4, 383 days

That is how long it's been since she found herself getting ready to go to the shooting range with Elliot Stabler (her partner, friend, and lover now).

The last time was well over ten years ago, you know, before he disappeared into the void and out of her life.

But they're past that now- or at least trying to be.

It starts with nights like these, random Thursdays in the middle of summer also known as their date night. Confessions over whiskey and wine left them both vulnerable and in admittance of wanting to build whatever it is they have got left between the two of them. So they started right here in the city where they first fell in love with each other (no matter how in denial they both might be about it). Wife, marriage, kids, all stood between them but now things have changed. For the best and for the worst but all in all it led them to this very moment.

He's dressed coincidentally coordinating with her, not as if that's hard to do. He's in black jeans and a fitted black tee that hugs his shoulders and triceps perfectly at every dip and chiseled part of him. The beard has been long gone and despite the loss of his hair he looks similar to the Elliot Stabler she knew once before. Except now he's more relaxed, the anger and heavy hands dissipated, but not fully gone. The roughness about him is still there but more well hidden. Something changed him in Italy. Maybe it's softened him to not have to fight the urges that came with being in the same room as her.

He doesn't have to fight it anymore though. He makes it painstakingly obvious by the way he touches her right here. She's signing the waiver you always did before entering the shooting range. His hand rests on her neck, the ends of his fingers knit into the roots of her hair back there. His hand squeezes gently, his thumb brushes against her skin. It still makes her tingle with warmth to have any part of him touching her.

"You ready?" He says softly when she pushes the clipboard over to the attendant.

"Mmhm," she stands up straighter and the corners of her mouth lift just the slightest. They both feel it. The nostalgia of being here again with one another, but under completely different circumstances. "Let's make a bet, keep this interesting," she's eye level with him in her black boots. A low laugh escapes him.

She's beautiful. The long layers of her hair fall in full voluminous waves around her face and all the way down her back. The honeyed and caramel highlights make her olive skin glow, especially since it's been kissed by the sun these last few weeks. Her makeup is light but her eyeliner boldly lines her lid and she too, looks similar to the Olivia Benson he knew black straight leg jeans and quarter sleeve v-neck reminds him of her old style but elevated. This Olivia is curvier in her hips, more confident in her walk, she commands an entire room without saying a word. It makes his throat go dry remembering he knows exactly what's beneath every article of clothing she wears now.

"And what's that?" his arms cross over one another and a smug smile spreads so far across his face she can see the dimple in his left cheek. Good riddance to that beard he had, she would have missed out on this.

"If I win this round and shoot the most accurately, drinks are on you tonight," he nods in agreement because footing the bill was nonnegotiable tonight anyway for him. "And if you win-"

"If I win, I get a celebratory kiss right here in front of everyone," he makes the decision for them both.

"No way Stabler," she's a menace in the privacy of their apartments but when it comes to public displays of affection? She would rather not. Olivia is a private person and for some reason especially when it comes to her relationship with him. The fact she lets him so much as touch her like he did just moments ago was a huge win.

"Just don't lose and we won't have to worry about it happening," he bent the slightest to whisper into her ear and went on to find a vest in his size, knowing all too well that she would be right behind him.

….

Every step feels familiar.

They're in the designated area to store their belongings in a locker with their earmuffs, safety glasses, and vests. Each of their guns are already securely fastened to their hips and if she closes her eyes for just a moment, it will feel like they're suiting up to run into a warehouse.

She unapologetically watches him slide his vest over his head and tighten it just right in only a few seconds, the practice becoming muscle memory. He looks up and beckons for her to come here with a wave of his finger. Her eyebrows crinkle but she follows and is face to face with his blues. He reached on the bench behind them and grabbed the vest meant for her.

"Arms up," he commanded and it made her laugh.

"Jesus Elliot, I can put on my own goddamn vest. You forgettin' who's the older one here?" Her arms cross over her chest in protest.

"Humor me a little? Please?" He stood with the vest in his hands with pleading eyes she knows are for show just to get his way.

Her arms unfold and she throws her arms above her head, keeping her eyes fixed on him. He's focused as he gets both her arms into the vest. When her head finally pops out, her hair is tousled all over her face and she's giggling again. Olivia Benson is giggling again. It is over the silliest thing, her smile widens and her teeth show when she does.

And now he finds himself laughing too. They share this moment for a little while, cherish it, store it right there with another core memory of them.

His hands both reach up to brush her hair out of her face in no particular way. Anything just to get the tendrils off her face and give him back his beautiful view of her. It makes her neck tilt back too, giving him the perfect access to her lips.

"Ah ah," she scolded him, reading his mind all too easily. "I haven't lost yet," her eyebrow arches. "Now finish the job, strap me in," she removed his hands from her face and placed them right above her hips at the first notch.

Oh, so now she's playing along.

He tightened her vest perfectly as if he's done this before for her, sliding his fingers in between to make sure it was tight enough. He tugs, pulling her closer to him until she's flush against his chest. He keeps the promise of no kisses until he's won, but sneaks in one to her forehead. It surprises her and she can't even be upset with him. She loves them, especially from him. An intimate gesture full of love. Equal to bringing her a cup of coffee in the middle of the work day, or buying her favorite flowers for her every now and then.

"Don't butter me up too much. I still plan on kicking your ass," she shoved him playfully and walked past him to grab her own earmuffs and safety glasses.

"Yeah, we'll see about that one," he's walking past her but before he does, his hand smacks her ass and he's out the door before she can get him back.

She's full on laughing now and grabs her things so she can humble that cockiness of his- remind who exactly was the Captain now.

….

"No fucking way!" she slammed the small score sheet on the table and shook her head in disbelief. He begins to remember how a bit of a sore loser she could be sometimes and it makes him chuckle.

"Those lips are mine Miss Benson," he tugged on the edges of her vest and brought her closer to him. Her face tries to still look bothered at her loss but she fails miserably. His big blues and soft smile gets her every time. "How lucky am I?

"Very lucky," she's looking up at him with those mahogany eyes and heavy lashes. A face that's his sunshine and the gravity that keeps him grounded. These are moments he wishes he could tell her, I love you. Not under duress, not when he thinks he might be taken out; when it's just the two of them despite being in a room full of people.

The way he looks down at her, asking one more time if this was okay, and with the biggest shit eating grin on his face he dives in for the kiss he so rightfully earned. His hands release from her vest and caress each side of her neck. His fingers press into her scalp at the nape of her neck, his thumbs curve along her jawline. He can taste the sweetness of whatever lipgloss she wore, familiarity of the vanilla scent draws him in more. He held her lips to his for a moment before pecking and stealing a few more from her. Her hands absentmindedly wrap around his waist, digging her fingers into the sides of his vest so her fingers are trapped between the fabric and him.

"That was more than one little kiss," she pulled back gently and looked up at him with the softest grin on her face. Her loss just a few minutes ago is long forgotten.

"Yeah well, I'm pretty sure you lost on purpose so I wanted to make it worth it," he smirked down at her and sure enough her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Elliot was right but she would never let him know that. It had been a month of these weekly dates and the warm subtle touches hadn't been enough for her lately. He made her want more not only in private but in public like this. A kiss to the lips every now and then, or the way he ghosts over her temple when they stand together- she craves it more than ever.

"A magician never reveals his secrets," she states and steals another kiss from him for herself before pulling away and heading towards the locker room to get out of this vest and take him home.

The bar became less appealing on the drive over when Olivia's hand had found its way over to his thigh from the passenger's seat. It started on his knee and worked its way up towards his inner thigh. Her hand gripped lightly but firmly enough to send enough impulses to his dick. They weren't new to this. A few weeks after he had gotten that damn combat cross medal that he did not let her know about, she was there at the front door of his apartment. The timing had been impeccable since he had just started putting the pieces back together after it was destroyed. He had just gotten it decent enough to live in but Eli and Bernie had remained at Kathleen's until their rooms were finished.

But there she stood with a bouquet of flowers and a card, despite him being a complete asshole and not letting her know about it. That is where being in sync had come to rescue them. He had told her about his father, about the shady shooting he had been a part of, and it didn't take much for her to know getting his own combat cross would trigger something in him. He had not let her know. Not because he did not want her a part of this moment, but because he was not sure if he wanted to be a part of this moment himself.

She gave him a half assed smile and handed over the gesture, only for them to be long forgotten hours later when he spread her out on his bed. It had not been her intention of coming over, but suddenly the voice of your detective telling you to fuck your partner of 12 years starts to ring.

And now to the present.

Where they come and go into one another's lives with more ease than ever. She comes by on weekends when Noah stays over at a friend's house. He sneaks in during the week when everyone is asleep and is gone by the time the sun comes. It's quality time mixed in with relearning what it's like to unapologetically love someone.

Lucky for her Noah is away this week for a dance camp. That means the apartment is all theirs.

Elliot had taken full advantage of this when he jumps her in the kitchen right after she had ordered them Chinese to be delivered. He'd taken her phone out of her hands and placed it on the counter behind her. His hands turned her body so that it faced the counter. Automatically, her own came up to lay flat against the granite, her hips poked out to run against his dick. He's hard as a fucking rock against her ass when he grinds against her. He leans to bring his chest flush against her back. His lips make contact with her neck while his hands smooth upwards to cup her breasts through the shirt she wore. Her head dipped between her shoulders at the sensation of having him all over her at once.

"Can't wait to hear you scream my name," he breathed into her ear. He reached to untuck her shirt from her pants and work the buckle to her belt. She kicked her boots off and reached for the hem of her top to take it completely off.

She turned in his arms to finally get her lips on him, feeling the hardness of his chest pressed against her breasts. Her lips find resolve against his- suckling his lower lip into her mouth. She nips lightly before soothing with her tongue and getting a taste of the beer he had taken a drink out of. His fingers undo the button of her jeans and slide her zipper down. He hooked his fingers into the belt loops of her jeans and tugged them down. Their kisses become sloppy in the process as she tries to play a game of catch up and tug his t-shirt over his head.

Next thing she knows she's in the middle of her kitchen in only her lace bra, her pants and underwear long gone, bent over her counter between the half eaten loaf of bread and fruit bowl. He's behind her pristinely arched ass spreading her legs the perfect amount for him to nestle his hips between. Her arms are folded in front of her across the countertop, her head resting on its side. The ends of her hair are dampened from the sheen of sweat coated across her back. He makes her this way- all hot and bothered, aching to have him inside her.

"I can't wait to hear you scream my name," he groaned into her ear as he stroked his dick. A mix of his own precome and the remnants of the orgasm he just gave her with his fingers coated him. "Feel you come around my cock," he's sliding into her slowly as her body welcomes the intrusion. She stretches just right for him everytime, her body warm and slick for him.

Olivia's moans intensify the deeper he fills her until he's buried to the limit. She's so full of him from every angle, he's inside of her and all around her, his hands his mouth and she thinks she might come again at the thought of being completely covered in Elliot Stabler.

His hips pull back and she only misses the feeling of him for a moment before he slammed into her relentlessly. It shocks her body, the brute force of him that she asks for all the time but can't quite get when they're always trying to be quiet. He feels fucking incredible and her eyes struggle to stay open any longer as the pressure in her belly builds again.

"I can feel you…so deep," she pants when he keeps up his fueling rhythm. He's down to the last millimeter of space, hitting that spongy flesh inside of her each time. It makes her legs shake beneath him. She lifts her arms to flatten her palms at the edge and push her body even more into him.

Elliot reaches to grip a hold of her hair and pulls a little roughly, tugging her head back far enough for his lips to reach. He sears sloppy kisses against her neck, dragging his tongue against her skin tasting the saltiness. "You gonna come for me again?" His free hand curves around her hip and finds the slickness between her legs.

She nods just barely against his face, fighting the urge to collapse against his body. Her knees buckled when he pressed his index against her sensitive clit to drive that burning sensation throughout her body. He can feel her pussy tightening around him. Making his cock swell inside her.

"More," she begged and he doesn't know how much fucking more of himself he can offer. That spurs him on to grab her hair tighter, testing that boundary and getting the proper response from her. He watches her face contort, her teeth bite down onto her bottom lip, sweat glistening across her forehead as she curses beneath her breath.

"Look at me," he snapped and her eyes opened wider. Elliot can feel her body- sense her coming and he wants to see. Watch exactly what he does to her. The darkness in her eyes when he brings her to the brink. The way her pouty mouth falls open when she can't get the words out anymore.

"Elliot," she cried a hundred times trying to shoo his hand away from her but he rubbed more freverently, feeling the come from her orgasm drip from his fingers. He continues to pump into her, letting go of her hair and wrapping his arm around her waist to hold her up.

"That's it baby," he spurred her on as her body shook beneath him. "I'm right behind you," his voice strained as he fucked into her until he spilled inside of her. His body stilled as he emptied completely into her. "Fuck," he breathed and collapsed his body atop hers against the counter. Their breathing erratic and silence between them until he feels her body shake beneath him.

She's laughing.

"Oh my fucking god," she managed to get out. A part of her feels in her twenty something's all over again, and the other part definitely feels her age as her knees struggle to stand any longer. She can't remember the last time she was able to have sex in her kitchen and be as loud as she fucking wanted. All the while having Elliot be the man that she does it with.

"Yeah, we're doing that again and again and ag-"

"I think you forgot how old we are," she cut him off and shimmied for him to get off of her. "It's going to take me days to recover from just that," he gently pulled out of her, his release finding its way back out of her and down her inner thighs.

Fuck he's gonna have to take a cold shower right after this.

"That's why we need to build our stamina," when she stood straight he pulled her back against his body and nuzzled his face into the space between her shoulder and neck.

"Mm," she hummed when his lips trailed lightly up her skin. "I think I'd like to eat first if I plan on surviving," her hands covered his that were on her belly. They swayed for a moment before turning to face him.

"How about I wait on the food and you go shower," he nipped at her lips. "Then I can show you just well I can shoot other things," his eyebrows wiggle and it makes her chuckle.

"You're no better than a teenage boy," she stole another kiss. "We can play cops and robbers later as long as you're the one who ends up in cuffs," she challenged him.

"It would be an honor, Captain."