Heaving a heavy breath, Olivia started the engine. She had been sitting in her car for more than thirty minutes, reminiscing over Fedor, best she return home to her baby. It was a pleasurable drive home. The roads were not so busy, exiting London. She got home in just over twenty minutes. She may have also drove, just a wee bit over the speed limit.

'Sorry, I'm so late,' Olivia whispered, as she entered her flat, and found Sophie, in the lounge, busy on her laptop, the lights all dimed.

'Don't be silly,' Sophie laughed, closing down her laptop. 'That is what you pay me for.'

Olivia rushed to her bedroom to check on Rebecca. She had kicked away the duvet, but was clutching her favourite teddy. Olivia smiled, kissed Rebecca's cheek, brushed her curls away from her forehead and covered her again, knowing full well, Rebecca would be kicking the duvet away very soon.

'She been good?' Olivia whispered, looking up at Sophie.

'Like an angel,' Olivia smiled. 'We played outside, read some. Gave her, her bath around six and she was passing out as I was feeding her, her supper.'

'Oh my poor darling,' Olivia kissed her cheek again, and walked out.

'She said "puppy"' Sophie mentioned.

'What?' Olivia laughed, pouring herself, a glass of wine.

'Rebecca observed the new neighbour's pup, running about.'

Olivia pointed the bottle in Sophie's direction, offering her some. Sophie declined. Olivia took a sip and smiled. "My baby said "puppy?"'

'Yeah,' Sophie grinned. 'She kept saying it over and over.'

'I hope Rebecca does not get any aspirations for a puppy,' Olivia expressed cautiously. 'We can't afford one,' Olivia derided, seeing Sophie pouting.

'I understand,' Sophie winked. 'We shall observe from a distance only.'

'Thank you,' Olivia emptied her glass. 'Mmm that was lovely.'

'I made Rebecca cottage pie. There is an extra portion for you too,' Sophie picked up her handbag.

'Thank you Sophie. I need to leave at eight, tomorrow morning.'

'Will be here bright and early,' Sophie promised.

Olivia poured herself another glass of wine after Sophie left. She was too keyed up to have supper. She paced about her lounge, her thoughts not surprisingly on Fedor. Gosh he looked so damn attractive today. Her arms had ached, just to wrap around him, to feel the strength of his body against hers. She wanted to kiss him too, no point denying it. She sat down, leaned back and closed her eyes. It was pointless, wasting her energy thinking about 'them' together. Fedor was ambitious. He had projects around the world. And she could never be any man's 'kept' woman. She had too much self-respect to live of a man. It had hurt like hell to walk away from the man she loved, especially when he had been caring, attentive, benevolent with his time and money, and most of all, he had been an amazing and wonderful lover, teaching her how to please him and to exact her own pleasure as well. She could never accuse Fedor of been an impatient lover. He had treated her like a delicate, rare treasure. Many a times, she had tried to hurry him, to reach her orgasm, but he had with patience, stilled her, developing her expertise, so she could maximize their pleasure. How could she have not fallen love with him?
But the same could not be said for Fedor. His life was compartmentalized. His work, ambition and career was front and center. She had been his recreation and pleasure. She had always known she was just a chapter, in the book of his life, never a permanent feature of it, so when he had demanded she accompany him and go live with him in Russia, she knew it was easier to walk away whilst still in her own country. It would have been humiliating, had Fedor broken up with her in Russia and sent her packing. Walking away from him, whilst in London, afforded her a little dignity. She knew she had made the right decision, when he had not called her, had not driven to her apartment to convince her to change her mind, had not made any effort, to keep their relationship going. He had returned to Russia and had not, once called her. Subsequently, her first contact with him, was today, after four whole years of not seeing or talking to him. Olivia sighed heavily. She thought four years had been sufficient to keep him in the past, to not be affected by him, if she would see him again, but how wrong she had been. One glance at him, had brought all the memories pouring back again. His touch, his lips, his scent, his passionate embraces, his whispered endearments. She stood up quickly, forcing those memories to the back of her mind. She rinsed out her glass, showered and climbed in to bed, snuggling up next to Rebecca. Her tiny arms were cold, for she had kicked off the duvet again. Olivia wrapped an arm around Rebecca's body, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

'Good night sweetheart,' she whispered.

Rebecca kicked out again, but turned, towards her mum's bosom, murmuring incoherently. Olivia smiled lovingly at her daughter, and tightened her arms around her little baby. Surprisingly, she enjoyed a restful night's sleep, only opening her eyes to Rebecca's tiny fingers on her face, early the next morning.

'Pancake mum.'

'Morning darling,' Olivia spoke sleepily, gathering her daughter into her arms.

'Want pancake mum,' Rebecca repeated.

'Let's wash up first, okay.' Olivia quickly showered. She sat Rebecca on her play mat and cut up an apple for her. She dressed in a formal beige business suit with a grape coloured blouse with a puffy collar. The skirt showed off her sexy legs, adorned in black heels.

'Morning,' Sophie greeted cheerily, as she walked in.

'Morning,' Olivia greeted appreciatively, seeing Sophie arrive a little early. 'We want pancakes,' Olivia pleaded softly.

'Not a problem,' Sophie smiled.

'Hey Rebecca,' Sophie greeted, pressing a kiss on Rebecca's cheek.

'Morning Sophie. Want pancake,' she finished her last slice of apple and tapped the plastic bowl repeatedly on the floor.

'Okay. How about we say goodbye to mum, then get those pancakes going?'

'Bye darling,' Olivia lifted Rebecca into her arms. 'Mummy is going to work. Will you give me a kiss?'

Rebecca pressed her lips to her mummy's, wrapping her tiny arms around her mummy's neck.

'Mummy loves you,' Olivia kissed Rebecca's cheek, handing her to Sophie. 'I'm hoping to be back at a respectable hour,' Olivia winced.

'We shall see you, when we see you,' Sophie laughed. 'We have food and we have entertainment, so no need to worry about us,' Sophie emphasized.

'Bye,' Olivia waved, as she departed her flat.

      As Olivia walked into the hotel, where they were working, she cursed herself for being early, as she saw Fedor striding towards her. She recognised two of his bodyguards, Timur Dubov and Timofey Shpak, near the bar, trying to look inconspicuous. She remembered them from her time with Fedor. One of them raised two fingers in a salute. She nodded, as they were too far away to respond vocally Trying to collect herself, she told herself to purposefully be five minutes late tomorrow, so she would avoid any situation with Fedor, but she knew, she could never be unprofessional. She held her breath as he approached her.

'Good morning,' he greeted with a confident smile.

'Morning Fedor,' she responded, clutching the strap of her handbag on her shoulder with both her hands. She still found his russet brown eyes so adorable.

'I would like to talk to you,' he murmured.

'Is it work related?' She questioned, suspecting it was not.

'Olivia,' his palm gently touched her hand. He began talking in Russian. 'I did not sleep much last night. I could not stop thinking about you.'

'You managed perfectly well in the last four years,' Olivia responded in Russian. She brushed his hand away, and purposefully walked to their meeting room. She greeted his guards, as she drew closer. 'Dobroye utro dzhentel'meny' .... Good morning gentlemen.

'Morning Olivia,' they responded in their thick accented Russian.

She was surprised that Fedor had spoken so frankly. As she entered the room, she found two of the German delegation at their desk. None of the Russians were in attendance as yet. She leaned against the door and closed her eyes. She could still smell his cologne, could still feel his warm breath on her cheek. He had been that close. She recalled all too clearly, some mornings, when Fedor would want to get out of bed, she would wrap her arms around him, restraining him. He would grin, envelop her in his arms and make passionate love to her, before she would release him to go to work.

She found she was shivering now. Not from cold, the air conditioner was regulating the temperature in the room. But each time she laid eyes on Fedor, it brought back all the memories, all the magical times they had had during their eight-month relationship.

     Fedor tugged on his sleeves and took a moment to regain his composure. For four years he had not stopped thinking about her. Four years later, and he still had not gotten her out of his system. Yes, he'd been with other women, in the last four years, but none of them, ignited a fire within him, like Olivia did. None of them made love to him, with their eyes and their smiles and their hearts, as she did. He had lied to her, when he'd said: "I did not sleep much last night." Truth was he had not slept a wink. He had tried to go to bed around midnight, but he had been highly strung, wide awake. He knew if he'd gone to bed, he would just toss and turn. He was not an idle man. He did not waste energy on unproductive actions. So, he'd gone to his desk, opened his computer and began working. Around 5am, still very keyed up, he stopped working, spent some time at the gym, before a strenuous swim. He'd arrived down at the reception about fifteen minutes earlier, waiting for her. He'd known she would be there early. She was always early. He'd also been fully aware, she was not going to roll out the red carpet for him. He began walking to their conference room. They we would be starting in five minutes.

     Olivia removed her jacket and tossed it over her chair. It was not hot. She was flustered. Fedor was confusing her. He'd allowed her to walk out of his life. He had not made any attempt to persuade her to stay in their relationship. They'd had no contact whatsoever in the last four years... so what the hell!
She was uncharacteristically nervous, when the Head of the German delegation, signalled to her, that they were ready to start. She nodded unsmilingly, cleared her throat repeatedly, drank from a glass of water, before she switched on her mike.

When the teams broke for lunch, Olivia did not join them. Normally, during her assignments, lunch was included. She would indulge in lunch, thoroughly enjoy the various cordial conversations around the table, like she'd had with the Germans and French the two previous days before Fedor arrived, but today her stomach was in knots. She could not eat at a table with Fedor. She doubted she could swallow a morsel of anything, but more importantly, she knew the charged electricity between them, was bound to be noticed by their colleagues. So, she discreetly exited the hotel, and walked about until it was almost time to return to the meeting.

     When Olivia returned, she found Luba Gusev in conversation with Fedor. They looked very cosy and intimate. Luba's palm was on Fedor's arm as she talked to him. Luba looked annoyed. Fedor had a lazy smile pasted across his face. Luba saw Olivia before Fedor did. She tightened her arm possessively around Fedor, and turned him away, so his back was to Olivia. Olivia rolled her eyes, seeing right through Luba's ploy. Little did Olivia know Luba and Fedor were engaged in a slight disagreement in Russian.

     'I can send you back on the next plane to Moscow Luba. I hardly need you here. You are here, purely for your own career development.' His speech was polite, his eyes smiling, but his tone to Luba brooked no argument.

'I want to come to your bed tonight,' Luba pouted.

'Thank you, but no thank you. Focus on your work Luba. That is the only reason you are here in London.' Fedor removed her hand and walked into the meeting room.

     Fedor cringed silently. He did not have many regrets in life, but he regretted his decision of a few months ago, a moment of temporary memory lapse, when he had allowed Luba to seduce him and he'd taken her to bed. He had immediately afterwards, regretted his lack of control and stupidity and had made sure there was no repeat performance. Unfortunately, Luba wasn't easily put off, and one may commend her perseverance. But she left a foul taste in Fedor's mouth. She was cold, detached, unemotional, ambitious and strategic. Fedor knew, she only clung to him like a leech, to advance her career ambitions. And being seen on the arm of a billionaire, would advance her networking circles.

     Olivia held her breath, as she saw Luba was waiting for her to draw closer. She wondered what the she-cat wanted, but she didn't have long to wait to hear Luba's vitriol.

'Ms Gusev,' Olivia acknowledged her politely.

'You need to improve your Russian,' Luba spat out venomously in English. 'Many a times, our strategic talking points loses its efficacy, by your choice of words used!'

Olivia wasted no time, entertaining Luba's critique, as she responded to her in Russian. 'Firstly Ms Gusev, if my competency, or lack thereof is in question, I will receive that from your Head of Delegation, not you.' Olivia emphasized. 'And secondly, my role here is to translate, not interpret. So, if your talking points are not getting you the desired effect, go back to the drawing room and work on improving your arsenal. You should note, that the Germans are no push overs. This is not their first rodeo! Enjoy the rest of your afternoon, Ms Gusev,' Olivia hurried away, not allowing Luba any opportunity to respond.

     Olivia was surprised at how calm she was and how effortless the rest of the afternoon's session was. She was her usual professional self, in full work mode and even giggled at Fedor's harmless joke, which she translated to the Germans, who accepted it good naturedly. Fedor seemed to have an affable relationship with the German contingent.

Olivia was pleasantly surprised when Fedor requested they end the day's session around four pm. They had not completed the day's agenda, but who was she to argue? It gave her some extra hours to enjoy with her baby. The Germans gave her the thumbs up. They switched off their microphones and were engaging in pleasant conversations, with the Russians. Seems they were heading for the bar. Olivia decided she would just quietly escape home. As she stood up and removed her head phones, she observed Luba piercing her with dagger looks. She ignored Luba, picked up her bag and exited her little kiosk. She was surprised to see Fedor was waiting for her. He had not joined the others at the bar. Or should she not be surprised at all.

     'Hi,' she greeted, seeing him gazing at her with big grin.

'I ended the session early to spend some time with you,' he responded.

'I don't have time to spend with you,' she lied. 'I have to rush home.'

He smiled. 'We could have been working for the next two hours,' he reminded her.

She looked away awkwardly. She didn't want to talk to Fedor, or have drinks or a meal with him. She didn't trust herself not to go to bed with him. She still loved him, was madly attracted to him and God above knew, she ached to be in his bed again. It was only self-preservation that allowed her to keep her distance, but hell it brought her no satisfaction.

'Pouzhinay so mnoy, dorogaya' ... have dinner with me darling

She swallowed uncomfortably and looked away. She used to love it when he would call her "darling" in the throes of passion. But she was a wiser adult now with a responsibility. Unlike as a star struck young adult, when she had given herself unconditionally to him. She knew how this would play out. They would have wild unadulterated sex for a few months and then he would want to return to Russia and she would have to pick up the pieces, like before. Four years later, she was still unable to put the pieces back together.

'No Fedor,' she whispered. 'We are over. I cannot have dinner with you, or drinks, or anything. Stay away from me __ please.'

She rushed away, before she allowed him to tempt her to dinner or worse, agreeing to unconditional sex.

        'You're home early,' Sophie grinned, with Rebecca comfortably perched on her hip.

'Yeah,' Oliva summoned a broad grin. 'Early finish today, but we at it again, bright and early tomorrow. She reached out her arms to take Rebecca.

'Hi darling. Mummy missed you,' Olivia kissed her cheek and hugged her daughter.

'Mummy came home?' Rebecca smiled, wrapping her tiny arms around Olivia's neck.

'Yeah and mummy has a surprise for you,' Olivia took out a little stuffed toy from her handbag.

'Thank you, mum,' Rebecca grinned joyously and slid down from her mum. She sat on her play mat, inspecting her new toy with delight and spontaneously pressed it against her cheek, hugging her new toy.

'You look tired,' Sophie observed, handing Olivia a cup of tea.

'Thank you.' Olivia avoided her eyes. 'We were hard at it today,' which was not a total untruth. 'The sessions were intense, but productive.'

'Well at least you have some daylight hours to put your feet up and chill,' Sophie smiled, not seeing through Olivia's ruse.

     There was a knock on the door. Olivia went to open it thinking it was Sophie's boyfriend. She looked over her shoulder seeing Sophie squatting next to Rebecca, chatting to her about her new toy.

'What! ___ What are you doing here? How did you know where I live?'

Fedor raised an eyebrow at Olivia. He knew the building she lived in, because he had dropped her off at her apartment on a few occasions, when they had lived together. Occasionally on a Saturday morning, she would return to her flat, give it a quick spring clean, and Fedor would fetch her again some two hours later. But now she had moved from her single bed sit to a two roomed ground floor cottage with its own garden. How did Fedor know which door to knock on? What she had not known, was Fedor used to previously, slip the guards some money to keep an eye on her apartment. The same guards were still on duty and they had duly informed him of her upgraded cottage. He didn't want to rat out the guards so he remained silent. She on the other hand put it down to his resourcefulness. He always knew how to get what he wanted.

'Who's there?' Sophie asked, wondering why Olivia was so long at the door.

Fedor looked over Olivia's shoulder, surprised that she had company and more shaken at the little figure on the floor playing with a little toy. His eyes widened with shock. Fedor stared from Olivia to the baby. Full recognition dawning on him as to the parentage of the little baby girl.

'Oh good heavens!' Sophie murmured, all at once coming to the correct conclusion as to the resemblance between Rebecca and the man standing stunned at the door.

'Umm ___ I'll see you tomorrow morning at seven, Olivia. Rebecca's supper is in the oven. Bye.' Sophie grabbed her handbag and dashed away.

Fedor walked into the lounge uninvited. He still looked like he'd just seen a ghost. His eyes never strayed from Rebecca on the floor. Olivia shut her eyes for a second. This was not the scenario she had planned, if ever Fedor was to meet his child.

'Is she mine?'

Fedor gazed at the young girl in bewilderment. He did not need an affirmative answer to convince himself, the child was his. Though she had her mother's flawless skin and full lips; she did not possess her mother's twinkling light hazel eyes, nor her rich, copper hair that gave it that polished brunette shade. His daughter had his distinctive big russet brown eyes, and light brown hair. The child's resemblance to him was unmistakable even to a stranger who would see them together. Something instinctively surged within him, knowing this was his child. He felt a protective urge to wrap his arms around her tiny frame, and just hold her tight and never let her go.

'You mean the child you rejected? The child you refused to believe was yours!' Olivia interrupted his watchful assessment of their daughter, her chin defiant, her hazel eyes narrowed.

Fedor had the grace to look embarrassed. He dragged his eyes to Olivia's. They were not twinkling at this moment, but they used to twinkle, when she was naked, in his arms, in his bed. He didn't regret much in his life, but he regretted being the cause of the end of their relationship. He had not been able to forget her. He had dated and bedded beautiful women in the almost four years since their separation, but none had pleasured or satisfied him like Olivia Chadwick. He wanted her back and now he had the perfect excuse to make her his ...permanently.

              -end chapter four -