If someone would have told Olivia she would be leaving her trendy Chicago loft for small town life in Charming, California she would have laughed in their face. But here she was packing the final boxes of her clothes and shoes. She found it sad that she only needed two medium size boxes for her other personal belongings…cherished family photos including a photo of her dad on their final family beach trip before his death four months later. At sixteen, Olivia felt her world ended the night her dad lost his battle with cancer. With her mom focused on her career it had always been Olivia and her dad. Richard doted on his one and only daughter….adjusting his work schedule to attend every school or sporting event she was in. Always being her biggest cheerleader while being a great father and role model in guiding her to become the smart, confidant, independent woman she was today. Olivia was taught to always stand her ground while being respectful, that you can keep your true friends at a distance while keeping your enemies close. Her father had been the one man in her life that had never let her down. For as long as she could remember, her father had always shown how much he loved her and what she meant to him. Yes, she knew her mother loved her, but her mom chose to use the "tough love" approach, the complete opposite as her father. With tears slowly streaming down her face, Olivia felt like she had lost him all over again. Would he be disappointed at how she stayed in a "loveless" relationship with a man because she had grown comfortable with subconsciously knowing they would never take the next step…correction…SHE would never take the next step? Olivia had lost count at the numerous fights she and John had over his wanting to live together and her insistence they not. It was just shy of their two year anniversary that she dropped by his condo earlier than expected to find him in bed with a waitress from his favorite bar. To say she was shocked was an understatement. She had falsely believed him when he promised her that he wouldn't "be that man" who would ever betray her. How wrong she was. He begged and groveled to get her back and against her gut instinct, she went back to him. Olivia herself was no angel. Yes, she had strayed each and every time she learned that John had cheated on her justifying that if "he could do it" than so could she. Sure she had enjoyed some good, unattached sex but she also had realized it made her no better than him and that thought irritated her more than him actually cheating on her. Realizing she was wasting what was left of her mental energy on a relationship that brought her nothing but grief and annoyance, Olivia decided she needed a distraction. Finding her phone buried underneath the covers on her unmade bed, she dialed the one person who could give her all the scoop on her future new home town.
"Sweet dreams, my beautiful boy. Mommy loves you."
Tara softly spoke as she put Abel down in his crib for the night. Making sure he stayed sleeping, she quietly walked out of his nursery making sure the night light was on. To say that Tara loved the precious baby boy in that crib was an understatement. Abel was Tara's heart. Yes, she knew without a doubt that Jax was her soul mate, but the love she had for this child went even deeper than what she felt for Jax. When she left him years ago for Chicago, she let any hope they would ever find their way back to each other in Charming. Making the decision to return home was difficult. She knew returning home to Charming that it was very likely she'd be shunned by the very people she considered to be her family, Jax included, but after surviving the hell she endured in Chicago, being an outcast in her home town seemed like heaven.
With Jax having church called earlier tonight, she had pampered herself with a relaxing bubble bath and was now climbing into bed. Checking her email one last time and confirming her schedule tomorrow, she jumped at the vibrating sound of her phone sitting beside of her, only to grin at who was calling…..Olivia.
"You had better not be calling to say that you've changed your mind because I will fly to Chicago and drag you here!" Tara said in the sternest voice she could manage.
"No, sadly you're going to be stuck with me for quite some time. Elliott's job offer came with a pretty strong condition. I have to commit for the next five years, so you had better be prepared to "sell" me on how fabulous your quaint small town is.", laughing at how tough Tara attempted to sound.
"I don't care if you hate Charming, I get to have you here! I might as well warn you now though."
"Oh, no what?" Olivia asked, her mind racing on what she should now be worried about.
"Couture can't exactly be found here in Charming", stated Tara, "Your love of fashion may take a serious hit moving here."
Letting out the breath she was holding, Olivia laughed at Tara's warning. "Now Tara, you know that I have that covered. That's what the "internet fairy" is for! Seriously though, what should I expect?"
After another four hour conversation and a crash course in "What to expect in Charming" Olivia was exhausted. Rechecking her suitcases for the flight, she finally crawled into bed for her last night in the loft. Staring out at the Chicago skyline, she expected to feel sad at leaving her life in Chicago but she felt nothing. She had thought she would feel guilty in leaving her job, but she didn't. She thought she would cry at some point at her final breakup with John but she hadn't shed the first tear. To be honest she felt excited. Excited about her new job working for a man who had seen her potential and wanted her help, excited about reconnecting with a true friend who she had missed dearly for the past two years and eager to find the woman she knew she was but had buried since she had moved to Chicago. Tomorrow would be the start of her new life and at that thought Olivia fell asleep with a smile on her face.