Previous Disclaimers Apply

Chapter 29

The ladies returned to work. Alex joined Olivia at the 1-6 their first day back to share their good news. Everyone was happy and supportive. The Captain joked to Olivia now knowing why she worked so many extra shifts to get the time off. Reluctantly Alex left and headed back to her office.

Alex spent the week between the holidays cleaning and reorganizing her office since no courts were in session between the holidays. Once that was done she start on trial prep for her next upcoming trial. There was an occasional warrant to get or bail hearing to attend, but that was about it.

Things for Olivia were quiet during the week. She was on call over the New Year's Eve weekend. She managed to get caught up on all of her paperwork, so she would at least be able to be on call at home with her fiancé. The ladies were able to enjoy their first New Year's Eve together as a couple without Olivia being called to duty. They had gone out to eat early. Alex insisted on a fancy five start restaurant. They enjoyed an elegant meal and though the restaurant had live music and allowed dancing the ladies felt a little self conscious. After a wonderful meal and dessert they left to go home. As soon as they got home, they changed out of their dressy clothes and opted for their pajamas. Olivia put on some light jazz music while Alex opened a bottle of sparkling cider. They had a few glasses of wine with dinner, but with Olivia on call, she could not have any more alcohol.

Olivia had just finished lighting the last of the 10 or so candles spread around the room. Alex set the bottle of cider on the coffee table and gave a glass to her fiancé.

"To us and a wonderful prosperous 2010." Said Alex.

They clinked their glasses together and Olivia repeated 'to us." They each drank a sip of cider, then Olivia took Alex's glass from her and set them both on the coffee table. She held her hand out to her fiancé.

"May I have this dance?" Asked Olivia.

"Of course." Replied Alex.

The ladies slipped into each others' arms fitting like a snug glove on a hand. They slowly started swaying to the soft music playing. It didn't long for their dancing to morph into a make out session. They moved to the sofa to continue that in a more comfortable position. Neither woman was in a hurry; they were taking their time. Before long Alex had removed Olivia's pajamas; each time Olivia tried to remove any of Alex's clothing she was denied. She finally gave up and allowed Alex to take control.

After Alex made love to Olivia they wrapped themselves in a blanket on the sofa and snuggled together. They were quiet; they could barely hear the muffled sounds of the city. Alex shifted to look at the clock on the stereo.

"Liv?"

"Hm?"

"You need to get up and get dressed."

"Why? I'm quite comfortable right here."

"I have a surprise for you. Come on." Said Alex who was now up and trying to coax Olivia up.

Finally after protesting, Olivia gave in and got up draping the blanket around her nude body. She grabbed up her discarded pajamas from the floor and headed towards the bedroom with Alex following behind. A few minutes later Olivia emerged from the bathroom dressed in her pajamas again. Alex was on the bed putting on her tennis shoes.

"You need to put on some shoes." Said Alex.

"Why?"

"Surprise, remember."

Olivia grabbed a pair of socks from the dresser and her tennis shoes and took a spot on the bed next to Alex to put them on.

"Alex it's almost midnight we are going to miss the ball drop." Said Olivia.

"Trust me. Coat, scarf, hat and gloves." Replied Alex as she was putting on her coat and such.

Olivia sighed and followed suit. They grabbed their cell phones and Alex picked up her set of keys. Olivia noticed that Alex had another blanket tucked under her arm. They headed out into the hallway with Alex's free arm linked into Olivia's. Olivia stopped at the elevator but Alex tugged her towards the stairs. Olivia let Alex lead the way. Once through the door, they headed up. The shock of cold air hit them both when Alex opened the roof door. Olivia now knew why Alex had the extra blanket. Alex pulled Olivia across the roof to the corner.

"Alex?" Protested Olivia as Alex unfolded the blanket.

Alex turned Olivia so that she was looking out over the city and she wrapped the blanket around her back as she hugged Olivia from behind essentially wrapping them both in the blanket. Then Alex raised one hand a little bit and pointed across the skyline.

"Look and listen." Said Alex.

Olivia followed her line of sight to see what she was pointing at. There off in the distance between several buildings she could see the ball in Time Square. If she listened passed the traffic just below them she could hear the roar of the crowd. Alex looked down at her watch there was about 20 seconds left until 2010 would be upon them.

"I love you, Olivia. Happy New Year."

Just then Olivia could hear the crowd clearly; 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Then a lot of screaming and the fireworks. She felt so much love in this moment. She turned in Alex's arms to face her.

"I love you too, Alex. Happy New Year."

They each leaned forward for the celebratory New Year's kiss. It was gentle and sweet. Alex did her best to keep the blanket wrapped around them. The kiss deepened; each tongue fighting for dominance. Their eyes were closed, neither could see the white flakes starting to fall. When one or two finally landed on their cheek or the nose and turned wet they broke the kiss.

"It's snowing!" Said Olivia.

"Come on, let's go back in and continue this in a much warmer setting." Said Alex.

"Where did you have in mind Councilor?" Asked Olivia as they walked back to the roof door.

"I was thinking our bed is the logical answer, Detective."

"I like the way you think."

In short order the ladies burst back into their apartment. Alex locked the door, they turned out all the lights and made sure all the candles from earlier were completely out. They quickly stripped and jumped into their bed. Olivia made sure to repay her fiancé for the pleasure she had received earlier in the evening. Once they were both satiated; they drifted off to sleep.

Around 2:30am, Olivia's cell phone rang.

"Benson?"

"Olivia? We have a rape victim at St. Vincent's. She isn't speaking and she had no ID. She'll be in the ER."

"OK, Cap. I'll be there in 20."

"Thanks, good night."

"Night."

As Olivia closed her phone she felt loving arms wrap around her from behind and pull her close.

"You have to go?"

"Yeah, I caught a case."

Olivia stood and turned around to face Alex. She leaned down and kissed her, passionately.

"I hate to leave. Tonight was wonderful, the best New Year's Eve I've ever had. Go back to sleep. At least one of us should get a good night's sleep."

"I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too. Now sleep." Said Olivia as she tucked Alex back in and got one more quick kiss before quickly grabbing some clothes and stepping into the bathroom.

A few minutes later, Olivia came out freshly showered, dressed and ready to go. She quietly slid open the drawer of her nightstand and unlocked the metal box to retrieve her service weapon. She popped the clip and ran through her normal routine before holstering it. She clipped her badge to her belt and her phone and lastly her handcuffs. One more quick kiss to Alex's forehead and slipped from the bedroom. She called down to the doorman and asked if he would hail a cab for her. Olivia got the rest of her things, her coat, gloves and hat and left the apartment locking it back tight.

The doorman had to call a cab so Olivia waited inside and spoke briefly with him. Soon she arrived at the hospital. She made her way through the sea of people to the check-in desk. Full moons and New Year's Eves were always the worst for bringing the crazies out and filling hospital emergency rooms. The nurse paged the doctor handling the case and Olivia got to work. It was a long few hours. The victim was found wandering the streets in torn and tattering clothing. She was in some sort of fugue state not speaking. She freaked out when the nurses and doctors tried to examine her. She eventually had to be sedated. During that time the doctor finished the exam and did a rape kit. They had collected semen so there was a good chance of finding the attacker.

Olivia was waiting for the young woman to wake up from the sedative. She started coming around and freaking out again. Olivia was able to calm her down without having the nurse sedate her again. Over the next little while Olivia learn who the young woman was and the events that she could remember. The doctor informed them both that she had been drugged. It appeared to be a date rape scenario.

Alex woke up around her normal time; she had not heard from Olivia. She wasn't worried, she just missed her being there. Alex decided to have a lazy morning in bed. She fixed a pot of coffee and grabbed a book she had been wanting to start. She crawled back into bed and got comfortable. Just before 8am, Olivia had called and said that she was on her way home. Alex decided to have a hot breakfast waiting for her love. She got up and slipped on a pair of yoga pants and pulled one of Olivia's NYPD sweatshirts on over her tank and headed for the kitchen.

Alex started frying the turkey bacon. Soon she was ready to scramble the eggs. She pushed the knob on the toaster for the two pieces of buttered whole grain bread to toast. She plated all of the food and poured each of them a glass of orange juice. She also fixed a mug of hot tea for her love instead of coffee. Hopefully this way Olivia will be able to get a few hours of sleep. Just as she finished setting the table she heard the door.

"Alex?"

"In here."

Olivia immediately smelled the scent of bacon. She follow her nose into the kitchen.

"What's this?" Asked Olivia as she was taking her coat and gun off.

"Breakfast, nice and hot. Here let me help." Said Alex as she walked over to Olivia.

Olivia hung her coat on the back of the chair; she had laid her gun on the table. Alex pulled her cuffs out of their slot and Olivia's phone while Olivia unclipped her badge. Alex then undid Olivia's belt and pulled it off, laying it on the table with the rest of Olivia's things. She pushed Olivia into the chair at the table then Alex dropped to a knee and slid Olivia's shoes off before taking a seat next to Olivia.

"I knew that you probably didn't take the time to eat anything and you've probably had more cups of coffee than I care to count. So I fixed you a hot cup of tea along with a hot breakfast. After this, you shower and then I am putting you to bed for however long you want to sleep or until you are called into work again, which hopefully won't happen again today."

Alex saw Olivia smile and the smile disappeared.

"What? What's wrong? Did I do something wrong?" Asked Alex timidly.

Olivia picked up Alex's hand from where it was laying on the table and brought to her lips for a tender kiss.

"Nothing, you did nothing wrong. In fact, you did everything right. Alex, I've never had someone love me and take care of me the way you do. Sometimes when you do things like this, it's…it's just a bit overwhelming to me. That's all." Replied Olivia.

Olivia leaned toward Alex and the smile was back on her face.

"Kiss?" Asked Olivia.

"Always!" Said Alex with a hint of seduction.

The ladies enjoyed breakfast. They did not talk about work. They have been trying to make a point to not talk about work at home and keep them as separate as possible. Olivia was getting sleepy; she managed to finish most of her breakfast. Alex led her to the bathroom and helped her undress and get in the shower. While Olivia was showering, Alex quickly straighten up the kitchen. Once back in the bedroom, she pulled the shades and the dark drapes closed to block out as much light as possible. She pulled the covers back on the unmade bed then grabbed a fresh pair of boxers and a tank from Olivia's drawer.

Olivia emerged from the shower wrapped in a towel. She was moving slowly as her tired body was showing its lack of sleep. Alex brought her over to the bed and pulled the towel from her fiancé's body. Handing her the boxers, Olivia slipped them on and allowed Alex to pull the tank over her head. Olivia sat on the edge of the bed while Alex took the towel and dried Olivia's short hair. Olivia felt like she was in a haze; she could feel Alex drying her hair. Then she felt Alex pushing her back into the bed and lifting her legs. She sensed the warmth when the covers were pulled over her body. She barely had any energy left in her, but she managed one word.

"Stay."

Alex pushed the bedroom door closed and discarded the yoga pants and sweatshirt from before and slid into bed next to Olivia. She was barely settled when Olivia turned over and snuggled into her side laying her head on Alex's shoulder. Alex could feel the moisture building in her eyes. This is what Olivia meant earlier, how overwhelming their love for each other can be. She wiped the errant tear from the corner of her eye and laid a kiss to the crown of Olivia's head. Soon she heard Olivia's breathing shift and she knew that Olivia had fallen asleep. It wasn't long before Alex dozed off as well.

The rest of the holiday weekend was much the same. Olivia would be called out to a crime scene or the hospital for a few hours, but the ladies did enjoy some alone time together. As soon as January 2nd rolled around, they were both in high gear planning the wedding. They had decided the date, March 6th. It wasn't going to have a huge guest list, so Alex was able to secure one of the smaller ball rooms at the Waldorf. This could accommodate both the wedding and the reception. She also got the hotel manager to bank the hotel rooms that they would need at cost. They got together with Abbie, Kathy and Melinda. They all helped with planning the menu and taking on some of the tasks that needed to be done liking ordering the flowers, invitations, arranging for the band, etc.

They had decided to have a ceremony in New York so that their friends and family could attend. They set the time in the afternoon because their plans were to leave Manhattan and take the Cabot jet to Boston. That night they would marry in Massachusetts so that the marriage would be legal, at least in one state. They would then leave on the private jet for their honeymoon. Olivia was keeping it a surprise from Alex. Alex was paying for most of the wedding and with the exception of the jet, Olivia was going to pay for the honeymoon.

The ladies had also decided on who they wanted in the wedding party, they just needed to ask them. Alex asked her Uncle Bill to give her away and she asked her cousin Beth to be her Matron of Honor. They both agreed. Olivia wanted to ask the Captain to give her away and Elliot to be her Best Man. They next day when she got to work, only the Captain was there. She decided to take this opportunity to ask him. She settled her things at her desk and made her way to his office and knocked on the door.

"Come in."

"Morning Captain."

"Olivia, good morning. Anything new on the date rape case?"

"Yes sir. All the fraternity boys gave a DNA sample. So since they gave so freely we are thinking it was a guest and not a member of the house. All the boys are putting together lists of the guests that they can remember. This house has exterior security cameras. Apparently they've had run ins with a rival house causing vandalism; so they installed security cameras. Munch has been reviewing the tapes to see if he can catch our vic and maybe whoever she was with."

"Good. Let me know what you find out."

"I will. Um, Cap, there something else if you have a minute?"

"Personal or work related?"

"Personal. Alex and I, we've set the date, March 6th. I was hoping…I wanted to ask. Sir, you are the closet I'll ever come to having a father. I wanted to ask if you would walk me down the aisle?"

The Captain got up from behind his desk and walked around to Olivia. He took both her hands into his.

"Olivia, I feel the same way about you. You are the closet I'll come to having a daughter. I'd be honored to walk you down the aisle. I'll even wear my dress uniform if you want."

She laughed as he pulled her into a hug.

"I'll let Alex know. We hope to settle that issue along with finding our dresses this weekend. It would be nice to see you and El in your dress uniforms though. When he gets in, I'm going to ask him to be my best man."

"Well, that seems only fitting." Replied the Captain.

Just then they heard a noise in the squad room and they both looked to see that Elliot had arrived. The Captain motioned for Olivia to go and ask Elliot now. She left her boss's office and went back over to her desk.

"Morning, El."

"Morning, Partner. Are you recovered from the long weekend?"

"Yeah, pretty much. I wanted to ask you something."

"OK, shoot."

"The squad, you guys are my family. I mean, I know there's Simon, but he can't accept me for who I am and in my book he doesn't count anymore. Alex and I, we've been working on the wedding plans. Oh, we set the date, March 6th…"

"You got a question in there somewhere, Partner?"

"Huh, oh, yeah. Um, will you be my best man?"

Elliot didn't hesitate to pulled Olivia into a big hug.

"You bet, Partner. I'll stand up for you. I'll always have your back."

TBC…