Chapter Nine
Of course she wouldn't, Fitz thought. A rush of pride in her courage filled him. There was no way his Livvie would ever hide behind someone else - or allow anyone to do it for her. But then he thought it through; Olivia might never back down from an attack on her - but an attack on him or his presidency was different. Protecting him was how the others had gotten her to agree to Defiance. If he pointed that out now, she'd only claim that she'd made the choice freely as mistaken as it was. All of which meant -
"That means keeping Elizabeth in rotation, whether I like the idea or not." What Fitz wanted meant nothing, compared to this. "At the same time, I'm not going to lie - I don't like the idea of using Kimberly Mitchell just to promote my own agenda - as a reporter, she's been mostly good to our administration, and when she hasn't been in agreement, she's at least been fair in her opposition."
One look at Cyrus' face told Fitz that they both knew Olivia's mind in this. "None of that really matters though, not in the long run. If there's going to be a negative reaction to my being seen with her - on any level and from any direction - we all know that means in the long run us knowing what their possible reaction to you might be - then I want to know that too."
"We both need to know." A part of Olivia reacted with relief that Fitz recognized the dilemma that she felt herself possibly being forced into. They might have a plan, but they all also knew that there was no real way they could predict how anything would go once the truth about she and Fitz came out.
It meant that they needed to know everything that they could learn going in. And if him being seen with a high-profile woman of color had any chance of obstructing the re-election campaign then they also needed to know that now so that they could plan to deal with it.
Fitz didn't know that she had already decided that if need be, Olivia was prepared to take a step back from their relationship. After her mistake with Defiance, whatever she might want took a back seat to what Fitz wanted, or more importantly, what he needed. All of this had come to her while Fitz and Cyrus had been discussing Kimberly.
It also came to her that there would be no better time to let Fitz know that than now. He wouldn't like it, but maybe with Cyrus there to bolster her argument, Fitz would see reason. That thought was followed quickly with another and Olivia found herself swallowing hard against the sudden knot in her throat that had come from out of nowhere as she realized that her task was far easier said than done.
Clenching her hands to stop their sudden tremble, Olivia took a deep breath, determined to sound reasonable. "If what we are - who we are - becomes an issue to your campaign, then you and I can push our own personal timetable back for a little while -"
His eyes flew to her face. Fitz cut her off. "We are not doing that. Get that out of your head right now."
"That's not going to happen, not now, not ever" For a moment, it was as though Cyrus wasn't even in the room as Fitz spoke to her. His voice was as fierce as it was gentle. . We are doing no such thing. I said that I know this is something I need to know - we all do. That much is true - but at no point did I ever say that knowing would change my mind about anything. Especially about you and I."
Cyrus took the moment to clear his throat. He didn't mean to be the naysayer in this conversation, but there were certain things that at least needed to be said.
"Mr. President, Olivia might have a point." He said. "At the very least, we all need to weigh all of your options, meaning we have no choice but to take into consideration all the pros and the cons that might influence your chances at re-election."
Fitz shook his head slowly. "No."
"Mr. President." Cyrus' expression made it clear that he knew Fitz was not liking what he was hearing. He didn't like saying it, but someone had to. "I don't mean to play devil's advocate, but someone has to; politically speaking, maybe waiting until you were done with your second term is the right choice -"
Fitz refused to let Cyrus finish. "You've made your point and Olivia has made hers. Now it's my turn - and here it is. Plan or no plan, by this time next year, my love for Olivia will no longer be a matter of secrecy. Whether I win or lose this election, I have no intentions of hiding how I feel about her any longer than I have to."
He turned his gaze back to Olivia. "The fact that I'm not only in love with her, but that she is the love of my life is nothing that I'm ever going to be ashamed of and the truth is, if it weren't for my children's sake, I'd shout it from the rooftops today- party optics and political expediency be damned."
Emotion rose up in Olivia and it showed in the sudden shine of unshed tears in her eyes. Despite her fears, despite her worries for Fitz's political future, his words lit up her insides like candles on a birthday cake, a million points of dancing bright fluttering inside her.
Hearing him declare his love for her in such a I-don't-give-a-damn way would never fail to light the dark corners in her soul. The strength of his love would always catch her when her fears and doubts caused her to stumble. It was a simple truth, Fitz would always do his best to be there to catch her when she fell.
"I'm sorry." She mouthed the words at him.
He smiled at her and shook his head. "Don't be." He mouthed back. She never had to be sorry about being who she was.
XXX
Cyrus sighed and looked away from them, giving them what privacy he could. He'd known what form this battle was going to take before it had begun. In truth - in the here and now - it hadn't even begun to begin.
People saw what they wanted to see, but what most people didn't know was that Fitzgerald Grant was the real-life embodiment of people expected from a military officer - a true officer and a gentleman. It made for great optics, but in a real life scenario it made a political life difficult. That was because from his very first political campaign, Fitz had been very strict about the use of his military career as a campaign tool, mostly refusing to use it to what Cyrus thought its best advantage no matter his efforts to change Fitz's mind.
But even so, Fitz was who he was. There had to be a way to make it work for the campaign's benefit - it was his job to make it work, he thought to himself.
So caught up in his own thoughts on the subject, it came slowly to him that Olivia had called his name at least twice now.
"Next name, Cyrus?"
He fumbled at his papers. "Last for now, is Colleen Cassidy. One of the newest and brightest new lights on the tech horizon, newly appointed CEO of Skylight, Inc. They are having their first public IPO sometime during the beginning of next year, complete with her presiding over the opening bell at the Stock Exchange sometime in the next few weeks. Good optics for the both of you if we can swing it."
"What else can you tell us about her?" Fitz asked.
As least he didn't have an instant negative reaction, Cyrus noticed - and he'd be thankful for small mercies.
"She's tall, willowy and red-headed - good looking in a Nicole Kidman kind of way - if one likes that type." He said.
"I already have a type." Fitz said.
"He already has a type." Olivia's words overlapped his like an echo and then they were grinning at each other again as if Cyrus wasn't even there.
"And it isn't tall, willowy -" Fitz started.
"- or red-headed." Olivia picked up where Fitz left off.
"- in a Nicole Kidman kind of way." They finished the sentence together.
"It's irritating when the two of you do that." Cyrus rolled his eyes at them, stifling a caustic reaction when they both laughed at him. "You might want to watch out for that in public."
"Watch out for the optics ? -" Olivia asked.
"I think we've had practice enough for that -"
It took nothing but a glance between them and then they looked at Cyrus and did it again.
"It's handled." they said.
The look Cyrus shot them was full with evil intent and a promise of payback. He could have been the head of a television network. James had thought that the offer had been serious…
"Cute." He grumbled, putting the momentarily wishful thought aside. "Let's forget optics for a moment and let's take a look at the politics. It hasn't been announced officially yet, but I've heard that Ms. Cassidy has plans on opening up a series of STEM training centers for girls around the country - including one in Puerto Rico."
Olivia smiled a little. "I happen to know that she and Kimberly Mitchell have an interview planned - there's no precise date yet, it is scheduled for the very near future. That could be a great public platform to add to the campaign."
Fitz was pleased; at least this pick didn't have him instantly on his guard. "Once it's been announced, I could openly invite her to the White House to discuss her plans."
The more he thought about it, the more Fitz liked the idea. "Can we get a matching foundation going?"
"I'd hold off on that." Olivia advised. "See what the public response is. We don't want to steal her thunder if her goal is to promote girls inclusion in the sciences."
"At least we'll be able to conduct a decent conversation." Fitz felt a sense of relief at the realization. Any time he imagined having a conversation with Elizabeth, it filled him with a definite sense mix of distaste and distrust. Olivia would tell him to trust his gut and his gut was giving him a two thumbs up on that. "It's something we can discuss for future strategies."
"Like the second year of your second term." Cyrus suggested.
"I like the sound of that." Olivia seemed to have gotten past her little crisis of faith. "Just make sure that's all you have, mister."
He smiled back at her but inwardly Fitz hesitated, wondering if the shadow still lingering in her eyes was something that was real or just his imagination. Her concern over Kimberly was real and he knew better than to believe that it was one that would go away quickly. Whether she needed an encouraging word or not, Fitz decided that they'd discuss it before she left the White House today.
Until then, they'd enjoy the happy in the here and now. Having the three of them together brainstorming together with the easy rhythm they had always had was something Fitz realized he'd missed from the early days of the campaign. "Of course; you know how much I am all about strategic partnerships…"
The smile he gave Olivia did its job and lit up her face like the sun breaking out after a storm. Fitz hoped he'd managed to banish the clouds he saw on her view of the horizon - at least for a little while.
A/N ~ Hope everyone enjoyed this week's episode!
In case anyone is worrying, Olivia's issues are not going to overshadow the entire story, but she is who she is and I admit it, I do love Olitz angst, so I may sprinkle some in here and there (remember, I can plot and plan and outline all I like, but once I start actually writing, the characters do what THEY want to do, which is not necessarily what I had in mind) But this version of Olitz will do their very best to work through anything that comes their way. Together.