Liv is sitting alone in her thoughts. Her thoughts and her dreams have been plagued with thoughts of Fitz and the kiss they shared. She knew it was wrong. Her body had betrayed her at that moment. She needed to feel him. She needed to feel his lips on hers and she knew she should have felt guilty but she wasn't. She knew she shouldn't have but she foolishly thought the kiss would prove that the past is the past. Instead, it proved to her that you can't run away from the truth or is it destiny.
She takes a deep, much needed breath. She's waiting for Abby. She wants to tell her that she won't be able to take the job. She knows Abby is going to have too many questions that she's not ready to answer. And she's dreading having to tell Fitz her decision. She brings her fingers to her lips again as she is transported to a time she wants to never forget, their first kiss.
Flashback:
Fitz and Liv are sitting in the library. She's trying to tutor him but Fitz has been acting strange around her lately. She knows she's attracted to him but there's no way, at least she thinks, he would be interested in her.
"Fitz, what's wrong?" Liv asks. Fitz is completely zoned out. "Fitz," she repeats again as she waves her hand in front of his face.
"What...what?" he says.
"I said, what's wrong?"
"Nothing. Nothing is wrong. I was just thinking about how much I hate any type of math," he answers.
She looks at him incredulously, letting know that she knows he's lying. "Fitz, you wouldn't need a tutor if you loved math," she laughs lightly.
"Touche," Fitz winks. He stops and just stares at her.
"So, are you going to tell me what's going on Mr. Grant?" She asks.
"No….because," he is getting flustered.
"Because….," she interjects.
"Because I don't want to scare you away," Fitz finally admits.
"Why would you scare me away?"
"Because you are my tutor," he offers.
She puts her pencil down, turning to him confused, "I thought with me being younger and being your tutor that I would scare you away. I think you have that backwards."
"You could never scare me away and that's the problem," Fitz adds.
"Why is it a problem? You are doing great, I think you are getting the hang of it."
"Do you know what I am thinking about most of the time?"
She laughs, "That problem your professor gave you that you have yet to solve."
He knows if he never says it, he'll probably lose his mind. "No. I think of you."
Liv's throat catches. Her face becomes flushed from his words, "What?"
"I think about you all the time and it has nothing to do with math or Professor Evil Langston. I come to these sessions because of you Liv."
He's definitely caught her off guard. She wasn't expecting this. She's happy to hear that they have something in common, each other. But should she tell him that she feels the same way? "I don't know what to say."
"Say I didn't scare you away," Fitz says with desperation in his eyes.
"I hope I don't scare you away," She answers much to his surprise.
"Why would you? I told you…."
She stops him mid sentence, "I think about you all the time too. On the days we are going to meet I can hardly contain myself. I'm almost jumping out of my skin." She drops her head, feeling embarrassed.
He lifts her chin, staring into her eyes, "I know."
"You know. Don't laugh at me," she responds.
"I'm not. I feel the same way. I want to jump out of my skin. I want to hold you and I want to kiss you. But then that little voice stops me and I remind myself..."
She now can't take her eyes off of him, "What?"
"That maybe you aren't mine to hold or kiss. Maybe you don't even like me. Maybe you just can't stand me," Fitz answers.
"You would be wrong," she fidgets, biting her bottom lip.
He shakily but gently runs his thumb across her lips. "So…what are we going to do about it?"
Liv takes a breath, "I don't know how this goes."
"I don't know how this goes either," Fitz smiles.
"I don't want to mess up our working relationship. I know I'm younger than you and you are probably far more experienced than me."
He puts his finger on her lips, "This is not a working relationship. You are a smart woman who's teaching me to be smarter. You just happen to be younger than me and I don't care about your experience. I care about how you make me feel."
Liv is blushing profusely now, "And how do I make you feel?"
"Like a different guy. I don't know who this guy is but he's always ready to see you. He's worried about how he dresses before our tutoring sessions. He's always checking his breath, making sure he's fresh and minty," He winks, which makes her laugh.
"There's only one way for me to know if it's minty fresh," Liv winks back.
Fitz likes this flirty side of her. "What are you saying Ms. Pope?"
Liv can't believe this side of herself either. "You want to know what it's like to kiss me and I want to know if you are minty fresh."
Fitz wasted no time moving over to her side. There is a single one minute of silence between them. They just shiver in anticipation of the moment. Both wanting to just do it but both not wanting to seem too anxious. But they don't want to seem uninterested. Fitz is the first to speak, "You have the most beautiful doe eyes."
Before he can finish, she grabs his face and kisses him. It's like they have both never been kissed. It's like their lips have found life for the first time. At first the contact is slow but they both know it's real. It's as if they've forgotten they are in a library, surrounded by people. They can't stop themselves from exploring each other's lips, each other's tongues. It is the sweetest taste for both of them. Finally, they pull away, needing just one breath of air to survive.
All of a sudden, they hear a clearing of a throat and turn to see the library clerk giving them the stink eye. Liv drops her head to his chest. 'I'm so embarrassed."
Fitz smirks, "I'm not. I want to do it again."
Liv lifts her head looking at him, "I do too."
"Then…," Fitz starts carefully. "Why don't we get out of here and go somewhere to talk?"
"I think I would like that a lot," Liv giggles. "And by the way, you are so minty fresh."
It's Fitz's turn to blush and his face becomes beet red. Fitz stands, reaching out his hand to her. "Come with me."
She takes his hand. They gather their things and head straight for the door.
Liv comes out of the memory. There is a permanent smile on her face. She is in a daze. She doesn't even see Abby walk up.
"Liv," Abby says softly.
Liv finally comes out of the haze. "Hey Abby!"
"Wherever you were just now, it was great," Abby says. "What's so urgent we had to meet and meet outside of the office. We really need to get you started."
"I won't be getting started," Liv says quickly.
"What do you mean?" Abby says, settling in her seat.
"I have to turn down the job," Liv announces.
"What?" Abby says loud enough that it draws attention.
"I have to turn down the job," Liv repeats.
Abby shakes her head in disbelief. "Liv you have to be joking right. You are joking."
Liv hates all of this. She hates that she can't tell her friend why she has to quit. She hates that her friend won't understand her vagueness. Most of all, she hates that Abby won't give up on why she's deciding she has to quit. "I hate that I have to do this but trust me, it's best."
"Liv, you are perfect for this job. Don't talk yourself out of it. Fitz likes you. He likes your work. He's on board and you were on board. What the hell is going on?" Abby rambles. Then she looks at Liv, "Is it Russell?"
Liv is taken aback by Abby's question. "Why would you ask that?"
"Because I notice everything Liv. I try not to be judgemental but I see the way he is with you. Trying to control what you do. Just trying to control you. I see it and I sure as hell don't like it but I remind myself that this is the man that you love. After all, you married him but I don't like how he talks to you as if he is your child."
Liv is rendered speechless. Abby has never said anything negative about Russell. "Abs…I…"
"I'm sorry Liv. I probably shouldn't have said anything but I don't want you to miss a great opportunity because of a man," Abby finishes.
"Who happens to be my husband," Liv defends.
Abby decides she should recede, "I'm sorry."
"No, don't be sorry. You are one of my best friends and you love me. I know you are just looking out for me. But I promise you, this is not because of Russell."
Abby is not that convinced but she tries to cover, "Okay! Then…who's ass should I beat?"
"This is my decision Abby. I can't explain all the whys but can you just respect this decision. Can you respect my decision?"
"I don't think I have a choice," Abby says, shaking her head as she picks up her phone.
"Who are you calling?" Liv quickly asks.
"No one yet. I should probably text Fitz. He's probably very upset about this."
Liv now really feels like the worst friend. "I haven't spoken to him. I wanted to speak to you first. Let you know what is going on."
"You haven't told him," Abby raises her voice.
"No Abby! I haven't told him yet. But I didn't want you to be blind sided. Although I know you are and I know he will be."
"Liv this doesn't make any sense," Abby continues.
"Abby, please trust me when I say this is the best thing for me right now," Liv pleads.
"When are you going to tell him?" Abby asks.
Liv drops her head, almost in shame. "I have a meeting with him tomorrow. He wants to start going over the ideas he had in mind and see what we can come with."
"And you are going to break the news to him then," Abby shakes her head.
"Yes, I didn't want to tell him on the phone when he called that I couldn't because I quit. I owed him that much to do it face to face," Liv says.
Abby sits in her thoughts for a few minutes. Liv can see the wheels turning in Abby's head. "You want to work from home. We don't have to have the office fixed for you."
"Abby it's not that. You've been great and I truly appreciate you doing this for me. This is personal and I need you to respect my decision, even if you don't like it."
Just then Abby's phone rings, she picks up. Liv's phone beeps and there's a text from Fitz. It simply reads, Can't wait for our meeting tomorrow!
Liv takes a breath, shaking her head. This is why she has to do this. If she doesn't, something bad is going to happen and they won't be able to blame anyone but themselves for it.
"Shit," Abby says as she hangs up.
"What's wrong?" Liv asks.
"I have to go. The guys that were coming to install the security cameras around the house were supposed to come tomorrow. But something came up and they want to know if they can come today."
"Okay! That's no problem. I have some things I need to take care of myself," Liv says hurriedly. She's honestly glad for this last minute interruption. It saves her from the Abby Interrogation Hour.
"Liv, we need to talk some more about this."
"I know Abby, but after I tell Mr. Grant," Liv answers.
"Okay," Abby gets up as she leaves.
Liv sits back in her chair, staring at Fitz's text. She doesn't want to sound snarky. She doesn't want to sound condescending. And she most certainly does not want to sound anxious to see him, knowing she's going to break his heart. She simply responds, See you tomorrow!
Fitz is sitting with Andrew at lunch. Andrew moved to Virginia after graduation, starting his own business there. He was Fitz's shoulder to cry on when Liv left and his best man at the wedding that never should have been. He has so many questions and he's hoping Andrew can help him with it.
"I can't believe Liv is back in town and for good. I also can't believe she's going to work for you," Andrew says.
"I can't believe it either," Fitz smiles.
"What's she like? Is it the same old Liv? I mean…I can't deny it. You were a lucky bastard when you found her. That girl was gorgeous and I don't think she knew just how gorgeous and damn fine she was," Andrew says.
"She still is and back the hell up. You are married and she's mine," Fitz says.
"Correction," Andrew tilts his head, "She was yours. You are married and so is she. Although I never took her for being into jocks."
"I hate him," Fitz says, taking a swig of his scotch.
"Why?" Andrew laughs. "Because he got the girl."
Fitz drops his head, "She doesn't love him. I know she doesn't. I can tell." Fitz shakes his head, "Yes, I hate him because he has her but I don't like the way he treats her. He's controlling. And for the life of me I don't understand it. She was a fucking firecracker. She didn't take any bullshit and she's taking his."
Andrew can see his friend is hurting, "She married him. Are you just hoping that something bad is going on in their marriage because it makes it easier for you?"
"How does this make it easier for me? I'm married. I have a son who I love more than anything. I have him to think about."
"You don't care about Mellie. You'd leave her today if she would let you. You are scared that Liv really does love this guy and the reality is, you lost her," Andrew points out.
Fitz gets ready to get up, "I didn't come here to get nothing but shit from my best friend."
Andrew tried to diffuse the thick air, "I am sorry man. I am just trying to be realistic here. A lot has happened. A lot has changed."
Fitz sits down. "We kissed."
"You what! When?" Andrew asks.
"A few weeks ago, we kissed. And it was the second greatest kiss of my life. The first one was with Liv. She kissed me first."
Andrew shakes his head, "This is not good. How are you two going to work together?"
"We have to make it work. There has to be a reason right," Fitz asks with so much hope in his voice and a search for answers.
"A reason for what?" Andrew asks.
"Why did our worlds collide again? Fate bought Abby back into my life so we could find each other again. I have to believe that," Fitz says.
"What if you should leave the past in the past?"
"I can't do that. I can't lose her again. She was….she is the love of my life and you know that. I can't just let her go, not again," Fitz answers.
"But is it worth hurting the people around you? It's gonna hurt you. It's gonna hurt your son. It's gonna hurt her and her marriage. What if she doesn't want what you want?"
Fitz shakes his head, "She kissed me. And yes she said it was wrong but she wanted it."
"What if it was just a moment?"
"What if it was real? I felt it and she felt it. It was all there."
"What are you going to do man? I just think you need to not invite a disaster. This could be a disaster waiting to happen," Andrew explains.
"Or this could be our chance to find love again, no matter how it presents itself," Fitz explains. He can see Andrew not agreeing with him. Fitz tries to clarify, "I agreed to hire her before I knew it was here. Abby assured me she was perfect for the job and I saw her work, she is."
"Yes but now that you know it is Liv. You know how you feel and how she might feel. You both have to do the right thing. Don't invite the temptation in. You'll just turn into your father."
"I will never be my father," Fitz says angrily. "Why the hell would you compare me to him?"
"You said he fucked around on your mom for years with his secretaries. Basically any skirt he could latch on to. You are inviting this into your office."
"First of all, my father is a cheating bastard. I am not that. And I am not looking to chase skirts. Olivia is not just a fuck I'm looking to have. This is the woman I knew I was going to spend the rest of my life with until I fucked it up and I don't think I did it alone. I think I had a lot of help," Fitz says frustrated.
"What do you mean you had help?"
"Something happened that night Andrew. And I am pretty sure that my father and Liv's father and my lovely wife had something to do with it but I don't know how to prove it."
Andrew is very confused, "What are you saying and what do you think they did exactly?"
"Remember I told you I don't remember most of that night. I just remember waking up in Mellie's bed. I remember wanting to see Liv. Wanting to go to the airport to get back to Liv and waking up in Mellie's bed."
"You were drunk. You were all pretty messed up about Jake. Maybe you were just so drunk. Do you know for sure that you two slept together? You were so upset about everything did you try to find out what maybe you didn't know."
"We were naked in bed and she was doing that Mellie giggle that I came to loathe. Why would be naked in bed if I didn't sleep with her," Fitz says. He then stops. He never thought of the possibility until now.
"What if you never had sex at all?" Andrew asks.
"If we didnt have sex, why would Mellie lie? And what did our fathers have to do with that?"
Just as Fitz says this. Off into the distance, Mellie walks in and takes a seat. Fitz studies her intently. Andrew turns to see what Fitz is looking at and realizes it is Mellie.
"What is she doing here?" Andrew asks.
"Exactly, what is she doing here?"
A few minutes later, Fitz gets another surprise, Big Gerry walks in and goes straight to Mellie's table.
"And what the hell is he doing here?" Andrew responds.
"I sure as hell want to know," Fitz answers. Andrew and Fitz turn and look at each other. Things have definitely gotten more interesting.
Mellie and Big Gerry are sitting, in what they think is a secluded corner as Fitz and Andrew look on. A part of Fitz wants to go over to the table and break up this meeting but the other part of him knows that something is not right and because of it, he lost Liv.
"You know this was not really what I wanted to do," Gerry says. We shouldn't be meeting behind Fitz's back. He already hates me and this.."
"I didn't really want to meet with you either. Listen, we can't meet at the house. Teddy loves to talk and Quinn could be a wild card," Mellie says. "We have a problem Gerry."
"No, you have a problem. Your husband is asking a lot of questions," Gerry says.
Mellie lets out a bit of a laugh, "We have a problem. We all did this together. You can't just hang my ass out to dry here. And what about her father? Have you talked to him?"
"Yes, I've talked to him. He's the lesser of two evils here. He got what he needed from us to protect his daughter without asking questions."
Mellie takes a breath, "But he can never find out. He can never find out what I truly did."
Gerry can tell that there is something Mellie is not telling him. "What did you truly do Mellie?"
Fitz and Andrew look on. Fitz knows that look on Mellie. He can tell that she's upset. He can tell that she's scared. He can see Gerry's hands now moving ferociously. "What do you think I did?"
"You better start talking," Gerry says.
"It never happened," Mellie drops her head.
"What do you mean it never happened?" Gerry says, slamming his fist on the table. "You and Fitz didn't sleep together."
"No, we didn't," she admits.
Gerry beckons a waiter over, asking for a drink. "You faked the photos." He asks the waiter for a glass of Whiskey.
"It doesn't matter now. She married the man she loves and Fitz married me," Mellie says.
"Because he thought he cheated and he didn't. I told you to get him in bed and make it happen."
"You told me to make it happen and I did. It doesn't matter how I made it happen. He was so drunk he couldn't get it up. All he kept talking about was wanting to see his Livvie. He wanted to get home to his Livvie. I had to come up with something so I stripped him and took photos."
"You b….." Gerry stops himself.
"Be careful what you say Gerry. You gave me free reign and I took it. I just helped fate along," Mellie says.
Gerry decides that he should let her in on a little secret, "Well, let me tell you how fate works. Fitz's precious Livvie, you know who she is. She's the woman he just hired to be his new architect. Fate brought Abby Whelan into his life and she just so happens to be friends with one Olivia Pope, who is now Olivia Emory."
Mellie is rendered speechless, "You are kidding me."
"I wouldn't kid you like that Mellie. Fate a crazy thing isn't it," Gerry adds.
"I don't believe you," Mellie says.
"You don't have to but that's actually the truth," Gerry says as he gets up. He takes the glass of whiskey and drinks it straight. "Have a good evening. I'll be traveling back to Santa Barbara and won't be back. I'll answer Fitz when the time comes but you went rogue and made a bigger pile of shit than there had to be."
"It was a pile of shit, fake or not. Are you going to act like an angel now? You still conspired to get what you wanted so no one is more guilty than the other."
"No, you are right. At least he'll hate all of us equally," Gerry says as he turns and walks out.
Mellie is left to think about the revelation that Gerry gave her. Could it be true? Could Olivia really be that Olivia? She can't ask Fitz because she knows he'll wonder how she figured it out. What can she do?
Fitz and Andrew just watch. "What are you going to do man?" Andrew asks.
"I am going to get down to the bottom of this," Fitz says.
The birds seem to be singing. The wind outside is whispering sweet nothings just as they are to each other. These are the moments they never thought they'd have. These are the moments they never thought they could recapture. They were each other's great love, the love that got away. But now, here they are, wrapped in each other's arms and it's everything they've longed for.
"I've missed you so much," Liv whispers into his chest as she kisses his nipple and tugs it slightly between her teeth.
Fitz moans a little, "I can tell."
Liv lifts her head to look up at him, "Is that all you got?"
"I'm trying to enjoy this moment. You know how long I've dreamed of being like this with you since the day I lost you,"
"How could we let this happen to us?" Liv asks.
"We were so afraid of losing each other that we lost each other anyway," Fitz answers as she gently lays her on her back.
"I never stopped loving you," Liv whispers.
"I never stopped loving you," Fitz kisses down her neck.
"What are we going to do, Fitz? I have a husband….You have a family and…"
He stops her with a searing kiss that takes her breath away, "We both made a terrible mistake. We both got married for the wrong reasons. We both married people that we didn't love. We just got married to not be alone."
"I love Russell," Liv says unconvincingly. Fitz stares into her eyes, unconvinced.
"Look me in the eye and say that," Fitz answers.
Liv looks away. She could never lie to him. She's too embarrassed with herself to have to admit that everything he's saying is true. "I love him," she lies.
"Good," he smiles.
"Why is that good?" Liv asks.
"Because you didn't say you were in love with him and that's all I need to know."
"Fitz," she purrs.
"I haven't probably told you good morning," Fitz winks.
"What are you talking about?" She giggles as if she knows what's to come. His morning wake up calls used to leave her horny all day for him. Nothing has changed.
Without answering her, he travels down her body, slowly prying her knees open. "I love it when you make it easy," he licks his lip at the sight of her completely bare.
"Fitz we don't have time," she giggles.
"I make time for you," he smiles as he dips his head down. He begins to kiss up her thigh. She lets out a hiss at the connections of his moist lips on her skin.
"Fitz," she repeats.
He slowly makes his way to her core. He takes a moment to take in her intoxicating scene. She's glistening for him, wet and ready. He takes a slow lip from top to bottom of her slit. He moans in satisfaction. He could stay buried in her wet sex forever. He begins to lick her slowly up and down. The more he laps, the more she refills him. Liv starts to arch off the bed back and forth, biting her lip hard because she needs to scream. She needs to scream loudly.
She wants to grab his hair but she wants him to stay right where he is, plunging his tongue in and out of her like a hungry nipping cat. She opens her legs wider, her pussy is on fire and only one man has ever been able to sugarcoat it, the man whose head keeps disappearing between her legs in and out, up and down.
"Shit," she sings.
He grabs her hips, digging his fingertips into her hip bones. He inserts his fingers inside of her, spreading her wet lips wide as he continues to drink her juices.
She's trashing her head from side to side. It's too much and not enough all at the same time. She drops her head to the pillow. "God," she sighs.
Fitz looks up, face coated in her essence, "Ride my face baby."
He doesn't have to tell her twice. She thrusts her hips, pushing her heat into his face. She is so close to what they both want. He keeps sucking and licking around her. Her body starts to tremble, "Fitz…Fitz….," she screams.
He moans, holding her hips tighter. "Fitz…yes, yes…yes…Fitz," she keeps chanting.
And then as if in a dream, she hears, "What in the hell did you say?"
Liv is snapped out of her dream, legs open, with Russell between her legs, looking at her with almost venom in his eyes. She looks around, realizing it was a dream, "What?"
"Did you just fucking say Fitz?"
"Of course I didn't," Liv quickly answers. It's the most awkward spot to be in. Her husband in between her legs, trying to give her tongue satisfaction when she's dreaming about another. "What are you doing?" She asks. It's probably the worst question she could have asked at this moment.
He gets off the bed, "What does it look like I was trying to do?"
"I'm sorry! I shouldn't have asked that."
Russell is staring at her with a glare she hasn't seen before. "You also shouldn't have called out your boss' name when your husband is going down on you."
"Russell, I am sure you heard it wrong," Liv tries to cover.
"And you want me to be sad for you that you are quitting today. No, I'm fucking glad. I don't trust him anyway and I've told you that. And what were you dreaming about exactly?" Russell says.
She hates it. She hates lying and she's going to lie to his face, "I wasn't dreaming about anything."
"I want you at the game tonight. It's playoffs and that's where you should be," Russell says as he goes into the bathroom. She takes a breath. This is terrible and she feels terrible.
She goes into the shower where he is. She feels obligated and she knows she should but mostly she feels guilty. She strips and gets into the shower with him, startling him a bit. She rests her chin on his shoulder. She has to fix this, "I just feel so bad about quitting on him even though I know it's the right thing to do."
"You think it makes me feel good to know you were dreaming about him," he answers.
"I'm sorry! It's been weighing on my mind, you know that. But after today it will be over," she drops her head. "Of course I'll go to your game tonight."
He gives her a kiss, "Now that's what I like to hear." He pulls her into another kiss. He grazes her lips with his, "Can I finish what I started before?"
She just stares at him, not giving him an answer. Truth is, she doesn't want him to finish. It won't be the same. It won't be Fitz. Before she knows he takes her silence as an okay as he drops to his knees. Her heart aches as she knows her heart isn't in it. None of her is present with Russell right now and she knows this is going to be a problem, especially now.
Mellie is watching Fitz get dressed. She wants so badly to ask him if what Big Gerry said was true but she can't. They've just been occupying the same cage. They go to bed not talking to each other and he makes sure he works more in his office to avoid conversations with her. This has been going on since their last fight.
"Fitz, how long is this standoff gonna last?"
"We aren't on a standoff Mellie. I asked you for the truth and you weren't willing to give it to me," Fitz answers.
"I told you the truth about that night," Mellie says. She rolls her eyes looking away, "As much as I hate to admit your mind was only on another woman that night, that's the truth."
"I just don't understand how I went from wanting to go home, to in your hotel bed."
"I don't understand why the hell it matters now," Mellie says defensively. She decides to test the waters, "What does it matter now? Wherever she is, she's moved on with her life, I'm sure and you've definitely moved on with yours."
"That's not the point, Mellie. People were hurt by whatever did or didn't happen that night. I have the right to understand that."
She leers at him, "Do you know where she is?"
Fitz turns. He's been fixing his tie. "Where who is?"
"Your precious Livvie. The one that got away. The woman you obviously never got over," Mellie huffs.
"You are right Mellie. She's moved on with her life," Fitz answers as he goes for his cufflinks.
She buttons her blouse. "Do you hate that you married me?"
"I can never hate you Mellie. You are the mother of my child," he answers.
"You didn't answer my question," Mellie continues.
"I don't hate I married you," Fitz says as he leaves.
Mellie watches as she leaves. She needs to know more. She needs to know more about Olivia Pope Emory. The woman that could potentially ruin everything for her.
Fitz is sitting in his office, looking over some zoning information. He doesn't know what to make of his conversation with Mellie. He could tell she was fishing but for what, he doesn't know. He knows he needs to keep an eye on her and find out what's been going on with her and Gerry.
He picks up the phone. Dials a number and waits for an answer. The person on the other end picks up. "Yes, I need you to go hunting for some information. My wife and my father." Just as he says this, there is a knock at the door. "I have a meeting but I'll call you with further details," Fitz says as he hangs up. "Come in," he says. His smile widens as he sees it's Olivia. He gets up, hurrying around his desk to greet her.
"I'm sorry! I'm early," Liv says.
Fitz stops, leaving space between them. "No, you are right on time." There is an awkward silence. "They haven't bought in our brunch yet," he stumbles.
"That's okay!" Liv smiles.
"Well, I know brunch is usually for the weekends but," he blushes, which surprises even him.
"Fitz, before we go any further," Liv starts.
Fitz stops her with a surprising admission, "Did you know I was trying to get home to you that night?" Liv looks at him confused. "Let's sit down," he says as he guides her over to the seat.
"What are you talking about?" Liv asks.
"The night of the funeral. I asked them, Mellie to be exact, to take me to the airport so I could come home to you. Even drunk, I knew I wanted to be with my girl."
"Fitz," Liv shakes her head. "We have to stop talking about the past."
"The past is very much a part of our present Livvie," Fitz fires back.
Liv gets up, walking to his expansive window, "This morning, I was dreaming about you and I said your name where my husband could hear it." Fitz can't help but stick his chest out. He's proud of this fact. "Don't smirk! It's not funny," Liv says.
"What makes you think I was smirking?" Fitz asks.
"You hate him and I know you," Liv turns around.
"You are right I hate him for one reason only, you. And you are dreaming about me, just as I dream about you. Don't you see Liv, we will never be rid of each other. As long as you and I have breath in our bodies, we belong to each other."
"I can't work for you," Liv says, just ripping the band aid off. She knows if she doesn't do it now, she never will.
Fitz walks to her, almost trapping her in her spot. "What did you say?"
"I can't work for you. I have to turn this down. I have to for you and most of all for me," Liv says with so much pain in heart. It kills her to see the pain in his eyes.
"How can you be doing this for me? I want you here," Fitz pleads.
"And something is going to happen, Fitz. Something that we can't control. We are going to hurt people and hurt ourselves and we don't need to do that," Liv explains.
"So you are giving up on a dream job….giving up on…." he struggles to say exactly what he is thinking.
"You," she finishes.
"Us," Fitz answers.
"That's just it Fitz! There can't be an us. We can't be anymore. We can't have an affair. We can't cheat. I can't lay in bed with my husband and think about you and lie to his face. I can't do that. We aren't those people," Liv answers.
He squares her shoulders, making her look at him. He has a death lock on her, "I love you and I know you love me."
"We can't invite trouble into our lives."
"And we can't lie to ourselves either," Fitz answers as he swoops her up into his arms and takes her into a kiss. She tries to pull away but his grip is too strong. She fights the kiss at first but Fitz is relentless. Then it happens, she submits her will and falls into the kiss. The moan that escapes her is deep and full of need.
Without knocking Abby comes in, "I know you have a meeting with…."
They both stop, turning into Abby's direction.
"Liv," Abby finishes.
They both look at each other as Liv brings her fingers to her lips to sooth the fire that Fitz has ignited.
"Anyone want to tell me what's going on here?" Abby asks.
Hmmm, what will Olivia and Fitz say?
