A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews and for following this story. I love hearing what you think. I hope you continue to enjoy it.

Chapter 5: Catching Up

A short while later, heels had been kicked off and tossed aside as they had danced slowly to the softly playing music. They had made out like teenagers for what seemed like forever then Alex fed Olivia the dessert she had made when they needed to calm their raging hormones. Olivia was now lying with her head in Alex's lap enjoying the soft jazz music while looking out over the city.

"I like your hair like this." Alex said running her fingers through the soft brown strands. "I liked it short too, but I like it this way as well. What made you grow it out?"

"I don't know. I guess I just wanted something different."

"Well, it looks beautiful on you. You have gorgeous hair."

"Thanks."

"You know, we've talked a lot about me tonight and not so much about you. I know we've been around each other but… we haven't really talked to each other, at least not about anything important."

Olivia turned her head and looked up into the blue eyes above. "Something you want to know in particular?"

Alex shrugged. "I want to know everything about you, but I'll settle with an update of what you were up to while I was gone."

Olivia thought for a moment about where she should begin. She just decided to go with the truth and let it all hang out. If Alex could take the leap, she could too. "The first couple of years, I sort of just… existed. I missed you like crazy. I worried about you all the time. It was weird. I felt like a grieving widow even though we were never together. Does that even make sense?"

Alex nodded knowing exactly how she felt. "Yes, it does."

"Then you came back for the trial and I thought it would be easier because I'd seen for myself that you were safe and you were making a life for yourself, even if it was with someone else. It didn't help. I just missed you so much more and I hated the fact that I had never told you how I felt about you. After they took you away again, I tried to date. Most of them were disasters or… umm…" Olivia tensed and glanced at Alex. "… one night stands."

Alex nodded and just kept stroking her hair. Olivia felt some of the tension ease. "I went through a real… rough patch a few years ago. I think that was my rock bottom."

The hand in Olivia's hair stopped. "What happened?"

"I nearly lost… everything trying to help my brother."

Alex looked at her in confusion, already knowing all about Olivia's past. "You have a brother?" Alex suddenly felt even worse, wondering what else she had missed. "We really should have talked more shouldn't we?"

Olivia nodded. "Yeah, we should've."

"So tell me about this brother and what happened."

"Half-brother. His name is Simon."

"You found you're father?"

"His name was Joseph Hollister. He died in prison." Olivia bit her lip unsure how Alex would take the next bit of information. "To make a long story short, I wasn't handling the things going on in my life all that well and suddenly there was this person in my life that I shared a possible connection with. I had to know if the connection was real so I… I kind of illegally ran Simon's and my DNA through the system to find out who he was."

"Olivia! You could have lost your badge or worse! What on earth were you thinking?"

Olivia smirked. She loved seeing Alex all fired up. "I wasn't really thinking. Everything was a mess, Alex. Besides, I didn't have you to keep me out of trouble anymore."

"Well, I'm here now and you had better not even THINK of doing anything like that again, Olivia. I mean it."

"Yes, ma'am." Olivia tried to look contrite.

Alex just rolled her eyes not buying the innocent look for a minute. She mumbled something about being pig-headed and reckless before giving Olivia a lazy wave of the hand. "Go on. I know there's more."

"Okay… umm… you may have heard that I had a short relationship with Kurt Moss."

Alex had heard about it and she was insanely jealous. "The guy from the Ledger, right?"

Olivia nodded and Alex snorted. "What is it with you and reporters?"

Olivia narrowed her eyes and stuck out her tongue secretly relieved that Alex was taking this all in stride.

"Ha. Ha. He's actually the chief editor and it didn't last very long. It wasn't that much of a relationship. I didn't even tell Elliot about him. It only became public knowledge because IAB were harassing us… again. I went out with David Haden for a while."

Alex smirked. "Should I be worried? Do you have a secret thing for ADAs, Detective?"

"Trust me. There is only one ADA for me and that is you."

That must have been the correct answer because Alex gave her a kiss that curled her toes. They sat in silence for a moment before Alex asked the question she knew had to be asked sooner or later.

"What about Brian Cassidy? I heard through the grapevine that you two were dating… very recently." Alex was trying not to sound jealous, but didn't think she was succeeding.

"I wouldn't call it dating."

"Then what would you call it?"

"Remember how you said you hooked up with your co-worker so you could feel something again?"

Alex nodded.

"I think that's what I was trying to do too. Cassidy was familiar and…" She looked away from Alex. "It was just sex, Alex. I'm not proud of it, but that's all it was."

"Hey." Alex pulled her chin back so she could look into her eyes. "You don't owe me anything. I understand and I'm so sorry that I wasn't there for you. I have screwed up so much with you."

"We both did." Olivia kissed the palm of her hand. "But, we're together now and that's all that matters, right?"

"Right."

"Hey…I forgot to tell you when we got here that I love your new place." Olivia said needing a change of subject. "It's… It's… uh…"

"Big?" Alex offered with a smirk.

Olivia shrugged. "Maybe a little, but it really is beautiful space."

Alex sighed and looked around. "Thanks. I didn't actually buy this place though."

"You didn't?"

"After I… died…" Alex cringed slightly. It was still strange to say that. "My aunt said that my mother wanted to feel closer to me. Being in the city made her feel that way so she made plans to move back and bought this place." She sighed heavily and blinked away a few tears. The loss of her mother still hit her at random moments. "She became ill shortly after. Uncle Bill and Aunt Julia said the cancer was very aggressive and it was… quick. So she never even had the chance to decorate it or move in."

Olivia took one of the blonde's hands and brought it to her lips then held it lovingly, offering her support. Alex smiled at the gesture. "I was really sorry to hear about your mother's passing. She was a lovely woman."

Alex smiled fondly. "She always liked you."

"I liked her too."

"Anyway… when I came back for good, the entire estate was turned over to me. This place was still vacant and for some reason I just couldn't bring myself to sell it. I didn't even tell Robert about it. Once, I finally started rebuilding my life and I was on my own again, I decided to move in here. I don't know if that was a good idea or not."

"Why?"

"I don't know. When I was in the program, all of my homes were kind of small so it took me a while to get used to all the… space here. I didn't even decorate it the first few months. I literally had a bed, a desk, and a chair. But… the better I got, the more at home I felt here. It was almost like I could feel her here, which makes no sense at all because my mother never even lived here."

"It does make sense. No matter how small, this place is a connection to your mother. It was something she bought with you in mind."

Alex shrugged her shoulders. "I guess I never thought of it that way."

"That's what I'm here for, sweetheart."

Alex smiled at the term of endearment. "Once I got everything the way I wanted it, it was still a while before I let anyone come here. It's kind of big and on the Upper East Side. I just didn't want the people I worked with to think…"

"That you were a pretentious snob?"

Alex's mouth dropped. "Hey!" She swatted Olivia's arm playfully.

Olivia genuinely laughed. God, she couldn't remember the last time she had really laughed. She sat up still laughing. She leaned in and kissed Alex gently on the lips and placed a golden lock back behind her ear.

"I wasn't saying that you were a pretentious snob. I was saying that you didn't want people to think you were. There's a huge difference."

Alex sent a mock glare her way before smiling. She just couldn't stop smiling around this woman.

"You've always been that way, you know?" Olivia stated.

"What do you mean?"

"You've always tried to downplay that part of your life." Olivia said thoughtfully.

"I learned at a very young age that people would form opinions about me as soon as they found out." She shrugged her shoulders. "So, I tried not to draw attention to it."

"Besides the expensive suits and shoes you wore to court, I never really saw you throwing money around, Alex. Even when we went shopping together, you never went overboard. You weren't exactly what I had expected… especially after I got to know you."

"So if you didn't see me, as you say, throwing money around, how did you know I even had money? I could have been an extremely smart dresser on a budget." Alex said smugly.

Olivia started speaking as if she was explaining things to a small child. "Sweetie, there is thing called the internet. It's a rather amazing invention. See you type in what you need information on and…"

Again Alex playfully punched her. "You googled my family?"

"Of course not!" Olivia looked almost insulted. "I ran a background check on you. It's totally different." She mumbled.

"Olivia!"

"What? You came marching in with your fancy suit and perfect hair talking about how you were going to use SVU as your stepping stone to the Governor's mansion. What else did you expect us to do?"

Alex threw her head back and laughed. "God, I was such an insufferable ass back then!"

"Just back then?"

Alex glared at her. This was the mischievous detective she'd always loved. "You could have just asked me, you know? I would have told you whatever you wanted to know about me."

Olivia leaned in and looked at her lovingly. "Alex, I could barely keep myself from tripping over my own two feet when you stepped into the room, let alone hold a conversation with you about the size of your trust fund and political ambitions."

Alex's heart melted. "You liked me… like that… even then?"

Olivia nodded shyly. "Yeah. I liked you a lot… more than a lot actually."

Alex leaned into Olivia and snuggled into her side. "You are such a big softy."

"Don't tell anyone that. I have a reputation to uphold, you know?"

"Of course you do."

Olivia rested her chin on Alex's head while she ran her fingers through long blonde tresses. She sighed heavily. "It's getting late. I should probably be getting home."

Alex wanted nothing more than to keep Olivia here with her forever. It would have been so easy to offer her one of the guest rooms, but she knew that this was their first date and didn't want that tainted in any way. She knew they had to take things slowly. This new beginning was much too important to her to risk… even if she was incredibly tempted. She removed herself from Olivia's arms and stood.

"You're probably right. Let me grab my keys and I'll drive you home."

Olivia grabbed her hand pulling her back. "You don't have to drive me, Alex. I can get a cab and get myself home safely. I'm a cop remember?"

Alex pulled Olivia up from the sofa and draped her arms around her neck. Olivia leaned in for a long sensual kiss.

"Not tonight. Tonight, you are simply my date. Being the traditional woman that I am, I happen to take the rules of dating quite seriously." She kissed Olivia once more before stepping away to pick up their shoes. "And I plan to court you properly, my dear. So… since I picked you up, I am going to be a perfect gentleman and see you back home to your door. No objections."

Olivia smiled shyly as she took her belongings. "You really are something else, Counselor."

"Your chariot awaits, my lady."

The ride across town was relatively quiet. They held hands as Alex guided them through the light traffic. True to her word, Alex walked Olivia up to her door.

Olivia fiddled with her keys for a moment then turned to face the beautiful woman standing before her. "Would you… like to come in for coffee… or a nightcap maybe?"

"Yes, I would but I can't." She shook her head. "Because if I do, we won't have coffee and I won't be leaving you until morning."

Olivia moved into the blonde's space until they were touching along their fronts. She leaned in and nibbled along Alex's neck. "Isn't that usually the point?"

Alex let out a painful moan. Olivia had a body that would not quit and she was using it well. Somewhere she found the strength to pull away.

"Yes, usually, but I want us to be the exception to the rule. I don't want casual with you, Olivia." She caressed Olivia's cheek gently. "I want to court you. I want… to do right by you."

Even through the fog of arousal, Olivia had never felt so cherished before. She actually swooned. She could hear Fin's voice in her head. 'Damn, the girl got game.' She quickly shook the thought away because Alex was still speaking.

"Tonight has been so wonderful, but it's still our first date. So no matter how much I want to come inside, I won't because you deserve better." She lifted Olivia's hand and gently placed a kiss on the back before stepping away. "And you will have that if I have anything to say about it."

Olivia stood there speechless. Alex blushed adorably before placing one last kiss on her cheek. "Good night, Olivia."

"Good night, Alex."

Olivia stood in her doorway long after Alex had disappeared behind the elevator doors. She was still trying to convince herself that the entire night had not all been a dream.

Olivia was lying in bed a half hour later when she heard her phone vibrating on the nightstand. She grabbed it, hoping it wasn't related to a case. She smiled when she saw that it was a text from Alex. She read it and quickly typed her response.

Alex: 'I didn't want you to worry. I'm home safe and sound.'

Olivia: 'U know me well. Thank u, sweetheart. I'll sleep easier now.'

Alex: 'I really like that, you know?'

Olivia: 'What?'

Alex: 'When you call me sweetheart'

Olivia: 'I'll call u whatever u like as long as I can call u, Counselor.'

Alex: 'You are such a big softy, Detective.'

Olivia: (kiss emotion) 'Only for u.'

Alex: 'Sweet dreams, Detective.'

Olivia: 'Can't believe u didn't send me a kiss emotion back.'

Alex: 'I hope you know that I'm rolling my eyes at you right now. Besides, I refuse to use animation. I only give my kisses in person.'

Olivia: 'Well, I'll be waiting then. Goodnight.'

Alex: 'Goodnight.'

Olivia placed her phone back on the nightstand and closed her eyes with a wide smile on her face.

TBC...