Olivia shivered at the rumble of his baritone near her ear. She could feel the body heat radiating from him due to the their proximity. She moved the hand that was not trapped between his and squeezed his arm. His arm was solid and his muscles flexed under her touch.
"I'm not sure that would be appropriate," she returned. Instead of laying her head on his expansive chest she leaned back slightly to meet his eyes. The nerve of him. He had no right being this gorgeous or charming. Instead of repelling her, he was weaving a spell and entrapping her with each shared moment.
"Then let's be inappropriate," he replied with a smile. He searched her brown gaze hoping that she would relent and give in. She was having an internal dialogue and he could practically hear the conversation playing out as he watched the expressions on her face change. The changes were swift and minute but he was so in tune with her that caught caught every micro movement and remained captivated. This was part of what made her such a great actress to watch. She could convey complex emotions with minimal effort or she could exaggerate them if it was required.
Fitz freed her hand and wrapped his arms around her when it seemed she would deny him his request. He rubbed one hand down her back and his eyes widened when he encountered the warmth of her skin. Her sundress was partially backless and after the unexpected touch of skin on skin he wanted to see if it was as smooth as it had felt. But that would mean he would to move and right now he was content to have her in his possession. He didn't know why he felt satisfaction at that fact but right now holding her was a far better alternative to not having her near and within reach.
She leaned her head forward to rest on his chest and heard his heart rate increase briefly before it returned to its steady rhythm. She brought her hands together and rested against him taking in his clean scent content to let the time tick away so long as she was wrapped in his embrace.
They remained locked together as time stretched. They had begun to sway slightly along with the music playing in the banquet hall but they never separated.
It wasn't until a camera flash went off that they remembered they were not alone even though it felt that way.
The flash startled both of them out of their shared private bubble and into action. Fitz raised a hand to cover his eyes and instinctively turned putting Olivia behind him slightly. He didn't want her exposed to the camera man any more than necessary. He didn't care about publicity or how he was perceived since his actions on the field held greater weight but he knew that as an actress Liv was under a much brighter microscope where every little thing could be documented and torn apart by the media.
"Do you mind? We aren't in the mood right now for pictures. Maybe some other time. You've gotten your picture, now how about you leave us alone?" Fitz tried to reason with the photographer.
They heard the camera clicks and knew he was still being photographed. Another person had joined the photographer and seemed to be recording the encounter.
His patience was wearing thin and he was about to lay into the both of them when he felt Olivia tugging gently on his arm.
He glanced back at her large doe eyes and felt something inside of him soften into mush. Whatever she asked of him, he would complete the task.
Olivia stared into Fitz's eyes silently pleading with him. He needed to calm down before he caused a scene. Quinn Perkins, her publicist, would not be happy if she left what was supposed to be an easy and positive event with bad press. Not sure if it would work Olivia did what Fitz had been asking earlier-she called his name.
"Fitz." It came out confident and ensnared him. She moved from behind him to engage the photographer and camera man.
"Gentlemen, my friend Fitz and I were in the middle of something and I'm afraid that we actually must get going now." She flashed them a swift smile and walked away beckoning Fitz to join her with an inclination of her head.
"You're a pretty smooth operator, Liv. I was close to losing my head there and I apologize for that." He had an arm placed on the small of her back and was leaning over her slightly to talk quietly.
"Liv?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Only fair since you called me a shortened name-"
She laughed interrupting him and paused. "You insisted that I called you that. I would have been happy calling you Fitzgerald." She jabbed him in the arm in play.
"Hmm...now hearing you say my full name doesn't sound bad at all. I usually prefer it shortened since people tend to stumble over it." He raised his shoulders and shrugged.
"Well, if you prefer I can stick with Fitz but I may slip and call you Fitzgerald if you get out of hand." She meant it in jest but she had a feeling that he wouldn't mind even if she did call him Fitzgerald.
"If I'm in your hands I promise to be on my best behavior unless you beg me to be bad, Liv," he finished with a lopsided grin and quick wink.
"Your inappropriateness knows no bounds." She shook her head and chuckled.
He smiled and joined in the laughter. She was beautiful to look at but when she smiled or laughed she radiated vibrancy. She was amazing and he needed to spend more time with her.
He wanted to be the one to put smiles on her face and he would act like a complete clown if he could hear her laughter on a regular basis. He wasn't even sure how long she would be in town or how long he would due to their schedule.
Pulling out his phone he said,"Let me get your number so we can keep in touch. I want to see you again." Her eyes widened briefly but after reciting her number it wasn't long before her phone vibrated signaling a message.
Fitz: This is Fitz and don't worry, you'll see the number so often you'll have it memorized soon. ;) But just in case you're more visual we can take some pics so that you can't forget me.
Olivia looked up and saw him grinning widely causing a deep dimple to appear in his left cheek. She felt a responding smile appear on her face.
He hugged her to him leaning his head toward hers and snapped a picture on his phone. He seemed happy with it but still decided to take another to have more than one picture of her. He set his phone camera to burst so that he could get a set to choose from.
Stepping behind her, Fitz placed one hand on her shoulder and rested his head near hers.
"Now say, Fitz..." He murmured it in a light tone.
Olivia smiled along with Fitz before his words sank in. She turned to chastise him and barely registered his eyes closing before his mouth met hers.
Fitz had known that teasing her would pay off-he had been expecting a smile or getting told off. But when she had turned to him he felt his body moving on autopilot. His positioning had already placed their heads close together and when she turned toward him he closed the distance and his eyes to savor the first meeting of their lips.
She was sweet, deliciously sweet as he nibbled along her plump lips and tasted hints of the fruit she had been eating. He wanted more of her-he needed more of her taste. He dragged his lips along her top lip before dragging his tongue along the seam of her mouth seeking entrance.
Liv felt him squeeze her shoulder as he pressed himself closer behind her while his mouth nibbled and licked hers. His lips were soft and he seemed to be memorizing what she liked. When she felt his tongue probing she opened her mouth to receive him and they began exploring each other's mouths, learning their tastes.
The camera burst set of photos was interesting. The first picture had them getting into position, the second had them smiling widely and the last few pictures caught Liv's initial shock at his words and the progression of their first kiss.
"Fitz! What are you doing?!" Mellie Montgomery hissed out the question and grabbed his arm yanking him away from Olivia.