Immediate Danger

(Chapter Nine: Family)

Things had been much better between them the past few weeks. Olivia had settled back into her old life and she and Elliot had managed to close several cases, strengthening their track record. Live had noticed a new balance that seemed to center in Elliot now. He had adapted much better than she had expected to being away from his children so much. Though Elliot had always worked long hours with no particular schedule he had always made certain he made time for his family. In Olivia's eyes Elliot was an amazing father and husband. He was always truthful to Kathy and although he was away from her a lot he gave her no reason to worry of infidelity, Elliot was a one woman at a time kind of man. Olivia had seen watched him sometimes with his children how tender and loving he was with them, always showering them with hugs and telling them how much he loved them. Even through the trying times of teenage mistakes, Elliot tried hard to keep communication with them and be understanding. Infact, it was watching him with his children that had made her wonder what kind of mother she would make.

Olivia had never really thought that much of starting a family until recently. After witnessing Eli's birth in the back of an Ambulance on the way to the hospital after a car accident, Liv had found a new curiosity for babies. This miraculous opportunity in her life had sparked a longing she would have previously thought alien to her, she had realized her own strong desire to become a mother. And though she tried hard to ignore these feelings in hope they would retreat, she was having no such luck.

Infact these thoughts had somehow managed to seep into her dreams and subconscious leaving Liv with an unconquered feeling of emptiness. She would often catch herself watching mothers out in public with their young children and her mind would wonder away to a world where everything was fair and just. In this fantasy world Liv would have found her perfect soul mate, possibly a handsome doctor or a successful lawyer. She would have given up her career a couple of years earlier when they married to help make their home. And by now she would probably be pregnant with second of three children. Three, she wondered. Why that seemed the perfect number she was not quite certain, but in the dreams she always seemed to have three children. Two boys and a girl, she thought to herself. And a handsome successful husband, a perfect family.

Olivia glanced down into the coffee cup sitting on the edge of her desk, then raised it toward her face to smell the black liquid she had filled it with hours earlier to decide if it was salvageable.

"Are you still here?" She asked Elliot as she poured the stale coffee down the drain and poured a fresh cup. "I thought this was your weekend with the kids?"

"It is…. I'm running a little late, but I am almost out of here," he replied as he re-stacked the files on his desk neatly and grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair.

"Benson and Stabler, it seems our suspect in the Theresa Tulley case has returned home from his business trip. I would like you to get him in here for questioning now," Cragen scalded handing a yellow sticky note to Olivia.

"So much for getting out of here at a decent hour," Elliot said as he tossed placed the jacket in his hand back over his chair.

"No, Elliot, I can get this. You go. You have not had the kids in three weeks," Olivia knew how much Elliot's time with his children meant to him and how it broke his heart not to get to see them more often then he did.

"I'll go with her, El," Fin said as he grabbed the keys from his pocket. "You go get your time with your kids, before they get too old to spend quality time with dear old dad.

Elliot laughed at that and gathered his things to leave once again. "Okay," he said looking at Olivia, but I want a full report later."

Olivia nodded her head in agreement. Then she and Fin set out to find Darryl Handler, a man suspected of raping his girlfriends fourteen year old sister. A fact only complicated by a complete lack of physical evidence. This was going to be a tough case, but one she was sure they would solve.

That night after work Olivia was laying in bed reading a book, trying to unwind before hopefully catching at least four or five hours of sleep before she had to get up and do it all again. Her mind kept drifting off into her little dream world again until finally she closed the book and picked up the case file from the nightstand. She reviewed all of the pictures and notes they had gathered the last few days, then remembered promising Elliot an update.

Liv reached across the bed, picked up the phone from the charger and dialed Elliot's number.

"It's about time," he said when he answered quick to get down to business. "Did you get anything good?"

"I got an alibi," she replied.

"That isn't good," Elliot said quietly.

"Fin's checking it out, he's supposed to let me know tomorrow. We were only about ten minutes into questioning and he layered up. So it was kind of a dead end. His attorney said they would prepare a statement for us and have it on my desk by noon tomorrow. I don't have a good feeling about this one, El."

"No, I guess he needed to buy some time to make up some big lie to cover his ass! And his shameless lawyer doesn't seem to care that what his scum ball client has done to a fourteen year old child is going to do to her for the rest of her life," he replied.

"Rough night with the kids?"

"I guess you could say that. Dickie didn't come because of a soccer game, the baby is sick and cried the entire time he was here, I have not seen Maureen since she moved into the dorms and left dinner early to go on a date, broke curfew, then proceeded to come back here and tell me that she is old enough she should be able to stay out as late as she wants because her mother lets her." Elliot sounded exhausted.

"Kathy lets her stay out as late as she wants?"

"Of course not. She's just been playing us against each other a lot lately, anyway I took them all home about an hour ago. I know this is hard on them, too. I miss being there with them, you know? I miss going into their rooms and kissing them good night after a long night at work. I don't see them much anymore and when I do get them it seems like the time goes by so fast," hearing Elliot talk about his time with his children made her happy. She loved that he was happy, finally after all of the heartache over this divorce and the custody issues it finally seemed like his troubles were resolved.

"Hey, Elliot, can I ask you something?" She paused for a moment to think it through. Was she sure she wanted to have this conversation with him? Once she did, the topic of her and motherhood would be open for discussion between them for a least the next few days and there would be no closing it.

"What's up, Liv?"

"Do you think you could ever see me with kids?" It was said now and there was nothing she could do to take it back. "I know it seems kind of silly," Olivia paused again long enough to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "I have just…. I don't know, been thinking. What is things were different? What if I had gotten married and had a family?" It was killing her that he hadn't said anything yet, even though she really hadn't given him the chance to speak.

"I think you would make a wonderful mother, Liv."

She felt a smile spread slowly across her face. "Really?"

"Yeah, I mean look how good you are with my kids. And when we work with children at work…. It is almost like you have a special power when it comes to kids. And they seem to love you."

"Thanks Elliot," she said softly with a smile.

"You got something you want to tell me?" He laughed.

"No, I was just thinking. You know, what if?"

"You get some sleep and I will talk to you tomorrow," he said.

"Yeah," she said quietly hanging up the phone.

Olivia placed the phone back on the night stand and settled back into her bed. She turned out the light and laid there in the dark thinking about the words he had said. No one knew her like Elliot did. Infact, in many ways he knew her better than she knew herself. The fact that he thought she would be a good mother pleased her. The truth was, something about having children of her own had always frightened Olivia. Perhaps due to her difficult relationship she once shared with her own mother.

Over the next few weeks Olivia noticed Elliot had brought up the subject of her having children numerous times. He even started bringing his own children around her more. Olivia was not exactly blind to his new behavior.

One day while they were sitting in the car watching a suspect trying to make a drug deal, Elliot turned to her out of the blue and said "I think you should do it."

"What?" Olivia replied, half sure of what he was talking about.

"I think you should start a family, you deserve to be happy, Liv."

"Um, thanks. I think. What exactly brought this up?" She asked.

"I was just thinking, if that is what you want, you should go for it."

"Even if I did want a baby now, I would kind of have to find a man first."

"Well, what about that guy you dated a few months ago? David…. Somebody. He seemed nice. Owned his own business and was building a house, wasn't he?"

"Elliot, David is gay. I didn't date him. I went out to dinner with him a couple of times. We went to college together and he was in town. We hadn't seen each other in a couple of years. Actually, he was asking me about you!" Olivia smiled at Elliot as if giving him a taste of his own medicine.

"What about Steve?" He asked, refusing to give up the battle before it had begun.

"Who is Steve?" She asked racking her brain.

"Steve Davis, the guy who did my taxes last year. Remember, I gave you his card. He's single!" Elliot looked pleased.

Olivia wasn't quite sure if he was joking or honestly thought she wanted to date his accountant Steve. "It isn't funny Elliot."

"I'm not trying to be funny. How long has it been since you went on a real date?"

"I don't know, a few months, I guess. I have been busy at work."

"You have been in hiding. Look Liv, all you do is think of everyone else. If you are ever really going to be happy you have to think of yourself every now and then. You need to get out and meet someone," Elliot looked at her and watched her trying not to focus on what he was saying to her. He wanted her to be happy and it had been a long time since he had seen her in a relationship.

"Look Elliot, I know you are just trying to help. But I am going to say this in the nicest way I know how….. Back off. When I am ready to date, I will date. You don't have to keep trying to set me up. I'm a big girl."

"I know," he replied. "I just don't like seeing you alone all of the time."

"Awww. That is sweet," she said as she hugged his shoulder and smiled.

"Hey," Fin called over the radio from the car behind them. "If you two are done making out, maybe we could take this guy today."

And with that they jumped out of the car and took off on a foot chase after the guy. Elliot followed him down a back alley while Olivia doubled back to get the car and cut them off at the street where she knew Elliot was going to run him out. She pulled around in the car and waited for her partner. A few moments later Elliot still had not come out.

"Did they come back your way, Fin?" Olivia called over the radio.

"Negative, we have the entrance blocked off. They have to come out your way," Fin replied.

Now Olivia was really getting nervous. She shut off the car and drew her gun. It was dusk and hard to see down the dark alley way between the old brick buildings. She held up a flashlight and beamed it off garbage dumpsters and but saw nothing.

"He's got a knife, Liv." She heard Elliot call to her and then she could hear foot steps coming toward her. Though she could not yet see the man, she knew he was running toward her with Elliot hot on his heels. Olivia ducked behind an over piled dumpster and waited for the right moment to play the element of surprise in her favor. She heard the man running and just as he approached her she stepped out hitting him in the nose with the handle of her flashlight. Olivia then tackled the guy getting him to the ground. As the two of them struggled, Elliot put his knee into the mans back and cuffed his hands behind his back then pulled him back to his feet to lead him back to the car.

"You, okay?" He asked Liv.

"Yup," she said still breathing a little heavy from taking down the criminal. They walked the man back to the car and as Elliot lowered the mans head to put him in the back seat he noticed he had torn his shirt in the scuffle.

"You're bleeding," Olivia said. "You should have that checked out."

"I'm fine, just a scratch." Elliot insisted.

Olivia moved in closer to examine the wound. "No, El. This is kind of deep, I think he got you with the knife. You might need a couple of stitches."

"Liv, I'm fine."

"Elliot, don't be a baby. Look Munch and Fin can take this creep in, I will take you to get this checked out. Don't argue with me!"

The wait in the emergency room seemed to take forever. Elliot called his kids to explain to them what had happened and tell them he was okay. A few minutes later Kathleen showed up at the emergency room to wait with them. Finally after almost a two hour wait they went into a small room. The doctor came around to look at the wound, but Elliot noticed he spent more of his time eyeing Olivia. Kathleen however as not the least bit subtle with her opinion of him.

"Oh, he's hot," she said staring at him across the room.

"And way too old for you," Elliot replied.

"Oh daddy, come on don't you want me to marry a handsome doctor?" Kathleen asked.

"Yeah, in about ten years!" Elliot replied. Olivia, had given up waiting on the hospital staff and had begun to inspect the gash in Elliot's shoulder herself when the doctor walked over. She didn't really even seem to notice the doctor, but he could not take his eyes off Olivia. Twelve stitches and a tetanus shot later they were finally ready to go. Elliot dropped Kathleen off at her car about half a block away then proceeded to drive Olivia home.

"Thank you," he said parked in front of her apartment building just before she got out of the car.

"No problem," she said with a tired smile, "Take it easy, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey, Liv?" He called to her.

"Yeah?"

"Don't be mad," he replied.

"Why would I be… Elliot, what did you do?" She asked almost afraid of what his answer would be.

"I gave that doctor your phone number."

"What?" She stood quiet for a second waiting for him to laugh, but he didn't. She hoped this was some kind of bad joke, but it wasn't. "You are serious?"

"Yes."

"What on earth would possess you to do that?" She felt mortified.

"You heard Kathleen, he's a catch. He's attractive and every girl wants a doctor."

"Elliot, for all you know he could have been married!"

"Calm down. He wasn't wearing a ring, besides he told me he was single."

"When did he tell you that?" She now stood on the sidewalk with a worried look in her eye and her arms crossed in front of her.

"When he asked me if you were single," Elliot said with a mischievous grin.

Olivia just stood there for a minute with a look that was half panic and half confusion.

"Good night Olivia," Elliot said as he started the car and pulled away.

Liv walked upstairs and got ready for bed. The more she thought about what had gone on that evening the more it frustrated, yet amused her at the same time. What was Elliot thinking? Before long she realized that her thoughts had strayed from her aggravation for Elliot to trying to remember the first name on Dr. Parker's name tag. Nick, she thought to herself as she smiled with a sigh. He was kind of cute. Olivia rolled over and turned out the light.