Author's note: Hey everyone. I hope you can forgive me for the major gaps between updates lately. I have had a lot going on in my life, and I am just getting over being sick. I didn't want to post a bad chapter, because I believe in quality over quantity, and, in addition to being sick, I have had writer's block. These factors, when combined, made updating rather difficult. Anyway, I'm back, I promise. This particular chapter skips four months ahead of the previous one. What does this mean? It means Casey has already had the twins and is just getting ready to return to work. There's a method to my madness. You'll see later. As always, hope you enjoy the chapter and thanks for reading. Please review. Reviews are an author's bread and butter.
Casey awoke to the sound of crying from the nursery. Sighing, she rubbed her eyes and slowly pulled herself into a sitting position. A quick glance to her left confirmed her assumption that Olivia was asleep; the brunette's snores told her that much. Rolling her eyes, Casey carefully got up and headed into the huge walk in closet that Olivia had turned into a nursery. Seeing that her daughter was awake and crying, Casey gently lifted her out of the bassinet and into her arms. "What's wrong, Stephanie?" she asked as she gently rocked the baby in her arms. "Is your sister still sleeping?" As she spoke, she glanced over at Serena, who was fast asleep in her own bassinet. "Okay, sweetie, come on," Casey murmured. Reaching for Stephanie's favorite pacifier, she popped it into the baby's mouth and handed her her stuffed elephant. "It's okay, Mommy doesn't need sleep anyway," she sighed.
Heading downstairs, Casey carried Stephanie into the kitchen. After fumbling for the light switch for several moments, she managed to turn the lights on. Still holding Stephanie in her arms, Casey opened the cupboard above the stove and retrieved a can of formula. Within a few minutes, she had prepared a bottle of warm milk. "Here, sweetheart," she whispered as she fed her daughter.
"Morning."
Casey jumped so high she swore she almost hit the ceiling. "Olivia, you scared me!" she complained as she turned around to face her wife. "You know not to sneak up on me, especially when I'm half asleep and not functioning."
"Sorry, Miss Cranky," Olivia answered, lifting their daughter out of Casey's arms and into her own.
Casey sighed. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "But I cannot seem to get more than two hours of sleep at any given time. If Stephanie cries, I get up to get her. But I no sooner lay down after she is asleep before Serena wakes up."
"I help when I can," Olivia replied.
"I know," Casey admitted, feeling guilty for complaining so much. "But you aren't always home, babe, you know? I love being a mother, but I need to be somewhat rested when I return to work next week."
Olivia kissed her gently on the lips and smiled, brushing a stray red lock out of Casey's emerald eyes. "I know, baby. We will figure it out. Together. In the meantime…" The detective's chocolate brown eyes twinkled with mischief.
"In the meantime?" Casey repeated, wondering where this was going, and what her wife had planned.
"In the meantime," Olivia answered, heading over to the table, "I have a surprise for you and our daughters." She reached into the pocket of her coat, which she had draped over the back of a dining room chair when she got home at four AM, so that the loud noise of opening and rummaging through the closet wouldn't wake Casey. "I found these online," she said, walking back over to Casey after having retrieved four what appeared to be tickets.
Casey looked down, quickly reading them, noticing that they were indeed tickets. Above the barcode was the title Shrek on ICE. The attorney looked up at Olivia, who had reclaimed a spot next to her. "Babe, these are perfect," she said, grinning. "The girls will love it. And I mean…how can you not love Donkey and Gingy? Besides, we need some updated family photos."
"Sweetheart, I don't think your looks have changed since last week's family photos," Olivia assured her. "Wait.." The brunette pretended to lean in and examine Casey's complexion. "Nope, not at all. You're still as beautiful as ever."
Casey blushed deeply. "Well, thank you," she mumbled, setting the four tickets on the island. "And you are still the most beautiful detective in the world. I love you."
"I love you too. Which is why I went ahead and planned another surprise, but this one is just for my beautiful attorney."
"What is it?" Casey asked, intrigued, though she was still very groggy.
"I arranged for Alex to babysit the girls for a week while you and I take a romantic vacation to Hawaii." As she spoke, Olivia moved behind Casey and wrapped her arms possessively around the redhead's waist. "How does that sound? The sun, the sand, and all the kinky sex we want without worrying about being interrupted by work or the kids."
Casey felt her body instantly relax into the feel of Olivia's arms around her. It always made her feel safe, loved, and wanted. Without meaning to, the redhead purred softly in response. Realizing this, she blushed once more and said "That sounds perfect. But is it a bad sign that Serena and Stephanie are only four months old and we are already taking a vacation to get away from them? Does that make us bad parents? Selfish?"
Olivia shook her head, though, since Casey's back was turned to her, the attorney didn't notice. "No. It is a vacation for us, a chance for us to do things that maybe we couldn't necessarily do while you were pregnant. And I have vacation time that has been begging to be used, that has accumulated since I have barely used any in the twelve years I have worked for SVU. Trust me, baby, it's a good thing. Besides." Olivia gently spun Casey around and gazed into her eyes. "Are you really going to turn down endless kinky sex with New York's Finest?"
"Oh? I thought I would be having endless kinky sex with Olivia Benson. Who is this other member?" Casey asked, her lips curling into a playful smirk.
"Keep that up and you will not get anything, sweetie," Olivia told her. She kissed her on the lips and added "We need to get back to bed. The Bensons have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."
Casey nodded and turned around to check on Stephanie, who she had laid down in the special crib in the dining room after burping her. She could see that her daughter was once more asleep. Lifting her very gently, Casey made sure Stephanie was safe in her arms and followed Olivia upstairs into their bedroom. Once Stephanie was back in her bassinet and the nursery light was off, Casey made her way into the main room and curled up in Olivia's arms. As the brunette's arms moved around her, Casey asked "So what kind of kinky sex do you have planned, Detective?"
"You will have to wait and see," came Olivia's reply, laced with seductive undertones.
The next evening, Casey, Olivia, and the twins arrived at the hotel that was hosting the ice event twenty minutes before it was due to start. But by the time they found a parking spot, checked in, and found their way through the huge line and into the tent that housed the ice sculptures, it was time for the show to start.
It began with a man pumping up the crowd, and warning about the temperature of the room in which the ice was. The next stop was the two windows to pick up the required parkas: the children window and the adult window. Casey and Olivia took jackets from the adult window and pulled them on, buttoning them all the way. Then they took two from the children window. Olivia helped Stephanie into hers, while Casey did the same for Serena. Both women pulled their daughters' hoods up. Casey tried to ignore what felt like a few dozen eyes. She wondered briefly if they knew she and Olivia were a couple, and if they did, her next wonder was if they were judging them.
"Case?"
"Hmmmm?" Casey pulled out of her thoughts and looked at Olivia, who was holding Stephanie up to see her. "Oh my gosh, how cute," the redhead cooed in response to seeing Stephanie's hood up. She pulled Serena's up and handed her to Olivia, who carried the girls over to a giant Shrek statue and sat down on the bench. Casey grinned and held up her camera, then took a picture. "You guys look so cute," she fawned as she admired the photo.
Olivia came over and looked. "Any bigger and the hoods would swallow their faces," she remarked with a smile. She traded with Casey, handing the twins to the redhead and taking the camera. Casey took her turn sitting down with their children, and Olivia took her turn taking the picture. "Awww. So adorable."
Hearing the detective fawn like this was strange for Casey, who was used to the bad cop routine, in bed and out. She came over and looked down at the picture. "Nice," she remarked. "Do you think we can find someone to take a family photo without them deducing we are married, and possibly judging us?"
"I don't know," Olivia answered, surveying the bustling crowd for a moment. "But let's wait until after. It's time to go in."
The next couple of hours were spent taking photos in front of massive ice sculptures of a variety of characters from Shrek, including the gingerbread man, the dragon, and all of the main characters from Shrek the Halls. By the time they returned the parkas, the camera was packed with pictures of various combinations of the Benson family, including one in a sleigh with all of them. Once they had checked out, it took another twenty minutes to find their way back to the parking lot, because Casey forgot which way their escalator had gone, and incorrectly guessed up.
Once they got home, Casey nursed Stephanie and Serena and laid them down in their bassinets. She activated the baby monitors and laid down next to Olivia, cuddling close to her wife's side.
"Are you still cold?" Olivia asked, wrapping her arms around her.
"Cold? Try I'm still thawing," Casey joked.
Olivia smiled and kissed the top of her head. "I love you, Casey."
"I love you too," murmured Casey, who was already beginning to fall asleep. "Thanks for tonight. I know we all had fun."
"You're welcome," Olivia replied, pulling the covers up over both of them. "I'm glad you and the twins had fun."
"Did you?" Casey asked, suddenly worried.
Olivia smiled again. "Of course. I was with the three people who mean the most to me in this world. How could I not?"
Casey nodded softly, and within a few moments, she was sound asleep.
Author's note: Remember a few chapters back, when I opened the path for ideas? Well, Casey and Olivia are going on a kinky vacation together. Review and let me know what you all want. I promise to work it in.