A/N: Getting snowed in lets a lot of secrets out.

DISCLAIMER: SVU and all related plot/characters originally belong to Dick Wolf. This story, words, and dialogue are mine. © TStabler

"It's really coming down out there," Elliot looped his arms around Olivia's waist as they both stared out the kitchen window.

"Yeah," Olivia agreed glumly. "At least it made for some beautiful pictures, and we all got to play in the snow with the kids." She smiled at him and said, "We had a wonderful dinner, the White Elephant didn't cause any arguments or injuries," she chuckled, recalling an incident during last year's party when someone's idea of a gag gift went just a bit too far. "And," she continued, "We have a houseful of friends and family. This was like your perfect White Christmas."

"It was," he said. He leaned further into her and whispered hotly into her ear, "But as much as I love the snow, I am praying it lets up soon, I want these people out of the house...because I didn't get to open my present yet." He nipped at her earlobe and moaned. "Neither did you."

His throaty voice and breath in her ear sent chills down her spine, ones that shot directly between her legs. She backed up with a low groan and bit her bottom lip. "They're still here, though, so maybe you shouldn't…"

He kissed her, silencing her protests, his fingers skirting the hem of her deep green sweater.

She moaned softly, bringing her hand up to his cheek, but pulled away quickly and moved back a full foot as she heard footsteps getting louder. Closer.

When Casey Novak walked into the kitchen, it was impossible to tell she'd interrupted a romantic moment. "Hey," she said, looking from Elliot to Olivia and back again, "Stabler, do you have any more of that wine?" She wiggled a long stemmed glass and smiled salaciously at him.

Olivia noticed it, crossed her arms and scoffed, and then looked at Elliot who knowingly smirked and licked his lips.

He nodded, moved to the side of the kitchen, and took his keys out of his pocket. He found a small silver key on the ring and unlocked the liquor cabinet, pulled out a bottle of deep red wine, and handed it to Casey. "Go easy on this one, will ya? I can't have you passing out in the living room. I don't want to have to explain that to my kids."

Casey shrugged, widening her smile, and asked, "What if I passed out somewhere else?"

Elliot raised one eyebrow at her, grimaced, and said, "That's definitely not happening." He shook his head.

"The night's still young," Novak winked and shook the bottle lightly, and then turned and walked back out into the living room.

Elliot didn't even turn to look at Olivia. He chuckled, pulling gently on his dark red turtleneck. "That should be a bigger ego boost for you than me, baby."

"How," she spat, "The fuck?"

He laughed at her irritation, stepped over to her, and kissed her softly. "Because you got me. She wants me, but you got me. Add it to the list of reasons she's fucking jealous of you." He winked at her and left the room, knowing she'd follow, because they had a living room full of guests who couldn't leave.

Follow him she did, and she sat beside him as soon as he plopped himself onto the couch. She noticed there were tense glares being passed around, from a few of their friends, and she spoke up. "Did we...what did we miss?"

"Tell her, Fin," Alex Cabot hissed, an almost empty wine glass in her hand. Her black sweater dress rode up a bit as she took a few steps. "You tell her, or I swear to God…"

"Okay," Fin cut her off, throwing a hand up. "All right, look…" he looked down at Olivia. "We were just talking…"

"Playing loaded questions," Munch corrected, narrowing his eyes over his thinly rimmed glasses.

Fin grunted. "Yeah," he coughed. "So anyway, Cabot asked me if I ever wanted to purposely get the two of you benched so I could take the lead on a case."

Elliot hummed once, leaned back on the couch, folded his arms, and said, "Okay, and…?"

Fin cleared his throat. "I said...yes, and that I…"

"Already did it!" Alex shouted. "You asshole! The one case that could have made their careers and mine! You son of a…"

"Hey!" Olivia hissed harshly, in as loud a whisper as she could. "We have sleeping kids upstairs! Keep it the fuck down!"

Casey squinted at her. "We?" Her eyes flashed with something menacing.

Realizing, Olivia shot her head toward Novak. "We. All of us," she made a large circular motion with her finger to indicate the group of them. "We're all here, right? So yeah, we." She tightened her jaw and then looked at Fin. "What case, now?" She wiped her suddenly damp palms on the knees of her black jeans.

Fin took a breath, rubbed his forehead, and yanked hard on the collar of his black button down. "Calvetti," he confessed, looking down at his black shoes for a moment before meeting Elliot's eyes. "I was the one that told Cragen you went to high school with him."

Elliot's nostrils flared as he stiffened and sat upright. "Why would…" he paused and laughed once bitterly. "Never mind, you told us why. That was low. I didn't even fucking know the guy! There were over three hundred kids in my class!"

"I know that," Fin admitted, "I just...look man, I'm not gonna lie, I'm jealous of you." He glanced at Olivia. "For a lot of reasons."

Elliot took a deep breath, his lips pressed together, and as he exhaled, he said, "Fine, it's...fine." He held up a hand and rolled the tension out of his neck. "Anyone find out when the fuck it's supposed to clear up out there?"

"Supposed to snow until three," Munch said, his voice monotonous and flat.

"In the morning?" Olivia asked, eyes wide. She gave a panic-stricken look toward Elliot. "They have to stay until they plow and salt and...that's gonna be…a while," she tried to convey her worry to him.

He closed his eyes almost defeated. He nodded and said, "Yeah, it is." He took another breath and shifted his weight, the discomfort from both the newly formed tension mixing with his built up need from being in close proximity to Olivia.

"Are we still playing?" Casey asked, grinning. She took a long sip of her wine, staring at Elliot, and then licked her lips slowly. "I have a couple of loaded questions I'd like to ask."

"Actually, uh," Elliot began as he started to rise. "I'm exhausted." He checked his watch, feigning shock. "Damn, no wonder! It's after midnight. I'm gonna check on my kids and...Liv, you...you're more than welcome to take the extra bunk in Maureen's room."

Casey raised her glass. "Aw, come on," she chuckled. "You're not gonna leave all of us down here alone, are you?" She giggled and said, "Fin and Alex might kill each other. And, uh, it's getting pretty cold in here. You need to find a way to keep me warm." She took a step toward him.

Olivia shot to her feet and said, "I have a sweatshirt you can borrow," as she got between Casey and Elliot. "In my bag. Help yourself." She plastered on a cheesy smile and used both of her hands to turn Casey around, then pushed her toward the duffle bag in the far corner of the room. She heard Elliot snickering behind her and turned to glare at him.

Elliot whispered, "Never gonna happen, trust me. I'm all yours."

"Damn right you are," Olivia whispered back, turning away from him again. She watched Casey begrudgingly pull a black hoodie over her head, a scowl on her face, and relaxed slightly.

"Okay, uh…" Elliot unconsciously rested his hand on Olivia's hip, his fingertips absently tweaking the belt loop of her jeans. "I guess I'll get some blankets." He patted Olivia's side and said, "You're helping me."

"Uh, try asking," she joked, her arms still crossed.

With an annoyed grunt, Fin said, "He barks orders at you at work, why would he be different now?"

"I do not!" Elliot yelled, pressing his body into Olivia's in an attempt to lunge at Fin. "Besides, she was kidding! What the fuck is your problem, tonight, huh?"

"You know what my problem is!" Fin argued back, standing sharply. He had a short glass of whiskey in his hand, holding it with four fingers as he pointed at Elliot. "You, man! You been my problem for years!"

"Damn it!" Olivia turned to Fin, eyes furious. "I asked you not to yell!" She whipped back around toward Elliot. "If Lizzie wakes up now, we'll never get her back to sleep, and Dickie…"

"Okay," Elliot nodded, biting his lip. "Sorry, you're right, I'm sorry." He dragged a hand down his face and shook his head to try to calm himself down. "Excuse me," he said, and he worked his way past Olivia, breezed by Alex and Munch, and veered left into the den, needing a minute alone.

Olivia sighed and pulled her sweater down again, and then looked toward Fin. "What is going on with you?" She shoved her hands in her pockets, shrugging as she waited for an answer.

Fin snorted and took a gulp of his drink. "Cragen thinks the sun shines out of his ass, ya know? No matter how hard I work to impress him, earn a raise or promotion, or even a fuckin' pat on the damn back…" he scraped his teeth over his lip. "And forget about tryin' to outshine you, Benson, I think Cragen's tryin' to fill the void of you not havin' a father or some shit."

"You think the captain's playing favorites?" Her narrow eyes stared astonished at Fin. "That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard."

"Any cop pulls the same shit the two of you pulled, they're out on their ass," Fin griped. He took another sip of his whiskey. "You two break rules, make up your own fuckin' policies, ignore protocol...then Tucker fuckin' shakes your hands and the mayor throws you a party and the rest of us have to fuckin' wonder where the hell we went wrong!"

Ed Tucker, who until then had been watching the show from a comfortable chair in front of the fireplace, got to his feet and held out both hands. "Tutuola, I am the first one to string them up when they step outta line! How many times a week are they in my office?"

Fin snarled at him, "Then why are they still…"

"Because they're damn good detectives," Tucker nodded firmly. He smoothed a hand down his blue shirt. "Not to mention two of the most dedicated and passionate people I've ever met! They've never let anything come before a case, a perp, or a victim."

Laughing in disbelief, Fin sat back down. "I give up," he said, and he downed the rest of his drink.

Alex spoke up then, her voice a lot softer than it was the last time she said anything. "Fin, be honest with her. It's Christmas Eve. Stop acting like a dick and making excuses for yourself."

Olivia looked at Alex, their eyes catching and communicating, and she winced. "No," she breathed.

"Yeah," Alex said, offering an apologetic shrug and crooked twist of her lips.

Fin stared sadly into Olivia's eyes once she looked at him, but before he could speak, Elliot came back into the room, wiping his mouth with his sweater sleeve, and immediately headed for the counter and poured himself a glass of bourbon.

The room watched in curious awe as he chugged it whole, swished it around in his mouth, swallowed, and poured a second glass. "She kissed me," he spat out, his penetrating gaze aimed at Olivia. He saw the look he was getting in return and said, "Oh, fucking...relax, I was just in there trying to calm the fuck down before I punched someone, she came up behind me, I turned around because I thought it was you...then she shoved her tongue down my throat! I pushed her off of me and came back out here to…" he raised his glass, then poured the amber liquid into his mouth.

She nodded once, and then turned to look at Casey, who stood on an angle, embarrassed and rejected. "Case," she let out a breath. "It's not you…" she looked up, contemplating, and bit her lip as she thought of the best way to say what she had to say. She pulled her lower lip through her teeth and said, "Ya know, if he was single...he might've…"

"Oh," Casey winced. "Oh, my God, he's…" she brought a hand up to her mouth and started to pace back and forth. "I'm so sorry, Elliot, I thought you were divorced, I mean you said you were, and it's been a few months since…"

"I am," Elliot interrupted. He pressed his lips together and moved, slowly, toward Olivia. "It has been, uh, a while since Kathy…" he waved a hand and made a face. But then he grinned, his gaze returning to Olivia, and he took two more steps, closing the gap between them. "And a few months since I started over…" he eyed Tucker, who looked amused, then Fin, who looked sick. He smiled and tilted his head as he leaned in and kissed Olivia sweetly. "With you," he whispered to her.

Casey's face fell, Fin grunted and let out a gruff, "Of fucking course," Munch whistled and shouted, "It's about time," and Alex clapped twice and said, "Merry Christmas, people!"

Elliot laughed and looped his arms around Olivia, pulling her close to him, and nodded. "Merry Christmas," he said, grinning smugly at her, and then he kissed her again, more demanding and less tentative now that their secret was out.

"Lemme guess," Fin whined, looking up at Tucker, "You ain't gonna do shit about that." He pointed to the kissing couple as he sneered.

Tucker shrugged. "There's nothing I can do," he said, "It's not against the law, they're not breaking any NYPD code! Besides, any detective worthy of his badge would have already known! How the fuck didn't you know?"

"I knew," Fin remarked, drinking the last of his whiskey. "Unit policy," he quickly spat in the direction of Elliot and Olivia, breaking them apart. He chuckled at their widened eyes. "That's why you hid this for...what, you said...months?" He laughed again, leaned back, and said, "Months! You know Cragen's gonna toss one of you into the snow because of this. And when he does, maybe he will finally…"

"Fin," Elliot said, cutting him off. He scratched a spot behind his ear and said, as gently as he could, "Man, uh, Cragen knows."

"We had to tell him," Olivia said, biting the inside of her cheek. "We knew what this could cost us if we didn't," she shrugged.

"Liv," Alex started, "Speaking of Cragen, you guys invited him, didn't you?" She eyed her friend for a second. "He didn't...wait, is he mad at you two for…"

"No, no," Olivia screwed up her face and shook her head. "He said he had to stay at the station tonight, since we all had the night off." She smiled, then, and said, "But he's coming tomorrow morning, he has presents for the kids and…"

"How did he react when you told him about you and Elliot?" Alex interjected. "I can't believe that it's just...suddenly okay after all of his warnings and threats."

Casey slapped Olivia in the arm. "That's why I was trying so hard to get into Stabler's pants, I knew...or at least I thought that you couldn't." She hiccuped, the wine finally taking its toll on her.

Olivia rolled her eyes as she laughed. "He blew his top, and then he called Tucker, over there," she jutted a thumb at Ed, who was pouring himself a drink, "He tried to have us transferred, fired, arrested...and then he calmed down and hugged us."

Elliot chuckled. "He knew this was happening," he said. "He saw it coming a mile away, he just wanted to be retired when it hit. We threw him for a loop."

Olivia laughed again. "I'll say," she quipped. Then she looked at Casey. "I'm so sorry, I wanted to tell you, but I didn't know if I could trust you...with the way you've been acting at work…"

"Not just work," Casey breathed out, folding her arms. "I, uh, I haven't exactly been the best friend to you lately." She moved over toward Olivia and said, "Now, I think...you know why." She sniffled and laid out a hand. "I knew how you felt about him, Liv. I let my own feelings get in the way of our friendship and I tried like hell to get him to look at me…" she sniffled again. "The way he looks at you." She took Olivia's hand. "I'm sorry."

Olivia squeezed her fingers, offering an accepting smile, and said, "I know the effects he can have on people, trust me. I don't blame you. Just…"

"I know," Casey chuckled. "You win, he won't have any more, uh, advances from me." She looked at Elliot. "I'm sorry, but...I mean, I did drink half a bottle of wine by myself so…" she shrugged. "I probably wouldn't have done or said half of that shit if I was sober."

There were a few relieved laughs and suddenly the tension dissipated. Elliot kissed Olivia again, and then yawned dramatically. "Christ," he rubbed his eyes and said, "One in the morning and still snowing."

Alex stood up and said, "Maybe we should all, uh, think about how we're gonna…" she twirled a finger around the room. "I haven't pulled an all-nighter since college, and I would like it to stay that way."

There was another round of laughter, and then Elliot spoke. We can still go upstairs and grab those blankets and some pillows. Munch, you can take the guest room, if you want. I mean, with your back you shouldn't be on the floor. The rest of you...think of this like a sleepover." He looked around. "A really awkward sleepover."

After another chorus of laughs, Elliot moved with Olivia toward the stairs, but Fin stood in his way. "Fin, man, not now, could you…"

"Let me help," Fin said, and he nodded at Olivia. "Novak's not the only one who let feelings blur the lines of friendships." He glanced at Olivia. "I'm sorry," he said with a nod, and then he held out a hand to Elliot. "Just remember, you ever hurt her…"

"I won't," Elliot took Fin's hand, shaking it before being pulled into a brotherly hug. "I promised her that, I promised Cragen that, and I promised myself that."

Fin blew out a puff of air as he straightened up. "Now, uh, where are those blankets?"

Elliot laughed, then he kissed Olivia before leading Fin up the stairs to gather the bedding for the snowed-in group.

Olivia walked back to the couch and sat between Alex and Casey. "It feels...so good to have that...out," she said with a relieved breath and a small laugh. "And before you ask...the kids know, so does his mother, and mine…" she paused. "Al, thank you for holding onto that one for me."

Alex hugged her friend and said, "Always," and then shot Casey a look. "At least you know I wouldn't hit on Elliot.

She looked over at the stairs just as Elliot and Fin hit the last step. "Thank God for that," she said, nudging Alex with her shoulder.

Elliot passed out pillows as Fin soles out blankets, and Munch made the brave decision to flatten out on the couch. "I may be Jewish, but I still want to spend Christmas with my family," he said.

And as Fin looked around the room, lit up only by the glowing embers in the fireplace and the lights on the gorgeous Christmas tree, he nodded and smiled. "Me, too," he said, sprawling himself out on the floor in front of the sofa. "Family. That's really... what we are. Which is why...I know we all had our reasons, but...I'm kinda glad all of our secrets are out now. Family...shouldn't have secrets."

Elliot pulled Olivia close, wrapped his legs and arms around her, and then let go with one hand only for a moment to pull a blanket around them. "Amen to that, man," he said, and he kissed Olivia softly.

"Merry Christmas, honey," she whispered to him as she closed her eyes and dropped her head to his chest.

He sighed as he settled them down on the floor. Just as softly, he breathed, "Merry Christmas."

A/N: Next: Five people are roped into a unique Christmas tradition. It leads to a few very unexpected presents.