Vexed

The rest of the week passed without incident; Elliot was sure that they would catch some major case late in the week that would cause Cragen to cancel their time off, but by some miracle, Friday morning came and all was status quo. He and Olivia had their paperwork caught up, Munsch and Fin were on call for the weekend, and Kathy had packed so much and left so many lists for Olivia that Elliot thought it would be possible for them to stay away for a month and not be missed.

Olivia came to the house an hour before they were due to leave so Kathy could walk her through some things and give Eli a chance to warm up to her. The twins were off at school, but looking forward to coming home to a pizza and movie party with their weekend guest. They refused to consider her the babysitter.

Eli went to Olivia immediately when she held out her arms and she carried him through the house as Kathy pointed out all of the things she felt needed explaining. On the refrigerator was posted a long list of emergency numbers: the pediatrician, Kathy's mom, Maureen and Kathleen's apartment, the hospital, the school, nearest neighbors and the B&B where'd they be staying. Olivia started to laugh when she saw it, but quickly stopped when she saw the from Kathy's face that she was totally serious.

"Um, this is great," she said. "I'll be prepared for anything."

For Elliot's part, he handed over the keys to the van, wad of money for take-out and pointed out where the beer and wine were for after the kids were in bed. "You'll need something by then," he told her. Kathy had cleaned up t heir bedroom, changed the sheets, and even, to Elliot's great amusement, taken the stash of condoms out of his nightstand drawer and hidden them in the back of her closet. The baby monitor was plugged in next to the bed, with the volume turned up all of the way. Elliot had given her the combination to his gun safe next to the bed so she could safely stash her weapon.

"He's gets up pretty early," Kathy warned her, taking Eli back for a hug. He wiggled away, wanting to go back to Olivia.

"I'm an early riser too," Olivia assured her. "We'll be fine together."

Elliot picked up Kathy's coat and held it out to her. "Come on, Mama Bear," he said, smiling. "It's time to take the plunge." He'd already loaded their suitcases into the car and had printed out directions to the inn.

Kathy slipped her arms into her coat. She had an odd look on her face, as if she was trying to making a decision and before Elliot realized what she was about to do, was blurting out to Olivia: "Olivia, I was just wondering about your boyfriend, Declan? He won't be coming over while we're gone, will he? I mean, Elliot tells me he's a great guy and I'm sure he is, but I wouldn't want you to be distracted, or confuse the kids by waking up to someone different…"

Olivia was looking at her with her mouth half open in surprise. Elliot gently took Kathy by the arm and tried to steer her toward to the door, but his misguided wife pulled free and looked at Olivia, clearly waiting for a response.

Olivia swallowed down a rush of anger. Did Kathy really think she'd do something like that, invite a strange man to sleep over at their house while she was in charge of their kids?

"No, Kathy, of course not." She said firmly. "You don't need to worry."

Elliot threw Olivia a look of apology and pushed gently but firmly in the direction of the door. He went over to the baby in his partner's arms and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "Be good, little man." Eli gurgled non-committaly, clearly happy in Olivia's arms. He patted Olivia on the shoulder. "Good luck, partner. We'll give you a call when we get there. My cell phone is on if you need anything before then."

Once in the car, Elliot put both hands on the wheel and took a deep breath. He didn't look at Kathy.

"What's the matter?" Kathy slid over to put her hand on his leg but he ignored her, starting the car and backing out the driveway, giving the engine a bit more gas than was necessary. He sure didn't want to start their trip with a fight, but he was pissed that Kathy had raised the subject of Declan with Olivia.

"Elliot, what is it?" Kathy asked, now sounding mad herself. "What—are you upset at what I said to Olivia?"

Elliot threw her a steely glance, but didn't answer, trying hard to compose himself before blowing the situation out of hand. He understood Olivia, knew her background and how she felt. With her history of an alcoholic mother who often hooked up with strange men, he knew how insulting she would find Kathy's question. With all of the things Olivia had seen and experienced in her own life and on the job, there was no greater advocate for children. She'd never put his kids, or anyone else's, in a questionable situation.

"I told you it wouldn't be an issue," he finally said, his voice controlled but icy. "Why couldn't you just let it go?"

"I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page," said Kathy defensively. "Is it really that big of a deal?"

Elliot started ahead of him at the road, trying to stay calm. He knew Kathy meant well, but goddammit—she could be such a control freak!

"It was insulting to Olivia, Kath. She's sensitive about stuff like that; after all she went through with her mother. She'll interpret it as you thinking she's a slut and not able to make responsible choices when it comes to men and kids."

He could see a dawning awareness in Kathy's eyes. "I never thought of that," she admitted, but then an angry tone snuck back into her voice. "This isn't easy for me, Elliot, leaving my kids with someone else. I needed to be sure."

Elliot turned to look at her. "I'm their father, Kathy. Can't you give me some credit too? If I'd thought it was an issue, I would have talked to Olivia about it myself. Can't you just, for once, trust my judgment too?" As soon as the words "for once" slipped out of his mouth, he knew he'd crossed into dangerous territory. That was one thing they'd learned in marriage counseling, to avoid trouble phrases that lumped one issue into a pile of baggage with other past mistakes. Inwardly, he winced, hoping Kathy would miss that part of what he'd said.

"For once?" she exclaimed. "You make it sound like I'm some kind of control freak."

He so badly wanted to say "If the shoe fits…" but knew that was blow the lid off the situation and there'd be no weekend away.

"Not a control freak," he said softly. "But you can let go once in awhile, you know. Trust my judgment."

"Whatever." She slumped down low on her side of the seat and stared out the window, looking for all the world like their daughter Kathleen, by far the most dramatic of all of their children. He sighed and kept driving. What a start for a romantic weekend!

Feedback/reviews welcome! Is this rough start going to ruin their getaway? Will Olivia be able to handle the kids?

Stay tuned!