Weeks later……

Olivia regretted how close she came to having Elliot. She knew her mixed emotions wouldn't hurt her or Elliot, but they'd hurt Kathy. She thought for the weeks following the incident about what she should do.

"Hey…" she greeted Elliot as if nothing had happened over the past few weeks. They had become distant, unable to speak for more than a few minutes about life. They hadn't even discussed their close encounter since it happened.

"Hey…" he replied back. The awkward silence that had taken over so many times before took over again.

"I was wondering…" Olivia began.

"Yea?" Elliot replied quickly, not letting Olivia finish.

"That you and me should tell Kathy about what happened…"

"Are you insane!" he whispered.

"No, I'm guilty. I led you on…"

"It was my fault. I'm the married one here."

"Exactly my point."

"Look, Liv. I've suffered a lot over the past seven or eight months, and a divorce is the last thing I need."

"A divorce? Kathy isn't that…"

"Paranoid? Oh yes she is, Liv. She's been convinced that I've been sleeping with you since the summer. She told me the only reason she got pregnant was to save this marriage. We're not in trouble though or anything…" Elliot said knowing he exposed too much.

Stunned, it took Olivia a few seconds to comprehend what Elliot just revealed. "Look Elliot, let me tell her it was me, it was my fault…"

"No! Liv, you realize it was wrong, I know it was wrong. We can admit we did a terrible thing, but tell Kathy? There's no point…"

"So you mean it meant nothing to you?"

"What? Nothing happened!"

"Everything happened! I can't live with the fact that we almost had sex and you're so nonchalant about it."

"Olivia, I'm finding it hard to cope with the fact that I'm gonna have another baby in a few weeks. If we tell her, what the hell am I gonna do if I'm handed divorce papers in the morning?"

"You're taking this way too far Elliot, it's best if we just be honest!"

"If we tell her and something did happen, you'd be at fault for the destruction of my marriage."

"Are you blaming me?"

"You blamed yourself!"

"Elliot, I don't want to argue with you. I just…I would want my husband to tell me if he was intimate with another woman."

"Well, I'm not your husband…" Elliot hissed. Olivia realized that no matter how guilty she felt, she couldn't go against Elliot's wishes.

"Thank God for that…" Olivia snapped back. Her eyes were filled with tears of anger, and she turned from a disappointed Elliot and walked back to her desk. He knew he said something wrong. It was one of those moments where both waited for the other to say they were sorry. They said nothing to each other for the rest of the day. By 3 o'clock, they're day was practically over. It was a quiet February afternoon, one of the quietest they could remember. Elliot got up from his chair and went to the bathroom; Olivia glanced at him with resentment from the corner of her eye. She started to notice the clumps of snow falling outside.

"No wonder it's so quiet today…" Olivia said to Fin.

"Tell me about it…" Fin replied.

Meanwhile, Elliot met Munch in the bathroom. Elliot cordially smiled finding it uncomfortable for him to speak to Munch in his condition.

"What's up?" Munch asked.

"Nothing much, John."

"I'm talking about you and Olivia. What's with you two?"

"What do you mean? We're fine."

"Did you guys….sleep together?" Munch asked politely.

"NO!"

"Elliot, I'm a guy. You can tell me."

"John!" Elliot interrupted him before he went any further. "I didn't sleep with her…"

"Then what's up?"

Elliot didn't answer. "I knew it!" Munch added.

"No, no, no! John, we didn't…" Elliot stopped when Cragen walked in. "Hey captain…Anyways John, we didn't have a party for my birthday." Elliot avoided the subject. "I'll see you guys later…"

"What was that about?" Cragen asked Munch.

"Beats me…" John replied washing his hands. Elliot was waiting next to the door for Munch. "We'll talk it over a beer…" he proposed.

"Good idea…" Elliot agreed walking back calmly and collectively to his desk. He checked the clock noticing it was time to go. Olivia watched as Elliot put his jacket on. "I'm sorry…" he whispered into her ear as he was walking out the door. She looked up surprised at him and apologized also.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Me and John are going for a few beers…Guy talk." he answered.

"Oh…" she sounded disappointed "Never knew there was such thing"

"I'd ask you to come, but…"

"Don't worry about it…" she smiled. "I have to run some errands, anyways…."

"See you tomorrow…" he added walking out the door with John. Once Olivia made sure John and Elliot were gone she decided it was time to go herself.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Fin." She smiled at him putting her gloves on.

"Later…" he replied. Olivia was walking to the car, noticing the increasing amounts of snow falling on the ground. She got gas, and headed in the opposite direction of her house – she was going to Elliot's.

Within a half hour, with the traffic and snow, she arrived at Elliot's house. There were bicycles in the front yard and a rusted old sign that had green paint saying "Welcome to the Stabler's."

"I hope I'm welcome here." She told herself ringing the doorbell; there was no answer. "Maybe she's not home…there's no car in the driveway. Shit." Convinced Kathy wasn't there, Olivia walked back to her car. Suddenly, the door opened and a tiresome Kathy appeared.

"Can I help you?" she asked not realizing it was Olivia.

"Kathy, hi. I didn't think you were home."

"Elliot has the car..." Kathy replied.

"Oh. Well, Kathy, I know I've screwed some things up lately but…" Olivia was stopped by a shivering Kathy.

"You must be freezing. Come in."

A/N: One more chapter to go! Tell me what you think!