Hi readers! I'm so sorry for the continued delays. Life has been getting in the way. This story is close to coming to an end, sorry to say, but we have a little more drama along the way. Please bear with me ad I will try to get another update out sooner. Thanks!

EOEOEOEOEO

Olivia sighed as she drove into the city on Friday afternoon. It had been the same routine for the past month, and Olivia had watched as Spring turned into early Summer. She felt like she had looked at every available apartment in the city and hadn't found more than a handful that seemed to fit their needs. On top of that, Elliot hadn't been able to make even one of the apartment hunting trips, and she'd had a variety of helpers, including Kathleen, Liz and Casey. The few she had liked, Elliot had gone to see during the week when he'd had time and crossed them off the list.

So here they were, at the beginning of June, and they still hadn't found a place to live. She was really hoping that Elliot would be able to go tomorrow, and that they would find the right place for them. She had found a great family to rent her house in Connecticut. A professor was moving his young family into town for a one-year interim teaching position at a small university in Bridgeport. It was the perfect arrangement because she had a good feeling about him, and she liked the idea that someone would be there for an entire year. She didn't want to deal with several short term renters.

She looked in her rearview mirror to check on Elise. She was reading a book and Olivia shook her head at all of the things Elise had on the seat next to her. It seemed like every week they brought more and more things and they were piling up at Elliot's. She didn't mean to leave that much there, but it seemed silly to repack the car on Sunday night and haul it all home. She always thought she'd leave clothes and toys so she wouldn't have to bring more things the following weekend…and yet, here they were. The car was practically full. Pretty soon they wouldn't have any room at Elliot's, and they wouldn't have anything to wear or play with at her house.

That might be OK, because she figured she could probably only reasonably delay her renters for a few more weeks. They simply had to find a place to live this weekend. And Elliot had promised her he would be there to try to expedite the process. Liz was coming over to spend the day with Elise so they could get going early and go late, with minimal breaks. When she had Elise along, they always had to stop for food and bathroom breaks, and the little girl could only tolerate house hunting for so long. She couldn't blame her. But long days were nothing to Olivia. She thought of it as a case to work through…personal comfort set aside.

She was also looking forward to spending the day with Elliot. Even though they had been to the city every weekend, she had barely seen him. And Elise had seen him even less. He came home late at night, exhausted…and went back early in the morning. There had been one Sunday that he'd spent the day with them. She tried not to give him a hard time about it because she could certainly remember those days. She knew he got home as quickly as he could, and she tried not to dwell on the fact that sometimes she could start to understand what Kathy must have felt over the years. She tried to dismiss those thoughts quickly. She didn't ever want to empathize with Kathy.

"Mommy I'm hungry."

Elise broke through her thoughts and she looked in the rear view mirror again. "We're almost there. We will get something to eat when we get there." She saw a pout break out on her daughter's face and she silently hoped they could make it the last half an hour without a temper tantrum. It had been a long day for both of them. Olivia had dropped Elise off at school earlier than normal this morning because she'd had an early meeting and they left later because she hadn't packed the night before. She had given Elise a snack before they left to tide her over, but it was a while ago. They were both tired and they were both a little cranky.

"But I'm hungry NOW." She said, her voice escalating.

"It's just a few more minutes. Why don't you tell me what you and Liz are going to do tomorrow?" she said, trying distract her.

"I already told you that." Elise said, catching on to her attempt at diversion right away.

"I forgot." Olivia said, trying to see if she could get her to repeat it.

Elise let out a sound of frustration and Olivia could tell she had reached her breaking point. She was going to have to resort to bribery. "How about if you be patient, I'll get you some McDonald's for dinner?" She hated to give Elise fast food, so she rarely got to eat it. Which is why she asked for it…constantly. Olivia didn't normally use food as bribery, but desperate times….

Olivia could tell Elise was in a mood when she didn't jump on it right away. She looked back in the mirror again and could see the little pout still on her little face. She swore that sometimes she just liked being stubborn for the sake of it…or she didn't know how to get herself out of the mood when it struck. Olivia had tried talking her through it; to teach her how to work through it. But just like her father, and herself to some degree, she was really good at holding on to it.

"Chicken nuggets and all the ketchup you want." She prodded, hoping to win her over.

"Can I have ice cream too?" she asked.

Olivia cursed inwardly, knowing she shouldn't have started down this path. "C'mon El." She said, hoping for some level of cooperation.

"OK." She said sullenly, giving in.

Olivia sighed in relief before she heard her speak again.

"I'll get to have ice cream with Liz."

Olivia rolled her eyes at what a little schemer she was, but she wasn't going to argue with her right now. She'd have that conversation tomorrow, with Liz in the room.

Elise got quiet in the back and the rest of the trip was relatively peaceful. She looked at her watch as they pulled up in front of Elliot's apartment. 8PM. Even though she had told him she was running late, she was surprised she hadn't heard from him, wondering where the hell she was. She texted him to let him know she was there so he could come down and help her unload as usual. She swung the car door open and got out, looking at the door of the apartment building expectantly. She opened the back door and saw that Elise had fallen asleep. She shook her head, wondering how she could be arguing with her one minute and then fast asleep twenty minutes later.

Olivia put a knee on the backseat and started to unbuckle her from her booster seat. Elise didn't wake up as she pulled her out of her seat, despite her attempts to rouse her. She hoisted her up and laid her head on her shoulder as she stood on the curb. She looked back at the doors. Still no Elliot.

What the hell? She let out a frustrated sigh. She closed the door and grabbed a small duffle bag and threw the straps over her other shoulder. She closed the front door and hit the lock button as she headed for the front door of the apartment building. She was thankful when someone walked out and held open the door for her; despite the fact that she hated when people let anyone in the building. She got into the elevator and to Elliot's door, struggling with the dead weight of Elise, who was still sound asleep on her shoulder. When she reached Elliot's apartment door, she knocked, getting ready to give him shit for not having his phone on him when he knew she was on her way.

Just as she had the thought, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She was focused on getting her key into the door, so she let it go. She didn't a free hand to get it anyway. When she pushed open the door, she saw the apartment was dark, and she let out a silent curse. Elliot wasn't home.

She flipped on the light in the foyer and made her way down the hall. She walked into Elise's room and laid her gently on the bed. She pulled off her shoes and set them quietly on the floor. She unzipped her sweatshirt, figuring she could easily sleep in her leggings and t-shirt. She debated waking her to feed her, but she knew that would be almost impossible. However, she also knew that going to bed this early, and without dinner, probably insured a middle-of-the-night wake-up. Either way, the it was making her even crabbier.

She lifted Elise up slightly and pulled down the blankets. She covered her up and saw Elise curl up on her side. Olivia grabbed the stuffed dog she liked to sleep with here and tucked it in next to her, and then leaned over to give her a kiss.

She walked out in the hallway, leaving the door partway open as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. She saw it was a message from Elliot and she almost didn't want to read it. She was certain he was going to tell her that he was stuck at work, and while most of the time, she was understanding…tonight her patience was worn thin. It had been too many ruined weekends lately and too long of a day. She knew it would be different when they lived together. They wouldn't have such limited time together, so it wouldn't seem so precious. But not tonight…

She flipped on a light and sat down on the couch. She opened up the message.

"Sorry. Meant to text you. Stuck w case. B home as early as can."

Olivia closed the message and tossed her phone onto the coffee table. That was about what she expected. She pushed herself up off the couch and walked into the kitchen to find something to eat. After she'd made herself a sandwich, she sat back down and ate while she found a movie to watch on TV.

She hadn't bothered to reply to Elliot, but she hadn't gotten any other message from him either. So she knew he must really be tied up. She got a text from Liz confirming that she'd be there around 9 the next morning, and Olivia replied to her with a big thanks. She was glad she had offered to help because Elise really liked spending time with her. And now that she had broken up with her boyfriend, she had some time on her hands.

To his credit, Elliot had never asked her what she and Liz had talked about that night he came home and interrupted them, but he had told her that he was happy that she was getting closer to his kids. And she was glad that she was developing a relationship with each of them on her own; independent of Elliot. That had been the only good part of Elliot missing all of their house hunting days.

Her movie was over by 11, and she still hadn't heard from Elliot. She turned the TV off and decided to call it a night. With how tired she was, she couldn't believe she had made it this long. She checked on Elise and saw she was still sound asleep. She still expected Elise would wake her in the middle of the night, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She slipped off her jeans and sweater and went over to Elliot's dresser. He had cleaned out some things and she had taken over a couple of drawers. She pulled out some pajama shorts and slipped them on. She took off her bra, leaving her tank top on.

She walked into the bathroom and looked around, realizing she had quite a bit of stuff here too. She washed her face and brushed her teeth and then flipped off the light. She crawled into bed and was asleep in minutes.

EOEOEOEOEO

Olivia heard Elliot when he came in the front door. She looked at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was 3AM. She realized she had left her phone in the other room, so she had no idea if he had tried to reach her again, but she was still a little upset that he hadn't been there when she got there tonight. She knew it was irrational, but she just hadn't been able to shake the mood and it still stuck with her, despite the fact that she'd had a few hours of sleep.

She heard him come down the hall and go past the door, so she knew he was going to check on Elise. She heard him come back towards their room and make his way inside, trying to be quiet. She heard his pants hit the floor and she imagined he was pulling his shirt over his head. She felt the bed bow as he climbed into bed.

"I know you're awake." He whispered. Typically, if he got home late, she was sitting up waiting for him, curled up on the couch in a blanket. Or if she had gone to bed, she threw back the covers and welcomed him to bed with a kiss and a smile. Tonight though, she didn't stir.

He scooted over to where she was lying with her back to him. "Liv." He said.

"Hmm." She mumbled.

Elliot wrapped a hand around her waist and pulled her flush against him. "It's good to see you." He placed a kiss on her bare shoulder.

"I'm trying to sleep." She said, hearing the annoyance in her own voice.

Elliot laughed against her skin, continuing to place small kisses along her shoulder. "Yes, but right now, you're awake. And I missed you." He said.

"So you can come home anytime you want and I'm just supposed to be lying here waiting for you?" She knew she was being kind of bitchy, but she didn't seem to be able to help it. She was still extremely tired, and a little annoyed with him, even though her rational mind kept telling her it wasn't his fault.

Elliot laughed. "Sounds good to me." He said. He ground up against her. "Didn't you miss me?"

"I did. But then I got here and you weren't here so I got over it." She was frustrated with how much they had seen of each other over the past months. She felt like they hadn't done anything together; spent any time together. Except for sex. They always seemed to find time for that of course. And while she loved the feeling of his body against hers, it wasn't all there was to a relationship.

Elliot let out a frustrated grunt and removed his hand from her waist. He rolled over onto his back and threw an arm over his eyes. He'd had a bitch of a day and he had been looking forward to seeing Olivia and wrapping his body around hers. When he was with her, all of his stress melted away. He didn't need this grief from her.

"Why are you being like this? You remember how it was." He said.

"I do." She said, trying not to sound as annoyed. "I'm just tired and I'm sleeping."

"Fine." Elliot snapped. He rolled over so his back was to her. "I don't need this tonight."

She rolled over on her back next to him with a huff. She knew he deserved an explanation but she was really struggling to shake herself out of this mood. She bit on her bottom lip, the events of the past month racing through her mind. She was lost in her own thoughts when she realized Eliot was snoring lightly next to her.

She propped herself up on her elbows and looked over at him. He was sleeping? She couldn't believe that she was lying here steaming and he just fell asleep without another thought. She sat up and looked down at him. She put her hand on his shoulder and pulled him onto his back.

"What the hell?" he asked, opening his eyes and looking up at her.

"You're sleeping?" she asked.

Elliot let out a pained sound. "Jesus. Yes, I'm sleeping."

She fell back against the pillows with a loud huff and rolled away from him again. "Fine. Go to sleep."

Elliot looked over at her and saw her back facing him. He was so frustrated with her now, and he knew how ridiculous this was but he wasn't going to engage her right now because he knew it was only going to escalate. She was obviously in a bad mood, and he was exhausted. He closed his eyes and threw an arm over his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh.

Olivia lay still for a full minute before she decided she couldn't let it go. "I just feel like I haven't seen you in weeks. I look forward to seeing you all week and so does Elise. On the entire drive down, the anticipation is building and then we get here, and you're not here. I try not to be disappointed…" she paused, knowing she sounded childish…like she was whining. "But today when I got here and you weren't here…I've just had enough. You're never here. We've come down every weekend and we've barely seen you. I've done all the apartment hunting by myself. You haven't been able to come along once!" She knew she was sounding like a bitch, but now that the words were pouring out of her mouth, she couldn't seem to stop them. "I mean, what are we even doing? I'm giving up my job and my home and ripping my daughter away from the only life she's ever known…for what?"

Elliot sat up quickly, stung by her words. "For what?" He couldn't believe what she was saying. "Your daughter? He scrubbed a hand over his face. He knew she was upset and frustrated and he knew it was a mistake to get into it because he was not in the mood to deal with her insecurities. He was yelling now, his tone matching hers. "Christ! If you don't know what we're doing here…"

"Mommy?" He looked up and saw Elise standing in the doorway and he wondered how long she'd been standing there.

Olivia was out of bed in a second and crossed the room, scooping the little girl up and laying her head against her shoulder. "Shhh. It's OK." She shot Elliot a dirty look, as if he was the one that had woken her up, and he irrationally felt like yelling at her that she started it. He watched her disappear down the hallway. He fell back on the bed with a loud grunt. He did feel badly that their argument had woken up Elise, but in a way, he was glad that she had interrupted them. He had a feeling that it would have gotten ugly, and this may give them both a chance to calm down and have a rational conversation.

He waited about 15 minutes, but she didn't come back to bed. He contemplated just going to sleep, but decided he would check to see what was going on. He sat up and got out of bed and walked down the hall quietly. He peeked into Elise's room and saw Olivia was curled up around Elise's little body. It appeared that Elise had fallen back asleep, but he couldn't tell if Olivia was sleeping or not. He guessed she wasn't…but he knew she wasn't coming back to his bed tonight. He walked back and climbed into bed, his body tense…his anger palpable.

He couldn't believe she was pulling this crap on him. He looked forward to seeing her every week. It was killing him to have her and Elise so far away. And it completely sucked that every pervert had decided to come out of the woodwork this spring and that NYPD was understaffed and that he worked all the fucking time. And he was frustrated because she, of all people, should understand. He counted on it.

It also pissed him off that she thought it didn't bother him to miss the apartment hunting. That he didn't miss being at the door when she and Elise arrived for the weekend. That he didn't miss putting Elise to bed and then kissing her until they were both breathless.

He let out a silent string of curse words and pounded the bed next to him. He pounded his fist a few more times and let out another frustrated groan. He rolled over on his side and looked at the clock, and knew he wasn't going to get any more sleep tonight. When 5AM rolled around, he got up, got dressed and left for the precinct.

EOEOEOEOEO

It had been another shitty day but he finally got out of the precinct about 2PM. He wondered if Olivia and Elise were out apartment hunting, or if they were home already. He hadn't texted Olivia and he hadn't heard from her. He didn't want to get in touch with her until he knew when he'd be getting home. And frankly, he had no idea where her head was at. She may have decided not to go apartment hunting at all.

He put the key in the lock and opened the door. "Olivia?" He dropped his keys, gun and badge on the kitchen counter and walked farther into the apartment. "Liv?"

He walked into the bedroom. He saw the duffle bag he had seen the night before was gone. He whipped down to Elise's room, and saw her bag and her blanket and her stuffed dog was gone too.

He sat down on Elise's bed.

They were gone.