Hello, darlings. Long time, no see, eh? I actually got stuck writing this chapter. There was a hump I just couldn't get over for a while, but luckily, that hump is safely behind me. So onto business. Once again, this is a shorter chapter but with some heavy content, so please don't cry. Things get a little steamy (literally and figuratively) in this one, so enjoy it!
"Are you sure you don't wanna come in for a bit?" Alex asked Josie as Cam pulled the Blazer up next to the cabin. "We've got whiskey."
Josie shook her head. "Thanks for the tempting offer, but you two should focus on each other."
"Well, at least come in so we can send some of my famous chili home with you," Olivia offered.
Alex looked stricken at the mention of the chili. "I totally forgot! It's not gonna be ruined, is it?"
Olivia placed a hand on Alex's forearm. "It's fine. I can't tell you how many times I've gotten a call and had to leave it for a lot longer than we were gone just now."
"Really?" Alex asked.
"Oh, yeah. No big deal," Olivia reassured her. "It takes a lot to ruin it." Alex relaxed a bit and smiled brightly at Olivia.
After they all got out of the car and went inside, Cam and Josie went to the fireplace as Olivia headed for the pot on the stove. Alex got a container out of the cabinet, which she handed to Olivia and met Josie and Cam by the fire. While the detective filled the container, Cam drifted toward the delicious smell and came to stand next to Olivia as Josie helped Alex throw a few more logs on.
"Thanks for coming out with us tonight. Josie was kind of worried about you and Alex being alone here. She didn't know if you had enough food until everything thawed and she thought that being in close quarters for an extended period of time may have made you both a little nuts," Cam said.
Putting the lid on the container, Olivia turned and smiled at Cam. "She was picturing something like The Shining, wasn't she?" she joked.
Cam smiled back and nodded. "Something like that. My money was on you two doing each other on that bear skin rug." Olivia blushed and looked down at the floor. "Sorry. I picked that up from Josie; the 'say what's on your mind no matter what' thing. I didn't mean to embarrass you."
"It's OK. I actually appreciate when people say what they're thinking," Olivia said, looking from Cam across the room to Alex. "The truth can hurt but sometimes it also sets you free." Alex, apparently sensing Olivia's gaze, made eye contact and smiled sweetly. Olivia grinned and handed Cam the chili. "Well, I hope you enjoy this. It's my special recipe."
"I can't wait. It smells fantastic."
"It's the least I could do for you guys since Josie loaded us up with pastries."
Cam laughed. "When Josie heard Alex was bringing someone up this year, she went into planning overdrive. She couldn't wait to meet the woman who Alex talks about so much and thinks the world of." Olivia smiled as her face suddenly reddened with another blush. "I think I should get Josie home and give you and Alex some space." They walked to where Josie and Alex were standing next to the fire, coming to stand next to their respective partners.
Josie reached out and took Cam's hand. "We should get going. We've gotta get up early and start the baking. I'm glad you guys are OK."
Olivia took Alex's hand and ran her thumb along Alex's wrist. "Me too."
Cam and Josie made their way to the door, followed by Alex and Olivia, who were still holding hands. After hugs were exchanged and goodbyes were said, Cam and Josie drove off, leaving Alex and Olivia alone in the cabin once again.
"How does a nice, hot bath sound?" Alex asked as she squeezed Olivia's hand. "Maybe with bath salts...and bubbles...and candles...and red wine..."
"You had me at hot bath," Olivia whispered to Alex as she leaned in to kiss her. When she pulled back from Alex, she tilted her head to the side. "And I'm assuming we'll be taking that bath together?"
Alex suddenly looked unsure. "If you want. We don't have to."
Olivia put her free hand on Alex's shoulder. "I want to," she said in a tone that removed all doubt from Alex's mind. "Let's get ready, shall we?" she said in a low tone of voice that gave Alex goosebumps.
While Alex got all the candles from the closet, Olivia got the bottle of cabernet and two glasses from the kitchen. Meeting back up in the bathroom, Alex lit the candles while Olivia opened the wine and poured some into each glass. When that was finished, Alex got two towels out and took the bath salts and bubble bath from the cupboard. Olivia knelt on the floor and turned on the tap, adjusting the temperature so it was perfect as Alex sat on the edge of the tub and added a bit of each item to the water.
"Now that everything's set up, there's only one thing left to do," Alex said.
Olivia looked up at Alex. "Get undressed and get in?" she asked.
"Um, I guess that's two things left to do, but yes," Alex answered as she slid her boots off and tossed them across the room.
Standing up and looking down at Alex, Olivia took off her shirt, leaving Alex staring at her as a wild look set in her blue eyes. "Let's see if you're as good at helping me out of my bra as you were at helping me into it."
Alex accepted the challenge. She stood up and with one hand reached behind Olivia and deftly unhooked the closure. "How'd I do?"
Olivia took a step toward Alex. They weren't touching, but the blonde woman could feel the heat emanating from Olivia's body. "Perfect technique," she whispered as she shrugged, letting the bra fall to the floor. Alex's eyes almost left their sockets. Olivia enjoyed the other woman's facial expression for a moment before reaching for the button on Alex's jeans. Realising she could speed up the process of undressing, Alex removed her shirt while Olivia took her jeans down the long legs she stared at for hours while they were pacing around the courtroom. As Alex stepped out of her pants, Olivia shoved them to the side, and let her thumbs graze the soft skin as she made her way back up Alex's lithe frame. Alex's blue eyes had glazed over with lust and her breathing was becoming more and more shallow as her muscles tensed in anticipation.
"You're overdressed," Alex pointed out as she unbuckled Olivia's belt and pulled it from the loops.
"Now who's the detective?" Olivia teased as she bent down to untie her boots. Alex took advantage of Olivia's distraction and unhooked her bra, carefully removing it and tossing it gently aside. When Olivia straightened up, she noticed that there was a lot more of Alex's fair skin on display and looked as if she'd just won the lottery. "Nice rack," she said, biting her lower lip as she kicked her boots and socks off, never taking her eyes off Alex's flushed face.
Alex looked amused as she recalled that particular exchange from their first morning at the cabin. "Better than the moose?"
"Oh, yeah. No contest," Olivia said as she exhaled. She unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans and was about to take them off, when Alex put her hands over Olivia's.
"Let me," Alex whispered as she slowly pulled Olivia's jeans down her muscular legs, delighting in the goosebumps that had arisen as she did so. Before standing back up, Alex placed a featherlight kiss on each of Olivia's knees.
Throwing her head back and closing her eyes, Olivia's legs suddenly felt like they were going to give out as she kicked her jeans next to her boots. She needed to touch Alex and she needed to do it now. She reached out without opening her eyes and roughly pulled Alex's body tightly to hers. Sparks exploded behind her eyelids as more of their skin made contact than Olivia had ever thought would be possible. She kissed Alex until she realised something. "The water's getting colder the longer we stand here."
"Then let's get in." Alex took off her underwear as Olivia did the same. The detective stepped in the tub first, then held out her hand to help Alex in. Giving each other an appraising look, they each wore a grin of approval. Olivia sat down against the back of the tub, while Alex settled between her legs and leaned back against Olivia's chest. Between the bubbles and the bath salts, the water was slick, so Olivia held Alex securely against her body. The upside to the slickness of the water was that Olivia's fingers met no resistance as they drew abstract shapes along Alex's ribs. What Olivia was doing with her fingers was nothing compared to what her mouth started doing to Alex's neck and shoulders. The tiny nips with her teeth were soothed by light kisses with her tender lips. Alex's nervous system had gone into overload and she was sure that at any moment Olivia's ministrations would cause her body to explode into glitter.
Olivia was thoroughly enjoying the feeling having Alex pressed against her with nothing in between them. The heat of the water combined with the heat of Alex's body was taking Olivia's desire on a slow, steady, but steep incline. The water was relieving her body's tension from the stressful day she had had, but it was being replaced with an entirely different kind of tension. She catalogued each sound Alex made as she explored new areas of the blonde's body. Her favourite so far was the sharp intake of breath followed by a slight moan as she exhaled when Olivia sucked on her ear lobe. But as Olivia's fingers once again traced lines up the side of Alex's torso, skimming the sweet flesh as they reached the side of the blonde's breasts, the detective could both hear and feel the low, animalistic growl that came from Alex's chest, and that was Olivia's new favourite sound.
Alex was pretty sure she had died and gone to heaven. She had always thought that saying was ridiculous, but the evidence supporting that theory was overwhelming. She was experiencing quite possibly the hottest thing anyone had ever done to her (and they hadn't even gotten to sex yet!), and it was Olivia Benson doing it all. There was no way she was alive. This felt too good to be real. However, Alex crashed back down to earth when Olivia's fingertips darted along the underside of her breasts. She flipped over to face Olivia, who had a smug grin on her face. "We need to get to bed now because I'm going to drown if I do the things I wanna do to you right here."
Oh, yeah, I left off there. I revved up your motors and left you sitting in the driveway! The next chapter's already outlined, so it won't be long until the payoff. I promise.