Day Nineteen

"This is, hands down, the ugliest thing I've ever seen in my life." Nonetheless, Olivia flopped down on the couch. The tan paisley was peppered with flecks of dark drown and orange with the occasional hint of a mottled, dingy gold. It reminded her of autumn, and not in a good way. More like in a rotting pile of leaves kind of way.

"Are you sure? We've seen some doozies." Despite his argument, Elliot dropped onto the sofa beside her. "It's pretty comfy, though, right?"

"Yeah, so get this one and just don't look at it." It wasn't her couch so she didn't really care. Or rather, she couldn't explain why she would care about which couch he had because they still hadn't gotten to that particular discussion yet.

A disappointed sigh came from above them. "You really do hate shopping, don't you?"

Olivia lifted her head and glared up at the young blonde woman. "Now why on Earth would you say something like that?"

Maureen shook her head, shifting Eli's carrier to her other hand and frowning at the pair collapsed on the sofa. "Because that really is the ugliest thing ever."

Elliot turned to shrug at Olivia. "So?"

Maureen laughed, kicking at her father's feet in an attempt to spur him into motion. "It's also the first one we've seen and you're all set to buy it."

Olivia frowned, suspecting suddenly that Maureen was one of those practical types who would drive all over town to compare prices. She turned to Elliot and couldn't help the grin from spreading across her face. "Why did we bring her again?"

"Because someone has to carry the baby." Elliot lifted his hand, which had been examined, prodded, re-x-rayed, and returned to its immobile position on the splint following another visit to the doctor. He'd tried to tell Olivia that the mottled brown color of his skin was a vast improvement from the swollen lump it had been the first time he'd been there. She hadn't believed him, not until the orthopedist assured her that what had been a terrible break was healing, albeit slowly.

Olivia's shoulder had been re-examined as well, landing her with her arm in a sling, several layers of tape and elastic bandage preventing her from moving it far because, according to the doctor, she couldn't be trusted not to move it excessively. Between the two of them they'd managed to care for Eli, however, an actual pair of coordinated hands was infinitely more skilled with the baby. Plus, Maureen had yet to inquire as to why Olivia was at Elliot's apartment in the morning when she got there and still there at night when she left.

Olivia turned back to Maureen, already desperate to be done with the shopping less than a half hour after leaving home. "Can I bribe you with chocolate?"

The young woman laughed and shook her head, something indescribable about the movement reminding Olivia of Elliot. "I'm on a diet, so no, chocolate isn't going to work."

"Christian Louboutin shoes? We buy this couch and you'll get a pair on me. What do you say?"

Maureen shook her head, grabbing her father's good hand and giving it a good tug. "You weren't kidding about the groceries, were you?"

He reluctantly climbed to his feet. "You really should try it, hon. It's really comfortable." Maureen wasn't listening and had already moved a good distance down the aisle. He looked back at Olivia. "I don't think she'd buy it if it was the last one on Earth just to spite me." He reached out, offering her his hand.

"And here I thought she'd outgrown that phase." Satisfied that Maureen was paying them no attention, Olivia extended her hand, refusing to let herself think about how natural it was to feel his fingers lace with hers. "She's not going to let us just buy something and leave, is she?"

"No, but she doesn't really know you that well, so you jump on the first thing she seems to approve of and insist that I buy it and I'll go along with you." He grinned, the smile translating through his arm to squeeze her hand. "That's the plan."

Half heartedly, Olivia extracted her hand from his, checking to make sure Maureen wasn't looking. "That plan might have worked with Kathy, but I'm not sure Maureen is going to believe that I have any say in your furniture choice."

He made another grab for her hand, frowning when Olivia shoved it into her pocket. "Except you're here, so you clearly have a say in my furniture choice." Not a bit dissuaded by her obvious desire to not be in physical contact, he stepped closer and put his hand on the small of her back. "Besides, you have taste and I think she knows I trust you."

As much as Olivia loved the warm, reassuring pressure of his hand against her back, she didn't want Maureen to witness anything out of the ordinary for friends. Because nothing had been decided between them and the last thing she wanted was to cause tension with Kathy and the kids, fearing that the tension might cause Elliot to have second thoughts before he managed to explain his first thoughts.

Side-stepping a bit out of reach, she tried to ignore the brief flash of pain and confusion on her partner's face. "More than you trust her?"

Copying her earlier motion and shoving his hand deep into his pocket. He shrugged, throwing glances at Olivia to determine what he'd done wrong. "Of course, if I'd trusted her judgment on a car, I'd be driving around in a bright yellow Mustang convertible."

She couldn't suppress the laughter at the image of Elliot tooling around in his mid-life crisis. "Well, maybe you should have listened. It might have gotten you some action, El."

With a wince, he hurried his pace to catch up with his daughter, but Olivia still heard him mutter. "Apparently, there's not much chance of that without it."

Olivia hung back, knowing he'd misread her rebuff of his touch. While he and Maureen poured over another couch, Olivia mentally kicked herself. Although, much like Elliot, she still tended to see Maureen as an impetuous teenager, Olivia knew the girl had grown up and probably had enough sense to keep a secret. And while she figured Maureen would be able to handle the situation, she knew Elliot, as indestructible as he seemed, was incredibly vulnerable when it came to her and wouldn't understand her rejection.

Rejoining them, Olivia pointed at the overhead sign displaying directions for the store. "Maybe we should prioritize a little. It could take years to decide on a couch, but you really need to get Eli a crib before Kathy finds out he's sleeping in his play pen."

With a wide smile, Maureen pulled a small notebook from her purse. "I already looked online to get a good idea of the current prices for baby furniture."

Olivia grinned, snagging the notebook away. "And since only one of us has children, only one opinion really counts." She expected her words to at least merit a grin, but Elliot didn't even acknowledge her.

Maureen glanced between them. "Ok, mood swing, anyone?" Olivia was staring at her shoes and Elliot was ignoring everyone, so Maureen looked down at her baby brother. "Damn, Eli, who stole their lollipops?"

Elliot and Olivia followed mutely behind as Maureen led the way to the children's department. As they passed a set of unsuspecting bunk beds, Olivia grabbed Elliot's right arm and yanked him into the relative privacy afforded by the thick wooden bed frame and a tall dresser. She shoved him against the wall, pressing into him until only her immobilized arm separated them. His eyes were wide, but he was apparently willing to go along with her as his arms circled around her.

"Look, I didn't think you were ready to let Maureen see anything, especially since we haven't really discussed what it is she'd be seeing. I wasn't trying to upset you." While she spoke, her free arm wound around his waist. "And I had no real desire to dissuade you."

The hurt and confusion and anger disappeared in a way he usually made more of an attempt to hide from her. "I thought I'd done something wrong." He bent forward, capturing her lips in a kiss. He pulled back a bit, far too soon for Olivia's liking. "You're not mad, are you?"

She shifted her weight against him, teasing him like she wouldn't have dared had they been somewhere besides Ikea. "I'm extremely angry that, for the time being at least, we're both crippled." She moved her arm, releasing his waist in favor of grabbing the back of his head so she could pull his lips back to hers. She'd been hyperaware of what Maureen might see until that point. But as soon as she felt Elliot's mouth open under hers, as soon as she felt Elliot's tongue probing her lips, Olivia stopped giving a damn.

A startled yelp almost made a dent in the pure desire fogging Olivia's brain.

There was a pause while the yelper realized she was being ignored and then there was an impatient voice. "Should I just keep going and wait for you to catch up or am I supposed to stand here and narrate while Eli learns around the birds and the bees?"

Fortunately, by the time Maureen finished speaking, Elliot's tongue was back in his own mouth. Unfortunately, the hormone-driven haze hadn't yet cleared Olivia's brain. At that moment, she didn't much care what Elliot's eldest daughter saw; she just wanted to go back to the kissing. Physical impairments be damned, nothing all that important was broken on either one of them. Olivia figured they could work it out.

Elliot, perhaps driven by instinct to protect his offspring, got a hold of himself faster, but he kept his arm around Olivia when he faced Maureen. "I know this looks bad, but-"

Maureen shook her head. "I'm an adult, dad. You don't have to explain it."

Sense was slowly dawning on Olivia, hampered somewhat by the intense heat that seemed to emanate from the points of contact between them. She knew exactly what Elliot was thinking and she didn't want to look like the other woman. "You're right. We don't have to explain anything to you. But it's important that you understand-"

Maureen grinned, letting the pair relax. "It's new. I got it."

Olivia looked at Elliot and shrugged. Elliot turned to Maureen. "Yeah, it is, but out of curiosity, how do you know that?"

"Cause you're hooking up in public. That's definitely a sign of a new relationship." Maureen looked between the two of them, appearing to size up their reactions. "Besides, even if I thought you were the type of pig who cheated, dad, which I don't for the record," She winked at Olivia. "Something tells me you wouldn't put up with that sort of shit."

Deciding it was the best possible result under the circumstances, Olivia mirrored Maureen's smile. "You're right about that." She leaned into Elliot, playfully nudging him. "Not even you're worth that."

Ignoring Olivia once again, Elliot didn't back down. "This wasn't how I wanted you to find out." He wasn't comfortable with the situation, possibly because he fully expected the information to go right back to Kathy due to the close relationship Maureen shared with her mother. And having only just recently avoided a messy divorce with accusations of adultery with Olivia thrown in for good measure, it wasn't necessarily a good thing to fan the embers for fear of starting another fire.

Maureen moved to Elliot's other side and slung her arm around his waist. "Don't worry, it's not how I found out."

Olivia was perplexed, having thought they'd kept any change in their status well hidden. "What gave it away?" She needed to know what had done them in, if for no other reason than so they might do a better job of keeping it under wraps from the boss.

"As far as I knew, Eli was sleeping in daddy's bed. So when you said he was sleeping in his play pen, I figured it had to mean someone else was sleeping in daddy's bed."

Elliot shook his head, realized that Maureen really had just found out, yet was taking it in stride. He turned to Olivia. "So if you'd kept your mouth shut and let Maureen compare the damn couches-"

Maureen stepped forward, dragging her father forward. "I still would have figured it out. You and mom are getting divorced. Olivia's helping you shop for furniture. Besides, it was only a matter of time."

Elliot squeezed his eyes closed, shaking off both of the women attached to him. "This just gets more and more awkward, doesn't it?" Using his uninjured hand, he grabbed Eli's carrier and surged ahead into the displays of furniture.

Maureen offered Olivia a friendly smile, letting the older woman know she really wasn't upset by the development. "Dad's awful cute when he's embarrassed, isn't he?"

Olivia had a wicked grin on her face as she watched Elliot storm away. "He's always awful cute, Maureen." A blush burned across her cheeks as she was reduced to giggling like a teenager. "But he's downright adorable when he's all flustered."

Rolling her eyes and stifling a groan, Maureen started after Elliot. "Oh, lord, help us."

She knew she ought to be mortified at her behavior, but Olivia couldn't muster up the energy to care. She was too busy being in a good mood. Even if she was shopping.

Splintered.5