Chapter 24

The ride home with Noah had surprisingly been exhausting. The three managed to get themselves into Olivia's apartment before collapsing on the couch. It was like a release of all the tension caused by the trouble that had been going on.

"So as much as I would love to cook you a meal…" Olivia didn't even get a chance to finish her sentence when Noah said,

"Can we get pizza? They don't know how to make it up there."

"Not exactly the same stuff huh?" Elliot asked. The group had tossed off their shoes, dropped Noah's luggage, and flopped onto the couch and overstuffed armchair.

"No," Noah smiled.

"Well, I think we can manage to get some of the good stuff delivered. Tomorrow we'll worry about the grocery shopping," Olivia smirked before pulling herself off the sofa to get the takeout menu.

"You know we've made a few trips to Buffalo and they teased us about our pizza," Elliot told him while Olivia was calling in the order. She knew both of the men in her life very well and did not need to ask what they liked.

"Really?" Noah was surprised.

"Well everywhere you go, they make it different. We need to eat and walk around here so the foldable type is for us. They like a thicker crust up there, helps keep them warm in the winter," Elliot teased.

"No, they use the chicken wings for that. Remember when you and Fin tried those suicide wings?" Olivia asked as she moved back to them. She handed Elliot a beer and Noah got a glass of juice. She went back into the kitchen for her own drink.

"Suicide wings?" Noah was confused.

"Basically, they are so hot and spicy that you wonder why you thought it was a good idea in the first place. They hurt going in and coming out," Elliot chuckled.

"Ewww," Noah shook his head.

"We'd start with mild for you," Olivia promised her son before sitting back down.

"You have a good time with the McCanns?" Elliot asked changing the topic.

"Yeah. Connor and I had a lot of fun. Aunt Ginny and Uncle Matt are great too," Noah smiled.

"I'm glad we have them," Olivia smiled at him. She had been apprehensive at first but the fact that Noah had had nowhere to go during this most recent event that wouldn't be easily linked to her had whacked her over the head. The Captain was glad that he could be out of the city and safe with people who understood his situation. Matt and Ginny had wanted to know about Noah and Connor's biological father and that had been something she wasn't sure they really wanted. Still, she had promised that they would discuss it but she made them promise that it would be out of earshot of the boys.

"Me too…" there was a look on Noah's face. Elliot didn't know what to make of it. He didn't know him well enough but he wanted to change that.

"The man who sent those men after us is in prison. We're safe," Olivia reassured him.

"It was just so scary…" Noah told her.

"I know, but I would have never let them hurt you sweetie," it was something that she knew she should not have said but she also knew she would have died to protect him.

"I wasn't worried about me," the young man admitted. That made Olivia set her drink down, get off the couch, and pull her son into her arms.

"Mom…" the tone belied the fact that he'd thrown his arms around him even though there was company over.

"Noah…" she teased him when they parted. Elliot was glad he could witness this. He always knew that she would be a good mother and he knew that she had been lucky to get Noah. Of course, he also knew that the luck went both ways and he was betting that Noah did too.

Later that evening, after Noah had gone to bed, the adults were still up on the couch. They honestly had no idea why they hadn't called it a night as they both could use the sleep but there they were. Finally, Olivia turned to Elliot and said,

"You want to just sleep here? No hanky panky, just sleep. I'm much too tired. I'm not even sure I want to get off this couch."

"Are we that old?" Elliot asked.

"I honestly didn't feel that old until today. I think the adrenaline made up for the other day," she admitted. Elliot stood and then scooped her off the couch.

"Show off," she teased as he moved her down the hall and into the bedroom.

"Hanky panky will be on the itinerary on our next trip, right?" He was teasing her. He meant what he said – they'd go at her speed.

"I make no promises Stabler," there was a smirk on her face as he set her down on her bed.

"Ok then, off to the couch with me," he gave her a wink and a kiss on the forehead.

To Be Continued…