102.

On her second evening in the Tucker home, Pearl began the night in Noah's room only to make her way to the master bedroom when it was time for her to go out. Ed remarked that she was, at least, consistent with her timing and he shuffled into the foyer for her leash and his parka and boots. The dog came alive in the chilly weather and she galloped along, seemingly more interested in getting late night exercise than anything else. Ed gamely walked her around the block, steering her away from the trash bags lining the curbs. Once back inside, Pearl scampered away. On instinct, Ed peeked into the twins' room on his way back to bed. They weren't there.

In a moment of panic, he spun around and stared at the apartment door, trying to remember if he'd locked it or not. His keys were still clutched in his fist, so he was sure he had. Even if he hadn't, neither Maggie nor Wyatt had ever successfully turned the knob. Taking a deep breath, he scanned the living room, looking for the twins in their bean bags or even curled up on the rug near the Christmas tree.

Nothing.

Next he tiptoed into Noah's room, and, sure enough, Maggie, Wyatt, and Noah were packed together in his bed. Noah must have woken up when the twins joined him, because they were all snug under the covers with Noah on his back serving as the guard rail, closest to the edge of the mattress.

Ed shook his head and smiled, but let them stay where they were. The frigid night air and the adrenaline rush from seeing the twins absent from their beds eliminated all fatigue and he hoped Olivia was still awake.

He found her in the middle of the bed, reading something on her phone. As soon as she saw him enter, she tossed the device and her reading glasses aside, smiled, and murmured something about how it seemed to take him longer than last night.

"She wanted to run around out there," Ed explained.

Olivia touched his face. "You're freezing," she said, her eyes open wide, "Come here." She kissed him ferociously and fell onto her back, dragging him on top of her. They grinned, kissed some more, and sighed at the relief of breaking their dry spell. Olivia gently pushed him away to throw off her shirt, and, in the seconds it took for her to toss it aside, Ed grew distracted. "What is it?" She asked.

He groaned and replied, "The dog."

Olivia lifted her upper back and looked down at Pearl. She was lying on the makeshift bed-the same hoodie Olivia had been wearing the night before. "She's about to fall asleep," Olivia said, noticing the dog's drooping eyelids, "Just...concentrate." Olivia put her hands on Ed's cheeks and guided his lips to hers. "It's okay."

"She's watching us," Ed mumbled.

"She's a dog," Olivia said, trying hard to mask her impatience.

"What if she jumps up here?"

"She would have done that already," Olivia said, "It's too high."

"Alright." Ed grinned, "I'll uh, pretend she's not here."

"We've done it with the twins in the room before."

"We did?"

"I think so." Olivia slapped his hips. "C'mon, enough thinking. Where were we?"

Ed glanced down at her breasts and smirked before he descended upon them. "I think, here."

"Yesss."

Soon they forgot all about Pearl and whether or not they'd made love in the same room as their sleeping infants when they were still in bassinets. Ed, overjoyed at finally having the chance to make love to his wife after a brief hiatus, went about foreplay deliberately, careful to hit all of Olivia's most sensitive spots. He very nearly lost control when, as he trailed kisses along the inside of Olivia's right thigh, she shivered, moaned, and reached for the back of his head just in case he was going to bypass the center of her body. Olivia whimpered and cried out softly.

"Ohhhh, Goddd, yessss, Ed, Ohhhhh…"

ARF!

"Goddamn it." Ed lost all rhythm. He groaned again and let his head fall onto Olivia's stomach. "Liv…"

Not willing to give up on the intimacy quite yet, Olivia got up, opened the door, and tried to shoo Pearl into the hallway. Refusing to comply, the dog barked again. "Shhh," Olivia said. "C'mon, why don't you go sleep by the tree?"

Hearing the urgency in Olivia's voice, Pearl leapt up and trotted into the hall, but when Olivia didn't follow, she barked again...and again. Olivia threw her hands up and turned back toward the bedroom thinking she could, perhaps, salvage a bit of the evening, but the next noise she heard was a faint "Mommy?"

She threw on a shirt and went to Noah's room. He was sitting up, groggy and confused, his brown hair sticking out in several different directions. Ed had neglected to mention the twins had relocated themselves, so the sight of Maggie and Wyatt took her by surprise.

"Sweet boy," she knelt beside the bed and held Noah's hands. "Sorry, honey. Pearl's a little hyper tonight."

""Shehavetagoout?" Noah slurred.

"She already went out," Olivia said, "I think...um...she wanted to come up on the bed with me and Daddy, but that's not allowed."

"C'she come on my bed?"

"Honey," Olivia whispered, "Maggie and Wyatt are already here. I don't think there's much room and you three need your sleep. I'm going to make her a little bed in our room, okay? You can play with her in the morning."

"Kay."

Olivia helped Noah get resettled under the covers and she kissed his forehead. "Go back to sleep, sweetheart. I love you."

"Loveyou," Noah turned onto his side and tucked Bernie under his chin. Olivia kissed him once more and went back to the bedroom where a very disappointed Ed Tucker was pouting.

"Sarah needs to get this damn dog," he grumbled. "She's ruining our lives."

"Ruining our lives?"

"Well," Ed shrugged, "Maybe I'm bein' a little dramatic."

"I think so." Olivia kissed him and laid her head on his chest. "I'm sorry," she said, "I didn't think she'd be this much of an intrusion."

"It's not your fault," Ed kissed her head and wrapped his arms around her, "I didn't mean to make ya feel bad. And I thought it'd be more of a pain in the ass pickin' up her shit, not her...cockblocking."

Olivia burst into silent laughter. "Did you say cockblock?"

"Yeah. You don't know that word?"

"I do...I never thought I'd hear you say it."

Ed chuckled and kissed her again, "Desperate times, Liv...desperate times."

….

Laughing hysterically, Ed and Olivia walked out of the elevator and toward her apartment. Mindful of neighbors and then of Noah, they hushed their voices and said goodnight to Lucy. The babysitter gave them a funny look and hurried away, leaving them to continue their laughter alone in the kitchen.

"Oh wow," Olivia said breathlessly, "Those two...wow…" she reached for a bottle of bourbon and held it in front of Ed's chest before opening it, "Want one?"

Ed took the bottle from her and leaned in for a kiss, "Sure." He watched Olivia's shirt pull a little from her waistband as she reached for the glasses on a high shelf of the cabinet. "Were we that awkward on our first date?"

"No, we weren't," Olivia confidently replied. She poured two generous portions and handed one to Ed. "Cheers to not being awkward."

"Cheers." He took a sip and kissed her again. They had so much fun at dinner that night. They'd chosen a sports bar with large banquettes and parked themselves next to one another so they could watch the Olympics on the large screen. However, they'd spent most of the evening surreptitiously eyeing a couple who were obviously very unfamiliar with each other. The duo struggled to make conversation. They fidgeted. And, although Olivia admitted feeling a tiny bit bad about using their agony for entertainment, the whole thing caused the two of them feel even luckier to be together.

"You know," Olivia said, "I keep wondering, why did he try to feed her? It's obviously not going well, and then he decides to do that?"

Ed thought of the scene and started chuckling again. The man, who was probably in his late twenties, could only have been less graceful if he'd dumped the forkful of food on the floor. One minute he was taking a bite of his shepherd's pie and the next he was lunging toward his date who had the choice of opening her mouth or getting slapped with a faceful of mashed potatoes. "It was probably the worst move of all time. At least in that bar."

Olivia moved closer, backing him into the corner between the sink and stove. "You were way smoother than he was," she purred.

"I hope so."

"Can't even compare the two, actually."

"You remember the first time I fed ya something?"

"Yes," Olivia cocked her head in surprise, "How could I forget it? We were in that little Italian place by your old office. In the back, hidden, at the beginning, and-"

"-you were eyein' my ravioli."

"-I was. I almost ordered it. But you were," Olivia grinned and tilted her head the other way. "So kind." She kissed his chin, "Still are."

"I love sharing."

Their bodies were pressed together now. Ed had abandoned his drink. Olivia placed hers on the counter. "I know you do," she whispered before burying her tongue in his mouth and wedging her fists between them so she could begin unbuttoning his shirt. Olivia thought of the unfortunate couple from the bar and how they weren't doing what she and Ed were doing right now, they probably never would, or, at least, never would do it as well. She felt the bulge in Ed's pants and the warmth in her own. She slid her hands under his white t-shirt, paused, closed her eyes, and touched her cheek to his. Yes, he's real, she thought. This man is real, and he loves me, and he got the whole giving me a bite of food right on the first try. He-

"Liv?" Ed gently stroked her back. He was patient but perplexed. Why did she stop?

"Oh," she slowly turned and locked her eyes on his, "I, um, sorry. I...was trying to make sure, make sure I wasn't taking this for granted. I don't want to ever, ever forget nights like these."

"Me neither," Ed held her face in his hands, "And we won't."

"Promise?"

"I promise." Ed smirked and turned the mood back to one tinged with playfulness. "Now, Olivia Benson, you want me in the kitchen tonight, or…?"

Olivia pretended to agonize over the decision for a few seconds then grabbed his hands, "How about the bedroom again? Conventional, but…"

He smirked and finished for her.

"Never boring,"

…...

The next evening, after Pearl was picked up and the Tucker kids were bathed and read to, Ed gathered them all together in front of the Christmas tree before he and Olivia put the twins to bed. Dressed in similar green-and-white pajamas, with Noah in the middle, they stood still, reverently looking up at Ed-three sets of wide, blue eyes regarding their father with all the seriousness in the world.

"Now," he said sternly, "We're all goin' to our beds. Noah in his, Maggie in hers, Wyatt in his, and we're staying there all night. Got it?"

Noah nodded.

"Maggie, Wyatt, no getting outta bed until morning."

In the kitchen, Olivia was wiping down the island and trying to hide her smile. She had no idea how much of the order Maggie and Wyatt understood, but Ed slowly nodded and the twins copied his movements. Occasionally Ed spoke to the twins as if they were much older, and Olivia found it hilarious.

He repeated "no getting outta bed" and Wyatt echoed him. Maggie simply shouted, "NO BED!"

Satisfied, Ed told Maggie and Wyatt to say goodnight to Noah, took them by the hands, and led them to their room. He and Olivia tucked them in, gave them kisses, and turned on the planetarium projector. They closed the door and told Noah to come and get them if his siblings wandered into his room again.

"Kay," Noah said doubtfully, "But dose babies liketa come and sleep with me!"

"They gotta stay in their beds, bud," Ed replied, "And you have school and I don't want you wakin' up in the middle of the night."

"You need to get good rest, sweet boy," Olivia cooed, smoothing his hair.

"Arright," Noah sighed. He instantaneously brightened and added, "Hey! You can tell Maggs and Wyatt that Santa won't come if they don't stay in da beds!"

"You think that'll work?"

"Uh-huh! They know all about Santa!"

Despite Olivia's semi-threatening glare, Ed agreed. "We might have to try that," he said, "But, ya know, I think they may stay in there tonight. I think they like the beds."

"Dat's 'cause we made 'em good and sturdy like da cribs!"

"That's right."

….

Jet lag had gotten the better of Noah and Wyatt, and the brothers had dozed off on the edge of the large blanket shortly after eating lunch. Maggie, unaffected by the previous day's travel schedule, was still munching on her panini. She was sprawled on her belly, sandwich in one hand, pencil in the other, doodling in her sketchbook. Ed and Olivia sat on the other side of her, a bottle of wine between them. They sipped and snuck kisses much like they'd done ten years ago when they visited the city together for the first time. The idea to make a return trip to Paris came up during Christmas when Maggie complained that Noah was the only Tucker child to ever go "anywhere fun." After all, he'd been to Ireland with Grandma Caroline, Paris with their parents, and a couple of years earlier, Sarah and Justin took him to Barcelona during Spring Break. Maggie easily recruited Wyatt as her co-counsel, and the two of them used pictures from the Paris trip to bolster their argument.

"Look!" Maggie said, stomping her foot on the floor to emphasize her point, "Noah was a little, little baby kid and he got ta go to Paris!" She made sure to pronounce "Paris" using proper French.

Ed and Olivia eventually agreed and planned a trip for that summer. The twins had just turned ten, so they no longer could use the argument that they were too young for such demanding trip. Since they had plenty of time, the vacation grew in scope during the planning phase. After a week in France, they would travel to London for a few days. From there, they were flying to Dublin and ending their time away with three nights in Ireland. The kids were thrilled, Maggie most of all.

As they'd done ten years earlier, Ed and Olivia booked a flight that left later in the evening with the hopes the kids would sleep. However, none of the Tucker kids, not even Wyatt, slept well on airplanes or during road trips. Noah nodded off for twenty minutes at a time and Maggie crashed for a couple of hours. Wyatt hardly slept at all. For him, there were too many people to watch, too many travel books to read, and too much that fascinated him about international travel. With four hours to go, Olivia suggested they watch a movie together, hoping it would lull her son to sleep. It worked, but not for nearly as long as she'd hoped. So, knowing the kids wouldn't last long, she and Ed planned a lazy first full day in Paris. After breakfast they walked along the Seine and took in some of the city's most famous sights. They veered off a few times to visit a few shops and stopped to take photos. By the time they reached Champs de Mars, everyone was ready for lunch and a break from walking, so they found a spot in the grass, Olivia unfurled the blanket she'd toted in her backpack, and Ed, Noah, and Wyatt went off in search of sandwiches. Maggie claimed she could walk no farther.

"Mom?"

Maggie had been quietly taking in the action around them, so her voice semi-startled Olivia.

"Hmm?"

"Did you and Dad fall in love here?" Maggie batted her eyelashes and grinned mischievously.

"No...we fell in love in New York," Olivia said, "But, well, here...I knew we were going to be a family."

"But you didn't have us."

"No, we didn't have you. But...you were possible after we got back. Does that make sense to you?"

Maggie crinkled her nose. "No."

"Your Dad and I, well, when you go on a vacation like this with someone you really love, it makes you love them even more. After we went on the trip, I knew I wanted to be around your Dad all the time. I wanted him to be my husband."

"Oh…"

"Now I have a question for you, my dear," Olivia said in a teasing voice.

Maggie grinned and she twitched her neck a little, making her brown ponytail flop back and forth. She waited eagerly.

"What made you think we fell in love here?"

"Cause of the frame!"

"The frame?"

"Yeah," Maggie said, clearly shocked her mother didn't know what she was talking about, "The frame with the Paris pictures in it says love."

"Ahhh...it does."

"So that's why."

"I get it."

"Now I have another question."

Olivia smiled lovingly at her daughter and raised her eyebrows expectantly.

"Can we go to the aquarium here in Paris?"

Olivia had been expecting a far more serious inquiry, so she laughed heartily. "Of course we can, honey. Tonight when we get back to the hotel we'll plan out the week."

"And we can swim?"

"Absolutely," Olivia replied, "What's a vacation without swimming in the hotel pool?"

Maggie giggled, "You're a good thinker Mom."

"So are you, sweet girl."

….

On the morning he first woke up naked next to Olivia Benson, Ed Tucker's soul danced with joy. He'd never once complained about the slow progression of their relationship, but as they baby-stepped their way into each other's lives and, finally, her bedroom, the anticipation of making love to Olivia became so overwhelming Ed sometimes had to remind himself to breathe when he was around her. In the weeks before they first had sex, every single thing she did or said struck him with an air of sex appeal. The way she intoned "thank you" to bartenders, the way she steeled her face against the winter wind, the motion she made when she performed the simplest movements, like unlocking her door-it was all, to Ed, one long prelude to intimacy. When he found himself peeling off her clothing for the first time and kissing every inch of her gorgeous body, he actually experienced a tiny twinge of regret-like that moment was the only time he'd ever feel this type of thrill-the pleasure of the highly anticipated yet previously unknown. Bottling it was impossible, but he needn't have worried. Their sex life was exciting beyond his wildest dreams, especially so when he and Olivia finally enjoyed an uninterrupted evening.

No illnesses.

No monsters.

No tiny footsteps running across the apartment to bunk in a different space.

And, most importantly, for Ed at least, no dogs.

Ed lying on his back panting, lacking even the energy to hold her afterwards, amused Olivia. She propped herself on an elbow, and smirked at his heaving chest and the ruddy skin on his face and neck. She kissed the side of his head. "Feel better?"

He tried to laugh but the sound came out as more of a grunt. "Hell yes. You don't?"

"Oh I do," Olivia cooed. "You, um, seem more spent than usual?" She played with his short hair and kissed him again.

"Gotta make sure you remembered what it's like."

After a groan and a loving eye roll, Olivia drew closer and wrapped an arm around his torso. "If I would have, for some reason, forgotten, this certainly would've jogged my memory, Captain Tucker. You are so, so good."

"No other option." Ed mustered the energy to cup her face and give her a quick yet passionate kiss. "Can't half ass loving you, Olivia Margaret."

"Mmmm," Olivia nestled her body next to his and rested her head under his chin. She stared at the window, outlined with the Christmas lights, and sighed contentedly. "I love this," she said, "I love you, Ed."

"I love you, Liv," he replied, "And I love you fallin' asleep in my arms." Ed sported a silly grin while he thought back to another first-sitting with Olivia, on her couch, and she suddenly reclined against his chest, inviting him to hold her. Within minutes, she was asleep, safe in his arms, and it was nearly dawn before she stirred. Ed had never felt so needed in his life.

"That is the best. But," Olivia tickled the side of his torso, "Wake me up if you need me."

"I may hold you to that, sweetheart."

"Don't be shy."

….

#Tuckson