"He's so nervous, but he wants her." Olivia told her.
"I love that little girl, but I'm single. I'm trying to make partner at my law firm and I work 80-90 hour weeks. My life isn't set up for a child."
"Ours is... I can't lie. Ours isn't either. It will be an adjustment for the three of us, but we talked and he doesn't want her in foster care. If there's no other family and you don't feel like you can take on the responsibility he will and he will be great."
"When Kim got sick I told her to reach out to him, so they wouldn't be blindsided, but she said she was too ashamed for having kept them apart for as long as she did." Quinn said shaking her head, "Scarlett's a really smart kid. She's already in third grade. She loves to read and she tells anyone who will listen that she's going to be the first female president if Hilary doesn't beat her to it." Olivia laughed. The conversation turned serious again.
"Can I ask, how did Kim die?"
"Brain cancer. It was quick she did her best to explain it to Scarlett and she's been handling it well. There's times when she cries but she's a wise kid, she keeps saying her mom doesn't hurt anymore and it makes her happy. If you guys take her, can I still see her? I know what I'm doing is awful, I have the means to raise her and I'm opting out, but I really do love her, I just, I'm weird. In the way that shouldn't be responsible for another life."
"We will never keep her away from you. You're always welcome at our house to come visit her. Do you know why Kim didn't tell him? He told me he called to check on the baby all the time and he was broken hearted when she told him she miscarried."
"I think she felt guilty. That she took away two parents from him and he felt like he needed to take care of her. She didn't want that for him. I'm not defending what she did, but I think she wanted him to keep whatever semblance of a normal life he had left." Olivia couldn't understand keeping family away from one another, but she had also been taught not to speak ill of the dead.
"He had nothing left. That was the problem." Olivia said softly looking up towards the stairs, knowing that at that exact moment Fitz was falling in love with the little girl.
"Wow I think you might have more books than Livvie, and that's saying something." Fitz said conspiratorially looking around the room. Every wall was lined with a bookcase and every bookcase was full. There wasn't a TV, but she had a toy chest he could see dolls sticking out of.
"Do you like to read?" She had been asking him questions trying to get to know him, or at least find out what they had in common besides a father.
"I love to read. Olivia and I have a library in the house were moving into. Maybe we could make room a for all your books too." She looked at him curiously.
"If you want."
"I don't think I have a choice do I?"
"We won't force you to do anything you don't want. When I lost my dad I was so confused and sad and my life changed a lot. I don't want to put you through that unless you want it." Realistically he was stuck in Rhode Island for school, they had just purchased a house, it's where Olivia was, but he felt like he had to at least let her think he had some control over her life.
"This house makes me sad and lonely. I don't want to stay here."
"Do you know where Rhode Island is?"
"Not really, little bit north from Maryland, but I know it's Americas smallest state." She told him proudly.
"It's not far, just a quick flight or plane ride away, or a drive. We can come visit your friends and Quinn. And Rhode Island is really pretty. We live by a river that leads to the ocean. Do you like a water?"
"I love swimming, mom was going to put me on swim team this year, but I guess not now."
"You know Liv was on swim team when she was younger, she swims all the time. I bet she would take you, and we can try and find a team for you." She smiled for the first time she he had arrived she walked over and wrapped her arms around him the best she could. He stooped down so he could get a better grip on her tiny body.
"Were the only Grants left." She told him sadly and her statement shocked Fitz. For the longest time he believed he was the only Grant left. It warmed him to know he wasn't alone.
"We have to stick together."
"Okay." She put her head on his shoulder and he picked her up. They stood in the middle of the room for a while. Fitz didn't know what to say to her but he tried to hold her and let her know that she would be safe. After a while he stood with her still in his arms and went back down to the living room. He heard Olivia and Quinn talking about a recent Supreme Court ruling and he smirked at her. Clearly she had made a friend.
"How is everything little one?" Quinn asked when she saw Scarlett wrapped around Fitz and him grinning.
"Were grants and were sticking together." She told Quinn and she smiled relieved that Scarlett had taken to Fitz. It made her feel less guilty for not taking the girl. Olivia grinned at him and he smiled right back and he went to sit down with her again. Scarlett was still on his lap but Olivia didn't mind. He put one arm around Olivia's shoulders and kept the other firmly around his little sister.
"Scarlett loves to swim, I kind of promised her you would take her." Fitz told her sheepishly.
"Absolutely. I need a swimming buddy, Fitz is so slow!" She said exaggeratedly to Scarlett and she laughed.
"I'm not that slow!" They both gave him a look and in that moment he knew he would be forever double-teamed.
"Okay I'm that slow. She likes too read too. I think she may have more books than you so we will have to make room in the library."
"I think that can definitely be arranged. So what's your favorite book?"
"It's a tie, between Harry Potter and my Greek book."
"Greek book?" Fitz asked, Olivia sat there silently thinking about how exciting it would be to read the Harry potter books with her and experience them for the first time again through new eyes.
"Yeah like Zeus and Hercules." She told him, shocked he didn't already know and she have him that look again, the one that was rapidly starting to grow on him. It went from being the look of a disappointed father to an exasperated sibling.
"Oh Greek mythology. Olivia and I love those stories too." He said as he rubbed his wrist tattoo absent-mindedly at the same time Olivia did. As they spent more time talking and getting to know one another Scarlett moved off of Fitz's lap to sit between the two. It was clear that physical affect ran in the Grant bloodlines. Fitz was always touching her in some way. Her hand, her arm, her hair wherever he could reach. He never had a problem throwing his arm around someone or squeezing together for a picture and it was clear Scarlett was like that, but only once she got comfortable with someone.
It was clear she was getting tired when she rested her head in Olivia's lap. Olivia stroked her hair as she fell asleep and Fitz watched the two of them enamored by how quickly they were all able to find common ground. Once they were sure she was asleep Fitz spoke up.
"She said she doesn't want to stay in this house. Liv and I talked about it on the plane and we decided before we even met her that if she was willing we want to take her home with us. Now that I've met her I'm not letting her go. I missed the first seven years of her life. I don't want to miss anymore." Fitz told Quinn not really sure what to expect.
"When do you guys want to go home?" Quinn asked them. It was Friday, but she knew they had classes to get back to after the weekend was over. She would miss Scarlett, as well as her best friend, but it was best for the child to adjust to her new life as soon as possible.
"We have a flight out Monday night, I bought three tickets." Olivia told them both and Fitz beamed at her, thrilled at how accepting of every thing she had been.
"I am in charge of the estate, aside from Scarlett. There's some stuff you'll need to sign, but Kim's accounts and the money from the house will go into a trust for you to take care of her with."
"Can you just put the money in a college fund? When dad died I received the full amount of his insurance policy and trusts because I was the only living child, but it's half hers too. There's plenty without Kim's money."
"Of course Fitz, but don't say no to this money because you resent Kim. She didn't want you to have this burden. She thought the money would make it easier."
"When I say that there's plenty of money I'm not being arrogant or short sided. My father's insurance policy alone was one hundred million dollars. That doesn't include my trust and his accounts, his stocks and investments, the homes. I have enough money to take care of the three of us several times over. Put it in a trust so that when she's 18 she gets it for college, if she doesn't go to college 25."
"16." Olivia corrected.
"What?" Fitz asked confused.
"She's seven and she's in the third grade. She will graduate high school when she's sixteen."
"Great I'm living with two geniuses now." Fitz said sarcastically, but grinned proudly at the new information about his little sister. He and Quinn discussed some more arrangements while Olivia sat next to him adding his input when needed, but mostly just trying to be his silent support system.
"I'm going to head home. I'll come back tomorrow and help you guys pack and bring paper work so we can finalize everything." Fitz got up and walked her out than locked the door behind her than made his way back to his girls.
"What do we do now?" He asked when he made it back into the room.
"Well first we put this little bit to bed than we need to call Claudia and Michael. Make sure Dad never finds out about her, figure out what to tell Mom. Than we go to sleep because we will need it these next few days." Olivia told him meeting his eyes after finally taking her own off the little girl in her lap.
"She's a good kid, we got off easy." He said. She nodded her head once than her eyes went back to Scarlett.
"Nothing about this is going to be easy except loving her. I already do." Olivia told him as she went back to stoking the girl's hair.
"Me too." He said as he sat down next to them. He put his arm behind Olivia on the couch. She rested her head into his shoulder and immediately felt exhausted.
"Livvy?"
"Hmm..." She replied already half asleep.
"This is weird right?" He said kissing the side of her head.
"What is?" She leaned into him, but kept her eyes closed.
"How not weird this feels." She nodded her head and smiled.
"We need to put her to bed, she needs rest."
"I can't."
"Fitz she will be fine. Were not leaving her."
"The house makes her sad. I don't want to leave her alone if she's more sad than she has to be." Fitz told her desperate to make her feel safer or happier in any way he can.
"I think the couch is a pull out. We can sleep here." Olivia told him with a sympathetic look. She definitely knew how comforting it was to sleep surrounded by family. Fitz lifted the sleeping child and held her while Olivia pulled out the couch and gathered the blanket hanging over the back. They laid down with Scarlett between them, she never woke up the whole time Fitz was holding her.
"I need to call Claudia." Olivia said and Fitz suddenly paled.
"She's going to want you as far away from this as she can get you."
"Don't you dare say that!"
"You're her baby sister. She's doesn't want you to be a parent at 21. I get it."
"You know what Claudia gets? Having to raise a child when your parents aren't in the picture. Claudia parented me more than Maya ever did. She will understand and respect what you're doing here. So don't you dare suggest that anyone wouldn't think you're a better man for what you're doing here. Especially me and Claudia."
"You're right Livvie, I'm sorry, I just, I love your family so much, they're my family too. I feel like being excited to have Scarlett makes it seem like I was using them until the real thing came along. This is a lot of responsibility and you already have so much. I can't stand the thought of them hating me."
"They will never hate you Fitz. They love you, half the time I call they ask for you. They will understand this and they will love her just as much as they love you."