"Hey mom?" Noah asks from the backseat.

"Yes?" Her eyes are focused on the busy road in front of her. New York traffic at 6:00 Friday night has always been crazy and it's no different tonight. The drive to Elliot's place isn't too far but it still takes a respectable amount of time to get there and damn, she wishes they would have left earlier.

"Is Elliot your boyfriend?"

She has known the question was coming for a while now. Definitely since the night Elliot stayed in her bed during her panic attack. The night she told him everything. They hadn't made love that night. He had simply held her, rocked her back to sleep when she woke from her nightmares, kissed her lips softly and told her repeatedly that he was there. That she was safe. And when Noah had asked where Elliot had slept in the morning, she had been truthful with him. Had told him that Elliot had slept with her. The sex conversation came up later that night again. But Noah was learning to respect boundaries and was letting her avoid the topic, for now. As much as she wants to tell him yes, wants to tell him the truth, Elliot and her have agreed to tell the kids all at once, when his kids are ready. The last thing they need is Noah blurting it out before they even approach the subject with his children. "Elliot and I are reconnecting. We're getting to know one another again." It's not technically a lie.

"Do you love him?"

Jesus, this child. He's too smart for his own age. "Yeah, I love him."

"And he loves you?"

"He does."

"So, why aren't you boyfriend and girlfriend?"

Okay. She's not sure why she agreed to do this the way her and Elliot had agreed because she doesn't lie to her kid. She's never lied to him. Does she beat around the truth sometimes? Of course she does. But that's only because he's still young and somethings he just doesn't need to know yet. "Can we talk about this later? When we're home?"

"But..."

"Please." Just long enough for her to touch base with Elliot. Just enough to let him know that he's asking and that she's going to tell him.

"Okay."

"Thanks, baby."

"Mom! Please don't call me baby in front of Elliot's kids."

She laughs, "Okay, I won't."

When they pull up to the Stabler residence, she takes a much needed deep breath. Elliot's kids are older and it's a good possibility that as soon as they see her and Elliot together, they're going to know right away what's going on. She's not exactly sure why that terrifies her so much but they did just lose their mother. Horrifically lost their mother and the last thing she wants any of them to think, especially Eli, is that she's trying to take Kathy's place. Because she's not.

She doesn't expect any of them to treat her any different now that she's sleeping with their father. Jesus, she's sleeping with their father. She's having sex with Elliot. Really incredible sex with Elliot. The best sex she's ever had and fuck, three weeks is way too long to go without him and they need to stop allowing that long in between. Her thighs clench and please, just let her get through this dinner without backing the man into a closet.

"Mom? Are we getting out?"

Fuck. "Yup."

Noah beats her to the door, beats her to knocking on it and when Elliot opens the door, Noah is the first to him. Greeting him with a hug, which has become their new thing.

"Hi, Elliot!"

"Hey, bud!"

She's not sure how the man always looks so fucking good. It doesn't matter what he's wearing. His three piece suits, his shirt and jeans, his tank top and sweatpants, he always has her drooling. Especially now when she knows exactly what is going on under those jeans. The second her eyes connect to his, he knows. She knows he knows what she's thinking about because his eyes darken and his breathing deepens. And fuck, they needed to pull it together. Right now.

So she shakes her head slightly and steps into the open doorway, purposely avoiding his body, "Hi."

"Hi."

"It smells good in here." Distraction, that's exactly what they bothneed right now.

"Stuffed chicken breasts," he answers leading them down the hall to the kitchen.

"Sounds delicious." She hears the Stabler children before she sees them. Hears the bickering and she finds it comical that even at their age they still fight like children.

"Maybe if you would stay out of trouble, dad wouldn't have security cameras EVERYWHERE," Dickie says from the living room, his eyes looking up at the camera pointed at them.

"Dad likes to run this place like a military boot camp," Eli responds. He's sitting at the kitchen table, a notebook in front of him.

"Well act right, and I won't have to run it like that," Elliot says.

Bernie is in the kitchen, stirring a pot of something, Kathleen and Elizabeth are sitting on the couch laughing about whatever is on Kathleen's phone, Maureen and John, the girls husband, are leaned against the kitchen counter watching Dickie and Eli throw words at one another, and Christopher and Samuel, Maureen's twin boys, Elliot's grandchildren, are in a corner playing with blocks.

"Yeah, yeah," Eli says quietly. He's doing better. That's what Elliot has told her. Still struggling but off the drugs. Elliot's only fear is that when he takes his security system down, when he starts trusting the boy again, he's going to fall right back in the wrong crowd and it terrifies the hell out of his father. Eli is his to raise alone now and that's something he's never done before.

Maureen is the first to greet them, "Liv, you look great."

They hug and it's nice. It's nice to know that through the years of absence, the Stabler kids still care for her.

"Thank you, so do you."

"And you must be Noah," the young woman says, turning her attention to Olivia's boy standing beside her. "I'm Maureen. The oldest of the Stabler bunch."

"Hi." As soon as he accepts Maureen's hand, it's like all the other Stabler kids follow. They greet her, they greet Noah and before she can even fathom that this is happening, Noah is excitingly following John, Dickie, Eli and the twins to the terrace to play catch.

"Well, that worked nicely," Elliot says from behind her.

"It did." She turns around to face him.

"How are you?"

It's innocent enough to not raise any suspicion in those around then. But before she can answer, Bernie says, "You guys don't have to pretend with us. We all know."

"Mama."

"What? We're not stupid Elliot."

"It's true, dad," Kathleen says from the couch and Jesus, she is not prepared for this yet.

"And what exactly is it that you think you know?" He asks as he walks to the oven to check on the food and if looks could kill he'd be six feet under. The last fucking thing she needs is their sex life being put on...

"That you guys are sleeping together."

Son of a bitch.

"Like I said, we all know," Bernie says once more, walking out of the kitchen to join the boys on the terrace.

She's kind of horrified but the way Elliot whips his head around to mug Kathleen is actually kind of funny and although she wishes she had a wall to bang her head on she laughs. His eyes drag back to hers instantly and she shrugs. They were going to find out eventually and if it doesn't bother them, there's not really a problem. "Well, now that that's out of the way," she says as she steps closer to him.

"You're okay with it?"

"I'm actually a little relieved. Noah was just asking if you were my boyfriend in the car and I kind of want to tell him you are."

He grins. That cocky fucking grin and God, she wants to kiss him. "So, I do get to call you my girlfriend?" A fucking child. A full blown child.

She laughs, "Shut up."

"I'm just asking."

"We have to disclose before you start openly calling me that." Her voice is low. Low enough that she thinks the girls can't hear her. And even if they can, it seems like they are already respecting their privacy.

His body moves even closer to hers and dammit. It's been too long again since they've been together and his proximity is making her body scream, "I'm ready whenever you are."

"Are you sure about that? Because once we do we never see one another at work again. You ready to never see me at work again?"

He seems to contemplate it for a second. Draws his bottom lip between his teeth. But then he smiles slightly, "I never see you at work now, Liv."

Well, if that isn't the truth. Their units haven't worked together since the sex trafficking case. But that doesn't mean they're not going to need SVU help again and if they disclose, Fin will have to lead the investigation, not her. Then again, it will always be like that, no matter when they disclose.

"Can we discuss it later?" When they're alone, preferably wrapped around each other's naked bodies.

"Of course."

She nods and looks at whatever Bernie was stirring on the stove. When she notices it boiling, she goes to stir and takes a look around the house. No one is paying any mind to them, everyone too busy in hanging out with one another. When she feels Elliot peering over her shoulder, she rolls her eyes, "I can stir potatoes, El."

"You sure about that?"

"Oh, you think you're funny."

"I'm just asking."

"Yeah, well go check on your chicken." She bumps him lightly with her hip and almost yelps when his hand catches it. "Noah is going to a sleepover tomorrow night." Which means they can have her whole place to themselves.

That definitely catches his attention because his voice drops and his body is right there, "He is?"

"He is." Her hand never stops stirring because she needs something to do. If she doesn't have something to do, she's liable to put her hands on him and she really cannot be doing that with all the kids around. "So, you know, if you want to come over. I even bought something to wear for you."

He growls. It's low but she hears it. She feels it and goddamn. What is this man going to do to her when he sees her in the black lace she bought for him. "What time?"

"Five. I have a hair appointment before then."

"I can't wait."

"Me either."

He seems to know that now is the right time to go do something else because he backs away from her then, turns his attention to the meat in the oven and she's grateful for the space. Because like she said, she really cannot be backing him into a closet right now and she can wait one more day. She can.

Dinner is full of joy and laughter and she can't be more full of love in her heart. Her and Noah are included in every conversation and it's easy. Simple. Nothing she has to work for and Jesus, these people really are her family. Always have been.

And when they all cuddle up on the couch to watch a Christmas movie, no one questions how close her and Elliot sit together, no one looks back at them oddly when he drapes his arm around her shoulder and this is her life now.

A life she's only ever dreamed of.