Chapter Twenty-Six: Confessions Of A Lover
Months Later…
Today was the twins' first birthday party. Noah and Jonah Grant were one year old, and Olivia couldn't contain herself. She had been crying all morning long. Every time she looked at the boys today all she could think about was how they came into this world and the fight they had at such a young age. And they were still fighting some battles. They were not walking yet, but they were crawling and they are getting more mobile every day. Olivia praised their physical therapist for their improvement. Noah had his helmet removed almost a month ago and Olivia was so grateful. However, the therapist was correct with her concerns about Noah eyes. Olivia and Fitz had taken Noah to a pediatric ophthalmologist and were informed Noah has stage 2 Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), an eye disease that causes abnormal blood vessels to grow in the retina. It can happen with premature babies or babies that weigh less than 3 lbs at birth and unfortunately Noah was in both of those categories. Luckily Noah only had stage two ROP, and his doctor is confident that his condition can resolve itself and Noah won't need surgery. But his condition has caused amblyopia (lazy eye) in his left eye. Now he wears a patch on his right eye to strengthen his left and later he will more than likely need glasses.
Jonah's medical problems were less severe. After their doctor's appointment, Jonah's thumbs did not improve. So, he began hand therapy and had to wear splints to try to correct the issue. It was better than having to have surgery to fix the problem. And thankfully after a few months of therapy and wearing the splints, Jonah's condition improved. Still despite everything Noah and Jonah had gone through in their short life, they were truly two miracles, and she knew she was beyond blessed to have her two boys.
Fitz came over early this morning, too early, the sun had barely come up. Olivia opened the door pissed off and sleepy, ready to punch whoever was ringing her doorbell.
"Fitz what the hell are you doing here?" she'd asked him, and he replied.
"The boys birthday!" Then he dashed past her and up the steps to the boy's room. They of course were not awake, but that didn't stop him. Olivia rolled her eyes when she heard him singing the happy birthday song loud and off key. She didn't stay mad long though, she knew Fitz was just excited about the boy's first birthday and so was she.
Now hours later, at a more decent time, Olivia and Fitz were working together to get the house decorated and ready for their birthday party. Olivia invited mostly family and a few close friends of theirs, more so the ones who had kids. Olivia kept the theme simple with an ocean theme. Just like their older sister, Noah and Jonah were obsessed with the water. They had only been to the beach a few times with their parents and they absolutely enjoyed it. Olivia thought they would be scared the first time, since the waves were so big and hard the day they went. They stayed on the shore and let the kids put their feet in, but a wave came out of nowhere and almost knocked Fitz over. He panicked a little, but Noah just laughed, as Fitz wiped his face. They always enjoyed taking their baths and their water mats and tables.
Olivia had ordered almost everything from Etsy and Amazon and she almost had a fit when she thought everything wasn't going to be delivered in time. The last box she was waiting for was delivered late last night and she was grateful. Amazon was about to get the worst review they ever had if her babies birthday was ruined.
She ordered so many ocean animal themed balloons that when she opened the package she didn't remember buying half of them. And each balloon was even larger than the last. They had set the house up to look like you were walking through water when you first came in. Streamers and balloons dangling from the ceiling. She seen a tutorial on Pinterest on how to make seaweed out of long green balloons. And another picture that had plastic blue tablecloths on the ceiling with cutouts of different sea animals inside. So when the lights were on and you looked up, you saw the silhouette of the different animals. Outside was the same deal, more balloons, more streamers. Olivia had purchased water guns, sprinklers, water mats and a few inflatable pools for the younger kids. The older kids could swim in the big pool, but Olivia didn't want the younger kids mixed in with them. Olivia knew how rowdy older kids could get in the water. And she had four large bubble machines going in each corner of the backyard pumping out bubble across the entire yard. At one point she had to turn the speed down because there were too many bubbles.
Olivia's dad was on the grill, hotdogs and hamburgers mostly for the kids. And chicken, ribs and fish for the adults. Olivia was using this opportunity to get her dad to cook on the grill for her, she'd been craving some BBQ ribs. Adelle and Carol helped Olivia with the rest of the food. Chips, fruit, pasta salad, baked beans and Olivia made sure to have mac and cheese and corn on the cob. It was the boy's favorite although they barely had enough teeth to eat it. She ordered a cake and two smash cakes from a local bakery she loved, along with cake pops and macaroon cookies with white coconut jellybeans in the center to look like oysters, popsicles and ice cream.
The majority of the decor was done, the ladies had finished their part of the food and Curtis was already getting started on the grill. They had about two hours left before the party started and now Olivia was getting the last of the party favors together. She was giving out little sand pails as party favor, filled with sea animal masks, bubbles, spiral straws with sea animals, and ocean themed sticker books, rock candy sticks, goldfish and almost every sea animal themed candy she could find.
Fitz came up to her just as she was finishing the last sand pail. He was sweating from working out in the hot sun setting up the decorations.
"Well I think your house can rival an aquarium now. In fact the guest might get confused when they walk in." Fitz said of the plethora of sea creature balloon he just blew up. "Might have been easier to just rent out a bunch of sea animals to swim out in the pool."
Olivia laughed. "You know I was this close to buying a bunch of goldfish to give as party favors. But my mother shut down that idea. She said I couldn't just spring a pet on people, but a goldfish is barely a pet. All you have to do is sprinkle some food in the water and check the tank every once in a while, to make sure the thing isn't dead."
This time Fitz laughed. "Thank you Adelle! And you are ridiculous."
"I'm a mother. And it's my babies first birthday. I went all out for Sophia and my boys will get the same treatment." Olivia finished the last of the party favors and Fitz helped her to set them up where she wanted. When they were finished Fitz went upstairs to shower and change for the party. He knew he'd be sweaty from setting up the party, so he brought a bag.
Fitz was in his old bedroom in the bathroom towel drying his hair, fresh out the shower. He'd just taken a shower and felt so much better after washing away his man funk. The rest of his clothes were in the room, so he opened the door to the bathroom, releasing all the trapped steam. She noticed him, before he noticed her, but it didn't take long for him to find Olivia standing in his room.
"Liv?" He called out her name after a moment of the two just staring at each other. Well Fitz was looking at Olivia's face, but she was more focused on his wet chest and the towel riding low on his waist. He smirked, watching her eyes roaming up and down his body. "Olivia."
"Oh!" Olivia snapped out of her daze, she hadn't expected to find a half-naked Fitz when she walked in the room. But she knew he was showering, so maybe she did. "I uh.. um.. Your shirt." She finally managed to get out. "I have your shirt. I was just going to leave it on the bed for you." Olivia held out the shirt still in her hand. She'd ordered matching shark shirts for the two of them Sophia and the boys for the party. Her shirt and Fitz's shirt said 'Mama shark and Daddy shark', Sophia's read 'sister shark' and the boy's shirts both had 'birthday shark'.
Fitz took the shirt from Olivia and held it up to look at it. He chuckled and rolled his eyes at the cheesy shirt, but he would proudly wear it.
"Nice touch."
"Thanks." Olivia stood rooted in her spot for another moment, before she decided it was time to go. "I'm going to go wake the boys from their naps. I don't want them to be cranky when the guest start to arrive."
"Yeah, give me a second and I'll help you get them dressed."
"Okay." Olivia left the room to let Fitz get dressed.
She went to the boy's room to set out their clothes, which was their birthday shirt and some swim trunks. Fitz joined her not too long after thankfully he was fully dressed.
"Since when did people start showing up on time for events?" Fitz asked.
Olivia's eyes grew wide. "There's people here already?" She looked at her watch. "We've still got an hour."
"Well I guess they could smell the grill from their house, cause there's a good little group downstairs already."
Olivia was almost frustrated. "Ugh, I'd rather people show up late than early. Can you dress Noah please?"
"Of course." Fitz grabbed Noah out his crib, changed his diaper and put on his birthday clothes. Olivia finished with Jonah just as Fitz was putting on Noah's shoes. She sprayed something in both the boy's head, that they did not enjoy, and then finger combed their curls into place. She had bought some sea creature headbands for all the kids and adults if they wanted. Olivia was wearing a dolphin headband and Sophia had a sparkly seahorse. Both the boys had shark headbands with the number one them. She hoped they would leave them on, or at least let her get some pictures with them on before they yanked them off.
After they got the boys dressed they headed downstairs to greet their guests.
"There go the birthday boys!" Adelle shouted out when she saw Fitz and Olivia coming down the steps, both holding a kid. "And looking so handsome." Adelle took Noah from Fitz and Carol came and took Jonah from Olivia. The two parents just looked at each other and smiled, they'd already accepted that when grandmas were around, they didn't stand a chance.
X
The party was going great. The kids were all enjoying the pool and the water activities in the back yard. The babies were especially drawn to the bubble machines. The entire backyard was flooded with bubbles floating around and Sophia couldn't pop them fast enough. All she wanted to do was jump around tongue out and clapping her hands trying to catch all the balloons. The older kids mostly stay in the pool playing volleyball with the net Olivia had Fitz set up. Throughout the party Olivia played the host, making sure everyone had what they needed. Keeping cups refilled and food on plates. It was hotter than the devil's toenail outside and she was not going to be responsible for someone fainting.
Adam had shown up earlier with gifts in hand. They stayed together for a while, until Olivia left him with her dad and brother to go help her mother. She was glad Adam was getting along. She already knew Curtis and Adam got along, but he hasn't been around the rest of her family that many times. But everyone seemed to be embracing him well and he knew how to blend in.
"Liv darling, you did a wonderful job." Carol told Olivia as she walked their way. Carol and Adelle were standing by the water tables watching Jonah and Noah play. "I can't believe my babies are already one. It feels like just yesterday they were born."
"Yeah I know. I was crying all this morning." Carol and Adelle laughed. "I don't want them to get older. They're in their cute stage. Next thing I know they're going to be teenagers calling me Ma and hiding dirty magazines between their mattresses." Olivia remembered how Curtis use to try to hide his magazines from their parents.
"Just like their uncle." Adelle said. "The second CJ turned fourteen it was like a switch flipped. His voice dropped, he got a little hair under his arms, and he got a little too curious about all them lil girls."
"Oh Fitz was the same way. But he kept his things in an old NAVY trunk his grandfather gave him. And don't get me started on the smell of his room."
"Smell?" Olivia asked.
"Ugh! I'll never forget it, it was a mix of college dorm room, axe body spray, feet, and man funk, then a mist of ocean breeze Febreze."
"Eww!" Olivia laughed.
"Oh just imagine how I felt walking in that room. I tell you what, they say boys are a lot easier than girls, but I'm glad I only had one boy."
"Same here. Olivia honey you've got your work cut out for you. Just wait until they start discovering their little-"
"Mommy! Please no, I don't want to hear that!" Olivia cried looking at her babies, silently praying they stay one year old forever.
"And you've got two of them." Carol added on. "That's twice the dirty tissues and towels under the bed."
"What?"
"You would not believe what I found under Fitz's bed. I almost cracked a towel in half."
"Carol!" Olivia was laughing, but she was mortified. Teenage Fitz sounded terrible. "Please can we change the subject?"
Carol laughed and hugged Olivia to her side. "Just make sure you hide all your good towels." Carol and Adelle laughed again.
"What's so funny over here ladies?" Curtis asked as he walked over to the women, if he'd known what they were just talking about he would have stayed away.
"Oh nothing son." Adelle answered with a smile.
Curtis had a feeling whatever they were talking about wasn't something he wanted to know. "Mhm." He said skeptically, then remembered why he'd come over in the first place. "Uh Liv, dad needs that barbeque sauce, I didn't see it in the pantry."
"I'll get it." She walked off inside the house. The BBQ sauce had been pushed to the back of the pantry. As she was on her way back outside, her doorbell rang.
Her smile dropped when she opened the door, but she recovered quickly.
"Claudia." Olivia said as sweetly as possible. She knew Fitz had invited her to the party, and she had been mentally preparing herself for when Claudia showed up. But when she hadn't shown up after well after the rest of the guest arrived, Olivia forgot about her.
"Hi Olivia." Claudia noticed the slight shock on Olivia's face. "Did… did Fitz not tell you he invited me?" Claudia was nervous, had Fitz not told her? She wondered. She didn't want to cause problems between Olivia and Fitz and she certainly didn't want to cause a scene at a child's birthday party. That was even if she made it into the party. Which wasn't looking too good, since Olivia was still standing in the doorway with a look that Claudia couldn't quite read. Claudia felt like she was being assessed or judged under Olivia's eye. She always felt small when she came around Olivia and even more so in this moment as she stood on the bottom steps of the doorway. But she didn't want to look cowardly, so she kept her head high and kept her fidgeting to a minimum.
"I'm sorry Olivia. Fitz told me he talked to you about this."
"What?" Olivia was brought out of her own thoughts. "No, he did. I just wasn't expecting you after some time."
"Yeah I got caught up at work. A woman's dog got hit by a car and I had to deal with that before I could leave for the day."
"It's fine, the party's still going. Come on in." Olivia finally moved out the way and allowed Claudia to walk in. Claudia's first thought when she walked in was how expensive the home looked. She could already tell from the outside, but the inside made it more evident. Olivia certainly had a taste for the finer things in life. Claudia knew that from the moment she met Olivia.
"You have a beautiful home."
"Thank you. Everyone's outside." Olivia led Claudia to the backyard. She found Fitz standing with all their friends having what looked to be a pretty animated conversation. "Fitz look who I found."
"Claud hey." Fitz hugged Claudia and kissed her forehead.
Olivia rolled her eyes when Fitz called her Claud, she's been doing that a lot lately. He could have picked a better nickname she thought. Claud? It sounds like an old drinking buddies name.
"Hey Claudia." Abby greeted her.
"Hey Abby. Good to see everyone again. The party looks great, felt like I was walking into deep sea through the door."
Fitz chuckled. "Well that was the idea and it was all Olivia. I just did the heavy lifting."
"Looks great."
"Thank you. Uh well mostly everyone's already eaten, Dad's closed down the grill already but I think there might be something left for you. But judging by the looks of Jr's plate there are definitely no more ribs left."
"Hey, you said help yourself so that's what I did." Junior defended himself and Olivia jokingly rolled her eyes.
"it's okay I actually ate before I got here."
"Oh." Did she not want to eat our food? Why would she eat before he came? Olivia thought.
"Claudia is a vegan." Fitz said.
Olivia wanted to roll her eyes yet again, of course she is. "Sorry Claudia I wasn't aware. Unfortunately everything on the menu is meat or something made with animal products. I think the only thing I can offer you if some fruit salad."
"Really I'm fine."
"If you say so."
"You know I tried vegan once." Jr said.
"Junior you just scarfed down a rack of ribs when have you ever been vegan?" Althea said.
"Okay it was closer to a half, and I said I tried it. It was only for like a month though a while back. Then my coworker brought in some birria tacos and had extras to share. I couldn't say no."
Everyone settled into an easy conversation, except Olivia wasn't paying attention. She was too busy staring at Fitz and Claudia out the corner of her eye. They had walked off and Olivia followed with her eyes. They walked over to where Sophia and the boys were playing. She knew Fitz brought Claudia so that he could introduce her to the kids, but now that it was actually happening, she didn't know how she felt. No, she knew how she felt. She didn't like it, not one bit. Watching Fitz introduce this other woman to her kids was pissing her off, but she couldn't show it. Fitz had been calm and cool when she introduced the kids to Adam. He even played with them for a while, before Sophia ran off chasing the dog and the boys were stolen by their grandmothers.
Olivia knew what her problem was. She was jealous. There was no denying it, she was jealous. She couldn't deny it to herself but she could hide it.
"Olivia did you hear me?"
Olivia was brought back to the conversation when she heard her name. "What?"
"I said we need to get together to talk about the wedding." Erika repeated herself. Abby was her wedding planner/coordinator, but Olivia was her maid of honor and she wanted Olivia's help in the wedding planning. "I was saying we go to brunch."
"Oh we haven't had a girls day brunch in so long." Quinn said. "I could really use a morning of bottomless mimosas." Olivia turned her attention back to Fitz. She was slightly pleased when Sophia brushed off Claudia's attempt to play with her. She tried to give Sophia a toy and she threw it on the ground and ran away laughing. That shouldn't have made Olivia smile, but it did.
"Liv?"
"Yeah E that's fine. Excuse me." Olivia walked off in Fitz's direction.
Claudia saw Olivia coming their way, and for some reason she felt like she was doing something wrong. She was about to pick Noah up, but when she saw his mother coming her way she backed off.
"Since when does Sophia say no to everything?" Fitz asked when Olivia stopped in front of them.
"It's her new favorite word." Olivia answered. "Momma said she's going to be a handful like I was."
"I can just imagine how much of a handful you were." Fitz joked.
"Oh I wouldn't talk too much there mister. Not after the conversation I had with your mother." Olivia snickered.
"What conversation?"
"Oh nothing." She smirked. "But she is very grateful that you weren't a twin."
"I don't think I like you two talking about me."
"Whatever." Olivia laughed.
"Olivia, you have some precious boys." Claudia said, feeling left out of the conversation. "And very handsome, they're going to be some heartbreakers."
"Thank you, but I can't take any of the credit. They look just like their father." Fitz smiled. "I do all the work and they come out looking like the guy eating donuts on the sideline." Fitz laughed again and Olivia smacked his chest. "Anyway, Fitz I came over to get you to help me with the cake. I took it out the fridge a while ago to soften but now we need to eat it before the buttercream melts." Olivia probably could have gotten the cake by herself or asked someone else to help her. But her reason for asking Fitz was clearly to get him away from Claudia.
"Yeah sure. Be right back." Fitz followed Olivia in the kitchen.
"This is a big ass cake Olivia." Fitz laughed, lifting the cake from it's box. "Why is everything so extra with you?"
Olivia smiled. "Fitz you knew from the beginning you weren't marrying a basic bitch."
"Oh don't I know it." Fitz stood closer to Olivia at the counter, close enough for his chest to rub against her shoulder each time he took a breath. He was watching over her shoulder as she put the cake toppers and number one candles on the cake that wouldn't fit inside the box. "Still doesn't feel real sometimes."
"What?" Olivia tried to keep her tone calm as she spoke. But in actuality Fitz being this close to her was rattling her nerves. He was unnecessarily close to her. She could feel his breath on the back of her neck, making her skin tingle. The scent of his cologne was invading her nose, making her hazy.
"The fact that we're here throwing a party for our kids. You know for the longest time, I never thought I would see this day. With you or any woman truthfully. We got lucky."
"We were blessed Fitz. Luck had nothing to do with it." They were both staring out the window now, watching the boys still playing. They couldn't believe how big they had both gotten, how strong they were from where they started.
Olivia leaned her head back on Fitz's chest, and he put an arm around her shoulder. "One year has already come and gone. For the longest time I prayed for their survival, I literally prayed for them to make it through the night. Then prayed they made it to a month old then two and now here they are a year old and I want to pray they stay a year old."
"Well that's not going to happen."
"I know. I'm just scared."
"Of what?"
"Of life Fitz. I can protect them now. We can protect them now Sophia and the boys, but eventually they're going to get older and be exposed to the real world and it scares the hell out of me. How do I protect them from the creeps of the world, the mean hearted people and every danger in the world."
"You can't Liv. It's impossible to shield them from every danger in the world. We just have to do our best as their parents to guide them the right way."
"And what if my best isn't enough?"
Fitz pulled her into his chest and she wrapped her arms around his back. "Olivia you know you're a good mother. To Sophia, Jonah and Noah. And all three of them will be just fine." Simultaneously, Olivia kissed Fitz's chest and he kissed the top of her head. Neither of them noticing Claudia watching them outside through the window.
Still hugging, Olivia looked up at Fitz. "You know you're a great too. You're a great father Fitz."
"Thank you." They stared at each other for a moment more before Fitz let her go. "Alright let's cut this big ass cake before it melts."
"Right behind you, I've gotta get the ice cream." She was getting the ice cream cups out of the freezer when Claudia walked in the kitchen. Olivia looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to speak. "You need something?"
"I was actually going to ask you that. Figured you needed help."
"No thanks, I got it." Olivia replied. She was going to walk away, but Claudia started speaking again.
"You know. I think it's great how you and Fitz get along and how you can raise your kids together."
"Mhm." Olivia replied, wondering where this conversation was going.
"My parents weren't the same. After they divorced, I don't think they were in the same room together again unless it involved a drop off. That meant two of everything, birthdays, holidays which might sound awesome to a kid, but honestly it was terrible."
Olivia smiled. "Is there a reason for this little chat?"
"Olivia I… I just feel for some reason you don't like me. Like I've offended you somehow." Olivia didn't respond. "You know Olivia I thought we could be friends."
"And why would you want to be friends with your new boo's ex-wife?"
"It's called being mature and evolved. There are plenty of blended families where the exes and current girlfriends or wives get along."
"Claudia you're only a girlfriend okay, I don't think you've reached family status. You certainly won't be playing house with my kids. I'm not auditioning stepmothers."
"That's not what I'm-"
"I'm not looking for new friends at the moment either."
"Fine." Claudia slightly raised her voice. "I just… Could we at least be cordial with one another?"
"Cordial? Am I not being cordial? You are standing in my home, you didn't have to be here."
"You know what I mean Olivia-"
"Do I?"
Claudia huffed. "Is your problem with Fitz seeing other people or just him seeing me?"
Olivia smirked and stepped closer to Claudia. "Claudia dear, it seems you've spent more time worrying about me than I have thinking about you."
"Olivia-"
Olivia put her hand up, cutting her off. "I'm going to stop you right there. Because if you take a quick look around you're going to see that we're currently at my babies first birthday party. And this conversation is not a conversation I'm going to have at my babies party. So I'm going to kindly ask that you continue your quest for friendship elsewhere."
X
"…Happy birthday to you!"
"Make a wish baby." Olivia held Jonah and Fitz held Noah, they both leaned over and helped them blow out the candles on the cake. Olivia kissed Jonah's cheek and leaned over to kiss Noah's cheek. "I just want to thank everyone for coming out today and celebrating this day with our boys. Everyone here knows the struggle and hardship it was to get to this point in our life. And how tough of a life they've already had. And I also want to thank all of you for your prayers for our kids and our family."
They put the boys in their highchairs and gave them both a small smash cake. They didn't know what to do with it at first, so Olivia put some icing on her finger and swiped it across their lips. Noah apparently liked what he was tasting and dove face first into the cake getting it in his eyes and nose, but he didn't care. When he lifted his face, all you could see were his blue eyes. Jonah on the other hand was not pleased. He cried until Olivia took him out.
"It's getting really close to someone's bedtime."
After the cake the party started to wind down. Olivia opted not to open the presents at the party because there were a lot of presents and the twins were already cranky. They didn't have their normal nap time; they'd been out in the sun playing all day and getting jacked up on sugar, they were ready to pass out. Olivia and Fitz both got them bathed and dressed in their pajamas and down for the night. Most of the guests had left and the stragglers were mostly just their parents and friends and they were helping to take down all the decorations. Olivia's mother had taken care of Sophia and put her in bed, so she just checked on her on her way back downstairs. She was sleeping peacefully; she didn't even flinch when Olivia fixed the covers around her.
"I cannot wait to take a shower and lay down, I am so tired." Olivia said as she walked back outside.
"Yeah it was a long day." Adelle said. "Baby girl was out like a light the minute her head hit the pillow."
"We've got almost everything cleaned up. The guys are going to load the trash bags onto the back of Stephens truck and we're going to take it to the dump for you. That way its not just sitting on your curb for two days."
"Thanks Abby."
"Well sis I'm going to head out now." Junior gave her a side hug and kept his arm on her shoulder. "It was a great party."
"Thank you Jr. and thank you for helping to clean."
"Of course. Everything is done just about, but the leftover food needs to get put away. We left that for you, because we all know how anal you are about fridge organization."
"Thank you." He was right, Olivia couldn't stand a cluttered fridge, it drove her crazy.
"Oh, there was one last thing."
"What?" Olivia barely had time for the word to leave her lips before Junior was lifting her off her feet and heading towards the pool. "No! junior don't you dare! Put me down!" She beat on his back, but it did nothing, just like her family and friends standing by and watching. "Junior put me down!"
"I will." He stopped by the pool and tried to toss her in, but she held onto him. He managed to loosen her grip and tossed her into the deeper end of the pool."
"My hair!" Olivia shouted just before she splashed into the water. When she emerged on the surface, everyone was standing on the pool edge laughing. "Daddy!" Olivia whined.
Junior was standing next to Adam who was laughing along with him with a hand on his shoulder. "You know I have to defend my girl right?" Adam said.
"What?" Junior said. "My hair!." Junior yelled, mimicking Olivia from earlier, right before Adam pushed him in the water right next to Olivia. He resurfaced laughing. "Hey man, what happened to bros before ho-"
"Hey!" Olivia's dad cut him off.
Adam shrugged. "Sorry she's better looking than you."
X
The next day Olivia was packing a bag for the boys. They were spending a couple of days with their dad. Fitz had a few days off from work and Olivia agreed for the kids to stay with him. It wasn't the first time Fitz had taken the kids to spend the night, but it was the first time they would be gone for almost a week. Thankfully she had gone back to work, so she had something to occupy her while they were gone.
Olivia didn't have a problem with Fitz taking the boys, because she knew they would be okay. Now all she thought about was who else was going to be around her kids. All night Olivia kept thinking about her conversation with Claudia, and she was right. Olivia did have a problem with Fitz dating, but it didn't have anything to do with Claudia in particular. She just wasn't her. Olivia was jealous, no matter how much she tried to deny it. And she hated it. She was dating too; she had a great boyfriend. One who seemed to genuinely care for her, someone that made her smile and laugh, someone the peaked her interest, who she genuinely enjoyed spending her time with. So why was she still constantly thinking about her ex-husband who, to her knowledge, wasn't thinking about her.
Some people say everyone has that one great love of their life. The one love that just consumes you whole and Olivia knew that one person was Fitz. She had no doubt that Fitz was her soulmate and to lose a soulmate is crushing. And trying to get over a soulmate is damn near impossible. Olivia had thought about it more than once, about trying again with Fitz. About being together, living as a family, possibly even remarrying. But each time, she thought back to the night her life changed, and she got not only angry, but scared. She knew she would never get over him, but she didn't know if she could just forget everything and loose herself in him once again.
The doorbell ringing brought Olivia out her thoughts. She knew it was Fitz coming to pick up the boys, she wasn't expecting anyone else today. She didn't know why he doesn't just use his key instead of ringing the bell all the time.
"Hey." She smiled when she opened the door.
"Good morning." Fitz kissed her cheek as he passed by her into the house. He went straight to the living room and found the kids playing.
"Daddy!" Sophia ran to Fitz the moment she saw him. Olivia sighed but didn't say anything about Soph calling Fitz daddy.
"Hey turkey." Fitz picked her up and tossed her in the air.
"You really need to find another name for her."
"What? She looked just like a butterball turkey when she was born, so that's her name."
Olivia laughed. "Fitz you're not going to call my baby turkey for the rest of her life."
"Well, what about butterball? You know what I think I like that better anyway."
"You're going to scar her for life." Olivia started picking up some of the toys the kids left on the ground, putting them back in the toy bin. "So what do you have planned for dad's week?"
"Oh nothing too crazy. The library is having this family day, with a puppet show and little games and art and crafts. I thought they might like that."
"Sounds fun."
"Yeah then we'll probably just wing it the rest of the week. What about you?"
"I don't have a week off so I'll be working."
"How's that going?" Fitz didn't tell Olivia, but he worried about her going back to work. He worried about her being around so many mentally unstable patients. For the most part Olivia dealt with patients with depression and family or work problems. But she didn't have patients with serious psychological issues and some patients that were hospitalized because of it. Those were the ones that worried Fitz. He didn't want another Nora situation. For someone to get so fixated on Olivia that they tried to harm her. He couldn't go through that again.
"I've been back at work for months now Fitz."
"I know."
"It's good. Great."
"Good."
They talked for a while longer, before Fitz got ready to leave with the kids. As he watched Oliva gather the kid's things and get them ready, he noticed she was only getting Jonah and Noah ready. He sighed, they were going to do this again. The first time Fitz came to keep the kids for a weekend, Olivia had only gotten the boys ready, not Sophia. Fitz wanted to argue with her that Sophia could come as well, but he didn't say anything. And when Sophia realized that she wasn't going with Fitz, she threw a tantrum. Crying, screaming and throwing stuff. It damn near broke Fitz's heart, but he didn't say anything.
The second time he came to get the kids though, he did say something. Olivia had once again only gotten the boys ready and Sophia started crying again. Fitz argued with Olivia for almost twenty minutes before she allowed Sophia to go with Fitz for the weekend.
"Olivia can we please not do this again?"
Olivia looked at him confused. "Do what?"
"Go get her a bag Liv."
"Don't start."
"No, you don't start Olivia. Why do we have to keep going through this? When I call you about taking the kids for a few days, I'm talking about all three of them and you know it. Why do you have to play these games?"
"I'm not playing games. You're the one playing games, playing daddy. She's not your daughter Fitz."
"Well I don't hear her calling anyone else daddy. What is the big deal if she calls me daddy anyway? What are you trying to save that distinction for your precious Adam?"
"Don't do that."
Fitz sighed, he didn't want to argue with her. Especially since they've argued about this countless times before. "I'm sorry. I don't know what your hesitation is with me and Sophia, but I'm not some stranger. I'm not a person you don't know or trust. If you don't want her to call me dad fine, but you know she loves me and I love her just as I do our boys. And until you do find someone you want her to call dad, I have no problem playing that role. So, go get her dressed and pack her a bag for the week."
Olivia knew she was being ridiculous, but at the same time she was justified for her feelings towards Fitz and Sophia. But she also knew that her daughter did love Fitz. All those months of them living together she had grown attached to him and there was no severing that. Not that Olivia wanted to anyway. And Olivia couldn't deny that she loved that Sophia had a male in her life. Little girls needed male figures in their lives just as much and boys did. And Fitz was a great male model figure.
"Fine."
Sophia cried when Olivia took her upstairs, but she settled down once Olivia started dressing her. She quickly got her dressed and packed a small bag for the week to send with Fitz. Mostly clothes she didn't mind her getting messed up, the same as the boy's bag. When she came back downstairs, Fitz as already outside strapping the boys in their car seats, and he had taken Sophia's car seat from her mother's car and put it into his.
"There she is." Sophia practically jumped from Olivia's arms and into Fitz's.
"Be a good girl Soph."
"Tell mama you're always a good girl."
Olivia kissed Soph one last time, then leaned in the car to kiss the boys goodbye again.
"What, I don't get a goodbye kiss?" Fitz laughed as she walked away.
X
"Alright kids what do we think ham or pepperoni?" Fitz held up both bags of ham and pepperoni and waited for Sophia to make a decision. He laughed when she smacked at both bags in his hand. "My girl. Ham and pepperoni it is." They were making pizzas for dinner. Fitz wasn't a great cook, but he could top some ingredients on a premade crust and pop it in the oven. Sophia was helping him out, sprinkling the cheese, although most of it ended up in her mouth, and toppings onto the crust. The boys were in their highchairs eating some of the cut up fruit Fitz had in his fridge.
Fitz had enjoyed his day with the kids. He didn't like the fact that he basically had to schedule appointments and meetings to be with his kids, but that was the way it was right now. But he and Olivia were coparenting well. They didn't have to argue and fight over custody and all decisions regarding the kids were made together. They worked well together and he hoped it stayed that way for the next eighteen years.
"Daddy I want that." Sophia pointed to the pineapple chunks on the bar. All day long Sophia has been calling Fitz daddy. Most times she would normally switch up, going back and forth between Fitz and daddy. But today it was daddy this and daddy that. Fitz honestly didn't mind, because he meant it when he said he'd become attached to the little girl. Which was odd for him, because before he met Sophia, he didn't think he could love another man's child as his own. But Fitz had to admit that he loved Sophia just as much as he loved Jonah and Noah. Maybe it was credited to him getting older and maturing and realizing what it truly meant to love a child and be a parent. Being a parent had nothing to do with genetics, biology is not the only thing that makes a family. He'd known that with Erika, but it took more personal experience to understand it.
But Fitz also began to think about the future. What if Adam was still in the picture or Olivia met another man. What if she remarried, would Sophia start calling that man daddy? Would she call both of them daddy? What if she got older and decided she no longer wanted to call Fitz daddy. Fitz grimaced, not liking the thought of a teenage Sophia calling him Fitz. That just didn't sit right with him.
"Woah that's too much kid." Fitz took the bowl of pineapple from Sophia and set them to the side. She'd put just about the entire bowl on top of the pizza. "I think we've got enough toppings on this one. Let's get it in the oven before you find something else to put on it." After Fitz closed the door to the oven, his doorbell rang. He looked at his watch confused, he wasn't expecting any company tonight.
He opened the door. "Claudia, hey." He smiled. "I didn't know you were stopping by, what are you doing here?"
"I know, I was just leaving work and I was thinking about you and decided to stop by. Hope you don't mind."
"Of course not." Fitz gave her a hug and kiss before moving to the side so she could come in. "The kids and I are just making dinner."
"You're cooking?" Claudia remembered the disaster of a dinner Fitz tried to make her the first time she came to his place. It was very memorable, but not in a good way.
"Yes I am, Luckly for all of us it doesn't require much skill to put toppings on a pizzas and bake it."
"No I guess not."
"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were coming over or I would have gotten some vegan options."
"Don't worry about it."
"You can share some fruit with the boys."
"Really Fitz it's fine." Claudia sat on the bar stool beside the boys in their highchairs. "You sure it's okay me being here? I don't want to interrupt your daddy time."
"You're not interrupting anything, I've got the week."
"And you don't think Olivia would mind me being here."
"Why would she?" Fitz looked at her confused. He noticed that lately, really ever since Erika's birthday, that their conversations seem to somehow shift to the topic of Olivia.
"I just don't want to overstep."
Fitz shook his head. "You're not overstepping anything. Olivia and I are fine we had an agreement that we would discuss introducing people with one another and we did that. She knows you'll be around just as I'm sure Adam will start being around more often. It's fine. Why are you always so concerned with what Olivia thinks anyway?"
"This is new to me Fitz. Dating a man with kids and an ex-wife. I don't know how to act, how all this works. But I do know how separated families can be and I'm just trying to keep the peace. Olivia already doesn't like me."
Fitz looked up at her hocked. "Why would you say that?"
Claudia didn't tell Fitz about the conversation she and Olivia had at the birthday party. She felt like a school kid running to tell the principle. She knew Olivia had a problem with her for whatever reason, but she felt she could handle the situation herself, without involving Fitz and having him play mediator.
Claudia shrugged. "Just a feeling."
"About what? Did she say something to you? I mean feelings about what?" Fitz was confused. He didn't think there was a problem between Olivia and Claudia. They had only been in the same room together a handful of times, and although Olivia didn't go out of her way to befriend Claudia, he at least thought they were cordial with one another.
"Just call it a woman's intuition Fitz."
"Do you want me to talk to her?"
"No!" Claudia shouted. "No, that will only make it worse. I tattled to my boyfriend; I don't need you to fight my battles."
"Look I think maybe you two just need to spend a little more time together and get to know one another. Olivia can be intimidating at times, but she really is a good person."
"I'll try."
"Great. Now enough about my ex-wife. Let's make some pizza."
X
Across town, Olivia was just getting home. She'd had a long day at the hospital. She had two back-to-back emergencies after her regular clients at her office. She spent hours at the hospital working on those two cases and didn't even bother going back to the office like she'd previously planned because it was too late now. Her parents would kill her if they knew she'd gone back to the office after dark. Ever since the Nora situation her parents were uneasy of her staying after hours like she use to. And honestly Olivia wasn't too comfortable with it yet either. She didn't even park in the parking garage anymore if she didn't have to. Now she parked on the side street, but hired security for the parking garage just in case.
She wasn't in a huge hurry to get home, knowing the kids weren't home. She had to admit that she was missing them, but then she was also glad to be going home to relax after a hectic day. She use to enjoy a quiet home and occasionally didn't mind the quiet these day considering what a zoo her home could be at times. She was riding with the radio off, windows down and her hair loose. All she wanted to do was get home, open a bottle of red and soak in her tub for a while. She was hungry, but didn't feel like cooking when she got home and at this hour almost everything was closed. Everything she ate at least.
She'd talked to Adam earlier that day, he'd called her just before she left the hospital. They hadn't made plans over the phone and when they talked he didn't mention coming over, so when she pulled up to her house, she was shocked to see his car in her driveway. She parked in the driveway beside his car, instead of parking in the garage. She was gathering her things, purse and briefcase, when he knocked on her window. She opened the door smiling.
"How long have you been out here? What are you even doing here?" She noticed he had canvas shopping bags in his hand.
"Well after we talked, I thought you needed some TLC after your day." Olivia smiled up at him. "And I also figured you'd be starving."
"I am."
"And knowing you, you would settle for some popcorn and a few glasses of wine."
"That was the plan."
Adam laughed. "Well how about we keep the wine but sub the popcorn for a chicken avocado caprese salad. I figured you'd want something quick and not too heavy."
"Mmm You know me so well already." Olivia leaned forward to kiss him, which he returned. Then he took her bags from her and followed her to the front door.
X
"Ooh, right there." Olivia moaned, with her eyes closed and head thrown back against the tub. Adam had made her late dinner and it was delicious, she didn't realize just how hungry she was until she smelled the chicken searing in a pan. Popcorn definitely wouldn't have satisfied her appetite tonight, she was glad he showed up. After they ate, Olivia helped him clear the kitchen and then they went upstairs. Adam was just going to get her bath started for her and give her a massage from outside the tub. But Olivia told him to strip, and he didn't need to be told twice. She wasn't sure if he had planned on staying the night, but she was going to make sure he did.
Now they were on opposite ends of the tub and he was currently rubbing the aches out of the arches of her feet. Her eyes popped open and locked with his, when she felt her toe going into his mouth. Olivia had been pleasantly surprised a while back when she learned Adam was a toe sucker. She never knew someone sucking on her toes was something she'd enjoy until Adam.
"You have the prettiest feet."
Olivia gave him a lazy smile. "You've got a foot fetish."
"I have an Olivia fetish."
She playfully rolled her eyes, before slipping her foot from his hand and sliding to his side of the tub. She kissed him, slipping her tongue in his mouth. She could feel his penis growing against her, but she stopped when his hands started gripping her ass. She was too tired to do anything tonight.
"Mm, not tonight." She pulled away and sat on his lap resting her back against his chest.
"Oh you're a tease." Adam laughed.
"I'm tired is what I am."
"So how was your day?"
"Terrible. I had a packed schedule at the office and then I got called in on two back-to-back emergencies at the hospital." Olivia's relaxed against him, enjoying the feel of his roaming hands. "I haven't even had a moment to breathe." Olivia could feel what Adam was doing, his hands were getting lower and lower down her body. She stopped his hand before he could slip a finger past her lower lips. "No mister, I am tired."
He kissed the side of her head. "I'll do all the work."
"No. Because then I'm going to want more." Olivia said and Adam laughed. "And we are not having sex tonight." She pushed off him and pushed the plug so the water could drain from the tub. "Come on."
They both got ready for bed, Adam had some shorts and a plain white tee that he'd left at her house and he wore that to bed. Olivia was already half sleep when they got into the bed, snuggled against his chest buried underneath the covers. She was fed, bathed and warm and all she needed now was a good night of sleep. Adam, however, was still in a talking mood.
"Liv?"
"Hm?"
"When your brother gave me your number, I was hesitant at first. Your brother showed me your picture and was telling me all about you."
"And it made you hesitate? What exactly did he say about me?"
Adam smiled. "Nothing. My hesitation had everything to do with me. It had been while since my relationship before I met you. And I worried that I wouldn't be enough or I wouldn't be what you were expecting. And then I met you and I knew then that I wanted to do everything in my power to make sure I was everything you needed and deserved." Olivia remained silent. "I know we haven't known each other for long, but I feel like I've known you my whole life. I've never been this comfortable with a woman before, you know how you feel you can just be yourself. And now I'm rambling and I'm not saying all this to scare you away, I just need to be honest with you and tell you that I love you." Olivia's breathing momentarily paused. She wasn't expecting that, and didn't know how to respond. "At first, I just thought I was in love with you, but now I know that I am without a doubt in love with you."
X
"Oh my God Erika you literally smell like a meadow." Abby said.
"Perks of working in a flower shop five days a week I guess."
"Harrison must have blue balls around you 24/7."
"Okay, can we not talk about my fiancé's ball please and thank you."
The girls were all meeting at their favorite spot for brunch to go over details for Erika's wedding. The week had gone by quickly and now it was Friday. Fitz still had the kids, originally they were only supposed to stay until Thursday, but Fitz called and asked could he just keep the kids for the week. And Olivia agreed, so Fitz was bringing the kids back on Saturday. Olivia kept herself busy with work, keeping her mind off her empty house and keeping her mind off Adam. Ever since his revelation to her nights before, she's been avoiding him. She didn't want to completely cut him off, so she's been answering his calls, but not all of them. And she takes longer to return his text messages. She knew she was being childish, but she didn't know how to respond that night to what he said and she still didn't know how to respond now. She was grateful that night that he didn't push her to respond and now she needed time to get her thoughts together.
"Thea did you call your sister? You know she's late to everything." Abby asked. Abby and Althea had arrived at the same time, and they waited for Quinn and Erika to pull up before they walked in. They hadn't seen Olivia yet.
"Yeah I called, she didn't answer as usual." Althea answered as they walked in. They were going to get an outside table, before they all filled up. "Wait, Liv?" Thea spotted Olivia at one of the outside tables. "She's already here."
"What the hell? She's not on time but early?" Abby was confused.
What they didn't know was that Olivia had been there for a while now, getting a head start on the bottomless mimosas. She was beyond stressed and she needed a few pregame drinks before the ladies arrived.
"Olivia? How long have you been here?" The girls walked over to the table, taking a seat.
"Not too long. I did get started without you though. I've had a very interesting week."
"All of which we will get into later." Erika interrupted. "First order of business is…" Erika dug through the bag she was carrying and plopped a large white binder onto the table. "My wedding!" Erika was beyond giddy, she couldn't contain herself. Ever since Harrison proposed she has been hounding Abby every day with thoughts and ideas for the wedding. She had every detail planned and organized in her bonder.
"Wow E, that's some book you've got there. How many dividers you got in there. " Quinn teased.
"I know it looks like a lot, but it's really nothing."
Abby rolled her eyes. "Please don't get me started on that damn binder. She carries it around everywhere. And if you guys thought I was crazy when I got married…" Abby not so subtly nodded her head towards Erika.
"Whatever." Erika cleared her throat. "Okay ladies now down to business."
They all couldn't help but laugh at Erika. She was treating this like a business meeting in an office building. She was beyond excited about her wedding and becoming the future Mrs. Harrison Wright. This was a new side of Erika that none of them had seen before. Erika Grant caught up on a man? Never. And as happy as Olivia was for her friend, who was practically her younger sister, she just wasn't int the mood to talk wedding gowns and bridesmaids' dresses or China patterns. All Olivia wanted to do was go and get into bed and nurse her impending hang over.
"Okay so next topic, which now that I think about it I probably should led with this." Erika put her fork down. They had finally gotten their food after a few drinks, and everyone was mostly quiet while Erika talked their heads off. And they all just nodded and smiled and excited bride was always fun to see. "So I decided, well Harry and I decided that we want to have a destination wedding."
"Oh Lord how long are we going to have to travel?" Quinn immediately thought about having to travel with her kids on a plane. They were a nightmare during car rides.
"It's about a twelve-hour flight."
"To where?" Althea asked.
"Italy. Lake Como to be exact." Erika answered looking at Olivia to see if she reacted. She knew that's where Olivia and Fitz honeymooned and it was their vacation and anniversary travel destination while they were married. Olivia use to love Italy because of her honeymoon trip and the trips after she and Fitz took. There was always something about Italy that made her fall in love with Fitz over and over again. Now she didn't even want to mention the country. She'd gone so far to vow to herself to never step foot in the country of Italy again.
Olivia tried not to show any emotion on her face, so she took a sip, or several sips of her mimosa. Olivia absolutely did not want to go to Italy, but what was she going to do about it?
"Olivia? Thoughts?" Erika asked.
Olivia smiled. "Sounds like you have your mind set."
"But is it weird?"
"Why would it be weird?"
"Because… Lake Como is kind of your and Fitz's spot."
Olivia laughed. "Honey it's an entire country, not a nightclub or restaurant. We can't just claim Italy. Besides we didn't get married in Italy, we only honeymooned there. It's fine."
"Okay. Good. But there's more." Erika looked nervous.
"What?"
"So I was looking up some wedding venues all around Italy and a lot of them were really great. But there's this one that I just… the moment I saw it I immediately fell in love. It used to be a major tourist resort, and it still is to some extent. But it's under new management and a few years back it got a revamp. Now it's little more secluded, but still close to the local towns and with the most amazing views. Apparently they acquired a lot of real estate and land surrounding it. It's big enough to house the entire wedding party for the time that we're there. They have horses and a beautiful sculpture garden. And the actual garden where we'll get married… it's so beautiful, I swear I almost cried when I saw it."
Olivia smiled. "Okay, sounds like you found your wedding venue. What's the problem?"
Erika bit her lip. "It's the La Dolce Vita."
Olivia was momentarily stunned. The La Dolce Vita. That was the resort she and Fitz honeymooned at. So not only would she have to travel to a country she vowed to never step foot in. But now she would have to stayed in the same resort she and her now estranged husband spent their first nights as husband and wife. A place that use to be so special to her, that now she didn't even want to look at pictures of.
"Olivia?" Erika called out her name. Everyone was waiting for a response or reaction. They could all tell Olivia was having an internal battle processing all of this. "Is it weird?"
Olivia was silent for a moment before she eventually found her words. "It's not weird Erika." Olivia tensely smiled.
"But it's yours and Fitz's honeymoon spot. You vacationed there like all the time, your anniversary trip-"
Olivia interrupted her. "That doesn't mean we own it."
"Are you sure Olivia? Does it make you uncomfortable? I mean if- if it does. I can- if so…"
Olivia saw the hurt on Erika's face and Olivia was not going to let her change her plans just to make her feel better. "Erika stop. Is this the venue you like?"
Erika nodded. "I love it."
"Then that's where you're getting married."
"Really? Thank you! I love you!" Erika was sitting next to Olivia and she reach out to hug her, almost yanking her from her chair. Erika wiped at her eyes, feeling them beginning to water. "Sorry, I promised Abby I would stop crying so much every time we talked about the wedding." Erika laughed. "Perfect, now that that's settled, Olivia I need you to do me a big favor."
"Well I am the maid of honor, so what is it?
"So like it said, the La Dolce Vita is under new management, new ownership and they bought most of the land surrounding the villa… anyway it turns out you're very close to the new owner."
Olivia looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to finish. Who was she close to that could own a resort…
"Adam owns the La Dolce Vita?" Olivia asked. Erika nervously nodded. Olivia took two seconds to internally scream before she spoke again. "What are the fucking odds of that." She noticed her glass was empty yet again, so she stole Althea's. "What do you want?"
"So there's like this weird process you have to go through before you can make a wedding reservation. This venue is very popular among brides and it's in great demand. You have to put in the application like months in advance and I don't have that time. So I need you to sweet talk Adam into letting me have my wedding there next month."
Olivia thought about the fact that she and Adam weren't exactly on the same page right now. She didn't know how he would feel about her calling him up for a favor for a friend after neglecting him for a few days.
"Please? For your favorite little sister?" Erika gave her the begging puppy dog face that she'd taught Sophia to do when she wanted something.
"I'll ask. No promises."
"That's all I'm asking for. But you know if you have to… just maybe, you know…" Erika poked her tongue on the inside of her cheek.
"Erika!" Quinn laughed.
"What? I want that damn resort!"
"So you're gonna pimp Liv out to get your wedding venue?" Abby said, making everyone laugh.
Althea noticed Olivia was still sitting quietly fidgeting. She only did that when she was anxious, or stressed. She was about to ask her was she okay when her phone rang. Olivia didn't know who it was, just she jumped at the opportunity to leave the table, even for a moment.
"Excuse me, I have to take this. I'll be right back." Olivia looked at the caller ID, but it was a 'potential scam' so she just stood outside the restaurant and let it ring out. She let out a huge breath. That was a lot to take in for a morning brunch. How was is possible that her new boyfriend owned the very same resort she honeymooned at with her ex-husband? And just how was she supposed to spend a week with said boyfriend and ex-husband under that same roof. Olivia loved Erika, but this wedding was stressing her the hell out.
After a good enough time had passed Olivia decided she needed to leave. She was done being sociable for the day and it had only just begun. She made up an excuse for why she had to leave. "I'm sorry, that was the hospital. There's an emergency I have to go." She wasn't on call for the hospital today, but they didn't know that. She quickly gathered her things, bid everyone goodbye and made her hasty exit.
X
Later that day, Olivia was in her house, curtains closed and lights off. She was in her room hibernating with a bottle of wine. It was only the middle of the day, but her kids weren't home and she didn't have anything she needed to do. So the second she got home from brunch she changed into comfortable clothes, grabbed a bottle and headed upstairs. She's been in her bed ever since, looking through old photo albums and watching her wedding video on repeat on the TV. She was obviously in her feelings and she didn't know how to handle it. Whenever she got like this, it always made Olivia laugh to remember she was a licensed psychiatrist.
She kept replaying Adam's words in her head over and over again. I love you. Why did he have to say that? Things were going so great, and he just had to ruin it. He wasn't supposed to love her or at least he wasn't supposed to tell her. Olivia knew she felt something for Adam, but she wasn't sure it was love. And if it was love she wasn't ready to admit it to him or even herself. She felt like voicing her love for another man was what would put the final nail in the coffin of her and Fitz's relationship. Yes, they were divorced, and he was in a relationship with another woman, but to her they were still connected. There was still something lingering and she wasn't ready for that to be over.
This wasn't how her life was supposed to go. This was not the life she envisioned as she took her wedding vows. And what were these feelings anyway? Did she want Fitz back or was she just scared about moving on with Adam?
I thought this would be one of the most difficult things I ever did, when I asked you to marry me. But when I saw you walking down the aisle I realized how simple it was. Until the day I met you, I couldn't imagine spending my life with just one person. And now I can't imagine spending a day of my life without you. You are my person. The woman I am meant to spend the rest of my life with. I love you.
"Fucking liar." Olivia sneered at the TV, before pushing the fast forward button on the remote. She's been watching this video for hours now, just rewinding back to the beginning.
She was pouring the last of the bottle when her doorbell rang. She contemplated just ignoring it, but they rang again. Olivia angrily slipped out of bed, not bothering to put on a robe to cover herself. She slowly made her way downstairs, hoping that if she took her time answering the door the person would just leave. But she didn't have that luck.
"Oh hey." Fitz said when she opened the door. He was thrown off by her appearance.
"What are you doing here? Why are you ringing my bell."
"I-"
"Where are my kids?"
"In the car."
"By themselves?"
"Claudia is with me."
Olivia rolled her eyes hard at the mention of her name. "What do you want?"
"Are you okay? You look like you've been crying."
"What do you want?" Olivia repeated.
Fitz let it go. "I came to get the kids swimsuits and water shoes. We're going to take them to the splash pad. Liv are you sure you're ok-"
"Upstairs." Olivia walked off without answering him. She went to the kitchen to find another bottle since the one upstairs was empty.
Fitz closed the door behind him and went upstairs to the kids rooms to find what he needed before coming back down. He knew something wasn't right with Olivia. The house was almost pitch-black dark, it was dead quiet and she looked like she'd been crying or drinking or both for some hours now. When he came back downstairs, she was in the living room laying on the couch with a wine opener in her hand and bottle of wine, unopened, on the coffee table. Instead of leaving he stopped and sat on the coffee table in front of her. She didn't acknowledge him, just kept staring off at nothing.
"Liv." She didn't answer. "Olivia what's going on? Something is clearly bothering you."
She started laughing, which threw Fitz off. "I am having a great day. Couldn't be better. "She sat up, scooting to the edge of the couch. "Guess what. Erika finally found a venue for her wedding. Guess where it is." She didn't give him time to respond. "Lake Como!" She yelled with exaggerated excitement. "Fucking Italy, that's great right. But here's the best part okay guess where she's having her wedding." Again she didn't let Fitz answer. "La Dolce Vita! Ringing any bells? The same place we spent two weeks fucking in every position possible because we were on our honeymoon. Remember? Our spot." Olivia laughed. "Which now is going to be Erika and Harrison's spot and it's not weird. You know they'll probably vacay there and spend their anniversaries there too right.
Olivia laughter was becoming uncontrollable. "But here's the real best part! Guess who owns that resort now…You'll never guess…Adam! The man I'm currently fucking owns the same resort you and I honeymooned at all those years ago. How fucking crazy is that?"
"Olivia-"
"And now Erika wants me to suck Adam's dick so she can have her wedding there next month."
"Olivia stop." Fitz said firmly.
Olivia tearfully smiled. "Well you asked what was wrong with me."
Fitz wasn't sure what to say in this situation. He didn't know what to do. Especially not with Claudia and the kids waiting for him. He couldn't just leave them in the car to deal with whatever Olivia had going on. "Liv I… I'm sorry, I don't know what you want me to say. Or just tell me what you want me to do."
Olivia laughed. "Nothing. Just go. Just carry on living your happy life, and I'll just stay here and resume my previous activities." Olivia grabbed the bottle off the table and stood. She didn't have a chance to leave though, because Fitz grabbed her wrist and took the wine bottle from her. "What are you doing?"
"I think you've had enough."
"Well I didn't ask for your opinion."
"Olivia what is going on with you? This doesn't seem like you?"
"Oh what do you know about me?"
Fitz looked at her like she was crazy. "I know you Liv. Probably better than anyone."
That was true and Olivia knew it. He did know her, better than anyone it felt at times. They were married for ten years and together longer than that. You learn a lot about a person in ten plus years. She couldn't hide from him. Olivia always wore her emotions on her sleeve around him.
"Olivia what's wrong?"
"I wish you would have told me how you felt." Olivia spoke softly, looking down so she didn't have to look him in the eye.
"How I felt about what?" Fitz was confused now.
"You didn't have to leave." She said a little louder and looked up at him with unshed tears. "You didn't have to leave me."
Ever since Adam told Olivia he loved her, all she kept thinking about was Fitz. How twisted was that? Here was a man, an available man, who was everything any woman could want in a man. Generous, smart, kind, funny, nurturing, handsome and he had his own money. And he loved her. Adam was perfect on paper and everything she could want in a man, but his only con was that he wasn't Fitz. No man would every be Fitz.
And now that he'd told her he loved her she was retreating, and she hated it.
Fitz hadn't responded to what Olivia said. Truthfully, he didn't know what to say. They had argued about this same topic plenty of times before and it always led to one thing. An argument. Why was she even saying this?
Why was she bringing this up again? She has Adam, she was happy right? Every time I see them together, she's always hanging on his every word, looking at him like he's Mr. Perfect. She's happy. Right?
All Fitz thoughts were swirling around his head all at once and he didn't know what to think or to say to her right now. And the way she was looking at him now, she was expecting an answer from him. An answer that he didn't have.
"Liv-" Luckily for him, he didn't have to come up with an answer. The front door opened just as he as about to respond with whatever.
"Liv?"
Fitz was so glad when Althea opened that door. She'd just saved him from putting his foot in his mouth once again with this topic.
"Liv where are you?" Althea shouted out, they could hear her making her way towards them.
"I should probably go. We'll talk later." Fitz used this as his excuse to escape. He hurriedly made his way to the front door, bumping into Althea on his way. "Hey Thea."
"Hey. I saw the kids in the car, Claudia said you're going to the splash pad."
"Yeah."
"Where's my sister?"
"Uh she's in the living room. You know I'm kind of glad you're here. There's something bothering her. She's sitting in the dark day drinking and she looks like she's been crying for hours." Fitz didn't tell her what Olivia had said to him. "I would stay but the kids-"
"I got it." Althea said, then shooed Fitz out the door. Althea knew something was wrong this morning at the restaurant with the girls. Olivia tried to hide her discomfort and feelings, but Althea saw right through it. Althea and Olivia might not have been as close as other sister relationships, but Thea still knew her little sister and could tell when something was wrong.
Thea found Olivia just like Fitz had said. She was in the dark, lying on the living room couch and the bottle of wine was now open. Thea took the bottle of wine from Olivia and sat it on the table. Then she sat next to her on the couch and put Olivia's head in her lap.
"What's going on?" Thea asked, stroking Olivia's hair. Their mother use to do that when they were younger. Olivia didn't respond. "Livvie poo." Althea sang, she knew Olivia hated that nickname. When they were younger Thea and Curtis would always call her that to annoy her.
"I hate that name."
"Well seems like the only way I can get you to talk Livvie poo."
"I will bite your leg."
Thea laughed. "For real Liv. What's wrong with you? You were acting weird today with the girls, so I came to check on you. And now I get here and you're still drinking and by the looks of your face crying hard. So what is it?" Olivia still didn't answer. "Olivia you know how relentless I am, I will spend the night here annoying you the entire time."
And she would, and Olivia knew she would. "It's Adam."
"Okay. What'd he do?"
Olivia sat up, curling her legs underneath her. "He told me he loved me."
That wasn't the answer Althea was expecting. "And that's a bad thing?" Olivia didn't respond. "Olivia what's wrong with him admitting he loves you? I thought you liked him."
"I do but. It's complicated."
"Then uncomplicate it. Because the last time I checked, you told me you could see yourself with him."
"I know what I said, but… now it could be real. It was easy to say that when we were just dating with no strings attached, and now…"
"Do you love him Olivia?" Althea asked. She knew her sister cared for Adam, but she wasn't sure if it was love or not.
"I don't know. Maybe. I know I feel something for him, but I don't know if it's love or not. And if it is love, then I am not ready to admit that yet."
Now it was becoming clear to Thea. This was about more than Adam just admitting his feelings for her. "This is about Fitz isn't it." Olivia looked at her but didn't answer. But Althea already knew the answer. "Olivia how long are you going to keep holding onto him?" You can't keep letting Fitz dictate your life."
"You don't think I know that? I would love to move past him, but I can't." Olivia admitted. "He was the first man I truly loved. I made a life with that man for ten years. How am I supposed to just forget that? And I don't want to forget it. And when Adam told me he loved me… I don't know, it just felt like he was putting the final nail in the coffin on me and Fitz."
"Was that nail not hammered years ago?"
"No Thea it wasn't, because I still have feelings for him."
"Did you tell him that?"
"No."
Althea sighed. "Olivia you and Fitz have got to stop playing these games with each other, it's exhausting. You both are being so immature and dumb and I can't take it anymore."
"You're supposed to be comforting me, not calling me names."
"No, you want me to coddle you and I'm not going to do that. I'm giving you real big sister advice." Althea was always the one to give out the harsh truth. "Olivia grow the hell up. You and Fitz both need to grow the hell up, both of are running around here acting like high schoolers. You love him one minute; you hate him the next. You're dating this person but got feelings for another. You're being dumb. The both of you have still have feelings for one another, the twins are evidence of that. So instead of stringing Adam and Claudia along, you two need to get your shit together. Because sitting in the dark day drinking is not going to cut it." Olivia sat quietly, listening to her sister rip into her. "I mean damn Olivia, this is exhausting me at this point. You either need to break things off with Adam and tell Fitz how you feel, or you need to finally let go of Fitz and move on with Adam. It's one or the other Liv, because you can't have both of them." Althea got up, taking the bottle of wine with her. "I swear you and Fitz are worse than mom and dad."
Olivia knew Althea was right. She couldn't have both. She had a decision to make, Fitz or Adam?
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