"Olivia do
you remember Victoria?" Elliot asked standing his ground.
"Yes"
Olivia said extending her arm.
"Eli, I'd like you to meet my
friend, her name is Victoria, you can call her aunt Vicky"
Elliot said stooping and holding onto his son's little fingers.
"Is
she my aunt?" Eli asked looking at his father then at the woman
standing beside her.
"Well, no but you can't just call her
Vicki it isn't polite." Elliot said. Not really knowing how to
put it so he would understand.
"Why not? I call Maureenm
Maureen" he asked challenging his father. Elliot looked up to
Olivia for help.
But she didn't get that far. Victoria stooped
beside Eli and started to explian.
"Ok, you see how you call
Olivia mommy and she isn't your mommy?" Victoria asked pausing
so his little brain would wrap around the information.
Olivia felt
those words like a slap and she looked at Elliot. Eli tugged his
hands from his grasp and ran to Olivia.
"Mommy, mommy I want
to go home! Make her go away." he cried looking at Olivia who
always made his little world safe.
"Baby," she said
lifting him to her lap. "You know how you call Uncle Munch and I
call him John?" she asked wiping away the tears that were
brimming in his little eyes. he nodded his little head and she
continued "That's because Uncle ohn is a lot older, and it is
rude for little boys to call grown up by there first just like that"
she said tickling his tummy and getting a laugh from him.
"Okay"
he said crawling out of Olivia's lap to stand before Victoria and
Elliot. "Daddy can we go home now?" he asked tugging his
father's finger and for the first Olivia noticed he wasn't wearing
his ring.
"Yes but Victoria will be staying with us, she came
to bring us good luck" Elliot said.
Those words slapped
Olivia across the face and tore her heart, what am I doing here she
wondered as they got into the car and drove to the hotel.
Eli
was unusally quiet at dinner and so was Olivia, something seem wrong
somehow. She was trying to be happy for Elliot's new found love but
how could she when she has loved him all her life. The conversation
going on she didn't even her absorbed in her thoughts. "Um
Olivia," she heard Victoria say.
"Yes" Olivia
responded getting out of her daze and staring at the smiling couple
before her.
"I was just saying that since, El and I are a
couple now and I'll be spending more time with the family, you could
o back to work full time" she said smiling as if she thought she
deserved some sort of prize. But Olivia was shocked, she had only
began working part time so that Maureen could go to college and the
others to school with worrying about Eli, she loved her job but she
loved spending time with Elliot's children more!
"Wow! That's
a great idea Liv" Elliot said blindily as he brought Victoria's
hand to his lips.
"Um I don't know what to say" Olivia
replied with all honesty. She turned for a second and looked at Eli
whose eyes were red from crying and a little puffy, but those eyes
spoke volumes and he didn't want her to go.
"Well think about
it" Victoria said and ran her hand through Eli hair only to have
him scowl at her and retreat to Olivia side.
"Mommy can I go
to bed" Eli asked holding looking.
"El-"
"Olivia!"
she heard Elliot's voice cut through the now silent room.
"Yes"
"Living-room!" he said pointing towards the suite she
shared with Eli while getting up from the table he held her arm and
brought her to the room.
"what the hell is going on with that
boy?" he demanded and for a moment she didn't recognize him
"I-I
don't know" she replied sitting down.
"You are the one
who always knows what the matter with them, I don't know they all
seem to be turning their back on me" he said his voice calmer
and she took the chance and gave him a hug. "I don't know Liv,
but I don't think they like her." Elliot confessed "They
look at me like I've betrayed them but Liv she amkes me feel" he
said and it sounded like a husky sob and she wanted to cry for
him.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Olivia asked him as they
both sat down.
"I wanted to surprise you, I know that I had
be pinning over Kathy for so long I just wanted to surprise you with
the progress I had." he smiled and his face looked like a boy
again.
"Well I am surprised, I guess Eli is just as
surprised, he's not used to having a woman hang on to his daddy like
that" she said with a smile.
"That's not true, he's see
you and I hug and 'hang on to each other" he teased, but as he
did the mood changed and Olivia got up putting distance between
them.
"Liv what's wrong?" he asked going up behind
her.
"Nothing," she lied turning around to face him and
regretting the movement as she did. With her lps only mere inches
away it would be so easy to taste him.
"What would I do
without you?" he asked kissing her fore-head.
"You can't
do anything with out me!" she said moving away his piecing
gaze.
"So will you be my bestman-woman?"
