A/N: Is Maureen going to have the baby? Will he be okay, if she does? And Maureen has a question for her father and Olivia, and Olivia gets some unexpected news.

DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. This story belongs to the mind, heart, and soul of TStabler©

Elliot had sped, avoided traffic lights, and practically hopped out of a still-moving car, having forgotten to put it into park when he pulled up to the house. He ran inside, yelling for Dickie and Maureen, and found them both in the hallway.

"Mo," he gasped, looking down at his daughter.

Maureen shook her head. "I'm okay," she said, breathing heavily. "I think it was just…well, it stopped, so…"

"Oh, thank God," Elliot sighed, relieved. He knelt down and brushed her hair back. "You gotta keep him in there for a few more weeks," he said with a soft smile.

"Liv," Maureen mumbled. "Get Liv," she said.

Elliot, hurt but understanding, stood up and put an arm around his petrified son. He walked with Dickie into the living room and gestured to Olivia that Maureen needed her.

Olivia kissed Dickie on the forehead as she passed him, then got to Maureen and sat beside her. "Hey, honey," she said, draping an arm over the teen's shoulder. "False alarm, huh?"

Maureen nodded, tears still slowly falling. "I'm sorry I ruined your night," she said. She dropped her head to Olivia's shoulder.

"Oh, honey," she said with a chuckle. "You didn't ruin anything. Dinner took a pretty serious turn, and I'm glad you interrupted it. You know your father and I would drop everything for you," she said, kissing the girl's head.

"Can I ask you something?" Maureen asked with a sniffle. "And promise you won't get mad at me for it," she begged.

"I can't be mad at you," Olivia said, looking down at her. "Not for anything," she added.

Maureen looked up, large tears in her eyes, and said, "It's a pretty serious question."

Olivia felt her stomach drop as she listened to the girl's heartbreaking question, and she slowly nodded as she pulled Maureen into her arms.

"She's asleep," Olivia said, walking out into the living room. "How's Dickie?"

"Traumatized," Elliot chuckled. Then he sighed. "I was scared. Scared shitless."

Olivia sat on the couch beside him, rested her hand on his knee, and nodded. "Me, too," she said. "How could Kathy just leave her here alone?"

"I have no idea," he said. "I bet she didn't want anyone staring at her and Maureen."

Olivia shook her head. She dropped it back onto the couch and said, "She wants us to…"

"I know she does," Elliot sighed. "Dickie, uh, told me all about it." He looked over at Olivia and raised both eyebrows. "What do you think?" he asked.

"It's up to you, really," Olivia returned. "I'm not Catholic. I'm not anything, actually, so…"

"It's okay," he said, kissing her. "I'm not the world's greatest Catholic, either, obviously."

Olivia chuckled. "But you do…you go to church, and you pray, and you have a memorized quote from the Bible for every occasion. You have Jesus etched into your skin, El, you're a true believer. I'm…"

"I'm telling you, it doesn't matter," he interrupted. "She wants you, Liv. All you have to do is show the priest proof that you were baptized, which I know you were."

Olivia kissed him and nodded. "If you say so," she said. "You know I want to be…"

"I know you do," he interrupted. He kissed her and pulled her closer, moaning slightly as her hand grazed over his growing erection. He chuckled when her hand moved back, this time on purpose, and she smirked against his lips as she dragged her nails lightly up and down, teasing him.

Olivia was so lost in him, and he in her, that as they kissed and the front door creaked open, they were both oblivious.

A clearing of a throat, and a giggle, broke them apart. Elliot peered over Olivia's shoulder and gave a sheepish grin. "Hey, Kathy," he said.

"What are you two doing here?" Kathy asked, sounding annoyed.

Elliot gave Olivia a gentle shove and sat up. "Well, while you were out with Lizzie and Katie, Maureen was here, all alone, and started having contractions."

Kathy's face paled. "Oh…my…God, is she okay?" she asked, panicking. "Where is she?"

"Calm down," Olivia said, holding up a hand. "She's upstairs, sleeping. It was a false alarm." She folded her arms and said, "But I'm wondering why you would leave an eight-month-pregnant teenager home with just her thirteen-year-old brother."

"Katie had a softball game and…"

"You could have taken her," Elliot said, suddenly angry. He stood up and took a step forward. "God forbid this happened when Liv and I were on a case, somewhere we couldn't get here in time! You know what could have happened? Why the hell wasn't she with you?"

Kathy backed up. She hated when Elliot got like this, and one of the reason's she left him was his irrational temper. This time, though, she knew he had a right to be angry. "Elliot, I didn't want her to…"

"You didn't want her to be seen by the other mothers," Elliot snapped, cutting her off. "You didn't want her to embarrass you, to get looked at by everyone else with the same look people gave you! Is that it?"

Kathy flinched as he yelled. "Elliot, please, not in front of the…"

"Go to your room," Elliot said gently, nodding at Lizzie and Kathleen. "Oh, who won, Kat?"

"We did. I scored three runs," Kathleen said proudly as she ran up the stairs. Lizzie followed her, but neither girl went into her room, they stayed at the top, listening.

"Damn it, Kathy!" Elliot barked. "You don't think of anyone but yourself, do you? You leave the boy you never wanted and the one child you have that's made a damned mistake home, so you could…why?

Olivia stood up, walked next to Elliot, and put her hand on his shoulder. He visibly relaxed and took a breath, calming down.

Kathy was stunned. She was never able to calm him down, not like that, and when she tried he only grew angrier. "I didn't want her to be out in the cold, or…"

"She has a new coat," Elliot said, softly. Tears were threatening the backs of his eyes. "She would have been warm. Would have been fine if…God, why don't you want her?" he asked, quietly, sitting back down on the couch. He dropped his head into his hands and clutched Olivia's hand tightly.

Kathy felt horrible. Everything he had said was true, and she knew it. She tried to find logical reasons to leave Maureen home, all of which masked the disgrace and shame she felt because of her. "I want her," she whispered. "I just don't want her to be…she's me, Elliot. She is exactly what I was, and I can't go through all of that again. She's making my mistake, and she's not sorry about it."

"Not sorry?" Olivia asked, her own emotions getting the best of her. "She apologizes every morning, every night she's crying in my arms because she thinks she ruined my life! She's sorry, Kathy. She's hurt and she's sorry, but ya know what? This baby is gonna be the best thing that has ever happened to her, and she's gonna be an incredible mother, no thanks to you!"

Elliot looked at her, sniffling, and said, "I don't know if you're talking about Maureen or yourself."

"Maureen," Olivia snapped at him, though part of her was saying all of that to her own mother, part of her was holding that in for years, and part of her so desperately wanted to be able to say the same thing about her own child.

Elliot looked at her with pure love in his eyes, wet with tears, and he smiled. "Okay," he said, knowing the truth behind her words. He looked back at Kathy and said, "You were in her shoes, Kathy. You, above anyone, should understand, and should be there to help her through this. You turned your back on your own daughter when she needed you the most."

Kathy sniffled as her own tears formed, and she nodded. "I know I did. I'm sorry, I just...I can't deal with this."

"No one can," Elliot sighed, "But it's the life God has given us, and he wouldn't give it to us if he didn't think we were strong enough to..."

Kathy interrupted him. "He gave it to you," she said. "You and Olivia. I was out of your life when this happened," she said as she rubbed her eyes. "So obviously he knew I couldn't handle this, and the both of you could."

Elliot tilted his head. Was she accepting them now? Was she realizing what he had known for months? "Yeah," he said with a small nod. "Right."

"You two can...I know you had to end your evening early," Kathy shrugged, "And you have a whole weekend ahead of you that I'm sure you don't want to send here with me and four kids." She finally took off her coat and said, "I will make sure she eats those whole wheat pancakes, and she will be with me wherever I go for the rest of the weekend."

Elliot nodded. He got off of the couch, walked over to the stairs and said, "Goodnight, girls," as he blew his two snooping daughters kisses.

"Goodnight, Daddy," they replied in simultaneous embarrassment. They ran into their room, then, and slammed the doors.

Elliot chuckled and opened the door, leading Olivia out, and home, and he had plans to make her forget all about the speed-bump they had hit. He had a lot of plans, and a box in pocket that was just waiting to be opened.

A/N: What's in the box? What does he tell her? And Olivia's reaction to it all! Review here, or on Twitter: TMG212