DISCLAIMER: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and all characters are property of NBC and Dick Wolf…with some play given to USA. All supplementary characters are completely fictitious.

WINDOW

Chapter 3: Racing

Olivia practically tripped over her own feet scrabbling out of the stationhouse. Shit. How could she have gotten so carried away? She had been checking the database for any possible connection to Tawny Davis to try and keep her mind off of her impending lunch with Alex.

"Jesus, Liv! Gotta hot date or something? Your watch isn't going to sneak off your wrist, so you might as well do something more productive than stare at it all day" Elliot cocked a suspicious eyebrow at his obviously impatient partner. "Or just leave now."

That got her attention.

"Naw…its just…nevermind. I'm gonna go check the system and see if I can't nail down a next of kin for Tawny. Warner should be done with the body soon and they should know."

She had gotten so entrenched in her task she completely neglected her watch. That is until her partner comment on the fact that she hadn't glanced at it for quite some time. She had grabbed her coat and barreled out the door, only to hear Elliot throw a "Where's the fire?" at her back.

Now she was late. How could she be late? Oh well. The perks of having a friend who understood the job, right? Isn't that why they were having lunch at all? They both needed a friend. A friend who understood. Right. Olivia brushed her hair out of her face as she stepped of the curb in front of the stationhouse. She reached for her cell and hit the speed dial. Understand. How could Alex possibly understand how she felt? She didn't even have a firm grasp on her own feelings. She…

"Cabot…" the sultry alto broke Liv's concentration. "Hello? This is Alex Cabot." Shit. Say something. Liv was batting a thousand today, to be sure.

"Uh…Sorry. This is Liv. Please tell me your not sitting alone waiting for me." Smooth Liv. Real smooth. "I'm sorry. That didn't come out right. Sorry, Alex. Are you there already, because I'm late…and I'd hate it if you were just sitting alone…I'm such an idiot."

"No, please. You're fine; I'm just leaving, myself. I was going to call you and say the same to you…I guess we're even." Liv could hear the smile in Alex's voice even over the phone. She was filled with warmth and relief.

"Good. I'd hate you to think I had stood you up." There went her mouth, running off without her once more. She punctuated this comment with a nervous laugh and hoped that it sounded like a joke between friends rather than a genuine confession.

"Very funny, Liv. Somehow you don't come off as one who would stand a girl up." Cabot quipped. "I'll take my chances though, if you'd still like to make good on our date I'll be at Rosie's in about two minutes. Maybe I'll see you there?"

She was teasing. Liv felt the heat rise in her cheeks. Did Alex know what she was doing to the detective? Her banter was deliciously flirtatious. Olivia had always been so careful to skirt around this type of friendly innuendo. Her friends would jest and she would politely abstain. They though she was a prude, but really it was her own way of not blowing her cover, in case one of them caught on that there was more to her words than simple banter. She never encountered this problem with the guys at work, but then again, why would she? She never had to fear that they might interpret one of her more colorful comments as a cleverly masked come-on. She was treading in dangerous waters for so many reasons.

"Liv? You still there?" A voice chirped in her ear.

"What? Yeah. Two minutes you said?" She paused as Cabot confirmed. A smile crept across her face and a twinkle danced in her eyes. "Race you!" she hollered into the phone, after which she promptly snapped it shut and shoved it into her pocket. She took of down the street at a steady jog, determined to hit the café before the ADA, knowing full well that Alex would be impeccably dressed in heels and didn't stand even the ghost of a chance. Olivia smiled as she ran the few blocks to Rosie's, the local haunt of beat cop and court officer alike. She rounded the final corner, mentally rehearsing what to say to Alex when she clicked into the café when something stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Now detective, that just wasn't fair, and you know it." There stood Alex Cabot at the entrance of the café, phone in hand. She was dressed not I her usual finely tailored suits, but rather a rather clingy tank top with coordinating running shorts and shoes, the final and perhaps most intriguing part of her ensemble was the smug grin curling at her lips. "And when I say it wasn't fair, I mean it wasn't fair to you."

Olivia caught a glimpse of mischief flashing in the blonde woman's eyes and stood bent over slightly, hands on knees, trying to catch her breath. The detective wasn't by any means winded from her run, but rather by the sight of Alex standing before her in an outfit that would put her most beautiful suit to shame.

Cabot's hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, which left her shoulders open, fodder for the wandering eye, Olivia could not ever remember seeing such a stunningly statuesque woman in all her life. From her neck and perfectly carved collar-bone – whose outer-most edges met the tight tank top, clinging to the ADA in the most becoming fashion – to her sculpted legs that seemed to go on for days, stemming from her distractingly short running shorts ending in perfectly coordinating running shoes, Alex was nothing short of jaw-dropping. Olivia stood completely flabbergasted, and she was not the only one, she noted, as other heads craned to get a look of the rather stunning blonde.

"Wow Liv. I though you guys had to keep in shape. You're a bit out of shape, there." Cabot crouched down to meet Olivia's eyes. She let out a giggle and Liv almost choked on what little breath she could muster.

"You…What? How?" She choked out. The detective finally seemed to be getting enough air to stand up straight. She smoothed her jacket and looked inquisitively at the smirking woman before her.

"Don't be sore at me Liv. You didn't let me explain why I was late. I was on my weekly run. I forgot I had it scheduled when we set up our lunch date. I run every Wednesday at lunch with a friend from homicide. I had the unfair advantage."

"Aw, I'm not sore." She obviously was. Cabot had beat her at her own game, it made her a bit flustered to say the least, not to mention stirring up other feelings she had rather hoped not to have to deal with. Liv had seen the smug grin Alex was sporting numerous times in court, but it had never been directed at her. She felt warm all over and her heart jumped into her throat. She noticed Alex looking uncomfortable at the frustration Olivia was masking poorly. Liv shifted her attitude toward the prospective lunch ahead of them. "No worries kiddo, let's get you some lunch. You look like you're wasting away." Alex led the way into the café and Olivia lingered behind her stealing a less-than-quick glance at Alex and her little running shorts leading the way. Oh god. This is so. Not. Fair.

Friends. That's all. Nothing more. Olivia mentally chastised herself, but she couldn't take her eyes off Alex.

Alex glanced quickly over her shoulder and followed Olivia's distracted line of sight downward, she was quietly pleased at her obvious effect on the detective. Maybe she hadn't been so misguided in her advances the other night. Even so, that was not what this lunch meeting was about. It was, after all their first. And Alex was determined to make it the first of many. She was determined to share many firsts with Olivia; but for now, lunch was enough.

She led Olivia to a small booth and motioned for the detective to sit. A waitress brought menus and water with the promise to return shortly to take orders. Olivia gulped down some water and laid her menu on the table and began to study it thoughtfully. Alex took this opportunity to observe the detective. Olivia seemed to glow; the air around her seemed to become electrically charged. Alex could feel her heartbeat quicken. It rang in her ears as she looked the detective over and she wondered if Olivia could hear it. All of a sudden she realized that Olivia had looked up and now met the ADA's gaze. Liv gave a lopsided grin. "What?" she smiled at Alex.

Roses bloomed in Alex's cheeks. "Nothing."

"Liv. Liiiiiiiiv…OLIVIA!" A voice snapped Olivia back to reality as she practically fell out of her chair. She had been daydreaming, mulling over the conversation she had had not an hour earlier. Lunch had gone beautifully. She and Alex talked non-stop about anything but work. It had been…wonderful. She can't remember the last time she had had such an easy and pleasant conversation. They went over fodder from the rumor mill, talked about books and music and generally took a break from reality. All that was over now and Olivia was jerked suddenly into the present by a nagging voice issuing from her partner's mouth.

"Wha? Sorry, El. Zoned out. What's up?" She was a bit hazy still, but reality was upon her so she adapted accordingly.

"We found a next of kin for our vic. Or rather, she found us." Elliot replied. "Name's Lucy Maguire."

Liv looked up, finally drawn into the situation, her interest piqued by the mention of what she had been caught up in earlier in the day. "Mother?"

"Naw, she died a while back" It was Fin who replied to this crossing from the doors to his desk and taking a seat. "Cancer. Her name was Maureen Deacon."

"Deacon?" Olivia was perplexed. "Why don't she and Tawny share a last name? Is there a father in the picture?"

"Step father," Piped Munch following his partner and taking a seat as well. "Maureen married Paul Deacon four years ago.

"Okay, so he should be notified. He can I.D. the body, right?" Olivia asked.

"Doesn't want anything to do with Tawny. Says they weren't close. Didn't agree with her 'lifestyle choices.' Vibe I get? As soon as Maureen died, Deacon severed all connection with Tawny." Fin scoffed. "He lives in Jersey and won't even come over to pay his last respects. Says God passed his judgment and she got what she deserved. Real nice guy."

Liv's face contorted into scowl. "So who's Lucy and what 'lifestyle choices' did Deacon condemn?"

"Looks like the answer to those questions is one and the same." Elliot paused know this information might make the case personal for the detective. "Lucy Maguire was…is Tawny Davis' fiancé. They were domestic partners."

Liv swallowed hard. Most cases got to her, but some hit harder than others. When cases like this came up, she was constantly forced to deal with her own 'lifestyle choices' as they were being referred to, and was often torn; not in her opinion of herself but rather by her dwindling faith in people to accept other's differences and react with something other than fear. "Okay," she rasped. Her voice seemed to have left her. "Okay, so we know this was a sexually motivated crime, so we can't rule out that her sexuality contributed to her rape and murder."

Cragen, who had been overseeing the interaction between his detectives decided to interject. "Okay people, lets move on this. I don't want to say the clock is ticking, but we've got a high profile politician involved and I'd like some information before anybody even thinks 'hate crime,' okay?" He looked a bit flustered. "This is important. Use discretion. Liv, Elliot, you're meeting miss Maguire at Warner's in an hour. Use kid gloves. Nobody loses their cool or they're off the case." He eyed Liv for a moment and moved on. "Munch, Fin, find out to whom our mystery prints belong. They're not Newsome's and the sooner we get him outta the spotlight, the sooner we can settle this case on our own terms. Get going."

They were off like a shot.