A/N: I am currently finishing up the next chapter for "Don't Take The Girl", however, I've been super busy lately much to my dismay. I'm amazed I found time to write this new story! I get these ideas and I have to write them down in my phone or else I'll forget and I believe I have 20 other drafts/ideas that I still haven't finished. Enjoy! :)

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plotline.

Chapter 1 – Tension

"I'm heading home. I want those reports on my desk before you leave," Cragen said, glancing between his two detectives; they both nodded in silent confirmation and returned to their computer screens. Cragen left for the elevators and Olivia stretched her back up, over the back of her chair with her arms raised and crossed behind her head. Her tense muscles relaxed immensely and she sighed, rotating her head to release the muscles in her neck.

Elliot watched her from the corner of his eye for a moment, mesmerized by the way her body contorted to release tension. He was starting to feel tension, but not the same way she had been. He tried to shift himself discreetly, and was relieved to see that Olivia hadn't even been paying attention.

They hadn't exactly been on the best terms these last few weeks. He would make a point and she would quickly shoot it down; he was so pissed at her one day, almost completely lost it, but instead dared her to pull her gun out and shoot him dead if she hated him so much.

Which only made their argument longer, and louder.

Only resulting in their three-day suspension from the case and the precinct. Cragen didn't trust them enough after that and had Munch watching him, and Fin watching Olivia to make sure they wouldn't kill each other.

Elliot smirked.

He didn't think Olivia had it in her to kill him. He didn't even have it in himself to kill her so he really couldn't say anything about it. Tonight was one of those long, quiet nights though. They had barely spoken to each other like they used to, recently, it was always about the cases. They rarely spoke about their lives outside of the precinct. Not that either of them really had any now; Olivia had given up on the concept of dating for a while, and with Kathy taking custody over the kids and fleeing to New Jersey, Elliot didn't have much to do besides stare at the ceiling of his apartment when he couldn't sleep.

But tonight was where he finally cut bulldozed the wall between them; he was lonely, he wasn't going to lie. He missed the old them, when their twelve stressful years didn't finally catch up to them. He was worried Olivia would request a new partner; though she threatened it a few times, he himself was guilty, they never actually did. Cragen asked if they wanted new partners during a much larger argument about two weeks ago but they both refused his offer.

The problem was, was they were both stubborn and refused to walk away.

Plus, Elliot wasn't so sure he could lose another partner; first it was Olivia, then it was Dani…he just didn't want to keep driving them away. His partnership with Olivia was like a marriage, one almost far better, and far more bittersweet, than his former real one; as much as he hated to admit it. But he was willing to try and work things out with Olivia if she was; they just didn't talk, so things didn't get solved. They had a weird, sexual tension going on…that much he could sense.

"Are you done?" Olivia asked. Elliot felt the room get ten degrees hotter; had she caught him staring?

"What?"

"With your report?" Instantly, he felt the color drain back into his face, "Are you done?"

"Oh, uh…yeah I just need to finish one last thing." He said, typing again so he could distract himself from looking at her. She let out a small laugh and stood up.

"So technically no," she walked around his desk as the printer next to Fin's desk roared to life; she grabbed the papers that were already spit out and waited for the rest; Elliot stole another glance in her direction, immediately he began kicking himself. Her back to him, but his eyes landed somewhere else, adding more pressure to the front of his jeans. He mentally cursed himself and placed his head in his hands, willing himself to erase the image; he couldn't.

"Are you sure you're okay, El?" She asked, adding a paper clip to the top of the stack to hold it together, "You seem distracted today…more often than not recently."

"Just a headache," he replied, shaking his head; he rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands and clicked print. He hoped the report was done, it was a bitch to complete enough already. He didn't want to have to do it again tomorrow. Just as Olivia passed his desk, he stood up and tugged on the sleeve of her shirt, "Here, I'll put them on his desk." Olivia glanced down at his outstretched hand before handing her papers to him; the gesture shocked her, for once they were actually getting along.

"Thanks," she returned his smile, and walked around him to her desk to grab her keys and jacket. Elliot returned a few moments later.

"I'm amazed you didn't run to the elevator," he said softly, "Usually if we're the last two, you don't wait for me anymore."

"Well, we haven't exactly gotten along." Olivia stated simply, "The last thing Cragen needs is the two of us trying to kill each other in a small space." Elliot didn't seem the least bit phased by her answer, he knew it was true. He was feeling brave suddenly.

"Do you want to get something to eat?" He asked, "…I just think we should try and sort things out." Olivia smiled again, nodding.

"Sure," she answered, "but you're paying." He smirked and rolled his eyes, expecting her negotiation; like old times. They walked out together, for the first time in months and it felt good, normal almost. They were quiet for the most part, especially in Elliot's car. Olivia was surprised he even had his radio on, but she was thankful it kept the silence at bay. It wasn't overbearingly awkward, or as tense as it would have been.

"How are the kids?" She asked quietly; Elliot almost hadn't heard her, but he was used to her quiet voice when she wasn't sure of what to say. He shrugged after a long moment and glanced over at her. She wasn't looking at him, she was staring out the window as they passed by blurry street lights; she seemed to be watching the rain drops as they landed and ran down the glass. He admired the way the lights illuminated her face; she had a stoic, but soft expression with her forehead pressed against the glass. Her olive skin looked pale in the lights, and he loved watching her body sway slightly with the bumpy car.

Her hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail, waving at the bottom; they also bounced with the ride, almost like each strand was as light as a feather; he imaged they were, and his grip tightened on the wheel as he restrained himself from wrapping the thick strands around his fingers and playfully tugging at them, "they're good. I haven't spoken to them recently, they're usually out and Kathy answers more than they do. From what I've heard, Eli's starting first grade, Dickie and Lizzie are graduating soon, Kathleen's enjoying college, and Maureen's gonna be starting her new job pretty soon. She's excited about it." Olivia's lips pulled into a smile at the love and affection in his words.

"That's great, El," she said, looking over at him for a brief moment; she noticed his hands on the wheel, they were white-knuckled, "Do you want to stop for aspirin or something?" Her question threw him off for a moment, but he shook his head.

"No, I'm fine, Liv. I swear by it, it'll go away," he reassured her. She turned her attention back to the road and he sighed. His problem was, ever since Kathy left, his feelings for his partner resurfaced. He tried to suppress them, he tried until he was blue in the face, but no matter how much he tried it was fruitless. He wanted to be open with her, but with how much they were constantly at each other's throats, he didn't need that information thrown back at his face.

God, he felt like a little boy again; like he had to harass and make fun of the girl he liked just to get her to notice him. Except she was headstrong…he was the gasoline and she was the fire; you can't play with fire. So his attempts at getting her attention were pointless.

He also feared that his separation was just another factor; that he was lonely and just attached himself to someone closer. At the same time, he knew his feelings for his partner was strong. But in the eyes of their work, it was wrong all together.

Though Elliot rarely gave two fucks about what was right or wrong unless it involved the line of justice. And as far as they were concerned, their outside lives rarely mixed with their work. Yeah, occasionally things would be brought up but nothing too major.

They spent more time in silence; Olivia tried listening to the music while Elliot paid attention to the road; it wasn't a horribly uncomfortable silence, but they wished they had something to talk about nonetheless. And neither wanted to start the conversation and double the already awkward air.

"What about you?" Elliot asked then; Olivia's eyes were swimming with questions, and he elaborated, "Like what have you been doing?"

"Uh…not much," Olivia replied, feeling insecure about her lack of a social life, "I work, I go home at least twice a week, and that's about it…" it was a stupid question, he knew that, he just wanted to hear her voice.

"Funny, me too." Elliot's lips pulled upwards slightly, "Though I wouldn't exactly call my apartment home. It's too quiet."

"Yeah," Olivia sighed, "unfortunately, you get used to it after a while. When I first got my apartment, I thought it'd be fun on my own. And it was, but there's nothing to look forward too. I never got the chance to go home to a loud atmosphere. It's a whole other perspective." Elliot nodded.

"I understand," he said; he did. It was like a piece of solace, but he missed the noise more than he cared to admit. "You giving up?" She turned to face him again; her expression told him she was expecting this question.

"I don't know," she said, almost in a whisper; he heard her voice break then. He wasn't trying to make her cry, that was the last thing he wanted to do. She turned away to wipe a tear away, she wasn't about to talk about it and get all emotional.

"We're actually talking." Elliot said. She could hear the smile in his voice and laughed, nodding.

"Yeah, we are."

XxxxX

"Your food will arrive shortly," the waitress said, placing a beer down in front of Elliot and a cup of tea down in front of Olivia.

"You're still drinking tea?" Elliot asked, motioning to the steaming cup across from him. Olivia gave him a questioning look, one that told him 'obviously'.

"Yes," she said slowly, "that wasn't a one-time phase sort of thing, El." He raised his hands in fake surrender with an amused smile. "Just like your 'staying-comfortable' wasn't a phase."

"Being comfortable is not a crime."

"So an occasional cup of tea is?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying," Elliot replied.

"What are you saying?" Olivia questioned, testing him. They wore matching smug expressions, neither was about to lose but this was a conversation that would land them nowhere, with no winner. Elliot shook his head, backing down.

"I don't know…" Olivia smirked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Wow, for once the great Detective Elliot Stabler doesn't know something…" she shook her head dramatically, shaking her foot below the table. It hit the side of Elliot's leg and her knee nearly shot through the table; she stopped so abruptly, waving it off as trying to uncross her legs.

"You sure?" He still had an amused expression, and she wondered if he was being sincere or if he had figured her out. Over their twelve years of partnership, she had developed feelings for him. It was cliché, and she hated herself for that. It was wrong to have a relationship that wasn't strictly business in their unit, she knew that. Hell, everyone did…she just didn't know why her body had to betray her. He was just out of a messy ending to his marriage, granted it was two years ago, but that didn't excuse anything.

He was the longest relationship she ever had with a man, and she knew that was partly why she felt this way. And since their arguments have grown so heavily over the last couple of months, she's afraid to see it all end because of one. A relationship would only increase that risk, especially if things didn't work out for them.

"I'm fine," Olivia dismissed, "I was just trying to uncross my legs."

"Bit clumsy don't you think?" He teased; damn you, she thought.

"I never said I was graceful, Stabler." Olivia retorted, ripping apart the corners of her napkin to keep from looking up. Her face was probably flaming red, and looking down, not being able to hold his gaze showed her weak at the moment. Before his taunting could continue, the waitress reappeared with their food.

"Here you go," she placed their plates down and smiled between them, "Are you all set? Would you like anything else?"

"Another beer when you get the chance, please," Elliot said; she nodded and took the empty bottle, leaving them alone again. Olivia's shocked eyes met his.

"You drank that whole bottle already?" She asked; he nodded slowly, not understanding her line of questioning, "Don't be pounding drinks down there, detective. I still need a ride home and I don't feel like dragging your ass home. I'll have to walk the rest of the way if that's the case."

"I'd let you borrow my car."

"And drive all the way back to Queens the next morning to pick you up? No thanks." She laughed, taking a forkful of salad into her mouth. Elliot watched her swallow, trying his best not to think much of it.

"How many times I have driven all the way back to Brooklyn for you? How many times have I driven you to work, Benson?" He cut into his steak, biting it off the fork as she spoke.

"Many of times, Stabler. However, most times I never called you for a ride."

"Okay, fair enough. But I don't believe this 'not-dragging-my-ass-to-work' bullshit. You know you would if I asked you to." Elliot said, picking up one of the fries off of her plate before popping it into his mouth.

"Fair enough." She agreed, wiping her hands on her napkin, "But let's keep the record straight, shall we? I don't always ask you for a ride. You show up 'in-the-neighborhood'."

"Usually I am." He replied.

"I don't believe that." She laughed, "How do you just happen to appear in my neighborhood. You do realize I am capable of driving my own vehicle, right?"

"Except you barely use it," he pointed out, stealing another fry.

"Well maybe I would if you gave me a chance to."

"Let's be realistic, Liv…" he said, holding his hand up to stop her protest, "You still wouldn't use that car even if I let you drive yourself. You're lucky you have me as your chauffer."

"I don't need you as my chauffer." She said is harsher then she intended, "…but I appreciate it, El."

"I know." They ate in silence for the rest of their meal; occasionally exchanging their opinions. They didn't talk about what they should have, but they were at least talking.

XxxxX

"Thank you," Olivia said just as they pulled up at the curb.

"No problem," Elliot smiled, glancing over at her; she remained in her seat, almost like she didn't want to leave yet. He felt like a teenager all over again, like the night should have ended with a shy, first kiss. Like they hadn't just been working on a rape case ten hours ago. Like the last, tense few months hadn't happened.

"Should I be expecting you tomorrow morning?"

"For once, no," Elliot grinned, at her question, "I need to meet one of Dickie's teachers. He wants me to drive all the way down to Newark…" Olivia nodded, pulled the lock up and pushed the door open, stepping out onto the sidewalk. "Let me walk you up."

"Uh sure," Olivia nodded, shutting the car door behind her as Elliot stepped out and around the car to her side. She wasn't used to this behavior from him, but it wasn't foreign to her either. Olivia ran her fingers down the doorbells, listening for the buzz. She didn't know who would actually be awake at this hour, but was thankful when she heard the sound of the door unlock.

Again, they remained in silence. The palm of his hand was itching to rest on the small of her back; thankfully, the stairwell and hallways weren't too long. They reached her doorstep just before he made a mistake. "Um, thank you again, El."

"You're welcome," he said softly, "See you tomorrow."

"Okay. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Liv." She quietly shut the door behind her and Elliot walked back out to the car; he drove home with a smile plastered to his face. For once he and Liv had a conversation that didn't end in one of them getting pissed off and the other yelling. For once, in a long, long time, they were actually happy to be in the same room together.

XxxxX

"Hey Liv," Fin greeted, handing her a Styrofoam cup as she made her way over to the coffee machine.

"Thanks," she replied, taking the cup and pouring the coffee into it; she grabbed four packets of sugar and dumped them in one by one, mixing it with a wooden popsicle stick from the tray by the side.

"Elliot didn't come in with you?"

"No, he's with his son…parent-teacher conference." Olivia answered, returning to her desk. So far, they hadn't been given a new case; she grabbed a pen from the top left draw and began working on the mountain of paperwork she had yet to start.

"Elliot's going down to New Jersey?"

"I guess so," Olivia replied, "Dickie really wanted him there."

"I don't ever remember going to any of Ken's." Fin said thoughtfully, "I can't tell if I missed out, or if it was a good thing I never was told about them."

"Well, judging from the pms-vibes Elliot gives off after most of them, I'd say you're pretty lucky," Olivia chuckled, scribbling away. Her eyes scanned over a hundred works per minute, trying her best to get it over with, but keep thorough. "But I think this time it was for something good. Otherwise, Dickie wouldn't have been so persistent with his father attending."

It was about two in the afternoon now, Olivia wasn't sure how long she had her head bent down at the papers, but Elliot had entered the precinct by the time she had finished half of the stack. She looked up just as he had sat down and she smiled briefly, "Hey."

"Hey," he smiled, throwing his jacket over the back of the chair.

"We have a lot of paperwork." Olivia said, handing him a few files she had already finished. Elliot groaned, taking the papers from her. Though she wouldn't admit it, his groan did things to her…there was nothing left for the imagination, that was for sure.

"Is Cragen making me rewrite the report?" Olivia shook her head.

"No, he didn't say anything about it," she replied.

"I'm starting to think his silence is scarier than actually yelling at us," Elliot said. Olivia laughed, nodding in agreement. "Want some coffee?"

"Uh…Fin beat you to it. But a refill would be nice?" Olivia said, handing her cup over to his outstretched hand. Elliot left his desk, heading over to the coffee machine; he made Olivia's first, how she usually took it, and then made his. When he returned, she had about a quarter of the stack to go.

"Couldn't wait for me, huh?" Elliot asked, placing the cup down by her keyboard, "Now I'm stuck doing all of my paperwork while you're almost done."

"Yeah, well I couldn't let it sit any longer. If it were possible, these papers would be growing mold by the time I actually got them done if I didn't do it now." She took a large sip from her coffee, thanking him for the refill. They got to work afterwards, falling into their own silence as the rest of the bullpen buzzed with phone calls, voices, and other sounds. Cragen had ordered for them to remain on desk duty until all of the paper work was done; Olivia had been given another stack, much to her dismay.

Elliot was about halfway through his at that point.

It had been a pretty slow day for them; they didn't like that Cragen had ordered it but they respected what he wanted done. And it was better to get it out of the way now than to let it grow and grow and grow until they could no longer see each other across their desks/ Many of the others had gone home, it was already eleven-thirty and they had once again found themselves in the deserted precinct.

Cragen had left hours ago; he had told them they could go home but they were determined to finish the majority of their piles before they left. The same sexual tension from before was there, but Elliot couldn't exactly tell her that.

"Hey Liv, if I asked you for a casual, quick fix would you hate me afterwards?"

Probably.

If she didn't, he would hate himself. But it was unlikely that she wouldn't not hate him. But he would be lying if he said he didn't want her. If he said he didn't dream about her warm, exposed body lying next to his when he woke up the next morning.

Hell, if there weren't cameras, he would take her on the desks right then and there, but he couldn't do that to her. This was Olivia he was thinking about, his partner of twelve-years. It took him some time, but when he really came to terms with his feelings for her, he realized he didn't want his marriage to last. And it was selfish, he had kids he should be going home to now and an ex-wife of twenty something years. It was all gone now, but it didn't hurt like it should have. He missed his family, he would always miss them, but he still got to see his kids; he still got to talk to them, he wasn't shutting anybody out. He wasn't even shutting Kathy out; he wasn't mad at her, he didn't hate her. Their relationship, despite the fighting, was never something he regretted. Kathy is still the beautiful woman he'll always love, he's just no longer in love with her. They could be civil for the kids, but it was strictly that now.

"El?" Olivia's voice broke him from his stupor. He glanced up, his eyes meeting hers; he almost fell into another stupor, but did his best to focus this time, "You were distracted again."

"Sorry, just a loud mind." He dismissed, rubbing his chin absentmindedly as he spoke.

"Anything you want to talk about?" She offered, resting her chin on her folded hands.

"Uh, not really…no," Elliot said slowly, "mostly thinking about my kids…"

"Oh yeah? You love talking about them though…how was Dickie's parent-teacher conference?"

"It was a lot better than I expected. He mentioned Dickie's grades have seemed to improve better there so I couldn't be more proud of him." Elliot answered, smiling more to himself. Olivia couldn't help the swell of affection in her chest at his words; she knew how much Dickie meant to Elliot. Dickie was practically a miniature version of him.

"That's great, Elliot." She'd watched him grow up to be almost exactly like his father; almost a spitting image, right down to the anger problems. She stood up after a moment and made her way to Cragen's office so she could drop of the recently finished paperwork. She heard the door close behind her, and turned around to see Elliot leaning back against the wall with his arms across his chest, "What are you doing?" Her heart sped up slightly; it wasn't likely he was going to try anything funny, she knew him better than that.

He actually looked sexy up against the wall like that, but she wouldn't admit that outright, "Suppose I were to try something?" Elliot asked; he was feeling brave again; whether he was suddenly a hormonal teenager again, or his adrenaline was at an all-time high, he couldn't decide.

"That would depend on what it was…" Olivia said.

"So you're not saying no?"

"Well I'm not saying yes." He smirked at her answer; it was definitely like her to rebut his response.

"What if it were to benefit us both, and fix our issue?"

"We have an issue?" He rolled his eyes.

"Don't give me that crap, Liv. You know as well as I do that we've both been too tense for our own good lately." Elliot said, pushing off the wall. He walked over to her and stopped just a few feet in front of her. Olivia instinctively backed up, the back of her thighs hit Cragen's desk and she braced it with white knuckles. She wasn't really afraid…more of aroused, but that was probably her body's stupidest reaction these last two days.

"What are you implying Stabler?" She asked. She knew this game…it would be fun to mess with him, "…that we do it?" She watched his mask fall for a fraction of a second before he composed himself and cleared his throat. "I guess it would benefit us…but would it really be worth it to risk everything?" She had dropped her voice an octave lower, looking for a response. She was satisfied when a hungry look came into his eyes.

Olivia took a few steps closer, her face just a few inches from his, "Not so tough are you now?" She smirked, leaning in more; her lips just barely grazed his, and she watched his eyes flutter close. She moved even closer, her top lip grazing his bottom one; it was enough to elicit a moan from her, but she bit it back. There were sparks dancing behind her eyelids, she was about ready to pull away and leave him there when his arms gripped her shoulders and he pulled her forward. His lips crashed down onto hers, hard. She let out a whimper, but kissed him back.

Why was she doing this? Why now? It was so sudden! She wanted this, of course she wanted this. But her body betrayed her so quickly. His tongue was practically begging for an entrance, but she refused to give him that satisfaction.

"Olivia…" he growled, "Open up…" she let out a 'no' against his lips and he became frustrated with her stubbornness. He placed his fingers under her chin and trailed them back across her skin; she let out another whimper and Elliot took advantage of it. His tongue met hers, enjoying every inch of her mouth he could reach.

"Damn you," she rasped out, just as he pulled her bottom lip between his teeth and sucked. It was a horrible way to lose…she was so ready to leave him wanting more, and yet he had turned the tables.

After a long moment, Elliot released her and pressed a short kiss on her swollen lips, "Nice try…but I was kissing you tonight." With that, he left the office with a smug expression and a shocked Olivia behind him. She glanced around the office, immediately feeling guilty. Not guilty for what happened, but guilty that it happened in their boss' office.

She wouldn't be able to walk in here and not think about it now.

"Damn you, Stabler…"

A/N: Soooo? What do you guys think? Feedback is appreciated :)