Please read and review. I think this is getting pretty close to the end of this story…. I will maybe write a few more chapters and tie things up. I don't see writing a whole wedding scene etc., so perhaps it's just best to leave it on a happy note…moving towards the future, and start a new story, Half the fun is the anticipation of them getting together! Thoughts?

Olivia lay in Elliot's arms and sighed.

"Happy?" asked Elliot.

"Yeah." Olivia smiled, tilting her head to look up at Elliot. "and hungry. Did you bring food?"

That made Elliot laugh. "Yes, Detective, I brought food. But I just brought sandwiches and soup. I'm not sure that's going to cut it. I really worked up an appetite." He snuggled her closer.

"I agree. I'm starving." Olivia said.

"Well, I suppose we could go out." said Elliot.

"Hmm. Are you asking me out on a date?" asked Olivia.

"Yes, I suppose you could call it a date."

"I know you're new to this, but I just wanted to let you know that you're supposed to take a girl out on a date before you sleep with her. So you have this kind of backwards."

"If buying a few meals is what gets you laid, then I have been missing out. With all of the coffee, donuts and lunches I've bought for you over the past 8 years…you owe me." He leaned in and kissed her, running his hand over her shoulder and down her arm. He dropped his hand down to her hip as he deepened the kiss, until Olivia broke it off.

"Not so fast Stabler. Feed me." Olivia said, rolling away from him. He tried to grab her and pull her back to him, but she eluded his grasp.

"El. Seriously, I'm starving. I know we could probably stay in bed all weekend and I would never get tired of this, but a girl does have to eat." She stood up and walked into the bathroom, giving Elliot a backwards glance and a smile as she shut the bathroom door.

Elliot smiled. He heard the shower start running and let his mind wander. He had been thinking about a relationship with Olivia for a long time, but really, it had never gotten much past wishful thinking. He never expected them to end up in bed together, much less seriously considering a relationship. But now it was a reality. They could really be together; be a couple. He couldn't stop smiling. Suddenly, he didn't want to keep it a secret any longer. He had been denying his feelings for so long, and now that they were out in the open, he wanted to let everyone know. All of the years of frustration and longing were gone. In his mind, she had always been his…but he could never claim her. But now he had claimed her; she was his. The last man that would ever kiss her, hold her, love her. He was going to make her happy; with everything he had. He wanted to make up for all of the sadness and disappointment in her life.

Olivia came out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel and saw Elliot lying on his back, staring at the ceiling with a big smile on his face. She raised an eyebrow and smirked. "What are you doing?" she asked.

Elliot rolled over onto his side and looked at her, a big smile on his face. "Thinking about you." he said.

"Hmm. Care to share?"

Elliot got up and walked over to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I was thinking about how happy I am; how happy you make me. I was thinking that I want to tell everyone how much I love you and that I'm never going to have to be upset about you going out on a date or think about you in bed with some other guy. You're mine."

Olivia looked up at him. "Wow. Pretty bold Stabler." She looked down at her hand. "I don't see a ring on my finger." She teased.

"Liv." said Elliot, with a very serious look on his face. "I would marry you tomorrow if you'd let me."

Olivia laughed and pulled back. "How about we go on a date first?" She didn't like how serious this conversation was getting. She had no doubt that Elliot meant what he said, and she had dreamed of hearing those words from him, but things were escalating really quickly and making her a little nervous.

"Deal." said Elliot. "I'm going to take a quick shower.

Olivia pulled on some clean underwear, some jeans and a soft gray sweater. She touched up her makeup and fixed her hair while she waited for Elliot to get out of the shower. When he was done, he got dressed quickly and they headed out.

"Where do you want to go?" asked Elliot as they took the stairs at her apartment.

"Let's just go to the diner that's a couple of blocks down. It's casual, and it's a nice night out and we can walk."

When they reached the sidewalk, Elliot grabbed Olivia's hand and they strolled down the street. It was such an odd sensation for both of them. There had been years of purposefully not touching, afraid of what they would unleash. And here they were, just strolling down the street as if they had been doing this for years. It was amazing how comfortable and easy it was.

They reached the diner and were seated at a booth for two. They got some water and ordered their favorites off the menu. They held hands across the table, and they couldn't stop smiling at each other.

Elliot finally broke the ice. "I guess we can't just sit here and stare at each other smiling."

"Why not?" asked Olivia, laughing lightly. She knew the conversation was about to turn serious, and she wasn't sure she was up for it.

"Liv. I meant what I said earlier."

"I know."

"You don't want that?"

"I didn't say that." Olivia shook her head. "I never said that. It's just that usually there is a natural progression…"

"Liv, our relationship has progressed naturally…over 8 years. People don't normally date for 8 years."

"El, nothing about our relationship has ever been normal. And we have not been dating for 8 years. Stop saying that." She shook her head.

Elliot sighed. "I know we haven't been dating, but you have to admit that our relationship has grown and changed over the past 8 years."

"Yes. But as friends. Elliot, I never would have done anything to jeopardize your marriage. I tried to keep my feelings in check; I never wanted to come in between you and Kathy."

"Liv, we both know that we felt more for each other than we should…I fell in love with you years ago, and Kathy knew it."

Olivia looked up at him sharply. "El, she knows we never… She knows you didn't cheat on her, right?"

Elliot looked down at the table. "Liv. She knows we never slept together. But how do you define cheating? You and I have an emotional bond…I had given part of myself to you already. And Kathy knew it. I went to see her earlier this week, when I was upset about you and Matt. I thought that I had really messed up. That I had waited too long and now it was too late. And suddenly, I was completely lost. My world was crumbling and I found myself at my house. My old house. Kathy could tell something was wrong and I told her about you and Matt. And she told me…she told me she knew that you I was in love with you and had been for some time. She told me to tell you. "

Olivia's mouth was open, in shock about what Elliot was telling her. "It was my fault that she left you." She whispered.

"No! That's not why I told you that. We got divorced because we had grown apart. We were kids when we got married and we've become different people. We have honestly been happier since we've been apart, and she's moved on. She's dating someone else. And she honestly thought that as soon as we were divorced, that I would tell you how I felt. She couldn't believe that I hadn't."

Olivia still couldn't believe what she was hearing. Kathy was the one person that she had been terrified of telling about their relationship. Even though she had been invited to a lot of Stabler family events over the years, she had always felt a certain wariness from Kathy. And she supposed she would feel the same way if she had been in her shoes. She had to send her husband off to work with another woman every day; let him spend more time with that woman than his family, and trust that he would return every night.

"So…" said Elliot. "I think we should talk to Kathy tomorrow and figure out when and how to tell the kids"

Olivia groaned. "El. I thought we were going to wait awhile."

"I don't want to wait. I want to tell everyone. You said yourself that we're not going to be able to keep it a secret."

"I know. But if we tell your family, we're going to have to tell Cragen." She looked down at the table. "As much as I want this El, I can't imagine not working with you. I don't want another partner."

"I know Liv. And I've thought about it. But there's no going back now. And I will trade a partnership if it means I get to come home to you every night." He took her hand and smiled. "I think Cragen will let us both stay in SVU; just switch up partners. I know Fin will watch your back. Mostly because he knows I will rip him to shreds if he ever let anything happen to you."

Olivia smiled. She knew that was true.

"And then, when we start a family, maybe you can just stop working." Elliot stroked the back of her hand gently with his thumb.

Olivia was dumbfounded. First he had talked about marriage and now a baby. She tried to pull her hand away but Elliot held on.

"Liv. Am I scaring you?" Elliot smiled, still stroking the back of her hand.

"A little. It's just so…much. So fast."

"Liv. Do you love me?" asked Elliot, looking into her eyes.

"Of course."

"Then don't be afraid. I'm not going anywhere. I'm never leaving you. You are not going to be alone…ever again. We're going to be a family.