The special victims squad room was exceptionally busy that Thursday night, filled with the sounds of papers rustling, phones ringing, and people talking. They had received a huge break in a hot case, and everyone was working overtime to try to and solve the case before the perpetrator could strike another victim. Tensions were high, and everyone seemed to be moving a million miles a minute.

Elliot and Olivia sat in an interview room, scattering papers all over the table. He glanced up at the clock every few minutes, a pang of sadness and anger filling his gut. It was nearly 9 PM and they were nowhere near being done for the night. He was dreading the impending phone call he would have to make to Johanna to cancel their night of fun.

He was furious that there would be a two-week gap between their last and next meet-up. He was annoyed that he would have to wait another week to see and feel Johanna's body under his. He was worried about how she would react to the news, anticipating a foul reaction similar to his ex-wife's usual one.

"I got something!" Olivia shouted as she stood up, holding a paper firmly in her grasp.

She darted out the room. Elliot quickly followed her, oblivious to what she had just discovered.

"Mason Burke's alibi," Olivia stated simply as she slammed the paper on her desk and began shuffling through papers on her desk. "We never checked out his alibi, and his story was shifty from the start."

By this time, Fin Tutuola and his partner, John Munch, had gathered around Olivia's desk with Elliot, sharing his curious and confused expression. She picked up a small notebook and flipped through the pages carefully.

"Here," she said, more calmly. "He said he was out buying groceries at the time of the rape and murder, but he never showed us a receipt. We didn't bother to follow up with it since we thought we had the guy in custody."

"We're on it," Fin told her, taking the paper she had placed on her desk.

"Let's just go straight to the grocery store; no use in wasting time asking for him to give us a receipt when he probably doesn't have one," Munch suggested as they started to walk away.

"Hey!" Elliot called after them. "If the times don't match up or they don't have a receipt, bring him in!"

"Got it," Fin responded before the partners walked out. "We'll let you know what we find!"

Olivia sighed with relief, running a hand through her hair. Elliot rubbed her back softly, letting her know she could relax for a moment while they waited to hear from their fellow detectives.

"I'm gonna go call Johanna and let her know I'm not going to make it tonight," Elliot informed her with a sigh.

She gave him a sympathetic and apologetic look and nodded her head as he walked away, pulling his phone out of his pocket. She wished there was a way she could continue working on the case alone so he could have his long-awaited date night, but without her likeminded partner, she was essentially useless.

The trill of the phone ringing made Elliot's stomach twist into knots. He was admittedly afraid of what the fiery redhead would say.

"Hey, Stabler," Johanna's perky voice filled his ears. He could tell just by hearing her voice that she was smiling. It made his heart skip a beat.

"Hey, you," he responded softly, realizing how badly he needed to hear her voice. "I've got some bad news."

"What's wrong?" She questioned; the pep in her voice faltered slightly.

"I'm not going to make it tonight," he sighed. "Olivia and I are going to be working all night on this case. I'm so sorry."

He couldn't recall how many times he had repeated those words before, feeling the guilt smack him in the stomach all over again.

"Oh, bummer," Johanna frowned, understandably upset.

"I really am so sorry," he apologized again.

"Don't be, goofball," she laughed. "I mean I'm bummed of course, but it's not like you're canceling because you hate me...right?"

"Right," Elliot laughed.

"Then no worries," she reassured him. "I get it."

Relief washed over him like a wave. He couldn't believe he wasn't going to have to get on his knees and beg for forgiveness to avoid the wrath of an angry woman.

"You," Elliot sighed. "You're incredible."

"I know," Johanna laughed.

"I might call you tomorrow," he told her as the thought of suggesting they get together over the weekend to make up for their canceled night entered his mind.

"Do that," she insisted. "Bye, Stabler."

"Bye, Jo."

Elliot was so thankful that he was blessed to have that girl in his life. He wasn't sure what he had done to deserve her, but he was glad it happened. Even though he knew Kathy's wrath had understandably come from years of canceled dates and disappointing phone calls, he appreciated the differences between his ex-wife and Johanna.

Everything about her was new to him. It was like he was leading a whole new life. A better, more exciting, more relaxed life. And he loved it.

The station was finally quiet around midnight. Only Elliot and Olivia remained at their desks while everyone else was either at home for the night or working elsewhere. The office phone on Elliot's desk rang, breaking the silence of the room.

"Elliot Stabler," he answered as he held the phone to his ear, propping it up with his shoulder as he wrote in a file. Olivia stood up and stretched then made her way over to the bathroom.

"Elliot," the voice he recognized as Maggie's from the front desk replied. "I've got a Johanna Rowan here. She's looking for you. Can I send her up?"

"Um, yeah, of course," he answered then hung up the phone.

He was curious and a little worried as to why Johanna was at the station at midnight. He prayed nothing bad had happened, but a twinge of happiness filled his stomach when he realized he was going to see her that night after all, even if it was under new circumstances.

Johanna made her way up the elevator and through the doors of the unit where she saw Elliot sitting at his desk waiting for her. She had a white bag in each hand.

"I hope this isn't totally crossing any lines," she began to ramble as she approached him. "But I got a late night craving for Chinese, and the only restaurant I know of that's open this late is a few blocks from here, so I got some food for you and your partner while I was there, I figured you guys probably hadn't eaten much today. I promise I'm not staying."

She fought with herself internally over whether or not to bring them food as she stood in the small restaurant a few minutes earlier. She thought about calling Elliot first to see if they were hungry and if it was okay if she stopped by, but she was afraid she would change her mind after and have to deal with the dilemma of showing up anyway or explaining to him why she didn't.

"You brought us food?" He questioned as she set the bags down at his desk.

"I totally broke our rule; stopping by your work is too serious, huh?" She wondered.

"No, no," Elliot shook his head as he examined the contents in the bag. "Even if it is, I don't care." He really didn't care. He was so happy to see her and beyond amazed at the generous gesture; he wasn't even worried about her stepping over boundaries. The smell of the fried foods filled his nostrils, making his mouth water; it had been hours since they had eaten.

Olivia emerged from the bathroom, puzzled at the sight she saw near her desk. "Hi," she stated simply, announcing her presence.

"Liv, this is Johanna," Elliot introduced. "Jo, this is my partner Olivia."

"It's so nice to finally meet you," Johanna smiled as she shook Olivia's hand.

"You too," Olivia responded.

"I'm just dropping off some food – I was just telling Elliot I had a late night craving for Chinese and was in the neighborhood," Johanna explained. "I figured you guys probably hadn't eaten in a while."

"Wow." Olivia was shocked by the beautiful stranger's generosity. "That's so nice, thank you."

"Not a problem," Johanna replied then turned to Elliot. "I'm gonna get going though."

"Why don't you stay and eat with us?" Olivia offered, wanting to get to know the woman better. After hearing all of Elliot's stories about her, Olivia determined that the girl was probably good news for him, but being so protective of her other half, she wanted to make sure for herself.

"Oh, that's okay," Johanna protested. "I already ate, and I know you two are busy. Plus, I need to get back home."

"Well, it was really nice to finally meet you, Johanna," Olivia told her. "And thank you for the food."

"No problem," Johanna smiled.

"I'll walk you out," Elliot said as he stood from his desk, walking beside the redhead as they approached the elevators.

"Okay, how do you not walk around with a boner all day?" Johanna joked as Elliot pressed the 'down' button on the wall. "Olivia is so hot."

He laughed at her wildness and shook his head.

"Did you really want Chinese food this late or did you just want to come spy on me?" He wondered as the elevator doors opened, remembering all the grief he got from Kathy about his partnership with Olivia.

"Did I really want Chinese food? Yes. Did I use that as a good excuse to come here and see you? Yes." Johanna spoke as they walked into the elevator and stood side by side. "But I was not here to spy on you, Stabler. If you're banging your partner, that's on you."

Elliot pressed the 'lobby' button and sighed then scratched the back of his head. "Sorry. My ex-wife used to give me hell every day about working with Olivia. Kathy was convinced I was having an affair with her, but it's not like that. It never has been, and it never will be."

"I wouldn't blame you if you banged her," she told him. "She's a knockout."

He laughed again and shook his head. "Not banging her."

Johanna shrugged. He noted that she didn't seem jealous or worried at all. Even after putting up with all of Kathy's nonsense for so long, he wasn't sure if Johanna's nonchalant attitude about Olivia was a good or bad thing.

"I'm glad you used Chinese food as an excuse to come see me though," he told her as he looked over at her. "I really did not want to cancel tonight."

"I know," she smiled softly at him. "We'll make up for it next week."

"Can't I just take you out on a real date instead of just getting you drunk and playing pool?" He wondered. "Or is that breaking our rule?"

"I don't know, but I kind of broke our rule tonight," Johanna stated. "So I think you can get a free rule-breaking pass."

The elevator doors opened, revealing the empty lobby of the station. The two went through the revolving glass door, leaving them in the frigid November air.

"Call me tomorrow and we'll set a date, okay?" She smiled as she stood on her tippy toes and kissed his lips softly and quickly.

She turned to walk away, but Elliot grabbed her arm and spun her back around, pulling her close to his body. He closed the small space between their faces, planting his lips gently onto hers. She brought her hand to the back of his neck and pulled his face down closer to hers, kissing him back deeply as his hand gripped her waist. They were oblivious to the random people walking around them, eyeing them as they kissed in the middle of the sidewalk.

When they broke away, their hot breath floated visibly out of their mouths as fog in the cold air.

"Thank you for being so incredible," he breathed. "And thank you for bringing us food tonight."

She smirked up at him. "Anytime, babe." She placed a quick peck on his cheek then broke away from him, walking away with a smile on her face.

When he walked back into the squad room upstairs, Olivia was sitting at her desk with chopsticks in one hand and a white box of food in the other.

"I like her already," Olivia said with a mouth full of food.

Elliot smiled. "Good."

"No, really," she started as she swallowed the food in her mouth. "She's gorgeous, and she just brought us food – so sweet."

"I know," he sighed, sitting at his desk to begin attacking the food as well.

"You kept going on and on about how great she is, but I thought you were mostly just full of shit because you hadn't gotten laid in forever," she admitted. "But I believe you now."

He laughed, thankful that Olivia seemed to approve. "I told you."

Elliot wasn't sure if he would ever get married again or if he even wanted to ever get married again. But he knew one thing for certain: he wasn't going to mess anything up with Johanna.