A/N: "Loneliness is a man-made emotion. That means it's man's job to destroy it." Please forgive the lateness in updating, as there were log-in and update problems with the site. Hopefully, it's working now, and you can read on!
DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. TStabler© owns this story.
Olivia, half-asleep in her chair, shook her head and popped her eyes open in an effort to stay awake long enough to read through and sign her final report on what she considered the case from hell.
Elliot watched her eyes close, then pop open, then close again, and he felt so relieved that he'd be able to take her home soon. "Liv, wake up and sign that thing, huh?" he teased with a smirk.
She looked at him with a sleepy glare, picked up her pen, and scrawled her name on the last page of the report. "Happy?" she spat, tossing the file onto her desk, then throwing the pen on top of it.
Elliot laughed and said, "Yes, actually." He got out of his chair, reached over his desk for his keys, then held a hand out to Olivia. "Four days, I think that merits s two off, right?"
She scoffed, taking his hand. "We only got one after that week-long…"
"Take two," Cragen said, yawning as he stepped out of his office. "This case was tough on both of you, and your kids…" he paused, realizing both how natural and painful saying that really was, and he shook his head. "Your kids need you."
Elliot looked up at Cragen, tilting his head. "Thanks, Cap," he said with a nod.
Cragen nodded back with a small smile. He walked out of the squad room, sticking to his decision to ease up on Elliot and trust that he'd be good to Olivia.
Olivia, her hand still in Elliot's, looked after the door with a curious expression. "That was weird," she said, stifling a yawn.
"Maybe he just came to the same conclusion that I have," he said, pulling her toward the door.
"And what's that?" she asked, trudging toward the elevator. She slapped the button and rubbed her eyes, dropping her head to Elliot's shoulder. She stepped blindly into the lift, keeping her eyes closed as he pulled her closer and held her.
He kissed her forehead and whispered, "That what we have, baby, isn't temporary. This is forever." He kissed her head again and said, "I'm gonna love you forever." He waited for a response, but didn't get one. "Honey?"
He looked down to see her, smirking, sound asleep on his shoulder. He chuckled and kissed her forehead again, bending a bit to lift her into his arms. He carried her out of the elevator, out of the building, and into the car, hoping whatever she was dreaming about was making her happy. That's the way he wanted her for the rest of her life: happy. He was prepared, now more than ever, to fight anyone who stood in the way of that.
She woke up, naked and in her bed, and she looked around, confused. "El?"
He walked out of the bathroom, a flushing noise following through the door. "Right here, baby."
"What time is it?" she asked. "How did…"
"It's almost eleven. You fell asleep in the elevator," he interrupted, sliding back under the covers. "I just didn't have the heart to wake you up. Carried you out, then up into the house, and when I tried to change you, you kicked me so…" he shrugged. "You look much better naked anyway," he laughed, pulling her into him.
She rolled her eyes, snuggling into him. "That was sweet of you," she mumbled, resting her head on his chest. Her hand splayed over his body, trailing over his muscles. She moaned a bit, feeling the tension and definition under her fingers. It reminded her just how much he turned her on, how much she wanted him, from the moment her eyes landed on his body.
"You woke up in a mood," he groaned, shifting his weight as he felt her hands move over his body. "A very good mood."
She moaned and kissed his neck, slipping her hand down his body, skimming over his thighs. "I had a really weird dream."
He moaned and moved again, trying to get her hand closer to his growing erection. "About what?" he asked, kissing her.
She kissed him back, her hand finally reaching and stroking his stiffness. "You. I was watching you, trying to talk to you, trying to be with you, but you were ignoring me."
"I could never ignore you," he said, breathless as he tried to stop a moan. He thrust his hips, making her hand work faster. "Never."
She chuckled, moving over him. "I told you it was weird," she said. She dropped her head to his and grabbed his hands, placing them both on her hips. "What were you saying? Before. About forever?"
He smiled, grabbing her tightly and moving into position. He thrust slowly, easing into heart, and he said, "You heard me."
She moaned and moved her head a bit, nuzzling him. "Tell me again," she whispered.
He grunted softly and pulled out of her slowly, then hit into her hard. "You and me," he told her. "Forever." He slid one hand up her body, caressing her, and he grabbed her left hand. He ran the pad of his thumb over the ring on her finger, and he kissed her, trying to prove his point by making everything about this encounter deep and soulful.
She returned his kiss eagerly, almost demanding more from him. She clutched his hand as she moved over him, trying to prove that she felt the same way he did. Her phone, ringing obnoxiously, interrupted the blissful moment they were sharing.
"Fuck," he spat, not stopping his thrusts as he watched her moving to answer her phone. "We're supposed to have the next two days off."
"It's not Cragen," she moaned, rolling her hips in reaction to what he was doing to her. "El, baby, God, stop. It's Fin."
He scoffed and moved faster. "What the hell does he want?" he asked, pulling her hand to his face, kissing her knuckles.
She shook her head, biting her lip. She was torn between answering the phone and ignoring the call to finish what she'd started with Elliot. She had the ringing phone clutched in one hand and Elliot's hand gripped in the other as she began clenching, tightening, and shaking. "El, God," she whispered, breathing hard.
"Baby," he moaned, squeezing her hand and moving harder to get through her tightened body. He pulled her back down to him as he felt her vibrate, knowing she was cumming, and he kissed her deeply as he kept moving.
She moaned into his mouth, unaware the ringing had stopped, and she stilled as he hit into her deeper. She cried his name into their kiss as she felt his body go rigid beneath her and.
He grunted as he shot into her, keeping her down tight to him. He pulled away from her lips, gasping for breath, slowing down before finally stopping. "Damn, Liv," he panted.
She kissed him, rolling her hips once again. "Wow," she breathed, laughing a bit.
He chuckled and gave her bottom a playful slap. "You started it," he said.
"I know I did," she whispered, moving back. Just as she was about to roll off of him, her phone rang again. She looked at Elliot, then down at the phone.
"Answer it," he said, brushing her hair back behind her ears as he rolled them carefully to the side, then laid her on her back on the bed. He kissed her shoulder as she lifted the phone to her ears.
"Benson," she said, slightly out of breath as her eyes slid shut. She felt Elliot brushing her hair back as she listened to Fin. She was almost asleep again when something he said made her shoot up. "What? Where is she?"
"What is it? What happened?" Elliot asked, a bit of worry in his voice.
She held up a finger. "Okay, uh, yeah. You can bring the baby over here and we'll…we'll find her." She sighed and said, "That's what friends do, Fin. Bye."
Elliot looked at her, sitting up, and asked, "What happened?"
"Kathy left," she said, pushing the covers down and climbing off of the bed. "She took clothes, left him a letter and her ring. She's gone."
"She would never leave her child," he said, confused. "She's not…that's not like her."
She nodded as she pulled on some pajama pants and grabbed a tee shirt. "That's what he said. He's scared, and confused, and the baby won't stop crying. I told him to…"
"Yeah, I heard you," he said, getting up and getting dressed. "I'll make coffee, try to call Kathy."
"You think she's really gonna pick up if I…"
"Use my phone," he told her, kissing her. He walked out, into the kitchen, wondering what had driven Kathy to leave the man she'd left him for, and what he could do to fix it. He ran a hand down his face and sighed, hating the fact that he felt a bit vindicated by it all, that Fin now knew a small amount of the pain he'd felt.
Olivia wrapped her arms around him, behind him. "No answer," she said, kissing the dip between his shoulder blades.
He turned and grabbed her, hugging her tightly. "I love you," he said, closing his eyes.
She knew what he was thinking, what was going through his mind, and all she could do was hold him just as close and reassure him. "I love you, too."
A/N: Where's Kathy? What's in the letter? And a surprise from Cragen which may move things along quicker. Review here, or on Twitter: TMG212