Chapter 35

Anne Cragen's house, Manhattan, New York

Sunday, January 19th 2016

9.36 am

Olivia stood alone in the living room of her Mom's old brownstone. Melissa and Nicole were packing what their bedrooms up saying that they would never stay with Elliot again which broke his heart but he knew that they'd probably come round.

The terms of the custody agreement they had drawn up together the previous evening was that they Olivia had full time custody of both Melissa and Nicole unless they asked otherwise, until the foreseeable future George would only be with Elliot every other weekends which was Elliot's decision because he knew Olivia had to bond with their son or she'd reject him and that would make them both worse off, as for the twins they would change week to week on Monday's after school, Olivia was going to make sure that herself or Elliot finished work before dinner on their week.

She had already put an advertisement that she was looking for a Nanny and that Nanny Sue would stay with Elliot. This was right, she knew it and Elliot knew it and they just hoped whatever happened from here on out was for the best. Olivia had hired back Eliza, the young British maid who had once worked for her Mom, she'd found Eliza working in a bistro and Eliza had jumped at the opportunity to have her old job back which had pleased Olivia, she couldn't have hired anyone else for the job.

Eliza was already hard at work pulling dust covers off and making up the beds. Olivia had already planned on having decorators in to turn her Mother's old fashioned house into a modern family home fit for her children but until then they would have to keep it as it was.

"Ma'am I've done the bedrooms what would you like done next?" Eliza asked in her thick British accent.

"First I'm not my Mother so call me Olivia and uh fancy doing the grocery shop?" Olivia asked unsure what the maid's job had actually been other than making tea when her mother had guests and cooking all the meals.

"Of course would you like to draw up a list?" Eliza asked.

"No just get whatever you want." Olivia said pulling a check book out of her purse. "All you'll need to do is fill the amount at the till."

"Ok the freezer is on so it should be ready to hold food by the time I get back, anything particular you want for tea… I mean Dinner?"

"Uh Melissa and Nicole love turkey dinasours." Olivia laughed. "With fries and salad."

"Sure thing." Eliza said before curtsying and hurrying out, Olivia making a note to tell the young woman not to curtsey and that she could wear whatever the hell she wanted, she thought it was brilliant and funny that the young woman had put on the uniform she wore when she worked for Anne and Olivia didn't want the woman to feel like a slave even if she was getting paid for it.

"Knock knock."

"George hey." Olivia smiled seeing her best friend standing in the doorway of the living room.

"Hey Elliot said I'd find you here." George replied.

"Did he say why?" Olivia asked.

"No he told me I should come talk to you here so here I am." George explained.

"We're separating." Olivia said and George nodded. "We both think it's for the best."

"I won't tell you if it is or not because only you and Elliot know that but at least you already have someone else to live."

"I have been thinking though, I was going to go back to my old apartment but with seven kids there was no way that we could fit completely into it so I had two choices here or Cragen's, why did I choose here and not my Dad's?" Olivia asked turning to the shrink.

"I don't know, maybe because you feel like you want to be closer to your Mom or that you feel that here you'll be more like your Mom to your kids?" George suggested.

"Yeah I guess." Olivia shrugged. "Melissa and Nicole have refused to stay with Elliot."

"How come?" George asked leading Olivia over to the couch.

"He's not their Dad, Melissa made the decision first and Nicole followed suit, Nicole has always been close to Mel because Elliot isn't their Dad." Olivia replied. "I'm guessing she is just following what her big sister said."

"What's the rest of the custody agreement?" George asked.

"Well Elliot has the twins this week and I have them next week, George will have every other weekend with Elliot until he's older." Olivia explained and George nodded in understanding. "I don't want my marriage to fail."

"It might not, separating and divorcing are completely different." George said.

"I told him to see other people." Olivia said. "I don't want him to be lonely."

"What did he say in reply?" George asked.

"He told me to give things ago with Rockwell." Olivia laughed.

"Are you going to?" George continued and Olivia just shrugged in reply the conversation interrupted by the shrill ring of her phone.

"Cragen." She answered. "Ok… no I'll come pick them up now. Bye."

"Well?" George asked.

"Nicole and Melissa are all packed and want to leave." Olivia explained. "I need to go and pick them up. Elliot's week starts tomorrow but he's keeping George tonight."

"Liv?"

"Just so I can settle in here and Elliot won't see him for two weeks, or won't have him over night for two weeks anyway." Olivia explained and George nodded. "I need to get the girls you stay here?"

"Sure thing I'll see you in a bit."

Cragen-Stabler home, Manhattan, New York

Sunday, January 19th 2016

10.12 am

Olivia walked into what was her family home and found Melissa and Nicole sat there waiting.

"Can we go now?" Melissa asked.

"Yeah get in the car I'll be there in a bit ok?" Olivia asked and the two hurried off. "El?"

"Living room." He called and Olivia hurried in to see him sitting there holding his youngest son.

"Ok?" She asked.

"This isn't the end Liv." He said and she nodded.

"I know."

"Call me if you need anything." He said looking up at her and she nodded. "I love you."

"I love you too but sometimes that isn't enough El." She whispered.

"I know." Elliot replied.

"Go out there and have fun El." Olivia said. "For me?"

"If that's what you want." He replied with a sigh.

"If you don't have a date before the girls come to mine I promise you that I will set you up on a blind date with some freak." She laughed and he leaned forward and kissed her lips.

"El." She groaned pulling away.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

"I know." She nodded. "Me too."

Cragen Household, Manhattan, New York

Sunday, January 19th 2016

3.46 pm

The large house was deathly quiet. Olivia and George were sat in the warm study while Melissa and Nicole unpacked in their chosen bedrooms. Eliza was getting ready for dinner in the kitchen leaving the two adults in complete privacy.

"It's going to take weeks to get this place set up to be my own." Olivia sighed sitting back in the old fashioned couch with a glass of wine.

"Yeah but you'll get there." George replied and she nodded.

"You know when I got married, I thought that was it you know? I really thought my life was made from there on."

"Olivia no one gets married thinking they're going to separate, if you thought that you'd never get married." George said and Olivia nodded in agreement.

"I think if we do divorce it will be simple and straight forward, Elliot signed a pre-nup because Mom was worried about my inheritance from her and from Cole and just for the sake of it they wrote in Don's money, neither one of cheated and the separation has been simple." Olivia replied and George nodded in agreement. "He can have the house, I have two houses and two apartments so I don't need our family home."

"Liv don't even think like that right now, just focus on getting yourself used to being alone again." George said and Olivia nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I have to get used to being single again even if technically I'm married." Olivia sighed looking at her bare ring finger, she and Elliot had both taken them off. "It's a whole new ball game."

Next Chapter – How do they work together when they've seperated