A/N: This has taken forever. My apologies. Thank you for contining to read.

Peace and love,

Renee

...

Oliver entered the dining room the following morning, pausing as he saw his wife already there at the dining table.

He cleared his throat as he took his seat at the head of the table. "I had hoped you might've joined me in bed last night."

"What can I say? I suppose I've gotten used to sleeping alone", Grace answered cooly, surprising both of them with how sharp her response was.

Oliver felt bad enough as it was, he really didn't need Grace to rub salt in the wound. What he needed was her support and her affection now that he was home. It was all he'd been craving for since his arrival home, especially after the ordeal he'd been through the past few weeks, the things he'd seen and heard.

Choosing not to retaliate and make things worse, he asked, "Where's Annie?", wishing to make amends with his daughter.

"She came down earlier and ate her breakfast, then left for the library. She said she needed to study."

Oliver's brow furrowed. "School hasn't even started back yet, what exactly is she studying?"

"Not wanting to push her even further away, I didn't pry."

"We're not her friends, Grace. We're her parents. It's our responsibility to pry."

"Annie is a responsible young woman."

"If she were so responsible, she would have let you know where she was going. I'm sure I have a fair idea where she's off to and what exactly she's planning to "study" and I dread to say it but I'd venture a guess that it involves human anatomy."

Grace made a face. "Oh, Oliver. Why must you conjure the most unseemly ideas?"

"I'm a Father, it's my job."

Grace laughed mirthlessly. "I'm not sure that being a Father has ever been quite as important to you as your job."

Her comment tipped him over the edge. He banged his fist on the table and glared at her. "You know that's not true! How could you say that, Grace?"

"You left us!" Grace shouted back, equally as impassioned as him. "For two and a half months! I was left to handle every aspect of our business on my own, yet worse than that was the utter loneliness I felt. I missed you so much, but I can't stop this resentment I feel toward you that you were gone so long and left me feeling so alone."

The raw truth of her words cut Oliver like a knife. How could she not understand the importance of the work he'd been doing during his absence? How could she resent him for it?

"I was needed in Europe. People are in serious trouble…"

"You were needed here, too. Annie and I, we needed you desperately. So many nights I held our daughter as she cried for you. So many more nights I held back my own tears, trying to be strong enough for both of us."

"I'm sorry, Grace. I thought the phone calls would be enough to sustain us. I tried my very best to call you as often as I could, to be as attentive as I could-"

"-You missed our anniversary." There was almost a wail in her voice and it made Oliver's heart sink. He hadn't even realized. That was probably the thing that had upset her the most.

He sighed deeply, feeling a pang of guilt and regret.

"You didn't even remember, did you? I tried calling you that night at your hotel in France, but the concierge said you were on your way out to dinner with a Madame Suzanne Briet."

"That was strictly business. Madame Briet is a librarian who's been keeping extensive records on Nazi activities."

Grace was unmoved. "That's not the point."

Oliver bowed his head. "No, I know." He sighed again. "I don't know what you want me to say, Grace."

Grace gave him a somber stare. "That might be the worst part of it. For the past few weeks our relationship has been nothing but words. I don't think there really is anything more that can be said, and even if there was, I'm not sure I'd want to hear it." She stood up forcefully from the table and walked swiftly out of the room, her cheeks red and her eyes filled with tears.

Oliver covered his face with one hand and pushed his plate away with the other, his appetite well and truly lost.

He didn't see Grace for the rest of the morning and when he asked Drake if he knew of her whereabouts, the butler said she had gone out to attend a meeting.

Oliver did feel guilty for all the extra work he had made Grace take on in his absence. He knew she could handle it - she was just as competent as he was with the business side of things, but he acknowledged that it was a lot to put on her already rather full plate.

He began to think of ways to thank her somehow - that's if she would actually allow him to be in the same room with her long enough.

As he crossed the foyer to return to his office, the front door opened and he spun around quickly, expecting to see Grace, but it wasn't his wife who he saw, it was his daughter.

"Annie!" He called out to her quickly, wanting the chance to mend at least one relationship.

Annie turned on her heel and began to walk away from him. "Annie, please, I'm sorry about what I did last night and I'm sorry about being away so long. Please at least give me the chance to apologize and figure out a way to make it up to you."

Annie stopped walking and Oliver mentally congratulated himself on his wiliness.

What teenager wouldn't be interested in a bribe?

"You embarrassed me, Daddy", she told him and his heart sank. He really had let her down.

"I apologize. I really am sorry, hunny. I suppose I was a little sore, and that's not your fault. I'd been building up this idea in my head of you and your Mother being so surprised and so happy to see me. The reality wasn't really what I'd had in mind and I guess that made me a bit upset."

"You weren't the only one that was upset by it. I'd been looking forward to introducing you to Gordon, but now his impression of you isn't great."

"I'm sorry about that, Annie, I'm sure he's a fine young man, it's only that I was a little shocked to meet him, especially in the way that I did."

Annie blushed. "It wasn't the most comfortable introduction for any of us."

Oliver nodded somberly. "You know I just want to protect you and keep you safe. I know it won't be possible for your whole life, but I suppose I figured that at least while you're living under this roof, I still could."

"I don't need protecting, Daddy. Not from Gordon, anyway. He's nice. I think you'd like him if you got to know him."

"He could be a prince and I would still have cause to be concerned, Annie."

"Why?"

"Because he's interested in my only daughter, and it's part of my job as a Father to make sure you're happy and that you're safe."

"I'm growing up, Daddy. I know how to keep myself safe and I think it's time I was allowed to decide for myself what makes me happy."

"You're right, but no matter how old you get, or how much of life you start to experience, you will always be my little girl, which means I will always be concerned about you."

Annie rolled her eyes at her Father, though there was a smile playing on her lips. "Daddy, I wasn't even a little girl when we met."

Oliver chuckled. "You may have matched me in terms of street smarts and spunk, but you were also the dearest, darlingest, most delightful little thing I'd ever met. Melting this old man's heart was no mean feat, you know, but somehow you achieved it."

Annie's lips tightened as she tried not to let him see her smile grow.

He placed a hand on her shoulder and said with a degree of seriousness, "Even though I wasn't the first Father who loved you, you will always be my little girl."

With a small sigh, she leaned into him and lay her head on his chest as he wrapped his arms around her. "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, Annie."

After several moments, he finally let her go, saying, "Now, why don't you invite your Gordon over for dinner tomorrow evening so that I can make amends and introduce myself to him properly."

Annie narrowed her eyes at her Father. "Are you only inviting him here so you can interrogate him?"

"Annie, what a suggestion! Of course not. I'd like to get to know him better and to…inform him of the standards I expect from any young man who wishes to become the suitor of my only daughter."

"Daddy." Her expression showed she was not impressed.

"Alright, I promise not to scare him off, but I also promise to make sure that he is worthy of such a precious gem as you. It is only the diligence required of me as a Father."

She did allow him a smile at that. "Alright, but swear to me you won't ask J. Edgar Hoover to do a background check on him."

Oliver pursed his lips guiltily.

"Daddy!"

"I'll call him now and cancel it."

After making good on his promise to cancel his request to the F.B.I on their research into Annie's new boyfriend, Oliver set the phone down and let out a long sigh. He was glad to have made amends with his daughter but his wife's grievance with him had still yet to be repaired.

He desperately wanted to make her happier but at the same time he was feeling quite upset with her for her lack of appreciation for what he'd been going through and all the good he'd been trying to do in Europe.

If it wasn't so dangerous over there, he would have suggested she come with him to see first hand what people were going through and how he was trying to help them.

"Afternoon, Sir", Mrs. Pugh's voice interrupted his thoughts. "Would you like to take your lunch in the dining room?"

"I'm not sure I'll be particularly welcome there, Mrs. Pugh. I think I'll just have it in here."

"Oh, I see. Alright, Mr. Warbucks." There was concern and compassion in her face, yet she tried to remain dutiful and professional.

Oliver knew Mrs. Pugh and Grace were close, he himself had become quite reliant on the older woman and had come to think of her as an extension of his own family.

It wasn't exactly professional of him, but he also thought she wouldn't mind him seeking her counsel.

"Mrs. Pugh…"

"Yes, Sir?"

"Would you mind?" He motioned to the chair on the other side of his desk.

Mrs. Pugh raised her eyebrows at him but took a seat anyhow.

"You and Grace are close, I know. I suppose I was just wondering if she might have confided in you about the issues she and I are having."

"Oh, Mr. Warbucks, I don't want to speak out of turn."

"You wouldn't be, I'm asking you, Mrs. Pugh."

Seeing her hesitance, Oliver pushed, "Please, I just want to know what I can do to fix this."

Mrs. Pugh swallowed. "It's been difficult for Mrs. Warbucks while you've been away. She's missed you a great deal. She hasn't confided in me in so many words, Sir, but she has come to me for solace. We've sat over cups of tea in long periods of silence, just in a sort of quiet comfort, and I'm sure that those times have helped her get through, but it's no substitute for her husband."

"So she hasn't said anything to you?"

The woman pursed her lips and turned her eyes downward.

"Mrs. Pugh?" He prompted her pleadingly.

"She asked me about my own marriage, before my husband passed, when I was younger. He was a seaman who used to be away from home for long periods of time. I told her it was difficult for me too. She-" Mrs. Pugh cleared her throat nervously. "She asked me if I ever had thoughts about ending it."

Oliver paled.

"I told her it just wasn't something that was done in those days, and despite the heartache and the struggle, not having my companion by my side, our children being without their Father for so long - when he was back home, all the time apart was worth it. He was so attentive, so helpful, always wonderful with the children. Every time he came back, it was as if he gave me reasons to fall in love with him all over again."

"So you're saying I should be more attentive when I'm home? How can I be when she won't even let me get close to her?"

"No, Mr. Warbucks, it's not just about that. I'm afraid these weeks apart have given Mrs. Warbucks a lot of time to develop many thoughts and not all very positive. When your husband goes away for an extended period of time and is giving his time and his attention to others while you sit at home without him, what other impression should you gain other than he cares less about you than he does about those people?"

"But you know that's not true, and so does Grace! The people I was trying to help are in much more dire need."

"Are they?"

Her question made Oliver pause for a moment.

Sensing that she had started to get through to him, or at least given him something to think about, Mrs. Pugh had just one thing left to say.

"All the people of the world are not knowingly dependent on you. The people living in this household, however - they are." She stood from the desk and reached across it to give his shoulder a comforting squeeze before shuffling out of the room.

After another restless night without Grace by his side, Oliver was awoken in the morning by a knock on his bedroom door. He sat up quickly, hoping to see his wife, but was instead greeted by Drake.

"Sir, I'm sorry to disturb you but you have an urgent call from President Roosevelt."

Oliver squinted at his watch in the dimly lit room. It was just after six in the morning. Whatever this phone call was in relation to, Oliver knew it couldn't be good.

He rose from his bed quickly and donned his robe, all but running downstairs to take the phone call.

"Franklin, what is it?"

"I've just been informed that there's going to be an announcement on the BBC Empire Service from Prime Minister Chamberlain, concerning the situation in Europe. I believe you'll want to tune in, Oliver. It's scheduled to begin any minute now."

Oliver released a long, slow breath. "I see. Thank you for informing me."

"Oliver, as your President, I am advised by those in my administration and higher above me to remain neutral in regards to the events unfolding over there. As your friend, I want you to know that my heart and my hopes are with the British people and their allies."

"Thank you, Mr. President."

"Take care, Oliver."

"You too."

Oliver ended the phone call with The President and immediately crossed his office to turn on the radio and tune it to the international frequency of the BBC Empire Service.

"This is London, you will now hear a statement by the Prime Minister."

Oliver's heart immediately began to race. He somehow already knew that a pivotal moment in history was about to unfold.

Chamberlain's voice could then be heard across the airwaves. In any other circumstance, Oliver would have marveled over the fact that he could be sitting in his office in New York City listening to a broadcast from London, England, but right now he was far too panicked and alarmed to do anything but listen intently to what the Prime Minister had to say.

"I am speaking to you from the cabinet room of 10 Downing Street. This morning, the British Ambassador in Berlin handed the German government the final note, stating that unless we heard from them by eleven o'clock, they were prepared at once to withdraw their troops from Poland, a state of war would exist between us."

Oliver gripped his desk, bracing himself.

"I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received and that consequently this country is at war with Germany."

Oliver buried his head in his hands as Chamberlain continued.

"You can imagine what a bitter blow it is to me that all my long struggle to win peace has failed. Yet I cannot believe that there is anything more or anything different than I could have done and that would have been more successful."

Oliver's heart seized, he was distraught for the Prime Minister, he was distraught for every single one of his home countrymen and women, and all who would be affected by the forthcoming. He was distraught for himself too, for all the work he himself had put in alongside Chamberlain. He could relate to the man's sober words so well. Every sacrifice he had made, every minute spent away from his family.

As he collapsed onto his desk, weeping for all of them, he had to ask himself, "What was it all for?"