A/N: Thanks again for all of the amazingly encouraging reviews and comments! You guys are awesome! One more chapter after this...
Elliot awkwardly shifted in his seat as he cleared his throat and clipped his phone back on to his leather belt. "Trainor says hello."
Olivia looked up to give him a brief, tight lipped smile before getting back to her files.
Rubbing at his temple, Elliot sighed and then leaned forward, speaking quietly. "Look, Liv-"
She looked at him with eyes devoid of emotion as she interrupted, trying to sound indifferent. "Hey, we had an agreement. This is not a big deal. Have fun on your date." She nodded her head once as if to convince both herself and Elliot that her statements were genuine, then pushed herself up off of her chair and walked down the hallway.
Elliot stared after her, interpreting her behavior and words as incongruent, as her figure disappeared into the ladies room. If there was one thing he was sure of, it was his partner's body language…and she was most certainly not okay with his having a date.
He closed his eyes and laced his fingers behind his head as he leaned back in his chair. Should he cancel his date? No, he shouldn't, he thought. Olivia and he had an arrangement. A one night deal, both knowing it couldn't lead anywhere, neither wanting to sacrifice their partnership for the risk of a possible relationship.
But was the partnership going to suffer regardless now?
Glancing down the hallway again, Elliot thought about how he would feel if the situation were in reverse and knew instantly that he would struggle with even the thought of Olivia now dating someone else. Kissing someone else. Touching someone else.
Loving someone else.
This was bad.
Taking a deep breath, he shook himself from his train of thought and decided instead to focus on the reasons why he and Olivia would never work. Their amazing thirteen year partnership was first on his list; losing that would crush him. Knowing he would have to trust someone else to have her back the same way he did would be more difficult to cope with than he could fathom at the moment. Sure, they'd worked with other partners before, but never for too long.
Second on his list of why they wouldn't work, was the fact that they were both too aggressive, forward, and outspoken…especially with each other. They would probably argue constantly. Though, the other side of that argument was that those same qualities translated in to passion, a deep connection, and incredible sex.
As he continued to struggle with his thoughts, Olivia reappeared from down the hall and when his body reacted immediately to her presence, he knew, just knew that no matter how hard they tried, things would never be the same between them again.
Elliot decided right then that he would go on the date with Jenna, but only to shut up Sean and not be rude to his friend's cousin. What he really wanted though, was to talk to Olivia and see if she was feeling the same strong pull to further explore whatever was now going on between them.
He just hoped he hadn't just blown his chance.
{EO}
Elliot not so discreetly glanced at his wristwatch for the third time in the past hour as his date rambled on animatedly about her "horrible" ex-husband and how difficult it was to meet a decent man these days. He pinched the bridge of his nose when Jenna proceeded to shovel large forkfuls of pasta into her mouth as she spoke, seemingly without pausing to take a breath.
He was going to fucking kill Sean.
"So, enough about my divorce, Elliot, why don't you tell me more about yourself?" Jenna smiled at him around a mouthful of linguini as he tried to keep down his dinner.
Elliot blinked, surprised that she had actually asked him an open ended question. "Um, well, you already know I'm a detective with the SVU in Manhattan. I've been divorced a few months now and I have five kids. Uh…what else would you like to know?" He furrowed his brow and prepared himself for whatever she would ask next. He wasn't used to talking about himself on a personal level with anyone except for his family and Olivia.
Olivia.
He wondered what she was doing at that very moment. She had been curt with him ever since his phone call with Sean, only speaking to him when it had to do with work, but he did notice her watching him just a little bit closer than usual as they went about their day. He hoped that meant that she'd come around eventually.
Elliot peeked at his watch once again as the waiter came to their intimate corner table to check on how they were enjoying their meal. They hadn't even been there all that long, but all he wanted to do was talk to Olivia.
Sure, Jenna was attractive physically, but that was where his interest in her ended. But wasn't that all he'd wanted? Wasn't that all he'd hoped to get out of sleeping with Olivia? Some fun and companionship without any responsibly? Why was it that suddenly that was no longer enough?
"…about your job then?"
"Wha?"
"Elliot, are you even listening to me?" Jenna put down her fork and tilted her head, expecting an explanation.
"Jenna, I'm sorry, will you excuse me for a moment. I need to use the men's room." Ignoring the look of confusion and irritation on her face, Elliot pushed his chair away from the table and made his way to the back of the restaurant.
Once he was in the restroom, he took out his phone and looked at it, almost expecting it to tell him what to do. Should he call Olivia? He knew he should probably wait until the date was over but he couldn't seem to help himself.
She answered on the second ring and his heart jumped in his chest.
"El, did we catch a case?"
Suddenly, it felt as though he had sandpaper in his throat. "No, I just wanted to see what you were doing in about an hour…"
"What I'm- Aren't you on your date now, Elliot?"
"Well, yes, but-"
"Are you kidding me? I'm trying to be okay with all of this, but calling me while you're out with another woman is just a bit much…"
"Liv, hold on. I need to talk to you. Can I come over in a bit? It's kind of important."
"I'm not going to be that person. It was just one night, Elliot, okay? Go fuck your date or something and leave me out of it."
All he heard then was a dial tone and her angry words reverberating in his head. God, he'd really fucked up and hurt her by going on this date, but he would make things right soon enough.
Inhaling a deep breath, he walked back to the table and rolled his eyes as Jenna mindlessly picked at her teeth with toothpick.
"Everything come out okay?" Jenna laughed loudly at her own attempt at humor as Elliot groaned and reached into his wallet for some cash.
"I just got a call from the station and we've caught a case. I'm really sorry to do this to you, Jenna, but I have to go now." He threw down more than enough money to cover their dinner and the tip and hazarded a glance at Jenna who was pouting exaggeratedly.
"Aww, well, that's a shame. We were having such a good time too."
Almost choking on his saliva, Elliot nodded noncommittally. "It was…nice meeting you and again, I'm really sorry." He leaned down to give her a quick kiss on the cheek when Jenna grabbed his face and planted a hard kiss on his lips instead. Sputtering for air, Elliot pried himself from her grip and felt his cheeks flush. "Okay then, have a good night, Jenna."
"Elliot, wait…you don't have my number."
"Oh, I think I do," he muttered under his breath. Then loud enough for her to hear, he said, "I'll get it from Sean, gotta run." As he walked out into the cool night air, he made a mental note to kick his friend's ass.
He would deal with Sean later though. Now, he needed to deal with Olivia.
{EO}
Olivia turned the page of the novel she was reading and stared down at the words. Words that held no meaning to her at the moment, seeing as her mind was somewhere else. Where the hell did Elliot get off calling her during his date? Was he trying to rub it in her face? And what could possibly be so important that he wanted to come over after his date? If he thought he was getting sex, he was sorely mistaken.
She sighed as she placed the book aside on the couch and headed into her bedroom. She knew Elliot wasn't that type of man, but she couldn't help but feel used. She guessed they had both started out using each other in a way the other night, but then something had changed, at least for her, and now it felt different. She was obviously falling hard for Elliot and she thought he'd felt it too.
Changing into a pair of navy blue, cotton shorts and a fitted grey tank, she decided to fix herself a snack and then read in bed. As she padded to the kitchen, she heard a knock on her door.
She knew it was him.
"Damn it, Elliot," she said with exasperation as she unlocked the deadbolt and swung open the door.
"Hello to you too," he retorted with a raised eyebrow.
Olivia stood with her arms crossed over her chest wanting to smack the smirk right off of his face. Her cheeks burned as she felt the heat from his gaze dragging down her body, making her feel naked.
"Fuck, Liv," he grated as he entered the apartment, slamming the door behind him with his foot then lifting her by the backs of her thighs. He spun her around and pinned her against the door roughly before his mouth descended on her.
She squirmed a bit against him, trying to break the kiss, but he was relentless and within seconds she found herself yielding to him. She hated to admit it, but he just felt so right against her body and with his mouth one with her own. "Mmm." She sighed into his mouth as his tongue continued to tangle with hers. The blood raced through her veins as Elliot broke the kiss to suck and nip at her neck.
"Shouldn't you be with your date?" The question came out as a breathless moan.
He answered her between kisses as he cupped her face in his hands. "Don't wanna be with her. Want to be with you…"
Olivia grabbed him by the nape of this neck and pulled his head back up to look at her. "El, we really should talk about this."
Elliot exhaled sharply and tried to calm himself down. He groaned as she slid over his erection, placing her feet back on the ground. "I know, you're right."
"I'm sorry, can you say that again. I'm what?" Her lips curled into a smile as she teased him.
"I'm not saying it again," he chuckled as he skimmed his hands down her arms to interlock with hers.
Squeezing his hands, she rolled her eyes and bit her bottom lip. "We have some major things to figure out now, don't we?"
He nodded and pulled her toward the loveseat.
"Why don't we start by you telling me about your date…"
"Shut up, Liv." He groaned playfully as he sat on the couch and pulled her onto his lap.