Elliot pulled up in front of the house…his old house…to drop the kids off. The girls piled out of the car and he got out as well. He had just shut the door when he saw Kathy come out of the house. She said hi to the girls and he saw Liz give her a big hug. She must have told them to go inside, because they looked back and waved and went inside as she walked towards the car. He leaned with his hands on the doorframe, facing her, assessing her body language. She didn't look upset or angry…she just looked tired.

She stopped a few feet from the car, her hands clasped in front of her as if she didn't know what to do with them.

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to come in." she said quietly. She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and sighed.

"I take it Dickie got home." He said.

"Yeah." Kathy took a deep breath. "I wish you would have told me that you were going to talk to them tonight. I wasn't prepared."

Elliot instantly felt horrible about the position he'd put her in. "When I called and told you that I wanted to take the kids out and talk to them, I thought you understood." In reality, he knew he was a coward. He hadn't wanted to address it directly with her, and had assumed that since they'd talked previously about his feelings for Olivia, and hers for him, that she'd just know what he wanted to talk to them about. He immediately added. "I'm sorry."

Kathy looked away for a moment before she turned back to him. He could see her eyes were glassy, tears threatening her lower lashes. "Even though I knew this was coming…it's still a shock. Like a punch in the gut."

Elliot came around the car and moved towards her but she put up a hand. "Don't."

"Kathy. I never wanted to hurt you." He started but she shook her head.

"Elliot. I can't talk about this right now."

Elliot moved closer. He started to reach out to pull her into a hug but she took a step back.

"I'm serious Elliot. It's just too much right now. My emotions are too raw and now I have to deal with the kids…" She looked back towards the house.

"Let me come in. I'll spend some time with the kids. We can talk some more."

Kathy seemed to consider what he said but then shook her head again. "No, I think Liz and Dick need some time to process this. Especially Dickie. He's pretty angry. I think it would be better if you're not here."

"Kath…" Elliot said. There was so much that he wanted to say. He felt pathetic but he wanted confirmation from her that they were still on the same page regarding the end of their marriage. That Olivia hadn't been the cause of their breakup. Because when they had originally discussed finally getting divorced, they had both agreed it was based on so many factors. Olivia had never come up in the conversation. But now…he felt like everyone was focusing on his feelings for Olivia as the reason for the split. He needed Kathy to confirm that she hadn't ended up there as well. "I tried to make the kids understand all the reasons we split up. But Dick is focused on Olivia. I told them that's just not true."

Kathy cocked her head slightly, and her eyes darted back and forth between his. His gut clenched because he could read the look on her face. "Isn't it?" she said quietly and his stomach dropped.

"Kathy." Elliot gasped, surprised by what she'd said. They had had this conversation…numerous times. When they'd fought over the years, his job and the time he spent with Olivia had come up. But when they were actually serious discussing separation and divorce, they had easily agreed on a number of factors: they got married too young, they were different people now, they'd grown apart, Elliot's job, the toll it took the family, his time away from them and on and on. Olivia had never come up. Not one damn time. "That's not…Olivia never came up when we talked about separating and when we finally talked about getting divorced."

Kathy sucked her bottom lip in and seemed to consider him for a moment. "But she's always there El. Even though we never said it…if you hadn't fallen in love with her, would things have been different?"

Elliot blinked a couple of times, completely blind-sided by what she had said. He prided himself on doing the right thing. He had stayed in his marriage and had tried to fix it so many times. It was what he had committed to…but it had been Kathy that he brought up the subject of divorce. Had convinced him it was for the best. And now she was blaming him? And Olivia?

He fell back against the car. He wasn't even certain what to say without blowing up at her. He finally managed to speak.

"Where is this coming from?" he asked. "We agreed…you brought up divorce."

Kathy crossed her arms. "Elliot, I've know you for a long time. You're an honorable man. You always want to do the right thing. But I knew you weren't happy. And I couldn't stand by your side anymore, knowing you were in love with someone else. So yes, we got divorced for all of the reasons you said, but really, deep down, you knew it had to end because you didn't love me like that anymore."

Elliot looked down at the ground, not able to look her in the eye. He knew they had discussed this at Kathleen's birthday party, but it hadn't been discussed as the reason for their divorce. He shook his head; maybe it had been and he just hadn't been listening to what Kathy was trying to say at the time.

Kathy walked up and put a hand on his shoulder. "It's OK Elliot. We're going to be OK. It's just like I said. Even though I knew this was the inevitable conclusion, it's still just hurts. I'm adjusting and the kids will adjust too. There was no reason to keep going forward together…it was never going to work out."

Elliot looked back at Kathy and realized that she had known all along; had recognized what he'd refused to acknowledge. He wasn't one to go against his marriage vows and she knew he would fight to the end…and make everyone miserable in the process.

He reached out and pulled her into a hug. "I love you Kath." He said. He kissed her on the forehead and she pulled away, a sad look on her face.

"I love you too Elliot."

EOEOEOEO

When Elliot got back to Olivia's apartment, he heard the shower running. He dropped his keys on the counter and pulled a beer out of the refrigerator. This had been an incredibly stressful afternoon and he was emotionally drained.

He toed off his shoes and collapsed on the couch, putting his feet up on the coffee table and taking a long drink of his beer. He lay his head back on the couch and closed his eyes, going through the events with the kids and with Kathy. He sighed heavily. He wasn't going to dwell on it. The marriage had ended and he was happy now with Olivia. He could honestly say he had given it everything he had and it wasn't enough. He didn't regret anything.

"Tough day?" Olivia said and he jumped.

He had been so wrapped up in his thoughts, he hadn't heard her come into the room. He opened his eyes and turned his head to look at her. "Yeah. You could say that." He took another drink of his beer, draining it.

"Want to talk about it?" she asked, stepping over his legs and sitting next to him on the couch.

"Hmm. Not right now." The emotions of the day were still too close to the surface and he didn't trust that he wouldn't get too emotional. He didn't want her to feel any guilt about what had transpired. He looked over at her and could see the concern etched in her face. He put a hand on her knee. "It's fine Liv. I just don't feel up to rehashing the entire evening right now." He looked at her to see if she understood what he was trying to tell her.

"OK." She said quietly.

"Really Liv. It's going to be fine. Kathleen and Maureen are ecstatic. Liz and Dick just need a little time to get used to the idea. But they all love you. It's going to be fine. You have to trust me on this."

She gave him a small smile. "I do. I believe you." She said, and she meant it. She knew the Stabler children well, and she had expected that the twins might have some trouble with the news, especially because they were younger than their sisters. Olivia had been Elliot's partner since they were very small, and they probably didn't remember a time when she wasn't. So it would be very odd for them.

Elliot desperately wanted to change the subject. "Looks like you're feeling better." He said. Her normal coloring had returned and she looked refreshed after her shower. She was wearing pajama shorts and a t-shirt and had a hooded sweatshirt in her hands. Her hair was still damp and was curling as it framed her face, and she didn't have any makeup on. Elliot thought she looked absolutely beautiful.

"Much." She said, giving him a small smile.

"Did you have anything to eat?" he asked. He should have checked with her so he could have picked up something on the way home, but he hadn't been thinking clearly.

"Not really. But I don't think I'm feeling that much better. I'll probably just have some toast." She knew her stomach was still sensitive and she didn't want a repeat of last night. "And I'm going to bed early tonight."

Elliot smiled at her. "How about we go to bed now?" he asked.

"You have a one track mind El." She said, slapping him lightly in the arm.

"That's not what I meant." He said, his tone serious. "I'm just exhausted, and would love to just curl up in bed and watch a movie or something with you."

Olivia saw the look on his face and could tell he just needed some good old fashioned TLC. Dinner with the kids must have been harder than he was letting on. She was glad that she hadn't burdened him any more with what had transpired between her and Jack. Or rather…what Jack had done to her. She was going to talk it through with Casey tomorrow.

She reached for his hand and intertwined her fingers with his. "Let's go."

EOEOEOEO

Elliot and Olivia arrived at the precinct early the next morning. They'd both fallen asleep in the middle of the movie, so it couldn't have been much later than 9. So when they'd woken early, they decided to grab breakfast on the way in. As a result, they were wide awake and ready to go, unlike normal Monday mornings. It probably also helped that they hadn't worked all weekend.

Munch was already at his desk when they arrived. He looked at them over his glasses. "Did you have a good weekend children?" he asked, smiling at them.

Olivia smiled back at him. "Of course." She said, putting her stuff away and sitting down at her desk.

"Wasn't Casey's bachelorette party this weekend?" he asked, staring intently at Olivia.

"Yes…" Olivia said, not sure of his interest.

"Well? Tell me all the naughty details. Did you get up close and personal with some sexy male stripper? Was there some girl on girl action? I want details." He said, wiggling his eyebrows.

Olivia rolled her eyes. "You would never know you work in sex crimes. You've got a dirty mind. It wasn't like that. It was just a party. The whole wedding party was there."

"So it was like an orgy." Munch quipped. "Wish I was invited."

Olivia laughed. "You're ridiculous."

Olivia looked over at Elliot and saw he wasn't really paying attention to the interaction. He tuned Munch and Fin out most of the time, not really involving himself in the squad room banter unless he heard his or Olivia's name. She turned back to the stack on her desk and dug into her work.

After an hour or so, she heard her phone buzz and saw she had a text from Casey. She groaned because she remembered that Casey had sent her several messages the day before and she hadn't gotten back to her. Casey would certainly give her hell about that.

She answered the phone. "Benson."

Sure enough, Casey launched into a tirade about Olivia not returning her calls or messages and Olivia just let her rant. She apologized and then asked the ADA if she'd be visiting the precinct. When Casey told her she'd be over in a few hours, Olivia sighed.

"I need to talk to you." She said.

"Everything OK?" Casey asked, wariness in her tone.

"Let's just talk when you get here." She said, looking up and noticing that Elliot was watching her. She swung around in her chair, her back to Elliot. "I have to go. I'll see you in a few." She said, hanging up the phone. She looked over at Elliot and saw he had a questioning look on his face. She knew he wanted to ask her who was on the phone, but she didn't volunteer the information and he didn't ask her. She got up and poured herself another cup of coffee and went back to work.

EOEOEOEO

Casey didn't make an appearance until after lunch and Olivia had been getting a little nervous about telling her what happened at the club. When she finally saw her friend, she snagged her by the arm, anxious to get it over with. Plus, Elliot wasn't at his desk right now and she wanted to escape unnoticed.

"Let's go into one of the interrogation rooms." She said, heading in that direction.

Casey paused. They usually went to the upstairs break area to talk, so she was surprised that Olivia wanted to go to an interrogation room.

"What?" she said, stopping.

"I just want a little privacy." Olivia said, motioning for Casey to follow her.

They ended up in one of the smaller rooms and Olivia shut the door behind her. She motioned for Casey to sit down and Olivia sat down across from her.

"What's this about?" Casey asked, her suspicions raised.

Olivia took a deep breath. She had decided somewhere along the line that she needed to tell Casey what really happened and ask for her help in deciding what to do. Jack had assaulted her and part of her couldn't let him get away with it. But the other part of her just wanted to let it go…mostly because she didn't want anyone to find out that she couldn't protect herself and because she didn't want Elliot to go after him. And she knew he would. There was no question in her mind.

"Liv?" Casey said her name again, pulling her away from her thoughts and back to the conversation.

"Yeah." Liv responded, looking back at her friend. She bit her bottom lip. "Casey, you know that I consider you one of my best friends."

"Uh-oh. I don't like the sound of that." Casey said, giving Olivia a nervous smile.

"Just. Just let me get this out." Olivia said, looking down at the table momentarily. "I need to tell you something as a friend, not as an ADA. And then I need your help in deciding how to handle it. OK?" She looked at Casey, waiting for a response.

Casey furrowed her brow. "Like I said before, I don't like the sound of that."

"Casey. Just promise me that we'll decide how to handle this together and you won't go off half-cocked."

Casey reached her hand out to Olivia. "Now you're really worrying me Liv. Just tell me."

Olivia noticed that Casey hadn't promised her, but she forged ahead anyway. She had to tell her before she changed her mind. "It's about Jack."

Casey groaned. That fucker had made her life a living hell the past few months. She and Aaron had even had a couple of fights about him. She was questioning how Aaron could be friends with him and Aaron admitted that Jack had changed a lot in the past six months and they he didn't know what was up with him. They had been friends for a long time, and he had picked him to be his best man because of that, but also because he couldn't choose between his two twin brothers. But now they had both been questioning that decision…until the party. He'd been well behaved and they'd decided just to suck it up through the wedding and then slowly start to separate themselves from him.

"It seemed like he behaved himself at the party. He wasn't drinking, and Aaron asked Isaac to keep an eye on him. Did he say something to you?" she asked, leaning forward.

Olivia shook her head. "No. Well, I mean, yes. We got into a small argument at the table. He thought I was being too cozy with Isaac and accused me of dropping him for Isaac. And of thinking I was too good for him. He called me a cock tease and a bitch."

"He's such an asshole." Casey said, anger in her tone.

"Casey. I can deal with that. I get called a bitch at least once a week. That's not it."

Olivia rested her elbows on the table and dropped her face into her hands, rubbing at her forehead. She took another deep breath and forged ahead.

"I walked away from him and went to the ladies' room. And when I came out…" she hesitated, thinking back to what had happened. It had happened so fast. "He grabbed me and he pushed me up against the wall. He pinned me against the wall and was kissing me and then he…" She let out a breath. "He grabbed my breast and he was squeezing and then he…he put a hand between my legs and…" she stopped. "It happened so fast Casey. I didn't even react. I didn't fight back. Nothing. I just stood there and then he was gone. He looked at me and smiled and then told me he was leaving. And he left."

Casey had one hand over her mouth. "Oh my God Liv! That sick bastard." She stood up abruptly, pushing her chair back. "I'm going to castrate that son of a bitch."

"Casey. Please. Please sit down. We need to talk about this." Olivia pleaded.

"Talk about what? He assaulted you Liv! What's there to talk about?" She slammed her fists on the table, leaning over towards Olivia. "What is it with his sick obsession with you?"

"Casey. Please." Olivia said. "I need you to talk to me."

Casey took a deep breath and sat down. "OK. I'm sorry." She looked back at her friend. "Are you OK? I mean, that was Saturday night. Why didn't you tell me when it happened? Or tell someone?"

Olivia shook her head. "A part of me just couldn't even process it. Like I said, it happened so fast. I was just glad he was gone. But I was thinking about it yesterday and it just….it pissed me off. And I needed to talk to someone about what happened and I didn't want it to be Elliot."

Casey got a puzzled look on her face. "You don't think he's going to find out when we arrest the bastard for assault?"

Olivia got a shocked expression on her face. "Arrest him? No. No Casey."

"What do you mean no? Of course we're going to arrest him." Casey looked at Olivia with confusion on her face. "He tried to rape you!"

Olivia sighed again. "Let's not make it into a big deal Casey. He didn't try to rape me. He just got…I don't even know what to call it."

"It's called sexual assault Liv." Casey said, her face like stone. "And he's going down for it."

Casey. No. I'm not going to press charges. I just want to use this as leverage to have him bow out of the wedding. And if he doesn't, then I'm going to. And I wanted you to understand why."

"I can't believe you're saying this. You're going to let him get away with sexually assaulting you?" She stood up and walked away and then turned back towards Olivia. "Who the hell are you? What would you tell other victims?"

"Victim? I'm not a victim Casey. I had sex with him before, I'd been drinking. I didn't even fight him." Olivia shook her head. "I just want this to be over. I don't want to deal with him anymore. I want him out of my life and I never want to see him again." She stood up and paced back and forth. "God, if I wouldn't have made such a stupid, stupid mistake at your engagement party. I let him get into my head and use my feelings for Elliot against me and I made a bad decision. And now it's like I can't escape from this nightmare." She stopped in front of Casey. "I'm not pressing charges. I want you to tell Jack that you know and that if he ever comes within 20 feet of me ever again, he'll be arrested for assault. And then I want you and Aaron to decide what you want to do about the wedding." She leaned over on the table, towards Casey. "And I'm being honest when I tell you that if you decide you want Jack to be in the wedding, I'll understand."

"Liv. No way. You can't think we'd still want him in our wedding. I don't want him anywhere near us. And Aaron will agree." She stood up. "But I can't agree with your decision not to arrest him. We can't let him get away with that. What about the next woman he assaults?"

"I just don't want all of this to come out."

"Olivia. You know you didn't do anything wrong. And this bastard can't get away with this."

Olivia sat down hard in the chair. Her mind was all over the place. She knew that what Casey was saying was true; she had to think about other women he might potentially assault. The attack from Jack wasn't anything she couldn't deal with; in the whole scheme of things, he wasn't nearly as horrifying as the things she saw on a daily basis. She also knew that didn't matter. Assault was assault. But she really wanted to wipe her hands of Jack. She didn't want to see him again. Have to tell her story a million times. She didn't want Elliot to know and to go after Jack.

"Casey. If Elliot finds out about this, I'm worried about what he'll do. He already landed in jail once. If he finds out what Jack did…"

"Liv. Elliot's a big boy. We'll talk to him and make sure he knows that he can't touch him. That he'll end up in jail and we'll lose the case."

Olivia shook her head. "I don't know Casey. Can I think about it?"

Casey hesitated. She didn't want to give Olivia an out. But she was hoping that if she gave her a little space and some time to think, she might come to her senses. "Ok Liv. But I'm going to tell Aaron and we're going to talk to Jack. I'm going to tell him to stay the fuck away from you…and that he's out of the wedding and out of our lives." She looked back at Olivia and saw tears brimming on her lower lashes.

"Casey. I'm so sorry. I caused all of this."

Casey reached across the table and grabbed Olivia's hand. "No! Jack caused this. You didn't make him who he is." She shook her hand. "Are you listening to me? He did this. Tell me you understand that I don't blame you at all."

Olivia hesitated a second and she nodded. "OK. Thanks Casey. You're a good friend."

EOEOEOEO

Outside the interrogation room, Elliot turned the volume down on the speaker and headed back into the squad room.

More to come my faithful readers. What did Elliot hear? And what's he going to do? What's Liv going to do? I'll update soon. I promise! If you want some other good stories to read while you're waiting, make sure you read writersrefinery (Semper Fi), poetif (The In-Betweens) , hargasm23 (Ripples) and lucythespencer (These Graces) plus all the other great fanfics out there!