Once again thanks for all the feedback and support :) I hope you like the chapter! I'll update soon!


Two days later, Olivia woke up and walked out into the kitchen expecting to find the normal chaos of the kitchen. Instead she found Lucy and Bernie sitting at the table alone eating breakfast and drinking coffee.

"Good morning Olivia!" Bernie said smiling at Olivia as she walked towards them. "Would you like some coffee?"

Olivia smiled and sat down at the table beside Lucy. "Good morning. That would be wonderful. Thank you!"

Bernie got up to make Olivia some coffee as she spoke. "Elliot took the kids out for breakfast so they could spend some time together alone. He didn't want to wake you up because he figured you never get to sleep in."

Bernie put the coffee in front of Olivia and she smiled at her. "Thanks Bernie. That's good that they got some time alone. I know he misses them a lot now that he doesn't live with them all the time."

Lucy nodded. "It's been an adjustment for all of them. But they seem okay with the divorce now."

Olivia took a sip of her coffee and nodded. "It can't be easy at their age…but it will be better in the long run for everyone."

Bernie sat back down and sighed happily. "You know I've been meaning to thank you for being so supportive of Elliot through all of this. I know he isn't always the easiest man to deal with…he gets that from his father." She said smirking. "But he truly does have a good soul."

Olivia smiled at Elliot's mother. "He can be a pain in the ass…but so can I. I think that's why we work so well together…we aren't afraid to say it like it is when we need too."

Lucy laughed and took another sip of her coffee. "That's exactly what Elliot needs sometimes. Someone to just call him out on his bull shit from time to time. You keep him in check!"

Olivia laughed and put her hands back on the table. "I suppose we could all use that sometimes."

"Well however you've done it…you've really helped him through these past few years and I truly appreciate that." Bernie said reaching a hand out to her.

Olivia smiled and thought about her relationship with Elliot. "Elliot's a great guy…and I can tell it has a lot to do with the way he was raised by both you and Lucy. He has his moments…but deep down he's one of the most amazing people I've ever know."

Lucy and Bernie looked at each other; they recognized the sincerity and emotion in Olivia's voice. Their suspicions were confirmed in that moment, they knew that there was definitely something between Elliot and Olivia.

"I can see why Kathy was jealous of you for all of those years…" Bernie said shaking her head as she laughed.

Olivia's face blushed. "Kathy had nothing to worry about…"

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "Elliot is a family man and he wouldn't have done anything to betray that marriage…but he cares deeply for you."

Olivia felt her heart pounding in her chest as she put her elbow on the table and rested her chin in her hand. "He's a good friend…"

"Just a friend?" Bernie asked leaning in towards her.

Olivia looked over at her, feeling nervous about where this conversation was headed. "Um…well I mean he's my partner at work. So I guess it's not a normal friendship. Something more than that…"

Lucy licked her lips and stood up. "I would say it is definitely more than just a friendship…but Bernie let's not ambush the poor girl."

"I'm not ambushing her." Bernie said to her sister. "I'm merely getting to know her better. She is a big part of my son's life after all…I have the right to ask questions that effect him."

"True. But there is a difference between asking questions and butting into other people's business." Lucy said turning back to her little sister.

Bernie huffed and turned to Olivia. "Am I making you uncomfortable dear?"

Olivia sat up straighter, trying to figure out how to answer the question, "Well I-"

"Of course she isn't going to admit that you are making her uncomfortable Bernie!" Lucy said sighing as she walked back to the table. "She doesn't want to offend you!"

"That's absurd." Bernie said rolling her eyes. "You don't know what you are talking about Lucy. You can tell me if I'm making you uncomfortable Olivia…"

"No…no you aren't making me uncomfortable really." Olivia said feeling her cheeks beginning to blush. "It's just kind of a complicated topic…my relationship with Elliot is more than a friendship but I don't know how exactly to characterize it."

"Well are you in love with him?" Bernie asked bluntly.

"Bernie!" Lucy gasped. "You can't ask her something like that!"

Olivia rubbed the back of her neck as Bernie shrugged. "What? It's a yes or no answer isn't it?"

She was trying to figure out how to answer the question when the side door opened and the four kids and Elliot interrupted them. Olivia was extremely thankful for the interruption and smiled as the kids walked up to her.

"Good morning Olivia!" Dickie shouted as he jumped up beside her at the table.

Olivia smiled and ruffled his hair. "Morning buddy…" She stood up and cleared her throat, anxious to get away from Lucy and Bernie.

Elliot smiled at her as he took off his coat. "Hey. I hope you don't mind that we went out without you. I thought you might like to sleep in."

She shook her head and started to walk out of the kitchen. "Oh no. I don't mind at all."

"Where are you going?" He asked her curiously.

She threw her hair up in a messy bun and smiled. "I think I'm going to go for a run on that trail you showed me yesterday."

He smirked at her thinking maybe it would be an excuse to get some alone time with her. "Want me to go with you? You might get lost…"

She shook her head and smiled. "No. That's okay…Id rather run alone. Besides you should spend some more time with the kids."

Elliot glanced over at his mother and Aunt who were mysteriously trying to avoid his gaze. "Okay…see you later then?"

She nodded and started to walk back to her bedroom again. "Yeah. See you later."

When she left the room, Elliot's kids gathered around the table to play cards and he walked over to his Mom and Aunt by the fridge. "What happened?"

Bernie feigned innocence. "I don't know what you are talking about. She's just going for a run. What's the big deal?"

He cleared his throat and leaned against the counter. "I know her pretty well Ma…I can tell something's bothering her and she was fine last night so what happened?"

"Nothing." Bernie said shaking her head as she turned away from him.

Elliot turned to his Aunt. "Auntie Lu?"

Lucy clicked her tongue, which she did when she was irritated. "Your mother may have asked a few invasive questions about your relationship with Olivia…"

"Invasive questions?" Elliot asked feeling slightly annoyed. "What exactly does that mean?"

"Bernie…" Lucy said glaring at her sister.

Bernie sighed and turned to look at her son. "I simply asked her if she loved you or not…"

Elliot felt his heart drop into his stomach and he groaned. "Mom!"

Bernie shrugged her shoulders and tried to smile innocently. "What?"

He sighed and watched Olivia walk out of her room and towards the front door to leave. "Mom come on…really?"

The front door closed and Bernie sighed. "Elliot I just want to see you happy and it's obvious that there is a connection between the two of you. I was just curious…"

"I appreciate that you want me to be happy Mom and I am happy…but my relationship with Olivia is complicated to say the least. I think it's obvious how I feel about her and I would love nothing more than to be in a relationship with her but I don't want to push her." He said trying to make her understand.

"I tried to warn her…" Lucy said crossing her arms over her chest.

"Hey! You continued to the conversation too! You were the one that said Elliot cares deeply for her." Bernie said glaring at her older sister.

"Yes but I didn't overstep any boundaries." Lucy said smirking at her.

Elliot looked between them in disbelief. "You're acting like my kids…"

Lucy smiled and turned back to her nephew. "I'm sorry if we upset her Elliot. It wasn't our intention…I guess we're just curious. And you know as we age we tend to lose our filters."

Elliot rolled his eyes. "Yeah well the two of you never had much a filter to begin with…"

"Fair enough." Lucy said shrugging her shoulders. "But I wouldn't worry about Olivia. She'll be fine. Let her go for her run and she'll probably be fine when she gets back."

Elliot wasn't sure about that. Olivia could be sensitive about things, and given the state of their relationship at the moment he wasn't sure how she was going to react to the situation.

He sighed and rubbed the back of his tense neck. "Yeah…I guess."

Bernie smiled and slapped his back gently. "Who knows…maybe it will get her to admit how she truly feels. You could be thanking me later…"

Elliot stared at his mother apprehensively. "Don't get ahead of yourself Ma…"

Bernie smiled mischievously and walked over to the table to join the kids in their card game. Lucy stepped closer to her nephew and put a gentle hand on his arm.

"You're Mom's just worried about you…she didn't mean any harm." She said trying to defend her sister.

Elliot smiled at his Aunt. "I know…"

Lucy leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Don't worry too much about it. You get cranky when you worry…

She started to walk away and Elliot couldn't help but agree…he definitely got cranky when he worried.


On the trail Olivia was running along the trail trying to focus on her breathing as she went. All she could hear was the thump of her feet on the hard ground and the birds in the trees around her as she ran through the woods around the lake. It felt good to be outside on her own and away from all the questions and accusations. She knew Elliot's Mom and Aunt meant well but she had never dealt with confrontation of any kind very well.

Deep down she knew the answer to Bernie's question was that yes she was in love with him. She just to afraid to admit it. If she did admit her true feelings, everything about her life would change. Yes it could be a good change but she was too afraid to lose Elliot in her life completely if something went wrong. And in her relationships, things usually did go wrong.

When she reached the end of the trail, she came to a cliff that overlooked the lake. Elliot had taken her and the kids out here the day before and he told her he used to jump off of it has a kid.

Her heart was pounding in her chest as she sat down at the edge of the cliff and tried to catch her breath. She closed her eyes for a moment and lay back on the ground thinking about the night she had spent the night at Elliot's apartment.

No man had ever made her feel so alive, so beautiful and so loved and at the moment it had almost scared her. It wasn't just sex like she had assumed it would be...it was more than that. She finally understood what it was to make love to someone. Her heart was still racing as she was thinking about that night, and she knew that it had less to do with her run and more to do with remembering what it felt like to be touched by Elliot.

When Elliot had pushed her in the water and had tried to kiss her, she had to admit that part of her wanted it to happen. Yet at the same time, when she felt the splash form Dickie's jump in the water she felt somewhat relieved. It took all the pressure off…

She was so exhausted from all the emotions she was feeling she began to doze off and lost track of time…


When Olivia wasn't back forty-five minutes later Elliot was extremely anxious. She was a fast runner and he knew it wouldn't take her that long. Either she had gotten lost on the trail or she was so freaked out she didn't want to come back.

He asked his Mom and Aunt to keep an eye on the kids as he took to the trail to look for Olivia. His mind was racing with all the possibilities; he knew it had to do with his job. He always thought the worst about situations…

But truth be told what he was most worried about was that she was going to run from the possibility of them being a couple ever. When he reached the end of the trail, he was relieved to see her stretching by the cliff.

"I thought you got lost…" He said walking up behind her.

She turned and couldn't help but smile when she saw him. "Sorry. I closed my eyes for a second when I got here and I fell asleep."

He smirked and sat down beside her on the ground. "You feel asleep?"

She nudged him playfully. "You know as well as anyone that I hardly ever sleep when we are working. I guess my body is trying to catch up with the amount of sleep I should be getting."

He nodded and pulled his legs up to rest his elbows on his knees. "Fair enough."

Olivia curled her legs up in front of her and took a deep breath. "How was breakfast with the kids this morning?"

"It was good. I like spending time with them." He said looking out at the horizon.

"Good." She said as she licked her lips, hoping to avoid the conversation she knew he had come to have.

"You know I won't be angry if you tell my Mom to keep her mouth shut." He said turning to smirk at her.

She laughed and shook her head. "Yeah okay…"

"I'm sorry about all the questions they bombarded you with." He said sincerely. "They can be quite nosy when it comes to people's personal lives. They've been doing it to me since I was a kid…"

She smiled at him. "They mean well…they just want to see you happy."

He took a deep breath and shrugged. "I guess. They just need to learn when to not overstep their boundaries."

Olivia bit her lip and touched the rocks at her sides. "So you know exactly what she asked then?"

Elliot nodded slowly. "They asked a lot of things…but my Mom asked you if you were in love with me…"

She took her hair out of the elastic and let it fall around her shoulders. "Mhm…"

He cleared his throat and tried to sound casual as he spoke again, "They didn't say if you answered or not though…"

"I see where you learned your interrogation skills now…" She teased him.

Elliot laughed and smiled innocently at her. "Can't blame me for being curious as to what your answer to that question would be."

She looked at him and wanted desperately to be able to say those three words to him but she couldn't. "El…you know I am…"

"I know you are what?" He asked wanting nothing more than to hear her say it out loud.

She sighed and looked back out at the lake. "Elliot I've never said that to anyone before…and no one's ever said it back to me. It's not that easy…I can't just say it. There are too many complications…to many things that it could change."

"I get that…and it kills me to know no one's ever said it to you but Liv…" He whispered urging her to look at him, and when she did he said honestly. "I'm in love with you. I have been for a long time…"

The words were on the tip of her tongue, but she just couldn't bring herself to say them. "Elliot…I just can't…"

He inhaled sharply and nodded, trying to be supportive. "Alright. I understand."

"It kills me that I'm hurting you Elliot…and I'm trying so hard to figure this all out but it's so complicated." She whispered desperately wanting him to understand.

Elliot stared at her face for a moment, trying to memorize every part of her face. "I know…"

She blushed at the way he was staring at her and she wanted to kiss him, but she didn't want to give him the wrong idea. "Do you? The last thing I would ever want to do would be to cause you pain Elliot…"

"I think you demonstrated that when you refused to take that shot in the warehouse…" He whispered referring to the Gitano case.

Olivia shivered just thinking about it. "I could never be the cause of your death Elliot. I would have never forgiven myself…"

Elliot nodded understanding what she meant. "When I saw you lying there with blood on your neck…I thought I was going to die right then and there. I felt sick to my stomach…"

She bit her lip nervously and squinted her eyes in the sun. "What's going to happen when we go back to work? We're supposed to put the victims first but I don't think we can do that if it means one of us getting hurt."

Elliot nodded slowly. "I know that if it came down to it…I'd pick saving you over any victim or perp."

She looked back at him and whispered nervously. "So does that mean we can't be partners anymore?"

He took a deep breath and looked back at her, feeling sad just thinking about the idea of not working with her. "I don't know…"

She smiled sadly. "I don't know how I would work with someone else after all these years…"

He nodded agreeing with her. "It would definitely be strange…"

"Although…" She felt nervous about what she was going to say, but she knew deep down it was something she had to face. "Lately I've been wondering if SVU is where I should be right now anyway."

His heart hurt just thinking about it but he knew that if it helped her, it could be a good thing. "Where would you go?"

Olivia smiled sadly. "I don't…maybe computer crimes? I've always been interested in that stuff."

Elliot nodded. "I could see you doing that. But…you work so well with the victims. You connect with them better than anyone else I know…not to mention how you can crack the perps."

"Well I learned from the best…" She said turning to him. "You taught me pretty much everything I know about the job El…you don't know how much I appreciate that."

Elliot shook his head. "Please…I may have given you a few pointers over the years but you were born to help people Olivia. I've known that since the first day we started working together."

She smirked. "Yeah well…it's easier to fix other people's problems then fix my own."

Elliot chuckled. "That's true…"

She looked back at the water. "I don't know…maybe I could go back to school and become a counselor. I'd still be able to work with victims…but I'd just be helping them rebuild their lives. Maybe that's what I'm supposed to do…"

"You could give Huang a run for his money as our shrink…" He said honestly.

She rolled her eyes. "Well I don't know about that…but it's something to think about."

He didn't like t he idea of her not working beside him everyday but he could see her being a counselor and he knew it might make her happier. "I can see you doing that…and I think…no I know that you'd be amazing at it."

She smiled back at him. "Thanks El…"

He smiled before standing up. "We should get back before they send out a search party for us."

He reached a hand out to help her pull up, when's he stood in front of him she smiled. "Not today…but before we go home can we jump off this cliff?"

Elliot looked down at the water. "Sure. If that's what you want."

She smiled and leaned up to kiss his cheek gently before pulling back and starting to walk away from him. "Race you back to the house Stabler!"

Elliot watched her run for a moment, caught up in the fact that she had kissed his cheek and the way she looked in those shorts she was wearing. But when he finally snapped out of it he took off running, determined to catch up to her. He knew in that moment, no matter what her choice was at the end of all this, she would always be in his life. He could never walk away from her…


That night after dinner; Elliot was roasting marshmallows with the kids by the fire pit in the backyard. Olivia was helping Bernie and Lucy clean the dishes from dinner as Lucy gave her sister a quick nudge towards Olivia before walking out to join the kids and Elliot.

Bernie glared at her sister before turning back to Olivia who was washing the dishes in the sink. "Olivia…I…I hope you weren't upset about all my questions this morning. I wasn't trying to pry…I was honestly just curious. I tend to get ahead of myself sometimes and I don't always realize how my words can affect people."

Olivia smiled and reached for a towel to dry her hands. "Bernie it's okay…I get it. And I wish I could give you an answer…but right now I'm not ready."

Bernie smiled and reached out to hold her hand gently. "I understand. And you don't owe me any answers Olivia…I know that your relationship with him is more than just a friendship. I think about how you've helped him all these years…how you've had his back and it just makes me so grateful for you. I guess I just went a little overboard…"

Olivia swallowed hard and looked out the window at Elliot and his kids. "We're partners at work…and we need to be close. But our relationship is something I never expected to have in my life. I've never had anyone in my life that I could count on 100% and I am so grateful for him…and yet it terrifies me at the same time."

Bernie nodded. "I understand…"

"You've got a great son Bernie…" She whispered to her.

Bernie sighed and looked out the window and smiled at her son. "Yes. I do. I don't know how much credit I can take for how he turned out…but he is pretty great."

Olivia knew that her relationship with her son wasn't always great. "Bernie…"

"I made a lot of mistakes with him…" Bernie said as she began to tear up. "But no matter how many times I always screwed up…he always did whatever I asked of him. I suppose a lot of it was to make sure he got my approval…to have me tell him I loved him as much as I should have. But he was such a good boy…always so strong and determined to make everyone happy."

"He's still like that…" Olivia said smiling as she thought about him. "He'd do anything for those kids…for his friends. No matter what it means for him…"

Bernie nodded in agreement. "He'd do anything for you too you know. Anything at all."

Olivia nodded and turned back to Bernie. "I know…"

She sighed and walked towards the counter to pick up another dirty dish. "I know that my son loved Kathy. And part of him always will because of the kids they have together. But I don't believe that he was in love with her…not truly."

"Really?" Olivia asked curiously, she couldn't deny the fact that she always been jealous of Kathy.

Bernie turned back to her and nodded. "Yes. I don't necessarily think they would have ended up together if she hadn't gotten pregnant. I'm glad they got married because I got four beautiful grandchildren out of it…but I want my son to be happy. And he wasn't completely happy…not with Kathy. Not happy the way he is when he's around you…"

Olivia swallowed the lump in her throat and stared at the woman in front of her. "He makes me happy too Bernie…so incredibly happy."

Bernie placed the dish in the sink and then walked all the way over to Olivia, she took her hand in hers and smiled. "I know I don't know everything about your past Olivia…but I can tell there is something holding you back. And I'm not asking you to tell me what it is…and maybe you don't even know what it is…but I know my son. I know him better than most people and I know that he loves you with every ounce of his being…there is no doubt in that. Don't be afraid to love him…"

Olivia bit her lip and felt her eyes well up with tears. "I do want to love him…I truly do. But I don't know how…I don't want to hurt him but I'm afraid that either way I'm going to end up hurting him somehow. It's what I do…and I don't mean it. It just happens."

Bernie nodded. "I understand that…but I also know that my biggest regrets in life are not taking chances because of fear. There are so many things I wish I had done and wonder about how my life would have turned out if I had taken them. I don't want that for you…"

"I don't want that for myself either…" She whispered.

"I can't tell you what to do Olivia…but I can give you some advice if you'd let me." Bernie said hopefully.

Olivia smiled and wiped a tear away from her face. "I'd love some advice."

Bernie squeezed her hand and smiled at her. "As much as I want you two to be together…you also can't make any rash decisions. I think you should take a long hard look at your life and how he fits into it. You need to think about whether or not you can afford to lose him…"

Olivia tensed up. "I don't want to lose him…"

Bernie smiled at her. "And I don't think that he will ever fully take you out of his life. But…either way your relationship is going to change somehow. If you are together, your relationship will grow and mature for the better. But if you try and go back to the way things were…you'll both eventually have to face the idea of being with someone else. Could you handle seeing him with another woman?"

Olivia's heart dropped quickly. "No. I hated seeing him with Kathy to be honest…and now I think it would be even harder to see him with someone else."

"Then I think you need to decide how you want to have him in your life. You need to decide if you want him as a partner…or just someone who is in your life but loves someone else. He says he'll wait forever…and I don't think he could ever love someone the way he loves you…but he shouldn't be alone forever. He wouldn't be happy…" Bernie whispered.

Olivia nodded. "You're right. And I want him to be happy…but not with someone else. And it isn't fair to ask him to wait forever…"

"Don't decide overnight…take your time but remember that life is short. You don't know what is going to happen…you don't want to wake up one morning and realize you never told him how you felt." Bernie whispered.

Olivia thought back to the Gitano case and thought about what Elliot had said the other day. He had been afraid he was going to die and never be able to tell her how he really felt about her. And she realized…if he had died she would never have been able to accept the fact that he didn't know how much he meant to her either.

She smiled and leaned forward to hug Bernie. "Thank you Bernie…"

Bernie hugged her tightly and smiled. "I didn't overstep any boundaries this time?"

Olivia laughed and pulled away form her, shaking her head. "No. You said everything I needed to hear. Thank you."

Bernie squeezed her hand and smiled. "Good. Why don't we do these dishes later and go join the fun outside?"

Olivia smiled and nodded in agreement; she grabbed a sweater and followed Bernie out to the backyard. She smiled and sat down next to Elliot on the bench he was sitting on.

She pulled the marshmallow off the stick he was using. "Thanks."

He pretended to glare at her. "Hey…I spent a long time making sure that one was toasted perfectly."

She licked her finger and smiled at him. "And it was perfect. Thanks."

He chuckled and looked over at his Mom who was now busily talking to Maureen and Kathleen about something. "You were in there for awhile with my Mom. I hope she didn't upset you again…"

Olivia reached down into the bag at his feet and took out another marshmallow and put it on the stick he was holding. "No she didn't upset me. We actually had a nice chat."

"About what?" He asked curiously.

She smirked at him. "Nothing you need to worry about…"

"That means you were talking about me." He said laughing as he moved the stick closer to the fire.

She chuckled and shrugged. "Maybe…"

He knew better then to press her any further on the topic so he figured he'd change the subject. "About what we were talking about earlier…you know you changing jobs…"

She grabbed a nearby stick and started to roast her own marshmallow. "What about it?"

"Whatever you decide…" He said honestly as he looked over at her. "I just want you to know that I support you completely. It will be weird to not have you at the precinct but if it is something that makes you happy…then I'm happy."

For a moment, she got lost up in how handsome he was as the fire lit up his face. She knew Bernie was right…she had to start making some serious decisions about her future. She couldn't possibly see her life without him in it…

"That means more to me then you could possibly know El…thank you." She said resting her hand on his knee gently.

He put his hand over hers and smiled. "Don't mention it…"

They stared at each other for a few more minutes before the sound of laughter pulled them out of the moment. As they sat together at the fire, Olivia realized that for the first time in her life she felt like she was a part of a real family. And it was the best feeling in the world…


What did you think? I hope it was worth the two day wait! I'll probably have the next update up by Thursday or Friday. Maybe tomorrow depending on how much I get done tomorrow...anyway...hope you enjoyed! :)