A/N: Welcome back, beautiful readers! I absolutely love reading your reviews, thank you so much for the love! Here's the thing, this is very obviously an OLITZ story, if you're not a fan then please kindly see yourself out. Hate speech will not be tolerated here and I encourage my readers to report any users that use it in their reviews. Thank you, and lets get to Colorado!

Chapter 10

She wasn't sure how she got away from Jake. She had yelled at him not to follow her but she most definitely did not expect him to listen to her. Now, she sat in her running car trying to decide what to do and where to go. Her home was not an option, Jake would be there and the last thing she wanted or needed was to see him. If she stayed in the parking garage any longer though, she would end up seeing Jake or Fitz and she just couldn't right now. After a long, deep breath she turned her car on and took off to the only place she could think of.

"Liv? What the hell are you doing here?" Abby opened the door to see her best friend, seemingly distressed. Olivia didn't answer before she walked into the apartment and straight to the kitchen. She grabbed the first bottle of wine she saw and poured herself a glass while a now worried Abby followed after her. "Olivia, what's going on?"

Olivia finished her first glass and poured a second before finally looking up at Abby. "Jake has been cheating on me, for years."

Abby's eyes widened in shock for a moment before she grabbed the wine bottle and Olivia's hand. She quickly dragged her to the living room and sat down on the couch.

"What do you mean? How did you find out?"

"Fitz found out. Fitz found out because the woman that Jake has been sleeping with is Fitz's wife. According to Jake it's been going on since Fitz and Mellie got together."

"Liv, I am so sorry. What do you need?"

"I just- can I stay here tonight? I am leaving for a work trip tomorrow but I can't go home tonight."

"Of course you can. You know you can, the guest room is already set up. Do you want to be alone, or do you need a drinking buddy?"

"A drinking buddy, please." Liv said with a half hearted smile. Abby had always been there for her, through thick and thin. At this moment, she was thankful that she had someone to run to tonight. She had plenty to think about, but tonight she just wanted to drink her feelings away with her best friend.

They spent the next couple of hours drinking while Olivia told Abby everything that had happened in the last few months. She confessed her brief night with Fitz, the inner turmoil she had been dealing with for weeks, and informed her that her next week would be spent with Fitz. Jake called more times than she could count, leaving countless voicemails begging to know where she was. Most of the messages consisted of him accusing her of being with Fitz, calling her in more or less words an ungrateful whore. She finally turned her phone off, deciding that she could deal with him in the morning. The release she got from sharing everything with Abby was healing, still not enough to handle the spiral of events that just ensued, but it was better than nothing.

The next morning came with a raging hangover and inevitable dread. Olivia turned her phone back on, seeing that it was just after six in the morning. She sat up slowly, mindful of her headache and looked at the missed calls. Almost every call was from Jake, but she noticed one from Fitz and one from her mom. She sighed deeply and chose to call Fitz first, confirming that she was going to be joining him later today.

It only took three rings before his voice picked up on the other end of the line. "Livvie? Are you okay? I didn't want to bother you last night, but I got worried when Jake started calling me."

"I'm okay. Well, not really okay but I will be. I stayed with Abby. Do you think I will have time to do some shopping when we get to Colorado? I don't want to go home to pack a bag."

"Of course, we can go shopping. Do you need me to come pick you up?"

She smiled softly, he was more than generous with her at work which she was used to but she was still getting used to his generosity in their friendship.

"No, that's okay. I have my car, I can just meet you at the office. I will see you soon."

"Okay Livvie, I'll see you soon."

She hung up the phone and went to the bathroom to freshen up. She knew where Abby

left the fresh toothbrushes so she took her time to wash the hangover from her. She eventually met Abby in the kitchen for a cup of tea and thanked her for her help last night before heading towards the office.

During her drive, she decided to call Jake back. If anything, maybe it would keep him from calling her non-stop for the next week. He answered immediately.

"Olivia, where the fuck are you? Why haven't you answered my calls?"

"Jake, last night I learned that you have been cheating on me for years. I need to be away

from you right now."

"So you're running away with him? Is that where you were last night? I called him, you know?"

"Yes, I know you called him but not because I was with him. I was with Abby you dumbass, if you knew anything about me you would have been able to figure that out pretty quickly. I am leaving for a planned business trip, I will be back in a week and I will pack my things then."

"Liv, come on. You don't need to leave, we can work this out."

"Please, do not call me until I come back. I'll be working, and I don't want to hear from

you." She hung up before he could get another word in. As much as she thought she would be hurt by his actions, she was really only pissed off. For years she helped Jake to get everything he wanted in life while putting her dreams on hold, and the entire time he was playing some game against Fitz.

It would have been different if he had some kind of one night stand, at least then it could be labeled as a mistake. But as she put all of the information she had together it became more and more clear to her that Jake was only with her as a way to piss off Fitz. It was childish, and selfish, and she couldn't believe that she hadn't caught on after all of these years. Maybe it was stupid to leave town with Fitz, they were both going through the emotions of their recent betrayals and were certainly more vulnerable to each other. She needed to leave D.C though, and she certainly didn't have the money to flee on her dime which left this trip as her best option.

When she arrived at the office, Fitz was finishing up a meeting with the staff about his expectations while he was gone. He seemed okay, but then again to the blind eye she probably did as well. He still held himself high, he still had power dripping off of him, and he certainly didn't resemble a man that just had his life shattered into a million pieces. She watched him carefully, she still didn't know if she could trust him or if he had known about Jake all along. It pained her to think that he had known but didn't tell her and instead pursued a friendship with her with the goal of sweeping her away from Jake.

When he finally finished his meeting and cleared the room, his eyes met hers. Immediately, she could see the sympathy in him and she couldn't stop herself from moving closer. They stood only a foot apart from each other, neither saying anything for a moment. She was still in her flats from yesterday and he towered over her. If his presence wasn't so calming, she would be intimidated.

"Hi." She finally breathed out, her voice just slightly shaky as her emotions crept up on her.

"Hi." He smiled his famed lopsided grin, a small attempt at helping her relax. "Are you ready to go?"

She simply nodded at him as he grabbed his jacket and led her down to the parking garage. A single black SUV met them in front of the door, Fitz moved in front of her and opened the back door, allowing her to take her seat first. After she was settled, he moved to the other side and got in next to her. They remained silent as the vehicle drove towards the airport, neither sure what to say to the other after everything that had happened.

It wasn't until they pulled into a private air strip that Olivia finally looked at Fitz and spoke. "Fitz, what are we doing here?"

He smiled and looked at her confidently, raising an eyebrow. "You didn't think we would fly commercial? Did you?" He turned away and got out of the vehicle, quickly making his way to her door and opening it.

"Well, yeah. I kind of did." Olivia laughed softly and took Fitz's hand as she stepped out. "This is yours?"

"Well technically, the jet belongs to my family. But now that I run the company I pretty much get it all to myself." He smiled and let go of her hand before walking towards the jet, one of his drivers followed behind with his bags.

As Olivia stepped onto the jet her jaw nearly dropped. It was nearly the size of her house, the interior was a light brown leather that adorned multiple couches and reclining chairs. In the middle of the jet was a large, oval, conference table with the Grant seal. Fitz stood back and watched as she walked around, taking in every detail.

"This is beautiful," she smiled as she ran her hand over the leather couch.

"Yeah, yeah it is," his eyes were fixed on her, the way she moved through his space had him in a trance. Finally, he shook himself out of it and made his way to one of the recliners. "Please, make yourself comfortable. We should be there in about two hours."

Two hours later they made their way into another SUV with a new driver. They spent the flight talking, both working vigorously to avoid the topic of their spouses. Fitz told stories about when he was a kid, mostly about the times they came to Colorado and how it influenced his decision to start looking at more property there. Liv told him everything about her college years, leaving out some of the gory details but enough to give Fitz a better idea of who she was not so many years ago.

Just over an hour later, the vehicle came to a stop in the middle of a busy downtown area. Fitz helped Olivia out of the car and led her to the crowded sidewalk. He took her hand in his and began walking town the street as lines of stores came into view.

"We can do some shopping here for now, then if you need more we can go back out once we get to Steamboat. Any place in particular you'd like to start?"

Two hours of shopping later, Liv was pretty sure she had everything she needed for the week long trip including a new set of luggage. She had somehow convinced Fitz to sit with her in every store as she tried on outfit after outfit. He had tried to feign annoyance like any other man would, but he was more than enjoying himself.

She mostly tried on new work clothes, a few pant suits and skirts and a charade of different blouses. Everytime she tried something new and asked his opinion he would say she looked great, and everytime he was telling her the truth. Something had changed in her once they got off of the plane, she seemed lighter and more care free. Maybe it was being away from the world she knew but he certainly hoped that it wouldn't change. He wasn't enough of an ass to try anything with her this week, but it did feel like a good opportunity to show her what else life had to offer.

At every store when Olivia tried to pay, she was informed that each item had already been paid for. She never mentioned it to him, but she knew that Fitz had gave them his card to take care of the bill. By no means was the kind of woman that needed to be taken care of, especially financially, but the gesture did mean the world to her. It wasn't lost on her that if she were to leave Jake she would have to do a lot of adjusting financially, she knew she would lose all of the money that she invested into his business and even with the high salary Fitz paid her it would take a while to get back on her feet.

Simply put, she was thankful that Fitz was as generous as he was and as far as she could tell he expected nothing in return.

After enough shopping for the week and then some, they grabbed a quick lunch with a couple of other board members before completing their journey. They were staying just outside of Steamboat Springs, but outside of that Olivia had very little information about their trip.

Finally, fours hours later, Fitz rested his hand on her knee and pointed out the window of the vehicle. Outside, the mountains and roads were covered in snow. It was still late March and it had been a particularly cold and snowy winter for Colorado. All she could see was white, and it was one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen. The sun reflected off of the snow, shimmering and illuminating the newly awakened trees. She found peace in that moment, allowing her mind to forget the troubles that lied ahead of her when she returned home. One week, she had one week to shut her brain off and focus only on work and herself.

Minutes later, the vehicle approached a large gated ranch. She could tell that there was more property that was out of her view, but from where she sat she could see at least four large cabins. She looked over at Fitz as the driver typed in a code to the gate.

"I thought we were staying at a hotel. What is this place?"

"Did I say that?" He asked with a mischievous grin. "This is my ranch, I had it built a few years ago as a place I could just get away. There's enough space for the team so I figured we should stay here instead of spending money on a hotel. Is this okay?"

She smiled, thinking about how much more privacy she would have in a place like this.

"This is perfect. It's beautiful."

As they all piled out of their vehicles, most of his staff already knew which cabin they would be in and where they were. It was obvious that this wasn't the first time he had welcomed them to his small piece of paradise.

"Livvie, do you want me to show you to your cabin?"

She smiled at him and made an attempt to grab her shopping bags from him, but he refused as he loaded his arms and grabbed his suit case. He loaded them into the trailer of an awaiting four wheeler and climbed on.

"Come on, city girl. Hop on." She couldn't help but smile at the boyish grin on his face while he watched her. When she climbed behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, she could feel his hard muscles under his hoodie and allowed herself to enjoy the feeling. Today she didn't need to remember that she was engaged, today she could let herself feel good in the presence of another man. He felt her cheek rest against his back, she left light and peaceful. Even more so than the time he stole an earth shattering kiss from her.

They road towards the edge of the ranch, noticeably farther from the cabins that were being occupied by the staff. When they came to a stop at a large cabin, she climbed off and took it in. From the outside it looked to be two stories with large glass windows opening up towards the mountains. She walked towards the entrance, entranced by her surroundings.

Fitz watched her carefully, studying her every move and every expression before he finally followed her through the front door.

"There are two bedrooms upstairs. The master bedroom has a full bath with a jacuzzi and a rain shower. There's a fully stocked kitchen, I made sure to have popcorn and wine brought in for you. Downstairs is the living room, you have cable and internet and just down the hallway is an office and another bedroom. Out back on the deck is a hot tub, please feel free to use anything in here. I want you do be completely comfortable."

She smiled and turned back to look at him. He looked so handsome, wearing a simple pair of blue jeans and a lightweight, gray hoodie. Relaxation looked just as good on him as power. He was beautiful, by every possible definition of the word and she just couldn't bring herself to look away.

"Popcorn and wine? How did you manage that when I only decided to come last night?"

He shrugged and she could see a hint of red on his cheeks. "I just wanted to be prepared in case I had changed your mind. Or as it turned out, if you changed your mind. Is it okay?"

"Fitz, stop asking me that. It's perfect. I uhm- I do have one question though." It was something she had thought about since she realized that they would all be separated by cabins. She definitely shouldn't have been thinking about it, but then again this was a week about her and what she wanted.

"How far is your cabin from here?"

Fitz didn't want to read too much into her question, he most definitely did not want to make any assumptions about her intentions. He would behave this week, if he didn't then it would likely only complicate everything going forward and everything was already complicated enough.

"I'm in the cabin across from you, just a fifteen second walk away. So I know there is snow on the ground, but with the elevation it can get pretty hot up here during the day but the nights are freezing. If you have issues with the hotub just let me know and if you need anything else at all we can make sure you get it."

He couldn't stay in her cabin much longer, if he did he would surely lose all resolve and the week had just started.

"Make yourself at home and I will come grab you at around six for dinner, sound good?"

"Yeah, yeah that sounds perfect." She smiled as she watched him, his hands were in his pockets hich she had grown to realize typically meant that he was nervous about something. She took two steps toward him, stopping directly in front of him and never losing eye contact. "Fitz?"

The smell of her perfume and her shampoo hit his nose and it sent a shiver through his body. He hoped that she didn't notice, but given the knowing smirk she now had on her face he knew that she had. If he had to guess, he would say she did it intentionally. He stayed quiet as he watched her, keeping his hands in his pockets to refrain from touching her.

To a point, he wasn't surprised when he felt her small, soft hands on his cheeks. They were still cold, but it still set his body on fire. He closed his eyes as her soft lips melted against his in a kiss lighter than a feather. Their lips had barely touched before she pulled back, but she stayed long enough for one of his hands to find her waist. He kissed her back just enough to let her know that he wanted the same thing, but this time he kept his resolve and managed to not deepen the kiss any further.

She was on fire. There was no explanation for kissing him, it was probably irresponsible but she couldn't it and by the way her body responded it was clear that she needed it. She needed the intimacy, she needed his intimacy. Right now wasn't the time to move any further though, so she drew herself away and took a step back.

"I'll see you in a couple of hours for dinner. Thank you, Fitz."

A/N: I know it's another short chapter, my time is limited right now but I should be able to get you something a bit longer here soon! Here is what we will call "Part One" of chapter 10 to hold you over!