AN: This is the last actual chapter, and then I'm writing the epilogue. Enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: Do not own.
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A week had passed since Elliot's return, and the week had been filled with love, happiness, and laughter. Stories were exchanged, jokes were told, hugs were given, and the love was abundant. It hadn't taken much convincing to the Brass to let Elliot back into SVU. The only change that was requested was the partnership. If problems arose, Olivia would be paired with Fin, and Elliot would be with Munch. It wasn't the ideal situation, but as Cragen reminded them, it allowed them to work together for the time being. Besides, even Brass knew that Detectives Stabler and Benson were the best pair of detectives in the force and to force them apart would prove disastrous.
Kathy and Jose were both in jail with no hope for parole, and Elliot couldn't be happier with that bit of news.
Lizzy was released from the hospital halfway through the week. She had been worried about her dad's reaction to her paralysis, but he proved to be very sympathetic. He hadn't become over bearing, or over protective. She was happy to be out of the hospital despite the fact that she knew that she would never walk again. She was just happy to be alive. Luckily, she was only paralyzed from the waist down. It had taken some time to get Maureen's apartment adjusted to her wheelchair, but it had been well worth it to have everyone in the same place once more. Elliot had moved back into his apartment with Olivia, who had never bothered to remove Elliot's belongings because she didn't want to be parted from him.
It was two day's before Christmas, and Elliot had a special dinner planned for him and Olivia. The kids had all agreed that the pair needed their time together, and Maureen offered to help Olivia pick a dress out for the dinner. He was taking her to one of the fanciest restaurants in the city. So now Olivia was browsing stores with Elliot's oldest daughter, and she couldn't help but feel as if they were all plotting something against her.
"Hey Mom, try this one on." Maureen held out a dark blue, tea length dress that was longer in the back than it was in the front.
Olivia gave it a once over and smiled. "That's a beautiful dress, Maur." She took it and continued to leaf through the racks of dresses. Soon, between the two of them, they found a total of 8 dresses for her to try on. She stepped into the dressing room, with Maureen camped directly outside the door.
"Now, Mom. Make sure you show me every dress. Even if it doesn't look right to you, I know what Dad likes." Maureen ordered.
Olivia was sure that an evil smirk was evident on Maureen's face. "Yes, dear." She said sweetly. She could almost hear Maureen's eyes roll.
"Wow, Mom." That was all Maureen could say as Liv stepped out of the room. "That's it. That's the one."
Olivia was wearing the first one that Maureen had held out. The front of the dress hit directly above her knees, and the back of the dress hit mid calf. The dress itself was sleeveless and the cut was just low enough to hint at some cleavage. The skirt of the dress was layered in a diagonal, with the top layer the dark blue, and the bottom layer black.
"We'll get you shoes too, Mom." Maureen grinned. "That's the dress. I don't even have to see the rest of the dresses."
Olivia had to agree with Maureen. She stepped back inside the dressing room. "It's a good thing that this dress is on sale." She muttered as she changed out of dress back into her jeans, baby-tee, and zip-up sweatshirt. She handed Maureen the dress and took the others back to the rack. "Lead on, oh fearless leader." Olivia teased Maureen who in turn took on a lofty air and flounced her way to the shoes.
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Meanwhile, as Olivia and Maureen were having their bonding moments, Elliot was pacing outside Don Cragen's office waiting for Don to get off of the phone. The moment that he heard the click of the phone, Elliot was in the room. Don refrained from smiling at the nervous detective. "Can I help you with something, Stabler?"
"Uh, yeah." He fiddled with something in his pocket, looking down at the ground. "I have a question for you. I know she isn't your daughter, but I know how you feel about her, Olivia, that is. And I know she thinks of you as a father figure, so I was wondering…" He froze and swallowed. "Mayihaveoliviashandinmarriage?"
Don swallowed a grin and leaned forward, speaking somewhat sternly. "Come again, Stabler?"
Elliot felt about 2 feet tall. "What I said, Sir is may I have Olivia's hand in marriage?"
"Yes." Don said without missing a beat. He let out his grin at the look on Elliot's face. "Just one thing for you to remember, Elliot. Take care of her. Because if you hurt my daughter, I will hurt you."
"I understand, Captain. I have three daughters of my own." He smiled, relieved that the hardest part of the asking was over. Well, maybe not. Olivia has to say yes first.
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"C'mon, Mom. You look fine!" Lizzy was giggling at the sight of Olivia pacing around nervously. She looked stunning in the dress, shoes, and necklaces she had purchased that afternoon with Maureen.
The door bell rang, and Olivia jumped. "Oh my god, he's here!" Elliot had gotten ready at their apartment so Olivia had gone over to Maureen's apartment to get ready for their special night.
Lizzy answered the door. They had changed the way the door opened so that it could open both ways for her. "Hi, Dad! Olivia's ready!"
Elliot's jaw dropped at the sight of Liv. "Wow." He finally managed after visibly checking her out twice.
She blushed. "See something you like, Stabler?" That managed to break the awkwardness of the situation.
"I always see something I like when I look at you, Benson." He whispered suggestively before kissing her deeply. The four kids suddenly became interested in something else.
"Dad." Dickie finally called out. "At least wait until we get out of the room!"
The couple pulled apart quickly, their faces a matching red. Olivia put on her coat and tucked her arm into the crook of Elliot's arm. "Shall we, Detective Stabler?"
"Allow me to escort you to the vehicle, Detective Benson." He gave a small bow and held open the door. She giggled and looked back to see the three girls all waving and smirking.
The ride to dinner was enjoyable. They talked about everything and nothing. He was every bit the gentleman. He opened her car door for her, and held the door open for her at the restaurant. He pulled out her chair at the table and waited for her to be seated before taking a seat. She was touched by his chivalry and told him so. He just smiled. "It's easy to be chivalrous towards the woman I love, Liv."
"I love you too, El." She smiled, taking a sip of water. The waiter came to them and asked what they wanted to drink.
"Wine." Elliot asked, a little nervous about the evening.
"I'll share his." Olivia smiled. "Just a bottle for us would be fine."
The waiter left and soon returned with a bottle of wine. He expertly opened the bottle and poured them each a glass and informed them that he would return to take their orders shortly.
"El, I want the Chicken Parmesan." Olivia showed him on the menu. "I'll be back; I have to use the restroom."
He nodded and examined the menu a bit before deciding on the House Lasagna. The waiter came back and Elliot explained what each of them wanted and also ordered a salad for each of them. The salads came just as Olivia returned to the table. They ate in a comfortable silence. However, Elliot was starting to feel more and more uneasy. He could feel Olivia's questioning eyes on him and knew that she could sense his uneasiness. He had just decided to ask when the waiter returned with their food.
Oh bother. He smiled politely at the waiter and thanked him. Olivia picked up her fork, but didn't eat yet. "Elliot? Are you okay?" She questioned gently, a thousand reasons for his uneasiness running through her head.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He forced out a smile. "Well, I will be at least." Screw it; I'm just going to ask!
Olivia's hand went to her mouth in shock as Elliot went down on one knee and held out the box showing the ring. "Olivia Benson, you are the love of my life. I can't imagine what life would be like if you hadn't become my partner that day 8 years ago. You have taught me so much about life, and about love. Every day that you were gone my mind was on you. You never left my mind while I was in the witness protection. Olivia, will you marry me?"
Tears were running down her cheeks. "Oh, Elliot. Yes, I will marry you." She framed his face with her hands and pulled him into a deep kiss.
"You didn't even look at the ring." He teased accusingly, sitting back in his chair, holding onto her hand.
"It's gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous." She said, her eyes not leaving his.
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"Let me see it!" The three girls were waiting eagerly for Olivia's return; Dickie had gone to a friend's house. She laughed and insisted that she changed first. The girls reluctantly allowed her to change and the moment she opened the door again they insisted that she show them her hand.
The ring was a simple silver band with three diamonds, one larger one in the middle and two smaller ones on either side. The ring wasn't huge, which was perfectly fine for Olivia. She wasn't into the huge complex rings anyway.
Elliot walked into the room to see his four favorite girls on the couch talking about wedding plans. Or, rather, his daughters were discussing the wedding plans and Olivia was leaning back against the back of the couch with a contented smile on her face.
Their eyes met and her smile brightened. I love you. She mouthed. He smiled and mouthed it back before heading back into his room to change.
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Christmas was spent with the whole gang from the precinct. They decided that with such a huge group that they should meet at the precinct. The desks had been shoved to the edge of the room. The men had put up a tree in the middle of the room and underneath the tree was a huge array of presents that everyone had brought from their own homes. A Christmas feast was warming up in the kitchenette and music was softly coming through the speakers on Elliot's computer.
Fin and Dani were there, and announced that they were together. "Finally!" Liv, Munch, and Casey yelled. John and Casey weren't quite dating yet, but were more than content to act as if they were. Olivia and Elliot were acting the engaged couple perfectly. George Huang had been excited to hear that the two of them were finally engaged. At the present moment, he and Melinda were engaged in an intense conversation.
The four Stabler kids along with Fin's son were there and were in a corner keeping to themselves mostly. They were plotting a way to get all of the couples in the room and had somehow forced Don into their plans. Maureen and Dickie had managed to procure a huge amount of mistletoe and were waiting for the opportune moment to hang it all over the precinct. Don's job was to get the three couples out of the room, which he did by pretending that there was a case they needed to discuss. This gave the kids about 5 minutes to hang the mistletoe, and they got George and Melinda to help.
The rest of the party was spent with the couples trying to avoid the mistletoe and them trying to get Don for helping the kids with the prank. Olivia and Elliot ended up just staying underneath one of the sprigs of the 'love plant' and starting making out. That ended the game instantly, because the last thing Don wanted to see was his 'daughter' and soon to be 'son-in-law' making out.
As revenge, Munch and Fin threatened Don into the Santa suit to hand out the presents. Don grudgingly began to call out names, his fake white beard falling off of one side of his face. The gift exchange lasted for an hour, with laughter and jokes abundant. A paper war began between Dickie and Lizzy, which soon escalated into a war between everyone in the room.
Sun down came too soon for them all, and soon everyone was beginning to pack up their gifts and head out. The kids were the first to go. Fin and Dani were next, promising that they would return the next day to help clean up the office. Munch and Casey helped clean some of the paper up before Munch insisted taking Casey home. Don looked at Olivia and Elliot. Elliot was sweeping some of the paper up, but Liv had fallen asleep on top of her desk.
"Elliot, take her home." Don whispered. "We'll finish up here." Melinda and George agreed.
Elliot nodded and put the broom down. "Liv, honey." He put a hand on her shoulder and shook gently.
She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Yeah, El?"
He smiled. She was beautiful, even after just waking up. "Let's go home, Liv."
She didn't even argue. "Okay."
"Goodbye all, we shall see you in the morning." Elliot held onto Olivia's hand as they made their way out of the office and into the elevator. The moment the doors closed, Olivia crashed her lips to Elliot's. "Mmm." He murmured against her lips before opening his mouth and letting their tongues meet.
She eagerly accepted his tongue into her mouth and began massaging it with her own. His hands slipped down to waist and he pulled her flush against him, allowing her to feel his erection against her stomach. Her stomach filled with a fire as her own desire was stoked with every beat of her heart and stroke from his hands. The doors clanged open and the pulled apart abruptly.
"The kids are at Maureen's tonight, right?" Olivia asked breathlessly, running a hand through her tousled hair.
"Right." Elliot answered, trying to compose himself. He gave her his shit-eating grin and they climbed into his jeep, both of them eager to get home and finish what they started.
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AN: Aww, I love this! It's almost done! Guess what the epilogue is about…? And no, I don't write smut. I will HINT at it, like I did at the end of this chapter, but I won't write anything graphic.