A/N: Not totally satisfied with this chapter but I needed to get it out of the way I suppose. I hope you enjoy it more than I did writing it haha xxx
A couple of days after the wedding, Olivia and Elliot found themselves headed for JFK airport to catch their flight to their honeymoon destination – Hawaii. They had just pulled up outside Don's brownstone when the man appeared in the doorway of his home.
"Grandpa!" Maria exclaimed when she saw Don standing on his doorstep. She frantically tried to unbuckle herself but Liv stopped her.
"Hold on, Maria. I'll come round and do it. You know you aren't supposed to do that yourself." Olivia said as she climbed out of the car. She went around to the back passenger door and opened it so she could get Maria out of the car. "Wait right there." She told the girl as she took Maria's luggage from Elliot who then went back to the trunk and took out a bag with some of Maria's toys along with her scooter. "Now we can go and say 'hi' to Grandpa." Olivia announced as she led the way to the house.
"Hey, guys." Don greeted as he took the small suitcase Olivia was carrying up the steps to the front door. He placed a kiss on his surrogate daughter's cheek before doing the same with Maria who said a quick 'hi Grandpa!' before running off into the house. Liv went to protest but Don waved her off.
Olivia sighed and looked at her father with a smile on her face. "Hi, Dad." She finally greeted. "Thank you so much for having her. Elliot and I owe you big time."
Don shook his head. "You don't owe my anything. I would take her off your hands more often if you would let me." He pointed out. Cragen was pleased when he was told by the Chief of D's that he could take some well earned time off in order to look after his granddaughter whilst her newly wed parents were away.
"Ok, I've notified the school that you will be collecting her instead of Lauren. You know what time bedtime is but she's not allowed any type of sugar after seven o'clock – eight at the weekend." Liv took the bag Elliot was holding and held it up in front of Don. "Somewhere in here is her favourite stuffed bear. She can't sleep without it so don't lose it. She also picked out some of her favourite toys to bring with her even though I said you had some here for her. Make sure she tidies up after herself. El, am I forgetting anything else?" She asked over her shoulder to Elliot who was standing just behind her.
"I don't think so but, Liv, we're not going to outer space. We have our cellphones and Don has the hotel number. If there are any problems or he has any questions he can just call us." El shrugged. He then took one of her hands in his. "We really have to go. I don't want to hit any traffic."
Olivia sighed. She knew she shouldn't worry so much but she couldn't help it. This would be the first time she would be leaving her daughter for an extended period of time. Not only that but neither her nor Elliot would even be in the same state as their daughter. How could she not worry? "I'm sorry, Dad. It's just-"
Don chuckled softly. "It's fine, Liv. I get it." He told her before hollering over his shoulder. "Maria! Your mom and dad are going now. Come say goodbye!"
The sound of tiny feet stomping towards the door had them all laughing. Maria came to the doorway, she had clearly already made herself at home as she had already taken off her shoes. "Come here, Baby." Olivia waved her forward as she crouched down. "Be good for Grandpa, ok?"
"I will, Mama." Maria nodded to emphasis her promise.
"I love you so much." Olivia said as she pulled the little girl into her arms and breathed in her familiar scent. Maria returned the sentiment before they parted. Olivia stood up and stepped aside only for Elliot to take her previous position.
"If Grandpa tells us you've been extra good, Mommy and I will even get you a present. Doesn't that sound cool?" El said as he pushed a piece of hair behind Maria's ear.
The five year old's eyes widened at the prospect of a present and nodded excitedly. "Ok!" She exclaimed before wrapping her arms around her father's neck. "Love you, Daddy."
Elliot wrapped his arms around her tiny frame. Much like his wife, he didn't want to leave their daughter but, unfortunately, she still had to go to school. "I love you too, Princess." He replied before kissing her forehead and standing up.
Olivia and Elliot then said goodbye to Don and before they knew it, they were making their way back to the car. A couple of times they looked back and waved at Don and Maria who waited for them to pull away before going inside the house.
Hours later Olivia and Elliot found themselves in their five star honeymoon suite at the hotel in Hawaii. They had just unpacked their luggage when Liv reached for the phone.
"Calling room service? Good idea. I think we should just relax tonight and explore the area in the morning. I don't know about you, but that flight killed me." Elliot moaned as he kicked off his sliders.
"No. I was going to call Cragen and speak to Maria." Liv frowned when Elliot began laughing. "What's so funny?" She asked, slightly offended.
Elliot shook his head and waved his hand at her apologetically. "Olivia, it's past eleven at night back in New York...we're like six hours behind. Maria is probably fast asleep."
Olivia closed her eyes and sighed. "Oh yeah. I forgot about that. I guess I'm a little jet lagged." She admitted to herself as she now started laughing. The happiness on her face soon left though when a sudden thought occurred to her.
"What's up, Baby?" Elliot asked concerned when he saw her forlorn expression. It was clear to anyone who knew Olivia that there was something on her mind.
A huff left Liv's mouth as she sat down on the end of the bed by her husband who began planting kisses along her shoulder and neck. He hoped some tender loving would help with her tenseness. "I was just thinking. Maybe we shouldn't have picked somewhere so far away for our honeymoon. Even better, we should have just waited for Maria to be on summer break before going anywhere. That way she could have come with us. I just hate the thought of her crying for us."
Elliot gave her the time to get her thoughts and feelings off her chest and decided not to interrupt her. It's as they say 'it's better out than in'. He didn't want to be the type of husband that didn't listen to his wife's thoughts and feelings. When he was sure that she was done letting it all out, he finally spoke up. "Just remember, we haven't left Maria with a stranger. She's with her grandpa. She'll have plenty to do while we're gone. I just know that Don is going to spoil her rotten. I'm sure he mentioned taking her to Coney Island at the weekend – no doubt he will ply her with a shit load of sugar. He said he was going to teach her to swim as well so she will have something to focus on. She'll probably be too tired to think so I don't think we have to worry about her missing us too much."
Olivia thought about what he had just said before smiling softly. "I guess you're right. I'm just being silly."
"Nothing wrong with missing your child, Liv." El told her simply before picking up the phone. "Now how about that room service? I'm starving!"
"Yeah, Liv. Everything's fine. You've only been gone for three days. Yeah, she's right here. Want to talk to her?" Don spoke into his cell phone. Liv made it a point to call every day at five o'clock NYC time. Of course, Don didn't mind this one bit. He just hoped that she was enjoying her honeymoon and not constantly worrying about her daughter.
The NYPD captain looked over at Maria who was sat on his couch eating a sandwich whilst she was watching cartoons. He smiled when she laughed at the characters on the screen. "Maria, Mommy wants to speak to you." Don called over to the girl who immediately leapt off the couch and ran over to her grandpa.
Cragen handed her the phone and she wasted no time in holding it up to her ear. Don walked away to give her some privacy. "Hi, Mama!" Maria greeted Olivia who replied back just as enthusiatically.
"Hey, Baby. How are you? Did you have a good day at school?" Liv asked. Her and Elliot were just about to go down to the breakfast buffet at the hotel. She was just waiting for Elliot to be ready so she thought she should give her 'father' and daughter a quick call.
"I'm ok. Grandpa is taking real good care of me. School was fine. Tia fell over in the playground and her wobbly tooth came out!" Maria replied.
"Oh wow! I hope Tia wasn't hurt too bad and I'm glad to hear that you're so happy with grandpa. Guess what Daddy and I are doing today?"
"What? Tell me!" The little girl demanded excitedly. Her parents gave her daily updates on their activities. So far they had gone on a boat that had a glass bottom so they could see the 'fishies' in the ocean and they had also had a ride on something called a jet ski – her daddy had explained that it was like a motorcycle but it goes over the water! She thought there could be nothing cooler than that!
"Well today we're going to go and swim with some dolphins and then I think we're going to spend the rest of the day at the pool. How's the swimming lessons going with Grandpa?" Olivia asked.
Maria's eyes widened at the mention of the dolphins. "Woah! I love dolphins! Take lots of picture please. Swimming is fun! Grandpa said I wont need to use my arm bands soon!"
"That's great, Honey. Hey, do you want to speak to Daddy?" The mother asked as Elliot was now standing beside her. He was also eager to hear his daughter's voice.
"Ok. Bye, Mommy. I love you!"
"I love you too, Honey. Ok. Here's Daddy." There was a rustling sound as the phone was passed from one hand to another.
"Hey, Angel Face." Elliot greeted.
"Hi, Daddy! Have you got me my present yet?!" Maria asked as she jumped up and down in anticipation.
Elliot chuckled. That child never missed a step. "Hmmm. I don't know. Have you been a good girl?" He asked to which he got a quick 'yes!'. Of course, he wasn't going to return home without anything for his baby girl. Even if she had slightly misbehaved, which he highly doubted, he would have waited until a sufficient amount of time had passed before giving her the gift. "Well then I guess there might me something in my suitcase for you when me and Mommy come home."
The rest of the conversation between father and daughter went in the same path as the conversation beforehand. After a few more minutes, Don appeared in the doorway of the living room to see that Maria was no longer on the phone but was instead looking down at the device sadly.
"Hey, why the long face?" Don asked as he went over to her and took his cell phone back.
Maria flung herself at him and wrapped her arms around his leg. "I miss them." She sniffled into his thigh.
Cragen sighed a little sadly before lifting her into his arms and sitting on the couch with her on his lap. "Hey, none of that." He said as he wiped a little tear that made it's way down her soft cheek. "They'll be home before you know it. And guess what?" He had began bouncing his leg up and down which brought a small smile to her face.
"What?" She asked in wonder.
"It's only three more sleeps until we go to Coney Island!" Don reminded her before tickling her sides which caused her to burst out into giggles.
The grandfather stopped the tickle monster attack and wrapped his arms around her body when she laid her head onto his chest. "You hungry?" He asked after a couple of minutes of silence only to receive a slight nod in return. "You want pizza for dinner?"
Maria leapt off of his lap and jumped on the spot. "Yay! Pizza! Pizza! Pizza!" She cheered and waved her hands in the air.
The following week went by in a blur and soon it came time for Olivia and Elliot's final night in Hawaii. Although they didn't want to leave their version of paradise, they were eager to return home to their little girl.
The now married couple decided that they would commemorate their final night down in one of the hotel's bars. Olivia and Elliot were walking down the hallway on the floor their room was on when Liv began looking in her small clutch purse. "El, did you bring the spare room key?" She was so paranoid that something would happen to the one she had.
Elliot paused in the hallway and patted the pockets of his shorts. "Shit, no I don't." He said. "I'll go back and get it. I'll meet you down at the bar. I'll have a 'Bud Light'." Olivia handed him the room key she had and the two went their separate ways.
Not long after, Olivia found herself sat at the bar waiting for her husband. Out of a nowhere a man took it upon himself to sit upon the stool she had reserved for El. She had thought she made it clear the spot was taken by leaving Elliot's bottle of beer in front of the spot. This strange man now sat beside her and Liv only needed to give him the once over before she came to the conclusion that he was a player.
"Hi." The man greeted her, a slime-ball smile on his lips, a smirk that reminded Olivia of some of the perps she had come across over the years. Her only response was a single nod of acknowledgement. "I'm Matt." The man, now known as 'Matt', held out a hand for Olivia to shake which she did reluctantly with what she liked to call her resting bitch face.
"Olivia." Liv hoped she made it clear that she didn't want to talk to him but just in case she shot a look at Elliot's beer.
"Well, Olivia, what's gorgeous woman like yourself doing in a bar all alone? Someone stand you up? They must be nuts." Olivia shivered in disgust when she realised Matt was checking her out.
Olivia looked away briefly and rolled her eyes before turning back to him. "I just got here. I'm waiting for someone."
"If I was him, I wouldn't leave your side for a single second," Matt went to say more but was quickly yanked from the barstool and was pushed up against the bar by the scruff of his shirt collar.
"That's my wife you're talking to!" Elliot growled out. He kept the volume of his voice low but the tone dark. It wouldn't have been a good idea to cause a scene on his and Olivia's last night.
Elliot had spotted his wife at the bar straight away but instantly felt rage bubble up inside him when he saw she had an uninvited guest sat beside her. He was well aware that Liv could hold her own but he felt like it was his job to ward of any unwanted attention. El didn't waste any time in rushing over to the pair and ripping Matt away from Olivia.
The detective's rage escalated when Matt smirked and turned his head to the side to once again look at Olivia, the sleazy smirk still in place, "What are you doing with a guy like him? You could do so much better."
Elliot couldn't stop his own instinctive reaction and before he knew it he had landed a punch to Matt's jaw causing him to have a split lip. "You don't look at her. You don't talk to her. You don't ever breath the same air as her. Your best option is to leave right now before I kill-"
"Elliot!" Olivia exclaimed before her husband could finish his threat. El held onto the jerk for a few seconds before releasing Matt from his grip, pushing him away from them harshly.
"Get out of here!" The blue eyes detective barked. Now looking shaken up, Matt took a quick glance between the husband and wife duo and promptly scampered off. "Ok, shows over!" Elliot announced when he saw that a few eyes were now on him and Olivia. He rubbed the back of his head and sat down on the barstool meant for him before taking a long swig of his beer.
Olivia looked around briefly before sighing and taking back her seat. "Elliot-" She began but was quickly cut off by her counterpart.
"Don't, Liv. Let's just forget about it."
"I can't, El. You're going to have to control yourself when we get back to work. Especially now that we're married. Cap has already warned us about one pp keeping a close eye on us. If they see you get angry like that they will order one of us to transfer out. Do you really want that to happen?" Liv's voice was pleading as she tried to make him see her point of view.
At first, it seemed like he was ignoring her but then he sighed dejectedly. "I know. You're right. I promise to control my anger. It's going to be hard though." He said. Olivia thanked him by kissing him on the mouth. "Now, let's just enjoy the rest of our evening. I want to make sure that our last night here will be one to remember." At his last remark he winked at her subtly.
"Mommy! Daddy! Mommy! Daddy!" Maria chanted as she raced down the steps of Don's brownstone and towards her parents who were just climbing out of the car. She had been waiting by the window all afternoon, eagerly anticipating their return.
"Hi, Baby!" Olivia greeted as she swept her daughter up into her arms and kissed her face all over, causing a burst of giggles to come from Maria. Liv made the most of finally having her child in her arms after such a long time. She didn't think she could ever leave her baby for so long ever again. "Did you miss us?" She asked.
Maria nodded and then dived into Elliot's arms with a shout of, "Hi, Daddy!"
Elliot didn't hold back either as he wrapped his arms around his little girl and held her tight. The three of them then began to make their way towards Don who was waiting for them on the top step.
"Hi, Daddy." Olivia said as she wrapped her arms around her 'father' and kissed him on the cheek.
"Hey, Livy." Don looked over Liv's shoulder at Elliot who was still holding Maria. "Elliot."
They stood talking on the doorstep for a couple of minutes before Don told them to come inside. "You can tell me all about the honeymoon but please, I don't want to hear about any intimate details." Cragen said as he began to make a pot of coffee.
Elliot scrunched up his face and Olivia gasped, clamping her hands over Maria's ears. "Dad! There are sensitive ears in the room!" She exclaimed.
Don chuckled – he loved embarrassing his detectives. "Sorry, Honey. So come on, tell me all about your time in paradise."
The family of three visited with the captain for a couple of hours more before they decided to head home. Olivia groaned when she realised how much laundry she had to get through before she went back to work after the week was out. Although, her dread was short lived when she realised that laundry is one of the many things that came with being married and being a mother. She wouldn't give up those two things for anything in the whole world.