrisome."
"Daddy you're being dramatic." Alex said from her seat next to Olivia's bed. They were all upset that Liv was in the hospital and that Roger was possibly the cause. But they were trying to keep their cool for Olivia's sake. Everyone except for Eli. He was upset that his daughter was in the hospital and he couldn't do anything about it. His worry was getting the best of him and he couldn't control his emotions.
"Elijah, you're yelling is not helping." Diana said. "Now we're all upset about this situation, but we need to stay calm and just be grateful that Olivia is okay."
Eli nodded. "Yeah you're right, and we're going to keep it that way. You are coming home with your mother and I when you're discharged tomorrow morning."
Fitz walked in just in time to hear what Olivia's father said. He was about to set Eli straight on why that was not going to happen, but Olivia spoke up first. Olivia's hospital room was larger than most, and the way the room was set up, there was a wall blocking the door entrance, so no one noticed Fitz coming into the room.
"Daddy no, I'm not going to do that."
"Olivia you have not been taking care of yourself properly. Now I am your father, I know what is best for you."
"I am a grown woman daddy! And I can take care of myself just fine."
"Look at you, Olivia. This is taking care of yourself?"
"Eli!"
"I don't know what has gotten into you Olivia. Ever since you started dating that boy, you've changed so much. And now look at you."
"This is not Fitz 's fault. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be here right now for you to yell at me." Olivia sighed. "Daddy I know you're just scared and worried about me and upset about the Roger situation, but you are not helping anything right now. You can't lash out and try to blame this on Fitz. He does take care of me and I feel safe with him. I know he isn't your favorite person, but he's my family now and I'm going to go home with him.
Eli knew he couldn't blame this on Fitz, he just needed someone to blame since Roger wasn't here. He was pissed that he didn't get rid of Roger a long time ago. He wasn't going to let Olivia and Fitz end up the same way if he could help it. He let one bad apple into the bunch, but he wasn't going to allow a second. "I am just a concerned father Olivia."
Fitz came from behind the wall now, and made his presence known. "Eli I understand where you're coming from. But I am more than capable of taking care of Olivia and protecting her from anything. I assure you that I will not allow anything to hurt her." Fitz walked to stand next to Olivia's best and she took his hand in hers.
"These are my only two children. I'm not going to just entrust their lives to a stranger."
"Really daddy? Fitz is beyond a stranger, I'm having his baby for christ's sake. You're just going to have to accept the fact that Alex and I are women now and we're not going to depend on you and mom for everything anymore. And I know you don't like it, but I'm leaving with Fitz tomorrow."
X
"I am so ready to get out of this room." Olivia stretched out again in her hospital bed. She was so ready to go home. All night long she tried to get some rest, but it was hard to do in a hospital bed hooked up to a few machines. Then every few hours, a nurse had to come into her room, wake her and ask her if she was feeling alright. All. Night. Long. She was exhausted, and she could tell Fitz was too. They both were more than ready for Olivia to be discharged. "I need to soak in a hot bath and get into my own bed."
Fitz looked at his watch. "Well it's about ten now. hopefully the doc will come in soon and release you." He let out a big yawn, stretching in the pullout bed he slept in last night. Olivia told him to get in the bed with her, but Fitz didn't think it would be too comfortable for Olivia if he squeezed in the small hospital bed with her. Luckily the couch in the room pulled out into a bed. It was nowhere near comfortable and he woke up with a crook in his neck, but it was better than sleeping upright in a chair.
"Hey what was all that about with your dad last night?" Fitz asked. Fitz knew he wasn't Eli's favorite person in the world, especially after the Mellie incident, but he thought they were on better terms now.
Olivia sighed. "My dad is just worried about me right now. And when he gets worried and scared he loses control of his emotions. He's also pissed about Roger."
"Well I understand that, but he seems to think I'm the cause of all this."
"He doesn't think that, he knows this isn't your fault. He's just looking for someone to blame and you were just there at the time. You know my dad is a good guy, he's just overprotective like you."
There was a knock on the door and they both looked up, hoping to see the doctor coming to tell them Olivia was being discharged. Instead, it was a nurse wheeling an ultrasound machine behind her.
"Good morning Ms. Pope." The nurse smiled. "So you did very well last night, your blood pressure is back to normal and you're still set to be discharged this morning. But the doctor ordered another ultrasound before you're discharged."
"Okay." Olivia sat back in her bed, and lifted her gown. She still felt like she was still too small, but her stomach had grown considerably. About a week ago, shed noticed that she had this dark, vertical line on her stomach. She was worried at first because she had no idea what it was. Then she googled it and found out it was a linea nigra, which was the first time she had ever heard of it, but it is very common with pregnant women.
"Okay let's see if we can get some nice pictures for you today." The nurse put the wand on Olivia's stomach and the image of their baby glowed on the screen. "And let's listen to the heartbeat."
This was Olivia's favorite part of getting an ultrasound. To hear her baby's heartbeat, to know that she was carrying a precious life was so overwhelming to her.
"Sounds good and strong. It's 170 beats per minute, which is a good strong heartbeat." She moved the wand around some more to get a better picture of the baby. "There's two little legs, belly, and arms. Awe looks like she's sucking her thumb."
"Really?" Olivia chuckled, watching the grainy image of her sucking- wait what did she say? "Did you say she?" Olvia asked.
The nurse looked confused. "Did you not know? I'm so sorry, I didn't know it was a surprise, I ruined it."
"So we're having a girl?" Olivia was sort of upset that the surprise was just ruined, but then again she was excited to know she was having a little girl. She looked over at Fitz to get his reaction. He was just as amazed as she was, and he hadn't stopped staring at the screen. Knowing the sex of the baby just made it so real.
X
After the doctor came in once more to check on Olivia, he discharged her to go home. He made sure to tell her to get plenty of rest and reduce her stress. Fitz assured the doctor that Olivia wouldn't be anything but resting from now on. Fitz had Tom bring a car to the hospital so that he could drive Olivia home. Olivia had fallen asleep on the drive, and when she woke up she noticed they were not heading towards the penthouse. When she opened her eyes, all she saw was trees and land, she knew they were no longer in the city.
"Where are we going?" She asked Fitz.
"Doc said you needed rest, so I thought we would get out of the city for a while. We're going to my house."
"You mean your mansion?"
"Sure." Fitz pulled into the driveway of his home and made the long drive up to the house.
"I don't have any new clothes here." Olivia said, once she realized she didn't get a chance to pack a bag. Fitz had clothes brought to the home for Olivia a long time ago, but they wouldn't fit her right now.
"I had Annie pack you a bag."
Olivia groaned. "Fitz." Olivia hated that Fitz had employees to do some things around the house. She didn't mind the cooking so much or the cleaning. But she hated to have someone else doing her laundry. The thought of someone else handling her undergarments made her uneasy.
"Olivia, she's a professional, it's her job. No one cares what your big girl panties look like." Fitz said laughing.
Olivia smacked him on the arm. "They are maternity underwear for support. And I only wear them when my back is hurting."
"If you say so." Fitz got out of the car and opened Olivia's door. When she got out, he caught her off guard by sweeping her off her feet.
"Fitz I can walk to the door."
"Doc said rest."
"Yeah, but I don't think me walking to the front door will cause any damage."
Fitz ignored her and walked on the door. When he opened the door, Pongo and Dipstick came running up to them. Fitz had Annie drop them off when she brought Olivia's clothes.
"I had Annie bring them by."
"Is she still here?"
"No. I gave her some time off, it's just the two of us here."
"Oh how will you ever survive?"
X
After a long hot soak in the bathtub, Olivia and Fitz laid down to take a much-needed nap. They were both exhausted from their near restless night in the hospital. It took no time at all for Olivia to fall into a deep sleep. And when Fitz woke up four hours later, she was still sleeping. Knowing she needed her rest, he left the bed to go through some paperwork he'd brought with him in his office downstairs. When he checked on Olivia an hour later, she was still sleeping. It was approaching seven o'clock at night, and Fitz knew when Olivia woke up she was going to be hungry. So he decided to start cooking dinner for the both of them. Fitz wasn't a master chef, but he knew how to cook.
He was going to make a simple dinner and something that he could make quickly. He'd found some Flank steak in the freezer and decided to make stir fry. He was cooking the steak when Olivia walked into the kitchen. She still had sleep in her eyes, as she rubbed them. She was dressed in one of the big t-shirts Annie had packed from Olivia's closet in the penthouse. Lately, Olivia hadn't been bothering with real clothes. All she cared about was comfort. and right now, her large t-shirt and Ugg socks were what was comfortable.
"Well look at that, the dead has risen." Fitz teased, watching Olivia sit down on a barstool.
"Shut up." Olivia ate a piece of the bell pepper that Fitz had cut up on the counter. "How long have I been asleep?" She ate another piece, not realizing just how hungry she was until she smelled the food Fitz was cooking.
"Almost six hours."
"What? Why did you let me sleep for so long?"
"Because you need your rest." Fitz poured the noodles in the now boiling water and turned the pan cooking the steak down. He walked back to the counter where he was cutting the vegetables.
"I think I like seeing you this way." Olivia said, watching Fitz slice through the veggies. Fitz didn't cook often, because he always had someone around the house who would do it for him. But she liked this side of him. The relaxed side that walked around in sweatpants and a t-shirt with no socks and bed hair. Fitz rarely let people see the relaxed and vulnerable side of him. He always presented himself as a hardass to the world.
"Can I help with something?" Olivia asked, but Fitz gave her a look. "Baby he said rest, but he did not say I had to stay in bed all day. I'm fine. I can cut the veggies from my stool." Olivia realized Fitz wasn't going to give her the knife to take over, so she took it out of his hand and started cutting the food. This was nice Olivia thought. The two of them cooking dinner together without a bunch of staff milling around the house. Fitz had gone back to cooking at the stove and while his back was turned to Olivia, she decided to ask him something that had been on her mind for a while.
"Baby can I ask you something?"
"Yeah." Fitz answered without turning around.
"Be honest okay. I know you had Tom look into who was driving that car that almost hit me." Fitz sighed, already knowing where this was going. He was hoping Olivia wouldn't ask, because he truly didn't want to talk about it. He was tired of Roger always being a topic in their discussions.
"Yeah."
"So?"
"It was Roger Liv."
Olivia was expecting him to say Roger was the one driving the car, but she was still stunned when he said the name. She just couldn't' believe that the man she once thought she was in love with was the same man that was now stalking her and tried to run her over. The Roger of today was nothing like the Roger she met years ago.
"Is he sure?"
"Yeah." Fitz turned around, wiping his hands with a kitchen towel. "Tom's cop friend said they have an image on a red light camera of the same car running a red light. The driver was Roger plain as day."
"I just want this to be over Fitz. I'm tired of the security, I'm tired of always staying home in fear. This is supposed to be a happy time for us. I'm pregnant with our first child, we should be talking about nurseries and baby names and-" Olivia was getting herself worked up with fear. Fitz wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight while she calmed down. "I just want this to be over." She spoke muffled, with her face in his chest.
"It will be. I promise I will end this."
X
"You know Fitz, with everything that's been going on I almost forgot it was the holidays. Christmas is in a couple of weeks. And we don't have any decorations or presents." After dinner, Olivia was relaxing on the couch in the den. She was curled up in a thick fluffy blanket with the fireplace blazing. She was scrolling on her tablet while Fitz sat next to her flipping through TV channels.
"Do we really have to do the whole decoration thing? I mean I've always thought it a waste of time. Putting all that effort in for a day just to rip it all down."
"Fitz please don't tell me you're a scrooge too. Christmas is my favorite holiday and I refuse to let you be a Debbie Downer on my favorite holiday."
"I am not. I was just never the kid that got overly excited about Christmas or any holiday for the matter."
"Hmm. Why does that not shock me?" Olivia said sarcastically.
"Anyway, I was thinking we could get away this Christmas." Fitz stretched out on the couch, putting his head in Olivia's lap. " What about Jamaica."
"Jamaica?"
"Yeah."
"Fitz I am not traveling anywhere in a plane at almost six months pregnant. Secondly, we can't go to Jamaica, we would be away from all our family and thirdly we can not have a white Christmas in Jamaica."
"Snow is overrated anyway. Who the hell wants to go playing in a bunch of ice, freezing their asses off anyway?"
"I do, and so will our baby girl." Olivia smiled. "Which is why we are getting a tree and decorations for this Christmas and every Christmas to come." She went back to scrolling on her tablet.
"Is that what you're doing on that tablet?" Fitz asked, looking up at Olivia from his spot on her lap.
"No, right now I'm shopping." Olivia smiled giddily. For the past couple of hours, all she'd been doing was adding and saving clothes in her cart on several different websites. Olivia hated to go out shopping in stores, but she could shop online all day long. And especially for baby clothes. It was entirely too easy to add everything she thought was cute into her cart, which turned out to be just about everything.
"I didn't realize how much fun it was to shop for bouncers and swaddles and bottles. And I found the cutest little pacifiers, they have little bows on them."
Fitz just sat listening to Olivia ramble on. She just looked so happy in this moment, talking about all the things she'd already ordered for their baby and everything she planned on ordering. She'd completely forgotten about Roger and the real reason they were hiding out in his home outside of the city instead of the penthouse.
"And I know at first, I was a bit ticked off that the nurse told us what we were having. But now I'm glad, because I can start looking at girl clothes instead of neutral onesies. And it is so much more fun to shop for a girl than it is for a boy."
"So I take it you're glad we're having a girl instead of a boy?"
"Well at one point, I thought I wanted a boy that looked just like you. But now I'm glad I'm having a mini-me. I already have ten different mommy and me outfits. And this website I'm on now has matching family swimsuits."
"Livvie please don't turn us into the cheesy family that goes on vacation matching every single day."
Olivia only smiled, because that was exactly what she planned on doing. "You'll love it."
Fitz went back to flipping through channels on the TV. Olivia hated when he did that. Fitz didn't watch TV often, so when he did he had no idea what he wanted to watch. So he spent most of the time flipping through a bunch of channels before he stopped on something that seemed interesting.
Olivia started scrolling through the websites on her tablet, but every few minutes she would notice Fitz moving and fidgeting. She scrunched her eyebrows, and when she looked at him, she noticed that he was readjusting himself. And when he moved his hand away, she noticed he had an erection. How he got an erection just sitting on the couch watching the evening news she didn't know. But it made her realize just how long it had been since they had sex.
Olivia didn't like that she couldn't be intimate with Fitz and she knew he was getting tired of it as well, although he wouldn't tell her that. And she felt worse, because she hadn't told Fitz why she couldn't have sex with him right now. And she knew he was probably coming up with a million different reasons it was his fault. Olivia knew it was time to tell him and she just hoped he wasn't too mad at her for not telling him sooner.
"Fitz." Olivia sat her tablet down on the table next to her and moved Fitz's head off her lap. "I need to tell you something." She said, as Fitz sat up to sit next to her. "But you have to promise you won't be mad at me."
"Well that depends on what you tell me." Fitz already knew he was not going to like whatever Olivia was about to tell him.
"Fitz."
"Alright, I will not yell." That was the best Olivia was going to get. Fitz could still be angry without yelling.
"Fine." Olivia sighed. "So I'm sure you've noticed it's been a while since we had sex. At first, the reason I couldn't be intimate with you is because my body was changing with the pregnancy and I just didn't feel like myself or desirable and -"
"Olivia what are you talking about? You are beautiful, I tell you that all the time. I am still one hundred percent attracted to you."
"And I appreciate you saying that Fitz, but I couldn't help how I felt. But that isn't the reason we haven't had sex recently."
"Well what is?"
"Before you had me change my phone number, I got another message from Roger." Olivia looked at Fitz, trying to gauge his mood before she continued. "He sent a picture to my phone."
"A picture of what?"
Olivia exhaled. "You remember that night we went to that Morrocan restaurant." Fitz nodded. "And when we got home, you were very touchy-feely and we ended up making love on the couch and we slept there all night."
"Yes, what are you saying?"
"The next morning, I got a message from an unknown number. When I opened it, it was a picture of you and I sleeping naked on the couch. I don't know how he got a picture of us. He either figured out a way to hack the security system you have in the penthouse or-"
"He was there." Fitz finished her sentence. Fitz knew that his home security system was nearly impossible to hack, but not impossible. He didn't think Roger had the intelligence to hack into his security system, so that meant he must have been inside the penthouse and took a picture of him and Olivia on the couch. That unnerved Fitz more than anything that Roger had done so far. The fact that he had somehow managed to find a way inside Fitz's home. And then had access to Fitz and Olivia in their most vulnerable state. They were both sleeping in the open with no defense, Roger could have done anything to them.
"Yeah. And ever since he sent that picture, every time we would get close to having sex I just thought about that picture and about the fact that was inside the house.
Fitz didn't know what to make of this, there was nothing he could do about it, it already happened. The only thing he could do now was to have Tom look over the cameras to confirm if Roger was inside the penthouse or if there was evidence they were hacked. Fitz got up from the couch, he didn't know what to do. He started pacing in front of the couch.
Olivia followed him with her eyes back and forth in front of her. "Fitz." She called out, but he didn't answer. "Please say something."
"You should have told me."
"I know, I know I sound like such a hypocrite. And you have every right to be upset."
"Olivia I am so beyond upset right now." And in all honesty, all his anger was not directed at Olivia. It was directed at Roger. He was just causing so much havoc on their lives. "Do you realize that if he was in our home that night, that he could have done anything. He could have come back anytime after that. You should have told me. Now it doesn't even make a difference if we look at the security cameras or not." Even though it was after the fact, Fitz still wanted Tom to look at the cameras. He wanted to know if Roger was in his home or not. Because if he was, it was time to update his security measures.
Fitz was still pacing, when Olivia asked low. "Are you mad at me?" She looked up at him with wide eyes.
"Olivia mad doesn't even touch how I'm feeling right now." He stopped pacing and stood right in front of her. "And if you weren't pregnant right now, I would take you over my knee."
Olivia had no idea why that brought such a warm tingle to her, and she knew this was not the time, but she liked it. But she also could tell that Fitz was very serious, and she had no doubt that if she in fact was not pregnant, that she would be draped over Fitz's lap right now with a red handprint on her ass. And again, she didn't know why that thought excited her.
"Fitz I'm sorry." Olivia stood and hugged Fitz around his waist, putting her head on his chest. She could feel the intensity and rigidness in his body as she clung to him.
They both jumped, when they heard something outside. It was dark out, so they didn't see anything in the backyard.
"Fitz what was that?" Olivia asked with fear laced in her voice. "Fitz."
"Shh." Fitz moved to the window to get a better look, but still he saw nothing. "Olivia go upstairs to the bedroom and lock the door. Don't come out until I get you."
"But Fitz-"
"Now Olivia."
When Olivia went upstairs, Fitz headed to his office to get the gun he kept in his bottom desk drawer. Fitz knew Olivia hated guns and she would go off if she knew just how many guns he own and kept around the house and the penthouse. But Fitz would protect his family at any cost, so he had to make sure he had the means to protect his home. He checked that the bullets were still inside and he took the safety off. He went outside to where they heard the noise coming from. The sprinkler system had gone off earlier, so the ground was wet. And when Fitz looked down, he saw footprints. Someone was definitely out here. He heard another noise towards his studio in the backyard. Fitz quietly made his way across the yard, careful not to step on any twigs or anything else that would make noise.
When he got to the shed, he leaned against the side walking to the back. He heard another twig snap and he pulled his gun at the shadowy figure in front of him.
"Whoa Fitz! Boss it's me!"
Fitz immediately pulled the gun back, when he heard Tom's voice. "Tom? What the hell are you doing out here? I almost shot you."
"I told you the guys and I would be doing perimeter checks twice a day." Tom said. He was mighty glad that Fitz knew how to use his gun and didn't just start shooting into the darkness. He almost had a heart attack, when he felt the barrel of the gun at the base of his neck.
"I'm sorry Tom, I completely forgot. Olivia and I were inside and she heard a noise." Fitz put the safety back on the gun and tried to calm his adrenaline. He saw the rest to the guys coming from out of the dark.
"I'll make sure to send a text next time we come to do a night check."
"That's fine. And Tom when you get back, I want you to check the cameras in the penthouse. Check to see if anyone has been inside and then check the system for any outside activity."
"Sure thing."
X
The next day was just like the previous day. Olivia spent most of the morning sleeping upstairs. This time though she woke up for lunch. They had turkey sandwiches and Olivia ate almost an entire bag of carrots to herself. they spent the rest of the day lounging around the house. Olivia wanted to take a swim in the pool, but it was an outdoor pool and it was freezing outside. So with nothing else to do, she spent another couple of hours scrolling through baby websites. This time she was looking at cribs and decor ideas for the nursery. She figured it was time she and Fitz started getting the nursery together. And that made her think about where the nursery would be.
Olivia loved the city and she loved Fitz's penthouse, but it felt like a bachelor ad and not a home. She didn't want to raise her family in a penthouse that felt like a hotel most of the time. She wasn't against the idea of living in Fitz house, it certainly had enough space and a gorgeous yard their child could play in. But she also wanted a home that was both hers and Fitz's. When Fitz spoke of his home and his penthouse, he referred to it as both his and Olivia's home. But while Olivia felt comfortable and welcome at both homes, she also felt like she was Fitz's extended guest. She didn't want to feel like a guest in the home she was supposed to raise her child in. She knew she had to talk to Fitz soon about them potentially buying a home together.
After spending a few hours on her computer, Olivia fell asleep on the couch. When she woke back up a few hours later, she was in the bed upstairs. Fitz must have carried her to bed. She noticed the curtains were drawn in the room and when she pulled them back she saw it was the evening. Lately, she felt like she was just sleeping her days away. She saw the lights on in Fitz's studio, so he must have been inside working. After she went to the bathroom, she grabbed her robe and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and went outside to Fitz's studio.
She heard the radio playing before she even reached the doors. She made her way quickly inside to the warmth, getting out of the freezing cold. Fitz was working on an easel with his back to her and because the music was playing he hadn't heard her coming in. Olivia had only been in his studio one other time, and that was a while ago. There weren't any big changes she noticed, except there was a lot more work than she remembered last time and some was covered by a tarp so she couldn't see.
"What are you working on?" Olivia asked, and Fitz finally noticed that he was no longer alone. He pulled a piece of tarp over the easel, covering his work. "Why can't I see?"
"Because it's a surprise." He swiveled around on his stool, turning the music down and pulled Olivia between his legs.
"A surprise for me?"
"Sort of." Fitz kissed Olivia's lips and noticed how cold they were. He looked down and noticed that she was only in a bathrobe. "What are you doing out in the cold with only a robe on." He rubbed her arms, trying to warm her up.
"I came out to see what you were working on, but since I'm not allowed to know, I guess I'll go back inside and continue shopping for baby Nala."
Fitz shook his head. "Veto." They had been discussing baby names recently, and so far they could not come up with a name that they both liked.
Olivia rolled her eyes, she felt like that was the fiftieth name she suggested that Fitz vetoed. "Fine."
"What are you shopping for today?"
"I was looking at strollers and cribs for her nursery. And speaking of nurseries." Olivia hung her arms around Fitz's neck. "What do you think of a dalmatian themed nursery?"
Fitz rolled his eyes laughing. "Of course you would want to decorate the nursery after those two mutts who still hate me by the way. And what happened to a Lion King theme, isn't that what you wanted first?"
"I know, but Fitz I found the cutest little comforter set with a 101 Dalmation theme. And I found a crib mobile with little dalmatian puppies, it's so cute. Ooh and I also found these cute wooden letters with dalmatian print on them. We could have the baby's name made and hang it up in her room."
Fitz could tell by the excitement and glee in Olivia's eyes that they were going to have a dalmatian themed nursery. There would be no denying her.
"Whatever you want. And I guess we already know what her favorite movie will be." Fitz looked down and spoke to Olivia's stomach. "Isn't that right Violet?"
"Nope." Olivia popped a kiss on Fitz's forehead and went to walk out of the studio. She heard Fitz yell out that he would be inside shortly. Before Olivia walked back in the house, she heard Fitz turn the music back up.
X
After Olivia left, Fitz planned on working at least another hour before he turned in. Once he got started on a project, it was hard for him to stop. But he had to make sure he was more careful. The set that he was currently painting was a surprise and he didn't want anyone, especially Olivia, to see them before he was ready to show them. He planned to have a showing sometime in the next year. He'd been planning it for a while and he had to make sure he had his work finished in time.
Fitz found tranquility when he was painting. He found peace, he could spend days working on one painting and not get tired. Fitz could get so caught up in a painting that he tuned everything else out and got lost in his painting. Which was why he didn't hear the door opening again after Olivia left. He didn't hear the footsteps creeping his way, therefore he was powerless to stop the two by four swinging at the back of his head.
Fitz fell off his stool and crumbled to the floor. A two by four was dropped by his limp body and the person swinging the wood left as quietly as he came. He closed the doors on his way out and wedged a piece of wood between the handles, effectively trapping Fitz inside.
Back in the house, Olivia had just finished off a mug of warm chocolate milk and was headed downstairs for a refill. As she passed by the window in the bedroom, she saw the lights on in the studio and she wished Fitz would come inside. She was getting bored and lonely and that only led her to more online shopping. She'd already purchased two strollers, enough baby bouncers to have one at Fitz's place and both grandparents. And enough clothes to fit two closets. It was a lot more fun to shop for her baby girl than it was for herself.
When Olivia got to the top of the stairs, she stopped dead in her tracks. Most of the lights were out in the house, but she saw a figure standing at the bottom of the stairs. She knew without a doubt that it wasn't Fitz. And she also knew that she should have ran, but her fear kept her rooted at the top of the stairs. Suddenly the figure moved and stepped into the light and Olivia's mug fell to the floor shattering on impact.
"Hello Peaches." Roger smiled a devilish grin. "I've missed you."
In an instant, Olivia was on the move. She bolted from the top of the stairs and raced to the bedroom. She slammed the door shut and locked it behind her. She pushed one of the chairs in front of the door, but she didn't think it would do much. She ran to the balcony and began to shout Fitz's name, hoping he would hear her over his loud music in his studio.
"Olivia!" Roger was banging on the bedroom door. "Open the fucking door Olivia!"
"Fitz!" Olivia screamed again and again. She jumped when she heard the door bust. Roger had kicked a hole in the door and was kicking, again and again, trying to get through. Olivia quickly grabbed her phone and ran into the bathroom, shutting and locking the door. She tried to calm herself so the 911 operator could understand what she was saying. But she was crying too hard and her fear was building.
"He's breaking down the door!" Olivia managed to say in between screams. She heard one last thud and then silence, he was in the room. She sat in the corner of the bathroom furthest away from the door. She knew it was only a matter of time before Roger broke down the door to the bathroom as well.
"Please help me." She whispered in the phone, right before the bathroom door flew open. "No! Leave me alone! Help!" Olivia tried to hold onto the phone, but it dropped from her hand as Roger dragged her out the bathroom.
Roger roughly tossed Olivia on the bed, panting in exhaustion and anger. He had this look in his eye that Olivia had bever seen before. She'd never seen this man before. This wasn't the Roger she knew before.
"Do not move." Roger pulled a hunting knife out his back pocket.
"Roger-"
"Shh."
"Why are you here?" Olivia's voice was trembling.
"Well isn't it obvious baby, I've come to take you home."
Olivia shook her head no. "I'm not going anywhere with you."
"Listen, I know you're upset with me peaches but we can't talk about it."
"There is nothing to talk about, you're crazy!" Olivia yelled. "You've been stalking me for months. You destroyed my shop and you burned down Fitz's business. I don't know who you are anymore."
"I'm Roger baby." Roger walked closer to the bed, and Olivia scooted back until she hit the headboard. "I'm the same Roger you fell in love with."
"No."
"I did all this for you baby."
"Excuse me?"
"I had to teach you a lesson about respect. I was a good man to you, I treated you right and what did you do? You left me for someone with deeper pockets!" Roger started pacing in front of the bed. Olivia was calculating how fast she would have to run to get by him and out the bedroom door without him catching her. "I saw you with him and you never behaved that way with me. I saw you kissing him, you let him touch you in ways you never let me. you told me you wanted to wait until you were married before you had sex. And then you let him fuck you in the back seat of a car Olivia!"
Olivia was stunned. How long has he been watching us?
"You were acting like a whore, throwing yourself at some rich white man. I had to teach you a lesson and he had to pay for taking me away from you."
"He didn't take me away from anything! I left you because you were a drunken bum and a sorry excuse of a man."
"You really want to talk to me like that while I have this knife in my hand?" Roger waved it around, playing with it.
"Fuck you Roger." Olivia snarled in the nastiest voice she could muster up. "I am sick of your shit. You're trying to act like some scorned man, when you have no right to be angry! I am the one that should be angry after everything you've put me through. And then you have the nerve to say you were teaching me a lesson?! What lesson was I to learn when you tried to kill me?"
"I never wanted you dead Olivia. Believe me, if I wanted you dead you would be, I've had plenty of chances."
"Oh I know, you took a chance two days ago when you tried to run me over with your car!"
"You were flaunting him in my face!" Roger yelled so loud it felt like the house shook. "I was there. I was there that night at that stupid party you threw him. I saw you hanging over him all night long. Obnoxiously laughing at everything he said, playing pretend with those rich snobs like you're one of them. And did you even notice me? Huh? Not even one word all night, just the help."
Oliva thought back to the party and she remembered there was one waiter that always seemed to be around. And every time she emptied a glass, he was always there with another. All the staff had on masks, so she couldn't tell who it was. But Olivia thought there was something familiar about the person, but it didn't click until now. His cologne, Roger's cologne. She smelt it all night long, that's how she knew he was near.
"You were acting like a fucking whore so had to teach you a lesson."
"You tried to kill me."
"I only meant to scare you. I wasn't going to hit you, I knew you would move out of the way."
"The only reason you didn't hit me is because Fitz pulled me away! I would be dead if he hadn't!"
"Oh yes the great and mighty Fitzgerald Grant ladies and gentlemen!" Roger raised his hands to the heavens, sarcastically bowing to no one. "What is it about him huh? What is he doing that makes you think he hung the stars and moon?"
"He's a man Roger. A man that takes care of me, provides for me, he protects me and thinks about my best interest. He isn't an unemployed alcoholic lowlife who will never make anything of himself. Because he is a real man and more of a man than you will ever be."
Roger smirked. "My my, how big your balls have gotten. But tell me baby, if he's such a big man where is he? Shouldn't he have rushed in by now so he can be the big hero?" Roger laughed, holding up his arms flexing his muscles. "Where's Superman?"
"What did you do to him?" Olivia knew Fitz would be here right now if he could. Roger must have done something to him. "Where is he?"
"You don't need to worry about him. He won't be bothering you anymore. But it's time for us to leave now."
"I told you I am not going anywhere with you!"
"We'll see about that." Roger reached behind him into his back pocket and took out a pair of handcuffs. Olivia panicked, she knew she had to get away from Roger and quick. She tried to scramble off the bed, but Roger caught one of her ankles and pulled her to the side of the bed.
She fought hard to get away from him, kicking and slapping at him, anything to release his grip on her.
"Relax baby, we're going to go somewhere where it will just be the two of us. And don't worry, I'll do the honorable thing and raise this baby as mine."
"Get away from me!" Olivia reached on the nightstand and grabbed the flower vase and slammed it against Roger's head. It was hard enough to knock him out, but it was enough to disorient him. And that gave Olivia enough time to get out of his grip and run out the room. She ran down the steps as fast as she could, she stumbled on her way, but fortunately, she fell onto her butt. When she got her footing again, she went the rest of the way down the stairs. She had just made it to the door and opened it, when it slammed back shut and Roger grabbed her by the hair and shoved her to the ground.
X
Fitz opened his eyes. He was confused and his head was pounding. He squinted from the light as he rose up from the floor. He had no idea what had happened, but he knew his head was killing him. When he reached back, he felt a wetness in his hand and realized it was blood. Then he looked down on the floor and noticed the two by four with his blood on it as well. He still had no idea what the hell was going on, but he knew that he needed to get to Olivia.
He rushed to the door, but he couldn't open it. He rammed into it over and over with all his strength, but it was no use. Then he remembered the window on the other wall. It was a high up window, but he could stand on his stool to get through. He used the two by four to bust the window, then stood on his tool to crawl out the window. He cut himself on the broken glass, but he ignored it. He needed to get inside the house. When he got inside, he immediately heard Olivia's screams. He thought to where his closest gun was and quickly reached under one of the hall tables and pulled a Glock from under the table.
He kept the gun low as he walked through the house looking for Olivia. He found her in the living room. Roger had cuffed her hands behind her back and was pulling her up to stand on her feet. When Olivia saw Fitz in the distance she started screaming and tried to wrench free from Roger. But when Roger noticed that Fitz was awake and had managed to get free from the studio, he pulled Olivia in front of him as a shield and pulled his knife on her.
"Fitz!" Olivia cried.
"Back up, you stay the hell away!" Roger saw Fitz had a gun and he made sure to keep Olivia in front of him. "I'm getting out of here, and I'm taking her with me."
"You know I'm not going to let that happen." Fitz steadied the gun aimed at Roger. He was trying to get a clear shot of Roger but it was hard because he kept moving back and forth behind Olivia. Fitz didn't want to risk the chance of shooting Olivia.
"You don't really have a choice." Roger moved the knife down to Olivia's stomach.
"Fitz." Olivia felt so powerless in this moment.
"You don't want to do that." Fitz said.
"No I don't, but I'll get over it. It's not my kid."
"You're right, it's mine."
"Yeah? How bad do you want it? I can leave it here for you."
"Fitz!"
"Shut up." Roger snarled. "This is the punk you left me for? Some rich pretty boy? This is the man you opened your legs for when you made me wait years and you still didn't give it up? And now you're having this white man's baby."
"Roger hey." Fitz called to get Roger's attention back on him. "Leave Olivia out of this. You want to be mad at someone, be mad at me. Let you and I handle this, I'm the one who took her from you."
"Do you think I'm stupid? Huh? She thinks I'm stupid but I'm not." Roger smirked. "I was smart enough to get here wasn't I. Smart enough that all those guards you hired never caught me. And I was smart enough to find a way into your penthouse, nice place by the way. I loved the view." Roger laughed, and Fitz knew he was not talking about the view of NYC.
Fitz changed his stance, gripping the gun tighter. "You really want me to shoot you don't you."
"I'd like to see you try." Roger ducked back behind Olivia. "But you better make sure you take me out with one perfect shot. I'd hate for you to kill Olivia and your little bastard all at once. That would be devastating for you."
Fitz was following Roger's movements as he spoke, just waiting for the perfect shot. "Olivia."
"Shut up." Roger yelled.
"Do you trust me?"
"I said shut up" "Yes" Roger and Olivia both answered at the same time.
"Don't move Olivia."
"Listen-"
Before Roger could get the next word out his mouth, Fitz had pulled the trigger and popped a single bullet right between Roger's eyes. After the shot rang out, the only sound was Olivia's screams. She hadn't moved, she stood still, hands still cuffed behind her back and now she had blood splatter on the side of her face. Logically she knew Roger was gone, but she needed to see for herself. She turned to look, but Fitz was there and turned her back around.
"Don't look." He hugged her into his chest, making sure she didn't try to look.
"Fitz get these off of me. Get them off." Olivia was becoming hysterical and she needed to be freed of the cuffs. Fitz searched Roger's pockets until he found the cuff keys and freed Olivia's wrist. She immediately hugged Fitz tight, needing to feel safe and secured at the moment.
"Is he?"
"Yeah. It's over baby." Fitz squeezed Olivia tight. Just as she needed comfort he needed to hold her to reassure himself that she was alright. This was twice this week that he almost lost the love of his life. And both times at the hand of the same person. Not wanting to look at Roger's lifeless body anymore, Fitz took them out on the porch. They sat on the steps and could hear the police sirens in the distance. Both of them were thinking the same thing, what the hell took them so long?
They sat on the front porch steps just holding each other. It was finally over, the end of a nightmare for both of them. They both finally felt like they could breathe. Olivia felt like she didn't have to live in fear anymore and Fitz felt like he could finally relax and enjoy what was happening in his life. He had a woman he was desperately in love with and they were having a baby. Now he could focus on being the best man for Olivia and trying to be the best father he could. They were no longer living in fear.
X