So sorry! It's tax filing season and work has me working like a mule while jumping through hoops. I wrote chunks of this in my spare time. Hence the long wait. That being said, this is the longest chapter so don't fall asleep half way through it. Yes this is the end of the line for these two. I'm going to go and write an epiloge for this to tie up loose ends and to give a bit of segway to Mack's own story. So thanks for sticking around and thanks for the reviews!

Big thanks to TVCrazed for that idea (you know what i mean). I probably would have been stuck with the biggest writer's block if you hadn't suggested it. So thanks!

I own nothing in Dick Wolfe land.

PS - anyone seen SVURaider1-6?

Chapter 22

Holding on tight to Olivia, Mack was desperately begging for Liv to hang on. Please, please just stay with me…Please God, save her…

Tears fell down Mack's face. Her hand stung from the gash on her palm but she didn't feel a thing. She didn't see much around her. She didn't see the police officers rushing in and out of the apartment. She didn't see them take her mother's dead body away. The only person she saw was her sister who lay motionless in her arms.

"Ma'am? Ma'am…we need to see how bad she is…" The EMT attendant said gently. When he made a move to untangle Mack's arms from around Liv, Mackenzie jerked back. She violently shook her head.

"NO! No, no, no, no…don't touch her!" With one hand, she pushed away the attendant. He tried to make another attempt but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

Elliot stood over the young man and shook his head. The EMT didn't look pleased but he moved out of the way. Squatting down close to the two women, he gently spoke.

"Hi. I'm detective Stabler. I'm Olivia's partner." He waited for a response from Mack. When he didn't get any, he tried a different approach. Still speaking as gently as before he laid a hand over Mack's, which was covering Olivia's wound.

"The EMT's need to make sure she's ok. Will you help them take care of Liv?" He looked encouraging at Mack. Seeing a small nod from her, he smiled in relief. Signalling the EMT, he helped Mack and the EMT with Liv. When the attendant untangled Mack's hands, she let him but she stayed close by keeping a watchful eye on her.

"Good girl. She's a fighter…she's gonna be ok." Looking at the attendant Elliot asked, "She will be alright?" The EMT finished what he was doing and looked at Elliot. He wasn't sure how to answer that. Most people he saw with a sever injury like this normally don't make it.

Shrugging, the EMT just said, "I don't know…we just need to get her to the hospital now." Elliot nodded and held on to Mack as the EMT's placed Olivia on a stretcher and prepared to wheel her out. Mack followed them out leaving Elliot to piece together what happened.

Chester was just finishing giving his statement when he saw Olivia being brought out. She looks so pale. Swallowing his tears he headed for where Elliot stood. Nodding to the other detective, Chester quietly spoke.

"You…uh…you need any help?" Nodding quietly, Elliot looked around at the mess and wondered how the hell things got so out of control. As if reading his mind, Chester spoke up.

"She snuck right by us…I don't know how…she just…" Chester's voice cracked. He shook his head. He couldn't understand how Sarah did it, but she some how waltz right in and neither he nor Fin saw her do it.

"I'm gonna head over to the hospital…" Elliot's voice was rough with emotion. He ignored Chester's explanation. He didn't want to hear it. He would deal with it later…when he was alone.

Nodding Chester just stood there feeling lost. A tear slipped down his face. He watched as Elliot passed him. Elliot was half way to the door when Lake stopped him.

"I'm sorry."

Elliot stood quietly. Without turning he nodded, "I know," then left with out saying anything else.

Lake watched Elliot's back disappear. He felt himself slowly crumble. He shook with the guilt he felt. Looking down, he wiped away the tears that threatened to fall. Sniffing and taking a deep breath, he looked back up and looked around the room. He needed something to do…

Outside, it seemed that every officer in New York was here lending a hand in some way. A few stopped by just to give a comforting smile and let Brady know that they were there if she needed them. She thought it a bit strange. Just being associated with a police officer some how gave you some sort of membership to a special club of some kind. Or maybe it was just the one particular detective. She'd found out that detective Benson was well known, well loved and very well respected amongst her fellow officers.

"Dr. Joy, I just got word that they're bringing her out now. Would you like us to give you a ride to the hospital?" She turned to see Captain Cragen. She smiled a little and nodded. She'd come to respect and like him in just a few minuets of meeting him. He had the eyes of a gentle father. And Brady could see that he was extremely worried about Olivia.

He led her to the squad car and opened the back door for her. She was about to settle in when she looked back at Liv's car.

"Don't worry. I'll go and get Alex. You wait here." Smiling gratefully, she watched as he walked over to Olivia's car and knelt down to gently wake Alex up. She could see from a distance that Alex was agitated. Brady immediately stood up but stopped. She watched as the Captain said a few words then Brady's eyes widened in wonder. She saw Alex wrap his small arms around Cragen. The captain turned and held him gently and whispered softly to the boy. As the two got closer, Alex reached out for Brady. She placed him inside the car and then turned back to the captain.

"How did you do that? No one's ever been able to calm him down like that. Except for Mack, myself and…Olivia." The mere mention of her name brought tears to her eyes. Captain Cragen reached out and held her.

"Where do you think Olivia gets if from?" He said with a small smile. Brady smiled back.

"Thank you" She said softly. Just then they both saw the EMT's come out. Brady ran for them with Cragen right behind her. She put a hand to her mouth from crying out. Olivia's left side was covered in blood. There was a dark bruise on the side of her face and temple. She looked so pale. Brady felt Cragen steady her. Brady noticed Mack following close behind. She too had a few bruises on her face as well as a few deep scratches. Mack stumbled a bit and Brady was immediately by her side.

"I'm here sweetie." Brady said softly but the words fell on deaf ears. Mack didn't seem to hear any thing. She just kept staring at her sister. Noticing the gash on Mack's hand Brady informed one of the EMT's.

"Thanks. We'll work on it while we're on our way." The attendants placed Olivia in the bus and hopped down and led Mack up the steps and helped her sit. Mack just stared down at her sister. Placing a hand on her sister's shoulder, Mack quietly cried.

"I'm here…I'm right here…"

They shut the doors and the ambulance roared to life.

"Where are you taking her?" Cragen yelled over the noise of the sirens.

"Mercy"

Nodding in acknowledgement, Cragen went and gathered Brady and headed for the car.

Fin, Munch, Lake and Stabler were waiting by the car.

"She's going to Mercy." With that the four detectives made their way to the squad car and drove off. A few officers heard and were also making their way to the hospital. Cragen helped Brady into the car and he settled in the driver's seat.

"Put your seatbelts on. I'm putting on the siren." Doing as they were told, Brady and Alex did up the belts and held on for dear life.

Mercy Hospital

Dr. Kent came rushing out to take a look at what they had. What greeted him took him by surprise. He saw Olivia being brought out on a stretcher. Oh God…

"What have we got?" Dr. Kent ordered. The attendants rattled off every bit of information. Dr. Kent then noticed Mack stumble out of the ambulance.

"Christ! What the hell happened?!" He rushed over to Mack to take a closer look. Shaking his head he ushered her inside. Inside the ER, everyone was in overdrive. Nurses were passing info to Dr. Kent while the EMT's were confirming the details. The group headed for the operating room. Mack was following right behind them. Seeing her, Dr. Kent gently blocked her path.

"I'm sorry…you can't go in there. I promise to take good care of her. I need you to wait in the exam room…get that hand looked at. Can you do that for me?"

Not knowing what else to do, Mackenzie nodded. Dr. Kent led her to a room and signalled one of the nurses to take care of Mack's hand. He then turned and ran out and into the O.R.

Mack stared at the door and cried.

Brady held on to Alex tight as she ran into the ER. Cragen, Fin, Munch and Stabler followed behind her. She saw that the waiting room was already filled with both uniformed and plain cloth's officers from various departments. Some even brought their families with them. All this for Liv…she saw a woman break from the group and came rushing forward and held on to Elliot. He squeezed his wife tight.

Letting go of each other, the woman stood next to Elliot and wrapped her arm around his waist and stared at Brady with gentle eyes.

"Dr. Joy, this is my wife Kathy. Kath, this is Dr. Joy." Kathy smiled and held her hand out to Brady.

"Please…call me Brady," she said as she shook the offered hand.

"She's with Liv…" Elliot said as if to explain her presence to his wife. Kathy then smiled even more at the news.

"Wish we could have met in different circumstances." Kathy said quietly. Brady nodded and smiled sadly. A fussy Alex began to stir. Brady did her best to sooth him but he was getting anxious and wanted to be put down.

"Sweetie, not yet. Just a few more minutes, ok?" Brady pleaded.

Twisting in Brady's arms, Alex just continued to get more restless. Kathy took pity on her and offered a hand.

"Sweetheart, why don't you and I go check out the playroom. I think I saw a playstation in there." Alex stopped squirming and eyed Kathy. She smiled and waited patiently. Alex turned to Brady then back to Kathy and nodded. Brady gave Kathy a thankful look as she set Alex down. The little boy placed his hand in Kathy's and the two were off to the playroom.

"We've got 5 of 'em at home. She's a natural with kids…Alex is safe with her," Elliot said as Brady stared. Brady wrapped her arms around herself and paced the small waiting area. She wasn't sure what she should do now. She didn't know whether to stay and wait or just get up and leave. She knew with out a doubt that she was deeply in love with Olivia Benson. There was no point in denying it.

Elliot watched as Brady fought her inner demons knowing that the decisions Brady would make would have an impact on Olivia's life. Making up his mind he made his way to Brady and motioned for her to take a seat. Eyeing him suspiciously she sat down.

Elliot was quiet for a moment. "I've known her for 10 years and I've never seen her broken up about anyone before…"

"What's your point detective?" Brady sounded so broken herself. Elliot saw pain in the woman's eyes and knew that she was just as hurt as Olivia was.

"My point is…" Elliot sighed. He was never good with these serious conversations with his kids. Christ…Brady isn't a kid though…rubbing his forehead, Elliot made another attempt at making Brady see reason.

"Look…Olivia's the kind of woman that would lie to you…hell! She'd die for you if she knew it would protect you. Even if it were killing her little by little on the inside not being honest with you, she would do anything and everything to keep those she loved safe. There is no question that Olivia loves you…she's in love with you. You can't just give up on her. Fight for her." Elliot just stared at the woman that took hold of his friend's soul. He hoped that she would make the right decision for both their sakes.

"Don't you see? I don't want her too." Seeing the confused look on Elliot's face Brady continued, "I don't want her to die for me. I want the opposite…I want her to live for me." Finally understanding, Elliot gently smiled and nodded his head.

Letting out a breath Elliot leaned forward and rested his arms on his thighs. "Think you can tell her that?" Without hesitation Brady nodded. Smiling at her he winked playfully, "Good. She's stubborn as hell." Getting ready to get up, Brady stopped Elliot.

"No can be more stubborn then me detective." Elliot turned and saw a hint of a smile on Brady's face. Smiling wildly he nodded.

"Thank God for that." Just then Mackenzie came out of the room with a bandage covering the stitches in her hand. She held her hand gingerly as she made her way through the mass of law enforcement personnel. As if on cue Alex came bursting out of the playroom with Kathy tailing him.

"MACKIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Slow down Alex!" cried Kathy. She tried to catch him as he flew through the air and into the arms of Mackenzie. Hugging the boy tight, Mack fell to her knees and cried. Brady, Elliot, Fin, Munch and Cragen were all around her at once. Brady knelt beside Mack and brushed back the thick locks of hair that fell over her forehead.

"Honey…are you alright?" Brady asked softly. Leaning back and kissing Alex's forehead Mack nodded. Brady and Fin helped Mack up. Kathy held her hands out and Alex climbed in. They all quietly made their way back to the waiting room.

"Have you heard anything?"

Shaking their heads they all mumbled, "no". Sighing, Mack lowered her head. Brady instinctively reached out and wrapped her arms around her. No one had anything else to say so they either sat down or paced the small room.

As the minutes turned into hours, the group of officers and detectives grew. Every one of them stopped by the waiting room and offered their support. A few of them even shared stories of how Olivia had helped them both personally and professionally. By the time it reached nightfall, Brady got a sense of the person Olivia was and how she was willing to go to the mat for any of them.

Brady knew deep inside her she just couldn't walk away from the detective. It was like asking someone not to breath. It was impossible. She wasn't about to give up that easily. That was the easy part…convincing Olivia was another thing….

It was about 4 am when Dr. Kent came out of the O.R. looking exhausted. His scrubs were covered in blood and he slowly made his way to the waiting room. Mack was the first to see him approach and jumped up and made her way to him. Brady, Elliot and the rest of the group followed her closely.

Dr. Kent was quiet. He looked down at his hands then back at Mackenzie. "She suffered a punctured lung that's why she coughed up that much blood. We were able to stop the bleeding though…we almost lost her a few times…"

Mack stood still, almost lost her…holy shit…Mack would have collapsed if it weren't for Brady holding her steady. Captain Cragen laid a gentle hand on Mack's shoulder.

"But she pulled through…" a collective sigh of relief could be heard through out the room and hallway. "We're bringing her to ICU. You can see her then but only 2 to 3 visitors at a time. She's still very weak and pretty out of it though. The next 2 days are critical. She's gonna need all the strength from you." As he said the last line, Dr. Kent spoke directly to Mack. As if answering the silent question, Mack simply nodded. The doctor reached out and gently squeeze Mack's arm then walked away pulling off the stained scrubs.

Elliot had turned to his wife and wrapped his arms around her and a sleeping Alex. Kathy breathed a 'thank God' as she felt tears fall from her husband's eyes. Fin closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose and felt tears fall down his face. Munch let out a sigh and placed a hand on Fin's shoulder. The Captain simply ushered both Brady and Mackenzie down the hall and into Olivia's room.

"I'll keep everyone out for you. Stay as long as you like…"

"Thank you…" Brady whispered. She was a bit surprised when Cragen reached out and hugged her.

"If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call." He whispered roughly. He pulled away and smiled sadly.

"You let me know if she's giving you any trouble, alright?" The captain somehow new that Olivia wasn't going to come back to SVU after today. It was so very obvious that both women were in love with each other. Although he was sad that he was losing one of his best detectives, he was also proud, as only a father can be that Olivia Benson finally found her match.

Brady wasn't sure what was going on but she just smiled and nodded. She watched as Don moved to stand next to Mackenzie. He laid a hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him.

He gently smiled, "Stay out of trouble," and he gestured to her broken hand and her newly stitched up hand. Mackenzie just gave him the famous Benson smirk and quietly replied, "I'll try."

Just then, the door opened and a nurse wheeled in Olivia. After setting up the tubes and monitors and after checking her chart one last time, the nurse smiled at all of them.

"Don't stay to long. She's going to need a lot a rest," the nurse said gently. She then quietly left the room. Cragen was the first to move towards the sleeping detective. He gently laid a hand on her arm gave it a small squeeze.

"I'll see you a bit later Liv." With that, Don turned around, smiled once more at the two women then left the room. Brady and Mack stood there for a moment just staring at Olivia lying in the bed. The only noise came from the beeping of machines.

"This seems so unreal. I was just talking to her a few hours ago…" Mack said as she slowly made her way to the bed. Brady quietly followed and lovingly wrapped her arms around her.

"What am I going to do if she…I mean, I just found out I have a sister…what if…this is my fault…I'm sorry…my entire fault…" Mack's voice broke off. Tears began to fall freely as she just stared at her sister.

Brady quickly turned the younger woman around. "Mackenzie Nunez! I don't ever want to hear you think like that." Brady too had tears in her eyes. Shaking her head Brady held Mack's face in her hands and held her gaze, "Olivia didn't leave you behind. She would never leave you behind. You fight for her. Understand?"

Mack wiped her eyes but the tears kept falling.

"I'm so scared…"

"So am I sweetie. And I bet that Liv is too. She needs us to fight for her right now. Ok? We need to remind her why she needs to with us."

"Yeah…I can do that…" Mack sounded so small. Brady was reminded of the first time she met Mackenzie. She was so tiny and vulnerable. Brady wrapped her up in a hug and kissed the top of her head.

"Good girl. Now…I'll leave you two alone for a bit. I'll go and check on Alex and be right back." Giving a final squeeze Brady let go and moved to the bed. She leaned down close and whispered in Olivia's ear, "I'll be back. Don't wake up while I'm gone…I wanna be here for that." she thought she saw one of Liv's fingers move. Smart-ass…smiling she whispered, "I saw that," and then kissed Olivia's temple. Turning she gently squeezed Mack's arm and left the room.

Gingerly, Mackenzie attempted to pull up a chair and sat next to the bed. She reached out and held Olivia's hand.

"Liv…you should see this. My left hand is in a cast and now my right hand is all stitched up. I look like the love child of Frankenstein and Raggedy Anne." Mackenzie laughed nervously and did her best to lighten the mood. Well this is going just great…

"I know; I know…I suck at this. This isn't one of my greatest strengths." Trying desperately to find something to talk about Mack racked her brain for any idea. Give her a reason to live…deciding that now was a good time to tell Olivia, Mack worked up the courage.

Clearing her throat Mackenzie took a deep breath. No time like the present, Nunez…move it!

"This is gonna sound really weird. And before you say it, I know…big understatement of the year…blah, blah, blah…but I've never told anyone about this, not even Brady." Mack hesitated. She looked at Liv as if waiting for some sort of sign. Seeing none she just shook her head and continued.

"I've always been told that I never should have survived the things my mother did to me. Everyone seems so amazed that I somehow lived to tell the tale, so to speak. I just shrugged it off, ya know? But I just didn't want anyone to take that part away from me. I guess you can say that it's kept me alive this long." Stopping, Mack did her best to brush away the hair from her eyes.

"Every time my mother would…uh…beat me…I'd go off into my little world. Kinda made the beatings not hurt so much. One night, I remembered I just couldn't get my mind to shut out the pain anymore. It was like my mother some how found a way to destroy that part of me too. I just wanted to die…I was about 4 years old, I think. Out of nowhere, I hear this voice. 'Hang on little one' she would say to me. She had the most beautiful voice I ever heard. That voice would get me through my mother's thrashings. I think it pissed off mother that I wouldn't just pass out or something because the beatings would get more frequent and more sever.

After she'd storm off I'd feel these arms just wrapping themselves around me. Felt like a warm blanket. I'd close my eyes and I'd see her there. Like an angel." Wiping the tears that fell down her cheeks, Mack took a breath.

"Remember the first time I met you? I was a bit of an ass to say the least. I was so confused…I knew it was you. Then I heard your voice…you were the one I saw…you were my angel. You saved me all those years ago. Just knowing I'd see you got me through it. Then you saved me again last night. Please don't leave me…please…don't you see? If you go…if you leave…I'll lose a part of my self." Mack stood and leaned over the railing and rested her head on her head on her sister's shoulder and wrapped an arm around her waist. She closed her eyes and let the tears fall. Softly she whispered, "Hang on Liv…just hang on…"

Olivia responded by turning her head ever so slightly so that her chin rested on top of Mackenzie's head. Mack was so exhausted both physically and emotionally that she didn't realize what had happened and had instantly fallen asleep.

40 minutes had passed and Brady quietly slipped into the room. She gazed at the two sleeping women. Mack had fallen asleep and was half on the bed and half standing.

Brady tenderly laid a hand on Mack's back as so not to startle her. She gently nudged Mack awake.

"Sweetie…sweetheart…" she stopped when she heard a faint grunt and saw that Mack was rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Tiredly, Mack ran her stitched up hand through her hair.

"Honey, why don't you get some rest. I'll stay here. Come back in a few hours." Mack seemed torn. She did need a bed to sleep in but she didn't want to leave her sister.

"I promise I'll be here when you get back. You'll be the first to know if anything happens. Come on…" Brady gently led the way out of the room and into the waiting hands of Captain Cragen.

"She's all yours Captain." Don smiled and led Mack out to the waiting car.

Sneaking quietly back into the room, Brady made her way to the bed and stared down at Olivia's still form. She reached out and tenderly held her hand.

Leaning down to rest her forehead against Liv's, Brady reached up and caressed her love's face.

"I love you Olivia. No matter what happens, I'm in love with you. Stay with me…I want to work this out. Please stay…" Brady lightly kissed Olivia's lips. She then climbed into the bed making sure not to cause any more damage. She rested her head in the crook of Olivia's shoulder and neck and placed her arm on her chest. She lovingly caressed Liv's chest with her fingers.

"We don't even know each other's annoying habits. What kind of coffee do you drink in the morning? What kind of things do you do to relax? I don't know any of those things. I want to learn them with you. That would be a hint for you to wake up now…" Lifting her head slightly, Brady nuzzled Olivia's neck. She resumed her position and continued to lightly caress Liv's chest.

"I'll be right here if you decide to wake up. I'm not gonna leave until you do," she whispered softly. The rhythm of Olivia's heart soothed Brady's anxious soul. So much so that she eventually fell asleep.

By the time Brady woke up, she noticed the sun was now shining brightly. Groggily, she checked her watch. 11:30...guess I should get up…taking a quick peek at Olivia, Brady saw no change. Feeling a bit disappointed she began to get up from the bed. Gingerly and very slowly, Brady struggled to sit up.

"You snore like a trucker…"

Head snapping around, Brady stared wide eyed. "Olivia?" she said breathlessly. Olivia still had her eyes closed but was tentatively moving her arms. Without thinking, Brady climbed up Liv's body. A sharp intake of breath from the injured woman stopped Brady cold.

"Not so fast sweetheart," Liv begged gently. Olivia's left hand reached out and steadied Brady's body.

"Oh my God! I'm sorry! Did I hurt you?" Brady panicked. She was about to get up when Olivia opened her eyes and smiled.

"I'm alright honey. Just don't move to fast." Brady visibly relaxed. Brady turned her head slightly and came face to face with Liv. There lips were inches apart but neither one of them made a move. Then Olivia flashed Brady the most beautiful smile.

"You snore like a trucker," Olivia repeated. Brady just stared…what in the world…she then noticed Olivia shaking with suppressed laughter. It hit her then, my most annoying trait, eh? She did her best to look upset but that only made Olivia laugh harder. Brady could help but join in the laughter.

Wincing slightly, Olivia smiled wider. "Ow, ow, ow…baby, don't make me laugh so hard." But there was no heat in her words. As the laughter died down, both women fell silent and gazed at each other. The heaviness from the day before now hung above them.

"How are they?"

"Alex is fine. Back to normal I think. Mack…she's handling it better then most people." Olivia nodded. She remembered what Mack had told her last night. It pained Olivia not being able to say what she wanted to her sister last night. I'll have to change that then.

"What happens now?" Olivia asked softly. She didn't want to push the subject if it wasn't what Brady wanted. But judging from what Brady said last night; Olivia could only hope there was a chance for them.

Brady snuggled into the comfort of Liv's arms. She toyed with the collar of Olivia's gown, "I'm assuming you heard everything?" Nodding, Olivia delicately caressed Brady's cheek with her finger. Slowly, Brady cupped Olivia's cheek.

"I meant every word. And I'm sorry I pushed you away. I never meant…"

"Sweetheart, don't apologize. I would have done the same thing if the tables were turned. Although I wouldn't mind at all if you could…uh…state that last bit of information. You know, I was really out of it last night so I didn't hear everything…"

Smiling brightly, Brady leaned in closer until their lips were a breath apart. Tenderly she kissed Olivia's lips.

"I…" kiss, "love…" kiss, "you…" and with that, both women were lost.

In between kisses Olivia mumbled, "Black…" Brady shot a confused look. "Coffee…" Brady made a sound that sounded like 'oh' but Liv wasn't sure.

"Earl Gray…" Brady muttered. Olivia uttered something incoherent and continued kissing her.

"What?" Brady whispered half listening.

"We're…going…to…need…a bigger…mmm…house…" Olivia said in between kisses. Brady didn't move. This is for real, right? I'm not dreaming? Breaking the kiss, Brady just stared at Liv.

"And we're gonna need a bigger car…" Olivia was nervous at the lack of response she was getting from Brady.

"What are you saying?" Brady wanted to be 100 percent sure she was hearing it correctly.

"Well…I was wondering…well more like thinking…um…" Oh for crying out loud! Benson, you've just been gutted by a mad woman! You can do this! Taking a deep breath, Liv tried once more. "I wanna have kids…with you. And I want to take home some kids from the centre…make them ours…"

"Adopt you mean?" Olivia nodded. Liv looked just looked so utterly hopeless trying to explain. Brady couldn't help it; she kissed her softly and slowly on the lips.

"In that case, how big off a house were we talking about?" she said lovingly. She loved the smile that formed on Olivia's face.

"Well…that all depends." Olivia wrapped her arms around Brady's waist. She loved how Brady fit just perfectly.

"Hmmm…looks like we're going to have to iron out the details a bit more…" Brady leaned in for a kiss. Olivia held her off again.

"Wait…there's one more thing…" Brady looked at her questioningly.

"Marry me." Brady lay there unmoving. I'm dreaming. This is not real at all…but then again this is what I've been waiting for…go for it girl!

"You sure you want to deal with a snoring trucker every night?" Brady said as she nudged a leg in between Olivia's. She heard Liv's breath catch.

"Can't live with out."

"I don't know…I mean, you're a coffee drinker and I'm a tea girl…" she slowly slipped her hand under Liv's gown. She watched as Olivia's eyes fluttered shut.

"Well sweetheart, we can't live in sin can we? What are we teaching our kids?"

"Good point, detective. Very, good point. Well then…there's only one thing left to say?" Olivia opened her eyes a fraction to see the most beautiful smile on Brady's face.

"Yes. Now kiss me…"

"Still bossy?"

"Yeah, and you love it"

"Oh God I do!" lifting her head, Olivia met Brady's lips. This kiss was different from the one's they had shared. This time, they kissed with no secrets between them.

Finally…a family to call my own…

The End.