The day was quickly ending but Dr. Matthew Taylor's mind was just beginning to churn with mischief. His sole objective before he retired for the evening after a long day was to examine the dynamic between Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson. He could not conjure up a single doubt in his mind that his analysis would inevitably lead him to call the bluffs of the suppressed detectives. He could spot a poker face from a mile away and he had seen Elliot Stabler's attempt at concealing his desires for his partner fail miserably. He wondered if Detective Benson would prove to be the same for this would determine whether he would fold or place all bets in favor of a blossoming relationship.
He had always been an excellent poker player.
Dr. Taylor sat with his legs crossed in a chair opposite Captain Cragen's desk. He smiled fondly at his friend of many years. "I see that you have not reinstated Detective Stabler to his position?"
Cragen shook his head briefly. "Detective Stabler is riding a desk until you clear him to return to field work."
"He has made marvelous progress in just one session with me," Dr. Taylor said. "But I could indeed argue that there is still quite a disruption in his view that prevents him from taking the necessary steps to fully engage in the proper conduct he has been lacking as of late."
"What kind of disruption are you referring to?"
Dr. Taylor smiled wryly. "The woman that is currently seated across from your problematic detective."
"What has Elliot said about Olivia?" Cragen regarded Taylor with an aghast look.
"I cannot betray his confidence," Dr. Taylor laughed at his friend's ashen face. "However, I can assure you that he is well on his way to recovering from his afflictions."
"So why the unexpected visit?"
"I need to speak with Detective Benson," Dr. Taylor replied. "She is an integral part of Detective Stabler's official evaluation and without a testimony on her behalf, I will not be able to proceed with my sessions."
Cragen waved his hand absentmindedly in the direction of Olivia. "I suppose you want me to call her in here and give you some time to speak with her privately?"
Dr. Taylor nodded and Cragen returned the gesture, stepping outside the door only momentarily as he motioned for her. She retreated from her desk and walked briskly towards his office, her eyebrows furrowed with blatant confusion. Her bright eyes glanced quickly between the two men and her face bore a bewildered expression. "You wanted to see me, Captain?"
"Olivia, this is Dr. Matthew Taylor," Cragen waved a hand over his friend as he began to open the door. "He's an old friend of mine."
Olivia smiled slightly at the discerning doctor. He gave the impression of being keenly aware of what was happening around without having any knowledge of it. He looked intelligent to say the least with wire rimmed glasses and a savant air that seemed to envelop him. It took her mere seconds to recognize him based on the description Elliot had given her."I assume you must be Elliot's shrink?"
"You have quite an acute sense of perception," Dr. Taylor raised a quirky eyebrow at her. "Or did your counterpart inform you of who I was?"
"Elliot told me that he has been seeing you because of what happened on the Harrington case," Olivia said as she took a seat beside the intriguing doctor.
"And what has Detective Stabler told you about me?" Dr. Taylor asked with a small smirk. "I must remind you that any information you can provide about your partner is pertinent to the arduous investigation he is currently participating in."
"He said that you were a very intellectual and a somewhat philosophical man. Elliot has never really been a fan of shrinks but he said you aren't as horrible as he imagined and that he thinks you might be helping him," Olivia shrugged nonchalantly. "Elliot rarely likes people so it's a little odd he likes you, especially because you're a shrink who is getting him to talk about the problems he never would before."
Dr. Taylor was surprised to hear that his patient had taken some of his obsolete advice and applied it to the situation that had caused him to be the victim of therapy. He had told Elliot to be more open with his partner and it seemed as though he was certainly taking heed. "How much information has Detective Stabler relayed to you about our session?"
"Elliot said he's trying to be open with you because you were pretty forceful in saying that he wasn't going to get his job back until he told you what's been going on," Olivia said. "He wouldn't tell me what it was you guys have been discussing but that he is talking."
Dr. Taylor hummed in response. "Do you find it difficult to work with Detective Stabler?"
Olivia scoffed at Dr. Taylor's question. "If you're looking for me to be spiteful just because you need insight on Elliot and you think I'll give it you because he's not in the room, you're looking in the wrong place."
Dr. Taylor's lips twitched in amusement. He had asked her a simple question regarding her partner and she had instantly bristled. As much as Elliot Stabler claimed he was the aggressor in their partnership, Olivia was quick to defend him and protect him from an outsider who may have threatened him. She was exotically beautiful with smoky eyes and chestnut colored hair falling haphazardly across her shoulders and curves of her body that moved with frankness. She obtained a witty sense of intelligence and she was clever when it came to her work as a detective. She had the strength of a thousand men lying within her and a resilience that catapulted her above the rest. She shined far brighter than anything he had ever seen. She was everything Elliot had described and much more than Dr. Taylor had envisioned.
"My only mission is to help your partner," Dr. Taylor said with his finger perched on his nose. "I cannot do that until I receive insight from you."
Olivia sighed heavily. "Elliot reminds me of a bull in a china shop. He sees something he desperately wants and he goes after it, with no recognition of the consequences that will inevitably come. He breaks everything in sight even though he didn't intend to and then feels great remorse and guilt afterwards. But he can't fix the things he has broken no matter how much he tries. It's all lying in pieces on the floor and he's just... left with an enormous mess."
"Is it not true that Detective Stabler could just as easily sweep away the shards of glass that may cause him harm and salvage what is left of the contents of his life?" Dr. Taylor challenged. "When a bull in a china shop makes a mess, there is always someone there to clean up."
"Elliot has conveniently destroyed the relationships of everyone who would be willing to help him clean up that mess."
"On the contrary," Dr. Taylor pointed out. "There is one person in his life that has stood by his side through each and every mess that man has made. Elliot Stabler has you."
Olivia's mouth was agape as she processed the doctor's words. Her mind didn't have enough time to debate however, as she noticed a figure appear in the police station. She steered her gaze away from Dr. Taylor's and ran her eyes up and down the form. "Can we continue this later, Dr. Taylor?"
Dr. Taylor's eyes widened at her abrupt interruption. "I don't see why not, Detective Benson."
"Thank you," Olivia said, giving him a small smile as she stepped out of her boss's office.
Dr. Taylor's eye followed her movements and they lead him to come to rest a dark haired man in a suit. He lifted himself from his position in the chair and made his way to the center of the precinct as he watched the scene unfold. He turned his head as he saw Detective Stabler making a cup of coffee only a few feet away, unaware of the presence of this mystery man. But when his eyes left the stir stick in his coffee and landed on the man in Olivia's company, his jaw tightened, his muscles bulged, his nostrils flared and the coffee was left unattended as he focused on a man he clearly despised. His eyes burned with an anger as he surveyed the man.
Dr. Taylor fought back the urge to grin. So this must be the infamous FBI Agent Dean Porter.
He could hear Olivia speak to Porter in a low voice, her hand resting delicately on his arm. "Dean, I have to work tonight but if you need to go over the specifics with me we can have lunch now."
"I need to relay the information to the FBI as soon as possible if it's all a go, but I'm not going to keep you if you have something that's more important to deal with," Porter said with his head bent slightly closer to hers than before. "I can always just stop by your place later."
Dr. Taylor chuckled as he heard Elliot clear his throat at the words of Dean Porter. He sat down at his desk with a huff, keeping his eyes averted from the couple. But Dean Porter would not let himself be unknown to Elliot Stabler. "Detective Stabler," he said in a cheery tone with a smile.
Elliot replied with considerably less enthusiasm, although Porter did not seem to notice. So Dean Porter thinks that dating Elliot's Stabler is an innocent endeavor. How wrong he will soon find himself to be.
"I'll call you later tonight," Olivia said with a warm smile. Porter leaned in for a kiss to her cheek but she pulled back slightly. "Not here, Porter."
He's a bold fellow for attempting to kiss her in front of the man whom she works with. But maybe it's his way of proving she is really his? He feels the need to claim his territory in regards to Olivia in the presence of Elliot Stabler.
Reduced to his last name now?
She tells Elliot she is dating Dean Porter but will not publicly display affection in front of him? Maybe she and Elliot are not as platonic as they both seem to think.
Porter apologized and Dr. Taylor watched as Elliot appeared behind her, his hand instantly coming to rest on the small of her back. It was a simple gesture in terms, but there was an ease and comfortability in the movement. He was surprised that Olivia allowed such close contact and that Elliot had done so when he claimed to be the epitome of professionalism.
But he had basically confessed his love for his partner without outright doing so which made it easy to overlook this fact. What intrigued him was that Olivia made no protests to where his hand currently occupied. Even though she might not have been aware of the fact, she had given herself to him and she was his. This was plainly obvious as his eyes roved over the pair of detectives.
The pained look on Elliot's face, which had alleviated somewhat when Olivia had withheld from the kiss, glanced back at Dr. Taylor as he watched Olivia disappear to escort Porter out.
Dr. Taylor leaned in closely to Elliot and winked impishly. "Now I see why you work such long hours."