30. Buildings

"Will you be in the city long?"

Olivia has finally gotten dressed and is getting ready to go leave for work soon. Gene has convinced her to eat something first and has made a run for the local Cibo e Vino to get them a nice late brunch. He has brought chicken salad, toast, cheese and eggs in several forms. It all tastes so good that Olivia actually eats too much and feels stuffed afterwards. And while they ate the Eggs Benedict as well as the omelettes, there is still enough left to use for breakfast the next morning. Gene is putting all the leftovers away and Olivia likes how at home he feels in her kitchen. She leans her elbows on the breakfast bar while waiting for his answer to her question.

"I was thinking of going back to Long Island. We both have work to do, so …" Gene replies, and she senses that there is more, but that he's decided not to say it out loud.

"Well, I get that you don't wanna camp out here all week," Olivia responds, and she does mean that. Her place is a far cry from the luxury he's used to after all. But she also hopes to get him to say what's on his mind. Does he resent the fact that she has to work all hours?

"Oh no, don't get me wrong," Gene clarifies quickly. "I love being here at your place. It really means a lot that you're giving me a key."

"Wouldn't you rather stay at a nice hotel and enjoy room service?"

Olivia can't help prodding him some more. Her worries of the previous day haven't gone away completely, not matter how wonderful it has been to spend the evening and this morning with him.

Gene stands in front of her then, the breakfast bar between them, and leans his elbows on it just like she is doing.

"Do you know why I always stayed in hotels here in Manhattan?"

Olivia scrunches up her nose and thinks about his question. She hasn't really thought about the why before, simply assuming it was convenient.

"I'll tell you why. Remember that I told you I've never taken a woman to my house before?"

Olivia nods, studying Gene's face, that has suddenly gone very serious.

"It's the same reason I never dated on Long Island and the reason I don't have my own place here in the city. I want to keep my private life absolutely private. That's why I only had these dates at hotels."

Olivia understands what he's telling her. And it makes sense now, that he likes being at her place, no matter how small it is. It's personal. Private. He really wants that with her, and with her only. Out of all the women he had at his disposal, he wants to be with her.

"And so …" Gene continues, and she focuses on his face again. He seems a little nervous suddenly.

"And so?" she repeats with a smile, tilting her head while resting her chin in her hands.

"I've been thinking … I mean, not that your place isn't nice but …"

Olivia's smile widens because Gene is suddenly stammering a bit, and apologizing even before telling her what he's trying to say - but she has an idea.

"You know I own a few apartment buildings in the city, right?"

Olivia's eyebrows shoot up and her smile fades. She stands up straight and gazes at Gene, who straightens up as well.

"Now how would I know that?" she asks, genuinely baffled. "A few buildings. You own a few buildings in the city!"

"Well, yeah. That's my main source of income," Gene says, shrugging lightly.

"We've never really talked about what you do, Gene," Olivia tells him seriously. "Something in real estate is all I know."

Gene blows out a breath slowly, wondering if this won't be too much too soon, but now that he's gotten this far, this seems like as good a time as any. Olivia will have to leave soon and she can mull it over at work, he decides. And so he continues boldly,

"I was thinking that maybe we could get a place of our own in one of those buildings."

...

Olivia manages to focus on the witness statements she and Elliot are taking, but once they are back at their desks doing the inevitable paperwork on the case, her mind begins to wander again.

Gene actually owns buildings in the city. Buildings, plural. She's always known he is well off but he might even be a millionaire. And now he wants to have his own place in the city. Their own place. He is really serious about her and proving it daily. How can she say no? But will she be willing to give up her own little apartment, and along with it, her independence? It's a lot to think about and naturally, her partner notices that she's distracted.

"Liv."

"Yeah."

She blinks as she looks at Elliot across their desks.

"Everything alright?"

She begins nodding even before Elliot has finished speaking and he sighs, leaning back in his seat.

"Well, it is!" she says defensively.

"Gene treating you right?"

"Yes."

"So why are you so jittery?"

It's Olivia's turn to sigh and she knows Elliot won't give it a rest until she tells him. He's stubborn like that.

"Gene wants to get a place for us in the city."

Elliot is clearly surprised but he nods appreciatively.

"Guy knows what he wants. Can't blame him either."

Olivia raises an eyebrow, wondering if there really is a double entendre hidden in Elliot's remark, but he just grins at her.

"Well, he can afford it, obviously. So why not?"

Olivia stares at her partner and bites her lip. Why not, indeed.

…

They're driving again, to pick up the suspect of Vicky's rape, when Elliot brings it up again.

"So, this place in the city. He got any ideas yet?"

Olivia knows what Elliot is referring to, even if he is asking his question out of the blue. They've both been thinking about it.

"Actually, he owns a couple of apartment buildings in the city."

"A couple!" Elliot exclaims. "Well, of course he does."

Olivia laughs out loud and Elliot chuckles with her.

"So basically, I guess he can just pick a place he already owns and move in," Olivia muses.

"I'm not saying I know the guy well or anything," Elliot responds, "but I'm going to predict that he's going to let you pick a place. Or at least let you make the final decision."

"You're warming up to him!"

Olivia doesn't know why that makes her so happy suddenly, but it does. It means a lot to her that her partner and friend accepts her boyfriend - more than she had realized.

"Eh," Elliot says with a shrug. "As long as he makes you happy."

Olivia smiles again and thinks back to last night and this morning. Gene really does make her happy and she's already looking forward to seeing him again. She decides to send him a text to see if he's really gone back to Long Island again. Her heart skips a beat when he replies,

'Still at your place, hoping to see you tonight. xxx'

…

They get a break in their case when their suspect suddenly confesses in front of his attorney. Elliot is due in court in the afternoon and Olivia actually manages to leave a little early. She knows she's never been this eager to leave work before. She's usually the one who stays the longest, simply because being at work beats being home alone most times. But things are different now. There is someone waiting for her at home and the idea of having a place that they can call their home in the city is becoming more appealing by the minute. Even if Gene wouldn't be home every night, it would still be so different to come home to a place where she isn't always alone.

When Gene shows her a few pictures of a penthouse in one of his buildings, she falls in love with the place instantly.

"I can show it to you after the weekend, after the current tenants move out," Gene beams at her.

They are sitting close together on Olivia's couch, Gene's laptop in their laps, and Gene kisses her temple.

"I really hoped you'd like it," he breathes against her skin. "I can see us sitting there on the balcony, looking out over the city with a glass of wine after dinner."

"That sounds heavenly."

They sit in silence for a minute, letting it sink in that they're already considering moving in together. Then, Olivia has a question for Gene that makes him chuckle.

"Gene?"

"Hmmm?"

"Are you a millionaire?"

He loves the innocent question. Olivia has never shown any signs of being interested in his money but it's a fair question to ask, now that he's told her he owns multiple buildings in the city.

"Well, most of my assets are tied up in buildings, so I don't actually have a million dollars in my bank account," he explains. "For instance, I still have a partial mortgage on my house on Long Island."

"Well, that's huge. It's worth millions in itself!" Olivia huffs. And she's right.

"True. But like I said, most of what I have, is buildings. For instance, I haven't had this building for very long," Gene tells her, tapping on the screen of his laptop, "and I'm still having overdue maintenance done, so it's actually still in the red."

When Olivia looks at him questioningly, he explains,

"It's still costing me more than I get out of it. But it won't stay that way, and meanwhile I'm making a profit at my other buildings, here in Manhattan as well as a few other cities."

They chat about his work some more while Olivia tries to digest what it is her boyfriend actually does. He even has a few properties abroad but those are always temporary, he tells her, until he can sell them with a profit. A few big deals like that a year help him pay off his mortgages. Olivia wonders out loud how he can do all that by himself and he explains that he has an accounting firm at his disposal as well as a very good assistant. And he works with several maintenance companies. But she is right, he keeps the number of people directly involved to a minimum, just a few trusted men.

Olivia studies Gene's profile while she files away the last bit of information he has just given her. Just a few trusted men. So his assistant is also a man? Gene looks at her and she smiles when he leans in to give her a peck on the lips.

"You should meet Jonathan soon. He's a great guy. I'd trust him with my life. He and his wife have a baby on the way."

When he sees the puzzled look on her face, he clarifies,

"My assistant. He basically runs my business for me, as my second in command so to speak. He's been with me for eleven years."

"He's worth his weight in gold then."

Gene grins.

"I pay him well. He's good."

The next morning when it's time for Olivia to leave again, Gene tells her he will be heading back to Long Island later but has one last request.

"After we have our blood drawn Friday afternoon, will you come back to the estate with me?"

Olivia takes a deep breath. When she left his parents' house a few weeks ago, she thought she'd never see it again, or his family. It will be a little awkward to go back, given how she'd left. Still, if she's going to be with Gene, there will be no way around his family. And they're all nice people. She nods.

"Okay. I never know what happens at work, but if I'm free, I'll go with you."

…

To be continued. Reviews are life.