Law and Order: SVU is the intellectual property of Dick Wolf. The use of the characters, settings, and plotlines is not malicious. This is a work of fiction.

"Home sweet home," Olivia said as she pushed the front door open, biting her lip nervously as she looked around the living room. Her mind raced as she dropped Elliot's hospital duffel to the floor, hoping the kids managed to take down every single picture that had Kathy in it and remembered to put up ones that included her, hoping that her friends managed to get a good chunk of her clothes here, hoping Elliot's brother did everything on the to-do list she'd given him, and hoping she wouldn't go straight to Hell for not feeling one shred of guilt over living this lie for Elliot's sake. She turned, hearing a throat clear.

Nathan, Elliot's older brother, had come out of a side room. With a small smile, he looked at Olivia with a resolute nod, and said, "I gotta go, now that you're back, but, uh, everything...everything's good, here." It was his way of telling her everything he needed to do had been done. He slapped his brother on the back as he made his way to the still-open door. "Good to see you in one piece, asshole."

"It'll take more than a knock to the head to do me in, you dick," Elliot said, and he watched his brother leave. He took a deep breath, sighed happily, and pulled Olivia into his arms, kicking the door closed. "Kids?" he yelled loudly, and then his lips dropped to Olivia's neck.

Unable to help it, she moaned, softly, his name.

He mumbled something against her skin, something that made her moan again, and he chuckled almost evilly. His hands slipped around her waist, toying with her belt as he walked her further into the living room. "Hey! Kids! Where the hell are you?"

Like trampling elephants, the four young Stablers ran down the stairs, their faces bright and covered in relief as their eyes landed on their father. Each little body wrapped itself around him, squeezing. Their voices welcomed him home with cheerful, "Thank goodness"s and "I love you, Daddy"s. They turned, partly because they knew they had to and partly because they truly wanted to, and pulled Olivia into a tight group hug.

Maureen, the oldest, looked up at her with a shit-eating grin and said, "We cleaned, Mom." She exaggerated the last word on purpose, laughing again. She had been the one to take Olivia's frantic phone call, and to her, it was hysterical. She'd told Olivia it all made perfect sense, and she'd get the other kids to play along, as long as it helped their dad.

Olivia looked down at Maureen, arms still wrapped around her, and raised one brow. "Huh? You what?" She tried to suppress the nausea that arose from being called mom.

Maureen winked at her and told her, "We reorganized the closet in your room, moved some furniture, and vacuumed the rug…" the eleven year old explained away the slight differences in the bedroom caused by moving Kathy out and Olivia in on short notice and borrowed time.

"We ordered pizza, too," Dickie chirped, his seven year old body blasting back into his father's.

Laughing, Elliot lifted him up, swung him around, and growl-kissed him before he tossed him up in the air and caught him.

Looking on, Olivia smiled, her arms now wrapped around Kathleen, Elliot's middle daughter. This was her favorite part of him; the daddy. She watched as he made his son fly like Superman, spinning him over his head, and dropped him to his feet.

He looked over, then, and his heart swelled at the expression on Olivia's face. Something in him broke and fixed itself. He moved and kissed each child on the forehead, and then his eyes darkened, narrowed as they landed on Olivia's. His smile turned into a sultry smirk and he cupped her face, inching slowly toward her.

Her heart stopped, her breath hitched, every muscle in her body tightened, and when his lips pressed to hers, she felt as though death was claiming her soul through Elliot's warm, sweet mouth. Her arms fell away from Kathleen and, although she tried to fight against it, they wound around his neck. Her fingers filtered through his short hair, her heart drumming again, a heavy and hard beat against her chest.

"Um…" Maureen stammered, stunned. This wasn't what she thought Olivia had in mind. "Guys? Dad? Li...Mom?"

Lizzie, Dickie's twin sister, rolled her eyes and walked over to the kissing couple, squeezed her little body between them, and pushed her father away from Olivia. She looked up at her dad, her little blue eyes almost annoyed. She wagged a finger at him, put her other hand on her hip and pouted, trying to seem authoritative. "Not in front of the children," she scolded, parroting what had been Elliot's excuse to avoid Kathy's advances. "Duh, Daddy."

"Right," he laughed, licking his lips. "Sorry." He bent over and kissed her forehead. "Go upstairs and play, Sweetpea."

"Kay," Lizzie spouted, running off and up the steps.

"All of you," he said, shooing the rest of the kids. "If you have homework, get it done. We'll call you when the pizza gets here."

Olivia and Kathleen shared an equally terrified look, suddenly worried that they couldn't pull this off, and something would happen. Katie closed her eyes and nodded, whispering, "It's okay, Liv, we...we have to do this, don't we? We...we all love you for it. Thank you." She turned her head and raised her volume. "We're really glad you're home, Dad. And that you're…" she swallowed, knowing the truth. "That you're okay."

"I'm fine, Princess," he said to her, smiling. "I promise." He watched her run up the stairs after his other kids, and then he turned to Olivia, reaching for her. He tugged her into him as he let himself fall onto the couch, and he pulled her up, onto him, into his lap. "Alone at last," he said with bouncing eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes, but she smiled, and again, hating herself for it, she made herself comfortable, surprised at how perfectly she fit against him. "I love watching you with them," she told him, brushing his hair back with one hand, the other curled around his shoulders.

He kissed her sweetly. "You and the kids, baby, are my entire world," he whispered to her. "They cleaned? Really? They never do that, which…" he squinted. "What did you tell them?"

"Just...that you hit your head, you might be a little disoriented," she shrugged, leaving out the part where she calmly explained his memory loss, what he really believed now, and that they had to turn the house and their world upside down so she could play house with them until the truth came back. "I, uh, told them to move anything you might...trip over."

"I know you don't believe it, I know you're worried," he started with a sigh, "But I am...fine. Honey, I remember every fucking detail of my life...our life. Go ahead, ask me anything." He leaned back, grinning cockily, his hands smoothing up and down her legs, from ankle to thigh and back again.

After a deep breath, she spotted one of the newly framed and positioned photographs on the wall. It was a staged wedding photo of them, part of an undercover op, that someone in Computer Crimes had quickly doctored to make them appear younger. The guy had altered the dress slightly, making it seem like something a pregnant teenager would wear, just in case Elliot did, in fact, remember everything else but who he'd married back then. Her chest throbbed with hurt, because it wasn't real, none of this was real. "Tell me…" she paused and took another shallow breath, trying not to cry. "Tell me how you proposed." Her eyes darted from the photo to his eyes.

"We were on a dock, watching a couple boats coming in, and…" he saw something register in her eyes, his smile widened, his hands crept further up her thighs. "The sun was setting, the sky was this...beautiful cotton-candy mix of color, someone behind us made some crack about your ass, and you...you thought I was going to hit him, but I just calmly told him to watch what he said about my pregnant wife."

A hand shot to Olivia's mouth, her eyes filling with tears. This happened, she remembered it, the guy behind them was Cassidy. They were about to go under, and she'd just been told she had to feign pregnancy to lure their perp into the trap they'd be setting. Cassidy was hitting on her, Elliot did what he always did, only kept it in character. A tear rolled down her cheek as the memory faded. She'd only asked him this question hoping it would spark something, because he never did propose to Kathy. Their marriage was one of necessity, orchestrated by Catholic parents for religious atonement. She was not expecting him to tell her this story.

Elliot moved his head, his nose brushing against hers, his hands slipping between her legs. "You looked at me like you were ready to kill me, and you told me I couldn't call you my wife yet, and then I pulled a ring out of my pocket...no box, no flash...held it out to you and said…"

"Why the hell not?" she breathed, remembering the moment. It was, what she assumed was a joke, a playful moment before they had to lay themselves in the path of a serial killer. The ring he'd given her was the one she was expected to wear, along with a silver band, part of their cover. "You really…"

"I swear, I know we were young, and I know we were...in a situation we...couldn't get out of," he told her, his lips moving against hers as he spoke, his hands now rubbing against her clothed heat. "But I wanted you then, I want you now. Nothing has ever felt more right, and marrying you...was the best decision I could have made. You…" he blinked, his eyes welling up, his voice breaking. "You made me the fucking happiest, luckiest son-of-a-bitch in the world." He kissed her hard, fighting to pry her mouth open, but when he did, he saw shooting stars behind his eyelids. It felt like Heaven.

She gasped and moaned, internal protests battling her selfish streak, and then, her resolve gave out. She sunk into him, kissing him back with everything she had. As she kissed him, she whimpered, wondering why he remembered all of the details so perfectly, but why he thought it had happened eleven years ago, while she was supposedly carrying his child. Why had his brain blended their partnership and his marriage so seamlessly? She pulled her head away, her eyes still shut, and she pressed her burning lips together. "God, El," she breathed.

He kissed her nose, her cheeks, her chin, and then he said, "This is fun. Ask me something else?"

"Oh, God," she moaned, dropping her head forward to his shoulder, as she felt him pressing his fingers harder against her. She knew he could feel heat, wetness forming and seeping through her jeans, and she knew that, in his current state, that's exactly what he wanted. "Elliot...you should...the kids are…"

"Ask me," he interrupted, pushing his thumb into her a bit harder and dragging it upward, knowing he had rubbed the denim against her clit. He groaned when she bucked into his hand, and he turned his head to look into her eyes.

There was a fire in them she'd seen before, after rough interrogations or during one of their volatile fights, moments where she knew if either of them had made the move they'd end up in bed, or up against the wall. Maybe Kathy had been right, after all. Maybe Elliot was in love with her, and that's why his brain retreated to its present place. She rocked against him again, willingly fanning the flame, knowing what he was waiting for, what he wanted to do. "God, Elliot," she moaned, heat building as his hand moved against her, over her jeans but hitting somewhere deep.

"Ask me," he whispered against her lips, and then he swiped his tongue along her parted mouth.

"When...when did you…" she pressed her lips together to keep from moaning too loudly. "When did you know...you were in love with me?" The question left on a breath before she could talk herself out of asking it.

His lips crushed hers, then, moving his hand faster, pressing harder, keeping her settled against him on his lap as his tongue explored and dominated. His mouth caught her moans as she came, and he promised himself that, as soon as the kids went to bed, he'd make it happen again, in a few other ways. "Fuck," he panted as she bucked her hips and cried his name. He watched her eyes roll, her head drop, her hair fall in front of her face, a drugged daze wash over her, and he groaned, the need for his own release now greater than it had ever been.

When she calmed, her breathing coming in longer spurts, her head righting itself, he answered her. "The moment I looked into your eyes, I knew. The first time, Liv. You had all of me from...from the moment we met."

Her pounding heart hammered against her chest, making it ache, and as she looked into his eyes, she knew he was telling the truth. She could always tell when he was lying, and he was more sincere than she could ever recall. She rested her forehead against his, staying still against him, as she tried to redirect her senses. Reality hit her, hard, and she let out an almost desperate sob.

She finally had him, in the ways she prayed for, and there was no way she would survive giving him up when the memories came back.

He lowered his head and captured her lips in another tender kiss, whispering, "I love you."

"God, I love you," she returned just as softly, her lips stinging with the pinpricks of truth left by his worshipping mouth. "You, uh, you sure you remember...everything?"

He nodded, moving in for another kiss. "First kiss," he said, "First...first time," he chuckled. "The first time we held each of the kids, how you looked up at me with that...exhausted smile, and we…" he choked on the words, more emotion building. "I remember, baby."

She nodded, smiling through the pain as she thought Well, shit, I wish I did. She moved her hands up his arms and around his neck and she was about to solidify her soul's eternal damnation by kissing him again when the doorbell rang.

"Shit," he spat, but he kept her wrapped around him as he stood, his strong arms holding her up. He walked with her, legs locked around his waist, and he turned his head and yelled, "Pizza's here!" He carried her toward the door and pulled it open. He nodded at the surprised looking teenager, taking the two pies in one hand, the other tightening his grip on Olivia. He said, "Thanks," and then grinned at Olivia. "You, uh...can you get my wallet?" He kissed the end of her nose. "My hands are kinda full."

She laughed and shoved her hand into his pocket, wrapping her fingers around the leather billfold. She flipped it open, handed the delivery guy two twenty dollar bills, and then moved to put his wallet back, when something stopped her. She looked down, and the pictures in his wallet took her by surprise. His kids most recent school pictures, of course, were each nestled in the plastic sleeves, but the first and last photos in the bunch were of them. Together. One, taken at some stupid precinct picnic, her standing behind him as he sat on a bench, her arms around his neck, bright, wide smiles on their faces. Another, taken during a press junket, in their suits, arms crossed, looking at each other with seductive smirks on their faces.

She felt her feet hit the floor before she even realized he was putting her down, and she blinked herself out of her haze and closed his wallet, handing it to him. Without saying anything, she leaned in and kissed him, gently, on the chin. Loving him came so easy to her, and it only made her certain that losing him would be the hardest thing she ever did.

"Hey," he whispered, pulling her away from the table now filled with pizza and kids. "That's never going to happen, okay? I told you...I'm fine." His eyes searched hers, trying to will her to believe him.

She squinted and then it hit her. She'd said that outloud. "Oh, I was just…" she shook her head. "Let's eat, huh?"

He watched her walk away, stared at her as she doled out pizza to the youngest kids, blowing on each slice to cool it before setting it down on thiet paper plates. He smiled and, as he moved to take his seat at the table, swore to himself he would squelch her fears, once and for all.

Peace and Love

Jo