A/N: A moment. A threat. A promise.

DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. TStabler© owns this story.

He stood in the doorway of their bedroom, watching her tugging at her clothes. He smiled, noticing the frustrated and awkward expressions on her face. He watched her tug on the top of her shirt, twisting the material this way and that before finally ripping it over her head and tossing it to the floor.

"This isn't fair," she said, throwing her arms up. "I mean, where the hell did they come from?" She gestured to her chest and shook her head. "I just…"

"Liv, you're pregnant," he laughed.

"Yeah, but is the baby growing in my boobs?" she asked, running a hand through her hair. "They hurt, they're oversensitive, and they're fucking huge!"

He chuckled as he pulled her into his arms. "Hello, mood swings," he mumbled, kissing her forehead. "They'll go away soon enough, honey, but right now…your body is just preparing itself for motherhood." He shrugged and kissed the end of her nose. "You read the book."

She looked up at him and narrowed her eyes. "Of course you would like this little side-effect," she said, rolling her eyes. "Call Cragen, tell him that unless he wants me to show up naked, I can't…"

"The closet," Elliot interrupted, smirking.

She raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Go check the closet," he said, nudging her toward the large, wooden doors. "I'm sure you'll find something you can wear."

She gave him a suspicious look as she walked toward the closet, and when she pulled it open, she froze. "Elliot," she said, her voice just a whisper.

He strode up next to her, wrapping his arms around her eight-week-old belly. "You've got work suits, in a few different sizes. The pants have an elastic waist, really stretchy. And you've got a few dresses, they're pretty…"

She turned fast and kissed him, silencing him. "Thank you," she whispered, drawing him closer to her again. She felt him running his hands up and down her bare back, she moaned against his lips, pressing herself further against him.

He smirked, he knew she could feel the stretch of his lips as they kissed. He chuckled and pulled her toward the bed, snaking a hand down to cup her ass.

She moaned again as she followed him onto the mattress, straddling him as he fell backward. She kept her lips attached to his, moving fluidly with him, and she toyed with the buckle on his belt, making her intentions known.

He moaned her name softly, lifting his hips to help her get his pants off of his body, and he tugged on hers at the same time, practically ripping them down her legs and off of her feet.

She whimpered when he skimmed his hands over her tender breasts, but she relaxed into his touch. He was gentle, taking the care not to squeeze or pinch, showing he was concerned more with her than himself. "El," she whispered, pulling at the waistband of his boxers, "I need…"

"I know what you need," he said softly, rolling over gently. He gripped her panties and slid them down, then slowly moved up her body, dropping light kisses along her skin.

When he met her eyes, she lifted her head to kiss him, wrapped her hands around his thick neck, and arched her body into him, almost begging.

He chuckled, pulling away from her for a moment. "Now, you know how I feel," he teased, letting his hardness rest against her swollen heat for a moment before thrusting. "All the time," he said to her, kissing her again.

She moaned and whimpered, her hands tightening around his neck and her nails digging into his shoulders. He felt bigger for some reason, it felt tighter, more intense. "Oh, my God!" she cried.

"Baby," he grunted, moving slowly for her, "If I'm hurting…"

She shook her head before he could finish. "God," she moaned, her neck rolling, her head falling backward. "It's just so…oh, God, El," she babbled. She pressed her lips to his, stopping all conversation. She arched into him, needed to feel more of him.

He moaned in surprise, her eagerness shocking him. "What, baby?" he asked softly. "What do you want?"

"More," she panted. "Harder," she ordered. She clawed at his back, her body rising off of the bed almost completely as she tried to slam up into him.

"Whoa," he chuckled. "Baby, you need to…" her lips quieted him again. He grunted into her mouth as he moved faster, harder, giving her what she wanted. What she, apparently, needed. He pried his lips away from hers with a low growl and looked down at her, seeing new expressions, new flickers in her eyes. He smirked, knowing that her hormones had fully kicked in, she was completely lost to him now.

She felt her body move, burn, tighten, she felt him move, every inch sliding in and out of her, so intensely. She gripped his skin, hooking her fingers into his arms, meeting every rough thrust.

He grunted and moaned, kissed her and held her, and his eyes rolled backward when she tightened around him. "Fuck, Liv," he spat, thrusting with more power, knowing she was close, knowing it would be one of the most intense experiences they'd ever shared.

She keened and whined, her spine rolling in waves as the burn washed over her. "Elliot," she moaned, scratching down his back. "God, Elliot."

"Come on, baby," he breathed, feeling his own body gear up to fire off, grunting as he moved.

"Oh, my God," she yelled, bending backward, almost angular.

"Shit," he spat, her clenching squeezing him so hard it triggered a volatile release for him. He shot into her with a grunt of her name, slamming his body against hers, sheathing himself fully inside of her and staying there. "God, Liv," he panted, holding himself close to her, in her.

She was breathing heavily, damp with sweat and a smile on her face, and she nodded. "That was…that…we are so…"

"Late for work," he said, noticing the clock and pulling out of her with a moan. "Come on, baby." He kissed her quickly and grazed her belly with the palm of his hand.

She turned her head as he got off of the bed, and her hands dropped to her belly. She felt the haze of pure bliss fade, replaced by nausea. She grimaced as she sat up, padded to the bathroom, and finally understood the duality of pregnancy, the pros and the cons, and she realized that she didn't mind at all.


Cragen stared at her, his arms folded and his foot tapping. He hadn't said anything to her since she took herself off the last case, and he had so much he wanted to say, so much he wanted to ask. He ran a hand down his face, remembering how he'd yelled at them when they came in late, and how Elliot had stormed into his office and demanded not only an apology but that he lay off of Olivia and treat her with more respect, or he'd walk out and take her with him.

It made Cragen proud, in an odd way, and made him realize that Elliot was serious, and he did care about Olivia. He still couldn't bring himself to accept it all, but he owed her an apology. He knew that much. He sighed as he walked over to Olivia's desk, looking down at her. "Olivia," he said softly.

"Yeah?" she said, her voice low, looking up at her captain.

He cleared his throat, tugged on his left sleeve, and he said, "I just wanted to know…how things are going. How are you?"

She was silent for a moment, as if choosing between answering him or ignoring him. She licked her lips and said, "Well, I'm nauseous all the time, I have terrible gas, I have a constant craving for chili dogs, none of my clothes fit, I get dizzy a lot, I get these horrible headaches, my sense of smell is incredibly strong which, trust me, is not a good thing. I'm tired all the time, I'm constipated, I have no ankles and I think, right now, I would lose in a beauty contest to Munch." She took a breath and said, "That about sums it up. Thanks for asking."

Cragen gave her a small smile and said, "Welcome to motherhood. It's only gonna get worse."

"I know, I read the book," she said. "Stop trying to scare me out of this, you're about eight weeks too late."

Elliot popped his head up and interjected. "You look beautiful, by the way. Munch has nothing on you." He smiled at her, garnering a soft grin in return.

Cragen folded his arms and bit his lip, ignoring Elliot, and he said, "I'm sorry, Olivia. For everything. I know…I know you love him, and I know you…you're gonna be okay." He stepped closer to her and lowered his voice, aware that Elliot was staring at them, at him. "If you ever need anything, Olivia…if he ever does hurt you…"

"He won't." She interrupted him, firmly and severely. "You have to believe that he won't."

Cragen gave her a look. Both a promise and a warning. "I know what I believe, and it's different than what you believe. This is one time I pray that I'm wrong." He looked down and he smiled upon seeing her hand resting on her very small bump. "Eight weeks, is it?"

She nodded, rubbing a circle over the subtle round of her belly. "Almost nine," she said. "And he hasn't left my side."

Cragen gave her another smile. "I'll give it another seven months," he said with a sigh. "If he still hasn't…"

"Captain Cragen," Olivia interrupted, her eyes dark. "I appreciate your concern, but this is my life, and my choice. I don't need your approval. Not on this." She turned back to her computer and said, "I'll have this report on your desk in fifteen minutes."

Cragen sighed again, and he nodded at her before turning to look at Elliot. "She trusts you," he said.

"She should," Elliot returned. "She's right to trust me." His eyes narrowed and he smirked. "I trust her, too. Partners…"

"Exactly," Cragen interrupted. "Partners. Partner, Elliot! This should have never…no, ya know what? I'm done being upset over this. You two…do what you're gonna do, do your jobs, I don't care anymore."

"You never cared," Olivia mumbled.

Cragen turned back to her. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," she said, still typing. "You've known…for years…that I…that what I feel for Elliot…that I wanted…"

"Spit it out, Benson," Cragen boomed.

Olivia turned to him. "You've known for a long time that I had feelings for him, that if this was ever gonna happen for me, that I wanted it with him. If you cared at all, you would be happy that I'm finally getting that. This is happening, and it's with him, and it's what I want."

Cragen looked at her with tears welling up in his eyes. "I do care," he said softly. "And I am happy for you, I am. I just…this is not how this should have happened. I'm worried about you."

"Don't be," she said, shaking her head once. "The great thing about me is, since I had to learn how to take care of myself fast, no one needs to worry about me."

"Hey!" Elliot yelled, irritated.

She smirked as she rolled her eyes and said, "Okay, no one except you."

He smiled at her and nodded, approving of her exception. "Better."

Cragen sighed. "Whether you want me to or not, Olivia, I'm gonna worry about you. You're the closest thing I've got to a daughter…I don't wanna see you hurt."

"You can't see it if you're the one doing it," she whispered to him. She turned back to her computer, typing faster.

Elliot eyed her sadly, his heart both breaking and pounding hard. He looked toward Cragen, who looked defeated. He watched the captain walk slowly toward his office, and he knew that something had finally gotten through to him. He looked back at Olivia and leaned over his desk. "Hey, Benson?"

She looked over at him and raised an eyebrow. "What, Stabler?" she asked, a teasing tone in her voice.

He smiled at her and said, "I love you."

"I love you, too," she said, her expression changing from sullen to soft. "Thank you," she said, blinking slowly. "Whatever you said to him that made him apologize…"

"How did you know I said anything?" he asked, squinting.

She chuckled. "I know you," she said. "And I saw you run into his office almost as soon as we got here, after he yelled…"

"Nothing gets by you," he interrupted with a laugh.

"Not when it comes to you," she said, the smirk on her face almost evil.

He narrowed his eyes, he folded his arms, and he said, "So you know."

She smiled brighter, wider, and she said, "I know." She winked at him, turned back to her computer, and finished her report, knowing he was staring at her. She didn't really know anything, but now…she knew he was planning something. Something she wasn't supposed to know about.

A/N: Next: Elliot surprises her, a session with Huang, and an impulsive act in an awkward place. Review here, or on Twitter.