Olivia sat at her desk contemplating what to do. Her knee bouncing up and down could attest to the state of her nerves. Her chin was resting in her right hand and as she began to bite her fingernails on that same hand, she realized she was being ridiculous.

"I'm a grown woman. I can do this. I've done this before…sort of."

Dialing the number Casey had given her earlier in the day, Olivia tried to calm her jittery nerves.

"Southerlyn," came the curt and professional reply.

"ADA Southerlyn, hi. This is Detective Benson…Olivia. Casey introduced us the other day outside of the courthouse after I testified in Ridenour's courtroom."

"Oh right. Hello Detective," the young ADA said in a forced professional tone. I know exactly who you are, Serena thought as she laughed to herself at the memory of 'girls' night' last weekend.

"I hope you don't mind, I got your number from Casey."

"Of course I don't mind at all. What can I do for you?" Serena asked curiously.

"Well, umm, I was wondering what your plans were for dinner tonight," Olivia said nervously.

"Are you asking me out on a date, Detective?" Serena asked, slightly taken aback and very very flattered.

"Uh I was, but it doesn't have to be if you don't want it to be. I mean, we have a lot of mutual friends, so it'd be nice to finally get to know you," Olivia said quickly.

Aww, she's nervous. That's so adorable. "Sure, Detective, I'd love to join you for dinner, but I can't tonight. I'll be stuck at the office. How about tomorrow night?"

"Tomorrow's great. But under one condition," Olivia replied.

"Oh? What's that, Detective?" Serena asked.

"You call me Olivia," said a giddy detective.

"As long as you call me Serena," the attorney quipped.

"Deal," Olivia laughed. "So I'll swing by your office around 6 tomorrow night?" Olivia said hopefully.

"Six? Okay. It's a date," Serena said as she smiled into the phone.

As Serena hung up the phone, she couldn't help but laugh out loud at the ridiculousness of the situation. She had just made a date with a known 'womanizer with a thing for ADAs'.

Allowing herself a brief moment of celebration, Olivia yelled 'YES!' in her mind. Soon though, a moment of doubt passed through Olivia's usually confident psyche. What have I gotten myself into?

Picking up her phone again, Olivia dialed an old friend's new number.

"Alexandra Cabot, Bureau Chief," Alex answered.

"Hey Alex, how's the new digs?" Olivia asked.

"Olivia hi! Good thanks. It's a bit of an adjustment from SVU though," Alex replied happily.

"Good. I'm glad things are going well for you," Olivia said earnestly.

"Thanks, Liv. So is this a social call or was there something I could help you with?" Alex asked.

"Actually, I need a favor," Olivia said nervously.

"Sure. Whatever I can help with," Alex reassured.

"You're friends with Serena Southerlyn, right?"

"She's been my best friend ever since college. Why?"

"Well I kinda sorta just asked her out on a date and now I'm panicking. You gotta help me, Alex. What are her interest...her hobbies? What do we talk about? Do you think she'll like me?" Olivia nervously rambled.

"Olivia, calm down. Why don't you swing by my office in 20 minutes and we can talk then?" Alex said as she chuckled at her friend's uncharacteristic behavior.

"Can't, sorry. Casey needs to recall me as a witness for the case she's trying right now. I'm scheduled to appear in half an hour. Can I meet you for lunch instead?"

"Actually, I'm supposed to meet with Casey and Abbie for lunch."

"Oh." Olivia sounded dejected.

"You know what, why don't you head over to the restaurant with Casey after court lets out? I'm sure Casey won't mind and Abbie's been complaining that it's been forever since she's seen you last. Besides, they know Serena pretty well too. They could offer more input," Alex said.

"Okay sure. That sounds great. Thanks, Alex. I'll see you later."

After court was declared in recess for lunch

"Hey Case, are you ready for lunch?" Olivia asked as she placed her hand at the small of Casey's back to guide her out of the courtroom.

"Yep. All set," Casey smiled.

Trevor Langan, opposing counsel for the case that they were currently in court for, couldn't help but overhear Olivia's question as he stood merely 3 feet away from the two women. How does she do it? Langan wondered about the stunning detective.

Olivia gallantly held the gate open for Casey to exit, and let it slam shut just as Langan was about to take a step through.

"Should we get a cab?" Olivia asked.

"No need. We're meeting Alex and Abbie just around the corner. We've all been to your cop bar, now it's time for you to check out our lawyer hang out," Casey replied happily.

"Oh, okay," Olivia said with a laugh.

Entering the restaurant, they spotted Alex and Abbie immediately and moved to join them.

"Hello Counselors," Olivia greeted merrily as she pulled a chair out for Casey.

"Hi, Liv," Alex replied.

"Hey Butch," drawled Abbie.

"It's been a long time Tex," Olivia address Abbie.

"Too long. Take a load off," Abbie said gesturing towards the last open seat at the table.

After the women placed their orders, they exchanged pleasantries and caught up for a bit.

"So, Ladies," Alex addressed the group as a whole. "Olivia here seems to have found herself in a bind and she needs our help," Alex stated with all the seriousness she could muster.

Casey's concerned expression turned to amusement when she noticed that Olivia was blushing and Abbie was snickering. "Am I missing some key piece of evidence here?"

Abbie spoke up, "Turns out the big bad tough detective asked Southerlyn out and now she's shakin' in her boots."

Glaring at the group of attorneys, Olivia whined, "this isn't funny, come on."

"Okay, Abbie. Lay off her. You must admit, Serena's a bit…different… from the women Olivia usually dates," Alex said, referring to Olivia's tendency to date waitresses and bartenders who fawn all over her. "Serena's not really the type Olivia usually goes for."

"Not according to Langan," Abbie muttered under her breath to Casey.

Barely able to stifle a giggle, Casey asked, "so what were you planning to do on your date?"

"Well, dinner of course, and maybe a movie or something. I'm not sure. What does she like?" Olivia responded as the waitress set their plates down in front of them.

"Dinner where Olivia?" Alex asked.

"I made reservations at Vong's on East 54th at 6:45."

"Great, she's been itching to go there," Abbie said.

Olivia smiled at their approval. "So what about after dinner?"

"You should take her to a show or something," Casey suggested. "She likes those fancy but not uptight and pretentious things."

"That'd be a good idea, Case, but it's too late for her to get tickets now," Abbie rationalized.

"Well, I've got two tickets I can't use… and I was going to take Serena anyway," Alex spoke up.

"Really?" Olivia asked.

"Yes really. You should take the tickets and show her a nice night out on the town," Alex said sincerely.

"Hey!" Casey objected.

"Why were you gonna take her and not us?" Abbie bellowed.

"Yea!" Casey yelled again.

Smiling politely, Alex answered, "Oh quiet down you two. You know Serena and I have the same taste in those shows Abbie refers to as 'fancy schmancy boring whatchamawhosits'." Alex smiled at their admissions and added for Olivia's benefit, "it's a by-product of the way we were raised. I swear our mothers were separated at birth."

"Oh, I see. So she comes from old money?" Olivia asked nervously.

"Yes, but not to worry Olivia, she's very humble," Alex assured.

"Yea, she's gotta be pretty down to earth if she's willing to seen in public with this one here," Casey offered as she pointed to Abbie.

"Careful where you point your finger Novak, you're not exactly bourgeois either. I remember seeing you wait tables in college. Besides, with all this fancy shiny silverware around, you never know when an accident may happen," Abbie teased playfully as she held her knife up and pointed it at Casey.

"Alright alright calm down. I'd hate to have to arrest someone for…," Olivia started to say amusedly, but she was rudely interrupted.

"Novak! You're secretary said I could find you here," Trevor Langan said, not bothering to acknowledge the individuals with whom she was dining.

"And clearly I need to find a better secretary," Casey answered, not bothering to hide her exasperation.

"On second thought, maybe arresting someone right now wouldn't be such a bad idea," Olivia griped to the other women seated at the table.

Trevor Langan visibly jumped at the sound of Olivia's voice.

Abbie and Alex had to pinch themselves to prevent themselves from fully cracking up at the expression on Langan's face.

"You're here…with them…all of them…together…" Trevor said disbelievingly.

"My my you are observant Langan." Olivia's words were laced with sarcasm and disdain.

"But…but…how...you…," Trevor attempted to form a question.

"What do you want from me Langan?" Casey interrupted. "You said you were looking for me."

Brought out of his stupor by Casey's angry tone, Trevor straightened himself out and cleared his throat. "Yes, we're needed in judge's chambers immediately," he informed.

Groaning, Casey got up from the table while glaring at the annoying slimeball. Smiling sweetly at Alex and Abbie, Casey confirmed plans for this week's girl's night.

Suddenly, an evil smirk crossed Casey's face as she remembered their last girl's night. Turning slightly to ensure Trevor was watching, Casey bent down and placed a small kiss on Olivia's cheek as the detective blushed.

Turning around to face Trevor, Casey started to leave, but decided to have a little more fun. Turning her head slightly, Casey called out over her shoulder, "Have fun on your date with Serena tomorrow night, Liv. I want to hear all about it!" And with that, Casey walked out of the restaurant triumphantly, with Trevor Langan following her slack-jawed and dumbfounded. That woman has got to be the luckiest woman alive, Trevor thought.

After they were out of earshot, Alex and Abbie burst out laughing until tears threatened to fall.

"What was that about?" asked a very confused detective.